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Mourning and Encouragement
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be encouraged.”
Ordinarily, when we see these words, we reflect on them in the context of the larger pericope. In other words, those who recognize their own spiritual poverty (due to sin) will naturally grieve their sin and thus be comforted by our Almighty Father. And, indeed, there is great truth for the individual in this reading. Yet, remembering that Jesus is speaking to a large group of His disciples at this point — essentially the church — we also must ask how these words apply to the corporate body.
To understand that, we must look at the words translated here as “mourn” and “encouraged,” respectively. The word we render as “mourn” is the Greek word πενθέω (pentheo). It can refer to someone being sad, grieving, or mourning (typically over a death that has taken place). Arguably, as a church body, there are two ways of thinking about this mourning. We certainly mourn the death of those who have died from amongst our numbers. This mourning is not for the one who has died, for their spirit has passed into the presence of Christ. This mourning is for our loss in their absence. The second way of looking at this language in the corporate sense is to reflect on our own nature and the sin we commit when we are tempted. Sin not only grieves the believer who engages in it, but sin grieves the body as a whole, for when one part suffers, the whole suffers.
The word found in the latter part of this verse puts the earlier part of the verse in context. Here we find the word παρακαλέω (parakaleo). The most basic definition of the term is to call or summon someone into your presence. It can mean “to invite” or “to summon.” It can also mean “to exhort, to encourage, or to request.” This may seem like a wide range of meanings for a single word until you realize that for someone to be encouraged or exhorted, they first must be present. So, in a sense, the picture we are being given here is that of the King summoning His people to Himself (John 6:44) and then speaking to them both to exhort and encourage. Furthermore, the people of God are comforted not only in the encouragement of Christ, but also in the exhortation, for indeed, God disciplines those that He loves (Hebrews 12:6).
Historically, one of the marks of the True Church is that they practice discipline for the chastising of sin. True, as Paul writes in Hebrews 12, none of us likes discipline at the time it is administered, but the fruit of discipline is holiness. If the church is indeed to embrace holiness, it must also embrace discipline. When churches reject discipline according to the Word of God, they reject the means by which they will grow and mature in godliness. Further, they disobey their King.
The Church that is Poor in Spirit
“Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”
When we arrive at passages like this, we must begin by asking the question: “What is blessedness?” Sadly, over the years, there have been some translations that have rendered this phrase, “Happy are…” Is being happy the same thing as being blessed? No, it is most certainly not! Happiness tends to be based on external things that bring you joy or comfort: friends, a good meal, entertainment, etc… In contrast, blessedness focuses on one’s inward state. That is why one can be blessed even during the most difficult of times. Indeed, just a few verses down, Jesus speaks about those who are persecuted for His name’s sake as being blessed. Happy…probably not so much, but definitely blessed.
So, what then does it mean for a church body to be blessed? In a sense, that is the purpose of these eight blessings (beatitudes). Ultimately, it means that the kingdom of heaven is theirs. But, what does it mean that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to a church that is poor in spirit? To answer that question, we must first ask, to what does the Kingdom of Heaven refer?
A Kingdom, by its nature, is a nation or realm that is ruled by a king. In the context of the church, we are talking about King Jesus. The idea may seem obvious enough, but its ramifications are wide and sweeping. For instance, kingdoms are not ruled in a democratic manner; the king has absolute sovereign rule. One might share with the king one’s difficulties with an aspect of his rule, but like it or not, but the subjects of the king do not get to make the rules. That belongs to the King alone. Similarly, in the church, the subjects of the King (believers) do not get to make or remake the rules. Our role is to submit to His Lordship and to yield ourselves to His authority. Every man does not get to do what is right in his own eyes (yet, how many churches do just that!).
But wait, I sound as if I am speaking of the church today, not the church in heaven. True. You see, while we tend to think of the Kingdom of Heaven only in future terms, that is not how the Bible treats it. For instance, both John and Jesus preached that the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand (Matthew 4:17; 10:7). Yet, Jesus also spoke as if the Kingdom of Heaven had always been present in the life of God’s people (Matthew 11:12). Finally, though, Jesus also speaks of the Kingdom of Heaven as something that will come at the end of all earthly time (Matthew 8:11). Perhaps, though, the Parable of the Mustard Seed presents the idea of the kingdom best. It starts very small and then grows into something mighty and magnificent (Matthew 13:24). In other words, it began small, in the Garden of Eden, and then grew through history until Pentecost, where it reached its branches to the ends of the earth. Further, it will come to completion in the New Creation when Jesus’ reign will be clear and universal. Nevertheless, in the here and now, the Kingdom exists and the King is seated on the right hand of God the Father, so the church should be in submission to the King’s rule.
That idea of submission brings us back to the beginning of the beatitude: blessed are the poor in spirit. So, to what does “poor in spirit” refer? The Greek word that is translated here as “poor” is the word πτωχός (ptochos) and refers to the idea of being entirely dependent upon others for support. It is the opposite of being proud and self-sufficient. At the same time, poor does not mean “without any other means,” but it means that any means one might have of their own are utterly inadequate to the task. And indeed, when it comes to heaven, membership in the Kingdom, and a life that honors Christ, we are utterly and completely bankrupt. Indeed, we are inadequate to the task.
If I might translate that a bit into the context of the life of the corporate church. It means there is no room for pride in the Church of Jesus Christ. It means that no matter how many dollars that the church has in the bank, they can do nothing. They are like vapor, summer grass that is burned up in a moment. Pride and the church are incompatible ideas if we are talking about the True Church of Jesus Christ. Civic associations have pride. Social clubs have pride. Yet, if we are to be a part of Christ’s eternal kingdom, we owe our past, our present, and our eternal future to Him. In turn, we must be obedient to His commands in life and in worship. It’s not about what we want. It is about what Christ commands.
Corporate Teachings on a Mountain
“And seeing the crowds, He ascended the mountain, and when He sat, His disciples came to Him. He opened His mouth and taught them, saying…”
(Matthew 5:1-2)
These words introduce what is commonly called Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount.” Follows in this sermon is a philosophy on Christian living, something that might be called the “Pastoral Theology” of Christ. We have a series on the Beatitudes, Jesus’ teaching on the nature of the Law and its application, on piety and prayer, and on the marks of a Christian as he or she lives out faith in this world. It is a boiled-down version of Jesus’ instructions for living a God-Centered life boldly in a fallen world.
Often, though, when we look at these teachings, we focus on them in the context of our personal living. And, while it is true that there is much personal application that can be made from within this text, we sometimes miss the corporate nature of this sermon. Indeed, to whom does Jesus preach this? He preaches to the crowds that are following Him. He preaches to His disciples, not just to the twelve. Corporately speaking, he is teaching the church, not just persons in the church.
As Americans, I fear that we often focus too much on the individual. We are “rugged individualists” at heart, and that is an asset in many parts of our culture. Yet, we sometimes forget that Christ has united us as a one body that is designed to be unified in thought, attitude, and action for the furtherance of His kingdom. Over the next several weeks, we are going to spend some time together on the Sermon on the Mount, beginning here in the Beatitudes. And while we will talk about many personal and individual applications, our focus will primarily be to apply this language to the church — the corporate gathering of Christians — to ask the question, are we really being faithful in being Christ’s church, or has the church simply become another civic organization to which we may or may not have ties.
For instance, is “church” just something you do one day of the week? Is your commitment to church something that begins and ends when you walk into the church building? For many professing Christians, the extent of church is just that — it is a program of sorts for Sunday participation. In contrast, if we take the Gospel (and this Sermon) seriously, we should see church not as something we do, but as the natural outflowing of who we are (or whose we are). As laid out here by Jesus, church is part of the fabric of your being, and it shapes all that you do, not just what you do on Sundays. Indeed, in light of these words of our Lord, I would suggest that taking the teachings of Christ seriously also ought to shape (or challenge) what we do when we gather as a body on Sunday morning and evening.
A final note. Who does Jesus gather to teach? We are told that he gathers His disciples. A disciple (μαθητής, mathates in Greek) is literally a student. Ask anyone who has ever taught, what is the mark of a good student? They learn and apply. You may learn every teaching that is given in the Bible, you might even memorize the Bible, cover to cover, but if you do not apply the things that you learn within the Bible to your life, then you are every bit as much a heathen as the person who is utterly disinterested in the Bible. Further, if you, as a corporate body — as a church — do not submit to the teaching of the Bible, but rather pick and choose what you like and you don’t like, you are not a True Church and have more in common with a social club than anything else. Corporately, we are a body with one Head who is Christ; we must live like it.
Unity, Honest Questions, Not Re-Inventing the Wheel, and Eternal Punishment
An Open Letter to Kirk Cameron and those exploring the question of Annihilationism:
Wow, that is a long title, and I suppose I ought to commend you for reading beyond the title, as many in today’s world prefer to live their lives in theological sound bites. The problem is that while theological sound bites may produce conformity in some circles, they rarely produce understanding. Due to providential hindrances, I am entering this conversation a little late, but there are a few things that seem to be missing from the broader dialogue that ought to be brought to the table. Yet first, please understand that I am not impugning Mr. Cameron’s salvation, nor am I condemning the raising of honest questions. As Christians, our goal ought not be to march blindly along a party line, but to use the tools that are at our disposal to understand why we believe the things we profess. How else will we be able to make a reasoned defense for the hope we have?
One of the concerns that I have is that many of the conversations are centered around matters that are essential and matters that are non-essential to salvation. While I appreciate the spirit behind such a position, I do not see this distinction either in Scripture or in the life of the early church. One might respond lightly that there are teachings on which we may disagree, where we will openly expect to see one another in heaven (and then have our views corrected). True. I baptize babies and do so by pouring water; others only baptize those who profess faith and do so by immersion. We disagree strongly in these matters, but the vast majority of creedo-baptists that I know would expect to see me in heaven one day, as I would expect to see them. Yet, where do we see the idea of such “non-essentials” presented as a virtue in Scripture? You might be tempted to cite Jesus’ remark in Mark 9:40 that “whoever is not against us is for us,” but I would respond that such is not the end toward which Christians should strive. Instead, Paul speaks of us maintaining the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Ephesians 4:3) and that we have “one faith” (Ephesians 4:5) through which the church is built up in the truth and in love (Ephesians 4:16). The principle here seems clear, we will have some points of disagreement within the body of Christ, but we ought never be content to remain in those points of disagreement, but in love and unity search the scriptures to find answers that will keep Christ’s church from being tossed about by every wind of doctrine like a boat in a storm (Ephesians 4:14). So, let us agree that if God thought it good and wise to provide it to the church in the scripture, it is essential (2 Timothy 3:16-17). We just may need to labor together within the scriptures to better and more accurately understand what God is teaching us in such areas.
To illustrate this principle, I would appeal to the Council of Jerusalem, recorded in Acts 15. A debate arose between the Christians who had a Jewish background and the Christians who had a pagan background. Did these Gentiles need to be circumcised to be saved (Acts 15:1)? Some said yes; some said no. What was the solution? Notice that the solution was not to allow the church to split into two factions. No, the desire was to be clear on how the Bible instructed Christians to order their lives. The solution, then, was to call a meeting of all of the Apostles and of all of the Presbyters in Jerusalem to debate the matter. Why? They recognized that while the church had disagreements, God was not confused in what He taught. The end result was to insist that circumcision was not necessary for the Christians, but there were four rules that were necessary: abstain from things polluted by idolatry, from sexual immorality, from what has been strangled, and from blood. These rulings were put in the form of an authoritative letter to the churches and Paul would circulate that letter as he traveled on his missionary journeys (Acts 15:22-29; 16:4; 21:25).
Though there is only one such council recorded in the New Testament, the church would follow this practice when teachings arose that threatened the unity of the church. These later councils are not Scripture as there were no Apostles present, but they were gatherings of the church in the same spirit as was recorded in Acts 15. These Councils would articulate what the Bible taught on new areas of debate that arose within the church. From these Councils, we have received Creeds like the Nicene Creed, the Apostles’ Creed, the Chalcedonian Definition, and the Athanasian Creed. We also find that these councils clarified those books that were to be understood as inspired Canonical books. This does not mean that they invented the Canon, but they were used by God to clarify for the church as a whole those books which were inspired by God and useful for the edification of the church body (much like the Jews did when they defined the canonical books of what we call the Old Testament).
Further, like the Council of Jerusalem, these Councils addressed specific questions and teachings that had arisen in the church with the aim of bringing clarity to “the faith that was once and for all time delivered to the saints” (Jude 3). They addressed matters like the Trinity, inspiration, the dual nature of the God-man, who should serve in the office of Elder or Deacon, and the practice of church discipline. Again, these teachings were meant to preserve the unity of faith amongst the church as it was challenged with new ideas. These Councils were not perfect, and often we see later Councils correcting earlier Councils. In other words, they were not inspired Scripture, but applications and interpretations of Scripture that were meant to be binding on the church as a whole.
One of the ideas the early church debated was that of annihilationism. Why must hell be understood as eternal? The Second Ecumenical Council of Constantinople (AD 553) addressed this matter. The conclusion of the Council was articulated in its ninth anathema:
If anyone says or thinks that the punishment of demons and of impious men is only temporary, and will one day have an end, and that a restoration (ἀποκατάστασις) will take place of demons and of impious men, let him be anathema.
In essence, this anathema is simply denouncing any teaching that would depart from that of the Athanasian Creed, which states: “And they who have done good shall go into life everlasting and they that have done evil into everlasting fire.”
It should be understood that this position was not simply the position of the medieval church; it was considered the universal teaching of the church, even by the Reformers. The Belgic Confession (Article 37) and the Westminster Confession of Faith (Article 33) echo this language with even further clarity. Knowing Mr. Cameron’s Baptistic leanings, it should also be noted that such was the view of the London Baptist Confession (Chapter 32). Likewise, the Welsh Calvinistic Methodist Confession (Article 41) articulates the same doctrine. Arguably, this has been the consistent teaching of the True Church across the ages. This point cannot be stressed highly enough. Here are the councils of the church, looking to the Word of God, and seeking to articulate for the body the clear teachings therein, defending against false teachings and heresies.
Does that mean that Mr. Cameron is not entitled to ask questions? Absolutely not! We should ask questions and seek to understand what the Councils have articulated according to the Scriptures. My criticism lies not in his asking an honest question. As Peter wrote of Paul’s teachings, some of them are hard to understand (2 Peter 3:16). And herein lies the problem with our culture today. As in the days of Judges, where every man did what was right in his own eyes (Judges 21:25), today it seems that theology is done in much the same manner. The reason, we are told that people behaved as they wanted was because there was no king in Israel. At least, there was no human king. God was king, but people chose to do what was right in their own eyes as if they were God and as if they had His authority. Essentially, what the author of Judges was saying is that the people behaved like Adam and Eve, discerning what was good and evil in their own eyes rather than submitting to the authority of God.
Today, there are thousands of different denominations and innumerable people and groups who evaluate theology on the basis of what seems good to them. Even though there is a King in Christ’s church, people act as if they are their own authorities rather than as men and women under the authority of God. The scriptures tell us of an interaction that Jesus had with a Roman Centurion. What is striking about this encounter is that, unlike most, the Centurion was content with Jesus’ word alone and did not insist that Jesus come and enter his home. Why? The soldier spoke of being a man under authority, and he believed that the physical world itself was under the authority of Jesus. In this case, we are told that Jesus marveled at this man’s faith (Matthew 10:8-9). What is the common thread? One of the effects of sin is that people desire to be like God, discerning right from wrong themselves. Nevertheless, we are meant to be men and women under authority, submitting to the clear and consistent teaching of the word of God as our authority. How do we discern that? Indeed, we look to the Word of God itself as our ultimate authority, but we are also to listen to and submit to the Consiliar rulings that our spiritual fathers have made. As noted above, Counsels and Confessions are not scripture, but they are authoritative for the church. And so, while we may not understand a given theology as articulated, let us say, in the Westminster Confession, we begin there by affirming its teaching as people under authority while seeking those wiser to understand why it is worded in a given manner. Remember, Mr. Cameron is a teacher in the church, and teachers are judged by God with greater strictness (James 3:1). Like it or not, his questioning orthodox teachings here is opening the door for others to pursue this error as well. To borrow the words of Anselm of Canterbury: “I believe so that I may understand.” Faith in God’s revealed Word must always be preeminent.
So, my concern for the path that Mr. Cameron is going down is that all scripture is God-breathed and thus all things are essential to believe and strive to understand. In addition, we should not be spending all our effort on reinventing the wheel. These are matters that the church has already wrestled through; why ought we be starting over again and again? In the case of Annihilationism, the church recognized the notion of eternal punishment was so significant to the Christian faith that they anathematized (essentially placed a curse upon) those who taught otherwise. In other words, this is a very important doctrine to understand and “get right.”
So, with the principle laid forth, why has the doctrine of Eternal Punishment been one that the church has so universally held to and defended? Or, perhaps, one might more simply ask, “Doesn’t eternal punishment seem vindictive on God’s part?” Of course, the answer is that, no, it is not vindictive, but perhaps we should define why it is just and right. To make an analogy to our experience in society, imagine that one day, after a particularly bad day at work, someone in the parking lot angers you. The reason why is not important, but imagine a situation where someone “pushes all of your buttons” just right and you, in anger, haul off and punch them, breaking their nose. Yes, that would be pretty bad, and you would likely be arrested and charged with a crime. Yet, once justice is served and a fine is paid, life goes on as it normally would. Now, imagine the same setting, but that you punched the President of the United States. The likelihood is such that you would end up in prison for a lot longer than if you hit a co-worker. Neither situation is good, excusable, or commendable, but with the increase in someone’s station in society comes an increase in the severity or duration of the punishment. To complete the analogy, apply it to God, who is infinitely greater and higher in society than any human might be. Hence, justice demands that the punishment be infinitely greater than any punishment served for a crime against a human. As God is the being greater than which no other being can be conceived, sin against God, in turn, is greater in severity than any other sin which one may commit. Thus, sin against the person of an eternal God warrants eternal judgment. You might be tempted to respond that your sins are not so much against God as they are against your fellow man. James makes it clear that when you break one aspect of God’s divine Law, you have broken the whole (James 2:10). Thus, even the sin of lying to one’s neighbor makes one guilty of breaking the whole of God’s Law. Justice demands that sin be punished.
It might be said that one’s view of sin parallels one’s view of grace. The more seriously we take our sin, the more weighty we will understand grace to be. The more lightly that we look at sin, the less seriously we will take grace. If sin is not such a big deal, neither is grace. If we realize that even our more “insignificant” sins deserve eternal condemnation in the fires of Hell, the more in awe we will be over the grace of God. If you make light of one, you make light of the other; if you treat one with great gravity, so too will the other be seen as weighty. So, what does the Bible say, specifically, about God’s judgment upon the wicked? There are three general categories in which the Bible speaks of Hell. It is a place of privation (a separation from anything good), positive retribution (punishment that is deserved due to sin), and eternal destruction (not annihilation, but a permanent time of slowly being destroyed). Below we will break down all three categories, but 2 Thessalonians 1:9 gives us an overview that includes all three aspects:
“They will pay the penalty [positive retribution] of eternal destruction [destruction] apart from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power. [privation]”
Privation:
This refers to a separation from anything good, glorious, peaceful, wholesome, pleasant, or good. It is a place without rest (Isaiah 57:2,20-21) or even light (Nahum 1:8). It is sometimes referred to as “the outer darkness” (Matthew 22:13) and of eternal chains in gloomy darkness (2 Peter 2:4). It is a place for those who do not abide in Christ (John 15:6). Further, it is described as a place of waiting until the final judgment will be brought. Any comfort you may have is gone; any pleasure that one might experience is removed. It is a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 8:12) and it is an abyss (Psalm 71:20).
Positive Retribution:
Why use the term “positive” here? It is positive because the retribution that is poured out by God is earned by the wicked. We may feel that sometimes punishment can be vindictive, but this punishment is just, fair, and moral. The language found here helps us to understand just how greatly our sin is an affront to God. It is described as a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 24:51) and that of a fiery furnace that will destroy (Matthew 13:42). It is also described as a place where people are tormented for all eternity (Matthew 18:34 — note that many Bibles use the term “jailer” here, but the Greek word βασανιστής is better translated as “torturer” or “inquisitor.”)
Destruction:
The key verses when dealing with this matter are Matthew 7:13 and 10:28. It should be understood, is that when this teaching is harmonized with the other Biblical teachings on Hell, annihilation is not in view. Instead, it is a picture of a slow and gradual destruction that will take place across eternity. Think of an eternal unmaking. As humans are made in the image of God, something perfected in glory, destruction implies a gradual decay and ruin of the Imago Dei through fire and worms. One of the terms that is used to describe Hell in the Greek New Testament is Gehenna, a Helenized reference to the Valley of the Sons of Hinom (Joshua 15:8; 2 Kings 23:10). It was a place where infants were sacrificed to Molech (also known as “The Burning Place — Isaiah 30:33) and was seen as the place where God would enter into final judgment (Isaiah 66:24), characterized by worms and fire, weeping and gnashing of teeth, and torture (Matthew 13:42,50; 18:8,34). By Jesus’ day the valley was used as a place where the offal from Jerusalem was dumped and burned. Some rabbinic references speak of the stench of Gehenna as something that could be smelled for miles. Ultimately, it became one of Jesus’ most common analogies for what God’s eternal judgment would be like.
Eternality
What one must note is that the uniform teaching surrounding Hell is that it is eternal. There is essentially an equal ultimacy in view. God offers eternal life to His elect and delivers eternal death to the reprobate. For Christians, the horrors of Hell are one of the reasons we share the Gospel so energetically.
Human language often lacks the ability to capture the fullness of eternal concepts. Yet, analogies are meant to get us as close to the principle being addressed as humanly possible. Thus, Hell should not be understood as a metaphor, but our finite minds and language will never capture the fullness of the Hell and fire reserved for the enemies of God. Knowing, as we do, that God is love often makes the doctrine of Hell difficult for people to reconcile, yet we need to remember that God is also just and holy, thus punishment must be exacted upon those who offend the God of glory. Indeed, God is merciful, but in His mercy, he renders punishment upon the wicked, which is a loving act toward those who are objects of His eternal redemption. Finally, the one who speaks of Hell and its reality the most frequently is our Lord Jesus Christ himself. If we are going to be faithful to the Biblical text, we must not water down the doctrine of Eternal Conscious Torment that is presented in the Bible and has been testified to by the church councils.
The good news for the Christian is that none shall bring any charges against God’s elect, for it is God who justifies, but it is also Christ who condemns, as He is the one raised to the right hand of God Almighty (Romans 8:33-34). The bad news for unbelievers is that unless they repent of their unbelief, they will die in their sins and face the wrath that they deserve (John 8:24).
So, what is the conclusion? Heaven and Hell are real, and we need to submit to the unified teaching on the matter as laid out in the Scriptures. We also need to learn from the Councils of the Church, for this matter was resolved long ago; there is no sense in trying to re-invent the wheel.
Divisions
In C.S. Lewis’ novel, The Great Divorce, he depicts a kind of metaphorical bus tour of Heaven , Hell, and a kind of in-between place, much as did Dante in his Divine Comedy. For Lewis, the aspect of Hell that he emphasizes the most is that of privation, or the separation from anything that is good. While Lewis did not reject the language of positive retribution or destruction that the Bible speaks of, it is the idea of the “outer darkness with weeping and gnashing of teeth” that depicted the awefulness of Hell to him.
As part of this tour, he described the people building houses with walls, but the walls only kept other people out and did nothing to protect the one within from the weather. Further, he depicted hell as a place utterly devoid of community. When someone would move nearby, those already there would quickly move away to avoid interaction with others. Lewis understood, as did Aristotle, that humans are social animals and separation from others is a most difficult thing to face — something that was a suitable part of God’s eternal and righteous judgment.
Yet, what strikes me as odd is that as a society, we are doing everything in our power to create that context here in this life, in this case, through the many labels that have been assigned to people, putting them into ever-smaller groups in both church and in society. We use terms like liberal and conservative, which have meanings, but don’t always define a person’s specific view. Most of us fall across a spectrum that falls between the far left and far right. In matters of religion, there are fundamentalists and liberals, orthodox and Neo-orthodox, evangelicals, confessionalists, Reformed or Arminian, pentecostal or cessationist, post-mil, a-mil, pre-mil, pan-mil and a wide range of in-betweens. I sometimes describe myself as a Confessionally Reformed, a-mil with post-mil sympathies, supralapsarian, paedo-baptist, creedo-communion, presuppositional in the Clarkian school of thought, sola psalmis, Christian with certain theonomic sympathies. And, I imagine that some of you, dear readers, either don’t know what all of these distinctions mean and others may be outraged by some of them.
My point is this: labels can be useful when understanding a person’s thoughts and motivations, but they are destructive when they just create walls between people that prevent constructive conversation. Socially, we see the same thing happening. People have created numerous “gender expressions,” which tend to put people into boxes that separate them from genuine community with anyone who does not hold their exact set of preferences. Largely, this generation has grown up being told they can be anything they want to be. Even in the church, this has been taking place as people often misquote Philippians 4:13. Paul saying that he can “do all things through him who strengthens me” does not mean that Paul could flap his arms and fly. It does not mean that he could breathe underwater. Similarly, people with lousy eyesight are not going to become Air Force fighter pilots even if that is what they most “want to be.”
Humans thrive in community and one of the reasons that the American Experiment has been so wildly successful (at least culturally and technologically) is because people of varying backgrounds have been able to come together to share ideas, cultural traditions, and to meet shared goals while also sharing a commitment to Truth (both in natural law and in spiritual law). Yet, today, as labels arise, as “personal truths” supplant the idea of absolute truth, we create chasms between ourselves, our ideas, and our cultural distinctives that do not belong if we are going to live in a united society.
Church Discipline
“Of whom are Hymenaios and Alexander, whom I handed over to Satan in order that they may be taught how not to blaspheme.” (1 Timothy 1:21)
Paul gives us two examples of people who have not been faithful as “good soldiers” of Jesus Christ. Hymenaeus, we see again in 2 Timothy 2:17, along with Philetus, as one who is irreverent in his speech and was leading people into ungodliness. If we presume that this Alexander is the same person as “Alexander the Coppersmith” found again in 2 Timothy 4:14, it can be inferred that these men did not learn their lesson.
What lesson, perhaps, is that? It is the lesson that calls upon all who name the name of Christ to live out lives in accordance with the way God has called us to live. Jesus said that we are to make disciples of the nations and part of that disciple-making process is to teach said disciples to obey all that Christ has commanded (Matthew 18:20). In turn, when sin is embraced rather than put to death, there is a place in the life of Christ’s church for the practice of discipline for the chastisement of sin (see Matthew 18:15-20). Here, Paul is referring to an instance where he has disciplined those in the community where Timothy is laboring (Ephesus).
The question that many raise is, why does Paul name-drop here? Arguably, it is not simply to make a point, but to prepare Timothy for those who might work against him. Those who had been disciplined by the Apostle Paul may very well become enemies of Paul’s emissary. Yet, that brings up a question of propriety. Many would suggest that for a preacher today to name-drop would be in poor taste. Nevertheless, Paul stated that we should imitate him as he imitated Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1). It should also be said that if a church disciplines a member of the church, especially to the point of removing that member from the rolls, then the rest of the body should know who that happens to be and why indeed they should be avoiding them (2 Thessalonians 3:6). Further, should not a shepherd warn his sheep of known threats from false teachers? While it may not seem to be “in good taste,” it is the example set for us in God’s word…something which we should be keen to follow.
The goal, though, of all discipline, is to teach the body how not to blaspheme, whether that blasphemy is to be uttered with one’s lips or communicated by one’s actions.
All Kinds of Prayers for All Kinds of People
“I urge you, firstly, that all kinds of requests, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be made for all mankind,”
(1 Timothy 2:1)
When we arrive at these verses, we often have a tendency of focusing on the importance of our praying for kings and other leaders. While it is true that we are to pray for such people who are in positions of influence over our lives, we sometimes overlook the two things that are being asserted here. First, our prayers should be for all kinds of people, not just the rich and powerful. We should be praying for the poor, the widow, the laborer who lives down the street, as well as those who are doctors, lawyers, and other people of wealth and influence. We should be praying for blue-collar and white-collar workers alike. We should be praying for soldiers and police officers. We should be praying for firemen, EMT personnel, nurses, therapists, farmers, mechanics, and the many other people who labor in our midst as moving parts of what we might call the great human-machine of society.
On a certain level, we indeed understand the importance of doing so, but do we pray for such people who are working for our overall good, but whose work makes our daily life more inconvenient? For instance, how often have we been running late to our own jobs only to find roadwork being done on the primary route we drive? Do we pray for such folks or do we hurl expletives into the air because crews have torn up the road for what seems to be the third time in as many months? When the person in front of us is driving too slowly, or who is moving too slowly down the middle of an aisle in the grocery store, do we pray for such people or just grumble at them? When a police officer gives you a ticket for going too fast on the road, do you grumble that the officer just happened to be present, like a shark seeking prey, or do you pray for said officer and give thanks to God for people who labor to keep our community safe (even if it means keeping the community safe from people who drive too fast)?
The point is, for a community to function, there are all sorts of people who must be engaged in labor. We are called to pray for these as well as our governors. Secondly, we are to offer all sorts of prayers. We are to intercede on behalf of others. We are to pray with those who are suffering and facing great challenges in life. We are to pray with those who cannot even lift prayers of their own. We are to pray for the needs that others happen to have and make requests on their behalf. And further, we are to make thanksgiving. We are to thank God for their presence in our community and we are to celebrate when they achief goals (even if we are struggling to meet our own goals!).
In the end, do we pray all kinds of prayers for all sorts of people? Sometimes the prayer life of Christians can be rather selfish and limited. Try spending a day praying for everyone you encounter. You might just find that you have far more for which you can pray than you initially thought.
Faith and a Good Moral Conscience
“having faith and a good moral conscience. Those who cast this aside have shipwrecked their faith.”
(1 Timothy 1:19)
What are the qualities of a good soldier of Jesus Christ? While we might list many attributes that Christians are to strive to have, Paul focuses on two here in this verse and combines them with a warning. What are those two attributes? The first is faith and the second is to have a “good conscience.”
Faith ought to be obvious. One cannot please God apart from faith (Hebrews 11:6) and likewise, all that is done without faith is sin (Romans 14:23). Further, this faith is not something we generate within ourselves, but we must be born again from above (John 3:3), it is the means that guides the way the believer lives and walks (Hebrews 11:1; 2 Corinthians 5:7) and it is not only how we are saved on this side of the Cross of Jesus, but it is the way the saints of old also walked (Romans 4:12; Hebrews 11:2). If you would be a good soldier of Christ, saving faith is the starting point and it is God’s doing.
Yet, there is an aspect of this “good soldiering” that also speaks to our participation. We are called to have a “good conscience.” Paul uses the word συνείδησις (suneidesis) in this context, which primarily speaks of the question of morality, or that of a moral conscience (hence the translation above). In other words, Paul is speaking about a person who chooses right over wrong, life over death, and God’s way over the ways of man (Deuteronomy 30:15-20; Romans 12:1-2). The one who knows what is right and yet refuses to do it is not a good soldier; indeed, he is one from whom we must separate ourselves (2 Thessalonians 3:6). And those ignorant of the ways of God must be taught (Matthew 28:20).
The challenge (to preserve the analogy) is that many in the church are not good soldiers and many churches are not interested in training good soldiers. People are often lax when it comes to growing in their faith and obedience to Christ’s commands and are often content with the idea that they are destined for heaven while they go about living worldly lives. If you have ever served in the military, you understand that obedience to the commands of your leaders is not an option and contentment in mediocrity is never an acceptable option. It isn’t in the church either. At least, it isn’t in Christ’s true church.
While it is certainly true that a true conversion (which is God’s work in us) does often supernaturally produce a change in the moral conscience. Indeed, it must! One is being transformed from death to life! Nevertheless, the true believer also seeks to mature his or her moral conscience every day of their life. We seek to discern what is the good and acceptable will of God and as we mature in the faith God has given to us, we grow more like Christ and less like the world. We grow to hate the things that God hates and to love the things that God loves in every aspect of our lives. In other words, we participate in maturing our “good moral conscience” so we may become a better soldier.
What happens if we do not? Therein lies the warning (and even examples in the following verse!). When you do not seek to be that good soldier, you make a shipwreck out of your faith. Does that mean you will lose your faith? No, God loses none of His own. But it does mean that your spiritual life will be tossed and battered by every wave and storm of human invention. And folks, if you have ever been aboard a ship that has been in danger of shipwreck, you understand that it is not a voyage that you would enjoy. A life such as that is filled with misery and guilt rather than with the satisfaction that comes with the fact that God is using you to build Christ’s Kingdom.
So be that good soldier and build on the faith that God has instilled in you (Jude 20).
Wage War as a Good Soldier
“This commandment I put before you, my child, Timothy, in accordance with the prophesies about you that preceded this, in order that you might wage war as a good soldier through them.”
(1 Timothy 1:18)
Paul now focuses on a direct instruction given to Timothy, yet it is one that is instructive for all of us. Timothy is to wage war as a good soldier. Wage war in what way? Wage war against whom? Paul will flesh this out as he continues through this epistle. Yet, what is clear is that the prophesies made about (or over) Timothy when he was a child were given for one purpose: that Timothy might rise up as a soldier in Christ’s church, fighting the Good fight (as Paul would once again instruct Timothy in chapter 6, verse 12, and as Paul would strive himself to do, 2 Timothy 4:7).
How is this instructive for us? As Christians, we live here in this world in a time of war. Indeed, we are not waging war against the flesh (2 Corinthians 10:3); we fight against the rulers, authorities, and powers over this present darkness and the spiritual forces in heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12). Indeed, there will be times of peace in the new creation, but not here in this world. And, just as Timothy was commissioned for this task by the prophecy and the laying on of hands (2 Timothy 1:6), we too are called to approach the Christian life as ones who are engaged in warfare. And we are to be “good” soldiers. We are an expeditionary force of heaven, yet, a quick survey of the landscape around us will indicate that we (as the True Church) have largely been losing ground.
Losing ground? Society in the West is in decline. The church, which is called to be the “pillar and buttress of the Truth” (1 Timothy 3:15) is commonly filled with corruption, social syncretism, and narcissistic strife. What is worse, like the church in Laodicea, the church in the west has largely become lukewarm and comfortable in its own filth. Loved ones, this is not how soldiers take to the battlefield. This is not how soldiers honor their captain (2 Timothy 2:3-4). This is not how members of a kingdom honor their King. Beloved, sometimes, as a church, we wonder why the culture will not listen to us. Yet, before the culture will listen, we must repent. We must worship and conduct our lives as the great Captain of our Faith calls us to live. Then, and only then, will God hear from heaven, forgive our sins, and heal our land (2 Chronicles 7:14).
Wake the Sleeping Giant
“And, coming from the town square, unless they have baptized [themselves], they do not eat and there are many other things that have come down to them that they hold dearly, such as baptizing cups and pitchers and copper kettles and dining couches.” (Mark 7:4)
In our home, there reside four adults. In addition to my wife and me, we have two adult children, and it should be said that all four of us have somewhat different work schedules. My wife’s alarm clock is typically the first to go off on any given day, and then the others follow, sometimes creating a cacophony of various beeps and tunes between our bedrooms. My wife is a light sleeper, and so she chooses a quiet melody as her alarm sound, one that wakes her up without disturbing my slumber. I tend to be a heavy sleeper, so I choose the most obnoxious-sounding alarm tones available to ensure that I will roll out of bed on time to go to work.
It has been said that the church, during times of relative peace, is like a sleeping giant. During persecution, that giant awakens and rises to a level where it changes the world. Yet, during seasons such as what we experience in the Western World, where persecution is fairly negligible, the Giant slumbers. It is as if it is genuine persecution, where people are losing their lives and churches are being shut down, that provides the obnoxious-sounding alarm that causes the Giant to wake.
I’d suggest that three things happen when the Church slumbers. First, every man does what is right in his own eyes, creating traditions that are both unbiblical and idolatrous. Second, we find ourselves fighting and bickering over the validity of our traditions rather than boldly proclaiming that people must repent and believe. And third, the society around us looks to other sources for finding meaning in life. Will any of you argue that society isn’t filled by all three of these sorts of things?
Some of you might be tempted to protest by saying, “Wait, but our local church meets all three of the marks of the True Church. Perhaps you do and praise God for that, but are you really fulfilling what the church is called to be doing? For those unfamiliar with the “Three Marks,” Chapter 29 of the Belgic confession lays these out as 1) the pure doctrine of the Gospel is preached therein, 2) the pure administration of the sacraments as instituted by Christ, and 3) that church discipline is exercised for the chastizing of sin (it should be noted that the Second Helvetic Confession, chapter 17 contains a much fuller description of the true church).
The problem is that many of the churches stop with a bullet-pointed list when the Belgic Confession itself goes on to summarize the nature of the true church in that same chapter, as one in which Christ is the only head of the church. A head is a ruler. A head is a lawgiver. A head is the one that you obey and follow. As Jesus stated: “My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27). There are also no qualifiers. The sheep are not to follow Christ their head some of the time. They are not to follow Christ their head when it is appealing to their taste or pleasing to their senses. And, they are not to follow Christ their head only when the path is easy. The sheep are to follow Christ their head at all times. The sheep are to follow Christ their head even when the road is hard, uncomfortable, and distasteful.
In turn, the true church is to do likewise. They are not to do what is right in their own eyes. They are not to follow and defend the traditions of men. And, when they discover that they are following human traditions, they are to repent no matter what the ramifications of doing so may be. Many denominations claim that they have Christ as their only head, but if you challenge them in an area — their approach to worship, their approach to leadership, their practice of discipline, their practice of koinonia — where said things reflect the traditions of men, then you will find yourself labeled as a “troubler of Israel” (1 Kings 18:17).
You see, the problem is that the traditions of men lull the church to sleep. To borrow from an old pop-song, they have become “comfortably numb.” The church today seems to be more interested in its own agendas, its own entertainment, and its own preferences…not that of the Head they claim to follow. They remain stuck in the morass of uninspired, man-centered, entertainment-driven, therapy rather than true worship. It needs a wake-up call. It needs to be told that man-made traditions, even while benign, are never okay. It needs an obnoxious-sounding alarm clock to wake it up. It needs to discover worship in Spirit and Truth, genuine koinonia, and a declaration of the Gospel that is proclaimed and then lived out, despite what the consequences may be. It needs a wake-up call. And, when the sleeping Giant truly awakes from his slumber, he will transform the world with that declaration.
Disinterest or Just Disinterested?
I have learned over the years that often people in churches are disinterested in learning what the Bible teaches beyond a certain point. Often, that certain point has a great deal to do with a person’s comfort zone (particularly in the realm of Christian living) and often that certain point has to do with what a person finds to be overall “interesting.” Talk to people about David and Goliath, Joel, Jonah, or Lot’s daughters and people’s attention is grabbed, but challenge people on their sexual ethics or approach to worship and they turn you off. In this case, much like some people’s hearing, interest can be selective.
Interestingly, the word “disinterest” has two different uses. Commonly, we use it as a synonym for the word “uninterested.” If we don’t give a flying leap about a matter, we are not interested. We might say we are uninterested, but very often we simply say that we are disinterested in that particular topic.
Yet, in a more technical sense, while being “uninterested” in a topic means that you don’t find it interesting, being “disinterested” in a topic means that you are unbiased toward a given outcome. In other words, being a “disinterested judge” in a matter is actually a good thing and something toward which we should strive. It means that you are willing to listen to the argument at hand and if the facts of the argument demonstrate an error in your view, you will alter your view accordingly.
What might it be like, were we able to conduct theological debates in disinterested ways? Often, when I have had theological debates with a person, I have laid out all of the Biblical reasoning behind a view and the response of the person would be to say, “Yes, but I prefer to do such and such (whatever that might be).” That response is an “interested” response because a person has gone into the matter with their own preconceptions that they are not willing to change. A disinterested response would be: “Wow, you are right about what the Bible teaches; I guess that my views on the matter do need to change.”
It does not matter as to the topic that is at hand. We may be talking about Creation, the use of Psalmody in worship, the doctrine of Election, Abortion, or the nature of the human will, whether we are comfortable with a notion is irrelevant. The question that must be asked is, “Is this True and Right?” If it is true or right, it does not matter what our preferences may be nor does it matter what we might find comfortable. What matters is if we are aligning our understanding with God’s understanding as He reveals it in the Scriptures. Then, what matters is if we are aligning our practice with God’s revealed Truth. In the words of one contemporary philosopher, “nothing else matters.”
Historically, being disinterest was a mark of good philosophical thought, but it was also a hallmark of the pre-Reformation and the Reformation itself. Here were men like Waldo, Wycliffe, Huss, Zwingli, and Calvin who were disinterested in what Rome was teaching that God used their disinterest to drive them back to the Bible and the early church. Yet, somewhere in the western world we have become comfortable in our preconceptions and are often unwilling to have them challenged.
In the Reformed world, this is essentially the notion of Ecclesia Reformata, Semper Reformanda (sometimes abbreviated simply as Semper Reformanda). If the church is reformed yet always reforming (what the phrase means), then on what basis is the church always reforming? Certainly it must not always be reforming to match the culture or the preferences of those in the church. No, the church is always reforming on the basis of a disinterested approach to theology as found in the Bible and as has always been understood by the True Christian church. Yet, the only way to get to that point of disinterest is to become interested in honoring God, loving what He loves, and obeying what He commands. That will have great consequences in the church. You may even discover that some groups that claim to be churches aren’t really churches at all — at least as defined by the Bible and the “faith that was once and for all time handed down to the saints.” No, there will be upheaval in the church if people truly approached theology and practice with a disinterested demeanor. But, it would also mean reformation in the church and perhaps our God will honor that disinterested reformation with revival.
Eternal King
“So, to the Eternal King, imperishable, invisible, God alone, honor and glory forever unto the ages, Amen!”
(1 Timothy 1:17)
Doxologies like this are not only common in Paul’s writings, but in the Bible as a whole. How can we even begin to put into words the glorious character of our God? Statements like this make a great start. And we must be very clear that we understand that declarations like this are not a matter of mere fancy or flights of spirituality, but they are clear statements as to the character of the God we serve, and as such, they should instill within us a holy fear for who He is.
One of the trends of the last generation has been to try and emphasize the personal and the relational nature of our God. Indeed, He is personal and he does condescend to us. Yet, the Bible also presents Him as being gloriously transcendent and our theology needs to capture both. Today, talk about the “Fear of the Lord” is frowned on in many circles, yet if we are going to take this passage seriously, these words should engender just that fear in our lives, for they speak of God’s profound transcendence over all He has made.
He is Eternal King. In other words, he is the ultimate ruler over all that exists. He has always been its ruler and always will be its ruler. He is God. Kings also protect what is theirs and they enforce the Law. Since God is also Lawgiver, now we see the language of Him being Law Enforcer, which reminds us that he is the final judge over all things. We may be tempted to think that if we write human laws in such a way that they excuse our sins that we are okay when it comes to judgment. Nevertheless, human laws do not supersede divine ones. He sets the standard. We often abuse it, twist it, warp it, and malign it for our own ends. And we will be judged accordingly for having done so.
God is imperishable. In some senses, this goes along with God being eternal, but it is a reminder that were we to stand up against God, we will never prevail. God is invisible, for He is spirit. And, God is alone. He is not one God amongst many nor is he even the superlative example of a class of beings. No, God exists alone. He is in a class that is entirely His own and there is none to rival Him; all others are pretenders at best.
And thus, all honor, glory, and praise belongs to our God forever. And the only right statement to add to these words is, “Amen!” It is our testimony that these words are both true and that they are engrained in the very innermost part of our being. Indeed, He is the one to be praised! Amen and Amen!
Did God Make Egypt Hate Israel?
“He changed their heart to hate His people —
To behave cunningly with His servants.”
(Psalm 105:25)
Now, wait one minute! Did you notice what the text states here? Who made Egypt hate Israel? Who made Egypt act deceitfully toward Israel? It does not say that Egypt began hating Israel because they saw Israel as a threat (which they were!). What it says is that God changed their hearts so that they would hate Israel and that God made Egypt act deceptively toward Israel. So many people in churches today cling desperately to the notion that they have free will or to notions that God loves everybody. Yet, passages like this are scattered throughout the Scriptures. They remind us that God is sovereign and that while we are responsible for our actions, God superintends them from before the foundation of the world. And, while God does have great love for His elect, he hates the reprobate and keeps them under his hand of judgment (2 Peter 2:9-10).
Thus, it is not just Pharaoh’s heart that God hardened (Exodus 9:12; 10:20), but the heart of all the people of Egypt was hardened against Israel. What is the result of a hardened heart? Hatred and deceit. Why Did God do this? He did so to show His wrath and to destroy Egypt (Romans 9:22) but also so that the people of the earth would fear Him and worship His name (Romans 9:17). Such is part of God’s promise to Abraham (Genesis 15:13-14).
Does that mean that God caused Egypt to sin? Indeed, the Hebrew verb נכל (nakal — “to deceive/behave cunningly”) is in the hithpael stem, meaning that it is a reflexive action that was caused to take place. Reflexive verbs mean that the one taking action is also the one receiving the effects of the action taken. How is this? God is causing the Egyptians to hate His people and as the people act deceptively toward the Israelites, they are also causing damage to themselves — heaping up condemnation upon condemnation into their lives. Such is the nature of sin; it harms the sinner as well as the one sinned against.
In short, while God was causing the Egyptians to do what they most naturally wanted to do and was not restraining their sin as He did in Joseph’s time, God is still sovereign over their actions. God is not guilty of sin — the Egyptians are — but God has indeed brought this about. He has caused it to take place. Such is the consistent teaching of Scripture and such is the plain reading of this psalm. While I may have been somewhat sarcastic in my wording when I began this reflection as I embrace the teaching of Scripture and the complete sovereignty of God, for many, this verse is a fly in the ointment of their humanistic, “free-will” theology.
Agony
“Trembling seized them;
labor pains like giving birth.”
(Psalm 48:7 {verse 6 in English})
In our society today, how rarely we take seriously the idea of being under God’s judgment. We make jokes about it, there are movies that celebrate it, and people write books suggesting that if anything, Hell would be more fun than heaven. Yet, beloved, how evil such sentiments are and how deceived we have allowed ourselves to be in these matters.
The Bible paints another picture for us — that of being struck with fear and trembling at the notion of God’s wrath. Here the psalmist speaks of the trembling of abject terror seizing ahold of him so much so that he cannot move and then the torment that comes from facing the wrath of God being like that of a woman in labor, giving birth…and the psalmist is actually just getting started.
Loved ones, take these words seriously for God’s wrath is against his enemies…all of them. Do not envy the wicked, for while their revelries may seem to fill their days with laughter, those days are fleeting and the end result is suffering greater than our human imagination is capable of relating. The psalmist here is paralleling the experience of the enemies of God in history to what is to come so that we turn from our wickedness and repent of our ways, pursuing the God of glory rather than the glory of the flesh. May indeed all of us heed his warning.
In the Far North
“Fair of height is the joy of all the earth — Mount Zion in the far north;
the city of the great King.”
(Psalm 48:3 [verse 2 in English])
What does the psalmist mean when he speaks of Jerusalem as “in the far north”? Surely, Mount Zion is not in the far north, nor is it even in the northern portion of Israel. One could perhaps assert that Mount Zion is in the northern portion of the region of Judah, though that still does not seem to fit the reading of the text. Some commentators have suggested that this is a reference to the Temple being in the north-eastern corner of the city of Jerusalem, but again, such a reading seems out of place with the lofty language of the text.
The phrase, “the far north” is used 5 times in the Old Testament. Three of those cases are found in Ezekiel (38:6,15; 39:2) and seem to be used in a literal sense, speaking of the tribes from the far north that God would bring down and use to judge Judah for its sin. The fourth use of this phrase, though, is found in Isaiah 12:13. Here we find a more figurative use of the language. In this passage, God is speaking judgment upon the “son of Dawn,” or, in Latin: Lucifer. It speaks of how he is fallen from heaven (verse 12) because he set in his heart to ascend to heaven, above the stars of God, to set his throne on high — “in the far north.”
Thus, in Isaiah we find the phrase speaking not of the earthly mountain of God, but of the heavenly reality that the earthly mountain is meant to reflect. Again, that fits the context with the verse that has gone before, speaking of the glory of God’s dwelling place — a spiritual dwelling place represented on earth in the Tabernacle and then in the Temple located on Mount Zion.
This phrase, then, sets the context for that which is around it. “Fair of Height,” or perhaps we might say, “Majestic,” is the joy of all the earth. Why is God’s eternal throne room the joy of all the earth? To quote from Psalm 117 — because God has been faithful to us — God’s own. The pagan idols cannot bring blessings to the pagan peoples and thus the pagan peoples can never be a source of joy and blessing to the world. But God’s people can be and in fact, that is part of the promise that God makes to Abraham — that the world will find their blessings in his seed. Why, because the God of Abraham is not an idol made by human hands — he is the one who made human hands in the first place. He is the God who sees, who hears our prayers, and who acts in the world of men. Thus, part of our message to the unbelieving world around us is and must be, “if you seek joy in your life, come to my God and find it.”
Who then is the Great King? It is God himself. Psalm 47:2 speaks of Yahweh as the Great King over all creation and similarly, Psalm 95:3 speaks of God as the Great King over all the Gods! God is enthroned in Zion (Psalm 9:11), above the cherubim (1 Chronicles 13:6), and he does so forever (Psalm 9:7). Thus, even when the Temple was torn down, God remained enthroned…why? It is because the throne in the Temple is nothing but the shadow of the eternal realms on high — in the far north (figuratively at least).
To God be the Glory!
“And my God will fill your every need according to his abundance in glory in Christ Jesus. And to our God and Father be glory from the ages to the ages, amen!”
(Philippians 4:19-20)
Amen. May God get the glory for all things, may he reveal his glory in all things, and may he be glorified for all things as they honor his name, now and forevermore, amen. Loved ones, this is what it is all about; here is the meaning in life. God is to be glorified and the glory of the things of this world pale in comparison to the glory of the risen Christ. What more can you desire? What more can you need? Nothing.
Paul also assures the church that God will provide for their every need. Not necessarily for their every want, but God will provide for their every need. So, too, he does the same with us. Why do we worry and fret about the things of this life? Our heavenly Father knows our needs and will provide them out of his grace. Instead of worrying, pursue God’s calling on your life and his Kingdom, trust the details to him. The pagans have the right to worry but the Christian (though we often worry) does not have that right for we have a God who knows our needs and who is capable of filling them.
Paul is wrapping up his letter to the church and what better way could there be to end? To God be the glory, great things he has done!
That Which is Worthy of Praise
“The last thing, brothers, is that whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is upright, whatever is holy, whatever is lovely, whatever is praiseworthy, if there is virtue and if there is praise, think on these things.”
(Philippians 4:8)
Whatever is worthy of praise…it is upon this that we should set our minds. Indeed, there are many things in this world of which are worthy of our honor and praise (though not worship). The beauty found within a sunset or the majesty of a bright, starry night; the eagle as it soars through the heights yet plummets to the ground with precision to grasp its prey; the complexity of the human body or the art with which one uses that body for dance, making music, or athletics are all examples of things that are genuinely worthy of praise. We give honor to a chef for an exquisite meal, we give honor to a painter for a lovely painting, and we give honor to an author who has written a book that has influenced the way we live. Again, all these things are worthy of praise…even to the extent that it would be dishonorable and disrespectful to deny such praise where that praise due.
Yet, while humans are indeed worthy of praise, it is God who excels the praiseworthiness of humans on an infinite level. We may revel in art or music but God is the one who gives art and music and who defines that which is lovely within art and music. He is the chiefest of all who are praiseworthy. Yet, how often it is that we are quicker to set our minds on the praiseworthy things of humanity and fail to give the infinitely more praiseworthy God his due. How often we will rearrange our entire schedule to attend a sporting event or a community engagement yet we fail to arrange our schedules around the worship of the Living God? If it is dishonorable and disrespectful to neglect giving honor where honor is due when it comes to humans, is it not infinitely more dishonorable and disrespectful to not give praise and honor where praise and honor are due for God? If we want to set our minds on that which is praiseworthy, we must begin by setting our minds on God and his praiseworthiness lest our perception of the praiseworthy things in the world become overinflated.
Anxiety is not Good for the Believer
“Do not be anxious, but in everything, with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”
(Philippians 4:6)
Are we to suggest that God does not know our needs before we “make them known”? Certainly not! Jesus says that our Father in heaven knows our needs even before we ask him (Matthew 6:8). No, the emphasis on the making our needs known to God is not on informing the omniscient one, the emphasis is on how we present ourselves before the King of the Universe.
Paul writes that we first must not be anxious in our manner. Why not anxious? Why shouldn’t we be worriers over every little thing? The answer is that we are adopted by the God of the universe who knows our needs and has the power to see those needs met. It is the pagan who has the right to worry, for their gods cannot act or move or hear their prayers.
Thus, we take our prayers to God in a way that is not anxious, but trusting in his divine hand, his divine character, and his divine goodness and we lift them before the Lord of heaven. Paul uses the phrase, “prayer and supplication,” which is a common phrase for the Apostle (see Ephesians 6:18;1 Timothy 5:5). Supplication speaks of specific entreaties or pleas for help before God and prayers speaks in a more broad and general way. The key is, that with this humble reliance upon our God, we are to lift our cares before him.
The thing, of course, that many struggle with is the anxiety part. How we often ask God for things in such a way that we would not want our children asking us for a need or a concern that they might have. How often we come across (if we look at our prayers objectively) as if we are doubting God’s goodness or power or both. How often we try and make demands rather than being still and having confidence that God is, well, that he is who he says he is (Psalm 46:10). Beloved, do not worry or be anxious and do not allow that anxiety to become part of your prayer life…instead, let your prayer life be such that it takes away your anxiety because you are assured of the one to whom you speak.
Finding Joy
“Rejoice in the Lord at all times; again I say, rejoice!”
(Philippians 4:4)
Here we have one of the most quoted verses from this letter. And there is no surprise as to why this is such a beloved statement. Yet how often we find ourselves deserting these words and pursuing our own sources of joy. But notice, that these words are not only valuable for our personal worship and demeanor…they are the solution for the quarrel between Euodia and Syntyche. For the reality is, if you focus your mind on finding joy in Christ it is a corrective for all of the areas of your life because it puts them into perspective.
It has become my conviction that many of our psychological and relational problems can be traced back to a wrong view of worship. We come for many reasons: fellowship, instruction, to be encouraged, etc… But if any one of these reasons is the primary reason you come to worship on Sunday, your motives are lacking. The primary reason must be because you are seeking God and his glory. If your aim is to know God and him alone, all these other things will come into place…but it does not work if we come looking for human things first.
Like children, we often think we know what we want but we are so wrong. Often children will say, “if I just had this toy or that toy I would be happy.” Yet they find that even with those toys they are unsatisfied. Are the toys bad? No. Not in and of themselves at least. But the toys cannot satisfy apart from the love of the parent. As adults, we often tell God what we think we need. But what we most need is to be close to the Father. And if we are close to the Father, finding our joy in Him through the Son, then the other things will fall into their proper perspective. Otherwise, they just aren’t that satisfying.
C.S. Lewis used to argue that there were “First Things” and “Second Things.” First Things are the things of God; Second Things the things of this world. Lewis’ point is that if we pursue Second Things alone, not only will we lose the First Things, but the Second Things will never satisfy. Yet, if we pursue First Things alone, God will also give us the Second Things that we need.
So, beloved, find your joy in the Lord Jesus Christ…and in nothing else in this world. Pursue Him. Adore Him. And allow Him to define your perspective of all of life.
Surpassing Value
“I rather count all things as forfeit because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord. Because of him, I count all things as waste in order that I might gain Christ.”
(Philippians 3:8)
Often, when reading comments that people make on this verse, they begin with the notion of sku/balon (skubalon), which refers to rubbish, waste, or even to human excrement…something that has no place in the presence of the people of God — its only value is to be taken out and burned. And that is a powerful image, but as I reflect on this verse, I would prefer to start with the notion of counting all things as forfeit in exchange for Christ. For, whether your works are of any measurable value or not, the heart of the matter is that you count the relationship you have with Christ as more valuable.
Of course, that is a notion that is far easier said than done. We like to hold on to the trappings and comforts of this life. We like to hold on to the notion that we are doing things our way. We like to hold onto the notion of “our accomplishments” and contributions. We like to think more highly of ourselves than we ought. Such is our fallen state and such is our stumbling block. We might give lip service to the notion that our works are rubbish but rarely do we give heart-service to them. We like the acknowledgement of men no matter how that acknowledgement pales in comparison to the acknowledgement of the Lord.
That is perhaps why I think it valuable to begin with whether we are willing to count all things as loss for Christ. Because if we are not willing to lose all things for Him, we will not be willing to count all things as waste, rubbish, or dung.
And how great is the value of knowing Christ? Is it not everything? Without the knowledge of Christ there is no hope for life beyond the grave. Without the knowledge of Christ, there is no hope of knowing true joy, peace, and happiness. Without the knowledge of Christ, there is no hope in finding meaning in the suffering we experience in this world. Without the knowledge of Christ, there is no hope in truly appreciating the beauty of the world around us — for to fully appreciate the beauty of something, you must also appreciate the skill and mastery of the creator. When you see a piece of artwork, is it not more meaningful when you know the life of the artist behind the piece of art? When you read a novel, does it not become deeper and more meaningful when you have engaged with the life of the author? When you hear a piece of music, does not the composer’s life add depth to what you hear? And the better you know and understand the author’s person, do we not more carefully appreciate the work they have created? If we say this of the works of men, shall we not also say this of God’s works? And since the created order is far surpassing in majesty and beauty anything that man might create, is not the knowledge of God far more surpassing than any human knowledge we might encounter?
Oh loved ones, how often we choose the poorer and shallower thing to pursue. Pursue Christ and do so through his Word and you cannot help to see the surpassing beauty of our redeemer and the surpassing greatness of his person. And you will see that knowledge of him is infinitely more valuable than knowledge of any other thing we might encounter in life.
Can I Grumble About It?
“Do all this without grumbling or debate,”
(Philippians 2:14)
Oh my. This is where we so often get ourselves in trouble. We know what the right thing is, we know we ought to do it, we don’t want to do it, but since it is the right thing we do it anyway — grumbling the whole time (at least to ourselves!). And here we go, we have the Apostle Paul telling us that we need to count one another’s needs as greater than our own and that we are to be obedient to Christ’s commands in all ways…but also that we are to do so without griping about it. Oh my. For some, I think that griping is a favorite hobby even, but no, not in the life of the Christian.
God’s interest is not just in our right actions. Were that the case, he would never have rebuked the wayward Israelites regarding their sacrifices…even to the point of saying that he hated and detested them. Why? Because their hearts weren’t in the right place. They believed that if they just performed the ritual in the proper way, then God would be pleased with them. God was not. And Paul echoes to us as well, in the Christian church, that God likewise will not be pleased by our service or by our offering of praise if our heart is in the right place.
Note that this also means that Christians don’t have carte blanche in their worship even if their heart is in the right place. for the Christian, the spirit of obedience must be joined with actions of obedience. Both go rightly together and cannot be separated in a life of faith.
And just in case you are wondering, the words that Paul uses here carry exactly the same connotations in English as they do in Greek. The word goggusmo/ß (gongusmos) means to talk about things in a low voice behind people’s backs or behind the scenes, typically in a way that voices a complaint. The word dialogismo/ß (dialogismos) means to debate or dispute someone’s reasoning…to argue about the conclusions of others. As fond of grumbling about our obedience as we might be, this too needs to be put to death in our lives.
True obedience follows a heart that is committed to Christ in all things and no matter the cost. That kind of heart does not typically develop overnight, but happens through training and conscious decisions to honor Christ in all things. It is a reflection of our love to God and his Son, Jesus. And a heart like this is equipped and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Loved ones, embrace it…oh, and embrace it without grumbling or arguing about it…
Grace and Peace to you…
“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
(Philippians 1:2)
When you greet others who are Christians, how do you greet them? Do you have a sincere wish for them that God would give them grace and peace or do you greet them begrudgingly, perhaps because of something that has happened between the two of you in the past? Or, do you even think about these things at all? Do you just say, “Hello, how are you?” and then just keep on walking satisfied in the pleasantries but not really caring about the answer to your question. Isn’t it interesting, so often, that we want people to be genuinely concerned about our welfare or about what we happen to be doing but don’t have the same concern about our neighbor…even that neighbor who happens to be a believer in Jesus Christ.
Paul sets for us a model that would serve us well to follow. May God give you grace and peace. The idea expressed by Grace as Paul presents it is that of God having a disposition of goodwill toward you, that he might bless your steps and your actions and that the world indeed would see God’s hand in your life. This is not a health-wealth or prosperity Gospel, though. For the evidence of God’s grace is not seen in money or physical well-being, Paul presents the evidence of God’s grace as peace in your life. Peace denotes a resting in God’s hand of mercy. It is a deliverance from the Evil One and his power. And later in this letter, Paul will refer to this peace as that which “passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7), because it is a peace that can be had despite the fact that you are facing trials in this life. Such peace, such resting in God’s mercy, is the result of God’s gracious hand upon your life (and while not always, often abundant wealth is a sign of God’s judgment…).
Yet, Paul also makes it clear where this grace and peace come from…God. Grace and peace are not found in wealth, careers, politics, sports teams, fancy cars, electronics, entertainment, computers, movies, status, fame, or anything else we might think of that captures our attention (and sadly also, our hearts). True grace and peace come from the hand of God and thus we should seek it in no other place but in God alone. How often we fall into the trap of looking elsewhere. John the Apostle closed his first letter with the words, “protect yourself from idols.” Indeed, how we need to here those words over and over again. And while we do that, may we train ourselves to take a genuine interest in one another’s welfare and the condition of their soul. Such is the heart behind the command to love your neighbor as yourself.
Rejoicing in Yahweh’s Divine Actions
“For you make me rejoice constantly, Yahweh, in your divine action; in the works of your hands, I continually exult.”
(Psalm 92:5 [verse 4 in English])
The question that we must raise is whether or not we can really say, with the psalmist that we rejoice and exult in the works of God. On the surface level, our first response is probably to say that we do rejoice in God’s works, but in saying that we need to take a closer look at what we are suggesting. Indeed, it is easy to rejoice in the blessings that God brings into our lives, but what of the trials? What of those times when everything is falling apart and we just cannot figure out which end is up in life? Is it not harder to rejoice in God and exult in his works when such things take place? Yet this, too, is in sight of what the Psalmist is saying.
Sometimes the hardest thing to do, when things fall apart in our lives, is to praise God in the midst of such things. Yet, in times of distress like this, such is what our soul most needs. We need that communion and worship and we need to affirm that God’s work is continually a good thing in my life because it is used to conform me into the image of his Son, Jesus.
One of the great reminders of this principle is the setting aside of the Sabbath day. A day where we join with the body of Christ and worship together — where we even lift one another up in worship, standing in the gap for the brother and sister who is broken and cannot stand (spiritually) on their own feet to do so. That joined with the promise that if we count the Sabbath a delight, God will raise us up from our depths and give us a taste of his glory (Isaiah 58:13-14).
God Gets the Glory…Great Things He Has Done
“And Abram and Nachor took to themselves wives. The name of the wife of Abram was Saray and the name of the wife of Nachor was Milkah — the daughter of Haran who was the father of both Milkah and Yiskah. And it came to pass that Saray was infertile and had no child of her own.”
(Genesis 11:29-30)
I suppose that there are no great surprises in the various spellings of familiar names — again, transliteration is not a precise science and there are many agreed upon spellings of these names that do not reflect the literal transliteration from the Hebrew into English. Saray, is better known to us as Sarai, whose name means, “My princess.” Milkah is the daughter of Haran, which makes her the sister of Lot. Milkah (or Milcah) means “Queen.” It is interesting that, based on names, both Abraham and Milkah marry women whose names denote royalty. Milkah has a sister named Yiskah, or Iscah in our English Bibles, whose name probably is derived from the word for “to look” or “to look at.”
And now we have the family line laid out before us as well as another tidbit — Sarai was barren and could bear no child. Perhaps that is the reason for Abram taking in Lot, his nephew, when his brother dies. We do not know the answer to that particular question. What we do know is that God is waiting until Abram’s father dies (and thus Abram becomes the covenant head of his home) and then is going to begin doing mighty things in this man’s life. The wait is for another purpose as well — so that the only explanation for this man’s success could be attributed to God.
How we like to have our successes attributed to our persons. Yet, how much better it is when our successes are attributed to the one from whom the success originated! For any good success that I might have is only because of the grace of God and the hand of God working in my life. It is all about God and his work from beginning to end — I am not my own. How often we fall on our faces because we do not recognize that truth and how often we allow our bloated egos to become so puffed up with pride that we become a blight even to ourselves and need be laid low all over again. Oh how the “mighty” have so often fallen. Loved ones, cling to God, trust his leading, but also ensure that you understand that any good credit belongs to God alone. We are but tools in his hand — may we be always sharp and ready for use.
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