Adoption in Christ
The lesson says that, “Both the Old Testament and the New Testament offer hope set in real life stories.” It adds that in this way, “God seeks to reclaim his Children.” This shows that God uses our reality to try to teach us His truth. He does this so that we can relate to His teachings, so that we can understand Him. More specifically, He does this so that we can understand how He feels about and for us, and also about Sin.
What are some examples of our reality He uses? He uses the example of a lover. One good example is Jeremiah 3: 1 – 10. Let us read parts of that passage,
Jeremiah 3:1 They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the LORD.
Jeremiah 3:7 And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it.
Jeremiah 3:8 And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.
Jeremiah 3:9 And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.
Jeremiah 3:10 And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the LORD.
As said above, He also uses the example of a parent. Consider Jesus plea to the Jews in Matthew 23:37,
Matthew 23:37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!”
When you, in fact, read Deuteronomy 30:15 – 16, the language comes across as very paternal. Let us read the passage,
Deuteronomy 30:15 See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;
Deuteronomy 30:16 In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it.
He wants us to listen to Him. He has our best interest at heart. He loves us. He wants to spare us from the consequences of our bad choices. Paul talks about this Hebrews 12: 5 – 11,
Hebrews 12: 5And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:
Hebrews 12: 6For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
Hebrews 12: 7If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?
Hebrews 12: 8But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.
Hebrews 12: 9Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?
Hebrews 12: 10For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
Hebrews 12: 11Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless a fterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
So, He chastens those He loves. When we do not listen He chastens us, as a father or mother would. It is not a desire to punish, but a desire to correct and show the right way; a way that will bring us closer to Him, the Lover of our Souls.
Yes, God hates Sin to the point of He would rather die, than to live with it. But, He does not hate us. We all have sinned (Romans 3:23; 5:12). Not one of us is righteous or just. We all fall short of the glory of God. However God wants to remedy that. That is why He sent His Son. And, sending His Son is the biggest proof that He loves us. This is evident in Galatians 4:1-7,
Galatians 4:1-7
Galatians 4: 1Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;
Galatians 4: 2But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.
Galatians 4: 3Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:
Galatians 4:4But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Galatians 4:5To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
Galatians 4:6And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
Galatians 4:7Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
Because of Christ, we can be adopted. God has not disowned us. This is what the world needs to know.
Comments to the weekly Sabbath School Quarterly
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Friday, December 12, 2008
Watching Versus Waiting
Watching Versus Waiting
There is a difference between waiting and watching. Waiting is to remain or rest in expectation or to be in readiness. Watching is to look and wait expectantly or in anticipation. To wait can be done while doing something else. To watch requires full attention from the watcher. In waiting, we can miss what or whom we are waiting for; not in watching. This story illustrates the difference.
A girl once asked her grandmother to watch for her the day she came to visit. Grandmother promised she would. This petition was repeated several times, and several times the grandmother promised she would watch for her granddaughter. The day the granddaughter would arrive Grandmother thought she had time to do a few chores before her granddaughter showed up. She thought that just before they arrived she would go outside the door. Grandmother got busy and lost track of time, and her granddaughter showed up while she was still inside. She heard the bell, ran to the door, and with excitement opened it up to greet her granddaughter. But, her granddaughter was very sad. Grandmother asked why the sad semblance. Granddaughter answered, “Grandma, you did not watch for me like I asked you.” “Honey, I was preparing things for you, while I waited for you,” answered Grandma. Granddaughter replied, “Grandma I did not want you to wait for me, I wanted you to watch for me.” Granddaughter wanted Grandma to be outside expectantly looking for her.
(Bear with me as I develop the point I am trying to make.) In Christ, and through His death, resurrection and ascension, God permanently united the world to Himself. But, only those who believe this will benefit from this fact. Only those who put their faith in His sacrificial death will benefit from this truth. This is a truth that is evident in Hebrews 9:28. Let us read,
Hebrews 9:28 So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
In the Bible the many refers to the world. Christ was offered to bear the Sin the world. As it is says in 1 John 2: 2
1 John 2:2 And He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world
When He died He paid for the World’s penalty of Sin, in other words He paid the wages of Sin that that mankind owed (Roman 6:23). With His resurrection and ascension His death guarantees that death is not our final destination in this life. But, it does not guarantee that eternal life is our final destination. This is guaranteed only to those, who as said above, put their faith in His sacrificial death that will benefit from this truth. This is also evident in Hebrews 9:28.
There are two clauses on this verse, separated by a punctuation mark (A semi-colon in the KJV). The punctuation mark makes a distinction between the two groups: the many and the few who look up. The first statement talks about what Christ did for the many on the cross. The second clause stated that although all men are saved from the penalty of Sin only to “them that look for Him shall He appear.” These are those who are looking up. It is those who believe He will return a “second time without sin unto salvation.” These are those who put their faith in His sacrificial death. These are the ones watching for Jesus. Are we waiting for Jesus or are we watching for Him?
There is a difference between waiting and watching. Waiting is to remain or rest in expectation or to be in readiness. Watching is to look and wait expectantly or in anticipation. To wait can be done while doing something else. To watch requires full attention from the watcher. In waiting, we can miss what or whom we are waiting for; not in watching. This story illustrates the difference.
A girl once asked her grandmother to watch for her the day she came to visit. Grandmother promised she would. This petition was repeated several times, and several times the grandmother promised she would watch for her granddaughter. The day the granddaughter would arrive Grandmother thought she had time to do a few chores before her granddaughter showed up. She thought that just before they arrived she would go outside the door. Grandmother got busy and lost track of time, and her granddaughter showed up while she was still inside. She heard the bell, ran to the door, and with excitement opened it up to greet her granddaughter. But, her granddaughter was very sad. Grandmother asked why the sad semblance. Granddaughter answered, “Grandma, you did not watch for me like I asked you.” “Honey, I was preparing things for you, while I waited for you,” answered Grandma. Granddaughter replied, “Grandma I did not want you to wait for me, I wanted you to watch for me.” Granddaughter wanted Grandma to be outside expectantly looking for her.
(Bear with me as I develop the point I am trying to make.) In Christ, and through His death, resurrection and ascension, God permanently united the world to Himself. But, only those who believe this will benefit from this fact. Only those who put their faith in His sacrificial death will benefit from this truth. This is a truth that is evident in Hebrews 9:28. Let us read,
Hebrews 9:28 So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
In the Bible the many refers to the world. Christ was offered to bear the Sin the world. As it is says in 1 John 2: 2
1 John 2:2 And He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world
When He died He paid for the World’s penalty of Sin, in other words He paid the wages of Sin that that mankind owed (Roman 6:23). With His resurrection and ascension His death guarantees that death is not our final destination in this life. But, it does not guarantee that eternal life is our final destination. This is guaranteed only to those, who as said above, put their faith in His sacrificial death that will benefit from this truth. This is also evident in Hebrews 9:28.
There are two clauses on this verse, separated by a punctuation mark (A semi-colon in the KJV). The punctuation mark makes a distinction between the two groups: the many and the few who look up. The first statement talks about what Christ did for the many on the cross. The second clause stated that although all men are saved from the penalty of Sin only to “them that look for Him shall He appear.” These are those who are looking up. It is those who believe He will return a “second time without sin unto salvation.” These are those who put their faith in His sacrificial death. These are the ones watching for Jesus. Are we waiting for Jesus or are we watching for Him?
Friday, December 05, 2008
Christ’s Sorrow
Christ’s Sorrow
The lesson asks the question, “Have you ever been so overcome with sorrow that you felt you would not survive?” I would have to answer that I know of I have never been so overcome with sorrow that I felt I would not survive. I am pretty sure that in the midst of it I may have felt that way. But, after that I cannot recall it. How about you?
Two things come out of this. One, it is as pregnant women delivering. In the moment it is painful. After labor they forget. Let us read John 16:21
John 16:21 A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.
Two, in reality, objectively, no sorrow we go through will ever be so much we cannot survive. God will not let us go through what we cannot handle. This is what Paul states in 1 Corinthians 10:13
1 Corinthians 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
So we could safely say that Christ was allowed to go as far as He did, because He could bear it. Not, necessarily because He was God, but because He surrendered Himself completely to the will of His Father. This is not to say that if we surrender ourselves completely to the will of the Father we could do what He did, in terms of being sin-bearers.
Sister White says it best,
“Man has not been made a sin-bearer, and he will never know the horror of the curse of sin which the Saviour bore. No sorrow can bear any comparison with the sorrow of Him upon whom the wrath of God fell with overwhelming force. Human nature can endure but a limited amount of test and trial. The finite can only endure the finite measure, and human nature succumbs; but the nature of Christ had a greater capacity for suffering; for the human existed in the divine nature, and created a capacity for suffering to endure that which resulted from the sins of a lost world. The agony which Christ endured, broadens, deepens, and gives a more extended conception of the character of sin, and the character of the retribution which God will bring upon those who continue in sin. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ to the repenting, believing sinner.”—Ellen G. White Comments, The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, p. 1103.
Many claim that others suffer more than Christ, because He did not suffer as long as others. There is a problem with this thinking. They typically are talking about Christ’s physical suffering. Christ physical suffering was bad, but has noting to do with our salvation. Christ torment started in Gethsemane - at least it was evident by then - before the physical torture to which the devil put Him through. To say that this physical torture has anything to do with our salvation is to say that the devil had a role in our salvation, which we know is not true. When the Father “spared not His own Son” (Romans 8:32) and made Him a curse for us, He poured His cup of wrath without mercy on Christ (Galatians 3:13; Revelation 14:10). This meant a complete separation between Christ and the Father. Goodbye to life forever. This is what caused the sorrow of Christ, and what eventually killed Him.
While physically we could suffer longer than Christ, even to the point where we think or feel that we cannot survive, it will never be more that what Christ ever suffered. And, this is good news. While this does not mean that we will never suffer or bear any sorrow. To think this goes against scripture. Matthew 5:10 and John 15:20 is two examples,
Matthew 5:10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
John 15:20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
It does mean that Christ enables us to bear any sorrow because He bore His and ours on the Cross. Are we not grateful to Him?
The lesson asks the question, “Have you ever been so overcome with sorrow that you felt you would not survive?” I would have to answer that I know of I have never been so overcome with sorrow that I felt I would not survive. I am pretty sure that in the midst of it I may have felt that way. But, after that I cannot recall it. How about you?
Two things come out of this. One, it is as pregnant women delivering. In the moment it is painful. After labor they forget. Let us read John 16:21
John 16:21 A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.
Two, in reality, objectively, no sorrow we go through will ever be so much we cannot survive. God will not let us go through what we cannot handle. This is what Paul states in 1 Corinthians 10:13
1 Corinthians 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
So we could safely say that Christ was allowed to go as far as He did, because He could bear it. Not, necessarily because He was God, but because He surrendered Himself completely to the will of His Father. This is not to say that if we surrender ourselves completely to the will of the Father we could do what He did, in terms of being sin-bearers.
Sister White says it best,
“Man has not been made a sin-bearer, and he will never know the horror of the curse of sin which the Saviour bore. No sorrow can bear any comparison with the sorrow of Him upon whom the wrath of God fell with overwhelming force. Human nature can endure but a limited amount of test and trial. The finite can only endure the finite measure, and human nature succumbs; but the nature of Christ had a greater capacity for suffering; for the human existed in the divine nature, and created a capacity for suffering to endure that which resulted from the sins of a lost world. The agony which Christ endured, broadens, deepens, and gives a more extended conception of the character of sin, and the character of the retribution which God will bring upon those who continue in sin. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ to the repenting, believing sinner.”—Ellen G. White Comments, The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, p. 1103.
Many claim that others suffer more than Christ, because He did not suffer as long as others. There is a problem with this thinking. They typically are talking about Christ’s physical suffering. Christ physical suffering was bad, but has noting to do with our salvation. Christ torment started in Gethsemane - at least it was evident by then - before the physical torture to which the devil put Him through. To say that this physical torture has anything to do with our salvation is to say that the devil had a role in our salvation, which we know is not true. When the Father “spared not His own Son” (Romans 8:32) and made Him a curse for us, He poured His cup of wrath without mercy on Christ (Galatians 3:13; Revelation 14:10). This meant a complete separation between Christ and the Father. Goodbye to life forever. This is what caused the sorrow of Christ, and what eventually killed Him.
While physically we could suffer longer than Christ, even to the point where we think or feel that we cannot survive, it will never be more that what Christ ever suffered. And, this is good news. While this does not mean that we will never suffer or bear any sorrow. To think this goes against scripture. Matthew 5:10 and John 15:20 is two examples,
Matthew 5:10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
John 15:20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
It does mean that Christ enables us to bear any sorrow because He bore His and ours on the Cross. Are we not grateful to Him?
Friday, November 28, 2008
Emotional Overdraft
Emotional Overdraft
Steven Covey, author of the Book “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”, used the analogy of a bank account to explain why some people feel emotionally depleted and react in very negative ways. Bank accounts have a certain amount of money. When you put money in that is called a deposit. When you take money out that is called a withdrawal. You withdraw too much money and you end up with very little money or none at all. In fact, sometimes you withdraw so much you take more than what you have. When this happens you have over drafted your bank account. Banks typically charge fees when this happen, so you end up owing more than what you took.
Covey says our emotions work similarly. Covey says that when you do something good to someone it is akin to a deposit, but when you do something wrong is akin to a withdrawal. If you do enough wrong things you can end with an emotional over-draft.
Rejecting a gift can be considered the wrong thing to do. This is a withdrawal to the giver’s emotional bank account. Depending on the gift and what it means to the giver, you could end up with an emotional overdraft. As banks, you may end up with higher “fees”, so you have to deposit a lot of the right things, to cover what you did wrong and the fees attached to it.
When we reject God’s gift, we not only make a withdrawal, we also create an overdraft situation that can never be repaid. What is God’s gift to us? In Ephesians 2:8 it refers to our salvation,
Ephesians 2: 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
In Romans 6:23 it refers to the eternal life we receive in and through Christ,
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
In Romans 5:15 – 18 it refers to Christ and all that we are given in and through Him: grace, justification, righteousness, and eternal life,
Romans 5:15But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.
Romans 5:16And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.
Romans 5: 17For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)
Romans 5:18Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
In John 4:10 Jesus tells the woman at the Well in Samaria that it is Living water,
John 4: 10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
What is living water? The answer to that is in John 7: 38 -39
John 7: 38He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
John 7: 39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
The apostle Peter is very direct in calling the Holy Spirit a gift,
Acts 10:45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with
Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Reject any of these and you reject them all. It is a packaged deal. You cannot choose one of them. Rejecting them grieves God. He gave them to you because He loves you. Rejecting the gift of God is so great an emotional withdrawal to Him it creates an overdraft situation in His emotional bank account. You are precious to Him and so is His gift to you. Will you appreciate His gift? Will you accept it? Will you take it?
Steven Covey, author of the Book “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”, used the analogy of a bank account to explain why some people feel emotionally depleted and react in very negative ways. Bank accounts have a certain amount of money. When you put money in that is called a deposit. When you take money out that is called a withdrawal. You withdraw too much money and you end up with very little money or none at all. In fact, sometimes you withdraw so much you take more than what you have. When this happens you have over drafted your bank account. Banks typically charge fees when this happen, so you end up owing more than what you took.
Covey says our emotions work similarly. Covey says that when you do something good to someone it is akin to a deposit, but when you do something wrong is akin to a withdrawal. If you do enough wrong things you can end with an emotional over-draft.
Rejecting a gift can be considered the wrong thing to do. This is a withdrawal to the giver’s emotional bank account. Depending on the gift and what it means to the giver, you could end up with an emotional overdraft. As banks, you may end up with higher “fees”, so you have to deposit a lot of the right things, to cover what you did wrong and the fees attached to it.
When we reject God’s gift, we not only make a withdrawal, we also create an overdraft situation that can never be repaid. What is God’s gift to us? In Ephesians 2:8 it refers to our salvation,
Ephesians 2: 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
In Romans 6:23 it refers to the eternal life we receive in and through Christ,
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
In Romans 5:15 – 18 it refers to Christ and all that we are given in and through Him: grace, justification, righteousness, and eternal life,
Romans 5:15But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.
Romans 5:16And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.
Romans 5: 17For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)
Romans 5:18Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
In John 4:10 Jesus tells the woman at the Well in Samaria that it is Living water,
John 4: 10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
What is living water? The answer to that is in John 7: 38 -39
John 7: 38He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
John 7: 39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
The apostle Peter is very direct in calling the Holy Spirit a gift,
Acts 10:45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with
Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Reject any of these and you reject them all. It is a packaged deal. You cannot choose one of them. Rejecting them grieves God. He gave them to you because He loves you. Rejecting the gift of God is so great an emotional withdrawal to Him it creates an overdraft situation in His emotional bank account. You are precious to Him and so is His gift to you. Will you appreciate His gift? Will you accept it? Will you take it?
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