You go to Church every week. You go to Church regularly not because you are a Christian; not because you are expected to be present in the Local Church at least once a week; you go because you find the sermons (from the Pastor or any invited speaker) are appealing to you and you love their teachings. There is no mention of sin; there is no call for repentance; there is no conviction of the Holy Spirit. In fact, things like immorality, sins and hell are seldom mentioned. Additional to the regular Sunday services the Pastor, now and then, invites the members of his congregation to attend teaching seminars as well. You like what your Church is providing for you to help you grow spiritually. At the same time all these teachings make you feel good. But very often there are hidden dangers in all these teachings. You see, all these teachings appeal to your soul (mind) and not your spirit and that is the reason why you feel good. The greatest danger in the contemporary Church is the extremely subtle prevailing New Age teachings. Satan wants you to get involved in the New Age movement (NAM) with its New Age philosophy and New Age psychology, so that the Church becomes ineffective in its purpose. He wants you to be a follower of the NAM and when you are convinced, door will be opened for him to usher in the Antichrist. Please read my earlier messages (postings) - "A Return to Biblical Christianity" and "The Foundation of Biblical Christianity."
What is the New Age Movement?
It is beyond the scope of this message to share more than just the outline of his vast topic. Here are som important points:
1. The NAM is difficult to define because there is no hierarchy, dogma, doctrine, or membership. it is both a religious and social movement. In fact, Western culture is currently experiencing a phenomenal, spiritual, ideological, and sociological shift. The NAM consists of an incredibly huge and well organized network consisting of thousands of groups, trust, foundations, clubs, lodges, and religious groups whose goal and purpose is to prepare the world to enter the "Aquarian Age" which, according to New Age followers, is dawning. It is spposed to bring in peace and enlightenment and reunite man with God.
2. Man is presently considered separated form God, not because of sin, but because of lack of understanding and knowledge concerning the true nature of God and reality.
3. The NAM has two basic beliefs - Spiritual evolution and Global Unity:
Spiritual evolution - For the most part, the NAM espouses evolution, both of body and spirit. Man is developing and will soon leap forward into new spiritual horizons - to become a divine being and mankind soon sees itself as god. Man's basic nature is good and divine with divine qualitites. Being divine, man can then create his own reality. If, for example, a person believes that reincarnation is true, that's fine because that is his realithy. If someone he knows does not believe in it, that is alright too because that is someone else's reality. They can each have a reality for themselves that "follows a different path." This is of course totally contrary to God's Word - God alone is the Creator (Isaiah 44:24) and that "reincarnation" opposes the Scripture (Hebrews 9:27).
Global Unity - This belief consists of three major divisions: man with man; man with nature; and man with God:
Man with man - The NAM teaches that we will all learn our proper divine relationship with one another and achieve harmony and mutual love and acceptance through the realization and acceptance of this proper divine knowledge. The New Age is looking for a single world leader who, with New Age principles, will guide the world into a single harmonious economic whole - one world government. It is also hoped that this leader will unite the world into a spiritual unity - one world religion.
Man with nature - Since the NAM says that God is all, and all is God, then nature is also part of God. Man must then get in tune with nature and learn to nurture it and be nurtured by it. In this, all people can unite. Some New Agers even worship the earth and nature.
Man with God - Since the NAM teaches that man is divine by nature, all people, once they see themselves as such, will be helped in their unity of purpose, love, and development. The goal is to fully realize our own goodness - contrary to Scripture (Romans 3:10 - 12).
Some general unbiblical views of the NAM
1. View of God - New Agers confuse the Creator with His creation and think that God is part of creation and not separate from it. The god of the New Ages is impersonal and benevolent - therefore he (it) would not condemn anyone. An impersonal god will not reveal himself nor will he have specific requirements as to morality, belief, and behavior. This is why reincarnation appeals so much to them. With it, there is no judgment, there is a second chance, a third chance, and fourth, etc.
It should be noted that because the New Ager seeks to elevate himself to Godhood, he must lower the majesty and Personhood of the true God. In other words, the universe is not big enough for one true God, but it is big enough for a bunch of little ones.
The NAM does espouse honesty, integrity, love, peace, etc. It just wants to do it without the true God. It wants to do it not on His terms, but on its own.
2. View of Jesus Christ - A major idea in New Age thinking is that of the "Christ consciousness." In other words, Christ is an office (ministry) rather than an individual, such as Jesus, whom Christians know to be The Christ. This idea of "Christ Consciousness" asserts that Jesus was not the only Christ, but that He equipped Himself to receive the "Christ Consciousness" - He was a great "spiritual master" just as supposedly also did Buddha, Krishna, and Mohammed. New Agers believe that Jesus Christ the "Christ Consciousness" at His baptism, and that it left Him at His crucifizion.
3. View of sin and salvation - There is no place for the concept of sin in the New Age. There can be no sin because there is no transcendent God to rebel against. There are no rules or absolute moral imperatives. Since man's true essence is divine and perfect, there is also no such things as "original sin." Since New Agers believe that each person is god, thereby having endless potential for self-improvement, sin is denied. Sin is merely igorance of one's "inner divinity." Because sin does not exits, there is no need for repentance or forgiveness, and Jesus did not die for our sins.
Salvation is not an issue for New Agers. The soul is part of the universe and never dies. it is reborn or reincarnated in different physical bodies in a succession of future lives.
4. View of man's destiny - The salvation of the world depends upon human beings. When enough people harmonize their positive energy and turn their thoughts to peace, the world will be cleansed of negative elements and New Age ideas will be realized in an era of spiritual enlightenment. Since man is intrinsically divine and perfect, his only real problem is ignorance of that fact.
5. View of good or evil - New Agers distort the distinction between good and evil. They believe that because "all is One," ultimately there is neither good nor evil. There are no moral absolutes in the New Age. They think that a person can trascend his consciousness and go beyond the bounds of moral distinctions, so that even murder sometimes becomes an acceptable way of serving one's gods!
6. View of Satan - The Biblical (or traditional) view of Lucifer as the Devil or Satan is clearly absent in New Age literature.
7. View of future life (reincarnation) - New Agers believe in the ancient Eastern religions concept of reincarnation - through a long process of rebirths, man can eventually reach spiritual perfection. They often place animal rights above human right, because many New Agers believe animals are reincarnated souls. They also teach that what a person sows in this life, he will reap in the next life in his reincarnated state.
New Agers misrepresent Church history, the doctrines of Christianity, and often twist the Scripture to spport the idea that original Christianity taught reincarnation.
New Age philosophy in today's Christian ministries
The influence of New Age philosophy in today's Churches is as certain as the coming of the Antichrist. Both are imminent.
Paul said, "Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day (Second coming of Jesus) will not come unless the falling away (apostasy) comes first, and the man of sin (the Antichrist) is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalt himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God" (2 Thess. 2:3, 4, NKJV, emphasis added).
Notice that God allows the coming of the Antichrist so that the Lord "will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming" (Verse 8).
All Churches in the world are being influenced by the New Age philosophy in varying degrees. The NAM is the "falling away" (apostasy) of Biblical teaching. Ultimately when the full teaching of the New Age (as described in the above sections) is being fully manifested in the Church, the Antichrist will reveal himself.
Two man-centered Church growth methods
I have chosen two different Church growth methods; both are men-centered where the New Age philosophy has already made an inroad - Rick Warren's Church growth method and the Natural Church Development (NCD) method.
Rick Warren's Church growth method
Rick Warren adopted a typical human approach to Church growth and spiritual development, since the standards that he set in the determination of success have a very poor doctrinal basis. His non-offensive gospel has been defined so vaguely that from a human point of view, it is acceptable to virtually everybody. People are not offended by it because sin and its dreadful consequences, which is God's wrath upon sinners, are not mentioned. The full implications of Jesus' death on the cross, where He shed His blood and laid down His life to serve God's death penalty upon sinners (Romans 6:23), is not explicitly proclaimed.
What he does proclaim is a general identification with Jesus Christ, and the many blessings that He has in store for us. Christianity is so positively and beneficially presented, and rendered so acceptable to sinners by associating it with modern music and worldly methods of spiritual motivation, that great crowds are drawn into the Church.
The main objective of Rick Warren is not doctrinal purity but the outward growth of the Church. He claims that doctrine is so unimportant that God will not even ask about it: "God won't ask about your religious background or doctrinal views" (Rick Warren's book - The Purpose Driven Life, page 34). On the contrary, the Bible says:
"Whoever trangresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son" (2 John 9, NKJV).
Rick Warren openly associates with the strange, mystical practices of Eastern origin. He teaches pagan "prayer" practices such as "breath prayers" which are designed to induce altered state of consciousness. He consults compromisers such as Robert Schuller and encourages other to do the same.
Sadly, if Rich Warren and other Chrsitian leaders fall for New Age schemes and devices rather than exposing them, they will take countless numbers of sincere believers in Christ down with them. It will be the blind leading the blind, as they further and further into the deceptive ditch of the New Age and its spirituality. Undiscerning Christians who think they are on the narrow way preparing the way for Jesus Christ, may discover too late that they had actually been on the broad way preparing the way of the Antichrist!
Natural Church Development (NCD) method
The founder himself said NCD is an ecumenical movement (Page 24 of his book - "Color your Word with NCD"). Everyone should know that "ecumenical movement" is a New Age practice and terminology. Furthermore, the founder claims that he and his two friends (an organizational scientist and a trained psychologist) have made the commitment to invest the rest of their lives and all their expertise into the development of the NCD network (Page 15). Notice that "network" speaks of "global" which is akin to the New Age philosophy.
The founder is confused when he compares "God is light" (1 John 1:5) with the creation of light (Genesis 1:3).
John said, "This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all" (1 John 1:5, NKJV, emphasis added).
"Light" in the context of the above verse, is an emblem of purity, truth, knowledge and without the corrupt nature of sin. "Darkness" is of the opposite.
In the creation of light - "Then God said, 'Let there be light'; and there was light" (Gen. 1:3).
"Light" in this case, is physical light. Notice that New Ager usually cannot tell the difference between the spiritual and the physical.
The main objective of NCD is to create "balanced" Christians which lead to the creation of "balanced" Local Churches. According to the founder, individual Christians and the Church can achieve "balance" by applying his principle of "Trinitarian Compass" which consists of three color zones - red, blue and green. God communicates to Christians with these three colors which are the three revelations of God. Red zone stands for "salvation (evangelism) revelation"; blue zone stands for "personal (individual walking with God) revelation" and green zone stands for "creation (interreligious) revelation," (Page 51).
The "health" of a believer and of a Local Church depends on how balanced are these three colors (Page 176). According to the NCD philosophy no believer can be a true Christian and no Church can be a true Church unless and until they have achieved this "balance." What garbage! May the Lord be merciful to the thousands of Pastors who have been deceived and introduced NCD to His Local Churches! Pastors wake up from your slumber!
Conclusion
It is hoped that most God-fearing and Bible-believing Christians will not fail to see that all these man-made and man-centered doctrines are greatly influenced by the New Age Philosophy.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Christianity or Psychology
It is either Christianity or psychology. There is no such thing as "Christianity and psychology" because Christianity is not compatible with psychology; they are mutually exclusive - one excludes the other. Christianity concerns things of the spirit, led by the Spirit of God. Psychology is a scientific study of the human mind - the creation of God. Furthermore, psychology is a major part of the New Age movement - a man-centered concept. God willing, we will deal with it in a later message.
Biblical Christianity
If the Church as a whole is to return to Biblical Christianity, then each individual Christian will have to make that journey for himself. We are not to follow Christian leaders except to the extent that they follow Christ. This means that each of us has to know and follow the Bible for himself, contending without compromise for the faith that has been committed to us, as saints, to proclaim and live.
Note what the psalmist says about the Bible (God's Word) - "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Ps. 119:105, NKJV).
God's Word is like a lamp or a candle to light man's path so that he may see where he is going. It shows him the way; it prevents him from stumbling over obstacles or wandering off into paths which would into danger, or would turn him away altogether from the path to life.
Here are some statements of truth about the Bible as a practical guide for us:
1. The Bible does not claim to cover every subject, but whatever it says about any subject is without error, because the entire Bible is inspired of God and therefore infallible. In those areas that are not the primary focus of the Bible, we may look outside its pages for counsel, but nothing should be accepted that is not in agreement with what the Bible says related to that subject or which violates general principles in God's Word.
2. When it comes to our relationship with God through Christ, what the Christian life consist of, how that life is to be lived, and the power of doing so, the Bible claims to offer the only and complete truth. We must look to no other source for what God declares that He alone can supply. Whatever claims to supplement that of which God says He has given us all, can only be a counterfeit, no matter how closely it seems to be in agreement with the truth of God's Word.
3. The Bible has been called the "Manufacturer's (The Creator's) handbook," given to man by his Creator. It is man's guide to repentance, reconciliation, and the knowledge and worship of the God who loved and redeemed him - and who desires to lead him into the joyful fulfillment of all that God intended him to be and do and experience of Himself and His creation.
Paul said to Timothy: "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Tim. 3:17, NKJV, emphasis added).
Those who heed the counsel of the Scripture will be perfect (mature), complete (fulfilled) thoroughly furnished unto every good work.
4. Any teaching (for example, psychology) that proposes to solve human problems apart from the Bible and the power of the Holy Spirit is automatically condemned by the Scripture itself.
The so-called "Christian psychology"
"Christian psychology" claims to solve "psychological problems" by means of psychotherapy. There is actually nothing wrong with "psychology" as far as getting scientific knowledge is concerned. Psychology, as a segment of science, deals with such matters as learning sensation, perception, and problem-solveing. What is forbidden by the Scripture is Psychotherapy - a term to describe the channel of healing of the human mind.
Many Christians see nothing wrong with Psychotherapy because to them, if it is legitimate for a Christian to go to a doctor who treats physical illness, there is no reason why he should not go to a doctor (a psychologist) who treats "mental illness."
Here are some very important reasons:
1. Medicine deals with the body (including the brain), which is physical and not covered exhaustively in the Bible. But psychology claims to treat the soul and mind, which Christians agree are nonphysical or spiritual. There is actually no such thing as "mental illness"; it is either a physical problem in the brain (such as a chemical imbalance or nutritional deficiency) or it is a moral or spiritual problem.
2. Medicine is a physical science, but psychology is in fact a religion trying to pass itself off as a spiritual science. It is actually a pseudoscience riddled with contradiction and confusion.
3. The Bible is not a scientific manual but a spiritual one. It does not claim to provide everything we need in the way of medical advice, but it does make that kind of specific claim concerning the soul and spirit of man. Psychotherapy by very definition contradicts that claim and must be rejected by all Christians.
Approaching the Bible - a basic principle
We must be careful not to approach the Bible with our own prior opinions in an attempt to find verses that we can somehow use to justify what we already want to believe. Succumbing to this temptation has probably brought more problems into the Church than anything else. On the contrary, we must let the Bible teach and change us. If the Bible is truly God's Word, then it will tell us what we did not and could not otherwise know, and our lives will be transformed if we believe and obey.
Christian psychology is one of the most alarming examples of a wrong approach to Scripture. It is based upon predetermined psychological theories that are imposed upon the Bible. As a result of the influence of psychology, the pure gospel and the practical application of the cross in daily life have been undermined.
Jesus said, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me" (Luke 9:23, NKJV).
Instead of doing what Jesus said, Christian psychologists turn "our daily taking up the cross" into "an inspiring idea" that will build up our self-esteem and the sense of self-worth. It is an insult to the One who hung upon the cross in agony, so that we may live. Sinners are no longer called upon to repent, but to awaken to their potential.
Christian psychologists totally ignore Paul's teaching concerning the cross and the suffering of Christ:
"... that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death" (Philippians 3:10).
"And I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why do I still suffer persecution? Then the offense of the cross has ceased" (Gal. 5:11).
"As many as desire to make a good showing in the flesh, these would compel you to be circumcised, only that they may not suffer persecution for the cross of Christ" (Gal. 6:12).
God's Word is sufficient to meet all our needs
Christian psychologists seem to overlook the fact that God promises in His Word to provide, through faith and the indwelling Holy Spirit, everything that psychology pretends to offer, and far more beyond that. Here are some examples:
To the fearful, God's Word says: "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been mad perfect in love" (1 John 4:18, NKJV).
And, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" (2 Tim. 1:7).
And also, "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, ..." (Ps. 46:1, 2).
For someone suffering from anxiety, God's Word says: "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanting, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6, 7).
When temptation comes, God's Word says: "Your word I have hidden my heart, that I might not sin against You" (Ps. 119:11).
When danger comes, God's Word says: "He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge. His truth shall be your shield and buckler. Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, even the Most High, your dwelling place, no evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; for He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways" (Ps. 91:4, 9 - 11).
When suffering from insomnia, God's Word says: "It is vain for you to rise up early, to retire late, to eat the bread of painful labors; for He give to His beloved even in his sleep" (Ps. 127:2, NAS).
The Bible is filled with examples (both in the Old and the New Testaments) of men and women, young and old, who suffered traumas and trials. They had no psychological help - the Bible does not mention any. It was out of their faith in God and their experience of His faithfulness through the deepest tribulations, and under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that the Scriptures were written. It is an insult to God and His Word to say that help is now needed from another source - psychological.
Paul said, "But we (the Church) have the mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16).
Paul also said, "When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory" (Col. 3:4).
All that we need has been provided in God's Word and may be experienced through the indwelling Spirit of Christ as we fellowship with a local body of caring believers.
The fruit of the Spirit
Paul said, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires" (Gal. 5:22 - 24, NAS).
Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John 12:24, NAS).
The fruit of the Spirit can be produced in our lives only when we are willing to die to self in Christ. There are no formulas, no techniques and no shortcuts. To look to psychology for spiritual help is not only begging bread and fish of that which can only give stones and scorpions, but is treading on dangerous ground in view of the clear injunction against adding to or taking away from Biblical revelation.
Delusion and fallacy
Christian psychologists claim that psychology offers a great deal toward an understanding of the human race. They attempt to explain scientifically and thereby provide an understanding of human behavior under the assumption that ignorance and not sin is the problem. If we only understood, then we could change our behavior to conform to our understanding.
This is a delusion that denies the root of the problem - man's sin nature and rebellion against God. A moral choice has been made that must be repented of before God. He alone can give cleansing for sin (1 John 1:9). Moreover, He alone can give the power to live a new life through Christ's indwelling Spirit. All of the understanding in the world will not provide the power to change one's behavior. A new moral choice is demanded. And if that choice is made without recognizing one's obligation to God and without accepting His remedy, then the result will either be failure to make a lasting change, or, what is even worse, outward success can produce self-righteousness.
All truth is God's truth
The Scripture declares that all truth is God's truth and that God's Word is God's truth.
The psalmist said, "The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever" (Ps. 119:160).
Jesus prayed to the Father: "Sanctify them (disciples of Christ) by Your truth. Your word is truth" (John 17:17).
Jesus and the psalmist did not say "part of the truth." God has spoken with finality; He has communicated in His Word the whole truth. There are no parts of this truth missing from the Bible and left in limbo, only to be discovered somewhere in the secular world - by psychologists.
According to the Scripture, the only "truth" that the unsaved person can understand is that he is a sinner and needs a Savior. This truth is imparted to him by the Holy Spirit (John 16:8). Until he is born again of the Sprit of God, through faith in Christ, he cannot understand the "things of God" that are "spiritually discerned." (1 Cor. 2:14). God's truth, says Paul, is only understood by the "spiritual man" who has been born of God's Spirit into the family of God. It is only such, Paul declares, who "have the mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16).
To the unsaved Jesus said: "He who is of God hears God's words; therfore you do not hear, because you are not of God" (John 8:47).
What is the true Christian life? The Scripture declares that it is Christ living His resurrection life in those who have opened their hearts to Him - those who are born again of the Spirit of God. To suggest that psyhotherapy is necessary in order for today's Christians to experience the abundant life in Christ, is not only destructive of the Christian faith, but also an insult to the Almighty God!
Biblical Christianity
If the Church as a whole is to return to Biblical Christianity, then each individual Christian will have to make that journey for himself. We are not to follow Christian leaders except to the extent that they follow Christ. This means that each of us has to know and follow the Bible for himself, contending without compromise for the faith that has been committed to us, as saints, to proclaim and live.
Note what the psalmist says about the Bible (God's Word) - "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Ps. 119:105, NKJV).
God's Word is like a lamp or a candle to light man's path so that he may see where he is going. It shows him the way; it prevents him from stumbling over obstacles or wandering off into paths which would into danger, or would turn him away altogether from the path to life.
Here are some statements of truth about the Bible as a practical guide for us:
1. The Bible does not claim to cover every subject, but whatever it says about any subject is without error, because the entire Bible is inspired of God and therefore infallible. In those areas that are not the primary focus of the Bible, we may look outside its pages for counsel, but nothing should be accepted that is not in agreement with what the Bible says related to that subject or which violates general principles in God's Word.
2. When it comes to our relationship with God through Christ, what the Christian life consist of, how that life is to be lived, and the power of doing so, the Bible claims to offer the only and complete truth. We must look to no other source for what God declares that He alone can supply. Whatever claims to supplement that of which God says He has given us all, can only be a counterfeit, no matter how closely it seems to be in agreement with the truth of God's Word.
3. The Bible has been called the "Manufacturer's (The Creator's) handbook," given to man by his Creator. It is man's guide to repentance, reconciliation, and the knowledge and worship of the God who loved and redeemed him - and who desires to lead him into the joyful fulfillment of all that God intended him to be and do and experience of Himself and His creation.
Paul said to Timothy: "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Tim. 3:17, NKJV, emphasis added).
Those who heed the counsel of the Scripture will be perfect (mature), complete (fulfilled) thoroughly furnished unto every good work.
4. Any teaching (for example, psychology) that proposes to solve human problems apart from the Bible and the power of the Holy Spirit is automatically condemned by the Scripture itself.
The so-called "Christian psychology"
"Christian psychology" claims to solve "psychological problems" by means of psychotherapy. There is actually nothing wrong with "psychology" as far as getting scientific knowledge is concerned. Psychology, as a segment of science, deals with such matters as learning sensation, perception, and problem-solveing. What is forbidden by the Scripture is Psychotherapy - a term to describe the channel of healing of the human mind.
Many Christians see nothing wrong with Psychotherapy because to them, if it is legitimate for a Christian to go to a doctor who treats physical illness, there is no reason why he should not go to a doctor (a psychologist) who treats "mental illness."
Here are some very important reasons:
1. Medicine deals with the body (including the brain), which is physical and not covered exhaustively in the Bible. But psychology claims to treat the soul and mind, which Christians agree are nonphysical or spiritual. There is actually no such thing as "mental illness"; it is either a physical problem in the brain (such as a chemical imbalance or nutritional deficiency) or it is a moral or spiritual problem.
2. Medicine is a physical science, but psychology is in fact a religion trying to pass itself off as a spiritual science. It is actually a pseudoscience riddled with contradiction and confusion.
3. The Bible is not a scientific manual but a spiritual one. It does not claim to provide everything we need in the way of medical advice, but it does make that kind of specific claim concerning the soul and spirit of man. Psychotherapy by very definition contradicts that claim and must be rejected by all Christians.
Approaching the Bible - a basic principle
We must be careful not to approach the Bible with our own prior opinions in an attempt to find verses that we can somehow use to justify what we already want to believe. Succumbing to this temptation has probably brought more problems into the Church than anything else. On the contrary, we must let the Bible teach and change us. If the Bible is truly God's Word, then it will tell us what we did not and could not otherwise know, and our lives will be transformed if we believe and obey.
Christian psychology is one of the most alarming examples of a wrong approach to Scripture. It is based upon predetermined psychological theories that are imposed upon the Bible. As a result of the influence of psychology, the pure gospel and the practical application of the cross in daily life have been undermined.
Jesus said, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me" (Luke 9:23, NKJV).
Instead of doing what Jesus said, Christian psychologists turn "our daily taking up the cross" into "an inspiring idea" that will build up our self-esteem and the sense of self-worth. It is an insult to the One who hung upon the cross in agony, so that we may live. Sinners are no longer called upon to repent, but to awaken to their potential.
Christian psychologists totally ignore Paul's teaching concerning the cross and the suffering of Christ:
"... that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death" (Philippians 3:10).
"And I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why do I still suffer persecution? Then the offense of the cross has ceased" (Gal. 5:11).
"As many as desire to make a good showing in the flesh, these would compel you to be circumcised, only that they may not suffer persecution for the cross of Christ" (Gal. 6:12).
God's Word is sufficient to meet all our needs
Christian psychologists seem to overlook the fact that God promises in His Word to provide, through faith and the indwelling Holy Spirit, everything that psychology pretends to offer, and far more beyond that. Here are some examples:
To the fearful, God's Word says: "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been mad perfect in love" (1 John 4:18, NKJV).
And, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" (2 Tim. 1:7).
And also, "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, ..." (Ps. 46:1, 2).
For someone suffering from anxiety, God's Word says: "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanting, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6, 7).
When temptation comes, God's Word says: "Your word I have hidden my heart, that I might not sin against You" (Ps. 119:11).
When danger comes, God's Word says: "He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge. His truth shall be your shield and buckler. Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, even the Most High, your dwelling place, no evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; for He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways" (Ps. 91:4, 9 - 11).
When suffering from insomnia, God's Word says: "It is vain for you to rise up early, to retire late, to eat the bread of painful labors; for He give to His beloved even in his sleep" (Ps. 127:2, NAS).
The Bible is filled with examples (both in the Old and the New Testaments) of men and women, young and old, who suffered traumas and trials. They had no psychological help - the Bible does not mention any. It was out of their faith in God and their experience of His faithfulness through the deepest tribulations, and under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that the Scriptures were written. It is an insult to God and His Word to say that help is now needed from another source - psychological.
Paul said, "But we (the Church) have the mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16).
Paul also said, "When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory" (Col. 3:4).
All that we need has been provided in God's Word and may be experienced through the indwelling Spirit of Christ as we fellowship with a local body of caring believers.
The fruit of the Spirit
Paul said, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires" (Gal. 5:22 - 24, NAS).
Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John 12:24, NAS).
The fruit of the Spirit can be produced in our lives only when we are willing to die to self in Christ. There are no formulas, no techniques and no shortcuts. To look to psychology for spiritual help is not only begging bread and fish of that which can only give stones and scorpions, but is treading on dangerous ground in view of the clear injunction against adding to or taking away from Biblical revelation.
Delusion and fallacy
Christian psychologists claim that psychology offers a great deal toward an understanding of the human race. They attempt to explain scientifically and thereby provide an understanding of human behavior under the assumption that ignorance and not sin is the problem. If we only understood, then we could change our behavior to conform to our understanding.
This is a delusion that denies the root of the problem - man's sin nature and rebellion against God. A moral choice has been made that must be repented of before God. He alone can give cleansing for sin (1 John 1:9). Moreover, He alone can give the power to live a new life through Christ's indwelling Spirit. All of the understanding in the world will not provide the power to change one's behavior. A new moral choice is demanded. And if that choice is made without recognizing one's obligation to God and without accepting His remedy, then the result will either be failure to make a lasting change, or, what is even worse, outward success can produce self-righteousness.
All truth is God's truth
The Scripture declares that all truth is God's truth and that God's Word is God's truth.
The psalmist said, "The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever" (Ps. 119:160).
Jesus prayed to the Father: "Sanctify them (disciples of Christ) by Your truth. Your word is truth" (John 17:17).
Jesus and the psalmist did not say "part of the truth." God has spoken with finality; He has communicated in His Word the whole truth. There are no parts of this truth missing from the Bible and left in limbo, only to be discovered somewhere in the secular world - by psychologists.
According to the Scripture, the only "truth" that the unsaved person can understand is that he is a sinner and needs a Savior. This truth is imparted to him by the Holy Spirit (John 16:8). Until he is born again of the Sprit of God, through faith in Christ, he cannot understand the "things of God" that are "spiritually discerned." (1 Cor. 2:14). God's truth, says Paul, is only understood by the "spiritual man" who has been born of God's Spirit into the family of God. It is only such, Paul declares, who "have the mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16).
To the unsaved Jesus said: "He who is of God hears God's words; therfore you do not hear, because you are not of God" (John 8:47).
What is the true Christian life? The Scripture declares that it is Christ living His resurrection life in those who have opened their hearts to Him - those who are born again of the Spirit of God. To suggest that psyhotherapy is necessary in order for today's Christians to experience the abundant life in Christ, is not only destructive of the Christian faith, but also an insult to the Almighty God!
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
The Antidote to the Fall
In order to understand how "faith" becomes the antidote to the Fall, we must first understand the eternal nature of God, the divine nature of man and the nature of temptation.
Eternal unchanging natue of God
Faith is part of God's own eternal nature. His creative ability proceeds out of His faith. All that He does, He does by faith. Furthermore, His faith finds its expression in the Words that He speaks. His Words are the channels of His faith and therefore the instruments of His creative ability.
The effective power of God's faith in His own Word is forcefully expressed in the Book of Ezekiel:
"For I the Lord shall speak, and whatever word I speak will be performed" (Ezekiel 12:25, NAS, emphasis added).
The introductory phrase "I the Lord" indicates that what follows is part of the eternal, unchanging nature of God. When God says something, it happens. Such is His faith in His own Word.
Concerning the gift of faith, the psalmist said: "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast" (Ps. 33:6, 9, NKJV).
In Gennsis 1 we are given a specific example of how this worked: "Then God said, 'Let there be light'; and there was light" (Genesis 1:3). When God spoke the word "light," the thing "light" was manifested. God's spoken Word came forth as "thing."
Facts about faith
From our study (messages of faith) concering faith so far, we come to three conclusions about faith that help us to understand its unique power and importance:
1. Faith is part of the eternal nature of God.
2. Faith is the creative power by which God brought the universe into being.
3. God's faith is expressed and made effective by the Words that He speaks.
Divine nature of man
Scripture reveals that man was created in perfection, but fell from that condition by transgression for which he was accountable to God. However, God was not content to leave man in his fallen condition. Rather, from that point onward, Scripture unfolds a magnificent theme of redemption. It is the story of how God buys man back for Himself by the death of Christ on the cross and how He works out man's restoration, changing his nature and his ways to bring him back into God's original purpose.
Faith, speech, and creativity of man
The key to the process of restoration of man (reversal of the results of the Fall) is faith. In order to understand fully, the redemptive effect of exercising faith in the restoration of man, we must consider the nature of man.
Man has a divine nature because God created him in His image and in His likeness:
God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness ...." (Genesis 1:26).
Having a divine nature means man has the ability to exercise faith. Because God created man with the ability to exercise faith, we find also in man the other two abilities which are related to faith - the ability to create, and the ability to speak. It is significant that both these abilities, which man shares with God, also distinguish man from animals.
By his very nature man has creative ability. He can envision something that has never actually existed; then he can plan it and bring it into being. This distinguishes him from all known animals. A bird, for example, can build a marvelously complex nest, but it does so by instinct. A bird cannot envision something that has never existed, plan it, and bring it into being. Man can. In this sense, man is continually creating.
Linked with man's creative ability is man's ability to speak. without this, man would never be able to formulate and express his creative purposes. Man's capacity for intelligent, articulate speech is not shared by any known animals. It is a distinctive aspect of man's likeness to God.
We see, then, that man, as originally created, share three related aspects of God's own nature: the ability to exercise faith; the ability to speak and the ability to create.
Satan's assault on faith
Because God has shared with man His ability to exercise faith, He requires him to do so. Consequently, when He created man, He placed him in a situation where faith was needed. The record of Scripture makes it clear that God, as a Person, did not remain permanently present with Adam in the garden. Instead, He left him with a substitute for His personal presence - His Word. In my recent messages we have already seen that faith relates us to two invisible realities - God and His Word. This was the type of relationship in which Adam found himself. He had been in direct personal contact with God, but when God was no longer present as a Person in the garden, Adam was obligated to relate to God through the Word which He had left with him:
"And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, 'Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die'" (Genesis 2:16, 17, NKJV).
Notice that God's Words to Adam fall into three sections - permission, prohibition and a warning.
Satan sought to undermine God's Word to Adam
As long as Adam (or anyone else) remained rightly related to God through His Word, he was blessed and secure. Satan could not touch him. But Satan was determined to alienate man from God and deprive him of His blessings. With characteristic craftiness, he approached him indirectly through the "weaker vessel" - Eve. He began by undermining Eve's confidence in God's Word, through first questioning it and then directly denying it. Then he went on to undermine her confidence in God Himself by suggesting that she and her husband did not need to remain in a position of inferiority, but could achieve equality with God by acquiring the knowledge of good and evil. This desire for independence from God is the inner motivation that leads to sin.
"So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate" (Genesis 3:6, NKJV, emphasis added).
The key word here is "saw." Eve "saw that the tree ...." This little word indicates a transition from one realm to another. At this point, Eve abandoned her faith in the invisible realm of God and His Word. Instead, she was moved by what she saw. She began to rely on her physical senses. She came down from the realm of faith to the realm of the senses. In this lower realm, the tree had three features that attracted her - it was good for food; it was delight to the eyes; it was desirable to make one wise. In other words, the forbidden tree confronted her three basic forms of temptation - the lust of the flesh; the lust of the eyes and the pride of life.
The nature of temptation
John said: "Do not love the world or the things in the world, if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world - the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life - is not of the Father but is of the world' (1 John 2:15, 16, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. The sensual world, in God's terminology, is made of three elements - the lust of the flesh; the lust of the eyes and the pride of life.
2. In Scripture the word "lust" usually denotes a strong desire which has become perverted and harmful and which does not submit to God's standards of righteousness.
3. The first two forms of temptation, listed here by John, are desires of the kind that affect man through his physical senses.
4. The third form of temptation appeals to man's ego, or soul. It is the inner urge in man which refuses to acknowledge his dependence upon God, but seeks to exalt himself.
The temptations of Jesus
When Jesus was in the wilderness, He was confronted by Satan with each of these three temptations (read Luke 4:1 - 13).
Satan tempted Him to make stones into bread - the lust of the flesh. Then he showed Him all the kingdoms of the world with their power and glory - the lust of the eyes. Finally, Satan tempted Jesus to cast Himself down from the pinnacle of the temple, thus performing a miracle on His own initiative that would glorify Himself, without submitting to the Father's will or seeking the Father's glory - the pride of life.
Comparison between the temptations of Adam and that of Jesus
Here are some interesting points:
1. Adam encountered his temptations in a beautiful garde, surrounded by every evidence of God's loving provision. Jesus (called "the last Adam') encountered His temptations in a barren wilderness, with no companions but the wild beasts.
2. Adam succumbed to his temptations by eating; Jesus overcame His temptations by fasting.
The implications of this comparison
It is interesting to realize that the implications of this comparison are profound!
Returning to Satan's encounter with Eve, we observe that the tree presented her likewise with the three basic forms of tempation. It appealed to her appetite - the lust of the flesh. It appealed to her eyes - the lust of the eyes. It appealed to her ego with the promise that it would make her wise and thus set her free from dependence on God - the pride of life.
The essence of sin
In its essence, sin is not doing something wrong. Sin is the desire to be independent of God. Whenever this desire appears in us, it spells spiritual danger. In Eve's case, the means by which she hoped to achieve her independence was knowledge - the knowledge of good and evil. This is one means by which people commonly seek independence from God. Others are wealth or fame or power. I believe on the subtlest of all is religion. We can become so religious that we no longer need God!
Motivated by her desire for independence, Eve transferred her confidence from God's Word to her own senses. As a result she quicly succumbed to the tree's threefold temptation and partook of the fruit. The she enticed her husband into doing the same, and both of them together were alienated from God by their disobedience.
The outworking of faith
Faith in the invisible realm of God and His Word is both original and natural for man; unbelief is perverted and unnatural. Temptation alienates man from his natural faith in God and His Word. Instead, it appeals to man through his physical senses. Traced to its roots, every temptaion is a temptation to unbelief. The motive which it exploits is the desire to be independent of God. The result which it produces is disobedience against God.
Faith works in exactly the opposite direction to temptation. Faith requires man to renounce both his confidence in his senses and ambition for his ego to exalt himself in independence of God. Faith reasserts the supremacy of the invisible realm of God and His Word and requires man's ego to humble himself and acknowledge his dependnce upon God. Thus faith undoes the effects of man's fall and opens the way for him to return into his original relationship with God. Faith reverses the process of temptation that led to man's fall.
Conclusion
There are two ways of living for man. One, in which man rejects dependence upon God, but trust in himself and his senses. The other, in which man renounces confidence in himself and his senses, but trusts in that which his senses cannot comprehend - God and His Word. By weaning us away from self and the sense realm, faith brings us back to the principle of righteousness which is based on trust in God and His Word and which alone enables us to live a life that is pleasing to God. Therefore, faith is the antidote to the Fall.
Eternal unchanging natue of God
Faith is part of God's own eternal nature. His creative ability proceeds out of His faith. All that He does, He does by faith. Furthermore, His faith finds its expression in the Words that He speaks. His Words are the channels of His faith and therefore the instruments of His creative ability.
The effective power of God's faith in His own Word is forcefully expressed in the Book of Ezekiel:
"For I the Lord shall speak, and whatever word I speak will be performed" (Ezekiel 12:25, NAS, emphasis added).
The introductory phrase "I the Lord" indicates that what follows is part of the eternal, unchanging nature of God. When God says something, it happens. Such is His faith in His own Word.
Concerning the gift of faith, the psalmist said: "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast" (Ps. 33:6, 9, NKJV).
In Gennsis 1 we are given a specific example of how this worked: "Then God said, 'Let there be light'; and there was light" (Genesis 1:3). When God spoke the word "light," the thing "light" was manifested. God's spoken Word came forth as "thing."
Facts about faith
From our study (messages of faith) concering faith so far, we come to three conclusions about faith that help us to understand its unique power and importance:
1. Faith is part of the eternal nature of God.
2. Faith is the creative power by which God brought the universe into being.
3. God's faith is expressed and made effective by the Words that He speaks.
Divine nature of man
Scripture reveals that man was created in perfection, but fell from that condition by transgression for which he was accountable to God. However, God was not content to leave man in his fallen condition. Rather, from that point onward, Scripture unfolds a magnificent theme of redemption. It is the story of how God buys man back for Himself by the death of Christ on the cross and how He works out man's restoration, changing his nature and his ways to bring him back into God's original purpose.
Faith, speech, and creativity of man
The key to the process of restoration of man (reversal of the results of the Fall) is faith. In order to understand fully, the redemptive effect of exercising faith in the restoration of man, we must consider the nature of man.
Man has a divine nature because God created him in His image and in His likeness:
God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness ...." (Genesis 1:26).
Having a divine nature means man has the ability to exercise faith. Because God created man with the ability to exercise faith, we find also in man the other two abilities which are related to faith - the ability to create, and the ability to speak. It is significant that both these abilities, which man shares with God, also distinguish man from animals.
By his very nature man has creative ability. He can envision something that has never actually existed; then he can plan it and bring it into being. This distinguishes him from all known animals. A bird, for example, can build a marvelously complex nest, but it does so by instinct. A bird cannot envision something that has never existed, plan it, and bring it into being. Man can. In this sense, man is continually creating.
Linked with man's creative ability is man's ability to speak. without this, man would never be able to formulate and express his creative purposes. Man's capacity for intelligent, articulate speech is not shared by any known animals. It is a distinctive aspect of man's likeness to God.
We see, then, that man, as originally created, share three related aspects of God's own nature: the ability to exercise faith; the ability to speak and the ability to create.
Satan's assault on faith
Because God has shared with man His ability to exercise faith, He requires him to do so. Consequently, when He created man, He placed him in a situation where faith was needed. The record of Scripture makes it clear that God, as a Person, did not remain permanently present with Adam in the garden. Instead, He left him with a substitute for His personal presence - His Word. In my recent messages we have already seen that faith relates us to two invisible realities - God and His Word. This was the type of relationship in which Adam found himself. He had been in direct personal contact with God, but when God was no longer present as a Person in the garden, Adam was obligated to relate to God through the Word which He had left with him:
"And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, 'Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die'" (Genesis 2:16, 17, NKJV).
Notice that God's Words to Adam fall into three sections - permission, prohibition and a warning.
Satan sought to undermine God's Word to Adam
As long as Adam (or anyone else) remained rightly related to God through His Word, he was blessed and secure. Satan could not touch him. But Satan was determined to alienate man from God and deprive him of His blessings. With characteristic craftiness, he approached him indirectly through the "weaker vessel" - Eve. He began by undermining Eve's confidence in God's Word, through first questioning it and then directly denying it. Then he went on to undermine her confidence in God Himself by suggesting that she and her husband did not need to remain in a position of inferiority, but could achieve equality with God by acquiring the knowledge of good and evil. This desire for independence from God is the inner motivation that leads to sin.
"So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate" (Genesis 3:6, NKJV, emphasis added).
The key word here is "saw." Eve "saw that the tree ...." This little word indicates a transition from one realm to another. At this point, Eve abandoned her faith in the invisible realm of God and His Word. Instead, she was moved by what she saw. She began to rely on her physical senses. She came down from the realm of faith to the realm of the senses. In this lower realm, the tree had three features that attracted her - it was good for food; it was delight to the eyes; it was desirable to make one wise. In other words, the forbidden tree confronted her three basic forms of temptation - the lust of the flesh; the lust of the eyes and the pride of life.
The nature of temptation
John said: "Do not love the world or the things in the world, if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world - the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life - is not of the Father but is of the world' (1 John 2:15, 16, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. The sensual world, in God's terminology, is made of three elements - the lust of the flesh; the lust of the eyes and the pride of life.
2. In Scripture the word "lust" usually denotes a strong desire which has become perverted and harmful and which does not submit to God's standards of righteousness.
3. The first two forms of temptation, listed here by John, are desires of the kind that affect man through his physical senses.
4. The third form of temptation appeals to man's ego, or soul. It is the inner urge in man which refuses to acknowledge his dependence upon God, but seeks to exalt himself.
The temptations of Jesus
When Jesus was in the wilderness, He was confronted by Satan with each of these three temptations (read Luke 4:1 - 13).
Satan tempted Him to make stones into bread - the lust of the flesh. Then he showed Him all the kingdoms of the world with their power and glory - the lust of the eyes. Finally, Satan tempted Jesus to cast Himself down from the pinnacle of the temple, thus performing a miracle on His own initiative that would glorify Himself, without submitting to the Father's will or seeking the Father's glory - the pride of life.
Comparison between the temptations of Adam and that of Jesus
Here are some interesting points:
1. Adam encountered his temptations in a beautiful garde, surrounded by every evidence of God's loving provision. Jesus (called "the last Adam') encountered His temptations in a barren wilderness, with no companions but the wild beasts.
2. Adam succumbed to his temptations by eating; Jesus overcame His temptations by fasting.
The implications of this comparison
It is interesting to realize that the implications of this comparison are profound!
Returning to Satan's encounter with Eve, we observe that the tree presented her likewise with the three basic forms of tempation. It appealed to her appetite - the lust of the flesh. It appealed to her eyes - the lust of the eyes. It appealed to her ego with the promise that it would make her wise and thus set her free from dependence on God - the pride of life.
The essence of sin
In its essence, sin is not doing something wrong. Sin is the desire to be independent of God. Whenever this desire appears in us, it spells spiritual danger. In Eve's case, the means by which she hoped to achieve her independence was knowledge - the knowledge of good and evil. This is one means by which people commonly seek independence from God. Others are wealth or fame or power. I believe on the subtlest of all is religion. We can become so religious that we no longer need God!
Motivated by her desire for independence, Eve transferred her confidence from God's Word to her own senses. As a result she quicly succumbed to the tree's threefold temptation and partook of the fruit. The she enticed her husband into doing the same, and both of them together were alienated from God by their disobedience.
The outworking of faith
Faith in the invisible realm of God and His Word is both original and natural for man; unbelief is perverted and unnatural. Temptation alienates man from his natural faith in God and His Word. Instead, it appeals to man through his physical senses. Traced to its roots, every temptaion is a temptation to unbelief. The motive which it exploits is the desire to be independent of God. The result which it produces is disobedience against God.
Faith works in exactly the opposite direction to temptation. Faith requires man to renounce both his confidence in his senses and ambition for his ego to exalt himself in independence of God. Faith reasserts the supremacy of the invisible realm of God and His Word and requires man's ego to humble himself and acknowledge his dependnce upon God. Thus faith undoes the effects of man's fall and opens the way for him to return into his original relationship with God. Faith reverses the process of temptation that led to man's fall.
Conclusion
There are two ways of living for man. One, in which man rejects dependence upon God, but trust in himself and his senses. The other, in which man renounces confidence in himself and his senses, but trusts in that which his senses cannot comprehend - God and His Word. By weaning us away from self and the sense realm, faith brings us back to the principle of righteousness which is based on trust in God and His Word and which alone enables us to live a life that is pleasing to God. Therefore, faith is the antidote to the Fall.
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
Understanding Faith
Books have been written about the simple word - "Faith" and yet its full potential cannot be easily measured or expressed. I believe the clearest way to bring faith's potiential into focus is to set side-by-side two statements made by Jesus:
"... with God all things are possible" (matthew 19:26, NKJV, emphasis added).
"... all things are possible to him who believes" (Mark 9:23, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. In each of these statements we find the words "all things are possible." The first statement applied to God; the second statement applied to the one who believes. It is not too difficult, perhaps, to accept that all things are possible with God. Can we equally accept that all things are possible to the one who believes? Yet this is what Jesus tells us.
2. In practical terms it means that, through faith, the things that are possible to God are made equally possible to the one who believes.
3. Faith is the channel that makes God's possibilities available to us. Through faith, all that is possible to God becomes equally possible to us.
Relation between "faith" and "believe"
This message is not a Greek lesson and so we need to be very brief here. Suffice to say that the translation from Greek to English created a lot of misunerstanding and difficulties for those who study the Bible - especially on things pertaining to faith. In Greek, the word for "faith" is "pistis" (a noun) and the word for "believe" is "pisteuo" (a verb). The root of each Greek word is made up of the four letters - "pist." As far as the Bible is concerned, "believing" is exercising faith. Conversely, exercising faith is "believing."
The opposite of "faith" is "unbelief" in English. But in Greek there is no direct connection between faith and its opposite - "Faith" is "pistis" and "unbelief" is "apistia."
Walking by Faith and not by Sight
Paul said, "For we walk by faith, not by sight" (1 Cor. 5:7).
The opposition between faith and sight is brought out by Paul. If we walk by sight, we do not need faith. If we walk by faith, we do not need sight. Each excludes the other.
This is contrary to our natural way of thinking. The world says, "Seeing is believing." But the Bible reverses the order - First we must believe, then we will see!
The following examples illustrate the principle of "walking by faith and not by sight." (or "believe, then you will see.")
David
David, the psalmist said: "I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living" (Ps. 27:13, NKJV).
To David, believing comes before seeing. What was true for David is true for all of us. If we cannot believe that we will see the goodness of the Lord, we will despair. The thing that keeps us from despairing is not what we see but what we believe.
Moses
The same thing experienced by Moses when he brought the children of Israel out of Egypt:
The writer of Hebrews said" "By faith he (Moses) forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible" (Hebrews 11:27).
Nothing in Moses' visible circumstances could give him any hope or encouragement. But in spite of all that was against him, he "endured" because he was able to "see the unseen," - by faith. Faith enables us to "see the unseen" and thus enables us to endure when the visible world offers us no hop or encouragement.
Jesus
Jesus was raising Lazarus from the dead witnessed by Mary and Martha.
"Jesus said, 'Take away the stone.' Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, 'Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.' Jesus said to her, 'Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?'" (John 11:39, 40).
All who desire to see the glory of God must believe first. We do not see first, and then believe. As a result of believing - we see. Faith comes before sight.
Contrast between the visible and the invisible
Paul said, "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." (2 Cor. 4:7, 8, emphasis added).
Paul's language here contains a deliberate paradox. The only way to "look at things which are not seen" is by faith! Notice that "light affliction" serves us only while we keep our eyes on the invisible realm. If we lose sight of this and become preoccupied with the world of time and of the senses, we are no longer able to receive the benefits that affliction is intended to work out for us.
So we are caught between two worlds, the temporal and the eternal. The temporal is that which we can see; we contact it with our senses. But the eternal is the world God wants us at home in. And we can be at home in that world by only one means - faith. Faith is the one thing that relates us to the unseen realities of God and His Word.
Differences between "faith" and "hope"
I believe the difference between faith and hope lies one of the greatest sources of misunderstanding among Christian today. Many Christians are disappointed and frustrated in prayer because they do not receive that they think they should. Often it is because they are praying in hope, but not in faith. The results promised by God to faith are not promised to hope. Here are two differences between faith and hope.
Faith originates in the heart
Paul said, "For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation" (Romans 10:10, NKJV).
True Biblical faith originates in the heart. Expressed by the verb to "believe," it is followed by the preposition "unto," indicating the result which it produces - "unto righteousness." "Unto" implies motion or transition of some kind. Faith is never static. It always expresses itself in motion, change and activity. A person who truly believes will be changed by what he believes.
On the other hand, a person who merely accepts truth with his intellect can remain unchanged by it. Mental acceptance of truth is not faith.
Solomon said, "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life" (Proverbs 4:23).
Everything that finally decides the course of our life proceeds out of our heart. True Biblical faith proceeds from the heart and determines the way we live.
However, God does not leave our mind without its proper provision. faith at work in the heart produces hope in the mind.
The writer of Hebrews said, "Now faith is the substance of things hope for ..." (Hebrews 11:1).
Faith in the heart is the substance - the underlying reality. This provides a valid, scriptural basis for the hope that we entertain in our mind.
Faith is in the present
Faith is in the present and hope is in the future. Faith is something we already have, but hope is directed toward the future, an expectation of things to come.
Jesus said, "Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you" (Mark 11:24, NAS, emphasis added).
Jesus tells us to receive what we pray for at the very moment that we pray. We "ask" and at the same moment we "receive." Thereafter we know that the things we asked for "shall be granted us." Notice that "granting" still remain in the future, but "receiving' - by faith - takes place when we pray. Having received now by faith, we know that, at God's appointed time, the things we received at the moment of praying will actually be granted us. Faith to receive is in the present; the manifestation of that which we receive is in the future. But without present faith there is no assurance of future manifestation.
Hope that is based on true faith in the heart will not be disappointed. But without this basis there is no assurance that our hopes will be fulfilled. Hope is God's appointed protection for our minds, but it will not obtain for us those results which God has promised us only to faith. The key to obtaining our petition from God is to appropriate them, by faith, at the very moment we make them. Doing this sets us free from continuing struggle and anxiety and bring us into an inner rest.
The Nature of faith
Faith, as depicted in the New Testament, has two aspects. its essential nature always agrees with the definition given in Hebrews 11:1 - "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." However, this nature expresses itself in two distinct but related forms:
The nature of faith as a gift
In 1 Corinthians 12:7 - 11 Paul lists nine distinct spiritual gifts. The key word that explains the distinctive nature of these gifts is "manifestation." The Holy Spirit Himself, dwelling in a believer, is invisible. But by these gifts operating through a believer, the presence of the Holy Spirit is made manifest to human senses. In each case the results produce are within the realm of the senses; they can be seen or heard or felt.
It has often been pointed out that these nine gifts fall naturally into three groups of three:
The 3 gifts of utterance - gifts that operate through the believer's vocal organs: prophecy; tongues; and interpretation of tongues.
The 3 gifts of revelation - gifts that impart spiritual illumination: the word of wisdom; the word of knowledge; and distinguishing (discerning) of spirits.
The 3 gifts of power - gifts that demonstrate God's supernatural power in the physical realm: faith; the gifts of healing; and the effecting of miracles.
The gift of faith
The gift of faith (God's faith) distinguished from other forms of faith by the fact that it is a sovereign, supernatural manifestation of the Holy Spirit working through the believer. The two key words are sovereign and supernatural.
An example of manifestation of the gift of faith is when Jesus pronounced a curse upon a fig tree: "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again" (Mark 11:14, NKJV). The next day, as they passed the same tree, the disciples were astonished to see that, within 24 hours, it had withered from the roots up. Peter commented: "The fig tree which You cursed has withered away" (Mark 11:21).
Jesus replied, "Have faith in God" (V. 22). This is the normal English translation. However, what Jesus actually said, in its most literal form, was "Have God's faith." This brings out the special kind of faith we are speaking of here - faith as a supernatural gift. Notice that Jesu speaks not merely to the disciples then present, but extends His promise to other believers when He said: "For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says" (V. 23, emphasis added). There is no restriction as to the person who speaks or the words that are spoken. All that matters is the nature of the faith - it must be God's own faith.
The nature of faith as a fruit
Paul said, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law" (Galatians 5:22, 23, KJV, emphasis added).
The seventh form of fruit here listed is "faith." Other Bible versions offer a variety of translations - "faithfulness" (NKJV, NAS, NLT, Amplified Bible and NIV); "fidelity" (Philips) and "good faith" (Weymouth) - as far as I have come across.
Spiritual fruit differs from spiritual gifts in two main ways. First, a spiritual gift can be both imparted and received by a single, brief transaction; fruit must be cultivated by a continuing process, requiring time, skill and labor. Second, gifts are not directly related to the character of those who exercise them; fruit is an expression of character. Ideally, fruit and gifts should balance one another in a combination that glorifies God and serves humanity.
As a form of fruit, faith may be understood in two distinct but related ways - as a trust and as trustworthiness. Trust is manifested in stability, which increases as trust mature. It requires an initial act of commitment. "Entrusting" leads to "trusting."
Our trust is based on God's trustworthiness. God demonstrates His trustworthiness toward us by fulfilling His covenant commitments, which go beyond anything we can deserve or demand. In turn, it makes us the kind of people who are willing and able to enter into and maintain commitments, both with God and with one another.
"... with God all things are possible" (matthew 19:26, NKJV, emphasis added).
"... all things are possible to him who believes" (Mark 9:23, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. In each of these statements we find the words "all things are possible." The first statement applied to God; the second statement applied to the one who believes. It is not too difficult, perhaps, to accept that all things are possible with God. Can we equally accept that all things are possible to the one who believes? Yet this is what Jesus tells us.
2. In practical terms it means that, through faith, the things that are possible to God are made equally possible to the one who believes.
3. Faith is the channel that makes God's possibilities available to us. Through faith, all that is possible to God becomes equally possible to us.
Relation between "faith" and "believe"
This message is not a Greek lesson and so we need to be very brief here. Suffice to say that the translation from Greek to English created a lot of misunerstanding and difficulties for those who study the Bible - especially on things pertaining to faith. In Greek, the word for "faith" is "pistis" (a noun) and the word for "believe" is "pisteuo" (a verb). The root of each Greek word is made up of the four letters - "pist." As far as the Bible is concerned, "believing" is exercising faith. Conversely, exercising faith is "believing."
The opposite of "faith" is "unbelief" in English. But in Greek there is no direct connection between faith and its opposite - "Faith" is "pistis" and "unbelief" is "apistia."
Walking by Faith and not by Sight
Paul said, "For we walk by faith, not by sight" (1 Cor. 5:7).
The opposition between faith and sight is brought out by Paul. If we walk by sight, we do not need faith. If we walk by faith, we do not need sight. Each excludes the other.
This is contrary to our natural way of thinking. The world says, "Seeing is believing." But the Bible reverses the order - First we must believe, then we will see!
The following examples illustrate the principle of "walking by faith and not by sight." (or "believe, then you will see.")
David
David, the psalmist said: "I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living" (Ps. 27:13, NKJV).
To David, believing comes before seeing. What was true for David is true for all of us. If we cannot believe that we will see the goodness of the Lord, we will despair. The thing that keeps us from despairing is not what we see but what we believe.
Moses
The same thing experienced by Moses when he brought the children of Israel out of Egypt:
The writer of Hebrews said" "By faith he (Moses) forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible" (Hebrews 11:27).
Nothing in Moses' visible circumstances could give him any hope or encouragement. But in spite of all that was against him, he "endured" because he was able to "see the unseen," - by faith. Faith enables us to "see the unseen" and thus enables us to endure when the visible world offers us no hop or encouragement.
Jesus
Jesus was raising Lazarus from the dead witnessed by Mary and Martha.
"Jesus said, 'Take away the stone.' Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, 'Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.' Jesus said to her, 'Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?'" (John 11:39, 40).
All who desire to see the glory of God must believe first. We do not see first, and then believe. As a result of believing - we see. Faith comes before sight.
Contrast between the visible and the invisible
Paul said, "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." (2 Cor. 4:7, 8, emphasis added).
Paul's language here contains a deliberate paradox. The only way to "look at things which are not seen" is by faith! Notice that "light affliction" serves us only while we keep our eyes on the invisible realm. If we lose sight of this and become preoccupied with the world of time and of the senses, we are no longer able to receive the benefits that affliction is intended to work out for us.
So we are caught between two worlds, the temporal and the eternal. The temporal is that which we can see; we contact it with our senses. But the eternal is the world God wants us at home in. And we can be at home in that world by only one means - faith. Faith is the one thing that relates us to the unseen realities of God and His Word.
Differences between "faith" and "hope"
I believe the difference between faith and hope lies one of the greatest sources of misunderstanding among Christian today. Many Christians are disappointed and frustrated in prayer because they do not receive that they think they should. Often it is because they are praying in hope, but not in faith. The results promised by God to faith are not promised to hope. Here are two differences between faith and hope.
Faith originates in the heart
Paul said, "For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation" (Romans 10:10, NKJV).
True Biblical faith originates in the heart. Expressed by the verb to "believe," it is followed by the preposition "unto," indicating the result which it produces - "unto righteousness." "Unto" implies motion or transition of some kind. Faith is never static. It always expresses itself in motion, change and activity. A person who truly believes will be changed by what he believes.
On the other hand, a person who merely accepts truth with his intellect can remain unchanged by it. Mental acceptance of truth is not faith.
Solomon said, "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life" (Proverbs 4:23).
Everything that finally decides the course of our life proceeds out of our heart. True Biblical faith proceeds from the heart and determines the way we live.
However, God does not leave our mind without its proper provision. faith at work in the heart produces hope in the mind.
The writer of Hebrews said, "Now faith is the substance of things hope for ..." (Hebrews 11:1).
Faith in the heart is the substance - the underlying reality. This provides a valid, scriptural basis for the hope that we entertain in our mind.
Faith is in the present
Faith is in the present and hope is in the future. Faith is something we already have, but hope is directed toward the future, an expectation of things to come.
Jesus said, "Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you" (Mark 11:24, NAS, emphasis added).
Jesus tells us to receive what we pray for at the very moment that we pray. We "ask" and at the same moment we "receive." Thereafter we know that the things we asked for "shall be granted us." Notice that "granting" still remain in the future, but "receiving' - by faith - takes place when we pray. Having received now by faith, we know that, at God's appointed time, the things we received at the moment of praying will actually be granted us. Faith to receive is in the present; the manifestation of that which we receive is in the future. But without present faith there is no assurance of future manifestation.
Hope that is based on true faith in the heart will not be disappointed. But without this basis there is no assurance that our hopes will be fulfilled. Hope is God's appointed protection for our minds, but it will not obtain for us those results which God has promised us only to faith. The key to obtaining our petition from God is to appropriate them, by faith, at the very moment we make them. Doing this sets us free from continuing struggle and anxiety and bring us into an inner rest.
The Nature of faith
Faith, as depicted in the New Testament, has two aspects. its essential nature always agrees with the definition given in Hebrews 11:1 - "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." However, this nature expresses itself in two distinct but related forms:
The nature of faith as a gift
In 1 Corinthians 12:7 - 11 Paul lists nine distinct spiritual gifts. The key word that explains the distinctive nature of these gifts is "manifestation." The Holy Spirit Himself, dwelling in a believer, is invisible. But by these gifts operating through a believer, the presence of the Holy Spirit is made manifest to human senses. In each case the results produce are within the realm of the senses; they can be seen or heard or felt.
It has often been pointed out that these nine gifts fall naturally into three groups of three:
The 3 gifts of utterance - gifts that operate through the believer's vocal organs: prophecy; tongues; and interpretation of tongues.
The 3 gifts of revelation - gifts that impart spiritual illumination: the word of wisdom; the word of knowledge; and distinguishing (discerning) of spirits.
The 3 gifts of power - gifts that demonstrate God's supernatural power in the physical realm: faith; the gifts of healing; and the effecting of miracles.
The gift of faith
The gift of faith (God's faith) distinguished from other forms of faith by the fact that it is a sovereign, supernatural manifestation of the Holy Spirit working through the believer. The two key words are sovereign and supernatural.
An example of manifestation of the gift of faith is when Jesus pronounced a curse upon a fig tree: "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again" (Mark 11:14, NKJV). The next day, as they passed the same tree, the disciples were astonished to see that, within 24 hours, it had withered from the roots up. Peter commented: "The fig tree which You cursed has withered away" (Mark 11:21).
Jesus replied, "Have faith in God" (V. 22). This is the normal English translation. However, what Jesus actually said, in its most literal form, was "Have God's faith." This brings out the special kind of faith we are speaking of here - faith as a supernatural gift. Notice that Jesu speaks not merely to the disciples then present, but extends His promise to other believers when He said: "For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says" (V. 23, emphasis added). There is no restriction as to the person who speaks or the words that are spoken. All that matters is the nature of the faith - it must be God's own faith.
The nature of faith as a fruit
Paul said, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law" (Galatians 5:22, 23, KJV, emphasis added).
The seventh form of fruit here listed is "faith." Other Bible versions offer a variety of translations - "faithfulness" (NKJV, NAS, NLT, Amplified Bible and NIV); "fidelity" (Philips) and "good faith" (Weymouth) - as far as I have come across.
Spiritual fruit differs from spiritual gifts in two main ways. First, a spiritual gift can be both imparted and received by a single, brief transaction; fruit must be cultivated by a continuing process, requiring time, skill and labor. Second, gifts are not directly related to the character of those who exercise them; fruit is an expression of character. Ideally, fruit and gifts should balance one another in a combination that glorifies God and serves humanity.
As a form of fruit, faith may be understood in two distinct but related ways - as a trust and as trustworthiness. Trust is manifested in stability, which increases as trust mature. It requires an initial act of commitment. "Entrusting" leads to "trusting."
Our trust is based on God's trustworthiness. God demonstrates His trustworthiness toward us by fulfilling His covenant commitments, which go beyond anything we can deserve or demand. In turn, it makes us the kind of people who are willing and able to enter into and maintain commitments, both with God and with one another.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Development of Faith
We have seen that faith comes by hearing of God's rhema Word (Romans 10:17). Please read my earlier message: "The Nature of God's Word" concerning the nature of Logos and Rhema. Once faith has come, there are three phases of development through which it must pass:
Confession - Faith must be confessed with the mouth.
Outworking - Faith must be worked out in action.
Testing - Faith must be tested by tribulation.
Faith must be confessed
The word "confess" in Greek is "homologeo" (a verb) which literally means "to say the same as". Thus the word "confession" is "saying the same as". In Scripture, "confession" is always related directly to God's Word. Confession is saying the same with our mouth as God says in His Word. It is making the words of our mouth agree with the written Word of God.
The psalmist said, "I believed, therefore I spoke ...." (Ps. 116:10, NKJV).
Paul applied this to the confession of our faith when he said: "And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, 'I believed and therefore I spoke,' we also believe and therefore speak" ( 2 Cor. 4:13, NKJV).
Speaking is the natural way for faith to express itself. Faith that does not speak is dead.
The entire Bible emphasizes that there is a direct connection between our mouth and our heart. What happens in the one can never be separated from what happens in the other.
Jesus said, "For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks" (Matt. 12:34).
In other words, the mouth is the overflow valve of the heart. Whatever comes out through that overflow valve indicates the contents of the heart.
Basic requirements of salvation
Paul said, "(V. 8) But what does it say? 'The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart' (that is, the word of faith which we preach); (V. 9) that if you confess with your mouth that Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (V. 10) For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation" (Romans 10:8 - 10, emphasis added).
Notice that in each of these three verses Paul speaks about the mouth and the heart, but the order in which he does so is significant. In verses 8 and 9, it is the mouth first, then the heart. But in verse 10 the order is reversed - the heart comes first, and then the mouth.
I believe that this corresponds to our practical experience. We begin with God's Word in our mouth. By confessing it with our mouth, we receive it into our heart. The more persistently we confess it with our mouth, the more firmly it becomes established in our hearts. Once faith is thus established in our hearts, no conscious effort is needed any longer to make the right confession. Faith naturally flows out in what we say with our mouths. Thereafter, as we continue to express our faith through our mouths, we confess our way progressively into the full benefits of salvation.
Fact, faith and feeling
There are three words, each beginning with "f," that we must put in the right order: fact - faith -feeling.
Fact - found in the Word of God, and they never vary.
Faith - as we have already seen, relates us to the invisible realm of God and His Word. It takes its stand with the facts of God's Word, and confesses them as true.
Feeling - based on our senses. It may waver. But ultimately, if faith stands fast, feelings will come into line with the facts. On the other hand, if we start at the wrong end - with feeling rather than fact - we will always end up in trouble. Our feelings change hour by hour and moment by moment. If our life is based on them, it will be as unstable as they are.
Faith must be worked out in action
The Scripture indicates that faith that is confessed with the mouth must be backed up by appropriate actions. Faith without works - that is, without appropriate action - is dead.
Faith works by love
Paul said, "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love" (Gal.5:6).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. Paul here establishes four vital points which follow each other in logical order.
2. First, taking circumcision as an example, Paul says that no outward ritual or ceremony can by itself commend us to God. God is primarily concerned with the internal, not the external.
3. Secondly, the one essential element in true Christianity is faith. This is the inner condition of the heart which alone is acceptable to God and for which there is no substitute.
4. Thirdly, faith works. It is the very nature of faith to be active. Where there is no appropriate activity, there is no genuine faith.
5. Fourthly, the way in which faith naturally acts is by love. Where there is no love manifested, ther is no genuine faith. Love is strengthening, comforting and upbuilding.
Relationship between faith and works
The Epistle of James emphasizes the relationship between faith and works. There is actually no difference or contradiction between James' view of faith and Paul's view of faith even though some Bible teachers suggest that their views ar different and contradictory. In actual fact, their views are two obverse sides of the same truth.
We are justified by faith without works, because there are no works we can do that will earn us righteousness. But once we are justified by faith without works, we must then express our faith by our works, or else our faith is not valid. So Paul tells us how we receive righteousness (or justification) from God and James tells us what results follow when we receive righteousness from God. There is no conflict between thse two views; only a difference in emphasis. Furthermore, it is completely wrong to suggest that Paul lays no emphasis upon works. In Galatians 5:6, as we have already seen, he shows that the very nature of faith is to work - and to work through love. He brings out the same truth also in 1 Corinthians 13 - commonly known as the "love" chapter.
The main part of James' teaching concerning faith and works is found in James 2:14 -26. James turns to the life of Abraham (Vs. 21 - 24) and Rahab (V. 25) as examples of "justified by works."
James concludes by saying: "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also" (V. 26). The only thing that can give life to a body is the spirit. Likewise, the only thing that can give to faith is works - appropriate actions from faith.
Faith is a Walk
Paul said, "And he (Abraham) received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while still uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that the righteousness might be imputed to them also, and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of the faith which our father Abraham had while still uncircumcised" (Romans 4:11, 12, NKJV, emphasis added).
The phrase "walk in the steps of the faith" indicates that faith is not static; it is not a condition, or a position. Rather it is a progressive walk that we take step by step. Each step springs out of our personal relationship with God. Different believers are in different stages of the faith walk. A believer who has been in the faith many years should be further down the road than a new convert. What God requires of a mature believer is different from what He requires of a beginner. Each step, regardless of the degree of maturity, is an act of obedience. Through a whole series of such steps, faith is developed and finally brought to maturity.
Faith must be tested by tribulation
Paul said, "Therefore haveing been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, (V. 2) through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. (V. 3) And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; (V. 4) and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; (V. 5) and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us" (Romans 5:1 - 5, NAS, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. At first sight, this seems ridiculous. Who could ever imagine "exult in our tribulations" - in our hardship, persecution, loneliness, misunderstanding, or in poverty, sickness, and bereavement? Why should Paul suggest, or God expect, that we should exult in such things as these?
2. Fortunately, Paul gives us a reason, for he continues on in verses 3, 4 and 5. The reason for exulting even in tribulation is that, when received as from God and endured in faith, it produces results in our character which cannot be produced in any other way.
3. There are four successive stages in character development that result from meeting the test of tribulation:
Perseverance (or endurance) - This is an essential aspect of Christian character. Without it, we will not be able to enter into many of God's choicest blessings and provisions for us.
Proven character - The Greek word here translated is "dokime" which means "strength of character" or "a mature character" or "God approved character" or "proof that we have stood the test".
Hope - Steady confident hope - not mere daydreaming or wishful thinking. Hope of this kind is a strong, serene, confident expectation of good - the good that will ultimately result from the process of testing.
The love of God - The final objective of God in dealing with our character is to bring us into the enjoyment of His divine love.
Tested by fire - through various trials
According to James - "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing" (James 1:2 - 4, emphasis added).
Paul tells us that we are to exult in tribulations; James tells us that we are to count all our trials as joy. Each is equally contrary to your natural thinking, but each has the same reason - testing alone can produce endurance or patience. Endurance is the only way that we can enter into the fullness of God's will for us - "perfect and complete, lacking nothing."
According to Peter - "In this (the expectation of salvation) you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 1:6, 7, emphasis added).
Peter here compares the testing of our faith to the way in which, at that period, gold was tested and purified by fire in a furnace.
According to prophet Malachi - Here Malachi paints a vivid picture of Jesus, as a long-waited Messiah, coming to His people and dealing with them as a refiner deals with gold and silver:
"But who can endure the day of His coming? and who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire and like launderers' soap. He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord an offering in righteousness" (Malachi 3:2, 3, NKJV, emphasis added).
Trials or afflictions are the crucible in which God refines and purifies His people (including "sons of Levi" - New Testament priesthood, the Christians) until they meet the requirement of His holiness.
The Bible teaches that tribulation is a neccessary part of our total Christian experience. Once we understand the purpose of our tribulations, we will embrace them with joy. Even if we fail temporary under extreme pressure, we must never give up our faith. God will see us through.
Confession - Faith must be confessed with the mouth.
Outworking - Faith must be worked out in action.
Testing - Faith must be tested by tribulation.
Faith must be confessed
The word "confess" in Greek is "homologeo" (a verb) which literally means "to say the same as". Thus the word "confession" is "saying the same as". In Scripture, "confession" is always related directly to God's Word. Confession is saying the same with our mouth as God says in His Word. It is making the words of our mouth agree with the written Word of God.
The psalmist said, "I believed, therefore I spoke ...." (Ps. 116:10, NKJV).
Paul applied this to the confession of our faith when he said: "And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, 'I believed and therefore I spoke,' we also believe and therefore speak" ( 2 Cor. 4:13, NKJV).
Speaking is the natural way for faith to express itself. Faith that does not speak is dead.
The entire Bible emphasizes that there is a direct connection between our mouth and our heart. What happens in the one can never be separated from what happens in the other.
Jesus said, "For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks" (Matt. 12:34).
In other words, the mouth is the overflow valve of the heart. Whatever comes out through that overflow valve indicates the contents of the heart.
Basic requirements of salvation
Paul said, "(V. 8) But what does it say? 'The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart' (that is, the word of faith which we preach); (V. 9) that if you confess with your mouth that Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (V. 10) For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation" (Romans 10:8 - 10, emphasis added).
Notice that in each of these three verses Paul speaks about the mouth and the heart, but the order in which he does so is significant. In verses 8 and 9, it is the mouth first, then the heart. But in verse 10 the order is reversed - the heart comes first, and then the mouth.
I believe that this corresponds to our practical experience. We begin with God's Word in our mouth. By confessing it with our mouth, we receive it into our heart. The more persistently we confess it with our mouth, the more firmly it becomes established in our hearts. Once faith is thus established in our hearts, no conscious effort is needed any longer to make the right confession. Faith naturally flows out in what we say with our mouths. Thereafter, as we continue to express our faith through our mouths, we confess our way progressively into the full benefits of salvation.
Fact, faith and feeling
There are three words, each beginning with "f," that we must put in the right order: fact - faith -feeling.
Fact - found in the Word of God, and they never vary.
Faith - as we have already seen, relates us to the invisible realm of God and His Word. It takes its stand with the facts of God's Word, and confesses them as true.
Feeling - based on our senses. It may waver. But ultimately, if faith stands fast, feelings will come into line with the facts. On the other hand, if we start at the wrong end - with feeling rather than fact - we will always end up in trouble. Our feelings change hour by hour and moment by moment. If our life is based on them, it will be as unstable as they are.
Faith must be worked out in action
The Scripture indicates that faith that is confessed with the mouth must be backed up by appropriate actions. Faith without works - that is, without appropriate action - is dead.
Faith works by love
Paul said, "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love" (Gal.5:6).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. Paul here establishes four vital points which follow each other in logical order.
2. First, taking circumcision as an example, Paul says that no outward ritual or ceremony can by itself commend us to God. God is primarily concerned with the internal, not the external.
3. Secondly, the one essential element in true Christianity is faith. This is the inner condition of the heart which alone is acceptable to God and for which there is no substitute.
4. Thirdly, faith works. It is the very nature of faith to be active. Where there is no appropriate activity, there is no genuine faith.
5. Fourthly, the way in which faith naturally acts is by love. Where there is no love manifested, ther is no genuine faith. Love is strengthening, comforting and upbuilding.
Relationship between faith and works
The Epistle of James emphasizes the relationship between faith and works. There is actually no difference or contradiction between James' view of faith and Paul's view of faith even though some Bible teachers suggest that their views ar different and contradictory. In actual fact, their views are two obverse sides of the same truth.
We are justified by faith without works, because there are no works we can do that will earn us righteousness. But once we are justified by faith without works, we must then express our faith by our works, or else our faith is not valid. So Paul tells us how we receive righteousness (or justification) from God and James tells us what results follow when we receive righteousness from God. There is no conflict between thse two views; only a difference in emphasis. Furthermore, it is completely wrong to suggest that Paul lays no emphasis upon works. In Galatians 5:6, as we have already seen, he shows that the very nature of faith is to work - and to work through love. He brings out the same truth also in 1 Corinthians 13 - commonly known as the "love" chapter.
The main part of James' teaching concerning faith and works is found in James 2:14 -26. James turns to the life of Abraham (Vs. 21 - 24) and Rahab (V. 25) as examples of "justified by works."
James concludes by saying: "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also" (V. 26). The only thing that can give life to a body is the spirit. Likewise, the only thing that can give to faith is works - appropriate actions from faith.
Faith is a Walk
Paul said, "And he (Abraham) received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while still uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that the righteousness might be imputed to them also, and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of the faith which our father Abraham had while still uncircumcised" (Romans 4:11, 12, NKJV, emphasis added).
The phrase "walk in the steps of the faith" indicates that faith is not static; it is not a condition, or a position. Rather it is a progressive walk that we take step by step. Each step springs out of our personal relationship with God. Different believers are in different stages of the faith walk. A believer who has been in the faith many years should be further down the road than a new convert. What God requires of a mature believer is different from what He requires of a beginner. Each step, regardless of the degree of maturity, is an act of obedience. Through a whole series of such steps, faith is developed and finally brought to maturity.
Faith must be tested by tribulation
Paul said, "Therefore haveing been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, (V. 2) through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. (V. 3) And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; (V. 4) and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; (V. 5) and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us" (Romans 5:1 - 5, NAS, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. At first sight, this seems ridiculous. Who could ever imagine "exult in our tribulations" - in our hardship, persecution, loneliness, misunderstanding, or in poverty, sickness, and bereavement? Why should Paul suggest, or God expect, that we should exult in such things as these?
2. Fortunately, Paul gives us a reason, for he continues on in verses 3, 4 and 5. The reason for exulting even in tribulation is that, when received as from God and endured in faith, it produces results in our character which cannot be produced in any other way.
3. There are four successive stages in character development that result from meeting the test of tribulation:
Perseverance (or endurance) - This is an essential aspect of Christian character. Without it, we will not be able to enter into many of God's choicest blessings and provisions for us.
Proven character - The Greek word here translated is "dokime" which means "strength of character" or "a mature character" or "God approved character" or "proof that we have stood the test".
Hope - Steady confident hope - not mere daydreaming or wishful thinking. Hope of this kind is a strong, serene, confident expectation of good - the good that will ultimately result from the process of testing.
The love of God - The final objective of God in dealing with our character is to bring us into the enjoyment of His divine love.
Tested by fire - through various trials
According to James - "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing" (James 1:2 - 4, emphasis added).
Paul tells us that we are to exult in tribulations; James tells us that we are to count all our trials as joy. Each is equally contrary to your natural thinking, but each has the same reason - testing alone can produce endurance or patience. Endurance is the only way that we can enter into the fullness of God's will for us - "perfect and complete, lacking nothing."
According to Peter - "In this (the expectation of salvation) you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 1:6, 7, emphasis added).
Peter here compares the testing of our faith to the way in which, at that period, gold was tested and purified by fire in a furnace.
According to prophet Malachi - Here Malachi paints a vivid picture of Jesus, as a long-waited Messiah, coming to His people and dealing with them as a refiner deals with gold and silver:
"But who can endure the day of His coming? and who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire and like launderers' soap. He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord an offering in righteousness" (Malachi 3:2, 3, NKJV, emphasis added).
Trials or afflictions are the crucible in which God refines and purifies His people (including "sons of Levi" - New Testament priesthood, the Christians) until they meet the requirement of His holiness.
The Bible teaches that tribulation is a neccessary part of our total Christian experience. Once we understand the purpose of our tribulations, we will embrace them with joy. Even if we fail temporary under extreme pressure, we must never give up our faith. God will see us through.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
The Nature of God's Word
In the original Greek of the New Testament there are two different words both of which are normally translated "word" - one is logos; the other is rhema. At times the two words are used interchangeably. Yet each has a distinct, special significance of its own.
Logos and Rhema
The full meaning of logos extends beyond a word that is spoken or written. It denotes those functions which are the expression of a mind. A Greek lexicon defines logos as " The power of the mind which is menifested in speech and reson." In this sense, logos is the unchanging, self-existent "Word of God." it is God's counsel, settled in eternity before time began, due to continue on into eternity long after time has run its course.
David said, "Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven" (Ps. 119:89, NKJV, emphasis added).
On the other hand, rhema is derived from a verb meaning to "speak," and denotes specifically a word that is spoken - something that occurs in time and space.
Paul said, "So then faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God" (Romans 10:17, NKJV, emphasis added).
The word, "word" used by Paul is rhema and not logos. This agrees with the fact that he relates "word" with hearing. Logically, in order to be heard, a word must be spoken. God's rhema Word is both specific and personal.
Application of rhema
Solomon said: "My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart; for they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh" (Proverbs 4:20 - 22, NKJV, emphasis added).
Here are som statements of truth:
1. "God's Words" followed by "God's Sayings" indicate than Solomon refers to the rhema Word.
2. Rhema Word gives life and physical health (health to all their flesh).
3. "Give attention" and "incline your ear" indicate the act of focused "hearing." As a result of hearing God's Word faith comes (Romans 10:17).
The hearing of God's Word
Proverbs 4:20 -22 (the above verses) indicate that the hearing of God's Word consists of four elements:
1. We give close, undivided attention to what God is saying to us by His Holy Spirit. By a firm decision of our will we exclude all extraneous, distracting influences.
2. We incline our ears. We adopt a humble, teachable attitude toward God. We renounce our own prejudices and preconceptions and we accept what God says in its most plain and practical meaning.
3. We focus our eyes on the Word to which God has directed us. We do not allow our eyes to wander to statements from other sources that may conflict with what God is saying.
4. Even when the Words are no longer before our eyes, we continue to meditate on them in our hearts. In this way we retain them continually at the center of our being and their influence permeates every area of our lives.
The nature of God's rhema Word
God's rhema Word comes to each of us directly and individually from God. It is appropriate to a specific time and place. It presupposes an ongoing personal relationship with God. By each successive rhema. God guides us in the individual walk of faith to which He has called us. A rhema that is given to one believer may not be appropriate for another. Or again, it may not be appropriate even for the same believer in another stage of his experience.
The life of contnuing dependence upon God's rhema is clearly set forth in the words of Jesus when He was tempted by Satan in the wilderness:
Jesus answered Satan and said: "It is written, 'Man shall not live by read alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God'" (Matthew 4:4, emphasis added).
The word "proceeds" is in the continuous present tense. Jesus here speaks of a specific word proceeding directly from God's mouth, a word energized by "the breath of His mouth," which is the Holy Spirit - This is the nature of God's rhema Word. As we live in continuing dependence upon it, it imparts to us, day by day, the faith by which "the righteous (the just) man will live."
The relationship between logos and rhema
Rhema takes the eternal - logos - and injects it into time.
Rhema takes the heavenly - logos - and brings it down to earth.
Rhema takes the potential - logos - and makes it actual.
Rhema takes the general - logos - and makes it specific.
Rhema takes a portion of the total - logos - and presents it in a form that a man can assimilate.
Rhema is like each of the broken pieces of bread with which Jesus fed the multitude; it is suited to each individual's need and capacity; often it comes to us through another's hands.
From the eyes of the Lord through prophet Isaiah
Prophet Isaiah presents the relationship between logos and rhema in a beautiful graphical vivid way:
"'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,' says the Lord, 'For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways highter than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I set it'" (Isaiah 55:8 - 11, NKJV, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. Isaiah presents two different planes - the heavenly and the earthly. On the heavenly plane is the divine logos - God's ways and thoughts, the total counsel of God, settled forever in heaven. On the earthly level are man's ways and thoughts, far below those of God.
2. There is no way by which man can rise from his level to that of God, but there is a way by which God's ways and thoughts can be brought down to man. Like the rain and the snow that bring heaven's life-giving moisture down to earth, God says, "So shall my word ...." This is the same "word" that Jesus replied Satan in Matthew 4:4 - the Word (rhema word) by which man lives. It is a portion of the heavenly logos coming down to earth as rhema. It imparts to us that portion of God's ways and thoughts which applies to our situation and meets our need at that moment.
Isaiah continues to tell us the benefits of rhema when received and obeyed:
"For you shall go out with joy, and be led out with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree; and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off" (Isaiah 55:12, 13, cmphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. The rhema of God, when received and obeyed, brings forth in our lives the activity and fruit that glorify God. All the above high-lighted phrases are the outworking benefits of God's rhema in our lives.
2. "Thorn" and"brier" typify our ways and our thoughts. As we receive the rhema from God's mouth, these are replaced by the "cypress" and the "myrtle," which typify God's ways and thoughts.
Biblical examples of the rhema of God received and obeyed
To further illustrate the way that rhema being received and obeyed, and the result it produces, we are going to take two beautiful incidents from Scripture - one from the Old Testament, concerning David, and the other from the New Testament, concerning the virgin Mary.
David (1 Chronicles 17)
In 1 Chronicles 17 we see David established as king over Israel. He shared his desire with Nathan to build the Lord a house (temple) for Him to dwell. At first Nathan gave David warm encouragement (V. 2). But the following night Nathan received a different message from the Lord: "God and tell My servant David, 'Thus says the Lord: 'You shall not build Me a house to dwell in. Furthermore I tell you that the Lord will build you a house" (Vs. 4, 10).
Here is an example of the difference between the ways and thoughts of God and of men. Whatever conceived in David's mind - to build a house for the Lord, was on the earthly plane. The Lord's mind was on the heavenly plane when He told Nathan that He would build David a house. Notice that David use the word "house" in the material sense, merely as a dwelling place. But God in His promise, used the word in its wider meaning of an enduring posterity - a royal line that would continue forever!
Nathan had brought to David a rhema - a direct, personal Word from God. Read the rest of the Chapter (V. 16 onward) you will notice that David set aside his own plans, preconceptions and gradually began to meditate with focused attention on God's message (rhema). He came to a place of hearing with faith, God's promise (rhema).
Then David replied the Lord: "And Now, O lord, the word which You have spoken concerning Your servant and concerning his house, let it be established forever, and do as You have said" (V. 23, emphasis added).
David received the rhema - "The word which You have spoken" - from God. It come down from heaven, bringing God's way and thought down to David. Having "heard" this rhema and allowed it to produce faith within him, David appropriated its promise by a short prayer - "Do as You have said." These 5 words represent the most effective prayer that anyone can pray. Once we are truly convinced that God has said something to us, and we in turn ask Him to do what He has said, no power in heaven or earth can prevent ist fulfillment!
Mary (Luke 1:26 - 38)
There was, in the city of Nazareth, a peasant maiden named Mary who was a humble descendant of David's royal line. To her appeared an angel with a message direct from the Throne of God:
"And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end" (Luke 1:31 - 33).
When Mary questioned how this could come about, the angel explained that it would be by the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit, concluding with the words, "For with God nothing will be impossible" (V. 37, emphasis added). In the original Greek, the word "nothing" in the context means, "No Word (No rhema)." And so Verse 37 means literally, "No Word (rhema) from God shall be void of power." And Mary knew that the angel had brought her a rhema (a direct, personal Word) from God.
She then responded: "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! let it be to me according to your word" (V. 38, emphasis added).
By these words Mary unlocked the supernatural power of God in the rhema and opened herself to its fulfillment in her physical body and demonstrated the greatest miracle of human history - the birth of God's eternal Son from the womb of a virgin.
The parallel responses of David and Mary
In its simplicity, Mary's response was parallel to that of David. David said, "Do as You have said." Mary said, "Let it be to me according to your Word." Each of these simple replies unlocked the miracle-working power of God to fulfill the promise that had been given. In each case, the rhema, received by faith, contained in it the power to its own fulfillment. Faith expressed in this way made room for the power of God, within the rhema, to bring about the fulfillment of what was promised.
Conclusion
I believe God still works the same way today with His believing people. By the Holy Spirit, He takes out from His eternal counsel (logos) a rhema - a specific word that fits our particular situation in time and space. As we "hear" this rhema, faith comes. Then as we use the faith we have thus received to appropriate the rhema, we discover that it contains in itself the power need to work out its own fulfillment.
Logos and Rhema
The full meaning of logos extends beyond a word that is spoken or written. It denotes those functions which are the expression of a mind. A Greek lexicon defines logos as " The power of the mind which is menifested in speech and reson." In this sense, logos is the unchanging, self-existent "Word of God." it is God's counsel, settled in eternity before time began, due to continue on into eternity long after time has run its course.
David said, "Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven" (Ps. 119:89, NKJV, emphasis added).
On the other hand, rhema is derived from a verb meaning to "speak," and denotes specifically a word that is spoken - something that occurs in time and space.
Paul said, "So then faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God" (Romans 10:17, NKJV, emphasis added).
The word, "word" used by Paul is rhema and not logos. This agrees with the fact that he relates "word" with hearing. Logically, in order to be heard, a word must be spoken. God's rhema Word is both specific and personal.
Application of rhema
Solomon said: "My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart; for they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh" (Proverbs 4:20 - 22, NKJV, emphasis added).
Here are som statements of truth:
1. "God's Words" followed by "God's Sayings" indicate than Solomon refers to the rhema Word.
2. Rhema Word gives life and physical health (health to all their flesh).
3. "Give attention" and "incline your ear" indicate the act of focused "hearing." As a result of hearing God's Word faith comes (Romans 10:17).
The hearing of God's Word
Proverbs 4:20 -22 (the above verses) indicate that the hearing of God's Word consists of four elements:
1. We give close, undivided attention to what God is saying to us by His Holy Spirit. By a firm decision of our will we exclude all extraneous, distracting influences.
2. We incline our ears. We adopt a humble, teachable attitude toward God. We renounce our own prejudices and preconceptions and we accept what God says in its most plain and practical meaning.
3. We focus our eyes on the Word to which God has directed us. We do not allow our eyes to wander to statements from other sources that may conflict with what God is saying.
4. Even when the Words are no longer before our eyes, we continue to meditate on them in our hearts. In this way we retain them continually at the center of our being and their influence permeates every area of our lives.
The nature of God's rhema Word
God's rhema Word comes to each of us directly and individually from God. It is appropriate to a specific time and place. It presupposes an ongoing personal relationship with God. By each successive rhema. God guides us in the individual walk of faith to which He has called us. A rhema that is given to one believer may not be appropriate for another. Or again, it may not be appropriate even for the same believer in another stage of his experience.
The life of contnuing dependence upon God's rhema is clearly set forth in the words of Jesus when He was tempted by Satan in the wilderness:
Jesus answered Satan and said: "It is written, 'Man shall not live by read alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God'" (Matthew 4:4, emphasis added).
The word "proceeds" is in the continuous present tense. Jesus here speaks of a specific word proceeding directly from God's mouth, a word energized by "the breath of His mouth," which is the Holy Spirit - This is the nature of God's rhema Word. As we live in continuing dependence upon it, it imparts to us, day by day, the faith by which "the righteous (the just) man will live."
The relationship between logos and rhema
Rhema takes the eternal - logos - and injects it into time.
Rhema takes the heavenly - logos - and brings it down to earth.
Rhema takes the potential - logos - and makes it actual.
Rhema takes the general - logos - and makes it specific.
Rhema takes a portion of the total - logos - and presents it in a form that a man can assimilate.
Rhema is like each of the broken pieces of bread with which Jesus fed the multitude; it is suited to each individual's need and capacity; often it comes to us through another's hands.
From the eyes of the Lord through prophet Isaiah
Prophet Isaiah presents the relationship between logos and rhema in a beautiful graphical vivid way:
"'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,' says the Lord, 'For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways highter than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I set it'" (Isaiah 55:8 - 11, NKJV, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. Isaiah presents two different planes - the heavenly and the earthly. On the heavenly plane is the divine logos - God's ways and thoughts, the total counsel of God, settled forever in heaven. On the earthly level are man's ways and thoughts, far below those of God.
2. There is no way by which man can rise from his level to that of God, but there is a way by which God's ways and thoughts can be brought down to man. Like the rain and the snow that bring heaven's life-giving moisture down to earth, God says, "So shall my word ...." This is the same "word" that Jesus replied Satan in Matthew 4:4 - the Word (rhema word) by which man lives. It is a portion of the heavenly logos coming down to earth as rhema. It imparts to us that portion of God's ways and thoughts which applies to our situation and meets our need at that moment.
Isaiah continues to tell us the benefits of rhema when received and obeyed:
"For you shall go out with joy, and be led out with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree; and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off" (Isaiah 55:12, 13, cmphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. The rhema of God, when received and obeyed, brings forth in our lives the activity and fruit that glorify God. All the above high-lighted phrases are the outworking benefits of God's rhema in our lives.
2. "Thorn" and"brier" typify our ways and our thoughts. As we receive the rhema from God's mouth, these are replaced by the "cypress" and the "myrtle," which typify God's ways and thoughts.
Biblical examples of the rhema of God received and obeyed
To further illustrate the way that rhema being received and obeyed, and the result it produces, we are going to take two beautiful incidents from Scripture - one from the Old Testament, concerning David, and the other from the New Testament, concerning the virgin Mary.
David (1 Chronicles 17)
In 1 Chronicles 17 we see David established as king over Israel. He shared his desire with Nathan to build the Lord a house (temple) for Him to dwell. At first Nathan gave David warm encouragement (V. 2). But the following night Nathan received a different message from the Lord: "God and tell My servant David, 'Thus says the Lord: 'You shall not build Me a house to dwell in. Furthermore I tell you that the Lord will build you a house" (Vs. 4, 10).
Here is an example of the difference between the ways and thoughts of God and of men. Whatever conceived in David's mind - to build a house for the Lord, was on the earthly plane. The Lord's mind was on the heavenly plane when He told Nathan that He would build David a house. Notice that David use the word "house" in the material sense, merely as a dwelling place. But God in His promise, used the word in its wider meaning of an enduring posterity - a royal line that would continue forever!
Nathan had brought to David a rhema - a direct, personal Word from God. Read the rest of the Chapter (V. 16 onward) you will notice that David set aside his own plans, preconceptions and gradually began to meditate with focused attention on God's message (rhema). He came to a place of hearing with faith, God's promise (rhema).
Then David replied the Lord: "And Now, O lord, the word which You have spoken concerning Your servant and concerning his house, let it be established forever, and do as You have said" (V. 23, emphasis added).
David received the rhema - "The word which You have spoken" - from God. It come down from heaven, bringing God's way and thought down to David. Having "heard" this rhema and allowed it to produce faith within him, David appropriated its promise by a short prayer - "Do as You have said." These 5 words represent the most effective prayer that anyone can pray. Once we are truly convinced that God has said something to us, and we in turn ask Him to do what He has said, no power in heaven or earth can prevent ist fulfillment!
Mary (Luke 1:26 - 38)
There was, in the city of Nazareth, a peasant maiden named Mary who was a humble descendant of David's royal line. To her appeared an angel with a message direct from the Throne of God:
"And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end" (Luke 1:31 - 33).
When Mary questioned how this could come about, the angel explained that it would be by the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit, concluding with the words, "For with God nothing will be impossible" (V. 37, emphasis added). In the original Greek, the word "nothing" in the context means, "No Word (No rhema)." And so Verse 37 means literally, "No Word (rhema) from God shall be void of power." And Mary knew that the angel had brought her a rhema (a direct, personal Word) from God.
She then responded: "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! let it be to me according to your word" (V. 38, emphasis added).
By these words Mary unlocked the supernatural power of God in the rhema and opened herself to its fulfillment in her physical body and demonstrated the greatest miracle of human history - the birth of God's eternal Son from the womb of a virgin.
The parallel responses of David and Mary
In its simplicity, Mary's response was parallel to that of David. David said, "Do as You have said." Mary said, "Let it be to me according to your Word." Each of these simple replies unlocked the miracle-working power of God to fulfill the promise that had been given. In each case, the rhema, received by faith, contained in it the power to its own fulfillment. Faith expressed in this way made room for the power of God, within the rhema, to bring about the fulfillment of what was promised.
Conclusion
I believe God still works the same way today with His believing people. By the Holy Spirit, He takes out from His eternal counsel (logos) a rhema - a specific word that fits our particular situation in time and space. As we "hear" this rhema, faith comes. Then as we use the faith we have thus received to appropriate the rhema, we discover that it contains in itself the power need to work out its own fulfillment.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Faith and the Sin of Unbelief
The writer of Hebrews said: "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him" (Hebrews 11:6, NKJV).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. Left to ourselves, if we were asked what we need to do to please God, few of us would offer the answer which Scripture here gives. Most often than not, people try to please God on some basis other than faith: by morality, by good works, by Church membership, by charitable contributions, by prayer or other religious activity. But without faith, none of these is acceptable to God. No matter what else we do, no matter how good our motives, no matter how sincere or zealous we may be, there is no substitute for faith. Without it we cannot please God. It is impossible!
2. God's single requirement is - "He who comes to God must believe ..."
3. The two things that we are required to believe are: First, we must believe that God is - that He exists. Secondly, we must believe that God is "a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him".
The ultimate object of faith
It is true that faith relates us to two invisible objects - God and His Word. The ultimate object of faith is none other than God Himself. It is true that we believe in God, but we do so because His Word is an extension of Himself. Our confidence in His Word rests on our confidence in Himself as a Person. If we ever cease to believe in God we will eventually cease to believe His Word also.
It is most important to see that, those whose faith goes no further than merely believing a form of doctrine or theology, will never get to know the fullness and richness of life that God offers us. His final purpose is to bring us into an immediate, intimate, person-to-person relationship with Himself. That is the ultimat object of our faith.
The sin of unbelief
We have seen in my previous message: "The just shall live by faith" that righteousness proceeds always and only from faith. The reverse is also true - sin has only one ultimate source - unbelief.
Jesus said, "And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; ..." (John 16:8, 9).
Therefore, the primary sin, of which the whole world is guilty, is unbelief. This the basis of all other sins.
The writer of Hebrews said: "Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called 'Today.' lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin" (Hebrews 3:12, 13, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. Most believers tend to view unbelief as something regrettable, but comparatively harmless. But we are here told that an unbelieving heart is an evil heart. Unbelief is evil because it causes us to fall away from God. Just as faith establishes a personal relationship with God, so unbelief destroys it. The two are exactly opposite in their effects.
2. Unbelief causes our hearts to be hardened toward God and thus expose us to the deception of sin and of Satan.
3. The word "Today" is use deliberately to emphasize the fact that the effects of hardening of hearts for believers today are same as for those children of Israel who came out Egypt. They are just as deadly for us as they were for them.
The writer of Hebrews said further: "Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but in those who did not obey? So we see that they could not enter in because of unfelief" (Hebrews 3:17 - 19, emphasis added).
Notice that those children of Israel committed many sins - idolatry, complaining, and rebellion and so on. But the specific sin which kept them from entering their inheritance was unbelief. Unblieve is the source of all sins. An important spiritual principle reveled is - "Faith unites us to Him; unbelief separates us from Him." Both are mutually exclusive.
The writer of Hebrews confirmed this spiritual principle:
"'Now the just whall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.' But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul" (Hebrews 10:38, 39).
Once we have committed ourselves to this life that is based on faith, we cannot afford to turn away from it again. To go back into unbelief leads only to darkness and destruction. To go forward we must continue as we began - in faith!
The definition of faith
Hebrews 11:1 give the only definiton of faith found in the Bible: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1, NKJV).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. The above verse consists of two parts - "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for" and "(Faith is) the evidence of things not seen." These two parts consist of two basic principles of faith.
2. The first principle is "hope". "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for" indicates that faith begins with hope - confident expectation. We hope for things not yet attained, things not yet in our possession, with the unshakable confidence that the promises of God - "things hoped for" - whether they be for the distant future, or for the hours and days that lie immediately ahead, will be realized.
3. The second principle is "awareness" of the unseen spiritual world. This spiritual world, though not seen, is as real as the physical world which we relate to our physical senses. "(Faith is) the evidence of things not seen". It is easy to believe in things we can see, but not easy to believe in the things we cannot see. Yet this is exactly where faith operates. We do not need faith to operate in the realm of things we can see; it is sight, and not faith that operates there.
The operation of faith
The writer of Hebrews, having given us a definition, now proceeds to draw some interesting deductions from it.
"For by it (faith) the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible" (Hebrews 11:2, 3).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. The "elders" were the ancient Hebrew patriarchs. They bore testimony under the influence of their faith because, even in trying circumstances, they had unwavering confidence in God.
2. Note carefully what this statement says - "By faith we understand". It does not say, "By faith we accept", or even "By faith we affirm". The word "understand" in the context simply means, "the exercise of the mind under the influence of God". Men who shut out God from their thinking, and then exercise their minds to try to discover the origin of the universe, even using scientific study and research, believe that all this happened by chance! Men will never understand the origin of the universe unless they begin to think from God's perspective.
3. The second part of Hebrews 11:3 is: "The things which ar seen were not made of things which are visible". In other words, we can never explain the things which are seen until we come to understand the things tha are unseen. That is the reason why so many scientists and philosophers struggle over the mysteries of the universe. They fail to recognize the existence of unseen things, and therefore they are unable fully to understand the meaning of the things that are visible. Unless these scientists are "converted"; unless they come by faith to the cross, they will not be able to discover something greater than the creation - the One and only Creator! And the more they understand God and fellowshipped with Him in the world of the unseen, the more clearly they come to understand the secrets of the material world aroung them.
4. The above gives the reason why the writer of Hebrews said, "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him" (Hebrews 11:6).
Everyone believes in God
As we have seen, we need faith to believe that God exists. But, strange may it seems to be, believing in God can be the easiest thing in the world. God created in the human spirit to relate to God. He also created in all of us a measure of faith (Romans 12:3). In fact, I believe it requires much effort to disbelieve, but it requires little effort to believe. Even though we are all born sinners with a sinful nature, but the fact is that each one of us starts out by believing God exists. It is only when we are trained not to believe, that we come to the place of declaring God does not exist. That is why children have very little difficulty with the concept of God. With their childlike faith they believe that God exists.
Someone had said, "The soul is naturally Christian". This does not mean that conversion and regeneration are unnecessary. The fact is that, the soul is created in such a way that left to itself and without the influences of secularism and atheism, it will come to the conclusion that Paul's words: "All thigs were created through Him and for Him" (Col. 1:16), are imprinted on it.
Living illustrations of faith
The writer of Hebrews, having given us the definition and opreration faith, goes on the give us a few living illustrations - beginning with Abel and ending with Jesus (Hebrews 11:4 to 12:3). Some Bible teachers call them "heroes of faith".
It is interesting to note that the writer of Hebrews did not pull these names out, as illustrations of heroes of faith, at random. Each name illustrates a particular aspect and characteristic of faith. Our task, as we look at each of these characters in turn, is to test ourselves to see how many of their distinguishing marks of faith are present to our own lives. Let us briefly consider each of these living illustrations.
Abel (Heb. 11:4)
The first name we encounter is that of Abel. Why? Because it is in Abel the primary note of faith is struck - in coming into God's presence an atoning blood sacrifice is required. Cain's offering of fruit and vegetables was not acceptable by God. Abel was the first man to learn this truth.
Enoch (Heb. 11:5)
Enoch was one of the only two men in the Old Testament who went to heaven without dying - the other being Elijah (2 Kings 2:11). Enoch walked so closly with God that he found a fellowship which death could not interrupt. Enoch has become forever a picture of what death is to the Christian - not a termination, but a transition.
Noah (Heb. 11:7)
Noah feared God and by faith, built the ark as commanded by God. Faith acts on what God says, even though circumstances seem to say that it is all futile. Noah was led on by faith to become an heir of righteousness.
Abraham (Heb. 11:8 - 19)
Abraham is held in high esteem, not only by Christianity but also by Judaism and Islam. There are three great movements of Abraham's faith - one, Abraham obeyed God's call (Gen. 12:1 - 9); two, he sojourned in the land of promise (Gen. 13:14 - 18); three, he offered up his son Isaac (Gen. 22:1 - 18). Abraham may not know where he was going, but he knew with whom he was going! Abraham was called the friend of God (James 2:22).
Isaac, Jacob and Joseph (Heb. 11:20 - 22)
Isaac, Jacob and Joseph are linked together in the list of heroes of faith. In ech case, the illustrations of faith given are drawn from the latter part of the patriarchs' lives.
Moses (Heb. 11:23 - 29)
Most of us are familiar with the wonderful story of Moses' life - a life which spanned a period of 120 years. The significant characteristic of which Moses illustrated is - he evaluates every situation before he exercised his faith. For example: "(Moses) esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward" (Heb. 11:26).
The faith of others (Heb. 11:30 - 40)
Who are these "others"? Obviously this refers to the multitudes of people who, down the ages, have lived their lives by the principle of faith. If you are truly one of Christ's disciples, includes you also.
Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith (Heb. 12:1, 2)
"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Heb. 12:1, 2, NKJV, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. "Cloud of witnessed" refers to those heroes of faith mentioned in Hebrews 11.
2. We should fix our eyes upon Jesus who is the author and finisher of our faith instead of fixing our eyes upon any of the heroes of faith.
3. Jesus sat down at the right hand of the throne of God because His work had been completed.
Here are some statements of truth:
1. Left to ourselves, if we were asked what we need to do to please God, few of us would offer the answer which Scripture here gives. Most often than not, people try to please God on some basis other than faith: by morality, by good works, by Church membership, by charitable contributions, by prayer or other religious activity. But without faith, none of these is acceptable to God. No matter what else we do, no matter how good our motives, no matter how sincere or zealous we may be, there is no substitute for faith. Without it we cannot please God. It is impossible!
2. God's single requirement is - "He who comes to God must believe ..."
3. The two things that we are required to believe are: First, we must believe that God is - that He exists. Secondly, we must believe that God is "a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him".
The ultimate object of faith
It is true that faith relates us to two invisible objects - God and His Word. The ultimate object of faith is none other than God Himself. It is true that we believe in God, but we do so because His Word is an extension of Himself. Our confidence in His Word rests on our confidence in Himself as a Person. If we ever cease to believe in God we will eventually cease to believe His Word also.
It is most important to see that, those whose faith goes no further than merely believing a form of doctrine or theology, will never get to know the fullness and richness of life that God offers us. His final purpose is to bring us into an immediate, intimate, person-to-person relationship with Himself. That is the ultimat object of our faith.
The sin of unbelief
We have seen in my previous message: "The just shall live by faith" that righteousness proceeds always and only from faith. The reverse is also true - sin has only one ultimate source - unbelief.
Jesus said, "And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; ..." (John 16:8, 9).
Therefore, the primary sin, of which the whole world is guilty, is unbelief. This the basis of all other sins.
The writer of Hebrews said: "Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called 'Today.' lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin" (Hebrews 3:12, 13, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. Most believers tend to view unbelief as something regrettable, but comparatively harmless. But we are here told that an unbelieving heart is an evil heart. Unbelief is evil because it causes us to fall away from God. Just as faith establishes a personal relationship with God, so unbelief destroys it. The two are exactly opposite in their effects.
2. Unbelief causes our hearts to be hardened toward God and thus expose us to the deception of sin and of Satan.
3. The word "Today" is use deliberately to emphasize the fact that the effects of hardening of hearts for believers today are same as for those children of Israel who came out Egypt. They are just as deadly for us as they were for them.
The writer of Hebrews said further: "Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but in those who did not obey? So we see that they could not enter in because of unfelief" (Hebrews 3:17 - 19, emphasis added).
Notice that those children of Israel committed many sins - idolatry, complaining, and rebellion and so on. But the specific sin which kept them from entering their inheritance was unbelief. Unblieve is the source of all sins. An important spiritual principle reveled is - "Faith unites us to Him; unbelief separates us from Him." Both are mutually exclusive.
The writer of Hebrews confirmed this spiritual principle:
"'Now the just whall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.' But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul" (Hebrews 10:38, 39).
Once we have committed ourselves to this life that is based on faith, we cannot afford to turn away from it again. To go back into unbelief leads only to darkness and destruction. To go forward we must continue as we began - in faith!
The definition of faith
Hebrews 11:1 give the only definiton of faith found in the Bible: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1, NKJV).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. The above verse consists of two parts - "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for" and "(Faith is) the evidence of things not seen." These two parts consist of two basic principles of faith.
2. The first principle is "hope". "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for" indicates that faith begins with hope - confident expectation. We hope for things not yet attained, things not yet in our possession, with the unshakable confidence that the promises of God - "things hoped for" - whether they be for the distant future, or for the hours and days that lie immediately ahead, will be realized.
3. The second principle is "awareness" of the unseen spiritual world. This spiritual world, though not seen, is as real as the physical world which we relate to our physical senses. "(Faith is) the evidence of things not seen". It is easy to believe in things we can see, but not easy to believe in the things we cannot see. Yet this is exactly where faith operates. We do not need faith to operate in the realm of things we can see; it is sight, and not faith that operates there.
The operation of faith
The writer of Hebrews, having given us a definition, now proceeds to draw some interesting deductions from it.
"For by it (faith) the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible" (Hebrews 11:2, 3).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. The "elders" were the ancient Hebrew patriarchs. They bore testimony under the influence of their faith because, even in trying circumstances, they had unwavering confidence in God.
2. Note carefully what this statement says - "By faith we understand". It does not say, "By faith we accept", or even "By faith we affirm". The word "understand" in the context simply means, "the exercise of the mind under the influence of God". Men who shut out God from their thinking, and then exercise their minds to try to discover the origin of the universe, even using scientific study and research, believe that all this happened by chance! Men will never understand the origin of the universe unless they begin to think from God's perspective.
3. The second part of Hebrews 11:3 is: "The things which ar seen were not made of things which are visible". In other words, we can never explain the things which are seen until we come to understand the things tha are unseen. That is the reason why so many scientists and philosophers struggle over the mysteries of the universe. They fail to recognize the existence of unseen things, and therefore they are unable fully to understand the meaning of the things that are visible. Unless these scientists are "converted"; unless they come by faith to the cross, they will not be able to discover something greater than the creation - the One and only Creator! And the more they understand God and fellowshipped with Him in the world of the unseen, the more clearly they come to understand the secrets of the material world aroung them.
4. The above gives the reason why the writer of Hebrews said, "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him" (Hebrews 11:6).
Everyone believes in God
As we have seen, we need faith to believe that God exists. But, strange may it seems to be, believing in God can be the easiest thing in the world. God created in the human spirit to relate to God. He also created in all of us a measure of faith (Romans 12:3). In fact, I believe it requires much effort to disbelieve, but it requires little effort to believe. Even though we are all born sinners with a sinful nature, but the fact is that each one of us starts out by believing God exists. It is only when we are trained not to believe, that we come to the place of declaring God does not exist. That is why children have very little difficulty with the concept of God. With their childlike faith they believe that God exists.
Someone had said, "The soul is naturally Christian". This does not mean that conversion and regeneration are unnecessary. The fact is that, the soul is created in such a way that left to itself and without the influences of secularism and atheism, it will come to the conclusion that Paul's words: "All thigs were created through Him and for Him" (Col. 1:16), are imprinted on it.
Living illustrations of faith
The writer of Hebrews, having given us the definition and opreration faith, goes on the give us a few living illustrations - beginning with Abel and ending with Jesus (Hebrews 11:4 to 12:3). Some Bible teachers call them "heroes of faith".
It is interesting to note that the writer of Hebrews did not pull these names out, as illustrations of heroes of faith, at random. Each name illustrates a particular aspect and characteristic of faith. Our task, as we look at each of these characters in turn, is to test ourselves to see how many of their distinguishing marks of faith are present to our own lives. Let us briefly consider each of these living illustrations.
Abel (Heb. 11:4)
The first name we encounter is that of Abel. Why? Because it is in Abel the primary note of faith is struck - in coming into God's presence an atoning blood sacrifice is required. Cain's offering of fruit and vegetables was not acceptable by God. Abel was the first man to learn this truth.
Enoch (Heb. 11:5)
Enoch was one of the only two men in the Old Testament who went to heaven without dying - the other being Elijah (2 Kings 2:11). Enoch walked so closly with God that he found a fellowship which death could not interrupt. Enoch has become forever a picture of what death is to the Christian - not a termination, but a transition.
Noah (Heb. 11:7)
Noah feared God and by faith, built the ark as commanded by God. Faith acts on what God says, even though circumstances seem to say that it is all futile. Noah was led on by faith to become an heir of righteousness.
Abraham (Heb. 11:8 - 19)
Abraham is held in high esteem, not only by Christianity but also by Judaism and Islam. There are three great movements of Abraham's faith - one, Abraham obeyed God's call (Gen. 12:1 - 9); two, he sojourned in the land of promise (Gen. 13:14 - 18); three, he offered up his son Isaac (Gen. 22:1 - 18). Abraham may not know where he was going, but he knew with whom he was going! Abraham was called the friend of God (James 2:22).
Isaac, Jacob and Joseph (Heb. 11:20 - 22)
Isaac, Jacob and Joseph are linked together in the list of heroes of faith. In ech case, the illustrations of faith given are drawn from the latter part of the patriarchs' lives.
Moses (Heb. 11:23 - 29)
Most of us are familiar with the wonderful story of Moses' life - a life which spanned a period of 120 years. The significant characteristic of which Moses illustrated is - he evaluates every situation before he exercised his faith. For example: "(Moses) esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward" (Heb. 11:26).
The faith of others (Heb. 11:30 - 40)
Who are these "others"? Obviously this refers to the multitudes of people who, down the ages, have lived their lives by the principle of faith. If you are truly one of Christ's disciples, includes you also.
Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith (Heb. 12:1, 2)
"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Heb. 12:1, 2, NKJV, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. "Cloud of witnessed" refers to those heroes of faith mentioned in Hebrews 11.
2. We should fix our eyes upon Jesus who is the author and finisher of our faith instead of fixing our eyes upon any of the heroes of faith.
3. Jesus sat down at the right hand of the throne of God because His work had been completed.
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
The Just shall live by Faith
This Biblical phrase: "The just shall live by faith" (NKJV) or "The righteous shall live by faith" (NIV) appears four times in the Bible - once in the Old Testament and three times in the New Testament. It tells us a lot about the need of living by faith as believers in Christ. Here are the Books in the Bible where we can find this brief phrase:
Habakkuk - the Lord said to Habakkuk, the prophet: "Behold the proud, his soul is not upright in him; but the just shall live by his faith" (Hab. 2:4, NKJV, emphasis added).
Habakkuk was confused and frustrated by the continuance of evil and injustice within Judah or the evil nations around him. He was frustrated by God's apparent slowness in dealing with this issue. But later on, after questioning the Lord twice, he decided to give up questioning Him and let Him has His way. The Lord's answer to Habakkuk's complaint is in Habakkuk 2:4, admonishing him "to live by his faith".
Romans - Paul said: "For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, 'The just shall live by faith'" (Romans 1:17, emphasis added).
In his epistle to the Romans, Paul deals with the great truths of salvation, showing how God has accomplished the task of justifying sinners and making them appear as if they had never sinned. The emphasis in Romans is therefore on the word "just" - "The just shall live by faith".
Galatians - Paul said: "But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for 'the just shall live by faith'" (Gal. 3:11, emphasis added).
Galations is the epistle of freedom. Here Paul proclaims the truth that in Christ, the Christian is set free from every yoke of bondage which can be placed upon the human soul. There were those in the Galatians Church who felt that Christ alone is not enough. They wanted "Christ plus something" because to them without Christ and something (for example, circumcision) their salvation was not complete.
Hebrews - The writer of Hebrews said: "Now the just shall live by faith, but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him" (Hebrews 10:38, emphasis added).
Hebrews is eminently an epistle of faith, and it reveals how, living by this principle, enable us to triumph over all kinds of difficulties and problems. Unquestionably the purpose of the writer was to establish and strengthen the early Hebrew Christians who felt that they had lost so much, having turned from the grand ritual ceremony of the Hebrew religion to the simpler but more effective things of Christ.
The life that a just or righteous person shall live is a life of faith. Every Christian is made righteous by the blood of Jesus (Romans 5:19) and therefore every Christian is to live by faith. Notice that in the context on Romans 1:17 - "the righteous shall live by faith", the word 'live' means more than to have a normal, physical life. We know that even the wicked and the ungodly have that kind of life. But Scripture reveals that there is another kind of life - a life of righteousness - that has its source in God alone. The only way that anyone can receive this kind of life is by faith in Jesus Christ. Someone had said, "We live by faith or we do not live at all"!
Living by faith in Jesus Christ
The apostle John said, "He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but he wrath of God abides on him" (John 3:36, NKJV).
John also said: "And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God" (1 John 5:11 - 13, NKJV).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. John uses the present tense throughout.
2. The essence of the gospel message is - There is a divine, eternal life which has its source in God alone. God has made this life available to us in Jesus Christ. As we receive Jesus by faith in our hearths and yield our lives to Him in full obedience, we receive in Him the life of God Himself. This life is not something reserved for us in heaven. It is something that we can experience here and now and into eternity. Eternal life is ours to enjoy from the very moment that we truly put our faith in Jesus Christ.
Commonplace activities included in "living"
Let us focus on the word "live" in the phrase, "The righteous shall live by faith". From practical viewpoint, the verb "to live" is one of the most all-inclusive words we can use. Everything we do at any time is included in "living" - eating, drinking, sleeping, working and innumerable other activities necessary to life. Through faith, every one of these commonplace activities can become a way to express the life of God that we have received within us.
Let us examine how we can work out our faith in daily living in two of the most down-to-earth areas - food and finance:
Eating from faith
Paul said, "But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin" (Romans 14:23, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. Eating from faith means that we acknowledge our dependence upon God for our food. We receive it as a gift from Him, and if He did not supply it, we would go hungry. As a logical consequence we thank God for our food.
2. Whatever is not from faith, including eating, is sin.
The benefit of thanking God for our food
Paul said, "For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer" (1 Tim. 4:4, 5).
As we receive our food from God with a prayer of thanksgiving, it is "sanctified"; it actually becomes something holy, designed by God to do us good. Even if there were originally impure or harmful ingredients in our food, their effect is nullified by our faith, expressed in our prayer of thanksgiving.
Our daily meals have the nature of a sacrament
"Eating from faith" has implications that go beyond the meal table. Our food is the source of our natural strength, and God is the source of our food. Therefore our strength is itself a gift from God. We are not free to use it in selfish or sinful ways, but we are under an obligation to devote it to God's service and God's glory.
Paul said, "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31).
Through faith, even our daily meals take on the nature of a sacrament, of which we partake of God's glory. After the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, the meals of the early Christians became spiritual feasts of worship and praise to God:
"So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved" (Acts 2:46, 47).
By the way they ate their meals these early Christians won many of their unconverted neighbors to the Lord.
The consequences of failing to eat from faith
If the consequences of "eating from faith" are so far-reaching, what about the consequences of failing to eat in this way?
Solomon gives a vivid picture of a man who, through unbelief, lives his life without the grace and the knowledge of God. In Ecclesiastes he pictures such a man at his meal table:
"All his days he also eats in darkness, and he has much sorrow and sickness and anger" (Eccl. 5:17).
The Amplified Bible puts it more vividly: "All his days also he eats in darkness (cheerlessly, with no sweetness and light in them), and much sorrow and sickness and wrath are his" (Eccl. 5:17).
Anyone who is in the habit of not eating from faith is eating in darkness. His life will be full of strife, anger, wrath and sorrow. He lives with bad health and much sickness and infirmities.
Faith for financial and material provision
The entire Bible abounds with both assurance and examples of God's ability to provide for His people's needs - even in situations where there is no human or natural source of supply.
Paul said, "And God is able to make all grace (every favor and earthly blessing) come to you in abundance, so that you may always and under all circumstances and whatever the need, be self-sufficient - possessing enough to require no aid or support and furnished in abundance for every good work and charitable donation" ( 2 Cor. 9:8, The Amplified Bible, emphasis added).
Notice that the level of God's provision for His people not merely sufficiency; it is abundance.
There are three levels of provision on which people may live - insufficiency; sufficiency; and abundance. When you do not have enough money to spend in everyday living, then you are living in insufficiency. If you have just enough money for your everyday needs, then you are living in sufficiency. If you have more than enough money to meet all your needs then you are living in abundance.
But the word "abundance" used by Paul does not necessarily depend on money or material possessions. Abundance means simply that God supplies all that we need - with something to spare for others. The perfect example of abundance is provided by Jesus Himself. He had no fixed dwelling, no material possession and no large sum of money. Yet Jesus never lacked for Himself or for those who were with Him.
The feeding of 5000 men (excluding women and children) with 5 loaves and 2 fishes from a boy after giving thanks to His Father, is a good example of abundance (John 6:5 - 13). It is also a startling demonstration of the supernatural effects of thanking God in faith for our food!
When Jesus sent His 12 disciples out to begin preaching the Kingdom of God, He forbid them to take any extra supplies with them (Luke 9:1 - 3). He did the same thing when He sent out 70 others also (Luke 10:1 - 4). At the end of His ministry, He reminded them of this and asked them whether they had lacked anything. They said, "Nothing" (Luke 22:35). That is abundance! The key to abundance is not money or material possessions. It is faith!
Some believers might be tempted to say that none of us could be given the same measure of faith as Jesus. But Jesus said: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also" (John 14:12).
Likewise the apostle John, who was an eyewitness of all that Jesus did, tells us: "He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked" (1 John 2:6).
Therefore, Jesus set the pattern for the walk of faith and we are invited to follow.
Principles that govern the operation of grace
The basis of our provision is not our own wisdom or ability, but God's grace. Therefore, in order to avail ourselves of it, we need to understand the two key principles that govern the operation of grace:
1. The channel of grace
Grace has only one channel - Jesus Christ. It is not received through observance of any legal or religious system, but solely and invariably through Christ.
"For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ" (John 1:17).
2. Grace cannot be achieved or earned by our own ability
Paul said: "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, less anyone should boast" (Eph. 2:8, 9).
The only means by which we can appropriate grace is faith. As long as we limit ourselves merely to what we deserve or what we can earn, we are failing to exercis faith and therefore we do not enjoy God's grace to the full.
Financial irresponsibility
Solomon said: "He who has a slack hand becomes poor, but the hand of the diligent makes rich" (Proverbs 10:4).
Paul said: "Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need" (Eph. 4:28).
Paul said more emphatically: "For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat" (2 Thess. 3:10).
God never blesses dishonesty, laziness, or financial irresponsibility. God expects us, according to our ability, to engage in honest work, not merely to earn enough for ourselves, but also to have something to share with him who has need.
Habakkuk - the Lord said to Habakkuk, the prophet: "Behold the proud, his soul is not upright in him; but the just shall live by his faith" (Hab. 2:4, NKJV, emphasis added).
Habakkuk was confused and frustrated by the continuance of evil and injustice within Judah or the evil nations around him. He was frustrated by God's apparent slowness in dealing with this issue. But later on, after questioning the Lord twice, he decided to give up questioning Him and let Him has His way. The Lord's answer to Habakkuk's complaint is in Habakkuk 2:4, admonishing him "to live by his faith".
Romans - Paul said: "For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, 'The just shall live by faith'" (Romans 1:17, emphasis added).
In his epistle to the Romans, Paul deals with the great truths of salvation, showing how God has accomplished the task of justifying sinners and making them appear as if they had never sinned. The emphasis in Romans is therefore on the word "just" - "The just shall live by faith".
Galatians - Paul said: "But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for 'the just shall live by faith'" (Gal. 3:11, emphasis added).
Galations is the epistle of freedom. Here Paul proclaims the truth that in Christ, the Christian is set free from every yoke of bondage which can be placed upon the human soul. There were those in the Galatians Church who felt that Christ alone is not enough. They wanted "Christ plus something" because to them without Christ and something (for example, circumcision) their salvation was not complete.
Hebrews - The writer of Hebrews said: "Now the just shall live by faith, but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him" (Hebrews 10:38, emphasis added).
Hebrews is eminently an epistle of faith, and it reveals how, living by this principle, enable us to triumph over all kinds of difficulties and problems. Unquestionably the purpose of the writer was to establish and strengthen the early Hebrew Christians who felt that they had lost so much, having turned from the grand ritual ceremony of the Hebrew religion to the simpler but more effective things of Christ.
The life that a just or righteous person shall live is a life of faith. Every Christian is made righteous by the blood of Jesus (Romans 5:19) and therefore every Christian is to live by faith. Notice that in the context on Romans 1:17 - "the righteous shall live by faith", the word 'live' means more than to have a normal, physical life. We know that even the wicked and the ungodly have that kind of life. But Scripture reveals that there is another kind of life - a life of righteousness - that has its source in God alone. The only way that anyone can receive this kind of life is by faith in Jesus Christ. Someone had said, "We live by faith or we do not live at all"!
Living by faith in Jesus Christ
The apostle John said, "He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but he wrath of God abides on him" (John 3:36, NKJV).
John also said: "And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God" (1 John 5:11 - 13, NKJV).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. John uses the present tense throughout.
2. The essence of the gospel message is - There is a divine, eternal life which has its source in God alone. God has made this life available to us in Jesus Christ. As we receive Jesus by faith in our hearths and yield our lives to Him in full obedience, we receive in Him the life of God Himself. This life is not something reserved for us in heaven. It is something that we can experience here and now and into eternity. Eternal life is ours to enjoy from the very moment that we truly put our faith in Jesus Christ.
Commonplace activities included in "living"
Let us focus on the word "live" in the phrase, "The righteous shall live by faith". From practical viewpoint, the verb "to live" is one of the most all-inclusive words we can use. Everything we do at any time is included in "living" - eating, drinking, sleeping, working and innumerable other activities necessary to life. Through faith, every one of these commonplace activities can become a way to express the life of God that we have received within us.
Let us examine how we can work out our faith in daily living in two of the most down-to-earth areas - food and finance:
Eating from faith
Paul said, "But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin" (Romans 14:23, emphasis added).
Here are some statements of truth:
1. Eating from faith means that we acknowledge our dependence upon God for our food. We receive it as a gift from Him, and if He did not supply it, we would go hungry. As a logical consequence we thank God for our food.
2. Whatever is not from faith, including eating, is sin.
The benefit of thanking God for our food
Paul said, "For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer" (1 Tim. 4:4, 5).
As we receive our food from God with a prayer of thanksgiving, it is "sanctified"; it actually becomes something holy, designed by God to do us good. Even if there were originally impure or harmful ingredients in our food, their effect is nullified by our faith, expressed in our prayer of thanksgiving.
Our daily meals have the nature of a sacrament
"Eating from faith" has implications that go beyond the meal table. Our food is the source of our natural strength, and God is the source of our food. Therefore our strength is itself a gift from God. We are not free to use it in selfish or sinful ways, but we are under an obligation to devote it to God's service and God's glory.
Paul said, "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31).
Through faith, even our daily meals take on the nature of a sacrament, of which we partake of God's glory. After the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, the meals of the early Christians became spiritual feasts of worship and praise to God:
"So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved" (Acts 2:46, 47).
By the way they ate their meals these early Christians won many of their unconverted neighbors to the Lord.
The consequences of failing to eat from faith
If the consequences of "eating from faith" are so far-reaching, what about the consequences of failing to eat in this way?
Solomon gives a vivid picture of a man who, through unbelief, lives his life without the grace and the knowledge of God. In Ecclesiastes he pictures such a man at his meal table:
"All his days he also eats in darkness, and he has much sorrow and sickness and anger" (Eccl. 5:17).
The Amplified Bible puts it more vividly: "All his days also he eats in darkness (cheerlessly, with no sweetness and light in them), and much sorrow and sickness and wrath are his" (Eccl. 5:17).
Anyone who is in the habit of not eating from faith is eating in darkness. His life will be full of strife, anger, wrath and sorrow. He lives with bad health and much sickness and infirmities.
Faith for financial and material provision
The entire Bible abounds with both assurance and examples of God's ability to provide for His people's needs - even in situations where there is no human or natural source of supply.
Paul said, "And God is able to make all grace (every favor and earthly blessing) come to you in abundance, so that you may always and under all circumstances and whatever the need, be self-sufficient - possessing enough to require no aid or support and furnished in abundance for every good work and charitable donation" ( 2 Cor. 9:8, The Amplified Bible, emphasis added).
Notice that the level of God's provision for His people not merely sufficiency; it is abundance.
There are three levels of provision on which people may live - insufficiency; sufficiency; and abundance. When you do not have enough money to spend in everyday living, then you are living in insufficiency. If you have just enough money for your everyday needs, then you are living in sufficiency. If you have more than enough money to meet all your needs then you are living in abundance.
But the word "abundance" used by Paul does not necessarily depend on money or material possessions. Abundance means simply that God supplies all that we need - with something to spare for others. The perfect example of abundance is provided by Jesus Himself. He had no fixed dwelling, no material possession and no large sum of money. Yet Jesus never lacked for Himself or for those who were with Him.
The feeding of 5000 men (excluding women and children) with 5 loaves and 2 fishes from a boy after giving thanks to His Father, is a good example of abundance (John 6:5 - 13). It is also a startling demonstration of the supernatural effects of thanking God in faith for our food!
When Jesus sent His 12 disciples out to begin preaching the Kingdom of God, He forbid them to take any extra supplies with them (Luke 9:1 - 3). He did the same thing when He sent out 70 others also (Luke 10:1 - 4). At the end of His ministry, He reminded them of this and asked them whether they had lacked anything. They said, "Nothing" (Luke 22:35). That is abundance! The key to abundance is not money or material possessions. It is faith!
Some believers might be tempted to say that none of us could be given the same measure of faith as Jesus. But Jesus said: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also" (John 14:12).
Likewise the apostle John, who was an eyewitness of all that Jesus did, tells us: "He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked" (1 John 2:6).
Therefore, Jesus set the pattern for the walk of faith and we are invited to follow.
Principles that govern the operation of grace
The basis of our provision is not our own wisdom or ability, but God's grace. Therefore, in order to avail ourselves of it, we need to understand the two key principles that govern the operation of grace:
1. The channel of grace
Grace has only one channel - Jesus Christ. It is not received through observance of any legal or religious system, but solely and invariably through Christ.
"For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ" (John 1:17).
2. Grace cannot be achieved or earned by our own ability
Paul said: "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, less anyone should boast" (Eph. 2:8, 9).
The only means by which we can appropriate grace is faith. As long as we limit ourselves merely to what we deserve or what we can earn, we are failing to exercis faith and therefore we do not enjoy God's grace to the full.
Financial irresponsibility
Solomon said: "He who has a slack hand becomes poor, but the hand of the diligent makes rich" (Proverbs 10:4).
Paul said: "Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need" (Eph. 4:28).
Paul said more emphatically: "For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat" (2 Thess. 3:10).
God never blesses dishonesty, laziness, or financial irresponsibility. God expects us, according to our ability, to engage in honest work, not merely to earn enough for ourselves, but also to have something to share with him who has need.
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