Revenge, a long time coming

Our oldest son has always been a fidgeter.  In his mind, anything can become a fidget toy…something to spin, twist, massage, or poke.  He’d wear out the battery cover on the remote control – open, closed, open, close.  Keys were for jingling and juggling.  Flashlights were for flickering.  Camera shutters were repeatedly opened and shut.  And let’s not forget one of his favorites – rolling up and down the windows in the car. 

I especially found the car window play to be rather annoying.  We’d be driving down the road, and then his window would randomly open, only to roll back up.  My quick fix would be to lock the windows from the driver’s door panel.  When I did that, he was instantly upset. 

“Why’d you lock my window?”

“Because you can’t play with it.”

“I’m not playing with it!  I just wanted to roll it down.”

“Not while we’re driving down the road.”

He’d sit and sulk until he got over it…at least, I thought he had gotten over it.  Let’s fast-forward 10 years.  He now has his learner’s permit.  I get in the passenger’s seat, and he slides into the driver’s seat.  After adjusting the car’s seat and mirrors, he reached over and pushed the button to lock the windows.  I’m quite certain there was a little smirk on his face when he did so.  At the very least, there was a sense of smugness now coming from the driver’s seat.

“Why’d you lock the windows?”

“Because I’m the driver and I get to now.”

“No, those can stay unlocked.”

“Why???  You always locked them on me!”

“I locked them so you wouldn’t play with the windows.  There’s no danger of the other people in the car doing that, so you don’t need to lock them now.”

“It’s not fair!”

Little did I know, he had held that grudge for 10+ years.  He felt slighted by someone in authority over him, and he nursed that pain without saying a word, waiting until the day that he, literally, sat in the driver’s seat.  He wanted revenge.  He wanted me to suffer the same way he had.  But when the day finally arrived – it didn’t play out the way he imagined all those years.

Throughout Scripture, multiple authors warn us about taking revenge:

1 Peter 3:8-9
Finally, all of you be like-minded and sympathetic, love one another, and be compassionate and humble, not paying back evil for evil or insult for insult but, on the contrary, giving a blessing, since you were called for this, so that you may inherit a blessing.

1 Thessalonians 5:15
See to it that no one repays evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good for one another and for all.

Hebrews 10:30
For we know the one who has said,
“Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay,”
and again,
“The Lord will judge His people.”

This last verse included a quote from the Old Testament:

Deuteronomy 32:35
[God speaking:] Vengeance and retribution belong to Me.  In time their foot will slip, for their day of disaster is near, and their doom is coming quickly.

Jesus even said that the second greatest command is to “love your neighbor as yourself”, but did you know that Jesus’ statement is only the first part of the Old Testament command?  Here is the full verse:

Leviticus 19:18
Do not take revenge or bear a grudge against members of your community, but love your neighbor as yourself.

Desiring justice and hating wrongdoing are perfectly normal responses to what happens in our broken world.  The problem we encounter when we are wronged by members of our community is that we tend to “one up” the wrong that was done to us.  We want them to hurt at least as much as we have.  This is why God says to leave the punishment up to Him.  He knows all the angles of every person involved, and as such, His vengeance and retribution is perfectly just and balanced – something we cannot manage within ourselves.

Upon reflection, when we choose to love our neighbor as ourselves even going so far as to be compassionate and humble, we may even find – like my son did – that the grudge we hold is more of a “me-thing” and not so much that I was actually wronged.  We can easily slide toward grudges and wanting revenge when we don’t get our own way.  How much head-space and energy did my son needlessly spend while he waited for his chance at revenge?  Years-worth.  Don’t make the same mistake.  If the moment for revenge actually arrives…it won’t turn out like you’ve daydreamed.  Leave it for God to sort out.  He will do a much better job than you ever could.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

Proverbial life: dangerous infidelity

We’re taking a topic-focused tour of the book of Proverbs.  Although Solomon was commenting on life roughly 3000 years ago, his observations ring loud and clear in today’s modern times.  In this blog post, we’ll be looking at a topic that we’ve all been directly or indirectly impacted by: infidelity.

When God gave Moses the 10 Commandments, the 7th stated “Thou shalt not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14) – or, as the KBC version (i.e. – according to me) states: Don’t screw around on your spouse, and if you’re single, that includes your future spouse. 

For many years, I’ve held the following position: If the entire world, regardless of their standing before God, could just follow the 7th commandment…then half the world’s problems would go away, and the other half would be significantly easier to deal with.

That’s how impactful infidelity has been to our world.  And, not surprisingly, when Solomon wanted to write down wisdom for his son, he talked many times on this subject.  We’re going to look at two of those times.  However, before we get into Solomon’s warnings, let’s start with one of his positive declarations:

Proverbs 18:22
A man who finds a wife finds a good thing
and obtains favor from the Lord.

God designed marriage as a good thing, a special relationship where a man and a woman can connect and grow.  Here in this proverb, Solomon reveals a great promise – that also within this unique relationship, we can obtain favor from the Lord.  The Lord’s favor, blessing, or protection on our physical lives is not a guarantee.  In fact, in Scripture we see that God’s favor, blessing, or protection are often conditional upon how we are living our lives.  Whenever we come across a promise of how to obtain favor, we would do well to pay attention.

That said, Solomon’s son does need to be warned about the dangers of breaking his marriage covenant:

Proverbs 22:14
The mouth of the forbidden woman is a deep pit;
a man cursed by the Lord will fall into it.

Flirtatious words, ego-raising compliments, and promises of desire all sound good, but Solomon’s son needs to know that when these words come from a woman who is not his wife, he is in danger of falling into a deep pit.  In Jewish thinking, you are either blessed or cursed by God; and, as we stated earlier, these two options are often dependent upon a person’s life choices (e.g. – Deuteronomy 28).  If Solomon’s son isn’t walking with the Lord, he will be more susceptible to falling into this trap of the forbidden woman.

A second warning Solomon gives his son is also beneficial for us to review:

Proverbs 23:26-28
My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways.
For the prostitute is a deep pit, and a wayward woman is a narrow well;
indeed, she sets an ambush like a robber
and increases the number of unfaithful people.

A number of years ago – in the pre-smart phone days – I was traveling by myself to visit family in Nevada.  I was reading a book while waiting for my flight to Las Vegas, when two women sat down directly behind me and started a loud conversation.  Although my back was to them, given the tone of their voices and the phrases they used, I guessed they were both in their early to mid-twenties.  One of them had never been to Las Vegas, and the other had been there many times.  The more experienced one began coaching up her friend about all the ways to get guys to buy them drinks, take them out to eat, and get into exclusive parties.  She explained how to dress sexy, which ways to flirt, and how to toy with a guy’s affections throughout the night in order to exploit him for as much as she could.  Her friend was shocked that it would be “so easy”, but the experienced woman assured her that she was about to have a fun weekend with everything she wanted essentially paid for by other men.

After a little while, I grabbed my bag to go get some food.  As I walked back to my terminal and to the seat I was in before, I was able to see both women for the first time.  I had guessed correctly at their ages, and they were very attractive, especially the one who had been to Las Vegas before.  Based on their looks and their discussed tactics, I knew their plans would succeed.  They were about to manipulate their way into just about anything they wanted.

Solomon warned his son that these type of women were a trap, just like a deep pit or a narrow well.  They were setting an ambush like a robber, and they were about to fleece any man who would take the bait. 

As a father of two young men, this is a bit scary to think about…that they could become trapped and exploited by a woman that has zero interest in them or their well-being.  Warning them is a good place to start, but Solomon also showed how to provide maximum support to his son.  He gave himself as the example:

Proverbs 23:26
My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways.

To paraphrase what we’ve read so far: If your ears are full of the forbidden woman’s words and your eyes are blinded by her beauty, look to me as your example and I’ll set you right.

A mentor can be a lifeline when a man is walking toward or even caught in a trap.  Us guys need to be a resource for each other in order to keep our minds focused and our marriages pure. 

On the one hand, this is great advice from Solomon.  On the other hand, we must acknowledge that this advice is coming from someone who had 700 wives who were princesses and 300 concubines, and Scripture says they turned Solomon’s heart away from God (1 Kings 11:3).  However, no matter how you look at it, Solomon is still an example to his son.  His words, if followed, tell how to obtain favor from the Lord, whereas observing his life shows us the dangers of what happens when we make the unwise choice.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

It's ok to write on the walls

It’s around preschool age when a child starts to develop the finger dexterity to hold a pencil steady and is able to make the lines and curves that represent our spoken words.  Moving from individual letters and sounds, at some point it mentally clicks for them – there is a particular combination of these letters that make up “my name”, and my brother’s “name”, and the dog’s “name”, etc. 

Shortly after learning these combinations, our oldest began to fill pages with letters and drawings.  However, he wasn’t always good at keeping his practice space to just a piece of paper.  One day I went upstairs to the boys’ room, and on the wall next to the doorframe was our youngest son’s name, written in blue crayon.  Curious, I asked our oldest if this was his handiwork…because he knew that he was not allowed to write on the walls.  He insisted that the perpetrator was his younger brother – obviously, because that’s whose name was on the wall.  The problem with his sound 5 year old logic was that his younger brother was still toddling around at point, and he was far from ready to write out anything, let alone his own name.

What’s crazy to think is that God once specifically told the Israelites to write on their walls.  However, what they were to write was more important than simply their brother’s name:

Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Listen, Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.  These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart.  Repeat them to your children.  Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead.  Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your city gates.

Thinking about God’s words, talking about them with others, and having them visually available would help keep their relationship with God in the forefront of their minds.  It’s hard to love God if you’re not thinking about Him.  You can’t have a relationship with Him if He’s not a part of your day.

I love how practical these directions are.  To be honest, Moses could have stopped much earlier and simply said: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.  These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart.  That direction is potent, and we could talk for hours about how to make sure this is the focus of our lives.  However, Moses emphasizes how important these directions are by giving a detailed list of examples for the Israelites.

God’s words are to be passed down to your children.  Talk about God’s words when you’re at home and when your out and about.  They should be visible in your actions and potent in your thoughts.

The most interesting part of the section is the last verse: Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your city gates.

One of my favorite ministries, Chestnut Mountain Ranch in Morgantown, WV, has a tradition when constructing a new building.  The workers and volunteers who help with construction write Bible verses and prayers on the wooden frame of each building.  This is a way for them to acknowledge the work God is going to do in the boys’ home they are constructing.  They pray for everyone who will use that space to make a generational impact.  You can see an example of this in the pictures at the bottom of this page.

One last observation: the doorposts and the city gates are rather specific locations for Moses to call out.  It doesn’t prevent them from putting up God’s words on other parts of their homes or in their community, but why these two places?  I think these are the best place to have God’s words visible to His people – because the doorposts and city gates are their transition points during each day.  When you leave your home and when you return back to your family, there are God’s words waiting for you.  When you leave your community to head out in to the world and upon your return – God’s words are there to ground you and remind you whose you are.

Transition points in our day are ripe with opportunity to reset our minds on what is most important.  Rather than move from Point A to Point B or from Task 4 to Task 5, here are some practical ways we can remember God’s words and reset our minds during the day:

·       I recently heard someone say that when they would drive to various meetings with clients, they would spend their drive time talking to God about the next meeting. 
·       To choose a strong password for your accounts, select a Bible verse (e.g. – Philippians2:14) and say it out loud when you log in.  If your work requires that you update your password every 90 days, then next time change it to Philippians2:15 and say both verses together.  And yes, it’s ok to look at the verse to help you memorize it…but after saying the verse for 90 days, trust me, you won’t need any help – you’ll have God’s word in your heart.  I have memorized chunks of Scripture using this method.
·       We use elevators to take us to specific places and people.  So when you ride one, tell God thank you for all the places He’s taken you in life and for the people He has introduced you to.  Name the places and the people you are thankful for.
·       Hang a Bible verse near your door, or even take my son’s approach and write it on the wall.  Find a verse that reminds you of who you are in Jesus and how much He loves you.

Search your day for transition points.  Change one of them.  This reminder will strengthen your relationship with God and help you love Him with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

What is meditation, really?

We’ve been looking at the beginning verses of Psalm 1 and have found guidance on where to expect happiness and where not to expect happiness.

Psalm 1:1
How happy is the one who does not
walk in the advice of the wicked or
stand in the pathway with sinners or
sit in the company of mockers!

Psalm 1:2
Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction,
and he meditates on it day and night.

However, I’m pretty sure I can hear your thoughts…

Seriously, Ken?  All I have to do to be happy is to read my Bible more?  And…somehow find “delight” in doing so?  I’ll admit some parts are interesting and other parts are easy to understand, but you’ve got to admit there’s a lot challenging things in there.  It’s really hard to “delight” in something that is a struggle to read.

I understand, and I agree…but my suggestion to help you connect delight with the Lord’s instruction is in the second half of the same verse: meditate on it day and night.

But what is meditation, really?  And how do we do it?  Is there a certain phrase to repeat or setting we need to be in to meditate properly?  It’s tough to know when there’s so many mixed messages about it in culture.  Meditation is used for jokes in kids’ shows and often portrayed as hippie mysticism in adult shows.  We hear stories of monks who silently meditate all day, every day.  Some parts of Christianity avoid it entirely, while other Christians advocate it as an essential spiritual discipline.  So what are we to do when read verses like Psalm 1:2?

We always want to avoid putting a modern spin or definition on how we interpret the text, so the first thing we do is look at how the original writer/reader would have understood the practice of meditation.

meditate (Hebrew: hagah) – ponder, give serious thought and consideration to selected information, with a possible implication of speaking in low tones reviewing the material, to mutter, to make a judgement about something after a thought process

From this definition, we see that meditation is intentional, not accidental.  Biblical meditation is mulling over the Lord’s instruction, it is not any of the examples or definitions we find in other cultures or religions.  There is no “emptying the mind” to find out what new thought will eventually fill it,  or “centering” on one word repeated over and over.  Looking at a one-for-one Hebrew-to-English translation of the second part of Psalm 1:2 can also help us see the emphasis of the verse:

mediate torah himself day night

God desires for His people to think about His words throughout their day.  For an example, we can look back to one of the pivotal moments in Israel’s history.  Just as they were getting ready to enter into the Promised Land, Moses gave meditative-like instructions to the Israelites.  Life was about to change for them, in a big way, as soon as they crossed the Jordan River.  They would need to remember who they were and whose they were.  Moses knew they would only remember these truths if they found ways to incorporate God’s words into their daily lives:

Deuteronomy 6:6-9
These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart.  Repeat them to your children.  Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead.  Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your city gates.

God’s words were to be a part of their daily lives, which would help the Israelites think about them throughout their day.  Lastly, notice how Psalm 1:1 and 1:2 are contrasted between action and contented thinking:
walk/stand/sit                                vs           meditate
wicked/sinners/mockers           vs          the Lord
advice/pathway/company        vs           instruction

From this contrast, we realize that our happiness is not found in the actions of the first column, instead it will be found as we allow God to renew our minds with His truth.

How can we apply this Biblical method of meditation to Scripture?  It involves examining a passage, thinking about it, praying about it, and exhorting ourselves to fulfill it.  It can include talking with others about it or intentionally having reminders of the passage show up at different parts of our day. 

A godly person is not influenced by unrighteous people, but by his mediations on the Word of God.  Biblical meditation does not mean emptying our minds, instead it is about filling our minds with God’s Word…but only if we desire to do so.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

Two paths, but only one leads to happiness

Last time, we looked at the beginning of Psalm 1, and we found strong advice on where not to go for our happiness:

 Psalm 1:1
How happy is the one who does not
walk in the advice of the wicked or
stand in the pathway with sinners or
sit in the company of mockers!

The second verse tells us where to go to find our happiness:

Psalm 1:2
Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction,
and he meditates on it day and night.

Hebrew psalms and proverbs were commonly written in parallel form, comparing and contrasting two aspects of life – in this case, the psalmist is contrasting a life lived with God’s input and a life lived without it.

We have to be careful here.  There is a trap that snares a lot of modern Christians when they read the Bible, and especially when they read Old Testament passages – although easy to do, there is no evidence here that we should read this text as a contrast of “saved” vs “unsaved”. 

Instead, remember the context of the psalm – the text was written as a poem/song for Israel, very likely before the Babylonian exile.  That puts the date as roughly 1000 BC.  At that time in history, the nation of Israel was in good world-political standing, they were prosperous, and they were not under the rule of any other nation.  The Mosaic Law was in full force (referred to in the psalm as the Lord’s instruction, and animal sacrifices were part of daily living).  As such, this psalm is about a way of life, not how to change one’s eternal destiny.

Therefore, based on the context, the topic of Psalm 1 is not “those who have everlasting life vs those who do not have everlasting life”…instead, it is “those who are blessed/happy vs those who are not blessed/happy”.

With this psalm, the Israelites are given a choice.  Being presented with two paths is not a new concept for them, either.  Compare Psalm 1:1-2 with what Moses told the Israelites before they entered the Promised Land:

Deuteronomy 11:26-28
Look, today I set before you a blessing and a curse: there will be a blessing, if you obey the commands of the Lord your God I am giving you today, and a curse, if you do not obey the commands of the Lord your God and you turn aside from the path I command you today by following other gods you have not known.

It’s not always easy to see where certain paths lead.  Like Proverbs 14:12 says “there is a way that seems right to a person…”.  Some bad paths may not look bad, at least at first.  This is why God gives us so many warnings in Scripture, and putting this poem/song at the beginning of the book of Psalms is a great way to start the entire book.  Starting with this kind of warning is a “first things first” approach to teaching the nation of Israel about their relationship with God.  Beginning with the End in mind will help them discern the choices and paths before them.

Looking at Psalm 1:1-2, we see that happiness comes from avoiding the habits of the wicked and replacing that constant input with the Lord’s continuous instruction.

The two paths presented look like this:

walking in advice of the wicked
standing in the pathway with sinners
sitting in the company of mockers
vs
delighting in the LORD’s instruction and meditating on it day and night

But verse 2 is counter-intuitive, isn’t it?  It’s not often that we connect delight and the Lord’s instruction.  Those aren’t concepts that we usually put together.

But think back to whatever timeframe you consider the “best times” in your life so far…were you following the advice of the wicked, or choosing a life characterized by sin, or actively participating with those who mock God’s ways?  My suspicion is that your “best times” were not characterized by these kinds of activities.  I would even go a step further and suggest that your “best times” were when you were following God’s advice and path for your life.

I can personally attest to this.  Both of the following statements are true for me and my family:
·       The happiest times in my life have been when I am intentionally studying and enjoying God’s Word.  The constant input of God’s influence kept me from wandering to other, more dangerous paths.
·       The happiest times in my marriage have been when both my wife and I are intentionally studying and enjoying God’s Word…and doing so with other godly people of all ages, as a mentor, peers, or younger believers.

Just like the Israelites, we have a choice of two paths: God’s design in His Word or the advice of those who reject God’s way.  One path leads to happiness and life of blessing, the other to unhappiness – while living under God’s curse and displeasure.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

They will get theirs

We have always craved justice.  However, in recent years, there has been an increasing emphasis on correcting injustices within society – for wrongs committed today as well as those committed in the recent past.  This desire to right the wrongs is noble; however, there have been many ignoble attempts to carry out retribution or exact payment for injustices.  And then we often end up fighting about the ignoble means of handing out noble justice.  Who is supposed to be responsible for administering this justice and how far the punishment is taken have both been hot topics recently.  Accusations of corruption within the judicial branch of government appears in our news feeds frequently.  Stories and rumors of bad behavior are immediately blown up and judged via social media.  Being an election year always seems to put these issues to the forefront of our attention.

But what is a Christian to do with all this?  How can we proclaim a perfect God to a world that is far less than perfect?  We feel the same tensions that non-Christians do – Why do evil people seem to get away with stuff?  I’m glad when the bad guys finally get caught, but what about all those who do the same things and the authorities aren’t even aware of them?  How do we handle inconsistencies for how justice is administered?  What do we do when it appears that justice has not been served and someone “gets away with it” or receives a much lighter punishment than we would have expected?

These are not new questions.  These are concerns that people have always had, as they realized that their governments full of sinful people are trying to corral the actions of sinful people…this is not a formula to bring about perfect justice.  But that seems to be the best we have.  Even Israel’s King David and God’s prophets recognized this tension, and they asked God why injustice happens:

Psalm 94:3-7
Lord, how long will the wicked – how long will the wicked celebrate?
They pour out arrogant words; all the evildoers boast.
Lord, they crush your people; they oppress your heritage.
They kill the widow and the resident alien and murder the fatherless.
They say, “The Lord doesn’t see it.  The God of Jacob doesn’t pay attention.”

Jeremiah 12:1
You will be righteous, Lord, even if I bring a case against you.  Yet, I wish to contend with you:
Why does the way of the wicked prosper?
Why do all the treacherous live at ease?

Habakkuk 1:2-4
How long, Lord, must I call for help and You do not listen
or cry out to you about violence and you do not save?
Why do you force me to look at injustice?
Why do you tolerate wrongdoing?
Oppression and violence are right in front of me.
Strife is ongoing and conflict escalates.

This is why the law is ineffective and justice never emerges.
For the wicked restrict the righteous; therefore, justice comes out perverted.

Paul also dealt with our unfulfilled desire for justice in this manner:

Romans 12:19
Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for God’s wrath, because it is written, “Vengeance belongs to Me, I will repay”, says the Lord.

Paul’s quote goes back to Deuteronomy 32:35, reminding his readers that despite all they are struggling with, God promised long ago to make things right.

Although Paul goes on in his letter (Romans 13), to say that one of the ways God displays His wrath now through the appointed governments to do the work of justice and punishing those who do wrong…we’re still left with a judicial system that doesn’t always get it right.  Our judicial system does not always get all the evidence; it is not is able to understand all aspects of a situation.  Additionally, and sadly, our judicial system can be corrupted so that in some cases, those responsible are never held accountable. 

That is a lot of tension for us to stand in.  And while God’s statement “I will repay” is comforting, it can still feel a bit hollow.  Just like the Old Testament writers, we want to ask God…When?  When will wrongdoing be properly and fully repaid?

It’s likely not as swift as we would want it to be, but God has set a time and place for justice to be finally and fully served.  The apostle John records this moment as the last actions God takes before creating a new heaven and a new earth:

Revelation 20:11-15
Then I saw a great white throne and One seated on it.  Earth and heaven fled from His presence, and no place was found for them.  I also saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened.  Another book was opened, which is the book of life, and the dead were judged according to their works by what was written in the books.  Then the sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them; each one was judged according to their works.  Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.  This is the second death, the lake of fire.  And anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

Let’s make a significant observation here: there are two sets of books that non-believers will be evaluated by.  The first set is plural – the dead were judged according to their works by what was written in the books – and this the full and just evaluation of their deeds in this life.  The second is singular – anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.  As the text says, it is whether or not their name is in book of life which sends them to the lake of fire, not their bad deeds and neither do their good deeds rescue them from this outcome.

The purpose of being judged according to their works is to determine the level of torment and anguish each person will suffer in the lake of fire.  A garden-variety pagan, who rejected Jesus’ offer of eternal life, will have a very different experience from someone on the level of Hitler, Stalin, or Mao Zedong.  That is true, full, and final justice.  Everything that someone appears to “get away with” now will come to light, and God will properly handle it.

Although this gives us some more comfort just knowing there is a “when”…I know this still leaves us with some unsettled questions.  Take them to God.  He is big enough to handle your questions.  Ask, just like Jeremiah did: You will be righteous, Lord, even if I bring a case against you.  Yet, I wish to contend with you…

This is how justice will be served for those who do not trust in Jesus for eternal life.  They will get theirs.  But, then, what happens to Christians who do terrible things?  Do they get away with it, just because they became a part of God’s family?  We’ll look at those questions next time.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

Is our worship ignorant?

When we get together at our church locations, do we know why “we do what we do”?  Seems like most, if not all, churches have the same basic steps in a worship service: songs, announcements, a sermon/talk, prayer.  Do we do these things – and typically in the same order each time – just because it’s tradition or is there some other reason?

The Greek word for worship (proskyneo) means to “pay homage or show reverence to someone”.  That would be a pretty open-end definition, if it is all we knew about “worshipping” God.  So, is there a “right way” to worship God – or at least a “better way” of doing it?

During their conversation at the well, the Samaritan woman presented Jesus with the biggest hot-button culture question of her day – and it was about worshipping God.  The Jews and Samaritans took the topic so seriously, that over the centuries, people had even died over it.  While we could brush off their dispute as something that was an issue long ago, Jesus’ answer raises a few questions for us, as well.

John 4:19-20
“Sir,” the woman replied, “I see that you are a prophet.  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain [Mt. Gerizim], but you Jews say that the place to worship is in Jerusalem.”

As we saw last time, Jesus didn’t choose between her Option A or Option B, instead Jesus chose “neither”:

John 4:21-24
Jesus told her, “Believe me, woman, an hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain [Mt. Gerizim] nor in Jerusalem.  You Samaritans worship what you do not know.  We worship what we do know, because salvation is from the Jews.  But an hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and in truth.  Yes, the Father wants such people to worship Him.  God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in Spirit and in truth.”

Jesus said the Samaritans worship what [they] do not know or fully understand.  Earlier in their conversation, Jesus point out that she didn’t know the gift of God (John 4:10).  From what Jesus has said, we can see that it is possible for people worship God in religious ignorance.  But why would they do that?

The Samaritans worshipped in ignorance because they acknowledged no prophet after Moses – other than the one spoken of in Deuteronomy 18:18, and they regarded that yet-to-arrive person as the Messiah.  Because of this, they rejected the rest of the Old Testament and had mixed in pagan concepts with their faith.  They stunted their ability to worship and know God fully because they cut themselves off from God’s Word.

In contrast, the Jews accepted all of God’s revelation in the Old Testament, therefore, they “knew” the God whom they worshipped.  What the Jews knew, however, became something all too familiar.  By the time Jesus arrived on the scene, the Jewish worship of God was outwardly religious and extremely formulaic.  Instead of looking to walk with God, the first century religious leaders were much more interested in enforcing “perfect living” according to the 600+ laws of the Old Testament as well as following all Jewish religious traditions.  They would rather debate the fine details of the law, instead of taking action to help their fellow Jew.  Jesus routinely called them out for such behavior.  Even though they knew God’s Law and could recite it line-by-line, they still doubted that Jesus was the promised Messiah.  In their familiarity, they began to focus on themselves rather than God.

Thinking about the times your church family gathers together to worship God or when you worship God on your own:

·       Do you know the God you worship? 
·       Have you looked for God in all His revealed Scriptures, or are you ignoring some parts?
·       If you do know Him, has your worship become stale or formulaic? 
·       Are you just going through the Sunday morning motions, because that’s what your family is expected to do on Sunday morning?

Think about your answers.  Talk to God about your answers.  It’s ok to wrestle with any thoughts or feelings that come up.  If you need help processing, ask a mature believer.  And next time, we’ll look at what Jesus said our worship should look like.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

An outcast of outcasts

We saw last time that Jesus purposely spent a lot of time with those who found themselves on the fringes of society.  These people were outcasts due to disease, physical brokenness, demonic influences, scandalous choices, or society’s prejudices and attitudes.  And yet, Jesus still connected with them, regardless of whether their situation arose due to their own choices or if their condition was due to circumstances outside of their control. 

There is one interaction I want to focus on, but in order to get a clear picture of why this individual would be considered an “outcast of outcasts”…we need a little history lesson:

The Assyrians brought about the end of the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 722 BC.  They deported around 30,000 people from the Northern Kingdom/Samaria and replaced them with captives from abroad (2 Kings 17:24-34).  Intermarriage occurred between the northerners who remained and the imported refugees, and a pluralistic culture of sorts developed.  Some of those refugees embraced a number of articles within Judaism, although they still mixed in their old religions, and in time came to regard themselves as Jews (Ezra 4:1-2).  However, their bid for membership in the Jewish community was rejected by post-exilic Jews (Ezra 4:3-5).  This event set into motion a religious animosity between the Jews and Samaritans that persisted throughout the remainder of the biblical period (Luke 9:51-56, John 4:9 and 8:48).

Samaritans claimed lineage through Joseph’s children.  When the tribes of Israel came to the Promised Land, half were instructed to stand on Mt. Gerizim and the other half were to stand on Mt. Ebal.  The half on Mt. Gerizim received the pronouncement of blessing from God – representing what would happen to the entire nation if they chose to follow God (Deuteronomy 28:1-14) and the other half, standing on Mt. Ebal, received the pronouncement of cursing from God – representing what would happen to the entire nation if they chose to not follow God (Deuteronomy 28:15-68).  Joseph’s tribes were among the those who stood on Mt. Gerizim and heard the blessing (Deuteronomy 27:12-13); however, the Jews would have viewed the Samaritans as being among the cursed.  Roughly 400 years prior to Jesus’ time, the Samaritans had built an alter to God on Mt. Gerizim, but it was later destroyed by the Jews in 128 BC.

A significant piece to understanding the Jewish-Samaritan tension is that the Samaritans only accepted the Moses-authored, books as their bible (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy).  The Samaritans acknowledged no prophet after Moses other than the one spoken of in Deuteronomy 18:18, and that is who they regarded as the future Messiah.  The Samaritans rejected all other Jewish writings of the Old Testament, containing history, wisdom literature, and the words of the Jewish prophets.  As such, while the Jews and Samaritans agreed in the expectation of the Messiah and His kingdom, by Jesus’ day, they were looking for different types.  The Jews expected a conquering king, who would clean up the world’s mess and establish Jerusalem as the center of His rule.  The Samaritans were looking forward to a teacher/restorer, who would set things right.

Because of the region’s mixed race history, pure-blooded Jews wanted little to do with Samaritans.  It was insulting to them that half-breeds would make equal-footing claim to their Jewish ancestors.  However, from a political perspective, Samaria was part of the Roman province of Judea in Jesus’ day.  Nevertheless, the ancient cultural barriers created a sharp divide between the residents of Samaria and the Jews who lived in Galilee (which was north of Samaria) and the Jews who lived in Judea (which was south of Samaria).

With this background, we are now ready to step into an amazingly unexpected encounter that Jesus had with an outcast from those who were regarded as outcasts:

John 4:1-7
When Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard He was making and baptizing more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were), He left Judea and went again to Galilee.  He had to travel through Samaria; so He came to a town of Samaria called Sychar near the property that Jacob had given his son Joseph.  Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, worn out from His journey, sat down at the well.  It was about noon.

A woman of Samaria came to draw water.

Societal ranking of the day looked like this:
Jewish man
Jewish woman
Samaritan man
Samaritan woman

Collecting water was a woman’s task, and they would typically go in groups to draw water during the cooler parts of the day – either early or late.  It is very telling that this woman of Samaria came alone, when the day’s heat was at its peak.  Later on, we’ll find out other aspects of her life that would have made her an outcast, even among her own people.

Despite all the historical animosity and racial tension between the Jews and the Samaritans, Jesus saw her as someone worth His time, His effort, and His offer of Eternal Life.

Whom do we see as a modern-day Samaritan?  Whom do you shun because you see them as an outcast?

If we want to be Jesus’ disciples, we’re going to need look at the outcasts like Jesus did…and then meet them where they are.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

Warning: Don't add and don't take away

We saw last time that those believers who hear Jesus properly are to make the invitation to non-believers to take the free gift of salvation:

Revelation 22:17
Both the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!”  Let anyone who hears, say, “Come!”  Let the one who is thirsty come.  Let the one who desires take the water of life freely.

The next two verses also command the attention of those who have ears to hear:

Revelation 22:18-19
I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book.  And if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share of the tree of life and the holy city, which are written about in this book.

Many commentaries will tell you that the warning John adds here at the end of Revelation is equivalent to a copyright in the ancient world, and that you’ll commonly find these types of warnings in other apocalyptic (prophetic) writings of the day.  While this is true, don’t think that this type of warning is something that John added just because everyone else was doing it.

This isn’t the first time that God gave a warning like this, and actually it was given at a similar situation – just on a slightly smaller scale.

Remember, we’ve been looking at eternal rewards that believers can inherit in Eternity Future.  When the Israelites were getting ready to inherit their reward of the Promised Land, this is what Moses told them:

Deuteronomy 4:1-2
Now, Israel, listen to the statutes and ordinances I am teaching you to follow, so that you may live, enter, and take possession of the land the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you.  You must not add anything to what I command you or take anything away from it, so that you may keep the commands of the Lord your God I am giving you.

Sounds very similar, right?

Those that hear are the ones expected to do – just as the Lord prescribes.  Those that do are the ones who will inherit, or take possession of the land.  To further his point, Moses gives the following example:

Deuteronomy 4:3-4
Your eyes have seen what the Lord did at Baal-peor, for the Lord your God destroyed every one of you who followed Baal of Peor.  But you who have remained faithful to the Lord your God are all alive today.

This incident is recorded in Numbers 25.  Those that strayed from God’s commands – they either subtracted God out and worshipped Baal exclusively or thought they could add Baal worship to their worship of God – they were not able to inherit the Promised Land.  However, those that stayed true to God’s commands – they were the ones that may live, enter, and take possession of the land the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you.

So God has previously made similar statements to what we read at the end of Revelation.  We’ll look more into the details of the warning next time, but there is an unmistakable quality in both passages that should not be missed:

Any believer that hears God’s commands is expected to take what God says very, very seriously.

Keep Pressing,
Ken

A believer's biggest choice, this side of Heaven

A key to understanding Revelation is to keep in mind that John assumes his readers know their Old Testament.  Oftentimes when a new concept or symbol is presented, an interpretation is immediately provided (like the explanation of the seven stars and seven lampstands in Revelation 1:20).  However, when describing the throne room of God in Revelation 4:3, John states that a rainbow…surrounded the throne.  He doesn’t interpret the rainbow’s significance; he expects that you already understand it from knowing Genesis 9:8-17.

Last time we started to look at this verse:

Revelation 21:7
The one who conquers will inherit these things, and I will be his God, and he will be my son.

Since this is the only time the word inherit is used in Revelation, to understand what is going on here, we’ll take a look back to the Old Testament.

Throughout the Old Testament there were two kinds of inheritance – an inheritance of God himself (e.g. – Psalm 16:5) or an inheritance was the right to a possession.  However, with this possession-inheritance, the ownership wasn’t automatic, there were conditions involved.  The land of Canaan was the nation of Israel’s promised inheritance.  However, the ability of a particular Israelite generation to actually inherit, or physically own, the land was dependent upon their obedience to God’s commands.

After God rescued the Israelites from slavery and bondage to Egypt, they rebelled and grumbled when they got their first look at the work to be done in order to possess the promised land of Canaan.  They even claimed that the Lord hated them and that they were better off back in Egypt.  Moses recounted this event:

Deuteronomy 1:34-38
“When the Lord heard your words, He grew angry and swore an oath: ‘None of these men in this evil generation will see the good land I swore to give your fathers, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh.  He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land on which he has set foot, because he remained loyal to the Lord.’

“The Lord was angry with me also because of you and said: ‘You [Moses] will not enter there either.  Joshua son of Nun, who attends you, will enter it.  Encourage him, for he will enable Israel to inherit it.’

The easy response to this passage would be to say that the generation of Israelites that died in the desert must not have been “saved”, or they weren’t “true believers”.  But…that can’t be the case, because these were the same people that trusted God and performed the first Passover.  They took the blood of a perfect lamb and spread it on the doorposts of their homes – doing so demonstrated their trust in God’s promise that they would be passed over when the destroying angel came by to take the life of the firstborn son.  The Passover prophetically foretold of Christ’s perfect blood sacrifice for mankind on the Cross.  This was also the same generation Paul later used as an example for other believers:

1 Corinthians 10:1-5
Now I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud, all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.  They all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink.  For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ.  Nevertheless God was not pleased with most of them, since they were struck down in the wilderness.

According to Paul, the people of the Exodus generation of Israelites were right (positionally) with God, on the basis of their faith in the foreshadowed Christ.  However, their disobedience later in life marred their relationship with God and prevented them from physically inheriting the Promised Land. 

Now that we have the Old Testament context for the word inherit, we can see that God takes possession-inheritance very seriously.  Fortunately, a believer’s potential inheritance is also discussed in the New Testament.  While there are many passages we can look at (and perhaps that’s a future study), the following selections help us understand what God is talking about in Revelation.

1 Peter 1:3-4
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Because of His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.

Notice that Peter says God the Father has given us new birth into two things – a living hope and an inheritance.  Some have argued that heaven will be a Christian’s inheritance; however, Peter is indicating that this inheritance is something found in heaven.  So this means that the inheritance can’t be heaven itself…either it is a part of heaven or something else, in addition to heaven.

Jesus also gave similar instructions during the Sermon on the Mount:

Matthew 6:19-20
“Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal.”

Jesus states that the treasures are in heaven, and not heaven itself.  Also important is the contrast Jesus presents here (store up treasures on earth OR store up treasures in heaven).  He wouldn’t give us these directions if they weren’t necessary.  So from this we can conclude that it is possible for a believer to not store up treasures in heaven, and whether or not we have treasures in heaven is dependent upon our choices here and now.

So what is this inheritance that can never perish spoil or fade and these treasures in heaven that cannot waste away or be stolen?

Revelation 21:6-7
I will give to the thirsty from the spring of the water of life.  The one who conquers will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be my son.

Having a relationship with God can be had without cost to us because Jesus already took the punishment for our sins.  Remember that to inherit these things refers back to the New Jerusalem.  And from looking at other scriptures, we understand that inheriting New Jerusalem is dependent upon the choices we make here and now.

Choose wisely.

Keep Pressing,
Ken