Qualifications – Blog.1
I have been thinking about what qualifies God’s servants and considering the role of Theological Training. Within some Christian circles a great deal of emphasis is put on people receiving formal theological training. Many churches will not allow a person to preach unless they have been through a theological seminary and in fact in some churches you could not be a preacher unless you had been through their own theological halls. Is this position Scriptural? I don’t believe it is.
Before I go any further in this blog, I want to state that I am not opposed in principle to the existence of theological seminaries. Such schooling has been of great benefit to many of God’s people before embarking on a life of service for God. However, we should not overstate their importance in helping make the man or woman of God. After all, the gifts to serve God are gifts that God imparts to believers. If God has not given a man one of the speaking gifts then four years in Bible College will not make him a preacher. God makes preachers not Bible Colleges. However, I will say more about gifts in a future blog.
If we look at the early Church in the book of Acts we see that the Apostles who pioneered God’s work were not ‘college men’. This truth is illustrated in Acts 4 where Annas the High Priest and his family challenge the Apostles for healing an impotent man. As part of the exchange Peter boldly preaches to them about Jesus stating ‘Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.’ After listening to this bold preaching the Jewish religious leaders marvelled that these men were such bold preachers despite the fact that they were ‘unlearned and ignorant men.’ This phrase ‘unlearned and ignorant’ does not mean that Peter and John were stupid people who had never learned to read or write, rather it meant that they had not been through the rabbinical schools of theology. They were not ‘college men’.
On the other hand the Apostle Paul was one who had been through the rabbinical schools. He had sat at the feet of one of the greatest Jewish teachers, Gamaliel. No doubt this teaching was of great benefit to Paul in his ministry, and in particular I’m sure God used this background of Paul to great advantage for the Church, in that much of the theology of the Church was written by the hand of Paul inspired, of course, by the Holy Spirit.
So, I think we can conclude from the Biblical example that theological training can be useful but it is by no means essential. In my opinion the model where Paul mentored Timothy should be better applied in our Churches where older, wiser men take young believers under their wings. It’s called discipleship, and is that not what the Saviour did with Peter, John and the other disciples?
A Greater Concern
However, I have a deeper concern about theological seminaries, which goes beyond any concerns about people’s over emphasis of their importance. I am concerned that theological halls can be structurally dangerous for the Church. Allow me to explain.
As I read church history I see a sad pattern, theological seminaries are often the seedbed for doctrinal error. For example, the error of Higher Criticism, which was developed in Holland and Germany in the 17th & 18th Centuries was born in theological halls like the Tubingen School and has spread to such an extent that most theological seminaries now approach Biblical interpretation from the Higher Critical position. Most of the well-known Ivy League universities that we can think of, started their lives as excellent theological schools but over the years have embraced many other disciplines. If you look now at their theological departments you will find that they are theologically corrupt in their interpretation and understanding of God’s word.
For some reason there seems to be a tendency for those with great intelligence to lose the run of themselves, and in their desire to probe the things where God’s words is silent, to speculate and philosophise to a dangerous level. Paul warns in 1st Corinthians 8 that ‘Knowledge puffeth up’ and perhaps too much learning has made some people mad.
A similar trend was evident in the inter-testamental period. At that time the Jewish religious system largely separated into to schools of thought. There was the sect of the Sadducees and the sect of the Pharisees. The Sadducees were the ‘higher critics and the modernists’ of their day, they denied life after death, resurrection and the existence of angelic beings. The Pharisees on the other hand were the Biblical purists. They took God’s word literally and were, more often than not, theologically correct. However, in their zeal for purity they moved onto the ground of legalism and introduced an array of extra biblical commandments. The point is that both of these erroneous systems were born in what we might call theological schools.
My concern essentially is this, if Satan wants to corrupt the Church then one easy way to do it is to corrupt the place where the Churches leaders are trained. If he can poison the fountainhead then he can poison the whole watercourse. As we survey Church history we can see how he has done this time after time. We could broaden the discussion into church government. Church denominations that have abandoned the Biblical model of local Church independence are also easy pickings for Satan, the same model applies, corrupt the leadership to corrupt the denomination. That is one reason why local Church independence is so important. If Satan wants to corrupt the church he has to do it one assembly at a time.
This is one reason why I believe there needs to be a greater emphasis within the local church for developing gifts. In many cases the local church totally abdicates this responsibility, saying ‘that’s not our remit, that’s the Bible Colleges department.’ This is wrong thinking! We need to develop those within our midst, rather than sending them of to some Bible school or other, which might not even teach the same doctrinal position that the local Church espouses.
So should we close Bible Schools? Certainly not! As I have already stated, they are useful and helpful for the edification of God’s people for service. However, we need to have a more realistic view of what they can achieve, to use on old phrase ‘they cannot make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.’ Bible Schools don’t make preachers, God does. We also need to have a watchful eye on Theological Seminaries, knowing how Satan has corrupted so many in the past, let’s not imagine that he is going to abandon a winning formula now.
‘Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain,’ Revelation 3 v2
Thursday, 26 May 2011
Friday, 20 May 2011
Qualifications
Introduction
It’s that time of year again, exam season. Students all over the country, whether in secondary or higher education, are doing last minute cramming ahead of the dreaded exams. In these days of course projects and work based learning, exams still have a vital role in determining who has made the grade and who has grasped their subject. That’s why the diligent student has been and is working so hard, they recognise the importance of passing their exams, they understand the importance of ‘qualifications’. The quantity and standard of their qualifications will be important in their search for employment or the furthering of their studies.
I have been thinking recently about qualifications, not GCSE’s, A-Levels or University Degrees but rather the qualifications of the Christian. What qualifications do we need to serve God?
Before discussing the subject any further it would be important to mention the obvious qualification, Salvation. We cannot serve God unless we have a relationship with Him. When we entered this world we were all born in sin and as such we had no relationship with God. We were in fact His enemies, as Romans says ‘the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.’ Our carnal or fleshly mind was not subject to God. However, through the blessing of Salvation we can have a living relationship with God. Our Saviour taught us to address him as ‘Father’ and so through Salvation we move from a situation where we have no relationship with God to one where we are His children. If you do not have that saving relationship with God then you cannot serve God. My own local assembly recognises the importance of this fact and has included the following qualification for a Church Pastor in the church constitution where it states ‘he must be a born again believer.’
‘Ye must be born again.’ John 3 v7
As I have already said the qualification of Salvation should be an obvious one, however, once we are saved we are all in a position to serve God in one capacity or another. That’s not to say that we all will, or indeed can fulfil the same roles within the Lord’s work. As members of the Body of Christ, we all have different functions to perform. To use the body analogy some of us are eyes watching out, some of us are mouths speaking out, some of us are hands reaching out and some of us are feet going out. Not everyone can be a Preacher, not everyone can be a Missionary, not everyone can be an Elder, a Deacon, a Sunday-School teacher etc but we all should be doing something. So what qualifies us to do the thing that we are doing or that we aspire to do?
I want to consider this question in a series of blogs. I want to look at two from a negative point of view and two from a positive point of view. I want to consider the misunderstandings that place an over emphasis on formal theological training and on physical maturity. I then intend to consider the gifts given to the Church and then finally the importance of humility.
It’s that time of year again, exam season. Students all over the country, whether in secondary or higher education, are doing last minute cramming ahead of the dreaded exams. In these days of course projects and work based learning, exams still have a vital role in determining who has made the grade and who has grasped their subject. That’s why the diligent student has been and is working so hard, they recognise the importance of passing their exams, they understand the importance of ‘qualifications’. The quantity and standard of their qualifications will be important in their search for employment or the furthering of their studies.
I have been thinking recently about qualifications, not GCSE’s, A-Levels or University Degrees but rather the qualifications of the Christian. What qualifications do we need to serve God?
Before discussing the subject any further it would be important to mention the obvious qualification, Salvation. We cannot serve God unless we have a relationship with Him. When we entered this world we were all born in sin and as such we had no relationship with God. We were in fact His enemies, as Romans says ‘the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.’ Our carnal or fleshly mind was not subject to God. However, through the blessing of Salvation we can have a living relationship with God. Our Saviour taught us to address him as ‘Father’ and so through Salvation we move from a situation where we have no relationship with God to one where we are His children. If you do not have that saving relationship with God then you cannot serve God. My own local assembly recognises the importance of this fact and has included the following qualification for a Church Pastor in the church constitution where it states ‘he must be a born again believer.’
‘Ye must be born again.’ John 3 v7
As I have already said the qualification of Salvation should be an obvious one, however, once we are saved we are all in a position to serve God in one capacity or another. That’s not to say that we all will, or indeed can fulfil the same roles within the Lord’s work. As members of the Body of Christ, we all have different functions to perform. To use the body analogy some of us are eyes watching out, some of us are mouths speaking out, some of us are hands reaching out and some of us are feet going out. Not everyone can be a Preacher, not everyone can be a Missionary, not everyone can be an Elder, a Deacon, a Sunday-School teacher etc but we all should be doing something. So what qualifies us to do the thing that we are doing or that we aspire to do?
I want to consider this question in a series of blogs. I want to look at two from a negative point of view and two from a positive point of view. I want to consider the misunderstandings that place an over emphasis on formal theological training and on physical maturity. I then intend to consider the gifts given to the Church and then finally the importance of humility.
Monday, 16 May 2011
Spectator or Participant
Last Wednesday night I watched with interest the performance of my fellow countryman Jim Eastwood in the ‘bear-pit’, which is Lord Sugar’s boardroom on the BBC television programme ‘The Apprentice’. The tide appeared to be going against Jim as his fellow competitors seemed to be prepared to make him the scapegoat for the their collective failure in the task of developing and marketing a mobile telephone application or ‘App’.
He made two excellent contributions as part of his defence, in the first instance he highlighted to everyone that was there that one of the competitors in the boardroom was a mere passenger in the process and then when selected by his team leader to be amongst the final three to be selected for dismissal, he refused to accept the injustice and authoritatively demanded that the team leader change his mind, which to my astonishment he did.
It is to the first contribution that I want to turn our thoughts. In highlighting the fact that one of the competitors was a mere passenger he outlined to Lord Sugar that his competitor was a ‘Spectator’ while he on the other hand was a ‘Participant’. Brilliant! However, this was not to be the last time I heard this analogy being used for the very next night at my Church prayer meeting I was confronted with the very same principle.
The speaker at our prayer meeting brought before us the story of David and Goliath as we find it in 1st Samuel Chapter 17. Of the many different thoughts he brought to us from this incident he asked us to think about how all of the Children of Israel watched each day as Goliath of Gath came down to challenge them to a one on one fight, your champion against me, whoever wins that fight wins the war. Each day he came down saying the same words and each day no-one from the armies of Israel volunteered to take on the giant. That was of course until David arrived on the scene, he was outraged at the giants words and said ‘who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?…Is there not a cause?’ David decided at that moment to do something, he was going to kill Goliath.
As David surveyed the trembling Israelite army all he saw was a bunch of ‘spectators’ but he determined that he was going to be a ‘participant’. The men of Israel were dressed like soldiers, they were on the battlefield but they weren’t taking part in the fight. So often in the Christian life we can be like that.
For the Child of God the place of prayer is the real battlefield in our war with evil. We do not fight with physical weapons, we are in a spiritual battle as Paul said ‘though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 2nd Corinthians 10 v 3-4. However, so many of God’s people get all dressed up and come to the battlefield, the place of prayer, but they do not participate. They are mere spectators in this great battle, they listen as others pour out their hearts in prayer but never take part themselves.
Are you a Spectator or a Participant?
‘Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.’ 1st Timothy 6 v12
He made two excellent contributions as part of his defence, in the first instance he highlighted to everyone that was there that one of the competitors in the boardroom was a mere passenger in the process and then when selected by his team leader to be amongst the final three to be selected for dismissal, he refused to accept the injustice and authoritatively demanded that the team leader change his mind, which to my astonishment he did.
It is to the first contribution that I want to turn our thoughts. In highlighting the fact that one of the competitors was a mere passenger he outlined to Lord Sugar that his competitor was a ‘Spectator’ while he on the other hand was a ‘Participant’. Brilliant! However, this was not to be the last time I heard this analogy being used for the very next night at my Church prayer meeting I was confronted with the very same principle.
The speaker at our prayer meeting brought before us the story of David and Goliath as we find it in 1st Samuel Chapter 17. Of the many different thoughts he brought to us from this incident he asked us to think about how all of the Children of Israel watched each day as Goliath of Gath came down to challenge them to a one on one fight, your champion against me, whoever wins that fight wins the war. Each day he came down saying the same words and each day no-one from the armies of Israel volunteered to take on the giant. That was of course until David arrived on the scene, he was outraged at the giants words and said ‘who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?…Is there not a cause?’ David decided at that moment to do something, he was going to kill Goliath.
As David surveyed the trembling Israelite army all he saw was a bunch of ‘spectators’ but he determined that he was going to be a ‘participant’. The men of Israel were dressed like soldiers, they were on the battlefield but they weren’t taking part in the fight. So often in the Christian life we can be like that.
For the Child of God the place of prayer is the real battlefield in our war with evil. We do not fight with physical weapons, we are in a spiritual battle as Paul said ‘though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 2nd Corinthians 10 v 3-4. However, so many of God’s people get all dressed up and come to the battlefield, the place of prayer, but they do not participate. They are mere spectators in this great battle, they listen as others pour out their hearts in prayer but never take part themselves.
Are you a Spectator or a Participant?
‘Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.’ 1st Timothy 6 v12
Saturday, 14 May 2011
Friday the 13th
On Friday the 13th of May I spoke to the young people in our Church about the subject of ‘Superstition’ and all that nonsense. I was asked by a friend to share my notes on this subject through this ‘blog’, so here’s the general thrust of what was said.
Introduction
Friday the 13th is supposed to be the unluckiest day. If something bad is going to happen to you then Friday the 13th will probably be the day. Historians are not quite agreed as to where this notion came from but it seems to be the double whammy of the number 13 being supposedly unlucky and Friday being the unluckiest day of the week. Superstitions like this are commonly believed amongst the population and other examples include: -
It's bad luck to
Ø Break a mirror
Ø Walk under a ladder
Ø Cross the path of a black cat
Ø Move house on a Saturday
Ø Put your new shoes on a table before wearing them
To bring a bit of balance the superstitious person believes good luck will come as a result of
Ø Having an itchy palm (money to come your way)
Ø Throwing salt over your shoulder
Ø Knocking twice on wood
Ø Finding a horse shoe
Ø Having a chimney sweep at your wedding
What a lot of nonsense, to think that doing any of these things effects what will or will not happen to us is totally ‘pie in the sky’. Believe it or not the Bible has something to say about superstition in the book of Acts chapter 17.
‘22Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. 23For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. 24God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; 25Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; 26And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; 27That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: 28For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. 29Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device. 30And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: 31Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.’
The Problem Relayed
‘ye are too superstitious’
The apostle Paul as he walked around Mars Hill in Athens saw altars and idols to every god you could imagine, from Ares to Zeus they were all there. In their fear of leaving someone out and the risk of offence they even had an altar to what was described as the ‘UNKOWN GOD’. This was a wee insurance policy Altar. If some god turned up saying why have you not worshiped me they could say we did when we worshipped the unknown god. Paul concluded as he looked at this altar that these people were ‘too superstitious’ and he told them so.
In his rebuke to these men of Athens he told them that they did what they did because of their ignorance, ‘Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship’. Sometimes we think that an ignorant person is a person with no manners but this is to misunderstand the word. Ignorance is really a lack of Knowledge. The rude person is rude because they have never been taught how to behave in polite company, they behave in the way they do due to a lack of knowledge, therefore to call them ignorant is more a diagnosis as to why they behave rudely rather than a description of what they are, rude. Lack ok knowledge has an effect on our behaviour and it makes people superstitious.
The Practical Result
‘Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship’
So Superstition is the result of mans lack of knowledge about God. This lack of knowledge manifests itself in fear. Fear in fact is part of the definition of superstition. The dictionary defines superstition as ‘an irrational fear of the unknown’. When people do not fully understand what is going on in the spiritual world, what lies beyond the grave and what is the meaning of life then they fill this vacuum of knowledge with irrational superstitious beliefs.
In an effort to get in touch with spiritual things and knowledge about their own future people often dabble with the occult. They read their horoscopes, visit fortune-tellers and read tarot cards. All of this contact with the occult is prohibited in God’s word.
In the Old Testament we read ‘There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch. Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.’ Deuteronomy 18 v10-12.
In the New Testament we read of people saved out of this sort of thing and they completely repented from it as Acts 19 v 18-20 records ‘many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed their deeds. Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver.’
So how do we combat this problem?
The Problem Resolved
‘Him declare I unto you.’
It’s simple really. The problem of superstition is as a result of a lack of knowledge so therefore we must fill the void with ‘the knowledge of the truth’.
This was what Paul did on this occasion he declared unto those ignorant Athenians the truth about the God of the Bible. Paul’s audience that day was unsaved people but before I speak to the unsaved let me say a quick word to the Child of God.
The Saved
As a Christian we should never entertain superstitious notions. We have the knowledge of the truth. Let me remind you of the truth about our God’s plan for our lives.
‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.’ Romans 8 v28
WE KNOW - CONCLUSIVE – There is no doubt about it.
ALL THINGS – COMPLETE – This truth covers everything that happens in our lives whether pleasant or unpleasant.
FOR GOOD - CHOICE – The things that happen to us are God’s ‘choice cuts’ for us. Some of them may appear unpleasant to us in the present but we have God’s assurance that they are for our good.
God’s plans for our lives are not going to be altered because a black cat looks sideways at us.
The Unsaved
With regard to the unsaved person, you need to learn about who God is and how He is to be understood and that is what Paul sought to do with these men of Athens. He informs them about.
The Sovereign
24God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;
This Sovereign was the one who created them
26And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth.
However he is a righteous God who will judge sin.
31Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness.
The Sinner
That leaves us with a problem, as we are sinners.
30And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:
If we were not sinful then there would be no need for us to repent. If we do repent then God can forgive us based on the work of the Lord Jesus on the cross.
The Saviour
Thankfully our sins can be forgiven because of what was accomplished at Calvary. Paul also refers to this saying.
31 ‘that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.’
The death and resurrection of Christ is the only basis on which we can find acceptance with God. Are you trusting in the God of the Bible or are you living with irrational fears?
Introduction
Friday the 13th is supposed to be the unluckiest day. If something bad is going to happen to you then Friday the 13th will probably be the day. Historians are not quite agreed as to where this notion came from but it seems to be the double whammy of the number 13 being supposedly unlucky and Friday being the unluckiest day of the week. Superstitions like this are commonly believed amongst the population and other examples include: -
It's bad luck to
Ø Break a mirror
Ø Walk under a ladder
Ø Cross the path of a black cat
Ø Move house on a Saturday
Ø Put your new shoes on a table before wearing them
To bring a bit of balance the superstitious person believes good luck will come as a result of
Ø Having an itchy palm (money to come your way)
Ø Throwing salt over your shoulder
Ø Knocking twice on wood
Ø Finding a horse shoe
Ø Having a chimney sweep at your wedding
What a lot of nonsense, to think that doing any of these things effects what will or will not happen to us is totally ‘pie in the sky’. Believe it or not the Bible has something to say about superstition in the book of Acts chapter 17.
‘22Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. 23For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. 24God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; 25Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; 26And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; 27That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: 28For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. 29Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device. 30And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: 31Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.’
The Problem Relayed
‘ye are too superstitious’
The apostle Paul as he walked around Mars Hill in Athens saw altars and idols to every god you could imagine, from Ares to Zeus they were all there. In their fear of leaving someone out and the risk of offence they even had an altar to what was described as the ‘UNKOWN GOD’. This was a wee insurance policy Altar. If some god turned up saying why have you not worshiped me they could say we did when we worshipped the unknown god. Paul concluded as he looked at this altar that these people were ‘too superstitious’ and he told them so.
In his rebuke to these men of Athens he told them that they did what they did because of their ignorance, ‘Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship’. Sometimes we think that an ignorant person is a person with no manners but this is to misunderstand the word. Ignorance is really a lack of Knowledge. The rude person is rude because they have never been taught how to behave in polite company, they behave in the way they do due to a lack of knowledge, therefore to call them ignorant is more a diagnosis as to why they behave rudely rather than a description of what they are, rude. Lack ok knowledge has an effect on our behaviour and it makes people superstitious.
The Practical Result
‘Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship’
So Superstition is the result of mans lack of knowledge about God. This lack of knowledge manifests itself in fear. Fear in fact is part of the definition of superstition. The dictionary defines superstition as ‘an irrational fear of the unknown’. When people do not fully understand what is going on in the spiritual world, what lies beyond the grave and what is the meaning of life then they fill this vacuum of knowledge with irrational superstitious beliefs.
In an effort to get in touch with spiritual things and knowledge about their own future people often dabble with the occult. They read their horoscopes, visit fortune-tellers and read tarot cards. All of this contact with the occult is prohibited in God’s word.
In the Old Testament we read ‘There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch. Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.’ Deuteronomy 18 v10-12.
In the New Testament we read of people saved out of this sort of thing and they completely repented from it as Acts 19 v 18-20 records ‘many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed their deeds. Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver.’
So how do we combat this problem?
The Problem Resolved
‘Him declare I unto you.’
It’s simple really. The problem of superstition is as a result of a lack of knowledge so therefore we must fill the void with ‘the knowledge of the truth’.
This was what Paul did on this occasion he declared unto those ignorant Athenians the truth about the God of the Bible. Paul’s audience that day was unsaved people but before I speak to the unsaved let me say a quick word to the Child of God.
The Saved
As a Christian we should never entertain superstitious notions. We have the knowledge of the truth. Let me remind you of the truth about our God’s plan for our lives.
‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.’ Romans 8 v28
WE KNOW - CONCLUSIVE – There is no doubt about it.
ALL THINGS – COMPLETE – This truth covers everything that happens in our lives whether pleasant or unpleasant.
FOR GOOD - CHOICE – The things that happen to us are God’s ‘choice cuts’ for us. Some of them may appear unpleasant to us in the present but we have God’s assurance that they are for our good.
God’s plans for our lives are not going to be altered because a black cat looks sideways at us.
The Unsaved
With regard to the unsaved person, you need to learn about who God is and how He is to be understood and that is what Paul sought to do with these men of Athens. He informs them about.
The Sovereign
24God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;
This Sovereign was the one who created them
26And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth.
However he is a righteous God who will judge sin.
31Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness.
The Sinner
That leaves us with a problem, as we are sinners.
30And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:
If we were not sinful then there would be no need for us to repent. If we do repent then God can forgive us based on the work of the Lord Jesus on the cross.
The Saviour
Thankfully our sins can be forgiven because of what was accomplished at Calvary. Paul also refers to this saying.
31 ‘that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.’
The death and resurrection of Christ is the only basis on which we can find acceptance with God. Are you trusting in the God of the Bible or are you living with irrational fears?
Thursday, 12 May 2011
Who's in Charge?
Well it’s all over! The votes have been cast, the ballot papers have been counted and the citizens of the different regions of the United Kingdom now know who will have their hands on the levers of power for the next few years.
Election results for some bring delight and for others they bring despondency but how should the Child of God view these things? I have always had an interest in what’s going on in the world of politics whether regional, national or indeed international politics. There have been issues that I have felt very passionately about and as a result there has never been an election since I turned 18 years of age where I have not made the trip to the polling station.
The Lord Jesus has taught us that as God’s Children we are ‘the salt of the earth’ (Matt 5 v13) and as such we are to have a preserving influence. I believe that one way in which we can use this preserving influence is by supporting candidates who will make the right legislative calls on the ‘Big Moral Issues’. However, we should never delude ourselves into thinking that God’s Kingdom or indeed the Church of Jesus Christ will ever be advanced by politics.
While my interest in politics is as strong as ever it was I have to say that in recent years I have become less and less exercised about it. I think of myself more as an interested observer these days and don’t shout at the TV anymore. You may conclude that this is the mellowing of maturing years but I don’t think that’s the case. I put the change down to a deeper appreciation of the truth of God’s Sovereignty.
If anyone ever grasped the truth that God is in control it was King Nebuchadnezzar of the Babylonian Empire, the first ever World Empire. Due to his pride God had struck him down with a mental illness where he thought that he was an animal. When God allowed his reason to return Nebuchadnezzar said these words.
‘And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?’ Daniel 4 v 34-35
As I have already mentioned many people can become despondent at the results of elections. They don’t particularly like some or indeed any of those who have been elected. However, as Christians we have to acknowledge that although we may not like some of those who have the rule over us that God in His permissive will has allowed those people to be in positions of authority. In the early days of the Church it was living in a world dominated by Imperial Rome. The Caesars who sat on the throne in those days were despots who thought nothing of feeding Christians to the lions or imprisoning them in penal colonies. These despots make our modern political leaders (even the worst among them) look like reasonable people and yet despite the harsh reality of life for a 1st Century Christian Peter wrote.
‘Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.’ 1 Peter 2 v17
The Apostle Paul for his part said.
‘Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates,’ Titus 3 v1
The Apostles make clear that as God’s people we ought to honour and obey those whom God has put into positions of government. We of course must qualify this obedience to state that if the government should ever seek to force us to do something that is against God’s will then ‘we ought to obey God rather than men.’ Acts 5 v29
Over the centuries there have been many different forms of government from Autocratic where one man ruled the roost to Democratic where the people decide who rules. All of these systems have failed and will continue to do so because of man’s wicked nature. I look forward to the day when the government will be Christocratic, government by Jesus Christ. In that day ‘the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.’ Habakkuk 2 v14
‘Even so, come, Lord Jesus.’ Revelation 22 v20
Election results for some bring delight and for others they bring despondency but how should the Child of God view these things? I have always had an interest in what’s going on in the world of politics whether regional, national or indeed international politics. There have been issues that I have felt very passionately about and as a result there has never been an election since I turned 18 years of age where I have not made the trip to the polling station.
The Lord Jesus has taught us that as God’s Children we are ‘the salt of the earth’ (Matt 5 v13) and as such we are to have a preserving influence. I believe that one way in which we can use this preserving influence is by supporting candidates who will make the right legislative calls on the ‘Big Moral Issues’. However, we should never delude ourselves into thinking that God’s Kingdom or indeed the Church of Jesus Christ will ever be advanced by politics.
While my interest in politics is as strong as ever it was I have to say that in recent years I have become less and less exercised about it. I think of myself more as an interested observer these days and don’t shout at the TV anymore. You may conclude that this is the mellowing of maturing years but I don’t think that’s the case. I put the change down to a deeper appreciation of the truth of God’s Sovereignty.
If anyone ever grasped the truth that God is in control it was King Nebuchadnezzar of the Babylonian Empire, the first ever World Empire. Due to his pride God had struck him down with a mental illness where he thought that he was an animal. When God allowed his reason to return Nebuchadnezzar said these words.
‘And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honoured him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?’ Daniel 4 v 34-35
As I have already mentioned many people can become despondent at the results of elections. They don’t particularly like some or indeed any of those who have been elected. However, as Christians we have to acknowledge that although we may not like some of those who have the rule over us that God in His permissive will has allowed those people to be in positions of authority. In the early days of the Church it was living in a world dominated by Imperial Rome. The Caesars who sat on the throne in those days were despots who thought nothing of feeding Christians to the lions or imprisoning them in penal colonies. These despots make our modern political leaders (even the worst among them) look like reasonable people and yet despite the harsh reality of life for a 1st Century Christian Peter wrote.
‘Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.’ 1 Peter 2 v17
The Apostle Paul for his part said.
‘Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates,’ Titus 3 v1
The Apostles make clear that as God’s people we ought to honour and obey those whom God has put into positions of government. We of course must qualify this obedience to state that if the government should ever seek to force us to do something that is against God’s will then ‘we ought to obey God rather than men.’ Acts 5 v29
Over the centuries there have been many different forms of government from Autocratic where one man ruled the roost to Democratic where the people decide who rules. All of these systems have failed and will continue to do so because of man’s wicked nature. I look forward to the day when the government will be Christocratic, government by Jesus Christ. In that day ‘the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.’ Habakkuk 2 v14
‘Even so, come, Lord Jesus.’ Revelation 22 v20
Monday, 2 May 2011
OSAMA BIN LADEN
One thing about 'the news' is it's ability to surprise you. I was not expecting, when I woke this morning, to hear that US Special Forces had killed Osama Bin Laden. But it has happened, the biggest man hunt in history is over.
As I have listened to commentary on news programmes today and indeed read posts on social networking sites there seems to be a view that justice has been served on Osama Bin Laden. Now while I understand where people are coming from and would agree that the world is a better place without the likes of Osama Bin Laden, it is wrong to come to the conclusion that justice has been served.
What has happened over night simply shows the truth of the Biblical principle that 'all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.' Matt 26 v52 For Mr Bin Laden justice will be served in a day yet to come. On that day he will stand with the dead small and great before the Great White Judgement throne of our Lord Jesus Christ. On that day the books will be opened and he will be judged according to the things written in those books. A God who knows and sees everything knows about every wicked plot and plan to have ever come out of the heart of that evil man and has recorded it to demonstrate how perfect His judgements are. On that day God will ensure that righteous justice is served.
As we look around the world we see all sorts of injustice and it is possible to get very vexed about it, however, I do not allow apparent injustice annoy me; I simply remember that there is a God in Heaven who will see to it that true justice is served. In my own region of the UK a lot of people get very exercised about former terrorist in positions of authority and influence. As repugnant as these former terrorists are to me I do not get vexed about the situation. A Sovereign God has permitted these things to be. I don't know why God has permitted this to be but I do know this, if these former terrorist do not repent they 'shall all likewise perish.' Luke 13 v3
That is a wonderful verse in Luke 13, for it gives hope to the terrorist or any other sinner for that matter. The Lord Jesus Christ said 'except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.' That means there is a place of forgiveness for sinners including murderers if they repent. Was the apostle Paul not a man who terrorised the Church before his conversion? If he can be saved so can Gerry or Marty.
Have you ever prayed for the Salvation of these people? Have you ever asked God to open their eyes to the wickedness of their past deeds and to draw them by His Spirit in repentance towards God and in saving faith to our Lord Jesus Christ? Perhaps you think they deserve to be punished for their evil deeds and aren't worthy of God's mercy! Were You?
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