Freedom is Good News Part 95

The opening words of the book of Ecclesiastes let us know that “everything is meaningless, yes utterly meaningless”.  Verse 1 along with verse 12 gives us the understanding that it was King Solomon who penned the book.  He is the man who was given great wisdom from God and yet went astray.  This in itself should cause us to sit up and take notice of what could lead a man of wisdom to walk away from the true God.  Something to think about!!

But as I said in our last installment, “It is my opinion that Solomon came back to his senses and saw his error.  And so the book of Ecclesiastes may be seen as his book of repentance.”  In his book of proverbs Solomon makes this observation “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.”  Solomon was trained by his father, King David, in the ways of God and when he was older he came back to it.

So why, pray tell, should a book that opens up by telling us everything is meaningless, be the one that can lift us up and help us find satisfaction is all that we do?  Good question, I’m glad you asked!!

But before we tackle that issue let’s do a short outline of the first two chapters.  Chapter 1 verse 1-11: everything is meaningless!  Chapter 1:12-18: wisdom is meaningless!  Chapter 2:1-11: pleasures are meaningless!  2:12-16: wisdom and folly are meaningless!  2:17-26: toil is meaningless!  OK, enough of this Bill, where am I going to find the good news? 

There is a clue to this answer in a phrase that Solomon uses 29 times in this short book of only 12 chapters.  The phrase, “under the sun” is inserted by Solomon in very strategic positions to help us see where the vanity and meaningless activities come from.  Let’s consider some of these examples.  The first instance is found in chapter 1:3, “What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?”  Well, the answer to this rhetorical question is “he gains nothing”.  In other words, you can’t take it with you.  (This reminds me of the story of the rich man who meets St. Peter at the pearly gates with a wheel barrow of gold ingots.  St. Peter takes a look and asks the man why he is bringing paving material into the kingdom.  Ah yes, streets of gold!!!)

We are ultimately, just consumers.  We earn, we spend and we leave the rest to others when we die.  Jesus put it this way in John 6:63, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh profits nothing.”  The term “flesh” is used here to indicate our life here on earth – it is a wonderful experience that we have been given; but without God, without the hope of eternal life, without the hope of glory, there is no profit in our fleshly existence.  As Solomon put it, “no gain from labor under the sun”.

In chapter 2 Solomon writes this, “I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. … yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.”  We will consider this catch phrase some more in the next article.

Freedom is Good News Part 94

There is an innate desire within each one of us to find satisfaction through the things that we accomplish.  I have had the opportunity to visit with and to counsel people who find their lives unfulfilled.  Perhaps you have found yourself in this situation, wondering what it is all about.  Is there a meaning to our routines that we attend to each and every day?

Do you enjoy your work?  Perhaps the first question to ask is; do you have work to do?  Work in itself can be a great help in finding some inner peace and satisfaction.  Unfortunately, many today feel that it is all about a paycheck.  This is a false motive.  There is a line in a song that I very much enjoy; it says, “Work like you’re worth more than money.”  Think about that.  Is the life you live only worth the money you earn?  Money is just a medium of exchange – I exchange my time at work for money, and then I exchange that money for things.  And some people think that the more money they have the more they will feel fulfilled or the happier they will be. 

A long time ago I learned a precious lesson and it has accompanied me these past many decades; the more things you own, the more they own you!  What is it you really want in life?  Well, I began this article talking about finding satisfaction through the things we accomplish. 

There is a book in the bible that, in my opinion, addresses this subject.  It is a book that I enjoy reading when the things of this life have gotten me down.  It has the tendency to help me center myself in the true meaning and reason that God has placed us here on earth.  The book of Ecclesiastes is a part of the bible called “The Wisdom Literature”. 

This book was written by Solomon and I believe it was written during the latter part of his life.  Perhaps we all know that when Solomon was very young, he was given rulership over all the nation of Israel from his father King David.  God came to him in a dream one night (the episode is found in 2 Chronicles 1) and said to him, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”  In verse 10 Solomon said, “Give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may lead this people, for who is able to govern this great people of yours?”  First of all this is an amazing request and second, Solomon had the understanding that this nation belonged to God.

Solomon started off really well and impressed all he met with his wisdom and with his wealth.  He reigned very wisely until his wealth and power went to his head.  In 1 Kings Chapter 11 we learn how his many foreign wives turned his attention away from God and toward false gods.  But it is my opinion that Solomon came back to his senses and saw his error.  And so the book of Ecclesiastes may be seen as his book of repentance.

“Meaningless!  Meaningless!” Says the teacher.  “Utterly meaningless!  Everything is meaningless.” (Eccl. 1:1)  This first line of the book doesn’t sound like a real pick me up at first blush but hang on – God willing, in the next few weeks, we will do a little study of this book to see if it contains any good news.

Freedom is Good News Part 93

Why take on something and do it halfheartedly?  That is the question I asked several articles ago and I believe we should ponder it awhile.  There seems to be a huge disconnect in our society today.  I am used to sitting with some of our teenagers these days and being virtually ignored because they are very busy with their phones.  But just recently I had the opportunity to be in the company of some adults (by this I mean an over the age of 50 group) and found myself wondering what to do while all of them were texting or reading texts.  Wow, you talk about doing something whole heartedly; we seem to be a society glued to Facebook, Twitter and any other self-inflicted form of the small screen!

OK, I got that off my chest – I just wish we could have as much zeal for our God and Father as we do for the many forms of entertainment we have surrounding us. 

Just what is it that you and I own?  I suppose our answers might contain things such as our house, car, furnishings, some land and whatever toys and trinkets we may have.  But I find it interesting that in Psalm 24:1, we read, “The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it; the world and all who live in it.”  In other words, God owns everything in this physical world!  Oh, and yes He even owns us.  So can we claim to own anything?  Well, as I see it the answer is yes; we do own one thing and that thing that we own is time.

Each and every one of us has a 24 hour day to live in and to utilize.  How many of these days we may have is not, for the most part, up to us to determine.  God has determined the length of a day – one full rotation of the earth around its axis.  God has determined the length of a week, “For in six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God.” (Ex. 20:9-10)  God has determined the length of a month (originally it encompassed the time that the moon took to make its circuit around the earth).  And lastly, God has determined the length of a year – the full circuit of the earth around the sun.

God has given all of us the gift of time - 24 hours in a day - and just what are we doing with it?  Sleeping, eating  and working take up a large portion of our time, this we know.  But how about the rest?  May I suggest that we might categorize the rest of our time as opportunities to give of ourselves; in other words our time is broken into increments of love.  If we are married, we give of our time, in love, to our spouse.  If we have children, we give of our time, in love, to our kids, etc. (you get the point) and the time we work must be incorporated here.  The critical two questions then become, how much time do we devote to self-love and how much time do we devote to our love of God?

Might I suggest at this point that our time really becomes the only commodity which we are able to  invest.  Where will we get the greatest return for our investment.  The answer to this is in your hands alone. 

Freedom is Good News Part 92

In our previous article we took a look at a couple of prayers given by a couple of prominent men of the bible – David and Daniel.  So, we know that they were men of prayer.  But how often did they pray? 

We are all familiar with the episode in the book of Daniel concerning him being thrown into the lion’s den.  But do we know why this happened?  A decree was issued by the king of the Medes and Persians that anyone found praying to any god or man beside Darius the king, would be thrown into the lion’s den.  This episode is found in the book of Daniel, chapter 6.  In verse 10 of this chapter we read, “Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem,  Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had once before.”  Daniel’s practice was to pray three times a day and he did so openly, even though it might cost him his life.

And what about King David?  This man who wrote the lion’s share (excuse me Daniel, no pun intended) of the Psalms tells us this in Psalm 55, “Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea; hear me and answer me for my thoughts trouble me and I am distraught … But I call to God, and the LORD saves me.  Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress and He hears my voice.”  We find here that David prayed as Daniel did, three times a day!!  Do you pray three times a day?  Let me include myself here – do I pray three times a day? 

How near do we want to draw to our Heavenly Father?  The bible tells us in several places, to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, all of our strength and all of our life. (Deut. 6:5, Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30)   It tells us to serve the Lord our God with all of our heart and with all of our soul. (Deut. 10:12)  It tells us to seek the Lord our God with all of our heart and with all of our life. (Deut. 4:29)

I once brought up these examples of praying three times a day and a listener raised his hand and pointed out what Paul had to say.  In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17 Paul writes, “Be joyful always, pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  In Colossians 4:2 he writes, “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”  In Philippians 4:6 he writes, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”  In Romans 12:12, “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, devoted to prayer.”

Paul sets the bar pretty high for us as we consider our relationship with our Heavenly Father and talking with Him in prayer.  But, let us remember where we started out;  “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Everyone was filled with awe …” (Acts 2:42)  Oh, this “awe” thing, and being filled with it; I am sure it is good news!!  Don’t forget to pray.

Freedom is Good News Part 91

“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Everyone was filled with awe …” (Acts 2:42)

We picked up this scripture in our previous article as we began to examine ourselves to see if we were “all in” when it came to wholeheartedly serving our God.  We touched on the first three items: the apostles teaching, fellowship and the breaking of bread, in that article but saved the fourth item, prayer, for today.  So let’s consider the concept of a “prayer life”.

If we begin by looking into the Old Testament for the word prayer, we will find the first use of the word in Genesis 20:7.  God tells the king of Gerar that Abraham is a prophet and he will “pray for you and you will live”.  We find in verse 17 of this same chapter that “Abraham did pray to God, and God healed Abimelech and his wife … so they could have children again”.  This first use of the word prayer expresses the idea of interceding on behalf of another.  We may use this type of prayer when we find that someone near and dear to us has become ill or has lost a job, etc. and we intercede with God for them. 

Another type of prayer may be for ourselves because we have sinned before our God and we need forgiveness.  We find this type of prayer in what many consider the book of prayers, i.e. the book of Psalms.  In Psalm 51 (of David) we read, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your lovingkindness; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.  Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.”  We see an example of both types of prayer in the book of Daniel, chapter 9.  Here Daniel is interceding for the people of God who have been exiled to Babylon because of their sins. In verse 4 we read, “I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed:  ‘O LORD, the great and awesome God who keeps His covenant of love with all who love Him and obey His commands, we have sinned and done wrong.  We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. … LORD, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame … .’”  In humility, Daniel includes himself here.

In these two prayers – of David and of Daniel – we can almost hear how sincere they are and how from their innermost being they pour out their hearts to God.  In this prayer of Daniel we begin to get into a third type of prayer, a prayer of praise and adoration to the great and awesome God who has created all things.  In considering this type of prayer, I would like to take you to my favorite prayer in the entirety of the bible.  This is a prayer of David in 1 Chronicles 29:10-20, “Praise be to you, O LORD, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.  Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours.  Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.  Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things.  In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all.  Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.”  David goes on from here with more praise and thanksgiving but I will let you read it for yourself so you may be lifted up with his words.  They are good news indeed.

Freedom is Good News Part 90

There is a short quip that makes its way around sports teams: “All in”!  I have seen it on the back of t-shirts and warm up jerseys of some athletes.  It is a nice sentiment to remind team mates that they should take the game and the season seriously.  Whether it’s in the weight room, the gym or the field, the team has a goal and each individual must be “all in”.

I have played many sports throughout my life and I have always tried to give my all, so I can appreciate the idea.  Why take on something and do it halfheartedly?

In the book of Acts, chapter 2, where Peter gave his most beautiful message to the gathered crowd on the day of Pentecost, it says that “they were cut to the heart” and wondered what they should do.  Peter told them to repent of their sins and be baptized, “every one of you for the forgiveness of your sins.  And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”  This scripture continues in verse 40, “And with many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’  Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.”  Wow, there were about three thousand who understood that they were living in a corrupt generation and they understood that Peter was showing them a way out. 

Was it any better or any worse than the generation we are living in today?  I suppose it is hard to say.  They were under the control of a corrupt Roman government and their society was decadent and perverse – hmmm, I don’t think I need to comment here!  But on that particular day three thousand people were cut to the heart when they heard what Peter had to say.

Do you suppose these people were “all in”?  Let’s read on: “they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Everyone was filled with awe …”  I counted 4 things that pointed to their commitment.  First, they were devoted to the apostles teaching.  Today we call that the “The New Testament”.  The other name for the New Testament is “the Apostolic Writings”.  Is that where you are?  Are you “all in” on that agenda?  How often do you read the word of God?  Secondly, they were devoted to “the fellowship”.  Do you enjoy visiting with likeminded godly people, sharing in bible studies with comments and questions?

Third, how do you feel about the breaking of bread?  The concept here is not really about communion but more about sharing meals together with brethren so as to join in with fellowship and perhaps spiritual conversation.  Are you “all in” on these first three things?  Think about it my friends, we also live in a corrupt generation and many are wondering where it is all heading.  The fourth item mentioned above is prayer.  We will talk about that very important subject in the near future – God willing.  Remember, the definition of the word “gospel” is “good news”.

Freedom is Good News Part 89

Paul tells us that “the commandment is holy, righteous and good.”  And then goes on to tell us, “There is no one righteous, not even one.” (Romans 3:10)  Why do we not want to do the things that are good for us?  We humans are a strange lot!  We want God but we want Him on our own terms and yet He is the creator and the giver of all good gifts.  As James says, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

Did you catch that?  “He does not change like shifting shadows.”  In other words He does not play “good cop / bad cop” with us.  He is not a good God today but tomorrow He is not so good.  (James 1:17)  Elsewhere in the bible it says that He is the same yesterday, today and forever ….. hmmmm?  Why is it that many of us think He has changed?

Do you like the Psalms?  There are so many beautiful thoughts and tremendous bits of wisdom in the Book of Psalms.  Might we take a quick walk through the 119th Psalm together?  Verse 1: “Blessed are they whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the LORD.  Blessed are they who keep His statutes and seek Him with all their heart.”  Right off the bat, we have two beatitudes that tell us it is a blessing to keep His laws.  Verse 11: “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”  Verse 20: “My soul is consumed with longing for your laws at all times.”  Verse 46: “I will speak of your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame, for I delight in your commands.”  Verse 174: “I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight.”

This Psalm is the longest in the Psalter - 176 verses – and in each one we find words that lift up the law of God!!  Did you know that Moses was not the first to receive these commands and laws?  I have heard some say that these laws were just for the Israelites.  But long before there was an Israelite, we are told that Abraham kept the laws of our God, (who changes not!)  And by the way, Abraham was not an Israelite; he was not a Jew.  Judah, from whom the Jews get their name, was the great-grand-son of Abraham.  When Isaac (Abraham’s son) was being blessed by God, we read this: “I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because Abraham obeyed me and kept my requirements, my commands, my decrees and my laws.” (Genesis 26:4&5)

It was four articles ago that I mentioned how huge a subject is the topic of “law”, and we have only touched the surface.  God’s law is good and keeping it is good news!  And yet somehow we tend to see this world’s empty glory and run after it.  The only way we humans can be filled and fulfilled is by allowing the God of the universe to guide us, to direct our paths and to fill us with His lovingkindness.  He has a plan and He is working it out.  Perhaps I have said this before but in any text book all the answers are found at the end and so it is with the bible; in the end of the book of Revelation we find that God wins.  Satan is defeated and destroyed; the righteous are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb.  God is good – amen.

Freedom is Good News Part 88

No more locks, no more security cameras, no longer any need to keep your eye on your baggage or laptop at the airport, for everyone has come to see the benefit of obeying the eighth commandment of God!  I know; that is a fantasy scenario in today’s world.  But is there anything wrong with it?  It is good to see the ramifications of “Thou shall not steal.”

Last week we began looking at the law of God and maybe trying to understand that it is we who have gone astray from our God and Creator and not the other way around.  And so if this is true, then we must place the blame squarely upon our shoulders for the chaos we see around us.  God gave us the law as a gift and He tells His people, “I have taught you decrees and laws … that you may follow them in the land … Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations around you, who will hear about these decrees and say.  “What other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws as this body of laws I am setting before you today?” (Deut. 4:6)  By the way, did you know that the original colonies of the 17 and 18th centuries, used these very laws of God to set up their own laws and judicial systems!   

I mentioned in the previous article, that Jesus said He did not come to abolish the law.  And to this Paul agrees when he tells the Roman church, “I would not have known what sin was except through the law.” (Rom. 7:7)  And then he goes on to say, in this discussion on sin, that “the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good.”  What should we twentieth century dwellers, make of this?

You know what?  We all break the law.  The scripture teaches us that, “There is no one righteous, not even one.” (Rom. 3:10)  So the law of the state of Iowa tells us that the speed limit is 70 MPH on the interstate.  Have you ever exceeded that?  I have.  And so I am a law breaker.  This is a law of man but Paul tells us later on in the book of Romans 13:1, “Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities.”  So where do we go with this whole concept of sin? 

Allow me to cite a very recent example:  I am a school bus driver.  There are rules for the safety of the students, one of which is that the aisle must be clear at all times.  This is actually a state law.  On the last day of school, one of the pupils asked if we could forgo this rule because it was the last day.  Hmmm.  My answer was to ask her if it would be OK, because it was the last day, to ignore the stop sign at Hwy. 71 and just continue at 55 MPH on into Exira.  Laws have reasons and laws have consequences. 

God has blessed us with a beautiful set of laws.  They are laws that will protect us and bring us security.  And His laws are for our own good.  A loving heavenly Father has told us what it is that we should do to stay out of trouble and; Oh yes, He has told us just how it is that we should honor Him.  The first commandment is, “You shall have no other gods before Me.”  We perhaps chuckle at the ancient pagans and their idols; statues of wood, stone and precious metals.  But if we are not somehow capable of keeping the simplest of laws made by man, can we really think that we do not break this first of the 10 commandments?  “Oh how I love your law!” (Psalms119:97)

Freedom is Good News Part 87

In our previous article we considered how it is not God who has abandoned His creation; but it is we, the people of His creation, who have abandoned Him.  There are many gifts that God has given to man and one that has been extremely overlooked is His law.  So let me give you a quote here, “Be sure to keep the commands of the LORD your God and the stipulations and decrees He has given you.  Do what is right and good in the LORD’s sight, so that it may go well with you …” (Deut. 6:17-18)  I, for one, want it to go well with me and so perhaps I should read the word of God and see what these laws are. 

The whole concept of law is very deep and quite vast.  You tell someone that you keep the law of God and they may try to label you as a legalist.  I have even heard people say that “we have been freed from the law.”  One of the problems here is that perhaps we have not settled upon a real understanding of just what the law really is! 

Someone may say, “You have quoted from the book of Deuteronomy, Bill, and that is a part of the Old Testament”.  So let us set that part of God’s word aside for a second and see what the New Testament has to say about the law of God.  Let us begin at the very beginning.  Jesus, in the first recorded message He gave, (usually called the Sermon on the Mount) tells us this, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” (Matt. 5:17)  Twice in this verse, Jesus warns us who read it, that He is not going to abolish the Law!!  In other words, “let’s get this straight, right off the bat!”  In the next verse He says this, “I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.”  It is of interest here that Jesus tells us that it is the written law He is talking about.  He mentions a pen stroke and a letter.  This is because, at that time, the Jews also had what they called the oral law.  The oral law was not codified in the scripture but consisted of the traditions and rules that the Scribes and Pharisees had made up.  These Scribes and Pharisees were soundly rebuked by Jesus for their traditions when in Matt. 15:3 He said, “Why do you break the commands of God for the sake of your traditions?”

When Jesus tells us He has come to “fulfill” the law, He uses a specific Greek word that means “to cram full; to make full”.  He then goes on in the rest of chapter 5 telling us that “You have heard it said …. But I tell you…..”  In these statements, concerning murder, adultery, divorce, oaths, etc., He is making the law more complete than the Jews of His day taught; in other words, He was cramming it full.  Jesus railed at the Scribes and Pharisees of His day for their treatment of God’s law. 

Which of God’s laws would you want to do away with?  Or better, wouldn’t it feel good to live in a community where all of God’s laws were fully kept.  Think for a moment what it would be like to know unequivocally, that everyone kept the command to not steal.  I see that as true freedom and indeed good news.  But as I said above, this topic is very deep and so we shall talk more about it in the future.

Freedom is Good News Part 86

And so we continue to see things happening in this world and in our society that could, if dwelt upon, begin to bring us down.  It is not my desire to do that in this column for in my heart of hearts I know that our God is in charge and He has a plan that is being worked out for good.  But, some may say, where is God who will bring this “good” to fruition?

Imagine if you can, that you are in charge of a group of young people – let’s say they are boys and girls somewhere around the age of 12.  You have a very important task to complete; it may even be a matter of life and death.  The steps needed to achieve the goal are all in your possession, you only need to get these kids on board with your solution.

A couple of these youths do not think you know anything (typical 12 year olds!!) and they proceed to infect the group with doubts as to your wisdom.  You take them through several steps and show them that you do indeed have the answers and several of them begin to listen to you.  So far so good!!  But the rest begin to moan and groan and pursue their own ideas.  It does not take long to see that their solutions are leading them down a dangerous path.  You try again and again to convince them.  You even send the other kids (the wise ones) to show them their errors.  Things get pretty bad on their side of the project; you know it is leading to disaster but they just will not listen.  It could end in tragedy.  At some point you realize that you must take a “hands off” approach and come up with a plan to save this project and perhaps jump in at the last moment to achieve the goal.

God has a goal!  God has a plan!  God has the solution safely in His hands.  This plan has been in place since the foundation of the world.  God created a world and all that is in it.  He placed a man and a woman in a most beautiful garden the likes of which have never been seen since.  He gave them the key to enjoying, not only the garden, but also His presence with them.  “Of the two trees in the middle of the garden,” He said, “you may only eat the fruit of one of them.”  I believe we know the rest of the story.  (Genesis 3)

The bible is filled with stories of God’s people rebelling against Him.  Again and again He sent His servants the prophets to warn them of the error of their ways – they did not listen.  And so He even sent His Son, His only Son, whom He loved; perhaps they will listen to Him.  They didn’t.  (See the parable in Matthew 21:33-40)

It is not a question of “Where is this God who is supposed to be so good”?  God knows His plan and will bring it to fruition.  The question really is, “Why do we, His creation, think we know better than He does?”  This has been our reaction all along.  We think we know better and will strive to do things our way even when we see what a mess we have made of His creation. 

Friends and brethren, can we take a look at His plan and His will and then walk accordingly?

Freedom is Good News Part 85

In the previous article I wrote about how effective it can be to quote a scripture when confronted with some dilemma.  I am sure you know that in Jesus day one could not run down to the local bookstore and purchase a set of the scriptures?  Jesus quoted the scriptures when confronting Satan’s temptation because He had them memorized!  In Jesus day they did not have books (as we know them).  All the scriptures were written on scrolls usually made of animal skins and hand written – in other words, they were expensive!  The scrolls were rolled up and had to be unrolled in order to read them. Only the local synagogue would own them and even then many would have just a portion of the scriptures. 

Ancient languages – Hebrew included – did not use punctuation as we have it today.  They did not even have spaces between the words (yes, that is hard to believe but it is true!).  Today we have it easy in that we do have punctuation, we can know when a word begins and ends and we can easily communicate with each other concerning the scripture because they have been codified with chapters and verses. 

Today we can go to a book store or get on line and purchase the word of God for very little money.  And not only that; if we think the King James Version is too difficult to read, we can purchase the New International Version.  Do you think the NIV is too loose with the translation?  Then go and buy the New American Standard or the English Standard Version or one of several dozen other translations.

“To whom much has been given, much will be required.” (Luke 12:48)  When we stand before the judgement seat, will we be able to claim ignorance?  “I just didn’t know!”  Many today claim that God is not interested in our hurts, our failures, our sicknesses, our financial situations, or our ……. You fill in the blank.  But the truth is that He is interested and He did not leave us without help.  He gave us everything we need for life and godliness. (2 Peter 1:3)  The one who created us made sure that we have the things needed for physical life: He gave us water, air, food and a brain.  That brain of ours is the most advanced computer on the planet.  Some might say that they do not have enough of these things but they do not understand that God promises to bless us abundantly if we would only follow His ways!  And beyond the physical, He has given us so much more by making sure that we have His “manual for life and godliness” – the bible!  But that’s not all (I’m starting to sound like one of those infomercials on TV) He sent His Son, His only Son whom He loves, to be a propitiation for us to bring us a righteousness that we cannot work to earn.  But wait folks, there’s more; if we accept His Son and His shed blood for our sins and turn from our fleshly ways, then we can repent and be baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, who will bring us into all truth. 

Yes Jesus did have the scriptures memorized.  They were quite precious to Him.  Here is one scripture for us to memorize: “I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.”  Now that is Good News.

Freedom is Good News Part 84

“In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart, for I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)  What is trouble?  This word “trouble” is from a Greek word that literally means “pressure – that which burdens the human spirit”.  There are many things which, in this world, burden our spirits.  There are a lot of things that can get us down.  And yet we are living in what is arguably the wealthy nation in the history of mankind.  Even the poorest of us have more than 80% of the people in this world.

Having said that, I do not remember anyone, who is going through a trial, actually quote that scripture.  The first step in relieving a pressure, turning from a sin, relinquishing an evil thought or finding peace in ones strife filled life, is to quote the Word of God.  How do I know this?  Let’s look at Matthew 4:1-11; this is the episode where Jesus, having been led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness, went without food for forty days and nights.  I believe we are familiar with the story; Satan came to tempt Him; “If you are the Son of God, turn these stones into bread.”  What was Jesus response?  “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”  End of discussion!

Second temptation: Satan took Him to the highest point of the temple in Jerusalem and said, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down.  For it is written: ‘He will command His angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”  Ah ha!!  Satan can quote scripture too!  But Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the LORD your God to the test.’”

Let us stop here for a second.  Concerning the stones into bread, Jesus quoted from Deut. 8:3.  In the second temptation, Satan quote from Psalm 91:11, 12 – but he did not quote it in its entirety; Satan left out an important part, the angels are “to guard you in all your ways … you will trample the great lion and the serpent.”  And so Jesus answers him from Deut. 6:16.  Sometimes Satan is straight forward and sometimes he is deceptive.  But Jesus knew what He had to do.

In the third temptation, Satan takes Jesus to a high mountain to show Him the kingdoms of the world and then says to Jesus, “All this I will give you, if you will bow down and worship me.”  Jesus did not argue with Satan as to who had ownership of all things, but immediately, He said to him, “Away from me Satan!  For it is written: ‘Worship the LORD your God and serve Him alone.’”  And so the Devil left Jesus and we are told that the angels came and attended Him.

Isn’t it interesting what quoting scripture will do?  The temptations and trials that our Savior endured just melted away in the face of Him quoting from the Book of Life; God’s word!   And He has left for us an example that we might do as He has done.

More on this in the next article!

Freedom is Good News Part 83

What is your take on the Word of God?  And by that I mean the entirety of the bible; from Genesis to Revelation.  This book is the essential reference work for our lives – and by that I mean every one of us in every aspect of our lives!  It is the book of life!

Can you imagine a scientist - say a chemist - trying to formulate some new product in the lab and not having access to any reference works?  From carpenters, plumbers and mechanics; to chemists, engineers and doctors, we need to learn our trades and specialties from the works of those who’s knowledge has preceded us. 

God has not only preceded us, He is from eternity and he is the one who created us.  And just as the automotive engineer has written a manual to let us know how the car should be maintained, God has a “manual” to let us know how our lives should be maintained.

So, what is your take on the Word of God?  I had an individual once tell me “it’s just a book of one’s own interpretation – you think it means one thing and I think it means something else”.  My answer to him was a question: “Have you read the bible?”  No he hadn’t.  Well, my friend (he was my nephew) until you read the bible and then tell me that you still believe the way you do, I must consider your view as one that lacks wisdom.  And so I must say the same to anyone who has never read the Word of God. 

Shall we just pay lip service to our Creator?  What did Jesus say concerning this?  “You hypocrites, Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: ‘These people honor me with their lips but their hearts are far from me.  They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’” (Matthew 15:7-9) 

The bible is not an easy read.  But one thing I tried to teach my children is that the most worth-while things in life take the most work; there really are few easy answers.  And that is a hard lesson to learn.  We live in a culture that teaches us that our comfort and happiness are the most important things to us today.  And yet we, who call ourselves Christians, must understand that this world is just a temporary existence to train us and get us ready for an existence that is beyond our comprehension; an eternal existence of glory.  What does the Word of God say?  “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” (Romans 8:18)  “Our light and momentary troubles are preparing us for an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen.  For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)

I leave you with one final scripture, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints and His incomparable great power for us who believe.” Your homework assignment is to find the whereabouts of that scripture!!

Freedom is Good News Part 82

“They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.”  There is much to be said about this scripture for it is, in essence, the over-riding covenant of God with man!

In the past two articles, we have been looking at a scripture at the end of the book of Revelation, chapter 21:1-4, and considering the good news there-in.  We now come to the scripture quoted above which is in many ways the crux of the gospel – the good news of the Kingdom of God!!

This statement; “They will be My people and I will be their God”, is found as a thread that runs through-out the entirety of the bible.  We see it as God’s everlasting covenant made with Abraham in the book of Genesis 17:7-8.  We see it in Exodus 6:7 where God reiterates to Moses His everlasting promise to His people Israel. And again in Exodus 29:45-46 we see this statement as it will be written in Revelation 21.  It is spelled out in detail in Deuteronomy 26:16-19.  And Jeremiah points out the words of this everlasting covenant seven times in his book of prophecy.  And to show its future application unto the end time, Zechariah tells us this: “I will refine them like silver and test them like gold.  They will call on My name and I will answer them; I will say, ‘They are my people’ and they will say, ‘The LORD is our God’”. (Note the future tense used here.)

Paul picks up this thread in 2 Corinthians 6:16, “… For we are the temple of the living God.  As God has said, ‘I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God and they will be my people.’”  The writer of Hebrews quotes from Jeremiah in connection with this everlasting covenant, “I will be their God and they will be My people”. (Heb. 8:10)  There are many more instances of this most important statement through-out the bible.  Would that we had the time and the room to explore each and every time this covenant statement appears in scripture.

Some may ask the very good question, “Is this a statement of the old or the new covenant?”  In short, allow me to be somewhat glib, and answer, yes!  This statement of covenant is an everlasting one and embodies the entirety of the bible.  Our God is an awesome God and He, himself, tells us that He does not change. (Malachi 3:6)  In Hebrews 13:8 He tells us that He is “the same yesterday and today and forever”.  In James 1:17 we read, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

The great God of the universe wants to be our God.  He wants us to choose Him as our God.  He wants us to live our lives as though we were His people.  He tells us this in the Old Testament and the New Testament.  Really, what could be more beautiful than to have such a relationship with our God who tells us that He is “abounding in lovingkindness”?

Freedom is Good News Part 81

The apostle John is banished to the island of Patmos and, while there, receives several visions from God.  He is told to write down the things he has seen and we know these writings as the book of Revelation.  In our previous article I picked up on the very last vision that John saw and quoted from chapter 21concerning a new heaven and a new earth and how the Holy City, New Jerusalem, came down to this new earth from God.  As a side note I might mention that the word for “new” has the connotation of renewed or refreshed; i.e. new in quality.

We are told that this New Jerusalem has been “prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.”  With this in mind let’s go to Ephesians 5:32; Paul is discussing the duties of a husband and wife just prior to this scripture and tells us that “This (the idea of a marriage) is a profound mystery – but I am talking about Christ and the church.”  Ah!  So this beautifully dressed bride is an analogy of the church and her relationship to the Savior!  A little earlier in Ephesians 5 Paul writes this, “Husbands love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing of water with the word and to present her to Himself, the church in splendor, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.”  Isn’t this a beautiful analogy?  Those who have committed themselves to Christ (i.e. the church) have a future free of guilt and filled with splendor and holiness.  They are the bride “beautifully dressed for her husband.”  And as we perhaps contemplate this, we are told by John that “Now the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them.”

Let’s take a moment here to consider this.  I know that there are some who disdain the bible.  They think it is just a bunch of tales told by men.  Really??  Has a man ever told a tale quite like the one told in the book of Revelation?  Has any man ever proclaimed that there was a new heaven and earth and that a new city would be brought forth as a bride?  If God is not the builder of all things, certainly one could not believe that a man was.  If indeed the universe exists, certainly it did not build itself.  I for one do not have enough faith to believe that kind of a fairy tale.  This is an issue that must be dealt with.  And we are left with the task of dealing with it.  It really is life or death and I for one chose life.

“Now the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them.  They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.”  As I read these words, I see that there is power in them.  This statement is something to behold.  God wants to dwell with His people - the one that I instinctively know created the universe and gives life to mankind has a mind and a will to desire a dwelling with His creatures.  And what else?  John then says, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away”.

I get goose bumps contemplating the things of my God!!

Freedom is Good News Part 80

Picking up from our last article, we see that Jesus says, “I am the way and the truth and the life.” (John 14:6)  Notice that He did not say, “I will show you the way, reveal to you the truth and give you life.”  This is a very significant detail.  We see a very similar thing when Jesus spoke with Martha, the sister of Lazarus who had just died.  He told her, “I am the resurrection and the life.” 

The spiritual reality here is that God does not just give us gifts; He is the gift.  Our God is the sum of all things and He has given all this to His Son.  Jesus tells us this in verse 11 “Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me.”  There is a relationship here that goes beyond our human understanding.  And yet we are called into that relationship as Jesus offers up His prayer in chapter 17; we see in verse 21, “As you are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, that the world may believe that you have sent me … may they be one as we are one; I in them and you in me.”

Jesus did not just give us these words and then go off to heaven to be with the Father, leaving us to wonder what He meant and so fend for ourselves.  No, he tells us, starting in 14:15, “If you love me you will obey what I command and I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to abide with you forever – the Spirit of Truth.”  This same “Counselor” is spoken of in verse 26, “the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, which the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.  Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.  I do not give you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”  Wow!  What a promise.  Please remember that we started this study with the words, “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart, I have overcome the world.”  (John 16:53) 

Going back to 16:16 Jesus says to the disciples, “In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me.”  The disciples were confused about this statement and it brought them some grief.  But Jesus told them, “Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice and no one will take away your joy.”

And so in chapter 17 Jesus offers up that most famous prayer: for Himself (verses 1-5), for the disciples (verses 6-19) and for us who believe (verses 20-26).  Jesus ends this prayer with these words, “I have made your name known to them, and will continue to make it known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

It is the time of year to reflect upon these things.  There are a thousand lessons in these few chapters.  But of a truth, the greatest lesson is found when the two Marys go to the tomb, see the stone rolled away and encounter two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning.  And the two men said, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?  He is not here; He has risen!” (Luke 24:1-6)

Freedom is Good News Part 79

The final instructions given to the disciples before Jesus was arrested, tried, tortured and crucified are found in John 13 – 17.  Let’s not forget how we started looking into these chapters.  We began, several articles ago, by considering what to do when trouble strikes. The answer I put forth came from Jesus mouth  “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart, I have overcome the world.”  (John 16:53) 

When we find that trouble has struck, the salve we should apply is the peace found in our Savior.  Paul tells us, “the peace that comes from God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:7)

 “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace.”  Let’s take a look at some more of “these things”. 

At the start of chapter 14, Jesus tells the disciples they should not let their hearts be troubled.  I suppose if we consider ourselves to be His disciples, we should take this to heart.  But it’s hard to do sometimes when all we find around us are troubles, dilemmas and heartaches.  Jesus then tells us that He is going to His Father’s house so as to prepare a place for us and then says that He will come back for us “that you may abide where I am”.  This is a sign of the betrothal.  In ancient Israel, after a marriage had been arranged by the fathers, the groom would not see his prospective bride again until he had built for them a home.  When this house met the father’s expectations, the wedding date would be set, the wedding take place and the groom would take his new bride to this abode he had built.

“Hallelujah!  For our Lord God Almighty reigns.  Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him glory!  For the wedding of the Lamb had come, and His bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Rev. 19:6-8)

In John 14:4, at the end of this segment, Jesus says, “You are aware of where I am going and you are aware of the way.”  A somewhat cryptic statement; to which Thomas (you know – doubting Thomas; or as some call him, “honest Thomas”) replies, “Lord, we are not aware of where you are going, so how can we know the way?” 

Are you a disciple of Jesus?  Are you one who calls Him Lord and Master?  Is He your teacher?  Only you can truthfully answer these questions and only you may understand the answer to Thomas; do you know the way?

“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me’”.  Jesus gave the answer and Jesus is the answer.  More on this next time.

Freedom is Good News Part 78

Slightly past the mid-point of the Book of John we have, what may arguably be called, some of the most important chapters in the Bible.  Chapters 13 through 17 contain the final instructions of Jesus to His apostles while He walked this earth in the flesh.  They take place during His last Passover meal.  In fact, He tells them in Luke 22:15-16, “With eagerness have I desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.  For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”  This is an interesting statement for it tells us that He will partake of the Passover again and that it will find a final fulfillment in the kingdom!!  So when we call it the “last supper” we must realize it was actually the Passover and also, Jesus will partake of it in the kingdom of God.  But, we are getting ahead of ourselves. 

In our previous article we were talking about Jesus washing the disciple’s feet and how that might be quite significant for us.  There are lessons that our Savior is continually striving to teach His followers and here we are 2000 years later, striving to be those followers. 

First lesson: Jesus is exampling for us humility and taking upon Himself (our Lord and Teacher) the servants role of washing the feet of those invited to a banquet.  But He goes further than this in that He specifically tells us that we should do “as I have done for you”.  I know that many people will reason this away and apply it to how we should be humble servants in our daily lives.  There is nothing wrong with serving our brothers and sisters in Christ but He did say we would be blessed if we did as He did.

Lesson 2: Peter in his first epistle, tells us, “You as living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood.”  Later on he says, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation.”  Did you get that?  There is a priesthood that awaits the called out ones of God!!  What does this have to do with washing the feet of our brethren?  Moses (a type of Christ in the Old Testament) is told by God to wash the newly ordained priesthood (a type of those called out ones in the Old Testament) and then later tells this priesthood to wash their hands and feet as they minister at the sanctuary.  (Paul tells us that these things were written down as examples for us. – 1 Cor. 10:11).  Today, we are that sanctuary and we are the servants/ministers of God!!

Lesson 3: Perhaps a much deeper lesson than humility and cleansing is also intended.  When Jesus told Peter that he did not now realize what He was doing and then said, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me”, Jesus was referring to the cross.  In fact, Paul tells us in his letter to the Romans, “For we know that our old self was crucified with Him (Jesus)”.  Our participation with Christ is a relational thing.  Jesus told us to, “Pick up our cross and follow Him.”  In all things that He did, He wants us to do likewise.  “He humbled Himself, obediently, even to death on the cross.” (Phil. 2:8)

Whew!!  Lots to think about here; until next time, keep your eyes on the good news.

Freedom is Good News Part 77

“I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart, I have overcome the world.”  (John 16:53)  We ended our previous article by quoting this scripture which comes at the end of John 16.  The appearance of these words at this point is quite significant.

But, let’s go back to the very start of this whole episode and see where Luke, the writer of the third gospel begins.  Luke 22:8, “Jesus sent Peter and John saying, ‘Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.’ … When the hour came, Jesus and His apostles reclined at the table.  And He said to them, ‘With eagerness have I desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.’”

As we piece this story together, we see from John 13 that about the first thing Jesus did, before the Passover meal, was to wash His disciple’s feet.  What was meant by this act?  Well, when Jesus finished this task, He says in verse 14, “Now that I, your Lord and Teacher have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet; I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.”  So Jesus sets an example for us. 

Today, in the 21st century, we have many means of keeping our feet clean.  His admonition to us, who read these words today, must have much more meaning than making sure our brethren have clean feet!  Let’s go back and take a deeper look at this activity.

In the process of washing feet, Jesus came to Peter who questioned his Lord’s actions.  First of all, in ancient Jewish traditions, this just was not done.  A disciple was not to question the actions or motivation of the Rabbi!  But Jesus was very gentle with Peter as He answered him, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but after you will understand.”  In today’s vernacular, I suppose we might say that Peter was always quick to “open mouth – insert foot”.  Peter replied, “No, you shall never wash my feet.”  If questioning a Rabbi was a dubious action, commanding the Rabbi was quite unheard of!

Again Jesus was gentle but firm, (don’t we wish our bosses today were as gentle as the Savior was?).  “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”  Uh-oh!  “Don’t stop with my feet, but wash my hands and head as well”, was Peter’s reply.

Many have said that this foot washing was done to show the humility Jesus was exampling for us and there is something to that.  This task was to be accomplished by the lowest servant of the house.  But I believe that there is more to it.  Jesus said to Peter that he had already had a bath (a reference to baptism) and so “his whole body was clean” (13:10).  Friends, there is a profound lesson for us here, but we must (God willing) leave it for the next article. 

Remember, in Christ Jesus we have PEACE!!

Freedom is Good News Part 76

We pick up where we left off in our previous article.  And as I have pondered this topic of trouble over the past week, into my thoughts came one of God’s servants, our dear brother, the servant of God, the Apostle Paul.  Listen, if you will, to his litany of troubles: “I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again.  Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.  Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, and I have been constantly on the move.  I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers.  I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have been cold and naked.  Beside everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.” (2 Corinthians 11:23-28)

Ok, so I do not really have any troubles!! 

The bible teaches us that we should not compare ourselves one to another.  If we feel the need to compare ourselves to anyone, it must be to our Savior, Jesus Christ, who was, “… despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.  Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised and we esteemed Him not.  Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered Him stricken by God, smitten by Him, and afflicted.  But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him and by His wounds we are healed. … And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.  He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth, He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.” (Isaiah 53:3-7)

Maybe it’s a good time to consider how good we really have it.  Two men, Paul and Jesus, suffered greatly on our account.  One, Paul, desired so much to bring the good news to all men and we have his example, his testimony and his teachings in our bibles; bibles that have been purchased by us for the equivalence of one or two hour’s wage.  The other, Jesus; He not only brought the good news; He was the good news.  I guess, with spring approaching, it is a good time to ponder the sacrifice that our Savior made for us.

Until next time, let us rejoice and not be troubled by the things of this world.  Jesus said, “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart, I have overcome the world.”  (John 16:53)