"I will meditate in Your precepts" Ps 119:15

Mercy, Love, Grace

2006-07-24T16:03:00.000-05:00

There is a beautiful statement Paul makes in his letter to the Ephesians:

Ephesians 2:4 but God, being rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
Ephesians 2:5 even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace have ye been saved),

I find Ephesians to be such a masterful use of language in how much is taught and communicated in just a few simple words. Leading up to this wonderful characterization of God, Paul comments on the horrible, detestable, and rebellious condition that we were all in. We were “children of wrath” and “dead through our trespasses and sins”. Then he connects our hopelessness with two simple words that convey the greatest power in the universe: but God.

Paul provides commentary of three key traits of God that delivers us from being dead in trespasses and sins: Mercy, Love and Grace. It is the combination of these three traits that provided us salvation through Jesus.

Most discussions concerning salvation will give ample study to God’s love and the grace he has extended but what about His mercy? For a moment I would like to consider how great a part God’s mercy plays in our salvation. Paul begins this transition in Eph 2:4 to life in Christ with “but God” by first describing God as “being rich in mercy”. Simply stated, having mercy showed to us is to not be given what we deserve. What we deserved was to remain dead in our trespasses and then have final, everlasting condemnation pronounced on us. This stands in contrast to having grace shown to us and be given what we don’t deserve. And the bridge between the two is God’s love. These three traits are inseparable in describing who God is and what He has done.

God’s mercy is extremely important for us and is the first way in which God has shown us His love. His mercy allows us to avoid receiving what we should be given. As a Christian I believe that we all share a common and very heartfelt understanding of how important God’s mercy is to us, personally and individually. We’ve all experienced those restless nights with the dread and fear of what our sin has done to us, separating us from God. There are other synonymous words to mercy such as forgiveness. We have the saying “forgive and forget” and truly that is what God does when he shows mercy to us and forgives us our trespasses. This is seen in passages such as Heb 8:12

Heb 8:12 For I will be merciful to their iniquities, And their sins will I remember no more.

I want to connect this thought with something that is central to both the Substitution and Satisfaction views and the emphasis on God’s need to punish, which is asserted to be what God did to Jesus on the cross in our place. If God must punish all sin, then that is not mercy and that is not the God that Paul describes in Eph 2:4,5. This would be like telling someone that I'll forgive you only after I extract all that is due from this other person. That does not fit the basic definition of mercy or forgiveness. I recall the wise words of a good friend, a preacher of many years, that we must maintain the right “spiritual balance” and composure in our understanding of God and scripture. Over-emphasis of a trait or quality is like a body builder spending too much time exercising his biceps and ending up a distorted and grotesque mess. Over-emphasis on God’s need to punish sin, without fitting in His capacity for mercy, creates a distortion in our minds of God. This creates a picture of God that is not accurate to who He really is, what He has done, and how He did it.

To add even more to this point, consider the word that Paul uses in amplifying God’s mercy: rich. It’s not as if God showed a little bit of mercy but reserved part of it in order to satisfy His punishment of sin at the same time. No! The word “rich” conveys the idea of an over-abundance, a lavishing of God’s mercy upon us. That is not to say that there are no conditions to receive His mercy but that there are no limits to His mercy when granted. My dear brethren, the Substitution and Satisfaction views distort God into something that He is not. I pray that we open the scriptures and our hearts and minds and view God as he has revealed Himself to us, a God that is rich in mercy, love, and grace. He knows even more than us that we need all three and His magnificent capacity to give them to us!

--Stephen Ledford

Suffered and died

2006-03-13T11:38:00.000-06:00

Think about this basic but important observation: Jesus did not just die on the cross, he suffered and died. A suffering Messiah is prophesied in scripture such as Ps 22 and Isa 53. So, Jesus’ suffering is no coincidence or passing matter but establishes who he is, his unique qualifications, and capabilities. It is Jesus’ suffering that provides key insight into what happened in the events leading up to and involving the cross.

Consider the Old Testament sacrifices for a moment. When a lamb, bull or other living animal was offered as a sacrifice, none of them suffered. It was performed as a “clean kill”. The priest would take the animal and kill it quickly by slitting its throat or some other means but suffering was minimized. Why then did Jesus have to suffer? Recall the introduction by John for Jesus:

John 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

Here John establishes an important parallel between Jesus and the sacrifices of old. Recalling the exegesis of Isa 53 and the use of the word “bear” to be a carrying away, we can see the continuation of the idea that John identifies that Jesus would carry away the sins of the world.

Isa 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

But Isa 53:7 gives more information about what would happen to the lamb and that he would endure affliction and suffering. Just as a lamb is helpless before the shearer our Savior as a lamb will not reply to the affliction, but instead endure it.

There is a repeated pattern in scripture as it relates to suffering: God takes dire circumstances of individuals in their suffering, pain, and anguish, and works in the person’s life to produce victory and glory to Him. This can be seen in Bible characters such as Joseph from the time when he was sold into slavery by his brothers to becoming the second in command over all of Egypt. It can be seen in the sufferings of Job and how he endured and was blessed two-fold more than before. It can also be seen in the death and resurrection of Lazarus in John 11, which also provides some direct insights into what God achieves through suffering.

The narrative of John 11 begins when Lazarus’ sisters send to Jesus telling him that his friend is sick. Jesus’ response to hearing this reflects the objective of using suffering to glorify God:

John 11:4 When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.

You would expect that Jesus would heal Lazarus after this statement but we see something unexpected just two verses later: “he abode two days still in the same place where he was” (v 6). Why would Jesus stay after hearing that a dear friend was sick? His disciples even ask him why he hasn’t gone to Lazarus yet. They don’t understand what is going on and Jesus finally tells them that Lazarus is dead but with a very unusual response again from Jesus:

John 11:15 And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless let us go unto him.

He just announced that Lazarus is dead and Jesus is glad for his disciples? How can this be? He provides a glimpse into these events with his statement “to the intent ye may believe.” Jesus concern, and that as direct insight into the mind of God, is the condition of the soul of the person and thus, Jesus is more concerned with their belief than a dear friend has died. But this is not the end of the matter.

Jesus and the disciples go to Bethany and here we see that Martha and Mary are distraught at the death of their brother and likely are confused and possibly resentful that Jesus had not come immediately to heal him. They also need to be instructed in how God takes difficult circumstances of suffering and accomplishes victory through them. Jesus arrives at the tomb with many people following him: Martha, Mary, his disciples, and a throng of Jews. Jesus tells them to remove the stone from the tomb and even now they don’t fully comprehend what Jesus can accomplish. His final response to them and a prayer to God give the final insight into what is being done:

John 11:40 Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?
John 11:41 Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.
John 11:42 And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.

Jesus continues to point them to the glory of God through belief in Him. What is it that they needed to believe? It is exactly what he told Mary:

John 11:25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
John 11:26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?

God’s glory is that as seen in His son that through suffering, agony, pain, loss, and even death that God will always, and I repeat always, have the victory for those that believe and serve Him. We see the great extent and expanse of God’s glory and power as stated by Paul:

Eph 1:19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
Epj 1:20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,

It is God working through the suffering Savior that we can see his glory and power. We can see there were those that sought to destroy the Messiah but it is those very actions that brought about his victory. We can see that when things look the worst that can possibly be, that a Savior hanging from a tree being crucified, suffering beyond comprehension, and dying there, that God uses this as the means to victory for not only His son but for us all. Praise be to God for His exceeding wisdom and grace!

In conclusion, think back to how righteous men such as Job have suffered in the past and the true origins of that suffering. The story of Job provides unique insight into how Satan seeks to devour and destroy and to the great extent he will go to achieve our destruction. But Satan was restrained in that he could not take Job’s life. In seeing a suffering Savior, a perfectly righteous man, who was obedient to God even to the point of a death on a cross, can we not see Satan, unrestrained, throwing everything at him to deter him from his mission? Recall the prophecy given by God as Adam and Eve were cast from the Garden speaking to the serpent:

Gen 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

Comparatively speaking what Satan will do to the Savior will be a minor wound compared to the destruction brought upon Satan. And that is exactly what the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus accomplished.

I submit to you that the focus has been on the wrong question. We see suffering and commonly will ask "Why is God doing this? What wrong did they commit to deserve this?" In a suffering Savior, a perfectly righteous man, you cannot find an answer to this by assuming God is behind it. Instead, we should be asking how God can take the wicked works of Satan against His son and achieve total and complete spiritual victory. It is through this that brings glory to His son and Himself throughout all eternity and will save unto eternal life those that believe and serve Him.

---Stephen Ledford

Punish the Righteous?

2006-03-10T12:10:00.000-06:00

So far we’ve examined two serious flaws in the idea that Jesus died on the cross in my place to be punished by God. The first flaw relates to the accountability of sin, the bearing of it, is that of the individual who committed the sin and is not transferable (Ez 18:20). The second flaw is that the direct consequence of my sin is a spiritual death (Ez 18:20, Rom 6:23) but Jesus died a physical death which would put punishment in the wrong realm, physical instead of spiritual. There is a third critical flaw, one that represents a great jeopardy to everyone’s soul that asserts this view: Did God bring punishment on Jesus of any kind? There is a variation of Penal Substitution that instead of having Jesus become accountable for my sin in punishment has Jesus receive my punishment from God and still is perfect and sinless. This is expressed in statements such as, "He paid my debt." Generally this is referred to as the "Satisfaction Theory", reflecting the root point of view that all sin must be punished.

It is also without doubt that Jesus was perfectly righteous as established in scripture:

Heb 4:15 For we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

Jesus committed no sin which uniquely qualifies him to serve as our spiritual high priest before God. But let us consider for a moment the case of another righteous man, Job. Job was not perfect in that he did sin, but still God called him perfect and upright:

Job 1:8 And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?

Recall that this introduction to the book of Job is setting the stage for Satan to bring all manner of suffering on Job. Satan was granted the power to destroy Job’s possessions and family and then Job himself was given into the hand of Satan but only to the point before taking his life. Why was this allowed by God? In order to show the character of Job as being a perfect and upright man that feared God reglardless of his physical state of being.

The rest of the book of Job is an account of the interaction with his wife and friends. They all came to Job telling him that he is being punished by God for something that he had done, some sin. Repeatedly Job tells them that he has done nothing wrong but it is clear that not even Job understands who is really causing these things to happen to him. He cries out seeking an answer to a question of why God is doing these things to him. However, as is common to man, Job is asking the wrong question. It was not God bringing the loss and suffering on Job, it was Satan. Asking the wrong question about the cause of suffering was even done by Jesus’ disciples:

John 9:2 And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind
John 9:3 Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.

Jesus corrects their perspective and re-aligns the events with the true objective with suffering: God working to overcome and glorify Himself through the lives of those serving Him. However, we have a tendency to ask what sin someone has committed when we see them suffer thinking it is God punishing the person for it, which can be the wrong question.

Returning to Job, we see in the conclusion when God speaks to Job and his friends, He corrects their understanding:

Job 42:7 And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath.
Job 42:8 Therefore take unto you now seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you: for him will I accept: lest I deal with you after your folly, in that ye have not spoken of me the thing which is right, like my servant Job.

It is God’s rebuking of Eliphaz that strikes fear in my heart in asserting the view that God punished Jesus in my place on the cross. Eliphaz spoke wrongly of God in assigning responsibility for Job’s suffering to God and God tells him His wrath is kindled against Eliphaz and his friends. Why was Eliphaz wrong? Job was a righteous man and there was no reason for God to punish Job. If God was punishing Job while being righteous then that makes God capricious and unjust. If God were indeed punishing Jesus on the cross in our place, Jesus the perfect and sinless man, then somehow Jesus must be made responsible for my sin for God to maintain His justness in only punishing the unrighteous. But as we’ve already examined, Ez 18:20 leaves no room for assignment of accountability of my sin to Jesus. Which leaves Penal Substitution with a third flaw if true, God is punishing a perfect, sinless, and righteous Jesus on the cross.

At this point I will present to you that just as Eliphaz and his friends and Jesus’ disciples asked the wrong question so it is to look at Jesus on the cross and ask why God is punishing him. Even worse, by completing the answer as a conclusion that God did punish Jesus, we are not speaking of God rightly and risk kindling His wrath. It is for this reason that I am most compelled to properly harmonize scripture concerning this matter. We must speak rightly of God, and for all that I can see in scripture, Penal Substitution speaks wrongly of God. There is no such thing as “punishing the righteous” by God. The next few topics will furhter examine closely the events of the cross as we seek to continue the harmonization of scripture.

---Stephen Ledford

Death or Death?

2006-03-10T09:45:00.000-06:00

I at times accept thoughts and ideas without serious consideration if it is true or not. This happens because an idea may be so pervasive and “accepted” that it is never even thought to challenge it. For example, until the mid 1400’s and the arrival of Christopher Columbus, the idea that the world was flat was pervasive and broadly accepted as true. The same thing occurred with the idea that the Earth was the center of the universe until Galileo came along. People just did not consider if the world really was flat or if the Earth really was the center of the universe. I fear that the idea of Jesus becoming accountable for my sin on the cross has fallen into the same trap and it is so pervasive in most Christian denominations that considering if it is true is rarely done. A brother referred to this type of issue as a “spiritual blind spot”, an area of our understanding that may be flawed and simply not seen.

At this point you may be asking the question, “Why is this use of the word ‘bear’ for Jesus on the cross important?” To address that requires us to back up in the thought chain of Jesus literally bearing my sin as in becoming accountable for it on the cross. There is an idea referred to as “Penal Substitution” and is common to most Christian denominations. My understanding of this idea starts with God being a perfect and just God must punish all sin. In order to save us from our sin, God must find someone to punish in order to maintain his justness. That someone was Jesus on the cross and that God punished him there by placing on him all the sins of the world, as in he became literally accountable for my sin and that of the world on the cross. It is the punishment aspect for the use of the word “penal” and the replacement of Jesus being punished instead of me for the use of the word “substitution”. This idea can be called various things but is commonly expressed in statements such as, “Jesus died in my place on the cross.” You may chose to call this idea by some other name and it is the idea that needs to be the focus but for the sake of clarity I will refer to this idea in the remainder of this study as Penal Substitution.

Hopefully it is becoming clear why the definition of the word “bear” is so critical in building a solid foundation for our understanding and harmonization of scripture concerning Jesus and the events surrounding the cross. There is a very different understanding of Jesus bearing on the cross as “To be accountable for; assume” or “To carry from one place to another” as in removal. There is already a serious flaw in the Penal Substitution idea based on the previous analysis of “bear” in harmonization of very clear passages such as Ez 18:20 which state sin is not, and cannot, be transferred from person to person. The word “bear” has several possible meanings as demonstrated in the harmonization of Isa 53:4,11 and Mat 8:16,17, a case where Divine inspiration establishes the definition of “bear” to mean removal. But there is more to examining the idea of Penal Substitution and the next link to consider is the word “death”. Subtitution views Jesus’ physical death on the cross as punishment for sin by God and forms the next critical element of this idea.

It is without doubt that Jesus physically died on the cross. His death was prophesied in scripture, he spoke of it himself, and is necessary for God to show power over death through his resurrection which gives us all hope and faith in Jesus. The question is not did he die but did Jesus die in my place? In scripture when the word “death” is used it can refer to one of two possibilities: physical death or spiritual death. Our physical death is a direct consequence of Adam’s sin by being cast from the Garden as established in scripture:

Gen 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever:
Gen 3:23 Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.

And as stated by Paul in Romans, physical death had reigned over everyone as a consequence of Adam’s sin:

Rom 5:14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.
Rom 5:15 But not as the offense, so also is the free gift. For if through the offense of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

We can see a reference to a spiritual death in a passage we looked at before:

Eze 18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

This passage connects the “soul” and “death” and therefore, refers to the spiritual death of the individual committing sin as a direct result of their sin. We have other passages establishing this connection between sin and a spiritual death:

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

This context is spiritual established by the contrast between “eternal life” and “death”. Although the word “eternal” is not placed before death, the equality of the contrast between the two establishes that this is an “eternal death”, and there is only one death that is eternal which is a spiritual death. The punishment, the wage I have earned, for my sin is spiritual, eternal death. As Gen 3:22 and Rom 5:14 described, I, and all people after Adam, are going to die physically as a result of Adam’s sin and separation from the Tree of Life. The critical flaw with the idea that Jesus physically died in my place on the cross to be punished and satisfy God’s justness is that I, and all others, need salvation from a certain and eternal spiritual death as a result of our own sin. As seen in Ez 18:20, I am the one that dies spiritually and only me and that accountability cannot be transferred or shifted. Jesus’ death on the cross as if dying in my place a physical death places punishment for sin in the wrong realm, the physical realm, when scripture is quite clear that sin brings about a spiritual death.

At this point you may be asking, “What then did Jesus’ death on the cross do for me and my sin?” Recall again the study of Isa 53 and the Divine commentary established for it by Mat 8:16,17. The bearing of iniquity that Jesus performed on the cross was the removal of my sin, the carrying away of my sin from me. Again, that does not mean he was accountable for my sin, nor does it mean he was punished for my sin by God. What it demonstrates is that a perfect, unblemished, sinless, and willing sacrifice for sin is necessary and capable of carrying away my sin to be remembered no more by God, full and complete forgiveness of my sin. I understand you may be skeptically reading this exegesis at this point but there are more things that must be examined to fully frame the flaws and issues with this idea that Jesus died in my place on the cross. The next study will examine a very serious issue with asserting a perfectly righteous man, Jesus, was punished by God. I pray you give me the patience to consider this next step in the harmonization of this subject with scripture.

---Stephen Ledford

What a "bear"!

2006-03-08T14:47:00.000-06:00

I’ve struggled recently to harmonize some comments and thoughts regarding the bearing of sin by Jesus on the cross. As odd as it may sound for my +20 years as a Christian the idea of Jesus literal sin bearing on the cross never entered my mind. I say odd because only recently have I become aware that the view of Jesus becoming responsible for my sin, and that of the entire world, on the cross is very pervasive amongst Christian brethren and the religious world at large. This will be the first in a series to lay out as precisely as possible a harmonization of scripture on the topic.

In my discussions and reading of various writers I have found that one of the foundational items to a view of Jesus literal sin bearing as becoming accountable for my sin on the cross is the word “bear” in scripture speaking of Jesus. In English the word “bear” has several possible definitions. This is not a complete list but presents a few of the commonly used meanings.

1. To hold up; support.
2. To carry from one place to another; transport.
3. To be accountable for; assume:
4. To have a tolerance for; endure:

In application of these definitions to the subject of Jesus on the cross, the definition commonly applied to passages such as 1 Peter 2:24, Isaiah 53, and others is option (3): "To be accountable for; assume." Application of this definition of “bear” is how the concept of Jesus literally being accountable for my sin, and all other sinners, on the cross is reached.

It is at this point that I begin having difficulty in harmonization of scripture and using the definition of “bear” as direct accountability by Jesus. We have very clear statements concerning the accountability of sin in passages such as:

Eze 18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

This context states in four different ways that the accountability and responsibility of a sin is that of the individual, and that person only, that committed it. The only reasonable definition for “bear” in this context that fits is “To be accountable for; assume.” How then can one passage of scripture say very explicitly that sin responsibility is not transferable while concluding that is what happened to Jesus on the cross? For the moment, let’s leave this question to look at some additional scripture.

To add some more dimension to this word “bear”, let’s consider a passage from Lamentations:

Lam 5:7 Our fathers have sinned, and are not; and we have borne their iniquities.

Applying the definition of “borne” here as to mean “To be accountable for; assume” would conflict with Ez 18:20. So, how is this harmonized? Given that the word “bear” has several possible definitions, this passage must be using one of the other definitions of “bear”. Examination of the broader context of Lam 5 reveals that the writer is describing how they were under affliction from outside forces. However, the actions and events that brought about the affliction occurred many years earlier. Therefore, the definition of “bear” in this case is either option (1) or (4), the idea of endurance or bearing under a load. Their fathers had sinned, were dead, and now the current generation was reaping the consequence of their sins. They were not accountable for their father’s sins but were bearing under the load created by them and their sin.

Then we have the context of Isaiah 53:

Isa 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

Also, in Isa 53:11 our word “bear” is used again concerning iniquities. The unique thing about this context is that we have a case of scripture commenting on the meaning of another scripture in this passage:

Mat 8:16 When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick:
Mat 8:17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.

Now we have Divine inspiration giving us the definition for “bear” found in Isaiah 53. Jesus did not literally transfer these diseases to his own body in healing the people and casting out demons. Jesus removed these things, similar to the meaning of option (2) presented earlier: "To carry from one place to another; transport."

In the original Hebrew language, the words used for "borne" and "carried" found in Isa 53:4 are respectively nasa and sabal. In Isa 53:11 speaking of Jesus, “for he shall bear their iniquities”, "bear" is the same Hebrew word sabal. This Hebrew word sabal is also the root word used in Eze 18:20 and Lam 5:7 translated as “bear” or “borne”. One of the Laws of Language is once a definition is established in context it remains the same until the context changes or the author explicitly changes it. This is a universal principle since all languages have words with multiple meanings and without it there could never be a consistent understanding by the reader. Therefore, with the establishment of the specific definition of “bear” in Isa 53:4 by the commentary provided by Mat 8:16,17 what is being spoken of in Isa 53:11 of the Messiah is the carrying away, the removal of their iniquities.

Now, coming back to the question asked earlier: how then can one passage of scripture say very explicitly that sin is not transferable while concluding that is what happened to Jesus on the cross? Simply put, using the definition of “bear” for Jesus on the cross to mean “To be accountable for; assume” is not correct. Scripture itself uses the word "bear" in different ways depending on the context (Lam 5:7, Isa 53:4,11) and does not universally mean “To be accountable for; assume”, as I have heard some state. Jesus didn’t literally become accountable or assume responsibility for my sin or anyone else’s on the cross (Ez 18:20) since scrpiture explicitly states that this does not and cannot occur. Considering the Divine commentary established for Isaiah 53 by Mat 8:16,17 reinforces that the “bearing” that is described of Jesus on the cross is the removal of my sin and in removing my sin He did not become accountable for it.

Future studies will consider other dimensions for the action of Jesus bearing on the cross. Understanding of the word “bear” is just the first step in proper harmonization of scripture concerning this subject.

---Stephen Ledford

Handling Adveristy - Examples for us: Jesus

2005-11-17T09:02:00.000-06:00

Examples for us
Jesus

Jesus is the ultimate example of handling adversity of every kind. It is noteworthy that the Old Testament is full of prophesies that a Savior would come and that he would suffer. We have old and familiar scriptures such as Isaiah 53 and Psalms 22 that speak of a man in pain and agony, ridiculed and rejected. Jesus himself in his own testimony after his resurrection told of the need for him to suffer (Luke 24:25-26). Jesus’ suffering becomes the center point of a life as a Christian as found in the writings of Paul and Peter (Acts 17:2-3, 1 Peter 3:18).

Recall again the events of John 11 and the death of Lazarus. Jesus pointed out several times that the events were going to take place in order to bring glory to God. Throughout the Bible God takes an event or circumstance that seems as though it will be utter failure, and turns it into complete and total victory. Jesus’ life follows this same pattern in order for it to be clear that the victory is the Lord’s. Jesus, the perfectly righteous man, conquers death and sin in the circumstances and event that would seem to the world to be complete failure: his death on the cross.

So, it is with this background that we consider Jesus and his life on this earth.

Questions

1. Read Genesis 3:14,15.
a. Who is the serpent?
b. What is the pronouncement by God on the serpent?
c. What is said will occur between the serpent and the Seed?
d. Who is the Seed?
e. When is this fulfilled and how?

2. Read Psalms 22. What is said of the man prophesied and his life?

3. Read Isaiah 53. What is said of the man prophesied and his life?

4. It is important to bear in mind that Jesus suffered many terrible things before the events of the cross. What did Jesus have to say about himself and the kind of life he had during his 3 year ministry leading up to the cross? Provide scripture.

5. Recalling the events of his temptation by Satan, what was Jesus’ response in each case?

6. What does Jesus’ suffering provide for us as Christians? Provide scripture.

7. What did his suffering qualify him for and to be? Why is this necessary?

8. What did his suffering accomplish in and of itself? Provide scripture.

9. Why did Jesus have to suffer and not just die?

10. Who caused Jesus, the perfectly righteous man, to suffer? Reflecting on the book of Job and what is revealed in chapters 1 and 2, what can be concluded about ultimate responsibility?

Handling Adveristy - Examples for us: Job and Joseph

2005-11-05T14:39:00.000-06:00

Examples for us
Job and Joseph

When simply surveying or reading through the Bible, there is an enormous amount of suffering and trouble that follow the various characters. You could simply mark it as random events if it was a few of them but virtually every one has some major event of suffering, trial, or problem that occurs. There are times when it is clear that the suffering is a result of sin but quite often the problems arise while they are trying to do what is right and follow God.

We now turn our attention to two notable characters in the Bible that dealt with extreme challenges in their lives: Job and Joseph. As we examine their actions, thoughts, and attitudes, keep in mind the past lessons regarding dealing with suffering, trials, and problems.

Questions

1. What kind of person is Job?

2. What is revealed in the first 2 chapters of Job as to why he is suffering?

3. What is the response of his wife and friends as to why he is suffering?

4. What is Job’s attitude during these events?

5. Finally, God speaks to Job as recorded at the end of the book. Summarize what God says and why.

6. The story of Joseph extends over many years. What are the various trials, temptations, and problems he had to face?

7. During his imprisonment he interprets a set of dreams and one of the men is released. What does Joseph ask of him? How long is it before there is a response?

8. Joseph meets his brothers again. What is his attitude towards them?

9. What is the initial response of his brothers when Joseph reveals himself? What does Joseph do in response?

Handling Adveristy - What to do when I fail?

2005-10-29T14:38:00.000-05:00

What to do when I fail?

We know it all too well, but there are going to be times when we fail to act or behave in a way that a Christian should. Recall back to some of the details that were studied about the definition of trials. Peter tells us:

1Pe 4:12 Beloved, do not be astonished at the fiery trial happening among you for your testing, as if a surprise were occurring to you;

The problems we’re going to experience are going to feel like we’re being smelted like metal and experiencing intense heat in the process. That type of trial is going to feel very intense and making the right decisions and taking the right actions will be very challenging. We should not go through life expecting that we will fail but be realistic that failure will occur.

One of the traits of patience is perseverance. In the chapter of the book “Habits of a Loving Heart” dealing with perseverance it was observed that the difference between success and failure is often very small. You may find yourself in a situation and fail to succeed the first time, and maybe even the second or third time. The difference in success may be getting up and trying again the fourth time and finally succeeding. It takes character and strength to keep working at something that we’ve failed at in the past.

Fortunately for Christians we have a solution to our problem of failure resulting in sin in our lives. In 1 John it is written:

1Jo 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of His Son Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin.
1Jo 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1Jo 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous that He may forgive us the sins, and may cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

We must keep in mind that the blessing of forgiveness does not provide a “license to sin”. This passage in 1 John highlights something extremely important to the Christian: walking in the light. A walk is a pattern of life that is pointed in a specific direction. For a Christian that means we walk in God’s truth in a direction towards Him and Heaven. We may sin as we move down the path but it is the blood of Jesus that cleanses us. However, when we sin we have a choice: either face and deal with our sin, repenting in order to stay in the light or ignore and flee into the darkness. It is when a person fails, sins, and then refuses to deal with the sin that a person begins walking in darkness. The failure then results in a separation from God and making the problem even worse.

Definitions
1. Light

2. Repent

Questions

1. Peter is a very important character to examine in seeing a spiritual response to failure. What was his response immediately after betraying Jesus? What was he doing in the days that followed?

2. Contrast Peter with Judas Iscariot. What was Judas’ response immediately following his betrayal? What did Judas do in the days that followed?

3. David committed several sins in the course of events surrounding Bathsheba. How was he initially confronted with his failure? What did he do? What did he do when finally confronted by Nathan?

4. In conjunction with David’s sin, after this he is still called a man after God’s own heart. How and why is this said of him?

5. Jesus on many occasions spoke to individuals about their sins and spiritual failures. Provide some examples and then briefly explain how he dealt with them?

6. Read again James 1:1-5 and in your own words, explain how patience is so important in the face of failure, both your own and others.

Handling Adversity - Prepare Now: Habits of a Loving Heart

2005-10-24T14:36:00.000-05:00

Prepare Now
Habits of a Loving Heart

A habit is something that is done naturally almost without thinking with a need and desire to do whatever is the habit. Most of the time we think about habits in a negative sense but a habit in and of itself is not bad. The past two topics have emphasized the need to be in action instead of dwelling the answer to why we’re experiencing suffering and pain as it happens. But, the actions of the Christian are not aimless or random. Instead our plan of action in the face of trouble should already be decided, practiced, and prepared.

There is a book used for reference with the very same title as this lesson, “Habits of a Loving Heart.” It is a complete book on this topic and lays out 12 specific behaviors, or habits, that result from the love that should be a natural part of a Christian. There is no greater text in the Bible for this subject as that of 1 Cor 13:

1Co 13:4 Love has patience, is kind; love is not envious; love is not vain, is not puffed up;
1Co 13:5 does not behave indecently, does not pursue its own things, is not easily provoked, thinks no evil;
1Co 13:6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth.
1Co 13:7 Love quietly covers all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
1Co 13:8 Love never fails. But if there are prophecies, they will be caused to cease; if tongues, they shall cease; if knowledge, it will be caused to cease.

Entire classes have been built that study this subject for 13 weeks which is well worth the time. We’re going to do a brief overview of this material and it is my hope that more time will be taken individually to dwell on and fill your mind with these things.

The actions that Paul describes that pour out of the love inside a Christian are not some kind of casual or superficial love. The love that we may express to friends often comes up very short of acting in a way that 1 Cor 13 describes. The challenge for Christians, and why it must be an ingrained, habitual type of reaction, is that this is the way we should act with everyone. A Christian doesn’t just do these things for friends, family, or those in your local congregation. By constant thought, study, practice, change, and diligence the actions we perform will be a habit springing from the love we have and given to us by our God and Savior.

Definitions

1. Habit

2. Love

Questions

Read through the book “Habits of a Loving Heart” and consider the questions at the conclusion of each chapter as the assignment for this lesson.

Handling Adversity - Gaining the Victory: Promise and Hope - it's about what you do

2005-10-16T14:35:00.000-05:00

Gaining the Victory
Promise and Hope – it’s about what you do

Just mentioning Abraham’s name will bring many things to mind about him and what the Bible says about his great faith. It was through Abraham that God established the plan of salvation for all mankind. There is a quotation of Genesis 15:6 that occurs three times in the New Testament:

Gen 15:6 And he believed in Jehovah. And He counted it to him for righteousness.

God had promised an heir, a son, to Abraham but at the moment of this quotation, Abraham was questioning this promise. The verse just preceding verse 6 says that God took Abraham outside and told him to count the stars if he could and so would be those of his seed.

Someone can make a promise and if you believe it, that the person making it will execute it, then you have something to look forward to, hope for. If you believe and hope that the promise will happen then you act and behave in a way that is consistent with the promise. However, there are promises made to us that we simply don’t believe will happen for many possibly reasons. When that happens, you’re going to carry on as if the promise was never made.

Consider the passage in Hebrews 11:1

Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

A person has faith because something has been promised and is the result in believing that it will be executed. There are two characteristics of faith that are identified in this verse: substance and evidence. A substance is something that can be seen, handled, and measured. Evidence is something that is left behind as a result of an action or sequence of events. Both of these words describe a faith in action and producing results for all to see.

In the context of suffering, pain, and problems, faith is critical to nourish the Christian and provide a source of comfort and strength. We know that suffering will come our way and when it does rather than dwell on why it is happening, we should spring into action because of our faith. If we truly believe God’s promises then we will act and behave in a way that is a reflection of those promises, our faith requires it.

Definitions

1. Promise

2. Hope

3. Believe

4. Faith

5. Righteousness

Questions

1. Where are the three passages in the New Testament where Gen 15:6 is quoted and what is the context for it being quoted?

a. Romans ___:___

b. Galatians ___:___

c. James ___:___

2. How is it that Abraham’s belief is counted as righteousness?

3. What are some of the promises made to Christians that should be mindful in times of suffering and trouble? Give specific scripture.

4. Upon what basis do we know and trust that God will deliver on the promises He makes?

5. Why is it that Christians believe that we will be raised from the dead to a new life in Heaven with God? Give specific scripture.

6. Read James 4:7,8. What is the application to Christians during trials and temptations?

7. What does James have to say in his letter about faith and works? What is the relationship?

8. In Acts 16, we have the account of Paul being thrown into prison. What is recorded that Paul was doing while in prison? Why did he act like this?

It's the little things

2005-10-15T14:40:00.000-05:00

It’s the little things

Many sports have some aspect that reflects on the importance of “small” details. There is a lot of focus in the game of golf on the drive from the tee but there is a saying that the game is won or lost in chipping and putting. Similarly, it’s a lot of fun to watch a big hitter in baseball knock one over the fence for a home run but most games are won with singles and doubles. Both of these observations reflect the importance of focus on the details of each game.

Jesus tells his disciples:
Mat 10:42 And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.
Consider how “small” offering a cup of cold water seems to be but Jesus calls this out as something critical to securing our reward. The relative size or importance of events and actions is something we do naturally in an attempt to prioritize our daily lives recognizing that we struggle to get everything done. However, we should be cautious in how we widely we apply this concept to other areas of our lives, especially our faith.

We sometimes apply the idea of the relative size of things to various types of sin. We’ll look at one sin and say to ourselves that it’s no big deal, it’s only a “little” sin. But we should be mindful that it is sin itself that separates us from God, not the size that we may assign to the sin. For example, recalling the scene in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were told to eat of anything except of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Conventional wisdom of our day would look at this and comment that eating of the tree is no big deal but we know that when they ate of the tree it resulted in the most dire of consequences: expulsion from the Garden, separation from God, and physical and spiritual death. As the saying goes, looks can be deceiving.

Extending this thought, we may fool ourselves into accepting a sin because of the good intentions involved. But the way is strewn with the good intentions of others. Consider the story of Uzzah and the transportation of the Ark. In 2 Sam 6:1-7 we have recorded for us that the Ark was shaken while being transported and Uzzah reached out to steady it. Uzzah had good intentions to keep the Ark from being knocked over but he also violated one of God’s commandments that no man can touch the Ark. In verse 7, it says that God’s anger was kindled against Uzzah for his error and He struck him dead. Good intentions can never make up for doing something that is wrong no matter how big or small we might think it is.

We must be mindful that a Christian life is one that requires balance. We cannot become overly attentive to small details that we lose the importance and meaning of being a Christian. Jesus rebuked the Jews in Matt 23:23-24 for being so attentive to tithing the trivial spices in their house that they forgot about what was important: judgment, mercy, and faith. He tells them that they effectively swallowed a camel by straining at such small detail. They were not balanced in their lives.

A passage of similar meaning to that of Matt 10:42 is found in Matt 25:32-46. Here Jesus uses a figure of a King separating the sheep and the goats. The pronouncement upon those on his right was commendation for doing some relatively small things for him: feeding, providing drink, shelter, clothing, visiting in sickness and in prison. Those on the right respond with the question of when did they see him in these various conditions? The king’s response was that as often as they did it to the least of my brothers, you have done it to me. The he turns to those on his left pronouncing condemnation on them telling them of all the small things they failed to do to him. They respond asking when did they see him like that? And again, he tells them in failing to do it to the least of them; they failed to do it for him.

We need to be mindful of opportunity as it comes our way regardless of size or merit. That requires that we are aware and prepared to meet the opportunity with a response worthy as if we were serving our Lord. We must ensure we’re not too busy and begin prioritizing the good we do based on the relative judgment of the size of the matter. The good news is that we can all do small things for our Lord and secure our reward in Heaven. What can you do?

---Stephen Ledford

Handling Adversity - Gaining the Victory: Patience, winning through weakness

2005-10-08T14:40:00.000-05:00

Gaining the Victory
Patience – winning through weakness

Through the first half of the class material we’ve considered a great deal of scripture as we sought answers to some basic questions. It has been more fact based learning than application. This marks the transition to a larger emphasis on application of these principles as Christians. We will consider some specific examples of characters found in the Bible towards the end of the study but, this does not mean that we won’t look at examples before then. It is through example and the characters of the Bible that we can find our greatest lessons, hope, and strength.

Coming back to a key context we’ve examined several times in James 1, he begins the text by saying:

Jam 1:2 My brothers count it all joy when you fall into various trials,
Jam 1:3 knowing that the proving of your faith works patience.
Jam 1:4 But let patience have its perfective work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

It’s tough to remember to be patient in trying circumstances but as James points out, it is the key to victory. As we’ve established, the victory the Christian seeks is a home in Heaven with God. But how do we get there? We must go through the path that James establishes for us: trials, proven faith, and patience in order that we may be perfected and complete. Patience is the key to many things in life.

But is our victory something that we earn? That premise is thoroughly dealt with by Paul in the book of Romans with the clear answer that God owes us nothing but has provided grace through faith in Jesus Christ. It is our working faith in God to deliver us that gains the victory. This victory is not something that is to go unnoticed either. Recalling the context of John 1, in speaking of the Word it says that the light shown in the darkness but it did not comprehend it and then further, that the light was the light of men. Do people see us as gaining the victory through our faith in our strength or our weakness? Charles Stanley in his book “How to Handle Adversity” uses the example of the death of Lazarus and the actions of Jesus as a case of how weakness allows God’s glory and victory to be seen clearly and boldly.

It is in times of weakness that we need patience in God the most. We must remember passages such as Romans 8:28, “all things work together for good for them that server God.” The good will arrive but it is on God’s schedule not ours. It is in weakness that our faith in God and his ability to work good in our lives is either proven or fails. This doesn’t mean that we sit back and do nothing but that we do our part and leave the rest to God. It is our weakness that strips back any false ideas that we can do it on our own and it is equally evident to those around that it is God gaining the victory through us. Remember, God wants us in Heaven with Him and He is just and righteous to know what we need and when we need it in order to get us there if we do our part.

Definitions

1. Joy

2. Patience

3. Prove

4. Faith

5. Perfect

Questions

1. Read through the context of John 11 and the death of Lazarus.
a. Who are the characters besides Jesus that are noted?

b. What are their responses at various points in the story?

c. What is Jesus response in return?

d. What does he explain as why events occurred the way they did?

2. Consider the story of David and Goliath. What can be learned about the perceived weakness of David and the victory delivered on the battlefield?

3. Consider the story of the Israelites taking of Jericho. What did they do in order to defeat the city and what does it say about the victory achieved?

4. Consider the story of Gideon in Judges 6,7. How was the victory delivered and why?

5. What is said about God and displaying His glory. How is it achieved? What are some of the reasons given as to why it is done in a particular way?

6. Thought question. The Old Testament contains numerous prophesies about Jesus. Many of them describe the suffering and anguish that he would endure. Why did Jesus have to suffer, why is it so central to be part of prophesy, how did he achieve it, and what did his sufferings accomplish?

Handling Adveristy - Sources of Suffering: Trials, Chastisement and the will of God

2005-10-01T14:39:00.000-05:00

Sources of Suffering
Trials, chastisement, and the will of God

Viewing adversity while it is happening and trying to determine if something is a temptation or a trial can be very difficult to discern. We’ve already read in James1:12-15 the process of temptation and how it begins within ourselves when our inordinate desire, lust, goes unchecked. It was said by a wiser man than me, “A temptation can turn into a trial but a trial is not a temptation.” What this statement acknowledges is from the context of James 1, temptations do not come from God but it begins by saying that the enduring of temptation, results in being successful and overcoming it. It is when temptation is conquered that it is only a trial.

There are times when God does place trials, or tests, on people. Recalling the context of John 9:1-5 the man was blind for the reason that God’s works would be made known. A common question on this topic is, “Why does God test those whom he loves?” For example in Jeremiah 17:10, God says he searches the heart and tries the reins and the reason He does this is stated so that God will give to each man according to what he does. David asks to be tried in Psalms 139:23. The idea of a trial as the form of a test is not a new concept to us. Coming back to our favorite analogy of sports, there are often times special events, trials of some sort, in order to determine any number of characteristics of the event. It could be a time trial where one rider is working against the clock to demonstrate their best time. College football players will go through a testing event called a combine before the NFL draft each year. Trials are a good thing when the goal is kept in mind. They provide a means to demonstrate what we’re made of, succeed, and excel.

Chastisement on the other hand, is not so pleasant of a topic. This originates when we’ve done something wrong. A simple example of chastisement is what your parents did when you violated a rule of the house. It could come in the form of a spanking, grounding, extra chores, or any number of possibilities. There is no mistake as to what they are trying to achieve: awareness that you did something wrong and a lesson to help remember not to do it again. When bad things happen to people it is a very common reaction to think that some wrong was committed to be deserving of the punishment. Job’s friends thought this was what was happening to him. We see the same thing today in natural disasters such as hurricane Katrina. Many around the world viewed the destruction of New Orleans as a sign that God was punishing the United States for the war in Iraq or moral depravity. Chastisement is simpler to understand in personal application but very difficult in broad, general terms such as natural disasters. In either case whether it is a trial or chastisement, God is exerting his rule and dominion over his creation to work towards a better good for us all.

Definitions

1. Trial

2. Chastise

3. Approve

Questions

1. Find scripture that speak of chastisement by God. Why is God doing this in each case?

2. Find scripture that speak of trials by God. Why is God doing this in each case?

3. Abraham is a character in the Old Testament that we can see God actively working in his life. What are some of his tests and what was the outcome?

4. What should be our view and attitude towards trials and chastisement? Site scripture.

5. How does love work in the context of trials and chastisement? What do parents do with children as they grow and mature?

6. It is difficult for some to see the difference between God’s will influencing someone’s life and the person’s free-will. What does the Bible have to say about such things and how are these two things harmonized?

7. National judgment and punishment is something that is seen in the Bible many times. Site a few examples and what God says are the reasons why it is happening.

8. It was said earlier that a trial is not a temptation. However, failing a trial can result in sinning. How can that happen and why? Who is responsible for that happening?

Handling Adversity - Sources of Suffering: Temptation, Persecution, and Sin

2005-09-24T14:38:00.000-05:00

Sources of Suffering
Temptation, Persecution, and Sin

These three things, temptation, persecution, and sin, are all the tools of Satan as he seeks to destroy us. Peter gives a very sobering warning about Satan in his words

1Pe 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

They all seek to inflict pain, anguish, and sorrow on us in order to deter us from serving God. Recalling the figure of the athlete in training sometimes they are going to experience great hardship from injury, accident, or illness. They don’t intend to hurt themselves but it is a risk of training, or sometimes just being in the wrong place. After receiving attention for their injury, they have a choice before them: endure and overcome or turn away and stop all together. We read of athletes that overcome extreme injury or disease by a lot of effort, perseverance, mental toughness, and good medical care. But it is a choice that they make to take that path in order to continue to pursue their original goal.

The simple truth of life is that Satan will throw everything he can at us to get us to stop pursuing our goal of Heaven and being with God. Temptations are those things placed in our way that seek to take us off the path. Persecution is focused on the Christian that is living righteously because there are people that hate everything that is good and pure in Christ. Sin is the great weapon of Satan that separates us from God. We are going to sin as we can read in Romans 3:23 but God has also provided the way back as can be seen in the verse following, Romans 3:24.

We started by seeking Biblical answers to our “Why….” questions and we’ve seen some of the broader answers as to what is going on in our lives. However, it at this point that we begin seeing that the real objective in handling these things is not having a specific answer but in what we choose to do about them. We need to be prepared to recognize them and already know in our minds what action we must take to remain on our path to the goal, Heaven.

Definitions

1) Persecution

2) Temptation

3) Sin

4) Forgiveness

Questions

1) Re-read the context of James 1:12-15 about the process of temptation. When can it be stopped? And what is required of us individually in order to stop it? Paul says some things about this in his letters to back this up.

2) Persecution is a specific form of temptation to get the Christian to stop. What did Jesus tell his disciples about persecution?

3) Find other cases of persecution in the OT or NT. What is revealed about the individuals enduring the persecution and why were they able to endure?

4) What does God provide for Christians in order to endure persecution? This is a very broad question with many different aspects of Christian life.

5) What if we’re not experiencing persecution? What can that say about our life as a Christian?

6) What does James say about sin and death in James 1:15? What type of death is this and why is it so bad?

7) Is it possible for the Christian to give up and be lost spiritually? Provide examples.

8) What is said about the Christian that gives up and turns away? What are some of the figures used in scripture?

9) How can someone be forgiven by God but still suffer the consequence of the sin?

Handling Adveristy - Trials and temptations: What's the difference?

2005-09-17T15:48:00.000-05:00

Trials and Temptations
What the difference?

In looking at the “Big Picture” backdrop of our lives we examined two major aspects. The first is that suffering is a guarantee. The other is that there are two forces working in our lives beside ourselves: Satan and God. It is easy for us to comprehend that Satan would work against us but, it may be a harder concept to grab hold that God may be bringing some suffering and difficulty in our lives. We see evidence of God being the active force behind why the man was blind as found in John 9:1-5. So, as we begin to find Bible answers to our many “Why…” questions, we need to keep an open mind as to what it will tell us. This study will provide some information on how temptation and trials work in our lives but why it is present will be left for the next two subjects.

The first place we need to start in understanding how God and Satan influence our lives and experiences is to look at the difference in what each is trying to do. We are told in Romans 8:28

Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

What exactly does this mean? Some would say that this is a promise by God of health and wealth to His followers. However, we must first define what the “good” is identified in this scripture. What is it that God wants most above all? Recall what is said in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world…” God most definitely is interested in the souls that live in His creation. Jesus’ goal on this earth was reaching souls to show them the way to the Father. The good that is identified in Romans 8 is what is stated as the purpose of writing the book of John in John 20:30-31

Joh 20:30 And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book:
Joh 20:31 But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

The good that God wants for us is to have a relationship once again so that we can have everlasting life through Jesus.

Contrast this with what Satan is trying to achieve. As we noted in 1 Peter 5:8

1Pe 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Satan is only seeking to devour and destroy. There is no everlasting “good” that he is attempting to bring into our lives. Notice that I said everlasting good because there are temptations that will come our way that will seem good to this life at the time but will result in our destruction. Remember what is said of Eve when she was tempted, that she looked on the fruit and saw that it was good for food, pleasant to the eyes, and desired to make one wise. Those can all be “good things” but when you consider that taking and eating of this tree was forbidden, what was “good” in the short term had a long-term consequence of destruction and separation from God. There is no good that is accomplished following Satan.

Thus we can see that God seeks to work good in our lives, a good that achieves everlasting life with Him. Satan only seeks our destruction, to devour us. This brings us to a subtle but very important difference between two words: trial and temptation. By understanding the difference between these two words and how they work in our lives we will be far along in dealing with them when they occur. Recall the introduction and the simple illustration of an athlete in training. They train themselves continually often causing pain physically in order to achieve something more important: winning the event. Is their training good for them? If you consider only the pain, you would say no. But to really answer the question you must look at the result achieved and when the event is won, the training is good.

I had a manager when I was fresh out of college that was always trying to keep our spirits up about the problems we’d have at work. He would say, “They are not problems, but opportunities to excel.” That’s a glass is half full perspective on problems! This piece of wisdom is mirrored and much more meaningful in what Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians.

1Co 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Think about the great hope and promise that this should provide. I can spiritually win at everything in my life because God will only allow things and events in my life that I can endure and be the victor. When you have a problem facing you that seems difficult or impossible to overcome, remember this: God knows you can do what’s right or He wouldn’t allow it to be there. This is not a promise that the conditions leading to the temptation will be removed or eliminated but there is a way provided to endure it.

Definitions
Hint: look these two English words up in both a regular dictionary and a Greek dictionary such as Vine’s. Provide the root Greek word along with the definition.
1) Trials

2) Temptation

Questions

1) Read the context of James 1:12-15. What is said about the following things:
· Temptation

· Trials

· God

· Desire

· Lust

· Sin

2) What other scriptures can you find that talk about temptation?

3) What other scriptures can you find that talk about trials?

4) Coming back to the context of Romans 8:28, what painful events in your life have resulted in something good?

5) Read 1 Peter 1:7. What is it that is tried and what is the result achieved? If you can, try to find out the process to refine gold.

6) What are some of the other names used for Satan? List scripture.

7) Can a trial turn into a temptation and if so, when does it happen? Provide some examples.

8) In some scriptures the word “test” is used. List some of these and define the word based on the context. Who is it that is giving the test in each of them?

9) Find scriptures that talk about testing or tempting God. What is being discussed in these passages?

10) Thought question. As we can read in John 1:1, 14, Jesus is God in the Flesh. We see throughout the New Testament, the word used in the English, that Jesus was tempted. Yet as we read in James 1:12-15, God is not tempted. How can you harmonize scripture in these cases?

Handling Adveristy - The Big Picture: What are we up against

2005-09-10T19:44:00.000-05:00

The Big picture
What are we up against?

When an athlete or sports team is preparing for an event, they study many aspects in order to be prepared. A runner will study the route and pay careful attention to the environmental conditions. A football team will look at film of their opponent to study their strengths and weaknesses. A coach may even simulate the opponent’s stadium and crowd if they are playing away from home by setting up speakers during practice to allow players to become accustomed to the tremendous noise of the “home crowd.” We can easily see the value of understanding the opponent in sports and the same is true of our spiritual lives. The fact remains that suffering, troubles, and trials in life will all come our way. It is important to understand the forces, conditions, and sources for the troubles of life so that we can be prepared and ready with a strategy and plan of how to succeed.

Paul makes this basic observation about understanding what we’re up against in Ephesians:

Eph 6:11 Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Eph 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Notice what Paul says that a Christian will face in verse 12:

· principalities
· powers
· rulers of the darkness of this world
· spiritual wickedness in high places.

That’s quite an intimidating list especially if we don’t understand what this means as we wage this spiritual warfare. There is an important principle of warfare established by the Chinese General Sun Tzu in his text The Art of War: Know Your Enemy. This is exactly what Paul is trying to do for us by identifying who and what it is that is behind the spiritual battles in our life.

Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy. Peter writes in 1 Peter 2:20 about suffering because of the wrong that we commit. This can be especially hard when there are long-term consequences to our sinful actions. Another case that is very difficult for some to grasp is that God is directly in action for some very hard things in life. This does not make God our enemy as we will see further in our study but there are definitely some reasons why God creates some trials in our life. Consider again the context of John 9:1-5 and the exchange between Jesus and his disciples about the blind man. Remember Jesus answer to their question:

John 9:3 “Not this man or his parents but that the works of God might be manifest.”

We will explore all of these in much greater detail through the next few lessons. With this though we complete setting the stage of our lives on what will happen and who is involved as events unfold. As we see the broader picture laid out for us in the Bible, the information we have about the source and cause of life’s trouble is so much less than what the Bible tells us about what to do when presented with these challenges. This speaks enormously to the emphasis placed by God on what do during trouble than why it’s there.

Definitions
Hint: You may want to do these definitions as you go through the questions

1) Principalities

2) Powers

3) Ruler

4) High place (heavenly places)

Questions

1) Paul makes reference to principalities earlier in the book of Ephesians 1:21. Read the context, provide a summary and then fill in the definition above.

2) The prince of power is referred to in the context of Ephesians 2:2. Read the context, provide a summary and then fill in the definition for powers and rulers.

3) Keep in mind that what Paul is discussing in Eph 6:12 is a spiritual setting. The phrase “high places” is also rendered as “heavenly places” in some versions and can be found in Eph 1:3, and 2:6. Examines those contexts, provide a summary and then fill in the definition above.

4) The book of Job provides us a glimpse into what occurs in the heavenly places. Read Job chapters 1 and 2 and make notes about what is happening, where, and who is noted as being present.

5) What does the insight provided by the book of Job tell us about the relationship between what happens in the heavenly places and then on earth?

6) This principle is also expanded on in the Lord’s prayer in a positive way found in Matt 6:9-15. What does this tell us about God’s will in the events of this world?

7) Looking back again at the book of Job, what can be seen about God and how He uses his power and authority with regards to Job?

8) What other passages can you find that talk of God’s care and protection of those that follow Him?

9) In considering ourselves as a potential source of our problems, read Romans 7:14-25. Paul describes a process of events using himself as the figure. Summarize the context and how dire the results are.

Handling Adveristy - The Big Picture: Suffering is a guarantee

2005-09-03T17:39:00.000-05:00

The Big picture
Suffering – it is a guarantee

Wow. That’s pretty strong language that suffering is a guarantee. I’m sure there are many people that would view this statement as pretty pessimistic. However, the Bible says this very thing over an over again. In light of what the Bible says about suffering, saying that it is a guarantee is a realistic look at life and is the reason we will start here with the study of the topic. The next few lessons set the backdrop to the stage of life that we find ourselves on. Keep in mind from our last study that a great many things that we may suffer, we have absolutely no direct control over.

There are many reasons as to why suffering is a guarantee in life. Some are broad and apply to all mankind. Others are more specific to Christians only. We’ll look at both sides of this as we seek Bible answers to these questions. First, consider the Garden in the beginning. It was perfect in every way and given to Adam and Eve to tend and enjoy. In it was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil of which they were not to eat. The instruction from God is found in Genesis 2:16-17. If they ate of this tree, they would surely die. Continuing in Genesis 3 we find the temptation of Eve, her eating of the tree, offering to Adam who eats as well, and their being cast out of the Garden. There are many things to consider from this account as we look at suffering. One of the key items is what God said to them as they were cast out in Genesis 3:16-19. He pronounced some very dire consequences on Adam and Eve, consequences that we still feel to this day.

Now turn your attention to suffering as a Christian. You’ll have some questions later to explore this further but for now we’ll consider a few passages. First, look at what Jesus taught his disciples in Matt 10:25-39. His teaching is of great promise, both positive and negative: Jesus’ followers will experience suffering (persecution) from those that hate Him but great care from God and those that serve Him. Almost the entire book of 1 Peter is spent examining the life of suffering as a Christian. Peter gives what would be considered by some to be a bleak picture of service to Jesus in 1 Peter 4:12-19, a guarantee that His followers will experience suffering and that justice will not be served in this life. This view is brought to life in the imagery we can read of in Rev 6:9-11, of the souls at the altar of the Lord that were killed, crying out and asking when vengeance would be delivered.

There are many, many more passages to consider as we examine what it means to live in this world and live as a Christian. James tells us in James 1:2-3 to count it all joy when we fall into trials. We don’t go around all joyous at the problem, but we focus on the product of successfully enduring through it all: patience. That seems to be an odd conclusion. Some may be saying at this point, “You mean you’re telling me that the best thing that can happen out of enduring suffering is patience?” That’s exactly right. Not to trivialize the discussion but we have an adage in America: “Good things come to those that wait.” This may be one of the hardest things to grab hold of, understand, appreciate, and then use in your life. But when you do, you may be surprised at the improvement you can have in your life.

Questions

1. Consider the context of Genesis 2 and 3. Compare and contrast the good things that God prepared for them in the Garden and the curses pronounced on them after their sin:
Blessing in the Garden Curse after their Sin

2. The account of Adam and Eve raises a discussion about free will. First, what does “free will” mean and second, what other scriptures can we look to that demonstrate that God gives us the ability to choose?

3. There is a critical item to understand as we explore handling suffering and trials in life, the difference between responsibility and consequence. Describe the difference and provide scriptures to demonstrate this.

4. Read the context of Romans 5:12-19. This is a difficult context but consider how it discusses and relates the difference between consequence and responsibility.

5. If you have access to a Bible program or concordance, find how many times the following words occur in the Bible (KJV if possible):
· Suffer
· Trial
· Temptation
· Persecution
· Chastise
· Endure

6. Consider this context in Eccl 7:13-15. What is the contrast established? What is the source of either? What is the statement made in the end about the just and wicked?

7. Does suffering imply that God doesn’t care or isn’t paying attention to us when it’s happening? Look at Rev 6:9-11, what does this say about God during these events? What other scriptures speak about God while His children suffer?

8. You may have seen some tele-evangelists preaching a message of prosperity if you give your life to God. This is sometimes referred to as the Gospel of Health and Wealth. What scriptures do they use to back this up? And why is this flawed?

Handling Adversity - Introduction

2005-08-30T21:33:00.000-05:00

Introduction
Common views about adversity

Mankind has an insatiable interest in finding the answers to the basic, but profound, questions of life:

· Who am I?
· Why am I here?
· Where am I going?
· Why are these things happening?

Our Creator has given us certain senses for our benefit. For example, when you reach to touch a hot stove, you can feel in your skin the heat from the element. You have the ability to sense in advance that something could harm you. But if you’ve never experienced the pain from having a burn, then how do you know to stop when you feel the heat? Kids do this all the time as they learn through experience. After the burn, what are you thinking? I’ll never do that again!

Pain is one of the many experiences given to us for us to learn and use for our benefit. We can use it to protect ourselves before a series of events harms us. But there are circumstances where we ignore what our senses are telling us, the pain we experience as a result, in order to reach beyond the pain to something desirable. This is often summarized in the saying, “No pain, no gain.” Athletes are told this and say this to themselves time and again. Why? Because as they train, their muscles and organs scream under the intense load, but they keep going, doing the same thing over and over. But that doesn’t answer why since the pain should be what stops them. They keep going because they know that the process will result in an increase in strength and endurance. It is only by continual training and enduring pain that they will perform at a level that provides the opportunity to win the event, to be the best.

1Co 9:24 Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.
1Co 9:25 And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.
1Co 9:26 I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:
1Co 9:27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

What these observations demonstrate is that we have senses to use at our disposal either to take action and avoid harm or ignore to achieve greater objectives. Both of these cases are trivial when set against the larger backdrop of our lives. In these examples we have the ability to choose the circumstances and actions based on our direct senses. We choose whether to train to compete in an athletic event or to just simply improve your physical fitness. But there are pains we experience that are not the result of one of our senses, pain that cuts to our core and touches the heart. This can be the pain of disappointment, loss, or failure. Most of the time the pain we experience is the result of circumstances outside of our control. We are simply in the path of what takes place.

It is when we experience pain as a result of something outside of our control that we begin asking the question reflected earlier: “Why?” It comes across as a question of “Why me?” or “Why my friend?” or replace the subject with any number of choices. It is at this point that we often begin trying to identify the one that is controlling these events. We seek answers for why with our parents, teachers, elected leaders, and ultimately God himself. We see this reflected in several accounts in the Bible. Consider each of these:

· Job asking his questions: Job 9 and 37
· Jesus and disciples about the blind man, “Who sinned?”: John 9:1-5
· Asaph: Psalms 73

Mankind asks a lot of tough questions but there are not always answers to these questions. Every now and then we may be able to find the direct answer to the stream of “Why?” questions that we ask, but most times we will not. This study is about that stream of questions and finding Bible answers.

Definitions

1. Adversity

2. Suffering

Questions

1. What are some examples of adversity either that you’ve experienced first hand or have watched in the lives of others?

2. What is the range of reaction that you have experienced or seen as a result of adversity?

3. Study the three contexts noted above and provide a brief summary:
a. Job 9 and 37

b. John 9:1-5

c. Psalms 73

4. We’ll consider these questions at the beginning of this study and then again at the end to compare and see what we’ve learned. What are some of your answers to questions such as:
· If there is a God, why did he allow those people to die in hurricane Katrina?

· Why did God allow my friend to develop a brain tumor and die when he was only 14? He was a good person with a bright future.

· If I didn’t have these problems with my health I could serve the Lord much better.

· Why do people keep mocking me and giving me a hard time about being a Christian?

Handling Adveristy - Schedule

2005-08-28T21:38:00.000-05:00

Handling Adversity

Class Schedule

Sunday 9/4 Introduction: common views
Sunday 9/11 The Big picture: Suffering – it is a guarantee
Sunday 9/18 The Big Picture: what are we up against?
Sunday 9/25 Trials and Temptations: what’s the difference?
Sunday 10/2 Sources of Suffering: Persecution, temptation, and sin
Sunday 10/9 Sources of Suffering: Trials, chastisement and the will of God
Sunday 10/16 Gaining the Victory: Patience – winning through weakness
Sunday 10/23 Gaining the Victory: Promise and Hope – it’s about what you do
Sunday 10/30 Prepare Now: Habits of a Loving Heart
Sunday 11/6 What to do when I fail?
Sunday 11/13 Examples for us: Job, Joseph
Sunday 11/20 Examples for us: Jonah, Paul
Sunday 11/27 Examples for us: Jesus

Reference Material

These are for us to use as a resource for discussion and examination. They are no replacement for what we can find in the Bible or it’s authority. From time to time we will reference them during our study. They are relatively easy to read and I encourage you to take the time to lightly read through them at least once.

Making Things Right When Things Go Wrong
Dr. Paul Faulkner
Howard Publishing Co.

How to Handle Adversity
Charles Stanley
Thomas Nelson Publishers

Habits of a Loving Heart
Willard Tate
Christian Communications

Updates

2005-08-19T09:29:00.000-05:00

I've been getting ready to teach a class at our local congregation on "Handling Adversity". Since I found out about a month ago that it will start in September, it has really consumed my time in reading and trying to find material for the class. So far I haven't found a single book or set of material that I think does a comprehensive job of addressing the subject from a Biblical point of view. There are some books with sensible recommendations but I'm looking for something that gives Biblical answers to our problems, trials, and suffering.

So, I'm going to develop my own material for the class which will result in going from no posts to the blog to about one per week for the next 3 months. As with anything that I post here, feel free to use any of this material in your study and understanding of God's word. It is not necessary to give credit or source reference either. I'm only seeking to do some planting and let God give the increase to His glory and honor. If you have questions or comments, please feel free to contact me through the links in this web site.

Can you see it?

2005-05-29T07:51:00.000-05:00

I’ve been working to restore a 1977 Corvette for the past five months. The story of this project goes back to the latter months of 2004 when I got an itch to restore an old vehicle. I contacted an old friend who I knew had done restorations asking his opinion only to find that he had this very car that he could no longer work on because his knees had given out. Understand that in order to restore something means that it is in sore need of work and not in good condition. The first pictures that he sent to me were true to character, a vehicle with no paint, dirty, rusty, and needing work on the interior. Yet, when I looked at the photos I could see the potential and could visualize in my mind how it might look when I was finished.

Complimenting my story were the reactions I got when I shared my interest with some of my family. My father-in-law immediately responded that I had to do the project. My wife gave me one of those looks and supportive responses that I should do it if I wanted to. And then my brother-in-law was more distant with one of those “you’ve got to be crazy” looks. Why would I get such a spectrum of responses? There are some that can share the same “mind’s eye” vision of things regardless of their current state, some that trust you that you know what you’re doing although they don’t see it, and others that are skeptical with no frame of reference to see past things as they are.

Getting into the project I had assessed what it would take to complete it knowing that I would be doing the vast majority of the work myself. I knew there would be a lot of sweat, frustration, periods where progress would seem slow, and overall require a tremendous amount of “stick to it-ness” to see the project to completion. Some days it just took sheer will power to get out there and give it a couple of hours of effort even though I was tired, beat up, and sore from all the work. Looking back on the past five months with two more left to go, I can officially say that I counted the costs but didn’t really know what I was getting into. Why am I doing it? Because I know it will be good when I’m done and I will enjoy driving it on a nice summer evening. When it gets tough I just recall in my mind what it will be like.

Daily life itself mirrors so much our spiritual experiences. If you take my story and replace the context with our journey and effort of reaching Heaven, you’d find many similarities. Our frame of reference must first start with living as a pilgrim and sojourner knowing that our citizenship is in Heaven. The Hebrew writer tells of this mind set in recounting the faith of the characters of old:

These all died by way of faith, not having received the promises, but seeing them from afar, and being persuaded, and having embraced and confessed that they are aliens and tenants on the earth. Heb 11:13

Because of their faith they could “see from afar” where they were going. If you can’t see it, then there is no point in taking the journey or putting in the effort.

To reach the destination is fraught with problems, suffering, and pain. Jesus taught his disciples what it would mean to be a true follower as we can read in Matt 10:25-39. His teaching is of great promise, both positive and negative: Jesus’ followers will experience persecution from those that hate Him but great care from God and those that serve Him. He taught that one should consider the cost before committing to a life of service to Him as we can read in Luke 14:26-35. Peter gives what would be considered by some to be a bleak picture of service to Jesus in 1 Peter 4:12-19, a guarantee that His followers will experience suffering and that justice will not be served in this life. This view is brought to life in the imagery we can read of in Rev 6:9-11, of the souls at the altar of the Lord that were killed, crying out and asking when vengeance would be delivered. They are told just as we that are living: wait a little longer.

Suffering and trials are good for the soul. James writes that they are a joy because it gives us opportunity to be proven true, refined, and ready for the next hurdle. Why was Job made to suffer? Because he was a righteous man that Satan sought to turn away from God. But God knew that Job would endure and that endurance would glorify Him. Job’s suffering gives us so much insight into why Jesus suffered and died, qualifying Him to be the Author and Finisher of our faith. (Heb 12:2-3) Why did all these suffer and endure? Because they could see it: Heaven and God’s glory!

Lead like a servant

2005-04-13T10:56:00.000-05:00

Many things that Jesus taught were contrary to conventional wisdom. But, when you examine them from a Godly point of view, they make complete sense and when put into practice we can see the result that He taught would happen. One idea that is the exact opposite of what the world would teach us today is about leadership and that true leadership is being at the bottom, a servant, instead of at the top.

When we think of leaders and leadership, our mind naturally gravitates towards people such as the President of the United States, a General in the Army, your principal at school, or maybe a top-performing athlete in a sport. We view them as leaders because of the position they hold, the influence and power they wield, and the commands they give to the people they lead. We express this as “top down” leadership in which orders are given and they are followed. But, that is not the kind of leadership defined by God and patterned in the lives of the leaders He has chosen.

First, consider Moses. The Jews viewed Moses as the ultimate leader and revered his name. But, how did Moses become the chosen leader by God of the Israelites? It certainly wasn’t because he sought after it! Beginning with Moses’ story in Exodus 2 after he had killed an Egyptian beating a fellow Hebrew, he came upon two others having a dispute. When Moses had rebuked them, their response was the challenge “Who made you a prince and judge over us?” (Ex 2:14). Here we see the beginning of what true leadership is not: it is not by self-determination. Moses could not make himself to be a leader of the Hebrews.

After Moses fled Egypt, we see the call of God to Moses many years later. The scene of the burning bush in Exodus 3 has God telling Moses He has chosen him to lead his people from Egypt. But, Moses first response is “Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?” (Ex 3:11). You might think that Moses did this out of politeness not wanting to seem eager for the position but in his heart desiring it. After all, he was raised in the house of Pharaoh, the very seat of authority. No, in continuing to read the story, we find Moses giving four more excuses why he should not be God’s chosen leader before he does agree. Surely Moses was not seeking to be a leader of God’s people. Which gives us another aspect of Godly leadership: it is not sought after but taken on understanding the seriousness and responsibility of the task.

Why was Moses so reluctant of becoming the leader that God chose him to be? To answer that requires us to look into the mind and heart of a Godly leader. The best insight we can find is Jesus, the ultimate servant leader. First consider who Jesus was being both God and Man. In being God, he quite literally had everything: divine authority, power, and influence. Contrast that with the Man Jesus was: not attractive, without wealth, and not of the spiritual ruling elite. You would think, and the Jews of the day did think this way, that the God of Heaven would come in regal, glory and large fanfare but that’s not the way Jesus came to this earth.

We can see some answers as to why Jesus chose to come like this in Matt 20. The context begins with the mother of two disciples asking the position be granted for her sons to be seated at the right and left of Jesus. (v21) Jumping to the conclusion of this exchange we see leadership through God’s eyes and why Jesus chose the Man he was in appearance, “Even as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (v28). Jesus contradicts her view of what leadership means showing that it is by being a servant that one leads, “But whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant.” (v26)

Jesus epitomized the servant leader in washing the feet of his disciples. John 13:3-8 is a passage of Jesus serving His disciples to give them an object lesson in servant leadership. This is emphasized in what is revealed leading up to this account in v3, “Jesus knowing that the Father has given all things into His hands”. He had the ultimate authority and chose to use it this occasion to serve others. Being a servant does not make one a leader, but to be a Godly leader requires you to be a servant. By serving others you influence them to seek and serve God instead of commanding them. God seeks leaders. Will you be one?

You're not from around here

2005-04-13T10:54:00.000-05:00

I sometimes hear that said to me. You might say I’m “traveled” in my life. A kid born in Indiana, grew up in South Florida which I watched become “Little New York”, 13 years in Texas, and now in Alabama. It doesn’t take much talking from me to know I’m not from around here because I have an accent from everywhere but yet nowhere.

Words carry great meaning and especially so of the words God uses to express Himself in scripture. Peter uses two small words in his first epistle found in 1 Peter 2:11:

1 Peter 2:11 Beloved, I beseech you as sojourners and pilgrims, to abstain from fleshly lust, which war against the soul;

He addresses them as “sojourners and pilgrims”. Two small words that contain a deep and profound meaning for Christians because ultimately they tell us who we are, how we should act, our view of life, and where we are going.

Literally, the definition of sojourner is a non-resident alien, a stranger, a foreigner, someone passing through on a journey. The definition of a pilgrim is a resident alien, someone who comes from a foreign country to reside by the side of the natives. These two words provide us two perspectives on the Christian life but each has in common one thing: Christians are aliens in a foreign country. Which leaves us asking, if a Christian is a foreigner in this life then where is home? What “country” am I a citizen of? What am I doing in this foreign land?

We have in American history the story of the Pilgrims from England that came to the “New World” in 1620. Their purpose was to escape from the religious persecution that they endured and find a new home. They called themselves Pilgrims because of the journey they made and the decision to reside in a new land with the natives. But, to them, they left behind the life in England with no intention to ever return. In Heb. 11:13, a context sometimes referred to as the Hall of Faith, we are told of spiritual pilgrims:

Heb 11:13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

God has always called His people to remember where their true citizenship is. The Israelites were given a special feast that they were to keep to remind them of their deliverance out of Egypt, the Feast of Tabernacles found in Lev. 23:42-43. God tells them the reason they were to keep the feast as a reminder that God made them dwell in tabernacles in bringing them out of Egypt, and that “I am Jehovah your God.” As Christians, we are citizens of a Heavenly country, one that we cannot see with our eyes, but one seen from afar at the end of our journey.

As our King, God expects us to work and behave in a way keeping with our citizenship. The Preacher of Ecclesiastes tells us in Eccl 3:9-12 the broad meaning of a purposed life for God. The tasks and responsibilities we are to be busy doing are rejoicing in doing good in this life. This is all framed in the perspective that God has set eternity into the heart of man. What is this good? Jesus responded when questioned about the greatest commandment in Matt 22:37-40, that the first is to love God with all the heart, soul, and mind, and the second is to love your neighbor as yourself. As Christians we are concerned with reaching our goal of Heaven and the good we should be trying to do is to take as many with us as we can.

However, it’s so easy to become content with this life and just “settle down”. We become busy with the work of this life forgetting about the good we are to be doing and effectively renouncing our Heavenly citizenship. People begin thinking you “look like just one of us.” We must be diligent to maintain the “eternal perspective” that this life is a journey, not a destination. We may have an address, telephone number, and email, but don’t be fooled into thinking that’s who you are. Look beyond these things and act in a way that people ask you, “You’re not from around here, are you?” And then explain where you’re going and why.

God's Flood Lamp

2005-04-13T10:49:00.000-05:00

Growing up in South Florida, life was infested with cockroaches, or sometimes more tastefully referred to as water bugs. We could never get rid of the things in spite of the effort in killing them by force or with pesticides. When you turned on the lights in the kitchen late at night or in the morning before the sun was up, it was almost a guarantee that you would see several of the little pests running for cover trying to escape from being exposed in the open where they could be easily killed, choosing to invade under cover of darkness.

This effect is not too different from what we find around us in life at times. The Gospel of John gives us a picture of the entry of the Light into the world in John 1:1-10. John introduces this image to us by starting at the beginning and describing the Word and that the Word was with God and was God and all things were created by the Word. Later in v14 we learn who the Word is when John writes that the Word became flesh and dwelt among them. The Word was Jesus. But John also gives us some additional imagery in identifying him as the life and light of men, v 4. In particular there are two key things that John identifies with the light. First, in v5, the light shone in the darkness but the darkness did not comprehend it. Then further in v9, the Light, Jesus, is the true Light that lights every man that is in the world.

To expand on this imagery further, we find another instance of light being used in the book of 1 John 1:5-7. Here the light is used to describe that God is light and that there is no darkness in him. The image is then expanded to that of us walking in the light, but that we cannot claim to have fellowship with God and also walk in darkness for to do so would be a lie. But, it’s the basis of walking in the light that allows us to have fellowship first with God, then with others that are walking in the light, and also to be cleansed from our sins by the blood of Jesus Christ.

For us living in a physical world where absolute bright light or darkness is difficult to relate to, the contrast provided in 1 John can be missed but the contrast is clear, we can either walk in light or darkness but not both, there is no “grey area”. When I’m outside on a hot, sunny day or happen to be in an area where the light is especially intense, I look at myself and all of a sudden the imperfections in my skin become very obvious. Likewise, everything around me is seen for what it is: the scratches in my car, the cracks in my driveway, the leaves under my trees that need raking. However, on a moonless night I can barely see the shape of my hand in front of my face let alone know what imperfections I have or are around me or where I’m going. It’s no wonder that a majority of crimes are committed at night.

It is important to understand what 1 John means by encouraging us to walk in light rather than in darkness. The word walk is used throughout scripture to identify the manner of life and conduct, our direction and aim. In application then, we should want to be in the light and strive to stay in the light. But how many times have we caught ourselves seeking how close we can get to something that is not part of the light, to that which is in darkness? Is that walking in the light? Likewise, do we try to rationalize our actions at times in an attempt to convince ourselves that it’s not that big of a deal and in effect living out the contradiction in the statement “innocent looking sins.” What about when we chose to do it our way rather than God’s although it may seem good?

Walking in the light is not easy for it will expose us for what we are and if we’re not humble enough to deal with what is easily seen and try to remove it from our lives with God’s help, it can drive us to instead seek darkness where those faults cannot be seen by us or by others. But, while we might succeed in hiding these things from our consciousness and that of others, do not forget the two warnings that we find in these passages. First, the Light exposes and lights every man in this world, John 1:9, none will escape it. Second, that if we say we have fellowship with God but walk in darkness seeking to hide what we are or are doing, then we lie and do not the truth, 1 John 1:5. What will be our response then in being exposed to God’s flood lamp of truth?

Introduction

2005-04-13T09:20:00.000-05:00

Why start a blog of Bible meditation? To answer that question requires me to step back in time and give a little background.

My father, now retired, was a college English professor. He's a very laid back person but you always knew he loved his work. Mix that with his dry sense of humor and you might guess that we had more than a little "chiding" about our grammar skills, or lack there of, over the dinner table, driving somewhere, any time, any where. It didn't take a special time for him to gently correct us in the correct paths of the English language. For the better part of 18 years I had my own personal English tutor and that left a mark on me. Not a bad one, just one that to this day shows his influence in my appreciation of writing, reading, and speaking. Even though I'm a "techie" and most others of my type have a real aversion to writing, I can honestly say that I don't. And of course, I must credit him with teaching me the Truth growing up. He is even to this day very diligent about studying God's Word which is another mark he has left with me. He's probably forgotten more than I'll ever know. In all these things I am extremely grateful.

There is another person that has had an impact and influence on me, Jim Everett. Jim was the local preacher at the congregation we attended in Cedar Park, Texas beginning in 1993. He had a real gift for writing about Biblical subjects in a very concise way. Jim's writing was a reflection of his personality and style: direct, succinct, and rich thoughts presented with a little dry humor on occassion. The focus was always about understanding the Word of God, not the writer or what the writer thinks. He always used some simple rules in his writing confining it to a single page of two columns and a short title that caught your attention. He would spend hours writing and re-writing to craft the thoughts and remove the "fluff".

It is said that often you don't realize what you have until it is gone. We moved from Cedar Park in the Summer of 2003 and missed Jim and his teaching and preaching. At the time we moved I had not spent much time writing or developing my skills. After all, we had Jim and he did it so well. At some point during 2004 I decided to get to it and use what I had learned from my father and Jim and developed a few subjects to use in lessons presented at our congregation here. Then what was least expected happened and set my mind to develop my writing skills even further. Jim was diagnosed with terminal cancer in early February and died 2 weeks later. He was an inspiration to me in life and now that he's gone I feel compelled to continue his legacy of writing.

With that short history, I hope you can understand why I set my mind to this and what I hope is accomplished. The goal is simple as Paul wrote in 1 Corithians 3:6 "I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase." So, we're going to get at some planting and let the Word of God operate on our hearts. My goal is to develop a subject and post it about one every two weeks. So, check back from time to time and let's be meditatiing on God's precepts.