The Mark

We are going to finish up Hebrews 10 today!  That being said, let's start with a look at Romans 10.

9that if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10For with your heart you believe and are justified, and with your mouth you confess and are saved.

Romans 10:9-10 (Berean Study Bible)

Belief, that essential, foundational act of becoming a Christian, is such a mystery!  On the one hand, it is a simple acknowledgement of the truth of Jesus Christ, a trusting in His finished work on the sinner's behalf, an acceptance and surrender which seat Jesus on the throne of one's heart.   On the other hand, it is a profoundly complex act, with eternal consequences.

There is no such thing as "easy believism", as far as Christianity is concerned.  Belief is quite complicated, far from superficial.  In fact, when adults come to Jesus Christ, their belief is accompanied by costly repentance, the giving up of other idols they have accumulated and worshiped along their life's journey.

I wrote in a recent blog post on Hebrews 10:23 that it is impossible for Christians to "keep themselves saved".  In other words, it is God's faithfulness that "holds on to us" and keeps our salvation secure.  With the duality of our carnal and our redeemed natures, it is impossible for us to do this for ourselves, because of the constant warring of those two natures in our lives!

Today, I was at a birthday party with my two-year old great-nephew.  (The party was for his older brother.)  The little boy was dressed in a gorgeous Noah's Ark "shortall" , with smocking on the front. (You mamas out there know what I mean).  But, as beautiful as his outfit was, it became smeared with icing from the cookie cake, the red sauce from the pizza.  It was all over his mouth, hands.... everything he touched bore the mark of grease.
Even Christians get their royal robes dirty! We sin from time to time (let's be honest - - DAILY), and we have to run to our Lord for confession, forgiveness, cleansing, restoration.  Hopefully, along the way, we grow in our faith as we learn more of the heart of our Savior through His Word.
This process is not the same as walking in sin, wallowing in sin - - apostasy.

Saving faith, true belief, is especially complex from the standpoint of identifying who is Christian and who is not.  We can observe a person's life, but only God knows that person's heart.

However ...
I have come to believe that the strongest indicator of a true Christian (that person claiming allegiance to Christ, claiming that He is Savior) is this: steadfast, persevering faith.
Honest, authentic faith endures.  The true Christian's "belief" is so strong and pure that it refuses to capitulate to apostasy when confronted with worldly philosophies or when that belief is challenged by the direst persecution.

Take a look at today's passage, Hebrews 10:26-39 (ESV).  It's long, but so important that I'm choosing to reprint it here.

26For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. 28Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 29How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? 30For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” 31It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

32But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, 33sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. 34For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one. 35Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. 36For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. 37For,

“Yet a little while,

and the coming one will come and will not delay;

38but my righteous one shall live by faith,

and if he shrinks back,

my soul has no pleasure in him.”

39But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.

Don't worry --- I won't exegete every verse.  We'd be here for hours.  But, let's start with verse 39. The apostle John says something very similar in 1 John 2:19 (ESV).

 19They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

It could be argued that many (if not most) Americans have heard the gospel message of Jesus Christ. In other words, they have "received knowledge of the truth" (vs. 26).  Many of those who "heard" might have gone so far as to profess allegiance to Jesus Christ, yet without a true belief. They may have walked the aisle, parroted a prayer that someone led them in, etc. - - maybe because it was what their family expected, or what their friends were doing.  But, there was no sincere, deep belief in the heart.  It is these folks who are spoken of in Hebrews 10:26-31.  SO many across the world have never had a chance to hear the message of the gospel!  How much worse it will be for those who have had a chance to hear, perhaps over a period of years and years, and still have not believed, truly believed to the point of a changed heart.

The evidence of a true heart change, a supernatural transformation, is the "fruit" which genuine belief, authentic faith, produces.  After all, as Jesus said, "a good tree produces good fruit" (Matthew 7:17 NLT).  You will not see apple trees producing figs.  Or, as the Lord also said, "You will recognize them by their fruit" (Matthew 7:20 NET).

You can resemble a Christian believer and not be one; but you can't be a Christian believer and not look like one.

On the flip side, ...
Verses 32-36 describe the true converts of the first century, and the 20 centuries since.  Because of their faith (vs. 38), they endured sufferings (whether ridicule or physical torture or great loss) with JOY!  And, they endured to the end.

Do you see that the actions of these true believers inexorably flowed from their belief, from their saving faith?  The same is true today.  Those who do truly take God at His word concerning Jesus, the Son of God, will not commit apostasy.  They may be enticed and deceived by some false doctrine; but, once shown the truth they will renounce error. They do not "shrink back" (vs. 39)  or eventually reject the eternally saving gospel of Jesus Christ.  Their actions don't "keep them saved"; their actions PROVE they are saved.

Saving faith endures.  This is true belief - - the unmistakable mark of the disciple of Jesus Christ.

Recommended further reading:

https://www.gotquestions.org/perseverance-saints.html
I did not take any material from this site in the writing of this post.  But, the article linked above goes on to expound upon the doctrine called "perseverance of the saints".

Are You Standing Still?

Recently I found myself disappointed by someone in whom I had trusted.  Ever been there?  And, conversely, I know that there are many times in my own life walk when I have let another person down.  It is a characteristic of humans that we are in a constant state of change and development. This is true of us all, Christian or non-Christian.  As Christians, we are all either growing closer to God, through Jesus Christ, or we are back-sliding.  There is no standing still.   By contrast, unbelievers are moving farther and farther away from God's salvation, or God's Spirit is drawing them to Himself in order for them to become saved.  Again, there is no standing still.

Why am I talking about this?  Because God is not that way!  God, The Unflickering Flame (James 1:17), never changes.  His holiness, His love, His mercy, His justice...all of His perfect attributes are unwavering.  The writer of Hebrews affirms this in today's scripture passage.

13For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, 14saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” 15And thus Abraham,^b having patiently waited, obtained the promise. 16For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. 17So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.

Verse 13 refers to the Abrahamic Covenant, as it is often called - - - that promise God made to Abraham to the effect that he would become the father of many nations, that his descendants would be as the grains of sand in the desert.  And, God has kept that promise over these many thousands of years since Abraham's day.  Abraham, through Ishmael, became the progenitor of all Arab peoples; through Isaac, he became the father of the Hebrew people.

Interestingly, the One who had absolutely no need to swear for emphasis, did so.  Finding no one greater than Himself, He swore BY Himself that He would keep His promise.  He did this for mankind's sake, a creation with limited ability to comprehend changelessness.  We spiritual chameleons find His immutability, His changelessness, as difficult to embrace and understand as we do His other awesome characteristics.

By His character and by His oath, by these two things, God is emphasizing that it is impossible for Him to lie, whether about His promise to Abraham OR about the work He accomplished on our behalf through Jesus Christ, the Son.

When we find ourselves disappointed what do we do?  We find refuge in something or in someone, do we not?  Some seek refuge in drugs, others in promiscuous behavior.  Others in foods which trigger the soothing centers of the brain.  

Verse 18 depicts believers who run to and find their refuge in God's changeless promises, in that God who cannot lie, will never disappoint, is "the same, yesterday, today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8).  It is in this section that the author begins to weave into his sermon the theme of Jesus Christ, our High Priest.

When we run to God in our time of need, we do so because of His sure promises that cannot fail. Still, here is an important point.  Even though this turning to, running to God is a type of perseverance, it is clear that the Holy Spirit living within us enables us to persevere in such a manner.  

Why is this an important distinction?  I overheard an elder Christian tell a younger believer the other day that he was going to just have to "suck it up" and "tough it out".  The implication is that the younger person was just going to have to work himself up to get things back on track.  But, clearly, that is not the Christian way.  "Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow"1 are not found within our own sinful natures.  Consequently, trying to achieve that in our own strength is hopeless.

Cockerill2 puts it like this, having just referred to Abraham as a godly example:  

"Provision for that perseverance is made certain, as it was for Abraham, through the faithfulness of God, which has now been fulfilled in the high priesthood of Christ.  Thus awakened, the hearers are ready to grasp that priesthood and its benefits as the ONLY means of perseverance." {emphasis mine}

In Hebrews 11, the author circles back to this theme of faith-based perseverance, as he lists "the roll call of faith".

What is it about Jesus Christ's current ministry as our high priest that makes this promise of refuge and perseverance so very exciting?  We will take a deeper look at that in upcoming posts.

Sources:

1      https://www.hymnal.net/en/hymn/h/19

2      Cockerill, Gareth Lee. The Epistle to the Hebrews. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2012. Kindle edition, p. 280. 

Signs of a Sure Future

This past weekend I visited my mother, who was, as usual, ecstatic to see me.  Such is the way of mothers.  I feel the same about my own two sons.  The occasion for my rather extended visit was one of her two family reunions, which fall back-to-back in late July/early August.  Both events are held at the church in which she was married, some 60 years ago.

She always insists on getting to the venue ridiculously early.  After making sure all was ready, I used the extra time to take a stroll in one of my earliest "stomping grounds": the church's graveyard.

When I was five, mother and daddy placed me in a half-day kindergarten school.  With both parents working, mother dropped me off very early each morning, where I waited in the empty school room for the teacher to come over from her house.  (The classroom was a converted garage on her property).  After classes were over each day, another mother took me to my great-grandparents' house.  They lived beside the church and, by extension, also by the graveyard.

My mother was surprised this weekend when I told her that, as a five year old, my great-grandparents had let me roam the graveyard on a regular basis.  I found it absolutely fascinating, all theological aspects aside.  Each tombstone was like a sign post.  The information on each one led to lots of speculation.  At first, of course, I could not read many names, although I did learn early to read.  As the years drew on, I enjoyed returning there time after time.

Yesterday, as I walked the grounds, I thought mainly of resurrection - - - how one day many of those tombs are going to explode as the unfathomable resurrection power which raised Jesus rocks the earth - - - literally.  An earthquake rolled the stone away from His tomb, the same earthquake which liberated from their tombs long-dead people in surrounding tombs following.  They came out of their tombs after "the first fruits" arose on Easter morning.  Even now, I long for that day when it will happen again, all across the earth, in the depths of the sea, on the highest mountain peaks.1  What an amazing display of omnipotence!  All is quiet in the tombs now....but then....

Colosse was located in a region rather famous for its earthquakes.2  Accordingly, in Colossians 1:21-23, Paul uses an earthquake metaphor to describe the signpost of a Christian conversion.  Take a look:

21And you were at one time strangers and enemies in your minds as expressed through your evil deeds, 22but now he has reconciled you by his physical body through death to present you holy, without blemish, and blameless before him – 23if indeed you remain in the faith, established and firm, without shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has also been preached in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become its servant.

The Colossians were a pagan people, worshipping all sorts of false gods.   This is why Paul referred to them (in contrast to the Jews) as "strangers and aliens".  Such a distinction does not mean that they were MORE lost than the Jews who refused Christ, but that merely they were lost, separated from Christ Jesus, in a different way.  They were literally "enemies of the true God", and this enmity was expressed by the evil deeds they did.  Had they remained strangers and enemies, they would have faced a sure future - - one apart from God forever.

BUT, now...

After Christ, since Christ, had saved them, reconciled them to God through His physical sacrifice, their perseverance in the faith was a sign that they had indeed been converted, irrevocably transformed, just as their evil deeds previously were a sign that they had not.

Perseverance is akin to a house built on such a sure foundation (Jesus Christ) that it cannot be moved. And truly, those who have been reconciled to God through Jesus Christ, cannot be moved, regardless of shifting sands or earthquake or storm or peril.

That "IF" at the beginning of verse 23 still troubles you, doesn't it?  The clause "If indeed you continue", according to Greek scholars3, is a "first class conditional clause".  That is, it assumes that the verb/action/condition is true: a truth, couched in indirect language. Paul, who loved scholarly arguments, used this device.  So did Satan.  Look at Luke 4:3, when Satan was tempting Christ.

The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread."  

The Greek word for "If" is the same:  Ei (εἶ) in both passages.  Obviously, Satan knew that Jesus was the Son of God.  Otherwise, his taunt would have been ridiculous and meaningless.

Of late, I have felt the storm.  But, the perseverance springing from faith in the Cornerstone, has sustained me.  I am not claiming credit here.  It is He who holds on to me, not the reverse.  It is He, the Holy Spirit, who comforts, who sustains, who causes me to "remain in the faith, established and firm".  It is He who purifies and sanctifies and presents blameless, not me.

Perseverance - - the sign that an irrevocable change has occurred, the sign that the blessed hope, the promise of resurrection is mine, forever.

Father, what precious promises Your children find in Your word!  Your Holy Spirit abiding in me works the perseverance in me which leads to eternal life.  Thank you for testing me, purifying me and one day presenting me "blameless" before Your throne.  As Psalm 117 says, "1Praise the Lord, all you nations!  Applaud him, all you foreigners!  2For his loyal love towers over us, and the Lord’s faithfulness endures.  Praise the Lord! (NET) 

Sources:

1 Lowe, David W. Earthquake Resurrection: Supernatural Catalyst for the Coming Global Catastrophe. Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C., 2005. Print. 

2   Wiersbe, Warren W., and Warren W. Wiersbe. The Wiersbe Bible Commentary: The Complete New Testament in One Volume. Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2007. Print, p. 670

3   http://www.evidenceunseen.com/bible-difficulties-2/nt-difficulties/1-2-thessalonians/col-121-23-does-this-verse-threaten-eternal-security/

Tired ... So Tired

Tonight is the night of the 2016 presidential Iowa caucuses, and God knows there are a lot of tired politicians and political hacks out there.  Most of them are laboring, trying to deliver a victory for their candidate, because they believe he or she is the very best person for the job.  Tonight is when "the rubber" begins to meet "the road".  It is the first opportunity for a victory, in a long line of opportunities.

Today's passage, from Galatians 6:9-10, is about what to do when you are tired to very depths of your soul.  Check it!

9-10 So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit. Right now, therefore, every time we get the chance, let us work for the benefit of all, starting with the people closest to us in the community of faith.   

(The Message version)

In verse 9, a key point is getting tired from "doing good".  What does that mean?  If you are a Christian, you have a "calling" of some type, from your Savior, your God.  You may not believe this to be true, because Satan has duped believers into accepting that there is the clergy (the professional godly people - - whuuuuuh?) and  - - here's your $10,000 word-of-the-day - - the laity (the people in the pews).  But, bottom line, Jesus did not issue The Great Commission (Matt. 28:19-20) to only the clergy.  At the very least, we are ALL commanded to share the gospel, in some way or the other, as God gives us opportunities to do so.  And, He does.

So, Paul is assuming here, rightly so, that Christians will be carrying out the "callings" God has placed on their lives.  A parent's calling is obviously to raise her or his children "in the nurture and admonition of the Lord", for example (Eph. 6:4).  A fellow believer said recently that if a believer is not fulfilling his calling, he is walking in disobedience.

No matter what calling God has given to you, you WILL get tired, and discouraged, and disgusted, and scared.  You will get angry at God and want to absolutely GIVE.UP.
I'm sorry to tell you - - - this is to be expected.
Why?
Because you are in a spiritual war.  Anytime and every time you yield yourself to the Holy Spirit in order to fulfill your calling, you will be opposed by the enemy, the evil one who is literally "hell-bent" on your destruction.
Isn't that just all flowers and bells?

Fortunately (oh yes!), God gives us His promise at the end of verse 9.  Don't quit.  Don't give up.
If you persevere, you will reap a harvest, a "good crop".

Some of you aren't "seeing" that right now.  But, look.  You aren't promised to see it.  Sorry!

I think of Vincent Van Gogh, who sold exactly one of his paintings during his lifetime1.  Yet, if you are at all educated, you've heard of the art of Vincent Van Gogh!  In fact, go google "Van Gogh at the Museum" and watch that vid, to get a sense of what I'm talking about here.  And, Van Gogh was a pagan, if I remember correctly!  How much more will our God do with our willing, persevering hearts if we will only trust Him and believe?  How much more!

The Scriptures say, "at the right time".  That's not your time.  That's on God's timetable.  HE gets to decide when "the right time" is.  Unfortunately, some of us play right into Satan's hands over timing. We get so discouraged at a lack of results, we just "chuck it all".  We do not live in a patient society. We live in a world where everything is instant, instant, right NOW!  Therefore, we expect our ministries to be the same.

So, let's persevere, people of God.  Go to Jesus when you are weary, and He will give you rest (Matt. 11:29).  Then, after He has restored your soul, get back out there, as Galatians 6:10 says.  "The test of your character is what it takes to stop you.  Finish the job!"1 Every time you get the chance, bless the people of God as well as the unsaved around you.  Be open-handed!  Give of your heart.  Give of your time. Give of yourself to advance Christ's kingdom.  Nothing ever given to God was ever wasted, nor will it ever be!

Father, even You rested, on the seventh day.  It is normal for us to get tired, in this war in which your gospel of salvation is continually opposed.  Thank you for being our source of rejuvenation, comfort and rest!  Thank you for equipping us because, you don't call the equipped; you equip the called! Help us to remember that and, like Winston Churchill said, "Never, never, never give up." as we keep walking in faith, fulfilling the calling you have given each of us.  In Jesus' name, amen
.
Source:

1  http://painting.about.com/od/paintingtrivia/f/van-gogh-first-painting-sold.htm
2  http://strader.cehd.tamu.edu/BobJonesQuotes.php

Holiday Perseverance and Discernment

Good morning,

This is not going to be my typical post, as it has not been a typical morning.  Yesterday was like "Thanksgiving Celebration 1", with my husband's side of the family's event and then our church's Thanksgiving Feast last night.  The youth had a "lock-in" afterwards.  My part to help with the latter was to be at the church this morning in order to have breakfast set up for 70 or so kids by 6:00 a.m., and then get them all picked up by 8:15.  With that mission accomplished, I came home to greet the appliance repairman, who could not stay because the 2-person job was short one technician.  Then, it was to care for the sick turtle, feed the dog, potty the dog, etc.  Before I knew it, it was nearly 10:00. After this, it will be on to decorating the house for Christmas....if I'm not too distracted to do so.
'Tis the season.

In the midst of all this, I read 2 Corinthians 11:16-33.  In this passage Paul was telling the Corinthians about his experiences as a missionary-evangelist-church planter.  It is sobering to read of all he endured:

• 39 lashes with the whip on 5 separate occasions
• beaten with a cane ("caning") on 3 separate occasions
• stoned once
• shipwrecked three times, and one of those was drifting in the ocean for a day and night
• in danger from a number of sources most of the time
• let down in a rope basket, through a window in the city wall
• sleepless nights
• hungry and thirsty many times
• falsely accused and in prison on several occasions, for a total of 5-6 years
• always, during all the above, anxiously concerned for the young churches

When I look at this list, I realize that my minor challenges are, well....minor.  It helps me regain perspective!  The reason Paul shared all this with the Corinthians was to establish his credibility as a true apostle of Jesus Christ.  He references the false apostles who had been beguiling the Corinthians, in verses 12-15 (NET).

12 And what I am doing I will continue to do, so that I may eliminate any opportunity for those who want a chance to be regarded as our equals in the things they boast about. 13 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is not surprising his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will correspond to their actions.

I'm not gifted with a great deal of discernment, when it comes to examining other people.  My husband has an abundance of that gift.  But, I'm grateful for when God does give me an extra helping.

Certainly, Satan opposed Paul, because of how he was spreading the gospel so diligently and faithfully.  While satanic opposition can be a validation of a person's ministry, the greater proof is whether or not the believer stays true to the Word of God.  It is sad to contemplate the reality that there are false prophets in the midst of The Body.  But, it is certain that there are.  Like their true master, they disguise themselves as the holiest of the holy.  While we may be deceived, God is never fooled.  He knows His own.

One thing I've noticed is that the "wolves in sheep's clothing" are often prideful.  They draw attention to their "accomplishments" as if they were responsible.  Their eyes are on themselves.  After all, again, they are following the example of their true master, the evil one, whose pride led to his eternal downfall.  True servants of the Most High God know that they are incapable (in and of themselves) of any good thing.  They recognize that it is His Spirit at work in them that accomplishes His will, and they give Him the glory for it.  They keep their eyes firmly fixed on Him.

So, here we have two valuable "litmus tests":  

• are they in-line with the Word of God as revealed in Scripture?  and 
• are they humble?

Open the eyes of our hearts, Lord!  

Dear Father, thank you for discernment and perseverance in the face of various types of trials.  No matter what my brothers and sisters are enduring today, Lord, give them your strength and your comfort.  Some of them are dealing with anxiety, loneliness, sickness, pain, fear, persecution. Whatever our challenges today, may we keep our eyes firmly fixed on You, our Savior.  In Jesus' name, amen.