July 29, 2016

Luke 16:22-24 (English Standard Version)

(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)

In the last two blogs I told about my friend and his involvement in Unity, a cult that denies the need of Jesus Christ shedding His blood on the cross in order to pay for our sins.  Unity’s basic premise is that you simply have to realize and develop the God already abiding within you.  According to their teaching, Jesus is more the ‘way-shower’ than the unique Savior!  My friend was Playing With Fire according to Hebrews 6:4 through 6 because he “unaccepted ” Jesus as his Savior!  But God, in His graciousness, forgave his rash statement!  He truly saved my friend, and later he and his wife trained for the Christian ministry!

But I was still meditating on this idea of Playing With Fire, and the passage from Luke 16:22 through 24 (English Standard Version) came to my mind.  This is from the parable of the rich man and Lazarus recorded in Luke 16:19 through 31.  Here are verses 22 through 24:

      The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in tor-
      ment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at
      his side.  And he called out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me,
      and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my
      tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.”

Now, most scholars recognize this as a parable – an illustration or story “…from which the listener can draw out for himself moral and religious truth.” (Eerdman’s New Bible Dictionary).  But if it is indeed a parable, it is the only parable in which a person is identified by his proper name – in this case, the beggar Lazarus!  Because of this, some think that this was an actual happening that the Lord (being deity) knew about!

The other character presented in this ‘parable’ is the rich man, known through tradition as ‘Dives.’  It is this man upon whom we will focus!

“…a certain rich man…was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day.” (Luke 17:19).  Purple dye in Jesus’ time was outrageously expensive!  And his food was ‘top-of-the-line’ every day!  He was very rich, and he lived his life extravagantly!  But when he closed his eyes in death on this mortal side of life, he opened them in Hades (Luke 16:23)!

Hades is a place of torment (Luke 16:23), for he was “…in anguish in this flame.” (Luke 16:24).  Obviously, he was fully conscious, could feel the pain of the burning flames, and had immediate burning thirst!  According to what the Bible reveals, he was facing torment in flames for eternity with no hope of ever escaping! (See Matthew 25:41, 46; Mark 3:29; 9:48; II Thessalonians 1:9; Revelation 14:11; 20:10).

Now the rich man was not in hell!  He was in Hades!  Hades may be described as the waiting place of the unrighteous dead!  Emery Bancroft, in his book, Elemental Theology describes it this way:

      …Hades…is the abode of the souls of the wicked.  This is the temporary prison
      where the criminals of the universe are held in confinement awaiting the Judg-
      ment of the Great White Throne.

Criminals of the universe?  Yes, because the worst crime one can commit is rejecting the salvation that Jesus Christ purchased with His own blood on the cross!  Every other sin is forgivable, but this one is not!  As Jesus Himself said in John 14:5, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.”  If you reject that one way, there is no other!

Some say hell is not even created yet, because it is not needed – yet!  It is after The Great White Throne Judgement (described in Revelation 20:11 through 15) that unrepentant sinners are cast into hell – “…the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:8).  In the meantime, they are held in Hades – also known as Sheol (Hebrew for the Greek word Hades.)  Also in the meantime, Satan and his demons are alive and active on this earth.  Someday, they too will be cast into hell! (See Revelation 20:10).  As a matter of fact, and according to Matthew 25:41, hell is created – or “…prepared for the devil and his angels.”

So hell is not a desirable destination, nor is Hades before it!  I was once burned on my back and arm with first, second, and third degree burns.  It hurt!  And it took a long time to recover!  I can’t imagine eternal (forever) fires that burn you, and hurt you, but never consume you!  Don’t get caught Playing With Fire, especially eternal fire!  Accept Jesus Christ as your Savior, and then follow Him as your Lord!

July 27, 2016

Hebrews 6:4-6

(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)

I shared in the last blog about my friend’s involvement with Unity, a dangerous cult that deny’s much of what orthodox Christianity embraces – including the unique deity of Jesus Christ and His vicarious sacrifice for our sins on the cross!  When I challenged my friend about Unity’s teachings, he boldly stated that, whereas he had accepted Christ as his Savior when he was a teenager, he now un-accepted Him!    I immediately thought of Hebrews 6:4 through 6:

      …it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted
      the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and
      have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come,
      if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify
      again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.

If my friend had really tasted of the heavenly gift, had been a partaker of the Holy Spirit, if he had really tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come, then he was in extreme danger!  He was Playing With Fire – the fires of hell!

I started praying for my friend.  Oh, I had prayed for him for years.  But now I began to pray that God would somehow save him – even making an exception to what it says in our featured Scripture!  Either that, or I prayed that when he had accepted Jesus as his Savior years before, it was an emotional response that had no depth of commitment.  I was hoping that he did not mean it the first time, so Hebrews 6:4 through 6 would not apply!

I did not see much evidence in his life over the next fifteen years, evidence that he had rethought his declaration of rejection.  I did not see where he had fully committed himself to the Savior.  My friend married – a second time – and he and his wife began to show an increasing interest in true spiritual things, even joining a sound Biblical church and becoming more and more involved.  My prayers for him began to change – from the ‘exception’ prayer mentioned above to “Thank You and praise You, Lord, for bringing my friend back to a meaningful relationship with You.”

Then I found out that he and his wife were seriously studying the Bible and taking correspondence courses toward a degree in Biblical studies!  I kept rejoicing and praying for them as they grew in their Christian faith.  Two years ago they moved to Colorado to attend Bible college and complete their degrees to become ministers!  “Wow, Lord! ” I prayed, “You sure do know how to answer my prayers! ”  Currently, they are in the process of moving back east to be closer to my friend’s son and family.  They want to witness to this son to bring him and his family into God’s kingdom!  I can hardly wait to see what God is going to do in their lives next!

We don’t know at what point Hebrews 4:4 through 6 comes into effect.  When does it become “…impossible…to renew them again to repentance…”?  In Psalm 34:8 it is written, “Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him.”  I think this describes a two-step process:

•      The first step is the taste – to see if the LORD is good.  This is just a nibble!  My grandson does not even go that far to see if he will eat what his mom or his grandma sets before him.  He sniffs the food!  If it does not pass his ‘sniff test,’ then he will not eat it!  Once you have sampled the Savior – either by tasting or sniffing – you then decide from that sample that, indeed, the LORD is good !  Then comes…

•      The second step – …trust…in Him.  This is whole heartedly consuming Him – receiving the Lord into your heart and life!  Jesus put it this way in John 6:51, 53 and 54:

      I am the living bread which came down from heaven.  If anyone eats of
      this bread, he will live forever; and this bread that I shall give is My flesh,
      which I shall give for the life of the world….Most assuredly, I say to you,
      unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have
      no life in you.  Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal
      life, and I will raise him up at the last day.

But at what point of tasting and then falling away does it become irreversible so that one cannot renew again to repentance?  Every unbeliever faces the fires of eternal hell! (See Revelation 21:8).  I would pray for all who might taste and fall away to not push the limit God has set!  Don’t be Playing With Fire!

July 25, 2016

Hebrews 6:4-6

(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)

Hebrews 6:4 through 6:

      …it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted
      the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and
      have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come,
      if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify
      again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.

This passage has always scared me – not for myself, because I discipline my time to stay close to my Lord Jesus Christ.  It scares me for others, who seem to come to the Savior for awhile, but then fall away.  It says here that “…it is impossible…to renew them again to repentance….”  Considering that impossibility, they would then forever remain lost and headed for hell, and nothing would ever change that!

About twenty years ago I was reviewing some of the literature published by Unity Church.  A friend had become more and more involved in this ‘church,’ and I was concerned.  In the literature available to me at that time I found some disturbing statements.  So I delved deeper into the teachings of this religion founded by Charles and Myrtle Fillmore in 1889.  Here are a some of their basic tenets I discovered (from the webpage of Unity Christ Church, serving Minneapolis, St. Paul, MN area):

•      “God, Divine Mind, is the Source and Creator of all….What is called ‘evil’ is a limited or incomplete expression of God or good. Evil’s origin is ignorance.”

•      “…Jesus Christ…the Way-Shower…was a special person in history who expressed perfection and thereby became the Christ….”

•      “…Unity teaches that the spirit of God dwelt in Jesus, just as it indwells every person; and that every person has the potential to express the perfection of Christ, as Jesus did….”

•      “The Bible is…accepted as a body of history, as a moral and ethical teaching, and as a great literary work.  Beyond this, Unity finds deep significance in the Bible through its metaphysical interpretation, wherein names of places and people and their experiences symbolize the unfoldment of human consciousness.”

•      “The blood of Jesus Christ represents the spiritual energy of God-life that purifies or redeems the body through a cleansing and renewal of the consciousness by the spoken word.  Regarding the ‘spilled blood,’ or the ‘ransom of many,’ the emphasis in Unity is not so much on the death of Jesus as on His life.  He did not relieve us of the necessity of working out our own salvation, but His example and teachings show us the way.”

•      “…the virgin birth is spiritually interpreted as the birth of the Christ consciousness (the awakening of the awareness of God’s Spirit within) in the purified soul.”

•      “Unity interprets the religious terms Father, Son, and Holy Spirit metaphysically, as three aspects of mind action:  mind, idea, and expression.”

•      “Sin is our separation from God in consciousness, caused by our belief in the ‘devil’ or a power other than God, the good….Heaven and hell are states of consciousness, not geographical locations.”

•      “Charles FIllmore (Unity’s co-founder) stated that, ‘The belief that Jesus in an outer way atoned for our sins is not salvation.  Salvation is based solely on an inner overcoming, a change in consciousness.’ ”

From Beliefnet.com, the thread of Salvation in Unity :

•      “Many of us…do not believe in a god that has or would ever require a blood sacrifice to atone for sins.  Such a god was born out of the fearful minds of man who made god in fear’s image….Through the evolution of His Soul, Jesus became the Christ – that is, He became the perfect Idea of man in the flesh and LIVED that Idea in everything that He did.  This ‘divine potential’ abides in each of us as our highest perfection…In fact, Christ is who we really are.”

I think you can see that Unity is not traditional orthodox Christianity!

I brought up some of these teachings to my friend, and emphasized what I had found – Unity’s claim about a bloodless salvation that can be achieved without the vicarious sacrifice of Jesus Christ on Calvary’s cross!  My friend said, “Yes, I believe you don’t need Jesus dying on the cross to gain salvation! ”  His mother, who had been listening to our exchange, then exclaimed, “But you accepted Christ as your Savior when you were a teenager!”  He angrily shouted back at her, “Then I un-accept Him! ”

Based on our featured Scripture, Hebrews 6:4-6, my friend’s vehement statement shook me to my shoes!  I will relate in the next blog what has happened since this incident about 20 years ago.

By the way, stay away from Unity!  It is a dangerous cult that denies Jesus Christ and God’s salvation procured through the sacrifice of laying down the Savior’s life on the cross!  Otherwise, you are Playing With Fire! – the fire of hell!

July 22, 2016

Colossians 3:12-16

(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)

One more time, here is Colossians 3:12 through 16:

      Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies,
      kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another,
      and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another;
      even as Christ forgave you, so you must also do.  But above all these
      things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.  And let the peace of
      God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and
      be thankful.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom….

We have looked at eleven negative characteristics of the old sin nature.  And concerning those characteristics of that nature we are told, “…now you must also put off all these…” (Colossians 3:8).  In the last two blogs we started to examine eleven positive characteristics which Paul says to “…put on…” (Colossians 3:12).   We covered the first nine.  Here are the last two in verse 15 and 16:

•      Colossians 3:16 – “…and be thankful.”  Greek – εὐχα’ριστοi, meaning, “…well favored, that is, (by implication) grateful…” (Strong, Dictionary of the Greek Testament).  Paul tells us in I Thessalonians 5:18, “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”  And in Ephesians 5:20 he says, “…giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ….”  So we are to be thankful in everything and for all things!  Why?  Because “…all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28).  And what is the good toward which all things work?  The next verse, Romans 8:29 gives us the answer:  “For whom He [God] foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.”  As Christians, we are to be more and more like Jesus!  And all things work together toward that goal!  James writes in James 1:2-4:

      My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into various trials; knowing that
      the testing of your faith produces patience.  But let patience have its perfect
      work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

It is a simple book-keeping illustration that James is using.  You have a debit page on one side, and a credit page on the other.  When a trial touches your life, it may be hard and it may hurt!  But, because God is making you more like Jesus through that trial, you should mark it down on the credit side – the good side – of the ledger!  This is why we are to be thankful in everything and for all things!

•      Colossians 3:16 – “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom….”  We know what the word of Christ is.  It is the Bible, the written record of the living Word, Jesus Christ! (See John 1:1, 14).  There are many Scriptures that admonish us to read, study, meditate on, and even memorize God’s Word (see for example Isaiah 34:16; II Timothy 2:15; Psalm 1:2; 119:11).  And Deuteronomy 11:18 and 19 instruct us when we are to be doing this:

      Therefore you shall lay up these words of Mine in your heart and in your
      soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets
      between your eyes.  And you shall teach them your children, speaking of
      them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie
      down, and when you rise up.

What time is left?  There is none!  We are to be like (as it says in Psalm 1:2) the godly man, who has “…his delight in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night.”  We are to thoroughly indoctrinate ourselves in the Scriptures!

The Greek for dwell is ἐνοικεi’tω meaning, “…to dwell in…[or] metaphorically to dwell in one and influence him (for good)” (Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament).  The Greek for richly is πλουσι’ως meaning, “…abundantly, richly…” (Thayer).  The Greek for wisdom is σοφι’α meaning:

      …devout and proper prudence in intercourse with men not disciples of Christ,
      skill and discretion in imparting Christian truth…the knowledge and practice
      of the requisites for godly and upright living… (Thayer).

My understanding of wisdom is the following:  Whereas knowledge is knowing about things, wisdom is properly applying what you know to the living out of your life!

While the Word (the Bible) is the final characteristic of the eleven postives we are to put on as we ‘dress’ for our Christian lives, it is really the key to all the others – both what we are to put off and what we are to put on.  The Word strengthens our faith (see Romans 10:17) – since we are to live by faith (see Romans 1:17); teaches us what to do and what not to do (see Psalm 119:105); examines our actions and motives (see Psalm 139:23, 24; Hebrews 4:12, 13; James 1:22-25); feeds and nourishes us (see Job 23:12; Jeremiah 15:16; I Peter 2:2); is one of the weapons with which we defeat the devil (see Ephesians 6:17); and makes us fit for our eternal dwelling (see Acts 20:32).

We could go on to the next several verses and add family interaction (see Colossians 3:18-21); employment and career relationships (see Colossians 3:22-4:1); prayer (see Colossians 4:2-4); and how we act and speak (see Colossians 4:5, 6).  But this is enough – eleven negatives we are to put off, and eleven positives we are to put on!  Concentrate on these!  It will keep you busy for a long time – at least until we see the Lord Jesus Christ face to face! (See I John 3:2).

July 20, 2016

Colossians 3:12-16

(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)

In Colossians 3:12 through 16, there are eleven positive characteristics that we are to put on – after we have put off the eleven negative characteristics of Colossians 3:5 and 8 through 10.  Here are verses 12 through 16:

      Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies,
      kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another,
      and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another;
      even as Christ forgave you, so you must also do.  But above all these
      things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.  And let the peace of
      God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and
      be thankful.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom….

In the last blog we looked at the first five of the eleven positives, all in verse 12:  “…tender mercies… kindness …humility…meekness…[and] longsuffering….”  Let’s continue:

•      Colossians 3:13 – “…bearing with one another….”  Greek for bearing – ἀνεχο’μenoi, meaning, “…put up with…” (Strong, Dictionary of the Greek Testament).  But we are not to just grudgingly put up with one another.  Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament defines the word to mean, “…to hold up…to hold one’s self erect and firm…to sustain, to bear, to endure….”  By standing erect and firm in the Lord yourself, you can then help to hold up and sustain others!  Otherwise, it will be as Jesus said in Matthew 15:14:  “…if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.”  If a weak believer tries to bear up another weak Christian, both will fall!

•      Colossians 3:13 – “…forgiving one another….”  Greek for forgiving – χαριζο’μenoi meaning, “…to grant as a favor, that is, gratuitously, in kindness, pardon or rescue…deliver, (frankly) forgive, (freely) give, grant…” (Strong).  Paul goes on in verse 13 to tell us, “…if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you must also do.”  Forgiveness one to another is such a basic Christian characteristic that Jesus, after teaching the Lord’s Prayer, told us in Matthew 6:14 and 15, “…if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:  but if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”  When we begin to understand all that God has forgiven us through the sacrifice of His Son, how can we not forgive others their wrong doings?

•      Colossians 3:14 – “But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.”  Greek for love – ἀγα’πηn.  Eerdman’s The New Bible Dictionary describes agape love this way:

      …it expresses…the highest and noblest form of love which sees something infin-
      itely precious in its object….The whole drama of redemption, centering as it does
      around the death of Christ, is divine love in action.

It is a selfless love that, even when it is not returned, keeps on loving sacrificially.  Paul writes in Romans 5:8, “…God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (see John 3:16; I John 4:9).  I John 4:11 applies such love further:  “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” (see I Corinthians 13:1-8; I John 3:17; 18; 4:7, 8).  Such love, said Jesus in John 13:35, has this purpose:  “…as I have love you…you also love one another.  By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”  We are also to love God totally and sacrificially (see Luke 10:27), and such love is to be shown in obedience to His commands (see John 14:15).

•      Colossians 3:15 – “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts….”  Greek for peace – εἰρη’νη, meaning, “…the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is…” (Thayer).  Greek for rule – βραβευe’tω meaning, “…to arbitrate, that is, (generally) to govern (figuratively prevail)…” (Strong).  Though as unsaved sinners we were God’s enemies (see Colossians 1:21), we now “…have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1).  We also have available to us “…the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding…” (Philippians 4:7).  We, having experienced God’s peace, Jesus tells us in Mark 9:50, “…have peace with one another.”  Paul adds in I Thessalonians 5:13, “Be at peace among yourselves.”  Such peace – from and toward God, filling us within, and manifested in our interaction with fellow-believers and with the world – is to be generated within us as the Holy Spirit produces His Spiritual fruit (see Galatians 5:22).

The last two positive characteristics we will finish in Friday’s blog.

July 18, 2016

Colossians 3:12-16

(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)

Our featured Scripture today is the last part of the passage we began to examine several blogs ago in the five Can’t Or Won’t blogs.  Then we followed by Changing Spiritual Clothes, and Renewed In Knowledge.  Let’s continue with Colossians 3:12 through 16:

      Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies,
      kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another,
      and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another;
      even as Christ forgave you, so you must also do.  But above all these
      things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.  And let the peace of
      God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and
      be thankful.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom….

As Paul wrote of eleven negative characteristics we examined in the Can’t Or Won’t blogs, so in this Scripture there are eleven positive things about which the apostle tells us to Put These On Also.  And we are to make sure we are wearing these positive characteristics – just as we are to make sure we are not wearing the negative ones listed in Colossians 3:5, 6, 8, and 9.  You don’t want to live your life for all to see when you are not properly dressed – when you haven’t put off the rags and put on the proper clothing!

•      Colossians 3:12 – “…put on tender mercies….”  Greek – σπλα’γχνa οἰκτιρμοu, meaning, “…compassion, pity, mercy…bowels in which compassion resides, a heart of compassion…emotions, longings, manifestations of pity…” (Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament).  Such compassion comes from deep within, as when it says in Matthew 14:14, “…Jesus…saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick.”  It was more than just seeing and meeting the people’s needs.  He was fulfilling Isaiah 53:4 (Literal Translation of the Holy Bible):  “Surely He has borne our sicknesses, and He carried our pain….”  Compassion drove Him to do it!

•      Colossians 3:12 – “…put on…kindness….”  Greek – χρηστο’τηta – meaning, “…moral goodness, integrity…benignity, kindness…” (Thayer).  As Paul taught in Ephesians 4:32:  “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ has forgiven you.”  Jesus set the example! We are to follow!

•      Colossians 3:12 – “…put on…humility….”  Greek – ταπεινοφροσυ’νηn, meaning, “…having a humble opinion of one’s self…a deep sense of one’s (moral) littleness… modesty, humility, lowliness of mind…” (Thayer).  One of the words that make up this Greek compound word is ταπεινο’ς, which means (according to Thayer) “…lowly in spirit, humble….”  Both James and Peter say the same thing in James 4:6 and I Peter 5:5 (loosely quoting Proverbs 3:34):  “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”  If the Lord tells us something in His Word three times, we had better sit up, take notice – and put on humility!

•      Colossians 3:12 – “…put on…meekness….”  Greek – πραu’τηta, meaning “…gentleness, mildness, meekness…” (Thayer).  Webster’s first definition of meek is “…patient and mild; not inclined to anger or resentment.”  I heard a better definition from a pastor friend:  “Meekness is power under control! ”  In Matthew 11:29 (KJV), Jesus said of Himself, “…I am meek and lowly in heart….”  There has been never anyone walking upon this earth more powerful than Jesus Christ!  And there has never been anyone more in control!

•      Colossians 3:12 – “…put on…longsuffering….”  Greek – μακροθυμι’αn, meaning “…patience, endurance, constancy, steadfastness, perseverance…forbearance, longsuffering, slowness in avenging wrongs…” (Thayer).  It is human nature’s (the old sinful nature’s) characteristic to lash out at wrongs or to be angry over trial that touch our lives! (See Galatians 5:19-21).  But we are told in James 1:2 through 4:

      My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that
      the testing of your faith produces patience.  But let patience have its perfect
      work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

The only One perfect and complete is Jesus!  And it is God’s ultimate goal to make us more and more like Him! (See Romans 8:29; II Corinthians 3:18).  So what would normally lead to anger and retaliation, let your reaction be patience! (See also Romans 5:3-5).

We have covered five positive characteristics, all from verse 12 of our featured Scripture.  In our next blog, we will begin to examine six more in verses 13 through 16.

July 15, 2016

Colossians 3:9, 10

(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)

There is still a Gem For Living to be mined from Colossians 3:9 and 10, and it is in last part of verse 10.  Here are the two verses of our featured Scripture:

      Do not lie to one to another since you have put off the old man with
      his deeds; and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge
      according to the image of Him who created him….

This Gem is a real key to our Christian life!  Yes, we are to “…put on the new man…” – the spiritual nature that God implants within us by His Holy Spirit when we are born again (see John 3:3-7; I Peter 1:23).  This godly nature is in “…the image of Him who created him…,” that is, God Himself!  We were originally created in that image (see Genesis 1:26, 27) and we were designed to carry His image all through our lives.  But when Adam sinned (see Genesis 3:1-7), he obeyed Satan incarnate in the serpent, and his new master (the devil himself – see John 8:44), implanted his own image into mankind, and overrode the original image of God!

Jesus Christ is God the Son incarnate in human flesh!  He carries the perfect image of the Father! (See John 14:9; Colossians 2:9; Hebrews 1:3).  He came to restore into humanity that which was lost to the devil! (See I Corinthians 15:20-28, 45-49).  When we accept Christ as our personal Savior, He gives us back that image of God, implanting within us His new godly nature! (See Ezekiel 36:26; II Corinthians 5:17).  Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3:7, “You must be born again.”  This is accomplished by the Holy Spirit within us (see I Corinthians 6:19; II Timothy 1:14).  God’s nature within us cannot sin! (See I John 3:9; 5:18).  But as Paul wrote in Galatians 5:17 (Easy-to-Read Version):

      The sinful self wants what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit wants what is
      against the sinful self.  They are always fighting against each other, so that
      you don’t do what you really want to do.

But here is our part – and it is emphasized in Colossians 3:10 (our featured Scripture):  “…the new man…is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him….”  What knowledge?  The knowledge of the Word of God!  We are to actively feed our new godly nature on Scripture so it can grow strong and remain healthy – dominating over the old sinful nature and manifesting itself in our lives in everything we do, say, and think! (See Job 23:12; Psalm 1:2; 119:9-11; Jeremiah 15:16; Colossians 3:16).

God’s purpose for His children is for them to be more and more like Jesus!

•      Romans 8:29 – “For whom He [the Father] foreknew, He also predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.”  God’s goal for all His children is to conform us to the image of Jesus!

•      II Corinthians 3:18 – “But we all…beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”  The idea that Paul is conveying here is that we behold Jesus by reading (study, meditation, memorization of) the Bible!  This increases our faith (see Romans 10:17) and it is by faith that we are to live! (See Habakkuk 2:4; Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38).  And by faith we behold Jesus and are more and more transformed into His image!  For it is faith that “…is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 1:1).  And in Hebrews 11:6 (1965 Bible in Basic English) we are told:

      …without faith it is not possible to be well-pleasing to Him, for it is necessary
      for anyone who comes to God to have the belief that God is, and that He is a
      rewarder of all those who make a serious search for Him.

So faith, built up by God’s Word, is indispensable for growing up in our Christian faith and becoming like Jesus!

•      James 1:2 through 4 – “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.  But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” There is only One who is perfect and complete – Jesus Christ!  So God allows trials and testings to touch our lives so that we may be made to be more and more like Him!  This is why we are to “…count it all joy when [we]…fall into various trials….”  Through those trials and testings, God is making us into the image of Jesus!

•      I John 3:2 – “Beloved, now are we the children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He [Jesus] is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.”  This is the end product of God’s plan for us.  We shall be like Him – exactly like Him in that we will only have our godly sinless natures for all eternity!  If this is being accomplished in part now by our beholding Him with sometimes imperfect and hazy faith, think of the completion of it all when we see Him as He is – face to face!

So keep in mind – and practice daily – being “…renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him….”  It will transform your Christian life!

July 13, 2016

Colossians 3:9, 10

(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)

We’re still on our Colossians passage that was the featured Scripture for the last five Can’t Or Won’t! blogs.  But in further study, I decided on a different title for today – Changing Spiritual Clothes.  Here are the two verses on which this is based – Colossians 3:9 and 10:

      Do not lie to one to another since you have put off the old man with
      his deeds; and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge
      according to the image of Him who created him….

We looked at eleven negatives which Paul says to put off – “…fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire…covetousness…anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language [and]…. Do not lie…” (Colossians 3:5, 8, 9).  But then he generalizes, with this illustration of Changing Spiritual Clothes:  “…put off…and…put on….”  Peter tells us in II Peter 3:16 and 17 that the apostle Paul in some of his writings is, “…hard to be understood….”  That’s because he goes deeply into his teachings.  There has never been a greater theological mind than Saint Paul’s!  But he also has the gift of simplicity, and relies on it often!  In our featured Scripture he uses the simple terms of Changing Clothes to encapsulate the eleven negatives and the several positives we will be examining soon.

•      Colossians 3:9 – “…put off the old man with his deeds….”  The old man is the old sinful nature with which we are born into this world.  It is also called by several other names – sinful flesh (Romans 8:3); the flesh (John 6:33; Romans 7:5, 25; Galatians 5:16-21 and many other Scriptures); natural man (I Corinthians 2:14); carnal (Romans 7:14); carnal mind (Romans 8:7); and the body of this death (Romans 7:24).  This is the natural state of a human being before he or she puts his or her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.  And we have inherited this nature from our parents – passed down from generation to generation beginning with our very first ancestor, Adam! (See Romans 5:12).

Although we can be born again by wholeheartedly believing in Christ (see John 1:12, 13); and upon such spiritual birth we receive a new godly nature (see Ezekiel 36:26; II Corinthians 5:17); we still have the old sinful nature with which to contend!  Paul tells us in Galatians 5:17 (Good News Bible):

      For what our human nature wants is opposed to what the Spirit wants,
      and what the Spirit wants is opposed to what our human nature wants. 
      These two are enemies, and this means that you cannot do what you
      want to do.

The apostle’s own struggles between the flesh and the Spirit he graphically describes in Romans 7:14 through 25.  And when I read that passage, I so often see myself in Paul’s struggles!  But I have learned – as Paul also came to experience – that a Christian can move from the struggles of Romans 7 to the victory of Romans 8!  He writes in verses 1 and 2:

      There is therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who
      do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.  For the law
      of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin
      and death.

How did he do it?  By Changing Spiritual Clothes!  He – and we – must “…put off the old man with his deeds….”

•      Colossians 3:10 – “…and…put on the new man….”  The new man is the new nature that is born of God’s Holy Spirit – born again (see John 3:3-7; I Peter 1:23).  This birth introduces into our person a nature that is in the image of God – a nature that cannot and will not sin! (See I John 3:9; 5:18).  But this fact does not guarantee we will have victory over the old nature!  We must actively and constantly turn away from the old and give precedence to the new!  Or in the words of Paul in our Scripture:  “…put off the old man with his deeds; and…put on the new man….”

Paul tells us in Romans 6:11, “Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  This dying to ourselves is what Jesus calls us to do when He told His followers in Mark 8:34 through 37:

      Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his
      cross, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but
      whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.  For what
      will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? 
      Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

The cross is an instrument of death!  If we take up our cross and follow Jesus, we are going out to die with Him!  Jesus also showed us the simplest way to accomplish this dying to self – simple but not easy!  In Luke 22:42 the Savior prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane:  “Father, if it is Your will, remove this cup from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”  To die to our old sinful nature so the new godly nature can shine forth, we must constantly say in one way or another, “Never mind what I want, God!  What do you want?  Tell me, and I will do it with your help!”  And His help?  Study what Paul wrote in Philippians 2:12 and 13!

Jesus set the example!  Paul set the example!  As Jesus said in Luke 10:27, “Go and do likewise.”

July 11, 2016

Colossians 3:5, 8-10

(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)

We will continue for one more blog featuring Colossians 3:5, and 8 through 10:

      …put to death your members which are on the earth:  fornication, un-
      cleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry….you
      must also put off all these:  anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy lan-
      guage out of your mouth.  Do not lie to one to another since you have
      put off the old man with his deeds; and have put on the new man who is
      renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him….

Paul approaches this from two directions – how we are to live out our Christian faith – negative in verses 5, 8 and 9, and positive in verse 10 through 18.  There are eleven negative things we are to put to death [in]…our members….”  We covered five in the last blog, all in verse 5:  “…fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”  Let’s look at the next six in verses 8 and 9:

•      Colossians 3:8 – “…anger….”  Greek – ο’ργή, meaning “…properly desire (as a reaching forth or excitement of the mind), that is, (by analogy) violent passion (ire, or [justifiable] abhorrence); by implication punishment…” (Strong, Dictionary of the Greek Testament).  Paul here chose the word to mean “violent passion or ire.”  Instead of negative passion, Christians are to show compassion (see I Peter 3:8).

•      Colossians 3:8 – “…wrath….”  Greek – θυμός, meaning “…passion (as if breathing hard)…” (Strong).  This is anger that affects the physical body of the angry one, in this illustration, one’s breathing.

•      Colossians 3:8 – “…malice….”  Greek – κακία, meaning “…badness, that is, (subjectively) depravity, or (actively) malignity, or (passively) trouble…” (Strong).  This refers to bad attitude and actions that come out of the depraved human nature of the unsaved person.

•      Colossians 3:8 – “…blasphemy….”  Greek – βλασφημι’α, meaning “…vilification (especially against God)…” (Strong).  Webster defines blasphemy as, “…profane or mocking abuse of God or anything sacred…contempt for God.”  Further research showed that blasphemy is also speaking against accepted Church doctrine, or presenting a different heretical doctrine.

•      Colossians 3:8 – “…filthy language out of your mouth….”  Greek – αι’σχρολογι’α ε’κ tou στο’ μαtos υʽμων (Greek New Testament, British and London Bible Society), literal meaning – “…abuse out of the mouth of you…” (The R. S. V. Interlinear Greek— English New Testament).  This is what James warns against in James 3:8-10 (Contemporary English Version):

      But our tongues get out of control.  They are restless and evil, and always
      spreading deadly poison.  My dear friends, with our tongues we speak both
      praises and curses.  We praise our Lord and Father, and we curse people
      who were created to be like God, and this isn’t right.

•      Colossians 3:9 – “Do not lie….”  Greek – mh’ ψευ’δesqe meaning “…not…to utter an untruth or attempt to deceive by falsehood…” (Strong).

Eleven things we are not to do!  But there are still some who identify themselves as Christians who continue to practice such actions.  I have known persons to will say something like this:

•      “I have a temper.  That’s just who I am.  I can’t change who I am! ”  Can’t Or Won’t?

•      “I grew up with my dad cussing like a sailor!  I learned to do it also without even trying!  It’s who I am and I can’t change.  I really don’t mean anything by it.”  Can’t Or Won’t?

Some people have a personality disorder that lends significantly to their actions.  I had a ‘shirt tail’ relative who turned out to be a compulsive liar and gambler.  He just ‘could not’ change!  Can’t Or Won’t?

Paul gives us the answer to Can’t Or Won’t in his epistle to the church at Philippi.  He tells us in Philippians 2:12 and 13, “…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.”   Yes, we are to work out (or live out) our salvation, in all seriousness!  But we not alone in this!  God – by His Holy Spirit within us – gives us not only the power to do what needs to be done, but to want to do it!  That is what is being emphasized in verse 13.  And when we want to do something, it becomes much easier to accomplish it! (See also the blog from March 13, 2013 – A Little Help Here, Please!).  No wonder the apostle writes in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

So let’s be honest, and own the truth that our decisions are not really based on “I Can’t do it! ”  It is really that “I Won’t do it! ”  But with God’s power, “I can and I will! ” – whatever the Lord directs me to do!

July 8, 2016

Colossians 3:5, 8-10

(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)

I am changing the featured Scripture in this series, Can’t Or Won’t!  For the next two blogs Colossians 3:5, and 8 through 10 will be the passage which we will closely examine:

      …put to death your members which are on the earth:  fornication, un-
      cleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry….you
      must also put off all these:  anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy lan-
      guage out of your mouth.  Do not lie to one to another since you have
      put off the old man with his deeds; and have put on the new man who is
      renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him….

Paul is writing to the Colosse Christians, showing them the proper way to live out their lives as followers of Jesus Christ.  And he is writing from two approaches – negative (in our Scripture today and Friday) and positive (which will be the direction of the featured Scripture next week – Colossians 3:12 through 18).

The apostle starts by giving his readers a general command in verse 5:  “…put to death your members which are on the earth….”  It is not our hands and feet and other bodily members, which is how we might think of bodily members in modern thought.  It is our actions that come out of the old earthly person, controlled by Satan (see Ephesians 2:1-3), actions which defined our lives before we put our faith in Christ!  Then Paul goes into specifics:

•      Colossians 3:5 – “…fornication….”  Greek – πορνεύω, meaning, “to act the harlot, that is, (literally) indulge unlawful lust (of either sex), or (figuratively) practice idolatry…” (Strong, Dictionary of the Greek Testament).  Fornication is forbidden by God in His Word! (See I Corinthians 5:1-11; 6:13-20; 10:8; II Corinthians 12:21; Galatians 5;19; Ephesians 5:3; I Thessalonians 4:3; Revelation 2:20, 21; 9:21).  God designed sex to be enjoyed within the bonds of marriage (Hebrew 13:4), and Christians are to follow that design!

•      Colossians 3:5 – “…uncleanness….”  Greek – ἀκαθαρσία, meaning “…impurity (the quality), physically or morally…” (Strong).  Paul writes this in Ephesians 5:5 (English Standard Version):  “For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure…has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.”

•      Colossians 3:5 – “…passion….”  Greek – πάθος, meaning “…suffering (pathos), that is, (subjectively) a passion (especially concupiscence)…” (Strong).  Webster defines concupiscence as, “strong sexual desire, lust.”

•      Colossians 3:5 – “…evil desire….”  Greek – κακός ἐπιθυμία, meaning “…a longing… depraved, or injurous…(especially for what is forbidden)…” (Strong).

•      Colossians 3:5 – “…covetousness, which is idolatry.”  Greek – πλεονεξία, meaning “…avarice, that is, (by implication) fraudulency, extortion…” (Strong).  Avarice is having an extreme greed for material wealth.  Since such greed takes over the first place in a person’s life, it becomes idolatry – putting something in the position in which God is to be! (See Luke 10:27; also the blog from October 31, 2014 – The Circular Ten Commandments).

We have only covered five manifestations of the old nature (the sinful flesh).  There are five more to examine in verses 8 and 9 of our featured Scripture.  But all such manifestations of unregenerate man we are to avoid!  And with the Lord’s empowerment, we can accomplish just that! (See I Corinthians 15:57; Philippians 4:13).

I knew a man in his 70’s who told me he was a Christian.  He was also ‘hook, line, and sinker’ into pornography.  He told me that he Can’t kick his addiction, it is too ingrained in him.  There is no hope for him, and he is resigned to be addicted to pornography for the rest of his life.  Is it that he Can’t or that he Won’t?  If we are not putting to death sinful manifestations in our daily living, remember – it is never a matter of Can’t!  It is always a matter of Won’t!

Do you recall the black comedian Flip Wilson?  If you do, you are probably as old as I am!  One of his iconic lines was “The devil made me do it! ”  While it drew a lot of laughs, it is seriously flawed theology!  The devil does not force anyone to sin!  Except perhaps in cases of extreme demonic possession where one of Satan’s host so takes over a personality, that person then loses control of his or her decision-making ability (see Mark 5:2-15) – the evil one can only tempt a person to do wrong!  The actual decision to commit sin is up to the individual!

Can’t Or Won’t! – stop ‘Flipping’ into ‘Wilsonian’ theology!  Own up to the fact that when we are tempted, we always have a choice laid before us!  With the Lord’s help, we Can resist, and we Will! (See I Corinthians 10:12-14).