Godly Dimples like Golf Balls

An aeronautical engineer once remarked that a perfectly smooth golf ball would not fly further than 130 or 150 yards.  Over a century ago, golf balls were made by stuffing a small leather sack with as many feathers as could fill a top hat.  The feathers were stuffed into the leather pouches boiling hot and as the feathers cooled they expanded while the leather tightened, created a hard, dense ball.  After some time, golfers began to notice that the balls were nearly useless at first, as they would fly erratically off the tee.  However, once the balls had become dented and imperfect, it was discovered that they flew more controllably and predictably.

The golfers got wise and begin to "age" their golf balls before use in order to make them fly better.  The trend continued and modern golf balls are manufactured with between 250-450 dimples.  The dimples drastically improve the aerodynamics of the balls and make their flight paths predictable and useful for the game of golf.  It seems odd to think that it is in fact the perceived "blemishes" and "distortions" on the balls that makes them purposeful at all.

Humans are like golf balls designed by the heavenly ball designer.  He has put certain dimples and, what we would call, imperfections into our design but only to increase our flight paths.  Each of these is for His purposes and, ultimately, our good.  If we could recognize that God desires to use us for a specific purpose and that He has designed us in such a way fitting that purpose, then we will take joy in who we are, knowing that God has made us a certain way for His reasons.

The psalmist writes in Psalm 139 that, "You (God) formed my inner parts, You knit me together in my mother's womb," and "I am fearfully and wonderfully made.  Wonderful are Your works and my soul knows them well."  If we remember this reality when scrutinizing ourselves or critiquing our exteriors, we will be able to breath and to thank God that He has created us in His perfect way.  Let us then cling to God, pressing into Him so as to receive His revelation as to what purpose He has created us for!

The Holy Standard of God

In 1992, the Rapid City, South Dakota police department arrested Dennis Lee Curtis, a known armed robber.  Curtis had been on a years-long robbery spree and the police were relieved to finally arrest him with relative ease. When the police were filing him at the station, they had Curtis empty his pocket. They were full of the usual stuff: wallet, gum, lint, etc.  But as the officers looked through his wallet they came across a piece of paper with a peculiar list on it:

1. I will not kill anyone unless I have to.
2. I will take cash and food stamps--no checks.
3. I will rob only at night.
4. I will not wear a mask.
5. I will not rob mini-marts or 7-Eleven stores.
6. If I get chased by cops on foot, I will get away.  If I get chased by vehicle, I will not put the lives of innocent civilians on the line.
7. I will rob only 7 months out of the year.
8. I will enjoy robbing from the rich to give to the poor.

Although Curtis was an armed robber, his list revealed that had developed and held to an ethic, a sense of morality that he lived by.  At Curtis's trial, the defense presented this list to the court in an attempt to show that, though Curtis had broken the law, he was not as bad as some other seemingly moral-less criminals.  Needless to say, the judge was not swayed and Curtis was sentenced to prison for his crimes.

The point is that no matter the moral code that we may create to make ourselves out to be "good enough," we are held to the higher, perfect law of God.  In reality, no matter what standard we set for ourselves, it is nowhere near the holy standard of God.  Scripture could not be more unified in this regard.  God is a perfect judge, His law is perfect, and man is unable to meet its requirements (Psa. 7:11; Isa. 64:6; Rom 3:10-23; 2 Cor. 15:10).

This reality should prompt us to humility and to faith in Christ, for only through Him may propitiation for our sins be made.  Recognizing our counterfeit-law is a necessary step in destroying it so as to strive for the highest, holy law of God, which is Christ Jesus crucified.  Let us then empty the wallets of our criminal selves and light our false-laws on fire!

Mining the Gold of Col. 3:1-5

Paul, in Colossians 3:1-5 writes, "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.  For you have died, and you life is hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ who is your life appears you also will appear with Him in glory.  Put to death, therefore, what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry."

Without question, this is convicting and challenging.  Paul is indicting believers.  It should be noted that he is clearly exhorting those who are believers to devote themselves to God in seeking the things that are above and to put to death their fleshly natures.  This is one of the most concentrated, clearest, and comprehensive presentations of the Christian life-ethic, carried forward through 4:6, in the whole New Testament.  Because of this, it seems a good sequence of verses to briefly take apart for their worth.

At the onset, though this is universal teaching, it is a contingent one: "If you have been raised with Christ," contingent upon belief in Christ Jesus.  Though this may seem trivial, it is of significance when we think about whom these verses address and who is to do these things.  Because Paul is addressing believers it tells us two very basic but important things.  The first is that this sort of radical life focus and ethic is for believers alone.  And secondly, as a result of the previous assertion, believers should not expect unbelievers to live up to God's ethical standards.  Even more so, unbelievers not only will be unable to understand what Paul is asking, they will be utterly unable to fulfill it.

Also, a note about the order here; Paul says, "Seek the things that are above," then, "Set you mind on the things above," and then, "Put to death, therefore." The natural reading of this is somewhat progressive, as in, first seek the things of God, then dwell and think about those things, and then put the sinful self to death.  Although this may seem trivial, it could refer to developmental stages of belief.

If one has come to faith in Christ, through belief and confession, then they are just beginning to seek the things of God.  Whereas someone who has believed and sought should be to the point of contemplating the things of God, the things that have been sought.  Once these things have occurred, that person's desire to live godly will be paired with the equipping that comes from understanding and pursuing God.  These are not necessarily separate events but could be simultaneous.  It is more important to indicate that they are separate aspects of belief.

This is a great passage of Scripture from one of the most beautifully concise books in all of Scripture. Its brevity is only surpassed by its density and theological weight.  The Holy Spirit made no mistakes in the inspiration of Scripture, however, sometimes we, as interpreters, need to slow down our reading as to take in each passage for its worth.  When we take on this sort of hermeneutic we will be surprised constantly at the beauty and design of Scripture.

Understanding the Holy Spirit

Throughout the Church, there seems to be much teaching and doctrine about the Father, and certainly the Son, but the work of the Holy Spirit is oddly neglected.  To be sure, it is challenging. For however many and eloquent words we might employ to depict and discuss the Holy Spirit, we are inevitably left using material and human words to describe an altogether un-human being.  This leaves us inclined either to dig deeper into the Scriptures for clarification or simply to ignore teaching about the Holy Spirit entirely for fear of doing Him injustice.  Needless to say, the latter is unacceptable.  Instead, we should look at the opportunity to learn about God, His Holy Spirit, with joy and energy.

At the onset, the Holy Spirit is unique to Christianity.  Only Christianity teaches that God Himself, in His Holy Spirit, will actually descend upon and indwell believers.  This should excite us to know that God desires to indwell us with His very person so as to guide, to teach, and to grow us from the inside-out.  Because we are discussing a Spirit, we should be sure to consider a couple of points of clarification: we are referring to the Spirit not a material substance; we are talking about One who indwells within believers not everyone; and there is an emphasis in the New Testament, particularly Acts, for a baptism of or being filled by the Holy Spirit.  These three basic assertions form a trifecta of foundations supported and supplemented by the Word, specifically the New Testament.

While the Holy Spirit plays a major role in nearly all of the New Testament works, none more so than that of the Gospel of John and Acts.  More than any other writing does John chronicle Jesus specific teaching about the Holy Spirit.  For starters, people are to be baptized in the Holy Spirit (John 1:33), which equates to be born of the Spirit (John 3:5).  This can seem both odd and confusing, and has sparked much debate over what amounts to this baptism.  Luckily, Jesus does not leave us without reference about this, as chronicled by Luke throughout Acts.

In Acts 1:4-5, Jesus tells the disciples to wait for the promise of the Father, "He said, 'you heard from me; for John baptized with water but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.'"  Jesus, quite clearly, tells the disciples that, though they had already been baptized with water and were believers, they would be baptized with the Holy Spirit.  Moreover, just before Jesus ascends, in His final words to His disciples, He says, "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth (Acts 1:8)."  The event Jesus prophesied is Pentecost (Acts 2:4), accompanied by the physical manifestations of the Holy Spirit, namely speaking in tongues and prophesying.

Much destructive and unbiblical teaching has been done on this subject, to the effect that the Church seems polarized.  In an effort to keep true to the Scripture and reserved, we can point out a couple of clear things about this.  For one, believers are to be baptized in water and the Holy Spirit.  These being two things, they do not necessarily mean two separate occasions; they could be simultaneous.  Secondly, the baptism of the Holy Spirit is the power of God.  If we do not have the Holy Spirit, we could believe all the right orthodoxy but never bear fruit.  In this far-too-normal scenario, we need to earnestly pray to receive the Holy Spirit who guides, counsels, teaches, helps us grow spiritual fruit and is the medium of worship (John 4:23; 14:15-18, 25-26; 16:4-15).

The other, and most controversial, aspect of the Holy Spirit that should not be neglected for fear of disrupting our denominational doctrines or sensibilities is in reference to the "sign" gifts: healing, miracles, prophecy, visions, and tongues.  In an effort to let the Word determine theology as opposed to the dire case of the reverse, it must be said unambiguously that these gifts are still in effect today.  We still live in the age of grace, and God still empowers believers who have been baptized by the Holy Spirit with these gifts and He still works in these ways today.

In the end, understanding who the Holy Spirit is, how He is received, and what He does within believers is essential teaching.  Certainly, it is challenging teaching that can convict and push us in unforeseen ways but this should not allow us to neglect it.  In closing, Paul indicates that the Holy Spirit "seals" our inheritance in the Father, and is a "guarantor" of our eternity (2 Cor.21-22; Eph. 1:13-14).  The purpose of this article has not been an exhaustive or comprehensive teaching on the Holy Spirit, but just a taste of the more important things that Christians need to be aware of.  Let us then pray to be baptized by the Holy Spirit so as to be empowered by God Himself!

The Quest for Humility

Facebook has made all the world self-promoters, Twitter has made every one fancy themselves a quick-quipping pun king, and Youtube has made everyone think they should be a star.  We live in a world that spreads self-esteem and expects self-exaltation, making the truly humble heart is a rarity.  But God demands something more, indicating that there is ruin for those who would exalt themselves in haughtiness and pride.

This is a hard but necessary teaching.  Many of us would rather be noticed and heralded, but God asks for something else altogether.  Throughout the book of Proverbs, humility is contrasted to pride just as wisdom is contrasted to foolishness and as godliness is contrasted with sin (Pro. 3:34; 11:2; 15:31, 33; 16:18-19; 18:12; 21:4; 26:12; 29:23; 30:32).  This should be enough in itself for us to know that God demands us to be humble so as to receive His favor and His blessings.

But before we should think that only the Old Testament was concerned with humility, we should be reminded of Jesus very own words: "For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, but whoever humbles himself will be exalted (Matt. 23:12; cf. Luke 14:7-11 & 18:9-14 )."  We should take Jesus' words with seriousness and sobriety and it should, ultimately, convict us on to humility.

Clearly, humility is a big deal.  However, as mentioned above, it goes against our well-ingrained, western tendencies.  Accomplishing the task of humility is a holistic, full-person endeavor.  To be sure, the quest for humility is a matter of identity.  If we are to be found solely and securely in Christ, then there is simply no room for pride or haughty self-exaltation because we will be looking at our own worth in the light of the Holy Lord.  Let us then look to God to be our identity and our only boast!

Qualified for Eternity

Qualification is an interesting and pervasive reality of life.  Whether one is applying for a job, looking through an online dating profile, registering for classes, or just trying to get into a night club, being qualified means that you meet the requirements necessary for whatever it is you are attempting to do or enter.  Often times, the reality is that if those qualifications are not met then admittance is refused.  And when those qualifying requirements are made plainly accesible, that refusal is just and true.

In terms of eternity, there is a steep qualification that must be met in order to enter into God's eternal presence: sin must be paid for and justified. If sin is not atoned for and propitiated, then we will be unqualified for eternal life and relegated to eternal death.  Sin is univeralsy pervasive, in that everyone is disqualified by it (Rom 3:23).

Additionally, though man would attempt to atone for his sin himself, either by doing good things in hopes that they outweigh the sin or by denying the reality of sin altogether, no one can blot out his or her sin debt; it takes a powerful work of God.  Thus, apart from the work of God in the life of humanity,  sin will remain un-atoned for and eternally damning.

Fortunately, God Himself, through the life and work of His Son Jesus, has atoned for the sin of all mankind (Gal. 1:3-5).  And now, by grace appropriated and applied by faith, humanity's sin has been expunged.  Therefore, man can become qualified to enter into God's holy and eternal presence not by man's work but by Christ's work applied to the believing man (Col. 1:11-13).  Let us then take joy in God who has qualified us by His Son to be in His eternal presence!

Carrying One Stick of Trouble at a Time

John Newton, a sailor and clergyman during the 18th century, has a wonderful analogy of worry and anxiety worth paraphrasing:

All the worries and troubles of an entire year of life are life a giant pile of sticks. And each day, God hands us a single stick to carry for the entirety of the day.  At the end of each day we return to God and return the stick to him.  The next day, we wake up and God hands us another stick.  Each day has its own stick, not more and not less than we can handle.  Occasionally, we come to God and we ask him to hand us today's stick and tomorrow's, and by the end of the day we seem tired and beaten but we return again to God to give him back the sticks.  And some days, we feel haughty and sure so we ask for a week's worth of sticks.  And though God warns us, he hands us the sticks and tells us that he will be there to help us if we can't handle the sticks.  We turn to God, smile, and proceed to take from him the sticks, tie them into a wide bundle, throw the bundle over our backs and leave for our day.  At first, the bundle seems only annoyingly heavy but as the day bears on, the sticks begin to weigh on us as an ever-growing burden.  Thus, by the end of the day, we can barely move and each step feels like a trudge throw the deepest of mired bogs until we finally collapse under the weight of bundle.  As we lay there, beaten under the force of our own troubles bundled beyond our ability to care for them, God comes up behind us and picks the overwhelming bundle of sticks off us us with ease and helps us back to our feet.

The point is that, though our natural inclination is to take on today's, tomorrow's, and next week's challenges and worries, God has ordained that we should not take on more than what we can handle, for each day has enough trouble for itself (Matt. 6:34), and we should only attempt to take on that which God has placed before us for the moment.  God desires that we, in humility, press into Him to cover and care for our troubles and our worries.  Let us then do so with consistency, clinging to Him to preserve us when we would rather pick up the bundle of troubles and to be reminded to carry one stick of trouble at a time.

Don't be Fooled by the Speech of Fools

A mechanic is an expert in automobiles.  He or she has been trained in the maintenance and repair of motor vehicles and has gotten sufficient experience for them to be considered mechanics.  As a result, they are trusted for their study as experts in their respective field.  Because of this, it would seem utterly asinine and idiotic for someone without any prior education or experience to tell that person what they "think" or "believe" to be the cause of their car troubles.

Or consider a medical doctor.  After having spent years of arduous study and rote memorization, coupled with years of hands-on experience in dealing with various types of patients and their syndromes.  Yet, inevitably, the patient will offer their arm-chair diagnosis with such gusto as if they themselves had done the schooling and they might know better or with more fullness what was actually going on.

However ludicrous the aforementioned examples may seem in their context, this principle is done with relative regularity and astonishing amounts of confidence in matters of faith and religion.  Truly, just like everyone who tries to offer their own diagnosis of car troubles or health, the unrepentant unbeliever will often make up his or her own story about truth and about God, with no care nor reference to the work and study done by believers and theologians who have given their very lives to the task of pursuing God and His truth.

Moreover, the unbeliever who would assert their own unfounded theological systems, tend to do so in such a relativistic way that warrants any discussion of true truth, that is to be found solely in the One who IS truth, is made impotent by their babbling.  Thus, the discussion is left unresolved because to the unbelievers unwillingness to hear the truth of God, due to their hardness of heart.

Strangely enough, Solomon spoke about such useless and foolish babbling several centuries ago.  He writes in Proverbs, "A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, only in sharing his own opinion (Pro. 18:2)."  He writes also that, "The wise lay up knowledge, but the mouth of a fool brings ruin near (Pro. 10:14)."  Thus, the man who continually airs his own opinion with no regard for transformational understanding is a fool.

This also brings to light the essential importance of humility in any theologizing.  If we are to be people of wisdom, then we need to be slow to speak and quick to listen in these matters (James 1:19). The challenge is that this principle, though easily asserted for its merit, is far-from-easy to implement.  However, if we remember that a fool will expose himself by his many words, if we simply listen attentively we will be in much better positions to address the fool with the truth that will pierce his foolishness: the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Let us then take heed the work done by great Christians of the past and those of the present who dedicate their very lives to pursuing God.  For they are the spiritual doctors that are studied and trained in the things of God and should be thought of as such.  Praise be to God that He would not leave us autonomous but that He would commission a body of believers with various gifts and callings to advance His Church and His Kingdom!

Treating the Gospel like the Good News it is

A 17-year-old opens the mailbox everyday in hopes of finding that letter, that one letter that could change his very life.  Everyday he opens the box with eagerness and closes it with sorrow at another depressing day without the letter and without relief from his anticipation.  Then, one day, like the hundreds before, there it is.  He pulls the envelope out of the box and breaths it in, opening it with deliberation and exhaling a scream of jubilant release.  From the mailbox, he sprints to his home, almost falling through the threshold as he leaps into the kitchen to yell at his mother across the kitchen: "They accepted me! I'm going to Harvard!"

Good news, like finding out that you're going to Harvard, or going to have a baby, or you've finally been offered the dream job, or the reports are in that the cancer is gone.  This sort of news will always demand to be expressed.  Undoubtedly, the joy of genuine good news will cause us to tell everyone we know because truly good news is nto something to remain hidden, but something to be shared.

The Gospel, the Good News about our Lord Christ Jesus saving all of humanity from sin and restoring a broken relationship with God Almighty, is something that should prompt us to share with everyone.  This Good News is the best news because it means that by faith we can spend eternity in the presence of the Lord.  Therefore, we should be ever-compelled to think of the Gospel at least as amazing as any other possible good news, and should be treated accordingly with the same joyous vigor.

In new believers, those who have recently made a confession of faith in Jesus, this kind of joyful sharing of the Gospel comes naturally and with ease.  Unfortunately, because of stagnant comfortability, the Gospel seems to loose some of its luster and awesomeness in their hearts and they don't share it with as much joy and gladness as news of its kind demands.  Pray that we never cease to think of the Gospel as any less than it is because it is the very power of God.  May we never think of the Gospel as common for it is supernatural and amazing.  In this way, let us seek to praise God for the Good News of His Son to be quick and excited to share it with everyone we can!

Something Other than a Bible from Gideon

When the Israelites finally entered the Promised Land after forty arduous years in the desert, the nation was so worn and ready for the Promised Rest that was to accompany the Land, that they neglected to completely dispose the inhabitants of the land that God had asked.  As a result of the Israelites failure to wholly eradicate the inhabitants of the Promised Land as God had commanded, they were locked for centuries in bitter, unending wars with the various surrounding nations until the time of King David.

During these periods of tumultuous unrest, God raised up judges.  We should not think of these in a legal sense, instead, a more accurate term would be deliver.  They performed the functions of chiefs, of judges, and as military champions.  This last role, as that of military leader, is the most important that the judges played: raised up by God to deliver Israel from paganism, often purging the nation of paganism that had arisen from the Israelites themselves.

One such judge, famous perhaps more so for Bibles bearing his name that fill hotel drawers, is Gideon.  His story is chronicled in Judges 6:11-8:35.  Often remembered for the way he tested his call from God with the woolen fleece (Jdg. 6:36-40), or his idolatrous end with his ephod (Jdg. 8:22-27), although on the whole his judgeship was one of peace and success.  For the purposes of this discussion, we will examine how God chose the soldiers for the army that was to raze the Midianites.

The Midianites had been tormenting the Israelites for decades, and finally the Israelites under Gideon had amassed a 32,00-strong army able to handling the Midianites.  However, the Lord came to Gideon amidst the preparations for the battle and told Gideon that the force was too big and needed to be decreased, that "Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return home (Jdg. 7:3)."  In a moment the force decreased by 22,000 men, leaving 10,000 for the battle.

Yet, once again, the Lord spoke to Gideon, urging him to decrease the force in a very odd but telling way.  The Lord said, "The people are still too many.  Take them down to the water, and I will test them for you there...And the Lord to Gideon, ' Every one who laps the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set by himself.  Likewise, every one who kneels down to drink (Jdg. 7:5).'"  Afterwards, the force of 10,000 was decreased to 300 able and powerful men that went on to handily win the battle.

The point here is usefulness.  If we want to be used by God, we need to be ready to throw aside politeness and manners in order to get our knees dirty and lap up the water.  Think of those who cast aside elegance and sophistication because their thirsty in preparation for battle.  Additionally, God wants us to forget about our cultural etiquette and be willing to get down and dirty, ready for our tasks to be determined by the Lord.  Let us then get on our knees to lap up the water with reckless abandonment to be used by God for great things!

Waking Up to God

Sometimes the warm cocoon of bedding is nearly impossible to leave.  When the alarm clock rings its obnoxious clatter in a concerted effort to either wake me up or just make me angry.  Often times it feels more like the latter, and I would rather just stay in bed, holed up against the world hidden behind a covering of blanketed bliss.  Unfortunately, as much as any of us would prefer to remain cuddled in a cocoon of covers, life persistently calls us to crawl out and meet the day.

This seems a most appropriate metaphor for belief.  Though we would rather hang around in the coma of comfort behind the veil of sinful slumber, God beckons the unbeliever to leave their state of eternal night and to step into the eternal light of His glory.  The fleshly, natural self is asleep (dead) to God because of sin.  But God calls for us to awaken.

Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, speaks to this regard.  He paraphrases Isaiah, "Awake, O Sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine upon you (Eph. 5:14)."  This is fundamental.  God desires to light our lives, to illuminate us with the glory of His majesty.  However, unless we, by faith, crawl out of our comatose cocoons of sinful slumber, we will be ever-unable to receive Him.

In a sense, we have an advocating heavenly alarm clock in the Holy Spirit who is ringing in an effort to prompt us to awaken from our sin.  And, like being awoken in the morning, we have a choice to make: will we either hit the snooze and pull the covers of unbelief over our heads to sleep for all eternity in hell, or will we heed to the prompting of God and awake to meet His day and His light?  These are the two choices, and they have everlasting consequences.  We should be compelled to awaken so as to embrace the day that the Lord has made, which is belief in the Son, Christ Jesus.

A brief note is in order for those who have already chosen the latter.  For those of who have already made our choice to awake from our sinful slumbers and to leave the ignorant envelop of our walking death, there is a sincere and distinct task to wake up those who are still asleep.  It is our obligation to the world to, by the empowering of the Holy Spirit, announce that the day has come in Christ Jesus and that everyone should be made awake in order to leave the darkness of death and to live in the light of the Lord.  Let us then take seriously the call to awaken to the Lord and to wake others up too!

Overcoming the Holy Language Barrier

In preparations for my freshman year of college, like everyone else, I was required to take a number of placement exams to ensure that I was placed in the proper courses.  One such exam was for language and because I had completed two years of German in high school, German was the exam I choose to take. Due to the fact that the material was fresh in my memory and that reading a language is far easier than speaking or hearing it, I tested quite well.  More accurately, I tested well beyond my ability and was placed in a course accordingly above my head.

The first day of class, actually my first college class, I confidently strode into my advanced-level German course to a shock.  The professor greeted me in German, handed me the syllabus, and motioned for an open desk.  For the next ninety-five minutes, the professor spoke exclusively in German, going through the syllabus that was written in German, and explaining the first assignment due next class period in German.  Needless to say, my confidence was not bruised but shattered as I sheepishly snuck out of the door and straight the the Registrar's office after class to drop the course and, hopefully, to never be in that situation again.

Although I had met the entrance requisites for the class, because I lacked the necessary capacity to receive the different language, I was wholly unable to understand little if anything of what was said by the professor.  Because of my deficiency, communication was nullified and the barrier was so distracting that any potential for understanding also voided.

Unbelief and sin resigns all of humanity in a state much like I was in my German course: unable to understand or comprehend the voice of God because of our deficient inability to hear His Spirit due to the effects of sin.  Though God constantly speaks to us, we are left unable to hear Him.  This what Paul indicates, that the things of God are as a foreign language to the fleshly man, and He is not able to understand them and His frustration at this barrier will cause derision and disdain for the things of God (1 Cor. 2:14).

Towards the end of Jesus' life accounted in the Gospel of John, there is an episode that expresses this (John 12:28-43): a voice from heaven came down and spoke but the crowd present was not sure if it was thunder or the voice of an angel; they couldn't understand.  In the next set of verses John indicates that these people cannot see the things of the Lord because they are blind to Him.  

Only the regenerate heart can discern and understand the things of God.  Only the repentant person is able to hear God's voice with clarity and comprehension.  This should compel us to bend our knees in faith to the Lord, knowing that only when we seek Him in humility will we be able to receive and comprehend His voice.  Let us then turn to HIm in repentance and faith so as to hear and to understand God!

Ambassadors for Christ

This summer, nations the world over will descend upon London for the Olympics.  Every nation will fly its flag and proudly display its colors on the world's stage.  Athletes will wear distinct uniforms and, while a part of their respective teams, they will represent their country in various athletic events.  But it is not only when competing that the athletes will be seen as ambassadors for their nations.  Perhaps even more so, when the competitors are away from the field they represent something more: they are Olympians representing their country, and they will need to behave in a manner fitting such an honor.


In a similar way, Christians represent Kingdom of the Lord Almighty.  And, particularly outside of the confines of the church building, believers will be constantly critiqued and criticized for how well or how poorly they behave in a manner befitting such a high honor.


The term apostle, though often associated with a position or people of the early church, is translated as a messenger, ambassador, or envoy that represents another.  In this sense, every Christian, to an extent, performs the task of the apostle, acting on behalf of Christ as an ambassador bringing the Gospel to the world and representing the King of Kings.


Because of this, we can understand more fully what Paul means when he exhorts believers to live lives "in a manner that is worthy of the calling (Eph. 4:5-16)," and to "walk in wisdom to outsiders (Col. 4:5-6)."  Christians are thus to recognize that we are ambassadors, representatives of the Lord to the unbeliever and we need to live in a way that reverently corresponds as such.


Practically speaking, Paul indicates that the manner of life that is worthy is one of humility, graciousness, patience, selflessness, truth in speech and deed, endurance, wisdom, and unity in community (Eph. 4:1-16; Phil. 1:27-30; Col. 1:10, 4:5-6).  To be sure, the worthy manner of life can be summarized in and fulfilled by love.


Christians, then, are quite like Olympians for the Lord: running an endurance race of faithfulness in a foreign world, representing our King at all times.  In this, let us then run the race with devotion and perseverance in the manner of our great champion, Jesus, to win the prize from our King in the end (1 Cor. 9:24; Phil. 3:14; Heb. 12:1-2).  And let us always give thanks and praise to God that He would call us to be His ambassadors in this fallen world!

The Good News of the Gospel

An emotionally-spent struggles to sleep.  For the past two years her son, a marine, has been deployed overseas.  Everyday the mother watches the reports, praying that she will not hear her son's name listed among those soldiers who had lost their lives in battle.  She is strained and worn from worry, having been for several months since her son's last correspondence.

Early one morning, before the sun dawns its brightness over the horizon, the mother hears rustling in the kitchen.  She gets herself dressed and walks down the stairs with reservation.   When she gets to the doorway of the kitchen, tears begin to wrench from her eyes as she is startled to see her son making her breakfast.  He had returned stateside days earlier and wanted to surprise her with good news.

Good News, that news which is a salve to our hearts and an encouragement to our lives.  The Word of God speaks of the greatest news to ever be received, which is the Gospel of Jesus, the story of sweet salvation.  The Gospel, the good news of Jesus, is the story of God's grace, the redemption from sin, death being conquered, and the reception of life eternal through the torn flesh and shed blood of God's Son, Christ Jesus.

Although the whole of Scripture speaks to the Good News of Christ Jesus, perhaps the most concise verse is the oft-quoted John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but shall have eternal life." The richness of this well-known passage is its theological density and literary precision.  John, empowered by the Holy Spirit, is indicating that at the heart of the Gospel of Christ is nothing less than God's very love for us!

Moreover, the Gospel, the Good News of salvation brought about by God through Jesus, is story that took centuries to write.  The Law and the Prophets (the Old Testament) prophesy of it (Rom 1:2-3; Heb. 1:1-4).  Profoundly, the Gospel was a centuries-long preparation of God for the redemption of humanity by the work of His Son, Christ Jesus.  This is certainly Good News.  Let us not eschew our passion for this news but let us, like the mother in the above story, weep tears of joy at the joyfulness of the Good News of Christ Jesus!

Freedom from the Fungi of Sin

Armillaria Ostoyae, or Honey mushrooms, are some the largets living organisms on the earth.  They are parasitic fungi that spread across root systems with its lace-like stems that grow under the bark of trees and shrubs, robbing the plant of its vital nutrients, killing the host-plant as it grows.  Although the mushroom begins from a single spore they can spread for miles.  In Oregon's Malheur National Forest, one such fungi has spread for some 2,200-plus acres.  It is estimated that this particular organism is over 2,400-years-old.

Oddly, while this fungi is present, it is very difficult to trace unless the tree is cut into as the fungi grows primarily under the bark, tapping directly into the nutrient source.  The "hidden" killer.  Often times researchers are not even aware of the fungi's presence until a cluster of trees is found dead and, upon dissection, the fungus is found.

The story of the Honey mushroom is much like the story of sin, which hides just under the skin, stealing the vital nutrients of the host and eventually killing him/her.  Something so small, hidden just beneath our skin with tremendously devastating effects.  Sin, like the fungi, eats away at its host to eternal destruction, and prevents the nutrients of God's grace from transforming our lives.

Fortunately, we have an advocate in Christ Jesus who has cured us of our disease and has removed the parasite of sin.  Sin entered into mankind through one man just as the Honey mushroom spread form a single spore.  But Jesus, through His obedience unto death, made a way to cure us of the pervasiveness of sin so that we could be free from its parasitic pull (Rom. 5:12-21; 1 Cor. 15:19-26).

God, by the work of His Son, has saved us utterly.  As a result, we can come to Him in faith so as to receive the perfect remedy for sin.  As Jesus enters into us, by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit,   God's holiness applied directly into us and the sin that had so destroyed the innards of our beings is removed wholly from our lives.  Let us then press into God in faith as to be fully cured from the fungi of sin that eats away at us from the inside out!

Freedom from the Stiffest Debt

Going to the mailbox is one of the most tormenting and hated acts in all of America.   The scene is so normal, as we dread opening the box and seeing those evil white envelopes housing their bills, we are left with a bitter gall at the power of these little pieces of paper, for they are sure to afflict the bank accounts and leave us feeling beaten and broke, like slaves to our debts and our creditors.  And while this may seem caricatured, the emotion is valid and more widespread than we would care to concede.

Fortunately, financial debts can be managed and overcome a persistent prescription of diligent prudence.  Additionally, finance is a finite ordeal, having no eternal affects in and of itself.  However, humanity has another, eternal debt.  And this debt, unlike the credits of finance, cannot be overcome by judiciously managing resources.  This debt is sin.

Sin is a stain on the credit scores of our souls that prevent us from receiving the heavenly and eternal King, known through the shed blood and broken body of Christ by faith.  Sin and its pervasive effects prevent us from entering into a right and restored relationship with the Lord Almighty.  Luckily, in this regard, we have One who has paid our sin debt in full: Christ Jesus.

The Bible speaks of sin a record of debt that Jesus has zeroed, nailing it to the cross in His body (Col. 2:13-14).  In doing so, God has secured for us an eternal inheritance, of the imperishable.  When we come to God, in faith, we receive this inheritance as adopted children into the family of God (Eph. 1:3-14).  Additionally, His Word declares that in Jesus, through repentance in faith, may our debt be cancelled definitively (Acts 3:19-20).  Let us then turn to God in faith to be cleared of the most severe and eternal of debts!

Rest for the Weary

Paraphrased from Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings:

In preparations for his one-hundred-and-an-eleventh birthday, Bilbo Baggins was sitting in his kitchen with his good friend, the wise wizard, Gandalf.  Gandalf was astonished at how young the old hobbit appeared, despite his apparent age.  After some brief conversation, Bilbo, became vulnerable with his friend and commented on his age, "I'm tired, Gandalf.  Like butter scraped over too-much bread."

Unlike fictitious hobbits, humans do not need to be one-hundred-and-eleven years old to feel burnt-out, spread thin across the bread of this life.  In the hustling bustle of contemporary culture, where working to exhaustion is the subsumed norm of life, taking a moment to recollect and breathe is an utter necessity.  However, Scripture speaks of God as the source of respite amidst the storms of fatigue.

While it could be useful to ask why are we burnt-out, in an effort to assess whether the various sources of our weariness are in fact worthy in themselves, for the purposes of this brief discussion we will assume, rather, that we are tired and look to God's Word for relief from the desperate tiredness of modern life.

At the onset, God must be the starting point in any conversation of rest.  The Lord God Almighty created the whole of creation.  And, in His infinite and perfect wisdom, He created day and night, a regular cycle.  This cycle lends itself perfectly to man who is built with a need to rest.  Moreover, He instituted a day of rest, a sabbath, so that man may find relief.  These are not coincidental or inconsequential truths; God has factored our need for relief from work into creation itself.

Additionally, weariness is the fertile soil of endurance, and it is endurance that grows into character of the godliest pedigree (Rom. 5:1-5; James 1:2-4, 12).  Again, the purpose of this dialogue is not to address the reason for tiredness, although it will suffice to say that weariness arising from wickedness or sinful activity will breed no endurance and cannot be soil for character growth.

The point is that God has made Himself to be our rest.  He has fashioned creation for our rest and has made us to rest.  Unfortunately, from time to time, we find ourselves in seasons that require us to regularly work ourselves into utter exhaustion.  During these prolonged periods of tiredness, it is essential that we remember to rely on God for our rest and relief.  Let us then hold fast in faith to the Holy Lord so as to be filled with relief even amidst the trials of endurance!

The Self-Existent God

One a normal, sunny Saturday afternoon, a father is driving the car to do some errands, his toddler-aged son sitting in the passenger seat next to him.  Weeks ago the toddler got a new baby sister that mommy is at home caring for, giving the boy some much-needed daddy-time.  Bouncing in his seat, fiddling with the door lock and the window, it's clear that he's excited at the prospect of spending some alone time with his father away from her.


After some more fidgeting and squirming, the boy rights himself and, with an innocent look to his father, aks, "Daddy where do babies come from?"  The father, not totally shocked by the question, actually expecting it, surprised that it hadn't come sooner, answers the toddler, "Well, son, it came out of mommies tummy.  Daddy and Mommy put it there."  The boy, not missing a beat, shoots back, "Where did you get it?"

Although the father had anticipated the first question, the second had catches him off-guard, and he stutters for a response, still stammering as his son unloads his clip of machine-gun questions, "But where did you come from? Did Grammy and Gran Gran put you in Grammy's belly too?  But where did it all start?  Who put the first baby in the mommy's belly?!"  The boy's agitated but sincere inquiry causes the father to quiet in contemplation at the profundity of his toddler's honest but challenging questions.

The determined, dependent, and created nature of humanity is one of those great and difficult realities of life.  Man, for ages, has had to face his own nature which is ever-contingent upon others for being and identity.  Think for a moment of the toddler's questioning: every human is born to parents who were born to parents who were born to other parents on and on till before time, each living in a different scenario, in a different culture, in a different time.  All in all, humans must recognize that we do not exist in and of ourselves.  The postmodern ideal of autonomy simply does not cohere to reality.

In fact, only God is self existent.  The only self-existent being is "I AM," the One who was, and is, and is to come (Ex. 3:14; Rev. 1:8), by whom all of creation exists as a result of His hand of creation and sustaining, done so in and by His Son (John 1:3, 10; Psa. 33:6; 1 Cor. 8:6; Col. 1:16).  In truth, this is the fundamental truth of all existence, put forth by the first words of the Bible, "In the beginning God...(Gen. 1:1)."

Recognition of God as who He is should compel us in so many practical ways, not the least of all being our identity.  Because God is the Creator of the whole universe, including each one of us, and His identity is not derived from anything but Himself, He is the One from whom we receive our true identity.  This means both repentance and humility but also the highest of sincere devotions, meaning that we will come to God to receive our true self, from the One who is truth.

Therefore, when answering the toddler's questions, we will be clear and concise that the beginning and end of all things is, unequivocally, God.  Let us then, when pressed with our own limited, finite, dependent nature, draw close to the Holy Lord Almighty through faith in His Son, Christ Jesus!

No Groupthink for God

Groupthink is a dangerous phenomenon.  It occurs most profoundly in teenagers who, because their ability to think critically and rationally remains still undeveloped, are susceptible to behaving in odd if not outright hazardous ways.  The pressure of the peer is overwhelming to the individual and they will succumb to the whims of the group, despite the inherent danger, legal ramifications, or sheer stupidity of the specific act espoused.

Say in the case of a gang of boys: the group may head to a river bridge and after some aimless loitering they will collectively decide that between the herd of thought, the best idea available would be to jump off said bridge.  Perhaps some gentle prodding may be required to garner all of the groups' allegiance to the ploy, but before long each boy jumps from the bridge into the river below only to discover that the river is far-too shallow for such a leap and two of the boys become seriously injured in the foray.

While this may be a common example of the kind of groupthink that dominates many teenagers and young adults, it seems even more dangerous when portrayed in adulthood.  This concept of groupthink can be seen at any age and can be caused by a number of factors.  Perhaps the most prevalent in our society are voyeurism, immorality, covetousness, greed, rampant secularism, and numerous other forms of idolatry.  And, unlike the aforementioned bridge-jumping example, these swaths of groupthink can have disastrously eternal consequences.

The apostle Paul speaks of this danger in 1 Cor. 15:33, "Bad company corrupts good morals."  Paul is speaking of the possibility of cancerous activity or deceit that can spread infectious sin in a community and destroy even believers; a little bad leaven ruining the whole lump of good dough (1 Cor. 5:6).  In a real sense, those around us who we choose to invest in and to be apart of our lives can either be sources of growth and encouragement or weights that hold us back from our potential in Him.

This is why we should not be unequally yoked with unbelievers (2 Cor. 6:14-18).  Believers should take this seriously.  It is not as though we completely sever relationships with unbelievers, rather, we should be discerning and guarded about who we allow to influence us.  If they are evil or sinful influences, then we need to remove ourselves from their radius of influence so as to be the most effective in preaching to them the Gospel.  However, if it is clear that no area is outside of a person's blast area, then severing ties may be the correct solution.

Paul is clear, "do not be partners with them (Eph. 5:1:14)."  We are, first, accountable to be godly and obedient to the Holy Lord and, second, responsible to relate to other humans.  If at any point other humans are hindering our devotion or drawing us away from God, we are already committing idolatry and must repent so as to turn utterly towards God.  Then we will be in a far better state to help or to encourage the other person(s).  Let us then take heed the Word of God and not fall pray to the dangerous whims of groupthink towards the Lord!

Flying on the Holy Wind

Birds are the perfect aerodynamic beings.  Their hollow bones and lean muscle structures make them the organic pilots of the sky, biological fliers that sail upon the thrusts of the wind.  The best and fastest birds use their bodies as an effective sail to fly with the wind, using it as the driving force that propels them.  However, occasionally a bird can be seen struggling against the wind, so intent on the direction they have chosen that, despite the unfavorable winds, they trudge against the opposing gales.  Eventually, the bird must concede to the current, either to turn around or simply wait until the wind changes course.

The Greek word for wind is pneuma, which, strangely enough, is actually the word for Spirit.  In a real sense, the language of the New Testament speaks of believers as empowered by indwelling of the Holy Wind.  Humanity is like a flock of birds either choosing to be empowered to fly by the power of the Holy Wind or struggling against it in unrepentant pride.

Truly, we should strive to ride the wind of the Holy Spirit, letting Him direct our flight paths and allowing His force to guide our lives.  Therefore, when we take a sincere and humble look into our lives, the directions that we are traveling, we should spend time thinking through whether we are flying by the power of the Holy Spirit or we are fighting His guidance and trying with all are might to fly against His perfect gale force current.

If we, after honest assessment, agree that we are fighting the Holy Spirit's thrust, the proper response for realigning with His perfect breeze is repentance and devotion in faith to our Lord, Jesus Christ.  Only when we draw to Him in faith can we turn in repentance with the wind and fly to the heights of blessing that God has intended for us.  Let us then be empowered to soar by ridding ourselves of pridefulness and turning in faith towards God!

Spirit Tenderizes Hearts

When preparing a nice steak sometimes the meat needs to be tenderized.  Because the best pieces of meat are filets of muscle fiber, those internal fibers can become bunch and taunt, making the steak tough.  In order to compensate for this, the piece of meat is beaten, smashed, or cut so as to loosen up the bunched muscular fibers and make the steak more tender to eat.

A hardened heart is much like un-tenderized steak.  It is tough and taunt, unfit for use and in need of tenderization.  Moreover, a hard heart affects every aspect of a person, body, mind, soul.  This is particularly true in regards to the intellect that is directly affected by a hardened heart.  Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, speaks directly to this.

Paul indicates that a hardened and calloused heart breeds futility in the mind (Eph. 4:17-18).  Logically, this makes sense.  If God is who He is (merciful, eternal, omnipotent, omnipresent, faithful, transcendent, supernatural, true, and gracious, et al), then a heart that is hardened to God would be hard to His traits, meaning that life would seem utterly futile, vain, and barren.

Luckily, God, through His Son and the indwelling of His Holy Spirit, has made a way to tenderize hearts that are tight and hard.  Additionally, when our hearts become tenderized through the process of sanctification it similarly affects are whole person: we will think differently, behave differently, and relate differently.

As Paul says, believers should put off our old self, in its futility of thinking, and put on the new self that is being renewed in its mind so as to think the thought of God (Rom 12:2; Eph. 4:20-24).  This is a beautiful proposition, that God would tenderize our hearts so that we be transferred from futility to eternity and to transform our minds.  Let us then press on in humility and repentance to let the tenderizing of the Spirit breakdown the callouses of our hearts so as to sanctify us in God!

Strengthen our Tensile Strength for God

In any load-bearing apparatus, there is a tensile limit, a maximum amount that can be supported before the compression goes beyond the allowance and it breaks.  For instance, an elevator's tensile limit is the maximum amount of weight that the advanced system of pulleys and counterweights can handle before the elevator is overloaded, the cables break, and the car crashes down to the bottom of the shaft.

Similarly, humans have a tensile limit for God.  We have a maximum amount of God's glory that we can possess within our person.  Think of it in logical terms: man, an in-eternal, material-based, finite, fallible being does not have the capacity to comprehend, let alone hold within himself an eternal, omnipotent, infinite, holy, and transcendent Being.  This task requires a powerful, sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit.

Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, indicates that believers must pray so that the Holy Spirit will strengthen with power our inner beings so that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith more fully (Eph. 3:14-21).  Paul, quite directly, is saying that it is through the strengthening of our inner beings by the Holy Spirit that our inner tensile strength is increased so as to allow more and more of Christ Jesus, in all His glory, to fill the depths of our beings.

The reality is that, because of sin, we have hard hearts unable to receive God into our inner most beings (Isa. 6:9-10; Matt. 13:15).  Only through a change of a supernatural kind are we able to receive God's grace.  It is through God's Holy Spirit working in us to transform our hearts from stone to flesh, and to increase our tensile strength to allow the necessary room and strength for Christ Jesus to takeover our very lives.  This is a beautiful thing: that God would, by His grace, strengthen our cores so that we could hold Him within it!  Sanctification, in the truest sense.  Praise God!

Dead to Sin like a Tree in Winter

Towards the end of summer into fall, trees take on an interesting character.  Green chlorophyll production ceases and the process of photosynthesis closes down, as the leaves change color in preparations for the dead of winter.  As a result, by the time the snow hits the bark, the tree is void of any photosynthetic leaves and the tree goes through seemingly no energy production or cellular respiration throughout the winter months, only to begin the process of growing green, photosynthetic leaves in the spring.  In a sense, the tree is dead for the winter, unable to feel or to utilize the sun because it does not have the necessary receptors in place to do so.

Humans are much like a tree in the winter of this world, dead to the warmth of God and unable to feel His presence or receive His grace because our leaves have long blown away, leaving us cold, calloused, and dorment to the Lord.  As Paul says clearly, that before we have accessed God's grace in Christ through faith, we are "dead in our sin and trespass (Eph. 2:1-3).

This death, like a supreme dullness to God, is pervasively holistic in that it has permeated to the very depths of our beings, preventing us from receiving God or the things of God due to the fact that we have become dorment in our minds, in our hearts, and in our souls (Eph. 4:18).  And because the things of God are spiritually discerned, the fleshly, darkened, hibernating-to-death man is unable to access God (1 Cor. 2:14).

Fortunately, God has made a way for us to shed the dullness of our winter hibernations in order that we may experience the warmth of the Holy Lord.  It is by His grace that, though we were dead to Him in our sin and trespasses, He died for us in order that we may be made alive to Him (Eph. 2:4-7).  It is as if God has taken our barren limbs and caused them to grow new leaves so that we may be alive in and to Him.

In truth, we all are snow-laden trees, hibernating in the winter of this world, unable to feel the warmth of God's grace and love because our photosynthetic cells are not working.  Only through the work of the Holy Spirit, who causes us to receive God's grace, will we be able to bask in the light of the Lord and take part in the work of His Son.  Our part in this is repentance.  We recognize our state and we seek out the warmth to change it from death to life, from wintered inaction to summer blooming.  Let us then take part in the awesomeness of God in repentance and faith and, like a spring tree, shed ourselves of the snow in order to bud in Him!

Joy Overflowing

Christmas morning in America is an event.  For parents it can mean buying, wrapping, and hiding gifts culminating in one sleepless night of getting to bed late and being startled awake at 4 am to open the gifts.  For children, it is a special time of expectation and exhilaration.  It is an all-too familiar scene before the sun peaks its head over the horizon to bring in the new day, a springy, pigtailed, four-year-old girl wakes up and rushes into her parents room, leaps onto the bed with exuberance and joy.

Many of us might be able to empathize with such a scenario of overwhelming, reckless expectation of joy being fulfilled.  Unfortunately, by adulthood many of us have become dulled to exuberant joy.  We equate joy with a good day at work, a long weekend, some time with family and friends, a new toy, or a raise.  But the biblical understanding of joy might be more like the pigtailed four-year-old than we would imagine and it might challenge our normal less-than correct understandings of joy.

Just like the springy girl running into her parents bedroom to wake them up in order to receive her presents, joy works in a similar way.  Our joy is a matter of reception, in that, we receive our joy from the Lord Himself.  More correctly, He bestows His joy, depositing it within us.  He does this in three basic ways.  The first is through His commandment, His Word.  When we study His Word, when we keep the words within them in our hearts and on our lips, God fills us with His joy (Psa. 19:8; John 15:10-11).

Secondly, God grants joy to those in His presence (Psa. 16:11, 34:5-8, ).  This should come as no surprise because as God is the source of joy, joy is a result of being in His presence.  Much like a faucet is a source of water, if I put my hand under its spicket in its presence, I will get wet for my proximity.  Therefore, when we seek and find His presence we will find joy from the giver of joy.

The other medium for joy is that it is a gift, given us directly by the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23).  When we humble ourselves in repentance and reverence at the awesomeness of the Holy Lord, He gifts us with fruits.  One of these fruits is joy (Psa. 69:2).  This should compel us to get on our knees to seek the Lord for the reception of joy.  Or, like the pigtailed leaper aforementioned, we should run with exuberant expectation of the joy of the Lord for it is the ultimate joy, found only in Him.  Therefore, praise God who gives us His joy overflowing!

Praise & Psalm 145

The Psalms are one of the ever-present soul-salves of Scripture.  Truly, in any state can one come to them for nourishment and edification, as well as exhortation and challenge.  It is the longest book of the Bible, at 150 chapters, and is a full-service anthology of prayers, songs, hymns, prophecies, laments, and liturgies, useful for nearly every possible occasion.

Among the many different types of psalms, the theme of praise rings clearly throughout.  In fact, many of the psalms either begin with or end with an expression of praise or the like.  And while it is difficult to point out single psalms to define a whole worship ideal of praise, chapter 145 offers a beautiful teaching on the nature of praise.  Disclaimer: the purpose of this discussion is to encourage an interpretive focus when dealing with the Psalter as well as to foster a love for the wealth within.  Psalm 145 will be interpreted verse-by-verse to accomplish this task and to point out the awesome profundity of the psalms.

For starters, believers praise the Lord for His name (145:2) and for His greatness (v. 3).  This is the starting point of praise, the lens by which praise is filtered through.  Once praise is asserted as an attitude of worshiping God for who He is, it is then to be taught and trained to each generation so that they will praise His glory, goodness, and righteousness (vv. 4-7).

The psalmist then praises the Lord for His grace, His mercy, His patience, and His love (vv. 8-9).  The psalmist decrees that all creation shall give thanks to God, a mandate of praise so that each generation will know of the glory of God and His everlasting Kingdom (vv. 10-13).  Again, the reason for such ardent and steadfast praise is because the Lord is faithful (v. 14), and He provides for all in need, even upon request (vv. 15-16, 19).

This psalm closes in continuity of the previous praises: God is righteous and kind (v. 17), He is near to all those who call on Him to provide and fulfill the desires of those who fear Him  (vv. 18-19), and He  preserves those who love Him but destroys the wicked for their wickedness (v. 20).  For the epilogue, the psalmist writes plainly, "My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord, and let all flesh bless His holy name forever and ever (v. 21)."

To be sure, this has been a purposefully brief interpretation of this psalm.  However, consider that in twenty-one verses, this psalm has covered so much of God's character: kindness, faithfulness, steadfast love, justice, awesomeness, majesty, mercy, providence, provision, goodness, greatness, righteousness, preserver, gracious, gloriousness, and His power.  Additionally, this psalm speaks to the mandate for believers to proclaim God's glory and His name throughout creation, particularly to the next generations.

Twenty-one short verses and yet so much theological weight and wonderful worth.  As believers who desire to know who God is, a practice of getting into the psalms is a great way to encourage that relationship with the Holy Lord.  A daily habit of taking one psalm and taking it apart, as shown above,  can be supremely beneficial for engaging with God's Word and, thus, with God.  One psalm is a reasonable amount of land to mine for the precious theological gold to be found within.  Praise be to God that He would reveal Himself to mankind through His immutable and lasting Word!

Admittance into Eternal Life

Recently, a prominent Minnesota sports radio personality passed away.  Known for his rude but oddly endearing behavior, his charm was in his pervasive connections to the pulse of sports in the city and he is currently being memorialized by several of his radio friends on air.  It was a tragedy.  He was well-known to be quite involved in horse racing and, as we move towards the final Triple Crown race of the season, one of his radio friends was predicting the action, saying that the deceased man would be watching from heaven with a line on the race at the betting table in heaven.

Needless to say, the man's comments had his tongue fixed firmly in his cheek, and I certainly mean no disrespect; however, the reception and sanctity of eternal salvation are at the heart of his statement, whether he knew it or not.  What is striking about such a reference to the holiness of eternity with the Holy Lord is not its glibness as much as it is its affirmation about the presumed nature of the divine.  Unfortunately, perhaps unbeknownst to many, this misconception is all-too widespread and eternally disastrous.

At the onset, it needs to be stated directly: salvation and life eternal are dependent solely on personal faith in the work of Christ Jesus as the Son of God (John 3:16; Acts. 4:12; Rom. 10:9; Eph. 2:8-10).  This cannot be stated more emphatically, unless one has a personal, regenerative relationship with Christ Jesus, they will be NOT enter heaven's pearly gates, they will NOT spend eternity in the presence of the Holy Lord, but they WILL be condemned to torment for all eternity.  While this may not seem warm and fuzzy, it is true.

Moreover, no amount of "goodness" in this life has any merit in gaining admittance into eternal life (Isa. 64:6; Rom. 3:23).  There is no thing, nothing, that man can do to earn salvation by a life well lived, or by goodness.  It is by His doing that we are predestined to be called sons of the Holy Lord, through the work of Christ Jesus, and only in Christ are we blessed with eternal life and salvation (Eph. 1:3-14).

All this being true and objective, found to be sure in His Holy Word, there is a spreading heretical doctrine that would delude the Gospel of its power and of its truth.  This heresy would like the world and its inhabitants to believe that the only requirement of admittance into heaven is death itself.  Far be it!  A variation of this would state that if a man lives a reasonably good life, then God would have to let Him into heaven.  Woe to the men and women led astray by this teaching, for it is an accursed lie!

The difficulty with death is that it reminds humans of their feeble mortality and recalls their utter dependence on a transcendent God.  However, even in these moments of ultimate clarity, many would rather pull tighter the veil to conceal the truth that they need God on their side, instead of drawing in humble, repentant faith to Him.  In truth, the nature of eternity and God is the utmost pinnacle concern for every human that has and that will ever live.  We do not want to leave the state of our eternal affairs so up in the air.  Assurance is found in Christ Jesus and He alone.  Either we can neglect the truth as poppycock or we can repent and turn to Him in faith.  These are the only two possibilities.

Apart from making further appeals to Scripture, perhaps a picture of the situation may be of benefit.  Consider an American who goes to the White House and begins knocking on the door.  As the Secret Service agents sight their sidearms on the man, the man throws his hands up cooly, exclaiming that he voted for the President, that he knows all about the President, and that he should be allowed to come in based on those credentials.

Certainly, only if the President knows the man personally will the man stand a chance at entrance.  Similarly, only if God knows us can we enter in.  Let us be then sure that He knows us personally, and let us pass this pertinent bit of information along to everyone, for their very eternal lives depend on it!

The Defense of Faith

There is no neutral ground in the battlefield of salvation.  In the war that wages in the mind, the heart, and the soul, there is no demilitarized zone.   In truth, no supposed neutrality exists in the battle over the eternal state of a person and it is a dangerous myth to assume that there is a neutral zone in spiritual matters, particularly when it comes to discussing these affairs.  Ultimately, because all of existence is made by, through, and for Him, the ground marked "neutral" belongs to God.

When believers engage, then, in any sort of dialogue with unbelievers, they need to do so from the standpoint that recognizes the reality: all common ground is God's ground.  Nothing is hidden from the eyes of the Lord, He peers into every crevice of humanity and all creation (2 Chro. 16:9; Job 34:21; Psa. 33:13-15; Pro. 20:27; Eze. 28:3; Heb. 4:13).

This is far from irrelevant.  We should, nay, need to engage the world with this understanding, not giving ground to so-called neutrality because we know that neutrality is but a ploy of the evil one to divert us form the truth and to lead us away from God.  Remember that all wisdom is dependent upon a foundation of fear and reverence of God.  This means that repentance is the gateway to all wisdom and knowledge.

Truly, as Paul indicates in Colossians, every shelf in the storehouses of knowledge are filled in. through, by, and for Christ (Col. 1:16-17, 2:3).  Therefore, there can be no hidden nor neutral ground in the battle over our souls.  It should, however, come as no surprise that the world would continually appeal to the need for "common ground" in the dialogues over faith.  Because in acquiescing to neutrality, Christians have all-too-quickly given valuable ground in the battle to unbelief.  But, as there is no such common ground that does not belong to God, any attempt to say otherwise is only veiled unbelief.

Instead, Christians should always commit the Scriptures that call for unequivocal obedience in every aspect of life, body, mind, heart, and soul (Matt. 22:37; Rom. 12:1).  Christians need to hold to their guns in this regard.  Although we may be labeled absolutist or dogmatic, we need to hold tightly to the truth of the Gospel and its particulars because it is true and the power of God.  Because of this, we should praise God who has revealed Himself to mankind through His Word!

Praying Persistently

Think of this all-too familiar scene:

A parent is pushing the grocery cart as fast as they can through the store, navigating it like a needle and thread, sewing through the aisles and getting just the essentials so as not to be there any longer than needed.  The reason for their frantic but focused speed is because they have a loud, obnoxious child at their heels, incessantly begging for a piece of candy.  

With every expert weave of the cart and stop to dump product into the basket, the child makes the same whimpered plea, "Mommy! Please, just one!"  On and on the battle rages, the mother determined not to give in to her child and the child knowing that if he plays this game long enough he'll wear her down and get the candy.  By the time the mother and child get to the register, the kid is eating the aforementioned candy and the mother is harried and hoarse from yelling under her breath.  Persistence pays off.

There are two passages of Scripture that speak directly to the necessity of persistance in prayer (Matt. 7:7-11; Luke 18:1-8).  In the first, taken from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches that believers ask, seek, and know so as to see, find, and gain admittance.  The primary purpose is the pursuit of God's presence but it is also a matter of perseverance in prayer.

God does not simply want us to come to Him like a vending machine: fifteen minutes of prayer for a trinket, an hour for a new car.  Instead, we are to ask Him, to seek after Him, and to knock on His door with the persistent tenacity of a loan shark.  There is a progression to the pursuit of God and we should be aware that God does not ever grow weary of our pleas for His grace and provision.  In fact He encourages that we ask in His name and remain like a branch to His vine (John 14:12-14, 15:1-17).

The other relavant passage in this regard is Luke 18:1-8, recounts the Parable of the Persistent Widow. In it, Jesus paints a picture of the value of persistent prayer and the need for consistency in pursuing God to provide for us.  God desires for us to come to Him for our provisions, for our desires, and for our cares.  But to do so in persistence.  Therefore, let us come to God like the child wanting candy in the grocery store, knowing that He does not grow weary of our badgering.  Praise be to God that He cares for us and wishes for us to come to Him for every need with a perseverance that is powerful!

A Study of Blessing

A young man was sitting in a whicker chair alongside of a lake on a particularly sunny, summer afternoon.  He breathed in the air in satisfaction.  The coolness of the breeze that swept across the water was steady and satisfying, making this would-be hot day feel pleasant comfortable.  The lake glistened with pristine hues of shimmer across the lake's surface.  He sat in his chair, trying his best to take in the profound splendor of the day.  After a while, the young man becomes too overwhelmed with a sense of fulness, much like a glass that is overflowing might feel and he tilts his head back, lifts out his hands, and cries out, "Thank You, Lord, for this beautiful day!  Lord, You have blessed me with so much and all I can say is: thank You!"

In this hustle-bustle world, moments of sincere praise can be rare to come by, or seem too manufactured to trust.  However, to be sure, God has blessed us; we are blessed.  Truly, humanity is blessed beyond reason with a love and joy that is eternal and ever-full.  Unfortunately, being blessed is something we associate with material or with circumstance, as in: "God bless you," or "God blessed me with you," or "that was such a blessing."  And, although each of these statements is reasonable and farfrom insignificant, they do miss the mark in regards to blessing.

Blessing, in its truest sense, is dependent upon the One who blesses, He being God and God alone.  It is from God that all blessings flow.  That being said, the reception of blessing has, sadly, become mistaken.  Often times, we consider blessing to be a temporal felicity or a serendipitous occurence.  Howevever, each one of these fails to hit the nail on the head of true blessing.

Psalm 1:1-3 lays out true blessing.  In it, the writer indicates that delighting in the Law of the Lord, meditating on His precepts is true blessing. In a trues sense, knowing the Lord is blessing.  It is our relationship with God, restored through the broken body adn shed blood of Christ, that is blessing in its ultimate form.  In reference to temporal blessings, it would then be more accurate to say that they are the external effects of blessing, which is relationship with the Holy Lord.  In a sense, true blessing is the person of Christ in which all other temporal "blessings" are but a shadow of, as in, He is the raincloud and the others are but the droplets.

If we, then, take seriously this orthodoxy, our response to the temporal blessings should always be to praise the Blessing, which is Christ who has reconciled us to God. Eph 1:3-14 has Paul praising the Lord for giving every spiritual blessing under heaven, defined in terms of election, predestination, and faith.  All of these are the blessings of right relationship with the Lord, the ultimate blessing. 

Similarly, James 1:17 has James defining, in no abmiguous terms, that "Every good and perfect gift is from above," which is a clear indication that blessings are sourced from and in God.  This should, then, cause sincere praise of the Lord for every blessing for it is He Himself who is blessing in its perfect form.  Let us then take time to praise the Lord who blesses for all of His blessings that He lavishly bestows!

Walking Straight through Life's Snow Drifts

Midwest winters are snow-filled and cold.  The frigid, frostbitten drifts of January make Wisconsin farmlands look like the endless frozen tundras of the arctic.  On one such day, a grandfather and his grandson have a job to do.  They have to repair a broken fence post on the farside of the field, a good hundred yards from the farmhouse.  After putting on their mittens and stocking caps, the duo begin the long trudge through the banks of snow to the other side of the field.  

Because of the flatness of the plain, the wind had formed the snow into waves that undulated instep with the plow lines of the snow-covered frozen meadow.  The young nine-year-old could not resist the urge to run across and through the rippled banks, while the grandfather, reserved and steady as he was, stayed the path to the broken fence post.  The boy was getting tired with all his running around in frolicking glee and his garb was growing more heavy with the weight of sweat and snow.  

When the two finally arrived at the field's farside, the grandfather turned back towards the house and motioned for his grandson to look.  The grandfather spoke with certainty but kindness, "See how your tracks are all over the place, meandering about the field with barely any direction.  Now look at mine: true and straight as an arrow shot directly at its target.   Son, it's cold out here and I would rather be inside.  So remember: sometimes it's best to keep your eyes fixed on the goal in order to get it done."

In many ways, life is like this.  Throughout our lives, we are either the grandfather or the grandson:  focused on the task or wandering through the snowdrifts in hopes of reaching the goal.  At the onset, it seems necessary to indicate with clarity that the goal of life is to enter into eternity in right relationship with the Holy Lord Almighty, which occurs by grace through faith in Christ Jesus.  Because of this reality, it may be best to think of the grandfather's path as that of the sure and secure believer, the grandson's as the wayward lukewarm questioner lacking conviction and commitment.

In the latter case, the necessary corrective steps, akin to the Prodigal Son, would be to concede in humility to God's grace and commit himself to Christ.  However, and more pertinent for this dialogue, the plight of the grandfather, who represents the Christian who has decidedly fixed his/her trajectory, is far-more easily exhorted than accomplished.

There is a need for an unrelenting focus.  If we, as Christians, are to stay the course that leads to eternity with God, then we must firmly fix our gaze upon the prize, which is Christ, in order that we may finish the race as winners (1 Cor. 9:24; Phil. 3:14; Heb. 12:1-2).  There is a requisite recalibration of repentance that we need to go through so that we can walk with the certain stability of the grandfather and not become reckless wanderers like the grandson.  To be sure, the process of realignment to Christ and His Word is like every step through the winter of this world.  In this way we can truly remain true to the path that leads to eternity.  Praise God who helps us accomplish this task and focus!