Your Freedom and the Word of God

Imagine, for a moment, you were born somewhere in Europe, around the year 1350. More likely than not, you would not have been literate, and indeed, language at this time was very segregated by region. Languages could change 10 times in what we would now call a single country, because there were still not many ways of communicating other than hand written letters and books.

The church held most of the power in regards to education and literacy. If you were to become ‘literate’, you almost certainly had to be a monk or a priest,unless you were very well off (and then still the church controlled education). And further to this, the church mass, and indeed the whole realm of Christian scripture, was in Latin. The problem was, by 1350, Latin was not anyone’s primary language.

In a world where many people couldn’t read and write their own language, knowledge of something you heard for an hour on Sundays (if you even went to church weekly) was very limited.

Even further to this, it was church policy that only the church should interpret Scripture – the common person couldn’t be trusted with their own interpretation, and so, it was illegal to translate the Bible into anything but Latin.

So, chances are, you would have never read the Word of God, and even if you went to a Church, may never have heard any of it in a language you understood. You may not have understood much of the mass at all! If I spoke the below to you today (and for most people in 1350), you would just look at me funny.

sic enim dilexit Deus mundum ut Filium suum unigenitum daret ut omnis qui credit in eum non pereat sed habeat vitam aeternam

Worked it out? No? That is John 3:16 direct from the Vulgate.

Romans 10:14-17 (ESV)
How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Your Freedom

In our modern era, we take access to the Word of God for granted. It is no thought to us any more – book stores (even secular ones) carry Bibles. There are internet websites that carry translations in more languages than ever before. Even in our English language, you can get enough translations to fit a bookshelf.

But do you appreciate it?

What was they key trigger for the reformation? It was people first reading the Word, and having God reveal it to them. This then spread, and the reformation took hold.

What are you doing with your freedom to read and study the word, to worship and live for Christ, and for most of you, free from serious persecution…

What would happen if you studied the Word like it was a precious resource, and then discussed it – like the reformers?

Don’t take your freedom for granted, but thank God for it, and make full use of it!

Who is God? God is Good

Psalm 34:8 (ESV)
Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!

(This is part 13 of our study on ‘Who is God‘)

God is Good. This is something that those who go to church might hear a lot. It is an affirmation of the Christian, an affirmation pronounced from the pulpit. But what does it mean?

Good means that which is morally right, or, that which is righteous.

So God is morally right. God does the right things. God is righteous.

And yet, it is more than just ‘being right’. God defines goodness at it’s very core – our definition of good and right is God.

Wayne Grudem (systematic theology) has a great definition – The goodness of God means that God is the final standard of good, and that all that God is and does is worthy of approval.

In the negative sense, it also means God is not evil. God does not do evil. God does not approve of evil. You can never ascribe evil to God, because by definition if God is good, he cannot be evil. We do not believe in a ‘dualistic’ God where he is both good and evil.

God IS good.

Personal application.

What does this mean for me I hear you say? It means that since God is good, His intentions towards you are also good. His wishes for you are good. His will for you is good. Anything He chooses for you, no matter what it feels at the time, is ultimately good.

If you want to reverse the analogy, then God is not evil. He does not wish or will evil upon you. He does not intend evil for you. His will for you is never evil.

God is good. Take some time and meditate on the verses below – I pray they will help you see more the goodness of God, and His purposes for your life.

John 10:10-11 (ESV)
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

Romans 8:28 (ESV)
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV)
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Quote of the Week

Where a people prays, there is the church; and where the church is; there is never loneliness.

It is much easier for me to imagine a praying murderer, a praying prostitute, than a vain person praying. Nothing is so at odds with prayer as vanity.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, 1928

Who is God? God is Omnipresent

Jeremiah 23:23-24 (ESV)
“Am I a God at hand, declares the LORD, and not a God far away? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the LORD. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the LORD.

(This is part 12 of our study on ‘Who is God‘)

God is everywhere, always.

God is always present. God is always ‘right there’. There is nowhere you can hide from God – there is nowhere that you are out of His reach.

Psalm 139:7-10 (ESV)
Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.

Personal application

God is always there for you. No matter what is going on in your life, no matter what your struggle, God is there. There is no place He cannot be! Think about that. The bottom of the sea? God is there. In the International Space Station? God is there. In the middle of the Sahara desert? God is there. In the middle of the most sinful place you have ever been and now are desperate to get out? God is there.

Quite simply, God is always there.

Psalm 17:6 (ESV)
I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
incline your ear to me; hear my words.

There is another part also to God being everywhere. He sees your sin. You might be able to hide it from your partner, husband, wife, parents, children, workmates and even yourself. But you can never hide it from God. He not only knows your heart, He sees your sin.

Luke 12:1-3 (ESV)
In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, he began to say to his disciples first, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.

In the end though, this brings amazing comfort! How?

We know that Jesus died on the cross for our sins. And we can know that even included the sins we have hidden from everyone but God. There is no sin hidden from God, and there is no sin that He did not cover on the cross. Jesus has already done the work on the cross – all you need to do is accept that work!

Romans 5:6-11 (ESV)
For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Who is God? God is Invisible

John 1:18 (ESV)
No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.

(This is part 11 of our study on ‘Who is God‘)

Coming back to our study on Who is God, today we look at simple fact – God is invisible.

And it really is a simple fact – you cannot see God. You can see His works, you can read His Word, you can hear testimonies about the things He has done. But you cannot see Him, not in this life in any case!

Revelation 22:3-5 (ESV)
No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

In the next life, we will see God the Father on the throne in Heaven. Had we been alive in Jesus’ time, we would have seen God in the flesh. But since we are here right now, God remains physically invisible to us.

Personal Application

So, what does this mean for me?

Firstly, we need to have faith in God. Because we can’t physically see Him, right here, right now, sometimes we doubt. But we need to have faith and trust that God is. We need to look at the world around us in wonder and realize that God must have created it. We need to read His word and see that He truly is who He says He is.

Secondly, that means that just because you don’t ‘feel’ God near, it doesn’t mean He isn’t! He is right there with you all of the time (we will cover this tomorrow when we look at God’s omnipresence).

John 14:8-11 ESV)
Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.

Lastly, there is a way to know God the Father, even though we can’t see Him – Jesus. And how can we know Jesus? By studying His word. By conversing with Him through prayer. By doing His will.

So have faith. Know that God is with you – even in the darkest times. Know that God is with you – even in the best of times! Know that even if you can’t see God, He is right there.

Take Jesus words to heart when He says “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed’.

John 20:26-29 (ESV)
Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”

Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

ESV Study Bible – A great resource

Do you want to understand scripture in a more complete way? I would say as a visitor to a site called ‘Delving into the Scriptures’, you just might… One of the main study tools I use is the ESV study bible.

Just to be clear – they have never asked me to write this, nor will I receive anything. In fact, I have these resources because I paid for them – and think they are so good I wanted to share (just to be clear…)

I use this resource all of the time - it is where I always start when I am studying. As you may know, I quote the ESV as my prefered translation, because of it’s clear translation and publishing policy. I’m sure it’s not perfect (no translation ever will be!), but it’s pretty good. The main tool I use for that is esvonline.org. The awesome thing is that I also have all of the ESV study notes available through esvonline.org. How? Well, you can either pay for it directly (around $20 at time of posting), or in my case, I purchased a hard copy, and was given online access free.

And to top it off, it works perfectly on the iPad, so I can have full access to all of the study notes and extra material through my iPad, no matter where I am.

So there you have it. Esvonline.org is pretty good by itself, but with the full study notes and mobile access, it’s brilliant for anyone interested in delving into the Scriptures…

Who Is God? God Is Bigger Than Love (Guest Post)

Today’s post comes courtesy of Dave from Armchair Theology!

“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us… Worship is pure or base as the worshiper entertains high or low thoughts of God.”
A.W. Tozer “The Knowledge of the Holy”

Acceptable Worship

What makes worship acceptable? It is not the vigor or the excellence of the worship.

• In singing, our worship is not acceptable based on its audible beauty.
• In preaching, our worship is not based on our eloquence or ingenuity.
• In listening to sermons, our worship is not based on our intellect or ability to stay completely focused on the preacher.
• In service, our worship is not based on our energy or productivity.
• In prayer, our worship is not based on our eloquence or strength of faith.

Our worship, in any capacity, is acceptable or not based on who we worship. It is the object of our faith, not the strength and quality of our faith, that gives our worship value. Therefore…

• In theology, our worship is not based on our precision or complexity.
• In theology, our worship is based on beholding the God of the Bible.

You Can Be a Universalist and a Christian…

I am convinced that one can sincerely (but fallaciously) believe inclusivism, universalism or annihilationism and be a Christian. So long as you believe in the God revealed in the Bible.

…So Long As You Worship the God of the Bible.

If you base your belief in universalism on a distorted view of God I cannot call you a Christian.

If your concept of “god” is exhausted in the definition of “love” then your concept is at odds with the Bible.

Yes, God is love (1 John 4:8). But he is also:

• Just (2Thes 1:6)
• Wrathful (Nah 1:6; Jer 10:10; Psalm 90:7-10; Rom 1:26-28)
• Jealous (Ex 20:4-5)

God is also a whole host of things that have no bearing on love:

• Self-existent (Psalm 90:2)
• Omniscient (Psalm 139:1-4)
• Immutable (Psalm 102:25-27)

That is why DZ’s series on God’s nature is so vital – we must know how the God of the Bible reveals Himself if we are to truly worship Him. If our worship isn’t aimed at the God who has revealed Himself to us we aren’t Christians at all.

If you deny Hell because your concept of God is constrained to “love” your denial of Hell is built on a denial of the Christian God.

(photo flickr/thetheresa)