Have you read through the seventh chapter of Numbers recently? It’s a chapter filled with detail about the offering each tribe brought to the tabernacle. One by one, tribe after tribe, they brought their silver platters and gold bowls and sacrifices. It’s a long passage! But then at the end of the chapter we see something that doesn’t seem to fit. We read, without context or explanation, “when Moses went into the tabernacle of meeting to speak with Him, he heard the voice of One speaking to him from above the mercy seat.”
The activity of Moses in the sanctuary had nothing to do with the offerings of Chapter 7 or the Levites of Chapter 8. And there is also the question of why Moses was there at all, because only the priests were to have access to the Holy Place.
We can say that Moses was allowed unique access to the Sanctuary as a special case since he was a prophet and type of Christ. But it seems to me that this verse is given a place of prominence in the midst of this account of gifts brought to the tabernacle, furnishings of the tabernacle and activity in the tabernacle, perhaps as a reminder of the true purpose of the tabernacle; bringing a holy God and sinful people together in fellowship. That unique place became a place of communion between the Lord and His prophet.
There are two things Moses did during his visits to the sanctuary. First, he was there to pray. Yes, Moses could have prayed just as well in his own tent, or anywhere else, but there was some special symbolism in that place. As he stood facing the veil that divided the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies, he would be in front of the altar of incense. The fragrant smoke that arose from that altar was meant to illustrate the prayers of God’s people that ascended to Him from everywhere in the camp. The coals that burned the incense were taken from the altar of sacrifice, which pictured the judgment of God poured out on His Son on the cross. Do you know why only those coals could be used on that altar? It was because the only basis any of us have for any of our prayers is the blood of Christ that gives us a hearing before a holy God.
Second, Moses was there to listen. He would pray and God would respond with a voice he could hear coming from the Holy of Holies, over the Mercy Seat. It’s not just that the glory was there. The fact that God would speak with a human at all is evidence of mercy. It was the same voice he heard in the burning bush. It was the same voice that he heard on the mountain. It was the same voice John heard in Revelation. The same Hebrew word is used both times: Moses spoke to God, God spoke to him.
The Mercy Seat was a gold cover that sat on the Ark of the Covenant and it was there for an important reason. There were only three articles in the Ark, and each of them was a reminder of God’s provision. The Ten Commandments were there as evidence of God’s law. The pot of manna was there as a reminder of their daily bread. The rod of Aaron was there as an illustration of God’s mediator. But the same three articles were also there in the presence of God as grim reminders of the failure of the people. They had broken God’s law before Moses even came down from Mount Sinai. They lacked faith in God’s provision. They had rebelled against His leading in the rebellion of Korah, Dathan and Abiram. Their only hope was mercy, and that’s why the Ark was covered with a symbol of God’s mercy, the Mercy Seat that formed a lid with two angels facing each other on top. That’s why, even though God is everywhere and His voice could have come from any other place of His choosing, that voice was heard in that one place.
We aren’t told how often Moses went there, but I would expect that every day, perhaps at the beginning of the day, he would make his way to the tabernacle for this private time of fellowship with Jehovah in the sanctuary.
The literal meaning of the word sanctuary is “holy place”. It’s a place that is dedicated for God’s use alone for worship and communion with the One we were made to know and love. Yes, God is not limited and He could have fellowship with His people anywhere, but he chose that place, designed after the pattern of the sanctuary, “not made with hands,” that exists in heaven.
You see, God hates competition, and this world is full of noise that drowns out His still, small voice. There is activity around us that draws us away from the task of adoration. There are sights that demand our attention and diminish our fellowship. That’s why it’s important to have a place where the things of this world are not welcome, a place where you can speak with your Creator and wait quietly for His response.
That’s one reason why I like the concept of sanctuary in the design of church buildings. I realize that the trend in church architecture today is toward multi-purpose rooms that can be used for Awana games on Tuesday, the kid’s pizza party on Friday, basketball on Saturday and worship on Sunday. Of course it’s more cost efficient. And, of course, the Lord was aware of that when He designed a place of worship that would not be used for any other purpose. He was willing to be extravagant with resources that were used for worship and so am I.
More to the point, however, I also like the concept of sanctuary in my own communion with God. I’m talking about a time and place that is to be used, like Moses did, for times of fellowship with God. All right, reality check here - maybe like Moses on a much more limited scale. Did you even notice how Jesus often sought out a time and place away from the crowds, activity and noise, where He could be alone with the Father?
My friend, have you found your own sanctuary, a place that is dedicated for prayer alone? Can I encourage you to find one? Prayer is more than just going to God with a shopping list. It’s also time devoted to listening to Him speak. If you simply go to God with your own thoughts and desires and then go on your way, you’ll miss an important part of prayer - waiting on the Lord in your own sanctuary.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Jazmyn's Grief
Eight year old Jazmyn rides the bus to our Sunday School and usually arrives eager to sing and learn but it was a saddened Jazmyn who came through our doors one Sunday not too long ago. Her father had been killed in an accident and she was still dealing with the news. Of course we rallied around her in support and she was surprised when I prayed for her in our worship service that morning. Dads are important and the loss of one makes a difference to all of us.
In fact, a godly dad can make a difference to the world. Abraham was one example. Even his name means “father of many”, which was a bit ironic considering that he was unable to have children until his old age. God chose Abraham to become the father of a great nation and the father of faith to all believers because he was a dad who would command his children to “keep the way of the Lord” and to do righteousness and justice. (See Genesis 18:19.) The Bible mentions him by name 232 times and his reputation is such that Jews and Muslims around the world claim his heritage and Christians everywhere seek to emulate his great faith.
There are also fathers today who will never be famous but are making this world a better place by leading their families to keep the way of the Lord. It’s not easy and the sacrifice required runs counter to a pleasure seeking culture. It’s difficult but worth it. The man who leaves behind the heritage of godly children will have left his world in a little better shape than he found it. Unfortunately, those dads are becoming increasingly rare in our world.
You should know that when little Jazmyn was sad, it was not only because she had lost her father. It was because she had never known her father. She was grieving because she felt little over losing a dad she had never met and even to an eight year old that doesn’t seem right.
Unfortunately her story is not unusual because we live in a culture in which men bring children into the world and then casually walk away. The unfortunate result is that the number of single mothers in our country has increased from 3 million in 1970 10 million in 2003. That number is still increasing and children are suffering the consequences. Ann Coulter wrote a helpful column on the subject that you can find in her book, Guilty; Liberal “Victims” and Their Assault on America. This is her insight.
“Controlling for socioeconomic status, race, and place of residence, the strongest predictor of whether a person will end up in prison is that he was raised by a single parent. By 1996, 70 percent of inmates in state juvenile detention centers serving long-term sentences were raised by single mothers. Seventy-two percent of juvenile murderers and 60 percent of rapists come from single-mother homes. Seventy percent of teenage births, dropouts, suicides, runaways, juvenile delinquents, and child murderers involve children raised by single mothers. Girls raised without fathers are more sexually promiscuous and more likely to end up divorced. A 1990 study by the Progressive Policy Institute showed that after controlling for single motherhood, the difference between black and white crime rates disappeared.”
Jazmyn’s grief is one shared by all too many of our children today – and not nearly enough of our adults.
In fact, a godly dad can make a difference to the world. Abraham was one example. Even his name means “father of many”, which was a bit ironic considering that he was unable to have children until his old age. God chose Abraham to become the father of a great nation and the father of faith to all believers because he was a dad who would command his children to “keep the way of the Lord” and to do righteousness and justice. (See Genesis 18:19.) The Bible mentions him by name 232 times and his reputation is such that Jews and Muslims around the world claim his heritage and Christians everywhere seek to emulate his great faith.
There are also fathers today who will never be famous but are making this world a better place by leading their families to keep the way of the Lord. It’s not easy and the sacrifice required runs counter to a pleasure seeking culture. It’s difficult but worth it. The man who leaves behind the heritage of godly children will have left his world in a little better shape than he found it. Unfortunately, those dads are becoming increasingly rare in our world.
You should know that when little Jazmyn was sad, it was not only because she had lost her father. It was because she had never known her father. She was grieving because she felt little over losing a dad she had never met and even to an eight year old that doesn’t seem right.
Unfortunately her story is not unusual because we live in a culture in which men bring children into the world and then casually walk away. The unfortunate result is that the number of single mothers in our country has increased from 3 million in 1970 10 million in 2003. That number is still increasing and children are suffering the consequences. Ann Coulter wrote a helpful column on the subject that you can find in her book, Guilty; Liberal “Victims” and Their Assault on America. This is her insight.
“Controlling for socioeconomic status, race, and place of residence, the strongest predictor of whether a person will end up in prison is that he was raised by a single parent. By 1996, 70 percent of inmates in state juvenile detention centers serving long-term sentences were raised by single mothers. Seventy-two percent of juvenile murderers and 60 percent of rapists come from single-mother homes. Seventy percent of teenage births, dropouts, suicides, runaways, juvenile delinquents, and child murderers involve children raised by single mothers. Girls raised without fathers are more sexually promiscuous and more likely to end up divorced. A 1990 study by the Progressive Policy Institute showed that after controlling for single motherhood, the difference between black and white crime rates disappeared.”
Jazmyn’s grief is one shared by all too many of our children today – and not nearly enough of our adults.
Monday, December 19, 2011
The Image of God
Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
Genesis 1:26, 27
Recently, a caller asked about the image of God. He wanted to know what exactly the Bible means when it says that people are created in His image. Does it mean that God looks something like human beings?
I appreciated his willingness to ask the question, because this is an important concept that forms an important basis for our understanding about God.
To start with, since God is a spirit we can eliminate the possibility that God’s image has anything to do with the physical appearance of Adam or anyone else. So what then does it mean?
First, it means that God’s nature is reflected in human beings.
The Hebrew word translated image refers to something that has been carved or cut off like a statue. It is used 16 times in the Bible, and 5 of those refer to the creation of man in God’s image. The text goes on to say that man was made in the likeness of God.
Man bears both the image and likeness of God. This is a word that describes the similarities between two things in the same way that an artist will recreate the image of a living person in another completely different medium like marble or brass. The medium that God used to reflect Himself is the human spirit. We are an accurate representation of what God is like.
We resembled God’s image structurally, the way in which he was put together – body and spirit, glory, and His likeness in qualities that make us what we are in personality.
Secondly, God’s image is reflected in man’s dominion over nature.
Man was given complete control over the earth itself and everything living in it. The extent of man’s dominion included fish, birds, cattle and wild animals.
“Over all the earth” means more than just that man had control over things in other parts of the world, but that he had control over all the different parts of creation that include things like laws of nature, electromagnetism, chemistry.
This is God’s explanation of what it means to be created in His image – dominion. Adam was not a Neanderthal, but was a man with amazing intelligence and abilities.
That’s why we have the ability to manipulate and control nature. And it’s also why we have a responsibility to care for the environment as good stewards over God’s creation.
Thirdly, God’s image is reflected in man’s creativity.
The Hebrew word ‘created’ refers to making something out of nothing. The emphasis is always on starting a new thing, and you’ll notice that Genesis mentions it three times in this text. Why a triple account? To emphasize the significance of this truth. Our God is a creative God.
Just as verse 26 related the image of God to man’s dominion, verse 27 related God’s image to man’s creativity
We should not be afraid of creativity. In our jobs, art, music, worship evangelism, in all areas of life, creativity is one of the ways in which we are like God. We should use and develop our creativity to the glory of God.
I understand that you may not be convinced at this point that the Bible is truly the word of God, but your thinking about God can start with what you know best – yourself. There is something about you that doesn’t quite fit with everything else. Yes, it’s true that human beings are composed of a collection of fairly common chemical compounds. And yet there is something different about you. You have the capacity for self-consciousness and self-determination. You have a capacity for love and self sacrifice. These are all qualities that we can’t observe anywhere else. They can’t be produced with any combination of chemicals, and yet they clearly are there and are an important part of what it means to be human.
It’s only the Bible gives us a cogent explanation for those qualities when it affirms that we have been created in the image of God.
Genesis 1:26, 27
Recently, a caller asked about the image of God. He wanted to know what exactly the Bible means when it says that people are created in His image. Does it mean that God looks something like human beings?
I appreciated his willingness to ask the question, because this is an important concept that forms an important basis for our understanding about God.
To start with, since God is a spirit we can eliminate the possibility that God’s image has anything to do with the physical appearance of Adam or anyone else. So what then does it mean?
First, it means that God’s nature is reflected in human beings.
The Hebrew word translated image refers to something that has been carved or cut off like a statue. It is used 16 times in the Bible, and 5 of those refer to the creation of man in God’s image. The text goes on to say that man was made in the likeness of God.
Man bears both the image and likeness of God. This is a word that describes the similarities between two things in the same way that an artist will recreate the image of a living person in another completely different medium like marble or brass. The medium that God used to reflect Himself is the human spirit. We are an accurate representation of what God is like.
We resembled God’s image structurally, the way in which he was put together – body and spirit, glory, and His likeness in qualities that make us what we are in personality.
Secondly, God’s image is reflected in man’s dominion over nature.
Man was given complete control over the earth itself and everything living in it. The extent of man’s dominion included fish, birds, cattle and wild animals.
“Over all the earth” means more than just that man had control over things in other parts of the world, but that he had control over all the different parts of creation that include things like laws of nature, electromagnetism, chemistry.
This is God’s explanation of what it means to be created in His image – dominion. Adam was not a Neanderthal, but was a man with amazing intelligence and abilities.
That’s why we have the ability to manipulate and control nature. And it’s also why we have a responsibility to care for the environment as good stewards over God’s creation.
Thirdly, God’s image is reflected in man’s creativity.
The Hebrew word ‘created’ refers to making something out of nothing. The emphasis is always on starting a new thing, and you’ll notice that Genesis mentions it three times in this text. Why a triple account? To emphasize the significance of this truth. Our God is a creative God.
Just as verse 26 related the image of God to man’s dominion, verse 27 related God’s image to man’s creativity
We should not be afraid of creativity. In our jobs, art, music, worship evangelism, in all areas of life, creativity is one of the ways in which we are like God. We should use and develop our creativity to the glory of God.
I understand that you may not be convinced at this point that the Bible is truly the word of God, but your thinking about God can start with what you know best – yourself. There is something about you that doesn’t quite fit with everything else. Yes, it’s true that human beings are composed of a collection of fairly common chemical compounds. And yet there is something different about you. You have the capacity for self-consciousness and self-determination. You have a capacity for love and self sacrifice. These are all qualities that we can’t observe anywhere else. They can’t be produced with any combination of chemicals, and yet they clearly are there and are an important part of what it means to be human.
It’s only the Bible gives us a cogent explanation for those qualities when it affirms that we have been created in the image of God.
Thursday, November 24, 2011
How Four Turkeys Survived Thanksgiving
It was corn dogs almost every day. We were living on a Forward Operating Base (FOB) where food was not as easy to come by as it is on larger, more accessible bases and corn dogs were available. I suppose some nameless supply sergeant was able to obtain a great deal on them, so that’s what we ate, day after day. There was the hope, however, that we’d have a special Thanksgiving meal because someone found four live turkeys which became residents of our FOB. We fed them canned corn to fatten them up and looked forward to having an actual turkey dinner when the day came. The birds weren’t in cages and were free to roam anywhere around our camp, but never seemed to show any interest in running (or flying) away. Every day when I left my tent to greet the day and get ready for an early morning Bible study, there were our turkeys usually perched on a trailer or sometimes just strolling around and enjoying their new home, always together in a group of four.
Finally, the day before Thanksgiving arrived and it was time to do what needed to be done to have our turkey dinner. It was time to sharpen the old ax. But that’s not what happened. Understand that we were an infantry unit and when it was time to fight, these were the men you would want on your side, but not one of us had the heart to turn our new friends into dinner, so a decision was made that we’d keep feeding them a little longer and use them for a special Christmas dinner. Yes, that would be the new plan.
For another month we shared our FOB with turkeys, growing fatter every day as they walked the grounds or perched on our vehicles. As Christmas approached, however, it was clear that our dinner date was just not going to work out. So we donated them to some people from a nearby village who I’m sure made the most of our gift.
Do you wonder why a group of hungry soldiers would have compassion on the guests of honor at their holiday meal? Is this a conditioned response where we are consistently rewarded for compassion and punished for a lack of it? That doesn’t seem to be the case. In fact compassion not only deprived us of the reward of tasty turkey, it also meant that we had given ourselves the burden of feeding and caring for four large birds.
Is this a quality that evolved over millions and millions of years? I can’t image how. There is certainly no compassion in nature where the fast eat the slow, the big consume the small, the strong devour the weak. In fact compassion seems to be a quality that we can’t observe anywhere else in the natural world – other than in other human beings.
Often, when we say, “I’m only human,” we are excusing the worst of our behavior, but the reality is the opposite. It’s not carnal appetites, self-centered behavior or violence that distinguishes us as human beings. Qualities like compassion are what make us unique in this world because only people, even hard charging soldiers, are made in the image of God.
Wherever you find it, compassion exists in this world because God is compassionate. As the Bible tells us, “You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.” (Psalm 86:15) Since our Creator is compassionate, we should expect to see that quality somewhere in the world He made, and we do.
In my next blog I’ll have more to say about the image of God, in answer to a caller’s question, but today I want to encourage you to be thankful for the compassion God has shown to you this year.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Finally, the day before Thanksgiving arrived and it was time to do what needed to be done to have our turkey dinner. It was time to sharpen the old ax. But that’s not what happened. Understand that we were an infantry unit and when it was time to fight, these were the men you would want on your side, but not one of us had the heart to turn our new friends into dinner, so a decision was made that we’d keep feeding them a little longer and use them for a special Christmas dinner. Yes, that would be the new plan.
For another month we shared our FOB with turkeys, growing fatter every day as they walked the grounds or perched on our vehicles. As Christmas approached, however, it was clear that our dinner date was just not going to work out. So we donated them to some people from a nearby village who I’m sure made the most of our gift.
Do you wonder why a group of hungry soldiers would have compassion on the guests of honor at their holiday meal? Is this a conditioned response where we are consistently rewarded for compassion and punished for a lack of it? That doesn’t seem to be the case. In fact compassion not only deprived us of the reward of tasty turkey, it also meant that we had given ourselves the burden of feeding and caring for four large birds.
Is this a quality that evolved over millions and millions of years? I can’t image how. There is certainly no compassion in nature where the fast eat the slow, the big consume the small, the strong devour the weak. In fact compassion seems to be a quality that we can’t observe anywhere else in the natural world – other than in other human beings.
Often, when we say, “I’m only human,” we are excusing the worst of our behavior, but the reality is the opposite. It’s not carnal appetites, self-centered behavior or violence that distinguishes us as human beings. Qualities like compassion are what make us unique in this world because only people, even hard charging soldiers, are made in the image of God.
Wherever you find it, compassion exists in this world because God is compassionate. As the Bible tells us, “You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.” (Psalm 86:15) Since our Creator is compassionate, we should expect to see that quality somewhere in the world He made, and we do.
In my next blog I’ll have more to say about the image of God, in answer to a caller’s question, but today I want to encourage you to be thankful for the compassion God has shown to you this year.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
In the Desert
I wasn’t sure where I was that night, only that our patrol was stranded somewhere in Afghanistan’s high desert.
Our mission had been to help a remote village plan for its first election. That changed when the lead vehicle in the convoy was hit with a roadside bomb on the trip back to our FOB (Forward Operating Base). We lost two good men, SSG Craig Cherry and SGT Bobby Beasley, as well as Ajamal, our 20 year old interpreter in the massive blast. The bomb was actually two mines designed to blow up tanks, stacked one on top of the other and then buried in the road. It was detonated by a cell phone that was activated by someone watching us.
Our dead and wounded were evacuated by helicopter within an hour and we were left to wait until a truck and heavy equipment could arrive to remove what was left of the HUMVEE. Our men spent the day going house to house in a nearby village, rounding up possible suspects. One would be coming back with us.
As night began to fall I gathered our soldiers and held an impromptu memorial service for the friends we had lost, spent some time just talking with our men, and then we made our plans to spend the night in the desert.
There actually wasn’t much preparation involved other than finding a soft spot in the sand. As I stretched out in the darkness, using my body armor as a pillow, I was amazed by the beauty of the night sky. The Milky Way was resplendent as I had never seen it before. Stars, planets and galaxies gave us a dazzling display of beauty and light. Every few minutes a meteor would burn itself out with a dramatic streak of light.
I was also struck by the surreal contrast. On my left, not fifty yards away stood the charred and twisted remains of our vehicle, while above me the sky was ablaze with glory. There was man’s work – death, chaos and destruction. And there was God’s work with its beauty, symmetry and light.
It was then I thought that if you look closely, the same contrast surrounds us every day. Man’s work versus God’s work. We see it when law competes with grace. We see injustice chosen over justice. Men choose depravity and reject holiness. And yet how many understand this distinction and realize how much we lose when we do things our way? To be honest, I think there are very few.
Does it surprise you that the murderer who planted the bomb was acting out a religion of “good works?” It shouldn’t. The Bible clearly teaches, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” (Proverbs 14:12) Throughout history, ever since Cain murdered his brother, man centered, works based religion has been the excuse for much of the violence in this world. It’s popular today to claim that it must be a spirit of religious intolerance or divisiveness that leads to violence. The Bible, however, teaches that the cause is a little more basic. The problem is within us, our own depravity, which is why man centered religion produces a result similar to man centered atheism: murder.
If the problem is within us, the solution must come from outside ourselves. It’s only when God’s grace produces a new creation that we can escape our tendencies. It’s only when our faith is God’s work that we can become the light of the world.
Our mission had been to help a remote village plan for its first election. That changed when the lead vehicle in the convoy was hit with a roadside bomb on the trip back to our FOB (Forward Operating Base). We lost two good men, SSG Craig Cherry and SGT Bobby Beasley, as well as Ajamal, our 20 year old interpreter in the massive blast. The bomb was actually two mines designed to blow up tanks, stacked one on top of the other and then buried in the road. It was detonated by a cell phone that was activated by someone watching us.
Our dead and wounded were evacuated by helicopter within an hour and we were left to wait until a truck and heavy equipment could arrive to remove what was left of the HUMVEE. Our men spent the day going house to house in a nearby village, rounding up possible suspects. One would be coming back with us.
As night began to fall I gathered our soldiers and held an impromptu memorial service for the friends we had lost, spent some time just talking with our men, and then we made our plans to spend the night in the desert.
There actually wasn’t much preparation involved other than finding a soft spot in the sand. As I stretched out in the darkness, using my body armor as a pillow, I was amazed by the beauty of the night sky. The Milky Way was resplendent as I had never seen it before. Stars, planets and galaxies gave us a dazzling display of beauty and light. Every few minutes a meteor would burn itself out with a dramatic streak of light.
I was also struck by the surreal contrast. On my left, not fifty yards away stood the charred and twisted remains of our vehicle, while above me the sky was ablaze with glory. There was man’s work – death, chaos and destruction. And there was God’s work with its beauty, symmetry and light.
It was then I thought that if you look closely, the same contrast surrounds us every day. Man’s work versus God’s work. We see it when law competes with grace. We see injustice chosen over justice. Men choose depravity and reject holiness. And yet how many understand this distinction and realize how much we lose when we do things our way? To be honest, I think there are very few.
Does it surprise you that the murderer who planted the bomb was acting out a religion of “good works?” It shouldn’t. The Bible clearly teaches, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” (Proverbs 14:12) Throughout history, ever since Cain murdered his brother, man centered, works based religion has been the excuse for much of the violence in this world. It’s popular today to claim that it must be a spirit of religious intolerance or divisiveness that leads to violence. The Bible, however, teaches that the cause is a little more basic. The problem is within us, our own depravity, which is why man centered religion produces a result similar to man centered atheism: murder.
If the problem is within us, the solution must come from outside ourselves. It’s only when God’s grace produces a new creation that we can escape our tendencies. It’s only when our faith is God’s work that we can become the light of the world.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Did Christ Die for Everyone?
The extent of Christ’s atonement has been debated so much that I felt compelled to weigh in on the issue today.
To start with, let me say that my theology has some loose ends in it. For example, I have no doubt that the free will of man and the sovereignty of God have a place of common ground even if that place exists outside of the limited understanding of my finite brain. A toddler may not understand what electricity is or how it works, but he can know that if you flip the switch, the lights come on. In a similar way, when it comes to explaining God’s truth, I’m like a child, content to affirm what the Bible teaches and willing to trust God for the things that are beyond me.
There are four basic ways of looking at the atoning work of Christ on the cross.
1. The cross provided atonement for no one. To some, the story of the cross is a myth or a tragic story of man’s inhumanity to man and nothing more. Islam teaches that it’s blasphemy to suggest that Allah would punish the innocent so the guilty could go free.
2. The cross provided atonement for everyone. This is the teaching that everyone will eventually be saved since the penalty for sin has been eliminated for every sinner on earth. Evangelism is simply letting people know the good news that they are already saved.
3. The cross provided atonement that is limited in effectiveness. With apologies to Arminians who might object to the term “limited”, this view teaches that while the work of Christ on the cross made it possible for everyone to be saved, it is not adequate to save anyone unless combined with the faith of a sinner.
4. The cross provided atonement that is limited in extent. This is the view that the cross did all that is necessary for salvation, but that it is applied only to the elect.
Did you know that atonement is actually an Old Testament term? It comes from the Hebrew word that means to cover something over. When the Jewish priest would complete the process of sacrifice and announce that atonement had been made, he was saying that the sins of the worshipper had been covered over. Guilt had been removed.
We make the issue more difficult than it needs to be by looking at the atonement as a theological monolith that must be all one thing or all another. The Bible itself doesn’t treat it that way. In fact, the New Testament never uses the word atonement, but instead is much more precise and uses terminology that describes different aspects of atonement that our Lord accomplished on the cross.
Is it possible then, that the New Testament teaches that some aspects of Christ’s atonement are unlimited and some are limited? I think it is. My goal is to keep this simple, so we won’t consider every verse in the Bible that deals with the issue. I’d simply like to clarify the matter for those who would like to see how the Bible can teach both at the same time.
First, it seems clear that the New Testament teaches that the death of Christ was for every sinner, at least to some extent. John says, in 1 John 2:2 that Christ, “ is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.” Paul teaches in 1 Timothy 2:6 that Christ, “gave Himself a ransom for all.” Then there is Peter who warned about false teachers (clearly unsaved) who deny “the Lord who bought them.” (2 Peter 2:1) Each of these aspects of the atonement falls into the category of what we might call “redemptive” aspects. Because of sin, there is a price that must be paid and there is penalty that must be endured and our Lord paid that price and endured the penalty for all the sin of the world.
And it is just as clear that Jesus taught that His death on the cross was only for the elect, at least to some extent. In John 10:11, for example, He said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” And who are His sheep? The Lord defined that a few verses later when He addressed those who did not believe in Him, “But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.” (See John 10:26-28.) The Lord also told His disciples in John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.” Who are His friends? Again, they are His disciples, those who obey His commandments.
In both of these passages Jesus used a Greek preposition that means “in place of.” His death on the cross was “in place of” the sheep, and it was “in place of” His friends. Substitution is another aspect of His atonement and that was what the Lord had in mind. He died on the cross in place of sinners, but not all sinners. He was a substitute specifically for those who belong to Him.
Charles Spurgeon put it this way in one of his sermons: "To think that my Savior died for men in hell, seems a supposition too horrible for me to imagine. That He was the substitute for the sons of men, and that God having first punished the substitute, punished these same men again, seems to me to conflict with any idea of justice.” (From “The Mission of the Son of Man.”)
We’ll study the cross throughout eternity and never come to the end of it, but here are a couple of things we can know with certainty. To pay the penalty for all sin the Lord tasted death for every man. And to bring many sons to glory, He took the place of those sons under the wrath of God.
To start with, let me say that my theology has some loose ends in it. For example, I have no doubt that the free will of man and the sovereignty of God have a place of common ground even if that place exists outside of the limited understanding of my finite brain. A toddler may not understand what electricity is or how it works, but he can know that if you flip the switch, the lights come on. In a similar way, when it comes to explaining God’s truth, I’m like a child, content to affirm what the Bible teaches and willing to trust God for the things that are beyond me.
There are four basic ways of looking at the atoning work of Christ on the cross.
1. The cross provided atonement for no one. To some, the story of the cross is a myth or a tragic story of man’s inhumanity to man and nothing more. Islam teaches that it’s blasphemy to suggest that Allah would punish the innocent so the guilty could go free.
2. The cross provided atonement for everyone. This is the teaching that everyone will eventually be saved since the penalty for sin has been eliminated for every sinner on earth. Evangelism is simply letting people know the good news that they are already saved.
3. The cross provided atonement that is limited in effectiveness. With apologies to Arminians who might object to the term “limited”, this view teaches that while the work of Christ on the cross made it possible for everyone to be saved, it is not adequate to save anyone unless combined with the faith of a sinner.
4. The cross provided atonement that is limited in extent. This is the view that the cross did all that is necessary for salvation, but that it is applied only to the elect.
Did you know that atonement is actually an Old Testament term? It comes from the Hebrew word that means to cover something over. When the Jewish priest would complete the process of sacrifice and announce that atonement had been made, he was saying that the sins of the worshipper had been covered over. Guilt had been removed.
We make the issue more difficult than it needs to be by looking at the atonement as a theological monolith that must be all one thing or all another. The Bible itself doesn’t treat it that way. In fact, the New Testament never uses the word atonement, but instead is much more precise and uses terminology that describes different aspects of atonement that our Lord accomplished on the cross.
Is it possible then, that the New Testament teaches that some aspects of Christ’s atonement are unlimited and some are limited? I think it is. My goal is to keep this simple, so we won’t consider every verse in the Bible that deals with the issue. I’d simply like to clarify the matter for those who would like to see how the Bible can teach both at the same time.
First, it seems clear that the New Testament teaches that the death of Christ was for every sinner, at least to some extent. John says, in 1 John 2:2 that Christ, “ is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.” Paul teaches in 1 Timothy 2:6 that Christ, “gave Himself a ransom for all.” Then there is Peter who warned about false teachers (clearly unsaved) who deny “the Lord who bought them.” (2 Peter 2:1) Each of these aspects of the atonement falls into the category of what we might call “redemptive” aspects. Because of sin, there is a price that must be paid and there is penalty that must be endured and our Lord paid that price and endured the penalty for all the sin of the world.
And it is just as clear that Jesus taught that His death on the cross was only for the elect, at least to some extent. In John 10:11, for example, He said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” And who are His sheep? The Lord defined that a few verses later when He addressed those who did not believe in Him, “But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.” (See John 10:26-28.) The Lord also told His disciples in John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.” Who are His friends? Again, they are His disciples, those who obey His commandments.
In both of these passages Jesus used a Greek preposition that means “in place of.” His death on the cross was “in place of” the sheep, and it was “in place of” His friends. Substitution is another aspect of His atonement and that was what the Lord had in mind. He died on the cross in place of sinners, but not all sinners. He was a substitute specifically for those who belong to Him.
Charles Spurgeon put it this way in one of his sermons: "To think that my Savior died for men in hell, seems a supposition too horrible for me to imagine. That He was the substitute for the sons of men, and that God having first punished the substitute, punished these same men again, seems to me to conflict with any idea of justice.” (From “The Mission of the Son of Man.”)
We’ll study the cross throughout eternity and never come to the end of it, but here are a couple of things we can know with certainty. To pay the penalty for all sin the Lord tasted death for every man. And to bring many sons to glory, He took the place of those sons under the wrath of God.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Are Angels Watching Over You?
Gemma Galgani was an Italian saint who claimed that she had conversations with her guardian angel. I’m not sure what they talked about, but if she was like many of us the discussion may have been something like, “Where were you?” Some of us question the concept that angels are standing guard over us, usually when something bad happens. If we have a spiritual protector, we ask, where was he when we needed him?
To begin a quick survey of the Bible’s teaching on the subject, I’d like to take you to one teaching moment in the life of Christ. The disciples were concerned about who would be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. (You may have noticed that this issue seemed to have been on their minds a lot!) Jesus answered their question by calling a little child and using him as an object lesson. Entrance to the kingdom would be only for those with childlike humility. Receiving a child is the same as receiving Christ. And then He warned the disciples about the danger of “despising” little children because of their angels. “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 18:10) It does seem, doesn’t it, that our Lord is saying that every child has an angel assigned to him or her? Even more, however, is the fact that when in heaven, those angels see the face of God. Angels have access to both heaven and earth, but in heaven, those angels are always near the throne. I would take that to mean that the angels assigned to children are among the most powerful, higher ranking angels. The Lord may assign a PFC angel to hand out judgment on a city, for example, but kids have Four Star General angels watching over them.
The Bible often speaks about angels watching over believers at various times in their lives. For example, when Abraham was concerned about a good wife for Isaac, he told his servant, “The LORD God of heaven … swore to me, saying, 'To your descendants I give this land,' He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.’” (Genesis 24:7) Or when Daniel was thrown into the den of lions, God didn’t control the animals Himself. Instead He dispatched an angel to provide the protection Daniel needed. (Daniel 6:22) Or how about the apostles who were in prison and were delivered by an angel who opened the prison doors at night and led them out? (Acts 5:19) Again and again we see that an angel was there to protect God’s people in a time of need.
The Bible also tells us that for believers, angels will be there for us when we die. When Jesus told the story of the rich man and Lazarus, He said that when the beggar died he didn’t simply shoot up to heaven, but was led there by angels. It may have seemed to a bystander that the beggar died alone, but in reality angels were there with him to aid in the transition from competing with dogs for scraps of food to enjoying the glory of the Lord in Paradise. (See Luke 16:22.) It’s also interesting that the rich man did not have an escort to hell, which raises a final observation we can make.
There does seem to be a limit. It’s not Church dogma, but a common Roman Catholic teaching is that a guardian angel is assigned to every person on earth. We don’t see that in the Bible, however. Angels are seen watching over children and caring for the redeemed, but there is no indication that the lost have angels who care for them. In fact, Psalm 34:7 tells us, “The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them.” If you need another reason to fear the Lord, you will find it in the help you need every day.
How many times have you experienced “close calls” when you needed help? You may have said, “If I had been in that intersection seconds earlier ….” But you weren’t. “If that bullet had been an inch lower … . “ But it wasn’t. In fact, there are many close calls that you never even know about, but if you fear the Lord an angel was there just the same watching over you.
So where is your guardian angel when bad things do happen, even though you may be a faithful Christian? He’s right there with you. All the biblical examples of deliverance through angels teach us that when the believer does experience illness or pain or persecution he can be sure that it has met the approval of God first, and He’ll use it for good. And when the time comes that your life on this earth is over, you can look forward to an angel who will be there to escort you to glory.
To begin a quick survey of the Bible’s teaching on the subject, I’d like to take you to one teaching moment in the life of Christ. The disciples were concerned about who would be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. (You may have noticed that this issue seemed to have been on their minds a lot!) Jesus answered their question by calling a little child and using him as an object lesson. Entrance to the kingdom would be only for those with childlike humility. Receiving a child is the same as receiving Christ. And then He warned the disciples about the danger of “despising” little children because of their angels. “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 18:10) It does seem, doesn’t it, that our Lord is saying that every child has an angel assigned to him or her? Even more, however, is the fact that when in heaven, those angels see the face of God. Angels have access to both heaven and earth, but in heaven, those angels are always near the throne. I would take that to mean that the angels assigned to children are among the most powerful, higher ranking angels. The Lord may assign a PFC angel to hand out judgment on a city, for example, but kids have Four Star General angels watching over them.
The Bible often speaks about angels watching over believers at various times in their lives. For example, when Abraham was concerned about a good wife for Isaac, he told his servant, “The LORD God of heaven … swore to me, saying, 'To your descendants I give this land,' He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.’” (Genesis 24:7) Or when Daniel was thrown into the den of lions, God didn’t control the animals Himself. Instead He dispatched an angel to provide the protection Daniel needed. (Daniel 6:22) Or how about the apostles who were in prison and were delivered by an angel who opened the prison doors at night and led them out? (Acts 5:19) Again and again we see that an angel was there to protect God’s people in a time of need.
The Bible also tells us that for believers, angels will be there for us when we die. When Jesus told the story of the rich man and Lazarus, He said that when the beggar died he didn’t simply shoot up to heaven, but was led there by angels. It may have seemed to a bystander that the beggar died alone, but in reality angels were there with him to aid in the transition from competing with dogs for scraps of food to enjoying the glory of the Lord in Paradise. (See Luke 16:22.) It’s also interesting that the rich man did not have an escort to hell, which raises a final observation we can make.
There does seem to be a limit. It’s not Church dogma, but a common Roman Catholic teaching is that a guardian angel is assigned to every person on earth. We don’t see that in the Bible, however. Angels are seen watching over children and caring for the redeemed, but there is no indication that the lost have angels who care for them. In fact, Psalm 34:7 tells us, “The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them.” If you need another reason to fear the Lord, you will find it in the help you need every day.
How many times have you experienced “close calls” when you needed help? You may have said, “If I had been in that intersection seconds earlier ….” But you weren’t. “If that bullet had been an inch lower … . “ But it wasn’t. In fact, there are many close calls that you never even know about, but if you fear the Lord an angel was there just the same watching over you.
So where is your guardian angel when bad things do happen, even though you may be a faithful Christian? He’s right there with you. All the biblical examples of deliverance through angels teach us that when the believer does experience illness or pain or persecution he can be sure that it has met the approval of God first, and He’ll use it for good. And when the time comes that your life on this earth is over, you can look forward to an angel who will be there to escort you to glory.
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