There’s No Place Like Home

February 23rd, 2012 by marcus

There’s No Place Like Home

Jeremiah 50:6–7

Additional Scripture Readings: Psalm 32:7; Psalm 84:1–4

The couch doesn’t match the drapes. The master bedroom is furnished with a jumble of antiques and garage-sale finds. The dishes, chipped and tired, were passed down from Grandma. Out front, a collection of trikes and bikes sprawl across a patch of grass. Below the front door lies a cheery mat reading in embellished cursive, “WELCOME.” And that’s just how we feel inside this well-worn house. It might seem strange to some passersby. But it makes sense to us. Here is peace and safety because here is home and there’s no place like it.

Do you have such a haven? Jeremiah talks about God as being our resting place, our pasture. In his presence, we find the safety and peace we long for. Whether in a palatial, well-coordinated home or in a humble bungalow, we can find the home of our dreams when we find it in God. When we find rest in the presence of God, we know for certain that there’s no place like home.

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Did People Witness to the Fact That Jesus Was God?

February 23rd, 2012 by marcus

Did People Witness to the Fact That Jesus Was God?

Acts 5:29–32

Though some critics have called Jesus merely a prophet or a good man, many people were witnesses of his divine identity. In Acts 5:31 Peter declared that Jesus is “Prince and Savior” and that he is seated at God’s right hand and able to forgive the sins of the very people who had crucified him. Peter clearly believed that Jesus is God. In Matthew 16:15–16, Jesus asked Peter about this very issue: “Who do you say I am?” and Peter replied, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” And the disciple Thomas, coming face to face with the resurrected Jesus, confessed, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).

Even Gentiles proclaimed Jesus’ divinity. When Jesus died, the sky grew dark and the earth shook. Seeing all this happen, the Roman centurion and soldiers who carried out the crucifixion exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:54).

In Mark 2:1–12 (see also Matthew 9:1–8; Luke 5:17–26), Jesus not only forgave a paralyzed man’s sins but also proved his authority to forgive by curing the man of his paralysis. Jesus ministered to this man publicly, in front of many witnesses and in full view of the hostile Pharisees. Although the Pharisees rejected Jesus’ claim despite the evidence, those whose spiritual eyes were opened believed there was no room for doubt: Jesus was (and is) the Son of God.

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Spirit Life: Enlivened human beings and the drama of the cosmos

February 22nd, 2012 by marcus

Spirit Life: Enlivened human beings and the drama of the cosmos

Romans 8

Romans 8:31 If God is for us, who can be against us?

The Holy Spirit is the theme of chapter 8, and in it Paul gives a panoramic survey of how the Spirit can make a difference in a person’s life.

In the first place, Paul sets to rest the nagging problem of sin he has just raised so forcefully. “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,” he announces (Romans 8:1). Through his life and death, Jesus Christ has taken care of the sin problem for all time. (In Romans 4:6, Paul borrows a word from banking to explain the process. God “credits” Jesus’ own perfection to our accounts, so that we are judged not by our behavior, but by his.)

Once again Paul reminds us of the best news of all: Jesus Christ did not stay dead. Paul marvels that the very same power that raised Christ from the dead can also enliven us. A life-giver, the Spirit can break the gloomy, deathlike pattern described in Romans 7.

Worth the Struggle

To be sure, the Spirit does not remove all problems. The very titles the Bible applies to the Spirit—Intercessor, Helper, Advocate, Comforter—imply that there will be problems. But “the God within” can do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.

Paul never minimizes suffering; after all, his own life has included beatings, imprisonment, shipwrecks, assassination attempts and chronic illness. But he insists with absolute conviction that future rewards will outweigh all present sufferings. Just as Olympic athletes endure years of practice, discipline and pain to achieve the goal of winning a gold medal, so, too, the Christian’s life on Earth may involve many difficulties (Romans 8:22–23). But the glorious end result will make all the difficulties seem worthwhile.

The way Paul tells it, what happens in believers is the central drama of history: “The creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed” (Romans 8:19). Somehow spiritual victories within us will help bring about the liberation and healing of a fallen creation. The apostle can hardly contain himself as he ponders these truths.

Romans 8 ends with a ringing declaration that nothing—absolutely, positively nothing—can ever separate us from God’s love. For Paul, this truth is a fact worth shouting about.

Life Questions

According to this passage, how can the Holy Spirit make a difference in your daily life?

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Wisdom in Creation

February 21st, 2012 by marcus

Wisdom in Creation

1 Kings 4:29–34

This passage is a celebration of God’s endowment of great wisdom upon Solomon. It also celebrates the broader theme of God’s ordering of creation according to a majestic, divine design. God has infused his wisdom, as it were, into the very structure of material reality. And he has equipped the human race, created in his image, with the ability (the intellectual machinery) to, as German mathematician Johann Kepler (1571–1630) said, “think God’s thoughts after him,” in order to develop creation’s potential (note especially 1Ki 4:32–33). We as God’s designated stewards have been called to faithfully and intelligently cultivate creation’s potential. God wants us to varying degrees, based on the particular aptitudes and strengths with which he has gifted each of us, to draw out the fruitfulness of creation through engineering, entrepreneurship, development, intellectual understanding, the arts and so forth.

Bible scholar J. Richard Middleton depicts God the Creator as both a grand architect and a consummate artist:

Superimposed on and integrated with the picture of God speaking creation into being is the metaphor of God as designer and artificer, constructing with care, attention, obvious pleasure, and self-investment (as a good artist) a coherent, harmoniously functioning cosmos, according to a well-thought-out plan. This characterization of God as maker or artisan is rhetorically embodied in the superb literary artistry of the creation story, which moves from a preparatory statement in [Genesis] 1:1–2, through six “days” of God’s work, to the seventh climactic day (2:1–3), when God “rested” (šābat), satisfied, having completed his work.

Middleton goes on to articulate part of his understanding of the complexity of the imago Dei (“image of God”) as it pertains to humanity’s interactions with the created world:

[C]areful exegesis of Genesis 1:26–28 … does indeed suggest that the imago Dei refers to human rule, that is, the exercise of power on God’s behalf in creation. This may be articulated in two different, but complementary ways. Said one way, humans are like God in exercising royal power on earth. Said in another way, the divine ruler delegated to humans a share in his rule of the earth. Both are important ways of expressing the meaning of the imago Dei. The first expression—the notion of likeness to the divine ruler—suggests the image as “representational,” indicating a similarity or analogy between God and humans. The second expression—the delegation of, or sharing in, God’s rule—suggests the image as “representative,” designating the responsible office and task entrusted to humanity in administering the earthly realm on God’s behalf. But these expressions are not simply alternative; they are integrally connected.

Think About It

  • How is God’s wisdom a part of our physical reality?
  • In what ways are intellectual pursuits a part of God’s calling?
  • How can people steward God’s creation through understanding it?

Pray About It

Lord, you have a unique calling for each of us. Those of us who seek and pursue the wisdom found in your creation—in any vocation or avocation of life—need your guidance to fulfill our role in your grand design.

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A Scar Shaped Like Your Picture

February 21st, 2012 by marcus

A Scar Shaped Like Your Picture

Isaiah 49:8–18

Recommended Reading: Psalm 13:1–6; John 20:24–28; Romans 8:35–39

For whatever reason, from the time they’re little boys guys like to show off their scars. A polite conversation with any average group of guys can suddenly turn into some bizarre, male-bonding ritual. First someone tells a story about crashing his mountain bike and the resulting scar on his knee. Then another guy regales the group about the scar left from his shoulder surgery. Another points out the scar on his hand and tells about his hunting-knife accident. Before you know it, the whole group is showing off their scars and relating the incidents behind the wounds.

Today’s passage tells us that God likes to do this as well—not to one-up anyone else with another great story but to reassure us of his devotion to his people.

In truth, there is something interesting about scars: They follow us wherever we go, and the stories behind them remind us of significant people and events in our lives.

The people of Israel had certainly wandered all over the place—both physically and spiritually. After the nation had faced devastation, occupation and deportation by King Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian armies, the people of Israel wondered, “God, have you forgotten us?” God answered through the prophet Isaiah: “I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands” (Isaiah 49:15–16).

Did you know that God bears a scar on his hand in the shape of your picture? Of course, because God is a spirit, he doesn’t have a literal hand. But you’re so present on God’s mind that it’s as though he has engraved your image on the palms of his hands.

Perhaps the fury of whatever storm you’re facing dims God’s voice and blurs his presence. You might ask, “God, have you forgotten me?” How can he be present in the midst of your turmoil? But regardless of the storm’s intensity, you remain in the forefront of God’s thoughts. He’s thinking of you, sustaining you, comforting you, giving you strength. He doesn’t mentally check out. Whatever challenge you’re facing isn’t the worst thing that could happen to you. The worst that could happen would be for God to forget about you.

But he hasn’t yet, and he never will.

To Take Away

  • Do you find it hard to accept that God knows your needs and cares for you to the extent that you’re always on his mind? Why?
  • What events in your life have caused you to ask, “God, have you forgotten me?”
  • How can you foster a deeper and more constant trust in the reality that God is always present with you?

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You Gotta Laugh

February 20th, 2012 by marcus

You Gotta Laugh

Proverbs 31:10–31

Oh, the unique challenges awaiting the woman approaching middle age! Imagine waking up one morning to find your face sort of lying in a pool beside you. Your once tight abs have been replaced with something rather squishy that has to be gathered up (starting somewhere around the knees) and tucked into industrial–strength, control-top pantyhose. Imagine suddenly realizing that your thighs almost create sparks when you walk. Your biceps are so deflated that in a strong breeze you worry that they might actually make a flapping sound. Maybe you don’t have to imagine it. Maybe you’re living it.

God might have knit these bodies together out of a more “permanent press” kind of fabric. He could have built in a kind of stretch that wouldn’t lose its elasticity around middle age. But he didn’t. And through our aging and all the challenges we live through, he teaches us what’s really important.

The Proverbs 31 “wife of noble character” got in on that teaching. She could “laugh at the days to come” (verse 25). Her future held flabby abs and combustible thighs too. But she could laugh. Why?

The passage describes a woman who seems just about perfect. Many Bible teachers call her the “virtuous woman,” and she makes Martha Stewart look like a novice. She keeps her husband happy; she works eagerly; she gets up early and stays up late. She gives to others generously, makes her own clothes, is an eloquent teacher, and her kids love her. A woman like this “who can find,” indeed! She is a formidable pattern, an intimidating example.

But look past the outward layer. Look deeper. You’ll see a woman of wisdom who fully understood what was really important. She understood what it meant to work hard and to serve God with her whole heart. She understood that everything of consequence was wrapped up in him. Serving others came as a natural extension of serving him.

There’s only one metamorphosis that matters—and it will keep every woman eternally beautiful. It’s a metamorphosis of the heart. The Scripture says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Having a heart of unselfish service that has been transformed by Christ—that’s what’s important. And that is what gives us the ability to laugh at the future . . . even if it involves flabby thighs.

Reflection

  1. When your attention to appearance gets out of whack and your focus is more on looks than on eternal things, how might “fearing the Lord” turn your focus back to where it needs to be?
  2. What are some of the ways the woman in Proverbs 31:10–31 served others?
  3. How many different types of people did her daily life and ministry touch? How might you underestimate the many lives you touch each day?

Proverbs 31:25, 30
She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come . . . Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

Related Readings

Psalm 139:1–24; Romans 12:1–13; Galatians 6:9–10; 1 Peter 3:1–6

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Can someone who is saved fall away?

February 20th, 2012 by marcus

Can someone who is saved fall away?

2 Peter 2:20–22

There are basically two positions on this question. Some say the people in these verses were saved, but by falling away, lost their salvation. They support their view by observing that: (1) These people had a relationship with Christ; (2) they had escaped corruption; (3) they had since become entangled again, worse than before. They also see the tragic results as reasons why the New Testament warnings against falling away are so vital (see, for example, Gal 5:4; Heb 6:4–6).

Others disagree and see salvation as an irrevocable gift. They believe people can appear to be saved—they know about Jesus and that their lifestyles appear to improve. But this view concludes that such changes are merely superficial and that such people were never truly saved in the first place. Those who hold this position see a distinction between genuine Christians and those who merely dabble in Christianity for a time (see, for example, Ro 8:38–39; 1Jn 2:19).

A third view incorporates elements of both of these positions. This view says some people fall away because they were never sincere in their faith while others fall away because they neglected their faith. The dividing line in these various opinions seems to depend on one’s view of God’s grace: Are God’s promises irrevocable or do they depend on our response? Do we have eternal security in Christ or do we have conditional security in Christ? These questions may never be reconciled this side of heaven

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The Big Result of a Little Independence

February 17th, 2012 by marcus

The Big Result of a Little Independence

Jeremiah 2:1–3:5

“You have lived as a prostitute with many lovers—would you now return to me?” declares the LORD.
Jeremiah 3:1

A while back, a man who had attended our Bible study stepped down from his responsibilities at church and moved out of his house. He left his wife and children and moved in with a gay lover. Our church was stunned, and our close-knit Bible study group was numb with shock. We hadn’t seen this coming.

Yet the clues were there. With the 20/20 vision that hindsight provides, his wife and I identified numerous tiny infidelities that had led to the ultimate big one. He had often made unilateral decisions, not taking his wife’s feelings or viewpoints into consideration. He often had kept his thoughts and feelings to himself. He certainly had not made a practice of humbly confessing his weaknesses or sins to his wife. His spending of time and money reflected a determination to primarily please himself, not to lay down his life for his family (see 1 John 3:16).

The prophet Jeremiah was called the “weeping prophet” because he often openly expressed his sorrow over the spiritual and moral condition of the faithless people of Judah and their impending destruction. God was long-suffering, but the people would suffer his coming judgment.

Judah’s infidelity showed up in numerous acts of disobedience. The people had fallen into idolatry, immorality and injustice. Personal and social corruption was prevalent. The Israelites fulfilled their religious obligations, but their hearts weren’t in the right place. Prophets, priests, nobility and common citizens were all guilty. God viewed his people’s many acts of independence (rather than God-dependence) as tantamount to adultery, an ultimate breaking of relationship with him.

Most of us can’t imagine how we would ever get to the point of entering into a sexual relationship outside our marriage. And yet adultery happens all the time, almost as often with Christians as with non-believers. And it usually begins with little acts of unfaithfulness that build gradually into bigger ones until suddenly one day we realize we’re up to our necks in a full-blown affair.

So if we want to safeguard the purity of our marriage, we’ve got to be on guard against small acts of faithlessness. We’ve got to ask ourselves questions, such as: Are my decisions to spend money at the mall based primarily on my own self-interests or are they made for the good of my spouse and family? Do I think more about myself than I do about my spouse in making plans for the evening or weekend? How important are the needs of my family in deciding whether or not to take on more work?

If, with God’s help, I refuse to take any baby steps of independence that distance me from my spouse, then I may never take that giant step of adultery. I’m not so overconfident as to say, “Sexual infidelity could never happen to us.” Instead, I humbly say, “Lord, protect my daily faithfulness in every way, both to you and to my spouse.”
Annette LaPlaca

Let’s Talk

  • When have we been totally surprised by someone’s unfaithfulness?
  • If we act as our own “fidelity police,” can we identify ways we’ve each acted independently or without consideration for each other?
  • How can everyday choices lead to lifelong sexual faithfulness?

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Little White Lies

February 16th, 2012 by marcus

Little White Lies

Jeremiah 9:1–6

Additional Scripture Readings: Proverbs 30:8; Ephesians 4:25

We tell them all the time. When we want to decline an invitation without hurting someone’s feelings, we tell a white lie. On the tennis court, we call a ball in when it is out—in our favor of course. In a financial crisis we stretch the truth and file for personal bankruptcy. Our children follow our example, telling white lies in their self-defense: “I didn’t forget to take out the trash. I was going to do it in a minute.”

In order to make them sound more like truths and less like lies, we label these everyday falsehoods “half-truths” or “white lies.” Like white magic or good witches, we hope that white lies will accomplish good. But lies are lies. If something is only half truth, then it is false.

Check your speech for white lies. You may be priding yourself on your honesty, while stretching the truth into what isn’t truth at all.

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Is Jesus Equal to God?

February 16th, 2012 by marcus

Is Jesus Equal to God?

John 17:1–5

While John 17:5 and other verses point to Christ’s deity, critics often highlight John 14:28, which reads, “The Father is greater than I.” Was Jesus a lesser God? Was he equal to the Father, or was he some sort of junior God, possessing the attributes of deity and yet somehow failing to match the total sketch of the divine that the Old Testament provides?

John 17:5 is one of the many verses that clearly indicates that Jesus fully shared the divine attributes and as such is worthy of worship. As the Creator of the world, God was the First Cause of all creation. If the statement in this verse is true, how does John 14:28 affect its meaning?

Reading the context of John 14 makes a big difference in determining the correct meaning of John 14:28. In this chapter, the disciples were distressed because Jesus told them he was going away. Jesus says, “If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I” (John 14:28). That is to say, Jesus is returning to the glory that is properly his, so if they really know who he is and really love him properly, they will be glad that he’s going back to the realm where he really is greater.

When you use a category like “greater,” it doesn’t have to mean ontologically greater. If someone says, “The president of the United States is greater than I,” that person would not be saying that the president is an ontologically superior being. While it’s true that the president is greater in military capability, political prowess and public acclaim, he’s not more of a person than anyone else. We’re all equal human beings.

Because of his ministry on Earth, Jesus was limited by the incarnation—he’s going to the cross; he’s going to die—but he’s about to return to the Father and to the glory he had with the Father before the world began, as seen in verses like John 17:5.
Adapted from interview with Dr. D. A. Carson

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