service genset jogja
Haggai 1:7, Proverbs 4:6

Why Am I Here?

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
June 10, 2024

Haggai 1:7 says, “Thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways.” This phrase appears six times in the book. Haggai wants the children of Israel to look at their life choices and to consider them in light of their history with God. It’s more than a call to see how much evil you are doing and what bad choices you are making. It’s a call to reflect on life as a whole and my own life in particular. Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” I would argue that the wise man of scripture is the one who is always “considering” his ways or examining his life. Many Christians hold a little disdain for Philosophy. They shouldn’t! Philos means love, and Sophia means wisdom. It’s the wise man in Proverbs who loves wisdom.

The most profound reflection is “Where did I come from?” I discussed that briefly in a previous post. Another question is, “Why am I here?” Jean-Paul Sartre answered that question by contending that “All of life is an empty bubble on the sea of nothingness.” Of course, that proceeds from the answer to the first question. If there is no creator, there is no purpose. If all life evolved by chance, life can have no true significance or meaning beyond the day to day pains and pleasures of life. Then Shakespeare is right. Life is only a fleeting shadow. It is an actor playing out his part on the stage of life and signifying nothing. I’ll have nothing to do with such a description of the greatest gift we have: life itself.

Those who believe Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning God…” answer the second question much differently, and therefore, they view life much differently. Christians often speak of the abundant life in which we exist to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. I am always astounded when unbelievers find themselves facing questions that are totally unanswerable because they assume the validity of the evolutionary hypothesis regarding the first question, “Where did I come from?” Even Sigmund Freud said, “Only religion is able to answer the question of the purpose of life. One can hardly go wrong in concluding that the idea of a purpose in life stands and falls with the religious system.” It’s simple: no God, no purpose! Know God, Know Purpose! The wisest man in the world tells us in Proverbs 4:6, “Do not abandon wisdom, and it will watch over you. Love wisdom, and it will protect you.”

Tags: ,
Permalink
Haggai 1:5f, Proverbs 2:6

The Wisdom Of God

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
June 9, 2024

The key challenge from Haggai is to “consider your ways.” It appears six times in the book. In a way, it’s a call to reflect on life as a whole and my own life in particular. Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” I would argue that the wise man of scripture is the one who is always “considering” his ways or examining his life. Many Christians hold a little disdain for Philosophy. They shouldn’t! Philos means love, and Sophia means wisdom. Philosophy is the love or the pursuit of wisdom when rightly understood. The wisest man in the world, Solomon, shares his wisdom with the world in the book of Proverbs. He argues that the only true wisdom in the world has its origin in reverence and respect for the creator God. It is those who fear God who have the pulse on true wisdom. Proverbs 2:6 says, “For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.”

Haggai says, “Consider your ways.” This is more than just an exhortation to evaluate one’s behavior. All actions come from some kind of presuppositions in life. I think Haggai wants us to reflect on them as well. Think about your life. “Where did I come from?” It is the first and most important reflection on life. If we see ourselves as coming through a random evolutionary process, we will view all life from this foundational premise. It says nothing plus infinite time plus chance equals everything that exists today. Even though I’ve argued in favor of this perspective in the past, it has never been completely convincing to me. Even though it’s the predominant view in our world, it is the most unsatisfactory view I can imagine. Thankfully, there is another option. I’m thankful that at 32 years of age, God opened my mind to His truth. It’s the only reasoning that really makes sense.

Tozer writes, “Everything has an origin. When you hear a bird sing, you know that once that bird was packed in a tiny little egg. It came from somewhere; it came from an egg. Where did the egg come from? It came from another little bird. And that bird came from another little egg, and that egg came from another bird, and so on, back, back, back to the heart of God.” Behind everything that exists is an intelligent Being who started it all. God’s Word, the Bible, begins with the answer to the most important question of philosophical reflection for all of life. It says, “In the beginning God…” He not only started the process but continues to guide it with some ultimate purpose in mind. When we think about that, we will adjust our “ways” accordingly. Ignoring or rejecting that leads only to every man doing that which is right in his own eyes.

Tags: ,
Permalink
Exodus 20:13

Thou Shalt Not Kill

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
June 8, 2024

The New Testament, instead of being the cause of demeaning of women, was the cause of liberating women. Just one verse in Galatians, “There is neither male nor female,” has set half of the world free. It took some time for this truth to sink in, and it might not be finished yet, but any advances society has made regarding the equality of women can be attributed to this one verse.  But as great as those advances are, they truly pale in comparison to the advances that Christianity brought in the elevation and development of children. Nothing has improved the status of children in the world more than Christianity. William Barclay notes correctly that under the Roman law of “patria potestas” (“the father’s power”), “A Roman father had absolute power over his family. He could sell them as slaves; he could make them work in his fields, even in chains; he could take the law into his own hands, for the law was in his own hands, and he could punish as he liked; he could even inflict the death penalty on his child. Further, the power of the Roman father extended over the child’s whole life, so long as the father lived. A Roman son never came of age.”

James M. Boice points out, “There was also the matter of child repudiation, leading to exposure of the newborn. When a baby was born, it was placed before its father. If the father stooped and lifted the child, the child was accepted and was raised as his. If he turned away, the child was rejected and was literally discarded. Such rejected children were either left to die or were picked up by those who trafficked in infants. These people raised children to be slaves or to stock the brothels. One Roman father wrote to his wife from Alexandria: ‘If—good luck to you!—you have a child, if it is a boy, let it live; if it is a girl, throw it out.’ Against such pagan cruelty, the new relations of parents to children and children to parents brought by the Christian gospel stand forth like sunshine after a dismal storm.”

Although infanticide was a common practice in the ancient Mediterranean world, it fell out of favor, largely due to the influence of Christianity.[1] The connection between child sacrifice scorned in the Old Testament and the modern practice of abortion has led every state to pass laws making abortion at certain stages of pregnancy illegal.  According to many conservative views, there is no difference between abortion and infanticide. They both end a human life. This was Tertullian’s view in the early years of Christianity. He wrote, in the “Apology,” of the acceptable practice of infanticide in the Roman Empire. But, speaking for Christians, he writes, “To us, to whom homicide has been once for all forbidden, it is not permitted to break up even what has been conceived in the womb, while as yet the blood is being drawn (from the parent body) for human life. Prevention of birth is premature murder, and it makes no difference whether it is a life already born that one snatches away or a life in the act of being born that one destroys; that which is to be a human being is also human; the whole fruit is already actually present in the seed.”[2]

[1] Grenz, Stanley J., and Jay T. Smith. 2003. In Pocket Dictionary of Ethics, 60. The IVP Pocket Reference Series. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

[2] Stott, John. 2018. The Preacher’s Notebook: The Collected Quotes, Illustrations, and Prayers of John Stott. Edited by Mark Meynell. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

Tags:
Permalink
1 Samuel 7:12, Various

A Stone Of Remembrance

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
June 7, 2024

In the early chapter of 1st Samuel, we read that the Philistines defeated Israel and took possession of the Ark of the Covenant. This grieved Israel, but it didn’t take long for the Philistines to feel God’s curse on them for having the Ark in their possession. God moved Israel to war again and gave them a great victory over their enemies. The Ark and its contents were returned to Israel. After God blessed Israel with victory over the Philistines, we read in 1 Samuel 7:12, “Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen and called its name Ebenezer; for he said, till now the Lord has helped us.” It sounds like Samuel is saying that God has helped them “until” now. But what is meant is that God has been with them all the time up to and including now. He wanted to memorialize God’s providential care of Israel.

I think we all know of the chief character in Charles Dickens’ novel A Christmas Carol. Ebenezer Scrooge is a miserly businessman who is reformed when the ghost of his business partner haunts him on Christmas Eve with visions of the past, the present, and a very gloomy future. The old man sees the error of his ways, and his sour views turn cheery. Despite his transformation, however, the character is remembered as the embittered miser and not as the reformed sinner, and his last name has entered the English language as a synonym for a miser.[1] The interesting thing to me is his first name: Ebenezer. Dickens chose this name to raise the idea of being of an immovable nature.

The setting up of stones for memorials was not Samuel’s original idea. If you want something to be permanent, you put it in stone. In Israel’s case, it was setting up stones. It had been part of the Hebrew culture since Genesis 28 when Jacob set up a similar memorial at Bethel. Joshua set stones in the midst of the Jordan to mark the place where the waters opened, and Israel crossed into the Promised Land. Stones were set up in the Achor Valley to remind the Jews of Achan’s disobedience. Another heap marked the burial place of the king of Ai. More stones were placed at a cave at Makkedah to mark where five kings had been defeated and slain. Before his death, Joshua set up a “witness stone” to remind the Israelites of their vow to serve the Lord alone and obey Him. “Ebenezer” means “stone of help” because the monument was a reminder to the Jews that God had helped them that far and would continue to help them if they would trust Him and keep His covenant.

The idea of “Ebenezer” is that God’s care is solid and stable, and we can depend on it. Wiersbe tells us that the founder of the China Inland Mission, J. Hudson Taylor, had a plaque displayed in each of his residences that read “Ebenezer—Jehovah Jireh,” Together, these Hebrew words say, “The Lord has helped us to this point, and He will see to it from now on.” Things written in “stone” are said to be permanent. When we build our houses, we want them built upon strong “stone” foundations, not wood, hay, or stubble. The stones set up by Israel were reminders for all generations of the faithfulness of God to His people.

[1] “Scrooge, Ebenezer.” 2015. In Compton’s Encyclopedia. Chicago, IL: Compton’s Encyclopedia.

Tags:
Permalink
Deuteronomy 32:11-14, Hebrews 13:4

God Protects The Faithful

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
June 6, 2024

The Bible often refers to the exclusivity of the marriage relationship with the exclusivity of His own relationship with His people. The Old Testament often refers to God’s marriage with His people, Israel. The whole book of Hosea is about the infidelity (adultery) of God’s people by picturing the unfaithfulness of a wife named Gomer. In all His dealings with His people, as He led them out of Egypt and into the Promised Land, he promised blessings for faithfulness and cursing for spiritual adultery. In Moses’ song in Chapter 32 of Deuteronomy, he teaches the people about how great God’s blessings are when we are faithful to him. God is the eagle that protects His young. God is the one who brings blessings upon His people for their faithfulness. Verses 11 through 14 present those blessings as they are identified because His people resisted the allure of foreign gods. It says, “Like an eagle that stirs up its nest, that flutters over its young, spreading out its wings, catching them, bearing them on its pinions, the LORD alone guided him. No foreign god was with him. He made him ride on the high places of the land, and he ate the produce of the field, and he suckled him with honey out of the rock and oil out of the flinty rock. Curds from the herd, and milk from the flock, with the fat of lambs, rams of Bashan and goats, with the very finest of the wheat…”

The author of the book of Hebrews (13:4) tells us to “Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the immoral and adulterous.” God must always be number one in our lives. We don’t need to find the one; God is the one! Whether married or single, it’s an exclusive relationship. When we enter into the biblical marriage relationship, we don’t put our spouses in the number one place. They automatically become number two. God is always involved in a marriage and always has an interest in its success. The second half of this verse expresses judgment on God for immorality and unfaithfulness. God directs us to remain loyal and faithful to our spouses regardless of our feelings. Being faithful mates is being faithful to God. Being unfaithful mates is being unfaithful to God.

The passage from Deuteronomy above is from a part of the book known as The Blessings and the cursings. Judgment on unfaithfulness is the reversal of fortune in life. Everyone involved in dishonoring a marriage, whether their own or someone else’s, has placed themselves under God’s judgment. M. J. Evans says, “This verse takes for granted the fact that marriage is ordained by God and that it is a unique and exclusive relationship. The marriage covenant is never to be treated lightly, either by the partners involved or by those outside; God himself will act against those who break such a covenant.” But along the same lines, God will act favorably towards those who keep Him number one in our marriage relationships.

Tags: ,
Permalink
Genesis 2:24-25, Various

I’m Number Two!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
June 5, 2024

Not only does the Bible teach us that the union between a man and a woman, becoming one flesh in the bond of God, is to be a permanent bond, but it is also to be an exclusive one.  There are at least two aspects to this. Looking back at the Genesis passage, which is the foundational passage for marriage (Even Jesus quoted it), we read, “For this cause, a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24-25). The first point is the “leaving and cleaving” idea again. Jesus taught us that God always has first place in our lives. The first commandment is to love God; the second is like it. Jesus said, “You love your neighbor as yourself.” The word neighbor in this context is an interesting one. It’s a little more general and could refer to several relationships. Most seem to think it’s the people who live next door to us because that’s what the word means to us. But it refers mainly to the nearest, closest, human relationship that exists in our lives.

When we are children, our nearest or closest human relationship is with our parents. We are to love God and then love our parents. With God first, His direction, one of the top ten is “honor your mother and your father.” Just as Jesus added to Genesis 2:24-25, Paul added to the fifth commandment.  In Ephesians 6:1-3 he says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother’ is the first commandment with a promise, ‘that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.’” But this relationship falls out of second place once we marry. Our spouses now become second only to God. From my 35+ years of pastoral experience, many marriages begin their downward spiral when one of the marriage members allows someone or something to replace their spouse as number 2! If our spouse falls from number 2, God has already left number 1. It’s His will and direction that we “leave and cleave.”

When our spouses lose the number 2 spot, God is no longer in the #1 spot, and it opens the door to a violation of the 7th commandment: “Thou shalt not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14). This does not just refer to sexual activity; it also applies to intimacy in general. Husbands and wives must remain faithful to each other for life. Not only should sexual infidelities be excluded from spouses’ lives, but so should emotional infidelities. Sometimes, a husband or wife will turn to someone (or something) other than their spouse for emotional intimacy, sharing deep hurts, frustrations, dreams, and aspirations. One writer concludes that emotional infidelity “… can damage marriage even without sexual involvement. Certain intimacies of thought and feeling should be reserved for the marriage relationship.”  Remember, love God first, then your spouse second! Let nothing come between! I’m happy to be #2 in my wife’s life, and she is just as excited to be #2.

Tags:
Permalink
Matthew 19:4-6

Leaving And Cleaving

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
June 4, 2024

Genesis 1:31 tells us that marriage is God’s idea. I call it a “God Thing.” Since marriage is a “God Thing,” we cannot miss the fact that this makes it a very sacred relationship. God is either very bad at math, or He’s very serious about our marriage vows. To Him, one plus one does not equal two.  It equals one! The Bible’s first description of the marriage union is found in Genesis 2:18-24. Jesus quotes this account and then adds a little bit to it. He answered those who didn’t understand His math in Matthew 19:4-6, and said, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, (He then quotes from Genesis) therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh? So they are no longer two but one flesh. (He then adds something!) What therefore God has joined together let not man separate.”  Notice the shift in the relationship between an individual and his parents and the transfer of a bond through marriage.

The word from which the above translation renders “hold fast” is most often translated as “cleave.” It literally means “glued” or, even better, “fused” together. This is not like two liquids joined together that lose their individual characteristics. Rather, it’s like two metals fused together by another element, which is the bond. I would argue that the bonding element is God. It’s not sex. It’s not companionship. It’s not a financial benefit! It’s God.

I read an article recently addressing single people to wait until they “meet the one” before they marry. Of course, it meant a variety of things: The one that turns me on, the one that makes me feel special, or the one who makes me feel secure. It argued that when you “meet the one” (emphasis on the ONE), you will know it. My point this morning is that you already know the one. When Jesus was asked by several people what the greatest commandment was, he replied that it was to love God with our whole hearts, souls, minds, and strength.” He then added that the second commandment was to “love your neighbor as yourself.” No matter what your human relationships are, the “ONE” is and must remain “God.” He’s number one! We must love Him first. As children, the #2 is our parents. As adults, the number #2 should be our spouses. When God is actually number 1, he becomes the glue, the weld, the fusion, that enables us to “hold fast, cleave” to one another in God’s sacred institution of Holy Matrimony. In the course of our marriages, there will be times when we won’t turn each other on. There will be times when we don’t make each other feel special. There will be times when we’re not feeling particularly secure in our marriage. But there will never be a time that God is not number one and bonding us together through our marriage vows.

Tags:
Permalink
Judges 9:7f

Responding To God’s Word

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
June 3, 2024

Jothan, the only remaining legitimate son of Gideon, was rejected by the Israelites as their leader in favor of Abimelech, the son of a servant. From Mount Gerizim, the same place where Joshua addressed the nation, Jothan tells the first parable in the Bible. In his parable, like Israel, the trees are looking for a king. None of the fruitful, productive, competent trees are willing to forsake their efforts to “wave above” the others. But the bramble bush is only too pleased to accept. Jackman observes, “After all, it has no useful task to perform and nothing to offer but thorns. The shelter of its shade is insufficient to protect anyone from the burning sun. It has nothing positive to give, for the trees will soon discover that all it can do is to hurt and wound.” Jothan, the legitimate heir, had to flee for his life from his half-brother Abimelech.

When the masses reject the legitimate leader, nothing but devastation awaits the subjects. It’s interesting that Jothan has the courage to say to Israel that how they hear his parable and how they respond to it will determine their future, for good or for bad. This is much like what Jesus said to the religious leaders of the day. He told parables in which they fit into obvious roles. He warned them that how they heard what he said and how they responded to it would determine their future. But Israel did not listen to either Jothan or Jesus. In the parable of the sower, God spread His Word like a seed, but only the good ground that received it could produce a good crop. The other seed shriveled up, was blown away, or was eaten by birds.

Things have not changed; how we hear God’s Word and how we respond to it will determine our future for good or for bad. Sproul writes, “There is an idea circulating in our culture—everybody believes in the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man, as if, by virtue of our natural birth in this world, we are the children of God. In one sense, the Bible does speak of us as God’s offspring, inasmuch as he is the Creator of all human beings. But in the New Testament, there is a special sense in which Christ speaks of the family of God. Christ is the only-begotten Son of God, and the only way one becomes a child of God in the New Testament sense is by adoption. It is only those who are led by the Spirit of God who are the sons of God. And Jesus qualifies that even more carefully here. This family is not defined by biology, by bloodlines, by nature. It is defined by grace. ‘My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.’”[1]

[1] Sproul, R. C. 1999. A Walk with God: An Exposition of Luke. Great Britain: Christian Focus Publications.

Tags:
Permalink
sewa motor jogja
© Chuck Larsen 2019. Powered by WordPress.