Directions All of us have been lost at some point in our lives. In those moments when you don't know where you are or which way to go next we can be filled with anxiety and fear. The point is that we just need to know which way to go to get back on the right path. We need something such as a landmark or sign to point us in the right direction. However, sometimes we know the right direction but the problem is that there is some other interest pulling us the other way. Of course this can be taken literally, as if you are running late for work or an appointment but you really want to stop in to your favorite morning drink spot or coffee shop. But this can also be the case in a figurative sense. You have a decision to make and you know the faithful choice, but there is something you desire just a little ways down the other path. The dangerous lie of sin is that we can go just a little way down that deadly road and then come back but unfortunately the reality is that starting that way only makes going God's way (repentant faith) more difficult. Slippery Slopes The problem is that with each step down the broad road (Matthew 7:13-14) the inertia begins to propel us further away from the Lord and His commands. The longer we spend on this excursion the less we remember His merciful warnings and steadfast love. The road we once would have never considered going down now becomes comfortable and easy. On this road it is easy to assume that we can turn around anytime and no real damage is being done. But remember every moment on the broad road is time not spent on the narrow way and not drawing closer to the Lord. The further the journey the steeper the slope becomes. Maybe you have experienced this with something as simple as church attendance. The first time you miss you feel like you really missed something and you know you should have been there. But over time you get used to not being there and before long you don’t even miss the meetings. The danger is that these things are subtle. These do not seem like massive departures from our values and commitments but they take us away from the Lord in small increments. Old Roads Sometimes our struggle is not that we are going down the old broad trail but that others who we love are venturing that fretful way. Of course we warn them but often they can't or won't hear us. They assume they are different and it will work out this time. But as anyone with real experience knows the crash and hardship are sure. We know where this road leads and it's always death (James 1:14-15). So often we overlook what seem like small things even sins because we want to believe the best of course that is what love does (1 Corinthians 13:4-7) but we must be on guard for a dangerous trajectory. There are many examples in the scriptures of people whose down trajectory started long before their eventual fall. Consider Esau, of course he was rejected according to God’s sovereign purpose but he disregarded and despised both his birthright and his blessing (Genesis 25:29-34; 27). Or look at the life of the first King of Israel, King Saul. He repeatedly chooses to place his wisdom over God’s clear commands. Saul thought he could offer sacrifices in place of Samuel and against God instructions (1 Samuel 13:8-15). Saul then directly disobeyed God’s instruction to devote the Amalekites to destruction claiming he only wanted to worship God with the sacrifices (1 Samuel 15). But God would rather have our obedience than our innovation. While the Bible is full of these examples, let us consider just one more. Judas did not suddenly decide to betray Jesus. Over time he began to question what Jesus was teaching and doing, insisting that the expensive ointment could have been sold for a great profit and given to the poor but we are told this was only because he wanted to steal from the purse (John 12:4-7). Judas had long before started on the trajectory of choosing money over Jesus. Caution The point of this post is simply that we would all be careful about traveling down dangerous paths that can lead to destruction. This danger is especially great if we are inexperienced and unwise. So let us ask God for wisdom (James 1:5) and seek to find His direction in His word and through the blessing of His Spirit!
0 Comments
Communication We live in a time with a great increase in information. That increase in information is not the product of our advancing mental or intellectual capacities. So what is the catalyst to the advancement of our knowledge base? I would propose that it is fueled by our innovations in communication technology. These seem rather clear as we consider the history of human society. Civilizations and cultures grow and mature as they move from being oral societies to literate societies. Then, as we proceed into modernity, the ability to move correspondence across large spaces more quickly seems to coincide with progress in philosophy, theology, science, and technology. The point is that communication is extremely important. It is at the very heart of our bearing of God’s image and our relationship with Him. Since this is the case it is truly important that we consider how God has communicated with us and how we should rightly interpret His word! Context In the real estate market, it is common knowledge that the most important three factors are location, location, and location. A property's location is crucial to accessing its value and actually finding buyers. When it comes to interpreting what God has said to us in His word (The Bible), context is king. If we do not understand the surrounding context we will almost inevitably get the meaning and application of what God has said wrong. First, we must understand the literary or grammatical context. Where is this passage in relation to what has been said before and after in the book. Context involves more than just reading a paragraph before or after our focal text. We must understand what the author is saying and what kind of argument he has been making. This can also include seeking to understand how a certain author uses words uniquely in their writing. Paul and John might use the same word and not be talking about the same thing, and that can only be determined by understanding the context of their writing. Second, we must understand the historical or cultural context. Without an understanding of this context it is easy to read into the text meaning that would be valid in our culture but not then. Understanding the cultural context does not mean that we are free from any command that God has given but does help us to apply them rightly in our real life circumstances. This is also important because it can keep us from judging people and practices by a standard that they did not have because all of God's scripture had not yet been given. This is also true of our interpretation of post biblical church history. When we read the writings and study the lives of Christians in the past we must be careful not to judge them by standards that we have that no one could have had in that time and place. Hopefully, we realize how unfairly we could be judged by people 500 years from now if they judge us by some standard that does not get implemented for another 100 years. Finally, we must understand the biblical context of every passage of Scripture. This involves the timeline of the Biblical events and the connections of each passage to key biblical themes most importantly God’s redemptive purpose in the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. There are many passages of the Old Testament that cannot be fully or properly understood if they are not viewed through the lens of the accomplishments of Jesus Christ. In these texts if we miss the presence of Jesus simply because His name is not mentioned we will miss the meaning and the application of that text. Genesis 22 is a good example of this key concept. The clear parallels to Christ are evident. Of course all of these texts have real meaning for the original audience that received them but the fullness of the revelation is when we interpret these texts in the biblical context. There is a principle of Biblical interpretation known as the analogy of faith or the analogy of scripture. The idea can be stated basically as Scripture interprets scripture. Another way of thinking about this is that a holistic understanding of the Bible will help us to understand the parts. If we have a sense of the whole story and the themes running through the scripture then we can understand individual passages and meanings more clearly. I love to be able to point clearly to a chapter and verse to ground my beliefs and actions in what God has clearly said. However, there are things that the Scriptures teach that are not the clear instruction of a single verse but rather the necessary implication of many passages. Our desire should not be to find “loopholes” in the scripture to allow for our sin. We should be desiring to obey everything both explicitly commanded and implicitly revealed in the inerrant and infallible word of God. Ultimately, we must understand that God has not spoken to us in verses but in narrative stories, poetic stanzas, and instructive letters which requires us to know more than a line or phrase or sentence or verse. Opinion We all have different opinions on a variety of issues, some funny and some very serious. For example, the weather is starting to warm up around these parts. I saw that today set a record for heat in Little Rock. I know that there are many people who are so happy to be wearing shorts and sandals. However, the present author is not one of them. I HATE hot and humid weather. I know that is a strong statement, but I will stand by it. I often joke that I never complain about the cold weather because I want to reserve the right to complain about the hot weather. In reality, the preference for hot or cold is not an issue of right or wrong but individual opinion. In all honesty, many people simply go from complaining about the cold weather to complaining about the hot weather. When I was in the ninth grade our agriculture teacher taught a wise little poem about this very thing. People may falter but they’re bold When it's hot they want it cold When its cold they want it hot Always wanting what is not! Of course the point of the poem is about content] but the post today is more about thinking about our own perspective and preferences and our attitude when we disagree about important matters. Thermometers Thermometers are used to gauge the relative temperature of something. When it comes to our own opinions we are often blissfully unaware of the degrees of difference that we may have with other people, even other people that we love very much. Since this is so, we can at times say things that we think are rather average temp, but that come across scathingly hot. As a person who uses a lot of words I am unfortunately painfully aware of this phenomenon. This is especially challenging when the difference in opinion is not over air temperature or food preference, but over issues dealing with morality, truth, and compassion. I wish I could write out for you a couple of brilliant sentences that would give you the tools to always discern the temperature correctly, but alas, I have not mastered that wisdom myself. But hopefully this is a cautionary call to be gauging the mercury in the thermometers of your conversations and relationships. Thermostat The great thing about the thermostat is that it doesn’t just tell you the temperature, but gives you the ability to set the desired level. Again, it may seem like it would be a lot easier to navigate our lives if we could just set a nice mild climate for all our conversations and interactions. Maybe in this fictitious world all our differences over politics, religion, and world peace could be solved with pleasant conversation. But in the real world I think that there are some key components of a good thermostat in our relationships. First, we must maintain an attitude of genuine humility. Pride, no matter how well intentioned, is bound to do harm and bring about destruction. Second, we must have love (Ephesians 4:15). Real affection! Here, I mean that this must be more than just a nice acquaintance or temporary tolerance. We must have a love for one another that goes deeper than being fans of the same team or having the same goals. We need to deeply care for and love one another. Finally, we must speak the truth (Ephesians 4:25). No one is served well by lies no matter how well meaning they may be. We must speak the truth in love but it is not loving to refrain from speaking when we know we should. If we fear losing the relationship more than we fear what will happen to the person, then we love the relationship more than we love them. Seasons The taming of the tongue is more art than science. The scripture is clear that this endeavor is difficult and dangerous (James 3:1-12). We also must realize that like the seasons sometimes will be more difficult than others. But regardless of if we are facing a cold shoulder or a heated debate, let us seek to do so with humility, love, and truth. When you Pray Yesterday (5/5/2022) was the national day of prayer. This is a day that has been chosen to call believers from all over our country to pray for God to bring revival and awakening to our country. It is certainly a good thing when men and women pray together for the grace, glory, and guidance of God on our land. In the Bible, God clearly expects us to pray. Prayer is both commanded and modeled in the Scriptures throughout both the Old and the New Testaments. Even in the life of Jesus in the gospels we see the prominent role of prayer. The reality of the importance of prayer could have no greater emphasis than Jesus’ personal practice of public and private prayer. The overwhelming reality is that God’s people are people who are communicating with God. Of course, a necessary part of this communication with God is the receiving which happens through general revelation in nature and the circumstances of our lives, and, to an even greater degree, through special revelation which is found ONLY in the Scriptures and illuminated by the Holy Spirit. We must be hearing from God and obeying what we are hearing. James exhorts us to be doers of the word and not only hearers (James 1:22-25). However, God also wants us to talk to Him. This communication is not because God needs the information. Obviously, He already knows all things. It is not so that He can learn something about us. Rather, it is so that we can grow in our experiential relationship with Him. Prayer is really doing something in and to us as we pray. God is truly relating to us and communing with His people when we bring our requests and petitions to Him (Philippians 4:4-7). How you Pray The internet is full of helpful and clever memes and acronyms about how to pray. I think that one of the best practices is to use scripture. This can be done in multiple ways. 1) You can use scripture to bring to mind things or people that you should be praying for. Just start reading and when someone or something comes to mind pray for it/them. 2) You can use texts, like the model prayer in Matthew 6:9-14 or the armor of God passage in Ephesians 6:10-20, to define the order and categories of your prayer. 3) You can use the actual words to pray back to God when you are struggling to know what to pray. These are just a few ways to use the Bible to help you pray. If you want to know more, I would encourage you to read Dr. Don Whitney’s book “Praying the Bible.” You can find that here. However, another helpful strategy is to use a prayer list. Notice, I didn’t say have a prayer list but to use a prayer list. I know people probably think won’t using a list make my prayers too repetitive? Well yes it can if you just read the list. But I mean taking your list and really making it your own. I do this every week. I take our church's prayer list and I highlight names and write in needs and personal requests that help me to remember and verbalize my prayer. The point is not just to read it, but to think about the people or ministries or events that you are praying for and the specific needs that they have. I was excited today when I was scrolling through facebook and saw a name that we once had on our prayer list. When I looked I realized that I knew the person as an acquaintance but not by name and so I put together that this person I had seen and spoke to many times was also someone I had the privilege of praying for many times. I’m not saying that you need to do it the way I do, but you do need to find practical ways to be more engaged in fervent and passionate prayer because it accomplishes more than we can imagine (James 5:13-18). Why we Pray I already mentioned the example that Jesus gives in His own life. It has been said that “if Jesus and the Apostles needed to pray so much, how much more do we need to pray?” But maybe we should instead notice not the need of Jesus’ prayers but the desire of His prayer life. Jesus didn’t go to the Father in prayer out of some sense of duty or some draw down of power and need for replenishment. Jesus wanted communion with the Father. They (the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit) had been in perfect unity and communication for all of eternity! One perfect and complete being of God shared fully without division or parts between three equal and eternal persons. This is the God who calls us to pray and welcomes us into perfect community and communication with Him! |
AuthorEddie Ragsdale Archives
May 2024
|