THE IDENTITY OF JESUS

      During the past century a multitude of books has been published which attempt to tell us who Jesus was (is!) and what His role has been in human history. Each book has presented someone's own understanding, according to how he has interpreted available information. Preconceived ideas and philosophical bias usually factor into the process.  Often the view of Jesus is little more than speculation, which in many cases becomes rather bizarre.  In this article I would like to let Jesus Himself identify His nature, His position, and His role with respect to people. He does this with economy of words in Rev. 1:17-18, when He revealed Himself to John.

      "I am the first and the last, and the living One. And I was dead, and behold, I am alive forever more. And I have the keys of death and of Hades."

      In this statement Jesus identifies Himself to us in terms of four aspects of His divine nature and transcendental powers. First, He says, I am the first and the last.  This declares that He is an eternal Being. He was first because there was no one before Him. This is the same assertion with which the Fourth Gospel opens: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God," (Jno. 1:1-2). As the past of Jesus is eternal, His future is also eternal. When this earth and universe have been annihilated, never more to be, Jesus will still be fully existent in heaven, a glorious dimension beyond time, space, and matter.

      Second, Jesus identifies Himself as the living One. As the eternal One Jesus is also the essence of life. He possesses to the fullest all the functions of life: consciousness, energy, personality, power. We are told in Jno. 5:26 that "just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself." Before there were angels and people on earth, Jesus lived in heaven with the Father. In fact, we humans are alive and have being only because Jesus, the Source of life, gave that gift to us. In Jno. 1:3 we are assured that "all things came into being by Him; and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being."

      Third, Jesus identifies Himself as the One who was dead, and behold, I am alive forever more. This refers to Jesus' time on earth in human form, in which He was crucified, buried in a tomb, and then raised to live again. This historical FACT! is the centerpoint of the Gospel, emphasized over and over throughout the New Testament. It is the foundation of Christian faith that Jesus of Nazareth was in reality the Son of God from heaven, to which He returned after His resurrection. This was Peter's proclamation in his sermon before Jews assembled for Pentecost in Acts 2:23-24, "[This Jesus], delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. And God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power."

      Fourth, Jesus identifies Himself as the One who has the keys of death and Hades. Hades refers to the state of confinement of the souls of the dead between death and the resurrection. When Jesus died, His soul also went to Hades and spent three days until He was resurrected. In that great triumph He was granted absolute power over death and Hades. At the time of God's choosing, Jesus will use the keys given Him to unlock the gate of Hades and release all souls held there. This is the subject of a major scene in Rev. 20:11-15. There in v.13 it says, "And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them. And they were judged every one of them according to their deeds."

      My friends, this is the presentation of who Jesus is and what He does in which I put my faith. Any which does not accord with it I dismiss as the product of fallible human construction unworthy of serious consideration.

   

THE IMPORTANCE OF SELF-DENIAL

Jno. 5:30 ... "I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me."

      When God created man and set him on earth to inhabit it, he did not make man to be a robot programmed to do what God intended. Rather, God endowed man with a mind capable of making moral decisions. He even allowed man the capacity to choose whether he would acknowledge his Creator and pay any attention to the advice and instructions He gave him. His first directions to Adam and Eve were: "From any tree of the Garden you may freely eat; but from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat, for in the day you eat from it you shall surely die," (Gen. 2:16-17). God gave them license to enjoy the fruit from every tree in Eden except one, which He explicitly commanded them to leave alone. Nevertheless, He allowed them to exercise their own will when Satan tempted them to partake of that very tree. When they chose to take fruit from it and eat, God did not intervene. He could easily have come between that couple and the beguiling serpent to prevent what was about to occur, but He refrained. Knowing what the catastrophic consequences of their bad decision would be, God nevertheless withheld His power and watched as they exercised their freedom of choice.

      If a person had not the liberty to choose evil, his worship of God and service to Him would be devoid of meaning and honor. Religion can begin only when a person chooses to deny his own will and submit the direction of his life to God. As long as one vacillates between pleasing himself and trying to please God, he is not yet ready to profess religion. And whatever religion he does profess in that state of vacillation is offensive to God and laced with hypocrisy. Jesus made this very plain in Mt. 16:24, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." The most prevalent and also the most serious fault of Christians is the reluctance to submit EVERY part of their lives to the will of God.  Nearly everyone reserves some area of his life to himself, and will not let Christ enter into it. Our most fervent prayer should be that the Lord would show us these restricted areas before He takes full possession of our existence in death and condemns us for our failure to submit totally.

      Jesus lived on earth as the Representative Man unto God. His life is now our model, both in attitude and behavior. Thus we are instructed to "let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus," (Php. 2:5). Jesus' attitude is that which we are to develop within us. In I Pet. 2:21 we are told that Jesus "suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps." Therefore, His manner of conduct is the one we must follow in our daily behavior. The lead text (above), Jno. 5:30, reveals the essence of Jesus' attitude and behavior; He denied His own will in order to obey the will of His Father. Many might think, "Well, Jesus could not have done anything else but subject His will in the path predetermined for Him." But this is far from the truth! Jesus could have denied God and sought His own glory anytime He wished. The devil knew this and therefore exerted every effort he could to persuade Jesus to sin, (Mt. 4:1-11). Had Satan succeeded, even for a second, to influence Jesus to think and act on His own and without reference to God, he would have destroyed Jesus.

      The challenge of every person is to learn to deny his own will and submit his life in every respect to God through Christ. The extent to which we exercise our freedom to choose to yield decisions to God's direction is the same extent to which we gain God's approval and favor. The extent to which we claim the right to go on thinking and acting as we wish is the same extent to which we risk the eternal ruin of our souls. Faith is the key to success in this great struggle, for it convinces us that God's choices are best for us. Those who demand their selfish right to make their own decisions without reference to God are saying that their wisdom is greater than His.

FULFILLING OUR REASON FOR EXISTENCE

Jno. 4:23 ... "An hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers."

      These words of Jesus, spoken to a woman at a well in Samaria, are well known to Christians, having been quoted in numberless lessons in which great emphasis was placed upon the requirement that our worship be "in spirit and in truth."  This emphasis was well placed, for we know not how to worship acceptably unless God tells us.  Worship performed without the full engagement of one's mind, or spirit, is vain and will be rejected by the Father.  And worship conducted without divine instruction, being designed rather to satisfy human desire, is likewise vain and unacceptable to God. In Mt. 15:9 in this regard Jesus declared, "But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as their doctrines the precepts of men."  In our efforts, however, to maintain the correct manner and motivation to worship, it may be we have neglected what our Lord said in the latter part of this verse. Therefore, in this brief exposition it is my object to draw attention to the essential message in the text above.

      Notice Jesus' declaration that "the Father seeks (us) to be His worshipers."  It is a thing of major importance to God that all people worship Him.  In Psa. 100:3 we are told to "know that the Lord Himself is God, it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture."  This Scripture reveals many points of truth that are disregarded, and even denied, by perhaps the majority of people of the present generation.  It first proclaims that God's existence is a reality, not a question for debate or speculation.  "Know that the Lord Himself is God."  Second, it declares that human existence is the result of God's creative act, and not of some mindless force in nature, and especially not of human ingenuity.  Third, it states that man is God's possession, since we are His handiwork.  And fourth, this verse affirms that the earth is "His pasture," that is, it belongs to God who made it.  So we see that there is, above all, a self-existent God who created man by His own will, who therefore owns man, and who also owns the very world upon which man lives.  

      No one knows why God created us, for in His revelation to us He never gives a fully developed explanation.  But there are statements which seem to show something of God's purpose, and Jno. 4:23 is one of them.  God made man to worship Him.  He created us as intelligent beings with souls reflecting His image, so that we would be able to offer Him meaningful worship "in spirit and truth." When we make that response, we are fulfilling our reason for existence.  A person is therefore at his best when he/she engages in worship to his Creator and Master.

      How pathetic it is when people decide not to take God's existence seriously, or worse, to deny that He who made us is real.  How blind is the creature who does not believe in the One who created him, thus rejecting his Master's ownership of him!  And how presumptuous is man-the-tenant who claims ownership of the land that, in fact, is the property of its Creator, God!  And how unresponsive and ungrateful is the person who disregards the desire of his Maker that he worship Him!  How can a person enjoy life and health that are given him by God, and daily use the earth and its fruits to enrich his life, and yet feel no inward compulsion to worship God?  In effect, this callous mentality amounts to tempting God, and Jesus said in Mt. 4:7, "You shall not tempt the Lord your God."  In conclusion, I implore everyone who reads this presentation and does not worship to awaken from complacency and begin to fulfill the express wish of God to worship Him.  Please make that response while He still shows you mercy in continuing to grant you the blessings of life, health, and opportunity.

BORN OF WATER AND THE SPIRIT

Jno. 3:5 ... "Jesus answered, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.'"

      The "kingdom of God," as the name indicates, is the kingdom that belongs to God.  He is the King, or monarch, over it.  His word is its law.  Those who are privileged to enter into this kingdom to be citizens of it do not own it, do not share in its government, and are absolutely subject to its law. Furthermore, it is not their prerogative to determine by what means they may enter into it.  God, as the Designer and Builder, alone decides how people may enter to enjoy citizenship.  It is the ultimate of the sin of presumption for people to act as though they own some part of God's kingdom and try to dominate its affairs by their own power, and to redesign its constitution to suit themselves. Nevertheless, the history of Christianity is a long, complicated affair of men who have intruded into God's domain to do these things.

      And so today, within the broad sphere of churches nominally Christian, there is a babel of confusion about the means of entry into the kingdom of God.  But in the test above Jesus simply tells us what God has determined.  It is important to note, moreover, that in spite of all human conceptions and zealous debates to defend them, no one enters the kingdom of God in a way different from what Jesus here specifies.  The word "cannot" is specific and absolute when He declares, "Except a man ... he cannot enter the kingdom of God."  One might indeed enter some church of human origin by subscribing to a human methodology, but he will not also enter into the kingdom of God.

      Jesus sets two requirements that one must meet in order to enter.  First, he must be born of water.  Second, he must be born of the Spirit.  These seem like simple provisions, and indeed they are.  Nevertheless, many have tried to complicate them in order to establish something other of human origin.  For example, it is argued that being "born of water" refers to one's physical birth and being "born of the Spirit" refers to one's spiritual birth.  This view, however, interprets Jesus to say that one must experience natural childbirth in order to move toward entry into the kingdom.  Since no one would be alive to consider entering His kingdom had he not been physically born, obviously this view is illogical.  One suspects that it is rather an attempt to dodge the true meaning of the phrase, "born of water."  

      In Acts 2 we are told that on Pentecost the apostles "were all filled with the Holy Spirit ," (v.4). This had been promised by Jesus, who said that the Spirit would "guide you (the apostles) into all truth," (Jno. 16:13).  So when Peter spoke on that day, his message was the truth from the Spirit.  By that message he convicted his audience of sin and generated within them faith in the Lord whom they had crucified.  When they cried, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?," Peter, still guided by the Holy Spirit, answered, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit," (Acts 2:37-38).  Then we read in v.41, "They that gladly received his word were baptized, and the same day there were added unto them about 3000 souls."  The events of Acts 2 explain the words in Jno. 3:5.  Through the gospel, which the Spirit communicated to man, the Spirit produces faith within the individual, and induces him to undertake a new course of life with a new allegiance.  This is the birth of the Spirit.  Then, still through the gospel, the individual subjects himself to baptism "for the remission of sins."  This is the birth of water.  Having accomplished these two essential things, the Lord opens the door of His kingdom for that person to enter.

Destroy This Temple

Jno. 2:19 ... "Jesus answered and said to them, 'Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.'"

      Jesus made this statement in the Temple in Jerusalem on the first Passover after He had begun His earthly ministry.  Upon entering the Temple compound He was filled with indignation at "those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money seated," (v.14).  These were people who had commercialized the sacrifice of animals prescribed by the Law of Moses.  Along with them were men who exchanged foreign currency for Jewish coin, capitalizing on a law that required sacrificial animals to be purchased only with Jewish money.  Of course, they also imposed a hefty fee for making this exchange, thus exploiting the pilgrims from distant lands who had come to worship.  After Jesus watched all this for a short time, He "made a scourge of cords and drove them all out of the Temple ... and poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables," (v.15).  

      This action had a considerable impact upon the priests, who had authority over everything that went on in the Temple.  They permitted and supported these people who were making "My Father's house a house of merchandise," as Jesus exclaimed in v.16. They even maintained a police force within the Temple precincts to enforce their control, (Jno. 7:32,45-46).  Evidently, however, Jesus' work of clearing out this mess was so sudden that these officers did not have time to intervene. When the priests saw what had happened, they immediately came to Jesus to determine by what authority He had acted.  It says in v.18 that "the Jews ... said to Him, 'What sign do You show us, seeing that You do these things?'"  It was in reply to this challenge that Jesus said, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

      The priests did not comprehend what Jesus meant by this.  They assumed He was referring to the great edifice in which they were standing, for they replied with contempt, "It took 46 years to build this Temple, and will you raise it up in three days?" (v.20).  They interpreted Jesus' statement as some kind of threat against the Temple, and three years later used this construction against Him in the trial in which they sentenced Him to death.  But the apostle John carefully points out that Jesus "was speaking of the Temple of His body," (v.21). The Bible occasionally refers to the human body as the "temple" of the soul, and that is the sense employed here by Jesus. In essence, He was telling His interrogators that He would for sure give them a "sign" (or proof) of His authority for clearing out the Temple, as well as for everything else He said or did.  He challenged them to destroy His body, knowing they would crucify Him before long anyway.  Then He said He would "raise it up in three days."

      The authority of Jesus is still a burning issue after some 2000 years.  In the New Testament He teaches a unique doctrine and then commands us to adapt our lives to it.  Moreover, He models that doctrine in His own life and then tells us to "follow Me." When people now read the New Testament, or listen as faithful Christians teach it, they want to know, "By what authority does this Jewish zealot and visionary make these demands of us, and what proof can He give of that authority?" The answer continues the same from the day Jesus first spoke these words.  His authority is from heaven, and the proof is His resurrection from death after His enemies had crucified Him.  There is nothing further to be said about it. If people will not accept this proof and be convinced by it to submit their lives to Jesus' authority as laid out in the Gospel, there is no hope for them.  They will die and be lost.  Our pathway to eternal salvation begins with faith in Jesus' resurrection and submission to His authority.

The Word Becomes Flesh

Jno. 1:14 ... "And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."

      The first fourteen verses of the Gospel according to John are the prologue to this account of Jesus, which is different in so many ways from those of Matthew, Mark and Luke.  They also constitute one of the major Christological passages in the New Testament.  Since volumes have been written to discuss the meaning and significance of what these verses reveal about Jesus, I confess that is rather presumptive of me to devote this brief article to such a vast subject.  If I can succeed, however, in focusing the reader's attention for a few minutes upon the central Figure of mankind and the only hope for our future, then my feeble effort is worth it.

      The text quoted above declares the fact of the incarnation, the descent of God to earth to enter into human flesh and dwell among us as a Man.  That this would happen was prophesied centuries earlier in Isa. 7:14, "Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name IMMANUEL."  In Matthew's account of Jesus' birth, (i.e., His incarnation), he quotes Isaiah's prophecy and explains to us that "Immanuel" means "God with us."  It is an astounding fact to the sensitive mind that God would choose to humble Himself to the human plane of existence and submit His presence and activities to the limitations of our physical condition.  If anything should cause our hearts to overflow with gratitude and thanksgiving to the Father, it should be the consideration of Jesus' assumption of the human state to share life with us in all its varied situations.

      John, an eyewitness of Jesus' human experience, emphasizes here that he and his companions were privileged to behold in Jesus "the glory of the only begotten of the Father."  It is difficult, if not impossible, to explain the full meaning and significance of the word "glory," but to say that it refers to "the sum total of God's perfections" may be a working definition.  The divine glory was constantly manifested to select men in the Bible as a brilliantly radiant, utterly beautiful light.  John, along with Peter and James, were honored to behold that glory when Jesus was transfigured before them one day on a mountaintop.  On that occasion "His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was as white as the light."  In the initial text above, John may be ultimately referring to this experience when he declares, "and we beheld His glory."  As a member of the Holy Trinity Jesus was endowed with glory which He left in heaven on His journey here to earth.  But on the remarkable occasion in Mat. 17:1-8 He was transformed back into it briefly before the awestruck eyes of His three disciples.

      Two other manifestations of Jesus' glory, though not beheld as a radiant light, were nonetheless wonderful.  John says that Jesus was filled with "grace and truth."  Grace refers to everything God gives us, although here the emphasis is upon His gift of salvation which we receive at Christ's expense.  Jesus did what no one else could.  He assumed the collective sins of every human and paid the price of death for their absolution.  What greater gift could God give us than release from the death penalty for sin and the promise of eternal life in heaven?

      Truth refers to the reality of spiritual existence which we can know only by means of revelation. Our perception is limited to the physical world, but Jesus taught us accurately about what exists in the spiritual world and what relation it sustains to us.  Others, who were of course inspired by God, revealed small bits of information about that other sphere of existence.  But the fullest picture we shall ever receive in this life is the truth which was revealed by Jesus when He was here among us.

ACCEPTING THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS

Luk. 24:11 ... "These words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe them."

      Previous to his arrest, trial, and crucifixion Jesus had, on more than one occasion, announced to the apostles that these dreadful things were going to occur.  For example, many months beforehand Jesus told them, "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things which are written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished.  For He will be delivered up to the Gentiles, and will be mocked and mistreated and spit upon; and after they have scourged Him, they will kill Him.  And the third day He will rise again," (Luk. 18:31-33).  One would think that after three years of close association with Jesus these chosen men would have gained some skill in perceiving the meaning of Jesus' words.  But it was not so with respect to these amazing words.  They evidently thought this announcement contained some cryptic message totally different from the plain, surface meaning of the words.  For one thing, they did not expect He would be abused and executed by the Jewish hierarchy.  As He traveled incognito with two of His disciples just after He had risen, one of them said to Him, "We were hoping that it was He (Jesus) who was going to redeem Israel," (Luk. 24:21).  In other words, they had not expected Jesus to be killed and fail to restore Israel to freedom and political power.

      It was the other part of His prediction, however, that must have been most perplexing to them.  The declaration that on the third day of His death He would rise from the grave with renewed life was incomprehensible to them.  Either this announcement was a coded message that meant something other than it appeared, or it was so strange and extraordinary that it just slipped right through their memory.  So when certain women visited His tomb that Sunday morning, only to find it empty except for angels who proclaimed His resurrection, the apostles found it impossible to believe their report.  The lead text above reveals their conclusion upon hearing the women's testimony.

      Rather than scorn the apostles for reacting with doubt to the reports of Jesus' resurrection, we should rather be thankful for our own sake that they did.  Antagonists of Christ and Christianity have always claimed that the resurrection was a hoax designed to lend credence to the claim of Jesus' divinity as well as to counteract the embarrassment and shame of His ignominious death.  But the reports of these men's reluctance to accept the testimony of Jesus' resurrection is one of several authentications of that marvelous event.  One would expect them eagerly to have grasped the reports to dispel their grief and assure them that their three-year investment of work, sacrifice, and hope in His ministry had not been in vain.  It is remarkable that they were so resistant and slow to accept what other reliable witnesses were declaring was fact.

      Everyone must reach his own conclusion about the reality of Jesus' resurrection, for Christianity has no power without the faith that it did occur.  We are told that "if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins," (I Cor. 15:16-17).  Because of this categorical statement, and others in the New Testament like it, it has been said that Jesus' resurrection is the center point of Christianity.  Accepting it as truth clears the way for the forgiveness of sins.  Rejecting it dooms one to go on his way in life under the weight of accumulating sin which in the end will cause that soul to be lost.  Christianity begins for an individual only when he is persuaded that Jesus did rise from the dead, and the attitude and behavior of the apostles are strong testimony to the reality of that awesome event.

PRAYING FOR ENEMIES

Luk. 23:34 ... "But Jesus was saying, 'Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are 

doing.'  And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves."

      As Jesus was addressing the crowds in the Temple, He made this statement regarding the religious leaders, "Therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things, and do not do them," (Mat. 23:3).  To a degree this can be said of any human teacher.  Because we all are fallible, at least a part of what we do involves sin due to bad judgment, making that part of our conduct no model for anyone to copy.  Jesus has been the only teacher in the world who could say, "Do as I say and as I do!"  For only He was perfect both in His teaching and in the personal performance thereof.

      Of the many things Jesus taught prior to the crucifixion, one was this:  "Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you; bless those who curse you; pray for those who mistreat you," (Luk. 6:27-28).  He also taught us to "forgive, if you have anything against anyone," (Mrk. 11:25).  When Jesus hung on the cross, He was there because people were malicious and vicious toward Him.  They hated Him, and for a long time had planned to destroy Him.  The way they treated Him when they arrested, tried, and executed Him literally defines the ultimate meaning of the phrase, "despitefully use you and persecute you," (Mat. 5:44 KJV).  While He suffered the dreadful pain of the crucifixion, He was cursed by onlookers, (Mat. 27:39-44), as well as even one of the malefactors being crucified beside Him, (Luk. 23:39).

      Through excruciating agony Jesus looked back at His tormentors and faithfully practiced what He Himself had taught.  He interceded for them with a prayer, "Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."  What He meant was, they did not realize the full significance of what they were doing.  They did not know enough to perceive their deeds to be sin; hence Jesus' prayer for their pardon.  What they failed to see was that they had delivered themselves into Satan's hands to serve as his tools in the supremely evil scheme to destroy the Son of God.  God answered His Son's prayer in Acts 2 when at least some of these people repented after hearing Peter's sermon and submitted to baptism for the remission of their sins.  The very blood which they caused to be shed on Calvary washed away the sin of their deed in the water of baptism on Pentecost.

      One of the most difficult challenges we face is following Jesus in this respect.  Not infrequently we are offended by people who abuse us because we are Christians, making us the direct objects of their malice and viciousness.  In our human weakness we are strongly tempted to respond in kind, or perhaps add a little extra in retaliation for good measure.  Then we try to defend and rationalize our action with long, intricate explanations.  This must greatly sadden the Father and Son in heaven as they look down upon us.  Jesus wants us to listen carefully to what He taught about forgiving our adversaries and defeating the temptation to lash back against them.  Furthermore, He wants us to observe how He adhered in practice to His own instruction as He was suffering persecution far greater than we ever will.  When we are influenced by His word and conduct to return good for evil, to forgive opponents that are hard and cruel, and to pray for them, then Jesus is surely moved with pleasure and satisfaction in heaven.  If we follow the right course, He will cause bad situations to improve in the course of time.  Provocation will not last forever, and those who provoke can be transformed into friends and sometimes even into brethren in the Lord.  When a storm of trouble breaks over us, we should look toward the sunshine afterward.  To act foolishly in times of trouble will only increase the severity of the storm and prolong it.

THE STRUGGLE AGAINST TEMPTATION

Luk. 22:40 ... "When He arrived at the place, He said to them, 'Pray that you may not enter into temptation.'"

      Temptation is the inducement to commit sin.  The origin and progress of temptation is explained as follows: "Each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.  Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death," (Jas. 1:14-15).  This tells us that temptation begins with lust and climaxes in sin, which results in death.  We can, therefore, think of it as a road which starts at LUST and ends at DEATH ... for the soul that chooses to travel it.  Lust is the desire for something God has forbidden us to do or to have.  To be "enticed" is to be offered an opportunity to fulfill the desire with encouragement to go for it.  Sin occurs when a person responds to the enticement and acts to fulfill the desire.  Death primarily means separation.  Physical death is separation of the soul from the body.  Spiritual death is separation of the soul from God for all eternity, and therefore from His grace and goodness.

      Yielding to temptation by sinning brings nothing better than a brief season of pleasure, (Heb. 11: 25).  It is a pathetic, wretched reward in comparison to its real outcome, eternal death.  Therefore, one should avoid temptation at all costs.  The Bible tells us various ways to do this, one of the most often mentioned is TO FLEE.  Thus are we urged in II Tim. 2:22 to "flee youthful lusts" and in I Cor. 10:14 to "flee immorality."  After referring to "many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge men (i.e., people) into ruin and destruction," Christians are exhorted to "flee from these things," (I Tim. 6:9, 11).  There is no point in going up against temptation when it is possible to avoid it, because those who play with fire will eventually get burned.  The most effective defense against temptation is obviously to diminish the desire for whatever is forbidden, since temptation is only possible when a person wants what God disallows.

      It is important to realize, however, that confronting temptation is a very challenging and arduous task.  It is not easy to curb a forbidden desire that is growing within you.  In fact, you might not even recognize its nature or power until it is far advanced.  And once it is there, struggling to be fulfilled, Satan comes upon the scene to lend the strength of his persuasion.  Just nine verses previous to the lead text above, Jesus said to Peter, "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat."  Satan is never far from anyone, ready to sift him like wheat and entice him to fulfill the forbidden urges.  This is why Jesus said to "pray that you may not enter into temptation."  Active prayer enhances all the other defense mechanisms against temptation that are offered in Scripture.

      When you begin to realize you are entertaining the urge to do something forbidden by God, take the matter to Him immediately in prayer!  Through His Spirit He will help you overcome that desire and put out its flame.  When you are enticed to satisfy a lust, pray to God about it quickly and fully!  He has the power to hold Satan away from you so that you cannot be coerced to fall.  The Bible teaches us to watch alertly for the approach of temptation.  All too often, however, our attention span is so short, and our spiritual vision so myopic, we do not see temptation until it is already ensnaring us.  But DAILY prayer (sincere and not ritual!) will increase your attention span and extend the range of your vision, thus enabling you to take evasive action while the temptation is yet at a distance.  We are also assured that "with the temptation (God) will provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it," (I Cor. 10:13).  But can we take that escape route, if we don't see it?  Just be assured that God will make it evident to you, and then you will see how to escape.

  

PREPARING FOR THE FINAL DAY

      Christians are constantly warned in the New Testament to conduct their lives with a view toward a very specific day in the future.  In this text, spoken by Jesus in the temple a day or two before His crucifixion, He referred to it rather ominously as "that day."  In Mat. 24:36 we are told that no one, except God the Father, knows when that day will be.  But Paul declares in Acts 17:31 that its time has already been fixed in God's mind.  Each day we all move one day closer to that unique day, unique because it is the last day of the existence of the universe.  Scientists theorize that the universe began with a "big bang."  Whether or not that is true, we are assured it will end with a "big bang."  It is written that "the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat," (II Pet. 3:10).  Personally, I am not so concerned about whether the universe began with a bang as I am about being prepared for its certain termination with a big bang.

      The preparation of His disciples for that cataclysmic day is the focus of Jesus' concern in Luk. 21:34.  He has told us it is certain and has also shown us something of the decisive events that will occur therein.  Thus we know it is not only the day when the universe will be destroyed, but the time when Jesus' disciples will forever be separated from those people who will be consigned eternally to a prison of darkness and torment.  Jesus wants us to prepare for that day by becoming His disciples and remaining loyal in  that relationship.  This unceasing loyalty, however, requires concentrated effort, indicated by the warning to "be on guard."  Day by day there are things and conditions that tempt us to come to them for indulgence, drawing our attention away from our commitment to be disciples of Christ and also away from the relentless flow of time toward the appointed day when it all comes to an end.

      Jesus singles out three such distractions, which may be something more of categories than specific entities.  First, He calls attention to being weighed down with dissipation.  This refers to overindulgence in activities that produce physical pleasure.  It is evident that worldly values center on the aim of enjoying life physically as much as possible day after day.  One's life can easily become devoted to pursuing pleasure to the extent that nothing else matters.  Any talk of controlling physical indulgence so that the soul can be conditioned for God's purposes seems folly.  The interpretation of life as indulgence in pleasure is manifestly the prevailing view in our present world.

      Second, Jesus emphasizes the allurement of drunkenness.  The primary reference is clearly to alcohol.  This is specific, but its magnitude is such that it alone will sidetrack countless multitudes from preparation for the final day.  Intoxicating drink has been, and probably always will be, the destruction of untold millions of lives physically, domestically, socially, and spiritually.  It is likely that Jesus also includes in this warning other chemical substances which have the same, or worse, numbing effect upon one's spiritual conscience.

      Third, Jesus points out the danger of the worries of life.  There is a burden of work to be done continually to carry on civilization, and people must train themselves and exercise their skills to accomplish it.  Jesus knows this and approves the Christian's participation in it.  His warning, however,  is directed against making this involvement the sum total of our ambition and energy.

BECOMING LIKE ANGELS

Luk. 20:36 ... "Neither can they die any more, for they are like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection."

      It was the week of Jesus' earthly ministry, and He was filling each day with the important work of teaching the great crowds which came to the temple to worship.  The common people listened with wonder and admiration to His lessons, but those of the religious elite were envious and hostile.  It is reported that "they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, in order that they might catch Him in some statement to deliver Him up to the rule and the authority of the governor," (v.20).  At times they also challenged Jesus to debate on issues they had carefully planned to become snares to Him.  One of these concerned the Mosaic doctrine of levirate marriage.  If a man died with no son, it became his brother's duty to take the widow as his wife and have a son by her in the name of his dead brother.  The Sadducees contrived a case where a woman was wife to seven brothers consecutively without having a child by any of them.  They wanted Jesus to tell them which of these men would be the woman's husband "in the resurrection."  These men were filled with insincerity and sarcasm, for Sadducees denied there was to be a resurrection.  In His reply, Jesus referred to Exo. 3:6 to show that the resurrection will be a reality.  Then He made the statement in Luk. 20:36.

      Jesus' words reveal the true nature of the condition of the people who are admitted to dwell in heaven after the Judgment.  First, He says, "Neither can they die any more."  Death is a traumatic event for us.  Even when the deceased has lived a righteous, God-fearing life in Christ, his/her departure fills those left behind with deep sorrow and grief, which indicate the love that bonded them.  One of the sublime benefits of residence in heaven is that "there shall no longer be any death; there shall no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain," (Rev. 21:4).  The happiness of heaven will suffer no pause from the death of one of its inhabitants.  No funeral procession will mournfully pass its streets.  

      Second, Jesus says that those who enter heaven "are like angels."  In this world, even as God's redeemed, we are inferior in status to angels.  The ancient psalmist wrote, "What is man, that You take thought of him? ... You have made him a little lower than angels," (Psa. 8:4-5).  But when a person is received into heaven, he is elevated in status to that of angels, a grand honor for those who have struggled in the flesh in the sin of this earthly domain.  Angels evidently have no gender and therefore no need for the marriage union, since Jesus said that they "neither marry nor are given in marriage."

      Third, Jesus said that those who enter heaven "are sons of God."  Because in this world Christians are already sons of God, this must refer to an advancement or perfection in their relationship with God.  If we are the children of God there, then God is our Father.  So, here we see an ideal family scene presided over by a perfect Father who always provides the best for His children.

      Fourth, Jesus says that people in heaven are "sons of the resurrection."  In the New Testament a Christian who has died is spoken of as being "asleep in Jesus," (I Ths. 4:14).  Like all other people, Christians must also die, but their status in death is very different from those who are not in the Lord.  When Jesus returns at the end, "the dead in Christ shall rise first ... and thus we shall always be with the Lord," (I Ths. 4:16-17).  In that remarkable event we will exchange our corruptible human bodies for ones that are new and spiritual, (I Ths. 15:50-53).

BLOG INTERMISSION: OVERVIEW

    

      The New Testament has 260 chapters.  Posting an article that highlights a passage in each chapter means that this project will require 260 articles, if it is continued to the end.  At this point, from the beginning last September, I have posted 65 articles.  Each chapter from Matthew 1 through Luke 21 has been featured.  The progression through the New Testament is now at the one-fourth point.  Before proceeding further, I think it good to pause briefly and make a few pertinent observations.

      I have been pleased that so many people in so many places have read the articles.  Outside the United States there have been readers in eleven other countries, especially France and Russia.  I am somewhat astonished that I can share knowledge of the Bible and its inspired message with people whom I do not know and probably never will.  Through this medium I hope a connection has been made that will yield eternal benefits.  The connection is a common knowledge of divine revelation; the eternal benefits, I hope, will be eternal life, since God's word is the word of life.

      Some of my readers are, however, quite known to me.  They are my Facebook friends, people whom I personally know.  A few of you I have had the honor to teach face-to-face in Bible classes in church.  It is my hope and prayer that these articles are meaningful and encouraging to you.  I am trying to write them in such a way as to open up and bring into the light the message in each text that is featured.  Also, I fervently hope that the "spirit" contained in any Scripture passage will enter into the heart of each reader and bring a measure of the encouragement needed to face the vicissitudes of life.  I write and publish these articles for the good of the reader, not for any self-oriented benefit.

      I must admit some disappointment that a great many of my Facebook friends are not reading the articles.  Perhaps you do not see Facebook as a place for teaching/learning, but rather a place for sharing your personal experiences (in vivid photos) with all who care to view them.  Each person may, of course, use Facebook for what he/she wants it to be.  It is the greatest avenue for free speech and self expression I know.  But, friends, each of my articles take only 3-4 minutes to read.  In the trip down your News Feed, surely you can pause that long to read something that might draw your attention briefly toward God and remind you of His desire for your attention.  God is always ready to bless you and waits for you to give Him the opportunity.  It is my fervent desire that in reading one of these articles you give your Heavenly Father that opportunity.  SOLI DEO GLORIA.

HANGING ON JESUS' WORDS

Luk. 19:48 ... "All the people were hanging upon His words."

      After a ministry that lasted about three years, Jesus made the journey to Jerusalem that resulted in His arrest, trial, and crucifixion.  Having passed through Jericho, where He visited in the house of Zacchaeus, He proceeded up into the mountains of Judea to Mt. Olivet, which rises on the east above Jerusalem.  From there He made a triumphal entry into the city, while a great multitude followed along, crying out, "Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord; peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" (v.38).  Going directly to the temple, Jesus expelled those within who were engaged in commerce, declaring that "it is written, 'My house shall be a house of prayer,' but you have made it a robbers' den," (v.46).  For the next several days Jesus boldly and publicly taught the great crowds which assembled in the temple courts.

      There were, however, those who looked on Jesus and His work with total contempt.  They were His inveterate enemies -- Pharisees, chief priests, scribes, and "leading men among the people."  (The latter were the top echelons of Jewish society that did not hold public office.)  Almost from the start they had opposed Jesus at every turn and lately had been secretly plotting His death.  Scornful of the multitudes which had joyfully accompanied on His triumphal entry, these bitter antagonists ordered Jesus to "rebuke Your disciples," (v.39).  Jesus, of course, refused.  During the following week as He taught in the temple, these enemies frequently engaged Him in carefully planned debate in an effort to trip Him up and disgrace Him.  To their frustration and dismay, their best laid plans came to naught as Jesus' perception and power of reason proved too much for them.

      As the rulers chafed and fretted while Jesus taught, fervently wishing they could silence Him, the common people "were hanging upon His words."  Throughout Jesus' ministry it had been this way.  The common people went to hear Him, were filled with joy and hope by His lessons, and returned again and again to hear His teach more.  But those at the top of society with vested interests felt threatened by Jesus' doctrine and power, and sought ways to stop Him and His movement.  This pattern did not cease with Jesus' death and ascension to heaven, for the movement He launched did not stop at the end of His earthly ministry.  Under divine guidance the apostles promoted the movement (now in the form of the church) with ever increasing success.  And those with power, wealth, and prestige continued to oppose it.  The same pattern continues to this very day.

      In the final analysis, there are but two sources of wisdom for the human mind to acquire and assimilate into a way of life, that of human experience and that of divine revelation.  Human wisdom is limited by empirical experience, which itself is limited by space and time.  No one has ventured beyond death and returned to tell us what exists there.  No one has journeyed beyond the universe and come back to reveal what lies beyond the furthest edge of this vast capsule of space.  Jesus declared, however, that He was fully knowledgeable of all that lies beyond our space-time limits, since He descended into our domain from the realm of existence without.  The whole issue resolves itself into the matter of faith.  Will one put his faith in Jesus' teaching about things beyond the limits of human perception, or will He reject Him as a fraud and rest the case upon what human reason and discovery can teach him?  Jesus' enemies in Israel chose the latter course.  The common people, however, chose the former and "were hanging on Jesus' words."  Whether one's choice is right or wrong is revealed in the first moment beyond death, but that is one moment too late if Jesus' words, which were rejected, are true.

TO OBTAIN ETERNAL LIFE

Luk. 18:22 ... "When Jesus heard this, He said to him, 'One thing you still lack; sell all that you possess, and distribute it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.'"

      One day there came to Jesus a young ruler who was very rich and posed to Him this question, "What shall I do to obtain eternal life?"  In essence Jesus told him to keep the Law of Moses, since it was still God's binding covenant with Israel.  The young man answered that he had been keeping this Law from his youth.  Jesus then told him there was one thing standing between him and eternal life -- his worldly possessions.  It was necessary for him to convert them into money and distribute it to the poor.  Through this great act of benevolence, he would invest real treasure in heaven.  

      As we survey this record, we must give credit to the young man.  First, he had assessed his spiritual life and determined there was something lacking for him to inherit eternal life.  He was not self-righteous with smug assurance that heaven was already his.  Second, he was spiritually oriented.  He believed there is a reward beyond this life, and he wanted to share in it.  Furthermore, he had been devoting his life to keeping the Law from his earliest ability.  And third, he recognized Jesus as the "Good Teacher" who could discern what he could not and then would instruct him in what he must do.  These three credits are more than can be given to the majority of people today.  In Mark's parallel account it adds that Jesus loved this individual, (10:21).  He saw in him the fertile soil where the seed of God's word, if sown, would spring forth and yield the abundant harvest of a Christian life.

      Jesus' answer initially might seem austere.  It would be a very hard thing for anyone to liquidate all his possessions and give the money to the poor.  One might think Jesus hates wealth and resents His disciples being wealthy.  So He commands them to give it away to the poor as they get it.  But this is a misrepresentation of Jesus' meaning.  His real point is, for one to obtain eternal life, he must value that life more than anything else.  That is, he must devote his energy, mental and physical, to the effort of preparing his soul to be fitted for life in heaven through eternity.  In the young ruler's case Jesus saw something which meant more to him than eternal life; it was the great wealth he possessed.  Matthew reports that "when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieved; for he was one who owned much property," (Mat. 19:22).  Had he really valued eternal life most of all, he would have been overjoyed to learn that divesting himself of his wealth was the key to that great goal.  

      There is a valuable lesson for us in the record of this young man's encounter with Jesus.  It should also be our desire to value eternal life more than anything else and readily give up whatever stands between us and that reward.  For many of us the intervening thing might not be wealth.  It might be the appetite for pleasure, worldly ambition, or pride in our talents, social standing, or achievements.  What comes between you and regular Bible study?  What can persuade you to neglect the assembly of the church at the appointed times?  What can turn you away from the practice of frequently praying to God?  What can influence you to refrain from standing up and speaking out for Jesus when His character is maligned?  The answer to these questions, after careful and honest scrutiny of your nature, will probably answer the question, "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?"  It is obvious we allow many barriers to exist between ourselves and the greatest of all rewards.

CAUSING LITTLE ONES TO STUMBLE

Luk. 17:2 ... "It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble."

      We learn in Mat. 18:1-6, the parallel to this passage, that the setting was an occasion when Jesus used a little child to illustrate the type of individual who will be allowed to "enter the kingdom of heaven." The lesson, therefore, concerned entering that kingdom, the greatest privilege open to earth's residents.  Citizenship in the kingdom means fellowship with God in this life and eternal presence before God's throne in the life hereafter.  It should be the primary goal of everyone to enter the kingdom and also to assist as many others as possible to enter as well.  When one is thinking clearly and considering all truth available, these will indeed be his greatest goals and humanitarian concerns.

      Unfortunately, there are those who can see no further than the limits of the material world about them and hence choose to restrict their education to the wisdom of men.  They have no interest in being in the kingdom of God.  Their only concern is to maximize the condition of their lives this side of the grave.  If they are also altruistic people, they have a similar concern for the life-condition of others as well.  If human life were not interdependent, this view of life and all that issues from it, might be dismissed as the sad choice of those who deny the reality of revealed wisdom and the kingdom of God which transcend space and time.  But human life is interdependent; we do not live in isolation from one another.  Our lives overlap so that what one person does, says, and thinks has at least some impact on the lives of others.  Therefore, when a person refuses God's revealed word and rejects entrance into His kingdom, it is almost certain that his choice will make it more difficult for certain people to accept that revelation and act to enter the kingdom.

      There are those who turn their backs upon God and His sovereignty with no thought of what other people may or may not do.  They make the decision for themselves and leave it to others to make their own decision.  Whether they choose to learn from God and seek His fellowship, or like themselves reject both, is of little interest to them.  They accept no responsibility for the influence their decisions may have on others.  And there are people inimical to God and His kingdom who make it their resolved purpose to turn others out of the way that leads to the acceptance of God's word and entrance into His kingdom.  They hate God and want others to adopt the same antagonistic attitude.  Whenever they offend the "little ones," a figure Jesus obviously used to refer to those approaching God, or those having just come into His fellowship, they are quick to act and speak to disturb their faith.

      Whether one is deliberately or indifferently hindering the course of someone else toward God and His kingdom, he is making himself an opponent of God.  He is daring, as a mere mortal creature, to enter into a contest with the Creator.  And this is a contest NO ONE can win!  Any victory he might claim is really only apparent.  It just seems, in the here and now, to be a victory.  God cannot be outmatched and defeated by a finite being whose very existence lies within His infinite power to terminate at any instant.  But God will take that drastic step only after these antagonists have used up the last drop of His mercy, for God would have even them to awaken to their foolishness, repent, and resolve to learn from Him, and, at last, to enter His kingdom also as "little ones" themselves.  My appeal, then, to those who oppose and hinder others from coming to God, or from progressing within His kingdom, is to turn from your opposition while the opportunity still exists.  In eternity beyond the grave you will be so thankful you did.

SERVING GOD OR MAMMON

Luk. 16:13 ... "No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other, or else he will hold to one, and despise the other.  You cannot serve God and mammon."

      The language spoken by the Jews in the days when Jesus was among them was Aramaic.  Some of the words of that language, which was also spoken by Jesus, have been left untranslated in the English Bible.  Jesus' cry on the cross, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani," (Mat. 27:46), is one such example.  It means, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"  The word "mammon" is another example; it meant "wealth."  In this statement Jesus personified wealth as a master named Mammon, who is opposed to God.  There are those who choose God as their Master and subject their lives in service to Him.  But there are others who select mammon to be their master and yield their lives to its dominion.  Jesus wants us to understand very clearly that no one can choose both God and mammon as co-masters and serve each, thus claiming the best of two worlds.

      A similar statement is made by Paul, "Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?"  (Rom. 6:16).  The opponents in this statement are "sin" and "righteousness."  It is clear that one cannot serve both, for the apostle states further that "having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness," (v.18).  That is, one must first be liberated from sin as master before he can become the servant of righteousness.  We might notice that this discussion in Rom. 6 is not afield from Jesus' thought in Luk. 16:13, since only two verses earlier he mentioned the "unrighteous mammon."  Mammon is one of the major venues of unrighteousness in human experience, and those who yield themselves to its dominion enter a sphere of service antagonistic to God.

      More precisely, mammon is the lust, or craving, for wealth and the pleasures it can afford.  Notice that I said the "lust" or "craving" for wealth, not the wealth itself.  There are those who have great wealth but are not controlled by it.  The essential factor is one's attitude.  We are assured that "the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil," (I Tim. 6:10).  So, it is the "love of money" rather than the possession of it that constitutes the root from which evil grows.  Understanding this should lead us to an important conclusion:  A person who is poor may be as much enslaved to mammon as the person who is very rich.  The penniless person may be as much convinced that power and privilege lie in wealth as the man who has great treasures and trusts in them.  Though he may never have much, he may struggle and grasp for the little he gets, and feel badly that it isn't a lot more.  He may consider life cruel to him for his poverty and live in perpetual envy of the rich, not realizing he is needlessly compounding his misery thereby.  The unrighteous mammon is as much his master as it is of the man who holds great wealth.

      Christians must learn that wealth is unworthy to be the master of human life, especially the life which has been purchased by the blood of Jesus.  We must realize that money is a means of life and not an end.  If we use it to cope with life and serve God, it is a blessing.  If we place our trust in it and think it to be the decisive factor in life, we have let it become our master.  We are counseled that "those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and hurtful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction," (I Tim. 6:9).  Wealth can possibly pamper a person with pleasure and power up to the point of death, but then its horrible end is "ruin and destruction."  Only God will reward His servants beyond the grave, where material goods no longer exist.  So, in this life we should be the master of mammon and never let it gain the rule over us.

REJOICING IN HEAVEN

No. 59: REJOICING IN HEAVEN

Luk. 15:10 ... "In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

      It is an unlikely thought that a person here on earth could do anything that would affect the nature of things in heaven.  Heaven seems so far away and so detached from worldly affairs that it is inconceivable something which occurs here would have any impact there.  Furthermore, since heaven is the place of God's immediate presence, it seems His glory would prevail so completely that an event on earth would be absolutely unnoticeable there.  Nevertheless, Jesus states that there is one human activity which does affect the nature of things in heaven.  That special event is the repentance of a person who has been walking in the pathway of sin.  A sinner's repentance has an immediate and impressive impact upon the residents of heaven.  Rather than temporarily diminishing God's glory, it magnifies it, because the opportunity for a sinner to repent is only attributable to the glorious work of God.

      God, who rules over all, has decreed that the penalty for sin is death.  Although He made man in His own image and loves us beyond our comprehension, it is nevertheless God's stated intention to destroy everyone who chooses the way of sin and continues to follow in it.  When people prefer sin to righteousness, God will act in His justice to condemn them and subject them to eternal punishment.  Even though God will certainly do this, He assures us in His word that He does not want to do it and takes no pleasure in it.  He had rather bless than curse, lift up than crush down, and exalt the human spirit than humiliate it.  But if a man chooses to reject God by turning into the path of sin, with sadness God will reject that man, crush him, and eternally humiliate him by casting him into a place of unending torment not prepared for man, but "for the devil and his angels," (Mat. 25:41).

      The residents of heaven are perfectly attuned to the mind of God.  His joy is their joy; His displeasure their displeasure; His sadness their sadness.  Sin in His human creatures displeases God and saddens Him, and His heavenly court responds likewise.  But when a sinner confronts his sin, begins to feel its offense to his soul and His soul's Maker, and consequently repents, God in heaven is pleased.  As the angels behold His divine joy, they together express their joy.  Jesus devotes Luke 15 to illustrating this great joy in heaven.  First, He pictures the lost sheep.  The shepherd, leaving the flock in a secure place, searched intently until he has found it.  Then he assembled his friends and neighbors and told them, "Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!" (v.6). Next, Jesus tells us about the woman who lost a coin and searched for it diligently.  When she found it, she also assembled her friends and neighbors and said, "Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost!" (v.9). Last, He described the case of the lost son.  When the boy returned home, the father gave a feast for him with this justification, "We had to be merry and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found," (v.32).

      The lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son are symbols of people who lose themselves in the way of sin.  Their repentance results in their discovery and reclamation to beings of integrity, honor, and dignity.  The woman, the shepherd, and the father are symbols for God, or perhaps His agents, who search for the sinner and try to persuade him to repent.  The rejoicing, which is emphasized in each case, is the heavenly response to the penitent sinner who is rescued from eternal destruction.  O sinner, will you not repent and cause joy both on earth and in heaven?

 

PRIDE vs. HUMILITY

Luk. 14:11 ... "Everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, and he who humbles himself shall be exalted."

      Pride and humility are attitudes that polarize human spirits.  They do not coexist within the human psyche.  Either pride takes control and drives out humility, or humility dominates and expels pride.  Morality is also inextricably involved in the tension between the forces of pride and humility.  Morality is defined not by human deliberation, but by God's standard for human behavior.  Even a superficial survey of the Bible reveals that God condemns pride and approves humility.  Those who exalt themselves with pride alienate themselves from God, but those who develop the attitude of humility find themselves ever closer to God's presence.

      The Book of Proverbs lists seven things which God hates because they are opposed to His nature, (6:16-19).  The first on the list is "a proud look."  A person's countenance mirrors the arrogance and cockiness of his spirit; and God, who sees both the face and the soul, finds offense in both when they emanate such pride.  We are told that "God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble," (Jas. 4:6).  It pleases God when a person divests himself of pride and clothes his mind with humility.  God bestows grace upon the humble, readily supplying them with all they need to endure and develop lives of service.

      It is stated that "pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling," (Pro. 16:18).  It makes one overconfident and too self-assured.  A veteran of the Pacific Theater in World War II told me of a man in his unit who boasted that "the Japanese bullet for me has not been made."  So, he took unusual risks after a battle to loot dead enemy soldiers.  But finally the Japanese made a bullet just for him.  As he was plundering dead bodies on an Okinawa battlefield, a sniper shot him dead.  His boastful, reckless pride earned him a 3x6 plot of ground in a foreign cemetery.  The Japanese no longer shoot at us, but we are warned about the "flaming missiles of the evil one," (aka Satan), which are aimed at us every day, (Eph. 6:16).  Thus we are issued the warning, "Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall," (I Cor. 10:12).  The strength of pride lies in deception.  It persuades the unwary soul that man is the measure of everything, that a person can deal with life on his own terms, and that he can be the master of every situation.  To take this persuasion into your heart creates there an expansive feeling of power and great personal worth.  This leads you, however, to the brink of destruction.  It sets you up as a target for personal disaster, as many unfortunate souls have discovered, albeit too late.  "How have the mighty fallen!" (II Sam. 1:19). 

      Pride would have you, like an ancient Achilles or Hector, to strap on the armor in which you trust and go forth to do battle with the enemy.  But Hector fell in his pride before Achilles' sword, and Achilles was slain by the chance arrow that penetrated the one vulnerable spot of his armor.  God counsels us to reject the deceitful persuasion of pride and assume instead the mental posture of humility.  And do not think that humility means weakness, paleness of life, and shame.  If you have that conception of humility, you have already been deceived by the counsel of pride.  Humility involves the total control of one's spirit so that it can be directed to glorify God rather than self.  Divine wisdom declares that "he who rules his spirit" is mightier than "he who captures a city," (Pro. 16:32).  To overcome great obstacles in one's own wisdom and power builds pride.  But eventually that pride will become the conqueror's master and destroy him.  However, to overcome life's barriers with the power and wisdom acquired from God will result in your exaltation in the aura of His glory both now and forever.

REPENT OR PERISH

Luk. 13:3 ... "I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish."

      Not long before Jesus issued this warning two calamities occurred among the Jews that were the subject of much popular discussion.  First, some Galileans had come to Jerusalem to worship.  While they were engaged in making a sacrifice, the Roman governor, Pilate, sent troops among them for some reason.  The worshipers were slaughtered, and their blood was "mingled with their sacrifices."  Second, in the Siloam neighborhood of Jerusalem a tower had fallen and killed eighteen people, who were probably the men building it.  It became the opinion of the people that these tragedies happened because the victims were guilty of egregious sin.  From that time until now it has often been the prevailing conclusion that terrible things happen to particular individuals as divine retribution for their overindulgence in sin.

      In this case Jesus did not deny that people may suffer tragedies as the consequence of sins they have committed.  What He is refuting, however, is the popular idea that the sins of such victims exceed those of people not stricken.  Of the people whom Pilate slew, Jesus said, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered this fate?"  And of those who were crushed by the Siloam tower, Jesus also said, "Do you suppose that [they] were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem?"  The reality is that sin is common to everyone.  We are each convicted of sin in Romans 3 by such declarations as, "There is none righteous, not even one," (v.10); "All have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one," (v.12); and, "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," (v.23).  While these statements probably apply to the unwashed and unregenerate world at large, Christians are addressed directly in these words, "If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us," (I Jno. 1:8).

      The point to Jesus' teaching in Luk. 13:2-5 is that it is unprofitable to survey the disasters which befall others and credit them as payment due for sin committed.  Such conclusions may sometimes indeed be right, since "the one who sows to his own flesh shall from the flesh reap corruption," (Gal. 6:8).  Nevertheless, how are we to know it is definitely the case in a given event, and not just an accident after all?  We also need to consider that our act of judging may breed within us a sense of self-righteousness that will blind us to our own sin.  Thus, Jesus issues to all a warning, not once but twice, "unless you repent, you will all likewise perish," (vs. 3,5).  He did not mean that all sinners will be executed at worship by soldiers, or crushed to death by a falling tower.  He did not even mean that the lives of sinners will end in tragedy as a general rule.  What He did mean is that each person must pay a severe penalty for his sin.  For some that will involve violent death, but for everyone it will involve eternal death in Gehenna, the inextinguishable "lake of fire," (Rev. 20:14).  We all face the terrible pronouncement of the prophet, "The soul who sins will die," (Ezk. 18:4), since each one of us is a sinner.

      As we stare into the abyss of certain destruction, each of us cries out with Paul, "Wretched man that I am!  Who will set me free from the body of this death?" (Rom. 7:24).  Then, through the darkness we see a bright ray of light.  It comes from Jesus, who reveals to us one corridor of escape.  And that is the way of repentance.  If we will renounce our sin, turn decisively away from it, and walk the Way of Truth illuminated by Jesus in His teaching and exemplary life, God will withhold the judgment of destruction.  We are assured that the Lord "is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance," (II Pet. 3:9).  Those who will repent can be victorious over sin, but the impenitent will be vanquished by it. 

LIFE'S BEST INVESTMENT

Luk. 12:15 ... "Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions."

      Evaluation, the process of putting a value upon something, is an activity in the daily routine of everyone.  It is as vital to commerce as breathing is to the body, for businessmen must state the value of their goods and services.  If customers and clients accept these values,  they may purchase the products.  If they do not agree with them, they usually try to persuade the businessman to reduce the prices to a level which they will accept.  Because our activities are so dependent on such transactions, we easily come to the conviction that nearly everything has a value that can be assessed in terms of money or other forms of wealth.

      It is often said that "everything has its price," meaning, of course, its material value.  From this we deduce that people can also be assessed in monetary terms in accordance with the amount of wealth they have.  If someone has an annual income of a million dollars, lives in a mansion in the elite part of town, has an impressive portfolio, and is well connected via his wealth to other affluent people, we count him as worth a great deal to society.  He is often honored, favored, and publicly recognized.  On the other hand, if the annual salary of another is only a few thousand dollars; if he lives in a common rental house between a warehouse and the railroad; if he has no investments and is perhaps in debt; and if he is known only among people like himself, then we count him as not being worth very much to society.  Only when businessmen need cheap labor is he noticed, but then only by his employer with evident condescension.  Only when a war is to be fought is he appreciated as a patriot who will sacrifice his life and limb to preserve the affluent world of those who hold wealth and were probably responsible for the war's inception.  Even then, when the war is over, he is quickly forgotten and relegated to obscurity.  If he returns disabled, he is often despised by the wealthy, who view him as a burden to be borne from their coffers.

      In the lead text above, Jesus refutes this common conviction that a man's value is proportional to his wealth.  God's view of what constitutes wealth is radically different from ours.  What we esteem is often contemptible to Him, and that which God treasures often seems worthless to us.  Notice how this contrast is brought out in the Letter to the Laodiceans:  "Because you say, 'I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,' and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire, that you may become rich, and white garments, that you may clothe yourself and that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and eyesalve to anoint your eyes, that you may see," (Rev. 3:17-18).  The limits of this brief essay prevent the development of the interpretation that "gold refined by fire" means "loyalty to Christ in spite of severe oppression," that "white garments" means "righteousness by virtue of adherence to divine law," and that "you may see" means "the ability to discern good and evil."  These are things that make one rich in the value system of God.  Jesus would surely say, "A man's life does consist in the abundance of his covenant loyalty, his humble righteousness, and his keenness in discerning good and evil.

      Most people dream of building an investment large enough to enable them to live on it securely in comfort until life's end.  This is admittedly desirable, but Christians must never let it become their primary goal.  Above all else, each day of our lives, we must be building in our souls deposits of loyalty to Jesus, righteousness through adherence to His teaching, and training in the ability to discern good and evil.  Material wealth we shall leave behind in this world, but spiritual treasure will accompany us into heaven.