god – Everything is About God

On the Way to Bethlehem – Part Two

The elderly priest Zacharias, chosen from a large group of priests for this privilege, entered the Temple to burn incense at the hour of prayer. A multitude of worshipers gathered outside, praying, as he entered the Holy Place and began the ritual of burning incense, symbolic of the prayers rising upward to God.

Suddenly, “… an angel of the Lord appeared … standing to the right of the altar of incense.” Zacharias was gripped by fear! But the angel said, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John …” (Luke 1:5-15)

The voice of the angel Gabriel broke 400 years of spiritual silence! God’s messengers, the prophets, had long been silent; there is no record of God sending a message since the time of Malachi, the last of the Old Testament prophets.

Timewise, the Christmas story begins with Gabriel’s visit to Zacharias. Thus began a very specific part of God’s plan to bring eternal salvation to the world!

The last words of the last book of the OT, Malachi, are echoed in the first words of Gabriel. Gabriel said of the soon coming baby John, “It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” (Luke 1:16-17)

Notice the similarity of Malachi’s words, “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. He will restore (or turn) the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse.” (Malachi 4:5-6)

God spoke another prophecy through Malachi in the previous chapter, another reference about John the Baptist as well as about Jesus! “Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me, and the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple …” (Malachi 3:1)

Here’s the point: God’s plan of salvation was not a spur of the moment thing! He had been planning these very events for the hundreds of years between the Old and New Testaments! In fact, God’s plan had been in the works for thousands of years!

And, by the way, He’s still not through! The last two verses of the Bible, the very end of the Book, remind us of His return! “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming quickly.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you all. Amen.” (Revelation 22:20-21)

God’s plans, promises, and prophecies are absolutely trustworthy! I hope we’re ready!

Along the Way to Bethlehem

Part One

As the new year begins, and thinking back on the Christmas season, I noticed a couple of things. One, the New Testament began with a connection to the Old, a continuation of God’s story. Secondly, I noticed that the very first chapter of the New Testament revealed the greatest reason of all for the Christmas season, the primary reason why Jesus came!

First, the continuation from Old to New. Notice the very first verse of the New Testament, “The record of the genealogy of Jesus, the Messiah (Christ), the Son of David, the son of Abraham.” Abraham shows up the first time in Genesis 11:26, “Terah lived seventy years, and became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.” A few verses later, in Genesis 12:1-3, God speaks to him. “Now the LORD said to Abram, ‘Go forth … To the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you … And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”

The rest of the Old Testament, in one way or another, tells the story of God’s interaction with Abraham (his name was changed from Abram to Abraham) and his descendants. David was a distant descendant of Abraham, and Jesus was an even further descendant. In fact, it was well over 2000 years from Abraham to Jesus. God is apparently in charge of history on a long-term scale, Old Testament, New Testament, and continuing!

Now, the second thing I noticed was in the dream of Joseph, a small-town carpenter whose fiancé was pregnant, and not by him! He was most certainly in emotional turmoil, yet we are told that, “… Joseph … being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly.” But God interrupted his plans; “… behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:18-21)

Wait! Don’t miss the reason here stated, “He will save His people from their sins.” That’s it! The point of it all, the reason for the season! From Genesis 3 onward, it’s been obvious that the problem above all problems is sin! Everything God has done since that point (and even before then) has been to save us from the sins that cause all our problems! In fact, the New Testament tells us how Jesus accomplished this goal; in the gospels, and then throughout the entire New Testament, to the very end of the last book, Revelation!

No room here to tell the “how” this was accomplished, but I have to ask myself how well this goal is being accomplished in my life, daily? And in your life? Have you been saved “from” sin? Are you being daily saved “from” sin? Or, do you just go along sinning daily and expecting that the Scripture meant only to save us from the ultimate, final, eternal, result of our sins? If you’ve been saved from slavery, you are not still a slave. If you’ve been saved from drowning, you are not still in the water! If you’ve been saved from sin, you are not continuing to live a life dominated by sin!

Listen, Jesus came to save us FROM our sins!

A Friend of Sinners

John the Baptist, in prison, sent some of his followers to ask Jesus an important question (Mt 11:3), “Are You the Expected One, or shall we look for someone else?” Jesus answered them and they departed. Then Jesus spoke to the crowds about John and ended with these words: “For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon!’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds” (Mt 11:18-19 NASB). Jesus was quoting His critics; they were the ones who accused Him of being a friend of sinners. From them, it was not a compliment.

Accusations were being made of Jesus and John the Baptist. John was separate and strict in his behavior and diet while Jesus mingled with the people and ate at their feasts. Not long before this, Jesus had called Matthew, a tax collector, to follow Him and Matthew gave a big reception for Jesus at his house (Lk 5:29). A crowd of tax collectors and others whom the Pharisees referred to as “sinners” were also there, dining with Jesus and Matthew (Mt 9:10). The Pharisees questioned His actions and we see the motives of Jesus in His reply. “It is not those who are well who need a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance” (Lk 5:31-32).

Consider another incident involving this same criticism. In Luke 15:1-2, we are told that “… all the tax collectors and the sinners were coming near Him to listen to Him.” Again, the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” Jesus never avoided people who needed to hear His message; He always accepted those who came to Him. In the course of His travels and during the times of His teaching and preaching about the Kingdom of God, Jesus often encountered people who were considered as the untouchables of society or the outcasts, the sinners, the unrighteous. He always was kind and good in His reception of them, so He was accurately considered as a friend to them. However, Jesus always was in the process of trying to save them from their sins, to be their spiritual “physician”.

The rest of Luke 15 is devoted to three stories Jesus told in response to the accusation that He, “… receives sinners and eats with them.” The first parable was of a shepherd who left ninety-nine sheep to search for and find the one sheep which had gotten lost. After finding the sheep the man calls together his friends and neighbors to rejoice with him. Jesus then declared (v 7), “I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”

The second parable was the story of a woman who had lost one coin, but swept her house and used a lamp to search for the lost coin. When she finds the coin, she called her friends and neighbors to rejoice with her. Jesus again declares, “In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

The third parable is perhaps more well known; it is the story of a lost son. We call it the parable of the “Prodigal Son.” This parable is a little different than the first two. In those parables, we see a picture of God searching for those who are lost. That is a picture of why Jesus came to earth and explains the actions of Jesus as He went about preaching the kingdom, healing the sick, bringing the “Good News” of salvation! But in this parable of the lost son, we see the father allowing the son to go his own way and try to live his own life, but eventually finding himself in terrible circumstances and finally seeing himself as lost. He came to his senses and returned to his father with true repentance. And as a beautiful picture of God, our heavenly Father, this earthly father joyfully receives his son back home, declaring (Lk 15:23-24), “… let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.”

In all this we find that Jesus was truly a “friend of sinners” but not simply for the enjoyment of their company or “hanging out” as people today seem to think. Let’s go back to Matthew 11:19 where Jesus listed the criticisms against Himself. He obviously was not a “gluttonous man” nor was He a “drunkard” and neither was He in the way the critics intended a “friend of tax collectors and sinners.” His final words there are, “Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.” Watching all that Jesus did, wisdom will reveal His intentions as well as His actions; Jesus was the Savior searching for those who were lost!

The question for us today, then, concerns our own intentions as we live in a world filled with sin. Are we simply enjoying friendships with sinners or are we praying constantly for the Lord to give us opportunities to share His truth, His good news, with those with whom we are friends, those who need to be saved?

What He Said to John the Baptist

Mt 3:15 “Permit it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” What did Jesus mean about fulfilling “all righteousness”? Is there a message here for you and me?

In the days before Jesus came to John, God had sent John the Baptist to preach a strong message! It was bold, strong, and simple, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” John’s message was intended to bring about a spiritual awakening in order to prepare the nation for the coming of Jesus!

Large crowds of people gathered and listened to his message! Those who responded by repenting of their sins, “… were being baptized by him … as they confessed their sins” (Mt 3:6). John further demanded of those who came that their lives would show proof of their change of heart and mind by a change of life, “Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance …” Every one who repents will change! Without change there is no repentance.

So, when Jesus came to John to be baptized by him, John resisted because he recognized Jesus as the Messiah and knew that He certainly had no need to repent! John said, “I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?” (Mt 3:14)

This was only the second time in His earthly life when the words that Jesus spoke were recorded. (The first time was when He was twelve years old.) Let’s not miss what Jesus said here!

John was correct in knowing that Jesus did not have sins to confess, did not need to repent, did not need to be baptized to show His reception of the message! Why then did Jesus want to be baptized by John? “Permit it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Righteousness includes the sum total of all that God required of Jesus then, and of us now! It just the right thing to do!

Jesus willingly did all that God required of Him, and this baptism in water was His way of demonstrating His submission to God’s plan, God’s way! This was Jesus identifying with the people who were coming to God and devoting themselves to Him, to His way and His will for us all!

Notice again the words, “all righteousness”! Those who confess their sins, receive forgiveness, who repent and turn away from their sins, are also submitting to God’s plans for them, plans that are always right! God is the only One who determines what is “right” and what is not! It is His “righteousness” that we must pursue.

On that day, maybe the first day of His public ministry, Jesus set the example by doing what God had determined was “fitting” as He sought to “fulfill all righteousness.” Let us pray that God will fulfill all righteousness in our lives, too!

Cultural Chaos

Oct 08, 2024
How did our society get to this place? “Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.” (Romans 1:29-32 NLT)

These qualities are filling our society, our politics, our entertainment, our news programs, and our conversations. Why is that? Perhaps you could say that all these things are simply the “wrath of God” that has been allowed. You would be right. There have been times when God’s sorrow over the evil in a society has so touched His heart that He simply lifts away His hand of protection and allows people to have what they want. That is where we are today.

This is a downward process that begins when “… that which is known about God …” is pushed aside and ignored. Those who turn away, perhaps even without realizing the consequences, will “… become futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart [will be] darkened. Professing to be wise, they become fools …” (Romans 1:21-22) Again, we might ask, “Why?” They replace God with other ideas or things, giving honor to the creation rather than the Creator!

Three times God’s actions are described. First, “… God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity …” Second, “… God gave them over to degrading passions …” And third, “… God gave them over to a depraved mind …” (Romans 1:24-28). Because they refused Him, He allowed them to pursue what they wanted. And because God’s ways are always for our good and will protect us from evil, when ways other than God’s are employed, the result will be an overwhelming darkness of sin and the deterioration of a society, cultural chaos.

The solution to gun violence and school shootings will not be found in laws or political action. The physical and mental health of children and adults alike will not be found in education or in the medical or psychological professions. The overwhelming lack of trust in anyone, the fear of others, and the skepticism that fills our minds – none of that will be made right by any human agencies.

The answer to evil is exactly where it has always been. God’s intentions are that such evil will drive us back to Him! Quoting from an earlier part of the same chapter I’ve been referring to, “… I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes …” (Romans 1:16). The solution, of course, is for people to turn their hearts, minds, motives, and lives back to God. His ways are always right and always good! In the words of Jesus, “… repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15).

Christian, pray!

A Few Notes on Genesis One and Two

Have you ever noticed God’s first recorded words to Adam and Eve, the newly created man and woman? There is, I think, a very important message here! These are not His first spoken words to them but the ones we first encounter as we read through the first two chapters of the Bible. Let’s read them in context.

First of all, “God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them” (Genesis 1:27). This is, of course, a summary statement; Genesis chapter two gives more details about their creation as we will see in a moment.

In the very next verse (Genesis 1:28) God speaks directly to them His first recorded words spoken to this man and woman. “God blessed them; and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’”

Don’t miss those first words that God spoke to them! “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth …”! God declared in these words His intention for this man and woman, this first husband and wife, to have a family! They were to “multiply” – to have children who would also develop into families and have children, who would then marry and have children as they became families, and so on – until they filled the earth!

Thus, from God’s very first words to Adam and Eve, He spoke of family; He revealed His perfect plan for humanity to enjoy the blessings of marriage and families!

Then, in the second chapter, beginning in Genesis 2:7, we begin to get more details of God’s creation of this first man, Adam, and then later in the chapter, of His creation of Eve, the first woman! Notice that God did not simply speak Adam into existence; He took more time, being careful in this creation. “Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being (a living soul).”

There appear in this context words that God spoke to Adam before the creation of Eve (which is why I said earlier that the words in Genesis 1:28 were the first “recorded” words that God spoke to humans). Of course, nearly all of us remember this command, given after God placed him in the Garden of Eden and gave him his job description. Notice Genesis 2:15, “Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.” Then, the famous command of Genesis 2:16-17, “The LORD God commanded the man, saying, ‘From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.’” It seems that it would be Adam’s responsibility to pass that command on to Eve after God brought her to him.

However, before He created Eve, God made a profound statement (although it is common sense to most of us now); “It is not good for the man to be alone” (Gen 2:18)! God then stated His intention to “make him a helper suitable for him.” God helps Adam to also recognize his need for a helper by presenting all the animals to Adam (probably in pairs, male and female; I’m just guessing). God allows Adam to give names to the animals, but the conclusion is clear, “… but for Adam there was not found a helper suitable for him” (Gen 2:20). Ah, now Adam sees the need as well!

“So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place. The LORD God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man and brought her to the man” (Gen 2:21-22). The man then makes a poetic declaration,

“This is now bone of my bones,

And flesh of my flesh;

She shall be called Woman,

Because she was taken out of Man.” (Gen. 2:23)

(Adam may have won her heart right there; women love poetry! Just saying.)

Bringing this section of Scripture to a close, the concluding statement of the Scripture writer was certainly inspired by God (as was all other Scripture, of course). “For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed” (Genesis 2:24-25).

I find it interesting (and important!) that Jesus quoted these verses when asked about divorce in Matthew 19. He responded with a question, “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning MADE THEM MALE AND FEMALE, and said ‘FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate” (Matthew 19:4-6).

(Note: The reason for the capital letters in that quote are because the NASB writes Old Testament quotations in the New Testament with capital letters.)

According to the Scripture itself from Genesis and from the words of Jesus, we find that marriage consists of one man and one woman and that when God joins them together in holy matrimony, the two become one flesh! Thus began God’s plan for marriage and family! And I say, “Hooray!”

(I have more to say about that “oneness” but will save it for another blog.)

Genesis One

In the Beginning July 9, 2024

The place to begin is usually “In the beginning.” It’s there that the Bible begins. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). So, there you have it – everything begins with God! The remainder of chapter one relates the process and order of creation.

The entire natural realm came into existence from the decision of God; He simply “created” everything! Well, not “simply” by our idea of simplicity; the created world, in fact the entire universe, is far more complex than scientists, philosophers, and theologians have as yet discovered! But let’s back up and see clearly this one fact, that everything begins with “God”!

Considering everything that the designer and creator has placed within this natural realm, as far as we know only humans have the ability to know, to realize, that there is a Creator who exists in a realm beyond the natural realm. All the rest of the creation simply exists without any thought or knowledge of the creator – this One to whom we owe our very existence! Since we have the capacity to recognize this truth, how are we to respond? That is perhaps the most important question we should attempt to answer today.

The first chapter of the first book of the Bible begins here with this first truth – that God exists and He is the Creator! God creates and His own character is reflected in the creation; we see order and beauty, simplicity and complexity. Also built into the creation is the ability to continue; all that is living, both plant and animal life, has the ability to sustain itself and to reproduce, to continue! Plants have seeds that reproduce “after their kind.” All the various sorts of animal life reproduce and multiply “after their kind” (Genesis 1:11, 21).

Then, standing back and considering the wonder of this natural realm, from the largest and the most distant of the stars, to the smallest of the plants, even to the tiniest of atoms, God evaluates it all as “very good” (Genesis 1:31).

We only learn in the New Testament that Jesus Himself was fully involved in the process of creation. One example of this truth is stated in Hebrews 1:1-3, “God … in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power.” So, we see clearly that the natural realm was originally created by God with the participation of Jesus Christ, and is still being upheld and sustained by His protective power and care!

It ought to be encouraging to think that of all that the Lord created, only one of His creations is said to have been made “in the image of God” (Genesis 1:26-27). Us! Humanity! Mankind! Only one creature was appointed to bear the “image” of God and to apparently be His representative in the natural realm. We have been delegated a limited authority to “rule over” the rest of creation. “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them!”

As the narrative continues, these humans are frequently in conversation with God, being spoken to and speaking back to Him! Don’t miss that point! He speaks to us, and we are to hear Him; we speak to Him and He hears us! [Later, we’ll discuss just how it is that He is speaking to us today.]

Just these few simple thoughts should convince us that we have a responsibility to God for how we respond to Him and to His plans for us. As the One who has the ability to simply speak the worlds into existence, the fact that He is concerned about us at all is amazing and intimidating. Think of it this way, “I owe Him my very existence; I am therefore accountable to Him!” What an amazing, wonderful, creative, and joyful God He is! I am newly motivated to learn more of Him and more of His plans for me.

work out your own salvation

The words were right there; I stared at them and read them again. Seemed like they were in bold print, “… work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” I felt like God was talking to me!

I was young, maybe ten or eleven years old, when that phrase from the Bible grabbed my attention. I didn’t get the real meaning for a while; I didn’t even see the rest of Philippians chapter two, just that part of verse twelve. I read the words “work out” as a challenge, like a math problem, and thought I needed to figure it out, to work out the real meaning of salvation, to understand it! So, not even realizing the importance of that decision, I started on my own personal life-time journey to figure it out! At that young age, I know now that my attempt was shallow, and my understanding was immature, and I know that I’ve stumbled many times along the way, but that really was the first “big” decision of my spiritual journey. No matter how young you are or how old you are, God will come to you and speak to you on your own level; He will meet you right where you are!

That verse became a rule to guide me as I tried to learn and understand everything I could about God and what it means to be a Christian. Instead of just doing what I was told or believing what someone else told me to believe, I decided that God wanted me to figure things out for myself. I wanted to know for myself what I believed and why I believed it! I wanted to learn for myself what the Bible said and what it really means. I wanted God’s Word to work its way into every part of my life so that I could actually live as a Christian in every part of my life to the very best of my ability. I was very serious when I asked God to help me “work out my own salvation”! And nearly sixty years later, I am still trying, still learning, still attempting to actually work out in real life the things I learn!