What MUST change in the new year

The first article discussed how God has consistently expected certain things from Christians since the faith began. If we remain constant in those matters, then we will see some positive changes in our spiritual lives. Here is a list of what should change from year to year:

1. Your faith will get stronger (II Thess. 1:3).

2. Your bond with brethren will get stronger (Rom. 12:10).

3. Your efforts to help the lost will increase (Acts 8:4).

4. Your relationship with the Lord will grow (Phil. 3:8).

5. Your joy in being a Christian will increase (I Pet. 4:13).

6. Your prayers will multiply (I Thess. 5:17).

7. Your abilities will grow as you do more in the church (Phil. 2:12).

8. Your selflessness will increase as you help others more (Gal. 6:10).

9. Your patience will grow as you continue to resist temptation (James 1:2-3).

10. Your knowledge will increase as you defend the truth more (I Pet. 3:15).

11. Your spiritual endurance will increase as you consistently live your faith (Heb. 12:28).

The more Christians positively change, the more the church remains the same. May we all seek to please the Lord by improving on these things in 2017!

                                                                                              Chuck                                                                                                                                                                    

The reason for the seasons

The apostle Paul told those who wanted to elevate him that they should instead turn their attention to the one who does deserve it – God (Acts 14:15). Paul said this about the Creator: “Nevertheless He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness,” (verse 17).

Despite the concerns that some have about climate change, there will always be the four seasons as they were given to us by our God. We are not just talking about the Father either. Notice what was said about the Christ in John 1:2-3: “He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.”  Jesus was present when the world was formed and is also jointly responsible for its existence.

There is a saying that “Jesus is the reason for the season.” It would be more accurate to say “seasons”. People can create a panic in this world about climate change, but the four seasons will exist until the end of time. In speaking about our Creator, the Psalmist wrote, “The day is Yours, the night is also Yours; You have prepared the light and the sun. You have set all the borders of the earth; You have made summer and winter,” (Psa. 74:16-17).

Man often forgets that God is in control and that this world will ultimately be destroyed by our God at the end of time (II Pet. 3:9-11). Until then, the sun will rise and the sun will set. The earth shall experience climate changes as it has for thousands of years.

How many times have older people said, “I haven’t seen weather like this since…”? In other words, things go in cycles.  Imagine a child that was born just before the seven years of plenty in Egypt (Gen. 41:54). The first seven years would be very different than the following years of hot, dry famine.

Those who reject God will never be satisfied with His comforting words. When things come back around and certain regions get the weather they are known for, some will cry, “See, more climate change!” As Solomon said, there is nothing new under the sun (Eccl. 1:9).

Keep in mind that when we talk about the seasons, they continue to exist even in places that do not have huge, visible changes during the year. For example, when Jesus spoke about the destruction of Jerusalem in Matthew 24, He stated, “And pray that your flight may not be in winter.” (verse 20). Did this mean that there was a danger that they would be getting the kind of weather that Alaska would normally see in the winter? Of course not. But the weather would be much colder than the summer.

We need to see that Jesus is the reason for the seasons and that there will always be the seasons. Southern California has a spring, summer, fall and winter. Are those changes as distinct as the seasons of the Northeast? Certainly not. But even if the weather patterns in both areas became more similar, let’s not panic. I realize that the media will state that such things have not happened since records were kept. Fine, but what about the thousands of years before they started recording temperatures?

The truth is, our God is the reason for the seasons. We are thankful for the planting and the harvest, for the sunshine and the rain, and for the night and the day. There is a time for everything (Eccl. 3). But remember, there will come a time when time will be no more. Let’s make sure we are ready for that before worrying about earthly things.

                                                                                                Chuck

What happens if you do not love it?

I cannot help but recall what Matt mentioned in his invitation last week. Although his lesson was about dealing with the mishaps that come our way in life, he mentioned about getting up at 4 in the morning to go duck hunting. Who does that? Only people who like to hunt. Who stands in line all night to get tickets to see a movie premiere? Who sits in a boat fishing while it rains or plays golf when the temperature is frigid? In every case, the person who is willing to endure those things loves the activity.

Those who love doing those things are sacrificing sleep, the comforts of home and a warm bed. For the most part, they do not complain about what they are doing. Most importantly, they do not consider the things they give up to be a sacrifice. So what if they are wet and tired – they get to do the thing that they love.

Compare the love of these activities to those who attend worship (Heb. 10:25). For the most part, we are protected from the weather. We travel in warm vehicles and sit in a warm building. We get to spend time with our spiritual family (I Cor. 12:12). We experience the joy of fellowship by praying, singing, giving, studying and taking the Lord’s supper.

But what happens when the love for the Lord is gone? What happens when worshipping God is something you could take or leave? It means all those things become a hardship. It is like taking someone fishing who does not like it. The weather is a bother. Getting up early is a bother. Driving to the lake is a bother. Even the event itself is unappealing. At every point of the process, they would rather be somewhere else.

The brethren at Ephesus were told that they lost their first love (Rev. 2:4). Jesus came right out and said that they had fallen because of this (verse 5). This was said even though they were still doing right things (verse 2-3).  Let this be a warning lest we also fall (I Cor. 10:12).

                                                                                              Chuck                                                                                                                                                                    

Demon possession

This past week I received a text from a man concerned about demon possession. He asked me what I knew about it. I told him that it does not exist today. His response: I wish that were true. I insisted that I could prove it Biblically. He sounded comforted but still wanted proof.

To be clear, I am not denying that demon possession existed. Jesus often cast out unclean spirits from people (Luke 4:40-41; 8:2, 26-33; 9:38-42). Beyond our Savior casting demons out of people, both the apostles and those whom they laid hands on also had the ability (Acts 5:16; 8:6-7; 16:16-18). It is one thing to know that possession existed, but it is another to understand what the Bible teaches on the subject.

Jesus, His apostles and some Christians cast out demons with purpose. This was not just done to help those suffering – it was also done to demonstrate power. Performing exorcisms showed that God was with them and confirmed that the things they were teaching were of God. Jesus made this purpose clear in Mark 16:19-20 – the gifts were given to confirm the word. Remember that in New Testament times, the scriptures were not yet complete. Once the complete revelation was given, it no longer needed to be confirmed and the gifts would go away (Jude 3).

Not just anyone could cast out demons though. As evidence, let’s consider what happened with some Jewish exorcists. In Acts 19:12-16, some religious men claimed to have the power to cast out evil spirits. These men noticed how Paul called upon Christ to rid people of evil spirits. Seeing this, they opted to do the same with a demon: “We adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches,” (verse 13).

The evil spirit then responded to the exorcists: “Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?” (verse 15). Then the demon leaped on them, overpowered them and caused them to flee the house naked and wounded (verse 16).

Movies and modern depictions of exorcisms are nothing like what we find in the Bible. The exorcisms of the Bible do not require ongoing repetition of scriptures and all-night vigils. The exorcist simply commanded the evil spirit to leave the body, and the spirit would comply. This happened via the power from above. Jesus could do it, as could His apostles. As we previously mentioned, the apostles would lay hands on Christians to give them the gifts of the Holy Spirit. One of those gifts was the ability to cast out demons (Acts 8:17-18).

James 4:7 should offer us comfort: “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” The key to this verse is the part that says to submit to God. The suffering of those who “think” they are possessed by demons has more to do with rejecting God than it does with being overpowered by some evil spirit. This is why we are warned about getting caught up in black magic, sorcery and even astrology (Acts 8:9; Rev. 21:8; Gal. 5:20; Eph. 5:11).  We are to rely on the power of God and not allow ourselves to follow Satan.

Am I implying that someone who dabbles with the occult will become demon-possessed? I will only quote the exact word of God: “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness?” (Rom. 6:16). Demons cannot overpower anyone who is following God, and everyone has the capability to obey Him (Romans 14:11).

There is no need for exorcism today. Moreover, nobody is qualified to perform one as the apostles have not laid hands on anyone alive today. God always makes a way of escape when we are tempted (I Cor. 10:13). We do not have to fear being overpowered by demons. Trust in God and follow Him.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Chuck

God gave them over

In conjunction with our first article, we need to understand that God will not make mankind follow Him. Our Father has given us more than enough evidence to prove His He does exist, meaning we are without excuse (Rom. 1:20). Still, our Creator leaves the choice in our hands via freewill. If people want to reject Him, so be it.

Having said that, consider Romans 1:28: “even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting.”  This explains why so many think the gospel message is foolish. Those who reject His word are professing to be wise, but they are fools (Rom. 1:22). The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God (I Cor. 1:27).

So what happens when someone develops a debased mind? The most dangerous result is that they become convinced that certain falsehoods are truth. For example, some are convinced that demon possession exists today. As Paul mentioned to the Roman brethren, people convinced themselves that sexual immorality was okay (Rom. 1:26-27). This is the result of a natural progression that starts when someone changes the true and living God into idols made by the hands of men (Rom. 1:23).

If someone develops a debased mind, can they break free of this and come back to the Lord? Yes! This is why we are redeemed by the blood of Christ (Eph. 1:7). It means we are brought back. The fact that we all have sinned (Rom. 3:23) means we all chose to reject God and instead do what we wanted. Those who choose to obey the gospel change their minds – that is what repentance means. We then put off that old man and put on the new man in baptism (Acts 2:38; Rom. 6:3-7). The debased mind has been put aside for a pure one.

Knowing all of this help encourage us to spread the good news. Let us never think that certain people are “made evil” or that the devil has taken away their free will to the degree that they cannot come back to the Lord. Those who do not obey are those who do not want to – it is as simple as that.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Chuck