God's Sovereignty and Human Responsibility: Awkward!

People have often asked me about how I teach the doctrine of election as it relates to human responsibility. I often say, “When the text clearly states the doctrine of election, I preach it, and when the text clearly states human responsibility, I preach it.” In Romans 9, I preach that God will have mercy on whom he has mercy. In Romans 10 I preach that people must hear the gospel in order to come. I believe that salvation is all of God and all of grace and that every human being is completely and individually responsible before him.

We often find this awkward because these two realities do not have a clear attachment that works easily for the human mind. Some who attempt to attach the doctrines together in a neat little system end up destroying one of them in the process. Sometimes when we read through texts of Scripture and find these two truths in close proximity to each other we sense an awkward tension. Most scholars call this tension a ‘mystery.’ I like this word because it points us to the fact that there is truth beyond human comprehension that can only be known in the realm of God’s transcendent wisdom. On the human level, and outside our ability to fully understand the mystery, it remains a little awkward.

One great example of this is found in Jesus’ parable of the tenants in Matthew 22. In this parable Jesus talks about a group of people who reject an invitation from the king to the royal wedding feast for his son. This first group of people represents the Jewish rejection of Jesus. In response to this, the king sends out his servants to invite anyone and everyone they can find. In this illustration we have a very clear indication that the proclamation of the gospel, while rejected by Jews, is to be an indiscriminate proclamation to the entire world. The hope of the indiscriminate proclamation of the gospel is that all who hear will respond and celebrate the wedding feast of the king’s son. In this part of the parable, we have a clear acknowledgment of the reality of human responsibility before God.

At the end of the parable, Jesus finishes with these words: “Many are called, but few are chosen.” Now we have an awkward tension. In the indiscriminate proclamation of the gospel, Jesus doesn’t say that few agree or accept or choose or decide. He says that few are chosen. In one small sentence, side by side, we see the responsibility of man and the sovereignty of God. Does it do anything more for us than simply present an awkward tension? I hope so.

We can be confident in these words. While we cannot make humanity accept the invitation of the gospel, we can be confident that God saves. We can be grateful for these words. While every single person in the world deserves hell, God extends mercy by his perfect love and wisdom. We can grieve over these words. So many humans hear the gospel and walk in willful rejection of their only hope of salvation. But we can also feel the urgency of these words. God uses the means of obedient servants proclaiming an indiscriminate proclamation of salvation to reach others, so we must mobilize the invitation urgently and globally.

“Many are called, but few are chosen.” It might seem like an awkward sentence, but it is true, and its ramifications are huge.

How Callous Do You Have to Be to Dismiss Jesus?

Hebrews 1:1-6 1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. 5 For to which of the angels did God ever say, "You are my Son, today I have begotten you"? Or again, "I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son"? 6 And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says, "Let all God's angels worship him."

Why is it that so many people hear Christ and reject him? Why is it that whole religions have broken from Christianity on the basis of making Jesus to be less than who he is? The biblical answer is that we are dead in sin and need to be made alive through the regenerating work of God through his gospel. Even so, when the bible presents Christ to us (all through the bible), we are not given any uncertainty about who he is. The magnitude of our responsibility is multiplied by the magnitude of his authority and glory.

When the human author of Hebrews was introducing Jesus, he immediately made a distinct differentiation between Jesus and every other human and every other created being. Prior to the first advent of Christ, God spoke predominantly through his prophets who were servants of his word to his people. The prophets had mixed responses from the people of Israel and were often persecuted for bringing warnings of judgment to a disobedient nation. When Jesus came into this world as God taking on human flesh, God was speaking directly to us in and through the second in the Trinity – the Son. Not only is Jesus introduced as God’s Son, he is introduced as the Creator of all things and the Heir of all things. In Christ, all things exist and in Christ all things are owned. This separates Jesus from both humans and angels who are created beings of Christ. God never spoke about angels or other humans in the same way he spoke about his Son. Furthermore, God who never shares worship, declares that all, including angels, should worship Jesus.

When Mormons uphold their modern day prophets as God’s ongoing revelation and reject that Jesus is the final and full revelation of God, they callously reject the unmistakable scriptural presentation of Christ. Jesus is clearly the fullest revelation of God as the exact imprint of his nature. All the prophets pointed to him and in his special revelation to us; Christ is the fullest expression of God to us. The prophets have been fulfilled, and in these last days God has spoken to us through his Son. 

When Jehovah’s Witnesses express that Jesus is a created being and not in fact the One True Living God, the clear presentation of Jesus shows us that as Creator and Owner of all things and as the One receiving all worship, we are left without doubt that the Son is God.

When Jews ignore that Jesus is the Lord and Messianic King of the entire Old Testament, they are rejecting every prophecy fulfilled in his coming into this world from birth to ascension. They reject his purification for sins in the fulfillment of sacrifice and the temple and they reject his authority as the resurrected Lord on the throne of the Majesty on high.

I know that we could continue with a great list of religions that reject the reality of who Jesus is.  I know that each of them would have their own attempts to defend their positions.  But…. The Scriptures are clear and anyone reading the bible in the light of its countless declarations that it is the written word of God must at least admit that Christ is presented as the all-authoritative God of the universe and only Savior of the world through the substitutionary atoning work of the cross and that he is the Risen King returning to judge. This is who every human is responsible before. To deny what the Scriptures say about Jesus is to deny who Jesus is.

So I ask…. How callous does one have to be to dismiss Jesus?

Why Can't I Move Mountains?

In Matthew 21:21-22 and 17:20 Jesus tells his disciples that if they have faith (even little faith) and do not doubt, that they will move mountains. I have faith, even if it’s a little faith like the tiny mustard seed, but I cannot move mountains. The disciples proved themselves to be men of great faith. Paul never physically moved a mountain, but if you read 2 Corinthians 11 you will find that Paul’s faith exceeded what most of us would never imagine claiming. His list of beatings and whippings and shipwrecks displays an enormous persevering faith. It seems like most of the disciples became faithful martyrs and John was exiled for the sake of his faith. Not one of them physically moved a mountain – not one inch. There is not one discussion in all of the letters of the New Testament in them even making an attempt to move a mountain or expecting it to happen. In 2000 years of church history, not one Christian with the smallest or greatest amount of faith has ever moved a mountain.

When Jesus makes these statements, we should see them as examples of hyperbole in his speech. On two occasions, Jesus was making a point to his disciples that there are greater works than the physical manifestation of a tree withering or a mountain moving. The problem with us is that we can be easily tempted to think that we must be persuaded by a spectacular sign of our choosing. We can easily be led to be like the unbelieving Jews who “seek a sign” (1 Corinthians 1:22). Unfortunately whole movements within Christianity have made “signs and wonders” a necessity for the proving of faith.

Is there a great work that can be assessed as so significant that Jesus would describe it in terms of a mountain being thrown into the sea? I would say among other things, there is one specific work of God that makes such a wonder pale in significance. Which would you rather choose: to have the miraculous ability to pick up a mountain and throw it into the sea, or to watch a human being dead in sin under the eternal condemnation of God come to regenerating life and reconciliation with the Creator for all eternity? The one-time event of a mountain being relocated seems menial in comparison.

Interestingly, Jesus says prayer is required to do anything, even miracles. Why? Because at the end of the day it is not actually our work. None of us can revitalize a cold dead heart as much as we can throw a mountain. Both are a work of God and considering that he is the God who spoke the entire creation into existence, both are easy for God. If he wills, it happens. The one truth we all must realize in this is that it is only the work of justification that also required God coming into this world, taking on our sin, and experiencing the eternal wrath of God in substitution for us. Anyone rejecting Christ and his glorious sacrifice will be and deserves to be plucked up like a mountain and thrown into a sea. In effect that is what happens whenever the gospel we proclaim is rejected.

Let’s be people, even of little faith, who trust in our God who has both the ability and the desire to save. Let’s live in the strength of his unlimited power displayed so gloriously in the death and resurrection of Jesus our Savior and King.

Mercy Drives Worship

Romans 12:1 – “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”

In what many regard as the Magnum Opus of the Apostle Paul, the book of Romans contains one case after another as Paul unpacks the devastation of human sin and the grace of God in the gospel of Christ. For 11 chapters, Paul has revealed the nature of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone ending in the last verses of chapter 11 exploding in praise to the acknowledgment that it is all to God’s glory alone. In chapter 12 Paul makes a statement about the life of the believer based on the character of God so explicitly revealed in the gospel he has so intricately explained. The believer is motivated by the mercy of God to live a life of unrelenting worship. In the fuller gospel context of the entire book of Romans, 12:1 seems to succinctly outline the only proper response to the limitless mercies of God – a living sacrifice of holy, acceptable worship.

The moment Paul uses the word, “sacrifice,” we immediately think of the altar of the temple and animals being slain in hope of atonement for sin. Paul can’t mean that we are going to sacrifice our own bodies as an atoning sacrifice because this is what he has spent eleven chapters explaining that Christ has already fully and finally done. The atoning work of Christ as substitution for our sin is the richest and most glorious aspect of God’s mercy toward us. He alone is our atoning sacrifice. What Paul is saying is that because of God’s mercy, most profoundly displayed in the atoning work of the cross, everything we are and have belong to him. He paid for it. Our lives are completely for him. In Christ we have been made alive to worship God. This is the purpose he originally had for us before Genesis 3 took humanity into a devastating tailspin.

As we think of being a sacrifice, we do consider the mediating work of the temple, but for us it is different. For the Old Covenant believer, the temple was where mediating sacrifice was done and where God was present in acceptance. It was through the temple that the Old Covenant believer could worship God and present total adoration and allegiance to our Creator. In the New Covenant, Christ has fulfilled the temple, atoned for sin, and in him we have direct access to the Father. We become a temple of the Holy Spirit. We are a temple of worship, and that worship is to be based on our new life given to him in sacrifice because of Christ’s sacrifice. It is based on God’s mercy. 

We who were once deemed utterly unholy, displeasing and unacceptable to God, by God’s mercy can now live in a completely opposite manner. We who were once unable to express any kind of acceptable worship have become temples of worship. Because of God’s mercy, worship has become our identity. It’s who we are, and therefore, how we are to live.

Jesus Stands on The Mount of Olives

When Zechariah was prophesying to the returning exiles, he was motivating them to continue with the building program for the temple and city in their worship of God. Under the inspiration of God and through a series of visions, Zechariah gives a message to God’s people to keep going. Part of the motivation of Zechariah’s message was to give them a glimpse of the ultimate victory of God for his people on “that day.”  In the 14th chapter, the day Zechariah seems to be talking about is the final day of deliverance and most Christians would ultimately see this as the second coming of Christ.

On that day, Zechariah says, “his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward.”(Zechariah 14:4-5). In apocalyptic images, we have a picture of the Lord coming in final judgment and salvation on the Mount of Olives and his coming is so powerful and awesome that the very mountains spread out in his presence. This is a scene of absolute sovereign power and majesty. The return of Christ will be full of awe and glory.

Why is Jesus depicted as coming on the Mount of Olives?  We can only guess why this is chosen as the arrival destination of the Lord in this vision, but recently something stood out to me with piercing force.  Two thousand years ago this is exactly where Jesus came from in his “Triumphal Entry” into Jerusalem.

The Mount of Olives stands above the Temple Mount on the other side of the Kidron Valley.  I have stood at a lookout on the Mount of Olives as I looked down upon Jerusalem and the mosque that now stands in the place of the temple. This was once the glorious scene of the coming of Christ on this mountain.  He rode the foal of a donkey from the Mount of Olives toward the great City of the King. The crowd around Jesus threw their cloaks and cut of branches and threw them on the ground before the donkey in making way for the King’s procession. The shouts and acclamations of Hosanna echoed across the valley and the residents of Jerusalem looked up and across.  Shockwaves spread across the city of Jerusalem and the Judean residents demanded to know, “who is this?” (Matthew 21:1-11).

This was not the second coming of Christ, it was the first. In one sense it was a fulfillment without consummation. The King has indeed stood on the Mount of Olives, he has indeed come in victory and the people of Israel have looked up and heard his proclamation. He came into the city with both acceptance and widespread rejection.  They crucified him. Little did they know that their wicked judgment upon the rejected Messiah was the victory of the Lord of Lords and King of Kings.  One day he will return and like Israelites in Jerusalem we will look up and hear his proclamation.  The final day of judgment and salvation will arrive because the day of judgment and salvation has already arrived. On that last day, those who believe in him will be made like him because they will see him as he is. (1 John 3:2).  Others will perish for all eternity?  ….  Who is this? It is the one who brings justice and salvation.  He is the King.

Post 2020, The Church is Still Beautiful.

Let’s face it, 2020 was a difficult year for the church. It seemed to be a year when issues of conscience and preference took precedence in fierce dialogue between Christians – especially on social media. Shutdown mandates, masks, vaccinations, social justice debates, election campaigns and result allegations lit up social media and divided many congregations in a crescendo of opinion among believers about the place of public theology. As I reminisce about 2020, I would simply sum it up as a year that exposed that we all need a healthy biblical balance of grace and truth. And yet…I still say with great confidence that the church is beautiful and God will succeed in the display of his glory in his people.

The Prophet Isaiah wrote for a people who were exiled in Babylon and not at all feeling like a picture of God’s glory. In the midst of their darkness, God gave them this promise: “For Zion's sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not be quiet, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a burning torch. 2 The nations shall see your righteousness, and all the kings your glory, and you shall be called by a new name that the mouth of the LORD will give. 3 You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. 4 You shall no more be termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate, but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her, and your land Married; for the LORD delights in you, and your land shall be married. 5 For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your sons marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.” (Isaiah 62:1-4). This is quite a substantial promise, and the church can learn a lot from it.

1.     God will not be silent about his glory.

When we think that God does not seem to be declaring his glory through his people, we can be assured that in the course of God’s eternal plan, his glory will be profoundly displayed. This has already happened in its brightest display in the cross, but in Isaiah 62 God says he will display his glory before the nations through his people. We must be reminded that to the Lord, a day is as of a thousand years and vice versa. When we think that God’s glory may be muffled in a seemingly darker period in the church, we can know that God’s beauty is displayed in his way and in his time. Our faithful God has said that his declaration of glory will ultimately come through his people.

2.     God’s glory is not found in our own name.

In exile, Judah was told that their glory would shine through them by a new name. It was not their glory but glory in a name of God’s choosing and doing. While their name was associated with covenant breaking and unfaithfulness, God would give a new name associated with his glory in faithfulness and redemption. The elect of God finds our glory in Christ alone. We may have had a bad year, but Christ never loses his eminence. Our new name is in Jesus.

3.      The Kings of the world will see God’s glory in his people.

There are ultimately two ways that the people of God will display God’s glory to the nations. The first is through the proclamation of the gospel and the second through final judgment as the church shares final victory in Christ. Since Christ ascended, there has never been a time in this world when the gospel has not been preached. It has been preached in bondage and freedom. It has been preached under the persecution of a Roman church papacy. It has been preached in the open and underground. Whatever the time and circumstance, there has not been a time in the last 2000 years when the name of Jesus has not been preached with gospel precision. In every instance it has displayed the beauty of God’s church reflecting God’s glory. One day that beauty will be on full display before the entire world in all of the King’s children.

4.     Christ delights in his bride.

No matter the circumstance, God delights in his children when he sees them through the lens of Christ who ransomed us. God rejoices over us because we are the bride of Christ. The beauty is his, not ours.

It is true that more than once I was a little disappointed with how the church was presenting itself through the 2020 trial. Even so, there were people who heard the gospel during this time and Jesus remained infinitely glorious. In the imperfection of this Genesis 3 world the church doesn't always shine as brightly as it should, but the truth is that God will not be silent about his glory and in his good timing the church will be perfected in Christ before kings, rulers, powers and principalities. Years like 2020 come and go, but Christ is building his church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. The church is beautiful because Jesus is beautiful.

My Testimony of The Glory of Christ

Normally in my pre-sermon writings I consider some Scriptural theme that will help our church family to prepare for the Sunday sermon. As I considered our topic for this week, “The Beauty of Christ,” I couldn’t help but give my personal testimony about a subject that has become more valuable to me than anything in this world and my undying passion in pastoral ministry.

About 11 years ago, two dear friends who have since become invaluable mentors introduced me to the great Puritan, John Owen, by giving me a copy of The Glory of Christ. Little did I know that this book would be used by God as a powerful instrument of change in my life. The Glory of Christ is a wonderful journey into seeing all the aspects of Christ’s beauty and glory in his character and works, but Owen also talks about the importance of gazing upon the beauty of Christ. For a guy who would often read the bible and look for argumentation, doctrine, information, and any tasty morsel that could be used to show that I was a “bible guy,” The Glory of Christ completely reshaped my view of the Scriptures and my view of myself.

Owen wrote, “No man shall ever behold the glory of Christ in heaven who does not, in some measure, behold it by faith in this world.” This might seem like a simple statement of fact well known to every Christian, but to a guy who was all about dogma, doctrine, and reputation, I had to ask myself a very solemn question: “Do I truly behold the glory of Christ by faith in my life right now?” I was a man who could defend the deity and humanity of Christ. I was a man who upheld the historicity of his incarnation and the supernatural reality of his miracles. I would be quick to proclaim the bodily resurrection of Jesus as essential to the gospel. (Disclaimer: All of these are vitally important and I am not saying we should ever neglect the need to defend Christian orthodoxy.) But Owen challenged me with an enormous question: “You know about the doctrines of Christ, but do you treasure him and how does it impact your life?”

The Glory of Christ gave me a new sense of the exaltation of Christ in all of the Scriptures. I started asking myself questions about the person of Christ rather than simply about the doctrines of Christianity. I gazed upon the beauty of Christ’s pre-incarnate glory. I gazed upon the beauty of Christ’s infinite condescension in his incarnation. I gazed upon his grace. I gazed upon his piercing truth that pinpoints the reality of my heart. I gazed upon his love and his unrelenting mercy. I gazed upon him suffering and dying in my place. I marveled at the perfection of my substitute atoning for my sin. I gazed upon his obedience to the Father in the perfect unity of the Trinity. I gazed upon his perfect holiness in every word and action. I gazed upon his death conquering resurrection, and I couldn’t stop rejoicing that he was the one true all-powerful and sovereign King of the universe – My King.

I reconsidered the way I held every position of doctrine and truth in my life, and it yielded an overwhelming change. I no longer believed in Christ because I could uphold the authority of the Scriptures. I upheld the authority of the Scriptures because I most treasured Christ. This may not seem like much of a change to you, but for me, it was huge. As I gaze upon Christ and delight in his beauty, he reveals my pride, my idolatry, my fleshly motivations and ambitions. When I see his glorious humility, he shows me a new way. When I see his spectacular love and mercy, he shows me a new way. When I see his compassion for the lost, he shows me a new way. When I see his glory in suffering, he shows me a new way. That new way is not just his example, but in seeing his glory in every word and deed I see him and his way as beautiful. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. This now has new meaning to me because the person of Christ is infinitely beautiful. My concern for what people think of me and how people treat me in this world has been transformed. I am no longer anywhere near as anxious for the things of this world because as I gaze at the beauty of Jesus, “the things of earth have grown strangely dim.”

Owen put it this way: “If we regularly beheld the glory of Christ our Christian walk with God would become more sweet and pleasant, our spiritual light and strength would grow daily stronger and our lives would more gloriously represent the glory of Christ. Death would be most welcome to us.”

Doctrine is important, but please, please, please, let it point you to the beauty of Jesus. Gaze upon him!

When Beauty Condemns You

Two people sit on top of a mountain and watch the most beautiful sunrise anyone could imagine. They both see the spectrum of colors move as the sky changes its shade from the darker tones of night to the glimmers of red on the horizon and then the warmness of the orange beam that eventually transforms the whole sky into a satisfying blue. They both hear the morning song of the birds as they witness the unveiling of the majestic, green mountains. One of the two witnesses praises God in gratitude and delight and the other ignores any notion that this beauty declares the glory of the Beautifier. They both witness and acknowledge the same reality of beauty and yet the difference between them is infinite. For one, beauty builds the anticipation of standing before its Creator, for the other beauty demands wrath.

In Romans 1, Paul makes it clear that God’s wrath is revealed in those who experience the creation of God and exchange his glory to worship the creation rather than the Creator. It is not that one has to be a believer to acknowledge or experience beauty. One must be a believer to know and live in the purpose of beauty and praise God in his glory. In his Psalm, David put it this way, “The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.”  (Psalm 19:1). In Romans 11:36 Paul declares, “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.”  The truth that we find so overwhelmingly clear in the Scriptures is that beauty can never be an end in itself. It is not good enough to acknowledge that something is beautiful. Every human being experiences the universal benevolence of God and can acknowledge the plain reality of beauty. Only some (the elect) can experience beauty in all the wonder of its purpose as they delight in the reality that beauty is a revelation of God. The difference between these two people is Christ.

“In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. 6 For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2 Corinthians 4:4-6).

Mankind is blinded, not to the reality of beauty, but to the reality of God’s beauty in all his glory. Only through Christ can true beauty be known in its revelation of God’s glory. In every other way, the ignorance of God’s glory in every experience of beauty in this world is an accumulating mountain of evidence requiring a righteous judgment of eternal condemnation. For the Christian, as we know Christ by faith and live by faith, we know and experience God’s beauty in this world and delight in his glory by faith. Every time we don’t, we are called to repentance because everything that does not proceed from faith is sin (Romans 14:23).

Consider the reality of this for just a moment. In the universal benevolence of God, Mozart experienced the beauty of God’s creation. This is a creation that included the beauty of sound, tone, harmony, structure and order. Mozart used all of this to create symphonies that resound in beauty. Can we call one of Mozart’s symphonies beautiful when it seems that it was written from an unregenerate heart with no care for God’s glory? The answer is yes, of course we can.  It is God’s creation of tone and harmony and structure, and it is God’s creation of human ingenuity and talent for which Mozart could compose a beautiful arrangement. In this sin-cursed world, those outside of Christ can compose beautiful art to their condemnation while those in Christ can enjoy that art to God’s delight.

How do you experience God’s beauty?

If God's Beauty Pleased Me Most

I could not abandon there

To start my day without a care,

To waive his counsel in that book,

Left closed beside my bedside nook.

 I would not rise with prayerless glee,

Entrusting daily tasks to me.

I could not live to Idly coast

If God’s beauty pleased me most.

I would not leave my mouth closed tight

While sun and stars are shining bright,

And then neglect the countless ways

Creation shouts his endless praise.

How could my thoughts think naught of him,

Who made and cares for life and limb?

His works ne’er shunned from coast to coast,

If God’s beauty pleased me most.

I’d not content my life in self,

Or in a trinket on a shelf.

I would not long for earthly greed,

Nor place in man my highest need.

I could not worry more for me,

To wonder where my life could be,

Nor in my own success to toast,  

If God’s beauty pleased me most.

There would be no delight in sin,

Nor beauty found in lust within.

I’d not exchange for what is true,

To long for what the wicked do,

And neither call an evil, good,

To stand on ground where Adam stood.

I’d ne’er then grieve the Holy Ghost,

If God’s beauty pleased me most.

But in the mercy of the cross,

Where beauty now discards its dross,

I’d see the glory of my King,

Invest in Him my everything,

To live in sanctifying love,

And render all to God above,

For Christ would be my only boast,

If God’s Beauty pleased me most.

Defending Genesis Boosts Confidence in Christ

The central tenet of our church is to glorify Christ. If anyone has come to our church for any period of time they would know that we simply aim to preach Christ, please Christ, and become more like Christ. Everything in our life and mission runs from this. Jesus, as the revelation of God and the reconciler of sinners is the essence of our entire being and purpose. Without an absolute confidence in Christ, we are left with an uncertainty that demolishes hope. Something many Christians fail to understand is that the certainty we have in Christ starts from the very first pages of Genesis. We should ask the question, “Why does defending the history in the book of Genesis impact the confidence we have in Christ and his gospel?”

Sadly, I have often heard pastors and theologians suggest that the defense of Genesis as an actual historical account of God’s creation work in six days is an unimportant issue compared to the gospel. Of course we all agree that no message can be more important than the irreducible gospel that we find Paul preaching in 1 Corinthians 15 or in Galatians 1:3-5. No doctrine, no apologetic, no preaching or teaching could be more central than the simple gospel message that God uses to bring those he is calling into repentance and faith. In saying this, when we hear someone emphasizing that Genesis is a secondary issue, we often hear it (and sometimes it may even be meant) as if the gospel is somehow disconnected from its place in the real history of the world. We should always understand that Jesus came into this world in historical reality because of the biggest human problem: that we disobeyed the Creator of reality. Understanding and defending the historical setting for the gospel in Genesis is par for the course in defending the historical reality of the gospel. What is that history we are defending?

1.     The very good creation.

When God finished his creation, he said it was very good (Genesis 1:31). One point that we must understand is that the work of Christ not only saves humans from sin in reconciliation with God, but Christ’s death and resurrection has also brought the hope of a completely reconciled physical creation (Colossians 1:20). That reconciliation, back to its former pristine condition, is described in the beauty of the perfect new heavens and earth outlined in Revelation 21-22. If we are to understand the comprehensive nature of Christ’s work of reconciliation, we can only do so in the understanding of a very good original creation that reflects God’s perfect character. To defend the very good creation is to defend the foundational history to Christ’s work of reconciliation.

2.     The image of God.

In Genesis 1:27, we read the account of man being created in the image of God. Humans are distinct from animals and every other aspect of creation in this way. Our purpose is to reflect the very character of God in the way we live in this world. In Romans 1, the apostle Paul tells us that humanity rejected God’s glory reflected in us to worship images of his creation. Ever since sin entered the world, we have failed at being the image bearers we were created to be. In the cross, Jesus placed his perfect record of image bearing upon us and paid the price of our failure in sin. In Christ we can be again conformed to the image of God. Defending the historical reliability of Genesis and especially the special creation of humanity in God’s image is to defend the foundational history that helps us to understand Christ’s restoration of the image of God.

3.     The comprehensive need for salvation.

If anyone knows the gospel, they understand that all humanity is sinful and is in need of a savior. In Romans 5 Paul describes this in the way that all who are in Adam die because since the original fall in Genesis 3, every human has been born with a sin nature under the condemnation of God. Defending the historical credibility of Genesis, especially that all humanity comes from Adam and Eve, specially created by God on the sixth day, is foundational to understanding why every human being needs saving.

4.     The price of sin.

In Genesis 2:16-17, God commanded Adam not to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil because he would die if he did. Death, both physical and spiritual, is a result of the original disobedience against God in the garden. To reject the Creator is a death sentence. Jesus was placed on a tree (a cross) as he took our death sentence in our place. The reason Christ had to physically die and physically rise in overcoming the consequence of sin was in direct correlation to God’s warning for all mankind in Genesis 2. Defending the historical credibility of Genesis in seeing that all death is a part of our world because of sin is foundational to understanding why Jesus had to die.

These are only four of many historical foundations of the gospel in Genesis, but they are huge. Defending the historical accuracy of the account of the six days of creation, the pristine condition of the creation, and showing that the consequences of sin had no place in the original creation is foundationally important to defending the historical significance of the gospel. While God saves only through the gospel and not through our ability to defend Genesis, we can never disconnect the importance of the historical setting in which we understand that gospel. Yes, defending Genesis is important.

Where is our Confidence in Apologetics?

 I am truly a big fan of apologetics. Even when I have forgotten specific answers to skeptical questions about the Bible, I have enjoyed great comfort knowing that there are answers and reacquainting myself with good resources knowing where to find them. I can honestly say that God has used the Christian discipline of apologetics in my life as a means of strengthening my faith and helping others when doubts attack. It may therefore be somewhat surprising to you that even though I teach and encourage others to know how to defend the faith, my confidence in both evangelism and perseverance in the faith is not centered in the discipline of apologetics.

As I have read the Scriptures, I have constantly found that apologetic arguments are a dear servant of the Christian faith and may even be seen as one of God’s means to bring people to the gospel or to calm the spirit of a conflicted Christian. I predominantly understand apologetics to be in such a subservient role for the following reasons: 1. The depravity of man in sin and 2. The sovereignty of God in the power of the gospel.

1.     The depravity of man in sin.

Whether in evangelism or discipleship, if we find our confidence in apologetic arguments, we are putting our confidence either in our own ability to convince somebody or their ability to accept a correct argument. Either way, our confidence is in fallible human ability. Particularly when the recipient is a non-believer, Scripture finds no confidence even in the most potent human argument. Writing to the church in Corinth, Paul says that, “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:3-4).  This is a serious statement about the ability of human reasoning. Those not in Christ are under the blinding of Satan, and there is no silver bullet argument that can help them see light.

In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul said, “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14).  These verses and many more tell us explicitly that humans need something greater than an argument.

Paul also makes it clear that this blindness to the gospel comes in different ways. Not only are we all impacted by spiritual blindness under Satan and our own natural incapability to discern spiritual truth, we are also impacted by the external influences of our own social backgrounds. In 1 Corinthians 1:22-23  Paul recognizes that “Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles.” Gentiles and Jews seem to have different social barriers to the gospel. When we add up all of the barriers to Christ that the unregenerate human has, it seems that no amount of good argumentation could possibly bring them to the truth. Is this true? I say, “yes.” So why bother then with anything? Why bother attempting to defend the gospel and give people answers?

Even though it seems clear that no argument will bring people to a knowledge of the truth, I would also be very quick to add that arguments leading to the gospel are totally effective on the basis of God’s sovereign electing love.

2.     The Sovereignty of God in the power of the gospel.

Paul often divided the world up into two groups – Jews and Gentiles. So, when Paul says that Jews have a stumbling block in Christ and Gentiles see utter foolishness, he is saying that the entire world is opposed to Jesus as Lord and Savior even if in different manifestations. Paul’s next statement in 1 Corinthians 1 is where we find our absolute confidence in preaching Christ to the world. 1 Corinthians 1:24 – “But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” Notice where Paul places his confidence. It is in the electing call of God in and through Christ. Paul’s confidence is in the fact that preaching Christ (the gospel) is not a fruitless exercise no matter who is in front of him, whether Jew or Gentile. He may use different arguments to defend the faith in front of different people, but his whole hope is in God’s call upon the life of the person in front of him through the gospel. That’s also why in the very first chapter of Romans just before talking about the complete depravity of humanity, Paul says that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation first for the Jew and then the Gentile. (Romans 1:16).

The Scriptures constantly show us that the objective truth of the gospel must be defended and explained right alongside our confidence in the fact that salvation is a work of God’s power alone. We are obedient in preaching and defending the objective truth that will only penetrate the heart of another human through the subjective power of the Holy Spirit. 

To some this may sound like I am saying that apologetics is a meaningless exercise. Far from it. It is simply a powerless exercise in and of itself. Paul explained to the church in Philippi why he had such a strong love for them. Philippians 1:7 – “It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.” It seems to me that Paul commends this church because they have supported him and indeed join with him both in defending the faith and looking after him through the consequences that come with it. It seems that they partner as gospel apologists. It seems that Paul and the church at Philippi argue fervently for the gospel of Christ as a means that God uses in power to illuminate and regenerate those he calls into faith.  

This says to me that we should all do our best to learn how to defend the gospel in whatever way we can as we seek to point people to Jesus as we rely on God alone to save and keep those he calls. So, our church will learn apologetics on an ongoing basis, and in doing so we will keep our confidence in the gospel of Jesus and our sovereign God who alone is able to make a human blinded by sin to see. Apologetics is pointless, except when it’s serving the gospel in the infinite power of an electing sovereign God…. in that case it connects itself to an irresistible grace. So, defend the faith, preach Christ, and trust God.

This Is The Confidence You Have In Christ

When Christians talk about the confidence that we have in and through Christ, we often refer to our confidence being justified in his work of atonement. Christ’s atoning sacrifice for the full payment for our sin is certainly a significant reason for our confidence. One might even say it is THE significant reason for our confidence. Knowing that we no longer stand before God facing condemnation should put an extra boldness in our lives. Even so, we should realize that the confidence we have in Christ encompasses not just the success of the cross for us but also Christ’s exaltation having completed it. Our confidence is also in the fact that our Savior is seated in a reigning authority that has no equal. We have confidence in Christ’s full payment for our sins on the cross. We have confidence in Christ’s resurrection as a certain hope in victory over death. We have confidence in Christ’s ascension into heaven in complete acceptance of his vicarious work for us. And we have confidence that the one who loved us and died for us is the supreme King of an eternally undefeatable, glorious kingdom to which we belong.

If Jesus’ death and resurrection resulted in less than his absolute reign over all creation for all eternity, how could we be sure that the results of the cross for us would remain intact? Temporal success in this world gives us confidence for a time, but eventually it ends or is superseded by a greater problem. Eventually time and death bring an end to every earthly victory of man. Jesus did not simply win an earthly victory on the cross. He won a universal comprehensive victory over all matter, space, and time and over every realm both physical and spiritual. The Kingdom of Heaven has broken into this world with the coming of the King. He has overcome the world through his death and resurrection and sits in absolute authority and power as the undisputed victorious King. Both man and Satan’s attempt to exalt self in defiance of God have been overcome in the cross and is eternally destroyed in the eternal reign of the victorious King Jesus. Our eternal confidence is never misplaced in the exaltation of Christ as King of his eternally victorious kingdom. The success of the cross has crushed the curse of sin and death, defeated every enemy, and exalted the King in the highest place. This is the testimony of Scripture.

[Philippians 2:5-11 ESV] 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 

[Ephesians 1:19-23 ESV] 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

[Acts 5:30-32 ESV] 30 The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.

[1 Peter 3:22 ESV] 22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.

[Acts 7:55-56 ESV] 55 But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 And he said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."

[Revelation 19:11-16 ESV] 11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

Christ is King – That’s confidence – If you are in Christ.

Paul's Valuation of Greatness

As you read through Matthew 18-20, there is a constant contrast between what Jesus says is great in the Kingdom of Heaven with what is seen as great in the world. Jesus consistently makes a point that worldly greatness is diametrically opposed to heavenly greatness. In the world, we love prestige, power, riches, rights, and personal achievements that gain esteem from others. In contrast, Jesus values serving, neediness, vulnerability, sacrifice, and humility. The world is a place for the pursuit of comfort and ease while those in the Kingdom of Christ face persecution and suffering. The Kingdom of Christ values greatness as that which reflects the glorious humility of Jesus in saving us through enduring God’s wrath in our place. Paul tells us that his life imitates these contrasting values, and in this way gives us a picture of a 180 degree transformation that we should expect when we know salvation.

In Philippians 3, Paul tells us about his pre-Christian life. He was esteemed for his heritage, position, and power as a persecutor of the church. Philippians 3:4-7 – “Though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.” In addition to this, Paul makes it clear that these very attributes that we read in Philippians were attributes of ignorance compared to what is truly glorifying in Christ. He says to Timothy, “I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief…” (1 Timothy 1:12-13).

As Paul sees the reality of his former life as an unbeliever, he considers what is valued most by the world to be what is now valued least by him. Philippians 3:7-8 – “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.”

In great contrast to what Paul no longer values as a Christian, we find Paul confronted by men in Corinth who wish to bring worldly values of greatness into the church. In 2 Corinthians Paul seems to be accused of not having the ability to command great crowds, earn money, and grow in popularity. The accusing protagonists in Corinth who seem to be known as “super apostles” seem to argue that Paul is to be rejected because he shows none of the greatness that we so often evaluate by worldly standards. Paul’s answer is to say that his greatness (even though he does not like to talk this way) is found in God’s power working through his weakness.

2 Corinthians 11:16-30 – “I repeat, let no one think me foolish. But even if you do, accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little. 17 What I am saying with this boastful confidence, I say not as the Lord would but as a fool. 18 Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast. 19 For you gladly bear with fools, being wise yourselves! 20 For you bear it if someone makes slaves of you, or devours you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face. 21 To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that! But whatever anyone else dares to boast of – I am speaking as a fool – I also dare to boast of that. 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. 23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one – I am talking like a madman – with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant? 30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.”

If you were to ask Paul to evaluate his life and tell you what he thought was greatest and least, he would not value the way the world does. Paul would value his own name, position, power, heritage, esteem from men, or abilities to be least in his life. His greater value would be God’s glory that sustained him as he experienced continuous suffering as a slave of the Suffering Servant, Jesus.

Look at your life. What does your greatness valuation system look like?

The Reality of Heavenly Rewards

When Jesus was answering the rich young ruler about receiving eternal life, he told the young man to sell all that he had and give it to the poor and come and follow him. This was a pious young man who seemed to think he was keeping the commandments (at least the ones Jesus mentioned), and yet he still sensed that being right with God for eternity would require more than that. He was right: it required putting his faith in Jesus and forsaking all to follow Christ. Jesus told this young man that if he did so he would receive “treasures in heaven.” But the young man was too invested in his treasures on earth to follow Jesus and went away sorrowful.

In comparison, Peter declared to Jesus that he and the other disciples had left everything to follow him. Even though it does not seem that Peter sold his possessions and gave them to the poor, it does seem that Peter and his brother Andrew left their livelihood of fishing to follow Christ and become fishers of men. Matthew also left his tax booth to follow Jesus. The rest of the disciples appear to have followed suit, and church tradition would suggest that most of them forfeited their lives for Jesus. Peter therefore asks Jesus, “What then will we have?” (vs. 27).

Jesus’ answer spans both their participation in Jesus’ authority and a hope for an inheritance beyond human comprehension.

1.     Authority:

The first thing Jesus mentions is that in the “new world” (or directly translated – new birth), “When the Son of man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” (vs. 28). Scholars have various views about what this means. Does it mean that the twelve apostles will one day judge the physical people of Israel? Does it mean that these twelve represent all those of the new birth? Either way, participating in Jesus’ kingly authority is not a concept found in this text alone. In Luke 22 during what we know as the Last Supper, an argument broke out among the disciples about greatness. Jesus once again reminded the disciples that in the Kingdom of Heaven the least is greatest. Even so, he again told them, "You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, 29 and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, 30 that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” (Luke 22:28-30).

In other places in the New Testament, statements of participation in Christ’s kingship are made to other believers beyond the twelve apostles. In 1 Corinthians 4:8, Paul reminds the church at Corinth that in Christ we share rule as kings. In Ephesians 2:6 Paul tells Ephesus that we have been raised and seated with Christ who has been raised and seated in ultimate power. We find similar statements throughout the book of Revelation. Whatever Jesus meant in speaking to his disciples about sitting on twelve thrones and judging Israel, it points to the fact that in Christ there is a wonderful participation in his kingship.

2.     Inheritance.

Jesus then says to Peter and the other disciples that “… everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name's sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life.” (Matthew 19:29). In contrast to the last verse, Jesus now explicitly says that EVERYONE who sacrifices for Jesus will receive one hundredfold in eternity. Whether it is family, land, or homes, our expectation should be that there is an incomprehensible difference for what we might suffer in this world now compared to the reward that awaits in the new creation. The fact that Jesus uses the term “one hundredfold” tells us that there is an incomparable difference between what we might not have for the sake of Christ in this world to what we will have in Christ in the next. Our inheritance in Christ will be exponentially better than the best we could hope for here. We will only know this in Christ.

The last verse of Matthew 19 is the verse that we must never overlook. Jesus says, “many who are first will be last, and the last first.” (Matthew 19:30). In the context of the whole discussion coming from the interaction with the rich young ruler, surely the disciples hear this and understand that what is valued most in this world is actually a hinderance to knowing the exponentially greater value in Christ. Riches in this world can be the focus that keeps us from greater riches, true riches, in the next. Those with positions of power in this world may find that their focus on power here has kept them from participating in Jesus’ authority in the next. The way of the Kingdom of Heaven is not in our ability or status or good works or anything else we deem as deserving of greatness here on earth. The way of the Kingdom of Heaven is the way of Christ, the one who came not to be served but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many. Those who lose all for the sake of Christ gain one hundredfold as we participate in his reign.

The Intensity of Following Jesus

 In Luke 18:18-23 Jesus comes across a rich ruler who wants to obtain eternal life but is not willing to give up his earthly wealth to follow Christ. Jesus told him to sell everything and give it to the poor and to “come, follow me.” Instead of following Christ, this young man walks away sorrowful.

What is Jesus saying about what it means to follow him? What must we leave in order to follow Christ? It would seem to me that the answer is everything. We must leave everything in order to make Jesus everything. If Jesus is to be our Savior, he cannot take second place to our earthly ambitions and desires.

This seems to be the case every time that Jesus calls someone to follow him.  Let’s consider some of these instances.

Matthew 4:19 – “And he said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.’”

Peter and Andrew were hoping for a catch that provided for their families. When Jesus walked past these two men, he didn’t ask them to consider how they might fit him in around fishing.  He told them to follow him then and there.  They immediately left their nets and followed him. The family business was not to be greater priority than Christ.

Matthew 8:22 – “And Jesus said to him, ‘Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.’”

In Matthew 8:18-22 we see two negative examples of people who are not willing to be followers of Jesus.  One man asks to go wherever Jesus goes, but Jesus’ answer to him implies that he was not willing to give up his comforts to be with Jesus, a man who had nowhere to lay his head. A second man wanted to follow Jesus but wanted Jesus to wait to allow him to bury his father. This may have even meant that he needed to wait until the day his father died. Life can only be found in Jesus and without Christ even the living in this world are already dead. You cannot receive life in Christ and be more concerned about the worldly dead, even if it is your own father.

Matthew 9:9 – “As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he rose and followed him.”

Matthew was a tax collector. He earned his money, and likely lots of it, from collecting tax for the Romans. In such a role, he would already have been more concerned with making money than being loyal to his own people (at least how they saw it).  Matthew left his secure income under Roman rule to immediately follow Jesus.

Matthew 10:38 – “‘And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.’”

Matthew 16:24 – “Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.’”

Jesus simply says to us that we must be willing to die to self and all that drives us in this world to follow him. He is to be our only hope and source of life.

When Jesus says “follow me” to the rich young ruler, he is saying to give up everything to put all his faith and hope in Jesus, to follow him despite all his desires, ambitions, and affections in and for this world. Jesus must be first and there must be an infinite distance between him and whatever is in second place. When the Scriptures speak of Jesus as Lord, we must realize that when we follow Christ, we are following our Lord. We cannot have two kings. That is the intensity of following Jesus.

Matthew 6:22-24 – “‘The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, 23 but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! 24 No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.’”

That may seem intense to you, but that is normal Christianity.  The normal intensity of following Jesus.

The Embrace of Christ

Mark 10:15-16 – “‘Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.’ And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.”

All three synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) have a narrative of Jesus receiving little children and teaching his disciples an object lesson about the humble, needy spirit that a disciple of Christ must have. Only in Mark do we have the extra information that Jesus actually took these little children into his arms. It is a sweetness in the text that is worth enjoying.

The idea of being taken into the arms of Jesus has been distorted in the sentimentalism and romanticism of our day, but we also need to be careful not to react to error by missing the gentle and loving demeanor of a Savior who truly does love his children. It’s worth contemplating and enjoying, but it doesn’t mean that we should make it sound like a teenage love song. Instead, we should consider what Jesus is doing here as he teaches his disciples about the children he embraces.

The disciples have just rebuked people for bringing their children to Jesus for blessing. Jesus then corrects his disciples and welcomes the children because they are a reminder to them that the Kingdom of Heaven requires a childlike faith. Without childlike faith, we will not enter his Kingdom. Then Mark makes a point that Jesus not only received the little children but took them into his arms. This is yet another picture of how God receives us into the Kingdom of Heaven when we come to Christ with childlike faith: he receives us with open arms. He receives us with tenderness and love and a desire to bless us. Christ embraces the childlike disciple with a heart of love that is beyond our limited comprehension.

Whether or not these little children brought to Jesus grew up to enter the Kingdom of Heaven is unknown, but in this world, the Second in the Trinity took children into his arms with a welcome embrace to show us his love for his disciples and how we must embrace all those who come to Christ with childlike faith. It tells us not only how tenderly Christ loves his church but how we are called to emulate that love. It’s a profound experience to take a moment and wonder at the mystery that the God of the universe would so tenderly embrace those who were once his enemies just as he did these children. It’s his desire that none of them are hindered in coming to him.

So, while some wrongly romanticize these statements, lets marvel at them. God’s love is not just in the transcendent realm beyond our contact or understanding. God’s love to us in Christ has actually been displayed in real time and space in that he embraced little children without hinderance to show us what he did through the cross. So let us trust him and need him without reservation as the little children we need to be. Let’s both enjoy and revere the embrace that holds us securely for all eternity.

Looking for Biblical Loopholes to Escape Your Marriage?

Mat 5:31-32 –"It was also said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”

In 2011, Author Jessica Hagy wrote an article in Forbes Magazine called, “Loopholing: Seeing the options between the rules.” In her opening paragraph she wrote, “Loopholes—they keep lawyers employed, the rich out of jail, and all of us on our toes. An omitted clause that negates the spirit of the law. A line that can be read in a dozen different and correct ways. An action that is not explicitly forbidden, and is thus allowed. These are opportunities—and not just for the sneaky or the nefarious.”  The author of this article believes that loopholes are just part of the landscape. Loopholes make big things possible, and that the bigger your goals are, the fewer guidelines you will have to contend with. Basically, looking for loopholes makes your life easier and gives you the competitive advantage. Is this what Christians do when marriage becomes too difficult? Do we look for the loophole to opt out and find something better? Are the statements from Jesus in Matthew 5 and 19 the loopholes to our problem?

If there are two authentic believers in Christ who are joined in marriage, they have a much greater calling than how the world perceives marriage. Really, it’s only Christians who even understand marriage. It is only those in Christ who can even live out a calling for marriage we see in the Scriptures.  See how Paul describes marriage in Eph 5:31-33 – "‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.” Paul refers back to Genesis 2 just like Jesus does and says that this whole statement is a picture of Christ and his church. So every Christian marriage is a picture of the gospel.

If the gospel is reflected in marriage, how should we live that out when one spouse grievously sins against the other? We should remember that every Christian has not just sinned against another sinful human being, even if it is your husband or wife. We have all sinned against the God of the universe in all his perfection and power. Every sin against God is as bad as the other and is the very reason we needed Jesus to redeem us with his blood. He bought us and paid the bride price with a sacrifice that meant enduring the eternal wrath of God on our behalf. Through his sacrifice for our sins, the church became his bride. And if you have truly come to Christ in repentance and faith, his sacrifice for you means that he is holding you as his bride despite all your flaws, and he is never letting you go even though you are as bad as an adulterer. The biblical definition of marriage depicts the repentance and trust we have in Christ and God’s grace and eternal love for us.  

If we are living out that gospel, do we, even in the face of sin, need a loophole when serious problems and dissatisfactions arise?

Should we not be more concerned with maintaining God’s intent for marriage as we read it in Genesis 1 and 2, echoed by Jesus in Matthew 19, and reiterated by Paul in Ephesians 5? Christians are called to be a picture of Jesus no matter how grievous the sin might be. We are to remember the permanency of our vows before the Author of marriage, “until death do we part.” And we must remind ourselves of the words that Jesus says after his statement about divorce in Matthew 5, “Let your Yes be Yes.”

There is no doubt that marriage can be tough, and enduring difficulty is greater for some than others. Even so, we need to remind ourselves that as marriage portrays Jesus’ forgiveness of our sins, we are able to do the same. Our focus therefore is not on the exception or the escape clause, but on fighting our hardest for the permanency of that which is God’s creation and to do so in the redemptive power of Christ. Loopholes are not our answer, Jesus is.

Mercy Trumps Rights

I know that the moment I use the word, “rights,” I am confronting a lot of people with a subject that is very dear to their hearts. Many Christians believe that having human rights comes from being created in the image of God. That may well be true. Even acknowledging this, we would also need to acknowledge that sinning against our Creator altered what is rightfully ours. In sin, our true entitlement is hell. Our relief comes through the cross where God’s judgment has been placed on Jesus so that we may experience his pure and infinite mercy. The God who would be right to bring eternal judgment on all of humanity has extended a glorious bountiful mercy to his children through the cross of Christ.

In Matthew 18:21-35 the parable of the unforgiving servant gives us a good glimpse of this very thing. After a servant had accumulated an insurmountable debt to his master, the master took pity on him and forgave him the debt. This servant then finds a fellow servant who owes him a smaller debt that may be paid off over time.  His fellow servant cannot immediately pay the debt he owes and so he is thrown into jail. The servant who was given mercy from the master “refused (to show mercy to his fellow servant) and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.” He did what he was legally allowed to do to his fellow servant who could not pay him what he was owed, but he was more concerned with his own rights than showing his fellow servant the same mercy (albeit to a much lesser extent) than he had received.

The parable of the unforgiving servant tells us something about God’s attitude toward our perceived rights. God favors mercy. It is very evident that God is more concerned with us seeking to forgive and showing mercy than to stand for that which we believe is rightfully ours. This certainly does not sit well with many of us, but we cannot help but see that this is also the very heart of God.

When Paul talks about Jesus’ humility in his work of salvation, he states, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:5-8). We should not skip over the words “though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped.” Jesus gave up that which was rightfully his in order to save us from what was rightfully ours – eternal judgment. The very act of God’s mercy is displayed in him giving up his rightful place in order than we might know his forgiveness through the cross. God’s glory is displayed through his selfless love for those who sinned against him.

If we are to be like our Heavenly Father, our nature must be less about holding on to our rights and more about selflessly giving mercy and grace to those who would sin against us. To the unforgiving servant, the violation of his rights trumped mercy. Is that our story? In Christ it should never be.  In Christ, mercy trumps rights. In Christ, mercy is our very character and mercy is what others should see most.

We Who Have Despised God Need Easter

 As we come to the Easter remembrance this weekend, we are celebrating our hope in the death and resurrection of Jesus. We remember the gospel, we remember that we have a risen Lord, and hopefully we contemplate our great need of salvation because of sin. If there is one thing that has become more apparent to me as I contemplate the death and resurrection of Jesus, it’s that the wonder of the cross abounds in the reality of my sin. I don’t think that Paul was overstating the truth when he said that where “sin increased, grace abounded all the more” – Romans 5:20. In one sense, we need sin to increase so that we might see the wonder of grace. By no means am I (or Paul) saying that we should actually sin more to see more grace: “May it never be (Romans 6:1).” What Paul is saying is that as we become more aware of the quantity and intensity of our violations of God’s holiness, we see the greater magnitude of his grace in salvation. We realize that we are not just a law breaker who’s getting ready to pay their fine. We are God despisers who have rejected the very glory and perfection of our Creator. We deserve the punishment that only traitors against the all-powerful God can receive.

Perhaps you don’t see that you are or have ever been a God despiser. Perhaps even when you recollect your life before knowing Christ, you can’t remember ever having an actual hatred for God or his word. Well, in the recorded history of the biblical narrative, God has given us an example that should make us all sit up and take notice and re-evaluate our assessment of ourselves.

In 1 Samuel 13:14, God is rejecting Saul as king in order to replace him with David. The first description given about David is that he is a man after God’s own heart. Surely every Christian on planet earth would give our right arm to be described this way by God. David may have killed a giant, but David himself was a giant in the landscape of biblical history as the pointer toward the Messiah and King yet to come. When we hear the words that describe David, we expect so much. We expect holiness and purity and goodness. We expect all that pleases the heart of God. We never expect God to say that David despised God and his word.

2 Samuel 11-12 is the account of David having the biggest brain explosion of his tenure as king. In the first verses of 2 Samuel 11 we read that David was at home while his men were out at war. He saw Bathsheba bathing, he saw that she was very beautiful, he sent for her, and he took her, and she became pregnant. While we cry at the atrocity of so many people who cover up their sexual indiscretion through abortion, David covered his up by murdering Bathsheba’s husband as he tactically placed him in harm’s way in battle. In 1 Samuel 11:27 we read, “But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.” The fact that these acts displease God is not a surprise to us even though we are surprised by David doing them in the first place. This is far from a heart that is supposed to be after God’s own heart.

It took the prophet Nathan to cleverly reveal to David the reality of his own heart. As this reality hit David square between the eyes, Nathan asked, “Why have you despised the word of the Lord to do evil in his sight?” – 2 Samuel 12:9. When did David despise God’s word and thus despise God? I put it to you that David despised God when he saw what he should not see and continued to look. David despised God when he meditated on beauty that was never meant to be beautiful for him. David despised God when he acted toward his temptation, and he despised God when he gave himself over to sin and then grievously sinned to cover it up. In every step of moving in sin and toward greater sin, the greatest sin in every step was despising God’s word to do it.

If you know what happened next, you know that David immediately called upon the mercy and grace of God and experienced and knew that grace in all of its infinite glory. In one simple phrase, the Lord put away David’s sin (1 Samuel 12:13). Surely God’s grace is even more shocking to us than David’s grievous sin. Psalm 51 is in our Bibles today as a public testimony of repentance from a king who was supposed to have a heart for God but instead despised God and then experienced the boundless mercy of our God who puts away sin through repentance and faith in him.

I know we probably don’t like the word “despise.” Compared to David, maybe you think your sins are more like misdemeanors. What we need to see is that David was despising God’s word by disobeying it and coveting something that wasn’t his. Adam and Eve did the same thing as they looked at a piece of fruit in the Garden of Eden.

If you want to be serious about the magnitude of the cross this Easter, my suggestion is that you be honest about how you have despised God and what Jesus has done to bring you and David reconciliation with God. Grace abounds when sin abounds, but so often our sin, at least in our own mind, does not abound like it should. Try using the word “despise” for yourself and then have a fresh look at Jesus. Be honest about your sin abounding so that Christ’s grace may abound even more. Go into Easter Friday with a sense of awe and relief. Go into Easter Sunday with a sense of eternal joy. Let’s truly worship our Risen King.

How Comprehensively Do You Forgive Others?

Do you ever have that lingering feeling of animosity toward someone you thought you had forgiven? Do you ever wonder if your expression of forgiveness is actually matching your behavior and attitude toward that person? How can you act out what you don’t feel? For too many of us there is a divide between expressing forgiveness and feeling it, and it is only exacerbated when we remind ourselves of past wrongs committed against us. Our actions and words tend to match those reminders rather than the forgiveness we want to express. Perhaps you even find yourself watching intently for an opportunity to pounce on the next wrong so you can tally up the list of sins against you. Ultimately, it’s possible to speak words of forgiveness that have little to no effect, and that makes forgiveness one of the most difficult virtues to possess.

Perhaps you have heard the statement, “I’ll forgive, but I’ll never forget.” In one sense, unless we have a physical problem with our memories, it’s impossible to forget. In another sense, not remembering a wrong is an intentional part of forgiving a debt. This is the way God himself forgives. Obviously, God knows everything, past, present, and future. While God never forgets any single occurrence in all of time, he tells us that he does not remember the sin he’s forgiven. When chastising Israel for their lack of repentance, God says, “I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.” – Isaiah 43:25. Israel needs to be reminded that they are ignoring the only true and living God who can comprehensively forgive them of their sin. This same sentiment is echoed through the author of Hebrews. “For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” – Hebrews 8:12.

It’s not that God forgets any past detail, it’s that he no longer holds it against us nor does he use it against us. In fact, in the mercy of God our whole relationship changes. We go from being objects of wrath to children. Through God’s forgiveness, found in and through Christ’s atoning work on the cross, our relationship changes from being categorized by judgment to being categorized by mercy.  Romans 9:22-23 – “What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory.” It has always been God’s eternal pleasure to forgive his elect and display the glory of his merciful heart.

When Peter asks Jesus about the nature and extent of forgiveness, Jesus answers by telling a parable. In the parable, Jesus describes a servant who owed his master an insurmountable debt. After begging for the master’s patience so that he might have time to repay him, the master absolves him of the debt, and Jesus uses this to represent the comprehensive nature of God’s forgiveness. The debt is forgiven, not partially, not mostly, but in full. When God forgives, all is forgiven. Matthew 18:27 – “And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.” When we read these words in context of Peter’s question, the reality is driven home like a stake through our hearts. Jesus is describing God’s forgiveness to Peter to show how Christians are to forgive others. In fact, the point of Jesus’ parable is that those who have been forgiven comprehensively are to forgive others comprehensively.

In Isaiah 59:2, we are told that our sin blocks us from God and creates separation. Without God’s forgiveness, sin is situated between us and God. But Psalm 103:12 says, “As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.” When God forgives, he treats us as if our sins are situated in an infinitely opposite direction from us and God. This is comprehensive forgiveness. This is what God expects of us.

If you are still counting every transgression or harboring resentment after expressing forgiveness, you are not there yet. It’s time to stop remembering the sins you claim to have forgiven and start forgiving people like God has forgiven you. It’s time for you to be intensely intentional and forgive like God does…comprehensively!