Miracles On Demand

Why didn't the Lord do a show for King Herod to demonstrate His authority?  Jesus never did a showy or biggie miracle to impress people, in fact, He stated that the only "sign" that evil generation would get was the one of Jonah!  The miracles of the Lord are consistent with His teachings and not meant to be attention-getting, or to force belief, though they do elicit faith in some--but in others evoke only skepticism.  If you took out the miracles of the Lord in the Bible, or if He had never done any, He would've only been a footnote in history, and we would've only heard of a humble teacher or martyr. But the "signs" He did were for a good reason--to be an illustration of His deity in some dimension (e.g., raising the dead to show He is the life, or feeding the hungry to show He is the bread of life).

In other religions, you don't have skeptics or doubters present to witness the event, but Jesus feels free to do them in the open, so that no one can deny them--even the Pharisees admitted that, if He had gone on, the whole world would believe in Him.  There is a vast difference in His miracles; if you take the miracles out of other faiths, they remain basically intact in their teachings, but not so with Christianity. What Jesus knew was that faith produces miracles and not vice versa.  You cannot force someone to believe by a miracle!  Jesus refused to oblige the mockers at His crucifixion who demanded that He get off the cross--He could've done it, but we'd all be lost.  The Scriptures point out in John 12:37 and Ps. 78:32  that though God performs miracles the people "would not" believe--note that it doesn't say "could not."

Miracles don't give faith, but only a desire for more miracles--that's why God refrains Himself.  God is the cause of all events, and miracles are just unusual ones caused by Him; if miracles happened all the time we'd call them "regulars."  Miracles can evoke faith in the believing, but skepticism in others. The question of whether miracles can occur is not scientific, because it's out of its domain, but is a philosophical question.

Ultimately, it depends upon whether God exists.  You cannot disprove God because that would be a universal negative, and all philosophers know you cannot prove a universal negative--like the fact that there are no little green men or Earth-like planets in the entire cosmos; you would have to know all and be everywhere, or be God yourself!  You can choose not to believe due to lack of evidence, but you cannot disprove. 

Jesus' miracles were different in that they were not helter-skelter, for prestige, money, or power; He never used His powers for personal advantage, gain, or relief.  None of them were capricious, nor fantastic, so as to force faith.  Also, His miracles were unique, in that they proved and illustrated lessons.  Jesus is the Lawgiver and has the authority to overrule His own laws of nature.  The miracle of miracles, of course, was His resurrection, and this is the ultimate verification of His power of death, hell, and Satan, and the proof that He's the Son of God in the flesh.

For this event, Luke writes, "there are many infallible proofs"  (cf. Acts 1:3).  What we need to determine, is whether the records of His resurrection are historically reliable and test the veracity of the witnesses (who were willing to lay down their lives for their testimony)--you will find that the evidence would stand up in a court of law verifying His resurrection as fact by an impartial jury. If the resurrection is true, it's the most fantastic and wonderful fact of history, if not, it's the cruelest hoax perpetrated on mankind.    Soli Deo Gloria!

Numbering Our Days

"[Making] the most of your time, because the days are evil"  (Ephesians 5:16, NASB). 
"Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity"  (Col. 4:5, NASB).  
"Redeeming the time, because the days are evil"  (Eph. 5:16, KJV).   
"For a thousand years in Your sight
Are like yesterday when it passes by,
Or as a watch in the night"  (Psalm 90:4, NASB).


The Lord can teach us to number our days and get wise to the fact of our limited time.  Too many live like there's no tomorrow, and die like they didn't get a chance to live!  We tend to live like we won't die, and die like we didn't live!  The truth of the matter is that God holds the future, as Scripture (cf. Psalm 31:15) says, "My times [future] is in your hands."  We are to make the most of every opportunity as the Lord gives us in grace to make hay with.  When He gives us lemons, make lemonade!  In other words, carpe diem, or seize the day!  We are only here for a limited time and will be judged by our stewardship of the opportunities God has granted us.

When we truly number our days or see them for what they're worth in the perspective of eternity, we get wise and don't take life or time for granted!  What does this mean but to thank God constantly for all He has done in our lives, to be ever aware of His presence and blessings, and hopeful and prayerful for the future, as being in His hands?  We should thank God for prayers even yet to be answered! Only when we see how passing our life is, and frail, ready to fade as a leaf, do we have high regard for it and see it as a blessing not to be wasted--we don't have the right to live as we choose and spend time doing as our pleasure only.  When we say we belong to God, our time does too! We are never too busy for God's service!  "... All the days of my hard service I will wait for my renewal to come"  (Job 14:14, NIV).

We don't have the right to kill time, and we should always find ways to redeem or buy back whatever God has allotted us by grace.  We can invest our time, spend our time, or waste our time--choose wisely.   Somethings are not necessarily a waste of time, they just aren't necessary!  When we walk in the Spirit He guides us and makes our time valuable, but never think that God is out of control when the unexpected happens--we are never interrupted, just given opportunities.  No one is a waste of your time, just an investment! The two-time wasters are looking back with regret and looking ahead with worry--neither are necessary with the eye of faith.  Time management is in order for the faithful believer who will give account for his stewardship of God's resources.

In summation, we need to constantly update our schedule and agenda to put God in it, and to orient ourselves to His plans, not making Him fit into or approve of ours!  Soli Deo Gloria!

The Timeless One

"... Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God"  (Psalm 90:2, NASB).  
"Do you not know?  Have you not heard?  The Lord is the everlasting God..." (Isaiah 40:28, ESV).
"For thus says the high and lofty One
  who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy;
'I dwell in the high and holy place [outside the time/space continuum]"  (Isaiah 57:15, RSV).
"[W]ho has saved us and called us to a holy life--not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace.  This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time"  (2 Tim. 1:9, NIV).

Most people don't know that time actually began!  Before there was a cosmos, there was no time--it was not of the essence!  "[G]od ... promised before time began"  (Titus 1:2, HCSB, emphasis added).

To our disadvantage, we are confined to time to comprehend things because we fit into the four dimensions that it included; whereas God created time and is timeless; from everlasting to everlasting He is God, according to Psalm 90:1.  Scientists have determined that if there were no space or matter, there would be no time.  What we can infer is that they were all created ex nihilo or out of nothing by the command of God simultaneously, since time is merely a corollary of space and matter.  If God created time, he cannot be defined in terms of it and is independent of it, and cannot be confined to it as we are.

God lives in more dimensions than we do and ones we cannot fathom.  When we say God is timeless, it means He doesn't age nor change--He is immutable!  Everything that begins to exist has a cause according to the ancient Greeks, and since God didn't begin to exist, He has no cause--He's not an effect, which means He owes His existence to no one or nothing.  God is not an effect since He had no beginning! Therefore, He must be self-existent and is who He is.  We don't know what God was doing before creation--some say He was creating hell for curious souls!  

But Jesus is the "Alpha and Omega," who always is, always was, and always shall be; the One "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty" (cf. Rev. 1:8), having no beginning and no end.  He is called the eternal "I Am" in Scripture and this is not an Is-ness or state of being, but an Is-ing, a living Being (the Is-ing One), that is independent of all other life.

What God did was create a place in our heart to long for eternity--He set eternity in our hearts according to Eccl. 3:11.   When God is not defined in terms of time, it means He's timeless and will never grow old, become obsolete, nor become weary due to age.   If God created time, then, He has the right to manipulate it according to His will and to step outside it and to see all of it in one big spectrum or perspective.  To Him, a day is as a thousand years (He can accomplish as much as He wants in any given moment), and a thousand years is as a day (He can speed it up to His desires).

In summation, we can see how man cannot fathom God's limits nor understand eternity since the finite cannot grasp the infinite, as the Greeks said.  We are limited no matter how we approach the equation of God.  "Canst thou by searching find out God?" (Cf. Job 11:7).  You cannot put Him into a box or equation!  Jesus Himself pronounced:  "... Before Abraham was, I Am [already existed as the eternal One]"  (cf. John 8:58).  God created the time/space continuum and is able to manipulate after His will.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Queen Of Sciences

Theology is the "queen of sciences" and probably the first science since it formulated the basics of all we still know of God.  It is based on Scripture, the immediate revelation of God, and cannot be disputed by man's conjecture or speculation.  We are all theologians in a sense because we all have private ideas concerning God and interpret the Bible accordingly.  It's not that some people are just good at theology and are therefore theologians, but some people just take a liking to this avenue of knowledge--direct from God.

Someday even science will have to admit that the theologians were right and they will meet together where theologians have stood for centuries, contemplating the origin of the universe, of evil, of man, et al.  Theology is not an abstract science that is a fool's errand of speculation, rather it's an exact science based on the faith that God has revealed to us what we need to know.  It's not a matter of faith versus reason, but of faith in God versus faith in science, or which set of presuppositions you decide to accept as your starting point.  In other words, everyone has faith!

You can know all there is to know of theology and miss the boat spiritually, yet theology is necessary, though it's not sufficient.  You must have your heart in the right place and have faith in God, not just head knowledge or consent to a dogma.  We all need a sound theology to mature in Christ, and that is why theologians are necessary--those that devote themselves to this endeavor.  The reason is that you cannot avoid theology--we're all theologians (those who study the nature of God)!   However, you can get A's in theology class and hardly know the Lord, because it's just head knowledge--it must go down 18 inches to the heart.

Many people distrust theologians because they seem to be intellectuals with their heads in the clouds or on abstract ideas, but this is unwarranted because there are theologians who know the Lord and know how to apply theology to the Christian experience.  It's the immature believer who balks at learning the teachings of God in-depth and doesn't go on to know the Lord.  We must get an intellectual grasp on the concepts found in theology because something cannot be in your heart that's not first in your head!   That's why it's vitally important that our heart is in the right place, even before we get our thinking straightened out--which is commanded in 2 Cor. 10:5, ESV, to "take every thought captive to obey Christ."  Otherwise, we will be "carried about by every wind of doctrine" (Eph. 4:14, ESV).   When we are ignorant of basic doctrine we are vulnerable to the assaults of Satan and are led astray by false doctrine and even doctrines of demons.

The mistake is to be overly convinced that the primary goal is to be right in everything; however, it's imperative that our hearts be in the right place more so than our doctrine be "impeccably correct." There are some controversies worth the fight to see what the truth is; godless ones are not.  Sound doctrine must be ascertained and heresy denounced--this is the calling of polemics or of defending the faith.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Thought Control

The heart in Scripture refers to the innermost being of man, his affections, will, and intellect.  In Psalm 19:14, David prays that the thoughts of his heart be acceptable in God's eyes.  Man is whatever he thinks about all day, some poet has written.  Another has said appropriately, you aren't what you think you are, but what you think, you are!  Jesus said  (cf. Matt. 15:19) that "out of the heart comes evil thoughts." The lips reveal what's on the heart, that's why David prays that the words of his mouth and the meditations of his heart be acceptable in God's sight.  In Psalm 139:23, David prays, "Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts." We keep no secrets from God. Proverbs 23:7 is pertinent:  "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." Jesus said that all is open and laid bare to Him whom we must give account.  In other words, God wants us to get our thinking straightened out!  We are to love God with all our minds, too.

Why are thoughts so important to our walk?  They are to be godly and have a divine viewpoint.  We are not to think like the world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind (to conform to the image of Christ), according to Romans 12:2.  It is not sufficient to be content with Bible knowledge if it doesn't sink into our minds and make them in the image of Christ and to learn to think like He thinks, "we have the mind of Christ [Scripture]"  (1 Cor. 2:16). Our minds are finite and Christ's is infinite and we will never peg Him nor have a handle on everything He thinks, but we are to grow in the grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (cf. 2 Pet. 3:18).

The devil likes to destroy our thinking process with lies from the world, and only the study of Scripture can prepare us to fight them.  "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does.  The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.  On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ"  ((2 Cor. 10:4-5, NIV, emphasis mine).

Your worldview is your mental outlook (how you interpret the world around you and its events) and it must be Christian or what is known as the Judaeo-Christian worldview, as opposed to the Secular Humanist or Postmodern ones so prevalent in academia today.  It is a sad fact, for instance, that the average teen believer now actually believes truth is only relative and there is no "absolute truth." Jesus came to bear witness to the truth (cf. John 18:37-38).  "...Everyone on the side of truth listens to me" (John 18:38, NIV). Jesus claimed to be the incarnation, embodiment, or personification of the truth and He claimed you will and can know it:  "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free" (cf. John 8:32). Man's learning can be called "true," but only Scripture is "truth." That's why truth transforms and has the power to change lives. That's why Jesus said:  "Sanctify them by the truth, thy word is truth"  (John 17:17, KJV).

This is where we must take our stand and show our colors--there is knowable absolute truth and we are responsible for it, as revealed in Scripture.  No one can claim ignorance and no one has an excuse (cf. Romans 1:20).  Just like Paul said in 1 Cor 13 that when he was a child he thought as a child, and so on; it is time to think like a man of God and this doesn't just imply being content to be impeccably correct theologically (it is far more urgent to have your heart in the right place), but thinking like Christ as it relates and applies to the world around us  (i.e., "to understand the times" per 1 Chronicles 12:32).  Our thoughts are vital, for Christ must first be in our minds before He can be in our hearts, likewise doctrine.


At the Ocean Grove Conference Center in New Jersey the inscription over the speaker's platform reads:

SOW ...                           REAP
a thought                           an act
a habit                               act
an act                                character
a character                        a destiny

IT IS OF PARAMOUNT IMPORTANCE TO PUT A PREMIUM ON THOUGHT CONTROL.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Repentance And Confession

"Therefore, repent and turn from all your sins, that you may be forgiven and times of refreshing may come from the Lord." Acts 3:19

When we get saved, it's by penitent faith, or believing repentance, because they go hand in hand as the Bible says, "Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate" in Mark 10:9. ("[Testifying] both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ," says Acts 20:21).  The first of the Ninety-five Theses that Martin Luther made was that our penitence is a continual thing and renewed, an ongoing resolution it's not just a one-time event.  It is a mockery of repentance to confess without turning from the sin and not being sorry enough to quit.  As Job said, "... I will wait till my renewal comes" (cf. Job 14:14).  Indeed, even Job did find repentance: "[Therefore] I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes"  (Job 42:6, ESV).

Some believers are concerned that they confess the same sins over and over (this is called the "sin which easily besets [or ensnares] you" per Heb. 12:1).  "... And let no iniquity have dominion over me"  (Ps. 119:133, NKJV).  David says, "Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me...."  What do they want?  New sins?  God is able to make grace abound toward us and give us the victory over sin because we are no longer "under the law" and "sin shall have no dominion over you" per Romans 6:14.

When we become believers we do not have permission to live in the flesh or become Antinomians living as our flesh desires, but we have the power to live in the Spirit.  As David says in Psalm 18:23 that he has "kept [himself] from [his] sin." We cannot achieve sinless perfection but we can overcome our easily besetting sin and not let it hinder our walk.  "Who can say, 'I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin [sinful nature]?'"(Cf. Prov. 20:9).   Note that the psalmist said in Psalm 119:96 that he had seen the "limit of all perfection."

We have to be on the alert, because "sin wants to destroy you, but don't let it [it's crouching at the door!]"  (cf. Gen. 4:7).  Hosea says that sin has been Israel's downfall (cf. Hos. 14:1).  Repentance was demanded of the woman caught in adultery:  "Go and sin no more!"[i.e., live in sin] (Cf. John 8:10ff).  Salvation is more than mere forgiveness at the point of salvation--it covers all sin, past, present, and future, but is not an easy believism or cheap grace that grants forgiveness without repentance.

We must confess and admit our faults and sins to God, calling a spade a spade, naming sin as God does and  calling it out, making no excuses, nor trying to justify ourselves.  "No one who abides in him keeps on sinning..." (1 John 3:6, ESV).   If we go on in our sin we will be disciplined or chastised of the Lord and we can be sure "our sin will find us out" per Numbers 32:23. Jeremiah writes:  "Why should a living man complain, A man for the punishment of his sins?"  (Lam. 3:39, NKJV).   

Remember, to feel remorse or regret is only half the formula; we must have faith and accept God's forgiveness, not living in guilt. It must be matched with faith.   Peter was forgiven, Judas wasn't because Peter had penitent faith/believing repentance and Judas just felt sorry for what he'd done or had remorse but lacked faith, his missing ingredient.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Coming Full Circle

Some Protestants have come full circle, in that they are no different from Roman Catholics in their study of Scripture and acceptance of its authority.  What they do is rely too heavily on the leadership or teachers of the church and fail to take the Word of God at face value for what God is telling them--in other words, they should become Bereans (cf. Acts 17:11), and search things out whether they are so.  The whole concept of being a Protestant is to question authority just as Martin Luther uttered:  "I dissent, I disagree, I protest!"  We must question authority, for no one is infallible, not even the Pope who claims to speak ex-cathedra.  Our authority from the Reformation was sola Scriptura, or the Scripture alone and this was one of its slogans during the drive to find its identity.

If you just rely on one person for inspiration or instruction or drink of just one fountain, you will lose the power of discernment and could become vulnerable to the Jim Jones phenomenon, where the whole church decides it doesn't even need the Bible anymore, since they have God's voice on earth to pontificate it. One consequence of not searching things out is that the church tends to become set in its ways and loses balance and perspective of the influence of new ideas and reform:  Semper reformanda was another slogan of the Reformation and we should never become complacent and think we've "arrived" at the perfect church or orthodoxy--we are always in the process of reform--Martin Luther, et al. didn't finish the work and they would be the first to tell you this.

But note that Reformation is not just in doctrine or what is called the dogma of the church, but also in practice, worship, outreach, and missions because we should always be open to new ideas and applications. We are not to change the gospel message though since that would bring Paul's curse (cf. Gal. 1:6-9). But customs and norms of society change and, though we are not exhorted to keep up with the times, we will see that not only fashion but customs and what is acceptable changes through time; for example, in my day as a youth it was unheard of to go to church dressed in blue jeans!

There is no one-size-fits-all for worship nor for church order and government, and there are Roman Catholics who are better Protestants than Protestants, in that they regularly read the Bible, question the Pope and priest or clergy's authority and have more zeal and love for the Lord and His work.   One thing about Catholics that should be commended is their mission work (for they are responsible for bringing the message of Christ to all of Latin America) and all the outreach work they do in hospitals, schools, orphanages, and charities.

A Christian is not saved en masse, in that it's according to what church he attends--God will not ask us what denomination we were affiliated with at the Judgment Seat of Christ.  The problem seems to be the reverse, in that many believers are content just to be theologically correct and rule out the experience with Christ and the joy of serving Him, not to mention worship.  Catholics may seem to be disinterested in theology but what matters most to God is having your heart in the right place, more than doctrine being impeccably correct.

However, we are all theologians and have a slant on the doctrines, whether we realize it or not, and we cannot escape theology!  But knowledge about God must be translated into an acquaintance of God or a true relationship.  Knowledge is not just an end in itself but must lead us to a closer walk--to know Him more clearly, to follow Him more nearly, and to love Him more dearly (as Richard of Chichester said).   We are never to look down on our brother as a poor specimen simply because he's not in the know or doesn't know his way around theologically.  We may be quite conversant on Bible themes and hardly know our Lord at all, because it's all second-hand knowledge.

What God teaches us and what we learn for ourselves has much more impact on our souls.  The danger is intellectual pride in thinking we are a cut above other believers by virtue of knowledge alone.  You can know the Lord with little theological training, and you can be a stranger with much training.  But in the final analysis, we will desire to go on and know the Lord and to search things out and know the scoop when we come into a living relationship with our Lord.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Clear-thinking Prophets

"... But we have the mind of Christ"  (1 Cor. 2:16, ESV).  

Every generation has its voice and witness from God to warn His people and to interpret the times with divine viewpoint and insight.  We are all to "gird up the loins" of our minds and take heed to the signs of the times just as Jesus exhorted us.  Our attitude towards the world, our nation, and our entourage must be interpreted in light of God's truths.  The sign of the unbeliever, as well as practical atheist who believes, yet doesn't act like it, is that God is in none of his thoughts!

By way of definition:  Prophets aren't necessarily seers or those who speak for God and foretell, but those who tell forth the Word of God, and testify of needed messages from God to illuminate His people--to build up or edify the body of Christ as is so desperately needed.

What manner of media and news we expose ourselves to says a lot about our priorities and values. Our attitudes are shaped by our thinking, whether it is godly or not; influenced by the world-system or the Bible.  We need to have our mindset formulated by a Christian worldview and not the secular ones that are so predominant.  The world will squeeze us into its mold if we don't watch our step and keep in step with the Spirit and are clued into basic universal, objective, and absolute truths of Scripture.  We must rein in every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ per 2 Cor. 10:5.   If we are not careful and let the world influence us instead of vice versa, we will experience the phenomenon of GIGO or garbage in equals garbage out!

We must learn to "think on these things" referring to what is noble, right, and praiseworthy per Phil. 4:8.   After all, we are what we think about all day and we aren't what we think we are, but what we think, we are! (sources unknown).  Very few believers actually are equipped to discern good and evil in the events of history and current events, and we are to seek out these modern-day prophets (one was the late Charles Colson).

Ignorance is never an excuse unless we never had the opportunity to know it, and it's ignorance, not knowledge that binds us.   Humility is the order of the day, as we are to have the same mindset as that of Jesus Christ (cf. Phil. 2:5).  If you don't know the prevalent worldviews and the propaganda they disseminate, you are vulnerable to becoming its victim and being bamboozled by lies and deceit.   We are to be infants in evil, but in our thinking, we are to be mature (cf. 1 Cor. 14:20).

Unfortunately, the leading epistemology of today is relativism, whereas truth is only relative:  This is depicted in Alan Bloom's book The Closing of the American Mind.  This is antithetical to the absolute and objective truth of Scripture and one must be ready to oppose it wherever it arises.  Soli Deo Gloria! 

Wolves In Sheep's Clothing

"Enter by the narrow gate.  For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.  For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few"  (Matt. 7:13-14, ESV).  

Jesus initiated His ministry the right way, by being baptized by John in order to identify Himself with the common Jews and to fulfill all righteousness, though John demurred--He did things the right way and didn't go against the order of the day.  If Jesus could humble Himself, how much ought we?  There likewise comes a day of reckoning and decision for believers, where they express solidarity with the body publicly in order to be accepted publicly.  

We are to beware of pseudo-believers or false brethren (for even the devils may seek to become accepted, if possible!) and those that sneak into the fellowship disapproved, who may "creep in unnoticed," as Jude writes, and are "marked out for condemnation" as "wolves in sheep's clothing," masquerading as angles of light (cf. 2'Cor. 11:4), as it were, and fooling even the elect, if possible (they come to "steal, to kill, and to destroy").  Who is he but one who doesn't enter by the door of the shepherd, but seeks his own way, door, or rules, for he seeks to "climb up some other way" (cf. John 10:1), and "he is a thief [proselytizer or even an apostate] and a robber."

If there's some initiation ceremony (e.g., baptism, testimony, classroom training, et al.) that the church has established, and a seeker or false brother rejects it, then he is going rogue and following his own whims or "inner voice", and not that of Christ. For in God's economy, the way up is down, and we must all humble ourselves in the sight of God first if we expect to be exalted in His eyes--you don't carry rank and privilege with you as you transfer from church to church, but must start at the bottom and work your way up all over again, respecting all in authority and seniority.

In order to get the "right hand of fellowship," and to be accepted as a member of the family of God one must show some fruit!  First we believe and works result and this comes by hearing of the Word of God, then we belong to the family in fellowship, and finally, we become what God intends by participation with the family and recognition of our charisma or gift and sharing it with others. Rick Warren describes our spiritual journey:  "believing (through worship), belonging (through fellowship), and becoming (through discipleship)."  We are always to be congenial and extend our good faith and love to all, regardless of where they are in the Lord, but there comes a day of reckoning when one must decide for or against the fellowship one is associated with and whether or not to endorse it and become a full-fledged member.  They are to "choose this day whom they will serve" per Joshua 24:15.

Our mission is to be "eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" per Ephesians 4:3, ESV.  Remember the slogan:  "No perfect people need to apply!"  God wants real people, not ideal people and unity, not uniformity.  We don't find shortcuts to the top of the spiritual chain of command, or pecking order, as it were, but must admit our spiritual frailty!  We never "assume" someone is a believer or earnest in his motives, by mere virtue of regular attendance--some people are just "playing church" or are guilty of "Churchianity," not Christianity.

Pseudo-Christian cults and churches do not seek out souls to save, but to steal, they go where Christ is already named and say they have something to add to the truth or have a new and improved Christianity to offer.  These wolves spare not the flock and have no qualms to lead to false doctrine and are thirsty for power (David Koresh, and Jim Jones, et al.).  They are really not members of the church, but mock it and set out to go by their own tradition or belief, that is antithetical to the churches.  They are pushing something secret and claim to be in the know and privileged to be privy to this so-called false knowledge.

In contradistinction to a true shepherd, one ordained and called by God, one who enters by the door--not some secret way (i.e., by way of secret pledge, friendship, reference, handshake, vow, ordination service, et al.), the false teacher, who isn't always a teacher, but just seeks a following and to make a name for himself!

The sheep do not listen to the "voice of a stranger" and know their shepherd, according to John 10:5, and they follow the Lord through His shepherds and they listen to the truth because they are of the truth.  The danger is that factions in the church and party spirit can cause church splits, and nothing ruins a church more than sectarian spirit or a conflict over leadership and loyalty issues--"I am of Apollos!"  The reason we have heresy is so that the teachers approved by God can be made manifest, the church and body of Christ can be cleansed of evil, and it can be renewed in the image of Christ as its head and cornerstone.  Soli Deo Gloria!

God's Debut

"[W]ho, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross" (Philippians 2:6-8, ESV).  

How should the Son of God make his entree into our domain, but as one of us, so we could readily identify with Him, since we are in the image of God, after all?  If He came as a scholar, monarch, rich man, entertainer, scientist, philosopher, or any privileged, prestigious person we might not think we have had a chance, that the Messiah wasn't for us!  We can all relate to the so-called son of a carpenter, a working-class entrepreneur, and this means ultimately that His salvation is available to all.  "... Peace to those on whom his favor rests," as it is written in Luke 2:10, ESV).

Shepherds were considered among the lowest scum of the trades, and many wouldn't even admit it publicly.  This was God's way of upsetting the religious apple cart. But the angels saw humility in these shepherds, who were not the typical thieves, like so many, and were raising lambs for the temple--God saw potential, and this means He saw potential in us, too.  We see Christ as the Good Shepherd in Scripture and God wants us to see the analogy.

No one can say they humbled themselves more than Jesus, who left His throne and gave up the independent use of His authority, and became "one of us" so that we see ourselves in Him, no matter what status we live in:  There is hope for all in Christ!   No one can charge Jesus with being aloof, indifferent, or disinterested, and that He doesn't feel our pains, struggles, and grief!  "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses..." (Heb. 4:15, ESV).  He alone can say, "Been there," to any problem we have!

It is no insignificant fact that the angels chose to appear to shepherds, because they would understand the imagery of Christ being the Lamb of God, and thus our Savior.  The fear of the shepherds upon seeing the vision of angels transformed into joy and as they saw the Babe in the manger, they just knew it was true, as the joy of the Lord filled their hearts.

The given name, Immanuel, is not fortuitous, since God is present fully in Christ as His image or icon, and one felt the presence of God with Him, and in all that He did God was with Him.  As it is written:  "The Spirit bears witness with our spirit" (cf. Romans 8:16).  One job description of the Holy Spirit is to encourage us as our Paraclete or Comforter (in the Greek, entheos, or to put God into something!).  Just as it's written in Zech. 4:6 that it is "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit..."(cf. Zech. 4:6, ESV).  We have the witness of the Holy Spirit in us to be a witness and testimony so that we "just know," like the shepherds "just knew." 

In summation, Jesus humbled Himself (it was voluntary) as a lesson and model for us ("Let this mind be in you"); whereas humility wasn't even considered a virtue before His time! Now being humble is considered a compliment due to Christ. In His humility we see an approachable God, referring to the veil being ripped upon His ignominious death. Seeing Jesus as an underdog (e.g., the son of a carpenter), gives us the courage and hope to identify with--everyone loves an underdog!  

Jesus truly illustrated the truth with His life that the way up is down in God's economy--"Humble yourself before the Lord and he will exalt you"  (James 4:10, ESV).  When He said, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble," He has authority to say it as all authority has been given Him (cf. Matt. 28:18).    Soli Deo Gloria!