Jefferson Vann

the mystery of godliness

2012-01-29T16:37:00.001-05:00

Foundational to the Christian message is that salvation is not something one earns, but is a free gift. It is based not on what we do for God but on what he has done for us through Jesus Christ. Anyone who has ever tried to get on God’s good side by following some code of conduct knows that all such attempts are doomed to failure. We are a condemned race, destined to disappoint our creator, with only one exception, and it is not me.

Grace in the bible is not a character trait or idea. Grace is a person, who “has appeared, bringing salvation to all people.”[1] By his sinless life and sacrificial death for everyone, Jesus did what every other human being could not do. He tasted death for everyone.[2] Having paid that penalty for sin, he was able to offer us the gift of eternal life which God so wanted to give us – out of his heart of grace.[3]

Christ’s death redeemed us from the penalty of death that we owed, and made us right in God’s sight as well. Because of that redemption, we “are justified by his grace as a gift.”[4] From Christ’s fullness “we have all received, grace upon grace.”[5] We owe everything to him – the fact that we are not what we once were, and the fact that we will be something better still in eternity future.

Rules and regulations can never do what Christ did. They are a poor substitute for grace. Even the law of God in the Old Testament had become just a set of rules to live by for the Israelites in Christ’s day. The Gospels tell us that “the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”[6] The apostle Paul had been a staunch supporter of this law to live by, until he met Christ on the Damascus road. Then things changed. He learned that the law was not God’s plan for the salvation of the world. He found that “if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.”[7]

So his message changed. He taught that salvation “is no longer on the basis of works” (actually it had never been). “Otherwise”, (he reasoned) “grace would no longer be grace.”[8] This message of salvation through the completed work of Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross was called the “gospel of the grace of God”[9] It was also called simply “the word of his grace.”[10]

It was a message of sacrifice – not that God wants us to sacrifice for him, but that he has willingly sacrificed for us. It reminded people of what God had done to freely offer deliverance from sin and death. People were encouraged to think about Christ’s sacrificial life and death. Paul told the Corinthians “you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.”[11]

This word of grace was not for Paul an excuse to sit back and rest. It was motivation for him to work harder than ever. He once proclaimed that he had worked harder than any of his opponents to get the gospel of grace out to the world that needs it. Ironically, he did so because it was the grace of God working with him.[12] For Paul, grace was not in conflict with hard work.

Yet there is a challenge we find in the New Testament that seems to conflict with this message of grace. These same apostles and evangelists that champion Christ as the grace of God revealed, also challenge their readers to live lives of holiness, righteousness and godliness.

Why? If Christ’s death is all the grace we will ever need (and it is) why are we encouraged to live godly lives as well? If our acts of righteousness are insufficient for our salvation – indeed are as filthy rags in God’s sight,[13] why should we waste our time trying live out impossible godly lives?

Yet, we cannot escape these challenges toward godliness for they are just as prevalent in the New Testament as the messages of grace. Paul tells Timothy to train himself for godliness, because “while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”[14] So, he encourages Timothy to pursue godliness.[15]

Peter encourages every Christian to seek godliness. In light of the evil nature of the last days in which we live, he says “what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God?”[16]

How we live as Christians is intended to reflect upon the holiness and godliness of the one we proclaim. That is why Paul instructed Timothy not to allow widows who were too young to become dependent upon the church for their support. Instead, they should go to live with their children or grandchildren. That would give the children or grandchildren a chance to “make some return to their parents.”[17] This would please God, and also be a good witness to the community that Christianity encourages family responsibility.

Paul also encouraged women in worship services not to dress with inordinate jewelry or immodest dress. Instead they should demonstrate “what is proper for women who profess godliness.”[18] Their husbands are encouraged to pray without anger – not to let their worship times be distracted by personal disputes or envy.[19] The reason is the same: godliness points people to Christ, ungodliness in Christians turns people away from Christ.

It is in this context that we read about what Paul calls “the mystery of godliness.”

Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.[20]

At first glace, it seems strange that Paul should use such a title. He is not talking about godliness here, but about what he elsewhere calls grace. He is describing the willing sacrificial life of Christ on our behalf. The mystery of godliness is not about what we can do for God, but about what he has done for us. Godliness is what the incarnation was: truth manifested in the flesh.

This is where the gospel of grace and the apostle’s encouragement toward godliness collide. This is the reason that Christians should live out the righteousness that was bought for us at Calvary, at the price of Jesus’ blood.

There have always been those who say that what one does “in the flesh” does not really matter. Many have fallen for the deception that was prominent in the movement later to become known as Gnosticism. They valued knowledge (Greek gnosis) above action. Indeed, for some, no action was significant at all. All that mattered was what one believed. Eventually, this deception paved the way for all kinds of immorality, because it was believed that the flesh did not matter because it was not eternal. They were taught that the soul was as immortal as God, so it was all that mattered.

Others went in the opposite direction, and warned that too much contamination with the world would defile that all-important immortal part within. These would forbid people to marry, or forbid eating meat, defining godliness as meaning what one does without.[21] Godliness was defined as keeping one’s immortal soul pure, not allowing this world of matter to contaminate it.

If Jesus is God’s definition of godliness, then his life blasted away that Gnostic definition. He did not keep his life separated from the world. He invested his life in the world. He did not come simply to convert people’s souls – he came to redeem and heal and resurrect their bodies. His goal was not eternity in a disembodied state, he took on flesh never to lose it again. For infinity he will be walking around in a glorified human body – without sin or shame.

So, after establishing that Christ – the mystery of godliness – came to manifest God’s truth in the flesh, Paul tells Timothy to do the same. He is to pursue righteousness not in order to be saved, but to point people to the Saviour.

He is to be a good man, not out of fear of judgment, but out of love for those who do not yet know Christ, the living manifestation of godliness. Godliness is truth manifested in the flesh. When Christians live godly lives in the midst of a fallen and reprobate world, it draws people to Christ.

This is where the Christian message of grace and the encouragement toward godliness should also meet. Our message of grace should never give people the mistaken assumption that since we are saved by grace it does not matter how we live “in the flesh.” It mattered how Christ lived in the flesh – it should matter for us. Our lives should manifest such integrity and lack of sin that people should assume that they are backed by supernatural power. Our connection to God should be so real and honest that others seek us out when they want to know him. That is what it means to manifest the truth in the flesh.

There is always a danger that those seeking to live out this definition of godliness might fall back into legalism and bondage. As a believer grows and experiences God’s grace, he might go through stages where he feels more “hands on” in his own sanctification. But there will also be times when the believer is overwhelmed with his own unworthiness and depravity, and must fall back to the “hands off” position. God is at work in the believer’s life no matter what his subjective feeling is about it. The God of grace is also a God who works within us to accomplish his will.[22]

God wants us to live lives that manifest his truth while our tongues continue to proclaim it. Godliness, then, should never take the place of Christ as our primary message. We are called to live godly lives so that people will listen to us when we proclaim freedom in Christ.

The Gnostics got it wrong, because they had adopted a false theology about human nature: that human souls are as immortal as God. People who followed the Gnostic teachings became more and more enslaved. People who followed the gospel message were set free to live lives of godliness. They could manifest the truth in the flesh.

It remains to see what this generation is going to choose. Will they leave Egypt or remain in bondage? Will they follow Christ – the mystery of godliness – or seek a godliness of their own making?

LORD, teach us how to celebrate your grace with our tongues, and manifest your truth with our hands.

[1] Titus 2:11.

[2] Hebrews 2:9.

[3] Ephesians 2:8; Titus 3:7.

[4] Romans 3:24.

[5] John 1:16.

[6] John 1:17.

[7] Galatians 2:21.

[8] Romans 11:6.

[9] Acts 20:24.

[10] Acts 14:33; 20:32.

[11] 2 Corinthians 8:9.

[12] 1 Corinthians 15:10.

[13] Isaiah 64:6 KJV.

[14] 1 Timothy 4:8.

[15] 1 Timothy 6:11.

[16] 2 Peter 3:11-12.

[17] 1 Timothy 5:4.

[18] 1 Timothy 2:10.

[19] 1 Timothy 2:8.

[20] 1 Timothy 3:16.

[21] 1 Timothy 4:3.

[22] Philippians 2:13.

Calvin on Psalm 31:5

2011-12-10T14:45:00.001-05:00

“Into your Hands I commit my spirit.”

David’s statement of trust in the midst of trial was so spiritually significant that the Lord Jesus himself quoted it on the cross. Later, Stephen quoted the same text at the moment of his own death by martyrdom. What does it mean to commit one’s spirit into God’s hands. Does this affirm the immortality of the soul?

John Calvin thought so. He was convinced that “man consists of a body and a soul; meaning by soul an immortal though created essence, which is the nobler part.”[1] He concluded that “Christ, in commending his spirit to the Father, and Stephen his to Christ, simply mean that when the soul is freed from the prison-house of the body, God becomes its perpetual keeper.”[2]

Calvin did not come to that conclusion by reading Psalm 31. He rightly commented on David’s statement by saying “Whoever commits himself into God's hand and to his guardianship, not only constitutes him the arbiter of life and death to him, but also calmly depends on him for protection amidst all his dangers.”[3] David was asserting his trust in God to deliver him, not his confidence in possessing an indestructible spirit.

Yet Calvin could not resist taking David’s words out of their context, and teaching that Christ and Stephen asserted something not about theology but about anthropology. His belief in Plato’s doctrine of the immortality of the soul was so strong that it led Calvin to forget his rules of exegesis.

Christ quoted from Psalm 31:5 while dying on the cross. He said “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!”[4] In doing so, he was expressing the exact same sentiment that David had expressed when he had used those words. He was not saying that his body was going to die, but that the real him was going to fly to heaven to be safe in his Father’s hands. He was saying that he trusted his Father to rescue him.

His Father did rescue him. He was raised from the dead three days later. His spirit had not gone to heaven to be with his Father at death. He told Mary “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.”[5] Christ went to the grave. He had committed his spirit – that is, his life – into the hands of the one person who could redeem it.

Stephen’s quote of Psalm 31:5 was also true to its context. Stephen knew that he was going to die. The prison-house was not his alive body, but death itself. But he also had confidence that his death would not be the end. God would rescue him from the prison-house of death in the same way that he had rescued Jesus – by a resurrection. Luke records, “as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."”[6] I heard a preacher at a funeral of a friend of mine say that Stephen did not sleep in the grave because God received his spirit. The preacher had quoted this verse. Later, I had to remind my students (who also heard this sermon) that the preacher forgot about the next verse! Luke continued “And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." And when he had said this, he fell asleep.”[7] Stephen’s committing his spirit to Christ was not a rejection of the reality of death. It was an expression of confidence that death would not be permanent.

Calvin’s commentary on Psalm 31 also quoted Paul’s reflection on death. He says “What David here declares concerning his temporal life, Paul transfers to eternal salvation.”[8] He was referring to where Paul says “I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.”[9] What Calvin did not point out is that Paul’s words in 2 Timothy are not words of someone who denies death. Paul’s words imply that his death would come, but he has entrusted himself to God who can rescue him from that death. Paul’s trust was not in his possessing an immortal soul, but in his possessing a resurrecting God.

That is the sentiment expressed in Psalm 31:5 by David, and reflected in the words of Jesus on the cross, and those of Stephen at his death. It is not that God has made a part of our being that will never die. It is that God has promised to restore his own by a complete resurrection. It is not about something inherent within us. It is about the faithfulness of God.

[1] John Calvin, The Institutes of the Christian Religion, Vol. 1. (Forgotten Books), 190.

[2] John Calvin, The Institutes of the Christian Religion, Vol. 1. (Forgotten Books), 190.

[3] John Calvin, Calvin's Bible Commentaries: Psalms, Part I. (Forgotten Books), 429.

[4] Luke 23:46 ESV.

[5] John 20:17 ESV (emphasis mine).

[6] Acts 7:59 ESV.

[7] Acts 7:60 ESV (emphasis mine).

[8] John Calvin, Calvin's Bible Commentaries: Psalms, Part I. (Forgotten Books), 431.

[9] 2 Timothy 1:12 NIV.

“A Better Place…”

2011-11-26T14:22:00.001-05:00

I overheard two men talking the other day, and caught the last bit of a conversation they were having. I do not really know what they were talking about, but I can hazard a guess. They concluded their talk with “she’s in a better place.” My guess is that they were talking about a loved one who is now dead. Perhaps they were consoling themselves with thoughts that their loved one was no longer suffering and in Jesus’ protection until his return. But I wonder if those men knew what they were talking about. Does the Bible describe death – even the death of a believer – as “a better place”?

The first recorded death in the Bible was that of Abel, who was killed by his brother, Cain. The Bible states that “the LORD had regard for Abel.”[1] Did that mean that Abel was taken up to heaven when he died? No, the Lord told Cain “the voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground.”[2] Abel did not go to a better place when he died. He went to the ground where his brother had buried him. That was the very reason that the Lord cursed the ground for Cain. He told him that “When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”[3]

The great saint and father of the Israelite nation was Abraham. When he died, did the Bible say that he went to a better place? No, it says that “Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people.”[4] We went where his pagan ancestors had gone: the grave. The Bible says that “Isaac and Ishmael his sons buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, east of Mamre, the field that Abraham purchased from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried, with Sarah his wife.”[5] Of course, it is popular for people to speak of burying a body, but still believe that the real person has gone elsewhere. Moses, the author of Genesis, entertained no such delusion.

David was called a man after God’s own heart.[6] Surely if anyone was to be granted a residence in a better place at his death, it would be David. But the Bible declares that “David himself never ascended into heaven.”[7] It was his descendant, Jesus Christ, that would sit at God’s right hand until his enemies are made his footstool.[8]

When Jesus faced the death of his friend Lazarus, he wept. He knew that death was not a better place for Lazarus. He did not console Lazarus’ sister Martha with the notion that her brother was not really dead. Instead, he told her that “your brother will rise again.”[9] He had told his disciples “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him”.[10] If Lazarus had gone to a better place, it would have been cruelty to bring him back.

Even Jesus did not go back to his Father at death. After his resurrection, he told Mary Magdalene “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.”[11] He had been in the tomb, and he was raised from that tomb. His ascension forty days later came not as a result of his death, but because of his victory over death. His words to us now are not “do not fear death because it will take you to a better place.” His words to us are “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.”[12]

Christians can be comforted at the death of a loved one. Our comfort comes not because we believe death takes us to a better place. The Bible says “the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing”.[13] David prayed that the LORD would deliver his life because “in death there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who will give you praise?”[14] Our comfort comes because we know death is not the end. It is a terrible prison where our body decays into nothingness while our personhood exists in a state of unconscious sleep. But our Savior has the keys to that prison. When he comes again, he will raise us from the dead and set us free from death forever.

The world needs honest Christians. It needs people who do not hide behind fairy tales, and deny the existence of death. It needs people who will tell them that death is real, but that Jesus is real too. The world needs hope that extends beyond the cemetery. Believers can offer that hope, but we have to do so with integrity. It is wrong to say that death is a friend when the Bible calls it an enemy.[15] It is wrong to imply that the blessed hope is a better place at death when the Bible says Christ’s second coming is the blessed hope.[16]

When the Thessalonians wanted to know about their loved ones who had fallen asleep in death, Paul told them not to “grieve as others do who have no hope”.[17] His instructions for them to teach each other were as follows:

“For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words. ”[18]

That is all the encouragement we need. Our hope is not in some mythical place that believers supposedly go when they die. Our hope is Jesus. He will not forget us. Death is real, but so is he.

[1] Genesis 4:4 ESV.

[2] Genesis 4:10 ESV.

[3] Genesis 4:12 ESV.

[4] Genesis 25:8 ESV.

[5] Genesis 25:9-10 ESV.

[6] 1 Samuel 13:14.

[7] Acts 2:34 NLT.

[8] Psalm 110:1.

[9] John 11:23 ESV.

[10] John 11:11 ESV.

[11] John 20:17 ESV.

[12] Revelation 1:17-18 ESV.

[13] Ecclesiastes 9:5 ESV.

[14] Psalm 6:5 ESV.

[15] 1 Corinthians 15:26.

[16] Titus 2:13.

[17] 1 Thessalonians 4:13 ESV.

[18] 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 ESV.

Job’s Hope

2011-11-05T15:36:00.001-04:00

Perhaps the earliest clear reference to the coming resurrection in the Bible is found in the book of Job. When contemplating the fact that he is mortal, he places all his hope in a coming Redeemer:

“As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, And at the last He will take His stand on the earth. Even after my skin is destroyed, Yet from my flesh I shall see God.”[1]

The meaning seems obvious, but perhaps I am reading too much Christian teaching into this text. Wharton insists that “the traditional Christian conception of Christ as the ‘Redeemer’ of Job 19:25 simply won’t do.”[2] He feels that assuming Job anticipates Christ’s redemption reads too much later theology into Job’s words. Instead, he argues that Job looks forward to being vindicated.

Yet Job’s words seem to say so much more here. He argues not that he is going to be vindicated in this life, but that he is going to see God in the next life. He expresses a hope not in survival after death, but in a complete restoration to bodily life. In short, he is predicting a resurrection. If that sounds too Christian to be acceptable, perhaps commentators need to come to grips with the fact that the Christian gospel is God’s plan for humanity from the beginning.

P. S. Johnston argues that Job may be referring to “vindication in the non-material world.”[3] But, again, all one has to do is look at the text to see that Job’s hope was in a real resurrection, not some shadowy existence in a bodiless afterlife.

The text of Job 19:25-26 affirms three things:

1. Job knew his redeemer was alive.

The word he used for redeemer was go’el. This word is the same used for a kinsman redeemer. In Ruth, it referred to a person living who had the answer to Ruth’s problem. Boaz was the one who made all the difference for Ruth and Naomi. If it were not for Boaz, Ruth’s story would have ended quite differently. Without rescue, there would have been no David, and no Jesus.

But that does not mean that Job assumed that his redeemer was a human being like him. His trust was in God. His hope was that from his flesh he would see God. The real person who would make a real difference for Job is God himself.

What Job affirms is that his own ability to stay alive is not the critical issue. What matters is that the Redeemer lives. Job had graduated from being like his miserable comforters. They were the “hands on” kind of people. They insisted that if there was a problem, there had to be something they could do about it. Job was learning that sometimes you have to take your hands off the situation and trust God. His confidence was not in his own ability to fix things, but in someone other than himself. He knew that he had a Redeemer, and it was not himself. Lahaye says that “regardless of the fate that would befall Job in the near future, he possessed confidence that God remained alive and well, and in perfect control of all creation.”[4]

2. Job Knew that God would take action in the future.

His confidence that the Redeemer would take his stand on the earth at the last was an eschatological belief. He was able to look beyond his present personal struggles and see that God had a plan. He knew that God was going to personally work out his plan for planet earth by visiting the planet.

The idea that God would take his stand is consistent with the concept of incarnation, but goes beyond it. It suggests not just Christ’s first coming, but also his second. The Psalms often use the term in prayers to God to arise and save his people.[5] The psalmists were not primarily thinking soteriology (salvation from sin) but eschatology (ultimate deliverance from evil. Job’s hope was in a God who delivers both spiritually and ultimately.

3. Job knew that he would be alive to see that ultimate restoration.

Job did not doubt the reality of death, he doubted its permanence. He knew that he was mortal. He knew that should the Redeemer delay his return to earth, it would mean his death. It would mean that his skin and flesh would decompose and return to the dust. He entertained no delusion that death was a gateway to a better life. Death was death – the destruction of the flesh, and total unconsciousness.

Instead of deluding himself with fanciful notions that he could live forever, Job aligned himself with his inevitable demise. But he was able to look beyond that dark time of unconsciousness to a time of new resurrected life. His confidence was that not only is God going to take his stand in the future, but that he (Job) would be standing right there observing it. His confidence was in a resurrection.

Notice how specifically Job describes his hope. He says “from my flesh I shall see God.” He does not say “as a spiritual entity I shall see God”. He anticipates his own, newly resurrected eyes will see God restore his creation. He even goes on to emphasize this hope by saying “whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another.”[6] His confidence is not in life for someone else, but in restored life for himself.

If I had no other text in the Bible to affirm my confidence in the resurrection, Job 19:25 would suffice. In this text, I see the reality that no matter what happens to me today, my Redeemer will be alive. I may not survive the troubles of this day, but my Redeemer will. My hope is in him. My confidence is not in something I can do, but in something he will do. My God is going to arise, and save his people ultimately. And when he does, I will be there witnessing it with my own resurrected eyes. Job and I will be standing there, with our eyes and mouths wide open, in awe of what our God is doing. This is our hope.

[1] Romans 19:25-26 NASB.

[2] James A Wharton, Job (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1999), 89.

[3] P.S. Johnston, “Afterlife” in Dictionary of the Old Testament. (Nottingham, England: InterVarsity Press, 2008), 6.

[4] Tim Lahaye, Exploring Bible Prophecy from Genesis to Revelation: Clarifying the Meaning (Eugene Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 2011), 101.

[5] Psalm 3:8; 7:7; 9:20; 10:12; 17:3, etc.

[6] Job 19:27 ESV.

the heart of Daniel

2011-10-24T21:22:00.001-04:00

Daniel 4:34-37.

The book of Daniel is kind of an odd bird. Everyone recognizes it as a prophecy, or group of prophetic visions – centered around the person of Daniel. But most of us first encounter Daniel in the Sunday School stories taken from the book.

There’s Daniel, thrown into the lion’s den because he refused to pray to anyone but God – even though it had become illegal. There’s the similar story of Daniel’s three friends – Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah – rescued from the fiery furnace. We know them better by their Babylonian names: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

When the Jews got together to compile and categorize their Scriptures they chose to put the book of Daniel in the writings category – even though it has many prophecies. It was obviously different enough from the Nevi’im (prophets) that the choice was justified.

But when the Greeks got together to compile and categorize the Scriptures, they placed Daniel in the category of Major Prophet. That choice was also justified. God is speaking through Daniel – not just in the apocalyptic visions – but also in the historical stories.

The text from Daniel that I want to highlight is the portion of the story of Nebuchadnezzar’s humiliation where the great king comes back to his senses.

“At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, "What have you done?" At the same time my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my majesty and splendor returned to me. My counselors and my lords sought me, and I was established in my kingdom, and still more greatness was added to me. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, for all his works are right and his ways are just; and those who walk in pride he is able to humble.” (Daniel 4:34-37 ESV)

This was the great king who had built the neo-Babylonian empire. His people thought he was so great that they literally worshipped him. Those who refused to do so were destroyed. This was what Nebuchadnezzar had planned to do with those three Hebrew officials with his fiery furnace. God rescued them, and the king was put in his place for a while. But before long, he was full of himself again.

Next, God struck him with insanity. “He was driven from among men and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles' feathers, and his nails were like birds' claws” (4:33). He stayed like that for “seven periods of time.”

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible:

“and seven times shall pass over thee; which some understand of weeks, others of months, others of the seasons of winter and summer; but it is best to interpret it of seven whole years”

What I wanted to look at was the testimony that came out of Nebuchadnezzar’s mouth that day – the day his reason returned to him. I think his words can give us the kind of perspective we are looking for.

PERSPECTIVE ON GOD (34c, 35b).

God is sovereign. No, I really mean it. He has both the right to choose what happens and doesn’t happen, and the ability to enforce his choice. The buck doesn’t really stop at the white house. It stops at God’s house. Prayer doesn’t really change things – God does. If God wants to do something, prayer is not going to change his mind. I’m talking about absolute sovereignty here.

Have you heard the story “Big John is coming” ?

[read the story here, then come back!]

That story reminds me of this incident with Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar was everybody’s “Big John” But God was Nebuchadnezzar’s “Big John.” His sovereignty is absolute. His power and authority are absolute. That was the perspective that the great king learned by his time of humiliation.

“for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation” (34c).

“and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth” (35b).

You see, you might be under the mistaken notion that the most important question in life is “who am I?” It is not. The most important question in life is “who is he?” -- “Who is God?” Your life is never going to get set in order until you have the right perspective on who God is.

PRAISE FOR GOD (34b, 37a).

True praise of God emerges from that awareness of his sovereignty. Until you and I come to grips with the reality that God exists and his sovereignty is absolute—our attempts at worship will be lacking something.

The very first thing that Nebuchadnezzar did after his sanity returned is …

“I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever” (34b).

What had gotten Nebuchadnezzar in trouble was looking around at all the great marvels of his kingdom and saying “look what I did.” We are always on dangerous ground when we focus on ourselves. It took a major crisis in his life for Nebuchadnezzar to get his eyes off himself and see clearly where the greatness is.

His awareness of God extended beyond the realm of “God is great.” It included the reality that this great God is also a good God.

“Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, for all his works are right and his ways are just” (37a).

You see, this story could have ended differently. Nebuchadnezzar could have been restored to sanity and still choose to judge God. Many people are like that. They go through some major crisis in their lives and because God did not do things the way they wanted – they turn their backs on him. Don’t do that. Learn the lesson that the great king did. There is an even greater king, and he always does what is right -- even if we cannot understand it. He deserves our praise.

PERSPECTIVE ON US (35b, 37b).

A final perspective I see in this story from the life of king Nebuchadnezzar is a reflection on humanity. He learned something about himself and every other human being that has ever lived.

“none can stay his hand or say to him, "What have you done?"” (35b).

We all need to learn this lesson. I suspect that this is why God allows us to keep getting into impossible situations. We have to learn that we cannot fix all our problems.

The analogy that Nebuchadnezzar uses is very helpful. He pictures the hand of God raising to strike. There is no hand that comes up to stop it. None can stay his hand. There is no voice raised in judgment asking God what he thinks he’s doing. Nobody is qualified to do that.

If anyone dares to think she is qualified to judge God’s actions, she will soon learn otherwise.

“those who walk in pride he is able to humble” (37b).

You have probably gone through several incidents like the one we read about here – probably not as drastic. But you got the point. It’s not about you. It’s about him. There’s only room for one on the throne.

There was once a man who had everything -- and lost it all because he failed to look up and recognize that God had him. What is it going to take for this generation of supermen to stop looking down and start looking up?

Waking a friend

2011-10-15T19:40:00.001-04:00

One of the simplest descriptions of death given in all of Scripture comes from Jesus as he explains his plans to go to Bethany to raise Lazarus. He tells his disciples “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him” (John 11:11).

Sleep is the most widely used metaphor for death in the Bible.

Some Christians talk about death using language that the Bible never uses, and Jesus never endorsed. Here are some examples.

the travel metaphor

Some talk about death as if the dead person (or his soul or spirit) has travelled to a far-away place. It is very comforting to think that a loved one has “gone to a better place.” But is it Christian? The Bible says that the better place is coming to us. When Jesus returns, he will set up his eternal kingdom on this earth, redeemed, restored, and glorified. The Christian hope is not going some place. The Christ hope is a coming someone: Jesus himself.

joined the angels

Usually, the person has traveled to heaven, and has joined the angels. The Bible says that when Jesus returns, his angels will accompany him to earth, where they will assist in gathering the righteous dead for the resurrection harvest. Paul calls this time “when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels” (2 Thessalonians 1:7). He does not mention humans making that return trip.

Some people actually talk about the deceased as if they have actually become angels. This is absurd. Angels are actually sent by God to minister to us (Hebrews 1:14). God has greater things in store for us than simply becoming angels.

joined the heavenly choir/ playing a harp

Some people think that dying makes a person become musical. That would be nice. I cannot carry a tune in a bucket, and I can hardly play the radio. It would really be nice to think that I was going to join some great worship jam session in heaven when I died.

Alas, the Bible shoots down that proposition as well. David said “For no one mentions your name in the realm of death, In Sheol who gives you thanks?” (Psalm 6:5 NET). He was asking a rhetorical question that called for a negative answer. No one gives God thanks in the realm of death (Hebrew Sheol). David’s plea was for God to keep him alive so that he could continue to send up songs of praise. The psalm would make no sense if David anticipated going to join a heavenly orchestra when he died.

Peter said of David “Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day” (Acts 2:29 KJV). He knew where David was, and there was no music there.

The music will come when the Bridegroom returns for his wedding feast. But we do not have to wait to start sharing the music that is in our hearts. Believers are to be “addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 5:19-20). Death does not make us musical. Life does.

escape

Some view death as a release from the prison of the body to enjoy freedom forever. Nothing captures this hope better than the famous epitaph of Solomon Pease:

“Under the sod and under the trees

Here Lies the body of Solomon Pease

The Pease are not here

There’s only the pod

The Pease shelled out and went to God.”¹

Who would not want to believe that death brings release from the pain and sufferings of this life? Yet, once again, the Bible places the terminus of rescue and escape not at death, but at the coming of Christ. As tempting as it is to believe that death will bring rescue, the most that we can say biblically is that at death the suffering will end. The rescue comes when the rescuer comes. No one shells out of his body at death.

Even Jesus – when he died on the cross – went to the grave and stayed there until his resurrection. He told Mary “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father” (John 20:17). Death did not bring escape for him. It was his resurrection which enabled him to escape from death. His resurrection guarantees ours. His return will be our means of escape. Jesus promised that when he comes the dead will be in their tombs and will hear his voice and be raised to life again (John 5:28-29).

gone to their reward

Some people think that death is the gateway to the reward that Jesus promised those who are faithful to him.

Martha would disagree. She stood next to the tomb of her brother, and refused to believe that he had been rewarded. She did not believe that he was anywhere but in that tomb. Her theology was biblical. She told Jesus that she knew that her brother would rise again, and that it would happen on the last day (John 11:24).

Martha’s eschatology (doctrine of the last things) was spot-on. Her Christology needed a little help. She had said to Jesus “even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you” (John 11:22).

Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die” (John 11:25-26). Jesus was talking about that resurrection day that Martha had mentioned. He said that on that day if any of his followers will have died, like Lazarus had, he will raise them back to life again. Then (he said) on that day any of his followers who are still living will never die at all. That is a great reward. It is so much better than shelling out and leaving the pod!

Jesus does speak of believers being repaid for their acts of righteousness toward the poor. He says that those who do acts of kindness toward those who cannot repay them will be “repaid at the resurrection of the just” (Luke 14:14). That does not happen at death. It will happen when Jesus comes back to raise people from the dead.

Jesus came to the tomb of his friend that day to give us all a visual demonstration of the resurrection at the last day. His friend had fallen asleep and he purposely waited until that happened.

Jesus shouted his friend’s name. “Lazarus, come out.” He didn’t say “come down” because his friend had not gone anywhere. He had simply fallen asleep. The shout from Jesus is all it took to wake him.

Someday, you and I will fall asleep. Do not fear. All it will take is a shout from our friend, Jesus, to wake us up again.

¹Sandra L. Bertman, Facing Death (London: Taylor & Francis, 1991), 29.

the logic of conditionalism

2011-09-24T14:21:00.001-04:00

Conditionalist theologians believe that the Bible presents a complete and verified doctrine of human nature. We do not believe that God has left out pieces of the puzzle from the scripture that have to be supplied by pagan philosophy. Augustine believed that God gave him insight into human nature through the writings of Plato, but we reject that. We trust the Bible alone to explain who we are.

Thus we find it illogical to make faith-statements like this:

“I am eternal.

Not this flesh that your eyes can see

But the soul that lives inside of me;

Not this body that soon shall expire

But the sanctified soul that cannot die.

I am eternal.”¹

Such statements sound spiritual and encouraging, until one dares to actually look into the Bible to find support for them. It is there that one comes face to face with an astonishing absence of proof for such an eternal soul.

One would expect that if God had endowed all humanity with an eternal immaterial essence, it would have been prominent in the creation account in Genesis. Here is what God says about our creation:

“The LORD God formed the man from the soil of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.”²

Our identity does consist of two parts: this “flesh that your eyes can see” and life from God. There is no indication from the text that the life is the person. The life animates the person. If the life goes back to God, the person returns to the soil. Death is not the separation of body and soul, but the separation of life from the person.

The man (Adam) was formed not from some spiritual substance in heaven, but from the soil of the earth. God animated that combination of soil-elements and the animated substance became “a living being” – literally, an alive soul.³Before God animated him, he was already a soul, but was not yet alive.

The reason this is important to conditionalists is that we believe that life is not a right. It is a gift bestowed upon humanity by God’s grace, but conditional upon our proper use of the gift. If we abuse the awesome gift of life, God is not compelled to keep us alive for eternity. Life was a gift at creation, an opportunity to live forever, but that opportunity was soon lost.

That is why God warned Adam:

“but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die”⁴

What God actually said was “dying, you shall die.”⁵ He gave a very accurate description of the human species -- after the fall. We have become a dying species, and each individual who is part of the species shall eventually die.

Again, God does not insert any notion that this death sentence refers only to a part of us. He does not whisper to Adam “of course, this excludes your soul, because it cannot die.”

Whose idea was it that human beings are incapable of death? We first hear the words "You won't die!" from that crafty serpent in the garden.⁶ Should we trust him to give us an accurate theology of human nature? Surely he has a lot to gain by convincing us that death is not real. But what do we gain by believing it?

Conditionalists believe that death is a reality for everyone was in Adam when God warned Adam not to eat of the forbidden tree. That includes Eve, since she was part of Adam at the time. That includes you and me, since we were still part of Adam as well. So, everyone, regardless of their spiritual condition will experience this death.

Just look around at all the cemeteries scattered throughout the planet. You will see that God’s threat was real. Death is a reality for all of us.

The good news of the gospel is not that Satan was right and God was lying. The good news is that God in his grace offers us hope beyond death: a resurrection of the whole person unto eternal life.

Jesus said: “an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.”⁷

This resurrection to eternal life is the true hope of the believer, not going to heaven as a disembodied spirit. In fact, Jesus says that if he does not raise you from the dead, you will be lost!

“Now this is the will of the one who sent me--that I should not lose one person of every one he has given me, but raise them all up at the last day.”⁸

This would make no sense whatsoever if believers are already with Jesus in heaven for thousands of years before the resurrection. It is only logical if believers are in their graves awaiting a resurrection when Christ returns.

This also explains why the apostle Paul argued strenuously for a physical resurrection to the Corinthians. These Corinthians had been exposed to the pagan philosophical notion of the immortal soul. In explaining the gospel, Paul had to convince them that this notion was wrong. He had to show them that the resurrection is necessary.This is what Paul says to them:

“For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.”⁹

Nowhere in Paul’s argument does he concede that death is not real. He argues for the absolute necessity of a resurrection. In fact, he says that if there is no resurrection, believing in Christ is futile. If there will be no resurrection, we are all still in our sins. If there will be no resurrection, we are of all people most to be pitied.

Why? Because those who die have fallen asleep. They are not alive somewhere up yonder or down there. They are not alive anywhere.

Jesus experienced that state of death – from Good Friday to Easter Sunday. Paul says that Christ was the first to be awakened from that sleep. The rest of us await his coming. It is then that we will be made alive again. Paul argues that until that takes place, our hope in Christ is only that. It is a hope. If Christ does not return to raise us, that hope will be in vain.

Plato’s philosophy of the innate immortality of the soul had permeated the western world. Surely all the Greeks in Corinth would have been aware of it. If Paul had agreed with Plato, this would have been a logical place to indicate it. Instead, Paul argues against the popular notion of a continued conscious existence at death. He argues that unless and until the resurrection takes place, the Christian hope of eternal life will not be fulfilled. The popular Christian teaching today borrows Plato’s notion of continued conscious existence and reads it into the Bible. The result is that the resurrection takes second place to “going to heaven when I die.” The biblical hope is never death, but always resurrection.

Jesus knew that each one of his disciples would go to that dark place of death and experience that sleep for millennia before his return. His message to them was not “you will come to me when you die” but “I will come again and take you to be with me.”¹⁰He comforted them by assuring them of their resurrection and reunion with him at his return. Surely, if they were going to already be with him in heaven for thousands of years, that would have been the logical message to give them. Why would he omit that if it were the truth?

The popular theology of conscious existence at death teaches that people go to their reward or experience their punishment immediately after death. The Bible teaches that both reward and punishment will take place after Christ returns.

“For the Son of Man is going to come with His angels in the glory of His Father, and then He will reward each according to what he has done.”¹¹

God has appointed a day in which every believer will receive the blessings of his faith and every unbeliever will receive the consequences of his unbelief. That day is not the day of our death but the day of Christ’s return. By following the pagan teaching of immediate rewards and punishment at death, we are in effect rejecting what the Bible says. We are choosing to believe what the world teaches instead of what God says in his word. Conditionalists believe that it makes a difference.

The logic of conditionalism says that God will not judge before the day in which he has set to judge: the judgment day.

“For he has set a day for judging the world with justice by the man he has appointed, and he proved to everyone who this is by raising him from the dead.”¹²

The parables Jesus taught his disciples that refer to his return indicate that his return is the time in which he will “settle accounts” with his followers and his enemies.

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory...Then the King will say ...take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ”¹³

“After a long time, the master of those slaves came and settled his accounts with them.”¹⁴

If Jesus had intended to settle accounts with us at death, why would he mislead his disciples by teaching something different? Why would he allow these teachings to be placed in holy Scripture to further the misleading? Conditionalists see the teaching that people go to their reward or punishment at death as a clear misrepresentation of what the Bible actually says about how and when God will bring about justice.

Jesus also taught the disciples to be hospitable toward the poor, who will not have the means to repay them for their hospitality. He said that they would be repaid, not when they die and go to heaven, but “at the resurrection of the righteous.”¹⁵ Surely if believers go to their reward at death, then they would be repaid for their good deeds then. But the Bible says otherwise.

The consistent and systematic emphasis of the apostles also concurs that believers will be rewarded, not at death, but at the second coming:

“let us encourage one another-- and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”¹⁶

“Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay”¹⁷

“Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.”¹⁸

“Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world.”¹⁹

“So now, little children, remain in Him, so that when He appears we may have boldness and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.”²⁰

“…that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ.”²¹

Each of these apostles taught that the hope of the believer was the return of Jesus Christ, accompanied by the resurrection of all in their graves, the reward of those in Christ, and the punishment of those not in Christ.

If the doctrine of the immortality of the soul is correct, all of these apostles (James, Peter, John, Paul, and the author of Hebrews) were misinformed. They placed their hope in the coming of Christ when they should have placed it in the death of the believer.

But it gets worse. Even Jesus was apparently just as mistaken. He told believers “hold fast till I come” when he should have said “hold fast till you die.”²²

It is the Bible’s teaching about the second coming that is at stake when one surrenders to the innate immortality theory. The Bible teaches that Christ’s return is the single most important event of all history. The doctrine that people’s spirits remain alive at death and begin eternity then subverts this truth. That doctrine makes the second coming practically unnecessary.

The logic of conditionalism returns the second coming to the forefront of Christian doctrine. It says that immortality is conditional. Only those who are given eternal life by Jesus when he returns will live for eternity. All others will suffer their appropriate punishment for their sins, and die forever.

The logic of conditionalism returns Jesus Christ to the center of Christian theology. Our hope is not in ourselves – in something intrinsic within our nature. Our hope is in our Lord. We await a Savior who will take away the death that we deserve and give us life by his grace. Our hope is not that we will get what’s coming to us when we die but that he will bring an inheritance we do not deserve when he comes. We wait on our Lord to fulfill his promise. We promise to hold fast ‘till he comes.

¹Alfred T. Mitchell, “I Am” in Tome of the Universal Poet (Xlibris Corporation, 2010), 166.

²Genesis 2:7 (NET)

³Hebrew nephesh chayah

⁴Genesis 2:17 (ESV)

⁵a literal rendering of the Hebrew mot tamut

⁶Genesis 3:4 (NLT)

⁷John 5:28-29 (ESV)

⁸John 6:39 (NET)

⁹1 Corinthians 15:16-23 (ESV)

¹⁰John 14:3 (NET)

¹¹Matthew 16:27 (HCSB)

¹²Acts 17:31 (NLT)

¹³Matthew 25:31,34 (NIV)

¹⁴Matthew 25:19 (NET)

¹⁵Luke 14:14 (NIV)

¹⁶Hebrews 10:25 (NIV)

¹⁷Hebrews 10:35 (ESV)

¹⁸James 5:7-8 (ESV)

¹⁹1 Peter 1:13 (NLT)

²⁰1 John 2:28 (HCSB)

²¹1 Timothy 6:14 (NASB)

²²Revelation 2:25 (KJV)

the heart of Jeremiah

2011-09-22T19:21:00.001-04:00

Jeremiah 1:11-19

I would have hated to be Jeremiah. He was a prophet during a time when people were actually listening to prophets. But he did not have much to say about his generation that was positive. He had access to the divine will, and what he found out is that God was angry at his people, and things were going to get very bad, and then get worse.

I hate reading books or watching movies where everyone dies in the end.

I was really excited to watch the Sci-Fi film, KNOWING, starring Nicholas Cage. I was fascinated with the idea of (spoiler warning) finding a time capsule with information about all the major disasters that will happen in history. But then the movie turned me off. It was not going to have an ending where somebody discovers how to make things better. The whole human race (except for a couple of kids) was going to be destroyed. Oh, come on. Something inside me says that is not fair.

I can imagine that there was something inside Jeremiah who felt the same way when he read the script that God gave him.

God gave Jeremiah a vision with some visual aids.

“What do you see, Jeremiah?”

“I see a SHA-KED -- an almond branch, LORD.”

“You, have seen well, Jeremiah, for I am SHO-KED – watching to see that my word will be fulfilled.”

That may sound like good news, but in Jeremiah’s case it was not. God’s word was about judgment upon his own people.

“What do you see now, Jeremiah?”

"I see a boiling pot, facing away from the north."

“Right again, Jeremiah. I am going to send invaders from the north.”

“Really, Lord. Is that what I have to tell the people who are looking for good news?”

“But you, dress yourself for work; arise, and say to them everything that I command you. Do not be dismayed by them, lest I dismay you before them. And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land. They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the LORD, to deliver you." (Jeremiah 1:17-19 ESV).

God’s message to Jeremiah was that there was going to be no rescue in his lifetime. That had to hurt.

What kind of faith stands up after a calling like that and says OK Lord, if that’s what you want, I am going to do it! (?)

Answer: the kind of faith that God is looking for in his people today. What if you preach revival and it does not happen in your lifetime? What if people accuse you of just spouting a lot of religious nonsense?

What really matters is that the message that we are called to preach (the gospel of Jesus Christ) is our calling. It does not matter if nobody listens, as long as we are are being faithful in proclaiming the message. That is not an excuse for being outdated or inefficient in our communication. It is merely an acceptance that the Holy Spirit is going to regenerate whomever he decides to reach. Our job is to be faithful so that he can use us when he wants to.

The long-term message of Jeremiah is much more comforting. He predicted that God would make a new covenant and that his new people would follow him. Jeremiah never lived to see that part of his message come true. Those of us who have been born again through faith in Christ now celebrate Jeremiah’s words. His own generation largely resented his words.

Thank you LORD for prophets like Jeremiah, who dared to proclaim an unpopular message, because they knew the message was from you.

the waiting station

2011-09-17T12:08:00.001-04:00

Solomon taught that “the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing” (Eccl. 9:5). For him, the intermediate state between death and resurrection was not a time to look forward to. Like all other biblical authors, he looked forward to the resurrection unto eternal life. He never denied the reality of death. Indeed, he taught that all people now living know that their death is coming. But after death, no one knows anything.

He taught that the intermediate state is universal. everyone will experience it, and all will experience it the same: a state of unconscious survival. It is not non-existence. It merely is a state of existence where one is not conscious or aware of the passage of time and cannot know anything.

This was Solomon’s view, and he held that view with other Old Testament writers:

“Those who are wise must finally die, just like the foolish and senseless, leaving all their wealth behind” (Psalm 49:10 NLT).

Death happens to everyone, and no one can “take it with them.” It is a universal event that all will experience. Being wise will not keep you from experiencing death. The wise will join the foolish in that one place. The Hebrews called it Sheol.

It was the place of waiting on God. Sooner or later, we will all meet at that station and await the resurrection train to take us to our next destination. The station (Sheol) itself is not our destination.

“But he said, "My son shall not go down with you, for his brother is dead, and he is the only one left. If harm should happen to him on the journey that you are to make, you would bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to Sheol"” (Genesis 42:38 ESV).

Jacob did not want his sons bringing Benjamin down to Egypt. He thought he had already lost Joseph to Sheol, and didn’t want to lose Benjamin as well. Such a loss would only mean death for Jacob, and joining his sons in Sheol.

But – wait a minute. Isn’t Sheol just another word for hell? No, it is not. The Hebrews did not see Sheol as a place of punishment for anyone. Sheol is the station where everyone waits in an unconscious state for resurrection to their final state: either eternal life or eternal death. Jacob expected to one day go to Sheol. He would never have expected to go to hell, and he would have never expected Joseph to go to hell.

“Oh that you would hide me in Sheol, that you would conceal me until your wrath be past, that you would appoint me a set time, and remember me!” (Job 14:13 ESV).

Job actually looked forward to death and the intermediate state (Sheol). He wanted to forget the pain and unfair treatment he had experienced in life. His hope was not that he would be rewarded at death, but that death would be hidden (in a state of unconsciousness) and the resurrected back to life at an appointed time when God remembered him. That is the hope of the New Testament as well.

“Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment” (John 5:28-29 ESV).

We are all waiting for that hour. For some of us, we will be alive when the train comes in. Others are in their tombs, and waiting at the station. The Greeks called the station Hades. And it corresponds to the Hebrew Sheol. It is a state of unconsciousness where the dead wait for life. It is not the final state. Ears which have long since crumbled to dust will one day hear again. They will hear their master’s voice, calling them to their eternal destiny.

Even Jesus himself waited at the Hades station between his death on Good Friday and his resurrection to life again on Easter Sunday.

“For David says concerning him, "' I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken; therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope. For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.' "Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses” (Acts 2:25-32 ESV).

Peter preached that Jesus waited at the Hades station, but was not allowed to wait long. After three days God raised him from his state of unconscious sleep and gave him life again. Unlike everyone else who has gone there, Jesus was not abandoned to Hades, and his body never saw corruption. His resurrection is our guarantee that we, too, will one day be raised to life.

Paul put it this way:

“But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:20-23 ESV).

Paul knew very well when the resurrection would come. It would take place “at his coming.” He was using a harvest metaphor to explain what happens at death. Death is a kind of planting of a person in Hades until the time of harvest comes. For Christ, his time of harvest has come, for he was the Firstfruits. For us, we await our time of harvest, which will happen at the second coming of Christ. The point is, our reward does not come at death. We are planted in the ground, and await the one who has the power to raise us up again. Until that happens, we sleep. Christ experienced this sleep as well. He did not cease to exist, but he did cease to function, and was absolutely dead from Good Friday until Easter Sunday.

The intermediate state is not a time of purgatorial purging of sin, nor is it a time of reward or punishment. Jesus told a story where he seemed to be saying that (Luke 16:19-31) but he was not teaching his disciples doctrine about the intermediate state. He was teaching the Pharisees about true riches (16:11). He adapted a story from their own folklore and twisted the ending so that the Pharisees “who were lovers of money” ((16:14) could see that God cares more about people like Lazarus than he does about their money. Jesus never intended this story to contradict all that the Bible teaches about the unconscious state of death. To use this story in that way is to take it out of its original context intended purpose.¹

The Bible teaches that the waiting station of Sheol/Hades is a time when the eyes see no light:

“Consider and answer me, O LORD my God; light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death” (Psalm 13:3 ESV).

There is no awareness of things that are happening. There is no consciousness of either good or evil. And that is how it really should be. God’s people could not experience joy if they saw their loved ones suffering and falling into the devil’s traps.

The Bible teaches that absolutely no worship takes place in Sheol/Hades:

“For in death there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who will give you praise?” (Psalm 6:5 ESV).

If you want to worship God, you had better not wait until you die. You will be invited to no angelic choruses. That is all the more reason for you to raise your voice in praise to the God who promises you a resurrection unto eternal life – a chance to praise his name for eternity in a resurrected body with resurrected lungs that can shout, and resurrected hands that can clap, and resurrected feed that can dance!

Death is a waiting station. It is not a time of reward. It is a time where we all pay the price for our ancestor’s rebellion, because the wages of their sin is death for all. But the waiting station is not the end of the journey. Thanks be to God who promises a resurrection unto eternal life at Jesus’ second coming. See you there!

¹For more information about the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus, see Edward Fudge, The Fire That Consumes (Cascade Books, 2011) chapter 14: Jesus: Fire (Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus).

the heart of Habakkuk

2011-09-11T17:29:00.001-04:00

I promised a friend that I would post the rest of this series when I started preaching regularly again. Well, it looks like that may be a while from now. So, I have decided to finish the series as blog posts. I hope that you get as much out of reading these sermons as I am getting from writing them – JV.

Habakkuk 1:1-12.

You might think that it would have been great to be a prophet – to have the very words of God come out of your mouth. But it was not easy for these guys. Their gift was a burden as well as a blessing. They could not just say what their listeners wanted to hear. More often than not, they were saying the very things their culture did not want to hear. They did not have the luxury of editing out the offensive parts.

Also, they didn’t always understand what God was saying through them. And when they did understand it, they often wished that they didn’t.

THE PROPHET

Consider, for example, Habakkuk. He is probably known best for a statement he made that the New Testament quotes: “the righteous shall live by his faith” (2:4).

Paul quotes that when he talks about how the gospel is for everyone. All it takes is faith in Christ whether you are a Jew or a Gentile, because faith in Christ is what God wants (cf. Rom. 1:17).

He explains to the Galatians that access to God is not through the Law, because the Law is about doing good things. Salvation comes through putting your faith in a good God (cf. Gal. 3:11).

The author of Hebrews uses Habakkuk’s slogan when he talks about how we must endure through this time while we wait for our Savior to come, and live by our faith in him (cf. Heb. 10:38).

I think that in each of these cases, the New Testament authors accurately understood what Habakkuk wanted to say, and quoted him in context.

THE PEOPLE

Let’s look at Habakkuk’s context more closely. He probably wrote between 640-615 BC. That means that when he was writing Israel had already been taken over by the super-power of Assyria. Judah alone was left to represent the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

The people of Habakkuk’s day were probably very interested in knowing why God had allowed that to happen. Habakkuk and the other prophets had told them that God was all-powerful. Now, he sits in shame because it appears that the gods of Assyria were more powerful than him. The people are ashamed of what has happened, and they want answers.

THE PROCLAMATION

They are not alone. Habakkuk himself begins his prophecy from God with an earnest prayer to God. He says…

“O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear? Or cry to you "Violence!" and you will not save? Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise. So the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth. For the wicked surround the righteous; so justice goes forth perverted” (Habakkuk 1:2-4).

God’s people had witnessed the collapse of Israel. Moreover, the evil empire of the Assyrians seems unstoppable. No law and no power seemed able to stop them. Habakkuk is living in a time when “justice goes forth perverted.”

Do you ever feel like that? Do you ever read about some crime being committed and ask “Where is the God of justice?” That was where Habakkuk was. That was where his heart was.

Personally, I am glad that he was allowed to ask that question. If God never wanted us to ask questions like that, he would never have had one of his prophets ask a question like that. Since God, by his Holy Spirit inspired Habakkuk to ask a question like that, I feel much better confessing to you that my prayer life is often riddled with similar questions.

It might be that for our spiritual lives – Habakkuk’s questions are more important than God’s answers. They reveal that life is going to be filled with things that happen that we do not expect. Living by faith does not mean ignoring the unfortunate realities around us. Living by faith means being able to cope with those unfortunate realities because we have someone to go to who has answers.

That does not mean – however – that the answers are going to be easy to take. Notice God’s specific answer to Habakkuk’s prayer:

“Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told. For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, who march through the breadth of the earth, to seize dwellings not their own. They are dreaded and fearsome; their justice and dignity go forth from themselves. Their horses are swifter than leopards, more fierce than the evening wolves; their horsemen press proudly on. Their horsemen come from afar; they fly like an eagle swift to devour. They all come for violence, all their faces forward. They gather captives like sand. At kings they scoff, and at rulers they laugh. They laugh at every fortress, for they pile up earth and take it. Then they sweep by like the wind and go on, guilty men, whose own might is their god!” (Habakkuk 1:5-11).

The short answer is that God intended to defeat the Assyrians by bringing in the Babylonians, who will swiftly destroy the Assyrian empire and take control of its lands. These were not godly men. They were a people “whose own might is their god.” But God was going to use them to do his bidding and bring justice.

It was going to take about three decades before this took place. We know from the Bible, and from history, that it did. Habakkuk probably never saw it. It was going to have to be enough for Habakkuk to know that God – in his time – would bring about justice against the Assyrians. Meanwhile, God’s message to him and to the people he ministered to was something like this: “Keep believing in me, even if you are not living in a time when I choose to manifest my power.”

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

Are you willing to trust in God even if you don’t get the answer you were hoping for, or if it does not come in your lifetime? Are you willing to let God be in charge of how he answers your prayers? That is hard. It is not easy to surrender control of your destiny, but God often requires that we do it – to manifest our faith in him. His message to Habakkuk was:

“ For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end- it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay” (Habakkuk 2:3).

And Habakkuk’s words of faith in response were:

“I hear, and my body trembles; my lips quiver at the sound; rottenness enters into my bones; my legs tremble beneath me. Yet I will quietly wait for the day of trouble to come upon people who invade us. Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation” (Habakkuk 3:16-18).

No matter what happens. No matter how contrary life seems to be compared with God’s vision of the future – faith trusts that God will fulfill his promise. That is faith in Christ. That is the heart of Habakkuk.

LORD, we choose to trust in you. We choose to believe that our Lord Jesus Christ is going to return and bring about true and complete justice upon this earth. Until that happens, we choose to endure this age of uncertainty with faith in you. We choose to quietly wait for our Savior, and rejoice in the LORD.

God is Different

2011-09-03T14:27:00.002-04:00

1 Timothy 6:16 is one of the foundational verses for conditionalists. In it, we see a theological principle that we are not ready to relinquish in favor of popular teachings. It is the principle that God is the only being in the universe who has immortality. His immortality is exclusive. In that respect, he is different from all other beings.

“The only One who has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light; no one has seen or can see Him, to Him be honor and eternal might. Amen” (HCSB).

The verse is the second part of a doxology: a pause to praise the God of whom the author is writing. In its context, Paul is encouraging Timothy to keep pursuing eternal life to which he was called, but has not yet attained. It is a promise from the only one capable of making that promise: God, who alone possesses that thing that Paul urges Timothy to pursue.

Comparing 1 Timothy 1:17 to 6:15-16 has led some scholars to suggest that Paul did not originate this text. He may have been quoting an already existing liturgy. That would explain how Paul quotes the text as if it is already known by Timothy and his companions at Ephesus. The principles found in those texts would have already been accepted as part of the Christian message.

Paul asserts four things about God here:

1. God’s Power is Eternal.

The phrase kratos aionion (just before the “Amen”) asserts that God’s battery never runs out. He never needs to be recharged. What a contrast this is to what Paul says about himself. He tells Timothy that when he was facing his lion’s den “the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it.”[1]

But Paul said that now that his work was done, he was about to die. His battery was running out.

“For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.”[2]

He speaks of an ending of his life, and a new beginning, at the resurrection when Christ appears. These are not the words of someone convinced that he has eternal life already. They are the words of one who realizes that God alone possesses unending power and life.

2. God’s Authority is Eternal.

He is to be honored for eternity. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords (6:15). That suggests, that everyone who has authority now derives that authority from him. It also suggests that the same is true of anyone who will ever be in authority. All honor will go to him. But all honor does not presently go to him. Perhaps that is why the adjective aionios (eternal) does not apply to the noun time’ (honor) in this verse. But someday, God’s chosen king will return. Then the kingdoms of this world will “become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever” (Rev. 11:15). So, from the standpoint of eternity, his authority is the only one that will last forever.

3. God is different from the other “gods.”

The “gods” of the first century Roman empire are idols made of stone or wood or metal. Those idols sometimes represent spirit beings, but have limitations that the God of the Bible does not have. They can be seen. God cannot. They can be approached by anyone with the ability to fashion them, or the means to procure them. The God whom Paul praises in this doxology does not dwell inside an image. His dwelling is in unapproachable light (fos aprositon). God is not a good luck charm to be manipulated by humans for their own desires and prosperity. He is distant.

Paul is not saying that God never approaches us. The gospel tells us that God came near in the person of Jesus Christ, and chose to make his dwelling among us (John 1:14). The Holy Spirit dwells inside believers, who are his temple (1 Cor. 3:16; 6:19). The author of Hebrews tells us that by prayer we can “with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

So, what Paul affirms in 1 Timothy 6:16 applies to God’s nature. There is a fundamental difference between the Christian God and the pagan Gods. The pagan gods are things to be manipulated. They can be used to bring a person good luck or prevent bad luck. But the God of the Bible will not be put to the test. His power can never be used for anything other than accomplishing his will at his prompting.

4. God’s Life is Immortal.

In the Bible, this word athanasia is never used as an attribute of anyone else but God this side of the resurrection at Christ's second coming. It is never used to describe a human soul or spirit. Yet it has come to be popular and “orthodox” to make all kinds of concessions to God’s exclusive immortality. Matthew Henry, for example, says that God “only is immortal in himself, and has immortality as he is the fountain of it, for the immortality of angels and spirits derived from him.”[3] So the hypothetical “box” in which we might put all immortal beings is actually not exclusive at all. It contains not only God, but all of those sentient creatures created by him, both human and angelic. Perhaps we should be grateful that cats and dogs did not make the grade.

Lately evangelical scholars see the dilemma in accepting what Paul said about God in 1 Tim. 6:16. Their conclusions, however, are ultimately the same as Matthew Henry's. Peterson, for example, states the “orthodox” position quite well in his recent debate with Fudge. He said that “Plato held to the soul's natural or inherent immortality. By contrast, evangelical Christians hold that God alone is inherently immortal (1 Tim. 6:16) and that he confers immortality to all human beings.”[4] But once the “and that he confers” is added to the equation, the dilemma begins. 1 Tim.6:16 says nothing about God conferring his exclusive attribute to all human beings. Either that attribute is exclusive or it is not. Conditionalists see no clear contrast between the view of Plato and that of our brother evangelicals who hold Peterson's view.

The onus is ours, however, as conditionalists, to back up this bold claim that God's immortality is exclusive. Ours is the minority position. That is why a study of the terms used in the Bible to imply immortality is helpful. The study shows that the concept of immortality does not apply to angels and human beings by default. This adds justification for our being obstinate enough to hold to the exclusive immortality of God in spite of its being an unpopular doctrine.

The noun athanasia only appears three times in the canonical Bible. It makes no appearance in the entire Old Testament. Besides 1 Tim. 6:16, it only appears in 1 Corinthians 15:53-54.

For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."

The ESV translators, normally sticklers to word-for-word accuracy, betray their theological bias here by supplying the word body twice in verse 53, even though there is no Greek equivalent in the original. Paul actually agrees with what he stated in 1 Tim. 6:16. Since God alone is immortal, something will have to change in order for human beings, who are perishable and mortal, to become immortal. That change will take place at the resurrection. There is no indication in the text itself that human mortality pertains only to our bodies. That is a concept that is assumed by the proponents of natural or inherent immortality, and denied by conditionalists, who propose that immortality is only potential. 1 Cor. 15 and 1 Tim. 6:16 both serve as evidence for the potential immortality position. While 1 Cor. 15 shows that immortality (athanasia) is not currently a present possession (even for the saved), 1 Tim. 6:16 identifies the one being who is the exception to that rule, and presently has athanasia.

The Apocrypha provides seven more instances of the term. While we cannot rely on the Apocrypha as a standard for proof of a doctrine, we can consult it in order to establish how certain terms were used, which is a reflection of their understood meaning. Were we, for example, to find numerous references to athanasia as a natural human attribute it might show that intertestamental Jews viewed humans as naturally immortal beings.

4 Maccabees 8-18 contains an account describing the torture of seven young men and their mother by the Tyrant (Antiochus IV). Instances of the term athanasia occur in two places. In 4 Maccabees 14:4-5 the writer says that “none of the seven youths proved coward or shrank from death, but all of them, as though running the course toward immortality, hastened to death by torture” (RSV). From this we can infer that intertestamental Jews did have the concept of immortality, but saw it as something to be earned through diligent faithfulness to God. It was certainly not an attribute taken for granted as the natural possession of all human beings.

The second occurrence of athanasia refers to the mother, who, “as though having a mind like adamant and giving rebirth for immortality to the whole number of her sons, she implored them and urged them on to death for the sake of religion” (4 Maccabees 16:13). The mother is pictured as encouraging her sons to stay true to their faith in God with such zeal that it is like she was giving birth to them all over again, this time for immortality instead of mortality (as it was in the first instance of her giving birth to them). Again, there is no innate, inherent immortality described here. Immortality is something to be gained by a martyr's death for the seven sons. Their mother, who gave them natural birth, did not in so doing impart to them immortality.

All the other instances of the term athanasia occur in The Wisdom of Solomon. Notice this revealing statement about the destiny of the righteous:

Wisdom 3:1-4 RSV

But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will ever touch them. In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died, and their departure was thought to be an affliction, and their going from us to be their destruction; but they are at peace. For though in the sight of men they were punished, their hope is full of immortality.

As in 4 Maccabees, athanasia is seen as potential for humans, because the righteous will be resurrected, but athanasia is not an inherent attribute.

Wisdom 4:1-7 RSV

... in the memory of virtue is immortality, because it is known both by God and by men. When it is present, men imitate it, and they long for it when it has gone; and throughout all time it marches crowned in triumph, victor in the contest for prizes that are undefiled. But the prolific brood of the ungodly will be of no use, and none of their illegitimate seedlings will strike a deep root or take a firm hold. For even if they put forth boughs for a while, standing insecurely they will be shaken by the wind, and by the violence of the winds they will be uprooted. The branches will be broken off before they come to maturity, and their fruit will be useless, not ripe enough to eat, and good for nothing. For children born of unlawful unions are witnesses of evil against their parents when God examines them. But the righteous man, though he die early, will be at rest.

Here is no denial of the reality of death, but a glimpse beyond it, to a resurrected virtuous person, known both by God and by men. The ungodly, though they might produce a prolific brood, will be uprooted. Notice, again, that there is no mention of athanasia as a common trait held by all humans. A resurrection unto immortality is only the hope of the righteous.

Wisdom 8:13-17 RSV

Because of {wisdom} I shall have immortality, and leave an everlasting remembrance to those who come after me. I shall govern peoples, and nations will be subject to me; dread monarchs will be afraid of me when they hear of me; among the people I shall show myself capable, and courageous in war. When I enter my house, I shall find rest with her, for companionship with her has no bitterness, and life with her has no pain, but gladness and joy. When I considered these things inwardly, and thought upon them in my mind, that in kinship with wisdom there is immortality...

Wisdom, as defined by the wisdom literature of the Bible and related works like The Wisdom of Solomon is the ability to make correct moral choices which lead to God's favour. In the Bible, those correct moral choices usually led to a long healthy life, but by the time The Wisdom of Solomon was written, one's eternal destiny was also seen as a consequence of living wisely. It is the route to eventual athanasia. It is a narrow path that does not include everyone on the planet. It is not innate, nor is the immortality it produces.

Wisdom 15:1-3 RSV

But thou, our God, art kind and true, patient, and ruling all things in mercy. For even if we sin we are thine, knowing thy power; but we will not sin, because we know that we are accounted thine. For to know thee is complete righteousness, and to know thy power is the root of immortality.

In the New Testament we found that athanasia was an exclusive attribute of God, but a hope for humanity. In this final reference to athanasia in the Apocrypha, we see a relationship with God as the only means of obtaining to that hope.

Athanatos

In the Apocrypha, there are a few instances of the corresponding adjective that we would translate immortal as well. Although this word does not appear in the New Testament, it is helpful to see how it was used.

It is said of Eleazar that “in no way did he turn the rudder of religion until he sailed into the haven of immortal victory” (4 Maccabees 7:3). The most that can be inferred from this metaphorical statement is that Eleazar is counted among those who finished the course of faith, and awaits a resurrection unto immortality. It does not imply that Eleazar was already immortal by nature. It is said of the aforementioned seven young men that “just as the hands and feet are moved in harmony with the guidance of the mind, so those holy youths, as though moved by an immortal spirit of devotion, agreed to go to death for its sake” (4 Maccabees 14:6). All this implies about these youths is that although their devotion was undying, they were not. You cannot prove that people are immortal from a passage that records their deaths.

Later, the author of 4 Maccabees does state that these “sons of Abraham with their victorious mother are gathered together into the chorus of the fathers, and have received pure and immortal souls from God” (4 Maccabees 18:23). There is a hint of some kind of rewarded state here, but perhaps the reward is merely the certainty of a resurrection unto immortality. At any rate, 1 Corinthians 15 states that the resurrection is when the reward will be realized. If some intertestamental Jews imagined a conscious intermediate state, they were mistaken.

One use of athanatos is found which draws a distinction between God's

righteousness (which is said to be immortal) and secular man's covenant with death.

Wisdom 1:12-16 (RSV)

Do not invite death by the error of your life, nor bring on destruction by the works of your hands; because God did not make death, and he does not delight in the death of the living. For he created all things that they might exist, and the generative forces of the world are wholesome, and there is no destructive poison in them; and the dominion of Hades is not on earth. For righteousness is immortal. But ungodly men by their words and deeds summoned death; considering him a friend, they pined away, and they made a covenant with him, because they are fit to belong to his party.

Here again, there is no mention of a man, or even a part of man, which is immortal by nature. In fact, immortality belongs to the righteous One. Human beings are mortal.

Athanatos is also found in The Wisdom of Sirach:

For we cannot have everything, human beings are not immortal. What is brighter than the sun? And yet it fades. Flesh and blood think of nothing but evil. He surveys the armies of the lofty sky, and all of us are only dust and ashes (Sirach 17:30-32 New Jerusalem Bible).

Here is perhaps the clearest expression of human mortality in the Apocrypha. It says that men do not have the attribute that Paul said only God has. He will always last, but we are “dust and ashes.” The statement is in perfect agreement with the New Testament.

Afthartos

Another adjective – sometimes translated “immortal” in versions of the New Testament – emphasizes the unfailing, imperishable, or incorruptible nature of the noun it modifies. If this adjective were found applied to beings other than God, it would serve as evidence that the NT authors assumed that these beings possessed immortality. In Romans 1:23 Paul explained that idolatrous humanity “exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.” Notice that only God is placed in the “beings having immortality” box. Man and animals are comfortably placed in the “all others” box.

In 1 Tim. 1:17 Paul ascribes “honour and glory for ever and ever” “unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God.” If the term immortal applies to all other created beings (or at least the higher ones: angels and humans) one wonders why Paul would bother mentioning the attribute. But if the attribute is exclusive to God alone (as Paul later states in chapter 6), his mentioning it here makes perfect sense.

Some might argue that the term “immortal” is appropriate to describe men's

spirits or souls, but not their bodies. As such it might be appropriate to speak of God being immortal in an absolute sense. He has no body to corrupt or perish. This logic only applies if the principles of Platonic anthropology are true. Plato argued that the soul of man is immortal because it is simple, and cannot be divided into composite parts. The notion of human immortality is the result of combining this principle from pagan philosophy with biblical theology. One question conditionalists ask is “can the Bible be left alone to answer the question of human mortality, or must we borrow from pagan theology to do it?”

All other references to afthartos in the New Testament[5] use the term to describe the hope of believers after the resurrection, or some kind of character trait that is imperishable in the sense that it does not fade away with time. There is not one single use of the term applied to human nature itself, body or soul. If this attribute is such an essential part of human identity, one would expect this adjective to be used repeatedly throughout the New Testament in reference to human nature itself.

God's Identity

Often when God is identified in the Bible, this exclusive attribute is part of his title, identifying him as different from all other beings. He is the Living God.[6] He is the eternal God.[7] He is the immortal God.[8] He is the everlasting God.[9] His name and attributes endure forever.[10] By contrast, humans are God's creatures. As such they are dying.[11] They are mortal.[12] They are perishable.[13] They fade away like the color on a leaf.[14] They return to the dust from which they were made.[15]

God is different. He is exclusively immortal. This, as well as his other exclusive attributes – like holiness and omnipotence – make it appropriate for us to worship him exclusively. Conditional immortality is – at the heart of the issue – a doctrine which seeks to preserve what the Bible says about God.

[1] 2 Timothy 4:17.

[2] 2 Timothy 4:6-8.

[3] Matthew Henry - The Matthew Henry Commentary on the Bible (1 Tim. 6:16).

[4] Robert A Peterson, in Two Views of Hell: A Biblical and Theological Dialogue. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2000), 88.

[5] 1 Cor. 9:25; 15:52; 1 Pet. 1:4, 23; 3:4

[6] Deut. 5:26; Josh. 3:10; 1 Sam. 17:26, 36; 2 Kgs 19:4, 16; Psa. 42:2; 84:2; Isa. 37:4, 17; Jer. 10:10; 23:36; Dan. 6:20, 26; Hos. 1:10; Matt. 16:16; 26:63; Acts 14:15; Rom. 9:26; 2 Cor. 3:3; 6:16; 1 Tim. 3:15; 4:10; Heb. 3:12; 9:14;10:31; 12:22; Rev. 7:2.

[7] Deut. 33:27; Rom. 16:26.

[8] Rom. 1:23.

[9] Gen. 21:33; Isa. 40:28.

[10] 1 Chr. 16:34, 41; 2 Chr. 5:13; 7:3, 6; 20:21; Ezra 3:11; Psa. 100:5; 106:1; 107:1; 111:3, 10; 112:3, 9; 117:2;118:1ff, 29; 119:160; 135:13; 136:1ff; 138:8; Eccl. 3:14; Jer. 33:11; 2 Cor. 9:9.

[11] Gen. 35:18; 2 Chr. 16:13; 24:22; Job 24:12; Luke 8:42; John 11:37; Heb. 11:21.

[12] Job 4:17; Rom. 1:23; 6:12; 8:11; 1 Cor. 15:53f; 2 Cor. 4:11; 5:4; Heb. 7:8.

[13] 1 Cor. 15:42, 50, 53f; 1 Pet. 1:23.

[14] Psa. 37:2; Isa. 64:6; Jam. 1:11.

[15] Gen. 3:19; Job 10:9; 34:15; Psa. 90:3; Eccl. 3:20.

the next paradise

2011-08-06T11:24:00.001-04:00

Recently, my pastor and his family went on vacation, and he asked me and my family to house-sit their residence. It was an interesting experience. His house is much larger, and in a much nicer neighborhood than any I have lived in. When I went on my daily walks, I found myself contemplating the beauty and orderliness and spaciousness of the neighborhood. I was not exactly envious – God has taken care of me and mine; I have never had a reason to complain. But I could not help but be struck by the extravagance of it all.

As I was musing over this one morning on one of my walks, I found myself praying to God. He asked me to take a good look at all this wealth, blessing and provision. Then he asked me to imagine myself (as he often does) a million years into the future. Looking back on those few days in the pastor’s neighborhood helps me to keep things in perspective. It helps me to realize that my entire life is simply a short temporary stay in (as it were) a borrowed house. What my Father has in store for me, when I get where he wants me, will be so magnificent that those few days among the well-off will seem like slumming.

God planted a garden

God had taken the elements of the ground (Hebrew: ‘adamah) and created a man (Hebrew: ‘adam).[1] He picked a spot of ground on the same planet and planted a rich and beautiful garden.[2] The garden was given to Adam for three expressed reasons:

1. enjoyment.

The trees and other contents of the garden of Eden were designed to be “pleasant to the sight.”[3] Long before scientists would invent the word ecosystem God had created one, and Adam had the pleasure of watching it work. The interplay between flora and fauna was – no doubt – amazing.

Even now, after thousands of years of corruption and dysfunction caused by sin – the planet is a marvel to behold. This planet’s ecosystem combines a varied geography with the peculiarities of myriads of species of plant and animal life, and produces an unsurpassed beauty. But it is more than just beauty. Our planet is a delight to behold because it all fits together in such an orderly system.

The ancients looked at creation and saw evidence for the existence of God because the world is a design that functions well. They reasoned from the design to a designer. They argued that if one found a watch in the sand, he would never imagine that the watch just emerged out of nothingness. Its design was too complicated for that. Just looking at the planet leads people back to its creator.

Eden was like that. Every blade of grass, every tree, every marvelous species of animal life – caused Adam to reflect upon the one who created it all. It was all “pleasant to the sight” and reminded Adam of the one who gave him eyes to see. Rather than distracting Adam, all this stuff enhanced Adam’s relationship with God. That is what the next paradise will be for.

2. life

The trees of the garden were designed to be “good for food.”[4] God had created Adam – not immortal like he was, but mortal: dependent upon the ground from which he was made. The ground would produce plants which would sustain the life of his soul. God had created him from the ground, and then breathed into his body the breath of life. The resulting combination was a living soul.[5] If Adam had not eaten, his body would have starved to death, and returned to the ground from which it had been fashioned. God wanted to preserve the man he created. He gave Adam what he needed to sustain his life.

Paradise was more than just a nice place to look at. It was designed to sustain life. That is also what the new heavens and new earth will do. Death and all associated with it will pass away.[6] Look at our future home and you will see a river of life flowing through it, and a tree of life in the midst of it.[7] Paradise will be eternal life for redeemed humanity.

3. meaning

Adam was placed in Eden “to work it and keep it.” That marvelous ecosystem will require the human touch to ensure that it continues to be all that God intended it to be. Adam enjoyed his work. Each day brought new discoveries. He “gave names to all the livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field.”[8] Every new discovery brought Adam even more appreciation of his God, as he categorized and celebrated the magnificent provision.

That is what the next paradise will be like. We will have an eternity to continue seeing what we have never seen before, and marveling at the elaborate richness of our inheritance.

God performed surgery

Nevertheless, the paradise of Eden was missing something that led God to pronounce it “not good.”[9] Adam needed “a helper fit for him.” Instead of forming this creature out of the ‘adamah as he had done all the others, God decided to perform the first recorded surgery, and fashion her out of ‘adam himself. Have you ever stopped to ask why the creator did so? He was creating a bride for his son, Adam. She would prefigure the bride for his Son, Jesus. She must be “a helper fit for him.” She must fit the criteria for the bride of Christ.

1. She must be IN HIM.

Eve began as part of Adam. She was in Adam. She literally came from him. If there had never been an Adam, there could never have been an Eve. She depended upon him for her life and for her destiny. The LORD God took her from Adam and brought her to Adam. Adam called her “bone of (his) bones and flesh of (his) flesh.”

In the same way, the next paradise (the new heavens and new earth) will be populated only by those who are in Christ. To be in him then, we must be in him now.

2. She must be FIT TO RULE.

Adam was a servant of God, and a ruler for God. He had been created so that he could have dominion over the “fish of the sea and the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that was moving on the earth.”[10] God had placed all of his domains under man’s dominion. If Eve was going to be “a helper fit for him” she must be able to rule at his side, to help him rule, to reign with him.

Does not the Scripture say that we, the bride of Christ, will reign with him[11] in his eternal kingdom? The next paradise, the new heavens and new earth will only be populated by kings and queens. We learn to serve under Christ so that we can someday rule with him.

3. He must sleep before SHE CAN LIVE!

The most remarkable picture that this surgery presents us with is a picture of Christ’s sacrificial death. “The LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man.”[12] Sleep in the Bible is a metaphor for death. Adam’s deep sleep was not death, but it was described in terms that prefigured Christ’s sleep in the tomb. Just as Adam had to fall asleep in order for Eve to be created, so Christ had to die on the cross in order to give life to his bride.

It was also essential that Adam wake from his sleep. He had to experience his resurrection so that he and his bride could come together and enjoy paradise together. So, the surgery in Eden prefigured the atonement, and the aftermath of the surgery prefigured the next paradise: the new heavens and the new earth.

Genesis 2 concludes with the record that “the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.”[13] This would be the last time something like that could be said, for shame and sorrow followed on the heels of sin – which was introduced into humanity’s story in the very next chapter. But the picture of paradise in Genesis 2 rightly ends with both bride and bridegroom enjoying the garden and each other’s company without shame. Humanity’s shame will be replaced with God’s glory. John describes the holy city as shining with the glory of God, the glory of kings, and the glory and the honor of the nations.[14]

I enjoyed my recent stay in the neighborhood where “the other half lives.” It has got me to thinking about my destiny. Do you share that destiny? Are you in Christ? Are you his bride? There will be a paradise tomorrow, but it only awaits those who are in Christ today.

[1] Genesis 2:7.

[2] Genesis 2:8.

[3] Genesis 2:9.

[4] Genesis 2:9.

[5] Genesis 2:7.

[6] Revelation 21:4.

[7] Revelation 22:1-2.

[8] Genesis 2:20.

[9] Genesis 2:18.

[10] Genesis 1:28.

[11] 2 Timothy 2:12; Revelation 20:6; 22:5.

[12] Genesis 2:21.

[13] Genesis 2:25.

[14] Revelation 21:22-26.

no “hope on the other side of the lake”

2011-07-28T22:21:00.001-04:00

Review of Erasing Hell by Francis Chan and Preston Sprinkle (Colorado Springs:, Colorado: David C. Cook, 2011) Kindle edition.

Francis Chan and Preston Sprinkle have joined forces to produce a contemporary book on hell that speaks to the hearts of today’s evangelicals, but engages our minds as well. Although admitting a reluctance to take up the subject, their approach flows from people who are serious about it, and who want to faithfully represent what the Bible says about it. They did not want to “get so lost in deciphering” and “forget to tremble” (87).

The title is a bit misleading – since the authors have no intention of actually erasing hell – or letting their readers forget it. Instead, the title speaks to the almost universal reluctance that modern humanity has of even thinking about the possibility of divine punishment. Most of us “would love to erase hell from the pages of Scripture” (13), but the references to final punishment are there, nonetheless.

Some have tried to erase hell by suggesting that it is merely a temporary phenomenon – that eventually all nonbelievers will be restored and God’s love will finally win the day. The problem is, nothing in Scripture “suggests that there’s hope on the other side of the lake (of fire)” (33).

The book prescribes a solution to our problems with hell – that we wise up to the fact that God is sovereign, and he is going to punish the lost so we might as well accept it. He is the potter, we are the clay. If he chooses not to save everyone, his love still wins, because his love is intrinsic. It is not defined by what we might expect it to do. The book defends God and hell, and encourages its readers to accept both as reality.

With one exception, that reality is exactly the teachings of popular Christianity that Rob bell reacted so strongly against.[1] Chan and Sprinkler defend what the modern universalist might call the traditional view of hell – as a place where God will torment unbelievers perpetually for all eternity. The only exception is that for Chan and Sprinkler, hell takes place after the final judgment, not immediately after death. They rightly conclude that the intermediate state is “where the wicked await their judgment” (156). What they do not admit is that it (sheol/hades) is also where the righteous await resurrection, and that for both it is a state of unconsciousness the Bible calls sleep.

No, Chan and Sprinkler will not erase hell. They are uncomfortable with the thought of people suffering for eternity, but conclude that they should not “erase God’s revealed plan of punishment because it doesn’t sit well with” them (135).

The book avoids any discussion of the essential nature of humanity, but proceeds from the same presuppositions regarding that question that Rob Bell did – that human souls are indestructible. This is seen in the explanation of Matthew 25:46, where Jesus speaks of the two destinies. The book argues that “Because the life in this age will never end, given the parallel, it also seems that the punishment in this age will never end” (85). If the authors had not already concluded that both destinies involve life, they could perhaps see that Jesus is not giving a description of two parallel destinies, but contrasting two permanent destinies, where only one involves life. The punishment is not life, but death, and it is just as permanent (Gk. aionios) as the believer’s life.[2]

Since they hold this presupposition of innate immortality, although the authors quote numerous texts of Scripture where hell is described as destruction (26-29, 80, 101-102, 109-111, 130), they conclude that this cannot be taken literally in any of them. They also conclude that the fire of hell is not a literal fire (154), and that the second death will not be a literal death (106-107). Neither of those conclusions can be established by exegesis of the texts themselves. They are all based on the presupposition of the innate immortality of the soul – a doctrine borrowed from paganism and infused into Christian thought by syncretism.

For those convinced that humans already have eternal life, Erasing Hell might achieve its purpose: to encourage them to accept the traditional notion of hell as God’s best -- even if it is repugnant to them. Chan admits that he does not feel that God is doing right by tormenting people for eternity, but adds “Maybe someday I will stand in complete agreement with (God), but for now I attribute the discrepancy to an underdeveloped sense of justice on my part” (141).

For me, the problem is not with God’s justice. If God created human beings immortal, his justice demands that they spend eternity suffering for their rejection of him. But that is just it. The Bible insists that humanity lost its chance at immortality in the garden of Eden. Since then, the only hope for anyone to live forever is found in Christ. Hell is designed for those outside of Christ. They have nothing immortal that would burn forever if thrown into a lake of fire. The fires of Hell will do what God says they will do. They will destroy those thrown into them, body and soul.[3]

This is both God’s justice and his love, because his new creation will be purged of all sin and evil. There will be no hell existing perpetually beside the kingdom. Christ will destroy all of God’s enemies.[4] That is the biblical hell. It ends God’s judgment and makes room for the eternal kingdom of life and love. That event is absolutely essential to God’s plan in history. No one should want to erase it.

[1] Rob Bell, LOVE WINS: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived. (Robert H. Bell, Jr. Trust, 2011).

[2] For more on the meaning of aionios, see my article “Solving the Problem of Hell.” http://www.afterlife.co.nz/2011/theology/annihilationism/solving-the-problem-of-hell-by-jefferson-vann/

[3] Matthew 10:28. For more on this fate, see Edward Fudge, The Fire that Consumes, third edition. (Eugene Oregon: Cascade Books, 2011).

[4] 1 Corinthians 15:24-26.

Solving the Problem of Hell

2011-07-17T19:45:00.001-04:00

Our ancestors’ rebellion in Eden has changed humanity from what God originally intended. Because of that rebellion, humanity has inherited a sinful inclination that devastates all our attempts at being good and doing good things. We are tainted with evil, depraved to the core. Legally, we stand condemned before God, so that even our obedience is never enough to justify us. We all sin in so many ways and so many times throughout our lives that destruction in Gehenna hell is almost the only solution for a just God to apply to the problem of us.

Hell

Every life so corrupted by the initial rebellion of Adam – so separated from God by its inherently selfish sinful inclination – deserves the punishment that God warns us of in the Bible. Unfortunately, there has been so much unbiblical tradition added to what the scripture says about that punishment that the term “hell” has ceased to be a helpful word to describe it. A better term – the one Jesus used – is Gehenna. Unlike the hell of tradition, this hell does not begin at death, but begins on judgment day at the end of the age. Also, unlike the hell of tradition, this hell is not a place for the torment of disembodied spirits, but is the place for the punishment and destruction of the whole person – body and spirit.

Originally designating a valley near Jerusalem where garbage was burned, Gehenna for Jesus is a place where every sin – no matter how small it might seem – counts. It is an event and a place for the punishment of every act of violence. It is also a place for the punishment of every careless thought and word of violence. Jesus said “everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment … and whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to the hell of fire.”[1] The reality of hell should make us careful about how we express our emotions.

Gehenna will also punish all those who have followed false teachers, and willfully passed on their deceptions. This idea makes modern humanity a little less comfortable, because it implies that humans are held accountable for the lies they are told as well as the lies they tell. But Jesus clearly taught that the religious leaders of his day were going to Gehenna, and taking with them all of their converts. He called the scribes and Pharisees hypocrites, because they “travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, (they) make him twice as much a child of hell as (them) selves.”[2] The reality of Gehenna should make us all wary of accepting any “new” doctrine.

The scribes and Pharisees were considered the super-spiritual of their day. If anyone envisioned what a holy man looked like, the appearance would be similar to that of a scribe (scripture expert) or Pharisee (law expert). Yet Jesus detected an inner spiritual defilement in these religious leaders. He said they “outwardly appear righteous to others, but within (they) are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”[3] He warned them by saying “You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell?”[4] The reality of Gehenna should make us all yearn for genuineness in our relationship to God and obedience to his word.

The hell of tradition is a different matter. Rather than teaching that hell is a place where sin is dealt with ultimately by God, tradition teaches a hell that is a sort of repository where God puts all those pesky sinners that he could not cure. It is a place of punishment and confinement, but not destruction. Having bought into the Greek concept of the immortality of the human soul, tradition is not in a place where it can accept what Jesus literally says about Gehenna. For Jesus, the judgment will take place not during the intermediate state (between death and the resurrection), but “on the last day.”[5]

That “last day” will be truly the last day for all sinners, because they will be raised not for life but for condemnation,[6] punishment (including torment) appropriate for each of their personal sins,[7] and then destruction. Yes, destruction. God has not created anything that he cannot destroy. Jesus said that he “can destroy both soul and body in hell.”[8] Jesus compared the Day of Judgment to the day the world was destroyed by Noah’s flood,[9] and the day the people of Sodom were destroyed by fire.[10] In calling people to himself, he urged them to take the narrow gate which leads to life, not the broad gate, which leads to destruction.[11]

Gehenna is a place for that destruction of both soul and body. That is why Jesus said “If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.”[12]

Gehenna is not a place known for life, but death. Those who suffer on judgment day will suffer for only as long as it takes to punish them for their sins, and then they will experience the same reality as anything else that is thrown into fire: they will die. The redeemed who are not condemned to Gehenna are said to “enter life.” But those condemned to Gehenna have entered death. That is why Jesus said “if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.”[13]

Destruction in Gehenna hell is almost the only solution for a just God to apply to the problem of sinful us. Thankfully, there is another solution. Since sin is so pervasive, and its consequences in our lives so comprehensive – God has provided in salvation a solution which touches upon every problem that sin has caused for his creatures. That solution is the gospel, which explains what Christ did for us (substitutionary atonement), and what he will do (resurrection and glorification).

Substitutionary Atonement

The apostle Paul put forth an axiom which applies to every aspect of sin discussed. He said “the wages of sin is death.”[14] Carried to its logical conclusion, that axiom would place every human being who has ever lived in the fires of Gehenna for a just destruction. Fortunately, there is a “but” in Paul’s statement: “but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The gospel tells us that Christ’s death on the cross can serve as a substitute punishment for the personal sins of everyone who turns to him in faith.

This substitutionary atonement is God’s idea. It is a free gift from a loving God who is determined to destroy all sin, but does not want to depopulate his universe in doing so. It is a manifestation of God’s attribute of grace. It is also a manifestation of his attribute of justice, since the punishment and death due us for our sins has been meted out on the substitute. The lesson Abraham learned on Mt. Moriah was that God will provide.[15] In that case, he provided a ram, whose head was caught in thorns. That ram served as a substitute for Abraham’s son, Isaac. The event prefigured another substitute God provided, when he allowed his own son to wear a crown of thorns, suffer punishment he did not deserve, and die. The wages of our sin was his death on the cross.

Resurrection

Since the wages of sin is death, the countryside of every country on this planet is littered with cemeteries. The sin imputed to all humanity as a result of Adam and Eve’s rebellion has resulted in just what God predicted: mortality and eventual – inevitable death. God offers a solution to this problem as well. He cannot simply reverse the curse and make it so that human beings will never die. He will not undo his just penalty. Instead, he offers a resurrection unto eternal life at Christ’s return.

This solution is once again a miraculous combination of God’s justice and his grace. His just punishment of mortality and eventual death still reigns. The cemeteries are still being filled. But the free gift of God is eternal life. This life will begin with a resurrection unto eternal, immortal life. It is the believer’s inheritance.[16] Peter says that God “has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”[17] Resurrection life is God’s solution to the problem of imputed sin, which keeps us heading to the grave.

Glorification

The axiom “the wages of sin is death” is also true spiritually. Our inherited sin has resulted in spiritual death. We not only experience death because of God’s justice, we also have died to his justice (and his grace too). Paul described this dilemma well: “For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?”[18] As much as we might want to do the right thing, spiritual death causes us to continue to sin.

God has provided a solution for this sin-reality as well. For every believer who trusts in Christ for his justification, God initiates through his Holy Spirit a process that will eventually lead to glorification – a complete restoration to a sinless state. This is a work of God from start to finish. Paul says “those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”[19] He speaks of glorification as a past tense event because he is emphasizing that it is a work of God.

In the present, however, most of us do not feel all that glorified yet. Our lives are a struggle where we keep getting in the way of the Holy Spirit as he seeks to sanctify us more and more. In fact, if anyone ever starts boasting that she has arrived and no longer sins, she is calling God a liar, and his word is not in her.[20] But we can look forward to more and more victories over sin as we yield to the Holy Spirit. He is the seal and guarantee of the glorified life that awaits us.[21]

In this life, believers do not have to experience the wages of spiritual death. This is true because “those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh (sinful inclination) with its passions and desires.”[22] We have been spiritually resurrected. Our baptism symbolizes this truth. Paul says “we were buried … with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”[23] Our death to sin allows Christ to live his resurrected life through us. This allows us to experience a glimpse of the glorified life now – in victory over sin.

The only way to solve the problem of the hell of destruction we all deserve is to trust in Christ for salvation now. All who do so will receive forgiveness from sins now, and the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives leading to their resurrection and glorification at Christ’s return. All others will face hell, which the Bible calls the second death. That hell is permanent. There will be no coming back, and no second chance. For sinners today, Christ is the only way to avoid destruction in hell tomorrow.

Recently, pastor Rob Bell has suggested that God’s love will eventually restore even those who are thrown into hell itself. In his bestselling book, Love Wins, Bell speaks of “a long tradition of Christians who believe that God will ultimately restore everything and everybody”[24] – even those he has thrown into hell. That long standing tradition was the belief in purgatory. It was based on another long tradition in the church – the doctrine of the immortality of souls. The reasoning was that since souls burning in hell will be alive for eternity, there is a chance that God’s mercy might eventually restore them. Bell suggests that this is God’s plan – to eventually restore all to himself and through that restoration his love will win over his wrath.

Bell’s solution to the problem of hell has much appeal to today’s society, just as the invented doctrine of purgatory did in the dark ages. It allows humanity to continue to reject Christ – the only solution God offers – and still come out alive. Bell’s problem with the traditional hell is that in it God never gets what he wants. He points out two conflicting facts: “ ‘that God is mighty, powerful, and “in control” and that billions of people will spend forever apart from this God, who is their creator, even though it’s written in the Bible that “God wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2). So does God get what God wants?”[25] Bell’s solution is to suggest what pagan Christianity did: that Hell is not permanent.

But everything the Bible says about hell suggests otherwise. Hell is a second death from which there is no resurrection. The first death is temporary, because all will be raised from it to stand before God on Judgment Day. Only those whose names are on the Lamb’s book of life will be rescued from that second death.[26] Those who are not listed as having been saved will perish,[27] be destroyed,[28] and be burned up.[29]

This destruction is permanent. The New Testament had many ways of describing something that is permanent. It could talk about things that remain after other things disintegrate. In such cases it would use the Greek verb meno. Paul said that the new covenant has more glory than the old, because the new covenant remains (meno), while the old covenant was being brought to an end.[30]

Sometimes a word indicating the impossibility of destruction would be used of permanent things. Examples include the adjective afthartos (imperishable)[31] and the noun athanasia (immortality).[32] These words are never used to describe the people in hell. They are only used of God, and of those who come to Christ and so never see hell.

The word the New Testament uses of hell that causes the most confusion is the adjective aionios, usually translated eternal. The English word eternal suggests a process that goes on forever. The way the New Testament uses the word, it usually depicts something that is permanent in contrast with things that are temporary.

Notice, for example how the New Testament uses aionios to compare some things that were permanent with some things that were temporary:

• the permanent sin which can never be forgiven (Mark 3:29).

• the permanent weight of glory compared with our slight momentary affliction (2 Corinthians 4:17; 1 Peter 5:10).

• the permanent things that are unseen compared to the transient things that are seen (2 Corinthians 4:18).

• the permanent house (body) in the heavens compared to our temporary tent (body) on earth (2 Corinthians 5:1).

• the permanent destruction the lost will face at Christ’s return (2 Thessalonians 1:9).

• the permanent comfort and good hope we have through God’s grace (2 Thessalonians 2:16).

• the permanent glory that accompanies salvation in Christ (2 Timothy 2:10).

• Philemon’s permanent return to Colossae, after being parted from them for a while (Philemon 1:15).

• The permanent salvation made possible by Jesus, our great high priest (Hebrews 5:9).

• The permanent judgment that will take place after the resurrection of the dead (Hebrews 6:2).

• The permanent redemption secured by Christ’s sacrifice in the heavenly sanctuary (Hebrews 9:12).

• the permanent covenant made possible by the shedding of the blood of Christ (Hebrews 13:20).

• entrance into the permanent kingdom provided for all those who make their calling and election sure (2 Peter 1:10-11).

Use of this adjective was never intended to negate the concepts of destruction and coming to an end already inherent in the idea of hell. The adjective aionios was used to show that the event of hell could not be reversed. Sadly, this reversal is exactly what Bell is suggesting. He attempts to solve the problem of hell by making it a temporary phenomenon.

God’s justice demands a hell that is hot enough to destroy, and to do so permanently. The problem of hell cannot be solved until hell itself is destroyed. Paul envisioned a reign of Christ which would destroy all his enemies, including death itself. Death would be the last enemy destroyed.[33] That means all other enemies will be destroyed – not punished for a while and then restored. Sadly, there will probably be billions in that number. Jesus said “the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.”[34] That is a terrible tragedy, but pretending that it will not be so is not going to help.

We should question the traditional view of hell (that of unending torment), because it is wrong. But suggesting that God is not serious when he warns people of their impending destruction is also wrong. Those who know about God’s grace, and his limited time offer of eternal life through Christ should be finding fresh new ways of proclaiming that truth to this generation on its way to hell. The gospel is the only solution to the problem of hell.

[1] Matt. 5:22.

[2] Matt. 23:15.

[3] Matt. 23:28.

[4] Matt. 23:33.

[5] John 12:48.

[6] Matt. 12:37; Mark 12:40; 16:16; Luke 20:47; James 5:12; 2 Pet. 2:3.

[7] Rev. 20:13.

[8] Matt. 10:28.

[9] Luke 17:27.

[10] Luke 17:29.

[11] Matt. 7:13-14.

[12] Matt. 5:29-30.

[13] Matt. 18:9.

[14] Rom. 6:23.

[15] Gen. 22.

[16] Gal. 3:18; Eph. 1:11,14,18; 5:5; Col. 1:12; 3:24; Heb. 9:15.

[17] 1 Pet. 1:3-5.

[18] Rom. 7:22-24.

[19] Rom. 8:30.

[20] 1 John 1:10.

[21] 2 Cor. 1:22; 5:5; Eph. 1:13-14.

[22] Gal. 5:24.

[23] Rom. 6:4.

[24] Rob Bell, Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived (Harper Collins, Inc.. Kindle Edition, 2011), 107.

[25] Bell, 97.

[26] Philippians 4:3; Revelation 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12, 15; 21:27.

[27] Luke 13:3, 5; John 3:16; 10:28; Acts 8:20; 13:41; Romans 2:12; 2 Pet. 3:9.

[28] Matthew 7:13; 22:7; Luke 17:27, 29; Acts 3:23; Romans 9:22; 1 Cor. 8:11; 10:9f; 15:26; Philippians 3:19; 2 Thess. 1:9; Heb. 10:39; 2 Pet. 2:12; 3:7.

[29] Malachi 4:1, 2 Peter 2:6; Jude 7.

[30] 2 Cor. 3:11.

[31] Mark 16:8; Rom. 1:23; 1 Cor. 9:25; 15:52; 1 Tim. 1:17; 1 Pet. 1:4, 23; 3:4.

[32] 1 Cor. 15:53f; 1 Tim. 6:16.

[33] 1 Cor. 15:26.

[34] Matthew 7:13.

“life has no meaning without destiny”

2011-07-13T11:42:00.001-04:00

Review of Earth’s Final Dawn by Clinton E. Taber.

The subtitle of Clint Taber’s new book Earth’s Final Dawn[1] is “understanding this age in view of the coming new age.” It is a systematic eschatology with numerous practical insights. Taber believes that “life has no meaning without destiny” (43). The destiny he envisions is the restoration of Edenic Paradise for eternity, cleansed of all things temporary – like sickness, pain, sin and death. The Bible is the story of how those temporary things came to be, and what God is doing to bring them to an end. It reveals how God has worked through history to replace the temporary kingdoms of Satan and men with his permanent kingdom, ruled by Christ. That kingdom is now in its formation phase – where God is preparing “a people who would live in fellowship with Him in His Kingdom Paradise for His glory forever (xxii).

Humanity is on the verge of witnessing earth’s final dawn – the dawn of the age to come. In this present age, Christ dealt with our sin problem by becoming our sacrifice of atonement. In the new age, after Christ returns, he will destroy death by raising his own from their graves, and destroy all his enemies by consuming them with the fires of hell. All of this is immanent – it could happen at any moment. All of this is necessary – because God’s plan for a restored Edenic Paradise cannot happen without it.

In Taber’s explanation of these things, you will find exegetical overviews of significant eschatological books of the Bible (like Daniel and Revelation) and extensive treatments of relevant doctrines (like the resurrection, the timing of the second coming, and conditional immortality).[2] His treatments are thorough, biblically sound, and up-to-date. He avoids following the party-line of popular end-times teachings, but points out that their popularity is due to the relevance that eschatology has for everyone.

Taber is not an extremist. He encourages balanced, biblical thinking on these important issues. He discourages the kind of date-setting fanaticism that has brought shame to the Church historically, and recently. He presents a powerful case that Christ could come in this generation, but stops short of saying that he definitely will. His evidence is compelling to anyone, but especially to those of us who long for our coming king.

Taber goes beyond simply proving that Christ is coming again. He gives his readers an appetite for the event. His descriptions of “main street” and “paradise park” (chapter 7) paint emotionally charged portraits of why Christ must come back. He captures the angst of this age with his descriptions of the pain, anxiety, trouble and sorrow that this world is now facing. He offers glimpses of a new age where the old limitations and sorrows are erased – the old bondages destroyed. He speaks as a man, and as a man of God who has seen much suffering, but who still believes that “God will not leave man forever in a world that falls short of his glory and purpose” (247).

Tabor neither expects nor demands complete agreement with everything he has presented. He encourages investigation. I took exception with Taber’s treatment of Rev. 20, and of some of his exegesis of Matthew 24. But these minor differences of exegesis did not deter me from my enjoyment of the work, or my benefit from it. Taber’s work is a well-written reminder that the second coming of Christ is the believer’s blessed hope. Come, Lord Jesus.

[1] Clinton E. Taber, Earth’s Final Dawn (Xulon Press, 2011) hereafter referred to by page number or chapter.

[2] Conditionalists will find particular interest in chapter 2, where Taber shows that Christ was sent to fight the battle of the ages in his own grave (63). Taber points out that “Death is the antithesis of life. Contrary to popular opinion, it is not the same as life. Death prevents man (even a believer) from experiencing the glories of God’s Kingdom Paradise. Without resurrection, there isn’t any future for man” (64). In chapter 5, Taber argues against the notion of innate immortality and for the notion of humanity’s complete dependence upon God. He investigates three views of what happens at death (reincarnation, relocation and resurrection) and concludes that “our problem with death stems from the fact that we were created for something better” (157). In chapter 6, Taber explains why the adjective eternal describes both destinies: “Eternal death is death forever. Eternal life is life forever” (193).

living as people of the promise

2011-07-06T15:36:00.001-04:00

2 Peter 3 (ESV)

The apostle Peter was marked for death. He had been pursued and persecuted by his own Jewish brothers, and now the Roman government had put him on their hit list. He knew that his time was short. This letter (2 Peter) was probably his last chance to communicate with a group of believers and churches that he felt responsible for. He was not going to waste his words. Peter’s words were to be his legacy. He wanted his readers to recall them long after he was dead (1:14-15). He wanted them to live as people of the promise.

The whole chapter is about the second coming. He mentions the second coming of Christ six times:

•Skeptics are going to try to get people to believe that the promise will always be unfulfilled (4,9).

•He shows that it will be bad news for some because it will bring judgment and destruction on the ungodly (7).

•It will be the Day of the LORD that divides this age from the next (10).

•It will dissolve the temporary things to make room for the permanent (11).

•It is the day of God (not creation, incarnation, or even the resurrection of Christ) 12.

Now, look at how Peter frames his argument. He uses the same word each time he begins a new section. That word is beloved. Look at verses 1,8,14,17. I asked myself why he is breaking up his letter like that. I think the answer lies back in 2:1, where he warns of false teachers bringing in “destructive heresies.” Peter responds to four different destructive heresies that were going to be introduced to the church. We have to use our imaginations to discover which heresies he responds to, because we only have his responses. But it is clear that each heresy is about the second coming.

2 Peter 3:1-7 This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, 2 that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, 3 knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. 4 They will say, "Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation." 5 For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, 6 and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. 7 But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

Peter is responding to those who say that nothing ever changes in this world. They would probably argue that Jesus does not need to come because we can eventually figure out the world’s problems and take care of them. There is some truth in every heresy. Truth: the world is predictable. Truth: Christ has not yet come. Peter responded by pointing out that creation happened when God said GO. The flood happened when God said GO. Jesus is going to come again as soon as God says GO! We are people of the promise. We should focus on what will be, not what has been.

2 Peter 3:8-13 But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. 11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, 12 waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! 13 But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Peter is responding to those who say that God is too good and kind and patient to ever make good on his threat to annihilate the universe. Once again, there is truth here. Psalm 136 celebrates the steadfast love of God which endures forever. But Peter says the purpose of God’s patience is to populate a new universe after he has destroyed the old one. We can actually hasten the coming by getting involved in that redemptive work. God’s justice will eventually prevail, so his mercy is not infinite.

2 Peter 3:14-16 Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. 15 And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, 16 as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.

Peter is responding to those who say that when you look at all the isms and conflicting teachings about the second coming, the whole thing is too confusing and impossible to explain. Peter says, true, it is confusing, and people distort the truth just like they do Paul’s writings. We need good solid systematic teaching on these issues. But the most important thing is not being able to explain the second coming, but being ready for it when it comes.

2 Peter 3:17-18 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

Peter is responding to those who say that all those doctrines the church teaches are irrelevant: they don’t matter, and the second coming is one of those doctrines. True, good theology cannot save you, but bad theology can destroy you. It can make you lose your stability. Destructive heresies can destroy your walk and keep you from the coming kingdom. There are two eternal destinies: permanent life or permanent death. Peter warns against turning from this truth back to defilements of the world. To know the gospel and turn against it is worse that not knowing it at all.

This may be the last gospel message you ever hear. I challenge you to live in the reality of the promise of Christ’s second coming. Peter said it this way: “Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God” (11-12). Living in the light of the second coming is learning to live as we shall – not as we have, not as we are. God accepts us by grace, and sees us just as we will be. John says that when he appears we will be like him. Peter says be diligent to be found by him spotless.

LORD, we ask you to transform us now, and commit ourselves to living that transformation so that we hasten Christ’s coming. Make us people of the promise!

the big picture

2011-06-10T20:32:00.001-04:00

Review of The Tree of Life: A Biblical Study of Immortality & New Creation by Paul Sellman

Pastor Paul Sellman has produced a significant study in biblical theology for the modern context. Much like John Stott and Edward Fudge, Sellman came to his study of the issues of life, death and destiny convinced that people go to their rewards at death. His study of the scriptures has revealed a different outlook. He now sees that death is not the answer to humanity’s problem, it is part of that problem. The solution to humanity’s problem is Jesus Christ, whose return will mean the end of evil, and an eternal new beginning for the saved.

The genius of Sellman’s approach to this controversial subject is his way of simplifying these very complex issues. He asks his readers to put aside their preconceived notions and to imagine all history as being represented by two ages: this age, and the age to come.

This age is the age of mortality because humanity rebelled against God in Eden, thus lost the opportunity to take of the tree of life and live forever. The age to come is an age of restoration where God renews heaven and earth with life eternal as it was meant to be. The crucial event which will put an end to this age of mortality and usher in the age of eternal life is what the Bible calls the Day of the Lord.

Sellman shows from scripture that this Day of the Lord is an event taught in both Testaments. It is the Day of Jesus Christ and the Day of his return, and Resurrection Day, and Judgment Day. It is the essential event in all history, since it divides the two ages. It corrects the problems of this age, and explains the destiny of those who will by God’s grace make it into the next.

Sellman attacks some of the theological traditions within popular Christianity that tend to obscure this way of looking at things. Chief among these traditions is the concept borrowed from Greek philosophy that all human souls are already immortal. Sellman argues that this is “an unbiblical presupposition” (152) which has led Christians who read the Bible to “see something that isn’t there” (172). He calls this view “the great heresy of all existence” (195). Immortality was lost in Eden, and will not be gained back “until the rebellion that lost it is ended” (197).

To Sellman, “good theology is based upon what is clearly taught, and then filled in by the less certain elements” (91). What is clearly taught in scripture is humanity’s need for eternal life in this age; God’s plan to fill that need in the age to come; and the Day of the Lord which will make God’s plan reality.

So, until that great event of the Day of the Lord arrives, those who die wait unconscious in their graves for resurrection – either to eternal life or to the second death. That is why the Bible calls Christians who have died asleep in Christ.

It is impossible for a reviewer to like everything about a book -- so there are a few changes that might improve this work in its next edition. Here is a short list of suggestions:

1. The frequent use of the first person is a style matter, but it seems to detract from the scholarly nature of the study.

2. Quotes from the Bible are everywhere in this work, but the font, italics, and justification combined in quotations tend to make some of the text run together.

3. Sellman steers away from a number of technical and complicated issues and avoids getting carried away in discussing particularly problematic texts. This is a good thing, but might be seen by opponents of his position as “chickening out.” A few well-placed reference notes to popular works (like that of Stott and Edwards) which do get into those texts might help.

4. The Tree of Life is not yet available in electronic book format. If it were, this review would have been written sooner!

The Tree of Life is a skilful and contemporary approach to questions that God’s people have been asking since the time of the patriarchs. It is the kind of book that pastors can pass on to new church members, who are just getting to know about the issues of life, death, and destiny. It helps to explain the way things are, and whet our appetites for the way things will be.

Jefferson Vann

Williamsburg, Virginia, USA

What would a Resource Site for Bible Study contain?

2011-06-03T15:14:00.001-04:00

I’m throwing together some random thoughts today about another one of my lifetime projects that I hope to get on the web before I pop off.

I have already begun posting on my devotions site. The idea behind that one is that as I read my daily devotions each morning, I write whatever seems appropriate, and blog it. Before long, I will have produced a running commentary of whole books of the Bible, and the idea is that some day I will have covered the whole text. At my current rate, I should complete this project in four or five years. Any time I am granted beyond that will be good for corrections and rewrites. One useful thing that I have done is tag and categorize the posts by text and subject. That makes the site useful for searching topically as well.

Another of my lifetime projects is the completion of a systematic theology site. This idea started as a book on systematic theology, and then I started posting each chapter as it was written. At present I am about 2/3rds completed with that project. Already I have found that if people ask particular doctrinal questions, I can usually refer them to a chapter or section in the blog for more detailed answers. These posts are categorized by theological locus.

The project I am considering right now is a resource site for Bible study. What should such a site contain? Here is a short list:

Background information on each paragraph/ pericope.
Word studies and translation notes on key words found.
Theological summaries of key topics.
Significant quotes from commentaries, etc.
Suggestions as to how to apply the texts.

Did I forget something? If you have a suggestion of something else which should be included, send a comment.

I am also thinking that the best way to do this project would be to do everything in one post per section, and to start with Genesis 1 and go through the Bible text in the given order.

I am not ready to start this project yet, because I want to plan it so that it can be accomplished without delays and revisions. I also want to have an idea of what I am going to do about titles, and what the tags and categories for such a site should be.

I am also toying with the idea of setting it up so that others could contribute to the project. This may entail getting people to volunteer to contribute as collaborators for certain texts or sections. Or, it may just be a matter of asking people to contribute by means of comments.

The idea of a resource site is intriguing to me. If done well, it will have the advantage over a commentary in that it would not be confined by space, and it would make the data available to the general public without cost.

If someone reading this has the idea that you might want to try putting together a resource site as well, GO FOR IT! There is plenty of space on the web. I look forward to seeing what happens!

Overcoming Pray-ers Block

2011-04-25T15:13:00.001-04:00

Why Prayer is Important

Prayer is among the most important disciplines that mature Christians learn in their walk with the LORD. The saying goes that “prayer changes things.” That is not exactly true. If it were not for our loving, merciful and sovereign God, prayer would accomplish nothing. But since we have a God who answers prayers, the importance of prayer cannot be understated.

Most Christians agree with this assessment, so proving the value of prayer is not necessary. Even the most immature Christians recognize and acknowledge that they should pray – that it would be good for them if they did pray, and that prayer would change their lives if they did it more often.

The Bible reminds us again and again that when God’s people pray, things happen:

“Abraham prayed to God, and God healed...”[1]
“Isaac prayed to the LORD ...and Rebekah his wife conceived.”[2]
“Moses prayed to the LORD, and the fire died down.”[3]
Hannah prayed for a child. She “called his name Samuel, for she said, "I have asked for him from the LORD."”[4]
“Elisha prayed” and some eyes were opened, others were blinded.[5]
“Hezekiah ...and Isaiah ...prayed” and stopped the Assyrian army from invading Judah.[6]
“Ezra prayed” and his people repented of their rebellion.[7]
Daniel prayed and God delivered him from the lions.[8]
Jonah prayed, and God delivered him by the fish, and then from the fish.[9]
Jesus prayed, and taught his disciples to pray.[10]
They prayed, and taught the church to pray.[11]

Pray-ers Block

But in spite of this biblical evidence, I dare say that we all stand convicted that we do not pray enough, and feel defeated by our sad attempts to reach heaven in prayer. We read Paul’s challenge to “pray without ceasing,”[12] but are ashamed to admit that we do not live up to that challenge. Like a writer, who knows she should be writing, but suffers from writers block, we pray-ers are often stricken with pray-ers block.

There are no easy, automatic solutions to the problem of pray-ers block. Like regular bible study, consistent giving, and loving fellowship with other believers, regular prayer is a discipline. It can be accomplished, but not without hard work, determination, and self-control.

Perhaps some readers are ready to stop reading now – afraid that my counsel has strayed away from the doctrine of salvation by grace. Let me assure you that I have not done so. Every spiritual and physical blessing we ever receive from the LORD is through grace -- bought by the blood of Christ and not our own works.

But the champions of salvation by grace were also the champions of regular disciplined prayer. They taught that once crossing the threshold of deliverance we would be faced with a wilderness that we would need to be guided through. That guidance comes through the Holy Spirit, and we keep in contact with him through prayer. They knew from the writings of Moses that it is possible to be rescued by grace and still die in the wilderness. For that reason they commanded prayer.

To put it another way, our call into the church by grace is a call to be the church – which requires doing battle in the spirit realm. God has taken up his battle armour for us. “He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on his head; he put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak.”[13] That does not mean that we are bystanders in the spiritual war. No, by faith in God’s grace we must:

· Trust in his truth (fasten on the belt),

· Trust in his righteousness (put on the breastplate),

· Trust in his gospel of peace (put on the shoes),

· Trust in his protection (take up the shield of faith),

· Trust in his salvation (take the helmet),

· Trust in his word (take the sword of the Spirit)[14]

But that trust is demonstrated by “praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints”.[15] The kingdom of God is at war with the kingdom of darkness. We demonstrate which side we are on --our citizenship in the kingdom --by doing warfare – on our knees.

Some practical Suggestions

Pray-ers block is not something that can be overcome by putting into practice a few simple steps to success. However, like writers block, it can be overcome if the sufferer really wants to, and is willing to change her behaviour to make it happen. To that end, here are a few suggestions of the kind of changes that have helped others pray more consistently.

1. Pray out loud. For many, attempts to pray silently are defeated by minds that get distracted too easily. Some have found that praying out loud helps them to concentrate, and keeps their minds from wandering off.

2. Write your prayers. Writing out one’s thoughts to the LORD often helps to keep those prayers on target. Writing is also understood as being more substantial than merely speaking, which can help the pray-er to realize the significance of what he is doing. The Bible contains many examples of prayers offered to God which have been written for our benefit.

3. Read and/or listen to other people’s prayers. Those prayers written in the bible are of benefit to us today. Also other prayers by great saints of the past, and the things they have written about prayer can serve to guide us in expressing our devotion to the LORD, in seeking his will, and in praying for others. They cannot replace our prayers to God, but can serve as examples for us to follow.

4. Make lists. Some of the great warriors of prayer that I have known brought lists with them to prayer meetings. The lists helped them to focus on particular people and specific needs. The lists were also evidence that they took prayer seriously. This suggestion is particularly helpful if one is task-oriented. Be creative! Sources of these lists can include:

a. church bulletins and directories,
b. social networks,
c. newspapers,
d. prayer calendars,
e. newsletters,
f. websites,
g. school yearbooks,
h. club membership lists.

5. Illustrate. Use pictures to help focus your prayers. One of my lists is my friends on Facebook. Having profile pictures associated with each name helps me to stay focused on them and their needs as I pray. When we were foreign missionaries, my family benefited greatly from an army of pray-ers who kept our prayer card in their Bibles, or on their refrigerators. Regularly seeing our picture reminded them to keep praying for us.

6. Covenant. Make agreements with yourself and the LORD to pray for specific things at specific times. Examples of such covenants include:

a. praying for a congregation every time you pass the building where they worship,
b. praying for everyone you know on their birthdays,
c. praying for political leaders every time you see the national flag,
d. praying for the sick and injured that you know every time you see a hospital sign or see or hear an ambulance,
e. praying for people with a certain first name every time you see that name in writing, or hear it spoken.
f. dividing all your lists into seven categories, then assigning a day of the week to each category.

7. Record. When you pray for specific things, keep records of the requests so that you can see how God is answering your prayers. We often miss the joy of discovering how much God is listening because we fail to check back on the status of prayers previously prayed.

Persevere!

There are victories to be won, and obstacles to be overcome which will only happen when God’s people appeal to him to intervene. God is looking for a people who are willing to persevere through the times when prayer seems dry and distant. He is looking for people who see every challenge they face as an opportunity to pray until he does something about it. He is looking for a people who are not satisfied with a “normal” prayer life. We can be a people like that if we only learn to persevere in prayer.

[1] Genesis 20:17.

[2] Genesis 25:21.

[3] Numbers 11:2.

[4] 1 Samuel 1:20.

[5] 2 Kings 6:17-18.

[6] 2 Chronicles 32:20 -21.

[7] Ezra 10:1 .

[8] Daniel 6:10.

[9] Jonah 2:1, 10.

[10] Luke 11:1; Matthew 6:9.

[11] Acts 1:24; 4:31; James 5:13-16.

[12] 1 Thessalonians 5:17.

[13] Isaiah 59:17.

[14] Ephesians 6:13-17.

[15] Ephesians 6:18.

reflecting grace

2011-04-23T13:41:00.001-04:00

LORD, today you have challenged me by your word to reflect grace in my relationships, and I want to do that.

John said of you that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” you reflected the glory of heaven. I want to do that too.

I especially want to be an agent of grace to the people you have blessed me with in my family, my church, my friends, the people I casually encounter, and the people I minister to by my writings.

I believe that I have received grace from you, and that I can be a reflection of that grace. I also know that by allowing my flesh to prevail I can hinder that reflection. Cleanse the mirror of my life by your Holy Spirit so that I reflect you in purity, without distortion.

I believe that I, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, am “being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” I pray that I will always be a willing participant in the process.

I pray that many others come into your kingdom after seeing it reflected in my life.

In Jesus’ name. Amen.

______________________

see Ephesians 5:22-6:9; John 1:14, 16-17; 2 Corinthians 3:18.

Depression

2011-04-21T17:06:00.001-04:00

I’ve been going through a bit of a rough road for a while now. I trust the LORD to lead me out of it. He always does. It’s just taking longer than usual.

I found comfort today in the words of this sermon that I preached in 2009. If you are going through tough times, I hope this helps you as much.

Psalm 42:1-11 (ESV)

TO THE CHOIRMASTER. A MASKIL OF THE SONS OF KORAH.

As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? 3 My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me continually, "Where is your God?" 4 These things I remember, as I pour out my soul: how I would go with the throng and lead them in procession to the house of God with glad shouts and songs of praise, a multitude keeping festival. 5 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation 6 and my God. My soul is cast down within me; therefore I remember you from the land of Jordan and of Hermon, from Mount Mizar. 7 Deep calls to deep at the roar of your waterfalls; all your breakers and your waves have gone over me. 8 By day the LORD commands his steadfast love, and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life. 9 I say to God, my rock: "Why have you forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?" 10 As with a deadly wound in my bones, my adversaries taunt me, while they say to me continually, "Where is your God?" 11 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.

If you want to know what a person is thinking, listen to his conversations. If you want to know what he is feeling, listen to his songs. That's why the psalms are so important to Christians. We get to go deeper into the inner feelings of people as they wrestled with life and God and the devil. As we do that, we realize something really important: they felt like us. They got mad at the same things that we do. They felt glad at the same kinds of things that make us glad. The same sorts of things embarrassed them, and the same conditions that tend to depress us, made them depressed as well.

This psalm bares a soul who is in the depths of an ugly depression. For that reason alone it deserves a place in the scriptures because God's people need to know that it's OK to feel that way some time. If you wake up feeling depressed, it doesn't mean that you have somehow failed God. We are commanded to rejoice in the LORD:

Psalm 64:10 “Let the righteous one rejoice in the LORD”
Philippians 4:4 “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.”

So, what do we do when we don't feel like obeying those commands? This psalm is written for just such times as that. It's like a blues song. It's a song you can sing when you don't feel like singing. It's a song about hard times, disappointment, distress. It digs deep into the pits -the bad times, but it doesn't leave us there. In fact, within this psalm are some of the tools that we can use to pull ourselves out of depression. Do you want to know what those tools are? Well, listen up.

1)Tool #1: Realize that depression is a natural consequence to living in a fallen world.

This psalm was written by a believer who suffered from depression (5-6,11).

We do not know whether one of the descendants of Korah was the author, or whether they were just a group of collectors. But whoever the original author of this psalm was, two things are sure about it: it bears the mark of the Holy Spirit, and it reflects the feelings of a person who is battling with depression.

“Why are you cast down, O my soul?”
“Why are you in turmoil within me?”
“My soul is cast down within me”

Many of the psalms were written by those who had deep bouts of depression.

There is, in fact, a whole category of psalms that reflect the believer's inner conflict when times are bad. They are called psalms of Lament. Jeremiah's book Lamentations was a Lament.

Many of the heroes of the faith suffered from depression.

John Calvin was of the opinion that Psalm 42 was actually written by David, and that is possible, considering all the psalms that are ascribed to David which struggled with this same harsh reality. We know, for example that David wrote:

Psalm 22:1-2 “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest.”

Jesus himself quoted that psalm when he was in agony on the cross. Why would he do that? It is a psalm that reflected such disappointment, such despair, that the Holy Spirit used it to predict Christ's ordeal on the cross!

Psalm 22:6-8 “But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people. All who see me mock me; they make mouths at me; they wag their heads; `He trusts in the LORD; let him deliver him; let him rescue him, for he delights in him!'"

Psalm 22:14-18 “I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; my strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death. For dogs encompass me; a company of evildoers encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet - I can count all my bones - they stare and gloat over me; they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.”

Feelings of depression can be the Holy Spirit yearning for what's next (2,5-6,11).

In psalm 42, the psalmist forced himself to look beyond the present problems and envision a triumphant future.

Psalm 42:2 “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?”

Psalm 42:5-6,11 “Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.”

This is the Holy Spirit's way of reminding us that the last line of the song has not yet been written. The troubles we face are real. They reflect the fact that we live in a fallen world where the good guys don't always win, and evil sometimes triumphs, but that is only temporary. When the last line of the song is written, God is the winner, and things are set right. Remember psalm 22? Here's how it ends:

Psalm 22:27-31 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. For kingship belongs to the LORD, and he rules over the nations. All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship; before him shall bow all who go down to the dust, even the one who could not keep himself alive. Posterity shall serve him; it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation; they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn, that he has done it.

That explains why Jesus could be quoting such a sad song as he hung on the cross. He was reminding himself of the bad predicament he was in – true. But the Holy Spirit was reminding him of the eternal result of his suffering. All the ends of the earth will remember his day on the cross. Posterity shall serve him!

2)Tool #2: Recognize that the circumstances of your life are not accidental.

The psalmist finds himself not where he wants to be (6).

Psalm 42:6 “I remember you from the land of Jordan and of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.”

I think that the psalmist of Psalm 42 was not David, but was one of the descendants of Korah. He was a Levite, and his life revolved around the annual worship celebrations at the temple of God in Jerusalem. But here's the problem: he cannot go to Jerusalem. He is held captive in a Gentile land far north of Jerusalem.

He is haunted by the inability to return to the glory days of the past (4).

Psalm 42:4 “These things I remember, as I pour out my soul: how I would go with the throng and lead them in procession to the house of God with glad shouts and songs of praise, a multitude keeping festival.”

When I pastored in a small church many years ago, I had a couple in my church who had been members in a large, energetic church. They were a great couple, and I thank the Lord for their contribution to our church, but they complained a lot. When I visited them, they would constantly compare their present church experience to that church in their glorious past. Their present circumstances were unbearable for them, not because I was a bad pastor, and not because we had bad programs or people, but because they were living in the past. Depression does that to you.

The Korahite is lost in his memories of a better day – a day when he could function in his God-given role as a leader in a worship procession like no other. Vast crowds would laugh and sing, chant scriptures and hug each other as they marched into the Holy City itself... and he would be among the Levites leading them.

Perhaps you have had a great experience in your past. Hang on to those memories and rejoice in them, but don't get stuck there. God has a future for you too. Don't allow your past to keep you from experiencing the new blessings God has in store for you today and tomorrow. Rejoice over yesterday, and then let it go. The same Holy Spirit who gave you a good yesterday has a great tomorrow for you. Expect it.

He is hounded by constant reminders that his witness is inadequate. They ask “where is your God?” (3,10).

To add insult to injury, the Korahite appears to have lived in a pagan land with relative prosperity. He was a poor believing stranger living among rich unbelievers. His neighbors noticed that his tent was a little shabby compared to theirs. He had fewer animals, or maybe none at all. His crops didn't gleam in the sun as brightly as theirs did. They would pass by him and deliver one of the most crushing rhetorical questions ever.
Psalm 42:3 “My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me continually, `Where is your God?'"

Psalm 42:10 “As with a deadly wound in my bones, my adversaries taunt me, while they say to me continually, `Where is your God?'"

Those pagan Gentiles had only one way of looking at things: the religious way. If a man is poor, or unhealthy, or lives in unsanitary conditions, it's a reflection on the god he serves. He's poor because his god is weak.

Now, how is a person supposed to witness in a situation like that? You see, being a witness is not just a New Testament thing. It didn't begin with the Great Commission. God wanted the nation of Israel to be witnesses to his greatness, “that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD is God; there is no other” (1 Kings 8:60). But things are so bad for this Korahite that he is witnessing in reverse – he seems to be driving people away from God.

He asks “why?” (5,9,11).

He asks himself why he feels so bad. He knows he should not feel that way. He hasn't forgotten his theology. He knows who God is, and he knows God is still on his throne. But he feels bowed down, humiliated inside. His anger is turned inward, and it is eating him up.

Psalm 42:5,11 “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?”

Then he turns his questioning to God, and asks him “why?”

Psalm 42:9 “Why have you forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy"

If you ever get to that point in your life where you want to ask God “why?” then go ahead and do it. I'm not going to stop you. If you are counseling with someone who keeps asking God “why?” then let them go ahead and do it. Do not stop them. Don't give them the idea that God does not want them to ask “why?” I say this for several reasons:

First, asking “why?” is part of a normal grieving process. We were built to look for answers to the mysteries in our lives.

Second, asking “why?” is a form of prayer, and prayer gets the depressed person closer to God, which is just what he needs.

Third, don't think that asking God “why?” is a challenge or an insult to God. He's a big God, he can take it.

We can ask God “why?” because he knows the answer. The circumstances of your life are not accidental. They are all part of his plan. He may give you an answer as you ask him to explain what you are going through. But even if he doesn't give you an answer right now, he will help you to see that there is an answer. He has a plan, and he is working out that plan.

When you get to that point, you can say with Joseph:

Genesis 50:20 “As for you (my brothers who sold me as a slave), you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.”

When you get to that point, you can say with the Apostle Paul:

Romans 8:28 “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good.”

And what did Paul mean by “all things”?

2 Corinthians 11:23-28 “with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.”

Paul was probably well acquainted with Psalm 42. He was no stranger to difficult times, but he knew that God was behind the scenes in every one of those times causing things to work together for his good. He knew that the circumstances of his life were not accidental, and neither are the circumstances of our lives.

3)Tool #3: Retrain your feelings by centering on God himself.

He pants for God like a thirsty deer (1-2).

Psalm 42:1-2 “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?”

Those words seem strange today because our society has developed a thirst for everything but God. When times are bad we cry after the government to fix it. Well, I have no problem with the government trying to fix my problems, but I suspect that some of them are beyond the government's ability to fix. The psalmist here was wise enough to understand that his problem was not really the circumstances of his life. His problem was that he had developed a God-shaped hole in his life. Brothers and sisters, there's a hole in us that only God can fill.

He encourages himself to hope in God (5,11).

Psalm 42:5-6,11 “Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.”

In other words, the song is not over yet. The psalmist keeps reminding himself that the Sovereign God is still working, and he will write the last verse.

He remembers past experiences with God (6).

Psalm 42:6 “I remember you”

One of the best cures for depression is a scrapbook or photo album. Just bring it out and start remembering all the good times you have had in God's presence with godly friends. If you don't have something like that – get it. If you can't remember any experiences like that – that's what church membership is for.

He keeps his relationship with God strong (7-8).

Psalm 42:7-8 “Deep calls to deep at the roar of your waterfalls; all your breakers and your waves have gone over me. By day the LORD commands his steadfast love, and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life.”

Nothing is more powerful to conquer depression than a regular devotional life. The psalmist would apparently go for regular walks in the woods, and every time he came upon a stream or waterfall he would hear God talking. Every day he would reflect on how God loves him, and he would spend time singing and praying every night.

I don't know what kind of week you are having, but if you are struggling with depression, you've come to the right place. God is here, and he wants to help you overcome that depression.

on Matthew 26:64

2011-04-18T15:53:00.001-04:00

R.H. asks

“Can you refer me to a helpful explanation of what exactly the Lord Jesus meant when he spoke (to) the High Priest in Matthew 26.64?”

Matthew 26:64 ESV

Jesus said to him, "You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven."

Caiaphas used this statement by Jesus as his only evidence to assert that Jesus was a blasphemer and deserved death. To him, Jesus had definitely crossed the line with the statement. What was Jesus saying?

He affirmed Caiaphas' charge that he claimed to be the Christ, the Son of God. The idiomatic statement "You have said so" was understood as a direct confirmation.
He implied that more evidence would follow. The statement "but I tell you, from now on..." is the equivalent of the modern colloquialism "you ain’t seen nothing yet."
His challenge was not specifically to Caiaphas, but to all of the people he represented. The second "you" in the verse is plural in the Greek, and so is the third "you". He is speaking to the Sanhedrin Council. He asserts that they will personally see that Jesus is who he says he is at some point in the future. By extension, this challenge applies to all unbelieving Jews and all other nations and individuals who reject Christ in this life.
Particularly, Jesus claims to be the one who will fulfill Daniel's vision of the Son of Man who comes in the clouds (Daniel 7:13-14). This is a reference to his second coming. This explains when this revelation will ultimately take place.
Jesus' reference to his being "seated at the right hand of power" seems to come from Psalm 110:1-2. This messianic prediction speaks of a time when the Messiah will rule over the earth, and God will defeat all of his enemies. Caiaphas would have understood this statement as a direct rejection of his authority as high priest. Jesus implied that by rejecting him, Caiaphas had sided with all other authorities who reject God, and will suffer their fate.

Why would Jesus use the enigmatic phrase "from now on" (Greek ap arti) if he was referring to his second coming? I think he implied that the first evidence of his messiahship and coming glory was going to be the crucifixion itself. It was the crucifixion that the Sanhedrin was calling for. Jesus was tying together the two divergent aspects of the Messiah by saying that the suffering Servant of Isaiah 53 is going to prove to be the Son of Man of Daniel 7. Remember that all the members of the Sanhedrin affirmed the concept of the coming Messiah in principle.

This should serve as a wake-up call for all of those who claim to believe in God and the Bible but are not yet ready to subscribe to the lordship of Jesus Christ, and to join his church. The trial that day was not a debate between atheists and theists. It came down to one man: a carpenter's son from Nazareth. The ultimate fate of millions of people depended upon the Sanhedrin's willingness to accept that Jesus was who he said he was. They were unwilling.

The gospel affirms that Jesus is who he said he was. Those willing to accept that claim will not be ashamed when they see him coming in the clouds.

The Essentials

2011-04-10T17:35:00.001-04:00

“But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished-- he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:21-26 NIV).

God supernaturally revealed his truth to us through the scriptures. When we try to understand and explain those scriptures, the results are human doctrines. Doctrines themselves can be divided into two major categories: basic doctrines and distinctive doctrines. Basic doctrines are those truths that almost everyone gets from the Bible as they read it. Most Basic doctrines are taken for granted by every believer, and the Church demonstrates a good deal of unity in its interpretation of them.

Distinctive doctrines are where most of the differences occur. These are generally based on scriptures which are not as clear as the ones the basic doctrines are based on. So, it stands to reason that there will be differences.

I think that there are a few basic doctrines that are so emphasized in scripture, and so important to salvation, that to ignore them is to be unfaithful as a believer and as a church. These are the tip of the iceberg. The iceberg is all of the basic doctrines upon which the church is practically unified. The tip is what must be visible, and what must remain visible. I call this tip of the iceberg the essentials.

Today's text focuses on some of those essentials. Paul wrote the Epistle to the Romans as an introduction to himself and his message, because he planned to go to Rome and minister there. He wanted the Romans to know what he was all about. As a consequence of that desire, Paul did not waste a lot of time on trivial issues in the Epistle, so it is a good place to look for the things he felt were essential to the Christian faith.

Salvation by Grace is taught throughout the scriptures. Noah's ark was a great symbol of this truth. God looked at a whole world and was justified in destroying it all, but he chose Noah and his family to be rescued from that destruction because of his grace.

Notice with me what Paul says about salvation in today's text.

The word "salvation" is not found here, but there are a few other words used which clue us in that salvation is what Paul is talking about.

God is righteous, but Paul is not talking about that. He's talking about righteousness from God, a gift of God's righteousness imputed to everyone who is in Christ.

This is salvation by grace. It is important because Satan wants to keep people away from accepting Christ by telling them that they are not good enough.

None of us are good enough. If we had to earn our salvation, the ark would have been empty, and the cross would be useless.

Justification is another term for salvation. It is a legal term. It means that God declares us not guilty based on the fact that the penalty for our sin has been paid in full at the cross.

This is salvation by grace.

The term redemption comes from the slave market. A slave could be redeemed for a price, and then his owner could choose to set him free. The slavery we are redeemed from is the sinful nature, which leads to death. The redemption we have in Christ will make it possible for us to have eternal life.

This is salvation by grace.

This term that the NIV translates as sacrifice of atonement is the old word – propitiation. It describes a change in relationship. It was used in the Old Testament for the "mercy seat" where the Israelites sprinkled the blood of the sacrifice on the Day of Atonement. When God saw the blood on the mercy seat, he forgave the nation. They would no longer receive his wrath. Jesus' blood at Calvary has appeased God's wrath.

This is salvation by grace.

Some people think that Jesus was a great man, like other great men. But if we take the Bible seriously, and accept what Jesus said about himself, we no longer have that option. Jesus said he is the way, the truth and the life, the only way to the father.

Jesus said he was going to die, be raised, ascend to heaven, and then return to reign over the universe eternally. If he was just a great man, then he was a liar. If he believed those things about himself, and they are not true, then he was a lunatic. But if he is what he said he is, and he did what he said he did, and he is going to do what he said he will do, then he is LORD, and should be worshiped as LORD.

Paul explained that Jesus is LORD because God's righteousness comes through faith in him alone.

He's not just one of the great men pointing the way to God. He is God's one and only Son. He is the only one worthy to be called Lord.

Paul explained that Jesus is LORD because he is the only one who can set us free (24). The redemption is in Christ Jesus.

If God had a number of ways of redeeming us, then we could just choose the one that most suited us. But there is only one way out of the slavery of sin.

That's why Jesus is the only one worthy to be served as Lord

Paul explained that Jesus is LORD because he is God's only plan for salvation (25-26). God does not have a plan B. God is the one who made up the idea of salvation, so he has the right to set the rules. He is not obligated to accept all those other ways of salvation made up by the various religions of the world.

There are some things that don't allow options. One plus one always equals two. H2O always equals water. You can't live without air. God made salvation simple: Jesus is either Lord or he is not. If he is your Lord, you are saved.

If anyone or anything else is lord of your life, you are not saved.

The book of Hebrews calls the elementary Christian doctrine a combination of "repentance from dead works and of faith toward God" (6:1).

These two choices make up what we call conversion. It is the only way to get into the kingdom of God. You have to turn away from your sinful life in the past and trust God for your future.

It doesn't matter if you are a theologian like Nicodemus, or a tax collector like Zaccheus. We all get into the kingdom the same way: repentance from sin, and faith in Christ's atonement on the cross.

Notice that Paul said that God's righteousness is apart from the law(21).

The law was God's way of telling the Jews how to act so that they brought Glory to him. But it could not save them from their sins: not now, and not even in Old Testament times.

Conversion to Christ is necessary because no-one (not even the Jews) could be saved without it.

Paul says that in God's sight there is no difference (22). Everyone comes into the family of God by conversion.

There are no spiritual grandchildren. Your parents can give you a lot of things, but they cannot give you a relationship with God.

God shows that he is fair to all now by making faith in Jesus the only means of salvation (26).

Have you made that choice. I made that choice when I was about ten years old in a church much like this one -only down in Florida. I walked down the aisle and I gave my life to Christ.

I realized that I could never be good enough to please God by myself, but Jesus has already done that.

Repent from your sins and trust Jesus as your savior today!

When you get serious and talk to people about God, what is it that shows through? What is the tip of your iceberg?

_______

LORD, help us to focus on the things that really matter.

May we care enough about the bible and truth to have distinctive doctrines and know how to defend them.

But please help us to focus on the essentials that we must teach: things like salvation by grace, the Lordship of Christ, repentance and faith.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Spring Cleaning

2011-04-06T16:23:00.001-04:00

Yesterday I spent a couple of hours cutting an old carpet into 3x3 squares, and pulling it up. Today my son-in-law helped as we stuffed that old carpet into garbage bags to be left for pickup with this week’s trash. We are repairing and refurnishing a room that will soon be occupied by my eight month old grandson. I told little Simon that the next time I do that, he is going to help.

This time of year in the U.S.A., we do a lot of those kinds of projects. We call it spring cleaning. It is a good time of year to do reality checks on old things that need to be thrown away – things that did not survive the winter, or have outlasted their usefulness. It never fails that once we start looking over all the things we have collected in storage rooms and attics and basements – we wonder why we have kept all this junk in the first place.

On a cosmic scale, God also has a spring cleaning in store. It is called Judgment day. The apostle Paul said that God “commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed.”[1] That man is Jesus Christ. He will decide who and what remains after Judgment Day.

In fact, he is actually doing the deciding right now. Today Jesus is hearing the prayers of people who are calling out his name for the first time. He is listening to those prayers. He is deciding who will inherit the eternal life of the age to come.[2] It is a gift that will not be given to everyone. Not everyone will make it into the next age. Those who do not make it will be destroyed.[3]

It is not a pleasant thought, but it is unavoidable. This world is too much marred and disfigured by sin and its consequences for a peaceful transition into the next age. The apostle Peter described that day as one which “will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.”[4]

He had described the fate of those who are lost as like that of Sodom and Gomorrah – two Old Testament cities that were destroyed by God because of their wickedness. He said that “by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly.”[5] Now, if they are the examples, and they are gone, why do so many think that God cannot truly destroy the ungodly? If they are the examples, and they were condemned to extinction, why do so many feel today that they are going to spend eternity alive somewhere – no matter what?

The fact is – the lost will be truly lost. They will not make it into the new age of everlasting life. God has a marvelous destiny of untold glory and joy, but only for those that Jesus Christ allows in. He is the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father and eternal life except by him. Have you come to the Father through Jesus Christ? Come to him. Judgment Day is coming!

[1] Acts 17:30-31.

[2] Matt. 19:16, 29; 25:46; Mark 10:17, 30; Luke 10:25; 18:18, 30; John 3:15f, 36; 4:14, 36; 5:24, 39; 6:27, 40, 47, 54, 68; 10:28; 12:25, 50; 17:2f; Acts 13:46, 48; Rom. 2:7; 5:21; 6:22f; Gal. 6:8; 1 Tim. 1:16; 6:12; Titus 1:2; 3:7; 1 John 1:2; 2:25; 3:15; 5:11, 13, 20; Jude 1:21.

[3] Matt. 10:28; 22:7; Luke 17: 27, 29; 20:16; 1 Cor. 3:17; 6:13; 15:24, 26; Heb. 10:39; 2 Peter 2:12; Rev. 11:18.

[4] 2 Peter 3:10.

[5] 2 Peter 2:6.

Bell’s Base Cards

2011-03-24T08:14:00.001-04:00

Rob Bell does a masterful job of shaking the foundations of the modern theology of human destiny in his new book entitled Love Wins.[1] He exposes the fact that much of what people say about salvation and human destiny is not based on the Bible, therefore does not hold up to the scrutiny of direct questioning. He dares to ask direct questions – many of them.

His tactic is similar to that of knocking down base cards in someone’s house of cards. A house of cards can be an enormous thing, but it is only as strong as the first few cards one lays out. Those base cards serve as the foundation. If they are stable, one can build fortresses out of flimsy cards upon them. But topple those base cards and the entire thing falls apart. Bell has identified some flimsy base cards in modern theology: the idea that only professing believers will go to heaven and its corollary that all others will suffer in hell forever.

He attacked those familiar base cards by appealing to scripture after scripture to show that the Bible addresses very different issues. He wanted to show that the whole of modern theology about human destiny was built upon assumptions that do not come from the Bible. He accomplished that mission. Each chapter in the book identifies a presupposition, and then proceeds to topple it by going to the text of scripture and comparing the presupposition to what scripture actually says. In short, Bell does theology and he does it well.

Nevertheless, Bell’s book is destined to be much maligned. He has taken on subjects which are practically taboo for evangelical Christians. “Heaven when you die” and “conscious eternal suffering for the lost” are concepts that are too holy for most good church people to investigate. Expect Bell to be branded a hopeless Universalist. Expect retaliation. Expect The DaVinci Code all over again.

…And rightfully so. Any good theologian worth his or her salt makes a difference. Bell has swung a pendulum, and one should expect the thing to swing back in the other direction. Paul told the Corinthians that “there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized.”[2] Bad theology can mobilize good theology.

With that in mind, let me tell you where I think Bell has it wrong. He spends numerous pages showing that the gospel message is not about going to heaven when you die – then he puts the saved in heaven when they die. He can do no other, because for Bell (and most of his opponents) the human soul has to live eternally somewhere. Bell sweeps away all of the scriptural evidence that he has amassed against the concept that heaven is a destination. In the end, he says what he has been arguing against.

He agrees with his opponents that all human beings are immortal, except that, unlike them, he argues that their immortality gives human beings hope for restoration to God even after their bodies die. He argues from scripture that God is love and therefore never gives up on his own. So, as long as there is life, there is hope. He argues for the concept of future probation on the basis of two premises: God never stops loving, and human beings never stop living.

Herein is the problem: none of Bell’s opponents want to deny either of those premises. They believe that God is both loving and just. They want to agree with what the Bible says about his love, but not forget that it gives equal time to his wrath. When they talk about Judgment Day, they envision that it will be just that – a day in which God will judge humanity, and determine the eternal fate of everyone. They cannot envision a Judgment Day that extends to however many years and centuries needed to purge humanity of all sin and rescue all. Hence, they must believe that death seals the fate of all.

The all important doctrine that Bell and most of his opponents agree upon is the concept of innate immortality: that all humans are born immortal. That doctrine will lead Bell’s opponents to insist on eternal conscious suffering in hell for the lost. It leads Bell to insist that a loving God would never condemn people to such a fate for a limited life of sin; therefore he must give opportunity for restoration.

Allow me then – in Rob Bell fashion – to suggest that it is that presupposition that keeps both Bell and his opponents from seeing what the Bible says about the destiny of the lost. The Bible says that only God is immortal.[3] Immortality is a promise from God that Christ will give to the saved – it is not an innate characteristic of every human.[4] For anybody to live anywhere forever, they must have eternal life. Eternal life is promised to the saved only.[5]

What, then, is the destiny of the lost? The God of justice who gave us his truth in his word has decreed that the lost will be destroyed.[6] Since the wages of sin is death, they will die.[7] They will be appropriately punished according to the decree of a God who is both loving and just, and then they will be no more.[8] They have been granted one life to live. That one life is a gift of grace from God. Nobody deserves to live forever. God is under no obligation to give unbelievers an eternal life, either to suffer, or to repent. He is sovereign, and if he has decided that the wages of sin is death, no theologian has the right to convert the sentence.

Bell wrote a book about a victory. He envisions an eternity in which all sin is forgiven, all wrongs are righted, and love wins. He is absolutely right. Love will win because God will win. God will win because he is God, not because he is love. His love and justice work together to produce a heaven and earth without evil. Our participation in that victory is not a given. Some will not make it. That is what it ultimately means to be lost. In the end, God wins. Reader, where do you stand before God? Don’t take his patience for granted.

[1] Rob Bell, LOVE WINS: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived. (Robert H. Bell, Jr. Trust, 2011).

[2] 1 Corinthians 11:19.

[3] Romans 1:23; 1 Timothy 1:17; 6:16.

[4] Romans 2:7; 1 Corinthians 15:53-54; 1 Timothy 1:10.

[5] Matthew 25:46; John 3:15-16, 36; 4:14; 6:27, 40, 47, 54, 68, 10:28; 12:25; Acts 13:46, 48; Romans 2:7; 5:21; 6:22; 1 Timothy 6:12; 1 John 5:11; Jude 1:21.

[6] Matt. 10:28; 22:7; Luke 17: 27, 29; 20:16; 1 Cor. 3:17; 6:13; 15:24, 26; Heb. 10:39; 2 Peter 2:12; Rev. 11:18.

[7] Matt. 21:41; John 5:24; 8:51; Romans 6:16, 23; 1 Cor. 15:26, 54; James 5:20; 1 John 3:14; Rev. 21:8.

[8] Psalm 104:35; Ezekiel 26:21; 27:36; 28:19.

on Romans 14:8 NLT

2011-03-19T14:40:00.000-04:00

Russell from Maine writes:

“I too have been doing daily devotions from Romans the past couple weeks.

Yesterday morning I was doing my devotional from Romans 14, which I believe you will be getting to in a few days. I read the chapter from the New Living Translation and then from the New King James translation. I was struck by the way the NLT dealt with verse 8. It says in the NLT

"While we live, we live to please the Lord. And when we die, we go to be with the Lord. So in life and in death, we belong to the Lord."

The above translation of the NLT is quite different from the NKJV which says:

" ...if we die, we die to the Lord."

And the NIV

". and if we die, we die for the Lord."

And the ESV:

". and if we die, we die to the Lord."

My question for you, would you say this phrase "we go to be with the Lord" a biased translation of what the Greek actually says? It sure looks that way.

Have a great day my friend.

Russell”

Russell,

Thanks for the excellent observation. It is most certainly an example of sectarian bias in translation. The Greek text does not imply what the NLT implies. In fact, in their first revision of the NLT text (2004) the translators corrected the verse. It now reads:

“If we live, it's to honor the Lord. And if we die, it's to honor the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”

This revision is consistent with how the text has been interpreted throughout the centuries, as is evidenced by this quote from John Calvin:

“(The apostles) were delivered (from prison in Jerusalem – Acts 5:19) so they could continue their strenuous efforts in preaching the Gospel and courageously challenging their enemies, even if they had to bravely face death. ... because they knew they had to live and die to the Lord, they did not abandon his commandment.”[1]

Actually there is no preposition in the text. The dative definite articles are all one has to go on, so most modern translations follow those versions you quoted and simply render the phrase “live to the Lord... die to the Lord” or “live for the Lord... die for the Lord.”

The point that Paul was making gave no reassurance about the intermediate state except that he affirmed that at death the believer’s status does not change. The dative definite article can also be rendered “in” resulting in the translation: “live in the Lord... die in the Lord.” Either way, Paul’s overall point is that we believers have a responsibility to withhold from judging other believers because we are not their Lord. He will judge us all when he returns.

[1] John Calvin, Acts (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1995), 77-78.

If you died today…

2011-03-05T14:19:00.001-05:00

The billboard on the interstate highway asked “If you died today, where would you spend eternity?”

The question was never asked in the Bible. It reflects a theology based on some assumptions that are not held by biblical authors. I would be uncomfortable asking the question to anyone, for fear that they might assume that I hold the theology.

First, asking where would you spend eternity assumes that everybody is going to be alive to spend eternity somewhere. The Bible does not teach that. The Bible teaches that God’s gift of eternal life is available only to those who put their trust in Christ. Eternity is not a given.

John 3:36 “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life”

John 6:40 “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.'”

John 6:47 “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.”

John 10:28 “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.”

1 John 5:11-12 “And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.”

Jude 1:21 “keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.'”

Second, asking if you died today indicates that it is the time of one’s death that seals their fate. A more biblical question would be Who is your LORD today? A person’s fate is not based on the time of her death but the quality and commitments of her life.

Matthew 10:25 “It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master.”

Matthew 10:42 “And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.”

Luke 14:26-27 "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.”

Luke 14:33 “So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.”

Acts 9:10 “Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, "Ananias." And he said, "Here I am, Lord."”

Nevertheless, the question is an honest one. My brothers and sisters in Christ who put up that sign may be somewhat confused about their theology, but their heart is in the right place. The question on the billboard reflects an urgency. It implies that thousands will drive that road every day who have never seriously considered their eternal fate. It is correct.

Perhaps you are one of those people who have never taken seriously the claims of Jesus Christ. Maybe you have thought about what would happen to you if you should die today.

Probably nothing. You would probably be buried, and rot in the grave for a very long time. But one day the same Jesus who was raised from the dead the first Easter Sunday will come back and raise you from the dead too.

Then you will really face the moment of truth. It will not be the day of your death, but the day of your resurrection which you should be concerned about.

Matthew 13:47-50 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. When it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. So it will be at the close of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

The evil ones who trust in their own ways will suffer, be discarded and destroyed. The righteous who put their faith in Christ will be gathered and saved for eternity. If you were to die tonight, which resurrection would you be a part of? Would you have a chance to spend eternity in God’s new heaven and new earth?

Commit your life to Jesus Christ today. Then you will not have to worry about whether you die today or tomorrow. You can be safe in him.

Surprising Lessons about Love

2011-02-22T09:54:00.001-05:00

I woke up this morning exegeting the love chapter, and I was anxious to get to the text to find out if I was getting it right.

My thought was that many of the things that Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13 actually go against the grain of conventional wisdom about love. Our songs and poems celebrate something different than what he described.

less about passion, more about maturity

When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways (11).

The love we have celebrated this month is driven by youthful passion. The love Paul urges upon the believers in Corinth has put away the passions of youth and is able to make deliberate decisions about how it performs.

Our world is upside down when it thinks about love. It talks about “adult movies” and films for “mature audiences” when in fact the those things feed on the most childish passion driven things in our nature. Paul tells us that true love is not passion driven.

The context of 1 Corinthians 13 is spiritual gifts – notably how the Corinthians were abusing those gifts by forcing them down each others’ throats. He was trying to get the Corinthians to act more loving with regard to their ministry. He wanted them to be more mature, less passion driven.

less about doing, more about being

Another surprising lesson we find here is that love describes a person’s heart not his hands. It is demonstrated by works, but cannot be reduced to works. In fact, you can do all those works that the world recognizes as spiritual, and yet still not have love, and all those works will be useless.

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing (1-3).

Love is a reflection of who we have become because God’s Holy Spirit has changed our character. It cannot be quantified by how much time or money you choose to spend on the beloved. There is nothing wrong with spending time or money, or even giving of ourselves sacrificially for the ones we love. But those are acts of love. They demonstrate love, but they do not define it.

less about possession, more about surrender

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth (4-6).

Our culture continues to play with the concept of love as a dominating force. It is something that you fall into and out of. It is the result of an enemy’s weapon (cupid’s arrow) and now someone owns you. You are forced to want them against your better judgment. The passion rules now, and if it ever lessens, you will break free and be yourself again.

The truth about love is that we choose to love. We willfully surrender the selfish part of our nature, and we do so not under compulsion, but out of joy. We realize that our true happiness is never going to come from owning things or people. It will only come from choosing to surrender self and becoming the answer to someone else’s needs and desires.

One of the most ridiculous things people have ever said about love is that it means never having to say you are sorry. What a crock of bull feathers! Love means constantly apologizing, changing, adjusting because you do not want to hurt or keep hurting your beloved. It is a lifetime of saying “I’m sorry, I did not want to hurt you.” It willfully surrenders the self with its envy, boasting, rudeness, and its getting its own way.

LORD, help us to demonstrate true love to a world lost in selfishness and immaturity.

Expanding Your Circle

2011-02-07T11:24:00.001-05:00

2 Corinthians 10:9-16 ESV

9 I do not want to appear to be frightening you with my letters. 10 For they say, "His letters are weighty and strong, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech of no account." 11 Let such a person understand that what we say by letter when absent, we do when present. 12 Not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding. 13 But we will not boast beyond limits, but will boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us, to reach even to you. 14 For we are not overextending ourselves, as though we did not reach you. We were the first to come all the way to you with the gospel of Christ. 15 We do not boast beyond limit in the labors of others. But our hope is that as your faith increases, our area of influence among you may be greatly enlarged, 16 so that we may preach the gospel in lands beyond you, without boasting of work already done in another's area of influence.

Nobody ever does anything of significance without collecting a few critics. History has been very good to the apostle Paul, but in his day there were a lot of people who did not care for his ministry – both within and outside the church. His 2nd letter to the Corinthians bears that out. Here are just a few of the things some people in Corinth were saying about him: “1) He had a lot of bad luck. Obviously God was not blessing him for a reason. 2) He can’t be trusted. He promises to visit, then backs out at the last minute. 3) He’s too harsh. When someone got out of line, Paul ordered him excommunicated. No grace. 4) He’s not really an apostle. He is so much different from the real apostles from the Jerusalem churches. He is actually a wannabe tentmaker.”

In 2 Corinthians Paul addressed these criticisms. He was concerned to set the record straight, as we all should be.

Often criticism comes from a lack of understanding. That is the case with the Corinthians who criticized Paul’s ministry. They did not understand the driving force behind the decisions that Paul made. Three times in today’s text Paul talks about a person’s “area of influence” (13,15,16). What drove Paul more than any other principle -- and affected the choices he made – was the desire to expand his area of influence to the widest scope possible. Notice in verse 16 he says that he wants to preach the gospel in lands beyond the Corinthians.

Paul began his life as Saul of Tarsus. Most of the choices he made for himself narrowed his area of influence instead of expanding it. He wound up rejecting Jesus as the Messiah because Jesus did not fit within his worldview. He persecuted Christians because they were outsiders, and outsiders were not to be tolerated. When Paul met Jesus on the Damascus road, he not only converted to Christ, the direction of his circle changed. From that time on, Paul was dedicated to reaching his world with the gospel.

What about you? In what direction is your circle moving? Is it getting narrower of broader? My guess is that if you could be a missionary right here in McAlpin without crossing any oceans, you would want to do it.

I think that if we look at the life of the apostle Paul, we can get some ways of doing just that. First, I want to suggest that you keep learning. Foreign territory is scary, whether it is another culture in another nation, or just another part of town. The more you know about the territory outside your present circle, the better you will be able to expand into it. Paul probably knew five languages. He had Roman citizenship, which enabled him to travel extensively. He had learned to adapt to different ways. He did not compare himself to those who were criticizing him. That’s what they did (12). He learned how to do ministry differently.

During our 13 years in the Philippines as missionaries, Penny and I encountered lots of challenges. But we were able to endure those challenges partly because we had spent a few years training specifically for cross-cultural ministry at seminary. Education is not the answer to every problem, but a good education can at least let you know what kinds of problems you are going to encounter. During those same 13 years we saw many missionaries come and go, and some of them had no preparation whatsoever. It was like they just felt the call and got on a plane. I don’t recommend that. Anything worth doing is worth learning how to do. So, if you want to reach your town, or city for Christ, let me suggest that you first learn what needs you can meet that will draw the people in your town or city to yourself.

When we moved to New Zealand, we had to learn that culture as well. We could have just assumed that everyone would understand us because most people speak English there. But we would have been wrong. Just like in the Philippines, the English spoken there has differences that we have to pick up on to communicate. For example compare the car we drive here with that we drove in New Zealand. My P.T. Cruiser does not have a boot, a windscreen, a bonnet. It doesn’t have any dings or prangs, but if it did, we would not go to the panelbeaters to repair it. Mt PT Cruiser does not know what a WOF is, but the Hyundai had to have one every six months. And when I take the Cruiser to the Jiffy Store I park in the parking lot; but I took the Sonata to the dairy and parked in the car park. So you see I had to learn how to talk about the Sonata as well as how to drive it on the left side of the road.

My second suggestion that matches Paul’s strategy is Keep Changing. Be flexible. Paul was the first to try reaching the Corinthians (14). Paul had a strategy during his ministry among Gentiles that the first thing he would do was go to the Synagogues. There he would make some converts among the Jews, but eventually he would get kicked out. Then he would concentrate on winning the Gentile God-fearers to Christ. He would do that until he had established a church, or until he got ran out of town. His strategy worked because he was flexible enough to change direction when that is what it would take to reach his objectives. There are a lot of things that people have done to reach others for Christ, but times change. We have to be willing to try new ways.

Our church in New Zealand has a movie night once a month in the church lounge. We provide the Christian movie and refreshments, and send flyers out to the neighborhood. Sometimes it is only our people who show up, but it has been useful as a way of introducing people to the church in a non-threatening way. This is just one of many ways a church can help its members expand their circles. And that is what it is all about. It is not about attracting people to the church. Think outside that box. It is about the area of influence that God gives each one of us. You see, all of our pastors have outstanding gifts, but they will not be able to reach the people that you can reach because those people are in your circle.

My third suggestion that matches Paul’s strategy is Keep Investing. Notice what Paul says in verse 14: “our hope is that as your faith increases, our area of influence among you may be greatly enlarged.” Paul did not plan to single-handedly reach the Gentile world for Christ. He led key people to faith in Christ and expected them to plant churches in their geographical area. His investment was in people, and those people produced churches. Sometimes those churches needed help, so Paul send other members of his missions team to help develop those churches (like Titus in Crete, and Timothy in Ephesus).

My point is this: all that time, effort, prayer and money invested was worth it because of the goal behind it all. In the same way, I believe we will see more church growth when we invest ourselves in our communities. The reason that the apostle Paul’s area of influence was so great was that he invested his time, money and prayers and energy in his missionary journeys. He did not just sit in Damascus and wait for somebody somewhere else to do something for somebody else. If we want to expand our circles, we are going to have to make room for other people, and some of those other people are going to be different than us.

I go back the question I asked earlier. In what direction is your circle moving? Is it getting narrower of broader? Is there room in your area of influence for new people? That is a very important question for a Christian. Jesus commanded up to make disciples of all nations, which includes McAlpin, Lake City, Obrien, and Dowling Park. I want to challenge you to be like the apostle Paul and strive to reach beyond your present limits.

______________

LORD, give us the insight to see beyond our present boundaries. Give us the courage to make new friends, to join new groups, to begin new habits … whatever it takes to expand our circles of influence so that we can reach more people with the gospel.

Harmonious Living

2011-01-29T16:00:00.000-05:00

Romans 12: 14-18 ESV

“14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be conceited. 17 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”

I’m really grateful for the part that the LORD has allowed me to play over the past few months in the ministry at Takanini Church. It has been a time of growth and increasing clarity for me, and I hope that I have been able to help you in some ways too. As I began to think about my last message here, I became concerned – perhaps a bit more concerned than usual – about the content of those messages. I think the LORD led me to one of those KEEP ON passages because as Penny and I leave New Zealand and Takanini Church transitions, these ideas will help the church to remain stable in a time of change.

The context of this morning’s text is first century Rome. Paul is writing as a way of introducing himself and his message to the Roman Christians. He anticipates a ministry there, and he wants people to be ready. Paul was a spirit-filled Christian man whom God used mightily. If we are not careful we might presume that wherever Paul went the seas divided and everyone got along. That was not the case. According to Acts and the Pauline epistles, everywhere Paul went there was controversy, misunderstanding and strife. And Paul was not the exception. The letters of Peter, John, James and Jude also show that the first century church was not the ideal. Fortunately for us, the first century churches went through numerous battles. I say that because epistles like Paul’s to the Romans addresses those problems with real solutions.

Usually Paul spends half of each of his letters addressing some doctrinal issues, then spends the other half on practical issues. Today’s text is within that second half of Romans. He had already made his point that everyone is equal in that we are all sinners in need of God’s grace. Then he made the point that Christ’s death on the cross was the means God used to offer redemption for all of us.

There were basically two types of people in Rome who had accepted God’s redemption through Christ. There were Jewish believers who realized the Jesus was the Messiah predicted in the Old Testament, and so accepted him as their Lord. There were pagans from the other nations of the Roman empire who accepted Christ as well. The problem was, these two types of Roman Christian did not always get along.

It is in that context that Paul gives the church this command: “Keep on living in harmony with one another.” Perhaps if Paul were a modern-day church growth expert he would have analyzed the situation in Rome and said: “Look, guys, you are too different. What you should do is split into two different denominations. The First Messianic Jewish General Conference can keep its traditions and target other Jews in the community; the New Gentile Church of Jesus can concentrate on the pagans who are hearing the message about Jesus for the first time.” But Paul did not say that. He had in mind for the Roman churches to sing their different tunes in harmony with one another.

How does a church or group of churches live in harmony with one another without compromising their diversity? One of the keys is found right here in today’s text. Paul tells the Roman Christians to “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them” (14). Where is this persecution coming from? The church was being persecuted by the Roman government during this time, and they were also being persecuted by Jews who had rejected Christ as the Messiah. Can you see how an undisciplined mouth could have caused disharmony in the churches at Rome? Cursing Caesar would have been insulting all Gentiles. Cursing the Jewish persecutors would be insulting all Jews. The best reaction: bless your persecutors.

Secondly, Paul tells the Roman Christians to “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep” (15). He’s telling the people to not remain spectators in their community’s life. They need to adopt one another as family, and get involved in each other’s lives. Believers are a family and it will not do for a family member to forget your birthday or anniversary, or to not attend your funeral. Often we think the easiest way to keep harmony is to restrict the time we have around each other. That is not what God wants. He does not want his family only meeting for an hour or two every Sunday, and then retreating into the safety of our own foxholes!

Thirdly, Paul tells the Romans “Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be conceited” (16). He encourages the church members to stay low enough on the totem pole so they can still see everybody. Jesus had proclaimed the same message with a wash basin and a towel. In the first century Roman church, both major factions had reason to take pride. The Jews could have pride in their biblical heritage, while the Romans could have pride in the fact that they did not stand on tradition. Either way, pride could destroy the church’s harmony, and thwart its mission.

Fourthly, Paul warns against the spirit of revenge. He says “Repay no one evil for evil” (17). He wants them to avoid payback, because it never accomplishes anything but disharmony. It is wise to overlook an offense. Notice that Paul assumes that people are going to do evil things. Remember, this is a church context. There is no church anywhere that is immune to people doing stupid, childish, evil things. If you are still looking for such a church, you can stop now. You will not find it. I think God allows those kinds of things to happen in our church communities because he is looking for us to be wise enough to obey this command. When his people turn the other cheek, he is glorified.

Finally, Paul says “give thought to do what is honourable in the sight of all” (17). Disharmony happens because I want to play my instrument and I don’t care how it is going to sound when you are playing yours. The trouble is, a church is not a solo concert. It is an orchestra. The music has to come from all the instruments, and it has to harmonize in such a way that all the music together sounds good. Even the greatest of all conductors cannot make an orchestra work if the musicians do not have respect for each other, and cooperate.

I want to tell you that it has been a great honour for me to teach in this pulpit and to be a part of this community for the past year. I am convinced that Takanini Church has what it takes to share the light of Christ’s gospel and lead people to him. I am also convinced that Satan is looking for an opportunity to spread disharmony and discord here, just as he was in Rome. That is why I chose this as my concluding message.

LORD, guard us from disharmony. We commit ourselves -- so far as it depends on us, to live peaceably with all.

The Heart of Zephaniah (3:8-15).

2011-01-22T16:00:00.000-05:00

{For audio mp3, click here.}

Zephaniah 3:8-15 ESV

"Therefore wait for me," declares the LORD, "for the day when I rise up to seize the prey. For my decision is to gather nations, to assemble kingdoms, to pour out upon them my indignation, all my burning anger; for in the fire of my jealousy all the earth shall be consumed. 9 "For at that time I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech, that all of them may call upon the name of the LORD and serve him with one accord. 10 From beyond the rivers of Cush my worshipers, the daughter of my dispersed ones, shall bring my offering. 11 "On that day you shall not be put to shame because of the deeds by which you have rebelled against me; for then I will remove from your midst your proudly exultant ones, and you shall no longer be haughty in my holy mountain. 12 But I will leave in your midst a people humble and lowly. They shall seek refuge in the name of the LORD, 13 those who are left in Israel; they shall do no injustice and speak no lies, nor shall there be found in their mouth a deceitful tongue. For they shall graze and lie down, and none shall make them afraid." 14 Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! 15 The LORD has taken away the judgments against you; he has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil.

We have been spending some time in the OT prophets. Over the past few months we have been looking at these ancient books and trying to see what God’s reaction is to us in the present. We have found that the messages of the prophets are quite relevant.

Zephaniah is labeled a minor prophet since it is one of the shorter books. Its prophecies are very much like those of the major prophets. There is a series of oracles which foretell God’s judgment upon the nations that surrounded Judah. Then, there is a final oracles of judgment against Judah itself. Then, in its final chapter the future blessings are revealed

The name ZEPHANIAH means hidden of Yahveh. I think the name is especially appropriate because of this blessing section of the book, part of which serves as today’s text. Hidden behind all those pronouncements of judgment and destruction is the hope of a bright future for God’s people. Also, just as the judgments came on all the nations, including Judah, the future blessings will belong to all the nations, including Judah.

The context of Zephaniah’s message is very significant. It was during the reign of Josiah, so there were some in Judah and Jerusalem who were submitting to Josiah’s reforms. But like all revivals, not everyone revives. There are still too many ethnic Israelites who are inwardly pagan. Because of this, judgment is going to fall on Judah as well.

But the good news is: God is in control. He is going to restore not only Judah and Israel but all those Gentile nations as well. Hidden behind this message of gloom is the message that the creator is going to re-create the planet.

What will be is hidden. It is like a caterpillar in a cocoon. Zephaniah’s messages of blessing is a way for us to see what God intends for our own future.

The recreated us will have new speech. Verse 9 (NET) says “Know for sure that I will then enable the nations to give me acceptable praise. All of them will invoke the LORD's name when they pray, and will worship him in unison.” Verse 13 says “those who are left in Israel …shall… speak no lies, nor shall there be found in their mouth a deceitful tongue.” Our tongues will be transformed – and that means that our hearts are also. The tongue only says what is in the heart. God is longing for the day when the whole creation prays, praises, and worships him in truth. It will happen. It is our future.

God says “I will remove from your midst your proudly exultant ones, and you shall no longer be haughty in my holy mountain.

But I will leave in your midst a people humble and lowly. ” God wants a people who humble themselves, and seek his face. In fact, the only way to get into God’s future kingdom is by repenting and throwing yourself on the mercy of God. Those who are proud of their achievements need not apply. Jesus said “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Matt.23:12).

You have to remember that it was Satan’s pride that caused rebellion in the first place. Christ is our model. He came as a servant.

God says that his new people “seek refuge in the name of the LORD,” “they shall graze and lie down, and none shall make them afraid,” because he “has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil.” Those of us who are fortunate enough to have won the life lottery do not have to live our lives in fear. We have to realize that most of the world is not so lucky. God wants true peace for the entire planet. He created this world to thrive in peace. The wars and conflicts among us are the result of sin.

Someone has said “war is hell” and that is not true. But it is going to take hell – the real hell – what the Bible calls Gehenna – to destroy the war. Zephaniah gives his listeners a glimpse into a future without fear. That future belongs to those of us who seek refuge in the LORD’s name today.

God tells his people “Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!” I want you to understand that the normal human state is ecstatic joy. Remember that when he first created us, God put us in Eden, which was a paradise. The toiling, pain, sorrow, depression and death all came as a result of judgment. Why is God telling Zion to rejoice? Because “The LORD has taken away the judgments against you.” God intends on taking away from us all those “normal” things that make us miserable. I don’t think we are going to have to learn how to worship and praise and sing aloud for joy. I think it is going to be spontaneous. What is more, our celebrations are going to make us want to celebrate more and more. That is what we have to look forward to.

This week we have been looking at a portion of scripture that reveals a small glimpse of what life in God’s eternal kingdom is going to be like. I hope it has whetted your appetite. I don’t know where you stand before God today – no one knows for sure but you and him. What I do know is that the eternal life that God offers those who take refuge in him is worth it.

LORD, we have decided to be in that number when the saints go marching in to your eternal kingdom. Our lips thirst for the purity that you offer for them. Our knees bow to you, we offer our lives for your service in imitation of king Jesus. Our hearts are longing for the peace and joy that cannot be taken away. Even so, come Lord Jesus.

The Heart of Nahum (1:1-8)

2011-01-15T16:00:00.000-05:00

{to download the audio (mp3), click here}

Nahum 1:1-8 ESV

An oracle concerning Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum of Elkosh. 2 The LORD is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD is avenging and wrathful; the LORD takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies. 3 The LORD is slow to anger and great in power, and the LORD will by no means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet. 4 He rebukes the sea and makes it dry; he dries up all the rivers; Bashan and Carmel wither; the bloom of Lebanon withers. 5 The mountains quake before him; the hills melt; the earth heaves before him, the world and all who dwell in it. 6 Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the heat of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken into pieces by him. 7 The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him. 8 But with an overflowing flood he will make a complete end of the adversaries, and will pursue his enemies into darkness.

We have been spending some time in the Old Testament prophets. I have been making the point that the OT prophets were God’s outlet. If you want to know what God feels – what his reaction is, ask one of his prophets. So throughout the prophets we keep hearing about God’s plans to destroy his enemies. The great nations which conquer and oppress God’s people are often the recipients of these oracles of impending judgment. In Nahum’s case, the oracles predict the destruction of the Assyrian empire.

Nahum’s prophecy was written between 660 and 630 BC. The Assyrian empire was destroyed in 612 BC. That means that this prophecy has long been fulfilled. But it still speaks to us today. Nahum explains in his first few verses why God judges. I want us to get a good grasp on what Nahum taught here, because it will help us understand God’s impending judgment on the world, otherwise known as hell.

Fire is a scary thing, and hell is a scary subject. But it is a reality. We do ourselves no favor ignoring the subject.

Nahum explains that judgment is coming because of the very nature of God himself. The Assyrians had brutalized many nations to obtain their prominence, and all the while God was watching them like a jealous parent. To be jealous is not the same thing as being envious. You are envious of something you do not have. You are jealous of something that you do have. God would not let the Assyrian empire go unpunished because they had attacked and brutalized his own people. For his own honour he would avenge the violence.

Let’s get something straight. Lots of people have done bad things to me, but I have no desire to see them burn up before my eyes. I am not an avenger. But God is an avenger.

Nahum explains that judgment is coming because God had chosen to postpone it. He is a God who keeps wrath for his enemies (2). That means that he does not immediately squish his enemies like a bug whenever they do something wrong. If he did that, there would be no one left to repent and become his people. He gives us time to realize the error of our ways and come to him seeking forgiveness and restoration.

Yet, at the same time, God does not keep his wrath forever. There must be a day of judgment or else God is not just. It is the nature of God that demanded that someday the Assyrians would “pay the piper.”

Nahum explains that the judgment that is coming will appropriately deal with Assyria’s sins because God is great in power (3). He has the ability to make them pay for what they have done. The Assyrians had arrogantly boasted that they would destroy the God of Judah just like they destroyed the gods of all the nations around them. Hezekiah prayed. Isaiah prayed. Then, in demonstration of that great power, God had an angel kill 185,000 Assyrian troops in their sleep. So, for Nahum, complete judgment upon Assyria is only a matter of time.

The only reason Assyria had not been destroyed is that God is slow to anger (3). God feels the anger, but he is in complete self-control, and will only express that anger at the appropriate time.

Nahum explains that the judgment that is coming will not miss anyone. The Assyrians had a philosophy that said might was right. Nahum’s message to them was that God’s judgment would come no matter how much power or land or influence they possessed. They thought that since they were on top that God had no problem with them. They were dead wrong.

Nahum explains that the judgment that is coming will not destroy anyone by mistake. The people of God did right in trusting in him to carry them through the day of trouble (brought on by the Assyrians). He would help them to survive the troubles of the day because he is good. He helps those who cling to him for help.

Nahum explains that the judgment that is coming will destroy all those who do not personally choose to trust in God. The LORD is the refuge. The people of Judah could not trust in their works to save them, nor could they trust in Egypt, or any other power. Only God could keep his people safe from the coming judgment

There is a judgment coming, and it is just as sure as Assyria’s judgment – because it comes from the same God. Hell is an event in the future of humanity. God has decreed it, and it is going to happen even if nobody in the world believes in it.

Jesus said If your right eye or right hand causes you to sin, tear them out and throw them away! It is better to lose them than to have your whole body thrown into hell (Matt. 5:29-30). He said we should fear God, because he is able to destroy both soul and body in hell (Matt. 10:28). Hell is going to be an unquenchable fire – which means it’s going to burn everything up that is thrown into it, and nobody will be able to put is out. The Bible calls it the second death, from which there will be no resurrection. God is going to come “with an overflowing flood he will make a complete end of the adversaries.”

I mentioned that hell is a scary idea, and it is meant to be. God does not want to destroy anyone. But he will. He is a God of justice, and he must punish every evil deed and thought. If you are here today, and you have committed and evil deed or thought – even just one – then hell is for you. But God is pleading with you right now. You see, he has already punished Jesus Christ on the cross. He did that out oif his own grace. All he asks of you and me is that we trust in him. He wants to be our stronghold, our refuge. He rescued his people from the judgment he visited upon the Assyrians. He can rescue us from hell too.

_____________

LORD, we confess that we have sinned against you, and deserve your judgment. We also confess that Christ’s death on the cross is our only refuge from hell.

The Heart of Micah (7:18-20)

2011-01-08T16:00:00.000-05:00

Micah 7:18-20 ESV

Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love. 19 He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities under foot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. 20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham, as you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old.

We have been spending some time among the Old Testament prophets. God gave us the messages of the prophets because their messages were intended to outlast them. The Old Testament poetry expressed the heart of the people of God, but the prophets expressed the heart of God. They showed God’s reaction to the world that he created.

We should expect to get a clear picture of what God is like by reading the prophets. Nowhere is that more obvious than the writings of Micah.

Micah can be dated from “probably before the fall of Samaria in 722/21 B.C. to Sennacherib’s march to Judah in 701 B.C.” The prophet Micah lived during the times of three kings of Judah--Jotham (750-732/35), Ahaz (735-713/16), and Hezekiah (716-687) (David Malick).

That makes Micah a lesser known contemporary of Isaiah. He was probably quoting Isaiah 2 in his mountain prophecy of Micah 4. Both prophets spoke for God during a time when the nations all around Judah were gaining prominence. It seemed like God’s people were in danger of being lost. The mountain prophecies encouraged God’s people to live by the light of his word, because some day all the nations would come to Jerusalem to be taught God’s word. This was also a time of warfare and bloodshed, but both prophets spoke of a time of peace, when the weapons of war would be turned into instruments of agriculture.

Micah concludes his prophecy by highlighting one characteristic of the LORD. It is his steadfast love (18,20). This is that special term chesed that I have mentioned before. It refers to God’s loyalty to his covenant people. I think that God had this word in mind when he instructed his people to make a sign on their doorposts at the Passover. That sign would look like the Hebrew letter Chet, which is the first letter in Chesed.

Micah proclaimed that God’s steadfast live is like the Passover. He forgives our sins by passing over them because of the blood of the Lamb. That Passover lamb represented Jesus, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.

Micah also predicted that God would again have compassion on his people and tread their iniquities under foot. The picture, I believe, is that of the conquest, when God went before Israel and gave them victory over their enemies. But the enemies of which Micah speaks are sins. These are our true enemies. There are three categories of sin: 1) transgressions, 2) sins against conscience, 3) sins of omission. God loves us so much that he does not want to just pass over our sins, he wants to defeat them – to tread them under his feet. This life – this Christian life – is the time in which he wants to do that for us.

Micah proclaims that God’s steadfast love will yet do one more thing to put an end to sin in our lives. He will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. I think Micah is harking back to the time when Israel was leaving Egypt and they were being pursued by Pharaoh’s armies. God drowned the enemy’s troops in the Red Sea, but let his people pass through the Sea. Casting sins into the depths of the sea is a way of getting rid of them forever. They are not on the shore for us to see again every low tide. They are drowned, forgotten, forgiven. This is what God is going to ultimately do for us.

What has God’s steadfast love done for you today? Perhaps you are here today, and you cannot even say that you know that you are forgiven. You can have forgiveness today, and you don’t have to do anything for it. Christ was the Passover lamb. Accept God’s forgiveness today.

Perhaps you are here today, and you have been struggling with some personal sin. God wants to tread your iniquities under his feet. Give him free reign over your life, and let him defeat your real enemies.

Perhaps you have some regrets. You know you are forgiven, and you no longer commit those sins anymore, but you just can’t quite forgive yourself. God wants to take those sins and drown them in the depths of the sea.

LORD, we want to experience the fullness of your grace today.

For those of us who have never come to you before, give forgiveness.

For those of us who are struggling with personal sins, give us victory.

For those of us who are hanging on to past regrets, give us the courage to forget what you promised to forget.

There is no God like you, LORD. Thank you for your steadfast love.

Time Travel

2011-01-07T23:39:00.001-05:00

I have always been fascinated by the concept of time travel. Among my favourite movies are those in which the characters travel through time in some way. These include Frequency, Deja Vu, Timeline, and the Back to the Future series. Who among us would not like to go back to our past to correct some oversight, or to let someone know that you care about them who is no longer here to hear it.

Of course, there is usually a twist in the movie plots. Fixing one problem winds up causing several other. In Frequency, the hero saves his father from a fire, and inadvertently causes many others to die. In Back to the Future, Doc Brown regrets that he ever made that infernal time travel machine, and orders Marty to destroy it.

I think my fascination with time travel is actually growing as I get older, even though I am not as much a fan of sci-fi as I have been. I have almost lived five decades and along the way I have made some decisions which have mapped out my life for me. Some of those decisions I cannot undo. Time travel movies let me toy with the idea of “what if I had…”

Movies like this are also a reminder for me to take advantage of the time that I have. It is a precious resource, and must be used wisely. I hate the thought of spending heaps and gobs of time on things that do not really matter – things that are insignificant.

It isn’t that I am afraid of death. I am angry at death. Death is an end. And, even though I am a Christian, and I believe in a resurrection unto eternal life, I resent the fact that I must keep losing friends and relatives along the way – and that someday my friends and relatives are going to lose me. The Bible calls death an enemy. If they read a poem at my funeral, I want it to be “rage against the dying of the light.”

Time travel movies are exciting to me because they represent an attack against the status quo of life – a rebellion against the tyranny of time. I would love to go back to the time of that first kiss, that first paycheck, or that chance that I had and blew it. But I cannot go back. The best that I can do is keep going forward in the right direction.

OK, 2010 is history. I do not like it, but it is there. I begrudgingly take down one calendar and put up another. And while I do that I say a prayer to the LORD that this year I waste less time, and invest my time on more important things.

The Heart of Isaiah (55:1-7)

2010-12-30T19:54:00.001-05:00

{to download the audio (mp3), click here}

Isaiah 55:1-7 ESV

"Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. 2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. 3 Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. 4 Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. 5 Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you. 6 "Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; 7 let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

We have been journeying through the Old Testament prophets for a few months now. We are not reading everything they wrote. We just want to get a glimpse of what drove them – what they were passionate about. That’s why I call this series “The heart of the Prophets.” Another way of saying it is we want to know what made the prophets tick. That expression comes from clockwork – the intricate machinery that is found when you open the back of a clock or watch. It’s the hidden substance that explains the outward style. It’s the reason for the function.

Isaiah’s lifetime overlapped two of our historical periods. He lived to see Israel fall to Assyria, and knew that Judah’s time was coming as well. The period of time that Isaiah saw was even broader than that. He not only predicted the Babylonian captivity of Judah, but he predicted the return from the captivity as well. Lots of people who have studied the book of Isaiah insist that there is no way that one man could have known all that. It has been popular to divide Isaiah into two or three parts, imagining that it really has more than one author. I don’t think that was the case. I think that God - knowing that his people were going to have to wait a long time for relief from their captivity – provided them with glimpses into their future to help them persevere.

Isaiah’s audience was varied as well. He spoke against both the northern and southern kingdoms. After Israel fell, he continued to plead with Judah, but knew that they too would be defeated by Babylon. He also spoke out against the nations in power, because he knew God was only allowing them to conquer as his instruments of punishment. Isaiah’s ultimate audience was the world. His prophecies are the most quoted in the New Testament. What made Isaiah tick was the same thing that makes God tick. He was always warning the disobedient to repent, and encouraging God’s people with messages of comfort about coming blessings in the future.

There is a problem that recurs throughout the prophets and is especially seen here in Isaiah 55. That problem is that God is the answer to all our needs, but we fail to pursue him. Isaiah put it this way: “Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near” (Isaiah 55:6). This is the problem of the limited time offer. If we had an eternity to decide whether or not God’s way may be the right way, then we could afford to waste a few decades on our own selfish pursuits. But we do not have an eternity, or a few decades. What makes God tick and what made Isaiah tick is that there is a clock ticking. When that clock reaches midnight, time is up. When time is up, Cinderella, you will not turn into a pumpkin. You will be permanently destroyed!

Isaiah appeals to his people and God appeals to his planet. They are both saying the same thing. You have been doing things your own way and it has left you hungry and thirsty. You have spent all of your money but you have still not found the satisfaction you are longing for. What you need to to is forsake your way, and your thoughts. Come to the LORD and he will forgive. Come to the LORD in repentance and he will provide you with food that satisfies and water that quenches your thirst. Jesus spoke once of the bread of God who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. The people said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always." Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” The only way to Christ is on our knees.

Isaiah calls on the people to remember what God did for the Shepherd king: David. God made a covenant with David and turned him into three things:

1)David was a witness. His life was a testimony of what God can do through a man who follows him from the heart.

2)David was a leader. People chose to follow him because they saw God at work in his life.

3)David was a commander. His words were important – so much so that people wrote them down and obeyed them.

Do you know someone like that? God is calling you and me to be like that.

Isaiah calls on the people to imagine themselves as being kings, like David. Notice verse 5 again: “Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.” Who is the”you” of verse 5? It is the “everyone who thirsts” of verse 1. In other words, each of us has the potential to be a David in God’s kingdom. The only thing God asks of us is that we forsake our own ways and come to him.

I’m sure that in Isaiah’s time the people often said “It sure would be great if we had a king like David again.” Isaiah is telling them that God could do for them what he did for David.

Evangelist D.L. Moody was once speaking with a British evangelist named Henry Varley. Varley said “The world has yet to see what God can do with and for and through and in and by the man who is fully and wholly consecrated to Him.” Those words burned in Moody’s heart. Moody said “I will try my utmost to be that man.” By God’s grace, Moody became such a man. I want to invite you to join me in seeking to be that kind of person as well. You have been hungering and thirsting your entire life. Give your body what it is truly thirsting for.

LORD, I present my life to you today, and so do all those following me in this prayer. We choose to forsake our ways and our thoughts, and follow you. In Jesus name. Amen.