Nearest and Dearest (Advent: Day 9)

I had to laugh at the POTUS-elect the other day.  He visited Ohio and spoke to employees of the Carrier Company, the folks who make heat pumps, and such.  During the course of his speech he said something like, "I have a secret to share with you. Don't tell anybody now!  My new secretary of defense is going to be..."  What makes this laughable is that, of course, when you tell several hundred people a "secret", with press present, it's not going to remain a secret very long!  That's not the way most of us operate. If we have precious news to share, we share it with our "nearest and dearest" first.

We live on the side of history after the first advent (coming) of Jesus to Earth.  So, it is a bit of a stretch for Christians to know what it was like for the Jews to look for, long for, their Messiah, except as we Christians can do in regards to Jesus' second advent, still in the future.  (I wrote about this in my last post.)

Two of the most intriguing people in the Bible are found in Luke 2.  One of the best things about Luke was his attention to detail.  None of the other gospel writers could compare to him in that respect.  Both of these "minor" characters were fervently looking for Messiah as "the first Christmas" approached.

Our story begins in verse 22, when Mary and Joseph are found taking the baby Jesus to the Temple in order to fulfill the requirements of the Law for newborn boys.  There, they encounter Simeon (who will be the subject of a future post) and Anna, our heroine for today.

36There was also a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old, having been married to her husband for seven years until his death. 37She had lived as a widow since then for eighty-four years. She never left the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. 38At that moment, she came up to them and began to give thanks to God and to speak about the child to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.

According to Luke 2:36-38, Anna lost her husband to death, after only 7 years of marriage. She never remarried.  Anna was OLD.  Most Jewish women marry in their mid-teens. Assuming she married at 15 and became a widow at 22, she would have been 106 years old at the time Jesus was brought to the Temple for the first time.  106!! That is "ancient", even by today's standards!  For whatever the reason, she lived in the Temple, most likely performing some sort of tasks assigned to older widows.1

Anna's close proximity to the Temple, however, is not what earned her the title of "prophetess".  (As I mentioned in yesterday's post, she is the only woman given that title in the New Testament.)  Being "in church" a lot is not what makes a person a Christian either...Verse 37 tells us that she spent much time in fasting and in prayer.  When a person spends that much time seeking God, communing with Him, they are more likely to receive revelations from Him.  That's not to say she EARNED the gift of prophecy, because it is a gift from God, given at His discretion.  But, she exercised her gift with tremendous zeal.

And, the "proof is in the pudding", as the saying goes.  Anna walked up and immediately recognized who Jesus was.  If we assumed that she knew Mary and Joseph we would very likely be drawing a false conclusion.  The Scriptures do not say she knew them, after all.  Whom she DID know was Jesus, even though she had never met him!  Her reaction to meeting Jesus "in the flesh" was to praise God aloud, to thank Him and to tell everyone around her about Him.

Do you "get" that Anna knew, even more surely than Mary and Joseph did, who Jesus truly was?

Don't you think that Anna must have been one of God's "nearest and dearest"?  Even though she is given a mere 3 verses in the Bible, what a wonderful testimony those verses contain!  In his classic commentary on the book of Luke, Alfred Plummer said that Anna was the first in a long line of prophetic disciples who would speak about Jesus to all who were fervently looking for the redemption of Israel.2

In Jesus, Anna glimpsed the future, a future as bright as the promises of God!

Sources:

1    http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/new-testament/mary-simeon-or-anna-who-first-recognized-jesus-as-messiah/

2   Alfred Plummer, Luke, International Critical Commentary (Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1905), p. 71.

A Payment Dear

He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all....

Romans 8:32 (KJV)

When I awoke this morning, after morning prayers, one of the first things I did was to check my iPad to see if there were any huge news stories or (as I like to call them) "flaming arrows".  This morning's article, If I Die Before You Wake, by @ewerickson (Erick W. Erickson) riveted me.  (See link under Sources: below.)  I've followed Erick's career for the past few years and love that boy like a son.

I knew that Erick's wife, Kristi, had had some health problems over the years, sometimes serious ones.  I knew of his recent crisis with blood clots in his lungs.  I did not, however, realize the drastic turn both of their healths had taken in recent weeks.  I learned from the article that his wife has been diagnosed with a rare form of lung cancer that only affects non-smoking women.  And, Erick continues to suffer with serious cardiovascular issues.  In the article, Erick was also extremely transparent about the emotional collateral his family has suffered, due to his political stances on this presidential election. This godly, Christ-honoring family has been buffeted and battered by both health crises and our toxic American culture, in general.

Some of you have felt that, in your own life.  I was reading a post by Paige on Facebook a couple days ago.  She drolly said that she was not going to discuss politics anymore before the election because no matter whom she announced she was voting for, it would be wrong.  Others chimed in that over-zealous friends had made Facebook an unpleasant venue, due to hateful stances and comments.  It can certainly be that.

Currently, I am studying Hebrews with you, as you know, because you came here expecting another Hebrews post this morning.  But, what you may not know is that I am concurrently studying the new Beth Moore study, Entrusted.  I highly recommend it to anyone who is experiencing loss, due to his or her stalwart faith in Jesus Christ today.  Let me close today's post by sharing some thoughts from that study of 2 Timothy.

In this letter Paul drives home the point that Christians fellowship with each other in many things: worship, fellowship, marriages, meals, laughter, Bible study - - - but that we must also be willing to suffer together the EVIL launched against us for carrying the name and testimony of Jesus, and for standing for truth and righteousness.

Standing true to the Word of God will not only open us up to attack, it will make our hearts vulnerable.  Beth's words:

"The raw vulnerability of untempered love...of that handful of people who hold your heart - - - 

skinned alive - - - and could slay you with their absence.  Untempered love is terrifying.  

But what's life if we never love others past the rational sensibilities of our self-protection? 

Divine love does not spare itself.  And, a life that risks no loss is no life at all." 

Erick's words from this morning:

"My faith and politics are more and more irreconcilable. What matters more to me now is to do what I think is right, not to do what is popular. It is not to lead others, but to speak for those who cannot speak and do for others what they cannot do. I am no leader. I am just blessed with a platform where I say what I think is right and true and make sure those who agree know they are not alone.

The world wants believers to be alone and if my wife and I die before my children wake, they will feel alone and helpless in the world. So they must know Truth on the cross. That truth can guide them when I cannot and sustain them when I cannot and comfort them when I cannot."

Beth, in her study, emphasizes the "gospel" and the "gifting".  What Erick is saying here mirrors that because both of these contemporary giants of the faith are speaking Truth, based on the Word of God, the Bible.  Erick, like Beth, is using his Holy Spirit-given spiritual gifts to spread the gospel.  It permeates his life, and he is paying dearly for it.  The man is under severe spiritual attack.  I ask all you who read my words here to please, please pray for him and his family.

I also challenge you to examine your own heart, if you claim the Name of Christ, if you say you are His.   Two questions:
1.  Are you using the unique set of spiritual gifts the Holy Spirit gave you to spread the gospel?
2.  Do you have the courage to stand for what is right and true?  To stand even when it costs you dear?

Oh, Christian....as the days roll on and our world descends more and more into chaos and ungodliness, the choices we are called on to make are going to become increasingly costly!  For myself, I want to draw close to Jesus Christ and cling to him now, so that as more and more tests come I will be found standing firm alongside Him whose Name is Faithful and True, to Him who was and is our Pathfinder, our Trailblazer, our Pioneer....to Him who endured the cross and despised the shame (Heb. 12:2) .... to Him who tasted not only suffering but death, so that we, His brothers and sisters, could lay hold on eternal life.

9But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

10For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering.

Hebrews 2:9-10 (ESV)

Dear Father,
While I certainly don't seek or crave suffering, I know that it will again touch me, as it comes to every Christian at one time or another - - not the general category of suffering common to every human at some point, but the specific kind of targeted suffering which results from bearing the name of Jesus Christ.  When those times come, may we follow in the footsteps of our Perfect Savior, allowing suffering to increase our faith, to purify our dross and to cause us to walk ... resplendent!  In Jesus' name, amen.

Sources:

1.  http://theresurgent.com/if-i-die-before-you-wake/

2.  Moore, Beth, Melissa Moore, and Kristi Smith. Entrusted: A Study of 2 Timothy. Nashville, TN: Lifeway Press, 2016. Print. 

The Gift-Givers

This is a frightfully busy week for me, work-wise, which is why I didn't blog yesterday.  An additional reason is that, in the midst of the work-related mayhem, I wasn't up to tackling Ephesians 4:7-12, today's text.  But, I found, as the day wound on yesterday that I missed my time here in the Word terribly.  I regretted not ordering my priorities well.  Here's today's text (NET):

7But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he captured captives; he gave gifts to men.” 9Now what is the meaning of “he ascended,” except that he also descended to the lower regions, namely, the earth? 10He, the very one who descended, is also the one who ascended above all the heavens, in order to fill all things. 11It was he who gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12to equip the saints for the work of ministry, that is, to build up the body of Christ

Here's the gist of it:  Father God gave us His Son.  Then, when Jesus Christ finished the work pre-ordained by God the Father, He was given by Father certain gifts and rights.  He, in turn, gave gifts to us, the members of His Body, the Church.  Not all the gifts look the same or are the same.  He gave to each of us, at the moment of our receiving Him as Savior, the exact spiritual gifts we would need in order to build up His people and to evangelize the world.

Ok, so what is meant by all this ascending and descending?  In these words, Paul is referring back to Psalm 68.  Let's turn there and take a look.  When you read Psalm 68, a long song of praise to God for His triumphing over His enemies, you will notice that verse 18 is quite similar to Ephesians 4:8-10.  The origin of Psalm 68 is that it was written to commemorate the triumphal bringing of the ark of the covenant to Mt. Zion.

When did this occur?  It happened about 1000 years before Jesus Christ was born as a baby (incarnated).  King David had both wanted to build the first Temple in Jerusalem and also to give the ark of the covenant its permanent home there.  But, God decreed that his son, Solomon, should do this.  Solomon built the Temple and the ark was triumphantly installed there, in the Temple's Holy of Holies, where it remained for about 450 years, until the Babylonian invasion.  There it remained, high above all its foes, a symbol of the triumph of God above all His enemies.  This was the first time the Ark had had a "permanent" home.

In his commentary, Barnes1 says this:

 The fact that the ark of God thus ascended the hill of Zion, the place of rest; that it was to remain there as its permanent abode, no more to be carried about at the head of armies; was the proof of its triumph. It had made everything captive. It had subdued every foe; and its ascent there would be the means of obtaining invaluable gifts for people; Mercy and truth would go forth from that mountain; and the true religion would spread abroad, even to the rebellious, as the results of the triumph of God, whose symbol was over the tabernacle and the ark

We see Jesus Christ's triumphal ascension to the throne room of God, after His resurrection pictured in Revelation 4-5.  The Father, seated on His throne, gave to the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, who has triumphed (emphasis mine) a sealed scroll.  Because of his triumph, His finished work, He began to open the seals on the scroll as the Church Age began to unfold.  We are currently approaching the Sixth Seal, which will occur with a mighty world-wide earthquake, when the Church is raptured; and, this will usher in the reign of THE Antichrist and the 7-year Tribulation period.2  But, I digress from todays' topic.

So, Father gave His  Son gifts, and the Son gave us gifts, the first of which is grace - - - grace that is offered to all, even to "the rebellious" (Psalm 68:18), should they turn and accept His offer.  Salvation is offered to every man and woman.  (It is a comfort to me that God has patience and is long-suffering toward those who, for a time, run from Him.)  In addition to that saving grace, Christ bestows on us the gift of His Holy Spirit, and through the Holy Spirit, the various "spiritual gifts".   I've written about those extensively, and won't re-plow that row here.  But, I'll put the links under Sources: below.3

Now, we come to the difficult part of this passage, if you compare it to other related passages.  By itself, Ephesians 4:8-10 seems to say that Jesus was in Heaven, was born (came to Earth), died, was buried, was resurrected and ascended back to Heaven after walking the Earth alive for about 40 days. All of that is true.  But, there are other relevant scriptures, by other writers, which add dimension to Paul's verses here.  Take your Bible and look these up:

• Matthew 12:20 tells us that Jesus was three days and nights "in the heart of the earth".  This goes beyond Joseph of Arimathea's tomb...
• Luke 16:19-28 and Luke 23:42-43 tell us that Paradise and the place of eternal fire and torment were in the same location.  Ephesians 4:9 (NIV) calls this "the lower, earthly regions". This is where the spirits of Jesus and the thief on the cross went after death.
• 1 Peter 3:18-20 tells us that Jesus preached to the spirits in prison who had caused all that mayhem that led up to the Great Flood.  This is part of His "triumph" over His enemies.4

Other sources talk about how Christ changed the entire structure of the abode of the dead with his death, burial and resurrection.  But, that is sort of controversial.  However, I'm not going there (lol!) at the moment....because all of this is plenty enough for one day!

Sources:

1  http://biblehub.com/commentaries/ephesians/4-8.htm

2  Lowe, David W. Earthquake Resurrection: Supernatural Catalyst for the Coming Global Catastrophe. Place of Publication Not Identified: D.W. Lowe, 2005. Print.

3  http://resplendentdaughter.blogspot.com/2015/10/to-each-his-own.html
    http://resplendentdaughter.blogspot.com/2015/10/gifts-small-and-great.html
    

4  http://heavennet.net/writings/did-jesus-go-to-hell-after-he-died/

Moving Rhythmically and Easily

Speaking as a parent, I'd say one of the biggest heartbreaks is when your children live in alienation from each other.  When they are small, you expect a fair amount of fracas ... because they are immature; they are children! Each one is behaving selfishly, wanting his or her own way.  A former pastor used to say that anyone who has children has no trouble believing in the concept of "original sin"!

As children grow and mature, they learn how to behave unselfishly within the family; or, at least, they should.  I was thinking of this as I read today's passage, Ephesians 4:1-16.  Look specifically today at verses 13-16 (The Message).

...{Jesus, the One} working within Christ’s body, the church, until we’re all moving rhythmically and easily with each other, efficient and graceful in response to God’s Son, fully mature adults, fully developed within and without, fully alive like Christ.

14-16 No prolonged infancies among us, please. We’ll not tolerate babes in the woods, small children who are an easy mark for impostors. God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love—like Christ in everything. We take our lead from Christ, who is the source of everything we do. He keeps us in step with each other. His very breath and blood flow through us, nourishing us so that we will grow up healthy in God, robust in love.

God is our Father, and I do love the aspect of His character that parents us, His children.  (More than one blog post could be written about that, but I will refrain and restrain myself for now, haha!)  Paul uses this illustration to describe unity within the church of Jesus Christ.

I have noticed a troubling trend in the local churches in my part of the world.  A member gets upset about something and leaves. (Sometimes this is because an "imposter" has caused division and other times not.) Often, there is no attempt by the member to dig deeper and find a solution to the problem, because "the grass looks greener" elsewhere.  By the same token, the attitude within the church being left is lackadaisical and prideful, if you can imagine such a combination.  At first, there is hurt and offense that the brother or sister would consider leaving, and that morphs into a sort of stubborn pride that prevents them from reaching out to say, "Wait a minute...let's try to work this out."  Church members are seen, by and large, as expendable.  And, you have a "church divorce".

Other times, this pridefulness manifests as a critical spirit in the church. (And, if your mind just now went to one of your Christian brothers or sisters, well, then, you'd just better hold up and check your own heart.  As the current commercial says, "Check yo'self, Rodney!")
Listen, brother or sister, your local church was not established by the Lord to give you everything you want or to let you have your preferences all the time!  That is not its purpose!  But, sometimes, unless a dear brother or sister gets his or her way, out the door they go.  (You know I am not talking about confronting legitimate major doctrinal heresies, but about minor preferences.)

Focusing on Christ, our Unifier, is key.  When we begin to focus on ourselves and on our differences and/or on others' faults, we move the focus off of Jesus, don't we?  Humility and discipline (as mentioned in 4:3) take the nearest route out the back door.  We stop exercising the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  We wander off the path of our individual calling, to chase some sort of self-gratifying desire.

This prideful behavior breaks God our Father's heart (Eph. 4:30) because it is an example of "prolonged infancy" - - baby Christian behavior.  Even those who are mature in the faith can exhibit it from time to time - - this includes "yours truly".  The point is that we need to be watchful and wary of it, so that "imposters, wolves in the sheep pen" can be called out ... so that our local bodies of believers can "move rhythmically and easily, efficient and graceful" with each other, as we exercise our spiritual gifts.

Look at today's picture.  Isn't that a beautiful scene?  Young and old, celebrating together, some dancing, some clapping, some singing, some smiling, one with hands raised ... among the many expressing themselves differently, we see unity.

Paul's admonition does not only apply to local groups of Christians, but also to culturally disparate groups of believers around the world.  Each locale has its own peculiar challenges, as well as customs.  Here's one example of a culture juxtaposition:  In many countries, it is accepted practice for a nursing mother to nurse her infant anywhere, under any circumstances.  I once witnessed a nursing mother nurse her baby as the gospel was being presented to her by a group of men.  Many in my country would find that behavior on her part so totally inappropriate that it would cause disunity. In a similar vein, behavior in church services has wildly different standards and appearances around the world.  But, unless something in scripture is being violated ... let's retain our brotherhood and sisterhood ... our robust love for one another, so that the world will see this magnificent brotherly love, and marvel at our Savior.

Paul urged believers well in verses 1-3 (NET):

I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live worthily of the calling with which you have been called, 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Father, we want to show this lost and broken world Your beautiful Son, Jesus, who created all that is, who became our Savior, who is the Source of everything we are as redeemed souls.  Protect us from wolves, heavenly Father, namely those divisive persons who pretend to be Yours but who are not, who stroke their own pride rather than building up others for the sake of Your kingdom.  Give us discernment and humility, Lord, because it does not "come naturally".  Grow us up in You, Lord Jesus!  Nourish us, so that we will be healthy, robustly healthy, bursting with Your love!  In Jesus' name, amen.

Oh Sugar! Pass the Salve!

Warning:  Painfully, blatantly transparent post ahead!

One of the truths God has pounded into my soul along the walk is this:  we Christians all have different pitfalls as well as different spiritual gifts.  I was thinking about this this morning as I threw the rest of a delicious pecan pie into the trash can.  It nearly killed me. One of my peculiarities is that I hate to waste food.  This was woven into the very fabric of my soul by my mother, who was born in the throes of the Great Depression, the daughter of a Depression Mama.  My grandmother, Ma, used to beg to take tomato sandwiches with us in a cooler when she went with our family on vacay.  Such are my roots.

This otherwise altruistic and "good" tendency runs headlong into my sugar addiction, a snare Satan uses to undermine my otherwise (thank you, Jesus!) excellent health.  To some, pecan pie (basically, sugar) is not sin. To me, it can be ... and usually becomes a trap.  Of course, the pecan pie was merely the "trap of the week"...

It's hard to find the glory in temptations, but I submit to you that glory is there.  Look at today's passage with me, Romans 12:3-8 (NET)

3For by the grace given to me I say to every one of you not to think more highly of yourself than you ought to think, but to think with sober discernment, as God has distributed to each of you a measure of faith. 4For just as in one body we have many members, and not all the members serve the same function, 5so we who are many are one body in Christ, and individually we are members who belong to one another. 6And we have different gifts according to the grace given to us. If the gift is prophecy, that individual must use it in proportion to his faith. 7If it is service, he must serve; if it is teaching, he must teach; 8if it is exhortation, he must exhort; if it is contributing, he must do so with sincerity; if it is leadership, he must do so with diligence; if it is showing mercy, he must do so with cheerfulness.

In those individual, unique traps Satan sets for us lie opportunities to glorify God by resisting temptation.  Another piece of beauty is that these temptations keep us humble.  Let me share with you my own "humble pie" this morning, a glimpse into my own warfare story.  I believe we tend to idolize people or to think more highly of them than we ought to think.  I also believe we tend to idolize ourselves, thinking more highly of ourselves than we ought.

As a child, I accepted Christ and then re-affirmed my commitment to Him as a teen.  From there, I did my best to follow Him.  However, I was proud, very, very proud.  I tended to look on others with a certain amount of disdain, as opposed to compassion.  As I tried to do everything "by the Book", this condition became worse and worse.  And, the very worst part?  I had no idea it was happening.  I was totally blind to my own sin.

The Lord used a series of devastating experiences to open my eyes to my idolatry, my self-exaltation, my pride.  This sin continues to plague me, although due to my history with Him, thankfully I am somewhat more aware of it now.  My sinful pride was and is the flip-side of my spiritual gifts.  That's the way it usually is, which is why Paul began to talk about gifts of the Spirit in the same breath as he spoke about humility.  (Sort of like my sugar addiction/saving food conundrum)

Examples:  if you have the gift of mercy, beware that you don't become an "enabler".  If you have the gift of teaching, make sure you don't neglect the exercise of that knowledge, the service which should flow from increased illumination/revelation.  You get my drift.  If we carefully look at our own "gift bag", we can probably find our corresponding weak spots.  This is what Paul means by "sober discernment".

These should produce in our lives humility, the meekness that can only come from Above. The other night, Easter Sunday, I watched again The Passion of the Christ.  In the context of how He allowed men to do what they did to Him, I marveled that He "opened not His mouth" (Isaiah 53:7).  He did respond to questions from the Sanhedrin and from Pilate, the most honest/earnest seeker of them all on that dastardly day.  But, to Herod, that pompous buffoon, He said nothing.  The King of the Universe! The Creator of all that was made!  He humbly said nothing.

I'm still learning about humility, as those closest to me know.  Humility is the soothing salve that heals the burns inflicted by the fire in my soul.  As painful, horribly painful, as the "burns" I've received over the years have been, I am so, so thankful for them!  They served to shine a laser beam on my dreadfully prideful heart.  They increased my "sober discernment" about myself and changed the way I view others.  As Paul reminds us all, "we belong to each other."

Do we really want to be more like Jesus Christ? It is a fearful thing to open our hearts a crack, to let the Holy Spirit flay your heart open and expose things He wants to root out of there...to allow God's balm of humility to seep in.  Oh, but I exhort you, Christians, to do it, even as I daily exhort myself.

As we close in prayer today, pray along with me a prayer of St. Augustine of Hippo:
"Lord Jesus, let me know myself and know you,
And desire nothing, save only you.
Let me hate myself and love you.
Let me do everything for the sake of you.
Let me humble myself and exalt you."

Amen.

Source:

http://saintaugustineacademy.com/saint-augustine-of-hippo-facts-prayers/

Decently and in Order

Good morning,

I find 1 Corinthians 14 to be difficult.  In my travels through 1 Corinthians, I arrived here late last week, amid trying personal circumstances.  The chapter just got the best of of me.  So, really I've been avoiding it.  However, that can't continue to go on; so, here we are.

Although born and raised in the Baptist church, I have had occasional forays into the more charismatic denominations.  I've worshipped with believers who spoke in tongues, for example.  I've worshipped in services where people were healed, where they danced, even where people became so ecstatic in the Spirit that they fainted.  I don't mention any of these things to demean or condescend to any Christian denomination, based on these behaviors.  In all those situations, the congregation behaved in a peaceful, orderly way (vs. 40).

It occurs to me that Christians congregate with each other according to their spiritual gifts.  If a person has been given the gift of tongues, for example, he or she will probably worship in a congregation where that particular spiritual gift is more often exercised.  I see nothing wrong with that.  Otherwise, disorder could result.

In this chapter Paul is instructing the new church on how the spiritual gifts should be exercised so as to build up the local congregation of believers and also to be a witness to an unbelieving world. Apparently, the Corinthians needed this type of corrective guidance, because their worship services were characterized by disorder, as was their communal eating (1 Cor. 11).  The points of disorder seemed to center around the exercise of the gifts of speaking in tongues, in interpreting of tongues and of prophecy.  In their eagerness to "share", members were not waiting their turn, were behaving disrespectfully to each other and were generally causing havoc among the people.

Paul had these things to say about the exercise of the gifts of speaking in and interpreting tongues.
1.  The primary purpose for speaking in tongues is for the believer to communicate with God, to draw closer to Him in prayer (vs. 2).
2.  The one with the gift of speaking in tongues should not exercise his gift in public unless there is someone present who understands the foreign language he is speaking and who can interpret his utterances to the people present (vs. 5, 9-12, 27).

If you do not speak clearly with your tongue, how will anyone know what is being said? For you will be speaking into the air. 10 There are probably many kinds of languages in the world, and none is without meaning. 11 If then I do not know the meaning of a language, I will be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me. 12 It is the same with you.

3.  The implication here is that the believer's utterance should be a recognized foreign language that another person present who speaks that language would be able to interpret.
The goal of public manifestations of the gift of tongues is to strengthen the church and to be a sign to unbelievers.  (vs. 12, 22)
4.   Public manifestations of speaking in tongues should occur one person at a time, with an interpretation following immediately thereafter (vs. 27-28).

Whereas the gift of tongues is to be primarily a private gift with carefully ordered public use, the gift of prophecy is a much more public gift (vs. 19, 39).  The purpose of the gift of prophecy is to:
1.  reveal hidden things from God to the people (29-31)
2.  to strengthen, encourage and console the Church  (vs. 3)
3.  to bring unbelievers to a saving knowledge of Christ Jesus (vs. 24, 25)

Even though the gift of prophecy is the more preferable gift for public use, Paul was clear that all spoken prophecies should be evaluated by the hearers, as to whether they are truly from God.  In the days of the early Church, the people did not have written revelation other than the Old Testament and the newly circulating letters from the apostles.  The spoken words of the apostles and missionaries (the apostles were the first missionaries) were also used as evaluation tools.  Today, we have the entire written revelation of Jesus Christ to His Church, both Old and New Testaments.  We must be careful to evaluate prophecy according to The Book.

Here's an example.  Every day a new "religious" book comes out, seeking to interpret the Scriptures in light of current events.  The most notable examples concern the nation of Israel and "end times" prophecies.  Books come and books go.  Some of their predictions (prophecies) are proven to be true. Others are not.  What makes me think of these phenomena is a piece I read by Joel C. Rosenberg yesterday.  He was commenting on both a huge natural gas reserve (16 trillion cubic feet) discovered in Israel (off the coast of Haifa in 2010) and also more recently, a huge oil reserve , in the Golan Heights.  Joel had penned a non-fiction work, Epicenter, in 2006.  In that book, he prophesied that a future newspaper headline would tell of both of these discoveries.

I would hope that you would do the same with this blog:  evaluate its contents according to the Scriptures, rather than taking it at "face value".  Look up the cited verses each day.  Search the Word of God yourself.

The gift of prophecy, though, has a more personal application as well.  Verse 25 says that this gift discloses secrets of people's hearts - - - not in a public, defaming way - - - but rather that the Holy Spirit uses preachers or teachers with this spiritual gift to produce conviction in the hearts of both believers and unbelievers.

Tomorrow we will conclude this chapter by examining verses 33-36.

Good morning, Lord.  Thank you for giving us the Body of Christ all of the spiritual gifts, so that as Your Church we can more powerfully bring You glory, so that the lost may come to know You.  May all things be done decently and in order.  In Jesus' name, amen.

Sources:

https://flashtrafficblog.wordpress.com/2015/10/11/israel-makes-massive-discovery-of-oil-in-the-golan-heights-is-this-a-prelude-to-the-war-of-gog-magog-heres-the-answer-part-two/

https://flashtrafficblog.wordpress.com/2010/12/30/bible-prophecy-update-israel-discovers-another-16-trillion-cubic-feet-of-natural-gas/

http://www.nasdaq.com/article/major-shale-find-could-guarantee-israels-oil-supply-for-years-cm528693

Gifts, Small and Great

Good morning,

I've waded into a difficult passage this morning, 1 Corinthians 12:14-31.  Because of its length I won't reproduce it here.  If you don't go read it, however, you will be lost.  Here is a link, to make things easy:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Corinthians+12%3A14-31&version=NASB

The essential difficulty of this passage is the seeming contradiction contained in it.
First of all, Paul is saying that all of the spiritual gifts are as necessary as each part of the human body is necessary.  But, then, later (in verses 28-31), he seems to imply that some of the gifts are more special and important than others.

I love the analogy of the Church to the human body.  (Paul expounds on this also in Ephesians 1 and 4.)  Each believer is created by God, according to His perfect foreknowledge.  Each is a miracle. Each is designed to work beautifully together.  It is God that constructs the body in the womb of the mother.  It is God who gifts each new believer.  It is God who leads believers to the local churches, along with the gifts each received at the time of his/her conversion (salvation).  He builds churches according to the giftedness of each individual member.

And, here is a powerful truth - - -
To the extent each of those members yields to the Holy Spirit, walks in obedience to the Word of God and exercises his or her spiritual gifts, the local church grows.
(Now, there are exceptions to this.  There are, for example, churches which have unhealthy growth, based on false teaching and deception.  Satan will pervert anything that is of God, even the growth of the local church.)

Diversity of gifts is healthy.  Where there is little diversity, there is an overabundance of uniformity. Uniformity is not the same as unity. We should pray for and work for unity of purpose in our churches, while we celebrate the diversity of our spiritual gifts.

Another distortion of the devil's is to persuade us to honor some spiritual gifts more than others. Paul seems to confirm this false teaching by mentioning how the Church got started, through the work of the apostles (that gift was preeminent in spreading the gospel initially), prophets, teachers and so on.

Yet, Paul speaks of this to "call out" the false teaching and frame the truth correctly.  Some gifts are more "important" for specific times.  Some are more "showy" in that they seem more effective in leading others to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ.  Evangelism is one of those, for example. Healing is another.  Yet, all the spiritual gifts are necessary, whether they are "pretty" or "flamboyant" or "sensational".... or not.  After all, you can live without some of the more visible parts of the body (ears, eyes, hands, feet, face); but, it's hard to live without some of the "less honorable" parts (the elimination system, the heart, the brain, etc.)

What, then, does Paul mean when he says, "Earnestly desire the greater gifts, and I will still show you a more excellent way" (verse 31)?  How can we "desire" something that is not part of our individual "gift package" the Holy Spirit gives us at the time of our salvation experience?

There ARE "greater gifts", and they are the heritage of every believer, in addition to their customized "gift package" from the Holy Spirit.  They are gifts found in every Christ follower, every child of the King: faith that leads to salvation by grace alone (Ephesians 2:8), justification (Romans 5:1 - being made positionally right with God forever), sanctification (John 17:17 - the continual purifying we can have through the Holy Spirit's work in our lives, in this earthly life), glorification (Philippians 3:20-21 - when we finally are totally free from sin, see Him face-to-face and are with him eternally). Inherent in each of these stages are the gifts of righteousness, joy, peace and love, the beautiful anointing oils of the Holy Spirit onto and into our own spirits (Romans 14:17).  We should every day earnestly desire these extraordinary, available-to-all-believer gifts!

In the next chapter, Paul shows us "a more excellent way", as he describes that ultimate mark of the Christian, the spiritual gift of Christ-like love.

Lord Jesus, you know I have truly wrestled with this post today.  There were (good) distractions.  I could not find things I wanted.  I believe this post to be horribly imperfect.  But, I pray that you will anoint it with Your matchless grace and use it in my life and in the lives of those who read it, as I pray for all my "almost daily" posts.  It is not about me; it is about You, and all of this (sometimes seemingly wretched mess) is offered up for Your honor and glory alone.  All love and praise to You, my King!  Amen.

To Each His Own

Good morning,

I don't hear that English expression much anymore, the title of this post.  In years past, I heard it often, to explain a person's choices or preferences.  I chose it for a slightly different meaning in the context of this post.

Yesterday I was telling a dear friend about the Peru trip.  She lamented the fact that she could not go. Not that she could not afford to go, but that she did not have the emotional endurance to go.  It is plain as can be that her spiritual gifts are different than mine.  The Holy Spirit has gifted her differently.  For example, while I have a small measure of the gift of hospitality, she has a heaping helping!  I love that about her.  She has the ability to make everyone feel welcome and loved.

God has equipped each of us differently so that, although we are united in our purpose to serve our Savior, we have the gifts to do that in a number of different ways.  Listen to what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12:1-12 (NET)

With regard to spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans you were often led astray by speechless idols, however you were led. 3 So I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.

4 Now there are different gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 And there are different ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are different results, but the same God who produces all of them in everyone. 7 To each person the manifestation of the ZonaSpirit is given for the benefit of all. 8 For one person is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, and another the message of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another performance of miracles, to another prophecy, and to another discernment of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 It is one and the same Spirit, distributing as he decides to each person, who produces all these things.

When preparing to go to Peru, the leader of Zona Zegura asked that I prepare teachings for the women on "the woman's leadership role in the church".  As I prayed about what to teach, the Holy Spirit led me to begin with personal holiness (although that segment ended up being taught by the other teacher, my pastor; so, I omitted that segment), then to move on to the woman's leadership role in the home, and then after proper spiritual authority had been established, the topic of spiritual gifts. I'm not going to reproduce that teaching here.

The point is this:  we must embrace the spiritual gifts the Lord has given us.  Why?  Because He gave them to us so that we can bless others, both within the Body of Christ and outside it as well.  Some gifts are given primarily for the unbelieving world (the gifts of evangelism and healing, for example) and others primarily for the building up of the Christian fellowship (the Body of Christ).  An example of that would be the gift of teaching.

The crux of this passage is in the underlined verses above.
1.  We are not the source of our spiritual gifts.  We receive them the moment we accept Jesus as Savior because it is at that moment the Holy Spirit comes to live within us.
2.  Because we are not the source of our gifts, we cannot take the credit for them nor can we accept any praise that comes from the use of our gifts.  Verse 11 clearly states that it is the Holy Spirit who produces both the gifts and the results of exercising them.
3.  It is SO important to remember that the purpose of our gifts is not only to benefit others, but also to glorify God.  Some of the gifts - - healing, for example, should always lead to a praise session and an invitation to others/observers to accept Christ, the One who performed the healing.

Finally, a common mistake we make in the Body of Christ is to glorify some gifts above others.  In fact, some use this "excuse" to not exercise their own gifts.  However, Paul goes on to say that this is a deception and a trap from the evil one.  Our gifts should bring unity, not disunity, peace not discord or dissension or envy or strife.  We'll examine those verses tomorrow.

Dear Father, I praise You for the gifts you give to Your children.  Each new day is an opportunity to use mine to advance Your kingdom, to encourage and support Your children, to bring You all the glory!  May it be done in my life today.  In Jesus' name, amen.

Gifted, Multiplying Trustees

Good morning,

I'm really dragging this morning.  This week, I got back into the part-time teaching I've done for the past four years, after a busy summer, yet one that involved no teaching.  So, for this old gal, it was somewhat of an adjustment.  My last class of the week was last night; and this morning, I'm tired.

Ironically, I had decided yesterday to focus on 1 Cor 3:22 - 4:2 (NET).

Everything belongs to you, 23 and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.

4 One should think about us this way—as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Now what is sought in stewards is that one be found faithful.

The word "steward" is not a common one in our American language today.  It is a word that marries the connotations of "servant" with "trusted keeper".   In other words, a steward is one who has been entrusted with something precious by his or her master; and, because of this high honor, the steward diligently cares for that precious commodity.

In this context, Paul calls himself a servant of Christ and a steward of the mysteries of God.  So are we.  You may not think of yourself as "a Paul".  Truly, none of us are.  But, each of us who claim Jesus Christ as Savior is, to some degree described by these verses.
1.  We belong to Jesus Christ.
2.  All that is His ("everything") is ours as well.
3.  Since He is our Lord, we are His stewards.
4.  By the Holy Spirit, varying degrees of the mysteries of God are given to us.  (Truly, all of God's written revelation is available to each of us!)

All this talk of stewards reminds me of the story in Matthew 25:14-30.  I'm not going to dissect that parable here.  That's another blog post for another day.  But, the point is that these three stewards were entrusted with their master's wealth, each according to his abilities and gifts.  The two who were entrusted with the most increased their master's wealth by 100%.  The third steward, who was given the least to manage, fearfully hoarded his resources and merely maintained the original investment.

As Christ-followers, we are entrusted with the kingdom of God.  Jesus said, "The kingdom of God is within you." (Luke 17:21)  Our responsibility, each of us, is to faithfully multiply what He has given us, according to our abilities and gifts.  We are to be "multiplication specialists"!

I teach teachers how to work with children who are "gifted", according to a prescribed definition adopted by the state of Georgia.  But, in addition to the Holy Bible, God gives each of His children, through the Holy Spirit, spiritual gifts, when they first trust in Jesus as their Savior.  All true believers are "spiritually gifted"! That unique package of gifts is part of our spiritual inheritance and treasure. We must not hoard what we have been given, but rather, diligently exercise our faith and use our gifts, for the glory of God and the advancement of His kingdom.

Don't we, as earthly parents, wish this for our children?  Don't we long to see them "become" the people they were designed to be, using their God-given abilities?  I was reading on Facebook this morning about how some of my friends are moving their children into college dorms this week.  My own two "Hood-lums" start afresh at KSU on Monday.  What parents wants to see his or her child "bury his or her talent in the ground"?  Instead, don't we keep a watchful eye over our children, lovingly upholding them, exhorting them to do their very best?  We parents get that from God the Father, who yearns to see us, His own beloved children, multiply His kingdom, according to the  "everything" He has already lavished on us!

This material world is so seductive; Christians are not immune to its charms.  Chasing after worldly materialism and/or worldly success takes our focus off of our greatest treasure, that spiritual treasure we already possess!  It is so easy to get side-tracked or off-base or just simply...tired.  For the glory of God, we must not allow that to happen.

Holy Spirit, I thank you for my own, unique "gift package".  Fill me; inspire me to "multiply" today. 
In Jesus' name, amen.