Good intentions?

So they said to Jeremiah, "Let the LORD be a true and faithful witness between us, if we do not do according to everything which the LORD your God sends us by you.
Jeremiah 42:5

"The LORD has said concerning you, O remnant of Judah, 'Do not go to Egypt!' Know certainly that I have admonished you this day. 
Jeremiah 42:19

So they went to the land of Egypt, for they did not obey the voice of the LORD
Jeremiah 43:7

God’s people, because of their sin, had suffered a terrible defeat at the hands of ruthless pagan enemies.  Only a small remnant remained.  These, determined to get things right with God, called on God’s prophet, Jeremiah, to inquire of the Lord for them.  They pledged to do whatever God said that things might turn around for them.  Jeremiah sought God’s will for these who seemed to be seeking the Lord.  God’s word via the prophet was clear and simple: Do not go to Egypt, or you will be severely punished.  Instead, stay in Israel and be blessed.

When the people, who already had it in their minds to go to Egypt, heard these words, they rejected Jeremiah, insisting that he had not heard from the Lord.  They headed to Egypt.  Once there—you guessed it—they suffered the consequences, exactly as Jeremiah had prophesied.

Before we cluck our tongues and wag our heads at “those fools,” we might want to consider how many times we have attended church with the intention to hear from he Lord through the preaching, and then, having heard something we do not care for, ignore what God has said.

Let us be reminded of the penetrating words of our Lord, who asked, “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do the things that I say?”

God's desire is that those created in His image know Him

“Then you shall know that I am the Lord.”
~Repeated 63 times in  Ezekiel

The fact that God says these words throughout Ezekiel so many times must be significant, wouldn’t you think?  As I read Ezekiel, and particularly the recurring phrase, “Then you shall know that I am the Lord,” I am struck by two things.

First, God really wants His people to know that He is the Lord!  He wants us to know this so that we will turn from the other things that capture our affections and divert our resources away from Him.  He wants us to know Him so that we will give Him the glory that He alone deserves.  Do you know that He is the Lord?

Second, it is worthy to note that so many times this phrase appears in Ezekiel is at the end of a prophesy about God’s judgment, often severe.  This instructs us that God is not a one-dimensional mush-ball of love.  It is as we know of His judgment that we have a fuller picture of who He is.  Let us seek to know as many aspects of God as we can, that we may know that He is the Lord!

Whitewashing sin. It doesn't work!

Through the prophet Ezekiel, God warned not only ancient Israel but all people at all times.  About what?  About “whitewashing” our sins.  We all whitewash at least some of our sins at least some of the time—some more than others. 

We whitewash our sins by playing-down the sinfulness of sin.  When we sin we comfort ourselves in a number of ways: “It’s not that bad.”  “Everybody’s doing it.” “I’m not hurting anybody,” and with many more equally foolish lies.

God promises that when Judgment Day comes (if not before), He will demolish what we whitewashed—in other words He’ll expose the folly of our rationalizations.  Not a one of them will excuse us. 

The incredibly good news for those who trust in Christ is that all our sin and guilt was carried by Jesus.  There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).  He even carried the guilt of our foolish rationalizations. 

There is no need to keep whitewashing.  Instead:

1. Trust in Christ,

2. Confess sin, and

3. ŽRepent in the power of the Holy Spirit. 

And then live free in Christ!

It is either bad news or good news, depending on...

"Am I a God near at hand," says the LORD, "And not a God afar off?  Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see him?" says the LORD; "Do I not fill heaven and earth?" says the LORD
Jeremiah 23:23-24

The truth of this passage is that God is neither near nor far.  He is both near and far because He is everywhere and sees all things.  This truth cuts in two directions.

To those who think they can sin without God seeing or knowing—God is everywhere and sees all things.  This is not pleasant news for those who think they can hide from God.

To believers who are feeling down, discouraged, and maybe even ditched by God—impossible!

First, He is everywhere and sees all things.

Second, He has promised believers that He will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).  This is excellent news for those who for whatever reason feel abandoned by God, that He is unaware of your troubles, and not hearing your prayers.  Child of God, trust God’s Word, not your feelings.  If you are trusting in Christ, God is with you and God cares for you because God loves you!

God’s will does not change, but people do

…Hilkiah the priest found the Book of the Law of the LORD given by Moses... .And Shaphan read it before the king. Thus it happened, when the king heard the words of the Law, that he tore his clothes. 2 Chronicles 34:14, 18-19

God does not change, but does He change His mind?  This is a little tricky, so pay close attention.  God told the people His will for them, which was to do good.  When the people disobeyed and acted sinfully, God told them that there would be consequences for disobeying His will.  God also said that if the people in sin would repent, He would spare them the consequences of their sin.

Did God change His mind, and therefore change?  No.  It is always God’s will for His people not to sin.  It is also God’s will that when people sin there are consequences.  It is also God’s will that people in sin repent.  It is also God’s will that when people in sin repent, He will deal graciously with them.  And it is also God’s will that if those in sin do not repent, He will deal justly with them, which includes His judgment.

God’s will does not change, but people do.  Sometimes we repent of our sins and sometimes we do not.  God does not change, but our choices determine which aspect of God’s will we will experience: grace or justice.

Make no mistake: It is never God’s will that we sin, but God does use even our sin to accomplish His perfect will!

More certainly could be said, but in 216 words,
that may be the best I can do!

Let us not postpone repentance!

…Hilkiah the priest found the Book of the Law of the LORD given by Moses... .And Shaphan read it before the king. Thus it happened, when the king heard the words of the Law, that he tore his clothes.
2 Chronicles 34:14, 18-19

During spiritually dark days in Judah, the prophet Jeremiah announced the judgment of God on the nation.  When young King Josiah ordered a housecleaning in the temple, a book was found.  It was God’s Law.  It is ironic that the Word of the Lord was lost  in the house of the Lord!

The book was read aloud to King Josiah.  His reaction was deep heart-felt conviction (always a prerequisite for true conversion and revival).  As Josiah was cut to the heart by the Word of God, the cleaning of the temple turned into a national revival.

Don’t miss the means God used to awaken the king and then the nation: The Word of God.  The same thing happened in the 1500s as Martin Luther was transformed by studying the Bible.  The result was the Protestant Reformation (the greatest revival in the history of the Church).  We need what Josiah and Martin Luther experienced: the transforming power of God that comes only by the Word of God!

As a footnote: Although great revival marked Josiah’s reign, God’s judgment on Judah was already determined because of the horrific sins of the nation, led  by Josiah’s grandfather, King Manasseh.  Shortly after Josiah died, Judah again went astray and God subsequently delivered Judah to the Babylonians.  Does that mean that Josiah’s revival was meaningless?  Not for the many who were saved as a result—even though a generation later the nation backslid again.  So, while no revival lasts forever, even if God determines to judge our nation, let us turn to Him and perhaps He will spare this generation.

What can we do for God?

Thus says the Lord: “Heaven is My throne, and earth is My footstool. Where is the house that you will build Me? And where is the place of My rest? For all those things My hand has made, and all those things exist,” Says the Lord. “But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, And who trembles at My word.
Isaiah 66:1-2

It has been said that there are only two religions: the one based on what man does, and the one based on what God has done.

There is no end to what man will do in hopes of garnering God’s favor, but what can finite man possibly hope to build for God who is infinite?  What man-made religious domicile can house the God in whose hand the universe comfortably fits?  After all, all that we have and are, are His handiwork in the first place.

The Lord finds no completion in what we may do for Him, but His holy, yet gracious eye is pleased to rest on those who acknowledge and are ashamed of their spiritual bankruptcy, and who quake before His Word.

Let us utterly abandon any and all delusions about what we are or what we may do for God.  Let us instead rest in what God in Christ has done for us.  Let us rejoice that His benevolent eye eternally rests on all who trust in Jesus, the Word of God made flesh.

Legalism & liberalism both create problems for which biblical faith is the only answer

Then Jesus said to them, "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees."
Matthew 16:6

It only takes a small bit of leaven, or yeast, to take over an entire lump of dough.  The effect is gradual, but left alone, it will be total.

The Pharisees were legalistic religionists who sought always to add to God’s Word.  They corrupted the Law into something other than that which was handed down to Moses.  The Sadducees were liberal intellectuals who sought always to take away from God’s Word.  Denying the supernatural, they watered down the truth to make it palatable to natural men.

It doesn’t take much legalism or much liberalism to create a problem.  It may begin subtly, adding or subtracting such a small amount of the truth as to be imperceptible.  But gradually, both religion and intellectualism will corrupt the entire faith of those who allow it’s intrusion into biblical Christianity. 

In Matthew 16:12 it was made clear that Jesus spoke concerning the doctrine of these two groups.  Beware brethren.  Doctrine matters.  We need not be far off, dabbling in outright heresy, to be inviting ultimate error.  A little leaven leavens the whole lump.

Worship God in, for, and with!

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!
Psalm 150:6

The last entry in the book of Psalms is Psalm 150.  It is short—only six verses.  In it there is broad, yet vital instruction about worship.  Three little words outline the content: in, for and with.

Verse one calls us to praise the Lord in two places: In His sanctuary (the Church) and in His firmament (or under the skies.)  These two mean everywhere!

Verse two calls us to praise Him for the great things He has done and for His intrinsic greatness.  Both are vitally important..

Verses 3-5 call us to praise the Lord with numerous instruments. The list is not exclusive or exhaustive.  It is illustrative.  The point is that we may use any number of musical instruments to praise the Lord.  Which instruments are used is not the point; the heart to worship the Lord is key.

Verse six concludes with an imperative (a command):  Everything that lives is to praise the Lord.  That the  command is repeated underscores the weightiness of this calling.  So, if you are alive, join the congregation of the Lord in praising the Living God: in, for, and with!

Hope and Caution

Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem... And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and walked in all the way of David his father, and he did not turn aside to the right or to the left. 2 Kings 22:1-2

 Josiah gives me hope.  He became king when he was only eight years old, and led a spiritual revival when he was only sixteen years old.  This gives me hope that God uses young people.

Josiah’s father Amon, was evil, yet Josiah was godly.  This gives me hope that can turn things around.

But I am also reminded to be cautious.  Amon’s father was Manasseh, who was the most ungodly of all Judah’s kings.  But Manasseh repented in his old age.  That is good.  But the damage was done as neither the nation of Judah nor his son Amon followed Manasseh in repentance.

As godly as young Josiah was, when he was older— though he remained godly—even he made a pridefully foolish choice and died in a battle he shouldn’t have been involved with.  Let us be cautious not to think that being godly in our youth, exempts us from foolishness when older.

Regarding our godless nation, let us pray for and believe that God can bring about revival in our land.  And whether He does or not, let us be on guard to finish wisely. 

We need spiritual, not political remedies

Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did—his might, how he made war, and how he recaptured for Israel, from Damascus and Hamath, what had belonged to Judah—are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 2 Kings 14:28

And he did evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin. 2 Kings 14:24

Jeroboam I was the first king of Israel when it was divided into Israel in the North and Judah in the South. Jeroboam I led the nation away from God from the outset.  Generations later, Jeroboam II (the one in 2 Kings 14) became king.  Please don’t miss this: Jeroboam II was a political and military success.  But spiritually, he was evil in the sight of the Lord.

May we in America not be duped by political and military successes brought about by godless leaders.  We can be thankful for the successes, but in the end, they are detrimental unless we as a nation turn to the Lord—not to anemic civil religion, but to biblical faith in and obedience to the King of kings.

Thank the Lord that we are blessed to live in a nation like no other in the world (as evidenced by the fact that people from all over the world want to come here!).  But let us repent of the false notion that an ungodly nation (regardless of outward strength) will be spared the wrath of God in the end.  Let us worship and follow the only true and living God of the Bible!

Because God is so good!

… Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm. Joel 2:13

For those who think the Old Testament prophets only spoke about God’s wrath, sorry. Not so!

God’s people were in sin. Joel was calling God’s people to repent. The threat of wrath was surely there, but look at how Joel pleads with the people to repent—not merely because of God’s impending judgment, but more importantly, because of God’s gracious, merciful, and kind nature!

Let us (and I include myself since I also need to be reminded of this!), repent of our sins, not merely because of God’s judgment, but because of God’s love and eagerness, to forgive, restore, and reconcile us to Himself!

Care regarding close unions

Then Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned safely to his house in Jerusalem. And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to King Jehoshaphat, "Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the LORD? Therefore the wrath of the LORD is upon you. Nevertheless good things are found in you, in that you have removed the wooden images from the land, and have prepared your heart to seek God."    2 Chronicles  19:1-3

King Jehoshaphat was good, but not wise.  He loved and honored God but he lacked discernment, especially when dealing with the godless.  The most pressing cases in point are the king’s social, economic, political, and military alliances with wicked King Ahab and with Ahab’s son, Ahaziah. 

Though we cannot perfectly read the minds of people in antiquity, we may cautiously wonder if Jehoshaphat’s foolishness stemmed from a presupposition that people are “basically good” and may be trusted allies. 

It is good to think the best of people, but even a wisp of discernment would have said that neither Ahab nor Ahaziah deserved any such benefit of the doubt.

As Christians we should not enter into covenant agreements with non-believers even if they seem like “good folk.”  Doesn’t 2 Corinthians 6:14 warn us not to be “unequally yoked” with non believers?  This does not mean we can have no dealings with non-believers, but we must not enter into contractual or covenantal unions with those who are not committed believers.  This includes, but is not limited to, marriages and business partnerships (especially if the union is in the least way binding.)

“But, but, but…”

When God speaks there are no buts!

Why is there evil in the world?

Truly, this only I have found: That God made man upright, But they have sought out many schemes."
Ecclesiastes 7:29

Why are things the way they are?  To be more precise, why are there bad things?  Solomon hit the nail on the head.  God didn’t create mankind sinful.  He created us without sin.  Solomon’s words about our “many schemes” are about the overarching reason we sin: our schemes are evidence that we think we know better than God!

Though God did not create us as sinful creatures, He created us with the potential to sin.  This is obvious due to the fact that Adam and Eve did sin, and so have everyone of their offspring—including every one of us!

Sin is a universal aspect of the human experience.  True, God knew that we would sin.  Our sin was part of His eternal plan to display His grace by forgiving sinners.  But that in no way makes God responsible for our sin, or for any evil, pain, and suffering in the world.  That is on us.  Lessons?

First, don’t blame or even question God’s righteousness, since God is never the author of sin.  We bear that responsibility ourselves.

Second, let us learn to stop thinking we know better than God.  Our sin is never a better or more correct choice than obeying God.

Third, thank God for His grace.  After all, His allowance of our sin is for the express purpose of putting His grace on display.

Christ in the Proverbs

A wise son makes a glad father, But a foolish son is the grief of his mother.
Proverbs 10:1

The book of Proverbs speaks numerous times, contrasting the wise and the foolish son.  The wise son pleases the Father.  The foolish son grieves the Father.  Remember that.

We know that Jesus fulfilled every aspect of God’s Law for those He came to save.  He had to because we have all broken God’s law.  On the cross our disobedience was laid on Jesus so that His obedience could be credited to the spiritual accounts of those who trust in and follow Christ.

In the same way, Jesus, who is the wise Son in whom the Father delights, lived every aspect of the wise counsel for those He came to save.  He had to because we are the foolish sons who would otherwise grieve our Heavenly Father.  On the cross, our foolishness was laid on Jesus so that His wisdom could be credited to the spiritual accounts of those who trust in and follow Christ.

The result is, just as Jesus is the wise Son who only always pleased the Father (Matthew 3:15, and others), if we are “in Christ” we are no less pleasing in the Father’s sight than Jesus is!

Let us live as though that is true, because it is!

How can a God of love…?

These six things the LORD hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him: A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren. Proverbs 6:16-19

We live in a fallen sinful world that thinks we can define God. One of the world’s favorite definitions of God is “God is love.” That is true and biblical, but the fatal mistake is that the world insists on defining God by the world’s flawed definition of love. Thinking biblically, we must define love by how the Bible defines God.

People who do not know God often say, “How could a God of love to this or that? A favorite is “How could a God of love send anyone to Hell?” I’ll come back to that.

The world insists that love demands that we endorse and affirm everything, but that could not be farther from the truth! Even humanly speaking, a loving parent hates, and will kill, a wild animal that is attacking that parent’s child. Likewise, because God is not only loving but holy—He not only disapproves what is unholy, He hates sin because it is unholy. Because God is holy, He must judge and condemn sinners.

So the question, “How can a God of love send anyone to Hell?” is based on not knowing God and therefore not understanding love. Because all people are sinners (having repeatedly violated God’s law) the better question is, “How can a God who is holy not send everyone to Hell?”

The answer to that better question is: Because (thank the Lord) God is also gracious through Christ Jesus!

Weaning toward contentment...

Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, Like a weaned child with his mother; Like a weaned child is my soul within me. Psalm 131:2

David said he learned to be content regarding things he could not understand (v.1). He said that in the end, he was content like a weaned child with his mother. Notice he didn’t say like who just finished being nursed by his mother. That is a different kind of contentment—the kind that comes from getting what he wants. No, a weaned child is one who has been cut off from receiving what he wants. Weaning a child is an important part of a child’s development, both physically and emotionally.

Physically, it means learning to eat other food that is more difficult to eat and eventually more nutritious than mothers’ milk.

Emotionally, it is a first step in learning the responsibility to eat food and feed oneself, rather than simply being fed. Children often dislike being weaned, but mothers must insist on it for the child’s development.

David was speaking of the spiritual benefit of learning contentment by being denied what he wanted—not by his mother, but by God.

The pathway to contentment, as well as trusting God when we do not understand or like what He is doing, is to be denied what we otherwise desire—a sort of imposed fast. The key to learning the lesson is to resist being demanding or complaining, and simply trusting God.

We do not understand many of God’s ways. We can either demand and complain, to our detriment, or learn to trust God, which will mature us and glorify Him. Which path will you choose?

Two ways of thinking about money and possessions

There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing; And one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches. Proverbs 13:7

Wealth gained by dishonesty will be diminished, But he who gathers by labor will increase.
Proverbs 13:11

There are rich people who have nothing and there are poor people who have it all.  How can this be?  Those who “make themselves rich,” loving and longing for money, doing everything they can to get their hands on it, may indeed amass great wealth.

Verse seven does not dispute that these people have money, but they own nothing.  They are instead, owned by the money they have accumulated.  In contrast, the one who does not love or long for money, who refrains from “making himself rich” by giving generously, may even appear to “make himself poor.”  This one, however has true riches.

Verse 11 declares that dishonesty may lead to wealth, but the wealth it obtains is temporary at best.  The one who earns his bread by honest hard work, however—though he doesn’t net big bucks in short order—is on the path to lasting wealth.  This speaks of time frames.  Will the self-made, often shady, rich man come to poverty right away?  Not often.  His money usually lasts long enough to convince him he was doing the right thing.  Will he loose it over the course of a lifetime?  Maybe.  But in the long run, this man will suffer loss of all things when he stands before God who will inform him that his riches cannot purchase forgiveness of sins and eternal life in Heaven.

The key to all of this is simple:  Listen to and obey God’s mind on the subject of money and true wealth, and enjoy eternal prosperity.  Listen to the world, and suffer eternal poverty.

Love greater than a mother's

When my father and my mother forsake me, Then the LORD will take care of me.
Psalm 27:10

I was watching a video of two adorable little bear cubs.  I thought, “How cute they are!  And to think when they are grown, they can tear the roof off a car!”  The scene changed to the two cubs and their massive mother.  Instantly I thought of the proverbial saying about the rage of a mother bear if her cubs are threatened.

And the powers to be condemn moms and dads for insisting that they, not the Christ-hating schools, have the authority to determine what their children are taught!  Incredible!  But I digress!

My point this: Mother’s day is that under normal circumstances, moms and dads (moms in particular) rightly give the highest priority to their children.  But because parents are sinfully imperfect, our love can be misdirected and can even wane.  But God, our Heavenly Father can never err in His love for His children.  And He can love us neither more nor less than He always perfectly does already.

• Parents, let us seek to love our children as our Heavenly Father loves us.

• Children, let us thank the Lord for our parents and forgive them when they are less than perfect.

• Children of God, let us rest in our Heavenly Father’s boundless love.

Do you want God, or merely what He can do for you?

For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
Psalm 84:10

Psalm 84 is the cry of a man whose heart longs for more fellowship and intimacy with God.  His heart longs, actually, for more of God Himself.  In verse 10 he declares, in essence, that it is better to be in a lowly position in the presence of the Lord than to be in the place of comfort in this world.  Ideally, all of God’s people would readily say, “Amen!”—though sadly we know that is not true!

But how resolute is that “Amen” even from we who really do want more intimacy with God?  What if we really had to choose the lower seat versus the place of affluence and comfort?  It is one thing to say, “We want God no matter what.”  It is another to choose to pursue the Lord if it really meant suffering loss to our financial portfolio, our comfort level, or our health.

May we pursue the Lord—really pursue the Lord—not worrying about our affluence or comfort.  And if it should please the Lord to remove some or all of the perks we are so accustomed to, may we count them all loss “for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:8).