Heavenly Minded and Earthly Good

(Transcript of Bible study taught at Landmark Baptist Church, Locust Grove, GA on 17 November 2013; landmarkbaptistga.com)

Heavenly Minded and Earthly Good

Romans 8:31-9:5

Most of us have heard the saying, “He’s so heavenly minded that he’s no earthly good.” I understand the spirit of that saying, but I have some issues with it. First of all, it implies that it’s more important to be earthly good. It’s not. If I had to pick one, I’d pick heavenly mindedness. It’s quite rare these days, frankly, even in the church.

     With the failure of the church as a whole to consistently rightly divide the word of truth, there’s much more emphasis on the earthly in the church than the heavenly, and consequently true heavenly mindedness has largely faded away.

     Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London, gave the sermon at Prince William’s marriage to Kate Middleton in April 2011, and he mentioned the reality of God fading from so many lives in the west. The same may be said, in a sense, of many believers. Earthly things are far more real to them than heavenly, and that’s not the way it should be.

     It is important, however, for our lives to influence our fellow men. Paul tells us in 2 Cor. 5:20, “Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.” So we have a solemn duty toward men to give them the gospel.

     We also have the more general duty of doing good to all men, as Paul tells us in Gal. 6:10, which would include, of course, evangelism but also any type of lawful aid we can provide others, to support the doctrine we preach. When Paul says that servants should “adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things” (Tit. 2:10) that’s what he’s referring to. In street language, walking the talk.

     To tie this together, I think that our goal as believers should be to be heavenly minded and earthly good. I really don’t think that you can be one without the other. How can you truly profit others down here without being heavenly minded? You can work as many soup kitchens as you like, but if you’re not “holding forth the word of life” (Phil. 2:16) as well, you are failing your fellow man. Likewise, a right relationship with God in heavenly things should drive you to church and out into the world to serve others. If you follow the word of God, it will produce both of these things in you.

     In this lesson, I’d like to give you several examples from Paul’s epistles of this heavenly/earthly balance, which is unmistakable in the life of our apostle. You’re not following Paul by being a mere philanthropist, but nor are you following him by being a cloistered mystic. Both of those extremes are worldly, even the cloister. The cloister proves that the world has power over men’s hearts, and they think that withdrawing from the world will fix this. It won’t. What will fix the problem is believing Paul’s gospel and personal communion with God, which can happen anywhere and is the only thing that can displace the world in your heart.

1. Romans 8:31-9:5

The most glorious passage on the eternal security of the believer in the Pauline epistles. I don’t have time to expound it, but I will say that it reaches a peak in vv. 38-39, where Paul states that nothing, absolutely nothing, can change our position in Christ Jesus our Lord.

     So that’s our heavenly position. But notice the sudden change in tone as we begin chapter 9, esp. in the first three verses. We’ve gone from a hallelujah passage on eternal security to “great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart” and “I could wish myself accursed from Christ” (vv. 2-3). Well, that’s impossible based on what he said in 8:31-39, and the fact that Christ already bore our curse on the cross (v. 34; Gal. 3:13).

     Nonetheless, you see how great Paul’s burden is for the Israelites, that they might enjoy these spiritual blessings on top of the ones they were given under the old testament (vv. 4-5).

     It’s a good, though strange, balance. He exults in the church’s security in 8:31-39, but laments the Jews’ plight in 9:1-5. He’s heavenly minded, and earthly good. He understands his position and blessings in Christ, yet he has a burden for those without them-a very deep one.

     I think that the more you realize how rich you are in Christ, the greater your burden should be for others. Lately I’ve been listening to numerous historical novels by G.A. Henty on mp3 in my car. I have a 40-minute commute one-way to Forest Park, so I’ve got plenty of time for listening to messages, music, and wholesome books like Henty’s.

     The one I’m currently listening to, Winning his Spurs, deals with an English lad who joins Richard the Lionheart on the Third Crusade in the late 1100’s. Henty is very honest in his portrayal of religion in the middle ages. He doesn’t try to make the characters evangelicals. There were relatively few of those in that time. The vast majority of Europeans in those days lived and died as Catholics or Orthodox, never knowing Paul’s gospel. Realizing this the other day made me VERY thankful for what I have and reminds me of the duty I have to give Paul’s gospel to others.

2. Rom. 11:30-12:1-2

I preached on this passage recently, so I’m going to keep my remarks on it brief. Paul breaks out into praise after showing God’s wise plan to save Jews and Gentiles in this age, using each group’s belief and unbelief to bring the other to salvation.

     He points out how blessed both groups are by the Lord with mercy, but then he comes back down to earth again in 12:1-2. OK, saints, in light of these mercies, here’s what you should do on earth: sell out. Give God your body (which belongs to him—1 Cor. 6:19-20), and therefore your life, since he’s been so merciful to you. Mercy is not getting what you deserve, which in our case is death (Rom. 6:23). So it stands to reason (v. 1—reasonable), that you should give God your life, since he had every legal right to take it from you, before you were saved, Amen?

3. 1 Cor. 3:20-4:5

Paul emphasizes the fabulous spiritual wealth of the believer to show why it’s silly to glory in men. All the light God gave to Paul, Apollos, and Cephas is ours, and we are equipped in Christ, both spiritually and temporally, to face anything (the world, life, death, things present, and things to come). We are in Christ, who is in God, and therefore all that is God’s is ours through Christ. Hallelujah!

     But it doesn’t stop there. God expects you, have freely received, to freely give. If you know the mysteries of God, it’s your duty to give them out faithfully (vv. 1-2). Your stewardship will be reviewed at the judgment seat of Christ (v. 5). Heavenly minded (all things are your’s), earthly good (stewards of the mysteries of God).

4. 1 Cor. 15:50-16:3

The last portion of 1 Cor. 15 is yet another hallelujah passage of scripture. The “rapturous” portion ends in 15:57, but notice the shift in three verses back down to earth: “work…labour” (15:58) and a “collection” in 16:1-3.

     Caught up to heaven in glory and a collection plate! What a contrast! It’s all part of the same package, though, right? 2 Cor. 6:10, “As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.”

     Heavenly minded: looking for that blessed hope, loving his appearing; earthly good: always abounding in the work of the Lord and being liberal to others. You can be both! It’s OK to have your head in the clouds, as long as your hands are busy down here! In my basement bathroom I have a placard that says, “Hands to work, hearts to God.” Heavenly minded and earthly good.

5. 2 Cor. 12:1-10

Paul is caught up to the third heaven, likely when he’s stoned at Lystra, and gets a foretaste, I believe, of the rapture to come. How fitting, in my eyes, that the wise masterbuilder and first member of the body of Christ should get a taste of the event he’s teaching all believers in this age will experience, just like he got a long draught of the grace all believers would experience after him (1 Tim. 1:14-16).

     In order, however, for Paul to remain earthly good (v. 9), God gives him a thorn in the flesh to deal with. How does this make him earthly good? It helps him experience the grace of God and encourage others thereby, in addition to revelations he had received. You can be heavenly minded and “have all knowledge,” but if you don’t have charity or grace, you have nothing. Amy Carmichael has a wonderful little booklet called If, in which she describes various attitudes believers may have that show how lacking in grace they are. It’s not for the fainthearted, but I encourage you to get a copy from Chrisitan Literature Crusade, which publishes most of her books.

     If you’re blessed with abundant revelation from God, and you know who you are, prepare yourself for a deep experience of the grace of God; you will be proud and useless otherwise.

6. Eph. 3:20-4:3

Along with the end of Rom. 8, the close of Eph. 3 is some of the highest ground in Paul’s epistles, if not the highest ground: God’s omnipotence working in the church and the church bringing him glory for ever. Wow! That’s high ground. But look at 4:1-3—imprisonment for Christ and submitting yourself to other believers. Listen, the end of chapter 3 turns into hoopla, in a sense, if you’re not willing to suffer for Christ and get along with other believers. That is what will bring God the most glory now and later: i.e., for you to be heavenly minded and earthly good.

7. Phil. 3:20-4:5

In the last few verses of chapter 3, we’re clearly in a heavenly context, but what do we see in the beginning of chapter 4? Standing fast in the Lord (v. 1), likemindedness (v. 2), helping others (v. 3), rejoicing (v. 4), moderation (v. 5)…earthly good. Understanding our heavenly position should, negatively, keep us from minding earthly things (3:19), but also, positively, make us useful on earth, to all men (v. 5).

8. Col. 3:1-11

The first four verses deal with our heavenly position and destination, things we should set our affection on (3:2; heavenly minded). Note the shift in v. 5, “Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth…” Put the flesh to death, and treat other believers right (vv. 9-11).

9. 1 Thes. 4:13-18; 5:8-12

Both of these passages deal with the rapture, which we should be looking for, not be hopeless over believers who have died nor asleep when we should be watching. That’s the heavenly mindedness; but notice how each passage ends: with an exhortation to comfort and/or edify other believers.

     If you are heavenly minded, your response to the hope of Christ’s coming will be encouraging other believers with that same hope and building them up in the Lord while they wait. It’s not enough for you to have the hope: you need to impart the blessings of that hope to others on earth; for example, that they will see those in Christ who precede them in death. Both passages show that both living and dead saints will be together with the Lord when he returns, and this can be a great comfort to those still on earth.

10. 2 Thes. 2:13-17

We’re bound for glory by God’s decree, per 2:13-14, in light of our belief of the truth and the Spirit’s sanctification (careful you don’t read this like a Calvinist). How should this affect us? You guessed it: do good on earth: stand fast, hold Paul’s traditions (v. 15), and work (v. 17), just like we’ve read in other passages

11. 1 Tim. 6:13-19

The Lord is coming back to reign as King of kings and Lord of lords, hallelujah (vv. 13-16). Very next verse he starts talking about money and giving it away. This world (v. 17) is soon to pass away, so better invest that money in getting others ready for the next life, amen? Heavenly minded (the King is coming) and earthly good (help others be ready).

12. 2 Tim. 4:18-22

Paul shows himself heavenly minded and earthly good to the last. He boldly declares in v. 18 that not even Caesar, the king of the world at that time, can stop his soul from reaching God’s heavenly kingdom, do what he will with his body. But immediately after declaring this glorious prospect, he says, “Tell Prisca, Aquila, and the Onesiphorus household hello.” He’s right back down to earth, being a blessing to those around him and encouraging them in the Lord.

     It’s so like Christ on the cross. He’s not really thinking about himself, but others. Look at the last thing Paul says. “The Lord Jesus Christ (his greatest love) be with thy spirit (Timothy, his dearest earthly friend). Grace be with you (church). Amen.” What a fitting close to the apostle of grace’s life. I’m going on to heaven, where I always wanted to be, but grace be with you on earth.

I hope that this survey has been a blessing and impressed on you’re the need and possibility of being heavenly minded and earthly good.

Things that Are Unsearchable

This is a slightly edited version of a sermon that I preached on Sunday evening, 10/20/13, at Landmark Baptist Church (my home church; see our website at landmarkbaptistga.com). 

THINGS THAT ARE UNSEARCHABLE

Text: Romans 11:30-36

INTRODUCTION

The goal of this study is to magnify the Lord and edify each of you in the process.

We’re living in a time when man is becoming increasingly magnified and God is becoming increasingly debased. A famous British author, Christopher Hitchens, wrote a book demeaning God’s greatness, and it sold over 500,000 copies. He died in 2011, so he knows better now, but what about the 500,000+ people who read his book?! How has their view of God been marred?

Elihu said in Job 36:24, Remember that thou magnify his work, which men behold.

…and that’s what I intend to do tonight, by showing you five things that are unsearchable and all of which have to do with God.

We’ll begin here in Rom. 11 to establish the biblical definition of “unsearchable,” which is important as a foundation for our survey, but we’ll look at this passage in more detail later.

In Rom. 11, Paul shows how God is able to save the Gentiles in this age through the unbelief of Israel at its outset. He also shows how God means for the Gentiles’ belief to provoke the Jews into believing in Christ themselves. This demonstration of divine wisdom causes Paul to burst into the praise found in vv. 33-36.

Note esp. v. 33b:…how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out.

So if something is unsearchable, it is past finding out. It’s something you can’t fully grasp or comprehend.

One might say, then why are we studying these things, if they can’t be grasped or comprehended?

Excellent question! Answer: to magnify the Lord and help you to fear him and love him more.

Ps. 33:8, Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.

You might think, “But that’s old testament…” Well then, let’s hear it from Paul. 2 Cor. 7:1b,…perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

My hope, then, is that this survey of the unsearchable will magnify God that much more in your eyes and help you give him the respect and love that he deserves from you.

1. GOD’S ATTRIBUTES (Ps. 145:3)

Ps. 145:3, Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable.

God’s greatness is said to be unsearchable. He is so very great.

2 Chron. 2:5-6, And the house which I build is great: for great is our God above all gods. But who is able to build him an house, seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who am I then, that I should build him an house, save only to burn sacrifice before him?

Exactly—that’s all that the house could do, serve as a place of worship of a being far too great to be contained in the heavens, much less four walls.

But greatness is only one of God’s attributes. I would argue that all of God’s attributes are past finding out.

Both Zophar and Elihu touch on this in the book of Job:

Job 11:7-9, Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? It (scope of God’s presence) is high as heaven; what canst thou do? Deeper than hell; what canst thou know? The measure thereof is longer than the earth , and broader than the sea.

Hell may be separation from God’s blessings, but it is certainly not separation from his presence, which is said to be deeper than hell (v. 9).

Job 37:23-24, Touching (or concerning) the Almighty, we cannot find him out: he is excellent in power, and in judgment, and in plenty of justice: he will not afflict. Men do therefore fear before him (at least they should): he respecteth not any that are wise of heart.

So God’s attributes, all of them, are unsearchable. You could learn all that you could about them, and there would still be more to learn. Paul affirms this, when he says “to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge” (Eph. 3:19).

2. GOD’S WORKS (Job 5:8-16)

Now, because God’s attributes are unsearchable, the next unsearchable thing logically follows.

Let’s turn to the oldest book in the Bible, where we find the patriarch Job arguing with his friends in the city dump (among the ashes, Job 2:8). Since the foolishness of God is wiser than men (1 Cor. 1:25), we’d be wise to pay attention to this seemingly commonplace argument.

Ironically, the book of Job contains some of the deepest material in the Bible. I jotted down on a piece paper one time the number of subjects covered in this book, most of which is indeed an argument between five men (Job, Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, and Elihu), and it is vast.

Outside of the Pauline Epistles, this is my favourite prophetic book. There’s so much mystery to it, and a good example of that is right here in this passage, where Eliphaz, one of Job’s friends, is addressing him.

Notice especially v. 9, Which doeth great things and unsearchable; marvellous things without number.

You can’t search out the greatness and number of things that God does. You see why I said this follows from passage we looked at in Ps. 145, which extols God’s greatness. God does great things, because he is great. God does good things, because he is good. Remember Ps. 119:68, Thou art good, and doest good; teach me thy statutes.

Mt. 12:33,…for the tree is known by his fruit…,and the same may be respectfully said of the Creator. God does what he does because of who he is.

So since he himself is unsearchably great, then it follows that his works will be that way too.

Thankfully Eliphaz provides some examples of God’s unsearchably great works:

• Giving rain upon the earth (v. 10a)

• Sending waters upon the fields (v. 10b); more specific

• Setting upon high those that are low (v. 11a)

• Exalting those which mourn to safety (v. 11b)

• Disappointing the devices of the crafty (v. 12)

• Taking the wise in their own craftiness (v. 13a); Paul mentions this one in 1 Cor. 3:19, so he read and believed the book of Job!

• Carrying the counsel of the forward headlong (v. 13b-14)

• Saving the poor from their enemies (vv. 15-16); can’t help but see the great tribulation typology in this passage (“the poor” is often a cue for that).

Some may not consider these things great, but God does. I believe that he inspired Eliphaz to mention these things, as fouled up as that man was spiritually, for our learning and admonition, so that we might magnify these works ourselves.

The world surely won’t! They won’t even acknowledge God’s control of the weather, except extreme circumstances which they have to call “acts of God,” though it’s nothing reverential, but rather an ignorant confession, sort of like the Athenian altar, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD (Acts 17:23).

3. THE HEART OF KINGS (Prov. 25:3)

Prov. 25:3, The heaven for height, and the earth for depth, and the heart of kings is unsearchable.

Here’s one that appears to deal with man, since it mentions the heart of kings. The first two parts of the verse provide two examples of unsearchable things: the height of heaven and the depth of earth. These were actually touched on in Job 11, where Zophar said that God’s presence was “as high as heaven” and “deeper than hell” (11:8). I think the overall idea is the heaven is the highest vantage point in the universe and earth (with hell inside of it) is the lowest. This will likely change when the lake of fire is created at the second coming (Is. 34; Rev. 19:20, 20:10).

These three things are unsearchable to men, but of course they aren’t to God. As Zophar said, God is bigger than heaven, earth, and hell, he doesn’t have any trouble with the heart of kings, or of any other man for that matter.

Jer. 17:9, The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

Answer, v. 10: I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.

God can search the heart of every man, according to this verse, including kings. What makes the heart of kings unsearchable is that it’s a special province of God. He mentions the gap between heaven and earth, which is unsearchable to everyone but God, and then he mentions the heart of kings, because only God can understand the workings therein, since it’s a special sphere of his activity.

Prov. 16:10, A divine sentence is in the lips of the king: his mouth transgresseth not in judgment.

So, when the king passes judgment, he’s doing it in the place of God. The context here is a righteous king (“his mouth transgresseth not in judgment”) and foreshadows Christ in his millenial reign, but the general principle holds: when Caesar Augustus said that all the world should be taxed, that was God’s decree or judgment; Caesar was just the instrument.

What man could explain this decree? But if you read the rest of Luke 2, you can see that God knew exactly what he was doing: fulfilling his word that Christ would be born in Bethlehem, which Jesus’ parents had left for Nazareth (v. 4).

So the heart of kings is unsearchable because it’s a place that God is constantly at work, and as we saw before, no one can search out God’s work. Consider another proverb:

Prov. 21:1, The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.

Now, this doesn’t do away with freewill; God didn’t force Caesar to decree worldwide taxation, but he definitely influenced him, and achieved his purpose, in ways that only he can understand.

Better to just stand back in awe and wonder than to question. As Michael Card, the Christian songwriter said, “Give up on your pondering/And fall down on your knees.”

4. GOD’S JUDGMENTS AND WAYS (Rom. 11:30-36)

Only God could have come up with this plan for saving both Jews and Gentiles by grace. Only the wisdom and knowledge of God could conceive Calvary (1 Cor. 2:6-9), and only the wisdom and knowledge of God could conceive the fall of Israel and subsequent salvation of the Gentiles in this age.

Verses 34-35 provide scriptural support for what Paul exclaims in v. 33 about God’s judgments and ways, just like Eliphaz supported his statement about God’s great works with examples.

Paul draws from the prophetic scriptures for support:

• Verse 34 is a free quotation of Is. 40:13. No one can know the mind of the Lord or counsel him (i.e., add something to his mind that he hasn’t already thought of; nothing has ever “occurred” to God). His mind is past finding out.

• Verse 35 is a quotation of Job 41:13. In the midst of a description about leviathan, the Lord pauses to magnify his own power, which leviathan is an example of, and he declares that no one has ever given him anything. Everything that anyone has ever had came from God. You not only can’t give God counsel, his wisdom is so profound, you can’t give him anything that he doesn’t already have (1 Chron. 29:14; 1 Cor. 4:7).

Praise God, he’s the source of everything we lack. Why waste time looking anywhere else? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things (including the salvation of Jews and Gentiles): to whom be glory for ever. Amen.

5. THE RICHES OF CHRIST (Eph. 3:8)

One more from Paul, and perhaps the greatest unsearchable thing for believers in this age personally.

Eph. 3:8, Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.

The spiritual riches that we’ve been given in Christ are past finding out. They’re limitless. It’s true that you can’t find them in the old testament, so they’re unsearchable in that sense, but going by the definition in Rom. 11, they’re also past finding out in the sense of their scope.

Think about it. They have to be unsearchable, in keeping with the character of God, who was manifest in Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 5:19; 1 Tim. 3:16).

While we haven’t been given a blank check for physical blessings, we have been for spiritual ones, and an excellent sample of those spiritual blessings can be found in Eph. 1:3-14.

The question I’d like to close this study with is this: what amount are you entering in your blank check? A paltry amount, or big bucks?

In 2 Kings 13:14-19, Joash the king of northern Israel came to the prophet Elisha on his deathbed and bemoaned him, admitting that Elisha was the real strength of Israel (the chariot of Israel; cf. 2 Kings 2:12), not Joash. Remember what Elisha told him to do: shoot the arrow out the window eastward, toward Syria. He even explained the type to him: the arrow stood for deliverance from Syria, northern Israels’ archenemy at the time. Then Elisha tells Joash to strike the ground with a bundle of arrows. And what did Joash do? Strike the ground many times? No; he balked at the type and only struck three times. If he had struck more, he could have smitten Syria much worse than he did, but his unbelief limited his blessings.

The same is true for us in Christ. The only thing limiting our enjoyment of the unsearchable riches of Christ is unbelief. Unbelief keeps sinners from entering into the benefits of salvation, and it also keeps saints from entering into the benefits of sonship.

So let’s not be like Joash and aim so low. C.S. Lewis put it this way: “We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with [earthly things] when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” (Piper, J.; Desiring God; Multnomah, 2003; p. 20).

Our God is unsearchably great and wise, and he conceived a way for us to be saved through the fall of his earthly people, Israel. But it wasn’t just to keep us out of hell. Oh no, far much more than that. It was so that we could experience, as his children, the unsearchable riches of fellowship with him through our Lord Jesus Christ, whose body we now comprise.

As Paul said in 1 Cor. 3:21-23, Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are your’s; Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are your’s; And ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s.

The Case for Paul's Journey to Spain

In this posting, I would like to make a case that the apostle Paul did make it to Spain, as he intended to per Romans 15:24-28, which is cited in its entirety below.  

24 Whensoever I take my journey into Spain, I will come to you: for I trust to see you in my journey, and to be brought on my way thitherward by you, if first I be somewhat filled with your company.

25 But now I go unto Jerusalem to minister unto the saints.

26 For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor saints which are at Jerusalem.

27 It hath pleased them verily; and their debtors they are. For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister unto them in carnal things.

28 When therefore I have performed this, and have sealed to them this fruit, I will come by you into Spain.

So it was Paul's firm intention (mentions it twice), after his pending journey to Jerusalem (Acts 20:3-26:32), to visit Rome and then Spain.  He makes it to Rome in Acts 27-28 and likely appears before Nero the first time, per the coliphon (footnote) at the end of 2 Timothy 4: "The second epistle unto Timotheus, ordained the first bishop of the church of the Ephesians, was written from Rome, when Paul was brought before Nero the second time."  Likely he is released, since the Pastoral Epistles (1 Tim., 2 Tim., and Titus) deal with events in the following locales:

• Asia (2 Tim. 1:15), including Ephesus (1 Tim. 1:1; 2 Tim. 1:18, 4:12); Miletum (2 Tim. 4:20b), where Trophimus is left by constraint; and Troas (2 Tim. 4:13; see notes below) 
• Macedonia (1 Tim. 1:1),including Nicopolis (Tit. 3:12)
• Achaia, including Corinth (2 Tim. 4:20), where Erastus apparently chooses to stay ("abode") rather than continue with Paul
• Crete (Tit. 1:5,12) 

Paul's final stop before returning to Rome the second time seems to have been Troas (2 Tim. 4:13) , where he left his cloke, books, and parchments, likely at the time he was apprehended by the Romans and then shipped to Rome.  

Paul seems to have spent a considerable amount of the time between his two appearances before Nero in Rome in the eastern Roman Empire.  Due to his strong desire to visit Spain, though, I think that he may have visited there, perhaps by the land route through Gaul, since he says that he would come by the Romans into Spain (v. 28) and "be brought on [his] way thitherward" by them.  There's no record of believers doing this by sea (Acts 15:3, 21:5; 1 Cor. 16:6; 2 Cor. 1:16; Tit. 3:14; 3 John 6), so Paul likely would have struck out north with a company of the Romans, just as they came a considerable way south of Rome to greet him when he arrived in Italy for the first time (Acts 27:13-15).  Note especially in Acts 21:5 that the accompaniment on a sea journey stops at the seashore. 

In closing, I'm reminded of the last verse of the gospel of John (John 21:25), where John states there are "many other things which Jesus did" which John did not record.  Because of the number of Paul's activites not recorded in Acts but recorded in his epistles (e.g. 2 Cor. 11:23-33), and because of the similitude of his ministry to the Lord Jesus' (Rom. 15:8, 16; Gal. 6:17; Col. 1:24), I'm confident that there are many others things which Paul did which are not recorded, perhaps even an evangelistic "journey into Spain" (Rom. 15:24). 

Do You Believe in What Christ Believed In?

Fasten your seat belts for this short survey of things that our Lord Jesus Christ believed in, many of them questioned by "modern men" (i.e. last days sinners):

• Creation (not evolution) Mt. 19:4, Mk. 13:19
• Adam and Eve (Mt. 19:4, Mk. 10:6)
• Cain and Abel (Mt. 23:35; Lk. 11:51)
• Noe, the ark, and a universal flood that destroyed all mankind (Mt. 24:37-38; Lk. 17:26-27)
• Lot (Luke 17:28-29)
• Sodom and Gomorrah destroyed by fire and brimstone from heaven (Mt. 12:23-24; Lk. 17:29)
• Lot's wife turning into a pillar of salt (Lk.. 17:32)
• The burning bush (Ex. 3:6; Mt. 22:32)
• Manna from heaven (Ex. 16:15; John 6:49)
• The brasen serpent (Num. 21:4-9; John 3:14)
• Solomon (1 Kings; I have a history book that glosses over the wisest and wealthiest monarch who ever lived!)
• The queen of Sheba (1 Kings 10:1-13; Mt. 12:42)
• The feeding of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17; Lk. 4:25-26)
• The healing of Naaman the leper (2 Kings 5; Lk. 4:27)
• Jonah swallowed by a whale, which is a fish (Jon. 1:17; Mt. 12:40)
• Nineveh converted (Mt. 12:41)
• Hell fire (Mt. 5:22)
• Etc., etc.

Dear friend, you may profess to be a Christian, but if you question any of the things listed above, you've made a liar of Jesus Christ.  Everything above can be supported with the verses of scripture (KJV 1611) listed above. 

If You're Not Giving, You're Not Living

From James Mudge's Poems with Power to Stregthen the Soul.  This is the best compilation of Christian poems I have ever seen.  See if you can find it on Amazon and acquire this treasure trove of inspirational poetry.  Here is one of my favourites from the collection:

BE ALWAYS GIVING

The sun gives ever; so the earth--
What it can give so much 'tis worth
The ocean gives in many ways--
Gives baths, gives fishes, rivers, bays;
So, too, the air, it gives us breath.
When it stops giving, comes in death.
  Give, give, be always giving;
  Who gives not is not living;
  The more you give
  The more you live.

God's love hath in us wealth unheaped
Only by giving it is reaped;
The body withers, and the mind
Is pent up by a selfish rind.
Give strength, give thought, give deeds, give pelf [money],
Give love, give tears, and give thyself.
  Give, give, be always giving,
  Who gives not is not living;
  The more we give
  The more we live. 

Comments and Email Welcome

Comments and/or questions in sincerity and good taste are welcomed.  You may also email me at davidgloria@bellsouth.net. 

Why Do the Paragraph Marks Stop?

Have you ever wondered  why (or noticed that) the paragraph marks in a King James Bible suddenly cease at Acts 20:36?  Some erroneously (lest I say irreverently) believe that this is an "error" in the KJB. 

I would like to acknowledge Bro. Dave Reese (http://www.right-division.com) for his help with this through correspondence with my pastor, Bro. David O'Steen, per below, with some careful editing (to preserve his view): 

"Some suggest the printer ran out of the pilcrow type at this point--if he did, it was an ordained lack. Considering the extensive use of the mark throughout the OT and the Gospels, as well as the meticulous care in typesetting, etc. under the King's orders and the scrutiny of the translators, it seems to me that idea of running out of type is silly. Unfortunately (?) we have very little of the translators' notes to see their reaction...

     First thing: As used in English, the pilcrow was not at first a mere paragraph marker but a MARK OF ORDER OF EVENTS in, for example, a service in which certain people were to perform an action or a particular change was made in events. Later, it was used to mark off discourse changes...
     [M]ost miss the final paragraph, [which] begins in v 36 and has not yet ended!...I believe the pilcrow at v 36 is connected with the prison epistle truth: Ephesians-Philemon. "See his face no more" is a key. The "ship" in Acts 21 thus removes Paul from the Acts ministry unto his prison ministry (the final order of things)."

Bro. Peter Ruckman, in his Acts commentary (notes on Ch. 20), mentions "present truth" being "fixed" at this point.  Synthesizing both his and Bro. Reese's comments together, with reference to Col. 1:25, the following can be suggested:

1.  Paul's epistles fulfil or complete the canon.  The traditional teaching is that Revelation and perhaps other general epistles or gospels are written after Paul's.  What is the scriptural (not literary) support for this?  Because they're placed after Paul's epistles? 

2. Since everything outside of the Pauline epistles essentially deals with the prophetic, kingdom program re: Israel, and Paul's writings describe the mystery program re: the body of Christ, which was not revealed until Paul, it makes sense for Paul's writings to come last chronologically, in which case his prison epistles are the most present truth that we have.  (I believe that the Pauline epistles are right where they should be canonically, since the church age is a parenthesis between God's dealings with Israel preceding the church age--Matthew through early chapters of Acts--and his dealings with Israel after the rapture of the body of Christ, as touched on in the general epistles following Paul's.  The general epistles aren't the only scriptures that cover the events after the rapture, but they complete the prophetic, kingdom revelation re: Israel, just as Paul's writings complete the scriptures as a whole).

3.  The paragraph mark at Acts 20:36 supports the idea that the prison epistles are the most present truth that we have, since at this juncture Paul's prison ministry begins: he's imprisoned in Jerusalem, then Caesarea, and ultimately in Rome, where he pens Eph.-Col. and Philemon.  After a brief release, in which he apparently writes 1 Tim. and Titus, he is imprisoned again for the last time and concludes his writings with 2 Timothy.  So no more paragraph marks are needed after Acts 20:36, since it's all "prison ministry" thereafter, essentially. 

Remember this principle, which I learned from Bro. Ruckman:  apparent errors or contradictions in the KJB are often doors to advanced revelation! 

The Other Chief of Sinners?

To initiate the age of grace, God saves the chief of sinners as a pattern of longsuffering "to them that should hereafter believe on [Jesus Christ] to life everlasting (1 Tim. 1:15-16).  That this is to be an age of longsuffering and grace is demonstrated in a marvelous way by the salvation of the chief of sinners and by his subsequent calling to proclaim the gospel of that grace (Acts 20:24).  

So Paul, the chief of sinners, is chosen as point man for the grace gospel.  But what about the kingdom gospel that preceded (Mt. 3-4, 9-10; Acts 1-12) and follows (Mt. 24:14) his?  Who is the point man for that gospel?  Well, you might say John Baptist or the Lord Jesus Christ himself, but I really think that the point man of the kingdom gospel is none other than Simon Peter, whom the Lord gave the keys to the kingdom of heaven to in Mt. 16: 19, and who emerges as the chief kingdom apostle before and after the Lord's passion.

There is however, an impasse in Peter's leadership...when he denies the Lord (Mark 14:72).  Note carefully in Mk. 16:7 where Christ distinguishes Peter from the disciples.  This is not an honour, but pointing out that he has lost his discipleship.  Judas loses his permanently (Acts 1:20, 25), but Peter's is obviously temporary, since he clearly emerges as the leader of the twelve in Acts 1-12. 

How was he restored? Please read John 21:15-19, where Christ asks him three times if he loves him, once for each of Peter's earlier denials (dabbling with "agapeo" and "phileo" will not show you this truth).  Where I'm going with this is that the point man for the kingdom gospel is a man who actually fell from his discipleship by denying the Lord, something that the other ten (besides Judas, a devil--John 6:70), did not do.  So again we see the grace of God, taking the kingdom apostle who falls the deepest and making him the chief of "the twelve apostles of the Lamb" (Rev. 21:14).  No wonder this other "chief of sinners" exalts the Lord as "the God of all grace" (1 Peter 5:10), a title unique to Simon Peter, who experienced that grace very deeply. 

The Last Days of the Prophet Abel (Version 2)

If this title caught your eye, I'm glad, since it can be proven from scripture that Abel was a prophet.  Turn with me to Luke 11:49-51, where Christ makes it clear that Abel was as much a prophet as Zacharias was (cf. 2 Chron. 24:15-22).  We read in Jude 14-15 that Enoch was a prophet, and that Noah was a preacher of righteousness (2 Pt. 2:4), but before either of these men were even born, Abel prophesied.  To whom?  Of what?  I think that a close comparison of Gen. 4:1-8 with 2 Chron. 24:15-22 may provide some additional details, and due to the cyclical nature of the Bible ("that which is done is that which shall be done:" Eccl. 1:9), what happened to Zacharias may shed light on what happened to Abel.

Christ affirms in Mt. 23:35 that Abel was righteous, as does the writer of Hebrews (Heb. 11:4) and the apostle John (1 John 3:12).  So, since in "the mouth of two or three witnesses shall very word be established" (2 Cor. 13:1), including the Lord's own mouth, we can rest assured that Abel was righteous. 

Notice in Gen. 4:3 that a "process of time" precedes his last days. During this time the characters of Abel and his brother revealed in vv. 4-8 develop.  Abel is a sincere worshipper of God, likely the meditative type like David after him, spending long hours alone with his sheep...and God.  Abel is a keeper, whereas Cain is a tiller, a hard worker.  Reminds me of the prodigal's brother:  "Lo, these many years I serve thee" (Luke 15:29), and yet he despises his penitent brother, picturing the Pharisees' estimation of their penitent countrymen (Luke 15:1-2).  These same Pharisees conspire to slay Christ, also typified by Abel (Heb. 11:4, 12:24). 

At some point, probably more than once, Adam explained to his sons why they wore animal skins.  The blood of animals, Adam said, was required to atone for our sins and restore our fellowship with God (Gen. 3:21).  Abel obviously took that to heart and applied it in Gen. 4:4.  I think that God "testif[ied] of his gifts" (Heb. 11:4) by sending fire from heaven to consume his offering, just as on mount Carmel he testified of Elijah's offering (1 Ki. 18:24, 38-39) and on other occasions (Gen. 15:17; Lev. 9:24; Judg. 6:21; 1 Chr. 21:26; 2 Chr. 7:1--for a total of seven times!).  An alternate scenario is that the brothers went to the gate of the garden, kept by Cherubims, and the fire came from the flaming sword.  I tend to think that it was the first scenario rather than the second.

When self-righteous Cain saw this, instead of fearing God and offering the proper sacrifice, which God graciously encourages him to do in 4:7, he boils in rage and determines to retain his self-righteousness no matter the cost (Job 27:5-6; Luke 7:29-30, 16:15).  I know that Cain was self-righteous, rather than a seeker of God's righteousness like Abel, because when God tells him how to "do well" in v. 7, he ignores him (Rom. 10:3) and eliminates the one who reminds him that he's not, just as a certain nation did about 4000 years later (Eccl. 1:9!).  Furthermore, God not only tells Cain how to be righteous before him ("accepted," v. 7), but also that sin does not have to rule him practically; rather, he can rule over it if he will obey God.  So it is in all dispensations:  sin did not dominate the lives of the righteous Zacharias and Elisabeth (Luke 1:6) under the law, nor did it dominate the lives of righteous Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and Job before the law, nor should it dominate our lives under grace (Rom. 6:12-15). 

How does Cain rid himself of Abel?  His conversation may have been a ploy to lead him Abel out into the field, away from the family and others who might hear (Cain was married by now--4:16).  Or, he may have known where to find Abel in the field (Judas knew where to find Christ).  Now, considering how his antitype Zacharias meets his end in 2 Chron. 24 (stoning), it's my assertion that this may have been the method Cain chose to slay his brother.  Other prophets met their doom in this fashion (Acts 7:58; Heb. 11:37), and Cain may have led Abel to a place where he had "ammunition" waiting.  Or, he may have grabbed Abel's rod and/or staff (Ps. 23:4), whatever he had, and slew him with that. 

But something else happened, I believe, before Abel's martyrdom.  Remember that what precipitated Zacharias' stoning was rebuking the apostate Judeans for their idolatry (wrong worship).  I think that the prophet Abel may have spoken his last, and perhaps first, prophecy to his brother Cain, and that it was similar to, if not the same, as what God said to Cain in Gen. 4:7:  if he would follow the light he had (v.7!), God would accept him, and it would go well with him practically; if not, sin would run him and he would end up in hell. Since Cain had rejected the light God gave him in v. 7, I don't think God gave him more light, but rather restated through Abel what Cain already knew, in hopes that he would repent.

That is more than self-righteous Cain, who is "of that wicked one," could stand, however, and he grabs a stone or Abel's own instruments and starts in on Abel.  I wouldn't be surprised if Abel's last words are something like Zacharias' in 2 Chr. 24:22, "...The LORD look upon it and require it."  I know that Christ and Stephen ask God to forgive their killers, but Abel precedes them dispensationally, and when he is dead, his blood cries out to God for vengeance (4:10), and vengeance Cain receives (vv. 11-12).  He slays a prophet, and becomes a vagabond thereafter.  Antitypes: (1) the Jews slay their prophets under the kingdom, and are scattered thereafter (2 Chr. 36:20; John 11:52; Acts 19:13); and (2) the Jews slay John Baptist, Christ, and Stephen, and are driven out of their land in 70 A.D. (Luke 21:20-24). 

So ends the brief, but remarkable life of the prophet Abel.  No doubt Cain is burning in hell right now (Jude 11, 13), and Abel's soul is comforted in the presence of the one he typified, the Lord Jesus Christ (Eph. 4:8-9).  Prophets may suffer affliction (James 5:10), but their end is truly blessed (Acts 22:20; Rev. 2:10).   

The Real "World War I"?

In studying Genesis 14, it occurred to me one day that this war, the first described in scripture, may be more rightly called "World War I" (WWI) than the one that occurred in 1914-1918.  It is certainly a "Great War" like the modern WWI, and the first part of this chapter (vv. 1-16), which deals with the specifics of this war, is laden with truth as well as the latter part (vv. 17-24), familar to most due to the appearance of Melchizedek. 

1.  First, let's note the events leading up this war.  A man once said, "War is God's judgment on sin in this life; and hell is God's judgment on sin hereafter."  This principle is illustrated well in Gen. 13-14.  Note in Gen. 13:13 the exceeding wickedness and sinfulness of Sodom.  Then, in 14:4, we see Sodom and four neighboring cities (Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboim, and Bela/Zoar) in subjection to Chedorlaomer, an Elamite king (from east of Shinar/Mesopotamia in modern southern Iraq/southwest Iran), no doubt for their sin (and in fulfillment of Noah's prophecy in Gen. 9:26).  So this king is ruling over a large area, and since Shinar is between Elam and Canaan, Chedorlaomer likely reigns over the three kings with him (Amraphel, Arioch, and Tidal).  His primacy is evident by references to "the kings that were with him" (vv. 5, 17). 

2.  Because of Sodom's wickedness, and evil influence on its neighbors (Deut. 29:23; Ezek. 16:49, Jude 7), it's no surprise that the five cities of the plain rebel against Chedorlaomer.  If they won't submit to God, how can they submit to worldly authority?  

3.  In response to this rebellion, Chedorlaomer gathers a multi-national, allied army, taken from what I believe are the greatest nations of that time (Shinar, where Nimrod reigned; Ellasar; Elam; and other "nations").  Note that it's Shem's seed vs. Ham's seed, so in light of Gen. 9: 26, the outcome is predictable.  If Tidal king of "nations" ruled over any Japhetic peoples, then it would truly have been a "world war," with all three races involved!  

4.  Chedorlaomer's campaign is very strategic: he smites all of the Sodomites' neighbors first, so they can't come to their assistance, and saves his archenemies for last.  Sodomite neighbors that perish: 

(a) Giants (v. 5; cf. Deut. 2:10-12, 20-23).  The last giants living, after the flood, are connected with Ham (Anak, Og, and Goliath all descend from Ham), and are a sinful bunch (idolaters etc.). Note "Zuzims in Ham" (v. 5). 

(b) Horites.  Predecessors of the Edomites in Seir (Gen. 36:20; Deut. 2:12).  May have been giants too, considering the context.

(c) Amalekites.  This is before the Amalek which sprang from Esau (Gen. 36:12; his grandson), or an anachronism of Moses' (like "Dan" in v.14--Dan not yet born at this point).

(d) Amorites. Larger part killed, yet the ones confederate with Abram spared (grace). Bad note: Abram confederate with those whom God judges in this war.

5.  Finally the armies meet, with one alliance (i.e. Chedorlaomer's) facing another, more wicked one (sound familiar?).  The Sodomite alliance doesn't put up much of a fight:  they flee before Chedorlaomer's host, and are either slaughtered in the vale of Siddim (v. 10, "fell there") or flee "to the mountain" (v. 10).  How can the wicked stand in battle, with God against them?

6.  It's curious that Chedorlaomer doesn't destroy Sodom and its allies: he simply takes all of the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah (and perhaps the other three cities) and departs.  Maybe he thought that these cities had learned their lesson and would submit now.  True, they do not rebel against him again, but they persist in their sin despite God's visible judgment on them (Rom. 1:18), and their destruction becomes "an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly (2 Pt. 2:6).   

In summary, there's much here to support the thought that this war, the first described in scripture, could rightly be called the first "world war" rather than the one that occurred about 4000 years later. 

Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new?  it hath been already of old time, which was before us.  Eccl. 1:10

Giving 'em Watts

From Wikipedia, re: the Battle of Springfield in the American Revolution (1780):

"As the American artillery ran low on wadding, James Caldwell, the Continental Army chaplain who had lost his wife during the Battle of Connecticut Farms [two weeks earlier], brought up a load of hymn books published by English clergyman Isaac Watts to use instead. 'Give ‘em Watts, boys!', he advised."

In the spirit of Mr. Caldwell, today I'm going to "give YOU Watts," i.e. a wonderful hymn of his (#70), in long meter, subtitled, "God's dominion over the sea.  Psa. cvii, 23, &c."  This is taken from the Psalms and Hymns of Isaac Watts, previously published by Soli Deo Gloria Publications (currently out of print to my knowledge--glad I grabbed it!).

1  GOD of the seas!  thy thund'ring voice

Makes all the roaring waves rejoice,

And one soft word of thy command

Can sink them silent in the sand.

2  If but a Moses wave thy rod,

The sea divides and owns its God;

The stormy floods their Maker knew,

And let his chosen armies through.

3  The scaly flocks amidst the sea,

To thee, their Lord, a tribute pay;

The meanest fish that swims the flood

Leaps up, and means a praise to God.

4  [The larger monsters of the deep    

On thy commands attendance keep;

By thy permission sport and play,

And cleave along their foaming way.

5  If God his voice of tempest rears,

Leviathan lies still and fears;

Anon he lifts his nostrils high,

And spouts the ocean to the sky.]

6  How is thy glorious power ador'd

Amidst these wat'ry nations, Lord!

Yet the bold men that trace the seas,

Bold men, refuse their Maker's praise!

7  [What scenes of miracles they see,

And never tune a song to thee!

While on the flood they safely ride,

They curse the hand that smooths the tide!

8  Anon they plunge in wat'ry graves,

And some drink death among the waves;

Yet the surviving crew blaspheme,

Nor own the God that rescued them.]

9  O for some signal of thine hand!

Shake all the seas, Lord, shake the land;

Great Judge! descend, lest men deny

That there's a God that rules the sky. 

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A few comments:

1.  I believe the bracketed sections are ones that could be omitted if the song was to be sung more easily, and the overall theme and strength of the hymn still retained.

2.  In stanza 4, the word "monsters" can be found in a King James Bible (Lam. 4:3) and in the context refers to whales (sea monsters giving suck to their young ones).  Also, I believe that the "leviathan" referred to in Ps. 104:26 refers to the whale, since the whale is the only fish named in scripture, and thus would be the only cross-reference (except for Is. 27:1, which I'll touch on shortly).   No matter what any scientist says, a whale is a fish.  If you don't believe that, you are making a liar out of Jesus Christ (Jonah 1:17; Mt. 12:40). 

3.  The fearful connotation that "monsters" has for most people, I believe, stems from the whale's connection with Satan, since most whales and large sea animals are peaceful creatures.  Job 41, the most detailed description of Satan in scripture, introduces him as "leviathan," and the same name is given to him in Is. 27:1, where he's said to be a "piercing serpent...crooked serpent...dragon in the sea."  So the whale, then, is a physical type of the devil.  The earthly leviathan is king of all the aquatic animals, and the spiritual leviathan is king over all "the children of pride" (v. 31) and all "spirtual wickedness in high places" (Mt. 12:26; Eph. 6:12). 

Praise God for giving us such hymns and preserving them for posterity.  "Give ‘em Watts, boys!" 

Let the word of Christ dwell richly in you in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.  Colossians 3:16

Were Those Living Before Sinai Really "Under Grace"?

It has been assumed by some that those living before the dispensation of the law at Sinai were "under grace" like those in this age (Rom. 6:14-15).  I have seen this assumption used to prove that tithing existed before the law (which it did--cf. Gen. 14:20; 28:22) "under grace," and therefore should be practiced now.  That's another study of its own, but I would like to raise the question as to whether people living before Sinai were truly "under grace." 

Now, it's evident that the grace of God spans the dispensations, but I believe that it's not manifested the same way and to the same degree in every age.  In no other age is grace said to "abound" and even "reign" like in the present one (Rom. 5:15, 17, 20-21).  True, "Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD" (Gen. 6:8), but scripture doesn't say that he was "under grace" like a saint in this age.  God was gracious throughout the the old testament and told Moses this in no uncertain terms in Exodus 34:6-7, as they were communing together on Sinai.  Thus, God had shown himself gracious up to that point (Gen. 43:29), and will continue to do so through the ages, since that is part of his character (Ex. 22:27).  But I think to say that those living before the giving of the law at Sinai were "under grace" is erroneous.

Even though a written law was given at Sinai, there was an unwritten law that had been operative for about 2500 years:  the law written in men's hearts, the conscience (Rom. 2:14-15).  Adam and Eve acquired the knowledge of good and evil (i.e. conscience) upon their fall, and this knowledge was passed on, innately, to all of their offspring (Deut. 1:39; Rom. 7:9).  Hence, it is probably more correct to say that everyone living before the gospel of God's grace was revealed to Paul (Acts 20:24, Gal. 1:11-12) was "under law," either written or unwritten.  All of those living before Sinai, and the Gentiles living thereafter, were living under an unwritten law.  In some dispensational systems, the age between the fall and the flood is referred to as the "dispensation of conscience" (Scofield, Larkin, Chafer, et al.).  But conscience continues after the flood and after the written law is given to Israel, which distinguishes that people even further from the Gentiles than circumcision did (Deut. 4:8; Ps. 147:19-20).  From 1500 B.C. (Sinai) to Paul, the Gentiles were not "under grace" while Israel was under the law, were they?  Nor were they under the written law (Rom. 2:14; 1 Cor. 9:21). 

What clears this up, and the notion that everyone before Sinai was "under grace," is the understanding that, though the law may not have been written down until Sinai, it was operating within men, and God held them accountable for heeding it (Gen. 4:7; 2 Pt. 2:5).  Hence, the antediluvians were under law rather than under grace, albeit an unwritten law, as were Gentiles living while Israel was under the written law.

So, even though it may sound right that those living before the written law was given were "under grace," it's really not an accurate statement.  Those truly living "under grace" are the ones that the apostle Paul said were: believers in this age who have believed his gospel (Rom. 6:14-17) and entered the body of Christ thereby (Eph. 3:6).  As before, grace spans the dispensations because it's the character of God to be gracious, but technically only those saved in this present age by believing the gospel of grace are truly living "under grace." 

The Spiritual Growth of Simon Peter

A few brief thoughts on this.

1.  Note how Peter introduces himself in his two epistles.  In the first, it's "Peter, and apostle of Jesus Christ" (1 Pt. 1:1); in the second, it's "Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ" (2 Pt. 1:1).  Peter was the name given to him by Christ to signify his spiritual strength, Simon his birth name, pointing to his humanity and weakness.  Perhaps he is intimating by adding "Simon" that, "I may be an apostle, but I'm merely a man" (Acts 10:26).  Also note how in 2 Pt. 1:1 "servant" precedes "apostle."  Seems quite a bit humbler, doesn't it, to add servant and mention it before his apostleship?  Compare Paul's self-introduction in Rom. 1:1, "Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle..."

2.  Notice that Peter's epistles emphasize spiritual growth, from start to finish.  He mentions it in 1 Pt. 2:2, 1 Pt. 5:10 ("make you perfect"), 2 Pt. 1:5-8, and 2 Pt. 3:18 (his last recorded words!).  To be burdened about others' spiritual growth is evidence of one's own. 

3.  When Peter and John are arraigned before the council of Jewish elders in Acts 4, they are classified as "unlearned and ignorant men" (Acts 4:13).  But, wow, how the tables are turned at the end of Peter's life!  Please read 2 Peter 3:5, 8, and 16.  In these passage, Peter speaks of others' ignorance (vv. 5, 8) and of them being unlearned (v. 16). He may have seemed ignorant and unlearned to the Jewish elders, but in reality they, and those mentioned in 2 Pt. 3 turn out to be the ignorant and unlearned ones.  In 2 Pt. 3:16, Peter also rebukes certain men's instability, and prays for God to "stablish" kingdom saints (1 Pt. 5:10), signifying his own stability, in contrast to his instability before Pentecost. 

Truly, the apostle Peter demonstrates remarkable spiritual growth for us and lived what he taught!      

NOW the serpent...

A few quick thoughts on Genesis 3:1.

I just noticed tonight what immediately precedes the devil's appearance: the first marriage and the institution of the home.  Satan has always been the enemy of the home, and he moves to destroy the first one as soon as it's created. 

Note also, "Now the serpent..." The serpent is doing NOW what he's always done--trying to destroy homes, using the same tactics now as then (see Eph. 6:11; 1 Tim. 2:14; 1 Peter 3:7).  So I don't think I'm erring to say that every Christian couple should expect opposition and not give place to the devil (Eph. 4:26-27).  In the Pauline passages I've cited, our apostle gives us two major ways to avoid giving place to Satan: 

(1) men, be the spiritual leaders in your homes and women, quietly follow them (1 Tim. 2:11-15)--Adam and Eve blew it on both accounts, when she led and he followed;

(2) don't go to bed mad at each other--you are asking for it if you do; make up so you don't get bitter (Heb. 12:15) and BREAK up.

God be merciful to our homes! 

"Swedenborg an Entertaining Madman" (Wesley)

Taken verbatim from Wesley's Journal.  I think that the date is December 28, 1769. 

Wednesday, 28.  I sat down to read and seriously consider some of the writing of Baron Swedenborg.  I began with huge prejudice in his favor, knowing him to be a pious man, one of a strong understanding, of much learning, and one who thoroughly believed himself.  But I could not hold out long.  Any one of his visions puts his real character out of doubt.  He is one of the most ingenious, lively, entertaining madmen that ever set pen to paper.  But his waking dreams are so wild, so far remote both from Scripture and common sense, that one might as easily swallow the stories of "Tom Thumb," or "Jack the Giant-Killer." 

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Commentary (mine):

Acts 17:11.  These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

1 Thes. 5:21.  Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.

I'm not an expert on Swedenborg, but he seems to have had a baleful influence on John Chapman (aka Johnny Appleseed), Helen Keller, E.B. Browning, Coleridge, and others.  Just Google "Famous People Influenced by Swedenborg" and decide for yourself.   

Are YOU a Nuisance to the Devil (Acts 19)?

The inspiration for this post comes from T. Austin-Sparks' Daily Open Windows (courtesy Emmanuel Church, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA), p. 134, and from my pastor, David O'Steen, who is teaching through Acts on Wednesday evenings.

"The Holy Spirit is positive, and not negative, and if the Holy Spirit is really Lord in  our lives, our lives will count for something.  There will be an influence from our lives which will be eternal.  Thank God for the Holy Spirit!  Let us be sure to ask the Lord that the anointing shall have a free way in our lives.  The effect of the Holy Spirit may be to condemn some people, and it may be to redeem others, but He cannot be neutral, and if the anointing is upon you and upon me, the devil will take account of it.  May the Lord help us to see that that may not be a bad thing!  Do you want the devil to say:  'Oh, that man, that woman, does not matter.  You need not bother about him, or her!'  I had a friend once who, whenever we were parting and going our different ways, took hold of my hand and said: 'Goodbye, old man. The Lord make you a nuisance to the devil!'  Well, that is how it will be if the Holy Spirit is really upon us, for that it how it was with the Lord Jesus."

[Doctrinal note: the only Pauline reference to anointing is to one that all believers received at salvation, per 2 Cor. 1:21 (note "hath anointed us...hath...given the...Spirit in our hearts").  I think that Sparks may be referring to the anointing in 1 John 2:27, which is not doctrinally aimed at the body of Christ, but rather to kingdom saints in the first century historically and to saints in the great tribulation prophetically.]

"A nuisance to the devil" reminded me of what the devil-possessed man said to the seven sons of Sceva in Acts 19:15, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?"  The Lord Jesus and Paul, respectfully were nuisances to the devil:

1.  The Lord Jesus "went about healing all that were oppressed of the devil" according to Peter in Acts 10:38.

2.  Handkerchiefs and aprons that merely touched Paul's body were used to exorcise evil spirits in Ephesus (Acts 19:12), so I assume that many such spirits were exorcised there.  Paul had also exorcised at Philippi (Acts 16:18) and likely other places. 

It's not necessary, of course, to exorcise to be a nuisance to the devil.  Faithfully preaching the gospel will also do it (Acts 24:5--a pestilent fellow), and also a powerful prayer life (Eph. 6:12, 18). 

The Lord make YOU a nuisance to the devil! 

Who's at the Top of YOUR Prayer List?

From Christian History & Biography (CH&B), Issue 88 (Fall 2005), re: C.S. Lewis' ministry during World War II:

"But perhaps the most practical thing Lewis did in his war service was to pray for his enemies, praying every night for the people he was most tempted to hate.  He told his brother in a letter that Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini were at the top of his prayer list.  He wrote to another correspondent that, when he prayed for Hitler and Stalin, he tried to recollect how his own cruelty might have blossomed under different conditions into something as terrible as theirs, to remember that Christ died for them as much as for him, and that, at bottom, he himself was not "so different from these ghastly creatures." 

I'm also reminded of Festo Kivengere and his remarkable book, I Love Idi Amin (1977).  Kivengere, an Anglican bishop from Uganda, was expecting arrest from Amin, the African dictator routinely referred to as "Africa's Hitler," and escaped the country on foot in early 1977.  Within the year he had published the book.  He survived Amin's reign, and after Amin's ouster was able to return to Uganda for years of fruitful ministry.  He died of cancer in 1988 (aged 69).  [Source: CH&B, Issue 94, Spring 2007]

For further inspiration, read 1 Timothy 2:1-6 in the King James Bible.

Tertullus the Eloquent Liar vs. Paul the Plainspoken Preacher

In Acts 24 the Lord gives us a graphic contrast of speech in the orations of Tertullus and Paul before Felix, the former being recruited by the Jewish elders as a prosecutor.  

One can't help but notice Tertullus' florid speech.  He uses big words (seven are unique in scripture) to flatter Felix and misrepresent Paul, showing himself a liar on both accounts--albeit an eloquent one! 

Paul uses plain speech to defend himself, in keeping with his statements in 1 Cor. 2:1 ("...I..came not with excellency of speech...") and 2 Cor. 3:12 ("...we use great plainness of speech"), and it truly is a "demonstration of the Spirit and of power" (1 Cor. 2:4). 

Nothing wrong with eloquence, as long as it's used for the glory of God.  Apollos provides a fine example of that for us in Acts 18:24-28.  He's eloquent, but also a sincere truthseeker who humbly receives correction from Aquila and Priscilla. 

Moral: big words are not what win the day, but a big God working through men with big hearts!

What Exactly Is Worldliness?

A weighty quote to share on this, from J.G. Mantle's Beyond Humiliation: 

"What, then, is the world, and what is it to be, worldly or unworldly?  Worldliness is a spirit, a temper.  It is not so much an act as an attitude.  It is a pose, a posture.  It is a certain disposition toward God.  It is a certain inclination, a certain aspect of the soul.  Worldliness is human activity with God left out.  Worldliness is life without heavenly callings, life without ideals. life without heights.  Worldliness recognizes nothing of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus: Worldliness has no hill country.  Worldliness is horizontal life.  Worldliness has nothing of the vertical in it.  It has ambition; it has no aspirations.  Its motto is success, not holiness.  It is always saying, "Onward," never "Upward."  A worldly man or woman is a man or woman who never says, "I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills."  --Dr. J.H. Jowett

Are you worldly? 

Whatever passes as a cloud between
The mental eye of faith and things unseen,
Causing that brighter world to disappear,
Or seem less lovely, or its hope less dear,
This is our world, our idol, though it bear
Affection's impress, or devotion's air. 

Are You Getting the "Message"?

The Bible study lesson in church this morning touched on 1 John 1:5, and one word in that verse captured my attention:  "message."

Through a quick referral to Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, I found that this word is only used seven times in the Authorized Version, as summarized below:

1.  Judg. 3:20:  Ehud's "message from God" for King Eglon of Moab (a dagger!)
2.  1 Kings 20:12:  Ahab's defiant message for Benhadad, as he laid siege to Samaria
3.  Prov. 26:6:  Sending a message by a hand of a fool is harmful
4.  Hag. 1:13:  the LORD's message unto the Judean remnant through Haggai
5.  Luke 19:14:  the rebellious citizens' message to the nobleman in the parable of the pounds
6.  1 John 1:5:  a doctrinal aspect of the kingdom gospel preached by the Lord Jesus (Mt. 4:17, 9:35, 15:24; John 1:11; Rom. 15:8) concerning God's character
7.  1 John 3:11: a practical aspect of the kingdom gospel--loving the brethren 

So in the AV, "message" is used in a prophetic, kingdom context every time it appears.  It's not used by the apostle Paul in his epistles a single time.  True, our gospel of grace is indeed a message, but it's interesting that Paul doesn't use the word. 

I believe that the AV's use of a word fixes its connotation within the Bible and in life itself.  So if you come across a "Bible" called The Message, you might proceed with caution, if you're trying to follow Paul.  The Message is a free paraphrase of the scripture, not a word-for-word translation of the Hebrew, Chaldee, and Greek texts like the AV, so it's technically not a Bible at all.  In my opinion, if one heeds The Message, it will lead him away from Paul, who commanded us to "Consider what I say;" (e.g. words he used or didn't use), and to "Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus" (2 Tim. 1:13). 

The point of this post is this: take note of how the AV uses or doesn't use certain words, and let that guide you as to whether something is good or bad.  For homework, look up the words philosophy (Col. 2:8) and policy (Dan. 8:25).  Both of these words are used one time in the AV.  Good or bad contexts?  What has your real life experience been with these words?  Paul's wasn't very good (Acts 17:18) :)... 

The Real Problem with Bible Study

This post won't be anything original, but rather a quote from someone else.  The quote is so weighty, though, I couldn't resist putting it here for your edification.  It comes from a wonderful little book entitled, 444 Surprising Quotes about the Bible by Isabella D. Bunn, Bethany House Publishers, Bloomington, MN, 2005. 

"We fail in our duty to study God's Word not so much because it is difficult to understand, not so much because it is dull and boring, but because it is work.  Our problem is not a lack of intelligence or a lack of passion.  Our problem is that we are lazy."  R.C. Sproul

1.  Difficult to understand?   

• Prov. 8:9, "They [the words of God's mouth, v. 8] are all plain to him that understandeth, and right to them that find knowledge."  
• John 7:17, "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." 
• John 16:13, "Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth:..."
• 1 Cor. 2:12, "Now we have received...the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God."
•  2 Tim. 2:7, "Consider what I [Paul] say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things."

2.  Dull and boring? 

• Much, if not the majority of the Bible, is action-oriented, e.g. the ACTS of the Apostles.  Consider that a major section of the old testament is the historical books, Joshua - Esther (385 of 1158 pages in an Oxford wide margin), which is running narrative with only occasional genealogical or geographic interludes (e.g. Josh. 15-21; 1 Chr. 1-9).  That's 1/3 of the OT, not counting Genesis (50 ch.), over half of Exodus, and the other narrative sections of the law, wisdom books, and prophets. 
• When we come to the new testament, we see a similar proportion:  207 of 348 pages. are the gospel and Acts narratives, well over half of it, not counting the Revelation (22 more pages). 
• Beloved, God could have made it all like Ex. 25 - Lev. 8 (very slow stretch of the scriptures) or one long philosophical discourse, but he didn't, and I think that part of his design may have had our infirmities in mind.  Thank you, Lord.

 3.  Work!

•  Eccl. 12:13, "...much study is a weariness of the flesh."
• 1 Tim. 5:17, "...[the elders] who labour in the word and doctrine."
• 2 Tim. 2:15, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."   

4.  Lack of intelligence?   

• In "the time of the end," (Dan. 12:4), "knowledge shall be increased."
•  Also, men in the last days will be "Ever learning," (armed with Google and Wikipedia) "and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth."

5.  Lack of passion? 

• "...the spirit indeed is willing,..." (Mt. 26:41)

 6.  Laziness!

•  "...but the flesh is weak."  (Mt. 26:41) 
• "...and prayer [and Bible study--DJ] is, after all, work--the most strenuous work in all the world."  Amy Carmichael, Amy Carmichael of Dohnavur, Christian Literature Crusade, Fort Washington, PA, 1996.  
• "If thou wert sick for want of God, how swiftly wouldst thou move." F. Faber

Conclusion

• "herefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, alway abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord."  1 Cor. 15:58
• "Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine...Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them...Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them..."  1 Tim. 4:13-16 

Sword Drill: Adjectives for the word of God

Here is a long list of adjectives for the word of God (from A to W).  You supply the references :).

1. Able
2. Engrafted
3. Everlasting
4. Exceeding broad
5. Faithful
6. Good
7. Gracious
8. Great
9. Holy
10. Incorruptible
11. Lively
12. Perfect
13. Powerful
14. Precious
15. Pure
16. Quick
17. Right
18. Righteous
19. Righteous altogether
20. Settled
21. Sharp
22. Sore (hint: Isaiah)
23. Stedfast
24. Strong
25. Sure
26. Sweet
27. Tried
28. True
29. Unsearchable
30. Upright
31. Very pure
32. Wholesome
33. Wonderful (Ps. 119:129)!!!

Hmm...33.  That's how old the incarnate Word was when crucified..

For an excellent comparison of the written word with the incarnate Word (watch your spelling!), please see Danny Doege's In the Beginning Was the Word (Bible Baptist Bookstore). 

Paul the Snake Handler?

I would like to propose that Paul's encounter with a very rude viper on Melita (Acts 28:1-6) was not what Mark was referring to in Mark 16:18, "They shall take up serpents;".  Here are a few reasons why:

1.  Different gospel.  The gospel referred to in Mark 16:15-20 is not the gospel of the grace of God, which Paul is proclaiming in Acts 13-28.  Paul was not saved until Acts 9, so how could Mark 16 be referring to his gospel?  The gospel in Mark 16 is the gospel of the kingdom, which was preached by John (Mt. 3), Christ (Mt. 4-9), the twelve (Mt. 10), and the seventy  (Luke 10) when Christ was on earth, but also after his ascension. Peter knows nothing of the gospel of grace nor of the body of Christ, and his preaching about the cross in Acts 2 is in the context of a nation crucifying its king and needing to repent of that deed to receive their promised kingdom.  When the leaders of Israel reject the re-offer of the kingdom (Acts 3-7), God sets the nation of Israel aside until the rapture (Rom. 9-11) and calls out Paul to begin building the body of Christ through the gospel (1 Cor. 3:10, Eph. 3:6, etc.).  For further study, consult the Berean Bible Society, Dave Reese (website) or Peter Ruckman (Acts commentary).  So you have a different gospel context in Acts 28 than you do in Mark 16, where taking up serpents is mentioned.

2. Different circumstances.  In Mark 16:18, the text says "take up serpents," like picking them up.  Remember Moses taking up a serpent in Ex. 4:1-5?  It didn't take him by surprise and bite him.  He reached forth and grabbed it by the tail ("Resist the devil, and he will flee from you"--Jas. 4:7b).  In Acts 28, Paul is surprised, bitten, and shakes the viper off into the fire.  Not the same circumstances as in Mark 16:18, which seems intentional.  So snake handling is a kingdom sign, since snakes will be handled in the Messianic kingdom (Isaiah 11:8--"put his hand on"...).  What a book we have in our hands, beloved!

3.  Different audience.  Paul's miraculous survival in the Melita incident is not a kingdom sign, but a sign to convert the barbarous, heathen people of Melita, since God also used signs to convert Gentiles during the Acts period (Rom. 15:18-19).  Paul took his gospel "to the Jew first" during the Acts period (Rom. 1:16), but once the Jews had rejected his message in Asia (Acts 13:46), Europe (Acts 18:6), and Rome, the capital of the world (Acts 28:28), their special gospel privileges, including signs, concluded, and the gospel now went to all men, including the Jews, without distinction.  Jewish missions do not have precedence over Gentile missions after Acts 28, since Rom. 1:16 apply to the Acts period, not today.

Things that are different are not the same, and even snakes need to be "rightly divided" :) (2 Tim. 2:15).

The Goodness of God (Reprise)

There is no escape from the goodness of God. God is always doing his children good, no matter how bad things look (Rom. 8:28). The reason why is because is God is absolute goodness; he cannot do anything but what is good (Psalm 119:68). To paraphrase John Piper in The Pleasures of God, even when things look "bad" God is changing things around to do us even more good. Praise his name! Why should anything move us, then, if such a wonderful Being is, in every circumstance of life, doing us good? No matter what anyone does to us or what befalls us, "God meant it unto good" (Gen. 50:20).

(Note: This post preceded my actual "launch" of the blog, but I thought I would retain it.)

Get With It, Elect!

Take a look at Col. 3:12-13 (KJV).  "Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye."

Note Paul's clear command to the elect to do certain things.  Just because one is elect does not mean they will persevere in good works.  According to these verses, the elect may choose not to put on these graces and not to be forbearing and forgiving, but that will not change their election (cf. v. 13 with Col. 2:13--they've been completely forgiven).  The sense is that, since they are elect, they should behave this way, but their election is not based on their behaviour, to begin with or end with.  Compare 1 Thes. 1:3-4.  The Thessalonian saints demonstrated faith, hope, and love because they were elect, but these graces did not make them elect nor keep them elect.  Also, if these graces were absent, that would not indicate that they were not elect, but rather not acting in harmony with their standing.  A good example of this is the Corinthian church, which Paul addresses as sanctified in the Lord (1 Cor. 1:2), but rebukes for walking carnally, "as  men" (1 Cor. 3:1-4).  Their carnal walk did not mean that they were not saved, but that they were not walking as they should (in the Spirit vs. the flesh).

So even if you are elect, you need to "get with it" according to Paul.  Election does not mean you will do right, but rather that you should do right in light of your election.

Let the Word of Christ Dwell Richly in Who?

Per Col. 3:16 in the KJV, the word of Christ should dwell richly in "you."  Contrary to the thought of thousands and perhaps millions, the "thees" and "thous" are actually a help, not a hindrance, to understanding God's word and demonstrate the KJV's superiority over all other versions.  The words "thee/thou/thy/thine" all refer to something singular, while the words "you/your/yours" all refer to something plural.  For example, "Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name (singular)" (Mt. 6:9); and, Phil. 4:7, "...shall keep your hearts and minds (plural)..."

So the word of Christ is to dwell richly in the Colossians as a body, not just as individuals.  True, the word needs to dwell in us individually (cf. Job 22:22; Ps. 119:11 and note the thee's and thou's--individuals!), but that is not the context of Col. 3:16.  The context is corporate, cf. also Col. 3:15, "...in your hearts...in one body."  The Colossians should let the peace of God rule in their hearts, as a body, and hence be at peace with one another.  Likewise they should let the word of Christ dwell in them richly as a body.  How is this done?  The verse supplies the answer:  teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs...The word of Christ can only dwell richly in a church that is forward and faithful to minister it to one another.  Note the psalms (inspired scripture per Lk. 24:44-45), which treat of Christ, hence "the word of Christ" (cf. also Rom. 15:3-4, where Paul links a psalm to Christ).

One would think that such a command is superfluous, but if you've visited a number of churches in your lifetime, you know that there are many where the word of Christ does not dwell in the people "richly in all wisdom," because the congregation doesn't minister it to one another, either publicly or privately.  Many "services" are very short on scripture and long on other things, which is contrary to the spirit of this verse.  When we gather, beloved, let's be sure that we give each other much scripture and spiritual music.  It will make us wiser ("all wisdom") and richer in the Lord.