Galatians: Week 9 and 10

Galatians 3:7-18
Understand, then, that those who believe are children of Abraham. The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: "All nations will be blessed through you." So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith. All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law." Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, "The righteous will live by faith." The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, "The man who does these things will live by them." Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree." He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.

Brothers, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say "and to seeds," meaning many people, but "and to your seed," meaning one person, who is Christ. What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.

I'm a week behind again, and I'm struggling with the memorization of verses 7-14 for some reason. Fortunately, this week's list of verses (15-18) is short. I don't have anything interesting to comment upon for the verses I've memorized, which may be part of the reason I'm having trouble with them. I understand that Paul is appealing to their understanding of the law by quoting Scripture. I recognize that these verses are important in showing that Christ fulfills the law, he doesn't abolish it. While that is true, it is still through faith that we are saved, not by observing the law. I love how over and over, in slightly different (and sometimes not so different) words, Paul continually lays out the Gospel. It should be evident to the Galatians, and us, that we are justified through Christ alone. He leaves no room to consider that you could be a good person, a "law-abiding" human and be justified because of that. That's so counter-cultural to us that it's almost unbelievable.

Hopefully next week will go a little more smoothly.

Salvation - Part I

I mentioned a few posts ago that I had been mulling over the concept of salvation a lot lately. I’m not quite ready to post anything on it yet, but I’m at a point where I would like to do some further study. Please don’t misinterpret this; I’m not questioning my salvation or belief in Christianity. I’m trying to understand it better, deeper.

So, I’m turning to you, my virtual community, for your input. Would you post in the comments your thoughts around the following questions:
a) What is it that triggers, if you will, the moment of salvation? By salvation, I’m meaning the point at which you are saved from eternal condemnation, which I believe happens at a specific point in time, one time. You might not agree, and I’d love to hear your thoughts on that too.
b) What are the bare essential elements to “becoming saved”? What I’m trying to get at here is what is the core of salvation? I think we often add a lot of extra stuff to salvation, and sometimes don’t even realize it. So, what are the basic pieces - that if you took any of them away, you wouldn’t be saved?

While I’d love to know your thoughts and conclusions on this, I’d also appreciate the Bible references that you feel back up your ideas. Additionally, I’d also appreciate any other suggested reading material. If you have friends interested in discussing theology, I’d love for you to ask them to join in the discussion.

Of course, I imagine there are varying viewpoints on this and my intent is not to create divisiveness in the Body. As usual, please be respectful.

Thanks for your help and input.

Galatians: Week 8

Galatians 3:1-6
You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: did you receive the Spirit by observing the law or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? Have you suffered so much for nothing - if it really was for nothing? Does God give you His Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law or because you believe what you heard? Consider Abraham: He believed God and it was credited to Him as righteousness.

What stood out to me this week was the verse: After beginning with the Spirit are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? Oh, I fall into this trap all the time! I believe that it is by God’s grace that I receive salvation. I began with the Spirit. And yet, in my day to day walk, I try to attain my goals by human effort. When I say “my” goals, I’m not solely referring to things I want to achieve in life. I’m also including the goals I believe God gave me, so having misdirected or selfish goals isn’t even my point here. Even the things I’m “supposed” to do, I try to do through my own effort. I started out on this journey recognizing I couldn’t do it on my own, but after the Spirit got me through the hard part (ie making me righteous in His sight) somehow I turn back to Him and say, “Thanks. I’ll take it from here.”

Daily I battle my desire for independence and control. Daily I have to turn my life back over to God. But as Paul notes, to begin with the Spirit and then try to attain my goal by human effort is foolish. It’s as if someone cast a spell on me, clouding my vision and making me forget what God has done. In some ways, the Christian life should be so easy. God wants to work in our lives. He wants to give us wisdom and direction. He already granted to us everything we need for life and godliness. Yet, we let our selfishness and independence get in the way and make it difficult. Oh, that I would step aside and allow Him to work.

Lord, help me to allow you to truly be Lord in my life. Remind me of my beginnings with your Spirit. I don’t want to be foolish. All of my efforts are in vain if I don’t have you at the center. Help me to not attempt to attain my goal through human effort. I am not justified by observing the law but by faith in you. I need your grace daily. Thank you for your Spirit. I just want to please you. I love you.

Galatians: Weeks 6 and 7 (well, and 5 too)

Galatians 2:11-21
When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face for he was clearly in the wrong. Before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray. When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?” We who are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus so that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law, no one will be justified. If, while we seek to be justified in Christ, it becomes evident that we ourselves are sinners, does that mean that Christ promotes sin? Absolutely not. If I rebuild what I destroyed, I prove that I am a lawbreaker. For through the law, I died to the law, so that I might live for Christ. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!

Okay, so I skipped posting last week because I was catching up on my memorization. And I intended to write this post on Friday, and then I blinked...and here we are on Monday. But here we go!

What has struck me about this entire passage and the one before is this: it was Christians causing division in the church. In Week 5’s verses, Paul refers to some “false brothers.” I did some research to find out more about these false brothers, but really didn’t come up with much. But here’s what I surmise...they were Christians. They might have been confused, deluded, or divisive, but I imagine they had good intentions (kind of like those Pharisees). Most likely they were not pagan worshippers who were dressing up like Christians, sneaking into the church and trying to convert people back to the pagan religions. I imagine they were Jewish Christians who were having trouble letting go of their rich history and traditions. I mean, Jewish law governed ALL of life. The “truth of the Gospel” that Paul was preaching rocked their entire system of existing. Paul goes on in this passage to describe what happened with even Peter. Peter, a pillar in the church, also fell prey to the hypocrisy plaguing the early church.

So what I take away are these two main points:
1) Test everything against the truth of the Gospel. Obviously that includes what you’re reading, what you’re seeing on television and what you’re hearing on the radio. But it also includes what your parents say, what your pastor says, what your friends tell you and even what famous, well-respected Christians are saying (and publishing). While they may be well intentioned, they may possibly be wrong. I’m not saying you can’t trust anyone; I am saying to be discerning.

2) Be careful when you begin speaking with authority. I’m definitely guilty of this. We sometimes are quick to share “what the Bible says” when we really don’t know where it says it. Or we quote things we have heard or read, and relay it as if it is truth - only because we assume the person we heard it from must be correct. I don’t want to become a “false brother” who is inadvertently trying to enslave people.

Obviously I could comment on much more from these passages, but this is what I’ve been pondering the past couple weeks. As usual, would love to hear your thoughts.

Galatians: Week 5

Galatians 2:3-10
Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you. As for those who seemed to be important - whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not judge by external appearance - those men added nothing to my message. On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, just as Peter had been to the Jews. For God, who was at work in the ministry of Peter as an apostle to the Jews, was also at work in my ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles. James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews. All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.

Well, the sad fact is that I didn’t even memorize one verse from this week. I did catch up on the previous week and practiced saying everything I knew (Galatians 1:1 - 2:2), but I missed week five. The message today at church encouraged me, though. Although the pastor spoke in a slightly different context, he said that living out the Christian life is hard. We can have the knowledge of what we’re supposed to do in our heads and yet fail to do it - and still be Christians. I know I should memorize Scripture. I know I should be going deeper in God’s Word and with Him. But sometimes I still don’t do it - even though I desire to do so. I am easily distracted. And I’m selfish and lazy. While all of these things are not acceptable excuses, I also can’t deceive myself and others into thinking I’m a perfect Christian. (I know, you’re shocked!) I struggle with making God a priority in my life and many times I struggle with not making it seem like to others that He is. I don’t have it all together, I can’t be a “good” Christian. I guess that’s yet another reason why I need Jesus. I pray this week will be better, that I will set my mind on things above and my heart on my Savior. I hope you’re able to do the same.

Envy

I gave a little talk last night on envy, and I thought it might be interesting to post some of my notes here. It’s amazing to see how much envy invades our lives; more than I ever realized before I started studying it this past month. As one lady pointed out after our meeting, many of our tragedies in society - like Virginia Tech - stem from envy taken to its extreme. The root of envy is comparison. We determine our value, our self worth, the quality of our life, the amount and goodness of our blessings by comparison. Envy robs us of the abundant life God desires us to have. We miss out on how God has blessed us - with gifts, with relationships, with provision...and how He wants to use that to bring glory to Himself.

Simply put, the answer to envy is contentment. I've added a few thoughts below on how to practically address envy.

1) Repent. Acknowledge the emotion when it arises. Call it as it is. Confess it as sin, and pray to God.
James 3:14-16: But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. (NIV)

2) Remind yourself that God has given you every thing needed for your life.
2 Peter 1:3-4: ...seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that you May become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.
Hebrews 13:20: And now, may the God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, equip you with all you need for doing his will. May he produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, all that is pleasing to him. (MSG)

3) Refocus your eyes on God, not yourself and those around you. Stop comparing yourself to others. Don’t miss out on what God has blessed you with because you’re busy concentrating on the blessings of others.
Galatians 6:4-5: Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, for each one should carry his own load. (NIV)

4) Rejoice. Befriend your rival. Try to see him or her as a person, not the competition. Celebrate success with them; it’s not about winning and losing - it’s about advancing the Kingdom...and any advance is worth celebrating.
Luke 15:7: I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. (NIV)

5) React. It might be to pray or memorize a verse. It might be to plan ahead in instances when you can. Maybe it’s to establish an accountability partner or confess your envy to the person you envy.
Proverbs 14:30: A sound heart is life to the body, But envy is rottenness to the bones. (NKJV)

Any tips to add on how to deal with envy? I'd love to hear them.

Galatians: Week 4

Galatians 1:18 - 2:2
“Then, after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Peter and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles, only James, the Lord’s brother. I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie. Later, I went to Syria and Cilicia. I was personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. They only heard the report: “The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” And they praised God because of me.

Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gosepl that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did this privately to those who seemed to be leaders, for fear that I was running or had run my race in vain.”

First of all, a confession. I don’t have the second half of the passage memorized yet this week. I’ve just forgotten. In some ways, I see how quickly the devil can gain a foothold because I felt a little discouraged, that I would struggle to catch up...so why continue?

What? I mean, we’re talking two verses here, and I’m feeling so behind that I can’t catch up? I still have two days. A verse a day wouldn’t be hard. But that’s where I am. I’ll share a thought about the passage that I have pondered a little, but please don’t think I’ve meditated on it all this week. The positive side of it is that I’m sad about it. I’m sad that I’ve missed out on meditating on a Scripture passage this week. I know that I’ve lost a week of time that I could’ve been growing closer to God that I won’t get back. Don’t worry, I’m not discouraged. Quite the opposite, I’m motivated. I don’t want to miss another week...another day...even another hour. For that, I’m excited. Excited about what the next two days will hold as I meditate on this passage. Anxious for next week’s passage and what lesson He might have for me there. That’s the joy of truly being in the Scripture, isn’t it? Waiting expectantly for what He wants to teach me, how He wants to grow me. I can’t wait.

As for this passage, what struck me was a comment my friend Beth made during our Bible study. Do you think you could praise God for someone who formerly persecuted you who was now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy? I think I’d have a hard time. If Osama Bin Laden suddenly became a Christian and began sharing the Gospel, would I rejoice? I’d have a hard time with that. I’d still want him to suffer for what he had done. I wouldn’t really want his sins to be forgiven and to spend eternity with him by my side in heaven. Mother Theresa? yes. Billy Graham? yes. Bono? yes. Osama Bin Laden? Nope, not really.

But Jesus came to die for our sins, period. Not for certain sins - the nice ones, the ones that aren’t so bad. All sins. Any sins. Sin is sin. It’s what separates us from God, even the so-called small ones. Luke says “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” (Luke 15:7, NIV). Paul needed Jesus. I need Jesus. Osama needs Jesus. And when a sinner repents, I want to join in the celebration.

PS - My friend Bekah, has a somewhat related post over at Xanga on forgiveness.

Galatians: Week 3

“I want you to know brothers, that the gospel I preached to you is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ. For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of our fathers. But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by His grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus.” Gal 1:11-17

Here’s what I’ve been thinking about in relation to this passage.

Paul was sure in his calling. The Scripture doesn’t say, “When God, who set me apart from birth and called me by His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles (the calling), I questioned God whether it was really Him telling me to do it or myself making it up. I looked through the Bible for some kind of confirmation, then I asked all my friends to pray about it with me for six months, after which I agonized over discerning God’s will for my life for another three months. Finally, I thought about going to Arabia and later returning to Damascus, but since I was still a little uncertain if this is what God was calling me to do, I decided to stick around and wait for another sign.” Nope; his words were “I did not consult any man” and “immediately.”

Now, I’m not saying that it is wrong to seek wisdom from godly friends, ask people to pray about our decisions with us or weigh whether or not we are acting from selfish motives or godly motives. However, sometimes we wallow in indecision because we doubt what we have heard. It’s like what Mick touched on at the end of his interview. We live in a time and place where we’ve relegated the Holy Spirit speaking to us and guiding us to the “charismatic” Christians. The truth of the matter is God has given us the Holy Spirit to teach us and remind us (John 14:26). We talk about discerning God’s will as though it’s a game of cryptography that God plays with us. We must do a specific, unknown number of Christian acts, say the right combination of prayers and cross our fingers hoping that today might be the day that He gives us the secret decoder ring. Many things are mysterious about God, but I don’t believe His will is intended to be one of those things (Eph 1:9, Jas 1:5).

So like Paul, we can be sure of our calling. We can move on immediately to follow His direction, without being paralyzed by second guessing. Because really, when we do that, we’re not trusting God. As a writer that gives me encouragement to continue writing and to know that when I hear that little voice inside me saying, “Maybe God didn’t really call you to do this” I can claim the authority of my calling and continue on.

Photo: Hunting for eggs (2007)

Galatians: Week 2

Galatians 1:6-10

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel, which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have alraedy said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned! Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.

I've just started memorizing this section (again), and it's not coming back as easily as the first five verses. I actually must be intentional about memorizing it, which is probably better anyway. Here are a few thoughts that strike me about this passage.

1) I am ASTONISHED...I want to be in the place where Paul is - so in love with Jesus and following hard after his teachings that it would astonish him that someone was distracted by a different gospel. Personally, I get distracted all the time, so it's not really astonishing to me to think about it happening to others. But Paul can't even imagine why someone would desert Christ because he is walking so closely with him - and may I go so far as to say, experiencing the abundant life that Christ had for him. I need to get to that place.

2) Okay, it might be just me, but I'm thinking Paul was serious in his admonition to pay attention to the gospel being preached. Eternal condemnation doesn't sound fun to me. Of course, in this text he warns the Galatians to beware of those "throwing them into confusion" but I like that he then switches focus momentarily to warn those who are doing the throwing into confusion. In the same way, we need to test the preaching that we hear against the Word, AND we need to be careful about the gospel we spread as well.

3) The last verse in this section is one I think of often. It's easy for me to get caught up in focusing on the approval of man...and it's definitely something I crave. But it's not eternally significant, and that's the type of impact I want to make. I can't please man and be a servant of Christ at the same time. Sure, sometimes it coincides, but pleasing man should be a pleasant by-product, not my focus.

Anyone have any thoughts on this passage they want to share?

Galatians: Week 1

The verses for this week are Galatians 1:1-5 "Paul, an apostle, sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead, and all the brothers with me to the churches in Galatia: Grace and peace to you in God our Father and Jesus Christ who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of the Father to whom be the glory forever and ever, amen."

Next week, I'll post some reflections on this memorization and the sermon. This week I'm still catching up on everything from being gone.

Odds and Ends

Just a couple random thoughts today, and maybe I’ll write a more coherent or meaningful blog later.

1) I love my new Mac. I’m still getting used to it, and being nerdy taking the tutorials online, but I already love it. It really does open up a whole new world of possibilities for my creative energy.

2) You would’ve laughed at me this afternoon if you had seen me sneaking around my house. I was hiding in blind spots, running through the kitchen passed the windows and crawling behind the couch to get to the other room without being seen. By whom? The dog. She’s outside because she is wet and muddy and I’m too lazy to clean her up. But the problem is when she knows that we are home and she’s not with us, she barks. And barks. And whines. And did I say barks? Since M is taking a nap, I didn’t want her raising a ruckus and waking her up...so I snuck around my own house. Pathetic, I know.

3) I hate it when I go to read my Bible and I just cannot concentrate. What is that all about? I curled up yesterday with the Word, looking forward to a time of refreshment as I studied my passage for the day (I’m reading through Matt 1-28 for Lent) and I could not stay focused. I must’ve read the Sermon on the Mount four times before I gave up. I was very disappointed. At least today was better.