johnlharrisr-blog

[johnlharrisr-blog]

Honestly Questioning God

Many people are afraid to be honest with God—which is odd, considering that He already knows what we’re thinking. The biblical authors certainly told God how they felt, and they did so eloquently and often.

The prophet Habakkuk remarked, “O Yahweh, how long shall I cry for help and you will not listen? How long will I cry out to you, ‘Violence!’ and you will not save?” (Hab 1:1–2).

Habakkuk felt that God was not answering his prayers—that God was ignoring his petitions. He reminded God of the desperate need for His intercession. In doing so, Habakkuk reminds us that wrestling with God is a healthy and necessary component of following Him.

Habakkuk went on to make more desperate, even angry, pleas: “Why do you cause me to see evil while you look at trouble? Destruction and violence happen before me; contention and strife arise.

Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice does not go forth perpetually. For the wicked surround the righteous; therefore justice goes forth perverted” (Hab 1:3–4). Habakkuk’s honest questions reveal the state of his heart. He was not afraid to tell God what he felt because he understood that God already knew. He also believed that God could be persuaded to intercede.

Yet it’s not language or skillful rhetoric that causes God to intercede—after all, He is a free being who can do what He wills, and He will not be manipulated. God wants to use us for His work, and He longs for us to acknowledge what He is doing. When we pray, God listens; when God acts in response to our prayers, we know that it is His work. We must pray honestly, and we must acknowledge God’s rightful place and acts.

What are you praying about? What are you honestly confessing to God?

John D. Barry

[johnlharrisr-blog]

What Shall Be Done?

How should we respond when those around us seem to be not only falling short of the glory of God, but actually abandoning God’s work? What should we do when we witness neighbors or friends tolerating or even justifying acts of injustice, oppression, greed, or idolatry? We live in such a time. So did the prophet Micah:

“Woe is me! For I have become like the gatherings of summer, like the gleanings of the grape harvest, when there is no cluster of grapes to eat or early ripened fruit that my soul desires. The faithful person has perished from the land, and there is none who is upright among humankind. All of them lie in wait; each hunts his brother with a net. Their hands are upon evil, to do it well; the official and the judge ask for the bribe, and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul; and they weave it together” (Mic 7:1–3).

Micah did what should be done—he spoke up; he told the truth. When we find ourselves in evil times among evil people, we must do the same. God may be calling us to be a voice crying in the wilderness (John 1:19–25; compare Isa 40:3). By boldly proclaiming the truth, we may make a way for others to come back to God.

Much of the world is corrupt, and it is our job as Christians to fight such corruption, to stand above it, and to help others find the better way—God’s way. The brokenness of our world is not simple. How many people are led astray unconsciously? How often does money or power trump the rights of the vulnerable? Do we recognize injustice when we see it? Do we have the courage to speak up, even when it hurts?

Micah provides an example here, too. Although he spoke vividly about God’s coming judgment on Samaria, he also told us where we would find the Savior who would heal our brokenness once and for all—in Bethlehem.

How are you standing against the evils of our age?

John D. Barry

[johnlharrisr-blog]

Going Your Own Way

I work hard to make my disobedience socially acceptable: “I have a stubborn streak,” I explain, or “I’m just like my dad.” But the truth is that my weaknesses aren’t cute or transitory—and they’re not anyone else’s fault. Instead, my disobedience is a deep-rooted, rebellious tendency to follow my own path when I should be humbling myself, seeking wisdom, or obeying leaders who know better.

The book of Jonah illustrates these opposing responses to God’s will. We can easily identify with Jonah’s stubborn character. When God tells Jonah to warn Nineveh of its coming judgment, Jonah not only disobeys, but he sets off in the opposite direction. As Jonah’s story progresses, however, we see God orchestrate a reversal. In His incredible mercy, He breaks Jonah’s stubborn streak and replaces it with humility. God also has mercy on the Ninevites—a “people who do not know right from left”—and they repent in sackcloth and ashes (Jonah 4:11).

It’s easy to diminish or rationalize our persistent faults. Yet when we’re faced with circumstances or people who hold up a mirror and show us who we truly are, we have the opportunity to change. God is molding us into people who want to follow His will, and He’ll provide opportunities to shape us to that end. We just have to respond to His calling.

How are you stubbornly insisting on your own way? How can you respond in a way that honors God?

Rebecca Van Noord

[johnlharrisr-blog]

This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare,  having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck,  of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme. (1 Timothy 1:18-20)

Paul encourages Timothy to fight the good fight, and to keep his conscience clear. Then, there is a warning, and we find that our faith is able to be shipwrecked if we are not willing to stand firm in our faith. Temptation will come, and by the leading of the Holy Spirit our conscience is made aware of the sin trying to enter and corrupt us. In this way our propensity to sin is revealed to us, and we are made aware of the choices we ought to make. We are able to make the right choice, to fight the good fight, to flee from sin, because of Jesus Christ. Stand firm today! Do not allow sin to entice you and drag you away! Jesus is greater than any impulse or temptation you face.

The ministry is a warfare against sin and Satan; carried on under the Lord Jesus, who is the Captain of our salvation. The good hopes others have had of us, should stir us up to duty. And let us be upright in our conduct in all things. The design of the highest censures in the primitive church, was, to prevent further sin, and to reclaim the sinner. May all who are tempted to put away a good conscience, and to abuse the gospel, remember that this is the way to make shipwreck of faith also.

[johnlharrisr-blog]

https://www.facebook.com/pastoredcitronnelli/videos/354071949062822/

[johnlharrisr-blog]

https://www.facebook.com/stevenfaithpastor/videos/610677819597169/

[johnlharrisr-blog]

Have mercy upon me, O God, According to Your lovingkindness; According to the multitude of Your tender mercies, Blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, And cleanse me from my sin. (Psalm 51:1-2)

David has committed adultery with Bathsheba and sent her husband Uriah to the front lines of the battle to be killed. Through the prophet Nathan, God tells David that the son that was just born to him would die because of David's sin. For seven days after this, David pleaded before God for the child's life, through fasting and prayer. It is these kinds of words like we see in Psalm 51, that pours out from David's heart once he realizes that he sinned against the Lord. Thanks to Jesus Christ, being deceived into sin is not the end of our relationship with God, rather it should be a platform for repentance and prayer.

David, being convinced of his sin, poured out his soul to God in prayer for mercy and grace. Whither should backsliding children return but to the Lord their God, who alone can heal them? He drew up, by Divine teaching, an account of the workings of his heart toward God. Those that truly repent of their sins, will not be ashamed to own their repentance. Also, he instructs others what to do, and what to say. David had not only done much, but suffered much in the cause of God, yet he flees to God’s infinite mercy and depends upon that alone for pardon and peace. He begs the pardon of sin. The blood of Christ, sprinkled upon the conscience, blots out the transgression, and, having reconciled us to God, reconciles us to ourselves. The believer longs to have the whole debt of his sins blotted out, and every stain cleansed; he would be thoroughly washed from all his sins, but the hypocrite always has some secret reserve and would have some favorite lust spared. David had such a deep sense of his sin, that he was continually thinking of it, with sorrow and shame. His sin was committed against God, whose truth we deny by wilful sin; with him, we deal deceitfully. And the truly penitent will ever trace back the streams of actual sin to the fountain of original depravity. He confesses his original corruption. This is that foolishness which is bound in the heart of a child, that proneness to evil, and that backwardness to good, which is the burden of the regenerate, and the ruin of the unregenerate. He is encouraged, in his repentance, to hope that God would graciously accept him. Thou desirest truth in the inward part; to this God looks, in a returning sinner. Where there is truth, God will give wisdom. Those who sincerely endeavor to do their duty shall be taught their duty, but they will expect good only from Divine grace overcoming their corrupt nature.

[johnlharrisr-blog]

(RNS) — It started in 2004 as a little Bible study looking at the political implications of Jesus’ teaching and the social dimensions of the gospel. Four years later, during the 2008 presidential election, I published a book with Chris Haw called “Jesus for President” and took the movement out on a national tour, traveling through nearly every U.S. state in a bus that ran on waste vegetable oil, hosting packed-out rallies in different cities each night.

We had some solid ideas for serious change in America back then. Like putting the Amish in charge of Homeland Security and melting all of our weapons into garden tools and enacting the biblical year of Jubilee, where property is redistributed and financial debts are forgiven. We were dead serious about some of those ideas (and still are).

A lot has changed since 2008. A lot has changed since 2016. Heck, a lot has changed since last month, and week and day.

One thing that has not changed is that Christians still have a hard time knowing how to engage with politics, especially during an election year.

RELATED: Voting my conscience in this election may mean staying home

Some Christians ignore politics altogether, preferring to focus on matters like saving souls and getting people into heaven. They often quote Scripture about how our “citizenship is in heaven” and insist that this world is not our home. Politics don’t belong in the pulpit, they say (unless it’s abortion or marriage equality). Jesus didn’t come to overthrow Caesar and take over Rome, but to establish an altogether new kingdom that is not of this world. So it goes.

Another group of Christians has totally bought into partisan politics and married itself to these Christians’ favorite candidate or party. If they are evangelicals, that usually means the Republican Party. As my friend the Rev. Tony Campolo says: “Mixing our faith with a political party is sort of like mixing ice cream with cow manure. It doesn’t mess up the manure, but it sure messes up the ice cream.”

More recently, I have become familiar with the progressive version of the savior complex; it still messes up the ice cream.

As people of faith, we are desperately in need of a better political imagination — one not confined by party or candidate or the culture wars at all, but one wholly rooted in our faith. We need to be as peculiar as we are political. Jesus was both — political and peculiar.

Nearly every time Jesus opened his mouth, he talked about the “kingdom of God.” The word he used for “kingdom” was the same word as “empire.” But his empire is upside down. The first are last, and the last are first. The mighty are cast from their thrones, and the rich are sent away empty. The poor are blessed, and the peacemakers are “the children of God.” Literally, Jesus blesses the people this world has cursed and rebukes the people this world has idolized.

According to Jesus, the kingdom of God is not just something we hope for when we die. It is something we are to make “on earth as it is in heaven,” apparently while we’re alive, now. It is an invitation to join a revolution that transforms the world from what it is into what God wants it to be.

We know because he talked about the real stuff and real people — unjust judges, day laborers, widows and orphans: political stuff. The golden rule — love your neighbors as yourselves — can’t be followed if we ignoring the policies and powers that are crushing the lives of our neighbors. Jesus was political in the sense that the word “politics” derives from “citizens” — meaning our neighbors.

As much as Jesus’ vocation was political, it was also peculiar. His entire life (and death) is a parody of power, political satire on a whole new level, a political photobomb that took attention off of the centers of power and put the spotlight on the margins.

Jesus came straight out of Nazareth: a brown-skinned, Palestinian, Jewish refugee from a town out of which people said, “Nothing good could come.” This was what determined his view of power. When confronted by tax collectors about whether he paid his taxes, he pulled money out of the mouth of a fish, questioning what really is Caesar’s and what is God’s.

He called Herod a fox and flipped tables in the Temple. He included the excluded and challenged the chosen. Entering Jerusalem, he did not ride a warhorse with a military entourage like Caesar, but a borrowed donkey. Political satire. Street theater of the holiest kind. Instead of the iron fist of tyrants, Jesus ruled with a towel washing his disciples’ feet. He was accused of insurrection, arrested, beaten, tortured by the state and finally executed.

His execution, directed by the Romans, was also political parody of the highest order. His throne was an old rugged cross. His crown was not made from olive branches like Caesar’s, but thorns. Nailed to the cross read a sign, “King of the Jews.”

Jesus outdid the Romans’ attempt to join in his parody by rising from the dead — the greatest act of protest in history.

The word “savior” was not just used for Jesus. It was also used for Caesar. On the imperial walls in Asia Minor, nearly a decade before the birth of Christ, these words were written: “emperor Augustus … who being sent to us and our descendants as Savior, has put an end to war and has set all things in order, having become god manifest… the birthday of the god Augustus has been for the whole world the beginning of the good news…”

Sound familiar?

The words attributed to Jesus in the Gospels — Lord, savior, Incarnation — were already attributed to Caesar. The imperial calendar revolved around the birthday of Caesar, not Christ. You start to see why the politics of Jesus are so radical, so revolutionary and so controversial. Every time the early Christians declared “Jesus is Lord,” they were also declaring, “Caesar is not.”

That confession was deeply and subversively political. It was just as strange to say “Jesus is my Lord” 2,000 years ago as it would be to declare him commander in chief today. It was an invitation to a new political imagination centered on the person, teaching and peculiar politics of Christ.

One of the greatest temptations during election year is to misplace our hope. We are tempted to put our hope in a party or a candidate who we think will save us from the chaos we are in. But as the old hymn goes, “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. … On Christ the solid rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.” There is a lot of sinking sand these days. Lots of big promises and empty words. We are bound to be disappointed if we put too much hope in a person or a party.

Joining the politics of Jesus is about joining God’s redemptive plan to save the world. It is about allegiance, hope and a new kingdom. So I am indeed hopeful in 2020 — not because I have found a candidate who fulfills my deepest hopes, but because I have learned how to hope differently. My hope does not lie in Donald Trump or Joe Biden, or even America. My hope is in Christ alone.

Now that we’ve established that — let me be clear. I will be voting on Nov. 3. But I will not be looking for a political savior. I will be looking to do damage control. I’ll be trying to harness the principalities and powers of darkness that are hurting so many children of God. I’ll be voting for the politicians who I believe will do the least amount of damage to the world, and alleviate the most suffering for the most people. Though that may sound cynical, I think that’s an appropriate theological posture to have.

There are those who will opt out because they don’t want to “hold their noses” and vote, and still others who refuse to choose between the “lesser of two evils.”

But opting out also has consequences. Privilege is being able to choose which issues matter and which ones do not. Privilege is being able to opt out of decisions that have life and death consequences for other people. I believe this election is a referendum, and we have power that we can steward on Nov. 3. I want to look back and say I did everything I could to stand against fear, and racism and violence… including vote. We need to use every tool in our toolbox.

If you have a hard time voting for a particular candidate this year, perhaps consider what it means to vote for the people Jesus blessed. Vote for the poor. Vote for immigrants. Vote for families separated at our border and for the kids in cages. Vote for those without health care. Vote for those who are incarcerated and those who aren’t allowed to vote. Vote for the victims of violence. Vote for Breonna Taylor.

Vote for love. When we vote for love over fear, we can rest confidently that we voted our faith and put flesh on our prayers.

So, I will vote on Nov. 3. I will vote against hatred, and fear, and misogyny. I will vote against Trump and those who have enabled his hurtful policies and hateful rhetoric. And I will do it because I have pledged my ultimate allegiance to Christ.

Surely, Election Day is not the only day we make a difference. I will also vote every day before Nov. 3 and every day after Nov. 3. Change is not confined to one day every four years. Change happens every day. We vote with our lives. Social change doesn’t come from the top down. It comes from the bottom up — just like water boils.

The holy work of “seeking first the kingdom of God” is not confined to a ballot box. No matter who gets elected in November, we will need to be in the streets in January holding them accountable.

[johnlharrisr-blog]

Diversity in the Church

In our comfortable and familiar church homes, we sometimes fail to see the Church as a community of ethnic and cultural diversity.

When I returned from a year in South Korea, I was surprised when my family and friends made thoughtless generalizations about people I had come to know and love—some of them fellow believers in Christ. Most of these comments contradicted the multicultural picture of Christianity presented in the book of Acts.

Peter and the Jewish Christians in the early church underwent a shift in cultural perspective. When Peter came to Jerusalem after meeting with Gentiles, the Jews were shocked that he would eat with “men who were uncircumcised” (Acts 11:3). For so long, they had associated their religion with their identity as a nation and as a people group.

Although they knew that God was extending this hope to the Gentiles, they needed to be reminded that Jesus was the Lord of all. Peter tells them, “if God gave them the same gift as also to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to be able to hinder God?” (Acts 11:17).

The hope they expected had been fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. Now Gentiles were being added to their number. Peter testifies, “In truth I understand that God is not one who shows partiality, but in every nation the one who fears him and who does what is right is acceptable to him” (Acts 10:34).

Strangely, Peter’s speech still needs to be heard today. We tend to confine our faith within comfortable borders—cultural, regional, or racial. We need to be challenged to see people from other ethnicities and cultural backgrounds as fellow followers of Christ.

If God does not show partiality, then neither should we. The reign of Jesus extends over all people; God will draw His children from all corners of the earth, and there will be no “foreigners” in His kingdom.

How does your view of the Church need to be challenged?

Rebecca Van Noord

[johnlharrisr-blog]

Was Paul Right About Women?

By Dr. Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg - January 2, 202050999 409

In 1 Cor. 14:34 the Apostle Paul’s letter states: “…the women should keep silent in the assemblies. For they are not permitted to speak but should be in submission, as the Law also says.” There are several major problems with this statement.

First, nowhere does the Jewish Law forbid women to speak in public gatherings. Paul, being a well-educated Jew, certainly would have known this. In fact, there was a law on the books that did forbid women to speak, vote and exercise authority over men by holding public office. It was not a Jewish, but a Roman law. These words would sound far more credible if someone else, other than the Jewish Apostle Paul, had written them.

Second, on numerous occasions throughout his travels and letters, the Apostle Paul affirmed the ministry of women (Rom 16:3-4; 1 Cor. 16:19; cf. Acts 16:11-40; 18:26). The centrality of the Shemah – the Oneness of Israel’s God, informed Paul’s theology when he wrote that in Christ-following assemblies there was no place for segregation or discrimination: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Gal. 3:28)

In 1 Corinthians 11:5, he wrote that a woman’s head must be covered while she is engaged in speaking in tongues or prophesying in a public assembly. The question was not, therefore, if a woman could speak and teach, but how it should be done in a way that would be right before God, angels and the people of Corinth.

When we read Paul’s letters we need to keep in mind that 1 Corinthians was not the beginning of this correspondence. Paul wrote at least one letter to the Corinthians prior to this (1 Cor. 5:9) and the Corinthian leadership had also written to him (1 Cor. 7:1). It is therefore highly probable that the statement in 1 Cor. 14:34-35 is a quotation from a letter that the Corinthian male leadership had addressed to Paul. It was their proposal on how to bring order into the disruptive practice of some women in the congregation as they spoke in tongues and prophesied. Paul, however, disagreed.

If this text is viewed as a quotation, then the challenge in 1 Cor. 14:36 that Paul brings to the male leadership makes perfect sense:

“Was it from you (masculine) that the word of God first went forth?! Or has it come to you (masculine) only?!”

The all-male leadership of the Corinthian congregation was not to forbid (women) to speak in tongues and themselves were to be encouraged to prophesy just as the women among them already were doing:

“Therefore, my brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy and do not forbid to speak in tongues. But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner.” (1 Cor. 14:39-40)

Paul’s solution, therefore, was not to exclude half of the congregation from exercising the gifts of the Spirit, but rather to make sure that it was done in a respectful, proper and orderly fashion.

Was Paul right about women? Absolutely! His Corinthian opponents were not.

BEGIN YOUR JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY

[johnlharrisr-blog]

Can Women Be Deacons?

By Dr. Nicholas J. Schaser - September 10, 2020

The passage about deacons in First Timothy stipulates that “deacons each be the husband of one wife” (3:12). Since this brief statement seems to assume that deacons are men, some Christian churches and denominations do not allow women to serve as deacons. However, this exclusionary conclusion is based on a narrow view of the early Jesus movement. First, Paul acknowledges female deaconship and describes women as overseers of the ekklesia. Second, the pertinent passage in First Timothy can be read in a way that includes women as deacons. Third, Roman correspondence about early Christians mentions female deacons in the Jesus-believing assemblies. Women have served as deacons since the beginning of formal organization in the Jesus movement.

Near the end of his letter to the Romans, Paul begins a list of fellow believers by mentioning “Phoebe our sister, who is a deacon (διάκονος) of the assembly in Kenchrea” (Rom 16:1). While the fundamental meaning of διάκονος is “servant,” the context supports the notion that Phoebe is a formal leader or “deacon” over the believers in Kenchrea. Paul goes on to describe her as a “patron (προστάτις; prostátis) of many and also of myself” (16:2). The Greek word for “patron” literally means one who “stands over” another. For instance, Paul reminds believers about “those who labor among you, and stand over (προΐστημι; proistemi) you in the Lord” (1 Thess 5:12). In the passage from 1 Timothy, the male deacons are described as “standing over (προΐστημι) their children and their own households” (1 Tim 3:12). When Paul refers to Phoebe as a “deacon” and “overseer” with this exact same language, readers can know that she holds an official leadership role, not only over her city’s assembly, but even over Paul himself.

The language about deacons in 1 Timothy is somewhat ambiguous, but it could well refer to women as deacons alongside men – which would make sense, since Paul underwrites Phoebe as a deacon explicitly. The discussion in 1 Timothy begins, “Deacons (διακόνους; diakónous) likewise must be dignified” (3:8). Then, some English translations state that “their wives” must also act in dignified ways (3:11). However, there is no “their” in the original language; instead, the Greek merely refers to γυναῖκας (gunaikas), which can mean either “wives” or “women.” If we choose the latter, then 1 Timothy 3:8 begins with discussing male “deacons” (διακόνους is a grammatically masculine noun), and then 3:11 adds to the discourse on deacons by saying that “women”—that is, women who are deacons—must also act in dignified ways that mirror those of the men.

Outside the New Testament, there is early evidence of female deacons as leaders of Jesus-believing assemblies. Around the year 112 CE/AD, the governor of Pontus/Bithynia writes a letter to the Roman emperor Trajan. Pliny, the governor, asks the emperor what should be done about a religious group that some have denounced to him as “Christians.” Pliny embarks on a fact-finding mission, telling Trajan, “I judged it all the more necessary to find out what the truth was by torturing two female slaves who were called deacons” (ministrae). The Latin ministra can mean a female “minister,” “handmaid,” or even “nurse.” Pliny notes that these women “were called” ministrae among the believers, which indicates that the term was a known title in the assembly; thus, the best way to understand ministrae is as official ministers or deacons. When most English New Testaments speak of Jesus, Paul, or other apostles as “ministers” who serve in spreading the gospel, the underlying Greek word is actually “deacon” (e.g., Rom 15:8; 1 Cor 3:5; 2 Cor 3:6; Eph 3:7; 1 Thess 3:2), so Pliny’s Latin term maps on to the Greek notion of “deacon.” More, the fact that Pliny tortures these two particular women in the hopes of extracting meaningful information shows that he understood them to hold leadership roles. Based on the multiple attestations of female deacons as leaders, it is clear that the office of “deacon” was open to women at the outset of the Jesus movement.

BEGIN YOUR JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY

[johnlharrisr-blog]

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this, all will know that you are My disciples if you have a love for one another.” (John 13:34-35)

This new commandment speaks the truth in love. Loving one another as Jesus loved us is the gospel because it communicates that we are His, that He is worthy, and that we are changed because He first loved us. Loving someone begins with selflessness and surrender. We surrender to God because we know we cannot love others like this without His help, without being loved this way by Him. It is selfless because to love others like this, we must set ourselves aside and deny ourselves daily. This is like Jesus laying down His authority and power and choosing to die on a cross so that we may truly live because of that sacrifice. Remember, Jesus said, "Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it." (Matthew 10:39) We find true life by loving one another as Jesus loves us.

Christ had been glorified in many miracles he wrought, yet he speaks of his being glorified now in his sufferings as if that were more than all his other glories in his humbled state. Satisfaction was thereby made for the wrong done to God by the sin of man. We cannot now follow our Lord to his heavenly happiness, but if we truly believe in him, we shall follow him hereafter; meanwhile, we must wait his time and do his work. Before Christ left the disciples, he would give them a new commandment. They were to love each other for Christ’s sake, and according to his example, seeking what might benefit others, and promoting the cause of the gospel, as one body, animated by one soul. But this commandment still appears new to many professors. Men in general notice any of Christ’s words rather than these. By this, it appears, that if the followers of Christ do not show love one to another, they give cause to suspect their sincerity.

[johnlharrisr-blog]

Bad Things, Good People, and Grace

We often wonder why God allows bad things to happen. We’re not unique in this; people have asked this same question since the beginning of time. Job struggled with this question after he lost everything. Job’s friends strove to answer it as they sought to prove that Job had somehow sinned against God and brought his terrible fate upon himself.

At one point, Job’s friend Zophar offers up the common wisdom of the time: “Did you know this from of old, since the setting of the human being on earth, that the rejoicing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the godless lasts only a moment?… [The wicked man] will suck the poison of horned vipers; the viper’s tongue will kill [the wicked man]” (Job 20:4–5, 16). Zophar is right about one thing: Eventually the wicked will be punished.

The rest of Zophar’s words prove his short-sightedness. The wicked are not always punished immediately. And God does not allow evil to continue without end. Instead, He chooses to intercede at certain times to ensure that His plan stays on course.

Furthermore, bad things happen because people are bad—not because God allows or causes evil to happen, and not necessarily because the afflicted people are somehow evil. Evil powers are at work in the world, seeking to thwart God’s plan. We, as humanity, chose our fate when we went against God’s will that first time and every time since.

God has good news for us. As Peter tells his Gentile audience in Acts, “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power.… They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him on the third day … [and] everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name” (Acts 10:38–40, 42esv). There is redemption to be found in His Son, who will return to earth to make all things right. Every moment between now and then is a moment of grace.

How are your beliefs about evil closer to Zophar’s than to the truth? How can you find a new perspective?

John D. Barry

[johnlharrisr-blog]

Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant:  You know that you were Gentiles, carried away to these dumb idols, however you were led.  Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:1-3)

Before launching into further instruction about spiritual gifts, Paul takes a moment here to confirm a warning against being led astray to mute idols. In contrast to those false gods, the Lord God speaks in a very real way through His people via the Holy Spirit. It is, I think, one of the most beautiful things to know that the God who saves me also chose to make His home in me. The church is the temple of God, and the Holy Spirit is the fulfillment of a promise: our seal in Christ Jesus that we are in Him, and He in us. The Holy Spirit unfailingly leads us to testify to the truth about Jesus, to share the gospel, to confession and repentance of sins, and stands poised and ready each and every day. Praise be to God for His magnificent gift of the Holy Spirit.

Spiritual gifts were extraordinary powers bestowed in the first ages, to convince unbelievers, and to spread the gospel. Gifts and graces greatly differ. Both were freely given of God. But where grace is given, it is for the salvation of those who have it. Gifts are for the advantage and salvation of others; and there may be great gifts where there is no grace. The extraordinary gifts of the Holy Spirit were chiefly exercised in the public assemblies, where the Corinthians seem to have made displays of them, wanting in the spirit of piety, and of Christian love. While heathens, they had not been influenced by the Spirit of Christ. No man can call Christ Lord, with believing dependence upon him, unless that faith is wrought by the Holy Ghost. No man could believe with his heart, or prove by a miracle, that Jesus was Christ, unless by the Holy Ghost. There are various gifts, and various offices to perform, but all proceed from one God, one Lord, one Spirit; that is, from the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, the origin of all spiritual blessings. No man has them merely for himself. The more he profits others, the more will they turn to his own account. The gifts mentioned appear to mean exact understanding, and uttering the doctrines of the Christian religion; the knowledge of mysteries, and skill to give advice and counsel. Also the gift of healing the sick, the working of miracles, and to explain Scripture by a peculiar gift of the Spirit, and ability to speak and interpret languages. If we have any knowledge of the truth, or any power to make it known, we must give all the glory of God. The greater the gifts are, the more the possessor is exposed to temptations, and the larger is the measure of grace needed to keep him humble and spiritual; and he will meet with more painful experiences and humbling dispensations. We have little cause to glory in any gifts bestowed on us, or to despise those who have them not.

[johnlharrisr-blog]

[johnlharrisr-blog]

God Doesn’t Promise Ease or Invisibility

As Christians, we might be tempted by the lure of invisibility—the fabled cloak or ring that gives us the power to walk undetected among our friends or enemies. Although it is true that “making much of God” means making little of ourselves, we sometimes use this truth as an excuse to avoid proclaiming God’s work in our lives. Living under the radar is much more comfortable.

Paul never chose the comfortable route. As a former persecutor of the Church, Paul knew the danger of preaching Christ in the open—the chief priests had once empowered him to imprison all who publically professed Christ (Acts 9:14). Yet as a new convert, Paul loudly proclaimed the name of Christ to anybody within hearing distance: “And he was going in and going out among them in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. And he was speaking and debating with the Greek-speaking Jews, but they were trying to do away with him” (Acts 9:28–29).

Most of us know that life as a Christian won’t be a life of ease. But what is our image of a life of ease? Is it overstuffed chairs, butlers, and bulging bank accounts? Is it remaining silent when we should confess the name of Christ? Or is it judging from afar when we should be coming alongside people in their pain and brokenness? If we follow Paul’s brazen example, we will boldly and wisely share Christ in every possible circumstance.

Are you choosing invisibility? How can you boldly and wisely proclaim Christ?

Rebecca Van Noord