Month: September 2019

“’Everything is permissible for me’ – but not everything is beneficial. ‘Everything is permissible for me’ – but I will not be mastered by anything.”  1 Corinthians 6:12

“’Everything is permissible’ – but not everything is beneficial. ‘Everything is permissible’ – but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.” 1 Corinthians 10:23, 24

            Have you ever known a non-Christian who thought Christianity was just a big system of do’s and don’t’s? Or maybe it was even a Christian who felt that way. The thinking is that God has given us a lot of rules that we have to keep and if we keep them well enough, we just might earn God’s favor. If we don’t keep them very well, look out! That’s when God’s anger just might strike. I’ve never quite understood what they think will happen. Maybe they’re waiting for the lightening bolt to strike. Or perhaps it’s a belief that we’ll find out when we die. We’ll reach those pearly gates only to hear God, who sacrificed His only Son for us, say that we slipped up on a technicality so we can’t come in. My guess is that most of the time, the individual doesn’t really know what they think will happen. It’s more of an underlying fear that they somehow didn’t keep the rules quite right.

            Here’s two news flashes for you: The first is that you haven’t kept them right. Neither have I. No one has because no one can. Here’s the second: Once we accept Christ, whatever sins we’ve committed or line we’ve crossed has been paid for in full. That includes sins we committed before accepting Christ, as well as those we commit after that. Hang on! Don’t stone me as a heretic quite yet. I’m not saying that now we’re free to do whatever we want. In fact, that’s what these verses are talking about. Apparently, there was a saying in the Corinthian church that everything is permissible. In a sense they were right. Since we can’t pay for any of our own sins, Christ had to do it. Therefore, we are always able to ask for forgiveness. I would guess that the saying started as a way to praise God for the incredible freedom we find in Christ and that we no longer live under the Old Testament sacrificial system. But our enemy will take anything and twist it if it will cause us to adopt an incorrect belief about God.

            So how do we determine what is and what is not permissible? Well, on some things, God has given us pretty clear instructions. Those instructions are for our own good as well as the good of others. On other things, the Bible isn’t quite so clear. That’s where these verses come in. Let’s ask ourselves a few questions. The first set of questions apply to ourselves. Is what I’m doing (or about to do) beneficial? Or is it something that has mastered me? We can think of the “common” addictions of alcohol, drugs, smoking. But what about the less commonly discussed such as food, or work, or materialism, or anything else that has gained mastery over us? If there is anything in our lives that controls us in any way, get rid of it! The second set of questions pertain to others: Is what I’m doing helpful to others or harmful? Am I building others up or tearing them down? Perhaps more to the point: am I even thinking of how my actions will impact those around me? I’m not suggesting that we worry about what others will think of us. Not at all! It’s not about us. Rather, are we behaving in such a way as to build others up, to strengthen them, to help draw them closer to God? Let’s praise God for the freedom He’s given us, and also for the privilege and responsibility of being His ambassadors here on earth!

“I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.” Psalm 40:1, 2

            Depression. Even the word is depressing. I don’t begin to understand depression. I think the word is used too often in our culture. If someone says they’re depressed, that can mean the new blouse they want to buy is no longer on sale, or that they’re struggling with a physical condition that so affects body and mind that they can’t get out of bed. Worse yet, they see no hope of ever feeling better and choose to end their life rather than continue to live in the pain they feel. As I said, I don’t understand depression, so I’m not going to try to talk about it. Instead, I want to say a word to those of us who have a loved one battling this insidious disease. How can we help them? What can be done?

            I was recently in a situation that made me think about these verses. I parked my car in a spot that was, well, slimy. When I stepped out of the car, I sank into the kind of mud that tries to suck the shoes off your feet. I should have known then that I was in trouble! When I got back in my car later and tried to back out, I went nowhere. It was that horrible feeling of hitting the gas and seeing mud flying everywhere but you don’t move. I then did exactly what I shouldn’t have done: hit the gas harder. More spinning, more mud flying everywhere but the car still didn’t move. I finally did get the car out, but it made me realize that people dealing with depression feel just that way. No matter what they try, no matter how hard they hit the gas, they just spin their tires. The mud, or depression, that holds them just pulls them deeper and deeper. In their frantic attempts to pull free of this mire that tries to suck them down, they inadvertently spray anyone close to them with dirt and yuck.

            I don’t know if the hope found in these verses is more for the depressed person or for their loved ones. Sometimes we are the ones who have to hold on to hope for the person who just can’t see even a faint glimmer of light. We’re the ones who need to remember that God is coming. He sees our pain, He hears our cries. Some other versions say He “inclined to me.” I like that better than “turned” because the original word means to “spread out.” I see God reaching out His hand to us, stretching as far as He needs to. Sometimes the best way we can help a struggling loved one is to help them touch the hand God is reaching out to them. Other times, we simply sit with them in the muck and allow the mud to be sprayed all over us, knowing that God is always faithful. Whether the cause of the depression is situational or physical – or both, He hears, He understands, and He cares. He will lift them out of the pit and set them on a firm rock. Keep believing! Whether you’re the one struggling with depression or the one just wanting to help, don’t stop looking for God’s deliverance!

“’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’”  Isaiah 55:8, 9

            Have you ever been confused by God’s actions? Or what we perceive as non-action? Have you ever wondered why one person is miraculously healed while another is not? Or why one person seems to sail through life almost problem free while another goes from one difficulty to another? If you understand all of that, please explain it to me because I don’t get it! It just doesn’t seem fair, does it? I’m speaking as one who’s life has been relatively problem free compared to so many others. Sure, there have been some tough times. But compared to the extreme difficulties and tragedies that others have faced, I’ve had a pretty idyllic life. And I don’t think that’s fair! That’s when I think of this verse. God is not some capricious god who randomly throws out, or allows, hardships on a whim.

            It often helps me to realize God is the loving Father and we are His children, dependent on Him for every need and every lesson to be learned. I think of a parent giving pieces of cake to his two children. One gets a bigger piece than another. That’s not fair, right? Well, maybe one is older and has a bigger appetite, or didn’t have any dessert after the last meal. Or maybe the one with the smaller piece is struggling with obesity or is even pre-diabetic. What seems unfair on the surface may be the loving parent trying to shield the one who was shorted from something worse. Maybe that example doesn’t make sense to anyone else, but I think of how a child would not be able to understand the situation and would think it’s unfair. In the same way, we aren’t able to understand why God does or allows things that seem unfair. But we are able to have confidence that whatever is happening, God is loving us with a perfect love. And He is always there with us through whatever trial we’re facing.

            I love that this verse begins with talking about God’s thoughts. It’s not just His actions that are difficult for us to comprehend, but His very thoughts. I’ve heard it said (and I believe) that thoughts precede emotions, which precede actions. Emotions aren’t something that just happen to us. They result from our thoughts. As we think, so we feel. As we feel, so we act. As an example, let’s say I think that a certain person doesn’t like me. Then that person neglects to say good morning so I’m hurt. Why? Because of my belief about the person’s feelings towards me. So I respond with a sharp retort, or tears, or some other completely uncalled for reaction when the reality of the situation is that the person had a bad night and is preoccupied with things that have nothing to do with me. And it all started with my thoughts. It’s the same in our relationship with God. If His thoughts are so incomprehensible to us, how can we begin to understand His actions? And this takes us back to what I said before. We may not be able to understand God’s actions, much less His thoughts, but we can be assured that He is our loving Father. Every thought He has toward us is a thought of total and complete love and care. Everything He does is for our good.

“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.” Romans 8:26

            Aren’t you glad we have the Spirit’s help? I’m so glad the Spirit helps us in more ways than we can imagine. The first question that comes to my mind is to ask who, or what, is the Spirit. There are many books written on this subject but let me just say that the Spirit is not a “what.” He is a “who.” He is the very breath of God. When we hear or read about God’s Spirit, that is talking about the essence of God, God’s heart and mind. That’s Who helps us. Are you awestruck by that fact? Does it make you want to run to God in prayer when you realize that God’s very heart is Who is going to help you pray?

            How does the Spirit help us? Take a look at the first four words of this verse: in the same way. In the same way as what? The preceding verses talk about how all of creation is groaning like a woman giving birth. We, too, are groaning, waiting for the time when we will be in heaven with God and all of creation will be made new. In the same way, the Spirit is groaning. He is helping us with groans and sighs. God’s very essence is groaning and waiting for the time when sin will be abolished, we will be made perfect in Him, and all of His wonderful creation will be redeemed. Does it seem strange to you that God’s Spirit is groaning and waiting for that as much as we are? It does to me. But when I pause to think about it, I realize that His holy groans are probably much more intense than ours because He knows the perfection that is waiting for us, and He is anxious for the kind of fellowship with us that He knows will be possible.

            What is this weakness of ours that is referred to here? That word can also be translated as illness or infirmity. Our illness is sin. We are literally sin-sick. Because sin has distorted our view, we do not recognize necessities. Instead, we pray for the things that seem important in our little worldly minds. We see such a small slice of what’s truly important. It’s as if we live our lives in a dark room until the tiniest ray of God’s glory shines through a chink in the wall. That ray is blinding to us, but it’s such a small bit of the amazing glory that we will see when we finally leave the dark room in which we now live, and enter the eternal paradise lit by God’s glory. So we pray for help with what we can see, or change that seems needed in this dark, dank cell in which we now live. We don’t even realize what we should be praying about. But that’s okay. God realizes that and instead of ignoring our pleas, He sends His Spirit to change our prayers into what is actually necessary to pray. When He does that for us, the darkness of our earthly existence seems a little less dark. We see a little bit more of God’s glory. We understand just a little bit better of what God has waiting for us. And we draw just a little bit closer to the very heart of God.

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” Colossians 3:23, 24

            As I thought about Labor Day, this was the first verse on the subject that came to mind. Many times through the years, I have repeated this verse to myself. Maybe my boss asked me to do something that wasn’t my favorite way to spend my time. Or maybe the whole job was less than completely fulfilling for me and I wished myself elsewhere during my working hours. It’s in those times that this verse has encouraged me to give the job my all, even if I didn’t feel like it. As I started to really dig into this verse, the first thing that struck me is that this isn’t talking about a job. Whatever you do. Period. It doesn’t say on the job, and it doesn’t seem to indicate that you’re doing it to receive a monetary wage. Whatever you do. Preparing a meal. Mowing the grass. Cleaning the house. Caring for grandchildren. Driving the car. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing. Whatever it is, do it with your entire being. Throw yourself completely into the work. Why should we do that? Why should we be so dedicated to excellence and productivity? Because we’re not doing it for any other human, or even for ourselves. We’re doing it for God.

            The next thing I realized as I studied this verse is that we won’t receive an inheritance IF we work hard. We’re receiving the inheritance. Because of that, we should be willing to work hard for God. I think I’ve always had this backwards. I thought that if I work hard, God will reward me. I’m doing this thing that I don’t really like doing, but that’s okay because God’s going to reward me for doing it and doing it well. That’s pretty self-centered thinking. That makes it all about me and really, it’s all about God, just as it should be. We have received salvation through Jesus Christ as our inheritance. Jesus is the Son of God and when we receive Him, we become a member of Christ’s holy family. Therefore, our salvation is our inheritance. We don’t work for it, we can’t earn it. It’s given as a free gift of God’s grace. Because of that, I should be willing to throw my whole being into whatever it is God has for me to do.

            When we view these verses in context, we see that Paul was talking about how families should relate with one another, then switches rather abruptly to talking about slaves’ obedience to their earthly masters. Then comes the verses quoted above. So this isn’t just when we’re performing a less than enjoyable chore, or even working in a job that is not ideal. This applies when we find our lives to be not at all what we envisioned. “I think I want to be enslaved to another,” said no one, ever. Even in those times, when it seems that life is horrible, we are to remember that life isn’t horrible. It’s the best that it could be because we’ve received this amazing inheritance from a loving, caring Heavenly Father. As we approach the work God has for us to do, whatever it is, let’s remember to do it fully, completely, and joyfully as an act of worship to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.