 Again
Well it’s spring again. It’s also quickly approaching graduation time. The trees and flowers are in full bloom and the transformation from the dormant state of winter to the long, hot days of summer is in full swing. If you have read my posts over the last several years you might note that I tend to get a bit nostalgic during these seasons of change during the year. With that in mind, I would like to think with you about some of the things that we know about change and how we should deal with change as believers. Inevitable Change is inevitable. This can be both good and bad. This obviously means that change cannot be avoided. Sometimes when things are going well or we are experiencing a truly sweet time of blessing in our lives we can wish that everything would just stay that way. However, in reality, since you and I have not yet lived in a world free from the presence and consequences of sin, to stop even at the best of moments is to rob ourselves of the future glory that we will inherit (2 Corinthians 4). It is also a reality that the coming struggles, trials, and even sufferings will be used by God to produce the kind of maturity and obedience that brings God ultimate glory (1 Peter 1:3-12). This is why we exist so we can know that God is going to help us to grow in Christ (Ephesians 4:11-16). Beneficial On the other hand, when we are going through things that are very hard and difficult we can trust in the fact that, while our God does not change, our circumstances do change. This means that we will have the benefit of seeing the gloomy clouds part and the sun shine again. We know that no suffering will endure forever because we have God’s promises as a sure and steady anchor for our souls (Hebrews 6:13-20). We must understand that most of the things that we celebrate in life are the result of positive changes that the Lord has brought about in our lives. Change is the flow that causes our lives to be like a pure bubbling spring not a stagnant pond. The beauty of the transformation that the Lord brings to each person who is born again is the most amazing testimony of positive change (Romans 12:1-2). Also the blessing of new life that invigorates a family when a precious baby is born. Or consider when a child is adopted into loving, believing homes out a difficult or dangerous situation. Also, when we celebrate a high school or college graduation or a couple entering into the covenant of marriage. All of these things are examples of the benefits and blessings of change happening in our lives. Unchangeable But we also must remember that in a world so full of changes and developments, we can rest because our one constant is that our God does not change (James 1:17-18). He is unchanged by anything that happens or could happen. This should give us amazing confidence because we can trust Him to bring about the promises He has made because those promises haven’t changed. It is also true that we can know that the character of God is trustworthy because He is consistent in His perfect character. Because our God does not change we can trust Him with all the twists and turns of our life and our eternity (Hebrews 13:8).
0 Comments
 That’s Good
What are some things that you really enjoy? As you ponder the list that is forming in your head, consider the investment you are willing to make in those things or experiences. For instance, if you love a certain kind of food, you can go to restaurants that serve that food. You can also spend time learning the proper ingredients and techniques so that you can prepare your favorite meals yourself. You might even take a cooking class specializing in that type of food. You could even go to the extreme of learning to produce the necessary ingredients in your own garden or sourced from local farmers to have the freshest experience. What is described above is someone who is receiving a great amount of pleasure and is therefore willing to expend a great amount of effort for this experience. However this is not the kind of lazy seeking of instant gratification that is common in our comfortable western culture today. Often we think that the problem in our world is the appetite for pleasure, but actually the problem is our willingness to settle for less than what will bring the maximum amount of joy. The sure and clear path to our lasting and satisfying joy is the straight and narrow journey (Matthew 7:13-14) in the footsteps of our Savior and following the voice of our Good Shepherd (John 10:1-16). Imagine the sheep traversing the difficult trail around the mountain and down to the lush green meadows of the valley by the gently babbling brook. If a sheep instead turned aside to munch some weeds along the way instead of staying on the path, then soon it would be lost and in danger of ravenous wolves. This poor pathetic sheep has also missed out on the joy being experienced by the rest of the flock in the fresh field. My point is that our real joy is found in the blessing and will of God, and it is worth pursuing that joy rather than the weeds of the world. Diligent Study In the 111th Psalm we are told that the works of the Lord are great and that those works are studied by all who delight in them (Psalm 111:2). Notice that the person who delights in the works of God also studies the works of God. Like the person who discovers a new favorite food and learns to make it because it is such a joy. Consider the Razorback fans right now who will seek to learn everything they can about each new recruit coming through the transfer portal. The reality is that we are prone to study those things about which we truly care. But does it really mean to study? The dictionary defines study as the devotion of time and attention to acquiring knowledge or a detailed investigation and analysis of a subject or situation. Bible study is not something that just happens randomly but it is the purposeful setting of our hearts and minds on God’s word for the magnification of His glory and our joy! People with regenerate hearts and renewed minds (Romans 12:2) have an appetite and hunger for the word of God. My goal in this post is not to dictate methods or plans for how you must study the Scriptures. (I do have opinions on that also.) But I must ask you: Are the great works of God studied by you? Because the Psalmist again says that those things are studied by ALL who delight in them! All does not leave room for you or I to be in a different category. The only categories are those who do not study because they have no taste for the glorious deeds of divinity. And those who do study God and His works because they desire the delightful delicacy of His glory.  The Eclipse
The recent eclipse on April 8th was a very impressive thing to experience. To be honest, I don’t know what I was expecting. The kind of hype that I had heard was that it would be an amazing thing to see and it would fully live up to the anticipation. I had seen videos where people would scream and cry and express many emotions when viewing the totality. I did not experience any of that but, I was impressed to see the phenomenon. One thing that stood out to me was that what really made this a big deal was that most of us had never seen one and would never see one again. The sight was beautiful and astonishing but I was struck by the thought that if we had one daily or weekly, we would probably become immune to the amazement. Rareness makes us think of things as special and often regularly repeated things get disregarded simply for being common. Later that same day, I happened to be outside at sunset. I noticed just how glorious the sunset was as I contemplated this majesty. I was reminded that I ought to be attentive to the many amazing ways that God so richly displays His glory, both those that are rare and those that are regular. Sustained Glory As mentioned above, our sense of wonder and awe can often become dull from regular repeated exposure. But if this is true, how will we not become numb to the glory of God in His eternal presence forever in our future? I propose that this is a serious issue because we were created to worship. It is our purpose as the image bearers of God to eternally magnify and rejoice in the glory of God. As the catechism says our chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. But will we be able to sustain such astonishment, such wonder, such awe! I think that there could be many facets to consider about this question but here I would like to consider just two. The first point to consider is probably the one that we all assume most naturally. That is that God’s glory unveiled and unmediated will be of a kind and scale so great that we will always be overwhelmed with His greatness. I am sure that this is true. Consider the last chapter of the Bible (Revelation 22:1-4). Here the Lord describes through the Apostle John this eternal scene. One thing that we must not overlook is the newness of this place. We are told that the river of life is flowing out from the throne of God and Christ. Flowing rivers are pictures of continual renewal. If I go down to the Buffalo river today and swim I cannot return and swim in the same water tomorrow because the water is constantly flowing. Also, on either side of this river the tree of life is yielding its fruit every month. Also, the night never comes for the light of God's glory shines on for this glorious eternal day. The point I am making is that God’s glory and our eternal existence is perpetually new. The newness will never wear off because we will be living in the eternal newness of God’s glory. I, of course, cannot explain how this is or how we will experience it for no one has yet to experience it but we will! Eternal Capacity The second aspect that we also must remember is that we will not be the same as we are now. Of course in this life the things around us get tarnished and fade from their youthful beauty. But in eternity it is not only our surroundings that will be renewed but us also. We will be living in glorified bodies! We will be thinking with renewed minds! We will be hearing with perfected ears! We will be seeing with clear eyes! We will be loving with our regenerate hearts unbound by even the presence of sin! My point is that we will be different. We will have the capacity to glorify, worship, rejoice, and enjoy God that we cannot now even fathom. I believe that this is what the Apostle Paul referred to as an eternal weight of glory (2 Corinthians 4:16-18). As wonderful as the Eclipse was, it was beheld by my fallen and frail eyes. But when we see Jesus in glory, we will see Him as He is and be like Him (1 John 3:2). This means that we will be able to experience the glory perfectly and fully!  The Eclipse
It seems that there are many different emotions and opinions surrounding the upcoming solar eclipse. Many people are excited about the opportunity for what, for many of us, will be a once in a lifetime event. On the other hand, many others are pursuing an economic profit from the visiting spectators. Still, many others are concerned about problems that could range from minor inconveniences to full on catastrophes. Finally, I am sure that many people are just ready for it to all be over. However, it does seem that those who have experienced a total eclipse almost universally report a significant experience. I am sure that that type of experience is a mix of expectations and surprises. Those who come to the eclipse with scientific interest probably are impressed by what they can learn and observe in the event. Others who come to the eclipse with spiritual, even pagan or mystic expectation, will probably have some sort of sensual experience. Still others will witness the rare and incredible product of our awesome and sovereign God through His own creation. Remember, the heavens declare the glory of God (Psalm 19:1). Danger It is amazing to me how everyone is so attracted to some fleeting moments of darkness. I know that there will be interesting things to observe in the daytime sky which are usually obscured by the sheer brilliance of our sun, but still, we do experience darkness every night. The fascination with the totality of darkness illustrates a Biblical truth. Jesus tells Nicodemus that the light of God had come into the world. He meant that He was the light meant to lead those who could see and love the light to eternal life by trusting in Him (John 3:19-21). But Jesus also points out in this same text that humanity loves darkness because man’s deeds are evil. The point is that darkness helps us to hide both our sin and the shame and guilt that comes with our sin. Even in a society that seems to flaunt even grotesque sin in the broad daylight, it is still true that men love to hide away their sins in the darkness. Darkness is dangerous not only because it affords us the opportunity to hide our sin from others but we can often even deceive ourselves as long as the light does not expose our evil deeds. As long as we remain trapped in the practice of wicked works we will continue to seek out the darkness rather than the light because we know that our deeds are evil. However, when by God’s grace and through faith in Jesus, we are delivered from the domain of darkness by having all our sin forgiven, we now come to the light (Colossians 1:13-14). This sudden attraction to the light is not to show off that we are now doing right and true things but rather to glorify God who is the source of these righteous actions (John 3:21). Impact So what should we do with this eclipse as believers? First, we should seek to behold the glory and grandeur of God in the breathtaking beauty and vastness of His creation. Second, we should not be looking for this eclipse to fulfill biblical prophecies. Let me give you a couple of reasons. The texts dealing with the darkening of the sun or signs in the moon and stars were primarily figurative and most, if not all, have already been fulfilled in the immediate context of the Bible. But even if that is not the case there is no reason to interpret prophecies given to Israel or the first century Roman world about signs in the heavens to be fulfilled over North America. Finally, we should look for every opportunity to use this eclipse to tell others about the true light who has come into the world. The greatest experience a person could have on April 8, 2024 is to come to a saving faith and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ (John 8:12).  We often think about inheritance in terms of the will of the deceased. What I mean is that each person gets what someone left to them in their last will and testimony. The will functions to express the wishes of the person who owned the assets. I suppose our reasoning is that since the property belonged to this person, their personal property rights extend to their posthumous will. I must admit to my modern sensibilities this seems correct. This post is not intended to be a full treatment of a Biblical view of personal property rights. To be clear, I think that the Lord gives us the privilege, authority, and responsibility of personal property ownership in the pages of Scripture. But this post is about what God may be teaching us through the rules of inheritance in the Scriptures.
In Numbers 27, we see God amending the inheritance stipulations for Israel so that daughters can inherit in the absence of any brothers. The context goes on to explain how the nearest relative of a person had the right of inheritance. What is interesting about this is that God did not leave it up to the will of the individual to decide who would receive the inheritance but rather God chose through the mechanism of the legal code. It is clearly true that many of these kinds of civil laws given to Israel are specific to Israel in that they are meant to show the distinction of Israel from the other peoples around them. These laws also serve to preserve the tribes and their allotments which is an important part of why the familial connections are so important. Keeping the land or possessions in the family also keeps them in the tribal portion. But what if there is still another reason for this instruction? Could this other reason be that God is showing us that the requirement for the true heirs is relationship? I think so! Heirs of Abraham After God initiates His covenant relationship with Abraham and the promises that belong to the future new covenant, all the believers throughout the Old Covenant period recognize their inheritance comes through their relationship to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This is because God made and reestablished His covenant relationship with them and their descendants (Genesis 12;15;17;26;35). However, not all the physical descendants were spiritual heirs of the New Covenant promises. Even while they were under the external demands and privileges of the Old Covenant. This is why the opponents of Christ are so adamant that they are not illegitimate but are Abraham’s children, because their relationship to Abraham truly is their relationship to God (John 8:39-45). They truly thought that God was more concerned with external obedience and genetic connection than true love of God and man from the heart (Matthew 22:34-40). But the true sons of Abraham may not have the blood of Abraham but they have his faith (Romans 4:13-25). Heirs of Christ The reality is that now after Jesus has come and brought us into the New Covenant through His mighty death and resurrection, we are made true heirs of Abraham because of our relationship with Christ (Galatians 3:23-29). The inheritance we receive as believers is the result of the relationship we have with God. Because we are now in Christ and indwelt with the Holy Spirit and at peace with God the Father, we are therefore, fellow heirs with Christ and heirs of God (Romans 8:12-17). So, dear Christian, rejoice! For you are an heir of God by sheer grace and according to the electing, redeeming, and adopting will of God. This inheritance is sure because it is kept in heaven where no capture or corrosion or corruption can ever happen (1 Peter 1:3-5).  Services
I am writing this blog on Wednesday evening, March 20, 2024. Today, I attended two funerals. As a pastor, I assume that I probably attend more funerals than the average person. But, of course, not as many as the folks who work for the funeral homes. But two funerals in one day is unusual for most of us. These experiences are made more difficult because none of us attend them passively or casually. We attend these services usually because of what this person who has passed away meant to us or because we care deeply for someone who was close to this person. Regardless of the precise reason, we are engaging in grieving to some degree. Memories The first service I attended today was for Randall Gardner. Randall was my father’s first cousin’s husband. But they were married when I was still an infant so I have never known our extended family in any form that did not include Randall. Today at the service and during the conversations afterward many stories were told relating his wit, his diligence, and his dedication. All true and admirable qualities. I always thought of Randall as the kind of person you can really count on. I remember a time when he really came through for me. Laura and I had been married less than 3 months, and I was in college at the time. That summer, I had started a young filly, but of course I hadn’t ridden her since Labor Day because of school. It was early October and I was going to ride her up the river road. As I rode along I saw Randall at the back of the field cutting wood and I went to speak with him. As I came back from our conversation, just before getting back to the road, the filly threw me and injured my shoulder. I tried to get back on (you know how cowboys are supposed to), but because of my injury I couldn’t. I walked back across the field, and Randall hauled me out so that I could get to the hospital. I remember how encouraging and reassuring Randall was as he came to my rescue. The second service I attended today was for Clarence Phillips. Clarence has been the music leader at Immanuel Baptist Church in Clinton, Arkansas for many years. Clarence was a ball of energy. He was not a very large man, trim and not tall. But from the first handshake, to him belting out those wonderful hymns, he always gave one hundred percent effort and enthusiasm. Clarence had an evident love for the Lord and for praising the Lord through gospel music. Clarence was also a man that could be counted on. Both of these men had impacted many lives and it will take many people to fill their shoes. But even more important than the things they did, these men are going to be missed for the people they were and that is irreplaceable. Hope Many things are being accomplished through the process of having funeral services. One thing is the opportunity for people to show their love, support, and respect for the deceased and the family. Another purpose is to give a point of closure. Though it is certainly not the end of the grieving, it marks the move into the new era of life without this person. But still another purpose is to encourage us all to grieve with hope. In 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Paul encourages the Christians that they are not to grieve like the unbelievers but rather with great hope because of their faith in the powerful salvation provided to all believers by our Lord Jesus Christ. We grieve differently because of our hope of resurrection and eternal life. Paul also tells the Corinthian Christians that because of the resurrection of Jesus and the resurrection promise for believers, death has lost its sting and power having been overtaken by the victory of Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:50-58)!  Common
We tend to think of things that are common as ordinary. Common things are not considered special or exciting things. Things that are common occupy a place among the regular or mundane aspects of life. In our hypersensitive and over stimulated culture we tend to crave things that are new and exciting. We may think that modern experience is unique but the Bible tells us that the Athenians also spent their time seeking after the next new thing (Acts 17:21). So, maybe it is not just our modern age but rather the joint inheritance of this age of sin following the exile from the garden of Eden that attracts us to the next new thing. If that is the case then we should expect that those of us who have been rescued from the tyranny of this sinful state would be free also from this lusting after something new. Is it possible that in Christ we have been given regenerate hearts that have an affinity and appetite for a common experience. Fellowship In Acts 2:42, Luke records for us the very first experience of Christians being together after three thousand were saved at Pentecost. In this passage, Luke refers to them being devoted to the apostles teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. The word that is translated as fellowship is koinonia. The root of this word is koine. You may have heard people refer to the particular dialect of Greek that the New Testament is written in as koine greek. That means it is the common Greek, the word on the street. But the word koinonia means partnership or fellowship. The common part is in reference to the relationship. Those first converts to the way of Christ were from many different parts of the Roman world and even spoke many different languages, but they had this one thing in common and that one thing is Christ! Human beings are traditionally very tribalistic. By this I mean that we tend to form associations around various shared backgrounds and experiences. But for the Christian our deepest and strongest fellowship must be with the saints who along with us have experienced regeneration (Titus 3:5). We share the common purpose of knowing Christ and making Him known.(Philippians 3:8-11) We share the common joy of worshiping Christ and praising God for the great things that He has done (Luke 1:46-49). We have a common source for truth and the wisdom to apply that truth in the Scripture (2 Timothy 3:16). We have in common the love of God that the Holy Spirit of God has put into our hearts (Romans 5:5). The list could be endless of all the things that we who are in Christ now have in common because we have Christ! Spectators So much more could be said about our mutual love for one another. But we will save that for another post. But maybe you are reading this post and you don’t have the experience of grace mentioned above. Possibly as you have read these prose about the joy of knowing and worshiping Christ no affections have been stirred in you. Could it be that to base everything about the way you live on the Bible seems strange or radical to you? Does it seem impossible for you to love other Christians to a greater degree than your extended family or your friends? May this be because you are not a Christian? If you do not have any of these common traits that are the normal fruit of the Christian experience then friend let me urge you and exhort you to turn to God from your sins and self and trust full in Jesus to save you by His grace (Ephesians 2:1-10)!  Normal
Most of us think of ourselves as “normal.” I know that our culture is overrun with a victim mentality that causes people to believe that they are truly afflicted in some special way. Others are convinced that they are genuine snowflakes, as unique as their own fingerprint. Still some are filled with hatred and pride because they belong to a particular tribal affiliation. But in truth, we all think that we are rather normal. We assume that our experiences, thoughts, understandings, and emotions are like most other people’s. Or, more accurately, we believe that other people are like us. We are even likely to do things purposefully or subconsciously to try to fit in when we feel like we are outsiders. I believe that this sense of normalcy is closely connected with our innate understanding that we are made in God’s image. This goes deeper than just our outward, corporeal existence because the image of God is reflected in our whole being including both our rational mind and soul. Even though because of sin we are plagued by the sins of partialism, kinism, and tribalism, we all also have a common understanding of our connection as human beings. Excluded Because we have this natural sense of belonging, we tend to think that to be excluded is somehow unfair. But when reading through the many laws given in the Old Covenant to the nation of Israel, it becomes very apparent that God took very seriously who could and could not come near to worship Him. For a specific example, consider Leviticus 21:16-13, in this text the Lord is giving specific instructions about who is prohibited from serving as priests because of physical deformities. To understand these exclusions, we must remember the external nature of the Old Covenant. But still reading the list it is striking to see these people excluded from this service and access to God because of physical defects. For the most part these are not necessarily the outcome of any moral or ethical failure on the part of the individual person. I am sure that many enemies of God would want to use this as evidence that God is capricious and unfair. However, we must understand that the purpose of these holiness codes and ceremonial commandments were to communicate the perfection and holiness of God Himself. God is not condemning people because of these things nor is He being unfair because in truth no one should be allowed to approach His holiness, rather He is communicating His greatness and holiness to His people and to the world through the law code which is a revelation of His righteousness (Romans 3:21). Accessible I must admit as I was reading the text in Leviticus 21, I was reminded that in that covenant I would have been excluded from the service and access to Yahweh. This thought caused me to immediately reflect on the amazing grace of God. In Christ, I am given free access to the very throne of grace and presence of God (Hebrews 4:14-16)! I must add that this access has nothing to do with my calling or vocation being in service to the church but rather it is the heritage of every member of the New Covenant (1 Peter 2:9). In Christ, all believers are priests and have access to God through Jesus. This last Sunday, we considered Paul’s teaching about the fact that through the doctrine of adoption Christians have been brought into God’s family. Paul goes on in Ephesians 2:18-21, to tell us that through Christ we have access in the Holy Spirit to the Father. He then explains that we are therefore, citizens in God’s kingdom, saints in God’s service, and members in God’s household. When we come to God through the transforming power of the gospel and the sanctifying work of God we are given access to God both free and forever! That is something worth singing about, worth preaching about, worth living for with our whole life!  False Teachers
The Scripture is clear that we should expect false teaching in the world (1 John 4:1) and false teachers to even arise among us (2 Peter 2:1-2). Therefore, we should be vigilant that there are wolves who would seek to devour the sheep with the infectious disease of their heretical teaching. Many of these wolves even disguise themselves in sheep’s clothing and bring reproach upon the name of Christ (Matthew 7:15-20). In the passage just mentioned, the Lord Jesus instructs us to judge the teachers according to the accuracy of their teaching. Of course the only way to measure the accuracy of their teaching is against a sure and common standard. The only perfect and inerrant standard by which to judge Christian teaching must be the eternal word of God (2 Timothy 3:14-17). The Apostle Peter is quick to remind us that it is the living and abiding word of God that is the imperishable seed by which we have been born again (1 Peter 1:22-25). False Teachings Several heresies exist which have been repeated over the centuries since the establishment of the church. Heresies are different from errors. Error in doctrine or Biblical teaching is simply a wrong or ignorant view of a particular doctrine. But heresy is the denial or contradiction of an essential doctrine of the Christian faith. The distinction is about the serious nature of the specific incorrect teaching. For example, a differing view on the administration of baptism and the Lord’s supper would usually fall into the category of being in error, while denying the full humanity and deity of Christ would be heretical. The kingdom of God will be full of believers who had differences in this life of practices regarding the ordinances of the church. But everyone will have believed in the perfect God and man mediator, Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 2:3-6). This means that with the world full of both religious and secular false teachers we must be on our guard against every doctrine that conflicts with the message that has been given to us by our great God (Galatians 1:6-9). Historically, the doctrines that have been attacked by heretics are those dealing with the person and work of Christ, as well as the nature and extent of the gospel. So, the target of the enemy is Christ and His bride, the church. The doctrines are essential to the hope of salvation and so they are malined by the debased and demonic enemies of God. True Teachings However, the danger of false teachers is not only the dissemination of false teachings, but also in introducing confusion about true teaching. False teachers do not only teach lies but also teach some things that are true. This is of course necessary for one purpose of making their false teachings believable. But this mixture of truth and error can also cast doubt on true doctrines. Just because a teaching was taught by a prideful and abusive false teacher does not mean that the doctrine itself is an error or a heresy. It also does not mean that the teaching is itself abusive or harmful. For example, a hammer can be used as a torturous tool of abuse or even murder, but it can also be used to build a home. Remember even Satan attempted to utilize and twist Scripture while tempting the Lord Jesus (Matthew 4:1-11). My point in this post is that while we must be careful not to just accept every plausible or hopeful teaching that comes along (Ephesians 4:11-14), we also should not discount or disregard everything that may have been taught by a false teaching on the basis that it was taught by them, but we must test the teaching by the measure of the Scriptures.  What time is it?
I have heard a few different interviews with Rosaria Butterfeild over the last several months. Rosaria is the wife of a presbyterian minister who was formerly a lesbian activist and professor of English and women’s studies at Syracuse University. (You can read more about her here, she was also recently featured in a video called “He saves us” made in response to the He gets us ad during the Super Bowl.) In these interviews, she has pointed out repeatedly that as Christians we don’t realize what time it is. What she means is that in response to so many culturally divisive and spiritually damaging topics of our day we still act like we are living in the quasi Christian culture of twenty or thirty or fifty years ago. A couple of examples might help us to understand this point. In terms of thinking about gender and sexuality, many of us are thinking that the argument is over ethics. Meaning is this behavior right or wrong. Or we may be thinking that the debate is about truth, such as is this gender claim true or false. But actually, the disagreement is much more fundamental, because it is about identity. Our response to the sexual promiscuity and gender fluidity of our day must be with the understanding that the true identity of each and every person is found in being made in the image of God as both male and female (Genesis 1:26-27). A second example would be our understanding of racialism or tribalism. For many of us the first thing that comes to mind when we hear the term ‘racist’ is a person who hates and persecutes other people because of their skin color or ancestry. But again this is because we don’t understand what time it is. Racism is now defined in terms of power and oppression. In this way of thinking, the needs of the oppressed should always be favored over the rights of the privileged because the privileged are benefiting from the plight of the oppressed. Our argument cannot simply be personal or inalienable rights because again that misses what time we are in. Rather, from the Bible, we must remember that prejudicial partialism is condemned whether it benefits the rich or the poor (Deuteronomy 1:16-18,James 2:1-13). What these examples and Rosaria’s point about knowing what time it is should help us realize are that often the problems that our lost and sinful culture are bogged down in are not the presenting preversions or the surface sins to which we often react. Rather, we must realize that there are deeper problems which these outward manifestations are revealing. These sins are the result of misplaced beliefs and worship. Human beings are created to be believers and worshippers but when that believing and worshiping nature is corrupted and polluted so that we believe lies and worship false deities then we are left with only emptiness and brokenness (Romans 1:18-32). Now What? So, if we realize what time it is, what should we do? First we need to tell the truth out of love for people and not out of fear or anger. Have you noticed that speaking out against most sins has become labeled as fear in many cases? Words such as “homophobic” are used to refer to those of us who would say that homosexuality is sin. But we are not afraid so why this label? I think it is because our opposition is understood as angry and hateful. Of course, no matter our tone, no one likes being told that they are sinning or that they should repent. However, we must still convey the only salvific gospel of Jesus Christ by calling out sin and commanding repentance out of love for sinners and not anger at sin or fear that we are losing our country or culture. It really does sometimes seem to me that many professing Christians just want the sinners to go back into the closet and out of sight. But we must love people enough to engage them with the life changing and hope giving message of the gospel (Titus 3:1-11). I could give a list here of things that we all know we need to do more. We need to share the gospel more, pray more, etc. But really what we need to do is love more. And loving more means loving enough to say hard things and even risk losing the relationship for the sake of the other person’s soul. |