Got Fruit ?

Ezekiel 18:32
32 For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!

These are the final words of Ezekiel 18, uttered by God.  A simple command which with compliance offers life. "Repent and live!"

On Friday thoughts from Ezekiel 18 were shared regarding how God makes it clear that every man is responsible for his actions, he will suffer the consequences of his sin, not his offspring, as will he also be acknowledged for his righteousness which no one else can take nor receive credit for.

Throughout the bulk of Ezekiel 18 (verses 3-28), God explicitly tells us that the wicked man that repents from all his sinful ways will have life, while the righteous man that turns from the path of righteousness to that of the wicked man will lose his life.

Reading through this chapter of Ezekiel some thoughts and ideas concerning the  "doctrine (?)" of "once saved always saved" crossed my mind.   As New Testament believers, I know that God’s grace is the mechanism by which we are saved, in spite of our past sins and ongoing struggles with sin.  It occurs to me that we have a problem however if we take God’s grace and not properly apply the stipulation of repentance earnestly,honestly and continually to our lives.  Text from Ezekiel 18 clearly points out both the benefit of repentance as well as the consequences of not repenting.  A broader view of the book of Ezekiel in fact pointing to the impending judgement by God as an example of the consequences suffered by Israel for not turning from it’s sinful ways.

Ezekiel 14:6
6 "Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Repent! Turn from your idols and renounce all your detestable practices!

In the New Testament of the Bible we have numerous examples from Jesus Christ Himself as well as Paul exhorting us to walk the righteous walk, to not fall into the deception of living a sinful life.  Below is a brief view of some of those exhortations.

Matthew 7:13
13 "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.

Romans 6:1-5
1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

5 If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.

Galatians 5:16-21
16 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. 17 For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.

19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

1st Thessalonians 4:7
7 For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.

From the previous examples, and with exception to Jesus speaking in Matthew 7:13, Scripture seems to be emphatically speaking to believers in Christ.  Given that this message of repentance is repeatedly preached, I can’t help but take it to heart that our salvation is an ongoing process.  A process of being strengthened in the Lord and in His Word (the building of the relationship with Christ),versus a false implication drawn from the "once saved, always saved" idea that no matter what one’s conduct is, salvation can’t be lost. (See Matthew 7:21-23)

• We continually wrestle with the flesh (Ephesians 6:10-12)
• Our faith is constantly being challenged by Satan’s deceptions (1st Timothy 4:1)
• Doctrine is constantly under attack  (1st Timothy 4:16)
• Christians are not immune to temptation (1st Corinthians 10:13)
• Righteousness is a product of laboring in Christ (Hebrews 5:11-14, Hebrews 6:1-4)

From the Gospel of Mark, Jesus calls to the people…

Mark 1:15
15 "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"

Grace and peace be with you.

Just thought I’d share the outline from Part 1of last night’s Bible study for the Young Adults group available…

Acts 17:11
Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.

I. What is Discernment?

From a Biblical perspective discernment implies scrutinizing for accuracy, validity or truthfulness, etc;.

Webster’s Dictionary defines discernment as:

1. To see and identify by noting a difference or differences; to note the distinctive character of; to discriminate; to distinguish.

2. To see or understand the difference; to make distinction; as, to discern between good and evil, truth and falsehood.

John MacArthur’s definition of discernment:

In its simplest definition, discernment is nothing more than the ability to decide between truth and error, right and wrong. Discernment is the process of making careful distinctions in our thinking about truth. In other words, the ability to think with discernment is synonymous with an ability to think biblically.

First Thessalonians 5:21-22 teaches that it is the responsibility of every Christian to be discerning: “But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil.” The apostle John issues a similar warning when he says, “Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). According to the New Testament, discernment is not optional for the believer-it is required.

Citation from “The Vital Importance of Biblical Discernment” by John MacArthur (http://bible.lightsource.com/11531806/)

II. Biblically speaking, what is the purpose of discernment?

1. To avoid being deceived

• 1st Timothy 1:3-4
• 1st Timothy 1:8-11 (Note verse 10! “contrary to sound doctrine”)
• Mark 13:5,22-23 (warnings directly from Jesus!)

2. To know and recognize the true Jesus Christ from the false christs (antichrists)

3. To distinguish Biblical fact from “fiction”, to recognize Orthodox Christian doctrine from worldview “religion”/man made doctrines

4. To be obedient to God and His Word

• 1st John 4:1
• Ephesians 5:6-7
• Colossians 2:8

5. To become matured Christians

• Wisdom - James 3:13-17
• Discipline
• Discretion
• Knowledge - Ephesians 4:12-16

6. Love (1st Timothy 1:3-5 Note verse 5!)

1st Timothy 1:3-5
3 As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer 4 nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God’s work—which is by faith. 5 The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.

III. Why study and discuss discernment?

1. The Bible tells us to be discerning (1st Thessalonians 5:21-22, 1st John 4:1)
2. To be obedient to God and His Word (1st John 4:1, Ephesians 5:6-7, Colossians 2:8)
3. To become matured Christians (Ephesians 4:12-16, 1st Timothy 1:3-5)
4. Concerns over the many misleading spiritual leaders, sects, movements, and religions masquerading as being of God and “Christian” in the Orthodox sense.

IV. Warnings directly from Jesus!

Matthew 24:4
4 Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you.

Mark 13:22-23
22 For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and miracles to deceive the elect—if that were possible. 23 So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time.

Luke 21:8
8 He replied: "Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them.

V. How does one become a discerning Christian?

1. Discernment is imparted by the Holy Spirit - 1st Corinthians 2:12-14

• Not “learned” or “taught” from self-help or self-esteem books
• Not based on our wisdom (human intellect) nor solely on our experiences See: Proverbs 3:5-6

1. Referring to the Bible for direction & spiritual nurturing
2. Relying on God’s wisdom, not ours - 1st Corinthians 1:25-30
3. Habitual prayer and reading of God’s Word - it’s vital that this is a regular part of your daily walk with Christ
4. Application of what God’s Word says, to your life
   These are components of spiritual nurturing which result in spiritual maturation.

Grace and peace be with you

A few days ago I was sitting around at the PC (as usual) with a movie playing on another system as background noise.  The movie of choice was "Office Space".  Office Space (Rated R) is about a mid to late twenty-something named Peter Gibbons who’s burned out with his job at Initech (Yeah..burned out at 26?).

Peter’s problem as he sees it, is that his job is a routine of tedious tasks, he’s micro-managed by multiple layers of management, and aside from his friends Michael (Bolton) & Samir; he’s surrounded by a host of quirky co-workers that he would probably categorize (Proverbs 16:18) as corporate sheep.   To top it off, he detests his boss Bill Lumbergh (Romans 13:1).  Peter basically has become disillusioned with how his life has turned out to this point.  His expectations and dreams are not on track.  He wakes up every morning and trudges into the office with his funky attitude (Ephesians 4:22-24).

As I said Office Space was really just on as background noise however, I picked up on a piece of dialog from the movie that spoke to me and prompted this post.  The scene… 

Peter’s back at his apartment and is visited by his neighbor Lawrence. (Diedrech Bader: Rex Kwan Do of  Napolean Dynamite and Oswald Harvey Lee of  The Drew Carey Show)  in their conversation, Peter daydreams about getting out of his rut.  Thinking out loud, he asks Lawrence:

Peter Gibbons: What would you do if you had a million dollars?
Lawrence: I’ll tell you what I’d do, man: (I’ll let you figure this part out)
Peter Gibbons: That’s it? If you had a million dollars, you’d (I’ll let you figure this part out)?
Lawrence: D*** straight. I always wanted to do that, man. And I think if I were a millionaire I could hook that up, too; ’cause ****** dig dudes with money.
Peter Gibbons: Well, not all ******.
Lawrence: Well, the type of …. like me do.
Peter Gibbons: Good point.
Lawrence: Well, what about you now? what would you do?
Peter Gibbons: Besides …""?
Lawrence: Well, yeah.
Peter Gibbons: Nothing.
Lawrence: Nothing, huh?
Peter Gibbons: I would relax… I would sit on my (butt) all day… I would do nothing.
Lawrence: Well, you don’t need a million dollars to do nothing, man. Take a look at my cousin: he’s broke, don’t do (squat).

There’s some truths to that last line uttered by Lawrence.  Not all of us have such a simple want as Pete, should we instantly come into financial riches.  More likely we would go on a cruise, travel, help someone less fortunate, invest, put away for our kid’s college fund.  The list is endless and depends on who you are and to some extent how you’re life experiences have molded your thought process towards money.  The thing that is sought, at least in Peter’s eyes is some type of happiness to achieve through his equation of having a specific sum of money.

Contentment is of course an obvious Biblical principle that comes to mind, there is however another perspective regarding Lawrence’s statement: "Well, you don’t need a million dollars to do nothing, man. …"  We sometimes take on this same mentality in our walk with Christ, coming in the form of thoughts such as:

• "Oh Lord, if you would bless me with (insert "magic pill"), I could then focus more on you because I wouldn’t have (insert name of your "burdens") to deal with."
• "Oh Lord, if we just had more attendees, we could spread the word mo betta’ for you".
• "Oh Lord, if our building was as big as the 1st Assembly of United Holy Rollers, we could do great works for the building of your kingdom."

At my church there at the end of service is a hymn of invitation for folks to accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, the hymn is by Charlotte Elliot and is titled: "Just As I Am, Without One Plea".  I think the title kind of sums up how our attitudes need to be with Christ.  We just need to let Jesus work the kinks out of our hearts as they are, and not try to take back His atonement for our sins by using excuses to cover our shortcomings, weaknesses, or fears.

Just as I Am, Without One Plea

Just as I am, without one plea,
But that Thy blood was shed for me,
And that Thou bidst me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, and waiting not
To rid my soul of one dark blot,
To Thee Whose blood can cleanse each spot,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, though tossed about
With many a conflict, many a doubt,
Fightings and fears within, without,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, poor, wretched, blind;
Sight, riches, healing of the mind,
Yea, all I need in Thee to find,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am Thou wilt receive,
Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve;
Because Thy promise I believe,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Grace and peace be with you.

I pick up from yesterday’s post with a final idea or two from Jeremiah 5. The thought here is additional information concerning Israel’s spiritual condition becoming affected by it’ selfish pursuit of economic/financial gain and a tie in to the idea behind 1st Timothy 6:6.

Jeremiah 5:26-27 reads..

Jeremiah 5:26-27
26 “Among my people are wicked men
who lie in wait like men who snare birds
and like those who set traps to catch men.

27 Like cages full of birds,
their houses are full of deceit;
they have become rich and powerful

I have a vision of snake oil salesmen or the hosts of late night infomercials after reading those verses. Yet, has God said that to be rich or powerful is a sin; or to even desire financial success? I think not, though His word surely warns of the spiritual difficulties that can occur when one is materially wealthy but spiritually impoverished.

As I understand it God is specifically addressing the corruption practiced by spiritual leaders within the nation of Israel, a point made back in verse 5, expanded upon in verse 26-27 and the fullness of the sinfulness summed up and judged in verses 30-31. The quick explanation is greed that led to godlessness, which allowed sin to further permeate their lives, which then declined to a state of total wickedness in the eyes of the Lord.

Jeremiah 5:5,30-31
5 So I will go to the leaders
and speak to them;
surely they know the way of the LORD,
the requirements of their God.”
But with one accord they too had broken off the yoke
and torn off the bonds.

30 “A horrible and shocking thing
has happened in the land:

31 The prophets prophesy lies,
the priests rule by their own authority,
and my people love it this way.
But what will you do in the end? (see v.27)

Certainly a lot to consider, to meditate on, and to remember, which was maybe where Israel initially failed and thus fell. Israel had forgotten the “little” but just as critical things in their relationship with God. A final verse that stands out concerning this thought as well as the economic implications associated with Israel and 1st Timothy 6:6 comes from verse 24. God has spoken on Israel’s rebellion, and again He points out some simple truths to how they faltered, forgetting God’s provisions instead opting for their own plan of action.

Jeremiah 5:24
24 They do not say to themselves,
‘Let us fear the LORD our God,
who gives autumn and spring rains in season,
who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.’

Grace and peace be with you.

For the past month or so, it would appear that my routine for Bible study time has taken a turn in methodology. It was, that I use to read a chapter or two from a book in both the Old & New Testament within the same study session. Now, I’m spending more time combing through a maximum of 1 chapter from any select book; being less concerned about the cumulative quantity. As best as I can tell, this change in approach forces me to read and re-read; often producing a better understanding as subtleties of Scripture are revealed. Jeremiah 5 is such a case…

Yesterday’s post titled Hook, Line & Stinker closed with a reference to 1st Timothy 6:6 which I take to understand as instruction and a word of caution against materialism. The gist of 1st Timothy 6:6 as I see it: be “happy” with what you have been blessed by God with,don’t get sidetracked into living a worldly life due to pursuit of “more”. Not to say that it’s a negative quality or “bad” to desire to have nice things, instead that desire becomes a bad thing when it’s the driving force or motivator in one’s life.

After reading through Jeremiah 5 about three or four times some other ideas appeared which I’ll get to momentarily, but first a brief overview of the chapter.

Jeremiah 5 overview: “No One is Upright”

1. God promises to forgive Jerusalem if Jeremiah can find one person that deals honestly and seeks truth.
2. Jeremiah however,surmises that Israel is unrepentant of her ways and prophesies of Jerusalem being attacked.
3. Israel’s infidelity with other nations is so perverse that they begin to think that God’s promises of judgement are idle threats.
4. God doesn’t seem too pleased with Israel’s brazen attitude toward Him.

If I were to sum up Jeremiah 5 it would be that Israel had become a corrupt nation because of it’s greed. a result of lacking contentment in the Lord. The greed spawned other sinful acts causing Israel to go deeper into losing it’s way in the Lord.

In Jeremiah 5: 1, it speaks of finding just one person that “…deals honestly & seeks truth, …”. I have an idea that what’s being referenced is that Israel sold their souls both collectively and on an individual basis for financial gain. Israel compromised their morals for economic prosperity. A situation that God first address when He says:

Jeremiah 5:7
“Why should I forgive you? Your children have forsaken me and sworn by gods that are not gods. I supplied all their needs, yet they committed adultery and thronged to the houses of prostitutes.

Through Jeremiah, God then tells of His judgment which I find kind of ironic in that it was an economic situation that got Israel into this mess, so it is through economics that God is going to get their attention. Israel proclaimed in verse Jeremiah 5:12; “…’He will do nothing! No harm will come to us; we will never see sword or famine.’ ”

Through war and famine Israel is going to be affected (economically), which in turn affects them in the most basic but essentials of humans, a need for food to survive. But for the immediate future it appears that the first thing that they’ll eat is their words, followed by a helping of “humble pie”. I have no idea if God intended for the order of this next verse to be specific, however I find it interesting that humans and animals are book-ended, between agricultural sustenance, & then as a point of finality or “in your face”, God says that the fortified cites will be destroyed. How do you fortify a city? One way is through trade and commerce or economics.

Jeremiah 5:17
They will devour your harvests and food, devour your sons and daughters; they will devour your flocks and herds, devour your vines and fig trees. With the sword they will destroy the fortified cities in which you trust.

To be continued…

Grace and peace be with you.