Showing Your Colors

Ponder the correlation between suffering and glory, realizing one unique trait of Christianity--meaning in suffering (no cross, no crown):

"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us"  (Romans 8:28, ESV).

"I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation [suffering] and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus..." (Revelation 1:9, ESV).

"... [And] saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God"  (Acts 14:22, ESV).

"More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance"  (Romans 5:3, ESV).

"... [And] a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed"  (1 Peter 5:1, ESV).

"And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you"  (1 Peter 5:10, ESV).

There will come a moment of truth for every believer before he is really seasoned and confirmed in the faith--when he makes his stand for Jesus.  This is not just confessing Him as Lord, but sticking up for what He stands for and risking something in the process--becoming a "confessor."  Jesus did say that we should consider the cost of discipleship and He didn't promise us a bed of roses.  In fact, He did all He could to discourage halfhearted admirers, of which there were many; however, these are not those he sought--we are not sidekicks or buddies of Christ, but worshipers and followers (a rare commodity).

The Christian way goes against the grain and is counter-cultural since we claim to know the only way to eternal life.  We would be egotistical if it was just us claiming this; however, Christ, Himself, made the claim of being the exclusive way to the Father--and He tolerates no rivals. This doesn't mean we are intolerant, which is the only vice modern man sees and they categorize believers as being.

We are called to bear a cross as believers and this doesn't mean as a fashion statement, but to be willing to suffer all and even give the ultimate sacrifice of our lives.  To be willing to go to our cross for Christ's sake, we must be absolutely convinced in our own minds:  "I know whom I have believed, and am convinced ..." (cf. 2 Tim. 1:12).  However, don't have a martyr's complex, thinking that the more you suffer, the better believe you are--and do not seek persecution or even be offensive as a person, because the offense should be in the cross.

We don't have to take the loyalty oath that first-century believers did to Caesar confessing, "Caesar is lord," but in everyday life, we are always being tested as to our devotion to Christ, and Satan is tempting us not to make Him first place in our priorities.  One reason we are to welcome suffering as friends is that it is all Father-filtered, which means God-approved, and it is guaranteed to work out for our best in the end (cf. Rom. 8:28).  God turns curses into blessings (cf. Gen. 50:20).  As they say, "Behind every cloud, there's a silver lining."

People don't turn their backs on Christ suddenly, but slowly, as they drift away and gradually lose their first love and devotion to Christ. Paul longed to participate in the "fellowship of His sufferings" (cf. Phil. 3:10).  The early disciple was glad that they were "considered worthy" of suffering for Christ's sake, to glorify Him.

How does this happen?  We run into everyday situations and conflicts that give us the opportunity to defend a Christian worldview or to preach the gospel, and we are not to be ashamed to own our Lord.  Actually, the more you stick up for Christ, the stronger your faith becomes.  As Paul said to the Philippians 1:29 (NKJV):  "For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him but also to suffer for His sake."   

There is a downside to letting people know you're a believer:  They watch your every move and listen to what you say to look for hypocrisy.  They seem to think that if you don't live up to your faith, that this nullifies it and God isn't real.  It only proves your faith isn't real, not that God isn't real. They hate hypocrites and won't go to church because they think it's full of them, yet they go to the golf club and play with hypocrites all the time and don't give it a second thought.  You will want to keep your reputation and the pressure is high as you live under a microscope of observation.  But there is no alternative because there are no secret agent believers who refuse to stand up for Jesus.

The world will approve your faith and won't object to anything unless it is pushed on them--they call evangelizing a way of forcing your viewpoints.  They don't object to anything as long as you "privatize" it!  But we are called to preach the gospel and be salt and light in the world, not to stand by and let the devil have his way.  We need a thick skin and to be certain of our faith (and assurance of salvation is not an automatic fruit), to be able to withstand the fiery darts of the evil one (with assured faith and the helmet of salvation). Tertullian of Carthage, second-century church father, said that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.

As Esther said, she was born "for such a time as this" (cf. Esther 4:14, NKJV).  We are not to wear our religion on our sleeve, as it were, as an excuse, but to live righteous and holy lives that God can use as a witness to a dark world blinded by Satan.  In other words, we don't go out of our way to "advertise" that we are Christians, like carrying banners but to let Christ open the door no one can close in His timing.

We must absolutely aim to give God the glory and not to seek fame or take the credit ourselves, because He is the Potter and we are the clay and He is using us as vessels of honor for His own plan and purpose   But one thing I can tell you from experience, is that you shouldn't doubt the wisdom of God, that He can make the most unpleasant events turn out for the good and we will praise Him in the end.  It is only because He is trusting us with this trial and it is an honor to be tested.

We need to anticipate being used by God, and be prepared to defend the faith, contend for the faith, according to our faith.  We all have a shot at greatness and God only holds us responsible for what He gives us:  "to much is given, much is required."  As John Milton said in Paradise Regained, "Who best can suffer, best can do."  Jesus suffered more than anyone and our crosses pale in comparison; He isn't asking us to do anything He didn't do.

We should live in light of eternity and the final declaration of Christ saying, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."  God doesn't care about our bucket list, but in us completing His will before we check out, as it is written: "For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw corruption"  (Acts 13:36, ESV).   Soli Deo Gloria!

Our Spiritual Portfolio

"... 'The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him'" (Lam. 3:24, NIV). 

Coming to Christ is not an investment in our temporal life, but an opportunity to make good on the investment of what eternity has to offer. When we live in light of eternity, we live life to the fullest and are properly oriented to reality and can put our troubles and adversities into perspective.  Jesus came that we can have life, and life more abundantly (cf. John 10:10), but this life starts in the here and now, though we are in a pilgrimage through time with spiritual green cards preparing for and making a tryout for heaven's stage.

If our hope is in this life alone, we ought to be most pitied, but we know our hope is real through the objective historical fact of the resurrection, and the subjective personal experience we have in Christ--to know Him is to love Him.  The proof of the pudding is in the eating!  As it is written:  "Taste and see that the LORD is good" (cf. Psalm 34:8).

Grace is, by definition, the unmerited favor of God, and there is nothing we can do to earn it, deserve it, nor repay it, and we must learn to become grace-oriented. Salvation is free but not cheap--it will cost everything you have because God wants you!   And grace is not cheap, because it will cost you something to live the Christian life, but putting things in perspective, our afflictions are but shots at greatness if we can overcome.  In this life we will have troubles, Jesus said, but we are to "be of good cheer" because He has "overcome the world" (cf. John 16:33)--and Christ's victory is transferable to our account and portfolio.

We never waste time in serving the Lord, but it is a wise investment in our future and an eternal investment with high payoffs.  No matter how much we suffer in this life, our crosses pale in comparison to Christ's and what He did on our behalf.  In the end, we can be assured that it is worth it and we are laying up treasures in heaven.  Christianity is not an economic decision that we think God will make us rich, famous, or powerful, but He will make us successful in serving Him!

The so-called prosperity theology, whereby Jesus wants us to get rich, money-wise, is a heresy, and God makes the poor as well as the rich, and if we get rich or blessed financially, we must recognize that it is God's blessing and not our own ingenuity, creativity, or entrepreneurship (cf. Deut. 8:17). God brings bad times as well as good (cf. Job 2:10).   It is God who gives us the power to get rich--"... 'I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way you should go'"  (Isaiah 48:17, ESV). God does promise to bless our doings in the name of the LORD and when we do God's will and follow our calling.  

God never promised us a bed of roses or a rose garden, and our walk is not Pollyanna, and life is not meant to be a picnic, but an adventure with Christ.  Christ was honest enough to tell us ahead of time of the trials, troubles, afflictions, temptations, adversity, discipline, and suffering we'd have, if we are serious to pursue Him, and this is because we must be willing to take up our cross and follow Him (this is what Lordship entails).

Paul had a lot to lose to become a believer, and he counted all his credentials and accomplishments as rubbish compared to knowing Christ as Lord.  In becoming a believer, we have nothing to lose and eternity to gain!  When we go through our troubles we can avail of the promises of God and know that He is with us and we have all of heaven's resources at our disposal.

Don't focus on this world and what it has to offer--we're only passing through. He who is the friend of the world is the enemy of God (cf. James 4:4), and if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him (cf. 1 John 2:15).   We need to live above our circumstances and to keep our eyes on Jesus as we march along our spiritual journey.  We are never really poor in God's eyes, but rich in what matters most--the things that money cannot buy!   Soli Deo Gloria!

Ushering In The Kingdom

Jesus told Pontius Pilate that His kingdom is not of this world.  Pilate then perceived Him to be a philosopher or harmless dreamer, but no threat to Caesar.  If His kingdom were of this world His followers would fight, but we have no such marching orders.  Many misled, though sincere believers throughout history have tried to usher in the kingdom of God, and thought that the church's job was to aid in doing it.  William Bradford, Pilgrim governor in Colonial America, said that his mission was to "advance the kingdom of Christ."  The Puritans also tried legislating Christianity in early America, but it failed and turned out to have evil fruit, such as hanging innocent women accused of witchcraft. John Calvin even tried to enforce biblical mandates on Geneva, like mandatory Sabbath observance and even forbidding anyone from naming children anything but biblical names.

Only Christ will usher in the kingdom of God and our marching orders are to fulfill the Great Commission, not to make a Christian nation. Yes, we are light and salt, but we must not lose focus and keep the main thing the main thing.  Christians are not to dedicate their lives to the betterment of society unless God calls them specifically to this.  The "social gospel is not only a misnomer but has no place in the church.  We are interested in saving souls and winning people, not becoming political activists. The Bible is meant to be a light for salvation, not government reform or social activism. Everyone has the obligation to be involved in his society that behooves a responsible citizen.

Entering the kingdom is synonymous with getting saved.  The whole purpose of announcing the kingdom of God to be at hand is to make people realize the urgency to repent and get ready for the second coming of Christ in glory.  The first words out of John the Baptist and Jesus in their ministries was to repent.  The kingdom is both present in the here and now, and future to be fulfilled at the Second Advent.  Presently Christ reigns in the hearts of His followers and we shall all reign with Him in His millennial kingdom after the tribulation period.  Jesus said that if He cast out demons by the finger of God, "the kingdom of God has come upon you."  Salvation (the fulfillment of our redemption) is nearer now than when we first believed according to Romans 13:11.

We are to do kingdom living while sojourning on this earth as pilgrims, this is not our home and we should realize that our true citizenship is in heaven (cf. Philippians 3:20).  We are just passing through and have spiritual green cards and this life is but a staging area or tryout for eternity, where each note we play has eternal vibes.  We are rehearsing for kingdom living and our faith must be tested and God wants to prove our faithfulness and reward it according to our deeds done through faith by the power of the Holy Spirit (cf. Isa. 26:12; Hos. 14:8).   Like Paul said (cf. Rom. 15:18), he would not venture to boast of anything, but of what Christ has accomplished through him.

We are not to seek nor store up treasure in this life nor to seek earthly fame, fortune, nor power, but to seek spiritual riches and to learn to live in the power of the Holy Spirit in God's kingdom.  God's kingdom is invisible and only God knows who is in it for sure or who the elect are  (cf. Mark 13:27 "... and shall gather his elect from the four winds ...").   Jesus said to "seek ye first the kingdom of heaven" and this means that our number one priority is kingdom living in God's economy, and when we put God first in our lives all else falls into place.  As it says, "all these things shall be added unto you."

The richest people are not those with worldly wealth, but those most content in what God has blessed them with and faithful stewards of our resources, time, talents, gifts, money, and opportunities. Someone has said that riches are not in the abundance of our possessions but in the fewness of our wants.  When we seek first God's kingdom all our priorities become focused on Christ and our life is oriented in the right direction and given divine purpose and meaning.  In sum, we ought to live one day at a time in light of eternity--not regretting the past, nor worrying about the future.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Limiting God

When you emphasize just one attribute of God or try to define Him to fit your agenda or project, you are limiting God or putting Him in a box. Martin Luther told Erasmus of Rotterdam that his "thoughts of God were too human."  In J. B. Phillips' book, Your God Is Too Small, the author expounds upon this theme. We will never fully apprehend God nor understand Him enough to peg Him, say we can second-guess Him, or have Him all figured out--He is beyond our analysis and cannot be defined by any human power of reason--God cannot be rationalized either. Throughout all eternity we will ever be learning more of Him and only be scratching the surface.  Fathom this:  God is perfect!

Common ways people limit God are saying things like God cannot forgive someone taking their life; God cannot meet my needs; my problems are too big or too little; God doesn't care.  God is so big that everything is small to Him and He cares enough to meet every need. We are wrong to call God just a mean Judge,  kind Father, celestial killjoy, sentimental Grandpa, or Great Spirit. Some people have a wholly inadequate concept of God and this in itself is limiting God--we are to be aware of all His attributes and not just our favorite one (some people even think of the Trinity as comprising the Father, who is the stern one, the Son, who is the nice one, and the Holy Spirit, who is the mysterious one).

A common error is to make God in our image (Voltaire said that man created God in his image) and like presumptuously thinking He is a member of our political party or even a citizen of our country.  Some even think Jesus would drive a Harley! This is all limiting God and trying to make a definition to fit our philosophy or way of life.  God is no respecter of persons or even teams, shows no partiality, and won't even take sides on sports events--don't believe that praying for victory is going to help; both sides are doing it and the prayers cancel out!  May I say, may the best team win?

The reason we cannot define God and understand Him is made clear by an old Greek maxim:  "The finite cannot grasp the infinite."  You cannot fit something that's infinite into a limited space.  We cannot imagine an infinite amount of potatoes, for instance, but we can imagine a God who is infinitely holy, wise, powerful, and righteous.  Just like love just is and beauty just is, and beauty remains after the rose fades, and love needs an expression like faith to make it known, but God is love and beauty proves there must be someone to enjoy it, namely God its Creator.  We can be grateful that God's love for us in infinite and cannot be measured and that eternity is longer than we can imagine, though God has set eternity into our hearts (cf. Eccl. 3:11).

You must ask yourself, "How big is your God?" And stop wondering if He can meet your needs because He is up to the challenge.  The bigger God you have the more awe and fear of God you have. It energizes and expands the intellect, boggles your understanding, it humbles the minds and spirit, and quite simply put, "It blows you away," to meditate on who God is.  Einstein thought of God as a "pure mathematical mind" in his early days, and this shows that even great minds cannot fathom God, but need to be enlightened by the Holy Spirit to come to faith in the true God as He is.  Someday we will behold the beatific vision and be satisfied with seeing Him as He is and when we see Christ we shall become like Him.  The highest calling of man and deepest meditation and contemplation is to dwell on who God is and His nature--we should never grow weary of this but always be up to the challenge and rise to the occasion.

For instance, God is perfect: That means He cannot change for the worse, nor improve for the better. He just is and describes Himself as I Am without a predicate, which means He is our everything and meets our every need and is everything He desires to be.  Our existence depends on Him, but He is self-existent and needs no one or nothing to exist or to live and owes no one or no thing.  Why do we want to know God as He is?  To know Him is to love Him and gives us a great desire to be like Him.

People who know their God, says Daniel 11:32, shall be strong and do great exploits.  God's pet peeve is that people don't know Him in Hosea 4:1 and Jesus said in His intercessory prayer of John 17 that knowing God and Jesus is having eternal life.  The whole point of believing in God is to know Him.  What is God like then?  All He has to tell us is expressed in the icon of God--Jesus Himself! God is like Jesus!   Soli Deo Gloria!

Suffer The Little Children

Jesus welcomed the little ones, wanted them to come to Him, and blessed them, while the disciples had no time for them and thought Jesus was too busy to be bothered.  He said, "Suffer the little children to come unto me, [in NIV:  "do not hinder them"] for such is the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 19:14).  Jesus rebuked them and told them that to such belong the kingdom of God.  He also said that he who humbles himself like a little child shall be greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Are children the enemies of God?  Yes and No.  James 4:4 says that he who is a friend of the world is the enemy of God.  Children are born in sin, of course. "In sin did my mother conceive me," says Psalm 51:5.  The Minnesota Crime Commission issued a report saying that little children are born to be criminals and if they are not civilized by the parents will grow up delinquent. The grace of God covers all children till the age of accountability (I don't want to get into an extensive proof of this doctrine here because most believers accept this) and children are to be welcomed into the church body and its fellowship, and not to be treated as outsiders.  There will be no children in hell, and God loves all children and wants to bless them.  If you make one of them stumble you will be better off with a millstone around your neck and cast into the sea.  They have angels that always behold the face of God and take care of them.

Yes, children sin but they have not learned to discern good and evil and are innocent to a certain extent.  Technically all unbelievers are children of Satan but children can be converted to Christ--the way of salvation is so simple even they can comprehend it. God can and sometimes does speak to us through the children, just like St. Augustine claimed happened to him.  We were all enemies of God before salvation and the miracle is that God loved us in that while we were His enemies He sent Son to die for us.  It is true that infants are completely self-centered and their world revolves around them, and it is the job of the parent to civilize them and bring them up in the training and nurture of the Lord ("Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it," says Proverbs 22:6, ESV). Responsible parents stand in loco Dei or in the place of God to teach concepts of authority, respect, and obedience.

Though children may have not accepted Christ yet, God is working on them and it is the job of the parents to teach them the truth and way of salvation.  We should never treat them as if they are enemies of God--that is the logical outcome of believing they are.  Only God knows and sees who His elect are and we are not to judge people prematurely or before the time.  The wheat and chaff look similar when growing together and it is not the task of believers to separate them because they could be wrong.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Cheap Grace

Easy-believism or cheap grace (first popularized by Dietrich Bonhoeffer) has been a constant misconception of our faith.  Salvation is indeed free, but not cheap!  It will cost something and you will be tested.  The most obvious one that some won't be willing to pay is to turn from a life of sin, like living in sin and not being willing to change that lifestyle.  If we want to live godly in Christ, we will suffer persecution, according to Jesus.  We must be willing to seek first the kingdom of God (cf. Matt. 6:33) above all other priorities, dreams, ambitions, and whatever is ours--because all ultimately belongs to Him, because Jesus doesn't want these things--He wants us as living sacrifices (cf. Rom. 12:1)!

That's what He meant when He said we must deny ourselves and follow Him.  We don't know where He will lead us or know God's laid out a plan for our whole life at salvation but must be willing to do His will, whatever it is in the complete surrender of our wills to His.  Jesus also said that we must love Him preeminently above family, friends, children, spouse, and even self.  In the last days, men will be lovers of themselves (cf. 2 Tim. 3:2), or "looking out for number one!"

Jesus did everything He could to discourage insincere followers and make salvation "well-nigh impossible."   But it is worth the cost to follow Jesus through thick and thin and the reward is eternal. The more abundant life we experience begins in the here and now, as we live in light of eternity with God's blessing in all we do in His name.  True prosperity isn't necessarily higher income, not even fame, or power.  What being prosperous entails is God's blessings on our ventures and helping us to find what He will bless us in.  The disciples were inquisitive about what their reward would be since they gave up everything to follow Him, and Jesus said that it would multiply not add (like ten times, instead of ten more).

Jesus had no trouble attracting admirers or people who wanted to be buddies or sidekicks, but He was looking for disciples who would devote their lives to the learning of Him and be following Him--this is what He meant by those who worship God in Spirit and in truth.  Jesus said that if we abide in His Word we are disciples indeed (cf. John 8:31).  Don't be someone to whom Jesus might say, "You have sacrificed nothing!"  This is an awful rebuke of a disobedient life, and some believers may be saved as if by fire and by the skin of the teeth, so to speak.

The reward that we strive for is everlasting and we should be inspired by athletes who make great sacrifices and strive for a temporal prize that fades away.  One of the metaphors that Christ uses for the believer is one of an athlete--we are to exercise discipline in our life and set our eyes on Jesus and finish the race He has set before us.  If athletes can endure the discipline and think it will be worth a temporal prize, so much the more should we be inspired to make sacrifices for eternal prizes in Christ's kingdom, and even the ultimate sacrifice, because we are considered worthy to suffer for His kingdom (cf. Philippians 1:29).  

The prize we seek is worth more than anything on earth and we should be willing to sacrifice anything on earth to gain it--God doesn't ask everyone to make great sacrifices, but He does expect them to be willing to do so.  Nothing on earth (fame, fortune, power) is worth losing our soul for and Jesus said succinctly (cf. Mark 8:36), "What shall it gain a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?"  One soul is worth more to God than the entire world! You cannot put a price on salvation nor on the joy that a believer has in Christ.

Jesus never made it seem easy to be a bed of roses to be a believer and admonished us to count the cost, but "all these things shall be added" unto us if we follow Christ. The problem with most seekers is that they want the benefits without the Benefactor.  We are not to get a martyr's complex either, thinking that the more we suffer, the more spiritual we are, or that we gain salvation through suffering or martyrdom--Jesus isn't calling us to die for him, but to take up our cross and follow Him regardless of the results and through thick and thin.  We are called to deny ourselves and this is the unique sacrifice of Christianity, and the one that makes it unattractive to some, because they are unwilling to heed Christ's "hard sayings." When we suffer for His sake, we shall in His glory--no cross--no glory!
Soli Deo Gloria!

A Different Drum

"And I have other sheep that are not of this fold.  I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd"  (John 10:16, ESV).
"If a man doesn't keep pace with his companions, perhaps he hears a different drummer." --Henry David Thoreau 

On the last day Jesus will finally separate the sheep from the goats--we cannot do this ourselves--and their eternal destiny will finally be determined, though they grew together while in this world.

It has been said that rebels just march to the beat of a different drum.  Quakers believe in listening to the "inner light" and New Age believers listen to the "God within."  Jesus, however, said that there are two types of people:  Sheep and goats.  Sheep recognize their shepherd and are followers and easily get lost without him.  Goats are independently minded and recognize no leader or a particular owner as a rule.  Jesus said that His sheep know Him and hear His voice (cf. John 10:27).

Today we have the phenomenon of revolution, politically wise people who feel they have a leader for their social gospel, and yet they refuse to take his advice and be followers along with him.  Paul said to follow him as he follows Christ.  We are to imitate the faith of our spiritual leaders and not be spiritual Lone Rangers or lone wolves-there is no such thing!  The wise listen to advice and learn from other believers and the fool trusts in himself and his own wisdom.

We should never feel or think we know it all and don't have some lessons to learn from each other, no matter how mature we are.  The great danger in people not under authority is that they have a tendency to fall into heresy and even apostasy.  We all need to be under authority and no one is an island to himself.  Being subordinate is not inferiority (Christ became subordinate for our sake),  and we are meant to submit to one another in the Lord--there's no ruling class or elite per se in the church by and large.

The church itself is an organism and not an organization and everything is to be done decently and in an orderly manner and according to the leadership (not dictatorship) of the church elders, deacons, pastors, et cetera, who are not to lord it over the flock.  We all function best under the authority and don't have the right to exercise authority unless we have learned to submit to it and are under authority ourselves--there is no, Head of the church besides Christ Himself.  No one of us should speak ex-cathedra or pontificate.  Christ is our leader and He rules through the authority of the church body that we are to submit to.

We witness today that many believers are doing that which is right in their own eyes, just as Israel did in the book of Judges and people are beginning to question authority rather than submit to it.  The Bible is the highest authority (sola Scriptura) and we are to test the spirits and search the Scriptures to see if the teachings are kosher just like Bereans (cf. Acts 17:11).  Soli Deo Gloria!

Reciprocity

Confucius summarized his system of ethics with the so-called Silver Rule ("What you don't want others to do to you, don't do to them"). The prevalent ethic of America now is the Brazen Rule, that we do unto others as they do unto us.  To be specific, when someone does you evil, return the favor or do the deed in kind (insult for insult, etc.). The worse ethic is the Iron Rule, which is like the law of the jungle and believes in the survival of the fittest, saying that you should do unto others before they do unto you--mind your own business and take care of number one!   It is worse to return evil for good, which is contemptible, and some only return good for good and don't go the extra mile and put in any extra effort or turn the other cheek.

We believe in the Golden Rule that says we should treat others the way we prefer to be treated.  This is the most challenging ethic, the one Jesus proposed and revealed man's depraved heart is to return good for evil and overcome evil with good (cf. Rom. 12:21), much less to pray for those who persecute us and love our enemies.  This can only be done when the love of God has shed abroad in our hearts (cf. Rom. 5:5).  It always pays to take the high road of nobility:  "When they go low, you should go high!"

We don't want to lower ourselves by stooping to the level that our enemy does and not to raise the bar, as Jesus did, and realize sin is not just outward behavior, but in the attitude of the heart.  Love trumps hate and it never pays to engage in hate-speech or any type of bias, because we are to reach out to all in the name of Jesus and not judge "those outside" (Christians are only authorized to judge those inside the church per 1 Cor. 5:12, and will eventually judge angels). We are to realize that we should judge nothing before the time and to realize that God is on the throne and is only using us for His purposes by Providence. When I say that Jesus raised the bar, I mean that no one can meet His standards--the Christian life is not hard, it's impossible,  The standard is perfection, but the direction is the test!  The Bible makes it clear that you cannot say you love God and hate your brother, and, if you see a brother in need, and don't help, how can the love of God dwell in you (cf. 1 John 3:17).

Islam denies that God is love and uses hate to spread its message of submission, and that man is a mere slave of God and subject to blind kismet or fate, and will ultimately face a whimsical and capricious God that will decide their final fate at the judgment.  Philosopher and mathematician Bertrand Russell said that what the world needs is more Christian love.  Love is what Christianity has going for it and makes it unique, and the karma of Eastern religions keeps them from loving their neighbors and helping them in times of need because that's their karma and they are to be islands to themselves. We believe that God will reward us for all the goodwill He accomplishes through us as His vessels of honor.  We shall receive a reward for our good works if we do not faint or give up and continue faithfully in them as they are ordained for us (cf. Gal 6:9; Eph. 2:10).   Soli Deo Gloria!

The Everyday Do-Gooder

But as it is written: WHAT NO EYE HAS SEEN AND NO EAR HAS HEARD, AND WHAT HAS NEVER COME INTO A MAN'S HEART, IS WHAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM."  (1 Cor. 2:9, HCSB, boldface mine).

"[Who] has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began"  (2 Tim. 1:9, HCSB, italics mine).

You might have heard someone say that his religion is the Golden Rule or the Sermon on the Mount. When you reduce Christianity to a formula, creed (you aren't saved by creeds, but by trusting in the person and work of Christ), or list of dos and don'ts (legalism), you make it a philosophy or religion (they all deny grace and are based on good works for merit), but Christianity is essentially a living, growing, vital relationship with the Savior Himself--knowing Him and making Him known! Two persons of different faiths can feel unity in that they have the same creed:  Do all the good you can! (borrowed from John Wesley).  But this is not salvation!

Many people actually believe that living a righteous life is living the good life, achieving the American dream--that blessing is a sign of God's approbation. However, some people's reward is in this life (cf. Psalm 17:15).  We are not saved by service but unto service.  Good deeds is a sign we are saved and have faith, not the substitute for it. We cannot merit or earn our way to heaven by self-reformation. The new life in Christ is not an improvement, but a transformation!   We are new creatures in Christ, behold, all things become new (cf. 2 Cor. 5:17).

Religion says, "Do!" Christianity says, "Done!"  We don't do good works because we "have to" but because we "want to."  There's a world of difference:  We don't say, "In order to..." but "therefore!" The believer's works are a byproduct of his faith and not the way to gain approval with God, however, he wants to please God and wonders, "What would Jesus do?" in the situations of life.   There's a big difference because we cannot reach out to God, He has to reach down and condescend to us and make the first move.  James and Paul said complimentary comments about their works: James would say, "I'll show you my works by my faith!"  

Paul would counter, "I'll show you my faith by my works."  James was dealing with people who were do-nothings and needed to realize that that kind of faith doesn't save ("Faith without works is dead," per James 2:17).  Paul dealt with the other end of the spectrum:  Those trying to earn their way in by obeying the law of Moses and legalism--they were doing too much and had no faith either--begun in the Spirit, but finishing in the flesh (cf. Gal. 3:3)! They were nullifying grace or as Paul says to the Galatians 5:4 (HCSB), "... [You] have fallen from grace."

The point is that if you have no good works, your faith is suspect and no fruit means no faith, because we are known by our fruits.  We will be judged by our deeds, not our faith (cf. Romans 2:6)!  We are not saved by works, however, but not without them either--they go hand-in-hand and can be distinguished, but not separated.   The Reformed formula of salvation was: "Saved by faith alone, but not by a faith that is alone." Works are the natural result of true faith just like apples from an apple tree. They prove the faith is genuine and not bogus.  There is a difference between a profession of faith and the reality of faith.

Faith is not something you have, but something you see and do, and it is abstract and must be demonstrated: "By faith Abraham obeyed...." We must put it into action, according to the measure of faith God has granted us (cf. Rom. 12:3).  The book of James, not the epistle of straw that Martin Luther thought it was before he saw the reconciliation, shows us that the faith you have is the faith you show!  We must not just talk the talk, but walk the talk and put it into action--faith is a verb and has feet!   It is well put that "only he who is obedient believes, and only he who believes is obedient," by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, et al.  We must bring forth the fruits of salvation and we can distinguish them but not separate them:  There's no such thing as faith without works, but there are works without faith (the kind that doesn't please God, for all our "righteousness, is as filthy rags," per Isaiah 64:6).


We are not saved by our service, but unto service, as we are vessels of honor being used by God for His glory.   Paul said in Romans 15:18 that he ventured not to speak, but of what Christ had accomplished through him!  God crowns His own work done through us by His Spirit and power.  It is a futile and vain hope to believe you can be good enough to merit salvation or do enough good deeds---God's requisite is perfection and the standard is Christ Himself.  Some people's creed is to do all the good they can, but no one does good according to Romans 3.  I'm not against good deeds and sincere works, but only those done in the energy of the flesh.  The problem with doing good deeds is that God sees the motive and most people just do them out of self-interest or to gain the applause of others or get attention or approval.

You cannot tell an unbeliever to "do good," because he is incapable (Paul declares that no one does good in Romans 3:12); only believers can do the works of God, which is to believe in Jesus (cf. John 6:29).  The best motto or creed would be to determine to be used by God and submit to His will and be obedient and willing to do it--God doesn't want works, He wants us!  Submit and see what He can accomplish through you in the power of the Spirit!

Don't ever let someone add something to grace, such as merit, because (the Reformed formula says) we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, God alone be the glory, and on the authority of Scripture alone. You are saved through Jesus alone; not Jesus plus works, which would be moralism; nor Jesus plus feeling, which is emotionalism or sentimentality; nor Jesus plus knowledge, which is intellectualism or the cult of Gnosticism.  Remember this:  A motto to do all the good you can is a good and rewarding philosophy, but it won't bring salvation.  Soli Deo Gloria!

Ready For Heaven

"So it is with the resurrection of the dead:  Sown in corruption, raised in incorruption; sown in dishonor, raised in glory; sown in weakness, raised in power; sown a natural body, raised a spiritual body.  If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body"  (1 Cor. 15:42, HCSB).

I want to dispel the common notion that people have that they want to go to heaven, but are in no hurry to get there!  WE ARE JUST PILGRIMS WITH SPIRITUAL GREEN CARDS; DON'T GET TOO COMFORTABLE OR AT HOME IN THIS WORLD.  

As Matthew Henry said:  "It ought to be the business of every day to prepare for our final day." We are to live each day as if it were our last and prepare daily to meet the Lord in the air, and we can do this with gusto if we are looking forward to heaven, which means we must have some idea what it is like--through our knowledge is really speculation based on Scripture.  "No eye has seen...."  Yet we do know some facts and can cast away some common fallacies and misconceptions.  For instance, we won't be sitting on clouds playing harps all day.  We won't have to go to church (yes and no!).  We are the church and we shall worship in all our activities, whether work, leisure, or play, but the Lord will be present to have a Spirit of worship.

There will be work in heaven, but perfectly suited for us and our talents, gifts, and desires--what we enjoy doing!  Work will have meaning and not drudgery or be menial and boring, and there will be no physical exhaustion involved because the curse will be removed which made us work by the sweat of our brow.  Since Adam worked the Garden of Eden before the curse we know that we are not made for idleness, but in God's image and He is always at work.  We express God's image in our work and find fulfillment and satisfaction and meaning in it.  If we are faithful in little, we shall be faithful in much and God gives all of us opportunity to express our faithfulness.  Many of the tedious chores like hygiene will no longer be necessary, as we know them because we will have spiritual and not physical bodies--sown physical, but reaped spiritual.

We will be recognizable and have none of our physical flaws in our appearance that make us unattractive to others or ourselves--we will appreciate beauty in others and return our identity as men or women but not be given in marriage or be involved in procreation.  The most important element of heaven will be our authority over angels and be rulers with Christ--we shall all reign, some of us just have more authority or responsibility due to temporal faithfulness.  The key is that we are really servants of the Lord in heaven and be glad we are subordinate to Him.  Our bodies are not just improved from this one, but transformed into a new fashion that defies gravity, has no weakness, such as gaining weight, or getting out of shape, and can pass through walls at will, yet eat to prove we really have bodies.

When we realize the wonders and excitement of heaven, then we want to go there and live in light of eternity!  Paul said that to die was gain, but to live was Christ (cf. Philippians 1:21)--live or die he was content!  You can only really live after you are ready to meet your Maker and have prepared for your final day--you don't want to go unprepared but ready.  "... Prepare to meet your God, O Israel," says Amos 4:12 (ESV).  Every day when we rise we should announce that we are ready to meet God and ask Jesus if this is the day we will finally see Him face-to-face and be satisfied with the beatific vision.   We shall all be changed when we see Him as He is and be fulfilled and completely sanctified or holy and glorified.

Preparing for that day does not mean making funeral arrangements or writing a will, but making your peace with God and being faithful in the calling He has given you.  We want to receive a full reward and not just enter by the skin of our teeth, as if by fire (cf. 1 Cor. 3:15).   It is sadly said, that man lives like he's not going to die, and dies as if he never lived--may this not be the case with us, but that we lived to bring glory to God. ("The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever," as the Westminster Divines proclaimed.   Soli Deo Gloria!