On Our Side

Romans 8:31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

31 Τί οὖν ἐροῦμεν πρὸς ταῦτα; εἰ ὁ θεὸς ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν, τίς καθ᾽ ἡμῶν;

This is one of those very simple verses that packs a great punch. This comes after Paul describes what theologians call the ordo salutis, which refers to the order of events by which man is saved. I've heard the previous verses described as a "golden chain" as God links things together for our salvation and His glory. Paul then writes this verse immediately afterward.


The key phrase does not even have a verb in it. εἰ ὁ θεὸς ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν, τίς καθ᾽ ἡμῶν; This is a first-class condition. As we read this, we should assume that God is indeed for us. We have to supply the verbs as it literally reads, "If God for us, who against us?" Really that says it all, doesn't it?


If we really believe this and really submit to His will then there is no room for anxiety. The command of Philippians 4:16 is hardly burdensome if we truly believe this verse. How can we be anxious? God is for us. That means that no matter what happens it is ultimately for our good and for His glory.


Now I would probably not lead with that to someone in Joplin, MO whose neighborhood was just devastated by a tornado. But I would try to get there. Most people know Romans 8:28 about how God works all things together for the good of those who love Him. This verse is a corollary to that. If we are children of God then God is for us. Therefore, no matter what happens is ultimately part of His will for our lives.


What we then have to decide is whether or not God is worthy of our trust. How we react to trials will give us the answer to that pretty quickly. Do we trust Him or don't we? He is for us. What can possibly stand against Him? Satan can resist Him, but we know how it will all work out in the end.

Rejoice!

Matthew 5:12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.


12 χαίρετε καὶ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε, ὅτι ὁ μισθὸς ὑμῶν πολὺς ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς· οὕτως γὰρ ἐδίωξαν τοὺς προφήτας τοὺς πρὸ ὑμῶν.

How to blog in the Sermon on the Mount?  Unlike some folks, I think that this passage applies to us today rather than simply to Old Covenant Israel.  This passage comes right at the end of what is known as the Beatitudes where Jesus says "Blessed is..."  He kind of turns the world upside-down by saying that it is a blessing to be poor in spirit, humble, etc.  Here He talks about rejoicing when you are persecuted for His name's sake.

Note that Jesus does not give a suggestion.  He uses the imperatives with χαίρετε καὶ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε.  He could have used a future which has a wear imperatival sense, but He didn't.  He used the imperative here.  What does that mean?

First, it means that we are to rejoice and be glad when we are persecuted.  This seems rather paradoxical.  Persecution is no fun, yet we are commanded to rejoice.  Even those who say that we should preach the gospel of Jesus rather than the misogynist Paul have to acknowledge this.  These are words that are quoted from the Lord Himself.  We can't take this lightly.

Second, it means that we are to have a future perspective.  The word translated "for" here is ὅτι, which gives the sense of "because" or "for this reason," though translating it "for" here makes for smoother reading.  In other words, when we ask ourselves "Why should we ever rejoice and be glad in persecution?" the answer is, "Because your reward is great in heaven."  Then He mentions the prophets.  When you read through the stories of the prophets you realize that they had pretty rough gigs here on earth.

But those of us who have a hope of eternity with God can indeed rejoice and be glad when persecuted.  We realize that everything on this earth is but a moment compared to eternity.

What kind of perspective do you have on all of this?  Do you know of any other way to make sense of this seemingly paradoxical command?

True Authority

Revelation 13:7 Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, 8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain.

7 καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ ποιῆσαι πόλεμον μετὰ τῶν ἁγίων καὶ νικῆσαι αὐτούς, καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ ἐξουσία ἐπὶ πᾶσαν φυλὴν καὶ λαὸν καὶ γλῶσσαν καὶ ἔθνος. 8  καὶ προσκυνήσουσιν αὐτὸν πάντες οἱ κατοικοῦντες ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, οὗ οὐ γέγραπται τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ βιβλίῳ τῆς ζωῆς τοῦ ἀρνίου τοῦ ἐσφαγμένου ἀπὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου.

It's tempting to get sidetracked with interpretive questions here.  Who is the beast?  Is it the President?  I don't think so for a lot of reasons.  Some thought it was Kennedy.  Others thought it was Hitler.  Pope John Paul II was another candidate.  We can speculate forever about this and in fact there are many folks who love to do just that.  I do not want to venture any guess about that.

But what I do know for sure is that any evil only exists through authority given by the Lord.  The phrase ἐδόθη αὐτῷ (literally translated "it was given") is an aorist passive.  In other words, all of these abominations could not happen apart from God's will.  He does not necessarily will each specific evil act, but He does give authority to this beast.

We've seen this before in Scripture.  The same thing happens in Job, which makes some skeptics see the whole book as little more than a bar bet between God and Satan.  But where we see this most significantly is at the cross.  There are references throughout Scripture that it was God's will for Jesus to die on the cross.  Therefore, in a sense God willed the most heinous act ever committed.

Does this mean we should throw in the towel when it comes to God?  By no means!  Instead, it should comfort us that nothing happens beyond His control.  I can't speak for you, but I always like to have a sense of what is going on.  I can handle a certain degree of chaos if I know that the important things are taken care of.  Knowing that God is ultimately in charge gives me great comfort.  All sorts of terrible things happen to Christians every day.  Yet God is in control and has a plan to make it all work out for His glory.  Therefore, if we focus on the Lord and the glory of His name as our greatest good then we can weather anything that comes our way.

Value in Trials

Haggai 2:15-17

(15) Now then, consider from this day onward. Before stone was placed upon stone in the temple of the LORD,

(16) how did you fare? When one came to a heap of twenty measures, there were but ten. When one came to the wine vat to draw fifty measures, there were but twenty.

(17) I struck you and all the products of your toil with blight and with mildew and with hail, yet you did not turn to me, declares the LORD.

I realize that I keep writing about this, but that's only because it keeps showing up in the Minor Prophets (or the Twelve, if you want to go with the Hebrew name). God uses trials to bring us to Him. Sadly, this doesn't seem to work all the time.

What I see is that folks were just as narcissistic then as they are now. If something doesn't seem to immediately benefit us then we cannot see its value. I can remember going through trials as a child and my dad would say that it is "character-building." Of course, a child doesn't really understand that, but I do now. God uses trials to build our character and bring us to Him.

This is easy to write about here in the comfort of my home with nothing pressing on me right now. But I think now is the time to consider such things before the pressures do mount because they certainly will someday.

I Will Rejoice

Habakkuk 3:17-19

(17) Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls,

(18) yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.

(19) GOD, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer's; he makes me tread on my high places. To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments.

This is the very end of Habakkuk and we see that he has learned a valuable lesson. He has done a 180 from his previous lament. He wondered earlier why God ran the universe the way He does. Now he realizes that God deserves praise no matter what is happening.

I'll be honest about suffering. I've never really suffered a whole lot. My senior year in high school was pretty miserable because I didn't get along very well with my stepmother. It was no fun when my parents divorced and I was in 7th grade. We had a molar pregnancy in between Lily and Noah. None of these things were good to go through.

The only one that I endured as a Christian was the molar pregnancy. Looking back, I think it was much harder on Amanda than it was on me. I think it was hard on me only in that I didn't want to see Amanda suffer so much. At any rate, it was nothing like a cancer diagnosis or losing one of our children to disease or accident.

My point is that my experience does not carry much weight, but it seems to me from the clear reading of Scripture that we are to rejoice at all times. There will be times when the fig tree does not blossom. The Christian life is not all happy-clappy joy joy. Trials will happen. I may not have suffered through the worst that this fallen world can throw at me, but I stand on the authority of God's Word that the proper response is still rejoicing.

Of course, that is impossible apart from knowing Christ. Unless we are in Christ God is just a capricious monster who pulls the wings off of flies. But if we do know Him, we can trust that God is a loving Father who knows what is best even when we don't.

Security in Preaching

Jeremiah 1:17-19
(17) But you, dress yourself for work; arise, and say to them everything that I command you. Do not be dismayed by them, lest I dismay you before them.
(18) And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land.
(19) They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the LORD, to deliver you."

Young Jeremiah had a very difficult task ahead of him. He had to preach judgment on a self-satisfied and self-righteous people. In this passage God gives Him reassurance that He would protect Jeremiah through it all.

What I note from this is that there is no promise of ease or comfort. In fact, in verse 19 He assures Jeremiah that there would be a fight. Yet He also promises that Jeremiah would prevail in the end. I think of fortified cities, iron pillars, and bronze walls. I think the point of this imagery is that they can take a licking and keep on ticking. They do nothing to prevent the attacks, but they can withstand them.

I am reminded of this verse:

Ephesians 6:13
(13) Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.

If you are a Christian then you are called to preach at some level. If you never share the gospel then you have to wonder if you're really a Christian. They will know us by our love, right? Well, if people are on the road to eternal damnation then we had better be willing to tell them how to get off that road. The problem is that we will likely suffer to some degree if we are faithful in that calling.

This is not easy for me. I don't know where the line is between sharing the truth in love and turning people off to the gospel. All I know is that I am called to share it. I don't want to be a stumbling block for anyone, but I also don't want my inaction to be the reason someone never heard the gospel clearly articulated either.

Climbing Out

Isaiah 25:10-11
(10) For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain, and Moab shall be trampled down in his place, as straw is trampled down in a dunghill.
(11) And he will spread out his hands in the midst of it as a swimmer spreads his hands out to swim, but the LORD will lay low his pompous pride together with the skill of his hands.

Like us, the Moabites tried their best to fix what was wrong. They thought that they could get out of the muck and mire that they found themselves in. However, God already had plans to keep them down there.

This would be depressing were it not for the promises made throughout the New Testament for believers. Yes, there are times when we find ourselves in the mire. There are times when we try to pull ourselves out, but God keeps us in there. The good news for us that there is a sanctifying aspect to that. 1 Peter and James are two places that tell us that God does not waste trials in our lives. Of course, there is also Romans 8:28.

God will knock down the pride of our striving. He will keep us in the mire when we need to be brought low. I can't say that it is easy to embrace, but it's something to think about.

The Bigger Lesson

Ezekiel 29:13-16
(13) "For thus says the Lord GOD: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they were scattered,
(14) and I will restore the fortunes of Egypt and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin, and there they shall be a lowly kingdom.
(15) It shall be the most lowly of the kingdoms, and never again exalt itself above the nations. And I will make them so small that they will never again rule over the nations.
(16) And it shall never again be the reliance of the house of Israel, recalling their iniquity, when they turn to them for aid. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD."

This is the beginning of a long judgment passage against Egypt. What I find interesting is that Egypt has merited its own punishment for how it has acted. Yet verse 16 shows God's deeper reason for all of this. He wants to remind Israel that He is indeed Yahweh.

There are some like my friend who think that they have God's intentions all figured out from a human perspective. I admit that there are times when He seems random to us and even capricious. It's as if He is pulling the wings off of flies sometimes.

Yet this passage gives me some hope as to why God does what He does. Ultimately it is for the glory of His name and to teach His people. Let's never forget that when we are going through trials or when we see others going through them.

The Value of Trials

I've been doing some thinking about where I'm going with this blog. I've decided that I want to primarily use it as kind of an online journal on my spiritual life. The family blog is a better place to go for news. I will still make some departures for funny stories at work or other miscellanea.

Here is today's Tozer:

Now it came to pass at the end of seven days that the word of the Lord
came to me, saying, "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the
house of Israel; therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them
warning from Me." Ezekiel 3:16-17

I once heard a brother preach on the fact that the church should be
without spot or wrinkle. To get the wrinkles out of a sack, he said,
you fill it. To get a wrinkle out of a rug, you lay it down and walk
on it. God sometimes fills us, the preacher continued, but sometimes
He just puts us flat down so that everyone can walk on us!

King David long ago knew something of the latter method. He wrote,
"The plowers plowed upon my back: they made long their furrows"
(Psalm 129:3). I think David was talking about his enemies. And they
must have been wearing hobnail boots!

Ezekiel had just come to this kind of a low-ebbed, humbling
experience when God opened the heavens. In effect, God put His hand
on him and said, "Now I can use you. I have some words and some
plans that I want you to pass onto your country-men."
Men Who Met God, pp. 117-118

I realize that it is kind of trite, but the times of the most growth in my life came from trials.  While I don't enjoy the times when I fall to temptation, I also know that they push me closer to God.  I do not want to sin so that grace may increase, of course, but I do want to make sure that I let God use all the trials in my life to stretch me and get rid of the "scribbles" as Lily calls wrinkles in a sheet.

We're going through a mini-trial right now.  Some sort of bug has made its rounds around the house.  I felt a little off yesterday, though a nap in the middle of the day helped.  Amanda has been stuffy and wonders if she has a sinus infection.  Lily had a fever yesterday and woke up with it today.  It's not been an easy few days.  However, it has been great to just spend time with my family.  It helps that I'm about done with classes too!