Typically my posts are several paragraphs unpacking a Bible passage or some Christian topic. I thought that for this week I'd do something different. I was in prayer for my congregation this morning (as I am every day), as well as some other congregations I'm familiar with around my area, and I had a couple of thoughts: 1.) In a lot of congregations, the gospel is so assumed that no one really even knows what it is anymore, and 2.) I'm very blessed in that I have a church that hungers and thirsts to know the gospel better.
So whereas I usually am writing posts that are (hopefully) gospel-centered (meaning that they focus on Christ's person and work as Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer, etc.), I thought I'd make a list of how the gospel bears fruit in a Christian's life.
My assumption is that in seeing the fruit, we can understand more clearly the Source of the fruit. And here, we're at the heart of the gospel, because the Source is Christ, who is Himself the Gospel!
So I jotted down in my journal some different passages that speak to to the "Marks of a Christian". I'd encourage you to (along with myself) use this post as a reference to specific Bible passages that speak to each "fruit", and perhaps pray over and meditate on it in your prayer time. Allow the Word to examine you and question you (Hebrews 4:12-13), to see whether or not you bear this fruit--and if not, repent and bring it to Jesus in humble subjection, where you can be sure you'll be helped by Him who is our High Priest (4:14-16).
The Marks of a Christian
A Christian....
--Loves Jesus, and keeps His commands (John 14:15, 23)
--Loves God with heart, soul, mind and strength, which quickens loving their neighbors (Matt. 22:36-40)
--Is humble and lowly (Matt. 5:3,5; Luke 18:10-14)
--Doesn't worry (Matt. 6:25-34)
--Prays earnestly, in submission to God's will and Kingdom (Matt. 6:9-10)
--Has a solid prayer life, marked by humble quietness (Ps. 46:10, Isaiah 30:15, Ecclesiastes 5:2, Matt. 6:5-8)
--Lives as "shining light" in the world, for the sake of their Father alone (Matt. 5:14-16)
--Doesn't judge rashly, but with humble and correct judgment (Matt. 7:1-5, cf. John 7:24)
--Hungers and thirsts for Christ's righteousness and holiness (Matt. 5:6, Philippians 3:8-11, Colossians 3:1, Hebrews 12:1-2, 1 Pet. 1:14-16)
--Loves even their enemies (Matt. 5:44-47)
--Watches their anger and doesn't hold grudges (Matt. 5:22-24)
--Gives generously to those in need, because their treasure is in Christ alone (Matt. 6:2-4, 19-21; Luke 10:30-37)
--Bears good fruit, which also bears good fruit (John 15:5-8, Galatians 5:22-24, Ephesians 2:10, James 2:14-26)
--Is willing to suffer for Christ (because He did it for them) (Matt. 5:39, 10:16-22; John 15:18-25; Romans 8:16-17, 35; 1 Peter 1:6-7, 3:9-17, 4:12-19; James 1:2-4)
--Lives a life of repentance (Mark 1:15; Acts 2:38, 3:19, 11:18; Rom. 6:1-4, 15-16)
--Hates their sin (Rom. 7:14-25) and continually puts it to death (8:13)
--Perseveres until the end (John 10:27-30; Romans 8:11; Ephesians 1:13-14; Philippians 1:6, 2:12-13; Hebrews 3:6,14, 6:9)
--Honors those in authority and prays for them (Mark 12:15-17, Rom. 13:1-7, 1 Tim. 2:1-4)
--Sticks with their commitments (Matt. 5:33-37, Mark 10:1-7)
--Loves God's Word (Psalm 119, Matt. 4:4, cf. Deuteronomy 8:3)
--Counts others better than their self (Matt. 7:12, Philippians 2:3-4)
--Cares about doctrine and theology (1 Timothy 4:15-16, 6:2-4; 2 Tim. 4:1-4; Titus 2)
--Is different than the world, and different than they used to be (Luke 19:9-10, Rom. 12:1-2, Eph. 4:17-25; 1 Pet. 1:16-17)
--Has faith (Rom. 3:26-4:22, Gal. 3:7-14)
--Has the Trinitarian God living inside of them (John 14:16-23, Gal. 2:20)
--Is a doer of the Word, and not just a hearer (James 1:22-24)
--Husband loves and serves his wife; wife loves and submits to her husband; parent raises their children in the Lord (Deut. 6:20-25, Eph. 5:22-6:4, 1 Pet. 3:1-7)
--Talks a lot about Jesus (Acts 1-28(!))
--Knows that Jesus sustains them as a Christian (Matt. 28:20, John 6:39-40, 10:27-30, 15:5, 17:14-18; 2 Tim. 1:12, Jude 24)
--Takes rebuke/discipline, and comes to Jesus (Hebrews 12:5-11, Revelation 3:15-21)
In Christ, and to Him be glory,
Scott
Scott Stine - Pastor of First Baptist Church, Newton NJ. Follower of Jesus; husband, daddy, PhD student, too distracted by basketball.
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Friday, July 13, 2012
Far From Me
"These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me."
--Isaiah 29:13
These words are said by God in response to Israel's idolatry and sinfulness--both of which were problems all the way from their first leaving Egypt to being in the promised land as God had promised they would be. We always read the stories of Israel throughout the Old Testament and conclude, "Israel...idiots. Why are they doing this? Why are they so idolatrous? Why do they worship other gods?" But in responding to the text this way, there are a few things we need to remember.
First, the Bible is God's story from God's perspective. Think for a minute about what it means to be deceived. It means to not only be lied to, but to have been lied to in such a way that one buys into the lie, believing it, and so acting accordingly. In Genesis 3, Eve was deceived by the serpent who is Satan, which means she didn't just stupidly make a non-sensical decision based on no thought. She chose to listen to the serpent because she believed what he said--she believed that he was telling the truth. She was deceived by he whom Jesus later called 'the father of lies' (Jn. 8:44).
As God tells us the story of Israel from His perspective, would we be stupid enough to think that Israel non-sensically and without any thought just bowed down and worshiped golden calves and idols because they had amnesia or because they were spiritually retarded? Of course not--each instance of sin is a case of deception. They've been deceived to believe that what they're doing is the correct course of action, and they acted accordingly. This is not a justification on my part for Israel's sin; I merely am attempting to give an honest assessment of what really is going on in God's story of God's people. They're deceived, and they act accordingly.
So when God tells us of their sin, He tells us how silly and non-sensical their sin and idolatry is, because it IS. We should assume that the same rule which applied to Eve applies to them as well. Why would it be any different? They were deceived like she was. Does this mean God is unfair in His assessment? Of course not--what He tells is the truth; His Word is always truth (see John 17:17). And being the honest diagnosis, the cause is deception.
Secondly, Israel's worship of the golden calf (as told in Exodus 32) deserves a further look than what most people will afford it. To most, it appears a story where Israel just randomly decides to worship an object, preposterously calling the newly created object "your gods...who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!" (32:4), as though they seriously thought this little object they'd just created are THE gods (notice Aaron makes one object, and they refer to it in the plural as 'the gods').
But on further investigation we realize a few things.
1. The second commandment (Ex. 20:4) is a prohibition of 'carved images'. Whereas most think this refers to worshiping idols, God had already covered that in commandment one "you shall not worship any other gods beside (or before) me." Instead, with the Second Com. God is more likely speaking of attaching an image to Himself. He speaks, in essence, of their giving a visible image to the invisible God. Apparently God hates this so much that it's the second commandment, right after "worship only me". Apparently it would become an issue.
2. If #1 (above) is true, it would make the golden calf incident more likely to be a case of Israel worshiping the golden calf because to them it was a visible image of the invisible God. Instead of them worshiping another god (which is common thought), they were worshiping God, but through the medium of a golden calf as his image. This is an explicit breaking of commandment two, and it's so grievous that God tells Moses "My wrath (will) burn hot against them and I (will) consume them" (32:10). In giving God an image, they've sacrificed God's invisibility in their hearts, and, since we all know how much easier it is to believe in something we see, now they worship the image instead of God. In this way, they're not worshiping God anymore, but a false god.
3. This also makes sense in light of a couple of other passages. In Deuteronomy 4, Moses, preaching his last sermon to Israel, remembering both God's revealing Himself to Israel and their subsequent golden calf incident, tells them, "Watch yourselves carefully. Since you saw no form on the day that the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, beware lest you act corruptly by making a carved image for yourselves, in the form of any figure" (4:15-16). "Since you saw no form..." refers to God, meaning that the subsequent warning (not to make an image) refers to making an image of God. Apparently this is an issue. In Isaiah 40, Isaiah says, "To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him? An idol! A craftsman casts it..." (40:18-19). Apparently, that's what's been going on--people giving the invisible God "who sits above the circle of the earth" (40:22) a likeness, like God said not to in Commandment Two, like Israel did in the golden calf incident, like Moses warned not to do again in his final sermon, and like Isaiah here preaches against.
When this becomes the common practice in a society (ie. Old Testament Israel), it loses its sting as something that should be held in contempt. Sin that one generation deems as "not a big deal", the next generation accepts as common and necessary without even a thought. We see this in our society--conservative evangelical denominations which began to make theological compromises 100 years ago are beginning to reap the bad fruit of theological relativity in all matters. "If this isn't necessarily what it means, then maybe the same principle applies to that as well." And the rest is history--if we don't have to believe one particular Biblical teaching, can we trust any of it? Of course the only reason why there are these questions in the first place is because of man's sinfully and stupidly thinking he's the standard of judgment, and that God's truth is only really truth if it fits into man's understanding and man's culture's understanding. And in God telling us Israel's story, their folly and rebellion is man's continued folly and rebellion--which takes us back to the original passage, which is also the third thing we need to remember in considering sin.
Thirdly, the reason Israel worshiped idols and wouldn't keep God's commands isn't because they were stupid (though they were), nor was it because God's Word coming to them had failed (see Isaiah 55:10-11; God's Word never fails). The reason they weren't obedient and were rebellious is that their hearts were far from Him. In short, they didn't love Him. They didn't appreciate Him; they didn't believe and accept that their life, calling, security, etc. all came from the God who loved them enough to give them breath in their lungs and favor over their lives.
Later, Paul is pretty explicit with this when he writes, "For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things" (Romans 1:21-23). Surely we can see that Israel's idolatry wasn't because of stupidity--it was because of hearts that weren't near God, because they didn't thank God or honor Him as God, because they didn't love Him, and so in turn they attached images to God and in doing so they brought stupidity on themselves.
But it all starts with a) a heart that isn't bowed to God, and b) a belief in one's own understanding before God's sovereignty and goodness. And in the end, trusting in one's own understanding over God's leads to one having no understanding.
I'm convinced that this has become the case with much of Christianity...if it can even be called that in some circles. Jesus came to make peace between us and God, through uniting us with Himself in His death and resurrection, so that we'd be new creations who live in the righteousness which is in Christ Jesus, being conformed into His image ever more as time passes by (see 2 Corinthians 5:17-21, Colossians 3:1-10). When He left His disciples He told them that they'd "be (His) witnesses to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8), meaning that the whole of their ministry will be to make much of Jesus and His person and work and glory. Truly, a Christian is one who, being bought by Christ's blood, and united with Christ's righteousness, wants with everything they have to bear His image and preach His glory.
And yet, why is it that there are so many Christians who will talk about "love" or "tolerance" or "self-esteem" or even God, but won't ever speak of the Jesus who bought them with His blood and is the only reason they HAVE God in the first place? Jesus said no one comes to the Father except through Him--notice He told the disciples they'd be HIS witnesses (meaning that in preaching Christ, they'll preach God's character--but they must be preaching Christ to do this; read the rest of Acts to see this in action, and try not to weep at the disparity between the Acts Church and the Church now).
It appears that today has many Christians in ministry (or Christians in general) who appear to operate from humanity first, tying God and His Word to what they say at the very end (as though God's Word answers to man), instead of operating from God's Word first. Why do Christians hate God's Word and not love Jesus either?
It's because they still "honor (Him) with their lips, but their hearts are far from (Him)". Jesus controversially applied this passage to pharisees in Mark 6, WAY after it was written. I wonder if He wouldn't go farther in applying it to many of us. My prayer is that I wouldn't be one of them. The glorious and risen Son Jesus Christ is all-sufficient, all-powerful, and holy. He deserves praise, worship, adoration, thanksgiving, and everything. He WILL get all of those for all time--may we be a part of the chorus who is singing it to Him today.
Where's your heart?
--Isaiah 29:13
These words are said by God in response to Israel's idolatry and sinfulness--both of which were problems all the way from their first leaving Egypt to being in the promised land as God had promised they would be. We always read the stories of Israel throughout the Old Testament and conclude, "Israel...idiots. Why are they doing this? Why are they so idolatrous? Why do they worship other gods?" But in responding to the text this way, there are a few things we need to remember.
First, the Bible is God's story from God's perspective. Think for a minute about what it means to be deceived. It means to not only be lied to, but to have been lied to in such a way that one buys into the lie, believing it, and so acting accordingly. In Genesis 3, Eve was deceived by the serpent who is Satan, which means she didn't just stupidly make a non-sensical decision based on no thought. She chose to listen to the serpent because she believed what he said--she believed that he was telling the truth. She was deceived by he whom Jesus later called 'the father of lies' (Jn. 8:44).
As God tells us the story of Israel from His perspective, would we be stupid enough to think that Israel non-sensically and without any thought just bowed down and worshiped golden calves and idols because they had amnesia or because they were spiritually retarded? Of course not--each instance of sin is a case of deception. They've been deceived to believe that what they're doing is the correct course of action, and they acted accordingly. This is not a justification on my part for Israel's sin; I merely am attempting to give an honest assessment of what really is going on in God's story of God's people. They're deceived, and they act accordingly.
So when God tells us of their sin, He tells us how silly and non-sensical their sin and idolatry is, because it IS. We should assume that the same rule which applied to Eve applies to them as well. Why would it be any different? They were deceived like she was. Does this mean God is unfair in His assessment? Of course not--what He tells is the truth; His Word is always truth (see John 17:17). And being the honest diagnosis, the cause is deception.
Secondly, Israel's worship of the golden calf (as told in Exodus 32) deserves a further look than what most people will afford it. To most, it appears a story where Israel just randomly decides to worship an object, preposterously calling the newly created object "your gods...who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!" (32:4), as though they seriously thought this little object they'd just created are THE gods (notice Aaron makes one object, and they refer to it in the plural as 'the gods').
But on further investigation we realize a few things.
1. The second commandment (Ex. 20:4) is a prohibition of 'carved images'. Whereas most think this refers to worshiping idols, God had already covered that in commandment one "you shall not worship any other gods beside (or before) me." Instead, with the Second Com. God is more likely speaking of attaching an image to Himself. He speaks, in essence, of their giving a visible image to the invisible God. Apparently God hates this so much that it's the second commandment, right after "worship only me". Apparently it would become an issue.
2. If #1 (above) is true, it would make the golden calf incident more likely to be a case of Israel worshiping the golden calf because to them it was a visible image of the invisible God. Instead of them worshiping another god (which is common thought), they were worshiping God, but through the medium of a golden calf as his image. This is an explicit breaking of commandment two, and it's so grievous that God tells Moses "My wrath (will) burn hot against them and I (will) consume them" (32:10). In giving God an image, they've sacrificed God's invisibility in their hearts, and, since we all know how much easier it is to believe in something we see, now they worship the image instead of God. In this way, they're not worshiping God anymore, but a false god.
3. This also makes sense in light of a couple of other passages. In Deuteronomy 4, Moses, preaching his last sermon to Israel, remembering both God's revealing Himself to Israel and their subsequent golden calf incident, tells them, "Watch yourselves carefully. Since you saw no form on the day that the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, beware lest you act corruptly by making a carved image for yourselves, in the form of any figure" (4:15-16). "Since you saw no form..." refers to God, meaning that the subsequent warning (not to make an image) refers to making an image of God. Apparently this is an issue. In Isaiah 40, Isaiah says, "To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him? An idol! A craftsman casts it..." (40:18-19). Apparently, that's what's been going on--people giving the invisible God "who sits above the circle of the earth" (40:22) a likeness, like God said not to in Commandment Two, like Israel did in the golden calf incident, like Moses warned not to do again in his final sermon, and like Isaiah here preaches against.
When this becomes the common practice in a society (ie. Old Testament Israel), it loses its sting as something that should be held in contempt. Sin that one generation deems as "not a big deal", the next generation accepts as common and necessary without even a thought. We see this in our society--conservative evangelical denominations which began to make theological compromises 100 years ago are beginning to reap the bad fruit of theological relativity in all matters. "If this isn't necessarily what it means, then maybe the same principle applies to that as well." And the rest is history--if we don't have to believe one particular Biblical teaching, can we trust any of it? Of course the only reason why there are these questions in the first place is because of man's sinfully and stupidly thinking he's the standard of judgment, and that God's truth is only really truth if it fits into man's understanding and man's culture's understanding. And in God telling us Israel's story, their folly and rebellion is man's continued folly and rebellion--which takes us back to the original passage, which is also the third thing we need to remember in considering sin.
Thirdly, the reason Israel worshiped idols and wouldn't keep God's commands isn't because they were stupid (though they were), nor was it because God's Word coming to them had failed (see Isaiah 55:10-11; God's Word never fails). The reason they weren't obedient and were rebellious is that their hearts were far from Him. In short, they didn't love Him. They didn't appreciate Him; they didn't believe and accept that their life, calling, security, etc. all came from the God who loved them enough to give them breath in their lungs and favor over their lives.
Later, Paul is pretty explicit with this when he writes, "For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things" (Romans 1:21-23). Surely we can see that Israel's idolatry wasn't because of stupidity--it was because of hearts that weren't near God, because they didn't thank God or honor Him as God, because they didn't love Him, and so in turn they attached images to God and in doing so they brought stupidity on themselves.
But it all starts with a) a heart that isn't bowed to God, and b) a belief in one's own understanding before God's sovereignty and goodness. And in the end, trusting in one's own understanding over God's leads to one having no understanding.
I'm convinced that this has become the case with much of Christianity...if it can even be called that in some circles. Jesus came to make peace between us and God, through uniting us with Himself in His death and resurrection, so that we'd be new creations who live in the righteousness which is in Christ Jesus, being conformed into His image ever more as time passes by (see 2 Corinthians 5:17-21, Colossians 3:1-10). When He left His disciples He told them that they'd "be (His) witnesses to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8), meaning that the whole of their ministry will be to make much of Jesus and His person and work and glory. Truly, a Christian is one who, being bought by Christ's blood, and united with Christ's righteousness, wants with everything they have to bear His image and preach His glory.
And yet, why is it that there are so many Christians who will talk about "love" or "tolerance" or "self-esteem" or even God, but won't ever speak of the Jesus who bought them with His blood and is the only reason they HAVE God in the first place? Jesus said no one comes to the Father except through Him--notice He told the disciples they'd be HIS witnesses (meaning that in preaching Christ, they'll preach God's character--but they must be preaching Christ to do this; read the rest of Acts to see this in action, and try not to weep at the disparity between the Acts Church and the Church now).
It appears that today has many Christians in ministry (or Christians in general) who appear to operate from humanity first, tying God and His Word to what they say at the very end (as though God's Word answers to man), instead of operating from God's Word first. Why do Christians hate God's Word and not love Jesus either?
It's because they still "honor (Him) with their lips, but their hearts are far from (Him)". Jesus controversially applied this passage to pharisees in Mark 6, WAY after it was written. I wonder if He wouldn't go farther in applying it to many of us. My prayer is that I wouldn't be one of them. The glorious and risen Son Jesus Christ is all-sufficient, all-powerful, and holy. He deserves praise, worship, adoration, thanksgiving, and everything. He WILL get all of those for all time--may we be a part of the chorus who is singing it to Him today.
Where's your heart?
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Freed By the Truth
"If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
John 8:31-32
In a world where "truth" is becoming more and more abstract as time goes by, it is freeing itself to know that there is such a thing as truth, and that it's solid. To Jesus, whereas everyone is influenced by their surroundings, upbringing, thought processes, etc., there is such a thing as truth. It's a real thing that exists, is foundational, and is the standard by which all other understandings and thought will be (and already are) judged. Most people think they know 'the truth', but when they come across someone else who thinks differently than they, their defenses show that they understand how unstable their stance actually might be. Further, many people believe a certain thing, but when presented with an appropriate opposing argument ("appropriate" meaning 'strong enough to trump their original stance'), they'll change their mind easily. I recently was in a conversation with another Christian about the Bible's stance on a certain 'lifestyle', and when it came up that I believe the Bible clearly condemns said lifestyle, he got defensive and told me I needed to watch a Lifetime movie that changed his mind about the whole thing, in hopes that it would also change my mind. Apparently to him Hollywood understands humanity better than the God who created humanity.
But here Jesus tells us that there is such a thing as "truth", and that regardless of our leanings, biases, and influences, it exists.
And He tells us three more things about "the truth":
1. It's knowable.
2. It's realized by abiding in his word and being his disciple.
3. It's freeing.
1. First, it's knowable. This thing called "truth" can be known. To "know" something means to be so well acquainted with said thing, one can refer to it with a certain advanced level of intimacy. "I know the back of my hand" means that I see the back of my hand more than anyone else does, so I know it better than anyone else. I know it's texture, color, etc. well enough that if blindfolded and held down and asked "What's the back of your hand like?" I could easily give a sufficient answer. On the other hand, I've met a couple of famous people, but it would be unfair to say "I know them", because I've really only met them. Mat Kearney the singer (whom I've met a couple of times, for example) is only an acquaintance. I know the back of my hand.
Jesus says that those who follow him and abide in his word will know the truth. This is a major statement, especially in our world where it appears that truth, as mentioned earlier, is appearing to become a more and more abstract concept. Jesus is making an authoritative statement by saying that truth can certainly be known. Whereas some think they know it, others think the first group is wrong and that they themselves are right in their understanding of truth, and there are still others who think the first two groups are idiots because THEY know the truth and the others don't--in the midst of this, Jesus is saying THE truth is knowable.
So the obvious question is this: "How can we know what this truth...THE truth...is?"
2. It's realized by abiding in his word and being his disciple. As though it wasn't an authoritative enough statement for Jesus to say a) there IS a truth, and b) it IS knowable, this statement is even more authoritative. Jesus says you will know this truth by abiding in Him and being His disciple. What a promise! As in many other places, here Jesus is as cut-and-dry as can be. If you'd like to know the foundational truth that is back of and underneath all the universe and humanity and thought and logic, you must come to Jesus. John 1:1 calls Jesus 'the Word', which in Greek is 'logos' from which we derive english "logic". 'Logic' is defined by dictionary.com as "the science that investigates the principles governing correct or reliable inference", with another definition being "inexorable truth or persuasiveness". In essence, 'logic' can be summarized as bare understanding itself. Perhaps, the ability to think--thought itself. John tells us that this is Jesus. Since all things are created through Jesus (John 1:3, 1 Cor. 8:6, Col. 1:16, Heb. 1:2-3), He Himself is foundational not just to the material of creation, but to the thought and understanding present in creation. This is why He can say "I am the truth" (Jn. 14:6)--in essence, "without me, you're left up to yourself, your understanding, and your experience...and good luck with that!"
Jesus had also said, "Come and learn from me" (Matt. 11:29)--though He is the foundation for all things seen and unseen, he's invited all who would come, to come to him, with assurance that he's a teacher and a good teacher at that.
Learning from him who IS the truth, one learns the truth. But why would one want to?
3. It's freeing. As Bonhoeffer used to put it, "the truth" is much less an 'it' and much more a 'who'-->it's Jesus. And knowing Him--He who is the standard by which the world is judged (see Acts 17:31)--is the most freeing and liberating 'knowledge' there is. Notice there in John 8, later in the conversation after "the truth will set you free" Jesus says "If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed".
How is it freeing to know Jesus who is the truth, as he teaches us and guides us into understanding truth in our world? There are many ways, but I'll just hit one for now: It's freeing to come to Jesus for the truth, because we know that we're starting in the right place. Whereas most worry and anxiety arises out of our outward circumstances appearing bigger than the unseen God we believe in, the claim that Jesus is preeminent and sovereign can shut up our worries and anxieties because, being united with him, we have nothing to fear. Our greatest fears are still underneath the banner of his Lordship, so whereas right now we are not completely free of worry, it's nice to know that He who is our Lord is also Lord over our situations--and this is the beginning of freedom. Whereas Christians hate their own sin and despise themselves for their constantly returning to it even though they really do love Jesus and strive for repentance (see Rom. 7:11-25), in Christ-the-Truth the Christian finds the kindness of pardon and forgiveness (see 1 John 2:1), the assurance that Jesus has already begun working on this sin to bring us to victory (John 8:36, Heb. 9:13-14), and the power to overcome it (Rom. 7:24, 8:9-11)--(and truly our hate for our sin comes from our being united with Christ in the first place, as well). Perhaps the greatest of all is the freedom in knowing that even though the world (and sometimes, the Church) compromises so much that it appears there is no standard anymore whatsoever by which to work from and infer that which is right/wrong, true/false, good/evil, Jesus being the truth and THE standard lets us know that no matter what others will say or what direction the world will move in, He's the Logos that is foundational to our and their very existence. And it is He who claims us as His own.
As Paul rightly said, "The natural person can not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned" (1 Cor. 2:14). What we are claiming to believe about Jesus is completely unacceptable to those who judge without God Himself as the starting point. But if we begin with God--the Holy God of the Bible--we realize how insignificant we are and yet how great our sin is. And this humbles us by putting the greatest fear there is, IN us. But then we hear the invitation from Jesus who claims to be THE Truth, "Come and learn from me." And as we learn from him we learn that we MUST be taken into one-ness with He and His Father, and we gladly accept the gift of adoption that is in him, because we can honestly say "What other choice do I have? Who else am I going to trust in? Mankind, government, sports, MYSELF? What else do I have but Christ who has availed Himself to me?" And coming to him finally, He who is truth, He who frees, He who loves, and He who is knowable, we can learn the truth, know the truth, and finally be free.
John 8:31-32
In a world where "truth" is becoming more and more abstract as time goes by, it is freeing itself to know that there is such a thing as truth, and that it's solid. To Jesus, whereas everyone is influenced by their surroundings, upbringing, thought processes, etc., there is such a thing as truth. It's a real thing that exists, is foundational, and is the standard by which all other understandings and thought will be (and already are) judged. Most people think they know 'the truth', but when they come across someone else who thinks differently than they, their defenses show that they understand how unstable their stance actually might be. Further, many people believe a certain thing, but when presented with an appropriate opposing argument ("appropriate" meaning 'strong enough to trump their original stance'), they'll change their mind easily. I recently was in a conversation with another Christian about the Bible's stance on a certain 'lifestyle', and when it came up that I believe the Bible clearly condemns said lifestyle, he got defensive and told me I needed to watch a Lifetime movie that changed his mind about the whole thing, in hopes that it would also change my mind. Apparently to him Hollywood understands humanity better than the God who created humanity.
But here Jesus tells us that there is such a thing as "truth", and that regardless of our leanings, biases, and influences, it exists.
And He tells us three more things about "the truth":
1. It's knowable.
2. It's realized by abiding in his word and being his disciple.
3. It's freeing.
1. First, it's knowable. This thing called "truth" can be known. To "know" something means to be so well acquainted with said thing, one can refer to it with a certain advanced level of intimacy. "I know the back of my hand" means that I see the back of my hand more than anyone else does, so I know it better than anyone else. I know it's texture, color, etc. well enough that if blindfolded and held down and asked "What's the back of your hand like?" I could easily give a sufficient answer. On the other hand, I've met a couple of famous people, but it would be unfair to say "I know them", because I've really only met them. Mat Kearney the singer (whom I've met a couple of times, for example) is only an acquaintance. I know the back of my hand.
Jesus says that those who follow him and abide in his word will know the truth. This is a major statement, especially in our world where it appears that truth, as mentioned earlier, is appearing to become a more and more abstract concept. Jesus is making an authoritative statement by saying that truth can certainly be known. Whereas some think they know it, others think the first group is wrong and that they themselves are right in their understanding of truth, and there are still others who think the first two groups are idiots because THEY know the truth and the others don't--in the midst of this, Jesus is saying THE truth is knowable.
So the obvious question is this: "How can we know what this truth...THE truth...is?"
2. It's realized by abiding in his word and being his disciple. As though it wasn't an authoritative enough statement for Jesus to say a) there IS a truth, and b) it IS knowable, this statement is even more authoritative. Jesus says you will know this truth by abiding in Him and being His disciple. What a promise! As in many other places, here Jesus is as cut-and-dry as can be. If you'd like to know the foundational truth that is back of and underneath all the universe and humanity and thought and logic, you must come to Jesus. John 1:1 calls Jesus 'the Word', which in Greek is 'logos' from which we derive english "logic". 'Logic' is defined by dictionary.com as "the science that investigates the principles governing correct or reliable inference", with another definition being "inexorable truth or persuasiveness". In essence, 'logic' can be summarized as bare understanding itself. Perhaps, the ability to think--thought itself. John tells us that this is Jesus. Since all things are created through Jesus (John 1:3, 1 Cor. 8:6, Col. 1:16, Heb. 1:2-3), He Himself is foundational not just to the material of creation, but to the thought and understanding present in creation. This is why He can say "I am the truth" (Jn. 14:6)--in essence, "without me, you're left up to yourself, your understanding, and your experience...and good luck with that!"
Jesus had also said, "Come and learn from me" (Matt. 11:29)--though He is the foundation for all things seen and unseen, he's invited all who would come, to come to him, with assurance that he's a teacher and a good teacher at that.
Learning from him who IS the truth, one learns the truth. But why would one want to?
3. It's freeing. As Bonhoeffer used to put it, "the truth" is much less an 'it' and much more a 'who'-->it's Jesus. And knowing Him--He who is the standard by which the world is judged (see Acts 17:31)--is the most freeing and liberating 'knowledge' there is. Notice there in John 8, later in the conversation after "the truth will set you free" Jesus says "If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed".
How is it freeing to know Jesus who is the truth, as he teaches us and guides us into understanding truth in our world? There are many ways, but I'll just hit one for now: It's freeing to come to Jesus for the truth, because we know that we're starting in the right place. Whereas most worry and anxiety arises out of our outward circumstances appearing bigger than the unseen God we believe in, the claim that Jesus is preeminent and sovereign can shut up our worries and anxieties because, being united with him, we have nothing to fear. Our greatest fears are still underneath the banner of his Lordship, so whereas right now we are not completely free of worry, it's nice to know that He who is our Lord is also Lord over our situations--and this is the beginning of freedom. Whereas Christians hate their own sin and despise themselves for their constantly returning to it even though they really do love Jesus and strive for repentance (see Rom. 7:11-25), in Christ-the-Truth the Christian finds the kindness of pardon and forgiveness (see 1 John 2:1), the assurance that Jesus has already begun working on this sin to bring us to victory (John 8:36, Heb. 9:13-14), and the power to overcome it (Rom. 7:24, 8:9-11)--(and truly our hate for our sin comes from our being united with Christ in the first place, as well). Perhaps the greatest of all is the freedom in knowing that even though the world (and sometimes, the Church) compromises so much that it appears there is no standard anymore whatsoever by which to work from and infer that which is right/wrong, true/false, good/evil, Jesus being the truth and THE standard lets us know that no matter what others will say or what direction the world will move in, He's the Logos that is foundational to our and their very existence. And it is He who claims us as His own.
As Paul rightly said, "The natural person can not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned" (1 Cor. 2:14). What we are claiming to believe about Jesus is completely unacceptable to those who judge without God Himself as the starting point. But if we begin with God--the Holy God of the Bible--we realize how insignificant we are and yet how great our sin is. And this humbles us by putting the greatest fear there is, IN us. But then we hear the invitation from Jesus who claims to be THE Truth, "Come and learn from me." And as we learn from him we learn that we MUST be taken into one-ness with He and His Father, and we gladly accept the gift of adoption that is in him, because we can honestly say "What other choice do I have? Who else am I going to trust in? Mankind, government, sports, MYSELF? What else do I have but Christ who has availed Himself to me?" And coming to him finally, He who is truth, He who frees, He who loves, and He who is knowable, we can learn the truth, know the truth, and finally be free.
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