"Shall I offer my firstborn for my sin,
My body's fruit for the wrongs of my soul?"
So Micah voiced Israel's remorse and chagrin,
In response to God's indictment of old!
They well knew He cared not for sacrifice,
To atone for many years of cold hearts;
What He wanted, they hated most precise:
Humble obedience on all their parts!
The Lord asks but little of any man;
To do even-handed justice; to love
And show mercy, insofar as one can;
To walk humbly with their God above!
What God wanted, proud Israel would not do;
The things He despised, they would not subdue!
Micah lived in southern Judah near the border with Philistia in the latter part of the 8th century B.C., at the same time as Isaiah. David's great nation of Israel had been long divided into two nations, named Israel and Judah. Both nations had stubbornly drifted into disobedience to God, breaking their duties under His covenant with Moses. His and Isaiah's messages to Israel were similar, warnings of judgment to come followed by restoration. It was a short time before the destruction of Samaria (Israel) in 701 B.C. by the Assyrians, and more than a century before the Babylonians demolished Jerusalem and Judah in 586 B.C. Micah's prophetic message took the form of a court trial---God acting as prosecutor, Israel the defendant, and the surrounding nations as judge and jury. Micah's written words conveyed both God's charges and a generalized defense from Israel. The poem highlights Israel's petulant plaint that perhaps God would be placated for its sins if the people would slay their firstborns in atonement. This was far from pleasing to the Lord, who had used the plague of slaying firstborn Egyptian children to force Egypt to free Israel from slavery; He had also used the threat of it to test Abraham's obedience. Both of these events were about as far removed from substitution for atonement of sin as anyone could imagine; their use by Micah as coming from Israel was at least sarcasm, and at worst insulting to God.
"Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:7-8)
God knew the future as well as the past; how do you suppose it made Him feel to hear from these obstreporous sinners a sarcastic, insincere parody of giving the lives of their firstborns to have their odious sins forgiven when in a few short centuries His own firstborn Son would in stark reality be nailed to a cross and killed for nothing less than their sins and ours? Nevertheless, He calmly responded with a prescription for forgiveness remarkably similar to that given by Jesus in Matthew 22:34-40. He was asked what the most important commandment of God's 10 was. His answer was "To love the Lord your God with all your might, mind, body and soul", followed by the second greatest commandment, "To love your neighbor as you love yourself". Micah's formula for God's approval and Jesus' prescription for keeping the Ten Commandments in reality mean the same: To act justly and to show mercy is a good interpretation of loving your neighbor as yourself; and to walk humbly with your God is the same as loving Him above all others or anything else! Either mantra would make an excellent memory prompt for you and me to keep continuously in mind every day.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Before The World Began
The great Caruso remains mute in awe;
Mozart rejects first-composed notes for new;
Sistene's artist, aghast, discerns the flaw,
Blots his ceiling, as too marred for men's view!
What, pray tell, is this paragon of worth
That humbles giants and makes great art mundane?
It's God's master plan for man and Earth;
How the Kingdom of Heaven to attain!
No detail's too minute to be left out;
Not one chance act or word of man or beast
Takes place whose role's unplanned or creates doubt;
Each outcome's foreknown, if famine or feast!
Alpha to Omega, God made His plan,
Man's history complete, before he began!
The grandeur and beauty of God's master plan for man and his world stem not from its wondrous perseverance or ingenuity or any heroic effort of its protagonist; they arise from the spectacular success in preserving God's even-handed justice and credibility, despite the endless sordid exhibitions of gross failures and incurable carnality of the creature made in His image. All of it was planned by God in advance of any act of creation, even before the angels. The foreknowledge of Lucifer's rebellion and dark obstructing presence throughout also adds luster to the plan and its divine Author; instead of detracting from God's unmatched stature for giving evil life, even knowing in advance the tragedy it would do to His beloved human creation, Lucifer becomes the essential deus ex machina that justifies His bequest to man of unbribed free will!
"The Lord possessed me ['wisdom'---God's omniscience (foreknowledge)] at the beginning of his works, before his deeds of old; I was appointed from eternity, from the beginning, before the world began. When there were no oceans, I was given birth, when there were no springs abounding with water, before the mountains were settled in place, before the hills, I was given birth, before he made the earth or its fields or any of the dust of the world. I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep, when he established the clouds above, and fixed securely the fountains of the deep, when he gave the sea its boundary so the waters would not overstep his command, and when he marked out the foundations of the earth." (Proverbs 9:22-29) [Brackets added]
No, God did not wind up the earth like a clock and retire, watching to see how it developed; nor did He haplessly flounder about, fixing breakdowns and putting new wrinkles in his original plan when first initiatives or covenants failed to work. Though from afar the history of man may appear as a patchwork quilt revealing man's failures and God's repairs, its every twist and turn, nook and cranny, whitewater rapid and millpond smooth, it has worked precisely as God knew it would; His original outcome is marching inexorably closer, matched to His expected finis.
Mozart rejects first-composed notes for new;
Sistene's artist, aghast, discerns the flaw,
Blots his ceiling, as too marred for men's view!
What, pray tell, is this paragon of worth
That humbles giants and makes great art mundane?
It's God's master plan for man and Earth;
How the Kingdom of Heaven to attain!
No detail's too minute to be left out;
Not one chance act or word of man or beast
Takes place whose role's unplanned or creates doubt;
Each outcome's foreknown, if famine or feast!
Alpha to Omega, God made His plan,
Man's history complete, before he began!
The grandeur and beauty of God's master plan for man and his world stem not from its wondrous perseverance or ingenuity or any heroic effort of its protagonist; they arise from the spectacular success in preserving God's even-handed justice and credibility, despite the endless sordid exhibitions of gross failures and incurable carnality of the creature made in His image. All of it was planned by God in advance of any act of creation, even before the angels. The foreknowledge of Lucifer's rebellion and dark obstructing presence throughout also adds luster to the plan and its divine Author; instead of detracting from God's unmatched stature for giving evil life, even knowing in advance the tragedy it would do to His beloved human creation, Lucifer becomes the essential deus ex machina that justifies His bequest to man of unbribed free will!
"The Lord possessed me ['wisdom'---God's omniscience (foreknowledge)] at the beginning of his works, before his deeds of old; I was appointed from eternity, from the beginning, before the world began. When there were no oceans, I was given birth, when there were no springs abounding with water, before the mountains were settled in place, before the hills, I was given birth, before he made the earth or its fields or any of the dust of the world. I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep, when he established the clouds above, and fixed securely the fountains of the deep, when he gave the sea its boundary so the waters would not overstep his command, and when he marked out the foundations of the earth." (Proverbs 9:22-29) [Brackets added]
No, God did not wind up the earth like a clock and retire, watching to see how it developed; nor did He haplessly flounder about, fixing breakdowns and putting new wrinkles in his original plan when first initiatives or covenants failed to work. Though from afar the history of man may appear as a patchwork quilt revealing man's failures and God's repairs, its every twist and turn, nook and cranny, whitewater rapid and millpond smooth, it has worked precisely as God knew it would; His original outcome is marching inexorably closer, matched to His expected finis.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
This Doomed World
Sodom's debris with righteous anger shakes
Beneath its desolate brimstone covers,
That God sustains this evil world who breaks
His laws of sex, her men of men lovers,
Yet oddly withholds His avenging hand!
Where is the Abraham that beseeches
Him His awful judgment to countermand
For sakes of who do as His Word teaches?
Even now His angels of impending doom
Are spreading alerts to the righteous few,
To prepare for this world's dark night of gloom
That must come before He makes it anew!
Ask Gomorrah, Egypt, Canaan, Babel,
If to respond, anyone is able!
Homosexuality is a sin, according to the Bible in both the Old and New Testaments. There is no excuse; no equivocation; no obfuscation; no symbolic puzzle; no misinterpretation. Of course, however, it is forgivable; it is not unpardonable. No person is born with an unquenchable attraction for same-gender sexual gratification; none with an unbreakable proclivity. Should there be such impulses, and there are with almost every individual, God expects those impulses to be successfully resisted, and the Bible says He will not test a person beyond his ability to refuse.
The principal cause for the deliberate obliteration of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 17 was homosexuality and its derivative practices. The Bible makes clear that if various sins were ranked according to the detestation of God homosexuality would be at or near the top. Modern psychology, sociology and formal governing authority have established toleration of homosexuality to unprecedented levels of respectability that encourage its increasing practice; indeed, its advisability, in certain mental and emotional aberrations from misguided cultural norms. Correspondingly, Christian marriage and the institution of heterosexual monogamous family are nosediving to levels dangerous to a healthy society.
This phenomenon is not surprising in a world whose occupants are born with inherent sinful natures, even before the takeover of world culture by postmodernism. Now our guiding philosophy is obsessed with hostility to absolute truths, especially Biblical, and the cultural demand for diversity in all things. Before, there was always more evil behaviors in the world than righteous; now, however, sin is a tidal wave threatening the very existence of Christianity. The abominations of abortion and same-sex immorality are potential rivals to the cultures of Canaan before Israelite took over and the pre-flood world, both of which God destroyed because of the stink of sin. The Bible forecasts the same destruction for today's earth and people, and for the same reason. Christianity, however, will not be extinguished, no matter how powerful its enemies become.
Beneath its desolate brimstone covers,
That God sustains this evil world who breaks
His laws of sex, her men of men lovers,
Yet oddly withholds His avenging hand!
Where is the Abraham that beseeches
Him His awful judgment to countermand
For sakes of who do as His Word teaches?
Even now His angels of impending doom
Are spreading alerts to the righteous few,
To prepare for this world's dark night of gloom
That must come before He makes it anew!
Ask Gomorrah, Egypt, Canaan, Babel,
If to respond, anyone is able!
Homosexuality is a sin, according to the Bible in both the Old and New Testaments. There is no excuse; no equivocation; no obfuscation; no symbolic puzzle; no misinterpretation. Of course, however, it is forgivable; it is not unpardonable. No person is born with an unquenchable attraction for same-gender sexual gratification; none with an unbreakable proclivity. Should there be such impulses, and there are with almost every individual, God expects those impulses to be successfully resisted, and the Bible says He will not test a person beyond his ability to refuse.
The principal cause for the deliberate obliteration of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 17 was homosexuality and its derivative practices. The Bible makes clear that if various sins were ranked according to the detestation of God homosexuality would be at or near the top. Modern psychology, sociology and formal governing authority have established toleration of homosexuality to unprecedented levels of respectability that encourage its increasing practice; indeed, its advisability, in certain mental and emotional aberrations from misguided cultural norms. Correspondingly, Christian marriage and the institution of heterosexual monogamous family are nosediving to levels dangerous to a healthy society.
This phenomenon is not surprising in a world whose occupants are born with inherent sinful natures, even before the takeover of world culture by postmodernism. Now our guiding philosophy is obsessed with hostility to absolute truths, especially Biblical, and the cultural demand for diversity in all things. Before, there was always more evil behaviors in the world than righteous; now, however, sin is a tidal wave threatening the very existence of Christianity. The abominations of abortion and same-sex immorality are potential rivals to the cultures of Canaan before Israelite took over and the pre-flood world, both of which God destroyed because of the stink of sin. The Bible forecasts the same destruction for today's earth and people, and for the same reason. Christianity, however, will not be extinguished, no matter how powerful its enemies become.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Thanksgiving Prayer 2009
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
You're so good to me.
Thank you for every beat of my heart,
And for the hope of new life with you
when you let it stop.
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
You're so good to me.
Thank you for my soul that will never die,
that will return to you when my body
returns to dust.
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
You're so good to me.
Thank you for planet Earth, the only safe place
for me in the universe.
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
You're so good to me.
Thank you for family who love me,
who encircle, protect , and sustain me;
Thank you for loving friends, who care
and uplift prayers on my behalf;
And thank you for all people, that I may
love them for you.
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
You're so good, so good to me.
Every human being has an almost-irrepressible trait of self-pride in what he/she is or has achieved in life. Frank Sinatra expressed this well in his popular and powerful hit song, "I Did It My Way". Heroic as the lyric seems, it is misguided and the greatest of all sins of mankind---taking credit for oneself in what God has made possible, allowed and assisted one to do.
Pride stands like an impenetrable wall between man and his Maker. How can most humans ignore the God that created them? How can sincere Christians, incredibly fortunate to have received and responded to the revealing truth, claim credit for any good thing they has received? If we conquer, or if we struggle, it is because of what God has set before us. We must learn humility, and it must be absolute and abject.
You're so good to me.
Thank you for every beat of my heart,
And for the hope of new life with you
when you let it stop.
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
You're so good to me.
Thank you for my soul that will never die,
that will return to you when my body
returns to dust.
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
You're so good to me.
Thank you for planet Earth, the only safe place
for me in the universe.
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
You're so good to me.
Thank you for family who love me,
who encircle, protect , and sustain me;
Thank you for loving friends, who care
and uplift prayers on my behalf;
And thank you for all people, that I may
love them for you.
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
Thank you, thank you, Jesus;
You're so good, so good to me.
Every human being has an almost-irrepressible trait of self-pride in what he/she is or has achieved in life. Frank Sinatra expressed this well in his popular and powerful hit song, "I Did It My Way". Heroic as the lyric seems, it is misguided and the greatest of all sins of mankind---taking credit for oneself in what God has made possible, allowed and assisted one to do.
Pride stands like an impenetrable wall between man and his Maker. How can most humans ignore the God that created them? How can sincere Christians, incredibly fortunate to have received and responded to the revealing truth, claim credit for any good thing they has received? If we conquer, or if we struggle, it is because of what God has set before us. We must learn humility, and it must be absolute and abject.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Paul Corrects Peter
"You really must not do that," scolded Paul
To Peter, aloud at the supper meal.
"Salvation by faith is now free to all,
For Gentiles and Jews; Jesus died to heal
The breech! You dine only with fellow Jews,
A man-made rule, not a part of the law!
Moses' ways are no longer any's dues;
Belief in Jesus saves men from hell's maw!
"What I have made clean, do not call unclean!"
God once told Peter, and which he'd forgot.
When Jew-Christians from the law would not wean,
They forced it on saved Gentiles; Paul said not!
God's free grace, not men's works, is the one way
For them to escape death on Judgment Day!
"When Peter came to Antioch, I [Paul] opposed him to his face, because he was clearly wrong. Before certain men [Jewish Christians] came from James [Jerusalem church pastor] , he used to eat with the Gentiles [members of Antioch church]. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcism group. The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by his hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray," (Galatians 2:11-13) [Brackets added] (Please read the remaining verses of Chapter 2 for further explanation)
What a man was Paul! He was not afraid to upbraid the chief apostle of Jesus for behaving in mistaken prejudice! What a great contribution to just-born Christianity! Had it not been for Paul, Christian churches might be a movement within Judaism, and we Christians would have to be circumcised and who knows what else!
Paul first appeared in the Bible after the ascension of Jesus to heaven as Saul, a fierce persecutor of the new faith. He was a Jew, a Pharisee; super-intelligent, he was needed to correct the shortcomings of the uneducated apostles in making sure the doctrine of Jesus Christ followed the true meaning of God's plan. He was needed especially to open the door to heaven for all races and all men, else it might have been closed to all that did not become Judaic. The first Christians were all Jews; Jesus was a Jew, but it was never God's intention to save them only. There was a large percentage of Jewish Christians who fiercely resisted admitting Gentiles unless they submitted to outdated Judaistic rules and rites. Called "Judaisers", these elements followed Paul over the Roman Empire attempting to change his teaching that salvation was free to those who had faith in Jesus; not a single "work" was required!
Judaism had developed many rules of behavior that strayed from God's law given Moses in the desert. They had tried to keep God for their exclusive benefit; therefore, they had become pompous and deemed themselves the most important tribe in all the world. Everyone else was a Gentile, unclean and contemptible, not fit people for Jews to be with. God had taught Peter earlier that he was not to consider Gentiles beneath Jews, by sending him into the house of Cornelius, a Roman, who was converted (See Acts 10). For a time Peter championed the equality of Jew and Gentile, but the outdated opinions of stubborn brothers influenced him to backslide.
To Peter, aloud at the supper meal.
"Salvation by faith is now free to all,
For Gentiles and Jews; Jesus died to heal
The breech! You dine only with fellow Jews,
A man-made rule, not a part of the law!
Moses' ways are no longer any's dues;
Belief in Jesus saves men from hell's maw!
"What I have made clean, do not call unclean!"
God once told Peter, and which he'd forgot.
When Jew-Christians from the law would not wean,
They forced it on saved Gentiles; Paul said not!
God's free grace, not men's works, is the one way
For them to escape death on Judgment Day!
"When Peter came to Antioch, I [Paul] opposed him to his face, because he was clearly wrong. Before certain men [Jewish Christians] came from James [Jerusalem church pastor] , he used to eat with the Gentiles [members of Antioch church]. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcism group. The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by his hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray," (Galatians 2:11-13) [Brackets added] (Please read the remaining verses of Chapter 2 for further explanation)
What a man was Paul! He was not afraid to upbraid the chief apostle of Jesus for behaving in mistaken prejudice! What a great contribution to just-born Christianity! Had it not been for Paul, Christian churches might be a movement within Judaism, and we Christians would have to be circumcised and who knows what else!
Paul first appeared in the Bible after the ascension of Jesus to heaven as Saul, a fierce persecutor of the new faith. He was a Jew, a Pharisee; super-intelligent, he was needed to correct the shortcomings of the uneducated apostles in making sure the doctrine of Jesus Christ followed the true meaning of God's plan. He was needed especially to open the door to heaven for all races and all men, else it might have been closed to all that did not become Judaic. The first Christians were all Jews; Jesus was a Jew, but it was never God's intention to save them only. There was a large percentage of Jewish Christians who fiercely resisted admitting Gentiles unless they submitted to outdated Judaistic rules and rites. Called "Judaisers", these elements followed Paul over the Roman Empire attempting to change his teaching that salvation was free to those who had faith in Jesus; not a single "work" was required!
Judaism had developed many rules of behavior that strayed from God's law given Moses in the desert. They had tried to keep God for their exclusive benefit; therefore, they had become pompous and deemed themselves the most important tribe in all the world. Everyone else was a Gentile, unclean and contemptible, not fit people for Jews to be with. God had taught Peter earlier that he was not to consider Gentiles beneath Jews, by sending him into the house of Cornelius, a Roman, who was converted (See Acts 10). For a time Peter championed the equality of Jew and Gentile, but the outdated opinions of stubborn brothers influenced him to backslide.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
From Whence The Big Bang?
Two friends were talking, as friends sometimes do,
About whether God exists, or does not.
One said, "Of course not! We die; we are through!
The grave is the end, where our bodies rot!"
"Without God, there'd be no life; random chance
Could have never formed this earth safe for man.
The Big Bang could not have been happenstance;
What was here before the cosmos began?
God was here; the energy He supplied
Became matter; made the bodies in space;
Only earth is safe for life to abide!
It was planned just for the human race!
God must have done it for some good reason,
Which He will reveal to us in due season!
Matter cannot be unless it is made of energy! Why is it so hard for human reason to accept that an eternal body can be made from a human soul? If matter comes from energy, and returns to energy, why cannot the supernatural come from the natural? Both the natural/supernatural phenomenon and the energy/matter were devised by God.
Albert Einstein first proposed the theory that matter is created from pure energy. The thesis has now been proven and is widely accepted in the scientific world. The basis for the rapidly exploding technology of the past seventy years is owing to Einstein. Scientists have traced the origin of the universe back to a single instant in time 13.7 billion years ago, when a silent but huge burst of energy was released into the void of space. As to what caused the Big Bang, or what was there before it, they are totally stumped! The Bible says God was there. Here's what I believe: It was His energy that was released---His spoken command! It was programmed from the beginning with the entire plan of development, creation of earth, and the details of the lives lived by every man, plant, and animal that ever lived.
Georges Lemaitre proposed the theory leading to Big Bang discoveries in 1927, followed by Edwin Hubbell's finding that all galaxies are speeding away from each other at ever-increasing speeds, in 1929. This means that the original "explosion" of energy is still exploding; we're racing away from ground zero as well as everything else!
Einstein was a Jew who didn't believe specifically in God, but he did believe in a "superior spirit" that allowed man to discover bits and pieces of the world. I believe that spirit to be God. He created all this just so He could create man and prepare a safe place to exist---for a time. He must consider us to be very special. Why do so many of us ignore Him?
About whether God exists, or does not.
One said, "Of course not! We die; we are through!
The grave is the end, where our bodies rot!"
"Without God, there'd be no life; random chance
Could have never formed this earth safe for man.
The Big Bang could not have been happenstance;
What was here before the cosmos began?
God was here; the energy He supplied
Became matter; made the bodies in space;
Only earth is safe for life to abide!
It was planned just for the human race!
God must have done it for some good reason,
Which He will reveal to us in due season!
Matter cannot be unless it is made of energy! Why is it so hard for human reason to accept that an eternal body can be made from a human soul? If matter comes from energy, and returns to energy, why cannot the supernatural come from the natural? Both the natural/supernatural phenomenon and the energy/matter were devised by God.
Albert Einstein first proposed the theory that matter is created from pure energy. The thesis has now been proven and is widely accepted in the scientific world. The basis for the rapidly exploding technology of the past seventy years is owing to Einstein. Scientists have traced the origin of the universe back to a single instant in time 13.7 billion years ago, when a silent but huge burst of energy was released into the void of space. As to what caused the Big Bang, or what was there before it, they are totally stumped! The Bible says God was there. Here's what I believe: It was His energy that was released---His spoken command! It was programmed from the beginning with the entire plan of development, creation of earth, and the details of the lives lived by every man, plant, and animal that ever lived.
Georges Lemaitre proposed the theory leading to Big Bang discoveries in 1927, followed by Edwin Hubbell's finding that all galaxies are speeding away from each other at ever-increasing speeds, in 1929. This means that the original "explosion" of energy is still exploding; we're racing away from ground zero as well as everything else!
Einstein was a Jew who didn't believe specifically in God, but he did believe in a "superior spirit" that allowed man to discover bits and pieces of the world. I believe that spirit to be God. He created all this just so He could create man and prepare a safe place to exist---for a time. He must consider us to be very special. Why do so many of us ignore Him?
Thursday, November 19, 2009
THE TWENTY-THIRD PSALM
"The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want;
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters;
He restores my soul;
He leads me in paths of righteousness, for His name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the Shadow of Death,
I will fear no evil; for you are with me.
Your rod and your staff, they comfort me;
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."
David wrote this poem about 1000 years before the birth of Jesus. He was Israel's second king, and he led Israel during its greatest time in history. It is David's kingdom that the Jews dream of and want Israel to be again. Much of the Bible concerns the history and future of the Jewish people. The future is primarily spiritual, which for the Jews themselves is still an enigma because of the curse announced by Isaiah. God dulled their spiritual insight so that He could cause them to reject Jesus as Messiah and offer salvation to the entire world rather than to Jews alone. They brought the curse upon themselves by gross obstinacy toward obedience to Him. God had meant salvation for this whole world from the beginning, but they didn't see it that way. They deemed they were better than every other race.
Many of the psalms were written by David. The Jews used them in worship, singing them to their Creator as praise hymns. They are regarded as excellent and elegant poetry. C. S. Lewis praised Psalm 19 as "the greatest lyrics ever composed by man." This 23rd Psalm is the favorite of more people than any other. I have quoted it aloud during surgeries I'm sure to the astonishment (and chagrin) of the medical personnel.
Each of Israel's kings was required by God to copy the Pentateuch (the first five Books of the Bible written by Moses---Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) by hand and spend time reading it every day. The many kings of Israel were vastly different---some God-fearing and faithful, most evil and disreputable.
Israel is now a free nation in a sliver of the land which God promised them. According to the Bible, they will always be free and their spiritual insight will be restored.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters;
He restores my soul;
He leads me in paths of righteousness, for His name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the Shadow of Death,
I will fear no evil; for you are with me.
Your rod and your staff, they comfort me;
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."
David wrote this poem about 1000 years before the birth of Jesus. He was Israel's second king, and he led Israel during its greatest time in history. It is David's kingdom that the Jews dream of and want Israel to be again. Much of the Bible concerns the history and future of the Jewish people. The future is primarily spiritual, which for the Jews themselves is still an enigma because of the curse announced by Isaiah. God dulled their spiritual insight so that He could cause them to reject Jesus as Messiah and offer salvation to the entire world rather than to Jews alone. They brought the curse upon themselves by gross obstinacy toward obedience to Him. God had meant salvation for this whole world from the beginning, but they didn't see it that way. They deemed they were better than every other race.
Many of the psalms were written by David. The Jews used them in worship, singing them to their Creator as praise hymns. They are regarded as excellent and elegant poetry. C. S. Lewis praised Psalm 19 as "the greatest lyrics ever composed by man." This 23rd Psalm is the favorite of more people than any other. I have quoted it aloud during surgeries I'm sure to the astonishment (and chagrin) of the medical personnel.
Each of Israel's kings was required by God to copy the Pentateuch (the first five Books of the Bible written by Moses---Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) by hand and spend time reading it every day. The many kings of Israel were vastly different---some God-fearing and faithful, most evil and disreputable.
Israel is now a free nation in a sliver of the land which God promised them. According to the Bible, they will always be free and their spiritual insight will be restored.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Sinners In Every Church
"Dear Lord, Deliver her from scoffers without,
Who seek to separate Christ from His church;
Warm the cold hearts of those within who doubt
Their pastor's guidance, his leadership smirch!
Warn carpers they work in Satan's employ,
Their whispered words fomenting inner strife,
Robbing believers of salvation's joy,
Making more difficult their new-found life!"
Satan on his own is trouble enough,
For neophyte Christians with new lives to learn,
Without facing barrages of bad stuff,
From veterans who long since made the turn!
The baptized believer leaves ranks of sinners
For others forgiven but still sinners!
This sonnet opens with a pastor's prayer for his church. The first two lines ask God for His aid in battling the critics outside the church; he devotes six lines for asking His help with carpers within the church, which proportionally is equal to the troubles every church faces. The church members themselves do more to create strife and hamper its progress than non-members. I own a prized T-shirt that pictures a truth of the Bible of which many Christians are unaware. Emblazoned across the front is the one word, "FORGIVEN"; across the back is the rest of the story, "I AM NOT PERFECT, JUST FORGIVEN"! When someone intrudes on you and asks if you have been saved, your proper reaction should be of gratitude; first, because he cares enough about your future, to call your attention to a very important matter, of which it is possible you do not know; and second, because he risks an angry reaction that can destroy a wonderful relationship. This angry reaction usually takes the form of anger, because you may think he thinks he is better than you. That is absolutely untrue. He loves you and wants you to spend eternal life in heaven, and you cannot do that unless your sins have been forgiven. He is not claiming he does not sin; he could live a more sinful like than you. The only difference is that he has been forgiven of his sins, and possibly you have not. You don't have to live a perfect life to be saved, but you do have to be forgiven.
Once a hew believer is forgiven of his past sins, he is urged by the Holy Spirit to be "born again". He is a gentle and loving Counselor that knows that as long as you live you will commit sin. He is persistent; as long as you listen to His advice and try to follow it, He will never give up, and by that you know that you are saved. Your sins are forgiven by God freely, merely by your asking. But if you keep on with your old habits and quit listening to the Spirit, He will slowly withdraw from you and eventually remain silent. This happens to a lot of would-be Christians who are Christian in name only. This means that within every church ever member commits sin; it also means that a lot of bickering, gossip, destructive divisions, and the like goes on in God's institution the church/ New members are often shocked to find imperfect Christians in the church; many drop out because of it. Mark 3:20 cites that blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is an unpardonable sin. Ignoring Him will "quench" His efforts to save you.
Who seek to separate Christ from His church;
Warm the cold hearts of those within who doubt
Their pastor's guidance, his leadership smirch!
Warn carpers they work in Satan's employ,
Their whispered words fomenting inner strife,
Robbing believers of salvation's joy,
Making more difficult their new-found life!"
Satan on his own is trouble enough,
For neophyte Christians with new lives to learn,
Without facing barrages of bad stuff,
From veterans who long since made the turn!
The baptized believer leaves ranks of sinners
For others forgiven but still sinners!
This sonnet opens with a pastor's prayer for his church. The first two lines ask God for His aid in battling the critics outside the church; he devotes six lines for asking His help with carpers within the church, which proportionally is equal to the troubles every church faces. The church members themselves do more to create strife and hamper its progress than non-members. I own a prized T-shirt that pictures a truth of the Bible of which many Christians are unaware. Emblazoned across the front is the one word, "FORGIVEN"; across the back is the rest of the story, "I AM NOT PERFECT, JUST FORGIVEN"! When someone intrudes on you and asks if you have been saved, your proper reaction should be of gratitude; first, because he cares enough about your future, to call your attention to a very important matter, of which it is possible you do not know; and second, because he risks an angry reaction that can destroy a wonderful relationship. This angry reaction usually takes the form of anger, because you may think he thinks he is better than you. That is absolutely untrue. He loves you and wants you to spend eternal life in heaven, and you cannot do that unless your sins have been forgiven. He is not claiming he does not sin; he could live a more sinful like than you. The only difference is that he has been forgiven of his sins, and possibly you have not. You don't have to live a perfect life to be saved, but you do have to be forgiven.
Once a hew believer is forgiven of his past sins, he is urged by the Holy Spirit to be "born again". He is a gentle and loving Counselor that knows that as long as you live you will commit sin. He is persistent; as long as you listen to His advice and try to follow it, He will never give up, and by that you know that you are saved. Your sins are forgiven by God freely, merely by your asking. But if you keep on with your old habits and quit listening to the Spirit, He will slowly withdraw from you and eventually remain silent. This happens to a lot of would-be Christians who are Christian in name only. This means that within every church ever member commits sin; it also means that a lot of bickering, gossip, destructive divisions, and the like goes on in God's institution the church/ New members are often shocked to find imperfect Christians in the church; many drop out because of it. Mark 3:20 cites that blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is an unpardonable sin. Ignoring Him will "quench" His efforts to save you.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Why Jesus Taught In Parables
Jesus explained why parables were used
In teaching Jews of the Kingdom of God;
They had God's covenant grossly abused;
God dulled their insight and left them in fog!
The Jews learned of this in Isaiah's day,
Seven hundred years prior to Jesus' birth;
They didn't like then what he had to say,
Though time has proved the ancient judgment's worth!
They put the prophet in a hollow log
And sawed it and him into pieces two,
But that was no cure for the blinding smog;
No race since has been so dull as the Jew!
Their insight will return when Jesus does;
The parables will clear with no more fuzz!
"The disciples came to him and asked, 'Why do you speak to the people [Jews] in parables?' He replied, 'The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and he will have abundance; whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. This is why I speak to them in parables.'" (Matthew 13:10-12) [Brackets added]
Jesus followed this explanation of why He spoke in parables to the people by quoting God's judgment upon the Jews given by Isaiah before 700 B.C.
"He [God] said, 'Go and tell this people [Israel and Judah]:'" (Isaiah 6:9-10) [Brackets added]
Let me say here, that some Jews were saved by the direct election of God in every phase of their history, because of their obedience and loyalty to Him. A great majority was not. In the time of Isaiah, God revealed to the Chosen People, the two nations of Israel and Judah, that He was going to intervene in their destiny by making their spiritual insight unusually calloused. Natural man has always had a callousness toward spiritual truths, but the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were made more dull than the Gentiles in punishment for their recalcitrance toward their responsibilities in the covenant God made with Moses in the desert. God will lift His judgment on Jews when Christ returns to earth, and the majority of them will accept Him then as Messiah, mourning at their previous treatment of Him.
The Jews never accepted this judgment of God. When Jesus cited it as His reason for teaching in parables; when Paul reminded his fellow Jews of it in Acts 28 and Romans 11, they became infuriated at him and (in Acts) left his preaching service en masse; together with Judaism's obstinacy toward Jesus as Messiah to this day (November 2009); all these inform us of their refusal to accept the just sanction of God upon them. However, the curse will be lifted, and a remnant (those still living at the time Jesus returns) will be saved.
A very interesting statement by Jesus in Matthew 13 is that whoever has (meaning whoever has learned of Jesus and wants to learn more) will be given more, and whoever has not (meaning he has learned something of Jesus but refuses to learn more), even what he has will be taken away. The reason it is important is that it is a direct reference to the "quenching" of the Holy Spirit's soul-winning effort in the heart of a person who fails to "listen" to His advice. Repeated rejection by a person will result in fewer and gentler nudges to move in the Lord's direction; finally, the Spirit will give up His futile battle with the devil; He will leave that person to fend for himself. This can be classified as the "unpardonable" sin, which the Bible says is "blasphemy" against the Holy Spirit (See Mark 3:20).
In teaching Jews of the Kingdom of God;
They had God's covenant grossly abused;
God dulled their insight and left them in fog!
The Jews learned of this in Isaiah's day,
Seven hundred years prior to Jesus' birth;
They didn't like then what he had to say,
Though time has proved the ancient judgment's worth!
They put the prophet in a hollow log
And sawed it and him into pieces two,
But that was no cure for the blinding smog;
No race since has been so dull as the Jew!
Their insight will return when Jesus does;
The parables will clear with no more fuzz!
"The disciples came to him and asked, 'Why do you speak to the people [Jews] in parables?' He replied, 'The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and he will have abundance; whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. This is why I speak to them in parables.'" (Matthew 13:10-12) [Brackets added]
Jesus followed this explanation of why He spoke in parables to the people by quoting God's judgment upon the Jews given by Isaiah before 700 B.C.
"He [God] said, 'Go and tell this people [Israel and Judah]:
Let me say here, that some Jews were saved by the direct election of God in every phase of their history, because of their obedience and loyalty to Him. A great majority was not. In the time of Isaiah, God revealed to the Chosen People, the two nations of Israel and Judah, that He was going to intervene in their destiny by making their spiritual insight unusually calloused. Natural man has always had a callousness toward spiritual truths, but the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were made more dull than the Gentiles in punishment for their recalcitrance toward their responsibilities in the covenant God made with Moses in the desert. God will lift His judgment on Jews when Christ returns to earth, and the majority of them will accept Him then as Messiah, mourning at their previous treatment of Him.
The Jews never accepted this judgment of God. When Jesus cited it as His reason for teaching in parables; when Paul reminded his fellow Jews of it in Acts 28 and Romans 11, they became infuriated at him and (in Acts) left his preaching service en masse; together with Judaism's obstinacy toward Jesus as Messiah to this day (November 2009); all these inform us of their refusal to accept the just sanction of God upon them. However, the curse will be lifted, and a remnant (those still living at the time Jesus returns) will be saved.
A very interesting statement by Jesus in Matthew 13 is that whoever has (meaning whoever has learned of Jesus and wants to learn more) will be given more, and whoever has not (meaning he has learned something of Jesus but refuses to learn more), even what he has will be taken away. The reason it is important is that it is a direct reference to the "quenching" of the Holy Spirit's soul-winning effort in the heart of a person who fails to "listen" to His advice. Repeated rejection by a person will result in fewer and gentler nudges to move in the Lord's direction; finally, the Spirit will give up His futile battle with the devil; He will leave that person to fend for himself. This can be classified as the "unpardonable" sin, which the Bible says is "blasphemy" against the Holy Spirit (See Mark 3:20).
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Not So Strange
What did they want, Mary and His brothers,
When they stood without the house where He spoke?
Had He embarassed them before others,
Making claims they thought nothing but a joke?
Were they hoping He would go home with them,
Leave the public eye, ending this wild talk?
If He did, maybe the priests' rage would dim,
And in the open once more they could walk!
They may have thought Jesus had lost His mind,
Spreading the news of the Kingdom of God;
Telling folks how eternal life to find---
Forgiving others, and living so odd!
It would not be strange if they wanted this,
For they, too, were learning how to find bliss!
"Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, 'He is out of his mind.' ... Then Jesus' mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. 'Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.' 'Who are my mother and my brothers?' he asked. Then he looked at them seated in a circle around him and said, 'Here are my mothrer and my brothers! Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother!" (Mark 3:20-21, 31-35)
It is obvious from Mark 3:21 that Mary and His brothers did think Jesus had lost His mind. It would be natural for a family to reach out to a loved one whose words had stirred the anger of the San Hedrin, attempt to bring him home and keep him under wraps for awhile. But Jesus was having none of it; though His rejection must have grieved His family, it was essential if He was to succeed in His mission to earth. Also, His own words emphasized that the child of God must put his Lord first in all things and above all others, even family. If He had interrupted His work and subjected Himself to them, it would have been inconsistent with His own commandments. He set the example for the millions of Christians who followed; we are not to put anyone above God, not even our spouse. This is contrary to the women's liberation movement and the teaching of psychologists today; but it is they who are deceived; the Bible is very clear on this point.
Furthermore, this incident tells us that Mary gave birth to other sons after the virgin birth of Jesus. Hence, she was guilty of sin---the original sin of Adam, for one; also, her attempt to intercede in Jesus' work was a sin. It also reveals that His own human family had not grasped the import of their son's plan of salvation at this time, maybe not until after His crucifiction and ascension.
When they stood without the house where He spoke?
Had He embarassed them before others,
Making claims they thought nothing but a joke?
Were they hoping He would go home with them,
Leave the public eye, ending this wild talk?
If He did, maybe the priests' rage would dim,
And in the open once more they could walk!
They may have thought Jesus had lost His mind,
Spreading the news of the Kingdom of God;
Telling folks how eternal life to find---
Forgiving others, and living so odd!
It would not be strange if they wanted this,
For they, too, were learning how to find bliss!
"Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, 'He is out of his mind.' ... Then Jesus' mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. 'Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.' 'Who are my mother and my brothers?' he asked. Then he looked at them seated in a circle around him and said, 'Here are my mothrer and my brothers! Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother!" (Mark 3:20-21, 31-35)
It is obvious from Mark 3:21 that Mary and His brothers did think Jesus had lost His mind. It would be natural for a family to reach out to a loved one whose words had stirred the anger of the San Hedrin, attempt to bring him home and keep him under wraps for awhile. But Jesus was having none of it; though His rejection must have grieved His family, it was essential if He was to succeed in His mission to earth. Also, His own words emphasized that the child of God must put his Lord first in all things and above all others, even family. If He had interrupted His work and subjected Himself to them, it would have been inconsistent with His own commandments. He set the example for the millions of Christians who followed; we are not to put anyone above God, not even our spouse. This is contrary to the women's liberation movement and the teaching of psychologists today; but it is they who are deceived; the Bible is very clear on this point.
Furthermore, this incident tells us that Mary gave birth to other sons after the virgin birth of Jesus. Hence, she was guilty of sin---the original sin of Adam, for one; also, her attempt to intercede in Jesus' work was a sin. It also reveals that His own human family had not grasped the import of their son's plan of salvation at this time, maybe not until after His crucifiction and ascension.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
The Sanctifier
The Holy Spirit is first to be sought,
When God's children plan a Kingdom advance;
Expect no victory in battles fought,
Unless His counsel your efforts enhance!
Jesus told His faithful that He would send
The Spirit to tell them what words to say;
When He appeared, a rushing, mighty wind,
All spoke in tongues unknown to such as they!
Each believer the Spirit does indwell,
And guides him in paths Jesus does approve;
He supplies right words of the truth to tell,
Which sway lost ones toward the Lord to move!
"Dear Spirit, Speak oft and bold; be not shy;
Your words will I heed; your counsel, comply!"
"It is for your good that I [Jesus speaking to apostles] am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment... But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth." (John 15:7-9, 13) [Brackets added]
"When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what appeared to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues [languages] as the Spirit enabled them." (Acts 2:1-4) [Brackets added]
"But the fruit [effects produced] of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness and self-control, ,,, Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified [gotten rid of] the sinful nature with its passions and desires." (Galations 5:22-24) [Brackets added]
Most of us have attended a church worship service, a Billy Graham crusade service, a Christian wedding or Christian funeral, whether a believer or not. Think back to that experience. Didn't you feel a gentle tug at your heart when the speaker offered any who desired to accept Jesus a chance to come forward? That gentle urge was the Holy Spirit, one of whose tasks is to tenderly nudge the non-believer towards acceptance of Christ and a guilt feeling for having neglected Him.
The Holy Spirit is the third manifestation of God in the world. He, Jesus Christ and the Father are one and the same; He is God being made known in three different beings. He is sometimes called the "Sanctifier", for He indwells the believer as a guide to purifying his life from worldly preoccupation to one described by Paul in Galations above. Does your life possess love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness and self control? Are these traits noticeable to all your friends and family? If not, the Holy Spirit will help you to acquire them.
When God's children plan a Kingdom advance;
Expect no victory in battles fought,
Unless His counsel your efforts enhance!
Jesus told His faithful that He would send
The Spirit to tell them what words to say;
When He appeared, a rushing, mighty wind,
All spoke in tongues unknown to such as they!
Each believer the Spirit does indwell,
And guides him in paths Jesus does approve;
He supplies right words of the truth to tell,
Which sway lost ones toward the Lord to move!
"Dear Spirit, Speak oft and bold; be not shy;
Your words will I heed; your counsel, comply!"
"It is for your good that I [Jesus speaking to apostles] am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment... But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth." (John 15:7-9, 13) [Brackets added]
"When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what appeared to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues [languages] as the Spirit enabled them." (Acts 2:1-4) [Brackets added]
"But the fruit [effects produced] of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness and self-control, ,,, Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified [gotten rid of] the sinful nature with its passions and desires." (Galations 5:22-24) [Brackets added]
Most of us have attended a church worship service, a Billy Graham crusade service, a Christian wedding or Christian funeral, whether a believer or not. Think back to that experience. Didn't you feel a gentle tug at your heart when the speaker offered any who desired to accept Jesus a chance to come forward? That gentle urge was the Holy Spirit, one of whose tasks is to tenderly nudge the non-believer towards acceptance of Christ and a guilt feeling for having neglected Him.
The Holy Spirit is the third manifestation of God in the world. He, Jesus Christ and the Father are one and the same; He is God being made known in three different beings. He is sometimes called the "Sanctifier", for He indwells the believer as a guide to purifying his life from worldly preoccupation to one described by Paul in Galations above. Does your life possess love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness and self control? Are these traits noticeable to all your friends and family? If not, the Holy Spirit will help you to acquire them.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
A Crown For Jesus
Jesus knew that Judah had made Him a crown,
But He also knew that He they would reject;
God meant it not for the Christ's first time down,
But the next, when His rule He would inject!
This crown was kept in the second temple;
It was there when Jesus, at twelve, was, too;
The elders assumed the boy was simple,
But listened in awe at how much He knew!
I wonder, while there, if He glimpsed His crown,
And, boy-like, wished He could test if it fit;
Not He, but Rome, got it, looting the town;
When Christ returns, He'll have many like it!
Crown Him King of every earth nation,
For such will be the Lord's coronation!
"The word of the Lord came to me [Zechariah]: 'Take silver and gold from the exiles Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, who have arrived from Babylon. Go the same day to the house of Josiah, son of Zephaniah. Take the silver and the gold and make a crown, and set it on the head of the high priest, Joshua, son of Jebozadak. Tell him this is what the Lord Almighty says,The crown will be given to Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah and Hen, son of Zephanaiah as a memorial in the temple of the Lord.'" (Zechariah 6:9-14) [Brackets added]
The prophet Zechariah lived, preached and wrote in the small colony of Judah among the Jews returning from 70 years captivity in Babylon, 500 years before the birth of Jesus, the Messiah. The high priest at the time was an ordinary man named Joshua, the Hebrew name Jesus. Zechariah's mission was mainly to motivate the returning Jews to rebuild the temple; the Babylonians had destroyed Solomon's magnificent temple in their capture of Jerusalem in 578 B.C. This second temple was Herod;s temple that existed in Jerusalem when Jesus came. It was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. The scripture passage cited above gives God's command to Zechariah to have a king's crown made for Jesus, the coming Messiah. It was placed temporarily on the head of Joshua, the current high priest to symbolize that because he had the same name as Jesus, it was for the divine Branch of the line of David coming later that the crown was meant for, It also emphasized to the Jews and Chrisians to follow that the divine ruler would combine the offices of Prophet, Priest, and King, similar to the functions of Moses in earlier times. The crown was also meant to be only one of many, because its true owner would have many crowns and rule all the nations of the world, not just Israel. The "temple" that this ruler would build is probably symbolic rather than real---symbolic of the temple of the new covenant, which is the Kingdom of God that Jesus announced and described in His Sermon on the Mount (See Matthew 5-7).
God knew that Jesus would first come as a gentle example of how He wanted His followers to live; they were to spread love to all the world; to be cooperative with their rulers, no matter how harsh. It is perplexing that He had the Jews to make this crown before Jesus came meek and mild, since the crown-making would have the effect of exciting them at the prospect of an unbeatable military leader who would rule the world; how could they reconcile the unaggressive Jesus with their expectation of a Napoleonic leader? Perhaps it was done by God in this fashion because He, in fact, had told them 200 years before, by Isaiah, that their stubborn refusal to adhere to their responsibilities of the Mosaic covenant had caused Him to further dull their calloused spiritual insight (See Isaiah 6:9-10). It seems apparent that God wanted Israel to reject Jesus; by so doing, the Gentile world became eligible for salvation, not just Jews. Of course, it was always like that in God's plan, but the Jews had become insufferably self-important, thinking their God was for them alone. God knew that this crown was not to be awarded to Jesus the Messiah; it was meant for Christ at His Second Coming, which was totally beyond what Jewish theologians could grasp.
But He also knew that He they would reject;
God meant it not for the Christ's first time down,
But the next, when His rule He would inject!
This crown was kept in the second temple;
It was there when Jesus, at twelve, was, too;
The elders assumed the boy was simple,
But listened in awe at how much He knew!
I wonder, while there, if He glimpsed His crown,
And, boy-like, wished He could test if it fit;
Not He, but Rome, got it, looting the town;
When Christ returns, He'll have many like it!
Crown Him King of every earth nation,
For such will be the Lord's coronation!
"The word of the Lord came to me [Zechariah]: 'Take silver and gold from the exiles Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, who have arrived from Babylon. Go the same day to the house of Josiah, son of Zephaniah. Take the silver and the gold and make a crown, and set it on the head of the high priest, Joshua, son of Jebozadak. Tell him this is what the Lord Almighty says,
The prophet Zechariah lived, preached and wrote in the small colony of Judah among the Jews returning from 70 years captivity in Babylon, 500 years before the birth of Jesus, the Messiah. The high priest at the time was an ordinary man named Joshua, the Hebrew name Jesus. Zechariah's mission was mainly to motivate the returning Jews to rebuild the temple; the Babylonians had destroyed Solomon's magnificent temple in their capture of Jerusalem in 578 B.C. This second temple was Herod;s temple that existed in Jerusalem when Jesus came. It was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. The scripture passage cited above gives God's command to Zechariah to have a king's crown made for Jesus, the coming Messiah. It was placed temporarily on the head of Joshua, the current high priest to symbolize that because he had the same name as Jesus, it was for the divine Branch of the line of David coming later that the crown was meant for, It also emphasized to the Jews and Chrisians to follow that the divine ruler would combine the offices of Prophet, Priest, and King, similar to the functions of Moses in earlier times. The crown was also meant to be only one of many, because its true owner would have many crowns and rule all the nations of the world, not just Israel. The "temple" that this ruler would build is probably symbolic rather than real---symbolic of the temple of the new covenant, which is the Kingdom of God that Jesus announced and described in His Sermon on the Mount (See Matthew 5-7).
God knew that Jesus would first come as a gentle example of how He wanted His followers to live; they were to spread love to all the world; to be cooperative with their rulers, no matter how harsh. It is perplexing that He had the Jews to make this crown before Jesus came meek and mild, since the crown-making would have the effect of exciting them at the prospect of an unbeatable military leader who would rule the world; how could they reconcile the unaggressive Jesus with their expectation of a Napoleonic leader? Perhaps it was done by God in this fashion because He, in fact, had told them 200 years before, by Isaiah, that their stubborn refusal to adhere to their responsibilities of the Mosaic covenant had caused Him to further dull their calloused spiritual insight (See Isaiah 6:9-10). It seems apparent that God wanted Israel to reject Jesus; by so doing, the Gentile world became eligible for salvation, not just Jews. Of course, it was always like that in God's plan, but the Jews had become insufferably self-important, thinking their God was for them alone. God knew that this crown was not to be awarded to Jesus the Messiah; it was meant for Christ at His Second Coming, which was totally beyond what Jewish theologians could grasp.
Monday, November 9, 2009
No Call Returned Void
What tugs at my heart when I hear the call
For sinners to come forward to be saved?
At the age of nine I gave Him my all,
Marshaled my courage and baptism braved!
I have filled the pew most Sundays since then,
Paid my tithe, and given offerings, too;
I have sought the Spirit's guidance within,
Been faithful to pray and search Scripture through!
O, that I had many lives to commit
To Him who rescued me from hell's torment;
Then would ev'ry call have response to it,
So He'd be glorified by much assent!
Would that no call return to Jesus void,
And He'd ne'er have reason to be annoyed!
Each of us has only one soul. Once we choose to follow Jesus, begin revamping our lives, and changing attitudes and actions, our love for Him becomes so great, that it hurts us to see Him hurt. His terrible suffering during His final hours was voluntary, and for us; it becomes grievous to us; so does the "don't care" attitudes of family and friends who don't know Him or seem to want to, despite our prayers and ventures to talk with them about their salvation. Especially hurtful: When we succeed in having them attend church with us, and the pastor asks for those who "feel the call" to come forward for counseling and perhaps to respond favorably, they do not respond; no one does, and the service ends without a single inquirer. When that happens, as it often does, I feel terrible pain for my Lord, wishing I could go forward again and again! If only I could assuage the pain of Jesus Christ; but what real good would it do? One soul can only be saved once, no matter how many walks down the aisle it makes! As for lost friends, we can only keep praying, talking with them when appropriate, so as not to cause "walls" of resistance to erect themselves; most of all, we must continue to live before them in such a way as to incur their envy, their desire, to be happy like us. The way a Christian lives should present to others a model which inspires emulation; not many succeed, even if all try.
We are not ascribed guilt by God when our efforts to win friends to Jesus fail, unless we give up and quit trying to win them. Above all, we must not blend in with their lifestyles, participating in their worldly sins in order to win their trust and friendship. When we do that, it is Satan who has succeeded in winning a convert, rather than Christ! Jesus associated with publicly-known sinners in His ministry, going into their homes and talking with them about their eternal destinies. In fact, He was roundly criticized for it and asked why He did such forbidden things. He answered that He did not come into the world to heal or seek the already righteous, but to seek and to save the sick and lost of the world.
For sinners to come forward to be saved?
At the age of nine I gave Him my all,
Marshaled my courage and baptism braved!
I have filled the pew most Sundays since then,
Paid my tithe, and given offerings, too;
I have sought the Spirit's guidance within,
Been faithful to pray and search Scripture through!
O, that I had many lives to commit
To Him who rescued me from hell's torment;
Then would ev'ry call have response to it,
So He'd be glorified by much assent!
Would that no call return to Jesus void,
And He'd ne'er have reason to be annoyed!
Each of us has only one soul. Once we choose to follow Jesus, begin revamping our lives, and changing attitudes and actions, our love for Him becomes so great, that it hurts us to see Him hurt. His terrible suffering during His final hours was voluntary, and for us; it becomes grievous to us; so does the "don't care" attitudes of family and friends who don't know Him or seem to want to, despite our prayers and ventures to talk with them about their salvation. Especially hurtful: When we succeed in having them attend church with us, and the pastor asks for those who "feel the call" to come forward for counseling and perhaps to respond favorably, they do not respond; no one does, and the service ends without a single inquirer. When that happens, as it often does, I feel terrible pain for my Lord, wishing I could go forward again and again! If only I could assuage the pain of Jesus Christ; but what real good would it do? One soul can only be saved once, no matter how many walks down the aisle it makes! As for lost friends, we can only keep praying, talking with them when appropriate, so as not to cause "walls" of resistance to erect themselves; most of all, we must continue to live before them in such a way as to incur their envy, their desire, to be happy like us. The way a Christian lives should present to others a model which inspires emulation; not many succeed, even if all try.
We are not ascribed guilt by God when our efforts to win friends to Jesus fail, unless we give up and quit trying to win them. Above all, we must not blend in with their lifestyles, participating in their worldly sins in order to win their trust and friendship. When we do that, it is Satan who has succeeded in winning a convert, rather than Christ! Jesus associated with publicly-known sinners in His ministry, going into their homes and talking with them about their eternal destinies. In fact, He was roundly criticized for it and asked why He did such forbidden things. He answered that He did not come into the world to heal or seek the already righteous, but to seek and to save the sick and lost of the world.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
The Church Triumphant
When Jesus established His worldwide church,
He said that hell would never it defeat;
It has survived years of Satan's besmirch,
Smitten and battered, yet with grace replete!
Sail on! Dear ship of love, through flood and drought;
Schism, and Spirit-quenching chill within;
Take heart! Through constant attacks from without,
Or betrayal by her own apostate men!
Nothing will stop the church from sailing on
To join the Savior in the eastern sky,
Bringing Him the millions that are His own,
His bride-to-be, to reign with Him on high!
Overwhelmed and outnumbered though she be,
The church will prevail triumphant and free!
"I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not overcome it." (Matthew 16:18)
Jesus announced to His disciples that the "church", a new kind of institution, was to be established by them on earth to organize and proliferate believers by preaching His teachings. When you see a local church, whether Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist or Lutheran, remember that it is God's way of winning people to Himself and foiling the devil in his opposition to Christ. Also, remember that a single local church is but an "outpost" or a branch of the worldwide church instituted by Jesus. The amazing thing is that they have spread from a ragtag group in little Israel in 2000 years to cover the entire world; despite fierce opposition from Satan and his demons, it has grown in numbers and strength.
Because there are numerous and serious differences in interpretation of the Bible among theologians, different "denominations" have developed, which is undoubtedly confusing to the uninitiated, with some candidates for belief in Jesus forever lost because of it. For convenience, society has lumped Christian churches into two categories---Catholic and Protestant. Please understand this: Despite conflicting claims, the particular brand of church you participate in makes no difference to your salvation, the most important reason to belong; if you believe in Jesus as divine and living because He was resurrected, YOU WILL BE SAVED in any church, or out of church. The reason you participate in a church is not to be saved, but to carry out Jesus' command to seek and save those that are lost. You can multiply your own efforts by joining with others; this is an example of the sum being greater than all its parts together.
Warning: There are organizations masquerading as churches which are so influenced by Satan's lies and perversions of truth that those attracted are led down wrong paths; celebrity gurus, for example, promote a delusion such as that "All religions lead to heaven"; "God dwells inside each of us; find His will for you by meditation; follow it, and you can't go wrong". etc. Remember this; if salvation is presented to you in a prescription that omits belief in Jesus in whatever words, it is a deception of the devil!
Now, a word about the future. The Bible tells us that as we approach the "last days", meaning the time that Jesus Christ will return, the church will decline. Whole congregations will turn en masse to a different belief; individual Christians will drop out in large numbers. If this happens during your lifetime, do not panic and join the exodus. Stand firm in your faith, that Jesus is God, the true Savior of the world. Even if your whole church abandons God, you must stand alone and worship according to your 'first love'.
He said that hell would never it defeat;
It has survived years of Satan's besmirch,
Smitten and battered, yet with grace replete!
Sail on! Dear ship of love, through flood and drought;
Schism, and Spirit-quenching chill within;
Take heart! Through constant attacks from without,
Or betrayal by her own apostate men!
Nothing will stop the church from sailing on
To join the Savior in the eastern sky,
Bringing Him the millions that are His own,
His bride-to-be, to reign with Him on high!
Overwhelmed and outnumbered though she be,
The church will prevail triumphant and free!
"I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not overcome it." (Matthew 16:18)
Jesus announced to His disciples that the "church", a new kind of institution, was to be established by them on earth to organize and proliferate believers by preaching His teachings. When you see a local church, whether Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist or Lutheran, remember that it is God's way of winning people to Himself and foiling the devil in his opposition to Christ. Also, remember that a single local church is but an "outpost" or a branch of the worldwide church instituted by Jesus. The amazing thing is that they have spread from a ragtag group in little Israel in 2000 years to cover the entire world; despite fierce opposition from Satan and his demons, it has grown in numbers and strength.
Because there are numerous and serious differences in interpretation of the Bible among theologians, different "denominations" have developed, which is undoubtedly confusing to the uninitiated, with some candidates for belief in Jesus forever lost because of it. For convenience, society has lumped Christian churches into two categories---Catholic and Protestant. Please understand this: Despite conflicting claims, the particular brand of church you participate in makes no difference to your salvation, the most important reason to belong; if you believe in Jesus as divine and living because He was resurrected, YOU WILL BE SAVED in any church, or out of church. The reason you participate in a church is not to be saved, but to carry out Jesus' command to seek and save those that are lost. You can multiply your own efforts by joining with others; this is an example of the sum being greater than all its parts together.
Warning: There are organizations masquerading as churches which are so influenced by Satan's lies and perversions of truth that those attracted are led down wrong paths; celebrity gurus, for example, promote a delusion such as that "All religions lead to heaven"; "God dwells inside each of us; find His will for you by meditation; follow it, and you can't go wrong". etc. Remember this; if salvation is presented to you in a prescription that omits belief in Jesus in whatever words, it is a deception of the devil!
Now, a word about the future. The Bible tells us that as we approach the "last days", meaning the time that Jesus Christ will return, the church will decline. Whole congregations will turn en masse to a different belief; individual Christians will drop out in large numbers. If this happens during your lifetime, do not panic and join the exodus. Stand firm in your faith, that Jesus is God, the true Savior of the world. Even if your whole church abandons God, you must stand alone and worship according to your 'first love'.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Reapers Never Retire
I sang those dear old hymns of Jesus' love
In the far-off days of my carefree youth;
They fanned my flames of zeal for God above;
To woo and win lost souls to saving truth!
The march of time has eaten all my years,
And rock-roll praise music prevails today;
These hamper my reaping, raising cruel fears,
That gone are my chances, more souls to sway!
But the fire instilled in me long ago
Burns brightly; the nearness of death but spurs
Me on, to use the time, more seed to sow;
Keep on keeping on, the Spirit adjures!
Soldiers of the cross do never retire,
But keep winning souls until they expire!
The greatest music ever composed by men was inspired by their love of God, and it was first performed in His worship in church. Great change has occurred in church music, perhaps because the worship leaders are led to believe that more of the lost will be won by the use pf modern praise choruses, because the genre is so like the rock-and-roll and rap music popular with today's youth. But, at best, it is a gamble: In the final analysis, will more souls be won for God by changing worship music to fit modern taste, even if some of the elder Christians are turned away by it? Will the praise chorus have a lasting effect on preserving the zeal for God in its devotees, such as hymns had upon the faithful oldsters? Only God can answer that question truthfully. Perhaps the hymn-lovers are remiss in not succeeding in developing and preserving their zeal for the changed genre of worship music; it is apparent that they have not been able to love it as they did hymn music. O, most cooperate quietly and harmoniously, by standing for long periods, singing and bouncing with the enthusiastic younger worshipers, but sadly they remember with sorrow the hymns of their youth.
I can only speak for myself. The hymns we sang in church in my growing-up days move melodiously through my mind 4 decades later. I love them; inspiration to serve God faithfully for me was born in the singing of those old songs, and it lives in me today more strongly even than in those long-ago days. The most important commandment Jesus ever gave to His followers is to tell the good news of free salvation to everyone we have contact with in this life, and we don't stop at age 65; it won't stop until we draw our last breath. We know that it is the Holy Spirit doing His job inside the unsaved person who actually does the most to convict him of guilt for living counter to the wishes of God; we also know that the gospel must be explained to him from a believer on the outside. We talk to people about the way they live because we love them; it is our desire to warn them that they must be forgiven by Christ Jesus to avoid condemnation. It's not easy, because most people interpret our intrusion as an insult; many times the reaction is, "I'm as good as you are!", and they certainly are. The believer, however, does not approach anyone thinking he is any better; far from it; he knows he is a sinner; he also knows that God has forgiven him of his sins. He is really saying, "Has God forgiven you yet?". because that's the important thing.
In the far-off days of my carefree youth;
They fanned my flames of zeal for God above;
To woo and win lost souls to saving truth!
The march of time has eaten all my years,
And rock-roll praise music prevails today;
These hamper my reaping, raising cruel fears,
That gone are my chances, more souls to sway!
But the fire instilled in me long ago
Burns brightly; the nearness of death but spurs
Me on, to use the time, more seed to sow;
Keep on keeping on, the Spirit adjures!
Soldiers of the cross do never retire,
But keep winning souls until they expire!
The greatest music ever composed by men was inspired by their love of God, and it was first performed in His worship in church. Great change has occurred in church music, perhaps because the worship leaders are led to believe that more of the lost will be won by the use pf modern praise choruses, because the genre is so like the rock-and-roll and rap music popular with today's youth. But, at best, it is a gamble: In the final analysis, will more souls be won for God by changing worship music to fit modern taste, even if some of the elder Christians are turned away by it? Will the praise chorus have a lasting effect on preserving the zeal for God in its devotees, such as hymns had upon the faithful oldsters? Only God can answer that question truthfully. Perhaps the hymn-lovers are remiss in not succeeding in developing and preserving their zeal for the changed genre of worship music; it is apparent that they have not been able to love it as they did hymn music. O, most cooperate quietly and harmoniously, by standing for long periods, singing and bouncing with the enthusiastic younger worshipers, but sadly they remember with sorrow the hymns of their youth.
I can only speak for myself. The hymns we sang in church in my growing-up days move melodiously through my mind 4 decades later. I love them; inspiration to serve God faithfully for me was born in the singing of those old songs, and it lives in me today more strongly even than in those long-ago days. The most important commandment Jesus ever gave to His followers is to tell the good news of free salvation to everyone we have contact with in this life, and we don't stop at age 65; it won't stop until we draw our last breath. We know that it is the Holy Spirit doing His job inside the unsaved person who actually does the most to convict him of guilt for living counter to the wishes of God; we also know that the gospel must be explained to him from a believer on the outside. We talk to people about the way they live because we love them; it is our desire to warn them that they must be forgiven by Christ Jesus to avoid condemnation. It's not easy, because most people interpret our intrusion as an insult; many times the reaction is, "I'm as good as you are!", and they certainly are. The believer, however, does not approach anyone thinking he is any better; far from it; he knows he is a sinner; he also knows that God has forgiven him of his sins. He is really saying, "Has God forgiven you yet?". because that's the important thing.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Christ Honored In A Million Ways
"The church is to gather, to pray, to sing,
Preach the gospel, and tarry, till Christ come!"
Said a pompous deacon, when a new thing
Was proposed, not squarely under his thumb.
Spoke up one, who oft heeded the Holy Ghost*,
"What will we do in heaven's endless years?
Just what we do here in each Sunday's host?
Surely, God will permit a change of gears!
We'll do all things as here, plus work and play,
Create art, enjoy life, as each does will;
Here, the church in house need not always stay,
Her Savior's commandments all to fulfill!
We can honor Christ in millions of ways,
Other than gathering, and singing praise!"
*Holy Ghost = Holy Spirit
The local church is one of thousands of branches of the universal church, an institution Jesus established on earth to win people to choose the path of God, teach and train them, send them out to the far reaches of the earth, telling them the good news of the gospel---salvation is available to everyone. No local church is free of squabbling, petty politics, divisive competition for control, and Satanic influences. Rather than being frightened to enter the church to do his tempting, Satan makes church congregations his primary attackees. The church is most surely not a group of homogeneous perfected Christians who do not sin; rather, every member of the church is a sinner; the church is a "hospital" for their care. Many an eager new believer has entered the church expecting to find peace, harmony, and Christlike behaviors only to discover the same or worse backbiting, quarreling cliques he hated in his weekday workplace. Sadly, many have abandoned their pilgrimage because of bickering in the church. The sinfulness found in human nature is not easy to change into the righteousness that God expects.
The Holy Spirit indwells every believer and will guide him in learning to live by the teachings of Christ. What can easily happen to new believers, though, is that they do not recognize the still, small voice of God advising them, choosing instead to follow the loud demands of outsiders, all of whom eventually lead the beginners back into the clutches of sin. If He is repeatedly ignored, His counsel often unfollowed, the Spirit is quenched, becoming quieter and quieter until finally, his host-believer never hears His guidance; He sadly remains silent. Please do not let that happen to you.
Yes, heaven is a place in which all wholesome pursuits will be practiced by those fortunate and wise enough to be there. Plus, it will have none of the petty bickering found among human beings; we will have new imperishable bodies, not bodies of flesh with sinful natures. We can't take with us the pride, ambition, self-centeredness, lust. greed, covetousness, envy, dissentiousness, quarrelsome natures we are saddled with on earth; also, we would have learned to discipline ourselves to forgive others, control our anger, quit holding grudges, and to live as a fit member of the Kingdom of God. We will be called "saints" in heaven; not because we earned the title, but because we started trying to earn it, and God forgave our failures and supplied us with grace to teach us what we failed to learn.
Preach the gospel, and tarry, till Christ come!"
Said a pompous deacon, when a new thing
Was proposed, not squarely under his thumb.
Spoke up one, who oft heeded the Holy Ghost*,
"What will we do in heaven's endless years?
Just what we do here in each Sunday's host?
Surely, God will permit a change of gears!
We'll do all things as here, plus work and play,
Create art, enjoy life, as each does will;
Here, the church in house need not always stay,
Her Savior's commandments all to fulfill!
We can honor Christ in millions of ways,
Other than gathering, and singing praise!"
*Holy Ghost = Holy Spirit
The local church is one of thousands of branches of the universal church, an institution Jesus established on earth to win people to choose the path of God, teach and train them, send them out to the far reaches of the earth, telling them the good news of the gospel---salvation is available to everyone. No local church is free of squabbling, petty politics, divisive competition for control, and Satanic influences. Rather than being frightened to enter the church to do his tempting, Satan makes church congregations his primary attackees. The church is most surely not a group of homogeneous perfected Christians who do not sin; rather, every member of the church is a sinner; the church is a "hospital" for their care. Many an eager new believer has entered the church expecting to find peace, harmony, and Christlike behaviors only to discover the same or worse backbiting, quarreling cliques he hated in his weekday workplace. Sadly, many have abandoned their pilgrimage because of bickering in the church. The sinfulness found in human nature is not easy to change into the righteousness that God expects.
The Holy Spirit indwells every believer and will guide him in learning to live by the teachings of Christ. What can easily happen to new believers, though, is that they do not recognize the still, small voice of God advising them, choosing instead to follow the loud demands of outsiders, all of whom eventually lead the beginners back into the clutches of sin. If He is repeatedly ignored, His counsel often unfollowed, the Spirit is quenched, becoming quieter and quieter until finally, his host-believer never hears His guidance; He sadly remains silent. Please do not let that happen to you.
Yes, heaven is a place in which all wholesome pursuits will be practiced by those fortunate and wise enough to be there. Plus, it will have none of the petty bickering found among human beings; we will have new imperishable bodies, not bodies of flesh with sinful natures. We can't take with us the pride, ambition, self-centeredness, lust. greed, covetousness, envy, dissentiousness, quarrelsome natures we are saddled with on earth; also, we would have learned to discipline ourselves to forgive others, control our anger, quit holding grudges, and to live as a fit member of the Kingdom of God. We will be called "saints" in heaven; not because we earned the title, but because we started trying to earn it, and God forgave our failures and supplied us with grace to teach us what we failed to learn.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Do Not Love The Things Of This World!
Avoid worldly pleasures and seats of pow'r;
Do not love the things this world can provide;
Sing praises to God ev'ry worship hour,
And dwell with joy among the Christian tribe!
Help adorn the Bride* for her royal Groom**,
Your constancy a glory to our God;
The meanest tasks for Him more noble loom;
Better to sweep for Him than wield earth's rod***!
He values most what carnal men despise,
And hates their proudest tokens of esteem;
What this world calls trash, God values most prize,
Their trophies bitter balm to the Supreme!
Be not found with the getters and spenders;
Cast your earthly lot with church attenders!
*Bride = the church; **Groom = Jesus; ***earth's rod = ruler of earth
The best and simplest way to describe how Jesus taught believers to live is to despise this world and everything in it; not the people---love them. In His Sermon on the Mount, contained in Matthew 5-7, in effect, He told them to live opposite to the way that is most popular in their world, and John told us the same thing.
"Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father [God] is not in him. For everything in the world---the cravings of sinful men, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does---comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever." (1 John 2:15-17) [Brackets added]
By the term "world" John is speaking of man-made activities and attractions, which are invariably perverted by Satan to draw people away from following God. The Christian is taught to avoid these popular pursuits and to remain immersed in worshiping God; prayer and Bible study; telling others the good news of the gospel. In other words, he is to be like a fish swimming upstream against the swift current of popular culture; thus, he will be noticed by the lost multitude going downstream, and his counter life style will be the most powerful way to witness to them, trying to persuade them to join him.
There is no age that needs this commandment more than today, for technology has inundated us with television, cellular telephones, MP3's, video games, computers, DVD's, CD's, and you name it; if we don't have it yet, it's coming soon. I am persuaded that this generation of people are moving farther from God each day, as a direct consequence of the technology explosion. Television alone is the greatest purveyor of evil, followed by moving films. When Clark Gable, as Rhett Butler speaking to Scarlett O'Hara in the 1939 movie, "Gone With The Wind", said, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn!", it unleashed a cyclone of public profanity that has so desensitized our culture that entire families, Christians and non-Christians alike, can sit in front of a TV set in their living room watching a movie so laced with vulgarity that it would make a brothel madam blush!
Do you have a favorite TV show? What about "Survivor"? That show is a perfect example of what John had in mind. Of course, he did not have a clue to the technology that dominates today's culture, but he was an apostle of Jesus, who taught him the sinful nature of the minds of men. You may think you can watch such things without their having an effect on you, but I have a news flash for you: If you can watch a single episode of Survivor without blushing at the profanity, sex, and sinfulness portrayed as an approved technique of behavior, and you are a follower of Christ, you have already been affected. How can you witness to lost people that their life styles are wrong when yours is no different?
Do not love the things this world can provide;
Sing praises to God ev'ry worship hour,
And dwell with joy among the Christian tribe!
Help adorn the Bride* for her royal Groom**,
Your constancy a glory to our God;
The meanest tasks for Him more noble loom;
Better to sweep for Him than wield earth's rod***!
He values most what carnal men despise,
And hates their proudest tokens of esteem;
What this world calls trash, God values most prize,
Their trophies bitter balm to the Supreme!
Be not found with the getters and spenders;
Cast your earthly lot with church attenders!
*Bride = the church; **Groom = Jesus; ***earth's rod = ruler of earth
The best and simplest way to describe how Jesus taught believers to live is to despise this world and everything in it; not the people---love them. In His Sermon on the Mount, contained in Matthew 5-7, in effect, He told them to live opposite to the way that is most popular in their world, and John told us the same thing.
"Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father [God] is not in him. For everything in the world---the cravings of sinful men, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does---comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever." (1 John 2:15-17) [Brackets added]
By the term "world" John is speaking of man-made activities and attractions, which are invariably perverted by Satan to draw people away from following God. The Christian is taught to avoid these popular pursuits and to remain immersed in worshiping God; prayer and Bible study; telling others the good news of the gospel. In other words, he is to be like a fish swimming upstream against the swift current of popular culture; thus, he will be noticed by the lost multitude going downstream, and his counter life style will be the most powerful way to witness to them, trying to persuade them to join him.
There is no age that needs this commandment more than today, for technology has inundated us with television, cellular telephones, MP3's, video games, computers, DVD's, CD's, and you name it; if we don't have it yet, it's coming soon. I am persuaded that this generation of people are moving farther from God each day, as a direct consequence of the technology explosion. Television alone is the greatest purveyor of evil, followed by moving films. When Clark Gable, as Rhett Butler speaking to Scarlett O'Hara in the 1939 movie, "Gone With The Wind", said, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn!", it unleashed a cyclone of public profanity that has so desensitized our culture that entire families, Christians and non-Christians alike, can sit in front of a TV set in their living room watching a movie so laced with vulgarity that it would make a brothel madam blush!
Do you have a favorite TV show? What about "Survivor"? That show is a perfect example of what John had in mind. Of course, he did not have a clue to the technology that dominates today's culture, but he was an apostle of Jesus, who taught him the sinful nature of the minds of men. You may think you can watch such things without their having an effect on you, but I have a news flash for you: If you can watch a single episode of Survivor without blushing at the profanity, sex, and sinfulness portrayed as an approved technique of behavior, and you are a follower of Christ, you have already been affected. How can you witness to lost people that their life styles are wrong when yours is no different?
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
The Gift Of Gifts: God's Grace
God kept His word; many dwellings await
The ones from earth who in Jesus believe;
Each owes Him much, for each He did create,
And their sins will He most freely relieve!
Mortals cannot conceive so great a worth;
As that of grace, which God on men bestowed;
Satan had so quickly spread sin on earth,
God became the Lamb, died for what men owed!
What lost men could not pay, Christ Jesus paid;
He became a man, lived without sin, and died
A scape-goat Lamb, on which men's sins were laid;
Thus, by Him, was God's justice satisfied!
Men can live forever in God's great place;
Only those who accept His gift of grace!
It took many years for me to understand clearly God's beautiful and infinitely perfect plan---why He created man, and how He justly provided for the salvation of those who freely choose to live with Him. That's the key to it all: Man must have free will. The following explanation is the best that I can produce, consistent with the Bible. I pray it helps.
God is one being; He has always been. He can divide Himself into 3 or more manifestations simultaneously. He created billions of angels with superhuman powers who live forever. One of them, Lucifer, rebelled against God; he led one-third of the angels in a war and lost. All of the traitors were exiled from God and cast to earth. God hated what Lucifer had done and named it "sin". He hated sin so much that He made a law: The wages of sin in the universe is death, which can be spiritual separation from God for undying beings, or physical expiration for creatures of flesh and blood, or both. He created a burning lake of sulphur where the traitors would be tormented forever.
God was disappointed in Lucifer's betrayal and desired fellowship from creatures who could be trusted to love Him back, so He decided to create man in His own image; man would be given free will and his loyalty and love for God tested before being admitted into the fellowship and presence of God. Man was made of flesh and blood like animals so his body would live a brief time and then die; but God gave man an undying soul. In this way, if, in his short lifetime on earth, man proved his love for God by passing the test of acceptance of Jesus (God in the flesh of a man) and rejecting the temptations of Satan (Lucifer) by living by God's commandments, his soul would be eligible to enter heaven and live forever. The soul would be given a new spiritual body like the angels. So God made man in His image, called him Adam; then He took one of Adam's ribs and made woman; God told them to be fruitful and multiply.
God knows the past and the future. He knew that Adam would disobey His one command; He knew, too, that all men would sin (offend Him) in their lives. By committing sin, man incurred the judgment of death upon himself---physical death and spiritual death. When Adam sinned, the entire race, even until this day, was born with sinful natures and is under the condemnation that Satan and his angels are under. However, if a single person could manage to live his entire life without committing one sin, that person, if he were willing to make the sacrifice, could become the scape-goat for the race by taking upon himself the sins of all. God knew that there would never be such a person, unless...it was Himself! He knew it before He made Adam; He had already decided that He would become a baby in the womb of a virgin; become the man Jesus, live as a man and never sin; then die as a man innocent of breaking neither man's law nor God's; resurrect Himself on the third day; ascend back to heaven as King of Israel and the world! What love must God have had for man to do all this for him! By His sacrifice, man is freed from his debt of sin: PROVIDED THAT HE/SHE WHO IS TO BE SAVED ACCEPTS THAT THE MAN JESUS WAS GOD, BELIEVES THAT HE IS RAISED FROM THE DEAD, FEELS GUILTY AND ASKS FORGIVENESS FOR HIS SINS, AND LIVES ACCORDING TO THE COMMANDS OF GOD IN THE BIBLE!
The ones from earth who in Jesus believe;
Each owes Him much, for each He did create,
And their sins will He most freely relieve!
Mortals cannot conceive so great a worth;
As that of grace, which God on men bestowed;
Satan had so quickly spread sin on earth,
God became the Lamb, died for what men owed!
What lost men could not pay, Christ Jesus paid;
He became a man, lived without sin, and died
A scape-goat Lamb, on which men's sins were laid;
Thus, by Him, was God's justice satisfied!
Men can live forever in God's great place;
Only those who accept His gift of grace!
It took many years for me to understand clearly God's beautiful and infinitely perfect plan---why He created man, and how He justly provided for the salvation of those who freely choose to live with Him. That's the key to it all: Man must have free will. The following explanation is the best that I can produce, consistent with the Bible. I pray it helps.
God is one being; He has always been. He can divide Himself into 3 or more manifestations simultaneously. He created billions of angels with superhuman powers who live forever. One of them, Lucifer, rebelled against God; he led one-third of the angels in a war and lost. All of the traitors were exiled from God and cast to earth. God hated what Lucifer had done and named it "sin". He hated sin so much that He made a law: The wages of sin in the universe is death, which can be spiritual separation from God for undying beings, or physical expiration for creatures of flesh and blood, or both. He created a burning lake of sulphur where the traitors would be tormented forever.
God was disappointed in Lucifer's betrayal and desired fellowship from creatures who could be trusted to love Him back, so He decided to create man in His own image; man would be given free will and his loyalty and love for God tested before being admitted into the fellowship and presence of God. Man was made of flesh and blood like animals so his body would live a brief time and then die; but God gave man an undying soul. In this way, if, in his short lifetime on earth, man proved his love for God by passing the test of acceptance of Jesus (God in the flesh of a man) and rejecting the temptations of Satan (Lucifer) by living by God's commandments, his soul would be eligible to enter heaven and live forever. The soul would be given a new spiritual body like the angels. So God made man in His image, called him Adam; then He took one of Adam's ribs and made woman; God told them to be fruitful and multiply.
God knows the past and the future. He knew that Adam would disobey His one command; He knew, too, that all men would sin (offend Him) in their lives. By committing sin, man incurred the judgment of death upon himself---physical death and spiritual death. When Adam sinned, the entire race, even until this day, was born with sinful natures and is under the condemnation that Satan and his angels are under. However, if a single person could manage to live his entire life without committing one sin, that person, if he were willing to make the sacrifice, could become the scape-goat for the race by taking upon himself the sins of all. God knew that there would never be such a person, unless...it was Himself! He knew it before He made Adam; He had already decided that He would become a baby in the womb of a virgin; become the man Jesus, live as a man and never sin; then die as a man innocent of breaking neither man's law nor God's; resurrect Himself on the third day; ascend back to heaven as King of Israel and the world! What love must God have had for man to do all this for him! By His sacrifice, man is freed from his debt of sin: PROVIDED THAT HE/SHE WHO IS TO BE SAVED ACCEPTS THAT THE MAN JESUS WAS GOD, BELIEVES THAT HE IS RAISED FROM THE DEAD, FEELS GUILTY AND ASKS FORGIVENESS FOR HIS SINS, AND LIVES ACCORDING TO THE COMMANDS OF GOD IN THE BIBLE!
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Kick-Back Day
Sunday is for most just a "kick-back" day;
Time to sleep-in, and let the whiskers grow;
To visit the folks and Aunt Sally May;
Great for watching football and shopping go!
Why churches spoil it, doing what they do,
Gathering crowds dressed up in "Sunday best";
Trying to make a sinner out of you,
For staying home on your one day of rest!
See? It's not hard to make excuse for sin;
The devil is quick to supply them galore;
The wrong way always appears right to men
In Satan's grip, headed straight for hell's door!
God's way's always opposite the world's way;
Why not honor Him, on His Risen day?
Here I go again, yearning for the "good ole days" when all things were different! Have you ever heard of something like the "blue" laws? Before America had shopping malls; before economists ran the country and accelerated spending to 150% of income in order to maximize the Gross National Product; before the chairman of the Reserve Bank learned to tweak the prime rate of interest to avoid inflation and depression; when people had a strange luxury called "leisure time"; the 48 states all had laws that businesses had to remain closed on Sundays. How quaint! We, as a nation, honored God on Sunday, not the idol of Wall Street, better known as the "bottom line", or, even better as The Almighty Dollar! We honored Him by closing every place of commerce; stores, auto service stations, movies; athletic contests, etc. Eric Liddell, the Scottish minister who had the talent of being incredibly fast as a runner, refused to race on Sunday in the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris. His story was featured in the film, "Chariots of Fire". He was called before the crown prince of England who personally asked him to forego his religious principles and run, but he refused. What a man! That is, what a dedicated Christian man! In these times, many church leaders, doubting the fidelity of their members to uphold their God-honoring vow of keeping Sunday sacred, call off services on Super Bowl Sunday; or they show the televised game in church. I wonder if they "black out" the beer ads for prayer, or skip the sometimes-bawdy halftime shows. But the blue laws are gone forever, I guess. How could the nation avoid deep economic depression by giving up the income of people's spending on Sundays?
A typical Sunday before WW2 in America went like this: 9:45---Sunday School; 11:00---Preaching; 12:30---a huge dinner of roast beef (fried chicken if the preacher went home with you), mashed potatoes with gravy, snapped beans, coconut meringue pie; 1:30---naptime for all, even reluctant kids; 5:00---cold cuts or leftovers; 6:00---BYPU (Baptist Young People's Union); 7:00---Preaching; 9:00---bedtime.
Have we become so enamored of the world that the day that Jesus walked out of the tomb alive---resurrected---we let Sunday become more important for the jolt it gives our economy than for the day God commanded us to keep holy?
Time to sleep-in, and let the whiskers grow;
To visit the folks and Aunt Sally May;
Great for watching football and shopping go!
Why churches spoil it, doing what they do,
Gathering crowds dressed up in "Sunday best";
Trying to make a sinner out of you,
For staying home on your one day of rest!
See? It's not hard to make excuse for sin;
The devil is quick to supply them galore;
The wrong way always appears right to men
In Satan's grip, headed straight for hell's door!
God's way's always opposite the world's way;
Why not honor Him, on His Risen day?
Here I go again, yearning for the "good ole days" when all things were different! Have you ever heard of something like the "blue" laws? Before America had shopping malls; before economists ran the country and accelerated spending to 150% of income in order to maximize the Gross National Product; before the chairman of the Reserve Bank learned to tweak the prime rate of interest to avoid inflation and depression; when people had a strange luxury called "leisure time"; the 48 states all had laws that businesses had to remain closed on Sundays. How quaint! We, as a nation, honored God on Sunday, not the idol of Wall Street, better known as the "bottom line", or, even better as The Almighty Dollar! We honored Him by closing every place of commerce; stores, auto service stations, movies; athletic contests, etc. Eric Liddell, the Scottish minister who had the talent of being incredibly fast as a runner, refused to race on Sunday in the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris. His story was featured in the film, "Chariots of Fire". He was called before the crown prince of England who personally asked him to forego his religious principles and run, but he refused. What a man! That is, what a dedicated Christian man! In these times, many church leaders, doubting the fidelity of their members to uphold their God-honoring vow of keeping Sunday sacred, call off services on Super Bowl Sunday; or they show the televised game in church. I wonder if they "black out" the beer ads for prayer, or skip the sometimes-bawdy halftime shows. But the blue laws are gone forever, I guess. How could the nation avoid deep economic depression by giving up the income of people's spending on Sundays?
A typical Sunday before WW2 in America went like this: 9:45---Sunday School; 11:00---Preaching; 12:30---a huge dinner of roast beef (fried chicken if the preacher went home with you), mashed potatoes with gravy, snapped beans, coconut meringue pie; 1:30---naptime for all, even reluctant kids; 5:00---cold cuts or leftovers; 6:00---BYPU (Baptist Young People's Union); 7:00---Preaching; 9:00---bedtime.
Have we become so enamored of the world that the day that Jesus walked out of the tomb alive---resurrected---we let Sunday become more important for the jolt it gives our economy than for the day God commanded us to keep holy?
Monday, November 2, 2009
If God Does Not Exist
When angry cannons growl at each other,
And the cream of nations, their youngest men,
Lie helpless targets, each fresh from mother,
Who'd hear their pleas for help above the din?
When the city is braced for the "big one",
Highways naught but parking lots, jammed with cars;
Left behind, the poor and old huddle alone,
With no hope for aid from beyond the stars!
When loved ones gather in the waiting rooms,
And doctors with solemn faces advise
Odds are against avoiding dreaded dooms,
Where can they turn for help, if not the skies?
Hpw desolate and hopeless we would be,
If God does not exist, then why do we?
People have short memories, and history records inadequate accounts of previous events. Our lives are exceedingly brief, unrealized except for the aged. Even nations have short memories, their leaders focussed on the here and now and being reelected. To me, it seems only yesterday I was a
20-year-old returning veteran of World War 2; no other subject than "the war" was ever discussed or entered the mind of anyone. Yet today (11/1/09), I look around me in sadness and fail to see but a very few feeble old men that even remember it or want to discuss it. More recent events are topics that preoccupy people's interest, like the death of Michael Jackson, or Brett Favre returning to play quarterback at age 40 for the Minnesota Vikings. What I find is, that the "greatest generation" is almost gone; they are dying at the rate of more than 1000 a day.
Yet, there are things from that cataclysmic event that are appropriate for every generation to focus on. A very popular song swept the country in that great adventure called, "Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition". Yes, they sang that with gusto, even the dignified, the middleaged, the soldiers, and the kids, and no one laughed or conidered it hoky and too religious. I expect that even Madalyn O-Hair, at her tender age, joined in. It was even on the Top 10 of the Hit Parade. There was a a popular saying that passed through the lips of all---Democrat, Republican, atheist, baker, candlestick maker, all---"There are no atheists in the foxhole". A "foxhole is a hastily-dug hole in the ground that a "GI" (soldier) jumped into when hot lead came flying at him. Each soldier carried a small shovel for the purpose; I don't suppose these high-tech warriors of today would ever need a foxhole. Seriously, I doubt there were many atheists in the world in the middle of those dark days, when Hitler had conquered all of Europe, and England stood alone, waiting for invasion. We have grown too cocky--the media has decided we don't need God; America is strong enough to go it alone. That's when God is likely to send us a "wake-up" call, one that even the Obama White House can't ignore.
WW2 was the great adventure of my life; I came home resolved to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. I strayed, but even so, I look forward to seeing Him soon. No matter how badly our Satan-influenced culture denigrates Jesus, it won't prevail. If you know a WW2 veteran, spend a little time with him, reminiscing about those days. You won't have to read about it in the library first; he will do all the talking.
And the cream of nations, their youngest men,
Lie helpless targets, each fresh from mother,
Who'd hear their pleas for help above the din?
When the city is braced for the "big one",
Highways naught but parking lots, jammed with cars;
Left behind, the poor and old huddle alone,
With no hope for aid from beyond the stars!
When loved ones gather in the waiting rooms,
And doctors with solemn faces advise
Odds are against avoiding dreaded dooms,
Where can they turn for help, if not the skies?
Hpw desolate and hopeless we would be,
If God does not exist, then why do we?
People have short memories, and history records inadequate accounts of previous events. Our lives are exceedingly brief, unrealized except for the aged. Even nations have short memories, their leaders focussed on the here and now and being reelected. To me, it seems only yesterday I was a
20-year-old returning veteran of World War 2; no other subject than "the war" was ever discussed or entered the mind of anyone. Yet today (11/1/09), I look around me in sadness and fail to see but a very few feeble old men that even remember it or want to discuss it. More recent events are topics that preoccupy people's interest, like the death of Michael Jackson, or Brett Favre returning to play quarterback at age 40 for the Minnesota Vikings. What I find is, that the "greatest generation" is almost gone; they are dying at the rate of more than 1000 a day.
Yet, there are things from that cataclysmic event that are appropriate for every generation to focus on. A very popular song swept the country in that great adventure called, "Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition". Yes, they sang that with gusto, even the dignified, the middleaged, the soldiers, and the kids, and no one laughed or conidered it hoky and too religious. I expect that even Madalyn O-Hair, at her tender age, joined in. It was even on the Top 10 of the Hit Parade. There was a a popular saying that passed through the lips of all---Democrat, Republican, atheist, baker, candlestick maker, all---"There are no atheists in the foxhole". A "foxhole is a hastily-dug hole in the ground that a "GI" (soldier) jumped into when hot lead came flying at him. Each soldier carried a small shovel for the purpose; I don't suppose these high-tech warriors of today would ever need a foxhole. Seriously, I doubt there were many atheists in the world in the middle of those dark days, when Hitler had conquered all of Europe, and England stood alone, waiting for invasion. We have grown too cocky--the media has decided we don't need God; America is strong enough to go it alone. That's when God is likely to send us a "wake-up" call, one that even the Obama White House can't ignore.
WW2 was the great adventure of my life; I came home resolved to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. I strayed, but even so, I look forward to seeing Him soon. No matter how badly our Satan-influenced culture denigrates Jesus, it won't prevail. If you know a WW2 veteran, spend a little time with him, reminiscing about those days. You won't have to read about it in the library first; he will do all the talking.
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