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Colossians 1:5-6

Beyond the Pale!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
July 25, 2023

Paul begins his letter to the Colossians by thanking God for them. He thanks God for their faith in Jesus Christ, their love for other believers, and the shared hope they have that’s been laid up for them all in heaven. The next phrase refers directly to the shared hope they have in heaven. Paul says in Colossians 1:5-6, “Of this, you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth.” It’s the ultimate truth that changed the world. Jesus did not start the church during his life. It wasn’t his death on the cross that changed the world. After his death, his close disciples went back to fishing. The two saints on the road to Emmaus were just going about their lives. The women went to embalm the dead body of Jesus as they would anyone that had died. It wasn’t his death that changed the world. It was the resurrection that changed everything. This is the essence of the Gospel preached to the Colossians and received by them. It’s the same truth that changes our lives today. We’ve come to believe with all the saints of old that, as Wordsworth wrote, “Life is real! Life is earnest!  And the grave is not its goal; ‘Dust thou art, to dust returnest,’ was not spoken of the soul.”

I think the gospel “truth,” however, is that eternal life, offered to all through faith in Jesus, comes to our body and soul, not just soul. It seems that an ethereal existence after death might be comforting in ways, but it’s a lot more exciting to see that our bodies will be resurrected to rejoin our spirits for eternity. One blogger explains, “Just as our earthly bodies are perfectly suited to life on earth, our resurrected bodies will be suited for life in eternity. We will have form and solidity to the touch. We will likely be able to enjoy food but will not be driven to it by necessity or fleshly desire. And like Moses and Elijah, we will be able to bathe in the glory of our Maker in the fellowship of His dear Son. The bodies we inherit will be more like what God originally intended rather than what we now abide in. Gone will be the infirmity and weakness of our sinful flesh; rather, we will be glorified with Christ, and that glory will extend to the bodies we will inhabit.”[1] Jesus wanted us to understand that, and that’s why he ate fish in one of his post-resurrection appearances and insisted that he had risen bodily.

This is part of the good news. I’ve often heard on TV shows, movies, and books that people are said to live on after they die in the hearts and minds of their loved ones. That might be comforting for those left behind, but it does nothing for the dead ones! I don’t know about you, but it’s not good news for me to be someone’s fond memory. I don’t want to live on in someone’s heart or mind. I want to live on, really! I want to be me. I want to be able to experience all the wonders of heaven. That’s the good news. It’s what enables us all to go on during times of suffering, war, disaster, or disease. Philipp Nicolai, a Lutheran pastor who had served in several congregations already, came to the parish of Unna in Westphalia in 1596. The following year, the plague struck Unna with dreadful ferocity; in 1597 alone, more than 1,400 residents died. Nicolai relates that the small town often witnessed up to 30 funerals in a single day. Surrounded by terror and engulfed in grief, Nicolai found consolation in the doctrine of eternal life. He writes, “During this time, nothing was sweeter, fonder, or more pleasant to me than contemplating the precious lofty article of eternal life procured by Christ’s blood.”[2] There has to be something beyond the pale. There’s more awaiting you and me. We are walking through the valley of the shadow of death. Notice, it’s just a shadow. We are not living in the land of the living, headed for the land of the dead. We’re living in the land of the dying, headed for the land where we will be truly alive.

[1] https://www.gotquestions.org/glorified-bodies.html

[2] https://www.wisluthsem.org/joy-of-eternal-life/

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Philippians 1:1, Various

A Book For Normal People

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
July 24, 2023

Paul identified himself as a “servant” of Christ Jesus. He didn’t use his official “Apostle” title, but the Greek word usually translated as “slave.” I have argued that titles are not necessary to be a servant of Jesus. If we are to follow Jesus’ example of washing others’ feet as Jesus did and invite us to follow His example, no titles are necessary. As a matter of fact, titles can often get in the way. The President doesn’t wash the feet of the Vice President. We just assume that is the way it’s to be. Yet, Christ calls for this kind of leadership. He was the Son of God. He had the highest position of anyone in the world. As a matter of fact, at His name, every knee will bow. It’s a name above every other name. Yet he washed his disciple’s feet. Paul and other writers of the New Testament did use titles in their letters to the churches. In the letter to the Philippians, Paul uses three titles; saints, overseers, and deacons.” Philippians 1:1b says, “To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons.”  So we consider the question, what does saint mean? “In its most basic sense, a saint is a ‘holy one,’ someone who is set apart for God’s special purposes. As a result, every follower of Jesus Christ is a saint. In most of his letters, the apostle Paul refers to the recipients as saints, including the church at Corinth, where there were significant moral and theological problems!” Saints, like the children of Israel, are not perfect people. The nation was called in Exodus 19, “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” Then

I Peter 2:9 applies this same language to believers: “you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”[1] Paul’s letter is written to all believers. All believers are saints, but not all saints are “overseers.” They are the believers who serve in leadership roles in the church. In the Bible, the terms overseer, bishop, and elder all refer to the same position in the church. I like the way the New Living Translation translates the term “church leader.” The titles Bishop, Elder, and Pastor have baggage attached to them for the modern believer. But simply put, they are simply church leaders. One blogger explains, “Those in the leadership position of overseer should follow the example of Jesus, who ‘did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’ Leadership, according to the Bible, is not about puffing oneself up or lording power over others but rather about serving those who have been entrusted to one’s care.”[2]

There are only two official offices mentioned in Scripture: Overseer and Deacon. The church leaders referred to as “overseers” refers to the pastors of the church. As the term suggests, they are responsible for “watching over” the church. Deacons are those who have been selected to serve the church in various ways that give attention to practical matters. In Acts chapter six, when deacons were chosen in Jerusalem to look out for the welfare of the widows in the church, it was done so to free the pastors to focus their attention on God’s word and prayer.[3] Although we see that Paul recognized those in official capacities in the church, he was addressing all believers. It might be helpful to hear what learned pastors might explain about a passage in the Bible, but be assured that it was written to everyone. The language of the New Testament is Greek. But it was unlike the formal classical Greek of Plato and Aristotle. It was the language that ordinary people spoke and understood. It was once referred to as “Holy Ghost” Greek by the church in order to distinguish it from classical Greek. It was something that only learned ecclesiastical leaders could understand and was often kept from normal people. “This all changed at the end of the nineteenth century. In a garbage dump in Egypt, the discovery was made of the letters, contracts, receipts, etc., of ordinary people who lived at the same time as Jesus. It became clear from these writings that the New Testament was written in the same common, everyday language of the people, not some special Bible language. This reinforces the idea that the Bible was written to the masses, not just to an elite few.”[4]

[1] https://seminary.grace.edu/what-does-saint-mean

[2] https://www.gotquestions.org/overseer-in-the-church.html

[3] Ellsworth, Roger. 2004. Opening up Philippians. Opening Up Commentary. Leominster: Day One Publications.

[4] https://www.blueletterbible.org

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Ephesians 1:4b

Now, That Is Good News!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
July 23, 2023

Paul teaches the Ephesian believers that, like Israel, they were chosen by God. The choice wasn’t based on their quantity or their quality but simply on God’s love. There was nothing special about them over and against anyone else that motivated God’s choice. He just chose them to be His Children. He has the sovereign right as the creator of all things. God’s choice was made “…before the foundation of the world.” Just as God had chosen Israel to be His unique people in the world, so too are Christians chosen by God for that purpose as well. The final phrase of Ephesians 1:4 explains what God’s choice results in regarding each believer. He states this biblical truth,  “that we should be holy and blameless before him.” This is either the most encouraging phrase in the Bible or the most discouraging. It all depends on how it is understood. Jenkins makes it most discouraging. He writes, “Nobel had a purpose in setting up his awards, and God had a purpose in electing those who are in Christ. Paul states the purpose in these words: that we should be holy (separate, set apart, different) and blameless. Saints are to be holy because God is holy (1 Peter 1:16; Leviticus 19:2). Saints likewise must be blameless (without blemish). The word is used in the LXX with reference to the sacrificial animals (Leviticus 1:3 et al.). In order to be presented unto Christ, the church, as His bride, must be holy and blameless (Ephesians 5:27; cf. Colossians 1:22). This indicates the type of life the Christian must lead.”[1] There is no “good news” in this comment.

Both the Old Testament and the New Testament verify the fact that all people are lost sinners and incapable of living Holy lives. Benfield explains this well, “This is where the problem lies. Isaiah declares our righteousness is as filthy rags. Paul declares there are none righteous, not even one. James reveals that if we fail to keep one of the commandments, then before God, we are guilty of all. This reveals one would have to live a perfect life, just like the life Jesus lived on earth, to be accepted by God through an attempt to keep the law. Common sense and simple knowledge of our own sinful tendencies reveal this is utterly impossible. We cannot live righteous enough, in and of ourselves, to merit salvation!”[2]

How can anyone be “Holy and Blameless?” There are two parts of this verse that needs to be understood to explain that to us. First, The Bible is clear that there is nothing we can do to make ourselves such. We either are, or we are not. The two-word phrase “holy and blameless” shows up in the Old Testament description of the sacrifices that would be presented as the sin offering. It is clearly a description of Jesus as the unique one and only perfect individual. We will never be holy and blameless in our practice, but our position in Christ ensures that we will never fall short because he cannot fall short. What He has, He has given to us. This is the good news of the gospel in a nutshell. The second thought to be considered is “before Him.” Obrien explains, “Since the whole expression is dealing with the goal of election, that is, their full perfection in Christ, it is likely that the day of the Lord Jesus is in view. God chose his people in Christ with the ultimate goal that they would be holy and blameless before him when they appear in his presence.”[3] Although we should get better in life, we all know that we will never achieve perfection. But the good news includes the idea that we will have it in the end. This is all good news for us. We try and fail. We try again and fail again. But when it’s all said and done, when we see the Lord, it’s promised that we will not fail anymore!

[1] Jenkins, Ferrell. 1987. “Election.” Edited by Brent Lewis. Christianity Magazine, 1987.

[2] Benfield, Chris. 2015. “The Way of Salvation # 36 (Romans 10:5–10).” In Pulpit Pages: New Testament Sermons, 853. Mount Airy, NC: Chris Benfield.

[3] O’Brien, Peter Thomas. 1999. The Letter to the Ephesians. The Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

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Galatians 1:4, 4:3, Ephesians 2:8-9

Redeemed from the Law!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
July 22, 2023

According to Paul, grace and peace come from God the Father and His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Then in Galatians 1:4, Paul says something more about Jesus. He “gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father.” Notice Paul’s identification of himself as a sinner. It was “our sins,” he says, that Jesus died for. The law condemns us all to hell. If the law is our standard, not only will we live with uncertainty and stress, we will eventually end up condemned to hell. Paul realizes that it includes himself. Jesus had to die for us. If a man could make himself acceptable to God by works of the law, Jesus would not have had to die for our sins. If the legalists of Paul’s day are right in that there are still stipulations of law that are essential for our salvation, we shouldn’t have needed a savior. But Paul knew he did. Sinners know that they do. The healthy don’t need a physician, only the sick. The righteous don’t need a savior; only sinners do.

Many people refer to Jesus as our example. Although this is true in several respects, it’s not exhaustive. Jesus set an example for us to follow and said so after He washed the feet of his disciples. But he didn’t set an example for us when He raised Lazarus from the dead. He is much more than our example. When you’re drowning, you don’t need someone standing on the dock doing the dog paddle and shouting, “go like this.” We need someone to save us. That’s what Jesus did, and then he illustrates a lifestyle that’s worth living. Kenneth Boles writes, “Paul wants to establish from the beginning what is the important theme of Christianity. Salvation is not based on man’s ability to keep God’s rules but on Christ’s ransom, paid with his blood. It was Christ ‘who gave himself as a ransom for all men’ (1 Tim 2:6, cf. Mark 10:45). As the Galatians will be reminded, the atoning sacrifice of Christ is not compatible with man-made salvation. Either Jesus saves us, or we save ourselves.”

It was God’s will that Jesus would die for our sins to “rescue us from this present evil age.” The Greek word for “rescue” or “deliver” in this verse is used five times in the book of Acts to describe how God rescued people who could not rescue or “deliver” themselves: The rescue of Joseph from his afflictions (7:10), the deliverance of Israel from Egypt (7:34), the rescue of Peter from prison (12:11), the rescue of Paul from the temple mob (23:27), and the deliverance of Paul from the Jews (26:17). The interesting thing is that even the Law of Moses was included in the idea of “this evil age” in Galatians 4:3. Jesus died not to enable us to live out the law, but to save us from the consequences of having broken it. The law condemns us all, and it’s too late to win God’s approval by keeping the law. The law never has and will never make anyone acceptable to God. Jesus saves us from the law and makes us acceptable to God by His righteousness, not our own. In Galatians 3:10-11, Paul will lay this out clearly. He writes, “For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law and do them.’ Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’” In other books, he makes other clarifying arguments as well. In Ephesians 2:8-9, he writes, “ For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” John Piper concludes one of his sermons on Galatians by saying, “The substitutionary death of Christ is our only and all-sufficient hope of escaping God’s wrath. And because of it, God is willing to grace us with his very Spirit when we repent and turn away from self-confidence and put all our confidence in him, that is when we are crucified to the old way of legal effort and live, instead, by faith in the Son of God who loved us and gave himself for us.”[1]

[1] https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/christ-redeemed-us-from-the-curse-of-the-law

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2 Corinthians 1:4

What Goes Around…

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
July 21, 2023

Paul continues to talk about God as the Father of mercies and the mother who comforts her hurting children but adds a purpose to God’s mercy and comfort.  The Father of Jesus Christ is the God who shows mercy and “who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” Forgiveness, mercy is needed because of our sinfulness. Comfort is needed because we live in a world that is full of suffering. God desires that we pass on the forgiveness, mercy, that we receive and comfort that we receive from God. By any estimation, 2 Corinthians 1:3–7 frames the Bible’s greatest text on comfort. The word “comfort” occurs no less than ten times in its noun and verb forms in this brief paragraph—essentially one-third of all thirty-one occurrences in the New Testament. Paul says more about suffering, and more about comfort, than any other writer in the Bible. And it is here that he says the most about it. Thinking about Paul’s life that might be expected. He was whipped, stoned, imprisoned, and eventually beheaded by Nero. But his whole life was one of suffering and comforting others who suffer. Hughes argues, “There is a reason for this, and it was to answer critics who held that the sufferings that characterized Paul’s life were evidence that he was not an apostle, because if he was the real thing, he wouldn’t be experiencing so much trouble. Paul’s answer was that abundant suffering and abundant comfort are, in fact signs of apostolic authenticity.”[1]

Dietrich Bonhoeffer is a more modern person who suffered greatly and passed on the comfort he received to others. He “was one of a handful of German theologians to stand up to the Nazification of the German church. Bonhoeffer’s courage thrust him into the leadership of the Confessing Church along with other stalwarts like Martin Niemöller. Bonhoeffer went so far as to found an underground seminary in Finkenwald, Bavaria, which was closed by Gestapo chief Heinrich Himmler. This led to Bonhoeffer’s joining the resistance movement and his being imprisoned by the Gestapo in April 1943. Bonhoeffer’s Letters from Prison became a best-seller after the war. Among the letters is a beautiful poem written to his fiancé Maria von Wedemeyer entitled ‘New Year 1945.’ Stanza 3 is famous:

Should it be ours to drain the cup of grieving

Even to the dregs of pain,

At thy command, we will not falter,

Thankfully receiving all that is given

By thy loving hand.1

“Poignant words that became more so when, three months later, just as the war was ending, Bonhoeffer was hung in Flossenbürg prison. Fast-forward to some eighteen years later, across the Atlantic in America, when another bride-to-be was grieving the death of her fiancé and found much comfort in Bonhoeffer’s poem. Her fiancé, who died from injuries in a sledding accident, was the son of author Joseph Bayly and his wife Mary Lou. When she mailed Bonhoeffer’s poem to them, Joe and Mary Lou also found comfort in ‘New Year 1945.’ Twelve years after this (thirty years after Bonhoeffer’s death), Joe Bayly received a letter from a pastor-friend in Massachusetts relating that he had visited a terminally ill woman in a Boston hospital for some period of time and had given her Joe’s book of poems, Heaven, as comfort for her soul. The pastor said that the dying woman had stayed awake late the previous night to read it and told him of the comfort and help she had received from it. A few hours later she died. The woman, the pastor revealed, was Maria von Wedemeyer-Weller, Bonhoeffer’s fiancé three decades earlier! God’s comfort circulates among his children—and sometimes it comes full circle, as it did from Dietrich Bonhoeffer to Maria von Wedemeyer in her grief to Joseph Bayly, Jr.’s grieving fiancé to Joe and Mary Lou Bayly in their grief and then back to Bonhoeffer’s one-time fiancé as comfort in her dying hours.2 Our text alludes to this astonishing cyclical nature of comfort—its mutuality—its overflowing nature.”

[1] Hughes, R. Kent. 2006. 2 Corinthians: Power in Weakness. Preaching the Word. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.

1 Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Letters and Papers from Prison, ed. Eberhard Bethge (New York: Macmillan, 1953), p. 221.

2 Personal correspondence of Joseph Bayly, June 23, 1980.

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1 Corinthians 1:4-5, 4:7

The Problem With Self-made People

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
July 20, 2023

After greeting his readers with a prayer for grace and peace to be theirs from God and Jesus, he then continues explaining how he prays for his readers in Corinth. 1 Corinthians 1:4-5 says, “I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge.” Paul’s prayers always seem to begin with “thanks.” As he begins his prayer in this section, he says, “I give thanks to my God always.” I remember my mother saying “thank God!” a lot of times. When Dad would finally do something she asked him to do, she would say it. When the turkey came out of the oven on time, she would say it. When I would get a passing grade on my report card, she would say it. My mom was a lot like Paul. She would thank God for most things in life. She would also say, “thank goodness.” Sometimes it would be “thank heaven.” One online dictionary comments on the saying and says that the “thank God” phrase means, “I’m grateful, as in Thank God you arrived safely, or We didn’t, thank goodness, run out of food, or Thank heaven the book arrived on time. These ejaculations originally expressed gratitude to divine providence but today tend to be used in a more casual way.”[1]

Paul sounds a lot more sincere with his thanksgiving to God than my mom did. He specifically points out what he’s thankful for regarding the Corinthians. First, he’s thankful for the Grace God gave them. It appears to be agreed that Grace, by definition, is undeserved favor. It’s not earned by being good or doing good deeds. It is simply a gift. One writer said, “At Christmas time, we all give and receive gifts, but in most all cases, these gifts are not deserved. (Except in the case of Santa Claus, so you better watch out!). The gifts are given, but they are of no value unless they are received (opened) and put to use in our lives. So if God’s grace is a gift, your only action is to be open to receive His gift.”[2] This is especially true regarding salvation itself. It is impossible to be earned or deserved. When can only accept the generous offer of salvation like one receives a Christmas gift. Jesus, of course, is the greatest Christmas gift. Paul tells us that we are saved by “grace.” It’s a gift from God. All of our service to God is done by His grace. All of our acts of kindness are done by His grace. Paul is not only talking about the grace of salvation that the Corinthians had received. He’s specifically pointing out how God had gifted them personally. He thanks God for their enrichment in speech and knowledge.

Paul begins by complementing the Corinthians for all their giftedness in speaking and knowledge. The Corinthians had become known for having many of the spiritual gifts of ministry. He wants them to know that he respects their giftedness to set the stage for what’s coming. There’s going to be a big “but” in the course of this letter. But for now, he wants the Corinthians to know he recognizes their giftedness. But he wants them to know from the outset that these gifts are somehow reflective of their being any better than anyone else. They are “underserved,” as are all gifts from God. Paul will get quite specific about this later in the letter. In 1 Corinthians 4:7, he writes, “What do you have that you did not receive? If you received it, why do you boast that you did not receive it?” We talk a lot about being “self-made.” We are taught that we should lift ourselves up by our own bootstraps. We honor and lift these people up as examples for us to follow. But “The problem with some self-made people is that they end up worshipping themselves. They may think, ‘Wait a minute; I built this business with my bare hands.’ But who gave you your hands? They say, ‘I thought up the business plan totally by myself.’ But who gave you your mind? They claim, ‘I worked for where I am today by the sweat of my brow.’ But who gave you the ability to work so hard?”[3] When I pray over our food with my grandsons around, I say the same thing every time because I want them to understand where Grampa stands. I say, “Dear Lord, you have filled the world with color and have given us eyes. You have filled the world with music and given us ears. You have filled the world with good things to eat and given us the ability to enjoy them. So, Bless us, O Lord, and these thy gifts that we are about to receive through Christ Jesus, Our Lord.”

[1] https://www.dictionary.com/browse/thank–god

[2] https://www.radianceworship.org/blog/grace-is-a-gift

[3] https://pastorrick.com/what-do-you-have-that-god-hasnt-given-you/

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Romans 1:5-6, Various

Sick To My Stomach

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
July 19, 2023

God declared Jesus as Lord through the resurrection from the dead. It’s Jesus’ resurrection that set the Church on its course through history. Without the resurrection, there would be no church. The disciples would have gone back to fishing. The grieving women would have embalmed Jesus’ body, and the disciples would have continued on their way to Emmaus. Jesus would have been just another radical Jewish religious figure from the past whose teachings and actions revealed the demented character of a false messiah. But the resurrection proved that Jesus was whom he said He was, and that sent the disciples into action. Paul wants the Romans to know that the resurrected Christ has commissioned him and his partners to bring the truth to the world, including them. Just as at the ascension, Jesus left His disciples with the commission to spread the good news around the world before He left them. Yet, He appeared once again to a Pharisee who was persecuting the church. Paul clearly saw the commission that Jesus gave His disciples as his own mission. In Romans 1:5-6, he says, “Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.”

 Along with all of the previous disciples, Paul claims to have received “grace and apostleship.” When we consider the various calls of Christ on His disciples to share the good news with the world, it seems Paul is referring to the great commission. The great commission appears in Matthew 28:16-20; Mark 16:15–18; Luke 24:44-49; John 20:19-23; and Acts 1:8. It has been a fairly universal understanding that this call to share the good news of God’s grace is applicable to all believers. Paul uses the first person plural “we.” Many commentators think he’s referring to just himself and the other apostles. Some think he was using the plural as a general way of just speaking about himself. It’s a rhetorical “we” in that case. But I’m thinking from the overall commissioning of Jesus’ disciples to the task of sharing their faith with the world, Paul is using it as a “we” that includes his Roman readers in that mission. Most protestant interpreters of the great commission apply Jesus’ calling to the whole church, past, present, and future. The word for “apostle” doesn’t always have to be a technical term that refers to only a select few during Jesus’ day. It could just mean “sent ones,” as the Greek term literally means. Paul speaks of receiving “grace” as well as apostleship. I doubt if anyone would argue that “grace” is only given to the few. There is a sense in which “grace and apostleship” are given to all believers.

Paul brings his readers into the mission as coworkers in bringing about the “obedience of faith” to everyone in every generation. There are numerous preachers and commentators that try to separate “obedience” from “faith.” They argue that Paul is calling Christians to be obedient to the law of Moses or at least to all the moral exhortations of the law. That leaves us all behind. One of my commentators preaches that “Obedience is the true measure of a person’s faith.”[1] If this is so, I think we’ll all be lost in the end. The Bible makes it clear that there is no human who is without sin. Further, the apostle John tells us in his first letter that anyone who says he is without sin is a liar. One current commentator has made a name for himself for saying and expounding on saying, “If Jesus is not Lord of all, He is not Lord at all.” The point in this is that if a person wants to be saved, Jesus must be the Lord of everything in his life. One person listening to a preacher proclaim this view watched the teacher who recognized his struggles in life in the middle of his teaching and said, “The whole class could tell he was troubled by what was said, even though the teacher didn’t say a word. He then made his feelings clear. He rubbed his stomach and said, that statement makes me sick to my stomach.’”[2] Obedience of “faith” means to believe in Jesus to have paid the penalty for our sins. I agree with Barrett, who said, “It is perhaps better to recognize that there are different kinds of obedience; there is what may be called a ‘works obedience,’ concerned to produce works that may win favor from God, and a ‘faith obedience,’ arising out of the faith that gratefully accepts the favor that God has already spontaneously shown. It is the latter that Paul seeks.”[3]

[1] Mounce, Robert H. 1995. Romans. Vol. 27. The New American Commentary. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

[2] Bad Theology Will Make You Sick (Rom 10:9)  – Grace in Focus Blog for 2/27/2023

[3] Barrett, C. K. 1991. The Epistle to the Romans. Rev. ed. Black’s New Testament Commentary. London: Continuum.

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Acts 1:8, Romans 10:14-15

Good News for the Whole World

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
July 18, 2023

Being together with Jesus before his ascension into heaven, the disciples ask Jesus about the future coming of His kingdom on earth. They want to know if He’s going to do that now. In their question was the assumption that it would be the Kingdom of Israel. They might still not have grasped the idea that Jesus’ kingdom would be for the whole world. Jesus informs them that the times and seasons of His kingdom coming is not something in their purview. They should pay attention and focus their efforts on something else. In Acts 1:8, Jesus tells them, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” You won’t be able to see the future, but you will receive the power you need to concentrate on the mission God is giving you. They were called to spread the message of Jesus Christ right where they were and move from there to the rest of the world.

I’m worried about the understanding and often the preaching of this passage, which makes “power” the same as “might.” Since the days of Constantine, along with many of the following rulers, this has been misunderstood a lot. Boice recognized the danger of misunderstanding what Jesus meant. The problem is that we still struggle with the flesh and are often moved to think we can force the issue. He writes, “It is the temptation to think that we are to do the Lord’s work in the world’s way. We are to establish the kingdom politically—by law, by getting Christians into high positions in government, and by imposing our vision of society on the world.”[1] I’m not arguing that we don’t need good Christian politicians. Boice and I both agree that we do. It’s just that Jesus doesn’t commend us to “Jihad.” To force conversions with a sword. He even told Peter to put away his sword because those who live by it will die by it. If we understand the “last times” accurately, there will be a time when force is used, and all the wicked will stand before the Lord and face the consequences for their behavior. But Jesus does not call Christians to hold others accountable in that way today. He will take care of that when He returns.

The power that Jesus was referring to that was bestowed upon the disciples was not military power to coerce people to the faith, but the ability and understanding of sharing Christ in a way that might convince people of the truth of the faith. The Holy Spirit will instruct them on what to say and when to say it. More importantly, it will place the passion for seeing others come to faith, without which no one will be saved. Paul makes the importance of witnessing the central thing in the salvation of individuals. Pointing to Jesus as the savior of the world is what is done, and the Holy Spirit will apply the power to the preaching. Paul says in Romans 10:14-15, “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” Acts 1:8 is Jesus “sending” his disciples to tell others the wonderful, good news of having our sins forgiven and being made right with God. I like what Ogilvie says, “There are very few examples in two thousand years of Christian history of people becoming Christians with no direct or indirect influence from witnesses in whom the Savior communicated His love. Surely, many have made their initial commitment to Christ alone with their Bibles. But prior to that was the influence of individuals or the church, however misguided or inept they might have been. Augustine was alone when he gave his life to the pursuing Savior, but his mother, Monica, was praying![2]

[1] Boice, James Montgomery. 1997. Acts: An Expositional Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

[2] Ogilvie, Lloyd J., and Lloyd J. Ogilvie. 1983. Acts. Vol. 28. The Preacher’s Commentary Series. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc.

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