Staying Together

Aren’t We All In This Together?

Aren’t we all in this together?  Why is it that so many people quit and move on to other things?  The multiplicities of choices that confront us on a daily basis mislead us to believe that we can have choice in all things.  This impulse creates in us the thought that if things do not go my way that I will “Take my ball and go home.”  The result of this is frequent life turnover: husbands and wives divorce; employers fire employees; employees quit to seek other employment; voters change their candidate; teachers change schools; students change teachers; patrons find new, more attractive, businesses; businesses search out and find new patrons; preachers leave pulpits; elderships fire preachers.  Some even go to the extreme of changing citizenship.  Children seem to be the only group who aren’t entitled to leave willy-nilly.  Nevertheless, some have championed even the divorce of children from parents.  Many also apply this mentality to church membership.  Is all of this choice truly what is best for us?  Are we all in this thing together?

Our sense of belonging has suffered because of this.  Part of our identity as human persons is that we are social creatures.  God knows this, and this is why He gave us the church (Matthew 16:18-19, Ephesians 1:22-23).  Not being able to identify who we are socially creates an identity crisis.  When we are constantly divorcing our community (whatever that may be), we get no permanent sense of belonging.  We become a paradox, an isolated individual in the midst of society – alienated.  Such an individual will quickly find himself lost in a sea of despair, hopelessness, ennui, and cognitive dissonance.  Alone we are hapless and helpless, but together we can do great things – are we truly in this together? 

Let me ask that question again: Are we truly in this together?  I think that most of us believe that we are not.  We really do not have a true sense of community, and in that respect we do not know who we really are because we cannot know who we really are without belonging to a community, but committing to a community can be risky and unpredictable.  What if things don’t work out?  What if we get hurt?  What if we don’t agree with everything the community does?  However, we can’t answer these questions unless we commit to the community!  We find ourselves in a catch-22: many, if not most of us, are not willing to commit to a community until we discover who we are and what the community is about, but we can’t discover who we and what the community is about until we actually commit to a community.  As a result, we suffer from a lack of ability to identify with a specific set of social norms or customs; this condition is known as anomy, and when gone unchecked can have disastrous consequences, but this is basically what we become when choice is our highest ideal.  In other words, we have defined the human condition predominantly upon the basis of individual choice.  What are we?  We are choosers.

I say “choosers,” and not “free,” because simply choosing is not the same thing as having freedom.  The notion that making a choice is equal to freedom is one of the big lies of modern society.  Choosing is certainly a consequence of freedom, and you cannot truly choose something unless you have the freedom to do it.  But freedom is more than simply choosing, because freedom can sometimes mean not choosing at all.  Freedom is more than being not inhibited; it is also being enabled.  When we are locked into a situation where we must choose, we have lost our freedom because we are no longer enabled, but our culture demands that we do precisely this on a regular basis.  Choose milk; choose bread; choose toothpaste; choose who to vote for; choose what church to go to; choose who to marry—sometimes it seems that the only thing that is not allowed is not to choose.  In fact, some have been so bombarded by the opportunities to choose that they develop the inability to choose.  This is known as abulia, or dependent personality disorder.  In other words, the combination of the vast multiplicity of choices that present themselves, and a culture that demands that we make a choice, have, paradoxically, taken away our freedom to choose.  In turn, the we-are-choosers identity has prevented us from establishing ourselves in a community and understanding who we truly are, because when things get difficult, the chooser can choose a new group.  Can we truly all be in something together and maintain this entitled sense of choice?

Choosing a new group simply upon the basis that we are unhappy is precisely the wrong thing to do, because in so doing, we simply reinforce the scatter-brained approach to social interaction.  As a result, we become more fragmented in our personalities.  Instead of integrating with others, we disintegrate under the plurality of our choices.  There is something to be said for sticking with something until it is done regardless the difficulties that may come our way.  I think this is at least one reason why God does not allow divorce except for fornication (Matthew 19:6, 9).  It is because our relationship with our spouse is so vital to our own personality that the willy-nilly ending of that relationship fragments us in an unhealthy way and causes additional damage to our ability to integrate.  We lose who we are when we exercise our choice to separate.  Are we all in this together?  Next week’s article will focus on what we can do to improve the situation.

What can we do to increase and contribute to the sense that we are “all in this together?”  First, we have to be willing to stick with things even in tough times.  Learning and growing based upon enduring through problems while maintaining relationships is God’s way of teaching us to be more like Him (1 Peter 4:1-2).  Think about it.  God hasn’t caused any problems; those have all come from created beings of one kind or another.  Yet God has demonstrated a willingness to stay with His creation despite the problems that it has created for Him.  He has not given up on us; we give up on Him, but when we do give up on Him, He will let us go our way—choice to our own detriment.  There is something precious about commitment, and we value it when we see it in others, but we find it difficult to accept when we are the ones involved in it.  True love involves a level of commitment that is beyond the latest fad that delights the senses.  Our commitment to one another displays another one of those God-like attributes.  God committed His Son Jesus to our salvation (John 3:16).  Developing the “we are all in this together” mentality means that we’ve got to have tough, strong, and disciplined commitment.

Second, we need to understand that other people are going through the same things that we are going through.  When we can find someone who has endured or is enduring the same problems that we are enduring, we will find a friend and companion who understands.  It is hard to separate birds of a feather.  It is when we think that we are the “only ones” who are enduring difficulties that we develop the “choice” mentality and move to another venue of one kind or another.  The only problem is that when we do that we just encounter more problems.  Seek out and find someone who has endured the same things that you have; get to know him/her, and share your difficulties and frustrations with them; then see how you will grow in your identity and in relationship to the people who surround you.  We assemble with one another to encourage one another (Hebrews 10:25).  Developing the “We are all in this together” mentality means that we’ve got to understand others go through the same things we go through.

Third, “Love the one you are with.”  Many times we think that the proverbial grass is always greener on the other side, but maybe our grass would be greener if we would fertilize and water it a little.  Putting effort into those we love will pay off in the long run, but we must be willing to invest time, talent, and treasure.  Making an effort to love the ones we are with requires that we think carefully about our relationships and that we value them for what they are.  It means we must do some amount of work to make those relationships successful, and it means that we must endure through difficulties that come our way and not give up on the people that we love.  No one has a perfect/ideal life.  Not everyone is going to have an above average life—most are not.  Most lives are mediocre, average, humdrum, and not exciting.  Some lives are constantly plagued with problems of one nature or another.  Can we love even these individuals?  We must (1 Corinthians 13:4-7).  Developing the “We are all in this together” mentality means that we’ve got to love the ones we are with.

Fourth, we must value the abilities of others and lean upon them in time of need.  Not all of us have the same skill sets.  Different individuals have different levels of education and learning, and some can do things that others cannot.  When we need help, it is good to know who has the skills to help us.  This means that we’ve got to talk to and learn about each other and what our various skills are.  When we know this, we see our brothers and sisters in Christ differently.  We see them as people we can depend upon, not just people who come and go.  Shepherds need to make an effort at identifying the talents of individual members of the congregation, and finding a place for them to work with the skills that they have (1 Corinthians 12:12-26).  Knowing who is doing what is also valuable for understanding our dependence upon one another.  Developing the “We are all in this together” mentality means that we’ve got to value the abilities of others and lean upon them in time of need.  We can’t go it alone.

When we give up, we are implicitly saying, “We are not all in this together.”  What can we expect from one another as we seek to do the Lord’s work in His kingdom?  Can we expect commitment to one another despite setbacks?  Or can we expect folks to go their own way when they don’t get their own way?  This is about our relationships with one another in the Lord’s church and in the Lord’s work.  Do we value those relationships?  Do we want them to continue?  Do we desire to have God’s will done on earth through the church’s efforts?  Then we must realize that we are all in this together!

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Sin Lies!

The Deceitfulness of Sin

So, what sins tempt you? Alcohol? The tongue? Pornography? The love of money? Gambling? What makes these things so enticing?

Is it the throwing up and hangovers that come from a bottle? The divided homes that come from angry words, severed friendships because of violated confidences due to gossip, or the loss of respect because of foul language? The metal health and family issues that destroy lives and families because of the scourge of pornography? Is it the loss of family because of a father that is never around since he is more attentive to his career than to his wife and family? Is it the neglect of family and wastefulness of precious resources associated with gambling that makes it so enticing?

No! No one gives into sin because of the ugly reality associated with the wiles of the devil. He makes sin look attractive. He promises a good time, love, pleasure, friendship, power, wealth, prestige, and all this life has to offer. The problem?

He is a liar! In John 8:44 Jesus says to the Israelites of His day, “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.”

A lie is defined as “an intentionally false statement: …used with reference to a situation involving deception or founded on a mistaken impression. You see a lie does not have to be a “whopper,” or something that bears absolutely no truth at all. People tell “half truths” and “little white lies” all the time. We just mislead, misdirect, or “forget” some integral aspect to a story or statement. And we fall for it all the time. But a lie is a lie is a LIE!

So here is the truth about sin. Satan makes it look good, feel good, taste good and makes false promises and misleading statements about the outcome of sin. Consider his deception in the Garden of Eden. God had indicated that in the day that they would eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil they would surely die (Genesis 2:17). Satan told Eve that was not the case (Genesis 3:4). Then he lied about God’s purpose behind the command (v 5). Then notice the impression of the sin Satan was tempting her with… the tree was good for food,… it was pleasant to the eyes,… it was desirable to make one wise (v 6).

How sad indeed that Satan was able to deceive Eve with half-truths and bring about their death, shame, and the ever-increasing evil and influence of Satan in this world. Why didn’t Satan tell her what would really happen if she ate the fruit? Because had he told her the truth, she never would have done so.

Satan tempted Jesus the same way in the desert (Matthew 4). And why? Because sin is pleasurable on the front end. As someone once said, if sin felt like hitting yourself in the head with a hammer, no one would do it! Sin offers an adrenaline rush, instantaneous pleasure and satisfaction, the promise of a better temporal life. Sin feels good!

How sad that so many are caught up by the deceitfulness of sin. “Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful (Matthew 13:22). “…Put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts” (Ephesians 4:22). “…Exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin” (Hebrews 3:13).

Dear friends, open your eyes to the realities of sin. It separates us from God (Isaiah 59:1–2). Sin deceives and kills (Romans 7:11). Sin brings death (James 1:15). Because we have all given in to the deceitfulness of sin and continue to fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), God, in His great love, sent His Son to die for our sins (John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 15:3). Because of what He did for us on the cross, we must do something in order to be freed from the shackles of sin: repent (Acts 17:30), confess His name (Matthew 10:32–33), be baptized for the remission of your sins (Acts 2:38; 1 Peter 3:21), and be faithful (Revelation 2:10)!

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Being Baptized

What Does It Mean To Be Baptized?  

In the first century when the new covenant replaced the old covenant as the authority under which people live, circumcision was replaced with baptism as evidence of being in a covenant relationship with God.  Under the old testament, faithful followers of God, whether they were Hebrews or Gentiles were required to be circumcised.  Old Testament circumcision was an outward physical mark in the flesh, while baptism replaced it as the “circumcision of the heart“, (Romans 2:29), or the “circumcision made without hands” (Colossians 2:11).  Both are the point at which an individual comes into compliance with the will of God.  Being baptized under the new covenant signifies one has entered into that relationship with God and as such has become one of His children.

Being baptized means we are in Jesus Christ

The scriptures teach us that Christ is the mediator of the new covenant therefore baptism is closely associated with Him.  Baptism is the means by which a convert enters into Christ as recorded in Galatians 3:27 and Romans 6:3.  Baptism is a similarity between the death of Christ on the cross and the conversion of a sinner.  Paul illustrated this similarity in his letter to the Romans.

Romans 6:3-4 “Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death…”  Being baptized means that one has been buried with Christ through the immersion of baptism.  Christ died and was buried in the tomb and in a similar fashion a new convert dies and is buried in water.

Romans 6:4 “…that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father”  Jesus Christ was raised from the dead and in a like fashion, the convert is raised from the watery grave of baptism.

“even so we also should walk in newness of life.”  After Christ was risen from the dead, He had been given new life after His death.  In a similar fashion, a baptized convert is raised from the grave and given a new life.  Jesus explained this in more detail to Nicodemus on one occasion in John 3:5-7 where He taught, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.”  The “newness of life” mentioned by Paul is the same thing as the rebirth that Jesus taught.  One who has been reborn has been given a new life.   Paul went on to explain this similarity even further in verse 5, “For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection”  Being baptized means one has died with Christ, has been buried with Christ, has been reborn with Christ and has received a new life with Christ.

Being baptized means we are freed from sin.

Romans 6:6 “knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin.”  When Christ died on the cross, He was set free from the sin of the world.  He was no longer compelled to suffer the consequences for it on that cross.  In a similar fashion, the baptized convert has been set free from His own sins.  No longer will he be required to suffer the consequences for his past sins.  In Acts 2 we have an account of the first Christian converts after the resurrection of Christ.  When convinced they had crucified the son of God, the converts asked what they should do.  Peter answered them in verse 38.  “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins”.  When Paul was converted, he was told very much the same thing in Acts 22:16, “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins“.  In Paul’s letter to the Colossian Christians, he discussed baptism and had this to say in Colossians 2:13, “He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses.”  Being baptized means our sins have been remitted, washed away, and forgiven.  Our new life with Christ is made possible through the forgiveness of sin.

Being baptized means we now live with Christ

Romans 6:8 “Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

When Jesus died, He died once for all.  After He was raised from the dead, death no longer had any power over Him.  In a similar fashion, the baptized convert no longer lives under the power of the condemnation of sin.  Death has no power over the baptized believer.  We are to consider ourselves dead to sin.  In other words, we don’t live like we used to live.  Like Christ who was risen from the dead and now lives for God, we are to be raised from the dead and live for God as well.  Our new life means a faithful life for God.  We live with Christ and we serve God with Christ.  We are now “alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Through baptism, a convert is a spiritual participant in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Have you been baptized?  Have you died to sin?  Have you been buried with Christ?  Have you been risen with Christ. Have you been freed of your sins?  Are you alive in Christ?  This is what it means to be baptized.  If you have not been baptized, then you have not died to sin, you have not been buried with Christ, you have not been risen with Him, you are not alive with Him and you cannot live for Him.  Do not delay.  Baptism is the way into a spiritual covenant relationship with God.  Why would anyone not want that?

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Saved by Works?

Saved by Works?

Saved by works?

Saved by Works

There are at least four types of “works” noted in the Bible:  “Works” of the Flesh (Gal. 5:19-21); Works of Merit (Titus 3:5); “Works” of the Law of Moses (Rom. 3:20); and “Works” of Righteousness (i.e., works resulting from obedient faith – Gal. 5:6).

It should be obvious that we are not saved by “works of the flesh” (Gal. 5:19-21).  It is also true that we are not saved by “meritorious works” (Titus 3:5) – as if we could earn our way into heaven.  Additionally, we are not saved by the “works of the Law” (Gal. 2:16), for then salvation would come through perfect keeping of the Law (v. 21).  However, we cannot be saved apart from “works of righteousness.”  James puts it this way: “…Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works” (v. 18). “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also” (v. 26).  So, there’s your answer, friends.

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Celebrating Lent

Tuesday (March 4, 2014) was known as “ Fat Tuesday, ” the peak of the Mardi Gras celebration, and Wednesday (March 5, 2014) was “ Ash Wednesday. ” One can figure out that Fat Tuesday always precedes Ash Wednesday, which is the beginning of “ Lent. ” What are these days? Can one celebrate these days as days of worship to God?

What is Ash Wednesday? Ash Wednesday is “the first day of Lent, so-called from the ceremony of putting ashes on the forehead as a sign of penitence. The ash is from palms, which are blessed on Palm Sunday of the previous year” (New Webster’s Dictionary and Thesaurus of the English Language, p. 54). What is Lent? Lent is “(in Roman Catholic and some other Western Christian Churches) the period of fasting and penitence during the forty weekdays between Ash Wednesday and Easter Eve, recalling Christ’s forty days in the wilderness” (Ibid., p. 566). In the Orthodox Eastern Churches, they fast for an additional week until Orthodox Easter. Nonetheless, Fat Tuesday received its name as the day before the forty days of fasting and filled with riotous, gratuitous and gluttonous living.

Can one celebrate Ash Wednesday and Lent as days of worship to God? What would be wrong with showing additional faith to God by also participating in these rituals? God has not authorized us to do so. Nowhere in the Bible has He commanded us to place ash on our foreheads as a sign of penitence. Nowhere has He charged us to fast for a specific forty days. Nowhere has He authorized us to fast in recognition of the Lord’s fasting in the wilderness, as recorded in Matthew 4. Jesus said,

But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; that thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. (Matt. 6:17-18).

Jesus states when we fast, it is not a public outward expression or ritual, but rather, it is to be an inward, secret expression. Paul said it best in Galatians 4:10-11, “Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.” The Galatians were binding certain traditions and ceremonies, especially those back under the Jewish law. Therefore, Paul was fearful that holding such would actually get in the way of serving Christ properly. Jesus gives an example in Matthew 15. Certain scribes and Pharisees came to Jesus and questioned His disciples not following the ritual of washing their hands before eating bread. “But he answered and said unto them, ‘Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?’” (Matthew 15:3). He later says, “But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:9).

God has authorized exactly what mode and method of worship by which we are to follow. Any other way, such as the observance of Fat Tuesday, Ash Wednesday or Lent that God has not authorized, would be contrary to the doctrine of Christ and is sinful (2 John 1:9).

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