The Price of Vision

by Oswald Chambers...
"In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw also the Lord." Isaiah 6:1 Our soul's history with God is frequently the history of the "passing of the hero." Over and over again God has to remove our friends in order to bring Himself in their place, and that is where we faint and fail and get discouraged. Take it personally: In the year that the one who stood to me for all that God was, died - I gave up everything? I became ill? I got disheartened? or - I saw the Lord? My vision of God depends upon the state of my character. Character determines revelation. Before I can say "I saw also the Lord," there must be something corresponding to God in my character. Until I am born again and begin to see the Kingdom of God, I see along the line of my prejudices only; I need the surgical operation of external events and an internal purification. It must be God first, God second, and God third, until the life is faced steadily with God and no one else is of any account whatever. "In all the world there is none but thee, my God, there is none but thee." Keep paying the price. Let God see that you are willing to live up to the vision.

Celibacy & Priesthood

The Pope defends celibacy for every priest & wonders why sexually confused pedophiles end up in ministry? 1 Timothy 4 says, "some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry," like the Pope.

There are roughly 1 billion Catholics. To care for that many people you need a lot of godly pastors. If you exclude men who want to marry & have kids, you have to take some less than healthy men to fill the ranks around the godly men called to celibacy.

- Mark Driscoll

These are bold points, and it reckons the question, is it right for the church to demand celibacy from its priests?

From a catholic friend of mine:

1 Corinthians 7:32-35

"I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord's affairs—how he can please the Lord. But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world—how he can please his wife— and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord's affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world—how she can please her husband. I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord."

Does St. Paul contradict himself? Or was he warning against the dissolution of marriage in society in your scriptural reference?

You could say that in 1 Corinthians, he is merely speaking of an ideal, and not something that could actually be achieved in practice. But I would have to disagree with such an argument based solely on pragmatism.

My friend Rob argues Paul is being spiritually pragmatic, and that he is describing a literal spiritual gift, one of singleness, claiming "How can we know if we have the spiritual gift of singleness? Simply stated, do you want to have sex? If your answer is yes, you don't have it."

But to answer my Catholic friend directly, I have two thoughts. One answer could be in the purpose of 1 Corinthians. J.I. Packer writes:

"The purpose of 1 Corinthians, in large part, is to encourage Christians to attend the kinds of daily affairs that would be unimportant if Christ were returning within weeks or months… Like other NT writers, Paul considers all of time from the cross forward to be the "last days" (Acts 2:17, Heb. 1:2, James 5:3) and cousels Christians to live in the light of Christ's certain return at an unforeseen moment. Paul's point here is simply the form of this world, or its day to day affairs, is not eternal. Christians should prioritize their human relationships. material possessions, and worldly dealings accordingly."

But most of all, I see the key to understanding those verses to be earlier in the chapter. Back in verses 6-7, Paul notes:

"as a concession, not as a command, I wish that all men were as I am [that is, celibate]. But each man has his own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that."

Both marriage and celibacy have their own benefits, and should be considered, in Paul's words, "gifts." Paul recognizes his gift is not the norm, but his gift does not make him any holier than others. Note v. 28, 36 ("let them marry - it is no sin").

My friend responded saying

I agree with you that neither the gift of marriage or the gift of celibacy is "holier" than another. However, in the Catholic world, a priest is considered to lead a life of Christ in the sense that he must also live the lifestyle that Christ led. Christ was indeed celibate (unless you're a Dan Brown-er) so priests should be celibate as well.

Keep in mind that priesthood shouldn't really be a choice for men to make, but rather be a vocation, or calling, that can be just as holy as married life. It can also be just as sinful as married life can be.

I agree that a vocation is completely a calling on a priest's life, and that the men that answer that call are accountable to model Christ, but if I may ask though, where do you see in the scriptures that pastors are called to celibacy? I can see the interpretation in v. 7-8, or 32-35, but within the context of the chapter, this appears to me to be only an ideal (esp. considering v. 6 or 36). The scriptures even go so far as to prescribe elders and "overseers" to be "a one woman man" who can manage his family household. (1 Tim. 3, Titus 1)

I recognize the pragmatic situation, but just because something is fruitful in one man's life does not demand it of every person. Christ was homeless, and the early Christians sold all of their possessions for the sake of the church. Yet the call to be a Christian today does not require selling everything to give to the poor (i.e. the rich young ruler in Mark 10). In fact, the call of a Christian is often to maintain a level of wealth to be able to fund other ministries or missions (i.e. Joseph of Arimathea, who provided Christ's tomb to fulfill the prophecy 'He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.').

Furthermore, if you combine a call to marriage with a call to follow Christ, Paul writes in 1 Tim 5, "if a man cannot provide for his loved ones, especially his family, he has forsaken the faith and is worse than an unbeliever." The thought is slightly off topic, but I trust you can already see my implication that Christians and Leaders are not called to follow every command of Christ. But noting 1 Tim. 3 & Titus 1, before a man is called to be an overseer (pastor, literally bishop), he is a one woman man, managing his household with fiscal, moral, and spiritual responsibility. The same follows for deacons (elders). In order to ever be considered a leader, there is a presumed family. So where is an enforced celibacy justified here?

Now hear what I am saying. Does this mean a celibate man cannot be called to pastorship? I would say not, esp. in light of Matthew 19:12, when Jesus calls us to respect men who are called to give up sexuality for God (by choice or situation). Remember when the disciples asked Him two verses prior, "is it better not to marry?" and He said to them, "Not everyone can accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given." - asserting not all men are called to a celibate life, and this time by Christ Himself.

So some men are celibate for God, which Paul refers to as a gift, and we respect that. But it is never laid down as a requirement of man. If celibacy were truly a requirement of leading a life that exemplifies Christ, surely He would have told us!

Another Catholic friend affirmed to me,

the "scriptures do not call for celibacy, the ideal of a catholic priest to emulate Christ's life is to "act" like him. Christ never married nor does it say he had an intimate relationship with a woman. So the catholics priests, when ordained, vow to act as Christ did in all facets of life...celibacy is just one of MANY facets. It just gets the most attention because it is what sets a catholic priest apart from other christian ministers... it takes more of a commitment. Is it right?? That is the question."

And I would answer him, if the scriptures do not call for it, why make it a widespread requirement? My fear is that many men within the Catholic church are called to the priesthood, but are not called to celibacy, yet out of obedience to man-made religion and not god-breathed scriptures choose the priesthood, and suffer in ways they otherwise would not need to, if not for the fear of excommunication.

My Uncle John had this to say:

First, it must be noted that Judaism has no history of requiring celibacy in ministry. All Jewish men were expected to marry and have a family, in particular rabbis. The history of the early church shows ministers, pastors, and priests as married -- the apostles themselves were married! 1 Cor. 9:5 indicates while Paul was single, the other apostles had believing wives, and 1 Tim 3 has a requirement to serve as a bishop that he is "the husband of one wife." It has been already cited 1 Tim 4's declaration that forbidding to marry is rooted in a "deceiving spirit." Plus, the early church was not celibate. Clergy was generally married until the 4th century, and even then, the official declaration for priests not marrying did not come down until 1074, when Pope Gregory VII declared all clerical marriages invalid. The Catholic church's own history on this issue is rather sketchy.

He has a valid point when you consider the doctrine of perspicuity: That those verses in the Bible that are unclear should be interpreted in light of the passages that are clear. A look at the lives of the apostles, those who literally followed Jesus with everything they had, had wives themselves. If Christ wanted priests and pastors of churches to not have wives, He surely would have chosen single men!

The tradition is noble, but it is also a gift not all men are called to. To require a specific spiritual gift of all men in the priesthood is dangerous. Consider religions that demand all members to speak in tongues, and that if you cannot, you have not received the holy spirit (which is absurd). They point to event at Pentecost and claim that is the model for all churches. This is the model of a cult, taking one piece of scripture, and exploiting it out of context. For instance, consider 1 Peter 3:21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ

The issue comes with that word "saves," and it leads to many false doctrines in some churches. To save here means "to save from the evils which obstruct the reception of the Messianic deliverance," and NOT "to deliver from the penalties of the Messianic judgment." Peter is exhorting here that it is not the getting wet that saves you, it is the faith in Christ. To believe it is baptism that literally grants salvation is false, and has become nothing but superstition. Jesus is the source of faith and salvation alone. Baptism is an appeal to God for a clear conscience, and an opportunity to recognize before God and man your new found life following Jesus.

Taken out of context, you get things like baptizing children, or baptizing in the names of other people to try and rescue those that have passed on as the Jehovah's Witnesses do. Neither ideas are found in the bible nor are they practiced by the early church. This is not much unlike a church demanding celibacy for any man called the priesthood, exploiting one thought in scripture, and demanding it of a widespread group of people.

Rejoice!

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith--more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire--may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls."

- 1 Peter 1:3-9

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"For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome."

- 1 John 5:3

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"Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say: Rejoice!

"God wants you happy, but he doesn't do it with circumstance. He does it with himself. He does it with the gospel. He does it in-and-through circumstances. This is a call for faith - huge faith. That God is good, God is for us, God is using all these things for our deep happiness now, and our perfect, unsullied happiness in the age to come."

- John Piper

Let your reasonableness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things... practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you."

- Philippians 4:4-7

Colossians 4:2-6

"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone."

This is an exhortation from Paul (similar to Col. 2:7) directed at the Masters of estates, the wealthy living in Colossae. He's just finished talking to the slaves, encouraging them "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men." The truth here is that both can apply to us today.

We are the wealthiest people in the world. Only 2% of the world own cars, my family has three. Wealth is measured in opportunity, not by the amount of paper in your wallet. Americans, in college or not, are the wealthiest the world has ever seen. But Paul also mentions he is enslaved to the gospel, in chains to the mystery of Christ. Should this not be our position as well?

"being watchful" in prayer. This passage in Colossians is linked with Ephesians 6:18-20

"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests (greek: supplication - with humility). With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should."

Prayer seems to function as a way to watch over other Christians, to care for them in supplication. I always related alertness to the "watchful servant" parable Jesus tells in Luke 12, but here - being alert translates in to knowing what to pray for.

The Col. passage also encourages thankfulness for our prayers, and how rightly he tells this to the wealthy. We are blessed, and need to be humbly reminded of such daily. Jesus, who during His ministry was homeless and not very wealthy, began most every prayer in the gospels with thanking God. We should abide in his example.

This idea of being chained to the Gospel or to the Mystery of Christ is fond in both passages. Paul often was literally in chains, as Paul wrote both letters during his first imprisonment in Rome, but he means it spiritually as well. He cannot separate his life from the message and direction of Christ.

Do I see this in my own life? Paul seems to be addressing conversation soon after, and it is true - so often in my daily conversations Christian topics just work their way to the surface. It's difficult for me to have conversations with people that do not end up focusing on Christ. But Paul is addressing something bigger here. Everything Paul does seems to be in relation to Christ. If he is truly in chains, maybe a better question is who are leading the chains?

If two are chained together, one is directing the other as they move forward. By saying he is in chains to Christ, yes there is a weight felt there, but is he not also saying he will go wherever those chains lead him? If on the other side of those chains is Christ, who is bigger? Who will be leading whom? I'm reminded of Christ saying His yolk is easy, encouraging us to bring our burdens to Him, that he might help us on the road - but a yolk can only go one direction. To join the yolk of Christ is to join Him in whatever direction He leads.

So what is my incentive to pray? I was recently reminded that if my incentive to spend time with God is to avoid sinning, I'm still only worshiping that sin. Praying needs to draw us closer to God for the purposes of knowing/better understanding Him and His will. This will reflect who or what we are really chained to, this will guide what happens in our daily conversations.

"Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone."

The encouragement is to have your conversations "seasoned" with the focus of Christ. But not only to mention Him, but be prepared to discuss it further. It may be a great "mystery", but our testimonies are not, nor are His works in the world. Being prepared to answer questions about your Christ seasoned words can only come from spending time with Him, in word and prayer. From being in Chains.

EPHESIANS 6:20 - I AM AN AMBASSADOR IN CHAINS. PRAY THAT I MAY DECLARE IT FEARLESSLY, AS I SHOULD.

Matthew 5:17 - Fulfill

from a conversation with my friend Michael Shea

You are right to say many people will pick and choose single blurbs of scripture from the OT law to support often discriminatory actions. It is wrong to take scripture out of context and abuse it to gain some end.

If you're questioning why Christians (who have tattoos and cut their sideburns and eat pig meat when Leviticus clearly speaks against such a thing) fail to uphold to Mosaic Law, consider what Jesus said in

Matthew 5:17
"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them."

For Christ to fulfill the law means that He has satisfied it completely for us. The law called for perfect obedience under threat of a “curse."

Galatians 3:10
All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law." (Deuteronomy 27:26)

For anyone to perfectly obey the law would mean to live a perfect and sinless life. Because man would inevitably fail at the 607 laws weekly, on the Sabbath a spotless lamb would be sacrificed, and the shedding of blood atoned for the many's sins.

Because Christ lived out the law to its fruition, and then continued on to pay the penalty of breaking the law, He became the fulfillment of the law, completing it's bind on man.

If the law were to bear the same relationship to mankind today, then it was not fulfilled when Christ first came, and Jesus failed to accomplish what He came to do.

The NT writers believed this was true as well:

Romans 10:4
"Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes."

Galatians 3:23-25
"Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law."

Ephesians 2:15
"by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace"


There's a really great analysis of Matthew 5:17-20 in response to a similar question on Islam here.

James 1:1

"James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations: Greetings"

Servant - in the greek it means bondservant, more or less meaning slave. Do I consider myself a slave for Christ? I try to Love the Lord by keeping his commandments, but even in that I fail. If I'm a slave - there should be no question what the right decision is when sinful opportunities arise. I like that the greek translates BONDservant. It reckons the connection as being inseparable. Which is true - I have been bought with a high price, and now that I have the Holy Spirit in me, and a regenerate heart, I could never escape from the Lord, no matter how much I try and run away. Like a father watching his kids, when I run too far away, he is always quick to snatch me up in his arms.

The perspective of James, and likewise Jude - who begins his book the same way - is very interesting. These two men were brothers of Jesus, they grew up along side of him. It makes sense that Christ's family call him crazy in the gospels - can you imagine your own brother or sister deserving your worship as king? but here, at the start of their books, they call themselves servants of Jesus Christ. Servants to their own brother.

Another interesting thought is that the tribes are scattered. “Scattered” here is the word “diaspora” which comes from two words: “dia” - through, and “speirein” - to sow. The word literally means “through sowing”, which makes what the ESV refers to as "the Dispersement", seem to be a reaction to Christ's command "bring the Gospel to the ends of the earth."

But the Jewish context of the tripes seems more related to Acts 11:19, when the Christian Jews were scattered from Jerusalem after the stoning of Stephen. There is a communicable idea that going out into the world is to sow the gospel as well. The reason for leaving aside, the actions are one.

Regardless of the strength of intentions by the word scattered, James is clearly writing to the saved abroad. Being the pastor of the church in Jerusalem, his letter is an encouragement to his brothers and sisters forced to leave the Holy land for their faith. As a christian in the world, I feel alien - due to sin, rebellion, clashing cultures - and i'm not always in my comfort zone in the world. Maybe my perspective is not so different.

He uses his letter to urge all Christians toward serious holiness and unconditional obedience to the word of God - which often times seem like the same idea to me. I often try to prove my holiness to God through obedience - but I've recently found that to be more a reaction to fear of God's judgement than of joy for what He has done for me. I'm looking forward to diving into holiness as a discipline, instead of seeing it as a reaction to what I do.

Hebrews 12:14 - Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.

Hosea 2

¹ "Say of your brothers, 'My people,' and of your sisters, 'My loved one.'

Israel Punished and Restored

² "Rebuke your mother, rebuke her,
for she is not my wife,
and I am not her husband.
Let her remove the adulterous look from her face
and the unfaithfulness from between her breasts.

³ Otherwise I will strip her naked
and make her as bare as on the day she was born;
I will make her like a desert,
turn her into a parched land,
and slay her with thirst.

⁴ I will not show my love to her children,
because they are the children of adultery.

⁵ Their mother has been unfaithful
and has conceived them in disgrace.
She said, 'I will go after my lovers,
who give me my food and my water,
my wool and my linen, my oil and my drink.'

⁶ Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes;
I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way.

⁷ She will chase after her lovers but not catch them;
she will look for them but not find them.
Then she will say,
'I will go back to my husband as at first,
for then I was better off than now.'

⁸ She has not acknowledged that I was the one
who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil,
who lavished on her the silver and gold—
which they used for Baal.

⁹ "Therefore I will take away my grain when it ripens,
and my new wine when it is ready.
I will take back my wool and my linen,
intended to cover her nakedness.

¹⁰ So now I will expose her lewdness
before the eyes of her lovers;
no one will take her out of my hands.

¹¹ I will stop all her celebrations:
her yearly festivals, her New Moons,
her Sabbath days—all her appointed feasts.

¹² I will ruin her vines and her fig trees,
which she said were her pay from her lovers;
I will make them a thicket,
and wild animals will devour them.

¹³ I will punish her for the days
she burned incense to the Baals;
she decked herself with rings and jewelry,
and went after her lovers,
but me she forgot,"
declares the LORD.

¹⁴ "Therefore I am now going to allure her;
I will lead her into the desert
and speak tenderly to her.

¹⁵ There I will give her back her vineyards,
and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.
There she will sing as in the days of her youth,
as in the day she came up out of Egypt.

¹⁶ "In that day," declares the LORD,
"you will call me 'my husband';
you will no longer call me 'my master.'

¹⁷ I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips;
no longer will their names be invoked.

¹⁸ In that day I will make a covenant for them
with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air
and the creatures that move along the ground.
Bow and sword and battle
I will abolish from the land,
so that all may lie down in safety.

¹⁹ I will betroth you to me forever;
I will betroth you in righteousness and justice,
in love and compassion.

²⁰ I will betroth you in faithfulness,
and you will acknowledge the LORD.

²¹ "In that day I will respond,"
declares the LORD—
"I will respond to the skies,
and they will respond to the earth;

²² and the earth will respond to the grain,
the new wine and oil,
and they will respond to Jezreel.

²³ I will plant her for myself in the land;
I will show my love to the one I called 'Not my loved one.'
I will say to those called 'Not my people,' 'You are my people';
and they will say, 'You are my God.' "

I posted my commentary in the comments section

click the "Hosea 2" title at the top to view both the passage and my comments at the same time.

Hebrews 11:17-19

  ¹⁷ By faith Abraham, when God tested him, 

offered Isaac as a sacrifice. 

He who had received the promises 

was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 

¹⁸ even though God had said to him, 

"It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." 

¹⁹ Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, 

and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.

Abraham had received an incredible gift from God, a son, which the Lord asked him to sacrifice for His sake, despite what he'd thought he'd heard from God. In fear, and in faith, he obeyed, and prepared the death of his son on the alter. 

The case of Abraham presents two reasonings for sacrificing his son for the sake of obeying the commandments of the Lord: 

1. That God has the ability to raise people from the dead, and therefore could raise his son from the dead if he were to lay down this sacrifice at the alter, and the the Lord would fulfill His original promises of future generations being born through Isaac. 
2. That Abraham had heard wrong about the Lord's promises, and the future generations to come, and that God had other, greater plans, and that God could be trusted to provide in spite of the death of his son through the sacrifice he would make. 

Regardless of the outcome, Abraham trusted in God. 

He had faith, he had fear; he obeyed even when the commandment of God 

seemed contradictory to everything he knew

and the Lord provided. 

Psalm 19

 ⁷ The law of the LORD is perfect, 
       reviving the soul. 
       The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, 
       making wise the simple.

 ⁸ The precepts of the LORD are right, 
       giving joy to the heart. 
       The commands of the LORD are radiant, 
       giving light to the eyes.

 ⁹ The fear of the LORD is pure, 
       enduring forever. 
       The ordinances of the LORD are sure 
       and altogether righteous.

 ¹⁰ They are more precious than gold, 
       than much pure gold; 
       they are sweeter than honey, 
       than honey from the comb.

 ¹¹ By them is your servant warned; 
       in keeping them there is great reward.

 ¹² Who can discern his errors? 
       Forgive my hidden faults.

 ¹³ Keep your servant also from willful sins; 
       may they not rule over me. 
       Then will I be blameless, 
       innocent of great transgression.

 ¹⁴ May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart 
       be pleasing in your sight, 
       O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

He is Risen!

Galations 2:20

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

it's been a long time since i have cried. 

to be honest, i can think of only two instances in the past year.

the world has a way of hardening the softest hearts,

bringing malice from admiration, depression from peace.

and it's not that i am a hard hearted person, but sometimes

it takes the sharpest swords to pierce the strongest armor. 

i am reminded of Hebrews 4:12: "The Word of God

is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword,

it penetrates, even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow."

the Word of the Lord is living and active, and I am reminded

He is Risen!

this morning, i cried for a third time.

 after i got up this morning, i watched the Mars Hill easter service 

with Mark Driscoll in Seattle. he presented the gospel, as was expected 

in a relevant and powerful way, proclaiming the Resurrected Christ,

but following was a call to repentance, which was fairly unique.

the call asked people to not only come forward and accept His grace

but to be baptized on stage as a symbol of a changed heart,

and a renewal of thoughts, lifestyles, actions, and deeds. 

admist intense worship, people came down to the stage,

and one by one were prayed over and dunked in and out of the water

in the clothes they came to the service wearing

as a symbol of a passing of their old self, cleansed. new.

i watched 

a pregnant, abandoned woman calling on the name of the Lord.

men and women, some my age, some older, boldly declaring faith.

a young girl weeping as she was brought under the water, 

laughing with joy when she arose.

a husband and wife, spiritually cleansed before hundreds of people.

a father, placing his daughter in the bath, and pulling her out

and capturing her in a loving embrace

as the worship band sang Gloria! Gloria! Gloria! Gloria!

i witnessed redemption, raw and pure

i witnessed unbridled emotion, tears and laughter

i witnessed the children of God coming home to their Father

i witnessed, from 3,000 miles away, grace

and i cried.

Easter has been a long time coming

surviving the trials of Lent

desiring the grace and redemption of God to feel renewed in me again.

we are often habitual, dirty, lonely people, who infinitely need the Lord

for repentance is not what we can do to gain God's favor.

repentance is realizing what God has already done, and to trust.

and i need to learn to trust God with all of me.

i long for God's intent

the rejoicing of my spirit

the joining of soul and body

at the culmination of the age

but until then, He is Risen!

sin is conquered, we forgiven

born again in living hope 

to celebrate this easter day

(4/12/2009)

Contending Idolatry

January 29, 2008

This morning, the guys in my discipleship group came over for breakfast before we all went to class. We had a great meal, and excellent conversation, but what stuck with me after all was said and done, and we’d gone on our separate ways, was this idea of Idolatry, or dedicating ourselves to something that is not God.

I was thinking about what I did yesterday and I discovered that I’d dedicate at least three hours of my time to watching and reading the news, and less than half an hour to spending time with the Lord. So I decided to sit down and pray over what this meant, and I found myself in Paul's writings in 1 Corinthians, on Idolatry. Below is the passage (with my personal commentary in parentheses), followed by more of what I've learned on the subject on Idolatry and the pursuit of God. It's a bit long, so please stick with me if you have the time.

1 Corinthians 10: 1-14

1 For I do not want you to be ignorant (sounds like me already) of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. 2 They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. (This is a reference to Exodus. What Paul is doing is making a connection between us and our spiritual forefathers of the Jewish faith)

3 They all ate the same spiritual food 4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. (This same connection, a community of people in the old testament, with whom the triune God, Elohim, was active in their affairs, much like the church today)

5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert. (That is to say, although they were God’s children, not all of them were committed to the word of God and His teachings)

6 Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. (You can be a spiritual person, be part of a church, be one who Christ lives in and with, but still have your heart set on what is wrong, and be doing wrong things. Paul provides us with an example:)

7 Do not be idolaters, (the primary theme here) as some of them were; as it is written: "The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry." (Instead of having a drink, these people would get drunk, instead of eating, be gluttons, and would fornicate and lust after one another (commit homosexuality, bisexuality, or have sex before or outside of marriage) all while still being a part of the church - a reference to Ex. 32.)

8 We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did—and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. (a shocking event in Jewish history, where it is my understanding that a plague of snakes came and killed 23,000 people, and where the only thing found to be in common among them was their participation in sexually immoral acts with and for one another)

9 We should not test the Lord, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes. (to not test the Lord – to not assume that God will overlook one small action here or a mess up there, that He will let us off the hook and that our actions don’t really matter in comparison to the rest of the things we do)

10 And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel. (to not complain over this commandment of God: to not be dedicated to, or disciples of, the flesh, and to not go against the Lord’s intent for our lives)

11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. 12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! (even those of us who are doing well on Monday may not find ourselves in the same place next week regarding our relationship with God. - But the urge here is to say that Paul doesn’t understand! That my situation is too hard, that no one can understand me, no one can relate to me; I suffer alone because my situation is too unique. But Paul goes on –)

13 No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. (whatever it is that you are struggling with, there are a bunch of people struggling with the same thing) And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. (so we can’t claim that we are a victim, that we cannot help ourselves. To say I have no choice, that I have to be like this, that I have to make this decision in my life, I had no choice) But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. (but when temptation comes, there is always a possibility to get out of that sin, and a way to continue to honor God in the decisions that we make)

14 Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. (Don’t eat too much. Don’t drink too much. Don’t have sexual sin… But how do are we suppose to do that? His response, simply, don’t go there – keep yourself away, run if you have to)

 

Now at first all of this seemed confusing. Aren’t all sins essentially equal? Sure, getting drunk is a sin, lying is a sin, arguing and grumbling against God is a sin, and sex before marriage or sex outside of marriage is a sin, just like pornography and perversion, so isn’t idolatry just another sin?

From what I’ve learned, I believe that Idolatry is not just any sin, but in fact the root of all sin. Martin Luther summarized the Ten Commandments (a) by noting the first two commandments are about idolatry, and all the rest follow. If you never broke the first two, you would never have problems with the other eight. The underlying cause of sins, like drinking or lying or obsession or addiction, is our idolatry to something that is not the Lord. It’s a matter of concentration. And Paul isn’t here condemning, he is merely forewarning of that in our lives that could and often will lead to other sins in our lives. Watching CNN is not a sin. What is a sin is letting that master us, the bulk of out time and energy, and losing our ability to do other things, like our homework or worshiping the Lord - the reason for which we are made. (Genesis 1:26-28, Romans 1)

That which we give our time, energy, money, love, our hopes, and our fears to, that becomes our God. The philosopher Peter Kreeft says, "The opposite of Christianity is not Atheism but Idolatry." That which takes our worship and adoration most poigniantly away from God is that which, in reality, has all of our love, adoration, worship. And those who call themselves atheists are not void of spirituality, as they claim. They devote themselves to science, they are people that worship their own mind, experience, and their own five senses. They devote themselves to rationalism, and by that make rationalism their God. (I often feel like atheists have more faith in their lives than I do, but that is beside the point)

My point is that we are all constantly in the act of worship, and constantly dedicating ourselves to something in our lives. The amazing resource that is TheResurgence.com defines idolatry as such, “worshiping something or someone other than the One True God of the Bible, or worshiping God in a way that is contrary to His Word.” (b) How many people in America worship their car? A band? Their religion, as opposed to their faith?

How many people (and Christians) find themselves to be overzealous, or so thirsty for justice that they will pursue evil, and openly condemn it, in any way they can, when the bible specifically tells us not to do just that! To not stir up dissention when we speak of God and represent His word (Proverbs 29:22), and to be a good witness of the Christ, Jesus, who did not come to condemn, but to lead, to love and to serve. (Mark 10:45)

Idolatry seems to be the over-pursuit of something that is good, and that later consumes us, and that is where we go awry. I once heard it said that the biggest difference between George Orwell and Aldous Huxley was that one said that our ultimate destiny was to be enslaved by that which we hate, while the other claimed our ultimate destiny is to be enslaved by that which we love. We love our family, our health, our car. Our knowledge, our boyfriend, our girlfriend, our job, our beauty, our style - and all of these things are good! But when we let those things master us, it is no longer permissible (1 Corinthians 6).

The pastor Mark Driscoll surmises the concept of having idols as this:

We each design ourselves a ‘little hell.’ Being poor, being ugly or fat, being unloved or alone or unappreciated. That fear of that hell then compels you to chose for yourself a false Savior-God, to save you from that hell, and then you worship that false Savior-God in an effort to save your from that self-described hell. For instance, many people are single, and for them hell is being single or unmarried, and their Savior becomes a spouse, or a boyfriend or girlfriend. And so they keep looking for someone to worship, to give themselves to so that person  can save them. Some are lonely, and their hell is loneliness, so they choose a person or a group of friends, and they worship that friend and would do anything for them, because they are their functional savior, and that is by definition Idolatry.

Much of this stems from our greatest fears. We all want success, we long for our knowledge to grow, or to never be alone, but we are scared of never being loved, to be misinformed, or to be a failure. And we need to ask ourselves what it is we run to when it all goes wrong. Do we run to food, or to alcohol. Do we run to sex or bury ourselves in work or a relationship, do we run to anger, violence, or despair. Idolatry turns out to be a very real and present danger in our pursuit of leading a good life, but we cannot serve God and Money (Matthew 6:24), or any other God that is not the One True God, creator and redeemer, Lord above all lords (who defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien by giving him food and clothing! - Deuteronomy 10).

So where should our priorities lie? It is clear that we cannot only devote ourselves to the Lord and expect to live a normal life, because that in itself would be enslaving ourselves in a way that prohibits us from functioning, and could be no different in our lives than being enslaved to any other sin. This is a bold statement, but we are not meant to live with one foot in the grave, we are to be mindful of the present day! Let me clarify.

Rob Bell describes people as being the compromise of Angels and Animals, the spiritual and the physical. He denotes this relationship in his book, Sex God (a book about the connections of sexuality and spirituality), in this way:

An Angel is a being with a spirit but without a body. When we deny the spiritual dimension to our existence, we end up living like animals. And when we deny the physical, sexual dimension to our existence, we end up living like angels. – And both ways are destructive, because God made us human… This is a primal struggle in all of us, and it goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden. The temptation was, and is, to trade our full humanity for something else.

Compare that to the passage in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6), where Jesus tells us to live for today and to, “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness,” and all the things we need (i.e. food, clothing) will be given to us as well. To seek first the Kingdom of Heaven, to give ourselves, our worship to the Lord, first, and live our lives by the standards and example of Christ; to abstain from idolatry, which leads to sin.

If and when we are able to seek the Kingdom first, the priorities in our lives will then start to align, and allow us to enjoy the created things here on earth in a healthy way, in a way we are meant to; one that does not include obsession. So where do my priorities lie?

What are we defining in ourselves? Hell is being fat. Hell is being poor. Hell is being stupid. Hell is not having enough free time. Hell is spending one more year at college. If I’m broke, I need money to be my savior. If pleasure is what I worship, I need pornography, or someone to date, and if I could just get out of that hell, I wouldn’t need to worship anything anymore. If I could just prioritize my life around this little hell, this discrepancy in my life, all my problems would go away, and I could be happy. We choose these idols, and we expect them to make us happy, to give us worth; a Savior to get us out, so we don’t have to live in this hell.

But I believe once that momentary hell has passed, it won’t be enough. When we worship an idol to meet the needs in our minds, we give our lives to worshiping something that will not satisfy. We are lonely, we find someone to date. We want a spouse, so we get married, and then that’s not enough, I need kids, a bigger house, a bigger tv. This isn’t a greed story, this is a success story, and it never ends within us.

John Calvin once said, “The human heart is an idol factory.” It takes that which is good - real estate, kids, sex, all good gifts that God gives - and perverts them into an obsession, and we get frustrated when they don’t continue to bless us, and don’t fulfill what we need them to do to save us from ourselves. The world operates at two extremes: There’s a hell, and we don’t want to be in it, and there’s a Savior, to rescue us from that hell, and all you need to do is devote yourself to that Savior, and you will be where you were meant to be all along.

Look to the media. You’re overweight? – we have a Savior, come join this diet, go to this gym, reach heaven. Devote yourself? – and you’ll be out of fat hell. Are you ugly? Well that’s ok, there’s a Savior in plastic surgery, a new wardrobe, and a heaven full of beautiful people. If you’re lonely, there’s a new website to save you from the pitiful hell you’re trapped in. Worship this Savior, give to that Savior, and your world will be a better place.

The problem is that Idolatry is not about grace. Idolatry is not about a Savior that loves you, serves you, or embraces you (not because of who you are, but in spite of who you are). It is a Savior that  doesn’t love you because you are good, but to make you good. Not because you are lovely, but to make you lovely. It does not follow a Gospel of grace, it is always searching for a way to make you better, smarter, skinnier, prettier, cooler, more loved than before, and if you could just reach that point, you could be saved, but you’ll never get there.

And the concept of religion is no different. It is not a religion that saves us, it is a God that saves us, who loves us through the example and sacrifice of His Son, and the enablement of the Holy Spirit. Religion tells us if we are just better, if we can just put in a few more hours, give a little more money, we’re in right standings with God, and our sins are clean, but God is not a God of deeds alone, He is a Lord of the heart. Religion can be a means, but it is never an end. It is the posture of our hearts and the meditations of our minds, and thereafter our actions and words that prove us before the loving Father. If you say you love the Father, but you are continually living in sin, than you are turning your back on the one you say you love. The word of God calls this the unforgivable sin, to have a full knowledge of sin, and to go deliberately against that truth (Hebrews 10:26-27, in the gospels – on many accounts, this is referred to as blaspheming the Holy Spirit, recognizing the Word of God, and choosing to disobey with full knowledge of our actions).

Clearly this state of living in constant sin carries a heavy cost, so how is this addressed? The way I see it sin is like bad fruit on a tree. And we could easily just pick that fruit, remove that idol or addiction from our life and just try to move on, but as long as that root of idolatry that leads to sin remains, we can never be free of that one obsession. That one overpowering desire that keeps us in our little hell. There’s nothing wrong with having kids one day, with having a drink, with working hard at your job, with participating in a religion. But we need to realize, as Paul says, that we are ignorant and that our hearts automatically lean towards idolatry and addiction. Luther calls this "the default mode for the human heart." i.e. My idol is free time, that’s why I never go to class. My idol is marriage, that’s why I keep dating losers. We can look at our lives and see a default pattern in them.

Our only solution is to break free of our idols, to cast them to the fire (like the golden calf in Exodus 32), and most importantly, not substitute them with a different idol! How often does a Christian look down on someone who gets drunk, because they once struggled with that same sin, but now they have saved themselves; that once were overweight, but now make fat jokes, because they had the dedication to go to the gym, and this person does not. Their idol may have been destroyed, but it has been replaced by their own self-worship of their accomplishments. This is why we seek first the Kingdom of God, and give it all up to Him who brought us to where we are today.

People who seek to be saved by their idolatry or their own works cannot succeed, because in the end all they are left with is pride, or depression – possibly even to the extent of being suicidal because they just can’t do it alone. The good news in all of this, is that we are not saved by ourselves, but by Jesus; by his works, his sinless life, his sacrificial death, and bodily resurrection. Our salvation comes through him, and luckily not by our own works, because they will never be good enough. Salvation does not come by a substitutional God, but by the creator God. He saves us from sin and from ourselves, by taking our place in a way we never could, bridging the divide created by sin that keeps us from reaching the one true heaven when we leave this earth.

Ultimately, we must replace our idols with the creator God, and rejoice in worship. Because if we are not praising God, we will worship that band we love, that knowledge we desire, that friendship we so long have craved for despite it all, because it is our default. Seek first the Kingdom, and we can rightly pursue a life in peace with God. I can have a drink without a need to get drunk, because I don’t worship alcohol, and it doesn’t rule over me, I rule over it.

I don’t need a friend’s approval, because I have my foundation in Jesus, and I can love and respect my friends, but I don’t have to elevate them to the level of Gods, and seek their approval that I am doing the right thing. I can live life with only one God, one who loves me and wants to spend time with me, and allow me to live life at its full extent, not worrying about self-defined hells. I can let the creator God be the creator, the Savior Jesus be my Savior and example, let the Holy Spirit facilitate my guidance through God’s word, and most importantly just let life be life, and an opportunity by which to appreciate the things within it.  We are all spiritual people; we are all worshipers. The question is not, "do I give my self to a Savior," but "which Savior I will devote my time, passion, and talents to" - and it is that Savior which will attest to whether you live in happiness, or despair.

Peace be with you, and thank you for reading.

Danny

 

Notes:

a. The Small Catechism, by Martin Luther   (http://www.bookofconcord.org/smallcatechism.php)

b. http://www.theresurgence.com/worship_spiritual_disciplines

c. It’s worth noting that most of my language and guidance on and in this passage was directly influenced by the works of Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Bible Church, in Seattle, Washington, and also by Mark Balmer of Calvary Chapel Melbourne, in Melbourne, Florida. This work is not all my own, but a reflection of God’s words and the works by the stewards of His teachings.

d. If you would like to talk to me about anything, in this note or not, please shoot me a message or comment below.