OT 4 Christ

This is an edited version of a message given on 7/17/09.

"But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their playmates, 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.'" (Mat 11:16-17, ESV)

Our Lord, having just sung accolades about John the Baptist now turns to the crowd and begins to rebuke them.

Jesus is telling the crowd that they are like children who play a song and call out to their friends to come dance, and they say, "Nah, we don't want to." Or who play a funeral hymn and tell their friends come let us mourn, and the friends say, "Nah we don't want to."

Some people are just negative. No matter what is proposed, they have a rebuttal. They are "contrary." I'm like that! Lord have mercy on me! Then there is the other extreme where people are "yes men." No matter what is proposed, they accept it. Like the character Pliable from Pilgrim's Progress. But I am only focusing on the first type of person -- the contrarian.

There is a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance (Ecc. 3:4). But here, Jesus is speaking about people who should be dancing or mourning but choose not to.

John announced that the kingdom of heaven is at hand and the people say, "nah, we don't want it." Jesus offers the kingdom of heaven to them and the people say, "nah, we don't want it."

In a sense, they played the songs of repentance and of promises, but the people refused it. We have a wedding song and a funeral dirge.

It's like hearing two preachers. One preaches "escape the wrath to come;" the other speaks of "the love and grace of God." Both speak the truth, just differently. One says, "come dance, rejoice in God's salvation, taste and see that the Lord is good." The other, "come lament over your sins, and seek God's forgiveness."

Yet, we criticize the one for being all love and all grace and the other for speaking only about judgment. Actually, both are speaking the truth. We should respond appropriately and not criticize the message or messenger, just because we don't like it or think we could do better. Of course, that's assuming it's not some heresy.

There is a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance. Some of us mourn when we should be dancing or rejoicing. Some of you are probably thinking, "ooh, dancing is evil." YOU ARE BEING CONTRARY! There are times to celebrate!

Here's an example of being contrary. Everyone knows the story of the prodigal son. The younger asks for his inheritance, goes and wastes it on loose living. He ends up feeding swine. He repents and humbly returns home, expecting the worst and hoping to at least be a servant. Instead, the father rejoices, gives him gifts and orders a feast to be given. And they began to celebrate.

"Now [the] older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.' But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out... And he said to him, '…It was fitting to celebrate and be glad…'"  (Luk 15:22-32)

The elder son should have been celebrating, instead, he's criticizing. He was supposed to be laughing and dancing, instead he's complaining. He's being contrary!

Aren't we often like that?

My brother called me Saturday to tell me he's been attending church for 5 weeks! I was ecstatic! Of course, I quizzed him to see if he really was a Christian--if he knew what it meant. Interestingly, he asked me not to tell mom. Mom is a Christian and I'm sure that her greatest desire is to see the last of her unsaved children saved.

But she's contrary! That's were I get it from, I think!

"For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds." (Mat 11:18-19)

This is obviously part of the same thought as that of the children calling out to their friends and the friends refusing. People then like now were contrary.

John ate bugs and honey, he must have a devil. Jesus ate and drank and to top it off, he did it with sinners! He must be a glutton and a drunk.

God desires all men to come to Him and uses different people and means. John was austere and had a particular message to certain people. Jesus hung out with common folk, He had a message for everyone.

Paul says, "To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. (1Co 9:22, ESV)

When we criticize we are, in a sense, becoming judges. Now, we are to test all things and hold fast to that which is good. (1Thes 5:21). But when we are critical, we not only hold on to the good, in a sense, we hold on to the bad.

When I was preparing this message, I searched for a source on the Internet, that quotes Billy Graham as saying that he'd "be happy if 4% of the converts continued in the faith." I couldn't find it, though I've found it before. But I found hundreds of links to websites that were viciously critical of him. They were like saying, "Oh, he's a friend of tax collectors." But worse yet, "He hangs out with Catholics!"  [I've since learned that the number attributed to him is 5%]

By the way, the reason I was looking that up was because, I used to be critical of his outreaches myself. I had a hard time rejoicing at the multitudes that came forward at his meetings, knowing that only a few would "make it." Now, I rejoice for the few that will make it and pray that all would make it. 

Critics become judges.

James tells us that when we judge others we judge the law, and we aren't supposed be judges but doers of the law, which boils down to loving God and loving others as ourselves.

Often, we don't know the whole story or see the bigger picture. Mark relates the following event:

And while [Jesus] was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. There were some who said to themselves indignantly, "Why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor." And they scolded her. But Jesus said, "Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial." (Mar 14:3-8, ESV)

There was a time, not long ago, when I looked at the expense of renovation at our new church building and thought, what a waste! We should have moved in 7-months ago and used the money to help the poor.

I catch myself thinking things like that and have to repent. Sometimes, I just chuckle and tell the devil, "nice try!"

There are some things going on at our church that I don't agree with, especially with the new building project. That will always be the case. So long as we don't break too many of God's rules, I can deal with it. Every congregation has issues. Even our beloved Puritan settlers had some major issues!

Our passage in Matthew ends with "Wisdom is justified by her deeds." John and Jesus both performed good deeds, but the critics didn't see it. In many cases the contrarians had to fight hard not to see. I mean, c'mon, the blind saw, the lame walked, the deaf heard, and people were being raised from the dead!

Wisdom is also a personification of Christ (Prov 8, 1 Cor 1:24). His deeds truly do justify Him.

So too will the objects of our criticism be either justified or condemned by their deeds. We often don't see the whole picture. We should not rush to judgment. Test all things and hold on to the good, maybe try to correct the bad, otherwise, let it go -- don't hold onto the bad.

John the Baptist saw the Spirit descend upon Jesus and heard the Father speak from heaven saying, "This is my Beloved Son with whom I am well pleased." Yet, he sends two of his disciples to ask Jesus if He is the Christ who is to come? Didn't he already know? Truth is that it is okay to have doubts. As a matter of fact, if we had no doubts, we wouldn't have faith. Faith without doubt is not faith at all and without faith it is impossible to please God. So when times of doubt come upon us, we can ask Jesus, as did John the Baptist: "Are you the One?"

Recently, I heard a friend say something which I've heard in varying ways on many occasions. In speaking negatively about a particular large congregation, he said that one of things that turned him off when he visited the church was that only about a quarter of the people brought their Bibles.

I'm all for bringing our Bibles to church and always have mine. Even if I don't bring the actual book, which is rare, I have many versions on my Treo, along with access to nearly every translation and numerous commentaries readily available online. But why is it considered bad to not bring our Bibles? Are we supposed to make sure the preacher reads correctly? In my experience, errors and heresies do not arise from reading incorrectly, but from taking text out of context or by not incorporating other scripture passages that speak on the same subject.

Like I said, I always have a Bible and often find myself frantically searching for passages to put things in context. Once when hearing a sermon from Revelation chapter 7, the speaker mentioned something about the rapture. So while the sermon continued, I went back and read the first six chapters of Revelation to find out when the rapture occurred. (It didn't, by the way.)

Another issue that occurs is that of the many translations. If the preacher is teaching from the Authorized Version (King James) and I'm following along with the Good News Translation, I will be totally lost. So, unless everyone has the same translation, it can get confusing. Although, I think it is more beneficial to use a different translation than what the preacher uses, since many translations often act as commentaries, such as the Amplified Version.

In my opinion, a much more effective way to learn is to take good notes. Not word for word notes, but just jot down passages, themes, and pithy sayings. Some do this directly in their Bibles, which is a WONDERFUL reason to bring them along. Personally, I rarely take notes or highlight during a sermon, because, when doing so, I am often postponing learning. I prefer to try to learn right then and there. The only notes I tend to jot down are questions that come to mind that aren't answered and require further study. Now, some people do take notes and go back and look them over later. Some even save them for nostalgic reasons, but most people never refer back to them. At least, I rarely did when I used to do it.

In conclusion, I think it's great that people always have their Bibles with them. But, I also think that reading along with the preacher is not a measure of the holiness or commitment of a fellowship. I think a better measure of commitment to God or His Word is if you bring your Bible to the coffee shop or on an airplane. Better yet, READ IT AT HOME, EVERY DAY, and DURING THE DAY! If you say you "Love God's Word" and only read it when it's read to you on Sunday, you are a big liar! But I guess having it read to you is better than never reading it.

If we do what is appropriate, we too will be accepted and not be downcast or upset. What is that appropriate thing we must do? It's to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. It is to love God and our neighbor. It is to do what is good. All too often, we do as Cain and choose the "instead." We have a better way -- a new idea. We can be self-centered and hold back from God what is best. Those of us, who have backslidden, are well aware of the feeling of being downcast and upset with ourselves. Those of us, when we do not walk in the Spirit, know well the feeling of being upset or even jealous when we feel someone has offered a better sacrifice. Let's not choose the "instead" and just obey His instructions and do what is appropriate.

Various are the pleas and arguments which men of corrupt minds frequently urge against yielding obedience to the just and holy commands of God.
--George Whitefield

1 Thessalonians 5:16 "Rejoice always,"    

How can we possibly rejoice always?  Because, we have a greater hope than the world. Our hope lies in those things we cannot see or even comprehend. Though the earth be removed and the mountains cast into the sea, God is our refuge and strength, and a very present help in times of trouble. Verses 17 and 18, the continuation of the above sentence, tell us to pray without ceasing and to give thanks in everything. Perhaps there's a connection. Is it the prayer and giving of thanks that causes us to rejoice, or the rejoicing that causes us to pray and give thanks? I contend that they all work together. So my brethren, rejoice always!    

In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”  
--Jesus Christ (John 16:33)    

[I sometimes worry when I post things like this. I worry that God will look upon me and say, "Let's see if you really believe this." Incidentally, the above verse is the shortest in the Greek NT.]

Last post, I chose the verse following the above as my text. But having heard of mom's stroke later that day, I thought about the above passage. At Sunday's bible study, I mentioned that "I wished my parents would die." I often say things that sound better in my head than my ears. My parents are both born-again. It was a radical conversion with much fruit. I am getting tired of my earthly tent that regularly surprises with a new infirmity or weakness. I am ready to go and be present with my Lord. My parents are ready to go and be present with Him as well. I don't want them to go through the heartache of burying their son, hence that's why I hope they go first.  What constitutes a good death? I answer with Paul's answer, "Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him." It is in making it our aim to be well pleasing to Him that we will die a good death. Even the person converted on their deathbed will be present with the Lord, but will regret not having been converted earlier. The lifelong Christian will regret not having been more devoted to God. May we all die a good death.

Is this a life that leads to death or a death that leads to life?
--Augustine of Hippo 

2 Corinthians 5:9 Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him.

I've been reading Law's "A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life." He hasn't yet directly touched on the above verse, but the tone of what I've read so far, makes it clear: We are only as devoted or well pleasing to God as we desire to be. When we fall short, it is because we have no intention, ambition, or desire to be "better" pleasing. This goes beyond reading, praying, and attending worship service. Our desire to be well pleasing to God should encompass every facet of our lives. There may be areas that are beyond our control and for those, we are excused. But for those things we can change and don't, that is outright rebellion.

Have mercy upon me, Oh God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. Ps. 51:1

Matthew 21:12, 13 And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, and said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

Does this mean that buying and selling of any sort was prohibited in the temple? Probably not. Does this imply that it should not be done in our churches? Keep in mind that the early church held all possessions in common. We are blessed in our church in that even our humble bookstore operates on the honor system with "suggested donations." While important to understand scripture in context, I think it is dangerous to seek out loopholes. The church should be a house of prayer, not a shopping mall.

What can be easier than surrendering to God? Think of a soldier in battle, is it easier to fight or surrender (pride and patriotism notwithstanding)? It amazes me that people will argue about how difficult it is to quit using drugs. How can it be easier to plan and execute the next heist or scam, to contact the fence, then the dealer, obtain paraphernalia, to poke oneself (if IV drugs) repeatedly until a useful blood vessel is found, and to do this several times a day? (I speak from experience) That's just plain crazy talk! Or, is it? 

What makes someone so full of themselves, that they will do anything to satisfy their fleshly desires. Clearly, it's not easier to use drugs or drink to drunkenness than to "not to." The book of Jeremiah [ch. 2, vv. 23-25] speaks of an animalistic drive to commit sin, when God speaking through the prophet says,

How can you say, 'I am not defiled; I have not run after the Baals [other gods]? See how you behaved in the valley; consider what you have done. You are a swift she-camel [in the uncontrollable violence of her brute passion eagerly] running here and there, a wild donkey accustomed to the desert, sniffing the wind in her craving -- in her heat who can restrain her? Any males that pursue her need not tire themselves; at mating time they will find her. Do not run until your feet are bare and your throat is dry. But you said, 'It's no use! I love foreign gods, and I must go after them.' (NKJV & Amplfied)

We are not Israel, but those of us who chase after the idol of "self," behave in the same way. Yet, God is merciful. Not very merciful, but infinitely merciful. He is ready to "heal our backslidings" if we but return to Him. Why carry around the heavy burden of sin when God wants to give us rest? Why chase fleeting pleasures, when we can receive everlasting peace? To not surrender to Christ is just plain crazy! 

Faith is defined in Heb. 11:1 as "The substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." This sounds simple, but it is saying that something intangible is tangible and that it is evidence of that for which, practically speaking, there is no evidence. Yet, this is the sole definition given in scripture. Thankfully, while a philosophical definition may be elusive, we are given many examples of faith in action. In other words, faith is a substance (some "thing" that is tangible). It is also evidence (i.e., exhibit A). The disciples had little faith, but had enough to run and wake up the Lord and ask to be saved.

Do we respond to God in the same way? This ought not be. When we hear God speak to us, let's not tell Him to wait for a more convenient time. If we profess to be "followers of Christ" should we not follow as He leads? Let's not be a bunch of liars who say one thing and do another. If we say we love others, let's compare our practice of love with that in 1 Cor 13. When we fall short, repent and pray to have the mind of Christ.

Cornelius feared God, gave alms, and prayed to God always" v.2. He believed in the God of Abraham but was not fully a Jew. God does not show partiality to a person's denomination or outward obedience to the law. He desires all to fear and obey with a pure heart. A good indicator of that purity of heart is what one does to help those in need, and does it without "sounding a trumpet."

“To will and not to do when there is opportunity is in reality not to will; and to love what is good and not to do it, when it is possible, is in reality not to love it.”
-- Swedenborg

Acts 16:30-31 And [the prison guard] brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

This passage is often used as a proof-text for what is called "easy believism" which is demonstrated by "making a decision" or reciting the "sinner's prayer" to be saved. They leave out that the prison guard fell trembling before Paul and Silas, that he washed their stripes, and was baptized with his family. His actions were those of a person who feared God, had a broken and contrite heart, repented, and obeyed.

Salvation through mental acknowledgement of Jesus is like a sick man who thinks he will be healed because he believes a doctor can heal him, but he doesn't place himself under the doctor's care.

1 Samuel 25:21-22, 32-33
Now David had said, “Surely in vain I have protected all that [Nabal] has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belongs to him. And he has repaid me evil for good. May God do so, and more also, to the enemies of David, if I leave one male of all who belong to him by morning light.”

Then David said to Abigail: “Blessed is the LORD God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! And blessed is your advice and blessed are you, because you have kept me this day from coming to bloodshed and from avenging myself with my own hand.

David almost destroyed countless men, because he was reviled after having done good. How often have we reacted in a similar manner when insulted or offended? But, instead of swords, we may use words. David was spared this indignation, by God, through Abigail. Nabal died shortly thereafter and David married Abigail. Let's leave the retaliating to God.   

Revenge commonly hurts both the offerer and sufferer; as we see in a foolish bee, which in her anger invenometh the flesh and loseth her sting, and so lives a drone ever after.
-- Joseph Hall

Ecclesiastes 7:21-22
Also do not take to heart everything people say,
Lest you hear your servant cursing you.
For many times, also, your own heart has known
That even you have cursed others.

I grew up when we were taught that "sticks and stones can break our bones, but words will never harm us." Nowadays, with the advent of politically correct speech, people are taught to be offended for not being addressed in the correct predefined manner. We are now taught to be whiny sissies.

Words shouldn't harm a Christian. If evil things spoken are true, then it should be received as reproof and correction should follow. If they are false, then we should give thanks to God that they are false and consider ourselves blessed when they "say all kinds of evil against [us] falsely."

I have come to a place in my Christian walk where I am aware that no matter how bad someone may mistreat me, I deserve much worse. No matter how ill someone speaks of me, they cannot begin to touch on my true wretchedness, as words have not yet been invented to describe the depths of it. Oh, the many times I have criticized others in my heart! It matters not that I nipped the vile thought at its onset, the fact that it even popped in my head speaks volumes as to how little I have allowed Christ to rule my life.

Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to the cross I cling;
Naked, come to thee for dress;
Helpless, look to thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.
-- Augustus M. Toplady

This discussion came up on a forum I frequent and I thought I should post my [edited] response here.

The question was, "Does the Holy Spirit convict believers when they sin?" We hear Christians say "The Spirit convicted me" all the time, but what does the bible say?

John 16:8-11

And when He [The Holy Spirit, the paraklētos: Comforter, Intercessor, Advocate, Helper] has come,

He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

of sin, because they do not believe in Me;

of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more;

of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

There you have it, in white and black. The Comforter convicts non-believers of sin and Christians of righteousness.

So what is that feeling that we get when we sin? Where does it come from?

BTW, I don't think we have to sin, but our self-love just about makes it inevitable. All you self-haters, STOP LYING!!! If you truly hated yourself, you would enjoy your misery, which would mean that the misery was a positive thing motivated by self-love. Hating your situation just means you love yourself so much that you think you deserve better!

Now, back to the topic at hand. Here's my take:

1. Even atheists know to do right and feel "convicted" when they don't (the law is written in their hearts). I was an atheist so I know this is true. When King David sinned by conducting a census near the end of his life, the bible says that "…David’s heart condemned him after he had numbered the people."

2. There is only one true God and Holy Spirit, yet different levels of "conviction." For example, some Christians will feel "convicted" if they drink a glass of wine, others can drink several. Some feel convicted when their foot gets a little heavy on the accelerator, others think it's okay as long as they don't get caught. Some think nothing of downloading, copying, and sharing copyrighted gospel music, others see it as stealing. If the "conviction" comes from the One God, we would all feel "convicted" of the same offenses.

3. Conviction is generally understood to mean "guilty conscience." When I say "I was [felt] convicted," I really mean that I realized I shouldn't or should've done something. So, if the Holy Spirit "convicts" us of righteousness, perhaps we feel guilty when we don’t meet the mark. But any "conviction" or accusation (in the legal sense) of Christians and their sin comes from Satan. In the past, I committed sins that made me think, "Oh, what's the use! I can't live up to God's standard, so I'll just give up and return to the world." Thankfully, I later realized that I was deceived. I repented and here I am.

To summarize this summary, I think it's semantics. We say "The Spirit convicted us" when we mean "O wretched man that I am, why do I do things I don't want to or shouldn't do?" Remember, The Holy Spirit is the Comforter to the Christians not the accuser. I guess the "conviction" thing could be inferred through incorporating all of scripture, if so, someone please show me a few proof-texts.

Blessings,

--

“Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.”

   --Thomas à Kempis