Hope of Salvation

When the angels announced the birth of Christ to the shepherds who were watching their flocks at night, they proclaimed, “glad tidings of great joy.” Angels made an actual appearance and they were couldn’t contain their joy as they told the shepherds, “For unto you is born this day, in the City of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” They explained to the shepherds where they would find the Christ child. He was born in a lowly stable. The shepherds worshiped Jesus when they found him.

Worship, adoration, gratitude—those are the appropriate responses in an encounter with Christ. In fact, this is what naturally overflows from our hearts.

John the Baptist introduced Jesus thirty years later, to a crowd, as, “The Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.”

Each of us has to reckon with Christ. We can worship him as the Son of God, whom he claimed to be, or we can reject him.

Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man (or woman) hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and sup with him.”

The image is one of intimacy, of enjoyment of fellowship, eating together, sharing life.

Jesus wants to be part of your life. And because he is God, one with God, the Son of God, as he himself proclaimed, he must also be Lord of your life, if you invite him in. Only he knows the purpose for which you were designed. Only he can direct us to live life as we were meant to live.

Jesus came to this earth out of his great love for us. He came to offer us a new way of living. He came to give us a new start. He offered forgiveness of sins of the past and deliverance from evil. He showed his great love to us by enduring death on a cross. He took the punishment for our sins in our place. It is a great mystery, how this was accomplished, but millions have accepted Jesus and experienced the joy of salvation when they opened the door of their heart to him.

Jesus offers us hope in this dark world. All we have to do is invite him in to our hearts and lives, make him a part of everything we do. “Practice the presence of Christ” daily, in every situation, as a Benedictine monk, Brother Lawrence, wrote centuries ago (Practicing the Presence of God). He had discovered the secret of the happy Christian life, which is abiding in Christ, resting in his presence, his goodness, his faithfulness to us. “He who freely gave his Son for us will he not also freely give us all things that pertain to life and godliness?” Of course he will. “There is no fear in love, for fear has torment, but perfect love casts out fear.”

The most cherished possession I own is my Bible. In the New Testament I read about the life of Christ, and about the Christian life. Jesus said that the Old Testament speaks of him, too. He explained to his disciples how the Old Testament related to him and foretold his coming, and his purpose of bringing salvation. At first his disciples did not understand because they thought their Messiah would be a great king, with an earthly kingdom. Even with all their religious training in their synagogues and in the temple, they failed to understand fully what would happen. The message of Jesus challenged them because it was one of humility and faith and service. His kingdom was not of this world. It is a heavenly kingdom. When we invite Christ into our hearts, our outlook changes. We begin to see heaven touching earth.

We pray, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.”

“Jesus, come into my heart. Forgive my sins and make me clean. Help me to live this life as you intended, as you designed for me to live it. Help me to acknowledge you in all my ways and to follow you every day. Thank you for your unspeakably great gift of salvation. Now, fill me with your Holy Spirit, as you promised, so that I will be empowered from on high to live for you. Amen.”

This is the good news. Salvation. In fact it is the best news, ever. It is the power of God, delivering us in every situation from evil. It is the power of righteousness in this world. God sets things right, through his Son, Jesus. He also gives us the hope of eternity with him, so we no longer fear death.

Related Scriptures: Luke 2, John 1:29, John 1, Revelation 3:20, John 3:16, John 10, John 15, John 17:11, Romans 8:32, 1 John 4:18, John 5:39, Luke 24:27, Matthew 5, John 18:36, Revelation 11:15, Matthew 6:33, Romans 14:17, Matthew 6:9-13, Luke 11:2-4, Luke 24:29, Acts 1:4, Ephesians 1, 2.

False Teachings in the Church

There are false teachings in the churches today. We can only discern them when we seek God and submit ourselves to his ways.

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sins and heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14

As believers we war against principalities and powers and spiritual wickedness in high places.* We pull down spiritual strongholds. We cast out demons. We heal the sick. We declare the kingdom of God. We shine a light in the darkness. We expose sin.

Today we commemorate the death of Christ. There were false teachings among the believers in Jesus’ day, as well, and the religious leaders were the ones who incited the mob to demand that Jesus be crucified. Jesus, who cast out demons, who healed the sick, who proclaimed the kingdom of God, who never did any evil or harmed anyone. If that is not enough evidence that we are at war against evil forces, then there is nothing that will convince us.

A very strange thing is happening in the world today. We are seeing death on every side as a result of the coronavirus. People are helpless in the face of this tragedy. We are also seeing economic hardship as businesses are shut down to prevent the disease from spreading. Even places of worship are closed.

In the past decade there has been a renewed interest in “spirituality” as a significant aspect of people’s lives. “Meditation” has become increasingly popular. However, there is extreme care taken not to specify the object of this faith. Supposedly it can be applied in any direction with the same result. Well, this is not true. My prayers will only be as effective as the power of the one to whom they are directed. Apart from this, the outcome is left to chance, or to evil and deceptive forces eager to participate in our undiscerning spirituality and meditation. While a lot of good can come from positive thoughts and actions, we are still left to decide whether we will choose to honor and worship a holy God, and follow his ways, or limit ourselves to our own understanding and refuse to acknowledge the designer of our universe and the forgiver of our sins.

The Rev. Bill M. Ferg stated the following in his book Every Believer’s Authority (1995): You and I are the greatest problem that satan has on the earth.

Satan has a problem with the believer. He had a problem with Jesus too. He succeeded in nailing him to the cross. When we confront heresy in the church, the response is often to try to nail us to the cross, in the sense that every effort is made to effectively silence our voice. But truth will not be silenced.

Some errors within the church are more serious and have more dire consequences than others. There is still value in gathering with believers, and we are exhorted not to forsake going to church. But let’s not be gullible and accept false teachings.

As a young teen I was part of a church that erred in its teaching. I turned to my Bible to find the truth. Eventually I found another church with a fuller understanding of the Bible. I experienced a great renewal and blessing in this church.

The errors of churches include distortion of Scripture, over-emphasis of certain teachings, exclusion of other teachings as irrelevant, adding to what the Bible teaches, changing the meaning, or being indifferent.

Even Jesus was frustrated over what he saw happening in the temple. He declared, “My house shall be called a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of robbers.” Greed had corrupted the house of God. We also see in the book of Revelation that God rebukes churches and requires that they change.

God is a God of mercy and grace, but he is also a God of wrath against men who hold the truth in unrighteousness. God hates sin. He who gave his own son to die for the forgiveness of the sins of the world will not in turn tolerate sin in the believer. Believers have lost their authority because they have rationalized that they can still harbor sin.

Psalm 103:3 says, “I will set no evil thing before my eyes.” The Bible admonishes us to be holy as God is holy. We are also not to think of ourselves as beyond temptation. If we are trying to help someone who is struggling there is the likelihood that we too could falter and fail. For this reason we walk in humility. Our susceptibility teaches us to have compassion for others. Jesus had compassion too, but he did not have tolerance for sin. In fact, he came to “destroy the works of the evil one.” (1 John 3:8) Sin is the work of the evil one.

God is purifying his church. He is preparing a bride. This is the symbolism used in the Bible for the church joining Christ for eternity. He is looking for a holy church, without spot or wrinkle.

The church does a disservice to believers when it fails to teach about the undeniable significance of being Christ-like in every respect. We are seated in the heavenly realms with Christ, having all dominion along with him. All authority is given to us as believers, along with Christ, when we walk in his will.*

Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 

*References from Ephesians 6:11-12, 1:20, 2:6, Matthew 28:18, Luke 10:19

Killed for Gathering Sticks

Numbers 15:17-16:40

It was going to be a test.  A showdown. The children of Israel, we are told, in Numbers 15:32, found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath. They brought him to Moses, because they knew this activity was forbidden in God’s law.

Moses and Aaron secured the man, not yet sure what was to be done. Then the Lord spoke to Moses and told him the man should be stoned to death, by the congregation, outside the camp.

I thought of the possible reasons this man was gathering sticks. Maybe he was bored, or restless. Maybe his wife sent him out to gather sticks for a fire. Maybe he wanted some warmth later in the day.

I was looking at the human element. I imagined the stoning. I visualized people picking up stones and the man turning to his friends and family, imploring them to intervene, to have mercy, to plead his case. The stones thudded against his flesh, again, and again, until he slumped over, and died.

This was the reality. We sometimes don’t let ourselves into what it was like to be there. I, personally, would rather not think about the details of that day. However, it is in the Bible, and I need to grapple with this story.

At first I was angry. It seemed so unjust to me, such an excessive and extreme punishment for a little thing like picking up sticks. I considered rejecting a God who was, to my sensitivities, so harsh, and, seemingly unfair. But, for me, this was not an option. Long ago I decided that indeed His thoughts are above my thoughts, and his ways are above my ways. So I asked for an explanation.

I was reading out of my One Year Bible which has daily portions selected from the Old Testament, New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs.

In the past I might have succumbed to a black or white, fundamentalist perspective, believing that I must simply accept what God does and says as good and right and disregard my fears and feelings. However, I now understand that my reaction is significant. It reveals things about me and my relationship with God and his word.

It only took a moment before other thoughts came to me. The first was, this man, undeniably knew that picking up sticks on the Sabbath was forbidden by God. The law had been very clearly presented to the Israelite congregation. Therefore his actions were clearly willful disobedience.

I began to see that if there was no consequence, then either the commandment meant nothing, or God could be defied.

I also saw that this incident was public knowledge and was going to set a precedent.

People were watching. The effectiveness of the law was on trial. How the case was handled would be extremely significant, given that the commandment originated with God.

Essentially, God was on trial, and I’m sure two questions were burning in the hearts of the Israelites, from the beginning, just as they burn in our hearts today. Who is this God? How does he respond to his people, particularly when they rebel?

I noted that if there had not been a command, then a man picking up sticks on the Sabbath would be of no consequence to anyone. But this was the crux of the matter. There was a command. And the command came from God.

One more thing, Moses was the guardian of the law. As the leader of the nation of Israel, he was responsible to enforce the law and mete out consequences for disobedience. It was not an enviable position. In the next chapter we read of a coup attempt.

Levite priests, Korah, Dathan and Abiram, along with two hundred and fifty supporters, “princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown” (Numbers 16:3 King James Version), protested against Moses and Aaron. They claimed that “all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them; (why do you lift yourselves) above the congregation of the Lord?” (v. 3). It was an all-out revolt against authority.

Gathering sticks on the Sabbath set in motion a whole series of events. It revealed the hearts of the leaders of Israel. The accusation was not new to Moses. “Who made you a ruler and a judge?” was hurled at him when he tried to break up a fight between two Israelites (Exodus 2:14).

Moses was no different, as a man. But he was anointed by God and this set him apart. God warns, “…Touch not the Lord’s anointed, and do his prophets no harm” (1 Chronicles 16:22, Psalm 105:15).

It is common to resist any type of authority or restraint. In fact, we might produce the argument that all Christians are anointed and we are all equal.

Who are you to tell me what to do? We don’t like your virtue signaling. You are no different from the rest of us.

I believe this passage bears out that not every anointing is on the same level. Some carry greater responsibility. Some are subject to others. Some can even be abused.

I just want to clarify that Jesus came to fulfill the law and to exchange the heavy burden of the Old Testament law for a lighter, easy yoke. When his disciples were criticized by religious leaders for “threshing” on the Sabbath, as they plucked and ate grain in the field, Jesus declared that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. He abolished the tradition of stoning, when a woman was caught in adultery and brought to him. He demanded that those without sin cast the first stone.

The law serves the purpose of revealing the nature of man. We tend to resist authority. Ultimately we need a new nature. Jesus came to give this newness of life to us through faith in him. But Jesus never gave us license to disobey or defy God.

The question, Who made you a judge would be better replaced by, Who gave humans a standard of righteousness? We have a tendency to shoot the messenger when we are really rebelling against the message which originates with God.

By this time there should not have been any doubt in the minds of the people concerning the authority of Moses. Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt. God gave the law to Moses and revealed to him the pattern for the tabernacle and the rituals of worship. Moses’ face shone with the glory of God when he came from his presence. But the Levites, who served in the tabernacle, and the princes of Israel seemed to have forgotten all of this.

Moses told the people to separate themselves “from the tents of these wicked men” (v. 26). The ground opened and swallowed them and their families and closed again. A fire ignited and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who held censors with incense. God spare the rest of the congregation because of the intercession of Moses and Aaron.

The next portion for the day in my One Year Bible reading, is the story of the crucifixion of Christ. I see a clear parallel in the attitude of the religious leaders who could not accept the authority of Christ and demanded his death. Jesus Christ was crucified. However, he rose from the dead, victorious over the demons of hell. Have no doubt, Satan, the deceiver and destroyer, is behind this rebellion.

I read somewhere, recently, (I apologize for forgetting the source) that Jesus was not crucified because he was good, but because he presented something new. I don’t concur. In fact, I strongly resist this message. It was precisely because he was good, and because he upheld a high standard, and because he claimed to be God, that he was crucified. This message, today, is no longer “new” and it is still being resisted just as strongly.

So, yes, God was just in putting to death those who defied his Godhead. And he forever will be.

Can a Person be Righteous?

I have long been fascinated by the story of Job. When I was in Bible College I was taught that Job was a righteous man and his friends were wrong when they insisted that he must have done some evil to cause this calamity to fall upon him. Through the years I have met Christians who insisted that Job’s friends were right and Job was indeed presumptuous to claim to be righteous. This caused me to dig deeper into the text, and every time I do so I come out believing more firmly that Job was righteous.

Today as I read the book of Job, something leapt out at me.

The story begins, “This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil.” Job even offered sacrifices for each of his children after they had enjoyed a time of feasting and reveling on their birthdays, just in case they had sinned and “cursed God in their hearts.”

What an interesting thought, cursing God in their hearts. Later, in chapter two, Job’s wife tells him to “curse God and die.” Job said she was speaking as a foolish woman. The text continues, “In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.”

What stood out for me today was Satan’s response to God. When Satan appeared before God with the other angels, God asked him if he had considered his servant Job, “There is no one like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.” Satan’s reply is, “Does Job fear God for nothing? Have you not…blessed the work of his hands….But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.”

Job’s wife essentially told Job to give up on God. Why would you serve a God who sends such calamity? What is the point? This is exactly what Satan was saying. Job would no longer serve God if God stopped blessing him. People only serve God for what they can get. The big question is, Will Job still trust God if God removes his hedge of protection from him?

Satan argued that Job’s reverence for God was conditional. It was dependent upon God’s goodness to him. Satan was convinced that if God would strike Job, Job would indeed curse God.

Job’s response to his wife, however, was, “Shall we accept good from God and not evil?”

Throughout the Bible we see a pattern of God blessing his people when they obeyed him and causing evil or harm to come to them when they disobeyed. The Bible literally says it will be well with us if we obey God. The King James Bible version puts it this way:

Ye shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God hath commanded you, that ye may live, and that it may be well with you, and that ye may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess (Deuteronomy 5:33).

As a result of this scripture and others like it, people have concluded that if something bad happens to us, we are somehow at fault. Presumably we have sinned or not been righteous enough. Job’s friends took the view that the trouble he was experiencing was evidence that he must have some sin he needed to confess.

Jesus challenged the belief that if something bad happens it is because a person has sinned. When he was about to heal a man who was blind from birth, Jesus’ disciples asked Jesus if the man was blind because of his own sin or the sin of his parents. This association of sin with affliction was deeply rooted in their understanding. Jesus responded that neither was true. Rather, this would bring glory to God (John 9).

If we look in the Bible we find stories of people who were not evil and still experienced great trials. Think of the story of Joseph, as an example (Genesis 37-46). The Bible teaches that God will give us the grace and strength to endure trials (2 Corinthians 12:9), that God can cause good to come from harm (Romans 8:28), and that he will not allow us to be  tempted beyond what we can endure (1 Corinthians 10:13). Clearly trials will come.

While the Bible says God will bless us if we are faithful, it does not promise that nothing bad will ever happen to us. After all, it happened to Job.

The Bible also does not say that God will not bless us if we are unfaithful. In fact scriptures like Psalm 73 wrestle with the fact that sometimes the wicked prosper.

We tend to read the story of Job through the grid of our New Testament understanding that, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). We understand that “…by one man sin entered into the world….” (Romans 5:12), speaking of Adam and Eve in the garden. In light of this it could appear presumptuous for Job to claim that he is righteous.

When Jesus healed the man who was born blind, the leaders of the synagogue questioned the man, wanting to know what had happened to him. His response was “All I know is that once I was blind but now I see” (John 9:25). I propose that Job knew he was righteous because he experienced the difference between being blind, living in darkness, and seeing. He recognized what his friends were trying to pin on him. It may have been his past, but of one thing he was certain. It did not describe his present.

Christians who cannot accept that Job was righteous are in fact aligning themselves with his friends. At the end of the story we read that God was angry with Job’s friends and required a sacrifice of atonement from them. He accused them of not speaking the truth about him. He also instructed Job to pray for them, “My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has” (Job 42:8).

We see here that the very knowledgeable friends of Job were wrong in their conclusions about Job, and that this, in the sight of God, was a serious offense which required sacrifice and intercession.

Although all that Job valued was taken away and he suffered incredibly, he possessed what his friends did not have. Job possessed righteousness. To say he was not righteous would have been to slander God. The truth Job spoke was about God.

I think today the “Christian” thing to do, if we were in Job’s place, would be to offer a show of humility and say something like “we all sin.” Job’s friends would probably have been satisfied if Job had just conceded that much. But Job refused. Job possessed an incredible understanding of God and righteousness.

Job’s relentless refusal to yield continues to challenge me, personally, especially when I think of how easily we confess to sin. Job’s testimony of righteousness was so powerful that God and Satan engaged in a contest to test its veracity. Wow!

Some people would accuse Job of self-righteousness and pride. This is exactly what his friends did. But God didn’t see it that way. There was a purity to his confession that could not be any further refined in the furnace of affliction. The trials he suffered only proved that what he had was real.