Support Your Local Pastor

Greetings and welcome to our final entry for 2011. First and foremost I would like the reader to understand that many generalisations will be used in this particular entry; it will be more subjective than what we normally offer. Therefore, We recommend the Bible verses offered here be the focus and everything else be received in a general sense.

The five-fold ministries of Ephesians chapter 4 are the basis of our entry today, well at least the part pertaining to pastors. Lets look at verses 11-13: And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.

We see from this verse that the role of a pastor is to equip the saints for the work of the service. Too often in the churches of today it seems that congregations have the expectation that their pastor will do 'all the work' and all they need do is to show up on Sunday. However, as we can see from the Ephesians 4, part of the pastor's duty is to equip the saints for work, not to simply be the only one in the church who plays an active role in the things of God.

We believe every member of the congregation is responsible to evangelise (this simply means reaching others with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, you don't have to be a World famous Evangelist to do this). Furthermore we are all responsible to minister to the needy, to minister to our families, to our friends, to each other and to assist with the day to day running of the church (the physical building). It is the pastor's role to equip everyone for the above activities. Yes there are different gifts and ministries but we are all called to perform the essential roles of our faith. Plainly put, we should not be pew warmers sitting back expecting the pastor to nourish us with God's word while we do nothing with that spiritual food. We should not expect the pastor to do 'everything'.

Another major Biblical expectation of Pastors that most of us would have, is that pastors are to 'shepherd' their flock, and there is some solid Biblical basis for this. See 1 Peter 5:2, Acts 20:28 & see John 10:1-16 for the role of Jesus as the Good Shepherd. So congregations have the right to expect their pastors to act like a shepherd. It has been my experience that pastors are like any other section of the societies we live in; some are outstanding, some are average and sadly some are not worthy of the title.

Happily I can say most of our pastors have been good ones. We had one less than ideal (who only visited our home to make sure we were tithing and after confirming that, we never had personal contact with him again). We also endured one pastor 'personal empire builder' who was a wolf in sheep's clothing who preached heretical, new age teachings. He majored on these more than he did anything Biblical. However, We have been blessed with a couple of men who were inspiring and their impact echoes in my life and I am grateful for the time they were 'my' pastor. (If you are concerned with my assessments here that you might consider 'judgemental' please see: John 7:24, Romans 16:17, Galatians 1:8-9 and in particular, 1 Corinthians 5:12-13).

The elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching 1 Timothy 5:17

If you have ever had a pastor who worked hard at preaching and teaching and they had a positive impact on your life, why not let them know. Yes they have their reward from the Lord but we can also honour them even if we just say thank you. However, it is our contention that we are obliged to do more than that and some of these things we have outlined above. Now if you are being led by a pastor who is not worthy of 1 Timothy 5, perhaps its time to look elsewhere. We've had to do it, so we speak from personal experience. If we stay under the leadership of a non-biblical pastor we risk becoming victims of their abuse and the damage that is done in those situations can be immense.

We also believe those in leadership need to lead by example, like Jesus did; that is they must be servants of all. However, pastors have a specific role and that does not involve being responsible for everything that happens in a church. Don't leave it all to the Pastor and his wife (if he has one, remember I mentioned this entry would be 'generalisation' heavy). Support him so he can get on with his role of equipping and shepherding the flock that he has been entrusted with. In short, support you local pastor.

Note: Unless something important arises this will be our final entry for 2011. Have a safe holiday. See you in 2012!

Do Not Exceed What Is Written

As believers, the Holy Scriptures are our plumb line, they are the 'frame of reference' (for a quick definition click Here) by which we filter our lives, our world. The Bible says that the Holy Spirit will guide us into all truth (John 16:13), and by the Scriptures we know who that truth is (John 14:6). I have heard it said, I have quoted, and I believe; If you search the Scriptures they will lead you to Jesus, if you follow the Spirit He will lead you to Jesus (as revealed in the Scriptures). I also believe the following: If you follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, you will be led to God's Word, and in God's Word you will discover the Holy Spirit. This then is my personal frame of reference (sometimes for me it is only aspirational, as I stumble my way through life so don't please don't think me arrogant).

As believers we need to have a clear understanding of God's Word. In this age of multi-media, multiple sources of information and opposing views, it might be easy to get lost in a sea of confusion. However, we know that our Lord is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33), therefore we need to 'tuck under his wing', Bible in hand, and stand our ground firmly rooted in Him and His Word (Ephesians 3:17 & Colossians 2:7).

The Bible is replete with warnings about false teachers, prophets and teachings (see our New Testament survey Here) and as we examine the current state of the church, we can see it has more than enough false teachers and teachings. We (and they) all need to remain within the bounds of Scripture. Who says? Well obviously God Himself and to that end, I would like to offer a few verses (just a few, as I could really 'go to town' here, but this is a blog and not our version of War And Peace). Please take the time to read them in context:

• Every word of God is tested; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. Do not add to His words Or He will reprove you, and you will be proved a liar Proverbs 30:5-6.
• Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively applied to myself and Apollos for your sakes, so that in us you may learn not to exceed what is written, so that no one of you will become arrogant in behalf of one against the other 1 Corinthians 4:6 (emphasis added).
• Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son 2 John 1:9.

Now some have argued against the views outlined here, and they might quote 2 Corinthians 3:6 (here). However, it can be strongly maintained that this verse is talking about the New versus the Old Covenant, and the 'letters' mentioned refer to the Old Covenant (read it in context esp. v7).

So, with all the strange and errant happenings in our churches today I think it is time for "those who have ears to hear" to take a stand before it is too late. Over the centuries, our faith has been through many perturbations, and each time after a struggle (consider the Protestant Reformation), truth and Biblical standards have been found anew. Perhaps that's what is required again. Remember, God is not mocked nor will God abandon His people, for a remnant will always be present until the King returns (Matthew 16:18, 1 John 3:2 & Romans 11 [The whole chapter is relevant but see verse 9 in particular]).

“Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.”
Luke 6:46-49.

And, in a similar vein:

And His mother and brothers came to Him, and they were unable to get to Him because of the crowd. And it was reported to Him, “Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, wishing to see You.” But He answered and said to them, “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it.” Luke 8:19-21.

So we see we must not go beyond what is written in God's Word, The Bible. Furthermore, from these last two verses we understand that Jesus expects us to put what He says into action. It is my prayer that we all have the strength to take Jesus at His Word, if not, we are just playing church and are simply 'nominal' Christians. Consider that.


Note: Thank you to everyone who has left a comment, sent us words of encouragement and who have shared our blog with others. Some have contacted us and advised it is difficult to leave comments. We have made every effort to make it as easy as possible for you to comment. It does take some persistence, please persist. God bless you!

The Motivational Feel Good Gospel

Dear reader, we live in an age when the truth is often obscured or mixed with error to deceive the unaware. This weeks entry will attempt to tackle some (but not near all) of the issues facing the Church today. Most of our points here will be in 'bullet' form so please be forgiving of the style. We suggest you read all of the scriptures quoted in context, so please at the very least read the chapter that they are from. If you don't have the time to read the whole entry, just look up the scriptures offered here and do your own study. Thanks for your time and we hope the Lord blesses you as you open your mind to the truth that is in Him.

We feel especially qualified in discussing many of the topics here because we fell for the WOF teachings, prosperity gospel, Norman Vincent Peale, power of positive thinking, 'blab it and grab it' type teachings etc etc etc... but the Lord has disciplined us and called us to a study of His Word and the 'scales' are beginning to fall from our spiritual eyes. We believers are all alike, that is, everyone who is called by His name needs to learn not to go beyond what is written (1 Corinthians 4:6). As you read these points keep in mind we are talking about an inordinate focus; we are certainly not arguing against legitimate faith in the power, mercy and provision of God. Also be aware the lines between some of our points will overlap. Lets begin.

Many preachers in our churches sound more like motivational spruikers than ministers of the Gospel. It's seems their message is focused on:

• What God can do for you. How many times do we have to hear a sermon or teaching on how to get our prayers answered, how to be wealthy, how to be well, how to get something from God etc etc. We rarely hear what our obligations are and they are myriad but consider just this one small piece of scripture and look in His Word for others; Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect Romans 12:1-2. Do you think we can achieve this by treating God like he is some sort of vending machine in the sky?
• Being seeker-friendly & culturally relative. We have stated before that it is not completely 'evil' to be seeker-sensitive, but when that becomes the norm in the church, then we are at risk of losing our 'saltiness' (Matthew 5:13). In recent weeks we have seen reports of; nude church, pole-dancing for Jesus, multiple examples of worldly music used in church services (some from occult sources), prize give-aways for attending church and the list goes on and on but I hope our point is made. You see brothers and sisters, we are salt & light (Matthew 5:13-16 and we are not supposed to be like the world around us and it is especially disrespectful to the Lord if act in a worldy manner during church or church associated events ministries. What does God say: They are from the world; therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them 1 John 4:5. We are not of the world.
• Feelings/experience. It is a very sad indictment against this 'new' (its not so new, some of it has its roots in the ancient Gnostic teachings) movement that many are placing the realm of experience above scripture. Feelings or experiences are not of themselves something 'bad', but when the focus is on them, they are what people will follow/believe. Rather we are to be led by the Spirit and to let God's Word to be our guide. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit Galatians 5:25 & Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path Psalm 119:105. If you cannot 'feel' something, it does NOT mean God is not there and if you are only going to church once a week to get a 'recharge', you might need to examine yourself. We are approaching 'shaky ground' when we place experience above the Scriptures. This does not mean only our experience but also that of others; for example, when people write a book about having been to hell, do we then treat that like it is scripture or do we stand by what the Word says about the subject?
• Finances. What does the Bible have to say about wealth? People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction 1 Corinthians 6:9, & from the Master Himself; It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God Mark 10:25. We must be careful not to fall into idolatry with the consistent push of the 'prosperity doctrine/gospel'. We are not all going to be wealthy, no matter how much we 'demand' to be financially blessed.
• Being positive. Don't be fooled, this focus on being ever positive and never negative has crept into our culture in the last 50-60 years through positive thinking proponents/business motivators via New Age type teachings which have their roots in eastern mysticism. How much do you think of what the Old Testament Prophets had to say would now be considered "negative"? 95%?. Research for yourself the roots of this lie...start with the author Norman Vincent Peale. We used to be part of the leadership in a church where the pastor's sermons and lifestyle seemed to be focused more on this author than on the Holy Scriptures. It sounded good to us at the time but lead us astray for many (wasted) years. Some years earlier I had worked for an organisation who promoted this type of think and grow rich type philosophy and it didn't even occur to us (being very naive) that something was wrong when this attitude permeated our church.
• Positive affirmations. The continuous repetition of affirmations or prayers won't get you that new car, whether you can "smell that new interior" or not. Continuously proclaiming things about yourself do not necessarily make them so. In fact, we are warned not to partake in this "pagan babbling". And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words Matthew 6:7. Avoid this heresy. Simply let your needs be known to God through prayer and be mature enough to accept His response.
• The power within. We need to be careful when we are told to release the power within. Do not misunderstand this point; I mean when we are encouraged to reach into ourselves for the answers/solutions/power. What does the Word say about our hearts and this practise? The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it? Jeremiah 17:9 & But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves 2 Corinthians 4:7. Don't fall for it, it is a con.

• Focus on the self How often do you listen to your pastor/preacher/teacher and the focus is on themselves. I, me, me and God etc etc. Not only do they focus on themselves, they encourage the listener to do the same. He rules by His might forever; His eyes keep watch on the nations; Let not the rebellious exalt themselves Psalm 66:7 & For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life Galatians 6:8. Pastors please point your flock to Jesus by your words and deeds. Be the servant of all. Like our saviour.
• Signs & wonders. Many false, many with no Biblical precedent, most untested; this tends to bring true miracles into disregard/disbelief/bad repute. Caution is suggested in this area since we do not want to disrespect the work of the Holy Spirit but we are warned to test the spirits to see whether they are from God; 1 John 4:1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. So we must pray for discernment, learn to discriminate [not such a bad word as the social engineers of this age might have you believe] and make correct judgements (1 Corinthians 2:14 & John 7:25). We know many people who have been/are willing to accept almost anything that comes across the pulpit/TV/Podcast/Book without checking it against the Word and keep in mind our earlier statement about our qualifications in this area.

So often then, the message is anything but the weightier things of God and it is rarely the full counsel of the Holy Scriptures. So how does God's Word address this type of attitude, this inordinate focus on the items in the list above? Paul, in his epistle to the Corinthians said "Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly—mere infants in Christ I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready" (1 Corinthians 3:1,2). These then are very worldly or fleshly traits. Worse still, some might be operating under the influence of the enemy; The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons 1 Timothy 4:1.

If you are in a fellowship which focuses on the above items, and they are claiming to demonstrate the power of God, please understand you are more likely to be witnessing the works of the flesh rather than those of the Holy Spirit. Worse still, you might be witnessing demonic power. Don't take my word for it (Acts 17:10-11), check your Bible and compare it to what is happening in your church.

Do Not Mention Sin

Here's a 'novel' idea for believers to discuss; sin! We are hearing of more and more Pastors/Preachers who refuse to mention sin from their pulpits. Some of these head the biggest congregations in the World. Perhaps that's why. "We mustn't have the flock and seekers feeling uncomfortable"; even if it is for their eternal benefit. Anyway, moving on from 'fantasyland' and moving into reality, lets take a brief look at what God says. Since there are so many verses to choose from and this is only a blog entry and not a thesis, lets look at just a couple of aspects of this topic.

The word sin is mentioned several hundred times in the Bible in English. In its Hebrew and Greek original forms, over 500 times by my reckoning (check for yourself, for example in a Strongs Concordance: Hebrew: Strongs no:02403 "Chatta'ah" & no:02398 "chata'". Greek: no:266 "Harmatia" & no:264 "Harmatano"). Amazingly, when you include allusions to sin there are many more mentions of the topic in the Bible.

Here are just a few verses that mention our unmentionable word. Please take the time to read them in context, lets say at least the chapter they are taken from. They are not chosen completely at random but neither am I trying to show anything other than the fact that it is a common theme in the Bible and is mentioned by all the major characters within it.

• The Lord: And the Lord said, "The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave" Genesis 18:20
• John the Baptist: The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! John 1:29
• Jesus: Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.” John 5:14
• Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin John 8:34
• Stephen: Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” Having said this, he fell asleep Acts 7:60
• David (as quoted by Paul)“BLESSED ARE THOSE WHOSE LAWLESS DEEDS HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN, AND WHOSE SINS HAVE BEEN COVERED. “BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE LORD WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT.” Romans 4:7-8
• Paul: What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! Romans 6:15
• James: Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin ^[p]is accomplished, it brings forth death James 1:15
• Peter: and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed 1 Peter 2:24
• John: but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin 1 John 1:7
• Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness. You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin 1 John 3:4-5

Did you notice that among the very small number of verses listed here, some could not be counted as 'negative'. Romans 4:7-8 is a good example. So why not preach on the topic? Here what we think, and we have decided to offer our thoughts in the form of our first poem.

It seems to me that so many preachers are preaching a message of grace & forgiveness without referring to the fallen state of people because they want to remain 'positive', seeker friendly & don't want to put the flock to flight. However, should we ignore the example Jesus has set?; These words He spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple; and no one seized Him, because His hour had not yet come. Then He said again to them, "I go away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come." John 8:20-21.

Furthermore, we must not preach forgiveness without explaining what sin is and that everyone has sinned. If we preach forgiveness without this, what is the listener being forgiven for? By the atoning sacrifice of Jesus, we offer salvation, but salvation from what? What do the Scriptures say? "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" Romans 3:23. Explain to them that they have sinned and they will be more able to understand clearly the offer of God's gift of salvation and the price Jesus paid.

I think we have stated our case despite the fact we could refer to so many more points within the Holy Scriptures but let's finish on this encouraging passage which just happens to mention that word. You know what it is don't you?

But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory. O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15: 54-56.

The Joy Of The Lord

There were three separate returns by the remanent of Israel from Babylon: the first lot was accompanied by Zerubbabel  (Ezra 2: 1-2); Ezra led the second group (Ezra 7:6-8) and a third group with Nehemiah (Neh 1:1 & 2:11). With each of these returns, different stages of rebuilding of Jerusalem occurs. First the alter of the Lord and the foundation of the temple is laid (Ezra 3) followed by the completion of the temple (Ezra 6: 14-15) and finally the walls and gates of Jerusalem (Neh 7:1). During the rebuilding period, the Israelites faced opposition, taunts, and threats from their enemies to discourage them. So, when all the work has been completed and the jobs assigned and the people are settled in the surrounding towns or in Jerusalem, all the people assembled as one to hear Ezra who was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses… as he had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the LORD, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel read the Book of the Law  (Ezra 7: 6,10 & Neh 8:1).

Ezra read the book from daybreak till noon (imagine if a pastor tried to pull that one off in a modern assembly...) to the people, who stood up to listen. Then Ezra praised the LORD and all the people lifted their hands and responded, “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground (Neh 8: 6). Next, the Levites read and explained from the Book of the Law giving the meaning so that the people could understand what was being read (Neh 8: 8) At this point, the people begin to weep and mourn, as they understood the words of the Law. Nehemiah (the governor), Ezra (the priest and scribe) and the Levites who were instructing the people, told the assembly not to mourn and weep but rather to go away and celebrate with great joy, because they now understood the words that had been made known to them and that the joy of the LORD was their strength (Neh 8:10,12).

We decided on this topic because we wanted to have some understanding of the often quoted verse the joy of the Lord is your strength (Neh 8:10b). Now we strongly urge you to read Ezra chapter 7 and Nehemiah chapter 8 in their entirety. In fact, we should always at the least read the chapter of any verse that is quoted because we can gain a better understanding of the meaning by the context.

So what can we take from this? Perhaps in part we learn here that reading God's Word (and having its meaning properly explained) can lead to conviction and Godly sorrow. But because we serve a merciful God, the story does not end there. This conviction should lead to repentance, and following this repentance,  joy, and thus the joy of the Lord becomes our strength. What do you think?

Special note to all pastors/preachers/teachers: please preach and explain the Word of God to the flock which will allow them to experience the true joy of the Lord!

Plastic People Plastic Words

During my younger years there was a saying among my group of mates for anything that was not legitimate; plastic. For the most part we applied this to people. If people did not appear or act in a way we considered genuine, we called them plastic people. In other words they were false, fake, phony.

In a similar way, the Bible calls the message of false teachers plastic, however unless you read it in Greek you might miss it. In 2 Peter chapter 2, Peter is warning about false teachers and their ungodly lifestyles. Lets look at the first few verses:

But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping. (2 Peter 2:1-3).

 

 

Now lets dig a little deeper, looking into verse 3 and the words translated here fabricated stories. Other versions might translate it as feigned words, words of deceit or false words. They come for the Greek 'plastois logois' and the Greek word 'plastos' is where we get the word plastic from (plastos means molded). In the New Testament, this word plastos means "being mentally constructed without a basis in fact", fabricated, false (BDAG p.823). Just as an aside, this is the only time this word appears in the New Testament (so it is a NT Hapax). So our word plastos combined with the word 'logos' in the plural gives us plastois logois, or false words.

So beware of plastic people and their plastic words. They will be among you and they will bring the Truth into disrepute and they will exploit you because they are greedy. May The Lord bless you and open your mind to the truth that is in His Scriptures (Luke 24:45).


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Running To Win

Son of Flint & Bearded Dragon

I was talking to a friend recently about his Christian walk and his study of the scriptures. Over the years we have helped each other with brotherely advice (sometimes after a stumble) and I was talking about how Paul, when writing to the Corinthains said "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize" (1 Corinthians 9:24).

I suggested he take his walk and study "one bite at a time" and "chew slowly". I also mentioned he take "one step at a time".  You see, without plainly stating the scripture, what we were discussing was the very next verse in 1 Corinthians 9, where Paul, building on his theme of atheletes states "Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever" (1 Corinthians 9:25). So it is not too far off the track to talk about training, one step at a time, adding to the whole, one brick at a time, buidling upon a sure foundation (Luke 6:46-9).

As I have explained to many in my personal life, the more I study the Bible, the more I feel a sense of urgency about the Church getting its house in order so She may present herself pure when the Bridegroom arrives. Nevertheless, whether you think we need to move faster, or slow but steady, let us be sure to adapt Paul's attitude. He says: "I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" Philippians 3:14. Let us also press on.

Greek Spot 5 Hebrews 4:18 Hard Heart Porosis

It's been a little while since we have 'done' a little Greek'. This is because we have been busy with our other Postmodern Church type entries.

For some background to this entry, please open your Bible and read Ephesians chapter 4.

Let's look at Ephesians 4:18. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. We are going to focus on just one word here: 'hardening', or in some translations, 'hardness'. This word is translated from the Greek root 'porosis'.

For the use of this term in the ancient world, outside of the New Testament, we can look to both Hippocrates 5th/4th century BC physician, and Galen the 2nd/3rd century AD physician and surgeon (Greek English Lexicon BDAG). In a literal sense it means 'the covering with a callus' & 'the formation of a callus in repair of a fractured bone'. However it is used here in Ephesians (and other parts of the Bible) in a figurative sense to mean; dullness, obstinacy, having a blunted mind, or simply hardened.

So what can we take from this? Let us not allow our hearts to become so calloused that we become like the World around us, thereby being at risk of succumbing to evil passions and greediness. And how do we stop our hearts becoming hardened? Go back and read Ephesians verses 4:1-3 & 14-16, and keep your thoughts on Jesus (Hebrews 3:1).

Like some further reading on this topic? See Hebrews chapter 3 & Psalm 95, (where the term concerning hardened hearts is from a different Greek word. You can look it up in Strongs concordance number: 4645).

How Do We Know We are Hearing From God?

If you haven't read our earlier blog entry titled "Who wants to talk about the things of God" please take the time to go back and read it as the initial story in it is also related to this post. You can click through to it here: http://likeflint.blogspot.com/2011/10/who-wants-to-talk-about-things-of-god.html

Now allow me to share a brief story which I heard from someone else so I am taking it at face-value and I have no reason to disbelieve it. There was a Christian man who while driving his car thought he heard God telling him to close his eyes, let go of the sterring wheel, and put his faith in God. I am sure most readers will know what the outcome was; he had an accident. Was he foolish to do that, was he lacking in faith or is there something else going on?

I think this story and the one from last week demonstrate that there are a number of believers in the Church today who have little understanding of God and clearly do not read or understand His Word. Sadly, I could have chosen a number of other stories to demonstrate this but I think these will suffice. Also, as it appears to be the norm with our blog, there is so much we could discuss here, but with a view to keeping things short, lets look at just one issue; How do we know we are hearing from God?

How do we know we are hearing from God? How could our car-driving fellow-believer have avoided an accident? Well to begin with, believers are cautioned to test the spirits (1 John 4:1-3) to see whether they are from God. When we are dealing with anything of a spiritual nature we must use some caution. So many people (authors included) have foolishly followed after false teachings/teachers without consulting God's word and have ended up in "spiritual car crashes". I strongly urge readers to become "good Bereans". This means that after you listen to your pastors/preachers/speakers/friends or whoever, or when you read this blog/that book or whatever, you will search the scriptures to see if what is being stated is true (Acts 17:11). We ignore this advice at our own peril. It is that serious.

Now what about my friend (from earlier post, see above) who told me he doesn't need the Word because he follows the Spirit? He only has part of the truth. Jesus said "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come" John 16:13 (See also John 15:26). Now we know that Jesus is both the Truth (John 14:6) and the Word (John 1:1 & 1:14) so it is my contention that the Spirit of God will lead you to both Jesus and His Word (The term translated 'word' here can mean both 'word' or 'the indpendant personified expression of God' see BDAG, 'logos', or any decent Greek Lexicon). It is my belief that God's Spirit will guide you to the truth that is to be found in Jesus and the Scriptures (see 2 Tim 3:15,16).

So how do we come to an understanding of how the Spirit of God operates in our lives? How do we know we are hearing from Him? We turn to His Word; "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby" 1 Peter 2:2. We believe God does speak to us via His Holy Spirit today, but We also believe He will absolutely not contradict what is written in His Word. So for us to avoid spiritual deception or even physical harm, we must study His Word. What advice did Paul give to young Timothy? He wrote "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" 2 Timothy 2:15. Shame on us if we ignore this exhortation. If we do, we will wind up making foolish statements like my Christian brother did when he told me he has little need for God's Word. Not only that, but we disrespect our Lord Jesus who said "Heaven and earth will pass away. But my words will never pass away" Luke 21:33.

We all need to seek God through his Spirit and His Word. We believe that if we seek God's Spirit, He will lead us to His Word. We also believe if we seek God in His Word, His Word will lead us to His Spirit. What do you think?

Who wants to talk about the things of God?

Sometime ago I was discussing a piece of Scripture or two with a Christian brother who part way into it cut me off and explained that he didn't need to know too much of the Word because he just went by the Spirit. Following this, he abruptly changed the topic. At first I was a little taken aback because this was a man who had been a Christian for some 20 plus years, but I soon came to realise in this Post-Modern era, that this is not such an abnormal position for fellow believers to hold. Now there are a couple of things going on with this attitude (one being whether we are to be led by the Spirit of God, or to follow His Word, or both. I plan to address this issue in an upcoming blog so check back soon for that) but what I would like to focus on here is the willingness or otherwise of believers to discuss the things of God.

With this in mind, take a little time to consider how many of your fellow-believers willingly discuss the things of God with you. Do many of them have only a surface understanding of the Scriptures? Do others look at you blankly if you talk about God, Jesus or the Scriptures, especially outside of the church setting? Do they change the subject? Are many of them more comfortable discussing sport, movies, music, celebrities or anything but the things of God? Does this type of shallow believer describe people you know? Yourself?

Anyone that knows me personally will tell you there was a time when it described me, so I have been as "guilty" of this type of attitude as anyone, which is partly why I feel qualified to discuss it. Now some reading this might think "So what? I've said the 'sinners prayer', I have my ticket to heaven, that's all I need to know". Well if that's you (or me), we need to go to the Word of God and see what it says. Perhaps some of us need to take the time to check our hearts.

When writing to the Corinthians, Paul said "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?" (2 Corinthians 13:5). This is very good advice, but if you are going to take this advice, keep in mind the following: Every man's way is right in his own eyes, But the LORD weighs the hearts (Proverbs 21:2). God knows our hearts, so whereas we might be able to deceive ourselves into thinking we are fine, God cannot be fooled. Perhaps we need to adopt the attitude of the Psalmist who said "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting" (Psalm 139:23-24).

It is our prayer that you will be encouraged to examine yourself and that you might invite God to examine your heart as well. If we know more about our favourite sports team than we do about Abraham, or if we can discuss the intimate details about our favourite celebrity but we cannot discuss our Faith, then it is well past time to stop and take stock. It is my belief that when we do this, we will have the opportunity to demonstrate a more effective witness to the people around us, both to believers and unbelievers. Please take the time to let us know if this encourages you to do so.

One Word That The Church Needs To Learn Again

Our rendition of a 5th Century Byzantine Church

Do you ever wonder why the Church is in the state that it is in today? Do you ever read the Word of God and wonder why the Modern Church seems have so little in common with that of the New Testament?

There are a number of reasons for this, for example, in our desire to see people saved, we have become too seeker friendly. We want the unsaved to feel comfortable around us so we use different language, we arrange "non-threatening" events and we do our best to be culturally relevant. Now all of these things of themselves are not necessarily "evil", however, when they become the "norm" then we are at risk of losing our "flavour". We need to heed Jesus' warning in Matthew 5:13
"You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it useful again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless".

Now if we accept Jesus' warning about "remaining salty", we can not only perhaps avoid God's discipline in this area (Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Revelation 3:19) but we can also avoid having another's blood on our hands (When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak out to dissuade him from his ways, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man to turn from his ways and he does not do so, he will die for his sin, but you will have saved yourself. Ezekiel 33:8-9).

So what is the word the Church needs to learn again? What is the word that we have an obligation to share with the unsaved, even at the risk of  being shunned by them; even at the risk of having fewer people in our buildings; even at the risk of being misunderstood or condemned by the Post-Modern Church? Have you deduced by the Bible verses I have offered so far that the word is "repent"?

What does repent mean? In a literal sense it means to "change one's mind". It also means turning about, feeling remorse (with regard to sin) and it means to be converted.
We need to once again add this word to our vocabulary. When we are sharing the Gospel with seekers, it is absolutely not good enough to preach forgiveness without warning about repentance. We need to follow the example of our Lord & Master Jesus Christ who early in his ministry demonstrated for us how it is to be done (Matthew 4:17).

When we are sharing the Gospel, we need to keep in mind that telling people their sins are forgiven goes hand in hand with their need to repent of them, that is to turn from them and be converted, ie. stop sinning. Only when a person truly has a change of heart and lifestyle can we rejoice like they do in Heaven.

"I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent" (Luke 15:7).

Koine Greek Spot 4 Romans 12:2 Part 2 Transformers

Welcome to another Greek Spot. We will continue our brief look at Romans 12:2. If you haven't yet seen our earlier post on this topic please go back and read it here: http://likeflint.blogspot.com/2011/09/koine-greek-spot-3-romans-122-be.html

Lets take another look at the verse: And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12:2).

So Paul is telling the Romans not to be molded into the fashion of this age, but change form by renewing their minds. Now, I would like to focus your attention to just one word represented in English by the term "by the renewing". At its root in Greek, this word is "anakainosis"" (See the graphic above for the highlighted word as it appears in Greek in Romans 12:2). This word simply means "renewal". The Greek-English Lexicon (BDAG) says it can refer to the "spiritual rebirth". Interestingly, I found another reference which states that this is also a word that can be used in terms of renovation, like when one renovates their home.

So we could say that part of the new life in Christ involves renovating your mind like you might "reno" your house. Why? So you can test and approve what the will of God is, that which is good, pleasing and perfect. For me, this says we have an active role to perform in our new life. It's not a matter of "set & forget" it's a matter of running the race to win (1 Corinthians 9:24). I hope this might encourage you to dig further into His Word. It is full of wondrous blessings for us as we renew our minds and strive toward the prize of the upward call of God in Jesus Christ (Philippians 3:14).

Koine Greek Spot 3 Romans 12:2 Be A Transformer

We often hear among Christians, discussions concerning the new life we have in Christ. These discussions usually send me searching God's Word for information as to what this might mean. Romans 12:2 can help us with part of our enquiry (this is not the whole picture so be sure to be a Good Berean [Acts 17:11] and search the Scriptures for yourself). Lets take a look.

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12:2).

 

I would like to pull just two words out of this verse for us to examine further (and as per usual, I have to say there is so much more we could examine with just one word here, let alone a verse/chapter/book so this will only be a part of what is possible to learn from a word) . The Greek used for "be conformed" is from the root "suschametizo"  (highlighted in green above). It means to form according to a pattern or mold. The way Paul uses the word here (those with an understanding of the Koine will know this is  most likely a Passive, Imperitive) it is with the power of a command, not a suggestion. So do not be formed in the pattern of this world. I think another aspect of this part of this verse is that it highlights the fact that we can be molded in a worldly fashion. I would suggest some of us have not been aware of this conformity. We are now.

The next term I would like to examine is "be transformed", from the Greek root "metamorphoo" (see the  word highlighted in yellow above"). It means "be transformed" "transform; change in form" It is the same word that is used in the report of the transfiguration of Jesus (Matthew 17:2) so the word can be used both literally or figuratively. So I think Paul is saying do not be conformed to the things of this age, the worldy/fleshly life, but become something new (think of the metamorphosis of a tadpole to a frog) by renewing your mind.

This change we are being told to make is what I believe to be a part of our new life in Christ. It is something we must do, it is not done for us. I would suggest that if we have been a believer for sometime, and there is no visible change in our lives, we need to examine ourselves as suggested by Paul who says ^"Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test? (2 Corinthians 13:5).

Take sometime to examine your Christian walk. Has there been change in your life (for the better) from when you first believed? Do you need to renew your mind further or will you allow this present age to fashion you? The choice is yours.

I think we will revisit this verse in our next Koine spot. There is just way too much here to skip over. Check back soon. I think you'll be interested to see where we go with this next.

New Testament Warnings About False Teachers & Prophets



2 Peter Chapter 2

I recently read that every book of the New Testament (except Philemon) contains warnings about false teachers and false prophets. So I thought I would investigate it for myself. I will share my results shortly but before I do, I'd like to make a point. For me, if the Bible says something once I try to take notice. If it says something twice I sit up and take notice. What do we do if it says it more than twice? As watchmen, we sound the alarm. Read on and see if this point is appropriate.

Over the course of a couple of days we searched the scriptures to see if this assertion (about false teachers/prophets) was so (Acts 17:11). Below is a list we have put together. It is by no means exhaustive, we were just looking to see if we could find just one mention or allusion to false teachers in each book of the NT. There are some books who have a great deal to say on the subject and our list is not indicative of the "best" verses available. In fact we confess we only attempted a cursory examination due to time constraints in our lives but I think this point adds weight to the argument that it's time for us to sound the alarm, because if what we found in a very brief survey is an indicator of what the Bible says on the topic, I for one consider myself warned.

So now to our list. Here's where we need your help. We haven't yet found relevant verses in 1 Corinthians, James or 1 Peter (keep in mind we are excluding Philemon). Please search these books and send us your findings, if any.

• Matt 7:15 24:24
• Mark 13:6
• Luke 11
• John 10:11-13
• Acts 20:29-31
• Rom 16:17-18
• 1 Cor
• 2 Cor 11:13-15
• Gal 1:6-9
• Eph 4:14
• Phil 1:15-17 &  3:2-3
• Col 2:8
• 1 Thes Chapter 1 & 5:1-3
• 2 Thes 2:8-10
• 1 Tim 1:3-7 4:1
• 2 Tim 3:6-9 4:3-4
• Titus 1:10-11
• Philemon
• Heb 13:9
• James
• 1 Pet
• 2 Pet 2:1-3
• 1 John 4:1
• 2 John 1:7-9
• 3 John 1:9-11
• Jude 1:4
• Rev 13:13-14