How to Understand what the Bible Leaves Out

Perhaps this sounds like an ambitious thing to tackle in a blog post, however, someone asked some good questions over twitter recently, and although I tried to answer her question, I'm not sure I was doing well over twitter. So, I'm going to give a more full answer here, where I have more space. The question was, basically, "Are we supposed to get baptized in Jesus name only, or in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit?" The question was raised because of a perceived conflict between two verses. The two verses are as follows:

Matt 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  (ESV)

Act 2:38 And Peter said to them, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Also ESV)

There are two ways to approach this question. First, does it matter how we are baptized? Second, how do we know what to do with two verses that seem to contradict each other because of differing amounts of detail?

One of the answers to the question of how to be baptized was to point the questioner to a CARM page on baptism, which has a link to an explanation of what that verse has to do with baptism (http://carm.org/baptism-and-acts-238)
That web page has an in depth, technical explanation of the Greek in Act 2:38.  However, I'm guessing that most people asking the question about which verse to follow aren't interested in a technical explanation of the Greek grammar behind one of those verses. If you skip that explanation, it also has a good explanation of the idea that salvation does not come because of getting baptized.  So, it really doesn't matter (much) how you get baptized, because that's not what gets you saved anyway. I'm not saying it isn't important to do what God's word says. The idea of obedience is good, certainly. The biggest issue, though, is that a person is acting from right motives. So, if a person is honestly trying to do what is right, then that's what counts. If they are in a group that believes in Jesus only baptisms, and so they believe they should be baptized in the name of Jesus only because they don't realize that the Bible has anything else to say on the subject, God isn't going to punish that person for having acted out of a good conscience and for not having been baptized the "right" way. This goes for any other question regarding baptism, too. If you are in a group that practices dunking, sprinkling, immersion, whatever, it isn't the most important question. If you were baptized in any of those groups (regardless of what is "correct" in an objective sense), that's fine. If you did it as the answer of a good conscience towards God to make a public confession of faith towards God, you did it with right motives. That's what counts. That said, if your conscience is bothering you, by all means, do it again! If you've decided that the group who originally baptized you didn't have everything right and so you are concerned that it "didn't take" or something along those lines, go do it again. The Bible is pretty clear about maintaining a good conscience (see 1 John 3:19-23 or so). Also, if those around you don't believe that the way you did it in the past was valid, for their sakes, do it again.

The second question is the more important question. How do we know what to do regarding two verses that seem to contradict each other by giving differing amounts of information? First of all, this pair of verses (Matt 28:19 and Acts 2:38) don't contradict each other. If you are baptized in the name of the son of God, then you are baptized in the name of Jesus. The two things mean the same. If you are baptized in the name of the father and of the holy spirit, you are still being baptized "in the name of" God, which means you are doing it because he (God) commanded it. You are acting as his agent. Because God is one God, whether you do something in the name of Jesus, or in the name of the Father, or the Son or the Holy Spirit, it is all being done in the name of God. Now, if someone doesn't believe in the doctrine of the Trinity, then that's an issue, because there are a LOT of scriptures which substantiate that doctrine. If someone says, though, there is a difference in meaning because the one tells me to be baptized in three names and the other says only to be baptized in one name, that person needs to consider this:

If I go to a party and am telling everyone about a car accident that was really shocking that I witnessed on the way to the party, I might give a LOT of details to the first person I tell about it. I might be still trying to deal with what I saw and I need to just have a shoulder to cry on, so to speak. But if someone else comes over and asks what we are talking about, I'm probably not going to go into as much detail. If yet a third person comes over and asks what we are talking about, I might shorten my recap to just a few words. "Oh, I was talking about an accident I saw." Done. End of story. Say no more. Does it mean that I'm "changing my story?" Is there a contradiction present between my various retellings of what happened? Not at all. These changes are completely natural.

If I'm trying to find a job and so I apply to multiple potential employers, the job descriptions might vary quite a bit. If they each require three completely different skill sets, I might tailor my resume to match each of those three requirements. If I leave out my computer programming experience while applying for a sales job, it doesn't mean I haven't ever worked as a computer programmer. It just means I've changed the focus of my resume to match the needs of my audience.

We often see instances in the Bible of the same circumstances being recounted by multiple witnesses. Jesus life is retold once in each of the four Gospels and each one is different. What to do? If you get more detail from one account than from another, you have to believe the one with more details. 2Ti 3:16 states that, "All scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness" So, you can't just toss out the longer verses because they seem to disagree with the shorter verses.



What do you think? Am I missing anything in my explanation of what to do with those two verses? Is my focus or set of priorities wrong? Can you give me any suggestions for improvements in my reasoning or my examples? Or, if this has been really helpful to you and you just think this is the most wonderful blog post you've ever read, either way, let me know! I love to get comments. Thanks in advance and God bless you!

Weed and the Gospel

Many of the arguments against using drugs are the same regardless of the drug. However, many of us don't know those arguments (when it comes to drug use and Christianity), so I thought I'd write up a quick synopsis of them. There may well be more, and I'd love to hear your thoughts on this in the comments, but this is the way I'm thinking about it currently.

The first argument has to do with the meaning of the word from the Bible translated as sorcery. Although most of us don't think of sorcery today as having anything to do with drugs, in the time the new testament was written, it did. This comes as a surprise to most people I talk to when I'm out witnessing in the streets, but if you look it up in "Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary," it is right there in black and white. I had a hard time with this, although I heard friends of mine saying things about this on a regular basis, until I looked it up myself. The definition given in Vine's is pretty explicit, so I will quote extensively here.

Sorcery:
A. Nouns
1. pharmakia (leaving out the greek spelling) (Eng., "pharmacy," etc.) primarily signified "the use of medicine, drugs, spells"; then, "poisoning"; then, "sorcery," Gal. 5:20, RV, "sorcery" (KJV, "witchcraft"), mentioned as one of "the works of the flesh." See also Rev. 9:21, 18:23. In the Septuagint, Ex 7:11, 22; 8:7, 18; Isa 47:9, 12. In "sorcery," the use of drugs, whether simple or potent, was generally accompanied by incantations and appeals to occult powers, with the provision of various charms, amulets, etc., professedly designed to keep the applicant or paitient from the attention and power of demons, but actually to impress the applicant with the mysterious resources and powers of the sorcerer.

The word "sorcerer" is only slightly different. The second meaning in Vine's for "sorcerer" is as follows.

2. pharmakos (greek spelling omitted), an adjective signifying "devoted to magical arts," is used as a nound, "a sorcerer," especially one who uses drugs, potions, spells, enchantments, Rev 21:8, in the best texts (some have pharmakeus), and 22:15.

Both "Sorcery" and "Sorcerer" are sometimes the words used as the translation of words of another root, "magos", whose definition doesn't have anything overtly to do with "drugs" or "potions". However, for your ease of reading, I've included some of the above cited verses below.

Rev 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

 First of all, sorcerers are listed right along with murderers, whoremongers (RSV uses "fornicators" here. Several other translations say just, "sexually immoral people") and idolaters, each of which is worthy of death in the old testament law. Second, it says that these people "shall have their part in the lake which burn[s] with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." That sounds pretty bad to me. Going from Vine's definition alone, one might say, "Well, the problem with whatever it was these people were doing was that they were actually committing idolatry. It had nothing to do with the drug usage." But, idolatry is listed, too. So, if idolatry was the only problem going on, it wouldn't be listed separately. In Rev 22:15, we see that sorcerers are not going to be allowed to enter into the "New Jerusalem" with the murderers, whoremongers and idolaters. In Gal 5:20, the word for "witchcraft" is pharmakeia. In Gal 5:21, we find that people who practice "pharmakeia" (right along with, again, murderers and such) "shall not inherit the kingdom of God." There doesn't seem to be any symbolism there. As if "lake of fire" and shut out of "New Jerusalem" weren't enough, those who do "pharmakeia" won't inherit the kingdom of God.

If you haven't ever tried to witness to people about the Gospel and had them try to justify themselves, then it might be hard to imagine all the different ways people try to wiggle out of their responsibility to do what's right. In case you, like me, think the above things make "doing drugs" look like something we really ought to avoid, I'll try to help you see things from the point of view of those I witness to. They say things like, "Well, maybe it was some other drug that was being talked about there. How do I know that is really talking about weed?" In response, I try to explain to them the principle behind these prohibitions. I tell them this is no different from alcohol usage (1 Cor 6:9-10, no drunkard shall inherit the kingdom of heaven). The thing that unites the two is Matt 5:28, "But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." The point here is not that a man can't look at a woman. The point is also not that a man can't feel attracted to a woman. Rather, if a man notices that he is being tempted to do something he should not (lusting after a woman he's not married to), he should avoid the source of the temptation. That is, a man being tempted by a woman's beauty should look away! The problem with both alcohol and weed is that they both dull the mind and prevent people from being able to choose right from wrong.

The third argument is that marijuana should be avoided because it is simply not good for you. This argument has a number of different approaches. We are told we are not to defile the temple, and the body of the believer is the temple of the Lord. (retort: What does it mean to defile the temple?) We are not to commit murder, and because we are killing ourselves by smoking (whether marijuana or tobacco), we are committing murder by smoking.

The obviousness of the above is pretty clear to me. However, when I bring this line of reasoning out into the streets, I'm often told, "Oh, no. Neither alcohol nor weed does that to me." I used to drink alcohol, and I find it hard to believe that it doesn't make it more difficult for ANYONE to do what is right. I've never used marijuana, but I've watched people who have, and having done that has been enough for me. Today, though, I found a book in the library that gives me further evidence to support my ideas. It is "Forensic Pharmacology," by Beth and Morris Zedeck, 2007. On p. 51, it says the following.

Marijuana has a range of behavioral effects, including feelings of euphoria, relaxation, mood changes, panic reactions, and paranoia. It also causes an altered time perception, lack of concentration, and impairs judgment, learning, and memory. [...] Other changes include psychosis, delusions, and hallucinations. [...] The physiological effects of marijuana include increased heart rate, dryness of the mouth and throat, increased appetite, enlargement of the blood vessels and pupils, sleepiness, decreased repiration rate, and psychomotor impairment. Ataxia (unsteady balance) and bloodshot eyes are characteristic of marijuana intoxication. Use of marijuana over a long period of time can cause lung damage, impairment of cognitive function, alteration of the immune system, reduced testosterone levels and enlarged breast tissue in males, and schizophrenia, a mental disorder that results in disorganized behavior and social withdrawal.

A friend of mine once told me about a movie he considered to be completely ridiculous called, "Reefer madness," which he said claimed some of those same things. As I remember, his rationale was, "I've known a lot of people who have used pot, and none of them had the things happen that were portrayed in that movie." I've not seen that movie, but if a book on "Forensic Pharmacology" says these things happen, I believe it does happen. How often, I don't know. However, is it really something that should be risked? I personally don't want to mess with anything that could cause me to become schizophrenic. 

1Cr 10:31 Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

Now, knowing what marijuana does to people (from a medical/pharmacological perspective), is using it really something likely to be "to the glory of God?"

A Shilling Tale of Deception

A small crowd of people huddled together at dusk on Alexander Platz in East Berlin staring at the ground watching intently. A few were scanning the passersby looking for police. Every so often there would be a small groan, or an excited yelp to declare triumph! It was illegal, of course. These con-men stole money from the innocent just as surely as if they'd put a knife to your throat, except that their theft was non-violent...usually. I mean, if someone got upset enough and attacked, then the con-man was sure to have his back up within easy reach. They always worked in groups, but I didn't know that at the time. Who was who? Hard to tell. But you can be sure the man with three hats had a lot of friends, even if he didn't use hats.

When I saw them, they always used match stick boxes and the ball was always just a little wad of paper or a rolled up candy wrapper, but it worked plenty well anyway. I'd never seen someone work that game so well before. Surely you have seen it at one time or another.  In cartoons, they always use big cups or bowls. The person working the bowls has three of them and only one ball and is supposed to move the bowls around so quickly that the onlooker loses track of where the ball is. When asked to choose, the onlooker gets it wrong because the three bowls moved around so quickly. It is always drawn in the cartoons as though the bowls are just a blur, but no one can move bowls so quickly that they become a blur.

The funny thing about the three hat game is that the bowls don't move quickly at all, and they don't have to be moved around very many times, either...because the trick isn't in the speed of the bowls. The beauty of using matchboxes and a little wad of paper is that the paper is small. When I first saw them playing, I had thought that the whole trick was in that they used cups with velcro in them, or that the game was played on a table and the ball was dropped out from under the cups by being moved over the edge of the table. But in Berlin, they play on the ground, and they'll let you inspect the match boxes to show you that there isn't any velcro. There is no trick (as far as you can see). And, sometimes people win! So, it must be an honest game, right?

That's where the shill's come in. The guy moving the boxes takes the ball out from under the box when he first puts the box down. Then he puts it back when he lifts up the box he wants the ball to be under. The speed comes in how quickly he sweeps his finger under the box to get the ball out, or in the angles. I'm not sure. I've never been able to do it convincingly (although I’ve never been interested in putting a lot of time into getting good at it). All I know is that if you watch them play for a while, the people who lose look like they must be complete morons. And, when the people win, it doesn't look like they're any geniuses, either. The boxes and ball are just not moving that quickly. So, it looks like a piece of cake. But, somehow, when I tried it, even though I was sure I knew where the ball was, it wasn't there when the guy turned the box over. One of the onlookers shook his head and told me I needed to step on the box with the ball under it and turn it over myself so that the con-man couldn't pull the ball out when he turned the box over. But, even though I was sure I had the right box, the ball still wasn't there. What about the people who won? Those are the shills. And the people who lose who look like complete morons? Those are often shills, too. The con-men work in groups: they have the spotters, the bodyguards, the people who are designated to lose and those chosen to win. Of course, it is all fixed ahead of time so that the innocent onlooker thinks only stupid people lose and you don't have to be that smart to win. So, playing should be easy money...except that it isn't.

Now, if you were brought up being taught about all the ways people can con each other, then maybe you'll think people like me are just really stupid. Anyone who doesn't already know how that type of game is played deserves to lose their money. But, that isn't the point. In college, I earned two degrees with three majors in four years. Two of those majors are in natural sciences with lots of math. I'm not stupid.

A few years ago, I was bitten by a dog. It didn't take my arm off or anything drastic like that, but it did leave a scar. The funny thing about it was that I saw the dog coming at me. I had been in a stand off with the dog for several minutes and it didn't attack until after I thought it had lost interest in me and I started to back away. If you've read enough of my other blog posts, you might know that I spent several years practicing Aikido (a Japanese martial art) when I was younger. Before that, I had spent several years learning western style fencing. Before that, I had spent several years as a wrestler. I've had my fair share of fights between the three of those sports. I'm used to things coming at me quickly. I don't say any of that to brag, but rather to emphasize that until you've seen how quickly a strong dog can move when it wants to, it is hard to even imagine how fast it is. I saw the dog coming at me. I pushed it away to try to protect myself. I never saw or felt it bite me. But after I pushed it away, I was bleeding.

The human eye can only see things that take longer than about 1/20th of a second. That's it. Any faster than that and things just disappear: a finger under a matchbox or a dog snapping its mouth shut.

2Cr 5:7    (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
Hab 2:4    ... the just shall live by his faith.
Pro 12:20 Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil, But counselors of peace have joy.
Prov 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.

What counselors are you listening to in your life? Is there someone by you telling you to just step on the match box and you’ll win, or do you work harder than that to figure out who to trust? Do you trust your eyes as the final arbiter of truth? Is seeing believing, or is there more to it? I'd love to hear your comments.

The Explosion in my Apartment

“Ugh. Another answering machine,” I thought. I’m not sure there were any more coal dealers in the phone book. I had called several and every one that I called was away for Christmas. After a year and a half in Berlin, I no longer lived with the woman I thought I would marry. (This was before I became a Christian.) I no longer had central heat. I had a coal furnace…but no coal.

“I can get coal at the building supply store,” I thought. It was a forty five minute trip to get there. Carrying as much coal as I could, I still could only bring enough home for a day or two at a time. Until the building supply store didn’t get their shipment.

The furnace looked like a big ceramic box: nothing complicated. There was an iron door about 10 inches square at the bottom on one end. The whole thing was five or six feet tall by 2 feet deep and 3 feet across and had a chimney at the top of the side farthest from the little door. When I say, “ceramic”, I don’t mean the whole thing was ceramic, rather it was covered in ceramic tiles. So when I had wet laundry, it worked well to hang my laundry on. A string fit nicely in the grooves between the tiles and then held the laundry against the furnace. I didn’t have a washing machine, or a dryer and paying for a dryer was expensive. So why bother? I had this great, big, hot box in my bedroom that dried my clothing just fine…or so I thought…until I ran out of coal.

“I’ll just get wood for today. It’s just a big box anyway, right? There won’t be any harm.” So, I bought wood instead of coal. Wood, unfortunately, doesn’t burn like coal. With coal, the fire is actually in the coal. When wood burns, it gives off gasses when heated and then the gasses burn…unless there isn’t enough oxygen for the flammable gasses to burn. Remember the big, simple, box that was my furnace? It wasn’t as simple as I thought. Coal just burns more slowly if there isn’t enough oxygen to burn quickly. Then the smoke gets routed in a sort of zig zag pattern through the inside of the furnace so that as much heat as possible is sucked out of the smoke and is used to heat the room. When you burn wood in it, though, that zig-zag slowly fills up with those un-burned flammable gasses until the air inside the furnace goes critical and then, “poof,” or “bang,” depending on your luck.

Remember the laundry? Those ceramic tiles are just held on with clay. Get it wet and the tiles come right off. That’s how those furnaces are repaired. Did I know that, as a foreigner? No. Did anyone tell me? No. Am I thankful no one told me not to hang my wet laundry on my coal furnace? Yes. When those furnaces get old, sometimes they go, “bang” and the top comes off, flying across the room. If you are lucky, you won’t be under the hundred pounds of clay, iron and ceramic tile when it lands. If I hadn’t hung my clothing on my furnace to dry before putting wood in it, it might have gone “bang” instead of “poof”. I might not have seen the little black puffs of smoke come out from between those tiles except for my laundry getting them wet.

Or, someone might have told me not to put wood in my coal furnace…even if I’m out of coal and I’m cold. Then, I might not have blown up my furnace (even gently) and had to go two weeks without heat.

Deu 10:19 So you, too, must show love to foreigners, for you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt.

Do you know any foreigners? If so, ask them about differences between where they are now and where they are from. Maybe give tips on how to live here. Perhaps you can prevent them from suddenly hearing “bang” or “poof”. You might save that foreigner’s life. They might appreciate it. Seriously, though, it might be rare for you to be able to find something that will keep anyone from accidentally causing an explosion. However, if you ask them about themselves, you can show them that you care. Maybe the above experience of mine has opened your eyes to something that you didn't even know existed just a short time ago, but is common in another country. Knowing about such things can make it easier to know what to talk about with foreigners, which can make it easier for you to "show love to foreigners."

Have you had any similarly bizarre experiences? Have you traveled? If so, you probably have lived through some shocking things. Why not let us know about those in the comments? Thanks! I look forward to hearing from you about it.

Earning an Escape from the Flames

"What you are asking for, I cannot sell you," said the old man.

Rufus replied, "If I'm not offering enough, I'll pay more. How much do you want?" They walked steadily and quickly, but calmly through the city as others ran past frantically.

But the old man answered, "There is no price. I'm sorry."

Amidst angry shouts around him, Rufus persisted. "But, you've offered it to me hundreds of times before...I just wasn't ready."

"You weren't ready? Are you sure you weren't just unwilling?"

The old man had volunteered at the orphanage for years. He told all the children wonderful stories whenever he came. But he also told the children to follow him and that doing so would be both extremely difficult and more fun than anything they'd ever done before.

"Well, I don't know. The things you said didn't make any sense to me. How was I supposed to know that the things you were saying were true?" The old man had also told them what would happen to their city. The old man had told of the problems the city had: the rising tensions and the unwillingness of the people who lived there to do what was right. The people who lived there always wanted more and more: even after they’d been given as much as they could use without hurting themselves.

"I know and understand that. But, they didn't make sense to Jimmy, either, and yet he is now coming with me."

"Why does he get to go and I have to stay? He doesn't have anything to give you! Look how much money I've offered you and he hasn't offered you anything!"

"He loves me. He is a child. Jimmy trusted me and came when I called him. He has no other parents. He needs me. You have said over and over again that you don't need my help. You are all grown now. Your father came to claim you years ago and you willingly went with him. Don't you remember the story of the soup kitchen?"

Rufus knew it well. The old man had explained to him and the other orphans using a story about how strange people could be. He said that he had run a soup kitchen for a time and that one night a proud man came in who had lost his home. He was still well dressed, in spite of being homeless. The man had no more money because of legal difficulties and problems with his own business. The proud man had wanted to earn his soup. The old man told him that he couldn't do that.

"But, I don't want a hand out. I don't want to take anything for free. Let me work for my food."

The old man could only reply, "You are welcome to work. You are welcome to eat. But the food is free, whether you work or not. You cannot earn it. All the ingredients have been donated. I promise all donors that I will never charge for what they have freely given. Should I put a price tag on it now? I cannot."

The proud man hadn't eaten in days and began to weep because he didn't want to take charity.

"But what does the soup kitchen have to do with us...here and now?" asked Rufus. Meanwhile, as they had walked, they had come to the docks and the old man began to board a ship, little Jimmy running quietly alongside him to keep up. The old man gave the fare for himself and Jimmy and continued to explain to Rufus, "When I told you not to steal, you did it anyway. Others punished you. I could not. I was just a volunteer. When I told you to tell me about your homework and let me help you with it, you would not. Your grades suffered for it. You didn't trust me in the little things. Jimmy did and does. Jimmy is clearly willing to be my son. You didn't seek me early. We haven't spoken in years. But now, when the things I told you would happen have finally come to pass, now you claim to want to be my son, but you aren't." By this time, everyone had boarded the ship except the old man and Jimmy. Then, they walked up the gang plank, too. The ship began to pull away.

Rufus looked out at the large ship as it kept pulling further from the dock. He had to speak ever louder in order for the old man to hear him.

"But I'll work for you. I'll do anything you say. Whatever you ask me, I'll do."

"Rufus, you've said that before, but you never keep your word. You have always lied to me. And anyway, I can't turn the ship around. The gap is now so large, you couldn't leap it if you tried. And, remember the soup kitchen."

Looking back, Rufus could see the city on fire. With all the noise in the background and the growing distance to the ship, Rufus was now yelling so loud it was hurting his throat.

He said, "I was only in the orphanage because I thought my father was dead, but he wasn't. Now I know my father is an evil man. But you were always kind to me. Even though I didn't do what you said, the things you told me...I see now that you always only gave me good advice. Please take me with you. And why do you keep bringing up the soup kitchen?"

Rufus began to sweat from the heat of the burning city. He was also sobbing by this time. The buildings in that city were made mostly of wood and it had been dry lately. The fires were spreading quickly, even while the people rioted instead of trying to put them out.

The old man yelled, "You don't really love me. You haven't ever loved me. You are only saying those things now to try to escape the flames. Immigrations would never allow it. You have no more time to make those decisions. You are too old now. I can't bring a grown man home and claim to have adopted him. This is your city. This is where you belong. I keep bringing up the soup kitchen to remind you that there are some things you just can't 'earn'."

The fires were close enough now that Rufus could feel pain from the flames, and he could no longer see the ship because of the smoke. It was so thick he was in complete darkness. As he tried to watch the ship sail away, Rufus gnashed his teeth in agony from the heat, but there was no way to earn a place aboard the ship. He couldn't buy a ticket any more now than he could pay the old man to adopt him. His wicked, natural father had deserted him again at the first sign of danger and his chance to go with his savior was gone. The last words Rufus heard were, "There are some things you just can't 'earn'."

Jimmy and the old man watched from the ship as the smoke flooded over the docks and absorbed Rufus but were unable to do anything to help him. Jimmy asked the old man, “Daddy, what is Rufus doing now?” He answered, “I don’t know, Jimmy. I can’t see him any longer.” With that, they sailed on to the old man’s home land. There were, of course, times when Jimmy did things he wasn’t supposed to. But, he kept learning. When he was punished for something, he would learn not to do that thing again and he stopped doing it. His relationship with the old man continued until the old man’s death many years later. Then, he went on to teach other children how to live uprightly as well. And yet, he always knew that his relationship with the old man did not exist because Jimmy was “better” than Rufus. They had both lied. They had both stolen things. But Jimmy never left the old man for long. And if he did something wrong, he came back and apologized. The relationship didn’t exist because Jimmy paid the old man anything. It wasn’t there because Jimmy “worked” for the old man, but because they were both willing to maintain a relationship.

There is an old man who wants to adopt you, too. Are you willing to be his child? If you wait too long, one day, there won’t be any more time for you to decide to change, either. If you decided once that you wanted him to adopt you, have you kept up the relationship? Or have you walked away and only return when you are in trouble? What kind of a relationship is that if you only show up when you want something from him?

If you have questions or comments, I’d love to hear what you think. Thank you for reading.

How to Lead a Valuable Life

You need to lead a valuable life. Perhaps that's obvious, but most of us drift through life without much thought to how to make ourselves more valuable. If you want to be valuable, there are several steps involved. First, you have to decide that being valuable is your goal. Second, you have to know what your goal means. Third, you have to know how to achieve it. Of the three, once you've achieved the first two, the third is easy.

Why focus on being valuable? The easy answer is, "Because God commands it." Now, he doesn't come right out and say it that way, but consider the two commandments from the Bible which Jesus said are the greatest: Love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength and love your neighbor as yourself. Now, when the Bible commands us to "Love God" and "Love our neighbors", what is it saying? First and foremost, remember that love is a verb. In the case of those two commandments, it is not only in active voice, it is COMMANDED! Sometimes people lose the idea that love can be commanded, but know this: love isn't just a feeling. It can be commanded because we can choose to act out our love toward others regardless of how we feel.

What does love have to do with being valuable? The opposite of love is not hate, but rather selfishness. There are only two ways to lead a life. You can be self centered or others focused. There is very little room in between.  If you seek to gratify your self, that path can only lead to failure. A very rich man from the early twentieth century was once asked how much money would be enough for him. He answered, "A little bit more." We are no different. One of my children really likes Pokemon cards. As a way to help him understand himself better, I asked him that same question, "How many will be enough? 100 cards? 500 cards?" He answered, "Some of my friends have binders and binders full of them." The answer doesn't really depend on some absolute, measurable goal, but rather on measuring up to those around him. What about you? Do your goals include measurable results?Do those results make sense on their own, or are your goals aimed simply at having as much as the next person or being as good as the next person? Are your goals all focused around how to get more _______ for yourself? (Go ahead and fill in the blank: money, power, prestige, stuff, comfort or other physical pleasures...it doesn't really matter what you put in that blank unless it is that you want more of God in your life...) To see a verse which talks about selfishness, read Isaiah 56. Towards the end of that chapter it says (of people not following God)

Isa 56:11

Yea, [they are] greedy dogs [which] can never have enough, and they [are] shepherds [that] cannot understand: they all look to their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter.

The one who follows God is satisfied...not necessarily because God pours out money and possessions and power on those who follow him, but rather because God commands us to be content with what we have...and because he commands us to love our neighbors as our selves.

This is why the idea of selfishness is important: we can never be filled by seeking only our own good. We can only be filled by giving to others. By seeking to empty ourselves, we find out how full we are. That's where contentment comes from. I'm not saying we can be content merely by giving. God has to have a hand in it. There's no value in giving away so much that you become homeless and are no longer taking care of your family. Poverty isn't valuable of itself, either. There are ways to be poor which benefit no one. The value comes not from being poor, but from serving God by serving others in his name.

I know I haven't spent much time writing about how to actually be more valuable. But, as it says at the beginning of this post, actually doing it is the easy part. God will make you more valuable if you decide that making yourself more valuable to others will help you to love them, which is the second greatest commandment. He tells us that if we love him, we'll keep his commandments. So, being loving toward others (and you know that doesn't mean just fawning over them or feeling a certain way towards them) is second in importance only to living out our holiness towards God. And, He doesn't command us to do anything He doesn't give us the ability to accomplish (1 Cr 10:13, Matt 11:30 & 1 Jo 5:3).

As always, I look forward to your comments. They are a huge help to me. Thank you.

How to Receive Many Benefits from God

A reader recently posed a question about preachers taking the idea of the command for holiness out of context and turning it into a works gospel. I told him I would write about that soon, but I have been finding it challenging because there are so many aspects to these issues. I think, though, that I have found a way to write about it that will be positive, encouraging, true and helpful. (And I have a lot more to say about avoiding the idea of "earning" salvation...so if you still think I'm too much in that direction after reading this, stay tuned! I have more to say on that topic and will deal with it more in future posts.) For now,would you like help in receiving benefits from God? If so, read on.

First, what are the benefits of a good relationship with God? I know of thirteen things one receives beginning right at the first moment of salvation, but to keep this post short, I'm only going to list four of them.

1. He provides for us. (see Ps. 78:20 and following)
2. He heals us if we get sick. (Acts 4:10-12)
3. He protects us. (Pro 18:10)
4. He forgives us and cleanses us from unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

(For details on how you can learn about all 13 things and a lot more, you can click here). To be even more general than the items in the list above, God is just (Deu 32:4) and he is good! (Psa 73:1) He wants to give us the desires of our hearts. And yet, he commands us to love him with all our hearts, minds, bodies and souls. If we love him, we are to keep his commandments (John 14:15). We are told that if we do not love him, we will not keep his commandments (John 14:24). Looked at from the other direction, if we don't keep his commandments, not only do we not love him, we don't even know him. (1 John 2:3-4) So, what are we showing the desires of our hearts to be if we are showing him that we don't love him? Jesus said we are either with him or against him. So, if you don't love him, you will want to get away from him, or even fight against him. I don't want to get into condemnation, though. Rather, let's think about a positive example.

Imagine a boy on a baseball team. Can you imagine him telling the coach, "Coach! I love playing baseball, but can you just let me sit on the bench throughout the whole game? In fact, I don't want to play at all. I just want to sit here and watch the whole season." It doesn't make any sense, does it? No, the one who really loves baseball is going to show up early for every practice and be the last one to leave. He'll want to play in every game. He will probably even practice on his own outside of the full team's practices. What does this have to do with Jesus and whether or not we follow him?

Jesus tells us that his commandments are not grievous (1 John 5:3) and his yolk is easy and his burden [that which he asks us to do/carry] light. When he gives us his supernatural power to live rightly before him, our lives are changed. When we see how wonderfully he has changed our lives, we will not be able to help but to talk about him. It will be like the apostles in Acts 4:20, "For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." So, rather than wondering what will happen if we DON'T do what he says, we should be overjoyed to have the opportunity to be ABLE to do what he commands! Then it will be like the boy who plays baseball every chance he gets. It will be obvious to everyone how much you love Jesus. Now, keeping that comparison in mind, which do you think has a better chance of scoring one for the team? The person who is out doing the work of our Lord, or the person who just wants to sit on the sidelines and watch? It is really not a question of whether we have to work. It is a question of whether or not we are even in the game! Are you showing up and asking to be put in? Or is it just there for entertainment...a mere spectator sport?

The last point I'd like to make here, since this is supposed to be a post about receiving benefits from God is just this: In Mat 10:10 (NIV), the verse ends with, "for the worker is worth his keep." If you were a professional baseball player, but you weren't preparing for the games, if you weren't asking to be put in, if you didn't have a good attitude about playing the game, if you really weren't committed to the team's goals, do you think you'd keep receiving the benefits of being one of the workmen on that team for long? Would you really be worth your keep? This is how I look at working for the Lord.

I normally go out street preaching Saturday nights. However, times do come up when I can't make it. For example, sometimes I'm out of town (and I try to bring Bibles with me to give away wherever I am). Sometimes, my wife is out of town and I don't have any childcare. So, I can't go out street preaching. I don't feel like I'm condemned for not managing to find a sitter to be at my house from 10:30 PM till 2:30 AM. That would be a pretty hard sitter to find. However, when I can make it out there, the whole rest of my week goes better for me. God provides me with a peace that is beyond understanding. When I don't go, I have trouble sleeping. I don't get along with people as well. So, does God provide for me? Absolutely. Do I get a pay check signed by him (or a church)? No. But his provision is every bit as real as if it had a church's name on it. I work for him, regardless of who signs my checks and I hope you do, too.

Please let me know what you think. I always value comments.