Enabling All The Rest

I remember, as a kid, going to "camp". It didn't really matter what sort of camp, they all had one thing in common:  a list of what to bring. In a sense, we attempt to do the same thing with our relationship with our Creator, act like there was a list of what to bring. But there isn't. Every bit of our righteousness is like dirty rags. Paul writes of "putting off the old man" and "putting on Christ Jesus". Yet that's a difficult concept to receive and live out.

But here's why that is so crucial, if we bring anything with us in our relationship with Jesus, our hope is divided. We may hope in Jesus, but we also hope in whatever we bring. And hope is essential for faith and love. 

Now faith is the  assurance of things  hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1 NASB)

How can faith be assurance of something we don't have? And if we have it, but it isn't entirely in Jesus, then how is our faith in Jesus alone?

But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:13 NASB)

Faith, hope, and love remain, or abide, or dwell, live together. The greatest is love, although they come as a set with the other two, and, as the previous verse makes clear, there's no faith without hope. Hope is essential for faith, and, as it turns out, love.

Think about the idea of hope for a minute. Does it bother you? Is there a little fear, fear that it will not be fulfilled? That's common, and the best indicator that our hope is mixed with Jesus and something else. But what does hope in Jesus look like?

Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled; that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. (Hebrews 12:14-16 NASB)

Hope in Jesus looks like disciples actively pursuing peace with all men, pursuing the process of being made holy to Jesus, working together to ensure we reach the grace of God together, ensuring roots of bitterness are removed even as they spring up, and not permitting godless or immoral activity among disciples as if it were simply part of our culture. Why? Because we are pursuing something not of this world:

All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them. (Hebrews 11:13-16 NASB)

Paul applies the call to follow the pattern of thinking in Jesus using himself as an example in Philippians 3:7-16. In Philippians 2:5-11, he lays out the pattern of Jesus, in 2:19-23, Paul uses Timothy as an example of Jesus' servanthood. In 2:25-30, he uses Epaphroditus as an example of Jesus' obedience to the point of death. But the emptying of Himself, for that element of Jesus' pattern Paul uses himself as the example in 3:7-16.

It's crucial for the disciple to grasp this, because it is the application of hope. That is the effect on us of having hope. And it is the antithesis of what we are seeing in our nation, in Hong Kong, in Indonesia, in India, and all throughout our world. People, without hope, will follow the pattern of the devil, stealing, killing, and destroying. Only Jesus came that we might have life, and have it to the full.

Next week, I want to share about the "content", or focus of our hope. Stay tuned.

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation

Tough Talk

Lots of guys are about tough talk, talking smack, and bragging, or whatever you want to call it. Their team, their dad, their accomplishments are always better than anyone else's. But their days are also worse, they've endure worse stuff, no matter what you've been through, they've "been there, did that". It's almost sociopathic. I think it was Bill Cosby who once joked about Americans and pets, "You could have a rhinoceros, walking it down the street, and someone from the United States would meet you on the sidewalk, and say, 'You have a rhinoceros? I used to have a rhinoceros.'" We're so silly.



I used to think it was just guys who play the "one-up-manship" game, but I've heard women do it too. Hearing people play it used to bug me (because I lost all the time), but now I find it comical. Part of the change in me was because of this one time when I was complaining to Jesus, you know, the Son of God who endured the crucifixion? I totally lost that storytelling competition. He didn't even have to say anything. But it's not just me. Lots of people have had that experience. In fact, there's a popular "meme" about it:

 

If this is you too, keep in mind, it's been believers since the first century. See how the writer of Hebrews puts it:

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (Hebrews 13:1-3 NASB)

Consider Jesus and what He endured so that we don't grow weary. We follow the One who gave all, endured the unimaginable, and overcame the insurmountable, for us. And we're only worth it because He says we are. In the economics of heaven, our value is set by our Creator, not our location, condition, or history. And He calls us to follow where He went, do what He has done, and wind up where He is.

So, let us not grow weary and loose heart. This is nothing compared to what we have to look forward to. And that's true regardless of whatever this is for you, whether it's the other person you work with, your neighbor, or buddy, or friend, or that one person who simply rubs you the wrong way. Whatever you endure, it's nothing compared to what we have coming in Jesus. Which is cool, if you think about it. So, think about it.

By Name Only

There are jokes we know so well, only the punchline is needed to get us laughing. They're not that funny, honestly, it's the memory of the laughter and fun they brought. And then there are those who had never heard the joke, but, often from peer pressure, laughed anyway. Over time, the joke was lost, but the punchline is remembered, and funny, but nobody can remember why. "Rectum? Dang near killed 'em!", will usually bring a smile, but no one remembers the joke (although you can look it up).

In the same way, we can remember stories of characters simply by naming them. And yet, often, we can't remember the story, only that the name is important for some reason. It's like history: it happened, and we remember the names, but the details of what they did are fuzzy, and we can never remember the dates. Again, we can look it up if we like.

The writer of Hebrews, toward the end of the "Role Call of Faith" stops telling stories, and begins listing names. And it is supremely ironic to me that most of the names are from a book which most disciples of Jesus consider a collection of faithless mistakes of Israel.

And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets, who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. (Hebrews 11:32-34 NASB)

Four of the six names are from the book of Judges. And of the Judges listed, the writer seems to have chosen the ones we consider the worst examples of faith. Gideon needed to test God three times, Barak wouldn't go into battle without a woman present, Samson is simply famous for his mistakes, and few people remember Jephthah because he's so embarrassing pastor's don't teach on him. And yet, there they are, considered paragons of faith to God, held up as examples to follow.

Is it possible that we've become so jaded by what we have been told about these men that we have missed the perspective of their Savior? Oh wait, you don't think they were saved, you say? Samson and Jephthah clearly didn't get it, and can't possibly be saved?

Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection; and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground. And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect. Hebrews 11:35-40 NASB

These were looking for a better resurrection. Why look forward to disaster? They were looking forward to the Savior, as we do. Yet, their names made the list. Maybe just their names, maybe not their stories, but I wish their stories were told. I want to know how the writer of Hebrews understands their stories. We are ashamed of them, and our Savior isn't. That should tell us something. That should shout loudly to us. A man who sacrificed his only daughter to Yahweh made the list. How is that? Perhaps we miss something in their stories.

Are we missing something in other stories? What about the stories in the lives around us? Is it possible that we have become so judgmental that we consider common what our Savior has sanctified (Acts 10:15)? The context of Acts 10 should scream at us that we, as Gentiles, would have no part in the Kingdom unless those in the Kingdom followed whatever God deemed holy.

These listed here in this collection of failures were considered holy by our Savior. Maybe we should revisit their stories to discover what we missed. It seems the punchline isn't enough, we need the whole joke to truly get it. And once we have a better grasp of our Creator's perspective, perhaps we will understand those around us better as well.

Just a thought.

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Copyright by The Lockman Foundation

Faith of the Fathers

The three Patriarchs of the people of Israel were amazing examples of faith. Yet, it's difficult to beat the example of Abraham offering Isaac in obedience to the One promising him children. This event is recorded in detail in Genesis 22. God tested Abraham. In the Hebrew, this word for "test" can refer to temptations as well as qualitative tests.

The word used in the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures (Septuagint) is also used by the writer of Hebrews in 11:17 for "test". It refers to testing to determine quality, and sometimes originates from ill will (temptation). God does this sort of thing with us, but we are not to do such things with Him (Luke 4:12, quoting Deuteronomy 6:16). The Pharisees did this sort of testing of Jesus constantly.

So, here's the way the writer of Hebrews uses it:

By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten son; it was he to whom it was said, “IN ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS SHALL BE CALLED.” He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which he also received him back as a type. (Hebrews 11:17-19 NASB)

Think through this test for a second. In Genesis 21, God has had Abraham send away Hagar and Abraham's son Ishmael, telling Abraham that Isaac would be the "child of promise". Now, "some time later", this same Yahweh calls on Abraham to kill Isaac, specifically calling out both Isaac, and the special relationship between he and Abraham. Think about that for a second. It should give you chills. It should give you some pause for a moment, possibly even doubt. Because behind this story is the reader's reaction of "what might my Savior ask of me?" And that's a very good question.

The test of Abraham is of his quality of belief. God had promised that He would fulfill Abraham's promise through Isaac. So, Abraham had to decide whether he would believe this God even when He seemed capricious. Did Abraham believe that this God would make good on a promise even when He seemed to be reneging? Do you?

When things aren't going well, do you still believe in the goodness of our Savior? When it's no longer "fun", when it's taking too long, when you are actually being persecuted and suffering, will you persist in your belief of the goodness of your Creator? Is Jesus still on His throne interceding for you? Is the Father still caring for you? Is the Spirit of the Living God still residing within you? Do you still believe, even when it's not convenient, popular, fun, or even safe? What if persisting in belief and being obedient actually costs you something precious?

It's easy to answer "yes" in the abstract imagination of "what might be". I suspect that I have a limit to my faith. I don't know where it is, exactly, but I suspect it wouldn't be very difficult to find. I have spent time doubting my Savior. I have spent time behaving as if He was't real, His promises weren't sure, and as if He didn't truly love me. For some peculiar reason, He still forgives me. I can't answer the above questions with absolute confidence because I haven't been tested to the extremes of my faith, not yet, but my day is coming.

How about you?

The Faithful Example of Abraham

The "Role Call of Faith" continues in Hebrews 11. After the "antediluvian" examples, we reach Abraham. He is such an important example, there are four instances listed where he shows great faith. We're going to look at three of them:

By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise; for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since she considered Him faithful who had promised. Therefore there was born even of one man, and him as good as dead at that, as many descendants AS THE STARS OF HEAVEN IN NUMBER, AND INNUMERABLE AS THE SAND WHICH IS BY THE SEASHORE. (Hebrews 11:8-12 NASB)

The first is the call. Abraham responds when Yahweh calls him to leave Haran and head to Canaan (Gen. 12:1-4). He responds by obeying, and this meant leaving the comfortable and known and going to the uncomfortable and unknown. There was a promise involved, so, obedience was to be rewarded. But there had to be belief involved, trust in the One making the promises. You and I are called. And there are promises involved. Will we obey, leave the known for the unknown, the comfortable for the uncomfortable? Will we trust the One making the promises?

And then we have the demonstration of faith in Abraham living as a sojourner in the land promised to him. Here the other patriarchs are mentioned, along with a reason for living this way. They were "looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder are God." Really? Is that why they lived in tents in Canaan? Reading the Genesis account of these men may not leave you with that impression, but what does become clear is that they lived in tents in a land they believed was theirs.

Living in a land believed to be theirs, meant living among cities of stone, and those who lived in them. It meant pasturing flocks around tilled fields of others in a land you knew was yours. It was an act of faith that waited for the timing of the One making the promise rather than taking matters into your own hands (except possibly for Simeon and Levi at Shechem).

How willing are we to faithfully persevere in obedience, even not seeing the promise? How long will we wait for the promise, while being obedient? Abraham sometimes waited more than a decade before another recorded conversation with the One making these promises. How long will we live in tents, temporary houses, waiting on the promise of real permanent mansions? The writer of Hebrews is pushing his audience to persevere to the very end.

And Abraham is used again, along with Sarah, in faithfully conceiving Isaac. Think about that, though. How much faith did that take? We tend to skip by the uncomfortable consideration of intimacy between spouses here. But, really, is it surprising they conceived? Abraham had been promised, and specifically promised that one from Sarah would be his heir, not Ishmael. He laughed, as did Sarah, but the "mechanics" of the process hadn't changed. It's just that this time it worked. And yet, the writer of Hebrews calls it faith.

 And, I suppose, it was faith. After Sarah dies, Abraham has other kids, so it wasn't Abraham who had the difficulty, it was Sarah who was barren. That's not a criticism, it's an important detail. Abraham doesn't "jettison" his wife at any point along this process. She's not the "problem", from his point of view. He is dedicated and devoted to her even though she cannot, in herself, provide the promised child. In a way, her barrenness is what brings God to the forefront. Unless He steps in, nothing changes. But, even as long as he doesn't, Abraham is faithful to this barren woman, and is for her whole life. That's faith.

You see, we can become so pragmatic about how God's promises are fulfilled. We can "see" His work, only under certain parameters, as if He can only work in certain ways. And yet, Abraham simply obeys God, remaining faithful to this woman who cannot provide him a son, an heir, the one thing he needs to see what he has been promised. And in remaining faithful to her, he remains faithful to the One promising.

Let's pay close attention to the example of faith provided in Abraham. Let's be uncomfortable, persevere without seeing our hope fulfilled immediately, and live faithful to the ones our Savior has provided to us. Being cooped up with people around the ones we love can strain that love. But it can also build it, renovate it, rejuvenate it, and make it new again. Your choice. Like Abraham, let's choose faith.

Evidence Unseen

We say it, "seeing is believing", but I don't think we believe it . You can probably think of something you've seen (or you think you've seen) but still struggle to wrap your head around. I experienced a "near car wreck" in my '20's that I still struggle to believe, and when I tell people about it, they look at me rather incredulously. And they should. It's difficult to believe.

So, when the writer of Hebrews floats a definition of faith by us, and we don't stop to pick it apart, that's probably why. We already can think of a few things that aren't God and which we still struggle to believe, even with evidence. If we can struggle with faith in seen stuff, accepting unseen faith in God is easier. Does that sound backwards? That's probably more psychological than philosophical, but it's still true.

Even so, let's look more closely at the definition of faith provided by the writer of Hebrews, especially the second half:

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old gained approval. Hebrews 11:1-2 (NASB, emphasis mine)

I had this whole write up ready for "assurance" but I'm focusing on "conviction", and have to switch gears. Be thankful.

The New American Standard uses "conviction", but you may be more familiar with "evidence" here. Those two terms are not the same in English. "Conviction" is a conclusion derived from some process (perhaps including evidence), "evidence" is what is used to derive a conclusion. That's not an unimportant distinction. Take a moment and think about it. Is faith the end of the process or an element of it?

As part of your process in drawing a conclusion about whether faith is evidence or assurance, keep in mind that this statement sits parallel to the first part of the definition, "substance of what is hoped for", where, again, the NASB has "assurance". Here, once again, the choice is between an element in the process of arriving at a conclusion, or the conclusion itself. Does that sound unnecessarily confusing? I hope not.

It isn't absolutely necessary to think about what you think about. I find it helpful. I prefer the elements in the process of coming to a conclusion rather than being handed a conclusion. But honestly, in discussing the Creator of the universe, it makes more sense to simply receive the conclusion. Faith is received (Ephesians 2:8,9). Is it "evidence"? In a very important sense, yes, it is. But in another sense, faith is the conclusion we live by.

The word "things" in the term, "things not seen" is the Greek word from which we get "pragmatic". For the Greeks it referred to "matters" personal, business, governmental, or even legal. So, events, points in time, of a practical nature, relating to daily life, but which are not seen, what are those? Creation? Salvation? Jesus' life, His resurrection, His ministry of intercession? All of these, and all the rest of Scripture, make up the pragmatic things we haven't witnessed personally, but about which we are convinced. 

Having been convinced of these things, we live our lives, make decisions about what to say, where to go, what to do. That is faith. We have hope in a future with Jesus, and faith gives substance to that hope. That assurance of such a future enables us to behave as if it's true. But there is so much we cannot see, so much that affects our day-to-day lives outside of our view. And we need the gift of faith from our Savior to live out our days convinced it is all proven, even when we can't see it.

Some thoughts about faith. I hope they help you through another day in quarantine.

A Bible Pun

The book of Hebrews in the Christian Scriptures is probably more challenging and controversial than even Revelation, or it was when it was first written. There are a lot of "only in Hebrews" sorts of assertions and arguments. For instance, Jesus is called our High Priest only in Hebrews. Yet, we think of the three roles of Jesus as Prophet, Priest, and King. King makes sense as He is the descendant of David. Prophet was what everyone figured He was, and He spoke for the Father, so he was the Prophet. But priests were descendant from Aaron, they were from the tribe of Levi, not Judah. So, that role is only defined in Hebrews. And that is only one of many elements we know of Jesus only found in Hebrews.

One of the unique perspectives in Hebrews can be found in chapter 9. In English, it's very strange, and probably causes more questions than it answers. It's found in the three verses below:

Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive. (Hebrews 9:15-17 ESV)

You may have missed the author's switch between "covenant" and "will" (as in "last will and testament"). Read that again. Now, who died? The obvious answer is Jesus. But look at the first sentence, especially the final phrase. Now, in the first covenant, who died? Do you sort of feel peculiar, even asking the question? That's not my point, to make you feel peculiar. It may help to notice in your own version that most of the time, this change from "covenant" to "will" has a footnote, where the translators explain something. Those are good things to read.

In this instance, the Greek word behind "covenant" in verse 15, and "will" in verses 16 and 17 are the same. The writer has used some "elasticity" in the meaning of the Greek word to highlight something, or rather Someone. All along through this book, the writer has been building an argument brick by brick. It's all led to this point. Jesus is superior to everything, angels, Moses, the law, the priesthood, and because of all that, He has a superior ministry. Everything done under the law of Moses was a shadow of the real ministry in heaven, the tabernacle, the furniture, the process, all to get to the Throne of our Creator.

But now, Jesus has done something huge. In fact it is so massive, it boggles the imagination. He has offered the perfect sacrifice, so perfect that no more sacrifices need be made, and in fact, it is effective for all time, present, future and past. The thing is, He's not "Levitical". There were exceptions to the Levites conducting the sacrifices, Samuel did it, and David. David even had some of his sons function as priests, although it's not necessarily clear in what way. But the law that God gave to Moses said that only Levites were to offer the sin offering. Only the High Priest, a descendant of Aaron, was to go into the Holy of Holies once a year to sprinkle blood on the ark of the covenant, atoning for the sins of all Israel for the year. But Jesus does this amazing thing, this new covenant mentioned by Jeremiah in Jeremiah 31.

At this point in his argument, the writer of Hebrews takes the Greek word used throughout the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures to refer to a covenant, and suddenly uses it like most of the common Greek-speaking world used it, to refer to a will. That was unexpected. But he does it to pull his audience into his main point. Referring to the New Covenant as a "will" highlights the amazing role that Jesus has within this New Covenant. In this will, Jesus dies to bring it into effect (verses 16 and 17), but then rises from the dead to be the executor as well (verse 15). The boomerang effect in the brains of his audience caused by using the "flexibility" in the word they were already used to hearing used both ways jolts them into the startling realization that Jesus' ministry of intercession was truly unique. And nothing can replace Jesus' role, not even adhering to the sacrifices of the temple and tabernacle. That doesn't rattle us today, but it was absolutely shocking when written.

Where Paul envisions a court room, lopsided in our favor (Romans 8), the writer of Hebrews envisions the temple/throne room of heaven with Jesus interceding on our behalf, but from the right-hand of the Father. Both roles of Jesus are intercession, one as our Defense Attorney, the other as our High Priest. Both are made possible because Jesus paid the price of our sin Himself. Both place our ability to approach our Creator entirely in our Savior. But one is an educational appropriation of common life, and the other is the reality underlying the mere shadows of this world. Yet both display the compassion and mercy of our Creator for His wayward creatures. Such compassion from a deity is shocking in the ancient world. And in our day, such mercy is still unexpected, and hopefully redemptive. What holds us back from experiencing it today? What holds us back from sharing it?