In the Spirit and Not in the Letter

In Romans 2, Paul concludes the chapter with these words, “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God” (2:28-29). From this passage, some try to make a distinction between the letter and the spirit of the law.

Denominationalists claim that if we carefully adhere to the commandments of God, we are only emphasizing the letter of the law, and not the spirit of the law. No, this is not what Paul is discussing. Paul is not here saying that obedience is not necessary, but that the inward attitudes must accompany their obedience.

Going all the way back to at least Martin Luther, many in the religious world confuse what Paul writes in this epistle and what James writes in James 2:14-26. Nevertheless, because we have only one author in the grand scheme of things (2 Tim. 3:16-17), we must view these as harmonious in teaching and understanding. Paul is not teaching some “faith only” doctrine with this peculiar language, but he is only addressing the problem in the attitudes of the Jews. Please look at the context, specifically in Romans 2:17-29.

He begins, “Behold, thou art called Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God” (2:17). In other words, they had the idea that because they had the Law of Moses, then everything was satisfactory. They thought that they knew God exclusively and that the Gentiles did not. Here is the problem—though they pretended to believe the Law of Moses, they did not allow it to affect their lives (2:18-21). On a side note, do we boast today in the gospel of Christ in the same way? Therefore, the same application is true of us. We have the Bible and say that we can properly interpret it. We try to teach others how to divide the scriptures properly concerning the plan of salvation, the church and such like, but do we really teach ourselves how it is to affect our lives?

Therefore, they boasted in the fact that they had the Law of Moses (2:23). They read it every Sabbath Day in their synagogues. Yet, they continually broke the Law (i.e., Matt. 23:14-23). As long as they went through the ritual of the Law of Moses, they thought that they were all right (cf. Isa. 1:2-20). In the time of Paul, national or fleshly Israel is living this same way as during the days of Isaiah. We need to remember to make a distinction between fleshly Israel and the Israel of God! No wonder they were unable to influence the Gentile world (2:24)! By the Gentiles seeing how they lived, they blasphemed the name of God!

Thus, when he brings in the subject of circumcision (a mark of distinction from Jews and Gentiles), Paul instructs them that the emphasis of circumcision in the Old Testament was to remind them of the importance of the circumcision of the heart (2:25); that is, they were to live as a separated people who belonged to God and were to abide in His covenant. When they failed to live the proper life, although they were circumcised, it did not make any difference as far as receiving the blessings of God. One Jewish rabbi once said, “A circumcised Jew could not go to hell!” That is what they thought here, and Paul is showing them that this is not true. Even the Old Testament showed that this was not to be the case. Now, by faith, here is a Gentile who lived in harmony with what the Law of Moses taught (2:26); thus, God accepted him based upon his faith. The “righteousness of the law” was righteousness by faith—there is no other kind of righteousness that is acceptable to God. By faith, whenever a Gentile lived by the principles of the covenant, he was acceptable to God, as he will even discuss later in this epistle to the Romans (cf. 9:30). Thus, we need to recognize the difference between one who followed the law “by the letter” and the Gentile who could fulfill the law (2:27)—he fulfilled it in the sense that he could do so by faith, which had to do with the inward attitude, as the next verse says.

Therefore, whenever a Jew under the law did not allow the law to affect his heart and cause him to live a righteous life by faith, he was not accepted of God. It did not matter if he was a descendant of Abraham (cf. Gen. 18:18-19). The real children of Abraham were those who lived by faith as Abraham did, and their lives demonstrated that they had a faith as Abraham did (i.e., Joshua and Caleb versus the rest of the nation). They were those who understood the significance of the circumcision and were Jews inwardly. The Old Testament emphasized that circumcision was always to signify a distinction of the heart (Deut. 30:1-6). Therefore, their captivity would cause them to return to God in faith, penitence and prayer (cf. Lev. 26:40-46), and then their hearts were circumcised. In other words, their service and obedience was from the heart, which is how God accepted it. That is the only kind of service that God has accepted.
Therefore, under the Old Testament, the Jews misinterpreted the Law of Moses—they thought that as long as they kept the rituals of worship, feast days and sacrifices, it would not matter how they lived. We must understand this to understand the references from Paul in the book of Romans to the law and those who were trying to find justification by it. I pray that this may help avoid confusion in misrepresenting and misunderstanding what Paul teaches in this wonderful epistle about redemption!

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Our Influence in the Parking Lot of Life

Have you ever driven around a parking lot looking for a place to park your car, only to find that the one spot available has another vehicle crowding it, in being parked over the line? That happens to me every time, it seems! It is just an annoying fact of living in this crowded world of ours. It is very easy to get annoyed and take it out on the person who “overparked”, isn’t it? I once took a piece of paper and wrote an angry note on it and stuck it under such a person’s windshield wiper. Of course, after I walked down the aisle of parking spots I began to feel bad about the note, after noticing that the five cars parked to his left had also “overparked”. I went back and removed the note from his windshield and was tempted to put it in the windshield of the first “overparked” car, but thought better of it. What had happened, of course, was that the first car parked too far to his right – causing the next car to do the same, and the next car, and the next car – all the way down to me. I am sure that the person who was already parked to my right was annoyed when he came back because my car was “overparked” and now crowding him.

What lesson can we learn from this about the influence we have on others? With regard to our personal influence, it is easy to see from this illustration that our actions cause others to have a reaction. You have heard the statement, “No man is an island.” What does that mean? It is a metaphor. You have two islands in the midst of the sea, there is no contact between them, and so what happens on one island has little or no effect on the other. With regard to man’s relationship to his fellow man, everything we do has an effect upon our environment and upon others. The Bible affirms this same principle, “For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself.” (Romans 14:7 NKJV). The context here deals with violating the conscience of one who is weaker in the faith by eating meat in their presence. To many Christians in Rome and also Corinth, the eating of meat that had previously been offered to idols and later sold in the common marketplace was too closely connected with idolatry for their conscience. Paul was concerned that eating in the presence of those who so conscientiously objected was the same as, “to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.” (Romans 14:13 NKJV). God calls such as a violation of the law of love, “Yet if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are no longer walking in love. Do not destroy with your food the one for whom Christ died.” (Romans 14:15 NKJV).

We must never forget how we can negatively influence others, even when we have the best of intentions in mind. This can be seen even in our “parking lot” illustration; perhaps the first “overparker” had intended to give the person in the handicap parking spot next to him a little extra room to get in and out of their vehicle. It could be the case that his best of intentions toward the handicapped person negatively affected the next six or seven vehicles in the row.

We must be careful and sensitive toward others; but also we must not let these things keep us from doing what is right. That is where “political correctness” has harmed our society, because in order to soothe the sensibilities of the few, we done harm to the many. Such as the “politically correct” view that we must go out of our way to not violate the rights or conscience of atheists or people of “non-Christian” religions, but in doing so we violate the rights or conscience of those in “Christian” religions. Therefore we must always strive to strike a balance between doing what is right and negatively influencing other by doing what is wrong. Paul also said, “Therefore do not let your good be spoken of as evil…” (Romans 14:16 NKJV).

In our illustration, why was I angry with the owner of the “overparked” vehicle next to me? I think it was do to a lack of communication. I did not know why he took up part of my parking spot so I just assumed he was a rude or careless individual. When the reason why he was “overparked” was “communicated” to me (i.e. I noticed the other “overparked” cars) I understood where he was coming from and was no longer annoyed with him. Likewise, when we do something, which causes our brother or sister in Christ to stumble, there needs to be some line of communication between us and the one we have “offended.” Jesus taught, “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother…” (Matthew 18:15). Here He is talking about actual sin, but the same application is valid with regard to other transgressions or perceived transgressions. Communication is vital in our natural families – between husbands and wives, parents and children. Communication is also vitally important between member of our church family. Communication makes peace between brethren; it heals rifts between elders, deacons or preachers and the congregations they serve. We must strive to, in all things, demonstrate our love for each other by effectively communicating with one another. The Holy Spirit inspired Paul to say, “Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another.” (Romans 14:19 NKJV) Communication and consideration of others will go along way toward this end.

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Commitment

Make Your Commitment As Sure as Possible!

2 Peter 1:10b, “… give the more diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never stumble” ASV:

Before making a commitment to some religious movement, make sure that they are teaching from the Bible [i.e. the 66 Books of the Old and New Testament].

Make sure the teaching you are called on to believe is correctly interpreted.

Make sure the teaching or passage of Scripture is not contradicted in some other Bible passage.

Make sure the Bible translation you are using is a good translation, some Bible translations are more a commentary than a translation.

Make sure that you are not under duress, but feel free to question your teacher and his philosophy.

Feel free to ask your teacher to show you the passage in the Bible that teaches his/her convictions about each point discussed.

Make sure that your previous exposure to false religious concepts are not influencing your perception of the present truth – Matthew 15:12-14, 12 Then came the disciples, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Pharisees were offended, when they heard this saying? 13 But he answered and said, Every plant which my heavenly Father planted not, shall be rooted up. 14 Let them alone: they are blind guides. And if the blind guide the blind, both shall fall into a pit” ASV.

Make sure that your fleshly relationships are not interfering with your ability to reason correctly about the truth – Matthew 10:34-38, “34 Think not that I came to send peace on the earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. 35 For I came to set a man at variance against his father , and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law: 36 and a man’s foes (shall be) they of his own household. 37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And he that doth not take his cross and follow after me, is not worthy of me”

REMEMBER THIS:

No question is out of order when a person is seeking truth, ask of your teacher whatever question about his/her teaching that puzzles you or that you do not fully understand – if the teacher is honest and sincere about their conviction, they will be happy to explain – Colossians 4:6, “6 Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer each one” ASV.

1 Peter 3:15, “15 but sanctify in your hearts Christ as Lord: (being) ready always to give answer to every man that asketh you a reason concerning the hope that is in you, yet with meekness and fear” ASV.

CONCLUSION: Since we are created beings, we are to respond to our Creator as He wills. Since our Creator is God, we will want to respond to His instruction because of our knowledge that without His action we could not exist. You see God is the sustainer of our environment, and everything that pertains to our existence. To understand this fact is important to our understanding of our place in the scheme of things visible and invisible. Since God did create our parents {i.e., Adam and Eve} and made it possible for them to multiply, we understand that our presence here on the earth is controlled by God. Therefore, God is in charge of everything that pertains to our existence, our destiny is predicated upon our understanding and response to this knowledge. As we acquire knowledge of God’s goodness toward us, we naturally want to respond to please and glorify Him. If we know that God loves us and cares for us, surely we will want to obey his wishes regardless of whatever those wishes are. Today is a good time to reexamine ourselves so that we can honestly determine what we want to be in the coming years, do we want to be right with God or do we want to be something less that right in our relationship to God and to others?

REMEMBER THIS – our time here is growing shorter with each passing day, now is the time to get right with God and with our family, friends, and neighbors.

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The Bible and Trust

There are some Biblical questions that I would like to respectfully request that you might earnestly ask some of your most ardent religious friends and neighbors who are denominational “church-goers” or church leaders to consider the next time you interact with them…

First off: Do they believe the Bible is the absolute and inerrant, eternal and exclusive truth of almighty God, and that it therefore contains everything we need to know in order to be saved (Ps. 119; 2 Tim. 3:14-4:4; 2 Ptr. 1:2-11)?

Secondly: do they subsequently and relatedly believe therefore, that the same process which the Bible repeatedly chronicles as having saved people in the 1st century is the same process by which people are still saved today?

And then, if they answer those two questions “yes,” then please ask them to very carefully consider this… If they believe that they were saved when they said the so-called “sinner’s prayer,” ask them where exactly is that found in the Scripture – book, chapter, and verse, please? Again; of the thousands of conversions to Christ that are Biblically chronicled since the establishment of Christ’s New Testament (Hebrews 9:15-17; Luke 22:17-20) church in Acts 2 (3,000 in Acts 2:14-47; 2,000 in Acts 3:13-4:4; Samaritans of Acts 8:5-13; the eunuch in Acts 8:25-39; Saul of Tarsus in Acts 9:3-19 and as again reported in Acts 22:1-16; Cornelius and his household in Acts 10:34-43; the people of Antioch in Acts 13:14-48; Lydia in Acts 16:14-15; and the jailor and his household in Acts 16:30-34), where was even one of those thousands of people ever taught to be saved/converted by saying that prayer and “receiving Jesus into their heart?” They weren’t were they? They can’t find it can they? It’s not there is it? (No it isn’t. And that’s why on the back of every tract that the Baptist and other man-made protestant denominations pass out, they list no Scripture whatsoever after they feature that prayer: It’s not in the Bible!)

And yet, those first century folks were absolutely saved according to the Scriptures… weren’t they? And so the question quickly becomes: “Where they say they believe that the Bible is the ultimate God-given authority, can they really, truly, honestly then turn completely around and trust their eternal salvation to something completely foreign to the Scripture?” You see, that prayer did not even come into religion until the mid 1600’s – some 1500 + years after Christ’s apostles began converting people to Christ His way in 33 A.D. without any hit of such an element. So; do they really, truly trust Jesus… or uninspired men of the mid-1600’s with their eternal soul? THAT is the question! And they answer it far more honestly with their actions at that point, than they do with their words…  Hmmm… didn’t Jesus say something about exactly that in Mark 7:6-13? Yeah, He said a whole lot… and folks better listen. God bless!

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What Does the Bible Say About Tattoos?

PLEASE SPEAK ABOUT WHAT THE BIBLE TEACHES ON TATTOOS AND BODY PIERCINGS

Perhaps you have heard of television shows like “Miami Ink, LA Ink, New York Ink.”  It is generally on the TLC channel.  It features a bunch of tattoo artists performing their work.  They are clearly quite talented in rendering images and designs on a person’s flesh.  So, there is obviously a fair amount of interest in tattoos.  But, does the Bible forbid tattoos?  Now, we are not asking did the Bible forbid a tattoo for the answer to that is clearly yes.  The question I think deals with whether it is inherently wrong under the law of Christ (i.e., the new covenant) for people to be tattooed.

Let us first see what the law of Moses said about this subject and why it was forbidden.  In Leviticus 21:1-6 Moses was told to instruct the priests not to defile themselves.  They were not to “make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh” (21:5).  The reason given for this was so they would be holy to God and not profane the name of their God (21:6).  The practices mentioned in verse 5 were common among the Gentiles and God said not to do such things. Why?  Because it would defile them.  Why?  Because these were things that the Gentiles practiced in their worship of other things.

This point is brought out clearly in Leviticus 19:28.  This verse deals with all the Israelites and not just the priests (19:23).  God commanded them saying, “You shall not shave around the sides of your head, nor shall you disfigure the edges of your beard. You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you: I am the Lord” (Lev. 19:27-28—NKJV).  Please note tattoos were forbidden in connection with making cuttings in the flesh for the dead.  Reading further to verse 31 shows the prohibition against consulting the dead through mediums or spiritists.  Thus, these two passages in Leviticus show the forbidden practices were associated with witchcraft or sorcery, idolatry.  However, since Leviticus is part of the old law, it is no longer in force today.  Otherwise, it would be wrong for Christian men to go beardless!

Now, in the New Testament, while we have no direct prohibition for either piercings or tattoos, we have some principles that would regulate such conduct.  For example: If modern tattoos indicate the tattooed person is trying to contact the dead or is seeking to gain favor from spirits then they would be idolatrous and evil.  However, it seems unlikely a tattoo of a rose or one that says Mom would fall in that category.  Some tattoos certainly would be inappropriate for Christians.   A tattoo of the devil would be sending the wrong message for a child of God.   While we do not know what the devil looks like, the traditional red devil is recognizable to most people.  Thus, a tattoo that is clearly identified with evil should not be on a Christian.  Third, tattoos advertising drug use and sexual immorality and other such things are wrong because they glamorize the works of the flesh (Gal. 5:19-21).

Now there are some who attempt to point out in 1 Cor. 6:19-20 that it forbids tattoos because our body is not our own, it is the temple and that we have been bought with a price.  However, these verses deal with pagan and sexual worship, which is idol worship.  It is not associated with tattooing and we must be so careful not to make a Scripture such as 1 Cor. 6:19-20 a catch all for everything.  Because, when we make these verses a catch all, we open it up to the point that people will argue that it is wrong for anyone to have their ear pierced, or wrong to get a shot from the doctor, or wrong to take any medicine seeing as how they all have side effects or its wrong to have a little belly and this list goes on and on.

According to the New Testament,  it seems that a tattoo lies more in the realm of opinions.  Now, some attempt to bind and others may be prejudice going so far as to say, having a tattoo is as disgusting as having rats on your head or using bugs for toothpaste.  But look, we can argue if it is right or wrong, if it’s proper or not, if its shameful or not.  But ultimately those who desire a tattoo need to know that it is permanent (despite what laser surgery can do) and it will influence all who see it.

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