Monthly Archives: September 2014

Kingdom Come?

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Left Behind CageMany of us are looking forward to Jesus’ return with great anticipation. Regarding that return, there are many who expect Christ to set up an earthly kingdom and reign from Jerusalem for 1,000 years. Indeed, later this week a new movie based on the popular “Left Behind” series opens in theaters, which espouses this idea of Jesus’ coming kingdom. Is this really what the Bible teaches, or is it just good fiction?  Let us look at just a few scriptures to ascertain the answer to that question.

Long ago Joel prophesied that in the last days God would pour His Spirit upon mankind (Joel 2:28ff). In Acts 2, Peter makes mention of Joel’s prophecy and says that they were living in those last days that Joel was referring to (Acts 2:16-21).  So we know from this that the last days began some 2,000 years ago on that day of Pentecost.  Additionally, we see that Jesus told those who were listening to Him that some of them would not experience death until they had seen the kingdom come with power (Mark 9:1).  Just prior to Jesus’ ascension He told His disciples to tarry in Jerusalem until they received power from the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-5).  About a week later, they received the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2.  Therefore, they received the power when the Spirit fell upon them.  When the power came the kingdom came.

Furthermore, in reviewing Daniel 2, and the explanation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, Daniel describes four earthly kingdoms. The first of these is Babylon, followed by the Medes and the Persians.  Later would be the Greeks and then the Roman Empire. Then Daniel states that in the days of those kings God would set up a kingdom that would never be destroyed (Dan. 2:44).  This is further confirmation that the kingdom would be established during the days of the Roman Empire and was also fulfilled on the day of Pentecost as described in Acts 2.  Just as Jesus told Pilot, His kingdom was not of this earth but that it was a spiritual kingdom (John 18:36).

So then, what do we learn by putting some of these scriptures together? We see that there were some who lived 2,000 years ago that were not going to die before the kingdom came with power.  We see that power came when the kingdom was established on the day of Pentecost, and we see that the kingdom is a spiritual kingdom which is the church.  Christ came to seek and save the lost and to add them to His kingdom, the church, and He was successful in that mission.  Therefore, the kingdom that we are to seek entry into has been established for the past 2,000 years, and it is the church which Jesus built (Mat.16:18).

Peace and Safety

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3828960388_ebf3fe4262_z     Last week my family and I traveled to our nation’s capital on vacation.  While we were in D.C., a man jumped the fence and attempted to gain entry to the White House.  It was not me.  However, it made us think about the security measures we did see while in Washington.  At most of the museums and monuments, there were security screenings and metal detectors in an effort to make us all feel safe.

That feeling of safety is something we all crave, especially in our modern world.  News of attacks and planned attacks seem to dominate the news.  And while the extra security measures are necessary to try to prevent further attacks, do they really make us feel safe?  When the security guard is talking to his buddy about last night’s game instead of watching the x-ray monitor, do you really feel safer?

While we may never be at peace or feel that we are completely safe in a physical sense in this world, there is a peace and safety that comes from the Lord.  This peace allows us to pillow our heads at night and sleep, without having to worry about what will come in the night.  As David wrote, “I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety” (Psalm 4:8 NKJV).

If we are in a right relationship with God, if we are in obedience to His will and His word, if we have put our trust in Him, then we can have peace.  We have a peace of mind, even if we don’t live in a world that provides us with much hope of physical safety (John 14:27).  We can have that peace, because we know that if anything happens to this earthly body, our eternal soul will be in the hands of a God who loves us.  If you want that peace too, you can have it by seeking God and obeying what He has told us to do.

Judge Not?

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Let us take a moment to consider one of the most misquoted scriptures in the entire Bible, which is in the book of Matthew.  Here we read,

 Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?  Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye?  You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.  Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you (Matthew 7:1-6 ESV).

Many will read this passage and immediately say that we are not allowed to make any judgments, based solely on the first verse of Matthew 7 (Judge not).  Is this what Jesus is really saying?  Are we to make no judgments at all based on this?  If, however, we read the rest of the context of this passage, we will find that Jesus is instructing us to not make any rash or unrighteous judgments.  Notice that Jesus tells us to first take care of our own affairs (take the log out of your own eye first), before we take the speck out of someone else’s eye.  It is important for us to realize that He does not say that we should not remove the speck from our brother’s eye.  We need to be able to see clearly in order to do that so that we will judge with righteous judgment.  Elsewhere Jesus tells us, “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment” (John 7:24).

We should also take special notice of verse 6 of Matthew 7.  How can we be sure to not give to the dogs that which is holy, or to cast our pearls before swine, if we do not make some sort of judgment about our audience?  Perhaps we could think of it this way.  Suppose that we came upon a woman with a flat tire along side of the road, and we stop to help.  Why did we stop?  Did we make a judgment that she is not capable of fixing the problem herself?  What if we come to a dark alley and decide not to venture that way?  Did we judge ourselves as ‘better’ than that alley?  You see, we make dozens of judgments everyday, and there is nothing wrong with that as long as we are judging correctly.

Much Ado About (Next to) Nothing

Posted on by under Christian Evidences

1410083904547_wps_9_Television_Programme_Step     In the news this week is a story about the “God particle” that scientists and evolutionists are eagerly anticipating will help them to understand the origin of the universe.  This surfaced in the news this week, because of the preface to a new book by famed physicist Stephen Hawking.  He warns that the experiments in particle collision to try to ‘recreate’ the God particle could lead to a cataclysmic catastrophe that we would never see coming.  Hawking warns that a vacuum caused by the particle could lead to a sudden collapse of time and space.

     Not to worry, though, as additional scientists point out that the collider to cause this catastrophe would have to be larger than the earth.  In the “current economic climate” this is seen as something that would be impossible to construct.  Really?!  One wonders where they would build this experiment that would have to be larger than the earth (anyone have a few acres they could contribute?).

     The idea of the “God particle” was first conceived by British scientist Peter Higgs in the 1960’s, and was ‘discovered’ in 2012.  Scientists believe that this particle creates an invisible energy field that causes small particles to gain mass and shape as they pass through the field.  Let’s break that down.  What they are looking for is a force that would cause small particles from the Big Bang to grow in mass (size) and that would shape them into planets, stars, comets, asteroids, etc.  Um, have you heard of God?

     What most people will fail to realize is that this does not explain the origin of the universe.  Where did the small particles come from?  Where did the initial energy and material come from to create the supposed Big Bang?  Evolutionary ‘scientists’ can kick the can down the road as far as they like, but they still cannot answer these fundamental questions about the origin of the universe and all that is in it.  True scientific laws of nature show that matter could not have been created out of nothing, without some sort of supernatural direction.  Therefore, they are arguing against science.

     In the news article the statement is made that this “God particle” has been confirmed by recent scientific discovery, but then there is a statement that scientists do not fully understand it all yet.  So which is it?  Have they really discovered something?  How can they claim to have discovered something that gives them understanding, and then turn around and say that they still don’t understand it?  Their argument would seem to beg the question.

     As for the potential destruction of the planet by the “God particle,” the question would be who is it that holds the future of the universe in their hands?  Is it the population of a small, seemingly insignificant planet when compared to the vastness of the universe, or an all knowing, all powerful God, who created it all (Gen. 1:1; Psalm 19:1; Heb. 1:3)?  God has said, “While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease” (Gen. 8:22 NKJV).  It is God who is in control.  It is God who has made all that is seen and unseen.  It is God who will decide when the end will come (Mat. 24:36).

Baptized in the Spirit. . . A Closer Look

Posted on by under Doctrine

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     In Acts 2 we see the account of the birth of the church when the Holy Spirit fell on the apostles and they were filled with power (Acts 2:1-4).  Many have looked at this passage and are not sure, however, of whether the Spirit fell only on the apostles, or if He fell on the 120 mentioned previously (Acts 1:15).  So then, who did receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2?  Was it the 120 who were in the upper room when the replacement for Judas was chosen, or was it just the apostles?

     First let’s examine who was given the promise of the Holy Spirit by Jesus.  When Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5, 8) and to baptize them in it, to whom was He speaking?  In order to find the antecedent of them, we need to look back at Acts 1:2.  Here Luke tells us that the them in this context are the apostles that Jesus had chosen.  Therefore the promise of Jesus to send the baptism of the Holy Spirit was given to the apostles.  They were the ones to receive the promise and watch Jesus ascend into heaven (Acts 1:11).

     Second let’s examine the time frame with regards to the promise and the coming of the Holy Spirit upon them.  After witnessing the ascension of Jesus into heaven, the apostles traveled a ‘Sabbath day’s journey’ (fixed at 2,000 cubits or roughly 1,000 yards) back to Jerusalem.  Thus they would have arrived back in Jerusalem on the same day in which Jesus ascended and met with the others mentioned in the upper room there (Acts 1:12-17).  Since we see that Jesus was with His apostles for 40 days after His resurrection (Acts 1:3), and since we know that Jesus was in the tomb for 3 days, we can accurately calculate that it had been 43 days since the death of our Lord on the cross when this event with the 120 in the upper room takes place.  Since we also know that there are 50 days between the Passover (time of the crucifixion) and the day of Pentecost, we can see that this meeting took place one full week prior to the day of Pentecost.  The importance of the calculation of the days is that it shows that the narrative of the 120 in the upper room was not on the same day as Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit fell upon the apostles.

     Third let’s examine the event of the Holy Spirit falling upon them on the day of Pentecost.  In looking at Acts 2:1-4 the Bible tells us that they were all together in one place (it does not specify where that place is – upper room, temple, marketplace, etc.).  The Holy Spirit fell upon them and they began to speak in tongues.  Again we need to find the antecedent of them and they in this passage.  This is found by looking at the last verse of Acts 1.  Here we read that the lot fell upon Matthias and he was numbered with the other eleven apostles.  This is to whom the they at the beginning of Acts 2 is in reference.   They were the 12 apostles and it was upon them that the baptism of the Holy Spirit was given, fulfilling the promise made by Jesus in Acts 1:5, 8.

     Through the rest of the book of Acts we can see that the apostles had the ability to heal sickness, cast out demons, and transfer spiritual gifts by the laying on of their hands.  Once the apostles passed from this life, however, those spiritual gifts and that miraculous ability also passed away.  The working of miracles to confirm the word of God had accomplished the task given to them, mainly to confirm that the words spoken by the apostles and prophets were true and were from God (Mark 16:20).  We today have the written word, which we can read and examine to see that these things are so.