The Spirit Blows Where He Will

For these past two weeks I've posted studies on spiritual gifts, based upon Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4 and 1 Peter 4. Today I'd like to pull these studies together with a brief summary. This is, of course, only a small part of what could be said about this important part of life in the Christian community.

In speaking about spiritual gifts it is easy to overlook what the Bible teaches about the Holy Spirit and the work of the Spirit. It is easier to focus upon the recipients of the Spirit's gifts by fashioning various inventories and questionnaires so that the congregation can help members identify their gifts, put these members to work in order to grow in numbers and influence. Nowhere in any of the four texts examined are there any instructions given by the Apostles to carry on such a practice. Why not?

The answer to that question is found in the very nature of these inventories. Members are encouraged to look internally at their own experiences and feelings. Here are some questions from one such spiritual gifts discovery tool I found online:

1. I am successful at getting a group to do its work joyfully. 
2. I enjoy making something that is artistically appealing.
3. I can readily sense when someone is promoting God’s purposes or their own personal agenda.
4. I look for occasions to share what Jesus means to me with unchurched friends and neighbors.
5. I welcome opportunities to minister to people who need comfort, consolation, encouragement, and counseling.
6. I see life as an adventure and am not afraid to take risks if it moves God's work forward.
7. I have a real hunger for seeing others spending time together in the Word and in prayer.
8. Without hesitation, I give generously and freely to worthwhile projects and ministries.
9. I count it a privilege to relieve someone in a responsible position of some small task, so that they may attend to more important things.
10. I truly feel that the needs and well-being of others are more important than my own.

Note the emphasis upon 'I' this and 'I' that. I am successful, I enjoy, I sense, I look, I welcome, I see, I have a real hunger, I give, I count it a privilege, I truly feel, etc. Such an emphasis leads us away from the Word of God and from the Spirit speaking directly to our hearts from that Word. Instead we are encouraged to focus upon my experiences, my feelings, my viewpoints, my giving, my senses, etc.

Further, in the discussions of spiritual gifts, we are told that these are different from creaturely or natural gifts. So we are led to believe that the Holy Spirit only wants us to focus upon our spiritual gifts, for these are not the same as our natural gifts. So some would point out that a reborn and truly spiritual Christian will always speak in tongues. In this way, there are two types of Christians, e.g. believers and Spirit filled or born again believers. In that connection it is important to note that in those Scripture verses that speak about disciples being filled with the Spirit nothing is said to indicate that this filling is a permanent and continued gift. In other words, we do not own or control the Spirit. He blows when and where He will (Acts 2:4, 4:8,31; John 3:8). 

Above all the Scripture teaches that everything is by God's grace. The Spirit working in God's Word teaches that everything comes down from the Father as God's wondrous and unmerited gift. Our whole lives, our bodies, our personalities, our intellectual abilities, our artistic talents, our athletic skills, our powers of perception—everything we have and are has been redeemed by Christ and given to us. As Paul says,

What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it? - 1 Cor 4:7 ESV

 All this we offer back to God in praise and worship as a living sacrifice. 

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice--the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. - Rom. 12:1 NLT

What the Spirit also teaches is that not only are we redeemed by Christ, we are members of his body. We are part of that community, that wondrous and varied body of believers in whom the Holy Spirit dwells. Speaking to the entire community in Corinth, Paul writes 

Do you not know that you (plural) are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? - 1 Cor 3:16 ESV

 So it is that we are the temple of God and the body of Christ and individually members one of the other. Each is important and each is God's gift to the other. So God intends that each of us is a gift to the other members of the body. Our unique personalities, experiences, gifts, abilities, talents and vocations are gifts of God through which God blesses others. Thus if I am a father, I have the calling to care for my children and to bless them through the uniqueness of who I am. If I am called to be a pastor-teacher, I have the opportunity and responsibility to bless the flock over which I am assigned with the teaching and application of God's Word. If I am a musician, I shall bless others with my music. So Paul writes,

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. - 1 Cor 12:4-7 ESV

It may be that spiritual gifts inventories could be used to help Christians discover their gifts. The cautions listed above are most important however. At most such inventories must be seen as tools toward the end of helping one another to give as they have received. Pride, discouragement and fear always lurk in our hearts because of sin. The Apostles speak to this as they emphasize in all these matters that we live by grace. It is in the Gospel and the forgiveness of sins for the sake of Christ that we find our life, our joy and our strength, never in the gifts we have or do not have.

About Our Confusion About Baptism

If you have followed my study of Jesus' conversation with Nicodemus in John 3, you have come across some common words and phrases used by Christians. These include born again, born from above, water, Spirit, flesh. Confusion and disagreement about these words and their meanings continue among us Christians. We argue back and forth about water baptism versus Spirit baptism, one baptism versus many baptisms, about which baptism saves, the baptism of children, making a decision for Christ before being baptized and so forth.

I do not suggest that my comments will bring an end to these arguments. Each of us must make his or her own decisions about these matters. Instead, I will summarize what I have shared in my earlier blogs about this important conversation and invite you to draw your own conclusions.

1. Nicodemus and his party saw Jesus as a Rabbi, but failed to see Him as the LORD, YHWH, God with us, Emmanuel, the Word (logos), the Son of God.
2. To gain this insight and faith, one must be reborn.
3. This rebirth comes from above; it is the work of God's Holy Spirit. Like the wind it is outside human control or decision making.
4. These reborn are chosen by God to be members of the royal family of Jesus Christ (Messiah), priests of God, members of Jesus body and of the Father's eternal family. 
5. Water plays a critical role in this rebirthing work of the Holy Spirit. It points to the long history of God's chosen people Israel and to their Exodus journey from slavery to the promised land. 
6. In, with and through this water (baptism) the Spirit declares us reborn to be members of God's chosen people, forgiven for all sins for the sake of Christ and promises that God will raise us up with Him in the new creation.
7. This powerful Word connected with the water (baptism) both creates and sustains the Spirit's new life within us as we continue on our journey to the promised land.

If indeed you are a reborn member of God chosen people, you personally know and understand what I have summarized above. You are not like Nicodemus who asked, "How can these things be?" (John 3:9). You also understand that these are but earthly things. Knowledge about heavenly things still awaits us (John 3:10-13). however, the center, the crux of the matter, the most important point at issue in the whole conversation is to be found in these words of Jesus:

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. - Jhn 3:14-18 ESV

Jesus purposely draws a parallel between what was to happen to him upon the cross and the bronze serpent Moses was commanded to raise up as he led the Israelites on their journey to the promised land (Numbers 21:7-9). You see, they complained again about the misery of the wilderness. There was no food, no water and they had come to loathe the daily supply of Manna, calling it "worthless food". To awaken them to their sin the LORD sent venomous snakes among them. Many died. This led to their confession and plea, "Pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us." So Moses did and the LORD heard their prayers.

And the LORD said to Moses, "Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live." So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live. - Num 21:8-9 ESV

This bronze serpent event, said Jesus, points beyond itself to the cross upon which Jesus was to be raised up. And it is all God's doing, God's gracious gift. Just as the wilderness people did not die from the snake bites, so all who believe that Jesus was judged, condemned and killed upon the Roman cross on the hill of Calvary for us and for all, will not die. They will be saved from the eternal wrath of God and receive instead a resurrected body and a new life that will never end.

That, as I said, is the crux of the matter, what its all about. Nothing else matters more than this. It is all about God's grace, unearned and undeserved. And faith to believe it is all the working of God's Spirit, sent from above and beyond us, working through this Word of grace. This is the rebirth Jesus speaks about, for which we shall praise him and the Father to all eternity.

I shall wrap up this discussion in my next post.

No Such Thing As Deciding To Follow Jesus!

American economist Alan Greenspan is purported to have said, "I guess I should warn you, if I turn out to be particularly clear, you've probably misunderstood what I've said." As you read the Gospel of John, you often feel that Jesus uses the same approach. It seems he uses words that send us in one direction, but he really wants us to go in another. And, as the familiar saying says, “If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll end up somewhere else.” That's what was going on in the conversation he had with the respected judge Nicodemus who came to talk with him one night. When Nicodemus called Jesus Rabbi and one sent from God, Jesus said,

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." - Jhn 3:3 ESV

And Nicodemus completely misunderstood what Jesus said. Its that little word again that threw him off. In the Greek language the word is anohthen, a complex word with a couple meanings. The first part of the word, anoh, is used three times in John's Gospel, always referring to up, above or to the brim. So we read

Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim. - Jhn 2:7 ESV  

He said to them, "You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. - Jhn 8:23 ESV 

So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. - Jhn 11:41 ESV

The second part of the word, the suffix then, generally means things are moving, as in . . .

The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." - Jhn 3:8 ESV

Put the two parts together and you literally have a complex word that means from up or from above. This is always always what the adverb anohthen means in other contexts. For instance, when Jesus spoke to Pontius Pilate about his authority as Roman Prefect he said,

"You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin." - Jhn 19:11 ESV

Ah, but Nicodemus misunderstood. He grabbed hold of a secondary meaning of the word. He felt that Jesus was saying you must be born again. We have a similar expression. We say, "OK, lets take it from the top." That means, "Lets do it again." And this is what Nicodemus heard, ". . . born again." And in so hearing he revealed his natural inclination to believe that in spiritual matters it all starts with ME! That's
why he wondered how anyone could pull that off. Notice his focus on himself as he asks,

Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" - Jhn 3:4 ESV

We still do the same thing to this very day as we use the very familiar expression born again Christians. Behind that expression is the assumption that in order for rebirth to happen you must make some kind of decision, as in the familiar hymn from India by S. Sundar Singh,

I have decided to follow Jesus;

I have decided to follow Jesus;

I have decided to follow Jesus;

No turning back, no turning back.

Though I may wonder, I still will follow;

Though I may wonder, I still will follow;

Though I may wonder, I still will follow;

No turning back, no turning back.

The world behind me, the cross before me;

The world behind me, the cross before me;

The world behind me, the cross before me;

No turning back, no turning back.

Though none go with me, still I will follow;

Though none go with me, still I will follow;

Though none go with me, still I will follow;

No turning back, no turning back.

Will you decide now to follow Jesus?

Will you decide now to follow Jesus?

Will you decide now to follow Jesus?

No turning back, no turning back.

But, but, but . . . That's not what Jesus said! You, Sundar Singh and all those singing with you did not decide anything. You could not. Nor can anyone—anyone—any more than can a baby decide when he or she wants to be born or from which parents. This decision is made elsewhere. So it is with this spiritual born again business. It is not born again. It is always born from above! If you doubt that, read the entire third chapter of John very, very carefully. I'll get back to you next time to carry on the discussion. 

Wading In The Water of John

"Shallow enough for a child to wade in and deep enough to drown an elephant." So goes a description of the Gospel of John, attributed to Rev. Charles Spurgeon. John's Gospel remains a favorite of millions, yet it continues to confound scholars. Its nuances, double meanings and symbols are familiar even to new converts, but puzzle old preachers like me. For the next several posts I will take you wading with me and pray that you do not drown with this old pachyderm. Lets start with this very familiar quote:

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. - Jhn 3:16 ESV

The quote is from a discourse by Jesus with Nicodemus, a member of the Great Sanhedrin, the 71 judges of the Jewish supreme court of that day, meeting in Jerusalem.

Though there is no clear source of information about this Nicodemus outside the Gospel of John, the Jewish Encyclopedia and many Biblical historians have theorized that he is identical to Nicodemus ben Gurion, mentioned in the Talmud as a wealthy and popular holy man reputed to have had miraculous powers. Christian tradition asserts that Nicodemus was martyred sometime in the first century.

When  Nicodemus came secretly by night to visit with Jesus, he called this young man Rabbi, a title of great respect that means my honorable sir, similar to the modern Reverend. Normally a Rabbi was trained in a theological school and formally ordained or certified as a teacher. Since Jesus was neither formally trained nor ordained, the title offered by such an esteemed leader was most unusual. Yet this respected judge saw Jesus as a teacher (John 3:2). As Matthew makes clear, others gave him the same title out of respect, but sometimes in mockery (Matt. 12:38).

Nicodemus goes even further as he acknowledges Jesus to be sent by God. He has concluded that Jesus' signs point to God being with him. For a further discussion of Jesus' signs see my earlier post. John emphasizes that Jesus was not a mere teacher come from God. No indeed. He was Immanuel, God with us. All the signs pointed to this fact. Nicodemus obviously was not prepared to acknowledge such an astounding claim. No mere man could ever make such a claim. It was blasphemy at the highest level, a crime so heinous that it deserved death (Matthew 26:63-66). No man dare claim to be the Messiah and the Son of God. By such a claim Jesus made himself God (John 10:33). Anyone uttering such blasphemy must surely be put to death. This was the law of the land and ultimately the judgment of the Sanhedrin as they dragged Jesus before the Roman Prefect, demanding his death (John 18:31).

Whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him. The sojourner as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death. - Lev 24:16 ESV

Nicodemus may have acknowledged Jesus as a Rabbi, but he did not at that time recognize him as the Son of God. He was not prepared to give him a divine title or to recognize the mystery of what we Christians later called the Trinity, the fact that God is three persons and yet remains but one God! To acknowledge this is indeed to wade into water deep enough to drown any elephant or as Jesus said,

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." - Jhn 3:3 ESV

More on water and rebirth and seeing next time.

Mankind Is Unique—We Are Not Animals

During Lent we Christians urge one another to take a long, hard look at ourselves in the light of God's revealed Word. That Word, of course, is divided into the Law of God that serves primarily to reveal our sins and the Gospel, the gracious Word of forgiveness won for us by the life and sacrificial death of Jesus Christ. The recent edition of The Lutheran Witness has a fine article on "Natural Law, Lutheranism and the Public Good," only partly reproduced by this link.

My friend and fellow-pastor, Rick, writes me again, this time about the above article:

What do you think of the article in Lutheran Witness concerning the Natural Law?  He has a point, but I think he goes too far with the very last statement "whom our Lord has created in His own image." The fact is the natural law in conscience in our culture has been "seared as with a hot iron." I Tim 4:2. and the "image of God" has been broken in the human heart and can only be restored in Christ "to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."  Eph. 4:24.. Question for you, "Is the moral law and conscience part of the "broken image of God" in natural man?"

 I gather that Rick wants to discuss the original image of God as it was in Adam and the image being restored in the hearts of those of us called to faith in the Second Adam, Jesus Christ. Beyond that, it seems from the referenced article that the answer to Rick's question is at least alluded to by the comment, ". . . appeals to natural law may be perceived as elevations of pagan philosophy over Christian theology, reason over revelation and Law over Gospel."

Best place to start is to review again what the image of God is—or was. Our source is Genesis 1:27:

"So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them."

This image persists even after Adam's fall into disobedience and sin:

"This is the book of the generations of Adam. When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God." - Gen 5:1 ESV

"Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image." - Gen 9:6 ESV

The Hebrew word for likeness in Genesis 5 is demuwth. The prophet Isaiah says you cannot create a likeness of God. He is incomparable, unique, one of a kind. There is nothing in all creation like Him. He is the Creator and Ruler over all things created. No idol of stone or metal can be made like Him. He is above and beyond all creation. "To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One" (Isaiah 40:25). How then can Adam and the sinful children of Adam be considered to be "made in God's own image"? Hold that question in your mind.

The other Hebrew word is tselem which we translate as image (Genesis 1:27; 9:6). The pagans made images of Baal (2 Kings 11:18). Images of men were portrayed on walls (Ezekiel 23:14). The forms and people we see in our dreams are called tselem (Psalm 73:20). When we awake we realize these are not real. They are but dreams (chalowm). 

And yet Adam's son Seth was brought forth in Adam's image (Genesis 5:3). Did that mean he looked like Adam? I suppose he did, but is that all Moses wants to say? Obviously not, because he starts the chapter by saying that man was originally created (Hebrew bara) in God's likeness (demuwth), both male and female.  Then he goes on the tell us that Seth was brought forth in Adam's likeness (demuwth), after his image (tselem).

Confused? Let's review where we are.

1. Adam and Eve were originally created in the image and likeness of God. No other creature was created in God's image and likeness. In that sense, mankind is unique. We are not animals. 
2. God cannot be portrayed by any creation of man, i.e. image, likeness, idol, painting, etc. 
3. Even after the fall into sin the image and likeness of God remains in mankind. 
4. This image and likeness of God is God's continued creation in the hearts and lives of mankind. This, above all else, is what distinguishes us from all other creatures. Like God, we are unique.
5. Yet, Adam's son Seth—and all of us children of Adam—are brought forth in Adam's image and likeness.
6. Conclusion: we children of Adam and Eve bear both the image or likeness of God and the image or likeness of Adam. 

How can this be? What does this mean? Let's look at the process of birth through which Seth inherited the image or likeness of Adam. Here is what the Spirit reveals. 

"Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me."           —Psalm 51:5

"The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.' They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity; there is none who does good. God looks down from heaven on the children of man to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all fallen away; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one." —Psalm 53:1-3 

"The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray from birth, speaking lies."—Psalm 58:3

"Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned?" — Romans 5:12

From this we gather that the likeness or image of Adam is sin and that we children of Adam and Eve are sinful and estranged from God from the moment of conception. This is why our Lord Jesus said to Nicodemus, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. . . unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (John 3:3-7).

From this brief study we can conclude that Pastor Rick refers to the image of Adam when he speaks about the "broken image of God". We humans still retain the image of God in certain matters. We are able to reason and to have dominion over the creatures of land and sea. We still multiply and are about the task of subduing the earth and using the plants for food (Genesis 1:26-30). And in the hearts of men there is still some of the image of God that we call the natural law and conscience. But we are in rebellion. We are sinners who bear also the image of Adam. Our only hope is that we might be born again by the work of the Spirit in the Word and remade into the image of the Second Adam (1 Corinthians 15:45-57). This process begins already in our baptism into Christ. It will be completed on the Day of the Great Resurrection.

These are weighty matters, well worth meditating upon during these 40 days of Lent.