Monthly Archives: May 2009

Galatians 3:10-14

10For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” 11Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” 12But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.” 13Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— 14so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

The death of Christ for all who trust, and not for those who keep the Law of Moses, means that salvation is not just for Jews. Once the Law is taken out of the equation it is plain that one of the great benefits is that all may be saved without any reference to law keeping whatsoever.

We who are Gentiles may be saved because salvation has no ethnicity bound to it whatsoever. This a major theme of Paul in his writings, especially in Ephesians 2:11-22 and Romans 3 and 4. It is a grand and glorious message. Salvation in Christ is for all who believe. It is not restricted by any human barriers whatsoever.

Sin, gender, race, social standing all mean nothing when it comes to salvation. The ground at the foot of the cross is level. This being the case we are called to give the Gospel wherever God gives us opportunity. We should deliver it ubiquitously knowing that the cross means all may come and believe and be saved. Anyone who knows Christ needs to know this great liberating truth and give the Gospel without fear. Never let a believer conclude in his heart that there is someone for whom the Gospel is not.

Of course this equality of people before the cross applies to those who do not believe as well. All people can be saved no matter who they are. And all people need to be saved no matter who they are. No one is granted a free pass on the basis of their ethnic origin, religion, gender, colour or anything else. Salvation is based on one’s faith in Christ – period. No one can claim special status with the Almighty. No one can rest easy because of anything about themselves. All need the righteousness of Christ, because no one has any righteousness of their own.

All need Christ and all are invited to Christ. Jesus Christ is for you.

Proverbs 14:1 (ESV)

The wisest of women builds her house,

but folly with her own hands tears it down.

The opposite of a woman who builds up her home is foolishness. What a commentary on our culture. Commitment to the betterment of the home is not often equated with wisdom in our culture today. People have bigger fish to fry. The impression is often given that what is important is what makes the most money, has the greatest influence or changes the society for good the most. But if what the prevailing ideas of a culture suggests do not build up the home it is not wise. Ladies, gentlemen, be faithful to the teachings of the Scriptures. Know that a woman who builds up her house is wise. To forsake the home on the basis of what the culture thinks about it, is to abandon God. Stick with Him and the teachings of His Word. They are abandoned at your own and your family’s peril. Look at our culture for the proof of it.

All of this, of course does not mean that the Bible says a woman cannot work outside the home. The woman of Proverbs 31 is obviously not one who sits at home and does nothing. Verses such as the following suggest that the virtuous woman does much more than what we traditionally think of as housework.

Proverbs 31:13-16 (ESV)

She seeks wool and flax,

and works with willing hands.

[14] She is like the ships of the merchant;

she brings her food from afar.

[15] She rises while it is yet night

and provides food for her household

and portions for her maidens.

[16] She considers a field and buys it;

with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.

[24] She makes linen garments and sells them;

she delivers sashes to the merchant.

But also note that what the woman of Proverbs 31 is doing all this for the good of her home.

[21] She is not afraid of snow for her household,

for all her household are clothed in scarlet.

[22] She makes bed coverings for herself;

her clothing is fine linen and purple.

[23] Her husband is known in the gates

when he sits among the elders of the land.

[27] She looks well to the ways of her household

and does not eat the bread of idleness.

Finally we note that the family members of the woman of Proverbs 31 are not shy about proclaiming, for all to hear, the praises of their wife and mother

[28] Her children rise up and call her blessed;

her husband also, and he praises her:

[29] Many women have done excellently,

but you surpass them all.”

[30] Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,

but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

If a woman comes to believe that her job of building up a household is demeaning and thankless and slavery, then perhaps it is because she has heard precious little of the encouragement that such work should receive. Liberation may be what she needs.

Husbands and children are to sing loudly the praises of the wife and mother who labours to ensure that her home is built up in the wisdom that receives the commendation of God. No woman should ever be given the impression that her work that contributes to the betterment of the home is unimportant. She should have no doubts that her household values her work and values her even more.

Mark 6:31 (ESV)

And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.

A holiday weekend is now over and those who have the blessing of gainful employment are returning to work after having an extra day off for a holiday. This blog has been dormant since Friday due to the fact that the regular author of the posts and the one who writes posts when he is away, were both away together taking a group of young men on a retreat weekend involving fishing, Bible Studies and preaching videos. While it was not a holiday, it was restful because we were out of the city and the normal hectic pace that we all seek to maintain.

To be able to spend a couple of hours fishing and then sit around a campfire talking about the goodness of God is an incredible gift from God. On Saturday evening there we were, all standing in a pitch dark night looking at an awe inspiring show put on by God in the form of a starry night. There are so many more stars in the sky when there are no city lights to block their view! And then there were the walks in the woods, the campfire and the absence of city noise.

This kind of get away is a gift from God and it is of great value to the soul. The verse above reminds us that Jesus was concerned about the physical well being of His disciples. He told them to come away with Him because they had just returned from a time of preaching and healing. They were tired. He wanted them to get a break.

But it would have benefits far beyond the physical. Rest feeds the soul as well. Overwork, a full schedule, a hectic pace do not just make us tired. They infect the soul. They keep us from spending time alone with God and benefitting from the good that such times give us. Our schedules contribute to the withering of the heart. God becomes distant. We know things are not right spiritually but we just cannot put a finger on why. Psalm 46:10 tells us why.

Psalm 46:10 (ESV)

“Be still, and know that I am God.

I will be exalted among the nations,

I will be exalted in the earth!”

We are unable to “be still and know”.

Not all of us can get away on fishing trips and spiritual retreats. But we can schedule in times alone with God. We need to value them more highly and get them on our “to do” lists. To say that we do not have time to schedule in away times with God for focussed prayer and Bible meditation is to say that we don’t have time to grow closer to Him.

We all need more rest. We all are over booked and over scheduled and trying to do too much. We must not let it prevent us from growing closer to our God.

Examine your schedule. This Sunday afternoon, schedule in a time to do nothing but nap, read your Bible and reflect upon its message and pray over it. If you have questions about what it says, bring them up with your pastor or leaders at another time. Turn the TV off. Take the ear plugs out of your ears. Turn off the computer. Pray, meditate, read, nap, journal, think, take a leisurely walk. There are many ways to cultivate a quiet reflective time with God. Do not diminish it. It is of great value. For the good of your own soul get away with God alone. It will make you better for all the things that you need to get done. It will help equip you for the spiritual battles you are called to fight in. And you will, as you make this a regular time in your life be amazed at how valuable it is to you.

God bless you in your efforts.

Galatians 3:10-12

10For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” 11Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” 12But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.” 13Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— 14so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

Faith produces good works. This is the consistent testimony of the whole Bible. But it is equally clear that in terms of how to be saved from our sins faith and works could not be further apart.

There is only one way works can save anyone: a sinless (meaning, someone without a sinful nature) person must remain sinless all his life, doing all that the Law of God requires and abstaining from all that the Law of God forbids.

This is impossible for two reasons: 1) There are no people without a sinful nature and 2) our sinful nature demands that it is impossible to keep all the Law of God flawlessly.

For a person to rely on his obedience to the law is to condemn himself. God requires sinless perfection in all who will live with Him for eternity. There is a curse upon all who transgress the Law in the least bit. The wages that sins earn is eternal separation from God. God would not be just if He did not punish sin.

This is why Jesus had to come. We did not force Jesus to come. He was not obligated to save anyone at all. But once God, because of His love, chose to save people, then there was no other way for Him to save them than through the death of Christ. He is able to keep the Law because He does not have a sinful nature like everyone else. And He lives for the sake of others to have counted as theirs, the righteousness that He has. His death is acceptable to God as a sacrifice because He is sinless and an acceptable offering. The resurrection is testimony that God has accepted the sacrifice of Christ on behalf of His people.

The benefits of Jesus’ life and death are counted as ours when we trust Christ to save us. When we put our faith in Him He counts us as if we had lived the sinless life that Jesus did and He counted Christ, on the cross as if He had committed our sins. It is by grace alone in Christ alone through faith alone that we are saved. Rely on the works of the Law, or any works for that matter and you are doomed for eternity. You simply cannot do it. You must trust the One who did it for you.

He turns none away who come to Him in faith, turning away from their sin and looking to Him as their only hope and life.

Psalm 93:1-5 (ESV)

The Lord reigns; he is robed in majesty;

the Lord is robed; he has put on strength as his belt.

Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved.

[2] Your throne is established from of old;

you are from everlasting.

[3] The floods have lifted up, O Lord,

the floods have lifted up their voice;

the floods lift up their roaring.

[4] Mightier than the thunders of many waters,

mightier than the waves of the sea,

the Lord on high is mighty!

[5] Your decrees are very trustworthy;

holiness befits your house,

O Lord, forevermore.

The Lord reigns. How many times are we told this in Scripture? And yet, how often do we live as if it were not so?

Should not the fact that God reigns over everything, all the time deal with our worry and anxiety over trouble? Should it not help us rest at night even when things outside are in a mess(Psalm 3:5)?

It is easy to say from the comfort of the office as this is typed, but it is still true. Countless hundreds of thousands of believers throughout history have demonstrated calm in the midst of strife because they believed that the Lord reigns (Hebrews 10:32-34). When the rulers of the world plot together to overthrow good, God laughs (Psalm2). When Christians are persecuted and killed for their faith the Lord Jesus says we should rejoice (Matthew 5:11-12). When the economy shows signs of tanking and people get laid off and work is hard to find, Christians trust in the God who takes care of birds and promises to take care of them too (Matthew 6:25-34).

How many of us can articulate the practical ways that this truth has impacted us and helped us in our day to day living? What is it that fuels us up for obedient service to Christ? Should not the sovereign rule of Christ over His church and the world be at the top of the list?

This is one of the ironies of the Christina faith as it expresses itself in the early years of the twenty-first century. People saved by the sovereign grace of God zero in on lesser things to sustain them in their Christian walk. This should not be.

The Lord reigns. He reigns over all that takes place. This is true when horrible things happen and when we cannot believe how good things are occurring. It is simply always true. And for Christians to believe less is an act of rebellion. The practical outworking of the reign of God in the world is seen in the last verses of this Psalm. “Your decrees are every trustworthy”. There it is. God’s sovereignty feeds our faith. Where there is no absolutely sovereign God there can not be faith. If God is not in absolute control of everything, then He cannot be trusted for anything. But our God does reign. He is in heaven and He does whatsoever He pleases (Psalm 115:3) .

Because He does, we can trust Him. Trust is only as good as the thing we put our trust in. We put our trust in the God who reigns supreme.

Galatians 3:7-9

Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. [8] And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” [9] So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

When God said that through Abraham all the nations of the earth would be blessed, He meant that people from all the world would be people of faith in Jesus Christ and therefore be children of Abraham. The promise to Abraham that he would the Father of a great nation was never intended to stop with Israel. God meant that this great nation that Abraham would father, would be a people from all the nations and the citizenship would be based on faith, not on geography or place of birth.

For the Galatian believers to hold on to the Law, is for them to go back to that which was a shadow of better things to come (Hebrews 10:1). The political entity known as Israel is not the chosen nation of God in the sense that God only has plans to save Jews.

The fulfilment of the promises to Abraham and Israel are fulfilled by Christ through the church and that was always their intention. Every time a person comes to faith in Christ the promise God made to Abraham is being fulfilled. Christians can read their Old Testaments without having to believe that Israel as a political entity is still awaiting the fulfilment of the promises made to the patriarchs.

Christians, both Jew and Gentile, should rejoice in the fact that they are the product of a plan forged before the foundations of the world and is now being realized. That plan came into being through Israel for the blessing of all the nations. God still has a special place in His plan of salvation for Jewish people (Romans 11:1-4). That special place is based on the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 11:5, 25-26).

Its hope is far greater than a piece of geography. We are all Israel who are of faith in Jesus Christ and that is cause for great rejoicing.

Psalm 66:8-9

8Bless our God, O peoples;

let the sound of his praise be heard,

9who has kept our soul among the living

and has not let our feet slip.

Life is always a gift from God. What hardships, what disappointments, discouragements, set backs … were there in the Psalmist’s life that could have cause him to say “God has turned away from me since he has kept my soul among the living”? “Why doesn’t He just take my life and get me out of this mess?”

Life is a gift. Regardless of the problem it is better to be alive than dead. This presents a paradox for the believer. He knows that “to depart and be with Christ is far better”, but he also knows that death is an enemy that is not a welcome visitor (I Corinthians 15:26).

As those who know that upon death there is an end to all the hardships of life, it is amazing that Christians value life the way they do. For some, this may be nothing more than doubt about their spiritual welfare, but for most of us it is a matter of having the image of God in us to the degree that we love life and do not want to let go of it.

Today is a gift from God to you. Thank Him for it. Do not see this life as the end of things and that your goal is to get everything from it that you can since we are here for a good time not a long time. But do not commit the opposite error of despising life and living in the hope that it ends soon.

The end of the matter is this. God has put you here for a purpose and until He is done with you here you should be thankful that he keeps your soul among the living. Do what points to Him today and be thankful that God gives you the opportunity to do so.

Galatians 3:5-9

5Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith— 6just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”? 7Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. 8And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

To get the people to see how law keeping has nothing to do with getting saved, Paul appeals to the greatest patriarch of them all – Abraham. If anyone is going to be justified on the basis of works/law, it is Abraham.

Paul takes it for granted that the Galatians know that Abraham was justified by faith and not works. “You know that Abraham was justified by faith. Why then would you think that you are not?” is his argument. This is very similar to Jesus’ statement to Nicodemus when Nicodemus expressed amazement at Jesus saying he must be born again. “How is it”, Jesus said to him, “that you are a teacher of Israel and do not know these things?” (John 3:9-10).

Similarly, when Jesus is walking with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus after His resurrection he expresses surprise that His death and resurrection should come as a surprise to them (Luke 24:25-27). In other words, the Old Testament has enough in it to direct to Christ and when Christ came, believing Jews should have seen Him as the Messiah.

The concept of new birth is not new in the New Testament. It is developed and explained more clearly and we see Jesus as the fulfillment of what the Old Testament teaches.

Justification by faith plus nothing is not a new concept. It is expressly said about Abraham. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is found in the Old Testament. The New Testament sheds light and gives all the details about it, but Jesus expected Nicodemus and the disciples in Luke 24 to know about it even before the New Testament was written, even before the new covenant was introduced. Paul will use the example of Abraham again in a more developed and powerful manner in Romans 4.

Make a commitment to read and understand the Old Testament better than you do. The theme of the whole Bible is salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Check Old Testament references that are used in the New Testament. Look for the Gospel in the Old Testament. The whole Bible is one story of God rescuing sinners from judgement. Be sure to read the Book with the purpose and plot line in mind. You’ll miss what the Bible is all about if all you do is see it as a bunch of stories that are largely disconnected.

Embark on the great adventure today of understanding the whole story that God has given us to tell us how He is going to save the world.

Galatians 3:1-4 (ESV)

O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. [2] Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? [3] Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? [4] Did you suffer so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain?

Paul wrote some Christians in a group of churches a letter that we now call Galatians. The reason he wrote them was because he had heard that those churches were giving in to some horrifying teaching. The teaching was that the work of Christ was insufficient to save people. In order to be saved, the false teachers were saying, one not only had to believe in Jesus, but one had to keep the Old Testament Law.

Paul uses very blunt language in his attempt to persuade the Galatian Christians to stick to the Gospel that he had preached to them – faith alone in Christ alone. In chapter 3 he continues to berate the Galatian Christians with arguments that they know the answer to and which show the foolishness of what they are doing in succumbing to the temptations presented to them.

Verse 4 – These people had actually suffered for the true Gospel and now they are willing to abandon it. This would make the suffering vain. No suffering truly done for Christ, for the one Gospel that is, is ever useless. But to suffer for something and then give up on it makes the suffering completely so.

A believer who suffers for the Truth and then decides that it isn’t the truth after all can look forward to nothing in terms of reward from God. The Christian life is not for the faint of heart. It demands much from us and if we are not willing to endure for the sake of Christ it is because we have never really put our faith in Him in the first place. We would be no more than the false conversions articulated in the parable of the sower

(Matthew 13:20-22).

As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, [21] yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. [22] As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.

Do not allow opposition to the Gospel cause you to surrender up your faith. God promises opposition to us and all who truly come to Him will suffer in some way. Salvation is for those who do not give up.

Matthew 24:13 – But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

Press on. Use all that God provides for your godliness (II Peter 1:3) and remember that the call of the Gospel is a call to die. Never, never, never, give up. It is the mark of true saving faith. Read I John 2:19 and show the genuineness of your faith. The rewards are out of this world.

Psalm 80:4 (ESV)

O Lord God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?

17-18 (ESV)

But let your hand be on the man of your right hand, the son of man whom you have made strong for yourself! Then we shall not turn back from you; give us life, and we will call upon your name!

Psalm 80 – A Psalm asking God to restore Israel in the face of punishment from God for her sins.

People in hard straits will, quite often, agree to anything. People being tortured will confess to things they never did, for the sake of alleviating their suffering.

The nation of Israel is under the hard hand of God’s anger and Asaph pleads for her to God. And He asks God in verse 4 – “O LORD God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?” They call out to God but God refuses to hear them. Their motives are wrong, their hearts are wrong. They do not pray with a desire for the glory of God. Their prayers are selfish.

Is God ever angry with your prayers? Is He ever refusing to answer because of our motivations in our prayers, our selfishness in why we ask Him to intercede in our lives, our self centeredness? Are we like the torture victim who will admit to things that are not true for the sake of escaping his suffering? Will we make promises to God that do not reflect the truth of our hearts? Will we admit to sins that we have no real intention of turning from once the crisis is over? Do we use prayer simply as a tool to get what we want, make ourselves appear holy, give ourselves comfort? Do we ask things of God while hiding sins that we have no intention of giving up? God sees through it all and He will neither honour such prayers nor answer them.

And we should be glad that He won’t. God wants better for us than the temporal requests we sometimes make of Him . He works for our eternal welfare and becoming the go boy for unrepentant sinners simply because they treat God like some kind of sugar daddy will hardy prove Him to be the glorious God that He is.

Later on in this Psalm Asaph writes “But let your hand be on the man of your right hand, the son of man whom you have made strong for yourself! Then we will not turn back from you; give us life and we will call upon your name.” This is a clear reference to Christ. Without Jesus and the life that comes through Him, we will not be able to turn away from sin. It is the sins of Israel that have gotten them into the situation of judgement that they are in and no amount of law keeping will fix the problem. They need a permanent solution.

That those of us who have Christ can come to God in prayer with less than godly motives, just as the people of the Old Covenant did is a shameful thing. We have the Holy Spirit in us because of the work of Jesus for us. God will lose none of all that He gives the Son. The mark of being in the Son is that we do not turn away from God. No more selfish, hidden agenda, hypocritical, insincere praying. We have Christ. The proof of it will be lives that do not turn away from God. He will see to it by the power of His grace. To live in sin is to declare that we do not have the grace that keeps us from turning away from God.