By John Stallings
And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.-Isaiah 59:14
A while back the world has had a ring-side seat to watch, obviously a world-class liar, bicyclists Lance Armstrong admit that he's weaved a web of lies for years about his use of performance enhancing drugs.
How frustrating is that? It seems that to him the truth isn't a valued coin in the realm he inhabits.As the poet said, "Oh, what tangled webs we weave when first we practice to deceive."
When I was a kid growing up, occasionally something untoward would happen that nobody wanted to admit any knowledge of. Mom would say with her voice slightly tinged with cynicism, " Well, it looks like "Mr. nobody" struck again." In other words, good luck in finding the culprit here.
On the subject of lies we could cast our eyes to our nation's capitol where lies are an everyday occurrence.
There's a funny story about a man who was being sworn in as a witness in a court case and as he put his hand on the Bible was asked if he'd tell- "The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth," whereupon he asked, "Well which of the three do you want.?"
Orlando was abuzz some time back after the disappearance of three year old Caylee Anthony.
There can be no doubt that Caylee’s mother; Casey Anthony’s trial was the trial of the century. You may be familiar with the details of the case; - the body of the beautiful Caylee was found in a decomposed state and her mother Casey was accused of her murder by the State of Florida.
The trial started in May and after 33 days of testimony, 400 pieces of evidence and more than 90 witnesses, the jury in the Casey Anthony case reached a verdict.
After just a day of deliberation, jurors informed the court at midday that they had reached a decision, and both sides in the case were ordered to assemble in the courtroom.
Anthony was found not guilty of killing her 3-year-old daughter, Caylee. She was also found not guilty of aggravated child abuse and aggravated manslaughter of a child. But she was convicted on charges of misleading law enforcement.
The case against Anthony was mostly circumstantial, but as it unfolded she was portrayed in the trial as a promiscuous, self-centered woman who became a cold-blooded killer. The motive, prosecutors alleged, was to allow her to live a carefree life without her daughter.
The state's case theory was that a desperate Anthony used chloroform to subdue her daughter and then suffocated her with duct tape. Anthony then fabricated fantastic lies to cover up her deeds, they said. Anthony's attorney Jose Baez told the jury his client was the victim of an abusive upbringing.
As soon as Casey was found not-guilty of murder, a tidal wave of protests began which may hound the woman to her grave or a mental hospital.
BORN TO LIE?
Though people had varying opinions as to the guilt of Casey, one thing everyone agreed on was that she was the most prolific and proficient liar anyone had ever seen in action.
Casey started lying at an early age. Although a good student, she dropped out of high school in her senior year not long before she would have graduated. Because she’s also sneaky, her mother didn’t find out she’d quit school for weeks after the fact but when she finally uncovered the truth, she took Casey’s side and tried to help her cover it up. Do we see a pattern here?
Casey’s grandmother went to the school graduation and was non-plussed when Casey was nowhere to be seen. She confronted her daughter about it and while she was at it, dropped the bombshell that Casey had stolen a blank check from her and bought clothes. But this was “small-ball” to Casey.
One thing for sure about Casey; she’s a double-barreled liar and obviously prefers a lie when the truth would sound better.
LIES, LIES, AND MORE LIES
It used to be that truth was pretty obvious. Truth was truth. We see that in the well known language of the American Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident.” Today, however, we live in a different climate. Truth is no longer “self-evident,” as is clearly seen and acknowledged by everyone.
Truth is now, apparently, only evident-to-one’s-self. What’s “true” for one person can apparently be “not true” to another. Our culture has largely rejected the idea of Absolute Truth, and has ridiculed and marginalized those of us who still cling to such a concept.
The verse in Isaiah 59 likens life to a street, or an expressway, and it says that something has fallen in the Street.
TRUTH HAS FALLEN IN THE STREET.
Because truth has blocked the street, equity cannot get by. Consequently, judgment is turned away backward. Judgment drives down the street, comes to a blockade, and finds truth lying prostrate in the street. There is no way to get by it. Judgment turns and walks back. There is no proper judgment. Why? Truth has fallen in the street.
The verse goes on to say, "Justice standeth afar off." Justice comes down the road and wants by, but justice can’t get by. Why? -Because justice, like judgment, is built on truth. If there is no truth, there is no justice. If there is no truth, there is no judgment. Judgment is turned away backward and justice stands afar off and says, "I can't get by." Why? Truth has fallen in the street.
The verse says, "Truth is fallen in the street and equity cannot enter."
Next, equity comes down the street, and finds that truth has fallen, and, because truth has fallen and is blocking traffic, equity can’t enter. Consequently, there’s a traffic jam. All because truth has fallen in the street.
In the Orlando area we depend mainly on one big artery called I-4. I can’t count the times over the years that we’ve been stranded on I-4, sometimes for hours. Usually when we’re finally able to see what’s happened, someone has rear-ended another car, or more likely an eighteen wheeler has jack-knifed and scattered its contents all over the road.
To state the obvious, when somebody blocks the street, nothing can get through. An ambulance cannot get through. Somebody going to the hospital in a car can't get through. Why? The street is blocked.
Isaiah looks at his generation and says, "We have one great problem. Judgment has to turn and go back. Justice has to stand afar off. Equity can't get by. Truth is fallen in the street."
Just about everything except Christianity is welcome on most of America’s college compasses. They’ll accept everything but the truth. The truth is not accepted as the truth anymore. That’s why we have confusion. We need to get truth up again and quit blockading justice, equity, and judgment.
The problems in our land today stem from the fact that we have quit exalting truth.
Hundreds of churches are empty because there's no truth. Truth has fallen in the streets. If our churches are ever to be full and growing again, and influencing our society again, you're going to have to get truth up and say, "This is true, and this is error; this is right, and this is wrong."
There will never be a virile Christianity, there will never be a church that will affect and influence society until the church says, "This, ladies and gentlemen, is truth!" As long as the Bible may or may not be so, justice will not pass, judgment will have to go back, and equity will not be able to pass in the street.
I heard a little story the other day that illustrates so well what is going on in so many places.
There was a rural area that had a lot of barns. These were not just any barns. These barns had targets painted on them. The interesting thing was that there was a bullet hole in the bulls-eye of all of the targets.
All the neighbors knew that this had to be some pretty good shooting. They also knew who it had to be. It had to be Zeek. Zeek’s fame went far and wide as the best sharp shooter in the valley. One day someone was congratulating him and asking him how he managed to hit the bull’s-eye every time.
"It ain't hard," he said. "I just shoot the barn and then I paint a circle around the bullet hole!"
What’s happening to truth is not hard to see! People embrace a “truth” and then in pride and arrogance draw a bull’s-eye around it, pretending they’ve “hit the mark.”
There are three things I want to say about truth.
1. TRUTH DOESN'T DIE.
Truth doesn’t die. It falls in the street, but it doesn’t die. Truth will not die.
The Bible is still the Word of God. Jesus Christ is still the virgin-born Son of God. Our natures are sinful by birth. Christ died for sinners. We must be born again to go to Heaven. There is a Heaven that has golden streets and gates of pearl. There is a Hell that has fire.
You could listen to some preachers until your hair turned green and never hear them mention hell. Although I don’t enjoy saying it, If I believed there was no Hell, I would close my Bible. If I believed there was no Hell, I would stop preaching. After all, Jesus told us most of what we know about hell and He wasn’t a liar. If He told a lie about hell, why would I bother to believe anything else He said? Truth does not change. Truth never changes.
Just because someone has a degree doesn't change truth. The Bible is still true. Christ is still God's Son. Hell is still hot. Hell is still fire. The temperature in hell hasn’t changed one degree since Pontius Pilate and Adolph Hitler went. Heaven is still real. Salvation is still available. The new birth is still a necessity, if we want to go to heaven. Truth doesn’t die.
BIBLICAL STATEMENTS ABOUT TRUTH
God is a God of truth - Deut 32:4
Jesus is the truth, and full of truth, and spoke the truth - Jn 14:6; 1:14; 8:45
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth, and guided the apostles into all the truth - Jn 14:17; 16:13
The Word of God is truth - Jn 17:17
The judgments of God are according to truth - Ps 96:13; Ro 2:2
Christians should walk in the truth as revealed by Jesus, including the standard of morality He taught - cf. Ep 4:17-32;5:1-17
Christians should patiently teach others the truth - cf. 2 Ti 2:23-26
Many will turn their ears away from the truth - cf. 2Ti 4:1-4
Much more could be said, as the Bible reveals so much about what is truth.
2. TRUTH NEEDS HELP.
Truth does not die, but truth needs help.
Do you recall that story of the Ethiopian Eunuch on the road to Gaza in Acts 8? Philip is coming down through the desert place, and he sees the eunuch in a chariot reading the Prophet Isaiah. Philip comes down and sees him reading Isaiah 53.
Philip cries, "Hey, do you understand what you're reading?" The eunuch replies from his chariot, "How can I, except some man should guide me?"
If there is one chapter in the Bible that would tell a man how to be saved, its Isaiah 53.
If there is one chapter in the Old Testament that pictures Jesus Christ dying for sinners, its Isaiah, Chapter 53.
If there is one chapter in the Old Testament, the Scripture he had available at that time, that would tell the eunuch easily and simply how to be saved, its Isaiah 53.
And yet, he shouted, "How can I except some man should guide me?" This man needed help!
Truth needs help.
Truth needs a man/woman. Truth needs proclaiming. Truth needs preaching. Truth needs declaring. Truth needs to be lifted high. And that's why the writer inspired the Apostle Luke to quote the eunuch saying,
"How can I, except some man should guide me?"
Truth once stood erect. Once truth stood and pointed the way. Now it lies in the street.
3. WITHOUT TRUTH THERE IS NO WAY!
The One who said, "I am the Truth," also said, "I am the Way." When the Truth falls, the Way falls. For He who is truth is also the way.
John Wycliffe was, of course, martyred for his Christian stand. They hated him so much they dug his body up, burned his bones, and drowned his ashes. They put his ashes in the Avon River, and then they went down to the sea. They hated John Wycliffe that much. It was not enough to kill him. They did not want his body lying whole, or intact, in the grave. They dug his body, burned his bones, and drowned his ashes in the river. Fox wrote about that in Fox's book of Martyrs and said that God made it so, for the ashes and the body of John Wycliffe was as his message. His ashes were placed in the Avon, and from there they floated to the sea, and from there they floated to the oceans, and from there, around the world. The truth that John Wycliffe preached cannot die and his body did as the truth he wouldn’t denounce. It went around the world.
Our nation totters on the brink of destruction. We're not that far from being a socialist nation today. We totter on the brink! Why? Truth is no longer truth. Right is no longer right. Integrity is no longer integrity. There is no black and white. Everything is a misty gray.
I thank God for the Tea-Party, because I see them as the people. We need to pray that their ranks will grow and that they’ll keep their hearts right. It’s strange that the Lefties have a distaste for calling terrorism by its real name but they have no problem calling the Tea Partiers terrorists. Truth has been stood on its head and spun like top.
Nobody is dogmatic about truth anymore. Nobody says, "This is it," anymore. Consequently, truth falls in the street. When truth falls in the street, the way also falls and people not being able to find the way end up confused. Everybody today is looking for the answer. Everybody wants the way out. Our leaders are meeting day and night trying to find a way out for America. It seems that everyone is confused.
When truth falls in the street, the Supreme Court becomes confused.
When truth falls in the street, our Congress doesn’t know what laws to make.
When truth falls in the street, our leaders grope in darkness.
When truth falls in the street, our young folk become anarchists.
When truth falls in the street, every man does that which is right in his own eyes.
TRUTH OPENS UP THE THOROUGHFARE
Truth always allows equity to pass and always allows judgment and justice to pass. Truth, when it is standing erect, easily points the way! But when truth falls, equity cannot enter. When truth falls, there is No Way. Truth must be adhered to whether popular or unpopular, whether accepted or rejected, whether liked or hated.
We must point people to the One who is the truth, for He who is the truth is the way. Jesus said- "I am the way, the truth, and the life." John 14:6
Jesus didn’t say, "I am the way, and someone else is the truth, and someone else is the life." No. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.
All of it hinges on the truth.
"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:32
No truth, No way. -No way, No life. First comes the truth. If the truth is not preached, you won't know the way, and if the way is not known, you will not have life.
Our medical scientists are working day and night to give us life. If we want life, we've got to find the way.
THE BIBLE IS TRUTH
Where is the truth? The Bible is the truth. Every word of it is true. When this truth falls in the street, we lose our way and man dies without God. When this truth is picked up off the street and held and preached, man can find the way through Jesus Christ to life and life eternal.
Truth says that all of us are sinners. What is the truth? The truth is, as sinners we are lost. What is the truth? The truth is, Jesus Christ became sin. He was the perfect substitute accepted by God, and on the cross bore our sins in His body on the tree. What is the truth? The truth is that Christ was buried and our sins were buried with Him.
What is the truth?
The truth is when you are born again, you receive Christ, by faith, as your Savior. What is the truth? The truth is you can be saved this very moment. What is the truth? The truth is: If you, right now, would acknowledge the fact that you’re a sinner and that Christ died for your sins and receive Him personally as your sacrifice and your hope for Heaven, you could be saved. What is the truth? The truth is you could have your named registered in heaven if you’ve not already done so. That's the truth.
What is the truth?
Jesus is coming soon. The truth is that those whose bodies have decayed in the grave shall become like the Lord Jesus Christ, and those of us who live at His coming and are saved will be caught up to meet Him in the air. Then for seven years hell will break loose on planet earth. A man claiming to be God will take over the reins and put most of the world in servitude to him. He’ll bring the world out of economic disaster. Confused mankind who’d been looking for an answer will see his success and turn to him and worship him.
Listen to John the Revelator on that time..
2Thess 2:8-12: "And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming. Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness."
What is the truth?
The truth is- In order to go to Heaven; you've got to receive Christ as your personal Savior. What is the truth? The truth is not that you join the church or live a good life or turn over a new leaf. The truth is: You have to be born again.
There are still places where truth stands tall. Where truth has not fallen in the street, and because truth is not fallen, the way is still plain…
You can live forever through faith in Jesus Christ. That’s the truth!
Blessings,
John
Tuesday, January 30, 2018
Saturday, January 20, 2018
That "Naughty Lady "
by John Stallings
There was once a beautiful young girl named Nancy.
She was tall & thin & when you saw her you thought of a future model & later in life a corporate executive. She was attractive, smart, outgoing radiant & happy. She very often would speak in the youth services at her church. Her words were always thoughtful & insightful, full of wisdom far beyond her years. Nancy was a stunning, well adjusted young woman brimming with life.
One evening, the phone rang in her home & Nancy answered. Almost immediately she collapsed & was rushed to the hospital emergency room & subsequently admitted as a patient. When her pastor walked into the room the drapes were pulled & the atmosphere was gloomy. Nancy laid in a hospital bed, weak, pale, listless almost the picture of death. Only hours ago she was the picture of vital, radiant life. Her mother explained “after they returned from church last night Nancy got a call. She hung up quickly & fainted & they couldn't revive her.”
Nancy’s mom was asked if she knew what could have happened to Nancy. She said, yes; this girl who’d always gotten everything she went after had just been told that the thing she wanted most at that moment was denied her. The mother said that the sorority Nancy wanted in had rejected her. Someone had black-balled her & the trauma of that blunt rejection was too much for her. She couldn’t handle it. The doctors were sure that she was so hurt it crushed her emotionally, physically & spiritually. Here we see the awful pain of rejection.
Without question... the most brutal weapon we human beings can use on each other is rejection.
One lazy summer day Isabella & her family were enjoying family time, lying on the grass outside their home watching the clouds float by. A plane was flying so high above their heads it was barely visible. Her Dad made a joke & everyone laughed-- it was just a time of lazy conversation & being together. Daddy glanced at Isabella & said, “Run up to the house & fix me a cheese sandwich.” She jumped up & ran to fix that sandwich, feeling so special, getting to do something for her daddy.
When she proudly handed the sandwich to her daddy he took a big bite & as he chewed he asked, “Did you wash your hands first?” She answered, “No I hadn’t even thought of that.” He sputtered & spit the chewed-up food out onto the ground as he tossed the sandwich into the air. Cheese & bread flew everywhere. Isabella’s brother & sister rolled with laughter at the sight. She swallowed hard & tried to blink back her tears.
“Now, go back to the house & wash your hands & fix me another sandwich,” he said.
Isabella turned & walked slowly back across the yard struggling not to cry, torn between hurt & anger. This was the first time that her dad had made her feel inadequate but certainly not the last. Many times through the years when she failed to meet his standards he would ask, “Are you stupid?” As time went by, on one level Isabella knew she was smart because she made good grades in school & was a member of the Honor Society, but on another level there was always that little voice asking “are you stupid?”
Later in life her dad mellowed & was an affectionate grandfather to her sons & showed his love in many tangible ways. Isabella always wondered if her dad had used the “cheese sandwich caper” in a more positive way, maybe the little voice that asked, “are you stupid” wouldn’t have had a chance to develop.
Isabella’s story continues. The day came when she was at a low point in her life. For no reason she could understand she’d made a mess of everything that was important to her. Frustrated she looked in her mirror & screamed at the women looking back, “you’re so stupid.” On this day she walked into her bedroom & turned on her tape player. Thankfully what she heard next were the words of a gospel song that spoke of being sheltered in the arms of God. Suddenly she felt as if her heavenly Father had picked her up like a little child, wrapped her in His arms & said, “Isabella, you’re My child. You don’t ever have to worry about being good enough for me.” As she rested in God’s healing grace, the hurt was taken away.
Most of them are gone now.
The ones who knew me as a boy of sixteen in my fathers church in Orlando, Florida. We lived there longer than any place dad ever pastored. They were the ones who first endured my efforts to try to sing & preach. They said I was good but I feared I was a little less than mediocre. I remember how I used to look forward to the church dinners because there were so many good cooks in the church. They all called me “Brother Johnny.” They remember seeing me drive into the church parking lot the day I got my first drivers license. At Christmas time we always had a Christmas play & I remember being in many of them. When I was about 18 my dad made me his assistant & I can remember conducting a funeral for a 96 year old man. When I was married it was in a small town about fifty miles away but many from my home church in Orlando participated.
These people saw me off to college & were supportive when we started our evangelistic ministry. They helped us buy our first car that we prayed would make it to California.
Most of them are gone now; the Hecks, the Dumphs, the Halls, the Coopers, the Singletons, the Hummels & the Stewarts. When we returned after our first year long tour across America, I remember our homecoming to Orlando. Everyone in the church was so proud of us. They asked questions about our travels & made us feel like world conquerors.
Somehow it was very important to us that the people in that church approved of us. I can’t imagine what it would have felt like to come home & be received coolly. I can’t imagine what it would have been like to return home to disapproval. I can’t imagine my friends’ rejection.
But that’s exactly what happened to Jesus.
Mark 6:1-6 is one of the most awesome passages in Holy Writ. Jesus returned to His hometown, the town where He grew up, & His friends & neighbors rejected Him. He’d been enormously successful. He had healed & restored a mentally ill man, a feverish old woman, a paralytic, a woman with a twelve year hemorrhage, & a dead little girl. He had reached across the barriers that divided His society, ate with sinners, touched the untouchables & painted a picture of the kingdom of God. Everyone knew Him & had an opinion about Him.
And now, for the first time since He left—since the day He walked away from the carpenter shop to be baptized by His cousin John—now for the first time He came home to Nazareth. His parent’s village, where Mary had been born & where Joseph had been a carpenter. It was a small town & everyone knew the rumors about Him. They had watched Him grow up.
These are the people who met Jesus when He joined with His friends in the old synagogue on that first Sabbath of His homecoming. Was He proud to be there? I think so. Was He a little nervous when they asked Him to read & interpret the scriptures? Probably! This was a tense homecoming moment. Jesus must have been a good reader because they handed Him the scroll to read & interpret.
But then Mark tells us that the people got a mite testy. They started to ask some sarcastic questions. Where did this local boy get all this? Is this not the carpenter’s son, the son of Mary? Usually men were known as their father’s sons so when they referred to Jesus as “Mary’s son” it was a slur, the equivalent of calling Him a “Bastard.” The people took offense to Jesus & He responds not by being argumentative, but by stating the obvious; “Prophets aren’t honored in their own hometowns.” Mark tells us He could do no mighty works there. Nothing changed in Nazareth. Nothing new emerged. Life quickly returned to normal & why not? They had rejected Jesus! Pick any word you want; jealousy, resentment, tradition, or even— “if He came from us He can’t be much.”
And now we read one of the saddest verses in the New Testament, “He went about the villages teaching.” That is, He left His own hometown & never came back.
Have you ever been there?
Your reputation has been trashed? The only ones who will speak to you are losers? When you walk past little groups of people they say something in a whisper you know isn’t complimentary? You lose your appetite & make excuses why you don’t want to go anywhere. You quit going to the places where you know everyone will be. The sting of rejection saps your energy so that all you want to do is sleep. You dream of moving somewhere that no one will know who you are.
But one day you’re sitting alone by a little stream listening to the birds sing. They seem to drown out the faces & stares that are usually part of your day. Suddenly you’re aware of a presence of another person sitting a few feet behind you on a large rock.
This stranger starts a conversation with you but you don’t feel awkward. After talking to Him a few short minutes you feel you’ve known Him forever & He knows all about you & understands your rejection.
If the person I've described were Jesus, what could He say to you that would heal the lacerations of your heart?
Jesus had left Judea & gone back once more to Galilee. Now He had to go through Samaria. He came to a town called Sychar & being tired He sat down by an old well called “Jacob’s well.” It was about the sixth hour.
When a Samaritan women came to draw water He asked her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into town to buy food.) The woman asked how He could be asking her for water because she was a Samaritan & Jews didn’t speak to Samaritans.
Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God & who is asking you for a drink, you would have asked Him & He would have given you living water.” “Sir”, the woman said, “You have nothing to draw water with & the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?”
Finally Jesus tells this woman that He can provide water she can drink & never be thirsty again. He told her, “Go call your husband & come back.”-- “I have no husband” she replied.
Jesus said, “You’re right when you say you have no husband. The fact is you have had five husbands & the man you have now isn’t your husband.”
“Sir” the woman replied, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place we should worship is in Jerusalem.”
Jesus said, “Believe me woman, a time is coming & has now come when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit & in truth for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks.”
This lady forgot her water jar & went into her village & told the people about the man who told her everything she ever did & her town came out to meet Him. John 4:1-30.
This woman could have written the manual on rejection. It’s very possible that all of her five husbands had rejected her because in those days women didn’t walk away from a marriage. All a man had to do to get rid of a women was to say “I divorce you” three times & the woman was out on the street. These women knew rejection.
When I was a kid in the fifties there was a popular song called, “The naughty lady of shady lane.”
Here we have the original “Naughty lady of shady lane.” She experienced two miracles that day. First, men didn’t waste their time talking to women & secondly, Jewish men certainly didn’t talk to Samaritans. Jesus smashed a 720 year old barrier when he treated this woman as an equal.
When you think about it, this poor woman had been promised the moon by at least five men but they delivered nothing but ashes; nothing but rejection. But Jesus offered her acceptance when He told her He had the power to forgive her sins.
It’s in forgiveness that we find the ultimate acceptance. The slights & snubs of others melt into insignificance in the reality & security of God’s acceptance.
The opposite of rejection is acceptance. The most powerful weapon we have against rejection is Ephesians 1:6;
To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us “Accepted in the beloved.”
Blessings,
John
There was once a beautiful young girl named Nancy.
She was tall & thin & when you saw her you thought of a future model & later in life a corporate executive. She was attractive, smart, outgoing radiant & happy. She very often would speak in the youth services at her church. Her words were always thoughtful & insightful, full of wisdom far beyond her years. Nancy was a stunning, well adjusted young woman brimming with life.
One evening, the phone rang in her home & Nancy answered. Almost immediately she collapsed & was rushed to the hospital emergency room & subsequently admitted as a patient. When her pastor walked into the room the drapes were pulled & the atmosphere was gloomy. Nancy laid in a hospital bed, weak, pale, listless almost the picture of death. Only hours ago she was the picture of vital, radiant life. Her mother explained “after they returned from church last night Nancy got a call. She hung up quickly & fainted & they couldn't revive her.”
Nancy’s mom was asked if she knew what could have happened to Nancy. She said, yes; this girl who’d always gotten everything she went after had just been told that the thing she wanted most at that moment was denied her. The mother said that the sorority Nancy wanted in had rejected her. Someone had black-balled her & the trauma of that blunt rejection was too much for her. She couldn’t handle it. The doctors were sure that she was so hurt it crushed her emotionally, physically & spiritually. Here we see the awful pain of rejection.
Without question... the most brutal weapon we human beings can use on each other is rejection.
One lazy summer day Isabella & her family were enjoying family time, lying on the grass outside their home watching the clouds float by. A plane was flying so high above their heads it was barely visible. Her Dad made a joke & everyone laughed-- it was just a time of lazy conversation & being together. Daddy glanced at Isabella & said, “Run up to the house & fix me a cheese sandwich.” She jumped up & ran to fix that sandwich, feeling so special, getting to do something for her daddy.
When she proudly handed the sandwich to her daddy he took a big bite & as he chewed he asked, “Did you wash your hands first?” She answered, “No I hadn’t even thought of that.” He sputtered & spit the chewed-up food out onto the ground as he tossed the sandwich into the air. Cheese & bread flew everywhere. Isabella’s brother & sister rolled with laughter at the sight. She swallowed hard & tried to blink back her tears.
“Now, go back to the house & wash your hands & fix me another sandwich,” he said.
Isabella turned & walked slowly back across the yard struggling not to cry, torn between hurt & anger. This was the first time that her dad had made her feel inadequate but certainly not the last. Many times through the years when she failed to meet his standards he would ask, “Are you stupid?” As time went by, on one level Isabella knew she was smart because she made good grades in school & was a member of the Honor Society, but on another level there was always that little voice asking “are you stupid?”
Later in life her dad mellowed & was an affectionate grandfather to her sons & showed his love in many tangible ways. Isabella always wondered if her dad had used the “cheese sandwich caper” in a more positive way, maybe the little voice that asked, “are you stupid” wouldn’t have had a chance to develop.
Isabella’s story continues. The day came when she was at a low point in her life. For no reason she could understand she’d made a mess of everything that was important to her. Frustrated she looked in her mirror & screamed at the women looking back, “you’re so stupid.” On this day she walked into her bedroom & turned on her tape player. Thankfully what she heard next were the words of a gospel song that spoke of being sheltered in the arms of God. Suddenly she felt as if her heavenly Father had picked her up like a little child, wrapped her in His arms & said, “Isabella, you’re My child. You don’t ever have to worry about being good enough for me.” As she rested in God’s healing grace, the hurt was taken away.
Most of them are gone now.
The ones who knew me as a boy of sixteen in my fathers church in Orlando, Florida. We lived there longer than any place dad ever pastored. They were the ones who first endured my efforts to try to sing & preach. They said I was good but I feared I was a little less than mediocre. I remember how I used to look forward to the church dinners because there were so many good cooks in the church. They all called me “Brother Johnny.” They remember seeing me drive into the church parking lot the day I got my first drivers license. At Christmas time we always had a Christmas play & I remember being in many of them. When I was about 18 my dad made me his assistant & I can remember conducting a funeral for a 96 year old man. When I was married it was in a small town about fifty miles away but many from my home church in Orlando participated.
These people saw me off to college & were supportive when we started our evangelistic ministry. They helped us buy our first car that we prayed would make it to California.
Most of them are gone now; the Hecks, the Dumphs, the Halls, the Coopers, the Singletons, the Hummels & the Stewarts. When we returned after our first year long tour across America, I remember our homecoming to Orlando. Everyone in the church was so proud of us. They asked questions about our travels & made us feel like world conquerors.
Somehow it was very important to us that the people in that church approved of us. I can’t imagine what it would have felt like to come home & be received coolly. I can’t imagine what it would have been like to return home to disapproval. I can’t imagine my friends’ rejection.
But that’s exactly what happened to Jesus.
Mark 6:1-6 is one of the most awesome passages in Holy Writ. Jesus returned to His hometown, the town where He grew up, & His friends & neighbors rejected Him. He’d been enormously successful. He had healed & restored a mentally ill man, a feverish old woman, a paralytic, a woman with a twelve year hemorrhage, & a dead little girl. He had reached across the barriers that divided His society, ate with sinners, touched the untouchables & painted a picture of the kingdom of God. Everyone knew Him & had an opinion about Him.
And now, for the first time since He left—since the day He walked away from the carpenter shop to be baptized by His cousin John—now for the first time He came home to Nazareth. His parent’s village, where Mary had been born & where Joseph had been a carpenter. It was a small town & everyone knew the rumors about Him. They had watched Him grow up.
These are the people who met Jesus when He joined with His friends in the old synagogue on that first Sabbath of His homecoming. Was He proud to be there? I think so. Was He a little nervous when they asked Him to read & interpret the scriptures? Probably! This was a tense homecoming moment. Jesus must have been a good reader because they handed Him the scroll to read & interpret.
But then Mark tells us that the people got a mite testy. They started to ask some sarcastic questions. Where did this local boy get all this? Is this not the carpenter’s son, the son of Mary? Usually men were known as their father’s sons so when they referred to Jesus as “Mary’s son” it was a slur, the equivalent of calling Him a “Bastard.” The people took offense to Jesus & He responds not by being argumentative, but by stating the obvious; “Prophets aren’t honored in their own hometowns.” Mark tells us He could do no mighty works there. Nothing changed in Nazareth. Nothing new emerged. Life quickly returned to normal & why not? They had rejected Jesus! Pick any word you want; jealousy, resentment, tradition, or even— “if He came from us He can’t be much.”
And now we read one of the saddest verses in the New Testament, “He went about the villages teaching.” That is, He left His own hometown & never came back.
Have you ever been there?
Your reputation has been trashed? The only ones who will speak to you are losers? When you walk past little groups of people they say something in a whisper you know isn’t complimentary? You lose your appetite & make excuses why you don’t want to go anywhere. You quit going to the places where you know everyone will be. The sting of rejection saps your energy so that all you want to do is sleep. You dream of moving somewhere that no one will know who you are.
But one day you’re sitting alone by a little stream listening to the birds sing. They seem to drown out the faces & stares that are usually part of your day. Suddenly you’re aware of a presence of another person sitting a few feet behind you on a large rock.
This stranger starts a conversation with you but you don’t feel awkward. After talking to Him a few short minutes you feel you’ve known Him forever & He knows all about you & understands your rejection.
If the person I've described were Jesus, what could He say to you that would heal the lacerations of your heart?
Jesus had left Judea & gone back once more to Galilee. Now He had to go through Samaria. He came to a town called Sychar & being tired He sat down by an old well called “Jacob’s well.” It was about the sixth hour.
When a Samaritan women came to draw water He asked her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into town to buy food.) The woman asked how He could be asking her for water because she was a Samaritan & Jews didn’t speak to Samaritans.
Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God & who is asking you for a drink, you would have asked Him & He would have given you living water.” “Sir”, the woman said, “You have nothing to draw water with & the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?”
Finally Jesus tells this woman that He can provide water she can drink & never be thirsty again. He told her, “Go call your husband & come back.”-- “I have no husband” she replied.
Jesus said, “You’re right when you say you have no husband. The fact is you have had five husbands & the man you have now isn’t your husband.”
“Sir” the woman replied, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place we should worship is in Jerusalem.”
Jesus said, “Believe me woman, a time is coming & has now come when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit & in truth for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks.”
This lady forgot her water jar & went into her village & told the people about the man who told her everything she ever did & her town came out to meet Him. John 4:1-30.
This woman could have written the manual on rejection. It’s very possible that all of her five husbands had rejected her because in those days women didn’t walk away from a marriage. All a man had to do to get rid of a women was to say “I divorce you” three times & the woman was out on the street. These women knew rejection.
When I was a kid in the fifties there was a popular song called, “The naughty lady of shady lane.”
Here we have the original “Naughty lady of shady lane.” She experienced two miracles that day. First, men didn’t waste their time talking to women & secondly, Jewish men certainly didn’t talk to Samaritans. Jesus smashed a 720 year old barrier when he treated this woman as an equal.
When you think about it, this poor woman had been promised the moon by at least five men but they delivered nothing but ashes; nothing but rejection. But Jesus offered her acceptance when He told her He had the power to forgive her sins.
It’s in forgiveness that we find the ultimate acceptance. The slights & snubs of others melt into insignificance in the reality & security of God’s acceptance.
The opposite of rejection is acceptance. The most powerful weapon we have against rejection is Ephesians 1:6;
To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us “Accepted in the beloved.”
Blessings,
John
Tuesday, January 16, 2018
What Am I Going To Do With Myself?
By John Stallings
…Presumptuous are they, and self-willed……2 Peter 2:10
If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross & follow me. –Luke 9:23
I always enjoyed watching Mohammad Ali fight.
Of course his original name was Cassius Clay. We first got acquainted with him years ago as a nineteen year old boxer. He was young, brash and above all, a very good fighter. The man we knew in latter years, although world renowned, was hardly a shadow of the young fighter we knew so many decades ago. I was reading an article recently where Ali talked about his past and he said something that caught my attention. He said many of the fighters he beat really beat themselves by the mistakes they made. In other words, he was saying even with boxers, self is sometimes the most formidable opponent.
Often when talking about a political election we’ll say of the leading candidate, “The election is his to lose.” In other words, unless he does something clumsy and shots himself in the foot, he’ll win. Let’s talk about the question of dealing with our biggest obstacle, ourselves.
We Know What We’re Going To Do About Most Everything In Our Lives.
. Our spouses,
· Parents,
· Children,
· And other relatives.
· We have long since learned to relate to the people we work with or go to school with.
· We have a working relationship with our neighbors and don’t lose sleep over other people in our lives.
· We pretty much have a plan and an approach for each and every one of them.
· We know what we’re going to do about our bills, our taxes, unforeseen sickness, setbacks and just about every other thing that could be named.
However, many who have mastered all those relationships and challenges that life presents often don’t have the slightest idea what to do with themselves. That may sound strange, but think about it. Who do you have the most trouble with? We all have more trouble with ourselves than any one else. Paul says, speaking to Titus about the qualifications of a Bishop, “a Bishop must not be self-willed”. Titus 1:7. He didn’t say he must not be devil -willed, but self-willed.
This goes for us as well. If the devil died tomorrow we’d still have our biggest challenges with self. Nowhere does the Bible tell us to take every devil into captivity but it does say—bringing every thought into captivity…2 Cor. 10:5
WE TREAT OURSELVES IN WAYS WE WOULDN'T ALLOW ANYONE ELSE TO TREAT US.
Think about it. We wouldn’t allow another person to come to us and say, “You won’t be allowed to finish your education. You will not be allowed to finish high school or attend college. Its been decided for you and that’s final.”
You wouldn’t allow that would you? You or I would hit the ceiling and if necessary, hire attorneys and go all the way to the Supreme Court to make sure that didn’t stand. However, we’ll turn right around and do that exact thing to ourselves. With parents pleading with us to finish school, we’ll just quit, of our own free will, and not think a thing about it until it’s too late to do anything but regret it.
We’ll make the decision to stop our schooling, often for no other reason than we didn’t feel like continuing. I don’t say this to condemn or to suggest that everyone should go to college, but to make the point that we make decisions that hurt ourselves when no one else would dare do that to us.
We wouldn’t allow another person to say to us, “from now on you’re going to only eat junk food.” Your diet will be sugars, starches, processed foods with no food value. No more nutritious foods for you. You’ve got to gain 60 lbs., become grossly overweight and remain that way.” You may laugh and say, “I wouldn’t stand for that, I would never allow someone to do that to me.” Yet often people do it to themselves and think nothing of it.
You wouldn’t let a person take you out to a house on the edge of town where a mean man or women lived and tell you to stay there and be beaten and verbally abused on a daily basis. No one could make you get your eyes blackened and your body bruised and cut up by another person. It would take an insane person to even think of that. But people will, of their own free-will marry spouses who will abuse them and stay right there and allow it to happen.
No one would allow another person to take them out and get them so drunk and drugged up that they didn’t know who they were and what they were doing. You wouldn’t let another person to put you in debt for every penny you had so you wouldn’t be able to pay your bills, and say to you, “this is how you will stay the rest of your life.” We would be right in not allowing others to oppress us, but how much sense does it make to do the same things to ourselves?
Without Thinking About It We Can Become Our Own Worst Enemies.
Suppose you hired me to help coach you to be the best you could be and to help you go as far as you could possibly go in your life. You were looking to me to help you in every way to reach your full potential. Then one day I came in and announced to you that I had reached the conclusion that you’d gone as far and as high as you could possibly go and you should give up and quit. I further informed you that you were most probably born on the wrong side of the tracks and therefore not to expect life to get any better than it already is.
If this happened, what would you do with me? I believe that if a scenario like that took place you’d immediately fire me and get as far away from me as you possibly could get.
However, in this imaginary scenario, what if that negative person isn’t me, it’s you. To be frank, many people treat themselves in exactly the way I’ve described, constantly putting themselves down to the place that they have no confidence in their own ability to have a superlative life. And the problem is, you can’t fire yourself can you?
So I ask the question: What are you going to do with yourself?
The reason it’s so important that we learn to deal with ourselves successfully is; when our lives work, it sends ripples into countless other lives.
Let me make some suggestions.
First there’s the necessity to place full trust in Christ as Lord and Savior. Then according to Romans 12:1 we must,
1. PRESENT OURSELVES TO GOD AS A LIVING SACRIFICE.
Romans 12: 1 says---I beseech you therefore brethren by the mercies of God that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service.
In 2 Cor.8:5 Paul says that the Christians at Macedonia, before they gave an offering, first gave themselves to the Lord. When they did this first, then they gave liberally to Paul.
· A little boy who went to church and had nothing to put in the offering plate so he asked the usher to lower the offering plate to the floor so he could step in. All he had to give was himself. That’s the very first thing we need to do with ourselves.
Trying to have a full rich life without Jesus in your life would be like trying to draw water out of a dry well. You might say, I know people who are happy and successful and they aren’t Christians. To an extent that may be true but I will say unequivocally, those people are using Godly, Biblical principles without knowing it. How sad that they are taking His teachings only, when if they knew Him as Savior they’d be able to enjoy a life of wholeness that only Christ can provide.
The next thing is:
2. RESPECT YOURSELF.
Please don’t mistake self-respect for a prideful, egotistical, narcissistic mind- set. This kind of pride in self will make you a slave to your accomplishments & the opinions of others. The heart will always be striving to enthrone self & churning to exceed expectations. Fleshly appetites will consume time, money & energy, & joy is sapped out of relationships. This kind of self-glorification leads to a worship of self that is as anti-Christ as anything ever hatched in hell. Self-glorification winks at its own sin & condemns the sins of others.
The kind of self-respect the Bible teaches is respect that stems from who we are in Christ; our Creator who made us in His image. The Psalmist said in Psalms 139:14, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made”. The word “fearfully” actually means “respectfully” made. Think about that.
The Bible says in 2 Peter 2:9:”But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood an holy nation a peculiar people, that should show forth the praise of him that hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”
Not only that; but one third of all God is died for us on the cross. Think of someone offering their child for you to allow you to escape a punishment you deserved.
Can You Imagine Anyone You Know Actually Giving Their Child To Save Your Life?
That’s exactly what God did when he gave Christ to die for us. So in light of that, how can we do less than respect ourselves? If you want to see the devastation that happens when people lose respect for themselves, look at what the teaching of evolution has done to our school children. The message they teach is that we evolved from monkeys so the kids have started to act as if they are no more than educated animals. How sad to have this teaching so pervasive today and look at the havoc it wreaks in the school systems of our land.
I’m not advocating that we assume an attitude of such superiority that we see ourselves as little Gods, but I am advocating that we realized we are God's workmanship, the highest of all beings He created and act accordingly.
The next thing I should do with myself is ;
3. DISCIPLINE MYSELF.
Self discipline is the ability to get yourself to take action regardless of your emotional state. Imagine what could happen if you could get yourself to follow through on your best intentions no matter what. If you need to lose 40 pounds, without self-discipline the intention won’t happen. But with sufficient self-discipline, it’s a done deal. Your life’s success will be measured by the ability you have, and the willingness you have to get yourself to do the things you ought to do in your life. It’s that simple. Don’t make the mistake of waiting for God to do the things for you that you must do for yourself.
In 1 Corinthians 9:27, Paul says; --“But I keep under my body and bring it into subjection lest that by any means when I have preached to others, I myself should become a castaway.”What a statement. Many a person with a good head and heart will never reach their potential because they fail in the area of self discipline. Sometimes self-discipline will mean speaking the truth in love & other times it will mean just shushing. This much I have learned: No one is going to force me to work harder, no one is going to give me success pep talks, no one is going to constantly stay after me to do those things I should be doing to be successful. No one will tell me to shave, to bathe, to get up and work, to vote, to get my taxes and insurance paid, fix my roof, get the oil in my car changed, watch my blood pressure, eat right and brush my teeth. That’s my watch. It’s totally my responsibility. If I don’t do it for myself, it won’t be done- period. To have any kind of a decent life, we’ll have to discipline ourselves.
Here’s a scary thought. If you & I can’t discipline ourselves, we are certain to be disciplined by others.
Don’t believe me? Chew on this. Run your credit cards up real high & be late on a couple of payments. What happens? The companies will be quick to teach you a thing or two about discipline. I repeat, if you don’t discipline yourself, someone else will do it for you.
Next, I’m going to;
4. ENCOURAGE MYSELF.
When I was a teenager, I observed that most adults had trouble distinguishing between two ideas;
1. Promoting pride, &
2. Encouraging progress.
Because they feared the first, they seldom did the latter. They didn’t want us to be cocky so they would give us a lot of correction but precious little encouragement. The Bible has a lot to say about encouragement. Moses regularly encouraged Israel in the wilderness & later Joshua did the same. There‘s a vast difference between flattery & encouragement.
· Flattery is lies told for selfish reasons.
· Encouragement is truth told for unselfish reasons.
We are in good company when we are encouragers because the Holy Spirit is an encourager & a comforter.
However when there is no one encouraging us, we can encourage ourselves. The Bible says that king David encouraged himself in the Lord. To keep your spirits up, it’s necessary to constantly remind yourself of who you are in God and who God is to you. We shouldn’t become dependent on the encouragement of others. It may be there and it may not, but when we learn to build ourselves up we never have to feel defeated. Also we need to guard our thought life carefully.
Some morning, for no apparent reason, you may get out of bed & observe that a “grasshopper spirit” has jumped on you. The thing to do is to quickly identify it & start rebuking it right then & there. It’s so easy to let yourself go negative and start thinking like a grasshopper instead of a giant killer. Resist that spirit & start giving your soul instructions to praise & glorify God & that spirit can’t stay.
In Psalms 103 the Psalmists gives instruction to his soul and tells it to bless the Lord.
Listen----: Bless the Lord oh my soul and all that is within me bless His Holy name. Bless the Lord oh my soul and forget not all his benefits. Who forgiveth all thine iniquities, who healeth all thy diseases, who redeemeth thy life from destruction, who crowneth thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies , who satisfies thy mouth with good things: so that thy youth is renewed like the eagles.”
5. FORGIVE MYSELF.
Maybe you’re waiting today on someone whose hurt you to apologize. May I make a suggestion? Stop waiting. In all probability it’s not going to happen. In my years of ministry I’ve had people to lie to me, steal from me & tell hurtful lies on me. Guess how many have ever apologized? Right. None that I can remember. Why? Most people don’t have the courage or stomach to apologize even when they know they’ve done wrong.
But something worse than that is; ---often we can’t forgive ourselves for sins or mistakes we’ve made.
I once heard a judge tell a young woman who’d made a mistake & paid for it—“Young lady, don’t give yourself a life sentence.” Society had forgiven & closed the books on her transgression but the question was would she forgive herself? Have you not forgiven yourself for some mistake you made in the past?
Let me ask you a question. If you’re not forgiving yourself, who are you helping? You’re not helping God because He’s forgiven you & expects you to do the same. Can you help others by not forgiving yourself? I think not. Is it making you spiritually stronger to not forgive yourself? I don’t think so. Is it honoring the God who has mercifully extended His love & forgiveness? I don’t think so, do you?
We used to enjoy watching the show Growing Pains. The show was about the Seaver family but most of the plots centered on the antics of Mike Seaver, the mischievous, trouble making teen, played by Kirk Cameron. On an episode of E! True Hollywood story, they documented the events that led to the cancellation of the show. According to cast & crew & producers of the show Kirk Cameron became a born again Christian & he became increasingly difficult to work with.
There was nothing immoral or out of the way on the show but at one point Cameron got a female cast member fired because of something in her past. Cameron demanded that certain shows be rewritten & many writers quit because he labeled what they were writing junk. He wanted them to re-invent him as a humble, placid boy when the show was built on his foibles.
The show finally buckled under the pressure of trying to find someone to replace Cameron.
But this story has a happy ending. In 2000, Cameron rejoined the cast of Growing Pains to shoot a reunion movie. On the set Cameron stood in front of his TV family & apologized, saying “I was a 17 year old guy trying to walk with integrity, knowing that I was walking in the opposite direction of many other people. I didn’t have the kind of maturity & grace in saying things that I would now.” He said he’d forgiven himself & asked for their forgiveness.
The cast accepted his heartfelt apology & once again embraced him. Cast member Jeremy Miller who played the younger brother Ben Seaver said—“he’s once again the Kirk I remember.”
In a March 2003 article in Christianity Today, Cameron admitted that he went through growing pains on the set of the sitcom. He was struggling with balancing the power to demand what he wanted & how to express his new-found faith in God. Cameron admitted –that “ he made some mistakes common to new believers such as distancing himself so far from the world that they do no good for anyone.”
Spiritual growth isn’t easy & we all make mistakes in our journey. Over time if we will stay connected, & don’t quit & “Drop off the key,” or “Hop on the bus,” God will mold & shape us into what He wants us to be.
If you are currently embracing a season of change in your life, just hang in there. There will be mistakes, fear, and adversity but there will be growth. More & more we’ll be able to keep self “crucified with Christ” & as Paul said, “Die daily.”
I'm reminded of an old song we used to sing;
HAVE THINE OWN WAY LORD, HAVE THINE OWN WAY,
THOU ART THE POTTER, I AM THE CLAY,
MOLD ME AND MAKE ME, AFTER THY WILL,
WHILE I AM WAITING, YIELDED AND STILL.
Blessings,
John
…Presumptuous are they, and self-willed……2 Peter 2:10
If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross & follow me. –Luke 9:23
I always enjoyed watching Mohammad Ali fight.
Of course his original name was Cassius Clay. We first got acquainted with him years ago as a nineteen year old boxer. He was young, brash and above all, a very good fighter. The man we knew in latter years, although world renowned, was hardly a shadow of the young fighter we knew so many decades ago. I was reading an article recently where Ali talked about his past and he said something that caught my attention. He said many of the fighters he beat really beat themselves by the mistakes they made. In other words, he was saying even with boxers, self is sometimes the most formidable opponent.
Often when talking about a political election we’ll say of the leading candidate, “The election is his to lose.” In other words, unless he does something clumsy and shots himself in the foot, he’ll win. Let’s talk about the question of dealing with our biggest obstacle, ourselves.
We Know What We’re Going To Do About Most Everything In Our Lives.
. Our spouses,
· Parents,
· Children,
· And other relatives.
· We have long since learned to relate to the people we work with or go to school with.
· We have a working relationship with our neighbors and don’t lose sleep over other people in our lives.
· We pretty much have a plan and an approach for each and every one of them.
· We know what we’re going to do about our bills, our taxes, unforeseen sickness, setbacks and just about every other thing that could be named.
However, many who have mastered all those relationships and challenges that life presents often don’t have the slightest idea what to do with themselves. That may sound strange, but think about it. Who do you have the most trouble with? We all have more trouble with ourselves than any one else. Paul says, speaking to Titus about the qualifications of a Bishop, “a Bishop must not be self-willed”. Titus 1:7. He didn’t say he must not be devil -willed, but self-willed.
This goes for us as well. If the devil died tomorrow we’d still have our biggest challenges with self. Nowhere does the Bible tell us to take every devil into captivity but it does say—bringing every thought into captivity…2 Cor. 10:5
WE TREAT OURSELVES IN WAYS WE WOULDN'T ALLOW ANYONE ELSE TO TREAT US.
Think about it. We wouldn’t allow another person to come to us and say, “You won’t be allowed to finish your education. You will not be allowed to finish high school or attend college. Its been decided for you and that’s final.”
You wouldn’t allow that would you? You or I would hit the ceiling and if necessary, hire attorneys and go all the way to the Supreme Court to make sure that didn’t stand. However, we’ll turn right around and do that exact thing to ourselves. With parents pleading with us to finish school, we’ll just quit, of our own free will, and not think a thing about it until it’s too late to do anything but regret it.
We’ll make the decision to stop our schooling, often for no other reason than we didn’t feel like continuing. I don’t say this to condemn or to suggest that everyone should go to college, but to make the point that we make decisions that hurt ourselves when no one else would dare do that to us.
We wouldn’t allow another person to say to us, “from now on you’re going to only eat junk food.” Your diet will be sugars, starches, processed foods with no food value. No more nutritious foods for you. You’ve got to gain 60 lbs., become grossly overweight and remain that way.” You may laugh and say, “I wouldn’t stand for that, I would never allow someone to do that to me.” Yet often people do it to themselves and think nothing of it.
You wouldn’t let a person take you out to a house on the edge of town where a mean man or women lived and tell you to stay there and be beaten and verbally abused on a daily basis. No one could make you get your eyes blackened and your body bruised and cut up by another person. It would take an insane person to even think of that. But people will, of their own free-will marry spouses who will abuse them and stay right there and allow it to happen.
No one would allow another person to take them out and get them so drunk and drugged up that they didn’t know who they were and what they were doing. You wouldn’t let another person to put you in debt for every penny you had so you wouldn’t be able to pay your bills, and say to you, “this is how you will stay the rest of your life.” We would be right in not allowing others to oppress us, but how much sense does it make to do the same things to ourselves?
Without Thinking About It We Can Become Our Own Worst Enemies.
Suppose you hired me to help coach you to be the best you could be and to help you go as far as you could possibly go in your life. You were looking to me to help you in every way to reach your full potential. Then one day I came in and announced to you that I had reached the conclusion that you’d gone as far and as high as you could possibly go and you should give up and quit. I further informed you that you were most probably born on the wrong side of the tracks and therefore not to expect life to get any better than it already is.
If this happened, what would you do with me? I believe that if a scenario like that took place you’d immediately fire me and get as far away from me as you possibly could get.
However, in this imaginary scenario, what if that negative person isn’t me, it’s you. To be frank, many people treat themselves in exactly the way I’ve described, constantly putting themselves down to the place that they have no confidence in their own ability to have a superlative life. And the problem is, you can’t fire yourself can you?
So I ask the question: What are you going to do with yourself?
The reason it’s so important that we learn to deal with ourselves successfully is; when our lives work, it sends ripples into countless other lives.
Let me make some suggestions.
First there’s the necessity to place full trust in Christ as Lord and Savior. Then according to Romans 12:1 we must,
1. PRESENT OURSELVES TO GOD AS A LIVING SACRIFICE.
Romans 12: 1 says---I beseech you therefore brethren by the mercies of God that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service.
In 2 Cor.8:5 Paul says that the Christians at Macedonia, before they gave an offering, first gave themselves to the Lord. When they did this first, then they gave liberally to Paul.
· A little boy who went to church and had nothing to put in the offering plate so he asked the usher to lower the offering plate to the floor so he could step in. All he had to give was himself. That’s the very first thing we need to do with ourselves.
Trying to have a full rich life without Jesus in your life would be like trying to draw water out of a dry well. You might say, I know people who are happy and successful and they aren’t Christians. To an extent that may be true but I will say unequivocally, those people are using Godly, Biblical principles without knowing it. How sad that they are taking His teachings only, when if they knew Him as Savior they’d be able to enjoy a life of wholeness that only Christ can provide.
The next thing is:
2. RESPECT YOURSELF.
Please don’t mistake self-respect for a prideful, egotistical, narcissistic mind- set. This kind of pride in self will make you a slave to your accomplishments & the opinions of others. The heart will always be striving to enthrone self & churning to exceed expectations. Fleshly appetites will consume time, money & energy, & joy is sapped out of relationships. This kind of self-glorification leads to a worship of self that is as anti-Christ as anything ever hatched in hell. Self-glorification winks at its own sin & condemns the sins of others.
The kind of self-respect the Bible teaches is respect that stems from who we are in Christ; our Creator who made us in His image. The Psalmist said in Psalms 139:14, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made”. The word “fearfully” actually means “respectfully” made. Think about that.
The Bible says in 2 Peter 2:9:”But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood an holy nation a peculiar people, that should show forth the praise of him that hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”
Not only that; but one third of all God is died for us on the cross. Think of someone offering their child for you to allow you to escape a punishment you deserved.
Can You Imagine Anyone You Know Actually Giving Their Child To Save Your Life?
That’s exactly what God did when he gave Christ to die for us. So in light of that, how can we do less than respect ourselves? If you want to see the devastation that happens when people lose respect for themselves, look at what the teaching of evolution has done to our school children. The message they teach is that we evolved from monkeys so the kids have started to act as if they are no more than educated animals. How sad to have this teaching so pervasive today and look at the havoc it wreaks in the school systems of our land.
I’m not advocating that we assume an attitude of such superiority that we see ourselves as little Gods, but I am advocating that we realized we are God's workmanship, the highest of all beings He created and act accordingly.
The next thing I should do with myself is ;
3. DISCIPLINE MYSELF.
Self discipline is the ability to get yourself to take action regardless of your emotional state. Imagine what could happen if you could get yourself to follow through on your best intentions no matter what. If you need to lose 40 pounds, without self-discipline the intention won’t happen. But with sufficient self-discipline, it’s a done deal. Your life’s success will be measured by the ability you have, and the willingness you have to get yourself to do the things you ought to do in your life. It’s that simple. Don’t make the mistake of waiting for God to do the things for you that you must do for yourself.
In 1 Corinthians 9:27, Paul says; --“But I keep under my body and bring it into subjection lest that by any means when I have preached to others, I myself should become a castaway.”What a statement. Many a person with a good head and heart will never reach their potential because they fail in the area of self discipline. Sometimes self-discipline will mean speaking the truth in love & other times it will mean just shushing. This much I have learned: No one is going to force me to work harder, no one is going to give me success pep talks, no one is going to constantly stay after me to do those things I should be doing to be successful. No one will tell me to shave, to bathe, to get up and work, to vote, to get my taxes and insurance paid, fix my roof, get the oil in my car changed, watch my blood pressure, eat right and brush my teeth. That’s my watch. It’s totally my responsibility. If I don’t do it for myself, it won’t be done- period. To have any kind of a decent life, we’ll have to discipline ourselves.
Here’s a scary thought. If you & I can’t discipline ourselves, we are certain to be disciplined by others.
Don’t believe me? Chew on this. Run your credit cards up real high & be late on a couple of payments. What happens? The companies will be quick to teach you a thing or two about discipline. I repeat, if you don’t discipline yourself, someone else will do it for you.
Next, I’m going to;
4. ENCOURAGE MYSELF.
When I was a teenager, I observed that most adults had trouble distinguishing between two ideas;
1. Promoting pride, &
2. Encouraging progress.
Because they feared the first, they seldom did the latter. They didn’t want us to be cocky so they would give us a lot of correction but precious little encouragement. The Bible has a lot to say about encouragement. Moses regularly encouraged Israel in the wilderness & later Joshua did the same. There‘s a vast difference between flattery & encouragement.
· Flattery is lies told for selfish reasons.
· Encouragement is truth told for unselfish reasons.
We are in good company when we are encouragers because the Holy Spirit is an encourager & a comforter.
However when there is no one encouraging us, we can encourage ourselves. The Bible says that king David encouraged himself in the Lord. To keep your spirits up, it’s necessary to constantly remind yourself of who you are in God and who God is to you. We shouldn’t become dependent on the encouragement of others. It may be there and it may not, but when we learn to build ourselves up we never have to feel defeated. Also we need to guard our thought life carefully.
Some morning, for no apparent reason, you may get out of bed & observe that a “grasshopper spirit” has jumped on you. The thing to do is to quickly identify it & start rebuking it right then & there. It’s so easy to let yourself go negative and start thinking like a grasshopper instead of a giant killer. Resist that spirit & start giving your soul instructions to praise & glorify God & that spirit can’t stay.
In Psalms 103 the Psalmists gives instruction to his soul and tells it to bless the Lord.
Listen----: Bless the Lord oh my soul and all that is within me bless His Holy name. Bless the Lord oh my soul and forget not all his benefits. Who forgiveth all thine iniquities, who healeth all thy diseases, who redeemeth thy life from destruction, who crowneth thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies , who satisfies thy mouth with good things: so that thy youth is renewed like the eagles.”
5. FORGIVE MYSELF.
Maybe you’re waiting today on someone whose hurt you to apologize. May I make a suggestion? Stop waiting. In all probability it’s not going to happen. In my years of ministry I’ve had people to lie to me, steal from me & tell hurtful lies on me. Guess how many have ever apologized? Right. None that I can remember. Why? Most people don’t have the courage or stomach to apologize even when they know they’ve done wrong.
But something worse than that is; ---often we can’t forgive ourselves for sins or mistakes we’ve made.
I once heard a judge tell a young woman who’d made a mistake & paid for it—“Young lady, don’t give yourself a life sentence.” Society had forgiven & closed the books on her transgression but the question was would she forgive herself? Have you not forgiven yourself for some mistake you made in the past?
Let me ask you a question. If you’re not forgiving yourself, who are you helping? You’re not helping God because He’s forgiven you & expects you to do the same. Can you help others by not forgiving yourself? I think not. Is it making you spiritually stronger to not forgive yourself? I don’t think so. Is it honoring the God who has mercifully extended His love & forgiveness? I don’t think so, do you?
We used to enjoy watching the show Growing Pains. The show was about the Seaver family but most of the plots centered on the antics of Mike Seaver, the mischievous, trouble making teen, played by Kirk Cameron. On an episode of E! True Hollywood story, they documented the events that led to the cancellation of the show. According to cast & crew & producers of the show Kirk Cameron became a born again Christian & he became increasingly difficult to work with.
There was nothing immoral or out of the way on the show but at one point Cameron got a female cast member fired because of something in her past. Cameron demanded that certain shows be rewritten & many writers quit because he labeled what they were writing junk. He wanted them to re-invent him as a humble, placid boy when the show was built on his foibles.
The show finally buckled under the pressure of trying to find someone to replace Cameron.
But this story has a happy ending. In 2000, Cameron rejoined the cast of Growing Pains to shoot a reunion movie. On the set Cameron stood in front of his TV family & apologized, saying “I was a 17 year old guy trying to walk with integrity, knowing that I was walking in the opposite direction of many other people. I didn’t have the kind of maturity & grace in saying things that I would now.” He said he’d forgiven himself & asked for their forgiveness.
The cast accepted his heartfelt apology & once again embraced him. Cast member Jeremy Miller who played the younger brother Ben Seaver said—“he’s once again the Kirk I remember.”
In a March 2003 article in Christianity Today, Cameron admitted that he went through growing pains on the set of the sitcom. He was struggling with balancing the power to demand what he wanted & how to express his new-found faith in God. Cameron admitted –that “ he made some mistakes common to new believers such as distancing himself so far from the world that they do no good for anyone.”
Spiritual growth isn’t easy & we all make mistakes in our journey. Over time if we will stay connected, & don’t quit & “Drop off the key,” or “Hop on the bus,” God will mold & shape us into what He wants us to be.
If you are currently embracing a season of change in your life, just hang in there. There will be mistakes, fear, and adversity but there will be growth. More & more we’ll be able to keep self “crucified with Christ” & as Paul said, “Die daily.”
I'm reminded of an old song we used to sing;
HAVE THINE OWN WAY LORD, HAVE THINE OWN WAY,
THOU ART THE POTTER, I AM THE CLAY,
MOLD ME AND MAKE ME, AFTER THY WILL,
WHILE I AM WAITING, YIELDED AND STILL.
Blessings,
John
Thursday, January 11, 2018
If You're Considering Divorce.....
By John Stallings
Susan Doe testified that she was beaten, kicked, burned with cigarettes & stabbed.
She also stated that her husband “threw me so hard against the wall that my head went through the paneling. He loved guns so his favorite game when he was drinking was Russian roulette— “his gun, my head.”
Question: Does God forbid this woman to divorce her husband who is ruthless, savage, heartless, cold-blooded & violent? Does God forbid her divorce since sexual immorality wasn’t involved? Would you say “bound for life” adultery not committed? Are there any mitigating circumstances where mercy takes precedent over law?
Jesus said:--But if ye had known what this meaneth; I will have mercy, & not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless. Matt. 12:7
Nancy Doe’s husband is in prison for life because he conspired to kill the wife of another man for insurance money. He took her into the woods, tied her to a tree & cut her throat from ear to ear. However he didn’t have sex with her. Question: Is Nancy bound to her husband for the rest of her life because he didn’t have sex with the woman, he just practically decapitated her?
In John 1:14 we read…and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace & truth. You see this over & over with Jesus. He was a perfect mixture of both grace & truth. In order for us to be Christlike we must find that same balance.
Divorce is a complicated subject. Some people can’t deal with shades of grey. They want to make everything black & white. I think you know that divorce isn’t pretty & it certainly isn’t black & white but contains shades of grey. I don’t want to upset anyone here nor do I want to open any old wounds, but I’m going to have to deal with some shades of grey in this piece.
To be perfectly candid, some divorces seem senseless, as if the two people just got tired of trying & hit the eject button. I am non-plussed when I hear people say, “Oh, my ex-spouse and I are the best of friends. We are together on all the holidays and talk on the phone most every day.” Maybe I’m wrong but that indicates to me they must have divorced on extremely frivolous grounds. If the ex-spouse sold you out lock-stock-and barrel, how can you befriend them now?
On the other hand, others divorces are so painful it seems that separation is the only redemptive thing to do. The people in the marriage are going “nuts-o” & children as well as others are in clear & present danger.
The stats aren’t pretty. More than 50% of all marriages in America will end in divorce. The stats say second & third marriages have an even higher failure rate. If people were getting rid of their problems by getting rid of spouses you wouldn’t see second & third divorces. New marriage—same old person----equals same result.
That’s why since 1970 there has been a 430% increase in the number of couples choosing to live together before getting married. This doesn’t seem to help but only increases their chances of divorce by another 50%. Not to mention they’re living in sin. You’d think things would be different in church but the divorce rate among those who claim to be Christians has just surpassed society as a whole. Not good!
Can we conceive of any circumstance in which divorce would be acceptable to God without sexual sin on the part of one of the partners? Did Jesus actually teach that there are no grounds for divorce other than fornication or adultery? When the writers recorded the divorce teachings of Jesus, did they have in view that His words were a be-all/end-all dissertation on the subject of divorce & remarriage?
What about spouse abuse, child abuse, refusing to provide for one’s family, wasting family resources by drug-addiction or gambling, rejection, mental, spiritual or emotional abuse, unreasonable demands, harassment, behavior that beats a mate down, criticizes & destroys their hope & joy, creates depression, weakens & compromises them morally emotionally or spiritually, refusal to break from dependency on ones family, actions that show no regard for the safety of the mate, contempt for the mates decisions, refusal to allow children to be disciplined, demanding control of all martial finances, failure to regulate finances, contemptuous behavior, slander, reviling mate, falsely accusing mate publicly, dishonoring mate, etc.
Could these possibly be called reasons for divorce? These are issues that puzzle & bring consternation to millions of people. Is the best we can offer a spouse trapped in an abusive marriage & has given everything but their sanity to it, that “God will bless you if you stay in the relationship?” Is it possible that we could apply some other principles here that would be helpful & enlightening & give us a more proper understanding & course of action than just the few verses on the subject in the Bible?
I realize that the subject of divorce is extremely controversial. Dealing with it is as sensitive as trying to perform a root canal without using Novocain. There’s no doubt that divorce is one of the world’s most common social problems & carries an immense stigma especially among religious folk. The church lays a heavy guilt burden on divorced people.
It isn’t in the mind & heart of this writer to minimize the sacredness of marriage or the tragedy of divorce, however, If we look at the problem of divorce through a “theological straw,” we can create impossible situations for many innocent victims scarred by divorce. Some people are so narrow minded they can look through a keyhole with both eyes. But have you noticed almost without exception they change their attitude when divorce comes to their doorsteps? It’s amazing how a little trouble can change people’s theology.
This much is obvious; while couples need to be challenged to be faithful to their marriage vows at all costs, there is a need for ministry to those who’ve been divorced to help them move past the guilt & shame that accompanies it.
When speaking of divorce, well-meaning people will often raise the standard too high or lower it. On one hand people will raise the standard seeking to stop divorce saying there’s no divorce for anybody, anytime & absolutely no remarriage for anyone anytime, period. On the other hand sincere people will emphasize that we must love, care for & accept those touched by divorce. While they rightly stress forgiving, they end up lowering the standard to the same as the worlds, & that’s Biblically wrong.
What is needed is an encouraging & redemptive word for those who’ve been shattered by divorce letting them know that God hasn’t disenfranchised them & doesn’t love them less than others: that the Bible isn’t an “anti-divorce document,” & they deserve to be free from spiritual & emotional burdens attached to divorce, at the same time continuing to build up the solemnity of marriage.
Every effort should be made to avoid the extreme positions held by those who condemn all divorce, even when the Bible grants it, as well as those who condone any & all divorce under all circumstances. A balanced position has to be found between legalism & license so that we might do as Jesus said; -bring liberty to those who are bruised.
Every Biblical passage needs to be examined & looked at in its proper context, & it should be asked how that passage of scripture fits our times. While the Bible doesn’t speak to every divorce situation specifically, it does give us timeless principles & truths we can apply.
Divorce isn’t primarily a theological issue but rather is a people issue. Any theological position on divorce that results in a heavy-handed condemnation of divorced people falls short of the Spirit of Christ. God isn’t really in the theology business; He’s in the people business.
JESUS WAS IN THE PEOPLE BUSINESS
When the Pharisees brought the woman caught in adultery to Jesus, & had taken up stones getting ready to stone her, in a very real sense He risked His life to stand up for her.
I experienced divorce more than twenty-five years ago & I can tell you there’s no pain quite like it. I’ve been told that losing a spouse to death is worse in the short term but divorce is more painful in the long term.
In reality, divorce is a form of death; the death of a relationship. The spouses, children, relatives & friends are the mourners, the lawyers are the undertakers, the court is the cemetery where the coffin is sealed & the dead bones of the marriage are buried.
In cases where a spouse has died, at least that renders them unable to continue to try to hurt the spouse they left. In a high percentage of divorces, one or both of the couple, if they’re still bitter, will spend many years trashing the ex-spouse & do all possible to keep a war going.
Counseling centers, pastor’s offices, psychiatric services & happy hours are running over with people looking for relief from the pain caused by divorce. Obviously divorce isn’t as painful for some as it is for others. Some marriages are so messed up & destructive that divorce comes as a blessing. But for most people, divorce leaves a deep painful wound that takes a long time to heal. Some never fully recover.
Many divorced people will vouch for the fact that for a long time after the experience they feel as if they’re living a nightmare from which they can’t wake up. Part of the hurt is being judged by others as “adulterous, criminal, neurotic, or at best frivolous & unfortunate.”
Divorce is devastating for the children because they often interpret it as a personal rejection & blame themselves thinking that somehow they caused the break-up. Tragically, the cumulative effect of divorces weakens the foundation of a nation & in the long term everyone experiences negative fallout.
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT DIVORCE?
The first observation we can make without fear of contradiction is that the Bible has precious little to say on the subject. For example, there are over 500 verses in the Bible on faith, over 500 verses on prayer but only 34 times in the Word of God does the word divorce appear. There are many diverse situations that bring on divorce but unfortunately the Bible doesn’t deal directly with many of these situations.
As an example, the verse that says, God is love, has just as much to say about divorce as the verse that says I hate divorce. We can’t just look at one passage & think we’re getting the totality of what God has to say to people going through any problem. The entirety of Scripture must be taken into account when weighing sensitive issues.
Let’s be real. When God says, “I hate divorce;” it doesn’t mean He hates divorced people. He loves divorced people as much as anyone else. Doesn’t everyone hate divorce? The school system hates divorce; society hates divorce & divorced people, more than anyone, hate divorce. The children of divorce hate it as they’re the ones who walk into the court room & watch innocently as their parents’ divorce is finalized. Divorce is a no-win situation any way you look at it because someone always gets hurt.
Any suggestion that God hates divorced people is absurd on its face. When God says He hates divorce, what does He mean? When God uses those words He isn’t saying what some folk hear. His voice doesn’t thunder out to shake the earth to show us his anger & disgust. To the contrary, God is speaking compassionately to those who’ve lived through the trauma of divorce. God hates anything that causes so much pain to children, to families, the church & to society.
The following is an overview of biblical passages on divorce.
1. The Mosaic Law---Leviticus 21:7, 14, -22; 13--Ezekiel 44:22 Old Testament priests were forbidden to marry divorced or widowed women as a symbol of the priesthood.
2. Numbers 30:9—Vows taken by widowed or divorced women stood on their own merit while those taken by married women could be fulfilled by their husbands. Num.30:6-8
3. The OT Prophets-1 Chronicles 8:8—Historical reference to a divorce in the linage of Saul.
Isaiah 50:1—Jeremiah 3:8 –Both these passages provide a play on words referring to God giving the nation of Israel a certificate of divorce due to her spiritual adultery.
4. Jesus’ teaching—Matthew 1:19-When Joseph learned Mary was pregnant before their marriage he had decided to divorce her privately until God revealed to him that she was carrying the Messiah.—Matt.5:31,32—In His sermon on the Mount, Jesus confronted the frivolous reasons which men used to divorce their wives, stating that adultery is the only legitimate grounds. Matt.19:1-9—Jesus reiterated to the Pharisees who questioned Him about divorce that adultery is the only grounds for divorce. He added that the only reason Moses permitted them a “certificate of divorce” was due to the hardness of their hearts.
Mark 10:1-9, Like 16:18---Unjustifiable divorce amounts to adultery in subsequent remarriage. Jesus underscored the permanence of marriage as God’s will: “What God has joined together let man not separate.
5. Paul’s Teaching—1 Corinthians 7:11-13, 27—this is the only apostolic passage on divorce & remarriage recorded in the New Testament. Paul prefixed his remarks by saying,-To the rest I say this, [I, not the Lord,] he spoke as a seasoned apostle by divine concession not divine commandment as he did earlier in this passage. His wisdom is, however, inspired by the Holy Spirit.
Verses 11-14- Believers married to unbelievers are to minister to their unbelieving mates not divorce them. Verse 27:-Paul poignantly states, are you married? Do not seek a divorce.
Verse 39. While the word Divorce does not appear in this verse Paul stated that couples are only bound together in marriage while both are still living. The death of one’s mate frees the other to remarry but only “in the Lord.” You can see what I mean when I say the information on divorce is limited.
When we pull all this together several timeless truths emerge;
• God’s will for married couples to make a life-long commitment in a monogamous relationship: a principle spelled out clearly.
• Due to the hardness of men’s hearts & the problem of unfaithfulness, divorce was granted as a “divine concession.” It provided primarily for women who suffered from abusive relationships.
• The primary grounds for divorce given in the Mosaic Law involved a husband discovering something about his wife i.e. adultery or sexual immorality.
• Since men often divorced their wives for frivolous reasons a husband was required to provide his wife a certificate of divorce which allowed her to remarry without shame.
• Jesus taught that adultery constitutes legitimate grounds for divorce while limiting remarriage in order to discourage widespread divorce & remarriage by those who had lost sight of the sanctity of marriage.
• The early church expanded the grounds of divorce to include abandonment.
Just as in The Garden of Eden, God loves us so much that when we turned our backs on Him, in order to save us from ourselves, He adapted Himself to the conditions we created by our abuses of His freedom. In The Garden He slew animals & made skins for Adam & Eve to wear. We might call that God’s modifications. But we should never confuse God’s modifications with God’s ultimate Intentions. Nor should we confuse God’s modifications with His acceptance or approval. God hates divorce but He allows divorce in some cases to keep us from doing worse to each other.
Let’s be honest, it takes two people to have a healthy, vibrant marriage. It’s impossible for one person to keep a marriage together if the other person acts irresponsibly, ungodly & destructively. In many cases one person does everything he or she can possibly do to have a good marriage while the other person does nothing, leaving no other option but divorce.
Is a spouse in a marriage like that marked for the rest of their life & forced to wear the scarlet letter “D” because they were victimized by a destructive relationship they couldn’t save? Absolutely not.
If you are in a troubled relationship, and are considering divorce or perhaps you’ve already gone through divorce, here are some helpful steps;
1. Repent.
Repentance means to change the way you think & live. Learn from every sin or mistake so that you won’t make the same mistakes again. Remember God forgives & divorce isn’t the unpardonable sin.
2. Reconciliation
Make every attempt at reconciliation if possible so that you know you’ve done everything within your power to save your marriage. God wants us to live up to our commitments even when it’s difficult & painful.
3. Recovery
Take time to heal. Watch the rebound effect. Learn what you can from the marriage that failed. Don’t ricochet immediately into another relationship with the closest available person.
4. Restoration
Though martial reconciliation is most likely out of the question, try to reconcile your relationship with your former spouse. Don’t live in bitterness for the rest of your life. Many divorced people will do everything in their power to turn the children against the other spouse. Enough damage has already been done & now it’s important to the children of divorce that their parents relate civilly to each other.
5. Reorientation
Order your life & relationships according to the Word of God. Read carefully what the Bible says about love & marriage. Resolve to have a Christ-centered marriage; a covenant, not a contract. Read books designed to help couples in a Christian marriage.
If & when you go into another relationship, get rid of the word divorce. The problem is & always has been an attitude of “I’ve got to do what’s best for me.” You know what that attitude springs from? The sin of selfishness. To focus on self is to live the exact opposite way God created us to live. Which is why “what’s best for me,” never works. Contrast “I’ve got to do what’s best for me” with-“We’re in this together, no matter what” Now that’s commitment. “Incompatibility” is a word the lawyers use a lot but too often it’s just two stubborn people saying, “I refuse to change.”
The more self-centered we become the more angry & bitter we become. We get the exact opposite of what we want.
Finally, face your future with hope & keep pressing for the mark. Don’t look over your shoulder wondering what might have been. Fix your gaze on a new horizon & dream of tomorrow. Remember your future is as bright as the promises of God.
If you’ve gone through the pain of divorce, know that you’re not a second class citizen. Many have fought for their marriages doing all they could to keep them together sometimes all by themselves. Thank you for sticking with your commitment & know that God will honor it even if you’re doing it alone.
If you’re exhausted & ready to throw in the towel on the whole Enchilada, hang in there. Keep working at it. God is working along side you even if you don’t feel His presence.
Some years ago in Scotland two friends spent the day fishing. That evening they went to a local inn for dinner. One of them got carried away describing the size of the fish he caught. As he flung his hands in the air, he hit the cup of tea the waitress was about to put on the table. The tea cup was dashed against the wall leaving an ugly stain. The fisherman was embarrassed & began apologizing profusely.
Another man got up & came over to the table. “Don’t worry about it,” he said as he pulled a pen from his pocket & began to sketch around the ugly stain. Soon there appeared a majestic royal Elk with his antlers spread upward. The artist was Sir Edwin Landseer, England’s foremost painter of animals.
In the same way, God takes His pen of unconditional love & mercy, sketches over the ugly stains in our lives & recreates us as His masterpiece.
Blessings,
John
Susan Doe testified that she was beaten, kicked, burned with cigarettes & stabbed.
She also stated that her husband “threw me so hard against the wall that my head went through the paneling. He loved guns so his favorite game when he was drinking was Russian roulette— “his gun, my head.”
Question: Does God forbid this woman to divorce her husband who is ruthless, savage, heartless, cold-blooded & violent? Does God forbid her divorce since sexual immorality wasn’t involved? Would you say “bound for life” adultery not committed? Are there any mitigating circumstances where mercy takes precedent over law?
Jesus said:--But if ye had known what this meaneth; I will have mercy, & not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless. Matt. 12:7
Nancy Doe’s husband is in prison for life because he conspired to kill the wife of another man for insurance money. He took her into the woods, tied her to a tree & cut her throat from ear to ear. However he didn’t have sex with her. Question: Is Nancy bound to her husband for the rest of her life because he didn’t have sex with the woman, he just practically decapitated her?
In John 1:14 we read…and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace & truth. You see this over & over with Jesus. He was a perfect mixture of both grace & truth. In order for us to be Christlike we must find that same balance.
Divorce is a complicated subject. Some people can’t deal with shades of grey. They want to make everything black & white. I think you know that divorce isn’t pretty & it certainly isn’t black & white but contains shades of grey. I don’t want to upset anyone here nor do I want to open any old wounds, but I’m going to have to deal with some shades of grey in this piece.
To be perfectly candid, some divorces seem senseless, as if the two people just got tired of trying & hit the eject button. I am non-plussed when I hear people say, “Oh, my ex-spouse and I are the best of friends. We are together on all the holidays and talk on the phone most every day.” Maybe I’m wrong but that indicates to me they must have divorced on extremely frivolous grounds. If the ex-spouse sold you out lock-stock-and barrel, how can you befriend them now?
On the other hand, others divorces are so painful it seems that separation is the only redemptive thing to do. The people in the marriage are going “nuts-o” & children as well as others are in clear & present danger.
The stats aren’t pretty. More than 50% of all marriages in America will end in divorce. The stats say second & third marriages have an even higher failure rate. If people were getting rid of their problems by getting rid of spouses you wouldn’t see second & third divorces. New marriage—same old person----equals same result.
That’s why since 1970 there has been a 430% increase in the number of couples choosing to live together before getting married. This doesn’t seem to help but only increases their chances of divorce by another 50%. Not to mention they’re living in sin. You’d think things would be different in church but the divorce rate among those who claim to be Christians has just surpassed society as a whole. Not good!
Can we conceive of any circumstance in which divorce would be acceptable to God without sexual sin on the part of one of the partners? Did Jesus actually teach that there are no grounds for divorce other than fornication or adultery? When the writers recorded the divorce teachings of Jesus, did they have in view that His words were a be-all/end-all dissertation on the subject of divorce & remarriage?
What about spouse abuse, child abuse, refusing to provide for one’s family, wasting family resources by drug-addiction or gambling, rejection, mental, spiritual or emotional abuse, unreasonable demands, harassment, behavior that beats a mate down, criticizes & destroys their hope & joy, creates depression, weakens & compromises them morally emotionally or spiritually, refusal to break from dependency on ones family, actions that show no regard for the safety of the mate, contempt for the mates decisions, refusal to allow children to be disciplined, demanding control of all martial finances, failure to regulate finances, contemptuous behavior, slander, reviling mate, falsely accusing mate publicly, dishonoring mate, etc.
Could these possibly be called reasons for divorce? These are issues that puzzle & bring consternation to millions of people. Is the best we can offer a spouse trapped in an abusive marriage & has given everything but their sanity to it, that “God will bless you if you stay in the relationship?” Is it possible that we could apply some other principles here that would be helpful & enlightening & give us a more proper understanding & course of action than just the few verses on the subject in the Bible?
I realize that the subject of divorce is extremely controversial. Dealing with it is as sensitive as trying to perform a root canal without using Novocain. There’s no doubt that divorce is one of the world’s most common social problems & carries an immense stigma especially among religious folk. The church lays a heavy guilt burden on divorced people.
It isn’t in the mind & heart of this writer to minimize the sacredness of marriage or the tragedy of divorce, however, If we look at the problem of divorce through a “theological straw,” we can create impossible situations for many innocent victims scarred by divorce. Some people are so narrow minded they can look through a keyhole with both eyes. But have you noticed almost without exception they change their attitude when divorce comes to their doorsteps? It’s amazing how a little trouble can change people’s theology.
This much is obvious; while couples need to be challenged to be faithful to their marriage vows at all costs, there is a need for ministry to those who’ve been divorced to help them move past the guilt & shame that accompanies it.
When speaking of divorce, well-meaning people will often raise the standard too high or lower it. On one hand people will raise the standard seeking to stop divorce saying there’s no divorce for anybody, anytime & absolutely no remarriage for anyone anytime, period. On the other hand sincere people will emphasize that we must love, care for & accept those touched by divorce. While they rightly stress forgiving, they end up lowering the standard to the same as the worlds, & that’s Biblically wrong.
What is needed is an encouraging & redemptive word for those who’ve been shattered by divorce letting them know that God hasn’t disenfranchised them & doesn’t love them less than others: that the Bible isn’t an “anti-divorce document,” & they deserve to be free from spiritual & emotional burdens attached to divorce, at the same time continuing to build up the solemnity of marriage.
Every effort should be made to avoid the extreme positions held by those who condemn all divorce, even when the Bible grants it, as well as those who condone any & all divorce under all circumstances. A balanced position has to be found between legalism & license so that we might do as Jesus said; -bring liberty to those who are bruised.
Every Biblical passage needs to be examined & looked at in its proper context, & it should be asked how that passage of scripture fits our times. While the Bible doesn’t speak to every divorce situation specifically, it does give us timeless principles & truths we can apply.
Divorce isn’t primarily a theological issue but rather is a people issue. Any theological position on divorce that results in a heavy-handed condemnation of divorced people falls short of the Spirit of Christ. God isn’t really in the theology business; He’s in the people business.
JESUS WAS IN THE PEOPLE BUSINESS
When the Pharisees brought the woman caught in adultery to Jesus, & had taken up stones getting ready to stone her, in a very real sense He risked His life to stand up for her.
I experienced divorce more than twenty-five years ago & I can tell you there’s no pain quite like it. I’ve been told that losing a spouse to death is worse in the short term but divorce is more painful in the long term.
In reality, divorce is a form of death; the death of a relationship. The spouses, children, relatives & friends are the mourners, the lawyers are the undertakers, the court is the cemetery where the coffin is sealed & the dead bones of the marriage are buried.
In cases where a spouse has died, at least that renders them unable to continue to try to hurt the spouse they left. In a high percentage of divorces, one or both of the couple, if they’re still bitter, will spend many years trashing the ex-spouse & do all possible to keep a war going.
Counseling centers, pastor’s offices, psychiatric services & happy hours are running over with people looking for relief from the pain caused by divorce. Obviously divorce isn’t as painful for some as it is for others. Some marriages are so messed up & destructive that divorce comes as a blessing. But for most people, divorce leaves a deep painful wound that takes a long time to heal. Some never fully recover.
Many divorced people will vouch for the fact that for a long time after the experience they feel as if they’re living a nightmare from which they can’t wake up. Part of the hurt is being judged by others as “adulterous, criminal, neurotic, or at best frivolous & unfortunate.”
Divorce is devastating for the children because they often interpret it as a personal rejection & blame themselves thinking that somehow they caused the break-up. Tragically, the cumulative effect of divorces weakens the foundation of a nation & in the long term everyone experiences negative fallout.
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT DIVORCE?
The first observation we can make without fear of contradiction is that the Bible has precious little to say on the subject. For example, there are over 500 verses in the Bible on faith, over 500 verses on prayer but only 34 times in the Word of God does the word divorce appear. There are many diverse situations that bring on divorce but unfortunately the Bible doesn’t deal directly with many of these situations.
As an example, the verse that says, God is love, has just as much to say about divorce as the verse that says I hate divorce. We can’t just look at one passage & think we’re getting the totality of what God has to say to people going through any problem. The entirety of Scripture must be taken into account when weighing sensitive issues.
Let’s be real. When God says, “I hate divorce;” it doesn’t mean He hates divorced people. He loves divorced people as much as anyone else. Doesn’t everyone hate divorce? The school system hates divorce; society hates divorce & divorced people, more than anyone, hate divorce. The children of divorce hate it as they’re the ones who walk into the court room & watch innocently as their parents’ divorce is finalized. Divorce is a no-win situation any way you look at it because someone always gets hurt.
Any suggestion that God hates divorced people is absurd on its face. When God says He hates divorce, what does He mean? When God uses those words He isn’t saying what some folk hear. His voice doesn’t thunder out to shake the earth to show us his anger & disgust. To the contrary, God is speaking compassionately to those who’ve lived through the trauma of divorce. God hates anything that causes so much pain to children, to families, the church & to society.
The following is an overview of biblical passages on divorce.
1. The Mosaic Law---Leviticus 21:7, 14, -22; 13--Ezekiel 44:22 Old Testament priests were forbidden to marry divorced or widowed women as a symbol of the priesthood.
2. Numbers 30:9—Vows taken by widowed or divorced women stood on their own merit while those taken by married women could be fulfilled by their husbands. Num.30:6-8
3. The OT Prophets-1 Chronicles 8:8—Historical reference to a divorce in the linage of Saul.
Isaiah 50:1—Jeremiah 3:8 –Both these passages provide a play on words referring to God giving the nation of Israel a certificate of divorce due to her spiritual adultery.
4. Jesus’ teaching—Matthew 1:19-When Joseph learned Mary was pregnant before their marriage he had decided to divorce her privately until God revealed to him that she was carrying the Messiah.—Matt.5:31,32—In His sermon on the Mount, Jesus confronted the frivolous reasons which men used to divorce their wives, stating that adultery is the only legitimate grounds. Matt.19:1-9—Jesus reiterated to the Pharisees who questioned Him about divorce that adultery is the only grounds for divorce. He added that the only reason Moses permitted them a “certificate of divorce” was due to the hardness of their hearts.
Mark 10:1-9, Like 16:18---Unjustifiable divorce amounts to adultery in subsequent remarriage. Jesus underscored the permanence of marriage as God’s will: “What God has joined together let man not separate.
5. Paul’s Teaching—1 Corinthians 7:11-13, 27—this is the only apostolic passage on divorce & remarriage recorded in the New Testament. Paul prefixed his remarks by saying,-To the rest I say this, [I, not the Lord,] he spoke as a seasoned apostle by divine concession not divine commandment as he did earlier in this passage. His wisdom is, however, inspired by the Holy Spirit.
Verses 11-14- Believers married to unbelievers are to minister to their unbelieving mates not divorce them. Verse 27:-Paul poignantly states, are you married? Do not seek a divorce.
Verse 39. While the word Divorce does not appear in this verse Paul stated that couples are only bound together in marriage while both are still living. The death of one’s mate frees the other to remarry but only “in the Lord.” You can see what I mean when I say the information on divorce is limited.
When we pull all this together several timeless truths emerge;
• God’s will for married couples to make a life-long commitment in a monogamous relationship: a principle spelled out clearly.
• Due to the hardness of men’s hearts & the problem of unfaithfulness, divorce was granted as a “divine concession.” It provided primarily for women who suffered from abusive relationships.
• The primary grounds for divorce given in the Mosaic Law involved a husband discovering something about his wife i.e. adultery or sexual immorality.
• Since men often divorced their wives for frivolous reasons a husband was required to provide his wife a certificate of divorce which allowed her to remarry without shame.
• Jesus taught that adultery constitutes legitimate grounds for divorce while limiting remarriage in order to discourage widespread divorce & remarriage by those who had lost sight of the sanctity of marriage.
• The early church expanded the grounds of divorce to include abandonment.
Just as in The Garden of Eden, God loves us so much that when we turned our backs on Him, in order to save us from ourselves, He adapted Himself to the conditions we created by our abuses of His freedom. In The Garden He slew animals & made skins for Adam & Eve to wear. We might call that God’s modifications. But we should never confuse God’s modifications with God’s ultimate Intentions. Nor should we confuse God’s modifications with His acceptance or approval. God hates divorce but He allows divorce in some cases to keep us from doing worse to each other.
Let’s be honest, it takes two people to have a healthy, vibrant marriage. It’s impossible for one person to keep a marriage together if the other person acts irresponsibly, ungodly & destructively. In many cases one person does everything he or she can possibly do to have a good marriage while the other person does nothing, leaving no other option but divorce.
Is a spouse in a marriage like that marked for the rest of their life & forced to wear the scarlet letter “D” because they were victimized by a destructive relationship they couldn’t save? Absolutely not.
If you are in a troubled relationship, and are considering divorce or perhaps you’ve already gone through divorce, here are some helpful steps;
1. Repent.
Repentance means to change the way you think & live. Learn from every sin or mistake so that you won’t make the same mistakes again. Remember God forgives & divorce isn’t the unpardonable sin.
2. Reconciliation
Make every attempt at reconciliation if possible so that you know you’ve done everything within your power to save your marriage. God wants us to live up to our commitments even when it’s difficult & painful.
3. Recovery
Take time to heal. Watch the rebound effect. Learn what you can from the marriage that failed. Don’t ricochet immediately into another relationship with the closest available person.
4. Restoration
Though martial reconciliation is most likely out of the question, try to reconcile your relationship with your former spouse. Don’t live in bitterness for the rest of your life. Many divorced people will do everything in their power to turn the children against the other spouse. Enough damage has already been done & now it’s important to the children of divorce that their parents relate civilly to each other.
5. Reorientation
Order your life & relationships according to the Word of God. Read carefully what the Bible says about love & marriage. Resolve to have a Christ-centered marriage; a covenant, not a contract. Read books designed to help couples in a Christian marriage.
If & when you go into another relationship, get rid of the word divorce. The problem is & always has been an attitude of “I’ve got to do what’s best for me.” You know what that attitude springs from? The sin of selfishness. To focus on self is to live the exact opposite way God created us to live. Which is why “what’s best for me,” never works. Contrast “I’ve got to do what’s best for me” with-“We’re in this together, no matter what” Now that’s commitment. “Incompatibility” is a word the lawyers use a lot but too often it’s just two stubborn people saying, “I refuse to change.”
The more self-centered we become the more angry & bitter we become. We get the exact opposite of what we want.
Finally, face your future with hope & keep pressing for the mark. Don’t look over your shoulder wondering what might have been. Fix your gaze on a new horizon & dream of tomorrow. Remember your future is as bright as the promises of God.
If you’ve gone through the pain of divorce, know that you’re not a second class citizen. Many have fought for their marriages doing all they could to keep them together sometimes all by themselves. Thank you for sticking with your commitment & know that God will honor it even if you’re doing it alone.
If you’re exhausted & ready to throw in the towel on the whole Enchilada, hang in there. Keep working at it. God is working along side you even if you don’t feel His presence.
Some years ago in Scotland two friends spent the day fishing. That evening they went to a local inn for dinner. One of them got carried away describing the size of the fish he caught. As he flung his hands in the air, he hit the cup of tea the waitress was about to put on the table. The tea cup was dashed against the wall leaving an ugly stain. The fisherman was embarrassed & began apologizing profusely.
Another man got up & came over to the table. “Don’t worry about it,” he said as he pulled a pen from his pocket & began to sketch around the ugly stain. Soon there appeared a majestic royal Elk with his antlers spread upward. The artist was Sir Edwin Landseer, England’s foremost painter of animals.
In the same way, God takes His pen of unconditional love & mercy, sketches over the ugly stains in our lives & recreates us as His masterpiece.
Blessings,
John
Monday, January 8, 2018
Our Unique Bible
By John Stallings
Unique… “One and only, different from all others, having no like or equal.”
A prominent Christian minister stood in the pulpit recently and his message focused on how Christianity was like no other religion.
His actual words were;-“I’m here to tell you that Islam isn’t just as good as Christianity. Islam was founded by Muhammad, a demon-possessed pedophile who had 12 wives and his last one was a 9 year old girl.”
Those words hit like a thunderbolt causing the Council of American Islamic Relations to say in response;
“It’s unfortunate that a top leader of the Christian church would use such hate-filled and bigoted language in describing the faith of 1/5 of the world’s population.” Then they asked the minister for an apology. They didn’t get it.
But how do you apologize for telling the truth? How do you apologize for saying that there’s a big difference in what a Christian believes and what a Muslim believes?
We’ve gone in our society from saying everyone has a right to their opinion to the absurd notion that every opinion has equal merit.
Christianity refuses to take its place alongside other religions. The reason for this isn’t—because I say so, or someone is trying to be stubborn. The reason is---Our Bible! Yes, our Bible is, as regards this question, “The Problem.”
Why? Our Bible sets Christianity apart from everything else. When you know the truth about this book you can clearly see why Christianity is very different from every other religion.
A. HERE IS A BOOK THAT WAS WRITTEN...
1. Over a long period of time
a. About 1500 years
b. A span of 40 generations
2. By approximately 40 authors from every walk of life
a. Moses, political leader trained in the universities of Egypt
b. Peter, fisherman
c. Amos, herdsman
d. Joshua, military general
e. Nehemiah, cup bearer to the king of Persia
f. Daniel, prime minister in the courts of Babylon
g. Luke, physician
h. Solomon, philosopher king
i. Matthew, tax collector
j. Paul, rabbi and tent maker
3. In different places
a. Moses in the wilderness
b. Jeremiah in a dungeon
c. Daniel on a hillside, and in a palace
d. Paul inside prison walls
e. Luke while traveling
f. John in exile on the isle of Patmos
g. Others in the rigors of a military campaign
4. At different times a. David in times of war
b. Solomon in times of peace
5. During different moods
a.Some writing from the heights of joy
b. Others from the depths of sorrow and despair
You might say, John, you can’t say the Bible is God’s Word simply because it claims to be. What does it matter what the Bible says about itself? After all, isn’t that “circular reasoning,” to try and prove the Bible is God’s Word simply because it claims to be God’s Word?”- Not really; hundreds of times the Bible claims to be recording the actual spoken words of God.
Exodus 7:1….And the LORD said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron they brother shall be thy prophet.
Exodus 20:1-3…And God spake all these things, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
There are many other times where the Bible say’s its recording God’s actual words. For instance it records some of God’s spoken words with Adam and Eve. It records conversations God had with Abram; it records God talking with Moses at the burning bush. Human language according to the Bible is not a barrier for God and the Bible claims to be a record of some of His spoken words.
And the LORD said unto me, they have well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. -- Duet. 18:17-18
Here the Bible says that God put His words in the mouth of His prophets and that a prophet’s words were God’s words. So not only does the Bible claim to have God’s words spoken, but it claims to have the prophet’s words which were God’s words. God took His spoken words through the prophets very seriously.
And Samuel said to Saul, thou hast done foolishly; thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God which he commanded thee: for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel forever.
But now thy kingdom shall not continue; the LORD hath sought him a man after His own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be caption over His people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.—1 Samuel 13:13-14
Samuel here says that Saul has not kept the command that the Lord gave him. Who gave the command? The Lord didn’t speak to Saul directly. Samuel had told Saul God’s commands. When Saul broke Samuel’s commands he broke God’s commands because they were one and the same. That is only one of many times when a prophet said he spoke with the same authority as God.
If you were to take the books of the OT and look through them you would find that they all have the same claims to authority, they either record God’s words or someone speaking God’s words.
NEW TESTAMENT
When you come to the NT the Bible is just as explicit that its God’s words its recording.
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.—2 Timothy 3:16-17
This is one of the clearest and best-known verses in the Bible about the origin of the scriptures. Many people think that the word “inspired” here means that after the Bible was written, God breathed into these books. The Greek word here literally means breathed out not breathed in. So Paul is saying that the words of the Bible are literally from the breath of God.
As also in all his epistles, speaking of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and some unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.—2 Peter 3:16
When Peter writes this letter he considers Paul’s letters as scripture. This is the same word for the OT scriptures. Peter says that Paul’s writing have the same authority as the OT scriptures.
For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.—1 Thess. 2:13
Paul is claiming that his letter is the word of God, not the word of man. He realizes that his letter should have the same authority as the other scriptures.
Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.—1 Peter 1:23
Peter quotes from Isaiah in the OT and tells those he’s writing to that the words that have been preached to them, the message that he has been telling them is the word of God that will endure forever. He’s fully aware that he’s writing God’s words and that those words would abide forever.
How many times do you think the Bible claims to be the very words of God or have the authority of the word of God? 50? 100? 200...Try over 1,500. It’s almost as if God made sure His signature is on every page of the Bible.
THE BIBLE DOESN’T LEAVE US WITH ANY OPTIONS!
Either the Bible is the very words of God as it claims to be or the Bible writers were deranged lunatics and the Bible is the most fraudulent book ever written. Furthermore, we’re just as crazy for thinking it contains morally worthy teachings and is the biggest pack of lies in the history of the world.
THE BOOK OF MORMON
You’ve most likely heard of the Book of Mormon. It’s the record of a lost civilization that existed in America. This book contains the details of coinages, descriptions of mountains, cities, rivers and intricate details of a past civilization.
BUT-The Mormons have a serious problem. To wit; not one geographic site that’s mentioned in the book has ever been discovered. Not one piece of archaeological evidence has ever been unearthed that substantiates the claims of the book of Mormon. Zero, Zip, Nada! Joseph Smith claimed to be speaking for God but there has never been a single prophet or man or woman of God of any era that has agreed with the book of Mormon. Incidentally, Mohammed’s writing of the Koran has as many problems being substantiated as the Book of Mormon.
The Bible is very different. Rather than being one individual’s testimony about God, the Bible is a book of 40 different authors over a period of 1,500 years. Find another book that took 1,500 years to write. The Bible was written in three different languages. During that time empires rose and fell, cultures came and went yet none of that affected the unity of the message of the Bible. There is no way there could have been some kind of general editor who trimmed it’s message or orchestrated it to insure that it would say things that were consistent over 1,500 years. It’s impossible.
What if we had a book of medicine that was written by 40 different authors over a period of 1,500 years, from all over the world, many of whom didn’t know one another yet when the book came together it was so up-to-date that it’s medical advice could still be used to heal the sick? Would that not be incredible? Yet the Bible talks about great lofty subjects such as man and his relationship with God, something even more controversial than medicine yet talks with intelligence, consistency and unity.
Admittedly in some cases the writers of the Bible knew what previous authors had written. For instance Malachi probably was acquainted with other books of the OT, but Daniel would have never known what Ezekiel had written. Paul didn’t know what John was writing, James didn’t know what Paul was writing, yet they wrote with agreement concerning things of God.
The Bible writers wrote on different topics but over all the diversity there is one central theme found in all of them and that’s man’s separation from God because of his sin and the restoration of that relationship that God provides through His Son. The Bible isn’t 66 different stories but ONE story developing in 66 books.
As one anonymous writer had said, “This book contains the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers ... It involves the highest responsibility, will reward the greatest labor, and will condemn all who trifle with its sacred contents.”
Jesus is the central figure in the Bible. In the OT He’s the one hoped for and looked forward to and in the NT He’s the model but in both He’s the center of everything.
Christ even said He was the theme of the Bible.
Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.—John 5:39
For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me; for he wrote of me.—John 5:46
Then He said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken. Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself.—Luke 24:25-27
In Genesis 1:1 the word used for God is Elohim. Elohim is a uni-plural noun denoting both oneness and plurality, meaning that God is revealed in Genesis 1:1 as existing in three persons. From verse one in the Bible the trinity is exposed to our thinking yet it’s much later on that he’s presented as a trinity; the father, the Son and The Holy Spirit.
It’s no wonder to me that many die-hard skeptics have been converted as they read the Bible because of its unparalleled unity. It’s as if God was building one cathedral with 40 different architects from all corners of the world who did their work separately over 1,500 years and when the pieces were all eventually shipped to one location and assembled, they fit perfectly.
THE PRINTING PRESS WAS INVENTED TO PRINT MORE BIBLES
The Bible has been on the best seller list for over 300 years. The famous atheist Voltaire who died in 1778 said that within 100 years the only copy of the Bible still in existence would be in a dusty glass cabinet in some old relic museum.
Less than 50 years after Voltaire’s death the Geneva Bible society purchased his house in Paris so they could use his printing press to print Bibles because of the high demand in for them in Europe.
The Bible is the only book in existence that is actually alive. Cut it anywhere and it bleeds. It pulsates with a divine power to change lives. I believe many Christians are weak and spiritually shriveled because they simply won’t read, study or care about this book.
In A. Z. Conrad’s delightful poem, “There It Stands,” are these impressive words spoken about the Bible:
Century follows century ... There it stands.
Empires rise and fall and are forgotten ... There it stands.
Atheists rail against it ... There it stands.
Agnostics smile cynically ... There it stands.
Profane prayerless punsters caricature it ... There it stands.
Unbelief abandons it ... There it stands.
Higher critics deny its claim to inspiration ... There it stands.
The flames are kindled against it ... There it stands.
The tooth of time gnaws but makes no dent in it ... There it stands.
Infidels predict its abandonment ... There it stands.
Modernists try to explain it away ... There it stands.The Bible is the word that lives forever, because it deals with eternal issues. The Bible is never out of date, or old-fashioned. It tells us where man is from, where he is going, why he is here, and how he should live while here on the earth. It deals with the greatest principles of ethics: love, justice, righteousness, truth, beauty and self-disciplined obedience to God.
When John Lennon of The Beatles boasted of his group’s popularity as exceeding that of Christ--the eclipse and ultimate demise of his group had already begun. And today as their inconsequential words move toward Oblivion, the influence and power of the words of Jesus will continue. He alone, of all men of all time, could say, “I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” (Matt. 28:20).
As we read the New Testament we see mirrored therein the likeness of those around us. If we are completely honest we also see ourselves. The word of God is the mirror of the soul. If we would see ourselves not as we see or even as others see us, but as God sees us, we have but to look into this mirror fashioned by God. If we do not like what we see either in ourselves or in the world about us, and the chances are that we will not, the book contains the remedy. Its God’s inspired word that provides the hope of the future of mankind.
The salvation of the individual soul and the salvation of society in general rest upon an acceptance of the truths in this book. It was James who said,
“He that looketh into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and so continueth, being not a hearer that forgetteth but a doer that worketh, this man shall he blessed in his doing.” (James 1:25).
As mentioned by the apostle Peter, “The word of God, liveth and abideth forever.
The sixty-six books of the Bible have a unity of theme and purpose unmatched in any other book. On occasion we hear the derogatory statement that the Bible is merely one of many allegedly inspired books. Yet man’s investigation and time’s ravages have proved the Bible to stand alone as the one, truly inspired book of ages.
Only the Bible pleads for the universal brotherhood of man and the Fatherhood of God. Admittedly, other books have been influential; other books have made certain contributions toward the betterment of mankind. But only the Bible points the way from earth to heaven.
Most books are for the old or the young, the rich or the poor, the educated or the unschooled, but the Bible is for everyone. While meaningful to a child, it is even more challenging to the mature man. It can be compared to the ocean. At its edge it is shallow enough for a child to wade in perfect safety.
Yet farther out man cannot cope with its great depth which defies man’s finest intellectual abilities. Such names as Copernicus, Galileo, Newton, Priestly, and Kelvin grace the list of men of science who were noted for their implicit faith in the Bible as the inspired word of God.
When the world renowned chemist-physicist, Michael Faraday, lay dying he was asked, “Faraday, what are your speculations now?”
“Speculations,” he replied, “I have none! Thank God I am not resting my dying head upon speculations.” Then he quoted the words of
the apostle Paul,
“I know whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.” (II Tim. 1:12).
Pastor James has further advice for us;
Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted WORD which is able to save your souls.Jesus said;
“Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall never pass a way.”
Blessings,
John
Unique… “One and only, different from all others, having no like or equal.”
A prominent Christian minister stood in the pulpit recently and his message focused on how Christianity was like no other religion.
His actual words were;-“I’m here to tell you that Islam isn’t just as good as Christianity. Islam was founded by Muhammad, a demon-possessed pedophile who had 12 wives and his last one was a 9 year old girl.”
Those words hit like a thunderbolt causing the Council of American Islamic Relations to say in response;
“It’s unfortunate that a top leader of the Christian church would use such hate-filled and bigoted language in describing the faith of 1/5 of the world’s population.” Then they asked the minister for an apology. They didn’t get it.
But how do you apologize for telling the truth? How do you apologize for saying that there’s a big difference in what a Christian believes and what a Muslim believes?
We’ve gone in our society from saying everyone has a right to their opinion to the absurd notion that every opinion has equal merit.
Christianity refuses to take its place alongside other religions. The reason for this isn’t—because I say so, or someone is trying to be stubborn. The reason is---Our Bible! Yes, our Bible is, as regards this question, “The Problem.”
Why? Our Bible sets Christianity apart from everything else. When you know the truth about this book you can clearly see why Christianity is very different from every other religion.
A. HERE IS A BOOK THAT WAS WRITTEN...
1. Over a long period of time
a. About 1500 years
b. A span of 40 generations
2. By approximately 40 authors from every walk of life
a. Moses, political leader trained in the universities of Egypt
b. Peter, fisherman
c. Amos, herdsman
d. Joshua, military general
e. Nehemiah, cup bearer to the king of Persia
f. Daniel, prime minister in the courts of Babylon
g. Luke, physician
h. Solomon, philosopher king
i. Matthew, tax collector
j. Paul, rabbi and tent maker
3. In different places
a. Moses in the wilderness
b. Jeremiah in a dungeon
c. Daniel on a hillside, and in a palace
d. Paul inside prison walls
e. Luke while traveling
f. John in exile on the isle of Patmos
g. Others in the rigors of a military campaign
4. At different times a. David in times of war
b. Solomon in times of peace
5. During different moods
a.Some writing from the heights of joy
b. Others from the depths of sorrow and despair
You might say, John, you can’t say the Bible is God’s Word simply because it claims to be. What does it matter what the Bible says about itself? After all, isn’t that “circular reasoning,” to try and prove the Bible is God’s Word simply because it claims to be God’s Word?”- Not really; hundreds of times the Bible claims to be recording the actual spoken words of God.
Exodus 7:1….And the LORD said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron they brother shall be thy prophet.
Exodus 20:1-3…And God spake all these things, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
There are many other times where the Bible say’s its recording God’s actual words. For instance it records some of God’s spoken words with Adam and Eve. It records conversations God had with Abram; it records God talking with Moses at the burning bush. Human language according to the Bible is not a barrier for God and the Bible claims to be a record of some of His spoken words.
And the LORD said unto me, they have well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. -- Duet. 18:17-18
Here the Bible says that God put His words in the mouth of His prophets and that a prophet’s words were God’s words. So not only does the Bible claim to have God’s words spoken, but it claims to have the prophet’s words which were God’s words. God took His spoken words through the prophets very seriously.
And Samuel said to Saul, thou hast done foolishly; thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God which he commanded thee: for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel forever.
But now thy kingdom shall not continue; the LORD hath sought him a man after His own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be caption over His people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.—1 Samuel 13:13-14
Samuel here says that Saul has not kept the command that the Lord gave him. Who gave the command? The Lord didn’t speak to Saul directly. Samuel had told Saul God’s commands. When Saul broke Samuel’s commands he broke God’s commands because they were one and the same. That is only one of many times when a prophet said he spoke with the same authority as God.
If you were to take the books of the OT and look through them you would find that they all have the same claims to authority, they either record God’s words or someone speaking God’s words.
NEW TESTAMENT
When you come to the NT the Bible is just as explicit that its God’s words its recording.
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.—2 Timothy 3:16-17
This is one of the clearest and best-known verses in the Bible about the origin of the scriptures. Many people think that the word “inspired” here means that after the Bible was written, God breathed into these books. The Greek word here literally means breathed out not breathed in. So Paul is saying that the words of the Bible are literally from the breath of God.
As also in all his epistles, speaking of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and some unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.—2 Peter 3:16
When Peter writes this letter he considers Paul’s letters as scripture. This is the same word for the OT scriptures. Peter says that Paul’s writing have the same authority as the OT scriptures.
For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.—1 Thess. 2:13
Paul is claiming that his letter is the word of God, not the word of man. He realizes that his letter should have the same authority as the other scriptures.
Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.—1 Peter 1:23
Peter quotes from Isaiah in the OT and tells those he’s writing to that the words that have been preached to them, the message that he has been telling them is the word of God that will endure forever. He’s fully aware that he’s writing God’s words and that those words would abide forever.
How many times do you think the Bible claims to be the very words of God or have the authority of the word of God? 50? 100? 200...Try over 1,500. It’s almost as if God made sure His signature is on every page of the Bible.
THE BIBLE DOESN’T LEAVE US WITH ANY OPTIONS!
Either the Bible is the very words of God as it claims to be or the Bible writers were deranged lunatics and the Bible is the most fraudulent book ever written. Furthermore, we’re just as crazy for thinking it contains morally worthy teachings and is the biggest pack of lies in the history of the world.
THE BOOK OF MORMON
You’ve most likely heard of the Book of Mormon. It’s the record of a lost civilization that existed in America. This book contains the details of coinages, descriptions of mountains, cities, rivers and intricate details of a past civilization.
BUT-The Mormons have a serious problem. To wit; not one geographic site that’s mentioned in the book has ever been discovered. Not one piece of archaeological evidence has ever been unearthed that substantiates the claims of the book of Mormon. Zero, Zip, Nada! Joseph Smith claimed to be speaking for God but there has never been a single prophet or man or woman of God of any era that has agreed with the book of Mormon. Incidentally, Mohammed’s writing of the Koran has as many problems being substantiated as the Book of Mormon.
The Bible is very different. Rather than being one individual’s testimony about God, the Bible is a book of 40 different authors over a period of 1,500 years. Find another book that took 1,500 years to write. The Bible was written in three different languages. During that time empires rose and fell, cultures came and went yet none of that affected the unity of the message of the Bible. There is no way there could have been some kind of general editor who trimmed it’s message or orchestrated it to insure that it would say things that were consistent over 1,500 years. It’s impossible.
What if we had a book of medicine that was written by 40 different authors over a period of 1,500 years, from all over the world, many of whom didn’t know one another yet when the book came together it was so up-to-date that it’s medical advice could still be used to heal the sick? Would that not be incredible? Yet the Bible talks about great lofty subjects such as man and his relationship with God, something even more controversial than medicine yet talks with intelligence, consistency and unity.
Admittedly in some cases the writers of the Bible knew what previous authors had written. For instance Malachi probably was acquainted with other books of the OT, but Daniel would have never known what Ezekiel had written. Paul didn’t know what John was writing, James didn’t know what Paul was writing, yet they wrote with agreement concerning things of God.
The Bible writers wrote on different topics but over all the diversity there is one central theme found in all of them and that’s man’s separation from God because of his sin and the restoration of that relationship that God provides through His Son. The Bible isn’t 66 different stories but ONE story developing in 66 books.
As one anonymous writer had said, “This book contains the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers ... It involves the highest responsibility, will reward the greatest labor, and will condemn all who trifle with its sacred contents.”
Jesus is the central figure in the Bible. In the OT He’s the one hoped for and looked forward to and in the NT He’s the model but in both He’s the center of everything.
Christ even said He was the theme of the Bible.
Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.—John 5:39
For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me; for he wrote of me.—John 5:46
Then He said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken. Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself.—Luke 24:25-27
In Genesis 1:1 the word used for God is Elohim. Elohim is a uni-plural noun denoting both oneness and plurality, meaning that God is revealed in Genesis 1:1 as existing in three persons. From verse one in the Bible the trinity is exposed to our thinking yet it’s much later on that he’s presented as a trinity; the father, the Son and The Holy Spirit.
It’s no wonder to me that many die-hard skeptics have been converted as they read the Bible because of its unparalleled unity. It’s as if God was building one cathedral with 40 different architects from all corners of the world who did their work separately over 1,500 years and when the pieces were all eventually shipped to one location and assembled, they fit perfectly.
THE PRINTING PRESS WAS INVENTED TO PRINT MORE BIBLES
The Bible has been on the best seller list for over 300 years. The famous atheist Voltaire who died in 1778 said that within 100 years the only copy of the Bible still in existence would be in a dusty glass cabinet in some old relic museum.
Less than 50 years after Voltaire’s death the Geneva Bible society purchased his house in Paris so they could use his printing press to print Bibles because of the high demand in for them in Europe.
The Bible is the only book in existence that is actually alive. Cut it anywhere and it bleeds. It pulsates with a divine power to change lives. I believe many Christians are weak and spiritually shriveled because they simply won’t read, study or care about this book.
In A. Z. Conrad’s delightful poem, “There It Stands,” are these impressive words spoken about the Bible:
Century follows century ... There it stands.
Empires rise and fall and are forgotten ... There it stands.
Atheists rail against it ... There it stands.
Agnostics smile cynically ... There it stands.
Profane prayerless punsters caricature it ... There it stands.
Unbelief abandons it ... There it stands.
Higher critics deny its claim to inspiration ... There it stands.
The flames are kindled against it ... There it stands.
The tooth of time gnaws but makes no dent in it ... There it stands.
Infidels predict its abandonment ... There it stands.
Modernists try to explain it away ... There it stands.The Bible is the word that lives forever, because it deals with eternal issues. The Bible is never out of date, or old-fashioned. It tells us where man is from, where he is going, why he is here, and how he should live while here on the earth. It deals with the greatest principles of ethics: love, justice, righteousness, truth, beauty and self-disciplined obedience to God.
When John Lennon of The Beatles boasted of his group’s popularity as exceeding that of Christ--the eclipse and ultimate demise of his group had already begun. And today as their inconsequential words move toward Oblivion, the influence and power of the words of Jesus will continue. He alone, of all men of all time, could say, “I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” (Matt. 28:20).
As we read the New Testament we see mirrored therein the likeness of those around us. If we are completely honest we also see ourselves. The word of God is the mirror of the soul. If we would see ourselves not as we see or even as others see us, but as God sees us, we have but to look into this mirror fashioned by God. If we do not like what we see either in ourselves or in the world about us, and the chances are that we will not, the book contains the remedy. Its God’s inspired word that provides the hope of the future of mankind.
The salvation of the individual soul and the salvation of society in general rest upon an acceptance of the truths in this book. It was James who said,
“He that looketh into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and so continueth, being not a hearer that forgetteth but a doer that worketh, this man shall he blessed in his doing.” (James 1:25).
As mentioned by the apostle Peter, “The word of God, liveth and abideth forever.
The sixty-six books of the Bible have a unity of theme and purpose unmatched in any other book. On occasion we hear the derogatory statement that the Bible is merely one of many allegedly inspired books. Yet man’s investigation and time’s ravages have proved the Bible to stand alone as the one, truly inspired book of ages.
Only the Bible pleads for the universal brotherhood of man and the Fatherhood of God. Admittedly, other books have been influential; other books have made certain contributions toward the betterment of mankind. But only the Bible points the way from earth to heaven.
Most books are for the old or the young, the rich or the poor, the educated or the unschooled, but the Bible is for everyone. While meaningful to a child, it is even more challenging to the mature man. It can be compared to the ocean. At its edge it is shallow enough for a child to wade in perfect safety.
Yet farther out man cannot cope with its great depth which defies man’s finest intellectual abilities. Such names as Copernicus, Galileo, Newton, Priestly, and Kelvin grace the list of men of science who were noted for their implicit faith in the Bible as the inspired word of God.
When the world renowned chemist-physicist, Michael Faraday, lay dying he was asked, “Faraday, what are your speculations now?”
“Speculations,” he replied, “I have none! Thank God I am not resting my dying head upon speculations.” Then he quoted the words of
the apostle Paul,
“I know whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.” (II Tim. 1:12).
Pastor James has further advice for us;
Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted WORD which is able to save your souls.Jesus said;
“Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall never pass a way.”
Blessings,
John
Wednesday, January 3, 2018
A Woman Named Somebody
By John Stallings
Somebody touched me....Luke 8:46
A man in New York City died at the age of 63 without ever having had a job.
He spent his entire adult life in college. During those years he acquired so many academic degrees that they "looked like the alphabet" behind his name.
Why did this man spend his entire life in college? When he was a child, a wealthy relative died who had named him as a beneficiary in his will. It stated that he was to be given enough money for his own support every year as long as he stayed in school, and it was to be discontinued when he had completed his education.
The man met the terms of the will, but by remaining in school indefinitely. He turned a technicality into a steady income for life-- something his benefactor never intended. Unfortunately, he spent thousands of hours listening to professors and reading books but never "doing." He acquired more and more knowledge but didn't put it into practice.
When we only listen to the promises of God, study the promises of God, hear sermons on the promises of God but never act on our faith in the promises of God, we are doing the same thing. We are just trying to keep from living in the real world where God intends us to live and we wall ourselves off studying or talking about faith. Justifying faith is an active, obedient faith.
A LITTLE FAITH AND A LOT OF OBEDIENCE
Galatians 3:6 says;
…Abraham believed God and it was accounted unto him as righteousness.
Abraham wasn’t all he could be in the righteousness department but he believed God and was so obedient to God that He put it down in the righteousness column.
Abraham’s faith was an active faith. When God first spoke to Abraham he was in the city of Ur of the Chaldees.
Gen 12:1-2 NKJV says- Now the LORD had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, from your family and from your father's house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing.
Abraham didn’t just study about God's promises, he believed them. Abraham obeyed God and followed Him to a new country. He didn’t just talk about believing God; his faith caused him to follow God in terms of his promises.
FAITH COUPON
Faith is one of the most crucial components in the life of the Christian. Although we as Christians cannot see God, we nonetheless believe that He exists and that He is active in our lives. Faith is more than just a wistful optimism about life. It is the very substance of what a Christian does. It is a gift from God--the unshakable confidence that allows a Christian to navigate life.
Have you ever gone to the store with a coupon? Most of us have.
Let’s say you have a coupon for a two pound bag of flour. If you pay full price for one bag of flour, you can present the coupon for the purchase of another item. The coupon in that transaction is the same as cash.
This is the way God dealt with Abraham. Because he so literally believed and acted on his faith, God gave him a “faith coupon.”
The good news about faith is that we all have enough faith to be obedient to God.
A TOUCHING FAITH
Unfortunately the word faith has a blurred meaning. It is the most important knowledge you could ever acquire, but Satan is going to discourage your tapping into that. It’s not what we think faith means, it’s what the scriptures say.
The devil has always been against the scriptures. He tried to kill the Word of God- Jesus Christ himself. Then he tried to set up a system where you could only ask the priests for an interpretation of the scriptures. He tried to hide it in a hidden language and then he burned the Bibles because Satan doesn’t want us to become conversant with faith. Bibles are all around us and Satan wants to change the translations and the meanings of the words and how we use the words in our daily language.
We can learn much about faith by studying the actions of the woman with the issue of blood. Her story has captured the hearts of multiplied millions over the centuries. What we really have in the story is a miracle within a miracle. In all three accounts Matthew 9, Mark 5, Luke 8 this miracle takes place within the context of raising of Jairus’ daughter.
The unnamed woman in the story had heard about the Rabbi. A man claimed that he was once blind but could now see after the Rabbi from Galilee had touched his eyes. She had heard another man tell her that he had been paralyzed until the man named Jesus commanded him to walk.
Someone else showed her his hands and told her that they had been once been scared by leprosy. A friend told her that the Rabbi even cured an older woman of a fever and the woman’s son-in-law was now counted among his followers. Other reports from relatives and friends from Capernaum were always the same. This man had special powers; maybe just maybe he could cure her.
One day as Jesus was teaching in one of the villages along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, a man named Jairus came begging Jesus to come to his house and heal his 12 year old daughter who was desperately sick. As Jesus began to walk with Jairus toward his house, hundreds of people pressed in on him, many of them no doubt hoping for their own cure, many others listening to his every word, still others attracted by all the commotion.
A woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the hem of his cloak. Immediately her bleeding stopped.
“Who touched me?”
Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing around you.” But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know power has gone out from me.”
Then the woman, seeing that she couldn’t go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. Then he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”
If you visit the Holy Land, you’ll notice how narrow and crowded the streets are. In some places you can almost reach out and touch the buildings on both sides of the street. So we know the scene must have been chaotic and confusing–Jairus on one side of Jesus tugging at his sleeve– “Hurry, Lord, my daughter is dying"–the disciples forming a moving wave like bodyguards for a rock star, and hundreds of eager people pushing, milling, shouting, stretching out their arms to touch him as he passes by.
Meanwhile, totally unnoticed, a frail, stooped, sickly woman pushes her way through the throng. Her face is partially covered so no one will recognize her. Her arms are thin, her hands shake as she stretches them toward Jesus. Now she is only a few feet away. Now he is passing right by her. No one notices as she reaches out to touch the blue and white tassel on the corner of his cloak.
AN ISSUE OF BLOOD
The Bible is not very specific about her problem and the translators handle it in different ways. The King James Version says she had “an issue of blood” for 12 years. The modern translations speak of a hemorrhage of blood. Most commentators agree it was some kind of chronic uterine bleeding. Whether continually or periodic, it was not normal and in those days, and there was no cure for the condition.
But that wasn’t the worst of it. Leviticus 15:25-27 contained certain regulations for women with an uncontrollable flow of blood. It basically says that such women are to be considered unclean and defiled as long as the flow of blood continues. Furthermore, anyone who touched such a woman would themselves become unclean and defiled.
In a practical sense, this meant that this poor woman had become an outcast in her own village.
By the Law of Moses this woman wasn’t allowed to touch any human being. The law demanded that a woman suffering in this way should be segregated. For twelve years this woman had been excommunicated from the Temple and from the synagogue, and from every religious place of assembly. She was divorced from her husband, shut out from her family, ostracized by society, and treated as a pariah.
She had endured incurable illness, social isolation, constant pain, financial poverty and personal humiliation. It’s hard to imagine a more pitiful situation. She’d been among the “living dead” for twelve long years. Now at last, Jesus has come to her village.
DOCTOR, DOCTOR
In Mark’s version of this story, he includes one detail that Luke omits. Mark 5:26 notes that this woman “had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse.” Why do you think Luke left that detail out? Luke was a doctor, and a member of the AMA of his day. Probably his motivation was -he didn’t want to make his own profession look bad!
They didn’t have any effective treatments for this kind of chronic hemorrhaging. As a matter of fact, the Talmud lists several “cures” for this problem: 1. Drinking a goblet of wine containing a powder composed of rubber, alum and garden crocuses. 2. Eating Persian onions cooked in wine administered with the words “Arise out of your flow of blood.” 3. Carrying the ash of an ostrich egg in a certain cloth.
With all those weird “cures” happening, it’s a wonder to me that they didn’t have a stricken woman to stand on her head and whistle “Yankee Doodle went to town”.
With “cures” like that, it’s no wonder this woman was not getting any better. It’s very likely that she’d started off wealthy because she’d spent a lot of money over more than a decade and gone broke trying to regain her health.
The doctors simply could not help her. For 12 years she had suffered from this “issue of blood.” Her prognosis was grim. Without a miracle, there was no hope.
TOUCHING THE TASSEL
Now at last Jesus has come to her village. The word spreads like wildfire–"He’s here.” “Who’s here?” “Jesus, that man from Nazareth who heals the sick. He just came to town and Jairus is talking to him.” With that, this poor woman makes the decision that somehow, some way she must get through to see Jesus. If only she could touch him. She obviously had “a touching faith.”
Perhaps there was a bit of superstition in her faith. Perhaps she thought there was some kind of “magic” in his clothing. Who knows? In her mind, she thinks, “If only I can reach out and touch the hem of his garment perhaps that will be enough.” In truth, her faith was immature and incomplete, but it was enough to make her risk public rejection… enough to make her reach out with a sickly hand to the Son of God.
But there’s something else at work here. She did not speak to Jesus because she was embarrassed and ashamed of her condition. After 12 years of public humiliation, she wouldn’t risk exposure and the taunts of the crowd. She wanted to simply touch him, receive her healing and then slip away unnoticed. After so many years, she was used to coping with life that way.
Now she reaches out and touches Jesus. The old versions speak of “the hem of his garment.” That’s certainly an acceptable translation, but the Greek word probably refers to one of the four tassels all Jewish men wore on their outer garments. Numbers 15:37-41 specified that tassels must be sewn on the four corners of the cloak and each must contain a blue thread. The tassels were visual reminders to obey God’s commandments. No matter the design of the cloak, at least one of the tassels would always hang from the back of the wearer. It was this tassel that the woman touched as Jesus walked by.
The story is very clear on what happened when she touched the tassel. Two different words are used. She was “immediately” and “instantly” healed. The text even specifies that at the moment she touched the tassel, the bleeding stopped. She didn’t need to get a handful of his garment, just touching the hem or tassel threw the switch and the power flowed.
It was a marvelous miracle. Jesus is going the other direction, Jairus tugging and talking and crying all at the same time. Meanwhile, the crowd is so tightly packed in the narrow alleyway that you could hardly breathe, much less move. The disciples are trying to do crowd control with little success. No one sees this wretched woman off to the side, no one notices as she elbows her way to the center, no one pays attention as she reaches out her hand, no one speaks to her and she speaks to no one.
Jesus doesn’t even notice this woman. As he passes by, her hand brushes his tassel. Something
like an electrical shock moves from her fingers through her hand, up her arm and into every part of her body. Only it is not an electrical shock, but the infusion of a mighty power with which she wasn’t familiar. In less time than it takes to tell it, her weary arteries, her shrunken veins, her diseased organs, her withered muscles, her shattered nerves were filled with health and life and strength. The disastrous decay of twelve years is instantly halted and then reversed.
She is well again! Healthy again! Whole again!
She turns to go, not ungrateful–no, not at all–but fearful lest she call attention to herself and respectful of the greater work Jesus must do. Also, she might be stoned for breaking the law and Jairus was just the man who could enforce it. She must not bother Jesus. With a smile on her face, the first real smile in a long, long time, she turns to go home.
“WHO TOUCHED ME?”
But just at that moment, Jesus stops, turns and surveying the crowd asks, “Who touched me?” It seemed to Peter and the other disciples like an absurd question. Hundreds of people milling around and he wants to know who touched him? Everybody was touching him. There were so many people crowded around Jesus it could have been anyone. Besides, what difference does it make? A touch is a touch is a touch.
But that’s not true. There’s the touch of hostility. Jesus certainly knew that touch. Then there’s the touch of curiosity. That’s the touch of the crowd milling around. Then there’s the touch of faith. That’s the touch of this poor woman. If the disciples couldn’t tell the difference, that’s O.K, Jesus could. He knew that someone had touched him in faith. He felt the faith in the passing brush of her fingers on his tassel.
Many times we go to church services and “elbow or jostle Jesus” but too often fail to touch him with the deliberate touch of faith that demands an answer. Many things could be said about this little lady but there’s one thing for sure, she didn’t just jostle or elbow Jesus. Her’s was a deliberate touch.
Jesus didn’t ask the question for his own benefit. He knew before he turned who had touched him. He’s the Son of God, after all. He asked not for his sake, but for her sake and for the sake of the crowd.
He asked for her sake so that he could raise the level of her faith. If she went away without a further word, she might actually believe there was some magic power in his clothing. There wasn’t any “abracadabra” going on. He wanted to assure her that it was her faith in him that made the difference. Furthermore, he wanted her to know that the healing would be permanent. Finally, he wanted to establish a personal relationship with her. To do all those things, she needed to identify herself to Jesus and to the crowd.
He also asked “Who touched me?” for the sake of the crowd. So that Jairus would know what Jesus could do, so that the curious onlookers would see his power fully displayed. And perhaps most importantly, he wanted the crowd to know that he wasn’t ashamed to be touched by an “untouchable.”
This woman had taken a real chance by touching Jesus. According to the law, her touch could make Jesus unclean. But because he was the Son of God, his power of healing overcame her uncleanness. But she did not know that when she touched him.
What a crucial point this is. Jesus was not ashamed to be touched by an “untouchable” and he was not embarrassed to be publicly identified with the outcasts of this world. He was at home with publicans and sinners, he ate supper with gluttons and drunkards, he welcomed the prostitutes, he touched the lepers and, in this story, he is not ashamed to be touched by an unclean person. Jesus had friends in “low places.”
Not ashamed? No, not at all. Delighted, and glad to identify himself with her. Delighted that she had the courage to reach out and glad that he could heal her. And he didn’t care who knew about it. No, that’s not strong enough. He wanted the whole crowd to know what he had done.
Why is this so important? Because with our Lord there are no “untouchable” people. In Jesus’ eyes, everyone is touchable. Thank God, there are no hopeless cases with him.
What does it mean to be a Christian if we only welcome the lovely, the clean, the pure and the safe? How can we even call ourselves Christian if we refuse to help people because they don’t meet up to our standard of cleanliness?
That’s not how Jesus lived his life. He wasn’t ashamed or embarrassed to eat with sinners, to embrace the shameful, to consort with the unclean and to touch the untouchable. It didn’t bother him that some people were bothered by his lifestyle. He just went ahead and loved everyone who crossed his path.
Let’s not talk about following in his steps or walking where Jesus walked until we are willing to do what he did and identify ourselves with the untouchables of this world.
“POWER HAS GONE OUT OF ME”
Notice his words. “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.” These strange words mean at least this much: That Jesus was conscious of God’s power flowing out from him into the body of the woman who touched his garment. Power that had been his passed from him to her. It resulted in her healing, but the power had to go out from him first.
There is a universal truth here. If you follow Jesus and get involved with the needy people of this world, you will be conscious of power flowing out from your life as well. By definition those in need lack the strength necessary to face the challenges of life. The only way they can get strength or power is from those who have more than they do. Ministering to such people means that power or strength or virtue will flow out from your life to theirs. It will cost you something that you will not easily replace–the very strength of your own life.
Some reading this will understand what I mean when I say ministry will sap you of physical as well as spiritual strength. There’s no addition of help to others, without the subtraction of power from us. If omnipotence cannot help others without depletion, how can we ever expect to bless the world without self-sacrifice?
At the risk of putting emphasis on the human side of what Jesus did at Calvary, this truth explains something that many people have puzzled over. When Jesus was finally crucified, why did he die so quickly? The Romans assumed that when they crucified someone it would take 24-48 hours for that person to die. But Jesus died after only six hours on the cross. Why?
It’s very possible that because he had spent his life giving himself for others and when he finally came to the end, he had given and given and given, and from a human point of view, he had given all that he had. Could that not be at least part of the explanation? Sometimes we say in a sentimental way, “He died of a broken heart.” There is at least this much truth in that statement- When he died, he was exhausted from giving himself for others.
If you follow Jesus, the same thing will happen to you. You will give and give and the power will go out from you. You can help people, but it will cost you something.
“GO IN PEACE”
When Jesus asks, “Who touched me?” the woman knows he is talking about her. Luke says that she came trembling and fell at Jesus’ feet. Then she publicly declared what Jesus had done for her and how she had been instantly healed. I imagine there was clapping and cheering all around and Jairus saying, “That’s good. Now come on, Jesus, my little girl needs you.”
But before they go on, Jesus looks at her and says, “Daughter, your faith has healed you.” The word for “daughter” is unusual. It’s the only time the gospels record Jesus using this particular word. It’s a term of affectionate endearment, something like “Maiden” or “Little girl” or even “Sweetheart.” Then he said, “Go in peace,” or literally “Go into peace,” meaning “Go from this place and walk in good health. You are healed forever of your disease.”
TWO ENDURING PICTURES
Let’s focus on two enduring pictures that remain from this story. They are images of Jesus and of this woman that encourage us along the way.
1. The Sensitivity of Jesus.
The most sensitive man in all history is Jesus Christ. No one ever cared about people like he did. No one ever gave of himself like he did. No one ever felt the pain of others like he did. He is–and was–and always will be–the most truly sensitive man to ever walk the face of the earth.
As he walked down a crowded street, hundreds of hands reached out to him. Yet he felt the thin, sickly hand of faith. He felt it! He felt her touch … He stopped … He turned … He spoke to her.
He was not offended or angry at her. Nor was he too busy or too tired to bother with her. Think of it. He whom all the forces of Hell could not stop was diverted by the touch of a sickly hand! This woman did by her touch what Satan himself could not do. She stopped Jesus in his tracks.
And he spoke to her as if she were the only person in the crowd. When he turned, it was just Jesus and her. No one else mattered.
He loves you as if there was only one person in the entire universe to love. He hears you as if you were the only one speaking to him. He attends to your needs as if yours were the only needs in all the world. What a Savior!
All that touches you touches him. If it is pain, then he feels the pain. If it is sorrow, then he feels the sorrow. If it is rejection, then he feels the rejection. If it is loss, then he feels the loss. If it is failure, then he feels the failure. Whatever it is that hurts you, he feels it. If it’s touching you, it’s touching him.
That’s what the writer to the Hebrews meant when he said,
For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities…..Hebrews 4:15
We don’t represent a cold, uncaring Christ. Nor do we offer this world a preoccupied Christ who is too busy to notice their problems. Thank God, we do not have an unemotional Christ who runs the universe like some high-powered businessman. No, we have a sensitive Jesus who feels our deepest need.
2. The Power of Feeble Faith.
This story shows us a second picture. In this poor woman we see the amazing power of feeble
faith. She didn’t have a huge amount of faith and what she had was partially misdirected. But she had a mustard seed and through it, God moved the mountain of her illness.
This story means that we don’t have to agonize over the “correct” way to come to God. You don’t have to worry about crossing all your “t’s” or dotting all your “i’s”. You don’t have to know the Bible before you come to God and you don’t have to have a degree in theology. You don’t even have to be a member of a church. Those things are good, but they aren’t the main thing. If you come to Jesus Christ in simple faith–even though your faith be as feeble as this woman’s was–he will not turn you away.
Do you ever feel as if your problems keep you from coming to God? Do you ever feel so dirty and unclean that you think Jesus would not have anything to do with you? Do not despair. Jesus is not offended by your problems. He’s seen it all before and He won’t turn you away.
Only a touch and this woman is healed. Not by her toiling, not by her promises to do better, not by an offer to do something for Jesus if he would do something for her. No deals here. She reached out a trembling hand and in an instant, she was healed. It happened so fast that it could only be called a miracle.
That’s what feeble faith can do. You and I should never look at the measure of our faith but
rather the measure of our God. The hardest part is reaching out with the hand of faith. If you want to touch Jesus, all you have to do is reach out to him.
REACH OUT AND TOUCH HIM
Maybe you are familiar with the song I wrote nearly forty years ago entitled,
“Touching Jesus.”
The chorus says,
“Touching Jesus is all that matters,
Then your life will never be the same,
There is only one way to touch him,
Just believe when you call on His name.”
Even feeble faith is powerful when it’s directed toward the right object. You don’t have to have strong faith. You can have weak faith so long as it is resting upon a strong object. And who could be stronger than Jesus Christ himself?
If you have the strength to stretch out your hand to him, his mighty power will flow into your life.
Just a touch and Jesus himself will enter your life.
Blessings,
John
Somebody touched me....Luke 8:46
A man in New York City died at the age of 63 without ever having had a job.
He spent his entire adult life in college. During those years he acquired so many academic degrees that they "looked like the alphabet" behind his name.
Why did this man spend his entire life in college? When he was a child, a wealthy relative died who had named him as a beneficiary in his will. It stated that he was to be given enough money for his own support every year as long as he stayed in school, and it was to be discontinued when he had completed his education.
The man met the terms of the will, but by remaining in school indefinitely. He turned a technicality into a steady income for life-- something his benefactor never intended. Unfortunately, he spent thousands of hours listening to professors and reading books but never "doing." He acquired more and more knowledge but didn't put it into practice.
When we only listen to the promises of God, study the promises of God, hear sermons on the promises of God but never act on our faith in the promises of God, we are doing the same thing. We are just trying to keep from living in the real world where God intends us to live and we wall ourselves off studying or talking about faith. Justifying faith is an active, obedient faith.
A LITTLE FAITH AND A LOT OF OBEDIENCE
Galatians 3:6 says;
…Abraham believed God and it was accounted unto him as righteousness.
Abraham wasn’t all he could be in the righteousness department but he believed God and was so obedient to God that He put it down in the righteousness column.
Abraham’s faith was an active faith. When God first spoke to Abraham he was in the city of Ur of the Chaldees.
Gen 12:1-2 NKJV says- Now the LORD had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, from your family and from your father's house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing.
Abraham didn’t just study about God's promises, he believed them. Abraham obeyed God and followed Him to a new country. He didn’t just talk about believing God; his faith caused him to follow God in terms of his promises.
FAITH COUPON
Faith is one of the most crucial components in the life of the Christian. Although we as Christians cannot see God, we nonetheless believe that He exists and that He is active in our lives. Faith is more than just a wistful optimism about life. It is the very substance of what a Christian does. It is a gift from God--the unshakable confidence that allows a Christian to navigate life.
Have you ever gone to the store with a coupon? Most of us have.
Let’s say you have a coupon for a two pound bag of flour. If you pay full price for one bag of flour, you can present the coupon for the purchase of another item. The coupon in that transaction is the same as cash.
This is the way God dealt with Abraham. Because he so literally believed and acted on his faith, God gave him a “faith coupon.”
The good news about faith is that we all have enough faith to be obedient to God.
A TOUCHING FAITH
Unfortunately the word faith has a blurred meaning. It is the most important knowledge you could ever acquire, but Satan is going to discourage your tapping into that. It’s not what we think faith means, it’s what the scriptures say.
The devil has always been against the scriptures. He tried to kill the Word of God- Jesus Christ himself. Then he tried to set up a system where you could only ask the priests for an interpretation of the scriptures. He tried to hide it in a hidden language and then he burned the Bibles because Satan doesn’t want us to become conversant with faith. Bibles are all around us and Satan wants to change the translations and the meanings of the words and how we use the words in our daily language.
We can learn much about faith by studying the actions of the woman with the issue of blood. Her story has captured the hearts of multiplied millions over the centuries. What we really have in the story is a miracle within a miracle. In all three accounts Matthew 9, Mark 5, Luke 8 this miracle takes place within the context of raising of Jairus’ daughter.
The unnamed woman in the story had heard about the Rabbi. A man claimed that he was once blind but could now see after the Rabbi from Galilee had touched his eyes. She had heard another man tell her that he had been paralyzed until the man named Jesus commanded him to walk.
Someone else showed her his hands and told her that they had been once been scared by leprosy. A friend told her that the Rabbi even cured an older woman of a fever and the woman’s son-in-law was now counted among his followers. Other reports from relatives and friends from Capernaum were always the same. This man had special powers; maybe just maybe he could cure her.
One day as Jesus was teaching in one of the villages along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, a man named Jairus came begging Jesus to come to his house and heal his 12 year old daughter who was desperately sick. As Jesus began to walk with Jairus toward his house, hundreds of people pressed in on him, many of them no doubt hoping for their own cure, many others listening to his every word, still others attracted by all the commotion.
A woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the hem of his cloak. Immediately her bleeding stopped.
“Who touched me?”
Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing around you.” But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know power has gone out from me.”
Then the woman, seeing that she couldn’t go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. Then he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”
If you visit the Holy Land, you’ll notice how narrow and crowded the streets are. In some places you can almost reach out and touch the buildings on both sides of the street. So we know the scene must have been chaotic and confusing–Jairus on one side of Jesus tugging at his sleeve– “Hurry, Lord, my daughter is dying"–the disciples forming a moving wave like bodyguards for a rock star, and hundreds of eager people pushing, milling, shouting, stretching out their arms to touch him as he passes by.
Meanwhile, totally unnoticed, a frail, stooped, sickly woman pushes her way through the throng. Her face is partially covered so no one will recognize her. Her arms are thin, her hands shake as she stretches them toward Jesus. Now she is only a few feet away. Now he is passing right by her. No one notices as she reaches out to touch the blue and white tassel on the corner of his cloak.
AN ISSUE OF BLOOD
The Bible is not very specific about her problem and the translators handle it in different ways. The King James Version says she had “an issue of blood” for 12 years. The modern translations speak of a hemorrhage of blood. Most commentators agree it was some kind of chronic uterine bleeding. Whether continually or periodic, it was not normal and in those days, and there was no cure for the condition.
But that wasn’t the worst of it. Leviticus 15:25-27 contained certain regulations for women with an uncontrollable flow of blood. It basically says that such women are to be considered unclean and defiled as long as the flow of blood continues. Furthermore, anyone who touched such a woman would themselves become unclean and defiled.
In a practical sense, this meant that this poor woman had become an outcast in her own village.
By the Law of Moses this woman wasn’t allowed to touch any human being. The law demanded that a woman suffering in this way should be segregated. For twelve years this woman had been excommunicated from the Temple and from the synagogue, and from every religious place of assembly. She was divorced from her husband, shut out from her family, ostracized by society, and treated as a pariah.
She had endured incurable illness, social isolation, constant pain, financial poverty and personal humiliation. It’s hard to imagine a more pitiful situation. She’d been among the “living dead” for twelve long years. Now at last, Jesus has come to her village.
DOCTOR, DOCTOR
In Mark’s version of this story, he includes one detail that Luke omits. Mark 5:26 notes that this woman “had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse.” Why do you think Luke left that detail out? Luke was a doctor, and a member of the AMA of his day. Probably his motivation was -he didn’t want to make his own profession look bad!
They didn’t have any effective treatments for this kind of chronic hemorrhaging. As a matter of fact, the Talmud lists several “cures” for this problem: 1. Drinking a goblet of wine containing a powder composed of rubber, alum and garden crocuses. 2. Eating Persian onions cooked in wine administered with the words “Arise out of your flow of blood.” 3. Carrying the ash of an ostrich egg in a certain cloth.
With all those weird “cures” happening, it’s a wonder to me that they didn’t have a stricken woman to stand on her head and whistle “Yankee Doodle went to town”.
With “cures” like that, it’s no wonder this woman was not getting any better. It’s very likely that she’d started off wealthy because she’d spent a lot of money over more than a decade and gone broke trying to regain her health.
The doctors simply could not help her. For 12 years she had suffered from this “issue of blood.” Her prognosis was grim. Without a miracle, there was no hope.
TOUCHING THE TASSEL
Now at last Jesus has come to her village. The word spreads like wildfire–"He’s here.” “Who’s here?” “Jesus, that man from Nazareth who heals the sick. He just came to town and Jairus is talking to him.” With that, this poor woman makes the decision that somehow, some way she must get through to see Jesus. If only she could touch him. She obviously had “a touching faith.”
Perhaps there was a bit of superstition in her faith. Perhaps she thought there was some kind of “magic” in his clothing. Who knows? In her mind, she thinks, “If only I can reach out and touch the hem of his garment perhaps that will be enough.” In truth, her faith was immature and incomplete, but it was enough to make her risk public rejection… enough to make her reach out with a sickly hand to the Son of God.
But there’s something else at work here. She did not speak to Jesus because she was embarrassed and ashamed of her condition. After 12 years of public humiliation, she wouldn’t risk exposure and the taunts of the crowd. She wanted to simply touch him, receive her healing and then slip away unnoticed. After so many years, she was used to coping with life that way.
Now she reaches out and touches Jesus. The old versions speak of “the hem of his garment.” That’s certainly an acceptable translation, but the Greek word probably refers to one of the four tassels all Jewish men wore on their outer garments. Numbers 15:37-41 specified that tassels must be sewn on the four corners of the cloak and each must contain a blue thread. The tassels were visual reminders to obey God’s commandments. No matter the design of the cloak, at least one of the tassels would always hang from the back of the wearer. It was this tassel that the woman touched as Jesus walked by.
The story is very clear on what happened when she touched the tassel. Two different words are used. She was “immediately” and “instantly” healed. The text even specifies that at the moment she touched the tassel, the bleeding stopped. She didn’t need to get a handful of his garment, just touching the hem or tassel threw the switch and the power flowed.
It was a marvelous miracle. Jesus is going the other direction, Jairus tugging and talking and crying all at the same time. Meanwhile, the crowd is so tightly packed in the narrow alleyway that you could hardly breathe, much less move. The disciples are trying to do crowd control with little success. No one sees this wretched woman off to the side, no one notices as she elbows her way to the center, no one pays attention as she reaches out her hand, no one speaks to her and she speaks to no one.
Jesus doesn’t even notice this woman. As he passes by, her hand brushes his tassel. Something
like an electrical shock moves from her fingers through her hand, up her arm and into every part of her body. Only it is not an electrical shock, but the infusion of a mighty power with which she wasn’t familiar. In less time than it takes to tell it, her weary arteries, her shrunken veins, her diseased organs, her withered muscles, her shattered nerves were filled with health and life and strength. The disastrous decay of twelve years is instantly halted and then reversed.
She is well again! Healthy again! Whole again!
She turns to go, not ungrateful–no, not at all–but fearful lest she call attention to herself and respectful of the greater work Jesus must do. Also, she might be stoned for breaking the law and Jairus was just the man who could enforce it. She must not bother Jesus. With a smile on her face, the first real smile in a long, long time, she turns to go home.
“WHO TOUCHED ME?”
But just at that moment, Jesus stops, turns and surveying the crowd asks, “Who touched me?” It seemed to Peter and the other disciples like an absurd question. Hundreds of people milling around and he wants to know who touched him? Everybody was touching him. There were so many people crowded around Jesus it could have been anyone. Besides, what difference does it make? A touch is a touch is a touch.
But that’s not true. There’s the touch of hostility. Jesus certainly knew that touch. Then there’s the touch of curiosity. That’s the touch of the crowd milling around. Then there’s the touch of faith. That’s the touch of this poor woman. If the disciples couldn’t tell the difference, that’s O.K, Jesus could. He knew that someone had touched him in faith. He felt the faith in the passing brush of her fingers on his tassel.
Many times we go to church services and “elbow or jostle Jesus” but too often fail to touch him with the deliberate touch of faith that demands an answer. Many things could be said about this little lady but there’s one thing for sure, she didn’t just jostle or elbow Jesus. Her’s was a deliberate touch.
Jesus didn’t ask the question for his own benefit. He knew before he turned who had touched him. He’s the Son of God, after all. He asked not for his sake, but for her sake and for the sake of the crowd.
He asked for her sake so that he could raise the level of her faith. If she went away without a further word, she might actually believe there was some magic power in his clothing. There wasn’t any “abracadabra” going on. He wanted to assure her that it was her faith in him that made the difference. Furthermore, he wanted her to know that the healing would be permanent. Finally, he wanted to establish a personal relationship with her. To do all those things, she needed to identify herself to Jesus and to the crowd.
He also asked “Who touched me?” for the sake of the crowd. So that Jairus would know what Jesus could do, so that the curious onlookers would see his power fully displayed. And perhaps most importantly, he wanted the crowd to know that he wasn’t ashamed to be touched by an “untouchable.”
This woman had taken a real chance by touching Jesus. According to the law, her touch could make Jesus unclean. But because he was the Son of God, his power of healing overcame her uncleanness. But she did not know that when she touched him.
What a crucial point this is. Jesus was not ashamed to be touched by an “untouchable” and he was not embarrassed to be publicly identified with the outcasts of this world. He was at home with publicans and sinners, he ate supper with gluttons and drunkards, he welcomed the prostitutes, he touched the lepers and, in this story, he is not ashamed to be touched by an unclean person. Jesus had friends in “low places.”
Not ashamed? No, not at all. Delighted, and glad to identify himself with her. Delighted that she had the courage to reach out and glad that he could heal her. And he didn’t care who knew about it. No, that’s not strong enough. He wanted the whole crowd to know what he had done.
Why is this so important? Because with our Lord there are no “untouchable” people. In Jesus’ eyes, everyone is touchable. Thank God, there are no hopeless cases with him.
What does it mean to be a Christian if we only welcome the lovely, the clean, the pure and the safe? How can we even call ourselves Christian if we refuse to help people because they don’t meet up to our standard of cleanliness?
That’s not how Jesus lived his life. He wasn’t ashamed or embarrassed to eat with sinners, to embrace the shameful, to consort with the unclean and to touch the untouchable. It didn’t bother him that some people were bothered by his lifestyle. He just went ahead and loved everyone who crossed his path.
Let’s not talk about following in his steps or walking where Jesus walked until we are willing to do what he did and identify ourselves with the untouchables of this world.
“POWER HAS GONE OUT OF ME”
Notice his words. “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.” These strange words mean at least this much: That Jesus was conscious of God’s power flowing out from him into the body of the woman who touched his garment. Power that had been his passed from him to her. It resulted in her healing, but the power had to go out from him first.
There is a universal truth here. If you follow Jesus and get involved with the needy people of this world, you will be conscious of power flowing out from your life as well. By definition those in need lack the strength necessary to face the challenges of life. The only way they can get strength or power is from those who have more than they do. Ministering to such people means that power or strength or virtue will flow out from your life to theirs. It will cost you something that you will not easily replace–the very strength of your own life.
Some reading this will understand what I mean when I say ministry will sap you of physical as well as spiritual strength. There’s no addition of help to others, without the subtraction of power from us. If omnipotence cannot help others without depletion, how can we ever expect to bless the world without self-sacrifice?
At the risk of putting emphasis on the human side of what Jesus did at Calvary, this truth explains something that many people have puzzled over. When Jesus was finally crucified, why did he die so quickly? The Romans assumed that when they crucified someone it would take 24-48 hours for that person to die. But Jesus died after only six hours on the cross. Why?
It’s very possible that because he had spent his life giving himself for others and when he finally came to the end, he had given and given and given, and from a human point of view, he had given all that he had. Could that not be at least part of the explanation? Sometimes we say in a sentimental way, “He died of a broken heart.” There is at least this much truth in that statement- When he died, he was exhausted from giving himself for others.
If you follow Jesus, the same thing will happen to you. You will give and give and the power will go out from you. You can help people, but it will cost you something.
“GO IN PEACE”
When Jesus asks, “Who touched me?” the woman knows he is talking about her. Luke says that she came trembling and fell at Jesus’ feet. Then she publicly declared what Jesus had done for her and how she had been instantly healed. I imagine there was clapping and cheering all around and Jairus saying, “That’s good. Now come on, Jesus, my little girl needs you.”
But before they go on, Jesus looks at her and says, “Daughter, your faith has healed you.” The word for “daughter” is unusual. It’s the only time the gospels record Jesus using this particular word. It’s a term of affectionate endearment, something like “Maiden” or “Little girl” or even “Sweetheart.” Then he said, “Go in peace,” or literally “Go into peace,” meaning “Go from this place and walk in good health. You are healed forever of your disease.”
TWO ENDURING PICTURES
Let’s focus on two enduring pictures that remain from this story. They are images of Jesus and of this woman that encourage us along the way.
1. The Sensitivity of Jesus.
The most sensitive man in all history is Jesus Christ. No one ever cared about people like he did. No one ever gave of himself like he did. No one ever felt the pain of others like he did. He is–and was–and always will be–the most truly sensitive man to ever walk the face of the earth.
As he walked down a crowded street, hundreds of hands reached out to him. Yet he felt the thin, sickly hand of faith. He felt it! He felt her touch … He stopped … He turned … He spoke to her.
He was not offended or angry at her. Nor was he too busy or too tired to bother with her. Think of it. He whom all the forces of Hell could not stop was diverted by the touch of a sickly hand! This woman did by her touch what Satan himself could not do. She stopped Jesus in his tracks.
And he spoke to her as if she were the only person in the crowd. When he turned, it was just Jesus and her. No one else mattered.
He loves you as if there was only one person in the entire universe to love. He hears you as if you were the only one speaking to him. He attends to your needs as if yours were the only needs in all the world. What a Savior!
All that touches you touches him. If it is pain, then he feels the pain. If it is sorrow, then he feels the sorrow. If it is rejection, then he feels the rejection. If it is loss, then he feels the loss. If it is failure, then he feels the failure. Whatever it is that hurts you, he feels it. If it’s touching you, it’s touching him.
That’s what the writer to the Hebrews meant when he said,
For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities…..Hebrews 4:15
We don’t represent a cold, uncaring Christ. Nor do we offer this world a preoccupied Christ who is too busy to notice their problems. Thank God, we do not have an unemotional Christ who runs the universe like some high-powered businessman. No, we have a sensitive Jesus who feels our deepest need.
2. The Power of Feeble Faith.
This story shows us a second picture. In this poor woman we see the amazing power of feeble
faith. She didn’t have a huge amount of faith and what she had was partially misdirected. But she had a mustard seed and through it, God moved the mountain of her illness.
This story means that we don’t have to agonize over the “correct” way to come to God. You don’t have to worry about crossing all your “t’s” or dotting all your “i’s”. You don’t have to know the Bible before you come to God and you don’t have to have a degree in theology. You don’t even have to be a member of a church. Those things are good, but they aren’t the main thing. If you come to Jesus Christ in simple faith–even though your faith be as feeble as this woman’s was–he will not turn you away.
Do you ever feel as if your problems keep you from coming to God? Do you ever feel so dirty and unclean that you think Jesus would not have anything to do with you? Do not despair. Jesus is not offended by your problems. He’s seen it all before and He won’t turn you away.
Only a touch and this woman is healed. Not by her toiling, not by her promises to do better, not by an offer to do something for Jesus if he would do something for her. No deals here. She reached out a trembling hand and in an instant, she was healed. It happened so fast that it could only be called a miracle.
That’s what feeble faith can do. You and I should never look at the measure of our faith but
rather the measure of our God. The hardest part is reaching out with the hand of faith. If you want to touch Jesus, all you have to do is reach out to him.
REACH OUT AND TOUCH HIM
Maybe you are familiar with the song I wrote nearly forty years ago entitled,
“Touching Jesus.”
The chorus says,
“Touching Jesus is all that matters,
Then your life will never be the same,
There is only one way to touch him,
Just believe when you call on His name.”
Even feeble faith is powerful when it’s directed toward the right object. You don’t have to have strong faith. You can have weak faith so long as it is resting upon a strong object. And who could be stronger than Jesus Christ himself?
If you have the strength to stretch out your hand to him, his mighty power will flow into your life.
Just a touch and Jesus himself will enter your life.
Blessings,
John
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