RECIPE FOR CHAOS

If the whole Bible was made into a movie, some parts would be too graphic for any censorship board to handle. This morning, I read the last three chapters of Judges, a portion of Scripture that describes a series of unbelievably brutal and hideous events. The wanton bloodshed and sheer stupidity of people who were supposed to be God’s witness in the world – well, it blows the mind.

I think a lot of people have the wrong impression about the Bible. Some detractors seem to think that it’s dull and dry, full of pious do-gooders who are about a zillion miles removed from real life as the rest of us experience it.

Other people seem to think that the Bible is just a vast compilation of rules and laws that are designed to spoil everyone’s fun.

Truth is, the Bible gets right down to the nitty-gritty of life (in the three chapters I read this morning, the emphasis is very much on the gritty!)

The last verse of Judges reads like this: “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”

Although that might sound good and noble, it was actually a recipe for disaster. Lawlessness and violence prevailed throughout the land because there was no consensus about what was right and what was wrong.

The Bible continues to speak powerfully to every generation. To ours, it shouts a warning about the consequences of neglecting God. Without the moral consensus that God provides, chaos is always going to reign. Either that or tyrrany and dictatorship.

There is much talk these days about domestic violence, bullying, sexual abuse, obesity, suicide and a host of other social issues. But the answer is not more legislation, more royal commissions, more expensive government committees. The answer is to be found in a national revival, a return to Christian faith and values. As long as the Bible is pushed aside as dull, irrelevant or socially constrictive, the rot will only continue.

Australia, and indeed every nation, needs to come back to Jesus.

TRYING TO SILENCE WHAT MAKES US UNCOMFORTABLE – A VERY OLD STRATEGY

This morning, over breakfast, I read a fascinating article in the recent VoxPoint newsletter about homosexuality and what is known as reparative therapy. A significant number of gays are seeking help to change because they are desperately unhappy in the homosexual lifestyle. Reparative therapy is a controversial psychological treatment aimed at helping such people to alter their sexual orientation.

The therapy is controversial because, if sexual orientation can change, then most of the propaganda from the gay lobby is summarily discredited. To say that “we were born this way” implies that we all must accept homosexuality as a normal, perhaps even God-given, state. The dogma that one is born either hetero or homo suits the agenda of the gay lobby.

The VoxPoint article mentioned a prominent American psychiatrist, Dr Robert Spitzer, who was professionally intimidated over several years because he published a major study showing that homosexual orientation could be changed. That was apparently an unacceptable conclusion, despite the evidence that he carefully presented.

Then I read on Facebook about a certain Professor Bengtsson who changed his mind about climate change and suddenly experienced rejection and intimidation from the academic community to which he had belonged all his working life. The negative pressure was so great that he became concerned even for his physical health.

Then, in my daily Bible reading, the next chapter to read was Acts 4 and I saw the same thing. Verse 2 talks of people “being greatly disturbed that [the apostles] taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.” It was an uncomfortable truth because they thought they had gotten rid of Jesus and His teachings.

What was their response? Threats and intimidation. Same response as we see today when people speak out a truth that upsets certain apple carts. To me, resorting to such tactics is evidence of intellectual bankruptcy and insecurity. If some idea or ideology is wrong, counter it with truth, not with threats.

Praise God the apostles spoke up boldly, refusing to obey man rather than God. May all God’s people have such boldness!

THE REAL LORD’S PRAYER

John chapter 17 is the chapter that rightfully deserves the title "The Lord's Prayer".  Jesus, who is actually God incarnate, is about to end His earthly life. It is a crucial moment in history. So what would be the intimate thoughts of Jesus at that moment?  What concerns and desires would weigh upon Him? John 17 tells the story.

Some people have suggested that Jesus exper-ienced a moment of weakness at Gethsemane when He prayed for His cup to pass away but there is no hint of weakness here, only persistent and steadfast dedication.

The prayer is actually a combination of assorted prayers and declarations about His finished work. Ten times in the passage, we read the words "I have."  By reading verses 4, 6, 8, 12, 14, 18, 22, 25 and 26, we can see what Jesus considered to be His greatest accomplishments.  There is no mention in this prayer of miracles or signs and wonders (not that I would disparage such things in any way – I’m a true believer in miracles for today!)  But no, the prayer is not about miracles. Instead, v14 is typical of His statements within this prayer: "I have given them (the disciples) Thy Word..."

Of the eight requests made by Jesus in His prayer, two of them concern the glory of the Father and six of them are prayers for the disciples.

Jesus prayed that His disciples should be: a) protected (kept) through God’s name, v11; b) kept from the evil one, v15; c) sanctified by the truth, v17; d) united as one, v21; and e) that they would be with Him and see His glory, v24.

The other one, by the way, is found in v9 and is only a general prayer.

It is easy to see the fulfilment for some of these prayer points.  But consider v21.  Jesus prayed that His disciples should be one, in the same way as He and the Father are one.  It seems impossible, but the prayer of Jesus is proof that it WILL happen.

JESUS – EASY, RELAXED LEADERSHIP

We often focus, quite rightly, on the words of Jesus when we read the gospels. His words were (and are) life to all who will hear. But we can also learn from the way He interacted with His disciples.

For example…

In John 11:7, a few days after learning that His friend Lazarus was sick, Jesus says to His disciples: “Let us go to Judea again.” This comes across not so much a command as an invitation. It’s obviously more than a suggestion because we can see that going to Judea was His firm intention. But His leadership here is exercised in an easy, relaxed manner.

Genuine authority does not have to be exercised harshly or condescendingly , as one vastly superior speaking to ones vastly in-ferior. Jesus led by relationship, with warmth and respect.

In v8 it’s worth noting that the disciples felt comfortable enough with Jesus that they could question His wisdom. “Lord, are you sure about this? The people down there tried to kill you not so long ago!”

How many times, in our walk with the Lord, do we feel that His leading doesn’t make sense? We question His wisdom and look for excuses to disobey. Are you absolutely sure, God?

Does Jesus get upset when His disciples question His wisdom? Not at all. Rather than rebuking them for asking questions, He simply explains enough to give them assurance that He knows what He is doing.

Martha does a similar thing in v39 when Jesus commands that the stone be rolled away from Lazarus’ tomb. “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.” Again, Jesus simply calms her fears and reaffirms His command.

There are many other examples of this in the gospels. And I confess that I’m no better than these earliest disciples. I have often questioned God about what I felt He was saying to me. But, without fail, He gently reaffirms what He wants from me.

We can learn a great deal from Jesus and His easy, relaxed leadership style. He is not offended when we check (and double-check) His leading in our lives. He invites us to go with Him into exciting (sometimes frightening) new situations.”

WHAT IS GOD THINKING ABOUT?

OK, I’m only human. I cannot pretend to know what God thinks about all the time. He reveals Himself up to a point but there are some things which we cannot know at this present time.

Deuteronomy 29:29 says: “Some things are hidden. They belong to the LORD our God. But the things that have been revealed in these teachings belong to us and to our children forever. We must obey every word of these teachings (God’s Word version).”

Thus whatever God chooses to reveal is revealed for the purpose of our obedience. The Old Testament covenants were instituted with this in mind.

Deuteronomy 29:9 says: “Therefore keep the words of this covenant, and do them, that you may prosper in all that you do.” The New Covenant, instituted in Christ, is a whole new ball game, but this verse still holds true. There is blessing in the Covenant for us and no Christian would want to disqualify himself/herself by disobedience or by failing to live by God’s Word.

But, let’s face it. In the busy-ness of life, the covenant of God is not always uppermost in our minds. We push it into the background while we deal with whatever is more pressing. Not so with God. He is always mindful of His covenant with us.

 “He has given food to those who fear Him; He will ever be mindful of His covenant (Psalm 111:5).” This tells us what God is thinking about. He wants to bless us, and He has established Covenant for that purpose. So we may confidently assert that God is thinking about Covenant.

God will never forget the promises associated with His New Covenant. Nor will He suddenly decide that something else is more important, so that we get shunted down the divine priority list. He is always mindful of His covenant with us!

YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN

The conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus, recorded in John’s gospel, chapter 3, is humorous in places but very enlightening overall. The term ‘born again’, which we hear so often, occurs only here and in 1st Peter 1:23.

Verse 8 says: “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."

What does this mean? Surely it cannot mean that those born of the Spirit are flighty and unpredictable like the wind. Surely it doesn’t mean that born again believers can never know where they have come from or where they’re going next!

Maybe Philip, in Acts 8, was a bit like that. But everyone who is born of the Spirit?

No, I think Jesus is saying that, from a human perspective, the process by which we are born again is a mystery. We may analyse it with our theological minds – I’ve tried to do that myself – but the subtleties are always going to elude us. It’s a bit like trying to explain in technical terms how Mary became pregnant.

Being born again is a work of the Holy Spirit, that much we can say. Therefore, we ought to be wary of telling anyone that getting born again is a human achievement. People can repent, come to Christ and give their lives to Him, but they cannot make themselves born again.

When Jesus says: “You must be born again,” therefore, He is explaining the only way of entering the Kingdom. As in, this is what has to happen before you can enter.

Isn’t it good that spiritual rebirth is entirely out of our hands?

WHEN DOES INDIVIDUALISM BECOME A PROBLEM?

In Deuteronomy 12:8, Moses issues a stern warning to the people of Israel: "You shall not at all do as we are doing here today—every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes.”

In this verse, and many others like it, God is speaking out against individualism. It's not that individual men and women have no choices, nor that they are somehow not valued as individuals. The problem arises when everyone in a given community does “whatever is right in his own eyes”. In other words, there is no accepted community standard of right and wrong.

Most of the great moral issues of our time can be traced back to the same attitudes that foster individualism. Do what you feel is right. Don’t let anyone tell you what you should do. It’s your life, so do whatever makes you happy. There’s no such thing as sin.

Hence we have people declaring that homosexuality is right in their own eyes, women insisting that an abortion is right for them at this time of their lives, and paedophiles finding ways to convince themselves that, for them, sex with minors is quite acceptable.

I used three examples in that last paragraph but some readers may consider the third to be in a totally different category. They may argue that paedophilia is universally recognised as unquestionably wrong, a terribly bad thing to do. Some might even be offended that I mentioned paedophilia in the same paragraph as homosexuality and abortion.

But the link is clear. In each of these examples, and countless others that I could have used, people are making choices based on what is right “in their own eyes”. Their choice. God, as our Creator, has the only legitimate right to explain what is right or wrong and, in a way, this is what the whole Bible is about. But mankind stubbornly says to God: “No way! We don’t believe in you and we’re not going to accept your definition of right and wrong.”

So, paradoxically, we see individualism working en masse, like when teenagers used to express their individuality by all wearing the same sort of jeans, haircuts, etc.

The verse I quoted at the beginning of this blog actually comes in a context of worship. Moses was saying that it’s not right, in the sight of God, for everyone to worship according to whatever is right in “their own eyes”. Multiculturalism says exactly the opposite but I’m not sure this is a message that too many Australians are willing to hear at this point of time.

As for me, and as for our local Christian communities, otherwise known as churches, we can (and indeed must) put aside whatever is right “in our own eyes” in order that we might do the will of God.