Pursuing Holiness

Colossians 2:23 These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.


23 ἅτινά ἐστιν λόγον μὲν ἔχοντα σοφίας ἐν ἐθελοθρησκίᾳ καὶ ταπεινοφροσύνῃ [καὶ] ἀφειδίᾳ σώματος, οὐκ ἐν τιμῇ τινι πρὸς πλησμονὴν τῆς σαρκός.

Paul is finishing up his argument about true holiness. He spends a lot of time talking about Christ and then he finishes with a series of verses about those who advocate various forms of asceticism as a means of godliness. This verse concludes that argument.

Why do I bring this up? It seems that as people we have a tendency to either license or legalism. The circles I run in tend more toward legalism, and I am as guilty of that as anyone. This is particularly prevalent in Independent Baptist churches. I've met some folks from this world who are assured of their salvation because they do not drink beer or wine. They would claim that they are saved by grace and not by works, but their attitude clearly indicates the contrary.

I am not advocating any use of Christian liberty. That is a matter for personal conscience. But as someone who served in a ministry helping people find freedom from besetting sins, I can tell you that there is a very fine line we must walk. Legalism is easier than grace. It is easier to discern a rule than to follow conscience informed by the Word and the Spirit.

My prayer is that those of us who love the Lord would follow Him based on the clear teaching of Scripture. Any pursuit of holy living must be the result of His grace working in our lives. Let's live accordingly, amen?

He is Glorious

Isaiah 6:3 And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!"

 וְקָרָ֙א זֶ֤ה אֶל־זֶה֙ וְאָמַ֔ר קָד֧וֹשׁ׀ קָד֛וֹשׁ קָד֖וֹשׁ יְהוָ֣ה צְבָא֑וֹת מְלֹ֥א כָל־הָאָ֖רֶץ כְּבוֹדֽוֹ׃

  

I wanted to try out posting in Hebrew, so I thought I'd pick one of my favorite verses.This is one of those verses that is easy to overlook because we have become so accustomed to the language here. Yeah, yeah, we know that God is holy. But what does that mean?

First of all, it is noteworthy that this is the only place in Scripture that contains the construct קָד֧וֹשׁ׀ קָד֛וֹשׁ קָד֖וֹשׁ. This term for the Lord is special. We tend to think of holy fairly simplistically. We think of it like a church is "holy ground" as in the Highlander movies. Or maybe we think of something consecrated like "holy water." Basically, we tend to put a lot of Roman Catholic symbolism around this term. At least I do.


But if we get into what this word means we realize that it speaks to something special about God. The term "holy" really refers to being set apart. In other words, this passage speaks to God's transcendence. There is no one else like God. No one else is holy and set apart like He is. 


I love that the Hebrew word translated "glory" is כְּבוֹדֽוֹ. Why? It very literally means "weighty" or "heavy." In other words, the whole earth is filled with the weightiness of God. We think of something important as being a "weighty matter." Think of what this means with respect to God. All of creation is filled with His glory or weightiness.


What does this mean? It means that it is impossible for sinful beings like us to approach a holy God. It also means that hell is perfectly just punishment for a sinner. How can such holiness abide sin? It is impossible.


Yet in His love God provided a way. That happened at the cross of Christ. There Christ's sacrifice covered our sin so that we may approach this holy God.


Will you rejoice with me in this fact?

Torn Curtain

Matthew 27:51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.


51 Καὶ ἰδοὺ τὸ καταπέτασμα τοῦ ναοῦ ἐσχίσθη ἀπ᾽ ἄνωθεν ἕως κάτω εἰς δύο καὶ ἡ γῆ ἐσείσθη καὶ αἱ πέτραι ἐσχίσθησαν,

I picked this title because it is also a good Hitchcock movie that is worth seeing, if nothing else because it so perfectly captures how you can get a scientist to give you a secret.  Much more importantly, it represents an incredible truth.  If you have spent any time in the Pentateuch you will know how important the Tabernacle was to the life of the people.  This was then continued with the temple.  It was vitally important to have the curtain to keep the Holy of Holies separate from the people.  Legend has it that when the High Priest went into the Holy of Holies for the annual sacrifice on Yom Kippur they would tie a rope to his ankle in case he made the offering in an unworthy manner and the Lord killed him like He did with Uzzah and the ark or with Nadab and Abihu and their "strange fire."  That's how serious it was.  There was a barrier between the people and God.

But as Christ yielded up His spirit this curtain was torn.  Not only was it torn, but it was torn ἀπ᾽ ἄνωθεν ἕως κάτω.  There was no way that a person could do that.  It had to be God who tore the curtain.  Imagine the violence of the moment.  Anyone who has ever lived through an earthquake knows how unsettling it is.  When rocks start splitting it is extremely serious and terrifying.  All of this happened as Christ yielded up His spirit.

What does this mean for us?  It means that because of Christ's atoning death on the cross we have access to God.  There is no longer a barrier between us and God if we go to the cross.  This would be simply unthinkable to Matthew's Jewish audience, but they could look at the torn curtain for all the proof that they needed.  God gave them a physical illustration of what Christ accomplished on the cross.  I can only imagine the spectacle as Jews went to the temple to get a look at what was in the Holy of Holies.  I know that I would have wanted to see.  That was unimaginable access for them.

And yet we have more than that with God.  What do we do with this?  Do we spend time in earnest prayer enjoying this intimate fellowship?  I don't know about you, but I find that I sadly do not do that as much as I'd like.  Instead, I find myself wasting time on frivolities and trying to entertain myself.  Why do this when we have access to God?  This passage reminds me of the access that we do have.  Let's take advantage of it, amen?

Your First Love

Revelation 2:3 I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name's sake, and you have not grown weary. 4 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.

3 καὶ ὑπομονὴν ἔχεις καὶ ἐβάστασας διὰ τὸ ὄνομά μου καὶ οὐ κεκοπίακες. 4  ἀλλὰ ἔχω κατὰ σοῦ ὅτι τὴν ἀγάπην σου τὴν πρώτην ἀφῆκες.

I recently heard a fantastic sermon on this passage that really cut me to the heart.  The church at Ephesus was basically a model church.  Note that Christ compliments them in verse 3.  However, they had a problem.  They forgot the love that they had at first.

What a stinging rebuke to a seminarian like me!  I remember the love I had for Christ when I started seminary.  Frankly, it went through some serious ebbs during my seminary career.  I have recently felt the fires rekindled, but it is not an easy journey.  It is so much easier to keep it hot then to try to reignite it.  It is so easy to let the cares of day-to-day life as a student, husband, father, and employee pour water on the coals.

The good news is that, like the fire Pilgrim saw, Christ stands in another room adding fuel to the fire.  He will never let the fire completely die for His saints.  That is a huge comfort to me, but I also know that I cannot quench the fire either.  I need to keep enjoying fellowship with Him.

I encourage you to keep fueling the fire if you are white-hot for the Lord right now.  And if you're going through a season where the wick seems to only be smoking without a trace of orange, remember the love you had at first.  Christ will get the fire going again.

The Most Holy Place

Hebrews 9:11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) 12 he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.

11 Χριστὸς δὲ παραγενόμενος ἀρχιερεὺς τῶν γενομένων ἀγαθῶν διὰ τῆς μείζονος καὶ τελειοτέρας σκηνῆς οὐ χειροποιήτου, τοῦτ᾽ ἔστιν οὐ ταύτης τῆς κτίσεως, 12  οὐδὲ δι᾽ αἵματος τράγων καὶ μόσχων διὰ δὲ τοῦ ἰδίου αἵματος εἰσῆλθεν ἐφάπαξ εἰς τὰ ἅγια αἰωνίαν λύτρωσιν εὑράμενος.

This is one of those passages that it is difficult to wrap our Gentile minds around.  This chapter contrasts the old sacrificial system with Jesus' perfect sacrifice for sins.  The Jews spent centuries with the ritual of a day of atonement where the high priest gave a sacrifice for his own sins and the sins of the people.  Then he could enter the Most Holy Place where they kept the Ark of the Covenant.  This was also the same day when the scapegoat was sent out into the wilderness for the shame of the people.

But when Jesus died on the cross the curtain in the temple was torn in two, from the top to the bottom.  God gave a clear sign to the people that everything had changed.  Now it was no longer to keep up the sacrificial system.  Through Christ's shed blood we have access to the Most Holy Place.  We can meet with God.

Lately I have been moved by how little I consider this privilege.  It's amazing how as people we tend to ignore really great gifts for a while.  I take time to periodically thank God for the fact that I live in a country where I can live pretty much however I want, that my family and I enjoy good health, that I have a good job, food on the table, etc.  But how often do I thank God for God?  Not nearly often enough.  This struck me yesterday morning as I was walking and praying.  Then again, I've been chatting with a friend who claims to be an atheist, so contrasting our worlds brought this to mind.

If you are in Christ this passage is an incredible promise of blessing.  Not in the sense of cars with rims falling from the sky, but in the sense that we get to come near to God.  Think on that for a while.

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?

Earning Rewards

Matthew 16:24-27
(24) Then Jesus told his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
(25) For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
(26) For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?
(27) For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.

I've been listening to the audio book of John Piper's Desiring God. Piper's big idea is that as Christians we are to be "Christian Hedonists." In other words, he changes the beginning of the Westminster Confession to read that God is most glorified when we are most satisfied in Him. It is both our duty and our delight to treasure God for the sake of Him being God.

What does that have to do with this passage? We have developed a kind of gnostic asceticism in today's church. We tend to be of the belief that good works are their own reward and that they somehow lose value if we try to gain anything from them. This passage tells us something different.

Instead of gnosticism we should become hedonistic in enjoying the pleasures that only come from God. This passage tells us that what we do will ultimately have reward. We naturally seek gain from everything we do. We sin because we think that sin will give us something that holiness will not. The problem is that sin becomes more attractive when we think that holiness has no gain.

Let us instead fix our eyes on the eternal. Sin may have its immediate effects, but long-term only holiness will truly satisfy us and give us what we need. Let's remember this.

Holiness

Ezekiel 44:1-3

(1) Then he brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, which faces east. And it was shut.

(2) And the LORD said to me, "This gate shall remain shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it, for the LORD, the God of Israel, has entered by it. Therefore it shall remain shut.

(3) Only the prince may sit in it to eat bread before the LORD. He shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gate, and shall go out by the same way."

This shows us that there is something special about the eastern gate of the new temple. Specifically, it is to remain shut because God entered through it. Presumably it can remain shut because He is never going to leave the temple again. The only use of the gate is for the prince to eat in fellowship with the Lord.

I wonder if we have any kind of that sense of the holy today. The specific reason given here is because God went through it. Whatever He touches becomes holy. It would seem that would include His people as well.

I don't think that makes us in any way untouchable or extraordinary. What I do think is that it should remind us of what it means to be holy. The perfect and unapproachable God of the universe humbled Himself by becoming a man and dying so that we might approach Him. We often take this too much in stride. Let's remember what an incredible privilege it is that we can meet with Him. And let's not abuse that privilege, amen?

Future Vindication

Ezekiel 39:25-29
(25) "Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Now I will restore the fortunes of Jacob and have mercy on the whole house of Israel, and I will be jealous for my holy name.
(26) They shall forget their shame and all the treachery they have practiced against me, when they dwell securely in their land with none to make them afraid,
(27) when I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them from their enemies' lands, and through them have vindicated my holiness in the sight of many nations.
(28) Then they shall know that I am the LORD their God, because I sent them into exile among the nations and then assembled them into their own land. I will leave none of them remaining among the nations anymore.
(29) And I will not hide my face anymore from them, when I pour out my Spirit upon the house of Israel, declares the Lord GOD."

This ends a passage describing what is going to happen to Gog and Magog. It won't be pretty for them as they end up being food for birds and other eaters of carrion. Their destruction will be so massive that Israel will be able to use their weapons as fuel for 7 years. That's a lot of weapons.

The "therefore" of verse 25 is a connector to the previous statement that Israel will know that the Lord acted because of how He dealt with them in their treachery and uncleanness. That is why they had to spend some time in exile. In the end it will all work out for them though.

I can't help but think of New Covenant promises when I read this. It sure sounds to me like the promises that God makes to us as believers. Ephesians 1:13-14 describes how we are sealed with the Holy Spirit. Other passages describe how we are filled with the Spirit. I guess I can see a little bit of both sides as I read this passage. It does seem like somehow Israel gets grafted back into the body as they enjoy the same blessings we do as believers in Christ. Or, it would be much simpler to see "Israel" here as the church. However, that is not plain from reading the text.

Either way, God is making a promise that He means to keep. There are consequences for our idolatry. However, if we are His then we can be assured of final restoration in Him. I'm looking forward to that final union with Him in eternity and I think keeping that perspective will help me to avoid sin and its consequences.

Holy Indignation

Ezekiel 9:4-6

(4) And the LORD said to him, "Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it."

(5) And to the others he said in my hearing, "Pass through the city after him, and strike. Your eye shall not spare, and you shall show no pity.

(6) Kill old men outright, young men and maidens, little children and women, but touch no one on whom is the mark. And begin at my sanctuary." So they began with the elders who were before the house.

This continues Ezekiel's vision. He saw that the Lord wanted this man clothed in linen to put a mark on those who were upset by what they saw in Jerusalem. This reminds me of what Peter had to say about Lot and his reaction to Sodom:

2 Peter 2:7-8

(7) and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked

(8) (for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard);

It seems that there is something to be said for being upset by what we see around us. However, I also think that there is a danger in this. It is popular, particularly in more fundamentalist circles, to build a bunker against the world. Yes, the world is filled with wickedness. We even have whole Christian denominations calling evil good. The homosexual lobby practically has a whole broadcasting network dedicated to their cause. Our churches are filled with gossip and slander.

Yes, there is much to get upset about. However, unless that indignation comes from the right place we are nothing more than Pharisees. Are we upset because we want to feel good about not doing what we see others doing? Or are we upset because we realize how much sin grieves God?

More importantly, are we starting with the mirror? Are we mostly concerned with dealing with our own sin. I know how easily my heart is led to seeing things I shouldn't. I know how easily my stomach is led to eating when I don't really need the fuel. I know how easily my mouth can go to gossip and slander. I know how easily I move to laziness when I should be working to earn the salary I am paid each month.

Yes, let us groan about the abominations before us, but let us start with those we see in our own lives, amen?

Preach It

Jeremiah 4:19
(19) My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain! Oh the walls of my heart! My heart is beating wildly; I cannot keep silent, for I hear the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.

This is a theme that we will see again in Jeremiah. He had such a burning for holiness and for God that he could not keep silent as he saw destruction approaching. I think of a few men in our day who have such a heart for holiness. Though it may make them unpopular they keep on sounding the alarm of impending doom.

This is not to say that we need to focus all of our energy on "watchblogging" or on calling out the ills of society. However, I think it is fair for us to expect God's people to act like God's people. I am tired of making concessions for sin in my own life and in the lives of others. As I wrote yesterday, I am working on getting the old zeal back. A passion for holiness is a good start.

Wanting it Both Ways

Isaiah 58:2
(2) Yet they seek me daily and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God.

This reminds me a lot of our New Age culture. Apparently a majority of Americans identify themselves as "Christians." Yet the practice of most self-identifying Christians would not stand up very well to scrutiny from the Word. So what does it mean?

I would maintain that there is a hunger to know God. However, we tend to want Him on our terms. We want to fashion Him in a way that is palatable to our tastes. We don't like this business of repenting and changing our lives. We certainly don't want to sacrifice for Him. Yet we say that we want Him.

Israel was no different in Isaiah's day. Read this verse in context of the whole chapter and you will see how the people wanted to know God, but they wanted Him on their terms.

I think it's very dangerous to approach God this way. It also makes me wonder in what ways I do the same thing.

Don't Fear the Reaper

Galatians 6:7-9
(7) Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.
(8) For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.
(9) And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

This is a passage that has a lot to say about reaping and sowing. I think it helps to dispel any idea that what we do in this world has no meaning. There is a sense here that our eternal rewards will have to do with what we sow in this life.

Put another way, I look forward to heaven because of Christ's righteousness, but it seems to me that there is a sense of rewards in heaven based on how I live. This passage also seems to speak to this idea:

1 Corinthians 3:11-15
(11) For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
(12) Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw--
(13) each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.
(14) If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward.
(15) If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.

The point is that sometimes Christians are accused of accepting a cheap grace where we punch our ticket for heaven and then go about abusing grace. I don't think it's supposed to work that way. Not only are we to live in such a way that God is glorified, but as we do these good works there are rewards waiting for us in heaven, provided that our works stand the test of fire.

The key is the foundation. What is yours?

What do You Love?

Isaiah 33:15-16
(15) He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, who despises the gain of oppressions, who shakes his hands, lest they hold a bribe, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes from looking on evil,
(16) he will dwell on the heights; his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks; his bread will be given him; his water will be sure.

The study note in my ESV Study Bible got me thinking about how this verse applies directly to me today. Certainly I should not tolerate corruption in society. I should despise the gain of oppressions and I should not seek the hearing of bloodshed nor should I want to look on evil.

However, in our society I think that this perhaps has even more application. What kinds of movies am I watching? What do I look for in the news? Do I sanction movies that glorify violence and evil? This is why I've stopped watching James Bond movies. They're fun with the gadgets, the one-liners, and the exotic locales. However, they also glorify sex and violence. As a Christian should I be entertained by that? Probably not.

I've noticed that my pants are getting a little small. They're tighter than they've been in about 6 years. This concerns me because it tells me that I've been letting myself go a little too much. It's a reminder that I need to repent of letting little sins into my life. It seems like the fight against sexual sin is sort of my touchstone. It's when I became serious about the overall pursuit of holiness. This verse reminds me that I need to get serious in all aspects of my life. It's far too easy to slide!

Source of Uncleanness

Leviticus 14:34-36
(34) "When you come into the land of Canaan, which I give you for a possession, and I put a case of leprous disease in a house in the land of your possession,
(35) then he who owns the house shall come and tell the priest, 'There seems to me to be some case of disease in my house.'
(36) Then the priest shall command that they empty the house before the priest goes to examine the disease, lest all that is in the house be declared unclean. And afterward the priest shall go in to see the house.

This passage goes on to describe all that happens when a house appears to have a leprous disease, or mildew as the NLT translates it. It's very inconvenient for the homeowner. They have to scrape the walls and replaster. Then they have to leave the house for 7 days for a time of purification. Then they have to see if the mildew comes back. If it does then they have to tear the house down.

Look at who brings this to them. According to verse 34, the Lord is the one who puts the mildew in the house. Somehow I doubt that Joel Osteen ever preaches on this passage. Frankly, it's not something I would have thought of writing about if it were not for this blog. I have always maintained that Leviticus helps us to see the holiness of God in action. Passages like this give us a clearer idea of how God operates.

Can we read a passage like James 1:2-4 or 1 Peter 1:3-7 and truly rejoice? I know that I don't always rejoice in my suffering like I should. I think it's important to remember that God uses it to sanctify us. I need to prayerfully seek that mindset though.

He Wasn't Kidding

Leviticus 10:1-3
(1) Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the LORD, which he had not commanded them.
(2) And fire came out from before the LORD and consumed them, and they died before the LORD.
(3) Then Moses said to Aaron, "This is what the LORD has said, 'Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.'" And Aaron held his peace.

I think that I read this and the story of Uzziah and the Ark of the Covenant with a sense of condemnation toward God. Isn't this kind of petty? I mean, I have rules at my house, but nothing that gets anyone more than spanked. I would not kill any of my children no matter what they did. Yet God basically zapped Nadab and Abihu because they tried to offer fire in a way that the Lord did not prescribe.

How could a good God do this? If we make the mistake of thinking of God as nothing but love then we are at a complete loss. What we need to remember is that God is holy above all else. That is why He would do this. When He gives a rule He isn't kidding about it. There is no, "next time you'll really get it" with God. For these two guys it was one-and-done.

Verse 3 implies that Aaron was going to complain or maybe he did complain a little bit. Moses' words shut him up. Are we just as content with this explanation? I sure want to be.

This seeming pettiness also solves the problem of evil. It assures us that the Lord will enact justice on those who deserve it. We still have a problem though if we think that we do not deserve this kind of condemnation. All of us deserve it, which is why Jesus' death on the cross was so incredible.

Right Reverence

Exodus 20:18-21
(18) Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off
(19) and said to Moses, "You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die."
(20) Moses said to the people, "Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin."
(21) The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.

God displayed a tiny fraction of His glory to the people so that they would revere Him and not sin. Of course, this worked for a time and they pretty quickly fell away while in the wilderness.

It's easy to skip over much of the Old Testament because we think that it doesn't apply to us. But how can we understand the book of Hebrews unless we also have the book of Leviticus? (more on that later in the month) How can we truly appreciate what Christ did for us unless we have a sense of the majesty and holiness of God?

We want a tame God that we can control. We don't want one that appears to us as a smoky hurricane. We want the sweet baby Jesus, not the Revelation 19 Jesus. However, as C.S. Lewis put so well, He's not exactly a tame lion, is he?

Let us properly revere God. However, unlike the Israelites on the mountain, let us also approach Him thanks to the fact that Jesus tore down the veil of the temple, amen?

Hope in Being Lost

“How can you tell if he is working on you now? If you begin to sense your lostness and find yourself wanting to escape it, you should realize that that desire is not something you could have generated on your own. Such a process requires Help, and if it is happening it is a good indication that he is even now at your side.”

- Timothy Keller, The Prodigal God (New York, NY: Dutton, 2008), 75.

I got this today as part of the RSS feed from the site called "Of First Importance." The stuff I get from them every day is usually helpful at some level. It never hurts to get a clearer picture of the gospel, right? However, today's really hit home.

I've had a hard time getting out of bed lately. The past two mornings I haven't made it up until 5:30 or so. I'm completely unfocused at work and frankly waste most of my days. I'm having a hard time staying focused and disciplined with my studies. I'm in a funk.

Today's quote encourages me because the funk bothers me. I've heard it said that you shouldn't be worried if you are worried that you've committed the unforgivable sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit. The reason is because the fear you have of doing it indicates His presence in you. In the same way, today's quote reminds me that my thirst for holiness indicates that God is working in me. I am always encouraged by the glorious promise of Philippians 1:6. Basically, God always finishes His restoration projects.

Can You Be Saved?

1 Timothy 1:15
(15) The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.

Jesus did not come into the world to save the righteous. He came into the world to save sinners. That means that He cannot do anything with anyone who trusts his own righteousness to save Him. He can only work with those who realize that they are sinners.

I think of the men who have served on elder boards of churches but have never really grappled with their sin. I think of the millions in America who trust their "churchianity" to save them. I don't want to be one of those people.

It doesn't take me long to think of a sin I've committed. I really enjoy the mornings when I can walk and pray. I find that I have much sin to wrestle with. The good news is that God gives me grace to overcome. How is this possible? He came to earth to save sinners.

I don't think Paul was being modest in this verse. I think he was painfully aware of his former sin as well as his current sins. He had a zeal for holiness that few in the church today seem to demonstrate. Unfortunately, that often includes me.