The Ten

The Ten Commandments are a vital yet significantly misunderstood set of precepts spoken by the voice of God and written by His own Hand (Exodus 20:1-17; 31:18). Their adherence is emphasized continuously throughout the Bible. They are God’s standing principles that govern His universe. Yet the people on Earth professing to be His followers make a point of deemphasizing their importance. The implementation of these ten Laws are a manifestation of true Love (2 John 1:6). Christ did say, “If ye love Me keep My Commandments” (John 14:15). They are the definition of Love (Deuteronomy 6:5; Matthew 22:36-40). We cannot keep them without Love (1 Corinthians 13:1-8) and we cannot Love without keeping them.

Jesus summarized the Ten Commandments as Love for God and Love for our fellow men. The fact is if we truly Love God we won’t put anyone or anything in His place. We won’t worship anything that we created. We won’t misuse His name. And we will spend the allotted time He designated with Him. If we love our parents, we’ll honour them in what we do. If we love our fellow men we won’t kill them, we won’t cheat on our spouses or break up a family, we won’t steal and we won’t lie or mislead. And if we genuinely love, envy of other’s successes will not exist in us.

People tend to look at these principles as burdensome, but if they are approached with the correct Spirit it is clear to see that their obedience is the only way to love and be fit for a perfect kingdom. Without them sin would not be a thing (1 John 3:4). If there was no sin, there would be no need for a Savior. Therefore, it behooves us to take a closer look at these Words from God and decipher how they apply to our lives. For the next few posts I’ll focus on each one, identifying some of the ways we drift from there adherence without even noticing.

I pray that the Holy Spirit guides my writing and your reading.

With Love

Grace

Many of us who grow up in the faith have a major struggle – accepting God’s grace. I was in a discussion today, in which I had to explain this mental dissonance. As a believer in the Bible I know that God’s grace is sufficient to justify and sanctify me (Acts 20:32; Romans 3:24; 2 Corinthians 12:9). However, the inability to accept this comes when the sins I have committed are classified as “small”. My sins have not been considered major errors to those around me and therefore the grace that is presented to justify me doesn’t seem relevant. My mind is filled with all this Biblical knowledge and I carry the burden of living up to this responsibility (Luke 12:48) without a tangible understanding of God’s grace to help me do so.

This is the conundrum that leads to legalism, a plague upon those of us raised on Biblical truth. It was the downfall of the Jewish nation (Matthew 23:24). This belief that my sins are not great enough to be covered by Christ’s justification, or that I am somehow unworthy because more is expected of me, skips a major step in the path to Glorification. It also adds the pressure of believing that I am expected to obey God’s commands in my own strength. As this is an impossibility a cycle of futility and frustration ensues. This has led to the disillusionment of many of my predecessors and contemporaries. I have heard the complaints but it never really sunk in until I had to vocalize it and I was told that I sound like pastors' children. There is a pressure for which the cure was not adequately emphasized.

This has also lead to another plague in the church “cheap grace”. This teaching promotes the idea that justification will cover all sins and we never have to change. This fallacy is leading many to destruction. Scripture clearly states that the law holds (Matthew 5:18). And that by grace through faith we can “establish the law” (Romans 3:31; 6:15; 7:7; Galatians 3:21).

Another symptom of not accepting Christ’s grace is pride. Pride, in the perception that we did not commit any sins great enough to require Christ’s justification. Pride in the knowledge we have acquired. Pride in the idea that my sins are not as bad as yours (2 Corinthians 10:12). The humility of accepting Christ’s justification is a requirement for His service. Only when we realize that ALL our sins, however small it may seem to us, placed Him on the cross, and that anything “righteous” that we do in our own strength is worthless (Isaiah 64:6) can we arrive at the level of humility necessary to serve.

This is why God sent Moses to be a shepherd for 40 years. Moses grew up knowing what his purpose was, and was ready to start a revolution in his own strength. So God sent him to Midian to learn from where the strength for his purpose would come (Exodus 2, 3). This is the pride that Jesus fought every day of His mission here on earth. Like Moses, Jesus knew who He was and what His purpose was. When Satan came to tempt Him in the wilderness Jesus gave him the answers we need to have – “It is written…”. When His disciples tried to make Him their earthly king He removed himself from the premises (John 6:15) and went to pray. He prayed constantly day and night because He knew that in His human form that was His only source of strength. The grace that forgives us is the grace that sustains us. Jesus never sinned but He knew that the only way to maintain sinlessness was grace from the Father.

As we are expected to share faith in Christ’s grace with others we need to experience it in full for ourselves. We all have sinned. We all are justified by Christ’s grace. We will all experience sanctification through this same grace. To be successful in our task ahead we need to humble ourselves and accept God’s grace to sustain us. Then and only then will we be able to share it with others, because we have lived it.

Humbly

The Body

Many people over the years have questioned the justice of Israel loosing Ai when Achan stole the “Babylonish garment, the gold and the silver (Joshua 7). After all are we not all individually responsible for our own actions? (Deuteronomy 24:16, Revelation 22:12) Why would the sin of one man affect a whole nation of people? Well there are a number of Bible events that bare out the reason for this. The essence of it is that ‘we ARE our brother’s keeper’. The converse of Achan’s story can be seen in Genesis 18, when God informed Abraham that He would destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham pleaded for them. And God said He would not destroy these cities if He could find as low as ten righteous individuals. Unfortunately for them there weren’t even five righteous in those two cities.

God is interested in the corporate as well as the individual and the individual’s actions towards the corporate is vital to the salvation of the individual (Hebrews 10:25). Daniel, of whom no sin was recorded in the Bible, prayed to God for the forgiveness of his own sins and the sins of all of Judah (Daniel 9:9-19). When Jesus returns He is coming back for a body of believers a church without “spot or wrinkle” (Ephesians 5:27). How is this meant to be achieved, verse 25 and 26 tells us that He gave Himself for the church that it might be sanctified.

So since Christ did what was necessary to produce a pure church what part do I have in this? God has given us a mandate to spread the Gospel, the good news of His sacrifice in our behalf (Matthew 28:19, 20). However, if the church is corrupted this mandate cannot be accomplished (James 1:8, Matthew 6:23, 1 Corinthians 5:6, Galatians 5:9). Before Pentecost Jesus instructed the disciples to tarry in Jerusalem until they received the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4). In that time, they confessed and cleared up all sins among them brining themselves into “one accord” (Acts 1:14; 2:1). Only then could the Spirit of God be poured out, empowering them to fulfill Jesus’ commission to spread the Gospel to the whole world (Acts 1:8).

We as a body would like to accomplish this final work to bring sin to an end. This was the initial purpose of this movement – to gather the group prophesied to preach the three angel’s messages and complete Christ’s mission for us (Revelation 14:1-12). In neglecting this primary task of preparing ourselves (tarry till endued), and going off on our own to do as “the other nations”, and corrupting ourselves with selfishness and temporary living like Esau (Genesis 25:29-34), we are now wholly unprepared for the task at hand. As followers of Christ we need to share in His desires, we need to possess and practice His yearning for each other’s salvation.

As always, there is hope. When we trust and obey God there is always hope. He has promised to take full control of His final work. Painful, nerve-racking things will occur (Ezekiel 9) but Christ has promised that His church will be safe. His obedient followers will be protected and vindicated (Revelation 7). I urge us all to take heed, give an account for ourselves and each other in brotherly, Christian love. Be humble, take good Biblical, Christian, counsel from wherever it may be found (Isaiah 8:20). God has a way of sending us messages in unexpected ways.

Hopefully 

The Word

I was in a discussion last week in which the inspiration of the Bible was put into question. I stated, as I previously have in this blog, that prophecy is the external anchor on which we can hang the validity of the Bible. Power changes predicted centuries before they occurred in patterns that could not be intuitively foreseen is striking (Daniel 2, 7, 8; Revelation 12, 13, 17). However, beyond power transfers, the Bible offers practical advice on health, foods that are good to eat and those that are not (Leviticus 11), civil structures that are reasonable and efficient (Exodus 18:13-27; Acts 6:1-7; 1Timothy 3), life skills on how to respond to conflicts (Proverbs 15:1, 26:4, 5) to name a few. All externally demonstrated to be truth.

In the conversation I was asked if I believe that there are beings at a level higher than human beings but below God. I said “yes” with the scripture Psalms 8:4, 5 and Hebrews 6:6, 7. So the individual asked if the Bible could then have been inspired by one of these intermediary beings. I responded “No, because created beings can’t tell the future” supported with Deuteronomy 29: 29 and Revelation 19:10. The retort was ‘why not human beings make “good predictions” all the time. My response was “God doesn’t make ‘good predictions’ He says what He sees and no created being has this power” (Isaiah 46:10; Revelation 1:8, 22:13). At this point my interrogator admitted to not believing the Bible to be true, thereby rendering the conversation futile.

A bit more was said beyond this but this summary of the conversation illustrates my point today. I was taught growing up that the word of God is our sword (Ephesians 6:17), specifically a “twoedged sword” (Hebrews 4:12). The word of God is listed as a part of our armour in defense against the “wiles of the devil (Ephesians 6: 11-20). If I was in this conversation a year ago my response would have been very different. My immediate response would have been to become defensive – this attitude is of no help to anyone. But as I study more and learn to yield more and more to the Lord I have come to realize, like Jahaziel said to Judah and Jehoshaphat, that ‘the battle isn’t mine, it is God’s’ (2 Chronicles 20:15). So in order to fight it His means of defense is required.

After Jesus fasted 40 days in the wilderness and Satan came to tempt Him at His weakest most vulnerable time His only defense was the word of God (Matthew 4:1-11, Luke 4:1-13). He was tempted in all the areas we are tempted: Lust of the flesh, Lust of the eye, and the Pride of life (Hebrews 4:15; 1 John 2:16). That last area is particularly insidious because when we come to a point of knowledge or strength, pride can take over and we, like Samson, forget where our strength comes from. This is why daily devotion and prayer is vital to the survival of a Christian. Without our daily, hourly, constant connection with the Father (1 Thessalonians 5:17) we put ourselves in dangerous territory.

My petition is that we all study the word of God. To paraphrase a well-known preacher: ‘Know what it says, know what it means and know where it is found’. It is our only defense and source of hope in the times ahead. We all need to get to the place where our reflex response to any challenge is the word of God. It is the solid rock on which we will find our safety. (Psalms 89:26; John 1:1-14; 1 Corinthians 10:4; 1 Peter 2:5-8)

Faithfully

Familiarity Breeds Contempt

I searched the definition of this proverb and found this meaning: “Extensive knowledge of or close association with someone or something leads to a loss of respect for them or it.” Anyone who has siblings, is married, have roommates or has worked in a dangerous industry such as a laboratory, construction or as an electrician can attest to this saying. There are thoughtless things that you would do to someone with whom you’re close that you would never do to a stranger or someone you’re just getting to know. Those with dangerous jobs, how many times have you eaten, put on lotion or worn sandals into your lab, or manipulated live wires without full protection or drivers using one hand on the steering wheel. It is human nature. We get comfortable with a situation and with that comfort we get careless.

This also happens in our spiritual lives. Some of us were born and raised hearing scripture, we know the dos and the don’ts, the rights and the wrongs backwards and forwards and sometimes we become careless. The account of Uzza in 2 Samuel 6 and 1 Chronicles 13 illustrates this very well. Following various military incidents, the Ark of the Covenant was in the house of a man called Abinadab, who had two sons: Uzza and Ahio. Following a military victory King David decided that the Ark needed to be returned to the Sanctuary. He had a brand new cart built and placed the Ark in the cart and had a procession to bring the Ark back to the Sanctuary. The oxen that were pulling the cart had a misstep and Uzza put out his hand and touched the Ark to stop it from falling. This action angered God and Uzza died instantly.

There were multiple failings in this event, the means David set up to carry the Ark was improper – The priests were to carry the ark with the staves made specifically for it (Exodus 37:1-9). The other was Uzza’s action. The Ark was in his house for a long period of time. All that time he was aware that he should not touch it, God’s presence is in the Ark and sinful man was not to touch the Ark. Then in a moment of absentmindedness Uzza let his reflexes take control, over his understanding – resulting in his death.

We as Christians do the same thing all the time. We have all this knowledge and understanding and in a moment of inattentiveness we try to “help God” by disobeying His clear commands. We try to make the church services or activities better by doing things through human methods, somehow convincing ourselves that the ends will justify the means. Believing that, because God wants to save people and we know how to attract people, our methods will be acceptable. Abraham made the same mistake of “assisting God” – leaving the world in crisis. The early Christian church did the same thing “baptizing” pagan practices sinking the world into 1260 years of darkness – from which know we are barely recovering.

We are now living in a time that requires absolute vigilance (1 Peter 5:8). Our natural propensity for sin requires that we always be on guard, we cannot for one moment trust our reflex responses. God has given clear specific instructions on how His work is to be done and from this we cannot deviate. We cannot allow ourselves to be made complacent by the knowledge we have. That knowledge must be put into practice and must be our only guide. Our senses, feelings and reflexes cannot be trusted (Proverbs 16:25). Human senses will be flawed until we are caught up and transformed at Jesus’ second coming (1 Corinthians 15:50-54, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18).

In Faith

Walking it Back

Repentance is a truly hard thing to do. Once you’ve made a stand and declared something to be right and realize you were wrong it is rough to “walk it back”. But if salvation is our desire we MUST repent (James 4:10). In church we’re studying the Holy Spirit, and in reviewing the lesson for this week some things came clearer in my mind that I need to share. The Holy Spirit serves multiple purposes He convicts us when we are wrong (John 16:7, 8), He purifies us (Matthew 12:28), He remakes us, He teaches us (Luke 12:12), He gives us gifts (1 Corinthians 12:4-12) with which to bear the fruits (Galatians 5:22,23) God requires of His people (Luke 13:7).

While studying I came across this passage that elicited some concern: Hebrews 6:4-6 says, “For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.”

I and many of my fellow believers have had varying degrees of “falling away”, some more adamantly than others. I have great concern for us because I don’t want this passage to be applicable to any of us. We were spoon-fed scripture from before birth and different things happen in our lives that caused us to reject God’s commands. Then one day we reach a point of self-examination and decision, do I keep doing what I’m doing or do I walk it back. Most of us choose to keep going because someone along the way caused us to believe that forgiveness is not possible, but if we learn anything from the parable of the prodigal son, we can do just that.

Truth, things will not be what they use to be. Some people that “never strayed” will treat us with suspicion. We’ve misspent most or all of our inheritance, but our Father is merciful and has made a way of redemption. God promises that if we will humble ourselves and pray, seek His face and turn from our wickedness then He will hear, forgive and restore us (2 Chronicles 7:14). However, we must TURN from our sins, we must be prepared to call evil what it is (Isaiah 5:20). We cannot expect to be accounted with the people of God and persist in evil.

The Holy Spirit is patient; He pleads with us daily. He desires to remake us into the character of Jesus and restore truth in our lives but repentance is the key (Acts 2:38). Today if you hear His voice do not reject Him (Hebrews 3:7,8) because rejecting Him will lead to the impossibility of return (Matthew 12:31,32 Luke 12:10).

In Hope

Know your Ally

At church this past Sabbath I had a very informative and thought provoking discussion with some fellow members. One of whom made the point that because in this life we are engaged in war – The Great Controversy – the strategy to utilize for victory is “to know your enemy”. I have been giving this tactic some thought for some time. I have been having this debate with other close associates, in this matter, for some time now. My theory is that the only way to truly know our enemy is to know who our Ally is (1 John 2:1).

Anyone who works with currency knows that the only way to be able to identify a counterfeit is to know every aspect of the real. Given the subtle, subversive nature of our adversary, this is the only true way to identify him. Matthew 24 describes such insidious deception that “if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” (Matthew 24:24) This should raise great concern in those choosing to follow Christ.

Isaiah 8: 20 states: “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is not light in them.” Therefore, it stands to reason that being able to identify the ‘dark one’ we need to become deeply acquainted with “The Law” and “The Testimony” of Light. Now what are these things and where are they found? Simple answer: The Word of God in the Bible.

The extended answer: In a previous post I mentioned that 2 Peter 1:16-21 guides us to the evidence that the Bible can be trusted. Prophecy is given to boost our confidence in God’s promises. Prophecy is an anchor that any honest person – religious or non-religious – can hold onto and know that there must be truth in this Book. As evidenced with the wise men from the East. These were not devout men from the Israelite tradition, they were scientists in search of truth. They found the Hebrew scriptures that prophesied of a coming King, they saw the signs foretold and went in search of Him. Similarly, we can see events predicted for our times indicating the second coming of our King.

So now, because we have something solid to hang our belief on in the Bible, what does this book have to say about The Law and The Testimony. Scholars have identified hundreds of laws listed in the Bible, are they all The Law? Or is there a more comprehensive list. As it happens there is a more concise list in the form of the Ten Commandments. The Decalogue is listed and repeated throughout the length and breadth of the Bible. It existed from the Beginning was reiterated to the Israelites (Exodus 20:1-17, Deuteronomy 5:1-21; 6:4-7), by Jesus throughout His ministry (Matthew 5:17-18; 19:16-22; 22: 37-40), by the Disciples after He left (Romans 3:31, 1 John 1:6) and by many others in between. This is the Law we must know and live.

Then what is The Testimony? Exodus 31:18 lets us know that God’s law is His testimony written with His own finger. John 5:39 states: “Search the scriptures; for in there ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.” Revelation 19:10 also says “… The testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of Prophecy. The very provisions given for us to know that the Bible is truth also show us where untruth lies. It is for us to choose to be diligent students (2 Timothy 2:15) of God’s word in order to arm ourselves against the enemy (Ephesians 6:14-20).

The Bible, in which we can anchor our faith because it is truth, testify of God, of Salvation, of the hope we have for a better existence. Therefore, any individual, power or system that speaks against, acts contrary to, or opposes, in any way (small or great), this Word is your enemy (Matthew 5:19-22).

Faithfully,