God Be With You

I've often wondered why the Apostle John limited what he wrote about the Lord Jesus. What might he have said if he were recording the events of Jesus' life in the form of a blog? Would he have posted his words daily or weekly and for years? Limited as he was, this is what he wrote at the end of his Gospel.

This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true. Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. - Jhn 21:24-25 ESV

What were those "many other things that Jesus did"? Will we ever know? Obviously not—at least not in this age. And what does he mean when he says that "Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written"? Perhaps he wants us to realize that He has and continues to fill all creation with His wondrous deeds.

With those words before me I am announcing that I am ceasing to add my thoughts about Jesus' deeds and what they mean—at least for now. I've written this blog now for just short of seven years. I've posted 836 times and witnessed 92,676 page views (so Google tells me). How many actually read what I have written I shall never know.

But I am weary—and currently am very much too busy tending the flock I've been given in Tomball, TX., the flock that is busy seeking a new pastor. And in the interim I'm overseeing them and joining them in their prayers.

Perhaps the next time I take up this blogging business it will be in the form of some new blog, with a new purpose or direction. Meanwhile if you stumble across this page, accept my thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to read my words. And above all know that I am also thankful to have made a tiny, tiny contribution to the strengthening of your and others' faith in our beloved Lord Jesus.

God bless and keep you.

—Al

Faith Alone Is What Pleases God

We looked at Cain and Abel last time. We now pick up a mysterious person about whom we know very, very little. His name is Enoch. His name means dedicated one. Indeed he was. Jude tells us that he was the seventh from Adam and proclaimed the Lord's coming to judge unbelievers.

It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, "Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, —Jude 1:14 ESV

Jude does not record his source of this information. Jewish commentators have much to say about this righteous man who was supposed to have gathered a large congregation of disciples. Some even called him their king. Under his wisdom, peace was said to have reigned on earth. But all this appears to be speculation. As far as Scriptures are concerned we only know what Hebrews says.

By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God.

And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.—Hebrews 11:5-6 ESV

The sentence about pleasing God is critical, for so many of us want to please God without faith, particularly without the kind of personal trust in Him and His promises. Such faith is a gift, completely unearned. It is a gift of God's Holy Spirit given, sustained and strengthened by God's Word, as the Apostle Paul teaches.

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

And again,

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart." Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. - 1Cor 1:18-24 ESV 

If you, my reader, have a friend or family member for whom you are praying, please remember this important fact. You cannot give him or her faith. You cannot convince him to seek Christ by shouting at him about the terrors of hell. You cannot argue that Christ is real and thus bring about faith. Faith is God's gift given through God's Word. Your task then is to invite and encourage him or her to read and study God's Word. And then pray and wait. God's Spirit will do the good work.

In turn, do you tell yourself that you have no need to hear, meditate upon and ponder God's Word? Beware, for this is a grave temptation of the devil. He would love to choke out the Word with the worries and temptations of this world. Remember that your heart is ever too willing to cooperate with that dark angel. Listen to the Apostle Peter and get back into the Word.

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation-- if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. - 1Pet 2:1-5 ESV

Long, long ago Enoch gave himself to that Word. His life was filled with the peace that comes from trusting in that Word. In His unlimited wisdom the LORD took Enoch with Him to heaven. We have not that immediate promise. We each have our earthly journey to complete. However, we are assured that when we put our faith in the LORD's mercy and forgiveness revealed in Christ we will indeed join Enoch and all the saints in the glory of that world to come.

Making The Good Confession

This week we're considering American civil religion , a phrase coined to describe the unique role that religion plays in America. The question before us is how does a committed Christian bear witness to his faith in that pluralistic context, how does he make the good confession?

The Apostle Paul writes the following words to young pastor Timothy about his calling to bear witness to his faith in our Lord Jesus Christ as his one and only Savior.

Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ . . . - 1Tim 6:12-14 ESV

Note the phrase the good confession used twice by the Apostle. What is that? Paul explains what he means by referring to the Apostle John's record of what happened when Jesus was tried by Pontius Pilate, Prefect of the Roman province of Judea, after the Jews accused Jesus of doing evil by claiming to be the Jewish Messiah, i.e. king of the Jews (John 18-19). Pilate told them to make their own judgments. He didn't want to be involved. However, they said Jesus deserved to die because of his claims. Since Roman law forbad them from carrying out capital punishment, they wanted Pilate to do it. This led Pilate to call Jesus to stand for a trial before him.

So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” 

Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?”   

Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?”   

Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” 

Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” 

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” 

Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”

After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I find no guilt in him." - John 18:33-38 ESV

Jesus openly accepted the title of 'king' before Pilate. This was why he was born. This was why he came into the world. But—and this is critical—his kingdom was not of this world. Here we come smack up against the Jesus' teaching of the two kingdoms. I wrote in detail about this in a series of blogs last August:

• Let Us Start To Talk About The Two Kingdoms 
• The Authority Of Secular Government
• Thank God For Good Government

As noted, Jesus was a king, but not a worldly king. However, Pilate was, with authority ultimately derived from above, from God (John 19:11). Jesus teaches that good governments must be respected. Good governments are God's gifts to preserve order and justice in a world that is ultimately under the rule of Satan, the god of this world (John 12:31,14:30; 2 Cor. 4:4).

Pilate at that moment represented such a government of law and order. The Jewish Sanhedrin on the other hand was operating contrary to its own nation's laws. The members of that worldly government—for that is what it was—were driven by greed, a desire for personal power, wealth and hate. As such Jesus' servants would be within their rights to resist that government's decisions, even with force if necessary.

So we come again to the question of how does a Christian make the good confession in a two-kingdoms world, a world that defies and despises Christ? Christ's followers are ever to bear witness to their faith in Jesus, the Christ, just as Jesus told his disciples after his resurrection.

Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. - Luk 24:45-48 ESV

The Apostle Peter encourages us in the same way.

. . . in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, - 1Pe 3:15 ESV

But how do we do that in a pluralistic country like the United States where believers and unbelievers are mixed? Certainly we believers are prepared to work hand in hand with unbelievers to maintain the good and oppose moral evils such as drug abuse, abortion, euthanasia, pornography, child abuse and many other deviant sexual behaviors. There is, after all, such a thing as "civil righteousness," based upon the natural knowledge of God that comes through conscience and human reason. Civil righteousness recognizes the importance of obeying parents and rulers, honoring marriage, protecting all from harm and murder, and punishing those who steal and rob. We Christians join with unbelievers to promote and sustain such righteous acts.

Further we offer prayer for the well being of all, for our rulers and legislators, police and armed forces and all in authority. We even pray for our enemies. And we pray outside the context of the fellowship of believers. As we pray, we make it plain that we pray to the one true God. We confess openly that there is none other even as we pray.

However, there are times and contexts outside the fellowship of believers when public prayer may not be appropriate. More about that next time.

How To Heap Burning Coals On Your Enemy

I continue to ask, Will our children have faith?

It happens, even among pastors, the spiritual leaders of Christian communities of faith. What happens? Pride and self-aggrandizement. This is why Pastor W insisted that he alone knew what was best for the congregation. They would have a new form of what he called contemporary worship. From his observation and experience this was the only way to reach the youth of the community. His was to be the only way to keep them with the church. The church needed to get past its outmoded fascination with old and outdated liturgical traditions of the past. It must become modern and contemporary with an ever changing world.

So Pastor W threw his weight around. He did not listen to the leaders and elders of his congregation. He did not consult with other pastors in the region. He simply did it! And when twenty families finally walked out in protest—some major, long-time members of the church—Pastor W simply shrugged. That was their choice. He and his followers were moving forward to educate, encourage and train the next generation and to reach out to those outside the congregation's fellowship.

In my previous post I emphasized the importance of living within a community of faith so that our faith in the Risen Christ might be passed on to our children. What I did not say was that within that community there is often conflict, confusion and quarreling about how to do just that. The decades old worship wars within the Christian community give evidence of the same. The Apostle Paul anticipated that in his guidance given to the churches in and around Rome. Though he wrote that "we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another," he also pointed to a long list of failures to bear witness to Christ's love within that body. Here's a brief summary:

• demanding that we adjust our values in order to relate to the world around us
• emphasizing individual rights by insisting that I know what is best! 
• refusing to use the gifts God has given in service of my community of faith
• pretending to care for and love others, with a hidden agenda of gaining personal glory and influence
• outright, obvious and open laziness
• slandering those who slander you
• spreading gossip about any and all who disagree with your personal viewpoint

This list goes on and on. Take another look at what Paul writes in Romans 12:1-21. He knew and wrote about the challenges we all face when living together in community. We carry our sinful natures along with us. His final advice:

Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." To the contrary, "if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head" (Prov. 25:21-22). Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. - Rom 12:19-21 ESV

Heaping Burning Coals? 

by Lois Tverberg - OurRabbiJesus.com

What's the deal about heaping burning coals on his head? Sure sounds like a cruel, even malicious way of getting even. Why appeal to such desires? How in all the world is this a way of witnessing to our children about the love of Christ the Lord? Dr. Lois Tverberg explains:

The picture of putting coals on a person's head initially sounds like a picture of causing burning pain, but it really is not. Instead, it seems to be a picture of stirring up the coals of a fire to rouse it back to life again. It is a picture of stirring within a person a response of remorse, when they see your kindness in the face of their meanness. This must also be the sense of Paul's passage - we cause our enemies to be remorseful for their actions toward us, and in doing so we overcome evil by doing good.

Another example of why living together in community is critical to the task of passing on the faith to the next generation.