"There is no one who understands; no one who seeks God" (Romans 3:11, HCSB).
"'Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it'" (Gen. 28:16, HCSB).
"... [W]hile my enemies continually taunt me, saying, 'Where is this God of yours?'" (Psalm 42:3, NIV).
"Why let the nations say, 'Where is their God?'" (Psalm 115:2, NIV).
NB: WHEN ASKED, "WHERE IS GOD?" WE OUGHT TO REPLY, "WHERE ISN'T HE?"
Job wondered of the whereabouts of God and sought Him wholeheartedly, only to be finally rewarded by His visitation. Remember: God didn't move, we did! "If only I knew how to find Him so that I could go to His throne" (Job 23:3, HCSB). If Job can wonder, so can we; not that He's deserted or left us alone, but that we sense His presence and feel in His will and at peace with Him. The Lord promises to be found by all sincere searchers, but His pet peeve or main complaint against man is that he doesn't seek God (cf. Rom. 3:11).
"... But from there, you will search for the LORD your God, and you will find Him when you seek Him with all your heart and all your soul." (Deut. 4:29, HCSB). Jesus reiterated that if we seek, we shall find; God is no man's debtor and will authenticate Himself. But Isaiah even recognized that God is is making Himself known to triflers and the merely curious or disobedient, in that he said, "Yes, You are a God who hides Himself..." (Isa. 45:15, HCSB). Jeremiah also noticed that if we seek we will surely find God, "You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you..." (Jer. 29:13-14, HCSB).
Our God is the God who is there (Jehovah Shammah) and He is here even when we don't know it, for He's always as close as the mention of His name. Some people think they have found God, but He found them first: Pascal said, "I wouldn't have found God, had He not first found me." Jesus is the great Hound of Heaven in search of lost sheep and He will find them. This is verified in Scripture, Isaiah 65:1, HCSB, as follows: "'I was sought by those who did not ask; I was found by those who did not seek Me...." There used to be a bumper sticker that proclaimed, "I found it!" but they obviously didn't realize what Amazing Grace says, "I was lost, but now am found." (Then they changed their rallying cry to "He found me!" He found them! God wasn't lost! And God is not called it!
Francis Schaeffer wrote a book about God's presence saying "He is there, and He is not silent." He said that Christianity is about the God who is there! Many who search for Jesus have just missed the boat on fellowship and have unconfessed sin or spiritual skeletons in their closets, and forget that He's as close as confessing all known sin, (call it as it is without cover up) for God indwells each believer and sometimes we quench the Spirit's fire and even insult the Spirit of grace, which grieves Him. Let us always live up to the calling we have received in a worthy manner (cf. Eph. 4:1).
Now God has no galactic address or physical place of residence, for His everywhere-ness is apparent in His Providence and dealings with man. For God is spirit! If we approach Him in prayer and get entree to the throne room of grace and mercy, it's like entering another dimension and the presence of God. For it has been postulated that God is invisible because He's in another dimension! But we are not capable of seeing the invisible and the spirit world.
So where is God? "'Am I a God who is only near'--this is the LORD's declaration--'and not a God who is far away? Can a man hide himself in secret places and where I cannot see him?'--the LORD's declaration.. 'Do I not fill the heavens and all the earth?' --the LORD's declaration" (Jer. 23:23-24, HCSB). Thus we are not capable of comprehending His presence: "The finite cannot penetrate (grasp, or contain) the infinite" (old axiom).
In sum, after Adam had rebelled and fell in the Garden he hid out of shame and guilt and possibly wondered where God was or even wasn't, only to find out that God didn't hide, he did--and to discover you cannot hide from God! Soli Deo Gloria!
To bridge the gap between so-called theologians and regular "students" of the Word and make polemics palatable. Contact me @ bloggerbro@outlook.com To search title keywords: title:example or label as label:example; or enter a keyword in search engine ATTN: SITE USING COOKIES!
About Me
- Karl Broberg
- I am a born-again Christian, who is Reformed, but also charismatic, spiritually speaking. (I do not speak in tongues, but I believe glossalalia is a bona fide gift not given to all, and not as great as prophecy, for example.) I have several years of college education but only completed a two-year degree. I was raised Lutheran and confirmed, but I didn't "find Christ" until I was in the Army and responded to a Billy Graham crusade in 1973. I was mentored or discipled by the Navigators in the army and upon discharge joined several evangelical, Bible-teaching churches. I was baptized as an infant, but believe in believer baptism, of which I was a partaker after my conversion experience. I believe in the "5 Onlys" of the reformation: sola fide (faith alone); sola Scriptura (Scripture alone); soli Christo (Christ alone), sola gratia (grace alone), and soli Deo gloria (to God alone be the glory). I affirm TULIP as defended in the Reformation.. I affirm most of The Westminster Confession of Faith, especially pertaining to Providence.
Tuesday, August 13, 2019
Monday, August 12, 2019
The Mystery Of The Proverbial Apple
What actually happened in the Garden of Eden? There is a pseudepigraphical book, The Life of Adam and Eve, but I am not referencing that. The first temptation of mankind in the perfect environment shows that we cannot blame our surroundings or call ourselves victims of circumstance. Even if everything was perfect, we aren't and are vulnerable to sin; we would do the same as Adam and Eve and therefore confirm ourselves in sin to stand in solidarity with Adam, the head of the human race.
God had placed two special trees in the Garden of Eden: the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam knew not their purposes. God put one off-limits because Adam may not have been mature enough for it yet and He intended him to learn these things at a specified time or in the fullness of time, or whenever! But this is merely speculation and we shouldn't second-guess God.
Eve wasn't looking for trouble, she was just curious, probably that a serpent could talk, or maybe she was too naive to think anything unusual. I wonder how much Adam had told her since she added to God's Word says, "And don't touch it." It was referring to the forbidden fruit, whatever it was, we don't know for sure. NB: Temptation is not sinning (Jesus was tempted of the devil too), but when we yield it brings forth the fruit of sin. Doubt often extends with augmentation or exaggeration and this leads to lies and distortions of truth. Satan saw her coming and said, "Hath God said?" immediately calling God's Word into question and planting the seeds of doubt in her vulnerable mind (for the devil seeks whom he may devour).
The temptation went like this: Eve was confused about the Word of God, then doubted it, then believed Satan, then she finally disobeyed God took of the fruit and gave some to her husband who then joined her willingly, for he was with her.
The question is not so much the act itself as the motive: why do it? God looks on the heart (cf. Prov. 21:2). Satan gave her incentive in promising, "You shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." This sounds awfully tempting and alluring to anyone to be a god and today people seek to be gods rather than godly. But it's the big lie of Satan. The insinuation was that God was holding out on her! Was she missing out on something that she deserves to have? Remember, Adam was nearby and failed to inform her and interfere, for he didn't dare cross her and chose to be on her side through thick and thin, even death.
God said that Adam was guilty of "listening to [Eve]." They weren't choosing good vs. evil, for they were innocent, they were choosing to disobey God and actually, their own wisdom, delights, wills, enjoyment, fulfillment, and purpose apart from God's. They rejected God's plan! People still do things their own way: "We all like sheep have gone astray, we have all turned each to our own way" (Isa. 53:6). We are like the Israelites in Judges who had no king and each did what was right in his own eyes.
This prototype sin that we all have confirmed ourselves in went as follows according to scholars:
Adam rejected God's authority, doubted His goodness, disputed His wisdom, repudiated His justice, contradicted His faithfulness, and spurned His grace. But haven't we all done that too? The point of Adam's sin was that he only had one simple rule to obey to keep in good standing with God and enjoy a life of paradise on earth, and he couldn't keep that; what does that tell you about man-made rules, religion and our nature? If he couldn't keep one simple rule, what makes him think he can keep any?
This worldly scandal had eternal implications--it changed the course of human history! They were expelled from paradise--the Garden of Eden for their own good (lest they eat of the tree of life and live forever in sin). This was mercy. God is also a God of judgment and must do something about the sin committed as promised ("the day you eat it, you shall die"). There would be no second chance or redo! But God again in mercy delayed the culmination of death some 930 years, but the process of death began while they commenced to aging and growing old.
All in all, this episode wasn't just a phase they went through, but the suffering had just begun and the earth was now cursed for Adam's sake and Eve's pain in childbearing would begin. They finally learned the great lesson of life of cause and effect and even though they tried to blame others, they had to admit that it was their own fault and they had failed God. God has been against the blame game ever since (cf, Isa 58:9). Finally, the whole failure of freedom should be called "Edengate," or perhaps more appropriately: "Applegate." Soli Deo Gloria!
God had placed two special trees in the Garden of Eden: the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam knew not their purposes. God put one off-limits because Adam may not have been mature enough for it yet and He intended him to learn these things at a specified time or in the fullness of time, or whenever! But this is merely speculation and we shouldn't second-guess God.
Eve wasn't looking for trouble, she was just curious, probably that a serpent could talk, or maybe she was too naive to think anything unusual. I wonder how much Adam had told her since she added to God's Word says, "And don't touch it." It was referring to the forbidden fruit, whatever it was, we don't know for sure. NB: Temptation is not sinning (Jesus was tempted of the devil too), but when we yield it brings forth the fruit of sin. Doubt often extends with augmentation or exaggeration and this leads to lies and distortions of truth. Satan saw her coming and said, "Hath God said?" immediately calling God's Word into question and planting the seeds of doubt in her vulnerable mind (for the devil seeks whom he may devour).
The temptation went like this: Eve was confused about the Word of God, then doubted it, then believed Satan, then she finally disobeyed God took of the fruit and gave some to her husband who then joined her willingly, for he was with her.
The question is not so much the act itself as the motive: why do it? God looks on the heart (cf. Prov. 21:2). Satan gave her incentive in promising, "You shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." This sounds awfully tempting and alluring to anyone to be a god and today people seek to be gods rather than godly. But it's the big lie of Satan. The insinuation was that God was holding out on her! Was she missing out on something that she deserves to have? Remember, Adam was nearby and failed to inform her and interfere, for he didn't dare cross her and chose to be on her side through thick and thin, even death.
God said that Adam was guilty of "listening to [Eve]." They weren't choosing good vs. evil, for they were innocent, they were choosing to disobey God and actually, their own wisdom, delights, wills, enjoyment, fulfillment, and purpose apart from God's. They rejected God's plan! People still do things their own way: "We all like sheep have gone astray, we have all turned each to our own way" (Isa. 53:6). We are like the Israelites in Judges who had no king and each did what was right in his own eyes.
This prototype sin that we all have confirmed ourselves in went as follows according to scholars:
Adam rejected God's authority, doubted His goodness, disputed His wisdom, repudiated His justice, contradicted His faithfulness, and spurned His grace. But haven't we all done that too? The point of Adam's sin was that he only had one simple rule to obey to keep in good standing with God and enjoy a life of paradise on earth, and he couldn't keep that; what does that tell you about man-made rules, religion and our nature? If he couldn't keep one simple rule, what makes him think he can keep any?
This worldly scandal had eternal implications--it changed the course of human history! They were expelled from paradise--the Garden of Eden for their own good (lest they eat of the tree of life and live forever in sin). This was mercy. God is also a God of judgment and must do something about the sin committed as promised ("the day you eat it, you shall die"). There would be no second chance or redo! But God again in mercy delayed the culmination of death some 930 years, but the process of death began while they commenced to aging and growing old.
All in all, this episode wasn't just a phase they went through, but the suffering had just begun and the earth was now cursed for Adam's sake and Eve's pain in childbearing would begin. They finally learned the great lesson of life of cause and effect and even though they tried to blame others, they had to admit that it was their own fault and they had failed God. God has been against the blame game ever since (cf, Isa 58:9). Finally, the whole failure of freedom should be called "Edengate," or perhaps more appropriately: "Applegate." Soli Deo Gloria!
Sunday, August 11, 2019
Good Preacher/Bad Preacher
"So they said to each other, 'Weren't our hearts ablaze within us while He was talking with us on the road and explaining the Scriptures to us?'" (Luke 24:32, HCSB).
You've heard of good cop/bad cop stories, but this applies to all professions. Jesus was a preacher par excellence and had no peers. "When Jesus had finished this sermon, the crowds were astonished at His teaching, because He was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes" (Matt. 7:29, HCSB). There was something different about the way he taught that even the common man heard Him gladly. Jesus knew how to make that "connection" (to be on the same page) as if He were one of them--the Jews. And He identified with the issues of the day, the problems and burdens of the Jews, and the message of grace itself--the good news.
But Jesus didn't just tell them what was on His mind, for telling isn't teaching any more than hearing is listening. Good teachers illustrate and make their point clear, often repeating it for emphasis. A good teacher must do certain basics to drive home that point he wants to make without losing focus: introduction and attention-getting method, points he wants to make, illustrations of those points, and repetition or summary of what was said. You tell them what you will say, say it, and tell them what you said.
Jesus had a revolutionary style! He used figures of speech in His teaching and more specifically told stories, especially parables about familiar events or circumstances that drove home the point. Jesus also used epigrams, or short, wise statements seeming like a paradox, and He also used object lessons from some accessible item or circumstance. He also was known for how He framed questions in a Socratic manner that elicited a desired or obvious response. He would readily turn a question into another question. He skillfully made use of metaphors people could relate to and likened Himself to familiar things in order to make the point clear. The good preacher doesn't lose his listeners due to boredom or belaboring a point either. He must be aware of where the flock is and sensitive to their attention span and how well he's keeping it, not getting lost or off on some tangent--stay on subject.
A sermon isn't a lecture or Bible study, it's an outreach to all the members of the body and even attendees and visitors. A good pastor knows the difference between teacher mode and preacher mode! There is a place for teaching in a sermon, but it's primarily preaching just like there's a place for preaching in a Bible study or teaching session. But good preaching speaks to the heart, not just the mind; it doesn't just inform but enlightens and illuminates Scripture. Going forward one should feel inspired, convicted, motivated, and above all, especially edified. There is a difference between being informed and being educated.
A good sermon isn't just "interesting" but it should be "challenging." We seek to be enlightened in the Word and see Jesus come alive in it. Just presenting facts will inform, but showing how to apply them will enlighten and illumine us. We must not see the Word as merely something to be well-informed about; we can know the Bible and a lot about it, without knowing the Author. The preacher can lecture on the nature of Christ quite eloquently and not even be aware of His presence and maybe not even know the Lord much personally.
We need our eyes opened to wonderful things in the Word, and all Scripture surely is profitable for doctrine, but also for instruction in righteousness (application). If we don't go away with any application the preacher really hasn't done a complete work. Yes, we must all preach sound doctrine, but sound preaching is more than just preaching doctrine. Jonathan Edwards said that his doctrine was all application and his application was all doctrine. His sermons were meant to start revivals not lecture in theology (everyone knows him for "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God"). One's passion must be in the preaching to show that it affects you before it can affect others, especially the lost. Good preachers preach the Word, in season and out, and comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable!
When the preacher actually makes contact with the flock, they feel he's one of them and can put himself in their shoes. They identify with the preacher and know where he's coming from. That's why Jesus said, "My sheep hear My voice and I know them and they follow Me." "... The sheep follow him because they recognize his voice. They will never follow a stranger, instead, they will run away from him, because they don't recognize the voice of strangers" (cf. John 10:4-5, HCSB). Sheep know their shepherd! Soli Deo Gloria!
You've heard of good cop/bad cop stories, but this applies to all professions. Jesus was a preacher par excellence and had no peers. "When Jesus had finished this sermon, the crowds were astonished at His teaching, because He was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes" (Matt. 7:29, HCSB). There was something different about the way he taught that even the common man heard Him gladly. Jesus knew how to make that "connection" (to be on the same page) as if He were one of them--the Jews. And He identified with the issues of the day, the problems and burdens of the Jews, and the message of grace itself--the good news.
But Jesus didn't just tell them what was on His mind, for telling isn't teaching any more than hearing is listening. Good teachers illustrate and make their point clear, often repeating it for emphasis. A good teacher must do certain basics to drive home that point he wants to make without losing focus: introduction and attention-getting method, points he wants to make, illustrations of those points, and repetition or summary of what was said. You tell them what you will say, say it, and tell them what you said.
Jesus had a revolutionary style! He used figures of speech in His teaching and more specifically told stories, especially parables about familiar events or circumstances that drove home the point. Jesus also used epigrams, or short, wise statements seeming like a paradox, and He also used object lessons from some accessible item or circumstance. He also was known for how He framed questions in a Socratic manner that elicited a desired or obvious response. He would readily turn a question into another question. He skillfully made use of metaphors people could relate to and likened Himself to familiar things in order to make the point clear. The good preacher doesn't lose his listeners due to boredom or belaboring a point either. He must be aware of where the flock is and sensitive to their attention span and how well he's keeping it, not getting lost or off on some tangent--stay on subject.
A sermon isn't a lecture or Bible study, it's an outreach to all the members of the body and even attendees and visitors. A good pastor knows the difference between teacher mode and preacher mode! There is a place for teaching in a sermon, but it's primarily preaching just like there's a place for preaching in a Bible study or teaching session. But good preaching speaks to the heart, not just the mind; it doesn't just inform but enlightens and illuminates Scripture. Going forward one should feel inspired, convicted, motivated, and above all, especially edified. There is a difference between being informed and being educated.
A good sermon isn't just "interesting" but it should be "challenging." We seek to be enlightened in the Word and see Jesus come alive in it. Just presenting facts will inform, but showing how to apply them will enlighten and illumine us. We must not see the Word as merely something to be well-informed about; we can know the Bible and a lot about it, without knowing the Author. The preacher can lecture on the nature of Christ quite eloquently and not even be aware of His presence and maybe not even know the Lord much personally.
We need our eyes opened to wonderful things in the Word, and all Scripture surely is profitable for doctrine, but also for instruction in righteousness (application). If we don't go away with any application the preacher really hasn't done a complete work. Yes, we must all preach sound doctrine, but sound preaching is more than just preaching doctrine. Jonathan Edwards said that his doctrine was all application and his application was all doctrine. His sermons were meant to start revivals not lecture in theology (everyone knows him for "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God"). One's passion must be in the preaching to show that it affects you before it can affect others, especially the lost. Good preachers preach the Word, in season and out, and comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable!
When the preacher actually makes contact with the flock, they feel he's one of them and can put himself in their shoes. They identify with the preacher and know where he's coming from. That's why Jesus said, "My sheep hear My voice and I know them and they follow Me." "... The sheep follow him because they recognize his voice. They will never follow a stranger, instead, they will run away from him, because they don't recognize the voice of strangers" (cf. John 10:4-5, HCSB). Sheep know their shepherd! Soli Deo Gloria!
Thursday, August 8, 2019
Knocked Out Of Your Comfort Zone
"Look, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction" (Isaiah 48:10, HCSB).
"The LORD says, 'I will give you back what you lost ["I will repay you for the years..." or make it up to you (HCSB)] to the swarming locusts, the hopping locusts, the stripping locusts, and the cutting locusts. It was I who sent this great destroying army against you'" (Joel 2:25, HCSB).
"The LORD says, 'I will give you back what you lost ["I will repay you for the years..." or make it up to you (HCSB)] to the swarming locusts, the hopping locusts, the stripping locusts, and the cutting locusts. It was I who sent this great destroying army against you'" (Joel 2:25, HCSB).
"... God left him to test him and discover what was in his heart," (cf. 2 Chron. 32:31, HCSB).
"... It is necessary to pass through many troubles on our way to the kingdom of God," (cf. Acts 14:22, HCSB).
We all must endure the fires of the testing of our faith to ensure its reality and genuineness. It's more precious than gold and silver which are refined by fire. It's not for God's sake that we get tested--He knows all and doesn't learn from the experience--it's we who learn and must realize for ourselves how strong we are in the Lord and whether our faith is strong enough to endure hardship, or whether it's just fair-weather faith. When the chips are down we must find out where our heart is and what we're made of! We should be proud to be able to say in sympathy: Been there, done that! And put ourselves in their shoes and be on the same page.
Job, the patron saint and poster child of suffering par excellence, was tested, but not beyond his ability! He may have questioned God and defended his own record but he was self-righteous, and his faith hung in there and he never gave up the ship! He left the bosom of the home and thought outside the box to wonder what was happening and to answer his miserable comforters who really were his critics. We can all relate to his depression and can find ourselves in a melancholy mood too sometimes, but this was severe and he was experiencing the doldrums and was in the pits, in a real funk! The Bible says that when we are being tested at least our friends shouldn't dessert us and we should find comfort and solace with them as we seek empathy. Job had the additional discomfort of being condemned by his "comforters" and "friends."
Second Corinthians 1:4 says that God is a God of comfort and allows us to experience hardship and trial so we can comfort others with the comfort that we have received. We should be able to relate to others and put ourselves in their shoes. Paul said in Phil. 3:10 that he wanted to know Christ and the fellowship of His suffering-to suffer with Him! There is a union and fellowship in suffering and God not only calls us to faith, but to suffering on behalf of Christ to fulfill His passion and to glorify God through them. For we are participating in the sufferings of Christ (cf. Col. 1:24).
When we get saved and surrender our wills to His and give up the ownership of our lives to be directed by God's will to His glory, we enroll in the school of suffering and decide to take up our cross daily and be willing to suffer for His name's sake--no cross--no crown! We must learn to endure hardship to be good soldiers in Christ because this comes with the territory and we sign up for it! It's only to be expected to suffer and should consider it an honor to be counted worthy to suffer for the sake of the Name!
The trials we have endured are like stripes on our shoulders or feathers in our cap and could be seen as the red badge of courage or our Purple Heart to show that we have been tried in the course of battle in the angelic conflict. The purpose of our suffering may never be answered, for God owes us no explanation and isn't accountable to us (He's too deep to explain Himself to us too kind to be cruel and to wise to make a mistake), but we must learn to endure not only during the good times but through thick and thin when faith isn't so easy when push comes to shove and faith isn't an automatic given!
The uniqueness of our faith is that we believe in a suffering God who bore our sorrows and griefs and didn't exempt Himself from hardship and suffering, so we can know He feels us in our pain and knows where we are in our time of need. Adversity, discipline, suffering, and trials are inevitable but that's how we gain Christlikeness. Soli Deo Gloria!
We all must endure the fires of the testing of our faith to ensure its reality and genuineness. It's more precious than gold and silver which are refined by fire. It's not for God's sake that we get tested--He knows all and doesn't learn from the experience--it's we who learn and must realize for ourselves how strong we are in the Lord and whether our faith is strong enough to endure hardship, or whether it's just fair-weather faith. When the chips are down we must find out where our heart is and what we're made of! We should be proud to be able to say in sympathy: Been there, done that! And put ourselves in their shoes and be on the same page.
Job, the patron saint and poster child of suffering par excellence, was tested, but not beyond his ability! He may have questioned God and defended his own record but he was self-righteous, and his faith hung in there and he never gave up the ship! He left the bosom of the home and thought outside the box to wonder what was happening and to answer his miserable comforters who really were his critics. We can all relate to his depression and can find ourselves in a melancholy mood too sometimes, but this was severe and he was experiencing the doldrums and was in the pits, in a real funk! The Bible says that when we are being tested at least our friends shouldn't dessert us and we should find comfort and solace with them as we seek empathy. Job had the additional discomfort of being condemned by his "comforters" and "friends."
Second Corinthians 1:4 says that God is a God of comfort and allows us to experience hardship and trial so we can comfort others with the comfort that we have received. We should be able to relate to others and put ourselves in their shoes. Paul said in Phil. 3:10 that he wanted to know Christ and the fellowship of His suffering-to suffer with Him! There is a union and fellowship in suffering and God not only calls us to faith, but to suffering on behalf of Christ to fulfill His passion and to glorify God through them. For we are participating in the sufferings of Christ (cf. Col. 1:24).
When we get saved and surrender our wills to His and give up the ownership of our lives to be directed by God's will to His glory, we enroll in the school of suffering and decide to take up our cross daily and be willing to suffer for His name's sake--no cross--no crown! We must learn to endure hardship to be good soldiers in Christ because this comes with the territory and we sign up for it! It's only to be expected to suffer and should consider it an honor to be counted worthy to suffer for the sake of the Name!
The trials we have endured are like stripes on our shoulders or feathers in our cap and could be seen as the red badge of courage or our Purple Heart to show that we have been tried in the course of battle in the angelic conflict. The purpose of our suffering may never be answered, for God owes us no explanation and isn't accountable to us (He's too deep to explain Himself to us too kind to be cruel and to wise to make a mistake), but we must learn to endure not only during the good times but through thick and thin when faith isn't so easy when push comes to shove and faith isn't an automatic given!
The uniqueness of our faith is that we believe in a suffering God who bore our sorrows and griefs and didn't exempt Himself from hardship and suffering, so we can know He feels us in our pain and knows where we are in our time of need. Adversity, discipline, suffering, and trials are inevitable but that's how we gain Christlikeness. Soli Deo Gloria!
Sunday, August 4, 2019
If God Could Speak
"Long ago God spoke to the fathers by the prophets at different times and in different ways. In these last days, He has spoken to us by Hi Son...." (Heb. 11:1, HCSB).
There is a story in India of six men touching an elephant and each having different experiences which is supposed to explain how we all see God in a different light, thus explaining worldviews or religions. The men are blind and each touches a different part: one touches the trunk and thinks its a tree trunk; another the tusk and thinks it's a spear; another a tail and so forth. But the men don't know they're touching an elephant! They don't know they're just touching part of the elephant. But if the elephant could speak there would be divine revelation and they wouldn't be confused but know the truth.
But in the analogy, God is supposed to be the elephant and the fact is that He did speak to us in the Bible and through His final revelation of Jesus. We need someone who is not blind to know the true nature and we are assuming all the men are blind and have limited knowledge. What if they touch different elephants? The analogy may have cute comparisons but it's not valid when you break it down and analyze it. God entered our world and became one in the nature of the elephant and that person is Jesus, the icon of God, and all we need to know.
God spoke the world into existence and He is here and He is not silent. God speaks every day through the Word of God and our voices--He uses us to be His spokespersons. God first spoke, then created, then acted on our behalf. He's listening to us if we listen and don't turn a deaf ear, but be attentive to His signals. As C. S. Lewis said, "God whispers in our joys, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains; it's God's megaphone to rouse a deaf world." The problem is not God trying to make contact but our refusal to listen and hear what He has to say. He speaks, we just don't listen up! As in the analogy, if the elephant spoke the confusion, conjecture, and speculation would cease and man would know the truth to set him free. To know Jesus is to know that truth and to be free in spirit.
It seems to me that if archaeologists found the love letters of Cleopatra that the world would seek out to read them wholeheartedly with gusto; however, we have the love letter of God and men ignore that. God has sent His Word to the world and we must heed and hearken to what He has to say, for He knows our needs and what we need to know. So we need not ponder whether God could speak but realize that He has spoken and all we need to know is in the Bible; there is no need for more revelation or doctrines.
"In the beginning was the Word...." The Greek word used is Logos or "thought expressed." Jesus is the express image of God (cf. Col. 2:9). The elephant is supposedly the expressed thought of God to the blind men. However, the difference is that Jesus opens the eyes of the blind and makes them see: "I was blind but now I see!" It was the devil who blinded the eyes of the unbeliever, but upon salvation, they are opened to the truth and he sees the big picture or the whole elephant.
Soli Deo Gloria!
There is a story in India of six men touching an elephant and each having different experiences which is supposed to explain how we all see God in a different light, thus explaining worldviews or religions. The men are blind and each touches a different part: one touches the trunk and thinks its a tree trunk; another the tusk and thinks it's a spear; another a tail and so forth. But the men don't know they're touching an elephant! They don't know they're just touching part of the elephant. But if the elephant could speak there would be divine revelation and they wouldn't be confused but know the truth.
But in the analogy, God is supposed to be the elephant and the fact is that He did speak to us in the Bible and through His final revelation of Jesus. We need someone who is not blind to know the true nature and we are assuming all the men are blind and have limited knowledge. What if they touch different elephants? The analogy may have cute comparisons but it's not valid when you break it down and analyze it. God entered our world and became one in the nature of the elephant and that person is Jesus, the icon of God, and all we need to know.
God spoke the world into existence and He is here and He is not silent. God speaks every day through the Word of God and our voices--He uses us to be His spokespersons. God first spoke, then created, then acted on our behalf. He's listening to us if we listen and don't turn a deaf ear, but be attentive to His signals. As C. S. Lewis said, "God whispers in our joys, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains; it's God's megaphone to rouse a deaf world." The problem is not God trying to make contact but our refusal to listen and hear what He has to say. He speaks, we just don't listen up! As in the analogy, if the elephant spoke the confusion, conjecture, and speculation would cease and man would know the truth to set him free. To know Jesus is to know that truth and to be free in spirit.
It seems to me that if archaeologists found the love letters of Cleopatra that the world would seek out to read them wholeheartedly with gusto; however, we have the love letter of God and men ignore that. God has sent His Word to the world and we must heed and hearken to what He has to say, for He knows our needs and what we need to know. So we need not ponder whether God could speak but realize that He has spoken and all we need to know is in the Bible; there is no need for more revelation or doctrines.
"In the beginning was the Word...." The Greek word used is Logos or "thought expressed." Jesus is the express image of God (cf. Col. 2:9). The elephant is supposedly the expressed thought of God to the blind men. However, the difference is that Jesus opens the eyes of the blind and makes them see: "I was blind but now I see!" It was the devil who blinded the eyes of the unbeliever, but upon salvation, they are opened to the truth and he sees the big picture or the whole elephant.
Soli Deo Gloria!
The Manifold Facets Of Our Salvation
Note that salvation isn't a simple adjustment in the Divine Ledger above. There are four aspects of our salvation that make it so wondrous. Firstly, we are redeemed from the slave market of sin, for Jesus paid the price to set us free from the power of sin; secondly, we are justified in the heavenly court above and declared righteous in God's eyes because we are imputed with it; thirdly, we are reconciled to God's family and restored to fellowship with the Father and the Son, while this invites fellowship with our brethren in Christ; fourthly, we are propitiated or expiated in the temple of God whereby the blood of Christ was shed on our behalf to satisfy the Father.
Christianity is a religion of salvation, which doesn't sound so equitable or democratic, implying some are condemned or lost. Salvation, technically, is to be rescued from some threat; however, in our case, we are our own worst enemy! Salvation is more than forgiveness! Our whole-person needs salvation: our hearts are depraved, our minds are feeble, and our wills stubborn. Our salvation is through God's grace as the source, with Christ as the means, and faith as the channel. And Christianity is the only one proclaiming that there is only one Savior and depicts the "saviorhood" of Christ. What are we saved from? Ourselves, the devil, hell, the power of sin, the effect of sin, and from God, i.e., from the wrath of God. Salvation is totally a work of God without our input and reflects our secure position in Christ, our growing condition in Christ, and our future expectation in glory--we achieve no pre-salvation work.
Our common salvation is as good as it gets and we cannot improve on it. We are saved from the penalty of sin, are being saved from its power, and shall be saved from its presence! Jesus saved us--He did; He keeps us--He does; He's coming for us--He will! Concerning the tenses, His salvation is our experience, hope, and expectation. Our past was forgiven, our present given meaning, and our future secured. We are saved; we are being saved, and we shall be saved! It began in eternity past, is realized in time, and looks forward to heaven. That's why it is written in Heb. 2:9, NIV, "How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?" We have faith in Christ, we believe in Him and believe Him, we have our hope secured and anchored in Him, our expectation is in Him, and our security is in Him. If we had to trust in ourselves, we'd fail and could never know for sure of our status.
Our salvation was wrought by God and planned and purposed by God the Father as its Author, accomplished and secured as a finished work by God the Son, and applied by the Holy Spirit. The Father purposed it, the Son executed it, and the Spirit made it known! The three work as a group effort in a team and union as one Being having no conflict of interest or will.
Christ is fully at work in our salvation through His three offices: we're saved from the penalty of sin by the crucified Christ, from the power of sin by the risen and living Christ, and from the presence of sin by the coming Christ. We are saved from the ignorance of sin by the prophet Jesus, from the power of sin by the king Jesus, and the guilt of sin by the priest Jesus.
Finally, let me add the perks of our salvation with come with the whole package: we are given peace with God and ourselves, we are given purpose and meaning in life following His will, and we're given the power to overcome sin, Satan, and the world as our threefold enemy, and don't forget: God is now our Father and we can confidently look forward to our reward in glory! Soli Deo Gloria!
Christianity is a religion of salvation, which doesn't sound so equitable or democratic, implying some are condemned or lost. Salvation, technically, is to be rescued from some threat; however, in our case, we are our own worst enemy! Salvation is more than forgiveness! Our whole-person needs salvation: our hearts are depraved, our minds are feeble, and our wills stubborn. Our salvation is through God's grace as the source, with Christ as the means, and faith as the channel. And Christianity is the only one proclaiming that there is only one Savior and depicts the "saviorhood" of Christ. What are we saved from? Ourselves, the devil, hell, the power of sin, the effect of sin, and from God, i.e., from the wrath of God. Salvation is totally a work of God without our input and reflects our secure position in Christ, our growing condition in Christ, and our future expectation in glory--we achieve no pre-salvation work.
Our common salvation is as good as it gets and we cannot improve on it. We are saved from the penalty of sin, are being saved from its power, and shall be saved from its presence! Jesus saved us--He did; He keeps us--He does; He's coming for us--He will! Concerning the tenses, His salvation is our experience, hope, and expectation. Our past was forgiven, our present given meaning, and our future secured. We are saved; we are being saved, and we shall be saved! It began in eternity past, is realized in time, and looks forward to heaven. That's why it is written in Heb. 2:9, NIV, "How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?" We have faith in Christ, we believe in Him and believe Him, we have our hope secured and anchored in Him, our expectation is in Him, and our security is in Him. If we had to trust in ourselves, we'd fail and could never know for sure of our status.
Our salvation was wrought by God and planned and purposed by God the Father as its Author, accomplished and secured as a finished work by God the Son, and applied by the Holy Spirit. The Father purposed it, the Son executed it, and the Spirit made it known! The three work as a group effort in a team and union as one Being having no conflict of interest or will.
Christ is fully at work in our salvation through His three offices: we're saved from the penalty of sin by the crucified Christ, from the power of sin by the risen and living Christ, and from the presence of sin by the coming Christ. We are saved from the ignorance of sin by the prophet Jesus, from the power of sin by the king Jesus, and the guilt of sin by the priest Jesus.
Finally, let me add the perks of our salvation with come with the whole package: we are given peace with God and ourselves, we are given purpose and meaning in life following His will, and we're given the power to overcome sin, Satan, and the world as our threefold enemy, and don't forget: God is now our Father and we can confidently look forward to our reward in glory! Soli Deo Gloria!
A Brief History Of Man
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." --George Santayana
The Bible begins in eternity past and continues in real time and concludes in eternity future. We are not in some episode between two oblivions but are here for a purpose--to glorify God, for all things were created for that purpose. The story of man (i.e., His Story) is simply: creation, fall, redemption, judgment. We all fell in Adam and can be redeemed in Christ, and will all be judged by Christ (either the Bema of Christ or the Great White Throne of condemnation for the lost). Where we end up for eternity depends upon our relation to Christ in this life with no second chances to redeem ourselves. We Christians are just passing through as pilgrims to a heavenly city and our eternal reward, for our compensation is not in this life. We believe that in the end the God of justice will make all things right and answer all our questions.
So we live in the hope of redemption from the slave market of sin and weakness of the flesh until we receive glorified bodies that don't have vulnerabilities, like Christ's. We are here for a purpose: to complete the Great Commission and do God's will. Happy are those who find their calling and purpose in life. Someday this calling will be the Great Completion. In the meantime, we are stewards of the time allotted us and must redeem it for the Lord's work. We are here for a purpose--to please God and know Him personally, but not second hand. We long for Jesus to announce: "Well done, thou good and faithful servant!"
Jesus, who created time (the corollary of space and matter), and entered it for our sakes and lived life in the flesh in all its weaknesses except without sin, living the perfect law-abiding life to fulfill the Law of Moses and thus qualify as our righteousness. He became the perfect sacrifice by dying in our stead while being innocent of any transgression and the Father imputed our sin unto His account in the Divine Ledger. And so Jesus made Himself known in real-time, for He existed prior to creation and is the Creator, but stepped into time so we would know God. All we need to know of God is expressed in Jesus as His icon or image.
Jesus didn't become the Son of God by being born of the virgin Mary but is the eternal Son of God and that means there never was a time when He became the Son or wasn't the Son and the Father is the eternal Father and always was the Father of Jesus, not becoming the Father--He was begotten, not made, born, or adopted of God. God didn't create Him, give birth to Him nor adopt Him like He did us. And so, it was high time Jesus entered history in the fullness of time and complete our redemption that was planned by the Father.
In the meantime, we are on borrowed time as it were, and must be good stewards with time management. The earth will end someday and we want to be on the right side that endures to the end. Man is ever-learning in technology, but not in wisdom--the right usage of that knowledge: right ends, right motives, and in the right way. Man will not evolve into perfection or have some mutation that puts us at a higher sphere of awareness wisdom, knowledge, and intelligence. The problem isn't intelligence, but wisdom and only God grants that. We need to know God, not the wisdom of man, for man cannot know nor find God through the wisdom of man.
As Santayana said that if we don't remember the past, we will be condemned to repeat it! And Hegel said, that one thing we learn from history is that we don't learn anything from history. History is not cyclical in that it repeats itself (as Mark Twain said, "it only rhymes!"), but it's linear going in a direction and having a beginning, climax, and end, conclusion, consummation, and culmination. It is going somewhere and has a purpose and story to tell from the Storyteller. History is merely God's redemptive plan and narrative for man unfolding in real-time as God orchestrates it.
History has meaning and we are to interpret it and study it to find out what God is saying. NB: The Bible is based in history too and is the only religion that is--dehistoricize it and you discredit the faith. We need to learn its lessons or be doomed to repeat its mistakes. And the unfolding of history in the making is about God's ultimate purpose for mankind, it's not bunk but worth the study, while the key to understanding a story is to know the Storyteller--God! We know the Author of the Bible as well and that's why we see Jesus at work in it. Soli Deo Gloria!
The Bible begins in eternity past and continues in real time and concludes in eternity future. We are not in some episode between two oblivions but are here for a purpose--to glorify God, for all things were created for that purpose. The story of man (i.e., His Story) is simply: creation, fall, redemption, judgment. We all fell in Adam and can be redeemed in Christ, and will all be judged by Christ (either the Bema of Christ or the Great White Throne of condemnation for the lost). Where we end up for eternity depends upon our relation to Christ in this life with no second chances to redeem ourselves. We Christians are just passing through as pilgrims to a heavenly city and our eternal reward, for our compensation is not in this life. We believe that in the end the God of justice will make all things right and answer all our questions.
So we live in the hope of redemption from the slave market of sin and weakness of the flesh until we receive glorified bodies that don't have vulnerabilities, like Christ's. We are here for a purpose: to complete the Great Commission and do God's will. Happy are those who find their calling and purpose in life. Someday this calling will be the Great Completion. In the meantime, we are stewards of the time allotted us and must redeem it for the Lord's work. We are here for a purpose--to please God and know Him personally, but not second hand. We long for Jesus to announce: "Well done, thou good and faithful servant!"
Jesus, who created time (the corollary of space and matter), and entered it for our sakes and lived life in the flesh in all its weaknesses except without sin, living the perfect law-abiding life to fulfill the Law of Moses and thus qualify as our righteousness. He became the perfect sacrifice by dying in our stead while being innocent of any transgression and the Father imputed our sin unto His account in the Divine Ledger. And so Jesus made Himself known in real-time, for He existed prior to creation and is the Creator, but stepped into time so we would know God. All we need to know of God is expressed in Jesus as His icon or image.
Jesus didn't become the Son of God by being born of the virgin Mary but is the eternal Son of God and that means there never was a time when He became the Son or wasn't the Son and the Father is the eternal Father and always was the Father of Jesus, not becoming the Father--He was begotten, not made, born, or adopted of God. God didn't create Him, give birth to Him nor adopt Him like He did us. And so, it was high time Jesus entered history in the fullness of time and complete our redemption that was planned by the Father.
In the meantime, we are on borrowed time as it were, and must be good stewards with time management. The earth will end someday and we want to be on the right side that endures to the end. Man is ever-learning in technology, but not in wisdom--the right usage of that knowledge: right ends, right motives, and in the right way. Man will not evolve into perfection or have some mutation that puts us at a higher sphere of awareness wisdom, knowledge, and intelligence. The problem isn't intelligence, but wisdom and only God grants that. We need to know God, not the wisdom of man, for man cannot know nor find God through the wisdom of man.
As Santayana said that if we don't remember the past, we will be condemned to repeat it! And Hegel said, that one thing we learn from history is that we don't learn anything from history. History is not cyclical in that it repeats itself (as Mark Twain said, "it only rhymes!"), but it's linear going in a direction and having a beginning, climax, and end, conclusion, consummation, and culmination. It is going somewhere and has a purpose and story to tell from the Storyteller. History is merely God's redemptive plan and narrative for man unfolding in real-time as God orchestrates it.
History has meaning and we are to interpret it and study it to find out what God is saying. NB: The Bible is based in history too and is the only religion that is--dehistoricize it and you discredit the faith. We need to learn its lessons or be doomed to repeat its mistakes. And the unfolding of history in the making is about God's ultimate purpose for mankind, it's not bunk but worth the study, while the key to understanding a story is to know the Storyteller--God! We know the Author of the Bible as well and that's why we see Jesus at work in it. Soli Deo Gloria!
Saturday, August 3, 2019
The Impenitent Sinner's Hope
Repentance is a prerequisite to salvation as well as its accompanying faith. We must have a radical change of heart, will, and mind with fruits bearing witness to it--it must be proven by our lives in real-time or in our actions. We don't just change our opinions but our wills are affected enough to renounce our sin. But we must acknowledge our sin first as Job One. We must also feel contrition or genuine remorse, not simple regret that we are sorry but not sorry enough to quit. Once more, our repentance is progressive and we must always keep short accounts with God and not conceal or hide our sin from God (no repentance without confession, which we willingly confess in order to obtain mercy).
NB: Martin Luther's first thesis was that it's not a one-time event but an ongoing lifelong continuing resolution or process of renewal and recommitment. Repentance is not fire-insurance or a security blanket, but a sign of regeneration.
There can be no genuine repentance without saving faith as the flip side--they go hand in hand and are distinguished but not separated (juxtaposed in Heb. 6:1; Acts 20:21). That's why Reformed theologians refer to penitent faith or believing repentance as the instrumental means of salvation. NB: Repentance, like faith, is the result of the regenerative work of God and act of grace in our hearts. Often we don't feel up to repentance, but we repent not when we feel like it, but so we will feel like it.
Some people feel that they cannot repent and something is wrong with them. But we can do nothing apart from God's grace ("Apart from me you can do nothing," --John 15:5). The real reason they can not repent is they don't trust God, they are trying to please God in their own right. We must trust, not try! But the bigger our God, the more we can trust! Due to the juxtaposition of faith and repentance and the terms linked in Scripture, when we cannot repent it's probable that we lack faith, and if we lack faith, we probably are unrepentant. We all experience both extremes of the spectrum at times and must learn by them.
Repentance is a mandate or imperative and must be evident in fruit to be genuine. Bring forth fruits in keeping with repentance! (cf. Luke 3:8). When we show contrition, and this the sacrifice that pleases God, we are cleansed of all wrongdoing, our slate is cleaned, and God's memory bank about it deleted. We shouldn't keep drudging up old sins because God says, "What sin?" As far as the east is from the west (cf. Psalm 103:12), God just blots out our sin and forgets (cf. Isa. 43:25), and like a mist that is swept away (cf. Isa. 44:22); and our sins are cast into the depths of the sea (cf. Micah 7:19)--they couldn't be more neutralized than that! Why do we get hang-ups about them or let them make us feel guilty then?
The motif of repentance is common in the Old and the New Testaments. The thankless job of the prophets during the dark ages of Israel was to call them to repentance. The New Testament opens with John the Baptist preaching a baptism of repentance, while Jesus opened His ministry preaching repentance and belief in the gospel. Repentance is from the Greek metanoia or to change one's mind. We must not only make an about-face, U-turn, 180-degree turnaround, New Year's resolution, or turn over a new leaf, but our hearts must be renewed in Christ's image and from the inside out. Times of refreshing will come from the presence of the Lord (cf. Acts. 3:19).
The heart in tune with repentance echoes David's prayer of contrition in Psalm 51 after the prophet Nathan told him of his sin with Bathsheba. Finally, repentance is by grace: "... 'So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life'" (Acts 11:18, NIV; cf. 5:31). God commands repentance be preached (cf. Luke 24:47) and we must repent now (cf. Acts 17:30; 3:19; 2:38).
In sum, we are never good enough to be saved; however, we are all bad enough to need salvation. And in order to realize how bad we are, we must try to be good, and we cannot be good without realizing how bad we are--the catch-22. Actually, the closer we get to God, the more cognizance of our sin; like when Peter said, "Depart from me, O Lord, for I am a sinful man" (cf. Luke 5:8). Soli Deo Gloria!
NB: Martin Luther's first thesis was that it's not a one-time event but an ongoing lifelong continuing resolution or process of renewal and recommitment. Repentance is not fire-insurance or a security blanket, but a sign of regeneration.
There can be no genuine repentance without saving faith as the flip side--they go hand in hand and are distinguished but not separated (juxtaposed in Heb. 6:1; Acts 20:21). That's why Reformed theologians refer to penitent faith or believing repentance as the instrumental means of salvation. NB: Repentance, like faith, is the result of the regenerative work of God and act of grace in our hearts. Often we don't feel up to repentance, but we repent not when we feel like it, but so we will feel like it.
Some people feel that they cannot repent and something is wrong with them. But we can do nothing apart from God's grace ("Apart from me you can do nothing," --John 15:5). The real reason they can not repent is they don't trust God, they are trying to please God in their own right. We must trust, not try! But the bigger our God, the more we can trust! Due to the juxtaposition of faith and repentance and the terms linked in Scripture, when we cannot repent it's probable that we lack faith, and if we lack faith, we probably are unrepentant. We all experience both extremes of the spectrum at times and must learn by them.
Repentance is a mandate or imperative and must be evident in fruit to be genuine. Bring forth fruits in keeping with repentance! (cf. Luke 3:8). When we show contrition, and this the sacrifice that pleases God, we are cleansed of all wrongdoing, our slate is cleaned, and God's memory bank about it deleted. We shouldn't keep drudging up old sins because God says, "What sin?" As far as the east is from the west (cf. Psalm 103:12), God just blots out our sin and forgets (cf. Isa. 43:25), and like a mist that is swept away (cf. Isa. 44:22); and our sins are cast into the depths of the sea (cf. Micah 7:19)--they couldn't be more neutralized than that! Why do we get hang-ups about them or let them make us feel guilty then?
The motif of repentance is common in the Old and the New Testaments. The thankless job of the prophets during the dark ages of Israel was to call them to repentance. The New Testament opens with John the Baptist preaching a baptism of repentance, while Jesus opened His ministry preaching repentance and belief in the gospel. Repentance is from the Greek metanoia or to change one's mind. We must not only make an about-face, U-turn, 180-degree turnaround, New Year's resolution, or turn over a new leaf, but our hearts must be renewed in Christ's image and from the inside out. Times of refreshing will come from the presence of the Lord (cf. Acts. 3:19).
The heart in tune with repentance echoes David's prayer of contrition in Psalm 51 after the prophet Nathan told him of his sin with Bathsheba. Finally, repentance is by grace: "... 'So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life'" (Acts 11:18, NIV; cf. 5:31). God commands repentance be preached (cf. Luke 24:47) and we must repent now (cf. Acts 17:30; 3:19; 2:38).
In sum, we are never good enough to be saved; however, we are all bad enough to need salvation. And in order to realize how bad we are, we must try to be good, and we cannot be good without realizing how bad we are--the catch-22. Actually, the closer we get to God, the more cognizance of our sin; like when Peter said, "Depart from me, O Lord, for I am a sinful man" (cf. Luke 5:8). Soli Deo Gloria!
Sunday, July 28, 2019
The Great Exchange
"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Cor. 5:21, NIV).
"Produce fruit in keeping with repentance..." (Luke 3:*, NIV).
"By faith Abraham... obeyed" (cf. Hebrews 11:8).
"... [T]o advance the obedience of faith among all nations" (Rom. 16:26, HCSB).
"The best measure of a spiritual life is not its ecstasies but its obedience." --Oswald Chambers
"True faith manifests itself in obedience only." --John MacArthur
"Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes." --Dietrich Bonhoeffer
"Faith is not believing in spite of the evidence, but obeying despite the consequences." --source unknown
"Faith is not how much we believe, but how well we obey." --source unknown
Religion is defined as tit for tat: good works in exchange for salvation! You must earn it by good deeds outweighing bad ones. But you can never know where you stand! Legalism is defined as works plus faith in exchange for salvation. While antinomianism or libertinism is defined as faith in exchange for salvation minus works; (in other words, works are not a part of the fruit nor authenticate salvation) in contrast to orthodox Reformed doctrine that faith is given in exchange for salvation plus works (works will always be the fruit and evidence!).
The only way of assurance is for everything to be grace! It's not a matter of us, nor of God and us in any combination, but of God alone ("Salvation is of the LORD," Jonah 2:9). The rub is that if we had to do anything, we'd fail. There's nothing we can do! For those hoping their good works will amount to anything, they are never good enough in God's estimation.
This is an important nuance because the correct Reformed formula for salvation is that "we are saved by faith alone, but not by a faith that is alone!" The "Five Only's" include by grace alone and by faith alone! Faith and faithfulness (making good on our faith) cannot be divorced! These two can be distinguished but not separated more than you can distinguish your body and soul but if you separate them you're dead! Paul and James both saw the two flip sides of the spiritual equation: Paul would say that he would show you his works by his faith; while James (cf. James 2:16) would counter that he would show you his faith by his works; the point is that they are not contrary nor contradictory statements but just two ways at looking at the one truth of our salvation by a faith that produces evidence in good deeds as fruit.
Salvation is not an imagined or figurative righteousness but actually forensic and totally by grace from beginning till end. Our contribution to the cross was our sin and God exchanged that for the righteousness of Christ on our behalf to our account to use business jargon. It was credited Christ's deeds to our account and that's why they say justification is "just-as-if-I'd-done-it!" When God looks at us in our sinful nature all He sees is Christ's righteousness as it's imputed to our new nature in Christ--the new man. It's not a new suit on the man, but a new man in the suit!
The point about this great exchange is that we must see our need for it. The necessary condition for salvation is to realize we aren't worthy of it. You could say it goes to the lowest bidder! We don't realize how sinful we are till we've tried to be good and we cannot be good without realizing our sin! Sort of like quitting to smoke. This is the catch-22 of salvation that is solved only by the mystery of how grace works in our hearts to kindle faith and awaken repentance and regenerate us into new creatures in Christ.
In coming to Christ, we must come in penitent faith or believing repentance which is granted by a work of grace--we exercise this making Christ real to us. We cannot come of our own power but must be wooed or actually drawn by Christ (elko used here in Greek doesn't mean to woo but to drag, but Arminians don't want to make God out to be forceful and they are trying to protect His honor or reputation). John 6:44 says "no man can come to [Christ] unless the Father who sent [Him] draws him, and verse 65 says similarly that it must be "granted of the Father."
Many see salvation is something that God owes them for their faith or repentance in a tit for tat arrangement or exchange. However, if that were true, it wouldn't be by grace but justice; the point is that God owes no one salvation and didn't have to save anyone to remain holy! We don't earn our salvation by our faith because faith is not a work, as the Roman Catholics believe, and a meritorious one at that-- but don't think grace is enough but add merit to grace, works to faith, the Church to Scripture, and the Pope to Christ.
Faith must be in the right object (we aren't saved by faith in faith--it must be directed in Christ), Christ saves--not faith! It isn't how much faith we have in the church or in the priest or pastor! If faith is a work, then we are saved by works! But we are saved from beginning to end by grace--grace is not only necessary but sufficient (it's all we need). He saved us by grace (cf. Eph. 2:8-9), He keeps us by grace (cf. Jude 21), and He's coming for us and gives us victory by grace (cf. Phil. 2:13). We must become totally grace-oriented to appreciate our salvation in its totality.
Now our "righteousness is as filthy rags" in God's eyes and only what's done in Christ is worthy of God's stamp of approval, imprimatur, and reward in heaven. Paul counted all his deeds in the flesh as "dung." We must see our faith as God's gift to us, not our gift to God. We must never attain the mindset that God owes us and we're doing Him a favor! We are simply vessels of honor that God is using for His glory and purpose. For this is the "chief end of man," according to The Westminster Shorter Catechism, "is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever." John Piper adds that it should really read "by enjoying Him forever." Our righteousness is God's gift to us and is the grand exchange for our sin.
That's grace: we are forever in God's debt and will never be able to reimburse or pay Him back, and we never can earn it nor did we, and we certainly didn't deserve it and never will, much less we cannot add anything (nada!) to grace (not Jesus plus "churchmanship," Jesus plus "Churchianity," Jesus plus emotion (emotionalism or sentimentality); Jesus plus knowledge (Gnosticism or intellectualism); Jesus plus knowing the rules (legalism); nor Jesus plus being a do-gooder (moralism). We must realize that grace means just that--the free gift of God we cannot even give back! And God certainly won't ever take back His gift to us, for gifts are given and God will not repent concerning them: "For God's gifts and his call are irrevocable" (Rom. 11:29, NIV).
In sum, we may think we are not that bad but God doesn't grade on a scale or curve and the closer we get to salvation and to God, the more we realize our own unworthiness and sinfulness. Paul called himself the "chief of sinners" and William Jay of Bath said that he was a great sinner, but he had a great Savior. No one is too far gone for God's grace and, in effect, we are all hopeless (cf. Eph. 2:12) without it, no one cuts the mustard or meets the standards because Christ raised the bar to perfection, fulfilling the Law.
A word to the wise is sufficient: We're predestined by grace, called by grace, saved and justified by grace, kept by grace, sanctified by grace, glorified by grace! By grace, no one is lost in the shuffle. Soli Deo Gloria!
"Produce fruit in keeping with repentance..." (Luke 3:*, NIV).
"By faith Abraham... obeyed" (cf. Hebrews 11:8).
"... [T]o advance the obedience of faith among all nations" (Rom. 16:26, HCSB).
"The best measure of a spiritual life is not its ecstasies but its obedience." --Oswald Chambers
"True faith manifests itself in obedience only." --John MacArthur
"Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes." --Dietrich Bonhoeffer
"Faith is not believing in spite of the evidence, but obeying despite the consequences." --source unknown
"Faith is not how much we believe, but how well we obey." --source unknown
Religion is defined as tit for tat: good works in exchange for salvation! You must earn it by good deeds outweighing bad ones. But you can never know where you stand! Legalism is defined as works plus faith in exchange for salvation. While antinomianism or libertinism is defined as faith in exchange for salvation minus works; (in other words, works are not a part of the fruit nor authenticate salvation) in contrast to orthodox Reformed doctrine that faith is given in exchange for salvation plus works (works will always be the fruit and evidence!).
The only way of assurance is for everything to be grace! It's not a matter of us, nor of God and us in any combination, but of God alone ("Salvation is of the LORD," Jonah 2:9). The rub is that if we had to do anything, we'd fail. There's nothing we can do! For those hoping their good works will amount to anything, they are never good enough in God's estimation.
This is an important nuance because the correct Reformed formula for salvation is that "we are saved by faith alone, but not by a faith that is alone!" The "Five Only's" include by grace alone and by faith alone! Faith and faithfulness (making good on our faith) cannot be divorced! These two can be distinguished but not separated more than you can distinguish your body and soul but if you separate them you're dead! Paul and James both saw the two flip sides of the spiritual equation: Paul would say that he would show you his works by his faith; while James (cf. James 2:16) would counter that he would show you his faith by his works; the point is that they are not contrary nor contradictory statements but just two ways at looking at the one truth of our salvation by a faith that produces evidence in good deeds as fruit.
Salvation is not an imagined or figurative righteousness but actually forensic and totally by grace from beginning till end. Our contribution to the cross was our sin and God exchanged that for the righteousness of Christ on our behalf to our account to use business jargon. It was credited Christ's deeds to our account and that's why they say justification is "just-as-if-I'd-done-it!" When God looks at us in our sinful nature all He sees is Christ's righteousness as it's imputed to our new nature in Christ--the new man. It's not a new suit on the man, but a new man in the suit!
The point about this great exchange is that we must see our need for it. The necessary condition for salvation is to realize we aren't worthy of it. You could say it goes to the lowest bidder! We don't realize how sinful we are till we've tried to be good and we cannot be good without realizing our sin! Sort of like quitting to smoke. This is the catch-22 of salvation that is solved only by the mystery of how grace works in our hearts to kindle faith and awaken repentance and regenerate us into new creatures in Christ.
In coming to Christ, we must come in penitent faith or believing repentance which is granted by a work of grace--we exercise this making Christ real to us. We cannot come of our own power but must be wooed or actually drawn by Christ (elko used here in Greek doesn't mean to woo but to drag, but Arminians don't want to make God out to be forceful and they are trying to protect His honor or reputation). John 6:44 says "no man can come to [Christ] unless the Father who sent [Him] draws him, and verse 65 says similarly that it must be "granted of the Father."
Many see salvation is something that God owes them for their faith or repentance in a tit for tat arrangement or exchange. However, if that were true, it wouldn't be by grace but justice; the point is that God owes no one salvation and didn't have to save anyone to remain holy! We don't earn our salvation by our faith because faith is not a work, as the Roman Catholics believe, and a meritorious one at that-- but don't think grace is enough but add merit to grace, works to faith, the Church to Scripture, and the Pope to Christ.
Faith must be in the right object (we aren't saved by faith in faith--it must be directed in Christ), Christ saves--not faith! It isn't how much faith we have in the church or in the priest or pastor! If faith is a work, then we are saved by works! But we are saved from beginning to end by grace--grace is not only necessary but sufficient (it's all we need). He saved us by grace (cf. Eph. 2:8-9), He keeps us by grace (cf. Jude 21), and He's coming for us and gives us victory by grace (cf. Phil. 2:13). We must become totally grace-oriented to appreciate our salvation in its totality.
Now our "righteousness is as filthy rags" in God's eyes and only what's done in Christ is worthy of God's stamp of approval, imprimatur, and reward in heaven. Paul counted all his deeds in the flesh as "dung." We must see our faith as God's gift to us, not our gift to God. We must never attain the mindset that God owes us and we're doing Him a favor! We are simply vessels of honor that God is using for His glory and purpose. For this is the "chief end of man," according to The Westminster Shorter Catechism, "is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever." John Piper adds that it should really read "by enjoying Him forever." Our righteousness is God's gift to us and is the grand exchange for our sin.
That's grace: we are forever in God's debt and will never be able to reimburse or pay Him back, and we never can earn it nor did we, and we certainly didn't deserve it and never will, much less we cannot add anything (nada!) to grace (not Jesus plus "churchmanship," Jesus plus "Churchianity," Jesus plus emotion (emotionalism or sentimentality); Jesus plus knowledge (Gnosticism or intellectualism); Jesus plus knowing the rules (legalism); nor Jesus plus being a do-gooder (moralism). We must realize that grace means just that--the free gift of God we cannot even give back! And God certainly won't ever take back His gift to us, for gifts are given and God will not repent concerning them: "For God's gifts and his call are irrevocable" (Rom. 11:29, NIV).
In sum, we may think we are not that bad but God doesn't grade on a scale or curve and the closer we get to salvation and to God, the more we realize our own unworthiness and sinfulness. Paul called himself the "chief of sinners" and William Jay of Bath said that he was a great sinner, but he had a great Savior. No one is too far gone for God's grace and, in effect, we are all hopeless (cf. Eph. 2:12) without it, no one cuts the mustard or meets the standards because Christ raised the bar to perfection, fulfilling the Law.
A word to the wise is sufficient: We're predestined by grace, called by grace, saved and justified by grace, kept by grace, sanctified by grace, glorified by grace! By grace, no one is lost in the shuffle. Soli Deo Gloria!
Friday, July 26, 2019
What About Hell? Well, What About It?
"... Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?" (Gen. 18:25, ESV).
"For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men" (Lam. 3:33, KJV).
NB: JUSTICE DELAYED IS NOT JUSTICE DENIED!
I heard an anecdote of a child asking the parent what the word heck was, and was told that it was where you go when you don't believe in Gosh! Many people feel so uncomfortable about hell that they avoid the subject and it isn't even part of their vocabulary. In fact, this is the doctrine that probably gives Christianity a bad rap and people become antagonistic. The word is often avoided in polite company and euphemisms are used, just as for death itself. We're all guilty of not taking it seriously, even trivializing it or correcting someone's diction, even when offended. We don't want to admit publically it exists because people object--a way of showing tact and sensitivity. But the truth can be offensive. Even the heathen will bid someone go there when they want to curse them, take revenge, or get even. Sometimes it seems that at some time everyone wishes there was a hell, even if they don't believe in God--just for a place for their enemies to go. You may even hear an atheist tell you to go there when angry!
Now, God is also uncomfortable about hell; yes, He created it for the devil and his fallen angels and it's the "other place" where people realize who they wanted to be for eternity apart from God; however, God had no choice (what's He to do?) because He is holy and just and cannot tolerate evil but must judge it. If He overlooked it without retribution, He wouldn't be just! There is no other place to go as an alternative final abode; either one is with God or separated for Him forever--no middle ground of neutrality or no-man's land.
The punishment and this is not a place to learn a lesson or to be reformed like a prison, but a place of comeuppance--being dealt their due desserts. But God is just and people are not punished beyond what strict justice mandates and the more one knew to do right, the more accountable they are, that of whom much is given, much is required also. There is final equity in hell for the just punishment of the lost or condemned. People in hell will not be able to repent, it's not a place of people changing their minds concerning their lives and lack of faith in God, for they will still insist that they are right and God wrong and accuse Him, instead of owning up to their own failings and evils. You would think people would realize their failures, but they will not and only be hardened and committed in their animosity toward God. Repentance is the gift of God and a matter of grace, but there's no grace in hell; as it says in Dante's Inferno, "All ye who enter here abandon all hope!"
If we eliminate hell from our doctrine, Christianity would be a lot more palatable to the infidel and some even think that that is the weakness of the faith--this teaching. They may want to be apologetic for God, protecting His reputation, but hell is real whether we preach it or not; Jesus mentioned it twice as much as heaven and the same word for everlasting was used to describe it--it's not annihilation or the grave as cults lead one to believe. Hell is a necessary doctrine because it must be If God is just and didn't punish sin it would mean He has weakness or is nonchalant or not holy. But God is almighty and holy and can do something about what offends Him. Sin isn't just something that God can overlook like we can, because God is allergic to sin and good and evil are antithetical to God and they cannot co-exist.
The torture of hell might be that this is the place where there are no rules and people get what they always wanted, but the real hell of it is that God isn't' there and they will realize that God's presence is what gives us joy in life and the ability to live life to the fullest. Just like it wasn't good for man to be alone and that's why God created Eve, hell could be a place of ultimate solitariness where one must contemplate forever what he did and have no one to blame but himself. They will have to live with their depraved self without any redeeming value or blessings. It's like having everything to live on and nothing to live for; in that case, even rich people are bored and find no purpose in life until they find true meaning in God.
Thus hell is the eternal monument to man's dignity where ultimate justice is meted out accordingly and in due measure, no more nor any less than required. It's a salute to man's so-called free will and the choices he made and that all choices have ultimate consequences! Time to pay the piper! Time for the recompense of the wicked getting what they deserve. If there was no hell we would lose an important anchor in preaching and society to the reality of sin's judgment.
We don't repent to get so-called fire insurance or a ticket out of hell, but we must realize there are consequences to our choices and decisions which God will judge. Christians shall not come into judgment (cf. John 5:24; Rom. 8:1), but the wicked will be judged (cf. Rom. 2:6; Heb. 9:27) according to their works and the books opened to show that they fall short of the perfect requirements for heaven's entree in spite of their do-goodism. Soli Deo Gloria!
"For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men" (Lam. 3:33, KJV).
NB: JUSTICE DELAYED IS NOT JUSTICE DENIED!
I heard an anecdote of a child asking the parent what the word heck was, and was told that it was where you go when you don't believe in Gosh! Many people feel so uncomfortable about hell that they avoid the subject and it isn't even part of their vocabulary. In fact, this is the doctrine that probably gives Christianity a bad rap and people become antagonistic. The word is often avoided in polite company and euphemisms are used, just as for death itself. We're all guilty of not taking it seriously, even trivializing it or correcting someone's diction, even when offended. We don't want to admit publically it exists because people object--a way of showing tact and sensitivity. But the truth can be offensive. Even the heathen will bid someone go there when they want to curse them, take revenge, or get even. Sometimes it seems that at some time everyone wishes there was a hell, even if they don't believe in God--just for a place for their enemies to go. You may even hear an atheist tell you to go there when angry!
Now, God is also uncomfortable about hell; yes, He created it for the devil and his fallen angels and it's the "other place" where people realize who they wanted to be for eternity apart from God; however, God had no choice (what's He to do?) because He is holy and just and cannot tolerate evil but must judge it. If He overlooked it without retribution, He wouldn't be just! There is no other place to go as an alternative final abode; either one is with God or separated for Him forever--no middle ground of neutrality or no-man's land.
The punishment and this is not a place to learn a lesson or to be reformed like a prison, but a place of comeuppance--being dealt their due desserts. But God is just and people are not punished beyond what strict justice mandates and the more one knew to do right, the more accountable they are, that of whom much is given, much is required also. There is final equity in hell for the just punishment of the lost or condemned. People in hell will not be able to repent, it's not a place of people changing their minds concerning their lives and lack of faith in God, for they will still insist that they are right and God wrong and accuse Him, instead of owning up to their own failings and evils. You would think people would realize their failures, but they will not and only be hardened and committed in their animosity toward God. Repentance is the gift of God and a matter of grace, but there's no grace in hell; as it says in Dante's Inferno, "All ye who enter here abandon all hope!"
If we eliminate hell from our doctrine, Christianity would be a lot more palatable to the infidel and some even think that that is the weakness of the faith--this teaching. They may want to be apologetic for God, protecting His reputation, but hell is real whether we preach it or not; Jesus mentioned it twice as much as heaven and the same word for everlasting was used to describe it--it's not annihilation or the grave as cults lead one to believe. Hell is a necessary doctrine because it must be If God is just and didn't punish sin it would mean He has weakness or is nonchalant or not holy. But God is almighty and holy and can do something about what offends Him. Sin isn't just something that God can overlook like we can, because God is allergic to sin and good and evil are antithetical to God and they cannot co-exist.
The torture of hell might be that this is the place where there are no rules and people get what they always wanted, but the real hell of it is that God isn't' there and they will realize that God's presence is what gives us joy in life and the ability to live life to the fullest. Just like it wasn't good for man to be alone and that's why God created Eve, hell could be a place of ultimate solitariness where one must contemplate forever what he did and have no one to blame but himself. They will have to live with their depraved self without any redeeming value or blessings. It's like having everything to live on and nothing to live for; in that case, even rich people are bored and find no purpose in life until they find true meaning in God.
Thus hell is the eternal monument to man's dignity where ultimate justice is meted out accordingly and in due measure, no more nor any less than required. It's a salute to man's so-called free will and the choices he made and that all choices have ultimate consequences! Time to pay the piper! Time for the recompense of the wicked getting what they deserve. If there was no hell we would lose an important anchor in preaching and society to the reality of sin's judgment.
We don't repent to get so-called fire insurance or a ticket out of hell, but we must realize there are consequences to our choices and decisions which God will judge. Christians shall not come into judgment (cf. John 5:24; Rom. 8:1), but the wicked will be judged (cf. Rom. 2:6; Heb. 9:27) according to their works and the books opened to show that they fall short of the perfect requirements for heaven's entree in spite of their do-goodism. Soli Deo Gloria!
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