Freewill directed by the Lord.

Exodus 36, John 15, Proverbs 12, and Ephesians 5

The Experience:

The Word

In Exodus 36 God has placed in people the knowledge and desire to do the work of building the Tabernacle.  Does this have affect on an argument for mans freewill?  If God can fairly impact mans will and ability to do work and direct how man spends his time; how much more can God impact man in the same way for a decision for the Gospel.  Reading about the detail going into this work leaves me thinking the people must have been astoundingly curious and excited to watch its construction.

 In John 15 the passage opens up with Jesus declaring himself to be the vine.  The vine is a image of his characters nature as a ‘life giving’ being.  1 Corinthians 15:22 says “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.”  We know because of the sin of Adam we are guilty of the sin or imputed with a nature which desires for sin because of this we require the redemption bought by Christ.  As such, he is the vine “I am the vine; you are the branches.  Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing (John 15:5/6)”.  In John 15:16 Jesus puts to bed the issue of choice, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide so that whatever you ask the father in my name, he may give it to you (John 15:16/17)”  We as Christians have been chosen, elected, to be saved.  Our nature and will was fallen, as is discussed in Romans 3, we in our sin and trespass were disinterested with God.  He in his grate mercy and love chose us and loved us.  As such our prayers are the prayers of the righteous man in accordance with the will of God and with his word.  Biblical promises to answer prayer are all given within the context of the believer who studies, understands, and seeks the will of God, not on the every whim of human material desire. 

 Some how the ESV translation seems to take lots of the ‘funny’ out of some verses, but Proverbs 12:1 is an exception to the rule; “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid”.  There it is. 

 The first 21 verses of Ephesians 5 discuss how the believer should walk and present themselves before a watching world.  The passages call the Christian believer out separately from the world.  The passages call the Christian out form activities or lifestyles which are perfectly normal and acceptable to the world.  However, the bible unequivocally does so.  Knowing that God is good and his desires are for our good and his glory we can trust that he will not lead us to anything that is bad for us.  Living as God has called us to live is to live in order and holiness.  We are finite and he is infinite, he is creator and we are creation; we can trust that he ultimately knows what is good in the bigger picture of eternity than we do from our position bound in time and creation.  Verses 22-31 describe the relationship of the wife and husband in light of Jesus’ self-sacrificing love for the Church.  While the world tells us we have rights and that we should live for ourselves within our rights the bible tells us we were brought for a price.  As such, we are Gods and we should seek first the kingdom of God.  This said, husbands reading this passage should not be caught up in the ‘wives submitting’ part but in the loving your wife like Jesus loved the church part.  Jesus died for the church, Jesus on his last day before being delivered up for crucifixion (the Latin root for excruciating) fully understanding the ramifications and temporal implications of this crucifixion, elected to was the feet of his disciples.  This self sacrificial love does not seek for its own gain and would not use submission to further one’s self, but in the picture of a loving relationship of submissions would be a beacon to the world and a perfect image of God in our marriages.  Likewise, wives should not concentrate on the husbands need to love her like the church, she should concentrate on her part of submission to the husband.  Each working in sanctification within their biblical role of manhood and woman hood will be tested and conformed to the image of Christ.  The work is not easy.

The way The truth…

Exodus 35, John 14, Proverbs 11, and Ephesians 4

The Experience:

The Word

Exodus 35 verses 1-3 discuss the Sabbath requirement from the Lord.  The people of Israel were commanded by Moses from the Lord that they shall work 6 days and rest on the 7^th.  This 7^th day was a day to be holy to the Lord and anyone not observing this holy day was to be put to death. 

Jesus in John 14 is close to the time of his betrayal and crucifixion, yet he is instructing, comforting, and informing his disciples about what will happen after he is gone.  Jesus informs him that he is “the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me” making a specific apologetic against their being many ways to God.  Jesus here explains that there is only one way to say that there are many ways is to contradict Jesus and the Bible.  Next Jesus introduces them to the idea of the Holy Spirit in saying “the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you (John 14:26)”.

Proverbs 11 is full of examples in parallelism between a righteous and unrighteous person.  I get an interesting perspective on earthly wealth from Proverbs 16-18, “A gracious woman gets honor, and violent men get riches.  A man who is kind benefits himself, but a cruel man hurts himself.  The wicked earns deceptive wages, but one who shows righteousness gets a sure reward”.  The wicked unrighteous person is everything the world wants to dislike however it is also everything the world embodies.  As the Christians and the Church we are called out from the world and set apart to be a light.  Are we wicked earning deceptive wages, violent getting riches, and cruel ultimately hurting our selves, or are we gracious, kind, and righteous?

Ephesians 4 talks about the body of Christ and what we are called to do, further lending support to the call for us to be righteous in Proverbs 16-18.  Were urged to walk worthy of our calling, humble, gentle, patient, bearing each other in love.  We see in verses 15 that the church focus around Jesus and grows healthy as the truth is spoken in a loving way and each member of the Church is working and working to build one another up.  There is much instruction as to how the body, the church, is to treat one another but it all comes to summation in verse 32, “be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you”.  Or forgiveness is not something to be taken lightly and it should motivate us to give grace to others.

transition of dispensation

Exodus 34, John 13, Proverbs 10, and Ephesians 3

The Experience:

The Word

Moses is instructed to come up to the mountain with precut tablets to be used for the law to be written on.  The first set was broken in frustration when Moses saw the people worshiping the golden calf.  Moses here in verse 27 wrote on the tables the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments.  This is a hinge pin in dispensational theology.  God in Exodus 34:27/28 establishes a covenant with Moses and Israel.  We know the covenant was based on obedience to the law (Ex 19:3-6).  Later revelation in 2 Corinthians 3:6-9 shows a transition from obedience to the law to a ministry of the Spirit.  Clearly from Corinthians 3 “the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone” is that which is being discussed in Exodus 34.   This said, the ‘New Covenant” is in Jesus and separate from that which was given to Israel in Exodus 34.  Hebrews 8:6 says, “but the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, and it is founded on better promises”.  Possibly this helps to understand why I talk about transitions in dispensation. 

John 13 shows a slight glance, within the first few verses, into the exhaustive foreknowledge of Jesus.  However, knowing all things and the suffering and death he was about to endure, he chose to serve those whom he loved.  Jesus though he was about to suffer unspeakable pain and was about to redeem those he loved from the sin’s they had and would commit washed the feet of these men.  Jesus told them that his service to them was an example for them to live by.  I’m reminded how I should live even among unthinkable suffering much less slight trial. 

In proverbs 10 a wise person is celebrated and are shown to be cared for by the Lord.  Chapter 10:6 shows that the mouth of the wicked conceals violence, that they have ulterior motive in their speech.  This is something we can test ourselves against to know if we are in the faith. Are we burring ulterior motive in our speech?

Ephesians 3 Paul talks about the bringing of the Gospel to the Gentiles and shows that this was “not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit (Eph 3:5).  Later in the text we read that the manifold wisdom of God would be made clear to all the plan of the mystery.  While we can read Ephesians 3 easily now it was and is allot to take in for Old Testament Jews.

God conforms us to his will

Exodus 33, John 12, Proverbs 9, and Ephesians 2

The Experience:

The past few days in Exodus have been interesting as I see Moses interceding for the people.  However, knowing God is sovereign it makes for a strange discourse as you would think God could not be thwarted in his plans.  This seems to me to be a similar process to our prayer lives today.  This is to say that during our time praying God conforms us to his will.  For example Moses was given a heart for the people in interceding on their behalf, he came to their defense and was refreshed in  working with the people. 

John 12 Judas speaks up but is rebuked by Jesus for trying to stop Mary from anointing Jesus’ feet.  Another example of the people being unable to choose for good, John 12:36-40.

Proverbs 9 puts of a wise person as a lifetime learner, one who is malleable and open to correction; this is put forth as a character trait of the wise.  

Ephesians 2 declares our death in our sin yet reiterates that we walked in the death of our sin.  This makes clear that we lived in the ways which were bringing us nothing but death.  Our bodies and nature were the cause of our desires, not the Devil.  Jesus “abolished the law of commandments” meaning no element of law exists as it’s been abolished.  Next Paul discusses the base and start of the church age “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets (Ephesians 2:20)”.

Eternal Security in Ephesians

Exodus 32, John 11, Proverbs 8, and Ephesians 1

The Experience:

Though I’m sad to see Galatians go Ephesians will be great too, after all it’s all The Bible! 

The Word:

Exodus 32 is so strange.  These are the Israelites who’d been rescued by the Lord lead into the wilderness by him.  They’re seeing the building of their community being handled by God yet they seek to make a false God and give it their worship.  

The temptation in reading Proverbs 8 is to think that Christ is being introduced as ‘wisdom’; however he is not.  Wisdom is being described in personal ways in each of the previous ways too.   To understand this to be Christ would be to take the verse wrongly.  If we understood wisdom to be Christ we’d have to attribute quite a strange number of things to him, including Proverbs 1:8 where wisdom is a she. 

I hoped to be more involved in my churches (www.eastshorebaptist.org) men’s ministry this year moving through a bible study with the men.  But, my work travel has been grueling and I’ve not been able to participate like I wanted.  I say this because they’ve been moving through Ephesians so it’s cool to read it in my plan now.  I don’t see how someone can maintain a position of choosing Jesus after having read Ephesians 3-10.  The grace in Gods choosing of me glorifies him in that it’s foolish that I’d be saved and loving Jesus which works to his glory to confine the wise.  I know that my salvation is secure in eternity as the Holy Spirit is the guarantee of my inheritance until I acquire possession of it (Ephesians 1:13/14).

The works of Jesus in John 11 are coming to a pinnacle he’s healed the blind and now calls forth a VERY dead Lazarus.  As I read this story I laughed out loud as Jesus goes on minimizing Lazarus’ condition then has to spell it out to his disciples, “Lazarus has died (John 10:14)”.  Interestingly they were STILL on the opening the eyes of the blind man (John 10:37).  In light of the ability for man to choose for God I think the discourse starting in verse 47 is telling.  They recognize the signs he is doing yet we see in verse 48 all this recognition does is make them want to stop or hide him.  Strange these fallen natures and hearts of ours when left natural they seek nothing but personal gain.

Coherency in the proverbs

Exodus 31, John 10, Proverbs 7, and Galatians 6

The Experience:

I’m sad to be finishing Galatians today but am excited to see what the Lord has for me today.

The Word:

I continually note the active role of God in the construction of the tabernacle.  In the opening of chapter 31 we see that Bezalel is given the Spirit of God , ability, intelligence, knowledge, and all craftsmanship for the purpose of building that which is required for the tabernacle.  Later we read more gifting for the remainder of the required parts.  The Sabbath is discussed in verses 12-18 and “the people of Israel” are commanded to keep the Sabbath (16). 

Recently at my church (www.eastshorebaptist) a missionary came and was discussing a time he observed sheep while his wife was witnessing.  He talked about their being rather dumb, unclean, and without much redeeming quality.  He alluded to a passage in John 10.  “I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep (John 10:11)”.  Why do this?  Why would Jesus, the 2^nd member of the God head die for us his sheep, in light of the qualities and character of God we aren’t that attractive, smart or deserving of redemption.  It’s only by the grace of God that Jesus died for us.  Also, it’s of note that Jesus says “I know my own” (John 10:14) knowing that Jesus died for us while we were still sinners we can rest knowing that our salvation bought for us because of grace not because of our own merit.  We see demonstrated that Jesus claimed us as his before we ever recognized our own need for him, as such we rest in his salvation and grace. 

As I continue through Proverbs and realize they are coherent works.  I’m taken with the repetition of the theme in writing of the commandments on the tablet of the heart.  Here in Proverbs 7 a demonstration of a common problem among men; seduction into sin.  We’re reminded to resist the sin that our heart so naturally desires.  As such, with the lengthy discussion of this problem we should be aware of our ability to fall into sin and resist and flee from it.

On the heels of Proverbs 7’s discussion of transgression I appreciate the balance that Galatians 6 brings.  Were to seek restoration of one caught in transgression.  Were again reminded to “keep watch on yourself, lets you too be tempted” in light of Proverbs 6’s note that God despises a haughty eyes.  The scary continual reminder is for us to beware of our nature and fight against it avoiding sin.

Law and Grace

Exodus 30, John 9, Proverbs 6, and Galatians 5

The Experience:

I was highly encouraged by Galatians and Proverbs this morning.

The Word:

Exodus 30 continues with the building of the parts of the tabernacle.  Interestingly we see God continuing in his grace to establish a government for this displaced people.  A tax and census is set for the people in verses 11-16.

John 9:16 shows conversation among the Pharisees with some seemingly believing Jesus is from God while others disagreed.  Next, they investigate with the family of the blind man whose sight caused the division in John 9:16.  When they realize he was born blind, the scenario becomes more tense.  Later Jesus will speak to the man again whose sight he restored.  The man will worship Jesus as God and the Pharisees will be accused of their unbelief in having seen Jesus and not believing.  This is interesting in light of why Jesus answered that this man was blind.  Many thought it was related to some sin of his or of his parents.  Jesus clarified “John 9:3, “it was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him”. 

Reading through Proverbs has been interesting.  I say that because I always considered the book to be a disjointed work of divinely revealed wisdom.  However, the book does not read as disjointed at all, its coherent and the wisdom in this book is astounding when read in sequence.  Today chapter 6 verses 16-19 say “there are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and won who sows discord among brothers.”  These words jump off the page to me and I am greatly enjoying this read. 

Galatians 5 again goes to law and grace.  Paul points that were free in Christ and that we should not again submit to a yoke of slavery.  Paul then speaks to circumcision, the sign of the covenant, that Christ would be no advantage to us.  This displays a transition from one dispensation of grace to a new dispensation under the same mode of salvation, by grace through faith.  Finally, if it were not clear enough he, Paul, doubles back to ensure that its understood that were not to work to keep the law in saying “every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law”.  I find Galatians 5 to be a carefully worded work that doubles back to pick up any potential for confusion each set of verses; the point being carefully conveyed is that the age of Law has past and the age of the spirit on the heart of regenerated believers is the rule.

Law of Moses

Exodus 29, John 8, Proverbs 5, and Galatians 4

The Experience:

I was highly encouraged by Galatians and Proverbs this morning.

The Word:

Proverbs 5 calls for the focus of the wise to remain straight and to avoid distraction.

Galatians 4:1-6 discusses that we’ll understand the word differently when Jesus comes (3:4).   He explains that Jesus’ sending redeems those ‘who were under the law’ to ‘adoption as sons’.  Again this language limits the time frame within which the law was applied.  Next I think Paul’s further modification of his statement in verse 9 is one of interest.  Paul states “but now you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God” showing that we are estranged to God unless or until we are redeemed.  Next Paul states they are returning to the elementary principals of the law, seemingly though contrary to the way we understand the word after Christ’s revelation, in their returning to observance of days months and seasons.

Grace Wisdom and Law

Exodus 28, John 7, Proverbs 4, and Galatians 3

The Experience:

I was highly encouraged by Galatians and Proverbs this morning.

The Word:

In Exodus 28 we see the building of the garments for the Priests has begun.  The same theme is in place, God is directing all the work and providing the workers.  Verse 3 God says “speak to all the skillful, whom I have filled with a spirit of skill”. 

In John Jesus has come on his own, separately from the disciples, to the feast of booths.  By this point in the narrative of his ministry the “Jews were seeking to kill him (John 7:1)”  Jesus goes to the feast separately from his brothers and from his disciples.  He begins teaching and a commotion starts as they are unsure as to how Jesus is leaned without having been taught.  In verses 16-24 Jesus explains the authority he is under and discusses their own disobedience to the law in judgment showing the law to reveal the character of God Jesus says “do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment”.  Verse 30 says “no one laid a hand on him because his hour had not yet come”, sovereignty directed the exact moment of ‘his hour’.  A great question is posed in verse 31 “when the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done”, still a valid question today.

Wisdom in Proverbs 4 is cherished and is laid in comparison with righteousness and in contrast with evil.  In the final words of the chapter we see the focus which is required of the wise: “keep your heart with all vigilance, for from if flow the springs of life.  Put away from you crooked speech, and put down devious talk far from you.  Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.  Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure.  Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil (Proverbs 4:23-27”.  The wise is an upright, attentive, purposeful person attuned to the wisdom of God.

Paul in Galatians 3 is beginning to contrast some of what the Galatians believed with Grace.  We read in Galatians 3:2 “did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith”?  Similarly the verses through 6 continue contrasting works and law and Paul is posing the question, what did the work, the law or the Spirit.  We see in verse 7 that those of faith are the sons of Abraham.  Paul in the remainder of the chapter is explaining where the Law came from, why it came, and how we are to understand it.  Paul discusses the law in limiting terms, “why then the law?  It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come… (Galatians 3:19”.  The law had a purpose in it’s existence but was for a limited time ‘until’.  The period of time under which the law was active is again limited in verse 24 “so then the law was our guardian until Christ came”.  Chapter 3 verses 15-29 shows the common thread running through covenant and the law is the gift of God, law cannot earn Gods favor and after Christ coming we have faith.  However, the dispensation of law is been limited and is ended we know look to Christ the author and finisher of our faith.

March 16 2010

Exodus 27, John 6, Proverbs 3, and Galatians 2

The Experience:

Tired.

The Word:

The layout of the book of John is a constant hit of the miracles Jesus was doing and learning of the reaction and crowds he drew of the people.  In the middle of teaching about his concentration upon temporal needs verses spiritual needs, Jesus speaks words that allow me to rest in eternal security.  “John 6:40 “for this is the will of my father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.  At the same time, John 6, the entire chapter, but specifically verses 25 on are a favorite section of scripture.  Here we have Jesus describing how and why man comes to a saving knowledge.  Gods role and mans role are clearly laid out.

Proverbs 3 starts out, “my son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments, for the length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you.  Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart” what a focus on knowing Gods word.  Proverbs is wisdom literature; much of the book to this point has labored to keep focus on wisdom and on its source being God.  Now that were transitioning into how to be and become wise we read here its central on knowing Gods teaching and word.  What more motivation should we need to connect with him in his word.  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding in all you ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.  Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil (Proverbs 3:5-7)”.