Doing A Great Work II

"LORD,  ... all that we have accomplished, you have done for us," (cf. Isaiah 26:12, NIV).

"... your fruitfulness comes from me," (cf. Hosea 14:8, NIV).

"But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for the finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus--the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God," (cf. Acts 20:24, NLT).

"But none of these things move me, neither do I count my life dear unto myself, so that I may finish my course with joy, and the ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus," (cf. Acts 20:24, KJV).

"I venture not to speak of nothing but what Christ has accomplished through me," (cf. Romans 15:18).  

 Nehemiah was not a prophet, nor a priest, nor a king, and he did no miracles, in fact, he was like any of us (he was only a cupbearer to the king), and did what we can do when the LORD blesses our work and we are called to do His will and we realize and fulfill our mission.  The book has no miracles, prophecies, nor great teaching, revelation, or wisdom, or poetry, but it shows God's quiet hand at work behind the scenes in the everyday work of the LORD.  Things we can do if we have a work ethic like his! 

But he was in a funk because he mourned for the city of David, Zion, the Jewish capital of Jerusalem, that it was in ruins. His depression became known to the king and he had the audacity to ask permission to take a leave of absence to repair his beloved city.  What do you know? His request was granted. The Jews were in exile but soon to return to the Promised Land and Job One was to rebuild the Wall. We see in this book of Nehemiah that he is the greatest motivator in the Bible, for he got results and the people worked for him with godly zeal. When we dedicate our work and effort to the LORD, we also get blessed in the fruit of our labors. 

We can see the hand of God upon him throughout the book even though it is not mentioned in particular. The one time that it does seem to give God the glory is when it says that the wall was rebuilt in only fifty-two days, a miracle in itself. Nehemiah was not a micromanager but he knew that when people believed they were doing God's work that he would get results.  He probably thought that if he didn't do it, that it wouldn't get done  He saw a need and fulfilled it; a key to success!  Thus the value and necessity of the work.  He saw that it was God who opened the doors for him to even get to first base and this was obvious: the LORD was with him from the get-go. He knew to abide in Christ so to speak or to walk with God as they said in the Old Testament. Though he was obedient to the heavenly vision, he knew he would get and did get opposition. He had enemies!  

When they tried to interrupt him while at work, he said, "I cannot come down [from the wall] for I am doing a great work."  He saw the LORD's work as a great and grand one and that it brought Him glory. The point is that he was obedient for faith and obedience are linked: Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, "Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes."  And he was like Habakkuk, who said, "The righteous shall live by faith [their faithfulness]."  (cf. Heb. 10:28; Romans 1:17).  We must see that faith and faithfulness are the same Hebrew word and they cannot be separated, only distinguished; they go hand in hand!   

This great motivator and leader of men knew how to inspire as well; to give the men a work ethic! "The people had a mind to work!"  That's what you call having the mindset for the LORD's work.  When the people faced opposition and enemies on the wall, even as they worked, he told them: "Fight for your families..."  People have to be able to put things into perspective and have a reason to fight. Remember the words of Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem Charge of the Light Brigade that goes:  "Ours is not to reason why is our to do and die." That kind of attitude seems glum and depressing but that is often the only motivation the world will give you. 

We must see that God's work is our privilege and we can take part in accomplishing His will to bring Him glory.  The Westminster Shorter Catechism says, "The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever."  We are to "trust in the LORD with all our heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding, in all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths."  (cf. Prov. 3:5-6).  We must understand that all that we accomplish is by God's working in us and He did it through us as His instruments of glory or honor; as Paul said, in Romans 15:18, "I venture not to speak of nothing but what the Lord has accomplished through me." 

In sum, nothing can give you the doldrums faster and more seriously than knowing the will of God and not being able to do it, and nothing can bounce you out of it faster than getting to work doing His will and making yourself useful in the kingdom work and God's will or completing the calling and mission God gave you; therefore, if your calling is to climb rocks, hope for rocks and even that you will die doing God's will and what you enjoy, just like they asked Saint Francis what he would do if only he had one hour to live while he was doing his gardening at the convent, and he said that he would finish his gardening!  Soli Deo Gloria! 

Is My Jesus The One You Know?

Right off the bat, John says He is the Creator and that He is the Word that became flesh; the whole point of our faith.  Some imagine the Trinity as Jesus the nice one, the Father the stern one, and the Holy Spirit the mysterious one!  But Jesus is Mr. Nice Guy!  What about when He chased the moneychangers out of the temple?   He knows how to be stern too and to rebuke with all authority.  There is essentially no difference in temperament in the triune God.  They all can be mysterious, nice at times, and stern.  We must not put Jesus in a box and limit His personality to what we can imagine.

His incarnation is a mystery how He God can become man, and the hypostatic union [of His deity and humanity] is another profundity.  We must refrain from confusing, dividing, mixing, or separating these natures, as He is two natures in one divine Personhood. Each nature retains its divine attributes.  Jesus is not only truly and fully God, but truly and fully man or He could not be our Mediator and Savior. Only God could die for the sins of the world and be perfect.  He has three offices for us:  Prophet to show us our sins and the truth as Savior from the ignorance of sin; as  Priest to save us from the penalty of our sins and be our sacrifice, and King to be our sovereign and ruler to save us from the power of sin and give us victory.   

But Jesus was not a man with divine powers like a Popeye figure, or even a God in human disguise as Superman, nor a demigod (half God, half man) like Hercules.  Nor is He a Cosmic Killjoy or Mean Judge.  Everything that makes us human is in Him and everything that makes the Father God is also in Him.   We cannot put Jesus in a box and limit Him for He is infinite and beyond definition or understanding.  We cannot know Him exhaustively, but we can know Him truly.  That's the whole idea of salvation: knowing Jesus personally.

His favorite title for Himself was "Son of Man" because He related to the human race and wanted us to know He is a man and not a ghost or humanized god or deified human!  This title was uniquely Messianic and the fulfillment of Dan. 7:13 and what condemned Him at His trial when He claimed it.  He was insulted and persecuted for calling Himself the Son of God.  But He was this because He had no human father and was God's Son equal in deity, attributes, holiness, powers, and eternity.  He always was the Son of God and used this title (in fulfillment of Psalm 2:7), the eternal Son, which means He is God because only God is eternal.  He claimed to be "one with the Father," and that the "Father is in Him and He is in the Father,"  and in effect made Himself [out to be] God, as the Pharisees saw it.

In so many words, He did claim to be the great I AM (cf. John 8:28, 58).  He didn't always beat around the bush but would ask people to believe in Him for His very work's sake  He didn't just make claims but assumed the authority of  God by judging, doing miracles, and forgiving sins.  Usually, you don't believe someone who claims to be born of a virgin but if one had the character, witnesses, works, and credentials of Christ it would carry some weight in a court of law as admissible evidence.  

He was an itinerant teacher who never traveled more than about one hundred miles from his home base in Capernaum. Known to some simply as the Carpenter, He was what one would respect in a man as one who got down and dirty with men when calling them to follow Him.  To call Him a good teacher is an insult, but The Teacher. He is not the greatest anything as one would say Jesus the Great, for this is unworthy of Him and doesn't do His greatness justice.  He introduced a new preaching style using object lessons and parables as well as teaching sermons and doing miracles to illustrate the point.  He taught mainly just the Twelve (disciples) but did it one-on-one and did such a good job that it was all the size He needed to change the world with His teachings. 

His ethic raised the bar and is considered one that cannot be lived, but Jesus lived what He preached and preached what He practiced. His disciples referred to Him as Lord or Rabbi and this was a sign of reverence. His disciple Peter confessed Him as the Christ, the Son of the Living God.  He commanded respect and confounded all those who challenged His authority, for He didn't teach as the Pharisees or religious leaders, and not by authority, but with authority, not as any man ever spoke!  Finally, when He answered all their questions, they dared not to ask Him anymore.  

The Father is the eternal Father meaning there never was a point in time when He wasn't the Father; He didn't "become" the Father. Jesus was called the Son of David also, which was Messianic and didn't deny the title.  He was the rightful sovereign of the throne of David and the rightful King of the Jews.  He fulfilled the Law of Moses perfectly without flaw or sin and was born with the one purpose in mind: to die for us. He challenged His critics to accuses Him of sin. Usually, when you get to know someone you see flaws, but not so with Jesus: the idea that familiarity breeds contempt didn't hold water as Peter said, "Depart from me O Lord, for I am a sinful man."   The only charge that stuck and that He was crucified for in the end, was one of insurrection, that He claimed to be a King.  

Jesus was par excellence a man on a mission!  He came to die.  He could've taken the throne of David but His prioritized purpose was to die for our sins as the Lamb of God and Savior.  He resisted efforts to establish His kingdom at the time and would not even die before His time.  He prophesied His crucifixion and knew what He had gotten Himself into and what He signed up for.  He even prayed to be delivered from the Passion, but relinquished to God's will and suffered in our stead. He would first be our Savior and then our priest, then our King.  Right now, I believe in and understand Jesus as my Advocate and Intercessor when I go astray and the Good Shepherd who keeps me on the right track and in God's will. 

His mission was Job One:

Jesus came to save sinners and set them free from themselves, God's wrath, their enslavement to Satan, and sin. His message only has something to say to those who are lost, sick, and unrighteous and see their need for a Physician to heal them. Sin is a virus that must be healed and we cannot approach God while affected--He must cleanse us or He will have no part of us. He saves us despite ourselves and our own efforts, for there is no pre-salvation work we can achieve or preparation we can make to qualify for grace--that's why it's grace and not merit-based. In fact, the only qualification for salvation is to realize our need and bankruptcy in God's tribune. Jesus is on a rescue mission and meets us in our deepest need--the effects of sin.

Sin is both alienating and enslaving, it estranges and separates us from others and God. Jesus is the Great Reconciler and has done something about the sin question on the cross by shedding blood. Yes, He owns us because He purchased us with His very own blood was shed voluntarily on our behalf. Our greatest need was to be forgiven and made righteous, both accomplished at the cross. We are forgiven for our sins (what we've done or called being justified) and delivered from what we are (sanctification or from our sin nature). The cross is a great rescue operation! "If our greatest problem had been ignorance God would've sent an educator, or if it had been technology, He would've sent a scientist, but our greatest need was the restoration of our relationship with Him" (source unknown).

That's what salvation is: the healing of our relationship with God and getting back into fellowship with Him, for sin precludes and prevents that. We were in no position to save ourselves or salvage our souls, in fact, we needed divine intervention to meet our needs and do for us what we couldn't do for ourselves. Jesus raised the bar on love and sacrifice, giving His all for us and pouring out His compassion on the cross when He was suffering the most--the ultimate sacrifice.

He thought of us to the very end and would rather die than live without us! His love is unconditional and sacrificial and costs something! We can give without loving, but we cannot love without giving! In the final analysis, Jesus knew what His mission was--to do the Father's will and be subordinate to it in all things (that was His mission statement or motto of life--to do God's will!), which would bring about the salvation of His sheep, by laying down His life, for whom He shed His blood and poured out His very life. 

He rose from the dead to give us hope of a resurrection and to prove the reconciliation and redemption for our sins to the Father. His resurrection was the final sign He would give of His deity and divine mission as our Savior.  His kingdom was not to be of this world, but as the Emperor of Love, He would reign in the hearts of men and conquer kingdoms and turn the world upside-down and topsy-turvy.  His influence changed the course of history as the biggest revolutionary of all time and the central figure of Western Civilization or what is called Christendom.  The pagan and barbarian world of Rome was to become Christianized or converted by the year AD 313 with the Edict of Milan by Emperor Constantine, who became a Christian.    Soli Deo Gloria! 

Results In Prayer...

"And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it," (cf. John 14:13-14). 

"If you believe you will receive whatever you ask in prayer," (cf. Matt. 21:22). 

"And this is the confidence that we have, that if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us," (cf. 1 John 5:14). 

Note: God doesn't give us carte blanche or a blank check that we get literally anything according to our whims and wish list, but it must be in His name or according to His will that He may be glorified.  You could rightly say that we are praying for what God is already predisposed to do: His will. Thus prayer changes us, it doesn't change God! But there's nothing wrong with trying to get results and answered prayer!  We ought to aim for efficacious prayer and a continued and fulfilling prayer life. 

Christians ought not to just seek the practical or pragmatic, but prayer works and for obvious reasons, there's a God who hears them.  Some would say you can never know the truth of something only its consequences and the test of an idea is whether it works, not its truth.  But this is anti-Christian.  Prayer is not true because it works; it works because it's true--viva la difference.   Our goal should not be just to get results or our will done on earth but God's will done from heaven.  The most perfect prayer we can pray is one of relinquishment: Thy will be done.   The sake of prayer is prayer (per se), not to get what we want from God, but to seek fellowship and dialogue with God.  Sometimes it may seem our prayers are not getting through and are falling on deaf ears. Prayer is a matter of fellowship and sometimes restoration is in order. 

"If I regard iniquity in my heart, the LORD will not hear me," (cf. Psalm 66:18).   Sin always separates us from the holy God.  We must first confess our known and convicted sins before we even attempt to boldly come before the throne of grace.  Many things can hinder our prayers and we may need to be honest with God about it first.   We must be willing to wait for our renewal and reconciliation as we seek God's face in prayer and confession. 

We should never give up on our prayers and always persists for God is listening: He may be answering unawares, like in other ways. He may have something better for us.  Our prayers may lack resolve, purpose, faith, sincerity, or even humility We must always prepare our hearts first before we pray!  In God's economy, the way up is down, emptying comes before filing and confession before restoration.  We must not assume we are in a state of fellowship but humbly acknowledge our weakness and lack of worthiness before the throne. 

In the Bible, we are exhorted to boldly come before His throne and yet approach Him and enter His gates with thanksgiving and praise.  That gives us the right mindset as we have the right priorities. When we realize that prayer is the serious business of heaven and we are entering into His labors and the work of God, we become all the more fucuses and determined in our prayers with purpose. 

Also, we must realize that in prayer it is God's Spirit working His will in us and we can do nothing apart from His grace and power working in us. "I will not venture to speak of nothing but of what Christ has accomplished through me," (cf. Romans 15:18).  When we do get success, just like material success, we must give God all the glory and credit and not our prayer or persistence.  We have entered into His labors as a privilege of being used by God as a vessel of honor.    Soli Deo Gloria!

Are You God's Blank Slate?

"So he will do to me whatever he has planned. He controls my destiny" (Job 23:14, NLT).
"My times [future] are in your hands..." (Psalm 31:15, NIV).
"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you" (Psalm 32:8, NIV)

"So he will do to me whatever he has planned. He controls my destiny" (Job 23:14, NLT).
"My times [future] are in your hands..." (Psalm 31:15, NIV).
"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you" (Psalm 32:8, NIV).

"Verily, I say unto you, whoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein," (cf. Mark 10:1),.

John Locke said that all children are born with a blank slate, a tabula rasa, that is amenable or conformable to become virtually anything the child desires or is taught to be.  That is to say with virtually unlimited potential!  CAVEAT:  We are all potential depraved criminals too! It's not by accident that we aren't for Paul said, "I am what I am by the grace of God," (cf. 1 Cor. 15:10) and George Whitefield said, "There but for the grace of God go I."  (He said this upon seeing a condemned man go to the gallows!)   It's merely a matter of grace that we are who we are.  

God enables us to be good and all our good works are a matter of God using us.  All our own righteousness is as filthy rags. In fact, our righteousness is God's gift to us, not our gift to Him (cf. Isaiah 45:24; Hosea 14:8; Romans 15:18).  Have you discovered your spiritual potential in Christ?  You must realize your gifting first but you start that by serving God wherever He calls you and willingness to do His will as a servant. If we have faith, God will fulfill His purpose for us; be sure to complete the calling or ministry you have received from the Lord (cf. 2 Tim. 4:5).  "But I count my life of no value to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of God's grace," (cf. Acts 20:24). 

Salvation is a matter of realizing we can do nothing of ourselves; it's all a matter of grace from beginning to end.  We can do no pre-salvation work to prepare ourselves but are at the mercy of God: He controls our destiny.  Jesus made it clear we can do nothing in our own right:  "Apart from Me you can do nothing..." (cf. John 15:5).  That means we cannot believe nor repent of our sins on our own merit but depend upon the grace of God to do a work of grace in our hearts. That is, we sue God for spiritual bankruptcy in a sense, realizing our utter helplessness!  

We must cease trying to save ourselves.  This is akin to discovering our own inner chile whereby we realize that we are dependent and need God; salvation is of the LORD (cf Jonah 2:9).  That means it is not of us alone as if we can work our way to please God, nor it is a joint venture or cooperative effort between us and God, but only by virtue of grace alone.  Both faith and repentance are gifts.  We do not conjure them up nor catch them by osmosis around other believers.  

Salvation is not about doing God a favor or deserving it, if so, then salvation would be a matter of justice, not grace. God is under no obligation to save anyone and would still be holy if all were condemned.  Grace is undeserved, unearned, and unrepayable.  We must realize that we are at God's mercy: "God be merciful to me a sinner,' (cf. Luke 18:13). The closer we get to God and salvation, the more we realize our sinfulness as Paul called himself the "chief of sinners," and Peter said, 'Depart from me O Lord, for I am a sinful man" 

The whole point of salvation is to realize we aren't qualified or good enough to be saved, but bad enough to need it.  But the good news is that no one is too bad to be saved!  That is why we must become as a child to enter the kingdom of God; displaying the positive elements of a child-like dependence, faith, humility, and wonder or awe. Just like children are in a state of dependency and need, we must realize this as our spiritual condition.  

As long as we hold a high estimation of ourselves we cannot be saved; we must humble ourselves and come clean from all our sins.  Children are willing to do what they're told as following orders and we are to be willing to do all of God's will for our lives, not leaning on our own understanding (cf Prov 3:5-6).  

Remember how children have dreams of success and becoming someone great like an astronaut or a doctor or even president!  We must expect great things from God and attempt great things for God in the words of William Carey, father of modern missions. But notice that one day children grow up!  We are to put away that which is childish when we become mature in the faith: When I became a man, I put away childish things, as Paul says in his love chapter (1 Cor. 13). Remember that it is to children that the kingdom of God belongs and that we can become child-like ourselves as believers embracing all the good things of their personalities. 

In sum, the genuine believer seeks and desires God's will and yoke (submission to whatever His plan for our lives is); we don't have to go by rules or regulations but everything in compliance with the rule and law of love:  "All that counts is faith expressing itself through love, (cf Gal. 5:6).   We may not be called to do something but God expects us to be willing, even to the laying down of our lives. The example of becoming a man after God's own heart is King David who did "all God's will," (cf. Acts 13:36).   Soli Deo Gloria! 

How Shall We Then Live?...

"And be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God" (Romans 12:2, KJV).
"And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle?" (1 Cor. 14:8, ESV).
"Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people [Israel] whom he has chosen as his heritage!" (Psalm 33:12, ESV).
"There is no accountability since God does not exist" (Psalm 10:4, HCSB).
"Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people" (Prov. 14:34, NIV).
"To this, you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps" (1 Peter 2:21, NIV).


Note:  Christianity is composed of two things: orthodoxy or believing right, and orthopraxy or doing right. Orthodoxy has to do with ethics or right conduct, answering the question, "how shall we then live?"


My title was also the title of a book by Dr. Francis A. Schaeffer, of L'Abri Fellowship in Switzerland. It is a big issue of how believers should apply their faith and fulfill their marching orders. We are not meant to either flaunt it or privatize it, though our faith offends no one if we do keep it to ourselves. However, it's not a matter of personal preference to propagate our faith, or "shove it down other people's throats" as some call it--it's the Great Commission, mandated by our Lord Himself.

We are to live out our faith, and only those believers who desire to live it out and share their faith are obedient--the only way to keep it is to give it away! We are, in essence, to live forthright, honest, exemplary lives as proof of our profession, which is the reality of our faith. The faith we have is the faith we show! We must never lose focus of our first order of business (Job One), that we are here to make a contribution and fulfill God's will, and must heed the spiritual wake-up calls to read the signs of the times.

As American citizens, we have the awesome task of being witnesses in the midst of people who've already heard (territory Paul would've balked at entering, to sow where someone else had been). People already have preconceived notions of our faith and are prejudiced--we must be all the more ready to be "not ashamed" "in debt" and "ready" as Paul proclaimed in Romans 1. The door is indeed often closed and we must pray for the open door or opportunity to live out our faith as examples. Unfortunately, there's often just enough darkness not to see, and enough light to see, but only to the willing and obedient. That's the rub: man is by nature stubborn and in defiance of God's authority, especially in the political realm, which seems to be Satan's turf, and so it takes moral courage and grit.

The biggest error is to think we can usher in the kingdom and that America is somehow God's chosen nation. It's true that Governor William Bradford of Plymouth set out to "advance the kingdom of Christ," (cf. Jer. 29:7) but our nation has no right to usurp Israel's place in God's scheme of things and the overall plan for the ages. This is the church age and the kingdom of Christ is not of this world, and we are here primarily to save souls, not the nation.

But if Christians do get their so-called act together and repent, pray, and stand up for the truth, God will bless our nation and rebuke the devil's intervention, and may perhaps relent of His divine wrath, punishment, and even curse--yes, God can and does curse nations, even Israel (cf. Deut. 28). We can not call something crooked if we don't have an idea of what straight is. And we should never turn a deaf ear to the evil in the land and be too timid or inhibited to speak out about crimes against humanity or whatever form evil manifests.

But by and large, we can expect the blessing of God if we follow godly paths of righteousness in our nation; for the Word says, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." God is no respecter of persons and shows no partiality and will bless us for the sake of His people. But we must also note that God has promised to bless those nations who bless Israel as God's chosen people, promising Abraham that He'll bless those who bless him. We cannot maintain an anti-Semitic attitude or policy and expect God's approbation--this doesn't mean whether they are right or wrong politically or morally!

Believers are called to rise to the occasion and stand up and be counted for the Lord, and that means taking stands for the truth and being loyal to God and even courageous to the point of civil disobedience and public stands when the state's policies are immoral, unethical, or unscriptural. We must maintain the highest standards of conduct and hold our government accountable and be equal to the challenge! Who knows, as it is written in Esther 4:14, maybe we were born for such a time as this?

We must be careful not to idolize our party (i.e., "my party, right or wrong!"), identity, candidate, or policies to the point of demanding our highest allegiance and unwavering devotion. God is not a member of a party since He cannot be limited or put in a box or labeled, and it is often the case that Christians deify their party or candidate at the expense of losing all sense of decency, morality, and even ethics. Remember, only God deserves our homage and ultimate loyalty; we only pledge allegiance to a nation "under God."

We must learn to draw the line and know where the limits are. Sometimes the law is in direct violation of divine principle, but we will never realize this if we are blinded by following party, person, or policy above God. Augustine of Hippo said something very noteworthy for our time: "An unjust law is no law at all." "Woe to those who decree unjust laws," (cf. Isaiah 10:1).    Remember the words of Scottish Presbyterian minister and author Samuel Rutherford, in his book, Lex Rex, (i.e., the law is the king), that delineated limits to the power of the king or any government as being subject to the rule of law--and this goes back to biblical precedent, not just democratic--this book upset the political landscape and applecart. In a similar vein, Will Durant, historian, said, "No society has been able to maintain morality without the aid of its religion."Also, Edmund Burke noted: "'All that is necessary for the triumph of evil, is that good men do nothing."

Christians always reserve the right to peaceful protest and even defiance of evil law, and this is fully realized in the slogan of the Reformation: I dissent, I disagree, I protest, attributed to Martin Luther. In a crisis of evil, many ask, "Where's God?" but we should be asking, "Where's the church?" We must never forget that we have dual citizenship, our home is in heaven and we are only passing through with our spiritual green cards on a mission. God doesn't burden just one individual to change the world for Christ but will transform it through the corporate activity of the body of Christ and the church at large. One task of the church is to equip and help believers find their calling and gifting so this can be implemented. It's a shame when unbelievers lead the way and do what we should be doing by nature (cf. Romans 2:14-15).

NB: God did something about evil--He made you! Our mission to counter social injustice has not been rescinded. Note the words of a famous Christian philosopher, dramatist, theologian, and journalist--known as the "prince of paradox": "What's wrong with the world? I am. Yours truly, G. K. Chesterton." The words of John Donne come to mind: "Don't ask for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee." We must turn our creeds into deeds, thus proving our testimony by actions, which can speak louder than words--true faith always expresses itself!

We must expose, openly declare, and wave our Christian colors and not permit evil to win by default. We must also learn not to just bemoan evil, but to challenge ourselves to see the possibility of good beyond the gray clouds. Evil always presents an opportunity for good, because that's why it exists as the counter and contrast of good, which we can then highlight and see clearly in juxtaposition.

Thus, Christians have a Second Great Commission, to heal and preserve society, and we must pay our dues, living up to our faith and being worthy of the name of Christ, touching the world for our Savior, all in order that no one will have anything bad to say about us, and we can win them over by our witness.

 
Even though Francis Schaeffer wrote a book by this title too, showing its importance, the question we all must answer: "How shall we live in light of eternity?" Jesus didn't tell us to close shop and stop working to wait till He comes but Matthew Henry said that we should live each day as if it's our last! Jesus told us to occupy till [He] comes and be ready! But we are to be ready and watch for Christ's coming and live our life to have maximum impact on eternity. We aren't seeking to be remembered but to be obedient.


We see eternal results in everything; all we do strikes a chord that will vibrate for eternity. Everything will either be rewarded or not, and in time we can be disciplined for what we do if not in God's will. Paul said that to him "to die is gain" not as a death wish but he meant that he saw eternity in a better light than imagined ("what no human mind has conceived"). He only said this because he had a clear concept of heaven with no misconceptions or delusions to live the good life.

Living in light of eternity inspires us to do good deeds and to have a good testimony to the world at large so they get saved as a result. It helps us in our trials, seeing that they are only temporal and serve an eternal purpose. In short, we become purpose-driven. We prove and validate our faith by our deeds--the faith we have is the faith we show and authenticate. The more we see Jesus coming soon, the more eager we will be to show our faith also because we will see the urgency of the Great Commission relative to our personal lives. 

Thus, we will want to pass it on and become contagious Christians. We will be eager to make others ready and to stop living for the moment and the here and now. What we look forward to affects our worldview and how we interpret life in general. When the "Desire of all nations" comes at His Parousia, we will be transformed to become like Him, but we can have a taste of the good things to come now: "Taste and see that the LORD is good." But now we can see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living (cf. Psalm 27:13, KJV).

We are simply pilgrims, aliens, foreigners, and even strangers in this life and to the world, and passing through, not meant to make ourselves at home here--we don't belong here! But God has a place for us in His plan. God has an eternal purpose for our lives that He will fulfill and not give up on us. We are on a spiritual journey too, growing in our relationship with Christ--Reality 101. We should not cling to our mundane lives but see that our spiritual lives take precedence; however, we do not live with our heads in the clouds nor on cloud nine. What matters is how our relationship with Christ is growing. It is wrong to think that we should live as if we go around once and should grab all the gusto we can. We must have an eternal bucket list that involves our beatific vision of God in glory.

Having a true focus on Christ, keeping our eyes on Jesus orients our life and sets the priorities to have spiritual value. However, we ought not to be so heavenly-minded we are no earthly good. We must not be known as mere secluded saints but actively involved in the real world. We can enjoy this life, but without sin, and thank God for the blessings that it gives to all in common grace. We can enjoy life to the max as Jesus promised: "I am come that they may have life, and have it to the full [more abundant life]" (John 10:10, NIV). On the other hand, we ought not to "love the world nor the things of the world" because the more we do, the less room we'll have in our hearts to satisfy our spiritual appetites to enjoy all the good things He gives us richly as a blessing for stewardship (cf 1 Tim. 6:17).

The good life has universally been defined as an ethical one: our duty to God and mankind. We do this by loving God with all our hearts and our neighbor as ourselves as exemplified in the parable of the Good Samaritan. "Mankind, He has told you what is good and what it is the LORD requires of you: to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8, HCSB). This is achieved by a true sense of "oughtness." Knowing and believing right doctrine or having one's thinking straightened out is orthodoxy while living right and practicing what one believes and applying it is orthopraxy--both are necessary for the good life (which is not achieving the American dream!).

In the final analysis, when our lives are given their final audit and we go one-on-one with our Maker to face God in the Bema or Judgment Seat, we must ask ourselves whether we are faithful stewards to the blessings God has given us and whether we used them to have an impact. We all will pass on some legacy and people will tend to judge our lives, but what matters most is what Christ sees in us. He isn't going to ask us about our achievements but our obedience and we will realize that success doesn't matter to God because it belongs to Him anyway (cf. Deut. 8:18), but what matters is our call to faithfulness. Praise the Lord, life is good! Soli Deo Gloria!

Becoming Motivated To Serve Christ

 "Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?" (cf. Romans 11:35). 

"Who has given to me anything that I need to pay back? Everything under heaven is mine," (cf. Job 41 11, NLT). 

"He gave himself for us in order to rescue us from every kind of lawless behavior, and cleanse a special people for himself who are eager to do good actions [zealous of good works]," (cf. Titus 2:14, CEB). 

Many are motivated to serve the Lord, but not according to knowledge (cf. Prov 19:2; Romans 10:2). There is the false motivation for selfish motives and misdirected and ignorant zeal. For example many have one of three psychological complexes that feed their ego:  guilt complexes that drive a need to make it up to God for some wrong done without repentance; martyr's complexes that makes one feel that the more he suffers for God, the better saint he is; and finally the messiah complex that makes one feel he's the answer and the church or God's kingdom cannot do without him.   

All religious systems are a works proposition that one merits or earns their way to heaven or eternal bliss, paradise, or nirvana; they do work out of obligation (they have to do them!).  But in Christ, it's different. we don't have to, but want to; it's not an "in order to," but a "therefore."  We are motivated by our love for Christ not to earn merit before God. We feel we can never repay God for His grace and deserve it in the first place; "For by the grace of God I am what I am," (cf. 1 Cor. 15:10).  

The only genuine motivation is out of heartfelt love for Christ, not that we can render anything to the Lord to make up for His blessing--that would be an insult to His grace for we can not do God any favors. The true motives come from a right attitude and it all starts with the right knowledge or doctrine, leading to right thinking or attitude, to the right action or deeds, which in turn lead to a right feeling about God and yourself--peace with God. 

We are to be in awe of God and that is the heart of worship which should never be dried out and spoiled by the world-system. This awe is inspiring us onto good works and love in action; after all, He owns us and love is the response and result of knowing God. We must acknowledge we cannot ever make it up to God: the definition of grace is that we cannot repay it, make it up, earn or deserve it, and cannot improve on it. We accept grace, period as eternal debtors of God. This grace is a life-changing event on us that should radicalize our behavior and transform or renew our thinking and attitudes. We are not called to become martyrs but to be living sacrifices--to live for Christ putting Him first--this motive of love in the heart is of the purest sort.  We can do more for Christ alive than dead; remember, Christ is the sacrifice, not us.  There are some who would die for a Christ they won't live for, likewise a church they won't attend. 

We are to live solely for God with His glory in mind, not to make ourselves a reputation or to a name for ourselves. We realize that there is room for improvement no matter how much we've progressed: We are works in progress and ask others to be patient with us because God isn't finished with us yet, and God promises to finish all He begins--the good work of sanctification (cf. Phil. 1:6). In other words, we are "bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God," (cf. Col. 1:10).  We are forever indebted to God and all God asks of us is us, to give of ourselves in unselfish living and sacrifice.  In sum, those who are highly motivated do so because of a knowledge of God's glory and are in a sense of awe or worship: "those who know their God shall be strong and do exploits."  (cf. Dan. 11:32).   Soli Deo Gloria!  

Time Is God's Creation And Tool ...

 

(I’m catholic) How can god have an infinite past? If the past was infinite wouldn’t existence cease to exist? Shouldn’t there be a beginning point?

Karl Broberg, Blogger/Bible teacher (10+ yrs), researcher, life coach

Answered 10h ago

“Every house is built by someone; God is the builder of everything” (cf. Heb. 3:4).

There is only a beginning point to all things that exist in time itself—the time-space continuum. NB: if everything has a beginning, nothing would exist—something must be eternal; namely, God by definition. But time had a beginning according to science and even the Bible (cf. 2 Tim. 1:9; Titus 1:2). Read A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking.

Time is the corollary of space and matter and doesn’t exist independently of them. No existence of matter means no time. Creation was the beginning of matter and space and therefore time. Some call this the big bang, which is highly regarded by cosmologists, astrologers, and astrophysicists today.

Just because we have a beginning point at creation, we must not jump to the conclusion everything had a beginning (out of nothing, nothing comes). Then there would be a time when nothing existed. By definition, God has no beginning and according to the Bible, He has no beginning and no end the Alpha and the Omega.

His name is I AM meaning He is complete in Himself and just is in Himself and needs no one or nothing else to exist (cf. Acts 17:25).   Theologians call this the self-existence or aseity of God.  He is the eternal I AM who changes not (with time or anything else according to Malachi 3:6). If He had a beginning, He could not be God, but be the slave to time as we are. as an effect or needing something.

If time were infinite with no beginning, we would not be able to arrive at “today”; you cannot cross an infinite amount of time in a definite period. But God is eternal with no cause and not defined by time, space, or matter. God is not defined, limited, nor confined to time. The only way you can be eternal is to have no cause and not be the effect of anything.

The universe had a cause because it’s an event: all events have causes. Everything that begins to exist, an event, namely here the universe, has a cause. But God is the “uncaused cause” or First Cause (how Aristotle described God).   Uncaused causes can exist in logic but not uncaused effects or events. All causes have effects but nothing can be its own cause or cause nor create itself.

Before creation or the big bang, only God existed because He is outside the time-space continuum. The Bible clearly begins: “In the beginning God ….” That is the beginning point, not a way to begin a narrative but necessary for the narrative; i.e.,  not “In the beginning matter/energy.” There’s no other rational way to begin reality. The first verse of the Bible tells of the beginning point: Creation. Genesis means “beginning.”

Does Jesus Need Credentials?...

 Jesus was well-known in Judea but especially in Capernaum and Nazareth where the ministry got off to a start and onto its feet as the first HQ.  His reputation preceded Him! He needed no introduction or publicity agent!   Fame was something that traveled fast in those days as the common folk spread the word, especially that there was a prophet in the nation, maybe even the Prophet that is to come.  Even today, people don't regard Him as Jesus the Great but simply Jesus.  He has no equal, neither predecessor nor successor.

John was His forerunner and character reference so to speak and he was the most highly regarded man in the land at the time, so much that the Pharisees dare not interfere with him, for the people loved him and respected his preaching the baptism of repentance. But Jesus needed no letter of recommendation or to refer to credentials as a way to impress Himself on others. His miracles spoke for themselves. 

What kind of credentials were these then? They consisted of perfect morality and keeping to a faultless degree every point of the Law of Moses, the Torah. No one could genuinely find fault in Him and He asked the Jewish leaders to accuse Him of sin with conviction and they failed; the only charge that could tick before the Sanhedrin was that He was an insurrection threat to Rome. Jesus was so holy that it made everyone who knew Him realized their own faults, shortcomings, and sins; Peter said, "Depart from me O Lord, for I am a sinful man!"  Now, normally familiarity breeds contempt but not in His case!  He could not have been anything but perfect to fulfill the Law and only one sin would have disqualified Him from being our Savior 

Another credential was His works, so ass to say that we should believe on account of the sake of the works alone, that they were of the Father.  He did many signs, wonders, and miracles that elicited faith in some and skepticism and cynicism in others; He had enemies because of the truths He spoke. He never footnoted His sayings but spoke directly as God Himself.  He spoke nothing but the truth but didn't say that He knew the truth or would say it or found it, but that He is the truth (cf. John 14:6); He didn't speak by authority, but with authority "as one who had authority" (cf. Mark 1:22; Matt. 7:29)! His word was binding, authoritative, and final.  He had and was the last word! 

Now, His miracles were not helter-skelter or for no reason scattered in the narrative, but God had a purpose for each of them and without them, the story wouldn't be the same and Christ would be but a footnote in history  If we remove the miracles from Christ then He is nothing and the faith is disemboweled and neutered. Other faiths remain intact even without the miracles--they are unnecessary for the religion. Jesus never did anything for selfish or self-serving reasons, but as acts of compassion and often to be object lessons to His sermons or sayings--no showy or biggie miracles!  

Now, Jesus had many character witnesses, and even if we look at His enemies (the witness of an enemy has a lot of weight in a court of law due to no personal gain by it), we learn quite a deal because they have no agenda or motive to lie about Him; they would unwittingly tell the truth. For instance, Judas said he had betrayed innocent blood, the soldier at the crucifixion called Him an innocent man or even the Son of God, Pontius Pilate said he found no fault in Him, even King Herod was unwilling to convict Him. When at the trial, they found no legitimate witnesses to tell the truth but they contradicted each other--they had to resort to getting a confession and self-condemnation which was illegal.  

But the biggest credential of Christ was His resurrection (cf. Romans 1:4; Acts 17:31), the final sign to a wicked generation.  He prophesied this and rose on the third day to prove His vindication for us and to give us hope of a resurrection, which doctrine had been vague to the Jews. The cornerstone of our faith is the historical truth of the resurrection and this is arguably the most attested fact in antiquity.  Either it's the most astounding fact in history or the biggest, cruelest hoax ever perpetrated according to Josh  MacDowell. If we remove this miracle then our faith is futile and we have no reason to trust Christ and we are indeed the most miserable of all men and most to be pitied (cf. 1 Cor. 15:14). 

But all this is only consistent with who Jesus claimed to be!  Most people mocked at having virgin births like Alexander the Great and Buddha, but if you lived the life of Jesus, you'd take it more seriously.  He claimed to be the Son of God, the Judge of mankind, the Lord of the Sabbath, to be without sin, and many more direct or indirect claims of deity.  Even though He mostly spoke in figures so speech, He didn't always beat around the bush though. His claims were consistent with His character.  Claims in themselves are not proof but in this case, they are consistent. Some cults teach that Jesus never claimed to be God, but Scripture makes it clear that He knew His mission and kept a low profile for that reason when they tried to kill him.

He made the most outstanding and bold claims and man since, or before ever did--even though the Caesars claimed deity, they didn't go this far! But He didn't go around bluntly announcing He was God, for His time had not come and he was looking for faith, not some who would believe had they had enough "evidence." It was obvious to the Pharisees just who Christ claimed to be and they plotted to kill Him for this reason. Jesus had to be both God to fulfill the Law and bear our sins, and man to relate to us as our Mediator. He must be the Go-between, the Daysman.   Soli Deo Gloria! 

The Bible's Limits

 The Bible covers over 10,000 events from some 1118 chapters from some 40 authors and cannot describe or depict all that happened. John said that if all the events of Christ’s life were written down, the world could not contain the books that would be written. But the Bible in Deut. 29:29 says that God has secrets and Scripture is not meant to tell us everything, only what we need to know or what God wants us to know. The rest is none of our business!

The Qualification For Heaven

"Indeed it is the straightedge of the Law that shows us how crooked we really are," (cf. Romans 3:20, Phillips).  The law measures us, it doesn't save us!  

 The chief qualification, it is said, to enter heaven, is to admit or realize you are not qualified; to see how you fall short and are not self-righteous in your own eyes, justifying yourself or minimizing your sin.  We all tend to justify ourselves.    For we cannot know how sinful we are till we try to stop sinning, and we cannot stop sinning!  Then we realize we are slaves to sin! You don't know your enslavement to sin till you try to give it up, and you have to give it up to realize your slavery.  It's like the smoker that thinks he can overcome and kick the habit till he tries to do and realizes he cannot of his own willpower. 

Salvation must be solely the gift of God, and not of our own works or merit thinking we deserve it because of what we've done in our own right.  We are never good enough to be saved, but bad enough to need salvation.  Gifting means grace and that's part of the formula of the Reformers: by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, by the authority of Scripture alone, and to God alone be the glory: the Five Only's (sola gratia, sola fide, soli Christo, sola Scriptura, soli Gloria Deo).  

We must not add merit to grace, works to faith or tradition, or church authority to the rule of our faith--the Bible alone. And we must not pat ourselves on the back in congrats but give God sole glory.  The summation of Reformed theology can be summed up in Jonah 2:9 saying, "Salvation is of the LORD."  That means not of us and the Lord, nor of us alone, but of God alone!  We didn't cooperate even just like at our first birth; therefore, it's called monergistic (one-sided), not synergistic (cooperative). 

In salvation, we must confess and recognize our sin (nature) as well as our sins. This is hardly mentioned in churches today because it's such a killjoy word! We must be saved from what we are (in a state of sin and rebellion or depravity) and justified and forgiven for our sins (our transgressions). As believers, we must realize we are still sinners, though we are justified (cf. Gal. 2:17). We can never achieve entire sanctification or perfectionism (cf. Prov. 20:9) as some denominations teach but we can progress in our power over sin and not let any certain sin dominate us (cf. Psalm 119:133; 19:13; 18:23; Romans 6:14; 1 Cor.6:12)  We are not to be controlled by any sin and to have power and victory over them and not let them have dominion over us.  This can be a pet sin (cf. Heb. 12:1) or one that easily besets us and our secret sins. or we may be known by as the Bible says that for sure our sins "will find [us] out." (cf. Numbers 32:23).  

In repentance, and we must realize that repentance and faith are linked (cf. Acts 20:21) and go hand in hand can be seen as the flipside of each other. There can be no genuine repentance without saving faith! Sometimes we may wonder if our faith is strong enough and not realize our repentance is not thorough enough. God doesn't make us righteous, not even in the eyes of the world, but reckons or considers us righteous--we are declared righteous. Our righteousness is completed in heaven only. Christians just recognize, acknowledge, and know their sins and are not blind to them like the infidel and we confess them and don't attempt to justify ourselves. But there is no condemnation for the believer in Christ, and he shall not come into judgment (cf. Romans 8:1; John 5:24).  

Whenever we sin, we have an Advocate to make intercession (cf. Heb. 7:25). We have admitted our spiritual bankruptcy before God, emptied ourselves of our self-righteousness, and come clean with God with nothing to hide. We realize God doesn't grade on a curve and all are sinners and we are no better than others:  We don't play the "let's compare game." (cf. 2 Cor. 10:12).  We don't have any credentials to boast of but must plead the merits of the blood of Christ shed on our behalf.  

Salvation goes to the lowest bidder as Paul saw himself as the "chief of sinners," and John Bunyan wrote his testimony in Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, not to the one with the highest spiritual pedigree or credentials or best resume: We have nothing to offer but brokenness and strife, a contrite and penitent heart.  This is the catch-22:  To be good we must realize how bad we are; to see how bad we are, we must try to be good.  

Don't think of sins as God not wanting you to enjoy life and He's a cosmic killjoy spoiling it all, but God didn't design us for sin and He knows what's best for us emotionally and spiritually and for our own good--if we had our own way--and sin is doing your own thing and your way, not God's--then we'd surely mess up our lives and our souls; if God ever said, "Okay, have it your way!" we ruin it for ourselves and lose our happiness that is only possible through knowing Him as Augustine said, "Our souls are restless till they find their rest in God."    Soli Deo Gloria!