Looking for Signs from Heaven?

So they came to Jesus to ask for a sign. He had already turned water to wine, healed every sick person brought to Him, fed the multitudes on two occasions and spoken life changing words. Yet, they were not satisfied. What more could God do to show the authenticity of Jesus and the new covenant He was revealing? His answer was, “No sign will be given . . . except the sign of the prophet Jonah” (Matt. 12:39; 16:4). Now think about this for a moment. The resurrection of Jesus is God’s ultimate sign to Christians that we are His people.

The resurrection of Jesus was at the heart of preaching at the beginning of the church in the book of Acts. The apostles proclaimed His resurrection, and one could not be an apostle unless he had seen the risen Christ (1:22). The central theme of the first sermon which gave birth to the church was His resurrection—it is mentioned four times in that one sermon (2:24, 30, 31, 32). It is mentioned twice in the next recorded sermon (3:15, 26). The first persecution came about because they proclaimed this sign from heaven (4:2), and it was defended by Peter and John in both of the trials before the Jewish council (4:10; 5:30-31). God’s grace was poured out on the infant church as it preached the resurrection (4:33).

The resurrection of Jesus was at the heart of preaching as the church spread in the book of Acts. When the gospel first spread to the Gentiles, the resurrection was preached (Acts 10:41-42). The resurrection was preached in the synagogues of Asia Minor (13:30, 33, 34). As the church began in Europe, His resurrection was preached at Thessalonica (17:3) and at Athens (17:18, 31, 32). Add to this the fact that Paul mentions the resurrection at least 31 times in his epistles.

The resurrection of Jesus should be in the heart of every Christian. The sign given to the Jews was a day of rest to remind them of their days of slavery in Egypt (Ex. 31:16-17; Deut. 5:15). We were not slaves in that land, but God has given us a far greater sign. It is this sign which is at the heart of Christianity. We pray to our Father by the authority of a risen Savior (John 16:23). Our risen Savior is the only Mediator between us and God (1 Tim. 2:5). We sing in the assembly of the church with Him who was raised from the dead (Heb. 2:12). Every week we come together as a church (1 Cor. 11:18) to eat at the Lord’s table (1 Cor. 11:20) remembering Him (1 Cor. 11:25)—that it was every week is show in 1 Cor. 16:1-2). The empty tomb is God’s sign to us!

The resurrection is the only sign we need! We do not serve a lifeless idol, but a living Savior. Thank God for this sign!

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What Should Brotherly Love Encourage Us to Do?

Concerning this subject, the apostle Paul wrote some quite enlightening things to the brethren in Thessalonica about which I would like to note. Contemplate carefully the passage under consideration and the following observations:

But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another. And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more; And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing. [1 Thess. 4:9-12]

First, note the priority of growing in brotherly love (4:9-10). Paul commends them due to the fact that he does not need to teach them to do so, but in fact, praises them in their fine example of loving one another (cf. Rom. 12:10; Heb. 13:1-3; 1 Pet. 1:22; 3:8; 2 Pet. 1:7). The apostle John declared that we are to see such through actions (1 John 3:18; 4:19-21), and Paul sets forth that they have done just that, not only to the brethren there in Thessalonica, but even to their brethren in Macedonia. However, note that he encourages them regarding such to “increase more and more….” In other words, though they were exemplary in practicing brotherly love, they could always improve upon such and grow. As we seek to implement such in our lives, no matter how loving we may be to our brethren, this does not indicate that we have arrived at a place of self-sufficiency. Rather, we are to realize that we can always improve regarding brotherly love. Thus, this denotes the priority it is to be to every child of God. It disturbs me at times to read of the ugliness of some of our brethren in some of our publications. While we need to learn that we do not need to compromise truth at the sacrifice of brotherly love, we also need to learn how to discuss the differences we may have with brethren without questioning their integrity or losing our love for them. We might have too much of some things, but we can never have too much of brotherly love (cf. Gal. 5:22-23)!

Second, note the process of branching out from brotherly love (4:11). He additionally commands them to “study to be quiet.” The literal rendering would showcase an interesting paradox, “Make it your ambition not to be ambitious.” Of course, this is in reference to their occupations—they were to be ambitious to work, but they were not to work as those in the world, because Christians are to have a different perspective on the world and their occupations (cf. Acts 20:35; Eph. 4:28). In other words, they were to go about their business in a quiet and restful way, serving God and using their opportunities to do good wherever they arise. Then, he commands them to “do your own business.” In his second epistle to them, he mentions busybodies (2 Thess. 3:11-12; cf. Col. 3:22, 24; Tit. 3:8, 14). The fact is that idlers become meddlers. Therefore, he tells them to stay busy doing their own work. In addition, he commands them “to work with your own hands.” He also mentions this again in the aforementioned second epistle. For some reason, some of the brethren were not working, and it is not clear as to the exact reason why. Was it because they had left idolatry and had become so enthused with their new religion that they just quit their jobs? Was it because they thought that Christ would return soon and simply quit their jobs? I am not sure that we know, although some certainly speculate. Here, it literally refers to not overseeing the matters of other people. This is not necessarily easy—many times, it is easier to run the business of others than our own business, because we know how others are to do so! Therefore, let us be ambitious to be quiet in order to take care of our own business, not trying to run the affairs of other people. This is good advice for everyone.

Third, note the product of having brotherly love (4:12). Because brotherly love extends to the point of living and working properly, they would even gain the respect of those who are not Christians. In our jobs and daily living, our activities are to be done in an honorable way so that we can reflect the fact that we are Christians. Thereby, we can gain the respect of those who are out of Christ (cf. Tit. 2:6-10; 1 Pet. 2:11-12). The truth is that we are teaching and preaching the love of God and Christ as people see us in the workplace and in our daily lives! This was not only important for the pagan society of Thessalonica, but it is just as important today! The world needs to see us making a difference! When we demonstrate the intended product, we can indeed have the peace and hope of eternal life (4:13-18)!

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The Promise of God to Abraham

In Genesis 12, we have the fundamental and critical account of God calling Abram out of the idolatrous land of Ur of the Chaldeans in Mesopotamia (cf. Josh. 24:2-3; Acts 7:2-4). In His call lies an extremely important promise:

Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. [Gen. 12:1-3]

Later, after God leads Abram to the land of Canaan, a rift develops between his herdsmen and those that belong to his nephew, Lot. After Abram wisely deals with this situation—allowing Lot to choose which portion of land to inhabit—God reiterates this wonderful promise to him again:

Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed forever. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered. Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee. [Gen. 13:14-17]

We may learn some important lessons from this great Old Testament promise that God made to Abram.

First, we learn that God was interested in the salvation of humanity, and planned such through this promise. It was according to the divine plan that God designed “before the foundation of the world” (cf. Eph. 1:4-5) that God, the Word, would come to earth in human form (cf. John 1:1-14). The promise of redemption through the seed of woman (Gen. 3:15) would narrow to the seed of Abraham (which later would be narrowed through the seed of Judah [Gen. 49:10] and the seed of David [2 Sam. 7:12-13; Matt. 1:1]), and the apostle Paul explains in depth that the fulfillment of this was Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:16). Therefore, after Jesus came to provide redemption from sin to humanity, he fulfilled the salvation portion of the promise that God made to Abraham. Thus, there is no more distinction between Jew and Gentile, and we need not offer any more special treatment to the Jews/Israel as a godly race. “Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham…And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Gal. 3:7, 29). Many religious (and even political) people need to understand this today.

Second, we learn that the false doctrine of premillennialism builds itself on a false platform. One of the basic tenets of premillennialism is that the land promise that God made to Abraham was unconditional. Thus, they argue that the promise has never seen its fulfillment. However, the Bible proves otherwise. Indeed, God promised the land of Canaan to the descendants of Abraham. Through the efforts of Moses and Joshua, God leads these descendants out of more than four hundred years of slavery in Egypt to this Promised Land. After the twelve tribes possess and divide the land, an important statement appears in Joshua 21:43-45:

And the Lord gave unto Israel all the land which he swore to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. And the Lord gave them rest round about, according to all that he swore unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the Lord delivered all their enemies into their hand. There failed not ought of any good thing which the Lord had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.

One problem that many have is the use of the term “forever” with respect to the promise to Abraham in Genesis 13:15. However, one must understand that the Bible does not always use the term “forever” in a completely unlimited sense. For example, circumcision was an “everlasting covenant” (Gen. 17:13), but its significance died along with the Law of Moses (cf. Gal. 5:2-6). Likewise, the observance of the Passover was an ordinance “forever” (Ex. 12:15), but its importance also ceased with the inclusion of the new covenant (Heb. 4:1-11). Thus, the land promise has already seen its fulfillment, and the fighting over in Palestine today (much less since the Crusades) only shows a lack of understanding of spiritual truths and results from the fruits of wickedness (cf. Jas. 4:1).

Third, we learn from this that we may rely upon the faithfulness of God in fulfilling His promises. In Joshua 21:43-45, we see the emphasis of God giving the land to them and the blessings associated with them receiving the land. Thus, the faithfulness of God becomes the inspiration of their faith, which is a shadow of the inspiration of our faith (cf. Gal. 3:11). The only way to trust God is to believe that God will do what He said He would do. His delay in answering the promise did not mean that He was unfaithful. Nevertheless, when I fail to see the faithfulness of God, I will fail in being faithful (2 Tim. 2:13). Any failure on the part of a promise of God is not His fault, but my fault (cf. Ps. 77:10).

May we learn these valuable lessons from this great promise of God to Abraham, and may we teach these lessons to an unlearned people who desperately need to know these things!

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The Temptations of Jesus

In both Matthew 4 and Luke 4, we see Jesus meeting temptations from Satan following His baptism and in preparation for His ministry. Of course, Jesus knew when He came into the world that His enemy was not Rome, but His enemy was Satan—Satan is the enemy of us all! Learning how Jesus deals with Satan during these temptations offers rich lessons for us.

In all three of these temptations, Satan tries to lead Jesus to place His own will above the will of the Father. Indeed, self-centered will is the tap root of every sin. The problem that brought sin into the world in Genesis 3 is when Eve (and later Adam) placed their self-will in opposition to the will of God. Nevertheless, instead of exercising His own will in each of the three temptations, Jesus submitted to the will of His Father. By quoting the respective three verses from the Old Testament, it was as if He stated, “Here is the will of God, and I am not going to do as you say to rebel against such.” Naturally, the essence of all sin is this.

As we look at these three temptations, we learn about the true meaning of life. Jesus came into the world to live life at its best. However, Satan tried to lure him away from living life as God intended. Thus, if I want to learn to live life at its best, I can learn from these principles and apply them to my life.

The first temptation attacked the goodness of God. Just as Satan did with Eve (“If God is so good, then why is this fruit off-limits?”), he attacked the goodness of God with respect to his hunger (“If you are hungry and claim that you are the Son of God and that God is good, then why not give in to your urges?”). Whenever we find ourselves in difficulties of life, we face the temptation of questioning the goodness of God (“If God is so good, then why am I in this predicament?”). Attacking the goodness of God involves the attempt to place the physical above the spiritual. This was the background with the children of Israel—they struggled to learn that the meaning of life is more than filling their bellies— and this is why Jesus quoted the sacred scripture from Deuteronomy 8:3.

The second temptation attacked the religion of God. Satan wants to take religion and pervert it, and if he can tempt us to follow a perversion of godly religion, then we have walked right into his trap. Whenever I take religion and turn it around for my own selfish purposes, then I have perverted godly religion. Satan carries Jesus to the holy city of Jerusalem to the pinnacle of the temple (Matt. 4:5-6). Then, he perverts the quoted scripture (Psa. 91:11)—actually misquoting it—to tempt Jesus to pervert godly religion for selfish purposes. Is not this the root of all perverted religion—to follow selfish purposes and to glorify man rather than God? Do not all perverted religions base themselves on perverted scripture? How else can we explain how denominations and false religions gather every Sunday with the same Bible but practice it in so many different ways? Nevertheless, Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy 6:16 to show that religion has to do with more than just the externals—godly religion has to do with the right frame of heart.

The third temptation attacked the glory of God. When Satan showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the world, he included “the glory of them” (Matt. 4:8). In other words, Satan is tempting Jesus to seek personal glory over the glory of the Father. This is why Paul wrote, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). Satan encouraged Jesus to bow down and worship him, and he would receive glory as a political leader of the world. Yet, Jesus challenged Satan by showing that God deserves undivided loyalty and devotion (Deut. 6:13). What a challenge for us to worship and serve God properly so that He receives the glory that He deserves!

Thus, Jesus handled all three temptations. His answers were scriptural—from the Book of God. His answers were simple—they were not complicated. His answers were strong, ringing with authority. His answers were sufficient—Satan saw no need to argue them any further. We truly have only “touched the hem of the garment” in dealing with this rich text, but may it continue to teach us lessons that benefit us when Satan tempts us.

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Temptation

How Do We View Temptation?

In 1981, Terri Gibbs sang the popular country song “Somebody’s Knocking.” The lyrics go:

Somebody’s knocking; should I let him in?

Lord it’s the devil; would you look at him.

I’ve heard about him, but I never dreamed,

He’d have blue eyes and blue jeans.

I heard that song thousands of times on the radio, and every single time it reminded me that temptation doesn’t come in nicely identified packages with warning labels. Instead, temptation comes through the most common of things that we deal with on a daily basis, and those with whom we are most intimate. How we view temptation, and subsequently deal with it, makes all the difference.

First, I should view temptation with an eye of skepticism. It isn’t the temptation, per se, that I’m worried about; it’s the devil behind temptation that bothers me. Temptation never delivers what it promises because its object is not to provide me with that with which I am being tempted. That is the “snare” of temptation. Like a bird who has been lured into a trap with a morsel of bread, temptation will never deliver the whole loaf (1Tim. 6:9). Instead, the morsel is consumed and the prey are left with nothing but the trap. When temptation comes my way, I must first ask, “What is behind this apparent ‘good time’? Who has set the trap?” Satan is the great tempter (Mark 1:13).

Second, I should view temptation with a knowledge of consequences. Simply thinking about the consequences of some sinful action is often sufficient enough to dissuade one from performing said action. The Bible teaches, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Gal. 6:7). Understanding that all choices have consequences, and weighing my choices in terms of the consequences quells temptation. How many have said, “I didn’t think that this would happen” after it is too late. Such is the problem with temptation: many simply don’t think about it.

Third, I should view temptation with a word of warning. The Bible warns repeatedly about the ubiquity of temptation and how I should handle it. It teaches me that God does not permit me to be tempted beyond my ability to resist. It also teaches that God provides the way of escape when I am in the midst of temptation. God’s faithfulness, love, mercy, and grace give me these tools so that I can work through the temptation to a successful conclusion (1 Cor. 10:13). The outcome of successfully handling temptation is that one will receive the crown of life (James 1:12). However, the Bible warns us that temptation is a deadly peril should I succumb to it (James 1:15).

Finally, I should view temptation as a tool for self improvement. There will be times when I will succumb to temptation and the sin that lurks behind it. However, such is no time to give up. I must repent of my sin, get up off of my proverbial back-side, and get back into the groove of things. I cannot let temptation and sin move me to quit living the Christian life. I must be like Peter, who, having denied Jesus three times, nevertheless repented and continued faithfully in the service of His Lord. Judas, however, allowed his temptation and sin to devour him; he hanged himself and went to his own place (Acts 1:25). While no one ought to desire temptation, and everyone ought to pray to be delivered out of it (Matt.6:3; 2 Peter 2:9), nevertheless succumbing to it is not the end of the story. God has granted forgiveness through the blood of Christ to deal with temptation/sin and provide us a way back to Him no matter what the circumstances might be (John 3:16). He truly wants all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4). Knowing this process is available means that I can improve in my walk with God even in the midst of my failure. Resistance is NOT futile!

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