 Today is November 9th, one day after an election where Donald Trump was elected president of the United States. It is also a fact that he is president in large measure because he received over 80% of the Evangelical vote. Since I was one of those who went through the agony of eventually voting for our president-elect, I also feel very qualified to offer the following article on the other side of the election.
Voting for Mr. Trump was one of the most difficult and excruciating things I’ve ever done. In the end I did so primarily due to one issue – abortion. After watching former Secretary of State Clinton coolly and confidently support abortion up until the last minute before a child is born, while also stating that an unborn child has no rights whatsoever – that was the turning point for me. There was no sense of anything in her except great pride that we do this in America. Because Mr. Trump had made it clear that he would oppose abortion (albeit with a promise – not exactly the most trustworthy currency in an election) I chose to vote for him. I did so without a sense of great pride in my vote – without any kind of bravado – I simply did it to protect the unborn. Having said this – and having read far too many facebook posts from both sides that broke my heart after the election – I want to offer unsolicited advice to those who are evangelicals who voted for president-elect Trump. President-elect Trump needs our prayers (as does President Obama) as he faces the presidency. First and foremost, it is my opinion, based upon his actions and words, that we need to pray for this man’s salvation. I was never under any deception that he was or is a Christian – regardless of what the President of Liberty University says. This man needs to repent of sin and receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior – period. By the way, if that statement offends you, I believe all men and women need to repent and receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior because all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. If you are a “true evangelical” then this is THE issue for us ultimately – is he (or anyone else for that matter) someone who has come to understand that he is a sinner by choice and by nature – has come to understand that Jesus is the God-man who came and paid for sin by His death, burial, and resurrection – and has come to repentance over his sin and now has put his faith in Jesus Christ to pay for his sin and make him acceptable to God. President-elect Trump also needs our prayers to govern wisely as the chief executive and commander in chief over our armed forces. Ask anyone who has ever held this office, there is tremendous pressure and responsibility associated with it. And take it from someone who is only a father and pastor of a local church – the more authority you have – the greater the damage you can do by making unwise and ungodly decisions. My unwise choices affect the 14 people in my family – and at least 175-200 people who attend the fellowship I am honored to serve. Things like pride, ego, marital infidelity, foul language, caustic comments, and perverse treatment of women, are unwise and ungodly from a biblical perspective. Sorry if this offends you but I am a pastor who is responsible to teach God’s Word – and advance a godly and righteous lifestyle. We can support him in some ways – but we need to be clear that these actions and attitudes are unacceptable. Should we show our president-elect grace and love? Absolutely. But can we afford as evangelicals to just gloss over the clear elephant in the room when it comes to his character and ungodliness? If we do – we will lose the moral authority to speak to our society – especially those who opposed him in the election who need the gospel so badly. President-elect Trump – and our nation – need our prayers for healing and unity. Only someone who has lived under a rock for the last year and a half is unaware of the incredible rift that there is in our nation. He is not responsible alone for this rift – but this past election cycle only made us aware of how wide it is. I am painfully aware that much of this rift is due to vastly divergent worldviews. Both sides of this divide view the moral stances of the other as moral bankruptcy. He will face deep divides that will require wisdom, patience, and understanding to even begin to address. As an evangelical there are issues within our nation where I have to take a stand that is unpopular – very unpopular with those who oppose it. There are moral issues – issues about sexuality – issues about justice – issues about racism – issues about abortion and crisis pregnancies – issues about how to help those in financial need – so many issues that even trying to list them makes my head swim. What makes it worse is that currently any discourse about them has become so incendiary that basic communication (where we respect one another) seems almost impossible. We so quickly descend into sound bytes and insults at the drop of a hat. Oh how we need to move away from listening to the talking heads and talk radio and actually listen to one another once again. The rhetoric of the election has left us all battered and worn out emotionally. Pray that our President – and our president-elect can begin to heal the fractures – rather than make them worse. One final word though to those of us who are evangelicals – and it is a word of great warning. If we choose to swagger through the next several months before and after the inauguration we are going to see the gospel itself face a terrible backlash. If we act as if Mr. Trump has great moral authority after what we’ve learned about how he treats women and his own marriage – we will alienate a large group of women who need to hear the gospel. They will see our joy over his election as an endorsement of his immoral actions – and will turn a deaf ear to the message of the gospel. If we act as if it wasn’t a problem that he didn’t distance himself from the KKK and other white supremacist groups with the strongest words possible – we will alienate many in the black community. They will see our joy in his election as an affirmation of what they already see as systemic racism and will turn a deaf ear to the gospel. If we act as if Mr. Trump’s bravado and pride – and the many morally questionable insults toward his opponents – should be seen as just politics as normal – we should not be surprised to see a rejection of our gospel as if it is associated with such insults. If we don’t at least attempt to see the political discourse toned down from its new lows in foul language that should offend people’s sensibilities - too many will deduce that we have come to endorse of this kind of talk. They will mock us when we say that the Bible teaches us to reject “corrupt communication from our mouths.” They will see such statements as just another way we’ve embraced hypocrisy as Christians. This will, in turn, justify in their minds turning a similar deaf ear to whatever else we have to say about salvation and the gospel. I’ve already seen too many posts by those on the other side of the political divide who are saying that if Trump represents evangelicalism – they are done with it. Be careful precious saints of God – and be wise in the days ahead. Our attitudes and our demeanor can do much to either advance the gospel or turn people off to it. May God give us wisdom, especially in these days to prove ourselves true sons of God – who embrace both truth and our role to be peacemakers. THE most important thing is that we, as evangelicals, see that what our nation needs most is the grace of God in the gospel of Jesus Christ. These are the only things that will bring about the much-needed revival in the church and the even more-needed spiritual awakening among the lost. So that these things may come to our nation may God give us grace to be men and women wise enough to navigate such a time as this.
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 For the next couple of weeks I want to take a few moments to reiterate some very important principles by which we want to live and minister at Calvary Chapel. One might even call these things core principles and values that we hold.
This first of these core values we have is that we believe that there is only one way for sin to be forgiven - and that is through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Scriptures state this fact numerous times. Jesus *said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. John 14:6 (NASB) "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12 (NASB) "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." John 3:36 (NASB) For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time. 1 Timothy 2:5-6 (NASB) Therefore we hold as one of our core values that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the only means by which anyone can have their sins forgiven and be made righteous in the sight of God. We also hold that this salvation is through Jesus Christ alone, through faith alone, by grace alone. It is not Jesus Christ and baptism (which is the error of baptismal regeneration). It is not Jesus Christ and the church (and by that I mean ANY church - even ours). Permit me to unpack the rest of that previous statement. We believe that salvation is by faith alone. There are no works that we can do to merit or earn our salvation. Salvation is by faith alone - faith in what Jesus did through His perfect, sinless life - His substitutionary death (meaning He was our substitute on the cross - we deserved what happened there - yet He paid it for us) - and His glorious resurrection, by which God declared that He accepted what Jesus did to pay for sin and make sinners righteous in His sight. Faith is not just mental assent to these facts, but rather is a total commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It is a surrender on our part, where we lay down our own works as dead works - and our righteousness as filthy rags. We no longer trust in anything from ourselves - no religious standing or good works can make us righteous in God’s sight. The only thing God will accept for that work is what Jesus Christ did for us. Finally, let me explain what we mean when we use the phrase, “by grace alone.” This phrase has to do with whether we ourselves can do anything for our salvation. The answer to that is a resounding NO! We cannot do anything for our salvation. It was God alone who chose to save us - we had nothing to do with our salvation. Romans 5 describes God’s grace this way, For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. “ Romans 5:6-8 (NASB) The Word of God makes it clear that our state before God was that we were, “helpless.” There was nothing we could ever do - no amount of obedience to the Law - no amount of religious works - no amount of religious payments we could make that would ever bring us one millimeter closer to God. We had not just “messed up a little” with our sin. We had, “. . . fallen short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23 (NASB) Therefore as Ephesians chapter 2 puts it, after painting the bleakest picture possible in verses 1-3 about our condition before God, “but God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions - made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved). We believe that we are saved solely because of the grace and infinite mercy of God. Therefore no one may boast of having done anything whatsoever to deserve their salvation. We are infinite debtors to God for His indescribable gift - His marvelous, matchless, incredible grace. This core value also comes with a core responsibility. We believe because there is salvation in no one else by Jesus Christ, we are responsible to take the gospel of His salvation to the ends of the earth. Our amazing salvation comes with a very real responsibility. If there is only one way of salvation - then all other religious views that do not come to God through Jesus Christ alone, by faith alone, through grace alone - are false. In the end all their religious fervor will amount to nothing - and they will face the wrath and judgment of God. This places on us a very serious task of proclaiming the gospel to every nation, tribe, people, and tongue (which by the way is Scripture). If our core value of belief in the gospel of Jesus Christ for salvation, does not lead to a core practice of taking the gospel across the street, across the city, across the state, nation, and world - then we are being very disobedient to the gospel, as well as very selfish toward the rest of the world who desperately need to hear of it. Saints - we at Calvary Chapel of Jonesboro are very, very serious about the gospel of Jesus Christ and its implications. We know that this Core Value is at the heart of all that we do - and indeed is at the heart of who we are as a church. I urge you to consider what has been said here. Think about it and meditate on what is means - for you - for our fellowship - and for the world around us. If we will not just adopt such a Core Value as a statement of faith - but rather as the “reactor core” of our faith - I believe that God will revive us and begin to move among us in powerful ways. I believe those ways will include a reviving of our own hearts as we embrace the truths of the gospel - and a reviving of our passion for the world around us as we grasp the ramifications of the gospel.  These were originally shared on Facebook - and there were requests to re-publish them on the church website.
Post #1 - Thought a lot since yesterday and the drama surrounding marriage. There is a storm coming (actually, already is here). There is going to be a battle between who will have "civil rights" when this is done. That is because the Bible has always held homosexual activity to be sin - and will not change regardless of how people voted on Prop 8 in California vote or what the Supreme Court decides. Therefore if homosexuality is considered a civil right, then the Biblical view of homosexuality will be deemed illegal - in free speech rights - in the hiring of church personnel - and eventually in what is taught legally in churches. Those who think this is extreme need to remember that when abortion was first argued in the early 1970's wise people said it would one day be available up to the moment of birth and for things like sex selection - and they were considered extreme. After a comment from a friend in my hometown about how my children would react if they were homosexuals - and that they probably would not come to me - but suffer shame and misery silently - this post was made. Post #2 - Just to let you know, although it was not homosexuality, I've had times with my children where they were walking in some pretty serious sin (from a biblical standpoint). Rather than wait for them to come to me - my sweet wife and I lovingly, yet firmly and boldly approached them. We did so making sure or several things . . . First, that they knew we had sinned in the past (my past involved actually hating Christians and Christianity - and a great deal of sexual immorality). Second, we assured them that although we were crushed and disappointed with their current choices - we would NEVER stop loving them. We assured them that there was nothing they would ever do that would make us reject them as persons - or as our children. Our problem was with choices they were making outside of God's will. Third - we took the time to sit down with them and share the Scriptures - specifically what they were doing that was outside of God's will. We did so unapologetically and with boldness (our confidence arising from God's Word - not from any pseudo-religious standing we thought we might have as parents or me as a pastor). Afterward, we assured them of two things - we would continue to side with God's Word on the moral issue - and second that we loved them very much. Post #3 - My original post was about the political ramifications of the current debate. I have known several people who chose a homosexual lifestyle - have loved them - shared with them - and continue to affirm my love for them personally. God does not approve of their homosexuality - even as He did not approve of my fornication before I came to Christ (and He wouldn't approve of it now either!) There are consequences for a nation when they choose to codify a sinful choice as legal. BUT - as a pastor and disciple of Jesus Christ - my responsibility is to love the person who is sinning, tell them the truth, and let them know that as a fellow sinner - I found grace in the gospel of Jesus Christ. God gave it to me when I responded to the conviction of the Holy Spirit (Who used Scripture to show me my sin) in repentance from my heterosexual immorality (as well as breaking His Law multitudes of times in ways that blew my mind). They can receive the same grace from God as well. The one thing they will have to do, though, is see their choice (homosexuality is a choice - not a DNA driven lifestyle) as sin and be willing to respond in repentance as they turn from it, and faith in Jesus Christ as the only way to pay for their sin and be right with God. Post #4 - Still thinking about the homosexual marriage debate . . . As Biblical Christians we have an interesting number of roles to live out in regard to these days. First and foremost we have our relationship with God through Jesus Christ. That we walk out loving and knowing Him - and do so with humility - always grasping that He first loved us and drew us to Himself due to His immeasurable mercy and grace. Second, we have a dual responsibility to our world which means we will walk a fine line in regard to how the world works. The first of these dual responsibilities is to proclaim the gospel of God's grace in Jesus Christ! That means that we cannot allow the political or social discourse to become so toxic that we are rejected because of our political beliefs alone. The first offense in our lives needs to be the offense of the cross and the gospel. If people are offended with us - it is because we love them enough to tell them of their condition - their true condition of falling short of the glory of God. Here is where we have to be careful that our political discourse does not make it seem like certain sins are "more sinful" that others. Sin is sin - and it all separates us from God - and requires of us repentance and faith in Jesus Christ to be forgiven and to receive Christ's righteousness as a gift so we can stand before God. In regard to sin - I am no different than the homosexual - for we both have sinned against God and we both need pure, unadulterated grace that only comes in the gospel. This ALWAYS has to be our first message to the world. BUT, we also have a second role that comes into focus in times like these - and that is a prophetic one. Especially in a democratic republic like ours - we play a part in our governing process. Therefore when our nation begins to turn from its godly heritage (which is has been going on for probably 60-70 years now - I am not one to say that this is the big issue - we've made choices for many years now - racism and inequality for blacks from the end of the Civil War until the Civil Rights movement of the early 1960's, the free love movement of the 1960's which popularized heterosexual immorality i.e. sex outside of monogamous, heterosexual marriage, abortion in the 1970's, the love of money in the 80's and 90's, and now homosexuality from the 80's to the present) - again, when our nation turns from its godly heritage and wants to codify as law what God calls sin, it is our responsibility to prophetically speak God's Word to our society - not that we predict the future or write new Scripture (which is unscriptural) - but we speak the morality that is in the Bible - boldly and unapologetically to our society. We lovingly, yet strongly state where we are going - and where it will lead. We do so hopefully knowing that it is most likely the case that we will be rejected - mocked - and called any number of names. Yet we do this for God's glory - and for love of the people in the world - and never for any kind of vindictiveness. We remember where WE came from - and that we needed grace and truth to come to Christ too. Finally - we do this for God's glory - knowing that Jesus made it clear that His Kingdom is not of this world. There is a strong possiblity that we will be misrepresented, cursed, spoken evil of - and maybe even arrested and put to death eventually for our stand with God's Word - and with the gospel of Jesus Christ. If I remember rightly - our Founder and Savior was cursed, mocked, arrested and eventually crucified for speaking the truth (wonder what week that happened in history? - oh, yeah, this week!) Just one last admonition for my brothers and sisters in Christ. Hold fast to the Word of God - to the testimony of Jesus Christ - to the gospel of God's salvation - and when you do have to speak prophetically to the culture - SPEAK THE TRUTH IN LOVE! Tough to do - I know - but when we do have to speak prophetically to our culture and our government - we do not want to do so in such a way that will disqualify us from sharing the more important message of the gospel later! (Yeah - just looked at the length of this - and I am a preacher - HA! - and a long-winded one at that!) Love all of you - and especially those I have the honor of ministering to weekly at Calvary Chapel of Jonesboro! This article the first in a series of studies I am doing in the book of Hebrews. They focus on the exhortations in Hebrews that come throughout the book. It was originally written to the men of Calvary Chapel in one of my email blasts for encouragement.
For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it. For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just penalty, how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? -Hebrews 2:1-3 Men . . . God has just said in chapter 1 of Hebrews that Jesus is greater than all the angels. He has said to us that Jesus is God - the exact representation of God's very essence and being! We are not following some mere spiritual being - or a leader of a movement. We have the opportunity to know, love, and follow God Himself! Now, having said this, there is an exhortation. That is how Hebrews works as a book - there is teaching about the supremacy of Jesus to everything - and after each teaching there is a call - an exhortation to walk with God. These exhortations are so helpful to me - and that I why I feel the need to walk through them to exhort you as the men of my congregation - as well as men that I work with in discipleship. Let's take a look at our first exhortation! Because we are not dealing with just a religious view - or a religious figure - or a spiritual being of some interest - we need to pay closer attention to what we've heard of God's Word and God's plan and purposes! We are dealing with God - One Who is immeasurable in power, might, glory, majesty, wisdom, goodness, grace, love, and (and this is part of the point of Hebrews) wrath for the lost and discipline for the saved! That is why we need to pay MUCH COSER ATTENTION! We are all guys here - so let's be honest! We are easily distracted - especially when someone is talking to us. There are times when my wife and daughters have to do something to get my attention because I am too focused on the television, computer, a book, a spot on the wall - you know what I'm referring to here. It is so easy for us to "DRIFT AWAY" in our thinking. Isn't it awesome to know that our God understands this weakness in us! He knows that we tend toward distraction. He also knows that the devil and the world system are experts as drawing us away in our thinking and our focus. The whole advertising world is geared to pulling your focus away from whatever you were thinking - to what they are telling you to think about - and eventually think you can't live without! Drifting can be very dangerous men. My family visited Niagra Falls when I was young. We went to the falls and read and heard of the stories of those who went over the Falls in barrels and various kinds of contraptions. The most frightening story of all though was of a young boy who went over the falls in nothing more than a life jacket - and survived. The story is frightening because it began with a father and son fishing trip on the Niagra River. The two of them got distracted fishing and did not realize that their boat had crossed a very dangerous barrier on the river. The father struggled to get the engine started - and could not because of the rough waters. Soon they were careening down the river without any control over the boat. The father furiously paddled at an angle to get to a shoreline, hoping to make it before the falls. His valiant efforts were to no avail as the boat capsized in the midst of the angry current. He grabbed his son and with every ounce of strength in him tried to reach the short swimming. He did not reach the shore - and was killed as he and his son were cast over the edge of the Candaian side of the falls. Miraculously the boy was relatively unharmed - with a lot of bruises and a few cuts. That story is a constant reminder to me to be very careful about drifting in my life. It is an easy thing to do - and it usually leads to danger when we do. MEN OF GOD - are you drifting spiritually? If you are - here are a few of the symptoms. #1 - You are probably not in the Word - and if you are - you are not exactly listening to God when you read it. Here is what I mean by this - and unfortunately I speak from experience. When I am drifting - I'm distracted from the Word. Either I am not reading it at all - or - I am reading it to mark it off some kind of list of things I'm supposed to do. There is little "hearing God" at all going on as I read. This will eventually lead to me reading less - or just stop reading at all. #2 - You are making "little compromises" in your life. If you are drifting - there are "little compromises" that are being made from time to time. These don't seem like huge things, but when you first do them there is just a twinge of conviction as you realize, "Probably shouldn't do that - but - ah, what's the problem - no harm, no foul." Here is the problem though - these little compromises - will lead up to bigger ones in the future. They also dull your spiritual senses over time to the conviction of the Spirit. #3 - You are not really aware of the tremendous danger of sin. God warns us in Hebrews that the word given by angels received a just discipline and punishment - and that those commands were unalterable. Do we realize that the "little compromises" - if they involve being disobedient - aren't so little? Each one comes with a cost - and each one is neglecting the fact that we will be held accountable for our actions. The drifting of our hearts involves just thinking that sin is not that big of an issue - when it really is! David's first sin with Bathsheba was not adultery. The first step was just wanting to relax and take it easy - when he should have been going to war. That little compromise led to him compromising by not turning away when he saw Bathsheba bathing. That compromise then led to him asking about her - then calling her - then having sex with her - then her getting pregnant - the cover-up - killing Uriah and a bunch of other guys who got killed being dumb in war on purpose. Could David have ever imagined that the "little compromise" of being lazy and not diligent as king - would have led to all this!? NEVER! But that is what "drifting" does to us spiritually! We drift - and we think it is not that big of a deal - and then - we find ourselves in the rapids of the river - then, over the falls! Sin is always, always, always dangerous - deadly dangerous! Anything that deadens our thoughts on this matter - is DEADLY ITSELF! #4 - You are not as excited or moved by your salvation. Hebrews says here that we should realize what a great salvation we have. The phrase is this, ". . . how can we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?" What God is saying to us is that our salvation is GREAT! The God we serve . . . is GREAT! The judgment and wrath we escaped . . . GREAT! The amount of sin forgiven . . . GREAT! How deep the change should be in our hearts . . . GREAT! And the list can go on and on! But when we are drifting - all that "greatness" just seems to become - ho-hum to us. It is not that we are not grateful for salvation . . . it is just that we are not all that convinced any longer that it was that big a deal - or that our danger was all that . . . dangerous - or that the joy and ultimate satisfaction in knowing and walking with God is . . . all that ultimate any longer. David prayed in Psalm 51 - restore to me the joy of my salvation. That is what we are missing - any real joy or sense of greatness in our salvation. So . . . are you drifting? If you are - consider Jesus - Who He is - how much greater He is than even angels. Consider Who is talking to you when you come to Scripture - and fellowship with Him! Consider how not concentrating and focusing on what He says may be leading to "little compromises" that are getting bigger over time. Consider if you consider all sin very dangerous or not. Consider if you are not so moved by your salvation as you used to be. If these things are happening to you - SNAP OUT OF IT BRO! There is a very real danger that you face! Your guilty of "spiritual drifting" - and that can cost way more than you ever imagined. Maybe now your just a litle off course. The problem is that the river gets rougher as it gets closer to the Falls. There is still time to wake up - snap out of the drifting - and get back on course. Don't wait until the river's current grabs you and takes you over the Falls. And if you're further down the river than you think - cry to God for help! Call out to brothers to throw you a line from the shoreline - and reel you in! All these things you can do - just don't sit there and continue to drift! The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. Zephaniah 3:17
I want you to listen today so that you can hear something. In order to hear what I want you to hear – you will have to pay attention to what is happening in the spirit world. If you are not careful to do this – you may miss hearing this wonderful song. When was the last time someone sang because of you? Some women have the joy of having a troubadour come beneath their window and serenade them with music and song. When this happens, the woman is most often touched by the gesture – and she feels very loved. But not every woman is fortunate enough to have someone do this for her. I read a passage today that pretty much blew my mind – and made me know that I am very loved. Please note that I avoided the phrase, “felt like I am loved,” because it was wholly inappropriate for what happened. I KNEW I WAS LOVED! Here is the kicker, though . . . YOU CAN KNOW TOO! The prophet Zephaniah spoke of something God was doing – and would do. He was working wonderfully with His people – and He was “saving” them as a result! What a glorious thing this was – and still is! But even more glorious than this is how God reacts to His “saved ones” in whom He is working. There are two sounds I want you to hear – and the fact of their occurrence is verified here by the prophet Zephaniah. The first is that the God who saved you is rejoicing over you with great gladness! There is something you need to hear – God is rejoicing over His saving work in your life. As you grow in grace, as you grow in your understanding of Who He is, as you grow in your faith, and as He sanctifies you more and more (and this is even as you struggle and fail and have difficulty) God rejoices continually in what is happening in your heart and life! He is thrilled over the ongoing changes that are happening in you. But there is more – and this is what truly amazes me. God sings over you! Remember the beginning of this article? The prophet Zephaniah revealed to the people of Israel – and to all those who would experience God’s salvation in the future – that God sings over us. For those of you who maybe doubt God’s love – He is not singing to blues either. The word used here is very instructive to us. The word for singing here is “ranan.” This is a Hebrew word that means a ringing cry, a loud shout, or loud, almost rambunctious singing. The idea behind the singing and shouting is that jubilation is at the core of it. God sings for joy – filled with jubilation and excitement over how He saves us! He is rejoicing because of His grace. We read in Ephesians 1 that the marvelous salvation God has given us should be seen in the context of “the praise of the glory of His grace!” That is what is happening here. God is singing and shouting jubilantly not because of some great thing in us prior to salvation. He is singing and shouting because of the very glory of His grace given to us. He wants to sing for joy because how we’ve been redeemed – and how that redemption reveals the love and the true character of God. Oh, what a thrill to see grace at work, and it is such a thrill that God Himself is moved to song over it – and He sings over us as that grace is revealed in our salvation and transformation. I remember reading that the angels sing and shout for joy when a sinner repents. This is even more awesome – that God Himself sings all through the process of our salvation. I want to offer a word of great encouragement to all those reading this. God loves you! He loved you enough to provide blood – the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ to pay for your sin. He loved you enough to give you, as a gift, the very righteousness of His Son so you could be acceptable in His sight. He loves you throughout the rest of your life as He sanctifies you - drawing you to Himself – changing and transforming you by His grace. He loves you and longs for the day when faith shall be sight – when the very presence of sin will be taken away at your glorification. He loves you so much that He sings loudly with shouts of joy over the salvation He watches at work in you. So the next time you wonder how God feels about you – oh, dear saint of God, listen. Don’t listen for what you can hear with your physical ear. Listen with the ears of your heart – listen with your spirit – read the Word of God, Zephaniah 3:17 especially, but read with understanding and grace the glorious truth of His singing. Listen for you will hear the exalted Lord of the universe sing of the grace that has been lavishly applied to you. He sings for joy – shouts with great gladness. He does so because more than you can know, more than you can imagine, and more than you can ever comprehend . . . He loves you! PHYSICAL AND SPIRITUAL CREATION
How God made the world shows how He wants to make you a new person. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1 One basic difference in the physical world is between space & matter. But, matter exists in & with space. A full container must have space that is being filled. Spiritually, there is also heaven & earth. The spiritual & fleshly (physical) are different, but in harmony. Heaven & earth can exist together. The Spiritual God is not against physical things, but wants people to know the true purpose in and beyond the physical. But, a fleshly mind can’t see past the physical. “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” Genesis 1:2. At first, the physical world was disordered, useless, empty & dark. But, God wasn’t finished. God would not only bring light, but also usefulness, order and fullness. Moral evil brings spiritual uselessness, disorder, emptiness & darkness into human lives. God’s Spirit hovered over the disorderly waters. We also need God’s Spirit to come over our chaotic hearts. “And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness.” Genesis 1:3-4. Unlike heaven & earth, light and dark are not in harmony, but in contrast. They can’t be truly together or one in the other. However much light there is, there is exactly not that much darkness. They are forever separate. Light doesn’t fill darkness, but destroys it. So it is with good & evil. “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5) God is never for evil. He is always against it. Evil cannot be with Him. Evil is not equal in power to the light of God, but is like a shadow that must be sheltered from light to exist. God allows evil a place to exist, not because He likes it or can’t destroy it, but shows that light is superior to darkness. And God gives more than light. God gave order and fullness to the universe and made many wonderful things (see Genesis 1). There is meaning & purpose in God’s creation. Land and sea can represent what is stable (reliable) and what is not. Different kinds of life were made for different purposes. God gave plants to animals & people for food (Genesis 1:29).1 People were made in God’s image (likeness) to rule over animals and the earth (Genesis 1:26, 28). God cares for all creation, but people are especially important & especially responsible for how they honor Him and treat each other and His creation. A fictional hero was told, “With great power comes great responsibility!” Jesus said, “Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required” (Luke 12:48). But, people have misused the power given to them. Since evil came into the world by human choice, God is not pleased when we dishonor Him and treat each other and the world badly. God promises to have complete victory over evil and to restore all things by making a new heaven & earth where everything is good. In the new creation, the separation between light and dark will be complete. The new creation will have no night and no more sea (Revelation 21:1, 25; 22:5). There will be no evil or instability in the new creation. Right now, light and dark “take turns” in the same world with the coming of each day and night. Likewise in this world, people experience both good and evil. But, those who come to God will inherit a world that is only good with no evil. But, all who stay away from God and cling to evil will go into a place of eternal darkness and pain and enjoy no good. But, how can we come to God and have His light now and forever? “For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2 Corinthians 4:6). The light that destroys spiritual darkness is to know the glory of God. God is all beautiful, wise, good, powerful & necessary. God needs nothing & no one, but everything & everyone needs God.2 One who does not know that God meets every need is in great darkness. God’s glory is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. Jesus taught people and showed them God’s great love. Jesus went around doing good, healing sicknesses, raising people from the dead and forcing evil spirits (fallen angels) to go away. But, most of all He defeated guilt, punishment and the power of death by dying on the cross and rising from the dead. Everyone needs light, order, purpose & fullness, whether they realize it or not. Please ask God to show you what those things really are and to bring them into your life through Jesus Christ. (Bible quotes from ESV) 1 Before evil entered the world, all animals and people were vegetarian (Genesis 1:29-30). Eating meat is allowed by God until He brings the restoration of creation. Recently Joel Osteen did an interview with Wolf Blitzer on CNN. During the interview Blitzer asked Osteen whether he viewed Mitt Romney, a possible Republican candidate for president, as a Christian. Osteen’s answer is a sad example of the lack of biblical discernment that is practiced in our post-modern Christian community. Osteen said, “When I hear Mitt Romney say that he believes that Jesus is the Son of God, that he’s the Christ, raised from the dead, that he’s his Savior, that’s good enough for me.” The pastor also went on to say that he wants to be “inclusive” and welcoming to those who claim they accept Christ. Osteen also stated in the interview that despite some differences, he sees Mormons “as brothers in Christ.”
Let’s look at these statements with a little biblical discernment. Mormon doctrine teaches that Jesus and Satan were spirit brothers and sons of God before the spirit of Jesus was given a body by Mary in Bethlehem. The Mormon “Book of Moses” presents Satan and Jesus as contending for the privilege of taking a body of flesh in order to become the redeemer, with Jesus winning the contest. [See Joseph Smith, Pearl of Great Price, Book of Moses 4:1-4.] Mormonism also teaches that Jesus was the physical son of God the Father and Mary, and that there is nothing in His life more than what is attainable by anyone else. The Word of God teaches something radically different. We learn that Jesus is God eternally, not just a spirit brother who won the contest to become our redeemer. Mormons hold that Jesus is little more than an angelic being who won a sort of WWF contest with Satan so that he could get a body and be the redeemer. Had Satan won this “redeemer match” . . . he would have been our savior! What a horrible perversion of biblical truth! Jesus Christ is THE creator (John chapter 1) and He created Lucifer—who subsequently fell and was cast out of heaven when he desired to be God. The Word of God also teaches that Jesus was NOT just the physical son of God the Father and Mary. He was physically a man—yet was God of very God as well. Unfortunately pastor Osteen has not grasped this radical difference. Therefore he has validated Gov. Romney as a Christian without adequately questioning just which Jesus he received. The maze of Mormonism is solved by having them define the Christian-sounding words they use—for they often have radically different meanings than those used by classic Christianity. Truly this is where we learn that the devil is in the details (especially when it comes to who else was in the devil’s family!) But, as pastor Osteen said, he is far more interested in inclusion. But inclusion without examination will lead to a fatal dilution of true biblical doctrine. But that is what happens when we do not practice biblical discernment. We tend to value inclusiveness rather than truth. Yet from what I read in the Bible about the final judgment—God is not exactly inclusive. He doesn’t just want us to “get along,” He commands us to “get right.” That is not possible with a Jesus who is the spirit brother of Satan. That requires a Jesus who is the God-man. It requires that Jesus be God of very God, sinless, spotless, and able to die as a payment for our sins. That, though, requires more discernment than pastor Osteen is willing to obtain. This requires asking questions - hard questions - discerning questions - questions that separate - questions that promote truth. It requires discriminating between the Jesus of Scripture and the Jesus of Mormonism. It is my hope that one day Gov. Romney meets a pastor who is far more concerned with his eternal destiny than in getting kudos from the folks at CNN for his inclusiveness. Ours is a world of compromise. That is because ours is a world in which no human being (outside of the God-man Jesus Christ) can claim absolute authority, absolute knowledge, or to be honest—any kind of absolute anything. Thus we have to compromise with one another on things—trying to not take an extreme position—but finding “middle ground” upon which to work. The interesting thing though is that with God and the issues of salvation and grace—there is no middle ground—only extremes. Let me explain this statement further this week.
Charles Simeon, a preacher from the 1800’s wrote the following. “The truth is not in the middle and not in one extreme, but in both extremes.” In making this comment he was referring to Romans 11:22. This verse says, “Behold then, the kindness and the severity of God. . . .” When it comes to the matters of salvation—sin and its consequences—grace and the manifestation of God’s grace—God’s response is extreme wrath and extreme kindness. His response to our sin is not something somewhere between wrath and kindness. His response to sin is wrath. The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against ALL ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. That is not a compromised position—it is an extreme one. This is not to say God is acting wrongly—for He is not—truly we deserve the fullness of His wrath. But when God grants to us salvation through Jesus Christ—again there is not a managed compromise—He offers complete forgiveness and grants to us the very righteousness of His Son. When He had to remedy sin, He did not make any compromise. He had to have His Son bear the full punishment for sin—and had to pour out the full measure of His wrath. Grace is not about compromise—it is about the extremes of what HAD to happen for God’s wrath to be satisfied—and for us to be made righteous. It is about understanding the very nature of salvation itself. We infinitely cheapen grace when we do not note and grasp these extremes. We try to make God infinitely less than Who He truly is when we try to take the “edges” off of the gospel. The gospel, dear saints, is an extreme thing. It was an extreme act by an infinite God to redeem absolutely ruined mankind from an infinite fall into ultimate rebellion. It is love without bounds reaching down wickedness without measure and choosing to absolutely redeem it by paying a price beyond our imagination. Oh saints of God, do not cheapen grace by compromising the extremes of this magnificent act of God that brings us the glory of our salvation! |
Biblical ArticlesMost of these articles are taken from the Calvary Courier, a weekly newsletter that is sent to the folks who attend Calvary Chapel Jonesboro. Due to the response to these articles, we've decided to print some of them which proved to be very helpful to God's people at the fellowship. 
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