God So Loved…

There is a good reason why God chose to call the experience of getting saved the “new birth” or getting “born again”.  These phrases carry with them the connotation of a fresh start or a new beginning.  When we get born again, it is as if we were allowed to start life over again.  Not physically, for that is impossible, but spiritually we are “born again”. 

In the third chapter of the Gospel of John, a Pharisee named Nicodemus came to Jesus in the night to privately ask him some questions without the other Pharisees around to judge or condemn him.  The first thing he does is acknowledge that Jesus is a teacher from God and that God was with him.  Jesus answered and said to Nicodemus in verse 3:

“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

This was obviously not what Nicodemus expected to hear, for it was concept totally foreign to his thinking.  He responded as anyone would upon hearing about being “born again”. 

“Nicodemus said unto him, how can a man be born when he is old?  Can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?”

You can tell he was truly puzzled by the idea of getting “born again”.  Looking at it from the senses point of view, it is not possible for an old man to climb back into his mother’s womb and proceed to get “born again”.  I am sure Nicodemus was wondering why he was even there.  What kind of silly theology was Jesus promoting?  Who ever heard of getting “born again?”

Jesus proceeded elaborate on this subject in verses 5-8:

“Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again.

The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth:  so is every one that is born of the Spirit.”

Verse 8 is very cumbersome in the King James Version.  Reading from the Beck Translation it says:

“The wind blows where it pleases and you hear the sound of it, but you don’t know where it’s coming from or where it’s going.  So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

All Nicodemus could say in response to this was; “How can these things be?”  Please keep in mind that Nicodemus according to verse one was a “ruler of the Jews”.  He was a teacher in Israel and sat on the Jewish court.  He should have been able to figure out what Jesus was speaking about.

After reproving Nicodemus in verses 10-13, Jesus lays out the simple truth of who he is, why he is there and how to get saved.  Please allow me to read verses 14-21 from the Williams Translation which is an older translation in the language of the people:

“And just as Moses in the desert lifted the serpent on the pole, the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who trusts in Him may have eternal life.

“For God loved the world so much that He gave His Only Son, so that anyone who trusts in him may never perish but have eternal life.

For God sent His Son into the world, not to pass sentence on it, but that the world through Him might be saved.

Whoever trusts in Him is never to come up for judgment; but whoever does not trust in Him has already received his sentence, because he has not trusted in the name of God’s only Son.

And the ground for the sentence is this, that the light has come into the world, and yet, because their actions were evil, men have loved darkness more than the light.

For anyone who is in the habit of doing wrong hates the light, and to keep his actions from being reproved, he does not come out into the daylight.

But whoever is in the habit of living the truth will come out in the daylight that his actions may be shown to be performed with God’s help.”

The record abruptly ends at this time.  There is no hint as to the response of Nicodemus to hearing this incredible dissertation.  If he was as smart as it appears, I am sure he took what Jesus said to heart and in due time got “born again”.

Whoever trusts in Jesus to be their Savior sent by God can receive that which Jesus came to make available; eternal life.  If a person loves habitually doing wrong, he will hate the light.  He will hide in the darkness and never see the light of glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ for fear of having his habits reproved.

Whoever loves habitually living the truth will gladly come out in the daylight so everyone can see that what he is doing is done with God’s help and through His power.  Evil people doing evil things hide what they are doing under the cloak of darkness.  Righteous people doing righteous things gladly do what they do in the light of day so God can be glorified.

God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son.  He allowed His beloved Son to be nailed on the cross to give up his life for our sins.  God loved the world so much that He rejected the natural Fatherly instinct to “save His son from death”.  God loved the world so much that He, with great sorrow, did not grant His Son the request of “If there be any other way to do this”.  God loved the world so much that He watched with agony as His only Son was beaten, abused, tortured, mocked, scorned, spit upon, degraded, debased and subjected to every sadistic urge known to man.  God loved the world so much that He stood by in heaven and allowed His only Son to die. 

Jesus loved us so much that he willingly went through all he had to suffer in order to redeem us.  Jesus loved us so much that he subjected himself to unfathomable abuse, torture and degradation so that God could legally justify us and declare us righteous when we get born again.  Jesus loved us so much that he allowed himself to be treated worse than any criminal who ever lived in order to set us free.  Jesus loved us so much that he laid down his life so that we might live.

Please, my friends, let us never lose sight of the incredible love shown to us by God when He gave us His Son.  Let us never forget for an instant the love of our Savior Jesus Christ as shown by his willingness to “lay it all on the line” for us.  Love so amazing and so Devine demands our life, our heart and our all.  Love so amazing and so Devine was demonstrated so we could get “born again” and receive eternal life.  Praise God and thank you Jesus for loving us enough to allow us into your Kingdom.  Amen.

    

Receiving Your Answer of Peace

Some people make all their decisions in life based on the impact they will have on their “image”.  Others make all decisions based on the impact they will have on their status or sphere of influence.  Still others use financial concerns as the basis for all decisions.  Rare indeed it is to find someone who bases all the decisions in their life on the standard of the Word of God. 

In order to ever make a decision, you must have a standard by which to judge the pros and cons by.  Arbitrary decisions are nothing more than “whims”.  Although minor meaningless choices may be fine to make on a “whim”, anything which will impact your life must be carefully weighed and considered in light of some standard. 

Moving is a huge decision which never can be taken lightly.  Physically moving from one place to another involves so much time and expense, any decision to do so HAS to be right.  Making the wrong decision can have catastrophic consequences for years to come.  Changing jobs is another MAJOR decision which must be carefully considered and weighed against the standard of short vs. long term gain.  Making a big purchase is a huge decision which cannot be done on impulse without tragic results.  A car salesman’s dream customer is one who wanders into the showroom, sees a fancy vehicle and buys on impulse. 

Deciding to have children is the biggest decision a couple ever makes.  Deciding what to do with an elderly parent is a “gut wrenching” decision most children have to make later in life.  Decisions regarding where to attend church and even which faith or denomination to become involved with cannot be made on the spur of the moment based on emotional impulses.

One of the most dangerous things in life is impulse decision making.  Emotions cannot be trusted when it comes to decisions.  The world’s history is littered with examples of ruined people who made horrible decisions based on emotional “whims” or impulses.  To avoid being yet another piece of trash due to making wrong choices, we must learn how to make Godly decisions based on the trustworthy standard of His faithful Word.

We make hundreds if not thousands of decisions every day which ARE made on impulse or split second choice.  These minor choices are an entirely different subject for another day.  The kinds of decisions I am talking about here are the major “life altering” ones where we cannot afford to be wrong.  Believe it or not, we make many more of these kinds of decisions than we realize, and thus it is very important that we learn how to “choose wisely”.

To make sound decisions that are in alignment with God’s Word, we must of course first know a little bit of God’s Word.  But then we need wisdom to know how to apply His Word to the situations that come up in life.  There are no short cuts for experience, even when it comes to understanding God’s Word.  Youth by nature are impetuous and extremely impatient.  It is very difficult for someone under age 30 to grasp why an “elder” should be consulted for advice and why parents should be listened to instead of “blown off”.

A teenage THINKS he knows it all.  A twenty-something person KNOWS he knows it all.  But a person in their thirties begins to realize they don’t know everything and by the time they reach “middle age” they freely admit they don’t know much of anything.  Age tempers and age mellows.  Age and experience allow for maturity and maturity provides for wisdom and understanding.

We were taken out to a very nice restaurant last evening by a dear friend to belatedly celebrate my wife’s birthday.  She was treated to a “center cut filet mignon” steak.  The meat literally melted in her mouth.  Part of the reason was that it was “aged” meat.  Many things do indeed get better with age.  It is interesting to note that people in their 50s and 60s and 70s make far fewer bad decisions than those in the 20s.  Maturity does have its benefits.  That is why in the Bible, elders are to be looked up to and treated with the utmost of respect.  Pretty much just the opposite of what our silly world teaches.

Among the enemies to making sound decisions, the two biggest ones are stubborn pride and fear.  Arrogant people make snap decisions and believe they are always right.  Their basis for making a choice is their own superiority and greatness.  Self confident people are excellent leaders but often make horrible decisions because of their inability to seek advice or heed counsel.  Yes, decisiveness is a quality of leadership, but it is a two-edged sword.  The ability to make a decision and act provides impetus to action but many times the action is flawed due to the original decision being wrong.

The Bible speaks of there being safety in a multitude of counselors.  Major decisions in a business, church or family should be made in a group setting with all members of the “board” present.  All sides of the matter should be presented and pros and cons discussed among the people present.  If the “board” is not a democracy (majority rules), then at least the chairman had all sides of the argument presented before making a decision.  One person operations run by the decisions of one person only are doomed to fail almost every time.

The worst enemy in making a decision is fear.  Fear prohibits making a decision to begin with.  Of course THE fear is the one of being wrong.  No one WANTS to make a bad decision, but we all occasionally do.  We cannot let a bad choice trap us forever in indecision.  A person who cannot “make up his mind” is not only aggravating but highly dangerous.  In matters of great consequence, the last thing you want is someone who is afraid to make a decision.

If you had surgery tomorrow, would you want a doctor who couldn’t make up his mind which instrument to use to make the incision?  If your car broke down would you want a mechanic to hem and haw and tell you he can’t decide whether to fix the flat tire or put in new motor?  I dearly love the old movie “Fiddler on the Roof”; but Tevye and his constant “on one hand, but on the other hand” indecisiveness is enough to drive a person crazy. 

Fear of failure prohibits a person from making a decision.  Every time the person thinks they have made up their mind, the doubts creep in and the semi truckload of “what ifs” are dumped on the mind.  Oh my, the greatest killers to making a decision are the old “what ifs”.  What if the truck next to me on the road tips over?  What if the jet flying 30,000 feet above me falls to the earth on my house?  What if the person next to me on the elevator has bird flu?  What if my kid blows up the school today? What if the pain in my little toe means a heart attack?  What if the sun doesn’t come up tomorrow?

“What ifs” choke the decision making process and make it impossible to ever make up our mind.  “What if” the chicken is not good, so I better not order it.  “What if” the beef is not aged, so I better not get it.  “What if, the fish has mercury in it, I better not choose it.  “What if” the pork has a bad disease, I better not get it.  If this is the sequence of events at a restaurant or grocery store, the end result is starvation.  Sooner or later the “What ifs” have to be silenced or the fear they drag into the equation will make it impossible to correctly make a decision.

To make a Godly decision, one must first and foremost pray.  Any major decision must be discussed fully with Almighty God and our Lord Jesus Christ.  We must have the humility and meekness to bring the situation before them or we are wrong to begin with.  The bigger the decision, the more prayer is involved.  Major life-altering decisions need a season in the wilderness, far removed from distraction, where hours, if not days are spent consulting the Lord on the matter.

Reading, studying, meditating upon and thinking about what the Bible has to say on the matter is critical.  The Bible does give cut and dry instruction on some issues.  But, in the majority of things, there are only guidelines in the Bible; specifics must be sought out through prayer and consulting elders.  Never underestimate the importance of seeking advice from elders when making a big decision.  In some matters, of course the pastor is to be consulted, but in many other matters a wise and experienced elder can provide wisdom even the pastor cannot offer.

Simple things such as listing the “pros and cons” or “good and bad” on a sheet of paper are nice for some matters, but never to be used in major decisions.  Just because one column is longer than another does not automatically mean it is right.

The ultimate way to finally make a decision is to await the answer of peace promised by God.  When Elijah was in the cave and needed an answer from the Lord, there were earthquakes and lightnings and thunders but the Lord was in none of them.  Too many times we wait for the “writing on the wall” or for some horseman to arrive and blow the trumpet announcing the proper choice to make.  It doesn’t work that way in real life usually.  People who wait for the dramatic answer usually wait a lifetime to find it.

Wait for the answer of peace.  Wait for Almighty God to deposit an answer that is undeniable and 100%  as peaceful as He is.  “Be anxious for nothing…And the peace of God which passes all understanding shall guard your heart…” Philippians 4 tells us.  God is Faithful and His Word is Faithful.  God will never let us down if we trust in Him with all our hearts, and lean not to our own understanding.  If we will acknowledge Him in all our ways, He will direct our paths.

Following the answer of peace is the Godly version of “listening to your gut” or “follow your heart”.  If your “gut” instincts are based on God’s answer of peace, then follow them.  If they are based on experience or emotions they are no more to be trusted than Oprah or Dr. Phil.  God will deposit His answer of peace in our hearts, so if we have peace in our hearts, then we DO “follow our heart”.  But, if the heart is being emotional, then its advice is not trustworthy.

Take the matter to the Lord.  Lay it out before Him.  Work out all your worries, fears and misgivings with Him.  Allow Him to lead you to His Word or to an elder where you can receive your answer of Peace.  The answer of PEACE confirms that the answer came from God of PEACE.  Once you receive your answer, never look back.   Refuse to allow the “what ifs” to slip in to your mind.  Squash doubts and refute fears.  Resolve to do what your answer of peace told you was right.  Then you can walk with the assurance of knowing you are doing the best you can do, and that is all God ever asks of us.