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Truth and Consequences

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God’s Power for God’s Purpose

Truth and Consequences

Dr. Jim Denison

Acts 5:17-42

Billy Graham’s bestseller Angels tells the story of John G. Paton’s missionary work in the New Hebrides Islands. One night, hostile natives surrounded the mission headquarters, intent on burning the Patons out and killing them. The Patons prayed all night long that God would deliver them. When morning came, they were shocked to see that their attackers had left.

A year later, the tribal chief came to Christ. Mr. Paton asked him what had kept his men from burning down their house a year earlier. Surprised, the chief replied, “Who were all those men you had with you there?” He told the missionary that he had seen hundreds of big men in shining garments with drawn swords in their hands. They surrounded the house, so that the natives were afraid to attack.

Jesus warned us: “In this world you will have trouble” (John 16:33a). Then he added, “But take heart! I have overcome the world.” So long as we live in his purpose, we can count on his protection and power. The apostle John, survivor of the persecutions we will study today, would later conclude: “The one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). And he is just as powerful today in Dallas as he was on that day in Jerusalem 20 centuries ago.

Where are you afraid to serve God? Most of us experience fear when an opportunity to share our faith arises. Some of us are afraid to trust God with our finances and tithe. Or with our time in serving God more faithfully. We may be afraid to handle work biblically, in fear that we will lose money or success. Pastors and teachers may be tempted to lessen the truth of God’s word in the service of popularity. Is there a place in your life where you are afraid to trust God fully with your life and service?

This week’s study will help you and your class serve God with bold courage and joy. The results could be as significant for our church as they were for these first disciples.

Anticipate angelic protection (Acts 5:17-24)

Psalm 91 has become one of my favorite passages to read to our members when they are facing surgery or other problems. It begins:

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust” (Psalm 91:1-2).

When we make God our shelter, our refuge and fortress, he promises to respond:

He will cover you with his feathers,and under his wings you will find refuge;his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart (v. 4).

How will he keep this promise to protect us?

He will command his angels concerning youto guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands,so that you will not strike your foot against a stone (vs. 11-12).

Jesus experienced such angelic protection in his wilderness temptations: “Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him” (Matthew 4:11). And again in Gethsemane: “An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him” (Luke 22:43). Angels appeared at his resurrection (Mark 16:4-7), and at his ascension (Acts 1:10-11). The purpose of these angelic beings is clear: “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1:14).

In our text “an angel of the Lord” appeared at the most crucial moment the early Church had yet faced (Acts 5:19). The high priest and his associates among the Sadducees, jealous at the popularity of the apostolic movement, ordered the apostles arrested and jailed. Not just Peter and John this time (cf. Acts 4:7), but the larger team who led the Christian church in Jerusalem. Jail in the first century was not itself a means of punishment, but prelude to physical torture or execution.

Imagine the results if the apostles were found guilty and killed. Never again would the entire leadership team of the Christian faith be small enough and accessible to such a strategy of the enemy (cf. the selection of deacons in Acts 6, the scattering of new leaders in Acts 8:1, and the sending of missionaries in Acts 13). The apostles had no political power or legal means of defense; they possessed no financial resources with which to secure release; they could not and would not attempt to break out of jail. The future of their movement appeared bleak indeed.

But doors locked to men are easily opened by God. In this case the angel simply “opened the doors of the jail and brought them out” (Acts 5:14), charging them to return to their public ministry of gospel proclamation (v. 20). Would they flee to safety in the night? Would they return to their Galilean homes and the protection such escape might afford? Risking their lives, they did exactly as they were told (v. 21). They knew that the same angel who had rescued them this night would protect them so long as they were faithful to their God.

The miraculous nature of their escape was made clear by the arresting officers: “We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside” (v. 23). This was no coincidence or human achievement misinterpreted. Professional soldiers, at risk of their lives if they failed their task (cf. Acts 12:19), made the situation clear. They had no faith by which to find spiritual reality where it did not exist. The miracle of this event was no miracle to God.

Such angelic protection would soon rescue Peter from another Jerusalem imprisonment (Acts 12:1-19), as an earthquake would free Paul and Silas from their Philippian jail (Acts 16:26). What angels did for these early disciples, they now stand ready to do for us (cf. Hebrews 1:14).

If you had eyes to see spiritual beings, you would see angels around you as you read these words. Elisha’s admonition to his frightened servant is still God’s word to us: “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them” (2 Kings 6:16). After the prophet prayed that the Lord would opened the servant’s eyes, “he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (v. 17). Those horses and chariots are still real today.

If you will serve God faithfully, you can count on angels to protect and serve you. Already you have likely experienced their help in ways you could not see and did not recognize. When we are with the Father in heaven, perhaps he will give us opportunity to look back over our lives and rejoice in all the ways his angels cared for us.

Obey God rather than men (Acts 5:25-32)

Next we come to one of the clearest proofs of genuine transformation in all the apostolic record. Remember that only John had even the courage to appear at Jesus’ crucifixion; Peter had cowered before a serving girl on the night of his Lord’s arrest; the disciples before Pentecost met behind locked doors for fear of the Jews (John 20:19).

Now their worst fears have come to reality. The Sanhedrin knows each of them by name, has already arrested them, and plans to bring them to punishment and probable execution. They are on the nation’s “most wanted” list, with no legal options. They have one more chance to retreat from danger, with the likely result that the Jerusalem officials would allow their safety in obscurity.

If you were in their circumstances today, what would you do? Would you return to the scene of the crime, the headquarters of your adversaries, and continue the very activity which led to your arrest? The apostles did. The Spirit who empowered them at Pentecost changed them forever. Frightened fishermen had become emboldened prophets. And world history would never be the same.

We should pray for such courage: “We must obey God rather than men!” (v. 29). The apostolic witness was consistent and powerful, centering always in the risen Christ and the opportunity for forgiveness he alone provides. Their message should be ours every time you teach and I preach. Those who hear us may never have another chance to come to the One we proclaim. And God will always protect and empower those who glorify his Son.

The text nowhere claims that the apostles performed their ministry without fear. A common spiritual mistake is to confuse the presence of fear with the lack of faith. Genuine faith is not the absence of fear, but the decision to obey God no matter how afraid we are. If we’re not afraid, we need little faith.

Return to that place in your life where you are afraid to serve the Lord. Name that fear. Trust it to God in faith. Follow your Lord even though you are afraid. Only when you step out of the boat can you walk on the water.

The old axiom is still true: “Fear knocked at the door. Faith answered. And there was no one there.”

Expect divine help from unlikely sources (Acts 5:33-39)

We have already seen how God will use his angels to protect his people. Now our story shows us that God can use humans as well as spiritual beings to advance his Kingdom. We expect him to employ the apostles to his Great Commission purpose, but not the greatest scholar among their Jewish opponents. “Straight licks with crooked sticks” is a proverb and a fact of spiritual life.

Gamaliel was the finest scholar in Israel. A Pharisee and legal expert, he may have been the grandson of Hillel, one of the two most prominent teachers in Jewish history. The school founded by Hillel typically interpreted Scripture in a moderate and practical manner, in contrast to Shammai’s more literal and demanding approach. And so Hillel’s school came to prominence and popularity in first-century Judaism.

Gamaliel was at least the recognized leader of this movement, a kind of “denominational” official and key advisor in Israel. Saul of Tarsus’s resume featured the fact that he had once been a protégé of this great scholar: “Under Gamaliel I was thoroughly trained in the law of our fathers and was just as zealous for God as any of you are today” (Acts 22:3). Saul’s subsequent persecution of the Christian movement showed that Gamaliel’s teachings could easily lead to the severest rejection of Jesus’ teachings and followers.

Now this respected spiritual leader, a kind of Billy Graham to his people, stood to speak. A word from him would likely lead to the execution of the leadership team of apostolic Christianity, and the direst consequences to their movement.

Gamaliel cited the revolutionary movement of the otherwise-unknown Theudas (not the one mentioned later by Josephus), and its dispersion. He also mentioned Judas the Galilean, whose revolt against paying taxes to Caesar was described by the Jewish historian Josephus. His rebellion likewise came to nothing (vs. 36-37). His point was simple: “if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God” (vs. 38-39). He was more right than he knew.

And “His speech persuaded them” (v. 40). God used a man none would have counted a friend of the Christian movement, to help preserve its leaders and maintain its growth. If our Lord could use such an adversary to become an unlikely ally of his people, know that he can use any person and source to further his Kingdom.

No one is beyond the redemptive grace of God. And no situation is beyond his redemptive power. If your fear to serve God has its source in a Gamaliel, know that your Father is more powerful than any adversary. The bumper sticker speaks truth: “God + 1 = majority.” Always.

Conclusion (Acts 5:40-42)

The protection God gave his people did not mean that they would not suffer for their faith. Their flogging (v. 40) was a severe torture in which the cat-o-nine-tails, nine long strips of leather imbedded with sharp pieces of rock and shell, was whipped across their backs 39 times. Often such abuse led to permanent damage or worse.

Despite such persecution, the apostles “left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name” (v. 41). What a transformation from cowardice to courage. If you and I can grow to the place where we welcome persecution as an honor, knowing that our Lord considers us strong enough to face such suffering for his Kingdom, realizing that we threaten the enemy enough to force such antagonism, we will have grown mature indeed. And our church will be as powerful and significant for our Father as was theirs.

Water on a grease fire only spreads it. Persecuting true followers of Jesus only strengthens their resolve and ministry. Tertullian was right: the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. Rather than dissuading their proclamation, the Sanhedrin’s abuse led to the opposite response, as the apostles “never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ” (v. 42). In public and private, in the temple and from house to house, nothing could stop their army from becoming the most powerful spiritual movement in human history.

Now God stands ready to use us as he used them. Where are you afraid to stand for your Lord? Where might your class members face such fear in their lives and faith? The angels of God stand ready to protect us; the Spirit of God stands ready to empower us; the providential work of God will employ unlikely sources to aid us. All that remains is for us to step forward in faith, no matter our fears.

I will not forget the time a noted pastor spoke to one of my seminary classes about the power of God and told the following story. A member of his congregation was jogging through a city park one night. She sensed a dangerous presence, and prayed quickly and earnestly to God for his protection. Nothing happened to her. The next day she read in the newspaper that another jogger, running through the same park, had been attacked. She went to the police with her story, and agreed to testify in the assailant’s trial.

A lawyer asked the man if he had seen the woman running earlier through the park. He said that he had. The attorney asked why he had not attacked her. He replied, “I started after her, but suddenly a giant man appeared at her side, running with her, and scared me away.” She never saw him, but he was no less real.

Who’s at your side today?

Tsunamis, Tragedy, and God

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Tsunamis, tragedy, and God:

Where is our Father when his children hurt?

Dr. Jim Denison

Why does a good God allow bad things to happen to good people? The tragedy of tsunamis, earthquakes, landslides, and hurricanes are only the most recent events to call into question God’s love, his power, or both. September 11, 2001, and the Holocaust of the previous generation, are equally problematic for those who believe God is all-powerful and all-loving. And each of us bears our own burdens, faces our own suffering and pain. A college professor said to me, “Son, be kind to everyone, because everyone’s having a hard time.”

What is the question?

In theological language, we are dealing with the issue of “theodicy” (from Greek words for God–theos, and justice–duke). “Theodicy” was coined by the philosopher Wilhelm Leibniz in 1710. He defined his term, “The question of the compatibility of metaphysical, physical, and moral evil in the present world order with the justice and absolute power of God” (Leibniz, Theodicee, my translation).

The Bible is willing to ask Leibniz’s question of its Author. Habakkuk complained to the God who allowed the devastation of his people at the hands of the Babylonians: “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong. Why then do you tolerate the treacherous? Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?” (Habakkuk 1:3). Jesus cried from the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).

The medieval theologian Boethius provided the classic expression of our problem: “If God exists, from whence comes evil?” The pessimistic philosopher Schopenhauer spoke for many: “The shortness of life, so often lamented, may perhaps be the very best thing about it.”

Christians are especially susceptible to this issue, because we believe three apparently contradictory facts to be equally true:

God is all-loving.

God is all-powerful.

Evil exists.

As the Stoic philosopher Epicurus observed, the “solutions” to this dilemma are four:

God wants to remove evil but is unable.

God is able but unwilling.

God is both able and willing; why doesn’t he?

God is neither able nor willing.

Can we defend the third approach with intellectual honesty? If so, how?

Popular but wrong approaches

The easiest way to “solve” the problem of evil and suffering is to deny or minimize one of its three conditions. Regarding the love of God, we can agree with the ancient Stoics that everything is fated by God. They claimed that we are all dogs tied to carts. We can trot alongside the cart, or be dragged by it, but we’re going with the cart.

The ancient Greeks saw their gods as capricious and immoral, Zeus throwing lightning bolts at those who displeased him. A common secular viewpoint today is that life is random coincidence, that if there is a “God” he has little interest in us. He is a clockmaker, watching his creation wind down.

We can also deny or minimize the power of God. Dualism argues that evil is coequal with good. From ancient Zoroastrianism to today, it has been popular to see God and Satan, good and evil locked in a battle for supremacy. J. S. Mill asserted that God is limited in his power; he loves us, but cannot do everything he would wish to help us. Rabbi Harold Kushner, in his kind and sympathetic bestseller When Bad Things Happen to Good People, agrees that even God is not able to do everything he wants to do.

A third wrong approach is to minimize the nature or existence of evil. The Hindu tradition views evil as maya, illusion. The ancient Greeks saw evil as the product of the material world, to be escaped through ascetic discipline and philosophical reflection. The Buddhist worldview treats evil as the product of wrong desires. Hinduism likewise believes that suffering results from wrong choices, as the karma we deserve.

One other wrong “solution” is to deny the existence of God altogether. David Hume, the 18th century “father of skepticism,” proposed this syllogism:

If God exists, he must be loving and powerful and thus eradicate evil.

Evil exists.

Therefore God does not exist.

While atheism says there is no God, “agnosticism” (from the Greek gnosis, knowledge, and a, no) asserts that we cannot know if he exists or not. Alternately, the “soft” agnostic admits that he or she does not (or cannot) know, without claiming that such knowledge is impossible for us all.

The existence of evil and suffering has perhaps motivated more people to question or reject the existence of God than any other factor.

Historical approaches

Since theodicy is a problem as old as the Garden of Eden and the flood of Noah, Christian theologians have wrestled with it all through the history of our faith. Five basic approaches have been proposed most often.

The spiritual warfare model

Satan is very real. He murders and lies (John 8:44). He accuses the people of God (Job 1:9-11), resists the godly (Zechariah 3:1; Matthew 13:38-39), and tempts us to sin (1 Chronicles 21:1; Matthew 4:1). He has power over unbelievers (Acts 26:18; 2 Corinthians 4:3-4). He is a “roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

As a result, much of the evil and suffering in the world is attributable to his malignant work. Paul was clear: “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12).

However, not all suffering is the direct result of Satan’s work. We live in a fallen world, in which natural disasters and disease are inevitable. People misuse their free will (see the second approach below). God permits some suffering for our greater good (see the third approach). Satan would like us to attribute all evil to him, giving him too much power; or blame nothing on him, pretending he doesn’t exist. The right approach is to ask the Lord if there is a Satanic component to our suffering, and trust that he will guide us to the truth. If we are under attack, we can claim the power of God over our enemy and find victory in his Spirit and strength.

The free-will theodicy

Augustine (AD 354-430) is usually considered the greatest Christian theologian after Paul. His approach to the problem of evil and suffering can be summarized as follows:

God created all that is.

All that he created is good.

Before the fall, evil was therefore “non-being,” potential to be chosen but not yet reality.

God created humanity with freedom of will.

We used this freedom to choose evil.

Our choice brought evil into existence, absolving God of blame.

There is much in Scripture to commend Augustine’s approach. God gave us freedom of will (Genesis 3:15-17; Exodus 32:26; Deuteronomy 30:19; Joshua24:15; 1 Kings 18:21). We were given this freedom so we could choose God and good (Matthew 4:10; Proverbs 1:10; 4:14; Romans 6:13; Ephesians 6:13; 2 Peter 3:17). Our free choice for wrong led to evil (James 1:13-15; 4:1). All people are now sinners (Romans 3:23). Our sin has resulted in a fallen world (Genesis 3:17; Romans 8:22).

Whenever evil is the product of our sinful choices, Augustine’s approach explains its existence without blaming God. However, it does not account adequately for innocent suffering. Augustine would argue (correctly) that the tsunami is the product of a world which “fell” because of sin. But he could not explain why it would devastate Southeast Asia rather than some other part of the planet, or why so many innocent children would be affected. A philosopher will also ask, if man was created good by nature, why did he choose to sin? If God gave us freedom of will and knew how we would choose to use it, is he not responsible for its use (at least to some degree)?

The free-will approach helps us understand why a person who chooses to abuse alcohol might die in a drunk driving accident. But it doesn’t explain why the innocent driver of the other car had to die as well.

The soul-building model

Irenaeus (ca. AD 120-ca. 200) proposed an alternative approach to our problem:

God created us to develop into perfect relationship with himself.

He created the world as a place for that development.

Evil is thus necessary as a means of our spiritual development (“soul-building”).

The Bible does teach that some suffering comes from God (Deuteronomy 8:5; Job 16:12; Psalm 66:11; 90:7). We know that suffering can lead to good (Job 23:10; Psalm 119:67; 2 Corinthians 4:17; Hebrews 12:11; Revelation 7:14). Suffering can lead us to repentance (Jeremiah 7:3, 5, 7), and can refine us (Psalm 66:10; Issiah 48:10; Malachi 3:3; 1 Peter 1:7; 4:17). Pain enables us to witness to our faith in God despite the hurt (2 Peter 2:12, 15; 3:15-16). And so God promises to use even difficult experiences for our good, to make us more like Jesus (Romans 8:28-29).

Irenaeus explains how evil could exist before Adam and Eve chose it. His approach also affirms the hope that God can redeem any suffering for his glory and our good. Problems with this approach include the fact that the “fall” it pictures is not as catastrophic as the event described in Genesis 3. The amount of evil in the world seems disproportionate to the present good; it is hard to argue that the lessening of anti-Semitism which resulted from the Holocaust justifies the horrors of that tragedy. This approach also struggles with the existence of Hell, since it is not a soul-building or redemptive reality.

The eschatological model

“Eschatology” deals with the future. Applied to theodicy, this approach asserts that evil will be resolved in the future, making present suffering endurable and worthwhile. Jesus promised that life leads to life eternal in glory (Jn 14:1-6), a paradise beyond our imagination (Revelation 21:1-5). We need not consider the present sufferings worth comparing with the glory to be revealed (Romans 8:18).

As a philosophical model, this approach offers the guarantee of absolute rational understanding. We do not comprehend the purpose of suffering now, but we will one day (1 Corinthians 13:12). All our questions will be answered. All the reasons why God has permitted suffering in our lives will be clarified. Our present faithfulness will be redeemed with future reward in glory (Revelation 2:10).

This approach does not offer explanation in the present, however. And some might wonder how this promise of future hope makes present courage possible.

The existential model

The last model is more practical than theoretical: God suffers as we suffer, and gives us strength to withstand and even redeem our pain. The Bible affirms this assertion (2 Corinthians 4:1, 16; Ephesians 3:13; Hebrews 12:5; Revelation 2:3). God walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death (Psalm 23:4). He weeps as we weep (John 11:35). Jesus experienced every temptation and pain we feel (Hebrews 4:15). He is present with us now in the sufferings of life (Deuteronomy 20:1; Psalm 34:18; Isaiah 43:2; Daniel 3:24-25; 12:6-7; Acts 16:25-26).

Philosophically, this approach is not a true theodicy. It offers no real explanation for the origin or existence of suffering. But it does provide the practical assurance that our Father walks with his children through the hardest places of life, and will never allow us to face more than he will give us the strength to bear (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Practical principles

When the tsunami strikes, how can this theological discussion help us in practical ways? Here are steps to take in the storms of life.

First, utilize the free-will approach to examine the origin of suffering. Is there sin to admit? Is this pain in some way the result of your own misused freedom? If you are not sure, you may ask the Father. Take some time, a pen and paper, and invite the Spirit to show you anything wrong between you and God. Write down whatever comes to mind. This “spiritual inventory” is a useful regular practice. Confess specifically and genuinely whatever the Spirit reveals to you. Claim his forgiving grace (1 John 1:9). Make restitution to others when doing so is to their good (Luke 19:8). But do not assume that suffering is always your fault. Joseph, Job, and Jesus are clear evidence to the contrary.

Second, use the soul-building model to ask: what can you learn from this situation? How can you grow closer to God through this pain? Strive to be open to every source from which this spiritual growth can come–ask friends for counsel, seek the Spirit in prayer and Scripture, worship God even (especially) when it’s hard. Stay close enough to Jesus to hear his voice and feel his transforming touch.

Third, use the future hope approach to ask: how can God redeem this present suffering for future good? How can he use your witness to touch the lives of people you may not even know? How will he reward your present faithfulness in the future and in glory? You may not be able to see the future, but you can believe that it is real.

One of my seminary professor explained the value of future hope this way: imagine that you are struggling financially (an easy thing for most seminary students to do). You’re sitting down to a dinner of beans and hot dogs, when a knock comes at the door. A messenger is there with a letter notifying you that your very wealthy uncle will die in the next few days, and you will inherit a million dollars. You return to your beans and hot dogs, but don’t they taste better?

Last, utilize the existential model to trust God’s help in the midst of your pain. Know that he loves you, no matter how the world assesses or treats you. He will always be your Father, if you have asked Jesus Christ to be your Lord. Nothing can take you from his hand (John 10:28). He will enable you to withstand this trial, until the day he takes you home to glory.

Conclusion

I will never respond to an issue of more practical or perennial relevance than this one. Even when the tsunami in Southeast Asia is a distant tragic memory, there will be another disaster in the news, and in our lives. The biblical and theological principles we have discussed are approaches to the various kinds of suffering we experience. But the enduring hope and strength to face our trials with courage comes from the God we trust and serve.

He promises that nothing can separate us from his love–not death or life, angels or demons, the present or the future, height or depth or anything else in all creation (Romans 8:38-39). We are never beyond the reach of his grace.

Now, where do you need his help and hope today? What hurting friend or family member is in need of God’s love expressed through yours? God is all-loving and all-powerful, even though (and especially when) evil exists. This is the reasoned conclusion of our theological discussion. And far more important, it is the promise of God.

Turning Fear Into Faith

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Turning Fear into Faith

Mark 16:1-8

Dr. Jim Denison

In the last 20 years, the number of poodles registered in America has fallen by half, while the number of registered Rottweilers has increased 100 times. There are more private security officers than public police officers in our country. The average American child will see 8,000 murders and 100,000 acts of violence on television by the end of fifth grade. No wonder psychologists have catalogued 628 different phobias by name.

If you had “ecclesiophobia” (the fear of church), you’d not be here today. But you might have “melophobia,” fear of music; “chrometophobia,” fear of money (at least putting it in the offering plate); “homilophobia,” fear of sermons, or “homilextendaphobia,” fear of long sermons (I made that up, but I’ll bet you have it).

What do we do with all these fears?

Someone said, “The object is not to get rid of the butterflies, but to get the butterflies to fly in formation.” How do we do that? How do we live in a post-9-11 world, with war in Iraq and terror threats at home, with all the disasters and diseases of this fallen world? What fears did you bring to church this morning? How do we face our fears and worries in faith?

Meet Mary Magdalene

We are celebrating Easter today through the eyes of Mary Magdalene. Her given name was “Mary”; she was from the village of Magdala on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee; hence the name by which we know her.

Her only appearance in the gospels before Holy Week is this reference by Luke: “The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out” (8:1-2).

However, Mary figured prominently in Jesus’ death and resurrection. She followed him to the cross, watched where he was buried, and was with the first group to go to his tomb (more in a moment). She is mentioned 14 times in the gospels; in eight she heads the list of names where she is referenced; a ninth places her after Mary the mother of Jesus; and the remaining five list her alone.

How did Easter happen for her? We’ll follow Peter’s eyewitness account, as given to his young disciple Mark and the gospel which bears his name; we’ll supplement what Mark tells us with that which the other gospel writers record.

Meet the risen Christ

Mary’s Easter story begins: “When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body” (Mark 16:1). The Sabbath extended from 6 p.m. Friday to 6 p.m. Saturday; this occurred on Saturday evening, as we keep time.

Then, “Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb” (v. 2). John says it was “still dark” when they set out (John 20:1); Matthew adds that it was “dawn on the first day of the week” (Matthew 28:1; Luke 24:1).

The three found the “very large” stone rolled away and the tomb unguarded (v. 4).

Matthew explains: “There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men” (28:2-4). That stone was but a pebble compared to the Rock of Ages inside.

They “saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed” (Mark 16:5). Luke adds that his clothes “gleamed like lightning” (Luke:24:4). And “they were alarmed” (Mark 16:5). We would be, too.

So the angel told them, “Don’t be alarmed” (v. 6). Matthew: “Do not be afraid” (28:5). Literally, “fear not” or “stop being afraid.” Why?

“He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you'” (vs. 6-7).

Nonetheless they responded: “Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid” (v. 8).

The other gospels tell us that these women eventually did go to the apostles with their experience at the empty tomb (Matthew 28:8; Luke 24:10). Peter and John then ran to the tomb and looked inside (John 20:3-10; cf. Luke 24:12). Mary Magdalene followed them and was left weeping outside (John 20:11; cf. Luke 24:12). To this point she has not met the risen Christ. She has heard from angels, but his body is missing and she is bewildered and upset.

Meanwhile, Jesus met the other women. They worshiped him, clasping his feet, and were sent to his disciples again (Matthew 28:9-10). Mary Magdalene then met “two angels in white” (John 20:11-13), and encountered the risen Christ for herself (John 20:14-17). She then told the disciples about the One she met (v. 18). And the rest is history.

Decide to manage your fear

On Easter Sunday, Mary Magdalene stepped from fear to faith. From “trembling and bewildered” to “I have seen the Lord.” How can we follow her example?

It has been noted that the Bible contains 366 “fear not’s”. Its most frequent prohibition is not about any of the seven deadly sins—pride, envy, gluttony, greed, lust, sloth, or wrath. It’s about fear. One “fear not” for every day of the year, including a leap year like this one. Why? Because we need to “fear not” every day of the year, including a leap year like this one.

Why is fear such a perennial reality in our lives? It’s because we’re made that way.

Now, some of us are more afraid than others. There is actually a “worry gene” you can inherit; it’s the slc6a4 gene located on chromosome 17q12, in case you’d like to go see if you have one.

But we all experience fear, every day. There’s nothing we can do to stop it. Your brain contains something called the “limbic system” buried deep within it. Its primary job is to ensure your survival. It detects what it perceives to be danger within a tenth of a second, and tells your conscious brain before you can stop the message. That’s why fear is so instantaneous. You cannot stop feeling fear. You can only decide to manage your fear.

Imagine returning to the tomb of someone you love, finding the tomb empty and an angel sitting on the tombstone. You’d be “trembling and bewildered” along with these women. You’d be afraid.

Where is your tombstone today? Where are you “trembling and bewildered” this morning? Complete this sentence: “My number one fear is ___________________.”

I fear for my family’s safety every day. I fear that my life will not fulfill God’s purpose for it. I fear not preaching the Easter message well on this important day. I have other fears too personal to confess to you. What are yours?

Step from fear to faith (Matthew 28:5-10)

How can you turn your fear into faith? Let’s close this morning by learning from Mary and these other women of faith.

First, confront your fear. “Do not be afraid,” the angel tells them (v. 5). Make that same decision. You cannot help the feelings of fear that plague you. But you can decide to respond to them. Name your fear today, and choose to confront it.

Next, believe the word of God. The angel gave them the eleven words of Easter: “He is not here; he has risen, just as he said” (v. 6). Find a promise or principle in God’s word for your fear.

I fear for my family, but I can trust those I love to the Father who said, “I will meet all your needs according my riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). I fear failing God’s purpose for my life, but I can trust the One who will lead me into his “good, pleasing, and perfect will” (Romans 12:2). I fear failing this morning, but I can trust this message to the One who said, “I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).

Name your fear, and find God’s truth to respond to it.

Now (and this is crucial), you must meet the risen Lord personally. The women are still “afraid” after hearing the word of God, though they are also now “filled with joy” as well. Then, “Suddenly Jesus met them” (v. 9). Now everything changes.

The only One who can help you overcome the significant fears of your life is the Lord Jesus. The reason you fear them is that you cannot control them. I cannot guarantee my family’s safety. I cannot know the future and my role in it. I cannot control the effectiveness of this message.

But he can. That’s why you and I need a personal relationship with this God. Not just intellectual affirmation of his resurrection on Easter Sunday, but a daily, living connection with him. Time every morning in prayer and Scripture; time every week in personal and congregational worship. Only he can help you with the fears of your life. You must know him personally.

And when you do, you can step by faith into purpose (v. 10). He will guide you into the future and your purpose in it, despite the fears you face.

These women had a purpose, a calling—to be the first evangelists of Easter, the first in human history to tell the world about the risen Lord. They had much to fear—that the disciples wouldn’t believe them, that their families would reject them, that the authorities would arrest and persecute them.

All these things happened. But they stepped by faith into purpose anyway. And their fears turned to faith.

Emerson was right: “Do the thing you fear and the death of fear is certain.” Step by faith into God’s purpose, and you will have his power. Then fear will knock, faith will answer, and no one will be there.

Conclusion

So this can be your Easter: you can leave today the way Mary and her friends left the empty tomb: “trembling and bewildered.” You can choose to “say nothing to anyone, because you are afraid” (Mk 16:8). You can leave as you came. With the same fears you brought to church this morning.

Or this can be your Easter: “Suddenly Jesus met them. ‘Greetings,’ he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid'” (Matthew 28:9-10). And they were not.

Dr. S.M. Lockridge is one of the most profound orators of our day. Listen to his description of our risen Lord: “He is enduringly strong; he is entirely sincere. He is eternally steadfast; he is immortally gracious. He is imperially powerful; he is impartially merciful. He is the greatest phenomenon that has ever crossed the horizons of the globe. He is God’s Son; he is the sinner’s Savior. He is the captive’s Ransom; he is the breath of life. He is the centerpiece of civilization; he stands in the solitude of Himself. He is august and he is unique; he is unparalleled and he is unprecedented. He is undisputed and he is undefiled; he is unsurpassed and he is unshakeable. He is the loftiest idea in philosophy; he is the highest personality in psychology. He is the supreme subject in literature; he is the fundamental doctrine of theology. He is the Cornerstone and the Capstone. He is the miracle of the ages.”

When he says, “Fear not,” he means it.

Turning to God

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Turning to God

2 Chronicles 7:11-14 / Acts 13:1-3

James C. Denison

If you’ve ridden on a Ferris wheel, you know that there is a moment when your gondola swings up to the highest point of the ride. In that frightening moment you can see nothing but sky, before you crest the top and see the ground again. As long as you ride, as many times as you come to that scary moment, it never gets easy.

Today is such a moment for us. I’ve often said that if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans. What has transpired in the last month in my life and work are now Exhibit A. And so once again we come to that moment when we cannot yet see the ground beneath us and must trust that the God who is operating the Ferris wheel of life is in charge of it all.

This morning I need to tell you what many of you already know, and then put it into biblical context for us all. This may be a day when your gondola is cresting the top as well. If it’s not, it will be one day soon.

What God has called us to do

A month or so ago, Dr. Randel Everett, Executive Director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, asked me to consider becoming Theologian in Residence for Texas Baptists. In this role I would be able to do all the things I love doing—speaking to current events in Christian perspective, writing, teaching, leading conferences, talking with pastors and Christian leaders.

He and I also discussed the need for an independent ministry we are now calling The Center for Informed Faith. Its mission would be to equip the Church to reach the world. The Center would promote cultural engagement, spiritual renewal and Awakening, and practical discipleship. It would be an independent ministry, hosted by the BGCT.

This ministry would speak to current events with biblical truth, addressing such issues as radical Islam, Israel and the Middle East, evil and suffering, science and faith, same-sex marriage, and so on.

Its discipleship emphasis would focus especially on people coming to Christ who need discipleship materials—new believers in Cuba, South Texas, the underground church in China, Latin America, critical places where the church is exploding in growth but few resources for spiritual maturity exist. It would partner with numerous other ministries in equipping Christians to reach their world.

From the time we began conversation together, it was obvious to Janet and me that God was calling us to do this. But from the beginning, both Dr. Everett and I intended this ministry to be done in partnership with Park Cities. I would preach on Sunday, teach on Thursday, and do this new ministry during the week.

However, in the last few days, as we began exploring the practical issues in this idea, it became obvious that both are full-time jobs. This new ministry would require a great deal of travel and attention. Park Cities deserves a full-time pastor. So we came to the difficult conclusion that we must resign this ministry in order to follow God’s call into this new work.

Jeff Byrd has been my best friend for 20 years in three churches together. He is resigning as Associate Pastor for Missions to become the Director of the Center. Minni Elkins, my longtime assistant, will join us in this ministry. Start-up funds for this new ministry are coming from friends who offered to help us, as well as other anonymous donors.

Church leaders have been incredibly gracious to us in this endeavor. The trustees spent a great deal of time praying for us last Monday night. The deacons laid hands on Jeff and me Thursday evening and prayed for us. Our congregation has been remarkably encouraging as we have sought God’s will together.

See your need of God

This experience has led us where we never intended to go. It illustrates for me again the fact that God’s will is a flashlight in the dark, showing the next step but no further. If we would experience true spiritual awakening, we must humble ourselves and admit that we need God’s power and purpose. We must pray for the nation and seek God’s face personally. Then we must align our lives with his call. That is the point of today’s text.

The last phrase of our key text makes the point in the negative: God’s people must “turn from their wicked ways.”

“Ways” translates a Hebrew word for road, path, journey, mode of action, course of life. It pictures the normal ways we live, places we travel, our lifestyles. “Wicked” translates a Hebrew word for superlative evil, that which is exceedingly wrong.

Note that God believes that “my people, called by my name” live in these wicked ways. We are not talking about radical Muslim terrorists, or serial killers, or child pornographers. We are talking about the things you and I do each and every day, the ways we live. God says that some of these ways are “wicked,” evil in the extreme.

Do you think of your sins as “wicked”? You probably haven’t committed adultery or murder this week. I doubt that you mean to harm other people. Neither do I. But the white lies, the sinful thoughts, the little things we know we shouldn’t do—all of them are called “wicked” by God. If we humble ourselves, pray, and seek his face, we will see ourselves in the light of his holiness. Then we will see our sins the way he sees them.

That’s what happened to Isaiah when he saw the Lord high and lifted up—he cried out, “Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty” (Isaiah 6:5).

That’s what happened to Peter when he saw the miraculous power of Jesus—he said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” (Luke 5:8). That’s what happened to John on Patmos when he saw the glorified Jesus—he fell at his feet as though dead (Revelation 1:17).

When we see our sins as God sees them, the way to get off of the wrong road is to stop now. The further we go, the further we’ll have to go back. Decide we want to go the right way, “turn from our wicked ways,” and go there. How?

Follow the call of God

Now we turn to the positive. Fast-forward with me a thousand years to the incredible church at Antioch of Syria in AD 46. Here we find “prophets and teachers,” preachers who shared God’s revelation and teachers who explained his word and will. Five are named, perhaps in order of importance:

Barnabas (literally “son of encouragement”), a wealthy man and (Acts 4:36-37) and spiritual leader.

“Simeon called Niger”: as “Niger” is Latin for “black,” some believe that he was African in race. He has often been identified with Simon of Cyrene, the man who bore the cross of Jesus (Matthew 27:32).

“Lucius of Cyrene”: “Lucius” is a Latin or Roman name; “Cyrene” was the capital of Libya in Africa (cf. Acts 6:9; 11:20). This man may have been a Roman, a converted Jew, or most likely another African.

“Manean (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch)”: a relative of the Herod who had beheaded John the Baptist (Luke 9:7-9). Suntrophos, “had been brought up with” can be translated “foster-brother.”

“Saul”: this was his Jewish name, as “Paul” was his Greek name. As he moved more and more among the Gentiles, he would increasingly be known by the latter (cf. Acts 13:9).

The church was capably led by these men of remarkable spiritual maturity and vocational and cultural experience. It would seem that their future was stable and secure. The church was “worshiping the Lord and fasting,” two words which indicate the spiritual fervor and depth of the congregation. Both are in the present tense—they were constantly worshiping God and fasting from food so they could focus on the Lord. This was not just their Sunday morning activity, but their daily lifestyle.

It was in the midst of such concentrated service to God that the Antioch Christians heard the next word from their Lord: “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them” (v. 2). “Set apart” means “to mark with a boundary,” to set something off by itself. “The work to which I have called them” was not specific; they did not know where they would go, what they would do, or how long they would do it.

The congregation responded with immediate obedience: “after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off” (v. 3).

They “fasted and prayed” to confirm that this was indeed the word of the Lord. Then they “placed their hands on them,” conveying their support and God’s blessing. And so began the second half of Acts and the missionary expansion of the gospel across the Roman Empire.

David Harper, our deacon chairman, read this text Thursday night at the deacons’ meeting. Then the men gathered around Jeff Byrd and me, laid hands on us, and prayed for us. It was a deeply moving and powerful moment. I did have to remind them of the way Paul’s story ended, with him in prison and then beheaded—I hope for a different end to our story.

But the text does show us how to follow God.

When we turn from our wicked and wrong ways to God’s paths of righteousness, we must first get alone with God. We must pay the price to listen for his voice. He speaks in stillness and solitude. He can seldom be scheduled into a Sunday morning hour. We spend time with our Father, fasting from the distractions of the world.

Then we do what his Spirit says, even if we don’t understand it. This ministry direction was nothing Jeff and I sought or expected; it is like nothing I ever thought I would do. But it is God’s clear and surprising voice, and we will follow it together.

Conclusion

Now, where does this message find you? What decision, problem, or opportunity stands before you this morning? How can you know and follow the call of God? First, turn from anything which is “wicked” and wrong. Ask his Spirit to show you anything displeasing to your Father, and stop in that road, confess, and ask God to forgive you and heal you.

Then get alone with your Father, asking his Spirit to reveal his word and will to you. Choose to submit and surrender—whatever he asks, wherever he leads, whatever the cost. You won’t know the future, but you will trust the One who does. The safest place in all the world is the center of the will of God.

We are all on pilgrimage with God. The good news for Janet and me is that we will step into this next chapter while staying in Dallas and in Park Cities Baptist Church, doing much which will partner with this church we love.

You will find and follow God’s next steps for your future together as well. Christians in Antioch had no idea that people in Rome would come to Christ because of their faithfulness. You cannot measure the eternal significance of present obedience.

This is the promise of God.

Turning Wine into Water

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Turning Wine into Water

John 2:1-11

Dr. Jim Denison

Recent polls reveal a nation filled with worried people. As the mid-term elections draw near, we are worried about war and terrorism, then about economic issues, taxes and the cost of living, and the moral decline of the nation. Apparently, there is much to worry about.

One in four women and one in six men suffer from clinical depression. Suicide rates have increased substantially in recent years, especially among teenagers. Greatly exacerbating the problem, alcoholism continues to be a tragic problem in this country. For instance, nearly 30 percent of high school seniors have engaged in “binge” drinking in the last two weeks.

There are 4.2 billion pornographic websites on the Internet today. A third of young women in this country become pregnant before reaching the age of 20. Four million teenagers contract a sexually transmitted disease each year.

The story inside the church is not much better than in the larger culture. According to recent reports, only half of all believers say they have experienced a genuine connection with God in the last year. The typical churchgoer will never lead someone to Christ in his or her lifetime. Christians spend less time reading the Bible than talking about personal hobbies and interests. Fewer than one in ten Christian families pray together outside of church.

We’ll learn today the difference between our water and God’s wine. You can have one or the other, but not both. When we’re finished with our study of God’s word, I hope you’ll choose wisely, for the sake of your church and your soul.

Have you invited Jesus to your wedding?

Our story unfolds on a Wednesday afternoon at a wedding. On the previous Sabbath, Jesus called James and John to be his first followers (John 1:39). Andrew and Simon joined him the following day (John 1:40-42). On Monday he called Philip and Nathaniel to discipleship, and “decided to leave for Galilee” (John 1:43). His fledgling group traveled on Tuesday, arriving late that evening or Wednesday morning.

Jesus’ group has come to a wedding, one of the greatest occasions of common life in ancient Palestine. The marriage ceremony was celebrated late Wednesday evening after an all-day feast. Then the couple was led to their new home under the light of flaming torches, with a canopy held over their heads. For a week they wore crowns, dressed in bridal robes, and were treated and even addressed as a king and queen. In lives filled with poverty and hard work, this was a joyous celebration for the entire village.

So to this village, Jesus came. Cana was so insignificant that its location has not been determined with absolute certainty. Most archaeologists identify it as Kefr Kenna, 3.5 miles from Nazareth, though other locations are also possible. It is mentioned twice in John’s gospel, and nowhere else in God’s word.

Jesus could have begun his public ministry in any way he chose. If you possessed his miraculous, divine powers, how would you first tell the world? Would you raise a Lazarus from his grave? Would you feed a multitude of 5,000 with a small boy’s lunch? Would you walk on the sea? Would you open blind eyes? Would you reveal your powers to Herod in Caesarea or Caesar in Rome? Jesus began in an obscure, rural village, by blessing a peasant wedding.

If he would come to their village, he’ll come to yours. Have you invited him?

Who have you put in charge of your life?

Now comes the crisis. Hospitality in the Middle and Far East was and is a sacred duty. When serving as a missionary in East Malaysia I was often privileged to be welcomed into the simplest of village huts. The mother would always set food before me. It might be goat’s milk or bean curd, but it was her best and I was obligated to eat it. (Fish eyes were the greatest test of faith I encountered.) No one in the Palestine of Jesus’ day would think of inviting a guest to their home without providing them a meal. And if the wine or food ran out, such would be a social catastrophe.

Nowhere was such hospitality more mandatory than at one’s wedding. The entire village was there. Families saved for years to provide for the occasion. To run out of wine would be a nightmare beyond contemplation. It simply wasn’t done. Such a failure could not be tolerated. If you invited friends and family to Christmas dinner but ran out of food to feed them, you would be embarrassed. If you were a bride or groom in Jesus’ day and ran out of wine, you would be humiliated for the rest of your life.

So Mary comes to Jesus with this crisis: “They have no more wine” (v. 3). Why him? Because they have nowhere else to turn, and she knows it.

His response seems very strange to our ears: “Dear woman, why do you involve me? My time has not yet come” (v. 4). This was a Jewish idiom which is better translated, “Dear lady, why do you ask me to solve the problem in this way? The time for my public miracles has not yet come.”

She knew that he would meet the need in his own way, so Mary said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” She gives him the problem, then trusts him with the answer.

Jesus then used the human to accomplish the divine: “Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons” (v. 6).

“Ceremonial washing” was vitally important to the Jews of Jesus’ day (see 2 Kings 3:11; Mark 7:3; John 13:4-10; John 3:25). It was the physical means by which they ensured that they were spiritually clean while living in this fallen world.

Each water pot contained about 20 gallons. By transforming this much water, Jesus created 2,000 four-ounce glasses of wine. Using the customary dilution of two parts wine with three parts water, Jesus provided enough wine to last the entire wedding week.

But only because Jesus’ mother and her servants did as he asked. They made him the master of this banquet, the King of this kingdom. Then he used them to do what they could, while he did what they could not. And the result was a miracle which blessed an entire village and caused his disciples to “put their faith in him” (v. 11).

Applications

Max Ehrmann wrote “Desiderata” in 1927. Over the years his poem has been made into plaques and posters, a Grammy-award winning song, and the mantra for a generation. Here’s how it ends:

You are a child of the universe,no less than the trees and the stars;you have a right to be here.And whether or not it is clear to you,no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,whatever you conceive Him to be,and whatever your labors and aspirations,in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,it is still a beautiful world.Be cheerful.Strive to be happy.

“Desiderata” is the theme song for a movement which has been going on for nearly 200 years in this culture. A spiritual movement has been afoot in America since the early 19th century. It is a movement which has come to affect every living American and every attender of Park Cities Baptist Church. It affects me every day of my life, and you as well.

At the dawn of the 19th century, the world was becoming a smaller place. Americans began to interact with world religions; many were drawn to mysticism of Eastern faiths and a desire to combine religions into a unified search for truth and happiness.

An outcry began for racial reconciliation, the abolition of slavery, the rights of women and workers. The organized churches of the day seemed insensitive to these issues, if not the enemy of such progress.

Meditation techniques practiced in solitude became popular. Thoreau’s Walden became sacred for many, teaching us that we can find God on our own terms.

Darwin’s evolutionary theories caused many to see the Bible as myth rather than truth. It became popular to view Christianity as personal spirituality rather than objective, authoritative truth.

These various movements have coalesced in our lifetime.

We now live in a culture which is convinced that spirituality is subjective and personal, that truth is individual and practical. There are many roads up the same mountain, for God has many names. We can be “spiritual” without being religious.

The objective authority of God’s word has been replaced by the subjective authority of our own desires and plans. We can abuse alcohol, view pornography, or engage in sexual activity as much as we want, so long as we don’t hurt anyone else.

We go to church for what we can get out of it. We choose a church or even a religion as consumers choose a shopping mall or a civic club. We have turned the wine of divine revelation into the water of personal opinion. And the well is running dry.

What are we to do?

Make God your King again. Hear Jesus’ first sermon: “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Pray with all your heart, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Abdicate the throne of your heart and put him on it.

Make him your King, then resolve to extend his Kingdom. Give him your problems, your future, your church. And do whatever he says. Know that it’s not about you. Worship is not for us but for him. How we worship is not nearly as important as Who we worship. Decide that you want to extend his Kingdom in Dallas and around the world, that you want to be part of a church which will do whatever it takes to help Dallas know Jesus as Lord.

And know that he makes the best wine. He can do so much more with us than we can do with ourselves. We worship a God who would bless a peasant wedding, who would meet a personal need with his divine best. He loves us, and likes us, and wants to give our lives his purpose and joy. He is waiting to turn our water into his wine. But he can bless only the wedding where he is welcome and he is King.

Conclusion

Where have you run out of wine today? What is the great challenge of your heart and soul today? Put Jesus on that throne. Make him its King. Seek his word and will on that very issue, then ask his Spirit to give you the strength to do what God says.

Make him the King of your church. Ask him to turn our water into his wine, to use our worship and ministries to extend his Kingdom in Dallas and around the world.

In coming weeks, as we walk through more miracles of Jesus in the Gospel of John, we’ll find practical ways to make God our King. Today you have come to the coronation service. Today is the day to crown him your King.

When I visit England I always make time for the Tower of London and its display of the Crown Jewels. Valued at around $30 million today, they are worn only when a new sovereign assumes the throne or other significant affairs of state commence. The rest of the time they are on display for tourists like me.

The crown of the Kingdom of God is not a museum showpiece. It is being worn today, right now. You are wearing it, or you have given it to Jesus. You will drink today your water or his wine.

Choose wisely.

Two Words That Will Change the World

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Topical Scripture: Matthew 5:21–24

Ryan Diviney was a star athlete in high school before enrolling in West Virginia University in Morgantown. He planned to go into law and dreamed of becoming a judge or even a US senator.

On November 7, 2009, he and a friend got into a verbal altercation with some young men outside a Dairy Mart convenience store in Morgantown. Then a WVU student steaked up behind Ryan and punched him in the face. He fell to the ground, then another student kicked him in the head.

Ryan’s jaw was broken, his skull was fractured in two places, and he began bleeding from the brain. For nearly a decade, he lived in a vegetative state. His father quit his job to devote himself to Ryan’s daily care at home. His mother kept working, in part to maintain the family’s health insurance. His sister, inspired by her brother’s plight, became a special-education teacher.

Ryan died 10 years later at the age of twenty-nine.

The student who punched him spent a year in prison; the one who kicked him spent four years in prison. All these years later, Ryan’s father says he remains angry at the two. Any father would feel the same.

But imagine the difference if the two men who attacked Ryan came to his family today and said, “I’m sorry.” Or better, imagine the difference if they had said those words rather than attacking Ryan in the first place.

Imagine the difference in marriages if every couple sought reconciliation rather than pursuing retribution. Imagine the difference in friendships and employment relationships. Imagine the difference in national affairs and geopolitical challenges.

Is there a place in your life where you need to hear those words? Where you need to speak them?

Let’s see how two words can change the world, and how they can change your world and mine.

Refuse to hate or hurt

Jesus continues his Sermon: “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be liable to judgment'” (v. 21).

They “heard” this because the rabbis read the law to them in the synagogue each Sabbath, including this Sixth Commandment (Exodus 20:13). A murderer was “liable to judgment,” the local tribunal composed of seven persons. These tribunals inflicted punishment for capital crimes.

Now we find Jesus’ commentary: “But I say you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment” (v. 22a).

Jesus is not dealing here with the simple emotion of anger. This is an inevitable human reaction to hurt or harm. And it was an emotion Jesus felt himself. In Mark 3:5 Jesus “looked around at them with anger” for their unbelief; in John 2:15 he drove the moneychangers out of the Temple. Ephesians 4:26 tells us, “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.” The emotion of anger is not a sin.

He is dealing with a different thing here. In the Greek language, thumos describes the spontaneous and unavoidable emotion of anger; it is not the word here. Orge is this word; it means anger that is long-lived, cherished in the heart, nursed and kept alive. The deliberate choice to continue holding onto your anger. Absolute unwillingness to pardon and move on.

Such cherished anger makes us “liable to judgment.” In other words, hating my brother is as wrong as the murder which hate spawns.

Jesus continues: “Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin” (v. 22b NIV). “Raca” was an Aramaic term of contempt which literally meant “empty-headed” or stupid. In ancient Judaism names were much more significant than they are for us. A name denoted a person’s character, and a word took on its own life and power.

So expressing your cherished anger by a term of contempt made you answerable not to the local tribunal but to the Sanhedrin, the Supreme Court of ancient Israel. They typically required reparations in money for such an insult to a person’s reputation and status.

Jesus then adds, “and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the fire of hell” (v. 22c).

“Fool” was the worst, most slanderous term you could use against a person in ancient Israel. It comes from the Greek word for “moron,” and meant a person who is morally deficient, corrupted, immoral, a person with no character or value whatsoever.

This level of anger deserves “the fire of hell.” The Greek says, “the gehenna of fire.” The Valley of Gehenna stood to the south of Jerusalem. During the reigns of wicked kings Ahaz and Manasseh, children were sacrificed to idols there. King Josiah stamped out such heinous sin, and make the valley a trash dump. Fires were kept burning there constantly to consume the trash; worms lived there and lived off the refuse. Jesus would later make Gehenna a metaphor for hell “where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:43, 48).

What is Jesus teaching us? Refuse to hate or hurt your brother. No matter what he may have done to you. In a moment Jesus will teach us how to reconcile with him. For now, how do we handle the anger our pain has caused?

Act on your anger immediately, before it takes root in your soul: “Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold” (Ephesians 4:26–27 NIV). Deal with this infection before it spreads. Admit it and give it to God.

Guard your tongue, especially while you are angry: “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless” (James 1:26). What we say shows who we are.

Choose to pardon, for your sake and his. Tim Stafford: “I would rather be cheated a hundred times than develop a heart of stone.” A wise old saint added, “I will never allow another person to ruin my life by making me hate him.”

The Didache is the oldest theological document outside the New Testament. It gives us good advice: “Love those that hate you, and you will have no enemy” (1.3). Ask God’s help, and it will be yours.

Who has made you angry this week?

Make things right today

Now, how do we reconcile our relationship with this person? Jesus will tell us: “So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift” (vv. 23–24).

“Offering your gift at the altar” describes the holiest moment a Galilean peasant might ever experience. Very rarely were non-priests allowed before the altar at the Temple in Jerusalem, and only when they were bringing animal sacrifice for a very special occasion. Some would prepare for years or all their lives for this moment. This is something akin to baptism for us.

There you “remember that your brother has something against you”—not just that you have something against him. “Something” is anything. There is no distinction here as to whether this is just or not, whether you are wrong or wronged. If anyone has anything against you today, you qualify.

Leave your gift. Don’t give it to the priest but leave it where it is. Despite the holiness and significance of this moment. The person comes first: “go and be reconciled.” Take the initiative to make things right. Only then can you give your gift to God. You cannot be right with me if you are wrong with one of my children. Our heavenly Father feels the same way.

How do we attempt this reconciliation? I recently read an article in Psychology Today entitled “Making Amends.” It suggests that a meaningful apology requires three steps:

Regret: recognize that your action or inaction hurt this person, whether you intended such pain or not. Empathize with the pain they feel.

Responsibility: accept total responsibility for your actions or inactions.

Remedy: offer restitution or a promise to take action so that you do not repeat this behavior. Find a way to resolve the situation and restore the relationship.

Take the initiative to reconcile with your brother. Go to the person directly: “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother” (Matthew 18:15). Don’t talk about the person, but to him.

Do it now. The poet Edwin Markham lost everything when an unscrupulous banker betrayed his business confidence. He hated that man. And he could not write poetry, but doodled circles on paper for hours. Finally, he realized he must forgive the man or die. He said aloud, “I forgive him.” For the first time in months, words began to flow. Looking at the circles on his paper, he wrote:

He drew a circle that shut me out,
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But love and I had the wit to win.
We drew a circle that took him in.
Start your circle today.

Conclusion

Many stories have been told about the painting of Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper. One of my favorites is that da Vinci made the face of Judas similar in appearance to a personal enemy. As the artist thought of how much he disliked this man, it was easy to paint him as the traitor of our Lord.

However, when he turned to paint the face of Jesus, he could not. His eyes wandered to the face of his enemy, creating thoughts within his heart which made it impossible to concentrate on the beauty and purity of Jesus. He painted the face of Christ only after he painted out the face of Judas and reconciled himself with his enemy.

To paint the face of Christ tomorrow, whose face must you change today?

Unlocking the Throne Room

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Unlocking the Throne Room

Romans 8:26-27

James C. Denison

I hate flying. I am “altitudinally challenged.” I don’t just dislike the experience mildly. As a child, I was made to fly with my family on a friend’s private plane. I threw up, and a pattern was established. I could be the John Madden of theology–if someone would give me a Greyhound bus to travel the country, I would never set foot in another plane. How I would travel overseas, I haven’t figured out yet.

The reason is simple: I want to know why something is true before I trust it with my life. And I have no idea how a mega-ton metal monstrosity can get up to 30,000 feet and stay there.

As a small boy, I wanted to fly more than anything else in the world. I used to lay in the grass and stare into the blue sky, jealous of the birds and clouds and Superman. I once carved a set of wings out of cardboard, taped them on my arms, climbed to the roof of our house and jumped. Fortunately, it was a one-story house. I still remember how that episode ended, and fear the same result every time I step onto an airplane.

It would help greatly if I understood the principles of flight. If I knew why and how an airplane lifts off the ground and stays in the air, I would probably be able to look out the window of my aisle and stop digging my fingernails into the armrest. The more vital the subject, the more knowing why comes before knowing how for many of us.

Today Romans 8 brings us to the topic of prayer. We’re going to learn the good news that the Holy Spirit prays for us when we pray, and that his prayers are always answered. This fact provides us the opportunity to ask hard questions about one of the most significant aspects of Christian spirituality, and learn to be more than conquerors in prayer today.

Why do you need to learn to pray more effectively this morning?

Answers to prayer

Before we get to our questions about prayer, let’s begin with the clear fact before us.

Our text begins, “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.” The apostle has just described our hope in heaven–now he shows us our hope on earth. “Weakness” can be connected to the problems of life, but in this context it relates more to our weakness, our problems with prayer. We’ll return to these in a moment.

Whatever your questions or issues with prayer, the Spirit is living in your life and is ready to “help” you. The Greek word means “to lend a hand” or “come to the aid.” It conveys the idea of helping someone carry a burden.

Why do we need his help? Because “we do not know what we ought to pray for.”

“We” includes us all, even the greatest Apostle in Christian history.

Paul knows that we will all pray, but that we do not know how to pray effectively. We are like children who do not know what is best for us or what to ask from our Father. We don’t know the future, or much about the present. We don’t know whether this new job is best for us, or whether we should marry this person, or whether it is best that we be healed of this disease or helped out of this financial struggle. None of us knows.

So when we pray, “the Spirit himself intercedes for us.” The same Spirit who created the universe (Genesis 1:2), who raised Jesus from the dead (Romans 8:11) and empowered the apostles to change the world, prays for us.

He “intercedes”–the word means to plead on behalf of another. It describes someone who rescues a person in need by advocating his cause before the authorities. He does this for “us,” for all of us, without exception.

His prayers are greater than our comprehension, “groans that words cannot express.” He is not limited to our finite minds and understanding when he prays for us.

And his prayers are always effective, because he “intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.” God can only answer prayer in accordance with his will. The holy, righteous God of love cannot and will not give us better than the best. He will not give us what we ask for if it violates his will for his glory and our good.

The Bible promises that “if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us” (1 John 5:14). But we must pray according to his will. We don’t often know how to do this, but the Spirit doesn’t have that problem. As we pray, he prays for us. And his prayers always reflect the will of God, so they are always answered by God.

This is incredible good news.

Jesus “always lives to intercede” for us (Hebrews 7:25). He “is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us” (Romans 8:34). He is praying for you at this very moment.

Now we learn that the Spirit helps us when we pray by praying for us as well. If you could have the holiest, most godly person you’ve ever known pray for you at all times and intercede whenever you pray, what person would you choose? The Father has provided even more for us, tasking his Son and Spirit with praying for you and me.

And when we pray and the Spirit prays for us, his prayers are always heard and answered.

Questions about prayer

This is wonderful good news, but it is also perplexing news. If the Spirit always prays for us when we pray, and his prayers are always heard, why is it that our prayers seem sometimes not to be heard or answered?

And why should I pray at all? Matthew 6:8 says that “your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” I’m not informing the omniscient Lord of the universe when I pray to him. Why pray, then?

Does my prayer motivate God to do something he would not have? If so, am I talking God into doing the right thing? If not, what is the point of praying?

And what about intercessory prayer and free will? Why should I pray for people to become Christians or make good decisions, if God honors their freedom and is not going to force them to trust or obey him? Let’s take our questions in order.

First, why are our prayers sometimes not answered as we pray them? Because God will always give us what we ask for or whatever is best.

Jesus taught us to pray to “our Father in heaven” (Matthew 6:9). He is the Father–we are the children. And as our text states, we don’t always know what is best for us. Billy Graham writes in his autobiography that he was devastated when the girl he loved rejected his proposal of marriage, and couldn’t understand why God hadn’t answered his prayers. Then he met Ruth Bell and the rest is history.

Why does God sometimes heal people when we pray for them and sometimes not? The Spirit helps us pray by interceding for us in accordance with God’s will. If it is best that people be healed, they will be. If it’s best that they go to heaven rather than staying on earth, one second on the other side they’ll be forever glad God answered our prayer as he did.

That’s incredibly hard for us to understand or appreciate, but it results from the fact that God always gives us what we ask or whatever is best. One day we’ll understand why this was for his greatest glory and our greatest good.

Remember when Paul prayed three times that God would remove his “thorn in the flesh,” but was refused three times. God gave him what was even better, teaching him the critical truth that his power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). God always gives us what we ask or whatever is best.

And know that he has all of eternity to hear and answer your prayers. He is not bound by time as we are. Six billion people could be praying to him at this moment, but he has forever to hear and respond to each and every request. So “pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:17), and know that God will always answer your prayer in whatever way is best. Always.

Second, why work at praying? If Jesus is praying for me all the time, and if the Spirit prays whenever I pray, why work at prayer myself? Why not pray generically and routinely and trust the Spirit to do all the heavy lifting?

Because prayer positions me to receive what God’s grace wants to give but cannot unless I’ll receive it. We didn’t build this sanctuary, and most of us had nothing to do with paying for it. But we must come inside it to receive the benefits it provides. God will honor our freedom, and will not force his grace into our lives. Presents must be opened. God wants to lead us, forgive us, and use us, but we must receive such mercy. We do so in prayer.

And prayer is the way God shapes our souls. When we pray the Spirit works on us, molding us into the image of Jesus. He transforms us, but only when we are connected with him in prayer.

We do not pray to inform God but to receive from God and to be with God. These reasons are enough to call us all to a life of prayer.

Third, what about intercession and freedom? Why pray for lost people to be saved, if God will never violate their free will? Why pray for a Christian to repent of sin or take a step of faith or change behavior in any way, if God has limited himself to the freedom he gave them in Christ?

When we pray, God does all he can to answer our prayer short of violating that freedom. If you pray for a lost person to come to Christ, God will bring Christians across his path, place Christian influence before him, and convict him by the work of his Spirit. And he will use you to answer your prayer. He will not violate the person’s freedom, but he will do everything else he can to bring him to faith.

It is the same when we pray for anyone’s behavior to change. God does all he can short of dishonoring their free will to answer our prayer in whatever way is best. So intercede for lost people to become Christians and for Christians to become Christ-like disciples, and know that your prayers are cooperating with God in shaping eternity.

Conclusion

To recap: When you pray, the Spirit helps you by interceding for you in accordance with God’s will–and his prayers on your behalf are always answered.

So pray continually, knowing that God will always give you what is best. Prayer positions you to receive his grace as his Spirit molds you into the image of Jesus. God will do everything short of violating human freedom to answer your prayers for yourself and others. And eternity will be different because you prayed.

Ask the Spirit to fill, control, and empower you every day. Ask him to teach you to pray and trust him to intercede as you pray. And he will, always.

R. A. Torrey was pastor of Moody Church in Chicago before embarking on a global evangelistic ministry which saw more than 102,000 people accept Christ in just the first eighteen months. He knew something about ministry and the power of God.

He said, “If anyone should ask me, ‘What is the great secret of holy living?’ I would say at once, ‘Living in the Holy Spirit.’ If anyone should ask me, ‘What is the great secret of effective service for Jesus Christ,’ I should reply at once, ‘Serving in the Holy Spirit.’ If anyone should ask me, ‘What is the one greatest secret of profitable Bible study?’ I would reply, ‘Studying in the Holy Spirit.’ And if anyone should ask me, what was the one great all-inclusive secret of prevailing prayer, I should reply, ‘Praying in the Holy Spirit.’ It is the prayer that the Holy Spirit inspires that God the Father answers” (R. A. Torrey, The Power of Prayer and the Prayer of Power [Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1971 (1924)] 137).

Israel’s Prime Minister Menachem Begin was visiting President Ronald Reagan in the White House, when he noticed a gold phone on the president’s desk.

“What is that for?” he asked. “It’s my direct line to God,” Reagan replied. “How much does it cost to make a call?” Begin wanted to know. “Ten thousand dollars, but it’s worth every cent.”

Later in the year Reagan was in Begin’s office in Israel. He saw a gold phone on the prime minister’s desk. “What is that for?” he asked. “It’s my direct line to God.” “How much does it cost to make a call?” “Ten cents–it’s a local call.”

Your next call is free. The Lord of the universe is waiting on the other end of the line. Why do you need to pick up the phone this morning?

Unopened Christmas Gifts

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Unopened Christmas Gifts

Matthew 3:1-12

Dr. Jim Denison

I have always been jealous of those who have an easier time decorating for Christmas than I do. For instance, a friend in Atlanta had a closet built in his new house specifically for his artificial Christmas tree. He put the tree on rollers, then glued on lights and ornaments and tinsel. Each Christmas he rolls it from the closet and plugs it in. Each New Year he unplugs it and rolls it back into its closet. I know that coveting is forbidden, but it’s hard.

This week I heard a new angle. A friend in our church tells me that his family hates to wrap presents. So they wrapped up some empty boxes and each year set them under the tree. The same boxes, year after year. Then on Christmas Day they open their unwrapped presents, saving all the time and hassle of dealing with shredded paper and sticky tape and such. Again I’m coveting.

I can picture unopened empty boxes. But I cannot imagine unopened boxes with gifts inside. Presents our family and friends chose and bought and wrapped for us, stashed in the attic unopened because it’s too much trouble to unwrap them.

It’s typical during the Christmas season to hear a sermon which deals with the presents we can give Jesus for his birthday–faith, commitment, and the like. It is less common to think about the birthday presents he wants to give to us. But that’s his message to us this morning.

Jesus has given us some very specific, very valuable presents. If we leave them unopened in the Sanctuary today, we miss all that he came to give. If we open his presents this morning, we will experience his transforming presence and leave with his peace, power, and joy. So, how do we unwrap the presents Jesus came at Christmas to give?

Either God is king . . .

“In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea” (v. 1). John “lived in the desert until he appeared publicly to Israel” (Luke 1:80). This was the wilderness area around the Dead Sea, honeycombed with caves. Here individuals and small communities lived apart from society, separated to the service of God.

His message to the nation was clear, and crucial: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near” (v. 2). The “kingdom of God” is the place where God is king. Jesus taught us to pray, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10).

The kingdom of God is the central theme of Scripture. In Genesis, the King creates his kingdom. In Revelation, he returns to rule his kingdom forever. Jesus came to announce that the king has come: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near” (Matthew 4:17).

Why must we “repent” to enter this kingdom? To “repent” is to change. Theologians define the word as a “change of mind which results in a change of life.” It means to make a U-turn, to go a different direction. In this case, to stop being king of our lives and make God king instead.

There can be only one king in a kingdom, one ruler in a realm. If he is to be our king, we cannot be king any longer. We must abdicate the throne. We must stop serving ourselves and start serving him. We must stop making our own plans and asking God to bless them, and start following his plans and purposes for our lives. We must climb down from the throne and crown him the King of our souls and lives.

You see, a king owns everything in the kingdom. This is his church, not ours. These are his pews, not ours. This is his Bible and his suit, not mine. You live in his house and drive his car. You eat his food and breathe his air. Everything you have is his. You are simply managing his possessions until the time when he comes to claim them again.

And so, to repent and enter the kingdom of God is to submit to him as the King of Monday as well as Sunday, the money we keep as well as the money we give, our private relationships as well as our public religion. It is to surrender to him all that we have and are.

How is this an Advent message? Because this is how we “prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him” (v. 3).

When important people were due to visit a city, the residents went out to improve the roads for them. Boulders had to be pulled out of the way; ravines and elevations made during the rainy season had to be leveled. The more important the visitor, the greater the preparations for his coming.

This King will not come unless he is welcome. He will not go where he is not invited. He stands at the door and knocks–if we open the door, he will come in and stay with us (Revelation 3:20). He will bring us the abundant life he came to give. He will make his presence real in our hearts and souls. He will be our Wonderful Counselor, our Mighty God, our Everlasting Father, our Prince of Peace. And it will be “Joy to the world–the Lord has come.”

Conversely, we can have Christmas without repentance, but we cannot have Advent. We can have holidays, but not holy days. We can observe Jesus’ birth, but we cannot experience it. We can be grateful that he entered the human race, but we will miss his presence in our hearts and souls today. We will return his gift of abundant life unopened. And soon Christmas will be done.

. . . or you are

Tragically, that is our likely response to John’s message. It is human nature to want to be our own king of our own Kingdom. Satan’s chief temptation is still the same: “you will be like God” (Genesis 3:5).

John Claypool, the famous and insightful preacher, spoke for most of us: “People used to ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, and I was shrewd enough to fashion my answer according to what I thought they wanted to hear. For some it was a policeman, for others a fireman or a preacher. However, in my own heart of hearts, I had my own private fantasy that I never dared to share with anyone. Do you know what it was? I am telling you the gospel truth: I wanted to be president of the world” (The Preaching Event 64, italics his).

As children want an allowance from their parents so they can have money of their own; as prodigals want their part of the inheritance to spend as they wish; so we all want to be in charge of our lives. We want God to meet our needs and bless our plans. We want to be king of our Kingdom.

And religion doesn’t help matters. In fact, it often makes things worse.

The Pharisees were the holiest people in Israel, 6,000 men who were devoted completely to living by every detail of the Law. The Sadducees were the religious authorities of the day–the high priest and those who helped him lead the nation. Think of Billy Graham and Pope John Paul II, and you’ll have a sense of the veneration in which the nation held these people. Yet they rejected the message of John and the Messiah he predicted. They returned the gifts of Christmas unopened.

It is a strange and tragic fact that the more religious we are, the less likely we are to repent of our sins and submit to God as our King.

The religious authorities tried to have Luther killed; they rejected Calvin; they massacred Anabaptists by the thousands; they exiled Baptists to the colonies; they rejected Jonathan Edwards and the First Great Awakening; they ridiculed Billy Graham when he began his crusades.

When we are successful in religion, we almost inevitably become self-reliant spiritually. We know how to run our church, or teach our class, or study and pray. We know how to serve the Lord. We can build his Kingdom for him, expecting his gratitude for our good work.

But you and I cannot convict a single person of a single sin. We cannot heal a single home or restore a single marriage. We can do nothing that matters for eternity. When last did you submit your life and religion to God as your King? Conversely, when last did you lead a lost person to Jesus? A saved person closer to him? When last did the Spirit use you for eternal significance? How is his Kingdom larger and stronger because of you?

Do you need to repent so that the kingdom can come into your heart and church today? So Jesus can give you his abundant and joyful life? So God can use your life to do eternal things? So you can have the peace and power of the Spirit in your soul? So you can receive all that the King of Kings gives to his subjects?

Conclusion

There is wonderful good news in John’s message and this day’s worship: all who will make God their King, can. The Bible says that “People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River” (vs. 5-6).

Tax collectors and prostitutes, pagans and demoniacs–it makes no difference to God. Where you’ve been doesn’t matter–only where you’re going. He is ready to forgive every sin you’ll confess and make your life significant in his Kingdom. If only you’ll make him your King.

This is how it has been all through Christian history.

Peter and Paul are the two best-known leaders in apostolic history. Yet one denied Jesus three times, and the other did all he could to murder Christians and exterminate their movement.

Justin the Martyr was a pagan philosopher before he became the most effective apologist of early Christian history.

Augustine was a pagan philosopher and lawyer, living with his girlfriend and rejecting all sexual morality, when he took up the Scriptures and was glorious transformed.

Thomas Aquinas was known as the “dumb ox” in school before becoming the most significant theologian of the medieval church.

Martin Luther was an obscure, guilt-plagued monk in a tiny village before becoming the leader of the Reformation.

Billy Graham is today the best-known Christian in the world, but no one would have predicted such success for him as a boy.

Growing up on a dairy farm in North Carolina, he was more known for mischief than spirituality. His conversion during a summer revival made no headlines in anyone’s newspaper. He went to Bible college, but not seminary. He pastored only one small church before beginning his evangelistic ministry.

The back cover of his autobiography contains these words: “I have often said that the first thing I am going to do when I get to Heaven is to ask, ‘Why me, Lord? Why did You choose a farmboy from North Carolina to preach to so many people, to have such a wonderful team of associates, and to have a part in what You were doing in the latter half of the twentieth century?’ I have thought about that question a great deal, but I know also that only God knows the answer” (Just As I Am).

I think Billy Graham’s wife knows the answer. Last spring, Janet and I were privileged to visit the Billy Graham Center at Wheaton College in Illinois. There we walked with amazement through displays documenting the decades of Dr. Graham’s global evangelism ministry. There were quotes from statesmen, presidents, and kings the world over. But the quote which most struck us came from his wife. Ruth Bell Graham said of her husband, “He was a man in a hurry who wanted to please God more than any man I’d ever met! . . . He stood head and shoulders above all the others because of the depth of his commitment to Jesus Christ. I knew I would always be second to God in his life. But what better place to be!”

I was privileged to meet Billy Graham personally a few years ago when I was part of the team which invited him to Dallas for his last Mission here. I will never forget the scene.

He was preaching in Fresno, California, at the university stadium there. He was seated in a converted locker room beneath the stadium, waiting to go onto the stage. He had broken a bone in his foot the night before, and had his injured foot in a walking cast propped up on a coffee table. His sermon notes were in his lap. He was bowed over them in study and prayer when our group entered the room.

I have a treasured picture which was taken of the moment when I bent over to shake his hand. I have never witnessed eyes like those–he looked into my heart and soul. I sensed absolute holiness. I felt that I was in the very presence of Jesus Christ. All because this “farmboy from North Carolina” was completely surrendered to Jesus. All because he opened the gift of Christmas given to him by his Lord and Master. I resolved that day to belong to Jesus as he belongs to Jesus. I invite you to join me in that resolve this morning.

There’s only one throne in your heart. Who is seated on it today?

Use Things And Love People

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Use Things and Love People—Not the Reverse

The life and legacy of Moses

Dr. Jim Denison

Exodus 20:15-17

In America, apparently no price is too high for the things we want. Who would have dreamed we’d spend $5 for a cup of coffee, or $3 billion on bottled water? But we’re drinking it. The price of gasoline hasn’t been this high in years, but we’re still buying it.

Our culture measures us by what we wear, drive, or own. Against all this materialism, we find the eighth commandment. Two words in Hebrew, four in English: “You shall not steal.” Let’s look at what the commandment means, and how to keep it today.

What is stealing?

We steal when we take the possessions of others. My family’s home in Houston was vandalized; a thief broke the window of our van in Atlanta and stole what was inside; our church has lost technical equipment to thieves in recent years. A few months ago my car wouldn’t start, so I had it towed to a local repair shop. They wanted $2,000 to replace the head gaskets; I took it to the dealership, who fixed the problem for a fraction of that cost and never had to touch the head gaskets. Stealing is taking the possessions of others.

We steal when we take advantage of others. Forth eight percent of American workers admit to taking unethical or illegal advantage of their employers in the past year. This includes cheating on an expense account, paying or accepting kickbacks, secretly forging signatures, and breaking legal statutes and codes. American industry loses $3 billion per year because of employee’s time spent in personal internet use while at work.

We steal when we take advantage of the government by cheating on our taxes, money which honest citizens must make up. In short, we steal whenever we take financial advantage of others.

We steal when we take the ideas of others. When I taught at Southwestern Seminary I heard the motto from students: if you steal from one source, it’s plagiarism; from two sources, it’s research. No, it’s not. My brother in law once worked as a custodian at a church while going to seminary. He cleaned the pastor’s office, and always knew what sermon they’d hear that Sunday from the open book of sermons on his desk on Friday.

We steal when we take the reputation of others. Remember a few years ago when someone accused Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger of sexual abuse? This godly man was completely vindicated, all charged were dropped, and the person making the allegation apologized, but the damage was done to his reputation. That man stole his good name.

Shakespeare said it well: “Who steals my purse steals trash; ’tis something, nothing; ‘Twas mine, ’tis his, and has been slave to thousands. But he that filches from me my good name Robs me of that which not enriches him And makes me poor indeed.” Before you say anything negative about any person, ask yourself first, Is it true? Is it fair? Is it necessary? To take the reputation of others is to steal.

How to keep the eighth commandment

So, how do we keep the eighth commandment?

First, we see things as God does. Material success is not the highest value in life—a relationship with God is. Jesus warned his disciples: “What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16.26).

As God sees things, material success is a means to an end, given for the purpose of serving God with that which he has entrusted to us. If I value God more than possessions, I’ll not offend him by stealing from you.

Second, we acquire things as God directs. Scripture gives us three ways we are to acquire possessions, a kind of philosophy of economics. We are to work hard: “He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need” (Ephesians 4.28).

We are to invest wisely. In Jesus’ parable of the talents (measures of money), he commends the men who doubled their investments, while criticizing the man who did not (Matthew 25.14-30). And we are to pray dependently. When our need is greater than our supply, we are to pray and ask God’s help. The early Christians gave to the common good of the believing community, and their resources were “distributed to anyone as he had need” (Ac 4.35). As we work hard, invest wisely, and trust God, we acquire things as he direct. Then we will have no need to break the eighth commandment.

Third, we use things as God leads. God has blessed us with material possessions, so that we might use them to help others in his name. He gave the Samaritan a donkey and some money, to give to the man in need. We are to do the same with the donkey and the money he has given to us.

The old song says, “Loving things and using people only leads to misery; using things and loving people, that’s the way it ought to be.” If I value you more than your possessions, I’ll not steal what is yours. In fact, I’ll give to you from what is mine.

It is imperative that we see things, acquire things, and use things as God directs, that we keep the eighth commandment. For our own sakes.

What is a “lie”?

When I worked as a graphic artist during seminary, I had a customer who kept a “lie book” in his pocket. Whenever he told someone a lie he would write it down, so he could remember it the next time he saw that person.

The commentaries claim that this is the commandment of the ten we break the most often. Do you agree? Raise your hand if you’ve never lied. Be careful—don’t lie.

The psalmist lamented, “Help, Lord, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men. Everyone lies to his neighbor; their flattering lips speak with deception” (Psalm 12.1-2).

What is “false testimony”? Why do we commit this sin? Why is it wrong? What can we do about it? These are our questions today. We live in a “post-modern” culture, where truth is considered to be subjective and personal. There’s no “right” or “wrong,” just what’s right or wrong for you. No absolutes—which is itself an absolute statement. So, let’s be clear—what is a “lie”?

False words are of course lies. We lie when we tell half-truths, when we exaggerate, when we misquote, when we slander others and gossip about them. False appearances are lies. The psalmist said of his people, “they take delight in lies. With their mouths they bless, but in their hearts they curse” (Psalm 62.4).

Sometimes we gossip in spiritual guise. “Pray for the Does, they’re having marital troubles”; “I’m concerned about the Joneses, their son (or daughter) is really struggling in school.” We pretend to care, which is a lie.

Withholding the truth is a lie. Listen to Leviticus 5.1: “If a person sins because he does not speak up when he hears a public charge to testify regarding something he has seen or learned about, he will be held responsible.” The sin of silence is as real as the sin of speech.

Last, rationalization is a lie. Everyone’s doing it; it won’t hurt anyone; no one will know. It’s just a “white lie.” But “white lies” are an oxymoron. In a Peanuts cartoon (August 1997), Charlie Brown says to Linus, “We’re supposed to write home to our parents and tell them what a great time we’re having here at camp.” Linus answers, “Even if we’re not? Isn’t that a lie?” Charlie Brown explains, “Well…it’s sort of a white lie.” To which Linus asks, “Lies come in colors?” No, they do not.

Why do we lie?

Let’s ask our second question: why are such lies and deceit so common? The first sin in the Bible was a lie. In Genesis 3 we read that the crafty serpent asked the woman if she was allowed to eat from any tree in the garden. When she answered he lied, “You will not surely die” (v. 4). So she ate, and he ate, and eventually they both died. As will we, unless Jesus returns first. The first sin in the Bible is a lie.

The last sinners named in the Bible are also liars. In Revelation 22 Jesus says to John, “Outside [heaven] are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood” (v. 15, emphasis mine).

The psalmist said, “Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward and speak lies” (Psalm 58.3). Why are lies so common to us?

One answer: we lie to compensate for our own failures. We have some sense of the way things should be, of life as God intended it. But we know that we are not living this way, that we have sinned, fallen, failed. So we compensate. We create a false self, an “idealized self,” the person we wish we were. And we spend the rest of our lives trying to live up to this person.

But no one can do it for very long. So, when we fall short of the perfectionism which drives us, we deceive ourselves and others. We lie. Cain lied to cover up his murder. David lied about Bathsheba to cover up his sin. Any sin they committed, or you commit, I can commit. There is no sin we cannot commit. If they lied to compensate for their own failures, so can I. So can you.

Another answer: to hurt those who hurt us. If someone lies to us, we lie to them. To hurt those who hurt us. We lie to get revenge. We repeat half-truths and rumors, we gossip and slander, to hurt people we think we have a right to hurt. After all, they did it to us, right?

Saul was convinced David was a threat to him, so he became a threat to David. He lied about him to his son, his family, his nation. If he lied to hurt his enemy, so can I. So can you.

Still another answer: to get ahead. We lie to get the account, to close the deal. To impress the girl or the boy. To please our parents. To further our own agenda. Ananias and Sapphira lied about the money they brought to the church, so they could keep some of it for themselves. If they lied to get ahead, so can I. So can you.

Finally: we lie because we are tempted by Satan himself. Jesus called him “the father of lies” (John 8.44). He helps us along, encouraging us to be less than honest with God, others, and ourselves.

Why is lying wrong?

Now we’re ready for our third question: why is lying wrong? If 91% of us do it today, and people did it all through the Bible, why is it so wrong? Here are the facts.

God says it is wrong. Listen to Psalm 101.7: “No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house; no one who speaks falsely will stand in my presence.” And listen to Ephesians 5.25: “Each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor.” God says lying is wrong.

Lying offends the character of God. Jesus is truth (John 14.6). The Bible calls our Lord “a faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he” (Deuteronomy 32.4). Thus lying runs counter to his very nature.

Listen to Proverbs 6.16-19: “There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers.” See how God feels about deceit?

Lying sacrifices trust. Do you remember the last time someone lied to you—perhaps a national politician or leader, or a personal relationship? Have you been able to trust them since?

Lying destroys people. Once a lie has been told about someone, it can never be taken back. The rabbis used to tell about a man who repeated gossip and slander about his rabbi. Finally he came to him and apologized, and asked what he could do to make things right. The rabbi gave him a bag filled with feathers, and told him to empty it into the wind at the top of a nearby hill. He did, and brought back the empty bag. Then the rabbi told him to go back and pick up all the feathers, which by now had blown across the town and the countryside. Of course he could not. The man then understood the damage he had caused. Do we?

In short, lies destroy. Never underestimate their power or the damage they can do. Who do you think said these words: “The broad mass of a nation will more easily fall victim to a big lie than to a small one….If you repeat a lie often enough, people will believe it to be the truth”? It was Adolf Hitler. And six million Jews died from his lies.

Lies destroy.

How do we keep the ninth commandment?

Now we’re ready for our last question: how do we keep the ninth commandment? How do we deal with lies, in our lives and our culture?

First, confront them as soon as possible. Don’t let their malignancy grow. Deal with this issue in your own life. If you find deceit in your words, your thoughts, your actions, confess it to God, right now. Deal with this issue with your children. Confess this sin to those you’ve hurt. This will hurt you, and make it far harder to lie next time.

Second, don’t listen to the lies of others. Know that if someone will lie about me to you, they’ll probably lie about you to me. Be the one who stops the cycle of lies and rumors and gossip.

Third, live with consistent integrity. Be the same person when you talk to someone as when you talk about them. Be the same in private as in public. Be one person, always. Will Rogers once advised, “So live that you would not be ashamed to sell the family parrot to the town gossip.” That’s good advice.

Last, stay close to God. Jesus always told the truth. In fact, he was the Truth. The best way to keep the ninth commandment is to get close to him—to ask his Spirit to fill and control you, to stay right with him as the source of your life. Then all which comes from your heart and lips will be right.

The tenth commandment

This commandment begins as do the other nine: “You shall not.” “You” is plural, showing that the commandment applies to us all and that we are all tempted here. It is in the present tense, because it is still relevant today.

And it is a command, not a suggestion or a principle. Someone said that God gave us the Ten Commandments in stone so we could keep them or break them, but not bend them. A command for all of us, for all time.

The key word, of course, is “covet.” his word simply means to long after or desire earnestly. It is a common theme in the Bible. Interestingly, the word itself is neutral. The question is not whether or not we will have desires, but what we desire, and at what price.

Some things we “covet” are good, as in wishing to emulate the great qualities of someone we admire. Some things we desire are natural, such as a good appearance or a nice car, or the ability to play golf well. So, what is “coveting” in the wrong sense?

The tenth commandment specifically prohibits two kinds of desires: to want something I should not possess, and to want something which belongs to someone else. These can be material things, such as “your neighbor’s house,” ox or donkey. Here’s a principle for life: don’t love something which can’t love you back.

This can be the wrong desire for status, as in coveting your neighbor’s manservant or maidservant, ancient symbols of place and status. This can be the wrong desire for people, as with “your neighbor’s wife.” It is wrong to want anything I shouldn’t have, or to covet what belongs to you.

This commandment is crucial. If we keep it, we will keep the other nine. If we don’t covet status or power above God, we will worship him, refuse idols, honor his name, and keep his day. If we don’t covet status or power with others, we will honor our parents and refuse to hurt people. If we don’t covet people, we’ll refuse adultery. If we don’t covet things, we’ll not steal or lie.

Breaking this commandment is at the root of all our troubles. So, why do we?

Learning not to covet

We covet things because we have the idea that things will bring us happiness. It’s no wonder. Thousands of people in our country spend forty hours every week designing ways to get us to buy more. They use music, slogans, sights, sounds, and colors. Their goal is to make us covet what they’re selling. Their message is everywhere. The typical American consumer is bombarded with 3,000 advertisements daily.

And they’re working. In 1967, 44% of college freshmen believed it was essential to be “very well off financially”; by 1990 that figure had jumped to 74%. By contrast, 83% in 1967 thought it was essential to have a meaningful purpose to life; by 1990, only 43% agreed.

We’re not the first people to struggle with coveting things. Do you remember the story of Ahab and the vineyard of Naboth (1 Kings 21)? Simply put, King Ahab wanted Naboths’ vineyard in ancient Samaria, but it was his father’s and he refused to sell it. Ahab became depressed and wouldn’t eat. So his wicked wife Jezebel arranged for two men to accuse poor Naboth of blasphemy; he was stoned to death, and Ahab got his field. The result was that Ahab and Jezebel died for their sin. Three people were killed, because one man coveting things.

From their story we learn not to want things we shouldn’t have, or things which belong to others. Why? Because such coveting will only hurt us, and hurt other people. It’s never enough. A servant asked his rich master, “How much money is enough?” His reply: “Just a little more.”

Recently a man on television interviewed people who had become instant lottery millionaires. He asked, “How many of you are happier today?” Not a single person raised his or her hand. One of the winners replied, “How many new suits can you buy? How many cars can you drive? Every time you get something nicer, it isn’t good enough, because you see and want something even nicer.” It’s never enough.

And we will use people to get more things. The right approach is to love people and use things, not the reverse. Martin Buber, the Jewish poet and philosopher, suggested that only two kinds of relationships exist: I-you and I-it. We should have I-you relationships with each other, and I-it relationships with things. When we reverse them, everyone loses.

It’s possible to use things for people and God, thereby keeping the tenth commandment. For instance, a few years ago Bo Pilgrim spoke at an outreach lunch our church created. He wore his pilgrim hat, put Henrietta the stuffed chicken on the podium, and simply preached the gospel. Then he called attention to a gospel tract he had written—there was one at every place, for all 220 people at the lunch. Inside each one was a $20 bill, to encourage us to take the tract and read it. He said, “It’s not mine, and there’s more where that came from.” He’s right. And he kept the tenth commandment.

We’re not the first. Listen to Paul’s confession: “I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, ‘Do not covet.’ But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire” (Romans 7.7-8).

Here was Paul’s problem, the only sin he ever admits committing anywhere in the New Testament: coveting. Not after things or people, but status. Wanting to be a Pharisee of the Pharisees, wanting to be the most zealous for the law and the rituals of their faith, wanting to be the holiest man in the nation. Paul admits that this was his own heart.

I admit that this is an issue for me as well: wanting to impress you, to please you, to perform well for the sake of status and achievement. Who today doesn’t struggle here?

Coveting at its root is all about me. “I trouble.” Note that the middle letter of pride and sin are the same. But as with other kinds of coveting, we can never have enough. Enough status, or reputation, or honor. We always need a little more.

Conclusion

So what is the answer to our problem? First, we admit that seeking things, people, or status we should not have is wrong. Seeking things, people, or status which belong to someone else is wrong. We start there.

Second, we admit that we cannot solve this problem ourselves. Our fallen human nature wants things, people, and status. We must have the nature of Jesus as our own.

This was Paul’s experience. The same man who admitted that he had “every kind of covetous desire” later said, “I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4.12-13). We can keep the tenth commandment, with the help of Jesus.

Listen to Jesus’ story with the tenth commandment: he, being in very nature God, chose not to covet the things, people, or status of heaven. Instead, he “made himself nothing” as a servant, to die for us. And so God restored him to the highest place and the highest name, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2.5-11). He refused to covet, and received from his Father more than coveting could ever have given him.

Now his Spirit is ready to help us have his humility. Will you admit that you need his help with coveting? Will you ask for that help? Will you trust God for it? Will you ask Jesus to make you like himself? The results will outweigh whatever they cost you today.

There was an elderly man who lived on the island of Crete. He loved everything about Crete—the hills and mountains, the beaches, the sunrises and sunsets. And so when he came to die, his sons laid him on the soil of Crete. He scooped into his hand some of that soil, and then he died.

He found himself outside the gates of heaven. They opened, and he started in. Then the angel saw his clenched fist and asked what was inside. “Crete,” he said. “I go nowhere without it.” The angel said that he would have to let it go to come inside. “Never,” he said, and sat down outside the wall.

A week went by. The angel came back out and asked him to let go of the soil of Crete and come inside, but he refused. Another week went by. Then an old friend from years before came out and asked him to release his dirt and come in, but he refused. Another week went by; his soil was dry and caked, and he cupped his hands under each other to hold it.

Then the gates opened, and his granddaughter came out to him. She said, “Grandfather, the gates only open for those with open hands.” He looked at the soil of Crete in his hands, then finally released it. It fell through the heavens as he took his granddaughter’s hand. The gates opened, and he went in. Inside, was all of Crete.

What’s in your hand today?

Using Babylonian Kings

Written by

Using Babylonian Kings

Matthew 5:33-37

Dr. Jim Denison

Jeff Warren was a long-time staff member here at Park Cities, and is now the very effective senior pastor of First Baptist Church in McKinney. Shortly after I came to Dallas, Jeff taught me how to cuss and be a Baptist preacher: use Babylonian kings’ names. When you miss a three-foot putt say “Belshazzer!” When someone cuts you off on Central Expressway say “Nebuchadnezzar!” It works.

Jesus wants to talk with us about our language today. And we need the help.

Research indicates that 64% of Americans agree with the statement, “I will lie when it suits me, so long as it doesn’t cause any real damage.” 91% say they lie “regularly.” Only 31% believe that honesty is the best policy.

Enron was one of the great success stories of the 1990’s. The company set up 3,000 offshore companies which it owned but treated as business partners. It sold gas to these “partners” at inflated rates, then used these rates when it sold gas to states like California. The company then transferred financial obligations to some of these false companies, so that its bottom line looked even better. Finally, insiders dumped 16 million shares of stock, pocketing $1 billion. Meanwhile, its 15,000 employees lost $1 billion in pensions.

George O’Leary was head football coach at the University of Notre Dame, arguably the most prestigious such position in the nation, for only five days. He resigned in December of 2001 after admitting his resume claimed degrees and athletic accomplishments which were false.

Sandy Baldwin was president of the USOC, arguably the most prestigious position in amateur athletics in our country. In May of last year she resigned after admitting her resume claimed a doctorate she never finished.

The Psalmist complained, “…the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men. Everyone lies to his neighbor; their flattering lips speak with deception” (Psalm 12:1-2). What was the last lie you told?

Today Jesus wants to talk with us about truth telling. We’ll focus on our words, because they both reveal and mold our souls.

Why tell the truth? (33)

Jesus begins: “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.'” Here he summarizes passages from Leviticus 19, Numbers 30, and Deuteronomy 23. And he agrees: lying is wrong.

So what is lying?

Speaking false words. Half truths, exaggerations, misquotes, slander.

Giving false impressions. Misleading about our accomplishments, or income, or relationships. Sometimes in spiritual garb: “Pray for the Smiths, they’re having trouble at home” or “Pray for the Joneses, their child is struggling in school.” Gossip in the guise of spirituality.

Withholding truth: “If a person sins because he does not speak up when he hears a public charge to testify regarding something he has seen or learned about, he will be held responsible” (Leviticus 5:1). Listening to slander or gossip without correcting it; agreeing tacitly to falsehood; refusing to pay the price of truth.

Why tell the truth? Because God consistently commands and commends truth-telling.

Without exception: “These are the things you are to do: Speak the truth to each other, and render true and sound judgment in your courts” (Zechariah 8:16).

Every one of us: “Each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body” (Ephesians 4:25).

No matter how tempted we are to lie: “Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place” (Ephesians 6:14).

This is the key to peace with God and ourselves: “True instruction was in his mouth and nothing false was found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and turned many from sin” (Malachi 2:6).

Why tell the truth? Because God condemns lying:

Here is what the Lord thinks of lies: “The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in men who are truthful” (Proverbs 12:22).

He warns us: “A fortune made by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a deadly snare” (Proverbs 21:6). Enron employees can attest that God is right.

Lying breaks our relationship with God: “No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house; no one who speaks falsely will stand in my presence” (Psalm 101:7).

God must punish those who lie: “You destroy those who tell lies; bloodthirsty and deceitful men the Lord abhors” (Psalm 5:6).

So God commands us: “Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices” (Colossians 3:9).

Why tell the truth? Because our words reveal our souls. Jesus said, “Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34). Our words are windows into our souls, and a witness we can never retract. How do we unring a bell?

Why tell the truth? Because our words mold our souls.

James, the brother of our Lord and pastor of the first church at Jerusalem, makes the point clear: “The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell” (James 3:6).

When we lie we become liars. Our words take on a power and life of their own. I don’t fully know why, but the words I speak shape how I think and feel. When I fail and then condemn myself, I become more of a failure. When I succeed and then encourage myself, I become more of a success. Our words reveal us, and they mold us.

Why do we tell lies?

Given their importance, the value of truth, why do we lie?

Comedian Jay Leno tells a somewhat embarrassing story about himself in his book, Leading With My Chin. The problem is that it didn’t happen to him, but to another comedian, Jeff Altman. When the deception was discovered, Jay told a reporter for the New York Post that he liked the story so much he paid Altman $1,000 for the right to publish it as his own.

Why did he do it? Why do we? Think about the last lie you told. Why did you tell it?

Lying is part of our fallen human nature: “Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward and speak lies” (Psalm 58:3).

We lie to compensate for our own failures. We have some sense of the way things should be, of life as God intended it. But we know that we are failing to live up to this standard. So we create a false self, an “idealized self,” the person we wish we were. And we spend the rest of our lives trying to live up to this person. But we cannot. So we lie, to others and to ourselves.

We lie to be the people we aren’t. We lie to be empowered, to control the situation. It’s part of our fallen nature.

We lie to get ahead. To get the account, to close the deal. To impress the girl or the boy. To please our parents. To further our agenda.

We lie to hurt those who hurt us. Someone lies to us, so we lie to them. They hurt us, so we get revenge. We start or repeat half-truths, rumors, gossip, slander, to hurt the people we feel justified in hurting. After all, they did it to us.

At its root, we lie because we are tempted by Satan himself.

Jesus says, “Anything beyond this comes from the evil one” (v. 37).

Later he explains: Satan “…was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8.44). The first sin in the Bible was a lie (Genesis 3.4), told by Satan himself.

Satan wants us to lie, so that we break the word of God, harm our witness, and corrupt our souls.

Calvin Miller gives voice to his lies to our first parents in Eden’s Garden:

I love all truth.

For I know the heart of falsehood

Is but integrity grown reasonable.

Good and bad are never values locked in stone,

They are only ways of seeing.

To obey or disobey, is but artifice.

And nothing ever shall be right or wrong

Within itself.

If he who made you

Wags His finger in your face

Telling you love the good and fear the evil,

Remind Him you live free

Of all moral rigidity.

There is right that’s only nearly right

And wrong that’s not so wrong

And a lie that saves is better than destructive truth.

And where’s the trespass in a kind transgression?

Make your conscience judge.

And you can purge the world of sin

And all the gods and devils will perish

With their good and evil categories.

Your Father lied to you.

There is no sin, till you define it so.

Sin is but the name of misery

That gods prescribe to make poor mortals fear

And teach them guilt.

What He calls ‘sin’ you’ve only to reverse and

Call it good.

Rename His old taboos,

And save your self from His confining moralisms.

You are guiltless when you say so,

Sin cannot live one second after you proclaim it dead!

(Requiem for Love, 76-7).

How do we tell the truth? (34-37)

So how do we refuse his lies? How do we refuse our own? How do we tell the truth? Here’s the key: give every area of your life to the Lord Jesus. Refuse to divide your days into sacred and secular, religious and the “real world.” Believe that God’s commendation of truth and condemnation of lying applies to your business practices as much as your Sunday school teaching, to your private finances as much as your public faith.

The Jews of Jesus’ culture missed this point completely. They believed they could make an oath and then break it, so long as they did not swear by God himself. They could swear by heaven, or earth, or Jerusalem. They could swear by their heads, as though to say “My head’s on the line if I don’t do this.” They could swear by the “secular,” just not the “sacred.”

But Jesus is blunt: there’s no distinction. Heaven is God’s throne room, the place where he lives. If someone slanders America, we are upset. Earth is his footstool, his possession. If you criticize my car or house I feel criticized, because I own them. Jerusalem is his city. If you criticize Dallas, I’m unhappy. Our heads are his creation. If you criticize my sermon I feel criticized, because I made it.

Greek philosophers taught that soul and body are separate, spiritual and secular distinct. Keep your faith and your life in separate compartments. Tell the truth at church, but lie when necessary at work. Except that God is as present at work as in church. You belong to him as much there as here. The “secular” does not exist. There is no place which stands outside God’s hearing, his caring, his judging or rewarding. Every word is spiritual, for it is spoken by a tongue God made. It reveals a heart which should be his. It shows who is on the throne of our mind and soul.

Conclusion

So what was the last lie you told? Be honest—why did you tell it? To compensate for failure or weakness? To get ahead? To hurt someone who hurt you? Ultimately you did it because Satan tempted you. And you pleased him.

Please remember this week: God commands truth-telling and condemns lying. Your words will reveal and mold your soul. So tell the truth. You’re on the stage. Your world is the panel, watching to know if you’re a truth-teller. And God is the audience.

In the night fog, a ship’s captain saw what appeared to be another ship’s lights. To avoid a collision, he signaled the approaching ship: “Change your heading 10 degrees west.” Back through the fog came the reply: “Change your heading 10 degrees east.”

The captain replied with clear irritation: “I am an admiral—change your heading 10 degrees west.” Came the response: “I am a seaman fourth class. Change your heading 10 degrees east.” Furious, the admiral blazed his message: “This is a United States Navy vessel under orders of the U.S. government. Change your heading 10 degrees west.” Came the reply: “Change your heading. I am a lighthouse.”

Live by the truth. Speak the truth. Or you’re sailing your ship in a foggy night. And the rocks are near. What heading do you need to change this morning?