QT 29 Apr 11

Jer 17:5 (NIV) This is what the Lord says:

"Cursed is the one who trusts in man,

who depends on flesh for his strength

and whose heart turns away from the Lord.

NOTE: I think, for me, that one of the most difficult things about living the Christian life in a modern age, is depending upon one's own intellect, resources, and hard work to live.  I suppose that is why the prayer at the beginning of Shenadoah is so different from the prayer at the end of the movie.  By the end of the film, the family has been devastated by a war the Father did not want or support.  In the end, he could not stop what had happened.  In the end, he realized that what he had -- although it looked as if he worked for it, sweated for it, and struggled for it -- even still, it was a gift from the hand of God.  Maybe that is the key.  I am called to work, to be wise, to be thrifty, to be prudent, and to give, yet in the end, it is still the hand of God that has been gracious to me.  Thank you Lord.  May I always believe that all that I have or do not have, is your gracious hand toward me.

QT 27 Apr 11

Ps 67:4 (NIV) May the nations be glad and sing for joy,

for you rule the peoples justly

and guide the nations of the earth.

NOTE: The world is a crumbling place.  Incivility, injustice, sexual slavery, cruelty, hunger, and selfish over abundance rule.  The political heat is high, some want to characterize it as racial, others as prudence.  Everyone wants change and no one wants to pay for it.  Everyone just wants more of whatever they are getting.  Someday, the Lord will rule with justice.  In that day, we will sing and be glad, for justice will finally prevail.  I look forward to that day.  I feel sad for those who believe that man in his own power can achieve the peace he longs for.  Oh, I don't think we should stop trying, but the problem is in the heart and no set of laws will change the heart.  Sin is an ugly mistress and she is determined to destroy all that is good.  Will we ever repent?  Will we ever admit that the evil in the world is not because God does not care, but because God does care and we rebelled against his control many, many years ago in the garden.  We got what we wanted and now we blame God for our mess which we created.  And God calls to us, repent of your rebellion, and you will have real peace.

QT 26 Apr 11

Col 2:8 (NIV) See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.

NOTE: One of the basic principles of the world is that nothing is free, you have to earn it.  This is a hard thing for people to get over because salvation is indeed free.  You cannot earn it, steal it, con for it, sacrifice for it, or trade for it.  It is a free gift.  All the work has been done by Christ on the cross.  But once we do put our faith in Christ by accepting the free gift, then there is a work involved.  We are justified by what Christ did on the cross, but we are sanctified through a combination of things.  Our sanctification is brought about by the Holy Spirit's work in our lives, but we have "work" to do to experience sanctification.  We have to seek God, seek his word, listen to his word, choose to obey, repent of sin, and basically grow to become like Christ.  Yes, the spirit gives us power, but it does not deny our role in working out our own salvation (with fear and trembling as Philippians says).  So, we are saved without any work at all, but we grow in Christ with work and the Holy Spirit's help.

But there is one more issue -- what is the work for Christ that we do to grow?  The human tradition comment would seem to suggest that some people might think it is obedience to the OT law.  But, in almost every letter of the NT, there are comments that we are not under the law.  What does that mean?  It means that those are not the rules that we are required to obey.  But we are under a law, Galatians calls it the law of Christ.  It is found in the statements of Jesus and the apostles on how to live life.  Yes, part of the law of Christ is similar to the OT law, but they are not the same.  And they do not differ just in the ceremonial areas.  Giving is completely redefined under the new covenant -- a fact that many Christians choose to ignore.  I suppose this leads to one other fact.  We work with God for our sanctification, but our acceptance or pleasing of God is never defined by what we do.  God accepts us because of Christ and is pleased with us on the basis of faith.  Our obedience to the law of Christ reflects our love for God and our desire to know the savior more closely by following his example.  Obedience is not a checklist for acceptance but a heart response for a salvation unearned.

QT 25 Apr 11

Col 2:8 (NIV) See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.

NOTE: The filter must always be the word of God.  An argument can sound great, can make sense, can seem indefensible, and can also violate the word of God.  That means that there is something wrong with the argument, or sometimes our understanding of the word of God.  But, assuming a historical-grammatical interpretation (i.e., common sense), then those should not happen often.  One example might be the length of the day in Genesis.  The word can actually be used for periods of time greater than 24 hours (i.e., an age), as it is used to describe the seventh day.  The morning and evening idiom can also be used to represent the beginning and end of a period as opposed to the literal usage.  But that is not making the scriptures metaphorical -- it is understanding the use of the language in that day.  Could it be six-24 hours periods?  Most definitely.  Could it be periods of time longer than 24 hours but with a distinct beginning and end?  Yes, that is also possible.  But what can't be ignored is that God created.  The "how" is not explained in enough detail, but the action is the result of intelligence.  Colossians, earlier in chapter one, also argues that God is the creator and before everything.  So, everything must be measured against the grid work of God's word.  That is always our foundation.

21 Apr 11

Col 2:6-7 (NIV) So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

NOTE: I memorized this verse over thirty years ago.  I think that believers today are looking for magic formulas or some secret to the Christian life.  I suppose that is why Gnosticism finds such willing minds.  But the secret isn't much of a secret at all.  Everything we need to know, we learned when we came to Christ.  The things that helped us to grow back then: getting into the word, prayer, meeting with other believers, sharing our faith, and applying God's word to our life, are still today the same things that help us to grow.  They don't change.  If there is any secret, it is that as we grow, as the roots go deeper, we get stronger.  It takes time, but it is the little things that we were taught when we were young that still determine our growth today.  Maturity in Christ occurs as we grow over an extended period of time, by reading his word, praying, meeting with other believers, sharing our faith, and applying his truth to our lives.  It is just that simple, and it does not happen overnight.  It is the same things repeated year after year that create mature saints in Christ.

QT 20 Apr 11

1 Kings 10:16-21 (NIV) King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred bekas of gold went into each shield. 17 He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three minas of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.  // 18 Then the king made a great throne inlaid with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and its back had a rounded top. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them. 20 Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom. 21 All King Solomon's goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon's days.

1 Kings 10:26-29 (NIV) Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses, which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. 27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore — fig trees in the foothills. 28 Solomon's horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue—the royal merchants purchased them from Kue. 29 They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. They also exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and of the Arameans.

NOTE: Nothing wrong with gold shields, although they are somewhat heavy and too soft for actual use.  They are ornamental and not really functional.  Likewise the great throne with twelve lions overlaid with gold is a bit ostentatious.  Drinking out of gold cups instead of silver because silver had little value also suggests the same.  But the first of the actual "wrongs" of Solomon is the accumulation of chariots and horses, which God had said not to do (Deut 17:16-17).  Also, the same passage speaks of not accumulating wives.  I think Solomon's fault goes back to one of the very first requirements of a King and that is, to read God's word entirely and copy it down onto paper.  If Solomon has continued in that habit (assuming he did it at first), I think he could have avoided the excesses of the latter half of his rule.  There is an application in here for me as well.  I need to be reading through God's word every year.  It doesn't matter how many books I studied or verses I memorized.  I need the fresh input of God's word constantly in my life, or the wisdom of the world will fool me into actions that are not pleasing to God.  I think that is where Solomon really went astray.  It wasn't the wives, it was ignoring God's word.

QT 19 Apr 11

Col 2:2-4 (NIV) My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments.

NOTE: Paul's purpose (I assume for the letter to a group he does not know personally) is two-fold.  He wants to encourage them and to unite them in love.  This two-fold purpose is necessary to experience the full riches of a complete understanding of biblical truth, with the primary truth being Jesus Christ, which is where all of the riches of wisdom (applied understanding) and knowledge (biblical truth) is found.  He gives them the purpose, because he is also seeking to refute "fine-sounding" arguments. 

That is usually true of false-teaching.  They appeal in some manner to what we want to hear, but they do not satisfy the criteria of adherence to biblical truth.  False teaching, such as a recent book suggesting no hell, appeals to many, but ignores one of the most solidly-based truths in the bible.  Jesus spent more time talking about hell than any other writer in the New Testament.  Jesus talked of a very literal hell, with very descriptive terms.  I'm sure some fine-sounding philosophy can explain why he would do it, but it ignores the plain teaching of the bible.  We either have a source for absolute truth or we do not.  If we do not, then there is no sense arguing, since all propositions can be said to be true but nothing is really true.  It is not worth wasting time.  We cannot even reason truth if we are the product of random chaotic events.  No, in the end, we require some clear foundation of truth, some message from the creator.  No other source satisfies that requirement than the bible.

QT 18 Apr 11

Col 2:1-4 (NIV) I want you to know how much I am struggling for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me personally. 2 My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments.

NOTE: Another clue to Paul's relationship to this valley (the churches reside in a common valley) is that he has not met the Laodiceans either. But still he feels a responsibility to both those from Laodicea and those from Colossae. His struggle, that he refers to must be one of prayer, although I'm sure it also took some effort to write the two letters and to send someone to deliver the letters.  Paul is doing all he can, and sometimes the only thing that can be done is prayer.  While I am convinced that prayer is always good, sometimes we do too little, especially in response to a person's need when we say "I'll pray for you."  I suppose what is even worse is when we don't really pray for them after saying that we'll pray for them.  Still, praying is a very good thing, and can be a very effective work.  When all we can do is pray, we surely ought to.  When we can do more, we should pray and do what we can, but only after prayer.  Which gets into another issue, and that is fixing people's problems which God has allowed for a purpose.  Sometimes our efforts to relieve another's pain are in direct opposition to what God is doing in their life.  I think that is most true when we deal with our adult children.  And prayer is important, to know what God would have us to do, and to ask that they are receptive to what God is teaching them in their struggle.

QT 15 Apr 11, Col 1:25-27, Fooling ourselves about faith

Col 1:25-27 (NIV) I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness— 26 the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. 27 To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 

NOTE: This is one of the seven mysteries of the NT.  A mystery is something not fully revealed in the OT but made clear in the NT.  In this case, it is the dwelling of God in the Gentiles.  There is no need for a temple, we are his temple.  The shekinah glory does not reside between the cherubim above the ark, but now within us through the Holy Spirit.  We don't need any more sacrifices performed day after day to cover sin, because Jesus has been sacrificed once for all for the removal of all sin.  Like the saints of old, we please God by a walk of faith, and not through ritual observance to some rules.  God is interested in the heart, and that is where he resides, to change our heart to be more like his Son.  This is the good news, the gospel we believe in, and our hope for the future.

PONDER:

1) We have the Holy Spirit in us, but does it show? Are we changing or do we look like everyone else?

2) If we are not changing, then we are not growing, and if we are not growing, then is the Spirit residing in us? And if the Spirit is not in us, then we are not Christians.

PRAYER: Father, many religious people have fooled themselves that intellectual knowledge of you and church attendance and good deeds makes them Christians. They have fooled themselves in believing they are born again, despite no real evidence of supernatural change. Father, take the blinders off of our eyes; may we truly repent of our sins, and humbly ask you to enter our lives and be our savior, and change us from the inside out. Amen.

QT 14 Apr 11

Col 1: portions of 13-23 (NIV) For he has rescued us from ... darkness … brought us into the kingdom … 15 He is the image of the invisible God,… by him all things were created … 17 He is before all things ... in him all things hold together ... he is the head of the body ... he is the beginning … God was pleased ... through him to reconcile … all things … by ... the cross. 21 Once you were ... enemies … But now he has reconciled you by Christ's ... death to present you holy in his sight ... This is the gospel ... which I ... have become a servant.

NOTE: It is a long section and is so rich.  This is the essence of the gospel which Paul preached.  I have shortened it down to emphasize the main points, but every point could be elaborated in much greater depth.  And to paraphrase the message even more, I would say: Jesus, the image and fullness of God, the creator and sustainer of all things, has reconciled us, formerly enemies, to God through his death on the cross by making us holy in God's sight.  A complex and yet incredibly simple message.  He died to restore me, his enemy.  I think the biggest problem that most people have is not recognizing themselves as enemies of God.  They don't see their sin as such a bad thing.  They compare it to others and believe they come off pretty well.  But they don't compare their sin to God and if they really did, they would see how short they fall and how unbelievable that God would even bother to save them.  No, most of us never truly grasp our lost-ness, and so salvation is never valued as it should be.  Lord, thank you for your salvation.  I understand what you did, and yet I cannot even grasp the depth of your love for me.  May I never take it for granted.

QT 13 Apr 11

Col 1:9-12 (NIV) For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. 10 And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. 

NOTE: After telling them about how he heard about their faith, Paul launches into what he has been praying for them, which also outlines his desire for them spiritually.  He wants them to grow in spiritual wisdom, to live lives worthy of the Lord, to bear fruit, to know God, to live in his power, to endure, and to joyfully give thanks.  My paraphrase lists seven things. 

What are the most important things for a new believer to know and do?  If I was writing the letter, I would want them to grow in a relationship with Jesus Christ through knowledge of the word of God.  So, I would emphasize getting into the word as the means to know Christ.  My second thing would be for them would be to obey God, to put into practice the things that God reveals to them in the word.  My third thing would be to emphasize prayer, because it is not really a relationship if the communication is one-way, that is from God to man, and not also man to God.  I know that fellowshipping with other believers keeps us in the battle and encourages us to maintain this discipline.  Without others the first three items fall off, because we feel we are all alone, so fellowship is important for ourselves, but also for others, since they would be in the same boat.  But they also need to share their new found faith with those who don't know about Jesus, because that expands our vision beyond our temporal selves, and gives meaning to our existence here on earth.  Otherwise, we could do the first three things, be encouraged by others to continue, but have no real purpose beyond activities which primarily benefit ourselves.  The gospel message is our purpose.  God has given us a huge mission, to take the message into our world and to make disciples of all the nations.  That is our vision.  That is the thing which is bigger than us and captivates our heart.  Without it, we are left with a selfish attachment to a dying and decaying world centered around entertaining ourselves.  How empty!

Paul's list is not really that different from mine, it is just said more elegantly and without so many words.  The knowledge of his will is reaching the world.  Spiritual wisdom and understanding comes through the word.  Living lives worthy and pleasing to God is putting into practice his truth.  Bearing fruit is having a witness among others (both believers to encourage, and unbelievers to challenge them to truth).  Growing in the knowledge of God is the relational aspect which requires the word and prayer.  Strengthened in power adds the importance of the Holy Spirit in you to make the impact in the world (my list excluded but would be very important).  Great endurance and patience, joyfully giving thanks are the final keys to long-term sustainment as a believer, and growth in key character qualities.  Paul emphasizes the long-term needs which my list failed to address.

QT 11 Apr 11

Col 1:3-9 (NIV) We always thank God, ... when we pray for you, 4 because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus ... and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel 6 that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth. 7 You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, 8 and who also told us of your love in the Spirit.

9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.

NOTE:  This is an interesting letter, and I look forward to studying it in-depth.  I think I forgot, but apparently, Paul does not know the recipients.  He did not plant the church or start the work, but he is still writing a letter to the church.  It would make sense that Paul would want to make sure that the church is grounded in the most absolute essential truths of the faith.  It could also be that someone has told him of some struggles / false teaching that the church is going through, and he is using his status as an apostle to lend support to right teaching.  I have read Colossians many times in my life.  From memory, I know he talks about the supremacy of Christ, the nailing of the law to the cross (possibly in response to Judaizers), the unimportance of rituals or special days, and certain character qualities and behavior that are important.  If I was to write to someone in four short chapters, what would be the essential things I would want them to know?  And how am I exhibiting those essentials in my everyday life?  If the essentials and my life are in disconnect, then how important are the essentials really?  And who am I fooling?  Surely, not God.

QT 8 Apr 11

Php 4:14–17 (NIV) Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles. 15 Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; 16 for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid again and again when I was in need. 17 Not that I am looking for a gift, but I am looking for what may be credited to your account.

NOTE: For Paul, money was never the issue.  He believed God would provide his need, and if for some reason God did not, that only meant that God wanted him to work.  He would start up his tent-making business part time during those days.  He never doubted God's care or provision.  His excitement at monetary gifts was not for himself but for the person or group of persons who were giving.  Why?  Because giving is a sign of spiritual maturity.  There is a reward for giving -- it may not happen in this life, but God does reward those who give.  Therefore, Paul was excited, because the gifts he received meant even greater spiritual gifts to those who gave both in this life and in the life to come.  Developing the ability to give cheerfully is one of the greatest joys of the Christian life and is a sign of spiritual growth in the giver.

QT 6 Apr 11

Phil 4:9c (NIV) … And the God of peace will be with you.

NOTE: The theme of peace permeates chapter four.  Verse 1: don't let the Judaizers take your joy away (continues chapter three discussion), stand firm.  Verses 2-3: agree with each other in the Lord, you are all fellow workers.  Verses 4-5: be recognized by your gentleness and joy.  Verses 6-7: don't be anxious, give your worries to God in prayer; God promises peace which is beyond understanding. Verse 8: focus and think on good things (the word of God is the most true thing I can think of).  Verse 9: put into practice the things you have been taught or seen in others that are good.  And then he ends verse 9 with the phrase that the God of peace will be with you.  Rejoice, stand firm, agree with each other, pray, think on good things, and apply the things you learned -- these are the things which will bring peace to your life.

QT 5 Apr 11

Phil 4:4-5 (NIV) Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

NOTE: I'm pretty sure I'm going too far with this verse, but here it goes.  In chapter 3 Paul starts out with the exhortation to rejoice, which is he also calls a safeguard.  He then warns the Philippians of the Judaizers, spending a lot of time explaining why outward things are rubbish, and finishes with a discussion on the hope of the resurrection, which is best understood as experiencing the rapture.  In these verses, he summarizes the beginning and the ending of chapter 3 with a one extra tidbit.  The extra item is: let your gentleness be evident to all.  To me, this is the part of our Christian witness that marks maturity in Christ (and contrasts with the lives of the Judaizers).  People aren't attracted to the faith by our ability to follow some set of rules or checklists or rituals (although, some people are but for the wrong reasons).  What attracts a person to Jesus, and makes a Christian attractive is love, evidenced by a gentle spirit.  As I imagine Jesus' life, this character quality is what stands out most to me, his loving and gentle spirit.  He would have been a good earthly friend (and he is a good friend now!).  Someone who cared about a person's struggle.  Someone who did not immediately judge you or tell you what you were doing wrong.  Someone who listened.  Someone who gently led you back to truth.  Someone who did not get angry for mistreatment but whose anger arose in defense of others or of God.  And even that anger would be controlled and gentle, firm and resolute.  Those are the people who please God, not the ones who have the rule book down flat.

QT 4 Apr 11

Phil 3:20-4:1 (NIV) But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

4 Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!

NOTE: How should we stand firm?  One, recognize that our citizenship is in heaven.  This world is not our home, it is not our reward, it is not what we live for.  Second, await the coming of the Savior.  I may have the opportunity which Paul did not have, and that is to attain the resurrection (the rapture) from the dead (the spiritually dead).  Paul hoped in that day, and I too hope for it.  I'm a lot closer to it than Paul was.  The thing that we don't realize, is that we lose nothing with the rapture.  And I sincerely believe that.  Eden was God's plan before the rebellion.  Who are we to know what God's plan is after the rapture?  We do know there is no giving of marriage, but that does not discount some other relationship between people.  We just don't know.  But no one has given up houses, wife, children, parents, or things who will not receive one hundred times as much in this life and in the age to come.  Third, we can stand firm because we know our bodies will be transformed to be like his body.  We won't struggle with the flesh, because our bodies will be uncorrupted, like Adam's and Eve's were before they had to cover them up because of their rebellion.  Lord, help me to encourage others with these truths.

QT 1 Apr 11

Phil 3:17-19 (NIV) Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. 18 For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.

NOTE: It is hard to know who are these enemies of the cross.  In context, it would appear to be the Judaizers, who appear in verse 2, and whose confidence in the flesh is the main thrust of Paul's response in the first part of Chapter 3.  But, in many cases, the Judaizers are believers, so that would not seem to fit with verse 19 since their destiny is destruction, unless the destruction is physical punishment and not spiritual, that is relating to salvation.  This would also fit with the warnings given in Hebrews to believers who were falling back under the law and in danger of physical destruction, not the loss of salvation, that was to occur in a few years (the destruction of Jerusalem).  Either way, whether they are believers or not, we need to be wary of those who preach a works-based relationship with God.  They may be false brothers, they may be misguided brothers, but their teaching is wrong.  Our citizenship is in Heaven.  We have a relationship with God by faith and through faith.  We live by the Spirit of God.  We seek to fulfill the law of Christ (Gal 6:2; 1 Cor 9:21) by caring for and loving one another.  Love is the law we now live by.