6/30/13

From Gary... Danger from the most unexpected places

Just another day; filled with fun at the water's edge. But, wait- there is danger afoot!!! It can creep up on you unexpectedly!!! How easy it is to fixate on unimportant things and ignore problems right in front of you!!! There is danger out there and it must be handled carefully (which is why someone put the word on the box in the first place). However, the box won't hurt them- something else just might. When we think of "danger", most of the time we worry about things happening to us "out of the blue"- like the new party to the game above. But, what about our brethren? How do we treat our fellow Christians? Listen to the words of Jesus...

Matthew, Chapter 5

21 “You have heard that it was said to the ancient ones, ‘You shall not murder;’ and ‘Whoever shall murder shall be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I tell you, that everyone who is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment; and whoever shall say to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the council; and whoever shall say, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of the fire of Gehenna.

23 “If therefore you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has anything against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Be careful to treat your brother (for whom Christ died) with respect. If you don't- the last part of verse 22 could become a major problem for you. Right here and now, it could hinder your worship (vs. 23f.), so make peace- and do it now. Have fun, enjoy life- it is far too short!!! But-- think about what you do, BEFORE YOU DO IT. Problems may sneak up on you if you don't!!!

PS. I have never heard anyone use the word "Raca" outside of a Bible reference, but be careful anyway!!!

From Bill and Laura Dayton... Today

Today

Today is here. I will start with a smile, and resolve to be agreeable. I will not criticize. I refuse to waste my valuable time. Today has one thing in which I know I am equal with others--time. All of us draw the same salary in seconds, minutes, and hours. Today I will not waste my time, because the minutes I wasted yesterday are as lost as a vanished thought. Today I refuse to spend time worrying about what might happen. I am going to spend my time making things happen. Today I am determined to do things I should do. I firmly determine to stop doing the things I should not do. Today I begin by doing, and not wasting my time. In one week I will be miles beyond the person I am today. Today I will not imagine what I would do if things were different. They are not different. I will make success with what material I have. Today I will stop saying, "If I had time," for I will never "find time" for anything--if I want it, I must make it. Today I will act towards other people as though this might be my last day on Earth. I will not wait for tomorrow. Tomorrow never comes.

Dear friends, today is here. We are not promised any more time beyond this present moment. My next breath could be my last, and such is the case with you also. Seize today--for the Lord!

"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble" (Matt. 6:33,34).

This is today. What will you make of it?

From Jim McGuiggan... The good news of Judgement

The good news of Judgement

Paul never ceased to preach the gospel and when he arrived in Athens that's what he did—he preached the gospel. The good news is that the one true God is the God who has come to us in and as Jesus Christ in whom the kingdom of God is revealed (see Acts 17:7).

It isn't only that one day the kingdom of God will be revealed—it's that in Jesus Christ it is revealed. The world in which the will of God will be done as it is in heaven is the world that embraces Jesus as the rightful King and Lord of all. These Athenians with all their interest in "the supreme good" could only debate and guess what the ideal world would look like but Paul knew exactly what the ideal world would look like—it would be a world that took Jesus as King, a world that embraced him as the embodiment of the will of God for creation.

The life and death of Jesus Christ was the judgement of the world in which these Athenians lived. In exalting him God had put his stamp of approval on how Jesus fleshed out the heart and will of God. "Therefore," God highly exalted him, Paul explained in Philippians 2:9, and gave him the name "Lord" over all.

Because this is true—because God saw Jesus Christ as the flawless image of himself and made him Lord of all—it's no surprise, then, that God has appointed a day when he will judge the entire creation in righteousness by Jesus Christ (Acts 17:30-31). Jesus is the judgement of the world (compare John 12:31 and Galatians 5:14 which refer to the cross on which the world hung him and on which it died). So when the time comes for judgement, the standard by which it will be judged is not some "general moral law" or some set of unknown ground rules—the world will be judged by Jesus who is the same yesterday, today and forever.

And how can that be anything other than good news? Could the Athenians have been glad to hear that one of the Caesars would finally judge all? Could 21^st century people be glad to hear that an American President or a UK Prime Minister (or anyone else) was their hope for the righting of all wrongs? Can you imagine humanity's hope that all wrongs will be righted resting on any one of the various segments of Christendom?

And until Jesus comes, what do you suppose is the business of those who are truly "the body of Jesus Christ"?

Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.

From Jim McGuiggan... Jerusalem first!

Jerusalem first!

The first wave of Christians was Jewish. In their thousands they came to take on them the name of Jesus in repentance and baptism and before long James was able to say there were hosts of Torah-observant Jews that had trusted in Jesus as the Messiah (Acts 2:36-41 and elsewhere with Acts 21:20).

Christ’s command to the apostolic group was that they were to begin preaching in Jerusalem, then Judea, then Samaria and then to the uttermost parts of the earth (Acts 1:8 and compare Luke 24:46-47 with Acts 2:1-40). It wasn’t long either before we hear that Phillip had gone to Samaria to proclaim Jesus as Lord and Saviour (Acts 8:5, 12-17) and then he careered down to meet a high-ranking official of the Egyptian court—a God-fearer after the Jewish style—returning from worship at Jerusalem and on his way back to Egypt (8:26-40). From there Philip preached his way up the coast to Caesarea, which at some point he made his home (8:40 and 21:8).

But since the gospel was to go out from Jerusalem, move through Judea and Samaria and then to the other parts of the earth—what are we to say of those righteous people (Jews as well as Gentiles) that the gospel had not yet reached?

Imagine this: a godly and faithful Jewess is present on Pentecost when Peter first proclaimed the gospel about Jesus Christ. She now believes in God’s new work in Jesus Christ and gladly receives the gospel and is baptized, taking Christ’s name on her (Acts 2:37-41). She has now experienced forgiveness in Jesus Christ. She usually comes with her godly and faithful widowed mother but this year the mother was ill and couldn’t make the trip. The daughter has heard and become obedient to the gospel but the mother has neither heard it nor has she taken on her the name of Jesus. What are we to say? One is “saved” and the other damned?

Before Peter got up to speak the good news both mother and daughter were at peace with God and now one is right with God and the other is not? Both were right with God before Peter spoke and now one is “lost” though she has not changed in heart toward God? That makes no biblical or moral sense. The mother has not obeyed the gospel as her daughter has done but it is not that she rejected it—it simply hasn’t yet been offered to her!

Had the mother been a decadent non-lover of God we would rightly call her lost. But this Jewish mother reveres, cherishes and serves God with her heart. As yet she hasn’t been offered the gospel which others far away in Jerusalem were offered just a few hours earlier. Should we conclude that as soon as Peter spoke Acts 2:38 that the absent mother (and a host like her) automatically became damned? Did God at that moment consider this mother (and a host like her) “disobedient to the gospel”? Would he have described her as one who has “not obeyed the gospel”?

Keep in mind that the gospel had not yet gone to the regions beyond Palestine because that was the will of God. “Begin at Jerusalem!” But what of the God-fearing and righteous people who lived half a world away while the apostles worked in Jerusalem?

It doesn’t really help to say, “Well, all I know is: salvation comes to people only through Jesus Christ!” I believe that is true but it doesn’t help us with the questions generated above about those righteous and God-fearing people who hadn’t yet heard.

Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.

From Mark Copeland... Worship In Spirit And Truth (Jn.4:20-24)

                          "THE GOSPEL OF JOHN"

                 Worship In Spirit And Truth (4:20-24)

INTRODUCTION

1. At Jacob's well, Jesus and the Samaritan woman discussed the matter
   of worship...
   a. Samaritans and Jews differed as to where one should worship - Jn 4:20
      1) Samaritans believed they should worship on Mt. Gerazim
      2) Jews understood that it should be in Jerusalem
   b. Jesus said the time was coming for a different kind of worship
      - Jn 4:21-24
      1) Where worship would not be defined by its location (though Jews
         had been right)
      2) Where true worshippers would worship the Father in spirit and
         truth

2. What does it mean to worship the Father in spirit and truth?  Many
   say it means...
   a. To worship God from the heart ("in spirit")
   b. To worship God as He directs in His Word ("and truth")

3. Yet note the contrast made by Jesus...
   a. The Jews had worshipped correctly by going to Jerusalem
   b. But the time was coming when place would not be important
   -- A contrast is being made between OT worship and NT worship

4. Somehow Old Testament (OT) worship had not been "in spirit and
   truth"...
   a. Yet God required worship from the heart from the Jews - cf. Deu
      6:4-7; Isa 1:10-18
   b. And God required worship as directed by His Word - cf. Deut 5:32-33

[If "in spirit and truth" does not mean "from the heart and in harmony
with God's Word", then what does it mean?  Let's first consider...]

I. WORSHIPPING GOD IN SPIRIT

   A. MEANS TO OFFER "SPIRITUAL" WORSHIP...
      1. In contrast to that which is mostly physical
      2. This explanation is in keeping with the context - cf. Jn 4:24
         a. Jesus began by saying "God is Spirit..."
         b. The worship of God is to be "in spirit" (i.e., spiritual)
      3. Note these comments:
         a. "...men must offer a worship corresponding with the nature
            and attributes of God." - J. W. McGarvey
         b. "Since he is Spirit, he must receive spiritual worship..."
            - B.W. Johnson
         c. "A pure, a holy, a spiritual worship, therefore, is such as
            he seeks the offering of the soul rather than the formal
            offering of the body - the homage of the heart rather than
            that of the lips." - Albert Barnes
      -- A worship was coming that was more in keeping with God's
         nature!

   B. AS OPPOSED TO "CARNAL" ORDINANCES...
      1. OT worship consisted of carnal (fleshly) ordinances - cf. He 9:1-10
         a. A physical structure (tabernacle)
         b. Special priesthood, clothing for priests
         c. Lamp stands, burning incense
         d. Instruments of music
         e. Feast days
         f. Animal and meal sacrifices
         -- All which appealed to the carnal or physical senses of man
      2. NT worship is geared more toward the spiritual side of man:
         a. God's temple is now spiritual, made up of Christians -

            1Co 3:16; Ep 2:19-22
         b. All Christians are priests, offering up spiritual sacrifices
            - 1Pe 2:5,9
         c. Our prayers are as sweet incense - Re 5:8
         d. Our music is making melody with the heart, not the harp - Ep 5:19
         e. The Lord's Supper - Ac 20:7; 1Co 10:16-17; 11:17-34
         f. Spiritual sacrifices of praise and service - He 13:15; Ro 12:1-2
         -- The emphasis is on the spirit of man, not his physical
            senses!

[Physical ordinances of the Old Covenant were until "the time of
reformation" (He 9:9-10), which occurred with the coming of the New
Covenant.  As Jesus proclaimed, the new worship is more in keeping with
the nature of God ("God is Spirit..."), designed to relate more to the
spiritual side of man.  Now let's examine...]

II. WORSHIPPING GOD IN TRUTH

   A. MEANS TO OFFER "TRUE (REAL)" WORSHIP...
      1. To worship according to the commands of God?
         a. Certainly we should do this
         b. But this is no contrast to what God expected in the OT - cf.
            Deut 5:32-33
         c. Jesus admitted that the Jews were right in their worship
            - Jn 4:22
      2. What then is the contrast between worship that was and that
         which "now is"?
         a. Not between true and false worship
         b. But between that which is true (real) and that which had
            been a shadow
      -- A worship was coming that was more in keeping with truth and
         reality

   B. AS OPPOSED TO "SHADOW (SYMBOL)" WORSHIP...
      1. Many elements of worship in the OT were simply a shadow or
         figure of that to come
         a. The Tabernacle was a symbol - He 9:8-9
         b. The Law with its worship was only a shadow of that to come
            - He 10:1
      2. Christ is now in the true tabernacle (heaven)- He 9:11-12,24
         a. We should expect the worship of the true to be different
            from that of the shadow
         b. We have already seen that to be the case:
            1) Old Covenant worship, which was but a shadow, was
               physical in nature
            2) New Covenant worship is according to the true realities
               (God is Spirit, Christ in heaven) and is therefore more
               spiritual in nature
      -- The emphasis is on that which is true (real), not which was a
         shadowy symbol of things to come

[This explanation of worshipping God "in spirit and truth" is more in
keeping with the immediate context. Since God is seeking "true
worshippers" who worship Him accordingly (Jn 4:23), some thoughts about
our worship today may be appropriate...]

III. WORSHIPPING GOD TODAY

   A. NOT ALL WORSHIP IS ACCEPTABLE...
      1. There is vain worship - Mt 15:7-9
         a. Based on traditions of men, while ignoring the commands of
            God
         b. Offered without involving our "hearts" (spirits)
      2. There is ignorant worship - Ac 17:22-23
         a. Ignorant of the true nature of God
         b. Ignorant of the worship He desires
      3. There is will worship - Col 2:20-23 (KJV)
         a. Self-imposed, not God-directed
         b. What we like, what we think is good
      -- Just because we worship God, does not mean He is pleased with
         our worship!

   B. MANY OFFER CARNAL WORSHIP...
      1. When they appeal to the OT for their authority for how they
         worship
         a. For instrumental music, burning incense, clapping, etc.
         b. They seek to justify that which appeals to the flesh
            (senses), not the spirit
      2. When they offer that which appeals to their fleshly nature
         a. Preferring what is based on how it sounds
         b. Preferring what is based on how it feels
      -- Striving to be more spiritual, some revert to becoming more
         carnal, a reason to be concerned (cf. Ga 4:9-11)!

   C. GOD SEEKS TRUE WORSHIPPERS...
      1. Who worship God "...with their spirits" - Matthew Poole
         a. Seeking to engage the spirit (mind) more than the organs of
            the body
         b. Content with the simplicity of worship that stresses the
            spiritual side of man
      2. Who worship God "...according to the rule that he hath
         prescribed, in truth and reality." - ibid.
         a. Not desiring to return to the carnal ordinances imposed
            until a time of reformation
         b. Content with the worship ordained in the New Covenant
      3. Who can worship God anywhere, anytime, with true spiritual
         worship - e.g., Ac 16:25
      -- God seeks such worshippers, who seek to worship Him in spirit
         and truth!

CONCLUSION

1. Matthew Poole offered this explanation of our text in his
   commentary...

   "God...is a spiritual Being, the Father of spirits, and requires
   a spiritual service proportioned to His being; and therefore those
   that pay a religious homage to him, must do it with their spirits,
   and according to the rule that he hath prescribed, in truth and
   reality."

2. How can we be sure to offer spiritual and true worship acceptable to
   God...?
   a. Look to the New Testament for our authority in worship!
   b. Worship in ways ordained by Christ and His apostles! - cf. Ac 2:42

3. As God is Spirit...
   a. Our worship should be spiritual and not limited to special places
   b. The emphasis should be on the spiritual (e.g., meaning of the
      words), and not the physical (e.g., how it looks, sounds, feels)

Remember...

   "...the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will
   worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking
   such to worship Him."
                   (Jn 4:23)

From Mark Copeland... The Gift Of Living Water (Jn.4:10-14)

                          "THE GOSPEL OF JOHN"

                   The Gift Of Living Water (4:10-14)

INTRODUCTION

1. When Jesus met the Samaritan woman at the well, He spoke of "living
   water"...
   a. He approached her for a drink on His way to Galilee - Jn 4:3-8
   b. She was amazed that He, a Jew, would speak to her, a Samaritan
      woman - Jn 4:9
   -- Jesus used the opportunity to tell her about "living water" - Jn 4:10-14

2. Questions abound about "the gift of God" and "living water" in this
   passage...
   a. What is "the gift of God"?
      1) Many say it refers to Jesus
      2) Others believe it refers to the salvation He offers
   b. What is the "living water" Jesus offers?
      1) Many say it is a figure for salvation or eternal life
      2) Others apply it to the Holy Spirit, because of Jn 7:37-39
   -- Are they two different things, or one and the same?

3. Like others, I  believe "the gift of God" and "living water" are one
   and the same...
   a. "Now it is quite clear that our Lord means the same thing,
      whatever it may be, by the two expressions, 'the gift of God' and
      'the living water.'" - Maclaren
   b. "When Jesus spoke about 'the gift of God,' He meant 'living
      water.'" - Hendriksen
   -- Though I can appreciate why many believe "the gift of God" is
      Jesus - cf. Jn 3:16

4. Like others, I tend to think "living water" in this passage may refer
   to the Holy Spirit...
   a. "By this living water is meant the Spirit..." - Matthew Henry
   b. "From [Jn 7:37-39] it is plain, that our Savior here by the living
      water he speaks of understood the Holy Spirit." - Poole

[That "living water" in Jn 4:10-14 may be an allusion to the gift of the
Holy Spirit comes from examining the nature of this "living water"
described by Jesus both here and in Jn 7.  For example...]

I. THE LIVING WATER MUST BE DRUNK

   A. AS EXPRESSED BY JESUS...
      1. "...whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will
         never thirst" - Jn 4:14
      2. "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink" - Jn 7:37

   B. DO WE "DRINK" THE HOLY SPIRIT...?
      1. Yes, upon our conversion
         a. Those who repent and are baptized receive the gift of the
            Spirit - Ac 2:38-39
         b. Those who are baptized are made to "drink" of the Spirit 
            - 1Co 12:13
      2. Yes, as we continue to seek to be filled with the Spirit
         a. We are not to be drunk with wine, but filled with the Spirit
            - Ep 5:18-19
         b. The implication may be that filling comes through "drinking"
         c. How do we continue to drink of the Spirit?  I would suggest
            in these ways:
            1) Singing and making melody in our heart - Ep 5:18-19
            2) Feeding upon the Word of God, which is the sword of the
               Spirit - Ep 6:17
            3) Praying for strength through the Spirit - Ep 3:16; cf. Lk 11:13

[Thus we see a similarity between the "living water" of Jesus and what
is said concerning the Spirit and the Christian.  The similarity
continues...]

II. THE LIVING WATER QUENCHES THIRST

   A. AS EXPRESSED BY JESUS...
      1. "but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will
         never thirst." - Jn 4:14
      2. "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink." - Jn 7:37

   B. DOES THE HOLY SPIRIT "QUENCH THIRST"...?
      1. Yes, as prophesied by Isaiah - cf. Isa 44:3
      2. Yes, if by quenching our thirst one means meeting our spiritual
         needs
         a. Such as our need for the love of God - cf. Ro 5:5
         b. Such as our need for our love for God - cf. Ro 8:15; Ga 4:6
         c. Such as our need to mortify the flesh - cf. Ro 8:12-13
         d. Such as our need to abound in hope - cf. Ro 15:13
         e. Such as our need for inner strength - cf. Ep 3:16

[In many ways the Spirit quenches our spiritual thirst!  As we continue
to note the similarity between "living water" and the Spirit in the life
of the Christian, we next observe...]

III. THE LIVING WATER IS IN YOU

   A. AS EXPRESSED BY JESUS...
      1. "the water that I shall give him will become in him..." - Jn 4:14
      2. "out of his heart..." - Jn 7:38

   B. IS THE HOLY SPIRIT "IN" US...?
      1. Yes, our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit - 1Co 6:19
      2. Yes, for the Spirit dwells in us if we are Christ's - Ro 8:9,11

[How the Holy Spirit indwells the Christian may be a mystery; that He
does, there is no doubt.  Note another similarity between "living water"
and the Spirit in the life of the Christian...]

IV. THE LIVING WATER SPRINGS UP

   A.  AS EXPRESSED BY JESUS...
      1. "a fountain of water springing up" - Jn 4:14
      2. "will flow rivers of living water" - Jn 7:38

   B. DOES THE HOLY SPIRIT "SPRING UP"...?
      1. Yes, by moving the Christian to "cry out" Abba, Father -

         Ro 8:15; Ga 4:6
      2. Yes, by helping the Christian to "abound" in hope - Ro 15:13
      3. Yes, by producing "fruit" in the life of the Christian - Ga 5:
         22-23

[The fruit of the Spirit truly refreshes the soul of the Christian as
"living water" does the thirsty soul.  Finally, note one more similarity
between "living water" and the Spirit in the life of the Christian...]

V. THE LIVING WATER RESULTS IN ETERNAL LIFE

   A. AS EXPRESSED BY JESUS...
      1. "a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life." - Jn 4:14
      2. Note:  the "living water" is not everlasting life itself,
         rather it results in everlasting life

   B. DOES THE HOLY SPIRIT "RESULT IN ETERNAL LIFE"...?
      1. Yes, for through the Spirit we wait for the hope of
         righteousness - Ga 5:5
      2. That hope, of course, is eternal life - Tit 1:2
      3. By the Spirit whom God poured out on us abundantly through
         Jesus...
         a. We are renewed and justified by God's grace - Tit 3:5-6
         b. Thus made heirs according to the hope of eternal life - Ti
            3:5-7
      4. And sowing to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting
         life - Ga 6:8
         
CONCLUSION

1. While the "living water" in Jn 4:10-14 may pertain to salvation, I
   believe it has particular reference to the gift of the Spirit in the
   life of the Christian...
   a. Salvation involves both justification and sanctification
   b. The Holy Spirit certainly plays a role in both - cf. 1Co 6:11; Ti
      3:4-7
   c. And the Spirit is given to those who become Christians - Ac 2:
      38-39; 5:32; Ga 4:6
   -- It certainly has such reference in Jn 7:37-39

2. If so, then we might understand Jesus' words to the Samaritan woman
   as follows...
   a. "If you knew the gift of God" - If you knew what God is willing to
      give you (i.e., the Spirit)
   b. "...and who it is who says to you..." - That He is the Messiah,
      the one who will pour out the Spirit on all flesh - cf. Jn 1:33;
      Ac 2:33
   c. "...He would have given you living water..." - i.e., the Holy
      Spirit
      1) The same promise made to all believers in Jn 7:37-39
      2) Though not fully given until He was glorified (after His
         resurrection and ascension)

3. Are we enjoying the benefits of "The Gift Of Living Water" that Jesus
   offers...?
   a. It begins by responding to Christ in baptism - cf. Ac 2:38; 1Co 12:13
   b. It continues by being careful not to "quench" the Spirit - cf.
      1Th 5:19; e.g., Ac 7:51

May our attitude be like that of the Samaritan woman:  "Sir, give me
this water..." - Jn 4:15

6/29/13

From Gary... "FRAMED"

Recently, I did a post about the "SUPER-MOON". And, how big and beautiful it was!!! But, the clouds prevented me from getting a good picture that night. I wish I could have captured the "SUPER-MOON" in this position- how marvelous it would have been to have the moon "FRAMED"; emphasizing its importance. This reminded me of a passage of Scripture from the book of Hebrews...

Hebrews, Chapter 1

1 God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds. 3 His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power...

Jesus is the focal point of all human beings. He made everything and and upholds it to this very hour. Like the moon in the picture, God the father has emphasized both his person and his work as meriting our special attention. Ask yourself- Do I really appreciate Jesus as the center of my life? Is he SUPER to me? Do I shine as a result of having known him? Now, I can see the "FRAMED" moon in the sky, but I can't look into your heart to answer these questions. Time for a little reflection on your part- and I don't mean moonlight either!!!

From Bill and Laura Dayton... LETTING GO!

LETTING GO!

For most Christians, especially first generation Christians, letting go of the past is probably one of our greatest challenges. We so often allow ourselves to be defined by who we once were instead of who we are now in Christ Jesus. Here is God’s answer to our problem: WE ARE FORGIVEN!!! Unless we can accept this teaching from Scripture, we will be forever paralyzed in our faith. Let’s consider a few thoughts.

We must accept the forgiveness of God! In 1 Timothy 1:15, Paul tells us that Christ came to this earth to “save sinners.” Paul confessed that he was a sinner and that God’s grace, mercy and love forgave us of ALL our sins. We now can live at peace with our God Romans 5:1 see also: Col. 1:14, 2:13. We are a new creation, reborn for God’s purpose.

Forgiving ourselves is the biggest challenge for us all. Let’s remember someone who needed a lot of grace and mercy from God – King David. His two great sins were: he committed adultery with Bathsheba and he numbered the people that cost the lives of 70,000 . What did God do with the life of David when he came to God with a genuine repentant heart? Solomon was born from Bathsheba and built the temple on the land where David built an alter to seek God’s forgiveness for his lack of faith in numbering the people.

From the Heart of a Servant

Today, accept God’s forgiveness! Today give up your pride and forgive yourself! God has much good to do through you.

From Jim McGuiggan... Cornelius and the Holy Spirit

Cornelius and the Holy Spirit

What was the significance of the Spirit coming on the godly and God-approved Cornelius?

The exaltation of Jesus the Messiah to the position of Lord of all (Acts 2:33-36) was marked out by the coming of the Spirit. In John 14:26 Jesus said the Father would send the Spirit in his name so when the Spirit came in fulfilment of scores of OT texts and the drift of the prophets his followers knew he had been glorified. See again, John 1:33.

But the promise of the Spirit was embedded in Jewish scriptures and it was addressed to the Jewish people so there was no reason to think “raw” Gentiles (righteous or decadent) would share in the Spirit.

In passages like Acts 2:38-39 the Spirit is promised to as many as God would call but that doesn’t settle the question about uncircumcised Gentiles. In the OT, blessing in the coming age is said to come only to Gentiles who come to Jews asking to be taught and allowed to engage in Jewish worship. See this in passages like Isaiah 2:2-4; 11:10; Micah 4:1-4; Zechariah 8:23; 14:16-19.

Peter understood that God accepted righteous Gentiles. Peter understood that the Spirit was for Gentiles if they became part of the Jewish nation but he didn’t think that fellowship in the Messiah and the sharing of the outpoured Spirit was for Gentiles apart fromconversion to Judaism. It was the outpouring of the Spirit in the middle of Peter’s speech that astonished the Jewish contingent (10:45-46).

Although Peter knew the Spirit had sent Cornelius’ men to him and sent him to Cornelius (10:19-20; 11:12) he was still in the dark and wanted to know, “Why am I here?” (10:29). He tells Cornelius that he and his fellow-apostles had been commissioned to preach the resurrected and saving Lord Jesus to the Jews (10:42). He knew that Jesus could bring forgiveness to all men from any nation (10:43 and see 2:10) but what he did not know—because up to this point he did not need to know—was that uncircumcised Gentiles were to share in the Spirit given by the Messiah; the Spirit through whom the exalted Lord would dwell in a temple made out of Jews and Gentiles on equal terms (see Ephesians 2:11-27).

Paul said that that truth—of Gentile equality in the Christ—had not been made known earlier or had not been made clear until the Holy Spirit made it known through New Covenant apostles and prophets (Ephesians 2:1-6).

It’s important to note that in Ephesians 3:4 Paul doesn’t say “the mystery of the church” but the “mystery of the Christ” (we need to take the Greek definite article seriously here). The mystery was about the Messiah! He was certainly the Jewish Messiah and they understandably claimed him as their own (Romans 9:5; 15:8; Ephesians 2:12, Matthew 15:24 and elsewhere in the Gospels). What wasn’t understood was that (the body of) the Christ would be made up of more than Jews. And note again that this was revealed “by the Spirit” (Ephesians 3:5).

The Jews maintained “the flesh” line of demarcation and restricted the Messiah to Jews. The Spirit called a halt to that the moment it pleased him. Acts 10 was just such a pivotal moment (see Acts 15:7). It wasn’t enough now to grant such Gentiles a place in the category of “righteous Gentiles”—accepted but still outsiders.

Peter regards the Spirit’s intervention as the destruction of the wall that stood between Jews and Gentiles. “In light of this, do any of you want to deny this man his place in Jesus Christ?” he wants to know (10:47). What could they say? The Spirit marked these people out—the very same Spirit they had received. In 11:15-17 he makes the same point but gives it an extra edge—“Did you want me to defy God when he gave them the same Spirit he gave us?”

In that text he wasn’t talking about going with the Gentiles to Cornelius’ house. He had already done that at the Spirit’s instruction. He wasn’t talking about laying hands on Cornelius and imparting the Spirit (see Acts 8:17-18); he quite literally didn’t a have a hand in the imparting of the Spirit to Cornelius. What galled the “conservatives” was Peter’s commanding him to be baptized and take on him the name of Jesus the Christ (10:47). It galled them that he widened the Messianic fellowship beyond the borders of the Jewish nation but they were stumped and accepted the obvious—Gentiles were embraced by God in Jesus Christ (11:18).

This entire narrative is not about God accepting Gentiles. Mark 16:15 and Matthew 28:19 and Luke 24:47 had settled all that. God now made it clear that Jews had no monopoly on Jesus and all he brought. Such a question would not be settled by Peter’s private vision or claims about Spirit instruction—note how quick his critics gathered in 11:2. His apostleship didn’t protect him from rebuke and accusation. The only way it would be settled (or, at least, the way God chose to settle it) was by replicating what had happened at the beginning (see 11:15)—look no hands!

The Spirit’s function here was complex but it was certainly to sound out the message that Jewish exclusiveness and Jewish national righteousness had come to an end. No one would have offered the gospel to this man and no one would have baptized him in the name of Jesus Christ if the Spirit had not acted ahead of them.

So the upshot of all this is what? This paradigmatic event was not about, “How is a man saved?” It’s about, “Does Jesus belong only to Jews or to all people?” The Spirit’s descent said, “Jesus belongs to this Gentile as surely as to any Jew!”

Peter and his fellows got the message and baptized him into the fellowship and covenant of the Lord of all in defiance of centuries of tradition. In light of the Spirit’s involvement in this from start to finish (Acts 10:19 and 11:12 with 10:44 and 11:15-17) Peter really wanted to know, “Does anyone still want to keep them out?” In the absence of protest and in the face of the Spirit’s witness he allowed them entrance into Jesus Christ. In the name of Jesus and by the Spirit of God he offered them the privilege and the means by which they took on them the name of Jesus Christ.

[Some think that the Spirit was sent to save the man. I think he was already “saved” when Peter came to him. Some think the Spirit’s descent on the man meant he didn’t need to be baptized. Neither Peter nor his companions saw it that way. He commanded them to be baptized (10:47). Peter wasn’t about to let anyone else have the credit for giving the Spirit so he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ who sent the Spirit. Some insist, “Yes, but he was saved without baptism therefore everyone else can be.”

And should we conclude from this that all who refuse to be baptized are saved? Is that what the Cornelius case teaches us? If people refuse to be baptized are they really like the Cornelius who said he was anxious to do whatever God had in mind for him? (See 10:3-8, 32-33 and 11:11-13) Did Cornelius take the name of Jesus Christ on him in baptism? If so, and Peter thought that’s what was happening (compare Acts 2:39 and 19:5) should we conclude that those who refuse to take the name of Jesus on them in baptism are “saved like Cornelius”? And what was Peter thinking about? Having seen and heard all he had seen and heard, his first response is to challenge his companions with talk about baptism and then to command these people to be baptized in Jesus Christ’s name. Can you even imagine him saying, “Well, one thing’s clear from all this, this man doesn’t need to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ”?

All such talk is so foreign to the narrative and occasion. We import such matters into Acts when we have our own agenda. I’m not suggesting we do it with sinister intent—but we do it. If we're to draw "lessons" from the incident it might be better to conclude that if someone like Cornelius had to be baptized the rest of us ought to get on with it without debate.]

Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.

From Jim McGuiggan... Cornelius and The Spirit (2)

Cornelius & The Spirit (2)

“Yes, yes, but if Cornelius got the Spirit before he was baptized then he was in the body of Christ and saved in Christ before and without baptism.”

We come up with these quick analyses by picking verses from here and there and piecing them together, but this is hardly the way to work with scripture.

The world cannot receive the Spirit

Cornelius received the Spirit

Therefore Cornelius was not of the world

It looks plain and simple but it isn’t!

If Cornelius was not of the world then what was he?

Was he already in Jesus Christ when the Spirit came?

Did Jesus have a Cornelius in mind in John 14:17?

Did that rascal Caiaphas receive the Spirit in John 11:51?

It simply isn’t good enough to quote a passage out of Romans that is addressed to one who has been baptized into Jesus Christ (Romans 6:1-6), tack it on to a discussion about people in general and then draw conclusions that we say are normative about people in general.

The Holy Spirit's a person (a difficult word, I acknowledge, but when he calls himself “I” or refers to himself as “me” as in Acts 10:20 and Acts 13:2, we’ll live with the difficulty) and the central issue is, “How does this Person relate to us when he is acting on us or in us? What does he mean to convey by what he is now doing?”

If we’re not in Jesus Christ he relates to us and works with us in this way or that and if we are in Jesus Christ he relates to and works with us in ways he doesn’t relate to us when we’re not in Jesus Christ. There’s overlapping, of course!

Christian prophets prophesied by the Holy Spirit but so did the high priest Caiaphas (John 11:49-51). Christians in Acts 8:14-19 had received Jesus Christ by faith but as yet the Spirit had not “fallen” on them. The obvious notion in that context is that though they were now part of the New Covenant community, the body of Jesus Christ which is indwelt by the Spirit, they hadn’t yet shared in the various miraculous gifts the Spirit bestowed on the church. Two Jewish apostles laid hands on them and they “received the Holy Spirit.” These people didn’t become Christians when the apostles laid their hands on them—they were already Christians and were sharers in the Spirit that indwelled the body of Christ (Acts 2:38, “and you will receive the Holy Spirit”). What they received via apostles was a share in gifts that the Spirit gave to some and not to all (see 1 Corinthians 12:4-11, 28-31). But Luke doesn’t say, “They received gifts from the Holy Spirit.” He says they received the Holy Spirit. [We should at least take that into account when reading Acts 10 and 11.]

This should warn us against simply collecting verses about the Spirit and homogenising them in a theological blender. It won’t do to work like this:

They received the Holy Spirit by apostolic hands

Therefore they didn’t have the Holy Spirit before

Therefore they weren’t Christians before the apostles

laid hands on them.

That would be nonsense. Getting back to Cornelius, it won’t do to claim this:

Only those in Jesus Christ receive the Holy Spirit

Cornelius received the Holy Spirit

Therefore Cornelius was in Jesus Christ

It’s manifestly clear that whatever Cornelius was when the Spirit fell on him, he had not committed himself to Jesus Christ in faith. We need to make up our minds about this! He had not yet come to Jesus Christ in faith so the opening line in the above syllogism—even if true, which it’s not—does not apply to Cornelius. If we say Cornelius was already in Jesus Christ by faith before the Spirit fell then the entire incident unravels and comes apart. If he was already a Christian before the Holy Spirit fell it means he would already have had the Holy Spirit (since he would have been a part of the body of Christ, a temple in which the Spirit of Christ dwelled--1 Corinthians 6).

We can’t have it both ways. We can’t say that only those (already) in Jesus Christ receive the Holy Spirit without having Cornelius in Jesus Christ before that moment when the Spirit fell on him.

Some of us in our anxiety to dispense with baptism as part of the conversion experience have Cornelius out of Christ before the Spirit fell, in Christ at the moment the Spirit fell and thus in Christ before baptism. But if only those in Christ receive the Holy Spirit then Cornelius had to be in Christ before the Spirit fell.

“Ah, yes, but maybe the falling of the Spirit saved him in that instant.”

Apart from faith in Jesus Christ?

“Maybe the falling of the Spirit created faith in Jesus in that instant.”

You mean faith was miraculously created in him apart from the gospel? Wonder why the Spirit doesn’t save everyone that way? If he did that with Cornelius the least we'd have to admit is that it is exceptional since the entire NT witness runs against it. And if it is an exceptional case we shouldn't pretend it's normative. I would suppose that anyone who thought Cornelius' saving faith in Jesus Christ was miraculously generated is too tied to a theory obout the significance of the Spirit's falling on the man.

The question isn’t, did the Holy Spirit work on Cornelius?—he did—it's, what are we to make of it? Can one have the Holy Spirit in him apart from being in covenant relationship with Jesus Christ? David did (Psalm 51:11). Can the Holy Spirit work on and in one apart from their being in covenant relationship with Jesus Christ? He did it all through the OT (see below). Can a non-Christian be kind and gentle and caring? Certainly! But can she be that without the Holy Spirit nurturing such things in her (Galatians 5:22-23)?

What the Spirit does in or through or on a person is to be interpreted not merely by the fact that he acted. The significance of that act is to be interpreted in the light of the context and we don’t create that context by importing texts from their own settings into that one.

Samaritans received the Spirit—what was the significance of that?

Ephesians received the Spirit in Acts 19:5-6—what was the significance of that?

People in Acts 2:38; 5:32 received the Spirit—what was the significance of that?

OT people received the Holy Spirit—what was the significance of that?

Caiaphas received the Spirit—what was the significance of that?

Cornelius received the Spirit—what was the significance of that?

Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.