Questions We Should Be Asking

 I have asked a lot of questions of the book of the Revelation.

 

I have been asked by others to explain various parts of the Revelation.

 

I’m sitting here in the dark this unbelievably cold Monday morning (-19°F wind chill) with my feet by the space heater and my hands around a mug of coffee, thinking about what questions I don’t ask of the Revelation – and what questions I’ve never been asked about this book.

 

“Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near” (1:3). Why don’t we read this book publicly if the blessing goes to reading and hearing? How can we “heed the things which are written in it”? What does this book ask of us? I fear our main motivation in coming to this book is to get information about events that we perceive to be threatening to us (and our safety, prosperity, and status quo) – we come to it to find what we need to prepare for that which we fear, rather than coming to it seeking to be what we are called to be in Christ.

 

“I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus” (1:9). Have I ever been anywhere even remotely unpleasant because of “the word of God and the testimony of Jesus”? Why not? If, “in Jesus,” John the Revelator said there was “tribulation and kingdom and perseverance,” do I live as if that was the norm for Christianity in this life? Do the books I read teach this? The songs I listen to and sing? The teachers and preachers I hear? Why not? What’s different about John’s Christianity and mine?

 

“I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false” (2:2). How should we “put to the test those who call themselves apostles”?

 

“…you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary” (2:3). What if I do grow “weary”? How can I be like the Ephesians, who were commended because they did not grow tired in the race?

 

“But I have this against you, that you have left your first love” (2:4). What “love” takes priority over what Jesus calls “first” in our lives?

 

“Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life” (2:10). How can I prepare to be so “tested” and “faithful” in such “tribulation”?

 

“But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality” (2:14; see also 2:20). What would “the teaching of Balaam” look like in a 21st-century context? What are some manifestations of this today? Are we tolerating what the church in Pergamum tolerated?

 

“…I will give to each one of you according to your deeds” (2:23). How does this fit with a Gospel of grace through faith apart from works?

 

“He who overcomes, and he who keeps My deeds until the end…” (2:26). How do we keep Jesus’ “deeds”?

 

“I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God. So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent” (3:1-3). How do we obey these commands to revive ourselves?

 

“I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. Because you say, ‘I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,’ and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see” (3:15-18). Am I driven by a clearly-seen and desperate need for Christ in all things? Or do I broadcast a self-sufficiency with a little Jesus added for appearance’s sake?

 

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, Who was and Who is and Who is to come…worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created…worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth…worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing…to Him Who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever…Amen” (4:8,11; 5:9-10,12-14). Do I sing and pray like they do in heaven? Am I moved by what so powerfully moves them? Why not?

 

“When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained” (6:9). Again, I ask: is my life any more difficult in this world because of “the word of God” or because of “the testimony”? Why not?

 

“Another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer; and much incense was given to him, so that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel’s hand. Then the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar, and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake” (8:1-5). If heaven weaponized my prayers, would the earth shake, or would I just get more comfortable? What earth-shaking prayers have I prayed today, this week, this year?

 

“The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk; and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts” (9:20-21). In what areas of my life do I refuse to repent? What idols do I treasure?

 

“And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death” (12:11). With what weapons do I fight and resist in this world? How can I fight and resist like these overcomers?

 

“So the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus” (12:17). Would the dragon even notice me? Is my chief identity that I “keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus”? Or is anything like this description way down on the list of self-identifiers?

 

“And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast” (13:3). Am I “amazed” and attracted to the same things as “the whole earth”? Are my affections any different?

 

“These are the ones who have…kept themselves chaste. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb. And no lie was found in their mouth; they are blameless” (14:4-5). Have I made this character study as high a priority as deciphering “666”? Why not?

 

“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame” (16:15). What does it say about my heart and priorities that I am more curious about “Armageddon” than the promise and call of this beatitude?

 

“Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready. It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints” (19:7-8). Shouldn’t we be deep in the Word, desiring to become masters of understanding and living this text? How can we live this text and obey it? Isn’t this more important than current politics and events, more valuable to our souls than speculative timelines or a seeking of signs?

 

“I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God” (20:4). Again, how has the “testimony of Jesus” and “the word of God” caused even a slight dissonance to my life in this world? Isn’t answering that question more important than convincing you my millennial position is correct?

 

There are many other questions we should be asking of the Revelation. Questions about our souls, our lives, our churches, our worship, our witness before a world that hates the Jesus of the Bible. Rather than asking “when,” maybe we should instead respond to the Revelation with a question of “how.” How are we to live faithfully right now in our lives in light of the Revelation? No matter what the headlines say, how does the Revelation say I should follow Jesus? Oh, my soul! Why have I spent so much time on the other stuff of the Revelation to the exclusion of a brokenness and hunger to live out the descriptions of normal, daily, true discipleship? How have I divided brethren and not adequately fed the sheep by ignoring these things? Lord, help. Help me ask the questions I should ask of your Revelation.

This Is How It's Done

This is perfect. Someone well outside our common fellowship gave my bride this as a tribute a few days ago.

This is who she is: the epitome of "do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing" (Matthew 6:3). The unspeakably countless people she has touched - the “seeds” she has planted - behind the scenes is a powerful testimony to me...and to many others, judging by how many I’ve seen give witness to her tireless care. This is how it’s done.

It seems that ministry has drifted toward branding or marketing: taking care at all times to make sure people know all the things we're doing for the Kingdom (it's not always clear whose kingdom). I'm certainly guilty. Paul, however, does speak of a "quiet life" (1 Thessalonians 4:11; 1 Timothy 2:2). My bride doesn't have to make much of her loving on others, but they surely know, even if others don't. I suspect she's more on track than the rest of us, who spend a lot of time constructing image, labels, slogans, graphics, and consider it vital to spread all of that as far as we can, seasoning our acts of serving others with a bit of self-serving.

I keep coming back to this simple little jar of mustard seeds. To steal a phrase from a popular show, "this is the way."

Balance in the Offices of the Church

“Paul and Timothy, bond-servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, including the overseers and deacons: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:1,2).

In this post, I’m not out to defend the plurality of overseers/elders/pastors in the local church (these different New Testament titles describing a singular office). I’m writing assuming you’re with me on the need for an office of men who lead, model, and meet the spiritual needs of the membership of the local congregation (overseers/elders/pastors); similarly, if you keep with this post past this sentence, I assume you’re with me on the biblical mandate for an office of men who lead, model, and meet the physical needs of the membership of the local congregation (deacons, a title that means “servant”). Presupposing these principles, I want to make an appeal for balance in the relationship between these offices and how that balance is a witness to the biblical calling on all believers.

First, there is no exclusivity to the actions carried out by the offices. “Overseers” can (and should) serve others. Why? Because service is a call for all believers, and holding an office exempts you from no requirements given to all believers (Matthew 25:41-46; James 2:15-17; 1 John 3:16,17). Yes, the focus of the office should be on “prayer and to the ministry [τῇ διακονίᾳ] of the Word” (Acts 6:4), and working “hard at preaching and teaching” (1 Timothy 5:17) – I would add that mentoring other teachers is a primary activity, as well (2 Timothy 2:2). This emphasis, however, doesn’t mean that an elder can’t mow a widow’s lawn or help wash dishes after the potluck. “Deacons” can (and should) be involved in the ministry of the Word when appropriate. Of the “seven” in Acts 6, two go on to dominate the next chapters with their preaching (Stephen in chapter 7 and Philip in chapter 8). Further, all believers have a responsibility to devotion “to the apostles’ teaching” (Acts 2:42), that is, the New Testament and its interpretive authority over the Old Testament. “Deacons” are no exception. All believers are filled with the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit speaks Jesus through all believers. Read Acts 2:16-18. On the day of Pentecost, the apostle Peter proclaims that the promise of Joel 2:28,29 (and the desire of Moses in Numbers 11:29) has been fulfilled in the Church. All of God’s people in Christ have His Spirit, and are called upon to speak a Christ-centered Scripture to all situations (a fulfillment of Deuteronomy 6:6-9). Office, to repeat, is not an exemption from normal Christian experience and calling.

Second, the offices display the two key elements to Christian life. True faith bears the fruit of good works (Ephesians 2:8-10; Philippians 2:12,13; Hebrews 13:20,21; James 2:14-26). In the offices we see these elements represented. “Overseers” lead and serve as examples to a dedication to the truth of the faith, as revealed in the Scriptures and witnessed to by the Church through history. “Deacons” lead and serve as examples to the living out of that truth in loving service to those who have needs (especially and primarily within the local congregation). Faith and works cannot exist apart from each other. Faith without works is dead. Works without faith is legalism that cannot save; or, to put it another way, works without faith in Jesus Christ alone is the model of every non-biblical religion/philosophy in the world. It is an effort to achieve a goal (be it spiritual or physical, temporal or eternal) apart from faith in Jesus’ all-sufficient saving work. The offices of the Church display both faith in Jesus Christ alone (and the body of truth that is part of that faith) and Spirit-wrought works as the fruit of that faith, and both are indispensable.

Third, in the single body of the local congregation, the offices serve as a model of balance that is to be lived out by the individual members. While Paul doesn’t single out the “overseers and deacons” in the rest of the letter, Philippians does have unity and mutual submission within the local congregation as a significant theme (1:27; 2:1-18; 4:2). The offices, since they witness to required elements of a true Christian life, must complement and balance each other. In a congregationalist (democratic) polity, individual office holders have one vote – just as the non-officer holder (as a Southern Baptist, I confess that “each congregation operates under the Lordship of Christ through democratic processes,” Baptist Faith & Message [2000], VI). They do not wield any greater decision-making power. “Overseers” lead by modeling a life dedicated to the truth of Scripture, teaching, equipping, correcting, and encouraging themselves and the congregation to greater understanding, knowledge, and faithfulness to the Bible. “Deacons” lead by modeling a life living that truth out in loving service to the congregation and by organizing efforts in the whole faith community to serve members in need. Neither office has greater power; the idea of power, in fact, is antithetical to the offices as Jesus embodied them. It is together that they display a biblically-balanced Christian life. If they are not displaying that balance in their harmony and mutual submission, they are giving witness to a twisted and imbalanced Christianity – which is no Christianity at all.

This humility, mutual submission, and balance has to be purposefully pursued. In our sin and pride we will tend toward exerting our will and elevating our status within and between the offices. Office-holders must continually remind each other of the true nature of the offices. They must pray for each other, and pray together (1 Timothy 2:8). They must speak well of each other, publicly and privately giving thanks for the wisdom of Christ and work of the Spirit in and through these offices. They must seek out ways of helping one another. “Overseers” must participate in the service of “deacons,” submitting to them and following their lead in service projects or individual acts of mercy. “Deacons” must participate in the teaching opportunities offered within the congregational schedule, especially when they are led by “overseers.” “Deacons,” pursue growth in the truth under the leadership of the “overseers.” “Overseers,” live out that truth under the servant-leadership of the “deacons.”

In the mutual submission and balance of the offices, these two groups offer even more to the congregation than they ever could apart from each other or – God forbid – in competition with each other. Officers living in biblical balance show a rich and whole Christian community and life to the congregation as a whole and as individuals. This is the will and plan of Christ, the only Lord of His Church.

Modeling the Truth

I recently wrote this: “Purposefully showing the relationship of Christ and Church in the worship gathering on the Lord’s Day should be a regular part of that disciplined pursuit of each other. This isn’t hypocrisy; this is disciplining yourselves to show the ideal of the Gospel. Again, if there are problems, get help. Modeling the goal of Christian marriage (the Gospel relationship between Christ and the Church) in the gathering of the Church is appropriate and a good reminder to you and the rest of the congregation.”

Today I’d like to say a little more about the principle behind this statement. This is advice I’ve given to a lot of people in many different contexts over the years.

We should purposefully discipline ourselves to think, speak, and live out the truth of the Bible, even when we don’t feel like it.

If I wait until I feel like praying, I won’t pray. If I wait until I feel like telling others about Jesus, fear will win. If I wait until I feel like showing my brothers and sisters in Christ the love commanded by Scripture, I will choose being “authentic” over obeying God’s commands.

There it is. The popular buzzword among believers today: “authentic.”

I suspect it’s a barely-Christianized version of the world’s advice to “follow your heart.” But I should not be led by how I feel. I don’t have that option as a believer, for I have been bought with a price, and I am not my own (I am only speaking to those who are believers – non-believers should not imitate the behavior of believers). The command to love (to use one example) is not conditional on whether I feel like loving or not.

I am not to follow my heart, but to lead it in the truth: “Listen, my son, and be wise, and direct your heart in the way…he who trusts in his own heart is a fool, but he who walks wisely will be delivered” (Proverbs 23:19; 28:26). Truth and wisdom come to the heart from the outside – from Scripture alone. It must be actively applied to the heart, which resists in its sin and selfishness.

The Psalmist often commands his soul into action; this command is usually accompanied by a proclamation of truth to self.

“Why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him
For the help of His presence.
O my God, my soul is in despair within me;
Therefore I remember You from the land of the Jordan
And the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;
All Your breakers and Your waves have rolled over me.
The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime;
And His song will be with me in the night,
A prayer to the God of my life…

…why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him,
The help of my countenance and my God…

…why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why are you disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him,
The help of my countenance and my God” (Psalm 42:5-8,11; 43:5).

“My soul, wait in silence for God only,
For my hope is from Him.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
My stronghold; I shall not be shaken.
On God my salvation and my glory rest;
The rock of my strength, my refuge is in God” (Psalm 62:5-7).

“Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And all that is within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget none of His benefits;
Who pardons all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases;
Who redeems your life from the pit,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;
Who satisfies your years with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle…

…bless the Lord, O my soul…

…bless the Lord, O my soul…

…bless the Lord, O my soul.
Praise the Lord!” (Psalm 103:1-5,22c; 104:1,35b).

“Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;
Yes, our God is compassionate.
The Lord preserves the simple;
I was brought low, and He saved me.
Return to your rest, O my soul,
For the Lord has dealt bountifully with you” (Psalm 116:5-7).

“Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!” (Psalm 146:1).

The Psalmist commands himself to praise, shepherding his own heart with truth.

As believers, we are called to obey, whether we feel like it or not.

We are called to keep the commandments of God, whether we are in a good place in our Christian walk or not.

We are called to apostolic imitation (1 Corinthians 11:1; Hebrews 13:7), even when we want to do something else.

God in Christ is not worthy of our love, praise, and obedience only when it’s “real” for us.

The Father purposes for us to be conformed to the image of His Son. In faith-union with the Son we are growing into His likeness, righteousness, and obedience. By the power of the Holy Spirit we are to die to the “authentic” self (which is a sin-loving idolater) and live unto God in obedience to His commands.

This is not hypocrisy, saints. This is discipleship. Hypocrisy would be someone outside of Christ pretending to be in Christ; what I'm advocating is a believer in Christ disciplining herself to be as the Scripture describes she is in Christ.

Live individually and corporately in the truth of the Word. Remind yourself of this truth constantly.

“I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:1,2).

“We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).

“…be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth” (Ephesians 5:23,24).

Crisis moments in our minds, character, and discipleship are usually built not on the sudden, but on the habitual neglect of being saturated in the truth in the gathering of the Church and the self-discipline of being in the Word.

When we don’t feel like it,

Lord, hold us in the truth

That we may preach it to ourselves

And live out our self-sermons

Until they become eternal life,

And not just a struggling self-discipline.

Help us to rest not the earthly

Under the excuse of “authentic” or “honest,”

But, Holy Spirit,

remind us of the truth of Scripture

As it is in Jesus.

Take us to what we are in Him,

Away from what we are as sinners.

Help us to think rightly and stand faithfully

By Your grace in Christ.

Without it we have nothing.

Amen and amen.

Married Couples, Show the Gospel in Worship

“Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you. But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head, but every wife who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it is the same as if her head were shaven. For if a wife will not cover her head, then she should cut her hair short. But since it is disgraceful for a wife to cut off her hair or shave her head, let her cover her head. For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but woman is the glory of man. For man was not made from woman, but woman from man. Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman; for as woman was made from man, so man is now born of woman. And all things are from God. Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a wife to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair it is a disgrace for him, but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering. If anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such practice, nor do the churches of God” (1 Corinthians 11:2-16, E.S.V.).

Before I comment on the text above, let me explain why I used the English Standard Version for this post. As far as translations go, I’m a New American Standard guy (I’ll be using it in the rest of this post). It was the translation given to me when I was baptized in 1984, and I’ve stayed with it (and its update in 1995). Occasionally I’ll try another translation; I’ve used the English Standard Version and Holman Christian Standard for sermon series through books of the Bible. I like the New King James Version and New Living Translation a lot (the N.K.J.V. is my favorite alternate translation). I recently quoted the New International Version in my sermon notes; that was the only time in 10 years, to my recollection.

I’ve been preaching through 1 Corinthians in our evening Lord’s Day service for a year now. Recently I taught on chapter 11, which begins an extended discussion of Christian worship (chapters 11-14). I believe the interpretive challenges in 11:2-16 (and 14:34,35) could be eased if we consistently translated γυνή as “wife” instead of “woman” (and ἀνήρ as “husband” instead of “man”). The E.S.V., in the passage above, does this, but not consistently. Still, the use of “husband” (11:3; 14:35) and “wife” (11:3,5,6,10,13) in the E.S.V. is a step in the right direction.

Well, the other night, when I was teaching through 11:2-16, I did a verse-by-verse explanation of the passage for about twenty minutes. There are several challenging aspects to this section, and I suspect it’s easy to get bogged down in them. The reason I’m writing this post, though, is not to rehash those interpretive hurtles with you. Instead, I want to sum up the passage for you with one sentence: husbands and wives are to display the Gospel in their relationship when the Church is gathered for worship.

Paul’s all about the Gospel. As far as his preaching when he was with the Corinthians, he wrote, “I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2). When I was teaching a preaching class several years ago, I told the men that the first step was to imagine a big cross on the empty sheet of paper that would become their sermon notes. Remember Spurgeon’s famous wisdom: “The motto of all true servants of God must be, ‘We preach Christ; and him crucified.’ A sermon without Christ in it is like a loaf of bread without any flour in it. No Christ in your sermon, sir? Then go home, and never preach again until you have something worth preaching” (07/09/1876; sermon #2899).

The Lord’s Supper is given by the Lord of the Church so that the membership can proclaim the cross of Christ together: “…as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26).

The Gospel is primary: “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared” (1 Corinthians 15:1-5). We need the Gospel often. I have told our congregation for years that they need to preach the Gospel to themselves every day. And it certainly needs to be proclaimed every Lord’s Day. As Martin Luther wrote at the beginning of his commentary on Galatians, “I must hearken to the gospel, which teacheth me, not what I ought to do (for that is the proper office of the law), but what Jesus Christ the Son of God hath done for me: to wit, that He suffered and died to deliver me from sin and death. The gospel willeth me to receive this, and to believe it. And this is the truth of the gospel. It is also the principal article of all Christian doctrine, wherein the knowledge of all godliness consisteth. Most necessary it is, therefore, that we should know this article well, teach it unto others, and beat it into their heads continually.”

In the same way, husbands and wives are to display the Gospel in their relationship in the gathering of the Church. When you read 1 Corinthians 11:2-16 (and 14:34,35), read “husband” and “wife” for “man” and “woman.” Don’t get distracted by hair/head coverings and the public prayer/prophesying of women (those are legitimate issues to discover, but it’s issue to miss the big picture while wrestling with them). Read this passage in light of Ephesians 5:22-33.

While there are definitely unique cultural elements to this, don’t buy the argument that the whole passage should be jettisoned from application because of those issues found in A.D. 1st century Corinth. Paul doesn’t base his reasoning on cultural conditions which are irrelevant today. He bases his argument on Genesis 2 in 1 Corinthians 11:8,9. He does the same thing in 1 Timothy 2:13-15. Jesus does the same thing in Matthew 19:3-9 and its parallels in Mark and Luke. The historicity of Genesis 2-3 matters because of the Gospel.

How does the marriage relationship display the Gospel in worship? I can’t answer that question comprehensively, but here are a few thoughts:

Show you actually love each other. Don’t complain about each other in the times around gathered worship. I’m not saying be hypocritical if there are problems, but we don’t gather for the primary purpose of displaying ourselves. We gather to display and remind ourselves of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Need help? Please seek it out. In worship, however, practice displaying love by respecting each other, smiling at each other, sitting close, singing together, and receiving the Word together (I know our roles in service sometimes make this impractical, but make time away from those roles to worship together with the gathered congregation). Do you remember the 40-day Love Dare devotional? Purposefully showing the relationship of Christ and Church in the worship gathering on the Lord’s Day should be a regular part of that disciplined pursuit of each other. This isn’t hypocrisy; this is disciplining yourselves to show the ideal of the Gospel. Again, if there are problems, get help. Modeling the goal of Christian marriage (the Gospel relationship between Christ and the Church) in the gathering of the Church is appropriate and a good reminder to you and the rest of the congregation.

It can be funny to put each other down teasingly and to make little jokes at each other’s expense, but think about saving that for other times. Husbands, have eyes for your bride. Wives, be thankful he’s at gathering with you. Smile at each other. Husbands, put your arm around her shoulders. Do you have little ones with you in worship? Shepherd them as a team, serving one another by engaging in worship-parenting together. Display the Gospel in your relating to one another in worship. I think you know to keep the affection appropriate; hear the heart of what I’m saying.

There is an increased sensitivity and consideration of single people in the life of the Church; that’s a good thing. We want to be inclusive and edifying to all believers. This doesn’t mean we minimize the biblically-mandated witness the married contribute to the worship gathering.

Husbands and wives, remember: you should be showing the Gospel story by your relationship in the gathering of the Church.

The Way the Wind Blows

“Two priests came round our house tonight:
One young, one old, to offer prayers for the dying,
To serve the final rite.
One to learn, one to teach
Which was the cold wind blows,
Fussing and flapping in priestly black
Like a murder of crows.”

Sting, “All This Time” (from The Soul Ages, ©1991, A&M Records)

I’ve had this song playing in my mind lately, and it’s been a psychical irritant. The place of the album in my life is poignant (it came out in January the year I graduated high school), and I have always deeply appreciated Sting’s song-writing abilities. But these lines rumple me in spirit.

Earlier this week I made the drive to the middle of our incredible (and incredibly large) state to visit someone in a rehabilitation hospital there. It was a long trip (roughly 280 miles one-way), and one of the men I’ve been mentoring for several years was off work, so I asked him to come along.

The Lord has granted me the opportunity to play the role of mentor many times over the years, sometimes even in an official capacity as some of these brothers were pursuing seminary degrees. It’s mostly been a joy to me (though there has been heartbreak), and that’s probably why Sting’s been annoying me with his singing recently. The discipleship of the people of God, those who “learn” and those who “teach,” does not have as its content “which way the cold wind blows.” He is anything but “cold.” Sting makes reference to the Bible’s play on the single word (Hebrew in the O.T., Greek in the N.T.) for “breath,” “wind,” and “Spirit.” He is the Spirit of Whom Jesus speaks in His nighttime encounter with the Pharisee: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:4-8).[1] The Person of the Holy Spirit, Who is as mysterious and invisible as the wind, causes our new life in Christ to become a reality in His continued participation in the creative work of God (this is how He’s introduced to us in the second verse of the Bible). He is not a “cold wind.” He is the very warmth of the true life of God in all those who believe in the resurrected and glorious Son. And this Monday, though we both coincidentally wore Batman t-shirts, we were not quite comparable to “a murder of crows” in “priestly black” (and there are no crows in New Mexico – only ravens). If you don’t know the joyful weight of pouring your time, heart, struggles with sin, experience with a gracious God, and life itself into a fellow believer for their (and your) continued growth, pray earnestly that the warm, living wind Who is the Holy Spirit brings you to this place.[2]

On our way back we were talking of false teachers. My brother mentioned that he had caught a reference I made to one several weeks early in the morning Lord’s Day service at our local church. Without mentioning the preacher’s name, I had pointed to his Gospel-denying, theology-twisting recent proclamation that God had broken His own Law out of love. Horrible. The Song of Moses praises God with these soaring lines: “The Rock! His work is perfect, for all His ways are just; a God of faithfulness and without injustice, righteous and upright is He” (Deuteronomy 32:4). The Spirit says this of God’s commitment to a just upholding of His Law: “He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous, both of them alike are an abomination to the LORD” (Proverbs 17:15). It is this unchangeable character of God in righteousness that leads to the sacrifice of His perfectly righteous, holy, and obedient Son in our place. It, not the breaking of His own Law, was the only way “He would be just and the Justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26). Sin had to be punished according to God’s Law. He is a perfectly righteous Judge. He is also Savior. Someone had to pay. The Son, one in will with the Father, fulfilled this role by offering Himself in our place. No Law was broken, no eternally unchanging righteousness compromised – but salvation is accomplished, praise His holy name.

Our conversation then moved to another teacher who, on Christmas Eve last year, had announced to his congregation that the Ten Commandments weren’t commandments at all, but promises. His argument was that they are not “commandments,” since this Hebrew word is not used to describe the Ten. They are the Ten “Words.” From this he argued, via a look at dubious connections between Hebrew words, that they were not commandments but promises. There are several problems here. Context is the greatest.

“Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Write down these words [הַדְּבָרִים], for in accordance with these words [הַדְּבָרִים] I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.’ So he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights; he did not eat bread or drink water. And he wrote on the tablets the words [דִּבְרֵי] of the covenant, the Ten Commandments [הַדְּבָרִֽים, lit., “words”]…then Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the rulers in the congregation returned to him; and Moses spoke [וַיְדַבֵּר] to them. Afterward all the sons of Israel came near, and he commanded [וַיְצַוֵּם] them to do everything that the Lord had spoken [דִּבֶּר] to him on Mount Sinai” (Exodus 34:27-31).

You don’t have to know Hebrew to see the three-letter root: דבר. It is a flexible word, translated “word”/“words,” “Commandments,” and “spoke”/“spoken.” I don’t remember exactly how my Hebrew professor in seminary explained it, but I always describe Hebrew words as something like Swiss Army Knives. Words can have a widely varied and large semantic range. This, sadly, opens the door for interpretive malpractice. Sometimes teachers use the original biblical languages as a means of giving the text a new meaning, usually falling into what is called a root fallacy. We don’t discover new or deeper understandings of texts by looking up a word in a Hebrew (or Greek or English) dictionary. That’s not how language works. You don’t get to isolate a word in a sentence, look it up in a dictionary, and choose a definition apart from how the word is used in its context. In this case, the “Ten Words” can be rightly understood as the “Ten Commandments” because they are “the words of the covenant,” that is, commandments that represent the boundaries of the covenant relationship. We see this earlier as Israel meets the LORD at the mountain: “In the third month after the sons of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that very day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. When they set out from Rephidim, they came to the wilderness of Sinai and camped in the wilderness; and there Israel camped in front of the mountain. Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, ‘Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob and tell the sons of Israel: “You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to Myself. Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant [obedience is part of being in covenant!], then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.’ So Moses came and called the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which the Lord had commanded him. All the people answered together and said, ‘All that the Lord has spoken we will do!’” (Exodus 19:1-8). With the establishing of covenant, God doesn’t give guideposts or mere words or promises – as Lord of the covenant He gives commands, and the people understand this. He commands obedience, and they response with a commitment to obey. The words that will come off of the mountain through the mediator Moses are understood to be commandments. Context tells us this, not a dictionary definition (or a Jewish Christian expert).

Returning to Exodus 34:34, the verb “command” is used in the midst of his presenting the “Ten Words,” or Ten Commandments, to the people. The people didn’t understand the words to be mere “promises.” They are “words” commanded by God.

The same language is used with the generation after the Exodus: “…the Lord spoke to you from the midst of the fire; you heard the sound of words, but you saw no form - only a voice. So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded [צִוָּה] you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments [הַדְּבָרִים]; and He wrote them on two tablets of stone. The Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that you might perform them in the land where you are going over to possess it” (Deuteronomy 4:13).

In case this evidence is unconvincing, I submit evidence from the Son of God Himself, Who, in naming five of the Ten, calls them “commandments” (Matthew 19:17-19; Mark 10:19; Luke 18:20).

To be fair, I don’t think what was said about the Ten “Words” was all bad.[3] What was bad was blaming God for this redefinition of the tablets of God’s Law (the preacher claimed the Lord laid this on his heart hours before the sermon was delivered). If this pastor would have taken to the pulpit and said, “here are the blessings in the life of a believer in Jesus Christ when they, by the power of the Holy Spirit, obey God’s Ten Commandments,” the ten points of this preacher’s Christmas Eve sermon would have been a wonderful, God-glorifying feast for the Church. What was bad was teaching his congregation that English translations are all wrong and the truth can only be learned from Jewish Christians with innovative definitions of Hebrew words. While they may provide insight that supports what the text as a whole clearly says, the original languages are not sources for secret knowledge accessible to a special few. Translation teams for our English translations have labored mightily to tell us what the Lord has spoken, and, as the saying goes, “context is king,” not selective and creative word-studies or etymological journeys into the previously unknown.[4] What was bad was minimizing the cover-to-cover demand by God that those who believe in Him and love Him also obey what He has commanded in His all-sufficient and clear Word.

The warm, eternal life-giving wind Who is the Holy Spirit moved through our discussion, even as we drove home through the powerful spring winds of New Mexico. By way of reminder to us all, it’s always important to return to rejoice in His truth after reading/refuting false teaching. So I conclude with the reality that the Ten Words commanded by God begin with a statement of gracious, supernatural, historical salvation for His covenant people: “I am the LORD your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery” (Exodus 20:2//Deuteronomy 5:6). This salvation foreshadowed the greater one accomplished by the Father in the new covenant: “He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Colossians 1:13). And, just like grace preceded the Ten Words commanded by God in the Old Testament, the New Testament also follows gracious salvation with an adjuring to obey the God of salvation.[5]

This upcoming Lord’s Day I hope to speak of the Christian’s graciously-given ability to love God’s Law. Only in Christ, with the penalty of the Law against our lawlessness forgiven, can we sing: “The Law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul” (Psalm 19:7), “I delight to do Your will, O my God; Your Law is within my heart” (Psalm 40:8), “the Law of Your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces” (Psalm 119:72), “Your Law is my delight” (Psalm 119:77b; 119:174b), “I love Your Law” (Psalm 119:113b; 119:163b), and “Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and Your Law is truth” (Psalm 119:142). Only in Christ, with the penalty of the Law against our lawlessness forgiven, can we confess with the apostle: “…the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good…the Law is spiritual” (Romans 7:12,14).

 Learn this and teach this. Warmly.

                                          

---

[1] Jesus is alluding to wisdom inspired by that Spirit through Solomon centuries earlier: “Just as you do not know the path of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman, so you do not know the activity of God Who makes all things” (Ecclesiastes 11:4).

[2] Mentorship (a contemporary word for discipleship) is also the fulfillment of the Great Commission – not baptism alone. READ Matthew 28:18-20. Teaching someone to observe all the commands of the Lord Jesus Christ is a life-long process.

[3] #1 – You do not have to live in constant disappointment anymore. #2 – You can be free from rituals and religion and trust in a relationship. #3 – You can trust in a Name that is above every Name. #4 – You can rest. #5 – Your family does not have to fall apart. #6 – You do not have to live in a constant state of anger because you will be motivated by love and not hate. #7 – You do not have to live a life dominated by the guilt, pain and shame associated with sexual sin. #8 – I will provide. #9 – You do not have to pretend. #10 – I will be enough. Found at Pastor Noble's blog. Again, if presented as blessings resulting from obedience to the Commandments, these are rich. Sadly, a day later, while apologizing for parts of this teaching, he addresses those who “still cannot wrap your mind around what I taught and disagree with it.” We can wrap our minds around it, and find that, according to Scripture, his redefinition of the Ten Commandments is wrong.

[4] D.A. Carson calls this “the root fallacy,” which is “the search for hidden meanings bound up with etymologies.” Exegetical Fallacies (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1996), pgs. 28-33.

[5] John 14:15,21; 15:10; 1 John 5:2,3; 2 John 6; Revelation 12:17. True faith leads to obedience (Romans 1:5; 16:26; Acts 6:7; Hebrews 5:9).

A Weapon in Each Hand to Fight the Darkness

I got to fill in for one of our Sunday School teachers yesterday morning, and took the opportunity to look at one of the most challenging Psalms – 88. In the English and original Hebrew, the last word of the song is “darkness.” The only positives in the Psalm is the sons’ (of Korah) opening address to “the God of my salvation” and meditation on the perfections of God in 88:10-12 (“wonders,” “lovingkindness,” “faithfulness,” and “righteousness”). Everything else is dark in the Psalm. We spoke about the place of lament and emotional discipleship in the life of the congregation, since the song is titled “for the choir director.” This is in stark contrast to contemporary Christian worship, which is a pep rally, and the suffering of the saints with depression, which is too often alone. The Spirit’s work through the teaching ministry of worship (“be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,” Ephesians 5:18,19) is neglected, since these days challenging emotions are not dealt with in the context of corporate discipleship as they would be in a Psalm-based liturgy. Psalm 88 (and similar Psalms), voiced by the congregation as a whole, would teach us a Spirit-inspired way of walking through depression and darkness. This seems like a valuable thing to do. As I pointed out to the Sunday School class, however, we have some Christian cultural expectations to overcome to utilize this Spirit-empowered scriptural tool. I can imagine our worship leader taking us through a Psalm like 88 and the uncomfortable reaction of the congregation. Some would have their brows furrowed as they struggled through the dark lyric, and others would joke their way out of the experience. The worship leader might be quickly questioned for putting such a “downer” of a song in the line-up.

We need this. I know not just from my place as overseer of the souls of the congregation (I know where many places of darkness are), but from my own experience with difficult days and weeks. Corporate lament and emotional discipleship would be an ultimate blessing to the people.

With this fresh on my mind this Monday morning (woke up at 5 a.m. worrying over a few specific souls), I read the apostle Paul’s letter to the Philippians.

“And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (4:7).

Ah, I’m jealous for this. I want this for dozens that I’m thinking of this very moment as I write this. How, Lord, can I help my fellow brothers and sisters find this? They have the peace with God that comes through being justified by faith in Christ (Romans 5:1). But this peace in Philippians 4:7 is a guarding peace promised to believers as we sometimes walk a very dark path. How, Lord? Then I saw the word, “and” (yes, it’s in the Greek, too). This precious promise is announced in connection with something that comes before it. Commands.

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:4-7, the bold marks the specific imperative verbs).

The God-Who-is-present (“The Lord is near.”) works through...

• ...our rejoicing in the Son (Who is called “the Lord” in 1:2; 2:11,19; 3:8,20; 4:23). Which means we are looking to Jesus regularly as He is on abundant display in the Scripture, and rejoicing in what we see.
• ...our cultivated reputation as gentle (1 Timothy 3:3; Titus 3:2; James 3:17). “To all men.” Challenging. It’s hard for some to let themselves be seen by others when they’re in the midst of the darkness.
• ...our refusal to anxiousness (Jesus issues similar commands in Matthew 6:25-34//Luke 12:22-26; Matthew 10:16-20//Luke 12:11,12; Luke 10:38-42). Interestingly, the apostle Paul describes anxiousness in a positive way in Philippians 2:20. Apparently, worrying over the spiritual welfare of other believers is acceptable!
• ...our thankful petitions to the Father (“God” is so identified in 1:2; 2:11; 4:20).

The Guardian of souls promises to work a protecting peace over those who pursue these disciplines (remember, they are commands, not suggestions). I’m not saying any of these things are easy to accomplish – especially for someone in a Psalm 88 kind of darkness. But it’s there.

The Spirit has shown me two weapons in two days to help others fight the darkness (Psalm 88 and Philippians 4:4-7). Pray with me, beloved, that He will wield them powerfully through the congregation and through this wholly inadequate overseer.

Psalm 88:9-17 in the ARP Psalter

The Boastful Pride of Life

There is a pride that shows itself in the Church. It is a pride over imagined spiritual maturity, based either on the amount of time a person has followed the Lord or on what they think to be spiritual depth (this is usually much greater in attitude than in reality!). They subtly – and sometimes not-so-subtly – make sure you (and everyone else) know how much more superior they are and how relatively immature you are compared to them. They do this to have a stronger voice in the group. They do this to build themselves up in their own minds (and in the minds of everyone around them). They do this to keep you in your place (below them). I know this is discouraging, especially when you’d like to “shock and awe” them into submission publicly and memorably. But this wouldn’t help them spiritually, would weaken the Church (even more than they themselves are), and most of all would not be beneficial to your own growth in the faith.

This is a foundational flaw to the sinful human being. You are not being hurt by anything novel or unique to your own experience. You aren’t even the offended party. God is. Their boastful pride is an affront to the God Who created them and saved them. You are collateral damage.

• “Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, ‘Indeed, has God said, “You shall not eat from any tree of the garden”?’ The woman said to the serpent, ‘From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, “You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.”’ The serpent said to the woman, ‘You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’ When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate” (Genesis 3:1-6).
• “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world” (1 John 2:15,16).

After the Exodus generation died in the wilderness for their rebellion, Moses renewed God’s covenant with the next generation. This generation had been raised in the wilderness and were now about to conquer the Promised Land. An offering of first fruits was commanded, with a liturgy built into it to give glory to the gracefully giving God and to keep spiritual pride at bay: “Then it shall be, when you enter the land which the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance, and you possess it and live in it, that you shall take some of the first of all the produce of the ground which you bring in from your land that the LORD your God gives you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place where the LORD your God chooses to establish His name. You shall go to the priest who is in office at that time and say to him, ‘I declare this day to the LORD my God that I have entered the land which the LORD swore to our fathers to give us.’ Then the priest shall take the basket from your hand and set it down before the altar of the LORD your God. You shall answer and say before the LORD your God, ‘My father was a wandering Aramean, and he went down to Egypt and sojourned there, few in number; but there he became a great, mighty and populous nation. And the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, and imposed hard labor on us. Then we cried to the LORD, the God of our fathers, and the LORD heard our voice and saw our affliction and our toil and our oppression; and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with great terror and with signs and wonders; and He has brought us to this place and has given us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. Now behold, I have brought the first of the produce of the ground which You, O LORD have given me.’ And you shall set it down before the LORD your God, and worship before the LORD your God; and you and the Levite and the alien who is among you shall rejoice in all the good which the LORD your God has given you and your household” (Deuteronomy 26:1-11). Notice the language of the liturgy. All that the worshiper has is “given” from God, not from the worshiper or from the worshiper’s heritage. In fact, the patriarchs are purposefully minimized in this liturgy: “My father was a wandering Aramean.” Israel (Jacob) is not to be the source of pride to the people. God is their boasting.

They later needed to be reminded of their humble origins: “Thus says the Lord GOD to Jerusalem, ‘Your origin and your birth are from the land of the Canaanite, your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite. As for your birth, on the day you were born your navel cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water for cleansing; you were not rubbed with salt or even wrapped in cloths. No eye looked with pity on you to do any of these things for you, to have compassion on you. Rather you were thrown out into the open field, for you were abhorred on the day you were born. When I passed by you and saw you squirming in your blood, I said to you while you were in your blood, ‘Live!’ Yes, I said to you while you were in your blood, ‘Live!’” (Ezekiel 16:3-6). The people needed to be reminded that they have just as much in common with the ungodly pagans of the land as they do with the faithful wanderers who were their fathers. This is true for us, as well. We still have much of the old humanity dwelling in us (Romans 6:6; Ephesians 4:22; Colossians 3:9), though we have put on Christ by faith (Romans 13:14; Galatians 3:27; Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10) and are in union in Him. The problem here is that some – God forbid it is us – have much more of the ungodly character inward, masked by a mask of mature Christianity. They can spout Scripture, have mastered the voice and language of a deep disciple (sometimes they do a good imitation of spiritual humility), but their motivation and words have a thread of serpent in them. Boastful pride of life, built on putting you down. And keeping you there. Sadly, other believers will buy their act.

This is not the attitude of true believers. If anyone would have reason to boast, it would have been Paul. He wrote significant portions of the New Testament! Top that! What was Paul’s character? Boastful? “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, Who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen” (1 Timothy 1:12-17).

Jesus taught that this attitude is the heart of what it means to be God’s faithful servant: “The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’ And the Lord said, ‘If you had faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, “Be uprooted and be planted in the sea”; and it would obey you. Which of you, having a slave plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, “Come immediately and sit down to eat”? But will he not say to him, “Prepare something for me to eat, and properly clothe yourself and serve me while I eat and drink; and afterward you may eat and drink”? He does not thank the slave because he did the things which were commanded, does he? So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, “We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done”’” (Luke 17:5-10). Notice that Jesus taught this to the disciples in response to their request to grow in faith. A deep faith doesn’t seek honor or glory for service to God. This is deep faith: a faith that obeys God without expectation of reward, blessing, or honor.

May those who are boastful in their spiritual pedigree, imagined maturity, or history of service take heed to the warning of John the Baptist: “But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, ‘You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance; and do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, “We have Abraham for our father”; for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham. The axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire’” (Matthew 3:7-12). God creates His children. They do not earn this badge through their own efforts. They do not keep this label through their own efforts. He creates us, as it were, from mere rocks. He will not permit it that we boast in our own spiritual self-creation.

Pray for them. It doesn’t work out well for those who are taking pride in their spiritual standing. Eve. The Jerusalemites to whom Ezekiel was speaking. The scribes and Pharisees to whom John the Baptist was railing. We don’t wish this upon people, even those who are hurtful and damaging to other believers. We don’t desire to see them fall away, but pray that their eyes are opened to their pride: “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12). Remember that God takes stumbling blocks in the midst of His people exceedingly serious (Matthew 18:1-10).

Use their example of pride as a warning and continual opportunity to take stock of the remaining pride in your own life. You have pride. I know you are being hurt and oppressed by those boastful souls who are being prideful, but this doesn’t make you a pure innocent. Prayerfully dig deep. It’s there.

Stay focused. These boastful ones have got it into their minds that we are gathered by God as the Church for their self-esteem and their social agenda. Trying to put them in their place or continually trying to counter their barbs, attitudes, and sneaking whisperings will only distract the Body from its calling. When these try to push the Church off-track, consider doubling down on the Commission of the Church to pursue missions, evangelism, church planting, and discipleship. These who are doing the work of the accuser of the brethren (Revelation 12:10) must be opposed by weapons – but not physical weapons. Get on-mission even more than you are. Encourage other believers. Pray. Stay in the Word and under its faithful teaching. Get out there with “the whole message of this Life” (Acts 5:20), even if “out there” is your own household. How far can you go for the proclamation of Christ?

Give God praise for all that He has done in saving you and adopting you as His child through Christ. Give Him thanks for His Spirit and the Bible. Through the words of your mouth and meditation of your heart get the focus where it needs to be – on your great God. This is the needful discipline for you in this moment of trial. His Church will prevail and grow stronger, but only if the true disciples in its midst live in simple, faithful obedience to His Word, by the power of the Spirit, through the lordship of the Son, to the glory of the Father.