Knocked Out Of Your Comfort Zone

"Look, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction"  (Isaiah 48:10, HCSB).
"The LORD says, 'I will give you back what you lost ["I will repay you for the years..." or make it up to you (HCSB)] to the swarming locusts, the hopping locusts, the stripping locusts, and the cutting locusts.  It was I who sent this great destroying army against you'"  (Joel 2:25, HCSB).

"... God left him to test him and discover what was in his heart," (cf. 2 Chron. 32:31, HCSB).

"... It is necessary to pass through many troubles on our way to the kingdom of God," (cf. Acts 14:22, HCSB). 

We all must endure the fires of the testing of our faith to ensure its reality and genuineness. It's more precious than gold and silver which are refined by fire.  It's not for God's sake that we get tested--He knows all and doesn't learn from the experience--it's we who learn and must realize for ourselves how strong we are in the Lord and whether our faith is strong enough to endure hardship, or whether it's just fair-weather faith. When the chips are down we must find out where our heart is and what we're made of!  We should be proud to be able to say in sympathy:  Been there, done that!  And put ourselves in their shoes and be on the same page.

Job, the patron saint and poster child of suffering par excellence, was tested, but not beyond his ability!  He may have questioned God and defended his own record but he was self-righteous, and his faith hung in there and he never gave up the ship!  He left the bosom of the home and thought outside the box to wonder what was happening and to answer his miserable comforters who really were his critics.  We can all relate to his depression and can find ourselves in a melancholy mood too sometimes, but this was severe and he was experiencing the doldrums and was in the pits, in a real funk! The Bible says that when we are being tested at least our friends shouldn't dessert us and we should find comfort and solace with them as we seek empathy. Job had the additional discomfort of being condemned by his "comforters" and "friends."

Second Corinthians 1:4 says that God is a God of comfort and allows us to experience hardship and trial so we can comfort others with the comfort that we have received.  We should be able to relate to others and put ourselves in their shoes.  Paul said in Phil. 3:10 that he wanted to know Christ and the fellowship of His suffering-to suffer with Him!  There is a union and fellowship in suffering and God not only calls us to faith, but to suffering on behalf of Christ to fulfill His passion and to glorify God through them.  For we are participating in the sufferings of Christ (cf. Col. 1:24).

When we get saved and surrender our wills to His and give up the ownership of our lives to be directed by God's will to His glory, we enroll in the school of suffering and decide to take up our cross daily and be willing to suffer for His name's sake--no cross--no crown!  We must learn to endure hardship to be good soldiers in Christ because this comes with the territory and we sign up for it!  It's only to be expected to suffer and should consider it an honor to be counted worthy to suffer for the sake of the Name!

The trials we have endured are like stripes on our shoulders or feathers in our cap and could be seen as the red badge of courage or our Purple Heart to show that we have been tried in the course of battle in the angelic conflict.  The purpose of our suffering may never be answered, for God owes us no explanation and isn't accountable to us (He's too deep to explain Himself to us too kind to be cruel and to wise to make a mistake), but we must learn to endure not only during the good times but through thick and thin when faith isn't so easy when push comes to shove and faith isn't an automatic given! 

The uniqueness of our faith is that we believe in a suffering God who bore our sorrows and griefs and didn't exempt Himself from hardship and suffering, so we can know He feels us in our pain and knows where we are in our time of need.  Adversity, discipline, suffering, and trials are inevitable but that's how we gain Christlikeness.   Soli Deo Gloria!

If God Could Speak

"Long ago God spoke to the fathers by the prophets at different times and in different ways.  In these last days,  He has spoken to us by Hi Son...." (Heb. 11:1, HCSB). 

There is a story in India of six men touching an elephant and each having different experiences which is supposed to explain how we all see God in a different light, thus explaining worldviews or religions.  The men are blind and each touches a different part:  one touches the trunk and thinks its a tree trunk; another the tusk and thinks it's a spear; another a tail and so forth.  But the men don't know they're touching an elephant!  They don't know they're just touching part of the elephant.  But if the elephant could speak there would be divine revelation and they wouldn't be confused but know the truth.

But in the analogy, God is supposed to be the elephant and the fact is that He did speak to us in the Bible and through His final revelation of Jesus.  We need someone who is not blind to know the true nature and we are assuming all the men are blind and have limited knowledge.  What if they touch different elephants?  The analogy may have cute comparisons but it's not valid when you break it down and analyze it.  God entered our world and became one in the nature of the elephant and that person is Jesus, the icon of God, and all we need to know.

God spoke the world into existence and He is here and He is not silent.  God speaks every day through the Word of God and our voices--He uses us to be His spokespersons.  God first spoke, then created, then acted on our behalf.  He's listening to us if we listen and don't turn a deaf ear, but be attentive to His signals.  As C. S. Lewis said, "God whispers in our joys, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains; it's God's megaphone to rouse a deaf world." The problem is not God trying to make contact but our refusal to listen and hear what He has to say.  He speaks, we just don't listen up! As in the analogy, if the elephant spoke the confusion, conjecture, and speculation would cease and man would know the truth to set him free.  To know Jesus is to know that truth and to be free in spirit.

It seems to me that if archaeologists found the love letters of Cleopatra that the world would seek out to read them wholeheartedly with gusto; however, we have the love letter of God and men ignore that.  God has sent His Word to the world and we must heed and hearken to what He has to say, for He knows our needs and what we need to know. So we need not ponder whether God could speak but realize that He has spoken and all we need to know is in the Bible; there is no need for more revelation or doctrines.

"In the beginning was the Word...."  The Greek word used is Logos or "thought expressed." Jesus is the express image of God (cf. Col. 2:9).  The elephant is supposedly the expressed thought of God to the blind men.  However, the difference is that Jesus opens the eyes of the blind and makes them see:  "I was blind but now I see!"  It was the devil who blinded the eyes of the unbeliever, but upon salvation, they are opened to the truth and he sees the big picture or the whole elephant.
       Soli Deo Gloria!

The Manifold Facets Of Our Salvation...

Note that salvation isn't a simple adjustment in the Divine Ledger above.  There are four aspects of our salvation that make it so wondrous.   Firstly, we are redeemed from the slave market of sin, for Jesus paid the price to set us free from the power of sin; secondly, we are justified in the heavenly court above and declared righteous in God's eyes because we are imputed with it; thirdly, we are reconciled to God's family and restored to fellowship with the Father and the Son, while this invites fellowship with our brethren in Christ; fourthly, we are propitiated or expiated in the temple of God whereby the blood of Christ was shed on our behalf to satisfy the Father.

Christianity is a religion of salvation, which doesn't sound so equitable or democratic, implying some are condemned or lost. Salvation, technically, is to be rescued from some threat; however, in our case, we are our own worst enemy!   Salvation is more than forgiveness!  Our whole-person needs salvation:  our hearts are depraved,  our minds are feeble, and our wills stubborn.  Our salvation is through God's grace as the source, with Christ as the means, and faith as the channel.  And Christianity is the only one proclaiming that there is only one Savior and depicts the "saviorhood" of Christ.  What are we saved from?  Ourselves, the devil, hell, the power of sin, the effect of sin, and from God, i.e., from the wrath of God.  Salvation is totally a work of God without our input and reflects our secure position in Christ, our growing condition in Christ, and our future expectation in glory--we achieve no pre-salvation work.

Our common salvation is as good as it gets and we cannot improve on it. We are saved from the penalty of sin, are being saved from its power, and shall be saved from its presence!  Jesus saved us--He did; He keeps us--He does; He's coming for us--He will!  Concerning the tenses, His salvation is our experience, hope, and expectation. Our past was forgiven, our present given meaning, and our future secured.  We are saved; we are being saved, and we shall be saved!  It began in eternity past, is realized in time, and looks forward to heaven. That's why it is written in Heb. 2:9, NIV, "How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?"  We have faith in Christ, we believe in Him and believe Him, we have our hope secured and anchored in Him, our expectation is in Him, and our security is in Him. If we had to trust in ourselves, we'd fail and could never know for sure of our status.

Our salvation was wrought by God and planned and purposed by God the Father as its Author, accomplished and secured as a finished work by God the Son, and applied by the Holy Spirit. The Father purposed it, the Son executed it, and the Spirit made it known!  The three work as a group effort in a team and union as one Being having no conflict of interest or will.

Christ is fully at work in our salvation through His three offices: we're saved from the penalty of sin by the crucified Christ, from the power of sin by the risen and living Christ, and from the presence of sin by the coming Christ. We are saved from the ignorance of sin by the prophet Jesus, from the power of sin by the king Jesus, and the guilt of sin by the priest Jesus.   

Finally, let me add the perks of our salvation with come with the whole package:  we are given peace with God and ourselves, we are given purpose and meaning in life following His will, and we're given the power to overcome sin, Satan, and the world as our threefold enemy, and don't forget:  God is now our Father and we can confidently look forward to our reward in glory!   Soli Deo Gloria!

A Brief History Of Man

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."  --George Santayana

The Bible begins in eternity past and continues in real time and concludes in eternity future.  We are not in some episode between two oblivions but are here for a purpose--to glorify God, for all things were created for that purpose.  The story of man (i.e., His Story) is simply:  creation, fall, redemption, judgment.   We all fell in Adam and can be redeemed in Christ, and will all be judged by Christ (either the Bema of Christ or the Great White Throne of condemnation for the lost).  Where we end up for eternity depends upon our relation to Christ in this life with no second chances to redeem ourselves.  We Christians are just passing through as pilgrims to a heavenly city and our eternal reward, for our compensation is not in this life.  We believe that in the end the God of justice will make all things right and answer all our questions.

So we live in the hope of redemption from the slave market of sin and weakness of the flesh until we receive glorified bodies that don't have vulnerabilities, like Christ's.  We are here for a purpose: to complete the Great Commission and do God's will.  Happy are those who find their calling and purpose in life.  Someday this calling will be the Great Completion.  In the meantime, we are stewards of the time allotted us and must redeem it for the Lord's work.  We are here for a purpose--to please God and know Him personally, but not second hand. We long for Jesus to announce: "Well done, thou good and faithful servant!"

Jesus, who created time (the corollary of space and matter), and entered it for our sakes and lived life in the flesh in all its weaknesses except without sin, living the perfect law-abiding life to fulfill the Law of Moses and thus qualify as our righteousness. He became the perfect sacrifice by dying in our stead while being innocent of any transgression and the Father imputed our sin unto His account in the Divine Ledger.  And so Jesus made Himself known in real-time, for He existed prior to creation and is the Creator, but stepped into time so we would know God.  All we need to know of God is expressed in Jesus as His icon or image.

Jesus didn't become the Son of God by being born of the virgin Mary but is the eternal Son of God and that means there never was a time when He became the Son or wasn't the Son and the Father is the eternal Father and always was the Father of Jesus, not becoming the Father--He was begotten, not made, born, or adopted of God. God didn't create Him, give birth to Him nor adopt Him like He did us. And so, it was high time Jesus entered history in the fullness of time and complete our redemption that was planned by the Father.

In the meantime, we are on borrowed time as it were, and must be good stewards with time management.  The earth will end someday and we want to be on the right side that endures to the end.  Man is ever-learning in technology, but not in wisdom--the right usage of that knowledge: right ends, right motives, and in the right way.  Man will not evolve into perfection or have some mutation that puts us at a higher sphere of awareness wisdom, knowledge, and intelligence.  The problem isn't intelligence, but wisdom and only God grants that.  We need to know God, not the wisdom of man, for man cannot know nor find God through the wisdom of man.

As  Santayana said that if we don't remember the past, we will be condemned to repeat it!  And Hegel said, that one thing we learn from history is that we don't learn anything from history.  History is not cyclical in that it repeats itself (as Mark Twain said, "it only rhymes!"), but it's linear going in a direction and having a beginning, climax, and end, conclusion, consummation, and culmination.  It is going somewhere and has a purpose and story to tell from the Storyteller. History is merely God's redemptive plan and narrative for man unfolding in real-time as God orchestrates it.

History has meaning and we are to interpret it and study it to find out what God is saying.  NB:  The Bible is based in history too and is the only religion that is--dehistoricize it and you discredit the faith. We need to learn its lessons or be doomed to repeat its mistakes.  And the unfolding of history in the making is about God's ultimate purpose for mankind, it's not bunk but worth the study, while the key to understanding a story is to know the Storyteller--God!  We know the Author of the Bible as well and that's why we see Jesus at work in it.  Soli Deo Gloria!

The Impenitent Sinner's Hope

Repentance is a prerequisite to salvation as well as its accompanying faith.  We must have a radical change of heart, will, and mind with fruits bearing witness to it--it must be proven by our lives in real-time or in our actions.  We don't just change our opinions but our wills are affected enough to renounce our sin.  But we must acknowledge our sin first as Job One.  We must also feel contrition or genuine remorse, not simple regret that we are sorry but not sorry enough to quit.   Once more, our repentance is progressive and we must always keep short accounts with God and not conceal or hide our sin from God (no repentance without confession, which we willingly confess in order to obtain mercy).

NB: Martin Luther's first thesis was that it's not a one-time event but an ongoing lifelong continuing resolution or process of renewal and recommitment.   Repentance is not fire-insurance or a security blanket, but a sign of regeneration.

There can be no genuine repentance without saving faith as the flip side--they go hand in hand and are distinguished but not separated (juxtaposed in Heb. 6:1; Acts 20:21).  That's why Reformed theologians refer to penitent faith or believing repentance as the instrumental means of salvation.  NB:  Repentance, like faith, is the result of the regenerative work of God and act of grace in our hearts.  Often we don't feel up to repentance, but we repent not when we feel like it, but so we will feel like it. 

Some people feel that they cannot repent and something is wrong with them.  But we can do nothing apart from God's grace ("Apart from me you can do nothing," --John 15:5).  The real reason they can not repent is they don't trust God, they are trying to please God in their own right. We must trust, not try!  But the bigger our God, the more we can trust!  Due to the juxtaposition of faith and repentance and the terms linked in Scripture, when we cannot repent it's probable that we lack faith, and if we lack faith, we probably are unrepentant.  We all experience both extremes of the spectrum at times and must learn by them.

Repentance is a mandate or imperative and must be evident in fruit to be genuine.  Bring forth fruits in keeping with repentance!  (cf. Luke 3:8).  When we show contrition, and this the sacrifice that pleases God, we are cleansed of all wrongdoing, our slate is cleaned, and God's memory bank about it deleted.  We shouldn't keep drudging up old sins because God says, "What sin?"  As far as the east is from the west (cf. Psalm 103:12), God just blots out our sin and forgets (cf. Isa. 43:25), and like a mist that is swept away (cf. Isa. 44:22); and our sins are cast into the depths of the sea (cf. Micah 7:19)--they couldn't be more neutralized than that!  Why do we get hang-ups about them or let them make us feel guilty then?

The motif of repentance is common in the Old and the New Testaments.  The thankless job of the prophets during the dark ages of Israel was to call them to repentance.  The New Testament opens with John the Baptist preaching a baptism of repentance, while Jesus opened His ministry preaching repentance and belief in the gospel.  Repentance is from the Greek metanoia or to change one's mind.  We must not only make an about-face, U-turn, 180-degree turnaround, New Year's resolution, or turn over a new leaf, but our hearts must be renewed in Christ's image and from the inside out.  Times of refreshing will come from the presence of the Lord (cf. Acts. 3:19).

The heart in tune with repentance echoes David's prayer of contrition in Psalm 51 after the prophet Nathan told him of his sin with Bathsheba.  Finally, repentance is by grace:  "... 'So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life'" (Acts 11:18, NIV; cf. 5:31).  God commands repentance be preached (cf. Luke 24:47) and we must repent now (cf. Acts 17:30; 3:19; 2:38).

In sum, we are never good enough to be saved; however, we are all bad enough to need salvation.  And in order to realize how bad we are, we must try to be good, and we cannot be good without realizing how bad we are--the catch-22.  Actually, the closer we get to God, the more cognizance of our sin; like when Peter said, "Depart from me, O Lord, for I am a sinful man" (cf. Luke 5:8).   Soli Deo Gloria!

The Great Exchange

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Cor. 5:21, NIV). 
"Produce fruit in keeping with repentance..." (Luke 3:*, NIV).  
"By faith Abraham... obeyed" (cf. Hebrews 11:8).  
"... [T]o advance the obedience of faith among all nations"  (Rom. 16:26, HCSB).
"The best measure of a spiritual life is not its ecstasies but its obedience." --Oswald Chambers
"True faith manifests itself in obedience only."  --John MacArthur
"Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes." --Dietrich Bonhoeffer
"Faith is not believing in spite of the evidence, but obeying despite the consequences."  --source unknown 
"Faith is not how much we believe, but how well we obey."  --source unknown


Religion is defined as tit for tat:  good works in exchange for salvation! You must earn it by good deeds outweighing bad ones.  But you can never know where you stand!  Legalism is defined as works plus faith in exchange for salvation.  While antinomianism or libertinism is defined as faith in exchange for salvation minus works; (in other words, works are not a part of the fruit nor authenticate salvation) in contrast to orthodox Reformed doctrine that faith is given in exchange for salvation plus works (works will always be the fruit and evidence!).  

The only way of assurance is for everything to be grace!  It's not a matter of us, nor of God and us in any combination, but of God alone ("Salvation is of the LORD," Jonah 2:9).  The rub is that if we had to do anything, we'd fail.  There's nothing we can do!  For those hoping their good works will amount to anything, they are never good enough in God's estimation.

This is an important nuance because the correct Reformed formula for salvation is that "we are saved by faith alone, but not by a faith that is alone!"  The "Five Only's" include by grace alone and by faith alone!   Faith and faithfulness (making good on our faith) cannot be divorced! These two can be distinguished but not separated more than you can distinguish your body and soul but if you separate them you're dead!  Paul and James both saw the two flip sides of the spiritual equation: Paul would say that he would show you his works by his faith; while James (cf. James 2:16) would counter that he would show you his faith by his works; the point is that they are not contrary nor contradictory statements but just two ways at looking at the one truth of our salvation by a faith that produces evidence in good deeds as fruit.

Salvation is not an imagined or figurative righteousness but actually forensic and totally by grace from beginning till end.  Our contribution to the cross was our sin and God exchanged that for the righteousness of Christ on our behalf to our account to use business jargon.  It was credited Christ's deeds to our account and that's why they say justification is "just-as-if-I'd-done-it!"  When God looks at us in our sinful nature all He sees is Christ's righteousness as it's imputed to our new nature in Christ--the new man.  It's not a new suit on the man, but a new man in the suit!

The point about this great exchange is that we must see our need for it.  The necessary condition for salvation is to realize we aren't worthy of it.  You could say it goes to the lowest bidder!  We don't realize how sinful we are till we've tried to be good and we cannot be good without realizing our sin! Sort of like quitting to smoke.   This is the catch-22 of salvation that is solved only by the mystery of how grace works in our hearts to kindle faith and awaken repentance and regenerate us into new creatures in Christ.

In coming to Christ, we must come in penitent faith or believing repentance which is granted by a work of grace--we exercise this making Christ real to us.  We cannot come of our own power but must be wooed or actually drawn by Christ (elko used here in Greek doesn't mean to woo but to drag, but Arminians don't want to make God out to be forceful and they are trying to protect His honor or reputation).  John 6:44 says "no man can come to [Christ] unless the Father who sent [Him] draws him, and verse 65 says similarly that it must be "granted of the Father."

Many see salvation is something that God owes them for their faith or repentance in a tit for tat arrangement or exchange.  However, if that were true, it wouldn't be by grace but justice; the point is that God owes no one salvation and didn't have to save anyone to remain holy!  We don't earn our salvation by our faith because faith is not a work, as the Roman Catholics believe, and a meritorious one at that-- but don't think grace is enough but add merit to grace, works to faith, the Church to Scripture, and the Pope to Christ.

Faith must be in the right object (we aren't saved by faith in faith--it must be directed in Christ), Christ saves--not faith!  It isn't how much faith we have in the church or in the priest or pastor!  If faith is a work, then we are saved by works!  But we are saved from beginning to end by grace--grace is not only necessary but sufficient (it's all we need).  He saved us by grace (cf. Eph. 2:8-9), He keeps us by grace (cf. Jude 21), and He's coming for us and gives us victory by grace (cf. Phil. 2:13).  We must become totally grace-oriented to appreciate our salvation in its totality.

Now our "righteousness is as filthy rags" in God's eyes and only what's done in Christ is worthy of God's stamp of approval, imprimatur, and reward in heaven.  Paul counted all his deeds in the flesh as "dung."  We must see our faith as God's gift to us, not our gift to God.  We must never attain the mindset that God owes us and we're doing Him a favor! We are simply vessels of honor that God is using for His glory and purpose.  For this is the "chief end of man," according to The Westminster Shorter Catechism, "is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever."  John Piper adds that it should really read "by enjoying Him forever."  Our righteousness is God's gift to us and is the grand exchange for our sin.

That's grace:  we are forever in God's debt and will never be able to reimburse or pay Him back, and we never can earn it nor did we, and we certainly didn't deserve it and never will, much less we cannot add anything (nada!) to grace (not Jesus plus "churchmanship," Jesus plus "Churchianity," Jesus plus emotion (emotionalism or sentimentality); Jesus plus knowledge (Gnosticism or intellectualism); Jesus plus knowing the rules (legalism); nor Jesus plus being a do-gooder (moralism).  We must realize that grace means just that--the free gift of God we cannot even give back!  And God certainly won't ever take back His gift to us, for gifts are given and God will not repent concerning them:  "For God's gifts and his call are irrevocable" (Rom. 11:29, NIV).

In sum, we may think we are not that bad but God doesn't grade on a scale or curve and the closer we get to salvation and to God, the more we realize our own unworthiness and sinfulness.  Paul called himself the "chief of sinners" and William Jay of Bath said that he was a great sinner, but he had a great Savior.  No one is too far gone for God's grace and, in effect, we are all hopeless  (cf. Eph. 2:12) without it, no one cuts the mustard or meets the standards because Christ raised the bar to perfection, fulfilling the Law.

A word to the wise is sufficient:  We're predestined by grace, called by grace, saved and justified by grace, kept by grace, sanctified by grace, glorified by grace! By grace, no one is lost in the shuffle.   Soli Deo Gloria!

What About Hell? Well, What About It?

"... Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?" (Gen. 18:25, ESV).
"For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men" (Lam. 3:33, KJV). 

NB:  JUSTICE DELAYED IS NOT JUSTICE DENIED!  

I heard an anecdote of a child asking the parent what the word heck was, and was told that it was where you go when you don't believe in Gosh!  Many people feel so uncomfortable about hell that they avoid the subject and it isn't even part of their vocabulary. In fact, this is the doctrine that probably gives Christianity a bad rap and people become antagonistic.  The word is often avoided in polite company and euphemisms are used, just as for death itself.  We're all guilty of not taking it seriously, even trivializing it or correcting someone's diction, even when offended.  We don't want to admit publically it exists because people object--a way of showing tact and sensitivity.  But the truth can be offensive.  Even the heathen will bid someone go there when they want to curse them, take revenge, or get even.  Sometimes it seems that at some time everyone wishes there was a hell, even if they don't believe in God--just for a place for their enemies to go. You may even hear an atheist tell you to go there when angry!

Now, God is also uncomfortable about hell; yes, He created it for the devil and his fallen angels and it's the "other place" where people realize who they wanted to be for eternity apart from God; however, God had no choice (what's He to do?) because He is holy and just and cannot tolerate evil but must judge it.  If He overlooked it without retribution, He wouldn't be just!  There is no other place to go as an alternative final abode; either one is with God or separated for Him forever--no middle ground of neutrality or no-man's land. 

The punishment and this is not a place to learn a lesson or to be reformed like a prison, but a place of comeuppance--being dealt their due desserts.  But God is just and people are not punished beyond what strict justice mandates and the more one knew to do right, the more accountable they are, that of whom much is given, much is required also.  There is final equity in hell for the just punishment of the lost or condemned. People in hell will not be able to repent, it's not a place of people changing their minds concerning their lives and lack of faith in God, for they will still insist that they are right and God wrong and accuse Him, instead of owning up to their own failings and evils.  You would think people would realize their failures, but they will not and only be hardened and committed in their animosity toward God. Repentance is the gift of God and a matter of grace, but there's no grace in hell; as it says in Dante's Inferno, "All ye who enter here abandon all hope!"

If we eliminate hell from our doctrine, Christianity would be a lot more palatable to the infidel and some even think that that is the weakness of the faith--this teaching. They may want to be apologetic for God, protecting His reputation, but hell is real whether we preach it or not; Jesus mentioned it twice as much as heaven and the same word for everlasting was used to describe it--it's not annihilation or the grave as cults lead one to believe.  Hell is a necessary doctrine because it must be  If God is just and didn't punish sin it would mean He has weakness or is nonchalant or not holy.  But God is almighty and holy and can do something about what offends Him.  Sin isn't just something that God can overlook like we can, because God is allergic to sin and good and evil are antithetical to God and they cannot co-exist.

The torture of hell might be that this is the place where there are no rules and people get what they always wanted, but the real hell of it is that God isn't' there and they will realize that God's presence is what gives us joy in life and the ability to live life to the fullest.  Just like it wasn't good for man to be alone and that's why God created Eve, hell could be a place of ultimate solitariness where one must contemplate forever what he did and have no one to blame but himself.  They will have to live with their depraved self without any redeeming value or blessings.  It's like having everything to live on and nothing to live for; in that case, even rich people are bored and find no purpose in life until they find true meaning in God.

Thus hell is the eternal monument to man's dignity where ultimate justice is meted out accordingly and in due measure, no more nor any less than required.  It's a salute to man's so-called free will and the choices he made and that all choices have ultimate consequences!  Time to pay the piper!  Time for the recompense of the wicked getting what they deserve.  If there was no hell we would lose an important anchor in preaching and society to the reality of sin's judgment.

We don't repent to get so-called fire insurance or a ticket out of hell, but we must realize there are consequences to our choices and decisions which God will judge.  Christians shall not come into judgment (cf. John 5:24; Rom. 8:1), but the wicked will be judged (cf. Rom. 2:6; Heb. 9:27) according to their works and the books opened to show that they fall short of the perfect requirements for heaven's entree in spite of their do-goodism.   Soli Deo Gloria!

The Naked Ape...

"There is something about the way God is that is like the way we are." (Moreland and Rae, Body & Soul, 158). 

There was a popular '60s book entitled, The Naked Ape, about the similarities of man to the beast. He just looks at how we're alike without recognizing the vast contrast:  viva la difference!   "Where is the one who makes us smarter than the animals..." (Job 18:3, NLT). "Do you think we are mere animals?  Do you think we are stupid?" (Job 18:3, NLT).  People are brainwashed with the Big Lie that we are animals, and thus can do or live according to our own morals and mores or ethics.  Consequently, believing we are animals, is it any wonder we act like them (rampant immorality, and always new inventions of sin)?   They say that "people of faith have a psychological need to believe, but they have behavioral and psychological needs not to believe--it might upset their lifestyle!

But man is distinct from the beast:  he's programmed or hard-wired to be like God in image and likeness in order to relate to God and fellowship and worship Him.  We were not made to be complete in our relationships with the beasts--Adam found no suitable helpmate before Eve.  God made man to be in communion with Him and to glorify Him while enjoying the ride!  We are "naked" in the sense that we are self-conscious, not that we evolved into wearing clothes because we had no fur coat to keep warm!  Chihuahuas have less hair and no desire to wear clothes.  Why is it that it was after Adam and Eve ate of the proverbial apple that they put on aprons of fig leaves?  They became self-conscious and knew good and evil for starters. Why is it that young children are unaware of their nakedness? They are innocent!  Man is a sinner and is the only creature that is--animals aren't accountable for their deeds! '

Man is hard-wired for many things since he's in God's image:

To worship God (if he doesn't he'll find something or someone to worship, even if it's himself!); to work (man fulfills himself in his labors and makes himself in God's image); to communicate and relate to others (animals communicate but don't argue, or communicate about the communication; only man can know God in the sense of having the mind to fathom, the heart to love, the will to obey)--note that God is abstract and animals are incapable of this type of reasoning; to be rational with a sense to reason with (you cannot reason with beasts!); to know right and wrong, good and evil (we alone have a conscience to feel guilt!); man is not a creature of instinct like the beast because we can control our passions and channel them to what's responsible (beasts are merely animals in heat avoiding pain and discomfort and seeking pleasure and are mainly sex, shelter, and food-driven); we're creative and want to accomplish tasks; while we're also self-critical; we can plan and forecast the future within reason;  we have a learning curve that passes on to the next generation and increases in knowledge; we alone appreciate beauty, design, and harmony of nature, especially in art and music; man alone has imagination, and man is called Homo sapien because he's the wise man;  we're drawn to be moral and principle-driven, and we're temperamental and emotional and express it in complex manners.

When you see all the differences between man and beast we have to wonder when did hominids become human?  There are more to differ than to compare--we are in contrast to beasts not just better beasts.  Even Darwin scoffed at the idea we should trust the convictions of a monkey!  And when did hominids acquire human rights?   But most of all, man is hard-wired for dignity (extrinsic from God), purpose (in God), and meaning (in God)!  In fact, "Unless you assume a God, the question of life's purpose is meaningless (Bertrand Russell, atheist).  In sum, we must ask why man alone has the concept of eternity in his heart and seeks after God and isn't oblivious to Him.  We seek fulfillment in life and to live for something above and beyond, bigger than ourselves.    

In sum, a man realizes his potential in being like God expressing virtue and abstract behavior: good sportsmanship, good faith, altruism, bravery, integrity, justice, decency, unselfishness, et cetera.  Soli Deo Gloria! 

Christians Rock Too!

Jesus may be different things to different people, often depending on your culture and background. If you are partial to Rock, you may believe Jesus rocks or rather can rock; however, if you love the Classics, you may be inclined to believe Jesus loves orchestras, and so forth!  Listing to Johnny Cash, I believe Jesus may speak Country! Many of the classical composers were devout Christians and I can say personally, that God has given me a great degree of appreciation for the Classics, now that I have His Spirit.  I sense the Holy Spirit especially when I hear the organ music of J. S. Bach, written as a prelude to worship services.  Haven't you ever heard the oratorio, Handel's Messiah and recognize the glory of heavenly choruses singing the "Hallelujah" in harmony? He claims to have seen a vision of God while composing it.  In my opinion, heavenly music is beautiful and doesn't have to carry a beat.  Is Jesus in a choir? Truly, Jesus is different strokes for different folks.  There is no one-size-fits-all type of worship or musical genre that pleases believers or God.

It is dangerous to put God in a box and claim that Jesus exclusively endorses a certain genre of music--some may rightly claim that Jesus has a soul, or that Jesus raps, too.  God is out to reach as many people as possible and can use any medium He chooses, but that doesn't mean we have to like any medium against our nature or culture. If you liked Rock & Roll, you are bound to feel an affinity to "Christian Rock."  What we need to do is find the genre we can relate to and not think that we have cornered the market on Christian music with it--as they say:  "To each his own." I do not see the heavenly choruses of angels rock and roll myself, but that's my opinion.  It seems that heavenly music is of a different dimension!

It is a dangerous doctrine to interpret an enthusiastic gathering as meaning that God endorses it in any special way, or that "Jesus is there!"  Christ wants us to learn to walk with Him wherever we go and to find Him in all our situations, not just at a concert.  According to Scripture, whenever two or three are gathered in His name, Christ is present.  He warned against saying, "Christ is here," or "Christ is there," to mean a blessing or sanction on the music genre or a special presence.  We believe Christ is present in a special way at the Lord's Supper--not at concerts (you shouldn't feel that you have to go someplace to be filled with the Spirit, as it is written of David, who "strengthened himself in the LORD his God), because concerts often feed on emotions and not truth.

I take issue at some of their lyrics; however, music often rules and you can get people to believe almost anything by putting it to a tune. Poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world, according to Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Today's phenomenon is that the musicians seem to be dictating the doctrines of the church.  Truth still matters!

If you are not musical, meaning, by definition, you cannot carry a tune, sing in key, or even sense rhythm, then how can you agree that Jesus fits into your box or you know what music He favors or blesses?   Are we at the mercy of the musicians to decide for us or can we find our own way that God speaks to our souls? Before the dawn of Rock & Roll, was Jesus musical, or was He silent?  Has God changed?  I decry the way the Christian music scene today has become so dominated with professionalism and musicians out to hold concerts, charging for admission--you shouldn't have to pay to worship God! Have we witnessed the professionalization of worship?

And so, one must say that "his Jesus" (Jesus as he knows, relates, and sees) rocks, but others may take issue and posit that "their Jesus" has the preference for soul, raps, or personifies the ageless appeal of the classics. When you say, "Jesus rocks," you should make it clear what you are saying, because those are loaded terms, easily misconstrued.   There is no such thing as "Christian music" because God transcends our limits and cannot be defined musically (i.e., put in a box), who invented it:  it is not the music that is non-Christian, but the lyrics in many cases.

Case in point:  I get goosebumps every time I hear the "Star-spangled Banner," or "God Bless America." Does this mean that Christ is a patriotic American?  There is so much unnecessary confusion in the church due to not saying what we mean, and leaving it open to private interpretation. Just because drums and guitars are used, doesn't define it as Rock; but merely contemporary--we should never limit ourselves, nor God!  Soli Deo Gloria!

I Write The Songs...

"Beautiful words stir my heart.  I will recite a lovely poem about the king, for my tongue is like the pen of a skillful poet" (Psalm 45:1, NLT).   "You are always on their lips but far from their hearts (Jer. 12:2, NIV).  "Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness." (Psalm 29:2, NIV).  "To sing is to pray twice."  --Augustine

Barry Manilow was known in the '70s for his song that assumed the personification of music.  "I wrote the very first song.  I write the songs that make the whole world sing,  [I am music]..."    Music is symbolic language (NB:  musical instruments are symbols too and music isn't mentioned until Gen. 4:21) and those who speak the language know that it can be interpreted in many lights too, it can soothe the savage beast and lift the spirits, as well as arouse to patriotism and warfare readiness.  They used to march into battle at the sound of a trumpet or horn's ram.

Music is essentially worship in essence and we all have this inclination to express this because our God is musical and invented it.  As man is the religious creature he is--hard-wired for worship, he will worship someone or something (even himself), if not God, to fill this gap and need of ours. Hero worship and celebrity enchantment or fascination are two examples prevalent today.

The Scripture, especially the psalms, exhort us to "sing unto the LORD," but not everyone has musical ability to carry a tune or sing in key and some may feel embarrassed at their voice handicap.  That's all right, because not every believer is called to be the voice of God or to bring Him praise in the same way.  We all must find our niche by virtue of exercising our gifting and make ourselves useful in God's service as unto the Lord (we must try out to test our gifting).

One thing I want to point out about interpreting the psalms is that poetry is another type of genre than teaching or didactive type found in the epistles.  And the principle is to interpret metaphoric poetry in light of didactive portions, not vice versa.  Don't try to base your doctrine solely on a poetic phrase.  When the psalm says to sing unto the Lord, it may mean in a symbolic or spiritual sense--singing in the Spirit and with one's spirit--which is much better than going through the motions and memorizing the song and dance routine of the pious!  After all, if the mountains can break forth into song and the seas can roar, we know it's metaphoric and not necessarily to be taken literally  The hermeneutic principle is that we take the Bible as literally true, but not everything is literal!

Everything we do is to be as unto the Lord and in His name; for instance, the writing of a hymn requires the filling and anointing ministry of the Spirit.  In that case when someone pens a song unto the Lord, he is the hand of Jesus that is worshiping God and not being inhibited.  In a sense, writing is a form of singing in the Spirit, just like playing an instrument is, and whistling and humming are, and one's spirit is singing aloud the praises of God realizing fulfillment in song.  That's why we believe in the freedom of expression.  A song is incomplete until sung!  A poem is incomplete until read.   That's what brings life to them and satisfaction and fulfillment.  The Jews used to believe that they had to read aloud to bring life to what they were reading.  We don't want our thoughts to remain that--just something in our head as head belief!

We must be careful not to judge another's worship or expression of it by whether he's audibly singing or voicing aloud his worship publicly. There are those who are inhibited and refrain from verbalizing their praise, but often to their regret:  One dying man said, "If I had the strength, I'd shout praise to God!" The reply by the chaplain, "It's too bad you didn't praise God when you had the strength!"  God doesn't look at the outward appearance, but the condition of the heart--He alone is in a position to judge and we don't have enough info to do it; for instance, it says to sing a new song, and they may not like the song it's not new to them and they would be just giving mere lip service hypocritically. Some are very discretionary as to what they will sing, and agree with.  But it's better to be silent than to pretend worship or do it without a heart after God or being after God's own heart.  

Corporate worship is complicated and involves input from instruments, writers, worship leaders, and even choruses--it's not a performance, but service and ministry of the Spirit.  Worship is done throughout the service (offering, the preaching, sharing, fellowship, gift usage) and when people know their niche, are edified, and feel part of the fellowship, they are worshiping in spirit and in truth. Singing unto the Lord is not just vocalization, but also instrumentalism and instrumentation, silent reverence and awe, and finally, even singing in one's spirit.

We don't need a list of dos and don'ts, for our faith is not a to-do list, because God wants us to want to sing unto the Lord, and not do it from compulsion. He wants it to be a natural response.  He seeks joyful and glad adoration from the heart; it's paramount that we be ourselves and act without hypocrisy--how you act alone might be indicative of your real identity.     Soli Deo Gloria!