The Importance of Theology...and Action

In Micah 3.11, this morning where the leaders of the people, the priests, and the prophets were all doing exactly the opposite of what God had told them to do and saying that God was fine with it. It does not matter what we say truth is, what matters is what the truth actually is. These guys were making their own truth and saying that God was in it. God was saying, "no, my truth is always the same, and you are making a mockery of it."

It is so important that we get our understanding of truth aligned with what God has told us because as humans we are prone to do what we want and call THAT truth. This leads only to destruction.

The Usual Suspects

Reading in 1 Peter 4.3, this morning where Peter lays out a list of what the "Gentiles"—those who have not come to Christ yet—typically do. What strikes me hard is that it is the usual suspects. What was popular to do in the 1st century AD, are the exact same things that are popular to do in the 21st century AD: Living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry. It's all the same.

What those who are not Christ-followers do, Christians should not be doing. That time, as Peter points out, is passed. We are men made new. Our hearts have changed. We do not do those things any more. Our aim and goal in life is to glorify Christ in how we live, rather than give ourselves over to the passions and desires of the flesh.

Who Is My Neighbor?

The story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10.37, this morning. This is the final verse where Christ asks the expert on the law of Moses, which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man. The lawyer correctly responds, the one who showed him mercy. The lawyer answers the question truthfully, even though he understands that it condemns him because he was probably one of the first two people in the parable, not the Samaritan. One hopes that this is a radical encounter for the unnamed lawyer that changed his life. What he needed was a new heart.

As the New Bible Commentary points out: It was not fresh knowledge that the lawyer needed, but a new heart—in plain English, conversion.

Who then is my neighbor? Anyone I encounter who needs mercy. Simple. Not always easy.

Augustine is good here as well: He shows mercy to us because of his own goodness, while we show mercy to one another because of God’s goodness. He has compassion on us so that we may enjoy him completely, while we have compassion on another that we may completely enjoy him.

God's Anger/Jonah's Anger

In Jonah 4.1, this morning. The Hebrew is quite clear about Jonah's reaction to God saving Nineveh. It was evil to Jonah, a great evil and it burned him. This pretty much sums up Jonah's reaction. It's interesting that the LXX translates the words here much less harshly than the actual Hebrew would imply. A rough translation of the LXX would be: And Jonah was pained with great pain, and he was confused. Not exactly what the Hebrew was getting at.

The New English Translation notes points out the contrast between God's anger and Jonah's anger: The verb ‏חָרָה‎ (kharah, “to burn”) functions figuratively here (hypocatastasis) referring to anger (BDB 354 s.v. ‏חָרָה‎). It is related to the noun ‏חֲרוֹן‎ (kharon, “heat/burning”) in the phrase “the heat of his anger” in 3:9. The repetition of the root highlights the contrast in attitudes between Jonah and God: God’s burning anger “cooled off” when the Ninevites repented, but Jonah’s anger was “kindled” when God did not destroy Nineveh.

The most intriguing interpretation of Jonah's reaction comes from Fairbarn via JFB.

If Nineveh had been the prominent object with him, he would have rejoiced at the result of his mission. But Israel was the prominent aim of Jonah, as a prophet of the elect people. Probably then he regarded the destruction of Nineveh as fitted to be an example of God’s judgment at last suspending His long forbearance so as to startle Israel from its desperate degeneracy, heightened by its new prosperity under Jeroboam II at that very time, in a way that all other means had failed to do. Jonah, despairing of anything effectual being done for God in Israel, unless there were first given a striking example of severity, thought when he proclaimed the downfall of Nineveh in forty days, that now at last God is about to give such an example; so when this means of awakening Israel was set aside by God’s mercy on Nineveh’s repentance, he was bitterly disappointed, not from pride or mercilessness, but from hopelessness as to anything being possible for the reformation of Israel, now that his cherished hope is baffled. But GOD’S plan was to teach Israel, by the example of Nineveh, how inexcusable is their own impenitence, and how inevitable their ruin if they persevere. Repenting Nineveh has proved herself more worthy of God’s favor than apostate Israel; the children of the covenant have not only fallen down to, but actually below, the level of a heathen people; Israel, therefore, must go down, and the heathen rise above her. Jonah did not know the important lessons of hope to the penitent, and condemnation to those amidst outward privileges impenitent, which Nineveh’s preservation on repentance was to have for aftertimes, and to all ages. He could not foresee that Messiah Himself was thus to apply that history. A lesson to us that if we could in any particular alter the plan of Providence, it would not be for the better, but for the worse [FAIRBAIRN].

Rebuking the Wind and Waves

We have heard the story of Christ and the disciples in the boat on the Sea of Galilee so many times that it is unremarkable to us that Christ would rebuke inanimate objects (waves) and effects (winds). This is a little bit unfortunate, because the sheer chutzpah of doing so we might miss. Some of the disciples were experienced fishermen so when they say that they are in danger of perishing—in jeopardy (KJV), taken from the French J'ai perdu, "I am lost"—we ought to believe them, they were in danger. Christ is sleeping, which in itself is remarkable, was he that fatigued (possible) or was he confident that whatever was tossed up against the boat, it was not out of his control (also possible). At any rate, when he is awakened by the disciples, he behaves in a most peculiar manner. What do we expect him to do? We expect him to calm the disciples and help them out of their predicament—point where to row so they can get to shore; help bailout the boat; show some interest!

What does Christ do? He speaks to inanimate objects and effects as if they were little children. He rebukes them for misbehaving! What? Unexpected. Unbelievable. The disciples must have not known whether to laugh or protest. What kind of person was this? The result? The wind and waves obey him. Obey him. Wind. Waves.

The disciples ask the question that I would have asked in the same situation. Who is this that even the winds and the waves obey him?

This is our God.

Most Unusual Place for a Prayer of Thanksgiving

My vote goes to Jonah while in the belly of a great fish. He has almost drowned, and now he sits—miraculously—in the belly of a fish, presumably not knowing what will happen next, but he is thanking the Lord! One wonders at this point where he thought that he would end up, having gone from really bad, to at least alive, but still pretty bad.

It is a remarkable prayer of faith since Jonah was alive, but not knowing what would happen next. Had the Lord saved him from the deep only to have him rot in the belly of the fish? Jonah wasn't concentrating on that, he was concentrating on the Lord's immediate salvation.

John Calvin: But in this state of despair Jonah even gathered courage, and was able to retake himself directly to God. It was a wonderful and almost incredible example of faith. Let us then learn to weigh well what is here said; for when the Lord heavily afflicts us, it is then a legitimate and seasonable time for prayer.

Hedonism

I'm reading in James 4.3 this morning where James says you ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. The word passions is ἡδοναῖς in the Greek which is the word from which we get the word hedonism, or the pursuit of pleasure. The word originally did not imply bad pleasures, but the meaning gradually became the pursuit of pleasure for its own end so that by the NT time all 5 uses refer to a bad pursuit of pleasure. The EDNT puts it this way: This led in Hellenism to the meaning “sensual joy, sexual pleasure,” and to the ethically negative evaluation by the Cynics, Stoics, and popular philosophy.

The point James is making is that we must be very careful that when we pray we are doing nothing more than asking God to feed our own passions which tend to draw us away from him. Why would God do that? It isn't in our best (eternal) interests. As one commentator pointed out, what we should be doing is praying that God would give us a greater desire for him than for our passions.

Splendor, Majesty, Strength, and Joy

All four are characteristics of our God as David points out in 1 Chr 16.27. I especially like strength and joy juxtaposed together because we do not normally associate the two. Strong people are not normally marked with joy, and joyful people are not normally renowned for their strength. Our God is both.

No Distinctions!

In James 2.3,4, this morning. James in essence says, In the house of God and with the people of God, there should be no distinctions. It is a radical difference from the world that they live in where people who were wealthy and/or a part of high society were given the place of honor wherever they went. They were more equal than the poor. The Old Testament condemns this treatment of the poor again and again, and James (along with other NT authors) carries this condemnation into the Church Age. There is no place for showing favoritism in the Christian faith, based on wealth or position or skin color or nationality. No distinctions!

Forgiveness Because God is Love?

Not according to Oswald Chambers.

It is shallow nonsense to say that God forgives us because He is love. When we have been convicted of sin we will never say this again. The love of God means Calvary, and nothing less; the love of God is spelt on the Cross and nowhere else. The only ground on which God can forgive me is through the Cross of my Lord. There, His conscience is satisfied.

WYSIWYG

More politically incorrect behavior from the Lord in 1 Chronicles 13.9-12. I'm struck once again at how little the authors of Scripture (and therefore the Holy Spirit) care about our sensitivities. The ark is being transported incorrectly; it gets upset; Uzzah reaches out to steady it and is struck down because he was not supposed to touch the ark. The Chronicler specifically tells us that the Lord struck him down, thereby making the Lord look capricious and vindictive.

I take from this that the Lord is more concerned about his holiness than he is about how he looks to us; his holiness is more important. That is breathtaking to me. We, humans, before we read this passage do not take his holiness that strongly. Yes, the Lord is holy, but is it that important? We read this passage and see that it is; radically.

May we take from this story, that God is holy. He will not have his holiness impugned. Even at the cost of how he appears to us. His holiness is more important than that.

Letting Your Servant Depart in Peace

The juxtaposition of Luke 2.26 with Simeon's first recorded words in Luke 2.29, make it clear that Simeon had no doubt that he was holding the Messiah. Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word for my eyes have seen your salvation. What the Holy Spirit had promised had been accomplished, he had seen (and held) the Messiah.

One struggles with words to describe this scene. Luke (as his his wont) describes it so sparingly, just the facts, nothing more. Decide for yourself. Did Simeon think he was the Messiah? Do you think he was? What the whole Jewish nation had been waiting for, Simeon gets to acknowledge first. He is old. He has lived a long life. He can depart in peace, for what God has promised, he has accomplished. The Deliverer is here. Staggering.

A True Heart

In Hebrews 10.22, the writer tells us to draw near (to Christ) with a true heart. I like that. The word true means "genuine," or "not false." In other words we must not fake it. It does no good to draw near to Christ while faking it, only a true heart will suffice.

Of course we are left with the question, "Do I have a true heart, a devoted heart, a passionate heart, an undivided heart?"

Why the Failure of the First Covenant?

The writer to Hebrews states very clearly that the first covenant was faulty. I read this and ask myself the question, "What happened? Did God make a mistake? If God is perfection, why did he institute an imperfect covenant?"

I believe the answer to that is contained in John Sailhamer's new book The Meaning of the Pentateuch. He says that the first covenant was instituted to demonstrate that we couldn't reconcile with God through adherence to his law because it is too high for us; we cannot attain it. This sets the stage for God ripping through the fabric of time and history in Christ. His covenant is perfect and will last.

The Purpose of Judgment

The purpose of judgment is stated in Joel 3.17; it is so that nations will all know that I am the Lord your God who dwells in Zion. God brings judgment upon people and nations so that they will understand that he is God, whether they like it or not. This reminds me of Paul's description of the future in Phil 2.9,10, where he says that God will highly exalt Christ so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow...and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess; they may not like it, and they may hate Christ, but they will bow and confess because he is King. Judgment will demonstrate the same thing to all the nations.

Be Gentle, Mature Christian. Be Gentle

In Hebrews 5. 2, this morning where the author of Hebrews says that the human high priest could deal gently with the ignorant and wayward because he understood that he too was prone to human weakness and failure. It's a beautiful reference to how we go about reaching those who are ignorant (without knowledge is the greek work) and deceived (again is the greek word).

Gentle is probably not an accurate definition of this difficult to translate word. A full explanation of the word would seem to be to deal moderately with people. In other words, not to be either too harsh, or so gentle that those who are ignorant and wayward do not understand that they need to change.

The point I want to take from the passage is that we approach people who need to change with humility because we understand our own tendency to wander and fail.

Naked and Exposed

Before God, according to Heb 4.13. All of us. There is no creature in all of creation that lives without God knowing all things about it/him/her. It is all the more frightening that the God to whom we are naked and exposed is also the God to whom we must all give account. It seems to me that, at this point, we have two options. We can go along our merry way and give no thought to the fact that we will one day give account to God; or, we can rest upon grace and say, "I am definitely going to give account to God one day, which makes me all the more grateful for grace!" Personally, I choose option 2.

He who is most fearful of God's wrath is least likely to experience it. Matthew Henry

When Pride is Okay

In Hebrews 3.6 this morning where the author of Hebrews says “we are his house if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.” The Greek literally says the pride of our hope. It is an interesting construction because we do not normally associate pride with anything good in the Christian faith, which is probably exactly why the author used that expression. He wants to get our attention.

We can have pride in regards to our hope that God will do what he said; that Christ will return; that he has prepared a place for us; and that when we die we will be forever with him. The word translated pride does not mean the act of boasting, it means something that one can boast about. We can have pride in our hope, not because we generate it, and so indirectly we have pride in ourselves, but because it rests on God's promises so by being proud of his promises we glorify him.

The obvious question then is, do we have pride in our hope that God will do all that he promised and how does this pride manifest itself in our lives?

Turning to the Lord (In Times of Difficulty)

In Hosea 7.14, this morning, where Israel is in difficulty, both from lack of the basic sustenance of life—grain and wine—and from a political situation where they are threatened by bigger and stronger nations around them. What they do not see, nor understand, is that God has brought the difficulty upon them to make them turn to him, to teach them to trust in him alone. They do just the opposite; they do not cry to the Lord from the heart. Instead we have the spectacle of Israel crying out for grain and wine, but not for the Lord.

Difficulty is designed to make us cry out to the Lord, to renew our dependence upon him; to reestablish our trust and faith in him. We must be very careful that we do not follow the pattern of unfaithful Israel and get our eyes on what we need, rather than from whom we need them. We depend upon the Lord, not on what our eyes see.