Hebrews 3:13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called "today," that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
13 ἀλλὰ παρακαλεῖτε ἑαυτοὺς καθ᾽ ἑκάστην ἡμέραν, ἄχρις οὗ τὸ σήμερον καλεῖται, ἵνα μὴ σκληρυνθῇ τις ἐξ ὑμῶν ἀπάτῃ τῆς ἁμαρτίας-
This is one of the great "one another" passages of Scripture, in my opinion. It's also one that I feel like I need some of the most work on. It is so easy to operate as something of a "Lone Ranger" Christian, particularly in 21st century America. Why do I need to talk to anyone anyway? I have Facebook and Twitter. I interact at some blogs. I have my classmates in seminary.
This verse tells me why. We need to be careful about ἀπάτῃ τῆς ἁμαρτίας. We need exhortations from our fellow Christians because we develop blind spots in our lives through the deception of sin. I'm sure that I have plenty. For example, when a friend calls me out for my lack of zeal about evangelism it strikes a nerve because of the deceitfulness of the sin of omission in not evangelizing more. That's just one example.
I also know how encouraging it is to be with a brother and talk about the Lord. Fellowship with a brother in Christ clearly has value that we cannot necessarily quantify. I think that this verse gives us warrant for this. In fact, it goes beyond warrant to command.
What have you done to exhort someone today? And what do you do to receive exhortations?
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Who He Helps
Hebrews 2:16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham.
16 οὐ γὰρ δήπου ἀγγέλων ἐπιλαμβάνεται ἀλλὰ σπέρματος Ἀβραὰμ ἐπιλαμβάνεται.
Given a discussion I have had recently on Facebook, this verse really leaps out at me. Here we see that Jesus helps the σπέρματος Ἀβραὰμ. The word σπέρματος is a genitive singular and it means "seed." This would be very confusing except that this word can also be used in the singular to refer to a collective plural. It's sort of like how a farmer would buy a bag of seed today. You could say "seeds," but you don't have to in English and you don't in Greek either.
Why is this significant? We know from the Old Testament that the "seed" of Abraham has two meanings. One refers to Christ Himself as Paul explains in Galatians 3:16. However, one does not have to read much in the Old Testament to see how Israel is described as the seed of Abraham as well. As my Old Testament professor pointed out over and over again, the three megathemes of the Old Testament are land, seed, and blessing.
Here we see that Christ helps the seed of Abraham. Just taking this text at face-value, I don't see what else it could mean other than the author of Hebrews is identifying the church with the seed of Abraham. It is possible that since this is written to a Jewish audience he is telling them that Christ helps the seed of Abraham, but that is just a subset of all the people who He helps. I find that logically possible, but highly improbable.
To be fair I consulted my MacArthur Bible Commentary on this verse and, sure enough, that is the argument that he uses. He writes that since the readers were Hebrews they would identify themselves with this description. True, but it seems like that ignores the flow of the chapter. We just had references to the "children God has given me," for example. Read it for yourself and I think you'll see that the scope of the chapter refers to all of God's children in Christ. I don't think it makes contextual sense to take this verse and limit it to those who are actually genetically linked to Abraham.
What do we do with this? As a friend of mine says, Israel is the key to the Bible. How we read the Bible depends on what we do with Israel. If we take Israel to refer to the literal people who are genetically linked to Abraham then we read the Bible and particularly the Old Testament one way. But if we understand the church to be the fulfillment of Israel then we read it another way. A verse like this has me leaning in the latter category. But frankly that gives me a lot of hope because that lets me read the Old Testament in a way that it actually has meaning to me rather than to a group of people that I will never truly be a part of, despite being grafted in.
Of course, I still have not studied any of this in a structured way so I am open to criticism and correction. Please comment if you have thoughts on this matter. Did I completely miss the point of this verse?
Note: This is the 1000th post for this blog. I love round numbers like that. I want to thank those of you who read this regularly. I really write it for my own benefit as it serves as a way for me to get deeper into something I've read each day. But if you've enjoyed it or been edified I'd love to know in the comments.
16 οὐ γὰρ δήπου ἀγγέλων ἐπιλαμβάνεται ἀλλὰ σπέρματος Ἀβραὰμ ἐπιλαμβάνεται.
Given a discussion I have had recently on Facebook, this verse really leaps out at me. Here we see that Jesus helps the σπέρματος Ἀβραὰμ. The word σπέρματος is a genitive singular and it means "seed." This would be very confusing except that this word can also be used in the singular to refer to a collective plural. It's sort of like how a farmer would buy a bag of seed today. You could say "seeds," but you don't have to in English and you don't in Greek either.
Why is this significant? We know from the Old Testament that the "seed" of Abraham has two meanings. One refers to Christ Himself as Paul explains in Galatians 3:16. However, one does not have to read much in the Old Testament to see how Israel is described as the seed of Abraham as well. As my Old Testament professor pointed out over and over again, the three megathemes of the Old Testament are land, seed, and blessing.
Here we see that Christ helps the seed of Abraham. Just taking this text at face-value, I don't see what else it could mean other than the author of Hebrews is identifying the church with the seed of Abraham. It is possible that since this is written to a Jewish audience he is telling them that Christ helps the seed of Abraham, but that is just a subset of all the people who He helps. I find that logically possible, but highly improbable.
To be fair I consulted my MacArthur Bible Commentary on this verse and, sure enough, that is the argument that he uses. He writes that since the readers were Hebrews they would identify themselves with this description. True, but it seems like that ignores the flow of the chapter. We just had references to the "children God has given me," for example. Read it for yourself and I think you'll see that the scope of the chapter refers to all of God's children in Christ. I don't think it makes contextual sense to take this verse and limit it to those who are actually genetically linked to Abraham.
What do we do with this? As a friend of mine says, Israel is the key to the Bible. How we read the Bible depends on what we do with Israel. If we take Israel to refer to the literal people who are genetically linked to Abraham then we read the Bible and particularly the Old Testament one way. But if we understand the church to be the fulfillment of Israel then we read it another way. A verse like this has me leaning in the latter category. But frankly that gives me a lot of hope because that lets me read the Old Testament in a way that it actually has meaning to me rather than to a group of people that I will never truly be a part of, despite being grafted in.
Of course, I still have not studied any of this in a structured way so I am open to criticism and correction. Please comment if you have thoughts on this matter. Did I completely miss the point of this verse?
Note: This is the 1000th post for this blog. I love round numbers like that. I want to thank those of you who read this regularly. I really write it for my own benefit as it serves as a way for me to get deeper into something I've read each day. But if you've enjoyed it or been edified I'd love to know in the comments.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Better than the Prophets
Hebrews 1:1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.
1 Πολυμερῶς καὶ πολυτρόπως πάλαι ὁ θεὸς λαλήσας τοῖς πατράσιν ἐν τοῖς προφήταις 2 ἐπ᾽ ἐσχάτου τῶν ἡμερῶν τούτων ἐλάλησεν ἡμῖν ἐν υἱῷ, ὃν ἔθηκεν κληρονόμον πάντων, δι᾽ οὗ καὶ ἐποίησεν τοὺς αἰῶνας·
I admit that the book of Hebrews has always intimidated me. I've never been quite sure what to do with it as I've tried to jam it into a theological system. I've decided that this time through I'm just going to take it as face-value as much as I can.
Even if you don't know much about the book of Hebrews you've probably at least heard the "at many times and in many ways" line. What did God do? He λαλήσας τοῖς πατράσιν ἐν τοῖς προφήταις. More literally it is that He "spoke to the fathers by the prophets." But since this is a book addressed to Jews and presumably written by a Jew, it is fine for the author to use "our" here. Whether or not that is appropriate for a Gentile to read it that way is another discussion.
I notice that there is no adversative in verse 2, but that is added by the translators. The phrase ἐπ᾽ ἐσχάτου τῶν ἡμερῶν τούτων is most literally understood as "on these last days" or something similar. We need a conjunction here to make it work as good English. Incidentally, the HCSB, KJV, NASB, and NET do not add the conjunction, but the ESV and NIV do. This is one of those places where the ESV goes a bit beyond the literal.
I think it is valid to add the conjunction here because it would seem that there is a contrast between God speaking through the prophets and now speaking through the Son. You may note that the word "his" does not exist in the Greek, but that it is consistent with the phrase ἐν υἱῷ.
Why am I going into all this detail? I think it is important that we handle the text faithfully, which is one of the goals of this blog. And, frankly, because I have a little bit more time this morning than usual :)
What do we get from this? What I see is that the prophets had their place. God spoke to the Jews through the prophets. As we see one fulfilled prophecy after another we can take great assurance in God's faithfulness and His sovereignty to accomplish His will. But in the times of the author of Hebrews (I suspect Paul, but we can't be sure), God spoke to His people through His Son.
This means that the Son is better than the prophets. It means that He fulfilled what was predicted of Him. The Jews missed it as they were waiting for a king like David who would throw off the shackles of Rome. They didn't realize that Jesus was the better David who would ultimately come to set the captives truly free, rather than simply politically free.
There is much debate about whether the NT should interpret the OT. When I read this I see no question. We'll get into this more when we get to 1 Peter 1. The point for now is that God has spoken to us through His Son. Let's listen to what the Son and His apostles have to say. That is not to say that we throw out the OT. Far from it. But let us realize that Jesus came as the fulfillment of the law. I am finding that it really makes things much clearer as I read my Bible.
1 Πολυμερῶς καὶ πολυτρόπως πάλαι ὁ θεὸς λαλήσας τοῖς πατράσιν ἐν τοῖς προφήταις 2 ἐπ᾽ ἐσχάτου τῶν ἡμερῶν τούτων ἐλάλησεν ἡμῖν ἐν υἱῷ, ὃν ἔθηκεν κληρονόμον πάντων, δι᾽ οὗ καὶ ἐποίησεν τοὺς αἰῶνας·
I admit that the book of Hebrews has always intimidated me. I've never been quite sure what to do with it as I've tried to jam it into a theological system. I've decided that this time through I'm just going to take it as face-value as much as I can.
Even if you don't know much about the book of Hebrews you've probably at least heard the "at many times and in many ways" line. What did God do? He λαλήσας τοῖς πατράσιν ἐν τοῖς προφήταις. More literally it is that He "spoke to the fathers by the prophets." But since this is a book addressed to Jews and presumably written by a Jew, it is fine for the author to use "our" here. Whether or not that is appropriate for a Gentile to read it that way is another discussion.
I notice that there is no adversative in verse 2, but that is added by the translators. The phrase ἐπ᾽ ἐσχάτου τῶν ἡμερῶν τούτων is most literally understood as "on these last days" or something similar. We need a conjunction here to make it work as good English. Incidentally, the HCSB, KJV, NASB, and NET do not add the conjunction, but the ESV and NIV do. This is one of those places where the ESV goes a bit beyond the literal.
I think it is valid to add the conjunction here because it would seem that there is a contrast between God speaking through the prophets and now speaking through the Son. You may note that the word "his" does not exist in the Greek, but that it is consistent with the phrase ἐν υἱῷ.
Why am I going into all this detail? I think it is important that we handle the text faithfully, which is one of the goals of this blog. And, frankly, because I have a little bit more time this morning than usual :)
What do we get from this? What I see is that the prophets had their place. God spoke to the Jews through the prophets. As we see one fulfilled prophecy after another we can take great assurance in God's faithfulness and His sovereignty to accomplish His will. But in the times of the author of Hebrews (I suspect Paul, but we can't be sure), God spoke to His people through His Son.
This means that the Son is better than the prophets. It means that He fulfilled what was predicted of Him. The Jews missed it as they were waiting for a king like David who would throw off the shackles of Rome. They didn't realize that Jesus was the better David who would ultimately come to set the captives truly free, rather than simply politically free.
There is much debate about whether the NT should interpret the OT. When I read this I see no question. We'll get into this more when we get to 1 Peter 1. The point for now is that God has spoken to us through His Son. Let's listen to what the Son and His apostles have to say. That is not to say that we throw out the OT. Far from it. But let us realize that Jesus came as the fulfillment of the law. I am finding that it really makes things much clearer as I read my Bible.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Calling in a Favor
Philemon 1:20 Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ.
20 ναὶ ἀδελφέ, ἐγώ σου ὀναίμην ἐν κυρίῳ· ἀνάπαυσόν μου τὰ σπλάγχνα ἐν Χριστῷ.
It's hard to pick something to write about in this short letter. Paul is writing to his friend Philemon about the escaped slave Onesimus. Apparently Onesimus was Philemon's slave, ran away, met Paul, and then was saved by Christ. Paul is making Onesimus do the honorable thing by returning to his master, but he is sending him with this note that appeals to Philemon to set Onesimus free. Paul starts his argument on the basis of the fact that Philemon and Onesimus are now brothers in Christ, but Paul turns the screws a bit as the letter proceeds. He basically says that he could command Philemon to do this since Philemon owes Paul his very life. Plus, Paul is an apostle after all.
I'm not sure that this was necessarily Paul's intention, but what strikes me about this letter is how loathe we are to ask each other for anything. As Christians we are quick to help someone out. We help a brother move his house if we can. We give people rides. We give money and food to folks in need. We serve at church. We do all manner of things to help out. After all, that's what Christians do. You can't miss that if you read much of the New Testament.
But are we so quick to ask for help? Not necessarily in a quid pro quo kind of way, but just in general? We should not be bashful about asking others to help us. Yet we don't. Why is that?
I think it's pretty clear for me that pride gets in my way. America is (or perhaps was) a great nation because of its can-do attitude. If there is an obstacle we will either overcome it or outflank it. We are used to being self-sufficient and pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps to do what needs to be done.
Yet that is not the way it should be. We should confidently ask others for help. It blesses them by being able to help us. And of course we should be ready to help others. We don't necessarily need to get to the place where Paul is effectively "pulling rank" on Philemon. We just need to humble ourselves by asking.
Am I the only one who struggles with this? How about you?
20 ναὶ ἀδελφέ, ἐγώ σου ὀναίμην ἐν κυρίῳ· ἀνάπαυσόν μου τὰ σπλάγχνα ἐν Χριστῷ.
It's hard to pick something to write about in this short letter. Paul is writing to his friend Philemon about the escaped slave Onesimus. Apparently Onesimus was Philemon's slave, ran away, met Paul, and then was saved by Christ. Paul is making Onesimus do the honorable thing by returning to his master, but he is sending him with this note that appeals to Philemon to set Onesimus free. Paul starts his argument on the basis of the fact that Philemon and Onesimus are now brothers in Christ, but Paul turns the screws a bit as the letter proceeds. He basically says that he could command Philemon to do this since Philemon owes Paul his very life. Plus, Paul is an apostle after all.
I'm not sure that this was necessarily Paul's intention, but what strikes me about this letter is how loathe we are to ask each other for anything. As Christians we are quick to help someone out. We help a brother move his house if we can. We give people rides. We give money and food to folks in need. We serve at church. We do all manner of things to help out. After all, that's what Christians do. You can't miss that if you read much of the New Testament.
But are we so quick to ask for help? Not necessarily in a quid pro quo kind of way, but just in general? We should not be bashful about asking others to help us. Yet we don't. Why is that?
I think it's pretty clear for me that pride gets in my way. America is (or perhaps was) a great nation because of its can-do attitude. If there is an obstacle we will either overcome it or outflank it. We are used to being self-sufficient and pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps to do what needs to be done.
Yet that is not the way it should be. We should confidently ask others for help. It blesses them by being able to help us. And of course we should be ready to help others. We don't necessarily need to get to the place where Paul is effectively "pulling rank" on Philemon. We just need to humble ourselves by asking.
Am I the only one who struggles with this? How about you?
Friday, August 27, 2010
The Need for Discernment
Titus 3:9 But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless.
9 μωρὰς δὲ ζητήσεις καὶ γενεαλογίας καὶ ἔρεις καὶ μάχας νομικὰς περιΐστασο· εἰσὶν γὰρ ἀνωφελεῖς καὶ μάταιοι.
Paul is wrapping up this short letter with some commands to Titus. This is the first of three verses about the kind of person who gets involved in μωρὰς δὲ ζητήσεις, or "foolish controversies." The δὲ in there is the weak adversative that we translate "but." Incidentally, the difference between this word and the stronger αλλα is one of the good reasons to study Greek.
Any conservative reader of Scripture will of course agree to this. But this is where the discernment comes in. What is it that makes a controversy μωρὰς (from which we get our word "moron," and in this case I do not think this leap is an exegetical fallacy) instead of essential? We all agree that the gospel is primary. When we get to Jude we'll see an extremely clear command to contend for the faith. How do we decide whether or not it is a vital doctrine or one that is μωρὰς?
Personally, I use salvation as my filter. Is this something that someone needs to understand in order to be saved? That's a bit nebulous though. Does someone need a perfectly-articulated understanding of the Trinity? Maybe or maybe not, but I would consider Christology to be pretty important. Relegating Jesus to "a God" as the Arians do is a problem. Relegating him to Lucifer's brother as the Mormons do is a problem as well. Do we have to get Jesus right?
This is where discernment is vital. I think that at the core we need to simply recognize that we are sinners who desperately need a savior. We need to recognize that there is absolutely nothing we can do to merit our salvation and trust completely on Jesus' finished work on the cross. If we agree on that as the core then some of the questions I asked above get answered pretty easily. It does matter who Jesus is because we have to understand Him as fully God (the perfect sacrifice) and fully man (representing us). We recognize the Holy Spirit and His work in salvation. This covers the Trinity pretty well.
It's tough to do this though and I fear that I may have missed something. But what I don't want to do is elevate any secondary or tertiary doctrine as primary. I will fight you long and hard over the gospel. I will fight very hard over God's sovereignty in electing and preserving His saints. I won't fight quite as hard over the mode of baptism. I will hardly lift a finger over eschatology.
We all need to determine where we put various doctrines. How many things are in the core that must be believed? How many do we hold with a fairly tight grip, but can let go of when pushed? And how many do we hold with a very loose grip?
Thoughts?
9 μωρὰς δὲ ζητήσεις καὶ γενεαλογίας καὶ ἔρεις καὶ μάχας νομικὰς περιΐστασο· εἰσὶν γὰρ ἀνωφελεῖς καὶ μάταιοι.
Paul is wrapping up this short letter with some commands to Titus. This is the first of three verses about the kind of person who gets involved in μωρὰς δὲ ζητήσεις, or "foolish controversies." The δὲ in there is the weak adversative that we translate "but." Incidentally, the difference between this word and the stronger αλλα is one of the good reasons to study Greek.
Any conservative reader of Scripture will of course agree to this. But this is where the discernment comes in. What is it that makes a controversy μωρὰς (from which we get our word "moron," and in this case I do not think this leap is an exegetical fallacy) instead of essential? We all agree that the gospel is primary. When we get to Jude we'll see an extremely clear command to contend for the faith. How do we decide whether or not it is a vital doctrine or one that is μωρὰς?
Personally, I use salvation as my filter. Is this something that someone needs to understand in order to be saved? That's a bit nebulous though. Does someone need a perfectly-articulated understanding of the Trinity? Maybe or maybe not, but I would consider Christology to be pretty important. Relegating Jesus to "a God" as the Arians do is a problem. Relegating him to Lucifer's brother as the Mormons do is a problem as well. Do we have to get Jesus right?
This is where discernment is vital. I think that at the core we need to simply recognize that we are sinners who desperately need a savior. We need to recognize that there is absolutely nothing we can do to merit our salvation and trust completely on Jesus' finished work on the cross. If we agree on that as the core then some of the questions I asked above get answered pretty easily. It does matter who Jesus is because we have to understand Him as fully God (the perfect sacrifice) and fully man (representing us). We recognize the Holy Spirit and His work in salvation. This covers the Trinity pretty well.
It's tough to do this though and I fear that I may have missed something. But what I don't want to do is elevate any secondary or tertiary doctrine as primary. I will fight you long and hard over the gospel. I will fight very hard over God's sovereignty in electing and preserving His saints. I won't fight quite as hard over the mode of baptism. I will hardly lift a finger over eschatology.
We all need to determine where we put various doctrines. How many things are in the core that must be believed? How many do we hold with a fairly tight grip, but can let go of when pushed? And how many do we hold with a very loose grip?
Thoughts?
Thursday, August 26, 2010
What to Teach
Titus 2:1 But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine.
1 Σὺ δὲ λάλει ἃ πρέπει τῇ ὑγιαινούσῃ διδασκαλίᾳ.
Paul continues his instruction to Titus. He just finished describing the folks who do not teach sound doctrine and have no use for it. Although the word δὲ is a weak adversative, it is one nonetheless. Paul is setting up a contrast between those who are doing the wrong thing and how Titus should act as a pastor.
What does it mean to teach τῇ ὑγιαινούσῃ διδασκαλίᾳ? There are a few glosses for the word ὑγιαινούσῃ. The general idea is that it speaks to something that is healthy. In other words, the doctrine that Titus is to teach should be healthy, like a healthy person or a healthy tree is healthy. The word "sound" is good too. You get the sense that the doctrine he is to teach is sound like something that is built well.
This is a vital truth for anyone who calls himself a Christian. Certainly he should always teach sound doctrine if there are opportunities to teach. It also means that we should be discerning as we are taught doctrine. Read your Bible and make sure that what you are teaching is sound. If not, then there is a problem with that teacher.
Every teacher is going to make a mistake here and there. None of us is like Paul with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit behind us. However, we should still be sure to do our best to teach sound doctrine. We also should expect our pastors to do the same. Let us be discerning with this.
How can we be discerning? We need to read our Bibles! Know what it says. Be ready to look things up to check. How can we discern if we don't know the standard?
1 Σὺ δὲ λάλει ἃ πρέπει τῇ ὑγιαινούσῃ διδασκαλίᾳ.
Paul continues his instruction to Titus. He just finished describing the folks who do not teach sound doctrine and have no use for it. Although the word δὲ is a weak adversative, it is one nonetheless. Paul is setting up a contrast between those who are doing the wrong thing and how Titus should act as a pastor.
What does it mean to teach τῇ ὑγιαινούσῃ διδασκαλίᾳ? There are a few glosses for the word ὑγιαινούσῃ. The general idea is that it speaks to something that is healthy. In other words, the doctrine that Titus is to teach should be healthy, like a healthy person or a healthy tree is healthy. The word "sound" is good too. You get the sense that the doctrine he is to teach is sound like something that is built well.
This is a vital truth for anyone who calls himself a Christian. Certainly he should always teach sound doctrine if there are opportunities to teach. It also means that we should be discerning as we are taught doctrine. Read your Bible and make sure that what you are teaching is sound. If not, then there is a problem with that teacher.
Every teacher is going to make a mistake here and there. None of us is like Paul with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit behind us. However, we should still be sure to do our best to teach sound doctrine. We also should expect our pastors to do the same. Let us be discerning with this.
How can we be discerning? We need to read our Bibles! Know what it says. Be ready to look things up to check. How can we discern if we don't know the standard?
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Pure Works
Titus 1:15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled. 16 They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.
15 πάντα καθαρὰ τοῖς καθαροῖς· τοῖς δὲ μεμιαμμένοις καὶ ἀπίστοις οὐδὲν καθαρόν, ἀλλὰ μεμίανται αὐτῶν καὶ ὁ νοῦς καὶ ἡ συνείδησις. 16 θεὸν ὁμολογοῦσιν εἰδέναι, τοῖς δὲ ἔργοις ἀρνοῦνται, βδελυκτοὶ ὄντες καὶ ἀπειθεῖς καὶ πρὸς πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν ἀδόκιμοι.
I remember listening to a debate in my apologetics class regarding good works. One classmate made the point that Mother Teresa never did anything good because she did not have a regenerated heart. This is a controversial statement for two reasons. The second is that most people assume that she was a Christian because of her works, though that is debatable based on her writings and what she professed.
The other is this notion of what is "good." The point my classmate made was that apart from the blood of Christ none of our works are "good" in the sight of God. He is right about that, but he took the argument too far. If an atheist gives food to a starving man it is still an intrinsically "good" act. The starving man would certainly think so. However, it is also true that this act is not going to change the atheist's standing before God.
What's the point of this? Why do we worry about what is καθαρος? This has great bearing on our evangelism. Let's say you have a coworker who does not profess any faith in Christ. As far as you can tell, He has no place of prominence in his life and he is living for himself. He comes in one day and proudly talks about how he served at a homeless shelter over the weekend and how he felt like that was a good thing that he did. How do we respond?
This verse gives us a clue. We can commend him for volunteering as that is a good thing. Many people were likely helped by this act of service. However, if we are to remain true to the gospel we also have to make sure that he does not try to reassure himself by the merits of this work. Why? Even something selfless like that does not tip the scales of merit in his favor.
Life is not about good works. It is about Christ's perfect work. Then we respond based on that work in our lives. We need to keep the order straight, amen?
15 πάντα καθαρὰ τοῖς καθαροῖς· τοῖς δὲ μεμιαμμένοις καὶ ἀπίστοις οὐδὲν καθαρόν, ἀλλὰ μεμίανται αὐτῶν καὶ ὁ νοῦς καὶ ἡ συνείδησις. 16 θεὸν ὁμολογοῦσιν εἰδέναι, τοῖς δὲ ἔργοις ἀρνοῦνται, βδελυκτοὶ ὄντες καὶ ἀπειθεῖς καὶ πρὸς πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν ἀδόκιμοι.
I remember listening to a debate in my apologetics class regarding good works. One classmate made the point that Mother Teresa never did anything good because she did not have a regenerated heart. This is a controversial statement for two reasons. The second is that most people assume that she was a Christian because of her works, though that is debatable based on her writings and what she professed.
The other is this notion of what is "good." The point my classmate made was that apart from the blood of Christ none of our works are "good" in the sight of God. He is right about that, but he took the argument too far. If an atheist gives food to a starving man it is still an intrinsically "good" act. The starving man would certainly think so. However, it is also true that this act is not going to change the atheist's standing before God.
What's the point of this? Why do we worry about what is καθαρος? This has great bearing on our evangelism. Let's say you have a coworker who does not profess any faith in Christ. As far as you can tell, He has no place of prominence in his life and he is living for himself. He comes in one day and proudly talks about how he served at a homeless shelter over the weekend and how he felt like that was a good thing that he did. How do we respond?
This verse gives us a clue. We can commend him for volunteering as that is a good thing. Many people were likely helped by this act of service. However, if we are to remain true to the gospel we also have to make sure that he does not try to reassure himself by the merits of this work. Why? Even something selfless like that does not tip the scales of merit in his favor.
Life is not about good works. It is about Christ's perfect work. Then we respond based on that work in our lives. We need to keep the order straight, amen?
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
The Value of Teaching
2 Timothy 4:3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.
3 Ἔσται γὰρ καιρὸς ὅτε τῆς ὑγιαινούσης διδασκαλίας οὐκ ἀνέξονται ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὰς ἰδίας ἐπιθυμίας ἑαυτοῖς ἐπισωρεύσουσιν διδασκάλους κνηθόμενοι τὴν ἀκοὴν 4 καὶ ἀπὸ μὲν τῆς ἀληθείας τὴν ἀκοὴν ἀποστρέψουσιν, ἐπὶ δὲ τοὺς μύθους ἐκτραπήσονται.
Paul has just finished explaining the value of Scripture in 3:16-17 and now he is explaining his admonition to Timothy that he preach the word. This is the reason why. There will be a time when people will not endure sound teaching. You don't have to look very far to realize that this clearly speaks to our society today.
Sadly, this even permeates our churches. You can find folks reading Joel Osteen, yet they identify themselves as evangelical. T.D. Jakes is a bestseller, despite the fact that he denies the Trinity and is a Oneness Pentecostal. Joyce Meyer's particular blend of psychology, self-help, and Word-Faith theology packs out coliseums around the country. Why? These so-called teachers tell people what they need to feel better about themselves.
Of course, the Bible is full of promises that help us to feel better. But the difference is that they are promises that make us feel better because of who God is and who we are in Him. The Bible is about Jesus, not about us. If we just read it like a fortune cookie we may think that it is all about us, but it's really His story, not ours.
This is why it is important to study and teach theology. We need to look for answers to the fundamental questions of life. Who is God? Who is man? What does man need to be reconciled to God? If we are reconciled then how should we live as a result of this reconciliation?
Read your Bible that you may know God. Everything begins to fall into place after that.
3 Ἔσται γὰρ καιρὸς ὅτε τῆς ὑγιαινούσης διδασκαλίας οὐκ ἀνέξονται ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὰς ἰδίας ἐπιθυμίας ἑαυτοῖς ἐπισωρεύσουσιν διδασκάλους κνηθόμενοι τὴν ἀκοὴν 4 καὶ ἀπὸ μὲν τῆς ἀληθείας τὴν ἀκοὴν ἀποστρέψουσιν, ἐπὶ δὲ τοὺς μύθους ἐκτραπήσονται.
Paul has just finished explaining the value of Scripture in 3:16-17 and now he is explaining his admonition to Timothy that he preach the word. This is the reason why. There will be a time when people will not endure sound teaching. You don't have to look very far to realize that this clearly speaks to our society today.
Sadly, this even permeates our churches. You can find folks reading Joel Osteen, yet they identify themselves as evangelical. T.D. Jakes is a bestseller, despite the fact that he denies the Trinity and is a Oneness Pentecostal. Joyce Meyer's particular blend of psychology, self-help, and Word-Faith theology packs out coliseums around the country. Why? These so-called teachers tell people what they need to feel better about themselves.
Of course, the Bible is full of promises that help us to feel better. But the difference is that they are promises that make us feel better because of who God is and who we are in Him. The Bible is about Jesus, not about us. If we just read it like a fortune cookie we may think that it is all about us, but it's really His story, not ours.
This is why it is important to study and teach theology. We need to look for answers to the fundamental questions of life. Who is God? Who is man? What does man need to be reconciled to God? If we are reconciled then how should we live as a result of this reconciliation?
Read your Bible that you may know God. Everything begins to fall into place after that.
Monday, August 23, 2010
Scripture
2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
16 πᾶσα γραφὴ θεόπνευστος καὶ ὠφέλιμος πρὸς διδασκαλίαν, πρὸς ἐλεγμόν, πρὸς ἐπανόρθωσιν, πρὸς παιδείαν τὴν ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ, 17 ἵνα ἄρτιος ᾖ ὁ τοῦ θεοῦ ἄνθρωπος, πρὸς πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν ἐξηρτισμένος.
I often try to stay away from the more commonly-quoted passages when I write these little journal entries, but I can't pass this one up. This is one of my absolute favorite passages in the New Testament. It pretty much summarizes my approach to life and ministry. The key to everything is Scripture. We will get into this a bit more when we do 2 Peter 1, but the point is that Scripture has what we need to live. It is not just that Scripture equips man for some good works, but it equips man for πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν. All means all.
This is one of the strongest passages we have for the inspiration of Scripture. Paul uses a word that presumably he made up for the occasion. As far as anyone knows, the word θεόπνευστος is a compound word where he joined Θεος and πνεω. He made it up because it perfectly expressed how Scripture came to be. God breathed it out. Note that this refers to πᾶσα γραφὴ.
This has a very profound implication. This means that the word ὁ in verse 17 is as inspired as the word θεόπνευστος in verse 16. It means that everything in Scripture is important. This is not to say that God dictated everything, but what we have as Scripture is what God intended for us to know. We see in verse 16 all that it does for us.
So, to beat my drum again, we need to know what it says! I cannot over-emphasize the importance of this. Know your Bible. Find a reading system and stick to it. I am really enjoying the ten chapters approach. Whatever you do, find some way to get through your Bible systematically. You will not be sorry.
16 πᾶσα γραφὴ θεόπνευστος καὶ ὠφέλιμος πρὸς διδασκαλίαν, πρὸς ἐλεγμόν, πρὸς ἐπανόρθωσιν, πρὸς παιδείαν τὴν ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ, 17 ἵνα ἄρτιος ᾖ ὁ τοῦ θεοῦ ἄνθρωπος, πρὸς πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν ἐξηρτισμένος.
I often try to stay away from the more commonly-quoted passages when I write these little journal entries, but I can't pass this one up. This is one of my absolute favorite passages in the New Testament. It pretty much summarizes my approach to life and ministry. The key to everything is Scripture. We will get into this a bit more when we do 2 Peter 1, but the point is that Scripture has what we need to live. It is not just that Scripture equips man for some good works, but it equips man for πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν. All means all.
This is one of the strongest passages we have for the inspiration of Scripture. Paul uses a word that presumably he made up for the occasion. As far as anyone knows, the word θεόπνευστος is a compound word where he joined Θεος and πνεω. He made it up because it perfectly expressed how Scripture came to be. God breathed it out. Note that this refers to πᾶσα γραφὴ.
This has a very profound implication. This means that the word ὁ in verse 17 is as inspired as the word θεόπνευστος in verse 16. It means that everything in Scripture is important. This is not to say that God dictated everything, but what we have as Scripture is what God intended for us to know. We see in verse 16 all that it does for us.
So, to beat my drum again, we need to know what it says! I cannot over-emphasize the importance of this. Know your Bible. Find a reading system and stick to it. I am really enjoying the ten chapters approach. Whatever you do, find some way to get through your Bible systematically. You will not be sorry.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Controversies
2 Timothy 2:23 Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels.
23 τὰς δὲ μωρὰς καὶ ἀπαιδεύτους ζητήσεις παραιτοῦ, εἰδὼς ὅτι γεννῶσιν μάχας·
This is one of those chapters where I could write about several different verses. I chose this one because of a great discussion I had with a commenter last week. It is vitally important that we be careful about our controversies.
There are a lot of dangerous areas with me. First, I'm in seminary and thinking about matters of theology. This is the time when one is forced to think about these matters and start to make decisions about them. Papers are polemic by nature, so it is easy to be in an argumentative mood. I need to be careful about that.
Second, I'm a Calvinist. This is not to say that Arminians have no interest in discussing theology. Far from it. However, for some reason we Calvinists tend to be a little more combative when it comes to these things. We tend not to be afraid of being "jerks for Jesus" because we figure that the important thing is just to get the word out and let God sort everything out. While that is true to a degree, it does not excuse any lack of gentleness nor does it excuse looking for a fight.
Third, I tend to thrive on discussion and argument. I like hashing stuff out with others. I'm not very good at sports, but I still like to compete. This is one area where I can be competitive and often win. However, theology is not a competition.
Ultimately the goal is to show people Christ so that they may enjoy Him. I also want to enjoy Him more. I don't think that foolish controversies add to that. However, we also need to remember that some controversies are vital. The trick is to distinguish which are vital and which can be left with a decision to "agree to disagree." I think we learn that by time in the Word to see what is important to God and by listening to the Spirit as we go about our lives.
23 τὰς δὲ μωρὰς καὶ ἀπαιδεύτους ζητήσεις παραιτοῦ, εἰδὼς ὅτι γεννῶσιν μάχας·
This is one of those chapters where I could write about several different verses. I chose this one because of a great discussion I had with a commenter last week. It is vitally important that we be careful about our controversies.
There are a lot of dangerous areas with me. First, I'm in seminary and thinking about matters of theology. This is the time when one is forced to think about these matters and start to make decisions about them. Papers are polemic by nature, so it is easy to be in an argumentative mood. I need to be careful about that.
Second, I'm a Calvinist. This is not to say that Arminians have no interest in discussing theology. Far from it. However, for some reason we Calvinists tend to be a little more combative when it comes to these things. We tend not to be afraid of being "jerks for Jesus" because we figure that the important thing is just to get the word out and let God sort everything out. While that is true to a degree, it does not excuse any lack of gentleness nor does it excuse looking for a fight.
Third, I tend to thrive on discussion and argument. I like hashing stuff out with others. I'm not very good at sports, but I still like to compete. This is one area where I can be competitive and often win. However, theology is not a competition.
Ultimately the goal is to show people Christ so that they may enjoy Him. I also want to enjoy Him more. I don't think that foolish controversies add to that. However, we also need to remember that some controversies are vital. The trick is to distinguish which are vital and which can be left with a decision to "agree to disagree." I think we learn that by time in the Word to see what is important to God and by listening to the Spirit as we go about our lives.
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Our Spirit
2 Timothy 1:7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
7 οὐ γὰρ ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν ὁ θεὸς πνεῦμα δειλίας ἀλλὰ δυνάμεως καὶ ἀγάπης καὶ σωφρονισμοῦ.
In this second letter Paul is giving Timothy some exhortations. Remember, this is the last time Paul would write to Timothy, so he had to make this count. Here he explains about how Timothy received the Holy Spirit after Paul laid hands on him and prayed over him. This verse explains the type of spirit we received. It is one of δυνάμεως καὶ ἀγάπης καὶ σωφρονισμοῦ.
This is one of those verses that can actually go well on the bathroom mirror or on an index card. I am normally against turning Scripture into fortune cookie aphorisms, but this verse contains a promise that we would do well to remember often. God did not save us so that we might be timid. This has all kinds of implications.
For example, when you sense the Holy Spirit prompting you to tell someone about Jesus, how do you react? Is it out of fear or is it out of His power? I'm afraid that I fail at that frequently. When you look at your life are you worried about how you can possibly make ends meet or do you trust in God's provision for your life? When you approach an unknown situation do you trust in God's sovereign care over your life or do you think through all the possible ways that things can and will go wrong?
We could go through a myriad of applications with this verse. Paul wrote this to Timothy specifically about Timothy's ministry. However, I don't think we need to stop there. Let's remember that God's Holy Spirit is one of power and not δειλίας, amen?
7 οὐ γὰρ ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν ὁ θεὸς πνεῦμα δειλίας ἀλλὰ δυνάμεως καὶ ἀγάπης καὶ σωφρονισμοῦ.
In this second letter Paul is giving Timothy some exhortations. Remember, this is the last time Paul would write to Timothy, so he had to make this count. Here he explains about how Timothy received the Holy Spirit after Paul laid hands on him and prayed over him. This verse explains the type of spirit we received. It is one of δυνάμεως καὶ ἀγάπης καὶ σωφρονισμοῦ.
This is one of those verses that can actually go well on the bathroom mirror or on an index card. I am normally against turning Scripture into fortune cookie aphorisms, but this verse contains a promise that we would do well to remember often. God did not save us so that we might be timid. This has all kinds of implications.
For example, when you sense the Holy Spirit prompting you to tell someone about Jesus, how do you react? Is it out of fear or is it out of His power? I'm afraid that I fail at that frequently. When you look at your life are you worried about how you can possibly make ends meet or do you trust in God's provision for your life? When you approach an unknown situation do you trust in God's sovereign care over your life or do you think through all the possible ways that things can and will go wrong?
We could go through a myriad of applications with this verse. Paul wrote this to Timothy specifically about Timothy's ministry. However, I don't think we need to stop there. Let's remember that God's Holy Spirit is one of power and not δειλίας, amen?
Friday, August 20, 2010
Money
1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
10 ῥίζα γὰρ πάντων τῶν κακῶν ἐστιν ἡ φιλαργυρία, ἧς τινες ὀρεγόμενοι ἀπεπλανήθησαν ἀπὸ τῆς πίστεως καὶ ἑαυτοὺς περιέπειραν ὀδύναις πολλαῖς.
This may be one of the most misquoted verses in all of Scripture, right next to the verses that don't exist like, "Cleanliness is next to godliness" or "Heaven helps those who help themselves." The word φιλαργυρία only appears here in the New Testament. You have to look to the Apocrypha to find it in the Old Testament (4Ma 1:26). The lexicons say that it means "love of money" or "avarice." The problem is that the verse is sometimes quoted "Money is the root of all evil." But that's not what it says, is it?
There are two extremes that we need to be careful about as we look at this verse. First, there is the permissive side that takes it as a license to be as rich as possible. As long as we don't "love" money we're fine, right? This is tough to defend given all the commands about taking care of the less fortunate among us. Clearly God does not want for us to just amass as much wealth as we are able to. Or, as a pastor of mine once said, "Get all you can, can all you get, so you can sit on your can." If we keep reading 1 Timothy 6 we see that Paul has different treasures in mind.
But then we also need to be careful not to fall into the other extreme. Folks may read this and couple it with Jesus' commands in the Beatitudes to say that there is virtue in poverty. I don't think that's what he's getting at here either. There is nothing particularly noble about poverty and I'm sure most poor folks would agree.
Here in America we have more wealth than just about anywhere else in the world. Even those in poverty live better than most folks in the world. According to the Global Rich List, my salary puts me in the top 0.84% of income in the world. Looking at it the other way, I make more money than 99.16% of the people in the world. And I'm hardly fabulously wealthy by American standards. We think of rich as anyone who makes more money than we do.
So what do we do with this? Find some worthwhile mercy ministries and contribute. Give faithfully at your church. Give more and live on less. We sponsor a child through World Vision for $35/month. Can you live without one time eating out each month so that an orphan could be fed, clothed, and educated? I am certainly not calling anyone to a life of poverty, but I do want to exhort you to think about how you live and how you may be able to help out. We're pretty wealthy in this country whether we realize it or not.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
A Little Wine
1 Timothy 5:23 (No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.)
23 Μηκέτι ὑδροπότει, ἀλλὰ οἴνῳ ὀλίγῳ χρῶ διὰ τὸν στόμαχον καὶ τὰς πυκνάς σου ἀσθενείας.
This is one of those verses that seems to vex a number of people. How can we be teetotalers if Paul tells Timothy to οἴνῳ ὀλίγῳ χρῶ? He's not saying that Timothy should be getting drunk, but that a little wine is good for his stomach. What to do with this?
One explanation I've heard is that we should translate οἴνῳ as grape juice here. However, I looked at 3 lexicons and they all translate it as "wine." Friberg writes, "iterally, of the juice of grapes, usually fermented." So it is remotely possible that Paul could be telling Timothy to drink grape juice and not fermented wine. The person who gave me this theory also said that the admonitions not to drink much wine are about fermented juice, but that Jesus actually just made grape juice. The argument from John 2 is untenable because of the word μεθυσθῶσιν in verse 10 which refers to getting drunk.
Another explanation is a bit more nuanced. It says that this actually defends abstaining from wine because that's what Timothy was doing. Timothy was so concerned about his purity that he did not drink wine and Paul had to encourage him to do so. That makes a certain amount of sense.
However, I think that the most reasonable way to read this is that Paul told Timothy to drink wine and, therefore, wine is not a bad thing by itself. The abuse of it certainly is, but the wine is not the problem. As Christians we can enjoy alcohol in moderation. This is not something that we flaunt in front of others, particularly those who cannot partake in good conscience.
My goal with this as with any other passage is to make a reasonable exegesis not bound by cultural presuppositions. I hope that I have accomplished that here.
23 Μηκέτι ὑδροπότει, ἀλλὰ οἴνῳ ὀλίγῳ χρῶ διὰ τὸν στόμαχον καὶ τὰς πυκνάς σου ἀσθενείας.
This is one of those verses that seems to vex a number of people. How can we be teetotalers if Paul tells Timothy to οἴνῳ ὀλίγῳ χρῶ? He's not saying that Timothy should be getting drunk, but that a little wine is good for his stomach. What to do with this?
One explanation I've heard is that we should translate οἴνῳ as grape juice here. However, I looked at 3 lexicons and they all translate it as "wine." Friberg writes, "iterally, of the juice of grapes, usually fermented." So it is remotely possible that Paul could be telling Timothy to drink grape juice and not fermented wine. The person who gave me this theory also said that the admonitions not to drink much wine are about fermented juice, but that Jesus actually just made grape juice. The argument from John 2 is untenable because of the word μεθυσθῶσιν in verse 10 which refers to getting drunk.
Another explanation is a bit more nuanced. It says that this actually defends abstaining from wine because that's what Timothy was doing. Timothy was so concerned about his purity that he did not drink wine and Paul had to encourage him to do so. That makes a certain amount of sense.
However, I think that the most reasonable way to read this is that Paul told Timothy to drink wine and, therefore, wine is not a bad thing by itself. The abuse of it certainly is, but the wine is not the problem. As Christians we can enjoy alcohol in moderation. This is not something that we flaunt in front of others, particularly those who cannot partake in good conscience.
My goal with this as with any other passage is to make a reasonable exegesis not bound by cultural presuppositions. I hope that I have accomplished that here.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Creation
1 Timothy 4:4 For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, 5 for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.
4 ὅτι πᾶν κτίσμα θεοῦ καλὸν καὶ οὐδὲν ἀπόβλητον μετὰ εὐχαριστίας λαμβανόμενον· 5 ἁγιάζεται γὰρ διὰ λόγου θεοῦ καὶ ἐντεύξεως.
It's hard to pick single passages to blog about because this book is so full of wisdom. Here Paul is instructing Timothy about food and marriage. Even though we have the record of Peter's vision before he took the gospel to Cornelius, apparently there was still need for instruction on this matter. It would be unthinkable for a Jew to eat pork, but Paul is again opening up the door for it.
Paul is also commenting upon marriage. Apparently there was a Gnostic influence at the time as there is today. Folks thought that it was more sanctified not to be married. I'm here to tell you that they were wrong and Paul was right. Marriage is just better. The marriage bed is meant to be enjoyed and not just for procreation. This is not something that everyone can easily accept, but it is biblical.
God created things for our enjoyment. The problem is that we pervert good things and turn them into gods. Our culture has made a god out of sex. We also have made a god out of food and rather than dealing with it we just try to manage it with various diets. Here Paul tells us to enjoy what god made. Enjoy His good creation. That means things like appreciating the beauty of a sunset, an ocean view, or the wildflowers on the side of the highway. It means enjoying good food and drink in moderation. It means enjoying the gift of sex in the context of the marriage bed (which biblically is one man and one woman). God gave us our senses to enjoy His creation.
Of course, let's be sure to remember the source of all this enjoyment. Everything is for His glory. That includes our senses. πᾶν κτίσμα θεοῦ καλὸν. Let's enjoy that!
4 ὅτι πᾶν κτίσμα θεοῦ καλὸν καὶ οὐδὲν ἀπόβλητον μετὰ εὐχαριστίας λαμβανόμενον· 5 ἁγιάζεται γὰρ διὰ λόγου θεοῦ καὶ ἐντεύξεως.
It's hard to pick single passages to blog about because this book is so full of wisdom. Here Paul is instructing Timothy about food and marriage. Even though we have the record of Peter's vision before he took the gospel to Cornelius, apparently there was still need for instruction on this matter. It would be unthinkable for a Jew to eat pork, but Paul is again opening up the door for it.
Paul is also commenting upon marriage. Apparently there was a Gnostic influence at the time as there is today. Folks thought that it was more sanctified not to be married. I'm here to tell you that they were wrong and Paul was right. Marriage is just better. The marriage bed is meant to be enjoyed and not just for procreation. This is not something that everyone can easily accept, but it is biblical.
God created things for our enjoyment. The problem is that we pervert good things and turn them into gods. Our culture has made a god out of sex. We also have made a god out of food and rather than dealing with it we just try to manage it with various diets. Here Paul tells us to enjoy what god made. Enjoy His good creation. That means things like appreciating the beauty of a sunset, an ocean view, or the wildflowers on the side of the highway. It means enjoying good food and drink in moderation. It means enjoying the gift of sex in the context of the marriage bed (which biblically is one man and one woman). God gave us our senses to enjoy His creation.
Of course, let's be sure to remember the source of all this enjoyment. Everything is for His glory. That includes our senses. πᾶν κτίσμα θεοῦ καλὸν. Let's enjoy that!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
A Noble Goal
1 Timothy 3:1 The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.
1 Πιστὸς ὁ λόγος. Εἴ τις ἐπισκοπῆς ὀρέγεται, καλοῦ ἔργου ἐπιθυμεῖ.
This is a sobering verse as I consider what I'm going to do after finishing seminary. If I were to get involved in a church I see that it is indeed a noble thing I seek. But then we have the rest of 1 Timothy 3 to deal with.
Paul gets into the qualifications of an elder. They are not trivial. Am I "beyond reproach?" Well, I'm pretty good. However, to say that I'm "beyond reproach" stretches it a bit. Go through all of them and it is easy to find shortcomings. They may not be immediately obvious, but they are there and God certainly knows them.
But I'm encouraged by a couple of things. One is that I am not the only one. Ask any pastor (or better yet - his wife) if he has any sins in his life and the honest ones will tell you that they do. They likely go beyond the petty to fairly serious too. While I am no longer enslaved to pornography I am certainly tempted and have times when I still go down roads I know I shouldn't. I am hardly beyond reproach.
The second source of encouragement is much greater. Jesus lived a life beyond reproach. When I die I am going to be judged by His righteousness. While I strive to "be holy as [He is] holy," I will always fall short. But thankfully I do not have to be perfect. I need to be faithful. And even that will waver at times, but He is always faithful even when I'm faithless.
This is just one more amazing thing about the cross. What an awesome Savior!
1 Πιστὸς ὁ λόγος. Εἴ τις ἐπισκοπῆς ὀρέγεται, καλοῦ ἔργου ἐπιθυμεῖ.
This is a sobering verse as I consider what I'm going to do after finishing seminary. If I were to get involved in a church I see that it is indeed a noble thing I seek. But then we have the rest of 1 Timothy 3 to deal with.
Paul gets into the qualifications of an elder. They are not trivial. Am I "beyond reproach?" Well, I'm pretty good. However, to say that I'm "beyond reproach" stretches it a bit. Go through all of them and it is easy to find shortcomings. They may not be immediately obvious, but they are there and God certainly knows them.
But I'm encouraged by a couple of things. One is that I am not the only one. Ask any pastor (or better yet - his wife) if he has any sins in his life and the honest ones will tell you that they do. They likely go beyond the petty to fairly serious too. While I am no longer enslaved to pornography I am certainly tempted and have times when I still go down roads I know I shouldn't. I am hardly beyond reproach.
The second source of encouragement is much greater. Jesus lived a life beyond reproach. When I die I am going to be judged by His righteousness. While I strive to "be holy as [He is] holy," I will always fall short. But thankfully I do not have to be perfect. I need to be faithful. And even that will waver at times, but He is always faithful even when I'm faithless.
This is just one more amazing thing about the cross. What an awesome Savior!
Monday, August 16, 2010
One Way
1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.
5 εἷς γὰρ θεός, εἷς καὶ μεσίτης θεοῦ καὶ ἀνθρώπων, ἄνθρωπος Χριστὸς Ἰησοῦς, 6 ὁ δοὺς ἑαυτὸν ἀντίλυτρον ὑπὲρ πάντων, τὸ μαρτύριον καιροῖς ἰδίοις.
There is an ecumencial spirit afoot in our time that believes in many paths to God. The goal of life is simply to live in a Christ-like way. If we do that, these folks say, then we will be at one with the Divine. That's all that really matters.
This passage tells us otherwise. As we learned way back in John 14:6, Jesus is the way, the truth, and the light. It is only through His sacrifice that man may be reconciled to God. This passage speaks to the reality of what theologians call penal substitutionary atonement. Christ paid our penalty for sin. We deserved the death that He died on the cross. He did this that we may live.
We do need to be careful with this verse though. We see that He gave Himself as a ransom ὑπὲρ πάντων, which means literally, "in behalf of all." The caution must be exercised with the definition of "all." If we take this to mean every person who has ever and will ever live then we move toward universalism. If we rip this out as a proof-text we can see that. But if we read this within the canon of Scripture (and even just the surrounding verses) we see that Paul is saying something quite radical to his audience. Christ died not just to save Jews, but also to save Gentiles.
In other words, when Paul writes "all" here, he refers to the fact that Christ's death secured the salvation of Gentile believers as well as Jewish believers. He is not teaching universalism here, but rather explaining to the Jews that the love of God goes beyond the descendants of Abraham. As a Gentile I rejoice in this fact.
Let this be a lesson to read every passage in its context, both immediate and far. To do otherwise is quite dangerous lest we fall into universalism and lose all zeal for evangelism.
5 εἷς γὰρ θεός, εἷς καὶ μεσίτης θεοῦ καὶ ἀνθρώπων, ἄνθρωπος Χριστὸς Ἰησοῦς, 6 ὁ δοὺς ἑαυτὸν ἀντίλυτρον ὑπὲρ πάντων, τὸ μαρτύριον καιροῖς ἰδίοις.
There is an ecumencial spirit afoot in our time that believes in many paths to God. The goal of life is simply to live in a Christ-like way. If we do that, these folks say, then we will be at one with the Divine. That's all that really matters.
This passage tells us otherwise. As we learned way back in John 14:6, Jesus is the way, the truth, and the light. It is only through His sacrifice that man may be reconciled to God. This passage speaks to the reality of what theologians call penal substitutionary atonement. Christ paid our penalty for sin. We deserved the death that He died on the cross. He did this that we may live.
We do need to be careful with this verse though. We see that He gave Himself as a ransom ὑπὲρ πάντων, which means literally, "in behalf of all." The caution must be exercised with the definition of "all." If we take this to mean every person who has ever and will ever live then we move toward universalism. If we rip this out as a proof-text we can see that. But if we read this within the canon of Scripture (and even just the surrounding verses) we see that Paul is saying something quite radical to his audience. Christ died not just to save Jews, but also to save Gentiles.
In other words, when Paul writes "all" here, he refers to the fact that Christ's death secured the salvation of Gentile believers as well as Jewish believers. He is not teaching universalism here, but rather explaining to the Jews that the love of God goes beyond the descendants of Abraham. As a Gentile I rejoice in this fact.
Let this be a lesson to read every passage in its context, both immediate and far. To do otherwise is quite dangerous lest we fall into universalism and lose all zeal for evangelism.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Wisdom from Tozer
Today's Daily Tozer:
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men,teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age.--Titus 2:11-12
The fact is that the New Testament message embraces a great deal more than an offer of free pardon. It is a message of pardon, and for that may God be praised; but it is also a message of repentance. It is a message of atonement, but it is also a message of temperance and righteousness and godliness in this present world. It tells us that we must accept a Savior, but it tells us also that we must deny ungodliness and worldly lusts. The gospel message includes the idea of amendment, of separation from the world, of cross-carrying and loyalty to the kingdom of God even unto death.
To be strictly technical, these latter truths are corollaries of the gospel, and not the gospel itself; but they are part and parcel of the total message which we are commissioned to declare....
To offer a sinner the gift of salvation based upon the work of Christ, while at the same time allowing him to retain the idea that the gift carries with it no moral implications, is to do him untold injury where it hurts him worst.
--The Set of the Sail, 19-20.
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men,teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age.--Titus 2:11-12
The fact is that the New Testament message embraces a great deal more than an offer of free pardon. It is a message of pardon, and for that may God be praised; but it is also a message of repentance. It is a message of atonement, but it is also a message of temperance and righteousness and godliness in this present world. It tells us that we must accept a Savior, but it tells us also that we must deny ungodliness and worldly lusts. The gospel message includes the idea of amendment, of separation from the world, of cross-carrying and loyalty to the kingdom of God even unto death.
To be strictly technical, these latter truths are corollaries of the gospel, and not the gospel itself; but they are part and parcel of the total message which we are commissioned to declare....
To offer a sinner the gift of salvation based upon the work of Christ, while at the same time allowing him to retain the idea that the gift carries with it no moral implications, is to do him untold injury where it hurts him worst.
--The Set of the Sail, 19-20.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Yet Another New System
If you have read my blog for very long or know me at all you will know that I am a Bible reading plan junkie. I'm trying to think of all the ways I've read through the Bible. I've done straight through, which I do not recommend. I've done a system where you read Pentateuch one day, History the next, Psalms the next, etc. I've done variations of the M'Cheyne system. Up until now I've enjoyed that the best. The key thing is to be in various parts of the Word each day.
I just learned about yet another system. The idea is that you read ten chapters a day, but don't let that scare you. It took me less than 15 minutes this morning. Obviously some days will be longer, like when you hit Psalm 119. What I'm really excited about is seeing how the various parts of the Bible will be interwoven throughout the year.
Will you join me? The cool thing is that you don't need to start on any specific date. Just start going because nothing hinges on the calendar.
I just learned about yet another system. The idea is that you read ten chapters a day, but don't let that scare you. It took me less than 15 minutes this morning. Obviously some days will be longer, like when you hit Psalm 119. What I'm really excited about is seeing how the various parts of the Bible will be interwoven throughout the year.
Will you join me? The cool thing is that you don't need to start on any specific date. Just start going because nothing hinges on the calendar.
Prayer for Steadfastness
2 Thessalonians 3:5 May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.
5 Ὁ δὲ κύριος κατευθύναι ὑμῶν τὰς καρδίας εἰς τὴν ἀγάπην τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ εἰς τὴν ὑπομονὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ.
Paul is wrapping up his letter with his usual prayers and final admonitions. I've been reading a book on Paul's prayers and so this one kind of jumped out at me. This is one of the prayers that he wanted to record in Scripture, so I would think that it is pretty important. Maybe it's something we should imitate.
What I see here is that we need God's help for our hearts to be directed to love Him. I know my own heart and I see how vital this prayer is. My heart manufactures idols quite easily. It also tends to focus on me. This prayer tells me that I need to pray for a heart that loves God more. I know I often find myself praying this over and over again some mornings as my mind wanders when I pray. I need God to keep me focused.
And how are we to be focused? We need our hearts directed to the steadfastness of Christ. When I see τὴν ὑπομονὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ I realize that it is Christ's steadfastness that matters here. The word τὴν ὑπομονὴν is in the accusative case, but τοῦ Χριστοῦ is in the genitive. It looks like τοῦ Χριστοῦ modifies τὴν ὑπομονὴν. In other words, the steadfastness that our hearts need to be directed to is the steadfastness that Christ has.
What does this do for us? It tells us that we can look at Christ's life for an example, to be sure. But it also tells us much more. It reminds us that our salvation is based on Christ's perfect obedience. It is not based on any of our own merit, but on His. This means that our salvation is assured because He secured it for us. This gives me great hope as I look at my own wandering heart.
How about you? Are you basing your salvation on your steadfastness or on His? My prayer is that as you read this you would reflect on the steadfastness of Christ and let that be your hope.
5 Ὁ δὲ κύριος κατευθύναι ὑμῶν τὰς καρδίας εἰς τὴν ἀγάπην τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ εἰς τὴν ὑπομονὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ.
Paul is wrapping up his letter with his usual prayers and final admonitions. I've been reading a book on Paul's prayers and so this one kind of jumped out at me. This is one of the prayers that he wanted to record in Scripture, so I would think that it is pretty important. Maybe it's something we should imitate.
What I see here is that we need God's help for our hearts to be directed to love Him. I know my own heart and I see how vital this prayer is. My heart manufactures idols quite easily. It also tends to focus on me. This prayer tells me that I need to pray for a heart that loves God more. I know I often find myself praying this over and over again some mornings as my mind wanders when I pray. I need God to keep me focused.
And how are we to be focused? We need our hearts directed to the steadfastness of Christ. When I see τὴν ὑπομονὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ I realize that it is Christ's steadfastness that matters here. The word τὴν ὑπομονὴν is in the accusative case, but τοῦ Χριστοῦ is in the genitive. It looks like τοῦ Χριστοῦ modifies τὴν ὑπομονὴν. In other words, the steadfastness that our hearts need to be directed to is the steadfastness that Christ has.
What does this do for us? It tells us that we can look at Christ's life for an example, to be sure. But it also tells us much more. It reminds us that our salvation is based on Christ's perfect obedience. It is not based on any of our own merit, but on His. This means that our salvation is assured because He secured it for us. This gives me great hope as I look at my own wandering heart.
How about you? Are you basing your salvation on your steadfastness or on His? My prayer is that as you read this you would reflect on the steadfastness of Christ and let that be your hope.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Sacred? Tradition
2 Thessalonians 2:15 So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter.
15 Ἄρα οὖν, ἀδελφοί, στήκετε καὶ κρατεῖτε τὰς παραδόσεις ἃς ἐδιδάχθητε εἴτε διὰ λόγου εἴτε δι᾽ ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν.
Paul is wrapping up an argument about standing firm with the man of lawlessness coming. He's telling them to remain steadfast in what he taught them. This is of course important as the man of lawlessness is a deceiver. I'm not necessarily ready to buy into this pointing to dispensational eschatology, but I suspect that this is an important chapter.
What I want to discuss instead is this word παραδόσεις. This is translated "traditions." This is also what the Roman Catholic Church uses to defend its stance on "sacred tradition." You see, what the Church teaches is on par with Scripture. That was Paul's approach, so it is theirs as well.
This would be perfectly fine if the church had the apostolic authority it claims. So what you've got to decide is whether or not Matthew 16:18 really does grant them the authority that they take for themselves. If they truly are part of an apostolic succession then you've got to give them their claim.
However, if they are just another cult like the Mormons or Jehovah's Witnesses who claim divine authority then you need to be wary of them. That's the approach I take based on their history. There simply is not enough evidence to substantiate their claim for apostolic authority based on the history, but there is plenty to challenge it.
Where you land on this is critical because it gets to the very heart of the gospel. How is one saved? Is it the Catholic way or the Protestant way? I'm betting my future on the Protestant way. How about you?
15 Ἄρα οὖν, ἀδελφοί, στήκετε καὶ κρατεῖτε τὰς παραδόσεις ἃς ἐδιδάχθητε εἴτε διὰ λόγου εἴτε δι᾽ ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν.
Paul is wrapping up an argument about standing firm with the man of lawlessness coming. He's telling them to remain steadfast in what he taught them. This is of course important as the man of lawlessness is a deceiver. I'm not necessarily ready to buy into this pointing to dispensational eschatology, but I suspect that this is an important chapter.
What I want to discuss instead is this word παραδόσεις. This is translated "traditions." This is also what the Roman Catholic Church uses to defend its stance on "sacred tradition." You see, what the Church teaches is on par with Scripture. That was Paul's approach, so it is theirs as well.
This would be perfectly fine if the church had the apostolic authority it claims. So what you've got to decide is whether or not Matthew 16:18 really does grant them the authority that they take for themselves. If they truly are part of an apostolic succession then you've got to give them their claim.
However, if they are just another cult like the Mormons or Jehovah's Witnesses who claim divine authority then you need to be wary of them. That's the approach I take based on their history. There simply is not enough evidence to substantiate their claim for apostolic authority based on the history, but there is plenty to challenge it.
Where you land on this is critical because it gets to the very heart of the gospel. How is one saved? Is it the Catholic way or the Protestant way? I'm betting my future on the Protestant way. How about you?
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Ultimate Justice
2 Thessalonians 1:9 They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, 10 when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed.
9 οἵτινες δίκην τίσουσιν ὄλεθρον αἰώνιον ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δόξης τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ, 10 ὅταν ἔλθῃ ἐνδοξασθῆναι ἐν τοῖς ἁγίοις αὐτοῦ καὶ θαυμασθῆναι ἐν πᾶσιν τοῖς πιστεύσασιν, ὅτι ἐπιστεύθη τὸ μαρτύριον ἡμῶν ἐφ᾽ ὑμᾶς, ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ.
Here Paul is explaining what will happen to those who were persecuting the Thessalonians. God would eventually repay them for their persecution and sin. He would not necessarily do it immediately, but it was coming. He contrasts their future with that of the saints. When Christ returns He will be glorified in the saints while those who did not believe will be punished forever.
I have heard complaints about the nature of God because of the so-called problem of evil. How can God allow such awful things to happen in the world? Why doesn't he stop evil men from doing evil things? I would submit three responses to this.
One is that you are talking about a world of absurdities. Should God turn every bullet into butter? He certainly could, but does it make any kind of sense for God to operate that way? We don't know the eventual implications of such modifications to His created order. He certainly could make these miraculous changes all over the place, but I would submit that would be an absurd world.
Two is that these folks will ultimately be punished in a way more horrifying than anything we can imagine. It seems that we all have a sense of justice. I have two small children and I see this in action every day. It doesn't take a child long to determine what is "fair" relative to his or her world. It takes a long view to see the justice that God will eventually dole out, but it satisfies my sense of justice knowing that evil will eventually be punished accordingly.
Third, this really speaks to how we perceive God. If He truly is God and He is truly good, then we can trust what He allows to happen. When we don't then we are telling God that we don't like the way He runs the world. That's kind of arrogant, isn't it?
Now this intellectual response may seem a bit cold to someone who just lost a spouse to cancer or to someone who had a storm ravage their house. I like to think that this is what I would fall back on though. Nothing in my life belongs to me, including my life. Christ bought my life with His. I am not my own. Therefore, nothing is mine and nothing is owed to me. An airplane could crash into my house (we are right by the airport, so this is not that ridiculous an idea) and kill the three people sleeping upstairs. That would be a terrible thing, but I don't think it would change my view of God. He owes me nothing, but He has given me the greatest gift possible in my salvation. Were that to happen I would know that there is a reason behind it, even if I could never hope to understand it while on earth.
I am not begging to be tested on this. But what I do know is that how folks react to pain demonstrates their view of who God is. Is God really God or are you going to be god and tell Him how to run His world because you don't like it?
9 οἵτινες δίκην τίσουσιν ὄλεθρον αἰώνιον ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δόξης τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ, 10 ὅταν ἔλθῃ ἐνδοξασθῆναι ἐν τοῖς ἁγίοις αὐτοῦ καὶ θαυμασθῆναι ἐν πᾶσιν τοῖς πιστεύσασιν, ὅτι ἐπιστεύθη τὸ μαρτύριον ἡμῶν ἐφ᾽ ὑμᾶς, ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ.
Here Paul is explaining what will happen to those who were persecuting the Thessalonians. God would eventually repay them for their persecution and sin. He would not necessarily do it immediately, but it was coming. He contrasts their future with that of the saints. When Christ returns He will be glorified in the saints while those who did not believe will be punished forever.
I have heard complaints about the nature of God because of the so-called problem of evil. How can God allow such awful things to happen in the world? Why doesn't he stop evil men from doing evil things? I would submit three responses to this.
One is that you are talking about a world of absurdities. Should God turn every bullet into butter? He certainly could, but does it make any kind of sense for God to operate that way? We don't know the eventual implications of such modifications to His created order. He certainly could make these miraculous changes all over the place, but I would submit that would be an absurd world.
Two is that these folks will ultimately be punished in a way more horrifying than anything we can imagine. It seems that we all have a sense of justice. I have two small children and I see this in action every day. It doesn't take a child long to determine what is "fair" relative to his or her world. It takes a long view to see the justice that God will eventually dole out, but it satisfies my sense of justice knowing that evil will eventually be punished accordingly.
Third, this really speaks to how we perceive God. If He truly is God and He is truly good, then we can trust what He allows to happen. When we don't then we are telling God that we don't like the way He runs the world. That's kind of arrogant, isn't it?
Now this intellectual response may seem a bit cold to someone who just lost a spouse to cancer or to someone who had a storm ravage their house. I like to think that this is what I would fall back on though. Nothing in my life belongs to me, including my life. Christ bought my life with His. I am not my own. Therefore, nothing is mine and nothing is owed to me. An airplane could crash into my house (we are right by the airport, so this is not that ridiculous an idea) and kill the three people sleeping upstairs. That would be a terrible thing, but I don't think it would change my view of God. He owes me nothing, but He has given me the greatest gift possible in my salvation. Were that to happen I would know that there is a reason behind it, even if I could never hope to understand it while on earth.
I am not begging to be tested on this. But what I do know is that how folks react to pain demonstrates their view of who God is. Is God really God or are you going to be god and tell Him how to run His world because you don't like it?
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Final Exhortations
1 Thessalonians 5:16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
16 Πάντοτε χαίρετε, 17 ἀδιαλείπτως προσεύχεσθε, 18 ἐν παντὶ εὐχαριστεῖτε· τοῦτο γὰρ θέλημα θεοῦ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ εἰς ὑμᾶς.
I'm a big fan of Scripture memorization. If you have never memorized any verses I would recommend these as they are short and you can say that you've memorized three verses. Verses 16 and 17 are even shorter than the famous John 11:35, at least in Greek. I don't have any magical exegetical insights here, nor do I need to. The verses are very straightforward. What does Πάντοτε mean? It means at all times. In other words, there is no time when we are not to be rejoicing. What does ἀδιαλείπτως mean? It's an adverb that means unceasingly. We are to pray at all times without giving up. What does ἐν παντὶ mean? It's the same word as verse 16. We are always to give thanks.
So what do we do with this? I tend to read through these passages kind of quickly because I see them just as Paul saying good-bye to his friends at whatever church. But these are three very powerful admonitions that I don't always obey very well. Always means always. Always means when work isn't going well. Always means when you or a loved one is sick. Always means when people you love die. We who are in Christ are to keep on rejoicing.
Without ceasing means that we never sell God short. We never give up on Him saving someone we love. We never give up on praying for our families, whether we are parents or children. We never stop praying for our country. We never stop praying for our churches. We never stop praying for the advance of the gospel.
All circumstances means that we should always give thanks, no matter what. Nothing happens apart from God's will. Therefore, any trial that comes into our lives is part of His plan for us. If we are His children it is for our sanctification. If we are not His children it may be so that we die to ourselves and trust completely in Him. Whatever it is, we are to give thanks. Pick the most horrific thing you can imagine happening in your life. We're still to give thanks when that happens. We don't have to know why it happens except that it is part of God's will for us.
My prayer is that anyone reading this will obey. Would you pray that for me as well?
16 Πάντοτε χαίρετε, 17 ἀδιαλείπτως προσεύχεσθε, 18 ἐν παντὶ εὐχαριστεῖτε· τοῦτο γὰρ θέλημα θεοῦ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ εἰς ὑμᾶς.
I'm a big fan of Scripture memorization. If you have never memorized any verses I would recommend these as they are short and you can say that you've memorized three verses. Verses 16 and 17 are even shorter than the famous John 11:35, at least in Greek. I don't have any magical exegetical insights here, nor do I need to. The verses are very straightforward. What does Πάντοτε mean? It means at all times. In other words, there is no time when we are not to be rejoicing. What does ἀδιαλείπτως mean? It's an adverb that means unceasingly. We are to pray at all times without giving up. What does ἐν παντὶ mean? It's the same word as verse 16. We are always to give thanks.
So what do we do with this? I tend to read through these passages kind of quickly because I see them just as Paul saying good-bye to his friends at whatever church. But these are three very powerful admonitions that I don't always obey very well. Always means always. Always means when work isn't going well. Always means when you or a loved one is sick. Always means when people you love die. We who are in Christ are to keep on rejoicing.
Without ceasing means that we never sell God short. We never give up on Him saving someone we love. We never give up on praying for our families, whether we are parents or children. We never stop praying for our country. We never stop praying for our churches. We never stop praying for the advance of the gospel.
All circumstances means that we should always give thanks, no matter what. Nothing happens apart from God's will. Therefore, any trial that comes into our lives is part of His plan for us. If we are His children it is for our sanctification. If we are not His children it may be so that we die to ourselves and trust completely in Him. Whatever it is, we are to give thanks. Pick the most horrific thing you can imagine happening in your life. We're still to give thanks when that happens. We don't have to know why it happens except that it is part of God's will for us.
My prayer is that anyone reading this will obey. Would you pray that for me as well?
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
A Holy Calling
1 Thessalonians 4:7 For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness.
7 οὐ γὰρ ἐκάλεσεν ἡμᾶς ὁ θεὸς ἐπὶ ἀκαθαρσίᾳ ἀλλ᾽ ἐν ἁγιασμῷ.
This concludes a passage where Paul tells the Thessalonians to abstain from sexual impurity. The word translated "sexual impurity" in verse 3 is τῆς πορνείας (in the genitive). This is where we get our word "pornography." He then goes on to tell them that they need to be in control of their bodies.
This stands in stark contrast with how our society operates. Men, are you feeling hungry sexually? Just look at some porn and gratify yourselves. Women, are you feeling depressed? Have something to eat or buy something. Of course, these temptations go for both sexes, but these are two of the big ones that our culture propagates. In verse 5 Paul talks about not being like τὰ ἔθνη τὰ μὴ εἰδότα τὸν θεόν. The word τὰ ἔθνη has a fairly wide semantic range in that it can mean a group of people, a nation, or the Gentiles as it is translated in the ESV. The point is that Paul uses it pejoratively. You don't want to act like those people.
Just as in that day there are believers and unbelievers. Here in verse 7 Paul makes a very important statement. We were not called to behave like everyone else. Our lives should be different. Put another way, if Christianity became illegal under American law would there be enough evidence to convict you of being one? I don't mean the holy hardware you can buy at Lifeway, but would there be enough evidence in your life? Do you consume media differently than unbelievers? Do you eat differently? Do you exercise differently? Do you guard your eyes differently? Do you spend your money differently?
My call is not one of legalism. Anyone can change their behavior for a time. My call is to examine your heart. If you cannot answer yes to my questions then perhaps you need to examine your own salvation. None of us is perfect and I don't want to imply that the saved all have this nailed down perfectly. What do you see when you ask yourself these questions and then look at your heart?
7 οὐ γὰρ ἐκάλεσεν ἡμᾶς ὁ θεὸς ἐπὶ ἀκαθαρσίᾳ ἀλλ᾽ ἐν ἁγιασμῷ.
This concludes a passage where Paul tells the Thessalonians to abstain from sexual impurity. The word translated "sexual impurity" in verse 3 is τῆς πορνείας (in the genitive). This is where we get our word "pornography." He then goes on to tell them that they need to be in control of their bodies.
This stands in stark contrast with how our society operates. Men, are you feeling hungry sexually? Just look at some porn and gratify yourselves. Women, are you feeling depressed? Have something to eat or buy something. Of course, these temptations go for both sexes, but these are two of the big ones that our culture propagates. In verse 5 Paul talks about not being like τὰ ἔθνη τὰ μὴ εἰδότα τὸν θεόν. The word τὰ ἔθνη has a fairly wide semantic range in that it can mean a group of people, a nation, or the Gentiles as it is translated in the ESV. The point is that Paul uses it pejoratively. You don't want to act like those people.
Just as in that day there are believers and unbelievers. Here in verse 7 Paul makes a very important statement. We were not called to behave like everyone else. Our lives should be different. Put another way, if Christianity became illegal under American law would there be enough evidence to convict you of being one? I don't mean the holy hardware you can buy at Lifeway, but would there be enough evidence in your life? Do you consume media differently than unbelievers? Do you eat differently? Do you exercise differently? Do you guard your eyes differently? Do you spend your money differently?
My call is not one of legalism. Anyone can change their behavior for a time. My call is to examine your heart. If you cannot answer yes to my questions then perhaps you need to examine your own salvation. None of us is perfect and I don't want to imply that the saved all have this nailed down perfectly. What do you see when you ask yourself these questions and then look at your heart?
Monday, August 09, 2010
A Pastor's Heart
1 Thessalonians 3:8 For now we live, if you are standing fast in the Lord.
8 ὅτι νῦν ζῶμεν ἐὰν ὑμεῖς στήκετε ἐν κυρίῳ.
There isn't a lot of devotional material in this chapter. However, I do think that it shows us what a pastor's heart should look like. Paul decided that it was more important to get news about the Thessalonians than it was to enjoy Timothy's company. He sent Timothy to get word about them. This was how Paul expressed his feelings about their church. Their steadfastness was obviously very important to him. ζῶμεν is a present active indicative verb. It seems that the ESV translates this perfectly.
When I read this I think back to my time at Setting Captives Free. When I started working as a mentor I think that this verse pretty well described how I felt. But as I proved myself faithful I got more work piled on me. Eventually I was working with so many guys that I was basically just processing them. I couldn't really counsel them and, therefore, I stopped caring. I just wanted to see them get through the course. I stopped following-up with them and really didn't even notice when they disappeared.
It seems terrible to look back on it that way. It's not the fault of Setting Captives Free either. There just simply was not enough time to work with all the men who came through. But I think back to those early days and I miss that. I would love to get into a ministry where I could actually work with people. We'll see if that happens.
8 ὅτι νῦν ζῶμεν ἐὰν ὑμεῖς στήκετε ἐν κυρίῳ.
There isn't a lot of devotional material in this chapter. However, I do think that it shows us what a pastor's heart should look like. Paul decided that it was more important to get news about the Thessalonians than it was to enjoy Timothy's company. He sent Timothy to get word about them. This was how Paul expressed his feelings about their church. Their steadfastness was obviously very important to him. ζῶμεν is a present active indicative verb. It seems that the ESV translates this perfectly.
When I read this I think back to my time at Setting Captives Free. When I started working as a mentor I think that this verse pretty well described how I felt. But as I proved myself faithful I got more work piled on me. Eventually I was working with so many guys that I was basically just processing them. I couldn't really counsel them and, therefore, I stopped caring. I just wanted to see them get through the course. I stopped following-up with them and really didn't even notice when they disappeared.
It seems terrible to look back on it that way. It's not the fault of Setting Captives Free either. There just simply was not enough time to work with all the men who came through. But I think back to those early days and I miss that. I would love to get into a ministry where I could actually work with people. We'll see if that happens.
Saturday, August 07, 2010
Turn or Burn
1 Thessalonians 1:9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,
9 αὐτοὶ γὰρ περὶ ἡμῶν ἀπαγγέλλουσιν ὁποίαν εἴσοδον ἔσχομεν πρὸς ὑμᾶς, καὶ πῶς ἐπεστρέψατε πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ἀπὸ τῶν εἰδώλων δουλεύειν θεῷ ζῶντι καὶ ἀληθινῷ
I've always wanted to say that, but I haven't been in a church setting quite country enough for it. Yet that is basically what Paul is getting at here. He's still greeting the Thessalonians and his greetings are usually pretty upbeat. Here he tells of how the Thessalonians became Christians. They ἐπεστρέψατε πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ἀπὸ τῶν εἰδώλων. The word ἐπεστρέψατε is 2nd person plural aorist active indicative. I don't want to make too big of a deal about the aorist tense, but basically it means that there was some time in the past where they were serving idols, but they turned from them δουλεύειν θεῷ ζῶντι καὶ ἀληθινῷ.
We can find a myriad of applications to this and I write from experience. I can remember my idolatry to sexual sin when I was enslaved to pornography and self-gratification. I remember my idolatry to food and ease when I was mired in gluttony and laziness. There were dead idols.
This is not to imply that I have no idols. I am continually reminded of how I can make an idol out of my schoolwork. I still have leanings toward making sex into an idol. The heart is a factory for idols.
The good news is that there is a living and true God out there. Serving Him is always better than serving idols. Before we can do that we need to turn from our idols. Another word for that is to repent. It has to be a 180 degree turn. You can't turn 179 degrees. Basically, there are 359 degrees of idolatry and 1 degree that points to God. Any sailor can tell you that a minor course deviation makes a huge difference over a long voyage.
I pray that we all run straight to God. Why serve idols when we can serve the living and true God?
9 αὐτοὶ γὰρ περὶ ἡμῶν ἀπαγγέλλουσιν ὁποίαν εἴσοδον ἔσχομεν πρὸς ὑμᾶς, καὶ πῶς ἐπεστρέψατε πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ἀπὸ τῶν εἰδώλων δουλεύειν θεῷ ζῶντι καὶ ἀληθινῷ
I've always wanted to say that, but I haven't been in a church setting quite country enough for it. Yet that is basically what Paul is getting at here. He's still greeting the Thessalonians and his greetings are usually pretty upbeat. Here he tells of how the Thessalonians became Christians. They ἐπεστρέψατε πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ἀπὸ τῶν εἰδώλων. The word ἐπεστρέψατε is 2nd person plural aorist active indicative. I don't want to make too big of a deal about the aorist tense, but basically it means that there was some time in the past where they were serving idols, but they turned from them δουλεύειν θεῷ ζῶντι καὶ ἀληθινῷ.
We can find a myriad of applications to this and I write from experience. I can remember my idolatry to sexual sin when I was enslaved to pornography and self-gratification. I remember my idolatry to food and ease when I was mired in gluttony and laziness. There were dead idols.
This is not to imply that I have no idols. I am continually reminded of how I can make an idol out of my schoolwork. I still have leanings toward making sex into an idol. The heart is a factory for idols.
The good news is that there is a living and true God out there. Serving Him is always better than serving idols. Before we can do that we need to turn from our idols. Another word for that is to repent. It has to be a 180 degree turn. You can't turn 179 degrees. Basically, there are 359 degrees of idolatry and 1 degree that points to God. Any sailor can tell you that a minor course deviation makes a huge difference over a long voyage.
I pray that we all run straight to God. Why serve idols when we can serve the living and true God?
Friday, August 06, 2010
Spending Time
Colossians 4:5 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time.
5 Ἐν σοφίᾳ περιπατεῖτε πρὸς τοὺς ἔξω τὸν καιρὸν ἐξαγοραζόμενοι.
I'm very familiar with the parallel to this passage in Ephesians, but this puts a little bit of a twist on it. In Ephesians you get the sense that you are simply to manage your time well. After all, we only get so much of it. It's a precious resource and we should use it well. Nobody would argue with that.
Here we get a little more direction. It's not just that we are to use our time well, but we are to do it with respect to outsiders. In other words, there seems to be an evangelistic purpose here. It is not enough simply not to waste time. Our time should be spent with a focus toward σοφίᾳ and it specifically mentions τοὺς ἔξω or the ones who are outside.
I'm fairly good at time-management. I think I'm probably a little bit more disciplined than many. I typically get a lot done every day. But am I doing it with a mind toward outsiders? Not so much. I'm doing it with respect to my agenda. Now the things I spend my time on are typically good things like exercise, reading Scripture, studying for seminary, and spending time with my family. These are fine things.
This verse tells me that I need to prayerfully think about how I can use my time in walking in wisdom toward outsiders. How do you do this?
5 Ἐν σοφίᾳ περιπατεῖτε πρὸς τοὺς ἔξω τὸν καιρὸν ἐξαγοραζόμενοι.
I'm very familiar with the parallel to this passage in Ephesians, but this puts a little bit of a twist on it. In Ephesians you get the sense that you are simply to manage your time well. After all, we only get so much of it. It's a precious resource and we should use it well. Nobody would argue with that.
Here we get a little more direction. It's not just that we are to use our time well, but we are to do it with respect to outsiders. In other words, there seems to be an evangelistic purpose here. It is not enough simply not to waste time. Our time should be spent with a focus toward σοφίᾳ and it specifically mentions τοὺς ἔξω or the ones who are outside.
I'm fairly good at time-management. I think I'm probably a little bit more disciplined than many. I typically get a lot done every day. But am I doing it with a mind toward outsiders? Not so much. I'm doing it with respect to my agenda. Now the things I spend my time on are typically good things like exercise, reading Scripture, studying for seminary, and spending time with my family. These are fine things.
This verse tells me that I need to prayerfully think about how I can use my time in walking in wisdom toward outsiders. How do you do this?
Thursday, August 05, 2010
Knowing Peace
Colossians 3:15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.
15 καὶ ἡ εἰρήνη τοῦ Χριστοῦ βραβευέτω ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν, εἰς ἣν καὶ ἐκλήθητε ἐν ἑνὶ σώματι· καὶ εὐχάριστοι γίνεσθε.
This is one of those verses kind of sandwiched between two sections. Paul had just finished admonishing the Colossians about the things that they must stop doing. He's about to get into exhortations for wives to submit to husbands, husbands to love wives, and children to obey. But here we have sort of a creamy center in this theological Oreo.
There is an old bumper sticker that reads, "Know Jesus, know peace. No Jesus, no peace." It may be reversed, but you get the idea. There is a lot of truth packed into that pithy statement. There is no true peace apart from Jesus.
"But," you may protest, "what about those holy men high up on mountains in places like Tibet? Surely they had a peace, right?" I would disagree with that because it would be inconsistent with their beliefs. Yes, they are seeking peace through emptiness. However, it is still a works-based system. They hope that they live their lives well enough and empty themselves enough that they can break the circle of reincarnation, enter Nirvanna, or whatever. They are still trying their best to earn favor with God/the cosmos/Brahama/etc.
Frankly, a lot of professing Christians live in the same way. We try our best under a thinly-veiled legalism. We think that if we have enough quiet times, tithe enough, serve enough, or whatever then we will be saved. But that just leads to greater anxiety. Believe me, I've been there. Instead, we are to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts. We were called to Him. Enjoy that! Enjoy the peace that comes from being part of that ἑνὶ σώματι. Then Paul commands us to εὐχάριστοι γίνεσθε. The word γίνεσθε is an imperative commanding us to be something. What are we to be? Thankful.
This means that an anxious Christian is an oxymoron. There is no place for habitual anxiety in the Christian's heart. To be anxious is to be disobedient. Obviously we all have things that cause us stress. Do we spiral down with those anxieties or do we get back to the clear teaching of Scripture?
I realize that this is easier said than done. But the good news is that we have a powerful, gracious God who transforms men's hearts. I pray that He would transform mine. Will you join me in praying for peace?
15 καὶ ἡ εἰρήνη τοῦ Χριστοῦ βραβευέτω ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν, εἰς ἣν καὶ ἐκλήθητε ἐν ἑνὶ σώματι· καὶ εὐχάριστοι γίνεσθε.
This is one of those verses kind of sandwiched between two sections. Paul had just finished admonishing the Colossians about the things that they must stop doing. He's about to get into exhortations for wives to submit to husbands, husbands to love wives, and children to obey. But here we have sort of a creamy center in this theological Oreo.
There is an old bumper sticker that reads, "Know Jesus, know peace. No Jesus, no peace." It may be reversed, but you get the idea. There is a lot of truth packed into that pithy statement. There is no true peace apart from Jesus.
"But," you may protest, "what about those holy men high up on mountains in places like Tibet? Surely they had a peace, right?" I would disagree with that because it would be inconsistent with their beliefs. Yes, they are seeking peace through emptiness. However, it is still a works-based system. They hope that they live their lives well enough and empty themselves enough that they can break the circle of reincarnation, enter Nirvanna, or whatever. They are still trying their best to earn favor with God/the cosmos/Brahama/etc.
Frankly, a lot of professing Christians live in the same way. We try our best under a thinly-veiled legalism. We think that if we have enough quiet times, tithe enough, serve enough, or whatever then we will be saved. But that just leads to greater anxiety. Believe me, I've been there. Instead, we are to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts. We were called to Him. Enjoy that! Enjoy the peace that comes from being part of that ἑνὶ σώματι. Then Paul commands us to εὐχάριστοι γίνεσθε. The word γίνεσθε is an imperative commanding us to be something. What are we to be? Thankful.
This means that an anxious Christian is an oxymoron. There is no place for habitual anxiety in the Christian's heart. To be anxious is to be disobedient. Obviously we all have things that cause us stress. Do we spiral down with those anxieties or do we get back to the clear teaching of Scripture?
I realize that this is easier said than done. But the good news is that we have a powerful, gracious God who transforms men's hearts. I pray that He would transform mine. Will you join me in praying for peace?
Wednesday, August 04, 2010
Tradition
Colossians 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.
8 Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται ὁ συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·
This was a verse that I had to memorize for my biblical counseling class. Whether you are in a pastoral counseling role or not I think that this is an important verse. This verse is the beginning of a three-verse sentence. The reason why we are not to be taken captive by any other philosophy is because Christ is divine and we who are in Him have been filled with Him. He is the source of all authority, not τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων. I like the more wooden translation "tradition of men" better because I think that really captures the idea and the grammar, though the ESV is fine too.
What do we do with this? First, I think it should make us very suspicious of psychology. Psychology is based on the idea that man is basically good. This is a faulty assumption because it stands in stark contrast with Scripture. Psychology can provide insights into human behavior, but it has no real cure for what ails sinful mankind. Christ does.
This also should make us wary of the papists, as men like Spurgeon and Calvin called the Roman Catholics. It is because they are papists that we should be concerned. They see sacred tradition as equal to or even surpassing the authority of Scripture. Now to be sure we Protestants do something similar. We all have faith and hermenutical traditions that govern how we read Scripture. However, we also theoretically let Scripture be our guide. If someone can provide a correctly-interpreted passage then that should change our minds about whatever it addresses. There is a little bit of a chicken and egg conundrum otherwise known as the hermeneutical spiral. However, no Protestant should go as far as affirming the perpetual virginity of Mary just because some ecclesiastical body says so, particularly because it stands against the plain meaning of Scripture. Most conservative Protestants would agree with this.
I would take application of this verse one step further. We need to be careful about our liturgical practices. Now you may read this and object, "I'm a Baptist! We have no liturgy!" Sure you do. How would you and the congregation respond if the singing and sermon were reversed in the service? It would surprise a few folks, wouldn't it? How would you like it if the pastor came out in an aloha shirt rather than his normal suit? Or if you go to a church like mine, imagine the reverse. What if your church changed from hymns on the organ to a four-piece rock band singing praise choruses? What if you went from grape juice for the Lord's Supper to wine?
I assume you get the idea. We all have sacred tradition whether we call it that or not. Let's be careful not to give it too prominent a place. If we truly are biblical then we will realize that there is flexibility in much of what we hold dear in our practices. Let's not make more of them than we should.
8 Βλέπετε μή τις ὑμᾶς ἔσται ὁ συλαγωγῶν διὰ τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ κενῆς ἀπάτης κατὰ τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων, κατὰ τὰ στοιχεῖα τοῦ κόσμου καὶ οὐ κατὰ Χριστόν·
This was a verse that I had to memorize for my biblical counseling class. Whether you are in a pastoral counseling role or not I think that this is an important verse. This verse is the beginning of a three-verse sentence. The reason why we are not to be taken captive by any other philosophy is because Christ is divine and we who are in Him have been filled with Him. He is the source of all authority, not τὴν παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων. I like the more wooden translation "tradition of men" better because I think that really captures the idea and the grammar, though the ESV is fine too.
What do we do with this? First, I think it should make us very suspicious of psychology. Psychology is based on the idea that man is basically good. This is a faulty assumption because it stands in stark contrast with Scripture. Psychology can provide insights into human behavior, but it has no real cure for what ails sinful mankind. Christ does.
This also should make us wary of the papists, as men like Spurgeon and Calvin called the Roman Catholics. It is because they are papists that we should be concerned. They see sacred tradition as equal to or even surpassing the authority of Scripture. Now to be sure we Protestants do something similar. We all have faith and hermenutical traditions that govern how we read Scripture. However, we also theoretically let Scripture be our guide. If someone can provide a correctly-interpreted passage then that should change our minds about whatever it addresses. There is a little bit of a chicken and egg conundrum otherwise known as the hermeneutical spiral. However, no Protestant should go as far as affirming the perpetual virginity of Mary just because some ecclesiastical body says so, particularly because it stands against the plain meaning of Scripture. Most conservative Protestants would agree with this.
I would take application of this verse one step further. We need to be careful about our liturgical practices. Now you may read this and object, "I'm a Baptist! We have no liturgy!" Sure you do. How would you and the congregation respond if the singing and sermon were reversed in the service? It would surprise a few folks, wouldn't it? How would you like it if the pastor came out in an aloha shirt rather than his normal suit? Or if you go to a church like mine, imagine the reverse. What if your church changed from hymns on the organ to a four-piece rock band singing praise choruses? What if you went from grape juice for the Lord's Supper to wine?
I assume you get the idea. We all have sacred tradition whether we call it that or not. Let's be careful not to give it too prominent a place. If we truly are biblical then we will realize that there is flexibility in much of what we hold dear in our practices. Let's not make more of them than we should.
Tuesday, August 03, 2010
Struggling by the Spirit
Colossians 1:29 For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.
29 εἰς ὃ καὶ κοπιῶ ἀγωνιζόμενος κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν αὐτοῦ τὴν ἐνεργουμένην ἐν ἐμοὶ ἐν δυνάμει.
Paul is finishing up his argument here. He is explaining how he is afflicted and works very hard to tell people about Jesus. He says in verse 28 that his goal is that "we may present everyone mature in Christ." How does he do this? He struggles κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν αὐτοῦ. Very woodenly this would be "according to his energy." How does this energy become manfested in Paul? It is because God τὴν ἐνεργουμένην. That is a present active participle. God is continually doing this work in Paul. How is He doing it? He is doing it ἐν δυνάμει (note the omission of references to dynamite here).
What we see is that Paul struggled very hard to spread the gospel. He knew that it was the only way for men to be saved. He knew that the gospel was how those who believed would grow in Christ. It is all about the gospel and that is what motivated Paul in his life.
But we see that Paul didn't do this on his own. God certainly created Paul with certain gifts to make Him the perfect man to do this. But that wasn't enough for Paul's mission. It still required God's spirit to powerfully work in him.
This challenges me. God gave me some skills and it is easy for me to trust them and rely solely on them. However, if I'm living my life correctly I cannot do it just on my own. That would be too easy. I need God's power to work ἐν ἐμοὶ ἐν δυνάμει. God must fuel my fire. He must keep me going.
What are you doing to make that happen in your life? I have my daily times in the Word. I pray every morning. I have fellowship with other saints. Basically, I try to keep up the regular spiritual disciplines. However, none of these are effective if I do not have the right attitude. Are you submissive to the Lord? Do you seek Him for everything? Do you realize that you can do nothing without His power working in you? I often forget these things, but by grace I am reminded and press on.
29 εἰς ὃ καὶ κοπιῶ ἀγωνιζόμενος κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν αὐτοῦ τὴν ἐνεργουμένην ἐν ἐμοὶ ἐν δυνάμει.
Paul is finishing up his argument here. He is explaining how he is afflicted and works very hard to tell people about Jesus. He says in verse 28 that his goal is that "we may present everyone mature in Christ." How does he do this? He struggles κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν αὐτοῦ. Very woodenly this would be "according to his energy." How does this energy become manfested in Paul? It is because God τὴν ἐνεργουμένην. That is a present active participle. God is continually doing this work in Paul. How is He doing it? He is doing it ἐν δυνάμει (note the omission of references to dynamite here).
What we see is that Paul struggled very hard to spread the gospel. He knew that it was the only way for men to be saved. He knew that the gospel was how those who believed would grow in Christ. It is all about the gospel and that is what motivated Paul in his life.
But we see that Paul didn't do this on his own. God certainly created Paul with certain gifts to make Him the perfect man to do this. But that wasn't enough for Paul's mission. It still required God's spirit to powerfully work in him.
This challenges me. God gave me some skills and it is easy for me to trust them and rely solely on them. However, if I'm living my life correctly I cannot do it just on my own. That would be too easy. I need God's power to work ἐν ἐμοὶ ἐν δυνάμει. God must fuel my fire. He must keep me going.
What are you doing to make that happen in your life? I have my daily times in the Word. I pray every morning. I have fellowship with other saints. Basically, I try to keep up the regular spiritual disciplines. However, none of these are effective if I do not have the right attitude. Are you submissive to the Lord? Do you seek Him for everything? Do you realize that you can do nothing without His power working in you? I often forget these things, but by grace I am reminded and press on.
Monday, August 02, 2010
Rejoice!
Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.
4 Χαίρετε ἐν κυρίῳ πάντοτε· πάλιν ἐρῶ, χαίρετε.
What to choose from Philippians 4? There are a lot of great passages, but this is the one that speaks most clearly to my heart right now because I needed to be reminded of this. When are we to rejoice? πάντοτε. There is no getting around this word with exegetical gymnastics. We are to rejoice always. At all times. No matter what is going on, we are to rejoice.
That does not mean that we rejoice in our circumstances. I did not have a particularly good weekend for a few reasons. I was not about to rejoice in the circumstances. However, Paul does give me a legitimate direction for rejoicing. I am not to rejoice in my circumstances, but ἐν κυρίῳ. And just in case we missed it, Paul tells us again.
This is both convicting and uplifting. It is convicting because I see how poorly I do this. I get caught up in the moment, start to feel sorry for myself, and just generally spiral downhill. It is uplifting because we would not be given a command that we could not obey by the power of the Spirit. Why is it possible? The Lord is always worthy of our rejoicing. When He becomes our focus then the crush of the world becomes less important.
Where are you putting your focus? Are you wallowing in your circumstances or are you focusing on the risen Savior? Will you join me in repenting from looking at the world?
4 Χαίρετε ἐν κυρίῳ πάντοτε· πάλιν ἐρῶ, χαίρετε.
What to choose from Philippians 4? There are a lot of great passages, but this is the one that speaks most clearly to my heart right now because I needed to be reminded of this. When are we to rejoice? πάντοτε. There is no getting around this word with exegetical gymnastics. We are to rejoice always. At all times. No matter what is going on, we are to rejoice.
That does not mean that we rejoice in our circumstances. I did not have a particularly good weekend for a few reasons. I was not about to rejoice in the circumstances. However, Paul does give me a legitimate direction for rejoicing. I am not to rejoice in my circumstances, but ἐν κυρίῳ. And just in case we missed it, Paul tells us again.
This is both convicting and uplifting. It is convicting because I see how poorly I do this. I get caught up in the moment, start to feel sorry for myself, and just generally spiral downhill. It is uplifting because we would not be given a command that we could not obey by the power of the Spirit. Why is it possible? The Lord is always worthy of our rejoicing. When He becomes our focus then the crush of the world becomes less important.
Where are you putting your focus? Are you wallowing in your circumstances or are you focusing on the risen Savior? Will you join me in repenting from looking at the world?
Sunday, August 01, 2010
Ever Forward
Philippians 3:14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
14 κατὰ σκοπὸν διώκω εἰς τὸ βραβεῖον τῆς ἄνω κλήσεως τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ.
I have used this verse in counseling more times than I can count. Here Paul talks about how he does not look back, but presses on. He realizes that he is not perfect, but he knows who is perfect. That's why he keeps pressing on. He has a goal in mind and he wants to push to get there.
When I read this verse, I think of part of this speech(apparently mirror-imaged to avoid being taken off YouTube). I love the spot where he talks about how "we are advancing constantly and we are not interested in holding onto anything except...the ENEMY." That's how I want to live my Christian life.
Are you pressing on? Do you see the prize in front of you? Or are you looking inward or backwards? Paul makes it clear that the Christian is to be pressing on. I pray that I would.
14 κατὰ σκοπὸν διώκω εἰς τὸ βραβεῖον τῆς ἄνω κλήσεως τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ.
I have used this verse in counseling more times than I can count. Here Paul talks about how he does not look back, but presses on. He realizes that he is not perfect, but he knows who is perfect. That's why he keeps pressing on. He has a goal in mind and he wants to push to get there.
When I read this verse, I think of part of this speech(apparently mirror-imaged to avoid being taken off YouTube). I love the spot where he talks about how "we are advancing constantly and we are not interested in holding onto anything except...the ENEMY." That's how I want to live my Christian life.
Are you pressing on? Do you see the prize in front of you? Or are you looking inward or backwards? Paul makes it clear that the Christian is to be pressing on. I pray that I would.
To the Point
Philippians 2:29 So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, 30 for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.
29 προσδέχεσθε οὖν αὐτὸν ἐν κυρίῳ μετὰ πάσης χαρᾶς καὶ τοὺς τοιούτους ἐντίμους ἔχετε, 30 ὅτι διὰ τὸ ἔργον Χριστοῦ μέχρι θανάτου ἤγγισεν παραβολευσάμενος τῇ ψυχῇ, ἵνα ἀναπληρώσῃ τὸ ὑμῶν ὑστέρημα τῆς πρός με λειτουργίας.
I was going to write about the earlier section in Philippians 2. After all, that is where Paul exhorts us to the same kind of humility that Christ showed by coming to earth. It's a wonderful passage and one that we should all meditate on. It tells us how we are to interact with each other and it gives us tremendous insight into Christology.
I find that when I go through Philippians I tend to gloss over 2:19-30. There Paul addresses the Philippians directly about sending Timothy and Epaphroditus to them. On one hand, they seem similar to the end of 2 Timothy where he asks for his cloak. But I want to comment on verse 30.
I've always marveled at how direct Paul is here. If this isn't an appeal to make them feel a bit ashamed I don't know what is. He writes about Epaphroditus, but then shames them about how he had to risk his life to complete something that the Philippians didn't. I don't know exactly what that was. I suppose that commentators have ideas, but I can't imagine it would go beyond conjecture. The point is that Paul calls them out very directly. He has lots of really nice things to write to the Philippians, but there is still this one verse that stands throughout time.
This tells me that there is a time for direct address like this. We can't always dance around issues. It is much easier to be passive-aggressive, but sometimes we have to be honest. This is easier said than done though. I know that is is easy for me to be too snarky, so I guard against this. But Paul does give us a model, unless you need to be an apostle to do this. I don't think so though, do you?
29 προσδέχεσθε οὖν αὐτὸν ἐν κυρίῳ μετὰ πάσης χαρᾶς καὶ τοὺς τοιούτους ἐντίμους ἔχετε, 30 ὅτι διὰ τὸ ἔργον Χριστοῦ μέχρι θανάτου ἤγγισεν παραβολευσάμενος τῇ ψυχῇ, ἵνα ἀναπληρώσῃ τὸ ὑμῶν ὑστέρημα τῆς πρός με λειτουργίας.
I was going to write about the earlier section in Philippians 2. After all, that is where Paul exhorts us to the same kind of humility that Christ showed by coming to earth. It's a wonderful passage and one that we should all meditate on. It tells us how we are to interact with each other and it gives us tremendous insight into Christology.
I find that when I go through Philippians I tend to gloss over 2:19-30. There Paul addresses the Philippians directly about sending Timothy and Epaphroditus to them. On one hand, they seem similar to the end of 2 Timothy where he asks for his cloak. But I want to comment on verse 30.
I've always marveled at how direct Paul is here. If this isn't an appeal to make them feel a bit ashamed I don't know what is. He writes about Epaphroditus, but then shames them about how he had to risk his life to complete something that the Philippians didn't. I don't know exactly what that was. I suppose that commentators have ideas, but I can't imagine it would go beyond conjecture. The point is that Paul calls them out very directly. He has lots of really nice things to write to the Philippians, but there is still this one verse that stands throughout time.
This tells me that there is a time for direct address like this. We can't always dance around issues. It is much easier to be passive-aggressive, but sometimes we have to be honest. This is easier said than done though. I know that is is easy for me to be too snarky, so I guard against this. But Paul does give us a model, unless you need to be an apostle to do this. I don't think so though, do you?
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