Chapter 1 - Be Holy As I Am Holy (Part 2 of 4)

Discussions about “holiness” today, and what that is supposed to look like, raise a great many eyebrows amongst those within the church.         

And those outside the church as well.

The answer seems to be harder and harder to find because of all the differing views on the subject.

Whether it be Calvinism, Catholicism, Episcopalianism, Lutheranism, Pentecostalism, Charismatic teachings, Presbyterianism, Wesleyan/Methodist teachings, non-denominational teachings, et cetera, et cetera, it seems each group has its own “flavor” of holiness to espouse. Each group embraces its own point of emphasis on holiness, which often downplays (or even berates) the other group’s tenet, while at the same time, propping up a different attribute of God they’d rather emphasis.

Then, when you add political layers, social layers, cultural layers, psychological layers, historical layers, and economic layers to the discussion—even erroneous biblical teachings—you have a Christian version of WWE Raw on your hands!

Not a pretty sight, to say the least. It is so contradictory to the teachings of scripture, as God truly meant them.  

Holiness, From God’s Point of View

In Leviticus 11:44-45, God says, “For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. And you shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm on the earth. For I am the LORD who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God; thus you shall be holy, for I am holy” (NASB, 1995, emphasis added).

When you look at the meaning of God’s own words within this context of Leviticus 11, the message is profoundly clear and simple. The Israelites were to consecrate themselves. This was the step that led to “being holy as God is holy.” There is something the human and his or her heart has to do before being holy as God is holy can even become a possibility.

In addition, this “consecration” and subsequent status of being holy was because He is the LORD your God, and because He was the one who brought them up from the land of Egypt to be their God. The Israelites were a people destined for the abyss because of their wickedness. They were a people who had abandoned God and His ways time and time again, living their lives in sin. It started in the book of Genesis, which is filled with story after story of Jacob’s (Israel’s) children living lives that looked more like the people around them rather than the God they worshipped (See Genesis 37-38; 42:11, 22, 29-38; 44; 50:15-18).

Yet, despite their short-sightedness, God saved them from the famine in the last chapters of Genesis. As Joseph put it, they intended wickedness, but God used it to save them by raising Joseph to prominence with the Egyptian court (Genesis 50:20).

Then, God saved them again when they cried out to Him because of their suffering, and He granted it by saving them from the clutches of Pharaoh and his armies (Exodus 12, although the “salvation plan” began with the saving of Moses as an infant in the Nile and raising him up to a position of power just like He did with Joseph).

However, it wasn’t long before the Israelites bellyached about “how God saved them,” showing that their “consecration” was external, not internal. Thus, God explained to them what true consecration looks like. True consecration comes because of who God is and because of what God has done, not who we are or what we have done. True consecration flows from a human heart and soul that understands these two realities (Matthew 13:24-30; 7:21-23). Any other means of consecration falls short and is thrown into the fire.   

The same is true of Leviticus 19:2, where God told Moses, “Say to all the congregation of the people of Israel, ‘You shall be holy; for I the LORD your God am holy.’ (RSV)” This particular message was for the “the congregation of the people of Israel,” which means “all the people,” not just a select few.

This command also came on the heels of an entire chapter of immoral behaviors in Leviticus 18, all of which were to be avoided because they were pagan practices performed in relationship to the worship of other gods.

Therefore, we start to see a distinction between how God’s chosen people are to live and how the rest of humanity lives. That distinction is based on their relationship to God (i.e., either we are consecrating ourselves to Him or not).  

Then, as we continue to move through the book of Leviticus, we start to get a clearer picture of what “being holy as God is holy” looks like. God finally spells it out for us in Leviticus 20:26, in case we are slow to understand 

“Thus you are to be holy to Me, for I the LORD am holy; and I have set you apart from the peoples to be Mine (NASB 1995, emphasis added).”

The message is there, in black and white, if we choose to see it. If we follow God, and if we wish to be holy as He is holy, then we first must consecrate ourselves, and when we do, then we will live a life that is markedly different from those around us who do not follow His ways. Therefore, we will be “set apart” by God to be His holy people, and thus, “be holy as He is holy.”

The word “holy” in the Hebrew is the word qadosh (שוֹדקָ – pronounced “ka-DOSH”). It means “to be set apart for a special purpose.”¹ Interestingly, “consecrated” is another word to help describe its meaning.

When something is “consecrated,” it is “set apart.” Its meaning and purpose are different from other, similar things around it. Physically speaking, the consecrated object may be amongst other objects just like it that are not consecrated. However, it is still consecrated, nevertheless.

The offerings brought to the Temple by worshipers (the bulls, the lambs, the doves, etc.) are an example of this concept. A consecrated object, like an unblemished lamb, for example, can live and move

amongst non-consecrated objects and still be “set apart” with a specific meaning and purpose, destined to be a sacrifice for God (cf. Romans 12:1-2). In other words, the consecrated object (in this case, the unblemished lamb) does not always have to be isolated and set apart physically from the objects (all the 

 other lambs in the flock) not designated as such. It can still walk and feed in a field filled with lambs that do have blemishes of various kinds and yet remain set apart. This is because of its unblemished character and its relationship to God in the act of worship.

We as humans can understand this concept to some degree. Every one of us has had a special something or someone in our lives. It could have been a vehicle, an animal, or a friend. We’ve owned other vehicles, but there was something special about “that” car or truck. There was something that set it apart from all the others in our mind and heart, and this special status was bestowed upon it by us. Or we had a family pet that was special to us. When “Rover” died, we tried to find a replacement, but no other dog will ever measure up to “Rover,” which is no fault of the subsequent pet, mind you. There was just something special that set Rover apart from the others because we had designated Rover as such. The same can be said of a friend. Anne of Green Gables called them, “bosom friends” and “kindred spirits.” They don’t come along every day, but when they do, you know it. There’s something about that individual that set them apart from all your other friends. As a result, these special things or people have had ascribed to them a special status by us, which is the key part to understand here. We saw something in them that caused us to designate them as special, or set apart.

In addition, these special things and people keep that status as they treat us well, serve us, and give us joy. If they falter in any way, we tend to give them a “benefit of the doubt” we would not give to other, similar objects or people. We work at restoring the relationship back to its utmost status because these things or people are “set apart” by us and for us.

However, if those special things or people continue hurting us, continue letting us down, continue betraying us, even disobeying our wishes—and do so deliberately, then we may disavow the “set apart” status of the relationship. Therefore, they may lose that special standing and become just like all the other objects around it.

If you’re seeing the correlation, then you start to get a teensy glimpse, however flawed the analogy I am making is, of how God feels when His people—who have consecrated themselves to Him and have thus been set apart to be holy as He is holy—continue to hurt Him, continue to let Him down, continue to betray Him, even disobey Him, and do so deliberately, in an downward-spiral of sinful acts after they had been “set apart” by Him and for Him.

 

Thought for the Week:

To be “set apart” and “consecrated” in the Biblical sense, to God, is the key to true Godly living. It was true in the Old Testament, referring to the Israelites, and it is as true today in the New Testament, referring to the Church. To be “set apart” in the way God intends it means we are to live for Him, the King, and His Kingdom alone.

Therefore, the things of our earthly kingdoms cannot get in the way and cause us to stumble and fall. We cannot be people of two kingdoms. God doesn’t accept dual citizenship. Either you are living for His Kingdom, in the here and now, where God is the Master and you are His slave (Romans 6:16-18), or you are living for another kingdom and another master. That’s why Jesus said those who clamor after money can’t be a part of God’s Kingdom. It’s not a money issue. It’s a consecration issue of the heart and a Kingdom-serving issue of the servant (Matthew 6:24).

So, how should we live then?

We should live for God’s Kingdom, not our own kingdom. That means we have to come to Him on His terms—just like He commanded the Israelites to do in Leviticus 11:44-45, 19:2, and 20:26—if we wish to be admitted into His Kingdom. It begins with a right understanding of our relationship to God (cf. Matthew 5:3). Without this right understanding, then any other understanding of how we are to live our lives for God will be flawed and damning (Matthew 7:13, 21-23).

We should live for God’s Kingdom, not our family’s kingdom. If we put family first, before God, then Jesus has something to say to us about that dilemma as well: “For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother” (Matthew 12:50, NASB 1995). We love our families because of what God has done. We take care of them as an act of worship to God. However, our earthly family can never take the place of God, lest they become an idol.  In God's Kingdom, the family structure changes as we are all related to Christ as adopted children anyway, therefore, we need to start thinking about family like our Lord does (Romans 8:15, 23: 9:4; Ephesians 1:5). How many of us truly view our family members, if they know Jesus, as brothers and sisters in Christ? Or does the concept of son, daughter, wife, husband, still dominate your thinking? Not that referring to your wife or husband in those terms is bad, but our thinking does tend to become skewed negatively when we conform to the patterns of this world as apposed to God's (Romans 12:1-2).  This is just something to think about as we move forward in this study...

We should live for God’s Kingdom, not our company’s kingdom. Jesus said where we keep our treasure stored is where our heart resides (Matthew 6:19-21). Our work can so often become our little kingdom. We strive to help it succeed. We work feverishly to benefit from its fruit. However, has your desire to see it grow overcome your desire to see God’s Kingdom increase? Are you afraid to talk about God’s Kingdom for fear it may damage your business? Run customers off? Offend someone? Who’s your master again? God, or money? God, or power? God, or prestige? God, or fame? God, or your 401k?

We should live for God’s Kingdom, not our nation’s kingdom. We are to be in the world, but not part of it (1 John 2:15-17). I realize America is a pretty cool place to live. We often tout its freedom as the major selling point. However, is the “freedom” America sells truly freedom? From a Biblical perspective, the answer would be, “No.”

That kind of “freedom” without God’s Word as the ultimate guide is nothing more than “the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life” repackaged into a very enticing bundle. It

becomes “freedom,” for sure. Unfortunately, it is freedom from God, which the Bible teaches, is actually slavery to sin, and thus, not freedom at all.  

Therefore, which kingdom do you serve?

NEXT WEEK:

We will look at little deeper at this concept of being “set apart” and how that looks in the “real world.”

 

Endnotes

 

¹ Benner, Jeff A. “Holy.” Ancient Hebrew Research Center. No Date. Web. 20 April 2019. https://www.ancient-hebrew.org/definition/holy.htm; See also Brown, Francis, S. R. Driver, and Charles A. Briggs. “6918.” Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Hebrew and English Lexicon. (Hendrickson Publishers; Peabody, Mass., 1979), p. 872.

 

 Pictures courtesy of  Pixabay and the following photographers/artists:

"Holy Bible" by Pexels-Pixabay

"Lamb" by Elsemargriet

"Sheep" by Peter H

"Children" by Bessi

"Handcuffed" by Klaus Hausmann

 

 

Chapter 1 - Be Holy As I Am Holy (Part 1 of 4)

God is Holy.

This must be distinctly understood, or nothing wondrous can come from the reading of this blog.

However, this is not a series about the theology of Holiness.

It is so much more than that.

For having a “right theology” without a relationship with the One who set those theologies in motion—even on such topics as holiness—is rubbish (cf. Phil. 3:4-8, NASB 1995). It leads to the broad road when it convinces the sojourner he or she is on the straight and narrow when that is not the case.

But to understand what follows in the many pages to come, we first must set the stage. Like any fine piece of literature, of which the Bible reigns supreme, themes must be established. Topics will be covered. A grand dose of theology will be examined, but not through any lens but the lens of God and His Word.

We will not examine the Bible through the lens of the prominent Bible scholars and teachers, per se, using their viewpoints as launch pads from which to develop an entire, theological framework we can live with and by, for this was the ultimate sin of the Pharisees and teachers of the law (cf. Matthew 5:21; 5:27; 5:33; 5:38; 5:43; 6:1; 6:5; 6:16). We may reference some Bible teachers as they point out crucial elements or phrase things in a wonderful manner, but this blog is not an examination of one Bible teacher’s theology versus another Bible teacher’s theology. It’s not one denomination’s stance on biblical and theological issues versus another denomination’s stance, pitting them against each other to see which is more agreeable in today’s religious landscape.

Instead, we will see a beautiful tapestry unfold. A tapestry that has been woven through centuries of people groups. It has blessed various latitudes and longitudes around the globe. Through the Old Testament and New Testament authors, it has become the story to end all stories, displaying the heart and holiness of God against the backdrop of sin, rebellion, and their monstrous effects upon creation itself.

In addition, this tapestry has the power to begin many new stories too.

One at a time.

Through life-giving, soul-redeeming grace, mercy, and love for any wayward human being who wishes to acknowledge God as his or her King.

Only one person could have completed such a magnificent mission.

The God of the scriptures.

Therefore, it behooves us to see Him as He really is. To understand His Word as it really is. And to do this, we must first understand His nature.

Which is holy.

The Heart of Holiness

Holiness, in twenty-first century parlance, carries with it a vastly different connotation than what is found in the original meaning of the Hebrew words used in the Old Testament.

There are many who ascribe to holiness as a doctrine which should garner a special theological emphasis over other attributes of God. There are others who just view biblical holiness in general without giving it any particular weight over God’s other attributes. Regardless of their theological leanings, how they picture God as who He is, what He is like, how He reacts to anything and everything—in total, His attributes—help shape and define what holiness is supposed to look like in their daily lives.

These theological and philosophical vantage points then manifest themselves into what is described as a “holy person,” a “righteous person,” or a “pious person.” Even the Pharisees and Sadducees of Jesus’s day saw themselves as “holy, righteous, and pious” because of how they strived so hard to meet even the minutia of the rabbinic traditions. However, Jesus called them out publicly for missing the crucial message concerning the heart and holiness of God (see Matthew 23; specifically verse 23). They viewed themselves as “righteous” based on their human goodness. This “goodness,” in their minds, was determined by the things they did not do just as much as the things they did do.

For example, they adamantly defended their form of righteousness by stating repeatedly that they weren’t tax collectors, helping the Romans to oppress the nation Israel by extracting money from fellow, impoverished Jews. They weren’t murderers, either, like Barabbas (Mark 15:7; Matt. 27:16). They weren’t “sinners,” like those “foul people” with whom Jesus chose to eat dinner (Mark 2:16; Matt. 9:10; 11:19; Luke 5:29; 15:1; cf. Matt. 21:31; Luke 18:10).

In the minds of the Pharisees and religious leaders, they were better than that. They viewed themselves as good people, “righteous” followers of God, because of their religion. Unfortunately, they were comparing themselves to sinners instead of God. That’s the problem with human religions and self-righteousness. They always look for the lowest common denominator, religiously speaking. They set the standard low so the followers can humanly achieve it and make themselves feel satisfied in their “goodness.”

Today, when we discuss what a holy, righteous, or pious person looks like from a Christian, biblical standpoint, we may conjure up images of monks sitting at desks, transcribing the Bible into Latin, or groups of flagellants, walking single file, whipping their own backs with scourges, shouting in unison, “Woe is me, a sinner.” Some would even go so far as to say the words of the rich, young ruler would suffice in twenty-first century Christianity as a pathway to holiness: “All these (commandments) I have kept” (Matt. 19:20), thus making this young man a “good person” and worthy of acceptance through the pearly gates, based again on his adherence to religious practice and upstanding morality.

This modern understanding of biblical holiness has created some very tenuous, and often contentious, debates about how Christians should live their lives. I hope you can see how these discussions and arguments often end up following the same pattern as the religious leaders of Israel used in Jesus’s day. We argue about holiness because our emphasis is on us instead of God. And this was the issue Jesus had with the religious leaders.

Oddly, and sadly enough, debating—even arguing—about what holiness looks like and acts like, seems hypocritical and contradictory on its face, like the man wearing his “Winner!” button after being chosen as the annual recipient of his local church’s Humility Award.

Understandably, we must denounce the heretics who wish to distort biblical truth as well as witness to the deceived souls following them, praying for their redemption, if that can be accomplished at all (Matthew 7:6; cf. Luke 16:19-31). However, debates with those who want to misrepresent and pervert God’s Word into something it isn’t are not the kind of debates we are talking about here. Heretics have always lived both outside and inside the church walls, and they still do. That is what makes the theological waters so muddy, even in today’s Church. One could say Satan has done a masterful job at

infiltrating God’s people with the same half-truths and lies he has spewed since Genesis 3. Jesus confirmed such infiltration when He told the parable of the Wheat and the Tares (Matthew 13:24-30;36-43), so we know this to be true.

Thought for the Week:

Holiness often conjures up ideals of perfection, like batting 1.000, or never making a mistake, or always scoring 100s on every test we take. And when Jesus says in Matthew 5:48: “Be perfect, therefore, as your Heavenly Father is perfect,” we stand in awe of such a statement and say, “That’s not attainable. How can anyone be perfect in that sense?”

In and of ourselves, we would be right. We can’t. However, there is a wonderful, glorious happening that takes place when a believer yields his or her life to God. He works through us, in and with the power of the Holy Spirit, to make us capable of being obedient. It’s definitely not of ourselves, and we don’t always obey when the chips are down. However, when we do, we are holy. When we do, we are being perfect as He is perfect.

The Greek word in Matthew 5:48, “perfect,” means “complete in all its parts; full grown, of full age; especially of the completeness of Christian character” (Strong’s Concordance: 5046 “teleios”). When you and I obey, we are fulfilling our calling. We are emulating our Heavenly Father. People who openly defy God’s commands or pervert His truths emulate their father the devil (John 8:44). It’s really that simple to understand. It’s all about obedience. It’s all about the attitude of the believer’s heart. It’s all about the right attitude of the believer in relationship to God Almighty.

Where do you stand in relationship to God?

Do you find obedience tedious? Embarrassing? Bothersome? Downright intrusive? Even unattractive and undesired? If so, then you need to check your relationship with God.

True believers “delight in the Lord” and “in His ways” (cf. Isaiah 58:13-14; Psalm 37:1-6). They look forward to spending time with Him. They look forward to being in His presence and doing His will. They delight in His law (Psalm 2:7). He becomes their “bread of life,” (John 6:35) and their “living water” (John 7:38; cf. Zechariah 14:8). Therefore, obeying Him brings joy, not despair, because when a believer does obey, his or her will bows to God’s. When the believer delights in the Lord, God’s Word promises to give the believer the “desires of his or her heart” (Psalm 37:4). Why? Because those desires are not selfish ones, not earthly-focused ones, not fleshly. Those desires are bound by the Kingdom. The believer prays that God’s will shall be done “on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). His or her heart becomes focused on the Kingdom of Heaven, the Kingdom of God. It desires to dwell there above all other places.

Is that your desire?  

NEXT WEEK:

We will look at what makes a believer a member of  “God’s Chosen People.”

Pictures courtesy of  Pixabay  and the following photographers/artists:

"Bible in Light" by Katine Art

"Hebrew Scripture" by RobertC

"Wheat & Weeds" by Hans Braxmeier

"Woman Praying" by Barbara Jackson

"Heaven" by jplenio

Every Journey Has a Story - An Introduction (Part 5 of 5)

I have been on this most recent journey for almost two years now. I find my views and opinions of things that are not eternal changing every day. It’s not that the hot topics of the news cycles have now become completely unimportant or irrelevant to me. Quite the contrary. I simply find myself examining those topics—and my understanding about those topics—through the eyes of the Almighty more and more in order to find how He thinks on such things, and subsequently, how I am supposed to respond and live.

More importantly, in my study of the Sermon on the Mount, I find one overarching theme Jesus mentions often, but I hardly ever hear preached upon these days. That theme is the Kingdom of Heaven. More specifically, what the Kingdom of Heaven is like. What are its requirements? What will living in this Kingdom entail? How are its citizens to conduct themselves? Both now and for eternity? And how does being a part of that Kingdom relate to my relationship with God and my relationship with others?

As I read the Sermon, I’m discovering that I was utterly mistaken on many counts as to the Kingdom of Heaven’s demands. My theological biases, both book-learned and learned from experience, had shielded my eyes from the truth when I thought they had actually made me wiser. Like blinders on a horse, I was convinced they were keeping me focused on the task ahead—to win the prize, as the Apostle Paul puts it (Phil. 3:12-14). Until now, what I didn’t realize was exactly the opposite had occurred. The blinders were affecting my vision. They were impairing it, actually. All I could see was the singular track in front of me. ’Round and ’round I went. Racing past so much. Missing so much. Calling it “sacrifice” when it was truly disobedience. The finish line being somewhere in the distance; a final finish line we call “death.” I believed that the crossing of this finish line would usher the soul into heaven and into the presence of God for all eternity.

In many cases of my past, I was willing to run over anybody and anything who got between me and that prize, because the prize was the goal. The goal was achieved from right thinking and right living defined by me and my particular doctrinal beliefs. And even though I felt at times the Holy Spirit screaming at me to stop and listen, I ran headlong down the track, blinders firmly in place, never giving any true thought about the actual track or path I was using to reach the goal.

You can’t win the Kentucky Derby when you’re running on the track at Belmont. A worthy track, to be sure, but still the wrong one.

In those days, I could defend my actions. I knew the theological arguments. I understood the political landscape. I mean, that is the goal, is it not, for most American Christians? To spend their last breath, helping to defend our country and protect its freedoms, and then spend all eternity with God in heaven? It’s what we tell others when we share our faith, is it not? We don’t want our country to be run by Nazi-like invaders. So, we need to stand up for freedom. We need to defend the Constitution. We need this nation’s inhabitants to turn from their wicked ways and live moral lives.

But we also need to get God’s fire insurance. “Accept Jesus as your personal savior, and you will go to heaven. Your salvation can be sure. And while you’re here on earth, vote to keep Satan from running roughshod over the historical documents of this fine land.”

“Accept Jesus as your personal savior, and you will go to heaven. Your salvation can be sure.” Those are all true words. They are all theologically accurate, when read at face value.

Unfortunately, they only tell half the story of what Jesus has in store for His followers.

For decades, preachers have preached that the Kingdom of Heaven as a faraway place, beyond the sky, beyond the atmosphere, beyond the stars in the heavens. A place where angels sing 24/7 to God. Saints in white robes join in. It’s a mystical place. Some would even say it’s a bit strange or odd, actually. And it’s only described in detail by the Apostle John in the book of Revelation, like “he was on some acid trip” while exiled on the Isle of Patmos.

I’ve had Christians say to me that if this is what heaven is going to be like, then they aren’t sure they want to go.   

Oh, the ungratefulness.

But you see, that’s what theological half-truths can do. They make you into half of a believer, and Jesus says time and again that “half-believers” will not be allowed entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 7:21-23).

This really hit home for me one day not too long ago when I heard a statistic blurted out over a secular radio station. “According to the research,” the announcer said, giving a quick news update, “the majority of Americans say they are Christians.” He proceeded to read lines from the article before moving on to the next headline. For years, I’d heard similar statements about American Christians. I would always shrug my shoulders and say, “Yeah. It’s been that way for decades now. What’s new?”

This time, however, that statement hit me like a meteorite falling from the heavens. If that was so, then how could Jesus’s words in Matthew 7 be true?  

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it (vv. 13-14).

Then, a few days later, I read an article titled, “Survey Finds Most American Christians are Actually Heretics,” from a secular online magazine, quoting Christian sources,¹ and the realization of Jesus’s words that follow in Matthew 7 made me shudder:

Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?  Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. 

Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophecy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles? Then, I will say to them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evil-doers” (vv. 15-23).

When I read the Sermon on the Mount, and all the other scriptures that back up what Jesus says so succinctly in a mere three chapters, it starts to get a little daunting. Actually, downright scary. For example, how can Christianity be so prevalent in the United States, and yet since 2011,² an average of a million babies, created in the image of God, are aborted each year (cf. Ex. 20:13)? How can there be so many Christians, yet divorce has remained at a healthy (or unhealthy?) clip of fifty percent, give or take (cf. Malachi 2:16; Matt. 19:1-9; 1 Cor. 7:10-11)?³

On and on the reprehensible list goes.  

My point is not to shake a finger at any specific person and attempt to convict them. That is the Holy Spirit’s job (and He is much better at it than any of us). I also don’t want to get into “the weeds” and have you start sharpening your political and theological knives. That’s when truth truly gets shut down.

My point in bringing up these “same old, tired, statistical arguments,” is to show how incongruous those statistics are with The Kingdom of Heaven. The Kingdom of Heaven doesn’t allow such a theology to enter the gate. As a matter of fact, Jesus said quite the opposite (Matt. 7:13-14). He said the doorway into Heaven was fronted by a narrow road. Few find it, He said. Few travel it. And those who do will look, act, and behave much differently than those on the broad road (for example, see Matthew 5:27-32, concerning the marriage rate in America). He said many would believe they were on this narrow road. Many of those folks would believe they were already part of the Kingdom of God and seemingly had the credentials to back up their claim (Matthew 7:21-23), but alas, they would be mistaken, even shocked when confronted by Jesus and not allowed entrance. They would find out all too late that they were travelers on the broad road instead. The one that leads to destruction. Jesus said, many find that road by their own choosing. Others would be deceived onto it.  

Some of the wayward travelers on the broad road would even be considered “good people” by today’s societal standards. Have you ever heard that phrase used to reference someone you know? I mean, let’s face it. You can’t cast out demons, heal the sick, perform many miracles, and be totally evil, right? Society applauds such efforts, commends the good people, and even gives them an award or two from time to time.

Yet, Jesus said they are not good. Instead, He called them evil-doers.

It was this section of chilling words from the lips of Jesus that forced me to my knees and plunged me into God’s Word. I did not want to be on the broad road. I didn’t want to think I was okay with my brand of spirituality, going through my Christian motions, only to hear in the end that I was not known by Jesus like I had believed all these years, despite what preachers preached, what theological books said, or what Church history left behind.

It was that deep dive that began to show me how monumental the Sermon on the Mount is. It is the hub, if you will. All of Jesus’s teachings throughout the gospel accounts relate back to and tie into the Sermon, which has been called by some “Jesus’s Manifesto of the Kingdom.” The Book of Acts and all of the epistles of the New Testament tie back to it as well. Even the Old Testament finds its fulfillment in it, which should not be surprising since Jesus said in His Sermon He came to fulfill the Old Testament, not abolish it (Matthew 5:17).

Yet, it is also the Old Testament, particularly, the Creation account in Genesis, that sets the table for all truth in the Bible, to include the Sermon on the Mount. If a person doesn’t believe that God created the heavens and the earth, and that He alone was its “designer,” then the belief of a “believer” is brought into serious question.

How can you say that, Kevin?

Simply put, if you don’t believe wholeheartedly and without any doubt that God created the heavens and the earth, in exactly the way He depicts it in Genesis 1 and 2, then when do you start believing in God’s Word? When does God’s Word become prescriptive for you as a believer, having authority to tell you what to do and how to live?

You see, if you discount Genesis 1-2 as anything but a factual account of how God created everything, then when do you stop discounting God’s Word? Genesis 3? Genesis 6? Genesis 12? When does the Bible start getting “accurate” as historical fact in your mind to the point where it can be believed and followed?

And since we are on this topic, if you don’t believe Genesis 1-2 is historically accurate and can be believed scientifically, then do you believe in John 1:1-5? John says Jesus was there, and everything was created through Him and by Him. And life, as we know it, is a result of His creationary actions.

As one preacher put it so succinctly, “Either you believe in the Bible, or you don’t.” It’s really that simple. Either you believe it all, or you believe none of it. No one can just believe bits and pieces and expect God to honor their lives with eternal redemption, for when you disbelieve one part, you make God out to be untruthful in that one part. And if He is untruthful in one part, then He is untruthful in all of it, for He is now a liar.

Oh, the blasphemy (Matthew 12:24-32).

I believe that if Jesus is truly my Lord, then I should listen to His words and His alone. I should ponder them. I should feast upon them. Everything I read, see, hear, and contemplate should be sifted through His Word, and not my political leanings, not my theological bent, not my limited understanding of the hot topics of the day, not my social media threads, and definitely not my puffed up, finite mind. If I am to be a true follower and disciple of Jesus, then I need to sit at His feet and listen, for I surely wish to be on that narrow path and hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” And apparently, this isn’t an easy thing to do, or one would think the number of travelers on the two roads of Matthew 7:13-14 would be reversed, right?

As I started this revitalizing journey, I found myself experiencing—and I would say it’s for the first time in such a deep manner—the words of Paul in Romans 12:1-2. Although I had “experienced salvation” many years ago, and this passage had become my “life verse,” I see now how dangerously shallow my waters of life have been. Now, I understand, more than contextually, more than theologically, what it means to “not conform any longer to the patterns of this world, but to be transformed,” by the renewing of my mind, so I will know what God’s will is.

His good, pleasing, and perfect will.

A living sacrifice.

Offering my spiritual act of worship.

My hope is that these blog posts will set you on the narrow path as well. It’s not an easy path, though, as we will learn, and that fact alone will cause some people to shun it because we like things to be easy in the twenty-first century. However, the narrow path is life-giving. Both to the believer and to those with which we come in contact. The kind of life, abundant life, Jesus spoke of (cf. John 10:10) can only be found on this narrow path. It is where true joy lives.  

Therefore, I ask you, I beg you, to take off ALL your hats. Cast aside the political, theological, economic, sociological, historical, even the spiritual hats you wear on a daily basis, and walk alongside God as we look at His Word together. Don’t allow the blinders of your personal, biased viewpoints—the ones you have staunchly defended for years—to give you spiritual cataracts that in turn leads to eternal blindness. Allow Jesus to teach you. Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you. Allow God to transform you.

Then, maybe you, too, can experience life abundantly…possibly, for the first time.

One Last Clarification

As we move forward in this series, the first few chapters are going to look and feel like an anti-Semitic diatribe (again, we have to take off ALL of our hats before we proceed!). Let me assure you nothing could be further from the truth, as you will see this unfold when we get to the heart of our study in the later posts. Although God’s chosen people from the Old Testament and the religious leaders mentioned in the New Testament made choices with which God and Jesus took issue, rest assured, they aren’t the only ones. The Church of Jesus Christ has been similarly guilty of its own poor, spiritual choices, and there has been dramatic fallout from those choices. Even today, we are seeing the fallout of choices made in the last fifty to sixty years, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We’ll discuss this in greater detail throughout this study.

* * * 

Thought for the Week:

How do you view Scripture? What do you actually believe about God’s Word?     

What we believe about His Word shapes our worldview. Our worldview then dictates who we are, how we act, how we react, and how we interact with the world around us. Therefore, it is critical that we have a Biblical worldview. Not just one that is grounded in the Bible. One that is grounded in what God intended and meant in His Word.

There’s a difference.

How we view Scripture, what we believe about it, and the worldview that unfolds from it, is determined through whose eyes we view Scripture. As we have seen, if we view Scripture through a multitude of lenses—political, theological, sociological, psychological, etc., then God’s Word finds itself having to bend the knee to these philosophies. When that happens, evil abounds.

Hence, the importance of how you view Scripture, and through whose eyes we see it.

NEXT WEEK:

This leads us to the next step toward the narrow road and into the abundant life Jesus has for us: A right understanding of God and His relationship to His people. Without this crucial and important understanding on our part, the Creation account and the Sermon on the Mount will be confusing and lackluster at best. At its worst, the Sermon will be condemning, on an eternal scale 

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ENDNOTES 

¹ Morris, G. Shane. “Survey Finds Most American Christians are Actually Heretics.” The Federalist. 10 Oct. 2016. Web. 29 May 2020. <https://thefederalist.com/2016/10/10/survey-finds-american-christians-actually-heretics/>

 

² Nash, Elizabeth, and Joerg Dreweke. “The U.S. Abortion Rate Continues to Drop: Once Again, State Abortion Restrictions are Not the Main Driver.” Guttmacher Institute.org: Guttmacher Policy Review. 18 Sept. 2020. Web. 29 May 2020.  <https://www.guttmacher.org/gpr/2019/09/us-abortion-rate-continues-drop-once-again-state-abortion-restrictions-are-not-main>

 

³ Stanton, Glenn T. “Divorce Rate in the Church—As High as the World?” Focus on the Family.com. 15 Aug. 2011. Web. 29 May 2020. <https://www.focusonthefamily.com/marriage/divorce-rate-in-the-church-as-high-as-the-world/>  - This older article from 2011 does point out that these statistics get a little skewed, depending on how we view a “Christian.” However, it also seems in this article they are pleased to report that the divorce rate is considerably lower in the church amongst committed believers who attend church regularly, yet in 2011, it was calculated at thirty-eight percent! That’s more than one-in-three marriages! Now, granted, it did not state if those divorces happened before the believer became a believer, but nevertheless…Yikes!

Pictures courtesy of  Pixabay and The Wesleyan Church and the following photographers/artists:

"Journey" - by akbaranifsolo

"Worship" - by Daniel Reche

"Thornbush" - by Kranich17

"Man Crying" - by StockSnap

"Road Sign" - by The Wesleyan Church

"Narrow Road" - by Tama66

"Genesis" - by Spencer Wing

Every Journey Has a Story - An Introduction (Part 4 of 5)

My personal revelations are not the only reason why I cringed when I began to write this series. My “fear and trembling” also deals with the political climate in which we find ourselves, both in America and around the world.

It causes me pause because much of what I am to say will be viewed through an extremely entrenched political lens (which incorporates sociological, religious, economic, and psychological worldviews into it). It is inevitable, I suppose. We see things so divisively today as conservatives, libertarians, liberals, progressives, nationalists, fascists, socialists, Republicans, Democrats, Green Partyists, constitutionalists, and marijuana legalizationists, just to name a few of the voting parties out there these days (and I won’t spend the time listing the smaller, more bizarre groups, like the one for pirates or transhumanists. They are too numerous to list!).

We have our subcategories, too, within these political camps. These delineations and divisive points of order help groups better define their arguments. They also help these camps make sure bits of crucial information important to their cause “remain pure” by locking them up in their respective, ideological cages. Heaven forbid, if one of those little liberal or conservative devils jumped out and mated with our political enemies’ beliefs. We’re not too keen on political hybrids in today’s society. If we’re not calling these people “sellouts,” “RINOs,” “compromisers,” or “un-American,” then we are calling them “racists,” “Uncle Toms,” “bigots,” “homophobes,” “xenophobes,” “hate-mongers,” and the like. We all know that once you get publicly labeled, the “optics” are hard to escape. Especially if numerous sources start parroting the same information. “I saw it on multiple websites, and even in the newspaper, so it must be true.” And even if the “report” is eventually proven to be false, the damage is already done. The label has already smeared your good name and irreparably damaged your cause. They don’t call it “the power of the press” for nothing.

Needless to say, the political climate can get pretty vicious. And when you add election years and social media components to the mix, then vicious becomes devilishly vile…on steroids.

You might think I’m talking only about the politics that occurs “out there,” outside the church, in the highways and byways of the industrialized world. I wish I was. But within the church, sadly enough, there is just as much politicized conflict. All I have to do is mention a president’s name from the last five presidencies, and immediately, hackles go up that will puncture the heart and soul of even the most devout. It’s not pretty.

Oh, the intolerance of the tolerant…

And the unrighteousness of the righteous, which brings me to the third “cause for pause” as to why I fear and tremble.

Yet, despite my reservations concerning my personal failures as a believer and the political climate of the day, these aren’t the only reasons that cause me concern with the writing of this series. It’s also the theological climate in which we live. Everybody has an opinion on the weightier things of life these days as they try to find meaning among the madness. Christians. Muslims. Jews. Hindus. Atheists. Agnostics. Name the group. It doesn’t matter. Just check out the latest social media rants for evidence to this fact. The ability to comment on everything around the globe in perfect anonymity as “CatMommyx5intheBooniesUSA” or “TheologicalTheo4MyGoddess” doesn’t help matters either.

Believers act and behave like non-believers in this regard:        

·       So long as someone says something that agrees with my “theology” (and my political views as well, because let’s face it, they are very inextricably linked in today’s age of post-modernity), then he or she is my “brother” or “sister.” 

·       If a person says something contrary to my “theological” views, then I must correct them and shut them down (and often “shout” them down). It is my duty and mission to do so. All I care about is being right. All I care about is making sure my beliefs become the “law of the land.” Making sure the people I want in positions of power get voted into office to protect said personal, political, and theological views.

Then, in an experiment in theological futility, watch the comment section explode as one person after another weighs in with his or her take on the subject at hand. The comments often become brutal, haranguing, and belittling to the other contributors until nobody’s theological stance seems right anymore.

Or righteous, for that matter.

Never mind that a soul may hang in the balance, looking for hope as he or she stands on the outside of the back-and-forth salvos, looking in. We’re all about the winning of arguments and elections, not leading souls to the Savior, while civilization is losing that which makes it possible: civility.

Also, when you examine these theological comment sections, notice how many of which, by the way, have political components tied to them as people mix and match theology and politics, sometimes seeing them as harmonious and interchangeable. (See “Pharisees,” “Sadducees,” and “teachers of the Law” for references in Matthew 12:2; 12:24; 15:1-2; 16:1; 19:3; 21:45-46; 26:3-5; 27:1-31; John 8:45-53).

I mention all this to show just how far we have drifted away from the shore as a church today. We are so far away from God, we don’t even recognize His Words anymore unless they are woven together with the great thinkers, the great movers, the great shakers of the world today. And sadly, those thinkers, movers, and shakers do not even have to be godly or Christian. If they were historical rock stars, have large congregations, write New York Times Bestselling books, or appear on television, then God must be smiling down on that person and ministry, right? Isn’t that how we determine godliness and success?

Truth has become extremely relative in the prevailing theological winds of today’s culture. If someone dares to claim a truth to be “absolute,” then the fireworks really begin. “That may be okay for you to believe, but not for me.” “That’s how you interpret the Bible, but I interpret differently.” As some people read this blog post, they will accuse me of saying exactly those words, no doubt. Yet, Jesus said He was the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and nobody could get to God except through Him (John 14:6). Jesus said there is only one way to Heaven. Period. And He was merely quoting Old Testament scripture (see Exodus 20:3-6 and Isaiah 45:22 for examples).

Are the words of Jesus in John 14:6 “complete” enough for you? Or do you feel the urge to say, “Yeah, but…”?

Do you understand now, at least a little, why I am filled with trepidation in writing this series? It’s not because I fear reprisal or have too thin a skin to take on the negative reviews and comments that will surely come. I am fearful because I, too, was once like this…having opinions on everything. Opinions that were rooted in some kind of lofty, educated state of personal aggrandizement. I still wrestle with this from time to time. Well, actually, on a daily basis. More so than I care to admit. I understand why Jesus said in Luke 9:23-27 that if anyone wants to follow Him, he or she must take up his or her cross and follow Him daily. It’s called “dying to self.” Not being “a lover of self,” as Paul told Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:2. And it must be a daily act on the part of the believer. It can’t be an occasional act one day a week (usually the day after Saturday) or a seasonal thing around Christmas and Easter.

The believer must not take up the cross one day and then desire to go back to his or her former life on another. Jesus was very clear about such thinking (Luke 9:61-62; cf. John 21:15-19). Such religious efforts will only garner a trip down the broad road (cf. Matthew 7:13). I know I’ve had to seriously curb my diet of social media and even change how I surf the web so that Mark Zuckerberg and others like him could no longer influence me with their algorithms, attempting to “gin up” the crowd.¹

As I dig deeper into God’s Word, particularly the Creation account in Genesis and Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount, I find myself grabbing myself by the arm when my heart wishes to jump on a popular bandwagon. I’m less likely these days to fall into the trap of political arguments for the argument’s sake, just so I can toot my horn and be victorious in my own little mind, reveling in the number of “Likes” from my social media friends. For what “victory” have I truly won?

And what did I lose in the process?

I’m less likely to get caught up in the minutia of theological wastelands that damn people and leave them in darkness more than help them see the light of Jesus. Instead, I find myself going back to the Bible, but not to learn more about the Bible, but to learn more about my status before a Holy God. To seek His face. To seek His presence. To desire to sit at the feet of Jesus. Weighing everything I do in light of the awesomeness of God in Genesis and Jesus’s words in Matthew on such weighty matters as mercy, love, humility, justice, and obedience. I find myself wanting to know what God thought about the topics of the day instead of human experts. I want to examine how He addressed issues of the heart, of the mind, of the soul.

The writer of Ecclesiastes said, in 1:9-10, that there is really nothing new happening like it is pitched to us. What has been done in the past will pop up again, repackaged and renamed, but it is nothing truly new. Therefore, because we know the writer of Ecclesiastes was correct, then what Jesus dealt with in His day, concerning His kingdom truth and its relevance to everyday living, is just as applicable to today’s societal ills as it was two thousand years ago. And since Jesus quotes Old Testament scripture as His basis for His teachings, then we can say these truths are actually applicable and trackable, all the way back to Genesis 1:1. Thus, the writer of Hebrews, in Hebrews 13:8, was correct.

* * * 

Thought for the Week:

How often do you attempt to make your views known? Or attempt to win arguments? Whether it be in person or on social media? We are bombarded with opinion shows these days. The news outlets have their shows, where the host gives opinion after opinion on every topic known to man, it seems. Radio has its talk show hosts. You can create YouTube channels and podcasts and make your own voice known. You can even have your own app.

However, in a world where we are inundated with information to the point where we care little about it, unless it serves us in some way, we may possibly be the most oxymoronic, uninformed society ever to grace the planet.

Back in the day, people like Martin Luther started reformations because the powers that be held the Word of God under a literal lock and key, chained to the pulpit and written in Latin, although no one spoke Latin anymore by the sixteenth century. Today, and unlike Luther’s contemporaries, we have access to anything and everything via libraries, the internet, books, magazines, newspapers, etc. Yet, ironically, we read less per capita than we did a century ago (and that trend is increasing). Instead, we’re content to allow the “experts” to tell us what this and that means while we surf the net, binge-watch TV, and play video games. Then, of course, after we’ve been fed all that information—whether it be true or not-so-much, we run with what we deem as “true and accurate” and post it to social media, argue with others about it, and unwittingly form an entire worldview based on it.

Yet, Luke said in the Book of Acts that the Bereans were more noble than the Thessalonians (and they were highly regarded!) because they listened to Paul preach the gospel, then went back to the Old Testament to verify that what he was teaching was true (Acts 17:11).

May we be less North American, less European, less Asian, less African, less South American, less Eastern European, less Middle-Eastern, and instead be more Berean in our approach moving forward.

NEXT WEEK: In the last post of this introduction, we will take a sneak peek at a topic that will become quite substantial in the weeks and months to come.

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ENDNOTES 

¹ Dowd, Maureen. “Think Outside the Box, Jack: Trump, Twitter, and the society-crushing pursuit of monetized rage.” The New York Times. 30 May 2020. Web. 9 June 2020. <https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/30/opinion/sunday/trump-twitter-jack-dorsey.html

Pictures courtesy of  Pexels, Pixabay and the following photographers/artists:

"Riot" by Mauricio Mascaro - Pexels

"I am right..." by Mote Oo Education - Pixabay

"Drawing of stick person" - by ElisaRiva on Instagram - Pixabay