Tag: faith

Help My Unbelief

Matt. 13:58 (NKJV)  Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

Unbelief is something I think most Christians struggle with.  We sometimes find ourselves praying as did the father of a demon possessed child in Mark 9:23-24 (NASB)  And Jesus said to him, “‘If You can!’ All things are possible to him who believes.”  Immediately the boy’s father cried out and began saying, “I do believe; help my unbelief.”

A fairly famous charismatic pastor once said he had never seen a person’s arm or leg grow back when he prayed for healing.  He said he believed it was because of his own unbelief.  Because he had never seen God do this, he doubted God would heal in this way.  Was his unbelief itself preventing the healing:

Matt. 13:58 (ESV)  And he did not do many mighty works there, because of their unbelief.

I think our unbelief can stand in the way of God working in us and in others.  So, we might be a little better able to understand this if we look at the Greek word used in both Mark 9:24 and Matt. 13:58. It is apistia.  Pistia is the Greek word for faith or trust.  As in this case, adding an “a” before many words in Greek makes that word the negative version: “no faith,” or “no trust.”  Unbelief is a soft version of what apistia means.  Either we have no faith or trust that God will do something, or we have no faith or trust in God at all.  That’s what this means.

The King James Version adds another even stronger Greek word into the mix: apeitheia.  This means “disobedience” and is translated as such in modern translations:

Rom. 11:30 (KJV)  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief. 

Interesting “not believed” in this verse is the apistia we saw earlier.  As with apistia, apeitheia means even more than just disobedience.  It means not to allow yourself to even believe or be persuaded. It is we who are limiting our belief.

What the Bible is telling us is we are not just neutral in our unbelief.  We are rejecting what we think God has promised or even what He can do. 

When my children were young and couldn’t swim, I would have them stand on the side of the swimming pool and jump into my arms.  I was trying to teach them not to be afraid of the water.  At first they would hesitate, but with some coaxing, they would finally have enough faith in me that they would jump, and I would catch them.  That hesitation they felt wasn’t the sort of unbelief the passages above are talking about.  The passages are talking about rejection of the belief I would catch them, that they were so unsure I would not catch them they would refuse to jump.

Is that who we are?  Are we standing on the edge of the pool listening to God’s coaxing us to have faith, yet we refuse to jump? 

Why Is this important?

I think the answer to that question is at times a shameful “Yes.”    “Unbelief” doesn’t appear very often in the New Testament: only ten times in the English Standard Version. “Little faith” appears six times, and each time it is Jesus accusing His disciples of having little faith once saying if we only had faith the size of a grain of mustard seed we could move mountains(Matt. 17:20).  We’re in good company with men God used to change the world.

How do we grow in our faith and trust in God, though?  How can God help our unbelief?  I think reflection on the things God has done that we have both experienced and witnessed helps, but God’s Word tells us of the great things God can and will do if we just fight off the temptation of unbelief.

I’m sure we have all been through tough times and seen God pull us out.  We’ve all seen God’s mighty hand at work in our lives and in the lives of others.  We’ve all read of the tremendous miracles of God recorded in the Bible.  So what keeps us from believing then doing? Unbelief. 

Let’s pray as the father of the demon possessed child did, that God would help our unbelief.  We do need our faith and trust in God to grow.  Let not God be limited by our hesitation to believe He will act.

What if the Bible Never Existed?

2 Tim. 3:16-17 (ESV)  All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

So, by what Paul says here, Scripture is our source for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness.  What do people do who either don’t have the Bible or have rejected the Bible as uninspired? 

In their book, An Introduction to Christian Philosophical Theology, Davis and Yang give four probable outcomes of a society without the Bible should they wish to understand salvation and how to arrive at salvation without Scripture:

 “Legalism: A religious system that consists only of a set of rules that must be stringently followed.

“Ritualism: A religious system that prescribes ceremonial practices, perhaps to placate the gods or to engage in a trade in goods or services – for example, sacrifices for plenty of rain and crops.

“Relativism: The view that no particular set of beliefs or practices is correct or privileged – as long as you are sincere in what you believe and how you live, you are doing well.

“Nihilism: There is no answer to the question or no way of knowing the answer, so there is no hope of salvation – it is merely wishful thinking.” (Davis and Yang, p. 29-30)

As most of you know, there are two divine sources for information about God: creation and the Bible.  These are called general revelation and special revelation respectively.  We can learn a lot about God through His creation: God is orderly, creative, logical, caring, greater than the universe He created, and so on.  It is our dependence on God’s Word which teaches us about God’s chosen people, their interaction with Him throughout their history, and, of course, the sacrificial death, burial, and resurrection of His Son in order that we might be offered eternal life. 

Special revelation is not necessarily Scripture, though. It can also be dreams, visions, any sort of direct communication from God to man.  Of course, these communications must be compared with the Scriptures themselves and discarded if they do not align.

We do seem to have evidence of some direct divine contact with men as long ago as perhaps 3000 b.c.  Some of the names found in the ruins of Ebla, a city which thrived between 3000 and 2000 b.c., contain the name Ya, perhaps Yahweh.  Names such as mi-ka-ya (“Who is like Yah”) and ish-ma-ya (“Yah has heard”) were found on tablets in the ancient city and may point to a public knowledge of Yahweh.  The abbreviation of God’s name, “Yah,” is used throughout the Bible in the term “Hallelujah” where the “j” is pronounced as a “y.”

This might indicate God had contacted us through some sort of special revelation prior to Moses in order to guide men in righteousness even then.  It could also have been passed down to their descendants by Adam and Eve through word of mouth.

Why is this important?

We see the need for some sort of contact whether written, as in the case of the Bible, or some sort of direct communication from God in the form of dreams or visions, for us not to wander off into some of the errors listed above by Davis and Yang.  Scripture is the standard, the one true and reliable source for our knowledge of God and His will in our lives.  It tells us specifically what God has done for us and how we please Him through obedience and displease Him through sin. 

If there were no Bible, so much of what we know of God and of ourselves might never been realized.

The Woman Caught in Adultery

John 8:1-11 (NASB)  But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2 And early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people were coming to Him; and He sat down and began to teach them. 3 And the scribes and the Pharisees *brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the midst, 4 they *said to Him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. 5 “Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?” 6 And they were saying this, testing Him, in order that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down, and with His finger wrote on the ground. 7 But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 And again He stooped down, and wrote on the ground. 9 And when they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the midst. 10 And straightening up, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?” 11 And she said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go your way. From now on sin no more.”

This story of the woman caught in adultery is an interesting passage of Scripture as are all passages of Scripture.  This one is disputed as to whether it is actually Scripture, though.  The story doesn’t appear in the earliest manuscripts of the New Testament but is possibly referred to by the Church Father, Papias (60 – 130 a.d.).  Since it doesn’t appear in a New Testament Manuscript until the fifth century, many scholars believe it was not included in the original text.  Greek Scholar, F. F. Bruce, doesn’t even include it in his commentary on the Gospel of John because of this belief.

Other scholars believe it appeared in the original autographs but was removed because the early church thought it treated adultery less severely than it should.  Adultery was apparently a problem in the early church perhaps due to the Roman and Greek culture of having a wife and a mistress.

A third camp believes this is a not Scripture but is a true historical event in which Jesus did address the adulterous woman and her Pharisee accusers.  They believe this because the story appears in early extrabiblical writings such as Papias (60-130 a.d.), Didascalia Apostolorum (c. 230 a.d.), Ambrose of Milan (c. 340-397 a.d.), and Augustine (354-439).  It also appears in the Latin Vulgate translated in the late fourth Century.  The earliest it appears in a New Testament manuscript is in one of our earliest full version of the New Testament, Codex Bezae (c. 400 a.d.) and Codex Washingtonianus dated about the same time and contains most of the four gospels.

The story doesn’t always appear in John chapter eight either.  Sometimes it appears in chapter 21 and even in Luke.  Again, this leads some to think either it was removed and copiests didn’t know where to reinsert the story, or it was a non-biblical but actual historical event which some copiests wanted to include in the gospel.

I’m going to take the view it is Scripture until proven otherwise.  Now let’s look a little at the text.  There are some fascinating points to make here.

In verses six and eight, Jesus writes in the dirt.  This is the only place in the New Testament where Jesus writes anything.  In Exodus 31:18, God (YHWH) uses His finger to write His Law in stone: (NASB)  And when He had finished speaking with him upon Mount Sinai, He gave Moses the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written by the finger of God.

Leviticus 20:10 says the Pharisees in our story should have brought the man who was committing adultery as well, and they were both to be stoned:  (NASB)  “If a man commits adultery with the wife of his neighbor, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.”

According to Deut. 17:7, the witnesses to the offense were to be the first to cast the stones:

(ESV) The hand of the witnesses shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.

So, legally, there was no one to pass judgment on the adulteress.  Her accusers had left. Remember she was still under the Law.  Jesus had not died and risen yet to bring on the New Testament Age.  And, there was to be no divine judgment either since Jesus did not condemn her.

On a lighter note, the last sentence in the passage, “From now on sin no more,” bothered me.  I asked Jesus several times in prayer why He would say that.  The woman was born with a sin nature just as you and I were.  She was going to sin again, maybe not commit adultery again, but she would sin. 

I sometimes think my questions are Jesus’ current main source of laughter.  He finally told me “Did you expect Me to say, ‘sin no more, and please cut back on the adultery?’”  I got the point. Absolute holiness is our goal, and we can only achieve that through God’s forgiveness.

Why is this important?

We receive criticism from all sides as Christians.  Many of these criticisms are directed at the reliability of Scripture.  Some will say we have included disputed passages in our Bibles, and we need to have an answer for them.  This is one.

Is Jesus Good?

Mark 10:17-18 (ESV)  And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.”

The question, “Is Jesus good?” seems pretty elementary.  Of course Jesus is good, but the question has some application to the above verse.  Some would say Jesus is denying His deity here, but is He?  If we see Jesus is good, then the question He asks is whether the man who knelt before Him recognized who Jesus truly was: God the Son.  At the same time, it would be an admission of deity, godhood, by Jesus.  Let’s see if Jesus is good.

Hebrews 4:15 says Jesus is without sin:

15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.

So, Jesus is without sin.  If that doesn’t prove He is good, at least He isn’t bad, is He?  But does Jesus ever claim directly to be good?  Well, in the Gospel of John, He claims to be the good shepherd:

John 10:11 (ESV)  I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

This shows His love for his sheep (followers).  That certainly points to His goodness, at least in His role as Shepherd.  There is another passage that might demonstrate more clearly just who Jesus is:

Col. 2:8-9 (ESV)  See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. 9 For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,

This passage in Colossians would seem to present a major logical problem for those who would claim Jesus is denying His deity in Mark 10:17-18.  Let’s look at the logic of it: If all the fullness of God dwells bodily in Jesus and God is eternally and infinitely good, then Jesus is eternally and infinitely good.  If Jesus is eternally and infinitely good and the only being which is eternally and infinitely good is God, then Jesus is God. (If you’re into standard form categorical syllogisms, I’ve presented this argument in that form at the end of the post).

Why is this important?

I’m sure somewhere in the last couple of sentences, you might have said, “Boy, Mike, you’re sure getting nitpicky.”  Well, sometimes we have to get nitpicky with those who can’t see the truth right in front of them.  Jehovah’s Witnesses and others believe Mark 10:17-18 shows Jesus is denying that He is God.  From what we have seen above, both biblically and logically, it’s obvious this is not what Mark is telling us Jesus is asking.

Going back to Mark 10:17-18, the traveler is simply being asked if he recognizes Jesus as God incarnate: (ESV)  And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.”

I agree with the psalmist:

Ps. 34:8 (ESV) Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!

——————————————

Syllogisms

  • Premise #1a – In Jesus, all the fullness of deity dwells bodily
  • Premise #2a – Deity (God) is eternally and infinitely good.
  • Conclusion #1a – Therefore, Jesus is eternally and infinitely good.
  • Premise #1b – If Jesus is eternally and infinitely good and
  • Premise #2b – And the only being which is eternally and infinitely good is God,
  • Conclusion #1b – Then Jesus is God

Who Should We Pray To?

Recently I was engaged in a conversation about who we should pray to.  We were talking about the Trinity and how, to some degree, each Person of the one God has particular roles.  Only Jesus, for instance, died for our sins, not the Father or the Holy Spirit.  This idea led to the question: do we pray to particular Persons for particular things?  Let’s look at this:

The Father:

Jesus tells us to pray to the Father: Matt. 6:9 (ESV)  Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name”  This is the “Lord’s Prayer,” of course, and in it Jesus lists some things to pray for: God’s Kingdom to come, God’s will to be done here and in heaven, for our daily needs, for forgiveness, not to be tempted, to be delivered from evil, and give praise to our God.

The Son:

Jesus says something similar, though briefly, about Himself in John 14:14 (ESV)  If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.   “Anything” would certainly include the full list of the Lord’s Prayer and then some.  So, praying to the Son is as appropriate as prayers to the Father.

The Holy Spirit:

Acts 13:2-3 (ESV)  While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

This passage doesn’t directly state the disciples’ prayers and worship were directed to the Holy Spirit, but I believe it implies it strongly, especially in verse 3 after the Holy Spirit had answered their prayer and given them direction.  So prayer to the Holy Spirit is just as appropriate as to the Father and the Son.

Why is this important?

The title question stems from our misunderstanding of our God, Yahweh, and our place in His care.  Our God is one God.  God is a gracious God. There is no pride in Him and, therefore, no prideful jealousy.  Even if we could get it wrong, God looks at our hearts.  He knows what you want to say and listens intently.  He is infinite in all of His ways.  He’s infinitely benevolent so is anxious to listen and respond to our benefit.  He is infinitely knowledgeable to understand all we say and do, so He listens to our mistakes, our stumbling, our uncertainty in prayer and makes sense of those.  No matter how great we think God is, He is greater.

We as His children cannot make mistakes in our prayers to this great and gracious God.  We can’t pray to the wrong Person.  We can’t pray in a wrong way if our heart is pure toward Him.  If this is a concern for anyone you know, I suggest you point them to Romans:

Romans 8:26 (ESV)  Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

Infallibility

2 Tim. 3:16 (ESV)  All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

I’ve been in a discussion about the infallibility of the Bible this week.  Webster gives three definitions for the word infallible: “1: incapable of error 2: not liable to mislead, deceive, or disappoint :certain 3: incapable of error in defining doctrines touching faith or morals.” Traditional and historic Christianity would apply all three to the entire Bible, but I’m mostly going to refer to the New Testament here because I’m much more familiar with the evidence for the infallibility of that than the Old Testament. 

First I’d like to look at the whole idea of a sacred text being fallible.  Fallible is pretty much the opposite of infallible.  Here’s Webster again:  “1: liable to be erroneous 2: capable of making a mistake.” So, a fallible religious text can be in error and is capable of making mistakes in what it has to say.  Let’s look at the philosophical concept for a minute.

If a sacred text is fallible, how would we know which parts to believe?  What if some doctrine expressed in this sacred text is in error, expressed incorrectly?  Fallibility is almost always blamed on the fact fallible man had some hand in its creation.  But, what if this uncertainty applies to a doctrine we hang our hats on?  If we can’t trust the text itself to tell us if that doctrine is true.  We could not include God as the authority.  He can’t be the final authority if fallible man can dilute or misrepresent God’s inspiration. 

So we would need another authority.  Maybe that authority is us.  We could believe what we want to believe is true in the text and reject what we think is untrue.  That would make truth subjective, though, subject to our own belief rather than our belief being subject to the sacred text.

Maybe we would need to turn to a pastor or a prophet to tell us which parts are true and which parts are not, but we would still have fallible man sifting what we agree began with God but was recast.  To be real here, this leads to relativism: truth is subjective, what is true for you may not be true for me.  “I believe something in the text is true but you don’t. Neither view has standing. So, I would conclude there is no way of knowing what a sacred text is saying if we believe fallible man was not just able to alter it but must have altered it.

Evidence

Is there evidence the Bible is accurate in its presentation of God’s leading?  The Bible certainly claims this. In the book of 2 Peter, Peter writes those prophets who came before him were inspired.

2 Peter 1:16-21 (ESV)  For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” 18 we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. 19 And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

Another evidence is that we have an exhaustive empirical demonstration of inspiration.  We have 66 ancient documents written over a span of more than 1500 years agreeing with one another, quoting one another in recognition of their divine inspiration, and supporting one another doctrinally, morally, and epistemologically.  I would challenge doubters to find a similar collection of ancient documents which would do the same.

Why is this important?

Ours is not a blind faith.  Our Bible is not a fallible book due to its being passed from God through man to reach us.  The question is often asked, “Couldn’t God protect His Word?”  I think the greater question is “Did He?”  In past blogs I’ve offered evidence of inspiration and of the trustworthyness of our Bible archaeologically , the authenticity of the Old and New Testament. 

We can trust our Bibles to be accurate and inspired.  They are the infallible Word of God not in translation, of course, or in copies of manuscripts, but in their original writing, the autographs.  Trust in the Bible you hold in your hand as an excellent representation of God’s Word to you.

Is our God capable of passing His Word through the hands of man without man corrupting it.  The evidence says “yes!” Ours is a God who could pass His Word through the hands of man infallibly despite the fallibility of man.

Giving Thanks

With Thanksgiving just a couple days past, I thought it would be fitting to list some ways we should give thanks to our Lord.  In my research, I came across David’s song of thanksgiving given in 1 Chronicles chapter 16 (ESV).  He said it much better than I can.  So, here it is for you to enjoy and rejoice in:

8  Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name;

make known his deeds among the peoples!

  9     Sing to him, sing praises to him;

tell of all his wondrous works!

10     Glory in his holy name;

let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!

11     Seek the Lord and his strength;

seek his presence continually!

12     Remember the wondrous works that he has done,

his miracles and the judgments he uttered,

13     O offspring of Israel his servant,

children of Jacob, his chosen ones!

14     He is the Lord our God;

his judgments are in all the earth.

15     Remember his covenant forever,

the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations,

16     the covenant that he made with Abraham,

his sworn promise to Isaac,

17     which he confirmed to Jacob as a statute,

to Israel as an everlasting covenant,

18     saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan,

as your portion for an inheritance.”

19     When you were few in number,

of little account, and sojourners in it,

20     wandering from nation to nation,

from one kingdom to another people,

21     he allowed no one to oppress them;

he rebuked kings on their account,

22     saying, “Touch not my anointed ones,

do my prophets no harm!”

23     Sing to the Lord, all the earth!

Tell of his salvation from day to day.

24     Declare his glory among the nations,

his marvelous works among all the peoples!

25     For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,

and he is to be feared above all gods.

26     For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols,

but the Lord made the heavens.

27     Splendor and majesty are before him;

strength and joy are in his place.

28     Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,

ascribe to the Lord glory and strength!

29     Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;

bring an offering and come before him!

       Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness;

30         tremble before him, all the earth;

yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved.

31     Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice,

and let them say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!”

32     Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;

let the field exult, and everything in it!

33     Then shall the trees of the forest sing for joy

before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth.

34     Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

for his steadfast love endures forever!

35 Say also:

       “Save us, O God of our salvation,

and gather and deliver us from among the nations,

       that we may give thanks to your holy name

and glory in your praise.

36     Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,

from everlasting to everlasting!”

Then all the people said, “Amen!” and praised the Lord.

Why is this important?

1 Thess. 5:16-19 tells it all:  Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Our God is an infinite God who works continually in our lives, so there is no end to the list of thing we can thank Him for.

Christianity’s Essentials

The Five Essentials

I was asked the other day what test could be used to tell if someone was a heretic or just in error.  I thought this would be a good topic to share here, so here goes.

There are five major doctrines the church has historically and generally used as a test of Christian organizations to see if they was not cultic: The Trinity, the deity of Christ, the bodily resurrection of Christ, salvation by grace alone, and the vicarious atonement.  Denial of any of these has historically put an organization in the cult category.  Let’s look at these very briefly:

The Trinity:  Belief in the Trinity is to believe the one true God chooses to exist in three distinct persons; God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit: one being but three persons.  These three are coequal and co-eternal.  We see this in Scripture here:

The Father is God:  Gal. 1:1 (ESV)  Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead

The Son is God: Titus 2:13 (ESV)  waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ

The Holy Spirit is God: Acts 5:3-4 (ESV)  But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? 4 While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to God.”

Yet there is only one true God: 1 Tim. 1:17 (ESV)  To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

Conclusion: The three persons are the one true God.

The Deity of Christ.  This is the belief that Jesus is God the Son, in all ways equal in nature with the Father and the Holy Spirit: 

John 5:18 (ESV)  This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.

The Bodily Resurrection of Christ.  This is the belief that Jesus rose from the dead in the very body that died on the cross at Calvary.

Luke 24:36-39 (ESV)  As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. 38 And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.”

Salvation by Grace Alone.  This is the belief we are saved by God’s grace and not by anything we have done.   Works have nothing to do with salvation.

Eph. 2:8-9 (ESV)  For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Vicarious Atonement.  This is the belief that Jesus didn’t only die for the world corporately but for us as individuals as well.  Vicarious just means “on behalf of another.”  God is interested in all of mankind, but what about me, a lowly sinner.  Is God interested in just me?  In the Parable of the Lost Sheep, Jesus answers this for us:

Luke 15:3-7 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?”

God is looking to save you and me.  That’s why salvation is such a personal experience.

Why is this important?

For the individual Christian, it is enough to rely on Jesus for your salvation.  The above five doctrines can be useful for a Christian to examine an organization before they become involved in it. 

A second danger of not understanding these doctrines is a Christian may have relied on Christ for their salvation but now thinks works are necessary for salvation, or Jesus is inferior in nature to the Father, or the Holy Spirit is just a name for God’s power.  When they share their faith, they are sharing it in error.  Maybe they are sharing a faith that is not a saving faith.  Maybe they tell a seeker that Jesus is the Archangel Michael or God is really not triune but one person who relates to us in three ways, or maybe we don’t really need to rely on Jesus at all to be saved, that works need to be performed first.  Is that a saving faith?

We are responsible before God both for what we believe and what we share with others.  One day we will stand before God, and we will have to explain why we didn’t study our faith deeply enough to be able to explain it clearly and completely to others.  We are expected to be able to give a clear and accurate representation of the Truth when asked.

2 Tim. 2:24-26  And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

Humble God

I’d like to look at John 8:56-58 again this week:

56 Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” 57 So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” 59 So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

Last time we looked at how the Son of God, creator of this universe, took on human form and walked the earth for thirty three years.  Now I’d like to look at the humility it took for Him to do such a thing.

To be restricted by a physical body, by the laws of physics, to die, to be separated from the father as He hung on the cross; none of these were expected of the God who spoke and all of creation came into existence:

John 1:3 (ESV)  All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 

This awesome God the Son came to show us what we were facing in our divine Father, that all Jesus did on earth was a reflection of who the Father is:

John 14:8-9 (ESV)  Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

Before Jesus came, the Pharisees were giving a distorted picture of God.  The god of the Pharisees had no grace, no mercy.  He was a legalistic god who was waiting for you to step out of line.  The Pharisees got it wrong because they were looking only at a small portion of God’s Word.

Even today, there are theologians and philosophers who believe we have no common experience sufficient for an understanding of God.  Isaiah tells us the same thing:

Isa. 40:13 (NIV)  Who has understood the mind of the Lord, or instructed him as his counselor?

The Pharisees had the people fooled into believing their version of Judaism was the correct one.  Man needed to see how we were to live, how we were to believe, Who God really is.  Jesus supplied that for us. 

Years ago we had the What Would Jesus Do movement.  There was one of those 2,000 years ago.  Jesus reflected the godhead when He dealt with the Jewish leaders and the woman caught in adultery:

John 8:10-11 (ESV)  Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”

We found God was not someone to be afraid of if we are His child.  He was someone to turn to in time of trouble and heartache.  Just as the woman called Him Lord, those who are His followers do as well.

One of my favorite passages that point to this safety in faith is at Jesus’ resurrection in Matthew 28:4-5

And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.

Notice the angels told women not to be afraid because they were followers of Jesus.  He didn’t say that to the unbelieving guards.

Why is this important?

If Jesus is the example for us, and righteousness is to do as Jesus did, we need to face the humility Jesus showed us head on:

Phil 2:5-8 (ESV)  Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

While I usually cite this passage to explain the incarnation of God the Son and Jesus, it is about humility.  God the Son stepped into time, emptied Himself, became obedient to the Father, took on such a worthless form as man and died for us.  The God of the universe in human form washed our feet.  How humble is that?

One more thing.  Verse 5 says we are to be just as humble. We should think on that.

Christians/Politics

Phil. 2:1-4 (ESV)  So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

We’re having an election in a couple of days in the United State, and some tempers are running a bit high.  How we as Christians present ourselves to others reflects on our Lord.  While we may disagree on important topics, we need to remember people are why Jesus came, people are why Jesus died, people are now our mission field not politics.  Shouting matches burn bridges that may never be rebuilt.

“Love your neighbor as yourself” still stands as the second commandment Jesus gave us and is equal to loving our Lord.  In fact, I think how we love our neighbors tells others how much we love the Lord.

God is in control of our elections, of government, of the people in charge.  Some governments are put in place as a consequence of that  nation’s attitude toward God. No matter the government, our job is the same:

Titus 3:1-3 (ESV)  Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.

The other day, I watched a video by Greg Laurie about elections.  He is concerned so many Christians are deciding not to participate in our electoral process.  He can see no biblical reason. 

Some don’t realize Separation of Church and State isn’t in the Bible but in a letter Thomas Jefferson wrote to the Danbury Baptists telling them there is a wall of separation but by government from the church not the other way around.  Christians in America are not taking advantage of the power God has given them to bring safety and justice to all Americans through the ballot box.

There are no perfect politicians just as there are no perfect plumbers, architects, or bloggers for that matter.  We as Christians can only do what God has offered us to do and vote for those who would further the kingdom of God or, at least slow the descent into a less godly nation.  It is up to Christians often to exercise this power to change.

Why is this important?

A lot of Christians see participation in the electoral process as a sort of endorsement of a corrupt system and, thus, refuse to vote or have anything to do at all with politics.  They see the world as separate, that “we should be in the world but not of it.”

Looking at nations where Christians have taken this step back from influencing their government, we can see countries where great cathedrals lay empty, where Christianity is seldom mentioned except in history books or it is taken as a sort of club where the Vicar is an occupation much like the village sweep  or city councilman.  Faith has been replaced by religion.

Many of the barriers Christians face in society are the result of poor Christian influence in government.  Our schools now teach things diametrically opposed to the Bible’s teachings.  Abortion is seen as a normal and permissible act, evolution is taught as fact, premarital sex has become just a stop along the path of coming of age.  All this may be traced to the Christian failing to seek public offices such as school board members, city council, and even Christians in teaching roles.  Our desertion of these positions has had grave effect.

I believe much of the blame comes from the church giving up its role in the community and turning over such duties as charity to the government.  Churches often become fortresses where individuals never meet with community members outside in a faith productive environment.

The local churches in America used to be the centers of local social life.  They are now passed by by most people on their way to Sunday morning breakfast, soccer, football, or just home for the game.

Unless the Christians take a more active role in our local communities, a generation or so from now, our churches will become museums and art galleries as are the great churches of Europe.  The next best thing to a lost soul is an inactive and sterile Christian. Vote!