Drive!

We are to Drive Sin Out!

In Matthew 21:12, when Jesus entered Jerusalem, He went into the temple. He saw the Jews who were selling doves to those who needed sacrificial animals. They were exchanging foreign money to make a profit. He described them as a “den of thieves.” This is one of the very few cases where we actually see the Lamb of God becoming the Lion of Judah. Jesus drove them out of the temple, overthrowing their tables and making the point that the temple is no place for sin. In other words, Jesus drove sin out of the temple. The Bible commands us to drive sin out of the temple as well.

We are to drive sin out of our own lives. Paul tells us that our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19-20). As Jesus drove sin out of the temple, we have an obligation to drive sin out of the temple as well. Jesus said, “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3). The longer we let sin cultivate in our lives, the stronger the roots of Satan will grow.

We are to drive sin out of the church. Paul hears of a report of fornication in the church at Corinth, and their attitude was being “puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you” (1 Cor. 5:2). Their attitude needed to change to “deliver such a one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus” (1 Cor. 5:5). We must purge old leaven. The Bible gives various scriptures to withdraw from ungodly brethren. Elders have the responsibility to rebuke sinful brethren and false teachers. In order to maintain the purity of the church, Christ knew that sin must be driven out of the spiritual temple (Eph. 2:20-22), just as He drove sin out of the temple in Jerusalem.

We are to drive sin out of our nation. We are in a time where sin is becoming increasingly rampant in America. The voices of many are taking God out of our country. We need to stop this sinful assault against our Jehovah God. What can we do? We can pray! Paul tells us of our obligation to pray for our leaders (1 Tim. 2:1-2). If there was ever a time when our leaders needed us, as Christians, praying for them, then the time is now! We need to be praying that our nation will have respectable men who can lead us. When the time comes to choose leaders for our nation, we must vote sensibly. We need to examine the candidates, including their record and their beliefs. We already have too much legalized sin; we certainly do not need any more. It is bad enough fighting sin that is against the law, but fighting legalized sin seems to be more difficult. Above all, we must voice the gospel (Rom. 1:16). When the church changes politicians with the greatest news of all—the gospel of Jesus Christ—then it will forever change politics (Mark 16:15-16).

Jesus promised, “Ask, and it shall be given you; see, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you” (Matt. 7:7). After Jesus drove the buyers and sellers out of the temple, he said, “It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer.” I aspire that we will drive sin out so that we may be called “the house of prayer”—our lives, our congregations and our nation!

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The End of a Year

A Time for Reflection

Is there any better time for reflection than the end of a year? In less than three weeks the year 2013 will be history. We are one year closer to the time of our death and one year closer to determining where we will spend eternity. Consider the following thoughts which seem so timely as this year comes to a close.

Are you numbering your days? This question comes from a consideration of Psalm 90. “The days of our lives are seventy years; and if by reason of strength they are eighty years . . . so teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” So many fail to sense the reality of their coming death. It may be hard for someone at 25 to think they have lived a third of their lives or someone at 35 to understand they have lived half of theirs, but as this year comes to a close, count the days you have left!

Have you forgotten His grace? The end of a year provides a time to look backward to where each of us has lived. There are no degrees of being lost. Each of us, in the past, was just as vile and lost as mass murders or child molesters. It is by His grace we live. Peter described what was happening in the lives of some Christians in his day. They had become Christians but had become barren and unfruitful and were spiritually blind. What had happened? What could cause a man to arrive at such a situation? He had “. . . forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sin” (2 Pet. 1:8-9). When we glory in our own “goodness” we lose sight of His. Have you forgotten His grace?

Have you buried the past? Obviously, one can never forget the past, but far too many live in guilt and have the lowest self-esteem. We must learn to live in the present and let God deal with what has passed. He has forgotten it and so must we. Paul described himself as the chief of sinners (1 Tim. 1:15), who had become what he was by God’s grace (1 Cor. 15:10). Look at this principle by which he lived: “But one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those thing which are ahead, I press toward the goal . . .” (Phil. 3:13-14). A new year awaits each of us. The old one must be forgotten, for there is a new year before us with greater opportunities and challenges!

You alone will determine what kind of year you will have in 2014. A precious brother (Harold Pack) told me when he awoke each day he had a decision to make. “Will I have a good day or a bad one? I may have headaches and pain, but I can have the best headache day I could possibly have.” Apply that to 2014. It will likely have adversity, but your attitude towards problems determines if the year will be a good year or bad one!

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Marriage, Polygamy, and the Slippery Slope

The fight for the biblical definition of marriage is one that isn’t ending any time soon, and it’s not going to be limited to homosexual marriage much longer. In the last week a U.S. District Judge made a ruling that struck down parts of long-standing federal laws against polygamy. The case involved the fundamentalist Mormon family from a reality TV show that centers on a man and his four wives, called “Sister Wives.” The judge’s ruling found that the Bill of Rights’ guarantee of the free practice of religion means that if polygamy is a part of your religion, you’re free to engage in it (which may get rather interesting with the spread of Islam, but that’s another article for another day). While the decision wasn’t a full endorsement of legalized polygamy, we know from watching the development of “civil unions” in the last 10-15 years that all it takes for another strike against marriage is a foot in the door.

The first thing that comes to mind is the “slippery slope” argument that Bible believers have used since the beginning of the homosexual marriage debate. Basically, if we give in on homosexual marriage then the door is opened for all kinds of wrong interpretations of marriage. While I agree with the idea of the slippery slope, our interpretation and application of it has been completely wrong.

The slippery slope doesn’t start with homosexual marriage. The slippery slope starts with our first departure from God’s design for the family that goes back to creation (Gen. 2:24). Forget the homosexual debate – this goes back to the rise of no-fault divorce and the problem of divorce and remarriage (Matt. 19), or beyond that to the idea that premarital sex was okay as long as nobody gets pregnant (at which point abortion became a part of the equation), or even further back to the point where dating and relationships began to be engaged in for fun rather than with the intention of marriage. We’ve let one of God’s most sacred institutions be pushed aside and stepped on for at least 70 years and we said nothing because we were participating it, or our family members were, or our friends were, or the people in the pews were. Now that homosexuality and polygamy threaten marriage (issues that don’t often affect people in the church), we’re suddenly bold enough to speak out about the sanctity of marriage? No, the slippery slope doesn’t start here.

This should be a lesson to us with regards to far more than just marriage. Any time we are given a biblical standard and we make compromises for ourselves or don’t hold to it and teach it strictly as the text says, we end up in a mess of man’s interpretations and sins (and our children and grandchildren get dragged even further into it). We aren’t called to take a stand where we’re comfortable; we’re called to take a stand exactly where God’s Word has spoken. “Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with the whole heart!” (Psalm 119:2).

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Acceptable Sexual Relationship

The Bible is clear on what is an acceptable sexual relationship.

The ONLY sexual relationship that God approves of is between a man and woman who are married to one another. I believe the Bible. If you ask me about homosexuality or sex outside of marriage, or adultery, etc., etc. The answer is still the same.

According to the scriptures, adultery and fornication are sin. Galatians 5:19-21 “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

According to the scriptures, homosexual behavior is sin. 1 Corinthians 6:9-10“Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God…”

According to the scriptures, homosexual behavior is a choice. 1Corinthians6:11 “And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God….” Such were some of you – they changed their behavior…”

I believe the Scriptures. Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek…”

Believing the Scriptures, does not make one a “homophobe” any more than it makes one a “liarphobe” or “drunkaphobe” or a “phobe” of anything else the Scriptures state as sinful. Declaring the whole counsel of God makes one free from the blood of all men. Acts 20:26-27“Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God…”

Every Christian has friends, family or loved ones who are involved in something the Scriptures call sinful. Every true Christian should treats those same friends, loved ones and family members with love and respect. Pointing out sin should always be done with love and respect, because while we may not be guilty of those sins, we are all guilty of some sins from time to time. True Christians have repented of all that God declares as sinful, yet they still can be susceptible to sin. That’s why the same Paul who wrote the strong condemnations above also wrote, “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted…” (Galatians 6:1)

If you are unwilling to accept what the Scriptures teach on any subject, that is your business and your choice. I am not the inquisition and would not try to coerce someone into acceptance. When I state what the Bible says, it is because I sincerely believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God. When I state what the Bible says about sin, it is because I am sincerely concerned about those who have chosen to live in sin. If you do not chose to follow the Word of God, then I will pray that someday you do. If you never do make that choice, you are still worthy of my love and respect.

 

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Dwelling Places of God

Holy Dwellings and God’s Association with Them

The man Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, once stood before the Sanhedrin (a legal body composed of the high priest, leaders of the people, and legal experts) and established God does not dwell in items made with hands (Acts 7:48). Yet, God chose to make His presence known within the earth, the tabernacle, and Solomon’s temple. God also commanded the temple built by Zerubbabel as a place for His name. These were not places where God lived, but those which He made holy by his association with them. Scripture identifies three other holy dwelling places of God not made by human hands. These are Christ, the Church, and the Christian. All told there are 7 specific dwelling places which are or were holy. However, not all of these remained holy. When something holy is defiled or unclean, what is God’s reaction? Is the reaction a pattern with God?

In the beginning, God created the tabernacle of the heavens and earth. For six days, God developed the creation which would house man and other forms of life. After each day, God declared everything He created was good. On the seventh day, he sanctified the day in recognition of the work He had done. It was holy, a pure dwelling place suitable for the care of man. God’s presence would be found upon it (Genesis 3:8). For man, God detailed acceptable behavior and what was not. This included what man was allowed eat (Genesis 2:15-16). Man made the decision to defy the authorized behaviors which God had established. Into the tabernacle of God’s creation was brought something unclean, unholy, and impure. Man introduced the defilement of sin into the world. What was God’s reaction? God disciplined man. The discipline brought death to all men from the time of Adam and Eve to the present day. During the age of early mankind, the pinnacle of judgment for defiling God’s tabernacle of creation was the destruction of all mankind save righteous Noah and his family. Is this reaction of discipline for defilement God’s pattern of response?

During the Mosaic age or time of Moses (1400 BC), God instructed Moses to build a tabernacle (Exodus 25:8-9). He gave miraculous inspiration to enable the exact creation of what He desired. Instructions were heeded exactly according to Exodus 39:32, including the contents of the tabernacle, creation of the Ark of the Covenant, and priestly garments. The tabernacle would represent a different manner in which God’s presence would be known (Exodus 40:34-38). God detailed authorized behavior in respect to the tabernacle. All that was directed by Him was holy. Man then introduced the defilement of sin into God’s holy wilderness tabernacle. In Leviticus 10:1-3, Nadab and Abihu determined to operate outside of faith (that which is heard from God’s Word – Romans 10:17). Nadab and Abihu offer an unauthorized fire into the tabernacle worship. What they offered was unclean, unacceptable, defiled. God reemphasizes He is to be treated as holy. How was He not? The priests were offering to God, so evidently they wanted to please Him. Their heart was right. John 4:24 states, “God is spirit, those that worship Him must worship in spirit and truth”. This means He will not only be worshipped by the appropriate attitude (spirit), but He will also be worshipped according to how He has commanded. Truth was missing in the actions of Nadab and Abihu. God was not being honored by unholy actions. Therefore, God disciplined man. He destroyed both men before the nation of Israel. Is this a pattern continued?

The nation of Israel through their sinfulness eventually demanded a King (as God said they would in Deuteronomy 17:14-15). Their second king was David. David whether by misunderstanding or not, determined to develop plans to build God a temple in place of the mobile tabernacle. These plans he handed over to Solomon his son. God agreed to be with Solomon, the people of Israel, and the temple as long as they kept His commandments (I Kings 6:12-13). As with the tabernacle, God’s glory filled the temple (I Kings 8:10-11). God made the temple a holy place and consecrated it in His name (I Kings 9:3-7). The purpose of the temple would assume the same as the tabernacle. It would be a holy place of worship and sacrifice. Solomon would later defile himself with foreign marriages and idolatrous ways. God would discipline him by splitting the kingdom of Israel. Jeroboam would assume the leadership of Israel and lead them into further defilement. Rehoboam the son of Solomon would lead the kingdom of Judah in sin. Under his leadership, the temple was defiled by Egypt (I Kings 14:25-26). This would come as discipline by the hand of God for he was not with this people in their sinful state. 350 years and 16 kings later, young King Josiah sees the defilement of the temple and people. He attempts to cleanse them. (2 Kings 23:4-7). He does what is right in the sight of God. Unfortunately, after Josiah, wickedness continues, defilement continues. 22 years later at the end of the reign of the last king of Judah (Zedekiah), the temple is destroyed. The year was 586 and Babylon plundered the nation and took them into captivity as a discipline from the Lord (2 Chronicles 36:14-19). Ezekiel from a vision in Babylon was given a vision of the Glory of God departing from the temple (Ezekiel 10:18-19). This continued God’s discipline pattern in response to the defilement of man’s sin.

Following 70 years captivity in Babylon and into the kingdom of the Medes and Persians, God’s hand of discipline would be lifted. It would be lifted to continue passage of the lineage of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. To do so, God commanded the King of Persia, Cyrus, to send Israel out of captivity to build Him a temple again. Zerubbabel would reign as governor over Judah upon his return. The temple would be known as Zerubbabel’s temple though later identified with Herod for the great restoration he would do. During the time of Zerubbabel the people would declare their allegiance to God once more (Ezra 10:10-12). The time frame covered from the completion of the temple in 516 BC to Christ in 3BC was 513 years. This period of Bible history is covered by the Bible writings of Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, and prophecy in Daniel. History shows Israel would put away its idolatrous ways. However, Israel did not stop its sin. This is shown in the prophecies of Daniel and the New Testament gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The priesthood would be defiled in aiding Israel’s enemies and seeking man driven power. The temple would become a “den of robbers” according to Jesus in Matthew 21:13. God would again punish the people by various incursions against them before Christ. Antiochus IV would come into Jerusalem, sack it, and defile the temple twice. This includes the pouring of boiling pig flesh over the temple and altar. The Holy of Holies was entered and the treasure was taken from the temple. These were discipline from God, but a greater punishment would be unleashed in 70 AD as prophesied by Christ in Matthew 24:1-2. Once again, as with the tabernacle of the earth, the wilderness tabernacle, and Solomon’s temple, a holy dwelling of God had been defiled; God’s commandments were ignored and God would have no part with that which was unclean and unholy. A pattern from God seems to be clear.

At the fullness of time, God, in love, sent His Son Jesus. He did so for man’s salvation from defilement. Jesus is the eternal and Holy Temple of God as identified in John 2:19-22. Jesus was pure, sinless, perfect, and holy (I Peter 2:21-23). Man exposed to the purity of Christ, attempted to defile Him. They tried to intimidate him in regard to reaching out to the publicans and sinners in Matthew 9:10-13. He could have rejected God’s will by listening to Peter in Matthew 16:21-23. The Pharisees attempted to see if He would go against Caesar in Matthew 22:17-22. The High priest would present Him with the opportunity to deny Deity in Matthew 26:63-64. In John 8:3-11, the scribes and Pharisees would try to get him to disobey Roman law or God’s Law, but He would not. In the garden, He did not lie about his identity (John 18:3-5), though for others it would have been tempting. Pilate tried to intimidate Jesus declaring “I have the power to crucify you”, but Christ would not falter. Christ endured the shame of the cross though he could have tried to escape (Hebrews 12:2). Jesus would not allow man to defile Him. He now sits at the right hand of the Father in Heaven because he maintained the Holiness of God.

According to scripture, Christ is the head of the Church (Ephesians 5:23). I John 2:1 establishes Christ is righteous and Colossians 1:24 states that Christ’s body is the Church. Therefore, Christ being the Temple of God, the Church being His body, by inference is also the Temple of God. Christians are said to be one in the body of Christ according to Romans 12:5 and their relationship is that of building materials (I Peter 2:5). The Church is a Holy priesthood of building stones (Christians) through Christ. They are a holy dwelling of God. Yet again, man attempts to defile this dwelling. They do so through ignorant, willful, and unauthorized worship. The Corinthians accomplished it through what they thought was love, but was really just arrogance in ignoring sin present in the Church. The Galatians defiled the Church through accepting the teachings of those holding to portions of the Law of Moses. In 2 Timothy 2:15-18, Timothy was instructed about the defilement in the Church coming from Hymenaeus and Philetus who were stating the second coming of Christ had passed. Peter told the Church in 2 Peter 2:1-3, false teachers would speak evil of the truth. In all of these situations, man brought defilement into the Church. However, the true Church will not stay defiled. God in times past cleansed the defilement through discipline. I Corinthians 3:10-13 makes it clear God will cleanse the temple of His Church. God’s pattern of treatment in respect to defilement stands strong.

The final holy dwelling which God is associated with is the Christian. God has identified Christians as His temple (I Corinthians 3:16-17). It is God who adds to the Church (Acts 2:47). He only adds the pure of conscience and those forgiven of sin (Acts 2:38, I Peter 3:21). Romans 6:3-7 demonstrates that baptism buries man into the death of Christ. It is here where the individual contacts the blood of Christ and Christ’s blood purifies like no other (Hebrews 9:13-14). Galatians 3:27 reemphasizes only those who have put on Christ are washed by His Blood. So through this process impurity, defilement, uncleanness is washed away (Acts 22:16). Yet, in this pure and holy dwelling of God, man still introduces defilement. They do so by denying Christ as Peter did (Luke 22:54-62), by lying as Ananias and Saphira (Acts 5), through immorality (I Corinthians 5), through a love of material things like the rich, young man (Matthew 19), by refusing to accept Christ as the Pharisees and Sadducees (John 11), by persecution of Christians like Saul (Acts 8), through a love of the world as Demas (2 Timothy), by being lukewarm Christians (Revelation 3), or forgetting to put Christ first (Revelation 2). The truth is man defiles himself through disobedience to God’s Word.

Every time a holy dwelling of God has been defiled, God has prepared discipline, a cleansing of the defilement. Will this pattern hold true in the case of the Christian as a temple of God? I John 1:6-2:2, establishes the blood of Christ continues to cleanse those in Christ. Defilement is washed away leaving no defilement for God to discipline over. This is not without observance to the command of God. God establishes the cleansing based on “if”. “If” the Christian no longer walks in darkness, “if” the Christian practices the truth, “if” the Christian confesses their sins, then they will be cleansed of the defilement. However, according to Romans 2:4-8, those who think it is enough to have God’s kindness, forbearance, and patience are mistaken. These are given only to lead a man to repentance. “God will render to man according to his deeds.” Those who do not obey will face eternal destruction (2 Thessalonians 1:6-10). In other words, God will hold to His pattern of discipline for defilement.

God commands his dwelling places be pure and holy. His creation, wilderness tabernacle, temples, son, church, and children were all initially pure. Man attempted to defile them all. Only God’s Son perfectly withstood the uncleanness and defilement of men. His Body, the Church, His bride, will stand pure and wholly as well, because of the continual cleansing of His blood. The sinful who declare they are the bride of Christ will be denied. Those who try to crash the wedding party will be removed. No unclean thing shall enter the kingdom of Heaven. This is God’s reaction to the defiled. It is His pattern.

Revelation 21:22-27 – And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God the Almighty, and the Lamb, are the temple thereof. And the city hath no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine upon it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the lamp thereof is the Lamb. And the nations shall walk amidst the light thereof: and the kings of the earth bring their glory into it. And the gates thereof shall in no wise be shut by day (for there shall be no night there): and they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it: and there shall in no wise enter into it anything unclean, or he that maketh an abomination and a lie: but only they that are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

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