I have been installing new windows in the parsonage. We replaced the windows in the living room, dining room, kitchen, and bathroom with plans to replace the bedroom and office windows next year. Of course our little boys were all excited about the project. They got to watch daddy work and they even got to crawl up and down the ladder outside.
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They definitely noticed the change as our house was renewed by having the old windows taken out and the new ones put in. It reminds me of Ephesians 4:22-24, “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.”
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We could see a difference between the old windows and the new ones just by how they looked, but the real difference is in how they perform. The new windows open and shut easily whereas the old ones did not. Then come next winter we expect them to be much less drafty than the old ones.
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The Ephesians passage is not about windows, but about believers in Christ. Like the windows, righteousness and true holiness is not as much about how it looks on the outside as how it actually performs.
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Consider the differences listed in the Ephesians passage: In the next verses we are told not to lie but instead to speak the truth. Then we are told not to lose control when angry, but instead let the go of wrath at the end of the day. It comes down to following God instead of doing what the devil wants us to do. That means not stealing, but instead working so that you can earn extra to give to others in need. True righteousness and holiness means being careful that bad things don’t come out of your mouth but instead giving words of encouragement and grace. Finally Ephesians 4 ends by instructing that instead of bitterness wrath and anger, the believer should be kind, tenderhearted and forgiving.
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Chapter 5 of Ephesians then goes on to talk about the importance of love and thanksgiving. It also shows how fornication, impurity, covetousness, filthy vulgar foolish talking, prostitution and idolatry are definitely not part of righteousness and true holiness.
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These comments may be stating the obvious, but too often man tries to come up with his own list as to what righteousness and true holiness looks like while forgetting what God has already told us about it. Fruit naturally grows on a healthy plant.
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A spiritually healthy Christian who is living a life close to God will naturally have fruits of the Spirit. Ephesians 5:9 says, “(For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)” Paul further elaborates in Galatians 5:22-23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
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Set aside pride for a moment and honestly evaluate if you have the fruit of the Spirit in your life. If not, ask yourself if you are really trusting in Christ. If you are but the fruits are still not there, then ask yourself what your focus has been. Have you been so focused on yourself and trying to look good to others that you have actually missed out on glorifying God through natural fruit?
Friday, July 29, 2011
Friday, July 15, 2011
God Became Man for Sinners
Have you ever wished you could be in two places at once. We had that challenge a few weeks ago. A wedding and a graduation were scheduled on the same day, so my wife and I had to split up. She and the boys went to the graduation, and I went to the wedding. It would’ve been nice if I could’ve just duplicated myself and sent one of me to each place.
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It is impossible for me to do such a thing, but it is not impossible for God. He can be in more places than one. Further, although He is a single God, He is composed of three separate distinctions: Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
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All three parts of the trinity are one God each with a separate purpose. Consider that our hand does not have the same purpose as our head, but they are still both part of a single body. The body illustration is insufficient to describe God though. Apart from the Son, who took on human flesh, God is Spirit.
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This brings us to a very important concept. Who is Jesus Christ, the man who was born in Bethlehem and died on the cross? Was He a man who stove hard to be sinless so that He might attain the right to be included in the trinity, or was He always God who took on the job of coming to earth as a man to die for our sins?
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The answer is clear. Jesus always has been God- even before He was born in Bethlehem. “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” (Micah 5:2) As God, Jesus was even involved in the creation of the earth. “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” (Colossians 1:16-17)
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Many other verses show Jesus is God and show that He always has been God. He did not have to attain that position by living a good life. So what are some of the implications of thinking that Jesus attained Godhood, rather than always possessing it? Some people think that they as well can attain Godhood. This is the grave error of the Latter Day Saints (Mormons). It is also the error of some holiness teachers who think that if Jesus could attain sinlessness, then so can other men.
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Jesus DID become a real human man, but He was able to remain sinless because He always has been God. Mere men do not have the same ability, that is why we are so dependant upon Christ. “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:” (Romans 3:10) “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8)
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Harry A. Ironsides tried to obtain sinless perfection and quickly realized it was a losing battle. He finally realized that he needed to strive to do right and trust Christ’s forgiveness when he could not. He went on to bring great comfort to others in the same struggle by writing the book, Holiness: The False and The True. What a reminder of I John 1:9- 2:2, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”
-
It is impossible for me to do such a thing, but it is not impossible for God. He can be in more places than one. Further, although He is a single God, He is composed of three separate distinctions: Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
-
All three parts of the trinity are one God each with a separate purpose. Consider that our hand does not have the same purpose as our head, but they are still both part of a single body. The body illustration is insufficient to describe God though. Apart from the Son, who took on human flesh, God is Spirit.
-
This brings us to a very important concept. Who is Jesus Christ, the man who was born in Bethlehem and died on the cross? Was He a man who stove hard to be sinless so that He might attain the right to be included in the trinity, or was He always God who took on the job of coming to earth as a man to die for our sins?
-
The answer is clear. Jesus always has been God- even before He was born in Bethlehem. “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” (Micah 5:2) As God, Jesus was even involved in the creation of the earth. “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” (Colossians 1:16-17)
-
Many other verses show Jesus is God and show that He always has been God. He did not have to attain that position by living a good life. So what are some of the implications of thinking that Jesus attained Godhood, rather than always possessing it? Some people think that they as well can attain Godhood. This is the grave error of the Latter Day Saints (Mormons). It is also the error of some holiness teachers who think that if Jesus could attain sinlessness, then so can other men.
-
Jesus DID become a real human man, but He was able to remain sinless because He always has been God. Mere men do not have the same ability, that is why we are so dependant upon Christ. “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:” (Romans 3:10) “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8)
-
Harry A. Ironsides tried to obtain sinless perfection and quickly realized it was a losing battle. He finally realized that he needed to strive to do right and trust Christ’s forgiveness when he could not. He went on to bring great comfort to others in the same struggle by writing the book, Holiness: The False and The True. What a reminder of I John 1:9- 2:2, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”
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