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Unusual Assurances, Pt. 3

“What is Death?”

Study Guide, August 26, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

We started this mini series on ‘Unusual Assurances’ with the help of some great questions that children ask. Again, we have been using these questions from children as springboards into various amazing and often reassuring teachings about life from the Scriptures. And as we started it we referenced that crisis verse in Genesis that set the whole course of man’s history, and his future, into motion. It was this: Gen 2:17- “…but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” NASU And the question that kids have asked about that is this: “Why didn’t Adam die when God said he would?” Great question, right? And part of the answer to that first comes in the form of another question: “What is death anyway?” And the answer to that would seem obvious. But we know that there are many things in this world that seem obvious, yet many people remain oblivious as to what they really mean or really are. Actually, in this upside down world of ours, oftentimes there is a fine line between the obvious and the oblivious.

For example: One dictionary defines ‘death’ as the end of the life of a person or organism. Seems obvious, right? However, that definition distorts the real meaning of death, which is essentially: ‘A separation’. So death is a separation. And that leads to another question: ‘A separation of what?’ Now we’re getting back to our child’s question of ‘Why didn’t Adam die when God said he would?’ And the answer is: ‘He did!’ Or more specifically, when Adam sinned against God he did die or he was immediately separated from God as to his spiritual relationship with God. Plus, he also set the dying process into motion, or this separation process of life from his physical body into motion as well. So in reality, when Adam sinned his spirit was immediately separated from God’s spirit and his body began the dying process, or the separation process from his living soul.

Remember, when God created Adam, God stated that he became a living soul. Gen 2:7- “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” KJV And the NLT puts it like this: “Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person.” And at this point, Adam was also spiritually united to the life of God, since he was created without sin. But as the Apostle Paul points out to us: Rom 5:12- “When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.” NLT

Sin has many effects on our world, but sin had and continues to have two fundamental effects upon this world. One: Sin immediately separates the spirit of a living soul from the Spirit of God, like it did with Adam and Eve. Our first parents spiritual relationship was immediately separated with God because of sin. They spiritually died when they sinned. That’s why Paul describes the condition of any person who has not received the Messiah, the Lord Jesus as their Savior, as still being spiritual dead. And this is paramount for any Christian to understand about the condition of people around them that have not yet been spiritually born again. Here it is: Eph 2:1- “In the past you were spiritually dead because of your sins and the things you did against God.” ERV

This is a stark irony about people in our world. Most people think about death only in terms of something that is going to happen to them in the future. When the reality is that, even though they are still physically alive, they have already died. They are already spiritually dead; dead in their sins. In fact, our entire world is inhabited by the ‘walking dead’, the ‘spiritually walking dead’. And unless they give their life to Christ in repentance and receive Jesus into their life by faith as their Savior, they will walk right into eternity still spiritually dead, separated from a relationship with God.

Remember, spiritual life is only found in relationship with Christ, in being re-united to God through receiving Jesus Christ into your life. So whenever you hear the word ‘death’ or think of ‘death’ you need to realize that there are two parts to death; spiritual and physical. Which brings us to the second effect of sin upon this world. So; Two: Sin set into motion the separation of life from physical beings and even material entities. What we mean by ‘entities’ here is like we talked about last time, like even the Earth itself has been and is being affected by the presence of sin, as the Psalmist put it: Ps 102:25-26- “Of old You founded the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. Even they will perish, but You endure; And all of them will wear out like a garment; Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed.” NASU

Sin is the ‘death agent’ acting on the planet Earth and on every living thing on planet Earth, causing everything to wear out and decay, or waste away. Ever since the presence of sin entered into the world, the Earth has been wearing out. That’s what effect the presence of sin has on any living organism or being. And so even though when we receive Christ as our Savior and He removes the sin penalty from us, the effects of the presence of sin has already started the mortality process on our bodies…or the dying process. But, praise God, He is even going to clothe us with an immortal body! But, again, the Earth and everything and everyone in it has essentially been dying ever since sin entered the world.

Now, that brings up another fascinating question. When do we begin dying? In Science and Medicine that concept is often answered in terms that we begin dying the day we are born, speaking of this wearing out or this ‘mortal’ aspect of the physical body. They have a way of stating that concept that goes like this: ‘Media vita in morte sumus’ or ‘In the midst of life we are in death.’

And as stark as that sounds, since human life begins not at birth, but at conception, the full reality is that this dying process is set into motion even before birth; it is set into motion at the very conception of a human being. In other words, the mortal part of our being, the physical part of our life, has been dying ever since we came into being.

Paul refers to the bodily part of our life as the ‘outer man’ and the spiritual part of our life as the ‘inner man’. And notice what he reveals: 2 Cor 4:16-17- “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.” NASU So how about that? Even though the body is aging, there is a part of you that actually is getting younger day by day!

But still the mortal body is wearing out and wasting away. It’s not called ‘mortal’ for nothing. Awhile back when Dr. Norm Geisler learned he had cancer, Pastor Robert said that when people asked him about dying, Dr. Geisler would say that we’re all dying…just at different rates. And while that does sound a bit ‘morbid’, still, to redeemed children of God, or to all of us who have had our spirit already resurrected by Christ’s Spirit, praise God, it’s actually a reminder that this dying world is not our Home. No, our Home is where our Heavenly Father lives. And it reminds us to rejoice in the fact that just as our Savior was clothed with a resurrected and immortal physical body we also will be clothed with a resurrected and immortal physical body in which to enjoy the physical wonders and the joys of the New Earth and the New Heaven forever.

Which also leads us to adopt new attitudes about death itself. And one of those attitudes about death that we are to adopt has to do with the fact that since this temporary world in which we now walk is not our Home, that means that life in this world is actually just a long walk on our way Home. Life is a long walk on our way Home. Recently Sharon told me about a description she came across that described dying for Christians this way: Dying for believers is simply God’s people walking each other Home. Isn’t that a great picture? As we walk through this world we are just ‘walking each other Home’, with our Savior, our Shepherd, leading us all Home. For Christians, life on planet Earth is just a long walk Home.

And since we are pilgrims in this world on pilgrimage to our real Home, this calls for us to adopt another attitude in relation to death, or we should say, in relation to what death means for a follower of Christ. We often refer to the death of someone as a loss, like the loss of a loved one, which it is. The loss refers to the loss of the fellowship and the physical presence that was enjoyed and was a precious gift for us in this life. Remember, even Jesus wept at the death of His friend Lazarus. Even though Jesus would soon see Lazarus again, and even though we know we will see our saved loved ones again, there is a temporary loss about death. But there’s also a greater reality that is going on in the death of a redeemed child of God, which the Apostle Paul identified this way: Phil 1:21- “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” NASU Have you ever thought about death that way? ‘To die is gain’. Again, in death there is certainly temporary loss and sadness to family and friends, but for the believer himself or herself, the greater reality is that to die is gain. In fact, Paul said that you can’t even compare the two; you can’t even compare the world the believer has just stepped out of to the world he or she just stepped into…the world of Heaven…Home.

Think about even that word the Apostle chose, or that God chose for the Apostle Paul to use. The word ‘gain’ means ‘profit’; ‘advantage’. The meaning is that Paul was revealing to us that when you compare living to leaving, the advantage goes to ‘leaving’; the advantage goes to ‘dying’. For the believer, that is what death is; it’s leaving this broken world to go Home, where everything is perfect; perfect health, perfect environment, perfect relationships, perfect peace, and even more. For the moment a believer’s body dies, he or she experiences what life was always meant to be; perfect joy in the presence of our perfect Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Nothing in this life is perfect, and everything in the next life is perfect. And until the Lord returns, the only doorway into the perfect land of Heaven is through the doorway of death. But again, God tells us not to fear this doorway, because why? Because Jesus is the One who walks us through it.

“For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Could it be that God wants His children to adopt a different attitude toward death than the world has? And no, not to hasten it or to intentionally put ourselves in harms way and such. But what would happen if God’s children would start thinking to themselves and even telling others that ‘to die is gain’? That would get people’s attention!

To others in this world, death is the worst that can happen. Death is what people fear the most. But Jesus said otherwise: Luke 12:4-5-” I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him!” NASU

For unsaved people in this world, death is not what they should be afraid of; what they should be afraid of is what death finalizes for them. Death finalizes their destiny of judgment by the Judge of the Universe, to whom they would not repent so as to be saved. They would not repent of their sins and ask God to be their Lord and Savior, so God remains their Judge. Either God will become your Savior or He will remain your Judge. Each person decides which He will be for them for all eternity.

Actually, we can tell how deceived and calloused our world is toward God and His Word by how little people are afraid of sin. People are not afraid of sin. Have you notice that? Remember that the central effect that sin had on Adam and Eve when they sinned was that they immediately became afraid. That’s what they told God when He came to them in the garden and asked why they were hiding from Him. They said they were afraid. That’s is the natural effect sin has; sin’s natural effect is that sin induces fear; unless the one that sins has become terribly deceived and greatly calloused.

Actually, that’s how we know how deceived and calloused our world has become toward God is because so many people are not made afraid by their sin. They are not afraid of sin, and they are not made afraid when they sin. And when sin no longer causes it’s natural effects, then we know that the sinner is under great deception and has become severely calloused in their soul toward God. That’s why we need to keep praying for the eyes of the lost to become open and their hearts to become convicted, to become sensitive to the Holy Spirit of God, so they can turn from their sin and have their Judge become their Savior, who will forgive their sin, like He did with Adam and Eve, and then cover them with His forgiveness, and re-unite their spirit with His Spirit and become their Heavenly Father.

Which leads us back to the fact that for all of us who have repented toward God and have received Jesus by faith as our Savior and Lord, Jesus reminds us that even when it comes to death, we don’t have to fear it; because we fear God, and are His eternal children. And what has God done? 1 Cor 15:50-57- “What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever. But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’ For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.” NLT

So for the Christian, death is not a defeat, but a victory. Jesus conquered death, and since we are conquerors in Christ, that means that through Christ we conquer death. Sort of gives new power to what Paul also said: Phil 4:13- “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” NKJV So let’s rephrase that to include what he said about death: ‘I can do all things, like even conquer death, through Christ who strengthens me.’

Unusual Assurances, Pt. 2

Study Guide, August 19, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

Kids have a unique perspective on things in our world, don’t they? Even with things of the Bible, they look at things and think about things in an unusual way. For example, one little guy thought the Golden Rule was: ‘Do one to others before they do one to you.’ And another child thought Noah’s wife was named ‘Joan of Ark’. Another one thought Moses was not allowed to go into the land of Canada. And another had learned about the great miracle with Joshua, when Joshua commanded his son to stand still…and he obeyed him!

Kids have a different way of looking at life and thinking about life, and even helping us adults to rethink many things about life, or at least to think through them a little deeper. And so last week we began looking into some questions that kids have about God and then expounding on them together. However, if you tell a child that you would be happy to expound on his question, he may not ask you another one…unless you explain what ‘expounding’ is.

Have you ever gotten this question from a child: “What does God look like?” What a great question. And it’s really a great question because it implies that God does have a certain look about Him, as in a physical or material look about Him; now that is. Actually, this question from children…or we could say, this assumption from children about God having a certain look about Him is really more insightful than a lot of adult’s assumptions…that is, that God is only ‘metaphysical’, or without substance or material form.

Certainly these are all qualities about God which do need some explaining…or some expounding. And again, in answering a child’s question, you’ll want to shorten the answers that we are expounding on. But for our study, we need to expand the expanse on that which we are expounding.

As to the metaphysical aspect of God, we know that God said this: John 4:24- “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” NASU So God reveals that the essence of His person is ‘spirit’, or, not ‘matter’ or material. Remember, before the material world ever came into existence, God existed, and existed from all eternity, in ‘spirit’ form, or apart from a material form. But after God chose to create a material universe and a material world…a physical world, God began doing things He had never done before. And when God does things He has never done before we really need to pay attention. Like what?

God, who is spirit in essence, began appearing to those He created. Remember this? Gen 3:8- “They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.” NASU Now, apart from our first parents now hiding from God because of their sense of guilt over their sin, this first part of the verse pictures one of the most beautiful scenes of Adam and Eve’s experiences with God before the curse of sin. This statement reveals a re-occurring or daily practice where, although in the presence of God at all times, still, at the end of each day, they would hear God walking in the Garden to meet with them in some special and fantastic way. Even the description of ‘walking’ implies that the immaterial and spirit based Person of God would appear to them in some visible or even material form. And in this ‘form’, God would either walk together with them in the garden or they would sit together and have their special evening fellowship.

Can you picture that for a moment? Have you ever pictured that, along with all of the things that this implies about God, as to how much God enjoys, or could we say, looks forward to special times with us when we have our ‘garden visits’ with God? It’s as though these were the first ‘quiet times’ or ‘devotional times’ in Scripture, where Adam and Eve would take some time out from all of the other wondrous things going on in this new world of theirs and just spend some time with God, walking and talking in the garden.

Perhaps this scene was intended to shape the way we think about our own quiet times or devotional times that we have with God, whether that be in the morning or at night or even in the cool of the day. Do you ever hear now, by faith, the sound of God walking in your garden or your yard or your house or wherever you have your devotions, realizing that God is coming in a special way just to spend some time with you?

Some might think, “But that was with Adam and Eve that God did that?” Well, think again: Who is Adam? Who is Eve? Guys…Adam is you. Ladies…Eve is you. What God did in fellowship with Adam and Eve He intended to do with you…or we should say, “He intends to do with you.” Really, sometimes I think children understand this better than a lot of adults do, since adult’s world gets so full of things that tends to then crowd God out. But once you come to understand that God looks forward to walking in the garden with you and spending a little personal time with you each day, it will change your whole image about ‘personal devotions’ or ‘quiet times’, as well as your image of our amazing God.

What’s also implied here is that this is the first of many times throughout Scripture where God would take on a physical form to appear to people. It was the first example of what is called a ‘theophany’. The word ‘theophany’ simply means ‘the appearance of God’. Other cultures and belief systems have claimed their own versions of ‘theophanies’, like the Greek mythological gods and such. Therefore, the Biblical ‘theophany’ has also been described as a ‘Christophany’ in order to specify that the only God that exists is the Biblical God, who has appeared to man throughout history in human forms, the last of course, in the Person of Jesus Christ. R.C. Sproul was once asked about how he could talk about Jesus Christ being the only way to be saved with all the other gods and religions in the world. And he said, “You mean apart from the fact that there are no other gods?”

(Again, how much of this you want to explain to a child when he or she asks you what God looks like is up to you. We’re using their questions as ‘springboards’ to explore some theology…or to ‘expound on theology together’.)

But the fantastic reality in this is that the metaphysical God began appearing to His newly created beings in physical forms. In one of the most remarkable conversations that Jesus had with the Pharisees He said something to them that rocked their world. It should have caused them to review the Scriptures, but they were too stubborn for that. But here’s what Jesus said: John 8:56-57- “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” So the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” NASU So this really dumbfounded them. But this revelation by Jesus referred not only to the fact that Abraham had seen the coming of the Messiah, the coming of Christ by faith, but that Abraham had actually seen Christ by sight! Remember the visit? Gen 18:1-2- “Now the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day. When he lifted up his eyes and looked, behold, three men were standing opposite him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth…” NASU

This was another early appearance of God, or a theophany. Jesus Christ took on a pre-incarnate form of a man, and along with two Angels, He met with Abraham and told Abraham about things that were to come. But again, Jesus tells the Pharisees that He and Abraham had already had a visit together. He may not have yet been fifty years old in His ‘incarnation’, or in the body that Christ had taken on in the Person of ‘Jesus’, but in reality, He had been around a lot longer than they imagined. In fact, Jesus put it this way: John 8:58- “Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I Am.” NASU Now Jesus really rocks their world, because not only does He tell them that Abraham had already seen Him in a physical form, but He also tells them who He really is! And where had they heard that identity of God before? Ex 3:13-14- “Then Moses said to God, “Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ Now they may say to me, ‘What is His name?’ What shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.'” NASU Jesus reveals to them not only had He visited with Abraham in a Pre-incarnate form, but He is also the One who met with Moses in the burning bush and revealed who He was, the eternal God; ‘I Am’! This is the eternal name for God, and that is who Jesus was and is; ‘The Great I Am’!

Some other physical appearances of God in the Old Testament were also really astounding, like as we mentioned, in the burning bush. But then there was the pillar of cloud and pillar of fire, through which the presence of God led the Israelites through the Wilderness. The lighting and thunder on Mt. Sinai was a powerful manifestation of God.

And how about this: Isa 6:1-5- “In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.” And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke. Then I said,“Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.” NASU What did God look like to the prophet Isaiah? Well, God’s physical form is not revealed here, but just Isaiah’s description helps us envision the Lord as our King of unimaginable glory!

Again, part of our point is that God was doing things that He had never done before, all because of His desire to be in closer and closer relationship with the people of His own making. And to do this He, God who is Spirit, began appearing in physical forms to His people, His family. Which ultimately led to this: John 1:1- “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” 14- “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” NASU This, of course, is the great Incarnation of God: God in Christ also became man in Jesus, and made a way for us to reunite with Him though His substitutionary life and death for us. And then as the Angels later revealed to the Disciples, this same Jesus will come back for us, or we shall go to Him. But Jesus Christ will forever be God and Man, our Resurrected Lord. They would physically see Him again, and so will we.

And as for us, or as for us spiritual and physical beings; to see God is one of the deepest desires of the human soul. It’s often overlooked, but one of the greatest comforts to Job in his hours of suffering was this: Job 19:26-27- “And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see Him with my own eyes — I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” NIV Knowing that he was soon to see God, and in his own resurrected body no less, was not only the deepest desire of Job’s heart, but was also his greatest strength to deal with his terrible struggles. The Psalmist pointed out that this was also a key to his strength to dealing with the hardships of this life, as it would be for us as well. Ps 105:4- “Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face continually. NASU Joni Eareckson Tada, who has endured the loss of the use of her arms and legs for many years, said she had so many questions for God. But then she said that she realizes that once she sees His face, she thinks her questions will just melt away.

To see God is not only one of the deepest desires of the human soul, it is also one of the greatest motivations for living; knowing that we are going to, and perhaps one day soon, look upon the very face of God, well…it gives us genuine power for living. And not only will we see that wondrous glory of God’s Spirit, we will also see the wonder of God’s actual face, the physical face of God, His resurrected face; because it’s the face of Jesus Christ, our Risen Savior and King!

So part of the answer to what does God look like is that God looks exactly like Jesus Christ, because Jesus Christ is the physical and visible manifestation of the spiritual and invisible God. Those who lived when Jesus walked the Earth already saw what God looks like. And we are about to find out, because soon and very soon, what….we are going to see the King!

Unusual Assurances

Study Guide, August 12, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

We are looking forward to having a Pre-School again here at the Chapel. We had one years ago. It’s a great way to bless families and invest in children and those in our community. But it’s also a blessing for those who serve and fellowship with the kids, because something that astute adults understand, is that you can learn a lot from kids, if you pay close enough attention. Kids tend to see the world around them just like it is, and they think about the world just like it is, and they wonder about the world that is, as to – ‘why it is the way it is’? In fact, they ask a lot of the questions that many adults used to ask, but maybe never got answered. And so they just stopped asking, or forgot about them all together.

The thing is, oftentimes if you track down the answers to these beginning questions about life and our world around us it can save a lot of confusion and misunderstandings about things later; like questions that adults still have about why the world is the way it is. If you pay attention to the early questions about our world, it then provides you with later answers about life and our world, and especially about the world to come. And then you can also help other adults remember those questions they once had, but now provide them with some Biblical answers. Plus, you’ll be ready to help kids too, because you know, they have questions! So, with the help of some really good questions from children let’s explore our world together.

All right, talk about a practical question, here’s one from a child: “Why did God make mosquitoes?” Good question. Actually, this is a question that a lot of adults are still asking. So what’s up with bugs that bite and sting and harm humans, and animals as well?

Now, I’ll be giving the ‘long answers’ to these things, since it is a study we’re doing. But when a child asks something like this, you can give them the short answer, unless you have a lot of time. But one of the important concepts to always keep in mind for not only helping children better understand our world, but for adults to better understand it as well, is to remember this: The way our world is today is not the way it always was, nor the way it’s going to be. This point is paramount in understanding most everything. The only way to understand our world today is to understand how it was when it was originally created, and to also understand how it’s going to be when it is re-created. In the meantime, it’s critically important to understand that this version of Earth and life on Earth is the broken one; it’s the damaged version. We live in a broken and damaged world. And we will live out our lives in this damaged version until the Creator restores it and remakes it like the original version…with even more features added, of course.

Remember, God’s original creation was all good…there was nothing damaged, nothing threatening, nothing harmful; nothing buggy. On days 5 and 6 we have the creation of the creatures of Earth:

Gen 1:20-25- “Then God said, “Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens. God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good. God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day. Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good.” NASU

It’s interesting that in the Hebrew that ‘winged bird’ is ‘flying creature’. So that could include quite a variety of winged creatures. Plus, the description of ‘creeping things’ can include a wide variety of ground insects as well. But the point again is that with every buggy creature that bugs man and beast today, it’s important to remember that it wasn’t always this way! So the real question is not; ‘Why did God create mosquitoes?’, but ‘Why do these mosquitoes that God created now bite us?’ Again, something went wrong! Since everything that God created was good, everything in creation existed in complete harmony, and was mutually beneficial to one another, and all creatures were completely safe and perfectly healthy at all times and in all ways. So in the original Earth there was no biting, no bugging, no harming of anything or anyone. Therefore, what we know is that even mosquitoes had good attitudes before something went wrong in this world.

Can you imagine a world in which mosquitoes are as friendly to you as your family dog? Amazing! Now, not even your dog can imagine a world where mosquitoes are friendly, along with ticks, and bees, and any of the other creatures that now bite and bother us all. But that’s how far we’ve fallen. That’s how far our world has fallen from what it originally was. That’s why we call the entrance of sin into this world: The Fall…the Fall of Man into Sin. Gen 2:15-17- “Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” NASU Of course, that sets another question into motion: “What is death?” We’ll come back to that one in our study series on all of this…

What is important to know is that when our first parents disobeyed God, this new presence of sin, this ‘death agent’ in creation, set into motion such damaging affects that all creation was now infected with everything that goes with death and sin; even the subsequent biting and bugging and fighting and harming and so on… It’s called ‘the curse’. And even all the creatures of earth were and have been affected by it. Rom 8:19-22- “For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who His children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.” NLT

Perhaps if we could hear well enough, we could hear the animal kingdom ‘groaning’, anxiously waiting for the Creator to restore this world of death and decay to it’s original version of pristine life and pure health. Maybe what we call that annoying buzzing or whining sound of a mosquito is actually the sound of it ‘groaning’…like ‘mosquito groaning’. Remember, God didn’t create anything to bite us, but because of the poison and the infection of sin in the world, everything is now broken. Even the very physiological structures of the creatures of this world have been damaged and altered by the curse of the sin agent in the world.

Did you also notice three key words in that Romans passage about why the animal world now is the way that it is? “Against its will…” “Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse.” Remember, the rebellion against the commandment of the Creator was not from the animal kingdom, but from the human kingdom. But because sin is the poison of Creation, all things in creation were poisoned by the Fall of Man into sin. And, again, the result of this presence of sin in the world is that it has affected and infected everything. This sin-virus has permeated our world system and has damaged everything from the world of humans to the world of animals…even to the world of weather. Yes, even the Earth and it’s weather systems are wearing out like a garment…all due to the sin-virus; the curse. And so again, among the effects of the poison of sin are that ever since sin entered the world, the animal world has been filled with fighting and harming one another…even harming those who were to be their guardians…mankind.

So if we are really going to get to the crux of the issue as to ‘why mosquitoes bite’; mosquitoes bite because man’s sin poisoned them; it cursed them, along with all of the animal kingdom. Something inside of them is broken and causes them to bite and fight.

A point to remember is that the beginning point to nearly every question about what is wrong in our world is this: It’s not how it was in the beginning, nor is it the way it will be when the Creator fixes our broken world.

Actually, here is a passage of Scripture that you ought to share as often as possible with children…and I’m talking now about ‘children of all ages’…but especially young children, because it’s a picture of what the animal kingdom looked like originally and how it will one day be again when God fixes this broken world. Isa 11:6-9- “In that day the wolf and the lamb will live together; the leopard will lie down with the baby goat. The calf and the yearling will be safe with the lion, and a little child will lead them all. The cow will graze near the bear. The cub and the calf will lie down together. The lion will eat hay like a cow. The baby will play safely near the hole of a cobra. Yes, a little child will put its hand in a nest of deadly snakes without harm. Nothing will hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, for as the waters fill the sea, so the earth will be filled with people who know the Lord.” NLT

We know that the Bible reveals that there is coming a day when there will be complete harmony between all the creatures of Earth and with all the people of Earth. But do not forget this: There already was a time when this was the way it was on our planet Earth. This is the way it was in the original version of Earth. The way things are now are not the way things have always been. There was a time when Adam and Eve could have played with wolves and leopards and snakes.

Here’s another question kids ask, which you have probably heard: “Can God make a rock that even He can’t pick up?” Another good question. The short answer is Luke 1:37- “For nothing is impossible with God.” NLT And then another great passage is Jer 32:26-27- “Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for Me?”” NASU So ‘Nothing is impossible with God, and there is nothing too difficult for God.’ What great truths about God with which to assure children, who have so many cares and the worries and concerns; to assure them that nothing is impossible with God or too difficult for God. (Again, children of any age…)

But the longer answer is that it’s important to remember ‘who’ God is! God is the Creator, who is Himself infinite in power! Which means that nothing that is finite, like a rock or any created thing, could be a problem for One who is infinite in all things; infinite in strength and power and everything else. So no…and it’s interesting to put it like this…but, ‘No, God can’t make a rock that even He can’t pick up because God is the Maker. And God is more powerful than anything that can be made!’

In fact, there are other things that God can’t do. Did you know that? That’s actually a good question to ask kids, and anyone else for that matter: “Did you know that there are things that even God cannot do?” Now this line of thinking does take some explanations. But again, knowing that there are some things that God cannot do is certainly unusual; but at the same time, it is very assuring and reassuring.

Like what? I have mentioned before, and I mention it quite often really, that one of the things that gives me great assurance of my salvation is not in something that God can do, but in something that God cannot do; and that is: God cannot lie. God cannot lie! God is perfect in every way. God is perfect in truth. And therefore, whatever God says to you and to me is absolutely true. Like, when God says to you and to me…

John 5:24- “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”…

And then in John 6:37- “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.”…

And then in 1 John 5:12-13- “He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.”…

And once more in Rev 3:20- “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.” NASU…when God makes these promises to you and to me, it’s settled! We can rest our eternal salvation upon these promises from God, because God cannot lie. All of the promises that God has made to us will come to pass. They are more sure than anything that exists in the universe; more sure than any law of the universe. When God says it; that settles it!

That’s why it is so important to learn and to then have a working knowledge of the different promises that God has made to us. Then when the problems of this world arise, we can place a promise from God over the particular problem and then deal with it according to God’s promise and not just according to our problem.

One problem that we do have each week is that we run out of time…but the promise is that ‘there is a time for everything’…So next time, we’ll look into some more questions that kids have about God and even some more things that God cannot do…self imposed things, that is.

Sunday Message “Hidden in Plain Sight” from pastor Robert Kornegay: 

hiddensermon

It Starts With Our Creator’s Rights

Study Guide July 29, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

Perhaps some of the most well known words to many people are contained in this statement: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.’ Truly, they are some of the most profound and encouraging words ever penned by men. And at the time that they were stated most people also understood what was not stated, but was clearly implied. And what was implied is what we are going to explore in our study today.

We could also put it this way: Without an understanding of our complete dependence upon our Creator we can never understand our limited independence as the created ones. And we can take that even further. Let’s restate this ‘Declaration’ and we’ll get a clearer picture of the real issue: ‘We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created by the Creator who is Himself endowed with certain unalienable rights, that among these are the right to reign in each person’s life, the right to define the liberties and the boundaries of each person’s life, and the right to determine the purposes by which each created life will live, in which the pursuit of these will result in eternal life, true liberty, and genuine happiness.’

This ‘declaration’ starts with the Creator’s rights, which is right where any discussion of ‘rights’ needs to start. For unless you start with our Creator’s rights, it is impossible to determine or define any of the rights of those who have been created. The rights of the created are always conditional upon the rights of the Creator and constrained by the rights of the Creator! Now that seems as clear and as obvious as can be. However, and ironically enough, very little thought or consideration among most the created people of this world ever starts with the consideration of the Creator’s rights over them and His created world. But mark it down: Unless you start with the Creator’s rights, people will default to their own imagined rights, which are often so very wrong!

When is the last time you heard an open discussion about ‘rights’ either in the media or university settings, where they were giving equal time to the Creator’s rights over all of us who have been created? Right, not only does our Creator not get equal time in our society’s discussion about ‘rights’ – our Creator rarely gets any time or any consideration at all as to His unalienable rights. And so, as a result of that, what many people the world over perceive as actual ‘right’s are actually complete ‘wrongs’! In fact, without living in complete dependence upon your Creator and in complete deference to your Creator’s rights, not only are you apt to insist on doing ‘wrong’ and calling it ‘right’, but you will even believe you are choosing to be independent, when what you are really choosing is just more continued ‘slavery’!

One clear example of that is what the Apostle Paul revealed about the actual condition of any who have not turned their life over to God in repentance and received Christ into their life by faith as their Savior. Note this: 2 Tim 2:24-26- “The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.” NASU

How about that for a reality check? Every day and all day long unsaved people can make a declaration of their personal independence as masters over their own lives, along with their right to choose however they wish to live. But the fact remains that they are actually living each day as a captive of the devil. The Scriptures reveal that they are even enslaved by him. Plus, along with imagining that they are their own masters, choosing to do their own will, they are in fact, simply choosing those things which are already the devil’s will for their life. That is how utterly deceived each person is who has not, as the Apostle Paul put it, ‘come to their senses and repented toward God and then escaped the snare of the devil.’

Again, true independence is living in complete dependence upon your Creator and living with complete deference to your Creator. And any perceived personal rights are only right if they honor our Creator’s rights over us all. As was stated in our restated ‘Declaration of Dependence upon God’, our Creator has the unalienable right to reign over us, or to rule over us. Which again, we can reinforce that statement by turning it around, as in: No created being has the right to rule over their own life, since their Creator alone owns their life.

Deceived people often make statements about owning their own life or their owning their own body. But that is a complete falsehood since no one owns their life or their body. You would have to be your own ‘creator’ in order to ‘own’ your life. All created beings are owned by the Creator. At the most, we are ‘stewards’ of the life and the body that is owned by the Creator of all life and the Master over all life.

This is a verse that we say a lot and use a lot, and it should be one of our ‘go to’ memory verses since it clarifies this truth of God’s sole ownership so very well. Ps 24:1- “The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it.” NASU God alone, as sole Owner of all life, has the right to rule over each of our lives. That is where any discussion about ‘rights’ needs to start. ‘Rights’ are not something that are first ‘declared’, as in, if enough people ‘declare’ them and then demand them that they will then somehow become theirs. No, ‘rights’ are not things that are declared; ‘rights’ are things that are imparted from Someone who has the right to impart these ‘rights’ to others. And, of course, that ‘Someone’ is the only One who created the earth and owns the earth and all it contains and all who dwell in it. God alone has the right to reign and rule over my life, and your life, and every created life on planet Earth. Or once again, turn it around: No one has the right to rule over their life, except for the One who created their life and owns their life; and that One Person is: God!

Next, our Creator also has the unalienable right to define the liberties and the boundaries for each created person’s life. And the remarkable thing is, both are given by God, not to burden us, but to bless us. Remember who mankind’s God really is and what He is really like? As Moses asked to better understand this newly found God of his, God introduced Himself this way: Ex 34:5-7- “Then the Lord came down in a cloud and stood there with him; and He called out His own name, Yahweh. The Lord passed in front of Moses, calling out,“Yahweh! The Lord! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin. But I do not excuse the guilty.” NLT

What do you think Moses learned about our Creator from this introduction by God about Himself? He learned that with God there is such great compassion and such great forgiveness and such great faithfulness, along with such great liberties. And yet, he also learned that with God there are such great responsibilities, and that if these responsibilities are disregarded or if pushed beyond the boundaries as set by God, then God will not excuse the guilty, as in; they will be judged for mocking God’s authority.

As we pointed out last time, ‘God is not mocked. What a man sows, so shall he reap.’ Or, as Moses also learned, what a man chooses he will receive. God put it like this: Deut 30:19-20- “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying Him, and committing yourself firmly to Him. This is the key to your life.” NLT

Wouldn’t it be great for people to know what the key to life is and to living it well? Well, God has told us. He has given us the key to what life is about and how to live it well: “Love the Lord your God, obey Him, and commit yourself firmly to Him!” It’s a choice. And what is the choice again? Our Creator says to us: ‘I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make.’

Now back to the issue of ‘rights’ a moment. So many people, especially in our country, are obsessed with the issue of ‘rights’. But way before the issue of ‘rights’ is this issue of ‘choices’. Now remember, ‘rights’ start with God. What comes next for us is ‘choices’; choices we make about God’s rights; choices we make about God’s right to rule over our lives, choices we make about the liberties God has given us and the boundaries He has set before us; and choices we make about living according to the purposes for which He has made us, of which good choices result in life, liberty, and happiness.

Let’s put it another way: No one has the right to not love the Lord. No one has the right to disobey His commandments. No one has the right to disregard His authority and His purposes for which He created them. No, no one has the right to deny God His right to reign over their life. What they do have…is a choice. What every person on Earth has is an unalienable right to choose the blessing or the curse. And whatever choice or choices they make then becomes a constant source of blessings upon them or a constant source of curses upon them.

Again, how ironic that what so many people call their rights are simply curses that they have chosen to be theirs, and theirs for eternity, unless they come to repentance. But why would anyone choose a curse anyway? The answer is; they choose the curse because not only does the sinful heart of people love darkness rather than light, but the sinful heart of man is also deceived above all else. Here’s another ‘go to’ memory verse we should have down: Jer 17:9- “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” NIV That’s why you don’t trust your heart…you trust God’s Word, which is God’s heart! When you have a deceitful heart in the hand of the Deceiver, the devil, then you can become so deceived that you can no longer tell the difference between a blessing and a curse. In fact, you begin to look at evil and call it good and you look at good and you call it evil. When people come to the place where they choose curses over blessings that is a clear indication that are being held captive by the devil to do his will. When beliefs and deeds, that the Bible define as clear ‘wrongs’, are then pronounced by people as personal rights, that is a clear sign that they are completely deceived and are being held captive by the devil to do his will, which is; to steal, kill, and destroy their life and keep them from choosing God’s will.

When people completely ignore the Creator’s rights over their life then that is a clear sign that they are no longer living by the unalienable rights given to them by their Creator, rather they are living by the choices that are being driven by their sin nature and the influence of the devil to do his will; while they are continuing to be held captive by him. They are choosing ‘the curse’, and yet calling it ‘their rights’. But Friends, the curse is always the wrong choice. And a ‘wrong’ can never be a ‘right’, no matter how many times you say it or how much people want it to be.

Plus, God created us for so much more. He created each of us for godly purposes to live godly lives and to live out God’s plan for our lives. Listen to His plan: Eph 2:10- “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.” NLT Of all of the created wonders the universe, the people of Earth are the masterpieces of God’s creation. Next time you feel a little low, think about that fact, that you are a masterpiece of God’s creation, and that ought to pick you up a little bit. But along with God creating each person as a masterpiece, He also created the purposes for each created person to live by and work out and enjoy.

And once again, God has the right as our Creator to determine the purposes by which each created life will live. And His purposes are basically summarized as – God’s will. And because our Creator is also the God of compassion and lovingkindness, when we align our lives with God’s purposes for our lives we also discover that this is the pursuit that truly does result in eternal life, true liberty, and genuine happiness. We find that obedience to the will of God is the key to the happiness that our souls crave.

Remember what Jesus said to the one who remarked how happy must be the woman who bore Him; the Messiah? Luke 11:28- “But Jesus answered, “Rather, how happy are those who hear the word of God and obey it!”” TEV Here Jesus reveals the key to genuine happiness: Learning God’s Word and obeying it! There’s the blessing again…choosing the blessing day by day. Remember? ‘There’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.’

The best thing anyone can do for themselves is to learn God’s Word and obey it. That is the key to human happiness. And, of course, God, as our Creator, has the right to command His creatures to obey. Which again, turn that around and catch the full weight of it: This means that no one on earth has the right to disobey God’s Word or to disregard God’s purposes by which He intended them to live their lives.

It all comes back to our Creator’s rights. It all comes down to our Creator’s rights. And as God has told us, everyone’s life will conclude with what they did about their Creator’s rights over their lives. Did they choose the blessing or the curse?

Basically, each person has only one right: the right to choose God to be their Lord and Savior. Any other decision is simply an ‘eternal wrong!’

Motivated by Mercy

Study Guide, July 22, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

There is a song in our hymnbooks that starts out: ‘There is a wideness in God’s mercy like the wideness of the sea…’ And right away we have an amazing image of the width and breadth of God’s mercy. Our Atlantic Ocean has a width of about 4,000 miles at it’s widest point. The Pacific Ocean has a width of about 12,000 miles at its widest point. That’s about half of the Earth’s circumference, which is about 24,000 miles.

But back to the statement in the hymn: ‘There is a wideness in God’s mercy like the wideness…’ well…like 12,000 miles wide! Or basically, wider or more than we could ever need or even hope for! There is mercy more than sufficient for our needs and our well being.

As we talked about last time, the Psalmist was so overwhelmed by the mercy of God that he talked about it over and over throughout the Psalms. Remember we pointed out that he devoted an entire song or Psalm to the celebration of God’s mercy that endures forever. It is Psalm 136 where David bursts into praising God for who He is, and then for what He is able to do, and for what God has done in creation, and in redeeming His people. He praises God for His loving providential ways toward them and for His grace in times of calamity, and then praises Him for being the God of Heaven who loves His people on Earth…and all because, remember?… ‘Because His mercy endures forever!’

That’s kind of like a semester load of theological study right there. We could safely say that the Psalmist was a scholar on the subject of God’s mercy. In fact, he not only knew that God’s mercy endures forever, he even knew that God’s mercy followed him! And it would continue to follow him forever! Remember that? Ps 23:6- “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” NKJV

But wherever King David was or wherever he went, he knew that he was being followed. And what it was that was following him were two things: God’s goodness and God’s mercy…goodness and mercy – always there, always sufficient, always ready to wash over his needs whatever he was…with goodness and mercy. So, wherever you are and wherever you go, stop a little more often, and take a little longer look behind you until you see something following you; something of what David saw following him…God’s goodness and God’s mercy, like the wideness of the sea, ready to wash over you and fill you with God’s all sufficiency.

Interestingly enough, David also knew that the only thing that put a distance between how close God’s goodness and mercy could follow him was the presence of sin in his life…and one sin in particular; notice: Ps 138:6- “Though the Lord is great, He cares for the humble, but He keeps His distance from the proud.” NLT David knew what he was talking about. There had been times in his life when his pride had risen up and caused him to dishonor God and treat others badly. But his pride had also caused something else; it caused God’s goodness and mercy to pull back; to put just enough distance so that God’s discipline of justice could step in and deal with David’s pride…for God keeps His distance from the proud, even with His children.

David knew about that, too. He even wrote about his experience of that: Ps 51:1-3- “Have mercy on me, O God, because of Your unfailing love. Because of Your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins. Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin. For I recognize my rebellion; it haunts me day and night.” 7-8- “Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Oh, give me back my joy again; You have broken me—now let me rejoice.” NLT

David knew about that distance and about the discipline that comes in times of unconfessed sin. It not only creates a distance in your fellowship with God, but it also creates a loss of joy in your spirit. Again, we decide by our pride how far back God’s goodness and mercy will follow us, and will keep us from His fellowship. Plus, we then lose out on that joy of the Lord, which is our strength.

But David also knew how to close that gap. And it wasn’t by covering up his sin by doing more for God or even sacrificing more…no, that gap is only closed one particular way. Thankfully, David also told us what that is: Ps 51:16-17- “For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; You are not pleased with burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.” NASU

If you want God’s goodness and mercy to follow you closely, you have to carry something with you wherever you go; a broken and contrite heart. No, not a broken down spirit or a condemning heart; not a broken will or a heart riddled with guilt or a mind filled with self pity. Actually, all of those are still elements of self pride anyway..since they are still focused on self. But broken in a sense of self surrender of your own will to God’s will, and contrite in the sense of having a humble mind and attitude before God and others and especially about yourself. A surrendered will and a humble heart are among the most precious and valuable gifts that you can daily give to God…gifts that are pleasing to God and are just what God wants from His children.

Plus, when we offer our contrition, our surrendered will and humbled heart to God, it’s like wading into that Sea of Mercy; it just gets deeper and wider the further we go. Those of us who are privileged to live by the Ocean or to vacation at the Ocean know what it’s like to wade into the waves and feel the waves of the sea wash over you again and again. It’s exhilarating and calming at the same time. That’s how the waves of God’s mercy are meant to be for us; both exhilarating and calming. As we come to God in contrition and seek to walk before God and others in humility, God causes the waves of His mercy to wash over us; with both exhilarating and calming effects on our minds and in our hearts.

Sometimes people have come to the beach because their Doctor has prescribed that as part of their therapy. They come for cleansing of their minds and spirits as they experience the waves of the sea and and then dwell on the Ocean’s majesty. David wrote: “Greater than the roar of many waters—the mighty breakers of the sea—the Lord on high is majestic. Lord, Your testimonies are completely reliable; holiness is the beauty of Your house for all the days to come.” Ps 93:4-5 Holman Bible

Some of us need to feel the waves again…the waves of God’s mercy washing over us, and dwell again on God’s majesty and His holiness and just how easy He really is to please. Of course He wants our service, and of course He treasures our sacrifices…but what He wants most of all is for our service and our sacrifices to flow out of a spirit of worship from a surrendered will and a humbled heart. That’s what closes the gap of fellowship, and then His goodness and His mercy can then move up closer in following us, and even flowing over us, like those waves of the sea. Again, as the Psalmist pointed out, those waves of mercy are both exhilarating and calming at the same time. Your joy is restored and your motivation is renewed as well.

In a wonderfully insightful and inspiring book called God Is My Delight, another shepherd, named Phillip Keller, was writing about God’s mercy toward him. And he said that in understanding God’s mercy better and then experiencing it more, it then motivated him to live more for God’s glory and God’s pleasure. He wrote: “Oh what good cheer! What new hope. What amazing incentive to go out and live for His honor. In His loyalty He does not condemn me. He corrects me and loves me. Well did David cry out with soul-stirring conviction – ‘God has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.’ For if He did, I would perished long ago in my pride and perverseness. It is Christ who, amid my peril, picks me up, restores my soul, cleanses my conscience, extends forgiveness. In this amazing action He assures me He is the friend of sinners. He is my friend. And therein lies my peace, my faith, my very life.” ¹

There is this marvelous result of mercy – mercy is motivating. God’s mercy changed Phillip Keller’s life like it had with King David. Jesus even gave us a principle about that when He once met with a proud Pharisee and a humble woman who had come to Him for forgiveness. Jesus revealed: ‘He who is forgiven much will love much, but he who is forgiven little will love little.’ Interestingly enough, Jesus was not talking about the amount of sins that needed to be forgiven, but rather how much people understood about how much forgiveness they needed because of their sins. The proud Pharisee didn’t think he needed very much forgiveness at all, since he didn’t think he was very much of a sinner. As a result he wasn’t very motivated to love God or show mercy to anyone else. But the woman understood the depth of her need of forgiveness for her sins. And upon receiving such forgiveness and mercy, she was motivated to love God even more and to show mercy even more.

The more we understand how much we have been forgiven by our merciful God the more motivated we will become to serve our God out of love and to show mercy to others through love. Actually, that balance is summed up in another passage where the Psalmist revealed the key to experiencing God’s pleasure in our walk with Him. The verse is Ps 147:11- “The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, In those who hope in His mercy.” NKJV Here God reveals the perfect balance we are to keep in order to please our God in our walk with Him and to then experience His pleasure in our walk for Him. ‘A holy fear and reverence for God, coupled with a confident hope and deep trust in His mercy for us.’ They not only go together, but they cannot be taken apart. In the same heart, at the same time, there must be both, a reverence of God’s authority and a trust in His mercy; both an understanding of His justice and a confidence in His mercy. And not that we are to hang between the two, but that we must live and order our lives under the influence of the two.

Think about it: Our fear of God will keep our trust from swelling up into presumption, and our trust in God’s mercy will keep us from sinking into despair. When King David neglected fearing God’s authority over his life, he then presumed upon God by spurning God and His mercy. But remember, God’s mercy and justice always travel together…whichever one steps up is something that we decide, by either our pride or our humility. We cannot presume upon God’s mercy without the consequences of God’s justice; like David found out: “Your hand of discipline was heavy upon me day and night”. When mercy is spurned, justice steps up. But neither are we to distrust God’s desire to show mercy. Remember what the Prophet Micah found out? Mic 7:18-19- “Who is a God like You, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever, but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; You will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.” NIV

That’s another reason I like looking out at the Ocean…I see where my sins are buried…way out there in the depths of the sea. But God delights in showing mercy. But again, not to those who are proud, not to those who presume upon Him by not confessing nor forsaking their sin, but for those who fear Him; who humbly seek to honor Him and who trust in His mercy. In fact, as the Psalmist told us, God takes pleasure in those who both fear Him and trust in His mercy.

What we learn from the Psalmist is that we do not need to live any day under the clouds of guilt or doubt. For that steals our joy and makes life mundane. The source of real joy is God’s mercy – and He is ready and willing to give it. The Father’s storehouse is full of mercy, but we must not take His goodness for granted in our self-pride and self-will. ‘Do not be deceived. God is not mocked. Whatever a man sows, so shall he reap.’ But when we come to God with a humble and contrite heart, and we empty ourselves in daily confession and have a desire to do His will, then God will fill us with the wideness of His mercy. God loves to be wholly respected and fully trusted. God takes pleasure in that. And remember; whatever pleases God will then become our pleasure, as well as our joy, and a great motivation for serving our Merciful God.

1. W. Phillip Keller, God Is My Delight, p. 107

Mercy Index

Study Guide, July 15, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

With all of the turmoil and strife, conflict and misery that we have to deal with in our world, we thought we would all benefit from a healthy dose of ‘mercy’ in our study today. How does that sound to you? But since we mentioned ‘misery’, there is an term that is used in economics that they refer to as the ‘misery index’. Kind of odd terminology, but the misery index was created by an economist named Arthur Okun, a professor at Yale. It was based upon the sum of the nation’s annual inflation rate and unemployment rate to serve as a snapshot of the economy’s health. Later it was modified to include the sum of unemployment, inflation, bank lending rates, and subtracting the gross domestic product per capita. So the lower the number the less misery, and the higher the number the higher the misery. You say, okay…and where are you going with this? Well, oddly enough, this is how they then rate countries around the world on those lists you may have seen of most miserable or the happiest countries, based on this ‘misery index’.

As in, so this is what determines happiness? Have so many forgotten about King Solomon’s experiment already? King Solomon had the lowest ranking ever according to this misery index and so he should have been the happiest, but do you remember his conclusion? Eccl 1:2- “Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher, “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” NASU His misery index may have been low, but his misery experience was off the charts! By the way, economists have estimated that King Solomon’s wealth in today’s dollars would figure to be around 2.2 trillion dollars! That’s right, not ‘billion’, but ‘trillion’. And a trillion is one thousand billions. So in reality, you can have 2.2 trillion dollars and still be high on the ‘misery index’. Just ask King Solomon.

Fortunately there is another index that really does accurately measure ‘happiness’…we can call it the ‘Mercy Index’. And this ‘Mercy Index’ is also an expanded index and based upon indicators like: the employment of God’s love, the inflation of grace, God’s bank lending of His righteousness, and the subtraction of judgment. And the possession of the sum of those indicators and then the level of our experience of them determines the height of where we are on this ‘Mercy Index’ and it’s accompanying happiness.

What do you think? Maybe we should send in this list of Biblical indicators to the researchers so that they can rework their misery and happiness tables for the countries and people of the world.

There is another list of indicators pointing out just how amazing God’s mercy really is in relation to our well being. Recall that King David wrote an entire song about it. We know it as Psalm 136. David was so overwhelmed about the immeasurable mercy of God that even though he wrote about it constantly throughout the Psalms, it’s like he just had to compose one song or Psalm that would be entirely dedicated to pointing out the infinite wonder of God’s mercy.

How about this…we’re not going to read the whole Psalm this way, but just to catch the weight of this, let’s read the first nine verses together. I’ll read the first part of the verse and then everyone can read the last part of each verse that says each time: “For His mercy endures forever.” And don’t think about that you’re just repeating it, but think about the height and depth of this revelation about God’s mercy…and then we’ll talk some more about it. So here we go:

Ps 136:1-9

“Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!

For His mercy endures forever.

² Oh, give thanks to the God of gods!

For His mercy endures forever.

³ Oh, give thanks to the Lord of lords!

For His mercy endures forever:

⁴ To Him who alone does great wonders,

For His mercy endures forever;

⁵ To Him who by wisdom made the heavens,

For His mercy endures forever;

⁶ To Him who laid out the earth above the waters,

For His mercy endures forever;

⁷ To Him who made great lights,

For His mercy endures forever —

⁸ The sun to rule by day,

For His mercy endures forever;

⁹ The moon and stars to rule by night,

For His mercy endures forever.” NKJV

In every verse of its 26 verses God is declaring to us this amazing reality of His mercy and of the truth that it endures forever…that it will be central in our lives and in our world forever. And as we have often pointed out: When God says something once it is instantly all important to pay attention to it. But whenever God says something over and over it means that it is absolutely essential to listen to it, to learn all you can about it, and to live according to it everyday! In fact, this particular song that David wrote was one that the people were intended to sing every day…like as part of their devotions. Amazing, right? And really, what is the only antidote to our human nature of forgetting and taking for granted those things which are the most important to remember and to thank God for day by day? Yes, the antidote to forgetting crucial truths day after day is to remind ourselves of them day by day.

You remember that chorus that was popular when many of us were a lot younger….Day by Day? Remember the words? “Day by Day, Oh Dear Lord three things I pray: To see Thee more clearly, Love Thee more dearly, Follow Thee more nearly, Day by Day.” That’s a pretty good devotional focus, as well as a reminder of the essential things in life. Well, that’s part of our point; the fact that ‘God’s mercy endures forever’, and that we are to daily focus on that fact, are both essential for the sake of our well being and for our living well for God’s sake.

And certainly one of the essential things about God’s mercy is for us to better understand it and to then live in light of that understanding. First, remember that God’s mercy is the foundation of mankind’s salvation. God in His mercy does not give us what we do deserve, judgment; and in His grace, He gives us what we do not deserve, justification or He counts us righteous, all for the sake of Jesus Christ. So, Mercy is God’s unmerited response to our basic human need. Paul put it this way in Titus 3:4-7- “…When God our Savior revealed His kindness and love, He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of His grace He declared us righteous and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life.” NLT

We could just stop right here and meditate on our great salvation as explained by the Apostle…Why does God save us…because we deserve it? No, in Romans 6:23 Paul explained to us that the wages that we do deserve amount to eternal separation from God because of our sins. Our only hope of being saved is not in our merits, but in God’s mercy. Salvation is not based upon a merit system, but upon a ‘mercy system’. But although we are saved by the mercies of God, it is not automatic.

That’s one of the strange things about how people think concerning religious things. A high percentage of Americans still believe in Heaven, along with a corresponding high percentage that think they are going to Heaven. And that would be wonderful, if that same percentage actually represented spiritually born again people who have given their lives to Christ in repentance and received Him into their life as their Lord and Savior. But that is not something that very many people have done. The problem is that this high percentage have not repented toward God and trusted in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior in order to be born again. They are just assuming that the merits of their life will save them, as though since they assume they are a pretty good person, naturally they will go to Heaven. Therefore, an extremely low percentage of Americans think they are in the condition of perishing and going to Hell. But until a person repents toward God and places their faith in Jesus Christ to save them, they are still perishing, and will perish for eternity. That’s what Jesus said to religious people who were counting on the merits of their life to make them right with God. He said, “I tell you, unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:5)

Remember, the ‘merit system’ of salvation – which every religion in the world naturally believes and is depending on for their salvation – cannot save anyone. Why? Because everyone is way past any chance of meriting or earning their salvation…they are already dead in their sins. That is one of the most foundational truths that everyone in the world needs to know. The Apostle Paul made it as clear as could be made. Eph 2:1-2- “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.” 4,5- “But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)” 8,9- “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” NASU

Think about what God has revealed here to the world. Every person on Earth is already dead…spiritually separated from God because of their sins, and cannot be reunited to God based upon their works. And yet, nearly every religion on Earth teaches people that they can achieve Heaven by their works. You may remember me telling of the temple districts in Bangkok, Thailand. In various places they have actual ‘Merit stations’, where people can gain extra merits to add to their hopes for their eternal existence. But again, people the world over believe they are going to Heaven based upon the merit system, when it is only based upon the mercy system: because of the mercy of God and by the grace of God through our faith in the merits of Jesus Christ alone. To insist that Heaven can be merited is a direct argument with God, a rejection of God’s Word, and a dishonoring of the Cross of Jesus Christ.

Basically the religions of the world are telling ‘spiritually dead people’ how to improve their lives…when what spiritually dead people need is LIFE itself. And spiritual life is only found in Jesus Christ. There is no spiritual life apart from being united to Jesus Christ. Spiritually dead people don’t have spiritual life until they are spiritually born again through receiving the Person and the life of Jesus Christ into their life. They are way past meriting Heaven. They are already dead in trespasses and sin. Their only hope of being delivered from the condemnation of Hell that they are already under is through repenting of the sins that killed their spirit and trusting in the mercy of Christ to be their personal Lord and Savior.

Now remember, we are to work for God out of our salvation, but no one can work for their salvation, because salvation is not a merit system, but a mercy system. And neither is it automatic, as so many tend to think of going to Heaven as being just sort of automatic. That is a dangerous way to think and live. Many presume on God’s mercy by treating it like one of those automatic doors at department or grocery stores; as you get near it, it just opens automatically. Many people think about Heaven and God’s mercy that way, like when they get close to the door of death that the door of Heaven will just automatically open for them.

Well, salvation is free, but we have to ask for it through calling out in repentance toward God and placing our faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior. The door of the Kingdom of Heaven is only opened to those who, as Jesus said, have have been spiritually born again. And their names are recorded in Heaven in the Book of Life. Or, as Peter said, their place in Heaven is reserved for them. You have to have a reservation to go to Heaven. Again, salvation is a free gift, but you have to call ahead. Rom 10:9-10- “If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. With the heart one believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses, resulting in salvation.” 13- “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Holman Bible

That would be an interesting way to witness, wouldn’t it?…to ask someone: “Have you made your reservation in Heaven yet? Yeah, you have to call ahead. ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’”

We have more wonders to talk about concerning the ‘mercies’ of God that endure forever. So we’ll go further on that next time. But one thing we each need to be sure about is that we are not depending on the merit system for our own salvation, but upon God’s mercy system. Be sure that you have called out to Jesus Christ, and in repentance and faith, that you have asked Jesus to forgive your sin and to unite His life with your spirit and cause you to be born again as His child forever. If you are not sure about that, we encourage you to call out to Him right away…even today.

The Cleansing Blood

A Devotional Communion Service

Study Guide, July 8, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen 

Choir: God So Loved the World

Praise: Oh, Lord You’re Beautiful

The Bread

A five year old once asked: “What does my blood do all day?” Good question. Well, imagine a flexible plastic tube winding southward from Canada to the jungles of South America, plunging into the oceans and surfacing at every inhabited island, shooting out eastward through Africa and joining all of Europe and Russia, as well as the Middle East…a pipeline so long that it links every one of the over 7 billion people worldwide. Now then; inside this tube is an endless treasure of provision; cereals, fruits, clothing, and all types of accessories. All 7 billion people have instant access to what they need by simply reaching into the tube.

Such a pipeline exists in each of our bodies, reaching not 7 billion, but around 40 trillion cells in every person’s body. That’s the latest count…give or take a few trillion. But each one of these trillions of cells has special withdrawal privileges from the fluid, called ‘blood’, for whatever it needs. Eight to ten pints of this all purpose fluid takes care of all 40 trillion cells. No wonder the Bible tells us that the life is in the blood!

In William Cowper’s hymn, the words are familiar to us: “There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel’s veins. And sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.” Well, this theological image makes for good biology as well. Dr. Paul Brand highlighted this wonderful cleansing power as he described the functioning of the human kidney. And several thoughts from this study are from his insightful book, Fearfully and Wonderfully Made. I highly recommend it…you’ll find it fascinating and practical at the same time.

I understand that some medical people judge the intricate workings of the kidney as second only to the brain in complexity. Here complex chemicals are filtered out as one fourth of the blood supply from each heartbeat rushes through the kidneys. Filtering is what the kidneys are all about, but in a very little space and time. Each new heartbeat pumps of quarter of the blood through kidney gates. The kidney manages speed by coiling the tubules into two million crystal loops, where all the cells are picked over one by one. It kind of reminds us of factory workers standing over a belt picking out every part that is not quite right.

Then the kidneys remove the red cells entire payload to remove some thirty chemicals. Then it places back 99% of the volume into the bloodstream. The 1% is rushed away to be eliminated. And then, one second later, the heart pounds and another quarter of the blood rushes in to fill the tubes, and the cleansing continues. Some Surgeons speak with a kind of reverence when they talk about the kidney. And some people who have lost theirs or use of their kidneys know just how blessed we are who still possess ours!

So all this focus on the process of cleansing leads back to the symbol. Blood sustains life by carrying away the chemical by-products that interfere with it. And this, right here, points out the perpetual problem of sin.

You know, too often we tend to view sin as a list of grievances that displease God. But even a casual reading of the Bible shows that sin is a blockage, a paralyzing poison that restricts reaching the life God designed for us. Remember, God’s laws were given for our sake, not just for His own. Sin needs to be continually filtered out of our lives just like the toxins are filtered out by our kidneys. Pride, egotism, lust, selfishness, envy, gossip…all poison our system and they must be purged out in order for us to be healthy and whole. The more we cling to our carnal desires and our unyielded self-will, the farther we withdraw from God and the more spiritually and morally sick we become.

In our Wednesday night studies we have been examining this Old Testament representation. God’s presence rested in the Most Holy place, approachable only once a year on the Day of Atonement by the high priest, who had purified himself through an elaborate system of blood sacrifices. But Jesus made that ceremony obsolete by His own, ‘once for all’ sacrifice. Matt 26:28- “…this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.” NASU And then, in the book of Hebrews, Christ’s complete once for all sacrifice is contrasted with the partial and continual rituals by the high priest. Heb 7:26-27- “For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.” NASU It’s amazing how Christ was both the High Priest and the sacrificial victim, offering up Himself on the altar of the cross.

The Old Covenant sacrificial system came to an end the day that Jesus offered up His own sinless blood on the altar of the cross and proclaimed “It is finished!” The final sacrifice for sin had just been offered. God even tore the veil of the temple from top to bottom to reveal to the world that everyone could now enter into His presence through this ‘once for all’ and ‘all sufficient sacrifice’ of the sinless blood of Jesus Christ, our Passover Lamb. And all who are now saved through receiving the Savior and trusting in the Savior’s sacrifice to remove their sin penalty can enter into direct communion with God. Heb 10:19-21- “Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God…” NASU And Paul also tells us in Eph 2:13- “But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” NASU

The life of the flesh is in the blood. Remember, we have been cleansed from the penalty of our sin through the sinless blood of Christ. Peter reminds us of that in 1 Peter 1:18-22- “For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom He paid was not mere gold or silver. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose Him as your ransom long before the world began, but He has now revealed Him to you in these last days. Through Christ you have come to trust in God. And you have placed your faith and hope in God because He raised Christ from the dead and gave Him great glory. You were cleansed from your sins when you obeyed the truth…” NLT

Let’s dwell on these wonders of God’s cleansing ways and thank Him for all the ways we are blessed through the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Cup

Now let’s enter the word ‘Repentance’ at this point. If we were to inject the concept of repentance into that process of the cleansing of the blood in the kidneys, it would depict each cell willingly cooperating with this cleansing necessity. Repentance would aptly describe the necessity of freeing the blood from the harmful effects of accumulating toxins. So think about it: repentance for salvation is the way of freeing the unsaved from the affects of accumulating judgment; and then repentance for fellowship with God is now the way for the saved to be free of the the harmful effects of accumulating toxins or sins which damage our fellowship with God and even damages the plan that God had for our lives.

In the table of Communion we are reminded of both. We are reminded of this complete forgiveness of the penalty of our sins, which was accomplished through Christ’s blood sacrifice on our behalf for our salvation. And we are also reminded of our continued forgiveness of the presence of our sins as we confess our sins in order to experience greater fellowship and usefulness to God. Again, it’s like we are experiencing that cell by cell cleansing of toxins from our lives. It really paints quite a word picture in connection with that great verse that the Apostle John gave us for our daily cleansing for fellowship.

1 John 1:9- “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” NASU

So as Christians, we understand that there is ‘salvation repentance’ and then there is ‘sanctification repentance’. When the Apostle Peter was speaking about repentance in 2 Peter 3:9 he was referring to the repentance of salvation: “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” NASU The Apostle Paul also talked about this kind of repentance in 2 Cor 7:10- “For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.” NASU Worldly repentance comes short of salvation in that it only produces regret or sorrow, but Biblical repentance leads to salvation because it produces reliance and surrender; reliance upon Christ to save your soul and surrender to God to reign in your life. And one more verse here from the Apostle Peter that points out how this Biblical repentance leads to life. Acts 11:18- “Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life.” NASU

Again, it’s remarkable to think about the real fact that repentance is for our benefit. Most people do not think of repentance in terms of being a cleansing that will benefit their entire life. They tend to think of repentance in terms of penance…like just going through a series of hard religious rituals or something. But Biblical repentance is more like that amazing cleansing that takes place within the organs of our bodies that God designed to protect us from the poisons and toxins of life. When people refuse to repent, either for their salvation or then as believers for their sanctification; that would be like the body refusing to give up the poisons and toxins that are ruining its health. It’s like a body saying, “No, I prefer to be sick…I want the build up of poison in my bloodstream to continue so that it will completely ruin my life.” How foolish indeed! And yet, that is exactly what people are saying who refuse to repent or to neglect repentance, both in order to have new life in Christ and then to walk with Christ through life.

Every commandment to repent, every call to follow, every instruction to obey that we find throughout the Bible is connected to this end: Each one is for our good; for our benefit. Repentance is God’s provision for our cleansing from the toxins of sin. Once we are cleansed from the penalty of sin, we then have eternal life in union with Christ, who shed His sinless blood to cleanse us from the judgment we were under because of our sins. And then, as we daily repent of the presence of sin in our lives, we are forgiven and cleansed from the poisoning effects of those sins in our lives. And by Christ’s Spirit within us we are then enabled to enjoy a greater spiritual and mental and emotional experience throughout our lives, without those damaging toxins that would otherwise be floating around in our souls.

The Apostle Paul gave us the wisest and healthiest and happiest way to live, and it’s in connection with this ‘cleansing habit’ or this practice of repentance as a way of life. Here it is: 2 Cor 7:1- “Since we have these promises, dear friends, we need to cleanse ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit and live a holy life in the fear of God.” God’s Word Version

As we prepare to partake of the cup, spend some moments in thanks to our Lord Jesus for His cleansing us from both the penalty of our sins, and for daily cleansing us from the presence of our sins as we come to Him in repentance day by day…to wash away the toxins in our lives and enjoy His blessings instead.

(Physiological information gratefully gleaned from Dr. Paul Brand’s work: Fearfully and Wonderfully Made)

On Earth As It Is In Heaven

Study Guide, July 1, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

Also listen to the choir song “America Bless God”

So what all do you think of when you think of the 4^th of July? How about ‘Christmas’? That’s what our 6^th President, John Quincy Adams, thought about in connection with the 4^th of July. Here’s what he said to the residents of the Town of Newburyport on July 4, 1837: “Why is it that, next to the birthday of the Savior of the World, your most joyous and most venerated festival returns on this day? Is is not that, in the chain of human events, the birthday of the nation is indissolubly linked with the birthday of the Savior? That it forms a leading event in the Progress of the Gospel dispensation? Is is not that the Declaration of Independence first organized the social compact on the foundation of the Redeemer’s mission upon earth? That it laid the cornerstone of human government upon the first precepts of Christianity and gave to the world the first irrevocable pledge of the fulfillment of the prophecies announced directly from Heaven at the birth of the Savior and predicted by the greatest of the Hebrew prophets 600 years before?”¹

And the answer is: “Yes!”

And did you notice what President Adams said that the Declaration of Independence did? He said that it primarily organized the social compact in connection with Christ’s mission, or it connected our nation’s commission with that of Christ’s mission upon earth. Did you just feel the Earth shake a little bit? In our present social confusion about the separation of church and state, or, really, the separation of the church’s influence upon the state, President Adams words are earthshaking! Do you see what President Adams was revealing to the people about the connection between our nation’s commission with our Redeemer’s commission? You know the Great Commission. But think of it now in relation to what President Adams said was also our nation’s commission: Matt 28:18-20- “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” NASU

Now, certainly, we know that the Scriptures define the Government’s role as being different from the Church’s role. The Government’s role is to govern according to moral laws, and to protect it’s citizens from harm; either from outside the country or from inside the country, and to collect just enough taxes in order to carry out those two responsibilities. The Scriptures also reveal that it’s the Church’s role to directly carry out Christ’s commission; to make disciples of all nations…including the nation they are in of course. But, still, President Adams clearly pointed out that the Government at least had a connection with supporting and being cooperative with the Redeemer’s commission. In fact, did you notice what word he used instead of ‘separation’? He used the word ‘indissoluble’, as in, America’s very existence is indissolubly connected to Christ’s mission. As he put it: “….the birthday of the nation is indissolubly linked with the birthday of the Savior.” Or, the founding of the nation was directly related to Christ’s coming to Earth. How so? Well, as the Founders stated it in the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men…” and so on. So the Founding Fathers knew that the very existence of our nation was directly related to the benevolence of mankind’s Creator and Redeemer. And also notice that President Adams clarified that mankind’s Creator is also mankind’s Redeemer. And therefore, though this new government’s role was certainly different from the church’s role, rather than being separated from our Redeemer’s mission, the government was to be supportive of it and to be cooperative in it…cooperating in, as President Adam’s put it: ‘in the Progress of the Gospel’.

Now, as Patrick Henry pointed out, this didn’t mean imposing the Christian faith upon the people of this nation, but it did mean that the foundation was based upon Christianity. Those are his words. And here they are: “It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason people of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here.”² Freedom of religion was to be a central tenet of America; but not freedom from religion, nor freedom from the teachings of the Redeemer of mankind as the foundation for America.

How far we have fallen from the vision and mission of our Founding Fathers for this nation! And not only has our present culture completely lost sight of this vision of our country’s responsibility to promote and support the mission of our Creator and Redeemer, but even much of the church has lost the understanding of what all God wants to be done…to be done in any nation on Earth. And what’s odd about that, is that in the most quoted prayer in the Bible, God clearly spells out what He wants done in any nation. Matt 6:9-10- “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” KJV

Where does God want His will to be done? On Earth. You mean like even the part of the Earth that we call ‘America’? Yup! And when does He want His will to be done? Only in the future when He comes back to set up His Kingdom on Earth? No. God wants His will to be done now, all over the Earth. And how does He want His will to be done? ‘Just as it is in Heaven’. And how do we know what His will is? Well, because God has told us all about His will in His Book that He gave to all inhabitants of Earth.

That’s like God is claiming that He has all authority over Heaven and Earth now. Right. That’s exactly what Jesus said: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations…” So does Christ have all authority in all matters in, lets say, the Congress of America? Does Christ have all authority in all matters in the courtrooms of America? Does Christ have all authority in all matters in the classrooms of America? In the words of Abraham Kuyper: “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: ‘Mine!’”³ My, that’s quite a word picture, right? What if American’s went about thinking in those terms wherever they did life, from their home to their places of business, their places of education and entertainment, and to their places of government? They just went about thinking: ‘There is not one square inch of any of these areas of live over which Christ does not call out: ‘Mine’!” Or, as the Psalmist put it as clearly as can be put: Ps 24:1- “The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it.” NASU The Psalmist really knew how to get to the bottom line on things.

But the point is, there was a time in America where many people did think in these terms, whether they were in their church sanctuary or their town courthouse. The Bible created a framework for daily life and thought. Guided by Biblical instructions for every arena of life people worked and intentionally lived their everyday lives ‘Corum Deo’, or ‘before the face of God’.⁴ Why? Because they knew that the earth is the Lord’s and all it contains. When they prayed “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.”, they realized that this prayer meant that God wanted them to do His will wherever they lived or worked. And so, for example, the ethics and the morality promoted at the Universities of America were pretty much the same as those promoted by the seminaries and the churches of America.

Really! Most of America’s oldest universities were started by pastors and churches. Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Brown, Dartmouth, and others were all founded by Christian pastors and church affiliations. How about Harvard’s original ‘Rules and Precepts’ for the university? “Let every student be plainly instructed, and earnestly pressed to consider well, the main end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ which is eternal life (John 17:3) and therefore lay Christ at the bottom, as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning.” Even Harvard’s original seal states: “Truth for Christ and the Church.”⁵ That’s like a breath of fresh air. Separation of church and what again?

And how about using Yale’s original Student Guidelines for new college student orientations in our universities today. It goes like this: “All the scholars are required to live a religious and blameless life according to the rules of God’s Word, diligently reading the Holy Scriptures, that fountain of Divine light and truth, and constantly attending all the duties of religion.”⁶ What a great addition that would be to college orientation classes.

There is clearly a fog in the understanding of many in our culture and even many in our churches about the fact that we all live our lives everyday ‘Corum Deo’… ‘before the face of God’. And there is a fog in many churches because there’s a fog now in many seminaries. Many religious leaders have left the authority and centrality of the Word of God, and therefore many churches have drifted from the authority and centrality of the Word of God over their lives. As Dr. Hendricks used to caution… “Remember: wherever there’s a mist in the pulpit there’s a fog in the pews.” Many are praying the Lord’s Prayer, but are ignoring what the Lord is answering through His Word and through His Spirit. But remember, King Solomon put it like this: Eccl 12:13-14- “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.” NASU King Solomon was a ‘bottom line’ kind of guy, too. But who did he say God’s commandments apply to? Every person! And where again does God want His will done? On Earth…as in ‘Every Town, USA’. And how do we know what His will is? He told us in His Book. And that’s why the first Chief-Justice of the Supreme Court, John Jay, said: “Human law must rest its authority ultimately upon the authority of that law which is Divine…Far from being rivals or enemies, religion and law are twin sisters, friends, and mutual assistants. Indeed, these two sciences run into each other.”

And even into the middle 19^th Century the Supreme Court was still saying things like this: “Why may not the Bible, and especially the New Testament, without note or comment, be read and taught as a divine revelation in schools – its general precepts expounded, its evidences explained and its glorious principles of morality inculcated? Where can the purest principles of morality be learned so clearly or so perfectly as from the New Testament?” (Vidal v. Girard’s Executors, 1844) The Supreme Court was supremely right about that, because that was a time when they understood that there was no difference between the sacred and the secular. There is only a difference between those who are seeking to do God’s will and those who are not seeking to do God’s will, wherever they are, whether that is in their churches or in their courthouses.

The Founders weren’t calling for the separation of the church from the state. That would be like calling for the separation of Heaven from Earth. Yes, the Founders clearly called for a separation from any interference and control from the state upon the church. And we need to make sure we are still calling for that, because the encroachment by the state upon churches is getting worse and worse. But they clearly were calling for complete influence and guided direction from the church upon the state. They clearly wanted their Creator to have a place in their government, since they knew it was their Creator who had given them a place in this world to enjoy life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And so they made a place for God in their government. They gave God a voice in Congress. They gave God a say in the Courtroom. They gave God a podium in the classrooms, and so on. And why? Because they knew what the Lord meant when He said: “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.”

God’s people need to remind all people that we all are to give to our Creator and Redeemer what He wants. He wants His will to be done on Earth and all over the Earth and everywhere in the Earth, just as it is in Heaven.

1. William J. Federer, America’s God and Country, p 18
2. Ibid, p 289
3. Darrow Miller and Bob Moffitt, On Earth As It Is In Heaven, p 109
4. Ibid, p 77
5. The American Patriot’s Bible, p I-22
6. Ibid

Dads: Make the Rest of Your Life Be the Best of Your ‘Dad Life’

Study Guide , June 17, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

After his son got his new driver’s license, the son asked his Dad about getting a car. So that Dad said, “I‘ll make a deal with you, son. You bring your grades up from a C to a B average, study your Bible more, get a hair cut and we’ll talk about the car.” So after about six weeks the Son asked about the car again. And the Dad said, “You’ve done real well with your grades and with your Bible Study, but what about the haircut? The Son said, “Well Dad, you know Samson had long hair, John the Baptist had long hair, and many think Jesus had long hair.” And the Dad said, “Yeah, but did you also notice that they all walked everywhere they went?”

Dads have to be on their toes about a lot of things, right? Parenthood is the greatest challenge for a Dad or a Mom. Got to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves, huh? But parenting not only seems daunting when you are young in life and children come along, but it even seems daunting still when you are older in life and the children are far along in their own lives. And so it seems that many Parents, or many Fathers, since we are focused on Father’s Day, often carry a sense of how they could have done Fatherhood better or should have done Fatherhood better. But that’s actually a pretty natural thing for conscientious men to carry around. Who couldn’t have done things better, right? Our Heavenly Father is the only Parent that has done it all perfectly and will continue to be the Perfect Parent for us children of God for all eternity.

We point out ‘conscientious’ men or ‘conscientious Fathers’ because ‘calloused’ men or ‘calloused’ Fathers don’t give much thought to how they should have done better anyway. They are simply calloused and cold spirited about it all. ‘Calloused’ Fathers don’t need encouragement about how they have treated their wife and children. No, they need rebuke! Spiritually and emotionally calloused fathers need to become convicted of their hard heart and become repentant and broken of their calloused ways so that God can remold and remake them into conscientious Fathers.

So our focus here today is not for calloused Fathers. It’s for conscientious Fathers who carry some burdens around with them or a carry a sense about what they could have done, or should have done, or would have done differently in their lives as Fathers if they could go back and do it again. Certainly, all of us could write a list of things we would have done differently if we could live our lives over again. And although we can learn from our past we need to realize that we can’t live in the past. We can only live in the present. Once again, we can and should learn from the past, but we can only and should only live in the present, with our eyes not on the ‘what ifs’ of life, but on the ‘what nows’ of our life. Learn from the past, but don’t stay there. For if you stay there, you not only prolong the pains of the past, but you forfeit the blessings of the present, along with rewards of the future.

Remember, non-Christians are prisoners of their past; but Christians are free people, who now live in the realm of new mercies each day, along with new possibilities each day for new growth and new transformations each day in union with the living God. Plus, as the prophet Joel learned, God is even able to make up for His people the years the locusts have eaten. Just like love covers a multitude of sins, godliness covers a multitude of ungodliness, kindness covers up a multitude of unkindness, generosity covers up a multitude of stinginess, commendation covers up a multitude of rudeness, affirmation covers up a multitude of neglect, and so on.

If you haven’t realized it by now, realize that the Holy Spirit has a way of multiplying the ‘blessing effects’ of however we are trying to bless others now as we are seeking to better know God and serve others in the ways God instructs us to; especially our family. God enhances and expands whatever blessing or blessings we are now seeking to give to our family. Now, whether they immediately respond to those ‘blessing effects’ varies from person to person and from time to time. But remember, God has not called us to ‘outcomes’, but to ‘faithfulness’. But what is certain is that when we seek to bless someone in the power of the Holy Spirit, then they will be affected by that blessing one way or another, sometime or another.

That’s one of the reasons that parents are to never give up hope about any of the ways they have tried to bless their children by way of instruction or demonstration or commendation or even correction. It’s like the story Dr. Howard Hendricks used to tell about the father who was really discouraged about his poor relationship he had with his son. And he asked the father how old his son was; and the father said his son was 38 years old. And Dr. Hendricks said: “Why are you giving up on him so soon?” Parenting is a life-long endeavor. It’s like with anything that is worthwhile, even like in war, as Winston Churchill said: “Never, never, never…give up!” Good advice for parents, right?

Often the laments from parents come from them focusing on the outcomes, when the real focus of parents is always to be on the process. And what is that process? That process is the only thing that anyone, or any parent, is in control of anyway. 1 Cor 15:58- “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.” NASU Did you know that you and I are only in charge of one thing in life? ‘Toil’. And ‘toil’ means labor, work, service…or essentially, efforts of faith…’faith efforts’.That’s all God calls us to in any endeavor of life. He supplies the sufficiency of grace, the guidance of wisdom and knowledge, and the inspiration for service. All He looks for from us is…’toil’. Even in our parenting, God only calls us to ‘toil’. And here’s the thing:You can only toil today. You cannot toil yesterday…you cannot toil tomorrow….you can only toil today. That’s why we have to keep our minds and emotions focused on today. Otherwise, we get stuck in the past and we lose our focus and even our joy and strength for the toiling of today, or for the works of today.

Let’s clarify this a bit. For Christians who are growing in grace and developing in spiritual maturity, guess what? You will always be thinking about how you could have done things better. And part of the reason for that is because of this principle: We live forwards, but we understand backwards. In other words, as followers of Christ, who are now seeking to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord, we are continually coming to a better understanding about our world, about life…about family life. The further we go in spiritual formation the better we understand life and relationships. And so it is natural that we will then consider and ponder things we could have done better in all of our relationships of life; like in our Fatherhood. It’s a bit like the commercial for Farmers Insurance: ‘We know a thing or two because we’ve seen a thing or two.’ But for followers of Christ it goes even further than that. Spiritual maturity is like climbing a mountain – the higher you go the better you see everything around you and the better you understand where everything fits into the picture.

And so it is in our life. It’s like with the Biblical counsel we read in our Responsive Reading from Deut 6:5-9- “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” NASU

This counsel is for training in our home life and really all of life. It deals with passing on a Biblical worldview in all of life. It deal with our personal life – ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might’. It deals with our home life – ‘teach them and talk of them in your daily routines of life’. It deals with our social life – ‘It directs your thoughts and activities with others’. And it deals with our business life – ‘It guides you through the gates or your places of business…and so on.

Again, the more you seek to follow Christ’s Lordship and act on His instructions not only will you grow to better understand your present relationships, but as we pointed out, inevitably you better understand how you could have or should have or would have done things better before, in all these areas, from your personal life to your home life to your social life to your business life.

And it’s right here that we need to understand something very important about all of this: And that is, the fact that you are now even thinking about all the ‘could have beens’ or the ‘should have beens’, like in your family life, is a testament to the reality of your further growing and maturing and formation as a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you were not growing in Christ you wouldn’t even be thinking this way, or be burdened about the past. But the fact that you are thinking this way is not going unnoticed; and particularly by two different persons. And one of those persons is Satan, who is constantly looking for any way to steal your joy and replace it with discouragement. And thus, he will use your burdens and thoughts about the ways you could have done things differently or the ways you should have or would have done things differently to bind you up in discouragement, in order to keep your focus off of what the other Person in your life is trying to get you to focus on instead. And that other Person, of course, is the Holy Spirit of Christ, who is instead trying to encourage you in your spiritual formation and to share His joy with you over your growth in Him and is wanting you now to focus no longer on your failings of the past, but on His pleasure over you for your faithfulness in the present…and to rejoice over your steps of faithfulness now.

Remember, Satan is always trying to take us back into the past of what we should have done, or what we could have done, or what we would have done, and so on. Satan always wants to use past failings or faults, either real or perceived, to bind us up in discouragement in order to keep us from walking with the Holy Spirit of Christ in the present…walking in freedom and forgiveness, and with the joy of knowing that Christ is not bound by our past and neither are we. Our God is able to transform a past failing or past fault by a single present act of faithfulness into an amazing new reality or even new relationship. Remember how the Apostle Paul was a testimony of all of that in his own life? And he then revealed to us what the possibilities really were of what God could do with our present offerings…Eph 3:20-21- “Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Glory to Him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen.” NLT

The Apostle Paul realized that our offerings of prayers and acts of service and words of grace were like raw materials that, when we put them into the hands of God, He is able to do more through them than we can even imagine; like mighty works in our families. Like we can’t even imagine what God is going to do yet in and through what we’ve given Him in our prayers and in our toil, our efforts of faith, for the sake of our families, no matter their ages…because, again, with God, all things are possible! Friends, Never close the book on a story that God is still writing.

We are each one of God’s stories…along with every child and every parent of that child. Until that story of their life is done, God is not done working on them. And thus, neither should we be done. And realize most, God is not done working on us. Phil 1:6- “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.” NASU And that reality is to be a present encouragement, day by day, and a source of joy for us day by day, which then gives rise to our strength for doing whatever it is that God has for us to do day by day, whether that is in our personal life, our family life, our social life, or our business life. Remember Guys, the key to being a better person, better Husband, better Father, better Grand-father, better friend, better employer or employee, or better anything is to first be a better follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. For God calls us first to follow Him. Everything else is to flow out of that.

And so Dads, regardless of however much you toiled in following Christ or whatever efforts you put forth in following Christ in your past and in how that played out in your family in the past, even though you no longer have the past, you still have today. And so today you can ‘be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.’ Every effort of faith, every pray of faith, every step of faithfulness is going to count in how it affects you and your family and others both now and forever. Remember: Our present efforts of faith today are what God uses to transform even things from the past to become glorious things in the future.

And Dads, because of that reality, we can make the rest of our lives be the best of ‘Dad lives’.

Turning Confusing Problems into Clear Principles, Pt. 4

Study Guide, June 10, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

In recent church research concerning spiritual growth in 1,000 churches, the researcher came to this conclusion: “Nothing has a greater impact on spiritual growth than reflection on the Scriptures. If churches were to do only one thing to help people at all levels of spiritual maturity grow in their relationship to Christ, their choice would be clear. They would inspire, encourage, and equip their people to read the Bible – specifically, to reflect on Scripture for meaning in their lives…The Bible’s power to advance spiritual growth is unrivaled by anything else we’ve discovered.”¹

Does this still ring in your head? ‘The B-I-B-L-E, yes that’s the Book for me. I stand alone on the Word of God. The B-I-B-L-E’. Right, many of us learned the ‘Bible Song’ when we were kids. How about, do you know how the rest of it goes? ‘The B-L-O-O-D that Jesus shed for me; Christ paid the price, our sacrifice, the B-L-O-O-D!’ And the next verse is: ‘I’m S-A-V-E-D, by G-R-A-C-E; I’m saved by grace, the Scripture says, the B-I-B-L-E!’

That’s a great little song to learn as a kid because it proclaims a great big truth to live by the rest of your life: “I stand alone on the Word of God!” Of course, we’re not alone, but the Word of God stands alone as the clear truth of the Lord Jesus Christ for a world stuck in confusion. And how not surprising is it, that the world is not equipped to deal with the confusion and complexity of this world, because God has revealed that the truths and the principles that equip anyone for life are found in the B-I-B-L-E.

Notice: 2 Tim 3:16-17- “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” NASU Now, let’s read it again in the Amplified Version for extra clarity: 2 Tim 3:16-17- “Every Scripture is God-breathed (given by His inspiration) and profitable for instruction, for reproof and conviction of sin, for correction of error and discipline in obedience, [and] for training in righteousness (in holy living, in conformity to God’s will in thought, purpose, and action), So that the man of God may be complete and proficient, well fitted and thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

It’s simply astounding what God is revealing to all people here: that the only way for anyone to become equipped to learn truth from error, to understand right from wrong, to become convicted and corrected, to be trained for useful service and every good work is through the revelations that God inspired certain ones to record and then distribute to all people everywhere in His Scriptures. This reveals that one of the central reasons that people the world over are confused and conflicted in living out their lives is that they are not equipped to do so. The only way anyone can become equipped to live life as it was designed to be lived is by becoming equipped through the instruction, reproof, conviction, correction, and training in right living through the Word of God!

And that’s why we tell others that one of the main things that characterizes Chapel By The Sea is the centrality and authority of the Word of God in all things in our lives. For if the Bible is not central to everything you believe and do, then no one can be equipped for doing anything of lasting value for the sake of Christ and His Kingdom.

I’m always struck by what God said in Malachi 1:10 after the people stopped revering God’s Scriptures and were, instead, following their own reasoning and traditions and religious ideas of what seemed right in their own eyes. As God watched them mix their worldly ways with their religious traditions He said this: “Oh that there were one among you who would shut the gates, that you might not uselessly kindle fire on My altar! I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord of hosts, “nor will I accept an offering from you.” NASU What a statement about how God feels about religious activities and false religions that are not obeying His instructions nor worshiping Him in spirit and in truth!

Mark it down: If any religious organization or so-called ‘church’ is not worshiping, serving, and following God according to His revealed Scriptures, then God would rather that they just close the doors to their so-called houses of worship, rather than going through their religious rituals or traditions that are so displeasing to Him!

You look around at so many so-called churches in America and you see that the Bible is not honored as the inerrant authority in all areas of life from family to business to history and science and government and so on, but rather the Scriptures are being dishonored as simply writings that were tainted with man’s culturally bound-up ideas. And thus, they then think that they should now be revised to fit society’s progressive preferences about what is truth and what is morally right or wrong, acceptable or unacceptable…of which many religious groups have trouble saying that anything is unacceptable anymore. But then this statement by God flashes out like a neon sign; that He would rather that they just close their doors altogether, rather than to dishonor and disparage His Word, and thus, lead people even further into falsehood.

Remember this about God: We come to God on His terms, not ours. And for anyone in any period of history who does not humble themselves in repentance and faith and come to God according to His Gospel on His terms, they will one day hear what Jesus said He will say to them: Matt 7:21-23- “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’” NASU

Remember, many people the world over profess to know God, but only those who possess a relationship with God actually ‘know’ Him and, thus, have eternal life in union with God. As the Apostle Paul pointed out in Rom 8:8-10- “…and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.” NASU

Being in a saving union with Christ is not just about being religious or associating with some religion or church. It’s about having the Spirit of Christ living in union with you. It’s having a relationship with Christ based upon having come to a saving knowledge of Christ’s words, His Gospel, and thus receiving Christ’s forgiveness and His gift of eternal life.

Again, it’s about coming to know God on His terms, not ours. And after coming to know Him as Savior, it’s then about following Him as your Lord, by observing all things which Jesus instructed us about in His Word. And right here we can give you another clear principle that you can count on to help take you through a very confusing problem that the world keeps distorting and fostering and festering when it comes to the authority and the reliability of the Bible.

And of course, God saw this coming long before people ever thought about coming up with this false accusation that the Bible is only a collection of mans own interpretations and opinions about religion and that the writers of the Bible themselves originated these ideas and teachings. Listen to what the Apostle Peter says about that claim: 2 Peter 1:20-21- “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy (no teaching) of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” NIV Isn’t that an amazing and absolutely wonderful explanation by God that no person came up with these teachings in the Bible on their own. None of these commandments or teachings or revelations of the Scriptures had their origin in any of these writers. No, they had their origin in God the Holy Spirit, who ‘carried these men along’ in writing what God wanted written, just like the wind would carry a ship along the way it should go.

So to a world that has twisted the teachings of the Bible into being some confusing problem about just representing the opinions and ideas of men we have this clear principle from the Scriptures to clarify it all: ‘The Bible has one author, God the Holy Spirit, who used many writers as His ‘human pens’ in order to record the exact truths and teachings that God wanted everyone to know, so that they could come to know their God as their Savior and then follow Him as their Lord.’ Remember, reading your Bible is just like listening to the voice of God. Remind others about that, too.

Now that brings us back to our premise today, because in order for you and for me to now ‘follow’ the Lord we have to pay close attention to His words. How close? Well, the Psalmist gave us the answer to that: Ps 119:105- “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” KJV Now then, when does a person use a lamp? They use a lamp when it’s dark? Guess what? In this world, regardless of what time of day it is – it’s always dark! We live in a spiritually, morally, and mentally dark world. No wonder people are stumbling into spiritual traps and falling into moral pits and walking into mental quagmires. Without the lamp of God’s Word they are walking in the dark every day of their lives. But how ironic that they think they see and think they know where they’re going.

No, the only way anyone can see what is really going on around them and what is also ahead of them is by using the Word of God; as a lamp for your feet and a light for your path. And the only lamp there is on planet Earth by which to spiritually, morally, and mentally see your way through this dark world is the lamp of the Word of God!

So the lamp shows us the right steps to take each day, and the light shows us where those steps will take us day after day. Or, the lamp of the Word helps us with our actions; the light of the Word helps us with our directions. And that’s why we need to pay close attention to both; both our immediate actions and our future directions or consequences, like where our actions take us as well as what they make of us, and what they make of our future destiny.

So this is why we so often talk about not just having a ‘knowledge of the Word of God’, but of having a ‘working knowledge of the Word of God’. When we are challenged by others concerning a spiritual question or a moral action or a mental decision, can we pick up our lamp of a truth from the Scriptures to shed some light on whatever subject it is? Remember, if you haven’t practiced using the lamp for your spiritual, moral, and mental guidance and decisions, then you’re apt to stumble in the dark right along with others who are walking in the dark without the Bible as lamp to their feet and a light for their path.

Actually, the way you gain the most light from the Bible is by looking for the Light in the Bible, looking for everything the Bible is revealing to you about the true Light of the World, the Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, you will find a great change in your Bible reading when you change your focus from looking at ‘what’ to looking at ‘Who’. Remember, your Bible reading will become transformational for you when it becomes relational to you. Yes, we need to learn what it is that God wants us to know in His Word, but we need to learn most about ‘Who our God is’ while we are discovering what He wants us to know. Listen to what God said about what He wants most in our relationship with Him: Jer 9:23-24- “Thus says the Lord, “Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things,” declares the Lord.” NASU And the Hebrew word for ‘boast’ here refers to the ‘celebration of an accomplishment’. This revelation that one of the things God wants most is for us to better understand Him should inspire us to make our life quest become the discovery of coming to better understand our God in His character and His Person-hood and even His personality. And to then celebrate each step forward in this accomplishment of better understanding our God.

Make the focus of your daily Bible reading a discovery of coming to better understand and know God and it will change not only the way you think about your Bible reading…it will also change the way you think about everything. You will find yourself not only becoming more informed about our God and His world, but you will find yourself becoming more transformed by God through His Word. And it will make your want to celebrate that with your Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

1. J.R. Briggs, Ideas for Improving Bible Engagement in Your Church, CTPastors, Spring 2018, p18

Turning Confusing Problems into Clear Principles, Pt. 3

(Practicing ‘Shalom’ in a World of Strife)

Study Guide June 3, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

As we mentioned earlier, we are looking forward to our Wednesday night Summer series of exploring the Jewish Tabernacle. There are so many great concepts illustrated throughout the Tabernacle. And sometimes we learn lessons that completely change our lives and change how we think about things. An example of one of those concepts and lessons comes from that Jewish word that is one of the most well known words of the Hebrew language, but surprisingly not well understood at all. That word is: ‘Shalom’. What’s interesting about it is that even though most people think of ‘Shalom’ as just being a greeting or just meaning ‘peace’, it originally meant so much more, along with all of its implications.

But first, think about it: We live in a world of strife, right? We live in a world of angst. We live in a world of conflict. We live in a world of stress. We live in a world of unrest. But this morning we want to help you deal with all of this. We want to give you something that will help you relax, especially in your mental attitude. We want to help you live your life and deal with others with a relaxed mental attitude, or a ‘shalom mental attitude’.

One of my favorite screen characters is Ballou, the big ole bear from the original animated version of Jungle Book. I haven’t seen the remake. But do you remember his counsel to Mowgli? “You need to relax a little…You need to unwind yourself.” Pretty good counsel for a whole lot of us, right? And how about his song? “Look for the bare necessities, The simple bare necessities, Forget about your worries and your strife. I mean the bare necessities, Old Mother Nature’s recipes, That brings the bare necessities of life.”

Now of course, the song needs some updating to be Biblically correct…Old Mother Nature’s recipes should be our Heavenly Father’s instructions for living, right? But do you ever feel all wound up in knots…tied up in the knots of worries and strife? Why is that? Is that the Holy Trinity doing that? Nope! Then it’s the unholy trinity doing that. It’s the world, the flesh, and the devil tying you up in knots in your mind and spirit. But how sad that we so easily co-operate with that unholy trinity or give into this unholy trinity.

Many Christians live in a continual state of angst in our humanistic society. So how can we, as God’s people, deal with the constant strife of our anti-Christian culture, but yet not be so bound up and tied up by it all? The answer is: ‘Shalom’. We were meant for ‘Shalom’. We were created for ‘Shalom’…in our relationship with our God. Here’s a capsule-form principle about that: We need to resist the strife of the unholy trinity and persist in acting on the ‘shalom’ of the Holy Trinity.

Now, note that ‘shalom’, as a word, is like the colors of a variegated plant. But a variegated plant is one that has many different shades or colors to it, and that is what the word ‘shalom’ is like. Shalom means everything from peace and harmony to wholeness and completeness to prosperity and well being. It also speaks of having a restful spirit and an absence of agitation or discord since we have a living relationship with the Creator of ‘shalom’.

But now, here is something else to be sure about: True ‘shalom’ is uniquely a Biblical word or concept, and you cannot experience true shalom apart from God. There is no true peace apart from God; apart from having peace with God and then having the peace of God. Rom 5:1-2- “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.” NASU

As we have pointed out before: Many people want the ‘peace of God’, but no one can have the ‘peace of God’ until they make ‘peace with God’. And we make peace with God through repentance toward God and placing faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior.

Here’s the other thing: Until you make peace with God, or shalom with God, you can’t really have peace or a true shalom with anyone else..including yourself! God clearly reminds all people that there is no peace for those who are still enemies of God in their relationship to Him. Isa 48:22- “There is no peace for the wicked,” says the Lord.” NASU The ‘wicked’ here is a reference to those who are separated from God in spirit and in deeds because of their sins.

So think about that; the fact that there is no peace for those who have not received the Prince of Peace, the Lord Jesus, as their personal Savior. Then what is there? Well, If you cannot have peace with God apart from a relationship with God, then the most you can have with anyone is basically a ‘cease-fire’. But a cease-fire is not a state of peace, but just a pause in the ongoing conflict. And that is what life is for those who have not become new creations in Christ; an ongoing conflict, again, with God, with others, and even within themselves.

We need to keep that in mind when we are looking at or observing the unconverted people in our lives. And that is: we are looking at ‘conflicted people’. Their heart and mind and spirit is not at rest, not at peace, and especially not in ‘shalom’, because there is a hole in their soul that has not yet been filled with the Spirit of their Creator and Redeemer. Sure, there might be other things they have put in it or stuffed into that hole in their soul, but it will never give them peace, especially not peace with God.

In all of our dealings with others, we need to remember this constant state of this conflicted spirit in unconverted people around us…because if we do not remember this, then we are apt to get pulled into the same kinds of strife and angst and wrongful attitudes that these unconverted and conflicted people have in themselves and are inflicting on others.

For example: We have to recognize that there is a standoff between those who are redeemed and those who are not. Proverbs 29:27 puts it like this: “The righteous despise the unjust: the wicked despise the godly.” NLT So the righteous despise the wicked and the wicked despise the righteous. Solomon is simply pointing out a clear principle to understand concerning the fact that there is this mindset of a moral and spiritual ‘stand-off’ that is constantly present between those who seek to live under the authority of their Lord and Savior and those who do not. Plus, Solomon points out that this stand-off is accompanied by deep natural feelings and attitudes; the natural attitude of ‘despising one another’. Now, because of our nature, that attitude comes natural. But for those with a new nature, one that is now a new creation in Christ, there is a way to deal with that natural attitude differently than the way the ungodly naturally default to it; that is, they default to their feelings of disgust and despising of God’s people.

In other words, it’s natural for the ungodly to bash the godly. It’s even natural for the godly to want to bash back at the ungodly. But the thing is about our new creation in union with Christ is that God didn’t create us to be ‘Bashers’, but to be ‘Builders’…not ‘people bashers’, but ‘people builders’. Remember, Jesus said, “I will ‘build’ My church”. And what does He build His church out of, His now ‘righteous saints’ out of? Right, He builds His righteous Church out of once ‘unrighteous sinners’. Remember that caveat of Paul’s? “By the grace of God, I am what I am…” Or ‘But, by the grace of God, that unbeliever could be me.’ So we need to look at unbelievers through eyes of grace; as in there is still a chance that this unbeliever might yet become a follower of Christ…that is, unless they persist in their resistance toward God.

Keep it in perspective: there is a time for everything. There is a time to do justice; a time to contend with those who contend against God and God’s people. There is a time to tear down and to defend the defenseless and so on. But as for carrying a general attitude toward the ungodly; naturally the righteous despise the wicked, but we are not to be controlled by the natural feelings within us, but by the supernatural Holy Spirit of God within us. Which means we are to seek to think how God would have us think about the ungodly around us and what to do about it all. We have to look to the Spirit of God to know what time it is: is it time to tear down or time to build up? God will lead. But regardless of what time it is, remember that the battle is the Lord’s, and so is the building of His church. And as far as it depends on us, we are to default to thinking like ‘builders’, unless it’s time to ‘battle’. In other words, we always start with ‘shalom’ unless it’s clear that it’s time for the ‘sword’. Like with the people building the wall in Nehemiah’s day: they worked with a trowel in one hand and a sword in the other. Their intention was to build, but they were ready to defend if necessary.

Now back to the examples of how this attitude of ‘shalom’ plays out in our general dealings with others around us. Again, “Shalom” speaks of completeness, fullness, or a type of wholeness that encourages you to practice gratitude toward God, as well as then sensing a need to give back — to generously re-pay something in some way. So actually, this understanding then sheds a whole new light on the concept of witnessing.

We often think of witnessing as just one of those hard disciplines of the Christian life. It is a discipline, and it sometimes is hard to share the Gospel with all of the push back we get from our Gospel-resistant society. Witnessing can be a confusing problem for many believers. But if you understand that witnessing is also a way of ‘generously re-paying a debt’ we owe to others, it can turn this confusing problem into a clear principle; a principle where we now think of witnessing as a clear expression of how we really can love our neighbor as ourselves, and thus fulfill the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. So by thinking about witnessing with a ‘shalom’ attitude, instead of worrying so much about if your witness, whether by word of mouth or by a gift of Gospel literature, is going to be received or rejected…think of your gesture of witnessing now like being a repayment of just something you owe another person anyway. And by just passing on to others this gift you yourself received, you will sense a liberation and a satisfaction like you get from fulfilling a debt you owe to others.

And why do we say witnessing is like a repayment that we owe to others? Do you remember what the Apostle Paul said about what we owe others? Rom 13:8- “Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.” NASU Witnessing is one of the greatest demonstrations of ‘loving your neighbor’ that there is. We owe to others what God has given to us; the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

And that really changes the perspective on ‘witnessing’, doesn’t it? Of course, our prayers and our hopes are that each one to whom we give a Gospel witness to will be open to the work of God’s Spirit and will then receive Christ as their Lord and Savior. But even if they respond in resistance or even rejection, once we realize that our part was simply to freely give to them what we freely received, then we can be at peace or shalom that we have just given to them something we owed them. Think about it: In witnessing to others, we’re not trying to start a verbal competition with anyone, we are simply accomplishing the completion of debt we owe to others; the debt to love them as someone else loved us and got the Gospel message to us. As Jesus pointed out to us: “Freely you received, freely give.”

Actually, this also adds quite an inspiring feature to our focus on Apologetics. As we have so wonderfully become better equipped in sharing our faith through our studies and seminars in Apologetics over the years here at the Chapel, when we add this attitude of ‘shalom’ to our apologetics it encourages us even more in getting the Gospel out to our world around us. How so? Well, as we come to understand that this peace of ‘shalom’ includes the peace that God can now offer to the world based upon Christ’s finished work of salvation, it means that our witness or outreach, our defense of the faith and offering of truth is not an intellectual tug-o-war with others around us. Why? Because remember, the war has already been won! Jesus has already conquered sin and death. Praise God! And so evangelism and the sharing of the reasons to believe that we learn in the studies of apologetics is now like something an army would do. With an army, after the war is won, they often distribute leaflets to the people that have instructions for them on what they should do now that the war has been won…how they are to make the best of their lives now and in the days to come; in the future.

Jesus has already won the war over sin and death. Jesus has already defeated every foe from sin and even death in His victory on Calvary. He has already defeated every falsehood that exists; the falsehoods of humanism, secularism, marxism, as well as every false teaching of world religions. Christians often live and deal with others in educational settings or political settings or business settings and so on, like these worldly ideas are still being contested. No, they are not! All of these false ideas and teachings and positions have already been defeated! We don’t have to defeat them again. Jesus already did that. And because the war has been won, His army, His church, is now called to distribute the leaflets, or to communicate to the world His Gospel and His words, the information and the instructions about how they should and can now live in order to make the best of rest of their lives now and in their eternal future.

And as God’s people communicate His truths, share His Gospel, and live among others in this world we are to do so with the mindset and the spirit and an attitude of ‘Shalom’. We are already at peace with God. And we can live with the peace of God. And so we can now share this offering of peace with God to whosoever will receive it, knowing that Jesus has already overcome the world. Many people in the world do not realize that yet, but they soon will. And that’s simply what we are trying to help others understand, that the victory over sin and death has already been won. And this victory is in Jesus. And all who follow Jesus share in His victory over sin and death. And that’s why we can live in ‘Shalom’ even while we live out our lives in a world of strife.

This understanding also gives a new sense to this benediction:

Num 6:24-26- “The Lord bless you, and keep you; The Lord make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance on you, And give you ‘shalom’…peace.” NASU

Turning Confusing Problems into Clear Principles, Pt 2

Study Guide – May 27, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

Let’s start with a ‘by the way’. So, by the way, how is your ‘RD’ vision working for you? That’s what we focused on at our Easter service; using ‘RD’ vision to look at all of life around us; that is, using ‘Resurrection Definition’ vision. It concerns looking at everything around us through the truths of the Resurrection of Christ and the implications that has for all of life.

So let’s expand on this concept of how we see our world around us because when we practice seeing our world around us the way the Scriptures instruct us to, then it clears up a lot of otherwise confusing problems.

For example: Traveling can be confusing, even with GPS. Have you ever had your GPS give you some wacky directions? That’s why I still love maps. Maps give you the ‘big picture’ instead of having to depend upon where to turn next. However, I do use the GPS when I can’t look at a map. But the point is, the overall view of wherever you are is always the clearest view there is.

It’s like our visit to our Son’s graduation at Liberty University. It’s quite a big campus and the various sites and event locations can be a bit confusing to find, even with a map. But then they recently built a 275 foot 17 story Freedom Tower. It also holds the college of Biblical Studies. But from the perspective and vision that you get from the Tower you can see exactly how things are laid out.

A point we are making here today is this: the Bible is our Freedom Tower. However, this Tower extends all the way to Heaven. And from here we can see how our world and even our lives are all laid out. From here we can even make sense out of our seemingly senseless world. Even with this being Memorial Day weekend, as we remember the sacrifices of those who gave their lives for our freedom, by standing on this upper platform of the Bible we see that for those who served God and country as followers of Christ, their sacrifices were not in vain, but rather they were offerings that have lasting value and lasting rewards. Their temporal battles are yielding eternal blessings for them as well as for others. Remember, that’s what the Apostle Paul pointed out about these things: 2 Cor 4:17- “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison…” NASU

Remember that: For believers, God is going to make even the afflictions from this world produce things of lasting value for His children. Remember, the world wastes our pains, but God doesn’t. God even keeps records of our tears, as the Psalmist pointed out in Ps 56:8- “You have taken account of my wanderings; Put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in Your book?” NASU In the Biblical Museum at Liberty U we saw several ancient tear bottles on display. So God even keeps a record of our sorrows in order to compensate us for them. How like our wonderful Heavenly Father.

That’s something else we see from the high perspective of the Freedom Tower of the Bible. And that is, in the world it often seems like trials and troubles and problems and pains and deeds, good and bad, just go on without consequence. But in reality, everything that happens in this temporal world is being recorded and will have eternal consequences. You recall, that when the unbelieving world stands before God at the Great White Throne Judgment, that they will be judged according to the record of their lives that have been meticulously recorded. Remember this? Rev 20:11-12- “And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from his presence, but they found no place to hide. I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books.” NLT

Do you think most people around you have any idea that everything they are doing each day, from their thoughts and words to their motives and deeds are being recorded in the ledgers of Heaven? Really, at the end of every day, from everything they have done to everything they have said has all been recorded in those books that the Apostle John told us about. Now, for believers, the Book of Life has the names of all those who have been born again into God’s family. That’s what Jesus was reminding His disciples to rejoice most about in Luke 10:20- “Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.” NASU By the merits of Jesus’ life and death on our behalf, we who have come to the Savior for forgiveness and a new birth of our spirit in union with Christ have, at this very moment, our names written down in Heaven in the Book of Life. Amen?

But for the unconverted, or the dead, meaning the spiritually dead, which is the title that Revelation 20 gives to unbelievers, their every work and deed, every day of their life, is being recorded to determine the degrees of their sentencing in a land of separation from God. And yet most people have no clue of this reality of these ‘Ledgers of Heaven’. But again, you can only see this picture of reality from the Freedom Tower of the Bible.

Now, we mentioned the Book of Life with the names of all of the saved. That’s like the ‘God’s Gift Book of Salvation’. That book records the names of those who received God’s free gift of salvation of eternal life through Jesus Christ. But there is also another book in connection with believers that Malachi called the ‘Book of Remembrance’. Notice: Mal 3:16- “Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord gave attention and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the Lord and who esteem His name.” NASU This ‘Book of Remembrance’ is the ledger that holds the words and works and motives and such for which all believers will give an account at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Paul describes this in 2 Cor 5:10- “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” NASU

So again, for unbelievers, there are the books with the record of their works which God will use to determine the degrees of their sentencing in a land that the Bible calls ‘Gehenna Hell’. And for believers, there is the Book of Life, which records the names of all the saved who received the gift of eternal life in Jesus Christ. And then there is also the Book of Remembrance, which records believers deeds as children of God, to determine their rewards or loss of rewards in the Kingdom of Heaven.

But again, you can’t see any of these realities without going up in God’s Freedom Tower of the Word of God. And from God’s Tower we can then begin to practice the principle that Paul pointed out in the rest of that passage we read in 2 Corinthians, because he went on to say this: 2 Cor 4:18- “while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” NASU The only way you can see the things are are not seen are from God’s Tower of the Bible. But when we do look at our world around us from the perspective of God’s Tower not only do we see how the things of the temporal world are laid out, but we also see how things of the eternal world are laid out as well. From God’s Tower we better understand not only the temporal things of our world, but we also better understand the eternal things of God’s world. In fact, from the perspective of God’s Tower we can superimpose the eternal world onto our temporal world. And when you do that you then begin to see the things that are not seen by others. Think about it: If you only see what is seen, but do not see the unseen around the seen, then you will miss seeing most of what there actually is to see.

For example, one important way to look at life is look at everything in life from the perspective of the last chapters of the book of Revelation. From the realities of Revelation we can look behind the scenes of the unseen, or look upon the things that are not yet seen. And as we do so we then gain a clear picture and a clear understanding of where life is headed.

One of the fixation of some scientists is either the need to solve the problems of the depleting resources of our planet or pursue the future colonization of another planet or planets. But fortunately God has another plan for our planet. Rev 21:1-4- “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away…And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God… And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them…22:16-17- “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star. The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost…20- “He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” NASU

From God’s Tower we can see what others cannot see – plans for a New Earth already in the works, along with a new capitol city, the New Jerusalem, even now being made ready by the Master Builder of the Universe, the Lord Jesus. Jesus is making plans for His return just like He said. And in return, we are to also be making plans for His return. In other words, we are to be living each day in this temporal world in light of these realities of our eternal world. And as we do so, just like the song states, the things of this world grow strangely dim in the light of God’s glory and grace.”

Again, perspective is everything! Jesus calls for us to walk by faith, and not by sight. But faith is not fantasy, like the world’s twisted version of faith. When the world talks about faith, they are talking about things which have no basis in reality. But Biblical faith is based upon reality. Biblical faith is acting on the realities and the proclamations and the promises that we find as we climb God’s Tower, the Tower of God’s Word. And from here we can see the things that are not seen by so many is this world. And we can then focus less on the things that many others think are the most important things to see and dwell upon in life. Certainly, we have to deal with the temporal things of life, but we are commanded to do so with eternity in mind and with eternal things in sight. We are commanded to set our minds upon the things above, the heavenly things, the eternal matters.

For example: people can go ahead and enjoy the temporal things of this world that God has given us to enjoy. Like: People even enjoy taking ‘selfies’…they are having fun with that. But even in the midst of fun things like this we are to remember the eternal things; like ‘every selfie is a soul’. Every temporal ‘selfie’ is an eternal soul. Every selfie that people take is a reflection of a soul that is either saved or lost. And if their soul has not become saved then that means they are one of those people whose lives are being recorded in those books for the Great White Throne Judgment. And if all of their focus has been on the things of this temporal life at the expense of preparing for the eternal, then no matter how much they may have enjoyed their temporal life, their eternity is going to be a tragedy, because they are going to live in a land called Hell…that’s what God is warning them about from the Tower. For not only can you see all the way into Heaven from God’s Tower…you can also see all the way into Hell from there.

Don’t forget about Hell. A lot of churches have, along with most of our society it seems. People don’t talk much about Hell anymore. Most people have lost sight of Hell. Jesus didn’t. In fact, Jesus talked more about Hell than He did about Heaven. Sometimes I feel guilty for not talking about Hell more than I do, since I’m responsible for teaching the things that Jesus taught. Listen to Jesus on this: Luke 12:4-5- “I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him!” And here’s another instance: Matt 5:29-30- “If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.” NASU Of course, Jesus wasn’t talking about self mutilation, He was talking about self repentance in order to escape going to Hell.

Remember, Jesus always looked at life from God’s Tower. As such, He always saw where the paths were leading that people were walking. All the paths that people travel in life lead to two different gates: one is wide, the other is narrow. Remember what He said? Matt 7:13-14- “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” NASU

Every person is either on that path that leads to destruction, Gehenna Hell, or they are on the path that leads to life, life in Heaven because they found life in Jesus on the path to Heaven. We trust that each of you here are walking that narrow path with Jesus as your Lord and Savior. If you are not sure about that, you need to make sure before you walk any further down the road of your life. Ask Christ to come into your life and save your life and make you His child forever. And then walk the rest of life on God’s path with Jesus.

But you only see these paths of life and those gates from the perspective from God’s Tower. Yet you can also see how God has laid out everything else in God’s world, now and in the world to come. What a view!

Turning Confusing Problems Into Clear Principles

Study Guide, April 8, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

Good mottos can be very helpful in dealing with this often confusing life of ours. Like, here are some examples of just good logical and helpful mottos that I came across. ‘Trust, but verify’; ‘Life doesn’t have to be perfect for it to be wonderful’; Use friendliness, but don’t use your friends; and ‘I just don’t want to look back and think: I could have eaten that’.

Seriously though, it does help to try to condense complicated issues into manageable mottos or principles. Even better is when a good motto is based on a Biblical principle. And like we started pointing out recently, a real help is to try to develop the habit of turning confusing problems into clear principles; clear principles based upon the Scriptures. Then you can better manage the messes that arise in your life.

For an example of this we return to Moses again and see that even Moses could have benefited from this Biblical principle: “Be angry, and yet do not sin.” We know it from the passage of Eph 4:26-27- “BE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity.” NASU And why would this have really helped Moses? Well, because, as we earlier saw, even though Moses had a lot of hair, it seems that dealing with the grumbling Israelites over the years had caused him to pull out most of it by the time the wilderness wanderings were completed. Listening to their complaining and their bickering day after day caused even Moses to do something that cost him the privilege of entering into the land God was giving the people. And it shows us that if even Moses can lose his cool when dealing with grumbling people, then we need to be especially careful about keeping our act together. Now, that’s kind of long for a motto or a principle, so we’ll just leave this part under the heading of: ‘Just saying…’

But check this out: Num 20:2-12- “There was no water for the people to drink at that place, so they rebelled against Moses and Aaron. The people blamed Moses and said, “If only we had died in the Lord‘s presence with our brothers! Why have you brought the congregation of the Lord‘s people into this wilderness to die, along with all our livestock? Why did you make us leave Egypt and bring us here to this terrible place? This land has no grain, no figs, no grapes, no pomegranates, and no water to drink!” Moses and Aaron turned away from the people and went to the entrance of the Tabernacle, where they fell face down on the ground. Then the glorious presence of the Lord appeared to them, and the Lord said to Moses, “You and Aaron must take the staff and assemble the entire community. As the people watch, speak to the rock over there, and it will pour out its water. You will provide enough water from the rock to satisfy the whole community and their livestock.” So Moses did as he was told. He took the staff from the place where it was kept before the Lord. Then he and Aaron summoned the people to come and gather at the rock. “Listen, you rebels!” he shouted. “Must we bring you water from this rock?” Then Moses raised his hand and struck the rock twice with the staff, and water gushed out. So the entire community and their livestock drank their fill. But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust Me enough to demonstrate My holiness to the people of Israel, you will not lead them into the land I am giving them!” NLT

That’s one of those times where no doubt Moses wished he could have a ‘do over’. Interestingly enough, this wasn’t the first time that God brought water from a rock for the people. However, the first time Moses was supposed to strike the rock. Notice: Ex 17:5-6- “The Lord said to Moses, “Walk out in front of the people. Take your staff, the one you used when you struck the water of the Nile, and call some of the elders of Israel to join you. I will stand before you on the rock at Mount Sinai. Strike the rock, and water will come gushing out. Then the people will be able to drink.” NLT So the first time Moses was instructed to ‘strike the rock’, and the second time he was instructed to ‘speak to the rock’. Do you recall the fact of how God used nearly everything in the Old Testament as a type or a lesson for something He intended to reveal in the New Testament? Look at this in 1 Cor 10:3-4- “…and all ate the same spiritual food; and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.” NASU Remember, it was the Pre-Incarnate Christ that was in the cloud that went with them by day and in the fire at night. That’s why in the first instance that the Lord said to Moses, “I will stand before you on the rock. Then strike the rock.” With the Shekinah Glory standing on the rock, Moses was supposed to strike it. What a powerful image that must have been! The rock was a type of Jesus Christ, who was struck for us on the cross. He was smitten for our transgressions. This was a picture of that. This is one of the reasons that explains why the next time Moses was wrong to strike the rock when he should have only spoken to it, because it violated God’s later revelation about the fact that Christ died for sin once for all. He was struck for our sins and that finished it. And the water was a type of the Holy Spirit whose coming was made possible by Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension into Heaven. Therefore, all that was needed now, or all that we need to do now is to speak to the Rock…or to ask Christ for the living waters of His Spirit and He will give it all as a free gift. That’s what Jesus was talking about when He said this in John 7:37-38- “Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” NASU Even the waters flowing from the rock in the wilderness was a preview of this!

But Moses anger got in the way of this important prophetic object lesson. But that’s not all it did, for, you see, the thing about unrestrained anger is that it usually doesn’t just mess up one thing…no it usually messes up lots of things all at once. Like here, not only does Moses not speak to the rock like he was supposed to do, but he now speaks to the people in a way that he wasn’t instructed to speak to them. In anger he starts by calling them a name… “Listen, you rebels!” So now he gives them a label. And the problem with giving people a label is that it’s kind of like giving livestock a branding. For one thing, it’s painful to get branded, and secondly, it pretty much sticks with you. It’s hard to take back a branding once you give it, and it’s hard to forget as well.

Moses would have had every right to rebuke them by telling them that they were acting rebellious against their God. He would have had every right to reprove and admonish their sinful actions. We are actually called to rebuke and admonish sinful actions. What we are not called to do is, in unrighteous anger, brand others with name calling. But there’s a fine line between controlled rebuke and unrestrained anger. Remember that part about “…and do not give the devil an opportunity”? As has been aptly stated: ‘If Satan cannot stop you, he will push you too far.’ Be on the alert for that, particularly with anger. Like here, this was so unlike Moses, who was one of the most humble and godly people ever. But again, remember the ‘push you too far’ thing? Your greatest strength can become your greatest weakness if it falls into the wrong hand of controlling it. Satan will use any means, any people, to twist your strengths into becoming weaknesses if you do not guard against it. Satan is always trying to push righteous anger into becoming unrighteous anger and then unrighteous actions. And if he can do that, then you lose both your moral authority and your proper reward, like even Moses later did.

And, remember something else; once you resort to calling someone a name, you have generally just lost your leverage in your argument. When people are labeled or called a name, they immediately tend to forget what their offenses actually are and instead just focus on how you offended them by calling them a name. I once worked in an organization that was managed by a tyrant. I know that’s a name, but I’m using this person as an illustration, not as a co-worker, anymore. But inevitably this man would cause good people to eventually come to the place where they had had enough. And so they would either just quit, or they would give him a piece of their mind before they quit. And often they would begin by calling him a name before they were done listing their grievances. And now here’s the important point about all this: Afterwards, all this man would focus on was the offense of being called ‘some name’, or being labeled in some way, instead of considering the grievances and possibly changing his offensive ways as pointed out in their grievances. Point being: Once they threw what he thought was an unjust name or a label at him, they lost all their leverage concerning their grievances, over which they did have just causes.

But that’s what unrestrained anger can do; it can cause you to sin. Now be sure about this: There is a time for anger; righteous anger that is. “Be angry; and yet do not sin.” Moses was right to be angry about their rebellion against God, their grumbling against God, and their judgmental spirit toward Aaron and himself. The problem is that he gave control of his spirit over to his anger instead of being controlled by God’s spirit in order to rightly handle his anger.

You know the best way to ‘handle’ your anger? Give the ‘handle’ to God. Remember who we are: we are ‘vessels’ of God, and God alone is to have the handle, and He is to then control what is done with the vessel. Now, yes, He may choose to pour out rebuke through us vessels, or reproof through us, or correction through us, or righteous anger through us…and so on. But you see, the thing is, even if it’s time to pour out righteous anger, if we have given God the handle on it; it’s not going to be done in an unrighteous way.

We need to trust God to lead us even when we are angry. So think of yourself as God thinks of you, as His vessel. And keep giving the handle on your emotions over to God. Plus, righteous anger is always more powerful than unrighteous anger anyway. You can even ask God, “Lord, how should we handle this problem over which I am angry?” And the Lord may want to handle it through tough love like He has shown many times in the Scriptures. Or He may want to handle it through tender love. That’s why you also need to ask for wisdom, in order to know what time it is, as in: “…there is a time for everything – a time to tear down and a time to build up – a time to embrace and a time to turn away – a time to be silent and a time to speak – a time for war and a time for peace…” (Eccl 3:1-8) Most people understand the hours of the day, but they still don’t know how to tell time; as in, what the time is calling for in different situations. And so they often just go ‘rogue’ instead of going ‘righteous’.

And for Moses here, who was so irritated by those he was trying to serve, he misjudged both the time and the consequences of His own disobedience to the instructions of God. “Because you did not trust Me enough to demonstrate My holiness to the people of Israel, you will not lead them into the land I am giving them!”

Remember this: Satisfying God’s righteous desires will always be more rewarding than satisfying our unrighteous desires. Plus, there is never any gain in disobedience to God. Moses had led these rebellious people all the way to Canaan, but because he drew the attention away from God’s glory and onto himself, and did not demonstrate God’s holiness to the people, he forfeited the reward of entering into the land himself.

Mark it down. There is no win in sin. There is only loss. Moses is even an example here of how a believer can lose privileges or rewards through disobedience. It’s why the Apostle Paul cautions us to not lose our coming privileges or rewards in the coming Kingdom through disobedience to the instructions of God for our lives. And note that this wasn’t a Salvation issue for Moses. He was saved by grace through faith in the sacrifice of the coming Passover Lamb, the Messiah, the same as we are. He was saved as a gift of God. But his privileges and rewards were based upon his obedience as a saved follower of God. And in this case, Moses lost his privilege, lost his reward of going on into Canaan.

It’s fascinating though, that he later did, as remember who was on the Mount of Transfiguration with Jesus in Judea or the land of Canaan? Right, Moses and Elijah. So, he finally got there, but in this instance, he did lose his reward of entering the land because of his disobedience to God’s instructions.

Don’t lose any of the privileges or rewards God wants to give you from either disobedience to God’s instructions for your life or from not giving the glory to God for His works through your life or from not demonstrating the holiness of God through your life. And especially, don’t let the rebellious and irritating ways of others around you pressure you to blow past righteous anger into unrighteous anger. Once you go rogue into ‘unrighteousness’ you have not only lost your righteous authority, but you also lose your righteous reward. Remember, don’t let the enemy win by pushing you too far into sin. No one is supposed to push you around anyway. We are only to be led by the Spirit of God, to whom we given the handle for using us, as His vessel, any way that He wants. And remember this as well: God’s ways are always the most satisfying anyway! There is no sin on earth that is more satisfying than obedience to the Will of God and the Word of God.

Written For Our Instruction, Pt. 2

Study Guide, March 11, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

If I were to ask you what one of the most remarkable products we use all the time is, we would no doubt think of our electronics: smart phones, smart televisions, smart watches, smart alecks, and so on. But one of the most amazing products ever made is the humble automobile tire. After the invention of the wheel itself, the rubber tire that goes around it is really one of the most remarkable inventions, as well as being one of the main things that keeps our world moving. A man named ‘Charles Goodyear’ invented vulcanized rubber in 1844. And, get this, for the first 25 years of the car all tires were white. Yeah, zinc oxide was added to the rubber for strength, but it had a side effect of making bright white tires. Later on they added carbon black, which was a waste product of the petroleum industry, in order to add longevity to the tire, but it changed the color to black. Although, the modern tire is now made up of over 200 different materials, including metals and oils. But if any of you buy ‘Goodyear’ tires, you can thank Charles for that.

And a couple other names you might know come from the fact that in 1888 John Dunlop invented air-filled tires, but mainly for bicycles. It took another fellow to use them on automobiles; a guy named Andre Michelin. Yeah, these tires are named after real people.

But back to the tire itself. Think again about this product that most people rarely think about. Did you know that while you are traveling down the road at 60 miles per hour your tires are rotating at 750 revolutions per minute? And let’s say it’s a hot summer day of 90 degrees outside. So while you enjoy the A/C inside your car, your tires are experiencing temperatures of up to 50 degrees higher than the actual temperature. So not only are they going around 750 revolutions per minute, but now they are doing this at around 140 degrees, all the while enduring a beating from rolling over cracks and holes and all sorts of debris on the road.

So what’s the best way to thank your faithful tires? Keep them properly inflated. Did you know that at least a fourth of all the cars driving around you have under-inflated tires, which lead to accidents at the worst, and just increased tire wear and gasoline waste otherwise. The Department of Transportation estimates that 5 million gallons of fuel a day are wasted due to low tire pressure. That’s more than 2 billion gallons per year. So check your tire-pressure at least once a month. Now, many cars after 2008 have tire pressure monitoring systems, but the warning light doesn’t come on until the tire is already 25 percent under-inflated. So a manual tire gauge check is the best. And don’t go by the number on the tire. That’s the maximum. You don’t want to fill it to the maximum. Use the number on the door plate of the driver’s side. Remember, in warm temperature air pressure increases when you’re driving, so you don’t want to start with the maximum. And fill your tires when the tires are cold, or not in use for at least three hours. Also, realize that weather can affect your tire pressure. For every 10 degrees F, tire pressure will adjust by 1 pound (psi). For example, if the outside air temperature increases 10 degrees, the tire pressure will increase by 1 pound. And if the air temperature falls 10 degrees, the tire pressure will decrease by 1 pound (psi). So that’s why we need to regularly check them.

Now, you might be thinking: Why is Pastor talking so much about tires? Well, not only do we like to give practical living helps to the Chapel Family, but this is just another example of the fact that we all need instructions for how to do life, about basically everything! And if we need instructions about not only the basic things in life then it reinforces the fact that we all need instructions about the things that are of the utmost importance in life; instructions on how to better understand, follow, and serve our very Creator and Redeemer.

Again, The Apostle Paul reminded us that the things that were written in the New Testament about those people that we read about in the Old Testament were written for our instruction. We are to learn how to live by how they lived and to also learn what they learned about how to live in relationship to God and others. And so we need to look into the life of another person who had a lot to learn and a lot to teach us. His name was Jacob. And even though we have read a lot about Jacob from maybe our child-hood, there is always more to learn and glean from this remarkable follower of God.

Apparently my Mother used to read a lot about Jacob to my oldest brother when he was little because she said when she would start to read about him at night my brother would say: “Jacob, Jacob, Jacob…every night it’s Jacob!” I’ll have to ask him about that again the next time I talk to him.

We talked about Jacob at our Men’s Retreat. So the question is: What are some things that Jacob can teach us or instruct us on how to better know and serve our God and others? Well, for starters: We learn some things about human nature, like with his early encounter with Esau. Gen 25:27-34- “As the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter. He was an outdoorsman, but Jacob had a quiet temperament, preferring to stay at home. Isaac loved Esau because he enjoyed eating the wild game Esau brought home, but Rebekah loved Jacob. One day when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau arrived home from the wilderness exhausted and hungry. Esau said to Jacob, “I’m starved! Give me some of that red stew!” (This is how Esau got his other name, Edom, which means “red.”)“All right,” Jacob replied, “but trade me your rights as the firstborn son.” “Look, I’m dying of starvation!” said Esau. “What good is my birthright to me now?” But Jacob said, “First you must swear that your birthright is mine.” So Esau swore an oath, thereby selling all his rights as the firstborn to his brother, Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate the meal, then got up and left. He showed contempt for his rights as the firstborn.” NLT

Several lessons spill out of this passage about stew. That sounds messy, doesn’t it? But One is this: Isn’t it amazing what people will exchange for stew? Think about Esau here: Esau was willing to exchange his future birthright to satisfy his temporary appetite. The birthright generally was a provision that came with special authority in family decisions, along with a double portion of the family inheritance, and special blessings and privileges passed on by the Father. So as is evident, the birthright was a great honor, and something to be thankful for, but especially, something to be patient for, because the birthright was not for the here and now, but for the here-after, or the future. But when your appetite is for the pleasures of the now instead of the blessings of the future; well, then you’re likely to exchange most anything for stew.

Be careful about you crave. If you don’t learn to crave the things that God’s stewards are supposed to become for God and do for God more than you crave the things found in this world’s stew, then you will always be focused on living for the here and now instead of investing your life for the here-after; or the forever-after. Or, be careful about what you hunger for, for if you go with your natural appetites you will just find yourself hungering for more of the here and now. But if you will go with your spiritual appetites you will find yourself hungering for more for more of the things of the ‘here-after’. You’ll develop a hunger for Heaven, as well as being more satisfied on Earth. Remember Jesus words about finding true happiness and also both present and future reward? Matt 5:6- “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” 6:33- “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” NASU

We each have a birthright to be thankful for, but to also be patient for. Jesus told us that He has plans for us to participate in reigning with Him in the coming Kingdom and to enjoy great portions of the family inheritance, and that special blessings and privileges are available. But these kingdom blessings are reserved for His children who seek first His kingdom and His righteousness as they live in the here and now. God doesn’t want any of His children to forfeit any of their kingdom inheritance or privileges because of exchanging them for the temporal things of this world.

So here’s a question: What is the stew in your life around you? Well, that could be any number of things in this world around us. And the thing is, they may be all good things in and of themselves. Like there was nothing bad about the stew that Jacob made and that Esau craved. I love stew, don’t you? There are good things in stew. The issue was not the stew. The issue is that there is something far more important in life than stew, and that is – stewardship. Both Jacob and Esau knew a lot about stew, but neither of them knew much about ‘stewardship’. Again, There is something more important in life than whatever it is that is ‘stew to you’, and that is, your than ‘stewardship to God’.

How odd, that even as early on as the family of Isaac and Rebekah and Jacob and Esau that this great purpose for mankind had already been forgotten: the ‘stewardship’ of man under the ‘sovereignty of God’. Here you have Jacob conniving and deceiving his brother about his birthright and you have Esau sacrificing his future rights on the altar of his immediate appetites, and neither one of them thinking about their personal accountability to God. They were just making it up as they went along without any thought of God’s plans for their lives.

Think about it: Most people around us are still paying more attention to the stew for their lives than to their stewardship in their lives. Most people are still making up their lives like a batch of stew instead of realizing that God has already made up a plan for them that includes who they are to become and what they are to do. Mark it down: ‘stewardship’ is God’s design for our lives. And ‘stewardship’ means that God has already made up the plan for you and for me on who we are to be and what we are to do. And certainly God has included a lot of liberty on lots of choices for us. But as far as the character we are to build and the commandments we are to keep, as well as many of the service assignments we are to do…well, God already has a plan in mind for each of us. And our part is to now yield to His Lordship and be His ‘steward’ in looking to God for how we go about using our time, and our talents, and our treasures, knowing that God is the sole Owner of it all and we are His stewards of it all.

In fact, it took a wrestling match with God for Jacob to learn about being God’s steward. Remember that? Now remember, a ‘Steward’ is ‘a God ruled man’ or ‘a God ruled woman’. Jacob was not yet a God ruled man, but he was about to become one. Gen 32:24-32- “Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he touched the socket of his thigh; so the socket of Jacob’s thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with him. Then he said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” But he said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” He said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed.” Then Jacob asked him and said, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And he blessed him there. So Jacob named the place Peniel, for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved.” Now the sun rose upon him just as he crossed over Penuel, and he was limping on his thigh. Therefore, to this day the sons of Israel do not eat the sinew of the hip which is on the socket of the thigh, because he touched the socket of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew of the hip.” NASU

Did you know that this prohibition against eating the sinew of the hip or area along the sciatic nerve of the hip is still practiced in the Jewish world? It’s not part of the Mosaic Law or anything, but it has been the custom ever since this event of Jacob that kosher eating does not permit this part of the hip in an animal to be eaten. Isn’t it interesting how meticulous some traditions are kept and how ignored other great revelations are; like the prophecies that Jesus fulfilled in being the world’s Messiah?

But as for Jacob, well he really did want the blessing of the Lord on his life. We need to commend him for this. But in becoming a God ruled man there are first things first. Before we can become what God intends us to be we have to face ourselves and admit what we are in ourselves. That’s why the Lord asked him, “What is your name?” Do you remember the last time that Jacob was asked that question? It was his father, Isaac, who asked him “Who are you, my son?” and Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn”. Uh oh! Remember, even Jacob’s name meant ‘deceiver’. You know that part about “…be sure, your sin will find you out…”? Yeah, it does every time. It’s like the Lord was saying to Jacob… “So, son…let’s go over this again. Left to yourself, who are you really?” Once a person admits who they are in and of themselves, then they can become who they were meant to be in and by the grace of God and power of God ruling in their life.

These two things are required for any person to become a faithful and useful and blessed servant of the Lord God. You have to know who you are left to yourself, or in and of yourself ruling in your life; and you then have to know who you are meant to be and can be in and by the grace of God and power of God ruling in your life. Only then can you reach the place where like Paul said, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.” 1 Cor 15:10 NASU, and, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Phil 4:13 NKJV

Remember something: Knowing who you are in Christ precedes understanding what you are supposed to do as a Christian. Until a believer comes to understand their identity in Christ they will always be confused about their purposes as a Christian.

And we will pause this study right there and let you ponder that more and more in order to discover the joy of understanding that more and more and the blessings that come from living that out more and more.

(Automobile tire information gleaned from sites: edmonds.com; caranddriver.com; etc.)

Written For Our Instruction

Study Guide, March 4, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

One of the great things about our Men’s Retreats is that we come away with so many ‘take-aways’ that we can further dwell upon and then pass on to others. They are ‘take-aways’ that become ‘give-aways’. And since we had so many ‘take-aways’ from our Retreat we thought it would be especially helpful to turn some of them into ‘give-aways’ for the Chapel family.

And, of course, some are just helpful everyday kind of things to know, some like we have talked about recently, like a few of these observations from women about men. Just practical stuff, okay? Women have observed why men love to barbecue: It’s because whenever danger and fire are involved, men love to be in on that! Some of you guys probably have some pretty good barbecue horror stories, right? I had a friend that put a bunch of flour all over some pork chops and then put them on an open fire…you talk about charcoal flamed meat…they were torched! Women also say that lots of men suffer from ‘open-cupboard-itis’ and ‘open-cabinet-itis’. I think for most guys, it would just make sense to be able to just look and see what’s available in the cupboards without the doors covering up the stuff, you know? Men think in terms of ‘what’s practical’. How about this department store issue? Women have observed that some men can slip into a coma while waiting for their wife to come out of a fitting room. So, you might want to just check on them once in a while. And we’ve touched on this one a bit, but it’s amazing how frustrated it makes women to realize that men really can think about ‘nothing’… and for a considerable amount of time. When a man is asked what he is thinking about and if he says “Nothing”, he really means it, even though it’s hard for women to imagine you can actually think about ‘nothing’!

Anyway, these are just a few practical everyday kind of things to ponder, you know? But now, the Apostle Paul pointed out that one of the reasons the Scriptures record so many observations about so many different men and women is because of this: “…Whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Rom 15:4 NASU Thank the Lord, there is hope for us all! Right? Therefore, through the lives of these real men and real women in real places in real life situations we can learn how God really works in and with and through real people; people like us; you and me. And we also marveled over the wondrous truth that no matter how much you may have messed up or flubbed up or tripped up, if you will look up and listen up and fess up to God, He will pick you up and fix you up and fill you up and wonderfully use you for the glory of God and the blessings of others and yourself as well.

So lets look at some of those ‘take-aways’ from some of those people that were written about for our instruction. And we’re not going to go through the story line of each character, rather we’re going to just highlight some of the significant things we learn form their adventures. So first lets’ look at some observations about Moses.

You all know the classic response that Moses gave to the Lord after the Lord met him on Mt. Horeb, which is another name for Mt. Sinai, from the midst of a burning bush and revealed His great plan to use him to assist God in the deliverance of the Israelites. Yeah, we are told that Moses’ response was: “But Moses pleaded with the Lord, “O Lord, I’m not very good with words. I never have been, and I’m not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled.” Ex 4:10 NLT Tongue-tied and tangled words….yeah, I can relate to that. But this was Moses’ defense. And notice that he said: “I’m not very good with words. I never have been.” “Oh, really?” Now, the Scriptures don’t say that the Lord said “Oh really?”. But God very well could have, because when we come to the detailed description of Moses in Acts 7:22 it reveals something quite different: “Moses was educated in all the learning of the Egyptians, and he was a man of power in words and deeds.” NASU How about that? You see, ‘a man of power in words’ and ‘not very good with words’ doesn’t really add up, does it? So what happened from the time that Moses was ‘powerful in words’ to ‘not very good with words’? Did he really lose his power or ability like he said? Or did he lose something else? It seems more like how Tony Evans put it: It seems that Moses had lost his ‘mojo’. Moses lost his ‘mojo’: He had lost that spark…that energy…that enthusiasm he once had. For some reason he had become discouraged, but not necessarily humble, yet. And we’ll talk more about that in a bit. But what had discouraged him?

Well, since we also find out more ‘behind the scenes’ information from the book of Acts we learn this: “But when he was approaching the age of forty, it entered his mind to visit his brethren, the sons of Israel. And when he saw one of them being treated unjustly, he defended him and took vengeance for the oppressed by striking down the Egyptian. And he supposed that his brethren understood that God was granting them deliverance through him, but they did not understand.” Acts 7:23-25 NASU

And you know that it all went downhill from there. But what was the problem here? At our retreat we talked a lot about what the problem might have been…It might have been a communication problem. It doesn’t appear that Moses had let many Israelites in on his plan to deliver them. It’s hard to get behind a plan that you have not been told anything about, right? It’s like Dr. Evans said, “I’m not quite sure what Moses long term plan was. I don’t know if he thought he was going to deliver the Israelites one Egyptian at a time or if he was just trying to make a point.”¹ Or it might have been an identification plan. Apparently Moses had been developing a deepening empathy for the suffering of his brethren for quite some time. We learn in Hebrews 11 about this: Heb 11:24-26- “By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward.” NASU Wow, this is just another reason Moses is one of the heroes of the faith. And how amazing that, although it’s not explained how, somehow he had come to realize that, kind of like Esther, that he had been appointed for such a time as this, appointed to be used by God to be a deliverer of the Israelites. But when he first took action on this delivering mission, his brethren didn’t really identify with him as their ‘Deliverer’. They didn’t seem to know what he was up to.

But notice again what especially took a toll on Moses’ mojo: “And he supposed his brethren understood that God was granting them deliverance through him, but they did not understand.” Don’t you hate it when that happens? You think people understand your good intentions and that you are trying to help them, but….What are we to do? Now, we’re veering off road a little here, but we’ll get back. But we ought to point out that this is a common challenge for all of us when we have good intentions and really are trying to help people. But often-times when you try to help people they aren’t going to understand your good intentions nor the good that you are trying to do for them. So what are we to do? Sometimes it just comes down to this: “People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered. Love them anyway. If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives. Do good anyway. If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway. The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway. Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable. Be honest and frank anyway. The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds. Think big anyway. People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs. Fight for a few underdogs anyway. What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight. Build anyway. People really need help, but may attack you if you do help them. Help people anyway. Give the world the best you have and you’ll get kicked in the teeth. Give the world the best you have anyway.” (That’s from the Paradoxical Commandments by Kent Keith)

We are to relate to others based upon who and what we are, not based upon who and what they are. We don’t wait for people to deserve good before doing good, we do good whenever the good we are considering doing is the right thing to do. That’s called grace living and grace giving, and God always rewards our grace living and grace giving, regardless of what others do about it. So do good anyway.

But now we need to point out one caveat to all of this: Remember, we’re talking about ‘good intentions’ here, like Moses had…and yet it all went south. One of the reoccurring reminders from the Scriptures concerning our good intentions is this: ‘Without God’s directions guiding our good intentions we set ourselves and others up for a lot of unnecessary frustrations.’ And these unnecessary frustrations may have some really long-lasting complications; like forty years in the desert here with Moses.

Friends, our good intentions are good things; they really are. The fact that you have so many good intentions about doing good for your family, your friends, your co-workers and such is good and noble and honorable. However, like every good thing: In order to turn your good intentions into godly actions you need to let God in on them, and right from the start. You need to first ask God for His directions and first look into His instructions in order to guide you and guard you in acting on any of your good intentions.

Now Solomon had not yet written this before Moses took actions on his good intentions, but the Spirit of God within him was trying to impress him with this: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.” Prov 3:5-6 NLT It’s quite clear that Moses had not first cleared his ‘good intentions’ with God, nor had first gotten God’s directions as to how to go about acting on his strong impressions that he was going to be a part of assisting in the deliverance of his brethren. In fact, it took a long time for him to start trusting in the Lord with all of his heart and not leaning on his own understanding. He learned the hard way. Like some people have asked: “Is there any other way?” It often doesn’t seem like it, you know? Like that DC Talk song, “Why is it that I always have to learn the hard way?” Well, I guess because we are so often so hard headed, right? But Moses learned the hard way that Moses was never supposed to be in charge; he was suppose to be controlled by the only One who is to rightfully be in charge over our lives.

But here’s the wonderful thing about that: When God does have charge over our life and when we then do look to God for His directions for guiding our good intentions…oh sure, there may still be push-back from others we are trying to help, but now God will have our back in whatever good we are trying to do, as well as we will have His blessing on whatever good we are trying to do. And when God has your back and you have God’s blessing on whatever you’re trying to do, then in God’s book, your good intentions become godly deeds and actions, regardless of the immediate outcomes. Amen to that?

But now one more thing that we earlier pointed out that Moses had to learn in order to experience God’s fellowship and for God to be able to use him. And that is: humility. I had never heard it put this way before, but when God told Moses to take off his sandals because he was standing on holy ground, it was like, as Dr. Evans put it; it was like God saying; “Moses, while you’re standing on top of those sandals in front of Me, you are still too high. You need to come down off those sandals and back to the dust, from which I made you.” Moses had to think about who God really was and who he really was.

Most people in the world have no idea how dependent they are upon the mercies and grace of God for everything they have and everything they are. John the Baptist once asked: “So what do you have that has not been given to you?” We could start with breath, and then all of our abilities and talents and mental capabilities and on and on. Two things are required for Biblical humility: You have to know who your Maker is; and you have to know that your Maker made you. And you see, when you know this, then you become humble before your Maker, and then your Maker will begin to exalt you with a sense of your significance; knowing that He made you with special purposes in mind for you. But again, only when you know who your Maker is can you then know who you are, and can then begin to have an understanding that since God made you that means that He has special purposes for you. And you can’t get anymore significant than that.

Let the world chase after success for themselves; you focus on significance for God; significance in letting God use you for the purposes that He made you. For nothing satisfies any more than that!

1. Dr. Tony Evans, It’s Not Too Late, p 23

And God Made Them Different, Pt. 2

Study Guide, February18, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

Some of the wisest, yet most unusual wedding vows I ever came across were spoken by a Bride that after the Minister said, “Do you take this man for better or worse…” she said, “Well, he ain’t gettin’ any better, and he cain’t get no worse…so I takes him just as he is!” That was a wise woman! That saved the both of them from a lot of unrealistic expectations.

We thought we ought to continue on a course we started last week of exploring some remarkable ways that God made men and women different, as well as made them with similar needs. And wisdom in relationships is found in better understanding these differences and in better assisting one another in these similar needs.

Last time we noted that some of the differences are simply biological, of course. So consider some more differences, like even with ‘blood’. Men have heavier blood, with 20% more red blood cells. And since red blood cells supply oxygen to the body cells, that explains why women tire more easily and are more prone to fainting. Men also have thicker skin and thus bruise less easily. Men also even have thicker skulls than women. (Resist from reading between the lines here Ladies…) Then, women have larger kidneys and liver, but men’s lungs are larger, so that’s why men and women even breathe differently. And women’s metabolism is normally lower than man’s…so that might have something to do with why women can withstand heat better and men can withstand cold better. Also, on average, men possess 50% percent more brute strength than women since 40% of a man’s body weight is muscle, compared to 23% for a woman. And when it comes to lifespans, well, women tend to outlive men by three to four years.¹

Here’s a remarkable difference that we learned from Dr. Dobson’s study of ‘Understanding Boys’. At about six or seven weeks in the development of a pre-born baby boy a ‘hormonal bath’ alters the structure of the little boy’s brain. The rope of nerve fibers, called the ‘corpus callosum’, that connects the two sides of the brain are changed in this hormonal wash or bath. And from then on the number of electrical transmissions that flow from one side to the other are more limited in the male than in the female; with women having up to four times as many neurons connecting the right and left side of their brain. And this has life long implications for both men and women. It explains why, as we pointed out last time, men think rather compartmentally and women think globally.

One implication has to do with the emotional component. For example: Because of this change in the ‘corpus callosum’ a man will have to think longer about what he believes and feels—especially about something with an emotional component. A woman, on the other hand, will typically be able to access her prior experience from both hemispheres and discern almost instantly how she feels about it. ² That’s why if a woman asks a man how he feels about something, and he says, “I don’t know…I’ll have to think about it”…well, that might sound really weird to a woman, but it makes perfect sense to a guy. Remember, women have an enhanced ability to combine thoughts and even memories with their emotions, but guys don’t have quite this same access. So if a woman asks her husband if he likes her new hairstyle, and he doesn’t answer immediately…it doesn’t instantly mean ‘No’… he’s just waiting for his thinking about it and his feeling about it to come to a conclusion…with no doubt the answer being “Absolutely!” But anyway, this explains the silence.

Here’s something that occurs very differently between men and women’s brains as well. Men and women make decisions about things very differently, such as how they go about asking for things they want or need. Women develop from childhood a kind of language known as ‘hint language’ when asking for something she wants or needs. A woman may say, “Honey, do you feel like going out to dinner and seeing a movie tonight?, when what she really means is, “I want to go out to dinner and see a movie tonight”. Unfortunately, men often do not get the hint. This is due to the fact that ‘hint language’ is not a part of men’s language style, since men tend to take language pretty much ‘straight up’, or they focus on the content of the message instead of hidden meanings. So when a guy gets a question like that, “Do you feel like going out…” he’s thinking about how he feels about going out. And when his thoughts tell him, ‘well, there’s that big race on the tube tonight’ and then when his feelings remind him how good he feels about racing, he thinks, “No, I’m fine…but thanks for asking…not realizing that she’s standing there thinking, “That was cold…don’t you even care that I want us to go out and do something special together like have dinner and talking and going see a movie?” ³ He didn’t get that ‘hint’ at all!

Now that might be a stretch in an example, but women should not assume that men understand ‘Hint language’. Rather, do understand that men love it when women tell them exactly what they want or need instead of dropping hints. Guys have a hard time with hints. Especially, young boys. When a Mom says to their daughter, ‘Would you like to clean up your room?’ The girl tunes in and thinks, “Mom wants me to clean up my room. So ‘Okay’”. But when a Mom says that to her son, the boy thinks, “Whoa…what? Do I want to clean up my room? What I would like is to go get some pizza!” Guys don’t handle hints well. Just tell them exactly what you want them to do. They can take it!

On the other hand, remember that motto for men by the Apostle Peter: “Guys, try to live with your wives in an ‘understanding way’? There’s actually a ‘key’ that opens up better understanding for both men and women. But think about it in terms of the guys here. When, for example, husbands think more in terms of ‘serving their wives’ rather than in being served they will come to not only bless their wives more and more, they will also come to understand more and more things about their wife, like even more about this other language that their wife speaks. Serving your wife opens the door to understanding your wife, and vice versa. Plus, it is through serving that you will discover a greater sense of joy than you could have ever reached without this attempt at seeking to serve her more and more and to understand her better and better.

Which brings us back to the similar needs of men and women, which when acted upon brings an amazing harmony to all these differences. Like the surprising need we just mentioned, which we also saw last time. Again, remember the amazing revelation: God’s requirements are also our basic needs. Deut 10:12- “Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require from you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul…” NASU

Last time we talked about most of these except for this one about ‘serving’. Did you know that both men and women have a basic similar need to ‘serve God’? Remember even Jesus said: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 NASU Of course that was the ultimate demonstration of service. But what we find is that in serving others we are fulfilled. Just before Jesus said what He did about His coming to serve He said: “…whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant; and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all.” Mark 10:43-44 NASU

Particularly in, say a husband and wife relationship, as you humble yourself in service to your spouse and others you then rise in their esteem of you. Or as you pour yourself out in service God sees to it that you are filled in significance and satisfaction.

It was fascinating that in our Men’s Life Group study that on the section discussing things we can do right now to find healing for our emotional and spiritual lives it focused on ‘serving others’. And one of the discussions said that the famous psychiatrist Karl Menninger was once asked what he thought someone should do if on the brink of a nervous breakdown. He said, “(I would tell them) leave your home, find someone in need, and do something to help that person.” Wow! What a surprising therapy, huh? And what a commentary on how a person’s sense of significance and satisfaction are directly related to their service to God and others.

This is actually built right into a marital relationship between a man and a woman. Before the Apostle Paul elaborates on directions for husbands and wives he starts with this exhortation: Eph 5:21- “Be willing to serve each other out of respect for Christ.” ERV That is the starting place in successful relationships. And since serving God and others is really a basic need of ours, then by the husband serving the wife and the wife serving the husband, each are getting one of their own basic needs met even as they focus on seeking to meet the basic needs of their spouse.

Now, remember, every discipline of right living, righteous living, holy living, is an acquired taste. The natural bent of our human natures is to seek to be served rather that seeking to serve others. So you have to stick with it. It’s like sowing and reaping…keep sowing good seeds of service and you will begin to reap the fruit of significance and satisfaction in your relationship and your own personal well being.

Speaking of differences, there is actually a very specific difference that the Apostle Paul points out at the end of that chapter of directions for husbands and wives. And when men and women catch this and remember this and adjust how they relate to one another according to this, it changes everything in their relationship for the better. It is absolutely fascinating. Notice: Eph 5:33- “Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband.” NASU

After an entire letter of the Apostle spelling out our similar needs as brothers and sisters in Christ, he then pointedly states: But here’s one very different need between you: “Husbands: love your wife; Wives; respect your husbands.” And with this statement the Scriptures point out that the basic need of a woman is ‘love’ and the basic need of a man is ‘respect’. And when men understand this about women and women understand this about men is changes everything in their relationship with one another.

In a remarkable book called ‘Love and Respect’ the author said that we could think about these Biblical needs in terms of a woman needing love just like she needs air to breathe and a man needing respect just like he needs air to breathe. He said when a husband is being unloving towards his wife it’s like stepping on her air hose…her spirit deflates. And when a wife is being disrespectful towards her husband it’s like stepping on his air hose…he shuts down. Often both spouses have goodwill toward each other, but they are not recognizing this difference between each others needs. For example: She criticizes out of love, but he hears only disrespect. He distances himself to prevent things from escalating, which he thinks of as being the honorable thing to do, but she sees it as a failure to be loving. And round and round it goes. He calls this the ‘Crazy Cycle’.

It’s like this counselor has explained to couples in counseling in that whenever a wife is complaining, criticizing, or crying, she is sending her encoded message: “I want your love.” And whenever a husband is speaking strongly or sometimes not speaking at all, he is sending his encoded message: “I want your respect.” ⁴ And interestingly enough, neither of these is about earning this love or respect at the time, rather it’s about sacrificially giving to the other what is most needed at the time. Remember, Biblical love is ‘sacrificial love’ and Biblical respect is ‘sacrificial respect’. It’s not about condoning or agreeing with the behavior at the time. If so, we would all be in big trouble with our God right now because Rom 5:8 reveals to us: “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Biblical love and respect are both sacrificial since they are based upon giving what the other one needs, regardless of if they first deserve it. That’s what makes it sacrificial. But it’s also these sacrifices that then have great impacts on people’s lives, like Jesus’ sacrifice for us.

And that’s why we find that in this counsel in Ephesians for marriage relationships it’s all about ‘sacrifice’, based upon the sacrificial example of Jesus. Eph 5:22-33- “Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body. FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND SHALL BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH. This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband.” NASU

And that says it all, so we’ll just say; God made men and women different so that by the grace of God they could celebrate their unique designs and by the power of God they can compliment each another as they worship and serve God for the glory of God and the gain of one another.

1. From the book by Gary Smalley and Steve Scott, If Only He Knew: What No Woman Can Resist

2. From the book by Dr. James Dobson, Understanding Boys

3. From the book by Bruce Christopher, Why Are Women So Strange and Men So Weird?

4. From the book by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs, Love and Respect, p 40

And God Made Them…Different…

Study Guide, February 11, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

So there was a guy that wanted to give his wife something special for her birthday which was coming up soon. As she was looking at her appearance in the mirror he asked her, “What would you like for your birthday?” And she said, “I’d like to be six again.”

So on her birthday he he got up early and made his wife a bowl of Fruit Loops. Then he took her to an amusement park where they rode all the rides. Five hours later, her stomach and head were all topsy turvey, but on they went to get a Happy Meal with extra fries and a chocolate shake. Next , he took her to the movies and had popcorn, soda, and candy.When they finally got home she flopped on the couch and he asked her: “So, what was it like to be six again?” And she said: “I meant my dress size!”¹

Test all assumptions first…before acting on them, right? As we share this special Sunday together as Brothers and Sisters in Christ we thought it would be helpful to explore some ways that God made us…well…different in design, yet with some same needs as well.

There’s an age old question that has been mulled over by theologians, scientists, sages, poets, and educators. And basically it’s this: ‘Why are women so strange and men so weird?’ Now the Bible doesn’t use these particular terms…this is more like those ‘self-evident’ truths that our Founding Fathers spoke about in the Declaration of Independence. I think they actually wanted to include a section in the Constitution about these differences between the brothers and the sisters in order to help establish a peaceful nation, but they had to cut it off somewhere.

But how remarkable of God to intentionally create men and women so different from one another and yet He also designed them to worship and work and serve harmoniously together. It’s both full of wonder and it’s wonderful at the same time.

So let’s explore: Have you noticed that men and women think differently? Basically men think ‘compartmentally’ and women think ‘globally’. Men tend to think in terms of one compartment at a time, and then mentally deal with one thing at a time. Whereas since women think globally, they tend to think in terms of things being interconnected, and then deal with many things at a time. And both of these tendencies have their advantages and disadvantages.

One common example of this distinction is seen in the ways men and women watch television. A guy can either watch a program or he can talk about other stuff. But he has trouble concentrating on doing both. Whereas a woman can both watch a program and talk about other stuff, and even have other projects going on at the same time and can concentrate on them all. It’s pretty remarkable. However, its also why guys love channel surfing, but women generally tend to hate channel surfing, because for the guys, he only sets his mind on just one channel at a time. When he clicks to the next one, that other one…he gone. But for the woman, it’s not gone at all…she is still processing the information from the last five channels…it’s all connected, and it can be a bit overwhelming.²

Even in conversations men tend to toss around one subject at a time, whereas women can easily juggle several subjects all at once. The down side of that for men is that it’s hard to be somewhere else other than the one place they mentally are at the time. And the down side of that for women is that it’s hard not to be everywhere at once. Women describe it as ‘cross-talk’ where their brain literally interrupts itself!

Men and women even talk differently. Men tend to be more ‘summary’ oriented, or getting to the bottom line of information. Whereas women tend to be more detail oriented and prefer to process the information that leads to the bottom line. No doubt, that is part of the explanation for a the difference in the amount of words that men and women use in a day…generally about 9,000 a day for men and 15,000 a day for women. Researchers even observed these differences in the play of young children, where the sounds from the little girls were nearly 100% verbal and the sounds from the little boys were about 40% verbal and around 60% just noises…grunts and making other sounds.³ It’s like Dr. James Dobson pointed out: “Boys love noise!”

But one reason it is helpful to understand this difference in communication styles between men and women is to then better understand and relate to each other in an understanding way. I’ve always found it interesting and even a bit humorous how the Apostle Peter put it in 1 Peter 3:7- “You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way…” NASU It’s like: “Guys, you’ll never actually get there, but keep trying…trying to live with your wife in an understanding way.”

For an example: Men tend to be very informational in their communication and women tend to be very relational in their communication. Men use words for building information reports. Women use words for building relations and rapport. This relational strength in women was even evident in observing various responses in babies. The research noted that baby girls tended to smile more than baby boys. The baby girls responded more to the cries of other babies. And the baby girls gave greater attention to photos of faces.⁴ They were just very responsive to relational things.

One thing to understand about this difference in communication styles is for both men and women to try to understand these tendencies in each other, especially in a like a married relationship. Men are to understand that in relating to their wife they will need to step up their communication since they know that their wife is not just looking for facts when she asks him how his day went. The Christian Comedian Tim Hawkins told of how different he and his wife are in this. She texted him to ask him how his day went and he texted back: “Fine.” And then he asked how hers was and he kept reading and reading and reading…and then he said that after he read it all he texted back one letter: ‘K’.

The point being for guys is to understand that by communicating perhaps further than you’re comfortable with you are actually deepening your rapport with your wife. And women are to understand that if their guy doesn’t give as many details as she would like it’s not because it’s anything against her or that there is something wrong…he might just feel like he’s pretty much out of words for that day. The real point is: try to understand more and more about about each other because even though we aren’t from different planets, Mars and Venus, we do tend to look at life from different ‘vantage points’, or from different view points.

But even though men and women are different biologically, they have similar needs spiritually. And it’s in recognizing these similar needs, as well as then responding to these similar needs that God’s amazing design for worshiping, serving, and working together for glory of God and the gain of one another happens. So let’s think about it.

See if you can point out some of these similar needs for men and women from what Moses said to the people in Deut 10:12-14- “Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require from you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the Lord’s commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good? Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the highest heavens, the earth and all that is in it.” NASU

Does it surprise you to learn that God’s basic requirements are also our basic needs? Did you know that by creation we have a basic need to fear God and to walk in His ways; a basic need to love and serve Him, and a basic need to keep His commandments? This passage is not first about commandments; it’s about relationships. It points out that our fundamental need as a man or a woman is to fear God, follow His lead, love Him, serve Him, and keep His commandments, and do this together, in community, in cooperation, in mutual commitment. Oh, and by the way, as Moses points out, guess what another surprising thing is about all of God’s commandments? They are for our good! Keeping God’s commandments are not only good to do and the right thing to do for God’s sake, but also they are good for our sake and the right thing to do for our sake as well.

Do you think most people think of God’s commandments for life as being the very things that also meet their basic needs in life? Most people tend to think of God’s commandments as restrictions upon us rather than as blessings for us. But keeping God’s commandments are the best thing anyone can do for God, for others, and even for themselves. And so when it comes to relationships between men and women we see that keeping God at the very center of every relationship between men and women is the key to every good thing that can become of any such relationship. Now each of these things is a study in itself, but let’s just consider some summary points about how these relate to our similar needs.

‘Fear the Lord your God’. Did you know that the basic need for men and women is to fear God? And isn’t it amazing how when a man and a woman does fear God that it then also meets one of the basic needs of any relationship, which is stability and security in that relationship? When a man and a woman conducts their lives living in the fear of God, then they will live in such a way that says: “I am accountable to God and, as such, then also accountable to you. And since I am accountable to God I am going to try to relate to you and to treat you the way in which God would have me do so.” And this ‘sense of accountability’ then results in sense of stability and security in their relationship, which are both basic needs of any relationship.

When a spouse knows, or even a child knows, that you have first looked to God to get His permission of how you are going to talk to or going to treat them, it then gives them a great sense of stability and security and even a sense of safety, knowing that you are not going to act according to your own personal feelings and impulses, but rather you are going to act according to God’s permissions about how you are going to speak and act, because you fear God and you consider yourself accountable to God, and even to them, for how you treat them. Remember, the ‘fear of God’ is the beginning of wisdom for everything…especially in a relationship between a man and a woman.

Look at the next thing: “Walk in all His ways and love Him”. Men and Women have another similar basic need, and it’s based upon the fact that they are basically both ‘Sheep’. That’s right…we all be sheep! And even though a person is either a ‘guy sheep’ or ‘girl sheep’ they still have the same need, and that is; ‘to follow’. ‘Following’ is what Sheep do! The question is: “Who are the Sheep going to follow? And if you haven’t figured out the answer to that question or if that answer is not the Good Shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ, then no matter if you are a guy sheep or a girl sheep, then no matter where you are going in any relationship, know this: you are going astray. If you are not personally committed to following Jesus Christ and living life His way then no matter what else you are doing or where you are going in any relationship, you are going astray, because Sheep are either following the Shepherd or they are going astray. But when you do get that figured out, that your basic need is to follow your Shepherd and commit to then following your Shepherd, then you will also find that He will lead you not only in the paths of righteousness, but also in the paths that meet your needs as well those in relationship with you.

Similar needs: Did you know that loving God with all your heart and soul and mind is not only the greatest commandment, but also your greatest need, the greatest need of all men and women? Remember that song ‘Looking for Love in all the Wrong Places’? We could re-title that song with: ‘Looking for Love in all the Wrong People’. How is a Christian man and woman supposed to build a relationship anyway? Ps 127:1-2- “Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain.” NASU

A Biblical love relationship is never about two people; it’s about three people; a Christian man and Christian woman with the Lord at the very center. Any other attempt to build that relationship apart from keeping the Lord at the center is an exercise in ‘Vanity’!

A Christian marriage is often depicted as a circle…when in actuality it is a triangle, with the man and woman at the sides and Christ at the top. And that also depicts how blessed a couple is when they first seek to grow in their relationship with Christ; because the closer they get to Christ, the closer they then get to each other. It’s simply the way God designed it!

Just remember what we’ve discovered so far; that by focusing on these similar needs of men and women, that of worshiping and loving and serving God, that we will be much better able to then celebrate the differences between men and women and see how wonderfully God has designed our lives, not to compete against one another, but to complement one another.

1. 1. 1. cleanjoke.com
      2. From a presentation at Steeling The Mind Conference by Dave Moore, Why Women are Weird and Men are a Mess
      3. Ibid
      4. Ibid

Study Guide (Draft form), February 11, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

So there was a guy that wanted to give his wife something special for her birthday which was coming up soon. As she was looking at her appearance in the mirror he asked her, “What would you like for your birthday?” And she said, “I’d like to be six again.”

So on her birthday he he got up early and made his wife a bowl of Fruit Loops. Then he took her to an amusement park where they rode all the rides. Five hours later, her stomach and head were all topsy turvey, but on they went to get a Happy Meal with extra fries and a chocolate shake. Next , he took her to the movies and had popcorn, soda, and candy.When they finally got home she flopped on the couch and he asked her: “So, what was it like to be six again?” And she said: “I meant my dress size!”¹

Test all assumptions first…before acting on them, right? As we share this special Sunday together as Brothers and Sisters in Christ we thought it would be helpful to explore some ways that God made us…well…different in design, yet with some same needs as well.

There’s an age old question that has been mulled over by theologians, scientists, sages, poets, and educators. And basically it’s this: ‘Why are women so strange and men so weird?’ Now the Bible doesn’t use these particular terms…this is more like those ‘self-evident’ truths that our Founding Fathers spoke about in the Declaration of Independence. I think they actually wanted to include a section in the Constitution about these differences between the brothers and the sisters in order to help establish a peaceful nation, but they had to cut it off somewhere.

But how remarkable of God to intentionally create men and women so different from one another and yet He also designed them to worship and work and serve harmoniously together. It’s both full of wonder and it’s wonderful at the same time.

So let’s explore: Have you noticed that men and women think differently? Basically men think ‘compartmentally’ and women think ‘globally’. Men tend to think in terms of one compartment at a time, and then mentally deal with one thing at a time. Whereas since women think globally, they tend to think in terms of things being interconnected, and then deal with many things at a time. And both of these tendencies have their advantages and disadvantages.

One common example of this distinction is seen in the ways men and women watch television. A guy can either watch a program or he can talk about other stuff. But he has trouble concentrating on doing both. Whereas a woman can both watch a program and talk about other stuff, and even have other projects going on at the same time and can concentrate on them all. It’s pretty remarkable. However, its also why guys love channel surfing, but women generally tend to hate channel surfing, because for the guys, he only sets his mind on just one channel at a time. When he clicks to the next one, that other one…he gone. But for the woman, it’s not gone at all…she is still processing the information from the last five channels…it’s all connected, and it can be a bit overwhelming.²

Even in conversations men tend to toss around one subject at a time, whereas women can easily juggle several subjects all at once. The down side of that for men is that it’s hard to be somewhere else other than the one place they mentally are at the time. And the down side of that for women is that it’s hard not to be everywhere at once. Women describe it as ‘cross-talk’ where their brain literally interrupts itself!

Men and women even talk differently. Men tend to be more ‘summary’ oriented, or getting to the bottom line of information. Whereas women tend to be more detail oriented and prefer to process the information that leads to the bottom line. No doubt, that is part of the explanation for a the difference in the amount of words that men and women use in a day…generally about 9,000 a day for men and 15,000 a day for women. Researchers even observed these differences in the play of young children, where the sounds from the little girls were nearly 100% verbal and the sounds from the little boys were about 40% verbal and around 60% just noises…grunts and making other sounds.³ It’s like Dr. James Dobson pointed out: “Boys love noise!”

But one reason it is helpful to understand this difference in communication styles between men and women is to then better understand and relate to each other in an understanding way. I’ve always found it interesting and even a bit humorous how the Apostle Peter put it in 1 Peter 3:7- “You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way…” NASU It’s like: “Guys, you’ll never actually get there, but keep trying…trying to live with your wife in an understanding way.”

For an example: Men tend to be very informational in their communication and women tend to be very relational in their communication. Men use words for building information reports. Women use words for building relations and rapport. This relational strength in women was even evident in observing various responses in babies. The research noted that baby girls tended to smile more than baby boys. The baby girls responded more to the cries of other babies. And the baby girls gave greater attention to photos of faces.⁴ They were just very responsive to relational things.

One thing to understand about this difference in communication styles is for both men and women to try to understand these tendencies in each other, especially in a like a married relationship. Men are to understand that in relating to their wife they will need to step up their communication since they know that their wife is not just looking for facts when she asks him how his day went. The Christian Comedian Tim Hawkins told of how different he and his wife are in this. She texted him to ask him how his day went and he texted back: “Fine.” And then he asked how hers was and he kept reading and reading and reading…and then he said that after he read it all he texted back one letter: ‘K’.

The point being for guys is to understand that by communicating perhaps further than you’re comfortable with you are actually deepening your rapport with your wife. And women are to understand that if their guy doesn’t give as many details as she would like it’s not because it’s anything against her or that there is something wrong…he might just feel like he’s pretty much out of words for that day. The real point is: try to understand more and more about about each other because even though we aren’t from different planets, Mars and Venus, we do tend to look at life from different ‘vantage points’, or from different view points.

But even though men and women are different biologically, they have similar needs spiritually. And it’s in recognizing these similar needs, as well as then responding to these similar needs that God’s amazing design for worshiping, serving, and working together for glory of God and the gain of one another happens. So let’s think about it.

See if you can point out some of these similar needs for men and women from what Moses said to the people in Deut 10:12-14- “Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require from you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the Lord’s commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good? Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the highest heavens, the earth and all that is in it.” NASU

Does it surprise you to learn that God’s basic requirements are also our basic needs? Did you know that by creation we have a basic need to fear God and to walk in His ways; a basic need to love and serve Him, and a basic need to keep His commandments? This passage is not first about commandments; it’s about relationships. It points out that our fundamental need as a man or a woman is to fear God, follow His lead, love Him, serve Him, and keep His commandments, and do this together, in community, in cooperation, in mutual commitment. Oh, and by the way, as Moses points out, guess what another surprising thing is about all of God’s commandments? They are for our good! Keeping God’s commandments are not only good to do and the right thing to do for God’s sake, but also they are good for our sake and the right thing to do for our sake as well.

Do you think most people think of God’s commandments for life as being the very things that also meet their basic needs in life? Most people tend to think of God’s commandments as restrictions upon us rather than as blessings for us. But keeping God’s commandments are the best thing anyone can do for God, for others, and even for themselves. And so when it comes to relationships between men and women we see that keeping God at the very center of every relationship between men and women is the key to every good thing that can become of any such relationship. Now each of these things is a study in itself, but let’s just consider some summary points about how these relate to our similar needs.

‘Fear the Lord your God’. Did you know that the basic need for men and women is to fear God? And isn’t it amazing how when a man and a woman does fear God that it then also meets one of the basic needs of any relationship, which is stability and security in that relationship? When a man and a woman conducts their lives living in the fear of God, then they will live in such a way that says: “I am accountable to God and, as such, then also accountable to you. And since I am accountable to God I am going to try to relate to you and to treat you the way in which God would have me do so.” And this ‘sense of accountability’ then results in sense of stability and security in their relationship, which are both basic needs of any relationship.

When a spouse knows, or even a child knows, that you have first looked to God to get His permission of how you are going to talk to or going to treat them, it then gives them a great sense of stability and security and even a sense of safety, knowing that you are not going to act according to your own personal feelings and impulses, but rather you are going to act according to God’s permissions about how you are going to speak and act, because you fear God and you consider yourself accountable to God, and even to them, for how you treat them. Remember, the ‘fear of God’ is the beginning of wisdom for everything…especially in a relationship between a man and a woman.

Look at the next thing: “Walk in all His ways and love Him”. Men and Women have another similar basic need, and it’s based upon the fact that they are basically both ‘Sheep’. That’s right…we all be sheep! And even though a person is either a ‘guy sheep’ or ‘girl sheep’ they still have the same need, and that is; ‘to follow’. ‘Following’ is what Sheep do! The question is: “Who are the Sheep going to follow? And if you haven’t figured out the answer to that question or if that answer is not the Good Shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ, then no matter if you are a guy sheep or a girl sheep, then no matter where you are going in any relationship, know this: you are going astray. If you are not personally committed to following Jesus Christ and living life His way then no matter what else you are doing or where you are going in any relationship, you are going astray, because Sheep are either following the Shepherd or they are going astray. But when you do get that figured out, that your basic need is to follow your Shepherd and commit to then following your Shepherd, then you will also find that He will lead you not only in the paths of righteousness, but also in the paths that meet your needs as well those in relationship with you.

Similar needs: Did you know that loving God with all your heart and soul and mind is not only the greatest commandment, but also your greatest need, the greatest need of all men and women? Remember that song ‘Looking for Love in all the Wrong Places’? We could re-title that song with: ‘Looking for Love in all the Wrong People’. How is a Christian man and woman supposed to build a relationship anyway? Ps 127:1-2- “Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain.” NASU

A Biblical love relationship is never about two people; it’s about three people; a Christian man and Christian woman with the Lord at the very center. Any other attempt to build that relationship apart from keeping the Lord at the center is an exercise in ‘Vanity’!

A Christian marriage is often depicted as a circle…when in actuality it is a triangle, with the man and woman at the sides and Christ at the top. And that also depicts how blessed a couple is when they first seek to grow in their relationship with Christ; because the closer they get to Christ, the closer they then get to each other. It’s simply the way God designed it!

Just remember what we’ve discovered so far; that by focusing on these similar needs of men and women, that of worshiping and loving and serving God, that we will be much better able to then celebrate the differences between men and women and see how wonderfully God has designed our lives, not to compete against one another, but to complement one another.

1. 1. 1. cleanjoke.com
      2. From a presentation at Steeling The Mind Conference by Dave Moore, Why Women are Weird and Men are a Mess
      3. Ibid
      4. Ibid

GPS: God’s Parcel Service, Pt. 2

(A Personal Look at Discipleship, Pt. 8)

Study Guide , February 4, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

The message in a church had been on evangelism, and the closing song was ‘Till the Whole World Knows’. So when they all began to sing one little girl said to her brother, “ I think we’re going to be here a long time!” ‘Till the whole world knows!’ Kids take things straight up, don’t they? But, again, of all the disciplines of the Christian life, this one is the most daunting…evangelism, or witnessing. That’s why it’s very important not to make our personal task so big nor confuse it with what God is actually looking for us to do…or looking for us to be; as in ‘our identity’, like we talked about last week.

As we pointed out, having a clear identity about who we really are as well as having a clear identity of who others really are has a great influence on what we will then do about it all. As in; once I have a clear understanding that God has commissioned me into His service as an Ambassador to represent Him to the Seekers as well as the Non-Seekers in the world around me, it then frees me to just do my part and it allows God to then do His part, as in; it frees me to be the ‘Representative’ of His and His truths to others and let’s Jesus be the Redeemer, who alone can do the work of redeeming others to Himself and re-birthing others into His family. And that is very liberating to know. It relieves us of a work that only Jesus can accomplish, that of saving souls, and it inspires us to just do the work that Jesus has assigned us to do; share His gospel. We share, Jesus saves.

However, that also means that we do have to get on with doing what Ambassadors of Christ need to be doing. And that’s what we are trying to help you do. So let’s now do some things that will really help…help you carry out your commission as being Christ’s Ambassador as you carry out Christ’s Great Commission.

For one thing, becoming an active ambassador for Christ requires adopting an ‘Ambassador Attitude’ in your spheres of influence. Really, much of the reason we often just don’t think about acting like an Ambassador for Christ to others in our spheres of influence is because we just don’t think like an Ambassador for Christ. We haven’t adopted an ‘Ambassador Attitude’ in our daily lives. And it’s hard to change what you do unless you change how you think. Remember, that’s what one of the powerful proverbs was all about, as in: Prov 1:1-3- “These are the proverbs of Solomon, the son of David and king of Israel. They will help you learn to be wise, to accept correction, and to understand wise sayings. They will teach you to develop your mind in the right way.”Also Prov 4:23- “Above all, be careful what you think because your thoughts control your life.” ERV

Until we develop our mind or develop our thinking into thinking like an Ambassador we probably won’t get on much with acting like an Ambassador. But when you do more and more adopt and then develop an ‘Ambassador Attitude’ it will then start affecting the way you see others, the way you talk to others, and even how you talk about God around others.

One of the helps in adopting and developing an ‘Ambassador Attitude’ is to start focusing on not just on talking more to others about God, but first on talking more about God around others. Really, think about it: A large part of the reason we have not gotten more comfortable in talking to others much about God is because we have not gotten more comfortable with talking much about God around others. Here’s a fascinating thing the Apostle Peter says about that, which will also then be a great boost in developing your ‘Ambassador Attitude’. 1 Peter 2:9- “But you are His chosen people, the King’s priests. You are a holy nation, people who belong to God. He chose you to tell about the wonderful things He has done. He brought you out of the darkness of sin into His wonderful light.” ERV

Many of us were blessed to know Pete Walston, or Ambassador Walston. And the Chapel was blessed to have him in our fellowship and in our leadership before he went home to Heaven. Pete was an Elder in the Chapel and he was also an Ambassador in the World. One of the things that characterized Pete’s life was a lot of ‘God talk’. He just talked a lot about God around other people. He took the Apostle Peter’s words straight up…he chose to tell others about the wonderful things God had done in his life. For example: his standard answer to most everyone’s standard question of “How are you doing?” was: “Well, the Lord’s been good to me.” So right away, he had injected the Lord into his daily conversation. And the thing is, Pete had lost his sight in his early 20’s, but the first thing he talked about was how good the Lord had been to him in his life. How great was that?!

Another version of what the Apostle Peter said put it like this:1 Peter 2:9-10- “But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God’s OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light…” NASU We are called to proclaim the excellencies of Christ in our conversations as we go about our daily lives with people. As Ambassadors for Christ we are to talk about the One we represent. We are to inject ‘God talk’ into the way we talk and into the things we talk about, everything from the excellencies of creation to the excellencies of conversion to the excellencies of the Christ’s coming again…or coming back; coming back to Earth. The Scriptures call for us to “Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.” Col 4:6 NASU So ‘season’ your conversations with people with grace, or salt and pepper your talk with ‘God talk’. Begin injecting talking more and more about God around others and you will find yourself becoming more and more comfortable in talking about God to others.

Actually, Ambassadors tend to talk a lot about the one they represent. In fact, as soon as others find out that someone is an Ambassador, they pretty much expect them to talk about the one they represent. Really, they would find it a bit odd if they didn’t talk much about the one they are representing as this person’s or country’s Ambassador. Can you imagine being an Ambassador of the United States in a foreign country, but then hardly ever talking about the United States to anyone in that country. The people in that country would find that a bit odd since they are expecting you talk like a representative of the United States. Which brings us to a very interesting place.

Remember those schemes that the Devil uses to distract and discourage and diminish Christians worship of God and their service to God? Well, one of the Devil’s schemes in relation to this ‘discipline of witnessing’ is to try to convince Christians that other people around them really aren’t seeking what they have share with them, and he also trying to convince those who are Seekers that they probably already have all they need to have anyway, even when all the while something in their heart and in their soul is telling them they actually don’t. But what a stand-off the Devil has created between the Saved and the Seekers. He does not want us to think of ourselves as who we really are; Ambassadors for Christ and Sowers of the Gospel. And he does not want us to think of others as who they really are; either Seekers or Non-seekers. And he does not want those who are Seekers to do anything more about seeking to fill that hole in their soul that only a relationship with Christ can fill. But the reality is that God has imparted this reality of God in the mind of man with the witness of His creation, and He has imprinted the Laws of God upon the heart of man in the witness of man’s conscious need for God. And what we are to understand about those among the ‘whosoever will’ that are responding to this witness of creation and this witness of conscience is that they really are seeking that which will finally fill that hole in their soul; the Person of Jesus Christ. And you see, what they are seeking is what the saved, what we, already have; the truths of God, the words of life, the Lord of life; Jesus Christ. All we have to do, as Ambassadors of Christ is to get the words of life into the hands and hearts and minds of the Seekers so that they can find the Living God.

And that brings us to another help. One of the benefits of being involved in a local church family is that you can then participate in the things in which that local church family is involved. And when others find out you are involved in a local church it just makes sense to them that you would then be doing whatever projects or service assignments that your local church is doing. And as we have stated before, we have often recommended and even prepared helps for being involved in getting Gospel information out to others. And we have then done so by way of letting others know that this is simply one of the things that we do as a part of the service of Chapel By The Sea. That’s why we developed this Witness Handbook and this Jesus Knocking Witness card, and others in our church, like Pastor Robert and Brother Roger and others have developed similar helps in helping us each be more active Ambassadors for Christ.

We are recommending another such help. We’re even suggesting that you see yourself as joining in this particular service of the church. It’s a service we could call: ‘God’s Parcel Service’, or ‘GPS’. Now, you right away might be thinking about ‘UPS” like: ‘What can Brown do for you?’ We have one of UPS’s finest right here, our own Ambassador Mike Hyden. But really, the only reason we are talking about a name like ‘God’s Parcel Service’ is simply to underscore the concept of what we have been talking about; and that is the fact that Seekers are already seeking what the Saved already have; the information about how anyone can have an eternal relationship with the Creator and Redeemer of the World, Jesus Christ. It’s like they have already ordered the materials in their heart and soul and they are just waiting for some GPS delivery person to deliver them their parcel. Now, they may not be really clear about all of that in their mind, but as we pointed out; if they are a Seeker, they are waiting for, they are seeking for something to come to the door of their soul. And you and I are the GPS: God’s Parcel Service.

Here’s something else we are to know: One of the things that Seekers seek is for some assurance concerning having an eternal relationship with God. They may have even been a part of some church for many years, but are still wrestling with questions about assurance of their salvation. Actually, a lot of already saved people still wrestle from time to time about assurance of their own salvation. That’s why we titled our handbook: Assurance of Eternal Life with God: We All Need It. We All Can Have It.” It’s just helpful for anyone for having assurance of their salvation. But again, Seekers long for assurance even if they are getting by with a ‘hope so’ kind of faith in their minds rather than a genuine ‘know so’ kind of faith that their soul is still seeking. Again, Satan has been trying to deceive them into settling for this ‘hope so’ kind of faith. But what Satan can’t do is stop that ‘gnawing in their soul’ that’s telling them there’s something more. And that ‘something more’ is what those who were once Seekers, but are now Saved – Us…that ‘something more’ is what we now have; the Gospel of Grace…the truths of how to be Born Again…the message of how any Seeker can finally have assurance of their salvation.

And so we actually are going to have some parcels, or some packets, with these words of Assurance that we can each distribute to any and to all we can in our service as Ambassadors for Christ as we carry out our ‘Discipline of Witnessing’ to the Seekers around us. You can even tell people it’s one of the services we do at Chapel By The Sea; we deliver Assurance Packets to everyone. And note this too: Non-seekers need this information as well. Telling the difference is often God’s part, unless it becomes evident to us as well. But the thing is, either way, our part is to do the sowing, right? It’s like we find in Eccl 11:6- “Sow your seed in the morning and do not be idle in the evening, for you do not know whether morning or evening sowing will succeed, or whether both of them alike will be good.” NASU We are to become more and more active in ‘sowing’ and leaving the results of the sowing in God’s hands. I’ve always loved Dr. Bill Bright’s statement on successful witnessing: “Successful witnessing is sharing Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results to God.”

We are also planning to include another help, another paper on Assurance, that is meant to set the tone of like coming alongside of another person and just sort of thinking out-loud together about having Assurance. For example, I’ll just share the first paragraph of that handout with you now: “Regardless of a person’s spiritual journey or religious affiliation, the reality is that we all need assurance that we are in right standing with our Creator and Redeemer. And the great news from the Scriptures is that we can each have this assurance. And whether we are in a good place health-wise and home-wise and business-wise, or in a crisis in our health or home life or business, each of us longs to know that we are secure in our relationship with Christ. And the good news is; there is a sure way to become sure.” And then the hand out continues to unveil several gospel truths. Of course, the handbook goes into it even further and clearly lays out a step-by-step explanation of how a person can be sure they are going to Heaven. We thought we would include that witness card as well. And we plan to also have a brief cover letter to let them know what’s inside the parcel or packet that you are giving to them. And we hope to have a supply of these packets ready soon so that you can begin delivering them as God’s Parcel Service. (Again, the name were using here is just to get us to grasp the concept of it all. But if you like it, you can use it…whatever it takes, right?)

What we are trying to do is to provide more and more helps for each of us to become more active and more faithful in practicing this discipline of Discipleship of Witnessing, as we obey God and bless others in carrying out the Great Commission as Ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ. We want to be as useful and helpful to our Savior as we can as He builds His church, His forever family.

GPS: God’s Parcel Service

(A Personal Look at Discipleship, Pt. 7)

Study Guide , January 28, 2018

Pastor Clay Olsen

We have been doing a review of the 5 disciplines of the obedient Christian life: Prayer, The Word, Witnessing, Fellowship, all centered around Abiding in Christ. And although four of these disciplines are pretty comforting and edifying…one of them tends to be a bit intimidating for most Christians. Can you guess which one that is? Witnessing…the discipline of Witnessing. But through the years here at the Chapel we have made attempts at lessening that ‘intimidation’ factor for us by recommending various concepts and developing some helps in order to encourage each of us to carry out God’s commission for us to be God’s witnesses in the world around us. And today we are continuing this attempt.

One of the surprising things about this discipline of witnessing is finding out what is already in the works. For example; when it comes to ‘witnessing’ what is already in the works is that once a person is born again he or she is already a Witness. That’s what Jesus said to his disciples: “You shall be My witnesses.” (Acts 1:8) Being a witness for Christ is one of the birth-rights for each Christian. So before you ever do any witnessing for Christ you are a witness of Christ’s; you are a Christian Witness. Therefore one of the helps in even thinking about this discipline of witnessing is to not just think of witnessing as something you now do for Christ, but to now think of yourself, as to your very identity, as personally being a witness for Christ. In other words, witnessing is what I now do because a Witness is who I now am! And so now you and I just need to find some ways that our personal activities in witnessing can better reflect our personal identity of being a Witness.

And why again does that help us right there? Because the more clearly I understand my true identity and dwell on my true identity the more apt I am to live and act according to my true identity. Or, what I do will now be more connected with who I am. That’s why God had the Apostle Paul give us even more help in thinking about our true identity. 2 Cor 5:20- “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” NASU

Maybe in addition to calling each other Brother Tom or Sister Jane and so on, we should also call each other ‘Ambassador Tom’ or ‘Ambassador Jane’ and so on. This would reinforce our thinking about our true identity. You and I have been appointed by God as Ambassadors to the United Nations of the World, and even the divided nations of the world (which there seems to be more of those than the other). Pretty impressive title though, right? ‘Ambassador of Christ to the Nations of the World’ But we can start carrying out our work as Ambassadors right in our own neighborhoods, too.

Another help here in connection with us being Ambassadors of Christ to the world is to realize that a great deal of the work of an Ambassador is trying to help others more clearly understand the person or the entity that they represent. In other words, an Ambassador realizes and comes to accept the fact that most of the people they are going to deal with do not clearly understand the one that they are representing. And in accepting that fact they also then expect to be somewhat misunderstood by those they are trying to reach. And they are okay with that. They don’t expect a favorable response right away. They know its going to be a process.

Do you see the point here? One of the reasons so many Christians avoid witnessing is because they have not yet come to the place where they expect to be somewhat misunderstood by those they are trying to reach. And so, they are not okay with that. In other words, they become discouraged by people’s resistance toward their attempt to help them because they had a false expectation about how most people would respond to their attempts. Again, as long as we carry an expectation that others will readily understand and appreciate what we are trying to do as representatives of the Biblical Jesus Christ and His gospel, we may never get to the place where we are somewhat okay with others resistance or reluctance, or at least understand it. Praise God when some do respond with appreciation and acceptance of the Biblical Gospel. But the thing that Ambassadors are to expect initially is some resistance and reluctance from others because they realize that before they came to this person with accurate information about the Biblical Jesus and how anyone can have a relationship with God, all that person knew about any of this was based upon faulty information or misconceived ideas. And when a person lives with a distorted understanding of who Jesus is and lives with a contorted view of how one has a relationship with God, you ought to expect some initial resistance.

That’s what we, as Christ’s Ambassadors, are to understand about non-Christian people around us. They have not come to know or understand the Biblical Jesus Christ nor His gospel. All they know is what they have received from faulty information and misconceived ideas about God and religion. And since that’s all they know then that’s all they will live by and also defend, until some Ambassador, who represents the Biblical God and true Messiah and the genuine gospel, begins to share information with them that starts clearing up their previously confused ideas about it all. But again, this may take some time, as in, it may take many exposures to this new and different information than what they have always believed.

That’s why we hear Jesus saying: “You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest. The harvesters are paid good wages, and the fruit they harvest is people brought to eternal life. What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike! You know the saying, ‘One plants and another harvests.’ And it’s true. I sent you to harvest where you didn’t plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to gather the harvest.” John 4:35-38 NLT And that’s why we hear the Apostle Paul saying: “I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow. The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work.” 1 Cor 3:6-9 NLT

The work of an Ambassador is often work that has been continued from the work of other Ambassadors who have been sowing and planting and watering. Which also means that in witnessing we don’t have to assume that our responsibility is to close every case. I’ve heard it put this way: In a courtroom the witness is to share accurate information about the case, but the witness is not also the lawyer, the judge, and the jury. No, he or she is the witness. It’s like that in sharing the gospel of Christ. Our part is to share accurate information with others about the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is God the Holy Spirit’s part to bring conviction, cause repentance, and bring re-birth to that person’s soul and spirit.

What a relief that is, right? But again, God is depending on His witnesses to share the information, to sow the seed of the Gospel, to be His Ambassador and represent the true God and Savior to others in this world who have been living, thinking, and acting according to faulty information they have received and even misconceived ideas of their own. No wonder so many people live like they live, and act like they act, and talk like they talk…all they have ever known is based upon false information and distorted teachings about God, the Bible, and religion. What we should expect to see from those held captive by the false god of this world is ungodliness and worldliness. That’s all they know. What we should expect to receive from those held captive by the false god of this world is resistance and defensiveness against whatever they don’t know about the true God of this world. I had a friend that used to say, “Remember: whatever people aren’t up on they’re down on.” Makes sense, right? But again, once we come to better understand this about people and even expect this from people, then we won’t be as personally upset nor deterred by it. Plus, just like an Ambassador understands, we will then also better understand that if our message is not favorably received, it is not us that they are resisting or rejecting, it’s the One whom we represent. Remember Jesus’ words? Luke 10:16- “Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever listens to you listens to Me; whoever rejects you rejects Me; and whoever rejects Me rejects the One who sent me.” TEV

An Ambassador understands that as he or she is seeking to help others better understand the One they are representing that people’s reactions toward them is really a reaction toward the One they are representing. And although it’s certainly not pleasant, once we have come to understand this and somewhat expect that, then we can also come to better accept that, and not be as discouraged about that. What it also does is then equip us with the attitude that it is also not going to stop us from carrying out our assignment from God to be His Ambassador to a world that does not yet understand or know Him.

Now, its also very important for a Christian Ambassador to understand something else that’s going on. In other words, it’s not only very important that we have a clear understanding about our identity as Witness and Ambassadors, but it’s also very important that we have a clear understanding about the identity of those who have not yet received Christ as Savior. So here it is: Those who have not yet been born again are either ‘Seekers’ or they are ‘Non-Seekers’. And why this is very important to know is that it answers the question about why some people will be very open and receptive to the Person of Christ and the good news of the gospel and why others are resistant and even rejecting of it. One of the fundamental verses for us Witnesses to know is Jer 29:13- “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” NASU

That is one of the most encouraging and liberating truths to know and understand about God and other people in this world. It’s encouraging in that God assures us that no one who truly wants to know God and seeks to be saved will be lost, but will indeed find the Lord. And then it’s also liberating in that it assures us that we don’t have to be polished evangelists or powerful debaters or walking Bibles in order to help a Seeker find their Savior, because if they are seeking the Lord with all their heart they are going to find Him. God can even use our mumbling and stumbling attempts to share Christ with others because He is our Spiritual Translator, speaking into hearts and souls of those we are trying to reach out to. And so our part is just to either give to them or share with them something of the truths they need and have been seeking so that God the Holy Spirit can then use His truths to help them find their Savior. And how wonderful that is to know!

And so what this means is that every person in your neighborhood, every person in your office or on the job site, every person you see or meet on the street, every person in every country around the world is either a Seeker or a Non-Seeker. So our part as Witnesses is to let God use us as His Ambassadors to reach the Seekers and to convict the Non-Seekers, and pray for discernment to recognize the difference. And one help in this is to review how Jesus explained this very thing to His disciples as He sent them out to various places to share the Gospel message. Matt 10:11-14- “Whenever you enter a city or village, search for a worthy person and stay in his home until you leave town. When you enter the home, give it your blessing. If it turns out to be a worthy home, let your blessing stand; if it is not, take back the blessing. If any household or town refuses to welcome you or listen to your message, shake its dust from your feet as you leave.” NLT

How people respond to the message of Jesus and His gospel indicates whether they are a Seeker or a Non-Seeker. Again, some Seekers may still be a bit resistant, but a Non-Seeker will be hardened in their resistance. But the point is that the symbolism of shaking off the dust from their feet was to help relieve the Disciples from any sense of guilt about their attempts to witness for Christ. Everyone is responsible for what they do when they receive the message of truth about the One who is the only way, the only truth, and the only life. All that we are to do is to distribute this message, either by word of mouth or the written word, so that the Spirit of Truth can use His truths to convict and convince and then create a new spirit within the one who has been searching for God with all their heart.

What this understanding also does is that it takes the pressure off of you. Like when it comes to others around you, you can know that they are already either a Seeker or a Non-Seeker. So ‘seeking’ is something they are already doing, or ‘not seeking’ is something they are already doing. Either way you don’t have to fret about it, you just need to be faithful about it in sowing the seed of the Gospel to them. What they do about it will reveal which they are; a Seeker or a Non-Seeker. It’s also meant to inspire us to, instead of starting our thinking about witnessing like, “I ought to share something with this person or I have to get the gospel out to that person”, and so on, to instead putting the focus onto thinking about or looking at another person in terms of; “I wonder if this person is a Seeker? If so, then what I have to give to him or her or share with them is something they have already been seeking for and can then use as they continue their search to find God and be saved.” In other words, if this person is a Seeker then they already want what you have to help them in their search. Or if they are good soil, or ‘seeking soil’, that means all they need is the seed that you carry as a Sower of the Gospel.

So we are to know that Seekers are seeking what we already have, the Gospel of grace, the message of truth…the words of life. We just need to find ways to get it to them. And that’s what we will explore next time as we continue to develop ways to more faithfully practice this Discipline of Witnessing.

Dining with God

Study Guide, January 14, 2018

Devotional Communion Service

Pastor Clay Olsen

The Bread

This is our first devotional communion of 2018. And so we are going to focus on the devotional aspect of it by looking into some implications of what it means to be in union with the God who dines with His people. That of course was the setting of the Lord’s Supper; Jesus was dining with His disciples in the Passover meal. Luke 22:14-16- “When the hour had come, He reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him. And He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” NASU

Jesus was teaching them that His death would mean the beginning of the New Covenant. This last supper was also Jesus’ last teaching about the Kingdom and the last Passover He would eat with them until all that it meant would find its fulfillment in the Kingdom of God. Remember, many events in the ceremonies of the Israelites directly pointed to Jesus’ ministry and His New Kingdom. But in order for this New Kingdom to come to pass Jesus would have to provide the opportunity for people to have new life. And the only way that people could have new life was for God to establish a New Covenant with them. And the only way for this New Covenant to be established would be through Jesus’ own death; death as the Passover Lamb.

Just think about it: The Creator of life is the only one who has ever come to live on Earth for the express purpose of dying. And His death would make it possible to then establish a New Covenant with us, whereby any of us could be judicially pardoned, spiritually reborn, and forever indwelt by the Holy Spirit…by Christ’s own life.

And even though the Disciples were ‘People of the Book’, and knew of the prophecies that their Messiah would come, they still were overwhelmed by just how ‘personal’ their prophesied Messiah would be. They were not ready for the depth of ‘fellowship’ that their faithful God really desired to have with them and with all of His redeemed family.

Think about the connection here of ‘fellowship’ and ‘faithfulness’. Let’s even take it a step further. In that great picture verse of Rev 3:20 where Jesus calls to the one behind the door of their life. What Jesus desires is to have that one open the door and invite Jesus in; to have Jesus come into their life, dwell in their life, and share life together eternally. The message of it all is profound in several ways. Of course, we rightly use that verse as an evangelistic gospel presentation to inform people that a relationship with Jesus is not automatic. Each person must open their heart and life and want Jesus to come in, to ask Jesus to come into their life and unite His eternal life to them. Interestingly enough, in the context of the passage it also applies to those who have drifted and drawn away from depending upon the Lordship of Christ in their lives and also from Christ’s fellowship in their lives. And that’s what is so remarkable about what Jesus said He would do when He had full access to a person’s life. Notice: Rev 3:20- “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.” NASU

What God promises is first to bring His very life into the one who asks Him in, and then He promises to dine with this child of God. And right off, that seems kind of unusual; dining with God? What’s that about? And once again, we are faced with something that perhaps, like the Disciples, we were not quite ready for or have not quite really understood what God is looking for in our relationship. But that brings us back to this remarkable relationship between ‘fellowship’ and ‘faithfulness’. Think about it: We pretty much get God’s call to us for our ‘faithfulness’. He is Lord and God, and our faithfulness is simply the reasonable and right response of ours to our ‘Holy’ and ‘Just’ God. In other words, God deserves our faithfulness, right? He is our Creator and Redeemer and King! Why, He deserves no less than our faithfulness. But is that why He calls us to faithfulness? Or for us sheep who are so prone to wander….is that why He keeps calling us to faithfulness?

Look again at Rev 3:20 this time in the NLT: “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear My voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.” As we pointed out awhile back: God has never needed anything, but He has always wanted one thing; you. It is simply a stunning revelation about our God; that our God has always wanted to have you as both His child and as His friend. Again, even the Disciples had underestimated the depth of fellowship that Jesus wanted to have with them. Remember, Jesus said to them: John 15:15- “Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.” KJV

Now, without any of us being there when Jesus said that to His disciples, still, we can be certain that they were certainly amazed by what Jesus said to them: “I have called you ‘friends’.” With that one statement Jesus took their relationship with the God of Creation to a whole new level…a higher and wider and deeper level. God wanted the essence of their fellowship to be that of ‘friendship’. That Jesus wanted to be their ‘friend’ reshaped everything they had learned so far about their Messiah and Lord. And you see, that Jesus wants to be your ‘friend’ and my ‘friend’; that is to now shape or reshape everything we know about our Savior and Lord. In fact, it should overwhelm us daily, that our God, our Savior, our King foremost wants to be our friend…your friend and my friend; actually to be your ‘Best friend’. And this reality ought to change everything about how we do life together in fellowship with our Savior and our God!

The Cup

Going on with this amazing reality about Jesus…Does that level of deep bonding relationship surprise you about our God and Savior; about your God and Savior? Have you thought much about the fact that the reason that God is so adamant about your faithfulness to Him is because what He really wants is your fellowship with Him? And have you really understood that because God’s nature is ‘Holy’ and ‘Just’ that this means that the only way that a ‘Holy’ and ‘Just’ God can have fellowship and this close bond of friendship with you and with me is by us first practicing faithfulness in our lives and by responding as a faithful friend should respond to a ‘Holy’ and ‘Just’ God?

Again, think about God’s motives in His commandments: God doesn’t command our obedience and faithfulness simply because He deserves it and demands it. No, He calls us to be faithful because our faithfulness is the only rightful way, the only judicial way, that He, as our Righteous God, can have fellowship with us and to then be a friend to us. Our faithfulness to God is a righteous requirement in order for God to be able to justly relate in fellowship and friendship to us.

So think about it again, and again, and again: God has done everything He can do to save our souls and make us spiritually whole again. And now God is also doing everything He can do in order to have a close walk of fellowship and a deep ‘day by day’ relationship of friendship with you and with me because that’s really what God wants! So what this means is that if this amazing experience of fellowship and friendship with God is not happening in our lives, it’s because we are the only ones getting in the way or keeping that from happening. God is always willing, always waiting, always wanting to enjoy daily fellowship with you and to have a deep friendship with you. So if there is anything keeping that from happening; it’s not happening because of anything on God’s side; it’s only coming from your side. God is not only rock solid in His justice and truth, He is also rock solid in His constant desire for fellowship with you.

So in relation to this revelation, think about the enormity of the decisions we make day after day. You and I are determining, deciding day by day, just how close of fellowship we really want to have with Jesus. We are deciding day by day just how good of a friend we want to be and are going to be to Jesus, who wants nothing more in His universe than to be your friend…to be your best friend.

This understanding even puts the teachings of ‘Rewards in Heaven’ in a whole new light. God wants to reward us not only for our obedience and service to Him, but He wants to reward us for being a friend to Him. He’s rewarding our faithfulness for sure, but He’s also rewarding our fellowship and friendship to Him, because that’s what He really wants to have with us.

Did you know that about your God? Did you know that Jesus wants to be your ‘Best Friend’…if you will let Him? Did you know that’s why He calls you to faithfulness, because He wants your fellowship, and since He is Holy and Just He cannot violate His justice by neglecting any sinfulness.

Did you ever realize that God had to find a way to justly forgive us of our sins not foremost for our sake, but for His…so that He could rightly then regain the family relationship and the familial fellowship and the deep friendship that He has always wanted to have with us but couldn’t because of our sins?

So many people think of God and His holy commandments as ways to keep people in line. But God didn’t give us commandments as ways to keep us in line. He gave them as ways to bring us closer to our Holy God. In order to have our fellowship He first needs to have our faithfulness. Again, it is the only way for a righteous God to not violate His justice.

Most people tend to develop their understanding about God through the influences of cultural presumptions, and church tradition, and ideas throughout history, and even their own experiences and assumptions about God. But one fascinating statement by God ought to change everything we are to understand about our God: Isa 43:25- “I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake, and I will not remember your sins.” NASU

What is the primary reason that God was willing to die for us in order to make a way to forgives us of our sins and for us to then be able to to live with Him and He with us? It was ‘For His own sake!’ Through Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross for us He could forgive us of the penalty of our sins and because of Jesus’ sacrifice He can now forgive us of the presence of our sins. And He does so first and foremost for His own sake! It judicially clears the way for Him to have fellowship with us and to relate as a ‘Friend’ to us.

Did you realize that it means even more to God to be able to forgive you of your sins than it means to you to have your sins forgiven? Your forgiveness means more to God than it even does to you. Think long and often about that and it will change your life. Let Isaiah 43:25 sink into your soul long enough and deep enough until it flavors everything you know about God. It’s the reason behind the Lord’s Supper. It’s the reason behind the Cross. It’s the reason behind God’s call to you for your faithfulness as God’s disciple now. God calls you and me to faithfulness because our faithfulness to God is the required prerequisite to our fellowship and our friendship with God. And that’s what God really wants most of all.

‘Dining with God’, communing with God, is God’s way of calling us to ‘do life together with Him’. That the Creator of the Universe, the Holy and Sovereign Lord of all, should foremost want to have us as His own born again child and also as His best friend…well, that should settle everything about how you and I do life for the rest of our lives. Do life together with God as God’s faithful friend.

Pressing On Toward the Goal

Study Guide – December 31, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

So here we are on the cusp of a New Year. I’ve always liked that word ‘cusp’. I thought it just meant like ‘on the edge’. But it’s even more sophisticated than that. It means: ‘An event marking a unique or important historical change of course or one on which important developments depend’. All of that comes from just that little word? Yup! So what this means is that on this New Year’s Eve we are about to experience a unique and important historical change of course on which important developments depend.

As we look around this world of ours, not only are there important developments going on, but there are some really bizarre developments going on as well. Like for instance: Did you here that a humanoid robot was the first robot to be granted citizenship in the country of Saudi Arabia? Yes, this robot even gave a presentation to the Saudi Assembly. And when asked whether robots can be self-aware, conscious and know that they are robots, this robot named ‘Sophia’ said: “Well, let me ask you this back; how do you know you are human?” But then one of the designers said that he believed robotics will be bigger than the Internet. He said that every industry will be redefined. These ‘robots’ will learn, they will read, and they will make decisions. The question next is: “Will artificial intelligence be enabled to think independently from humans?”

Add that to this next bizarre development in which a former executive at Google recently filled paperwork with the IRS to establish an official religion of technology. It will be the church of AI; the Church of Artificial Intelligence. This religion does not just worship scientific progress, but worships artificial intelligence itself, with the goal, they said, of creating ‘a god-head’.

So now, think about these developments as you hear these words from the Apostle John concerning the End Times: Rev 13:14-18- “And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life. And it was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast would even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed. And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six.” NASU

Whatever developments there will be in artificial intelligence and robotics and such, and however much they do and will benefit mankind in various ways, know this: the culmination of it all will be with this development of the works of the Anti-Christ, along with the False Prophet and this Image of the Beast that is given humanoid type powers. And these will all be under the influence of Satan in order to force world worship, not of technology, but of the Anti-Christ himself. And these will be the conditions on Earth right before Christ returns to restore world order under the Lordship of Christ. The last counterfeit god-head will be Satan, the Anti-Christ, and the False Prophet. But again, this False Prophet is going to enlist and then animate an Artificial Intelligence to help with the cause of world control under the rule of the Anti-Christ.

So just know, that’s how it plays out. And certainly, many benefits have come to our world through all these breakthroughs in technology. We have all benefited in lots of helpful ways. But we need to understand that the sin nature of mankind and the sinister entity of Satan always takes even good things in the world and turns them into really bad things for the world. The point: Be on guard about everything!

Which brings us back to the point that every day we are setting a course of important developments into motion. And, when you factor in that each day for a Christian is an opportunity to live out God’s will for our lives, then yes, important developments in the course of this world and eternity are being impacted by our prayers, our works, our worship, our witness, our faithfulness, and so on. So now how significant do you feel?

What if we put it all in the context of this: Phil 3:12-14- “Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” NASU

And now let’s read it again in the ESV: “I don’t mean that I am exactly what God wants me to be. I have not yet reached that goal. But I continue trying to reach it and make it mine. That’s what Christ Jesus wants me to do. It is the reason He made me His. Brothers and sisters, I know that I still have a long way to go. But there is one thing I do: I forget what is in the past and try as hard as I can to reach the goal before me. I keep running hard toward the finish line to get the prize that is mine because God has called me through Christ Jesus to life up there in heaven.”

So what is the goal? “I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.” “I don’t mean that I am exactly what God wants me to be. I have not yet reached that goal.” Note clearly that the Apostle Paul was not talking about his ‘Salvation’ here…no, he was talking about his ‘Sanctification’. Plus, he was revealing to us all that our sanctification, or our growth in discipleship, includes not only the deeds that God had planned for us to do, but it also includes the character that God planned for us to develop. You and I came to Earth with a pre-designed plan of who God had in mind for us to be as well as what God planned for us to do. Essentially, it’s broken down into one word: Christ-likeness.

Earlier Paul put that like this: Rom 8:29- “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son…” NASU And now once more in the Amplified Version: “For those whom He foreknew [of whom He was aware and loved beforehand], He also destined from the beginning [foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of His Son [and share inwardly His likeness]…”

Here’s a question: Why is it that God is so concerned about the development of our character, especially in becoming more and more conformed to the image of Christ, or in becoming more and more Christ-like? It’s because the measure of your Christ-likeness in your character is the measure of your real love for Christ. You see, deeds for Christ can be motivated by duty, but imitation of Christ is motivated by adoration. Remember something about us ‘humans’: We tend to become like that which we love. And that, our love, is also the first thing that God wants from us anyway, remember? “You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, and soul, and strength, and mind.”

So while we look to a New Year with the usual thoughts about what we will be ‘doing’ or should be ‘doing’, that’s good, but attach it to an even greater goal; the goal of ‘becoming’ more and more like Christ, and then doing more and more of what Christ has called you to do for Him.

What are we talking about here? Well, let’s go back to what Paul said: “…there is one thing I do: I forget what is in the past and try as hard as I can to reach the goal before me.” What we are talking about is ‘finishing well’. We are talking about the critical need of deciding now, of planning now, of determining now, not only that you are going to try as hard as you can to finish well, but we are also talking about figuring out just how you plan to do that. Because if you do not plan it out; if you do not figure it out now just how you are going to finish your Christian life well…then there is a very good chance that you won’t. And why do we say that?

Just before the Christmas break our Men’s Life Group finished a series on ‘The Invisible War’, a Bible study series led by Chip Ingram. And one of the themes of the study was that this spiritual battle we face is a relentless battle that we have to count on having to fight day by day. But the surprising point of it was to realize that the intensity of this battle often increases right at the finish of your battle. What we mean is that one of Satan’s strategies, of which we are supposed to be aware, is that the closer a believer gets to the finish line, the more Satan will try to undo whatever good a believer has done. In other words, one of Satan’s most devious schemes is to try to topple whatever a Christian man or woman has built up over their lifetimes…especially their reputation.

And as soon as I said that, you probably started thinking of examples, right? And many of these examples were of highly influential Christians with far reaching ministries. And their fall was often related to deep moral sins. And yes, while Satan certainly is trying to undo all the good of highly influential and highly public Christians, what you and I are to clearly understand is that Satan’s strategy is actually the very same for you and for me.

We are to understand that his sinister plan is to undo whatever good we have done in our discipleship by having us finish badly as disciples. And why is that? Because remember, just as we earlier pointed out: Every day that we live out God’s will for our lives important developments in the course of this world and eternity are being impacted by our prayers, our works, our worship, our witness, our faithfulness, and so on. But if Satan can interrupt that, if he can divert that, or if he can especially damage that by tearing down your testimony and your works, then not only does he diminish your usefulness to God, but he also interferes with God’s plan for your life and others. Remember, once Satan loses you to the Kingdom of God, his plan is then to ruin you for use in the Kingdom of God; ruin your influence, ruin your service…just simply ruin your usefulness in doing the will of God.

What that means in connection with another year ahead of us is this: the older we get the more on guard we have to be against Satan’s plan to ruin us. The closer we get to the finish line the more of a target we are to Satan and his evil forces. And since God’s highest goal for us is godliness” or ‘Christ-likeness’, that means that Satan’s highest goal for us is ‘ungodliness’, or trying to keep us from becoming more like Christ. Rather than us being filled with God’s Spirit, Satan simply wants to keep us ‘full of us, full of ourselves’! His goal is to simply keep us becoming more like…well, let’s put it this way: John the Baptist’s Christ-centered motto was this: “He must increase, and I must decrease.” So what then is Satan’s motto that he is trying to imbed or to deeply ingrain in the hearts and minds of believers, maybe not directly, but just by subconscious habit? It’s simply this: “I must increase…period.”

Remember that old saying: “Jesus saves you just as you are…but He doesn’t intend for you to stay that way!”? We are to be putting off the ‘old self’ for the rest of our lives, because it’s the only way we can be putting on the ‘new self’ for rest of our lives. And we are to be especially more conscious of this as we near the finish line of our lives. We are to realize that one of the enemy’s strategies is keep our ‘natural self’ at the center of thoughts and plans. He wants to keep us in charge of our own lives, not Christ in charge. If he can keep us from adopting John’s motto of ‘Christ must increase and I must decrease’ then he knows that our imbedded sin-nature will simply be enough, even by itself, to ruin our development as disciples of Christ. If he can keep us from setting the same goal that the Apostle Paul set to press on toward the goal of becoming everything that God intended for him and for us to be, then he knows that he has pretty much neutralized our usefulness to God. Without each of us personally setting this goal for our lives then Satan has achieved his goal for our lives.

Remember, Satan has lost us from his world of darkness. But if he can keep you from pressing on to ‘lay hold of that for which you were also laid hold of by Christ Jesus’, if he can keep you from the goal of making whatever changes are needed in order to see the character of Christ increase in you and your old natural self decrease in you, then, although he has lost you from his world of darkness, he will have kept you from doing all you would have done for God’s world of light. And why would any of us want to give Satan any satisfaction over that? The only way you can insure that you are not giving Satan any satisfaction in your life is by seeking to please Jesus in everything in your life! If you are not seeking to please Jesus, then who are you pleasing? It’s always one or the other.

Also remember, Satan’s plan for us to concentrate on doing our will and ignoring God’s will. For if we do that, then we will have also done his will. His plan is for us to focus on having our way in our life instead of trying to let God have His way in our life. For if we do that, then we will have also let him have his way with us. And his plan for us is for us to let up in our pursuit of being more like Christ the older we get instead of pressing on toward the goal of becoming more and more Christ-like, especially as we near the finish line. For if we do that, if we do let up…know that Satan never lets up…especially as you and I near the finish line. For if he can keep us from finishing well, he may very well tear down much of whatever it was we tried to build up over the course of our Christian life and work.

So don’t let Satan win in anything in your life. Remember: there is no win in sin. There is only loss in sin and in sinfulness. But there is always gain with God and in godliness. Whatever other goal you may be setting for this New Year, be sure that this one is at the top of your list: “I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.” Be diligent to become ‘who’ Christ is trying to make you be, as well as be committed to doing whatever Christ has created you to do. That’s how you will insure that this coming New Year will be a great year for you and for God.

Press on, my friend!

(Information on Robotics and the Church of AI gleaned from Midnight Call Magazine, January 2018, p.26)

Our Gifts For Our King

Slide Guide, December 24, 2017

1. A Gift from the Little Drummer Boy

“Then He smiled at me….me and my drum.”

That’s really what God wants from us anyway…whatever we have in abilities and talents and gifts and such, whatever it is, do it all to the glory of God. Give back to God what God has given to you in ways that bless God and bless others.

The more that you think of how benevolent God is and how pleased God is with whatever it is that you offer Him, of your time and your talents and your treasures, the more your life will be enriched by the fullness of God and the fruit of God’s spirit.

Do whatever you can with your talents and abilities in order to bring a smile to the face of God, and that will be the best present you will receive as well.

2. Gifts from the Wise Men

Matt 2:11- “After coming into the house they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” NASU

We think of gold as signifying that when you think of giving to the Lord you think of giving your best for Him.

Frankincense was a key ingredient in the incense offerings in the Old Testament sacrifices.

It later symbolized Jesus’ own offering in which He suffered for our sins and gave Himself up for us…the sweetest offering in History.

Myrrh had the particular use of preparing for burial, signifying the reason that Jesus had come.

But the first gift each of them gave to Jesus was their worship!

Our worship is always the first gift, as well as the finest gift that we can give to our Savior.

What if we were to think of our worship more in terms of being a gift with which God is well pleased?

3. The Gift of Preparing the Way

John 1:6-8- “There came a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.” NASU

‘There came one sent from God, whose name was (now your name)_________. You came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through you. You were not the Light, but you came to testify about the Light.’

One of the clearest purposes of your life and my life is that we are each to be a witness and to testify about the Light…the Light of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to help prepare the way…

You and I have been sent to prepare the way for Jesus’ Second Advent.

Gal 4:4-5- “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”

You and I are the messengers of Jesus’ return. And our message is to help others prepare for the return of the King.

4. A Gift from God the Holy Spirit to God the Son

Matt 1:20-21- “…for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.”

Did you ever stop to think that when God was creating the first human body that He was also creating the body in which He would one day take on for Himself?

“Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, But a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure. Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come — In the volume of the book it is written of Me — To do Your will, O God.'” Heb 10:5-7 NKJV

Through this gift of God becoming one of us, now each of us can live with our God forever and ever, when we receive His gift of forgiveness and His very life into our lives.

That’s why we call Him – “Savior!”

Do You Hear What I Hear?

Study Guide  December 10, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

Some time ago I used this title of a Christmas Song to do a study on listening for the deeper meanings of the Scriptures. But since we are now in the Christmas season let’s use the actual Christmas Carol itself as a stimulus for listening for the deeper meanings of Christmas.

Christmas is a time that calls for us to hear what we normally aren’t listening for and to see what we normally aren’t looking for. For example: In the Carol it says: “Do you hear what I hear? Ringing through the sky, shepherd boy, do you hear what I hear?
A song, a song high above the trees with a voice as big as the sea, with a voice as big as the sea.” We often think of that appearance of the Angels to the Shepherds: “And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” Luke 2:13-14 NASU I wonder how many of the Shepherds were asking each other: “Do you hear what I hear?”

Certainly this was a super special experience, but again Christmas is a reminder to us to hear what we usually aren’t listening for and to see what we’re usually not looking to see.

Even King David reminded us to tune into God’s world around us a great deal more than we usually do. “Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; And let them say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.” Let the sea roar, and all it contains; Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the Lord; For He is coming to judge the earth.” 1 Chron 16:31-33 NASU

Part of the statement we’re trying to make here today is that Christians are to hear what others do not hear and to see what others do not see, like the kinds of things that so many of the Christmas carols speak about and like King David here was talking about. “Let the sea roar, and all it contains.” Could it be that the ocean roar we hear is sometimes the singing of the sea? And could it be that the rustling of the leaves is the clapping of the trees? Now, how can the ocean sing? Well, how can a field exult? How can the forest sing for joy before the Lord? How can the trees clap their hands? How can the heavens be declaring the glory of God, as the Psalmist also said?

And the answer is: It depends upon who is listening? If God hears His creation sounding out His glory, shouldn’t God’s people hear it, too? What if what others call the roaring of the ocean is actually the singing of the seas? What if what others call the rustling of the leaves is actually the clapping of the trees? Could it be that the sounds we hear from God’s creatures are really songs to their Creator?

Certainly, many people of our world are not listening for these expressions of praise from the created world around us. The world has a bad habit of looking at the world around us as though the natural world and the religious world are worlds apart. The world talks about the natural world around as though it is something altogether unrelated to God. But the Psalmist tells us it is just the opposite.

Ps 24:1- “The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it.” NASU Everyone in this world is living in God’s world. Everything in nature is the natural world that God created. Even the animals of this world, though also affected by the curse, have often acted in ways that demonstrate a greater sense of their Creator than many people have. Do you recall the episode when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on an unbroken colt of a donkey? Mark 11:2-3- “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here.” NASU Think about that: If you want have a gentle ride on an animal that you can trust, well, you are not going to pick a colt of a donkey that no one had ever sat upon, let alone ever ridden before! You don’t just sit on an unbroken colt and have perfect co-operation from the colt. The natural response of an unbroken donkey is to freak out the first time a person tries to sit on it. But this was no ordinary person…and this was not a natural response of this natural animal. Why? Because this animal sensed something supernatural about its rider…it sensed its Creator.

Actually, history is filled with experiences from the animal world demonstrating their connection with their Creator. In fact, they seem to obey God more readily than many people do. Remember that other donkey, Balaam’s donkey, that not only obeyed, but even spoke a message to Balaam from God? And then there was the raven that fed Elijah when Elijah was singing the blues? And what about the whale or the great fish that sensed the will of God and not only swallowed Jonah when it was appointed to swallow him, but even delivered Jonah up on the shore when it was the appointed time to deliver him up.

The point is that we, as God’s people, are to hear things that others are not listening for. It’s like with the Christmas Carol; Angels We Have Heard on High. The first verse says, ‘Angels we have heard on high, sweetly singing o’er the plains, and the mountains in reply echo back their joyous strains’…and you know how the rest of it goes. But again, ‘the mountains reply in joyous strains.’ It’s almost like creation itself responded in some way to our Creator and Savior’s first advent, with the oceans singing and the trees clapping and the mountains rejoicing, and so on. It’s interesting that ever since the Lord Jesus went back to Heaven the Apostle Paul describes the sounds of creation another way: “For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.” Rom 8:22 NASU It’s like if we had ears to hear it we would hear a ‘groaning’ in the sounds coming from the natural world around us, like a yearning for the return of its Creator to come in His second advent…to come back and restore all nature and all creatures of nature to their rightful condition.

But that brings us back to Christmas, because it seems that at that first Christmas, all creation sensed it was now closer to that time, since it’s Creator had come. We can see that or hear that in the words of ‘Joy to the World’. The second verse says: ‘Joy to the earth! The Savior reigns, let men their songs employ’…now notice…’while fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains repeat the sounding joy, repeat the sounding joy.’ There it is again; it’s like when the Creator came to Earth in the body of the Savior, the fields, floods, rocks, hills, and plains took a break from their groaning and instead ‘repeated their sounding joy’. Why? Because the Hope had come. Jesus’ coming to Earth brought hope not only to the people of God, but also to all of God’s creation and to God’s creatures.

Sometimes scoffers say that ideas like this about the world are just religious ideas and should be kept separate from the natural world. Well, here’s an important reality check about that: The only world there is, is a religious world. There is no such thing as a world that is not religious, nor is there any such thing as a ‘non-religious person’. They may think they are non-religious, but every person and everything on Earth and in this world and in all the worlds of God’s created universe have been created as religious entities. Being religious is not an option for anyone. The only option anyone has is who or what is every religious person on Earth going to worship and serve? Will it be the Creator and Savior who made them or will it be some other created person or thing…including themselves? That’s another reason that all creation is groaning. It’s like the Apostle Paul explained: Rom 1:21-23- “For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.” NASU Notice how man himself is included in the things ungodly people worship. The worst idol is the idol of ‘self’. Even Satan found that out, but he still worships himself anyway.

But back to Christmas again. Christmas reminds us all of the hope we have because our Creator didn’t leave this fallen world to remain that way and waste away that way. The Carol ‘Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus’ reminds us of that. It says: “Come, thou long-expected Jesus, born to set Thy people free; from our fears and sins release us; let us find our rest in Thee. Israel’s strength and consolation, Hope of all the earth Thou art…”So even in the groaning of creation we ought to still be able to hear joy, because our Hope has come in Jesus Christ. And our ‘Hope’ is coming again; coming back!

So when Christians, when we, hear the roar of the ocean, hear the rumbling in the clouds, hear the rustling of the trees, hear the sounds of the animals, and so on, we can say: “Do you hear what I hear? It’s the sounds of ‘Hope’. All of creation is not only groaning as it awaits its redemption, it’s also calling out for it; calling out to its Creator and Savior, the Hope of all the Earth.”

In every Christmas Carol that is sung, even in the midst of whatever else the song is about, it’s about this Hope of all the Earth. And, according to the carol of ‘O Little Town of Bethlehem’, even the stars are getting in on the praises. In the second verse it says: ‘For Christ is born of Mary, and gathered all above, while mortals sleep the Angels keep their watch of wond’ring love, O morning stars, together proclaim the holy birth! And praises sing to God the King, and peace to men on earth.’ And yes, sometimes Angels are referred to as stars, but again, both are proclaiming the glory of God. Like in ‘O Come, All Ye Faithful’, verse 2 says, “Sing choirs of Angels, sing in exultation, O sing, all ye bright hosts’…or citizens, as it says in some versions. Anyway, it finishes with ‘Glory to God, all glory in the highest!’ Those who are closest to God, like his Angels, are overwhelmed by God’s glory. They see God’s glory throughout God’s world. Again, the heavens declare God’s glory…’In Excelsis Deo’ or ‘Glory to God in the highest’.

And since we have much to learn from the Angels, we should learn to look for more and more things in which to give glory to our God in the highest. We are to listen for more things over which to give glory to our God in the highest. And yes, we sing about it, and the carols tell how the Angels sing about it, and the Scriptures even tell us creation sings about it, but how about this? They also tell us that God sings about us! That’s right. Look at Zeph 3:17- “The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.” NIV This Hebrew word for ‘singing’ here is ‘rinnah’, and it can either be translated as ‘shouts of joy’ or ‘singing’. I remember one of the inspiring things about the ‘Worthy Is the Lamb’ play that used to be held over by the White Oak river, was when Jesus sang. You weren’t used to hearing Jesus sing in any film or play about His life. But it caused you to think about how God must sound when He sings. No doubt we will be amazed at the singing of the Angels, but I imagine that when God sings, all of the citizens of Heaven are going to stop and listen in awe to God singing.

But think about it: Maybe this Christmas, as we sing the carols ourselves and hear the carols sung by others, maybe we should listen, by faith, for Someone else singing along…listen for the One who rejoices over us with singing! And maybe then ask others around us: ‘Do you hear what I hear?’ No doubt they won’t, so you can tell them about all of this.

In The Beginning (of Christmas)

Study Guide, December 3, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

In a little while we’re going to sing a great Christmas carol written by Emily Elliot. She came by her musical gifts through her musical family, as her Uncle is the author of that great hymn “Just As I Am”. This gifted woman published 48 hymns that were greatly used as outreach helps to the needy and those in many hospitals of 19^th century England. But Miss Elliot wrote this special song for a church where her father was a Pastor in order to help the children better understand the meaning of Advent and the Nativity. But after reading through it I think it actually helps us ‘children of all ages’ to better understand the absolute wonder of what the Creator of the Universe did for those whom He created.

But what is particularly special about this hymn, or Christmas carol, is that it starts at the real beginning. And no, not at a manger, but at the very throne of God. For that’s where ‘Christmas’ really began, at the throne of God, at least the vision and the plan for it all. So let’s explore:

“Thou didst leave Thy throne and Thy kingly crown when Thou camest to earth for me; but in Bethlehem’s home was there found no room for Thy holy nativity. O come to my heart, Lord Jesus – There is room in my heart for Thee.”

When people all around our country look at, think about, or hear references to Jesus’ manger how many of them do you think also think about Jesus’ throne in Heaven? How many ever picture the Babe in the manger as first being the Creator on His throne? Or, how many people understand that you cannot really understand Jesus coming to a manger in Bethlehem without understanding that He first had to leave His throne in Heaven.

References to the ‘throne’ of God are found throughout the Bible, from the Pentateuch to the book of Revelation. But it’s the Psalmist, who was born in Bethlehem, that seemed to marvel most over the fact that this Messiah, who was going to be born in the same town as David, was also the One who ruled the Universe from His throne in Heaven.

Look at this: Ps 103:19-22- “The Lord has made the heavens His throne; from there He rules over everything. Praise the Lord, you angels, you mighty ones who carry out His plans, listening for each of His commands. Yes, praise the Lord, you armies of angels who serve Him and do His will! Praise the Lord, everything He has created, everything in all His kingdom. Let all that I am praise the Lord.” NLT That’s quite a call to praise. But Angels already know all about Christ’s throne! What they no doubt marvel over is that He would leave His throne and His kingly crown and come to Earth for us!

David knew that the coming Messiah was going to have to come from His throne in Heaven. He knew that the Messiah was also the sovereign Lord of all. By the way, it was David’s clear understanding of the deity of the Messiah that Jesus later used when He was challenging the Pharisees. Remember, they proudly thought of themselves as King David’s offspring. But here is the strange thing: They stubbornly rejected any notion from David’s clear revelation that the Messiah would also be God. They had so distorted the Scriptures and the person of the Messiah that they had come to believe that the Messiah would be just a man…a man with the powers of God, like Elijah, but still, just a man. And, sadly enough, that is exactly what the unconverted Jewish leaders are still teaching the people of Israel, both in the country of Israel and to the Jewish population around the world, that the Messiah they are still looking for will not be God, but just a man with the powers of God. That’s the reason that Jewish people think that Christians are idolaters, polytheists…believing in many gods. That’s the central reason that the Pharisees were determined to kill Jesus. Note what the Apostle John recorded about that: John 5:18- “For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.” NASU

Again, they completely distorted the reality that the Messiah was also their Creator and Lord. So Jesus totally challenges their false teachings with one of the most profound questions ever asked: Matt 22:41-46- “While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?” They said to Him, “The Son of David.” He said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool”‘? If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his Son?”And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.” NKJV

Jesus also revealed the fact that God is to be understood as the ‘Godhead’, consisting of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. For David was under the direction of God the Holy Spirit when he said, “…the Lord (the Father) said to my Lord (the Son), Sit at My right hand, till I make your enemies Your footstool.” This also set the Pharisee’s teeth on edge, since they had also fully rejected the Trinity of the Godhead. And so they also fully rejected the ‘Incarnation of God’; that God would become both fully God and fully Human in the Person of Jesus Christ.

Isn’t it strange how religious people, even religious leaders, can have the very Scriptures of God and yet distort it’s revelation and reject what it actually says, and instead they believe what they want it to say and to mean? Mark it down: The Pharisee’s are still alive and well all over planet earth. But that doesn’t change these Holy Spirit inspired facts that King David was trying to point out; that the Messiah was equally divine with the Father and the Spirit, even from eternity past. Like he said in

Ps 93:2- “Your throne, O Lord, has stood from time immemorial. You Yourself are from the everlasting past.” NLT The Messiah didn’t have His beginning in the city of David…in a manger in Bethlehem, for He was from time immemorial, along with His throne.

But even when He came, He should have been worshiped like King David worshiped Him and said: “The Lord is king! Let the nations tremble! He sits on His throne between the cherubim. Let the whole earth quake! The Lord sits in majesty in Jerusalem, exalted above all the nations. Let them praise your great and awesome Name. Your Name is holy! Mighty King, lover of justice, You have established fairness. You have acted with justice and righteousness throughout Israel. Exalt the Lord our God. Bow low before his feet, for He is holy! Ps 99:1-5 NLT Can you imagine if King David would have appeared at the time of Jesus’ birth and started saying these kind of things to the political and religious rulers of that day? Would they have done what King David was telling them to do; to worship the Messiah? No, They would have put even King David to death, just like they did John the Baptist, and later, Jesus Himself.

Something we should clearly know about people from history and even into our own day is this: Repentant faith in the sovereign Lord and Messiah is not an intellectual problem, it’s a volitional problem. It’s not a head thing, it’s a heart thing. Certainly, solid facts will help a seeker find the Savior. And that’s why we are to keep sharing solid truths and facts about our God and His world. But a scoffer will reject even the facts. The reason they wouldn’t listen to King David or to the Prophet Isaiah or to John the Baptist was not because the revelation was not as clear as glass – no, it was because their hearts were as hard as stone. The same is true of so many people today. They will sing the songs, they will exchange the gifts, they will put up their Christmas trees, and maybe even talk about the manger. But they won’t connect it all with the throne of the Messiah…or connect it with the Cross of Christ and their need to to repent and receive Christ.

And if they don’t connect Christmas with the Cross, nor bow in repentance and faith to the One ‘who camest to earth’ for them, nor made room in their heart for Him, then they will one day stand before that great throne that Jesus left, but now sits upon. The Apostle John put it like this: Rev 20:11-15- “And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from His presence, but they found no place to hide. I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books. The sea gave up its dead, and death and the grave gave up their dead. And all were judged according to their deeds. Then death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This lake of fire is the second death. And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire.” NLT

It begins at the throne and it ends at the throne. How odd that most people go throughout life ignoring both. It’s not like the world hasn’t been warned. The prophet Micah also declared: “Look! The Lord is coming! He leaves His throne in heaven and tramples the heights of the earth.”

Mic 1:3 NLT

So remember, Christ’s throne speaks of His authority and His power. It also refers to His majesty and holiness. Do you remember what Isaiah wrote, who also foretold of Jesus’ coming in Isaiah chapters 7 and 9? How fascinating that before Isaiah prophesied about the King coming to earth as our Messiah, he first tells us about the King’s throne. Isa 6:1-4- “In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said,“Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts,The whole earth is full of His glory.” And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke. Then I said,“Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.” NASU

This is what Jesus looked like before His incarnation; before his lowly birth in a manger. This is the scene that Jesus left: one where Seraphim Angels worshiped around His throne, a throne that exuded glory and honor and power. It’s pretty clear that Isaiah, as well as King David, wanted us to clearly see this scene of Who it was that ‘camest to earth for you and me’ before we looked at that scene of the manger in Bethlehem. That’s why the Wise Men gave Jesus the gifts fitting of a King…because they were looking at One; looking at the King of kings and the Lord of lords! They knew that this Babe in the manger had just left a throne in Heaven. That’s why they bowed before a Babe, because this Babe was their King!

And catch this: Not only did Jesus leave His throne of honor, but He also humbled Himself in order to accomplish the purpose for His coming. Phil 2:5-8- “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” NASU

This is the great ‘Kenosis’ passage of the Bible, from the Greek word ‘keno-o’. Jesus emptied Himself of the independent use of His sovereign powers and authority over all creation. Remember, at any time, Jesus could have crushed any opposition to Him from anyone. As the political and religious leaders railed at him, He could have just taken their very breath right out of them and snuffed out their lives right in front of Him. Probably not the part of the rest of the story you would want to include in telling your young children and grand-children on Christmas Eve, but…at some point they need to know who were dealing with here.

But back to the point: From the throne of glory Jesus came and humbled Himself even to the point of dying on a cross. Why? Because He left the throne with a gift. The King left the throne with a gift to give to each person on His created planet of Earth. The gift was His eternal life. But the gift came wrapped in a sacrificial body – the body of Jesus, who as the Lamb of God would be sacrificed in death for our sins so that we could have new life in Him.

Interesting how the traditional Christmas story of St. Nick has him leaving his home at the North Pole with a bag filled with gifts for the children of the world. In one instance in Isaiah it speaks of the throne of God as being on ‘the mount of the assembly in the recesses of the north’. So Jesus Christ left His throne in the north with a gift to give to each of the children of the world; a gift of His own eternal life wrapped in His sacrificial death. But like with any gift; you have to accept it to make it your own. The gift that Christ gives requires that a person accepts Jesus own life into his or her life and also trusts in the sacrificial death of Jesus to forgive them of the debt of their sins against their Holy God who left His throne of Heaven to come to Earth to be their Savior and Lord. You have to make room in your heart for Jesus.

We trust that you have made room in your heart for your Savior. If you’re not sure about this, then this is an ideal time to make sure. Just think: Christ came all the way from His throne in Heaven to give you the gift of His own eternal life. Accept His gift and you life forever with Him. No wonder Paul called it ‘the indescribable gift’!

I Think, Therefore I Thank

Study Guide, November 26, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

Since Thanksgiving tends to get slighted by our crazed consumer culture, rather than rushing right by it, how about we slow it down a bit and reflect a bit more about ‘thanksgiving’ and the central part that a thankful heart and mind is to play in our day to day lives?

To start with let’s emphasize that word ‘reflection’ by walking through several poignant and effective statements about ‘thanksgiving’. We’re going to do something a little different today in that we are going to go through one or two at a time and then pause a moment, just slowly enough to let you reflect on these thoughts.

“Giving thanks is one course from which we never graduate.” Valerie Anders

Have you ever thought about Thanksgiving as being like a college course? It’s like a course of study in which there is always more to learn, because…and you may know what’s coming next… ‘There is always more to know about what you think you already know, you know? And interestingly enough, this course on thanksgiving is one that the only way to learn more about it is to practice however much you’ve learned so far.

The principle is similar to what Jesus said about using what He has taught us so far.

Luke 8:18- “So pay attention to how you hear. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given. But for those who are not listening, even what they think they understand will be taken away from them.” NLT Our thankful spirit is either developing or diminishing, based upon our commitment to practicing it.

Here’s another thought for reflection: “A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parent of all other virtues.” Cicero

Here’s a question: Just how fundamental is this virtue of giving thanks even in connection to people’s relationship to God? The Apostle Paul pointed to two fundamental issues and revealed that if a person neglects these two things then it may take them down a path from which they may never recover. What are we talking about? Notice: Rom 1:18-21- “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.” NASU

The two things that mark an unbelievers life is one; they do not honor, or submit to the Lord as God, and two; neither do they give Him the thanks that is due Him. As such, by dishonoring God and withholding thanks it sets them on a course of self destruction. That’s how fundamental this virtue of thankfulness really is. As was stated by E.J. Conrad: “One distinguishing mark of an unregenerate man is ingratitude.”

And in connection with that, how about this quote: “The atheists most embarrassing moment is when he feels profoundly thankful for something but can’t think of anybody to thank for it.” Mary Ann Vincent That’s sort of a built-in frustration with atheism, right?

Then how about this: “No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks.” Ambrose of Milan How odd that the practice of thankfulness is often viewed like a sort of ‘add on’ in relationships, when in fact, it is actually a ‘duty’ in any interpersonal relationship, but especially with our God. In fact, in one passage in Colossians this duty of giving thanks to God and being thankful is repeated like wave upon wave of instruction. Notice:

Col 3:15-17- “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.” NASU Three times in three verses we are instructed about practicing thanksgiving. Paul just removed the practice of ‘thankfulness’ from the table of options and placed it directly in the hands of ‘duty’. It’s like Paul instructing us: “Be thankful! It’s not a suggestion!”

It is like Vance Havner stated: “The whole Christian life is one big ‘Thank you’, the living expression of our gratitude to God for His goodness… for what we take for granted we never take seriously.” Wow! So the whole of our life is to be one big ‘Thank you’ to God. Giving thanks to God should be like one of the daily sacrifices by the priests of the Old Testament. No wonder the Psalmist wrote: “To You I shall offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving, And call upon the name of the Lord.” Ps 116:17 NASU Thanksgiving to God should be one of our daily offerings that we bring to God as His New Testament priests; a thank offering that we present to the Lord day by day.

And how did that last part hit you? “…what we take for granted we never take seriously.” So even a failure of regularly practicing gratitude to God can cause a person to take God less seriously, as well as everything else! Again, that’s another example of just how important the habit of givings thanks really is. On the other hand, how encouraging to realize that one way we can deepen our devotion to God is by simply developing our habit of giving thanks to Him more often and more consistently. Amazing how that fits together…how one leads to the other.

Now, how does this hit you from the writings of Helen Keller? “For three things I thank God every day of my life: thanks that He has vouchsafed me knowledge of His works; deep thanks that He has set in my darkness the lamp of faith; deep, deepest thanks that I have another life to look forward to – a life joyous with light and flowers and heavenly song.”

There’s a saying: Tell me your habits and I’ll tell you who you are. Helen Keller, even with her blindness and all her infirmities, she was not defined by any of them. No, what defined her was her thankful spirit, her habit of giving thanks. She chose three things each day: Thanks to God for granting her the knowledge of His works in her life; thanks to God for lighting up her darkness through the light of His Word as she looked at God’s world through her eyes of faith; and thanks to God for the promises that the best of her life was yet ahead of her, with the immortality of her body and the eternality of her spirit in her home of Heaven.

Once again, it’s apparent that she purposefully practiced this habit. She actually primed the pump of her thankfulness by choosing to think about these things. And it will be the same with us. We must prime the pump of thanks by choosing what we think about. One of our fundamental goals in life is to think about how we intend to be a thankful person. And then we are to choose to practice that plan so that we will become more and more thankful, rather than taking more and more blessings we have from God for granted.

And what do you think of this next statement calling us to prayer and thanksgiving and giving honor to the Holy Scriptures? “Let all of us…give thanks to God and prayerful contemplation to those eternal truths and universal principles of Holy Scripture which have inspired such measure of true greatness as this nation has achieved.” Dwight D. Eisenhower Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1956

Now what was that separation of church and state thing about again? This was from a President! Any honest political leader has to admit that this nation owes everything from its very existence to its subsistence to the grace and mercy of our Creator and Redeemer. To fail to publicly acknowledge this and to proclaim this in every area of our national life is simply a return to the sins of Romans 1, and also to its subsequent destruction: “For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.” This is one of the reasons we are to pray for and promote godly leaders in government, for the sake of not decaying more and more into being led by foolish laws and hard hearted leaders who are sowing seeds of further judgments to come.

And not just to political leaders, but about people in general Matthew Henry wrote this:

“What a pity it is that this earth, which is so full of God’s goodness should be empty of His praises and that of the multitudes that live upon His bounty, there are so few that live to His glory!”

What a great way to put it: If you live by God’s bounty, then you should indeed live for His glory! I often think of one of the most profound explanations that the Apostle Paul gave to the Greek leaders of Athens. It was an amazing reality check concerning the fact that everything they had came from and was coming from the benevolent hand of God; everything in their lives, even their very breath.

Let’s try this: How long can you hold your breath? See if you can hold it while I read this passage from Acts 17:22-31. “So Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I observe that you are very religious in all respects. For while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, ‘TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.’ Therefore what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you. The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His children. Being then the children of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man. Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.” NASU Aren’t you thankful to God for your very breath?

This is a passage that should be sent around the world to every world government and religious leader so that they would realize that not only should they be bowing in thankfulness to the one God of Heaven for all that they have, but they should be thankful to God for even having any breath at all. The next breath that anyone on planet earth is about to take is being supplied to them from the very source of life; our Creator and Redeemer. That’s how completely dependent all people are on this sustaining grace of God and how fundamental thanksgiving should be to God for all that we have, even our next breath.

Let’s wrap up our thanksgiving reflection time with that powerful passage from Phil 4:6-7- “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” NASU There it is again; ‘with thanksgiving’. It’s crucial to understand that this goal of ‘peace’ here can only reached by the pathway of ‘thankful prayer’. Note that when the stresses and anxieties and worries rise up against us, the only way to get to peace is through this particular kind of prayer. It’s a prayer that revolves around ‘thanksgiving’. In our Thanksgiving meals we often talk about having a ‘centerpiece’ at the meal. And while that can be like some special craft or other such arrangement, practically speaking, most people think about the ‘turkey’ as being the centerpiece, right? Well, this is a little bit of a weak analogy, but the point is, in any prayer for the protective or the preventative peace of God to guard your hearts and minds, the centerpiece of the prayer is to be on this focus of thanksgiving. Without a thankful heart you cannot have a peaceful mind. And without a thankful mind, whatever thankfulness that was in your heart will erode away like a drying river bed.

And so it goes, round and round. But again, it’s our choice: I think, therefore I thank. It’s like the focus of our conference this last week; to love God with all of our mind. It’s what the Psalmist called for us to do. Ps 103:1-2- “Bless the Lord, O my soul, And all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits.” NASU

Like David, we have to remind ourselves to remember. For as Matthew Henry also said: “’Forget not all of His benefits’, for if we do not give thanks for them, we do tend to forget them, and that is unjust as well as it is unkind to God.”

How could we even think of being unkind to God. Rather, we are to daily think of our duty to thank our God and praise our God for everything from our daily bread to our daily breath…and more. Giving thanks to God is a sure way to bless our God, and to reap blessings in our lives as well.

Ps 95:2- “Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.”NASU

Col 4:2- “Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving…” NASU

(Assorted quotes from Topical Encyclopedia of Living Quotes; The Vance Havner Quote Book; The Quotable Matthew Henry)

A Personal Look at Discipleship, Pt. 6

Study Guide – November 12, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

Life is tough, right? I shared with the guys at our Life Group one person’s prayer for dealing with this tough life. You may have heard it. It goes like this: “Dear Lord, So far I’ve done all right. I haven’t gossiped, haven’t lost my temper, haven’t been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish, or overindulgent. I’m really glad about that. But in a few minutes, Lord, I’m going to get out of bed…and from then on, I’m going to need a lot more help.”

Yes, life is tough even before you get going very far. But one thing that helps dealing with this ‘tough life’ is having a tough plan, or having a solid plan, a disciplined plan; a plan that you can live by. We have been walking through that plan, the plan of ‘Discipleship’, particularly the five disciplines of a disciple’s life. And as personal disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ we are not only responsible for practicing these disciplines in our personal lives, but we are to know that we are also going to give an account to our Lord concerning what we did about these disciplines as we lived out our lives as His disciples. So we need to continue to unpack this fourth discipline that we started in our last study: the discipline of church life or of ‘body life’ development.

So let’s look again at that key passage of Eph 4:11-13- “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.” NASU

Did you notice the central goal? ‘…to the building up of the body of Christ.” I have mentioned before that my college Pastor had been a ‘body builder’. At one time he was awarded the title of ‘Mr. Mid-West’ in body building. And like in most churches there was always some push back from time to time about different programs and such. But the thing was, everyone was careful not to personally push him! You didn’t mess with Mr. Mid-West! Some of you have done weight training and body building before. Nate’s been pumping iron for years…he’s in power lifting competition at Liberty University. I stopped wrestling with him at about age 13!

But the point is; what a great image for a Pastor to have been into ‘body building’, since a central activity of the church is ‘body building’. The goal of each believer, from the leaders who serve to the servant leaders…the goal is to be a ‘body builder’; a believer who intentionally seeks to serve others in such a way as to build up the body of Christ. So you can add that to your Christian identity: “I am a ‘body builder’.”A Christian is a ‘body builder for the Lord’. In fact, ‘body building’ is one of the central reasons we come to church; to build up others in the church.

In our Membership Orientation class one the things we always point out is the fallacy of one of the most common things you hear from those who do not practice the discipline of church service in their lives. Their default line that they go to is this: “Well you know, you don’t have to go to church to be a good Christian.” How many times have you heard that one?

What is completely misunderstood about that is this: “When has the goal of the Christian life ever been about being a ‘good Christian’? And who decides what a ‘good Christian’ is anyway? No, the goal of the Christian life is not about being a good Christian; it’s about being an ‘obedient Christian’! And to be an obedient Christian we have to commit our lives to doing what Christ has commanded us to do. And one of those things involves committing ourselves to worshiping, fellowshiping, and serving in a church body, a particular body of Christ. In speaking of the habit of church fellowship the book of Hebrews states it very clearly: Heb 10:23-25- “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” NASU

And here we see that not only are Christians to obey the command to regularly assemble as a body of believers, but they are to be even more committed to it as the time approaches for the Lord of the Church to return for His church. So practicing the discipline of church worship, fellowship, and service in your life is not optional for any disciple of the Lord Jesus; rather it is mandatory. Christ expects it and He will evaluate what His disciples did about it when they give an account of their lives before the Judgment Seat of Christ.

Another fallacy about church that you often hear is that some say that they don’t feel the need or see the need for church in their life, as though some believers need church, but others don’t. Once again, is there anywhere in God’s instructions to His church that indicates that church is about how a follower of Christ feels about it or sees any need for it personally? No, rather what we find are instruction after instruction about our need to minister to the needs of others in Christ’s church. In fact, there are about fifty eight times in which the concept of ‘one another’ is used in the New Testament, statements like ‘Serve one another’, ‘Be devoted to one another’, Honor one another’, ‘Bear one another’s burdens’, ‘Encourage one another’, and on and on. You see, a believer can’t even obey some of God’s instructions apart from being an active participant in a body of believers. Back to that Hebrews passage: The avenue for obeying the command to encourage one another in the service of love and good deeds was through the habit of being used by God to do this through the fellowship of God’s people, His church.

It’s as Ray Ortland put it: “The Christian who is not committed to a group of other believers for praying, sharing, and serving, so that he is known, as he knows others, is not an obedient Christian. He is not in the will of God. However vocal he may be in his theology, he is not obeying the Lord.” Pretty strong statement, right? And pretty clear that the goal of discipleship is being an obedient Christian, not just a good Christian.

But since we are on the subject of ‘good’, what does God say about ‘good’ in relation to being an obedient Christian? Gal 6:10- “So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.” NASU So an obedient Christian is one who does good for others in need around him, but he especially does good for those in his own household of faith, or in his own fellowship of fellow believers; the church.

And one really good example of a ‘good Christian’ in this sense is a man called ‘Barnabas’. The Bible even calls him ‘a good man’. Look at this: Acts 11:22-26- “The news about them reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas off to Antioch. Then when he arrived and witnessed the grace of God, he rejoiced and began to encourage them all with resolute heart to remain true to the Lord; for he was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And considerable numbers were brought to the Lord. And he left for Tarsus to look for Saul; and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. And for an entire year they met with the church and taught considerable numbers; and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.” NASU

When God calls you ‘a good man’ that’s really good! But here’s the point: One of the things this ‘good man’ did was that he focused a good amount of time and energy and money on building up this church in Jerusalem and in building up this church in Antioch and in building up churches every other place that he and the Apostle Paul went as ‘church planters’! And why did this ‘good man’ do this? Because He knew that to be an obedient Christian God’s will for him was to plant and to build up local churches. And in the same way, although you may not be called to plant a church, you and I are called, commanded really, to ‘build up’ the church.

So for one thing, we are back to dismantling any idea about church as being something that a Christian can decide about on the basis of him or her feeling they ‘need’ church in their life or not. No, being a serving part of a local church is way past being an ‘option’ for a disciple of Christ’s; rather, it is an ‘obligation’ of a disciple of Christ’s. We are obligated to God to do our duty in seeking to do whatever we can to build up our fellow believers in a particular body of Christ to which we are committed to serving. In fact, God has equipped every Christian with something that is needed by someone else in a particular body of the church. Look at what the Apostle Peter says about that:1 Peter 4:10-11- “God has given each of you a gift from His great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to Him forever and ever! Amen.” NLT

There’s that ‘serve one another’ command again. Plus, whether a believer feels he or she needs church in their life or not is not a valid determination for church in their life. No, far from it, because the Apostle Peter reveals that the issue is that someone or some others in the church need the gift or special service that you have been given by God. Therefore, once again, you and I are obligated to pass on to others in His church what God intends to get to them through you and me. If a believer is not regularly worshiping, fellowshiping, and serving in a local body of believers then that believer is withholding something that God intended to get to other body part through that believer. He or she is denying something that God was going to pass on to another child of God through them. You see, That’s one of the other reasons He calls us “His branches”, since He, as ‘The Vine’ intends for us to be the channels of His resources to others in His church, which He intends to ‘build up’ until He returns.

And that brings us back to whatever else we are as believers in Christ, we are in fact ‘body builders’ for Christ. Church body building is our duty. We are commanded to edify or to build up others in the body of Christ. 1 Thess 5:11- “Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.” NASU How remarkable that this verse is one of the primary answers to the question of why we are supposed to go to church, or what are we supposed to do when we go to church? Certainly, we go to worship our Lord and to offer our gifts of thanksgiving and to learn and to grow together. But one of the foremost things we should have on our minds as we regularly go to church is that we are going with the purpose of ‘building up’ someone else; building up some other Brother or Sister in Christ.

As Paul was writing to the Corinthian church he said: 1 Cor 14:12- “So also you, since you are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek to abound for the edification of the church.” NASU In the midst of him giving these believers instructions about spiritual gifts he injects this prime directive: “…seek to abound for the edification of the church.” That’s a marching order to each of us disciples of Jesus Christ. Why is being an active part of a local church so important? Because we have a prime directive from the Scriptures to ‘seek to abound for the edification of the church.’ When you and I come to church we are to be seeking to edify others around us in the church. The word ‘edification’ actually means ‘to build up’. A building is often called an ‘edifice’. And so an edifice is the result of edification, or a building is the result of ‘building’. Yeah, the English language is a lot more confusing than the Biblical Greek. Fortunately English wasn’t an option when the Bible was being recorded for mankind. I understand English developed from a set of North Sea Germanic dialects spoken by the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes around the 5^th to the 7^th centuries. So English sprung up a lot later than Greek. Just thought you’d like to know.

But back to our point: What the Scriptures reveal to all of us believers is that one of the purposes of going to church is to edify or to build up our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. As a fellow ‘body builder’ we are to seek to actively contribute to another believer’s spiritual, emotional, and even physical well being. As we gather together for worship and fellowship we are to come to church with the focus of encouraging someone in need of encouragement; or to enlighten someone who needs understanding; or to pray for someone in need of prayer; or to lift up someone who is under heavy burdens; or to comfort someone in a time of sorrow; or to celebrate with someone over a recent victory; or to affirm someone in some worthy accomplishment; or to magnify someone’s sense of importance and significance, and so on.

Essentially, church is not about if someone sees the need for it in their life or not; Church is about our fellow believer’s need to see or receive something of Jesus from you and from me as we obediently seek to build up the body of Christ for the glory of God and the gain of His body; His Church. And one day we are going to give an account to Jesus about what we did in this assignment that He gave to us in being a ‘church body builder’ for Him.

Rom 14:19- “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”

A Personal Look at Discipleship, Pt. 4

Study Guide, October 22, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

On any visit to Israel one of the sites to see needs to be the Shrine of the Book. They made the building to look like the top of the pottery which contained the first scroll. This museum contains scrolls from the Dead Sea Scrolls, which are the greatest literary and archaeological discovery of our time. And inside you can walk around looking at these scrolls of the Bible which were hidden in caves for nearly 2,000 years at an ancient city called Qumran, near the Dead Sea. They were written in Hebrew, with several in Aramaic and Greek. One of the most fascinating scrolls uncovered was made out of copper—the only scroll not made from animal skin or parchment. These scrolls date back to 300 B.C. And One of the scrolls was the Book of Isaiah, which was 1,000 years older than any previously known copy of the manuscript. It was also about 24 feet long.¹ But here’s the thing, how amazing that after examining these 2,000 year old writings, which contain nearly the entire Old Testament, the only differences they found between them and the writings we hold in our hands today were some spelling differences!

What a confirmation of God’s promise to us in the scroll of Isaiah: Isa 40:8- “The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.” NASU The Apostle Peter repeated that truth as well. And not only will these truths stand forever, but God has even preserved His truths for the people of Earth in His revealed words of the Bible for all people of Earth. And these Dead Sea Scrolls are an excellent example of this.

The Bible is certainly the greatest treasure on Earth, as it contains the very revelation of God and of God’s will for us all. And as we talked about in our last study, the Bible is the very manifestation of God upon Earth to us all. And so for us, as His disciples, in order to follow God and walk with God we are to learn to follow God’s Word and to walk with God’s word. And we noted that we each have an appointment with God when our Lord Jesus Christ is going to review what we did about what He instructed us to do in His personal book to us.

Now of course, here at the Chapel, we celebrate the centrality and the authority of the Word of the God in our church family life and in our own personal lives. We glory in this manifestation of Jesus our Savior to us in His Word. Like the Proverbs say it, we ‘treasure’ God’s instructions and His commandments for our lives. But we have to remember that we live in a culture where everything that we have just said is under attack, as to the authority of the Bible, the relevancy of the Bible, the centrality of the Bible, and even the truth claims of the Bible. And this attack is not just coming from our culture, it’s coming through our culture from the very enemy of God’s Word, who said to our first parents, “Has God said…?” And then he went on and lied about what God had said! Remember, Satan’s primary attack is against the Word of God, because the Word of God is the manifestation to us of our Lord Jesus Christ, who was in the beginning, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, as the Apostle John revealed to us. So Satan is relentlessly seeking to keep people from trusting in and looking to the authority and the centrality of the Word of God in people’s lives. But notice this: If he can’t keep believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, from believing the Word of God, he is going to try to keep those believers from depending on the Word of God and thus from walking with the Word of God.

And how is he doing? A recent poll revealed that less than half of those who regularly attend church read the Bible more than once a week, and one in five say they never read it. In other words, most people, even in the church, do not have a discipline of daily meeting with Jesus in His Word, of communing with Jesus in the Scriptures, and looking to have their minds transformed by the Word of God.

Once Satan has failed to keep a person from coming to Jesus for their salvation, he then tries to keep them from meeting with Jesus for their sanctification, particularly in meeting with Jesus in His Word. Once Satan has lost an unconverted person to becoming converted to Christ, his work is to then keep that person that was converted in their soul from becoming converted in their mind. And, again, the way he does that is by seeking to keep them from depending upon the Word of God, and from walking with the Word of God, and from following the Word of God, which is basically depending upon Jesus and walking with Jesus and following Jesus.

Note this carefully: By definition, a Christian is one who has a converted soul, but by default, this converted soul still has a carnal mind, or a cultural mind. And this converted person will continue to have a carnal mind until their mind becomes more and more a converted by and to the truths and the worldviews of the Word of God. Again, conversion of the soul takes place in a moment through the new birth; whereas the conversion of the mind is a life long process that takes place as a result of the renewing the mind day after day by the continual transformation of the mind by the Word of God.

Many Christians tend to think that when they become a Christian that somehow they will now just think more ‘Christianly’…as though their opinions and judgments about things somehow got sharpened along with their salvation, or somehow got renewed along with their rebirth. Or they think that since they now have a converted soul that they no longer have a carnal mind. Well, because of the Spirit’s indwelling, potentially, yes, but in practice…wait a minute!

The classic passage on this is from Paul’s letter to the Corinthian Church. 1 Cor 3:1-3- “And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal.” NKJV Actually, Paul went on talking about this concept of them needing to go on to maturity about 10 more times in his letters.

Now the word ‘carnal’ can imply anything from just meaning ‘being of the world’ to ‘being really worldly’. You have to determine the severity of it by it’s context. And here Paul is simply using it to explain to these Corinthian believers that although they were converted to Christ in their souls their thinking hadn’t become very converted yet. They were not committed to having their minds become more converted into thinking more and more like Christ. They were continuing to think like carnal people rather than converted people.

That has been the stumbling block of the Church throughout history. People become converted to Christ in their souls, but they fail to commit themselves to the process of developing a converted mind. That is what so many Christians continually overlook. How ironic that in coming to understand the Gospel of Grace through faith, they realize that instead of trusting in their own works to save them, that they are to place their trust in the works of Jesus Christ for the conversion of their soul. But then for their sanctification, or their growth as a saved person, they just revert back to trusting in their own carnal mind again, instead of distrusting their carnal mind and trusting in the Bible, the mind of Christ, for the conversion of their thinking. Paul also spoke to the Colossian believers about this same thing. Col 2:6-7- “Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.” NASU

Just as we received Jesus Christ by trusting in Him and His gospel truths to us we are to go on and mature in our faith and thinking by trusting in His revealed truths to us. Or as Dr. Walvoord put it: “Paul exhorted them not to forsake its divine authority for any human sophistry.” Basically Paul was instructing them to not neglect the study of the Scriptures by their insistence on trusting in their own deceived human reasoning! Or if we could use even more down to earth wording: “If the way you thought about being right with God was all messed up before you got saved, how come you don’t realize your thinking is still going to be all messed up unless you change the way you think and how you think according to Biblical thinking!”

Think about it: God didn’t save us from the mess in our heads; He saved us from the sins in our soul. He converted our soul all at once in a spiritual rebirth, but it’s going to take the rest of our lives for God to convert our minds by transforming them more and more to think more and more in line with His truths, His words: The Word of God. And that’s why you and I have to develop the discipline of feeding on the Bread of Life, taking in the Word of God, the daily manna of God, because it’s the only way we can keep converting our mind to be in line with the truths of God’s Word. Plus, it’s the only way we can prepare for the coming evaluation of the Judgment Seat of Christ when God is going to evaluate our obedience to His command for us love Him with all of our mind. He’s going to evaluate what we did about His commands for us to have our carnal thinking transformed into converted thinking by renewing our mind according to the words of God.

Realize this about our God: God wants us to succeed in this. As our loving God and Heavenly Father, He wants us to succeed in our discipleship. Look at what He said to Joshua. Josh 1:7-8- “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.” NLT

First of all: God wanted to see Joshua succeed. And what is ‘success’ in the eyes of God? Success is faithfulness to God. Really, in all of life, for anyone’s life, the measure of anyone’s success in life is the measure of their faithfulness to God. The lasting value of any of our accomplishments in the areas of our family, our jobs, our church experiences, our community contributions, our personal achievements, and so on; the success of any and all of that is being measured and is going to measured by the measure of our faithfulness to God in and through it all. And notice again how that faithfulness is to be set into motion. Notice what God told Joshua what the ‘key’ was to achieving a successful/faithful life: “Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.”

Bible study is not optional for a saved child of God: it is a required discipline for every disciple of God’s. The Apostle Paul repeats this requirement in the New Testament: 2 Tim 2:15- “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” KJV The Greek word that Paul used here for ‘rightly dividing’ literally means ‘to cut straight’. Paul could have had in mind anything from images of tent-makers to stone masons, but the point is clear: in order for anything to be properly put together, from a tent to a palace to a person’s own life, it has to start with accuracy. After we become saved in our souls, in order for the rest of our lives to be properly put together, we have to be able to think with accuracy. But that requires a new discipline; the discipline of replacing our faulty default thinking, or our natural reasoning, or our carnal mind, with a disciplined mind, a renewed mind; a mind that is continually being converted. And that is exactly what Paul was saying to the Romans in Rom 12:2- “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.” NASU

Realize that ‘conformity’ is not an option for a creature of earth. The only option is to what or whom will you be conformed? Every person is either being conformed to their culture or conformed to their Creator. Before we were converted we were conformed both in our soul and in our mind to this world. But when we were born again into the life and family of Christ Jesus, our soul was transferred from this world of death and into the world of eternal life in union with Christ. But our mind is still in need of a complete transformation so that we will become more conformed in our thinking to our Creator rather than to our culture. Our soul was regenerated, but our mind is in need of renewal. And that is the discipline that our Lord has commanded us to practice as His disciples.

And again, that is the discipline that only you can do: this discipline of personally studying the Word of God for the purpose of having your default carnal mind changed more and more into a Biblical disciple’s mindset. Plus, God has also clearly reminded us that we are going to give an account to Him of what we did about His call for us to come to Him and to His Word day after day to have Him transform our minds and renew our thinking to be more and more a faithful and useful disciple of His.

And another ‘Plus’: Plus, we are to also realize that God is depending on us to defend His Word against the truth twisters of the world. And He’s is depending us to follow His Word in being truth lovers; particularly, lovers of the One who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

1. guideposts.org The Dead Sea Scrolls

A Personal Look at Discipleship, Pt. 3

Study Guide, October 15, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

I’ll always remember my College Pastor saying that many Christians think of their life as like bringing a sheet with their plans for their life to God and asking God to sign His name at the bottom. But instead we are to bring a sheet to God with our name already signed at the bottom and then ask God, “Lord, will You fill out Your plan for my life?” What a great way to remind us of who is to be in charge of directing our lives.

And often when we think about what we are to be focusing on concerning God’s will for our life, we tend to focus on the big three: R.V.L. – Relation, Vocation, and Location, or whom shall I spend my life with, what shall I spend my life doing, and where should I spend my life living? And these are certainly good and godly considerations in God’s plan for our lives, and we thank God that He leads us in each of these areas. And yet, what often gets overlooked are the clear and distinct areas of our individual discipleship that God has already filled in on the sheet of God’s will for our lives. As we began pointing out in our studies, God has already given us our marching orders in five areas of discipleship. He has already given us specific commands about what is involved in following Him as Lord of our lives. And He has already revealed to us that there is coming an ‘appointed day’ when we will personally meet with Him to review what we actually did about what He commanded us to do, as His saved children and His ‘appointed disciples’. As Paul was writing to the Roman believers about these kind of instructions and others he paused and reminded them of this: Rom 14:12- “Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God.” NLT

That can kind of give you the ‘shivers’, right? Well, Paul didn’t remind them of this coming evaluation of their lives before the Judgment Seat of Christ in order to give these Roman believers the ‘shivers’ about it. And we are not reviewing these five key areas of our discipleship over which we will give an account before God in order to give us believers the ‘shivers’ about it either. We are reviewing these things because as Matthew Henry put it: “It ought to be the business of every day to prepare for our last day.” And what He was talking about was the fact that we only have one life on this side of Heaven to prepare for that day when Jesus reviews what we actually did about the works He commanded us to do from the time He saved us to when our work on this Earth is through. Like we pointed out last time: The judgment for our sins is past, but the judgment for our service is yet future. And only you can do what Jesus commanded you to do about worshiping and serving Him as you live out your personal discipleship. No one else can do your discipleship for you.

In our last study we highlighted the central focus of our personal discipleship, and that was, to daily abide with Christ, to commune with Christ. And so today we want to examine the ‘key’ to daily abiding with Christ’. It’s really fascinating, so let’s get to it.

The Apostle John revealed this about Jesus: John 1:1- “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” And then he goes on and says this: 14- “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” NASU

We know that John was explaining that Jesus was the very manifestation of God to all people of Earth. And the word ‘manifestation’ means: ‘An appearance in bodily or tangible form.’ But this is not all that John was revealing, because by identifying Jesus as ‘The Word’, the Apostle John directly connected God with God’s revelation, or His communication, or His Word – His Scriptures to us. The point being, before Jesus came, the Word, or the Scriptures were the manifestation of God to the people. When Jesus became flesh and dwelt among people, He was the manifestation of the Word or the Scriptures to all people, especially His followers. Therefore, now that Jesus has returned to Heaven, once again, the Word or the Scriptures are the manifestation of Jesus to all people, especially to us, as His disciples. And this then is the key to how we are to ‘abide in and with Christ’.

Let’s let John, really Jesus, teach us further about this. In the lesson that Jesus taught about the Vine and the Branches He instructs us further about how we are to ‘abide’ in and with our Lord. Notice: John 15:4-5- “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” NASU Okay, that’s pretty clear. Jesus commands us to ‘abide in Him’. And if we don’t ‘abide’ in Him, then whatever else we assume or presume that we are accomplishing adds up to a grand total of: ‘Nothing!’ Now, that should make us ‘shiver’! So we had better find out how to abide in Christ and then personally and seriously get on with the business of ‘abiding’ in Christ.

First of all, what does it mean to ‘abide’? To ‘Abide’ means: to stay connected, to be present with, to be fixed upon, to stand with, to move in sync. Think about that last one a minute: ‘to move in sync’, particularly in describing what it means to ‘abide in Christ’. In our techie culture we think a lot about things as needing to be ‘in sync’, especially like our computers and phones and cars and such. But when you define ‘out of sync’ it really begins to enlarge the picture. ‘Out of sync’: ‘A state in which two or more people or things do not move and act together, or do not agree with, or their goals do not match up with one another.’

That really fills in the picture of what Jesus is talking about when He commands us to ‘abide’ in Him. He’s calling us to make sure our goals for our life match up with His goals for our life. He’s calling us to stay connected and focused on standing in agreement with Him concerning God’s morals and values and such. And He is also calling us to to act upon these things together with Him as to how we think and live. What a way to think about our discipleship! Am I ‘in sync’ with Jesus in what I am thinking and in what I’m doing in my family, my church family, my job, my friendships and so on?

Think about it: If you are not ‘in sync’ with Jesus in how you think, then you had better think again, because that means you have not been ‘abiding’ in Jesus. And if you are not ‘abiding’ in Jesus then Jesus says, “…apart from Me, you can do – nothing.”

As born again believers who love the Lord, we do want to please our Lord and abide in and with Jesus. So how do we do that? How do we get more and more ‘in sync’ with our Savior day by day? Jesus instructed us about that, too. John 15:7-11- “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.” NASU

So here Jesus reveals that the way to ‘abide in Him’ is by letting His words, the Word of God, the Scriptures, abide in us. We are to purposefully and daily seek to ‘sync up’ our thoughts and ‘sync up’ our actions with His words. And to make it even more fascinating Jesus reveals that when we do ‘sync up’ with Him by letting His words get into our thinking and planning and living, that even our prayer life will be more ‘in sync’ with His will and His acts in and through our life. Plus, Jesus says that it out of our practice of abiding spiritual fruit will grow…lasting benefits will result for His Kingdom, and for others, and particularly for you. For did you notice what Jesus said will grow out of your practice of ‘abiding’ in Him? “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.”

Again, how like our loving Lord to want to see us come to know Him through knowing His words, not only for the purposes of doing goods works for Him, but for His purpose of wanting to grow His fruit of joy in us. Our perfect benevolent Heavenly Father wants us to experience something of His own joy. But again, in order to grow the fruit of joy we have to get in sync with His words. It’s like in order to enjoy music through a radio you have to sync up with the right frequency. That connecting part in ‘abiding with Christ’ is crucial.

Here is another fascinating thing about abiding in the Word. Do you remember that other part in the definition of the word ‘manifestation’ in connection with Jesus? ‘An appearance in bodily or tangible form.’ We often talk about how wonderful it would have been to see Jesus like the Disciples did, to be near Jesus in His bodily and tangible form. Absolutely wonderful for sure; and one day soon that will be a reality for us. But for now, Jesus has so designed life for us that there is a way, even a somewhat tangible way, to see Jesus and to touch Him. I think of when Philip once asked Jesus to show them the Father, and Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long and you still don’t know Me?” Could it be when we are longing for some greater connection or sense of Jesus presence that He in essence is saying to us, “Have I been with you for so long in My Word and you still don’t know Me?” Jesus told us that He would make Himself known to us in His words, the Word of God, the Scriptures. If you want to get close or closer to Jesus, get close and closer to His words. If you want to see the Father, look to Jesus’ words in the Scriptures. If you want to respond to Jesus call to Thomas to reach forth your finger and touch His side then reach forth your hand and touch your Bible, for the Word of God is the manifestation of Jesus Christ to us until He comes or we go to Him.

This also explains to us why ever since the Ascension of Jesus Christ that the fiercest battle against the Sovereignty of God and the Saviorhood of Jesus has been directed toward the Bible. The attack has shifted toward the Scriptures. Why? It’s because now that Jesus is tangibly gone from the Earth the Bible is the tangible manifestation of Jesus upon Earth. And so the attacks are focused against the Bible. And yet, how wonderful for all who love the Lord and His Word and want to get close to our Savior. We can. In fact, the Bible is as close as you can tangibly get to Jesus ever since His ascension. When Jesus left Earth He left His words. So now His words are essentially Jesus on Earth. Again, that’s why those who oppose Jesus’ Lordship so oppose the Scriptures. But that’s also why, and should be why those who worship the Lord Jesus should so love the Bible, for the Bible contains the very words of Jesus that He left for us in order to ‘abide in Him and with Him’.

That’s even why before Jesus the Messiah was made manifest on Earth we hear the Psalmist speaking about the Law of the Lord as though it was the Lord Himself: Ps 119:1-2- “How blessed are those whose way is blameless, Who walk in the law of the Lord. How blessed are those who observe His testimonies,Who seek Him with all their heart.14-16- “I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, As much as in all riches. I will meditate on Your precepts And regard Your ways. I shall delight in Your statutes; I shall not forget Your word. 18- “Open my eyes, that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law. 97- “O how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day.” NASU

The Psalmist loved the Scriptures like he was loving the Lord Himself, even before the Lord had revealed the rest of the Old and New Testaments, which magnify Jesus Christ and our great privileges and future with our Lord even more! So how much should we treasure the Word of God. Our Great Shepherd has arranged a way that we can tangibly touch Him and actually walk with Him by holding His words in our hands and obeying His words in our hearts and lives. In fact, if you really want to show Jesus how much you, too, love Him like the Psalmist loved Him…well, here it is: 1 John 5:3- “Loving God means obeying His commands.” ERV

Simple, yet profound…that’s the way and the wonder of God. You see, our claim to love God can be measured. And here in 1 John 5 we find that the measurement of our love for Jesus is measured by our obedience to His commandments, because when we read or hear the words of the Scriptures we have just heard the voice of our Lord. When you read the words of the Bible you have just heard the voice of your Shepherd. John 10:27- “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me…” NASU So what we hear the Scriptures saying is what we just heard the Shepherd saying. We have heard His voice, and as His sheep we are to follow and do what He said. To learn to follow the Shepherd you must learn to follow the Shepherd’s words. To learn to abide in Jesus you must learn to abide in His Word. To walk with the Shepherd you must learn to walk with the Word.

Again, part of my role as a Pastor is to help you prepare for that day that you will give an account of how you did or did not listen to the Shepherd’s voice in the words of the Scriptures and follow Him in obedience to His voice. Part of my responsibility is to inform you as clearly as possible what is going to be on the test at this Judgment Seat of Christ. And what is going to be on this test is the evaluation of five key areas of your discipleship. So that’s why we are going over each one so carefully and precisely. However, only you can do what is required of you to do in these five areas of your discipleship. You are going to be evaluated over what you did about this ‘Test’ of your discipleship. And what you are doing about this ‘test’, day after day, is essentially what is going to make up your ‘testimony’ before God.

Although this can give us all the ‘shivers’, what it’s supposed to do is to give us a greater sense of our great significance, since we have been called into this deep and abiding relationship with our Savior who loves us so, and is anxious to reward us so, but can only do so based upon the fair evaluation of how much we have loved Him in return, and showed Him so by keeping His commandments. And as the Apostle John reminded us in 1 John 5:3-4- “And God’s commands are not too hard for us, because everyone who is a child of God has the power to win against the world.” ERV

Just think: God has already given us the power to obey His words and to win against the world and show God and others how much we love our God and Savior. We already have the power; we just have to supply the will…to be willing to do what our Shepherd is calling us to do as we abide with Him through this tangible manifestation of Him; His Word – His Bible.

A Personal Look at Discipleship, Pt. 2

A Devotional Communion Service

Study Guide – October 8, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

The Bread

With our attention turned to the Lord’s Supper today, it seemed providential that we should focus on the centerpiece or the center-part of the five areas of our personal discipleship, and that is; Abiding in Christ. Jesus called His disciples not first to serve Him, but to ‘be with’ Him. Even before the Incarnation, when Divinity took on our humanity and Christ forever became Jesus Christ, God made it clear that His greatest intention and desire was for His people to personally know Him and love Him and do life together with Him. And that kind of surprises people because they think of God’s relationship with His people in the Old Testament as being rather austere and primarily centering on the ceremonial laws and their sacrificial rituals and such. But then we hear from God concerning what He has always wanted in His relationship with His people, and again, it’s kind of surprising to many. Listen to what God says in Hos 6:6- “I want your constant love, not your animal sacrifices. I would rather have My people know Me than burn offerings to Me.” TEV

Does that level of intimacy that God wants surprise you any? Do you realize that what we just read is what God just said…to you? Of course, our service to God and our sacrifices to God are very important to God, but God wants them to be expressions of our deep and abiding relationship with God as we do life together, day by day. The reason we have called this study on Discipleship – ‘A Personal Look at Discipleship’, is because of this very reality; that the centerpiece of our religion is this longing of God to have a deep and daily personal relationship with us. Again, does He want our sacrifices? Sure He does. Does He want our service? Sure He does. But over and above and beyond all of this, God foremost wants our constant love and deepening knowledge and daily relationship with Him.

This revelation about what God wants from us and with us is simply stunning, and beyond our understanding for sure. God is perfect in every sense and requires nothing outside of His own attributes and being complete in all things and in all ways. God has no needs…but He does have ‘one want’…and that ‘one want’ is for one person to love Him with all their heart and soul and mind. And that one person is ‘you’. Again, God has never had any needs, but He has always had one want – you.

Have you ever thought about the fact that if God would have stopped with Adam and Eve as being His only children that Jesus would have still have had to come to Earth and take on their humanity and then die in their place to remove that penalty of sin that was upon them? Those animal skins that God placed on them were only temporary coverings for their sin. To remove an eternal spiritual death sentence required an Eternal Being who would be willing to become a human being and then die as a substitute and pay the eternal penalty for them. Jesus was and is that Eternal Being who died as Adam’s substitute, and as Eve’s substitute, and as your substitute, so that Adam and Eve and you and me could be pardoned of that sin penalty and have our spirits become reborn, re-united with Jesus’s own spirit, Jesus’ own eternal life. And why? Why did Jesus do that for Adam and Eve – and for you? It’s because although Jesus didn’t have any needs He did have one ‘want’…and that ‘want’ was ‘you’. Jesus’ one want was you.

Yes, Jesus died for the whole world, but what is the whole world? It’s you and me and every other individual who has ever lived. Jesus died not for a world, but for individuals of this world. Christianity has always been about a personal relationship between the Person of Christ and one other person. And that other person is you, and me, and each born again individual throughout history. But in essence: it’s always been One to one; Person to person. Even that statement of the Psalmist about – “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained; What is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him?” Ps 8:3-4 NASU – what David was really saying was “What am I that You take thought of me and that You care for me?”

Really, what do you and I have to offer our perfect and all sufficient God who has no needs? And then God reveals that our relationship with Him is not about His needs – it’s about His wants. And ‘His wants’ are a reflection of ‘His love’. And so, God’s love gave birth to a want…and that ‘want’ was you, and me, and each of His children throughout history and on into the future, all the born again individuals who will, one by one, make up God’s family; the family God always wanted.

Which brings us to this memorial, this ‘Communion’. In salvation Jesus first brings us into ‘union’ with Him, in which Jesus shares with us His very eternal life. It’s like with our memory verse this morning of John 6:40 where Jesus gives us that wonderful promise that to everyone who believes in Him/receives Him into them, He gives to them His eternal life. And this eternal life is the indescribable gift that the Apostle Paul talked about in 2 Cor. 9:15. Just think: Jesus takes our eternal debt of sin and then gives to us His eternal life. It’s why we often call the Gospel ‘the Great Exchange’. That’s how Paul put it in: 2 Cor 5:21- “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” NASU When we surrender to God in repentance of our sin and place our faith and trust in Jesus to save us – Jesus takes our debt of sins from us and then places His righteousness upon us. It’s the ‘Great Exchange’. That’s how much Jesus was willing to do; to live a perfect life of righteousness for you. And that’s how far Jesus was willing to go; all the way to the Cross to die a physical and spiritual death for you, in order to have you.

Jesus didn’t save us to complete any need in Him. He saved us because you completed a ‘want’ in Him.

The Cup

As we mentioned, in our salvation Jesus brings us, or births us, into union with Him and His very own eternal life. And then He calls us into ‘communion’ with Him. The Lord’s Supper is commonly referred to as ‘Communion’, since the central idea of ‘communion’ is ‘sharing’. The Bread and the Cup symbolize Jesus’ death on our behalf. And even here, as we learn from the Apostle Paul, we even shared in His death. Look at this: Rom 6:6-11- “We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with Him. We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and He will never die again. Death no longer has any power over Him. When He died, He died once to break the power of sin. But now that He lives, He lives for the glory of God. So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.” NLT

That always astounds me, that in some way I was crucified with Christ…and so were you. You were crucified with Christ. Paul said it again in Gal 2:20- “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” NLT When Paul looked at the Cross he saw Jesus on the cross and he saw something of himself on the Cross with Jesus; his old self…his sinful self. And in this he understood that he shared in Jesus’ death. No, not in the work of the cross; not in the offering of Jesus own sinless life in dying in our place, but in the sharing of the results of the cross. Paul explained that further in Col 2:14- “He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross.” NLT Paul saw his record of sins nailed to the Cross with Jesus. And in that sense he was crucified with Christ, as to his old self and as to that record of sins, which could only be removed from him by Christ’s cross. What a striking picture, a striking truth…a striking reality.

Did you know that everyone has a record of their sins? Most people have no idea that there is a record of their sins. They are going through life living and doing as they please regardless of sinning against God and man without giving any thought to the fact that their every sin is being recorded day by day. And why is that? Because for those who neglect or reject the great salvation offered them by the Lord Jesus Christ, one day they will give an account to God. And the sentencing of their eternity will be based upon their record. That’s what we see the Apostle John revealing to us in Rev 20:11-12- “And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from His presence, but they found no place to hide. I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books.” NLT

In these books is the record of their sins. One of those sins is the sin that determined their destiny, their perishing in the land of Gehenna Hell, and that sin was their unrepentant unbelief in Jesus, the only Lord and Savior. Their sin of unbelief determined their destiny – their sins as unbelievers determines their severity. The rest of their sins in that record of their sins will determine the severity of their sentencing as they live out their eternity in the land of Gehenna Hell. Even Hell will have differences of severity, as Jesus made very clear, and which is only fitting for a Just and Fair God.

But then there was another book there; the Book of Life. And in the book of life is the record of believers names; your name. Remember, this is what Jesus was telling the Disciples about: Luke 10:20- “Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.” NASU The record of your sins is not in the book of life. Only your name is in the Book of Life, because that record of your sins is somewhere else. Remember: It was nailed to the cross alongside of Christ – and His sinless blood washed over your record of your sins and made it clean and white as snow. God even foretold of this to the Prophet Isaiah: Isa 1:18- “Come now, let’s settle this,”says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.” NLT

Now back to the Communion and our personal discipleship. As we shared in or communed with Jesus in His death, we are now to share in or to commune with Jesus throughout our life. That’s part of our personal discipleship. And as we said before, no one else can do your discipleship for you. No one else can commune with Jesus for you. You are personally called by Jesus to personally commune with Him day by day. It’s part of how you set Christ apart in your life each day as Lord of your life. It’s part of how you rightly respond to a God who has never had any needs, but has always had one want: You! It’s how you say to God and show to God that even though you do have a lot of needs that your highest want is to worship and please the One who wanted you and loves you so.

And, as far as records go…that record of your sins has been nailed to the cross. But remember, there is now another record, a record of your works, a record of your obedience, as a saved child of God that is being recorded day by day. 2 Cor 5:10- “For we must all appear and be revealed as we are before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive [his pay] according to what he has done in the body, whether good or evil [considering what his purpose and motive have been, and what he has achieved, been busy with, and given himself and his attention to accomplishing].” AMP

One thing you will want to see that was recorded in this: “This is Your Life” record, is a record of your proclaiming to God and demonstrating to others over and over how much you loved your God in return for His great love for you. The one thing you will want to have recorded in the record of your works, as a saved child of God, is how much you obeyed the greatest commandment that God gave you: Matt 22:37- “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” NKJV

That’s the central part of your discipleship that only you can do. So choose to do it well for the sake of the Lord who loves you so much that He gave Himself up in death for you in order to have you share in His resurrected life together…forever.

Implications of the Word, Pt. 10

A Personal Look at Discipleship

Study Guide, September 24, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

According to the Jewish Calendar we are in the midst of the Days of Awe. These are actually ten days between Rosh-Hashanah and Yom Kippur, which began on Thursday and concludes on the 30^th. Rosh-Hashana is the Feast of Trumpets and also the start of the Jewish New Year, which by their calendar is now the year 5778. It’s also a time when we as Christians rise up in hopes for that great trumpet call of God and the appearing of the Blessed Hope, the return of our Savior for His church in the great Rapture of the Church.

In Jewish tradition the ten days are days of preparation for Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement, a special day of forgiveness of sins for the year behind them. Fortunately, we realize that for those who are born again into union with Christ, all our sins have been forgiven, as to them separating us from a relationship with God. Our salvation includes our eternal union with God in a forever relationship with our Lord in His coming Kingdom. And we praise God for that assurance and security.

But speaking of these great events, there is another coming event that is the most significant event to come in each of our lives because it will determine the kinds of experiences and privileges and service assignments we will have for the rest of eternity in the Kingdom of Heaven. And of course that event is the family evaluation of the Judgment Seat of Christ to review and evaluate the personal discipleship of each of God’s children. 2 Cor 5:10- “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” NASU

We speak often about the Judgment Seat of Christ and have done an entire series on this subject at the Chapel. And we could start another one, which no doubt we will do sometime…maybe soon and very soon, because we are going to see the King! I am inclined to believe that a series on the Judgment Seat of Christ probably should be done frequently. In fact, more and more highly respected and influential Bible teachers are calling for teaching on the Judgment Seat of Christ to be the central teaching in churches along with the Great Commission.

Why are they saying that? Because the impact of this Judgment, this evaluation of our works from the time that we were saved, will impact our lives throughout eternity. As a president of Western Conservative Seminary, Earl Radmacher, said: “The person I am becoming today is preparing me for the person I shall be for all eternity.” Much will change about us in eternity, but much shall also remain the same. We will be the same people (as to our personal identity) we were here on earth, though with a new nature and a new body. And because our position in eternity will be momentous, the life that I live today is momentous – eternally momentous! Only in this life can we impact our eternity!¹

That quote is from a book that I encourage every believer to read: Your Eternal Reward, by Erwin Lutzer, pastor of Moody Bible Church. And another book that I consider ‘essential reading’ is Facing Your Final Job Review, by Woodrow Kroll, president of Back to the Bible ministries. In it Dr. Kroll said: “The reason Christ-followers stand before this judgment seat is to have our lives evaluated. It is to have the service we’ve done for the Lord Jesus appraised and, for what’s deemed acceptable, compensated. This is where the determination is made of what we will enjoy for all eternity.” ²

What is essentially being reviewed by our Lord is what we did about His call to follow Him from the time He saved us. And this call to ‘follow Him’ is what we call ‘our discipleship’. And so that is what we need to get specific about so that we will know just what God is looking for in His call for us to follow Him as His disciples.

I often think about the passage where Jesus is speaking about the coming days in the lives of His disciples, and Peter motions over to John and says, “And what about him?” And Jesus responds with, “And what is that to you…you follow Me.” You know, that is actually one of the wonders of the Christian life. Christ is building His world-wide Church. He is doing amazing things through His body, the Church. And our lives are interconnected with other body parts in the Church, through which we receive great benefits and blessings as we serve our Lord together. And yet, in our discipleship with the Lord Jesus, it all comes down to like Jesus’ call to Peter… “You follow Me.” It all comes down to you and me following Jesus in a one to one dynamic relationship with Jesus Christ. And the thing is, no one else can follow Jesus for you. You have to do that yourself. No one else can do your discipleship. You have to do your own discipleship yourself. No one else is going to stand before Jesus at the Judgment Seat of Christ to give an account of your life for you…you are going to give that account of your life yourself, to Jesus.

And part of the reason I’m focusing on this is that a main part of my role as a Pastor is to try to help other Brothers and Sisters in Christ succeed as much as possible in doing their own discipleship in serving our great God and in preparing for the Judgment Seat of Christ. Part of the reason God drafted me into the Pastorate was to come alongside other disciples of Jesus and to encourage, instruct, invoke, and even provoke them in doing their discipleship.

You and I have an agenda from God to be focusing on and then living it out. And one day soon, maybe very soon, we are going to stand before Jesus and He will say to us something to the effect of: “What did you do with the life that I gave you after I saved you? What did you do about My instructions to follow Me as My disciple? What did you do in your own personal discipleship?” Now, the wording here is not certain, but the evaluation of these things is certain!

Now, here is a working definition of ‘Christian Discipleship’: “Christian Discipleship is the response of the believer to become what God created him to be; a faithful Disciple. It is the commitment to yield to Christ’s Lordship, to learn Christ’s teachings, and to follow Christ’s lifestyle. It involves the study of the doctrines of the Christian faith in order to further develop a Christian mind. And it results in equipping the Christian to live as a Disciple; a Follower of Christ in the service of His church.”

Now certainly, there are many things involved in our own personal discipleship, but here are five areas that are particularly involved, in which Jesus will review in particular, since each area is one in which He particularly revealed is involved in being a follower of His. So let’s take a deeper look.

Some of you might be familiar with this image: [show wheel]. It’s in the shape of a ship’s wheel and it’s called ‘The Obedient Christian In Action’. The reason it’s in the shape of a ship’s wheel is because it was developed by the Navigator’s ministry, a ministry originally organized as an outreach to sailors in the U.S. Navy. The founder of the Navigators was Dawson Trotman. Actually, Dawson Trotman asked Sharon’s father to come and join their ministry in the early years, but that’s when Sharon’s parents were preparing to go to Irian Jaya to serve among the Asmat people group. And by the way, many of you know that the Chapel is now supporting a work that is continuing that ministry to the Asmat people that Sharon’s parents began many decades ago.

The wheel points to five particular disciplines in the life of an Obedient Disciple: Prayer, The Word, Witnessing, Fellowship, all centered around Abiding in Christ. And while these might sound like areas you already know about, just remember: There’s always more to know about what you think you already know…you know? One interesting platitude from Plato is: “Remember that the greater part of instruction is being reminded of the things you already know.” Did you know that? How typical of us humans in that we tend to forget what we should know and to remember what we shouldn’t.

Even the Apostle Peter used this principle of ‘Remembrance’ for instruction: 2 Peter 1:12-15- “Therefore, I will always remind you about these things—even though you already know them and are standing firm in the truth you have been taught. And it is only right that I should keep on reminding you as long as I live. For our Lord Jesus Christ has shown me that I must soon leave this earthly life, so I will work hard to make sure you always remember these things after I am gone.” NLT That reminds me of the three principles of Scripture memory. #1. Review #2. Review and #3. Review

So what we see is the Apostle Peter connecting the need for exhortation along with our ongoing education. For education without exhortation leads to nullification. Exhortation is basically ‘urging us into action’. It’s like after a quarterback gives the play in the huddle, and then he says, ‘Break!’ The players know what to do, but it’s the ‘Break’ that moves them to go do it! We often know that these five disciplines are what we are supposed to being doing, but it’s like we are waiting for someone to yell: “Break!” Our ultimate Quarterback is Christ’s Spirit within us, God the Holy Spirit, and everyday we are to carry out these plays of our discipleship. And we are to realize that each day the Holy Spirit is basically saying to us: “Break! Run the play! Do what I’ve called you to do today!”

Remember this: Jesus Christ is counting on you to do what He has called you to do. And what He has called you to do today is exactly what He is going to review tomorrow. Jesus is going to review what you did about what He called you to do.

So, part of my responsibility is to do what the Apostle Peter said: “I will always remind you about these things—even though you already know them and are standing firm in the truth you have been taught. And it is only right that I should keep on reminding you as long as I live.” So we’ll start working through these five disciplines today, but will have to continue them next time. And again, these are disciplines that you already know about, but remember; there’s always more to know about what you think you already know.

Now, the central one is Abiding in Christ, but we are just going to walk through these by the way they are laid out on the wheel. So let’s begin with Prayer. Remember, God has called you to the discipline of Prayer and is counting on you to carry out this discipline of prayer.

S.D. Gordon wrote: “The greatest thing anyone can do for God and man is pray. It is not the only thing, but it is the chief thing. The great people of the earth today are the people who pray. I do not mean those who talk about prayer, nor those who say they believe in prayer, nor yet those who can explain about prayer, but I mean those people who take time to pray.”

Let’s think further about this discipline of prayer. Ps 145:18- “The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.” NASU For one thing, prayer is recognizing the presence of God. Prayer is a powerful way that God intended for us to get well acquainted with our God. Prayer is not only intended as a way for us to get things done, but as a way for us to get closer to our Heaven Father.

How about this? Ps 25:14- “The Lord is a friend to those who fear him. He teaches them His covenant.” NLT You see, Prayer is a way that God intended us to deepen our friendship with Him. And when we do God even promises to confide in us the deeper things of His covenant, or His Word.

Prayer is the laying hold of God’s promises. 1 Chron 17:23- “Now, O Lord , let the word that You have spoken concerning Your servant and concerning his house be established forever, and do as You have spoken.” NASU Prayer is not overcoming God’s reluctance; it is laying hold of God’s willingness.

And notice this: Ps 5:3- “In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice; In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch.” NASU Prayer is ordering our life in line with God’s order for life. Prayer is the path to strength and peace. A person’s prayers are a measure of his maturity and his understanding of spiritual matters and experience with God. It’s a measure of his or her understanding of their dependence upon God, and God’s plan. Prayer is like completing the circuit in God’s work in our lives; for through prayer we are to be expressing our allegiance as did Jesus: “Father, not my will, but Thy will be done.”

Prayer is also the way God has chosen to move in and through our lives. And when you think about it, Prayer is the very breath of spiritual life. Prayer is to the spirit what breath is to the body. Many Christians treat prayer as though it was a spice that you could add to your life. But the Bible prescribes it as the vital staple of our spiritual diet. It’s been put like this: Many are content with a dash of praise, a pinch of petition, and a drop of confession in order to bring a slight spiritual flavor to their secular lifestyle. But God intends for prayer to permeate our lives for the purpose of changing our lives. Yes, prayer changes things, but it’s first suppose to change us! And God has even ordered His plans in such a way as to include our prayers. So He is counting on us to daily work with Him in carrying out the discipline of prayer in our discipleship.

We will continue unpacking these key disciplines next time so that we can better understand exactly what it is that God is counting on us to do as His disciples, and will one day evaluate what we actually did about what He called for us to do. And thankfully, by the grace of God, these disciplines are all do-able!

1. Erwin Lutzer, Your Eternal Reward, p.19
2. Woodrow Kroll, Facing Your Final Job Review, p. 13

 

Implications of the Word, Pt. 9

We Set Our Tomorrows Into Motion Today By What We Think, Do, and Say

Study Guide, September 17, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

One of the most helpful Biblical habits that we can have is to look at life’s thoughts, words, and deeds as ‘Seeds’. And then to be keenly aware of the fact that, as Dr. Charles Stanley put it, “You reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow.” Now, that’s good to know. In fact, it is amazing that what grows tomorrow grows directly out of the seeds we sow today.

Of course, even nature gives us great illustrations of this reality. The might and the strength and the size of trees today were set into motion by the sowing that went on in the days gone by. Of course, these massive trees clearly show that indeed you do ‘reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow.’ Which also shows us how important it is to pay attention to what what we sow or are sowing today…because we are setting our tomorrows into motion today by what we think, do, and say.

All right…let’s explore this more…

Have you ever thought much about your thoughts, words, and deeds as being ‘Seeds’? Well, since they are, just think of how much we could directly influence and impact our tomorrows if we would be more circumspect, more careful about the potential consequences concerning the things we do think about…and the things we do say…and the things we actually then do. Every day we are planting more seeds that will surely grow. Every day we are sowing more seeds that will reap what we sow, and even more than we sow, and even later and longer than we sow.

How about this powerful statement from Prov 4:23- “Above all, be careful what you think because your thoughts control your life.” ERV Do you ever give much thought to what you think about? Do you ever think much about the way you think and how you think and why you think the way you think? Think about it. You see, the Proverbs actually start out with giving foundational directions to us about this very thing. Look at this: Prov 1:1-3- “These are the proverbs of Solomon, the son of David and king of Israel. They will help you learn to be wise, to accept correction, and to understand wise sayings. They will teach you to develop your mind in the right way.” ERV

It seems that we have missed an entire discipline in our educational systems, since the implication of this revelation is that the entire book of Proverbs was intended to be an educational course for the proper development of the human mind. Actually, the implication is that this course was intended to be a ‘continuing educational course’ for mankind that a person took in both formal educational settings and in informal personal development settings. Like, along with Math, Science, Geography, and such, the core course was to be ‘Proverbs’. Why? Because this course would be the instrumental course by which a student could learn to become wise, learn to accept correction, come to understand wise sayings, and would teach a person how to develop their mind in the right way.

Do you begin to see one of the central problems of mankind here? We live in a world of people that have skipped this essential course their entire lives, and as such, rather than having wisely developed minds, they have distorted and foolish developed minds. Their minds have not been developed in the right way, or the righteous way, but have been developed in the wrong way or the unrighteous way. And thus, their minds produce distorted and foolish thoughts, words, and deeds that, like seeds, they have sown day in and day out and are now reaping distorted and foolish lives.

Well, just how important are wise words versus foolish words anyway? And why is it important to be careful about the potential consequences of our words? How much does it really matter? And the answer is: Matt 12:36- “And I say to you that in the day when they are judged, men will have to give an account of every foolish word they have said.” BBE You mean the judgment of unbelievers will even include the words they have said? Exactly! And not only that, but the verse doesn’t say just unbelievers…it says ‘men’, as in all people, as even believers will have an account to give before the family judgment of the Judgment Seat of Christ, to determine believer’s rewards or loss of rewards in the Kingdom. Actually, remember what we said about the thoughts? Right, not only our words are on record, but notice what the Apostle Paul wrote to the Church. 1 Cor 4:5- “So don’t make judgments about anyone ahead of time—before the Lord returns. For He will bring our darkest secrets to light and will reveal our private motives. Then God will give to each one whatever praise is due.” NLT

You mean that God will not only evaluate what we did, but also why we did what we did? That’s right. Now, this revelation by the Apostle is not to discourage believers about their good words and their good works. Many humble and conscientious Christians would hesitate to say that all of their good works were made up of entirely pure motives, or that they always wanted to do them. What would Moses have said about his response in doing the works of God, about how anxious he was to do the will of God and with entirely pure motives? Not really, right? Remember, his first response was, “Here am I Lord, send Aaron!” No, his motives were not all that pure at all. He thought God had the wrong guy. His motives were rather ‘mixed’ to say the least. But there’s more to this picture because, remember, God thought highly of Moses and spoke to him as a friend would to a friend, and He praised Moses for his good works. So there’s more to this ‘motives evaluation’ than that.

Here’s another example of what we might think is a motive that might disqualify us for service or reward, but instead, in God’s eyes, is both right and reasonable in His servants. It’s quite fascinating: Matt 21:28-31- “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’ “And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. “The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go. “Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” NASU

In both examples of Moses and this first son we learn that God is okay with what we could call ‘reluctant obedience’ in His people. In fact, He understands that because of our ‘sheep nature’ that we are prone to first wanting to go our own way rather than our Shepherd’s way. But what pleases our God is when we make the choice to go ahead and do those things that God’s wants anyway, and to choose those things that are God’s will over the things that we might want and over our will. Like Peter, we choose to do them ‘for God’s sake’, regardless of how we feel about it. We choose to make ourselves available for God’s service for God’s sake ahead of our own.

It’s when God’s children come to the place where they serve Him and obey His commands because it’s the right thing to do even if they don’t feel all that great about doing it that God factors in this new level of maturity into this concept of motives, and He then counts their works as both righteous and rewardable. He considers these kind of motives as honorable because they were meant to honor Him in spite of any initial reluctance in His children. Doing good works for God’s sake is great motive for doing good works.

Now, as for the motives that really do cancel out rewards from our works, well, God spells those out very clearly in Prov 6:16-19- “Six things the Lord hates; in fact, seven are detestable to Him: arrogant eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that plots wicked schemes, feet eager to run to evil, a lying witness who gives false testimony, and one who stirs up trouble among brothers.” Holman Bible Notice how ‘self-pride’ tops the list. Now these are the motives you want to root out of your life or stay away from at all costs because they will bring on God’s discipline in your life as well as will cancel out your rewards in the life ahead.

Now, let’s say we have become a conscientious Christian and we are somewhat bothered or burdened about some past thinking habits or past words that were said or past deeds that were done, about which we would really like to not have to give an account for these things at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Is there any provision for that? Praise God there is and both Solomon and the Apostle John gave us the procedure for it.

Prov 28:13- “He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, But he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion.”

1 John 1:8-9- “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” NASU

Now, remember something very important here. No doubt you have heard young Christians and sometimes older Christians say that they don’t understand why if they have been forgiven of their sin why then then need to confess their sins for forgiveness. Well, that is an important distinction to understand. And here is a way to clarify it: Our ‘conversion’ removes the ‘penalty of our sins’ from us, whereas our ‘confession’ cleanses the ‘presence of our sins’ from us. Our conversion established our ‘relationship with God’, whereas our confession promotes our ‘fellowship with God’. Remember, before we became saved we were under that condemnation of the penalty of our sins. John 3:18- “Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” NIV But once we were born again into union with Christ that condemnation was removed from us. Rom 8:1- “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” NASU So now that the eternal condemnation from the penalty of sin has been removed the only thing remaining is the presence of sin from our old sin nature that needs daily cleansing by confession in order for our fellowship with God to be close and our usefulness to God to be ready.

All right. So our conversion happened at a point in time, and we were forgiven of the penalty of our sins. Now, our confession of our sins to God, and to others if we sin against them, is to be a discipline or regular practice of ours for the forgiveness of the presence of our sins which interfere with our fellowship with God and our usefulness to God. But notice that this confession that Proverbs spoke of had a companion that determined if the confession was a ‘profession from the head only’ or if it was true ‘confession from the heart’. Notice again, “He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, But he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion.”

Mark it down: ‘Biblical confessing’ requires ‘genuine forsaking’. And ‘genuine forsaking’ requires ‘actual replacing’. And here we are back to motives, because confessing sin to God without the intention of forsaking the sin is only an empty profession. If a believer has no intention of truly forsaking the sin he or she is confessing then God makes it clear that He has no intention of forgiving it either. So Biblical confession involves the intention of turning from the sin, which is repentance towards God about the sin. But notice, Biblical forsaking also involves something as well, and that is: Replacing. And we learn more about this from what Jesus said about what discipleship is. Mark 8:34- “And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.” NASU

Many man made religions think of denying self as giving up certain things over a period of time, and then they soon just revert back to whatever it was they gave up. Or, in Eastern religions, they tend to view the denial of self as almost an extinguishing of self…although, what they are simply left with is just some other version of the self anyway. But to Biblically deny one’s self is to ‘replace’ one’s self in the sense that self is no longer in charge…Jesus is; Jesus is now in charge. And what you are denying being in charge of are the very things that make up the human experience: thoughts, words, and deeds. So to deny yourself is to replace acting as the authority of whatever you choose to think, and whatever you choose to say, and whatever you choose to do, with submitting to the authority of Jesus and thus choosing to think on those things that Jesus instructs you to think about, and choosing to say the kinds of things Jesus instructs you to say, and choosing to do those things which Jesus instructs you to do, regardless of how you feel about them all, because you are following another Master. And in doing so you are then actively forsaking the sins you are confessing by replacing doing your personal will with obeying God’s sovereign will. And in doing so, God lavishes His forgiveness and His compassion and His fellowship upon you and moves Heaven and Earth in finding ways to use you in the plans He already had for you.

The thing is; either way you and I are setting our tomorrows into motion each day by the things we think and do and say. Every day we sow more seeds of thoughts, seeds of words, and seeds of deeds. And if these things are those that are pleasing to the Lord, then we will be both useful and fruitful to the Master, and our tomorrows will be rewardable in the Kingdom as well. But if the seeds of our thoughts and words and deeds are not pleasing to the Lord, then they become neither useful nor fruitful for the Master, and our tomorrows will suffer loss of privileges and inheritance rewards.

That’s just how important our thoughts, words, and deeds really are. They are seeds that we are sowing day by day. And the thing is: “You reap what you sow, more than you sow, and later than you sow.”

So choose good seeds to sow each day, and then sow them generously for the sake of our loving Lord and King.

Implications of the Word, Pt. 8

A New Way to Look at ‘Hope’

Study Guide, September 10, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

A rope represents a connection between two things; generally a strong connection, one that you can count on, and rest in, and trust. Through the years, as I’ve watched people go through hard things, either physically with various health issues, or spiritually with various belief issues and such, I’ve often thought that it would be helpful to hand somebody something to hold onto, like a rope. And not just a rope, but a rope that stood for something beyond itself; symbolized something that helped them sense their connection with the One who was on the other side of the rope. And particularly, helped them think about the treasures of all they possessed, all the benefits they had, and all the repose they could have, all because of the One who was on the other side of the rope with whom they were connected.

With that said, it’s come together in what I’ve come to refer to as: “The Rope of Hope.” And, of course, the rope has no attributes or powers in and of itself, but the One who holds the other end of it does. That’s why there’s only one knot on the rope, because the other knot is in the hand of the One who made us and redeemed us, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

God actually paints a picture of this connection to His people as being like ropes of kindness and love. And perhaps a reason why this imagery is sometimes missed is because God introduced that concept to His people of Israel at a time when they were straying from Him and He had to remind them of what He had done for them and was willing to do again. Hos 11:3-4- “I Myself taught Israel how to walk, leading him along by the hand. But he doesn’t know or even care that it was I who took care of him. I led Israel along with My ropes of kindness and love. I lifted the yoke from his neck,and I Myself stooped to feed him.” ERV

The thing is, since God introduced the picture of this connection between Him and us as being like ropes of kindness and love, we can make good use of that image to help us better understand how great God’s care for us really is and how much we can trust and rest in that care. And since His love contains all His attributes we can then also add to it this picture of the ‘Rope of Hope’. So let’s expand on it.

Notice what the Psalmist said about God and ‘hope’. Ps 71:5-6- “For You are my hope; O Lord God, You are my confidence from my youth. By You I have been sustained from my birth; You are He who took me from my mother’s womb; My praise is continually of You.” NASU

I’m going to use the letters of ‘HOPE’ to expand on some of the wonders and reasons for God being our confidence and reasons to rest in His kindness and love for us, especially when we are going through tough times in our lives, either physically or spiritually. So for ‘H’ we have this: Hope is a Person. And as soon as we say that it moves ‘hope’ from even beyond this wonderful virtue to the wondrous ‘source’ of this virtue. You see, the Psalmist took the virtue of ‘hope’ itself and attached it to God Himself as being his very hope; “For You are my hope, O Lord God.!” Now, Biblical hope is based on deep assurance and confidence about everything that God has revealed to us in His Word. This hope is like an anchor that keeps us steady in the midst of this crazy world that is tossed around by the winds of faulty human reasoning and the waves of worries and doubts and such.

And as David implied, one of the reasons our hope is like an anchor is because it’s based upon the nature and character of God. David even goes back to this as a basis for God being the ‘Helper’ he can depend on: Ps 124:8- Our help is in the name of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.” NASU When your help is coming from the One who made the heaven and earth, that’s as firm a foundation as you can get.

So our hope is not only in the One who made all things, made us; but our hope is also thee very One who saved us from the penalty of our sins, from the power of our sins, from the bondage of our sins, from the power of the devil, and has promised to deliver us from this mortal world into a world of immortality. As the Apostle Peter put it in 1 Peter 1:3-5- “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” NASU ‘A living hope’. And ‘a living hope’ equals ‘a present joy’, of which to us, our Lord Jesus is both; our hope and joy!

Let’s go to the ‘O’ in HOPE. The ‘O’ can symbolize ‘Overcomer’, for that is who we are in Christ Jesus. John 16:33- “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” NASU Jesus has overcome the world, and since we are now in union with Him eternally, we, too, are partakers in His victory and ‘Overcomers’. From whatever battles we have to face, from the battles with our culture, to battles with those we don’t know to those we do know, to battles within our bodies to battles within our minds; we do not face them as those who are overcome by them, but as those who are, ourselves ‘Overcomers’…’Overcomers in Christ’.

One of the recurring phrases to the Churches of Revelation is “to him who overcomes”…and then there is a promise from God of some great reward or rewards. One implication of this call from God to His people, to us, to overcome is that overcoming temptations and trials and struggles is possible because we are ‘Overcomers’ in Christ. Remember, God never calls us to do what He doesn’t also equip us to do. That’s one of the great comforts that the Psalmist celebrated in Ps 23:4- “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” NASU

What makes the difference in any valley of life is not how long or how deep is the valley, but Who it is that walks through the valley with us. The One on the other side of the rope is our Shepherd, who is there to take us through the valley and to comfort us in the valley. And even when our trial or trouble is like a shadow of death for us, the One who walks with us is the ‘Light of the world’. Someone has said that when there is a shadow there must be light nearby. There is…there always is, because Jesus is the Light of the world, and has said to us: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” And that’s even another reason why we are ‘Overcomers’ in Christ.

Now to the letter ‘P’ in ‘HOPE’. And here we think of ‘Peace’, which is actually a birthright of believers. Notice what the Apostle Paul says in Rom 5:1-2- “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.” NASU I remember my Pastor in college often talking about this passage and saying how so many people are always talking about wanting the ‘peace of God’ in their life, yet without having first made ‘peace with God’ in their life. Until a person is ‘justified by faith’, or declared ‘not guilty’, and instead declared ‘righteous in Christ’ through repentance toward God and placing faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior…until they make peace with God they cannot have the peace of God.

But when anyone surrenders to God in repentance and puts their trust in Jesus as their personal Savior, then God pardons the sin penalty that separated them from God and He reconciles them to Himself. There is now ‘peace’ between them and God where their was once ‘separation’ due to their sin penalty upon them. Plus, they can now enjoy their new birthright to having the ‘peace of God’ working in their life, along with what Paul went on to describe in Rom 5:3-5- “And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” NASU

Since the believer has made peace with God now the peace of God is going to make even the problems of life produce something of good and lasting value on behalf of this born again child of God. Imagine, sitting in a hospital room dealing with some illness, some accident, some disease, or whatever it might be and being able to say to this tribulation: “You may be troubling me, but God is going to see to it that if you trouble me you are going to be made to produce something for me…some perseverance, some proven character, some hope, and even a greater experience of the love of God poured out upon me through the Holy Spirit given to me.”

Remember, sickness or trials or tribulations never have the last word for a child of God. No, God has the last word and He makes sure that even problems will be made to produce something of good and lasting value on behalf of His children. You and I can be at peace about that, and experience peace in the midst of any of that.

And then for the ‘E’ in ‘HOPE’ – ‘Encouragement’. Back to what Jesus said in Jn 16:33. And let’s go to the Amplified Version to catch the full implication of this powerful promise. “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.]”

Now remember, these are kingdom words spoken by the King about the victory of His kingdom over this world. There may be temporary losses in this world, but eternal victory for us is assured. As has been aptly put by Bible commentators for God’s children: ‘We are to remember – we fight not for victory, we fight from victory!’ And therefore, we are not to let any temporary trials and troubles diminish our victories or define our losses, for the victory is already won for God’s children by our Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, we will have to deal with the struggles of this world, with the hardships of this world, physically and spiritually, but God is supplying us with ‘courage’, pouring ‘encouragement’ into us as we daily look to the Holy Spirit to ‘fill us’ with this ‘encouragement’. And as we do so we can then have ‘hope’ and can then rest in the fact that, as God’s victorious children, we cannot be defeated by this world.

Remember, our encouragement lies in the face of God’s grace and in the fact that He will help us make it through any difficulties or sufferings that we ever have to face in our present lives. At times, He will deliver us entirely from these situations. At other times, He will deliver us entirely through these situations, as He leads us through the valley to the place where we most belong; Home. For example; even deliverance from sickness in this world is at most a temporal healing. What we see as death on our side is more fully seen as the ‘ultimate healing’ on the other side. But the point again is that God’s children always win…win over even sickness and death. And how encouraging is it when you know that nothing in this world can defeat you because Jesus has already overcome this world, and you are united by grace through faith to your Maker and Savior Jesus forever!

This ‘Rope of Hope’ can remind us of these things; Hope is a Person, Hope is being an Overcomer, Hope is having Peace as our birthright, and Hope is receiving Encouragement from the Holy Spirit as we look to Him to be filled by the Spirit of Christ day by day.

So the plan is to make up a good number of these ‘Rope of Hope’ pieces, along with a card with the verses and a few thoughts about these great truths of God for us. And then we’ll make them available to any who would like to share this message of hope with others they know who are facing some trial or trouble, either in a health struggle or a spiritual struggle and such. And again, there’s no power in the rope itself, but there is power in the One who holds the other end of it. For remember, God Himself is the one who draws us and leads us with ropes of kindness and love. And that’s why we can call this a ‘Rope of Hope’. In fact, we are looking for our hope, the Blessed Hope, referring directly to the return of our Savior, but indirectly to Jesus Himself as being our Blessed Hope.

Rom 15:13- “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” NASU

Ps 62:5-8- “Wait calmly for God alone, my soul, because my hope comes from Him. He alone is my rock and my Savior—my stronghold. I cannot be shaken. My salvation and my glory depend on God. God is the rock of my strength, my refuge. Trust Him at all times, you people. Pour out your hearts in His presence. God is our refuge.” God’s Word Version

Implications of the Word, Pt. 6

The Alpha and Omega

Study Guide, August 27, 2017

Pastor Clay Olsen

There is a bridge in a town in Austria that has twelve statues of Jesus. The interesting thing about it all is that these statues represent Jesus in His various relationships with His people; like He is represented as a prophet, a priest, a king, a physician, a sea captain, a shepherd, a carpenter… And so people coming in or out of this town in Austria, either before or after work, pause before these replicas and think of Jesus’ in His various ministries to them. Like, the farmer thinks of Jesus as his Shepherd throughout the day, or the artisan thinks of Jesus as his Master Carpenter…the sailor thinks of Jesus as his Captain and pilot over the waters, and the hurting think of Jesus as their Great Physician, and so on.¹ But quite amazing symbols of our Lord Jesus as being our all-sufficient God and Savior.

And how fascinating that God Himself has throughout the Scriptures given various titles and identities to Himself describing the many aspects of His character and His ministries to His people and His sovereignty over the world. For example, here are just a few of these wondrous identities of Jesus.

*’The Bread of Life’: “For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.” Then they said to Him, “Lord, always give us this bread.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life…” John 6:33-35 NASU So Jesus is the staple of our soul; the very ‘bread’ that sustains our eternal life. I have a little motto of mine that I think about. It’s this: “My Bread of life is my Salvation in Jesus: the rest of my life is gravy.” It’s rather simple….but you get the idea.

*’The Vine’: “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” Jn 15:5-6 NASU This is not only an identity of Jesus, but as we have pointed out many times, the passage also includes an essential identity for us: we are at most and at best, ‘branches’ of the Vine. We are not the source, nor the solution, nor the sufficiency for anything of lasting value and eternal good. No, that source is Jesus Christ, our Vine, and we are the channels, the branches for bearing the fruit which has lasting value and eternal good. And this fruit is borne in our lives as the Lord works in and through us, as we abide in Him in our worship and service. And how about that last part that Jesus said? It sort of settles it all and puts everything in perspective about whatever is of lasting value and of eternal good. “…for apart from Me you can do…what…Nothing.” That pretty much clarifies our complete need of Jesus’ Lordship and leadership over everything we do. Jesus didn’t say, ‘apart from Me you can do a few things of lasting value, or He didn’t say, ‘apart from Me you can do some things of eternal good…’ No, He said, ‘apart from Me you can do NOTHING’. Or, as for any disciple trying to live out his or her family life, or business life, or social life, or anything else, apart from looking to Jesus and His Word for instruction and guidance and in then living in obedience to Jesus in it all…well, as we would put it: “Don’t even think about it!” Without surrendering to the control of Christ’s Lordship over you and the guidance of Christ’s Spirit within you…whatever you are trying to do or build or accomplish in your life adds up to exactly what Jesus said it would: “NOTHING”. Without Jesus in the center of your life, the center of your work, the center of your world…you can do ‘NOTHING’…nothing of lasting value and eternal good. That’s a hard lesson for living, but it’s a solid foundation on which to build your life. Plus, it’s the difference between building your life upon the rock or building your life upon the sand…lasting value and eternal good—-or…’nothing’.

*Here’s another identity Jesus revealed about Himself: “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die.” John 11:25-26 NASU Again, Jesus reveals that He alone has the power to raise people from the dead because He alone is the very source of ‘life’! And Jesus also revealed that there is not just one death to consider in life, but two. However, He states that for those who believe in Jesus, meaning, receive Him as their Lord and Savior, even if they die they will never die. Say what? Jesus revealed that even if a person dies physically, since they have believed/received Him and His gift of eternal life they will never die spiritually. Christ did that for us, for all who receive Him as Savior.

Actually, it’s that great salvation verse of John 3:16 that reveals that spiritual death is technically known as ‘perishing’. As in, “…whosoever believeth in Him shall not ‘perish‘, but have everlasting life.” To ‘perish’ is to be spiritually and physically separated from your Creator for eternity. Why? Because you did not believe in…did not receive the Savior of your life into your life. Do you remember that great clarifying statement about this? ‘Born once – die twice…Born twice – die once.’ Each person needs to be Born Again…to have their spirit re-born in union with Christ. For that is the only way to not die twice; physically and spiritually. Unless the Lord Jesus comes soon for His church, and we pray that it is soon, then although we will face a physical death, re-born children of God already possess eternal spiritual life in Christ.

Now then, we come to another identity that Jesus gives Himself that pretty much says it all. And it says it all because it covers it all. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” Rev 1:8 NASU Oh my! And how can skeptical and unbelieving people think they can suppose that Jesus never claimed to be God??? Jesus absolutely claimed to be God and did so many times over. The book of Revelation even begins with: “This is the revelation of Jesus Christ”. And then Jesus says, ‘I am the Alpha and Omega. I am the Lord God who is and who was and who is to come. I am the Almighty.’ You can’t get any more ‘deity’ than that!

Now, Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. The Hebrews also had the same saying about God as being ‘the first and the last’. In fact, when Jesus made this statement to the Apostle John in about 90 A.D., or ‘Anno Domini’…’In the year of our Lord’, He had already made this statement to the Prophet Isaiah around 700 B.C.

And, just a side note here, when you think about it, that abbreviation, B.C., ‘Before Christ’, should actually be B.J., ‘Before Jesus’, because ‘Jesus’ is the name referring to the humanity of our Lord, and ‘Christ’ is the name referring to the deity of our Lord. Yes, The title of ‘Christ’ is the Greek form of the Hebrew ‘Messiah’. But remember, the Son was spiritually ‘appointed’ as the Christ, the Messiah, in eternity past, before He was physically ‘anointed’ as Messiah when He came. And since our Lord Christ is eternal, that means that there never was a time that was ‘Before Christ’, since Christ always was and is and is to come. But there was a time before our Lord Christ took on our humanity in the Person of Jesus of Nazareth. And so, our Gregorian calendar ought to list the years as being either ‘B.J.’ or ‘A.D.’, ‘Before Jesus’ and then ‘In the year of our Lord’. That would just make things a lot clearer, as well as help the world understand that Christ was fully God before He ever became fully human…becoming thus, God incarnate: both God and Man.

(That’s just a little personal concern of mine there…)

But notice what our Lord Christ said to Isaiah before He later said it to John as our Lord Jesus Christ: Isa 44:6-8- “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: ‘I am the first and I am the last, And there is no God besides Me. ‘Who is like Me? Let him proclaim and declare it; Yes, let him recount it to Me in order, From the time that I established the ancient nation. And let them declare to them the things that are coming And the events that are going to take place. ‘Do not tremble and do not be afraid; Have I not long since announced it to you and declared it?And you are My witnesses. Is there any God besides Me, Or is there any other Rock? I know of none.'” NASU

The Hebrew for ‘first’ and ‘last’ is ‘ri’shown’ and acharown’ and this phrase as applied to our Lord carries with it the sense of not only first in existence in time, but also of having preeminence in rank. So we can understand why Isaiah goes on to say of our one and only God that He is also ‘high and lifted up’ in glory. Plus, here in Isaiah, in the midst of this awe inspiring reality of God’s eternal majesty, God also assures His people of His divine care for them – ‘Do not tremble and do not be afraid’. As God loved His people in eternity past He will love His people through the present and right on into eternity future. He’s talking about us here, too, you know. He is our ‘Rock’ of salvation, our ‘Rock’ of security, our ‘Rock’ of rest and peace. In fact, He is our ‘Alpha and Omega’ of our entire life!

Think about it: Since Jesus is the first and the last, the beginning and the end, then Jesus is also everything in between. For example: when the creatures of Earth think about creation, all are to realize that Jesus is the Alpah and Omega of Creation. The story of creation is the story of the Creator. Creation itself is all about Christ. Col 1:16-17- “For by Him (Christ) all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.” NIV

As I was watching a documentary on the Sun last week, in connection with that amazing ‘Eclipse’, the narrator was describing the solar flares that come off of the Sun and blast away at the Earth. And he said that these flares would completely scorch our Earth if it wasn’t for these remarkable magnetic fields that are set up around the Earth that act like a shield or a force field protecting life on our planet. And then he just went on, like, ‘Lucky us, huh?

No, once again, creation itself is telling the creatures of the Earth how all of these amazing things, like the Earth’s magnetic fields, could have only been ‘set up’ by a Caring Personal Creator…a Creator who planned to protect all life on Earth because He had a plan for all life on Earth! Jesus is the Alpha and Omega of Creation.

Another example of so many people’s lack of humility toward God is how people completely miss the central tenet of the Bible. Many people who do not want to have to bow to the authority of the Bible over their lives try to make some claim that the Bible was written by many different authors who were simply writing about their own religious ideas and opinions about the religions of Judaism and Christianity. How strange that they say that when the fact is that the Bible doesn’t have many authors; No, the Bible only has ‘one author’ with simply many ‘transcribers’. And let’s note this from the Amplified Version to make it very clear: 2 Peter 1:20-21- “First [you must] understand this, that no prophecy of Scripture (message of the prophets) is [a matter] of any personal or private or special interpretation (loosening, solving). For no prophecy ever originated because some man willed it [to do so — it never came by human impulse], but men spoke from God who were borne along (moved and impelled) by the Holy Spirit.”AMP

Mark that down because so many need to understand that the Bible has ‘one author’, God. God the Holy Spirit is the author of the entire Old and New Testaments, who used a variety of men to record God’s revelation to all who inhabit His created Earth. Not men, but God is the Alpha and Omega, the first and last author of the Scriptures.

And then let’s go back to that Colossians passage, because the Apostle Paul reveals something else about our Lord Jesus. Col 1:18- “He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.” NASU

Some of you may remember the song ‘He’s Everything to Me’. The lyrics speak about all that Jesus is to you and to me. “…Till by faith I met Him face to face, and I felt the wonder of His grace,Then I knew that He was more than just a God who didn’t care,
That lived a way out there and, Now He walks beside me day by day,
Ever watching o’er me lest I stray, Helping me to find the narrow way,
He’s Everything to me.”

Jesus is the ‘beginning and the end’; the ‘first and the last’. And the powerful implication of this is that Jesus is to be ‘first’ in everything in our lives all the way through to the last of our lives. And just like Creation is based upon order, your life and my life is also based upon order, and is to then be set in order by us under God’s leadership. Much of the angst and undo stress and conflicts and so on that drain life and detract from the peace and joy and fruit of the spirit from growing in our lives is due to ‘dis-order’ in our lives. There is a place for everything in our lives, but none of it is ‘first place’. That place, ‘first place’, has been reserved for the Creator and Redeemer of our lives. Like the old saying about Christ being your ‘co-pilot’: “If Christ is your co-pilot, then you’re in the wrong seat!”

Jesus Christ has a reserved seat on the throne of our lives. Concerning our highest devotion…that place has been reserved for Christ alone. Concerning what authority is to command our greatest allegiance…that place has been reserved for Christ alone. Concerning our who leads in our decision making about all of our responsibilities and opportunities that we have in our lives…that place has been reserved for Christ alone. Concerning who has the right to rule our spirit and direct our paths… that place has been reserved for Christ alone. For Jesus Christ is not only the Alpha and Omega of the world, He is the Alpha and Omega ‘of our world’. He is to be the first and the last and everything in between as we live out our lives in preparation to meet our King!

1. T. R. Stevenson, The Biblical Illustrator, Revelation 1:8