Called to God – Blessed for no Other Reason

Exodus 19:3-6 with notes from the Reformation Study Bible and Faithlife Study Bible.

The Exodus narrative continues as Israel arrives at Mount Sinai, and God prepares the people to receive the Law (Exodus 20:1-23:19).  God’s sovereignty and power have already been demonstrated substantially to Israel by what He did to get them out of Egypt and bring them safely to Sinai – He even says, “I carried you on eagles’ wings.”  While He clearly doesn’t mean that they had traveled to Sinai in luxury, they traveled under his divine protection.  Now, after reminding them about the things they’d seen and how they’d arrived at Sinai, God says, “if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all people…”  Not unlike Jesus words in John 14:15 that if we love Him we will obey His commands.  Unfortunately, we are not unlike Israel will show themselves to be, because we also repeatedly show by our actions that we do not love God.  Fortunately for us, His love does not depend on our merit, but on His sovereign will.  Over and over again, God calls us back to Himself in a way that we cannot refuse, who can possibly refuse being released from slavery to sin?  Who can resist being kept safe in the hands of a completely sovereign God?

If we authentically love Jesus for what He has accomplished on our account, we will keep his commandments, we will obey God, and we will hear His voice (first and foremost through Scripture).  But we cannot authentically love as God loves, obey His commands, or hear His voice if we are not faithful students of Scripture.  Fortunately when Jesus said that if we love Him we’ll obey Him, He followed up with the promise of a Helper, the Holy Spirit (John 14:16).  Speaking of how the Holy Spirit helps us to understand Scripture, Joel Beeke says, “Knowledge is the soil in which the Holy Spirit sows the seed of understanding.”  Not only does the Holy Spirit help us to understand God’s expectations in the first place, but He helps us to meet them, because we are so much like Israel in that we have absolutely no power within ourselves to meet those expectations.

Israel’s covenantal obligation to God was to obey Him, and God’s promised reward for obedience was that Israel would remain under the Abrahamic blessing and become God’s “treasured possession” (v. 5).  Because we live in the Church age, that same covenantal blessings is extended to us, not because of any merit on our part, but because after God has called us to Himself, He gives us the Holy Spirit to enable us to obey Him and then receive His blessing.  We don’t receive that blessing because we deserve it, and we don’t receive it only for the benefit of the Holy Spirit’s help, but because God called us in the first place.  Going back to when God called Abraham (Genesis 12), God could have just as easily called Abraham’s father Terah, or his brother Haran.  But God, in His own sovereign pleasure, picked Abram to call out of his homeland, and to bless.  God picked Isaac, rather than Ishmael, to carry on his father’s blessing.  God picked Jacob, rather than Esau, to carry his grandfather’s blessing.  And on down the line until the nation of Israel is called to God out of Egypt, and out of all the rest of the world that God had made and that belongs to Him anyway.

We are blessed, as Israel was, for no other reason than that God called us out of the world, and out of our slavery to sin.  Why Israel and not the rest of the world?  Why the Church and not the rest of the world?  We don’t know.  But we do know that God’s thoughts and ways are not ours, and that His are higher than ours (Isaiah 55).

Related articles

• A Family Reunion, and a Father-in-law’s Advice (thinkrhema.wordpress.com)
• Deliverance, Remembrance, Complacence (thinkrhema.wordpress.com)
• My God can beat your god (thinkrhema.wordpress.com)

Related books

• Chosen by God (R.C. Sproul)

Soli Dei Gloria

Why is the first aim of this blog to glorify God?  The simplest answer is twofold:  first, because He deserves it; second, because it will keep me humble.  Who is this God that I seek to glorify?  To answer that, here are my preparatory notes from a sermon that I gave at Parkside Church on April 29th, 2012.  The audio of this message is available here, and I welcome any constructive criticism.

Pillars of Parkside’s Practice

Soli Dei Gloria

Main Scripture: I Timothy 1:17 ESV 

To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

Parkside’s Statement: We believe in one God, Creator of all things, who is personal, perfect, and eternally existing in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

As I mentioned two weeks ago, our core beliefs are statements of Parkside’s position on various doctrine issues.  However, this particular statement is also our statement on theology – the study of God.  This statement is very brief and simple, even though God is infinitely complex, but it provides six theological building blocks that can be used to edify our understanding of God and his character.  I’ll handle them a bit out of order, but the building blocks are these:  God is God alone, God is Creator, God is personal, God is perfect, God is eternal, and God is triune.  This is not meant to be a comprehensive list of God’s attributes – first and foremost because there is no such list – but all of the rest of God’s attributes can be accurately extrapolated from these six when guided by scripture.

God is Creator 

God built the universe under his own power and by his own will.  God made the universe ex nihilo – out of nothing.  We see this in the creation account in Genesis 1-2.  We also see God referred to as “Creator” all through scripture.

Ecclesiastes 12:1 – Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”;

Isaiah 40:28 – Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.

Isaiah 43:15 – I am the LORD, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King.

Romans 1:24-25 – Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

I Peter 4:19 – Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.

Scripture is explicitly clear that God is our Creator.  Christians frequently come into conflict with scientists on this issue because of conflict between our understanding of the scriptural creation account and the way that science understands evolution.  In most cases, it is absolutely right that we firmly stand our ground on this issue, but not necessarily all the time.  Psalms 19 begins by proclaiming, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.”  David continues in that psalm by describing what we call general revelation – God revealing himself through his creation.  Romans 1:19-20 gives a similar message, “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.”  Exploration of creation – science – is a scripturally valid way to know of God, as long as we make science subordinate and subject to scripture, and not the reverse.  When I have conversations with unbelievers on this issue, I approach it by saying that Philosophy has six basic questions:  “who,” “what,” “why,” “where,” “when,” and “how.”  Science can only answer four of those questions, but it cannot answer the “who” or “why” questions.

As science explores and reveals more about the “what,” “where,” “when,” and “how” answers, we must remain ready to give an answer for our faith and hope – and to do so with gentleness and respect.  If we close our minds and ears to learning and hearing about new scientific discoveries, then we close lock the gates to an extremely important mission field.  We also need to take it on faith that God will eventually reconcile scientific understanding with his word, and it may not happen in our lifetime.  For the sake of brevity, I won’t spend any more time on that topic today.  However, if this issue has been an obstacle for your own faith, or you frequently find yourself wishing you knew more on the subject, I would strongly encourage you to check out Mark Driscoll’s article Answers to Common Questions about Creation, and the corresponding list of resources that he has put together for that topic. 

God is Triune 

This is the toughest one for me personally to wrap my head around.  It is not a teaching that 1+1+1=1, and it is also not tritheism – teaching that there are three little gods that are buddies working together in the big God club[i].  God is one God, simultaneously manifested in three distinct persons.  This is immensely difficult for our human minds to grasp.  However, we must accept it because it is clearly taught in scripture.

Matthew 3:16-17 – And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

Matthew 28:19 – Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

I Peter 1:1-2 – Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.

The most helpful illustration for me to understand this is marriage – if the marriage relationship were considered a distinct being from the bride and groom – which it isn’t, but remember, this is only an illustration.  The husband and wife are distinct people, with distinct roles, but there is only one marriage, and it contains both the husband and wife.  There is an amazing sermon by Bruce Ware on this topic, called “How the Trinity Relates to Marriage.”  It’s pretty long – an hour and thirteen minutes, but it is worth every second – both for your understanding of the trinity and for understanding biblical marriage.  I personally am not a fan of the illustration of one man being simultaneously a son, husband, and father, because it seems to be toeing the line on a heresy called Modalism – a teaching that the persons in the trinity are different ways that God expresses himself at different times to different people.  Modalism is a heresy because it denies distinct roles performed by distinct persons within the Godhead.

Dr. R.C. Sproul (senior) insists that his students be able to make distinctions between contradiction, paradox, and mystery.[ii]  The rule of contradiction, as defined by Aristotle, is the rule something cannot be what it is and not be what it is at the same time in the same relationship.  So “a” cannot be “a” and “not a” at the same time.  I cannot simultaneously be a husband and a bachelor.  Paradox is a situation when something seems like something else until it is placed alongside that something else.  My brothers and I look similar enough that if you saw us separately you might call us by the wrong name, but if you see us together you can see the differences.  Mystery is fact beyond the capacity of understanding.  The law of relativity would be a mystery to most first graders, but God was (and still is) a mystery even for Einstein.  The doctrine of the trinity is a certainly a mystery, but it is absolutely not a contradiction, though it may appear so when you are first exposed to it.

God is God Alone
(and is therefore sovereign, omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient)

God is the supreme and final authority in the universe.  There is no one and nothing higher than him.  Because God is God Alone, he must be sovereign over the entire universe, or else there would be some other authority in the universe besides him.  Because he is sovereign, he must be omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient, because if he were not those things than there would be either something, some place, or some issue over which God was not sovereign.

Exodus 20:2-6 – I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

Psalms 115:3 – Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.

Proverbs 16:4 – The LORD has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble.

Isaiah 40:13-14 – Who has measured the Spirit of the LORD, or what man shows him his counsel? Whom did he consult, and who made him understand? Who taught him the path of justice, and taught him knowledge, and showed him the way of understanding?

Isaiah 46:8-10 – Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’

Isaiah 55:8-9 – For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Jeremiah 10:10 – But the LORD is the true God; he is the living God and the everlasting King. At his wrath the earth quakes, and the nations cannot endure his indignation.

I Timothy 1:17 – To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

If God is not the sole, sovereign, independent governor of the universe, then He is not worthy to be called “God.” Critics of Christianity, and heretics within Christianity will frequently object to God’s sovereignty because it supposedly encroaches on human free will, and/or because of the existence of evil.  The critic John Stewart Mill framed an argument that essentially claimed that God is either loving but not sovereign, or sovereign but not loving. Supposedly, if God is loving, then he cannot be sovereign, because a sovereign God would prevent evil, and there is evil in the world.  The only alternative offered in Mr. Mill’s argument is that if God is sovereign, then he is not loving, because a loving God would not allow evil to exist.  Variations of this same argument might pit God’s righteousness against the existence of evil.  However, Mr. Mill has offered us what is called a false dilemma.  He has framed the argument in such a way to make us believe that there are only two options – and there are in fact more than two options.  He has also set up the options to appear as if they are mutually exclusive, when they are not mutually exclusive.

So what are the other options, and why are they not mutually exclusive?  I’ll return to that in a couple of minutes, but first I need to provide a more complete framework.

God is Eternal
(and is therefore unchanging)

If God is both eternal and sovereign, then he must be immutable – or unchanging – because if God changed, then there would be a time over which God was not sovereign.  A.W. Tozer was a well-known Christian mystic – which in this sense does not mean that he was superstitious, but that he was an explorer of biblical mystery.  Regarding God’s immutability, he said, “For a moral being to change it would be necessary that the change be in one of three directions.  He must go from better to worse or from worse to better; or, granted that the moral quality remain stable, he must change within himself, as from immature to mature or from one order of being to another. …  All that God is He has always be, and all that He has been and is He will ever be. … In God no change is possible; in men change is impossible to escape. … In coming to Him at any time we need not wonder whether we shall find Him in a receptive mood.”[iii]  God’s attributes do not change, nor does his character, and nor does his will.  If God did change, or went through mood swings, then the entire endeavor of the Christian faith would be utterly pointless.

Deuteronomy 33:27 – The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms… 

Psalms 33:11 – The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.

Psalms 90:2 – Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. 

Psalms 102:24-27 – “O my God,” I say, “take me not away in the midst of my days— you whose years endure throughout all generations!” Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.  They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end.

Isaiah 46:8-10 – “Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’…” 

Malachi 3:6 – For I the LORD do not change…

I Timothy 1:17 – To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

Hebrews 13:8 – Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 

God is Personal

(and therefore embodies love, and is loving) 

All through scripture, we read personal pronouns used for God.  ‘He,’ ‘Him,’ and ‘His’ are all pronouns used to describe or reference God.  ‘Father,’ ‘King,’ ‘Lord,’ and ‘Master,’ are all words describing personal human relationships to an authority figure, they are also words that are used in scripture to help us understand our relationship with him.  We are told to pray to God and to read his word, this constitutes our conversation with him.  Scripture also teaches a great deal about God’s love for us, and a relationship of love is the highest interpersonal relationship we can have.

Another quote from Tozer:

From God’s other known attributes we may learn much about His love.  We can know, for instance, that because God is self-existent, his love had no beginning; because He is eternal, His love can have no end; because He is infinite, it has no limit; because he is holy, it is the quintessence of all spotless purity; because He is immense, his love is an incomprehensibly vast, bottomless, shoreless sea before which we kneel in joyful silence and from which the loftiest eloquence retreats confused and abashed.[iv]

Because God’s love is a constant theme through all of scripture, it is difficult to choose just a few verses to support the point.  They are all important to our understanding of God and his love.  I do, however, want to bring up one verse that is frequently misused.

I John 4:8, 16 – Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. … God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

What that verse means is that God epitomizes love; God’s character is the highest embodiment of love; that as we more understand God, we more understand love; and that as we demonstrate love to other people, we reflect God and his character.  We have to be very careful how we apply that statement that God is love.  Many heresies arise from misapplication of that statement.  One heresy is to say that because God is love, that love is God.  If that is true then whatever we fallen and depraved wretches think embodies “love” becomes an object of worship placed either above or beside God, and our tainted understanding of love becomes and idol.  Another common heresy from that statement – that is tragically common today and that many of my peers have embraced – is that because God is love he will not eternally punish sin. 

God is Perfect

(and is therefore just and righteous) 

Again, we get some useful distinctions from Dr. Sproul.  Justice means to give what is due, biblical justice is to do what is right, injustice is an opposite of justice done by someone without the right to do other than justice (a vigilante, or someone other than God), and mercy is an opposite of justice done by someone with the right to do other than justice (a judge, or God)[v].  Remember as I read these verses that God is sovereign, does all that he pleases, God is not under the law, and that he is a law unto himself. 

Exodus 34:6-7 – The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.”

Nehemiah 9:32-33 – Now, therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love, let not all the hardship seem little to you that has come upon us, upon our kings, our princes, our priests, our prophets, our fathers, and all your people, since the time of the kings of Assyria until this day. Yet you have been righteous in all that has come upon us, for you have dealt faithfully and we have acted wickedly.

Psalm 25:8-10 – Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in the way.  He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.

Matthew 5:48 – You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Romans 3:1-6 – Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God. What if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? By no means! Let God be true though everyone were a liar, as it is written, “That you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged.” But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a human way.) By no means! For then how could God judge the world?

Romans 9:3-20 – As it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills. You will say to me then, “Why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?” But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?”

So now we’ll go back to John Stewart Mill’s objections.  How can God be both sovereign and loving, and there still be sin in the world?  This is where our theology – our understanding of God and his character – becomes doctrine that has application for us and how we relate to God.  The answer is partially that God’s sovereignty and God’s love are not mutually exclusive.  The other part is that God is simultaneously sovereign, loving, righteous, and just.  God’s sovereignty gives God the right to make the law, his love and righteousness necessitate that man had free will to choose sin at least at creation, God’s justice necessitates that he punish sin under the law that he defined, but also gives him the right to have mercy on whom he chooses. “[God’s] eternal decree decided not which choice [Adam] should make but that he should be free to make it.  [Humanity’s] will [was] free [at creation, before the fall] because God is sovereign.  A God less than sovereign would not bestow moral freedom upon his creatures.  He would be afraid to do so.”[vi] Humanity’s free will was exercised by Adam.  After Adam’s fall, humanity is dead in sin, its heart knows only evil, and it cannot seek God.  God is under no obligation to save anyone, he would be perfectly just to eternally damn us all if he so chose.  But fortunately, in his love, he chose to have mercy on a few.

---

[i] Sproul, Robert C.  Essential Truths of the Christian Faith. N.p.: Tyndale, 1992. 35. Print.

[ii] Sproul, Robert C.  Essential Truths of the Christian Faith. N.p.: Tyndale, 1992. 7. Print.

[iii] Tozer, Aiden W.  The Knowledge of the Holy.  New York, New York: Harper Collins, 1978. 49. Print.

[iv] Tozer, Aiden W.  The Knowledge of the Holy.  New York, New York: Harper Collins, 1978. 98. Print.

[v] Sproul, Robert C.  Essential Truths of the Christian Faith. N.p.: Tyndale, 1992. 54. Print.

[vi] Tozer, Aiden W.  The Knowledge of the Holy.  New York, New York: Harper Collins, 1978. 111. Print.

Sola Scriptura

These are my preparatory notes for a sermon given at Parkside Church on April 15th, 2012.  The audio for this message can be found here, and I welcome any constructive criticism.

Main Scripture: II Timothy 3:16 ESV 

¹⁶ All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, ¹⁷ that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Today I have the privilege of introducing Parkside’s next teaching series:  “This We Believe: Pillars of Parkside’s Practice.”   The rough outline for this series is the list of core beliefs that you can find on our website or in our brochures on the information counter.  With the exception that the first message is on God’s word, and then the rest will be in more or less the same order as the various points in our core beliefs.   The reason for that is that all of the other points are based on scripture, so it is fitting to address our belief about scripture first.

So why teach a series like this?  Aren’t doctrinal debates divisive and destructive?  They certainly can be if they are not handled carefully.  However, if they are handled well they can be very unifying.  When Paul wrote to Titus, he said of any man who would qualify to be an elder: “He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.”  (Titus 1:9).  Then when he spoke specifically to Titus, the pastor, Paul said “But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine.” (Titus 2:1).  Whether we like it or not, our beliefs influence our thoughts, our thoughts influence our attitudes, and our attitudes influence our behavior and our treatment of others.  If we are to ensure Godly behavior and treatment of others, Godly attitudes, and Godly thoughts, then we have to have beliefs founded on sound doctrine.  Just for example, consider the question of whether you can lose your salvation or if once you are saved, you are always saved.  One way that folks in the eternally insecure camp can go wrong is to become legalistic, and to fail to reflect Christ in the way that they treat others; but we in the secure salvation camp can go just as wrong is to become lawless, and fail to reflect Christ in our behavior.  Of course, there is a way to balance those problems and still come down strongly on one side, but I’m going to cop-out and leave that to Darryl; because to handle that issue in a helpful manner requires enough preaching skill to wield a verbal scalpel, and I am still figuring out how to handle a verbal sledgehammer…

Please don’t forget that no matter who is up here preaching, for any message or series, whether it be Pastor Darryl, Dr. Ellerby, me, or Tyler, that there is nothing we can do to take away the need for some kind of leap of faith.  We can tell you what the Bible says, we can tell you what we understand that to mean, but there will always be a gap that faith has to cross.  By God’s grace, we can endeavor to make that leap smaller, but only God can instill the necessary faith in you to actually make the final leap.

There are certainly some pitfalls in doing a series like this, so we want to keep a few of those issues in mind in order to avoid slipping into one of them.  This comic has an effective satirical address to a couple of major pitfalls.

Because we do not want to be destructively dogmatic in our discussions with other believers or with non-believers, we need to remember Saint Augustine’s line “In the essentials, unity.  In the nonessentials, liberty.  In all things, charity.”  Even more so, we should be mindful of Paul’s words in Romans 12:18: “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”  As well as Peter’s instructions in I Peter 3:15: “…but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect…” We can and should have God glorifying friendship and fellowship with those who believe differently than us, but always be trying to win them to Christ, and to gently convince them of sound, scriptural doctrine.

Speaking of always being “prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks for a reason for the hope that is in you,” if we take that verse together with our main verse from II Timothy 3, it should be pretty clear that we cannot hope to give such a defense or answer without being scripturally literate.  Therefore, concerning the Bible, Parkside’s statement of faith says, “We believe the Bible is God’s word, the supreme source of truth.  It was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. Because it is inspired by God, it is the truth without any mixture of error.”  If you will bear with me for a moment and allow me to be technical, we believe in Non-mechanical Verbal Plenary Inspiration.  What that means is that God did not simply dictate the specific words of scripture to its writers, as an executive does with a secretary for an important memo.  Instead, God so significantly influenced the minds and hearts of the scriptural authors that every last word of scripture in its original language exposes and describes to our finite minds the infinite personality and mind and heart of God.   Look back at II Timothy 3:16 – “ALL scripture is God breathed…”  Additionally, because scripture is the very word of God, it is perfectly consistent and there are no errors.  If God’s word were imperfect, then God would be fallible, and therefore not worthy of being called “God.”

Critics of the Bible often point to difficulties in translation or canonization as enough to discredit all of scripture. However, an important point to remember is that if God superintends the writing of scripture, then he will take a similar role superintending both the translation, and compilation of scripture.  For translation, the flaws that they point out are not significant to the basic points of the Christian faith.  Additionally collaborative nature of the translation process – with many respectable scholars having contributed to the most commonly accepted translations – minimizes risk of errant translation.  When we consider the existing translations and manuscripts of other ancient writings, such as Homer’s Iliad, the translation of scripture actually comes up as much more authentic than other books.  The earliest existing copy of Homer’s Iliad was written 400 years after the original, and there are only 643 manuscripts total[i].  However, the earliest copy of the Greek New Testament was written only 50 years after the original, and there are 5,700 surviving Greek Manuscripts[ii].  When you add in New Testament manuscripts in languages other than Greek, there are over 24,000 copies, and the earliest copy was written only 25 years after the original[iii].  No other ancient document matches the archeological credibility and linguistic purity of the Bible.

Criticisms of the canonization process point out that since the Bible is actually a small library of 66 small books, and there are other writings from the same eras as the biblical authors that are not canonized, there is no way to  know that the right books were canonized.  However, the canonization criteria eliminate this problem as well.

The New Testament books were canonized because[iv]:

1. They were either written or endorsed by an apostle (a firsthand witness, chosen by Christ).
2. They had been received as authoritative in the early church.
3. They were consistent with, and not contrary to, the books about which there was no doubt.

The Old Testament books are canonized because[v]^,[vi]:

1. They were canonized first by the Jews.
2. They appear in all manuscripts of the Septuagint – the Greek translation of the Old Testament, which was the common scripture in Jesus’ day.
3. They are cited by the Apocryphal books (non-canonical books found in some manuscripts of the Septuagint).

The canon of scripture is now also closed, because the messiah promised in the Old Testament has come, the New Testament tells us about him, and the only thing left unfulfilled in God’s plan is Christ’s return and judgment day.

Another common objection to the Bible is that it is over 2,000 years old and is therefore no longer relevant to modern life.  I really like Pastor Charles Swindoll’s handling of that issue.  He says:

Let’s imagine that you and I are exploring the jungles of Africa.  We get into a deep, dense area of the jungle, so thick it’s almost dark.  It isn’t long before we have lost our way.  If our lives depended on it, we couldn’t tell if we were going north or south.  There is no sun, no stars, and no trail or river to follow.  (Let’s throw in a few nasty mosquitoes for good measure.)  Got the picture?  We are hopelessly lost.  Suddenly, a twig snaps behind us… and we hear footsteps approaching.  But we’re relieved when someone calls our names and walks into the clearing.  “I’m glad I found you,” he says.  “I have a map and a compass I thought you might need.  Would you like them?”  Now, pause for a moment.  How many of us would answer, “Are you kidding?  That map of Africa is really old.  I’m not sure I can trust it.  I mean, look how wrinkled and worn it is!  And that compass… it may or may not be pointing north… how can I know for sure?  No thanks; I think we’ll stay on our own.”  We would be thickheaded if we said that! (And we would die in the jungle).[vii] 

Probably the best way to think of that character who shows up out of nowhere with a map and compass is that he is Jesus Christ.  However, since it is just an analogy, we are probably safe to take a little bit of liberty with it and imagine that character as a pastor as well.  And, while it is true that one role of pastors is to equip us to live God glorifying, Christ centered lives, that fact does not absolve us regular folks of our responsibility to study scripture.  It will not do us any good at all if our pastors teach us how to read the map and use the compass, and we respond by not using those tools to get out of the jungle.  Tragically, it seems very probable in the modern church that “Christians invest more of their mental energy in cultural literacy than in biblical literacy.”[viii]  There is significant evidence that postmodern philosophies and ideals have crept into the church and have caused Christians to take less interest in either scripture or doctrine[ix]^,[x].  This means that despite having that map and compass, we as a culture are minimally interested in using them – we would rather stay lost in the jungle.  Paul said in Romans 15:4, “… whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” He was speaking of the Old Testament, parts of which were over 1,000 years old even in Paul’s day.

This is not the first time in the church’s history that Christians’ interests in scripture have dwindled.  During the Protestant Reformation, the leaders of the movement came up with the phrase “sola scriptura” – meaning scripture alone.  This statement stood against two issues.  The first was that the Roman Catholic Church was teaching that scripture and tradition were the final authorities on the Christian life; the second was the Anabaptist movement who held the belief that the Holy Spirit spoke directly to its leaders, and so they did not need scripture[xi].  Both of these heresies caused the clergy to devalue scripture, and the laity to take a “leave it to the experts” approach to scripture.  That was not what Christ intended for his followers, because it gave “the experts” undue authority that was often abused, and because the laity had no way to know if they were being sold a bill of goods.  We know that is not the way we are supposed to conduct ourselves because in Acts 17:11 we read about the Jews in a town called Berea being praised for how they responded to Paul and Silas preaching the gospel. “…these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”  They did not leave it to the experts; they took it upon themselves to be the experts.  Take note that the scriptures that they were examining were the books of the Old Testament, because the New Testament had not yet been written.  There are those who claim that the Old Testament is not useful or relevant to New Testament age Christians.  They have not read the New Testament.  The words “scripture” or “scriptures” occur 52 times in the New Testament, variants of the phrase “Moses and the prophets” occur seven times, and the phrase “the Law and the Prophets” occurs five times.

Speaking of the laity’s responsibility to be scripturally literate, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, often called the “Prince of Preachers,” said this: “I beg you carefully to judge every preacher, not by his gifts, not by his elocutionary powers, not by his status in society, not by the respectability of his congregation, not by the prettiness of his church, but by this – does he preach the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation?”[xii]  If there ever was an expert on scripture, I think it is safe to consider the Prince of Preachers as such an expert, but even he advocated not leaving the understanding of scripture to the experts.

For some reason, Christians today have reverted to that “leave it to the experts” approach to scripture, because apparently reading the Bible has become intellectually intimidating.  Postmodernists also consider scripture narrow-minded.  Scripture is indeed narrow on some issues, because it boldly proclaims Christ as the only way to the Father, and that God is sovereign in salvation.  On most other issues it is actually scripturally illiterate Christians who are narrow-minded, remember the eternally insecure legalists I mentioned earlier.  Over the last century or so, the Christian community as a whole has not spoken up loudly enough to rebut those legalists and their underlying theology.  In that failure, the Church has further failed to be credible ambassadors of Christ, living by grace.  However, that is a rather long rabbit-trail, and what I am more concerned with in this message is that question of why scripture has become intellectually intimidating.  I would be utterly dishonest to claim that I have even a marginal understanding of scripture or theology, but it would be just as deceitful for anyone to tell you that only an educated clergyman should bother reading scripture.  Seriously! I am a schmuck who took eight years to finish community college, and even I get the basics.  When I first met Dr. Ellerby, he said, “Scripture is shallow enough for a child to wade in, but deep enough for a theologian to drown in.” David Wells, speaking about this very paradox as it relates to the health of the modern Church, says:

In its biblical setting… the gospel does not give us a choice between its simplicity and its profundity.  It is both.  It is both so simple that everyone can understand it and so profound that none can fully plumb its depths.  It is this matchless combination of simplicity and profundity that has to be preserved if Christian faith in its biblical fullness is to be preserved.  Those evangelicals who took its simplicity and abandoned its profundity are now finding that Christian faith itself is beginning to crumble in their hands.”[xiii] 

Psalm 19:7 says, “The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.”  Likewise, Psalm 119:130 “The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.” I John 2:26-27 says, “²⁶ I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. ²⁷ But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him”   John was writing to all believers of his day, telling them specifically to take responsibility for their own biblical literacy, and to let the Holy Spirit enlighten their hearts as they endeavored to study God’s Word.  Do not misunderstand this!  Understanding scripture requires both our personal effort, and the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit.  We will not get it just by reading it, and the Holy Spirit will not bring understanding where we have not studied.  God, through the apostle John, did something beautiful to balance out the paradox of scripture being both simple and profound.  Once we are reading and studying scripture on our own, we do not need clergy to help us understand the simple parts.  However, we do need the Holy Spirit’s help to understand the profound parts – and He will often use clergy for that part, as well as to motivate us to either start or continue our study of scripture.

We know from scripture that the Church is the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5; Revelation 19, 21).  For this reason, the Bible has often been called God’s love letter to the Church.  Much like a bachelor romances a woman through love letters, so God romances the church through the Bible.  Scripture is our chief and primary way to know of God, and it is our only way to know of Christ as the risen Messiah.  If we, the Church, fail to study scripture, then it is as if we are a bride married to a stranger.  If we study scripture but fail to treasure it, then it is as if the bride knows her husband but thinks him dispensable.  Read the love letter!  Treasure it!

I hope that this encourages you to start studying scripture; and if you are already doing that, to do more of it, and to do it more intensely.  As Darryl says it: “Be Bereans.”  When you hear a message or a sermon, or someone claims, “The bible says…” CHECK IT! Examine the scriptures daily to see if those things are so.  If you are not already studying scripture on a regular basis, and even if you are, here are some tools to help that study be as productive as possible.

Martin Luther used the term Sensus literalis – or literary sense, to describe how we should interpret scripture.  Because the Bible is made of 66 books, of several different genres, we need to interpret each book according to its literary type.  Interpret history as history: the stories in the Bible actually happened.  We can read the stories about all the biblical heroes and heroines and recognize the sin, fault, and failure that caused separation and punishment from God.  We can also read stories about when the biblical icons were so fully overpowered and indwelt by the Holy Spirit that God used them to conquer seemingly insurmountable challenges to the benefit of God’s people, and to God’s own glory.  We can know that that same God is our God and that he is just as sovereign in our lives today as he was in their lives.  We can sympathize with the anguish and the worship expressed in the books of poetry and gain not only an academic knowledge of God, but also an incredibly vivid emotional experience of God.

There is also the lex parsimonious, or the law of the simple, also known as Occam’s razor, or the KISS Method – Keep It Simple, Silly.  Essentially, it means that the simplest interpretation is the best interpretation.  When we read the prophetical books, like Isaiah, Ezekiel, or Revelation, it gets very easy to get distracted by all of the various supernatural phenomena that those books talk about.  Instead, we need to realize that a large portion of that phenomenological language is not there to be the point; it is there to accent the point.  It might be debatable as to how much of that language is the point or how much of it is accenting the point, but when you are just starting out, do not get distracted or discouraged by that.  The fifth grader who is learning long division does not need to worry right now about multi-dimensional partial differential equations, but he might eventually get there, depending on his course of study.  When one scripture speaks plainly on a topic, and another scripture speaks vaguely on the same topic, use the clear scripture to shed light on the vague one.  Always use the explicit to interpret the implicit, and never the reverse.  If you are stuck with different interpretations of a passage that seem equally valid, remember that the Christian life is lived to the glory of God alone – Soli Dei Gloria – choose the interpretation of scripture that glorifies God the most, and elevates humanity the least.

“Exegesis” is one of those scary seminary words that should not be so scary, it means to study and read scripture in order to pull out and make understanding possible.  It is to read and study scripture to understand how to relate to God and to people.  Stuart Olyott, in his book Preaching, Pure and Simple, said, “Where there is no Christo-centricity, there is no exegetical accuracy.”  Charles Spurgeon said that he would take whatever piece of biblical text he was preaching from, and then “make a beeline to the cross.”[xiv]  Accurate understanding of scripture requires recognizing that all of scripture works together to form a story where Jesus Christ is the main character and hero.

1. The Old Testament is the preface and prelude.
2. The Gospels are the main act and climax.
3. The apostolic letters and prophecies are the conclusion and epilog.

The purpose of all of scripture is to point us to Jesus Christ who then leads us to the Father.  There is no scripture without Christ at its core! Because there is no Gospel without Christ at its core!  Nursery rhymes and fairy tales were once used to teach simple life lessons to children.  However, scripture is a story full of real lessons about the real God and how he really saved real people through the real death and resurrection of His Son.  Those real lessons are timely and relevant for real people living during any time in History.

Eisegesis is another scary seminary word… it means to use logic or other rhetorical or mental tools to project our understanding of scripture onto our daily lives – application.  However, accurate application absolutely depends on a solid understanding.  A professional football player cannot perform in his sport if he does not know the rules – he cannot apply them if he does not understand them.  It is a tragedy Christians will say they love God on one hand, but then on the other hand think they can live a fruitful, authentic, credible, God glorifying lives without knowing and understanding scripture.  Psalm 119:9-16

⁹ How can a young man keep his way pure?
By guarding it according to your word.
¹⁰ With my whole heart I seek you;
let me not wander from your commandments!
¹¹ I have stored up your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.
¹² Blessed are you, O Lord;
teach me your statutes!
¹³ With my lips I declare
all the rules^[c] of your mouth.
¹⁴ In the way of your testimonies I delight
as much as in all riches.
¹⁵ I will meditate on your precepts
and fix my eyes on your ways.
¹⁶ I will delight in your statutes;
I will not forget your word.

Where we as Christians so often go wrong in this area is to read the Bible by our life rather than living our life by the Bible.  We enjoy doing things that the Bible tells us not to, and so we ignore the sections of the Bible that tell us not to do those things.  Likewise, we enjoy not doing things that the Bible tells us to do, and so we ignore the sections of scripture that tell us to do those things.  This would be like that football player saying he only wants to play by page four of the rule book because it is the only page he likes, but he does not like the rest of the rulebook so it does not apply to him.  Remember again, II Timothy 3:16 “ALL of scripture is God breathed…”

Also, do not be afraid to ask questions of the pastor or elders.  We are very privileged here at Parkside to have five elders, for a church our size that is a high number.  Ask any one of them what they think about a passage in the bible if you do not understand it or if you see something in the news and want to know what the bible has to say about that issue.  Our elders are all great men, and they love to get questions like that, so do not be afraid to ask.

So remember this: Read it in its literary sense, interpret it simply, connect it to Jesus Christ, apply it all to your life, and ask questions.

 

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For the sake of this blog, and this post in particular, I want to add a couple of thoughts about the  sufficiency of scripture.  If, as Christians, we hold that the Bible is indeed God’s word (which I do), then every time we read scripture we are effectively listening to God speaking to us – we are engaging in a one sided conversation where God is the speaker and we are the listener.  I will not deny that God might speak specifically to us as individuals at times, but we on the listening side have to make sure that what we are “hearing” is actually from God, and we do that by making sure that it is consistent with scripture.  Everything that God might tell us personally will be in agreement with scripture, which means that if we are not studying the word, we won’t have the discernment to tell when Satan is appearing to us disguised as an angel of light.  If we also hold that God is a personal, loving God who cares about his children (which I do), then God must speak to us, and we must listen, in the middle of even the most hellish of life’s circumstances.  If we reject God’s word and say that it isn’t relevant to us because it doesn’t speak to life today, or by saying that it doesn’t speak to whatever issue we’re dealing with, then our actions and behavior will convey to God that we do not trust Him, because we do not trust His word.

For Further Study:

1. The 1689 London Baptist Confession, specifically chapter 1 “Of the Holy Scriptures”
2. Allison, Gregg. “Theology of Scripture.” The Resurgence. Seattle. 20 Feb. 2012. Web. 8 Mar. 2012. <http://theresurgence.com/2012/02/20/theology-of-scripture>.

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[i] Muncaster, Ralph O. Examine the Evidence. Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 2004. 199. Print.

[ii] Ibid.

[iii] McDowell, Josh. Evidence That Demands a Verdict. San Bernadino, California: Here’s Life Publishers, 1979. 43. Print.

[iv] Sproul, Robert C.  Essential Truths of the Christian Faith. N.p.: Tyndale, 1992. 23. Print.

[v] “Canon Of The Old Testament.” I. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. 1992. 680-702. Web. 8 Mar. 2012. <http://www.bibletools.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Def.show/RTD/isbe/ID/1835/Canon-Of-Old-Testament-I.htm>.

[vi] Canon Of The Old Testament.” II. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. 1992. 680-702. Web. 8 Mar. 2012. <http://www.bibletools.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Def.show/RTD/isbe/ID/1836/Canon-Of-Old-Testament-Ii.htm>

[vii] Swindoll, Charles R. The Church Awakening – An Urgent Call for Renewal.  New York, New York: Hachette Book Group, 2010. 202. Print.

[viii] “Major Christian Leaders Are Widely Unknown.” Barna Group. Barna Group, Nov. 2006. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. <http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/17-leadership/142-major-christian-leaders-are-widely-unknown-?q=literacy>.

[ix] “Six Megathemes Emerge from Barna Group Research in 2010.” Barna Group. Barna Group, 13 Dec. 2010. Web. 11 Apr. 2012. <http://www.barna.org/culture-articles/462-six-megathemes-emerge-from-2010?q=literacy>.

[x] Swindoll, Charles R. The Church Awakening – An Urgent Call for Renewal. New York, New York: Hachette Book Group, 2010. Print.

[xi] Horton, Michael. “Reformation Essentials – Five Pillars of the Reformation .” Monergism. Monergism, Mar. 1994. Web. 11 Apr. 2012. <http://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/onsite/essentials.html>.

[xii] Lawson, Steven J. The Gospel Focus of Charles Spurgeon. Orlando, Florida: Reformation Trust Publishers, 2012. 34. Print.

[xiii] Swindoll, Charles R. The Church Awakening – An Urgent Call for Renewal.  New York, New York: Hachette Book Group, 2010. 189. Print.

[xiv] Lawson, Steven J. The Gospel Focus of Charles Spurgeon. Orlando, Florida: Reformation Trust Publishers, 2012. 2. Print.

All of the above references are provided for study purposes only.  If any of the referenced titles are purchased, no compensation or commission is received by Parkside Church, the pastor, or the speaker who delivered this message.

My Statement of Faith

This statement of faith is adapted from the Core Beliefs page of Parkside Church in Camas, WA, where I am a member and occasional teacher.  I reserve the right (or, more correctly, I acknowledge my obligation) to revise or clarify my position on these issues as my studies and Christian life continue.

God:  I believe in one God, Creator of all things, who is personal, perfect, and eternally existing in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.  From these traits, under the guidance of scripture, we can learn many (not all) of God’s other traits.  Matthew 28:19-20.

Jesus Christ:  I believe that by the miracle of the virgin birth, Jesus Christ, eternal Son of God, became man without ceasing to be God. He came to reveal God and restore man to God by dying on the cross for our sin. He arose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven and will return again someday to earth to reign as King and Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4.

The Holy Spirit:  I believe that the Holy Spirit is equal with the Father and the Son as God. He is present in the world to make people aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. 2 Corinthians 3:17; John 16:7-13, 14:16-17.

The Bible:  I believe the Bible is God’s word, the supreme source of truth. It was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. Because it is inspired by God, it is the truth without any mixture of error.  I also believe that the Bible is fully sufficient to guide God’s elect to a lifestyle that glorifies Him above all others and that is spiritually, emotionally, and physically healthy and productive.  2 Timothy 3:16; Also listen the sermon, Sola Scriptura. See also: Desiring God: All Scripture Is Breathed Out by God, Continue in It.

Mankind:  I believe people were created in the image of God to be like Him in character. People are the supreme object of God’s creation. Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called “sin.” This attitude separates us from God and causes many problems in life. Genesis 1:27; Isaiah 53:6a, 59:1; Romans 3:23.  Regarding secular studies, I also believe that Anthropology, Sociology, and Psychology are useful but incompletely informed until they account for the existence and character of God; while there is some use in studying the crown jewel of creation in a scientific manner, this study is incomplete without the inclusion of theology.

Salvation:  Salvation is God’s free gift to His elect, who can do nothing but accept this gift. We can never make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works. Only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God’s offer of forgiveness can anyone be rescued from sin’s penalty. When we turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in faith, we are made whole. Eternal life with Christ begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ into his life by faith.  John 10:28, 17:3; Romans 8:1, 10:9-10.

Eternal Security:  Because God gives us eternal life through Jesus Christ, the true believer is secure for eternity. It is the grace and keeping power of God that gives us eternal security, not our self effort. A true Christian will not take advantage of God’s favor, but will practice genuine humility and attempt to live according to God’s standards.  John 10:29, 2 Timothy 1:12, 1 Peter 1:3-5.

The Christian Lifestyle:  I believe that a Christian is to walk within scriptural boundaries but also has freedom within those boundaries. We trust people to be empowered and led by the Holy Spirit to live a life pleasing to God. Romans 14:1-6; Galatians 5:22-23.

Church:  I believe the universal church consisting of all those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their savior. We believe in the local church where Christians live out their faith through corporate worship, work and fellowship. We believe God has given the individual members of the local church the primary task of telling others about the good news of Jesus Christ. Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 5:17-20.

Baptism:  I believe Baptism is one of the ordinances Christ left the church. Baptism is not salvific (it does not save or bring about salvation); rather, it is an outward sign of an inward reality demonstrating one’s faith in God the Father, one’s acceptance of Jesus Christ the Son, and one’s recognition of the living presence of the Holy Spirit in them. Baptism means to dip or immerse; therefore, my preferred mode of Baptism is immersion.  While I do not understand infant baptism to be an ordinance instituted by Christ, I believe that it was practiced by early believers and that its practice can be beneficial, but it is not a saving baptism, nor is it indicative of God’s election of the child to salvation.  Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 2:38-41.

Communion:  I believe that Jesus told us to remember Him through sharing the bread (representing His body given for us) and the cup (representing His shed blood). It is an outward symbol pointing to our present healthy relationship with Christ.   At my home church, we choose to take communion once a month. 1 Corinthians 11:23-24.