If there was a box of favourite questions to ask, this one is probably the one most often pulled out. God is omniscient (all knowing), and omnipotent, (all powerful) so why does He not simply use His power to stop bad things happening, and create a paradise for us to live in?
Well actually, He did!
“The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed. And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food”
Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 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.'' And the Lord God said, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.''
And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said: "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called
Woman, because she was taken out of Man.'' Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed. Genesis 2:8-25 (selected)
Just check this out. No need to plough or hunt for food. Surrounded by a verdant supermarket of good food ready for the picking. No problems with the climate, they were not cold even though naked. No need for irrigation, rivers ran through the garden. A perfect companion provided at the small cost of 1 rib. Paradise!
What happened? What went wrong?
Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.'' So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Genesis 1:26-27
God made us like Him. He has free will. So do we. He has dominion over the Universe, we have dominion over the Earth. He can reproduce, He made Adam in His own image, we can also reproduce ourselves. He can create, so can we. He is a moral loving being, so are we.
Which one of these capabilities would you like to give up? Ask anyone who lived in communist eastern Europe last century what it was like. You wanted a car? You could choose a Lada in white or red, but it had to be a Lada. Some choice! The shops had bread, great! Only problem there was only one kind of loaf to choose from. No choice at all! You needed a home. You were allocated a flat in a concrete block. No choice there either. Creative writing? Forget it. Unless it was approved by the party censors, it would never get into print! Art never saw the light of day unless it portrayed communist scenarios in a communist approved style! A drab dreary world where the human spirit was crushed, where the free will of the individual was subordinated to the state. Ok so you don’t want to give up your free will!
Perhaps you would like to give up your sexuality? I hear the monks and nuns are recruiting. No? Ok how about your creativity? No more singing, writing, painting, decorating, reading, TV, music, Internet, gardening, carpentry, games, sport, gastronomy, the list is almost endless!
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 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.'' Genesis 2:16-17
God gave man free will, and here He gave him a choice to exercise that free will. Note that the choice was weighed heavily in Adam’s favour. He could have the fruit of every tree except one. Seems fair to me, especially as it was God who planted the trees.
Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, "Has God indeed said, `You shall not eat of every tree of the garden'?'' Genesis 3:1
The best lies are a distortion of the truth. Satan knew this, so he reversed what God had actually said, to make it seem ridiculous and call it into question.
And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; "but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, `You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.' '' Verse 2-3
Embellishment of the truth is a gateway to error. God didn’t say anything about not touching it. Now note how Satan questions the veracity of God’s statement…
And the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.'' Verse 4-5
Adam and Eve were created perfect. They were not designed to die physically, but in order to be fit to live forever, they had to achieve moral perfection. This could only be achieved through perfect obedience to God. Obedience can only be authentic if exercised through the operation of free will. God gave them the opportunity to choose to do this. They made their choice, and the rest as they say is history.
And what a sad history it has been. Eventually Adam and Eve died as God said they would. Before that however they witnessed the murder of one son by the other. This act of jealous rage set the tone for the rest of history, which has been a sad litany of cruelty, murder and death on an increasingly grand scale. That is the legacy we have made for ourselves by our rejection of God and His way for our lives. We can hardly in all fairness blame God for decisions we have made! It is not as if He has not shown us a better way after all.
Yet there is still a choice to be made…
“Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve,... But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.'' Joshua 24:15
You can choose to serve and follow God through Jesus Christ, or you can choose to serve your own interests. Even if you are a kind loving and generous person, good though that is, you are still choosing to please yourself, and that is free will. Unless you are prepared to give up that freedom, you cannot expect God to override the freedom of others to act in a way that is bad as well as good. That doesn’t mean they will get away with it though. Like Adam and Eve, we are free to decide what we do, but we are not free to escape the consequences of our actions. The consequence of rejecting the offer of salvation that is in Jesus Christ is eternal separation from God. Would you like God to force you to accept Him? It would be in your best interest after all. The trouble is we can’t have our cake and eat it. We can’t have free will, and have God control our decisions and the decisions of others at the same time!
So instead of asking “why does God allow bad things to happen?” perhaps you should be asking “How can I co-operate with God to become a better person, and do my bit to make the world a better place?”
Thursday 14 May 2009
Thursday 16 April 2009
What is the Church?
What is the Church?
Church; Ekklesia (Greek) Lit “Called out ones”
There is a lot of misunderstanding over the subject of the Church of Jesus Christ. It is my hope to dispel the misconceptions, and at the same time to see from the Scriptures, both Jewish and Christian, what the Church is, and who comprises it. The Church was rooted in Israel and birthed by Jesus from Israel. The delivered Church exploded onto the world at Pentecost in AD 27/29, but was still comprised exclusively of Jewish believers. Before long it would spread to every corner of the Roman world, and people of every tribe and nation would become a part of it.
Firstly I want to go back 4000 years to the conception of the Church.
Who are God’s chosen People?
We refer to the Jews as God’s chosen people. The Jews are an ethnic /religious /national entity, defined by their ancestry, history, and beliefs. The scriptures have a tighter definition of God’s chosen people, based on a relationship to God established by a covenant sealed by faith in obedience, through blood. This covenant was made with Abraham and his descendants through Isaac, the child of promise.
To Abraham God said; "And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.” Genesis 17:7
"I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you do what you have seen with your father.'' They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our father.'' Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham, but now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this.” John 8:38-40 (Italics mine throughout)
The first thing to notice here is that Jesus defines who is a descendant of Abraham, and who is a recipient of the Covenant that God established. He was talking to Jews, to Pharisees, who reckoned themselves as Abraham’s descendants. They were obviously descended from Abraham physically, but Jesus defines a child of Abraham as one who acts like Abraham. How did Abraham act?
“What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something of which to boast, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.'' Romans 4:1-3 (Read all of Romans 4)
The works of Abraham were works of faith. He believed God, and acted on that belief. Because of this, God called him His friend, and chose him to be the father of the faithful. It’s important to notice that God was the instigator in this, and Abraham the faithful responder.
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him”. Hebrews 11:6
The Church is conceived
“But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, "In Isaac your seed shall be called.'' That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed. Romans 9:6-8
Abraham had 2 sons, the older by Hagar an Egyptian, who’s name was Ishmael, from whom the Arabs are descended. They are therefore descendants of Abraham. But God established a covenant with the descendants of Isaac, not Ishmael. Why? Because Ishmael was a product of humanity, of the flesh, and Isaac was a product of God’s promise, of the Spirit. To prove this, God waited until Abraham and Sarah were old and reproductively “dead” before fulfilling His promise, so that there is no boasting in the flesh, and no doubt about God’s sovereignty. To establish this principle, God told Abraham to give Isaac back!
“By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, "In Isaac your seed shall be called,'' accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense. Hebrews 11:17-19
The covenant was established through redemption. God made a covenant with Abraham, with a promise, “I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you.” God fulfilled the promise through a birth that was impossible and a redemption that was sacrificial. Isaac could only be the fulfilment of the promise by being redeemed by a blood sacrifice.
A covenant is sealed by the shedding of blood. The covenant God made with Abraham originally was a promise. It’s fulfilment began on mount Moriah, with the redemption of Isaac by the sacrifice of a ram. Here is the Covenant God made with His children, here is the conception of the Church, within the womb of Israel! The gestation period of the Church was 2000 years. The birth of the Church was at Pentecost around AD27/29. Scholars reckon God made His covenant with Abraham on 28th March (10 Nisan) 1953BC. Isaac was born the following year. (But My covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time next year.'' Genesis 17:21) This would have been 16th March 1952BC (10 Nisan)
The 10th Nisan is the day that the Passover Lamb is selected! (Exodus 12:3)
AD52 would be 2000 years from Isaac’s birth. That leaves a discrepancy of approximately 58 years from the birth of Christ for a fulfilment of a 2000 year period. There is a question over the date of Abraham’s birth however, and the disputed date is 60 years. If the alternative date for Abraham’s birth is accepted, and allowing for ambiguity over the birth date of Jesus of +/- 2 years (6 or 4BC) then a 2000 year parity with the birth of Isaac is achieved. It is not recorded how old Isaac was when Abraham took him to Moriah, but he was not a child, because he carried the wood for the sacrifice, which had been carried by the donkey. Also Ishmael who was 14 when Isaac was born, was married before Abraham lived in the land of the Philistines “many days”. So Isaac would have been around 10 years old when Ishmael was married. If Abraham stayed in Philistia about 20 years, Isaac would have been about the same age as Jesus was at His death, when Abraham took him to Moriah. From the birth of the church at Pentecost in 27/29AD to the 2000th anniversary of the resurrection of Jesus, we come to 2027/29AD!
Jesus promised that he would return in a similar way to that which he departed…
“Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.'' Acts 1:11.
He departed after His resurrection, so the calculation should be based from that date, not His birth date.
It is commonly accepted by bible scholars that we are living in the last days before the return of Christ. (A separate study) 2000 years from His death would be around 2027-2029AD! Please note, this is not a prediction, just an interesting observation, to prompt us to buy oil for our lamps!
To sum up: From the Covenant of promise given by God to Abraham in the conception of the church in Isaac, to the promise of God in the conception of Jesus, 2000 years! From the delivery of the covenant in the redemption of Isaac by the death of the ram, to the delivery of the Church by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ the Messiah, 2000 years! From the birth of the church in 27/29AD to 2027/29AD, 2000 years! Is the duration of the church in the world to be the same as it’s gestation in Israel?
The history of the Jews is without parallel. The record in the bible of their unique relationship with God is a rich tapestry interwoven with triumph and despair, glory and destitution, blessings and curses, faithfulness and rebellion. God promised them blessings for obedience, and warned them of the withdrawal of His protection and benevolence if they were disobedient. (Read Deuteronomy 28)
God delivered them from starvation in Canaan through Joseph, and gave them a refuge in Egypt. Later, through Moses, He delivered them from cruel oppression in Egypt, and brought them to the promised land. In spite of their grumbling and rebellion He fulfilled His promise and gave Canaan to the next generation. The record is one of continual rebellion and disaster, followed by repentance and restoration. God always had his faithful remnant, even in the darkest times….
“I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.'' 1 Kings 19:18
Seven thousand out of a population of about 3 million or more can only be classed as a remnant!
Isaiah also cries out concerning Israel: "Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, the remnant will be saved.” Romans 9:27
For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, "In Isaac your seed shall be called.'' Romans 9 6-7.
Finally, God allowed them to be deported as slaves to Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar. If it were not for His promise to Abraham, this would probably have been the last that history would have heard of them. The Babylonian and Persian empires assigned other peoples to historical and cultural oblivion, but God had made a covenant with Israel through Abraham, which He was going to keep. Finally when they had been purged and refined by the adversity of captivity, God told Cyrus King of Persia to restore the remnant of His people to Jerusalem, and to provide them with the finance and resources they would need to rebuild the Temple! (Read Ezra and Nehemiah)
God blessed the nation of Israel because of His Church (Ekklesia – Called out ones) the remnant spoken about in the above verses and many others.
There has always been a remnant in Israel, the anointed of God, who have attracted God’s blessings, and have led the people back to obedience to God. Theirs was a continual battle against the powers of darkness, and they often paid with their blood, treasure and lives to gain victory….
“of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us”. Hebrews 11:38-40
After the Church was birthed at Pentecost, the saints of Israel, the seed of Isaac, joined with the saints worldwide to jointly partake in the promise made to Abraham fulfilled at last in the Messiah, Jesus Christ the Son of God. There is a continuity of promise, covenant and fellowship from Abraham and Isaac through to Jesus, and on through Pentecost to us.
“Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, "And to seeds,'' as of many, but as of one, "And to your Seed,'' who is Christ.” Galatians 3:16
“Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise.” Galatians 4:28
The promise to Abraham is fulfilled in his Seed, that is in Christ, and we along with Isaac and the saints of Israel are the children of promise, redeemed by the blood of the everlasting covenant in Christ!
God showed His love for His church by His faithfulness to and deliverance of Israel throughout it’s generations, and in the fullness of time by sending them His Son as a final sacrifice for their redemption. He even demonstrated His love 2000 years before by appearing in the form of Jesus to Abraham on three separate occasions, See Genesis 14, 17 &18 (A theophany, pre incarnate appearance of Christ)
“For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated "king of righteousness,'' and then also king of Salem, meaning "king of peace,'' without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.” Hebrews 7:1-3
By appearing to Abraham, the father of the Church, Jesus sealed His covenant of love with not only Abraham, but also to his Seed through Isaac. By being born into the world in the fullness of time, Jesus sealed His covenant of love to us who would follow from every tribe and nation, grafted into the olive tree of the Church.
The Church then, “called out ones” has been in existence for 4000 years. The gestation within Israel, God’s chosen Nation was 2000 years from it’s conception in Isaac, and the birth into the world through Christ’s death and resurrection, 20 years short of 2000 at the time of writing.
Next we will look at the Church birthed at Pentecost.
Church; Ekklesia (Greek) Lit “Called out ones”
There is a lot of misunderstanding over the subject of the Church of Jesus Christ. It is my hope to dispel the misconceptions, and at the same time to see from the Scriptures, both Jewish and Christian, what the Church is, and who comprises it. The Church was rooted in Israel and birthed by Jesus from Israel. The delivered Church exploded onto the world at Pentecost in AD 27/29, but was still comprised exclusively of Jewish believers. Before long it would spread to every corner of the Roman world, and people of every tribe and nation would become a part of it.
Firstly I want to go back 4000 years to the conception of the Church.
Who are God’s chosen People?
We refer to the Jews as God’s chosen people. The Jews are an ethnic /religious /national entity, defined by their ancestry, history, and beliefs. The scriptures have a tighter definition of God’s chosen people, based on a relationship to God established by a covenant sealed by faith in obedience, through blood. This covenant was made with Abraham and his descendants through Isaac, the child of promise.
To Abraham God said; "And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.” Genesis 17:7
"I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you do what you have seen with your father.'' They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our father.'' Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham, but now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this.” John 8:38-40 (Italics mine throughout)
The first thing to notice here is that Jesus defines who is a descendant of Abraham, and who is a recipient of the Covenant that God established. He was talking to Jews, to Pharisees, who reckoned themselves as Abraham’s descendants. They were obviously descended from Abraham physically, but Jesus defines a child of Abraham as one who acts like Abraham. How did Abraham act?
“What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something of which to boast, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.'' Romans 4:1-3 (Read all of Romans 4)
The works of Abraham were works of faith. He believed God, and acted on that belief. Because of this, God called him His friend, and chose him to be the father of the faithful. It’s important to notice that God was the instigator in this, and Abraham the faithful responder.
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him”. Hebrews 11:6
The Church is conceived
“But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, "In Isaac your seed shall be called.'' That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed. Romans 9:6-8
Abraham had 2 sons, the older by Hagar an Egyptian, who’s name was Ishmael, from whom the Arabs are descended. They are therefore descendants of Abraham. But God established a covenant with the descendants of Isaac, not Ishmael. Why? Because Ishmael was a product of humanity, of the flesh, and Isaac was a product of God’s promise, of the Spirit. To prove this, God waited until Abraham and Sarah were old and reproductively “dead” before fulfilling His promise, so that there is no boasting in the flesh, and no doubt about God’s sovereignty. To establish this principle, God told Abraham to give Isaac back!
“By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, "In Isaac your seed shall be called,'' accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense. Hebrews 11:17-19
The covenant was established through redemption. God made a covenant with Abraham, with a promise, “I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you.” God fulfilled the promise through a birth that was impossible and a redemption that was sacrificial. Isaac could only be the fulfilment of the promise by being redeemed by a blood sacrifice.
A covenant is sealed by the shedding of blood. The covenant God made with Abraham originally was a promise. It’s fulfilment began on mount Moriah, with the redemption of Isaac by the sacrifice of a ram. Here is the Covenant God made with His children, here is the conception of the Church, within the womb of Israel! The gestation period of the Church was 2000 years. The birth of the Church was at Pentecost around AD27/29. Scholars reckon God made His covenant with Abraham on 28th March (10 Nisan) 1953BC. Isaac was born the following year. (But My covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time next year.'' Genesis 17:21) This would have been 16th March 1952BC (10 Nisan)
The 10th Nisan is the day that the Passover Lamb is selected! (Exodus 12:3)
AD52 would be 2000 years from Isaac’s birth. That leaves a discrepancy of approximately 58 years from the birth of Christ for a fulfilment of a 2000 year period. There is a question over the date of Abraham’s birth however, and the disputed date is 60 years. If the alternative date for Abraham’s birth is accepted, and allowing for ambiguity over the birth date of Jesus of +/- 2 years (6 or 4BC) then a 2000 year parity with the birth of Isaac is achieved. It is not recorded how old Isaac was when Abraham took him to Moriah, but he was not a child, because he carried the wood for the sacrifice, which had been carried by the donkey. Also Ishmael who was 14 when Isaac was born, was married before Abraham lived in the land of the Philistines “many days”. So Isaac would have been around 10 years old when Ishmael was married. If Abraham stayed in Philistia about 20 years, Isaac would have been about the same age as Jesus was at His death, when Abraham took him to Moriah. From the birth of the church at Pentecost in 27/29AD to the 2000th anniversary of the resurrection of Jesus, we come to 2027/29AD!
Jesus promised that he would return in a similar way to that which he departed…
“Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.'' Acts 1:11.
He departed after His resurrection, so the calculation should be based from that date, not His birth date.
It is commonly accepted by bible scholars that we are living in the last days before the return of Christ. (A separate study) 2000 years from His death would be around 2027-2029AD! Please note, this is not a prediction, just an interesting observation, to prompt us to buy oil for our lamps!
To sum up: From the Covenant of promise given by God to Abraham in the conception of the church in Isaac, to the promise of God in the conception of Jesus, 2000 years! From the delivery of the covenant in the redemption of Isaac by the death of the ram, to the delivery of the Church by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ the Messiah, 2000 years! From the birth of the church in 27/29AD to 2027/29AD, 2000 years! Is the duration of the church in the world to be the same as it’s gestation in Israel?
The history of the Jews is without parallel. The record in the bible of their unique relationship with God is a rich tapestry interwoven with triumph and despair, glory and destitution, blessings and curses, faithfulness and rebellion. God promised them blessings for obedience, and warned them of the withdrawal of His protection and benevolence if they were disobedient. (Read Deuteronomy 28)
God delivered them from starvation in Canaan through Joseph, and gave them a refuge in Egypt. Later, through Moses, He delivered them from cruel oppression in Egypt, and brought them to the promised land. In spite of their grumbling and rebellion He fulfilled His promise and gave Canaan to the next generation. The record is one of continual rebellion and disaster, followed by repentance and restoration. God always had his faithful remnant, even in the darkest times….
“I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.'' 1 Kings 19:18
Seven thousand out of a population of about 3 million or more can only be classed as a remnant!
Isaiah also cries out concerning Israel: "Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, the remnant will be saved.” Romans 9:27
For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, "In Isaac your seed shall be called.'' Romans 9 6-7.
Finally, God allowed them to be deported as slaves to Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar. If it were not for His promise to Abraham, this would probably have been the last that history would have heard of them. The Babylonian and Persian empires assigned other peoples to historical and cultural oblivion, but God had made a covenant with Israel through Abraham, which He was going to keep. Finally when they had been purged and refined by the adversity of captivity, God told Cyrus King of Persia to restore the remnant of His people to Jerusalem, and to provide them with the finance and resources they would need to rebuild the Temple! (Read Ezra and Nehemiah)
God blessed the nation of Israel because of His Church (Ekklesia – Called out ones) the remnant spoken about in the above verses and many others.
There has always been a remnant in Israel, the anointed of God, who have attracted God’s blessings, and have led the people back to obedience to God. Theirs was a continual battle against the powers of darkness, and they often paid with their blood, treasure and lives to gain victory….
“of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us”. Hebrews 11:38-40
After the Church was birthed at Pentecost, the saints of Israel, the seed of Isaac, joined with the saints worldwide to jointly partake in the promise made to Abraham fulfilled at last in the Messiah, Jesus Christ the Son of God. There is a continuity of promise, covenant and fellowship from Abraham and Isaac through to Jesus, and on through Pentecost to us.
“Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, "And to seeds,'' as of many, but as of one, "And to your Seed,'' who is Christ.” Galatians 3:16
“Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise.” Galatians 4:28
The promise to Abraham is fulfilled in his Seed, that is in Christ, and we along with Isaac and the saints of Israel are the children of promise, redeemed by the blood of the everlasting covenant in Christ!
God showed His love for His church by His faithfulness to and deliverance of Israel throughout it’s generations, and in the fullness of time by sending them His Son as a final sacrifice for their redemption. He even demonstrated His love 2000 years before by appearing in the form of Jesus to Abraham on three separate occasions, See Genesis 14, 17 &18 (A theophany, pre incarnate appearance of Christ)
“For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated "king of righteousness,'' and then also king of Salem, meaning "king of peace,'' without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.” Hebrews 7:1-3
By appearing to Abraham, the father of the Church, Jesus sealed His covenant of love with not only Abraham, but also to his Seed through Isaac. By being born into the world in the fullness of time, Jesus sealed His covenant of love to us who would follow from every tribe and nation, grafted into the olive tree of the Church.
The Church then, “called out ones” has been in existence for 4000 years. The gestation within Israel, God’s chosen Nation was 2000 years from it’s conception in Isaac, and the birth into the world through Christ’s death and resurrection, 20 years short of 2000 at the time of writing.
Next we will look at the Church birthed at Pentecost.
Thursday 19 February 2009
The Logic of Faith
1. We all have faith
We have all heard the term “blind faith” Faith is presented today as something primitive, as contrary to science, and only pursued by those of lower intelligence or education. Those who exercise faith are often portrayed at best as being pitiful, and at worst as being dangerous. Of course that depends on what or who you have faith in.
We all have faith, and exercise it. If you have ever been on an aeroplane you will have exercised faith. Did you ask to see the aircraft’s CAA certificate of airworthiness? Did you check with the ground crew that they had carried out the pre-flight service? Did you ask to see the pilot’s licence? Did you smell his breath to check if he was intoxicated? You are exercising faith in scores of human beings unknown to you every time you fly! Ever had an operation? How did you know you would wake up after the anaesthetic? You had faith in the doctors and the procedures they follow. Every time you go through a traffic light you are acting in faith that no one of the millions of people in the city will run a red light in the opposite direction! Every time you eat in a restaurant you are acting in faith that the chef will take the proper care in the preparation of your food so that you will not get food poisoning. And so on and on.
We have all heard the term “seeing is believing” Yet we all believe in many things we cannot see. Sight after all is only one of our senses. Blind people see nothing, but believe in everything sighted people do. If you were to describe a beautiful scene to a blind person and he turned to you and said “I don’t believe you!” what would you think of him? The world is not subjective to your experience, neither is creation subjective to mankind’s cumulative experience. What we know today is less than we will know tomorrow, so that means that our experience and knowledge as it is today is not a complete representation of reality. Reality is not subject to our experience and knowledge of it. Reality just is. Some of it we will be able to discover with our senses, or by scientific process, but some of it will only ever be discovered by the exercise of faith.
Some people seem to have no faith at all. I think that every human being on the planet has faith of some sort. Scientists have a theory about the creation of the Universe called the Big Bang Theory. According to this theory all matter in the Universe came into being with a huge explosion. Now I may not be as bright as them, but my understanding of explosions is that you need two things to start one. You need material, preferably unstable or combustible, and you need a detonator or a source of combustion. Where did these essential components come from?
“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth” Psalm 33:1
“By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” Hebrews 11:3.
That is what I believe. I think it takes a greater leap of faith to believe in a “Big Bang” than it does to believe in the Bible! So you see Stephen Hawkins has faith after all! Trouble is, ultimately what he believes fails the test of logic, and there is perfect logic in Psalm 33 and Hebrews 11.
Another term that is heard is “arrogant faith” This implies that those who deal with normal human doubts by exercising faith instead of reason are prone to arrogance. I would contend that the reverse is true. Take life after death. It would appear that there is no way of proving it. Fear of death is a normal human condition. We would all like to think that there is some nirvana awaiting us after death. Wishful thinking is the indulgence of the weak minded. Scepticism and denial is the position of the hard headed who demand evidence. Faith is the position of the believer. Those who say they know beyond a shadow of a doubt that there is an afterlife, and that they have a ticket there, are often labelled arrogant. Arrogance is not what you know, but the way you act on that knowledge. The putting down and deriding of someone else’s beliefs simply because you think you know better is arrogance. So those who don’t believe in life after death simply because they see no proof for it, who pour scorn on those who do, are being arrogant. Equally those with faith who deride those of no faith are displaying arrogance.
Arrogance by its very nature is prone to entrenchment and inflexibility. Unbelief when infected by arrogance will propose the preposterous like the Big Bang Theory, or ignore the obvious like the resurrection. Listen to this…
“If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.' '' Luke 16:31
Not only did Jesus rise from the dead, but since then and even in our own generation there is documented evidence of resurrections, but their testimony has been largely ignored and forgotten.
Let me say again that I believe we all have faith. However when our belief system is grounded in ideology and not logic, it will deny the obvious, ignore evidence to the contrary, and engage in delusion, That is irrational. True faith engages with logic. It sifts the evidence, and does not insist that the spiritual must be explained by the natural. Instead it is open to information outside of the physical world and senses being able to explain that which we cannot otherwise understand. That is logical.
2. The Human Condition
"For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man and birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things. Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonour their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgement of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them." Romans 1:20-32
If the Apostle Paul were alive today would he revise this critique of the human condition? I think not! Sadly, little has changed in the 1950 years since he wrote this.
Logic dictates that if you break a law of nature, you will suffer the consequences. Take the law of gravity. Sadly only too well known by people with a suicidal inclination. No one would expect to survive a jump from the Empire State Building!
The medical profession has clearly established a causal link between homosexuality, promiscuity and AIDS. This was discovered over 20 years ago. Yet in spite of this, people continue to engage in these activities. This is not logical. Is it then an act of faith? Do people somehow believe that for some inexplicable reason it will not happen to them?
There are natural laws and spiritual laws. The laws God has put in place are there to protect us, not to restrict us. Sexually transmitted diseases are the natural result of breaking God’s law against promiscuity. People who rail against that need to look at the logic of their position. Their position is that they consider it unfair for promiscuity to attract the consequences it does. They would like to be free to conduct the lifestyle they choose without any consequences. So they blame God. Yet if you ask them if God is responsible for Cholera, they would readily agree that careless and inadequate sanitation is responsible, and that any sensible person or society should take precautionary measures to prevent Cholera. Unfortunately Cholera does not only affect those responsible for poor sanitation, it also affects those who are not responsible, such as children. Promiscuity also affects the innocent. Husbands who have been with prostitutes infect wives. Babies are then born infected. Children are made orphans, and grandparents have to take on the burden of caring for them. Millions of dollars from already overstretched government budgets have to be diverted from other projects (such as sanitation) to pay for the treatment of those infected. Where is the logic in insisting on and pursuing this kind of freedom?
Let me say something. Sin is not logical. Neither is it considerate. Nor is it caring. It is not sensitive. It is in fact everything that Paul said it was in the quote from Romans.
The human condition is one of sin. Sin is simply rebellion against God and His Law.
What then can be done about it?
Atheists will bury their heads in the sand and deny it exists. They will excuse what God calls sin by re-naming it inappropriate behaviour, or diminished responsibility, and blame it on inadequate social provision, or deprived circumstances, or marginalisation. Their solution for the problem is always money. More money for better education, better housing, more social workers etc. While there is no doubt merit in these, they fail to solve the problem. After 50 years of effort in these areas, the problem is still there, and if anything worse than ever.
Muslims are in the headlines a lot railing against the “decadent western civilisation” Their solution to the problem of sin is to beat and kill the sinner! Husbands kill adulterous wives. Brothers and fathers kill promiscuous daughters and sisters. (Who deals with adulterous and promiscuous men?) Thieves have their hands chopped off. Homosexuals are decapitated. Blasphemers are assassinated. You would have thought that with this sort of treatment the problem would have been cured long ago! Unfortunately not, the human still has his condition.
Hindu’s hope that it will be better next time! Try hard this time, and you will get a better deal the next time. Is treating “untouchables” as inferior to cattle or monkeys part of qualifying for a better life the next time round? In spite of more “holy men” than Israel had prophets, in spite of the threat or promise of a reincarnation, in spite of all this and more, Hindu society continues to be the most divided corrupted and inequitable on earth. No answers there either.
The Apostle Paul described the problem, can he describe the solution?
“For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:20-23
Paul identifies sin as enslaving. The human condition then is one of slavery to sin. A slave is helpless. He cannot procure his own freedom. He is doomed to die from and in sin. But a slave can be set free! Someone with more power than the slave owner, someone with the authority of the law on their side can set the slave free! Furthermore, because a slave cannot own property, he has nothing to offer in exchange for his freedom, other than himself. So freedom from sin is a gift of God through Jesus Christ!
God’s Provision
And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.''
Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him, and He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.'' Luke 4:17-21
Isaiah wrote this seven hundred years before Jesus read it in Nazareth. This was the son of Joseph the carpenter. Surely Isaiah was referring to someone else when he penned this? Jesus is a nice chap and all, but we all know him, he can’t possibly be the Messiah! Anyway, we all know the Messiah will come from Bethlehem, and it’s a well known fact that nothing good ever came out of Nazareth!
People are making the wrong assumptions and drawing the wrong conclusions about Jesus today as well. They ought to examine the evidence.
Did He heal the broken hearted? Does He still?
Did He give the blind their sight? Does He still?
Did He set the captives free? Does He still?
Did He deliver the oppressed? Does He still?
If He did not and does not, then Christianity is the biggest hoax ever perpetrated in history, and the only one to have lasted so long and prospered to boot! If you look at it in reverse, without knowing the history of it, the presence and vitality of Christianity all over the world today is all the evidence you objectively need that something very special happened in Palestine 2000 years ago. There is more evidence that Jesus lived, performed miracles, was crucified and rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven than there is for the life and achievements of Alexander! Yet nobody would dispute history’s account of Alexander.
To deny Jesus as the Son of God is illogical. Otherwise in all the span of human history, there would have been at least one other man or woman who did what He did, and consequently spawned a movement with the track record of Christianity. (And I’m not talking of religions like Roman Catholicism here, but vital life changing faith; See Opium of the people) Alexander was not unique, (Julius Caesar, Mohammed, Genghis Khan, Napoleon.) but Jesus Christ was!
God’s provision is His Son Jesus Christ. To miss this is the most tragic mistake any human being can make.
“While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!'' Matthew 17:5 (emphasis mine)
The Scriptures foretold the messiah’s virgin birth, His birthplace, Herod’s attempt to murder Him, the worship of the Wise men, His ministry, His method and place of death, the type of burial, His resurrection and many other details about Him, all of which He fulfilled, and if that wasn’t enough, God himself spoke and enjoined us to Hear Him!
What did He say?
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?'' John 11:25-26
"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.'' John 8;32
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. John 14:6
“He who has seen Me has seen the Father” John 14:9
“I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” John10:10
"I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.” John 12:46
"Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.'' John 3:3
That last quote is not some piece of religious dogma, or a ritual to obtain a ticket to an exclusive club! It’s directly linked to all the other statements that Jesus made. The human condition apart from God is one of spiritual death. God is the fount and source of life, and sin has separated us from that source. Our spiritually dead condition needs to be reversed. Our spirits need to literally be reborn into a new life of connection to God. This can only happen when sin has been dealt with. Sin is the transgression of the perfect Law of God. Lawbreaking requires a penalty be paid. That’s logical. The penalty for sin is death. We can’t carry our rebellion with us into God’s presence, otherwise He would not be Holy. God and sin cannot co-exist. That is why He cast Lucifer out of Heaven, and why He cast Adam and Eve out of the garden of Eden, To achieve restoration, we need to get rid of our sin. The other choice is to pay the penalty for it. Jesus was the only human to have lived a sinless life, in perfect obedience to His Father. As a result He is the only one qualified to satisfy God’s requirements for eternal life. He is the only one to have overcome death. He is therefore the only one through whom we can be reconciled to God and receive the gift of eternal life. That seems logical to me!
John the Baptist filled with the Holy Spirit said..
"Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” John 1:29
The apostle Peter full of the Holy Spirit said..
"Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.'' Acts 4:12
If you can find anyone else who can fill this position, go follow him!
But before you do, subject what he says and does to the Logic of Faith, and see if it stands the test!
We have all heard the term “blind faith” Faith is presented today as something primitive, as contrary to science, and only pursued by those of lower intelligence or education. Those who exercise faith are often portrayed at best as being pitiful, and at worst as being dangerous. Of course that depends on what or who you have faith in.
We all have faith, and exercise it. If you have ever been on an aeroplane you will have exercised faith. Did you ask to see the aircraft’s CAA certificate of airworthiness? Did you check with the ground crew that they had carried out the pre-flight service? Did you ask to see the pilot’s licence? Did you smell his breath to check if he was intoxicated? You are exercising faith in scores of human beings unknown to you every time you fly! Ever had an operation? How did you know you would wake up after the anaesthetic? You had faith in the doctors and the procedures they follow. Every time you go through a traffic light you are acting in faith that no one of the millions of people in the city will run a red light in the opposite direction! Every time you eat in a restaurant you are acting in faith that the chef will take the proper care in the preparation of your food so that you will not get food poisoning. And so on and on.
We have all heard the term “seeing is believing” Yet we all believe in many things we cannot see. Sight after all is only one of our senses. Blind people see nothing, but believe in everything sighted people do. If you were to describe a beautiful scene to a blind person and he turned to you and said “I don’t believe you!” what would you think of him? The world is not subjective to your experience, neither is creation subjective to mankind’s cumulative experience. What we know today is less than we will know tomorrow, so that means that our experience and knowledge as it is today is not a complete representation of reality. Reality is not subject to our experience and knowledge of it. Reality just is. Some of it we will be able to discover with our senses, or by scientific process, but some of it will only ever be discovered by the exercise of faith.
Some people seem to have no faith at all. I think that every human being on the planet has faith of some sort. Scientists have a theory about the creation of the Universe called the Big Bang Theory. According to this theory all matter in the Universe came into being with a huge explosion. Now I may not be as bright as them, but my understanding of explosions is that you need two things to start one. You need material, preferably unstable or combustible, and you need a detonator or a source of combustion. Where did these essential components come from?
“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth” Psalm 33:1
“By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” Hebrews 11:3.
That is what I believe. I think it takes a greater leap of faith to believe in a “Big Bang” than it does to believe in the Bible! So you see Stephen Hawkins has faith after all! Trouble is, ultimately what he believes fails the test of logic, and there is perfect logic in Psalm 33 and Hebrews 11.
Another term that is heard is “arrogant faith” This implies that those who deal with normal human doubts by exercising faith instead of reason are prone to arrogance. I would contend that the reverse is true. Take life after death. It would appear that there is no way of proving it. Fear of death is a normal human condition. We would all like to think that there is some nirvana awaiting us after death. Wishful thinking is the indulgence of the weak minded. Scepticism and denial is the position of the hard headed who demand evidence. Faith is the position of the believer. Those who say they know beyond a shadow of a doubt that there is an afterlife, and that they have a ticket there, are often labelled arrogant. Arrogance is not what you know, but the way you act on that knowledge. The putting down and deriding of someone else’s beliefs simply because you think you know better is arrogance. So those who don’t believe in life after death simply because they see no proof for it, who pour scorn on those who do, are being arrogant. Equally those with faith who deride those of no faith are displaying arrogance.
Arrogance by its very nature is prone to entrenchment and inflexibility. Unbelief when infected by arrogance will propose the preposterous like the Big Bang Theory, or ignore the obvious like the resurrection. Listen to this…
“If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.' '' Luke 16:31
Not only did Jesus rise from the dead, but since then and even in our own generation there is documented evidence of resurrections, but their testimony has been largely ignored and forgotten.
Let me say again that I believe we all have faith. However when our belief system is grounded in ideology and not logic, it will deny the obvious, ignore evidence to the contrary, and engage in delusion, That is irrational. True faith engages with logic. It sifts the evidence, and does not insist that the spiritual must be explained by the natural. Instead it is open to information outside of the physical world and senses being able to explain that which we cannot otherwise understand. That is logical.
2. The Human Condition
"For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man and birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things. Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonour their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgement of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them." Romans 1:20-32
If the Apostle Paul were alive today would he revise this critique of the human condition? I think not! Sadly, little has changed in the 1950 years since he wrote this.
Logic dictates that if you break a law of nature, you will suffer the consequences. Take the law of gravity. Sadly only too well known by people with a suicidal inclination. No one would expect to survive a jump from the Empire State Building!
The medical profession has clearly established a causal link between homosexuality, promiscuity and AIDS. This was discovered over 20 years ago. Yet in spite of this, people continue to engage in these activities. This is not logical. Is it then an act of faith? Do people somehow believe that for some inexplicable reason it will not happen to them?
There are natural laws and spiritual laws. The laws God has put in place are there to protect us, not to restrict us. Sexually transmitted diseases are the natural result of breaking God’s law against promiscuity. People who rail against that need to look at the logic of their position. Their position is that they consider it unfair for promiscuity to attract the consequences it does. They would like to be free to conduct the lifestyle they choose without any consequences. So they blame God. Yet if you ask them if God is responsible for Cholera, they would readily agree that careless and inadequate sanitation is responsible, and that any sensible person or society should take precautionary measures to prevent Cholera. Unfortunately Cholera does not only affect those responsible for poor sanitation, it also affects those who are not responsible, such as children. Promiscuity also affects the innocent. Husbands who have been with prostitutes infect wives. Babies are then born infected. Children are made orphans, and grandparents have to take on the burden of caring for them. Millions of dollars from already overstretched government budgets have to be diverted from other projects (such as sanitation) to pay for the treatment of those infected. Where is the logic in insisting on and pursuing this kind of freedom?
Let me say something. Sin is not logical. Neither is it considerate. Nor is it caring. It is not sensitive. It is in fact everything that Paul said it was in the quote from Romans.
The human condition is one of sin. Sin is simply rebellion against God and His Law.
What then can be done about it?
Atheists will bury their heads in the sand and deny it exists. They will excuse what God calls sin by re-naming it inappropriate behaviour, or diminished responsibility, and blame it on inadequate social provision, or deprived circumstances, or marginalisation. Their solution for the problem is always money. More money for better education, better housing, more social workers etc. While there is no doubt merit in these, they fail to solve the problem. After 50 years of effort in these areas, the problem is still there, and if anything worse than ever.
Muslims are in the headlines a lot railing against the “decadent western civilisation” Their solution to the problem of sin is to beat and kill the sinner! Husbands kill adulterous wives. Brothers and fathers kill promiscuous daughters and sisters. (Who deals with adulterous and promiscuous men?) Thieves have their hands chopped off. Homosexuals are decapitated. Blasphemers are assassinated. You would have thought that with this sort of treatment the problem would have been cured long ago! Unfortunately not, the human still has his condition.
Hindu’s hope that it will be better next time! Try hard this time, and you will get a better deal the next time. Is treating “untouchables” as inferior to cattle or monkeys part of qualifying for a better life the next time round? In spite of more “holy men” than Israel had prophets, in spite of the threat or promise of a reincarnation, in spite of all this and more, Hindu society continues to be the most divided corrupted and inequitable on earth. No answers there either.
The Apostle Paul described the problem, can he describe the solution?
“For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:20-23
Paul identifies sin as enslaving. The human condition then is one of slavery to sin. A slave is helpless. He cannot procure his own freedom. He is doomed to die from and in sin. But a slave can be set free! Someone with more power than the slave owner, someone with the authority of the law on their side can set the slave free! Furthermore, because a slave cannot own property, he has nothing to offer in exchange for his freedom, other than himself. So freedom from sin is a gift of God through Jesus Christ!
God’s Provision
And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.''
Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him, and He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.'' Luke 4:17-21
Isaiah wrote this seven hundred years before Jesus read it in Nazareth. This was the son of Joseph the carpenter. Surely Isaiah was referring to someone else when he penned this? Jesus is a nice chap and all, but we all know him, he can’t possibly be the Messiah! Anyway, we all know the Messiah will come from Bethlehem, and it’s a well known fact that nothing good ever came out of Nazareth!
People are making the wrong assumptions and drawing the wrong conclusions about Jesus today as well. They ought to examine the evidence.
Did He heal the broken hearted? Does He still?
Did He give the blind their sight? Does He still?
Did He set the captives free? Does He still?
Did He deliver the oppressed? Does He still?
If He did not and does not, then Christianity is the biggest hoax ever perpetrated in history, and the only one to have lasted so long and prospered to boot! If you look at it in reverse, without knowing the history of it, the presence and vitality of Christianity all over the world today is all the evidence you objectively need that something very special happened in Palestine 2000 years ago. There is more evidence that Jesus lived, performed miracles, was crucified and rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven than there is for the life and achievements of Alexander! Yet nobody would dispute history’s account of Alexander.
To deny Jesus as the Son of God is illogical. Otherwise in all the span of human history, there would have been at least one other man or woman who did what He did, and consequently spawned a movement with the track record of Christianity. (And I’m not talking of religions like Roman Catholicism here, but vital life changing faith; See Opium of the people) Alexander was not unique, (Julius Caesar, Mohammed, Genghis Khan, Napoleon.) but Jesus Christ was!
God’s provision is His Son Jesus Christ. To miss this is the most tragic mistake any human being can make.
“While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!'' Matthew 17:5 (emphasis mine)
The Scriptures foretold the messiah’s virgin birth, His birthplace, Herod’s attempt to murder Him, the worship of the Wise men, His ministry, His method and place of death, the type of burial, His resurrection and many other details about Him, all of which He fulfilled, and if that wasn’t enough, God himself spoke and enjoined us to Hear Him!
What did He say?
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?'' John 11:25-26
"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.'' John 8;32
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. John 14:6
“He who has seen Me has seen the Father” John 14:9
“I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” John10:10
"I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.” John 12:46
"Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.'' John 3:3
That last quote is not some piece of religious dogma, or a ritual to obtain a ticket to an exclusive club! It’s directly linked to all the other statements that Jesus made. The human condition apart from God is one of spiritual death. God is the fount and source of life, and sin has separated us from that source. Our spiritually dead condition needs to be reversed. Our spirits need to literally be reborn into a new life of connection to God. This can only happen when sin has been dealt with. Sin is the transgression of the perfect Law of God. Lawbreaking requires a penalty be paid. That’s logical. The penalty for sin is death. We can’t carry our rebellion with us into God’s presence, otherwise He would not be Holy. God and sin cannot co-exist. That is why He cast Lucifer out of Heaven, and why He cast Adam and Eve out of the garden of Eden, To achieve restoration, we need to get rid of our sin. The other choice is to pay the penalty for it. Jesus was the only human to have lived a sinless life, in perfect obedience to His Father. As a result He is the only one qualified to satisfy God’s requirements for eternal life. He is the only one to have overcome death. He is therefore the only one through whom we can be reconciled to God and receive the gift of eternal life. That seems logical to me!
John the Baptist filled with the Holy Spirit said..
"Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” John 1:29
The apostle Peter full of the Holy Spirit said..
"Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.'' Acts 4:12
If you can find anyone else who can fill this position, go follow him!
But before you do, subject what he says and does to the Logic of Faith, and see if it stands the test!
Tuesday 17 February 2009
Opium of the People
"Die Religion ... ist das Opium des Volkes". “The religion, It is the opium of the people”
Thus said Karl Marx in his critique of religion. You might be surprised to find out that I do not disagree with him!
1. The current meaning of religion has evolved to `belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.'
2. However, that specific meaning is not found in the etymological history of the word religion. The root of the word is thought to be Latin religare, which means `to tie fast,' From that came Latin religio which originally meant `obligation, bond.'
Anyone who has been addicted to opium will recognise having been tied fast and bound up with the substance. The results are not pleasant.
Equally, the results of being bound up and tied fast by a religion are not pleasant either. Atheism however is not the answer, for by the above (2) definition it is just another religion. It’s adherents are just as bound up and miserable as those gripped by other religions.
Do you know what the first religious act was? Here it is..
“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.” Genesis 3:7
Before they were disobedient, Adam and Eve’s nakedness was not an issue. Afterwards however they felt so guilty that they sought to cover themselves with a leaf! Sin had perverted their view of their reproductive organs, they felt ashamed to be exposed, and tried to cover up. However their covering did not cut it with God , He had another solution,
“Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.” Vs 21.
For them to be effectively covered, an animal had to die, so that it’s covering could be theirs. In this provision God pointed the way to the sacrifice of the perfect Lamb of God to atone for the sin of the world.
“For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” Hebrews 9:13-14.
Ever since then mankind has invented various ways to get right with God. They are called Religions. God is not impressed, and has no time for them. To Him they are just another manifestation of disobedience. To get round this Devine displeasure men invent gods to construct religions around. If you invent your own god / goddess, you can also invent your own rules for getting on his/ her good side, (or getting him/her on your side)
“For the idols speak delusion; the diviners envision lies, and tell false dreams; they comfort in vain. Therefore the people wend their way like sheep; they are in trouble because there is no shepherd.” Zechariah 10:2
`These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honour Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me, And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' '' Matthew 15:8-9
This is a form of delusion on a grand scale which Marx recognised. Unfortunately Marx was also deluded. His delusion was to get rid of God. You can’t get rid of God in the psyche of man, because we are created in His image. Communism substituted the worship of the creator with that of the creature with disastrous consequences!
“who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them up to vile passions.” Romans 1:25-26
When I was about 13 I became an atheist. Previously I had believed in God. Not just believed in Him, as in He exists, but as in I really want to know Him. Consequently I paid great attention to people who were supposed to be Christians. I listened to what they had to say, and observed what they did, especially ministers. I was not impressed. These people did not seem to believe the Bible, and did not seem to have any integrity. Perhaps I was misjudging them, but that was the impression they left with me at 13. So I became an atheist. What I did in fact, although I did not realise it at the time, was to cast myself morally ethically and spiritually adrift on a sea of relativism. It’s too long a story to tell here, but at the age of 17 God caught hold of my drifting life and with my permission anchored me firmly to Jesus Christ
What I have now is a relationship, not a religion. Jesus said…
“But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.'' John 4:23-24 and…
"No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. 15:15
A relationship is characterised by love and trust and respect. Religion is characterised by fear and domination. Which would you rather have?
Religion may change it’s cloak from time to time, but never it’s spots. Underneath the spots are always there. The purpose is always to bring men and women into bondage to a lie through a delusion that convinces them that they have the truth.
Where a religion is dominant in a society it shows it’s spots. These are intolerance, persecution, ignorance, deprivation, control, subjugation of women, and concentration of power and wealth in an elite priesthood.
That is a pretty accurate description of Islam in the Middle East and Africa today, and also of Hinduism in India today. It was also an accurate description of Catholicism in Europe during the 1000 years from it’s inception to the Reformation. It is still an accurate description of Catholicism in Central and South America. It is also an accurate description of Communism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe until 1989, Cambodia in 1976-79, and currently of North Korea and to a lesser extent China and Cuba.
Now I am going to say something else that may shock you. I agree with the separation of Church and State. (but only until Jesus Christ returns to set up His kingdom on earth). I also agree with freedom of Religion in a secular state, protected by Law. If you want to be deluded, feel free. By the same token I am free to point out your delusion, and to present to you the truth. I am not free to force it on you, neither would I want to!
However; I believe that the best foundation for the Laws of that state are to be found in the Jewish and Christian Scriptures. It is no accident that the societies that enjoy the greatest degree of personal freedom and liberty for their citizens have their Judicial systems rooted it the Judeo / Christian ethic.
Compare that with Saudi Arabia, Iran, India, Sudan, North Korea etc.
It’s a sad and ominous day when we like Esau (Genesis 25:29-34) trade our birthright of tolerance and freedom for a mess of stew disguised as multiculturalism. A sad day when we deny an elected European Parliamentarian the right to enter our country to express his views. http://www.ccfon.org/view.php?id=687 (If Geert Wilders offended anyone, they have recourse under the libel laws of our country, only they have to prove he is not being truthful!) A sad day when a nurse is dismissed for offering to pray for one of her patients. A sad day when schoolgirl is reprimanded for praying for her friend in school. http://www.ccfon.org/view.php?id=689 A sad day when a mob of violent Muslims are allowed to march on our streets shouting abuse and hatred at their fellow citizens who do not agree with them,. A sad day when a radical Muslim cleric is invited to our capital by the Mayor, and is allowed to seed his hateful perversions, a sad day when Muslim women will be subjected to Shania law contrary to English Law in the worlds oldest Democracy. See http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/543869.aspx
A sad day for us, and for them
You won’t find this or anything like it in the Koran….
"You have heard that it was said, `You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. Matthew 5:43-45
I pray for them, but the state should lock them up or kick them out! That is it’s obligation to the rest of us, of whatever religion. Instead it sanctions those who do the praying, and kicks out those who tell the truth!
Unless the government wakes up, this nation is heading for serious trouble. Spain under the Inquisition will seem mild by comparison!
Thus said Karl Marx in his critique of religion. You might be surprised to find out that I do not disagree with him!
1. The current meaning of religion has evolved to `belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.'
2. However, that specific meaning is not found in the etymological history of the word religion. The root of the word is thought to be Latin religare, which means `to tie fast,' From that came Latin religio which originally meant `obligation, bond.'
Anyone who has been addicted to opium will recognise having been tied fast and bound up with the substance. The results are not pleasant.
Equally, the results of being bound up and tied fast by a religion are not pleasant either. Atheism however is not the answer, for by the above (2) definition it is just another religion. It’s adherents are just as bound up and miserable as those gripped by other religions.
Do you know what the first religious act was? Here it is..
“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.” Genesis 3:7
Before they were disobedient, Adam and Eve’s nakedness was not an issue. Afterwards however they felt so guilty that they sought to cover themselves with a leaf! Sin had perverted their view of their reproductive organs, they felt ashamed to be exposed, and tried to cover up. However their covering did not cut it with God , He had another solution,
“Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.” Vs 21.
For them to be effectively covered, an animal had to die, so that it’s covering could be theirs. In this provision God pointed the way to the sacrifice of the perfect Lamb of God to atone for the sin of the world.
“For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” Hebrews 9:13-14.
Ever since then mankind has invented various ways to get right with God. They are called Religions. God is not impressed, and has no time for them. To Him they are just another manifestation of disobedience. To get round this Devine displeasure men invent gods to construct religions around. If you invent your own god / goddess, you can also invent your own rules for getting on his/ her good side, (or getting him/her on your side)
“For the idols speak delusion; the diviners envision lies, and tell false dreams; they comfort in vain. Therefore the people wend their way like sheep; they are in trouble because there is no shepherd.” Zechariah 10:2
`These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honour Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me, And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' '' Matthew 15:8-9
This is a form of delusion on a grand scale which Marx recognised. Unfortunately Marx was also deluded. His delusion was to get rid of God. You can’t get rid of God in the psyche of man, because we are created in His image. Communism substituted the worship of the creator with that of the creature with disastrous consequences!
“who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them up to vile passions.” Romans 1:25-26
When I was about 13 I became an atheist. Previously I had believed in God. Not just believed in Him, as in He exists, but as in I really want to know Him. Consequently I paid great attention to people who were supposed to be Christians. I listened to what they had to say, and observed what they did, especially ministers. I was not impressed. These people did not seem to believe the Bible, and did not seem to have any integrity. Perhaps I was misjudging them, but that was the impression they left with me at 13. So I became an atheist. What I did in fact, although I did not realise it at the time, was to cast myself morally ethically and spiritually adrift on a sea of relativism. It’s too long a story to tell here, but at the age of 17 God caught hold of my drifting life and with my permission anchored me firmly to Jesus Christ
What I have now is a relationship, not a religion. Jesus said…
“But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.'' John 4:23-24 and…
"No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. 15:15
A relationship is characterised by love and trust and respect. Religion is characterised by fear and domination. Which would you rather have?
Religion may change it’s cloak from time to time, but never it’s spots. Underneath the spots are always there. The purpose is always to bring men and women into bondage to a lie through a delusion that convinces them that they have the truth.
Where a religion is dominant in a society it shows it’s spots. These are intolerance, persecution, ignorance, deprivation, control, subjugation of women, and concentration of power and wealth in an elite priesthood.
That is a pretty accurate description of Islam in the Middle East and Africa today, and also of Hinduism in India today. It was also an accurate description of Catholicism in Europe during the 1000 years from it’s inception to the Reformation. It is still an accurate description of Catholicism in Central and South America. It is also an accurate description of Communism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe until 1989, Cambodia in 1976-79, and currently of North Korea and to a lesser extent China and Cuba.
Now I am going to say something else that may shock you. I agree with the separation of Church and State. (but only until Jesus Christ returns to set up His kingdom on earth). I also agree with freedom of Religion in a secular state, protected by Law. If you want to be deluded, feel free. By the same token I am free to point out your delusion, and to present to you the truth. I am not free to force it on you, neither would I want to!
However; I believe that the best foundation for the Laws of that state are to be found in the Jewish and Christian Scriptures. It is no accident that the societies that enjoy the greatest degree of personal freedom and liberty for their citizens have their Judicial systems rooted it the Judeo / Christian ethic.
Compare that with Saudi Arabia, Iran, India, Sudan, North Korea etc.
It’s a sad and ominous day when we like Esau (Genesis 25:29-34) trade our birthright of tolerance and freedom for a mess of stew disguised as multiculturalism. A sad day when we deny an elected European Parliamentarian the right to enter our country to express his views. http://www.ccfon.org/view.php?id=687 (If Geert Wilders offended anyone, they have recourse under the libel laws of our country, only they have to prove he is not being truthful!) A sad day when a nurse is dismissed for offering to pray for one of her patients. A sad day when schoolgirl is reprimanded for praying for her friend in school. http://www.ccfon.org/view.php?id=689 A sad day when a mob of violent Muslims are allowed to march on our streets shouting abuse and hatred at their fellow citizens who do not agree with them,. A sad day when a radical Muslim cleric is invited to our capital by the Mayor, and is allowed to seed his hateful perversions, a sad day when Muslim women will be subjected to Shania law contrary to English Law in the worlds oldest Democracy. See http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/543869.aspx
A sad day for us, and for them
You won’t find this or anything like it in the Koran….
"You have heard that it was said, `You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. Matthew 5:43-45
I pray for them, but the state should lock them up or kick them out! That is it’s obligation to the rest of us, of whatever religion. Instead it sanctions those who do the praying, and kicks out those who tell the truth!
Unless the government wakes up, this nation is heading for serious trouble. Spain under the Inquisition will seem mild by comparison!
Thursday 5 February 2009
Sandcastles
"Now everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.''
Matthew 7:26-27
I saw a TV program recently where a team of sculptors turned a beach into a Disneyworld of castles and statues. It was truly amazing to see. We can all remember a day spent at the beach attempting to create a fortress that would stand against the incoming tide, trying to shore it up against the slowly advancing water!
Their castles, wonderful as they were suffered the same fate as ours did, and pretty soon the beach was flat sand again, with no evidence left of hours of dedicated effort!
Of course it’s only a beach pastime, and we don’t take it seriously. Jesus however was very serious when He warned us about the consequences of not taking Him seriously. If we’re not careful we can spend our whole lives building a sandcastle only to see it crumble to nothing when the tide turns.
Jesus said; "For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? Matthew 16:26
This saying somehow packs a bigger punch that the one we usually trot out “you can’t take it with you.” True enough, but that’s not the point; what we say is “ I want it all, and I want it now!” Jesus’ statement exposed that attitude for what it is, a trade off between what the world has to offer, and what God has to offer.
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
1 John 2:15-17
"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, `What shall we eat?' or `What shall we drink?' or `What shall we wear?' For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
Matthew 6:25-33
In the first passage John is apparently on a downer about the things of the world, whilst in the second Jesus accepts that they are necessary. But both are saying the same thing.
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21
This is where the problem lies. Whatever is dear to our hearts, whatever we are attached to at a deeper emotional level is what will preoccupy us, and hold our attention, or in other words we will love. Whatever we love we worry and fuss over. That level of attachment should be reserved for God and for each other, not for the “things” of the world, not even the necessities such as shelter, food and clothing. Of course as they are necessities, we need to devote a lot of time and effort to securing them, but when we focus our attention exclusively on them to the exclusion of our relationship with God and even each other, then we are building sandcastles.
Like Esau we have traded our soul for a pot of stew. Trouble is we can live our entire lives without realising it. And it’s true, you can’t take it with you. One day you won’t be able to manage that big house you killed yourself to pay for. One day you will not be able to drive that Porsche. One day that designer label outfit won’t fit, and wouldn’t look right if it did! One day you will wonder why you devoted so much time and effort to acquiring them. None of these things in themselves are wrong, and if God “adds” them to your life be thankful, but seek after Him, not them!
We are all different, and God has different plans for our lives. Some will be called to a life of few material possessions and wealth, others will have much. But God says clearly to those who have been given much, that He expects them to share it.
“For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.” Luke 12:48
This applies to Material and Ministry gifts. Paul implored the churches in Greece who were well off to help the churches in Palestine who were struggling. By the same token he a Jew, laid down his life for the gentile churches in Greece, Italy and Asia Minor.
Paul also said that we will only enter Heaven with things that are of value.
“For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one's work will become manifest; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is. If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” 1 Corinthians 3:11-15
There are some things you can take with you after all! You can’t take your big house with you, but you can take with you the “precious stones” of the time you housed someone who was in need for a season. Your title of Bishop or Vicar or Evangelist or TV Minister will mean nothing in Heaven, but the “gold and silver” of the time given sacrificially to that person suffering from depression, or the time and effort spent in repairing that broken spirit will adorn you as you enter His presence. That is not to say that salvation can be earned by good works, because unless they are built on the foundation of Jesus Christ they are sandcastles. No matter how beautiful or impressive, the tide will wash them away. (See Inevitable Appointment)
If you are a Christian, I would encourage you to take stock of your life. Are you building a sandcastle? Get close to God, seek Him first, and He will show you how to build an enduring house.
If you are not a Christian, you need to ask God into your life. Turn away from the empty things of the world to God, and He will show you a better place, a place of eternal value. Jesus will fill the void in your life that only He can fill.
Matthew 7:26-27
I saw a TV program recently where a team of sculptors turned a beach into a Disneyworld of castles and statues. It was truly amazing to see. We can all remember a day spent at the beach attempting to create a fortress that would stand against the incoming tide, trying to shore it up against the slowly advancing water!
Their castles, wonderful as they were suffered the same fate as ours did, and pretty soon the beach was flat sand again, with no evidence left of hours of dedicated effort!
Of course it’s only a beach pastime, and we don’t take it seriously. Jesus however was very serious when He warned us about the consequences of not taking Him seriously. If we’re not careful we can spend our whole lives building a sandcastle only to see it crumble to nothing when the tide turns.
Jesus said; "For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? Matthew 16:26
This saying somehow packs a bigger punch that the one we usually trot out “you can’t take it with you.” True enough, but that’s not the point; what we say is “ I want it all, and I want it now!” Jesus’ statement exposed that attitude for what it is, a trade off between what the world has to offer, and what God has to offer.
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
1 John 2:15-17
"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, `What shall we eat?' or `What shall we drink?' or `What shall we wear?' For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
Matthew 6:25-33
In the first passage John is apparently on a downer about the things of the world, whilst in the second Jesus accepts that they are necessary. But both are saying the same thing.
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21
This is where the problem lies. Whatever is dear to our hearts, whatever we are attached to at a deeper emotional level is what will preoccupy us, and hold our attention, or in other words we will love. Whatever we love we worry and fuss over. That level of attachment should be reserved for God and for each other, not for the “things” of the world, not even the necessities such as shelter, food and clothing. Of course as they are necessities, we need to devote a lot of time and effort to securing them, but when we focus our attention exclusively on them to the exclusion of our relationship with God and even each other, then we are building sandcastles.
Like Esau we have traded our soul for a pot of stew. Trouble is we can live our entire lives without realising it. And it’s true, you can’t take it with you. One day you won’t be able to manage that big house you killed yourself to pay for. One day you will not be able to drive that Porsche. One day that designer label outfit won’t fit, and wouldn’t look right if it did! One day you will wonder why you devoted so much time and effort to acquiring them. None of these things in themselves are wrong, and if God “adds” them to your life be thankful, but seek after Him, not them!
We are all different, and God has different plans for our lives. Some will be called to a life of few material possessions and wealth, others will have much. But God says clearly to those who have been given much, that He expects them to share it.
“For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.” Luke 12:48
This applies to Material and Ministry gifts. Paul implored the churches in Greece who were well off to help the churches in Palestine who were struggling. By the same token he a Jew, laid down his life for the gentile churches in Greece, Italy and Asia Minor.
Paul also said that we will only enter Heaven with things that are of value.
“For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one's work will become manifest; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is. If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” 1 Corinthians 3:11-15
There are some things you can take with you after all! You can’t take your big house with you, but you can take with you the “precious stones” of the time you housed someone who was in need for a season. Your title of Bishop or Vicar or Evangelist or TV Minister will mean nothing in Heaven, but the “gold and silver” of the time given sacrificially to that person suffering from depression, or the time and effort spent in repairing that broken spirit will adorn you as you enter His presence. That is not to say that salvation can be earned by good works, because unless they are built on the foundation of Jesus Christ they are sandcastles. No matter how beautiful or impressive, the tide will wash them away. (See Inevitable Appointment)
If you are a Christian, I would encourage you to take stock of your life. Are you building a sandcastle? Get close to God, seek Him first, and He will show you how to build an enduring house.
If you are not a Christian, you need to ask God into your life. Turn away from the empty things of the world to God, and He will show you a better place, a place of eternal value. Jesus will fill the void in your life that only He can fill.
Wednesday 28 January 2009
Inevitable Appointment
It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, Hebrews 9:27
There are two kinds of appointments. One is mutual, where both parties agree to meet at a certain place and time. The other is where one party is summoned to an appointment by the other. An example of the first is a date, something to look forward to. An example of the second is a summons to court over a transgression of the law. The first kind of appointment is usually eagerly anticipated, and the approach of the second kind of appointment is usually accompanied by trepidation at the least, and fear at the worst.
We all agree that we all have one thing in common at least. Rich or poor, smart or dumb, weak or strong, powerful or impotent, we are all going to die. Well actually we all have two things in common. After we die we all have an appointment with the Judge of all mankind. You are probably in agreement with me about the first thing we have in common, but if not, it won’t make any difference, you will die anyway! Neither does it make any difference if you disagree with me about the second thing, for you will face judgement as well anyhow! Why? Because God says so!
Let me enlighten you about something. The reason you are going to die is because God said so. If He is right about that, rest assured He is also right about the judgement. You do have an appointment, time and date unknown, before the court of heaven, and so do I.
Let’s clear up any misunderstanding here. God did not create us to die! Think about it, it makes sense. If a turtle can live over 400 years, why is it that the pinnacle of God’s creation can only manage one quarter of that time? The answer is found in Genesis 3. Adam and Eve were created to be immortal. They were made in God’s image. They could reproduce, they could create, they could choose to do whatever they wanted to and they had dominion over the earth and its creatures. They were in fact lords of the world, by the decree and authority of its Creator! They were created with built in immortality! In that state they were in communion with God. Genesis records that Adam walked with God in the garden. If you really want to talk to someone and get to know them, go for a long walk in the country. God and Adam fellowshipped together like that! Wow!
What broke that relationship? For it surely has been broken, I am sure you will agree with me on that point! Relationships are broken by agreement and trust being violated. God trusted Adam with stewardship of all He had made on the earth, and withheld only one thing. God said that if that trust was broken, Adam would suffer death. Why? God was not being petulant or vindictive. He is not a man, and does not act out of wrong motives. God is pure, holy, and without fault. As soon as Adam disobeyed God, he betrayed His trust. Do you remain on good terms with someone you do not trust? No. It does not make for a relationship of any sort. Now Adam’s life was directly dependent on his continuing relationship with God, just as his body’s function was dependent on food and water, just as the earth as a habitable planet is dependent on the sun. Take away the source of life and death is inevitable. If God continued in relationship with Adam, His holiness and purity would be compromised. That cannot happen of course, so the only alternative is that Adam and Eve would have ceased to exist completely. So they were driven out from Eden, from God’s presence, which had now become deadly to them. Separated from the source of their life they began to die. Corruption set in, and eventually took it’s toll, and they died, just like their descendents did. And you and I will. It could be no other way. The Bible says in Romans 6:23 that “the wages of sin (breaking of relationship with God by disobedience to His law) is death.” That’s not all it says, but I’ll come back to that later.
Before the fall, relationship with God was a privilege. Now the privilege is withdrawn. What do you do when a privilege you value very highly is taken from you? For example your car is impounded because it is unworthy. You pay the fine to have it released of course, and then you pay to have it made roadworthy again. That’s what you do isn’t it? Anybody would.
So what price will mankind pay to get right with God? What price will you pay? The history of the world is littered with mankind’s attempts to get right with God. They are known as religions. They all have some things in common. Firstly they are all inventions of men. I can prove it. What do you do when the thing you cherish most is insulted, rejected, belittled, despised, abused, miss-understood, and scorned? You get angry, that’s what you do! Ring any bells? Does a Muslim get angry if Jesus is insulted? How about Mohammed! Muslims own Mohammed, they don’t own Jesus, That’s why!
Listen to what Jesus said to His followers about their reaction to Him being insulted…
`A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you (John 15:20). You have heard that it was said, `You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, Matthew 5:43 & 44
How many wars, persecutions, massacres and suppressions have been carried out in the name of religion? Even people who are followers of the same religion despise and kill one another! More people have died in Iraq from sectarian attacks than from the action of coalition forces! The bitterness and division in Ireland has its roots in religious intolerance Are we stupid enough to think God is impressed by this? If we think that we can get right with God by following the rules and regulations of a religion, we are sadly deluded! Look at what Jesus had to say…
Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying,
"Why do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread.'' But He answered and said to them, "Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? "For God commanded, saying, `Honor your father and your mother'; and, `He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'
"But you say, `Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me has been dedicated to the temple'' is released from honouring his father or mother.' "Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition. "Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:
These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honour Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' '' Matthew 15:1-9
For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin.
As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God. They have all gone out of the way; they have together become unprofitable; there is none who does good, no, not one.
Romans 3:9-12
The benchmark here is the one set by God in the 10 commandments. Sorry, you can’t set your own benchmark! But that is exactly what religion does! How absurd! Here’s a good idea. If you want to go to university, just set your own admission standards! Hey, let’s all go. Sorry, but it won’t work. We can all see that, so why do we delude ourselves into thinking we can write our own ticket to heaven? You can dress it up with a fancy name, like Catholicism, or Anglicanism, or Judaism, Islam, or Buddhism, or Hinduism, or any ism you like, but it WILL NOT WASH!
So back to the 10 commandments. Jesus said to him, " `You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' "This is the first and great commandment. "And the second is like it: `You shall love your neighbour as yourself.' Matthew 22:37-39
Oh! Uh.. hands up anyone who has managed the first two? No, well that’s no surprise! Hard isn’t it? In fact it’s impossible to keep the commandments! So why did God set an impossible benchmark? Come on God you say, cut us a little slack, it’s not fair! Actually God had no option. He is holy and perfect, and to gain admission to His presence we have to be holy and perfect too, or we will be destroyed. Remember when God was going to appear to Moses on the mountain? God found a fault in the rock, a deep cut into which Moses could go. Thus surrounded by the rock, he saw God pass by the opening to the cleft with His back to Moses. Even so Moses barely survived the encounter! When he returned to camp his face shone for days afterwards. It wasn’t sunburn, it was Godburn! This is an old testament example of a new testament truth. We can only enter God’s presence if we are hidden in Christ, the Rock of our salvation. He is our advocate at the court of heaven. He fulfilled all the demands of God’s law and lived a perfect life. When he laid down His life, he offered it up as the penalty for our sin, our rebellion and disobedience. There is nothing any of us can do to deserve the pardon that He freely offers us. Clutching our pardon in our hand, we approach our appointment with God at the court of heaven with confidence knowing that our pardon has the seal of God on it, because it was purchased with the blood of His precious Son!
Remember Romans 6:23? The wages of sin is death? The second part of that verse says “but the gift of God is eternal life!”
Funny thing about a gift. You don’t have to earn it. You earn your wages, and the wages of rebellion is death. We have all sinned, and we shall all die. Eternal life however is a gift. To obtain it you only need to do an about turn towards God, hold out your hands and receive it! The about turn is repentance. That means to turn around, to change direction.
“For godly sorrow produces repentance to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.” 2 Corinthians 7:10
Being sorry for your sin is good, but it is not good enough. On it’s own it won’t alter your destination. Godly sorrow causes you to turn from your rebellion, and set’s you off in the opposite direction, in fellowship with Jesus Christ, the fellowship that Adam lost.
“For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.” 1 Corinthians 15:21&22.
We all have an appointment with death. We don’t know when or where. There are no guarantees. The appointment could come at any time. Are you ready? Afterwards we have an appointment in the court of God for judgement. We are all guilty,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23
Is your defence prepared? There is no defence. Jesus said…
"If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin.” John 15:22
There is no defence, there is no excuse! There is however a pardon available. Do you have it? Without it there is no entry to God’s presence, only everlasting torment over a wrong decision that cannot be rectified.
To those who reject the Son of God He says…
"But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. "So he said to him, `Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. "Then the king said to the servants, `Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'
Do not delay. God says ' Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me”. Revelation 3:20
There are two kinds of appointments. One is mutual, where both parties agree to meet at a certain place and time. The other is where one party is summoned to an appointment by the other. An example of the first is a date, something to look forward to. An example of the second is a summons to court over a transgression of the law. The first kind of appointment is usually eagerly anticipated, and the approach of the second kind of appointment is usually accompanied by trepidation at the least, and fear at the worst.
We all agree that we all have one thing in common at least. Rich or poor, smart or dumb, weak or strong, powerful or impotent, we are all going to die. Well actually we all have two things in common. After we die we all have an appointment with the Judge of all mankind. You are probably in agreement with me about the first thing we have in common, but if not, it won’t make any difference, you will die anyway! Neither does it make any difference if you disagree with me about the second thing, for you will face judgement as well anyhow! Why? Because God says so!
Let me enlighten you about something. The reason you are going to die is because God said so. If He is right about that, rest assured He is also right about the judgement. You do have an appointment, time and date unknown, before the court of heaven, and so do I.
Let’s clear up any misunderstanding here. God did not create us to die! Think about it, it makes sense. If a turtle can live over 400 years, why is it that the pinnacle of God’s creation can only manage one quarter of that time? The answer is found in Genesis 3. Adam and Eve were created to be immortal. They were made in God’s image. They could reproduce, they could create, they could choose to do whatever they wanted to and they had dominion over the earth and its creatures. They were in fact lords of the world, by the decree and authority of its Creator! They were created with built in immortality! In that state they were in communion with God. Genesis records that Adam walked with God in the garden. If you really want to talk to someone and get to know them, go for a long walk in the country. God and Adam fellowshipped together like that! Wow!
What broke that relationship? For it surely has been broken, I am sure you will agree with me on that point! Relationships are broken by agreement and trust being violated. God trusted Adam with stewardship of all He had made on the earth, and withheld only one thing. God said that if that trust was broken, Adam would suffer death. Why? God was not being petulant or vindictive. He is not a man, and does not act out of wrong motives. God is pure, holy, and without fault. As soon as Adam disobeyed God, he betrayed His trust. Do you remain on good terms with someone you do not trust? No. It does not make for a relationship of any sort. Now Adam’s life was directly dependent on his continuing relationship with God, just as his body’s function was dependent on food and water, just as the earth as a habitable planet is dependent on the sun. Take away the source of life and death is inevitable. If God continued in relationship with Adam, His holiness and purity would be compromised. That cannot happen of course, so the only alternative is that Adam and Eve would have ceased to exist completely. So they were driven out from Eden, from God’s presence, which had now become deadly to them. Separated from the source of their life they began to die. Corruption set in, and eventually took it’s toll, and they died, just like their descendents did. And you and I will. It could be no other way. The Bible says in Romans 6:23 that “the wages of sin (breaking of relationship with God by disobedience to His law) is death.” That’s not all it says, but I’ll come back to that later.
Before the fall, relationship with God was a privilege. Now the privilege is withdrawn. What do you do when a privilege you value very highly is taken from you? For example your car is impounded because it is unworthy. You pay the fine to have it released of course, and then you pay to have it made roadworthy again. That’s what you do isn’t it? Anybody would.
So what price will mankind pay to get right with God? What price will you pay? The history of the world is littered with mankind’s attempts to get right with God. They are known as religions. They all have some things in common. Firstly they are all inventions of men. I can prove it. What do you do when the thing you cherish most is insulted, rejected, belittled, despised, abused, miss-understood, and scorned? You get angry, that’s what you do! Ring any bells? Does a Muslim get angry if Jesus is insulted? How about Mohammed! Muslims own Mohammed, they don’t own Jesus, That’s why!
Listen to what Jesus said to His followers about their reaction to Him being insulted…
`A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you (John 15:20). You have heard that it was said, `You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, Matthew 5:43 & 44
How many wars, persecutions, massacres and suppressions have been carried out in the name of religion? Even people who are followers of the same religion despise and kill one another! More people have died in Iraq from sectarian attacks than from the action of coalition forces! The bitterness and division in Ireland has its roots in religious intolerance Are we stupid enough to think God is impressed by this? If we think that we can get right with God by following the rules and regulations of a religion, we are sadly deluded! Look at what Jesus had to say…
Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying,
"Why do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread.'' But He answered and said to them, "Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? "For God commanded, saying, `Honor your father and your mother'; and, `He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'
"But you say, `Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me has been dedicated to the temple'' is released from honouring his father or mother.' "Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition. "Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:
These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honour Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' '' Matthew 15:1-9
For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin.
As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God. They have all gone out of the way; they have together become unprofitable; there is none who does good, no, not one.
Romans 3:9-12
The benchmark here is the one set by God in the 10 commandments. Sorry, you can’t set your own benchmark! But that is exactly what religion does! How absurd! Here’s a good idea. If you want to go to university, just set your own admission standards! Hey, let’s all go. Sorry, but it won’t work. We can all see that, so why do we delude ourselves into thinking we can write our own ticket to heaven? You can dress it up with a fancy name, like Catholicism, or Anglicanism, or Judaism, Islam, or Buddhism, or Hinduism, or any ism you like, but it WILL NOT WASH!
So back to the 10 commandments. Jesus said to him, " `You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' "This is the first and great commandment. "And the second is like it: `You shall love your neighbour as yourself.' Matthew 22:37-39
Oh! Uh.. hands up anyone who has managed the first two? No, well that’s no surprise! Hard isn’t it? In fact it’s impossible to keep the commandments! So why did God set an impossible benchmark? Come on God you say, cut us a little slack, it’s not fair! Actually God had no option. He is holy and perfect, and to gain admission to His presence we have to be holy and perfect too, or we will be destroyed. Remember when God was going to appear to Moses on the mountain? God found a fault in the rock, a deep cut into which Moses could go. Thus surrounded by the rock, he saw God pass by the opening to the cleft with His back to Moses. Even so Moses barely survived the encounter! When he returned to camp his face shone for days afterwards. It wasn’t sunburn, it was Godburn! This is an old testament example of a new testament truth. We can only enter God’s presence if we are hidden in Christ, the Rock of our salvation. He is our advocate at the court of heaven. He fulfilled all the demands of God’s law and lived a perfect life. When he laid down His life, he offered it up as the penalty for our sin, our rebellion and disobedience. There is nothing any of us can do to deserve the pardon that He freely offers us. Clutching our pardon in our hand, we approach our appointment with God at the court of heaven with confidence knowing that our pardon has the seal of God on it, because it was purchased with the blood of His precious Son!
Remember Romans 6:23? The wages of sin is death? The second part of that verse says “but the gift of God is eternal life!”
Funny thing about a gift. You don’t have to earn it. You earn your wages, and the wages of rebellion is death. We have all sinned, and we shall all die. Eternal life however is a gift. To obtain it you only need to do an about turn towards God, hold out your hands and receive it! The about turn is repentance. That means to turn around, to change direction.
“For godly sorrow produces repentance to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.” 2 Corinthians 7:10
Being sorry for your sin is good, but it is not good enough. On it’s own it won’t alter your destination. Godly sorrow causes you to turn from your rebellion, and set’s you off in the opposite direction, in fellowship with Jesus Christ, the fellowship that Adam lost.
“For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.” 1 Corinthians 15:21&22.
We all have an appointment with death. We don’t know when or where. There are no guarantees. The appointment could come at any time. Are you ready? Afterwards we have an appointment in the court of God for judgement. We are all guilty,
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23
Is your defence prepared? There is no defence. Jesus said…
"If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin.” John 15:22
There is no defence, there is no excuse! There is however a pardon available. Do you have it? Without it there is no entry to God’s presence, only everlasting torment over a wrong decision that cannot be rectified.
To those who reject the Son of God He says…
"But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. "So he said to him, `Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. "Then the king said to the servants, `Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'
Do not delay. God says ' Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me”. Revelation 3:20
Go your own way
I will sacrifice to You with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord. So the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land. Jonah 2:9 & 10
It’s not always easy to obey God.
It’s much easier than disobeying Him though!
God told Jonah to go to Nineveh and warn that city that they were heading for disaster unless they altered their ways. Jonah figured that the Ninevites would not exactly give him the keys to the city for such a hard word!
So Jonah had a better idea, he would go in the opposite direction, even if that meant taking a ship, because to the west was the sea! Have you ever noticed that our good ideas are usually in opposition to God’s? What was Jonah’s motivation for disobeying God? Fear of man. I’m sure that if he had read in the Nineveh Herald that the mayor was offering a well paid position in the administration for a prophet of God, he would have taken a fast camel east! Jonah wasn’t that dumb however. He was street wise, he knew that a wicked bunch like the Ninevites would probably lynch him, or at best dump him in a really gloomy damp smelly jail!
Actually, talking about a damp smelly dark dungeon….
It turned out that God cared too much for the people of Nineveh to let Jonah retire to a villa in Tarsish! God sent a storm his way. Now we have no guarantee that life will be storm free, but I can guarantee that if we refuse to abide in the will of God for our lives, we will encounter more than our share of storms.
If you want to know the best way out of a storm in your life, ask Jonah. Say what you like about Jonah, but he was a quick learner. (Or was it a case of necessity is the mother of invention, as the boat was about to go down with all hands?) Whatever, he quickly realised that he was the cause of this, and consequently the solution. His bottle deserted him when it came to jumping ship however, so he asked the crew to chuck him overboard. This is getting worse! Nineveh seems like a good option now!
Look, whatever your situation, God will provide a way out as long as you want out! Just be prepared for the unusual. A giant fish is probably not Jonah’s first choice of lifeboat, but it did the job!
Back to that damp dark smelly dungeon… look on the bright side, he’s not dead – yet. Well when all else has failed, what’s the worse that can happen? You die and go to heaven? Well not yet, you see there’s that Nineveh thing. “Ok God I give up! I will praise you in spite of my situation, and I repent of my disobedience”!
Well it’s about time Jonah! Hey fish. Spew that pain in the gut out, and while you’re at it, point to the east!
God got His way in the end, and because of Jonah’s citywide crusades, there was a revival in Nineveh.
But it could have been easier on Jonah!
Option 1. Say yes Lord, book a seat on a camel east to Nineveh, and preach to whoever will listen. Leave the rest to God.
Option 2. Run away. Take a ship instead of a camel, and go west to Tarsish instead of east to Nineveh. Your choice. Only pretty soon you run out of choices. Now it’s between going down with the ship or going overboard. Some choice!
When we are disobedient and choose to live our lives outside of the will of God, we start to find our choices becoming increasingly less attractive. We find the destination we set for ourselves unattainable. Plans and dreams fall apart. Health fails, circumstances are unfortunate, situations are gloomy, money is wasted, (I reckon a camel fare to Nineveh was cheaper that a cruise to Tarsish, even if it did seem less comfortable)
If your life has turned out like that, if you find your choices running out, you still have one choice left you can make. You can choose to praise God and repent and obey Him. If you commit your ways to the Lord, He will direct your path and turn your life around. Only be prepared to go to Nineveh! It’s never too late to go to Nineveh.
Hey it’s got to be better than the fishy mess you’ve been in so far right?
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5&6.
It’s not always easy to obey God.
It’s much easier than disobeying Him though!
God told Jonah to go to Nineveh and warn that city that they were heading for disaster unless they altered their ways. Jonah figured that the Ninevites would not exactly give him the keys to the city for such a hard word!
So Jonah had a better idea, he would go in the opposite direction, even if that meant taking a ship, because to the west was the sea! Have you ever noticed that our good ideas are usually in opposition to God’s? What was Jonah’s motivation for disobeying God? Fear of man. I’m sure that if he had read in the Nineveh Herald that the mayor was offering a well paid position in the administration for a prophet of God, he would have taken a fast camel east! Jonah wasn’t that dumb however. He was street wise, he knew that a wicked bunch like the Ninevites would probably lynch him, or at best dump him in a really gloomy damp smelly jail!
Actually, talking about a damp smelly dark dungeon….
It turned out that God cared too much for the people of Nineveh to let Jonah retire to a villa in Tarsish! God sent a storm his way. Now we have no guarantee that life will be storm free, but I can guarantee that if we refuse to abide in the will of God for our lives, we will encounter more than our share of storms.
If you want to know the best way out of a storm in your life, ask Jonah. Say what you like about Jonah, but he was a quick learner. (Or was it a case of necessity is the mother of invention, as the boat was about to go down with all hands?) Whatever, he quickly realised that he was the cause of this, and consequently the solution. His bottle deserted him when it came to jumping ship however, so he asked the crew to chuck him overboard. This is getting worse! Nineveh seems like a good option now!
Look, whatever your situation, God will provide a way out as long as you want out! Just be prepared for the unusual. A giant fish is probably not Jonah’s first choice of lifeboat, but it did the job!
Back to that damp dark smelly dungeon… look on the bright side, he’s not dead – yet. Well when all else has failed, what’s the worse that can happen? You die and go to heaven? Well not yet, you see there’s that Nineveh thing. “Ok God I give up! I will praise you in spite of my situation, and I repent of my disobedience”!
Well it’s about time Jonah! Hey fish. Spew that pain in the gut out, and while you’re at it, point to the east!
God got His way in the end, and because of Jonah’s citywide crusades, there was a revival in Nineveh.
But it could have been easier on Jonah!
Option 1. Say yes Lord, book a seat on a camel east to Nineveh, and preach to whoever will listen. Leave the rest to God.
Option 2. Run away. Take a ship instead of a camel, and go west to Tarsish instead of east to Nineveh. Your choice. Only pretty soon you run out of choices. Now it’s between going down with the ship or going overboard. Some choice!
When we are disobedient and choose to live our lives outside of the will of God, we start to find our choices becoming increasingly less attractive. We find the destination we set for ourselves unattainable. Plans and dreams fall apart. Health fails, circumstances are unfortunate, situations are gloomy, money is wasted, (I reckon a camel fare to Nineveh was cheaper that a cruise to Tarsish, even if it did seem less comfortable)
If your life has turned out like that, if you find your choices running out, you still have one choice left you can make. You can choose to praise God and repent and obey Him. If you commit your ways to the Lord, He will direct your path and turn your life around. Only be prepared to go to Nineveh! It’s never too late to go to Nineveh.
Hey it’s got to be better than the fishy mess you’ve been in so far right?
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5&6.
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