Trayvon Martin

The case of Trayvon Martin is both sad and tragic.  Certainly there is much that we simply do not know concerning the events that took place that evening.  Many will assume that they know based on the limited information that has been slowly leaked from the media.  But the only ones who really know what happened on that night were Trayvon Martin, Mr. Zimmerman and God.  Besides that as much as we like to speculate, amateur arm-chair detectives that we are, we simply don’t have the first hand knowledge of what happened.

What do we know?  We know that it is a tragedy and that this dear family is mourning the loss of their son who at the end of the day will not be returned to them no matter what the exact circumstances were at the time, or no matter the outcome of the investigation.  We know that some things were likely not handled correctly nor with equity for all who are involved.  We also know that there are many who would seek to use this tragedy as a platform for increased visibility and as an opportunity to ride their soap box of choice.   Furthermore, we know that the apparent racial prejudices surrounding this tragedy are had on both sides.  Neither side will admit but both still harbor feelings of prejudice.  And it takes situations like this (which would not likely breach the news if both parties were either black or white) to bring out those apparent and remaining prejudices.

What does this tragic event in the life of our theoretically socially advanced society remind us of…those of us who desire a heart of wisdom and not merely a heart that holds on to bitterness and pride?

1.  Sin is still a problem.  That is a no brainer…at least it should be.  Any death is a reminder for us that sin is still a problem.  The Scripture says that the wages of sin is death.  Thus all die because all sin.  The tragic nature of death only intensifies the reality of the sin problem.  Whether a person dies of old age, cancer, a car wreck or a gunshot wound, death is both tragic in itself and a tragic reminder that mankind, the human race has a sin problem that has not yet been resolved.  But there is One who has been appointed to resolve this problem.

2.  Race is still a problem.  The way that we use race is really misleading.  If you are a person of faith then we understand that there are no separate races, for we are all born from one man, Adam.  And even if that were not so (I am speaking in foolish terms because it is inconceivable to me that we would have come from an animal which is much lesser in significance than we are in the eyes of our Creator) even if it were true that we evolved from monkeys we would still only be one race of people…all having the same ancestry, all having the same blood pulsing through our veins.  If we have all come from different places in the world or have all had different tongues in recent years, these things are not enough to makes such a grandiose claim that there is more than one race.  Thus in my mind race should not be an issue.

Furthermore, to those who have faith, in Christ there is no distinction to be made between those who are from one people group or another.  All who are in Christ are a part of God’s family and thus are brother and sister.  That ought to be our attitude.  “Our people” are God’s people.  The color of your skin, the culture of those who are closest to you in relation should not matter.  Christ should.  Now I don’t expect for those who are without the faith to understand nor to consent to this latter point.  But it saddens and sometimes deeply disturbs me to hear those who would profess to be followers of Christ quick to claim their allegiance to skin color rather than Christ.  Racial inequity continues and will continue because men are sinners.  We who have faith ought not respond as if we are just like them, without knowledge, without faith.  Continuing to focus on racial inequity, using it as a platform to further hatred and division does not help to solve the problem and it dishonors the Lord who died so that we (people from every tribe and tongue and people and nation) would have peace together in Him.

Christian, do not marvel at the sin of the world.  Magnify the glory of Christ in His Church of diverse peoples.  Use these tragic days, not as a means of perpetuating hatred but rather as a means of propogating the gospel of Christ that reconciles sinners one to another.

3.  Injustice is a problem.  This is related to the first point.  Injustice is as a result of sin.  Between a man and his neighbor, between the accused and the judge in the courtroom, between citizen and King; injustice abounds.  And this is so because of sin.  When men do unjust things to one another (whether by fist or by gunshot) we ought to mourn.  And we ought to mourn because a man has lifted up his fist against another who is also made in the likeness of God.  Both men are made in His image and thus both ought to be honored.  And yet dishonor is done between one man and another and this ought not be so.  It dishonors our collective human race when men act unjustly towards one another.  Besides which who is competent between two sinners?  Would you be a just judge between those two men who lifted up their hands against each other?  Are your hands innocent of shed blood?  Have you never hated another man in your heart?  Let you who are without sin cast the first stone against Zimmerman.   Who among men is able to do such a thing?  We dare not use our own fallen, wicked, sin stained judgment against a man whom we do not know, in a situation in which we have incomplete knowledge to judge his wickedness when we have our own.  You who call for justice, what about the justice due concerning your sin against others?  What about the hatred that you’ve had in your heart against your mother, father, brother, neighbor?  What about the times when you’ve lifted your hand in anger against another?  What about your infidelity?  What about your foolish pride?  Who will bring justice against your wickedness against the God of Heaven?  There is One who has been appointed and who is worthy to resolve this matter of injustice.

4.  Whatever happened to compassion?  We – bystanders – pride ourselves in having the “right” response of outrage, awe and are quick to judge.  I could certainly understand the response of shock, disbelief, grief, perhaps hatred, and a desire for justice from the family who lost their son in a such a senseless way.   These emotions are quite natural when we go through such trials.   But beyond the initial shock, what ought our response be to Mr. Zimmerman?  No matter what the circumstances his life is now ruined.  Do we dare think that he took lightly to murdering a young man in the street?  Do we think that he failed to consider the ramifications of this to his family?  Perhaps the answer to those things is yes.  Perhaps he was so callous as to murder a young man in cold blood.  Perhaps he simply didn’t care what ramifications it would have on him or his family.  Should we respond to him with hatred or with pity?  Whether he took these things lightly or carefully considered and did it only as a last resort as he claims, we ought not respond to him with hatred but with pity.  When he pulled that trigger he changed the lives of many.  Each one of us will give an account one day before The Judge.  The One who has All Authority to cast both body and soul into Hell.  And each one of us will stand before Him and have to answer for what deeds we’ve done in the body.   This man will have to one day give an account to the Judge, of all flesh, for why he chose to take the life of that young man on that day.  And His judgment then will be final and severe.  We do not have to seek revenge for this young man’s death.  Scripture says clearly “leave room for His vengance, ‘vengance is mine I will repay, says the Lord.’”  Rather we ought to pity him.  And we ought to, as we are also exhorted, “love our enemies.”  Whatever was his reasoning, in times past, perhaps today, (perhaps even now while you are reading my post disagreeing with my every word) you have had hatred enough in your heart to pull the trigger against another.  Bottom line…you are no better.

I recall the news of Osama Bin Laden’s death where many, including many Christians, were almost rejoicing at his death.  I wrote a post about that here  The Death of the Wicked.  My thoughts then are essentially the same as they are now.  I am speaking to you believer.  We ought not join with them in the folly of their judgments on matters too great for our limited wisdom to discern.  The Lord will Judge.  The Day is coming soon enough when justice and equity will be brought upon the Earth.  In that day, every lofty heart, every foolish thought, every bit of hatred, every ounce of prejudice, all strife, wars and rumors of wars, everyone who has ever thumbed their nose against the All Mighty God will be silenced.  And He will have His Day.  The race of men will fall.  Only those who are in the 2nd Adam will stand.

I am saddened for Trayvon, his family, Mr. Zimmerman and his family.  It saddens me that death still reigns, and that inequity and injustice are still part and parcel in our day.  What is sadder yet is all of those who presume to have a handle on how to judge others when they haven’t considered in what way they themselves will be judged by the Lord.   But I am hopeful in a God who has provided both a Savior to remedy the problem of death by taking away our sin (including our pride against others), and a Lord who will some day soon return bringing justice and equity to all.

Maranatha

A humbling reminder…

I had a bad attitude today…a sinful attitude.  Its easy to justify a sinful response to someone, particularly when you feel that you have rightly discerned their heart and motive in the matter.  But that justification is just as wrong as any justification that they might render concerning their own behavior; furthermore my discernment is not infallible.  So what makes the difference between them and I?  As far as I know, from their behavior they are not a follower of Christ.  And yet based solely on my own heart response (even if I suppressed foolish behavior) some might wonder if I were a follower of Christ.  So what makes the difference?

I guess the difference comes in what I do with that sinful response.  For the one who follows Christ sin must be dealt with.  Really there are two issues involved in a situation like this.  First is what do you do with a person who has sinned against you?  How do you respond to such a thing.  Second is – if you haven’t responded well – what do you do with your sinful attitude.  Really the other person has probably gone on about their business for the day, they aren’t even thinking about you but you are still fuming.  I’m trying to be real with this because I struggled with it for quite a bit this afternoon.

Concerning the first issue, what do you do when a person sins against you.  My first response today was to become agitated.  Part of the issue is that I was already a bit agitated from something that happened yesterday (both of these issues transpired around work…).  So I should have dealt with it yesterday before the LORD but I did not.  BIG PROBLEM.  When you let a sinful response fester in your heart it is bound to take root and grow into something worse.  So when someone sins against you deal with it immediately.  If you are not in the place to where you can address the person as a believer, and they won’t respond otherwise, then you may need to simply right it off.  I was thinking on a passage in Psalm 37 about not fretting because of evildoers…ceasing from anger and forsaking wrath because it will only lead to evildoing.  In other words, when you become angry about an evildoers actions and respond in anger that response is itself evildoing and leads to further evildoing.  Furthermore we are to follow the lead of Christ who when reviled did not respond in anger but kept entrusting Himself to the One who judges rightly (I Peter 2:23).  This is the example that we have, thus we ought to follow it in all of our doing.

One further thing, when we are sinned against by someone else, our first response is often characterized by a preoccupation with ourselves and how we feel that we have been wronged.   Its not necessarily about justice, though we may say that it is.  Its often about retribution and/or seeking to be recompensed for some right of ours that we feel has been violated.

Sin is a violation against the LORD.  And the LORD is gracious.  He has been gracious to us in Christ, thus we ought to seek to be gracious to all others, regardless of what offense they make.

Titus says

Remind them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed,  2 to malign no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing every consideration for all men.  3 For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another.  4 But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared,  5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,  6 whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,  7 so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.  (3:1-7)

We are to show every consideration for all men, we are to be kind, to malign no one, to be peaceable and gentle to all, because we were all once foolish…and because God showed us His kindness and love by sending Christ to die for us, not because of our good deeds, but because of His mercy.  If God has done this for us in Christ, we must do no less.

Furthermore God is the One who exacts vengeance, who brings justice.

Romans 12:19-21

19 Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY,” says the Lord.  20 “BUT IF YOUR ENEMY IS HUNGRY, FEED HIM, AND IF HE IS THIRSTY, GIVE HIM A DRINK; FOR IN SO DOING YOU WILL HEAP BURNING COALS ON HIS HEAD.”  21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Thus we must leave room for God to bring justice, because His justice is righteous.  Ours is often selfish.  And it is His alone to give as He is the Judge of all things.

Concerning the second issue, if you haven’t responded well, what do you do with your sinful response?  My sinful response was in the heart.  Thus I had to deal with it before the LORD first.  I had to realize that it was sinful.  When I thought a little longer about it and reflected upon some passages of scripture that I had been praying through recently, I was convicted.   Thus I had to seek Him for forgiveness because ultimately any offense is an offense against the LORD who Himself is righteous and expects righteousness from all.  Because some cannot, and we all do not live up to His standard does not require that He lower the standard.  He has provided Christ to help us to be acceptable to God because of Christ and not ourselves.  Thanks be to God!  Seeking the Word was crucial in that step because the Word of God is that which brings conviction to the heart and correction.  It also gives wisdom to know how to respond in the future.

The next step would have been to seek forgiveness from this other person because of your sinful attitude toward them.  Regardless of whether or not they were privy to your sinful attitude.  Especially if it is a believer.  Seeking forgiveness from them for your sinful attitude towards them helps to restore your relationship with them.  If you are not able to seek forgiveness because they are separate from you geographically or otherwise then you must entrust that situation to the LORD.  But be humble and seek the forgiveness.  In my case, the individuals against whom I sinned I will not likely see again.  That is sad because I fear that I may have left a negative view of myself behind for them.  Of course this is not for my sake alone but for the sake of the name of the LORD by whom I am called.  We often (myself included) forget this.  We don’t merely represent ourselves, thus we don’t always have to be right or to “save face” in a given situation.  If we know the LORD, if we follow Christ; then it is His glory that we ought to seek to preserve.  And often the best way to do that is not by retaliation or an angry sinful response, but by humility, being “quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger” as James says, and by entrusting ourselves to the LORD, the Righteous Judge.

 

I pray that this confession and exhortation would be a blessing to you today.  Until He comes…

 

Psalm 37:1-11

Do not fret because of evildoers, Be not envious toward wrongdoers.  2 For they will wither quickly like the grass And fade like the green herb.  3 Trust in the LORD and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.  4 Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.  5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it.  6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light And your judgment as the noonday.  7 Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.  8 Cease from anger and forsake wrath; Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.  9 For evildoers will be cut off, But those who wait for the LORD, they will inherit the land.  10 Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more; And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.  11 But the humble will inherit the land And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.

James 1:19-20

19 This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger;  20 for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.

I believe.

1 Corinthians 15:1-8

Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand,  by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.  For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,  and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,  and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.  After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.”

This is the testimony of the Apostle Paul to the Corinthian Church.  This is what he believed.  This is what he taught.  I am no different than him, who spoke nearly 2000 years ago concerning the fact of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection attested by the Scriptures and the other Apostles.

I have written previously concerning certain thoughts that I had around Easter.  Somehow I feel that this Easter has crept up on me.  It is certainly one of the most important celebrations in the Christian faith.  Much of what Paul mentions in the rest of I Corinthians 15 has to do with the literal, bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  His point in a nutshell is that if Jesus didn’t rise from the dead then our whole faith is in vain.  Thus Easter is greatly celebrated among those who believe.  It is a time to reflect upon the sacrifice that Jesus made on our behalf, the heinousness of our own sin that drove Him to the cross, the great love that kept Him there in the midst of such hostility and mockery at the hand of sinners like you and I, and His victory over sin, death and the grave when He rose triumphantly just three days later.  Appropriate words fail me now to describe the joy that I ought to feel as I reflect upon my own weakness, tendency to rebel against my Wonderful, Merciful Savior.

There ought to be much jubilation.  There ought to be great celebration.  Sadly many who believe approach Easter as if its just any old holiday.  Perhaps there is dressing up, perhaps there is the purposeful endurance of hours in a hot church before a dispassionate preacher droning on about the significance of how many Angels were at the tomb or that women received the message of the resurrection first (among other things).  And once they’ve made it to church on Easter, they check this spot off their list and return to their usual sporadic church attendance.

My point here is not to down anyone.  My point here, as I check my own heart, is to remember that at the heart of my faith is a set of truths.  It is not the celebration of a “holiday” or a the warm and fuzzy feeling associated with the spectacle that many make of Easter (bunny rabbits, chocolate and such).  It is the recognition and heart affirmation of a set of truths that all who claim to be a part of my faith ought to hold to.  And those same set of truths dictate (some more directly than others) how we approach these holy days,  who we ought to be toward one another and toward all men.  And more than that, these set of truths point to a Man.  The only Man in whom there is true life.  And the only Man under heaven of whom it may be said that believing in His name leads to salvation.

Paul said it first and best here in the above passage “the gospel which I preached to you, which you also believed, in which you stand, by which you are saved…[is] that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures and that He appeared to [many].”

I am a Christian.  As a Christian I affirm that…

I believe that Jesus Christ of Nazareth is a real person.

I believe all of the Bible to be fully trustworthy, authentic and truly the Word of God to man.  As the Word of Creator God, it is fully capable and does predict the future and accurately record historic events.

I believe that Jesus died for my sins according to the Scriptures (the Old Testament in the Bible).

I believe that Jesus was buried in a tomb because He was genuinely dead.

I believe that Jesus rose again on the third day according to those same Scriptures.

I believe that Jesus appeared to over 500 people including the Apostles ( who walked with Him during His life, and would have known Him intimately), and that they accurately recorded their testimony about Him in the New Testament of the Scriptures.

And I believe that my faith in Jesus Christ of Nazareth will not be in vain because He has risen from the dead and will literally return to the Earth, as sure as He came the first time, and that He will finally make me fit for His Glorious Kingdom.

There is much more that I could say.  For now I will conclude with this.  I believe because He lives.  Had He not risen from the dead, there would be no hope in Christianity.  There would be no power to change us from being dead in sin to have life before God, thus saving us from His Wrath.  And there would be no confidence in the Word of God to accurately predict the future on the basis of God’s Almighty control of all things.  But again, because He lives, all of these things are yes and Amen.

Romans 10:9-11

“if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;  for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.  For the Scripture says, “WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.” “

I have put my complete faith in this man, the LORD Jesus Christ.  I invite you to do the same.

Even so, Come LORD Jesus!

Parenting, 3 reasons why we must not give up!

Reason #1 why we must not give up. It is the will of God.  God has destined us for this purpose.  He brought both husband and wife together in marriage.  He enabled their bodies to conceive.  He appointed each child to the family.  If it is thus God’s will that we are the parents and they are the children and if God has thus called children to parent; then we must parent, and we must not give up.

Parenting is at times discouraging, frustrating and down right disheartening.  But God has appointed us to this.  He has appointed us as parents, weak, lacking wisdom, easily frustrated and tired as we are.  And He has appointed these children to us, foolish, stubborn, sinful and childish as they are.  And God never errs.  He never makes mistakes.  He did not forget that you were weak.  He did not forget that you too would struggle with sinful inclinations and responses.  He did not forget that you might be tired or that it might be hard.  He also did not forget or fail to realize how difficult this child would be.  Nor did not overlook that you would have many sleepless, teary eyed nights over this unrepentant, sometimes belligerent soul.  In fact He planned it all.  He planned it all first for His glory and next for the good of the two of you.  Yes, He gave you two to each other for the sanctification of each of you.  And perhaps if your child is yet to believe, then He has planned them first for your sanctification.

Furthermore in His mercy, in His plan, with His call, He provides greater grace.  For God always gives grace to the humble and He always gives grace sufficient for the weaknesses of those whom He calls to service.

Reason #2 why we must not give up. This is why children need parents.  Children are born sinners.  Thus their intellect, their capacity for “reason,” their ability to know their limitations and to discern right from wrong is all corrupt.  It is tainted with sin.  Thus children need guidance.  They need wisdom.  It is not inherent in them.  What is inherent is to sin.  What is inherent is to choose what is most pleasing to them alone, whether it is wise or right for them to do.  Children are never taught to sin.  They never need to be taught to cry for something that they want.  They know instinctively how to become angry when a perceived need is not met.  However they do need to be taught to delay gratification.  They need to be taught discipline.  They need to be taught that food is for the belly and not the belly for food.  They need to be taught that fun isn’t always safe.  They need to be taught the nature of action and consequence.   They need to be taught boundaries.  If parents do not teach them these things then their folly will ensnare them.  Their desires will overwhelm them until they become utter slaves to their lusts, whatever those lusts may be.  They need to be taught these things or else they will perceive no boundaries, either human or divine; thus incurring both the judgment of man and eventually the judgment of God.

Reason #3 why we must not give up. The Lord is patient with us.  If we would but count the times of our stubbornness, the times when we’ve scorned the reproof of the Lord, the times when we’ve ignored His chastening and rebuke, the times when we’ve returned to the vomit of our sin even in light of His discipline, the times when we’ve shaken our fists at God’s law in pursuit of our own passions…we would be ashamed at our lack of patience with our children.  For the Lord God is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness towards us…and that so beautifully and bountifully displayed on a wooden cross on which He hung His Son to suffer, bleed and die for our sins while we were sinners and His enemies.  He did that for us.  And He rose Him from the dead and gave Him glory and the promise of new life and glory to us as well, though we were His enemies.  If God has thus done so for us, how can we not do so for our dear (sometimes wicked) sweet children, the fruit of the womb, the blessing from the Lord?

Certainly there are more reasons.  These have been the most outstanding in my own heart recently as I’ve considered this stewardship of parenthood which the Lord has thus given us.  May they be a blessing to your soul as well.  Remember these principles when you are at your last, remember that the Lord is Sovereign, even over the course of their young, seemingly uncontrolled lives, and often seek the Fountain of Grace whenever your cup runs empty.

Maranatha!

Coram Deo – Reckon the Reward

Sin is a lack of faith.  It is short sightedness.  It is an affront against the goodness of God.  It is the choice to partake in the passing pleasures associated with this world above that which is eternal and infinitely more enjoyable in God.  Consider what is said of Moses in Hebrews as he is praised for his faith in the God who is a rewarder of those who seek Him, “Moses when he became of age refused to be called the son of Pharoah’s daughter, choosing rather o suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward.”

In this description we notice 4 things, not in any particular order:

1)  Sin is pleasurable.  The alternative for Moses were the “treasures of Egypt.”  What pleasures would have been available for the son of Pharoah’s daughter?  It was not a small thing for Moses to simply choose not to partake in these things.  They were treasures.  They were glorious.  He probably would have had any number of pleasurable things at his disposal.  And so for us, in our “Egypt.”  Though we are not sons of Pharoah’s daughter, we have so many “treasures” and “pleasures” available at our very finger tips.  It does the believer no good to attempt to deny the desirability of sin.  James says that temptation is temptation precisely because it caters to a desire within the person who is tempted. Sin is desirable, just as the fruit was desirable to the eyes of our first father and mother in the garden, such that they sinned against their God.

2)  Sin must be deal with. Sin cannot be ignored.  Temptation cannot be ignored.  And it cannot be fought.  A person cannot man-up and struggle their way through a temptation as to overcome it.  We are told, in Timothy to “flee” from immorality.  Peter told us to “abstain” from fleshly lusts because they wage war against our souls.  Abstain – hold back from, keep away from anything that pertains to the lusts of the flesh.  We must flee from it, we cannot simply ignore it.  The problem is that most of the time, that which tempts us is not the wife of Potipher.  In those situations, many of us who have the spirit of God would turn in run.  But it is often not those situations in which we find ourselves.  We find ourselves in situations where we have to make a thousand little choices every single day in order to flee.  And every one of those thousand little choices can either bring us closer to sin or closer to the Lord.  Perhaps you’ll never have to decide whether to stay in Egypt or not.  But each day you must sit in front of your desk at work and decide to waste time or be productive.  Each day you must sit at your computer and decide to spend time looking at worthless things or to spend you time wisely in the Lord.  Each moment you must decide to complain and gripe about a situation that is difficult for you or to accept it as the Lord’s will for this season.  Each moment you decide how to respond to an arrogant, ignorant, hostile or demanding person in your life, whether you will continue to pursue righteousness or respond to them in the flesh. The point is that fleeing is not often a one time event, but rather a conscious decision that must be made daily, yea even each moment of your day.

3)  Often association with God brings affliction. This is clear and obvious from the text in Hebrews as well as it says plainly that Moses’ choice was to suffer affliction with the people of God.  Paul said to Timothy that “all who desire to live godly will face persecution.”   And that in the greater context of 2 Timothy where affliction and hardship is a major theme that Paul sought to convey to Timothy.  The man of God will face persecution from those who are crooked and perverse in his generation.  It must happen.  This world is anti-God and anti-Christ.  Those who are called by His name will receive just what He received.  Turning from sin to serve God is not an easy thing.  It is not a turning to “your best life now.”  It is a turning from the pleasures of this world to the cross of Christ, and it is taking up our own cross and making that same journey of death with Him…though it is a death to eternal life. If it were not for the cross, the world would be flocking in droves to the call of Christ.  But that is not the case because the call of Christ, a crucified and slain Christ, is foolishness to them.

4)  That brings us to our last point.  Pursuing holiness leads to the reward. Holiness is the opposite of sin.  Sin seeks its own apart from God.  Holiness seeks the pleasure of God in doing what is pleasing to Him.  While sin’s reward of pleasure is indeed enjoyable for a moment it is in reality only an illusion.  The one who is deluded may find great pleasure in his psychotic episode.  He may run free with reckless abandon in a secluded wood.  He may spend endless hours feasting upon his favorite meal.  But when he awakens from his slumber his belly will still be empty.  And if he were in his  delusion for long, the hunger pains may well lead him to starve himself to death.  There is no true reward with sin.  Only the image of a reward and an empty belly.  The reward of God is a reward indeed.  It is the reward of a better country.  Though a spiritual reality, a reality indeed.  Though unseen, its substance is what yields eternal pleasure and everlasting joy.  The reward of God is as real and eternal as God Himself, for He is the reward.  And the Christ of God is the reward giver who gives to all who both believe God and believe that He does reward those who diligently seek Him.

Reckon the reward.  Know that no matter how scintillating or how pleasurable the sin may be, beneath its surface lies a whirlpool which drags its captive down to the abyss of death.  But beyond the treacherous roads of Holiness mountain lies greater reward.  “In His face is the fullness of joy and in His right hand are pleasures forevermore!”

Blessed be the Name of the LORD!

Why do we always ask “why” when difficulty strikes?  I’m not talking about after we’ve had time to think about it, pray about it, and have others comfort and encourage us through it.  I’m talking about the initial gut response.  When something difficult happens our first thought, more often than not is “why?”  Why me, why now, why this?  Strange it seems, particularly once you’ve gone through the trial that you even asked why to begin with.  Then again, I guess sometimes all you’re left with is why with no further response from the Lord.  Some things, we’ll never know and were never meant to know.  Somethings He makes clear to us knowing that we are flesh, weaklings.

But where does that gut response of “why” come from?  Most likely it comes from the expectation that we deserve only good in life.  Certainly for the unbeliever there is often that expectation.  That they are inherently good and that they deserve only good to come.  Even that god, their god, is a god of only good things and that disaster and calamity should never befall them.  But that is not the God of the Bible.  That is certainly not the Father of Jesus Christ nor the Father of His Church.

So what about believers?  When disaster and calamity strikes and we respond with “why” what are we saying?  I think that we too are saying “why me, why this, why now?”  And I think that we are often responding with that thinking that we too deserve only good things.  Is that wrong of us to assume?  We are children of the King.  Children in the Beloved.  We are the Lord’s and we expect that He will work out everything for our good and His glory in the end…right?  And what about those who are more charismatic among us who assert that there aren’t really any difficulties that should befall us and that we shouldn’t even be physically sick (I recently had someone who was of the charismatic persuasion say to me – with reference to Isaiah 53 – that Jesus’ bore our sicknesses and that through His death we are healed and so my wife’s physical distress would be healed if we believed that and claimed it).  What about that?  There is certainly much to be said for their faith, though their interpretation of scripture is somewhat lacking.  And there is much to be said about their fervency for prayer and trusting that God would move because they pray in faith.

But what else are they saying?  In a sense, and I don’t believe that everyone of them is saying this nor do I believe that every other believer thinks this way but for the most part it is probably true, in a sense they are saying that God should give us what we ask for no matter what it is and that we shouldn’t ever experience physical or any other distress because God never meant it to be that way for us.  That is so close to the truth its almost difficult to combat.  Certainly God created us “good” and for “good.”  However things did not remain that way.  And there is really no promise in scripture that now things ought to be completely good and at ease for us as believers.  Quite the opposite.  I’ve been reading through I Peter and he assumes that difficulty will arise and that this difficulty is a part of what it means to walk in Christ’s footsteps.  Certainly Paul’s life – who was a man of faith and a man of prayer – was full of difficulty.  Are we to assume that he was in some sort of sin or that he didn’t have enough faith or that he didn’t pray earnestly enough and that this is why his life was marked with difficulty both physical and otherwise?  Certainly not.  And ultimately we have Jesus who said “in this life you will have tribulation but to be of good cheer because I have overcome the world.”  And His life, what was it if not marked by “grief and sorrow.”  Are we, His disciples, to live a life greater than He, our Master?

I guess in the final analysis we have to conclude that what is “our good” that God is working all things toward, is ultimately not up to us.  In other words we can’t and won’t know what the “good” is that God is working all things toward.  We don’t really know what good thing we need and we don’t really know how best to work out situations and circumstances in our lives in order to reach that good.  But we can rest in knowing that God knows.  And we can rest in knowing that God is the One who is and always will be in control and that He is at work to work all things together for our good, whether they are “good” or “bad” according to our perspective.

In the end, we must assert with Job that it would be foolish to only be willing to accept good from God and not adversity.  Accepting the good and adversity in this respect is more of an attitude adjustment.  There is not really anything that we can do to accept or reject adversity from God.  But the acceptance, as we saw – at least from the first and last couple of chapters of  Job – has more to do with an attitude that doesn’t question God’s motives but which accepts that He is in control, that His plans and purposes are higher than we can conceive and that whether He gives or takes, He is and always shall be blessed.

Responsibility

Most people simply do not want to accept responsibility. I was talking to someone the other day about their life, and it seemed that at every point this person was shifting the responsibility for the way that they are onto someone else. If it wasn’t some potential suitor, it was their parents…and I’m sure if I had allowed to conversation to continue it would have been something else. The one thing that I have continued to come back to with this person is based on the old definition of “insanity.” Insanity is doing something repeatedly the same way but expecting different results. Well, if you haven’t addressed the issue of your own heart before the Lord and how your heart has or has not changed based on your knowledge of Him; then you will continue to get the same results out of life.

You could, of course, continue to blame things on others and even to look to others to solve all of your problems…and rest assured you will continue to get the same results from life. Or you could turn to the One who is able to solve all of your problems…not just to meet your felt needs, not just to make you feel good about yourself…but to address your most basic need. That is the need to see your own personal sin.

You are a sinner. You have made choices in your life that you will be held responsible for. God will examine your life. Not the life of your parents, friends, co-workers or that person who wronged and hurt you so deeply all those years ago. You.

And you need a new heart. You need a new way to view life. You need a new mind with which to think about life and with which to make decisions. And what mind is better than the mind of the One Man who has ever made ever decision perfectly, without fail in accordance with the will of His Father who is in Heaven? What better life to imitate…not just imitate, but to be forever and intimately identified with and molded to than the One whose life could not be held in the grave because it was so pleasing to God?

Which path will you take? The path wherein your life continues to be in your own control, under your own direction, in your own power and at whose end is only death, misery and condemnation. Or, the path wherein your life is crucificed, the path wherein your life is reborn, the path wherein you are no longer enslaved to your former lusts to do the will of the flesh, leading to death but wherein you are enslaved to the will of God to do righteousness. Furthermore, it is the path which has already been trodden for us. It involves tears, not of disobedience and shame, but of obedience and glory. It is the path which accepts responsibility and penalty of its own sin; but also trusts in the Gracious One who made payment for our sin for the glory of God and our good.

Psalm 8 – 150 Days of Purposeful Meditation (Day 8)

God is…

I am in awe of this Psalm.  Each time I’ve read it lately, I’ve had to give pause at this one thought that the Psalmist is seeking to convey.  Though he has many different points, I think that there is one main thought.  Namely that God, as great as He is and as great as His works may be, would take interest in us.

Many take note of the sun, moon and stars and marvel at their wonders for wonders sake.  They look at the great expanse of the universe and are aghast at the multitude of brightly shining stars in the heavens.  They may even stand in awe of the manifold nature of the plant and animal kingdoms.  They are right to find these things compelling.  But they fall short of what is truly worth their wonder because they fail to mix their wonder with faith.

The ungodly do not believe that there is a Creator.  And because they do not believe that there is a Creator then there is no reason for them to consider His reason for creating.  It would be natural to wonder what purpose a person has in creating one thing or another; but if something were created solely by accident, then there would be no right reason to wonder.

Yet, we who understand that something, particularly something with such complexity, could not possibly have come about without an initial cause; believe that the cause is in fact a person with a plan and purpose at heart.  Furthermore that this person’s plans and purposes include us, who – as great as we think we are – in the big scheme of things are really only a small part of His vast created universe; is truly a thing of wonder.  It would be something like us building a vastly complex ant farm in which there were little ant cities, towns and countries; placing a few small ants in the farm, at various locations, and then tending to each one’s particular real need.  (I say real need to distinguish from the “felt needs” that some of my brothers and sisters believe that we ought to cater to in order to reach some with the gospel.  Real needs are those things which God determines are our needs…paramount is our need for Him in the gospel and not necessarily temporal ease.)  I’d give them charge over the entire farm, placing other “inhabitants” of the farm under their charge. Then I’d give them a special relationship with me above all of the other inhabitants of the farm.  Such that they can communicate with me and I with them, they can know me relate to me.

Crazy huh?  I mean, why on earth am I taking time to build an ant farm of such complexity for these ants to inhabit?  Why not just give them a mound of dirt?  Why would I take time to see that each of their needs is met?  Why would I even give them charge over the farm?  Just because its called an “ant farm?”  And why would I give them of all the inhabitants of the farm, the opportunity to know me?

“Oh Lord, our Lord how majestic is your name in all the earth.”  When was the last time that you thanked God, worshipped God, praised God; because He has chosen to bestow His grace upon you?  Before you understand why its so great that God has chosen to bestow grace upon you; you must first understand how incredibly worthless you are.  Thats where most people miss it.  Pop pshychology will tell you that you are to be made much of.  Pop culture will tell you that your wants/desires are most important.  God’s grace teaches us that we have nothing to offer and everything to lose; but that He has chosen to purchase our good with the death of His own Son.  His grace teaches us that there is no one righteous; but the One who had no sin and was made sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.  God’s grace teaches us that it is not our name that ought to be made much of; but that it is His.  For He alone is worthy of praise for the grace that He has bestowed on us, who are but dust.

O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name, in all the earth!

Psalm 5 – 150 Days of Purposeful Meditation – (Day 5)

God hates sinners.  That is not a popular nor politically correct thing to say.  In fact, some people will disagree with me and question my interpretation…Its a good thing the word of God is not  up for discussion.  You may hate or disagree with what I say, but scripture is clear.  He says “You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, no evil dwells with you…you hate all who do iniquity…the Lord abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit.”

Part of the reason why we react so strongly to the idea that God hates sinners is because of our understanding of what it means to hate and also because of our low view of sin.  We find it necessary to say rather that God hates the “sin” but loves the sinner.  That may be true in some sense…depending on how you view God’s electing purposes.  Not to go too far down that path, though I do believe it is related, but if God has chosen some to save; certainly it can be said that He loves those whom He has chosen.  And that His love is clearly seen in His choice of them and His provision of salvation for them.  However clearly God has not chosen all.  For all are not saved, nor will all be saved.  Furthermore, it would not make sense that God loves those whom He has not chosen…at least not in the same way those whom He has chosen…for why wouldn’t He simply choose them too, so that they would be saved.  Of course I am assuming that those whom God chooses, He also saves (Rom 8).  If that is the case then it would stand to reason that God chooses those whom He loves (or loves those whom He chooses, either way); but hates those who are not chosen (Rom 9).  I will not discuss here whether He chooses them for condemnation or simply does not choose them to be saved.  I think that is an irrelevant point here.  Then we understand God’s hatred of the sinner in terms of His choice not to choose to be gracious towards them.  After all, we are all sinners.  There is nothing to separate us in Gods eyes as more worthy or less worthy of His choosing.  Therefore its simply a matter of His either choosing to be gracious towards us or not.  Those whom He chooses, naturally He loves.  Those whom He chooses not, He hates.

But its more than that.  Our understanding of sin is often quite lower than Gods.  With God, “no evil dwells.”  Evil does not and cannot dwell with Him.  He is Holy, Pure, Righteous and alltogether perfect and without blemish.  We are wrought with weakness and conceived in iniquity.  We are “prone to wander” as the hymn writer said.  Our view of righteousness and holiness is tainted by sin and will be until we are released from our frail and wretched fallen flesh enraptured existence.  When we “hate” it is often for selfish reasons.  We hate and we love based on our emotions, or based on what is done for us or against us.  When God hates, He hates based on an affront made against His perfect, holy character.  All He does is upright.  All He does is perfect.  Therefore, any sin against Him is rightly hated in His sight.  Whereas any sin done against us is done by one who is conceived in iniquity and prone to wander from God’s righteousness just as we are.  He has a perfectly upright and just hatred of sin and the sinner.  Ours is tainted by the same disease that caused them to sin against us.  Therefore when we initially look at the phrase “you hate all who do iniquity,” we think surely it must mean that He merely hates the sin.  But no.  He perfectly and rightly hates all who do iniquity.

God hates sin and sinner alike.  He is perfectly holy and righteous and good.  And He will not abandon the sinner to sin forever.  He will judge the sinner.  I suppose that’s another reason that we understand that God is not merely against “sin.”  If He were merely against the sin; then there would be no good reason for Him to punish sinners.  But He does punish sinners.  He punishes them for an eternity because they have sinned against an eternal God.  And here we are reminded of the nature of sin and consequence.

A wrong done is given a consequence proportional to the honor due the one who is wronged.  For example, a homeless man on the street who is mugged by another in a dark alley in which no one else sees will likely not be met with immediate or dire consequence.  Because there is not much honor given to a homeless man.  There is not much glory due to him and therefore there will not be much consequence to the mugger for sinning against him.  However that same mugger who happens to run into the President of the United States in a dark alley, and attempts to rob him; will likely be met with deadly force, or at least an extended prison sentence.  And that is because the honor due the President of a nation is so much greater than the honor due a homeless man.  And therefore the consequence for offending the President is much greater.  Consider now the wrong done to an all powerful, all knowing, infinitely great being.  One who is perfect and holy and righteous.  One who is infinitely holy and so is offended by even the most “insignificant” offense; one who is infinitely wise and so is able to conceive of the best possible way to judge an offense; and also one who is infinitely powerful so as to measure out the best possible judgment for any offense.  If the consequence is dire for a wrong done to someone who is like us in our essential nature; what manner of consequence is due for offending such a one who is infinitely greater than us?

Have you offended a Holy God?  Any sin committed is ultimately a sin against Him.  Perhaps you have not done a “great” sin, but even our thoughts and words are subject to sin and corruption.  The Psalmist describes the sinner who has offended God as one whose sin from within is shown in his words “There is nothing reliable in what they say, their inward part is destruction itself, their throat is an open grave, they flatter with their tongue.”  Have you sinned against Him?  If so, tremble.  Fear.  Bemoan your current state, turn from your wickedness and turn to the Lord.  He is able to cleanse you from within with His righteousness.  He is able to give you a new heart and a new mind, even a new tongue.

You who trust in the Lord, “be glad!”  This Psalm is really about you.  You always have reason to rejoice.  The Psalmist says “let them ever sing for joy…for [He] blesses the righteous man…[He] surrounds them with favor as with a shield.”  The favor of God us upon us.  First in teaching us of our sinfulness and our impending judgment.  Then in being gracious to us and giving us His righteousness.  Rejoice!  Sing for joy and shout for all to hear!  The Lord is your righteousness.  He has granted you favor which surrounds you, even as a shield.  Take refuge in Him, man of God.  Continually put your confidence in God, who is our King, our Rock; the one who hears and answers our prayers.  Again, I say, rejoice!

Psalm 1 – 150 Days of Purposeful Medidtation (Day 1)

God is for those who love what He loves.  Psa 1:6 “For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.”

Do you love what God loves? Do you agree with and seek what He perceives as “righteous.”  What is righteous in God’s eyes and what is righteous in our eyes are often polar opposites.  Therefore the Psalmist exhorts us that the man who “does not walk in the counsel of the wicked…stand in the path of sinners…nor sit in the seat of scoffers…is blessed.” However, the one is blessed who “delights in the law of the Lord…[so much so that] he meditates in it day and night.”

Blessing from God, your creator, does not come in loving what you love.  Or in loving what other men love.  What other men love is to do what is right in their own eyes and not that of God’s.  Do you do what God loves?

Cursing from God, your creator, comes when you love what you love more than what He loves.  It says “the way of the wicked will perish.”  That seems pretty clear.  God does not love the “ways of the wicked.”  But it is not just the ways of the wicked that will perish.  For he says earlier that “the wicked…are like the chaff which the wind drives away…[they] will not stand in the judgment…nor in the congregation of the righteous.”  The wicked and their ways will perish.  God will do away with them both.  Do you love the ways of the wicked more than God’s ways?

Here is the exhortation…love what God loves.  Do what God loves.  If you love or do anything but what God loves (as a pattern of life); know that you will surely die for it.  Don’t take my word for it; read for yourself.