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Christian Living: I Feel Like God's Calling Dudes, They Just Want to Play Call of Duty

8/31/2014

1 Comment

 
I love Christian Rap. Every song is like a sermon with a beat. The lyrics and message are strong and they don't compromise. It seems to me that in many genres of music, the Christians are about 10 years behind the culture. Christian rap is ahead of the game in my opinion. Secular rap feels like it is all about the beat and the lyrics don't matter at all. Christian rap has substance and content in addition to good beats.

I have really been struck by Andy Mineo's new EP. There are definitely a few really good songs on it. It was also nice to see a fun song or two. Andy's personality really shows through when he does that. My favorite song on the album however is called "Death of Me."

In "Death of Me" Andy relates his struggles as a traveling artist on tour. "Yea, it must be a struggle making all that money playing your music" one might think. That's the beauty of Christ in the lives of His people. We recognize when we are going astray spiritually and are not close to God. The Bible describes unbelievers as completely numb to those feelings of the Spirit. We however have tasted of God and know that he is the one we need.

The second set of verses really hit home with me. Andy talks about the challenges of making time to commune with God and enjoy his presence. When I get busy, I know one of the first things to go is my prayer life. It's so easy to be focused on other things and forget to make time to be with God. The problem is that we begin to slip far away and not even know it. Next thing you know we forgot what communing with our Savior is like and we are so distracted by other things that we don't even think to come to him.

One line that really struck me falls towards the end of the second set of verses. "I feel like God's calling dudes, they just want to play Call of Duty." This line really hit me because there have been times in my life when I spent a lot of my free time gaming. You see I am a very passionate person. Whenever I set my heart to do something or pursue something, I want to be the best there is at it. The sad thing is that I have sometimes set that passion on the most trivial fleeting things like video games. Playing all of the time just trying to get better and better. All for what? To what end? You know I never stopped to think about it. I just thought that I liked the game and I wanted to get good at it. In the end however, it was a trap. A trick and a lie to waste the time, energy, and passion that God gave me.

However, the application of this truth applies to more people than just gamers. I certainly do think many great minds and passionate hearts during our day have been caught up in this industry. There are many shiny baubles and distractions for human beings, though. How many things there are in the world to pursue! We have so many options to spend our time and energies on in our day. How many are spurning God's call on their lives so that they can waste their time doing things that don't matter at all?

I don't mean to criticize those who may be legitimately called to secular positions. Praise God for people who will work as unto the Lord in any industry that that glorifies God and promotes human flourishing. However, I know that I have at many times in my life put the calling that I knew was mine on the back burner because I wanted to spend more time doing what I wanted to do. Already I wish I had those years back. I can only imagine my sorrow and regret if I had wasted my entire life pursuing vanity.


-tanner
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Christian Living: Should Christians "Party" and/or Spend Time with Those Who Do?

8/30/2014

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College in America is more and more stereotyped as a time of partying and fun. School is less about studies and more about getting to know people and drinking heavily on the weekends. While this experience may not be typical for many American college students, I think certainly some elements of the lifestyle are present for most.

I confess that my college experience was nothing like this. I can recall attending one Halloween party where that type of atmosphere was present. Other than that, I don't believe I ever attended this type of function. It's not that I actively avoided these types of people. It simply was a crowd that I didn't find myself running in.

The party I attended I did so before I became a Christian. When I was saved, the church and atmosphere in the area confronted me with a major question: Can Christians legitimately be in and among and spend time with these types of people and run in these types of crowds?

It is a question that deserves some attention. Depending upon your church background and stance the answer may seem immediately apparent. The ironic thing is the "obvious" answer among Christians is different. For some the answer is essentially: "Of course a Christian should not be actively in the company of such people." Yet others would affirm something along the lines of: "Jesus spent time with sinners. How are we supposed to reach the lost if we don't meet them where they are?" Which answer is correct for the faithful believer? Is it somewhere in the middle?

First, let me address the issue of a Christian partaking in this type of behavior. Is it appropriate for a Christian to drink heavily with and among the company of others? Paul speaks to this issue directly and poignantly in Ephesians 5:18:
Ephesians 5:18 (ESV) — 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,
This verse is clear, and there really isn't any confusion in the Greek either. Referring to the act of getting drunk, Paul explicitly calls that behavior "debauchery." Paul also utilzes the imperitive form of the verb. We are commanded explicitly to NOT get drunk. Paul is not describing the context in particular either. It's not as though getting drunk at home by yourself is any more acceptable to Paul than getting drunk at a party among friends. Neither is acceptable according to Paul. I would argue that getting drunk among unbelievers is even more unacceptable, as it slanders your witness. However under no circumstances is such behavior acceptable for the Christian. So it is clear that Christians are not to partake in such activity directly.

How about drinking among such people but not getting drunk? This approach is really a slippery slope. How much is too much? Just when is somebody "drunk?" These answers can both be subjective, and we don't have much in the way of biblical answers available to us. I'm going to move on to an even stronger stance so as to answer this question by way of implication.

Are we even permitted to actively hang out with these people in these settings? This is where the rubber meets the road with this question. Fortunately we have biblical instruction explicitly on this topic. Paul gives some general wisdom on the subject when he is discussing the resurrection from the dead in 1 Corinthians 15. Referring to those who disbelieve in the resurrection and who think that when you die it is simply over he describes their motto, and immediately gives some Christian wisdom:
1 Corinthians 15:32–33 (ESV) — 32 If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” 33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”
Note that the attitude of these people is generally the attitude of many in our day and age. Philosophical naturalism and neo-Darwinianism have mostly concluded that there is no afterlife, and when we die it is over. Paul says that the natural consequence of such a perspective is hedonism: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”
This is what those people we are discussing this morning are pursuing, The entire scene of partying and drinking heavily promotes this mindset. What is the biblical response to this perspective? Paul tells us in the next verse that “Bad company ruins good morals.” This is the biblical version of "You become like those you hang out with." Paul explicitly explains that we are not to be deceived and those we hang out with will influence us no matter how strong we think we are in our faith. Our good morals will be corrupted and diminished by hanging out in these crowds.

This still however may not answer the question for many. It is a general warning, and doesn't explicitly say the behavior is absolutely wrong. It tells us generally at very least, that such scenes and crowds we should not spend the majority of our time with, but it does not rule out the behavior entirely. Fortunately, we have another text from the Bible to clarify the subject for us.
Proverbs 23:19–21 (ESV) — 19 Hear, my son, and be wise, and direct your heart in the way. 20 Be not among drunkards or among gluttonous eaters of meat, 21 for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and slumber will clothe them with rags.
This text is very explicit. It tells us not to be among drunkards or gluttonous eaters of meat. The picture of those who "party" in excess often and spend much of their time and energy feasting. To me this picture captures the spirit of "partying" perfectly. As such, the command explicitly condemns such practice for those who would order their lives after an image of godliness.

What then do we make of Jesus? Does he not violate this very command? Did Jesus not actively spend times with each of these types of people and meet them where they were? This is a legitimate concern and I would like to bring two thoughts to bear on such a topic.

First, Jesus was sinlessly perfect. To say that we are permitted to go to these places because Jesus went to these places, fails to recognize this fundamental difference between Jesus and us. I do not grant that Jesus went to these places (as I will argue next), but even if I did, I am corrupted by sin in a way that he is not. As one of my professors said, I am not permitted to even mess around with sin because it will corrupt me. Yet, our heavenly father can work it together for good because it does not corrupt him. In a sense, he can "handle" it to shape and mold it to the good of his people though he is not the author.

Secondly, and more importantly, we have no evidence whatsoever that Jesus actively spent time "partying" with sinners in the manner that is prohibited by Proverbs, in the manner that people in our day often pursue it.

Yes, Jesus turned water into wine at a party. However, was that party the 1st century equivalent of a modern frat party? Perhaps a night in the VIP lounge of the hottest club? Hardly. In the context of John 2, Jesus was at a wedding. This is a time that calls for celebration and moderate drinking of alcohol is perfectly appropriate in this context. Jesus turns water into wine not because he didn't want the party to stop, but because he was assisting in the celebration! What is the righteous occasion that modern "partying" celebrates? Friday? Equating these two is absurdity. The fact the we party just because it is the weekend displays the wicked excess to which our society has fallen, and is exactly the denunciation that Proverbs refers to.

Yes, Jesus ate with sinners. However he did not do so in such a way to affirm them in their sin. Jesus' call to those who would follow him was a call to die. A call to give up everything and follow him. Jesus does NOT ask people to continue on in their lifestyles and add on a little bit of relationship with him from time to time. Yet this is primarily the image that we paint for people if we go and party with them while trying to simultaneously tell them about Jesus. We are affirming them in their lifestyle and saying to them that as Christians we can live in this manner as well. Rather, Jesus calls for radical abandoning of one's sinful lifestyles to pursue and follow him wholeheartedly.
Matthew 11:18–19 (ESV) — 18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.”
Here Jesus' detractors accuse him of exactly what we are talking about. Is Jesus' point that, yes indeed they have judged correctly, but they didn't understand that he was doing God's work among the sinners while he "partied" with them? Again, hardly. His very rebuke to them betrays the fact that he did not conduct himself in this way. He notes that his deeds will justify himself. What is his point? His point is that the charges of the Pharisees are incorrect! He did not conduct himself in this manner. He did not engage in the behavior they are charging him with. Instead, Jesus spent time with sinners, yes, but he certainly did not violate Proverbs in the process. He did not actively involve himself with gluttony and drunkeness, but rather ministered to those who had fallen victim to the sins of gluttony and drunkeness. It is the very fact that he was associating himself with such people that caused the Pharisees to level their charge, and yet Jesus affirms that his own actions betray the fact that they are not judging rightly.

In conclusion, the "partying" atmosphere that is so common in our day is not something that Jesus would promote or be involved with at all. However, Jesus would seek to minister to these people and call them to radical repentance and faith. As believers, we are to conduct ourselves with the same mindset of our Savior to be sure, but the appropriate place to call sinners to repentance is NOT from the other end of the beer pong table. Examine your heart and the Scriptures before God to make sure that you are conducting yourself in a manner worthy of our Lord.
Isaiah 5:22 (ESV) — 22 Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine, and valiant men in mixing strong drink,
-tanner
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Devotional Thoughts: Sharing the Cup With Christ

8/29/2014

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An interesting request is made of Jesus in Matt 20. The mother of James and John approaches Jesus and asks him if her sons can sit at the right and left hand of Jesus in the kingdom. These were places of great honor and respect, and their mother is obviously hoping to secure that honor and respect for her sons.

Jesus response is very interesting, and the exchange is one that has always confused me a little bit. That is why I want to examine it a bit more closely today. Jesus' initial response begins in v 22:
Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.”  -Mt 20:22.
The interesting thing is what Jesus chooses to focus upon here, as well as the responses of James and John. Note 3 things:

1. The Cup being referred to is the wrath of God.
This is a common Old Testament allusion, and Jesus use of it here points forward to his suffering and guilt bearing upon the cross. Here are just two passages that refer to the cup:
For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup
   with foaming wine, well mixed,
   and he pours out from it,
   and all the wicked of the earth
   shall drain it down to the dregs.  -Ps 75:8.

Wake yourself, wake yourself,
   stand up, O Jerusalem,
   you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD
   the cup of his wrath,
   who have drunk to the dregs
   the bowl, the cup of staggering.  -Is 51:17.
Notice that the cup is the wrath of God due to sinful man. In Psalm 75, it is poured out upon the wicked of the earth, the ungodly and sinners. This is what is so striking about Jesus drinking the cup! He is openly proclaiming here that he will take the wrath of God upon himself. However, he does not have a cup that is due to him, instead he takes the wrath of sinful man upon himself. Here we have a direct reference to the gospel.

2. Positions of honor, respect, and importance are directly tied to suffering.
Notice how Jesus is responding to the request made by the mother of James and John. He could have brought up anything in his response, and yet he chooses to focus on the cup. This is not without purpose. What Jesus is doing is tying worthiness of lofty and respected positions directly with the willingness to be made low and function as a suffering servant. This is further emphasized with the short excursus that Jesus goes into through v 28.
And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  -Mt 20:24–28.
Jesus is pointing the brothers to the fact that if they want to be important and respected leadership, they must humble themselves and take on the form of a servant just as Jesus has done. They must be willing to participate in his "taking of the cup" and suffer and die for God's people.

3. Note finally the audacity of the response of the brothers: "We are able."
This is the part of the text that has always grabbed my attention. We know from the Old Testament what the cup Jesus is referring to is. It is the wrath of almighty God. We know that only Jesus can drink of that cup. That is why Jesus had to come! Yet the brothers are so bold as to claim that they are able to drink from that cup as well. I have always assumed that they simply didn't understand the reference Jesus was making to the Old Testament. How else could someone make such a bold claim as to say that they can drink from the wrath of God. After all, they couldn't imagine that Jesus the perfect Messiah would actually drink God's wrath. The Messiah is God's servant, a conquering king. He has no reason to drink the wrath of God. Such would be their mindset.

However, even mistakenly, James and John affirm that they can drink of the cup. This is where I have always had difficulty understanding the passage. I would expect Jesus' response to be a rebuke of some sort. I would expect Jesus to explain how only HE is fit to drink the cup. However Jesus doesn't respond that way, listen to what he says instead:
He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”  -Mt 20:23.
Jesus affirms that they are able to drink the cup! What? What can he possibly mean by this?

It is in this affirmation by Jesus that we find great joy and comfort from a sympathetic Savior. Sure, there is a very real sense in which we are unable to drink the cup of God's wrath as Jesus did. However, in drinking God's wrath, Jesus is embodying a suffering servant who sacrifices himself for his people. In drinking God's wrath, Jesus is demonstrating laying one's life down for the sake of God's Kingdom, no matter the particular role that God has given you.

The cup then is something that we are able to participate in. It is not as though we can bear the weight of God's wrath as Jesus did. However, Jesus goes out of his way to affirm that James and John will indeed suffer for the kingdom of God in their own way. James will eventually be martyred, and John will suffer exile to Patmos. They will both give their lives for the cause of God's kingdom, and Jesus does not minimize that at all, even though his sacrifice for us is infinitely greater.

Behold the mercy and grace of our Savior! Beloved, our lives and our suffering count. What we go through for God's kingdom, the sacrifices we make for the glory of Jesus, these are things that God forever looks upon with joy and gladness. Sometimes we think the part we play is so small and insignificant. It is good to be humble. But also recognize here that our lives count for the Savior, and he won't forget them. He doesn't minimize our sacrifices either, but places them on par with his sacrifice for the sins of the world. Not that my piece of the puzzle is anywhere as important or big. Yet God has something for each of us in his kingdom, and our faithful carrying out of that assignment - humbly submitting as a servant to our task, pleases God very much.

Note finally the uniting of Christ's people with himself. Jesus Christ suffered greatly on our behalf, and Paul speaks of sharing in that same suffering. While being martyred for the cause of Christ is very much sharing in his suffering; there is a sense also in which all believers are united with Christ in his suffering for us. Becoming a Christian is being adopted into God's kingdom and family. When God does that, we are coming together to share in the mission and work of our elder brother, Jesus. However, we are all also his body. And we go forth in the power of His Spirit accomplishing the mission that he has for us. We have been united with Christ in a very real and spiritual sense, so that we may continue to carry out the work of building his kingdom.

Beloved, we share in the sufferings of Christ. We do so by being spiritually united with him, and by carrying out the work that God has given each of us as individual members of Christ's body. That work is something that God remembersa nd looks down upon with joy. We are all meaningful to God in his kingdom. Not because of who we are, but because of what he has done for us. Let us praise God for that, and go forth in unceasing effort to glorify and honor God with our lives.

-tanner
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Devotional Thoughts: The Relationship Between Faith and Effort

8/28/2014

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Genesis 30:25-43 provides us with a very interesting account of Jacob dealing with Laban. In particular, I want to focus on Jacob's husbandry practices to try and influence the physical traits of the goats that were in his care. As such, I primarily want to look at v 38-43.

A quick summary of the action up until this point will put things into perspective. Jacob has been working for Laban for a long time now. He initially agreed to work for Laban for 7 years so that he could marry Rachel. After Laban tricked him and gave him Leah instead, Jacob agreed to work another 7 years so that he could marry Rachel also. In addition, he has now spent some time having children with his wives. At minimum he has been working for Laban for 14 years, but it could be a bit longer. Jacob approaches Laban and asks if he can depart, however Laban won't have it. He keeps trying to get Jacob to stay by asking him to name his wages. Jacob finally decides a way to try and get Laban to agree. Jacob offers to keep Laban's goats for what appears to be one final generation of offspring. When the generation is up, all of the goats that are less desirable - striped, speckled, and spotted will be Jacob's. Laban's will be the rest. Laban sees an opportunity he can't refuse and he accepts.

As if Jacob didn't lay a good enough deal for Laban, Laban goes out of his way to remove every striped, speckled, or spotted goat among his flock. This would make it much more unlikely that goats with those traits would be reproduced at all. It is at this point that Jacob turns to employ a little trick that he has learned in his time pasturing Laban's flocks.

Evidently, there was a belief by Jacob that whatever the animals were looking at when they mated, their offspring would share similar traits. It is likely this view was held by more than just Jacob himself. Due to this belief, we get the account that Jacob tried to put sticks that he had made striped, speckled, and spotted before the strong goats when they were mating. He was hoping to ensure that the best of the goats would end up as his possessions when the cycle was up. Please be aware that the deck was quite stacked against him, as Laban had attempted to trick him entirely.

There is much speculation at this point about Jacob's practices. Was he trying to employ some sort of dark magic or sorcery? Was he not trusting in the Lord fully to deliver him? The context seems to indicate that this was simply a husbandry "trick" that he had learned, not some sort of magic. It is to the relationship of man's effort and God's working that I would now like to turn.

Trusting in God and believing that God will provide for us and look after us does not relieve us of human responsibility and effort. There is an old joke that demonstrates this point well.
There was a great flood that devastated a city in which a faithful pastor was living. He escaped the devastation by climbing onto to his roof, but the waters were still rising quickly. He was not worried however, he knew God would deliver him.

A few men in a life raft happened to float by his house and see the man. "Come aboard Pastor, we have room for you!" they called. "No friends, the Lord will provide." he responded, and they shrugged their shoulders and paddled away.

A few hours later, the Pastor had moved to the highest part of his roof, when a speedboat came by. "Hop in, friend" they called to the minister. "No worries friends, the Lord will provide." They headed away also.

Finally, the waters had risen so high that the Pastor was isolated to a small patch at the highest point of his house. At that time a low flying helicopter looking for survivors spotted him and flew down to pick him up. He refused to get on the helicopter and insisted to the men that the Lord would provide. The helicopter flew off to look for more willing survivors. Finally the flood waters rose so high that the Pastor was swept away and he drowned.

When he found himself dead and in heaven, he approached God and asked him: "Why didn't you save me?" God looked at him incredulously: "I tried three times!"
The point illustrated here is this: God often uses natural means and events to accomplish his supernatural purposes. He spreads his kingdom through the preaching of his gospel by his church. He brings about the punishment of his people in the Old Testament by using other nations to oppress them. He heals people through the use of medicines, and he provides for your family through the hard work that you do. Does it mean that you have to work any less hard because God will provide? No. However, the faithful Christian recognizes that all that has been provided for them is from God, even if they may be working their fingers to the bone for him to provide it. Faith does not exclude our effort.

It is the same here with Jacob. He is trusting in the Lord to provide for his needs. He isn't practicing some sorcery or wizardry. He is simply attempting through the best means he knows of to try and work hard to ensure that he can beat Laban at his own game. It does not matter one whit that his means are entirely flawed or useless, and the text doesn't indicate that the manipulation with the sticks was a contributor to the actual production of the offspring in this way. Despite his flawed method, God chose to bless him, and ultimately in the next chapter, Jacob will attribute any success he has to God.

This is a crucial truth to keep in mind for our own lives. Often, we are directed by Scripture to put our trust in the Lord, and he will provide for our needs. However, this does not at all mean that our task is to stay holed up in our homes praying all day. Rather, we are to certainly pray, but after we have done so, we are to go out into the world and through the efforts of "working as unto the Lord" seek to accomplish the things that we have prayed for. It is through faithful obedience to him and a heart that is set upon obedience to God that the Lord will often provide for his people.

-tanner
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Christian Living: Finances and Our Lives

8/27/2014

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Money is a major stumbling block for much of the world. Some never feel like they have enough of it and are always having difficulties with budgeting properly and spending on things they don't need. Still others seem like they have plenty, and yet their hearts are in bondage to the idea of accumulating more and more. There are even those who genuinely have plenty of money, but they place so much value and security in the idea of it that it has become a secret idol in their lives. While this is a very full topic that is not at all simple to deal with, today I hope to shed a small amount of light on what the Bible has to say about our finances.

The world for the most part makes finances a sort of high score to life. Those who are truly successful are able to accumulate great wealth in their lives. The entire structure of our society is built around the idea of amassing great wealth. If you consider college and the majors that people focus upon, they are often centered around the idea of success. That success is nearly always defined in some terms as accumulating wealth. We sign up for majors and complete degrees that will get us good jobs so that we can have money. I am convinced that many end up pursuing careers that they are not made for simply because the career affords the opportunity of financial stability and wealth.

While the world has developed such an idea of financial gain, what about God's people? Unfortunately many people in the church visible have a very similar mindset or attitude. There are those who look no different from these that we have described in their pursuit for money and wealth. Still others have taken the pursuit a step further and preach a "prosperity" gospel that affirms God's desire for all of us to be prosperous and wealthy. Where can we find clarity and help on this issue in such a confusing world? God's Word is truly a light for our path.

The biblical emphasis for Christians in regards to their finances is contentment. This is something that people can wrestle with regardless of how many funds they actually possess. Rich people can be consumed with accumulating more wealth, and poor people can be obsessed with the idea of what they would do if they had more wealth. 1 Timothy 6 has great insight into this idea:
If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain. But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. -1 Tim 6:3-8
Here Paul's truth has a few things for us. First note the association of false teachers with the concept that godliness is a means of financial gain. This rebuke comes directly against the prosperity preachers of our day. Those who use the church and the Bible as a means to try and promote their financial gain are described by Paul here as false teachers. We should reject their ideas and promotion as worldly pursuit and vanity.

Note also that Paul emphasizes one main point for us to combat this perspective: contentment. First, in verse 6 he describes what is truly a great gain for the believer. It is not those who have accumulated wealth who have gained much, but rather those who have attained godliness mixed with contentment. What does this look like? Jesus mentioned this in other places as well, but ultimately it looks like seeking God's kingdom first in your life. Jesus speaks to this idea in Matt 6 when he emphasizes that we should not be worried about finances or our futures. Rather Jesus emphasizes that our first task and responsibility is to seek God's kingdom first, and then God will see to it that our needs are provided for.

You see, money is not an end, it is simply a means to an end. When it is used in this fashion, as a tool, then it has taken its proper place in our lives. Money is not something that should be pursued, instead we should pursue God's kingdom. If you are caught up in the pursuit of personal holiness and the calling of people into God's kingdom, then we will have enough money for what we need, because God will provide it for us.

One ultimate truth can protect you from the love of money: All money is God's money. Every single dollar, quarter and penny on the face of the earth belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ. He distributes the wealth as he sees fit, some money is given to the godly, and it is used for his glory and good. Still other money is given to the ungodly for their lives and needs. He shows no partiality in that respect. However, sometimes great wealth is given to the ungodly. This can actually be a form of God's judgment on wicked and sinful mankind. How? Because there is a sense in which this wealth can be a "handing over" (see Rom 1:24-28 ) of God to the lusts and passions of unbelievers' lives and they can be consumed with their finances. For these people their wealth is a stumbling block to them that keeps them from God, and it will be to their great condemnation.

Beloved, do not buy into the lie of the world. Money and wealth is not an end, it is simply the means to an end. Seek God and his kingdom and all of your needs will be provided for you. These needs often will be provided through the work of your hands and the sweat of your brow. God's provision does not absolve you of the responsibility to be faithful. However, you don't have to spend all of your efforts and mind worrying about how you are going to make ends meet. Pursue God and work hard, and he will provide for you. Remember the snare of the love of money, and diligently keep watch over your heart. Be content, and it will go well for you.

"He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity." -Ecc 5:10

-tanner

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Recommended Resource: For the Love of God by D. A. Carson

8/26/2014

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I have been a critic of the idea of a "quiet time" in the past. It's not, that I don't think we should spend time with God, but rather the idea of reducing our time with god to an item on our checklist, that gets to me. That said, I think properly implemented the concept can be a great one.

One thing that helped to facilitate a proper "quiet time" for me was getting a good devotional to go along with my reading. This served to focus my thoughts, and help clarify some of the more difficult passages I was reading. While there are many such resources on the market, this morning I want to highlight one in particular: For the Love of God by D. A. Carson.

On of the nice things about Carson's devotional is that it follows the Bible reading plan of Robert Murray M'Cheyne. This plan has you reading about 4 chapters a day, and gets you through the New Testament and Psalms twice in a year and the Old Testament once. This feels about right in terms of a manageable reading plan each day, and allows you to dig a bit deeper if you desire.

Another thing that I love are Carson's comments. He is extremely insightful without being too long-winded. He helps bring clarity and understanding to particularly difficult sections as well. I found him indispensable as I read through some of the prophets. D. A. Carson strikes an excellent balance between intellectual insight and pastoral care, and his devotional is no different.

Finally, note that Carson currently has two volumes out of this resource. Used in tandem, you can get Carson's insight on two of the chapters of Scripture you read each day. If you find that to be a bit much, then you can always save the second volume for the second year you choose to read, gaining fresh wisdom the second time through. Overall, I recommend this resource highly. I'll leave you with a bit of Carson's words from the preface to volume one.
This book, the first of two volumes, is for Christians who want to read the Bible, who want to read all the Bible.

The challenge has become increasingly severe in recent years, owing to several factors. All of us must confront the regular sins of laziness or lack of discipline, sins of the flesh, and of the pride of life. But there are additional pressures. The sheer pace of life affords us many excuses for sacrificing the important on the altar of the urgent. The constant sensory input from all sides is gently addictive—we become used to being entertained and diverted, and it is difficult to carve out the space and silence necessary for serious and thoughtful reading of Scripture. More seriously yet, the rising biblical illiteracy in Western culture means that the Bible is increasingly a closed book, even to many Christians. As the culture drifts away from its former rootedness in a Judeo-Christian understanding of God, history, truth, right and wrong, purpose, judgment, forgiveness, and community, so the Bible seems stranger and stranger. For precisely the same reason, it becomes all the more urgent to read it and reread it, so that at least confessing Christians preserve the heritage and outlook of a mind shaped and informed by holy Scripture.1

-tanner

1
D. A. Carson, For the Love of God: a Daily Companion for Discovering the Riches of God’s Word., vol. 1 (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1998), ix-x.
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Theology: Soli Deo Gloria and Its Relations

8/25/2014

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The five solas of the protestant reformation form a unified basis for a consistently Christian worldview. They act as a sort of cohesive set of first principles that ground our faith on solid bedrock. However, there is one sola that throws radiant light upon all of the others: Soli Deo Gloria.

To bring anyone up to speed who may be rusty on their Protestant history, there are five solas that marked the Reformation. They are:

Sola Scripture - Scripture Alone
Solus Christus - Christ Alone
Sola Gratia - Grace Alone
Sola Fide - Faith Alone
Soli Deo Gloria - Glory of God Alone

Together they form a common confession: We are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, by Christ alone according to the Scriptures alone, to the glory of God alone.

All 5 Solas of the Protestant Reformation are intertwined. None of these doctrines stands alone as though it were in a vacuum. Each Sola both relies upon and informs the other 4 in order to establish a strong matrix of truth. Soli Deo Gloria in particular speaks to the big picture of all the other Solas, tying them together and answering the big “why?” questions of our lives.

Soli Deo Gloria and Sola Scriptura combined speak to why we believe what we do, or our epistemology. Soli Deo Gloria relies on Sola Scriptura for the authority of the doctrine itself. Indeed if it were not for Sola Scriptura, we would not know that all things were Soli Deo Gloria. It is from the Bible that this truth is explicitly revealed to us. Soli Deo Gloria informs Sola Scriptura by establishing the reason for which the Bible is our only infallible rule of faith and practice. If all things are for God’s glory, then we ought to honor and observe every Word that he speaks to us. In contrast, we ought not to ascribe that same honor and that same authority to those commands which do not proceed forth to us from God himself; thus establishing our principle of nothing more and nothing less than God’s Word.

Soli Deo Gloria and Solus Christus combined speak to why we are saved, or our soteriology. Soli Deo Gloria relies upon Solus Christus to establish the fact that Christ alone functions as our savior and that his sacrifice need not be supplemented. If there were another savior or the savior’s sacrifice needed supplements to be effectual, then those additions ought to be rendered some glory for their part in the process. This relationship also heavily implies the deity of Christ, as it can be deduced that the savior himself ought to be given glory for his sacrifice. Soli Deo Gloria informs Solus Christus by establishing the ultimate end for the atonement itself. God ordains and accomplishes the atonement primarily to manifest his glory. In the work of the cross God is glorified by maintaining his perfect justice while simultaneously being merciful to sinners. This is in addition to the glory God receives for formulating the plan of salvation and then realizing that plan by taking his wrath upon himself.

Soli Deo Gloria and Sola Gratia combined speak to the positive aspect of our salvation, or why salvation is all of God. Soli Deo Gloria relies upon Sola Gratia to establish the grounds upon which we are saved. Specifically, salvation is grounded entirely in God’s unrestricted favor. God receives all the glory in the act of salvation because it is his free gift. If salvation were in some sense necessitated God would not receive glory for being gracious, as the atonement would simply be what ought to have been done. Instead Sola Gratia calls for ascribing glory to God in a supreme way as He has gone above and beyond the “call of duty.” Soli Deo Gloria informs Sola Gratia by giving the reason that salvation is a free gift. God specifically structured salvation so that it was all of him to the end that he would receive all the glory for its accomplishment.

Soli Deo Gloria and Sola Fide combined speak to the negative aspect of our salvation, or why salvation is none of man. Soli Deo Gloria relies upon Sola Fide to assert man’s utter lack of contribution to his own salvation. Salvation is all of faith and none of works. Further, Sola Fide offers the reason for which this can indeed be the case, in particular an alien righteousness. If righteousness is not our own, and acquiring salvation is done through the empty hand of faith, then man has nothing to offer. Soli Deo Gloria informs Sola Fide by again reasoning why God has made this to be the case. Man has been particularly excluded from contribution in order that God might receive all the glory. If man had some contribution then he would have some grounds to boast in, and therefore a reason to receive some glory. Sola Fide strips man of all grounds of boasting and consequently all basis to glory in himself.

While there is certainly some unique truth in each of the Solas, they enjoy substantial overlap. This overlap is what makes them a strong and unified system of truth. Instead of loose and fragmented doctrines, we have in the Solas a central idea and motive. Soli Deo Gloria gives the other Solas purpose and direction so that indeed all things may be to the glory of God.

-tanner
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Church History: God's Truth Prevails

8/24/2014

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Sometimes I can be a bit of a pessimist, always focusing on what's wrong in the world and in our churches. I don't mean to be this way all of the time, but I just see so much error and confusion that something makes me want to correct all of it. I was reading an old interview of Wayne Grudem, and I was greatly encouraged by his perspective on how the Church of God receives truth and accepts it over time.

The interview was done in 2006, and at the time, Grudem was writing heavily about the egalitarian and feminist movements in the churches. I don't want to debate that particular issue right now. Instead, something that drew my attention was his faith that God's people eventually are convinced of his truth and structure their lives by it. You see, liberal theology has been attacking the church seemingly since its foundation. Yet throughout history, the efforts of faithful men have proven victorious in calling the church to stand firm on each and every issue. God's Truth Prevails. Listen to what Grudem had to say:
Yes, I have great confidence that this issue will eventually be resolved, and that the vast majority of God’s people who take the Bible as the Word of God will adopt and practice a complementarian position, and will put it in their statements of faith. I am thankful that out of this controversy has come a greater appreciation for women’s gifts and wisdom, and a greater openness to many more ministries for women, but the church will still, by and large, be complementarian until Christ returns. Jesus Christ has not given up on His church, and He has not abandoned it. He is still building His church, and He is purifying it, “so that He might present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.”1
Again, I don't want to debate Grudem's stance on Egalitarianism vs Complementarianism in this post. Suffice it to say that Grudem believes when churches accept egalitarian positions, they have capitulated to the society and culture rather than following the Word of God. He believes that this movement allows liberal theology to sneak into the church and do damage. He believes that this is a fundamental issue that the church must deal with in the same way that I believe homosexuality is a fundamental issue for us today.

What I do want to focus on is this: God's Truth Prevails. So many times in church history we see the same liberal (speaking theologically here) attacks come at us over and over again. What prominence do those positions hold any longer? By and large those movements have become irrelevant and obsolete. Our labors have not been in vain, and they will not be in vain. Jesus said "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." Jesus' sheep recognize his voice and truth and they will follow him. It is a refreshing and encouraging thought. Grudem continues:
There have been many doctrinal controversies in the history of the church, and God in His providence always eventually guides the vast majority of the people who sincerely believe the Bible to the right conclusion. Then those who hold the wrong position eventually are marginalized, their churches lose God’s blessing, and they then decline or even close. It will be that way in this controversy as well, although it may take some time, and before it is resolved many churches will adopt a feminist position, to the detriment of many marriages and ministries along the way. (I was just told last week of a complementarian church in a major American city that hired an egalitarian pastor; [they] gave in to his demands that all church offices be open to women, and he took the church from 2500 people on Sunday to under 400 today. I think we will see that more and more, though there will be temporary exceptions from time to time.)2
Sometimes the media and the cultural climate that I gather from it has me so discouraged. It seems as though the society is just feeding lies and the church has capitulated to many of them. However, there truly is no reason to be discouraged. When Elijah thought that he was the only one left who trusted in and followed God, God's response was  a sharp rebuke:
Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel? "Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life.” But what is God’s reply to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”  Rom 11:2-4
God is building his church, even when we don't see it. Christ's bride is lovely and faithful to him, even though they may appear scattered and dwindling. May we continue to fight for God's truth in a contrary world knowing our labor is not in vain. What's more, may we fight with the hope and faith that God's people will be encouraged and edified by his truth. He who has ears to hear, let him hear. We don't have to concern ourselves so much about those who do not have ears to hear. Jesus preached his truths directly into a contrary culture. Sure, some rejected and reviled him. Jesus didn't have to concern himself so much with that however. God still built his church and raised up his people. God's Truth Prevails.

-tanner

1
Grudem, Wayne. "INTERVIEW – Wayne Grudem, Part Eight – What Does the Future Hold for the Church?" patheos.com. http://www.patheos.com/blogs/adrianwarnock/2006/12/interview-wayne-grudem-part-eight-what-does-the-future-hold-for-the-church/(accessed 8/24/14).
2 Ibid.
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Devotional Thoughts: Trusting in God through Despair

8/23/2014

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April 7th, 1872 at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Charles Spurgeon stands to preach. His text is Matthew 27:46.
Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Spurgeon spent the first portion of the sermon describing how we are unfit to preach upon these words. If any of us had been at the cross when our Savior lifted up these words, they would forever echo in our ears. Preaching on them would be too painful a recollection to bear.

Spurgeon said that it should be the same case for each of us, and we should not preach upon these words. However, he then dials in on how he will deal with the text.
You must know that the words of our text are not only the language of Christ, but they are the language of David. You who are acquainted with the Psalms know that the 22nd Psalm begins with just these words, so that David said what Jesus said; and I gather from this that many a child of God has had to say precisely what the Lord Jesus, the first-born of the family, uttered upon the cross. Now as God’s children are brought into the same circumstances as Christ, and Christ is considered the exemplar, my object to-night will be simply this—not to expound the words, but to say to believers who come into a similar plight, Do as Jesus did. If you come into his condition, lift up your hearts to God, that you may act as he did in that condition. So we shall make the Saviour now not a study for our learning, but an example for reproduction.1
So Christ as our elder brother and perfect example gives us insight on how we should respond to God when we are in despair. Spurgeon gave 6 ways that we are to imitate Christ in our trials. I only want to focus on 3 of them.
I. UNDER DESERTION OF SOUL, THE LORD JESUS STILL TURNS TO GOD.

Now observe our Lord. He is deserted of God, but instead of looking in, and saying, “My soul, why art thou this? Why art thou that? Why art thou cast down? Why dost thou mourn?” he looks straight away from that dried-up well that is within, to those eternal waters that never can be stayed, and which are always full of refreshment. He cries, “My God.” He knows which way to look, and I say to every Christian here, it is a temptation of the devil, when you are desponding, and when you are not enjoying your religion as you did, to begin peering and searching about in the dunghill of your own corruptions, and stirring over all that you are feeling, and all you ought to feel, and all you do not feel, and all that. Instead of that, look from within, look above, look to your God again, for the light will come there.2
When I am struggling in my faith and God seems distant to me, my natural reaction is to run far from God. "He must be angry with me," I reason. "He does not want me to approach him in this state." But these are lies that spring from a heart still set upon saving myself. Whatever it is we need. Whatever the reason for our affliction, the answer is held in the hands of our loving God.
II. THOUGH UNDER A SENSE OF DESERTION, OUR MASTER DOES NOT RELAX HIS HOLD OF HIS GOD.

He believes that God is still his God. He uses the possessive particle twice, “My God, my God.”
Now it is easy to believe that God is ours when he smiles upon us, and when we have the sweet fellowship of his love in our hearts; but the point for faith to attend to, is to hold to God when he gives the hard words, when his providence frowns upon thee, and when even his Spirit seems to be withdrawn from thee. Oh! let go everything, but let not go thy God. If the ship be tossed and ready to sink, and the tempest rages exceedingly, cast out the ingots, let the gold go, throw out the wheat, as Paul’s companions did. Let even necessaries go, but oh! still hold to thy God; give not up thy God; say still, notwithstanding all, “In the teeth of all my feelings, doubts, and suspicions, I hold him yet; he is my God; I will not let him go.” . . .

. . . Now I would like to put this personally to any tried child of God here. Are you going to let go your God because you have lost his smile? Then I ask you, Did you base your faith upon his smile? for if you did, you mistook the true ground of faith. The ground of a believer’s confidence is not God’s smile, but God’s promise. It is not his temporary sunshine of his love, but his deep eternal love itself, as it reveals itself in the covenant and in the promises. Now the present smile of God may go, but God’s promise does not go; and if you believe upon God’s promise, that is just as true when God frowns as when he smiles.3
Faith's true object is the promise of the immutable God. How many professing believers have abandoned the faith because their feelings or emotions no longer resonated with God's voice? They could no longer feel God's nearness nor sense God's presence and so they left. I say they gave up too quickly. The true heart of faith presses on through the seaming abandonment and desertion. The true heart of faith knows that God is true even when I cannot feel him. God is near even when he feels far. How do we know these things? Because we believe the God who promised them, and that is what faith truly looks like.
IV. OUR LORD, WHEN HE DOES CRY, CRIES WITH THE ENQUIRING VOICE OF A LOVING CHILD.

“I have forsaken thee, my child, because thou hast forsaken me. Thou hast grown cold of heart by slow degrees; grey hairs have come upon thee, and thou didst not know; and I have made thee know it to make thee see thy backsliding, and sorrowfully repent of it.” Sometimes the answer will be, “My child, I have forsaken thee because thou hast set up an idol in thy heart. Thou lovest thy child too much, thy gold too much, thy trade too much; and I cannot come into thy soul unless I am thy Lord, thy love, thy bridegroom, and thy all.” Oh! we shall be glad to know these answers . . .

. . . Sometimes the Lord’s answer will be, “My child, I have gone from thee for a little to try thee, to see if thou lovest me.” A true lover will love on under frowns. It is only the superficial professor that wants sweetmeats every day, and only loves his God for what he gets out of him; but the genuine believer loves him when he smites him, when he bruises him with the bruises of a cruel one. Why, then we will say, “O God, if this is why thou dost forsake us, we will love thee still, and prove to thee that thy grace has made our souls to hunger and thirst for thee.” Depend upon it, the best way to get away from trouble, or to get great help under it, is to run close in to God.
. . .

. . . Now, beloved, we shall have an answer to our question something like that. When we get to heaven, perhaps not until then, God will tell us why he forsook us. When I tossed upon my bed three months ago in weary pain that robbed me of my night’s rest, and my day’s rest too, I asked why it was I was there, but I have realised since the reason, for God helped me afterwards so to preach that many souls were ingathered. Often you will find that God deserts you that he may be with you after a nobler sort—hides the light, that afterwards the light of seven suns at once may break in upon your spirit, and there you shall learn that it was for his glory that he left you, for his glory that he tried your faith. Only mind you stand to that. Still cry to him, and still call him God, and never complain, but ask him why, and pursue his work still under all difficulties; so being like Christ on earth, you shall be like Christ above, as to the answer.4
How often has my pain and despair been self-inflicted? God loves his children too much to allow them to wallow in their own misery and idolatry. He will crush our fingers that cling so tightly to our idols until we cast them far from ourselves. However, even when my pain does not seem self inflicted it is still no reason to abandon God. Even though our lot my be a crooked one, we press on in faith knowing that God has for us the greater good. Sometimes we cannot see how God used our affliction for good until we view it from the calm and serene balcony of the future. Perhaps that repose will not be found for you this side of heaven. Even so, the true heart of faith presses on to God, trusting in his promises.

God never actually told Job why he allowed so much affliction to come upon him. Instead, God revealed his glory
to him, and that was sufficient for Job to put his hand over his mouth. We will all one day see God, and we will not walk away from his presence confused about what he has done and allowed. Every tongue will confess that the Lord of all the earth has done what is right. The question is if we will confess it from a heart that trusts in that God, or rejects him. Spurgeon leaves us with a final exhortation:
I cannot sit down without saying just this word. God will never forsake his people for ever. But as many of you as are not his people, if you have not believed in him, he will forsake you for ever, and for ever, and for ever; and if you ask, “Why hast thou forsaken me?” you will get your answer in the echo of your words, “Thou hast forsaken me.” “How shall ye escape if ye neglect so great salvation?” “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”

      “But if your ears refuse
         The language of his grace,
      And hearts grow hard like stubborn Jews,
         That unbelieving race;
      The Lord in vengeance drest
         Shall lift his hand and swear,
      ‘You that despised my promised rest
         Shall have no portion there.’ ”

God grant it may never be so with you, for Christ’s sake. Amen.5

-tanner

1 C. H. Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 62 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1916), 170–171.
2 Ibid, 171.
3 Ibid, 172-173.
4 Ibid, 175-176, 178-179.
5 Ibid, 179.

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Homosexuality: Understanding Leviticus in its Context

8/22/2014

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There are several texts in the Bible that speak out against homosexuality. It is a sad day that we live in when these texts are dismissed as irrelevant or not socially forward enough to be useful any longer. Additionally, many professing believers who have capitulated to the modern position on this subject have sought ways to reinterpret and rethink how we should go about viewing these texts. It is my assertion that these teachers have ulterior motives for their interpretation and do not handle the Word of God correctly. In light of that, I would like to spend several posts exegetically dealing with each relevant text so that we get a better understanding of how the texts should be understood.

A couple of caveats again, as I state always before we deal with this subject. The church has traditionally been woefully inadequate in their treatment of this topic in terms of providing meaningful help and guidance. It is my belief that many Christians who want to honor God with their lives have previously been made to feel weird or awkward about dealing with this issue and as such have received little to no help. We are quite late as the body of Christ addressing this topic as it should be addressed, with love and compassion. Secondly, if I interpret the Bible correctly, homosexuality is a sin; but not any more or any worse of a sin than many others. Heterosexual adultery and fornication are just as much major issues, and yet some have gone out of their ways to rail against homosexuality to the exclusion of all other sins. Again, this is irresponsible and as well as inconsistent with the biblical data. Additionally, it does damage to the lives of others. Thirdly, I don't particularly enjoy addressing this topic. I wish we didn't have to fight about these issues or spend so much time discussing them. I would prefer to speak of other things, "about our common salvation," however this is certainly the defining issue of our age, and we would be lax in our duties if we did not deal with it fairly and appropriately. Finally, as I hope to keep driving at with these posts, where you land on this topic is ultimately going to be determined by how highly you value Scripture, and if you are determined to interpret it correctly, as God has given it.

Scripture has been used in illegitimate ways all throughout history, and our day is no different. If you approach the Bible with a preconceived notion or idea about what it says or ought to say, you can mostly find support for your position. Additionally, if you deal with texts in isolation from one another and seek to reinterpret them according to your perspective, you can mostly make the text say whatever you want it to. The Scriptures ought to be taken as a collective whole and additionally ought to be taken on their own terms. One who genuinely comes to the Scriptures with a submissive heart that desires to know what God has to say on any given topic and conform their lives to that truth will find the Bible to be a treasure trove of divine wisdom. However, those who seek simply to reaffirm their preconceived stance will shape the Bible as a wax nose to support whatever position they see fit.

In light of these facts, faithful Bible interpretation is roughly a two step process. First, we attempt to discover what the author intended to communicate to his audience in their original context. Secondly, we seek to pull the principle out of that teaching and apply it in whatever way is most faithful to out current situation. This fact is important. It is the principle that we are after for our own lives. However, we can only get at that principle by going through the texts themselves. Sometimes the principle that is applied to our current situation is very near to the original audience's principle. Sometimes however, that principle is vastly different. It all depends upon the purpose and original context and its relationship to our context today. Please realize that this hermeneutic principle approaches the text on its own terms. It allows the text to say whatever it wants to say first, and then seeks to understand how that may apply to our lives. This is not some idea that we have cooked up in order to try and get around or pick and choose our way through Scripture. This is how any and every book should be read. We should always strive to discover the author's original intent and meaning.

Given all of this background, I want to deal with two of the most clear biblical texts on the topic of homosexuality, Lev 18:22 and 20:13:

You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.

If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.
These texts seems pretty straightforward at first blush, and they really are when we boil it down. However, we want to make sure we deal with them faithfully so I want to take the time to address them. Because the texts are so clear, do we ever see people objecting to these text directly? No. People typically deal with many of the New Testament texts in a direct manner. They claim that we aren't sure what a certain word means, or that it isn't clear that the homosexuality in the New Testament context is at all similar to the homosexuality in our day. We will deal with these issues in time. However, these texts in Leviticus are so clear that they hardly ever receive attacks like that. Instead the way that these texts are often attacked is by attacking the entire book of Leviticus. The response you will hear 9 times out of 10 is roughly as follows: "Oh yea, why are you wearing a shirt made out of two different fibers, or shaving your beard? You can't just pick and choose which Old Testament laws you want to keep, you have to be consistent!" You may have heard of a letter to Dr. Laura on this topic. It has been out for some time and it is very well written. I had to read it in one of my Core Humanities classes in college:
Dear Dr. Laura,

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and I try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind him that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination. End of debate.

I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some of the specific laws and how to best follow them.

a) When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord (Lev 1:9). The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

b) I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

c) I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness (Lev 15:19-24). The problem is, how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

d) Lev. 25:44 states that I may indeed possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

e) I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself?

f) A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an Abomination (Lev 11:10), it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this?

g) Lev 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle room here?

h) Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev 19:27. How should they die?

i) I know from Lev 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

j) My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev 19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? (Lev 24:10-16) Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)

I know you have studied these things extensively, so I am confident you can help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.

Your devoted disciple and adoring fan.
I believe that an episode of the West Wing also used nearly this exact form of argumentation. What is the heart of this argument? Again, it's to attack the entire book of Leviticus. This argument is really just an attempt to capitalize on the fact that most Christians don't understand well enough how their Old Testament Bible and laws fit into the New Testament gospel perspective. I hope to address that very issue.

The book of Leviticus is full of laws. This section of Scripture is often called the "Holiness Code," as it deals primarily with how Israel is supposed to remain pure before a holy God. Remember that the proper way to interpret any biblical text is by pulling out the meaning that was intended to the original audience, seeing the principle at work underneath all of it, and then applying that principle to modern times. To understand how to do that correctly requires a broader understanding of the biblical themes of who God's people are and how they are to live before him.

This topic has many more intricacies and complexities than we have time to deal with here. However I will give some general principles to set you on the right path of understanding. We ought not to be afraid of the book of Leviticus. It has much that is relevant for us today. However, we need to know how to deal with it correctly. In general realize this: the New Testament Church is the spiritual manifestation of Old Testament Israel. This isn't replacement theology, this is theology consistent with Paul's argumentation in Romans that says Israel is not primarily physical, but faith based, and that Gentiles are now grafted into the tree of Israel. What this means is that laws that are to be kept in a physical manner in the Old Testament often have a spiritual application in the New Testament. Every law that required someone to be stoned in the Old Testament, generally would require excommunication from the church in the New Testament for example. This understanding presupposes that said behavior is sinful in both testaments. So Old Testament laws all still apply, just many of them apply in new ways.

How do we distinguish how each of the laws apply to us? This is the heart of the Christian's faithful study of the book of Leviticus. However, a simple distinction makes the entire task much easier. Generally there are three types of laws in Leviticus.

First, there are general moral laws that Israel is supposed to keep. These laws have the most direct application to God's people because these are the standards God generally requires his people to conduct themselves by. The principle behind moral laws is generally the law itself. Interestingly enough, there is some biblical evidence that God also requires Gentile nations to keep these as well, and punishes them when they do not. They have consciences that reveal these standards to them. The Ten Commandments are pretty typical examples of laws that fall into this category.

Additionally, there are civil laws. Remember that Israel was a nation of people and they had a governmental system that God established for them. These laws are to be kept by Israel in their time as part of their civil society. It is important to recognize that these laws are given in the context of how people in a theocratic society are to conduct themselves. They are primarily meant to communicate how judges should view case laws. Sometimes these laws make sense for us today, but more often than not they simply give good principles and insight into what is just and fair. Various laws regarding property and ox goring fall into this category. While the principle applies, often the exact law is irrelevant to us. We don't eat and socialize on our rooftops any longer, so we aren't required to place handrails on it to prevent someone from falling off. However we do have pools at our homes, and it would be quite negligent if a family did not install fencing to keep young children from falling in. This is a perfectly consistent application of Deuteronomy 22:8, and it faithfully deals with the text's principle.

Finally, there are ceremonial laws. Many of these laws have to do with things that are made ceremonially clean or unclean based upon violating these laws. Quite a few if not all of these laws have been explicitly repealed, as Christ is the perfect fulfillment of the entire Old Testament ceremonial system. Laws in this category include just about everything relating to Levites, weird prohibitions involving blood, etc. It is not that the law is no longer helpful or applicable. It is simply that they were shadows of a greater fulfillment that was to come. That fulfillment has come in Jesus Christ. Every time we read one of these laws it points us to Jesus, and it was supposed to point the original audience to Jesus as well.

While these breakdowns are not explicitly spelled out in the Old Testament. They are honest attempts to deal faithfully with the biblical data. Further, it makes sense that all of these texts would still apply to us in some sense. It is all God's Word after all. This proper method of interpreting said laws allows us to be faithful to the biblical mandates while at the same time recognizing that we live in a different period of biblical redemption. Ceremonial laws no longer apply directly, but every time we read of a scapegoat, sacrifice, or atonement we think of Jesus, just as the law was originally intended. Civil laws no longer apply directly because we are not theocratic Israel, but the principles of equity and justice still apply and these requirements give us an idea of what that looks like. Moral laws still apply mostly directly because God's standards of living for his people are the same forever.

Please recognize that this method of interpretation is not some theological trickery to allow us to pick and choose what laws we would like to keep and which ones we wouldn't. Rather it seeks to interpret each law as it was originally intended and apply consistently those laws to a New Testament framework. This is standard hermeneutics, and if churches would start teaching people how to read their Bibles again then maybe we wouldn't have so many Christians shocked when they hear about these things. Maybe we wouldn't have so many professing believers abandon the faith when they get pressed because nobody ever taught them how to consistently understand all of God's Word.

Which category then does Lev 18:22 and 20:13 fall under? It is quite clearly a moral law. It certainly isn't simply ceremonial, it applies to more than just the priesthood, and is broader for the nation of Israel than just when they are presenting sacrifices. Additionally, it is a capital offense, which is typically more consistent with moral offenses (they also mirror behavior that is unacceptable for NT believers as well under the judgment of NT church discipline up to and including excommunication). The law is likely not civil either. The primary argument for this lies in the fact that gentile Sodom and Gomorra was destroyed for this crime, a group of people clearly outside of the civil realm and authority of theocratic Israel (a community that didn't even exist yet). As such this is a moral command that is still binding upon God's people (and unbelievers as well) today. God clearly identifies homosexuality as a sin with the punishment that those who unrepentantly pursue such behavior will be cut off from their people.

Let us not fall victim to the tactics of the secular humanists. An honest and straightforward reading and understanding of the text reveals that God's moral command against homosexuality is binding for all people everywhere. Where does our ultimate authority lie? Will it be with God and his Word? Or will it be with secular man and what he deems is appropriate behavior? Ultimately, your stance will either be with God and his Word or with man and his opinions, regardless if you try to apply a religious veneer to it after the fact. I hope and pray that we will not feel that we must succumb to the pressure of the unbelieving majority. May God's people stand firmly upon his truth even though the whole world may assail them.

-tanner
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