I call it an excursus but really it’s getting to the main point while going around everything I wanted to talk about and probably will discuss anyway. I love theology. So much so that it often times becomes an idol for me. I love to think and wrestle with concepts, theories and ideas as they pertain to God. I believe that God works in his creation and with his people to make himself know, more specifically showing his glorious attributes. I get this from the first chapter of Romans and the book of Exodus, but you can see it everywhere. So it makes sense to me that if God wishes to make himself known, we should work to know him.
Not only this, but I would argue that the more we know God and his purposes in creation and our own lives, the more we are compelled to live for him. There is reason why Paul prays that the churches will grow in knowledge; the reason is that true knowledge produces action. If we say we know God, but don’t act according to that knowledge, we don’t really know God. 1 John says that if we say we know God and continue in sin we don’t really know him. But something must come before our growing in knowledge. That thing is the main point which I will try and articulate now.
The main point of this series on theology is that repentance comes before knowledge. In the epistle that we call 1 Corinthians, Paul tells the church there that he wishes that he could address them as adults and feed them with meat (Deeper teachings about God), but he can’t because they are acting like babies and still need milk (The elementary teachings). WE HAVE TO GROW UP IN OUR FAITH! And to do that we must repent of our worldliness. But what does this mean? In the situation in Corinth the believers were grumbling with each other and they were playing favorites with which teacher’s they liked the best. They were prideful and were using the gifts God had given them for the purpose of building up the church to exalt themselves. So they were prideful. They loved things and the perceived power or position that came with them, namely their spiritual gifts. They were still acting as the world acts. Jesus tells us that the rulers of the world lord their power over other people, but it is not to be that way with us. We are all equal in position with differing roles. We are a body.
Just as the church in Corinth was acting as the world and not in accordance with the grace and call of God, so are we. The reason we as a church are so theologically weak, is because we love the world more than we love God. And our theological lacking shows in how we live. We look like the world because we don’t know God. We will spend hours if not weeks trying to figure out how we can make more money or have more possessions, but we won’t spend 5 minutes learning the scriptures. Why? Because we don’t see it as important. We, just like the Corinthian church, are seeking power and position. Knowledge and understanding are not valued in our culture, and like wise it is not valued in the Church. So instead of seeking to know the Lord, we seek money and position. We want to be exalted, instead of exalting God.
THIS HAS TO STOP. We are a body and it is necessary that we grow in the knowledge of the Lord, so that we will live in accordance with his word and his will. This is what pleases God. Not our house, not our checking account. Our unabashed devotion to Jesus Christ and his Gospel is what pleases God. So let’s stop acting like the world and grow in the knowledge of the Lord.
-Mitchell
Showing posts with label Faith. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Faith. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Monday, May 10, 2010
Faith: For Better or For Worse, Which is The Best.
Hebrews 11
If anyone is reading this please stop right now and read all of Hebrews 11. It’s not that long and it is an amazing section of Scripture. Not only does it unify the believers of the Old Testament and the New Testament on the grounds of faith, it also shows us that bad things, which I will argue are the best things, are carried out by the same faith that great things are carried out with.
Hebrews 11 is called the Faith Hall of Fame, and in reading it, its easy to see why. You have read it right? If not see the first sentence. The Chapter is all about faith; this is good because faith is some what of a buzz word these days. “Have faith and everything will okay.” “God will heal you.” “God will give you a big house.” “God will give you a perfect family.” Everything will be great. “Just have faith and you can shut the mouths of lions.” And the first part of Hebrews 11 seems to support this. By faith Enoch pleased God and if we read in Genesis, he didn’t have to taste death. He walked with God then he was no more. Sarah who was up there in years and barren bore Isaac. By Faith Isaac invoked future blessings on his offspring. By faith Moses is spared and used mightily by God to lead his people out of captivity. These are awesome and good things. That God does do for those that have faith. In verse 32-35a the climax is reached. It says,
“What more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were mad strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection”
These are awesome things. They are good things, but as we continue to read in Hebrews 11 we see that other individuals don’t seem to fair so well. Just look at verse 35. The first sentence of the verse reads, “Women received back their dead by resurrection.”, but the sentence directly following it, without any sort of transition says, “Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life.” WOW!. We go from being brought back from the dead to being tortured and killed. It goes on to say in 36-40,
Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated—of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
And all these, though condemned through their faith, did not received what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.
Again I’m blown away. By faith all of these people suffered terrible things. It was not because they were lacking in faith, or because they were disobedient. They went through these things because it was better. In chapter 2 of Hebrews it speaks of Jesus being made perfect through suffering. And it is the same for us. It is a blessing to share in the sufferings of Christ. But in America today, suffering and death are seen as bad things, or some sort of punishment. It’s neither of those things. It is not the worst thing that could happen, it is the best thing. This world and the things of the world are passing away. No matter how good your health, you’re going to die. No matter how big your house, it’s going to burn. No matter how good your marriage, it will end. Everything apart from Christ and his Kingdom is fleeting, and will one day be gone. To live by faith is not to live a comfortable life. It’s to live a life that hopes in the things we have not yet received. So live you life by faith in a better day, the day to come when our glorious Lord returns and all things are made new.
-Mitchell
If anyone is reading this please stop right now and read all of Hebrews 11. It’s not that long and it is an amazing section of Scripture. Not only does it unify the believers of the Old Testament and the New Testament on the grounds of faith, it also shows us that bad things, which I will argue are the best things, are carried out by the same faith that great things are carried out with.
Hebrews 11 is called the Faith Hall of Fame, and in reading it, its easy to see why. You have read it right? If not see the first sentence. The Chapter is all about faith; this is good because faith is some what of a buzz word these days. “Have faith and everything will okay.” “God will heal you.” “God will give you a big house.” “God will give you a perfect family.” Everything will be great. “Just have faith and you can shut the mouths of lions.” And the first part of Hebrews 11 seems to support this. By faith Enoch pleased God and if we read in Genesis, he didn’t have to taste death. He walked with God then he was no more. Sarah who was up there in years and barren bore Isaac. By Faith Isaac invoked future blessings on his offspring. By faith Moses is spared and used mightily by God to lead his people out of captivity. These are awesome and good things. That God does do for those that have faith. In verse 32-35a the climax is reached. It says,
“What more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were mad strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection”
These are awesome things. They are good things, but as we continue to read in Hebrews 11 we see that other individuals don’t seem to fair so well. Just look at verse 35. The first sentence of the verse reads, “Women received back their dead by resurrection.”, but the sentence directly following it, without any sort of transition says, “Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life.” WOW!. We go from being brought back from the dead to being tortured and killed. It goes on to say in 36-40,
Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated—of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
And all these, though condemned through their faith, did not received what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.
Again I’m blown away. By faith all of these people suffered terrible things. It was not because they were lacking in faith, or because they were disobedient. They went through these things because it was better. In chapter 2 of Hebrews it speaks of Jesus being made perfect through suffering. And it is the same for us. It is a blessing to share in the sufferings of Christ. But in America today, suffering and death are seen as bad things, or some sort of punishment. It’s neither of those things. It is not the worst thing that could happen, it is the best thing. This world and the things of the world are passing away. No matter how good your health, you’re going to die. No matter how big your house, it’s going to burn. No matter how good your marriage, it will end. Everything apart from Christ and his Kingdom is fleeting, and will one day be gone. To live by faith is not to live a comfortable life. It’s to live a life that hopes in the things we have not yet received. So live you life by faith in a better day, the day to come when our glorious Lord returns and all things are made new.
-Mitchell