merittmusings

A Piece of the Puzzle

www.bible.com/72/rom.10.9.hcsb

In no uncertain terms, Paul states that salvation from sin comes from confession that Jesus is Lord and belief in the resurrection of Jesus. Paul clarifies in the next verse that belief in the heart brings justification while confession with the mouth brings salvation. For he says in vs 13, “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

In 2 Corinthians 7:10, Paul commends “godly sorrow” in repentance which leads to “salvation”, which is line with Acts 11:18’s “repentance unto life”. In this text, Paul is saying that repentance is part of this salvation process. No mention of it is Romans 10, but still a part of this process we call salvation from sin.

In Romans 6:3-4, Paul speaks of baptism as a burial to the old life and a raising to a new life. The old life dies to sin and is buried, but the new life is raised to righteousness. While not stating the essential nature of baptism here, he does say this: vs 7 “anyone who has died has been freed from sin.” Seems to point to the fact that if you do not die in baptism (immersion), you cannot be free from sin. This act appropriately follows faith, repentance and confession. Baptism is a saving action, because it frees you from sin. It is no mere act of obedience. It is not the water that saves you, but submitting to the act itself. Jesus does the saving work. As Peter later on says in 1 Pet 3:21, the water saves you, but only because you pledge your good conscience to God, and the resurrection power of Jesus does he heavy lifting.

What must I do to be saved? It seems that the New Testament has several pieces that need to be put together: Faith, Repentance, Confession, and Baptism. Faith to change the heart, Repentance to bring Godly sorrow for sin, confession to speak the truth, and baptism to bury the sinner and raise the new Christian. Peter also offers in Acts 2:38 repentance and baptism bring forgiveness of sin and the gift of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. This Spirit if God helps us “understand what God has freely given us.” (1 Cor 2:12).

What I don’t understand is that if all of these pieces are essential to salvation, which I believe they are, then why are they not all listed in the same place? Why not put in some conventions place a list saying, “do this to be saved”? I believe when the message was first being preached, these things were included, but as it was recorded, details were recorded as they were deemed significant. Faith is usually recorded as shorthand for the whole. “And they all believed”!

Jesus comes as close any to laying out a plan of salvation in Matthew 28:18-20. He first instructs the apostles to make disciples (so that they believe, change their understanding of sin and who Jesus is), then baptize in the Name of the Triune Lord, and then to continue to teach them the way of obedience. Baptism here is not included as part of the pattern of obedience, but a necessary point of entry into the community of faith. Very telling that.

That’s all for now. Have a good day and God bless!

Just a Word

www.bible.com/72/rom.12.12.hcsb

In just s few short words, Romans 12:12 manages to put out a strong definition of the Christian life. We are a people of hope, long-suffering in tribulation, and constant in prayer. Knock us down, overrun us and try to destroy us through persecution, and we keep coming back for more. Every other faith demands results, proofs, sometimes even by sword. Still other faiths are content to do nothing but be contemplative, meditative, and insular. Christianity calls for both evangelism and interaction with the world, but also contemplation and joy while within it. Christianity manages to satisfy all the pious urges without being destructive (when done right) and offers fantastic grace without forcing back-breaking labors upon its subjects.

I challenge you as a Christian to practice the above. Rejoice in hope. Be patient in suffering. Pray constantly.

God bless!

Spiritual Hygiene

www.bible.com/72/1th.5.17.hcsb

This command from Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians is good spiritual hygiene for the Christian. If you are constant in prayer, you will have little time for temptation. As Christians, because we have within us the Holy Spirit, the presence of God is within us constantly. I cannot really understand what that means. Do we comprehend the gift that that is? Never before in the history of man had any people ever been given the promise of their God being present in them. This is the same Spirit if God who hovered over the waters at Creation. That presence swells within us. How could we not be in constant contact with Him?

This command is as much a recognition of our new normal as it is a command. You are always in the Lord’s presence. You always carry His Spirit, not just a portion because God cannot be divided up into little pieces. You carry the presence of God within you at all times. There is no place that you go that God is not already present. You do not need Temple or Church to find the presence of God.

So imagine how much more meaningful it is when you do find that gathering of saints at your church. Whose meaningful encouragement and mutual support only reinforce your awareness that God is present with you.

I want to encourage you today to pray constantly. Talk to Him always. He will never leave you.

God bless!

Alert in Prayer

www.bible.com/72/col.4.2.hcsb

Being the National Day of Prayer, this seems appropriate today. The NDP always sneaks up on me, especially this year being so soon after Easter. I almost always forget to plan for it. Usually I have a 12 to 24 hour prayer chain going on at church, but not so this year. I don’t have that kind of pull where I am now.

This verse does stand by itself in the text of Colossians. It precedes a more general instruction to pray for Paul as he is facing public trials while in prison. We assume this is written while he is in prison in Caesarea (but possibly Rome). Because of this independence in the text, we can treat it by itself.

Paul recommends to these Colossians that they need to decor themselves in prayer. In that, to stay alert in prayer, and to include thanksgiving as part of that alertness. So, being alert for opportunities to be thankful to God.

The idea of being alert in prayer seems an odd juxtaposition. If anything, Prayer takes me away from the concerns of the moment and offers a respite from the pull of the world. I usually close my eyes in prayer. That is not a position of alertness.

So what is Paul talking about here? There a couple of possibilities.

First, that Paul is calling for a posture of alertness while in prayer. To be aware of your surroundings and those around you. Don’t let Prayer be an opportunity to be caught unaware. So, pray with your eyes open.

Second, always be alert for opportunities to pray, especially to be thankful. Make prayer a priority in your daily walk. Pray when you get up and when you lie down and as you go about your daily life. Always be looking for reasons to pray, and pray often.

A possible third may be this: Be aware of when your prayer life is faltering and don’t let prayer get away from you. Always be alert to the condition of your prayer life.

As Christians, we ought to follow this command, for this holds true for all, not just the believers at Collosae. God be with you today as you stay alert in prayer.

Evidence

www.bible.com/72/heb.12.2.hcsb

When looking at this verse, I realize that the only part of this verse that can be proven historically is that a man named Jesus from Nazareth died on a cross nearly 2000 years ago. While that seems like a long time ago, it is easier to prove than the exodus of Israel from Egypt or the Flood of Noah.

The rest of this verse depends not only on the crucifixion, but another piece which isn’t mentioned, the resurrection. That too can be proven historically beyond a reasonable doubt. With these two points in hand, what can we say about the others?

Jesus is the author and perfected of our faith. – because Jesus rose from the dead, He is the first to both predict his resurrection but also to fulfill it. While there are other resurrected god stories out there (i.e., Osiris), we actually have historical evidence that His is true. There are a number of eye-witnesses, there documents recording their varied accounts. A number of eye-witnesses, On threat of death, refused to recant their faith in the living Christ. Then there is the Shroud of Turin, whose image was burned into by an amazing heat that cannot be explained by natural means. This One is the author of our faith. He started it by rising from the dead. He perfects it by continuing to work in us today as the living Christ. I can accept by reason that He is alive. I accept by faith that He continues to live and mentor me today.

Jesus now sits at the right hand of God. – This one is harder to prove, but not impossible. In His life in earth, Jesus claimed often to be the Son of God. He performed many miracles which established His power over creation like His Father. When he died and rise again, he established that even death had no hold over him. By these evidences, He has proven He is the Son of God, God in flesh. So it is not much of s stretch to believe by faith, though we can’t see it, that today He sits at God’s right hand, a position of favor with His Father.

Evidence? Far more reliable than the reasoned suppositions offered by others. It is far easier to prove God exists in an ordered, physical universe than to prove He doesn’t. What kind of God He is can be found in the pages of Scripture. While we may not agree with the Christian God, that doesn’t mean He doesn’t exist. I am grateful for a God who loved me enough to save me before I was ever born.

Thank you God.

Dependent Forgiveness

www.bible.com/72/mat.6.14.hcsb

This is a difficult passage to process. It’s easy enough to understand. It’s just difficult to execute.

Jesus offers here forgiveness of sin. That is an amazing offer. For the price of asking, involving no animal sacrifice whatsoever, Jesus says we can ask God to forgive our sins, and He will. That is a revolutionary idea. But here’s the kicker. You must also be willing to pass along that same extraordinary forgiveness to others. “Freely you have received, freely give.” This is a theme that Jesus repeats in the parable of the unjust servant, who is forgiven a great debt, but cannot forgive a much smaller one from a fellow servant. The unjust servant is punished by the master for failure to forgive.

It turns out this forgiveness comes at a price. It’s no Faustian bargain, but it feels like it. Faust traded his soul for worldly riches and honors. We trade our “right” to be bitter at others sleights against us for eternity in Heaven. We can no longer hold grudges. We can’t keep a record of wrongs. Though we may be angry, we do not sin in our anger. Can we give these things up?

That’s the price of eternal forgiveness. It’s easy to understand, but difficult to carry out. I hope that today, if you are working through anger and resentment, God give you the grace to do so. I’d hate that you missed heaven because you treasured your grudges more.

God bless!

Creation Entitlement

www.bible.com/72/rev.4.11.hcsb

Sorry about the late post today. Time got away from me this morning. But I looked at this verse and immediately knew what I needed to write about it.

If you make something, do you feel ownership is entitled to you? I mean, if I write a post, and someone else quotes from my post without giving attribution, will that make me upset? Of course, and rightly so. That material is an extension of me, it goes forth from me and represents my thoughts and inner workings. It is me to an extent.

So when God creates the universe, is He entitled to credit for making it? Duh. And yet, what has happened? Why is there so much desperation to make it a natural random chance event? Why are there those fanatical about making the universe create itself? Because doesn’t that put the creative earnest right our laps? Surely the atheist believes that is the universe created itself, and we are the highest form of life in this universe, we are responsible for creating ourselves. Or something like that. And we don’t have to give credit where credit is due.

But God is the Creator, and He is entitled both for credit and for Ownership. He made it. It belongs to Him unless He willingly sells it to someone else. And there is another who stole it from Him, stole the power of the air for himself and stole men away from God. So God sent His Son. Jesus died and paid the ransom for many. God owns us. Twice. He will own is a third time when He grants us a resurrection body, a newly created thing when we lose this one to death.

Isn’t God amazing? Let us glorify Him together.

Be Courageous!

www.bible.com/72/jhn.16.33.hcsb

If there is any phrase often repeated in the Bible, it is “Be strong and courageous” or variations of it. That is very telling of what our role is. While God has conquered evil and death, done all of the heavy-lifting for our salvation, He still leaves it to us to have an attitude of strength and courage. He doesn’t offer His courage to us, but calls us to it.

So what is courage? What is this thing we call bravery or valor? Is it not the hope that things will turn out ok and acting accordingly? Men will brave fire and smoke to rescue people trapped in a burning building. We call that courage. Is it? Isn’t it also training yourself in the dangers of fire and learning how to avoid getting burned? Is it the willingness to subject yourself to danger, the uncertainty of random accident? Is that courage?

If so, then to call us to courage is to call us to “face uncertain days because He lives.” Our burning building is this world, burning down all around us. Our courage is the willingness to face the uncertainty of what will happen to us if we go in, to save someone in that building from burning to death. Courage is hope that we will be ok. Courage is knowing we go in with divine protection, knowing that death is only temporary. Courage is willing put ourselves at risk, even of death, to carry out our Father’s orders. That takes courage. He does not force us, but calls us to take the step forward.

Courage, like faith and hope, not only call for belief in something I may not have actually seen or experienced, but also the action to demonstrate our commitment. Be strong and courageous. For I have overcome the world.

God bless you today.

Good Mourning

www.bible.com/72/mat.5.4.hcsb

What route do you take through grief? Elizabeth Kubler-Ross once penned the roadmap through grief. It starts with denial, then goes to anger, bargaining through to acceptance. Not everyone takes the same path, but the human reaction to grief for all its reasons tends toward the same direction as the human mind readjusts to a new normal. Grief isn’t over quickly either. While a person may experience all of these things in the immediate aftermath, they will also experience them on significant anniversaries and reminders of the event. Grief can last for a lifetime, depending on the significance of the object lost.

Knowing that mourning deals particularly with human loss, I am intrigued by Jesus’s statement. He pronounces blessing over those that mourn, for they shall receive comfort from God. This is the same Jesus who will rise from the dead just a year or so from this point giving the Christian cause for rejoicing. The resurrection directly refuted mourning, because the dead are raised! Aren’t these values in conflict? No.

In fact they complement each other. Jesus earlier words were placed in the future tense. “They shall be comforted.” Now we mourn, but in the future we will be comforted. What would change that would cause us to be comforted? Belief in the resurrection! Even now, we are comforted when a loved on dies that they are with Jesus. That is comforting. How are they with Jesus? Because if anyone believes in Jesus, though he were dead, is alive in Christ. This is a powerful truth in the midst of mourning. The possibility of life after death existed in Judaism before, but was refined and given more specifics in Christ. This is certainly comfort for the believer.

“But what about …”

If your loved one didn’t believe in Jesus, then we have every reason to mourn. I am sorry. If they were witnessed to and knew the requirements of the gospel and still refused to surrender to God’s Love, I am truly sorry. I know that sounds harsh, but Jesus endured hell for them. I believe some leniency will be given to those who have never heard, but they will be judged on the light they have been given and how obedient they were to it. “All have sinned, and have fallen short of the glory of God.” Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

God bless you today.

I blasphemed in church tonight!!

I blasphemed in church tonight!!

I blasphemed in church tonight!!

— Read on riproarghol.wordpress.com/2019/04/24/i-blasphemed-in-church-tonight/

This contains some echoes of some my own thoughts and frustrations. In order to move evangelism into the church and away from the front lines, we’ve moved the front lines to the church pew, and let go of the church’s responsibility to edify the saved. When our music and our preaching are solely for the purpose of making new Christians, we end up saying the same things every week. And it is all milk and not solid food. It is a frustrating position for mature Christians.