Tuesday, June 29, 2010

A Pretty Good Deal

For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself. (Philippians 3:20, 21, NKJV).

Our future home and existence is in view with these verses, along with the corollary thought that we are merely sojourners here and now, in a state of active waiting, not for something, but for Someone.

As pilgrims in the earth during this present age, we abide in a temporary dwelling, described as a tent elsewhere, awaiting relocation to a permanent (eternal), glorified body that will neither age, feel weakness, experience pain, or die. The power which ensures this destiny for all children of God by faith is that same power that flung the Universe into existence through the mere speaking of words, and that governs and maintains the cosmos in all its vastness and complexity.

It is power freely given in exchange for the simple acceptance of the free gift of salvation offered by the One who became one of us for the sole purpose of paying the debt of our sin. A pretty good deal, if you ask me. Particularly in view of the alternative.



Monday, June 28, 2010

The Anti-Christian

For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame--who set their mind on earthly things. (Philippians 3:18, 19, NKJV).

As a counterpart to Paul's concise summary of the true Christian walk in Philippians 3:3, in these 2 verses he provides the contrasting summation of the false Christian; those who profess Christ insincerely. With the same quatrain pattern of rapid-fire bullet points, the Apostle describes the grievous hallmarks of those who say they believe, but whose life bears no fruit (Mt 7:15-20).

First, their end: destruction, just as any and all unbelievers - eternal perdition in the Lake of Fire “where ‘Their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.’" (Mark 9:44, NKJV). This an unthinkable destiny, beyond comprehension. It is an inexpressible existence of perpetual agony and regret. Imagine your worst nightmare scenario. Is it life-long paralysis? Being buried alive? Not being able to breathe? However horrendous these might be, the torments they picture end eventually in death. But there is no end to the torments of Hell. After a trillion trillion years, the only prospect is another trillion, trillion years, and then more of the same after that; each millisecond of agony as excruciating as the first.

Next, Christ enemies are enslaved by their fleshly lusts for food or sex or comfort or pleasure. They worship at the altar of their own craven desires, bowing down in devoted self-love and delusions of worthiness.

In turn, this inevitably leads to transparent self-justification of their own entrenched wickedness, and they engage in endless, pathetic and delusional declarations of how proud they are of this or that vice, how bold and courageous they are for daring to have the freedom to live in such a manner; how liberated; how enlightened.

And finally, they focus only on what they can perceive with their senses, on those earthly, material things right in front of their faces, like brute beasts with no perception or consciousness beyond a smell, or a touch, or something seen.

I have no choice but to agree with Paul on these aspects of life without Christ, or Christ falsely claimed. I know. I lived them until that day he condescended to make Himself known to me as my Lord and Savior. Then I became a new Creation, and as the Apostle wrote earlier in the same chapter of this epistle:

"Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13, 14, NKJV).

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Christian: A Succinct Definition

For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh, (Philippians 3:3, NKJV).

This is one of the most succinct definitions of what it means to live as a Christian in the New Testament. In 22 English words it summarizes how we are to be, physically, spiritually, and emotionally. Each comma-separated phrase provides a springboard into a wealth of profound revelation, and hearkens back to the beginning of redemptive history and forward into the future consummation of all things.

First, circumcision was the unmistakable outward sign given by God to the male descendants of Abraham that would set them apart in the flesh from all the rest of humanity. For Jewish newborns, it was to happen on the eighth day of life. It was the means by which God physically set apart His Chosen People, but which also pictured a far more fundamental setting apart of all Abraham's descendants by faith, male or female, Jew or Gentile. It represented the voluntary cutting away of all that attached a human heart to a fallen world, allowing it to be captivated by God, Himself.

"For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God." (Romans 2:28, 29, NKJV).

Secondly, Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well something which had been hidden from mankind since Creation. It is remarkable that He chose to reveal this transformative truth to an immoral outcast, a relational failure, a desperate sinner. He told her this revelation in response to a heart-felt question she asked, and I find it significant that in many interactions between Jesus and those who sought answers from Him, He often, very often, ignored their spoken questions, and answered instead, the deeper issue of their hearts. Not so this woman. In repose to her every query, he gave her a direct reply, so when she asked Him where was the right place to worship, He told her simply:

“Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. “You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. “But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:20-24, NKJV).

Thirdly, from the beginning of Time, the command went forth from the throne of Heaven to rejoice in the Lord (Ps 33:1; 97:12; Isa 41:16; 61:10; Joe 2:23; Hab 3:18; Zec 10:7; Php 3:1; 4:4, to list just a few). It is an exhortation given for no other reason than to point us, His creatures, toward the source of all true joy. There is no other satisfaction anywhere. Everything that is even remotely joyous originates from Him. The very capacity to experience joy is His gift to us, As Christians, we recognize that our Creator is also our Savior, and our exceedingly great reward. There is nothing good apart from Him, There is no true enjoyment apart from Him. Our ultimate goal is to enter into His joy, for it is our strength, and our song, and His ages-old intention for us.

Ne 8:10* Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our LORD. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”
Job 33:26* He shall pray to God, and He will delight in him, He shall see His face with joy, For He restores to man His righteousness.
Ps 5:11 But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; Let those also who love Your name Be joyful in You.
Ps 16:11* You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Ps 30:5* For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.
Ps 43:4 Then I will go to the altar of God, To God my exceeding joy; And on the harp I will praise You, O God, my God.
Ps 67:4* Oh, let the nations be glad and sing for joy! For You shall judge the people righteously, And govern the nations on earth. Selah
Ps 126:5 Those who sow in tears Shall reap in joy.
Isa 35:10 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, And come to Zion with singing, With everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, And sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
Isa 65:18* But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; For behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing, And her people a joy.
Jer 15:16* Your words were found, and I ate them, And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; For I am called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts.
Hab 3:18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.
Mt 2:10* When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
Mt 25:21 “His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’
Mt 28:8 So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word.
Joh 15:11* “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.
Joh 16:22* “Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.
Joh 16:24* “Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
Joh 17:13* “But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.

Finally, we can do nothing pleasing to God in our own strength. What the world sees as valuable, is detestable to God. Followers of Jesus know that whatever good we do is from Him and not from ourselves; whatever gifts we have are nothing that we can boast about for how can we boast about something we have been given. Self-confidence in the worldly sense is an affront to Him who made us and sustains us. Not that we are to be falsely humble, or denigrate those things He has made us capable of doing, but rather than glory in ourselves we are to glory in Him. This is hard. It's easy enough to blame others for our faults, but giving credit to our Maker for what we are good at flies in the face of our most cherished sin: pride.

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Fatherhood

There is a war against fatherhood today. It's been going on for a generation or so, ever since the popular glorification of single-motherhood. In general, fathers are portrayed in cultural media as either bumbling idiots  ineffectual leaders needing to be saved by their children, or inflexible throwbacks, struggling frantically to hold on to a glorious, irrelevant past (The Simpsons, a majority of recent Disney films, certain episodes of Dr. Who, Berenstein Bears, etc.), It's understandable, given the widespread de-masculinization of boys and men in literature, public education, films, TV shows, and the like. The result is modern men who have a murky picture, at best, of what it means to be a man and a father, and who struggle against the destructive stereotypes of perverse masculinity that abounds in the world today.

For all our big. big brains, human beings without God are idiots. And, collectively, the farther away from God we get, the more idiotic we become. I know this because at one time, and for most of my life, I was as far away from God as it is possible to be and still be among the living. When I was a younger, more stupid man, I looked at childhood and children as a disease that, if one were lucky, one recovered from in time, I was far too significant and progressive to be saddled with something as mundane and banal as fatherhood. Children were millstones of little value, far too much trouble to be worth it, a prison sentence to be avoided at all costs.

I have since learned the truth. Apart from and above everything else in life, the privilege of being a father is one of the most gracious gifts given by God to man. There is nothing that comes close in comparison; not material success, academic achievement, celebrity, power or prestige. It is a sacred and solemn honor, worthy of any and all personal sacrifice.

It is no accident that God has chosen to reveal Himself to us through Christ, as Father. And as the two verses above indicate (Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6, NKJV), not just Father in the formal, patriarchal sense, but in the uniquely close and special sense of a young, dependent child who longs for his or her 'Abba', or 'Daddy'. It is astounding that the Eternal, Omnipotent King of Kings and Lord of Lord, chooses for us his lowly creatures to relate to Him not as a distant, impersonal Power, but as a loving, devoted, nurturing and protective Father.

We men, as human fathers created in His image, are to mirror that example given to us, and reflect His fatherly attributes toward our own God-given children so that, by our example, we lead them into the Heavenly Kingdom, and enable each of our precious children to receive that gift beyond price; eternal life. I cannot conceive of a higher purpose for my life.

And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. (Ephesians 6:4, NKJV).

"Training and admonition", are the two positive instructions, preceded by the one negative of "do not provoke". But take note that it is not merely any human-centered training or correction, but that "of the Lord", founded upon and revealed within "the whole counsel of God".

Christian fathers are commanded to be accountable for the family. To be bold, but unprovocative leaders, providing righteous guidance and correction. To assume responsibility for the physical, emotional, and above all, spiritual well-being of those under our care. We are guaranteed sometimes to falter. We will sometimes require a sternness that brooks no compromise, and a steadfastness of purpose and love that defies our natural human capability, but the rewards and joy are beyond calculation.

As the Apostle John wrote, "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth." (3 John 1:4, NKJV).


Saturday, June 12, 2010

If By Any Means…

But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. (Philippians 3:7-11, NKJV).


Being self-righteousness is dangerous. Human beings in their natural state, that is without a personal relationship with God through faith in Christ, avidly desire to believe that they are, in reality, what they imagine themselves to be. They want to prove to themselves and to the world that their self-image is accurate. Sometimes great effort and time will be expended to reach this ephemeral goal, and for some, it is the ultimate purpose of existence, at least when the basic necessities of life aren't at stake.

This priority is the exact opposite of what the Bible teaches. In fact, we are told that self-righteousness is despicable in the eyes of God because at its root is Pride, the foundation of sin and rebellion. Humans, being cunning and clever, have the ability to disguise this raw and blatant Pride in any number of devious ways: personal achievement, success in the world, power, prestige, reputation, even feigned humility. But underneath, it is all filthy rags in the eyes of the Lord (Isa 64:6).


In the passage cited above, Paul makes this truth undeniably clear, and uses himself as an example. Consider for a moment that the apostle, before his conversion, was at the pinnacle of achievement in his sphere of life. He was of pure Hebrew stock (Phi 3:5), born a Roman citizen (Ac 21:39), schooled by the best (Ac 22:3), given great authority (Ac 9:1,2), and very successful in his career as a professional scholar and lawyer (Ga 1:14, Php 3:4-6). He was a man with all the right pedigrees, credentials and certificates, and he had worked hard for them, devoting all his life to achieving these very things. He knew much about God, and believed fiercely in His existence, and was willing to strive mightily to protect all his own beliefs with whatever it took (Ac 9:1). Yet he did not know God.



Because Paul was so convinced of his own righteousness, it took dramatic divine intervention in his life to show him the truth. He was literally knocked off his "high horse" on the rode to Damascus, made blind so he could see, emptied of himself so he could be filled with the Spirit, and transformed from a formidable opponent of the infant church to a fugitive apostle (Ac 9). That transformation laid him low so that God could use him to fulfill His divine purpose for Paul's life (Ga 1:15). His delusional, inflated self-image was replaced with the truth; he was a wretched, vile sinner (Ro 7:24, 1Ti 1:15).

The contrast between what he thought of himself before and after encountering Christ was so drastic that it changed his entire world view, his self-assessment and even his name. As Paul wrote above, all that he had achieved beforehand he now considered "rubbish", or "refuse" (the KJV translates it "dung"), Paul realized the truth of what Jesus spoke about it being worthless for a man to gain the world, but lose his eternal soul (Mt 16:26). He understood that what is valuable to man is an abomination to God (Lu 16:15).



The Christian life is full of these paradoxes partly because we cannot see the truth without God illuminating it through His Word, and partly because in our long war against our Creator, we don't want to see that only from being humble can exaltation come, that only from losing one's life (and self-image and pride and self-reliance) can one truly gain that life, and that only through recognizing our own condemned nature can we escape the eternal judgment that our wickedness so richly deserves.


So we, like Paul, must strive "by any means" to enter into His rest (He 4:11), forsaking any and all delusion of self-worth, and replacing it completely with "the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things…"