Christians and Capital Punishment

A couple of days ago I mentioned that if you’re really processing your faith at the “201″ level, you’re going to have to have a “take” on certain issues that some might consider peripheral. I think the example was creation science. But what about something like capital punishment? Again, the tendency is to say, “Look, Paul, you started this blog to avoid getting into the kind of issues you deal with at Thinking Out Loud. This space is supposedly reserved for Christ-centered Bible exposition and discussion.”

Absolutely right. But Christ needs to inform all areas of our life and thoughts. Better yet, Christ will inform just about any subject that comes up for discussion. So with that in mind, let’s look at Christ in the case of a justice issue  taking place concurrent with His earthly ministry, and see how He responded. This is from Woodland Hills pastor Greg Boyd at Christus Victor Ministries where it appeared under the title, Sinful Accusers and Capital Punishment.

 

May 4th, 2011

The Pharisees brought to Jesus a woman they had caught in the act of adultery (Jn 8:3-4; where was the guilty man?). They wanted to see how this increasingly popular, would-be Messiah, might respond. Their motive, of course, was to entrap Jesus (vs. 6). The law explicitly commanded that adulterers had be stoned to death (Lev 20:20; Deut 22:22). If Jesus agreed with this and had the lady stoned, it would likely get him in trouble with Roman authorities, for they alone had the right to try and carry out capital punishment. If Jesus disagreed with this, however, it would set him in explicit opposition with the Torah and justify the Jewish court trying him as a false teacher.

Displaying his signature genius, Jesus found a way to affirm the Torah in principle while undermining it in practice. “Let anyone who is without sin cast the first stone,” he said (vs. 7). In agreement with the Torah, Jesus affirmed that sinners like this woman deserve to be executed. Yet, he added, only a sinless person would be justified in carrying out this sentence. Since none of the woman’s accusers were sinless, they ended up dropping their stones and walking away.

Since all people are sinners, it seems to me that Jesus’ teaching in this episode applies not just to this particular accused sinner and to this group of sinful accusers, but to all accused sinners and to all sinful accusers. And if you think it through consistently, this entails that none of the Old Testament’s commands to carry out capital punishment should ever be acted on! Indeed, for followers of Jesus, it entails that no command to carry out capital punishment should ever be obeyed, regardless of where it is found or who it comes from.

The command itself may be just, but unless you are without sin, you’re not  justified putting it into practice.

Think about it, and have a blessed day!

~Greg Boyd

The Storm Has Passed

I borrow many times from Daily Encouragement, but there’s no denying the timeliness of what they wrote on Monday in light of current events.  But that’s not the only reason this is here. This morning I asked my self what I would want to read today, and what I would want to give my readers, and instantly this theme came to mind: God’s peace. When I clicked on Stephen and Brooksyne’s reading, that was the theme!

“Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ And the wind ceased and there was a great calm” (Mark 4:39 NKJV). “And the peace of God which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7 NIV).

As most of you know, due to the intense media coverage of Hurricane Irene, we had a severe storm come through our area this weekend.  We were to the west of the hurricane’s main path up the east coast but still had a lot of rain and high winds. Some of our friends had power outages but the damage in our area is minimal and few lives were lost due to the many warnings we received…

…But early Monday morning as we prepare this message the sky is bright blue, the winds are completely stilled, the school buses are loaded with students and drivers are heading to work. The storm has passed! For our devotional message today let us consider a famous storm in the Bible.

Matthew, Mark and Luke all recount the story of Jesus climbing into a boat with His disciples to cross the Sea of Galilee. It’s 700 feet below sea level and its deepest point descends 150 feet. The sea is 13 miles long and 7 miles wide, surrounded by hills. Jesus had called four of His disciples into ministry from this very sea.

The winds blowing across the land intensify in close proximity to the sea, often causing violent and abrupt storms. Several of the disciples were seasoned fishermen who had spent their lives on this lake. They’d undoubtedly survived many storms, but in today’s Scripture account a severe squall released its windy furor which caused the still waters to erupt thrusting powerful waves of sea water above the boat.

Can you just imagine the scene; the men running about the boat to find watertight containers to bale out the water as it swirled about their feet and was rising. They surely panicked and feared for their lives. All except One; the Son of Man who, of all things, was sleeping soundly on a cushion in the stern!

Nerves completely shattered by now, the disciples awakened Jesus and asked passionately, “Teacher, don’t You care if we drown?” (Mark 4:38b). Jesus responded to the disciples with a reprimand for their lack of faith, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” (Matthew 8:26). He then got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, “Peace!  Be still!” and the winds and waves obeyed their Creator.

The disciples, still shaken, after their death defying ordeal, now witnessed the instant calming of the horrific storm once Jesus commanded the elements to be still. Consider the roller coaster ride their emotions took as the sudden storm broke loose, the waters rose, and then the miracle that followed.  Their emotions went from concern to worry, then fear, then terror, then disbelief, tremendous relief, and finally amazement. Stunned by what they had seen, they surely shook their heads in astonishment as they began to ask each other, “Who is this?  Even the wind and the waves obey Him” (Mark 4:41).

When our hearts become troubled they’re much like the storm tossed sea. It causes unrest within our soul and our passions become unruly. Fear and anxiety are inevitable as the deadly water of doubt, unbelief, rebellion and other harmful attitudes rise up within us thereby drowning our faith in God.

Challenges, trials, and tragedies will always exist. But God has promised that His peace is available to all who seek Him – He offers a peace that transcends human understanding or human intervention. This peace will guard our hearts from anxiety, fear, terror, and strife. “He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day” (Psalm 91:4,5).

Jesus looks on but eagerly awaits our beckoning call. He comes into our lives upon our invitation as we ask Him to save us.  He says, “Peace!  Be still!” to the conflict, doubts, fightings, and fears that grip our hearts.  We no longer strive to save ourselves, but we ask Jesus to save us.  Fear is overcome by faith when we ask Jesus to be our Savior, to guide us over the troubled sea of life.

Daily prayer: Father, we thank You for the powerful God that You are.  Even the winds and waves recognize You as Creator and obey Your voice.  Your Word is a lighthouse that directs us safely toward heaven when the furious waves swirl about us and the water rises up to our necks.  Keep us firmly anchored in Your ways so that we stay above the waters and endure to the very end. In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Just as I am, though tossed about
With many a conflict, many a doubt,
Fightings and fears within, without,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Why Did God Make Poisonous Snakes?

When your blog is called Christianity 201, you have the freedom to delve into all kinds of “deeper” questions, but today’s is, I have to admit, a little different than what normally appears in this space.  Still, before you can answer even a child’s question like, “Why did God create mosquitoes?” you have to at least do some serious consideration about creation, including what you believe about the earth in a pre-fall condition [Adam's fall, not pre-autumn!] versus its state in a post-fall condition. 

Rick Oliver has a PhD from the University of California and is a bit of an expert on rattlesnake venom.  In the article you’re about to link to, he poses questions about the nature of snakes, which seem to be ‘born to kill.’

Other aspects of snake design don’t have any obvious use in the original creation. They seem clearly designed for this cursed world. So we can probably rule out mutations or changes in habitat.

• Did God add these features to snakes at the Curse?
• Did God design the original snakes with these features, knowing that Adam would sin and that snakes would soon need them in a fallen world?
• Did God place these designs in the original snakes’ genes, but they were not expressed until after the Curse as snakes had offspring and spread over the earth (mediated design)?
• Did these designs arise in other ways, which we have not yet considered but are consistent with Scripture? Perhaps we’ll never know.

Some believers don’t like to be drawn into the creation-science debate, considering it peripheral to serious Bible study. However, I think it’s necessary — without being a science expert — to have a ‘take’ on this issue; I see at as part of our mandate to “always be ready to give an answer [or account]” for what we believe.  I Peter 3:15

So click this link with me, and spend a few minutes seeing where your theology meets up with spiders, mosquitoes and snakes.

[Thanks to the blog, Strengthened by Grace for highlighting this topic.]

Love Songs to Jesus

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

Matthew 22:37

It’s become fashionable of late to ‘dis’ worship choruses that express love to Jesus in terms that could equally be applied to an earthly lover. The term commonly used is “Jesus is my boyfriend” songs. I do agree that some of these songs should simply be performed by the writers and not have their lyrics projected on a screen for everyone to sing lyrics that reflect a position in Christ that they haven’t yet reached; or expect us to sing lyrics where the similarity to a secular love song is painfully close.

But what if the writer is genuinely overflowing with love to Jesus? Isn’t that exactly what we want to hear in a song expressing personal worship? Isn’t it also true that many of us find it really easy to sing about “How Great is the Lord,” but are less comfortable saying, “Lord, I love You”?

This song, by the group Jars of Clay surfaced many years ago. It’s not a congregational song per se, but a beautifully crafted expression of love.

In open fields of wild flowers,
she breathes the air and flies away
She thanks her Jesus for the daises and the roses
in no simple language
Someday she’ll understand the meaning of it all

He’s more than the laughter or the stars in the heavens
As close a heartbeat or a song on her lips
Someday she’ll trust Him and learn how to see Him
Someday He’ll call her and she will come running
and fall in His arms and the tears will fall down and she’ll pray,

“I want to fall in love with You”

Sitting silent wearing Sunday best
The sermon echoes through the walls
A great salvation through it calls to the people
who stare into nowhere, and can’t feel the chains on their souls

He’s more than the laughter or the stars in the heavens
As close a heartbeat or a song on our lips
Someday we’ll trust Him and learn how to see Him
Someday He’ll call us and we will come running
and fall in His arms and the tears will fall down and we’ll pray,

“I want to fall in love with You”

It seems too easy to call you “Savior”,
Not close enough to call you “God”
So as I sit and think of words I can mention
to show my devotion

“I want to fall in love with You”

“my heart beats for You”

Lord, give us a heart that overflows with love for you; not gratitude for all you have done for us, but one that loves you for who you are.

Being “In The Presence” Isn’t Sufficient

Today we listened to a sermon by one Robert Bell. Yes, that Rob Bell. And it was a good sermon. In typical Bell fashion, the June 26th message was titled, “Helicopters, Alicia Keys and a Woman in an Art Museum.” You can find it here. The message was part of a series where Bell and associates have divided up the epistle First John. Bell spoke about the different meanings of ‘anointing,’ and how up to the coming of Christ, God was in the temple, God was with the priests, God was with David, and then with the coming of Christ, God was with Jesus.

But then, Jesus breathed on His disciples and said, “Receive the Spirit;” and suddenly, God was with everyone. As He is today. He compared it to the broadcasting industry, which once had a somewhat exclusive abilities to take a news story and disseminate it; whereas today, anyone with a cell phone — mobile phone for non-Americans — can take a picture and post it to a website within seconds. It’s really an interesting analogy that holds well all theological aspects considered.

The message could have stopped there, but then Bell pointed out that there’s a difference between being in the presence of God and having the presence of God within. 

I have to ask myself how my own life is characterized by having the Spirit, and people seeing that Spirit radiating within me. It’s easy to be around God’s presence and even to mirror what’s going on in the lives of others; but I need to be constantly aware of the need to cultivate God’s Spirit, uniquely given to me and working out His will and purpose in my life.

If someone looked at your life, would they say that you are a person who has obviously spent time in God’s presence, or is the overarching characteristic of your life that God ‘presences’ himself within you?

Adopting Wrong Views of God

I had hoped to have time to do something else today, but I hope you’ll accept this shared post with Thinking Out Loud.

This morning while looking for something else, a copy of Your God Is Too Small by J. B. Phillips fell into my hands.  This 124-page pocket book is usually remembered for its first 59 pages which focus on a number of “wrong pictures” we have of God, and while I know that Thinking Out Loud readers would never fall into one of these errant views, I believe that we often partially fall into looking at God in one of these stereotyped forms.  Here’s a quick paraphrase of the types Phillips lists:

• Policeman — an image usually formed out of a ‘guilt-based’ response to God
• Parental hangover — the Father image of God evokes images of an earthly father which is more negative than positive
• Grand Old Man — the head of the seniors group perhaps, or president of the service club; but the danger is the ‘old’ part if it implies irrelevance
• Meek and Mild — an example, Phillips would argue, of a Sunday School chorus influencing theology which we might want to keep in mind when choosing modern worship pieces for weekend services
• Absolute Perfection — which leads to us trying to be absolutely perfect even though we don’t often grasp what it means; or thinking God isn’t interested in us when we’re not perfect
• Heavenly Bosom — a variation perhaps on burying our head in the sand; we bury ourselves in God as a kind of escapism
• God in a Box — what I think Phillips is using describe people whose image of God has been shaped by subjective experience in local churches or denominations; or conversely, is defined by the beliefs of his or her denomination
• Managing Director — with an emphasis on God as “controller,” this image evokes another metaphor: puppet string God
• Second-Hand God — a longer section; it might be summarized as variations on the God-picture we would get from having seen a single movie or read a single book about God and built everything else up from there
• Perennial Grievance — whatever the God-view the person holds, this one is ever mindful of the time that God let them down them; disappointed them; etc.
• Pale Galilean — an image Phillips uses to describe people whose faith is lacking vitality and courage; or whose loyalty is fragile
• Projected Image — which we would describe today as “creating God in our image.” 

Do you ever find yourself falling into any of these mistaken views of God?

While the terminology might not be readily used today; the book is fairly thorough about describing the full range of false views about God that can exist.  I felt led to share this here, but then needed to come up with some resolve to this.  Phillips views the first half of his book as deconstructive and follows it with a constructive second half.  What I want to do here instead, is end with a quotation I’ve used before, but which I believe everyone should commit to memory:

When we say we begin with God, we begin with our idea of God, and our idea of God is not God.   Instead, we ought to begin with God’s idea of God, and God’s idea of God is Christ.

~E. Stanley Jones

Further reading:  If you can get your hands on this out-of-print book, look for Jarrett Stevens’ The Deity Formerly Known as God (Zondervan) which is an updated version of Phillips’ classic.  If you can’t find it, get the original, which after all these years is still in print!

A Hunger Deep Inside My Soul

Both on and off the blog, I get comments from people who remember particular songs and are able to find them here. Especially a couple of the older songs from the three different Psalms Alive CDs Maranatha Music produced many years ago. 

We often underestimate the power of song.  Psalm 84 has been the source of many worship songs.  We can think of a few, but imagine the themes of scripture expressed musically over the past 2,000 years; the songs that were lost over the ages, and the songs that were written for use in one local church setting that were never heard beyond that church’s walls.  Here’s “How Love is Your Dwelling Place” from Psalms Alive (Maranatha Music).

The hunger deep inside the Psalmist’s soul for God’s word, God’s law and statutes, and being in God’s temple is a recurring theme throughout the Psalms. When you read the text of the Psalm you’ll also recognize a popular worship chorus from our own generation in verse 10 (and if you grew up Pentecostal or Charismatic, one from your parent’s generation in verse 11). It’s interesting that the writer’s desire to be in God’s presence is twice expressed in language that could refer to a tabernacle or building, and how that contrasts with our world today where we see declining church attendance and even church closures.

Psalm 84

New International Version (NIV)

    For the director of music. According to gittith. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.

 ¹ How lovely is your dwelling place,
   LORD Almighty!
² My soul yearns, even faints,
   for the courts of the LORD;
my heart and my flesh cry out
   for the living God.
³ Even the sparrow has found a home,
   and the swallow a nest for herself,
   where she may have her young—
a place near your altar,
   LORD Almighty, my King and my God.
⁴ Blessed are those who dwell in your house;
   they are ever praising you.

 ⁵ Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
   whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.
⁶ As they pass through the Valley of Baka,
   they make it a place of springs;
   the autumn rains also cover it with pools.
⁷ They go from strength to strength,
   till each appears before God in Zion.

 ⁸ Hear my prayer, LORD God Almighty;
   listen to me, God of Jacob.
⁹ Look on our shield, O God;
   look with favor on your anointed one.

 ¹⁰ Better is one day in your courts
   than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
   than dwell in the tents of the wicked.
¹¹ For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
   the LORD bestows favor and honor;
no good thing does he withhold
   from those whose walk is blameless.

 ¹² LORD Almighty,
   blessed is the one who trusts in you.

Here’s a version of Better is One Day by the group Petra:

Do we regard the presence of God with the same passion?  Can we say with verse 10 that in terms of the things of this world, the presence of God in ratio to the things of this world rates at better than 1,000:1 ?

The Cross Identifies With 9/11

Something rather different today, but worthy of much consideration. This item by Ryan Halliday appeared as a web-only piece at Christianity Today under the title 9/11 Cross Should Offend. 

In a recent debate surrounding a cross displayed at the World Trade Center 9/11 memorial site, both sides agree on at least one point: the complaints by atheist litigants that the presence of the cross has caused them to suffer “dyspepsia, symptoms of depression, headaches, anxiety, and mental pain and anguish” are less than credible. Even the commentators who have argued against the inclusion of the cross in the 9/11 memorial have nevertheless ridiculed these purported symptoms, assuming they are nothing but a thinly-veiled attempt at establishing legal standing.

But Christians should recognize that these seem to be the sort of symptoms many sane and thoughtful persons experience upon encountering an unwanted vision of the cross. Far from being silly, these four atheists seem to take the cross more seriously than many believers do.

Because the cross tells the world’s strangest story in an image, it has always provoked a variety of responses, most of which have been negative. In the first century, the idea that the crucified Jesus was God-in-the-flesh was considered, depending on one’s background, either a scandal or a joke. (As the Jewish-turned Christian theologian St. Paul put it, “a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles.”) A weak, suffering deity held little appeal and would have been easily dismissed, were it not for the early Christians’ insistence that the death of Christ was everyone’s problem.

Jesus’ first followers did not only assert that God came to earth and died, but also that culpability for his death was universal. “This Jesus, whom you crucified,” were the words chosen by St. Peter to conclude the first Christian sermon, directed to an ethnically diverse crowd, most of whom were not even present in Jerusalem on the day of Jesus’ death.

For the two millennia since Jesus’ resurrection, Christian orthodoxy has been consistent in repeating this same message: the whole world stands equally guilty of committing history’s greatest atrocity, an atrocity in light of which the events of 9/11 pale in comparison. God came to earth, and we killed him.

The Book of Acts records that upon hearing this indictment for the first time, many of Peter’s listeners were “cut to the heart.” Understandably so—the charge is enough to turn the stomach, darken the mind, and plunge the heart into despair. Or, in other words, Peter’s words were enough to cause “dyspepsia, symptoms of depression, headaches, anxiety, and mental pain and anguish.” The atheist litigants have called the 9/11 cross “an ugly piece of wreckage,” arguing that it speaks of “horror and death.” On the basis of the New Testament, these statements are difficult to contradict.

But if the image of the cross represents humanity’s greatest collective failure, why would a nation cling to it as a sign of hope in the days after 9/11? The exchange that follows Peter’s sermon sheds some further light.

When asked to suggest a course of action, Peter advised his hearers, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins”—advice which makes little sense unless one assumes certain premises. These premises, implicit in the Christian religion from day one, were intricately explored over the next several decades in the writings of St. Paul, who advanced what would become the best-known but least-understood tenet of Christian theology: that somehow the death of the perfectly sinless Christ was itself the event which atoned for all the wrongdoing of the sinful human race.

If true, this turns the cross into a profound paradox. The same event that condemns humanity also justifies it, standing at once as damning evidence of guilt and a doorway to forgiveness and innocence. What’s more, the very episode that shows humanity at its worst shows God at his best, as he transforms an act of wickedness into a display of mercy and love. It is difficult to imagine themes more relevant to the attacks of September 11.

Suppose God himself has suffered and died at the hands of evil men. Suppose God himself has shown the capacity for taking what was intended for harm and using it for good. Might this affect the way we ourselves face evil and suffering? Might this be a source of strength to someone who is waist-deep in ash and rubble, trying to loosen bodies from steel and concrete?

For the person who accepts this narrative, the cross is the only thing that makes sense in the face of a senseless tragedy. But for the person who rejects it, the cross serves as a reminder of an offensive and seemingly absurd accusation, adding insult to injury. The trouble with the cross is that it refuses to be the universal symbol of beauty that some would make it out to be—it speaks life to those who believe, but death to those who do not.

No wonder people disagree about where it should be displayed.

Ryan Holladay is pastor of Lower Manhattan Community Church, which meets two blocks from the World Trade Center site.

Gimme, Gimme, Gimme

Today’s piece is from Arkansas pastor Rusty Blann’s blog,  S.O.A.P. For Today — it makes more sense when you note the outline below — where it appeared under the title…

“Manna, Manna, Manna or Holy, Holy, Holy?”

Scripture:

Numbers 11:1-6 The people fell to grumbling over their hard life. GOD heard. When he heard his anger flared; then fire blazed up and burned the outer boundaries of the camp. (2) The people cried out for help to Moses; Moses prayed to GOD and the fire died down. (3) They named the place Taberah (Blaze) because fire from GOD had blazed up against them. (4) The riff-raff among the people had a craving and soon they had the People of Israel whining, “Why can’t we have meat? (5) We ate fish in Egypt–and got it free!–to say nothing of the cucumbers and melons, the leeks and onions and garlic. (6) But nothing tastes good out here; all we get is manna, manna, manna.”

Observation:

The Israelites complained, and then Moses complained. But God responded positively to Moses and negatively to the rest of the people. Why? The people complained to one another, and nothing was accomplished. Moses took his complaint to God, who could solve any problem. Many of us are good at complaining to each other. We need to learn to take our problems to the One who can do something about them.

Every morning the Israelites drew back their tent doors and witnessed a miracle. Covering the ground was pale yellow, fluffy manna-food from heaven. But soon that wasn’t enough. Feeling it was their right to have more, they forgot what they already had. They didn’t ask God to fill their need; instead, they demanded meat, and they stopped trusting God to care for them. “Give us meat to eat!” (Numbers 11:13) they complained to Moses as they reminisced about the good food they had in Egypt. God gave them what they asked for, but they paid dearly for it when a plague struck the camp (Numbers 11:18-20; Numbers 11:31-34).

When you ask God for something, he may grant your request. But if you approach him with a sinful attitude, getting what you want may prove costly.

Application:

How does this apply to me?

Dissatisfaction comes when our attention shifts from what we have to what we don’t have. The people of Israel didn’t seem to notice what God was doing for them: setting them free, making them a nation, giving them a new land. They were so wrapped up in what God wasn’t doing for them. They could think of nothing but the delicious Egyptian food they had left behind. Somehow they forgot that the brutal whip of Egyptian slavery was the cost of eating that food.

Before we judge the Israelites too harshly, it’s helpful to think about what occupies our attention most of the time. Are we grateful for what God has given us, or are we always thinking about what we would like to have? We should not allow our unfulfilled desires to cause us to forget God’s gifts of life, food, health, work, and friends.

The Children of Israel did just that however. They found themselves complaining about the “blessings of God.” Every morning God would literally pour out blessings from heaven. They would look around and Manna from heaven was all around them. They became so accustomed to God caring for their needs, that their daily thanksgiving and praise slowly, and subtly turned to complaining. Then the words from their mouth and the meditation from their hearts were…”Manna, Manna, Manna.”

How often does my attitude reflect the same disregard for the loving care of provision of God? “Manna, Manna, Manna” I may say in disgust, instead of what should flow from my mouth when I think of my awesome God… “Holy, Holy, Holy.”

Prayer:

“Lord, I am so guilty of waking up in the morning and focusing immediately on the problems of the day instead of the potential. Focusing on the storm of the day instead of the peace. Focusing on the sickness of the day instead of the Healer. Focusing on the need of the day instead of the provider. Focusing on the battle for the day instead of the King of Kings. Focusing on the lack of today instead of the Lord for this day. I ask you to forgive me, for I truly repent of that kind of attitude. Every single day you bless me in ways that I often overlook. I find my attitude the same as the Children of Israel, and even though my words may not, my actions declare, “Manna, manna, manna.” I choose today to be thankful. For I am a blessed man, who serves an awesome, loving, providing God. You are creative in the ways that you bless me and my family. I love you Lord, and thank you for this day. I will rejoice and be glad in it…and thankful! In Jesus’ name, amen.”

~Rusty L. Blann

Wishing Hell Wasn’t So Doesn’t Change the Bible

First, Radical author and pastor David Platt.  This was filmed in India as things were heating up in the U.S. over the publication of Rob Bell’s Love Wins, though I should add that Bell doesn’t clearly state some of the things he is being associated with.  Nonetheless, this is worthy of viewing:

Did you note the difference between “intellectual universalism” and “functional universalism.”

Next, Hell is Real But I Hate to Admit It author and pastor Brian Jones. The book is releasing in the next few days.  I wonder sometimes if perhaps there is a degree to which an understanding — perhaps an acceptance – of the doctrine of hell is mark of spiritual maturity; while at the same time others believe that a rejection of the doctrine of hell is some kind of mark of spiritual sophistication.  This video was directed to pastors, but there doesn’t seem to be a general book trailer.  You can read my review of the book here.

Transfer Credits

Steven Furtick is pastor of Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC, and has been featured here several times. This appeared on his blog last Tuesday…

Transferring credits can be a maddening process.

I experienced this once. I started seminary in one place and then we moved to start the church, so I had to end up changing schools. And sure enough, some of the credits that I earned at the first school wouldn’t transfer to the other. It was frustrating to say the least. It felt like my scholastic achievements were for nothing.

There’s a similar credit transfer problem that happens in the Kingdom of God when it comes our accomplishments. It can be even more frustrating and maddening because we’re so accustomed to operating according to the world’s standards of measuring success. But it’s something we have to take to heart because it’s the way God works.

The credits of men on earth don’t transfer to the Kingdom of God. What I mean is that just because the world says you’re successful doesn’t mean you’ve impressed God one bit.

God really doesn’t care about

• How much money you’ve earned
• Where you’ve gotten your degree from
• Or what letters make up the title in front of your name.

The things that we think are major accomplishments aren’t to God.

For at least two reasons.

First, it’s kind of hard to brag to a God who spoke the universe into existence. I just can’t see God being blown back by our resumé. Especially when the source of all of our accomplishments is Him. Also, it’s kind of insulting to His grace to think that any amount of achievement could earn the love and favor that has already been achieved for you.

Second, I don’t think God is looking for the same things we are. If you take a cursory look through the Bible, these were the kinds of people and things that stood out to Him:

• A young shepherd on the backside of nowhere whose heart was after Him. (1 Samuel 16)

• The faith of a man who shouldn’t have had any. (Luke 7:1-10)

• The meager but total generosity of a peasant woman compared to the lavish but incomplete giving of the rich around her. (Luke 21:1-4)

I’m not saying you need to downgrade your job. Or make yourself poor. Or that your success and accomplishments can’t be used for God’s glory.

I’m just saying that you shouldn’t assume that you’re at the front of the line to be used for His glory because of them. Besides, in God’s order of things, the front isn’t necessarily where you want to be anyways:

So the last will be first, and the first will be last.
Matthew 20:16

~Steven Furtick

Commandment Keeping: Prerequisite to God’s Favor, or Fruit of Grace?

More from the book, Look to The Rock, by Alec Motyer (p.41)…

…Nevertheless, law is really and truly law.  The terrors of [Mount] Sinai were real and palpable (Ex 20: 18-21, Heb 12: 18-21).  This was no contrived display of religious fireworks designed merely to cow and awe.  The cause of the whole manifestation of fire and cloud, earthquake, thunder and lightning was simply this: that “the Lord descended in fire.” (Ex 19:18).  This is what he is like.  His holiness is not a passive attribute but an active force such as can only be symbolized by fire, a force of destruction of all that is unholy.  At Sinai this holy God came to declare His holy law.

It is at this point that the sequence of events in the great historical visual aid bears its distinctive fruit: In the Old Testament as in the whole Bible, the law of the Holy God is not a ladder of merit whereby sinners seek to come to God to win His favor and climb “into His good books;” His holy law is rather His appointed and required pattern of life for those who by redemption have been brought to Him already who already belong to Him, and are already “in His good books.”  The Law of God is the lifestyle of the redeemed.

Somewhere in the middle of reading that section, I started thinking about the difference between law and grace in terms of the “How Do You Spell Religion?” presentation which I’ve outlined here.  I see this as another way of looking at man’s attempts in more of a chronological method:

If each of the checkmarks below represents the keeping of one or several commandments and the cross represents acceptance by God, many people feel that their story should unravel something like this:

In fact, what the Bible teaches is that living “a ten commandments lifestyle” is more of the fruit of experiencing the grace of God.  The commandments were never requested of Israel’s neighbors, they were the cadence of a life lived in fellowship and communion with God.  While they are phrased in a “Don’t do this” manner, they could be interpreted — or lived out — in more of a I Cor 13 way: “Doesn’t kill, doesn’t steal…” etc.  That’s also in keeping with a “before and after” way of looking at life that incorporates life transformation.  So it looks like:

Of course, there is always the issue that most of the general population can’t name all ten commandments, and if they do, they tend to focus on the “second tablet,” the ones having to do with interpersonal relationships, and neglect the first four, having to do with our relationship with God.

Cleansing from Impurity Necessary to Relationship with God

My wife has been reading the book Enthroned On Our Praise (An Old Testament Theology of Worship), by Timothy M. Pierce and a few times I’ve peeked inside myself.  I asked her if there was a particular section she’d like to share with Christianity 201 readers and she chose this one:

 

“The literary ordering of the book of Leviticus seems strange at first.  After chapter 10 recounts the story of Nadab and Abihu, the book lists a number of things related to impurity.  Instructions about the Day of Atonement follow, beginning with the story of Aaron’s sons.  Subsequently, the laws concerning holiness are outlined.  This structure serves a twofold purpose, revealing the importance of the cleanliness of the priest in making offerings and the necessity of atonement before holiness as a way of life can be achieved.

For the Christian, the doctrine of the priesthood of the believer (1 Peter 2:5-9) adds an important element of comparison to the priestly requirements of the OT.  That is, the greater message from the Leviticus passage is that the requirements of purity for the high priest also serve as requirements for each priest in the kingdom of God.  If there were no other theological relevance to this passage, it would be worth exegeting.

The fact that every part of the sanctuary had to be atoned for – both the mercy seat inside and the altar outside – reveals the need for purity before God.  So do the multiple washings that the different individuals had to endure in meeting God’s requirements for purity.  Likewise, the shedding of the blood of four innocent animals, the sending away of the live goat, and the strictures against doing any labour are all part of the recognition of the seriousness with which Yahweh takes sin and the necessity that His holiness creates for His people to separate themselves from sin’s presence.

To underestimate the influence sin has on God’s relationship with His people is to live in direct conflict with the concerns He revealed through the institution of this important day (the Day of Atonement).  Sin corrupts everything and requires a serious appraisal of its impact on worship.  It is striking how quickly individuals and congregations today enter into a worship event without first considering the effect their sinful lives have on their ability to worship.  Indeed, in many evangelical churches it seems that along with the invitation at the end, there should also be an invitation to prepare oneself for worship at the beginning (see Matt 5:23,24; 1 John 1:5-10).

… Indeed, it would be interesting to see the effect on the lives of Christians if they started viewing their salvation as a cleansing from impurity instead of only focusing on an escape from punishment.”

Timothy M. Pierce

Indescribable King

This is post number 500 here at Christianity 201, and it seems fitting that it includes a video clip which is so familiar to so many people through its widespread use as a church video a few years ago, but may be new to many others as well.  It’s S. M. Lockridge’s sermon excerpt, That’s My King.  (If you’ve seen it before, maybe it’s time to view it again!)

Usually, if there’s a video clip here, it’s a worship song.  I am convinced that if you are involved in worship planning, there are three worship themes with which you can’t ever go wrong:

• communion, Lord’s supper, Christ’s death, Christ’s sacrifice, atonement
• personal surrender to God
• God’s attributes, particularly his greatness and majesty

The last category is where we land today.  All the most popular worship songs in the last decade — Majesty, Shout to the Lord, How Great is our God — are songs which speak to the indescribable greatness of God.

S. M. Lockridge (born Shadrach Meshach Lockridge!) pastored in Texas and California and was active in the civil rights movement.   You can read more about him at Wikipedia.

His words are most fitting for a blog which has as its aim being Christ-centered, and so well-suit being the 500th post here.

Here is the full text (click the ‘more’ button if it’s all not visible):

My King was born King.
The Bible says He’s a Seven Way King.
He’s the King of the Jews – that’s a racial King.
He’s the King of Israel – that’s a National King.
He’s the King of righteousness.
He’s the King of the ages.
He’s the King of Heaven.
He’s the King of glory.
He’s the King of kings and He is the Lord of lords.
Now that’s my King.

I’m Behind You

Today’s devotional from Janette Levellie is from CBN.com’s devotional page…

When I made my living as a waitress I quickly learned the value of three words spoken to fellow servers: “I’m behind you.”

No one wants to turn around and cannon into a tray brimming with hot coffee, Denver omelets, and oatmeal with raisins. Fifteen Cub Scouts and their troop leader get impatient when you have to re-scoop their ice cream because you dropped the original bowls on the floor after forgetting to tell the busboy, “I’m behind you.” It’s wise to let people know of a potential mess, so you both can avoid it.

As my husband was getting a pizza out of the oven recently, I walked behind him, carrying our salad bowls. Although 35 years have passed since I served food professionally, I still said, “I’m behind you.” When those three words hit the air, they gripped my heart in a new way. I was not simply telling Kevin to “watch out;” I was helping him succeed at his task of the moment. I was supporting him. And I was saving both of us a trip to the floor to clean up tomato sauce, mozzarella, and Thousand Island dressing.

We all need support, especially in the Church, where we operate as a body, and “should have equal concern for each other (I Corinthians 12:25).” As we serve the Lord and those around us, our individual loads become lighter when we help each other carry them.

The second-wisest man who ever lived said it this way,

“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: if one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up. (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, NIV)”

The list of ways to get behind a brother or sister is endless:

Are you struggling to make ends meet on a stingy budget? If I slip a ten in your pocket, I’m behind you.

Do you doubt if your marriage can last one more night, or one more fight? If I listen and pray for strength for you, I’m behind you.

Is your kid making choices that break your heart? If I hug you and say “Don’t give up,” I’m behind you.

Are you afraid of what the doctor might find on the next test? If I pray for your healing and tell you “I love you,” I’m behind you.

Do you wonder where your dream got lost? If I encourage you to keep hoping, I’m behind you.

Rebuking and finding fault rarely motivate anyone to succeed. Most of us avoid critical, sour individuals. But we enjoy the company of people who bring out the best in us, helping us believe in ourselves and our dreams. We achieve things we thought impossible by having one or two caring friends say, “I’m behind you.”

You can be that friend to someone today. Instead of turning your back on a need or mocking a dream, be wise enough to say, “I’m behind you. Let me help you succeed.”

For us fellow servers, it will make the difference between messes to clean up or miracles to celebrate.

~Jeanette Levellie