How Should We Live?

1^st Peter 2:11-25 Galatians 5:16-23

Introduction:

We saw last week that there are “changes coming,” for all true believers. No matter who I was in the past, life is not going to be just as it was before. I have a new heritage, and a new Master. It is obvious that things are going to change. So, we need to think about what will change, and how.

We saw last week that there were things destined to be “laid aside and left behind” as we press forward to walk with Jesus. We also saw that there was an expectation that we would begin to display a “family resemblance,” since we have been born again—“born from above,” as some of the passages say—and specifically, we are born into the family of God, as His real children.

Now Peter goes on to admonish and exhort the believers to “live up to” the calling they have received. I can’t lose my position in Christ, but walking with Him does require some attention as to my response to the world around me: without that attention to my walk, I will constantly stumble, and fall back into the mess of my old habits and responses. So, Peter gives fair warning against this trap:

Abstain from Fleshly Lusts

¹¹Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; ¹²Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.

He prefaces it all with the fact that as long as we are in this World, we are literally “strangers and pilgrims:” travelers, nomads…just “camping out,” here; seeking a home not in this world, but in that which is to come. The song, “This World is not my Home” is correct: we are “Just passing through!” But it is so easy to forget that fact. Peter warns us to not forget, but, as strangers and pilgrims, to abstain from fleshly lusts which war against our souls.

The goal is that our lives should reflect the truth and grace of God before unbelievers, so that, when they speak evil of us (as He says will happen,) they will eventually have to confess before God that our lives(the Greek word “anastrophe,” translated “conversation,” here, means our “way of life”) and our works actually have shown the truth of our testimony, and that they have rejected and persecuted us without cause…and in so confessing, they will Glorify God in that day—the “day of visitation.” Our reputations should be built upon the truth that people can see in our lives, not just what we say is there. This is the importance of a living testimony, which is expected to agree with our spoken testimony.

If I consider, for a moment, the phrase, “Abstain from fleshly lusts,” I might also step over into Galatians, where the “works of the Flesh” are listed. These are what the lusts of the flesh produce, if I allow them in my life. The word “lusts” simply means “strong desires, and isn’t even always a bad thing, though we use the word that way almost exclusively.

The Lusts Produce the Works (Galatians 5:16-21)

¹⁶This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. ¹⁷For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. ¹⁸But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

¹⁹Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, ²⁰Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, ²¹Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

I find it fascinating that the “works” (plural) of the flesh (verses 19-21) are listed seventeen strong, with an eighteenth item that is a “catch-all” phrase: “and such like”. The list is literally twice as long as the nine-fold list in verses 22, 23, and that last item extends it to include everything that the human heart can imagine. And it is plural: if I am partaking in any of these, then I am in the flesh; it’s as simple as that. Any one of these marks me as being “in the flesh.”

But the next “list” is half as long, and it is singular: it is not a “smorgasbord” from which you can choose what you would like to exemplify. It is a “nine-fold” fruit (singular), or a single fruit with nine aspects, or characteristics, and all nine aspects, or characteristics, have to be present or it is not the Holy Spirit who is producing it.

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
²³ Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

Notice that last bit? “Against such there is no law…?” Why is that even an issue? It is because the whole context of the book of Galatians is the separation of Law and Grace. If you are walking in the Spirit, then the Law will have no effect on you because it does not touch the things of the Spirit. That is why God can freely tell us, here in 1^st Peter 1:13-15, to submit ourselves to Civil Authority.

Civil Authority

¹³Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; ¹⁴Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. ¹⁵For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:

As a general rule, believers are to cheerfully submit themselves to human civil law. Is there a possibility that the law of man can “cross the line,” so to speak, and be in direct conflict with the Law of God? Surely there is! But it is actually pretty rare. Usually civil laws are made to protect the law-abiding people from human predators and to protect their personal rights against those who would take them away. It is a rare thing for the laws of man to require us to do something that is wrong, or to forbid us to do something God says we are to do. But it can happen.

A week ago, we received the news that our governor had mandated “no more than 25 people in church gatherings.” That does not force us to disobey God, though it might have made us work harder to obey Him: we were willing to split the services to keep below 25. But the ruling also said that enforcement was at the discretion of local Law enforcement; so we called the local police chief, to see what he would require, and we were told that he has no intention of enforcing such a mandate, and that if he comes here it will be to worship with us, not to act against us.

So, we obeyed the law, and simultaneously obeyed God. And, in the process, we allowed the local law enforcement to see that we are not in rebellion, which strengthens our testimony with them, whether they are believers or not.

We virtually always have an option to not disobey God, and still be obedient to the law. In the unusual event that there is literally no avenue of escape without bringing down the judgment of an evil, ungodly employer or government, then that becomes our option: we can lose a job, or our belongings or our freedom or even our lives as the final option. Believers have made these hard choices for virtually all of human history.

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego did not go into the furnace because they disobeyed God, but because they obeyed Him. Daniel did not end up in the lion’s den because of dishonoring God, but because of honoring Him. Daniel submitted to every ordinance of Man until the ordinance clearly required him to ignore God, and even then, he was in his own home, praying toward Jerusalem, not out on a street-corner, haranguing crowds of unbelievers in the name of the God of Israel. He was quietly obeying God when they came in and arrested him. We need to keep these examples in mind.

¹⁶As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God.

We are truly free in Christ: we are free to serve Him, but we are not free to use our “liberty” as a way to cover sin. We are free to serve and to suffer, as the servants of God. We are not free to use our freedom to damage someone else unnecessarily, nor to express self-will and rebellion cloaked in a show of “piety.”

Honoring Man, while Honoring God

¹⁷Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.

Notice that there was no hint of “backtalk” here: they were to extend respect and honor to all those around them. They were to commit themselves to the Love of the Brethren, in keeping with Jesus’s command in John 13:34, 35, and to fear God above all human authority, and yet, to honor the human government. He goes on to give some examples:

¹⁸Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward. ¹⁹For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. ²⁰For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.

Is it possible that we will suffer grief in return for good behavior? Certainly it is! And, if that is what really happens, then God is glorified by that suffering. But if we are “off in left-field” doing things God has warned us not to do, and end up being punished for our misdemeanors or infractions, then it does not honor God…it dishonors Him. I have heard of Christians losing jobs specifically because they are Christians…and, in anti-Christian countries, people are imprisoned or even killed because of their faith. In those cases, they have honored God by their obedience and their suffering.

But when I have also known believers who were jailed for tax-evasion, or theft, or other crimes, they were not suffering for their faith: they were being punished for wrongdoing. And that does not honor God. Is it possible that the government will use your taxes for evil purposes? I can just about guarantee that they will! When Jesus paid taxes to Caesar, was Rome using that money to promote godliness? Of course not! And yet, we are told to pay our taxes, and not be rebels. We are to take Jesus as our example:

²¹For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

Whole books have been written about what it may mean to “Follow his steps:” I am not going to spend a lot of time on the subject, but I do think we should at least look at this particular context to see what is in focus, here:

In the first place, the subject in this context is the concept of “suffering for doing rightly.” Jesus certainly did nothing but “good, righteous works,” showing compassion and kindness to the poor, and holding the privileged and wicked religious leaders accountable for their sin. However, this passage is not suggesting that we all quit our jobs, and walk around attempting to imitate Jesus in His earthly ministry: I have no gift of healing, nor of any sort of miraculous sign-gift. So I can’t imitate that portion, but I can imitate His righteousness and I can strive to learn His Word, so that I can offer the same message of Hope which He offered.

²²Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: ²³Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously:

We can at least see that we are to trust God for justice, not other humans, who are flawed individuals, just as we are. We can also see, obviously, that we are especially to abandon the kinds of wrong behavior that could get us in trouble with civil law, because there is no glory to God in suffering punishment for unrighteousness. Dishonesty and a vengeful, sharp tongue are both mentioned as things Jesus did not exhibit.

But for believers, it goes further, as Jesus judges the hearts, not just the outward actions. There are people who teach that “unless there is an outward action, it isn’t sin.” Sorry…that is simply not true. Every man who is honest with himself knows what it means to “sin in his heart.” And, it is interesting to note that the specific sin Paul addressed in Romans 7 was covetousness! (What part of your body do we use to commit Covetousness?) It is specifically a sin of the heart and the mind! Jesus judges the heart, not just the outward actions!

What is the “Goal” of our Salvation?

²⁴Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

We are dead to sins, that we should live unto righteousness. That is the goal!

Now, this last phrase, “by whose stripes ye were healed,” is a direct quote from Isaiah 53:5, but the conclusion is strictly New Testament: We could not be “dead to sin” in the Old Testament. But, according to this passage, along with Romans 6 and Galatians 2, we believers during the Church Age truly are dead to sin, as we died with Christ, and the result is supposed to be that because we are alive to Righteousness and alive to God, we should live for God.

²⁵For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.

This final passage reminds us that the letter was originally to Jewish Christians: the gentiles were seldom referred to as “sheep,” but the “lost sheep of Israel” was a common theme. In one place, only, John 10:16, Jesus said “¹⁶And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.” I believe in that reference he is talking about the Gentiles who would respond in faith: In the Church Age, there truly is one fold and One Shepherd. The Jews who had strayed from the God of Israel were considered “the lost sheep” of Israel. The Gentiles were simply considered to be foreigners and heathen. In fact, the word “gentile” simply means “heathen.” So these who had once been “lost sheep” of Israel had been returned to the shepherd and “overseer” or “Bishop” of their souls. The word translated “bishop” is “episkopos,” meaning “supervisor” or “overseer.”

We gentiles have been born into the family of God, and He is truly the Shepherd and the Bishop of our souls as well, but we were not the lost sheep of Israel. We did not “wander away from God:” In fact, regarding the lost world, in Matthew 7:23, Jesus said “I never knew you! Depart from me ye workers of iniquity.” He does not say, “I once knew you, but you just wandered off and got lost: too bad!” He says he never knew them. We were born as sinners, just as the lost Jews were born as sinners. That is where we all start out!

This is probably a good time to be reminded of what Jesus says about us who have become His sheep: John 10:27, 28 says, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give unto them Eternal Life, and they shall never perish.” Also, in John 6:39, he said “this is my Father’s will who sent me, that of all He has given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.” As a gentile believer, you will never become a “lost sheep.” He will keep you for eternity. You have been placed into a new relationship with the Savior, and it is entirely dependent upon Him, not you!

We are His forever! Now we need to learn to walk with Him!

Lord Jesus, allow us to walk with you and reflect your holiness as a testimony to the world that has rejected You. Teach us to walk in Your footsteps!

November 22, 2020November 22, 2020

Change is On the Way!

1^st Peter 2:1-10

Introduction:

We have begun a study through the book of first Peter: For all practical purposes, the first half of chapter one was given to a lengthy “salutation,” making it clear who were the intended recipients of the epistle (and it included us!); but then outlining their (and our) collective and individual position in Christ, our security there, and all that this position implies.

Then, in the last half of chapter one we began to examine Peter’s exhortations as to how to respond to the reality of our new position in Christ. Because we are “In Christ,” there are certain changes that are to occur. Because He is holy, His followers are to be holy. We are literally His children: members of His family, and members of His Body, the Church. Therefore we should expect to see the “family resemblance” in ourselves. And the world around us should expect to see those changes also. Remember that Jesus gave three criteria by which the World is expected to judge the Church, in this Age:

Love (John 13: 34, 35): this is the supernatural Agape love between the brethren.
Unity (John 17:21): this is the supernatural unity of the Spirit taught in Ephesians 4.
Good Works (Matthew 5:14-16): this is the result of the Holy Spirit working through us, which is supernatural by definition, but may look completely normal, in a way, but as a whole, it is to exist as a light in a dark world, bringing glory to God the Father.

Those things are not the result of our personal piety or goodness. Unsaved people can certainly do good works in their own strength, for the purpose of advancing their religion or philosophies, or to earn merit from their gods for their good works, or simply because “that is the way they were raised,” and they think it is what “ought to be done.” But I cannot earn God’s Grace.

Grace is defined as “unmerited favor:” unearned favor from God. If we are saved individuals, we recognize that we were saved “by Grace, through Faith”, according to Ephesians 2:8, 9. And in gratitude for that Grace, we serve, out of love. That is what the world needs to see, in terms of good works.

Our unity, also, is to be a genuine outworking of Agape love and faith, not a “truce” created by “glossing over” important teachings in God’s Word. (By the way, that is “Ecumenicalism:” It is the effort to create and maintain a false “unity” by simply ignoring or ceasing to consider any teaching that may be controversial or which could offend someone. Think back: did Jesus “skirt issues,” in fear of offending the Pharisees? No! He went ahead and taught the hard doctrines! And the common folk loved Him for it!)

Now; here in chapter 2, Peter begins to be specific about what those changes should look like:

What should we “drop and leave behind?”

¹ Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,

Notice that he first lists five things that should be left behind in the darkness of our old lives:

All Malice: Mean-spiritedness…the desire to torment or “get back at” people that we don’t like. Taking pleasure in someone else’s misfortune or discomfort.
All Guile: deception at every level. Presenting a false front to others, as well as saying things we know are untrue. If we are acting or speaking in such a way as to hide who we really are, that should warn us that something is amiss.
Hypocrisies: This goes right along with Guile. The old word “hypocrite” simply meant a “false-face actor:” those old-time performers who literally held up a smiling face-mask when playing a happy part, or an angry face-mask when playing an angry part, etc. They were just reading lines, and holding up a mask on a stick, so that the audience would “feel” the correct emotional response to the play. But when we pretend to be something we are not, we are doing just that; and Jesus repeatedly condemned that behavior in the Pharisees.
Envy: desiring to have the honors offered to others, not by earning them but by supplanting that person: wishing to take their place, and desiring to drag them down, because we can’t stand the fact that they are receiving honor. This is frequently the source of strife between the brethren.
All Evil Speakings: This is a“catch-all”phrase that at least forbids “bad-mouthing” others. It would also seem to rule out general “snarkiness,” as they call it today: taking verbal cheap-shots at others; put-downs, etc. Possibly it could even include just a complaining spirit, in general. This is something to think about and ask oneself how it might apply in one’s own life.

**What should we use to replace the old ways?**

Having commanded us to “lay aside ALL our old wicked ways,” he then says what shouldbe used to replace that old, evil behavior: and the first thing listed is the Word of God! I’m reading from the KJV: if your translation is different, bear with me, and we will address that difference.

²As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: ³If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

This makes it clear that if I am a believer, (If I have tasted of His Grace) the normal response is to hunger for God’s Word. Even a newborn lamb, or a baby mammal of any sort, has an instinctive desire to feed, and be nourished on its mother’s milk. Our food is the Word of God. God says that we are to desire the sincere milk of the Word, that we may grow thereby. If you ever have a question about what God considers to be proper “sheep-food,” this verse should answer that question. In Matthew chapter four, Jesus also said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that proceedeth out of the Mouth of God.” This is what we are to feed on: The Word of God!

I am aware that other translations handle this differently: the Greek word here, translated “Word” in the KJV is “logikon” which could be translated “logical,” but which comes from the root word “logos.” While it can be translated in several different ways, “logos” is the word used when John 1:1 says “In the Beginning was the Word.” Possibly even more instructive is the passage in 2^nd Peter 1:4, which says that by the “exceeding great and precious promises” in God’s Word, we are to become “partakers of the Divine Nature.” As we might tell a small child, “If you want to grow up to be big and strong, like Mommy and Daddy, you need to eat your healthy food!” And He just told us that the “food” we are to consume is the “exceeding great and precious promises” of the Word of God!

So the core change in our lives should begin with a hunger for God’s Word, as opposed to philosophy, politics, human logic, or human rationalization. The World offers all of these. We try to avoid any of those things and only offer God’s Word as our source of nourishment. We don’t preach politics, opinions, or current events. We preach the Person of Christ; The Word.

God says we are to center our thinking on His Word, and allow Him to reshape our outlook. And what does He say about the nature of the relationship? He says something very strange: He refers to us as “living stones,” and to Jesus as a special, precious stone, as well as a Rock of offence.

Living Stones

⁴To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, ⁵Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. ⁶Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. ⁷Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, ⁸And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.

This whole passage seemed very strange to me. When the scripture refers to Jesus as a stone, it is strange enough, because I don’t think of a person as a stone, at all. (In this passage the Greek word for “stone” is “lithos”, meaning a building stone, or, in some cases, simply the material, “stone.”) I see stones as specifically non-living objects: mineral in substance, completely inorganic and, in most cases never having possessed life of any kind. So how can I see Jesus as a stone? And when it calls Him a Rock of offence, the Greek word is different: it is “petra”, which usually is a monolith: the kind of rock of which mountains are made, or upon which buildings are founded. How is He a Rock of offence?

And when he begins to address us as “living stones” I used to find it completely repugnant, as I imagined sitting forever as a “stone” in God’s temple, unmoving, and fixed in place in a wall or something, throughout eternity. That really does not sound attractive to me! But as I was reading in Ephesians, it finally dawned upon me that the “temple” he is referring to in Ephesians is the living Church, scattered all over the World, but united in Christ. That we are the (singular) “habitation of God,” now; not just sometime in the future. I am not “sitting, imprisoned in a wall, as a non-living piece of rock,” but rather, I am a living part of a single organism called the “Body of Christ” which also happens to be the Temple of God on earth, as well as including all those believers who have gone before us into Heaven. I am only “cemented in place” in terms of my security in Christ: I can never be removed from Him. He can move me or have me stay put, according to His will, but wherever I am within the Body of Christ, I am to be an active, functioning part of the body of Christ! We are living stones, or, as the KJV says, “lively” stones.

By the way, that is the essence of “positional truth!” I am literally, permanently cemented in Christ!” But I am an integral, organic part of the Body of Christ: not a parasite or a transplanted foreign organism. How did we get into this position in Christ? We became His children through the new Birth, being born again. We entered in by faith and are permanently joined to Him. Whether we knew it or not, we were each planted in the church-at-large, as a “living stone,” a part of His Living Temple! In 1^st Corinthians 12:13, it says that the Holy Spirit “baptized” us into the body of Christ. We are eternally joined to Him in one Body.

We are part of what God presents to the World as His army of ambassadors: we each have a part in the task He has assigned the church: “Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel!”

Further, Peter points out that the World sees Jesus as a “stone of stumbling” and one rejected by the builders (quoting Psalm 118:22, Isaiah 8:13-17, Romans 9:32, 33) but we also see that to those who are believers, He is precious beyond description. That puts us in a different category than those who reject Him. It clearly spells out a different response expected from those of us who see Him as Holy, and Precious, than from those who stumble over His claim to be the Incarnate God, the Savior and the Judge of all the Earth.

By the way, while we are talking about Christ as a stone or a rock, I want to point out that when we read about the children of Israel wandering in the desert, and Moses bringing water from a Rock in that desert, we need to look just a little further: in 1^st Corinthians 10:4, Paul clearly states two incredible truths:

The “Rock” from which they drank followed them in the desert, so that they found water wherever they went, and,
That “Rock” was Christ! (Exact same Greek construction as when John 1:1 says “The Word was God”)

How’s that for a mind-boggling truth? The physical Rock that the people approached, and from which Moses demanded water, was literally Christ! (In fact, it says, “the Christ” in Greek.) This is not stated as a metaphor: it is stated as a truth: they were followed by a spiritual Rock, in physical form, and they drank fresh literal water from it. Remember, too, that there were around 2-1/2 million people in that group, plus all their livestock: and all of them had to get their water from that Rock. We aren’t talking about a little “stream:” it had to be millions of gallons of water coming out! And this is the Rock to which we have come as well, seeing Him as our true source of sustenance, both physical and spiritual!

God says that He is also the Stone (lithos, again) rejected by the builders. Jesus was rejected by the religious authorities of His day, but He turns out to be the foundation and the cornerstone for all of both Judaism and Christianity!

But You!

So, what else is true about us?

⁹But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light; ¹⁰Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.

These all were quotes from the Old Testament, and initially were specifically stated about Israel. But a change has happened: Yes, Israel was to be a priesthood and a “kingdom (singular) of priests” standing before the Lord according to God’s promise in Exodus 19:6, and they still shall be, according to Isaiah 4:3, Isaiah 61:6, and others.

But there is a similar and yet different promise to the Church Age believers: we are called “kings (plural) and priests,” in Revelation 5:10, which is not the same thing as a “kingdom” (singular) of priests. The Body of Christ is never called a kingdom: it is a Body, with a Head, not simply a Kingdom, with a King. We, as the Body of Christ are part of the greater Kingdom of God, but we are there as part of the King, not simply subjects in the kingdom. We are the Bride, whereas believers from other ages are the guests at the wedding feast of the Lamb.

Peter, speaking to Jewish believers, quoted passages that were familiar and precious to them. They knew of the old promise from Exodus, but they also knew that it has never yet been fulfilled. During the Church age, it is partially fulfilled, in the sense that every believer, Jew or Gentile, is declared to be a priest in the Body of Christ: we can stand before God and pray for others, and offer “sacrifices of Praise and Thanksgiving.” But, in the Millennial Kingdom, it will be completely fulfilled, in that every Gentile nation will come to Jerusalem to worship the King, and Israel will literally be a “kingdom” of priests. But we will still be the Bride of Christ, seated in the throne with Him.

Even the passage about not having been a people, etc. were from Hosea chapters one and two; messages originally directed to Israel; not the Gentiles, but they now apply to us according to Ephesians 2, where we are described as having been outcasts, and foreigners, lost, without Christ in the World. That is a fact! We have to be very careful when we attempt to apply promises or commands to ourselves which were actually directed to someone else. But if God says they now apply to us, then we can apply them with confidence. In this case there is a direct application to the Church Age believers. This is reiterated in Revelation 5:9, 10, where the Church (which is called out from every nation, every language, every ethnic group and every tribe on Earth) confirms that they have been made “kings and priests” and that they shall reign on the earth.

Yes, we have obtained mercy, and yes, we have been called out of darkness, and, yes, we are now filled with His marvelous light, because Jesus, the Light of the World, indwells us! And the result should be that we will demonstrate His Glory and honor in our lives: “…showing forth the Praises of Him who called us!”

So, perhaps we can each individually consider this small verse as a “standard” or a “measuring stick” against which we measure our behavior. We can ask ourselves these questions:

Am I living in such a way as to “show forth the Praises of Him who called me?” Or am I pretty much living the way I have always lived?
Does the Agape love shine as a central motivating factor in my life, or do my motives seem to be pretty much the same as everyone else’s motives; self-centered, rather than pouring out the Love of Christ to others?
Do I see the people around me as precious souls for whom Jesus has already shed His blood, and then value them as He does? Or are they primarily irritating, contrary “blockheads” who only exist to annoy me? There is an old ditty that says, “To dwell in Love with the saints above, O, that would be Glory! But to live below with the saints I know; well, that’s a different story!” Can you treat the believers around you as the holy, precious saints that Jesus says they are?

I can’t answer any of those questions for you: each of us has to stand before God, and, along with David, say “Search me O God, and know my heart: try me and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting!”

This is a direct quote from Psalm 139:23, 24. You can go and read it in your Bible and spend some time dwelling on it, allowing God time to speak to you. This is what we call “meditating on God’s Word”…it is not “blanking your mind and leaving yourself open to any vagrant thought:” it is specifically shining the light of God’s Word on your heart and allowing Him to speak to you through His Word and by His Spirit. We all need God’s Word to speak to our hearts and change us into His likeness.

Lord Jesus, take charge of your people, the Body of Christ! Train us up in the way that we should go, as your children. Send us as capable ambassadors, to do your work on Earth! Allow us to serve with you.

November 15, 2020November 15, 2020

Remembering Jesus, the Redeemer

1^st Corinthians 11:23-26; 1^st Peter 1:18-25; (Cp. Genesis 1:1; Hebrews 11:3; John 1:1, 14)

Introduction:

We are taking communion today: Because we make a practice of sharing communion every month, on the third Sunday, it ought to be very easy for me to remember, but since the first Sunday of this month also happened to be the first day of the month, it feels as though the month has hardly begun, yet, here we are at the third Sunday. If Ann had not reminded me, I would have simply forgotten again. I’m grateful that she always remembers.

We have been studying through 1^st Peter, and the message I had prepared for this morning was really too long to share the time with the Communion service. Besides, we have been studying about some pretty special things regarding Jesus our Redeemer and our new relationship with Him, so, since Communion is all about remembering Jesus’s sacrifice for us, it seems appropriate that we re-focus on some of the things right here in 1^st Peter, that ought to be remembered, as well as looking back to the Beginning, since we are also learning some pretty precious things about Jesus in Genesis, in the Wednesday night Bible study.

1^st Peter 1:18-25 Remembering The Redeemer

This is pretty recent, in our studies, so we ought to find it easy to remember: we talked about the fact that there are three words in the New Testament, used to describe our redemption:

Agorazo, (bought in the marketplace)
Exagorazo (bought out of the marketplace)
Lutroō (bought with the purpose of being set free.)

The whole of what we know about the concept of redemption is in the compilation of those three words: We were bought by Jesus, in the “agora”…the marketplace of sin. We were bought out of that marketplace, (exagorazo) never to be returned, and He bought us with the intent to set us free, forever. We know those things, according to 1^st Peter 1:18…and more specifically, He says we know the price that was paid:

**The Price of Redemption**

He says in verse 19 that we were not redeemed with Gold or Silver or anything else of corruptible, temporal value: We were redeemed (bought out of the marketplace of sin, never to be returned there, and specifically to be set free) by the price of Jesus’s death at the Cross: by His sinless blood being deliberately shed on our behalf. (“By His stripes we are healed!”) By His death, we have been set free forever.

**The Plan of Redemption**

We saw, too, that before the foundation of the Earth, Jesus was “Plan A,” and that there was no “Plan B.” He was God’s only provision for the salvation of sinners, and the provision was made before there were sinners to save!

**The Path of Redemption**

In John 14:6, Jesus told the disciples, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; No man cometh unto the Father but by me!” Here in 1^st Peter 1:21, we see that he is way we approach God: It says, that “by Him we believe in God.” It is not just a conceptual question: anyone can “believe in God:” James pointed out that the demons also “believe, and tremble!” But that sort of belief doesn’t help anyone. Believing in God through the Person of Jesus is our means to approach God.

Adam heard the very slender promise of Hope in the promise of the coming Savior, the “Seed of the Woman,” in Genesis 3:15, and he believed that promise. He stated his faith in that coming Savior by naming his wife Eve,” the “Mother of all the Living.” And God accepted His faith, and Eve’s along with him, and clothed them in the skins of animals, making the first blood sacrifice, prefiguring the Sacrifice of Jesus, at the Cross, some 4,000 years later.

That approach, through the Blood of the Chosen Sacrifice, has been the only approach, ever since. The Passover Lamb, looked forward to the Cross. Consider the motions needed to fulfill the command regarding the blood at the Passover: They were to dip the bundle of Hyssop (a weedy shrub that grows in that area) in the basin of blood from the freshly slain lamb, and strike it on the lintel and the two doorposts of the home. Run through those motions in your mind, and see that you are necessarily making a cross in the air, of the literal blood of the lamb! Those believers, 1500 years before Christ, were huddled under the same Blood of the Cross as we share today!

So, these Jewish believers, to whom Peter addressed this letter, had celebrated the Passover every year of their lives, and, at the day of Pentecost had finally come to know the Lamb personally, and, through Him, finally were able to approach God freely. Some had been Old Testament believers, but had known their limitations: no one but the High Priest could ever enter the Holy of Holies in the Temple, and draw near to God. Now, through Jesus, and the Redemption He made at the Cross, they were able to walk right into the presence of God …just as we are! They had always believed in God at one level or another: but now they believed in Him by means of Jesus!

**The Power of Redemption**

Finally, in verse 23, we see that they (and we) are born again, not of any fleshly, or biological process, but specifically, by the Word of God. Let’s give that some thought:

Over in Hebrews 11:3, we can see that the World was created by the Word of God. If we compare Genesis 1:1 and all that follows it, we can see that God literally “spoke the World into existence.” But if we look at John 1:1 and following, we see another facet to this truth: It says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God!” If we find that puzzling, we can keep reading: when we arrive at verse 14, we will see that it says, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His Glory, the Glory as of the only Begotten of the Father,) full of Grace and Truth.” In short, we can see for sure that “the Word” was Jesus, in Person! And He was not only with God, but actually was God, so that as Jesus the Messiah, walking the roads of Israel, He was literally, “God, in the Flesh!” (That is what “Incarnate” means, by the way: “in the flesh.”) Finally, when we turn to Hebrews 1:10,we see God the Father, speaking to God the Son, saying “And, Thou, Lord, in the Beginning, didst lay the foundations of the Earth, and the Heavens are the Works of thine hands.”

Jesus is the Word! And He is the Creator! So, when Adam and Eve were dealing with the kind, but stern Creator in the Garden, it was Jesus! Later on, in Genesis 18, we see Him identified as the Judge of all the Earth! And Jesus confirmed that, in John 5:22, 23, saying, “For the Father judgeth no man, but has committed all judgment to the Son, that all men may honor the Son even as they honor the Father.

So, when it says in Genesis 15:6, “Abraham believed God, and He (God) counted it unto him (Abraham) as Righteousness,” we can see that Abraham believed the promise of Jesus, just as Adam had done, and was declared righteous (justified) on the basis of his faith.

Jesus made the promise to us and all who will ever live, that if we place our trust in Him, we have eternal life now, not waiting until we die to find out whether we “made the cut.” John 5:24 says, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my Word and believeth on Him who sent me, hath everlasting life and shall not come unto condemnation, but is passed from death unto life.” And He wants us to know it: In 1^st John 5:11-13, he says “And this is the record, that God hath given unto us eternal life, and this life is in His Son, He that hath the Son, hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of god, that ye may KNOW that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” (Emphasis mine… )

Finally, in Romans 1:16, we read, “I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto Salvation to everyone that believeth…” There is nothing else in the scripture, defined as being the Power of God unto salvation. The Good news (That’s what “Gospel” means) about Jesus, the Living Word of God, is called the Power of God to save those who believe in Him.

So, do you see why it is important that we take time to “Remember the Redeemer?” He has given us eternal life by His Blood: When the Jews celebrated Passover, they looked back to their own redemption from physical death, the night before they left Egypt forever. And, unknowingly, they looked forward to the Cross, where their sins would be “taken away forever,” instead of only “covered,” which is all the animal sacrifices could ever accomplish. John 1:29 says, “Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the World!” They looked back to the original Passover, and looked forward to the Cross: When we celebrate Communion, we look back to the Cross, and look forward to His return.

Looking Back, to the Cross

When we look back and remember the Cross, we share in a tiny memorial feast called “Communion,” or “The Lord’s Supper,” or, sometimes, “The Lord’s Table.” We believe His Word, as did Adam, and Abraham, and the disciples, and the people at the day of Pentecost, and every believer since then: we trust in His promise of eternal life, though we scarcely understand all that it entails.

We first read of the Lord’s Supper in the Gospels, and again, as the only directive to the church regarding the celebration of communion, in 1^st Corinthians 11:23-28. (Read it)

Here we see that there is a practice to be followed in all churches worldwide, as a memorial we have in common. The scripture in this passage simply says “the cup” with no mention of the contents, only stating that it represented His Blood. The bread is also somewhat non-specific, as the staple food varies all over the world, and this feast will fit in any society on earth. In Papua New Guinea, we are told by the missionaries we support, there are no grapes: water is the liquid in the cup. There is also no bread. The staple food there is sweet potato. So, water and sweet potato are the elements of communion among the believers, there in Papua New Guinea. Here, there is a narrower choice. Some insist upon using wine, as that truly was the staple drink in the land of Israel at that time; but it is not the standard drink, here, and there are many who are trying to escape a past addiction to alcohol. So we have chosen to offer grape juice as the contents of the cup, and some sort of unleavened cracker as the Bread. The elements themselves are not terribly important: the meaning behind them is very important, as is our attitude toward the Lord’s Table: The believers in Corinth had taken communion lightly, and flippantly, and took it in combination with some sort of community feast, such as we might call a “pot-luck.” But, if we read the whole context, starting in verse 17, we can see that they weren’t even sharing the food at the “pot-luck.” Communion means “Sharing” or “Fellowship… Having in common.” How could you take the very thing that expresses our commonality in Christ and make it into a show of “who has food and who doesn’t?” So they were being judged for their unworthy behavior.

The scripture warns against taking the Lord’s Supper in an unworthy manner: it has nothing to do with the person being unworthy, nor even of having unconfessed sin in one’s life (though it is certainly a good time to reflect on that as well.) The warning is against an unworthy approach to God’s memorial feast: perhaps a manner by which God is dishonored, or by which fellowship is denied, rather than strengthened. We approach the Lord’s Supper in reverence, “Remembering the Redeemer” and all He has done. We approach in Unity, knowing that the ground is truly level at the foot of the Cross. We approach in Love, truly desiring God’s best for one another. The scripture says, that, having examined ourselves and our motives, we are to go ahead and eat. It says, “So let him eat!” So we will share together in the Lord’s Supper now.

(Communion Service)

Final Hymn and Prayer

November 8, 2020November 8, 2020

Responding to the Redeemer

1st Peter 1:13-25

Introduction:

We are studying through 1^st Peter, and we have seen the security of the believers and the Joy that is their choice, and which is only possible because of their position in Christ. Given that position, that security, and the possibility of such Joy, the logical question seems to be, “What now? How should we respond to this reality?” Peter addresses that question in the last 13 verses of this chapter. He begins by listing three things the believer is to do:

How should we Respond?

1. Gird up the Loins

¹³Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

I am told that when a man of that time was called to some sort of active work, or a coming battle, he would prepare by picking up the hem of his tunic or robe or whatever sort of long garment he was wearing, and tucking it into his belt, or “girdle” as it was called, then cinching it so that it could not fall loose and trip him. I have no way to know the accuracy of that historical note, so all I can do is look at it in the context of the rest of the scriptures and see that, in every case, when people were told to “gird up their loins”, it meant to prepare themselves for coming activity, whether a fight, a trial, or a task. It was an admonition to “get ready for action.” God wants to use your life: prepare yourself so that you are usable in His hand! We see this over and over in the New Testament. We are saved to serve. We have been set free from our slavery to sin, and now we are free to go to work “with Jesus.” He asks us to join Him in His work, but working with Him requires that we are prepared to serve.

2. Be Sober

Being sober is not the opposite of being drunk: it is looking at things realistically, from God’s perspective: not frivolously, but also not overly optimistically when God has not promised a good end to circumstances. Nor are we to think pessimistically, assuming that God doesn’t care. We have been left in this world to live as lights in a dark place! If life were “all easy” for us, then we would not be seen as lights at all: we just would appear to be “privileged characters” incurring the envy and anger of all those around us. If we are complaining about life all the time, then we are not seen as a light, either: we are simply seen as whiners.

But, if we see life soberly, accepting hardship and privation as being part of life, and choosing to find our Joy in the Savior Himself, instead of only in all He provides, then the people around us can see that we have something to be desired. We have clear Hope when there seems to be no hope. We have Joy in the presence of grief. People are not blind to the work of an active faith. Serenity and peace during tumultuous times is an unusual thing, and it is seen as valuable to most people. It is a mark of stability and strength, and attracts attention to the source of that strength.

3. Hope to the End

All the believers to whom this epistle was originally written have died, obviously. Every one of every generation since then has also “hoped to the end” to see the revelation of Jesus Christ. I believe that we are very close to His return, now, but we are still told to “hope to the end.” So, we keep pressing on, doing what we were told to do, placing our faith in the faithful Creator who claims us as His children; building our lives on the foundation of our new relationship with Him.

A New Relationship

We have been born again, so we are in a new relationship with a new Father. We want to imitate our Heavenly Father, just as a toddler tries to imitate his parents.

¹⁴As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: ¹⁵But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; ¹⁶Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

God’s primary attribute is His Holiness. Even His Love is subject to His Holiness. So, we need to consider what that means, if we hope to imitate it. The word “Holy” means “set apart for a particular purpose.” It does not mean “walking around with your hands pressed together as if in prayer, and with a pious expression on your face.” The world recognizes that phony charade and rejects it, just as God does. The Pharisees specialized in that sort of behavior, and Jesus condemned it as hypocrisy and fraud. In Matthew 23:25, He said they were polishing the outside of a cup, while the inside was still filthy; “…filled with extortion and excess”.

But we are called to imitate the holiness of God, because He has created us by the new birth to be as holy as He is Himself: It means that, as His child, and His new creation, you belong to Him, and you are created for His personal service and fellowship.

Your whole life belongs to Him, which is really nothing new: He created every sub-atomic particle in every atom of every molecule in every cell in your body as well as the air you breathe, the water you drink and the food you eat. That was true of us all, even when we were still in our sins! How much more, now that He has freed us from our slavery to sin, and provided us with eternal life?

We are re-born in His image, and we are created for His pleasure and service. It is our privilege to be in his service. We are in a place of honor and reward, not “forced servitude.” So He calls us to imitate Him in His holiness. Paul begged the believers to do just that In Ephesians 5:1, saying, “…be imitators of God, as dear children.”

This is part of what is involved in “girding up the loins” of our minds, in preparation for service. It means that we are to subject our wills to His, and see our lives beginning to reflect His character. It also means that we are to learn His Word. Over in 2^nd Peter 1:4, it says that by means of the “exceeding great and precious promises” in God’s Word, we are to become “partakers of the Divine nature.” The way…the only way, God promises to change us into His likeness is through the application of His Word, as we allow the Holy Spirit to use that scripture to change our hearts. (Psalm 119:9-11)

Since we are born of “His seed” as it says in 1^st John 3:9, we are “genetically predisposed” to bear His likeness. One of the first laws discernible in God’s Word is the Law of the Harvest: “Like begets like!” God made man in His image, but that image has been marred by sin. So He offered the new birth, and we are born again in His likeness, with the express intent that we are to be like Him, in character and purpose and action. Psalm 119:9 says that the way our lives can be cleansed is by the application of God’s Word. This is a key issue, because it means that His Word can change us into His likeness. (So, what was the means by which we have been born again in the first place? We will answer that question in verse 23. But for the moment, we are to remember the price that has already been paid for us.)

**How did we Get here?**

¹⁷And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: ¹⁸Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; ¹⁹But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:

Since we call upon the Lord as our Father, we need to consider and remember how we became His children: the result should be a sobriety and a respect for the Holiness of God, and a dread of offending the Eternal One who loves us.

We were not bought out of our slavery to sin by a “cash payment” of any sort, nor were we freed from the Law of Sin and Death by a price that we could pay. This is especially important in the case of these Jewish believers: they had lived their whole lives attempting to please God by works of the Law, as their ancestors had taught them. They (like most humans) were convinced that they could live in such a way as to please God. But they could not pay the sin-debt that stood as a testimony against them. That One Blood Sacrifice approved by God and delivered by Jesus is the only price that could redeem them and us. The Greek word, here, for “redeemed,” is “elutrothete” which is a form of the infinitive verb “lutroō,” meaning “to purchase with the intent to set free.” There are three words translated “redeem” in the New Testament:

“agorazo,” meaning “to purchase in the marketplace”…the “agora.”
“exagorazo,” meaning “to purchase out of the marketplace”…not to be sold again. And,
“lutroō,” meaning “purchased for the purpose of setting free.”

All of these words, combined, tell the story of our redemption.

We were enslaved to sin. Jesus went to that marketplace of sin, to purchase us with His own blood. That is where he bought us, because that is where we were!
He purchased us out of that marketplace, never to be returned there. We belong to Him eternally. And, best of all,
He purchased us with the purpose of setting us free. He was not just trying to increase his household staff, nor the number of workers in his field. We were set free by that purchase. We are free to serve Him, but also free to choose not to serve, in which case we suffer loss, though we still are saved.

Remember, we were all pretty much living pointless lives, serving our own desires, in activities that had zero eternal value, regardless of how they may have seemed to us. He has given us a new purpose in life. Now we can live in such a way as to be to His eternal glory! We can work with Him in a task that has eternal value and which will earn us eternal reward!

²⁰Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,

This is an important concept and it is very easy to just “pass over” and not notice it. It says here that He was “foreordained” (or “appointed before the time”)…when? Before the foundation of the world! Before Genesis 1:1 (!) Ponder on that for a while! So, when it says, “In the beginning…” He was already there and was already “Plan A” for our salvation!

Compare this verse to Revelation 13:8, and see what it means: in that passage, He was “the Lamb Slain, from the foundation of the world.” But here it says, from “before the foundation of the world!” Jesus was always “Plan A” and there is no “Plan B.” Before He created the world, God ordained that Jesus was to be the sacrifice for the fallen Human Race…the “as-yet non-existent, un-created, un-tested, and not-yet-in-danger, Human Race.” God provided for us before He created us. What wisdom and care! We can see in Ephesians 3:8-11 that God had an eternal plan. And, He laid the foundation for His plan before He laid the foundations of the earth!

Where do we Stand? And, What should we Do?

²¹Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God. ²²Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:

It is interesting that he is not “commending them” simply for “believing in God:” these were Jews, who already believed in the God of Israel. And James points out that “belief in God” is not necessarily even meritorious: he said, “The demons also believe, and tremble!” But something has changed in them, in Acts 2-7: they met God personally, by faith, in the person of Jesus their Messiah. Now they believe in God through Jesus. The result is an unfeigned (genuine) love of the brethren. Agape love is the fruit of their lives because they believe through Jesus. They received the Holy Spirit when they believed, and He changed their hearts and their desires, just as He has changed our hearts and desires. Each has a new nature, because they have been born again, same as we have. And along with them, we are commanded to fervently love one another with that Agape Love. Finally, he reminds us of the means by which we were born again:

²³Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

Take special note of what Peter says, here: He says that you were “Born Again:” by what means? By the Word of God! It had nothing to do with works! It had everything to do with your having heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ and having believed that message, placing your trust in the promise, and thus in God who gave it.

So, this also correlates with verse 3 where he says that we have been “begotten again.” The “seed” of natural birth is corruptible. The “seed of God,” in this case, is incorruptible, as it is the Word of God.

This is an important concept, because we sometimes are given to think that our own “persuasive speech” is the key to drawing a lost soul to Christ. But Jesus said, in John 12:32, “If I be lifted up…I will draw all men to myself!” He is the one who draws souls, like bits of iron to a magnet. We are to lift up Jesus, not try to dazzle unbelievers with our convincing arguments: The door to the truth is the will, not the intellect! We are to preach the Cross and Jesus Christ: not try to “convince” people by philosophy or moralizing, or any other sort of Human reasoning. Paul echoes this idea, in 1^st Corinthians 1:17, saying that he was sent “…not to baptize, but to preach the Gospel; not with wisdom of words, lest the preaching of the Cross be made of none effect.” We actually reduce the effectiveness of the Gospel through our “human effort.” Peter concludes this passage with a clear comparison between the flesh and all its “human wisdom” versus the Word of God and His eternal Wisdom. He says,

²⁴For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: ²⁵But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

Let’s bear in mind that God’s Word has eternal value. Everything we can do on our own is destined to decay and failure. What God chooses to do through us, by His indwelling Spirit, by His perfect Word, not only has eternal value, and will bear eternal fruit, but it will also pay eternal rewards or “dividends.” God gives us the will to serve, and He does the work through us, but then He rewards us for the work as if we had done it ourselves. What Amazing Grace!

Lord Jesus, free us from our addiction to self. Teach us to subject ourselves willingly to Your will, to Your Holy Spirit, and the teachings of Your Word. Continue to remake us into your likeness, and let us shine in this dark world as reflections of your Light.

November 1, 2020November 1, 2020

Rejoicing in the God of Our Salvation

1^st Peter 1:5-12

Introduction:

We have begun a study in the book of first Peter, the first epistle of Peter to the scattered Jewish believers, evidently after the persecution in Jerusalem. We saw a strong encouragement in the first five verses, underscoring the security of these persecuted believers, and the fact that their position “in Christ” was permanent. The last thing we considered was a very brief look at the fact that we are “kept by the Power of God unto Salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

We need to talk about that idea of “Salvation ready to be revealed in the last time:” Aren’t we saved now; already? Let’s read what it says, and then consider:

⁵Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

⁶Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:

⁷That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

⁸Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:

⁹Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.

¹⁰Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:

¹¹Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.

¹²Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

“Tenses” of Salvation:

Notice that it says this salvation is “ready to be revealed in the last time.” There are three aspects, or “tenses,” to what we call “Salvation:”

We have been saved from the penalty of our sins. Romans 5:1 says that we have been (or “are”…perfect tense) “justified” (declared righteous) by faith, and that, as a result, we have (present tense) peace with God. This is positional truth.
We are being saved (present tense) from the power of sin in our lives. Romans chapters 6 and 7 point out that while we no longer are slaves to sin, there is a daily battle in progress, and our constant salvation from that power is found in Christ. This is conditional upon our choices.
We will be saved (future tense) from the presence of sin. Revelation chapters 21, 22 tell us of the end result of the salvation God brings: there will be a new heaven and a new earth, in which there is literally no sin, no evil, no suffering. This is positional truth, again.

So the recipients of this letter had been enduring persecution, it seems (which is possibly why they were scattered…compare Acts 8:1, 4.) And they were assured by Peter, that the “last chapter” will bring full deliverance. The words translated “salvation” in both the Old Testament and the New Testament mean “Deliverance.” The words translated “savior” mean “deliverer.” That is why God referred to the judges, leaders, and heroes he sent to “save” Israel from their enemies as “saviors.”

We tend to think of Jesus as the only Savior, because, in terms of salvation from Sin, He IS the only Savior. But the word isn’t always in reference to salvation from sin. It can refer to being delivered from an oppressor, or a danger. But Jesus is our savior in every sense of the word.

Even if He chooses to not spare me from some present disease or danger, He is the Savior. As a rule, every one of us will die of our last illness, if an accident or other calamity does not take us first. All of us face that reality. Hebrews 9:27 says “it is appointed unto man once to die, but after this the judgment.” But in our current lives, He is our Savior from the penalty of sin, since God’s Judgment for sin fell upon Jesus at the Cross. This is positional truth. Because you are in Christ, you have been eternally saved from the eternal penalty of sin. Jesus said in John 5:24 that you will never again be condemned by God.

He is our Savior from the power of sin as well, according to Romans 7, but that battle is still in progress … and whether I am “being delivered,” in a practical sense, depends on how I am responding to Him. If I am walking with Him, I will be free from the power of sin. If I am not walking with Him, then I will behave as one who is a slave to sin, because in terms of my condition, I have subjected myself to sin instead of to Christ. This is conditional truth.

But in the end, He is our Savior from the presence of Sin. This is positional truth, again, because we are in Him. That is our position. We have been placed there by the Holy Spirit, and Jesus said in John 6:39 that he will not lose any of us, but that He will raise us up at the last day. That is a precious promise!

That truth, alone, is worth our rejoicing. And the people to whom Peter addressed this letter were rejoicing over that deliverance, by faith, in spite of their current distress. We can do the same. As we mentioned last week, from God’s perspective, according to Ephesians 2:6, we are already seated with Him in the heavens! So our eternal position with Him is secure forever!

Rejoicing in spite of Trials

⁶Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:

Remember that the reason they were rejoicing was their salvation in Christ. The word, “wherein,” is in reference to the Salvation mentioned in the previous verse. These believers were under intense persecution, not just the normal hardships of life, nor simple unpopularity or public scorn. They were losing their belongings to confiscation, according to Hebrews 10:34 and were in some cases tortured and killed. But their response was to rejoice greatly! They were not just “hanging on and hoping the Lord would bail them out.” Why?

The trial of their faith was producing praise and honor and glory to God. This is one of the purposes of trials; the way we respond to the testings can produce glory to God, and reward for us. We can read more about the reasons for sufferings, over in 2^nd Corinthians 1:3-11. But look at how Peter described the relationship of these persecuted Jewish believers to their Savior:

⁸Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: ⁹Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. ¹⁰Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:

These Jewish believers had not met Jesus during His earthly ministry: if we are correct that these were the believers from the day of Pentecost, in Acts 2 and those thereafter between chapters two and seven, then they were not living in Israel during Jesus’s life on earth: they had come to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles, and heard about Jesus from Peter and the other apostles. There were thousands of people who became believers during that time in Jerusalem. And, when the persecution arose, evidently they headed back to the countries into which they had been driven hundreds of years earlier. And they did not go home empty: they were filled with the Holy Spirit, and they carried with them the Gospel of Christ.

Now Peter is declaring the nature of their relationship with Jesus.

They have not seen Him, but they love Him
They are still not seeing Him, but because they believe in Him, they are rejoicing with unspeakable joy, and are filled with His Glory.
They are (present tense) receiving the result of their faith, the salvation of their souls. Here is another example of the different “aspects” of salvation: Their souls were already delivered from the grip of the Evil One, forever. They were looking to Jesus for daily deliverance, but confident in Him for ultimate deliverance.

Peter goes on to remind them that the Old Testament prophets had desired to know what they now knew: those prophets had enquired and searched diligently, desiring to see it, but all they could do was prophesy of the Grace that was to come. None of them knew of the realities of the Church Age. Paul makes this emphatically clear in Ephesians 3:4-6, that the Old Testament believers (even the prophets) did not know about the Church. It was revealed after the Cross, after the resurrection, after the ascension, and after the giving of the Holy Spirit. All of those things were known to the prophets. They also knew about the coming Tribulation and the Kingdom age to follow. But they knew nothing about the Church.

¹¹Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.

Daniel 9:23-27 is a prime example of a great Old Testament prophet knowing everything before and after the church age, but skipping the Church Age entirely. He described events right up to the crucifixion, and then skipped all the way to the Tribulation! He skipped the Church Age!

Isaiah 53 predicted the crucifixion and resurrection of the Messiah. He also predicted the judgment that will fall during the tribulation, and the glory of the Kingdom to come. But he didn’t see the Church Age at all.

In Daniel 12: 8, 9, Daniel told the angelic messenger that he (Daniel) did not understand the message. He was informed rather succinctly, that the message was not for him, but for the people of the end times! He was told, in short, to “write it down, close it up, and run along!” I believe that some of the prophecies in scripture are still in that category. There are some that seem impossible today, but that will become plainly obvious to the people at the end of the age. Some have changed in that regard, just in the last 50 years or so. Some in the last 30 years! (I used to wonder how it could be that the armies of every nation would be there to fight against Israel: It occurred to me a few years ago that they are already there! The UN Peacekeepers are comprised of the armies of all the nations! If they turn against Israel, at some time in the future, then that prophecy will be literally fulfilled! Another thing: I used to wonder how it could be that “every eye” would see Jesus at His return. With the advent of the internet and live video of news coverage, it has literally become a reality.)

So Peter underscored this idea, that it was not for themselves, but for us that those prophecies were given. He also reminded the readers later (2^nd Peter 1:19-21) that the messages came by the Holy Spirit, not by the desire or the imagination or the “scheming” of the prophets. It was revelation from God by means of the Holy Spirit. And all the apostles and prophets and evangelists who had shared that message with them (the readers) were empowered by that same Holy Spirit. He concludes with a strange comment, that all of the subject of Grace and salvation are “things the Angels desire to look into.” This is a mystery to them as well! They are waiting “on the edge of their seats,” as it were, to see how it will all be explained. And, over in Ephesians 3:8-11, Paul confirms that the entire experience of mankind, and God’s salvation of those who place their hope in Him, (culminating in the Church Age) is specifically an “object lesson” for the holy angels. He says that God’s eternal purpose was that through the Church might be known unto the angelic hosts in the heavenly places, “the manifold wisdom of God.”

I find that idea simultaneously mind-boggling and encouraging. On the one hand, I think “What could the angels possibly learn from our experience?” But on the other hand, knowing that it is so, because God says it is so, makes all the trials seem somehow more worthwhile. Knowing that our hard times are somehow a blessing and an education to angelic hosts that we can’t even see is such a strange thought! But God says it is so, and we can rejoice in that fact!

Joy is a Choice

I am uncomfortable making this statement, because I have had so much failure to rejoice, in my life: I’m guessing it may be rooted in unthankfulness, or unbelief. But we are so ensnared by what the world tells us that we have a hard time looking past what we see with our eyes, and seeing what God tells us is the reality “behind the veil.”

The fact is that these persecuted saints were rejoicing with “Joy Unspeakable!” They were overflowing with joy at the sheer privilege of walking with God, rather than complaining because they didn’t like the circumstances.

I am constantly having to confess unbelief and ingratitude to God, because I am whining about some inconvenience…all things that we call “First-World Problems.” Others in the world are lacking food, water, shelter and safety, and instead of being grateful that I have all of these, I am distressed about some tiny problem and I’m distracted to the point of ignoring God’s provision.

When I open my eyes to God’s provision, it changes my perspective. I know “Joy is a choice.” Joy has to be a choice, because the command in 1^st Thessalonians 5:16-18 includes “Rejoice evermore!” There is always a possible choice to disobey a command. Obedience is a choice!

But what if all those provisions, the visible, tangible ones, are taken away? That is where faith had better be the real basis of my relationship with God! If I am only thankful when things are the way I want them, then I am guilty of that of which Job was accused by Satan! Satan claimed that the only reason Job responded well to God was that he had everything so easy…he was rich! He had everything! So a test followed! Job lost literally everything, including his health. And his response initially, was to worship God and say, The LORD hath given, and the LORD hath taken away! Blessed be the name of the LORD!” Now, it is true that Job’s attitude began to suffer after some time, and the long argument with his supposed comforters began to produce bitterness in his own heart. But God stepped in and corrected him, while rebuking the others. Bear in mind that Job’s troubles were not because of sin: God says so!

I think it would be good to consider the prophet Habakkuk: He recognized the wickedness in God’s people and pleaded with God to clean them up. God replied that He was sending the Chaldeans (who we call the Babylonians) to punish His people, the Jews. Habakkuk was shocked! He said “But they are even more wicked!” God agreed that they were, and said that He would use them to punish the Jews, but He then would punish Babylon even more severely.

Then, in Habakkuk 3:17-19, the prophet concludes “¹⁷Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls:

¹⁸Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

¹⁹The Lord God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds’ feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high places. To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.

The things Habakkuk listed were all the things Israel considered to be blessings and provisions from God. And they were all to be taken away, because of sin, in this case. But Habakkuk chose to find his Joy in the Person of the Savior, the God of his salvation. He saw that God was going to lift him above the trials, and “make him to walk in high places” like a sure-footed deer.

And he gave the message to the musicians to make a song about it; evidently so that he and others could sing of the Joy of the Lord! Choosing to rejoice just might include choosing to sing about His goodness! I know it helps me to focus on His goodness when I sing of His Grace and Mercy. Praying and actually verbalizing thanks helps as well. We can choose to do these things!

Lord Jesus, we know that hard times are coming for the world. We ask that you would lift our hearts above the troubles of the World through Faith, and show us your Mercy and Grace, every day. Allow us to shine for you in the darkness of this world.

October 25, 2020October 25, 2020

The Believer’s Security (Part 2)

Introduction to Peter’s Epistles:

Security of the Believer (Part 2)

1^st Peter 1:2-5

Introduction:

Last week we began a study of Peter’s first Epistle. We didn’t even complete the second verse, because there was so much information packed into the words themselves. Today we will continue and attempt to finish the first five verses, as Peter continues his greeting to the recipients of the letter. Remember that you are among the intended readers.

Security of the Believer, (continued)

As you recall, we had underscored about thirty key words in the first five verses:

Chapter One

¹Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied. 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

The Terminology:

We only got through the first thirteen of those key ideas, last week. Let’s read on! We saw that, in the first two verses we have the security of the believer introduced. And we were only halfway into verse two! The next concept is “Grace:” so we will start there, and continue.

“Grace:” this word can be easily misused, so we want to think carefully about it. It means “unmerited favor.” We might use it in a variety of ways, but the key word, there, is unmerited favor. Unearned favor. One might do something special for one’s employer and be rewarded by the bestowment of honor, or by particular privileges…but in those cases, the honor was earned.

I did not and cannot earn the honor that God has bestowed upon me; to be made an ambassador of Christ…to be made a real child of God. To be seated with Christ in the Heavenlies (Ephesians 2:6 says if you are a believer, you are already there!) and so much more…I haven’t earned any of those. That is why it is called “Grace.” Keep that in mind, when you see that word in scripture. It is not a “feeling” type word, as in “that was so gracious!” It is a fact! It means “I did not earn this, but it was given to me anyway, in spite of my not deserving it!”

“Peace:” There are several kinds of Peace in the believer’s life: the initial one is the fact that you are no longer “at war with God.” You may think that you never were at odds with Him, but Romans 5:10 says that all of us were initially the “enemies of God.” But, the day you trusted Jesus as your Savior, that “Peace” became a permanent reality. You have Peace with God, because you have been justified (declared righteous) by faith. (Romans 5:1 is a positional truth.) We are encouraged to seek the Peace of God in our daily lives. (Philippians 4:6, 7 is a conditional truth.) We are to seek to make peace with other people and to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Jesus said “Blessed are the peacemakers…” which is probably that same kind of peace.) But please notice that all peace is dependent upon prior Grace. The Biblical order is always Grace and then Peace, as a result of Grace..

“Blessed:” The Greek word here is “eulogetos” meaning “to speak good words”…this particular aspect of “blessing” is the voice of worship, giving blessing back to God, not a “conferred blessing.” When He blesses us, we benefit. When we bless Him, we also benefit, and draw closer to Him in worship and praise. This idea can also be used to bless other humans, in which case it is not worship, but genuinely wishing good for them. We are commanded to bless them that curse us. That is this word. (There is another Greek word, makarioi, which means “happy, because of God’s approval.” When Jesus preached the Beatitudes: that was the word He used, there. “Blessed are the poor in Spirit,” etc. That is a different concept.)

“Lord:” The Greek word “kurios” is translated “Lord,” virtually every time it is used. It literally means “Master,” and “Lord,” but was often used casually, in about the same way as we say “Mister, or Sir.” Both of those English words came from English and French words, meaning “Master, or Lord.” Regarding Jesus, it is not a casual term of reference: We are not simply politely saying “Mister Jesus.” He is literally our master, our creator, our owner… our Lord: the One to whom we owe honor and obedience and loyalty and Love. It is the exact same meaning as the Hebrew word “Adonai.” It has nothing to do with deity; it means “master.”

“Mercy:” This is the “reverse” of Grace. Grace was “God giving me what I don’t deserve.” Mercy is “God not giving me what I do deserve.” I have earned the full wages for my sins! That is what I deserve! Romans 6:23 says “the wages of sin is death:” meaning, “that is what I have earned and deserve.” Not giving us those “wages” is Mercy. It goes on to say, “But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” We have not earned that! That is Grace! I need both the Mercy and the Grace of God. Without both of those, I would have no hope.

“Begotten Again:” This is a key issue. The idea, here, is not just a “trendy thing to say,” as it has become over the last fifty years, but a reality! You were born again the moment you trusted Jesus as your Savior, whether you knew it or not. You became God’s real child, through that new birth. The word “begotten” is the same idea as the word “sired”…in that He not only “claims” you as His own, but, as he says in 1^st John 3:9, “His seed remains in you.” At a spiritual level, you are His child, genetically. The New Man, your new nature, is literally the child of God. Your old nature could never approach God, even if it wanted to. Now you can approach Him in confidence as His true child, because you have been “begotten again.”

“A Living Hope:” The word translated Hope, here is “elpida” and it just means “hope.” The word translated “lively” in the KJV (or “living,” in most of the newer translations) is “zosan.” (“Zoē” means “Life,” in Greek.) So what is our ‘hope”, and why is it a living hope?

Hope has essentially a three-part definition, in scripture, as well as in “just plain English:”

The happy confidence of good, for our future. (This is how God wants us to feel and think toward our future: not the hopeless, despairing, defeated thoughts of unbelief.
The ground, or evidence on which that confidence rests, (our hope rests in the character of God and the truth of His Word.) and finally,
The Object of our confidence (in our case, it is Jesus. He is the one toward who we direct all our hopes. He is our only Hope.)

And it is a living hope: it is to be realized in our lives, now, not sometime after we die. In John 17:3 Jesus says, “…this is eternal life; that they may know Thee (present tense), the One True God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.” We are to be “knowing Jesus” on an experiential basis all the time, not “just hanging on and waiting to die,” to get out of our distress. In John 5:24, Jesus says we have eternal life now! Present tense! 1^st John 5:11-13 says that God wants you to know that you have eternal life…again, present tense. It is a living Hope! And the Person who is our hope lives in us; and that miracle is called the “hope of Glory!” (Colossians 1:27.)

How did we enter into that Living Hope? By faith! How do we maintain that hope? Also by faith. Faith is not a “force,” nor is it a “feeling.” It is something you choose to do. Faith is believing God enough to act on that belief. The root word in Greek is “peitho” which means “being persuaded.” But “peitho” can also be translated “obey” as it means “persuaded to the point of action.” Faith is not just mental assent, but “an obedient response to a revealed truth.”

“Resurrection:” Greek “anastasis.” This literally means “a rising up from” or “a standing up out of” death. An argument frequently brought up by unbelievers is that “Jesus wasn’t really dead…just passed out.” Or, on the other hand, claiming that the many medical revivals of “those who otherwise surely would have died, but who rose up to once again enjoy good health” are the same as what Jesus did. Jesus was dead…not in a coma. His body cells were dead. The reason for the three day “limit” was that at four days, he would have begun to decompose, and the prophecy of Psalm 16:10 stated clearly that he would not experience corruption (decay.) Lazarus was in the grave four days: and the bystanders warned Jesus that he would be stinking by this time. God says he can easily bring a truly dead body back to life. Don’t mistake “revival” for resurrection. Revival is only a renewal of life: resurrection is a restoration of a truly lost life.

“Dead:” One thing to keep in mind when reading scripture is that there are three kinds of “death” called out in the Bible:

Spiritual Death (first recorded in Genesis 2:17 compared to Genesis 3:7-12. The sinning couple were separated from God the moment Adam ate that fruit.)
Physical Death (Adam died physically, 930 years later. (Genesis 5:5) His spirit and soul were separated from his body.)
The Second Death. (Eternal punishment, separated eternally from God, in the Lake of Fire. Revelation 20:14)

Do you see what all three have in common? All have to do with some sort of “separation.” Physical death requires that the spirit and soul (the non-material parts of the human) are separated from the physical body. It is not just “flat-lining” on a heart-monitor. We all start off “spiritually dead,” separated from God. There is a “modified form” of this death, which can be experienced by believers: when we are in sin, we are separated from fellowship with God, although we can never again be separated from either His presence or His love, forever. But when we are in sin, we are no longer pleasantly aware of either His presence or His love, and are effectively living as if we were spiritually dead. Resurrection, for us, will mean a permanent, conscious reconnection with a body that can never die, a Savior who will be visibly, physically with us, and the permanent escape from sin and destruction. In Jesus’s case, it was a permanently resurrected body, and a never-again-to-be-separated connection with the Father. It is utter mystery to us that the Immortal One died at all! It is utter mystery that the eternal Unity of the Godhead was temporarily separated, for our sake. But it is a fact. And it will never be repeated.

The Inheritance

“Inheritance:” We are not told a lot about the inheritance, but the following points are important to remember:

We have this inheritance in Christ, because we are joined to Him eternally, and are part of His family. (see verse 3)
The Inheritance itself is eternal (1^st Peter 1:4; Hebrews 9:15)
The Holy Spirit is the “earnest” (down-payment) of that inheritance (Ephesians 1:14)

Notice that the next four descriptive words or phrases are all in reference to the inheritance. It is:

“Incorruptible:” We usually associate this idea with an absence of moral corruption, but the idea here is that our inheritance cannot rot, mold, or by any other means, deteriorate. This is about our inheritance. It has nothing to do with “reward,” to be discussed later.

“Undefiled:” There is nothing negative about your inheritance: there is no “seamy side,” unlike our present lives and experience. It is untouched by any sort of destructive or polluting influence. Again, this has to do with your eternal inheritance…not your current condition, nor your eventual reward.

“Fadeth not away:” Your inheritance will not be affected by time. It does not wither, or oxidize, or die on the vine. It is eternal, just like Jesus. He is the heir: we are joint-heirs with Him, and the inheritance we have is ours through Him.

“Reserved in Heaven for you!” The inheritance is yours and it is reserved for you! This is not like an earthly hotel or airline “reservation” which may be accidentally “double-booked,” or “sold out from under you,” leaving you with nowhere to go. God’s “reservation” of your inheritance in Christ is for you eternally. By the way, I have been using the word “eternal”, a lot: the Greek word for eternal is “aeoneon” and literally means “to the ages of the ages.” Some unbelievers have claimed that it therefore does not really mean “forever,” but rather only “a very long time.” The problem with this idea is that the exact same word is used to describe the eternality of God! So, we (and our inheritance) are “only” going to last as long as God does! And, I think that will be sufficient!

Finally, the last phrase I want to address in these five verses, is about the believers, not the inheritance:

The Believers

As believers, we are:

“Kept by the power of God!” Why is this so important? Because there are those who claim that “Well, you are saved by faith, but you are kept by works!” Let me share with you: if at any point, my salvation is dependent upon my works, then, ultimately, it is entirely dependent upon my works, because, I can guarantee you, “My works are definitely the weak link!” But, if, on the other hand, I am “kept by the power of God unto salvation,” as this verse clearly says, then how much more secure can I feel in my position in Christ? How much more confidence should that give me regarding my future and my current service, knowing that I literally cannot lose, and I absolutely cannot be lost? It is hard to even grasp the concept, because, from human perspective it seems not only illogical but impossible. But that is also true regarding the rest of the Gospel! The entire plan of salvation is unthinkable from human perspective: How can God become a man? How can there be a virgin birth? How can the blood of His sacrifice have any effect on a sinner like me? How can I have the righteousness of Christ applied to my account, through His blood? And, because of the human “disconnect” from the truth of God, we must enter in by faith: But we are kept by the power of God!

“Through Faith:” This was and is the avenue of approach. God’s Grace is what saved us, and His Power is what keeps us (Compare Ephesians 2:8, 9) Faith is simply the avenue by which we are required to approach Him. (Hebrews 11:6 “Without Faith it is impossible to please God.”)

“Unto Salvation:” We are kept “unto salvation.” Our inheritance is reserved in Heaven for us, and secure, because we have been declared to be the children of God, through the new birth, and we are also eternally placed into Christ by the Holy Spirit. (1^st Corinthians 12:13) The end result of all that we experience, all that we hope, all that is promised, is Eternal Salvation. We have it now, but we don’t feel it, necessarily. It is ours now, but we don’t see it. The day is coming when it will be visible and tangible, and, in every way a part of our permanent awareness. Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them and they follow me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish!” (John 10:27, 28)

Conclusion: The “Helmet” of Salvation

In case it had not occurred to you, the security of the believer is the “Helmet of Salvation” described in Ephesians 6:17. This Knowledge and Faith that we are Eternally Secure in Christ, is what gives us the confidence to walk with Him and to serve Him, knowing we cannot fail. The Helmet of Salvation protects your mind from the attacks of Satan.

Spend some time mulling this over: Consider how it affects your relationship with God and with the World around you, knowing that you are eternally secure in Christ, and that He is eternally your Lord and Savior…the Master of all things.

Lord Jesus, we are so limited in our understanding of who you are! Please open our eyes to the spiritual realities surrounding us and allow us to see the world through your eyes. Raise us up to serve you in faith and confidence.

October 17, 2020October 18, 2020

Security of the Believer (Pt. 1)

Introduction to Peter’s Epistles:

Security of the Believer (Part 1)

1^st Peter 1:1-5

Introduction:

We never want to forget that the Author of any portion of Scripture is God, but I think it is important to remember the identity of the writers as well: The writer, in this case is the Apostle Peter, and it was written probably about A.D. 60. But let’s give some thought to Peter: This is Peter, the companion of Jesus, the commercial fisherman, the one who openly struggled with his humanity, and truly desired to overcome it and walk with Jesus. This is the Commercial fisherman who absolutely knew the danger of going overboard in a storm but was willing to deliberately step out of the boat, to “go for a walk on the water” with Jesus.

This is the same Peter who was sternly rebuked by Jesus for trying to prevent Jesus’s journey to the Cross; the same who swore he would be true to the death, but a few days later, denied he even knew the Lord. The same Peter who ran to the gravesite, and barged right into the empty tomb, seeing for himself the empty grave-clothes, and the folded face covering. This is the same Peter who loved Jesus with all his heart, as a human, and knew his own shortcoming: he couldn’t profess a greater love. The same Peter, who tradition holds was crucified upside down, by his own request, as he didn’t feel he was worthy to die just as Jesus did. We don’t know the manner of his death in detail, and I can’t prove the traditional tale true or false. But all the other notes are directly from scripture.

Remembering who Peter was, as a human, leaves me a little surprised at his understanding of “heavy doctrines,” which may explain why it astonished the Jews of the time as well. What you and I need to remember is that it was a supernaturally-supplied understanding. In the first place, his personal tutor was God the Son! In the second place, when he began his preaching ministry in the book of Acts, he was not only indwelt by, but also “full of” (under the influence of) God the Holy Spirit. The Jews were amazed (Acts 4:8-12), and said, “How could an uneducated man learn these things?” Let us not make the mistake of judging the authorship by what we know of the writer: Peter was just “the guy carrying the bucket!” The one who filled it was God. God is the Author of this epistle, just as He is the Author of the rest of the Bible.

This epistle was to a large group of scattered individuals, not to an individual, nor to a specific assembly in a given town. But the way he describes them in the first five verses allows us to realize that we are also included. Like the other epistles, this is to You.

Security of the Believer

Chapter One

Key Words and Ideas in the first five verses of this epistle:

I have underscored about 30 words or phrases in these first five verses. If we can grasp the significance of these few words and phrases, we will be well on our way to studying the whole epistle:

Peter (Greek ‘petros’): This is not just “the man’s name:” it is the new name given to Simon Bar-Jonas, by Jesus, and it means “a rock”…a stone, such as one might pick up and move, to be used for some purpose. This is not to be confused with ‘Petra’ which meant an unmovable bedrock: the kind a building is founded upon, not to be moved. Peter is not the “rock” upon which Jesus was to build His church. The Truth about Jesus is! (Matthew 16:18)

Apostle: The word simply means a “sent one.” There is a gift called “apostle,” and that gift is a person. Peter was one of those gifts to the Church (Ephesians 4:11-16). Are there others beside the original 12? Well, there at least were others: Paul was one, for sure. Some think he was the only other one, but in Acts 14:14 both Barnabas and Paul were identified as Apostles. There is some evidence that Apollos was recognized as an apostle. It is possible that the number even included Priscilla and Aquila, but all it says is that they were “of note among the apostles.” At any rate, that is what the word means, and as far as I can see, their primary task was to plant the churches. There are people who argue that they also had to write scriptures. The problem with that idea is that there are only eight writers of the New Testament, and only four of them were called apostles. Mark was not an apostle. Neither was Luke. The “James” who wrote the epistle of James is almost certainly not James the son of Zebedee, and brother of John, but rather one of the brothers of the Lord, who was not even a believer during the Lord’s earthly ministry. And Jude did not claim apostleship, but only said he was James’ brother. Just something to consider.

Jesus: this is a Greek rendering of the Hebrew name we pronounce “Joshua.” It means “The LORD (YHWH) Saves;” which is especially significant because the angel Gabriel announced that his name should be called Jesus because He would save his people from their sins. This is the name before which it is said “every knee shall bow, to the glory of God the Father.” This is the name of which it is said “…there is none other name under heaven, given among men, whereby we must be saved.” This is His personal name, as the Savior, and not just during his earthly ministry. It is his chosen name forever, regardless of into what languages it is translated. Not the pronunciation of it, but the name itself: the “content” of the name.

Christ: This is a Greek word, too, meaning, “the anointed one,” which is what the Hebrew term “Messiah” means. That is His “office”, as being “chosen and sent by God”…it is not his “last name.” When we refer to Jesus Christ, we are referring to Jesus as the “anointed one” from God, who was sent as our one and only Blood Sacrifice by which the sins of the entire Human race were to be washed away. It means, Jesus the Messiah: Jesus, the Anointed One. The world uses it as a curse, when, in fact, it is a point of worship. He is “The Anointed One!” There is no other!

Strangers: This epistle was especially addressed to the “dispersion:” the Jews who had been scattered among the nations, but specifically the Messianic Jews—the believers among the dispersion (perhaps specifically those who had been scattered after the persecution in Jerusalem)…not just any foreign-born Jew. Remember that the scattered tribes had been gathered in Jerusalem at the day of Pentecost, for the feast of tabernacles. Those who became believers in Jesus stayed in Jerusalem because of the Gospel. When persecution arose, they were scattered again (Acts 8:1) and possibly began drifting back to their homes among the nations. But we are told that wherever they went, the Gospel went. They shared their faith! These are the original recipients of this epistle. But we are to be that sort of person as well.

Elect: This word means “chosen.” A lot of controversy comes over the understanding of this word, so we will address it later, except to point out that it does not always have anything to do with salvation. Aaron’s rod was called “elect,” too, as were the vessels in the temple. It simply means “Chosen.” Rather than spending a lot of time on the subject right now, I would like to point out that the whole Gospel is addressed to “Whosoever Will.” (Revelation 22:17) We see the invitation on the outside of the “gate” or “door,” so to speak, saying, “Whosoever Will May Come! “ Then, by Grace, through faith, we step across that threshold, entering into a permanent relationship with the Creator, through Jesus’ Blood at the Cross. But later on, we begin to learn more, and we look around; finally turning to look back and ask “How did I get in here?” And, on the inside of that same door, we see the sign, “Chosen in Him before the foundation of the Earth!” God chose in Eternity Past, to save all those “In Christ.” Those who respond in faith are automatically part of that group. There is nothing in the scripture to indicate that God deliberately chose the majority of the Human Race to end up in eternal punishment. We choose that ourselves.

Foreknowledge: This goes right along with “election:” we have no doubt about the absolute foreknowledge of God. That’s the way He presents His “Credentials” in Isaiah 46:10. He “declares the end from the beginning.” We will address both of these ideas more thoroughly, later in this study. Yes, God knew from Eternity Past who would choose to believe Him, and who would not. But He also chose to go to the Cross and die for the sins of even those who rejected Him. You will never meet a person for whom Jesus didn’t die; a person whose sins were not under His Blood. 1^st John 2:2 specifies that Jesus did not die “…for our sins only but also for the sins of the whole world.” God knows in advance who will come, but the offer and the promise is genuine.

God: The Greek word is “Theos.” It is His “office”…” it is what He is.” This is not His name. The name he offered to Moses, to give to Israel, was ‘I AM.” The name by which Abraham knew Him was what we call the “Tetragrammaton:” the “YHWH” four-letter “puzzle,” which no one seems to know how to pronounce. (I think Acts 4:12 is a good answer to that puzzle, by the way.) But this passage specifically refers to God the Father.

At this point we are beginning to touch upon the doctrine of the Trinity. In Isaiah 9:6, 7, we are told that “the Son”, the long-awaited Child, of whom we sing at Christmas, “…shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father!” So, at that point I gave up. Jesus confirmed that the Father is greater than He, but this scripture says Jesus is the Father. And, in Acts 5 and in Acts 13, we see the Holy Spirit identified as God, as well. So…I will drop it right there. I think the Trinity is a true “mystery,” and I seriously doubt that it is decipherable by human intellect.

Sanctification: the word means “being set apart for a special purpose.” Like the word “elect,” it can be used for inanimate objects, not just humans. But in the case of humans: saved individuals have become the Lord’s personal property, and are for His use and His honor only. We have been declared holy! Give that some thought, as to how it may apply to your own life. When the vessels from the temple, which were declared Holy, were defiled by enemies who stole them and used them in idolatrous feasts, did they lose their “holy” status? No! They had to be cleansed, and restored to proper use, but they were still God’s personal Property. So are we! So, when we have sinned, and are out of fellowship with God, we are no less holy, positionally, but we are defiled, in terms of condition. We need to be cleansed and restored! That is what 1^st John 1:9 is all about: the restoration of a sinning believer.

The Spirit: This is in reference to the Holy Spirit: there is not as much information about the third member of the Godhead as we might like there to be. There is enough, however. He chooses to not speak of Himself, but of Jesus. The bookstores are loaded with extrabiblical books about the third member of the Godhead which are largely false. But there is sufficient information in the scriptures for our use, and Jesus specifically said that the Holy Spirit would not glorify Himself, but only Jesus. We need to keep that in mind, when we are trying to gain “greater spiritual experiences.” Does it really glorify Jesus, or do we simply want a thrill?

Obedience: The Greek word here, is “hupakoe”, meaning to “hearken submissively” or, along with that idea, to “set in order below”…in other words, deliberately choosing for ourselves the “lower rank,” where Jesus is concerned, and taking His Word as authoritative. Interesting concept, isn’t it? Notice that both the word “Obedience” and the following phrase, “the sprinkling of Blood,” are both in reference to the Lord Jesus.

Sprinkling of Blood: This refers back to the Old Testament sacrificial system, under which an object was declared holy through the sprinkling of the blood of a holy sacrifice: a priest or other believer was declared holy (as well as cleansed) by the same sort of sprinkling. This was completely fulfilled in the Person of Jesus Christ, whose Blood did not just “cover” our sin (which is what happened at the day of Atonement, each year) but “takes away the sin of the World,” according to the statement made by John the Baptist, in John 1:29. These Jewish Christians were quite familiar with the Old Testament teachings regarding Blood. They had no trouble understanding what Peter meant. He stated it fully, though: “…Obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ”…so this is not some generic requirement of obedience, nor of any “other” blood. Both are about Jesus. And all of these people had heard Jesus, and had “hearkened submissively.” This is the “obedience to the faith,” called out in Romans 1:5. Paul made it more clear a few verses later, in Romans 1:16, where he stated that the Gospel, being believed in, is the power of God to save those who believe. This is Obedience to the faith. Does it result in more “physical” obedience? Surely it does, yes, but the initial choice to place one’s dependence on the shed blood of Jesus at the Cross for salvation, is the “obedience of faith” that resulted in the “Sprinkling of Blood” upon that believer’s soul, and which cleanses him or her before God, forever!

Conclusion: (Yes it means You!)

If you have heard the Gospel, the “good news” that Jesus’s blood was the full payment for your sins: If you have believed that news, and placed your trust in His shed blood for your salvation, then according to Jesus’s personal promise in John 5:24, all of the things we have been talking about are true of you!

You have been “Chosen in Him before the foundation of the earth!” You have been declared Holy, by the “sprinkling of His blood” and You are His personal Property, forever!

Yes, you entered in because you saw or heard the invitation, “Whosoever Will may Come!” But you can now look back and see that you were chosen in Him, specifically because you were “one who would respond in faith.” So, now, when you read the first chapter of Ephesians, and see all the amazing “positional truths” laid out there, you can know for sure that all those things are true of You, not just some “theoretical person.”

Next week we will continue in 1^st Peter, and see the remaining concepts concerning our eternal position in Christ.

Lord Jesus, please secure our hearts against the fear that the Enemy sows in us. Let us rest in your Promise, not in our own wisdom or reasoning. Help us to obey out of Love and confidence, not fear, as we rest in your promise and your Love.

October 10, 2020October 11, 2020

Faith Begets Godly Wisdom

**Faith Begets Godly Wisdom**

**“The World by (worldly) Wisdom Knew Not God”**

James 1:5-11; 1^st Corinthians 1:17-25 (esp. 21)

Introduction:

For some reason, Christians love to cite “Scientific Proof” for the Bible being the Word of God. Occasionally, it is some specific point that is being corroborated by physical evidence, which is fine: God’s Word does have a better pedigree in terms of documented evidence for its archaeological accuracy, etc. than any other ancient document. In fact, I have been told that, prior to a century ago, historians believed the city of Troy, from Homer’s The Iliad, to be sheer fiction, with no historical basis in fact. But, as I was told, the city of Troas is identified (and located) from scripture, and it was conjectured that possibly, because of the similar name, they were the same place. So digging commenced at Troas, and, sure enough, nine civilizations down, archaeologists discovered that Troy had indeed been a real place…and that was it.

In another example, secular scholars long believed that King David of the Bible was a legendary character, and not historical. Why? Because no other ancient documents seemed to mention him. In fact, they also had believed that the Philistines, Israel’s ancient enemies, never existed, for similar reason. But archaeologists happened to discover the ruins of the Philistines right where the scriptures said they were supposed to be (and of course, they made the Philistines out to be noble, wonderful folk), and later, in Philistine writings they excavated, they found mention of…King David. (Oh! Well! So if the Philistines mention him, then he must have existed!)

Doesn’t that seem a little “backward?” If the Bible has more documented evidence to its accuracy than any other ancient document (and it does), wouldn’t it make more sense to take its word for something until proof comes that it is fiction, rather than the other way around?

The Psalms mention (Psalm 8:8) “…the paths of the sea”. In the early 1800’s, an American naval officer, Matthew Maury read that verse and thought, “Well this is certainly just a ‘figure of speech’…there are no ‘paths’ in the sea.” But he was a believer—he was convinced of the truth of God’s Word (as a principle) and it troubled him to find what seemed to be an exception. So…he proposed a test:

He already knew that there were certain places in the oceans that seemed to allow faster sailing, and thought that the explanation might be the “paths” mentioned in scripture. So the test was to have thousands of small bottles dropped overboard from sailing ships at each time a location was known, say, at their noon-shot bearings, with a slip of paper inside, having the longitude and latitude written on it, and a reward offered if the paper was sent in with precise answer as to where it was found. The idea was that, if there were paths, or “rivers”, currents, in the oceans, then the bottles would not just wash ashore randomly, but would go to specific areas, determined by the location where they were originally dropped overboard and the resulting exposure to the currents of the ocean.

And it worked! The result was the first tentative “mapping” of the ocean currents: the “paths of the sea”. Today the shipping companies use those routes to minimize fuel costs, and oceanographers maintain accurate satellite maps of the ocean currents, because, as it turns out, the paths move around a bit, and it pays to know where they are at any given time.

There are times when Scriptural information far pre-dates that of science: Though it made no special point of it, the Bible told of the original super-continent, and its subsequent breakup, long before modern science proved it to be so. (I had read it there, and understood the implications 20 years before the proof was determined by Computer modeling.) Now, here is an interesting question: The breakup supposedly happened long prior to man’s evolution on the planet. But the scripture not only calls out that it happened, but that it happened within the memory of man…a man was given the name “Peleg” (meaning “division”), because it broke up about the time he was born. How would they even have known about it, let alone named a child after the event?

If the Evidence is solid, why does the World reject the knowledge of God? Is it odd to you that the Bible makes no attempt to “prove” the existence of God? The existence of the “self-existent one” is taken as fact, and all that is offered is how a sinner may be reconciled to that holy God.

Faith Precedes Full Knowledge (not vice-versa)

Hebrews 11:6 states that it is impossible to please God without faith. It goes on to explain that “…he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.”

That naval officer believed God that there were paths in the seas, so he went looking for them. Today we have them mapped in detail by satellite photography, and infrared camera tracking, etc., so that shippers and meteorologists know on a day-by-day basis where the currents are, and how fast they are travelling, as well as their temperature within a few tenths of a degree. But the beginning of that knowledge was faith. Proverbs 1:7 agrees, stating that “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.”

Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. Abraham had met God…because God had sought him out, and invited him to leave his family home, and go with God. Abraham was nothing special—an idolatrous shepherd from what is now modern-day Iraq. But he believed God enough to get up and go, so God gave him a little more light. Eventually, in Genesis 15:6 where Abraham believed God and it was counted as righteousness…which is to say, God declared him righteous…the promise was for the Land and a progeny. Abraham was about 85 years old when God made that pivotal promise, and he was right at 100 years old, when his “only begotten” son was born (Abraham had seven other sons…one before, and six afterward, but none of them were the Son of the Promise. “Only-begotten” is a special phrase, meaning “the heir”.) But Abraham still had a lot to learn, after he believed God.

The Door to the Truth is the Will, not the Intellect

Jesus said that “whoever is willing to do the will of God will know of my teaching, whether it is of God, or just my own.”(John 7:17) The key to knowledge, then, as Jesus was describing it, was being willing to do God’s will. A person who approaches the truth in rebellion against God will find the truth to be too obscure to follow. He will find it repugnant, and finally call it foolishness. And God knows this. (1^st Corinthians 1:23)

Jesus really did shed his blood for the sins of the whole world, and He said that He had come that the world through him might be saved. But he also predicted that most people would avoid Him, ignore the truth, take the easy way of following the World and believing Self… and as a result, would be lost.

Consider Cain and Abel: both, as far as we are told, had exactly the same information to work with, and that is borne out by the fact that God reasoned with Cain as with one who knew the truth. But Abel believed God, and Cain did not. Hebrews 11:4 states that by faith, Abel brought a better sacrifice. Both Cain and Abel knew it was to be a blood sacrifice; Cain went his own way, Abel believed God and obeyed.

Some well-meaning philosophers have attempted to “prove” the existence of God…but there are always holes in their arguments. Why? It is because we are required to know God by faith, and He will not permit us to remove faith from the equation. There will always be a believable argument available against faith, and it will always be a fatal choice, if believed.

Jesus described the “wide path” that leads to destruction: one might ask, then, “why not put up an impassable roadblock?” One thing we tend to miss is the fact that we are by nature the enemies of God, not just “innocent bumblers.” Romans 5:8-10 says that while were yet enemies, Christ died for our sins. God does not force his enemies to fellowship with Him. He offers full forgiveness to anyone who comes to Him, and warns over and over of the punishment awaiting those who continue to reject him. But, ultimately, if they choose destruction, that choice is open as well. He will not force them to come to safety in Him. The problem is “Human Reasoning.”

“Human” Reasoning leads to “Human” conclusions.

God tells us that humanity has never learned by means of human wisdom to know the Creator. (1^st Corinthians 1:21) We are warned against human reasoning, philosophy, and vain thinking, (Colossians 2:8) because it will ensnare the unwary soul. The Law of the Harvest was laid down in the creation account—each plant bore seed “after its kind,” and every animal reproduced “after its kind.” What you sow is also what you reap. If you use human reasoning against, or instead of, God’s Word, you will wind up with Human conclusions against God’s Word. When a person or a church begins to drift away from the centrality of the Word of God, ultimately, the decisions they make and the conclusions at which they arrive will be in opposition to God’s principles…and the longer they allow the slide to go, the further from truth they will stray, until they are a fully apostate person or assembly, whether individual, local, or wide-spread. There are large church organizations today, once known for their stand with God, which are now better known for their stand against Him. There are no Bibles in their sanctuaries, nor is there a Godly word from their pulpit. They are fully committed to humanism, yet still proclaim themselves to be “Christian”, though everything about them says they are far removed from the flock of Christ.

How can we overcome this tendency?

Faith begets Wisdom

James 1:5-8 ⁵If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. ⁶But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. ⁷For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. ⁸A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

We see, then, that Proverbs 9:10^“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding” is also borne out in the New Testament: We saw earlier that faith precedes knowledge; and here we see that faith precedes wisdom. In fact, in both cases, faith actually begets knowledge and wisdom. You see, James agrees with the Old Testament regarding both wisdom and knowledge:

Proverbs 2:6 “For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.” “Understanding” is the same as wisdom. The source of both knowledge and wisdom is the “mouth” of God! His Word is the source of both wisdom and knowledge. But to get either one requires that we approach the Bible as actually being His Word. That requires faith!

Hebrews 11:6 says, “…without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” We feed on God’s Word, because we believe it is God’s Word. The result is a growing confidence and faith in Him (because we constantly see how all of His Word ties together) and a growing knowledge of what He says, as well as a growing wisdom as to how to apply it to our lives.

If we are constantly calling into question God’s character, and doubting His person, His authority or the truth of His Word, then we are not going to gain any of that. That is what “unbelief” really entails: we are continually questioning God’s character, and authority, and the truth of His Word, at the very least. And eventually we will even question His existence. This is why James says that a man full of doubts is unstable, and will not gain wisdom.

Wisdom gives Clear Perspective

The last three verses in this passage reflect another result of gaining God’ Wisdom: we gain a clear perspective as to who we are in Christ, which eliminates both pride and shame.

James 1:9-11 “⁹Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: ¹⁰But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away. ¹¹For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways.”

If I am controlled by Godly Wisdom, I will neither be tempted to “hold myself up as being something special,” nor to “grovel in self-condemnation.” Romans 12:3 says that we are to see ourselves in a “sober” way: not thinking more highly of ourselves than we ought. This is not the same as “self-condemnation.” Sobriety means seeing things the way they really are. Years ago, an anti-drug campaign made a statement along the lines of “Drugs are for people who can’t handle reality!” Someone else replied, as a joke, “Reality is for people who can’t handle drugs!” But God says that “sobriety” (not simply the absence of substance abuse, but the embracing of reality) is the view by which He wants us to see ourselves and everything in life.

Perhaps you have thought, “Oh, I’m the worst sinner…!” Well, believe it or not, the Bible says who the “worst sinner” was, if you want to read for what it says. Three times, the Holy Spirit identified the Apostle Paul as “the chief among sinners;” “less than the least of all saints;” and “not worthy to be called an apostle.” There are those who laugh at this fact, saying, “Oh, that’s just how Paul felt about things!” If that is the case, then it is not true, and not all of the Bible is God’s Word, since not all of it is true. But this is God’s Word, and no one else in scripture is so labeled. You can accept it or not, but the Bible says you are not as “bad a sinner” as Paul was.

Perhaps you have thought, “Well, at least I’m not as bad as (so-and so)!” Sorry, that is a wrong perspective, too. If we were both without Christ, we would both be equally lost! (Remember that everyone outside the Ark, rich or poor, young or old, educated or not, sick or healthy, were ALL just as lost, when the rain began and God closed the door to the Ark! On the other hand, inside the Ark, regardless of any other differences…all were saved.

The ground at the foot of the Cross truly is level: As a man with limited education, I can rejoice that it will not hold me back in God’s service. As a man with a checkered past, perhaps, I can rejoice that it is all under the Blood of Jesus, and completely removed from how God sees me. As a person with lots of money, a sterling past, an impressive education and a long list of accomplishments, I could rejoice that those things also do not prevent my serving the Lord with my life. (They may even help, but there is no guarantee that they will do so. Paul had all of those things, and he reckoned it all to have been a waste.)

Conclusion

All of us need to gain a proper perspective as to our importance to God, and our very limited “window of opportunity” in which to be used by the Lord. James says that our lives are “a vapor” that will soon pass away. We have “one shot at the target,” so to speak: One life to use for God. One chance to work with Jesus “in the flock,” or “in the vineyard,” or “in the harvest…” however you like to see His work.

Jesus says “Take my yoke upon you and learn of me:” He asks us to be co-laborers with Him, and learn wisdom from Him. So, let’s gain God’s Wisdom, let’s see ourselves clearly, and then, let’s get on with the job! Don’t allow human reasoning or wrong thinking to keep you out of the blessing!

Lord Jesus, we ask that You fill us with Faith and Wisdom and Sobriety. Let us see ourselves as You see us, and make us able ministers of your Grace.

October 3, 2020October 3, 2020

Problem Passages in James (Part 2)

Some Problem Passages in James (Part 2)

James 5:12-20 Healing, Confession, Prayer, Conversion, and “Saved from Death”

Introduction

We are finishing up our study in the Book of James, and last week we discussed some passages with some small problems for us in terms of how to apply them. But the following verses give me serious trouble:

Healing

I am not at all sure that I understand the last seven verses, here. I’ve heard them preached, and seen them put into practice, but unless my memory fails me (and my wife remembers the same few times I recall), every single time I have seen this done, the patient has not been healed, but rather has died. So, perhaps we need to give serious thought as to what is being taught here.

¹⁴Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: ¹⁵And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

So, what should we get from this? To begin with, I can definitely say that the sick person is the one to call for the elders. It is not for the elders to volunteer. They are told to pray over the sick individual, and anoint that person with oil in the name of the Lord. (OK, so far…) But then, verse 15 makes a clear statement that “the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up, AND if he has committed sins they shall be forgiven him.

In legal terminology, the word “shall” is a very strong word: it is the word that makes an issue mandatory, without exception, unless otherwise stated. It would seem, then,that the passage has to be a “blanket promise for healing” so long as some certain conditions are met. So…in the cases where the sick was not healed…what should I assume? What were the “conditions?”

Was their prayer not “the prayer of faith?” In other words, “Was it the fault of the elders?” I can’t blame the patient for a lack of faith: all they were told to do is call the elders; and they did so! So, let’s say the elders have “doubts about” this passage: if they lack faith, then, should they disobey and not follow through and pray? Jonah wasn’t “full of faith,” but God used him! Namaan the Syrian wasn’t “full of faith” when he took “seven dips” in the Jordan. He had just enough faith to go and do it! Seems to me they need to go and do it when called. But then…what is the “prayer of faith?” (I guess I don’t know!)
Is there some sort of “formula” not being correctly followed? (If so, it is not stated.) A special kind of oil, for instance? Special liturgy to follow?
- Dr. McGee points out that the Greek word for “anoint,” here, is not the word “chrio” which is used in the sense of a spiritual “anointing” and from which we get the word “Christos” or “Christ…the anointed one…the Messiah.” Instead, it is the Greek word “aleipho” which just means “put oil on something,” often for a practical reason. His commentary says that since it was sometimes used in a medicinal sense, he has concluded that this must mean to “go get medical attention in addition to the prayers.” Sorry…it simply doesn’t say that: Grammatically, it says that the elders are to pray over the sick person, anointing that person with oil, in the name of the Lord! (The doctor would not do that!) There is no teaching here of getting separate medical attention, though I agree that the oil may not be a “ritual anointing.” I just don’t know how to understand this. I certainly believe in going to doctors for help. (Jesus said “he that is sick needeth a physician.”) That is not what this passage is about.
I do think it is worth noting that it says “…the prayer of faith shall save the sick…” It does not say the oil will do it. (Regardless of what the oil may mean.)
So, then, is this only for sicknesses caused by sin? Verse 15 does bring up the possibility that sin was involved. And if it is for “sicknesses caused by sin”, then why would it not heal some of the modern, fatal diseases that definitely are caused by sin?
Is the Lord no longer offering this promise? (It does say the Lord shall raise him up…) Has that offer been revoked? There are people who truly believe this to be the case; that this promise is no longer in force. How would we know, for sure?
Was the promise only for a select group of believers? Well, the book was originally written to Jewish believers. But, I don’t believe that healing is only promised to Jewish Christians. There were lots of Gentiles healed in the New Testament.
Does the fact that the word translated “sick” in verse 15 is not the same as the one in verse 14 make any difference? (In verse 15, the Greek word is “kamnonta” and it means “exhausted one”, or “faint one,” and it’s only used four times in scripture, and only translated “sick” in this verse. The Greek word in verse 14 is “asthenei”, which is frequently translated “sick”, or “infirm,” but also could be translated “faint” or “weak.” The word “asthenei” is the one used in regard to Lazarus, who was so sick that he died… and Jesus raised him from the dead. John 11:1-44)

The fact is, I have no solid answers to any of the above questions, and I am not willing to jump to anecdotal “proofs” of any sort. Either God gives light in His Word, or He does not. The claims made by so-called “healers” usually end up proving false: some very shamefully, publicly false, which leads unbelievers to blaspheme the Lord, and claim that the scriptures are false, and that all who believe the Bible are fools. And I can’t blame them, when that’s what they see!

For the moment, I have to confess, I simply do not know what to make of this passage. I don’t like to “skip a verse”, and I am not inclined to pretend to have knowledge, when I can’t back it up with God’s Word. So…that’s where it stands for right now. I’m sorry!

Confession

The next verse seems to tie in with the previous two, with the exception that it does not mention oil or prayers of the elders, at all: it does mention confessing our faults to one another, and praying for one another. It again mentions healing, but seems to be a general principle, not necessarily a specific incident of sickness.

¹⁶Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

The word translated “faults” here, is not the usual Greek work “hamartias” which is translated “Sins,” (as in 1^st John 1:9.) It is the Greek “paraptomata”, and it means “offenses, trespasses, faults, etc.” This is not grounds for the practice of the “confessional”, as in some religions. It means that if I have offended, I should confess it to the offended party, and if it is a public matter, I should confess it publicly; not necessarily in a formal setting, as though it were a courtroom, but simply addressing the fact that (for example) “I wronged this brother when I was angry. I said harsh words about him. It was unfair of me to speak that way, as he was not at fault. I have already spoken to him, and asked his forgiveness, but many of you heard me, and I want your forgiveness too.” That sort of honest transparency “keeps the decks clear,” so to speak, and perhaps keeps our communication with God more open as well, because Psalm 66:18 says, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the LORD will not hear me.”

Prayer:

It also says, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” This passage is constantly quoted as proof that “prayer changes things,” and I agree that it does. I believe that we are commanded to “pray without ceasing,” (1^st Thessalonians 5:17) and “in everything.” (Philippians 4:6, 7) We have examples in the lives of the apostles, as well as Old Testament saints, and the life of Jesus Himself. They all seemed to have pretty intense prayer-lives.

¹⁷Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. ¹⁸And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.

This is a good reminder that prayer can make a difference: It is important to read what the rest of the scriptures say about prayer, too, though: 1^st John 3:22; and 5:14, 15 give some admonitions regarding God’s reply to prayers. There are some keys given, in regard to answered prayer. We do not always “get what we want.” The passage in 1^st John 3:22 suggests that we have to be living in God’s will in order to have confidence in prayer. If we aren’t even walking with Him, why should we hope for Him to do what we want? And the one in 1^st John 5:14, 15 lets us know, that God still reserves the right to veto our idea. Remember that He is God!

He does answer prayers, but He reserves the right to answer “No”, or “Wait” as well as “Yes.” We say, “God didn’t answer my prayer,” unless He immediately answers “Yes!” That is a bad response on our part, and certainly not one that expresses faith. “No” is a legitimate answer, too, and sometimes it is the best answer God can give. “Wait” is also a good answer, in many cases.

Consider how many times a young child asks his parents about something he or she wants to happen. Little children are asking from a child’s perspective, and cannot understand all the ramifications of their requests. Like those little children, we have very limited understanding of the things of God, and the eternal issues He considers in responding to our desires. We need to trust that He will make the best choices for us, but also remember that He does want us to ask. And, finally,

What does “Convert” mean? What does Death mean?

¹⁹Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; ²⁰Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.

Is this about evangelism? Or is it in regard to restoring a sinning brother?

There are three keys to understanding this passage:

The first is the phrase “if any of you do err from the truth”
The second is to find the meaning of the verb, “to convert.”
The third is to determine which of the three possible meanings of the word “death” is intended in this passage.

In the context (“Brethren, if any of you…”) I would have to say that it is regarding a sinning brother (or sister) who is erring from the truth, not an unbeliever who has never been connected to the truth. Remember that Jesus said “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life…” when we sin, we are “erring from the truth”…wandering from the way, and temporarily separated from the life of Christ. Not lost, but acting as though we were lost…and, for all practical purposes, living as if we never knew Him.

But, in that case, I also have to ask, what does it mean to “convert” someone else? I certainly cannot “save” someone else, nor can I even force them, through strength of argument, to voluntarily receive the Lord. They have to make that decision themselves. Remember that the door to the truth is the will, not the intellect. (“Whosoever will may come!”) So, in what way are we “saving a soul from death?” What does “conversion” even refer to?

In our culture, we have long referred to salvation as “conversion:” possibly even because of this passage. But Jesus addressed Peter (already a believer) and said “… Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” (Luke 22:31, 32)

How could Peter, who was already a believer, expect to be “converted?” Perhaps some people would use this verse to support the idea of a believer “losing their salvation and being saved over again:” But it says, “I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not.” So, if Peter’s faith did not fail even though he denied the Lord, and he felt that his faith had failed, and he acted as though his faith had failed, what would his subsequent “conversion” entail?

The English verb “convert” (from the Greek, “epistrepho”) means to “turn back”, or “return.” It is the same word used when the shepherds “returned” after seeing Jesus in the Manger, and they “went back” to their flocks, glorifying God. (Luke 2:20) It was also the word used when the demon in Jesus’s parable decided to “return to his house,” meaning to “go back and repossess the man who had been freed from demonic possession.” (Luke 11:24) So Peter was expected to return to his strong faith. Could the word be used to denote salvation? Possibly…but the primary use simply means to return…go back! An unbeliever has never been a child of God: he cannot “return” to being one. Only a sinning brother or sister can “return” to the Lord. So, that leaves the last question, “What kind of death?”

Is this simply the “separation from fellowship” …a spiritual deadness which occurs every time we are out of fellowship? Or are we talking about the eternal “second death,” warned against in the Revelation? (In which case this would definitely be about evangelism, not restoration.) Or, is it actually about physical death? (Which indeed can result from a continuing pattern of rebellion in a believer’s life.)

To begin with, I am sure that this is a believer in question: it says, “Brethren (that means believers), if any of you do err from the truth…” So, let us assume there is no further question that the individual is already saved. That settles the issue with death, as well, then, because it is impossible for a believer to die, spiritually, although they can live as if they were spiritually dead, if they are out of fellowship. So, the only possible choices are either the “spiritual deadness” that results from unbelief and disobedience, or, more likely, physical death.

There are several examples in scripture of believers whose lives were taken by God, because of rebellion, or some flagrant sin. Perhaps that is the warning, here. John says that “there is a sin unto death.” (1^st John 5:16) And John was talking about believers. In 1^st Corinthians 11:17-34, Paul stated that some in the church at Corinth—believers— had physically died because of their sins regarding the Lord’s Table. They had dishonored the Lord by their actions and attitudes, in what is intended to be a solemn, holy memorial and celebration.

Ananias and Sapphira, in Acts 5:1-11, were believers too, but their sin of publicly lying to God, about something so mundane and trivial as money, cost them their lives. Peter demonstrated how pointless the whole thing had been; saying that the money was theirs, the land was theirs: they had been free to keep it, give it, or do whatever they wanted with it. But they lied to God about it, and judgment fell. They did not lose their salvation: they lost their lives.

King Josiah, one of the best kings Judah ever had, lost his life in an unnecessary battle with an Egyptian king who had no quarrel with Judah. (2^nd Kings 23) We can lose our lives because of sin, too. Anger or lust or envy can drive us into situations that become deadly: in traffic, water-sports, or other life-situations. As we try to out-do a rival, or pass another driver, or show off for someone we want to impress, we take unnecessary risks. Many young men lose their lives through foolish behavior, but it is not limited to the young, nor only to men.

Left to ourselves, we can allow sin to fester until it erupts into a catastrophe. Murders have often occurred because of hurt feelings, anger, jealousy, etc. That possibility is not just for unbelievers. Christians are capable of every sin, the same as unbelievers. Suicides frequently occur because the individual turns in upon himself in a tighter and tighter “vortex” of frustration, guilt, fear, despair or anger, until there seems to be no escape. Sometimes (but not always) someone else can draw alongside the suicidal person and turn them away from the trap into which they are falling. That is what we are called upon to do, here.

We are told to care for one another, and to help turn one another away from such snares. I have personally known believers who allowed themselves to be drawn into sin that eventually cost them their lives. I don’t know what could have been done to turn them back from that sin, before it was too late. I do know that their family (also believers) desperately tried, but finally gave up trying. I heard about the results long after the fact. But we are told, here, that if we can “turn them back,” it will save their life, ultimately.

Believers are not immune to the attacks of the Evil one. In fact, we are his primary target. He really doesn’t need to do anything to unbelievers: he already has them. We are members of the Body of Christ, and Satan attacks us, in order to fight against Jesus, the King.

This closing admonition from James is to remind us of the battle we are in, and to urge us to take it seriously. I pray that we will do so. We are to function together as a team, as a body, and work to strengthen and bless one another. If we fail in that regard, the enemy is always looking for an opportunity to attack. We are told to “be sober, be vigilant, for your enemy the devil walketh about as a roaring Lion, seeking whom he may devour.” (1^st Peter 5:8)

Lord Jesus, we ask that you will feed us on Your Word, and give us the Wisdom to apply it to our lives, even when we feel that we don’t fully understand. Shape us into your likeness and help us in our weakness and our ignorance.

September 27, 2020October 3, 2020

Problem Passages in James (Part 1)

Some Problem Passages in James (Part 1)

James 5:12-20 (Oath-taking, Prayer and Singing)

Introduction

The remaining verses in James are difficult for me: Quite honestly, I am not entirely sure how to teach them. I know what they say, and I know what the words mean, but I do not know how to apply them all, especially the verses about healing.

Even verse 12, many (including myself, in the past) have taken to be a prohibition against oath-taking of any sort. (And, perhaps it is: I can’t rule that out completely.) But, when a public official (even a police officer) in our country takes office, they are required to take oath to uphold the law, to uphold the constitution, to protect and to serve, etc. Is that a bad thing? I really don’t think it is! They are being required to state, for the record, that they are bound by this oath to actually do the things in that oath. The same goes for marriage vows. So we need to talk about this verse and what implications it might hold for us.

Oath-taking

¹²But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.

(Remember that in Matthew 5:33-37, Jesus taught the same concept, nearly word for word.)

I have known of people who habitually used the name of God in everything they did, not even disrespectfully, but perhaps too casually, as if it were a charm, or a magic phrase to make things come out right. Perhaps they knew the verse that said to “do all in the name of the Lord Jesus,” so they simply “said those words” with everything they did. A Latino friend told me how his father did that: throwing a bag of seed into the back of a truck, he would say “En el nombre de Dios!” He told me that his father did everything that way! I can’t speak to that, because I can’t see the man’s heart. Perhaps it was an honest effort to “do everything in the name of God.” But saying those words does not make it actually be in the name of God: it strikes me that this is very likely to become “taking the name of God in vain,” even if the intentions may have been good.

I have frequently heard unbelievers say something like “Jeeezus help me!” in a frustrating, but somehow humorous situation. All of us have heard unbelievers cry out “God help me!” in a bad situation…an emergency, of some sort. (That is where the aphorism comes from, saying, “There are no atheists in foxholes!”) This takes the form of profanity, though, in many cases, to the extent that people only use the name of Jesus or of God, as a curse. That is not what this verse is referring to, but there are plenty of other passages that address that idea and the “cursing” aspect is also supposed to be “left behind” in the darkness of our old life.

This passage, however, is about taking oaths. Cursing is a separate issue. Remember, when Peter was confronted by the Jews at the crucifixion, (Matthew 26:74) “…he began to curse, and to swear, saying I know not the man!” The cursing was one word…the swearing (oath-taking) was another. He was terrified that they were going to crucify him along with the Lord, and felt helpless to change the course of events. Perhaps he was even angry at Jesus for allowing it to happen? I don’t know. But, in that circumstance he was both cursing and making a false oath. And both things are clearly forbidden.

Butt seems to me that taking true oaths should not be a light thing, either. I don’t really think this verse (nor the passage in Matthew 5:33-37 where Jesus said nearly exactly the same thing) is a prohibition against all oath-taking, since God demonstrated in Genesis 15 that an oath can be appropriate. (The passage in Genesis 15 predates the practice laid out in Jeremiah 34:18 wherein two people walked between the pieces of a sacrifice, confirming an oath before God. In Genesis, God alone walked between the pieces of the sacrifice. He alone bore the oath.)

Some believe that this passage in James really is a prohibition against all oath-taking, and will refuse to take oath in court, for instance. (I used to think that!) Our laws make room for that specific belief, allowing a witness to simply affirm that their statements will be entirely true.

But there are sufficient righteous oaths taken in scripture to make me believe that this verse is more likely a prohibition against “casual” oath-taking. (Abraham required an oath of his servant in Genesis 24, for example.)

“Swearing on a stack of bibles” that something is true, is pointless, when simply stating that “you are convinced of” something is more honest. There is no need to invoke some “higher authority” to validate your given word. It seems that the Jews had become habitual “oath-takers,” and needed to go back to just giving their word, as a general practice. (Which may explain the Matthew 5 passage as well.)

But I think this verse would also preclude any of the ugly, pagan oaths take by people who join secret societies, or certain cults. I have read some of them, and they are truly gory, ungodly oaths. Why are they requiring such oaths, in order to join their organization?

You did not “take an oath” in order to become part of the Body of Christ: you simply placed your faith in His Word, and in His blood. God made the promise: He promised to save you and to keep you, forever. He required no oath from you! Remember, in Genesis 15, He made the oath; He required nothing of Abraham! He also requires no oath from you.

As a member of the Body of Christ, you are expected to find a group of like-minded believers and attach yourself to that assembly, and then faithfully function there as all believers are called to function:

You are a priest before God, and you are expected to pray and offer praise and thanksgiving to the Savior, both for yourself and for others.
You are an ambassador for Christ, and are expected to reach out to the lost as well as to the saved, to offer the Grace of God to the lives around you.
Finally, there are specific gifts you have been given as a believer, that are to be used to bless the assembly, and to serve, and to build up that assembly.

We hope that everyone who attends this assembly will take all these things seriously. But no “oaths” are needed! This is simply what God expects of all believers, in every assembly!

Prayer and Singing

Here is where things begin to be a little more difficult, though they ought to be easy:
¹³Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.

This seems pretty straightforward. I can easily teach the practice of praying, as it is taught everywhere in the scriptures; We are commanded, in Philippians 4:6, 7, to “be anxious for nothing, but in every thing, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God; and the peace of God which passes all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

So the part about being afflicted, and praying, I can teach, for sure. Affliction could be physical, mental, emotional, or financial (or maybe something else.) But we are told to give ourselves to prayer, both here and elsewhere. This is to be prayer from the heart, by the way, not reciting written prayers from a book of prayers, but actually talking to God about what is on your heart.

But there are people who say that “Prayer doesn’t change anything: God is just going to do His will anyway!” This passage teaches us otherwise! In verse 16 we are told it can accomplish a great deal. But most roads have two ditches, and this is no exception:

The other extreme is people who think that we can literally “order God around,” telling him what to do…specifically not “asking,” as (they say) that displays a lack of faith. But we are absolutely told to ask. We are absolutely told that, at least sometimes, we “have not because we ask not.” (James 4:2) And we are absolutely told that the reply depends on several things:

Our relationship with God at that time, (1^st John 3:21-24)
The faith with which we ask, (James 1:6, 7) and
Whether, in fact, the thing we ask is within God’s will. (1^st John 5:14, 15)

God always reserves the right to reply “Yes, No, or Wait.” The Lord is very definitely in control as God…He is not a “celestial vending machine:” (where you just put in your prayer, pull the appropriate lever, and automatically get your wish!) He is God! Yes we are to pray, and freely come to His throne to receive help in time of need, but do remember who it is you’re talking to! He is the Authority! He is God!

So both of the above ideas about prayer are mistaken: yes, “most roads have two ditches,” but the idea is to stay out of the ditches, and preferably in your own lane! Prayer definitely will at least change your relationship to the One you serve, and may change the world around you, as well. But remember that the Lord is sovereign: He always has the final say!

Something I frequently do, in prayer, because of 1^st Peter 5:7, where we are told to “CAST” all our cares on God, is to use that word as an acronym, to remind me to begin with

Confession of my sins, and my frequent unbelief, then moving on to
Adoration and Worship, Praising God for who He is, then making requests, in
Supplication (praying for my needs and those of others,) and not forgetting
Thanksgiving for answered prayers and the constant faithfulness of God.

So, What about Music?

The singing of hymns (or specifically psalms as some churches insist on doing) to express joy, worship, praise, thanksgiving, fellowship and faith is clearly taught as well. I think it is well to remember the rest of what the scriptures say about singing, too: Jesus and the disciples “…sang a hymn, and went out to the Mount of Olives.” (Matthew 26:30)

The scriptures encourage us to “sing unto the Lord a new song”, in several places. And some of us may feel encouraged that the psalmist also says “make a joyful noise unto the Lord!” There is no restriction as to our innate gifts in music, or our skill as musicians. There also does not seem to be a restriction as to what sort of music, as it varies wildly from culture to culture, nor is there a restriction as to what kinds of instruments, as far as I can see. But it seems clear that the lyrics must honor the Lord. (It would seem reasonable, as well, that the music should be of a sort that draws a person into a serene, joyful worship of Christ, not stirring them to a frenzy of emotions, though perhaps that is also a matter of perspective: we will discuss particulars later.)

There are churches which completely forbid the use of any musical instruments in the church, just because there is no mention of them in the New Testament. But the Old Testament has many references to musical instruments: some were used for the glory of God, some were not: but the difference was in who was using them, and for what purpose. There is no mention of them in the New Testament, except in the Revelation; but there is no prohibition against them, either.

The three types of music mentioned in the New Testament are “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” and they are grouped together as “singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord.” (Ephesians 5:19) All these are commanded and encouraged.

The problem with “trying to decide what kind of music is permitted” is that in other cultures, when the believers “sing unto the Lord a new song,” it does not sound like western hymns at all! And, as cultures change, the style of music frequently shifts along with the changing culture. That is not necessarily a bad thing. The “old” hymns we love were once “new songs.” And not everyone approved of them! The churches which demand that we only sing psalms forbid making new lyrics. And the really old churches did not approve of what we now consider the great hymns of the faith. But one thing that stays consistent, throughout the centuries, is that the Holy Spirit always speaks to glorify Jesus. So, if the “new songs,” and the “spiritual songs” are actually coming from Him, then the lyrics have to clearly honor the Lord.

My youngest son sadly, quietly told me once, of being condemned by the pastor of his church (in the presence of his friends) for listening to “rock” music. The man said “I’m a man of God! You are a man of the World!” I felt especially bad about it, because my son was a very young believer, and such harsh condemnation is hurtful in any case, but especially in the case of a young believer, and doubly so, in front of a group of friends. (I still grieve for the damage done by this pastor: the entire exchange was wrong!)

But a few days later, I was accompanying my son somewhere in his car, and he started a song on his music system, that was unquestionably “rock” music. I had a little trouble understanding the words, and really wasn’t listening too carefully, until my son asked “What do you think of the song?” I answered honestly, “Good music!” as there was nothing inherently wrong with it, though it was not what I might choose. Then he said, “That’s the song I was listening to when the pastor chewed me out.” So I “perked up my ears,” so to speak, and listened more intently. I found that I actually could understand the words if I listened carefully. Do you want to know what they said?

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right Spirit within me…cast me not away from thy presence…restore unto me the joy of your salvation….” Do you recognize those words? Yes! It was the 51^st Psalm put to music! That is what he had been listening to, and that is what was condemned by his pastor.

I’m not sure those wounds ever really healed. And they were inflicted by someone who, I am sure, thought he was doing something “righteous.” But James 3:18 says, “…the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” That encounter did nothing to create or maintain peace, and the fruit it bore was not righteousness, but bitterness. We need to think carefully about how we use God’s Word, and how we treat the people around us.

Now, in another case, when I was in welding school, I myself was singing or humming the tune (not the lyrics, because it was in Latin, and I didn’t know the words) to Schubert’s “Ave Maria.” A younger friend, a brand-new believer to whom I had been teaching the Bible, heard me, and confronted me, in shock, demanding “Why are you singing that song!?” I was astonished, and said, “It’s a beautiful song! I like it!” He asked again, “Do you know what that song is?” I said, “Yes, it’s Schubert’s ‘Ave Maria.’”

He persisted, though, saying, “But don’t you know what that is??” I said, “I guess I must not!” He said “That is the ‘Ave Maria!’ The ‘Hail Mary’ put to music! It is a worship song to Mary!”

I simply had never thought of “what the song was about.” I certainly did not intend to sing a worship song to Mary, even if the music was beautiful! And this young man was a recent believer, who had been saved out of Roman Catholicism, so he was very sensitive to this particular thing. I answered on the spot, “I just never thought of that! I won’t sing it anymore!”

You see, the “beautiful, worshipful music” of that song was specifically written to worship a human being, as if she were deity. Mary herself confessed that she needed a Savior. She is not to be worshipped. And in my friend’s mind, I was singing worship to Mary! I was literally causing him to stumble, and I didn’t even know it. The “beautiful music” did not make it acceptable, nor did the “rock music” in the previous case make it wrong. The lyrics, in both cases, made the song what it really was.

So these two concepts of prayer and singing ought to be a total blessing to us, but they can be problematic as well. We need to think about them and what they really mean, and how we are to use them to honor the Lord.

Is there a Conclusion?

If nothing else, I hope that we can come away with a commitment to “Love one another,” and not to condemn each other for innocent differences of opinion regarding God’s Word.

But the remaining verses in James are about “healing,” and something called “Converting a sinner” and “saving a soul from death.” All of these ideas can be easily misunderstood, and are controversial enough that many commentators sharply disagree over them. I’m not certain I have all the answers, but we will address that passage next week, as these also are subjects people may struggle over.

Lord Jesus, please give us light to read your Word in the teaching of your Holy Spirit, so that we are not confused, but rather drawn closer to yourself. Use your Word to cleanse our hearts and transform us into your likeness.

How Should We Live?

Introduction:

Abstain from Fleshly Lusts

The Lusts Produce the Works (Galatians 5:16-21)

Civil Authority

Honoring Man, while Honoring God

What is the “Goal” of our Salvation?

Change is On the Way!

Introduction:

What should we “drop and leave behind?”

What should we use to replace the old ways?

Living Stones

But You!

Remembering Jesus, the Redeemer

Introduction:

1st Peter 1:18-25 Remembering The Redeemer

The Price of Redemption

The Plan of Redemption

The Path of Redemption

The Power of Redemption

Looking Back, to the Cross

Responding to the Redeemer

1st Peter 1:13-25

Introduction:

How should we Respond?

1. Gird up the Loins

2. Be Sober

3. Hope to the End

A New Relationship

How did we Get here?

Where do we Stand? And, What should we Do?

Rejoicing in the God of Our Salvation

Introduction:

“Tenses” of Salvation:

Rejoicing in spite of Trials

Joy is a Choice

Security of the Believer (Part 2)

Introduction:

Security of the Believer, (continued)

Chapter One

The Terminology:

The Inheritance

The Believers

Conclusion: The “Helmet” of Salvation

Security of the Believer (Part 1)

Introduction:

Security of the Believer

Chapter One

Key Words and Ideas in the first five verses of this epistle:

Conclusion: (Yes it means You!)

Faith Begets Godly Wisdom

“The World by (worldly) Wisdom Knew Not God”

Introduction:

Faith Precedes Full Knowledge (not vice-versa)

The Door to the Truth is the Will, not the Intellect

“Human” Reasoning leads to “Human” conclusions.

Faith begets Wisdom

Wisdom gives Clear Perspective

Conclusion

Some Problem Passages in James (Part 2)

Introduction

Healing

Confession

Prayer:

What does “Convert” mean? What does Death mean?

Some Problem Passages in James (Part 1)

Introduction

Oath-taking

Prayer and Singing

So, What about Music?

Is there a Conclusion?

**What should we use to replace the old ways?**

1^st Peter 1:18-25 Remembering The Redeemer

**The Price of Redemption**

**The Plan of Redemption**

**The Path of Redemption**

**The Power of Redemption**

**How did we Get here?**

**Faith Begets Godly Wisdom**

**“The World by (worldly) Wisdom Knew Not God”**