To Anomymous

On April 6th, 2008 I wrote a post entitled Can We Win the War Against Sin?. It was about a statement made by Mormon president Thomas S. Monson regarding sin. To understand this post please feel free to see my post at the link above. At any rate, last Sunday the 27th I received a comment which I will reproduce below...first though, I want to say that this will not be a normal post for me. You see, rather than addressing the comment in the comments section, I have decided to write a new post and devote the entire thing to answering it. What is more, I hope and pray that the anonymous poster will come back and read this post.

Anonymous, if you are reading this, please feel free to interact with me through the comments section...but if that is not your choice then I invite you to interact with me privately. If you'd like, please leave a comment indicating this and I will give you my email address.

For the sake of context, then, I reproduce here your comments:

I have no desire to be contentious or anything like that but I would like share my feelings. I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior. It is ONLY through and by Him that we can be saved. It is only through His atonement that we can be reconciled with God (Rom 5:10). We cannot save ourselves from our own sins, it is only through Christ. I don't believe through only our own efforts we can be saved...it is through Jesus Christ, after all that we can do. We are saved by His grace. I believe you are Christian, but I am Christian, too. I know Christ lives, I have experienced the power of His Atonement in my own life. I think that we are all waging a war with sin . . . but what a glorious thing we know that Christ has won that victory for us, if we pray for the power of the Atonement in our lives. I was born to 'mormon' parents, it is what my parents taught me, but I have also knelt on my knees to ask the Father, with faith, if what I am learning is true. I have asked in faith to know that Christ died for my sins. I know He did, and He now lives so that we can live again. Through the fruits of the Spirit I know that my prayers have been answered by God.

First of all, I want to thank you for your comments and do not at all think that you were being contentious, indeed, I admire your desire to defend what you believe and to share your thoughts on the matter. So rather than contentious, I observed nothing but respectful disagreement in what you wrote and only wish that everyone who disagreed with me could do so in as gracious a manner! :) I hope that in this response you will find the same gracious spirit and that I will live up to the example you have set. Of course, I intend to disagree with you in some very critical things, but I do not want to do so in a condescending manner. Instead, my prayer is that you will read into my heart and know that what I write is motivated by a desire to see Jesus glorified through the salvation of those who do not know Him as Lord. There is no way, however, that I can minimize the impact of my words when I say that if you are a Mormon (as I believe your comments indicate) then I do not believe you are truly saved, nor will you enter into the kingdom of God. It pains me to be so blunt because I work with at least two ladies who are of the Mormon faith and I know them to be wonderful and sincere. And yet, sincerity will not be enough to save them from hell (Matthew 7:21-23)

The problem as I see it is that the Mormon church uses the language of mainstream Christianity without attributing the same meaning to that language. So while we can both agree that we are justified by faith, that Christ is our Savior, that He died for our sins, and that we are saved by grace, we often mean completely different things! What is more, when we speak of passags like Romans 10:9-10 we must keep in mind also Romans 9:6 which says "...they are not all Israel who are of Israel." In other words, there is something more to being a Believer than affirming something. There must be a correct understanding of what the Word of God teaches. Otherwise we may all just as well embrace Jehovah's Witnesses as our brothers in Christ...we may as well embrace the Unitarians as our brothers in Christ. We may as well forget the Reformation and all that those men of faith struggled against and embrace Catholicism as just another branch of Christianity. It is not. And none of those other sects I mentioned are either. Neither, dear commenter, is Mormonism.

But how can I say this? You have acknowledged Christ as Savior. You have affirmed that you have experienced the power of His atonement. Does this not make us fellow partakers of the Promise? Rather than addressing these questions directly...allow me to ask the following questions. These questions, I pray, will show that while one of the Mormon faith can readily affirm some historic confessions of Christianity (again, with different meanings), in practice the Mormon religion is far removed from that historic Christianity which they claim to hold.

1. Is Jesus the spirit-brother of Satan?
2. Is Jesus one of many gods?
3. Is salvation by grace alone through faith alone? (i.e. nothing we do can save us)
4. When you speak of "Heavenly Father" do you mean it in a literal sense? (i.e. through actual physical relations with your spirit mother He gave birth to you, his "spirit child)
5. Did Adam sin in the garden of Eden?

How would you answer these quesions?

This is how I would answer them:

1 AND 2)

I am putting questions 1 and 2 together because the way I will show that the Mormon position is false is to show that Jesus IS God. Doing this, of course, will refute the idea that Satan and Christ can be brothers (especially in light of the book of Isaiah...but more on that later)

According to the LDS website, Satan is a spirit son of God the Father. Likewise, Jesus is a spirit son as well, though the only Begotten in the flesh...(emphasis mine). Therefore, Jesus and Satan are brothers according to Mormon teaching!

How does this align with Scripture?

Well in order to properly answer this, let us consider Jesus Christ...just who was He? Understand this, if He is God rather than a god then those who teach otherwise are in a bit of a jam, for they have been denying His very essence. And just as Jehova's Witnesses affirm Jesus' divinity without giving Him the glory He deserves as God, Mormonism teaches (correct me if I am wrong) that Jesus is a god just like any good Mormon man can someday hope to be. The key here being the implicit acceptance of the existence of many gods...of polytheism. I imagine that as a Mormon you are well aware of this peculiar belief. Indeed, on the website of your organization I found an article that says the following:

"This insight of the gospel into the subject of outer space is what makes the whole subject meaningful. When you look up into the heavens at night and see the countless numbers of stars, it is easy to imagine other people “out there” being tested and tried and experiencing struggles and joys somewhat similar to those we are going through. But the most exciting thing about this whole basic and fundamental concept is that it is true. Totally and completely true. People growing, developing, and finding fulfillment—out there! The Prophet Joseph Smith taught: “God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man. … he was once a man like us … God himself, the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth. …” 6
“If Jesus Christ was the Son of God, and … God the Father of Jesus Christ had a Father, you may suppose that He had a Father also. … And where was there ever a father without first being a son? … If Jesus had a Father, can we not believe that He had a Father also? …
“He [Jesus] laid down His life, and took it up, the same as His Father had done before.” 7
Long before our God began his creations, he dwelt on a mortal world like ours, one of the creations that his Father had created for him and his brethren. He, with many of his brethren, was obedient to the principles of the eternal gospel. One among these, it is presumed, was a savior for them, and through him they obtained a resurrection and an exaltation on an eternal, celestial world. 8 Then they gained the power and godhood of their Father and were made heirs of all that he had, continuing his works and creating worlds of their own for their own posterity—the same as their Father had done before, and his Father, and his Father, and on and on...[t]he great hope of the gospel for us is that we may come to a oneness with our Lord and our Father and partake of this same work and glory and godhood" (emphasis mine)

All of this, dear anonymous, is in direct conflict with Christianity...indeed it is blasphemy to say of God that He was once a created creature!! So I don't hesitate to give you the right to claim that your religion is true, and to proselytize with vigor and zeal, but I do take issue with your claim that our Christianity is one and the same...for your religion is far from Christian. And while I thank you for saying that you believe I am a Christian, this does not mean that you too are a Christian. Our respective faiths are worlds apart, and whichever one of is wrong is not a Christian! Lest you think I am trying to antagonize you, I assure you I don't intend to do so. Indeed, an elder of your religion had this to say:

"The gift of eternal life cannot be obtained outside of the Church established by the Father and the Son. The church set up by Christ in the meridian of time became apostate following the ministry of his apostles, and thus was steeped in error by false gospel teachings, changing ordinances, and loss of divine authority. The same condition prevailed during the dark ages, requiring a new gospel dispensation—the restoration of Christ’s church to earth. I testify this restoration occurred in the year 1830, through the Prophet Joseph Smith." ("The Path to Eternal Life" Ensign January 1974. Elder Delbert L. Stapley, a member of the Council of Twelve) - emphasis mine

What does this elder of your religion say? Not a Mormon? You are not a Christian (as Mormonism understands the term)! So let's admit that there is a significant difference between what we believe...differences that make one the true faith and the other a cult.

But let us return to looking at my answers to those questions posed above. So let us look first at some very important verses in the book of Isaiah:

The first one is Isaiah 6:1-5.

I have included the first five verses in order that you might understand the context here, which is of course the vision/calling of Isaiah to be a prophet. He sees God upon His throne, the angels of the Lord praising His holiness. Now look with me at John 12:27-41. I have again included a bunch of verses to make sure that you understand what John is saying...he is speaking specifically of Jesus...then in verses 37-40 he makes reference to Isaiah 6...then note what he says at the end in verse 41..."These things Isaish said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him."

What did he just say? Whom did Isaish see and whose glory did he speak of? Well....draw your own conclusions but make sure you interact with the text when doing so! I think you will find that John, writing not only with hindsight but through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, adds these narrator comments to the event he desrcribes because he is still amazed that for three years he walked with God Himself!

These next passages I'm not going to link to so you'll want your Bible handy...but here goes, look these up and compare them:

Isaiah 41:4 (God the Father) Revelation 22:12-13 (Jesus)
Isaiah 43:11 (God the Father) Titus 2:13 (Jesus)

Isaiah 44:6 says in part "...Besides Me there is no God."

See also Isaiah 45:5-7

Let us look also at the classic passage in John 1:1-5 And just so you understand completely to whom this refers, make sure you read John 1:14

Now, in light of these verses...how would a Christian answer questions 1 and 2? NO...Jesus is NOT the spirit brother of Satan. NO...Jesus is not one of many gods. The verses above lead us to one of two conclusions...

a) There are contradictions in the Bible. For the Father to claim to be the Alpha and the Omega and then for Jesus to do the same is a contradiction...how could they both lay claim to the same title? If this is true, then I may as well give up my faith for if the Bible is not trustworthy then upon what authority can I base my belief system? A burning in the bosom? I think not.

b) The Trinity is true. No doubt you are aware that this is the conclusion I come to, for this is the teaching of Biblical Christianity. A person can say they believe Jesus died for their sins and that only through Him can they be saved, but if they also reject His unique divinity, His equality with the Father, and the revelation of Scripture that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are God, then they are not a Christian. If one were to point to this as evidence that the Christian therefore worships many gods also (as the Muslims do), then it points to a huge ignorance of the Bible...and maybe this will be the subject of a future post...who knows!

What about questions 3?

Well I can point to my first post for the answer to this, but also see this link where you read the following:
"In the Church, an ordinance is a sacred, formal act performed by the authority of the priesthood. Some ordinances are essential to our exaltation. These ordinances are called saving ordinances. They include baptism, confirmation, ordination to the Melchizedek Priesthood (for men), the temple endowment, and the marriage sealing. With each of these ordinances, we enter into solemn covenants with the Lord."

Am I reading too much into this if I conclude by it that Mormonism does not truly subscribe to the doctrine of salvation by faith along through grace alone? If you say I am mistaken, then please explain to me the parable of the bicycle, which I have heard of from at least two Mormons. See also the Mormon teaching on eternal life.

For those of you who don't know what the parable of the bicycle is, here it is:
Sometimes we feel very inadequate when we compare ourselves to others. We may even begin to despair. But when the Lord looks at us, he measures us against ourselves. His expectations are based on our abilities. He simply asks, Are you doing all that you can do at this time? Consider the principle of tithing. The man with ten million dollars is expected to pay one million dollars in tithing. The child with ten cents is expected to pay one penny. Both offerings are a full tithing in the eyes of the Lord.
In our home we have what is now called the parable of the bicycle. It dates back to when my daughter Sarah, who was seven years old at the time, came in and said, “Dad, can I have a bike? I’m the only kid on the block who doesn’t have one.”
Well, I didn’t have the money then for a bike, so I stalled her. I said, “Sure, Sarah.”
She said, “How? When?”
I said, “You save all your pennies, and soon you’ll have enough for a bike.” And she went away.
A couple of weeks later I heard a “clink, clink” in Sarah’s bedroom. I asked, “Sarah, what are you doing?”
She came to me with a little jar, a slit cut in the lid, and a bunch of pennies in the bottom. She said, “You promised me that if I saved all my pennies, pretty soon I’d have enough for a bike. And, Daddy, I’ve saved every single one of them.”
My heart melted. My daughter was doing everything in her power to follow my instructions. I hadn’t actually lied to her. If she saved all of her pennies, she would eventually have enough for a bike, but by then she would want a car. I said, “Let’s go look at bikes.”
We went to every store in town. Finally we found it—the perfect bicycle. She was thrilled. Then she saw the price tag, and her face fell. She started to cry. “Oh, Dad, I’ll never have enough for a bicycle!”
So I said, “Sarah, how much do you have?”
She answered, “Sixty-one cents.”
“I’ll tell you what. You give me everything you’ve got and a hug and a kiss, and the bike is yours.” Then I drove home very slowly because she insisted on riding the bike home.
As I drove beside her, I thought of the atonement of Christ. We all desperately want the celestial kingdom. We want to be with our Father in Heaven. But no matter how hard we try, we come up short. At some point all of us must realize, “I can’t do this by myself. I need help.” Then it is that the Savior says, in effect, All right, you’re not perfect. But what can you do? Give me all you have, and I’ll do the rest.

Anyone at all familiar with the Biblical teaching of salvation knows well that we do NOTHING, not even one tiny part, in getting ourselves to heaven. Ephesians 2:1 says that "you He made alive, who were once dead in trespasses and sins." To say that we do even a portion of the work, and He does even 99.9% is not Scriptural at all. (See here for the story in its context)

Question 4)

Mormonis teaches that "God the Father is the Supreme Being in whom we believe and whom we worship. He is the ultimate Creator, Ruler, and Preserver of all things. He is perfect, has all power, and knows all things. He "has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man's" (D&C 130:22)."

In addition to this, it teaches that "We are all literally children of God, spiritually begotten in the premortal life. As His children, we can be assured that we have divine, eternal potential and that He will help us in our sincere efforts to reach that potential. " (you can see this quote and the one before it here)

I don't even know what to say about this one...aside from denying its truth of course. If it weren't such a serious matter I might be tempted to think it funny, but this is indeed what Mormonism teaches. Dear anonymous...I challenge you to show me one verse in the Bible that would teach this doctrine of your organization. If the answers I have given to questions 1 and 2 are correct, then the Mormon answer to this question is also false. Furthermore, it is blasphemy, for where in the Word do we see even a hint that our Father has had sexual relations with His celestial wife in order to populate this planet? Truly this teaching is abhorrent and I urge you to look closely at the Word and may it pierce your soul and cause scales to fall away from your eyes...

Question 5)

This one is interesting and I want to present four powerful Scripture passages before I point out how Mormonism teaches the exact opposite. I will point primarily to Romans since within its chapters we find one of the clearest teachings on human sin and its nature. Again, have your Bible ready for I won't link to the passages:

Romans 3:23
Romans 5:12
Romans 5:18
1 Corinthians 15:21

What do you think? Does the Bible say that Adam sinned and that all of us are heirs of that sin? Born in bondage to sin because of Adam? The answer is yes.

What does Mormonis teach about this:
"As we “talk [more] of Christ,” 1 the gospel’s doctrinal fulness will come out of obscurity. For example, some of our friends can’t see how our Atonement beliefs relate to our beliefs about becoming more like our Heavenly Father. Others mistakenly think our Church is moving toward an understanding of the relationship between grace and works that draws on Protestant teachings. Such misconceptions prompt me to consider today the Restoration’s unique Atonement doctrine.
The Lord restored His gospel through Joseph Smith because there had been an apostasy. Since the fifth century, Christianity taught that Adam and Eve’s Fall was a tragic mistake, which led to the belief that humankind has an inherently evil nature. That view is wrong—not only about the Fall and human nature, but about the very purpose of life.
The Fall was not a disaster. It wasn’t a mistake or an accident. It was a deliberate part of the plan of salvation. We are God’s spirit “offspring,” 2 sent to earth “innocent” 3 of Adam’s transgression" emphasis mine (see here for the context)

Note first Bruce C. Hafen's remark in the first bolded section...are Protestants (read Christians) and Mormons the same? No they are not.

But then look at the second part..."the belief that humankind has an inherently evil nature...is wrong." Oh...so is Mr. Hagen right or the Word of God?

Keep reading:
"President Joseph Fielding Smith (1876–1972) taught: “When Adam and Eve were placed in the Garden of Eden, they did not have to die. They could have been there to this day. They could have continued on for countless ages. There was no death then. But it would have been a terrific calamity if they had refrained from taking the fruit of that tree, for they would have stayed in the Garden of Eden and we would not be here; nobody would be here except Adam and Eve. So Adam and Eve partook.” 9"

"Adam and Eve kept the first commandment to multiply and replenish the earth. Their bodies were changed, and mortality, parenthood, and eventual death came upon them. Eternal family relationships became possible. The Fall was a “glorious necessity to open the doorway toward eternal life,” said Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. 10 As a result, we have been blessed with the opportunity to come to this earth." The above two quotes can be found here

Despite the intensity with which the Mormon church has in recent years protested the Christian charge of being a cult...despite its desire for mainstream acceptance, it is quite clear that its teachings are so contrary to Scriptural truth that there is no possible way a follower of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ can embrace them as fellow Believers.

So dear anonymous...I do believe that you are sincere in what you believe...but unless that sincerity is grounded on Truth it is meaningless. Jesus said in John 15:6 that He is "the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No ones comes to the Father except through [Him]." So although you asked the father, with faith, whether what you were learning was true, and you received some type of confirmation from this father, it was not the Father as revealed in the Scripture...for if that spirit gave you assurance that Mormonism is true then it was not of the Father. Read the words of Paul:
"...even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than waht we have preached to you, let him be accursed." Galatians 1:8

I pray that you will take to heart what I have said here...some of what I have said may seem harsh to you, but I assure you my intention is not to antagonize...as I've said, I cannot help but reply in the only manner that I do so, knowing fully well that many people are offended by biblical truths...nonetheless, we cannot choose what we will and will not say, one can only tell the truth and let the Spirit to the rest. May He do a mighty work in your life, revealing to you His truth's.

1 Corinthians 5:9-13

"I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person. For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But those who are outside God judges. Therefore “put away from yourselves the evil person"

A couple of days ago I read this passage and I was reminded of it by a discussion I had with a dear brother in Christ this evening. We met to discuss many things and it is always a joy to fellowship with those who have a passion for the Lord. I feel very refreshed! :)

We were discussing the difference between judging somebody and being judgmental in spirit, and how we are called to hold one another accountable. As much as we Christians speak, rightly so, of the importance of Paul's epistles, we so often forget that his letters were written to correct error in the infant church...to call the Believers to a more sincere faith in the risen Lord. The passage which this post concerns is a wonderful example of this...but even more, it is a good reminder to us of what, or where, we need to focus our energies. For example, so many professing Christians today are so involved in political and social activism, indignantly protesting every moral outrage committed by the secular world around us. Where, however, is their concern for the outrage committed every day within their churches? Where is their cry for reform when youth pastors sin and boast about driving "troublemakers" out of the church? Where is the sense of injustice when a church practices cult like behaviors?

Note that the Apostle Paul says "I certainly did not mean with the...people of this world..." What does he mean by this? That when he'd written to them he did not intend for them to begin carrying signs outside of the local temples where prostitution was practiced as an act of worship (this was, after all, Corinth!). No. He wanted them to focus on the impurity within the church! Let the world be judged by Almighty God, and let us concern ourselves with our own housekeeping! Those of you who know me know exactly how I will interpret this, don't you?

For me, when I see a co-worker practicing homosexuality, I will reach out to them with the love of Christ and the precious Truth of the Gospel. When I see a co-worker who does not know the Lord and who is having personal conflict, I will tell them of Christ, who alone is able to help us deal with inner turmoil. And when I see those who profess Christ as Lord behaving carnally, I will attempt to correct their behavior by calling them to the doctrinal truths of the Word of God. Why? Because they should be able to correct their behavior and adjust to the precepts of the Word, whereas those who do not know the Lord cannot change their behavior without the Spirit in them...so let's be used by God to bring about their new birth, and let Him deal with the secular behaviors of a world that does not even give Him lip service!

Brothers and sisters...let us get our priorities straight.

A Review of “The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical” by Shane Claiborne Part 2

ISBN #9780310266303

In this post I pick up on my review of the book mentioned above. This post will be specifically about chapter two…and while I don’t intend to do a review of each chapter I do want to discuss specific ones that are representative of the entire book. Chapter two is such a chapter.

Let me begin by saying that I really like much of what Claiborne brings up…his heart is in the right place. The purpose of my posts is not to denigrate his efforts on behalf of poverty or his desire to effect social change, not at all. My entire purpose is to address his claims, his motivations; and why do I do this? Because I like to criticize? Well maybe I do like to criticize, if so I beg the forgiveness of those whom I have criticized and when I see it in my life I will ask my Lord for forgiveness. So no, I do not believe it is a desire to tear down that motivates me. Bear in mind that when I address people’s opinions I do so when they first have shared these…duh right? How would I know what to address unless they had done so? This is important though, because I want you to think about that. If someone expresses an opinion, does not that imply that they are ready and willing to defend that opinion? Does it not therefore open them up to correction? If I were to fall over myself in praising someone for what they have said aloud, then they would love me and people who overheard would think very well of me. But when I disagree and make it known…nobody likes me! What are they really saying? They don’t like my willingness to engage in a polemical interaction with them…BECAUSE they want everyone to agree with them. I am willing to speak publicly on what I believe, and when I do so, I expect that many people will disagree with me…why should I get mad when they do so? Anyhow, I only mention this because I know what people think when I speak out against someone who has voiced an opinion…grace towards me is denied!

So back to Claiborne…his heart is in the right place. But since he’s chosen to speak in a way that clearly demonstrates he believes he holds some truth that is more perfect than “Christianity,” [the quotes are his…he uses them often when he refers to mainstream Christianity] then I must interact with his claims. And whenever someone chooses to use Scripture to prove a point then they must expect that their comments and their use of that Scripture will be tested. Guess what? Luke praises people for testing the words of the Apostle Paul! See Acts 17:10-11 So if the Apostle’s words should be tested…then don’t you think Claiborne’s should? So do I!

In the first few pages of chapter two we read about an experience Claiborne had with some people who were being evicted from a church they had squatted on…and reading how he and his friends became involved is nothing short of inspiring. His descriptions of the outcry against the injustice occurring is what I wish we would see more of…I only wish that this experience had led him to a desire for His Word…but instead it led him towards an emotional type of spirituality that masquerades as true Christianity. This is sad because in reading his book, I can see where Claiborne could be such a powerful tool for Christ…

Let me ask a question: What is systematic theology? According to Webster’s dictionary it means “a branch of theology concerned with summarizing the doctrinal traditions of a religion (as Christianity) especially with a view to relating the traditions convincingly to the religion's present-day setting.” (Find it Here) You know what this means? It means that systematic theology is the study of the doctrines of the faith. It is the effort to take the biblical doctrines and explain them in a way that helps us apply them to our lives today. Do you believe that Jesus was born of a virgin? Do you believe that He died on the cross for your sins? Oh-oh…you have just given affirmation to doctrines! Shame on you! Just being sarcastic of course. The reason I bring this up, however, is because the point in this chapter at which Claiborne transforms himself from a man doing good deeds to a false preacher is on page 62 where he states that after seeing people involved in resisting the eviction of the homeless people he felt that “[t]he body of Christ was alive, no longer trapped in stained-glass windows or books of systematic theology…” Later in the chapter he says that “[t]he church became something we are - an organism, not an organization. Church became so fresh and vibrant, it was like we had brought something dead back to life. And perhaps we had. In fact, one of the old news headlines read. “Church Resurrected.” There’s some systematic theology for you.” [emphasis his]

Do you see what he is implying? Systematic theology: boring and dead. Social activism: exciting and alive.

Wrong. Of course the body of Christ is alive…of course it is Christians who are the church…who has ever said anything different? But if you can consider systematic theology a sign of deadness then the spiritual death lies elsewhere, perhaps within the living breast of he who would mock it. And you know what? We don’t do things for others in order to feel alive…we don’t engage in helping the poor or the sick because it makes us feel good. We do it because systematic theology has led us to an understanding of how we should walk in the Way! Something that someone belonging to an organization called “The Simple Way” should know!

Later he writes that “[w]e dreamed ancient visions of a church like the one in Acts, in which “there were no needy persons among them” because everyone shared their possessions…We knew we could end poverty. The early church did, and the homeless families were doing it…[w]e were not interested in a Christianity that offered these families only mansions and streets of gold in heaven when all they wanted was a bed for their kids now. And many Christians had an extra one.”

Let me address the comments above like this:

No needy among them? I don’t know what version he’s been reading (probably The Message- ha-ha) but Acts 2:45 says “and [they] sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.” So first of all, there were those who had need, but my point is that the early church did not end poverty nor did they intend to do so! And if you want to be literal…the giving to the poor here meant the poor in Christ, so even if poverty could be ended, it would be ended among the Believers! And as far as knowing that they could end poverty…Claiborne and his friends must have had some word from God which even Jesus (incidentally, He WAS God!) did not have because Jesus said we would ALWAYS have poor people among us (Matthew 26:11). Maybe He should have checked with Shane before He said this! :)

You know, it is a good thing to have a burden for the poor. It is a good thing to want to help the sick. But it is not Biblical to say that meeting these needs is more important than meeting the spiritual needs around us. Want to sell your possessions and give the proceeds to homeless shelters and soup kitchens? Go for it. But don’t tell anyone it is required of a Believer because the Bible does NOT say this anywhere! And if you feel such a burden for the poor, then for the sake of our Lord, minister to them with the Word in your hands and the Gospel on your lips! Because our Lord did not command us to go and solve all the problems of the world…poverty, AIDS, the eradication of the Amazon forests. What He did command was for us to “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen” (Matthew 28:19-20) And by the way, the “go therefore” in the Greek implies “as you are going.” In other words…as you live your daily life, spread the Good News!

I will post more on this book later.

"The Pauline Circle" by F.F. Bruce

ISBN #0853647062

I just finished reading a book which a brother in Christ lent to me. It is a very small book (more like a booklet), about 100 pages, but it is packed with so much good information that I managed to finish it in only a couple of hours (well, two hours this morning and maybe a half hour this evening)!

The book, as the title implies, is about the people who are considered the friends and co-workers of Paul...all those people mentioned not only in Acts but throughout the letters which Paul authored. F.F. Bruce does a magnificent job of gathering various Scriptures and weaving them together in order to bring to life the many people involved in the ministry of the Apostle Paul. One thought that this book made me consider was brought about by the following quote at the very end of the book, on page 100:

"These friends and co-workers, hosts and hostesses, had no other motive in being so helpful than love love of Paul and love of the Master whom he served. They knew that in serving the one they were serving the other. The last thing they thought of was that their names would be put on perpetual record; indee, that was the last thing thta Paul himself thought of with regard to his own name. But he recorded his gratitude to them all, and their memory lives on - not only in the pages of the New Testament but in the Christian names borne by so many people ever since in all parts of the world. Lydia, Priscilla, Phoebe and Persis; Mark, Luke, Timothy and Titus - why are these names still in such widespread use? Because certain people who bore these names in the first century A.D. were friends of Paul, and he set down his appreciation of them in letters that he wrote, and his letters have the salt of immortality in them. So we read his letter, and the faith and kindness of those friends of his are remembered afresh, and their example remains powerful."

In actuality there are two thoughts I have in regards to this quote.

1) As we read the passages in which these people are mentioned, some receiving only one or two sentences...some even less, I for one am going to be more aware of these as more than just names. Indeed, rather than skipping over the salutations and the farewells, I will read them carefully and give a moment of thought to the important truth that the apostolic age was inhabited by more than just the titans we normally ponder (Paul, Peter, and others), it was also home to the everyday man and woman who may not have been called to missions, but served in whatever capacity they could...right where they found themselves.

2) That part that reads "[t]hey knew that in serving the one they were serving the other" of course refers to Paul and Christ. Think about that. Should we also not serve our shepherds in like manner? Should we not honor them and offer to bear a part of the burden in exchange for the feeding that they provide? I know that there are so many pastors out there that fail their congregations by not teaching them the Word, but for those of us blessed enough to have a true shepherd...let us serve him, for in serving him we serve our Lord.

May God's people all say an emphatic "Amen!"

Hayley Westenra sings Amazing Grace

I have been listening to this song on youtube for a number of weeks with my 1 yr old and I decided I would post it on this blog! I hope anyone visiting my site will enjoy it as much as my son and I have...

I've gone and placed some of her CD's on hold today at the library 'cause I definitely want to hear more from her. This is "Amazing Grace" as it should be sung...you can keep all the modern revisions! lol

Enjoy!

Evengelism...Rob Bell Style!

I hope that you will follow THIS link...it's from http://www.alittleleaven.com/ and it shows a clip of Rob Bell answering some questions and (failing) to say anything about our Lord. Funny how a supposed preacher can fail to preach at a time and place when he might have the best opportunity to be heard by those least likely to ever visit any church. Anyhow, I intend to view the entire thing once it's posted at the site mentioned...

How sad that so many follow Rob Bell...truly Paul knew exactly what he was talking about when he wrote to Timothy that "...the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but accroding to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables." 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (emphasis mine)

1 John 2:1-2

Yesterday we held our sword fighting group and had about 12 boys show up. No dads stayed, again, but that is okay...I was able to join in the fun and at this point I think I'll just plan on having a great time with the boys every time! :)

Well it was a surprise that it has taken this long, but we had one of the boys wounded by a spear thrust that led to a visit to the ER and four stitches! The cut was right above the eye so it was a completely accidental hit (head shots are not allowed)! This happened right at the end of the gathering and the young man is fine and now holds bragging rights (who else can say their scar comes from a spear thrust?).

Below is the lesson we had at midpoint...I planned to teach through verse 6 but you know how those things go!

1 John 2

Throughout this book we see the theme of love, of why we love, and of how our spiritual life should be if we claim to know the love of God. In the first couple of verses we will look at today, we have the testimony of John regarding the most beautiful act of love ever known, the work of Christ on the cross!

Read 1 John 2:1-2

We see here in verse 1 that Jesus is our Advocate before the righteous anger of God.

What is an advocate? (discuss)

So what does it mean that He is our Advocate?

What kind of advocate would you want?

See the end of verse 1...”Jesus Christ the Righteous”

You don’t want an advocate with a bad reputation right?

Wow look at verse 2)
What does the word “propitiation” mean?

1. The act of appeasing the wrath and conciliating the favor of an offended person; the act of making propitious.
2. (Theol.) That which propitiates; atonement or atoning sacrifice; specifically, the influence or effects of the death of Christ in appeasing the divine justice, and conciliating the divine favor. (source: Webster’s Dictionary)

Let us not deceive ourselves, we DESERVE the judgment and censure of the Father. El Shaddai, God Almighty, is a holy God. The stain of sin which we are born with is an offense to Him who is Perfect.

But this book tells us that Jesus, God in the flesh, chose to die the wretched death of the cross FOR US! Therefore, when the Father looks upon us, He sees the cleansing that was brought about by Jesus, whom the Word of God refers to as our propitiation.

Think about this: Jesus died because only He could pay the penalty for sin. And the Father demonstrated His love also by determining to send Jesus for this purpose. To save us!

In fact, we see the first prophetic words regarding Jesus way back in Genesis 3:15, with what is commonly referred to as the Proto-Gospel.

Allow me to take the soap box for a moment and mention the following: I have mentioned the above because I want to so clearly show you how much God loves us. Salvation is His work. Never underestimate the power of His love.

Yet, how do we thank our Lord? So many people, even within the church, think it is enough to believe in Jesus. They overlook the part about serving Him.

Remember James 2:19 "You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe -- and tremble!"

Think back to what we do when we are not in church. What kind of programs do we watch on TV? Are they honoring to Him? Think about the books we are willing to read, or the jokes we are willing to hear and to tell!

Do they fit the words of Philippians 4:8?

If not, why do we continue to watch, to read, and to hear and tell those things? Why do we resemble the world so much? Remember that not only is God holy, he calls us to be likewise.

In Leviticus 11:44 we read the following: "For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy."

And in case someone were to correctly point out that this was a message to the Israelites in the desert, I want to point you as well to 1 Peter 1:13-16, where the Apostle says "Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, 'Be holy, for I am holy.'"

Where in the OT do you think Peter is quoting from?

Anyhow, more on this the next time we meet…I just want us to keep these thoughts as we continue in our study of God's Word.

Close in Prayer

Can We Win the War Against Sin?

This won't be a very long post...I just wanted to quickly touch on something that Mormon President Thomas S. Monson said in his address to the LDS faithful. I read a news report about it, which you can find Here.

At any rate, the comment I want to focus on is where he says that "We [LDS] are waging a war with sin," Monson said. "But we need not despair. It is a war we can and will win." This comment pretty well sums up one of the many beliefs that separate Mormonism from Christianity...one that provides a pretty wide gulf, showing that though the Mormon may argue that s/he is a christian ("see, we have "christ" in our name!"), the sad reality is that they do not believe in one of the basic foundational truths of the Word of God...that it is Jesus that has already won the victory over sin for us!

What does the Bible say about Jesus and sin?

"The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" John 1:29

"Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous. Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" Romans 5:18-21

"We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Corinthians 5:20-22

This is merely a sampling of the verses that speak of the work of Christ in regards to sin...indeed when our Lord said in John 19:30, "It is finished!" He was speaking of the work of atonement! Guess what? The "war with sin" was ended on that very day! For He died that we might live! The wages of sin were paid in full on that day! No, dear brothers and sisters in the Lord...Monson has it very wrong when he says his faithful will win the war...such a works based mentality is what blinds people to the Truth that He is our Champion and the true Victor over sin...the Bible says that all we need to do is to repent of our sin, and if we don't we will perish! But nowhere is it even implied that we, through our own efforts, can and will defeat sin. In fact, why should we attempt to defeat that which has already been vanquished by the Lord?

Before I end this post, I want you to read this quote, which comes from the LDS website:

"To become worthy to live in Heavenly Father’s presence after this life and to receive this peace and strength, you must learn and follow the principles and ordinances of the gospel. The first principles of the gospel are faith in Jesus Christ and repentance. The first ordinances of the gospel are baptism and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. After you learn and follow the first principles and ordinances of the gospel, you must seek to follow Christ’s example throughout the remainder of your life" [emphasis mine]

What are these ordinances?

"Ordinance: A sacred rite or ceremony performed by the power of the priesthood and intended to bless God’s children. Some ordinances, such as baptism, are essential for salvation. Other ordinances, such as administering to the sick, constitute gifts from God to His children which are not essential for salvation. Many ordinances have symbolic meaning." [emphasis mine]

Essential for salvation? A true Apostle of our Lord Jesus Christ said that "...if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." Romans 10:9

Whom will you believe?

I hope and pray that while this gives you a glimpse of the deception inherent in Mormonism, it also gives you a heart for sharing the true gospel with them.

You can find the quotes I cite above here.

Isaiah 6:1-5 for Children's Sunday School

This morning I had the privilege of teaching the children’s Sunday school class at church. There were three boys and two girls in the class (ages 6-10). I had a great time teaching them and it amazed me at what these kids can take in and learn. For so long I’ve seen children taught in a very simplistic manner, but that is not the case at this church, where the kids are taught straight Bible lessons. As such, I decided to adjust a lesson I’ve used when teaching adults and older teens and it went really, really, well! They asked questions, they shared really insightful thoughts, and they listened respectfully the whole time…it was awesome.

At any rate, below is the lesson I taught; as I said, it is a recycled one so those of you who know me well will be familiar with it. Enjoy!

I. Greeting and Introductions:
Get everyone’s names…write them down

II. Prayer:

III. Lesson

Read 1 Timothy 6:15&16

These verses are speaking about Jesus…

Ask) What do they say about Him? (discuss)

Now…let us all take turns reading the following:
Exodus 15:11-13
Leviticus 11:44,45
Leviticus 19:1-2
Leviticus 20:7

Ask) Does anyone notice something that keeps coming up in these verses? God is holy and He wants US to be holy!

Ask) Do you believe that God is holy?

Ask) If God is holy…how should we treat Him or talk about Him?

Read Mathew 6:9

What does this verse mean? (discuss) It is a plea for His name to be revered throughout the world!

You must understand this:
How we understand the character of God affects how we live our lives.

Ask) If we see of God as distant, how will we behave?

Ask) What about if we see Him as close to us…as the Creator?

If so, then we see Him as Lord of His creation. Nothing is outside of His power!
Again, you see, His holiness must affect everything.

Do we try our hardest to be like Him?
Well…to understand this, we must know about His holiness, so…

Read Isaiah 6:1-5

Whom does the Bible say that Isaiah sees? God…now read John 12:37-41

Who is John speaking of? Who does John say Isaiah saw? (Discuss how this points to the Trinity)

Discuss the following:

*The Seraphim and their demeanor before God…

Discuss the symbolism of the covered feet and faces…

I want you to understand something…these angels cannot look upon the face of God because He is so holy…but read 1 John 3:2

Ask) Do you understand what this means? The angels before Him do not look at Him, but you will one day see God as HE IS!

*Their song of praise and the meaning of it…

Why the repetition? It is very important! When Jesus would say, “Truly truly I say to you…” He was saying “pay attention!”

Ask) How many times do the angels repeat the word “holy”?

What do you think this means? His holiness is VERY important!

*Isaiah’s reaction…

Ask) Why did Isaiah react this way?

Isaiah, standing before a holy God, understood His sin kept him separated from such a Holy One...His own sin made him feel unworthy before the glody of God!

Conclusion:
How does the world treat the name of God?
How do those of us who claim we love Him?

IV. Closing game:
Biblical names on backs of kids…ask “yes or no” questions only to find out who you are!

_____________________________________

Well that was it!

Mark 8:31-33

Verse 31)

"And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again"


Note that Jesus explains His role as Messiah. He was not the conquering Prince others expected Him to be...NO, He was to be the sacrificial Lamb recognized by John the Baptist! This verse, then, is Jesus' response to His disciples' assumption of who Messiah should be! They might think they know whom Jesus is...but He now tells them who Messiah IS!

Even so, we know that still the disciples will not completely understand...but before we go on and on about their lack of understanding we have to face the sad reality that we are just as guilty of not always letting what the Word says convince us! What do I mean by this? Well, how often to we try to make for ourselves a god in the image of what we desire in a god? We create this god in our own image, rather than worshipping the God Who is revealed in the blessed Scriptures!
Indeed, our expectations too often determine what we will believe and how we will act! We are quicker to make Jesus what we want Him to be rather than worship Him as He has revealed Himself to us.

Before we examine this phrase "Son of Man," let us look closely at a small word in here. The Greek word translated as "must" is die, it gives the sense of the word "necessary" even "binding." So Jesus says He "must" suffer many things...It was necessary for Him to do so. This was something that had to come to pass.

Why "must" these things happen?

While we can say refer to many things such as the salvation of man and His sinless nature being the only acceptable sacrifice, there is an even more simple reason why these things "must" happen. What is that reason?

God said they must happen!

Look closely at Isaiah 53

In other words, because the Scriptures needed to be fulfilled!

This is a common theme throughout the NT...events occurred that were fulfillment of prophecy and lest God cease being God they would happen as proclaimed by the prophets of the Living God! And the scourging, death, and resurrection of our Lord was the greatest of the prophecies...the first one ever proclaimed in the Scriptures (See Genesis 3:15)

Now in regards to the phrase Son of Man...I want us to look at the term in the way that Jesus used it of Himself. Why did He identify Himself as "Son of Man" in so many places?

The title Son of Man was used by Jesus to refer to Himself as one who exercised authority...an authority dependent not upon anything other than God...note Matthew 7:29 where we see that the people were amazed because He derived His authority from Himself. See also Mark 2:10.
The Bible records only one instance in which Jesus was referred to as "Son of Man" by anyone other than Himself...Stephen in Acts 7:56.


What can we deduce from this...that the term Son of Man was a title of authority...Yes, Jesus would be temporarily humbled (because He chose to be) but ultimately the Son of Man would and will return as King (Mark 14:62).

Verse 32)

"He spoke this word openly. Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him"

Poor Peter...Jesus has just acknowledged His role of Messiah, and now He says He has to die! In Matthew, of course, Peter has been offered the keys to the Kingdom! You can just imagine that he can just see a temporal position of power at his reach! If Jesus dies, what happens to his position?!? To be fair to Peter, however, we must realize that no Jew who knew anything about the Messiah believed His rejection was possible. Therefore what Jesus is sharing would have been inconceivable to a 1st century Jew!

So Peter takes the Lord aside and "rebukes[s] Him"! The creature rebuking the Creator! If this does not convince everyone in this room that it is truly by God's grace alone that saves and maintains us...then we have no hope!

Verse 33)

"But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, 'Get behind Me, Satan! For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.'"

Note that the Lord looks closely at the other disciples...He knows that they agree with the sentiments of Peter!

Jesus does not react with concern...saying "Thanks for caring so much about me Peter." NO! He reacts with righteous anger! "Get behind Me, Satan!"

And why do you think Jesus reacted in this way?

For this reason: to oppose the scourging and death of Messiah was to oppose the revealed Word of God! To challenge the Word Himself on a prophetic statement was arrogance! It was to care more about the way things should be than the way God plans them to be! Remember that God owes us no explanation for the decisions He makes...one commentator says that "Jesus shows no inclination to justify the ways of God to men. He simply affirms that the way of the cross is the will of God"!

Realize this...when we close our eyes to God's truths we desire the things of men rather than God...when we seek to live in any way other than that which is outlined in the Scriptures, we are not mindful of the things of God.

So then what should we take away from these verses?

How about the following:
We need to be prepared to give an account of our faith to anyone, for we may be asked ourselves...who is Jesus?
We need to accept the Word of God as authoritive in all areas of our lives
When we read the Scriptures, we should be prepared to consider our preconceived notions, our prejudices, our personal “feelings” as secondary to the teachings of Scripture!

Amen?