And Then Comes The Judgment

Posted on by August 27, 2014
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Hebrews 9:27-28 — And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: so Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

Here’s a thing. We all die. When we die, we end up being judged. You might think it’s redundant. After all, God knows who’s going to heaven and who’s going to hell doesn’t he? Well yes — but I think it comes down to due process. God is loving, but He is also holy. Those two attributes merge in His willingness not only to do justice but also to be seen to do justice.
There is a judgment of those who refuse to be saved. If you are not a Christian, that’s you. It’s your choice — but there are consequences.
The judgment of unbelievers is described in the Revelation — Chapter 20:11-15. It’s called the “Great White Throne” judgment. This is the judgment for out and out sinners, but also for those who think they don’t need Jesus because they are “good” people. They are misguided. The scripture is clear:

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Before the great white throne all those who have denied Christ will be judged by the standard they have chosen. Their works — their thoughts, words and deeds, will be measured against God’s standard of holiness. Failing, as they inevitably will, unbelievers are doomed to the lake of fire.
It might seem natural that sinners would be judged — but why the saints? Here’s the deal. Believers come before the Judgment Seat of Christ. You might have heard it called the “bema” which is the Greek word where the judgment is described in Romans 14:10-12. This is not about salvation. Just as unbelievers are doomed, believers are destined for a great future. But not one of us is perfect, and just as for unbelievers, there are consequences. It’s that justice thing again.
In 1 Corinthians 3:9-15 there’s a clear explanation. Our body of work is reviewed — what did we do, and how much was truly driven by faith. The results are reflected in rewards and losses:

If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. (1 Corinthians 3:14-15)

We are all judged. There is no free pass for any of us. For those of us who are Christians it means that we need to be disciples, following Paul’s instructions to his beloved Philippians:
Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling: (Philippians 2:12)
For the unbeliever, the “no free pass” rule means a world of hurt — forever. Tell your unsaved family and friends!

 

Finish Well!

Posted on by August 27, 2014
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Ecclesiastes 7:8 — Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

We just had some trees trimmed in our yard. We were lucky enough to find a great guy to do the work. He offered a great price and got busy. By Saturday night the trees were looking great. But there was a problem … We had a small forest lying on the ground! Not to worry, our guy would be back on Monday. Only he wasn’t. Turns out his truck had to go into the shop. Not to worry, he’d be back on Tuesday… and he was. The forest is gone. It looks great.
One of the things I love about the Bible is its reality. Different books bring out different “facts of life”. In one book we find the reality of history, in another the truth of creation. In one book we find emotional truth, and here in Ecclesiastes, the Preacher provides a realistic (if cynical) view of life “under the sun”. This verse makes the simple, but oh so true, point that it’s more important to finish projects than to start! We were happy to see work start on our trees, but we were much happier to see it finished!
The second half of Ecclesiastes 7:8 makes it clear that there’s another part to this story though. It’s easy to miss. “The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.” Simple. But it connects to “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof”. The message is “don’t be to quick to judge”. Myra and I could have got upset when our tree surgery didn’t get finished on Saturday … but a little patience got the job done without any unnecessary aggravation.
So that’s a nice simple idea. Is that all there is to it? Well no. It goes a bit further. In fact it goes right through to the end of life. And just like the little projects, it goes both ways.
From one side, the message is “don’t be too quick to judge a life”. People may start out badly, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to finish badly. In fact Christians are committed to the idea that God offers redemption, and that the end of a life is better than it’s beginning.
From the other side, the story looks different. Once we’re past childhood we are driven for the next many years. Family and jobs occupy us, and that has an interesting effect. The responsibilities we carry drive us to achieve. For a Christian couple that means he stretches towards Biblical leadership, she reaches towards being the supporting Biblical wife and mother.
For perhaps as long as forty years we are operating within a framework that, in an odd way, provides simplicity. Then an odd thing happens. The kids move out, the job ends and suddenly the pressures ease. It becomes easy to let things slip. The Preacher would want the end of life to be as good, if not better, than the start! Finish well.

Is The End Nigh?

Posted on by August 27, 2014
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Matthew 24:3 — And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

When I was growing up in England, there was a man who walked up and down Oxford Street in London wearing a sandwich board with “The End Is Nigh”. He was predicting, of course, the end of the world — the rapture, the tribulation, the last judgment … So was he right, or just another crazy?
I thought I’d address this topic today because of some of the reporting I’ve seen about the magnitude 6.0 earthquake that hit the Napa Valley on Sunday morning.
People are looking at a couple of verses in Matthew’s Gospel and starting to ask a question:

For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. (Matthew 24:7-8)

Is the Northern California earthquake one of those “earthquakes in divers places”? Are more earthquakes happening,and does that mean the end is nigh?
Well, we may or may not be seeing more earthquakes. A paper published in the journal “Geophysical Research Letters” in June did say that the rate of major earthquakes more than doubled in the first quarter of 2014 compared with the average since 1979. The problem with that, though, is that 35 years is just too short a time to measure by.
But let’s say that there really are more earthquakes. Does that mean the end of the world is upon us? That’s a definite maybe! Jesus said …

But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. (Matthew 24:36)

You know, I’m not smart enough to have a definite answer as to how far we are from the rapture — and I’m not stupid enough to claim to know the date! What I do know is that a lot of wonderful men of God believe that all the necessary conditions have been met, and that Jesus could return for His people at pretty much any time. So I do think the end is nigh … earthquakes or no earthquakes.
While I’m here let me touch on a related topic. Whether the end is nigh or not, we are definitely in the end times.
Just consider “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.” (1 Peter 4:7). For two thousand years we have be in the end times … but now, the end is nigh!

Hell

Posted on by August 27, 2014
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2 Thessalonians 1:8-9 — in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;

I have said before that I do not always “like” the topics that the Holy Spirit lays on my heart for these pieces. So it is with today’s topic.
Most of the time I, like most Christians, prefer not to think about, much less talk about, hell. It is, however, a responsibility. There are those who prefer to believe, preach and teach that there is no hell, or that if there is, God will not allow any human to fall into it. It is hard to imagine how they come to this conclusion, given the clear teaching of Paul, and more so of Jesus Himself who spoke more of hell than anyone else, and more of hell than Heaven.
Let us be quite clear. There are two eternal destinations — Heaven (and then the new Earth), and hell. Anyone who has not admitted their sin, acknowledged Jesus as God and the Son of God, and accepted Him as Lord and Savior will spend eternity in hell. As believers we must make this truth universally known.
Those who believe a loving God would not condemn anyone to hell will often point to 2 Peter 3:9 as suggesting that God will allow none to be condemned:

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

That great old commentator Matthew Henry gives the lie to the error:

God has no delight in the death of sinners: as the punishment of sinners is a torment to his creatures, a merciful God does not take pleasure in it; and though the principal design of God in his long-suffering is the blessedness of those whom he has chosen to salvation, through sanctification of the spirit, and belief of the truth, yet his goodness and forbearance do in their own nature invite and call to repentance all those to whom they are exercised; and, if men continue impenitent when God gives them space to repent, he will deal more severely with them, though the great reason why he did not hasten his coming was because he had not accomplished the number of his elect.

We must make it clear. For those who have not repented and accepted God’s gift of salvation, hell is the inevitable destination and it is terrible.
The great Italian poet Dante imagined the following words inscribed on the gateway to hell:

Through me the way is to the grievous city;
Through me the way is to eternal pain;
Through me the way among the people lost.
Justice incited my sublime Creator;
Divine Omnipotence created me,
The highest Wisdom and the primal Love.
Before me there were no created things,
Only eternal, and I eternal last.
All hope abandon, ye who enter in!”

The words describe a place beyond description — but it captures two truths about hell that can not be denied. It is a place of despair — eternal grief and pain, and it was created by a loving God. The Bible repeatedly makes it clear:

But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. (Revelation 21:8)

Tell your friends.

Who’s In Charge

Posted on by August 23, 2014
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Romans 13:1-2 — Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.

Myra and I read chapter 13 of Romans this morning. Verses 1-7 speak of the duty of Christians to government, and we discussed the issue which has exercised Christians for years: “What do Christians do when the government is not the one they would have chosen?”
Let me make my answer plain from the start, and then follow with my Biblical base. The Christian is obligated to submit to the government, to pay taxes, to speak respectfully of those in government, and even to pray for them. The Christian is not obligated, however, to act unlawfully — even when government demands it.
For my first point — that the Christian is obligated to submit to the government, I refer to the very passage at the head of this piece. To those who might object that Paul didn’t know what today’s government’s are like, I can simply reply that the Roman Emperors of Paul’s day were far worse!
As to my second point — Christians have no choice about whether they pay taxes. Jesus Himself paid taxes. As well as the famous comment about rendering to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, He paid temple tax — see the account in Matthew 17:24-27. There is no “wiggle room” here. Even when we don’t like what governments do with our money, paying taxes is not optional.
Well how about speaking respectfully of those in government? Surely it’s OK to express contempt for the inept, the immoral, the deceitful, if they happen to be in government. No. Never. Once again, Paul’s words in Romans 13 make the point. In his letter to Titus, he repeats the point, “to speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, showing all meekness unto all men.” (Titus 3:2) Not only that, but every person is made in the image of God. Disrespect for government amounts to disrespect to God. Not only are we to respect those in government, but As Paul writes to another young disciple, we are to pray for them:

I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; for kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. (1 Timothy 2:1-2)

So there it is, Biblically confirmed, The Christian is obligated to submit to the government, to pay taxes, to speak respectfully of those in government, and even to pray for them. But the Christian has no obligation to obey commands that are in opposition to Gods law. This is most clearly stated in Acts 5:29 when the apostles, commanded to stop preaching the gospel of Christ, robustly respond “We ought to obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5:29). There were consequences. The apostles took their beating (Acts 5:40) and moved on. There is a lesson, or perhaps a warning, for Christians. We must obey God’s law, and expect man’s consequences. It is a timely warning when students are being abused for defending their beliefs, and businesses penalized for principals. Jesus said “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:10)
There is, of course, a background to this longish piece. Paul writes, “the powers that be are ordained of God.”. That’s the point — love them or loathe them, governments are established by God as part of His long plan of redemption. We may not understand the place of today’s government in His plan — but He’s in charge!

Children Go Where I Send Thee

Posted on by August 22, 2014
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Jonah 3:2-3 –.Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee. So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord…

Pardon the long quote, but on August 6th, conservative commentator Anne Coulter wrote:
“I wonder how the Ebola doctor feels now that his humanitarian trip has cost a Christian charity much more than any services he rendered.
What was the point?
Whatever good Dr. Kent Brantly did in Liberia has now been overwhelmed by the more than $2 million already paid by the Christian charities Samaritan’s Purse and SIM USA just to fly him and his nurse home in separate Gulfstream jets, specially equipped with medical tents, and to care for them at one of America’s premier hospitals. (This trip may be the first real-world demonstration of the economics of Obamacare.)
There’s little danger of an Ebola plague breaking loose from the treatment of these two Americans at the Emory University Hospital. But why do we have to deal with this at all?
Why did Dr. Brantly have to go to Africa? The very first “risk factor” listed by the Mayo Clinic for Ebola — an incurable disease with a 90 percent fatality rate — is: “Travel to Africa.”
Can’t anyone serve Christ in America anymore? No — because we’re doing just fine. America, the most powerful, influential nation on Earth, is merely in a pitched battle for its soul.”
Now I usually prefer conservative commentary, but this one really saddened me. It’s been tugging away at me. I’ve been trying to stay away from the topic, because the wonderful Dr. Al. Mohler has already weighed in on it — but it keeps coming back to me.
There are several reasons why I think Miss Coulter is wrong, and that American isolationism ought not to cross over from the political sphere to the religious sphere.
Before I get to my reasons for disagreeing, let me say that there is a point on which I completely agree with her. America is in a pitched battle for her soul. But that might be a good place to start the explanation of why I think it’s wrong to abandon Christian service overseas. The apostles could probably have filled their lives with the Galilee mission. But that wasn’t the instruction they got. Remember? “… ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8). American evangelism can’t be limited to “Jacksonville, Georgia and the whole Southern United States”!
But it’s more than a matter of just following the scriptural instructions. I don’t believe Dr. Brantly went to Liberia on a whim. He didn’t go to Liberia for fun. It wasn’t an “ego trip”. He went because the Father sent him. Remember the song? “Five for the five that came back alive” — missionaries. We serve where we are sent … in America, or Africa.
Don’t mistake me. There is a choice. Dr. Brantly didn’t have to go. He could have made Jonah’s choice, and run in another direction. But we all know what happened to Jonah. The terrible thing that happened to Jonah was not that he ended up in the belly of a whale. The terrible think happened before he was swallowed by the whale. His prayer in chapter 2 makes it plain that the whale was to him a token of his deliverance. Before that moment, he had touched a base of isolation and despair. That is the risk that anyone who runs from God’s will is faced with.
So, Miss Coulter, Dr. Brantly arose, and went unto Liberia, according to the word of the Lord. I say he could do nothing else.

What’s Happening With Our Kids?

Posted on by August 21, 2014
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Psalm 127:3-5 — Lo, children are a heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.

What’s going on with our kids? Actually, that’s not my question. My question is “What’s going on with how people are dealing with their kids?”
I keep seeing on TV, or reading about, tragic stories: “Death of Connecticut child left in hot car ruled a homicide”, “Child neglect accounts for 75% of reported abuse cases”, “New Mexico man fractured infant’s skull, pummeled mother during motel spat: cops”. … On and on it goes…
I did not have an especially protected upbringing. But I can’t remember things being like that when I was growing up.
It’s not just the overt cruelty that bothers me though. It’s the whole change in attitude to children that upsets me — maybe even frightens me. I love what the Psalmist says about children being a blessing, the future of the family, speeding like arrows to the target of God’s glory. Of course it’s more than that … Solomon tells us that children are a responsibility, too. “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6). So what’s the “modern” attitude?
Here’s something else I read recently:

On one level, I can see how Shona Carter-Brooks got it twisted.
Carter-Brooks is the Tennessee bride who decided that the “something new” to include in her wedding-day wardrobe would be her 1-month-old daughter. So she fastened the infant in the folds of her bridal gown as if she was adding a tulle bow or a taffeta sash, and dragged her down the aisle.
She also preserved the moment on Facebook, where it went viral and where she wound up being vilified for possibly endangering her child and ridiculed for her tacky taste. Carter-Brooks’ pathetic defense to the overwhelming criticism was a barely literate post about the baby being “covered by Christ,” and about God being on their side.

It’s not a “one off”. Increasingly children are being seen as, at best, “fashion accessories” or, at worst, an annoying inconvenience. Oh I know it’s not universal. I know there are people reading this for whom children are a gift, a blessing and a message to the future. But I know, too, that there are more and more of the other kind. I see so many people start as accessories, then become and inconvenience, and end up being occasional visitors …
So I guess my question isn’t even “What’s going on with how people are dealing with their kids?”. The question is “How do we fix what’s going on with how people are dealing with their kids?”. Any ideas?

Change, you know it ain’t easy.

Posted on by August 20, 2014
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Isaiah 43:18-19 — Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

In Lancashire, the English county where I was born, they say “there’s nowt so queer as folk”. A loose translation is “there’s nothing stranger than people”. It’s an undeniable truth! One of the things that’s strangest about us folk is the way we deal with change.
We get set in our ways. We complain ceaselessly about the frictions, bumps, scratches and bruises that we collect every day as we travel along those ways. Time for change right?
Wait! What? Say what? Did you say change? NOOoooooooo. No change. I want you to make things better … but don’t change things.
Now maybe you’re not the same as me, because I really don’t like change. I am conservative with a small “c”, I love tradition, I hate upheaval. Some people are the exact opposite. They love change, thrive on it, embrace it — but there’s a funny thing. Most people have something, some area of their life, that they can not and will not change.
This change thing might be one of the hardest things about this Christian life. I don’t know about you, but nobody told me that everything was going to change when I became a Christian, and that I had to be prepared to give up all control. It’s been a struggle. Some things were O.K. I was fine with letting go of the petty little dishonesties that the non-Christian world seemed to regard as normal social lubrication. I was fine (a little to my surprise) with stopping drinking. But I really struggled with giving up my right to lose my temper. I used to ENJOY letting people know how I felt! (I know, I’m not perfect, but I’m a lot better now, honest! Ask Myra)
God, though, is creative. He says “Behold, I make all things new.” And what does He say about this business of changing people? “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
The heart of these two verses from Isaiah say something very special about God’s creative process. “Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it?” The implication is that the seed of change is already sown, the change is coming … and we see that process so much in creation — there is sowing, and growing, and bursting forth. So it is with us when we become Christians — the Holy Spirit moves in, and the change starts … And change, you know it ain’t easy …

Dream Home

Posted on by August 19, 2014
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John 14:1-3 — Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

Today’s rather obvious thoughts have to start with a pretty shameful confession. Recently Myra and I have been enjoying watching the shows on HGTV. There. I said it. You might not know the shows unless you share our shameful secret, but they are mostly about people buying — and sometimes remodeling — houses.
Tonight there were shows about people moving to the Caribbean, people moving to Napa Valley … looking for their dream homes.
Somehow, what we were watching connected with some thoughts I had during my quiet time this morning. I can’t remember the train of thought that led to it, but I was thinking of the story of the rich man and Lazarus. We find the story in Luke 16:19–31. The rich man lives a really nice life, but ends in hell. Lazarus doesn’t have a nice life, but ends in Heaven. The rich man appeals to Abraham to have Lazarus cool his tongue … And Abraham drops the hammer — “But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.” (Luke 16:25)
That put me in mind of some people I know who would surely say they have dream homes … but sadly they are — how shall I put it — less generous than they might be.
When these thoughts chased each other around in my head eventually they settled around the conclusion that maybe chasing the dream home is not really the most Christian of ideals.
Then again, maybe chasing a dream home is a really Christian ideal — as long as you pick the right builder!
Jesus promises that there will be dream homes for all — or at least, for all who trust in God, and His son.
Now it’s easy for me to talk. After all, I live in a house that works pretty well as a dream home for me. It might only be a modest two bedroom two bathroom house … but it’s the nicest home I have ever owned, and all I can imagine Myra and me ever needing. All the same the thought process made me wonder … Can you put too much into your earthly home, and not enough into heavenly real estate?

Happy Anniversary

Posted on by August 18, 2014
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Ephesians 5:25 — Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;

Fourteen years ago this day, my beloved wife Myra and I were married. Anybody who knows us knows how lucky I am, and what a brute I would be if I did not love her. I do. And it doesn’t need Paul to tell me to!
As I considered our marriage this morning, I was reminded of this instruction to the Ephesians, and a question popped into my head. Why had Paul considered it necessary to tell Ephesians husbands — and by extension all Christians — that they should love their wives?
As I thought about my question, two things came to mind. The first is that the modern Western understanding of marriage based on romantic attraction and eventual intimate partnership, is far from the historical norm. In Paul’s day marriage was essentially transactional, economic, though the Jews, Greeks and Romans had different flavors.
The Jewish wedding was most formal, with three stages — contract, consummation and celebration. An offer of marriage was proposed. If the offer was accepted there was a contract of marriage and gifts and money were given both to the bride and her parents. The “bride” and “groom” could be young, and consummation and celebration might be years later. Jewish men were encouraged to love their wives — but it was not assumed.
It might be said that marriage for the Romans was even more cold-blooded. It was (at least in the case of first marriages) an agreement between families to marry a man in his mid-twenties two a woman in her early teens, with the families agreeing that their ties were a good financial and political match. The bride and groom were contracted to marry each other at the betrothal, a formal ceremony between the two families. Gifts would be exchanged and the dowry agreed. A written agreement would be signed and the deal sealed with a kiss. Marriage had no legal force of its own but was rather a personal agreement between the bride and groom. The “wedding” was effectively no more than a declaration that the couple intended to live together! As might be imagined, such agreements were often discarded if finance or politics made it seem like a good idea!
There is, perhaps, not room for me to describe fully the Greek marriage. This essence, however, is that a woman was under the Lordship of her father, and in marriage would be transferred — effectively as a possession — to the Lordship of her husband.
This quick review of the state of marriage in Paul’s time leads to the conclusion that it looked nothing like a picture of the relationship Jesus wanted with His church! Paul’s remedial words were certainly needed.
There is, though, another aspect. Paul’s emphasis on the need for men to love their wives, and wives to respect their husbands, showed a clear understanding of the values that are critical to a successful marriage — in any century. It’s interesting to me that modern research by authors such as Shaunti Feldhahn and teaching by marriage experts like Dr. Emerson Eggerichs make it clear that Paul was dead right.
Husbands, love your wives! I do …