Ecclesiastes and Vanity

The book of Ecclesiastes begins with these sobering words of Solomon: "Vanity of vanities! All is vanity."  Solomon then goes into a severe indictment over the uselessness of every form of life, from wisdom to folly, from pleasure to prudence, Solomon ends this small book of wisdom before the epilogue in the same way that the book begins, "Vanity of vanities...All is vanity!"

Think of the profundity of Solomon's assertion.  The wisest man to ever live (apart from Christ Jesus) has seen everything under the sun, all of man's toil and strife as well as all of man's joys and pleasures, and Solomon's final analysis is that "All is vanity." To be sure, Solomon's verdict is more than somber, it is downright depressing but under more analysis, Solomon is painting a picture of life and wisdom.

A bit of introductory information is in order.  Ecclesiastes is one of the Old Testament Writings, the third part of the Old Testament that is more like a miscellaneous bin of various writings, like Job, Psalms, Proverbs, and Esther, that do not fit with the rest of the Old Testament.  In fact, this book completes the trifecta of wisdom books, the other two being Job and Proverbs, that offer differing views on the value of wisdom.  Because of this, Ecclesiastes should be considered in relation to the other wisdom books.  That being said, Ecclesiastes does have some good and useful things to say about wisdom and life.

Although Solomon's tone is less-than encouraging in regards to the uselessness of life, he does indicate that there is value to be had in enjoying one's work (2:24), value in timing and enjoying life (3:1-113),  value in enjoying work and simple pleasures (5:18), value in mourning (6:2-4), value of enjoying work and life (9:7-9), value of wisdom (10:10), and the value of praising the Lord in the days of youth (12:1).  Sense a theme?

Solomon, though thoroughly negative in his understanding of the vanity of life, is clear that man should work hard and toil with joy while rejoicing in the simple pleasures without over indulging.  The point is that wisdom is better than folly and taking joy in simple pleasures is a good gift from the Lord that adds enjoyment to man's toil-laden life.

Although this particular discussion was information-heavy, it should still compel us to take time to day to praise God for the gift of a good cup of coffee, the joy of a nice breeze, or the kiss of a child.  God has blessed us with little gifts and we should praise Him for them!

Godly Time Management

The most expensive resource any person has is time.  Time is the supreme premium.  It is fleeting and limited.  We only have so much time and, considering that there are certain things like sleeping and eating, how we use our time is of utmost importance.  Because of the extreme significance of this ultimate and expensive resource, we should be conscious of how we use the limited time we have ben blessed with.

There are several relevant passages in this regard, but Paul's words in Ephesians 5:15-16 seem to hit the nail squarely on its head.  It comes down to this simple but sobering assertion: make the best possible use of your time, because the days are evil.  To be sure, time is amoral, but how we use time, what we choose to fill our time with, speaks volumes to our devotion and faith.

Because time is so precious and finite, we should be very aware of what we do and do not do in our limited time allowances.  This needs to be an active undertaking.  If we simply "go with the flow" not only will we not grow to the degree that God desires of us but, and much more importantly, we will not live out a life of ardently loving God, because it necessitates active faith and obedience.  Therefore, let us be sober-minded in our pursuit of godly time management so as to grow more in the likeness of God's Son, Chris Jesus!

Salvation Declared

Salvific faith is not a single prayer.  That is to say that limiting the gift of salvation to asserting a belief in Jesus as the Son of God one time is an insufficient measure of salvation.  There are many who proclaim that they have sincerely been a Christian but what was once an inferno of love for God has long since become a flickering candle flame.  God wants more.

Salvation, the belief that bears fruit, requires more than an intellectual ascension to a set of theological assertions.  Faith is an activator, it is an expression of a deep, heartfelt, all-encompassing love for God.  Just because we can retort all of the orthodoxy does not make us saved.  Even demons have the right theology (James 2:19)!

Instead, and this needs to be clear, salvation is a daily, moment-by-moment, denial of self to the exaltation of Christ.  Life eternal begins now!  We have the privilege to worship the Holy Lord Almighty and His Holy Son, Christ Jesus.  This reality should cause more in us than intellectual agreement to credal statements about theology; salvation is a full-person endeavor, God asks for all of us or none of us!  Worship is the response!

There are hundreds of relevant passages in Scripture that deal with this phenomena of people not bearing fruit but believing themselves truly saved (an oxymoronic impossibility).  Yet, for our purposes, Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23, the Parable of the Sower seems a fitting and appropriate place to begin the quest.  In this parable there are four possible soils for the reception of the Word: rocky soil, shallow soil, thorny soil, and good soil.  Many Christians believe they are, obviously, the good soil.  Francis Chan, in his book Crazy Love, puts the relevant statement forth as sharply as possible:

Do not assume that You are good soil.


We need to continue to pursue God in love and passion not for the goal of salvation but for the goal of meeting God!  Let us cast aside every thorn of the world and its lures, every rock of sin that weighs us down, and every half-hearted lukewarm religious habit so that we may run with perseverance the race that is marked for us and draw closer to the Lord and His Son!

Devoting Ourselves in Love to God

Devotion is an interesting word used to describe the Christian life.  In many ways it is the perfect term because it speaks of true love and fervent desire for the Lord.  Strangely enough, though, it has taken on a different connotations, more akin to arduous study and obligated discipline than to the devotion in love.  While these aspects are important components of the Christian life, they are supported by devotion, that is to say, all of the Christian lifestyle begins with overwhelming, breathtaking, gut-wrenching, and all-encompassing love for God.

Love is the starting point of devotion, the launching pad for all spiritual discipline, the very propellant of our pursuit of God must be love.  In this, then, it must be asserted unequivocally that devotion is not obligatory.  We are not obligated to devotion.  Devotion is based on love, which must arise out of our sincere desire and love for God.

Perhaps a more appropriate way to speak of the Christian life is in terms of a love relationship.  When one is in love, they will go out of their way to exorbitant measure for the sole purpose of loving another.  Think of the long-distance couple that might splurge thousands on travel expenses just to spend any amount of time together.  This is what devotion is all about.  If this type of reckless love would characterize our devotion for God, everything else would fall into place and perspective.

Devotion should never feel like a chore.  It should be a natural extension of the deepest love and affection for the Almighty.  Devotion arises out of a sincere love of God.  The important thing is whether we truly love God or not.  In the case of the latter, not loving God, it boils down to two possibilities, either we haven't met God or we have chosen the world's riches instead of Him.

Consider two parables, the parable of the treasure hidden in the field and the parable of the pearl of great price (Matt. 13:44-46).  The point in both of these parables is the immense value of discovering the Kingdom of God and that anything compared to it is as good as worthless. Also, the joy of finding the God cannot be overstated.  In truth, if God is worth more than anything and finding Him brings overwhelming joy, why wouldn't we love Him?  Let us then come face to face with the Holy Lord Almighty so as to love Him more with the highest devotion!

Loving God by Loving Others

Nowhere in Scripture is conversion and salvation described as a simple one-time prayer.  Instead, the Christian life is described as one of discipline, suffering, and perseverance in doing good.  The essence of the Christian lifestyle is condensed in the Greatest Commandment (Matt. 22:37-39), respectively, in which Jesus exhorts would-be believers to love God with everything and to love their neighbors as themselves.  Salvation is thus not a punch-your-ticket license for immorality or a freedom to sin, but is in fact a new ethic to the highest love and a freedom from sin.

The major thrust of the Christian life can be summed up by a single but immense word: love.  This love has two important and related expressions.  The first is the love of God.  God is to be supreme, the very center in our lives.  Anyone who has been in love knows that it is a constant and burning obsession that flames from the deepest parts of our beings.  This is the kind of love that God asks of us.

The second part, the love for others, arises out of our love for God.  It is our overwhelming love for the Almighty that empowers us and impassions us to love others.  In a sense, this is a phenomenal transference of God's love and compassion to us so that His love passes through us.  Becoming the "hands and feet" of Christ is not merely a nice Christian slogan or tagline, it is a commandment.  Believers are to be the agents of God's love on the earth, the one's who physically act out God's compassion.

In fact, it is the fervor of our love that determines the validity of our faith.  As John writes, "Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.  No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and His love is perfected in us (1 John 4:11-12)."  John goes on, "for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God, whom he has not seen (1 John 4:20)."   John concludes, "everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of Him (1 John 5:1)."

Clearly, our vertical relationship with God is intimately intertwined with our horizontal relationships with one another.  For John, if we do not love one another we do not love God.  This love refers to much more than a happy platitude or a quick "how are you doing?"  Moreover, loving one another is about loving those who we would rather choose not to love.  If we only loved those who love us back, we ARE NOT loving one another as God asks (Matt. 5:46-48).  This is what doing the Word is all about (James 1:25; 2:8, 14-17).

If we do not love others, the love of God is not in us as it is meant to be. God does not desire intellectual ascension or one-time-for-all conversions.  He wants us to love as He has loved us.  He wants us to pursue Him by loving others as He would.  There is a tremendous charge in the commandments of God, but they are completed through love.  When we truly love God, when we are madly in love with God, we will desire to love those whom He loves.  Let us then pursue Him with a fervent love that loves those whom He loves with the sacrificial love that He loved us with!

As Simple as Prayer

Prayer is so fundamental and foundational for the Christian life.  Prayer is communication, it is deference and reverence, it is humility and praise, but most of all it is worshiping God who provides those who earnestly seek Him.  Prayer cannot be overemphasized for its value, and it is often relegated to the time between "Our Father" and "Amen".  This should not be the case, no not ever never; prayer is so much more!

Instead, prayer should be constant, the constant state of honoring God for who He is and what He has done while relying utter upon Him to provide for every one of our needs and desires.  In reality, the essence of prayer is aligning ourselves with the Holy Lord, not just aurally but in the deepest and most foundational parts of ourselves.

Prayer is like a conversation between a babbling infant and their parent.  The infant intuitively knows that the parent is in control while the parent merely wants to care for and help their child.  Prayer could also be described as a love letter from one partner to the other, or rather, like a letter from a sick child at camp to their loving parent back home.

Essentially prayer is about vulnerability before an omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, and holy God. It is this realization that dominates heartfelt and effective prayer.  When we remember who we are praying to, the what of the prayer becomes secondary and will reflect the prayer's receiver, i.e. God.  Therefore, prayer needs not be rehearsed or refined or liturgical; it only needs to be sincere and humble reverence to a Holy God.

Although much could be said about format and the like, it will suffice to say that the heart determines both prayer's validity and its efficacy.  Simply put, when we pray, two basic postures must be present: (1) the praise of God as the Holy Lord Almighty, and (2) faith that He will provide.  It should also be stated that thankfulness is a relevant aspect of prayer.  The point is that prayer should be more like breathing than talking on a phone, and less like conversing than blinking.  Let us then pursue a fervent and ever-greater life of prayer!

The Pride of Worry

Pride is a grotesquely evil monster that lurks in the depths of our hearts, waiting for moments to leap to the surface of our lives and reveal its wickedness through us.  It is vile, both for its lure and its propensity to mask itself behind veil's of confidence or insecurity.  As a result, pride has a variety of guises it employs within us to conceal its sinfulness.  These guises make pride look like other sins, like greed or vanity, but at the heart it is still but simple pride.

One such facade worn by pride is worry.  Worry, or anxiety, can be basically reduced to fear.  Fear of the unknown, fear of the weight of the circumstance, or a general uneasiness with the state of affairs are all examples of worry but they all stem from the same, somewhat complex principal: a feeling that we are not totally in control of the situation, however, if we were in control, if we had the necessary power to handle the present context, we would be able to make everything okay.

Needless to say, this proposition is a fallacy and is untrue for several reasons.  The first is the fallacy of control.  No human has control over anything but whether they will have faith in God or not.  To choose to believe God or not is the grand extent of our control.  Any feeling that humans have control beyond this is simply false.

The second issue deals with power.  Because every morsel of our power and strength is derived and given from God, to wish for the power to handle the situation means that we believe that the One who currently has the power, i.e. God, is either not qualified for the job or simply incompetent to handle the situation.  Quickly the prideful root of worry comes to the surface once the veneer is wiped away.

Additionally, worry's prideful head rears itself in two opposing but equally sinful ways.  These two ways can be summarized by the two reasons people worry, void of whether they know it or not: people either worry that their issues are far too small for God to care about, or the inverse, they think their issues are far too big for God to be able to handle.  The latter reeks of unbelief and pride, while the former smacks of a small faith and false humility.

There are many Scriptures to note in this discussion, perhaps the chief among them being Matthew 6:25-34 and 1 Peter 5:6-7.  In both cases, the exhortation is clear: cast your fears and worries upon the Lord, who both desires to care for us and is capable to do it.  Relying on God, wholly depending on Him in faith can overcome any worry and anxiety we could have, and should be how we deal with worry.

Again, remember that the root of worry is pride, so the inverse of worry must be humility, the essence of worship.  The conclusion must be, then, that worship triumphs over worry.  Worry should prompt worship so that pride's slithery head is sliced off like the lurking serpent it is.  Let us refuse to be prideful in anxiety or worry and strive to worship God!

Responding in Worship

Worship and recognition go hand-in-hand.  If we recognize who God is in His majesty our response will be worship.  If we were to think of worship in terms of relationship, then, recognizing the person and character of God must precede and dominate any offering of praise because love requires knowledge.

Consider Isaiah, taken on the clouds to the heavenly throne room to see God in His infinite, incomprehensible glory.  His only response is to stammer and cry out, "Woe is me!"  To truly stand and face God's character and person is to recognize His holy awesomeness in contrast to our sinful depravity and utter smallness.  We are but blades of grass in comparison to Him.

Recognizing Christ Jesus for who He is encompasses so much of Christian faith.  Upon conversion we see the glorified Son, who took on the sin of all mankind.  Thus recognizing Jesus we align ourselves to Him by faith and receive grace; true worship.  Additionally, at the end of times we will be given the ultimate gift, finally being able to see Him as He truly is (1 John 3:2).

Worship is this: recognition and response.  To see God as He is will prompt a response of reverence and fear, struck in awe before a holy and infinite God.  Therefore, the first and continual step in living out a life of worship is learning who He is in ever greater measure.  Through faithful and Spirit-filled Bible study, prayer, and fellowship we learn more about Him which will compel us to live  a life of worship.

Unfortunately, in our ever-secular new age post-modern world, worship has become a watered-down verb that can refer to anything a person may wish to honor and praise.  This is both tragic and condemnable.  Only God is worthy of our worship because only God, upon humble recognition of who He is, is worth it.   Therefore, those that refuse to worship the Lord Almighty do so not because they have actually seen God and found Him unworthy of praise; God forbid!  Rather, those that refuse to worship the Lord do so because of a pedetermined disposition to not see God as God, but to see Him as something whimsical, detestable, and less than God.

At the final analysis, God is the only One who deserves our praise.  This is His world; He made it in all its intense vastness and minute intricacy using nothing more than the very power of His Word.  He sustains us moment by moment.  If we would spend time every day simply contemplating Him, we would be so totally drawn to Him in worship that we would live lives of worship, constantly in awe at the Holy Lord.  Worship really can be that simple!

Intimacy with God

Intimacy is a strange and vulnerable ordeal.  It refers to the utter stripping of pretense and posture for the purpose of drawing close to another.  It is truly a relational ideal that requires intentionality and trust.  Moreover, intimacy is the wholesale closeness of love.  When we consider intimacy with God, we are talking about supreme intimacy, the true intimacy referent that all other forms of intimacy are but a shadow of.

Essentially, intimacy is knowledge, the innermost vulnerable, unabashed, and true knowledge of another.  If we understand intimacy in these terms, then, the case for intimacy with God becomes clear.  For starters, He created us.  When He knitted us together in our mother's wombs, He knew us (Psa. 139:13; Jer. 1:5).  Even at the beginning of us, God knew us more intimately than anyone ever would or could.

Additionally, God is sovereign in His infinitely perfect knowledge.  He even knows the very number of hairs on our head (Matt. 10:30).  This is intimacy in its supreme form. Understanding that intimacy is knowing the deepest and most sacred inner parts of another should guide the "pursuit of intimacy" with God.  Thus pursuing intimacy with God, means learning who He is.

At the onset, because God knows everything, the first step for an intimate relationship with God is worship, honoring Him for who He is.  When we recognize that God holds all things in His hand (including the minutiae of us) we should give Him praise.  In a way, it is by praise through faith in Christ that we activate the Holy Spirit working within us, thus growing more intimate with Him.

Intimacy is something to be cherished for the treasure.  This is why the marriage bed to so sacred and to be, above all, protected.  Similarly, our intimacy with God is to be pursued and valued for the pleasure and worth that being intimate with the Holy Lord is.  In truth, intimacy is about the quiet, secret relationship between God and man that takes place in the depths of our hearts.  Although as Christians we are told to spread and to share this love, this does not mean that we should negate or trample the ultimate intimacy of relationship with Christ Jesus.  Praise God that He would desire intimacy with us!

Jesus, the Son of God

An often proposed argument against the deity of Christ Jesus is a simple claim, "but He never claimed to be God."  This proposition is put forth for one specific purpose: if we downplay the deity of Jesus, we don't have to believe in who He is, and then we can easily equate His teaching to that of any other man.  Fortunately, this concept is wholly untrue, unfounded, and unbiblical.  In essence, to hold that Jesus never said He was God is not based on the evidence but rather is based on a predisposition to deny that Christ is who He is.

For starters, it should quickly be asserted that Jesus, on more than one occasion, equated Himself with God (John 10:28-30; 14:7-11, just to name a few of the more direct verses).  Jesus claimed unequivocally and with certainty that He was the Messiah, the Son of God who possesses all of the qualities of deity and the divine traits of the sovereign God (Matt. 28:18).

Additionally, Jesus was tried by the Sanhedrin for the crime of blaspheme.  In a very real sense, the religious leaders convicted Jesus for claiming to be the Son of God (Matt. 27:43; Mark 14:61-64; Luke 22:70-71).  Remember, the religious leaders, the most educated Hebrews of Hebrew, who wanted to kill Jesus wanted to kill Him because of blaspheme.  If Jesus never claimed to be God or the Son of God, why would this be the case?  Obviously, Jesus claimed to be, at least, the Son of God.

This is one of the non-negotiables of Christianity.  One cannot read the New Testament without recognizing not only the high Christology of the New Testament authors but also that the divinity of Jesus is essential to the Gospel.  In fact, much of the Gospel depends on the deity of Christ.  If we are to be Christians, then we must assert that Jesus not only said He was God, but more profoundly, Jesus is God.  Let us not neglect this truth but remember that Christ is the Holy Risen Lord!

Doctrine of False Teaching

The idea of false teachers is as true today as it was in the first-century Church.  Many of the epistles deal specifically with warnings and indictments of false teachers and their teaching, especially 2 Peter & Jude.  The whole concept of false teaching is based on two ideals: (1) that there is a true teaching, and (2) that motives matter.

The first ideal is obvious, and is concerned with the particular content of teaching.  Christianity upholds clear and definite teachings that are true, absolute, objective, and unchangeable.  Among these are certain theological doctrines which should not only be upheld and taught, but defended against potential heresy, such as: the nature and character of God, the Trinity, the Gospel, the resurrection, the supremacy of brotherly love, et al.  

Thus, the beginning point for judging false teaching is then based on whether the teaching is inline with accepted orthodoxy and biblically defensible theology.  If a teacher is teaching anything that is contrary to the Bible, opposed to the person and work of Christ, or that goes against the prompting of the Spirit, then that teacher is a false teacher and should be corrected urged to repent of falsity.  Additionally, those who would choose to listen to false teachers who teach false things should be warned at the errors thereof.  Essentially, we need to protect the flock of Christ from being led astray from falsity.

The second sense by which false teachers are indicted is in regards to motivation.  Ideally, sound teachers shall be motivated by godliness and devotion to the Lord.  Teachers will always be held accountable, understanding that they are stewards of the gifts that God has given them to administer theology to the fellowship of believers.  In reality, every teacher is to acknowledge the sobering and humbling responsibility of teaching.

In contrast, a false teacher's motivations will not be the pursuit of godliness or devotion but will be self-serving.  Greed, vanity, pride, power are the marks of self-serving false teachers.  THe teaching of a false teacher will reflect their motivations.  Thus, one way to determine whether a teacher is false is to look at the heart of their teaching, which is always accessible if the corpus of their work is examined.  It is the motivations of false teachers that will determine their worth, and more profoundly, how they will be weighed by the Lord.  This should challenge those who are teachers or who desire to teach to search their hearts for the motivations, always striving to teach with the best motivations.

Ultimately, teachers will be held accountable both for the content of their teaching and their hearts motivation to teach.  Moreover, everyone is under teachers.  We each have a certain amount of responsibility in this to examine every teaching with a critical eye for the purpose of growth.  This should not give free-reign to critique or slander teaching or teachers, just that we should be aware and involved students who are keen to protect the flock against heresy and falsity.  Let us then keep alert to  prevent false teaching and protect the Church from false teachers!

Generosity and Godliness

Love and generosity go hand in hand.  One cannot be loving and simultaneously not generous.  In fact, the highest definition of love coincides with the most generous human act, namely that one would give of one's self for their friends (John 15:13).  The point is that love is generous and because Christians are to be ultimately loving, we need to become a people of generosity.

This can be a difficult concept to grasp because of the challenges inherent to generosity, chief among them being the self.  Generosity, by way of definition, is a quality of kindness that strikes at the manner and intent of the heart in its output of love.  In its essential form, generosity refers to a willingness to give at the expense of self.  Very quickly, then, the gravity of generosity in the life of a believer becomes clear and sobering.

Because Christ Jesus has given us everything, we have no right to hoard and to clutch to that which we would like to claim as our own.  Truly, the only part of ourselves that we can claim is our faith which, as should seem clear, is merely the conduit by which God's grace may enter our lives.  When we give ourselves to the Lord, we give the ownership of self over to God and become His, slaves to His will and righteousness (Rom. 6:20-22).

Therefore, because all we are is not in actuality ours but belongs to the One who has given it to us, we should be generous as a response to the grace that has been shown us.  This can be a challenging proposition because we so like to clammer and cling to our fleshly identities and worldly possessions.  However, God asks us to invest every resource to give every part of ourselves so as to collect a heavenly treasure that is eternal (Matt. 6:19-20).

Generosity can be hard until we realize what it means.  When we are generous, meaning that we give of ourselves be it time or resource, we are engaging in relationship with the Lord as His love, His very character is passing through us in love to whomever we are being generous towards.  In a sense, we become His hands and feet, the physical agents of His supreme generosity.  It we want, then, to feel more of God's presence in our lives, we only need, by faith and discernment, improve our generosity. Thus we will grow in Him as we begin to love more like Him.  Let us then pray for the opportunities to be generous so as to love Him as He has loved us!

Children of Inheritance

When we are born, we inherit from our parents.  Be it genetic material or family traditions, every human being is a composite of inherited components that the person will carry with them. Additional to this is the inherited sin nature, that deep part of every human that is prone to sin.  This inheritance is perishable and ultimately leads to death and destruction.

Luckily, believers who, having put the sin nature to death by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit, have become qualified by the blood of Christ to become heirs to something else, a new imperishable inheritance.  The New Testament puts forth a theology of inheritance that can be challenging to understand but is necessary to comprehend in order to claim the fullness of riches that we receive in Christ.

In Christ, by belief in Him and His work, we are made children of God ( Rom. 8:16-17; 1 John 3:1).  To be a child of God is dependent on one being born again of the Spirit (John 3).  It is the necessary requirement of inheritance: we must become heirs.  The natural implication of this is that in order for us to be heirs, we must be born of God.  To be born of God is dependent on the grace of God in Christ through faith. Thus, when we give ourselves fully to Christ Jesus in faith, we become heirs with Christ Jesus, adopted into the family of God.

This adoption is two-fold.  At first it is based on present blessings, as in, we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, who guides and compels us to continually deny ourselves and gifts us spiritual with every good thing necessary for perseverant and loving faith, i.e. sanctification.  This inheritance is now, received upon the moment of belief and confession in Christ.

The second, and more profound, sense of our adoption refers to our eternal inheritance, the gift of being in God's presence eternally.  As Paul writes in Colossians, the "Father has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light (Col. 1:12).  Or, as Peter writes, we are born again to an inheritance that is "imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for us (1 Pet. 1:3-4)."  Our inheritance is thus something beyond temporal or corporeal trappings.  Our inheritance is perfect and eternal.  Additionally, our qualifications for eternal inheritance is based solely on the work of Christ.

Inheritance is received upon the death of the willing benefactor.  In the case of believers' inheritance, it is Christ who has died and blessed us witha  holy and eternal inheritance.  This being clearly true, there is another who dies in order to receive the inheritance of Christ: ourselves.  We need to die so as to live and be brought into the family of God and heirs with Christ of the inheritance.  Dying to self in order to be made alive to Christ is the requisite that qualifies us to inherit the blessings of God.  Let us the die to ourselves so as to receive the inheritance of Christ!

The Only Salvation

In an age of rampant religious pluralism and post-modern neo-gnosticism, claiming objective and absolute truth takes courage and confidence.  But the Gospel is just that, objective and absolute.  Moreover, the Gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, is exclusive in that only through Christ may anyone receive salvation.

John's first epistle speaks directly to the necessity of personally claiming Christ Jesus in the reception of salvation (1 John 5:11-12).  The key to eternal life is only Christ Jesus.  There is no way to God but through the torn flesh of Christ.  In fact, only through Christ may anyone enter the presence of the Holy Lord (Heb. 10:19-22).  Only through Jesus and only by faith is salvation appropriated (Acts 4:12; Eph. 2:8-10).  Scripture is more than unified about how salvation is received and through whom it comes, it is concrete.  The real question is: do we agree? to what degree?

Are we willing to stake friendships, comfortability, status, or seeming close-minded for the sakes of the Gospel?  Really, this is important.  How far are we truly willing to go in defense of the Gospel?  Honestly, believers are outnumbered in this world.  There are a lot more unbelievers than believers.  And unbelievers will always despise and revile believers because we are not of the world, we are not like them (John 15:19).

The reality is that the Gospel is both exclusive and inclusive.  It is exclusive because only through  Christ Jesus is salvation possible and only by faith is it applied.  But the Gospel is also inclusive because it is for everyone who has faith.  We should not forget the Gospel's inclusivity in light of its exclusivity, as in, we should never cease spreading the Gospel for it is truly meant for everyone.  However, we should also not neglect the Gospel's exclusivity, as in, salvation is by no name other than Jesus.

In reality, the Gospel needs to be preached because it is true.  We, believers, are to be the ones who preach it.  We have a responsibility to present the Gospel, not only because it is true but, more importantly, people's lives depend on it.  If we do not preach it no one will hear it (Rom. 10:14)!  Let us then take this call seriously as we engage the world with the Gospel because only Christ Jesus saves!

The Throne of God

The Holy Lord is the King over all creation.  Everything that is, that was, and that will ever be is under His command and His dominion.  His dominion is everlasting and sure.  He is called Yahweh, Elohim, Jesus, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Holy Father, Abba, and many more that can be summed up in one name: God.  He is eternal, omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, holy, righteous, just, merciful, and royal.  He is not limited by temporality or corporeality.  And, although for a time He condescended from His heavenly throne as the incarnate Christ, His throne is never, has never been, and will never be vacant.  He continually and eternally rules and His rulings are final and unalterable apart from His own good pleasure.

Although there are many parts of Scripture that deal with the Lord's Kingship and His dominion, particularly the Psalms (Psa. 11:4; 90-105, et al), however, nowhere is the throne room of God more directly described as in the revelation given to an exiled John.  In Revelation 4 we are given a glimpse of the panoply of majesty that is the throne room of God.  Jewels and gems of such blinding splendor and royal value are the meager words John employs as he is grasping to take in and describe the utter beauty of God as He is.  Two things immediately stand out in John's account.

The first is weight of majesty that encompasses this vision.  God, the Holy Lord of all creation, is wholly awesome.  There is no glibness or flippancy in the throne room, only awesome fear at the Lord.  In many ways we are given a sacred glimpse into a heavenly worship service.  This immediately carries over to the next observation.

Worship abounds in the throne room of God.  Continually the angelic beings praise Him, not because they are ordered to but because they cannot but worship the Lord.  Similarly, the 24 elders who sit on the thrones that encircle the throne room continually cast down their crowns before the Lord in submission and honor, recognizing that God is above all and worthy of all praise.  Not only is there no place for self-exaltation before the throne of God, it is impossible to exalt ourselves when we enter His presence.  Truly, truly, every time the presence of God is encountered in Scripture and history, the response is utterly naked humility at His glory.  Let us join the heavenly choir and add our praise to the beautiful cacophony to Him!

Scripture and Politics

Citizenry is not something to be balked at.  Being a citizen, a valuable and engaged member of society is incredibly important as a Christian.  Fortunately, the Bible has much to say about proper citizenship for believers.  Understanding this basic truth is of vital importance.  Unfortunately, many Christians do not look to Scripture to inform their political identity but instead rely on the world.

The first point in regards to citizenship is work ethic.  Christians should develop a work ethic that is unrivaled and gives no place for reproach.  Both of Paul's letters to the Thessalonians speak out against idleness, exhorting believers to work hard for the sake of the Gospel (1 Thess. 2:9; 2 Thess. 3:6-18).  The rigor with which we work will prevent anyone from being able to revile God because of our idleness.  Therefore, we should work hard and diligent as unto the Lord (Col. 3:23-24).

Secondly, and this is key, believers' political leanings and activity is to be dominated by a vibrant and intentional prayer life, focused on interceding on behalf of leaders and submitting to their God-given authority (Rom 13:1-7; 1 Tim. 2:1-2; 1 Pet. 2:13).  This can seem radical in not downright provocative, considering that the past several decades of political posturing has associated Christianity with right-wing political proclivities.  God is not a republican just as much as He is not a democrat.

This assertion does not mean that Christians should not be involved in politics, rather, our political leanings should not ever hinder our real purpose, i.e. living out and preaching the Gospel of Christ Jesus.  It wasn't for politics that Jesus' came.  We should take great comfort in the fact that the value of our faith is not and will never be measured by our adherence to political platforms or agendas.  Instead, as always, our faith is measured by our devotion in repentance and sincerity to the Lord Jesus.  Always remember that our faith influences our politics, never the other way around.  Let us then take heed to focus and fix upon Christ to guide us in every part of our lives!

Sanctification through Suffering

We live in a world that spends exorbitant amounts of money pursuing ease and pleasure with the intention of making life seem better.  As if somehow the elusive search for happiness is reached by avoiding stress and the "right" life is defined as one in which suffering is so minimized that it can be considered to no longer exist.  A surface study into the viral growth in anti-depressant usage in America reveals a culture that is obsessed with "feeling" better.  Unfortunately, this runs in opposition to how Scripture speaks about this immensely important issue.

At the onset of this discussion, consider Jesus, who requires His followers to pick up their crosses (Matt. 16:24).  We are also called as Christians to emulate Jesus, suffering in this life with the grace and humility that He did (1 Cor. 11:1; Eph. 5:1-2).  These are not simply pithy sayings to encourage us to wear rosaries or get crosses tattoos.  Rather, this exhortation is to remind us that a Christian's lot in this life is one of joyous perseverance amidst suffering.

Consider two passages of Scripture, Romans 5:1-5 and James 1:2-4.  Both of these passages exhort believers to rejoice at the gift of trials and sufferings for it is in these times that we are being grown more like Christ Jesus.  Essentially, suffering is the breeding ground for character.  It is through perseverance that we cultivate patience, kindness, and enduring strength.  In a very real sense, Paul and James and all of the New Testament authors are quite clear in this regard, not that we should seek suffering but that we should rejoice in its usefulness for sanctification.

Nothing grows without soil, seed, tilling, nourishment, and time.  We, our very hearts, are the soil.  The Gospel, the Word of God, is the seed.  The tilling is suffering and trial.  The nourishment is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.  Another metaphor may illuminate this more.  Think of anaerobic exercise: muscular tissues and fibers are broken down as a result of continued resistance and the breaking down of muscular tissue allows for more blood to flow through the muscle thus spurring growth.  Suffering breaks us down but it is the breaking down itself that allows for more of Christ to flow into us.

In this regard, Peter speaks of suffering and trial as the refining of precious metals (1 Pet. 1:6-7).  Only under intense and destructive heat may the dross be separated from the gold. Similarly, only under the fires of suffering and persecution may we be refined to be more like Christ.  Therefore, we should take joy in our sufferings not because God will use them to make us more in His image.  Again, this in no way means that we should not grieve or that we should not hurt or that suffering is less painful.  Instead, we can see suffering as it is meant to be seen, namely as the soil for cultivating character.  Essential to this is the continual praise of God amidst the toil and strain.  But praise be to God that He would use suffering to grow us!

The Book of Philemon

Paul's epistle to Philemon is a curious book in the canon of Scripture.  It is only a single chapter written by Paul for a very specific purpose, which lacks much of the theological weight and length of Paul's other writings, it can easily be read in a single sitting.  However, understanding why this unique work was included in the canon is an odd discussion in itself.

The letter has Paul pleading with Philemon, a wealthy Christian slave owner, for the well-being and status of Philemon's runaway slave, Onesimus.  Onesimus, having run away, ended up imprisoned with Paul (v. 10), and has since converted to Christianity.  Because it was illegal for a Roman citizen to harbor another citizen's runaway slave, Paul resolves to address Philemon, one of Paul's Christian brothers, directly.

Paul appeals for the sake of Onesimus that, as Paul is returning Onesimus to Philemon, Philemon might see to it in his heart to free Onesimus from the bonds of slavery that he might return to Paul (vv. 12-16).  Paul goes so far as to declare that he will personally cover any costs incurred because of Onesimus' fleeing (vv. 18-19).

The strength of Paul's plea coupled with the reality of the letter's content, forms a definite argument for Christian slave masters to free their slaves.  Add to this the implication of the book's canonization: because this letter has survived, reason stands that Philemon did free Onesimus.  This is a radical argument for the ancient world, when slavery was so widespread that approximately 30-40% of the Roman population was comprised of slaves.

It is even reasonable to think that the Onesimus, the Bishop of Ephesus, mentioned by Ignatius in his Letter to the Ephesians (written c. A.D. 100) is the same person discussed in Philemon.  Therefore, this book was supported in its canonization by a primary source, and reveals how Christians should deal with slavery.

The book of Philemon is intimately tied to a specific historical context and addresses a particular scenario.  That being said, Philemon also has a broader application, namely the necessity of reconciliation.  In fact, the primary theme of this book is Paul's plea for Philemon to initiate reconciliation with Onesimus, even though Onesimus had unlawfully wronged him.

Paul thus acts as a mediating force, mediating reconciliation and restoration in brotherly love.  Let us then not overlook the value of such a small and odd book as Philemon, recognizing that it is the Word of God, meant for our benefit and growth, even today!

The Judgement of Christ

Nobody ever wants to talk about judgement.  The whole concept makes people uncomfortable and fearful, rightly so.  But it cannot be simply ignored because of our fraught for judgement, to come at the end of the age, is a real future that will come for all of creation.  Judgement, plainly, is that moment at the end of history when God will finally and conclusively mete out His divine justice, holding every person accountable for choices made.

The common evangelical misconception is that believers will not face judgement.  To be frank, this is dangerous thinking and blatantly un-Scriptural (Matt. 13:39, 49, 25:32; Rom. 14:10; 2 Cor. 5:10).  The harsh truth is that in the end at Jesus' second coming, the Parousia,  everyone will be held accountable for his/her deeds.  This holds true for Christians as much as it does for non-Christians.  There are two points to be made in this regard:

First off, Christians need not fear judgement for we have an advocate who is seated at the right hand of the throne of God and intercedes on our behalf (Rom. 8:27; Heb. 7:25; 1 John 2:1).  This is a comforting reality.  It is true that Christ Jesus, because of His propitiative work on the cross, has become our true intercessor, having taken in His flesh the judgement due all mankind because of sin.

Thus the judgement every sinner deserves has been paid in full, that at the end of the age when the Father looks upon us in His holiness, Christ will He see standing in our place.  In this sense, judgement for Christians depend on Christ's salvific work and we will be judged righteous not because of any righteousness we have within ourselves, but because of Christ's imputed righteousness by faith.

The secondary sense of judgement is solely a Christian ordeal, and will not befall non-Christians.  Christians will be held accountable for how we live, for whether we persevere in faithfulness and to the measure with which we remain steadfast and secure in our faith through suffering and trial will we be judged (2 Cor. 5:10).  This should not be overlooked: we will be judged for how well and how thoroughly we've received and transferred the gift(s) that God has given us through His Son.

We should take this charge with the sobriety and seriousness that it deserves, acknowledging that how we live our post-conversion lives matter and will be weighed for its worth.  In this sense of judgement, Christians depend on Christ's sanctifying work to compel us to remain steadfast to will and to do for His glory.  Ultimately, God is good and worthy to be praised.  This holds true especially in His final and conclusive hour, when all creation will be brought to their knees before His glory.  Therefore, let us praise Him for His awesome and perfect judgement, and that we will be judged perfectly.  Let us also take heart that we will either be judged as ourselves or as Christ living within us.  Let us pursue the latter!

Jesus the Great High Priest

The book of Hebrews is a mammoth work.  In fact, only Romans compares to the theological genius of Hebrews.  In it, the writer presents a succinct and thorough case for faithfulness in regards to Jesus of Nazarene, the Christ.  Certainly Hebrews is a vast and great work concerned with the theology and and a high doctrine of Christ.  One of the major themes present throughout it is that the covenant made in Christ has surpassed the Mosaic one, as in, the fleshly covenant under Moses is surpassed by the spiritual covenant in Christ.  A major thrust of this argument is that Jesus is our supreme High Priest, the mediator of this greater covenant, that is established by His blood.  Hebrews 7-9 are the primary sources for this dialogue, briefly (re)acquainting with them would be a good introduction to this discourse.

Under the Old Covenant, established under Moses, the High Priest had a specific role and a particular task.  The High Priest was the foremost mediator between the Israelites and God.  To accomplish this mediation, the High Priest would continually make regular sacrifices and offerings on behalf of the people, culminating on the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, the one day per year that the High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies under the heavy veil to offer propitiation for the sins of Israel, including himself.

Thus, when Yom Kippur came around every year, the people were annually reminded of the ever-pervasive sin and guilt that remained imperfectly atoned.  The system itself was flawed because it was unable to provide an eternal cleansing and removal of sin, which is and has always been rooted in the heart and not the externals.  This systemic flaw necessitated a greater covenant, prophesied by Jeremiah (Jer. 31:31-34).

It is important to note that everything about the Old Covenant, from the robes of the priests to the architecture of the tabernacle and Temple, acted as an echo, but a shadow of the heavenly realm.  In a very real sense, everything under the Old Covenant was a sacrament, an emblem that expressed teh realities of heaven.  This understanding can be lost on modern day Christians, removed by centuries from this form of religious expression; however, it is essential to note if we are to comprehend what the writer of Hebrews is saying.

Because the tabernacle was but an earthly shadow cast by the heavenly realm, when Christ came an administered a New Covenant in the heavenly realm by His earthly ministry, He thus established a greater covenant, having atoned for all sin "once-for-all" by the power of His blood.  As a result, because the Old Covenant has been made obsolete by the surpassing Covenant made in Christ, Christ has become our great High Priest, who mediates between man and God.

Therefore, and this cannot be overstated: Jesus is our sole and only priest, the exclusive mediator between man and God.  The simple fact that Hebrews exists and that it argues so strongly for this implies that this was a misconception even in the first century A.D.  The implications of this are clear and shattering: anyone who claims to be a priest, mediating between man and God is usurping the position and task that rightfully belongs to Jesus alone.  Because we have one perfect High Priest under a perfect Covenant made by that Priest, we simply have no need or even desire for any other earthly and less-than priests.

Although God has commissioned others, pastors, evangelists, shepherds, etc., the point still stands: only Jesus mediates and acts as the Great High Priest on our behalf, any earthly version is not only a shadow but much more so a counterfeit.  It is true that this may seem provocative if not outright controversial, but the Bible is clear and definite in this regard.  We should be on guard then for those who would claim to be our mediator.  Instead, let us praise Jesus who has established the perfect Covenant through His blood and who mediates on our behalf before the Father, our true and perfect High Priest!

Pursuit of Righteousness

Much has been made about the pursuit of holiness, that most eager and beneficial quest.  However, the focus on chasing holiness, as it pertains to sanctification, can often neglect another parallel though not synonymous endeavor: the pursuit of righteousness.  Whereas the pursuit of holiness is intent on the purification that is part of sanctification, the pursuit of righteousness is concerned with seeking God's absolute moral good, His justice.

Proverbs says, "Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honor (Pro. 21:21)."  Or, as Solomon writes earlier, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied (Pro. 15:9)." It can be easily seen, then, that pursuing righteousness is both encouraged and rewarded.  It should then seem as no surprise that Paul also exhorted Timothy to pursue righteousness (1 Tim. 6:11; 2 Tim. 2:22).

A working definition of righteousness is in order. Righteousness is a character trait possessed by God, referring to His moral perfection.  His righteousness is based on who He is, in that, He is morally perfect and just in His very being.  Thus, the pursuit of righteousness can be summed up as a purposed pursuit of God, particularly of His morality.

The pursuit of righteousness then differs from the pursuit of holiness in that it is based on the specifics of His moral perfection and justice.  Although holiness is intimately tied to this, righteousness is that which is right, and God being ultimately the right, the pursuit of righteousness is the pursuit of God, focused like a lazer on His justice.  Logically, the practical question needs to be asked, "how do you pursue righteousness?"

Because righteousness is defined as the perfect morality and faultless justice of God, the pursuit thereof reflects the fervent study and personal application of God's righteousness.  Luckily, and not surprisingly, the pursuit of righteousness is intricately tied to the study of Christ Jesus.  Think of it, Jesus represents the perfect meting out of God's justice while simultaneously acting as the living example of His absolute moral perfection.

Therefore, the pursuit of righteousness necessitates the study of Jesus as the Christ.  Understanding that Jesus acted out the righteousness of God in that He became the instrument of God's justice, to pursue righteousness is to pursue Christ.  Let us then study, pray, and pursue Christ Jesus so as to seek after the righteousness of God!

Love of Christ

Christianity is founded on the perfect life, sinless death, and bodily resurrection of Christ.  These are irreducible in that upon these basic assertions all of Christianity stands.  It is therefore paramount that they be considered and protected both for their merit and for their truth.  But acknowledging doctrines with an intellectual ascent akin to accepting the weatherman's forecast is wholly different from letting the weight and matter of the truths sink into the depths of our beings.

In essence, knowing about Jesus is insufficient to affect transformation and guarantee salvation.  A mere knowledge about Him is completely different from a sincere knowledge of Him.  This second step, to know Him in a transformationally intimate way, requires that we address the content of His teaching.  Luckily, the New Testament is a literary environment solely focused on the factual and historical Christ Jesus, His life, death, resurrection, and continuing work in the Church by the empowering of the Holy Spirit.  Because God has provided us such a valuable resource as is the New Testament, it would be unwise for us to ignore it.  A good introductory step in the pursuit of Jesus would be to engage His teaching, to be summarized in a single word: love.

Needless to say, Jesus' teaching encompasses vastly more than love; however, it is His presentation of the worth and merit of love, true love, that seems to run as a theme like a river throughout the New Testament.  Although it could be said that all of the New Testament serves as evidence for Jesus' high esteem for the value of love, a few passages succinctly reveal Jesus' feelings about love (Matt. 5-7; 22:37-39; John 3:13-17, 14:21-23; James 2:8; 1 John 4:7-21--this is not exhaustive, just a cursory list to whet the whistle).

Love is important and it should be our very lifestyle.  Think of it theologically: God is love, having performed the greatest act of love in all of history by taking on the sins of mankind and condemning His Son (John 3:16; Rom. 5:7-9; 1 John 4:7-8).  And, because believers are sanctified by putting themselves to death as to be raised with Christ, Christians should be lighthouses and salt shakers that while they receive the love of God they reflect it to others.  Therefore, as we love God we will love others.  Loving others is the natural expression of loving God, for in loving God in our pursuit of Him, we will inevitably take to loving those whom He loves, i.e. everyone.

The picture becomes un-blurred as we begin to lift the veil and see Christ as He is and see His teaching properly.  Essentially, we are to love God and, coming out of that first love, we will love others.  The "others" refers to neighbors, friends, family members, enemies, anyone.  It is important not to put the cart before the proverbial horse, as in, if we are not truly pursuing and loving the Lord than not only will we be unable to really love others but, more importantly, the love we do show others is nothing more than vanity.  There is a definite hierarchy to love, first God then others.  The latter arises out of the former for if severed from the former the latter is worthless.  Let us then love God and in doing so with all our hearts, minds, spirits, and strengths, to love others as we would ourselves!

Engaging Easter

Across the earth on this Easter sunday, Christians unite in worship and remembrance of Christ Jesus, His life, death, and resurrection.  It is on this day, Easter, that the centuries old story is told and retold as families get together around the table for feasts and fellowship while the kids hunt for dyed eggs strewn about the home.  However, for this Easter, let us engage the story of Jesus again.

For starters, Jesus was the fulfillment of prophecy.  Not only prophecy, but Jesus' life, death, and resurrection fulfilled the whole of the Old Testament.  This all being true, understanding the meaning of Jesus is something else entirely.

The Jewish faith, at the time of Jesus, was a closed religious system.  Their Law and Writings had been well-established for several centuries and the nation was all-too aware of their special status as the Chosen People of God.  The major feature of becoming the Chosen People was that the Israelites were given the Law, the perfect and absolute moral ethic of God.  The Law revealed the character of God as it pointed out the transgressions of sin.  It is the Law that condemned Israel but it did much more than that, preparing the world for the Messiah to take on the sin of mankind.

The Law's primary function was to expose sin.  More than that, the Law condemned the transgressors.  Forgiveness for the sin could be accounted for by sacrifice, but only in part because the blood of bulls and goats is not sufficient to cover the sins of man.  However, the Law acted as a funnel, in that the sin of all mankind was able to be concentrated and pressed upon Israel.  Thus, when the Messiah came as a Hebrew, the God Man Jesus became the perfect atoning sacrificial lamb who could take on the sin of the whole world by condemning sin in His own flesh upon the cross.

Easter is an important holiday.  In fact, it is on Easter that the most important event in all of history is remembered.  This Easter, let us take a step beyond gluttonous consumption and obligatory family engagements to dig into the Word and to seek after the Lord for what He has done.  This is truly a wonderful day for He is risen, and as a result we can live too!

The Betrayals of Jesus

The night Jesus was arrested, two of his closest friends and disciples betrayed Him.  One, the moneyman of the group, turned Jesus’ location over to the religious leaders who were seeking a way to arrest and kill Him.  The other, His hotheaded confidant, denied ever knowing the Lord, even uttering curses upon himself to prove his ignorance of Jesus.  Both of these men were in Jesus’ close circle of friends, yet how they each responded to their betrayals speaks volumes, both to the cost of unfaithfulness as well as the potential reactions once we realize what we’ve done.

Judas Iscariot, the accountant of the disciples, had shown that he was more concerned with fleshly gains, having been helping himself to the groups money and proving himself a thief for sometime before Jesus' arrest (John 12:5-6).  Therefore, when Judas did finally turn Jesus over to the authorities for a meager 30 pieces of silver, approximately $7,500 today, how lowly Judas and the chief priests who paid the fee thought of Jesus was revealed (Matt. 26:14-15).

Yet Judas, upon realizing what he had done in aiding the chief priests to condemn and execute an innocent Jesus, changed his mind and, in his utter guilt, hanged himself (Matt. 27:3-5).  There was to be neither forgiveness nor restoration for Judas.  He recognized his shame and faced the wrath of God in the total disgrace of suicide, taking his own life instead of repenting in humility for his betrayal.

Then there’s Peter, the outspoken foot-in-mouth disciple, who denied ever knowing the Lord Jesus at the inquisition of a slave girl in the courtyard outside of the Caiaphas’ house (Matt. 26:69-75).  Even as Jesus prophesied Peter’s denial, Peter underestimated how his faith would be tested, claiming, “Even if I must die, I will not deny you (Matt. 26:30-35)!”  Yet when the moment came to live up to his bravado, he folded in denial of His Lord and in humility ran out of the courtyard weeping bitterly.

Unlike Judas, though, Peter was stayed true to His Lord, running to His tomb with John at His resurrection (John 20:3).  And after preparing breakfast on the shore alongside the Sea of Tiberius, Jesus confirmed His forgiveness and reconciliation to Peter (John 21:15-19).  Although Peter had betrayed Jesus, turning his back of Him at His most dire moment, Jesus forgave and restored Peter,  confirmed by Peter's prominence at Pentecost (Acts 1:15).

In truth, each one of us has betrayed Jesus in our own way and time.  That being said, if and when we do deny our Lord, we should take on the posture of Peter, weeping in humility at our unfaithfulness and repenting in faith for God's forgiveness and restoration.  LEt us then look to the restoration of Peter as to make it our own!

Giving up the Throne for Guidance

At many times throughout this life we will be forced to make decisions.  Some decisions such as what to eat, or what clothes to wear can seem trivial.  While others like who to marry, where to go to school, or what career to pursue can be monumentally important for their obvious and resounding longterm ramifications.

The method we employ to determine the decisions we will make can speak volumes of who we rely upon most when the rubber hits the road.  Many people would say that they trust the Lord to guide them while they still sit firmly in the driver's seat steering the car.  This is like talking out of both sides of the mouth.  Instead, we should determine who will be the master of our lives and stick to it.  If God is truly to sit upon the throne of our lives then the first step is to clear the seat by getting up and out of the way.

In truth, recognizing that the Lord desires to guide man's steps is a great starting point in seeking guidance from Him.  Not only does God want to guide us but when we rely on Him to lead us, He will (Psa. 23:2-3, 37:23-24, 139:9-10; Pro. 3:5-6).  The Lord will watch over us and will direct our every step, we just need to follow His leading (Isa. 42:16, 58:11).

Jesus spoke clearly, "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matt. 6:33)."  This is the point: we need to pursue God and His will.  When we seek after Him, we will align our will with His, we will be focused on spiritual matters over fleshly vapors, and we will take every step with discernment and faith.

God has given us every resource needed to depend on Him for guidance.  We have the wealth of the Bible, imparted through reflection and study.  We have mentors and fellowship, which helps to encourage growth and challenges blind spots.  We also have the inestimable power of the Holy Spirit who, by His indwelling, both guides and empowers us to make the right and sound decisions.  All we need to do is make it our posture to rely on God for our decision making ability.

Making decisions, sometimes life altering ones, is a part of life.  To be sure, the most significant decision anyone ever makes is to confess with their mouth and believe in their heart that Christ Jesus is the Lord of all creation.  The step of faith is to be the gait for every decision we make.  We are to walk by the Spirit, living by the Word, and loving as He has loved us.  Let us take this seriously and cast our decision making upon Him!

Peace of God

Peace.  It is one of the buzz words employed by Paul but it is steeped in theological merit.  In the postmodern world, peace has become a generic term for good relations or the goal of disparate international alliances.  In the spiritual realm, though, peace holds a much more significant definition, aptly describing how, through the blood of Christ, we can be reconciled to God (Rom. 5:1-2).

In this, the greatest sense, peace is purely relational, a designation reserved for how Christ Jesus has affected the relationship between man and God.  The ultimate referent for peace is what Jesus has done, breaking down the wall of hostility, the Law, that had separated man and God as well as Jew and Gentile in order to bring all who are faithful to His self (Eph. 2:14-15).

Peace, in its truest sense, refers then to how Christ Jesus has reconciled us to God through His blood (Col. 1:21-22).  Additionally, the peace we receive from God arises out our justified status (Rom. 5:1-2).  This cannot be emphasized enough: peace is a gift from the Lord that stems from the applied work of Jesus.

Additionally, peace is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22), that guards are hearts and minds as its ruler that leads us in brotherly love (Phil. 4:7; Col. 3:15).  As we receive the gift of peace, which is made sure by the blood of Christ Jesus, we are to pass it on.  In essence, peace is to be our very way of life, living peacefully in peace.  Peace is thus not merely a word, but it reflects the restored relationship between man and God through the blood of Christ.  Therefore, we should pursue peace as to pursue Christ.

Plea for the Young

Because the word for overseer, "elder," serves as a term for the aged in our society, there is a natural compulsion to feel that those who are older are to be the examples worth following.  Although this may be true, being of youth or youthful is no excuse for not pursuing righteousness and living as salt and light in the world.  Simply put, this means that those who are young need to live as examples with just as much fervor and intent as those who are older.

Strangely enough, Scripture offers multiple examples pointing to young people being used for great things.  The first example is David, a teenage shepherd boy who was used by God to defeat the mightiest Philistine champion to the envy of Saul, the king who should have done the job.  Merely a young boy, David, was chosen by God to be the greatest king in Israel's history.

Or consider Jeremiah, a young boy when he was called to by the Lord to prophecy judgement over Jerusalem and all of Israel.  Although he was but a boy, he was called to be the voice of God for all of Israel, one of the greatest prophets in Israelite history.  Clearly, youth is not a hindrance to doing the will of God.

Or consider Timothy, Paul's son in Christ (1 Tim. 1:2).  Although Scripture does not clearly specify the age of Timothy but it is certain that he is Paul's junior and that Timothy was considered a youth at whatever ministry setting he was in.  However, Paul was clear that Timothy should not be hindered by his youth but should strive to be an example for the older generation, devoting himself to public reading of Scripture, and to teaching (1 Tim. 4:12-14).

The point is that youth, though often neglected by the older folk, is not any reason to not live the life God requires of us.  The truth is, although youth and youthfulness can be an excuse to delay growing in devotion, we should not let ourselves off the hook so easily.  Instead, we should be just as fervent in our pursuit of growth as older people.

In truth, if we who are younger desire to become leaders who are wise and faithful, we should take the quest after Christ seriously throughout our youth as to grow like plants into flowering fruition in His due time, not hindered by our own flesh-seeking procrastination.  Let us then press into Him as to be the people, young and old, that God wants us to be!

Setting the Morning Right

Every day that has ever been and that will ever be has begun and will begin with dawn, the morning.  It is true that morning may coincide with the dawning of the Sun, however, for the purposes of this dialogue, morning is the preparatory part of the day.  Morning sets the tone and color of the day.  If morning is rushed, all day will be spent catching up to it; if it is lethargic, all day will be slowed to a snail's pace; and if it is filled with strife or unease, the only hope for relief may be in fact tomorrow.  The point is that how we handle and use our mornings can have dramatic and significant effects on the whole of our day.

Morning marks a new day.  This straightforward assertion, though obvious, can be neglected for the simplicity of its truth.  Many people treat morning either as a time for preparing the flesh (shower, clothes, breakfast, makeup, etc.), and others as a transitionary period (a time of transitioning from sleep to responsibility like the time between getting out of bed and going to the office).  The truth is, because of the significance that morning can have over the whole of the day, a more intentional attitude towards morning begs development.

A simple question might be in order: what constitutes the ideal day?  Not simply arbitrary, the perfect day is dominated with an outpouring of love for God, meaning that the perfect day has us fulfilling the two greatest commandments with fervor, loving God and loving others (Matt. 22:37-39).  In essence this is the life manner of Christians, to live by the Spirit and thus fulfill His commandments (Rom. 8:4; Gal. 5:17, 24).  Therefore, because walking in the Spirit is to love God and loving others selflessly should be the posture and tone of our very beings, it makes great sense to consider imprinting these traits into our mornings.

As the scenarios of morning can be the dominating pall or overwhelming joy over a day, integrating these key components of Christian life into our mornings is thus essential to ensure our morning does not set the course of our day for mourning but for love.  There needs to be an intentionality to the morning, just as there is to be an intentionality to our lives.  For this, a brief discourse on method is in order, focused on the routine of morning.

Because worship and love is to be the trait that characterizes all of Christian life, we need to make our mornings times of worship and love, preparing us for days of praise.  Although not exhaustive, there are basically three elements needed to take this attitude among us: (1) prayer, (2) praise, and (3) preparation.

The necessity of prayer is clear, we need to pray for God's provision and for His care to keep us throughout our day.  Praise, a part of prayer, is a practice of worship.  In the context of the morning routine, praise means acknowledging who God is and what He has done with thankfulness, an obvious necessity to the Christian life.  Preparation is a two-part endeavor.

The first part is in study, we should make a habit and practice of Bibly study in the mornings as it will set our minds to meditate on the Word for the day.  The second step of preparation is the focus on loving others, meaning that we will consider potential opportunities to love others as well as setting an attitude to love others.

Developing a sound morning routine that is focused on worshiping throughout the day is one of the most important ways to grow as a believer.  Setting our days off right with prayer, praise, and preparation is a simple but necessary way to love the Lord with the intensity and seriousness that He desires of us.  Let us then practice good morning habits as to press into Him!

Jesus' Victory Over Sin

The Gospel is empowering.  Often it is thought of as a gateway into the "weightier" matters of Christianity.  However, the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus, is the empowering force that infuses believers with the ability to live life the way God desires, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.  It should not be neglected, though, that because of the Good News, we may overcome not only sin but also its repercussions.

Obviously, as sin is a human ordeal (not to speak of the spiritual element in regards to Satan, etc.), there are certain elements of the human experience that can be directly traced to sin.  Among these are two in particular that are worth highlighting for further examination: (1) grief & suffering, and (2) temptation.  The purpose of this dialogue is to offer encouragement that the Gospel empowers believers in both of these aspects of the human experience.

Grief, pain, suffering are all consequences of sin traced back to the original sin (Gen. 3).  As a result, humanity is consistently marred by misery and sorrow.  In reality, the malady of sin and its mortal sting affects us wholly through this earthly life.  This is inescapable.  Luckily, we have God both to empathize and to comfort.

For this, one needs only to look at the life, especially the death, of Jesus.  Isaiah 53:3-4, in particular, describes in grave detail the grief-stricken life of the Christ.  Moreover, Jesus has taken on the grief and sorrow due us as a penalty for our sin.  As a result, the Gospel then is the ultimate source of comfort and empathy when we are forced, by the consequences of sin, to trudge through sorrowful seasons.

The writer of Hebrews agrees with this assessment of the role of the Gospel amidst suffering (Heb. 4:15).  Therefore, we should look to Him. Think of Psalm 23, "even though I walk through the valley..." Does this not also assert that, though we fear and suffer, we will find our source and comfort in the Lord?

Lastly, Jesus is clear that the Holy Spirit is the "Helper," the "Comforter," whom Christ sends to indwell within us to empower us through the hardships (John 14:112-14; Acts 1:18).  Also, because the Holy Spirit is acquired by faith, it is then our faith in Jesus that, by the Holy Spirit, who comforts and helps us.  Jesus has overcome sin, not just redeeming us from it by justifying us in terms of judgment, but also in that He saves us in the midst of hardship and suffering as well.  Let us then press into Him not only on the sunny days but also when the tempests rage so as to find comfort and help in our times of struggle!

The Marks of a Fool

Scripture contains three Wisdom books: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Job.  In these books, wisdom is examined and highlighted as the preferred manner of life for believers.  Although both Job and Ecclesiastes are focused on wisdom's worth, Proverbs employs a method of parallel antithesis in order to define wisdom.  In this, the wise man is held up to the fool.  There is then much to learn about the wise through understanding the foolish.

Proverbs 1:7 defines the fear of the Lord as the beginning of wisdom, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.  This verse is really saying those that despise wisdom and instruction are fools.  If we do not seek after wisdom, we will not learn the right way to live.  Moreover, if we do not seek and accept instruction, we will never grow beyond our own preference and proclivity.  Wisdom and instruction require the ability to receive rebuke and admonishment with grace and humility.  If we cannot take on this posture, wisdom will forever remain outside of our reach.

Although foolishness is a character trait, it does not occur within a vacuum, it has external indicators.  The chief among these is the reality that a fool will think and believe foolishly, which ultimately means that a fool will live foolishly.  The most foolish thing a person can think and believe is the most obvious and self-evident truth possible: God exists, and we are not Him.  If we are not rooted in this fundamental truth, we are fools.

Psalm 14:1states that, "The fool says in his heart, 'there is no God.' They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds, there is no one who does good."  This Psalm is both profound and true.  The root of foolishness is the lie of atheism.  Remember, foolishness is not primarily an intellectual ordeal.  Instead, foolishness is a worldview, a posture of irreverence and transgression.  Inevitably, the life of a fool will be marked by corruption and derision.  This does not mean that a fool cannot be sincere or kind, but, like all unrepentant people, these are a veil that conceals the depraved heart beneath.

Becoming wise and accepting instruction are not passive endeavors.  Growing into the wise people of God that He desires us to be demands active participation and intentional pursuit of Him.  The truth is that we are all fools, every one of us.  Only by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit can we cast aside our foolishness in favor of wisdom.  Let us then press in to Him as to put to death our foolishness and be made alive to His wisdom!