Britons are known for sharp wit and cynicism. We often decry cynicism as an extreme of distrust or unbelief (and rightly so), but today I want to think about misplaced hope and faith, which we leave unchallenged, if we're not careful.
Politics is a prime example of this. If we are honest with ourselves, those of us who care deeply about politics have a kind of faith invested in the ideologies and political candidates we support. The unspoken words in our hearts run something like this: 'If only we could get X into power / If only we could change the constitution, then this country/the world would get better.' This is the dream, to bring about a golden age of prosperity and contentment.
Looking at things from this angle, the reader will not be surprised at the fact that many writers have compared Christians and Marxists. Both dream of a better world and devote a substantial part of their lives and hopes to bringing it about. This much may be obvious to most, but I want to include others in this circle, from vibrant eco-warriors to seemingly restrained conservatives. All of these people are characterized by intense faith and hope, whether they realize it or not; but these groups invest their faith in different things.
Ultimately, there is a divide between the Christians and the others. Christians place their faith in God, a God who has revealed Himself and invited humanity to return to Him. The others have ultimately placed their faith in man, believing Man can solve his own problems. But when it comes to creating the perfect society, man's track record is against him. Of course, this doesn't stop the dreamers; they keep saying, 'Next time will be different!'
Now let me qualify what I have said. This post is not intended to discourage passion to change the world for the better. Far from it - people should aim to help their neighbours and to be more caring and involved. But we need to think about where history is headed and what Man is really like. Dream all you like, but nothing you can do will make Obama or Cameron or Farage or Miliband into the Messiah. There is only one answer God has given for humanity's woes, and His name is Jesus.
Something to think about...
God bless.
Wednesday 25 September 2013
Saturday 21 September 2013
Culture of Violence
My friends know that I am a keen gamer (though not nearly as keen as the pros). In recent months I have been pondering the effect of violent games upon the psyche. I do not think that they can force anyone into committing acts of violence. It seems to me that cases of game-related violence tend to come from people who are already unhinged in some way and/or have played the games to excess (e.g. a thousand times). Most casual gamers are unlikely to go out and shoot or stab people.
That being said, I am concerned about the effect of games on our sense of justice/revenge and our self-definition. Regarding the first point, vendettas and private assassination contracts and acts of passion seem to be quite common in games, whereas the formal proceedings of a court seem to appear rarely. (An excellent exception appears in Knights of the Old Republic, however, where the player is given various options for influencing a wookie judge.)
Regarding the second point, cultures or individuals that define themselves as warriors struggle with a number of disadvantages their stance creates. Firstly, war is not a desired end-state of humanity. People dream of an age of peace when war will be no more. Those who define themselves by war are effectively limiting themselves - they have no part in the future of humanity. Furthermore, the human aging-process limits us, even as strategists planning campaigns. Secondly, war is not always justified; if you are so obsessed with fighting that you look for occasions to fight, then something has gone very wrong. Thirdly, war is not a creative process. It is the reconstruction after war has ceased that employs man's creative talents. Don't get me wrong - I know many of man's greatest scientific and technological discoveries have been fueled by war, but their short-term aims have been to control or destroy the enemy, not to create something that improves people's lives. The improvement of people's lives is largely a task of people at peace.
So, where does this leave us? Well, I think it leaves us wanting more. I don't intend to stop playing (at least not in the short-term), but I am reconsidering what I want out of games. A chance to be more creative, to solve problems - this is beginning to hold more appeal than the repetitive hack 'n' slash, shoot 'em up experience. Still, an outlet for rage is useful...the wheel turns.
God bless.
That being said, I am concerned about the effect of games on our sense of justice/revenge and our self-definition. Regarding the first point, vendettas and private assassination contracts and acts of passion seem to be quite common in games, whereas the formal proceedings of a court seem to appear rarely. (An excellent exception appears in Knights of the Old Republic, however, where the player is given various options for influencing a wookie judge.)
Regarding the second point, cultures or individuals that define themselves as warriors struggle with a number of disadvantages their stance creates. Firstly, war is not a desired end-state of humanity. People dream of an age of peace when war will be no more. Those who define themselves by war are effectively limiting themselves - they have no part in the future of humanity. Furthermore, the human aging-process limits us, even as strategists planning campaigns. Secondly, war is not always justified; if you are so obsessed with fighting that you look for occasions to fight, then something has gone very wrong. Thirdly, war is not a creative process. It is the reconstruction after war has ceased that employs man's creative talents. Don't get me wrong - I know many of man's greatest scientific and technological discoveries have been fueled by war, but their short-term aims have been to control or destroy the enemy, not to create something that improves people's lives. The improvement of people's lives is largely a task of people at peace.
So, where does this leave us? Well, I think it leaves us wanting more. I don't intend to stop playing (at least not in the short-term), but I am reconsidering what I want out of games. A chance to be more creative, to solve problems - this is beginning to hold more appeal than the repetitive hack 'n' slash, shoot 'em up experience. Still, an outlet for rage is useful...the wheel turns.
God bless.
Thursday 12 September 2013
Authority
The Book of Revelation describes Jesus Christ as 'Lord of lords and King of kings' (Revelation 17:14). This is a Hebrew way of expressing a superlative; it means Jesus is the supreme King. With our tradition of democracy, these titles may come as something of a shock to Western readers.
A good starting point is to consider the king's role as judge in the ancient world. A society needs laws and courts in order to function. Often the king served as the supreme judge, the final court of appeal; his ruling was final and provided stability. In human history we have had a number of corrupt judges and kings; nevertheless, the court system has provided order and safety and has eased, if not relieved, the human need for justice.
Jesus will return to judge the living and the dead. Whereas human judges have failed in giving justice, He will succeed. His judgement is just: being God, He knows all of the relevant information and has a perfect sense of justice.
Jesus says at John 5: 25-30 (NKJV), 'Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.'
Notice why Jesus has been granted authority to judge humanity - 'because He is the Son of Man'. In other words, because He Himself is human. Jesus has authority to judge us as King of kings because He became human - He knows exactly how things are from our side of the justice problem.
But what about the king's role as supreme military commander? Jesus is the Supreme Commander of Heaven's armies. The buck stops with Him. Unlike earth's wars, however, God's wars are fought for the right reasons and against the right foes. The warfare of the angels and Christians is against spiritual forces of wickedness (Ephesians 6:10-13). Satan means 'enemy' or 'adversary' in Hebrew, as does his title in Greek, Diabolos, from which we get our word 'Devil' (compare French 'Diable'). Satan is the enemy of God, the enemy of humanity, and the enemy of justice. It is against Satan's forces that Christ and His army wage war; Christ's aim is to save people from darkness and to bring them into His Kingdom of love and light. When Christ returns as King of kings on His white horse, coming as the great commander of Heaven's armies, He comes to overthrow Satan's evil kingdom and his puppet-ruler, the Antichrist. Understand that the Antichrist is a wicked ruler who has been persecuting Christians and waging war on earth; his overthrow is just.
Lastly, there is the king's role as leader of the nation, his authority absolute in all things. This perhaps is the hardest for us Western Christians to accept. Free will is a major topic in Western theology: we discuss it with relation to love and salvation. Here it is relevant to obedience. True obedience is given willingly, not compelled by superior force, and this is one of the reasons why Jesus truly is King of kings. He doesn't force Christians to be obedient to Him by using His godly power to make us do things. Jesus asks us and we have the right to say no. We give Him our obedience truly when we do so out of love and reverence for who He is. Jesus has earned our love; John says, 'We love Him because He first loved us.' (1 John 4:19, NKJV.) How much better it is to be King of the Willing than to be King of the Compelled!
Psalm 22:3 (NKJV) says, 'But You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel.' God has always been King and will always be King. But we enthrone Him in hearts when we truly worship Him in spirit and truth. We think of kings as people who have everything. What can we give to Jesus, by whom all things were made? We can give Him our love.
God bless.
A good starting point is to consider the king's role as judge in the ancient world. A society needs laws and courts in order to function. Often the king served as the supreme judge, the final court of appeal; his ruling was final and provided stability. In human history we have had a number of corrupt judges and kings; nevertheless, the court system has provided order and safety and has eased, if not relieved, the human need for justice.
Jesus will return to judge the living and the dead. Whereas human judges have failed in giving justice, He will succeed. His judgement is just: being God, He knows all of the relevant information and has a perfect sense of justice.
Jesus says at John 5: 25-30 (NKJV), 'Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.'
Notice why Jesus has been granted authority to judge humanity - 'because He is the Son of Man'. In other words, because He Himself is human. Jesus has authority to judge us as King of kings because He became human - He knows exactly how things are from our side of the justice problem.
But what about the king's role as supreme military commander? Jesus is the Supreme Commander of Heaven's armies. The buck stops with Him. Unlike earth's wars, however, God's wars are fought for the right reasons and against the right foes. The warfare of the angels and Christians is against spiritual forces of wickedness (Ephesians 6:10-13). Satan means 'enemy' or 'adversary' in Hebrew, as does his title in Greek, Diabolos, from which we get our word 'Devil' (compare French 'Diable'). Satan is the enemy of God, the enemy of humanity, and the enemy of justice. It is against Satan's forces that Christ and His army wage war; Christ's aim is to save people from darkness and to bring them into His Kingdom of love and light. When Christ returns as King of kings on His white horse, coming as the great commander of Heaven's armies, He comes to overthrow Satan's evil kingdom and his puppet-ruler, the Antichrist. Understand that the Antichrist is a wicked ruler who has been persecuting Christians and waging war on earth; his overthrow is just.
Lastly, there is the king's role as leader of the nation, his authority absolute in all things. This perhaps is the hardest for us Western Christians to accept. Free will is a major topic in Western theology: we discuss it with relation to love and salvation. Here it is relevant to obedience. True obedience is given willingly, not compelled by superior force, and this is one of the reasons why Jesus truly is King of kings. He doesn't force Christians to be obedient to Him by using His godly power to make us do things. Jesus asks us and we have the right to say no. We give Him our obedience truly when we do so out of love and reverence for who He is. Jesus has earned our love; John says, 'We love Him because He first loved us.' (1 John 4:19, NKJV.) How much better it is to be King of the Willing than to be King of the Compelled!
Psalm 22:3 (NKJV) says, 'But You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel.' God has always been King and will always be King. But we enthrone Him in hearts when we truly worship Him in spirit and truth. We think of kings as people who have everything. What can we give to Jesus, by whom all things were made? We can give Him our love.
God bless.
Tuesday 3 September 2013
Difficulties in Revelation
Some weeks ago I led two Bible studies, one on Daniel and one on Revelation, which are closely-related books. Many people find Revelation a difficult book to understand because of the symbolic language it uses. While I am by no means an expert, I have spent a lot of time studying Revelation, so I thought I'd use this post to give some tips for any who might be struggling with it.
1) Understand how symbolism and metaphor work. Many people get lost because they say that Revelation is 'just imagery' and stop there as if images don't mean anything. Metaphors consist of two parts: the image, and what the image represents. For example, the Beast from the Sea in Revelation 13 is not a literal beast, but it does represent a literal empire and its wicked ruler who will persecute God's saints on earth. The Beast is symbolic, but the empire, ruler, and persecution are literal. A good preparation for this sort of task is to read Jesus' parables in the Gospels. They work on a similar principle.
2) Use the interpretations that are given to you in the book itself. So many get scared off Revelation because they hear of crazy theories that don't come to pass and aren't founded on the book itself. If you read Revelation carefully, you will find it tells you what many of the images mean. For example, Revelation 12:9 tells the reader that the Red Dragon represents Satan. The Dragon is the image; Satan, a real angelic person, is the literal truth behind the image.
3) Understand that Revelation is both timeless and time-specific. This book speaks to all generations of Christians, who have, to various degrees, suffered persecution and seen the wickedness of fallen humanity and Satan manifested on this earth. There have been many Antichrist-like figures in history: Antiochus Epiphanes and Hitler are prime examples. At the same time there is one man who is THE Antichrist, a figure who will appear later in history not long before Jesus returns to the earth.
4) Use cross-references in a good study Bible to find the Old Testament passages that are being quoted or alluded to in the verse you're reading. Revelation is very closely connected to the Old Testament, and many of its passages become much clearer once one has read the relevant Old Testament verses. For example, the 1260 days, 42 months, 3.5 years mentioned in Revelation all refer to a single period of time found in Daniel 9:27 (where it is half of a 'Week'), and Daniel 12:11.
5) Keep the 'big picture' in mind and simplify where necessary so that you have a basic overview of the book. A basic timeline could go as follows:
Persecution > Jesus Returns > Restoration
Keeping this basic structure in mind will help you to locate where you are in the sequence when you're reading a particular passage and will also indicate the tone of the passage.
Much more could be said, and I may return to this in a later post, but hopefully this is sufficient for an introductory approach to Revelation. May these tips be of service to you.
God bless.
1) Understand how symbolism and metaphor work. Many people get lost because they say that Revelation is 'just imagery' and stop there as if images don't mean anything. Metaphors consist of two parts: the image, and what the image represents. For example, the Beast from the Sea in Revelation 13 is not a literal beast, but it does represent a literal empire and its wicked ruler who will persecute God's saints on earth. The Beast is symbolic, but the empire, ruler, and persecution are literal. A good preparation for this sort of task is to read Jesus' parables in the Gospels. They work on a similar principle.
2) Use the interpretations that are given to you in the book itself. So many get scared off Revelation because they hear of crazy theories that don't come to pass and aren't founded on the book itself. If you read Revelation carefully, you will find it tells you what many of the images mean. For example, Revelation 12:9 tells the reader that the Red Dragon represents Satan. The Dragon is the image; Satan, a real angelic person, is the literal truth behind the image.
3) Understand that Revelation is both timeless and time-specific. This book speaks to all generations of Christians, who have, to various degrees, suffered persecution and seen the wickedness of fallen humanity and Satan manifested on this earth. There have been many Antichrist-like figures in history: Antiochus Epiphanes and Hitler are prime examples. At the same time there is one man who is THE Antichrist, a figure who will appear later in history not long before Jesus returns to the earth.
4) Use cross-references in a good study Bible to find the Old Testament passages that are being quoted or alluded to in the verse you're reading. Revelation is very closely connected to the Old Testament, and many of its passages become much clearer once one has read the relevant Old Testament verses. For example, the 1260 days, 42 months, 3.5 years mentioned in Revelation all refer to a single period of time found in Daniel 9:27 (where it is half of a 'Week'), and Daniel 12:11.
5) Keep the 'big picture' in mind and simplify where necessary so that you have a basic overview of the book. A basic timeline could go as follows:
Persecution > Jesus Returns > Restoration
Keeping this basic structure in mind will help you to locate where you are in the sequence when you're reading a particular passage and will also indicate the tone of the passage.
Much more could be said, and I may return to this in a later post, but hopefully this is sufficient for an introductory approach to Revelation. May these tips be of service to you.
God bless.
Saturday 31 August 2013
Suffering and Death
With all the TV and internet buzz about Syria, many people are asking questions about whether we can stand by and watch innocent people suffer when we are in a position to do something about it. In today's post I'd like to discuss suffering and death generally, rather than talk about the rights and wrongs of military intervention, which I leave to wiser heads than mine.
First of all, let me say that suffering in all its forms is felt by God. He is not absent and aloof from His creation, as some would have us believe. The Lord grieves when He sees what sin has brought about in this world; He grieves when He sees people suffer. When He became a man, He felt suffering just as we do. Jesus wept at the death of Lazarus (John 11:32-36). He wept not only at the loss of His friend, but also at seeing Lazarus' sister weighed down by grief.
Similarly, He wept over Jerusalem when He arrived there on Palm Sunday, because He knew that in rejecting Him, her leaders were rejecting Peace (Shalom). He knew the day would come when the Romans would destroy the city, slaying and enslaving her inhabitants (Luke 19:41-44).
He suffered physical pain when He was scourged by the Romans and nailed to the Cross (Matthew 27:26-35). I'd like you, dear reader, to pause on this for a moment. Those of us who have had happy families and no problems with the law or criminals have little knowledge of what it is like to be physically and verbally abused in this fashion. While we may have experienced physical pain from accident, illness, or exertion, we do not know what it is like to be scourged in this way. It was a truly horrific event in Christ's life. Many did not survive this process - small wonder that He stumbled and could not carry His Cross all the way to Golgotha afterwards.
But terrible as this was, the worst was yet to come. On the Cross, Jesus, quoting David's words from Psalm 22, cried out, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?' (Psalm 22:1; Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34.) Jesus, being sinless, could not and would not lie. He meant what He said; it was true. At that moment, God the Father turned His face away from God the Son.
He did this because God cannot look at sin and our sin Jesus took upon Himself. As Isaiah said, 'the LORD has laid on him [Jesus] the iniquity of us all' (Isaiah 53:6, NIV). This pain that Jesus felt none of us will truly understand, because we aren't God. We cannot know what it is like to eternally and perfectly love someone and then forsake them because they have accepted the punishment for sins incurred by others. But it is the beauty, the humility, and the glory of God that He did this for us, that He identified with us sinners who also cry out, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?'
Isaiah described Jesus as, 'a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief' (Isaiah 53:3, NKJV). This has to be one of the most touching, beautiful, and understated lines in the Bible. God knows personally and experientially what it is to watch someone suffer and what it is to be the one suffering.
So, where does this leave you, dear reader? Firstly, don't turn away from God. If you are experiencing sorrow, share it with Him. As the Apostle Peter said, 'casting all your care [sorrow/anxiety] upon Him, for He cares for you' (1 Peter 5:7, NKJV). Scream at Him, cry before Him, lean on Him; but don't turn away from Him: He wants to help you. Secondly, don't harden your heart. Jesus took into His soul the suffering of the world. If you would follow Him, you must do likewise. Pray for those who are in sorrow and let God lead you in this. As Paul said, 'weep with those who weep' (Romans 12:15, NKJV). Practically, there are steps you can take, and I would advise you to seek God's will in this. Just because the UK will not be involved militarily in Syria doesn't mean you can't bless the people of the Syria, wherever they may be.
God bless.
First of all, let me say that suffering in all its forms is felt by God. He is not absent and aloof from His creation, as some would have us believe. The Lord grieves when He sees what sin has brought about in this world; He grieves when He sees people suffer. When He became a man, He felt suffering just as we do. Jesus wept at the death of Lazarus (John 11:32-36). He wept not only at the loss of His friend, but also at seeing Lazarus' sister weighed down by grief.
Similarly, He wept over Jerusalem when He arrived there on Palm Sunday, because He knew that in rejecting Him, her leaders were rejecting Peace (Shalom). He knew the day would come when the Romans would destroy the city, slaying and enslaving her inhabitants (Luke 19:41-44).
He suffered physical pain when He was scourged by the Romans and nailed to the Cross (Matthew 27:26-35). I'd like you, dear reader, to pause on this for a moment. Those of us who have had happy families and no problems with the law or criminals have little knowledge of what it is like to be physically and verbally abused in this fashion. While we may have experienced physical pain from accident, illness, or exertion, we do not know what it is like to be scourged in this way. It was a truly horrific event in Christ's life. Many did not survive this process - small wonder that He stumbled and could not carry His Cross all the way to Golgotha afterwards.
But terrible as this was, the worst was yet to come. On the Cross, Jesus, quoting David's words from Psalm 22, cried out, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?' (Psalm 22:1; Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34.) Jesus, being sinless, could not and would not lie. He meant what He said; it was true. At that moment, God the Father turned His face away from God the Son.
He did this because God cannot look at sin and our sin Jesus took upon Himself. As Isaiah said, 'the LORD has laid on him [Jesus] the iniquity of us all' (Isaiah 53:6, NIV). This pain that Jesus felt none of us will truly understand, because we aren't God. We cannot know what it is like to eternally and perfectly love someone and then forsake them because they have accepted the punishment for sins incurred by others. But it is the beauty, the humility, and the glory of God that He did this for us, that He identified with us sinners who also cry out, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?'
Isaiah described Jesus as, 'a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief' (Isaiah 53:3, NKJV). This has to be one of the most touching, beautiful, and understated lines in the Bible. God knows personally and experientially what it is to watch someone suffer and what it is to be the one suffering.
So, where does this leave you, dear reader? Firstly, don't turn away from God. If you are experiencing sorrow, share it with Him. As the Apostle Peter said, 'casting all your care [sorrow/anxiety] upon Him, for He cares for you' (1 Peter 5:7, NKJV). Scream at Him, cry before Him, lean on Him; but don't turn away from Him: He wants to help you. Secondly, don't harden your heart. Jesus took into His soul the suffering of the world. If you would follow Him, you must do likewise. Pray for those who are in sorrow and let God lead you in this. As Paul said, 'weep with those who weep' (Romans 12:15, NKJV). Practically, there are steps you can take, and I would advise you to seek God's will in this. Just because the UK will not be involved militarily in Syria doesn't mean you can't bless the people of the Syria, wherever they may be.
God bless.
Wednesday 7 August 2013
Pairs
Today's post is about disorder; the title refers to pairing virtues with vices. Christians believe that when Lucifer/Satan and Adam 'fell', sin and disorder entered into God's creation, and that the creation was 'subjected to futility' until the time when Christ ushers in the New Heavens and the New Earth.
This point is important for both Christians and non-Christians. A classic example is sex. Christians are often charged with being prudish and hating sex. The proper Christian doctrine is that sex is good. God created Adam and Eve (that is, Man and Woman) to procreate by sexual means. He intended sex to be an expression of love and unity between a husband and his wife, and the children that come from it are the fruit of that love. The point of difficulty lies in misuse of sex. Such misuse is confusing to our emotions: on the one hand, attraction is a very natural thing and sex is an expression of love; on the other hand, since the Fall, we have become very disordered in our being. There are so many factors that influence our feelings and decision-making: culture, experience, conscience, logic, physical circumstances.
The reason this is important to both Christians and non-Christians is that it helps Christians to be mature and sensitive in how they make decisions and relate to other people. They realize that 'the Flesh' - the sinful disorder in our being - is drawing us in one direction, while the Holy Spirit, who lives in us, wants us to go in another direction.
For the non-Christian, this information is important in helping them to make an informed decision about Christianity. Many of us, myself included, before we became Christians, thought that becoming a Christian meant giving up many things without having anything to replace them; we thought that what it meant was a kind of emptiness. In reality, what Christ's life means is a kind of reordering and restoration of mankind and the universe. We must get away from the notion that the body is inherently evil, right from its creation. Rather, this body is sin-riddled and in need of discipline until its redemption. When the Saints are resurrected they will be given new, 'heavenly' bodies - they will not float around like Ghosts - but these bodies will be free of the sinful disorder that now characterizes human life.
For this reason, I think it can be useful to realize the links between virtues and vices. This is not a fool-proof system that covers all aspects of life, but I think it helps one to avoid extremes and the naivety of separating things that are actually related - vice is, in fact, often a distorted version of virtue.
Below is a short list of some examples. They are given to provoke thought, not as legalistic, binding ideas to be blindly accepted.
-Passion & Obsession
-Imagination & Fantasy
-Authority/Command & Manipulation/Control
-Love & Lust/Greed
-Self-control & Self-deprivation
The list could go on, and the difficulties of language make the task of reflection on these matters harder. People tend to have associations with words and images and they are often graded positively or negatively. To one person the word 'father' means a source of strength and comfort; to another, it means 'Victorian hypocrisy' and a troubled home.
As the ancient Greeks said, 'μηδεν αγαν' - 'nothing in excess'.
God bless.
This point is important for both Christians and non-Christians. A classic example is sex. Christians are often charged with being prudish and hating sex. The proper Christian doctrine is that sex is good. God created Adam and Eve (that is, Man and Woman) to procreate by sexual means. He intended sex to be an expression of love and unity between a husband and his wife, and the children that come from it are the fruit of that love. The point of difficulty lies in misuse of sex. Such misuse is confusing to our emotions: on the one hand, attraction is a very natural thing and sex is an expression of love; on the other hand, since the Fall, we have become very disordered in our being. There are so many factors that influence our feelings and decision-making: culture, experience, conscience, logic, physical circumstances.
The reason this is important to both Christians and non-Christians is that it helps Christians to be mature and sensitive in how they make decisions and relate to other people. They realize that 'the Flesh' - the sinful disorder in our being - is drawing us in one direction, while the Holy Spirit, who lives in us, wants us to go in another direction.
For the non-Christian, this information is important in helping them to make an informed decision about Christianity. Many of us, myself included, before we became Christians, thought that becoming a Christian meant giving up many things without having anything to replace them; we thought that what it meant was a kind of emptiness. In reality, what Christ's life means is a kind of reordering and restoration of mankind and the universe. We must get away from the notion that the body is inherently evil, right from its creation. Rather, this body is sin-riddled and in need of discipline until its redemption. When the Saints are resurrected they will be given new, 'heavenly' bodies - they will not float around like Ghosts - but these bodies will be free of the sinful disorder that now characterizes human life.
For this reason, I think it can be useful to realize the links between virtues and vices. This is not a fool-proof system that covers all aspects of life, but I think it helps one to avoid extremes and the naivety of separating things that are actually related - vice is, in fact, often a distorted version of virtue.
Below is a short list of some examples. They are given to provoke thought, not as legalistic, binding ideas to be blindly accepted.
-Passion & Obsession
-Imagination & Fantasy
-Authority/Command & Manipulation/Control
-Love & Lust/Greed
-Self-control & Self-deprivation
The list could go on, and the difficulties of language make the task of reflection on these matters harder. People tend to have associations with words and images and they are often graded positively or negatively. To one person the word 'father' means a source of strength and comfort; to another, it means 'Victorian hypocrisy' and a troubled home.
As the ancient Greeks said, 'μηδεν αγαν' - 'nothing in excess'.
God bless.
Tuesday 30 July 2013
The Jewish Roots of our Faith - Part 2
In my first post on this topic I said I would write more, and here it is. Today I'd like to think about the Jewish pattern of worship, which has served as a model and basis for Christian church services. Let me say up front that there are a number of things that are different. The gifts of the Spirit were not widely distributed until the Pentecost after the Ascension. Whereas Tongues, Healings, Prophecy and so forth may be regular features of a Christian service today, they were extremely rare in the days before Jesus came. Secondly, whereas Communion is frequently celebrated in Christian churches today, Passover was a feast that occurred once a year. More could be said, but you get the point: the synagogue and Temple services are not identical with the church service.
But let's think about the similarities. Those who have attended a Christian church service can boil down the common format to a couple of categories: worship in the form of singing, reading from the Bible, commentary (sermon/homily) on the passage(s) read, prayers, communion. A number of these features were already established in Jesus' day. If you read the account of Jesus' visit to the Nazareth synagogue in Luke 4, you will find that a Bible passage is read (Isaiah 61:1-2) and Jesus comments on this passage He has just read - i.e. he gives a sermon. From the first God was concerned that His people should know His Word, so He decreed in the Mosaic Law that the Torah should be read to the Israelites every seven years at the Feast of Tabernacles (Deuteronomy 31:9-13).
As for prayers and singing, they were features not only of the synagogue, but also of the Temple, where people made private prayer (Luke 18:9-14) and the Levites sang in formal worship (1 Chronicles 25). Public prayer has long been a feature of Judaism, a beautiful example being Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the Temple, found at 1 Kings 8 and 2 Chronicles 6.
As I've said before, the first Christians were Jews. When they met together, at times after being expelled from their synagogue, they brought some of their patterns and habits with them. This is not to deny that their ways were changed by the teachings of Jesus as passed on by His commissioned Apostles. It is the New Covenant, after all. But this New Covenant is built upon the Old. The Old was, like John the Baptist, the forerunner for Jesus; he prepared the way for the Christ. When you graduate from school to enter the big wide world of experience, you notice the difference between the freedom of this new place compared with the restraint and supervision of your school days. But you don't forget the lessons you learnt there - after all, you were taught these things so you could use them to live well.
Let us be thankful that God used the Jewish people to prepare the way for Messiah and serve as an example for the Church to learn from. 'For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.' (Romans 15:4, NIV.) But if He began our blessing with them, He will also bring it to its conclusion, its maturity, with them. For it is written, 'For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?'
Praise God He is at work among His people Israel. He has broken down the middle wall of separation and made Jew and Gentile one in Yeshua HaMashiach, Jesus the Christ.
Shalom al-Yisrael; shalom al-Yerushalaim.
God bless.
But let's think about the similarities. Those who have attended a Christian church service can boil down the common format to a couple of categories: worship in the form of singing, reading from the Bible, commentary (sermon/homily) on the passage(s) read, prayers, communion. A number of these features were already established in Jesus' day. If you read the account of Jesus' visit to the Nazareth synagogue in Luke 4, you will find that a Bible passage is read (Isaiah 61:1-2) and Jesus comments on this passage He has just read - i.e. he gives a sermon. From the first God was concerned that His people should know His Word, so He decreed in the Mosaic Law that the Torah should be read to the Israelites every seven years at the Feast of Tabernacles (Deuteronomy 31:9-13).
As for prayers and singing, they were features not only of the synagogue, but also of the Temple, where people made private prayer (Luke 18:9-14) and the Levites sang in formal worship (1 Chronicles 25). Public prayer has long been a feature of Judaism, a beautiful example being Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the Temple, found at 1 Kings 8 and 2 Chronicles 6.
As I've said before, the first Christians were Jews. When they met together, at times after being expelled from their synagogue, they brought some of their patterns and habits with them. This is not to deny that their ways were changed by the teachings of Jesus as passed on by His commissioned Apostles. It is the New Covenant, after all. But this New Covenant is built upon the Old. The Old was, like John the Baptist, the forerunner for Jesus; he prepared the way for the Christ. When you graduate from school to enter the big wide world of experience, you notice the difference between the freedom of this new place compared with the restraint and supervision of your school days. But you don't forget the lessons you learnt there - after all, you were taught these things so you could use them to live well.
Let us be thankful that God used the Jewish people to prepare the way for Messiah and serve as an example for the Church to learn from. 'For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.' (Romans 15:4, NIV.) But if He began our blessing with them, He will also bring it to its conclusion, its maturity, with them. For it is written, 'For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?'
Praise God He is at work among His people Israel. He has broken down the middle wall of separation and made Jew and Gentile one in Yeshua HaMashiach, Jesus the Christ.
Shalom al-Yisrael; shalom al-Yerushalaim.
God bless.
Friday 19 July 2013
The Signs of His Coming
Christ in His famous 'Olivet Discourse' (Matthew 24-25; cf. Mark 13 and Luke 21) commanded His Disciples, 'Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming' (Matthew 24:42, NKJV).
There are a number of reasons for this. Firstly, since no one knows the exact time of His coming, we should be striving to live godly lives and to spread the Gospel to other people.
Life is short: it could end any moment, and when Christ returns He will judge the nations.
Secondly, for those who live through the times that precede His Coming (which in one sense is any time from the Ascension to the Second Coming), there are a number of dangers that they must face, and Christ in His goodness has warned us concerning them. Writers like David Pawson and Joel Richardson have for a long time been reminding Christians that one of the reasons to study eschatology (and Revelation in particular) is that this prepares one for persecution and martyrdom.
The Church throughout its history has been persecuted. In the West we are concerned about laws that prevent us from sharing the Gospel and may cost us our jobs or certain privileges. These are legitimate concerns and certainly amount to the beginning of persecution - we would be blind and foolish to ignore what one friend of mine, applying a verse from Scripture, termed 'the throne of the iniquity of the law'. But let us not forget that in China and the Islamic World Christians are facing the kind of persecution we associate with the Early Church: murder, execution by the state, imprisonment, slander, job-loss, ridicule - the list goes on. I encourage readers to become familiar with groups like Open Doors and to read books about persecution in China and the Islamic world (e.g. Secret Believers or The Heavenly Man). In the time just before Christ returns things will get worse in one form or another almost everywhere. I'm not saying there will be no spots of relative peace, but one shouldn't assume safety - forewarned is forearmed.
Below is a bullet-point list of signs Christ gave us to watch for. Christianity is not about rules and lists, but I thought this format might be useful for easier digestion and memorization.
I hope this is useful as a spur to watchfulness. It might be a good idea to think about each of these signs slowly and bring them before God in prayer - some may seem more relevant than others at this stage, but all will be fulfilled.
God bless.
There are a number of reasons for this. Firstly, since no one knows the exact time of His coming, we should be striving to live godly lives and to spread the Gospel to other people.
Life is short: it could end any moment, and when Christ returns He will judge the nations.
Secondly, for those who live through the times that precede His Coming (which in one sense is any time from the Ascension to the Second Coming), there are a number of dangers that they must face, and Christ in His goodness has warned us concerning them. Writers like David Pawson and Joel Richardson have for a long time been reminding Christians that one of the reasons to study eschatology (and Revelation in particular) is that this prepares one for persecution and martyrdom.
The Church throughout its history has been persecuted. In the West we are concerned about laws that prevent us from sharing the Gospel and may cost us our jobs or certain privileges. These are legitimate concerns and certainly amount to the beginning of persecution - we would be blind and foolish to ignore what one friend of mine, applying a verse from Scripture, termed 'the throne of the iniquity of the law'. But let us not forget that in China and the Islamic World Christians are facing the kind of persecution we associate with the Early Church: murder, execution by the state, imprisonment, slander, job-loss, ridicule - the list goes on. I encourage readers to become familiar with groups like Open Doors and to read books about persecution in China and the Islamic world (e.g. Secret Believers or The Heavenly Man). In the time just before Christ returns things will get worse in one form or another almost everywhere. I'm not saying there will be no spots of relative peace, but one shouldn't assume safety - forewarned is forearmed.
Below is a bullet-point list of signs Christ gave us to watch for. Christianity is not about rules and lists, but I thought this format might be useful for easier digestion and memorization.
- False Christs (including people who claim to literally be Jesus Himself)
- Wars and rumours of wars
- Famines, diseases, earthquakes
- Persecution of Christians
- Betrayal of Christians by other so-called 'Christians'
- False prophets & deceptive miracles
- Lawlessness, anarchy, chaos, violence
- The Abomination of Desolation in Israel
- Sun darkened, moon darkened, stars fall from sky
- Sign of the Son of Man (i.e. the real Jesus Christ)
- Jesus comes on the clouds in all his glory with His angels and saints
I hope this is useful as a spur to watchfulness. It might be a good idea to think about each of these signs slowly and bring them before God in prayer - some may seem more relevant than others at this stage, but all will be fulfilled.
God bless.
Tuesday 16 July 2013
The Reality of Christ's Second Coming
Those who know me well are aware of my interest in eschatology. Indeed, I believe it is an essential part of Christian teaching that deserves time in our study programmes along with other more traditional topics like prayer or living by faith. In today's post I'd like to think about the Second Coming as history.
That's a strange way to describe something still future, isn't it? The reason I use the term 'history' is because I want to emphasize the reality of this event. Sometimes I think we conceive of the Second Coming more as a mythological event than a real one. This is understandable: we do not know when exactly Christ will come, so we might think of His Coming as something that will happen after we die, in which case our perspective will be different anyway. Furthermore, His Coming will be glorious and He will 'restore all things' after the world has been through a terrible time of war, persecution, chaos, and judgement. Life as we know it will be indescribably different after Christ has returned and to some degree just prior to His arrival. Nevertheless, some people will be alive on earth to witness His arrival, and when He does come, far from being removed and ethereal, He will set up a perfect government and will commission His saints to rule on the earth with His authority.
We think of great events of the past as real, despite the fact that we were not alive to witness them. Few people my age would question the reality of Queen Victoria's Coronation or the Battle of Trafalgar, but we aren't even close to those events time-wise. Of course it's difficult to be sure about things still future to us, but Christ has promised that He will come again, and we know He is a man of His word. The historical record affirms that God keeps His promises - you only have to look at the miraculous preservation of the Jews and the Church throughout history to the present day.
In the meantime, how can we strengthen our hope and faith in His Second Coming? We can study His other promises to see how they have been faithfully kept by our Lord and God. We can study the prophetic parts of Scripture that speak of the Second Coming and the time just before it. We can pray. We can watch for the signs that Christ said would precede His arrival - I refer the reader to Matthew 24, otherwise known as the 'Olivet Discourse', as a good starting point.
God bless.
That's a strange way to describe something still future, isn't it? The reason I use the term 'history' is because I want to emphasize the reality of this event. Sometimes I think we conceive of the Second Coming more as a mythological event than a real one. This is understandable: we do not know when exactly Christ will come, so we might think of His Coming as something that will happen after we die, in which case our perspective will be different anyway. Furthermore, His Coming will be glorious and He will 'restore all things' after the world has been through a terrible time of war, persecution, chaos, and judgement. Life as we know it will be indescribably different after Christ has returned and to some degree just prior to His arrival. Nevertheless, some people will be alive on earth to witness His arrival, and when He does come, far from being removed and ethereal, He will set up a perfect government and will commission His saints to rule on the earth with His authority.
We think of great events of the past as real, despite the fact that we were not alive to witness them. Few people my age would question the reality of Queen Victoria's Coronation or the Battle of Trafalgar, but we aren't even close to those events time-wise. Of course it's difficult to be sure about things still future to us, but Christ has promised that He will come again, and we know He is a man of His word. The historical record affirms that God keeps His promises - you only have to look at the miraculous preservation of the Jews and the Church throughout history to the present day.
In the meantime, how can we strengthen our hope and faith in His Second Coming? We can study His other promises to see how they have been faithfully kept by our Lord and God. We can study the prophetic parts of Scripture that speak of the Second Coming and the time just before it. We can pray. We can watch for the signs that Christ said would precede His arrival - I refer the reader to Matthew 24, otherwise known as the 'Olivet Discourse', as a good starting point.
God bless.
Sunday 14 July 2013
The Holy Family
The other day as I was putting away plates in the kitchen a thought struck me: what was it like to live in Joseph and Mary's house? The Bible gives us some information on Jesus' childhood, but nothing like a full biography for the period.
I don't intend to speculate much in this post; rather, I'd like to emphasize the point that when Jesus 'took on flesh' He entered into history and lived a real life, just like you or I. Think about that for a moment. He had conversations with His parents; he talked to His siblings; He helped around the house; He learned Joseph's trade. Jesus is Jehovah God, the Almighty. The Almighty humbled Himself and lived the life of us mortals.
I know we talk about this a lot as Christians, but what struck me on this occasion, this little epiphany, was that Jesus was like us not only in the so-called 'big things', like temptation or suffering, but also in what we consider to be boring or insignificant, the Thursday evenings round the television.
I know that's peculiar language to use, and, of course, they didn't have televisions in those days, but I want to really hammer home this idea. We so often think of the great missionaries or the 'great sinners' as the people with whom Jesus identifies, be it through the Cross, Temptation, Ministry, or Persecution. This is undoubtedly true - but He also knows us as the family people, the quiet people, the 'ordinary' people. There is no part of life that Jesus hasn't touched.
He was, is, and always will be the God-Man. He is our Intercessor, our Great High Priest, the Second Adam. In short, He is the one who became like us because He cares for us.
Amen.
I don't intend to speculate much in this post; rather, I'd like to emphasize the point that when Jesus 'took on flesh' He entered into history and lived a real life, just like you or I. Think about that for a moment. He had conversations with His parents; he talked to His siblings; He helped around the house; He learned Joseph's trade. Jesus is Jehovah God, the Almighty. The Almighty humbled Himself and lived the life of us mortals.
I know we talk about this a lot as Christians, but what struck me on this occasion, this little epiphany, was that Jesus was like us not only in the so-called 'big things', like temptation or suffering, but also in what we consider to be boring or insignificant, the Thursday evenings round the television.
I know that's peculiar language to use, and, of course, they didn't have televisions in those days, but I want to really hammer home this idea. We so often think of the great missionaries or the 'great sinners' as the people with whom Jesus identifies, be it through the Cross, Temptation, Ministry, or Persecution. This is undoubtedly true - but He also knows us as the family people, the quiet people, the 'ordinary' people. There is no part of life that Jesus hasn't touched.
He was, is, and always will be the God-Man. He is our Intercessor, our Great High Priest, the Second Adam. In short, He is the one who became like us because He cares for us.
Amen.
Saturday 13 July 2013
Revenge
Have you noticed yourself getting angry when you see injustice in films and in the news? Does this happen to you often? If so, then this post is for you. To be honest and upfront, I find myself in this situation frequently these days, and I believe it is a matter for prayer. Christians often talk about 'righteous anger' and the difficulty in discerning whether we are experiencing it or not on a given occasion. Why is it difficult to discern whether this is the case? Because, 'The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?' (Jeremiah 17:9, KJV.)
Clearly the matter is tricky. On the one hand, anger at real injustice is a normal and valid reaction. On the other hand, we are guilty of self-deception if we believe we haven't sinned and of hypocrisy if we judge others while continuing to sin ourselves. I suggest, then, that part of the problem, part of what gives it intensity, is an inner, secret recognition of the fact that we ourselves are not perfect. Part of it is to do with patience and acceptance of God's authority in the matter, trusting Him to see that justice is finally met. 'Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.' (Romans 12:19, KJV.)
The Beloved Apostle, John, exhibited anger during the Lord's ministry. Passing through the territory of Samaria, a certain village refused to receive Jesus (though not all - He made many converts among the Samaritans). John and James became angry at this and asked Jesus, 'Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?' (Luke 9:54, ESV.) Jesus' reply was not what they expected: 'You do not know what manner of spirit you are of; for the Son of Man came not to destroy people’s lives but to save them' (Luke 9:55, ESV). It is this same John, who, after years of the Holy Spirit's work in his life, wrote, 'God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.' (1 John 4:16, NIV.)
We'd all like to see justice given on the spot, to see guilty people answer for their crimes, but where would we be then? In this life we'd have anarchy, danger as people carried out vendettas. In the next life, we'd all be in Hell. God is not like that. His Ark of the Covenant contained the Ten Commandments, by which we are all convicted of sin, but it was the Mercy Seat that rested on top. Be comforted: when Christ comes again He will usher in an age of justice. But in the meantime, see yourself in other people - why should they be punished, but you not? Understand your Father in Heaven: 'The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.' (2 Peter 3:9, KJV.)
God bless.
Clearly the matter is tricky. On the one hand, anger at real injustice is a normal and valid reaction. On the other hand, we are guilty of self-deception if we believe we haven't sinned and of hypocrisy if we judge others while continuing to sin ourselves. I suggest, then, that part of the problem, part of what gives it intensity, is an inner, secret recognition of the fact that we ourselves are not perfect. Part of it is to do with patience and acceptance of God's authority in the matter, trusting Him to see that justice is finally met. 'Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.' (Romans 12:19, KJV.)
The Beloved Apostle, John, exhibited anger during the Lord's ministry. Passing through the territory of Samaria, a certain village refused to receive Jesus (though not all - He made many converts among the Samaritans). John and James became angry at this and asked Jesus, 'Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?' (Luke 9:54, ESV.) Jesus' reply was not what they expected: 'You do not know what manner of spirit you are of; for the Son of Man came not to destroy people’s lives but to save them' (Luke 9:55, ESV). It is this same John, who, after years of the Holy Spirit's work in his life, wrote, 'God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.' (1 John 4:16, NIV.)
We'd all like to see justice given on the spot, to see guilty people answer for their crimes, but where would we be then? In this life we'd have anarchy, danger as people carried out vendettas. In the next life, we'd all be in Hell. God is not like that. His Ark of the Covenant contained the Ten Commandments, by which we are all convicted of sin, but it was the Mercy Seat that rested on top. Be comforted: when Christ comes again He will usher in an age of justice. But in the meantime, see yourself in other people - why should they be punished, but you not? Understand your Father in Heaven: 'The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.' (2 Peter 3:9, KJV.)
God bless.
Wednesday 10 July 2013
Why Jesus Came - Part 2
In my last post on this topic I emphasized the importance of Christ's sacrifice from the angle of sin and restoring relations between God and Man. This time I would like to think about Jesus' ministry as a model for Christians to follow.
When Jesus sent out the Twelve to preach the Kingdom of Heaven - I am referring to an occasion some time before His crucifixion - he gave them orders to do what He Himself had been doing: 'Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.' (Matthew 10:8, NKJV.) Some might say that this was a special occasion and does not serve as a model for subsequent generations to follow. Against this I would make two suggestions:
a) What purpose does the passage serve, if it is not a model for Christians to follow?
b) The Book of Acts and Church tradition say that the Disciples/Apostles went on doing these after the Ascension.
Often we want to discuss Jesus as a model for preaching or for reaching out to the marginalized in society. These are, of course, extremely important things and they speak of the Father's character. But we should not be afraid to say that Jesus is also our model for ministry according to the character, power, and grace of the Holy Spirit. Luke 5:17 (NKJV) says, 'Now it happened on a certain day, as He was teaching, that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.' In other words, Jesus healed by the Spirit of God.
Following his Resurrection, Jesus said, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.' (Matthew 28:18, NKJV). His is the 'name that is above all other names' (Philippians 2:9); He has authority to drive out demons, to heal the sick, to raise the dead and forgive sins. He has entrusted His authority to the Church, which serves Him as His Body on earth: He said to Peter, 'And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven', (Matthew 16:19, NKJV), and following His Resurrection He said of his disciples: 'And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.' (Mark 16:17-18, NKJV.)
Jesus is our model for so many things, but let us not forget that He is our model for ministering the miraculous grace of God to the oppressed in whatever form He sees fit. Remember, though, we must stick close to our model as Christ stuck close to His, the Father. Christ said: 'Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner."' (John 5:19, NKJV)
God bless.
When Jesus sent out the Twelve to preach the Kingdom of Heaven - I am referring to an occasion some time before His crucifixion - he gave them orders to do what He Himself had been doing: 'Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.' (Matthew 10:8, NKJV.) Some might say that this was a special occasion and does not serve as a model for subsequent generations to follow. Against this I would make two suggestions:
a) What purpose does the passage serve, if it is not a model for Christians to follow?
b) The Book of Acts and Church tradition say that the Disciples/Apostles went on doing these after the Ascension.
Often we want to discuss Jesus as a model for preaching or for reaching out to the marginalized in society. These are, of course, extremely important things and they speak of the Father's character. But we should not be afraid to say that Jesus is also our model for ministry according to the character, power, and grace of the Holy Spirit. Luke 5:17 (NKJV) says, 'Now it happened on a certain day, as He was teaching, that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.' In other words, Jesus healed by the Spirit of God.
Following his Resurrection, Jesus said, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.' (Matthew 28:18, NKJV). His is the 'name that is above all other names' (Philippians 2:9); He has authority to drive out demons, to heal the sick, to raise the dead and forgive sins. He has entrusted His authority to the Church, which serves Him as His Body on earth: He said to Peter, 'And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven', (Matthew 16:19, NKJV), and following His Resurrection He said of his disciples: 'And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.' (Mark 16:17-18, NKJV.)
Jesus is our model for so many things, but let us not forget that He is our model for ministering the miraculous grace of God to the oppressed in whatever form He sees fit. Remember, though, we must stick close to our model as Christ stuck close to His, the Father. Christ said: 'Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner."' (John 5:19, NKJV)
God bless.
Monday 8 July 2013
Service
The word 'servant' appears to have become unfashionable over the years. The reason may be that it has been used as a way to insult people, as in, 'you're just a servant!' This is extremely problematic for Christians because the Bible contains a very strong ideology of service that we need to understand and apply in our lives. I should say up front that I believe true service comes from the heart and is the work of the Holy Spirit, but a little reflection on the matter will hopefully be beneficial.
One of the counter-intuitive aspects of service is that it means authority. When the master asks his servant to do something, he has given that servant the authority to carry out the task (assuming the content of the order is within the master's own authority). For example, if my master asks me to clean his fireplace and another servant or member of the household comes in and asks me by what right or authority I am doing this, I may legitimately say, 'by my master's authority', and any objection may thus be referred to the master.
The consequence of this is that service also means protection for the servant so long as he acts within framework outlined by his master and the law. This is a very important point to remember: it means that the master is responsible for his servants and that the two parties are bound together. Furthermore, under the Mosaic Law and in the New Testament, believers are exhorted to treat their slaves/servants well, while servants are exhorted to treat their masters with respect, carrying out their duties as if they were done for Christ. (See Leviticus 25:39-46; Deuteronomy 15:12-18; Ephesians 6:5-9; Philemon.)
Thirdly, service is not to be denigrated. It is a humble station. Christ himself said, 'And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’”' (Luke 17:7-10, NKJV.) But if Christ had not taken on the nature of a servant and died on the Cross, we would all be destined for Hell. Christ has made holy and glorious the office of servant - when we truly put the will of God before our own, He values that.
To some extent this is an idealizing account that doesn't always work out this way in practice. Nor is it intended as a defense of slavery: it is right that slavery was abolished in so many parts of the world, and I hope that it is fully stamped out in the near future. Paul himself said that if it is possible for a slave to obtain his freedom, let him do so (1 Corinthians 7:21). But it is good to think about service and authority from a Biblical point of view because it affects so much of the Christian life, from caring for others to how one carries out one's job to exorcism, healing, and the other miracles of the Kingdom of Heaven. I'd like to end with this quotation from Philippians 2:4-11 (KJV):
'Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.
One of the counter-intuitive aspects of service is that it means authority. When the master asks his servant to do something, he has given that servant the authority to carry out the task (assuming the content of the order is within the master's own authority). For example, if my master asks me to clean his fireplace and another servant or member of the household comes in and asks me by what right or authority I am doing this, I may legitimately say, 'by my master's authority', and any objection may thus be referred to the master.
The consequence of this is that service also means protection for the servant so long as he acts within framework outlined by his master and the law. This is a very important point to remember: it means that the master is responsible for his servants and that the two parties are bound together. Furthermore, under the Mosaic Law and in the New Testament, believers are exhorted to treat their slaves/servants well, while servants are exhorted to treat their masters with respect, carrying out their duties as if they were done for Christ. (See Leviticus 25:39-46; Deuteronomy 15:12-18; Ephesians 6:5-9; Philemon.)
Thirdly, service is not to be denigrated. It is a humble station. Christ himself said, 'And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’”' (Luke 17:7-10, NKJV.) But if Christ had not taken on the nature of a servant and died on the Cross, we would all be destined for Hell. Christ has made holy and glorious the office of servant - when we truly put the will of God before our own, He values that.
To some extent this is an idealizing account that doesn't always work out this way in practice. Nor is it intended as a defense of slavery: it is right that slavery was abolished in so many parts of the world, and I hope that it is fully stamped out in the near future. Paul himself said that if it is possible for a slave to obtain his freedom, let him do so (1 Corinthians 7:21). But it is good to think about service and authority from a Biblical point of view because it affects so much of the Christian life, from caring for others to how one carries out one's job to exorcism, healing, and the other miracles of the Kingdom of Heaven. I'd like to end with this quotation from Philippians 2:4-11 (KJV):
'Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.'
God bless.
Sunday 7 July 2013
Kingdoms
Jesus said, 'My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.' (John 18:36, NIV.) Challenged by the recent developments in Egypt, many have been asking whether democracy is the best form of government. Furthermore, in Christian circles the role and nature of the Church in connection with government has long been discussed. It's not my intention here to present analysis of current events in the Middle East or to persuade the reader as to what form of government is best - I am still reflecting on these issues. Rather, I would like to highlight a number of factors that affect our assessment of government - be it within the Church or outside it.
1) The psychology of individuals and groups affects the governmental decisions they make. People often remark that 'absolute power corrupts absolutely' and assert that on this basis absolute power should never be entrusted to an individual. But what if the individual were free of sin? Should Jesus be denied His rightful kingship? Clearly in His case absolute power can be entrusted to a single man. A king or a parliament will make good or wicked decisions not simply because they can but because they want to.
2) History furnishes us with examples of kings and democracies and oligarchies functioning both well and badly. People cite Hitler as an example of someone wielding autocratic power with terrible results. Undoubtedly that was true, but we shouldn't forget the advisers who surrounded him or the people who voted for the Nazi party. Admittedly they were never a majority - but they were a significant part of the population. What about Henry VII? When he died he left Britain in an excellent position financially. It was democratic Athens that put Socrates to death.
3) The Bible provides a mixed picture of government for both Israel and the Church. On the one hand, monarchical power was wielded by the Kings; on the other hand, they were advised by elders and priests, whose advice they were free to accept or ignore. In the Church councils were held to decide certain matters (e.g. Acts 15), and it is clear from the Epistles that the Apostles expected their addressees to consider themselves brothers and to work together for each other's good. Christ's words concerning authority are eye-opening, and counter-intuitive from an earthly perspective. 'You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.' (Matthew 20:25-28, NKJV.)
I think sometimes we make too much fuss about the precise form of government. I am prone to this myself. I can understand why people feel there should be a legal mechanism to prevent rulers from abusing their power. But the danger here is that we overlook the spirit or character of man - law is an external thing, but the heart is what really determines choices.
Below is a list of questions I think it may be more appropriate to ask as an alternative to concerns about 'democracy' and 'freedom' in relation to government and justice.
-Is the government protecting the vulnerable members of society?
-Is the government making sure that the courts are functioning properly?
-Is the government meeting the country's emergency needs (e.g. natural disasters)?
-Are the government's relations with foreign governments healthy? (E.g. avoiding relations with known troublemakers.)
-Are the government's relations with business healthy (e.g. no bribes for granting contracts)?
May God grant you peace where you are in both the state and your heart. God bless.
1) The psychology of individuals and groups affects the governmental decisions they make. People often remark that 'absolute power corrupts absolutely' and assert that on this basis absolute power should never be entrusted to an individual. But what if the individual were free of sin? Should Jesus be denied His rightful kingship? Clearly in His case absolute power can be entrusted to a single man. A king or a parliament will make good or wicked decisions not simply because they can but because they want to.
2) History furnishes us with examples of kings and democracies and oligarchies functioning both well and badly. People cite Hitler as an example of someone wielding autocratic power with terrible results. Undoubtedly that was true, but we shouldn't forget the advisers who surrounded him or the people who voted for the Nazi party. Admittedly they were never a majority - but they were a significant part of the population. What about Henry VII? When he died he left Britain in an excellent position financially. It was democratic Athens that put Socrates to death.
3) The Bible provides a mixed picture of government for both Israel and the Church. On the one hand, monarchical power was wielded by the Kings; on the other hand, they were advised by elders and priests, whose advice they were free to accept or ignore. In the Church councils were held to decide certain matters (e.g. Acts 15), and it is clear from the Epistles that the Apostles expected their addressees to consider themselves brothers and to work together for each other's good. Christ's words concerning authority are eye-opening, and counter-intuitive from an earthly perspective. 'You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.' (Matthew 20:25-28, NKJV.)
I think sometimes we make too much fuss about the precise form of government. I am prone to this myself. I can understand why people feel there should be a legal mechanism to prevent rulers from abusing their power. But the danger here is that we overlook the spirit or character of man - law is an external thing, but the heart is what really determines choices.
Below is a list of questions I think it may be more appropriate to ask as an alternative to concerns about 'democracy' and 'freedom' in relation to government and justice.
-Is the government protecting the vulnerable members of society?
-Is the government making sure that the courts are functioning properly?
-Is the government meeting the country's emergency needs (e.g. natural disasters)?
-Are the government's relations with foreign governments healthy? (E.g. avoiding relations with known troublemakers.)
-Are the government's relations with business healthy (e.g. no bribes for granting contracts)?
May God grant you peace where you are in both the state and your heart. God bless.
Monday 24 June 2013
Justice
Today I thought I'd make a comment about justice. I have recently been re-watching Batman: The Animated Series, an old childhood favourite of mine. As I was watching it, a thought occurred to me. Why do people find such stories attractive? There are many reasons, of course. Mark Hamill's superb acting as the Joker is one excellent reason for watching the show, but the thought that immediately struck me was Batman's connection with justice. Justice is a complex issue, as anyone who has read Plato's Republic can affirm. What I am getting at here is a basic desire to see wrongdoing punished, to see the victims vindicated, to see damage repaired, and protection guaranteed for the future. Batman is built on the basic assumption that something is wrong with the world: the hero would have no villains to fight, no raison d'être, unless there already existed some uncontrollable urge in humanity to do what is evil.
But it doesn't stop with the hero: what makes Batman and other similar comics so interesting is the ability to empathize with the villains also. They too are often trying to correct some injustice. Revenge is often their motive, and more than once they ask Batman what the difference is between him and them. It's not my intention to argue the rights and wrongs of vigilantism here; rather, I wish to highlight the close connection between psychology and justice as a motif in art and literature. In the West, Christians often talk about Christ's Crucifixion in a legal framework, following the Apostle Paul. We talk of sin, and that is understood to mean 'crime'; the sin/crime deserves to be punished and Christ takes the punishment that we deserve. Thus Christ's sacrifice is presented as meeting the requirements of justice, with God as the Judge and injured party, and humanity as the wrongdoers. This is not the only way of talking about the Crucifixion and what it means, but I would like to suggest that it is an important and powerful one because of the place justice occupies in the human condition and psyche, as seen in our artistic expression.
I do not mean that our psychology creates this interpretation of the Cross. It is objectively true that Christ died for the sins of humanity, whether we see it this way or not. What I am saying is that God built into us a sense of justice, a remembrance of the way things were and should be - there is no getting away from Eden. Fallen as we are, we still have a conscience, something that bears witness against the evil we do, against the current state of the world. It fills us with a longing for Paradise and points us back towards God.
Do you cry out for justice? Turn to Christ.
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:6, NIV)
God bless.
But it doesn't stop with the hero: what makes Batman and other similar comics so interesting is the ability to empathize with the villains also. They too are often trying to correct some injustice. Revenge is often their motive, and more than once they ask Batman what the difference is between him and them. It's not my intention to argue the rights and wrongs of vigilantism here; rather, I wish to highlight the close connection between psychology and justice as a motif in art and literature. In the West, Christians often talk about Christ's Crucifixion in a legal framework, following the Apostle Paul. We talk of sin, and that is understood to mean 'crime'; the sin/crime deserves to be punished and Christ takes the punishment that we deserve. Thus Christ's sacrifice is presented as meeting the requirements of justice, with God as the Judge and injured party, and humanity as the wrongdoers. This is not the only way of talking about the Crucifixion and what it means, but I would like to suggest that it is an important and powerful one because of the place justice occupies in the human condition and psyche, as seen in our artistic expression.
I do not mean that our psychology creates this interpretation of the Cross. It is objectively true that Christ died for the sins of humanity, whether we see it this way or not. What I am saying is that God built into us a sense of justice, a remembrance of the way things were and should be - there is no getting away from Eden. Fallen as we are, we still have a conscience, something that bears witness against the evil we do, against the current state of the world. It fills us with a longing for Paradise and points us back towards God.
Do you cry out for justice? Turn to Christ.
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:6, NIV)
God bless.
Friday 21 June 2013
Things In Common
One of the many blessings and challenges I have received during my time at university is meeting Christians from other denominations. I would describe myself as a 'non-denominational' Christian, but I do fall roughly within a Protestant framework. Often when talking with someone about a doctrinal matter, one easily forgets the things both people have in common. While I am skeptical of the Ecumenical Movement, and don't believe one can cover up major differences between the denominations, I do believe it is important for all Christians to remember the things we have in common, especially at this time when there are so many religious, philosophical, and moral challenges to our faith.
Below is a list of things I believe my Catholic and Orthodox friends would share in common with me, a Protestant:
-Jesus is the Son of God and the Son of Man - fully human and fully God - He was crucified to reconcile us to God and He was raised from the dead three days later as a sign of His victory and His promise to give everlasting life to all who believe in Him (John 3:16)
-the importance of the Bible in discovering who God is, what He has done in history, and what His will for our lives is
-the importance of confession to God when our conscience and the Holy Spirit prompts us concerning sin
-the need to exercise our free will in our relationship with God; He won't make our choices for us
-the sanctity of the Eucharist
-the love of God for all people and the desire of God for all people to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9)
-the need for a Christian to frequently meet with other Christians for prayer, encouragement and correction, and worship (Hebrews 10:24-25)
-Christ has promised to come again and will - at that time the dead will be raised to life, and He will judge the nations (Matthew 24-25)
-the importance of prayer in the life of the Christian
-the importance of the work of the Holy Spirit in the personal and corporate lives of Christians (John 3, 15-17; 1 Corinthians 12-14)
-the need to share the Gospel of Jesus' Crucifixion, Resurrection, and Ascension with all people, regardless of background
-the need to avoid and expose syncretism and compromise in the presentation of the Gospel
-the need to show love to others and respect their free will
More could be said here, but I hope I have shown that the Holy Spirit's work in all true believers has not fallen by the wayside - he is bringing us to the 'unity of the Faith' longed for by the Apostle Paul - but what that unity looks like does not always conform to our expectations.
God bless.
Below is a list of things I believe my Catholic and Orthodox friends would share in common with me, a Protestant:
-Jesus is the Son of God and the Son of Man - fully human and fully God - He was crucified to reconcile us to God and He was raised from the dead three days later as a sign of His victory and His promise to give everlasting life to all who believe in Him (John 3:16)
-the importance of the Bible in discovering who God is, what He has done in history, and what His will for our lives is
-the importance of confession to God when our conscience and the Holy Spirit prompts us concerning sin
-the need to exercise our free will in our relationship with God; He won't make our choices for us
-the sanctity of the Eucharist
-the love of God for all people and the desire of God for all people to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9)
-the need for a Christian to frequently meet with other Christians for prayer, encouragement and correction, and worship (Hebrews 10:24-25)
-Christ has promised to come again and will - at that time the dead will be raised to life, and He will judge the nations (Matthew 24-25)
-the importance of prayer in the life of the Christian
-the importance of the work of the Holy Spirit in the personal and corporate lives of Christians (John 3, 15-17; 1 Corinthians 12-14)
-the need to share the Gospel of Jesus' Crucifixion, Resurrection, and Ascension with all people, regardless of background
-the need to avoid and expose syncretism and compromise in the presentation of the Gospel
-the need to show love to others and respect their free will
More could be said here, but I hope I have shown that the Holy Spirit's work in all true believers has not fallen by the wayside - he is bringing us to the 'unity of the Faith' longed for by the Apostle Paul - but what that unity looks like does not always conform to our expectations.
God bless.
Sunday 9 June 2013
The Whole Counsel of God
'For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God..' (Acts 20:27, NKJV)
These words were spoken by the Apostle Paul to the elders of the church at Ephesus when he was returning to Jerusalem, where it was prophesied he would be taken prisoner. This speech was a final address of sorts. He said to them, 'And indeed, now I know that you all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, will see my face no more' (Acts 20:25, NKJV). Paul was concerned that the Ephesian church must be prepared to weather all the trials and challenges of the future, and so it needed to be established in all of God's truth and have the courage and endurance to remain true to it.
Some time ago I was asked to lead a Bible-study at my home-church. At the time I was reading Acts and I came across this passage. I use a study-Bible for my daily readings and there was a passage written by one of the editors regarding this point. It emphasized the need for pastors to cover in time a wide array of topics from the Bible. This really struck me and I decided to make the point that it is also incumbent on all believers to address our blind-spots. For example, in Britain talking about money is often awkward, so we mind not tackle it so often in our private study.
Below is a non-exhaustive list of topics for study. This is offered merely as a way of drawing attention to things one might have overlooked and is not suggested as a stringent programme to be slavishly followed.
-God's character
-the Trinity
-salvation
-the work of the Holy Spirit
-the gifts of the Holy Spirit
-the fruit of the Holy Spirit
-prophecy
-the Second Coming
-money
-Biblical history
-Old Testament types of Christ
-the Church
-the Kingdom of Heaven
-parables
-prayer
-legalism
-deliverance & demons
-healing
-repentance and confession
-marriage & family
-sexual ethics
-evangelism & outreach
-idolatry
-other religions
I would like to end by saying we should all seek God's will and prompting in this. If He puts it on your heart to explore some part of His Word, follow Him.
God bless.
These words were spoken by the Apostle Paul to the elders of the church at Ephesus when he was returning to Jerusalem, where it was prophesied he would be taken prisoner. This speech was a final address of sorts. He said to them, 'And indeed, now I know that you all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, will see my face no more' (Acts 20:25, NKJV). Paul was concerned that the Ephesian church must be prepared to weather all the trials and challenges of the future, and so it needed to be established in all of God's truth and have the courage and endurance to remain true to it.
Some time ago I was asked to lead a Bible-study at my home-church. At the time I was reading Acts and I came across this passage. I use a study-Bible for my daily readings and there was a passage written by one of the editors regarding this point. It emphasized the need for pastors to cover in time a wide array of topics from the Bible. This really struck me and I decided to make the point that it is also incumbent on all believers to address our blind-spots. For example, in Britain talking about money is often awkward, so we mind not tackle it so often in our private study.
Below is a non-exhaustive list of topics for study. This is offered merely as a way of drawing attention to things one might have overlooked and is not suggested as a stringent programme to be slavishly followed.
-God's character
-the Trinity
-salvation
-the work of the Holy Spirit
-the gifts of the Holy Spirit
-the fruit of the Holy Spirit
-prophecy
-the Second Coming
-money
-Biblical history
-Old Testament types of Christ
-the Church
-the Kingdom of Heaven
-parables
-prayer
-legalism
-deliverance & demons
-healing
-repentance and confession
-marriage & family
-sexual ethics
-evangelism & outreach
-idolatry
-other religions
I would like to end by saying we should all seek God's will and prompting in this. If He puts it on your heart to explore some part of His Word, follow Him.
God bless.
Saturday 8 June 2013
Studying the Bible
In my last post I emphasized the guidance of the Holy Spirit, who helps us to understand the Bible. In this post I would like to give some practical advice to help readers really engage with the Bible.
One of the first things I would recommend is getting a Bible with good cross references and marginal notes. The New Testament is built upon the Old Testament, and a lot of it won't make sense unless the reader is familiar with the relevant Old Testament passages. Here's an example to demonstrate my point: in Luke 4 Jesus reads from the Book of Isaiah, specifically a passage prophesying the healing ministry of the Messiah, and He applies it to Himself, telling the synagogue that the passage is fulfilled in their hearing (i.e. at that very time). But if one consults the passage in Isaiah, one finds that Jesus stopped half-way through a sentence, the rest of which reads:
'And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn,
3 To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.' (Isaiah 61:2-3, NKJV)
One of the first things I would recommend is getting a Bible with good cross references and marginal notes. The New Testament is built upon the Old Testament, and a lot of it won't make sense unless the reader is familiar with the relevant Old Testament passages. Here's an example to demonstrate my point: in Luke 4 Jesus reads from the Book of Isaiah, specifically a passage prophesying the healing ministry of the Messiah, and He applies it to Himself, telling the synagogue that the passage is fulfilled in their hearing (i.e. at that very time). But if one consults the passage in Isaiah, one finds that Jesus stopped half-way through a sentence, the rest of which reads:
'And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn,
3 To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.' (Isaiah 61:2-3, NKJV)
The implication is that Jesus would fulfill the rest of the passage, but not at that time. In other words, Jesus will at some point in the future execute the vengeance of God upon the enemies of God's people. Only by consulting the passage in Isaiah would one pick this up. The Bible is meant to be read holistically: it is meant to be searched and its various parts brought together.
It follows from this that one needs to read the whole Bible, and not just parts. When I became a Christian and got my own Bible, I came across the common practice of reading the whole Bible in a year and I did so. This can be an extremely useful thing to do as it reveals different aspects of God's plan and His dealings with mankind and the angels, and it gives the reader a better grasp of the overall sequence of Biblical history. I would suggest that someone who has just become a Christian start in the New Testament; but once a certain amount of familiarity with it has been attained, it makes sense to have a look at the Old Testament. One doesn't need to read the Bible in the space of a year: it's good to meditate on God's Word. But a specific reading plan is very helpful for making sure one reads the whole Bible.
Having a good grasp of grammar is essential for studying the Bible. If one finds a tough passage, it's better to take one's time and go through it step-by-step, rather than rushing on to read the rest of the chapter. People can go too far with this, and I confess I have often done so because my education has trained me for close-reading of texts. Nevertheless, I am glad that I have been trained as a classicist because my knowledge of Greek has helped me engage a great deal more with the New Testament and Septuagint translation of the Old Testament. I realize of course that we don't all have the time and opportunity to learn Greek, but consulting a good concordance or textbook concerning key vocabulary and concepts will help in grasping some of the finer points of Scripture.
Concordances, commentaries, timelines, and interlinear Bibles are all helpful, but they are not a substitute for prayer. Perspective is important.
I highly recommend this website: http://biblehub.com/
There's a great deal on here and it's easy to get lost, but it's worth exploring, and is very useful for people who have a solid foundation in the Scriptures and want to build on it.
'The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
But fools despise wisdom and instruction.' (Proverbs 1:7, NKJV)
But fools despise wisdom and instruction.' (Proverbs 1:7, NKJV)
God bless.
Thursday 6 June 2013
Introduction to the Bible
The Bible plays a central role in the life of Christians. We believe that it is a gift of God to us: it tells us about who He is and who we are; it gives us comfort and guidance in times of need; it proclaims the Truth of Jesus Christ as a witness in the world. We believe that the Bible is without error, was written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and contains the guidance we need for knowing God and living a life pleasing to Him.
However, understanding the Bible requires the help of the Holy Spirit. Jesus says of the holy Spirit, 'I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority,but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.' (John 16:12-15, NKJV.)
Earlier Jesus had said, 'If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.' (John 14:15-18, NKJV.) A couple of points need to be drawn from this: the world - that is, non-believers - cannot receive the Spirit of truth. This is not to say that the Holy Spirit is not at work around non-believers; I believe it is His ministry that softens people's hearts to help them become believers (see Jesus' words about being 'born again' at John 3:1-21). But it does mean that the Holy Spirit is the one who leads people to the truth. Only by becoming a believer and receiving the promised Holy Spirit will you be able to truly understand the Bible. The Apostle Paul says, 'But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.' (1 Corinthians 2:14, NKJV.)
When Jesus stood before the Roman procurator, Pontius Pilate, Pilate asked Jesus, 'What is truth?' (John 18:38, NKJV.) The answer was standing right in front of him. Jesus had said to His disciples earlier, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.' (John 14:6, NKJV.) Jesus is the truth; if truth is what you really seek, then you will find Jesus. How the Lord speaks to someone is of course up to Him; but the Bible is one of the ways He uses. If you seek the truth, if you seek God, search for Him diligently. 'Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.' (Matthew 7:7-8, NKJV.)
Lastly, I would like to say a few words about the structure of the Bible to help anyone who is new to it to find their way around. The first five books, known as the Pentateuch or Torah contain the history of God's relationship with Man and His people Israel from the time of Man's creation to the time of Moses. A number of passages, and all of Leviticus, are laws that God gave to the Israelites to live by, which is why these five books are known as the Law. The books of Joshua to Esther contain the history of Israel from the time of Joshua, who succeeded Moses to the return of Israel to their land after their captivity in the Babylonian Empire. Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes are books about life and wisdom, while the Psalms are songs (poetry) in praise of God and reflecting on life and relationships with Him. The Song of Solomon/Song of Songs is a love song. Isaiah to Malachi are prophetic books: these are contain a variety of messages and predictions, some already fulfilled, others awaiting fulfillment They deal with God's relationship with Israel and mankind, and they reflect the promise of a time when God will be reconciled with Man and all things will be restored. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (the Gospels) are accounts of Jesus' life: they contain many of His teachings, records of how He fulfilled the promises of God predicted by the Prophets, and stories that show His life - the life of God and Man - how he wept, became angry, and rejoiced. The Epistles or letters (Romans to Jude) are letters written by early Christian leaders to the Church. Revelation is about the Second Coming of Jesus and the establishment of His Kingdom in glory - the book ends on the high note of God's desire fulfilled, that he should live among mankind and that the two would know and love each other perfectly.
Search for Jesus in the Scriptures.
God bless.
However, understanding the Bible requires the help of the Holy Spirit. Jesus says of the holy Spirit, 'I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority,but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.' (John 16:12-15, NKJV.)
Earlier Jesus had said, 'If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.' (John 14:15-18, NKJV.) A couple of points need to be drawn from this: the world - that is, non-believers - cannot receive the Spirit of truth. This is not to say that the Holy Spirit is not at work around non-believers; I believe it is His ministry that softens people's hearts to help them become believers (see Jesus' words about being 'born again' at John 3:1-21). But it does mean that the Holy Spirit is the one who leads people to the truth. Only by becoming a believer and receiving the promised Holy Spirit will you be able to truly understand the Bible. The Apostle Paul says, 'But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.' (1 Corinthians 2:14, NKJV.)
When Jesus stood before the Roman procurator, Pontius Pilate, Pilate asked Jesus, 'What is truth?' (John 18:38, NKJV.) The answer was standing right in front of him. Jesus had said to His disciples earlier, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.' (John 14:6, NKJV.) Jesus is the truth; if truth is what you really seek, then you will find Jesus. How the Lord speaks to someone is of course up to Him; but the Bible is one of the ways He uses. If you seek the truth, if you seek God, search for Him diligently. 'Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.' (Matthew 7:7-8, NKJV.)
Lastly, I would like to say a few words about the structure of the Bible to help anyone who is new to it to find their way around. The first five books, known as the Pentateuch or Torah contain the history of God's relationship with Man and His people Israel from the time of Man's creation to the time of Moses. A number of passages, and all of Leviticus, are laws that God gave to the Israelites to live by, which is why these five books are known as the Law. The books of Joshua to Esther contain the history of Israel from the time of Joshua, who succeeded Moses to the return of Israel to their land after their captivity in the Babylonian Empire. Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes are books about life and wisdom, while the Psalms are songs (poetry) in praise of God and reflecting on life and relationships with Him. The Song of Solomon/Song of Songs is a love song. Isaiah to Malachi are prophetic books: these are contain a variety of messages and predictions, some already fulfilled, others awaiting fulfillment They deal with God's relationship with Israel and mankind, and they reflect the promise of a time when God will be reconciled with Man and all things will be restored. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (the Gospels) are accounts of Jesus' life: they contain many of His teachings, records of how He fulfilled the promises of God predicted by the Prophets, and stories that show His life - the life of God and Man - how he wept, became angry, and rejoiced. The Epistles or letters (Romans to Jude) are letters written by early Christian leaders to the Church. Revelation is about the Second Coming of Jesus and the establishment of His Kingdom in glory - the book ends on the high note of God's desire fulfilled, that he should live among mankind and that the two would know and love each other perfectly.
Search for Jesus in the Scriptures.
God bless.
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