By What Authority?

Posted on by under Article, Doctrine
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            In the religious world today, there is no shortage of worship styles and services, all of which differ in mode and operation.  It begs the question as to whether they are all approved of by God.  Some will say that the details of their worship to God do not matter, that anything is acceptable.  I wonder if those same folks would be okay with animal sacrifices being done in a voodoo ritual, or snake handling being done by some fringe group, however.  It would seem that we all would draw a line somewhere.

            The question then becomes where do you draw that line?  If we are all going to do something different in our worship to God, who determines if that is acceptable or not?  The root of the issue really boils down to authority.  Do we have the authority to make our own decisions when it comes to worshiping God?

            In the New Testament of the Bible the subject of authority comes up often.  In one such instance, the chief priests and elders are questioning Jesus in the temple and asking where His authority comes from to do what He was doing.  Jesus responded with a question of His own.  “But Jesus answered and said to them, ‘I also will ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things: The baptism of John—where was it from? From heaven or from men?” (Mat. 21:24-25 NKJV).  Notice that Jesus only gave two options for the source of authority.  Authority either comes from heaven or from men.

            Everything that is done in religion today is done by one of those two sources of authority.  Either what we do is done with the authority of God Almighty, or what we do is by our own authority.  God has a preference.  In rebuking the Pharisees and scribes, Jesus referred to them as hypocrites and stated, “And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men” (Mark 7:7, Mat. 15:9).  Worship that is vain is useless.  God will not accept useless worship.  God wants to be worshipped as He has commanded.

            We need to have biblical authority for what we teach and practice.  Paul explained in Colossians 3:17 that whatever we do in word or in deed needs to be done in the name of the Lord.  That doesn’t mean we do what we want and slap the name of Jesus on it.  That means that we do it according to His authority.  Let us examine our own selves to see that we are doing what the Lord wants when it comes to our worship of Him.  By what authority do you do these things?

Can We Deal With the Devil?

Posted on by under Article, Christian Living

Our current news feed is loaded with what has been going on in Israel in the war with Hamas.  Many are wanting for a cease fire that will bring peace to the region, but the question that must be answered is how you negotiate with someone who only wants your death or demise.  How can you appease them if all they want is for you to not exist?  Can we make a deal with the Devil? 

It’s difficult to see how that would bring about the desired result, and yet people seem to think that they can make a deal with the Devil and that it will somehow all work out.  Satan is referred to in the Bible many times and in many ways.  He is the tempter in the Garden of Eden in Genesis 3.  He is the accuser of mankind in Job 1.  He is the leader of the fallen angels who have made war against the people of God in Eph. 2:2 and Revelation 12.  All he wants is for the demise and destruction of mankind.  How can you negotiate with him?

Moses certainly understood the importance of not giving in to the adversary.  In dealing with Pharaoh, Moses remained steadfast and sure and did not negotiate with the foe of God.  In Exodus 8:25 Pharaoh told Moses to hold a sacrifice in the land of Egypt, but that was not what God had demanded.  Later, in Exodus 8:28, Pharoah said to go, but only do not go too far away.  Satan would like for us to not go too far away from him. He wants for us to keep one foot in his synagogue (Rev. 2:9) and one foot in the church. 

In the plague of the locusts in Exodus 10, Pharaoh again tried to control the situation in allowing the men to go and sacrifice, but he wanted the children to be left behind.  Satan is delighted when we don’t bring our children with us into the church or into a right relationship with the Lord.  Satan loves to tell us that it is wrong for us to “force” our religion on our children, and instead would have us allowing our children to make their own choices when they are still young and naïve.

Pharaoh tried one last time to negotiate with Moses and his God in allowing the people to leave, but not taking their possessions with them.  “Then Pharaoh called to Moses and said, ‘Go, serve the Lord; only let your flocks and your herds be kept back’” (Exodus 10:24).  Moses answered Pharaoh that they would not leave a hoof behind when they exited Egypt (Exodus 10:26).  Moses understood that he could not give ground to the adversary.

Satan loves it when we give in and negotiate with him.  Go serve God, he might say, but don’t go very far away.  Go do what the Lord wants, but leave your children behind with me.  Go ahead and be a Christian, but don’t let that get in the way of your pursuit of material things.  We cannot give ground to the adversary.  We cannot deal with the Devil.  We cannot negotiate with Satan.  We need to stand, and to stand firm against the wiles of the Devil. 

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand (Eph 6:10–13).

Give Us A King!

Posted on by under Christian Living

               In 1 Samuel 8 the nation of Israel came to Samuel, who was the last of the Judges.  Apparently, they felt Samuel was too old to continue to be their leader, as they pointed out the obvious to him.  More importantly, they wanted a king so that they could be like the nations surrounding them.

               This was not what God had desired for them.  He was supposed to be their king.  They were to look to God for His guidance, they were to rely upon Him for their protection, and they were not to be like the nations in the land of Canaan (Lev. 20:23).  God had called them to be a holy people, who would be different and distinct from their neighbors (Ex. 19:6; Lev. 19:2).

               Likewise, God calls for us today to be holy and distinct from the rest of the world (Eph. 1:4; 1 Pet. 1:15-16).  In 2 Corinthians 6 Paul explains that Christians today are the temple of the living God, and so we are to “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord.  Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you” (2 Cor. 6:17).  Too often we are comfortable being like the world, but God desires something better from us.  Let us realize that we have a great King, and let us walk in His ways.

How Was David a Man After God’s Own Heart?

Posted on by under Repentance

            There are passages of scripture that we may ponder more than others.  One of those is the statement that David was a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam. 13:14; Acts 13:22).  We likely remember what David did in committing adultery with Bathsheba and how he had her husband, Uriah the Hittite, killed in battle to cover it up.  So, we may wonder at how this man is to be commended.  Fortunately for David, and for us, we are not judged by just one moment in time.  So how did David become a man after God’s own heart?

            First, David owned his sins.  When Nathan confronts David over his sin with Bathsheba and Uriah in 2 Samuel 12, David makes no excuses.  He simply admits that he had sinned (2 Sam. 12:13).  This is unlike Saul, who constantly blamed others for his shortcomings (1 Sam. 13:10-12; 1 Sam. 15:20-21).

            Second, David repented of his sins.  David’s deep remorse over what he had done can be seen in Psalm 51, which shows David’s feelings and his broken heart because he had transgressed the law of God.  David wrote, “For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is always before me” (Psalm 51:3 NKJV).

            Third, David trusted in God to forgive him.  Nathan told David that God had forgiven him (2 Sam. 12:13b).  David trusted in that forgiveness and placed his faith in God.  Several places in the Psalms show us that David trusted in God (Psalm 16:1; 20:7; 31:14; 62:8).

            We should also be like David.  We need to own our sin, repent of what is wrong in our lives, and trust in God to forgive us, as He said He would.  If God has forgiven us, we don’t need to carry that guilt any longer in our lives.  Therefore, “let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Heb. 12:1b).  While none of us are perfect, we can be people after God’s own heart if we do these three things.

Can We Die Apart from How We Live?

Posted on by under Article, Christian Living

            There is a country song by one of Knoxville’s more famous sons titled “Everybody Wants to go to Heaven,” which expresses the attitude that we can live however we want now and still go to heaven in the end.  In the song, the lyrics suggest that we can have the women and whiskey and all the worldly pleasures we want, as long as we put some extra money in the collection plate on Sunday.  Is that how God operates?

            The thought is nothing new.  Around 1400 BC, there was a prophet of God named Balaam who basically wanted to do the same thing.  Balaam was eager to go with the men that the king of Moab sent to him in order that he might come and curse the children of Israel, who had exited Egypt 40 years prior and were now encamped on the plain hear Moab (Num. 22-24; 2 Pet. 2:15).  You may remember that God did not want Balaam to go and even placed the Angel of the Lord in his way.  Balaam wanted to go and be ‘honored’ by the king of Moab, but he still wanted to die the death of the righteous (Num. 23:10).  Can we live wickedly and still die the death of the righteous?

            How we live matters!  We cannot live like the devil and die like an angel.  God says that we are to strive for holiness in how we live (1 Pet. 1:13-16).  Indeed, Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called” (Eph. 4:1).  We cannot live in disobedience and think that we can somehow buy our way into heaven.  It didn’t work for Balaam, who died with those who caused Israel to stumble by his counsel (Num. 31:8, 16), and it will not work for us.  If we want to die the death of the righteous, we must live in obedience to God!

Whatever Happened to Truth?

Posted on by under Culture, Uncategorized

It seems such a long time ago that common sense was more common, and people believed that there were some things that were absolutely true.  Our own Declaration of Independence states that there were certain truths that the population held to be undeniable and self-evident.  Today, however, truth has taken a back seat as our nation has embraced relativism.  In short, relativism is the idea that what is true for you may not be true for me.  It’s all relative and based upon our own experiences.  Modern scholars will declare that there is no absolute truth, to which I would like to ask if they believe that absolutely.

            The Bible paints a different picture of truth.  Jesus prayed in the garden that God the Father would sanctify or set apart His followers in the truth and declared that God’s word is truth (John 17:17).  In his conversation with a Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well, when she stated that she did not currently have a husband, Jesus told her that she was correct in this and proceeded to point out that she had a spiritual problem (John 4:16-18).  She and the Samaritans also had a truth problem in that they were worshipping upon Mt. Gerizim rather than in Jerusalem.  Jesus did not tell her that she needed to live out her own truth.  Instead, He told her that they who would worship God must do so in spirit and in truth (John 4:24).  God wants us to follow the truth of His word, and to not make our own path (Matthew 15:7-9).  That would seem to be absolute.

            Absolute truth means that there are some things that are true for all people and at all times.  Boiled down, truth is always true.  It doesn’t depend on our circumstances or experiences.  Water is always wet, ice is always cold, and fire is always hot.  God has revealed the truth to us in His word, and it is that truth that will set us free (John 8:32).  Nothing from our imagination will compare to the truth.  If we are to escape the eternal fire, then we need to learn, understand, and obey the truth of God’s word and follow His will (Hebrews 2:1-4; Matthew 7:21ff; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9).  Be a seeker of truth, and follow God’s path to salvation.

Do We Remember to Say Thanks?

Posted on by under Uncategorized

thank you heart text

Photo by Řaj Vaishnaw on Pexels.com

I can remember in the days and weeks following the attack upon the United States on September 11, 2001, that church attendance in the U.S. enjoyed a momentary increase.  Sadly, however, that increase was short lived.  Studies have shown that within a few weeks, in most cases, church attendance quickly regressed to the pre-September 11 level (https://today.duke.edu/2016/08/after-911-short-lived-rush-church).  What happened?

What happened seems to be consistent with all of human history.  When things are bad, when we are pressed on every side, when we are struggling with adversity, then we remember that there is a God in heaven and we seek His favor.  The same was true of the Hebrews, who in a time of affliction in Egypt called out to the Lord for deliverance (Exodus 3:7-9).  Later, after settling into the Promised Land, the Israelites became satisfied and forgot their God, who had brought them out of Egypt (Judges 3:7; 1 Samuel 12:9; Psalm 106:21).  Over and over again throughout the book of Judges, there was a cycle of them forgetting God, practicing idolatry and other sorts of evil, and only turning to God when oppression came upon them.

We can look back at them in wonder, as to how they could have seen so much of the power of God, and then turned away or neglected God.  However, don’t we do the same thing?  We cry out to God and pray when times are bad.  We suddenly become more religious when under attack, but quickly forget about God when life is good.  We often treat God as if He is the genie in the bottle (break glass in case of emergency), and we neglect Him when things are good.

Let us not be those people!  Instead, let us remember the God who loves us.  Let us remember that He has not left it to us to figure Him out, but has given us an ample description and instruction through His inspired word (2 Timothy 2:16-17).  Let us come to Him both in our hour of need (Hebrews 4:16), but also when our hearts are full.  “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, emphasis added).

At this time of year, as we gather together to give thanks as a nation, let us not forget our Creator, the One who gives life and sustains us all (Acts 17:28).  Let us not be so quick to forget Him during the rest of the year, but instead, let us continue to give God our thanks throughout our lives.

“Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of His,
And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name” (Psalm 30:4).

God’s Family

Posted on by under Christian Living, Doctrine

Pontus_Greek_family     If we are like most people, somewhere amongst all of our belongings there is a family photo album or two. From time to time we like to take out that photo album and relive the memory of lost loved ones or special times and events in our life. Maybe we gather around with others in our family and share stories from the past. Family is important and makes us feel like we belong to a group with a common background, common experiences, and a shared heritage. Just imagine for a moment what it would be like if God had a family photo album. Whose pictures would be in that album?

     We see that family was important to Jesus, but maybe not in the way that we think. There was an occasion where Jesus was teaching His disciples, and while He was still speaking to them He was told that his physical mother and brothers were waiting outside to speak with Him (Mark 3:31-2). Then Jesus said, “’Who is My mother, or My brothers?’  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, ‘Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother’” (Mark 3:33-35 NKJV). Jesus stated that His spiritual family was more important to Him than His physical family.

     If we want to be a part of God’s family, if we want for our pictures to be in His “photo album,” then we need to do what Jesus says to do. Notice He said “whoever does the will of God” is His family. It is important then, that we do the will of God. Compare this to what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven” (Matthew 7:21). It is not enough for us to just call Him Lord, we must be willing to do the will of the Father to be in the family of God and to enter into the kingdom of heaven. Have you obeyed God’s will? Is your picture in God’s photo album? We invite you to come and see what God’s word has to say about the will of the Lord, so that all of us can be in God’s family!

Do This in Remembrance of Me

Posted on by under Love of God

grapes     Recent research has suggested that the consumption of grape juice is an aid in either avoiding Alzheimer’s, or that it can slow the process of memory loss in those with the brain disease. Alzheimer’s is thought to be brought on by stress and free radicals in a person’s physiology. Since antioxidants combat free radicals, and since grape juice is rich in antioxidants, the thought is that grape juice can help combat one of the causes of the disease (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3544087).

     Is it not interesting to think that grape juice can aid memory? Just before He was arrested, tried, and convicted to die via crucifixion, Jesus gathered with His disciples in an upper room in order to partake of the Passover. At this last supper of the Lord, Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper. They took the cup containing the fruit of the vine (grape juice) and divided it amongst themselves. Then Jesus explained to them how the unleavened bread represented His body, which would be given for them and us. That cup with the fruit of the vine represented His blood, which would be shed for the forgiveness of sins (Luke 22:17-20). During that discourse, Jesus instructed them to “do this in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19b, NKJV).

     Every week, on the first day of the week, Christians around the world gather together to remember the sacrifice of Christ (Acts 20:7). One of the emblems that is used in this remembrance is the fruit of the vine/grape juice, which researchers now believe is an aid to memory! Of all the things that we have to remember, from time with our friends as children, to time spent with loved ones as we grow old, what can we remember that could ever be more important than what God did for us by sending Christ to die in our place? God, who knows all things, chose to use unleavened bread and grape juice as the symbols to remember Jesus death. “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26). So the next time you enjoy a glass of grape juice, remember what Jesus did for you.

Instant Messaging

Posted on by under Christian Living

Texting     Have you ever prayed for God to take care of some problem that you had, and then wondered what the answer to that prayer would be? It is especially difficult for us as Americans to be patient in waiting for a response. We are so accustomed to fast food, microwave ovens, and instant messaging that we expect immediate results. Additionally, it may be that the answer to our prayer is “not now,” and so we have to wait awhile for the result. This is a normal situation, but during the time of Hezekiah, he received an instant response to one of his prayers.

     As 2 Kings 20 opens Hezekiah is sick to the point of death. Isaiah the prophet comes to him to instruct him to put his house in order, for he will soon die. This leads to Hezekiah’s prayer, and the text tells us that he prayed with such fervor that he wept bitterly (2 Kings 20:2). His prayer was heard and his tears were seen by the Lord. Before Isaiah could even exit Hezekiah’s house, he was told to return to Hezekiah with an updated message (2 Kings 20:4-5). Hezekiah was not going to die yet. Instead the Lord granted him another 15 years on this earth. God was prepared for Hezekiah’s prayer, because God knows all things even before they occur.

     Likewise when we pray to the Lord, He already knows what it is that we will say and what it is that we need (Matthew 6:8). Still, He wants for us to come to Him in prayer. We are no different than Hezekiah in that respect. God knew that He would heal Hezekiah, but yet He waited for Hezekiah’s prayer. God has the power to answer all our prayers in an instant. Whether the answer comes instantly or over the course of time, our part is to pray with the earnest expectation that God will hear and answer our prayers (James 1:6-8).