Looks Like the Gardener

Even today, Jesus is frequently misidentified on both personal and doctrinal fronts. There are those who label him a good teacher and great man, but who balk at his claims to be the Messiah. Others embrace him as the prophesied savior, but emasculate the harder things that he taught, so to make faith more palatable to recalcitrant sinners. Sadly, Jesus Christ is so chronologically removed from modern minds that his entire character becomes subject to revision and abuse.

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2012

A popular movie a few years ago dramatized the notion that the Mayan calendar predicts the end of the world in 2012. Like the vague writings of Nostradamus, however, the Mayan calendar threat has been exaggerated and mythologized beyond anything credible. Could the world end in 2012? Absolutely! If it should, however, it will be due to the will of God and the readiness of Christ to return in the clouds, according to the plan revealed in the New Testament, and only coincident to the Mayans’ dayplanner. Predicting the end of the world seems almost as old as the world itself, as we will learn from our study in the book of Revelation, set to begin this afternoon at 5:00. This thirty-part series of lessons will continue with only rare interruptions on Sunday afternoons for the next several months. In it, we will learn how first-century Christians could have anticipated relief from their struggles, but not necessarily through the conquest of their enemies or the immediate return of the savior. Like them, we must be patient and redeem the time, for we know not at what hour our master will return to require of us an accounting of how we lived our lives and used our talents.

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Winter of Discontent

When the mercury conquers triple digits more than forty times in the summer, it is only natural to crave the cooler temperatures of winter, forgetting how bone-chillingly uncomfortable it can be. A crippling ice storm can quickly make just about anyone long for the return of the melting sun. We find ourselves in the calendar’s extreme seasons suffering from palpable discontent, but God’s promise to Noah’s generation holds steady: “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease” (Genesis 8:22 ESV). I’m reminded of an old piece of wisdom regarding morally neutral, unchangeable things: Learn to love it. Six months from now, we will again be longing for these cooler months, just as much as our runny noses and cabin fever are now inspiring perverse nostalgia for the Texas summer. “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven” (Ecclesiastes 3:1 ESV). Winter affords us more quiet times for meditation, more opportunities for lingering over the Bible or snuggled under the blankets in prayer. Take advantage of the unique benefits of earth’s coolest season and learn to love it.

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Pedophilia: Sexual Orientation?

Interest in pedophilia has waxed with the grand jury indictment of former Penn State assistant football coach, Jerry Sandusky, and the related firing of legendary coach Joe Paterno. While he has been convicted only in the court of public opinion, Sandusky has maintained a certain level of innocence, although admitting to remarkably inappropriate behavior. The psychology behind the sin – still only alleged in this case – is both curious and alarming, especially as it is offered parallels and, perhaps, protection, by the successful movement to legitimize another deviant sexual habit, homosexuality. Writing in USA Today, Donna Leinwand Leger suggests, “Some scientists believe ‘this may be like a sexual orientation. It may not be a choice. It may be how they are wired’” (November 16, 2011). Homosexuality was once defined as a mental disorder – it isn’t – before gaining popular acceptance and theoretical justification. Only the matter of consent, then, would distinguish homosexuality from pedophilia under such an amoral assessment. Consistency in defending sin can get awfully messy.

A Spirit of Slavery

Slavery becomes an appropriate way of describing a perverse dependence upon the tempter for the satisfaction of wicked and self-destructive yearnings, as well as the resulting guilt and disillusionment that shackle the wayward believer to iniquity. A spirit of slavery is surely undesirable, but is apparently inescapable where human weakness prevails.

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From Where I Stand: Don’t Take The World Serious

If my feeble memory and limited Internet research are accurate, it was a Carefree chewing gum commercial from the 1970s that I am remembering every time I intone, “Oh Abner, don’t take the world serious!” The commercial jokingly suggested that Mrs. Doubleday had inadvertently given her husband the name for baseball’s annual championship round, but clearly the episode is apocryphal. I have always liked the message nonetheless – don’t take the world serious, at least not as seriously as we sometimes do. As another baseball season gives way to the hot stove league, we have time to huddle in our homes and contemplate the passage of time and the things that really matter, baseball being one of them only by the slimmest of margins. No, what we see more clearly is that many of the world’s things which we take too seriously simply expire with use or fail to affect our eternities unless we inflate their importance so much that they take priority over matters of faith, become idols of the heart, or threaten us through temptation. The things of this world are just not as serious as matters having to do with the next. Mrs. Doubleday was right after all.

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From Where I Stand: When Children Die

I believe in the existence of the devil every bit as much as I believe in God. I believe in the ultimate goodness of God and the malevolent intent of his – and our – adversary in this world. In the last two weeks, I have become witness again of the tempter’s pernicious attacks upon humanity, manipulating the forces of chance and wickedness at his disposal to cause harm and tragedy and to foster doubts, if possible, in the minds of Christians. The deaths of two teenagers with connections to my tiny West Virginia hometown serve to remind me again that the devil is at work – directly and indirectly – as he struggles to destroy the faith of the faithful and provoke unwarranted criticism of the redeemer. Satan is a thug who commits the crime and then manipulates the witnesses to blame the innocent, the heroic, the savior, instead of him. This time, however, he must suffer yet another disappointment, for we are not ignorant of his designs (Second Corinthians 2:11). It is he who ushered sin, temptation, curse, and death into a world which God created perfectly and which he has offered to redeem ever since. Our faith in God does not waver because his adversary strikes us where we are most vulnerable. We see through him and cling to the Lord.

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Peter, Paul, and Marriage

A study of Peter, Paul and marriage reveals perfect harmony in the things they taught, even a complementariness in their writings, but also a contrast in their personal lifestyles. That contrast indicates that, in ministry, both the married and celibate lifestyles are authorized and conducive to the work, depending upon circumstances and personalities. Single Paul was able to travel the world, putting himself in harm’s way, sacrificing much of his income, without a thought to dependents. Married Peter travels as well, but at some point, settles where he can shepherd a local flock of believers. Both were bold and effective, even though their gifts differed.

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Can We Talk About Your Porn Stash?

Can we talk about your porn stash? Whether it is nestled away on paper in a nightstand, lurking somewhere on a computer hard drive, or available to you by clicking on a web page, your porn stash is a filthy, addictive, morally expensive habit. You feel like you have been fortunate so far that no one has found it, but you would be better off if they did. Maybe then you would feel compelled to quit. Instead, you’re just digging deeper.

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From Where I Stand: Addiction

After researching America’s problem with gambling compulsion for the last three months, a helpful news item recently dropped into my lap, courtesy of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Under the heading, “Addiction redefined as a chronic brain disease,” the reporter describes the conclusions drawn by Dr. Michael M. Miller of the American Society for Addiction Medicine. “Addiction is about a lot more than people behaving badly," he suggests. He and his colleagues believe that all addictive behavior – overeating, drug abuse, gambling, etc. – occurs when appropriate parts of the brain are hijacked. While the advances of neuroscience are impressive, however, it is counterproductive to remove entirely the moral component of addictive behavior, especially when guilt and self-control can be important tools in prevention and correction. Paul wrote about food and marital sex, for instance: “‘All things are lawful for me,’ but I will not be dominated by anything,” emphasizing the essentiality of learning self-control (First Corinthians 6:12, Galatians 5:23). Comparing enslavement to sinful and self-destructive behavior to physical disease tends to excuse the immorality and thwart the gospel’s potential to indicate a path of scriptural treatment.

From Where I Stand: Dog Days

The dog days are upon us as temperatures have soared into the triple digits for more than a month and rain has been nothing more than a distant rumor. Forecasters indicate a hint of relief is out there, but without any guarantees. These dog days of August can be a Sirius-ly miserable experience. We tend, however, to adore our pet dogs, but they had a far less noble reputation in Bible times. It was dogs who encompassed the psalmist (22:6), licked up the blood of King Ahab (First Kings 22:38), and refused to bark a warning when Israel was threatened (Isaiah 56:10). Jesus employed the canine metaphor as well, warning his disciples not to feed them holy morsels they could not digest (Matthew 7:6), nor to throw the children’s bread to the ones under the table (Matthew 15:6-27). In his story of the rich man and Lazarus, the dogs make a cameo appearance by licking sores (Luke 16:21). To the apostle Paul, dogs represented the habits of the false, Judaizing teachers (Philippians 3:2), and to John, they were symbolic of the ultimate outsider, having no access to the tree of life or the city itself (Revelation 22:15). If all dogs go to heaven, it will have to be by some other means. Five weeks until autumn!

From Where I Stand: When Rome Ruled

When Rome Ruled is a series of documentaries airing on the National Geographic cable channel, that might be of interest to Bible students for the background, occasionally speculative and disputable, that it provides on the era of the early church. Of special significance is the episode on the Rise of Christianity, which describes the conditions and events that allowed an executed rebel from a minor province to become the founder of the world’s greatest religion. The historians’ perspective is decidedly agnostic and influenced by certain myths of the Roman church, but remains mostly respectful of what early believers courageously accomplished. In this portrayal, the church of Christ thrives under persecution and underground, appealing to the poor and downtrodden, but accepting the rich and powerful, male and female, all the same. Emperor Constantine’s dubious conversion validated the claims of Christ at the expense of centuries of Roman polytheism, but the resultant political influence upon the apostate church and its Pope widened the gap between Scripture and practice.

Lion

The Old Testament is rich with comparisons to the mighty king of the jungle, but nowhere more than when wisdom proclaims, “The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion” (Proverbs 28:1). Although life is filled with many difficulties and tense moments, the believer in Christ, armed and armored with faith and hope, is equipped to stare down every peril and emerge victorious (Ephesians 6:10-18). The wicked run away from spiritual challenges, allying with the tempter in a perverse compact of convenience and self-indulgence – the righteous resist him, firm in the faith and persuaded of eternity, falling prey neither to laziness nor selfish pride, but strengthened by the Lion of the tribe of Judah.

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Buried With Christ

Submitting to water baptism – or insisting upon its significance and essentiality – is not a denial of reliance upon grace, but a demonstration of trust in the power and authority of God (Colossians 2:12). There is nothing particularly meritorious about it – no cause to boast in being baptized when one’s sins required the son of God to die to begin with (Romans 3:27-28). At the same time, however, there is nothing very faithful about reading the New Testament and its voluminous discussions of baptism and then rejecting it as an offensive work or meaningless ritual. Jesus asked such an audience, “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you” (Luke 6:46)? He likened the disobedient to those who build their houses upon the sand then suffer destruction when storms inevitably arise, but compared obedience to building upon the rock and weathering every tribulation.

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Shovel-Ready

Every one of us has an appointment at the judgment bar and a reservation for eternity, making it incumbent upon us that we strive to be shovel-ready, “for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Matthew 24:44). Author's Note: This article is not intended as a discussion of the political policy involved in the stimulus plan. The author was careful not to express personal opinion regarding a matter that utterly pales in comparison to the subject addressed here -- being "shovel-ready" to die, be buried and face eternity.

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Mature in Christ

Spiritual maturity is the point at which resisting temptation feels better than indulging it. It is where the promise of Heaven is more meaningful and tangible than any earthly pleasure that would interfere with it (Second Corinthians 4:16-5:1). Like the apostle, we “press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained” (Philippians 3:14-16).

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From Where I Stand: A Dry Heat

Summer temperatures and drought conditions have been extreme across North Texas and much of the southern United States in 2011, provoking prayers for relief, threats of water and electricity rationing, and wistful recollections of that Super Bowl Ice Storm back in February. (Of course, many of us suffered through the inconvenience of power outages, then, as well.) Besides being conditioned to expect and endure such summery unpleasantness, we can take solace in our air conditioned cars and homes, and in the knowledge that, by Thanksgiving, coolness will prevail again. Surely, the rain will also begin to fall as the year wears on and the cracked soil around our houses will heal. The mighty Earth has a knack for adjusting and replenishing itself – it is, after all, the most enduring of all God’s creation. “A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever” (Ecclesiastes 1:4). Forever, though, is relative, for God has likewise promised eventually to be done with this planet, exposing it to a fiery finish, and subjecting every soul throughout history to final judgment. A minority will enjoy eternal life with him in Heaven; the majority will suffer a self-induced, everlasting heat wave in Hell’s fiery furnace. That’s a fall one can never be ready for.

From Where I Stand: Music in Worship

Maybe you have heard that the churches of Christ are the ones without music. Of course, that is not true – it’s just that our musical worship is confined to a cappella singing and the lack of instrumental accompaniment is jarring to people who have enjoyed pianos and organs all their lives, or who crave a modern rock or R&B sound. Singing is music and an example of the fruit of our lips that God desires in worship, a setting that should be about honoring and pleasing him rather than entertaining ourselves (Hebrews 13:15). Personal preferences will tend toward one kind of music or another and contemporary worship fads will reflect that evolution, but the psalms, hymns and spiritual songs described by New Testament writers communicate praise verbally and scripturally (Colossians 3:16-17). When we follow the pattern of the early church, it is not because we lack imagination or initiative, but that we respect the authoritative nature of the new covenant – its commands, implications, prohibitions, examples and silence (First Peter 4:11). We simply want to please our savior because we love him and we know that the early Christians succeeded in doing that by singing praises and eschewing what Luther called “an ensign of Baal.”

From Where I Stand: Gossip

Gossip is the world’s foremost delicacy, a taste sensation that excites even the most discriminating palate, and one which is refused with the only the greatest exertion of willpower. The brother of the Lord wrote, “the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell” (James 3:6). Gossip is but one way that the tongue mars our discipleship, but it is among the most destructive. “For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another” (Galatians 5:14-15).  What is more unloving – more counter to the Golden Rule – than to gossip about someone, especially a brother or sister in Christ? To spread lies is slander, but gossip is occasionally true, but always reported with gleeful malice, with self-serving viciousness. Gossip has wreaked havoc on more than one church, where it ought to be thoroughly extinct. Stories are drafted, told and retold, growing as they go, until they so embarrass their subject that reconciliation becomes nearly impossible. What a damaging fire a little busybody’s spark can ignite!

He Told You What Is Good

Micah reports the self-serving proclamations of ignorance and frustration that emanate from people who really do not want to try to be faithful, who would prefer to give minimal effort and enjoy maximum benefits. They falsely claim to be incapable of figuring out God’s expectation, using passive aggressive hyperbole to make God seem unreasonable. Micah responds that God’s requirement is not confusing or excessive; certainly it is not even impossible to the one who is willing to pursue God’s favor with the diligence characteristic of Noah or Job.

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