My way or the highway

As I meditated on 2 Kings 5 my spirit gave warning, or should I say, received warning, from the text. Too many times we do just as Naaman did, we risk missing the blessings of God because they did not come in the form or manner that we had expected, and therefore we do not believe it is God. Naaman came all the way from Syria to be healed in a miraculous way, but when Elisha told him to simply go and wash in the Jordan 7 times, he was angered. He tried to leave, but his servants convinced him to at least obey. As we see in the story, God was in the command of Elisha and Naaman was cleansed through washing in the Jordan. Once more, in the first century, the Jews missed the coming of the long awaited Messiah because He didn’t come in the manner that they had expected. They expected a warrior king to come and set them free, but instead they received a humble servant, come to die a cursed death on the cross for their sins. What scares me most is to think about what I would have done if I had lived in the first century. Would I have been like the Jews and missed the Christ because He was not what I expected or would I have been one of the few that did receive Him? This is a question to which I will never know the answer, but unfortunately the odds say that it is more likely that I would have responded as the Jews did, and rejected Him.

What can we do? How do we protect ourselves from missing God or His work because it is not in the form or manner in which we expect? My thoughts are this, instead of reading God’s word and trying to formulate what God’s plan is from it, in a sense trying to deductively construct His plan, let’s just wait on the Lord and as we see His plan unfold we can prayerfully weigh it against scripture, knowing that God will never contradict Himself or His revealed will. I think this is the answer because we do not have God’s wisdom and because God never tells us that He has revealed everything to us in His Word. This means that if we are trying to deductively construct what His plan is that we will have holes where He did not reveal. The Jews and their response to Christ gives evidence of this. They deductively constructed the coming of the Messiah from scripture, yet because they didn’t have God’s wisdom or all the information, they got it wrong, and therefore rejected the Messiah and murdered Him (all of this according to God’s will, of course). Instead, if they had waited on the Lord and taken the claims of Christ to the Scriptures, weighed them against God’s revealed will, they would have seen Jesus as the Messiah. They would have received Him. We know this because Jesus is everywhere in the Old Testament, Romans, Galatians and Hebrews give great evidence to this. Instead of trying to figure it all out and have every detail planned, trying to say that we know and understand what God’s will and plan are, let’s just admit that we are finite and that God is infinite and that we can never fully know or understand His will. Let’s wait on the Lord and as His will and plan are revealed we can prayerfully weigh them against scripture, knowing that God will never contradict Himself and never go against His own revealed will. Then we can pray and expect that we will not miss God or His work or His blessings because they did not come in the form or manner that we expected. How about we put our pride and ourselves down, lay them at the feet of God and simply receive Him, as He is, not as we want Him to be, in His time, in His way.

(Note- When I speak of deductively constructing God’s will from His Word I am not talking about formulating theology. We should and we must systematically approach God’s Word in an effort to understand theology so that we can adequately relate the teachings of Scripture to our lives and so that we can adequately teach them to others. I am referring to making a literal timeline of events for God in determining what must happen, when it must happen and how it must happen in order for us to believe that it is God, which you can clearly see has problems attached to it)

The Angels can't save you.

I want to meditate on Colossians 2:18,19. As I read Colossians 2:18,19 I catch a glimpse of a condition that I think affects 90% of Christians today, a false Christianity. Let me quote the verse,

“¹⁸Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, ¹⁹and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God.”

I see several things, but the main thing is the false Christianity that comes from "churchgoing". Since Christianity has been the state religion of the US for the last 100 years many people attend because that is what they are “supposed to do.” This has led to a huge misunderstanding of what it really means to be a Christian, a true follower of Christ. This has led to ‘false humility and worship of angels’ as well as not ‘holding fast to the Head,’ which is Christ. People hold on to their rituals and habits and what they see as ‘keeping up appearances’ and thereby fall into a false Christianity. ‘False humility’ is the show that people put on, the façade they wear. ‘Worship of angels’ is the result of distractions in their relationship with Christ whereby something else takes the place of Christ in their worship. We get caught up in what we know and in what we think and get separated from Christ, the head. This is most readily seen in the mega-church and their programs, although this is not the only place that this can be seen. People substitute true Christianity for the appearance of Christianity by attending every meeting, serving on every board, and going to every function. The horrible thing is that most of the time they don’t even realize it. Doing those things isn’t bad, they become bad when they are done while not ‘holding fast to the Head.’ When these things become substitutes for a true relationship with Christ they become ‘false humility and worship of angels’, and can "cheat you of your reward". When these programs take the place of a consistent quiet time or they take the place of prayer they have disconnected from the Head, from Christ. The product of this is a modern day Pharisee, people who honor God with their lips while their hearts are from him. We need to be careful in everything that we are not led astray from the real focus of our worship and our service, the Head, Jesus Christ. The "angels" can't save us. We need to maintain our focus on Christ that our work might not be in vain. Reality check!

I praise you Father for your glorious work in the lives of men through your son Christ Jesus. You have given meaning to our lives and provided us a way back into your courts and into your presence. Help us to always maintain the correct focus in our lives, a focus on you and on Jesus. Let all that we do be for your glory and not our own, that your kingdom may be enlarged on this earth and your name praised. In Jesus name I pray, amen.

Wisdom and Folly

In my readings today I read Proverbs 18:2, which says, “A fool has no delight in understanding, but in expressing his own heart.” I thought this was a very telling observation of a fool and a wise man. As Solomon sees things a wise man will listen and desire to understand what is being said to him, or what is happening to him. (A side note about understanding. We can learn and gain understanding not just from people teaching us or from reading books, but also from circumstances and events as well. God seeks to teach us and sanctify us by events and circumstances just as much as he does from the mouth of other people.) Whereas a fool, while he may look like he is listening, is not actually paying attention. He is not concerned with understanding what is being said or what is happening, he is only concerned with how he will respond, what he will say next and how he feels. Which of the two men/people are you? Do you listen and seek understanding, in all things, or do you simply listen superficially, waiting for your chance to speak and give your opinion? I pray that God will mold you into the former and crush any resemblance in you to the latter.

Father I thank you for insight into the condition of man. I thank you for opening up my sins and flaws and showing them to me. Help me now to move forward with this knowledge in a way that brings you glory. Help me to be a wise man and seek to understand all things and to find you in them and help me to be humble, to crush my own desire to speak and say what I feel. What I feel is inconsequential if I do not fully understand your purposes in what I am feeling. May you always be my focus and my life’s greatest joy. In your name Lord Jesus I ask these things, amen.

That wasn't part of the plan

My reading in Proverbs brought me to 19:21, which reads, “There are many plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless the Lord’s counsel– that will stand.” I want to just take a minute and think about the truth of this proverb. Many times each of the individual proverbs are read over with only a glancing view to the reality of their truth, I want to make sure not to do that with this proverb. I think that God offered Solomon a unique look into the heart of man and the sovereignty of God when he wrote this proverb. Something that the Bible tells us about men, and the way God created them, was that they are to be cultivators and managers, we were commanded by God to subdue and steward over the earth. So it is natural for us to plan and prepare and try to manage in ways to make this instinctual desire come to be. This is a fact that brings glory to God; we should not try to subdue these desires, we should let them glorify God. The problem that we see revealed in this proverb is not our desire to plan and manage and cultivate, the problem is when we do so out of our sinful nature. When God created us and built these instincts into us as a race He did so in view of His righteous and pure creation, but then due to Adam’s sin and rebellion against God all that was lost. We now have the same desires that God gave us for the purpose of stewarding and subduing the earth for God’s glory, yet we use them for our own glory. We plan and prepare and cultivate in ways that fulfill our own desires, which take the glory from God and gives it to us. Solomon cues in on this and offers some wisdom to us, he says that our plans are many but only God’s plans have any lasting value. To follow our own plans will only end in destruction and death. God’s plans are righteous and everlasting, so much so that to follow any plan other than God’s is futile. We can all speak to the validity of Solomon’s statement. We have all had our best-laid plans blown away with the wind. We have all seen hours, days and months of planning and preparing get thrown out like an old newspaper, worthless the day after it is printed. In our hearts we know this is true.

Now we face the real issue, due to our rebellious hearts and sinful nature we cannot follow God’s plan. All we see is our own glory; we can’t look to God’s. How do we overcome this? We don’t, we can’t, but God can, and did. Through the death, burial and resurrection of Christ, righteousness has been imputed to us and we can now look to the glory of God. Through the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit we can look away from our glory and give glory to God. We can put down our plans and take up the plans of God.

As I meditate on this passage three questions come to mind. 1. What plans do you have in your life that are your own and that aren’t God’s? To these I would say, they will amount to nothing so place no weight on them because they will crumble. 2. Do you know Jesus as your personal savior? He is the only way that you can take up God’s plans and make your plans line up with His. He is the only way that you can have anything that will stand. 3. Do you now what God’s plan for you is, or even for life in general? Find out what God’s plan for your life is, this way you can begin to glorify him. The real question is this, do you want your life’s efforts to be a part of something futile or do you want them to be a part of something that will stand?

Father I praise you for the men that you have sent before us to pass on your words. I thank you for scripture and for the obedience of men like Solomon to pass on to us your very words. As I read your word and you reveal truth to me help me to apply it my life and stand on your teachings. Make my life a reflection of you, through Christ. Help me to pass on all the truth that you reveal to me that I can be seen as faithful in your eyes. May your plans be my life’s plans and may I always seek to give you glory. In Jesus name I pray, amen.

Christ's Wingman

Why is it that we must share the gospel for people to come to a saving knowledge of Christ? This is a question many Calvinists ask. Isn’t God sovereign? Can’t God just fill them with the Holy Spirit and they be saved? Why do we have to take part? I was reading in John 16 today and came across a verse that answers this question from one perspective (I believe that there are other reasons as well, this is just one of them). John 16:14 says, speaking of the Holy Spirit, “He will glorify me, for he will take of what is mine and declare it.” The Holy Spirit’s main purpose is to glorify Christ. His work in salvation, through regeneration, faith and conviction of sin, is all purposed to glorify Christ. So it makes sense to say that if the Holy Spirit is here to glorify Christ then Christ must come first, otherwise the Holy Spirit has nothing to glorify. We see this in the life and work of Christ, he came and ministered and it wasn’t until after he left that the Holy Spirit came (in the fullness prophesied). He came after Christ. It is kind of like a kite with its tail, the tail can only go where the kite has already gone because it, the tail, is in existence for the kite. The same is true of salvation. The Holy Spirit follows behind Christ to glorify Him, so we must spread Christ to others before the Holy Spirit can come behind and do his work. If Christ has not been to a place first, through evangelism, then the Holy Spirit will not be there either, and we know from scripture that without the Holy Spirit there is no regeneration, no faith and no conviction of sin. This is why we must take part in evangelism and why we must spread the gospel in order for people to be saved. If people do not hear the gospel and do not know of Christ then the Holy Spirit has nothing in their life to glorify, i.e. Christ is not their to be glorified. This results in no Holy Spirit and therefore no salvation.

Father I give you praise and glorify your name because you are perfect and righteous and holy. You are the all that we need in life, your word is more precious than silver and even fine gold. You have given us your Son to bear our punishment and have given us your Spirit to follow behind and provide us with the tools necessary to be saved, and to glorify you as He glorifies you. Thank you for your provision of life, and it eternally. In Christ Jesus I pray, Amen.

A loss for words

I would like to write about Christ’s work on the cross, or more specifically his sacrifice of dying, what he went through, and all of his glory in sacrifice. But I cannot, because I do not have enough talent or skill in God’s gift of words to even attempt this endeavor. I do not even know where to begin to try and give God in Christ glory by speaking about his sacrificial death, I am overwhelmed at the mere thought of it. What I will say is this, human words cannot describe the pain of Christ on the cross, nor can they describe the gifts he gave by dying, nor can they describe the glory he received for his obedience. As I worship in Spirit and truth may the Spirit speak on my behalf and give God in Christ the glory in all the ways that I cannot.

Father, I thank you and praise you for your plan to redeem your children. Jesus, I thank you also for your obedience to the Father and for your willingness to die. As I ponder the redemptive work of the cross and all it contains I am overwhelmed, I am speechless before your glory. May I always praise you, even in my lack of words. Amen.

Deception, mockery and the faithful

I read an encouraging, yet sobering, word this morning in my scripture readings. The verses were Galatians 6:7,8, which says, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, the he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.” I know that sometimes things seem unfair. We always hear about how God’s will prevails and the evil are punished. In reality it seems that Christians, the faithful few, are walked on and that everyone who seeks his own, and not God, prospers. This verse gives us encouragement in this area. It begins so powerfully with the words “Do not be deceived.” Why does it start this way? Because these thoughts of unfair treatment, that God will not come through on his word, or that things aren’t happening the way God said that they would, are deceptions and are from Satan. His goal is to get you to lose faith in God and no longer trust him to do what he says. Paul exhorts us in a powerful way, “Do not be deceived.” He then says, “God will not be mocked.” Let me explain this. When people think that the words of God will not come to pass they undermine God’s sovereignty, and then when they act accordingly, as if God’s words will not come true, they functionally mock him. For man to go on in his life and sow to his flesh thinking that he knows best and that all the warnings from God will not come to pass is to mock God. And let me say this as a side note; even when men do not know the specific revelation of God through Christ they still have the general revelation of creation and also the Law written on their hearts, both of which testify of God. This makes their disobedience and rebellion mockery, something that God will not tolerate, for he will not allow his glory to be undermined. Paul then comes back and summarizes what scriptures teach multiple times in many places, “What a man sows, that he will also reap.” Which he explains even further by saying, “For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.” Paul uses an agricultural illustration but is in no way talking about harvests, he is talking about eternal life. His whole statement is one with an eye toward eternity. The promise wasn’t for our prosperity in this life and evil’s punishment in this life but for reward and justice in eternity. We can be sure that even though we feel that things are unfair and that evil men and women prevail all around us, this is only temporary. We should never let ourselves be deceived into believing Satan’s lies. Although it may seem like things aren’t happening God’s way, that is only from our perspective, a perspective that is fallible and narrow. God sees all of time and knows what happens in eternity. His promises of justice may or may not pertain, in each specific case, to situations in this life, but we know without a doubt that they pertain to eternity. We also should heed Paul’s implied warning, sow to the Spirit or we shall receive death! This passage can be encouraging when we feel that evil is succeeding all around us, but it can also be quite sobering when we take stock of our lives. What have we been sowing to, the flesh, or the Spirit? What should we expect in eternity, corruption or eternal life? These are very important questions that we should ask ourselves on a regular basis. We do not want to find out too late that we have been sowing to the flesh. Let us always remember, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked.” Trust in the sovereignty of God and know that his will cannot be thwarted.

Father, I praise you for your everlasting strength, for your sovereignty which cannot be undone or outdone, and for your justice, the mighty show of your love. Continue to encourage me when I see evil running rampant all around and keep my eyes soberly on my own life, looking to what I have sown. Help me always to sow to the Spirit and not the flesh that I may receive eternal life in your presence and your glory. In Jesus name I ask these things. Amen.

A Daily Offering

I was reading in Exodus 8 this morning and came to verses 38-46 which discuss the daily offerings to the Lord. As I was reading it I began to draw a parallel between the daily offerings of the old covenant and those of the new covenant. Many people think that ‘offerings’ went away when Christ fulfilled the old covenant and ushered in the new, but that is not correct. Required sacrifices, for atonement, went away, because Christ became that atoning sacrifice, once for all time, but offerings still stand to this day. Offerings under the new covenant just look different. What are offerings under the new covenant, what do they look like? One offering is time given to the Lord daily. Time spent in the Word of God, in reading, meditation and prayer. I will show you how these activities parallel the offerings of the old covenant and how they serve the same purposes. I want to look now at the similarities in the offerings. First, old covenant (OC) daily offerings were made at the tabernacle of meeting (Ex 29:42) that later became the Temple of the Lord. Under the new covenant (NC) there is no longer a need for the Temple as it stood traditionally, because we are now the temples of the Lord (1 Cor 3:16; 6:19) so the offerings are made in our bodies, through our devotion to God in the actions mentioned above. Second, in response to the daily offerings in the temple God says, “There I will meet with the children of Israel” (Ex 29:43). This same purpose holds true in the daily NC offerings, it is here that the Lord meets with us, in our reading of the Word, meditation and prayer. This is where we can come face to face with God. Third, through this presence of God, in response to the daily OC offerings God said that he would sanctify the temple by His glory (Ex 29:43). In the same way, under the offerings of the NC we (the new temples) are brought into the presence of God and sanctified by his glory. If we do not offer this to God we will not be sanctified. Fourth, in response to these offerings God said that he would dwell among his people and they would know that he was their God (Ex 29:45-46). Under the NC, the only way to consistently hear from God and open up your life, open up the doors to your ‘temple’, your heart, for God to dwell among you, is through the daily offering of reading God’s Word, meditating on it and praying to him. Finally, the OC offerings were done twice a day, in the morning and in the evening (Ex 29:39). This was done as a reminder, first thing in the morning and last thing in the evening, that God was first, and that they served the one true God. This principle is extremely important under the new covenant. Since we no longer have a physical ‘temple’ to go to we are very easily distracted in our worship and dedication. Without daily reminders of what is important and who we serve we are led astray and fall quickly into temptation. Israel proves this over and over again in the Old Testament by their consistent apostasy and they had a temple to worship in. This daily offering, twice a day, serves to keep our eyes on God and preserve us in the long run, not to mention it gives God the glory and priority in our lives. So to summarize, OC offerings were made in the temple, in response to these offerings God said that he would meet with his people, sanctify the temple, dwell among his people and make Himself known to them. This was done twice a day as a reminder of the God that they served. What does this mean for us? If we want God to meet with us, sanctify us and dwell with us, in our hearts, the temple, and make himself known to us, we must make daily offerings to him as Israel did. Ours will be in our bodies, the new temple, and will be in the form of reading God’s Word, meditation and prayer. These offerings should be daily, twice a day, to keep us focused on God and in remembrance of him in all of our life. Morning and evening may God receive the glory.

Father I thank you for insight into your word. I thank you for understanding of the principles of offering and for the revelation of yourself through your Word. Help me to be consistent in my daily offering to you and in my devotion to your glory. Come to me, meet with me here, dwell with me, make yourself known to me and sanctify me. These are my hearts desires, that I could be a temple of God, a place where you remain. Amen.

A believer and a priest walk into a bar...

The reading in Exodus 28 spoke of the clothing the priests wore, mainly to separate them from the people and show them to be set apart for God’s service. It talked about what they should wear and why they should wear it. The reason their clothing was so extravagant was because it was for the service of God and his glory and the reason their clothing was so intricate was because all the different parts served to remind of some aspect of God, either in his blessings to Israel through the 12 sons or in his acting in the exodus, or of his holiness, etc. I began to draw a comparison to the work of the priest under the old covenant and the work of the Christian under the new covenant. I found that they are remarkably similar. We see that the priests were set apart by God to do his work and minister to the people, something that all Christians are called to do to this day. We see that they are to be a reflection of God’s work, God’s glory and God’s holiness, also something that all Christians are called to do. Priests interceded for the people, they served the people for God, etc. Many people relegate these tasks of the priest to the old covenant because under the new covenant there are no longer priests. Or are there? In Hebrews it is said that Jesus is our High Priest, in 1 Peter 2:5,9 Peter refers to Christians as a holy priesthood. This makes very clear that there are still priests, they just aren’t from a special lineage, they happen to be each and every one of us. The reason we do not have ‘priests’ proper any longer is due to one thing, Jesus Christ, our high priest. Upon his death on the cross we are told in Matthew 27:51 that the curtain between the Holy place and the most holy place was torn in two. This was a symbol to all who believe in Christ that they could now enter into the Holy of holies, a place that only the high priest could venture prior to this act. We can all now come into the presence of God. We no longer need a special office of priest because through Christ we all have the privileges of the priest. One of the main duties of the High priest was to enter into the Holy of holies once a year and atone for the people. This is no longer necessary, for the people have been atoned for, once for all, by Christ our high priest, and we can all now enter into the holy of holies, the presence of God. But these facts did not do away with all the other works and ministries of the priest. The other duties of the priest are still very necessary and have been passed to us, the believers in Christ, to fulfill in Christ’s absence. We must go out into the world with a missional heart to be priests of God, ministering to others on his behalf, sharing with them the grace, mercy and patience of God and the saving work of Christ. In the same way that the priests of the old covenant were to be set apart to God for service, holy in His sight, we also are to be set apart to God for service, holy in His sight. Let us not forsake this or take God’s holiness for granted. Let us honor him by fulfilling our duties as priests, for a believer and a priest are one and the same. To God be the glory.

Father I thank you for sending us a great High Priest in your Son Jesus. Through him I have been atoned for once and for all time and can now enter into your presence myself, through him. As I have been called of you and set apart for your service I ask that you would give me wisdom in fulfilling the priestly call on my life and honoring you and Christ. Strengthen me to bring you glory and serve your purposes. In Jesus name I ask these things. Amen.

Can you walk on one leg?

I was having a conversation last night and the topic came up concerning the ‘Christian life’. The observation was that, in general, Christians live an unbalanced life. We tend to focus on one or two of the attributes of the basic Christian life to the neglect of the rest. I.e. Love to the neglect of godly counsel and rebuke, or the Holy Spirit to the neglect of the Word of God. I can’t help but compare our walk with God to the actual character of God (because our relationship with God is an extension of God). When we look at the attributes of God, such as his love or wrath or even his joy, we know that God is 100%, completely, each one of these attributes. God is 100% love and 100% wrath at the same time. How do we know this? We know this because for God to be more of one attribute and less of another would mean that he himself is more in one area and less in another. Or to say it in another way, this would imply that certain attributes of God are more important than others and by force of logic, that other of his attributes are less important. This cannot be, for God cannot not be anything less than complete and perfect in everything. All that he is is most important, and no part of him is less important than another. Therefore they each constitute the whole. This concept of God being 100% of each attribute is hard for us to grasp. We are accustomed to think of the ‘whole’ as the sum of its parts, each part contributing to the whole. We are not accustomed to the idea that each part, in and of itself, can constitute the whole. We can’t grasp how five different parts can each be 100% of the ‘whole’ in question. We would end up with 5 ‘wholes’ wouldn’t we? This is the difficulty that we face when trying to comprehend an infinite God with a finite mind. So how does this doctrine of God relate to the unbalanced Christian life? We have been made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27) and therefore our relationship with God should follow the pattern of his attributes. Why? Because our relationship with God is fully supplied by God, through Christ, in the power of the Spirit. Being supplied by God it must therefore take on his attributes. For example, whatever God gives to his children we know is good, because God is not evil and therefore cannot give evil to his children; he gives from what he is. Our relationship with him is no different, it is a gift from him, an extension of who he is, and therefore must come from what he is, his attributes, complete in each aspect, 100% of the ‘whole’. This is to say that we should also be 100% love and 100% Godly counsel and rebuke as well as 100% filled with and led by the Spirit and also 100% obedient and submissive to the Word of God. Each of the basic requirements of the Christian life that are spoken of in scripture, faith, prayer, love, etc. (the list is too long to write exhaustively here) should be full and complete within our own walk, each constituting the whole, in and of themselves and therefore each receiving the same focus from us. When we focus on one area over another it's as if we are walking with one leg, and then we wonder why we are constantly falling down. We must model our walk after God and His character so that we may be balanced. But what about the areas that we are specially gifted or called by God? What I am speaking of in this entry is not the area of special calling placed on your life by God, but the basic Christian walk. If God has gifted you to preach then you shall focus your efforts on fulfilling that call while at the same time having a full relationship with God, equally so, if God has called you to be a missionary you will focus on relating to your people in a new culture while having a full relationship with God. I hope you can see that your calling from God goes over and above the basic Christian walk. I do not propose that we all be 100% of everything, preachers, missionaries, teachers, administrators, prophets, etc. that would be folly. But we are each called to have a full and complete relationship with God, taken from him and therefore imitating him in who he is. I know that we look at this proposition with difficulty and ask the question, “how?" We may never reach this goal, but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't try. Let us not forget the counsel that Christ gave to his disciples when they asked how to achieve the impossible, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God” (Luke 18:27).

When people are big and God is small

I was reading John 2 and at the end of that chapter I read a section of scripture, three verses long, entitled, ‘The discerner of hearts.’ These three verses tell of how many people believed in Christ during his first Passover in Jerusalem because of the great miracles that he did, but how Jesus put no weight in their belief/testimony of him because he knows what is in the heart of men. I couldn’t help but stop and think about how beneficial this example would be for all the pastors and ministers out their ‘serving’ God. As leaders we are very often put in the situation to choose between what is right, that which is commanded by God, and what is pleasing to others, namely, those we are leading. Unfortunately, all to often we make the wrong decision, myself included. And I also know that this is a sad day for a leader, when they look back at the decision just made and see that they have honored themselves above the Lord and his commands. Why did we do it? Because we sought the testimony of men, we wanted to be liked and spoken well of. In my circumstance this failing was in the place of church discipline. My elder board didn’t want to do anything; they didn’t think it was our business to interfere in someone else’s personal life. I took them to scripture to show them the evidence otherwise and the clear commands that we are to act, but they could not be convinced. In the end I did not answer the call of scripture and step out in faith and seek to rebuke this person and their actions. I went along with my elder board. The person in question went on to living in unrepentant sin and failure in the sight of God. Never again! Never again will I experience that sad day when I look back on my actions and see a focus on my own glory and not on God’s. It is not worth it. Let us all take after the example of Christ and put no weight on the testimony of men, because we know what is in their hearts, we have experienced it first hand because we ourselves have the same hearts they do. Let us seek strength through Christ in the Holy Spirit that our main focus in all of life would be to receive a great testimony from God, that in the end he would look on us and say, “Well done my good and faithful servant.” To God be the glory!

"...but of God"

As I was reading in John, I read verses 1:12-13, which read,

“¹²But as many as received him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in his name: ¹³who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

In reading this I can’t help but look towards the glory of God in predestination, in his election of the saints. I don’t know for sure that this is what this verse is referring to, but I know that this verse does lead me to think on this doctrine. As the passage says, they were born not “…of the will of man, but of God.” I can’t help but think that people, who feel that their salvation is their choice, and must be their choice, rob God of his glory in the salvation event. I think that the doctrine of free will is a doctrine that seeks to exalt man above his fallen state, and therefore gives man the glory and not God (Eph 2:8). I think that this doctrine is the attempt of our sinful and rebellious heart to retain some control or to have some semblance of power concerning our eternal destiny. I for one do not want the power to choose, as Paul says in Romans 6:21, concerning decisions made from our sinful nature, “What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death.” This powerful statement from Paul is very sobering and leads me to believe that without the Holy Spirit I could never make the right choice, but only choices that lead to death. But clearly, as we see in scripture, it is God’s chief end to bring himself glory and therefore we can rest assured that anything we do, even in the salvation event, is purposed to bring God glory. As scripture says in Romans 8:7, “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.” We must remember that we are not able to see through our fallen nature to the glory that is the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, we must first be chosen by God and be set free, regenerated, given the gift of faith, and then we can receive His glory. We must let go of our desire to be in control and let God be glorified in his work in our hearts, in his gift of faith and in his gracious and merciful choosing of his elect. We must never forget that in our salvation we were born, “¹³not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” May God receive the glory.

Father, I praise you for your gift of salvation through your Son, Jesus Christ. I ask that in all things that I do, that you receive the glory. Reprove my heart when I selfishly seek to glorify myself and redirect me back to you, help me to humbly submit to your control and complete dependence on you, that I might do all things for your glory and serve your purposes. Amen

Worldwide "Blasphemy Day" 2009

September 30^th 2009 was the first ever “Blasphemy Day” where people who do not believe in God try to express their right to blaspheme Him. They are trying to promote a “nothing is sacred” doctrine and feel that their freedom of speech should even extend to the outright offense of others. Whether that was the intent of our forefathers when they penned the Bill of Rights, I do not know, but that isn’t what I want to discuss. The topic of Blasphemy day came up at lunch today, a brother and I were discussing it. I was told that many people were trying to commit what scripture and Christ called the “unforgiveable sin”, blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. As we dove into this a little deeper I began to see a widely overlooked fact concerning blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. First, the question is often asked, as I myself have, what constitutes blasphemy of the Holy Spirit? For this we must go to Mark 3. We find Christ’s statement about blasphemy of the Holy Spirit at the end of a section of scripture that my Bible has named “A House Divided Cannot Stand”. In that passage they say that Christ has an evil spirit and that His works are the works of Satan, to which Christ replies that many blasphemies will be forgiven but not the one committed against the Holy Spirit (this is to say that once you have committed this blasphemy you are no longer redeemable). Verse 30 then goes on to say that He said this because, “they said, “He has an unclean spirit.”” Context here tells us that blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is when we attribute the work of God or the Holy Spirit, to Satan, when we give the glory that was intended for God to Satan. This definition implies two things, a belief that God has worked (otherwise there is nothing to attribute to Satan) and that Satan exists (otherwise there is no one to whom you may attribute God’s works) So it would stand to reason that if you do not believe in God, His works, or in Satan, that you cannot blaspheme the Holy Spirit. This thought brings me back to the awesome holiness of God, that man, in an utterly sinful state, unbelieving toward God, yet desiring to blaspheme our understanding of Him, cannot by his own will take himself outside the reach of God’s ability to redeem him. He cannot commit the one sin that God has said is unredeemable. So we stand in a valley between two mountains, on one side, the mountain of election, that says that because of our sinful nature we cannot choose God of our own free will, and on the other side, a mountain of God’s reach, that says that we cannot of our own will remove ourselves from God’s ability to redeem us. Neither option is our choice; both are totally wrapped up in the grace of God, one requiring His grace, and the other an eternal display of it.

Many Christians have focused on the massive offense to God that was partaken of on this “Day” and have responded with bitterness and hatred (you can read about it all over the net). Unfortunately for Christ and His glory, these followers have missed the point. The blasphemers are self-appointed “enemies” to our faith, and what has Christ taught us concerning our enemies? That we should love them, as He loved us when we were His enemies. So instead of taking the position of offensive attack against these “enemies”, I believe that we should take the position of the Father, loving them, knowing that in spite of all their sinful effort, they can never move themselves beyond His ability to redeem them, and although they are “enemies” now, one day we may call them brother. (This isn't a call for tolerance. In spite of Christ's love for His enemies He never tolerated unrepentant sin, and neither should we, if we have any concern for the eternal well-being of the person in question)

(Side note- through general revelation we have all been given some belief in God even if we deny Him outwardly, whether or not that level of belief is enough to qualify you for blaspheming the Holy Spirit, I do not know. My thought is that it doesn’t, because blasphemy of the Spirit also requires a belief in Satan so that you have someone to attribute God’s works to and the knowledge of the existence of Satan isn’t present in general revelation, but only through specific revelation. Not to mention the definition of God and His glory and His works, which I believe are prerequisite to truly blaspheming the Spirit, also aren’t in the category of general revelation. )

God...out of focus.

In my devotion today I read 1 Chronicles 17, where David purposes to build God a house, but the Lord tells David no. The Lord then goes on to bless David and promise him a lineage and a great name. This chapter finishes with David in deep conversation with God, pouring his heart out to God, the Lord of his life. I was convicted by this scene, and brought to see the overall picture of David’s relationship with God. When I saw this I thought about the backwards nature of our service for the Lord today. In all of David’s life he was focused on God, on his relationship with God. When he killed Goliath, he didn’t do it for God because Goliath threatened God’s people. He killed Goliath because Goliath spoke against God; he did it to honor God. He wanted to build a temple to honor God, not for God, as if God needed it.

In our own lives I believe that we miss the main purpose of Christianity, which is to glorify God by having a relationship with Him. That was why He created Adam, that is what Adam lost when he sinned and that is what Christ restored on the cross, fellowship with God, a relationship with Him. We tend to do for God when we should be doing to God. We miss the starting point so our whole frame of reference is wrong. Don’t minister for God, don’t serve for God, first, love God, give your life to God and never lose this focus. Then, from this deep seated relationship that you have with God you will begin to minister, you will begin to serve, and your motives will be pure and God will be the Lord or your life.

My purpose in life is to glorify God, first by loving Him. This will naturally then lead to loving my neighbor, and both of these will be seen in my life by living in the fullness of the gospel.

What's in a name?

I wanted to let everyone know why I chose the name that I did for this blog. Some time back I was wrestling with the question "why?" I had really been seeking God on what scripture says is the purpose for which we are to labor. I spent time in the Word, meditating, praying and seeking an answer. Some would say the reason is evangelism, others ministry to the poor, and still others to imitate Christ. Below is what the Lord revealed to me and is the reason for the title of my blog.

The chief end of God is to bring himself glory¹, therefore, my purpose is to glorify God²; this was why I was created³. My means through which to do this is the gospel of Jesus Christ. Because of sin and the fall, instead of giving glory to God I sought to give glory to myself⁴, but through Christ's work on the cross I am now free from sin and death and able, once again, to give God glory⁵. Although my flesh is at war within me to turn and glorify myself⁶, I can have victory through Christ over my flesh and be strengthened by the Holy Spirit to give God the glory⁷.

But how do I glorify God? Glorifying God does not mean that I make God more glorious, but that I acknowledge his glory, value it above all else, and make it known. I do that by living out the first and second greatest commandments, to love God with all my heart, with all my soul, with all my strength, with all my mind and to love my neighbor as myself⁸.

But these are very general statements, how do I specifically go about this task of bringing God glory in loving him and loving my neighbor? I believe that this is done through living in the fullness of the gospel, which is walking in covenant with God, and partnering with God in His work of building His kingdom.

To conclude, this is what my focus is and these are my priorities: Glorify God, by loving God and loving our neighbor through living in the fullness of the gospel.

Note- these two ‘loves’ must be conducted with joy; otherwise it is all done in vain and brings no glory to God.

Footnotes

1. Isaiah 43:7, 48:9-11

2. Ex 20:1-5; 34:14; Deut 5:6-10; Jer 9:24; Isaiah 43:7; 1 Cor 1:30-31; 6:20; 10:31

3. Isaiah 43:6-7; Ephesians 1:11-12

4. Romans 1:18-25

5. Romans 8:2

6. Romans 7:15-25

7. Romans 8:2-5, 9-11

8. Deut 6:4-; Matt 22:36-40; Mk 12:28-31; Lk 10:25-28

Sometimes the heart of the matter is what's in a name.