To The Glory Of God? - 1 Corinthians 10:31

 

Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.  - 1 Corinthians 10:31

    Whatever I do? Whatever I say? Whatever I think? Whatever I dream or hope for? But what if it isn’t God’s will? What if, in fact, it doesn’t glorify Him? Despite the clarity of Paul’s words to us we still sometimes have a difficult time separating the wheat from the chaff. We often approach our desires from the margins and the edges, hoping we can find an angle, excuse or approval in the vagueness of our requests. But with God, there is no uncertainty. That is why the Bible is said to be perspicuous. Its meanings are understandable and self-evident, even if we can’t see it at first. “The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” - Psalm 119:130.
    There are many times in our lives when we know right from the start that God would never under any circumstances agree with a decision we were about to make. We get around it by simply pushing God back, out of the picture. It makes it so much easier for us to satisfy our own worldly desires. Once God is out of the picture, we have no one to answer to. Especially if the world holds a confused or obscured perspective on right and wrong. “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.” - 1 John 2:15-16.
    A clear and virtuous conscience never sees the need to run or hide for fear of discovery. It is a guilty conscience that tries to hide. “And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.” - Genesis 3:8.
    The difficulty is this: the dilemma we face as Christians is something unbelievers never fret about. They never lose a moments sleep over their intentions unless, of course, it is because they just haven’t worked their plans out yet. Think about it: for the unbeliever, right or wrong becomes pragmatic. Whatever needs to be done to expedite their goals, they will inevitably do! But for one who believes in God, the issue is much more difficult. We have to remember that we are called to walk with God. “Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left.” - Isaiah 30:21.
    Consider a friend, a loved one with a journey to make. If he asked you to make that journey with him you would have to walk alongside him to fulfill that commitment. You wouldn’t lag behind nor would you race ahead. To fulfill that promise, you would keep stride for stride beside that loved one. That is the encumbrance of the faithful Christian. “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” - 1 John 2:6.
    As a Christian, while we may find ourselves struggling to walk with Christ but understanding our responsibility to do so should be self-evident. So whenever we seek a goal, it should be blatantly obvious whether we have the Christian freedom to do so or not. Can we in good conscience turn our backs on those we find reprehensible? Can we refuse to reach out and help someone up? Can we refuse the thirsty a cold drink of water? Can we deny the hungry a piece of bread? And if we can; can we do so to the glory of God? If not, then we knew the answer before we asked the question. “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” - Matthew 25:44-46.
    So to understand then; for the Christian - we are always to make Godly decisions, to “do the right thing,” to the glory of God. We must walk with Christ. To do otherwise is to sin.

Of Border Walls & The Bible - Nehemiah 1:3

And they said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.” - Nehemiah 1:3

    There has been much debate about whether or not “Jesus would build a wall” to keep illegal immigrants out of the United States. Clearly, Christ would not, based on His words regarding His kingdom. “Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.’” - John 18:36. And listening to many Christian pastors, there is scant reference in Sunday sermons to our current political issues. Most avoid discussion of a border wall like the plague. But it need not be that way. There is plenty of Biblical support for the building of a border wall designed to protect the US from those who would violate our sovereign borders.
    Aghast, you cry out for the sojourner and the stranger! Does not our Holy Bible tell us to treat them as we treat ourselves? Indeed it does. Right down to the consequences of breaking the law! “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same.” - Romans 13:1-3. The teaching of the Bible clearly refutes those who would lie and say that as a nation we must accept any breach of our borders for the sake of those who would do so. If it is not done legally then it is done “illegally!”
    And of the wall. What should we do? “And I told them of the hand of my God which had been good upon me, and also of the king’s words that he had spoken to me. So they said, “Let us rise up and build.” Then they set their hands to this good work.” - Nehemiah 2:18. And just as our President has his critics and obstructionists, Nehemiah had his. “But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they laughed at us and despised us, and said, ‘What is this thing that you are doing? Will you rebel against the king?’ So I answered them, and said to them, ‘The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem.’” - Nehemiah 2:19-20.
    Even with the blessing of God, Nehemiah and the Israelites were to face opposition, even danger, so they took all reasonable precaution when building the wall. “Now it happened, when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the gaps were beginning to be closed, that they became very angry, and all of them conspired together to come and attack Jerusalem and create confusion. Nevertheless we made our prayer to our God, and because of them we set a watch against them day and night.” - Nehemiah 4:7-9.
    Nehemiah knew how important it was to restore the walls of Jerusalem. It was so important that his enemies would do anything to prevent him from completing his task. So Nehemiah took the necessary precautions to complete the wall. “Therefore I positioned men behind the lower parts of the wall, at the openings; and I set the people according to their families, with their swords, their spears, and their bows. And I looked, and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”- Nehemiah 4:13-14.
    Nehemiah reminded the people that securing a wall for national protection wasn’t only necessary for the protection of their national security but it was ordained by God as well! What was the reaction of those who opposed the wall upon its completion? “And it happened, when all our enemies heard of it, and all the nations around us saw these things, that they were very disheartened in their own eyes; for they perceived that this work was done by our God.” - Nehemiah 6:16.
    Let us protect our sovereign borders as God has commanded us to. The words of God are never ambiguous or confused. We have a duty to protect our own whether it be our front door or our nation’s border. “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” - 1 Timothy 5:8.

A New Year, A New Start - 2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. - 2 Corinthians 5:17


    I gave up New Year's resolutions many years ago for the same reason that so few of them ever come to fruition: most of us simply don’t have the staying power to effect the change we feel we need to make. After all, if it was that easy, we wouldn’t have to wait for a special day to make the commitment; we would just make the change. But if we are intent upon making a substantial change in our lives, why not make a change that will affect us into eternity?
    Obviously, we all struggle with sin in our lives. Why not make a resolution to deal with the one issue that will cost us the most if we fail to contend with it in our lives? There are five considerations we should take into account if dealing with sin is going to be our goal.
1.    The devil is limited by the staying hand of God. “And the Lord said to Satan, ‘Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person.’ So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.” - Job 1:12. Simply stated: there is a limit to what Satan can actually do to us. He’s not a magician. He tricks because we are gullible enough to believe him. He is not all-powerful and cannot hurt us if we trust in God Almighty.
2.    The devil is already throwing everything he has at you. “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” - Ephesians 6:12. From the moment we wake up in the morning Satan is at work on us, trying everything in his power to turn us and sift us like wheat. Think about it: what is our first impulse when that guy cuts us off on our way to work? Trust me, if we throw all caution to the wind and let Satan have a foothold in our lives, our day will end much worse than it began.
3.    Satan’s success depends wholly upon our response to his overtures. “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” - James 4:7. Satan can only hurt us if we let him hurt us. He can only use us if we let him use us. His assault against us will continue as long as we lay ourselves open to his temptations. We must block him by submitting ourselves to God’s will for us through fervent prayer.
4.    Satan’s success depends upon our refusal to acknowledge his presence and influence.
    “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” - 1 Peter 5:8. Remember the old saying: “The devil's finest trick is to persuade you that he does not exist.” Satan is not some bumbling fool in red pajamas, carrying a pitchfork. He is the most potent enemy a Christian will ever face. He is dangerous and he is deadly and only the power of God can utterly defeat him. On our own, we are helpless against the Beast.
5.    His ultimate victory (our spiritual death) comes when we die in our sins. “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”  - John 8:24. Jesus was not ambiguous in the very least. He let us know in no uncertain terms that the wages of sin is death. If we die without redemption, we die twice: once physically then once spiritually. And there is no resurrection from this spiritual death.

    So, are we looking to make a significant change in our lives this New Year? Then let us make a real change. Let us make a change that will resonate into eternity. “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” - Philippians 4:8.  Let us put away our desire for worldly self-expression and let us seek God where He may be found.

A Christmas Blessing - Luke 2:10-11

Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. - Luke 2:10-11

    We all make choices in this life. While we wear the fragile mantle of humanity, we get to choose much of what life has to offer us. Of course there are always those situations and conditions that are thrust upon us regardless of our needs and desires. But belief in Christ Jesus remains not only within our reach but also our grasp. If we will only make that choice. “And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” - Joshua 24:15.
    There has always been the argument that we either have free will or we do not. Luther insisted that the human will was in bondage and not free at all, while Erasmus contended that the human will had “wiggle room” in opposition to God sovereignly predetermining what our choices would be. And while Scripture fully supports Luther’s contention that the will is indeed bound to our flesh, we must then turn to God’s “Unconditional Election” of the saints. The doctrine states clearly that God in His infinite sovereignty chose some of us for salvation before the foundation of time. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.” - Ephesians 1:3-6. If this is true, how then can we still boast of a free will? If God has already chosen some of us for salvation why do we still need to choose? Scripture answers us without ambiguity. “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” - Hebrews 11:6.
    With the intercession of the Holy Spirit, we are regenerated and are blessed with faith in God.  “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” - Matthew 7:7-8.
    When should we ask the Holy Spirit for a life in Jesus Christ? “For He says: ‘In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.’ Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” - 2 Corinthians 6:1-2.
    As we celebrate Christmas this year and every year let us be grateful for the good tidings of great joy that come with the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! If you have not yet come to faith in Christ, “now is the accepted time; behold now is the day of salvation.” Do not tarry a moment longer, for we “know not the hour of our Master’s return.”
    Merry Christmas to all.

Don’t Look Back! - Genesis 19:26

But his wife looked back behind him, and she became a pillar of salt. - Genesis 19:26

    The command of God was clear as a cold winter night. There were no ambiguous terms or conditions. The command was terse and succinct - “So it came to pass, when they had brought them outside, that he said, ‘Escape for your life! Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be destroyed.’” - Genesis 15:17. Yet like so many of us, Lot’s wife ignored the Lord’s directive and looked back. On the other hand, unlike so many of us, she met God’s justice immediately.
    Whether it be a longing for our old life of sin or just a pining for the familiarity of our old ways, we too often turn away from God’s commands, even if only for an instant. And sometimes an instant is all it takes. Jesus even warns us of the distractions which lead us to perdition. “But Jesus said to him, ‘No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.’” - Luke 9:62.
    We are told that the old man is dead, the old self, the old way finished. “For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.” - Romans 6:5-6.
    Once we were all sinners living a sinner’s life. We were born in sin and except for the mercy and grace of God we are destined to die in our sins. Sometimes the justice of God reaches out to greet us as in the case of Lot’s wife. Other times God is patient with us for a lifetime. But know this: we have not eluded our omniscient God. His justice will not be thwarted. “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.” - Galatians 6:7-8.
    Like the title of the Thomas Wolf novel, “You Can’t Go Home Again,” we must understand that once we have heard the word of God we can no longer feign ignorance or hide behind mock naivete. Once we have been exposed to God’s light, we can never again hide in the darkness. We know we are sinners in need of salvation. The cross of Christ Jesus looms before us just as surely as our sinful lives hang from our coat-tails. To look away brings judgment upon us, and while it might not be immediate, it awaits us in God’s good time.
    When we look longingly back at our sins or where we have been in the flesh, we take our eyes off the prize that Christ has provided for us. We can only obtain what God has set aside for us if we live according to the cross rather than the flesh. “And also if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.” - 2 Timothy 2:5
    There is a cost associated with salvation. Fortunately, we do not have to pay it. It has been paid for us by Jesus Christ. But we must accept Him as Lord and Savior to realize our redemption and we can’t do that if we are preoccupied with our old lives and our old ways. We cannot possibly focus on the gift of grace provided by God if we are intent upon looking back over our shoulders at the life we lived in sin! We must purge ourselves of sentimentality for wickedness. There can be no nostalgia for sin. We simply have to seek Christ. “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” - Romans 13:14.
    Those in the faith do not look back at their old lives any more than one who has survived a near-fatal crash looks back with fondness at the moment of impact. We are new creatures living in the shadow of Christ’s cross, saved for eternity by His holy sacrifice. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” - 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Dying The Good Death - John 3:16

  
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. - John 3:16

    At my age, I have seen many of the friends and family I have treasured pass from this mortal veil into eternity. As I write this, I myself am dealing with some health issues that require testing, monitoring, and treatment. I pray for myself as often as I pray for others, relying upon God’s firm hand to keep us by His blessed grace. But the time will come; it does for all of us. And when our time comes, it is my fervent prayer that all of those I love and care for will share my belief in “the God Who is there,” as theologian Francis Schaefer put it.
    Many things cross one’s mind when mortality comes into question. Some believe that if they have lived “a good life” they will be entitled to eternal glory after they shed these earthly rags. Some believe in nothing at all and thus they “live for the day.” But that nearly always ends in anxiety and ultimately in fear of the unknown. Even though I have failed miserably at times to conduct my life in a noble and godly manner, I entertain no such fears, not so much because I feel I have lived the good life but because I will have died the good death.
    Make no mistake: dying a good death has nothing to do with lofty self-affirmations and mantras based on a lifetime of nihilistic musings about “living and dying well.” Most such faulty notions are advanced by secular atheists who have convinced themselves that after lifetimes lived in opposition to God something benign awaits those who will just keep a positive attitude. Yes, try that while you’re dying. The thunder of such absurdity is deafening!
    Then what, you ask, is a good death? “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.” - John 5:24. Death is but a doorway to glory, a passageway to eternal salvation. Of course, one can only hold to this heavenly view if their faith is anchored to the one mediator between man and God, Jesus Christ. Nothing I do of my own can suffice to save me regardless of how well intended. It is by faith alone in Jesus Christ that my eternity awaits me unfettered. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”  - Ephesians 2:8-9.
    Many will ask, “Why? Why must we believe in Christ to be saved?” Because, the only source for belief in Christ Jesus, the Bible, states emphatically - “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” - Acts 4:12. Jesus Himself has told us as much - “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’” - John 14:6. This is why God gave us His only begotten Son. This is the way of the good death that awaits those who believe!
    Many of us will do whatever we can to prolong our earthly lives regardless of the condition we live in. We will undergo radiation therapy, chemotherapy, surgical procedures, never knowing for certain whether these last futile attempts to hold off death will in fact work or if the quality of life left to us will have been worth it all. Our loved ones will spend countless hours futilely hoping and praying for a cure, for a miracle. And all the time spent trying desperately to live here and now could have been spent preparing to meet our Lord, knowing that for us, death is just a passageway and not an end in itself! Our loved ones should be praying that our immortal souls have been granted salvation through God’s saving grace.     We need not fear the death of these corporal bodies. Those who are in Christ at the time of their deaths will be able to sing out in unison - “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?”- 1 Corinthians 15:55. We must prepare ourselves now for the eternity that awaits us. Believe in Jesus Christ now, today! Don’t put off believing in Him a moment longer. Accept Him as Lord and Savior.“For He says: ‘In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.’ Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” - 2 Corinthians 6:2. Now is the time. Today is the day!

Dominion - Genesis 1:26-28

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”  So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.  Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” - Genesis 1:26-28

    Once again the news s filled with our latest venture into planetary exploration. The $850 million endeavor is called the InSight Lander. It will take photographs as other similar craft have done in an effort to prove what cannot be proven - that life exists anywhere in the universe but here on earth where God created life. Here and here alone, according to Scripture, God created all the life forms that have or will ever exist. We can speculate and hypothesize all we want and at the end of the day, the proof-box will remain empty. “Then God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind’; and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.” - Genesis 1:24-25. God said that the earth would bring forth the living creature. He never mentioned Mars or any other heavenly body bringing forth life! And on top of that, He saw that it was good for it to be this way.
    The only heavenly beings that God has any contact with are the angelic beings He created and they are not of dust, flesh, or bone. They are spirits. Whether they be angelic hosts or fallen angels, they are the only other created beings in God’s creation. Period!
    Now it is true that where Scripture is silent we should not speculate or engage in conjecture. Where Scripture is silent we too should remain silent. Have we not enough on our plates right here on earth? Are there not enough obstacles here and now that we as human beings need to attend to without engaging in the utterly fantastic? “The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of wisdom.” - Proverbs 10:21.
    We have enough to contend with right here. We have enough sickness and poverty. We have enough hatred and murder. We have enough ignorance and foolishness. We have enough arrogance and pride. What we lack is enough faith in God. What we lack is enough love for our fellow men and women. What we lack is enough humility to learn. But the day is coming when we will see with our own eyes the truth of God’s creation and it won’t require a telescope, a microscope, or pictures beamed back from a distant planet. The day is coming when we will see for ourselves - “Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.” - Genesis 1:31.
    We have been charged by God with dominion over our own planet. “So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.’” - Genesis 9:1. This is our commission - dominion over God’s creation here on earth! There is nowhere in Scripture where we are commanded to search the stars for other forms of life. We must not let our pride bring us to ruin again. We still have not recovered from our last attempt to be Gods.
“And they said, ‘Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.’” - Genesis 11:4.
    Instead, we must hear the words of Christ Jesus once more - “‘Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ Amen.” - Matthew 28:19.
    Both the command for dominion and our commission to spread the Gospel applies nowhere in creation but right here on earth.