Christmas Eve and 40 degrees Celsius in the shade! Converted to Fahrenheit, that is a toasty 104 degrees. As I sit in my sweltering non-air conditioned house baking birthday cakes to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, I can hear thunder rumbling in the distance. Maybe we will have a downpour or some hail before the day is over. But I didn't drag myself up the stairs to post on this blog just for a weather report, as interesting or unimportant it may be.
Yesterday we had the pleasure to accept a friend's invitation to a Christmas carol presentation at his church. It was a grand affair with thousands in attendance, bright lights, skilled musicians, talented vocals, and booming volume. As I was singing along with "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," I noticed one of the opening three lines was curiously omitted. It has come back to mind several times today, and therefore I feel compelled to expound upon the deleted line.
The familiar carol begins, "God rest ye merry, gentlemen, let nothing you dismay, remember Christ our Savior was born on Christmas Day; to save us all from Satan’s power when we were gone astray." Many Christians today set apart Christmas as a time to commemorate and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, the Saviour sent by the Father to be the Saviour of the world. From what I heard at church last night, the purpose of Christ's coming was to bring salvation, peace, joy, and goodwill toward all men. This is true. What I did not hear is that Jesus Christ came "to save us all from Satan’s power when we were gone astray." When Jesus came to earth, this was a primary reason why He came! 1 John 3:8 reads, "He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil." There was likely nothing sinister at work in the omission of that single line in the carol. But the devil is sinister, and Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil.
Right after Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden through their disobedience, God alluded to this future destruction of Satan's power. Genesis 3:14-15 states, "So the LORD God said to the serpent: "Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life.
15
And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel." Slithering snakes are a reminder of man's fall and subsequent curse of sin. That "old serpent," that deceiver and destoyer Satan who is the devil, he has continually been at war with mankind. There would always be enmity between Satan and men created in the image of the Almighty God. Jesus Christ, the Messiah, also called Immanuel (God with us), is the Seed of whom is referred to here. Satan would inflict a painful blow to Christ upon the cross of Calvary, but Jesus in dying and rising again would crush Satan's head. Jesus proved Himself victorious over sin, death, Satan, and hell. The Law that condemned us was nailed to the cross, along with the power of Satan. Jesus has overcome, and all who repent and trust in Christ as Saviour are triumphant also through Him.
Christmas is a wonderful reminder of what Christ has done by saving all from Satan's power when we were gone astray. Because of His incarnation, obedience, and sacrifice, all may repent and be born again. Romans 5:8 says, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." For those who are born again by God's grace, we are to put off the works of darkness and walk in newness of life. Praise God for sending us a Saviour, for breaking our chains, and freeing us from the bondage of fear, sin, death, and Satan!
23 December 2012
19 December 2012
Why Go to Church?
I have met many people who are professing Christians but cannot see the need to regularly attend church. There are a vast amount of good reasons to do so. The primary reason is that God's Word commands us to. Hebrews 10:23-25 reads, "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.
24
And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works,
25
not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching." Gathering together to pray, worship God through song and the preaching of God's Word are also modeled throughout scripture. Because all born again Christians are part of the universal Body of Christ, we have all been given talents and gifts to glorify God and edify the church. It is impossible to edify a local or international Body of Christ without personal involvement.
God lamented concerning His people in Hosea 4:6, "My people perish for lack of knowledge." God has given us the Bible so we might know His character, understand His will, and hear His voice. It is possible to read the scriptures, understand the words on a mental or literary level, but not comprehend or apply what is being said. It is for this purpose God has gifted people in the church to teach and preach. We see this provision supplied even in the Old Testament. Nehemiah 8:8 gives a descriptive example of this: "So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading." In Nehemiah's day, the people had not heard the scriptures read for some time, much less explained. Ezra the scribe and other men stood at a pulpit of wood and opened the Book of the Law in the sight of the people and helped the people to make sense of what was written. They carefully observed the text, interpreted it in light of other scripture, and applied it practically to the lives of the people.
Though this is a God-ordained way of people learning from the Bible, a gross abuse developed over the years. Spread across millenia and spanning various Bible-believing groups, men were "put on a pedestal" as the chosen oracles of God. God provided His Word so all men could learn of Him, yet a misconception was perpetuated among both clergy and laity. The clergy saw their role as to discern truth from heresy, and their faithful followers did not consider themselves able to lay hold of the truth alone. Therefore the understanding of the scriptures were seen as reserved for a select few chosen ones. Even priests must bow to a traditional stance which is passed to the people. This view continues in some circles to this day.
When Jesus Christ came to earth, He explained the scriptures in a way that the Pharisees and Scribes could not. Being the Author, Jesus had authority to rightly divide the Word of Truth. Luke 24:45 tells of Christ's interactions with His followers: "And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures." Not only did Jesus make sense of the scriptures, He enabled men through the Holy Spirit to lay hold of them and apply them correctly. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to indwell His people so they might be taught by God Himself, not relying upon the word of any man to interpret and apply them. John 16:12-13 states, "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come."
It is ironic that after God sent the Holy Spirit, men have adopted a different error: they do not make a practice of being taught the Word by a pastor or teacher and justify this because they have the Spirit who already teaches them all things. This is partially true. It is true that all genuine believers have the Spirit of God within them, but that does not mean we should shun messages God delivers through men called for this purpose. Those who cannot seem to endure church fellowship sometimes stand in harsh judgment of presentation styles and personalities, acting like the clergy of old: terriers of orthodoxy, bristling dogmatics, devoid of grace, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel. They cannot find a church that suits them because they have some quarrel with church structure, the age of the pastor, perceived hypocrisy, or a multitude of trite minutiae. Instead of seeking to be suitable for God's service in a God believing, Christ-honouring, Bible teaching church, they cannot find a church suitable for them. As they dry out spiritually without the support and fellowship of God-fearing brothers and sisters in Christ, the belief in the existence of an adequate church fellowship erodes. Having separated themselves from the flock they are open to doubts, attacks, and error. Without spiritual exercise through fellowship, spiritual atrophy is certain. Without like-minded believers to sharpen their countenance and conscience, dullness follows.
So what is the balance? Let us be those who are filled with the Holy Spirit, having had our understanding opened to comprehend the scriptures through faith in Christ. Let us also seek fellowship among God fearing, Bible teaching churches with pastors and teachers gifted by God to do so. Even pastors need solid Biblical teaching. A man cannot rightly teach unless he has first been taught by God. God graciously uses both His Word and people anointed by the Holy Spirit to do this. Receive the exhortation and encouragement from 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24: "Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies. 21 Test all things; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil. 23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it."
God lamented concerning His people in Hosea 4:6, "My people perish for lack of knowledge." God has given us the Bible so we might know His character, understand His will, and hear His voice. It is possible to read the scriptures, understand the words on a mental or literary level, but not comprehend or apply what is being said. It is for this purpose God has gifted people in the church to teach and preach. We see this provision supplied even in the Old Testament. Nehemiah 8:8 gives a descriptive example of this: "So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading." In Nehemiah's day, the people had not heard the scriptures read for some time, much less explained. Ezra the scribe and other men stood at a pulpit of wood and opened the Book of the Law in the sight of the people and helped the people to make sense of what was written. They carefully observed the text, interpreted it in light of other scripture, and applied it practically to the lives of the people.
Though this is a God-ordained way of people learning from the Bible, a gross abuse developed over the years. Spread across millenia and spanning various Bible-believing groups, men were "put on a pedestal" as the chosen oracles of God. God provided His Word so all men could learn of Him, yet a misconception was perpetuated among both clergy and laity. The clergy saw their role as to discern truth from heresy, and their faithful followers did not consider themselves able to lay hold of the truth alone. Therefore the understanding of the scriptures were seen as reserved for a select few chosen ones. Even priests must bow to a traditional stance which is passed to the people. This view continues in some circles to this day.
When Jesus Christ came to earth, He explained the scriptures in a way that the Pharisees and Scribes could not. Being the Author, Jesus had authority to rightly divide the Word of Truth. Luke 24:45 tells of Christ's interactions with His followers: "And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures." Not only did Jesus make sense of the scriptures, He enabled men through the Holy Spirit to lay hold of them and apply them correctly. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to indwell His people so they might be taught by God Himself, not relying upon the word of any man to interpret and apply them. John 16:12-13 states, "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come."
It is ironic that after God sent the Holy Spirit, men have adopted a different error: they do not make a practice of being taught the Word by a pastor or teacher and justify this because they have the Spirit who already teaches them all things. This is partially true. It is true that all genuine believers have the Spirit of God within them, but that does not mean we should shun messages God delivers through men called for this purpose. Those who cannot seem to endure church fellowship sometimes stand in harsh judgment of presentation styles and personalities, acting like the clergy of old: terriers of orthodoxy, bristling dogmatics, devoid of grace, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel. They cannot find a church that suits them because they have some quarrel with church structure, the age of the pastor, perceived hypocrisy, or a multitude of trite minutiae. Instead of seeking to be suitable for God's service in a God believing, Christ-honouring, Bible teaching church, they cannot find a church suitable for them. As they dry out spiritually without the support and fellowship of God-fearing brothers and sisters in Christ, the belief in the existence of an adequate church fellowship erodes. Having separated themselves from the flock they are open to doubts, attacks, and error. Without spiritual exercise through fellowship, spiritual atrophy is certain. Without like-minded believers to sharpen their countenance and conscience, dullness follows.
So what is the balance? Let us be those who are filled with the Holy Spirit, having had our understanding opened to comprehend the scriptures through faith in Christ. Let us also seek fellowship among God fearing, Bible teaching churches with pastors and teachers gifted by God to do so. Even pastors need solid Biblical teaching. A man cannot rightly teach unless he has first been taught by God. God graciously uses both His Word and people anointed by the Holy Spirit to do this. Receive the exhortation and encouragement from 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24: "Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies. 21 Test all things; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil. 23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it."
18 December 2012
The Cure for a Rotten World
We live in a rotten world. It is a world of unspeakable beauty yet unfathomable evil because of the deeds of the wicked. It is the wicked who kill the innocent and their shed blood cries out for justice, justice only satisfied by an eternal, holy God. Inevitably in times of grief we shift our gaze from the individual perpetrators and take aim at society as a whole. What could have been done to prevent such tragedies like Columbine and Sandy Hook Elementary? When it is so fresh, what can we do but weep? It sometimes feels like the pain of the victims, their families, and even the perpetrators are lost in the ensuing debate. Since sane people cannot fathom what exactly drives a person to such insanity, we can only stab in the dark for answers. For every suggestion, it seems there are more who disagree than agree.
It has been said that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The trouble is, all the prevention in the world cannot stop criminals from doing what they do. More cameras, restrictive laws, armed guards, bullet proof-glass, education, and awareness provide no guarantee as adequate safeguards against violence. Everyone has opinions about what needs to change in our world. If our solution to the problem only addresses the symptoms, we will never be free from the trouble. The problems the world is facing today are way bigger than government legislation or gun control. There has been gun control in varying degrees for decades in the United States. Would more gun control prevent future gun-related tragedies? Maybe. If the gunman in Connecticut had only killed himself in his bedroom with his mom's pistol, gun control would not have been considered a relevant topic. The death of that young man would not have made the news, much less become a point of global conversation. But because he killed his mother, children, and school staff in cold blood, something must be done. The trouble is, man cannot agree on what to do.
The surefire answer for the ills of sin that plague this entire world does not solely rest in government reform, additional laws, better medicine, education, even wealth distribution, the justice system, or religions of the world. What people need is a relationship with the Living God of the Bible through faith in Jesus Christ. Nothing has changed: God is perfect and all powerful, man has rebelled from Him and chosen his own path, and Jesus has been sent to seek and save the lost. He lay down His life and rose up again proving His divinity and power over sin, death, and hell. Jesus is the only One powerful enough to transform the depraved mind of man and cleanse his heart from sin. Man is evil, but God is not. Many men have made a mockery of supposed Christianity through their wickedness, but Jesus Christ remains righteous, pure, and untainted. Blame the cursed Crusades on religion if you want, but Christ had nothing to do with them. Blame brutal beheadings and tragic mass suicides on religion too, yet Jesus was not the cause. When Peter took a swing with a sword in the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus commanded him to put it in his sheath. He restored the man's ear that was cut off with His divine touch. That is what God will do for us if we will put down our swords and quit fighting with God and one another. That is when healing for individuals and society can begin.
Jesus Christ is more than a model. Religion looks to Christ as a model to be copied, but being born again by the Holy Spirit through faith allows Jesus Christ to live out His life through you. We can go through the motions of life with the appearance of uprightness, but we must still contend with our monstrously wicked hearts. There is no hope for us originating in ourselves or this world. There is none who is good, no not one. The only one who is good is God! We all need forgiveness and grace. It is through God we learn what love looks like. It is only in His strength and power that we can walk in His love. Isn't God's love what we all admire and need? 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 reads, "Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails." Nothing can separate a Christian from the love of Christ, and we are more than conquerors through Him.
It has been said that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The trouble is, all the prevention in the world cannot stop criminals from doing what they do. More cameras, restrictive laws, armed guards, bullet proof-glass, education, and awareness provide no guarantee as adequate safeguards against violence. Everyone has opinions about what needs to change in our world. If our solution to the problem only addresses the symptoms, we will never be free from the trouble. The problems the world is facing today are way bigger than government legislation or gun control. There has been gun control in varying degrees for decades in the United States. Would more gun control prevent future gun-related tragedies? Maybe. If the gunman in Connecticut had only killed himself in his bedroom with his mom's pistol, gun control would not have been considered a relevant topic. The death of that young man would not have made the news, much less become a point of global conversation. But because he killed his mother, children, and school staff in cold blood, something must be done. The trouble is, man cannot agree on what to do.
The surefire answer for the ills of sin that plague this entire world does not solely rest in government reform, additional laws, better medicine, education, even wealth distribution, the justice system, or religions of the world. What people need is a relationship with the Living God of the Bible through faith in Jesus Christ. Nothing has changed: God is perfect and all powerful, man has rebelled from Him and chosen his own path, and Jesus has been sent to seek and save the lost. He lay down His life and rose up again proving His divinity and power over sin, death, and hell. Jesus is the only One powerful enough to transform the depraved mind of man and cleanse his heart from sin. Man is evil, but God is not. Many men have made a mockery of supposed Christianity through their wickedness, but Jesus Christ remains righteous, pure, and untainted. Blame the cursed Crusades on religion if you want, but Christ had nothing to do with them. Blame brutal beheadings and tragic mass suicides on religion too, yet Jesus was not the cause. When Peter took a swing with a sword in the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus commanded him to put it in his sheath. He restored the man's ear that was cut off with His divine touch. That is what God will do for us if we will put down our swords and quit fighting with God and one another. That is when healing for individuals and society can begin.
Jesus Christ is more than a model. Religion looks to Christ as a model to be copied, but being born again by the Holy Spirit through faith allows Jesus Christ to live out His life through you. We can go through the motions of life with the appearance of uprightness, but we must still contend with our monstrously wicked hearts. There is no hope for us originating in ourselves or this world. There is none who is good, no not one. The only one who is good is God! We all need forgiveness and grace. It is through God we learn what love looks like. It is only in His strength and power that we can walk in His love. Isn't God's love what we all admire and need? 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 reads, "Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails." Nothing can separate a Christian from the love of Christ, and we are more than conquerors through Him.
16 December 2012
This Might of Yours
"Then the LORD turned to him and said, "Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?"
Judges 6:14
The tasks God calls His people to undertake will always require faith. These will always be greater tasks than a man can accomplish in his own strength. The Israelites had been greatly impoverished by the Midianites who brutally oppressed them. God called Gideon and said to him, "The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour." Gideon did not look or feel the part. He certainly was unable to destroy the Midianites on his own or he would already would have tried to do it! It was God that prompted him to even consider the crazy notion of massing a force to defeat the mighty Midianites. It was God and His mighty sword that routed the Midianite nation.
God said to Gideon, "Go in this might of yours!" It was not that Gideon himself was mighty. Because God was with him, Gideon would be going in God's might. The Angel of the LORD continued: "You shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?" Gideon did not feel mighty, but he was mighty because a mighty God empowered him. God had called Gideon, sent Him to perform a task in faith, and it was God who would secure the victory. Gideon's part was to believe God and obey. Instead of focusing on the great Midianite nation as a deadly threat, Gideon was called to look to God as His source of life and strength.
It is the same for Christians today. God has called us all to undertake steps of faith for His eternal glory. We may not feel strong or like a "mighty man of valour," but when God is our life and strength we shall overcome. Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20, "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." Christ has overcome, and when He lives His life through us we also obtain the victory through Him. We need not fear the evils of this world or even Satan's schemes and power when we have the all-powerful God residing within our hearts, granting us joy, peace, and strength even in the midst of struggles. He is a refuge that protects us wherever we go, regardless of what befalls us.
Take confidence in Christ, o man! Don't trust Him just for eternal life, but for living today. Go in this might of yours - might that is not found in your flesh, but in the Spirit of God who dwells within you by grace.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)