There is a miss-characterization of Christianity, promulgated by some atheists, that we substitute prayer for action. This misrepresentation is seen on the atheist monument that was erected in front of a Florida courthouse, which claims atheists believe an action should be taken instead of a prayer said. However, the Scriptures do not teach that prayer is a substitute for righteous action, nor do obedient and faithful Christians think that it is. In fact, James, the half-brother of Jesus Christ, reprimanded the so-called "faith" of those who do not show their faith by taking righteous action in obedience to our Lord Jesus Christ (James 2:15-17).
Prayer has a couple of purposes in the Christian life, but replacing righteous action is not one of them. We do know that our Creator God is the One from whom all blessings, power, and strength originate; and that without Him, no one can do anything. So prayer is a humble acknowledgement of our complete reliance on God for the strength of spirit and body to do what we need to do. Without God's providence, we would all just keel over dead in our tracks. Actually, we couldn't even do that, because we wouldn't even exist in the first place, had we not been created by God.
And indeed, there are wicked people who use their God-given gifts to do evil, an act of defiance toward God. But their inevitable destination is everlasting ruin unless they repent and reconcile with our Maker (Luke 13:1-5, 2 Corinthians 5:20). And God who is love, in His grace and mercy, patiently allows for everyone to have ample opportunity to seek after Him and find Him. He personally came into the world and taught us about His kingdom; and then He gave His human life on a Roman cross to pay for our sins so that we can be reconciled to Him. And everyone who, in their heart, has heard and learned from God will trust in Jesus Christ for salvation; knowing that we all need to turn from our sin and be reconciled to the heavenly Father by faith in His Son (John 6:45, Romans 3:23-24).
This, too, is why we pray; because we are talking to our heavenly Father. You see, righteousness has never been just about doing good deeds; it's about living in harmony with our good God who is love, (1 John 4:8) and who made humanity in His own image (Genesis 1:26-27) for the purpose of love (Matthew 22:37-40). And a big part of having a relationship with anyone is to spend time talking to the person. And His Spirit speaks to us through His word, the Bible, as we prayerfully read and study it, and contemplate it in all its context.
And through this holy conversation He teaches us. And as He teaches us, we learn to love the things that God loves; that which is good and right and pure and holy. And so we learn which actions are good and right for us to take. As the Scriptures say, "for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth, finding out what is acceptable to the Lord." (Ephesians 5:9-10). This is more than just an outward change in our behavior. It is an inward change of our hearts and minds as we become harmonized with our heavenly Father.
Showing posts with label Spirit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spirit. Show all posts
Saturday, June 28, 2014
Saturday, March 22, 2014
Creation and Birth
An important point which I have only lightly touched on, or hinted at, in previous posts, is the difference between creation and birth. C.S. Lewis dealt with this subject in book four, chapter one of his book Mere Christianity. The title of that chapter is Making and Begetting. Adam and Eve were created; they were made. They were never born. They were not begotten.
And it is more than interesting to note that all humanity was created in Adam and Eve. Led by the Holy Spirit, the author of the book of Hebrews explained that in some sense, whether genetically, spiritually, or both; Levi was present in his ancestor, Abraham, when he gave a tithe offering to Melchizedek, the mysterious high priest of the Most High God (Hebrews 7:1-5, Genesis 14:18-20).
My point in bringing this up is that if Levi was present in his ancestor, Abraham, when he gave a tithe to Melchizedek, then every human being who ever has or ever will exist, was in the same sense present in Adam and Eve when they were in the Garden of Eden - and when they sinned. We who are physically living today were actually created in our ancestors, Adam and Eve, in the beginning - six thousand years ago. We were created by, and in the image of our holy God who is love (Genesis 1:26-27, 1 John 4:8). And in that sense, God is our Father. But we were not born, or begotten, in the image of God.
In fact, since Adam and Eve were never actually born, but were created as mature, grown adults, there is a sense in which no human has been born until they are born of the Spirit; as Jesus said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he can not see the kingdom of God...unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he can not enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit (John 3:3-6).
We were created in God's image from the beginning. But we were born by descent from Adam and Eve. We were born after sin entered the world by our first ancestors. That is why we are all born with a hereditary fallen, sinful nature; characterized by enmity against God. The only begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ, is begotten from eternity past. He has always been with the Father (John 1:1-5). And He came into the world, taking on human form, so that everyone who trusts in Him and welcomes Him may not only be forgiven of sin, but be born of God (John 1:10-14).
And it is more than interesting to note that all humanity was created in Adam and Eve. Led by the Holy Spirit, the author of the book of Hebrews explained that in some sense, whether genetically, spiritually, or both; Levi was present in his ancestor, Abraham, when he gave a tithe offering to Melchizedek, the mysterious high priest of the Most High God (Hebrews 7:1-5, Genesis 14:18-20).
My point in bringing this up is that if Levi was present in his ancestor, Abraham, when he gave a tithe to Melchizedek, then every human being who ever has or ever will exist, was in the same sense present in Adam and Eve when they were in the Garden of Eden - and when they sinned. We who are physically living today were actually created in our ancestors, Adam and Eve, in the beginning - six thousand years ago. We were created by, and in the image of our holy God who is love (Genesis 1:26-27, 1 John 4:8). And in that sense, God is our Father. But we were not born, or begotten, in the image of God.
In fact, since Adam and Eve were never actually born, but were created as mature, grown adults, there is a sense in which no human has been born until they are born of the Spirit; as Jesus said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he can not see the kingdom of God...unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he can not enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit (John 3:3-6).
We were created in God's image from the beginning. But we were born by descent from Adam and Eve. We were born after sin entered the world by our first ancestors. That is why we are all born with a hereditary fallen, sinful nature; characterized by enmity against God. The only begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ, is begotten from eternity past. He has always been with the Father (John 1:1-5). And He came into the world, taking on human form, so that everyone who trusts in Him and welcomes Him may not only be forgiven of sin, but be born of God (John 1:10-14).
Thursday, October 24, 2013
Exorcism At the Gadarenes
One day, Jesus got into a fishing boat and said to His disciples, "Let us cross over to the other side of the lake", referring to the Sea of Galilee. And so they did (Luke 8: 22). It was on this excursion that Jesus bewildered His disciples when, with a verbal command, He pacified the raging sea that threatened to kill them all.
When Jesus had commanded the evil spirits to leave the man, they begged Him not to make them go into the abyss of Hell; using as their defense the fact that the day of final judgment has not yet arrived. The Lord Jesus displayed His magnanimous character by allowing the devils permission to go into the nearby herd of swine instead, as they had desperately requested. And they, of course, displayed their wicked and unrepentant character by driving the said herd of swine off a steep slope, into the Sea of Galilee.
But what I appreciate most about the exorcism at the Gadarenes is how in it Christ demonstrated His love for the man who was a demoniac. We are informed that the keepers of that herd of swine ran into the city to report what had happened. And when a crowd of locals came to the scene, they "came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind" (Luke 8:35).
Jesus' whole purpose was to undo Satan's work, by setting at liberty him who had been a slave of demons. Satan had made this man a slave of devils; driven out of his home and out of his mind, naked and living in tombs. Now he was calmly "sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind". And as if that were not enough, Jesus proved His love when the man asked to become one of His traveling companions. Jesus told the man, "Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you" (Luke 8:38-39).
The healing - the restoration of the man's life had to be complete. Satan had forced him out of his home, to live naked in the tombs of the dead. Now he was wearing clothes, which probably were given to him by Jesus and/or His disciples; and he was in his right mind. And now he needed, needed to go home.
So that's what he did. He went home. And he told all over the city what wonderful things Jesus had done for him.
Interestingly, after Jesus had restored the man to a life of freedom, He got back into the boat with His disciples, and went back to Galilee. True, the local people had asked Him to do so, because they were afraid of Him. But I suspect that this was His plan all along.
The whole trip across the water was just for the sake of setting a captive free. And the calming of the Sea of Galilee was a fitting prelude to the calm that would be given to the man who was troubled by demons.
And Jesus has the same love for every one of us, whoever and wherever we are. The Son of God gave His life on the cross to set us free from sin; since "every one who commits sin is a slave of sin" (John 8:34). And so from God's perspective, humans are evil spirits too (Luke 11:11-13, John 7:7, Romans 3:23).
So we don't necessarily need fallen angels to mess us up in our minds and spirits. As fallen humans, we can do that to ourselves by simply living our lives in discord with God who is love. But He loves humanity, whom He originally created in His own image for the purpose of love (1 John 4:8, Genesis 1:26-27, Matthew 22:37-40).
We are fallen humans. But Jesus also said that "if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them - to give His life a ransom for many." (John 8:36, John 10:10, Luke 9:56, Matthew 20:28).
We don't necessarily need fallen angels destroy our lives. But we do need the risen Son of God to save us from our own fallen, sinful nature. All we have to do is trust Him with our lives.
After this incident, they came to the Gadarenes (also known as the Gergesenes) which was the region across from Galilee. And when they had come ashore, they were met by a demoniac. Matthew informs us that there were two demoniacs (Matthew 8:28). But Mark and Luke both prefer to focus in on just one of them. Perhaps this is because their focus is specifically on the one, out of the two, which answered Jesus' question, "What is your name?" with the now-famous retort, "My name is Legion; for we are many" (Mark 5:9).
This man, who was from the city, had been living under demonic possession for a long time. And he had been driven, by the possessing spirits, out of his urban home. When Jesus came to him, the man was naked; and he had been living in the tombs that were in that rural area. He was living in the tombs! And his behavior was violent. All attempts by the local people to restrain him had failed.
And even though the demonic force recognized the Son God upon His arrival; (Mark 5:6 uses the word "worshiped") nevertheless, the words directed toward Jesus were antagonistic. By all accounts, the man shouted at Him, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?".
But what I appreciate most about the exorcism at the Gadarenes is how in it Christ demonstrated His love for the man who was a demoniac. We are informed that the keepers of that herd of swine ran into the city to report what had happened. And when a crowd of locals came to the scene, they "came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind" (Luke 8:35).
Jesus' whole purpose was to undo Satan's work, by setting at liberty him who had been a slave of demons. Satan had made this man a slave of devils; driven out of his home and out of his mind, naked and living in tombs. Now he was calmly "sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind". And as if that were not enough, Jesus proved His love when the man asked to become one of His traveling companions. Jesus told the man, "Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you" (Luke 8:38-39).
The healing - the restoration of the man's life had to be complete. Satan had forced him out of his home, to live naked in the tombs of the dead. Now he was wearing clothes, which probably were given to him by Jesus and/or His disciples; and he was in his right mind. And now he needed, needed to go home.
So that's what he did. He went home. And he told all over the city what wonderful things Jesus had done for him.
Interestingly, after Jesus had restored the man to a life of freedom, He got back into the boat with His disciples, and went back to Galilee. True, the local people had asked Him to do so, because they were afraid of Him. But I suspect that this was His plan all along.
The whole trip across the water was just for the sake of setting a captive free. And the calming of the Sea of Galilee was a fitting prelude to the calm that would be given to the man who was troubled by demons.
And Jesus has the same love for every one of us, whoever and wherever we are. The Son of God gave His life on the cross to set us free from sin; since "every one who commits sin is a slave of sin" (John 8:34). And so from God's perspective, humans are evil spirits too (Luke 11:11-13, John 7:7, Romans 3:23).
So we don't necessarily need fallen angels to mess us up in our minds and spirits. As fallen humans, we can do that to ourselves by simply living our lives in discord with God who is love. But He loves humanity, whom He originally created in His own image for the purpose of love (1 John 4:8, Genesis 1:26-27, Matthew 22:37-40).
We are fallen humans. But Jesus also said that "if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them - to give His life a ransom for many." (John 8:36, John 10:10, Luke 9:56, Matthew 20:28).
We don't necessarily need fallen angels destroy our lives. But we do need the risen Son of God to save us from our own fallen, sinful nature. All we have to do is trust Him with our lives.
"Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all nature
Oh Thou of God and Man the Son
Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor
Thou, my soul's glory, joy, and crown
Fair is the sunlight, fairer still the moonlight
And all the twinkling, starry hosts
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer
Than all the angels heaven can boast
Beautiful Savior! Lord of all nations!
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor, praise, adoration
Now and forevermore be Thine"
"And though this world, with devils filled
Should threaten to undo us
We will not fear, for God hath willed
His truth to triumph through us
The prince of darkness grim
we tremble not for him
His rage we can endure
For lo, his doom is sure
One little word shall fell him"
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Rethinking Reality
Last month, I wrote a post titled Subjective/Objective Reality. In it, I made the point that subjectivity is equally an important part of reality as objectivity is. My position in that post was that moral and spiritual laws are subjective because they can not be seen with the eye, touched with the hand, or examined under a microscope. Yet, as I maintained, moral and spiritual laws are real since they proceed from the mind of God who is absolute.
I now, however, take pause to reconsider, whether or not right and wrong are indeed subjective after all. The reason for this second thought is that, as I have said before and say again, God is love. The reason that we as human beings even have a concept of love; the reason that it is an essential part of the human being, is that we are created by and in the image of God who is love. Love is not just an idea. Love is not even confined to being an action. Love is Persons. God is love (Genesis 1:26-27, 1 John 4:8).
Now God is Spirit (John 4:24). But I'm not entirely certain that that means He is non-objective as a Being or Entity. Perhaps we may conclude that a spirit, and also the Spirit, is another kind of objectivity though transcendent over and apart from the natural universe. We are spirits who have bodies, and we are persons. And God is Spirit, and Personal. And God is love. And love is the fulfillment of the Law of God (Romans 13:8-10).
I conclude then that God, from eternity past and forever, is a kind of love in three Persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. That is, that the subjective idea of love actually comes from the objective Persons of God who is love. And we being made in His image are in the image of love, though because of sin, the image of God in us is distorted. That is, God who is love has made us to have the subjective concept of love, which comes from Him and leads to Him. As an old Christmas carol says "Let loving hearts enthrone Him". If we do not love Him, then we do not love, even if we claim to.
And furthermore, Jesus, being the Son of God, also became a flesh and blood human to die for our sins which alienate us from God. So being God incarnate, He is perfect love, from eternity past with the Father, incarnate also as a flesh and blood human. And so it might be said that in God, and also in humanity (since we are created in the image of God) that which would otherwise be subjective, is found instead to be objective.
However, until one comes to be reconciled with God through Christ, one can not personally know God who is love. And as stated above, God is Spirit. And whoever would worship Him must do so in spirit. As the apostle Paul, through the Holy Spirit, pointed out; the carnal, or natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit. The natural man can not receive the things of the Spirit because they are spiritually discerned (2 Corinthians 5:18-21, 1 Corinthians 2:14).
I now, however, take pause to reconsider, whether or not right and wrong are indeed subjective after all. The reason for this second thought is that, as I have said before and say again, God is love. The reason that we as human beings even have a concept of love; the reason that it is an essential part of the human being, is that we are created by and in the image of God who is love. Love is not just an idea. Love is not even confined to being an action. Love is Persons. God is love (Genesis 1:26-27, 1 John 4:8).
Now God is Spirit (John 4:24). But I'm not entirely certain that that means He is non-objective as a Being or Entity. Perhaps we may conclude that a spirit, and also the Spirit, is another kind of objectivity though transcendent over and apart from the natural universe. We are spirits who have bodies, and we are persons. And God is Spirit, and Personal. And God is love. And love is the fulfillment of the Law of God (Romans 13:8-10).
I conclude then that God, from eternity past and forever, is a kind of love in three Persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. That is, that the subjective idea of love actually comes from the objective Persons of God who is love. And we being made in His image are in the image of love, though because of sin, the image of God in us is distorted. That is, God who is love has made us to have the subjective concept of love, which comes from Him and leads to Him. As an old Christmas carol says "Let loving hearts enthrone Him". If we do not love Him, then we do not love, even if we claim to.
And furthermore, Jesus, being the Son of God, also became a flesh and blood human to die for our sins which alienate us from God. So being God incarnate, He is perfect love, from eternity past with the Father, incarnate also as a flesh and blood human. And so it might be said that in God, and also in humanity (since we are created in the image of God) that which would otherwise be subjective, is found instead to be objective.
However, until one comes to be reconciled with God through Christ, one can not personally know God who is love. And as stated above, God is Spirit. And whoever would worship Him must do so in spirit. As the apostle Paul, through the Holy Spirit, pointed out; the carnal, or natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit. The natural man can not receive the things of the Spirit because they are spiritually discerned (2 Corinthians 5:18-21, 1 Corinthians 2:14).
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Nothing Is Secular
There is no such thing as secular, since all the universe belongs to its Creator God. Everything was created by Him for His glory. And all we have; the strength of flesh and spirit, and every breath comes from His hand.
Even our sins are not secular because they are committed against God who alone can forgive our sin and remove our guilt through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Someone might say now, "Wait a minute. Those were the Pharisees, Jesus' critics, who said only God can forgive sin". But be that as it may, they were correct. Only God can forgive sin.
This is because He is the only real plaintiff in cases of sin. This is because sin is committed against Him. What the Pharisees got wrong was that they failed to recognize that Jesus is the Son of God, equal with the Father.
When we forgive sin, we are only agreeing with Jesus, or leaving the case up to Him to judge.
So there is truly nothing secular. Everything belongs to "the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh" (Numbers 27:16). And all things will be judged by Him.
Psalm 24:1, Hebrews 11:3, Numbers 27:16, James 1:17, Mark 2:5-12, John 1:29, Colossians 1:13-14.
Even our sins are not secular because they are committed against God who alone can forgive our sin and remove our guilt through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Someone might say now, "Wait a minute. Those were the Pharisees, Jesus' critics, who said only God can forgive sin". But be that as it may, they were correct. Only God can forgive sin.
This is because He is the only real plaintiff in cases of sin. This is because sin is committed against Him. What the Pharisees got wrong was that they failed to recognize that Jesus is the Son of God, equal with the Father.
When we forgive sin, we are only agreeing with Jesus, or leaving the case up to Him to judge.
So there is truly nothing secular. Everything belongs to "the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh" (Numbers 27:16). And all things will be judged by Him.
Psalm 24:1, Hebrews 11:3, Numbers 27:16, James 1:17, Mark 2:5-12, John 1:29, Colossians 1:13-14.
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