Book of Luke

Tonight we read a passage that is a favorite with my 9 year old son.  Jesus had a way with words!  We all have a laugh at this one.

Luke 20:1-8

     One day as he was teaching the people in the temple courts and preaching the gospel, the chief priests and teachers of the law, together with the elders, came up to Him.

    "Tell us by what authority you are doing these things," they said.  "Who gave you this authority?"

    He replied, "I will also ask you a question.  Tell me, John's baptism--was it from heaven, or from men?"

    They discussed it among themselves and said, "If we say, 'From heaven,' he will ask 'Why didn't you believe him?'  But if we say, 'From men,' all the people will stone us, because they are persuaded that John was a prophet."  So they answered, "We don't know where it was from."

    Jesus said, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things."

Talents

I have felt for a while that the parable of the talents is speaking of much more than stewardship of our finances.

I'm sure you all know the story--the master gives three of his servants talents (a measure of money, by weight).  He gives one 5 talents, one 2 talents and the third 1 talent.  He goes away and comes back and asks what they did with their talents.  The first and second servants doubled their money, but the third was afraid and buried his.  The master was not happy about this and took his 1 talent and gave it to the servant that had 10. (Found in Matthew 25)

Well, last night we were reading in Luke at the dinner table and came across a very similar parable, but this one mentioned minas as the monetary unit. Also, there was an interesting clause added at the end.

This parable confirms it for me. These parable are not talking about stewardship of our finances, although that is a good lesson that everyone should learn. No, they are talking about stewardship of the TALENTS, gifts, and abilities that God has placed in each and every one of us!

The story of the minas is a little different from the one about the talents.  There are ten servants, each given 1 mina.  The master goes away.  Notice there is a mention of citizens that are refusing to submit to his authority, they are a separate group from the servants.  When the master comes back he wants an account of the business of the servants.  One servant multiplied his mina by 10, so the master rewards him with rulership over 10 cities.  The next servant multiplied his mina by 5, so, again, the master rewards him with rulership over 5 cities.  Then a third servant enters the scene and we find that he was afraid of his master and hid his mina away in a handkerchief.  The master was not pleased with this, so he took his mina and gave it to the one that had 10.  And then notice in verse 27, that other group of citizens.  The master has them all executed because they refused to submit to his authority.  (Read in Luke 19)

The minas are talents (gifts and abilities), the work that we are doing.  (This is not working for salvation, that is a gift.)

God has given all of us talents--what are yours?  Are you using your talents for God's glory?  To multiply His kingdom?  Or are you hiding your talents away?  The master will want an account when He comes back.  We will either be rewarded or have our work taken away.

The citizens who refuse His authority?  Who are they?  Read Psalm 2.  Do we know anyone in this world that is refusing to recognize God's authority?  Now read Revelation 19:11-21.  The Master will slay them all.  Click here to read my article on that topic.

Character of God

Update 1/27/09 - I know this is turning into a long post.  It might be best to break it down into days, rather than reading it all at once.  I have highlighted all the day breaks.

This week I decided we should study the fact that God is gracious to balance our study of God's wrath last week.  To read our other studies about God's character, click here.

I had my son write two definitions of grace in his notebook - unmerited favor & the ability to do something you wouldn't be able to do.

I read two verses on day 1 -
Jonah 4:2b I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm.
I wanted to emphasize with this verse that God is SLOW to anger, to balance our discussion from last week.

Then I discussed that we are saved by grace, it was unmerited, meaning undeserved.  There is NO way we could be good enough to save ourselves (all have sinned--Rom. 3:23).

Eph. 1:7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace...

Then I realized that if we were talking about grace, we HAD to bring in the subject of faith!  (Eph. 2:8).   If we were saved by grace ALONE, then everyone in the world would be saved.  It is God's will that everyone be saved. (II Peter 3:9)  But we have to use our faith and this is an important thing to realize.

I used to say for years that I am where I am in life because of the grace of God, but that was only partially correct--I am where I am because of my FAITH in the grace of God! It's not that I am special that He would choose to use me and not some others around me, it is my faith working TOGETHER with His grace.

I heard the other day on my Chuck Missler Galatians commentary that faith and obedience are synonymous (operationally) in the New Testament. I typed that into my notes on that day, but then it came alive to me as I started this study of grace with my son.

On day 2 we read the story of Rahab in Joshua 2 and 6.   She was saved, by grace, from destruction.  But notice that it was her faith working together with grace. She showed faith in God Almighty and asked the spies to spare her life. (Josh. 2:9-13)  She is living in a pagan, idol-worshipping world, but see in verse 11 that she says when she heard of the God of Israel that she knew He was God in heaven and on earth (not just a great god, like a pagan person would say).  This shows her faith.  They then gave her instructions--but she had to take action (obey)! (2:17-20)  It was up to her, if she hung the scarlet cord out her window, her and her family would be saved, if not, they died.  So we see that she found favor (grace), used her faith and obeyed.

On day 3 we read the first 2 chapters of Ruth. Not much to discuss until the next day.

On day 4 we read the last 2 chapter of Ruth.  Ruth was saved by grace, but notice in Ruth 3, verses 3 and 4, Naomi gives Ruth instructions.   In verse 5, what does Ruth say? "I will DO all that you have asked me to do."  She obeyed.  First she had faith in Naomi's words and THEN she obeyed, a thing of action.  So just like Rahab, Ruth found favor with Boaz (grace), had faith in Naomi's words and acted on that faith with obedience.

Salvation is a gift from God, but we have to accept it by faith, we have to OPEN that gift.  I explained it to my son like this--If I wrapped up a cool Lego set and gave it to him, he would never experience the joy of that gift unless he opened it.  Likewise, if I wrap up a nice, big umbrella, raincoat, and galoshes and gave them to him, he wouldn't experience the protection from the rain UNLESS he opens the gift.   JOY and PROTECTION are just two of the many things we get to experience when we OPEN the gift of salvation.

On a side note - I noticed as we were reading this morning in Ruth 3, that Naomi asks Ruth if she could seek security for her.  This means to find her a husband.  But in the margin of my Bible, it says that the word security here literally means rest.  This is what we experience when we accept Christ, rest AND we as the church are called the Bride of Christ.   Interesting! (Read Hebrew 3 & 4)

I have had my son add these two examples, Rahab and Ruth to his notebook page and also copy Ephesians 1:7 into it, as well.

Update 1/23/09 -

Today is day 5 and I couldn't think of any more examples to read, so I thought I would just read a passage, Ephesians 2:1-10, and have a discussion.  I started asking my son questions about grace and I could tell he needed a bit more explanation, so I found myself using the example of the life of Paul.  So, we turned to read that story instead.  

I wanted to emphasize that we are saved by grace, it is undeserved, but also the work that we do for God is because of His grace.  The story of Paul illustrates this really well.

We first read about Paul in the end of Acts 7, then see some of his character in the beginning of Acts 8, and then read of his conversion in Acts 9.

The story of Paul is a good story to read if you are feeling unworthy.  If God could save Paul, He can save any of us!  Paul was killing and arresting and persecuting Christians.  If anyone deserved God's wrath, it was Paul.  But God gives everyone a chance (just like Ninevah, we'll probably read that story after this one).

So picking up in verse 3 of Acts 9, we see that Saul (Paul) was on his way to Damascus to arrest more Christians when he saw an incredible light.  From this light he heard a voice.  The voice said, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?"  And Saul asks, "Who are you?"  The voice answers, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting."  (I'm paraphrasing, please read the entire story in Acts 9.)

This is God's grace.  He could very well have let Saul keep on his destructive path, he certainly didn't deserve God's favor.

What is Saul's response?

"Lord, what do you want me to do?"  Ah ha!  This shows Saul's faith.  Remember that faith has to work together with God's grace.  Saul could have ignored the voice, he could have walked away, he could have said, "this is ludicrous!"  But he didn't, he shows us with his statement that he believes the voice to be, in fact, that of Jesus.  We also see that he wants to know what TO DO.  This is very important.  Faith without obedience is dead.  (James 2:17)

Jesus gives him instructions--go into the city and you will be told what to do.  (Remember the instruction that Rahab and Ruth were given?  What has Jesus instructed you to do?)

Paul has a choice, as we all do.  He could have run back home to Jerusalem, but he didn't.  He went into Damascus and he was saved.  He was saved by grace, AFTER he showed that he had faith by his obedience!

We will read more of Paul's story on Monday.  He tells us in Ephesians 2:8 that we are saved by God's grace, but also in Ephesians 3:8 that the work that we do is only by God's grace, as well.  Paul should not have been able to preach to anyone, since everyone knew of his past, but by the grace of God (AND Paul's faith working with it), he was able.  Hence, the dual definition I have taught my son--unmerited favor AND the ability to do things we wouldn't be able to do.

Update 1/27/09 - 

On Monday, day 6 of this study, we read from Acts 9:26-30 and Acts 11:25.  We see that Paul tries to preach, but everyone is afraid of him, they don't trust him because of who he used to be.  He goes away for a time and we pick up in verse 25 of chapter 11 and see that BY GOD'S GRACE, he is able to start a preaching ministry.  He tells us himself in Ephesians 3:8 that his preaching is BY GOD'S GRACE.

Today is Tuesday, day 7, and I can tell that my son is having a hard time wrapping his brain around the definition of grace.  If you recall from day 1, I taught him the definition of unmerited favor.  I decided to look up favor in the dictionary.  One of the definitions was help or aid.  This was a better word to use for my son.  So I had him write in his notebook that, "grace = favor = help", and, "unmerited = undeserved", and underneath that, "grace is the undeserved help of God."  I think this helped it click in his brain.  We cannot save ourselves, we need God's help.  Paul couldn't preach to anyone without God's help.

I started reading the story of Ninevah in the book of Jonah today.  We will conclude it tomorrow.  I also had my son copy Ephesians 2:8 into his notebook.

Update 1/29/09 - 

Yesterday, Wednesday, was day 8 on this study.  We read the last two chapters of Jonah.  We see that Jonah went to Ninevah and simply said that in 40 days the city would be destroyed.  (Jonah 3:4)  He didn't even mention the word repent!  Verse 5 tells us that the people believed.  Did they go around telling everyone they believed?  Did they shout to God that they believed?  Let's read on.  We see that they took action--they fasted and mourned (wearing sackcloth).  News got to the king and he declared that everyone should repent!  In verse 9 we see that the king has hope that, if they repent, God will relent from His wrath.  And He did.  God is giving everyone a chance.  He gave Jonah a chance, (even after he disobeyed!)  He gave Ninevah a chance, and He's giving you a chance!  The verse that we read in Nahum a couple weeks ago about how God hates sin and will one day pour out his wrath is now put in context.  This was 150 years AFTER Jonah had preached in Ninevah.  Nahum was a prophet that was sent to Ninevah to preach to a city that had heard the truth and had now REJECTED it!  That is important to understand.

Today is day 9 and we started out by reading II Peter 3, I wanted to highlight verse 18, but sometimes it's good to get some background and context.  Wow!  This was a good chapter!  The basic summary is that we should live holy and pure lives, looking forward to the return of Christ (that could happen as a thief in the night--at any moment).  I especially like verse 9, "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.", and verse 18, "but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." This verse is why I picked this passage.  We are saved by grace, but we also need to grow in grace.

I asked my son, "How do we grow in grace?"

He said, "Accept Jesus into your heart."  (He's 9.)

I said, "That is the new birth, your spirit is born again.  Do physical babies grow after they are born?"  (This got a laugh.  The answer was, "Of course!")  I continue, "So how does your spirit man grow up?"

My son thought for a minute, but couldn't come up with an answer.

I explain, "The same way you are saved--by grace, through faith."

Remember that grace works together with faith.  And how do we SHOW our faith?  Through obedience.  We turned to James 2:14-26.  This passage contains an excellent concrete example that children can understand.  The example of a friend that has no food, absolutely nothing to eat.  If you go to them and say, "God loves you!  Have a nice day!", it doesn't do them a BIT of good!!!  You need to DO something for them--bless them with some food, show them God's love with a gift!  It is your actions WITH your words that will mean something to them.  It is the same with God, we cannot simply say we have faith in Him, we must DO something--obey His Word!  Afterall, God showed you His love for you by His actions--He SENT His only Son to DIE on a cross to pay for YOUR sins and to take your sickness and sorrow!  God wants more than lip service.  It's more than simply saying you believe, EVEN the demons believe (James 2:19).

So we see that we are saved by grace, but we ALSO live everyday by grace.  We are only able to grow spiritually by His grace and do the work (Eph. 2:10) He has called us to, by His grace.  This is a day-by-day thing, using your faith and obeying.

Now it is very important to remember that we are NOT saved by works (Eph. 2:8).  Don't fall into the trap of doing good works to get on God's good side.  If you do, you won't have peace.  It is when you have received instruction from the Lord and His Word and are obeying out of faith, that He gives His grace, and remember one of the definitions means help.  It is easy to do, because He is helping you.  Jesus said, "My yoke is easy and My burden is light."  (Matt. 11:30)

Remember that Rahab, Ruth, and Paul all received instruction.  We must go to the Word to receive our instructions (II Tim. 3:16).  This makes for a nice segue into a study of specific instructions in God's Word.  I think we will spend the next few weeks on that.  I will have to do some research.

Tomorrow we will read the story of Abraham offering Isaac (spurred by James 2:21) to finish this topic.

Note to parents:  After reading this, I feel that there may be a few of you that don't feel capable of teaching your children these things from God's Word.  I want to encourage you to just start reading to them from the Bible.  You could start in Genesis and pick out the numerous Bible stories or go to the New Testament and read to them from the gospels about the life of Jesus.

There is something that happens when you start reading out loud and teaching your children.  Light bulbs will start to go off in your head, puzzle pieces will start to connect.  I have noticed a difference in my daily reading (One Year Bible Schedule) and my reading to my children.  Too often with my daily reading, when I was on a particular schedule, I was reading to check that day off my list.  I wasn't retaining much, or stopping to understand what I was reading.  Don't get me wrong, it was beneficial to me (I wrote about that here), but there is SO much MORE I get out of reading to my children.  I am thinking more about what I'm reading and stopping to explain it to them, which in turn helps me to understand it even more.

This topic is a prime example.  All these things I taught my kids in this two-week study, literally came to me as I was teaching them.  The dots were connecting in my head as we went through this and sometimes more thoughts would come to me through the day that I could teach the following days.

So don't hesitate, start sowing seeds of God's Word into your children now!  (Deut. 6:6-7)

Galatians

I was studying Galatians 5 yesterday and listening to a commentary by Dr. Chuck Missler. He mentioned something that I had not heard before.

Basically, the power to overcome our flesh with its desires and passions has ALREADY been given to us.  And I guess that makes sense.  Galatians 2:20 says, "I have been crucified with Christ...", it does NOT say, "I am being crucified with Christ."   Your sinful nature was ALREADY crucified, you have been given a new nature.   Just as we WERE healed by Jesus' stripes (I Peter 2:24).  These are past tense things, all you have to do now is lay hold of them by faith and walk (obey/action) in them.

So rather than crying out ot God to help you with strongholds, temptations, and fleshly desires, realize that He has ALREADY done it!  Confess that you are a NEW creature, old things HAVE passed away, behold all things are NEW! (II Cor. 5:17)  Confess that you HAVE BEEN crucified with Christ and it is no longer you who live, but Christ that lives in you! (Gal. 2:20)  Confess that you WALK in the Spirit (this is a moment-by-moment thing) and you do NOT fulfill the lust of the flesh! (Gal. 5:16)   It is already done, it is settled.  If we don't continually lay hold of this truth we fall into the trap of legalism and we will try to secure victory by our own efforts.  This always fails.

Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. (Rom. 10:17)  The more you read the Word and hear the Word, the stronger your faith grows AND remember--faith without works is dead, so be a doer of the Word as well as a hearer! (James 1:22)  WALK in the Spirit and you will see the fruit of the Spirit! (Gal. 5:22-23)  Rest in the fact that your old, sinful nature HAS ALREADY BEEN crucified and no longer keeps you in chains!

Peace Part Two

You may be wondering why this article is entitled, "Peace Part Two", where was part one?  Well, I posted it on my other blog.  My focus in that article was that in order to have true peace, you need God. But some of you are thinking, "I have God in my life, why don't I have peace?!?"

This article is for you.

I know what you are feeling. It's almost embarrassing to admit this, but if it helps someone, it is worth it. I got saved at the age of 3. I don't actually remember it. I was just always told by my parents. When I hit my teenage years I really started questioning whether I was really saved. I went forward during an altar call at teen camp one year, but later I still questioned my salvation. I grew up in church from the age of 2. We went to churches that taught the Word. I had a good grasp of a lot of doctrine, but still didn't have peace. I wasn't unhappy, I just had this ever-present nagging inside. Every now and then I would repeat the sinner's prayer to "make sure" I was saved, but it still didn't make the nagging go away. I think it came down to thinking I had to be perfect to be right in God's eyes. I would go over my past and think about things I had done wrong and question whether I was good enough to go to heaven.

Four years ago, I sat down and decided to start a Bible-reading schedule. I was 29 years old and had been saved for 26 years, but had NEVER really read my Bible!!! I know, shocking, but true! I had never done consistent devotions. I would go to church, but never bothered to look up the passages and see for myself if the pastor was right or not. Occasionally, I would feel guilty about my lack of Bible study, so I would randomly open up my Bible and read a bit, but didn't get much out of it, because I didn't understand much of what I was reading. I kept thinking that it would be great if there was a book or something out there that would teach me, without actually having to go to Bible school. But I didn't really seek anything out.

Well, now I realize that I had to take the first step. I started with a One-Year schedule that was printed in my Charisma magazine. Every day was a selection from the Old Testament, the New Testament and either Psalms or Proverbs. After a couple weeks of reading, it was starting to make sense. And the desire to know more was growing in me. I wanted to know the history behind things happening in the Old Testament, so I would check out books from the library. I started seeing the big picture of the Bible. And I'm happy to say that in the last four years I have been consistent. I may not study or read every single day, but most days of the week. It was only when I stepped out in obedience to God to seek first His kingdom and start a study of His Word that the peace came! And that peace has grown and grown. First came the peace about my eternal security, no more questioning whether I was really saved. Next came peace in other areas of life. I detailed one of those here. No more nagging sense that something isn't right! I'm at peace and truly free!

This is partly why this blog was born. I want to tell everyone that you MUST read your Bible!!!! But it sounds so legalistic. I am not telling you that you HAVE to read your Bible. God is not going to love you any more whether you ever read your Bible or not. But He can't help you unless you do! The abundant life that Jesus promised us in John 10:10 is available to ALL, but only SOME will partake! Many are saved, but FEW are walking in prosperity, peace, and joy! Why? Because they are not seeking His kingdom first. This is why that is my banner verse at the top of my blog.

It is the devil that will beat you over the head with guilt and condemnation and tell you that you're not a good Christian because you aren't reading your Bible. He may make you question your salvation because you're not reading your Bible, as he did with me. Romans 8:1 tells us that there is no condemnation to those that are in Christ Jesus. Condemnation will pull you away from God. All those times I felt the guilt and condemnation for not reading my Bible, it didn't motivate me form the habit. It is the working of the Holy Spirit (I wrote about this before here) that pulls you closer to God. I started the habit of Bible reading because I knew I needed to, not because I felt guilty, and that was the gentle pushing of the Holy Spirit. If you're ever feeling down, just read the whole chapter of Romans 8. I especially love the last verse - there is NOTHING that can separate us from the love of God!!! That is good news!

Looking back now over the four years of my Bible study, I can see how beneficial it has been for me. The biggest benefit is to see God's Word come to my mind, come from my heart, when it is needed. In time of trial is when it is needed most and that is often not the time to sit down and search for a scripture.

Most of my life I have lived a blessed life, there were no real bumps. But you never really know when a trial will hit. I have had things these last 6 months that have really tried my faith and patience. If it were not for God's Word ALREADY planted deep in my heart, I would not have peace! You NEVER know when you will need it--why not prepare! Someone close to me found themselves in the hospital this last year with a life-threatening condition. There's no time like time in the hospital to stand on the promises of God! But this person didn't have any scriptures to stand in faith on. The answer was that they just didn't think something like this would happen! We can't predict that life is going to be smooth sailing, but you can have the peace of God amidst adversity, IF you have His Word planted in your heart. It will spring forth to your mind at your hour of need! And that will bring you needed peace!

At some point a few years ago, I started having my son memorize passages of scripture. Inevitably, this made me memorize them as well. This has been a big boost to my peace! When you memorize scriptures, the Holy Spirit will bring them back to your mind in times of need. John 14:26 So, I really recommend, as part of your new study, that you incorporate some memorization. It may sound like the stuff of children's Sunday school classes, but it will help you!

I could tell you until I'm blue in the face about all the benefits of starting a personal Bible study, but you will just have to experience it for yourself. Are you experiencing turmoil in your finances, your marriage, your child-rearing, or even about your eternal destiny? First and foremost you must accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, but THEN you must LET Him teach you and correct you and instruct you in righteous living (II Tim. 3:16). This only happens when you let him IN through His Word. Your pastor can speak into your life to a degree, but to REALLY, really experience the abundant life that Jesus promised you, you HAVE to get into the Word! Verse 17 of II Timothy 3 tells us the end result - ...that the man of God may be complete! Salvation is not the end, but the beginning! The beginning of a work, that doesn't end until Christ returns! But YOU must LET God work in your life!  You can read more about that here.

What it really boils down to is obedience. You may be doing devotional reading daily, perhaps you need to start a deeper study. Perhaps you need to start tithing! (Oooh, hot button!) Perhaps there is an area you need to practice self control in. Perhaps, you are just hearing the Word, but aren't doing it? (James 1:22)

What if you don't know what areas God wants you to step out in obedience in? Start reading His Word and see what sticks out to you. You'll know it, when you read it.

Whatever area you feel you need to be obedient in, make Bible study a part of it. How else will you know what God's will is for you and how else could you obey? God's Word IS His will! For me, obedience was to simply start with a daily reading schedule. (Not to say that is the only thing--we never arrive, it is a life-long journey of obedience.)  God knew that I would dig deeper, He knew that with any area of interest I have, whether it's health or history, I dig as deep as I can.

Now, don't tell me you don't have time! You have time for whatever is important to you. You can MAKE time for anything you want! It's a matter of priorities. Shut off the TV for 30 minutes!

I want to be here to help you. I want to give you some resources with this blog. I mentioned above that I wished there were books or teaching tapes out there that would give me an in-depth "Bible School" education.  I always felt that if someone would educate me, THEN I could understand what I was reading and I would make Bible study a habit!  Now I know it's the other way around, I was to start the study myself and THEN the understanding would come.  And I have found some great resources along the way, as well.  Dr. Chuck Missler offers detailed, in-depth commentaries on practically every book of the Bible. He will teach you verse by verse and at the same give you a big picture perspective of the Bible. I highly recommend his Learn the Bible in 24 Hours study, as a start. I also have really enjoyed his study of Philippians, Isaiah, and Galatians. These commentaries are available for download, or on CD, and many are available to listen to direct from his website for free. He also puts the current broadcasts out on iTunes for free download. They are only available on iTunes for 2 weeks at a time, though.
On the right-hand bar of this blog you will find other links to ministries that I like. And I am trying to give you plenty of study ideas, on here, by posting what I am studying.

So, don't delay, start today!

Here is a Bible-reading schedule.

I would love to hear your comments and questions on this topic.

Update 1/30/09 - For more information on this topic, read my article on Grace, here.

The Character of God

We got back to our study of the character of God this week.  To see our past study of this, click here.  This week the focus was on how God hates sin.  Since the wrath of God can be a bit much for a child, I decided that we would only stay on this topic for one week.

I started out the week reading Nahum 1:2-3 to my son and having him copy it down into his notebook.

On the second day, I read him the story of Achan, starting in Joshua 6:18-19 and then skipping ahead to read all of chapter 7.  The background is that Jericho was the first city the Israelites would conquer.  They were to consecrate the entire city to God, they were not to take any spoils, this city was the first fruits of all the cities they would destroy.  But Achan couldn't resist!

On the next day we read the story of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5, the background is given in Acts 4:32-37.

On the day after that we read the description of the Battle of Armageddon in Revelation 19:11-21.  This was exciting to my son as we had read it before and he really enjoys battle scenes.

After all this talk about wrath, I wanted to end the week on a positive note.  So on the final day we had a little discussion.  It went like this...

Why does God hate sin?  It separates man from Him.  He created us to be in fellowship with Him.  Adam and Eve walked and talked with God daily, but once they allowed sin into this world, they were separated from God.  This had to be a horrible feeling!  We really can't even fathom it.  Remember when Jesus was up on the cross and He cried out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"  At that moment He was separated from God because He became sin for us.  God cannot accept sin in His presence.  Thankfully, for you and I, He provided a way for us to come back into fellowship with Him--He sent His Son to take our place and take our sins upon Himself and take our punishment.

We talked about how Jesus is fighting His enemies in the Battle of Armageddon.  I asked my son if he was an enemy of God?  No!  I read him Galatians 3:26, "you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus" and I John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

I then asked him how we are to feel about sin?  We are to hate sin!  Does that mean that we tell sinners that we hate them?  Certainly not, we hate the actions, but LOVE the person.

Why should we love someone that is doing bad things?  John 13:34-35 gives us our answer, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.  By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."--because God loves them.

Good Works

I was dictating spelling words to my son today and I love that my spelling curriculum includes famous quotes and scriptures to show the context of the spelling word.

The spelling word was careful.

The verse was a portion of Titus 3:8 - Those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works.

I have been meaning to do a study for a while of all the verses that mention good works.  So I wanted to highlight this one in my Bible.

I opened up to that chapter and read the first eight verses.  Paul here is writing to Titus and exhorting him in what he should be preaching to others.  Verse 1 he says to remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities (very applicable to us today) and to be ready for every GOOD WORK.  Verse 2 he goes on to say that we should speak evil of no one and be peaceable, showing humility to everyone.  Verse 3 is the reason, because we ourselves were once deceived and foolish, slaves to sin and hating one another.  Verse 4 is the ray of light---it was the kindness and love of God our Savior and (verse 5) NOT our WORKS of righteousness, it was His MERCY that saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit (this reminds me of my past article on the subject).  Verse 6 goes on to tell us how He poured out that love on us through Jesus Christ.  Verse 7 is very important to get--we have been justified by His grace!  If you don't have a thorough understanding of this, please go read Galatians and then Romans.  And finally, verse 8, we should maintain good works.  Why?  Because these things are good and profitable to men.  Never forget this--the good works DON'T save you, they are good and profitable to men, this means to yourself and to others, in many different ways.  Our good works can bring glory to God, can show others the love of Christ, can put Christians in general in a positive light in people's minds, will bring about good character qualities in ourselves such as humility and selflessness, bringing us peace, not to mention laying up treasures in heaven, BUT they are not what saves us or makes God love us anymore than He already does!

Psalm 100

We read Psalm 100 this morning at breakfast.  I have not taken the time to research more of God's character qualities that I want to go over, so I fall back on familiar passages.

Psalm 100 is a good one!  Short, to the point, but also shows us a part of God's character, which is why I picked it.

Psalm 100

Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all the earth!

Serve the Lord with gladness; come before His presence with singing.

Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise.

Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to ALL generations.

Do you know that you know that you know that the Lord is good?  If not, please spend some time studying what God's Word has to say on the subject.

His truth (His Word) is relevant for ALL generations!  This reminds me of an article I read recently.  Lisa Miller wrote an article for the December 15th issue of Newsweek.  She basically says that part of the Bible is outdated and not relevant for today.  But Psalm 100 tells us that His truth endures to ALL generations!

Read the article about the article here.