Tag: Sin

Sin is Stored Up, Present Yourself at the Opening of the Womb

On By TimIn Daily Walk, Hosea 13, SalvationLeave a comment

The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is stored up. The pains of childbirth come for him. He is an unwise son, for he does not present himself at the opening of the womb.

Hosea 13:12–13 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Like Israel, putting off repentance and redemption is unwise. One never knows what a day will bring, and already standing condemned in sin, swift judgment can come at any time.

Here, through the prophet Hosea, God is instructing Israel that He waits for them to repent from sin. He wants them to turn around, and come to Him while compassion can be found.

When we put off turning from our own sin, we are unwise. As sinners, each of us is condemned. The Bible calls it being dead. I don’t mean spiritually. We are dead. We are already part of the kingdom of this world where death reigns.

God wants to move us from that kingdom where death reigns to another.

I will ransom them from the power of Sheol. I will redeem them from Death. O Death, where are your plagues? O Sheol, where is your sting?

Hosea 13:14a — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

In order to truly live, each of us needs to be birthed again. New birth brings new life. Yet here, Israel had put off that new birth. Their delay resulted in an abrupt judgment that came upon them.

God is waiting for someone to come to that point of redemption and He likens it to getting to the opening of the womb. It could be you.

The analogy is intentional. Perhaps your mind is being led like mine by Hosea’s point. It explains how Jesus expected Nicodemus to know “you must be born again.”

Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly I say to you, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

John 3:3 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Nicodemus didn’t make that connection. Yet Jesus expected him to know.

Now that you know… Would you delay and be unwise in that moment of redemption into the new kingdom where life is?

The unwise thing to do is remain in a state of condemnation where the power is Sheol controls.

You can change things right now. You must be born again.

Good People

On By TimIn Daily Walk, John 071 Comment

I have a question I would like to pose to you. I want you to answer it honestly.

Do you think of yourself as a good person?

Let’s really examine what it means to be good. Remember, that Jesus told us that we really ought to judge… And do it correctly.

Do not judge according to appearance, but practice righteous judgment.

John 7:24 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Jesus said this after He selflessly healed another on Shabbat. He mercifully rescued someone, showing the real purpose of the law and what others missed. We cannot be good by keeping it.

We know it is mercy that triumphs over judgment (James 2:13.) The principle is that the measure we offer to others will be given back to us in multiples. It is this sowing and reaping principle, as planting a seed the harvest is expected to be many more seeds.

“Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you shall be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you: Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will men give unto you. For with the measure you use, it will be measured unto you.”

Luke 6:37–38 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

The principle Jesus is using in the way we judge is to give. In so doing receive the good measure which is returned to us. In the market at those times, when one bought grain, a good measure was done like this: Grain would be ladled into a container until full. The container would then be pressed down, and more grain added. Then the vendor would tamp the container on a hard surface a few times. His would provide even more room. The vendor would finally ladle more grain into the container until it piled up and overflowed the sides.

That is a Good Measure.

Most of us, if not all, would have no problem meeting judgment to ourselves like this. Some of us will struggle to do that with some of our friends. I think the problem grows exponentially when we judge others by what they do that we do not like. It really is an unfair system.

And yeah, I am talking to myself, too.

What do We Do?

So let’s set out and esteem others better than ourselves like Paul instructs.

Let nothing be done out of strife or conceit, but in humility let each esteem the other better than himself. Let each of you look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Philippians 2:3–4 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

The task can be daunting at first. But with practice (and the indwelling Holy Spirit,) it gets easier. You cannot do it without the Spirit in you. I promise.

But back to that question.

A certain ruler asked Him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good, except God alone. You know the commandments: Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and your mother.”

Luke 18:18–20 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Think about the answer now. Do you still think you are a good person?

I don’t want to beat you up (or myself for that matter.) I want to encourage all of us to really expect that good measure from ourselves, the same as we would expect it in return from others.

When it comes to judging ourselves against the law and being asked a question like I posed, we would immediately bring to mind all of our foibles. In light of the law, we would esteem ourselves as something less than good.

Brothers and sisters… If we are saved, we are good! We are good in Jesus’ name. It is His gift of righteousness — His, that He freely gives to us.

Let’s think of ourselves rightly. We are good people… Only in Jesus’ name.

You Cannot Lose Your Salvation

On By TimIn Daily Walk, Eternal Security, Revelation 03, SalvationLeave a comment

He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments. I will not blot his name out of the Book of Life, but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.

Revelation 3:5 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

This is Jesus making a promise to you as an individual. Amidst epistles He gave to seven separate local churches as a whole, His appeal is to the church as a whole and extends to the individuals in those churches.

The weird thing is no matter how bad these churches’ ‘report cards’ were those attending were not encouraged to leave. That speaks volumes, especially in today’s age. (That is another post.) It is when we encounter odd things we can be sure to find something useful. Those attending the churches were instead instructed to strengthen what remains, to repent, remember and be zealous to do right.

To each individual “who has an ear…” Hear!

Hear the promise He gives to you if you are a believer. It is a His Word that you cannot lose your salvation, that you can trust Him. Remember what God thinks of His Word?

He places it above His name (Psalms 138:2.) Believe Him.

Conversely, this is sometimes taught that that same promise is a warning to you. Your salvation is tenuous and precarious. That if you are not careful, you can lose it. That Jesus will blot out your name from the Book of Life. Is that what is really being said?

No.

When we attempt to rightly divide what is being said in the Bible, it is important to use the whole counsel of Scripture. Pointing to standalone verses, context is often non-existent. These verses are made to support or conform to external ideas. With that in mind, let’s see what can be gleaned here.

We read clearly that Jesus says “he that overcomes.” He is assessing the overcomer. What does He mean?

Let’s look at how John (the human writer of Revelation) explains these remarks. Revelation is the last book of the New Testament, though scholars believe it was written before John’s three epistles. Therefore, his epistles could offer some enlightenment.

Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves the one born of the Father. By this we know that we love the children of God: when we love God and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome, for whoever is born of God overcomes the world, and the victory that overcomes the world is our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world, but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

1 John 5:1-5 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

He who overcomes is he who believes… If you believe, that is you. Whoever is born of God overcomes the world. Look at how the sentence is constructed. The one born of God, or better born again, overcomes… It is a continuing process that doesn’t stop. The born of God part has already happened. Overcomes is in the simple present tense. The simple present tense in English is used to convey unchanging situations, general truths, and fixed arrangements. Being born again results in unchanging and fixed salvation.

The promise given to you is another iteration of that in 1 John. To you, as the overcomer—Jesus will not blot your name out of the Book of Life and will also confess your name before the Father.

It’s the provision of the Holy Spirit to anticipate the need to provide necessary commentary in a later-penned epistle. This is to ensure that you, as a believer, move beyond the elementary things of the faith.

If you struggle about losing your salvation, don’t. You cannot.

Were You Really Born This Way?

On By TimIn Jeremiah 07, SinLeave a comment

How many times have you heard it said that God has already determined all things that are to be, and has ordained and decreed them to be?

What does the Bible say to this?

For the sons of Judah have done evil in My sight, says the Lord. They have set their abominations in the house which is called by My name, to pollute it. They have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not command them, nor did it come into My heart.

Jeremiah 7:30-31 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Because they have forsaken Me and have profaned this place by making offerings in it to other gods whom neither they, their fathers, nor the kings of Judah have known, and have filled this place with the blood of the innocent, and have built the high places of Baal to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings to Baal, which I did not command or decree, nor did it come into My mind—therefore, surely the days are coming, says the Lord, when this place shall no more be called Topheth or the Valley of Ben Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter.

Jeremiah 23: 4-6 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

They built the high places of Baal which are in the Valley of Ben Hinnom to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire to Molek, which I had not commanded them, nor did it come into My mind that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.

Jeremiah 32:35 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Recorded three times for the hardened-of-heart who would want to blame their sin on God by saying “I was born this way. He made me a sinner.” God doesn’t command, decree, or imagine all things that do come to pass. There are things that happen that do not come from His mind.

Don’t fall for the false gospel of a false god who is powerless to save all.

The Servant is not Discouraged

On By TimIn Daily Walk, Good, Isaiah 42, Mark 14, The ServantLeave a comment

Here is My servant, whom I uphold,
My chosen one, in whom My soul delights.
I have put My Spirit upon him;
he shall bring forth justice to the nations.
He shall not cry out, nor lift up his voice,
nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
A bruised reed he shall not break,
and the smoking flax he shall not quench;
he shall bring forth justice faithfully.
He shall not be disheartened nor be discouraged,
until he has set justice in the earth;
and the coastlands shall wait for his law.

Isaiah 42:1-4 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Jesus was steadfast in His elect purpose. Continuing from the previous post in Jesus’ purposeful encounter with that Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well, this is what He told her.

Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.

John 4:34 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Jesus set forth at His task. It was to do as the Father has purposed. The Holy Spirit was placed upon Him and He presses forward just as the text says, to bring forth justice faithfully.

“Truly, truly I say to you, whoever hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has eternal life and shall not come into condemnation, but has passed from death into life. Truly, truly I say to you, the hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has given to the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.

Do not marvel at this. For the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come out—those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. I can do nothing of Myself. As I hear, I judge. My judgment is just, because I seek not My own will, but the will of the Father who sent Me.

John 5:24–30 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Just as He faithfully spoke of the same need to that Samaritan woman. And in the above passage, He spoke plainly to those who would intend to harm Him. He wasn’t disheartened. He addresses their need to believe even in the midst of their desire to kill Him. He also explains that there is a time constraint to this mercy. Judgment is coming, yet now there is a way of Escape.

In one of my favorite portions of Scripture, Jesus is ministering to the folks who followed Him after He fed them from a young boy’s lunch. They were looking to see more of the miracles and they wanted the satisfaction of their physical and temporal needs. Jesus patiently explained to them of a greater spiritual need.

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me shall never hunger, and whoever believes in Me shall never thirst. But I told you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe. All whom the Father gives Me will come to Me, and he who comes to Me I will never cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of the Father who has sent Me, that of all whom He has given Me, I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. This is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 6:35–40 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

“I am the Bread of Life” He said. It would cure the hunger that they had.

He further expounds on what was told to the Samaritan woman, He gives water that quenches thirst for good. Jesus is using physical needs to point to the related spiritual need.

We also see that He speaks of raising the dead in the passage from John 5. Some are raised to the resurrection of life and others to the resurrection of judgment. He is pointing to the truth of the Father giving Him all things. He is telling them He loses none that come to Him. It doesn’t mean that all will be saved from the resurrection of judgment. But that He loses none of which He’s been given authority to raise up, which is all. Those that believe will be given eternal life.

The important part is that He is set to do His Father’s work diligently.

“He shall not be disheartened nor be discouraged,”

I will just leave the rest to Mark’s description of the end. In it we see Jesus to be a bit tentative in His last night before the Cross. He goes away to pray three times, we see His resolve. Even here, we see Him to not delay or be discouraged.

They came to a place which was named Gethsemane. And He said to His disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took Peter and James and John with Him and began to be greatly distressed and very troubled. And He said to them, “My soul is deeply sorrowful unto death. Remain here and keep watch.”
He went a little farther and fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him. He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will.”
Then He came and found them sleeping and said to Peter, “Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not keep watch one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
Again He went away and prayed the same words. When He returned, He again found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. And they did not know what to answer Him.
When He returned a third time, He said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise up, let us go. Look! He who betrays Me is at hand.”

Mark 14:32–42 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

In the same way in doing our father’s bidding, ought we not be disheartened or discouraged?

He Shall Bring Forth Justice

On By TimIn Daily Walk, Isaiah 42, The ServantLeave a comment

Here is My servant, whom I uphold,
My chosen one, in whom My soul delights.
I have put My Spirit upon him;
he shall bring forth justice to the nations.
He shall not cry out, nor lift up his voice,
nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
A bruised reed he shall not break,
and the smoking flax he shall not quench;
he shall bring forth justice faithfully.
He shall not be disheartened nor be discouraged,
until he has set justice in the earth;
and the coastlands shall wait for his law.

Isaiah 42:1-4 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

I had a conversation in which a portion of this passage was cited for some off-the-wall explanation. It was a friend of mine whose words helped to explain a portion of this.

“A bruised reed he shall not break,”

The idea explained here is that Jesus would not break those who are already beaten and trodden down. It characterizes Jesus in a way that is easily recognizable for the pattern that Isaiah has established.

Reeds were often collected to be used as kindling for starting fires. Fire was a necessity for heat and cooking. We don’t think that way because of modern conveniences. When collecting the reeds, it was preferred to not take a green reed. It was easier to break off one already bent. These were collected and dried to use in fires. The idea is that these bruised reeds were removed from their source of life and fruitfulness. This is the same way that the Servant would regard people.

Jesus wouldn’t break these. Moreover, He wasn’t the cause of these reeds being bent. The reeds would have been bent by the wind, people, or other animals who went amongst them to the water they grew in. It was a part of life. As my friend said:

“Jesus, who is God in the flesh, did not regard people as just kindling for the fire.” Wayne E. Parsons

He didn’t cause the reed to be bent nor would He purposely cause people to be completely severed from the source of Life. This idea is no more epitomized than with Jesus’ purposeful encounter with the Samaritan woman. John says it was necessary for Jesus to go through Samaria (John 4:4.) It was a purposeful encounter, even to the very place… Jacob’s well. Jesus sat there in the middle of the day.

Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.

John 4:9 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

There is that bruised reed. The woman was a Samaritan, someone an Israeli may have considered beneath even serving them. The Samaritans were generally considered half-breeds and not fully Jewish. Yet they are descendants of Jacob, but it is more than the well and the water.

Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who is saying to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”
The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, along with his sons and his livestock?”
Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water that I shall give him will become in him a well of water springing up into eternal life.”

John 4:10-13 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

In this simple conversation, Jesus is pointing to Himself as the Giver of Life. Yet the Samaritan woman had not yet understood. Her eyes were focused on the well before her, and she could see Jesus had no utensils for even drawing water from the well. Jesus must explain, that the water He gives won’t come from that well. We see that the reed before Him is twice bruised. She is a half-breed and lacks eternal life (a pathway to God.)

The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not thirst, nor come here to draw.”

John 4:15 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Just like that, we see the next portion illustrated.

“and the smoking flax he shall not quench;”

The smoking flax is the smoldering wick of a candle. It puts out a little bit of light, but with lots of smoke. You’ve seen it, when the wax puddles up to the wick, the flame gets very small and may even begin to smoke for a lack of oxygen and/or fuel. We would snuff that candle out; not Jesus. We see by the woman’s testimony that she still wanted to serve God, but her faith was weak because of the circumstances she found herself in. These weren’t caused by God, nor did she fatalistically end up there as we shall see. It was clearly her own choices that put her faith in such a precarious position of being smothered out by life.

Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.”
The woman answered, “I have no husband.”
Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband,’ for you have had five husbands, and he whom you now have is not your husband. So you have spoken truthfully.”

John 4:16-18 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

I love this part. Jesus called her to a task. It led to her confessing the truth to Him. It is given to us in such a matter-of-fact way, I don’t know if there was any shame. I certainly don’t think that was Jesus’ intent. His intent was to win her!

She quickly perceived Him to have some way of knowing secret things. She was still quite unsure of things, being separated from the only way to approach God at that time. He didn’t quench that little spark of faith, she wanted to know how to seek God.

The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, but you all say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.”
Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. Yet the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth. For the Father seeks such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth.”
The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.”
Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”

John 4:16-26 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

I can imagine in my mind’s eye the protracted silence that existed in that moment. A half-breed Samaritan woman who had perceived wrongly her own rejection by God because of her circumstance of birth. She was also a woman five times divorced, and the man she had didn’t marry her. Really who is she that the Elect One of Israel came to meet her?

The silence seems to continue as the disciples show up and are caught up in their own marvel.

Then His disciples came. They marveled that He talked with a woman. Yet no one said, “What do You seek?” or, “Why are You talking with her?”
The woman then left her water pot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” They went out of the city and came to Him.

John 4:27-30 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

I am still imagining, there she is thinking probably with her mouth agape. His friends show up, they too are surprised. She then takes off, leaving her stuff behind. I am laughing as I am thinking it like the old cartoon Road Runner… That fast!

That smoldering flax caught fire again!

Many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all that I ever did.” So when the Samaritans came to Him, they asked Him to remain with them. And He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His word.
They said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this Man is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.”

John 4:39-42 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

We have an account of the first evangelist. She was a woman.

There is another account that I think of when reading of a bruised reed He will not break. It is that of the woman caught in adultery which is given a bit later in the book of John.

Jesus isn’t here to crush you… Really.

“he shall bring forth justice faithfully.”

But in the meantime, would you want justice for what you’ve done?

Or would you prefer compassion and mercy?

The Next Forbidden Tree

On By TimIn Creation, Genesis 03, The FallLeave a comment

The Lord God said, “The man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil. And now, he might reach out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”

Genesis 3:22 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

After the fall, God set aside access to another tree. It was the tree of life that was now forbidden. Again, as we have seen previously, maybe it is the enemy that wants us to think God is keeping something from us.

It’s not so. He doesn’t keep good things from us.

Had Adam and Eve partook of that tree of life they would indeed live forever. It wouldn’t be a good thing for them or us. We would have remained corrupted.

God has a better plan. That would be the Offspring to bruise the head of the serpent. As the prophet Daniel would reveal, He (this Offspring) would make an end of sin. Corruption would be no more.

His Way is how and why we must be saved. To put off this body of corruption, and be raised anew incorruptible.

Naked Meets Crafty

On By TimIn Genesis 02, The Fall1 Comment

They were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

Genesis 2:25 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God said, ‘You shall not eat of any tree of the garden’?”

Genesis 3:1 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

They were both nude. The serpent, though, was shrewd. The wordplay in that summation hints at the wordplay that exists in the Hebrew behind our Bible translations.

The word translated as naked is the Hebrew arummim. In the next sentence, the word translated to subtle is the Hebrew arum. Maybe it is an entertaining way to convey a recount of what had really happened. Maybe there is something more.

The enemy had no way to directly curse these first humans. Just as the crafty wordplay is presented. It helps us to be paying attention to the next sentence in which he subtly changes the Word God had said to Adam.

“Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”

Genesis 2:16b–17 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Instead of it being a generous offering as God intended, the serpent inserted his own wordplay. He wanted it perceived as perhaps God depriving them of something. He changed the command to highlight one thing set aside, “Has God said, ‘You shall not?'” The idea of deprivation comes in the context following. We can clearly see that for whatever reason, Eve gives into this crafty idea of deprivation. She even added to it.

And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit from the trees of the garden; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You will not eat of it, nor will you touch it, or else you will die.'”

Genesis 3:2-3 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

We can’t even touch it. God didn’t say that. Now that she had bought into the idea of deprivation, he pushes her even further. God really is keeping something from you. Don’t worry about dying. When you eat, you’ll be like gods knowing how to fix that.

Then the serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! For God knows that on the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Genesis 3:4-5 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Death comes because of calamity.

These first – innocent humans weren’t acquainted with death; having never experienced it. God was protecting them from calamity and death.

It’s like that for us. The enemy wants us to think that God is keeping good things from us. It’s not true. We see from yesterday’s post on James 1:5, God gives lavishly to us, just as He did to Adam and Eve. He gave them every tree from which to eat. He gave them the tree of life that would keep them alive forever. All of that was good, but the enemy pointed out the one thing God said they couldn’t have. He made it sound as if what God was keeping them from was something good.

Considering our world and all the calamity that exists in it, would you rather not know calamity than experience it?

I would rather not have to experience it.

Did God really set us up to fall for something that was not good for us?

No.

But each man is tempted when he is drawn away by his own lust and enticed. Then, when lust has conceived, it brings forth sin; and when sin is finished, it brings forth death.

James 1:14-15 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

I don’t think it a coincidence that this subtle lie from the enemy that God may be depriving us of something has given way to the deprivation we humans demonstrate.

After all, it was just a subtle idea. One that would lead Eve to want to satisfy her own felt needs. It led the unashamed to desire something that wasn’t theirs. It drew her eyes away. She saw that what really wasn’t intended to be good for food as something to eat. She did and gave to the man and he ate.

When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasing to the eyes and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. So they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

Genesis 3:6-7 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

The rest of this we all know. The one thing God had said would happen did. Death came because we had set ourselves apart from the source of life. Our parents deprived us of the only life that matters.

The LORD God said, “The man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil. And now, he might reach out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”—therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken.

Genesis 3:22-23 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

In Dependence Day

On By TimIn Acts 17, Daily WalkLeave a comment

I have been giving some thought to the significance of this day. In the United States, 4 July is the day we commemorate independence from the tyranny of the crown. One of the major themes of the day is freedom! It is in that light, we ought to point this day to Jesus.

Acts 17:22–31 (MEV): Then Paul stood in the middle of the Areopagus, and said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious. For as I passed by and looked up at your objects of worship, I found an altar with this inscription:

TO THE UNKNOWN GOD.

Whom you therefore unknowingly worship, Him I proclaim to you.
“God who made the world and all things in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by hands. Nor is He served by men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives all men life and breath and all things. He has made from one blood every nation of men to live on the entire face of the earth, having appointed fixed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they should seek the Lord so perhaps they might reach for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. ‘For in Him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are His offspring.’
“Therefore since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to suppose that the Deity is like gold or silver or stone or an engraved work of art or an image of the reflection of man. God overlooked the times of ignorance, but now He commands all men everywhere to repent. For He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by a Man whom He has appointed, having given assurance of this to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

You may wonder why I am citing this portion of Scripture. Perhaps it is because of the similarities of the celebrations of this day with that of honoring an unknown god (a whole other post.). While Paul pointed to these men of Athens and noting their religious sincerity. Today’s celebration for many is an homage to an unknown god. I want to proclaim this God to you; He Who has provided to you your freedom. This God doesn’t live in man-made temples, nor does He need anything that we can provide.

The Yoke of Bondage

Paul understood clearly the mission of Jesus Christ. He has come to set us free from bondage. But what does that mean, to be in bondage?

What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? God forbid! Do you not know that to whom you yield yourselves as slaves to obey, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? But thanks be to God, for you were slaves of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart that form of teaching to which you were entrusted, and having been freed from sin, you became the slaves of righteousness.
I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh, for just as you have yielded your members as slaves to impurity and iniquity leading to more iniquity, even so now yield your members as slaves to righteousness unto holiness. For when you were the slaves of sin, you were free from righteousness. What fruit did you have then from the things of which you are now ashamed? The result of those things is death. But now, having been freed from sin and having become slaves of God, you have fruit unto holiness, and the end is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6:15–23 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Paul is stating that if we yield our bodies toward sin, that is some moral decadence, we become enslaved to that. For some of us who struggle with addiction, we can understand. I wish not to make light of addiction but will offer an easily understandable example.

Remember back to the first time you tried your favorite dessert. It could be a chocolate cake or crème Brulee… Even something more exotic. Remember the sensations of the first taste, and how you just wanted to experience that forever. I am willing to say, that while you may enjoy these favorite treats, it is almost impossible to recreate that first experience. Sometimes, our physical bodies send us sensations of intense cravings for these things. The cravings we experience couldn’t exist without our first indulgence. With desserts, we can often partake but overdoing creates problems. The issue is, we clearly understand how to alleviate the real pangs that come with our own desires. That is part of the bondage to which this is speaking.

I know my example used something as innocuous as dessert, but some do have real struggles with that. Your body just wants a little more. It is the same thing with bigger issues. You can ask a millionaire, “How much money is enough?” The answer will be a little more. It goes with almost anything… We want newer and better clothes, a better car, a bigger house. The addict just wants to keep the high going. But at what cost? That is the weakness of the flesh… It always wants just a little more.

Some of these things are inherently bad for us and maybe detrimental (to us or even others.) Sin comes with this same bondage. In our own selves, we just want a little more. We think nobody will know. With those secret things, nobody else gets hurt. It is still bondage. Paul goes on to say what the result of all those things… Death. What advantage do we have from these things?

If you do too many drugs it may result in overdose and you may die. The same holds true for too much booze, too many cigarettes, even too much chocolate cake.

Presenting ourselves to these desires leads to enslavement. It is a circular cycle of repetition. Presenting ourselves to sin leads to a suppression of the knowledge of God.

The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth through unrighteousness.

Romans 1:18 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

We could think that the suppression of the knowledge of God may be for us only. More likely, it will also spread to others. Sin affects ourselves and will inevitably affect those around us. We don’t only present ourselves to bondage and suppression.

Because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him or give thanks to Him as God, but became futile in their imaginations, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

Romans 1:21 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Sin brings death. It works collectively. It leads to futility. Of course, the world understands this futility by another name, entropy.

There is freedom. The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ!

Independence

It is only in Jesus where we can be free from this yoke of bondage to sin and death. In His early ministry, there was a conversation Jesus had with Nicodemus, a teacher in Israel. Most of us Christians know of the conversation, and some who are not Christian may know. That is where John 3:16 comes; For God so loved the world that He gave His only unique Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. The continuing conversation goes like this:

For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned. But he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. This is the verdict, that light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that it may be revealed that his deeds have been done in God.”

John 3:17–21 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

There’s that circular cycle of bondage again. There is also that dire verdict of condemnation that abides on all outside of Jesus Christ. The good news is that we’ve all really been set free.

For freedom Christ freed us. Stand fast therefore and do not be entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

Galatians 5:1 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

What do I mean by “we’ve all been set free?”

Jesus’ death on the cross was the payment that sin demanded.

He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

John 2:1 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

You’re reading this for a reason. If you aren’t a Christian and want freedom from the bondage, it’s an easy thing.

But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart.” This is the word of faith that we preach: that if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved, for with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be ashamed.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is generous toward all who call upon Him. For, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Romans 10:8–13 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

One must first Acknowledge that Jesus is Who He claimed to be, and that He died and rose again. That He is the very same Lord you are calling upon. The next step is to Believe it all to be true. When you acknowledge Him for Who He is, and Believe He is Who He is, then Confess it with your mouth. The promise is there, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” If you are calling on Jesus Christ, the God-man, you will be saved and set free.

What of the Christian who is stuck in a seeming circular cycle of bondage?

It’s the same way for you. Jesus has already given you victory over sin. If you want it, believe it. Confess your sin to Him. Of course, you’re going to have to not present your members to that enslavement. Yes, it may be difficult, but you already have victory. Trust Jesus for that and deny your body what it thinks it wants. The first baby steps will be very hard. It’s just like exercising your muscles. You might have to say no a hundred or more times but keep exercising the ‘no’ muscle.

Always know that Jesus came to set the captives of sin free…

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.”

Luke 4:18–19 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

In Jesus there is true independence from bondage.

Dependence

Even the very freedom that God gives is an innate acknowledgment that everything we have is dependent upon Him.

“God who made the world and all things in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by hands. Nor is He served by men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives all men life and breath and all things. He has made from one blood every nation of men to live on the entire face of the earth, having appointed fixed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they should seek the Lord so perhaps they might reach for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. ‘For in Him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are His offspring.’

Acts 17:24–28 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

He made it all. Everything we have comes from His hand.

He is the image of the invisible God and the firstborn of every creature. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they are thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers. All things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that in all things He may have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him all fullness should dwell, and to reconcile all things to Himself by Him, having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him, I say—whether they are things in earth, or things in heaven.

Colossians 1:15–20 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Paul is telling us that Jesus is the image of the invisible God. He is also the firstborn of every creature. Importantly, we see the words that all things were created by Him and for Him. This precludes this First Born from being a simple man, or even a created thing. It demands that He is God, and He is. It’s a simple thing, we are made by Him for Him. And only in Him… This Jesus… do all things hold together.

We are clearly dependent upon Him, even for our freedom.

“Therefore since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to suppose that the Deity is like gold or silver or stone or an engraved work of art or an image of the reflection of man. God overlooked the times of ignorance, but now He commands all men everywhere to repent. For He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by a Man whom He has appointed, having given assurance of this to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

Acts 17:29–31 — Modern English Version (Thinline Edition.; Lake Mary, FL: Passio, 2014)

Back to Paul and his speech at the Areopagus. We are the offspring of God, created by Him and for Him. He is not some “bearded white guy in the clouds,” He isn’t the dead man portrayed on the cross on the end of a rosary. He isn’t limited by the vain imaginings of any man.

He commands all to repent! That is, to change their mind and the way they are going. To those who don’t know Jesus, such are condemned already. They can change that.

If you are a Christian and aren’t walking in the Light, change that. That is what is being said. Stop the way you’re going and turn around.

There is an appointed day of judgment for the world. It is a Man, the God-Man Jesus Christ. He will judge the world. The promise is that God raised Him from the dead. Just like cited above “This is the word of faith that we preach: that if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved, for with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation.” (Romans 10:8b–10.)

Celebrate your in-dependence.