...BOAST ABOUT MY WEAKNESSES

-

“…in far more labors, in far more imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches.” (2 Cor. 11:23-28)

The apostle Paul strikes me as a tough guy. When I watch the Ultimate Fighting Championships on TV, I admire those guys who will not tap-out; even when they are pinned to the ground and in danger of having some body part broken or pulled out of joint. That’s the way I imagine the apostle Paul, as someone who simply will not tap-out, no matter how much suffering he’s going through.

Of course, Paul did not see himself as a tough guy, but rather as someone who was frail and weak. He declares “If I have to boast, I will boast of what pertains to my weakness” (2 Cor. 11:30). In another place he says “most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:9-10).

He was willing to admit his weaknesses, because he knew that in his own power he could never live the Christian life or accomplish God’s will. With the admission of weakness, he could turn to God for strength and guidance.

I’m still learning that lesson: the lesson of not relying on my own strength to sustain me, but rather turning to the Lord for His. It seems that since I came to seminary about six years ago I’ve encountered one attack after another, in which I’ve been broken down in my self-confidence and personal strength. My attacks have been nowhere near as bad as the apostle Paul’s, but like all tailored suffering from the Lord, it has been sufficient to bring me to that place where I am learning to rely on Him, because I just don’t have the strength within myself to carry on. I’ve actually thought about hanging up my hat and just walking away from ministry because I don’t want to face any more conflicts or attacks. However, there’s the ever-present pull from the Lord to keep going, and I see Him working in my life in ministry. To be honest, I’m struggling within.

The thing about admitting weakness is that it makes me feel vulnerable to others who may be callous and arrogant. It’s like telling the potential bully where my weak spot is, and then wondering if he’ll take advantage of it during a fight. Paul did not hide his weaknesses, but openly boasted about them, informing others that he was relying completely on the power of Christ to sustain him. I’m still learning that lesson: the lesson of not relying on my own strength to sustain me, but rather turning to the Lord for His.


Steven R. Cook
http://www.christonly.com/




-

THE PROBLEM OF EVIL

Genesis 6:5 The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Genesis 8:21b The intent of man's heart is evil from his youth.

Isaiah 5:20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick.

Romans 7:21 I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good.


This analysis is not exhaustive, and I will not try to deal with every issue related to the subject of evil. My goal is to acknowledge its presence in the world, biblically reveal its origin, explain why it continues throughout history, and reveal that it will come to end one when God personally handles it.

The word evil is used in every generation, but like many words, its definition is often changed according to popular culture, or personal preferences. The Bible defines evil, explains why it exists, and how it will eventually be dealt with. However, if a man rejects the Bible as an absolute authority, he is ultimately left trying to make sense of the world from his own limited perceptual abilities. More than that, he has no way to understand himself, and why he thinks and behaves the way he does. Without the Bible to guide him, he will eventually “call evil good and good evil” (Isa. 5:20).

The first important step in dealing with evil is to acknowledge its existence, and know that it’s not natural to the world. If evil is natural, then the world is as it ought to be, and pagan religious concepts such as dualism in Hinduism, or the yin and yang in Taoism are correct. They are not correct. Evil is not natural to the universe, but rather the intrusion of some foreign destructive element that prevents it from functioning the way God intended.

The second important step in addressing evil is to know that it’s not merely what the majority within a society declares it to be. If good and evil are what society declares them to be from one moment to the next, then Hitler was good because the majority in Germany approved of his leadership during most of his rule. Further, if there are no absolutes regarding good and evil, then how could the judges at the Nuremburg trial declare Hitler’s officers guilty of war crimes against humanity? What standard were the judges using to declare innocence or guilt, good or evil? If Germany had won World War II, the judges at Nuremburg would have been different, with Hitler sitting on the judgment seat judging the Allies and putting them to death for their crimes against him. Without absolutes to guide us, the problem of what is good or evil becomes nothing more than a game of words controlled by a vacillating majority.

After examining the Scripture, there comes a weighty realization that evil does not only exist outside of man, but inside as well. It’s not enough to say that the world is evil, rather, we must admit that there’s something evil within us, within our hearts. First, evil is the desire to act contrary to God’s righteous character and commands, and every man has an evil heart. If we are honest with ourselves we’ll admit it, that there’s something wrong with us, and that we find it easy to sin, and a struggle to do good.

Secondly, evil is the production of a will given over to an evil heart. This is true both for the unbeliever as well as the believer. The unsaved person cannot do good as the Bible defines it, because he is totally corrupt, and there is nothing within him that enables him to do God’s will. The believer has a genuine choice between good and evil and can say yes to God. The apostle Paul admits this when he says “evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good” (Rom. 7:21). The believer can choose to do God’s will, because he has a new nature, the Holy Spirit, and the word of God; and these enable him to do good, if he is willing. Like a good parent to a child, God always commands us to do good by obeying His will; however, like every child, we are bent towards evil, and we have to be taught what is good, and prompted to obey. As Christians we are commanded “never to pay back evil for evil to anyone” (Rom. 12:17a), but rather “to overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:21).

The Biblical Answer to Why Evil Exists

Before anything existed there was only God, and He is good. Evil did not come into existence until an angelic creature of the order of cherubim manufactured it from the source of his own volition (Isa. 14:12-14; Ezek. 28:12-18). Evil exists only in connection with willful creatures; first angels, and then mankind. Lucifer was the first to fall, and he convinced a third of the angels to follow him, creating the kingdom of darkness. Later, Lucifer expanded his kingdom by convincing the first humans to disobey God, which resulted in their spiritual death and the acquisition of a sinful nature that permeated every part of their being (Gen. 3:1-7). Since the fall of angels and men, evil has advanced and grown in proportion to the number of volitional creatures in existence. To remove evil from His universe, God would have to remove the source of its production, both fallen angels and men. More than that, evil has infected the physical universe itself, bringing death to all creatures, and the abnormal function of nature. This is why we see famines, destructive tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, and other harmful acts of nature.

So then, why does evil exist? Evil exists because God sovereignly allows His willful creatures to temporarily continue in rebellion. Man complains that God is somehow to blame for evil, when all man needs to do is look within to realize the problem. What is ironic is that men want God to remove evil from the universe, but they do not want God to take away their volition in the process. Men cannot have it both ways. Either volition is destroyed, with the result that the production of evil ceases; or volition remains intact, and evil continues. To remove evil means nothing less than the destruction of the creatures who manufacture it. Really, I think most men want God to fix the world so that there is no more suffering, and they are free to sin without consequence. In short, they want God to help them in their rebellion by alleviating the consequences of their actions.

There are two groups of men who manufacture evil on the earth today: the unsaved and the saved. The unsaved person manufactures sin and lives in a continuous state of rebellion against God and all that is good. The unsaved person cannot produce good, for he lacks the capacity to do so because he is spiritually dead. However, the saved person can produce both good and evil, because he has two natures that influence his volition. Because the saved person has a new nature in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17), he can choose to do good by living God’s word under the filling of the Holy Spirit. However, the saved person also has the capacity to reject the Holy Spirit and the word of God and yield himself to the world, his sin nature, or demonic influences, and thus produce evil.

Until Christ returns, the Holy Spirit will restrain evil directly and through an obedient church (2 Thess. 2:7), but this restraint will come to an end when the church is raptured and the lawless one is revealed (John 14:1-3; 1 Cor. 15:51-52; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; 2 Thess. 2:6-12). God also controls evil through good government (Rom. 13:1-5); but “because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed quickly, the hearts of the sons of men are given fully to do evil” ((Eccl. 8:11).

It seems at times that it is the wicked that prosper while the righteous suffer (Job1-2; Ps. 37; 73). But the believer will do well to see the larger picture, that there are rewards beyond this life for the righteous, and that we live in the devil’s world and will suffer for righteousness until Christ returns (1 Pet. 4:16, 19; 1 Jo. 2:15-17; 5:19).

There is hope for those who suffer from the presence of evil, for the Bible teaches that a day of judgment is coming when God will remove evil from the earth. When Christ brings history to an end—after His millennial reign (Rev. 20:1-6)—He will eternally separate those who rejected His provision of salvation by sending them to the eternal trash-heap known as the Lake of Fire. Those who accepted the provision of salvation will be cleansed of their sinful nature, and will never experience temptation nor be permitted to manufacture sin any more. Evil has a beginning and an end. It began with the fall of Satan and his angels, was expanded with the fall of man, and will end when God judges the world in righteousness, destroying everything (Matt. 25:41; Rev. 20:10-15), and creating a new heaven and earth that will go into eternity (2 Pet. 3:10-13; Rev. 21:1-4).


Steven R. Cook
http://www.christonly.com/


-

"When I am weak..."

Faith relies on God, but our faith starts only after we stop relying on ourselves. When our strength is gone, and suffering has done its work in bringing us low, and there is nothing left within us to give, and we have exhausted all our energy, helpless to change our situation; it is often at that moment that God works in us by His grace and strength.

God promised Abraham a son when he was seventy-five and perhaps Abraham thought there was enough vigor in him to pull it off by his own strength. However, we know that God withheld a son until he was a hundred, and at such a time when Sarah’s womb was dead, incapable of producing any children.

Romans 4:18-21 "In hope against hope he believed, so that he might become a father of many nations according to that which had been spoken, “SO SHALL YOUR DESCENDANTS BE.” Without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb; yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform."

Of Abraham it is declared “in hope against hope he believed…that what God had promised, He was able also to perform.” It took Abraham twenty-five years to realize he was helpless to change his situation, and it was at this time that he stubbornly held on to the promise of God, and God was pleased with him, calling him His friend.

God moves slowly when developing our character and His suffering-work runs deep within us, molding us into a helpless lump of clay, in order to form in us the character of Christ, which our sinful nature fights against. “All suffering for the moment does not seem joyful, but sorrowful; yet those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness” (Heb. 12:11). He works in us to shape us, to prepare us for eternity, so that we can live in His holy presence. Moses spent forty years in the wilderness, perhaps thinking God had abandoned him to a life of tending dumb sheep (Ex. 2-3). God had to humble Paul at his conversion and then set him aside for three years before calling him to service (Acts 9:1-6; Gal. 1:13-18). Certainly God humbled Nebuchadnezzar with seven years of suffering in the wilderness, and at the end of his tribulation, Nebuchadnezzar responded “He is able to humble those who walk in pride” (Dan. 4:37). The reality of Scripture is that God saves and uses the helpless. If a man thinks he is strong, the Lord must make him weak before He will use him. It is “not by might that a man shall prevail” (1 Sam. 2:9), but rather, it is the “helpless” that God saves and uses (Rom. 5:6; 2 Cor. 12:7-12).

Jesus declared “apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). A person might say, “I do everything for myself from the moment I wake until I sleep.” Yes, we live and move and carry on life’s activities, but it the Lord who gives us life (Ps. 100:3), and who provides our food, shelter, clothing, strength, and opportunity to work, and it is only by His will that we “live and move and exist” (Acts 17:28; cf. Matt. 6:25-34).

God has to bring us down before He can use us. “The LORD kills and makes alive; He brings down to Sheol and raises up. The LORD makes poor and rich; He brings low, He also exalts” (1 Sam. 2:6-7). Job was a man that was brought low by the Lord, and when his wife gave him bad advice by telling him to “curse God and die” (Job 2:9), he responded and said “shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity also?” (Job 2:10).

It’s OK to pray for God to take away our suffering, but we must realize that He reserves the right to say “no,” and that what He does not remove, He intends for us to deal with by trusting Him. This was the case with the apostle Paul who suffered a “thorn in his flesh,” and prayed three times for God to take it away, and He said “my grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in your weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). Paul gave a stubborn-faith response when he stated “most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:9-10). Paul’s praise to God was not shallow, but genuine; springing from a faith that held on tightly to God. But this stubborn-faith did not come quickly to Paul. At another place he reveals that his good attitude took time.

Philippians 4:10-13 "But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned before, but you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."

Paul “learned” to be content and to trust in the Lord. So must we. After we are brought low by the Lord, and we are spent, with nothing left to give, it is at that time that He comforts us with His grace and power as only He can. Are you one of God’s special people? Are you one of the blessed who have been chosen by God to suffer and to learn of His grace? Many in this world will never know the depths of God’s riches, His grace and power, but only those who have been marked out by Him to suffer and know true humility. And when He is through with you, like those who came through the furnace, you will know what it means to stand with Him, for He knows our suffering like no one else. Our little pain helps us know in a small way, to a slight degree, how much He suffered on the cross when He bore our sins; and it produces in us the character of Christ, which is what the Father wants to see in all His children. The sooner we realize and admit our helplessness to the Lord, the sooner He will be our “refuge from the storm” (Isa. 25:4).

Psalm 40:17 "Since I am afflicted and needy, let the Lord be mindful of me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God."

Psalm 72:12-13 "For he will deliver the needy when he cries for help, the afflicted also, and him who has no helper. He will have compassion on the poor and needy, and the lives of the needy he will save."

Isaiah 25:4 "For You have been a defense for the helpless, a defense for the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat; for the breath of the ruthless is like a rain storm against a wall."


Steven R. Cook
www.christonly.com


-

The Stable Mind of the Christian

We find stability in life by learning to trust in God's word on a daily basis, looking only to Him for our needs and purpose in this life. If we look to the devil's world for our happiness, then the purpose and meaning of life slips away from our thinking, and we are left only with despair, and wind up seeking to shut out the meaninglessness by chasing temporary pleasures. Be sure, the pleasures of this world serve only as an anesthetic to deaden the pain of the empty heart.

As a pastor, I’m not here to preach against your anesthetic, nor am I trying to take it away from you. Rather, I want to give the only substitute that will satisfy your life, and unlike the pleasure that lasts only for the moment, God’s word will never fail you. Won’t you turn to something better? Won’t you turn to God’s word?


Rom. 1:17 The righteous man shall live by faith.

Rom. 10:17 Faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Heb. 11:6 Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.

Ps. 18:30 As for God, His way is blameless; the word of the LORD is tried; He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.

Ps. 37:4-5 Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He will do it.

Ps. 55:22 Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.

Ps. 56:3 When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You.

Ps. 56:11 In God I have put my trust, I shall not be afraid; what can man do to me?

Ps. 145:18 The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth.

Prov. 3:5-6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

Isa. 26:3-4 “The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, because he trusts in You. “Trust in the LORD forever, for in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock.

Isa. 41:10 ‘Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

Lam. 2:22-23 The LORD’S lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.

Matt. 11:28-30 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

John 10:28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.

1 Cor. 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.

Phil. 4:6-7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Phil. 4:11-13 Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am in. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

1 Thess. 5:16-18 Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Heb. 4:16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Heb. 13:5b He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you.”

1 John 5:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.


Steven R. Cook
http://www.christonly.com/



-

Avoid Worldly Christians

1 Corinthians 5:9-11 I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one.

Romans 16:17 Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them.

2 Thessalonians 3:6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from every brother who leads an unruly life and not according to the tradition which you received from us.

2 Thessalonians 3:14-15 If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of that person and do not associate with him, so that he will be put to shame. Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.



Paul directs Christians in the church to turn away from worldly-minded believers who pursue the things of the world. James speaks strongly against worldly-minded Christians and declares “you adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (Jas. 4:4). It is possible for the believer to turn away from God’s word and follow Satan on a full time basis.

John tells Christians “do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever” (1 Jo. 2:15-17).

The Christian who loves the world does not have the Father’s love, and he certainly does not have the Father’s values guiding his life. The worldly-minded believer cares for his own interests rather than God’s, and that arrogant Christian will only find comfort in a weak and worldly church. America has many churches that accommodate worldly-minded believers; in fact, I would dare say it’s the vast majority!

I’ve made decisions in my past not to associate with some Christians because they did not hold to sound doctrine, or because they wanted to promote their personal values above God’s word. It’s not easy to give up a relationship with someone who has turned worldly, and conventional wisdom would argue that if we stayed close to that person, we could influence them for the better. However, when we try to have fellowship with worldly believers it is our walk with God that gets impacted, and we are the ones who are pulled away from God instead of the other person being drawn closer. We are weak creatures, and conventional wisdom should give way to God’s word. The fact is, “bad company corrupts good morals” (1 Cor. 15:33). This does not mean we should not pray for the worldly-believer, or even invite him back to walk with the Lord whenever we see him from time to time, for certainly such actions are good. It does mean that so long as the worldly-believer keeps turning away from the Lord, we must love that person from a distance, and not have anything to do with him. It means we can’t even have lunch with him (1 Cor. 5:11)!

The biblical teaching is plain that the Christian is to turn away from the believer who has become friendly with the world and no longer holds to sound doctrine. The church as a whole is to put that believer out and have nothing to do with him. Of course, this aspect of Christian teaching will cause some churches to lose membership, and this is simply more than they can bear. I’m not sure which is worse, the arrogant believer who follows the world and its values, or the church that coddles him and makes him feel welcome each week?

Of course, I’m sure there is someone reading this who says “what if I’m married to a worldly Christian and can’t leave?” Also, there may be the person who works with worldly believers every day at the office. In situations where the believer cannot escape, he must bear up under the relationship in a limited way; much like Daniel did when he was under Babylonian captivity. Daniel (and his three friends) made concessions with regard to education, dress, and service to the pagan king Nebuchadnezzar, and he made every effort to comply with the king’s edicts until he was directed to do something that clearly violated God’s word, and then he refused. When the Christian cannot leave his situation because he is married, or works for a believer that is worldly, he must simply do the best he can to get along, without participating in activities or discussions that are sinful. In short, the believer must bear such pressures, constantly seeking the Lord in study and prayer.


Steven R. Cook
www.christonly.com


-

Spiritual Warfare

Before anything was created there was only God, and He is good. The angels were the first created beings and were present when God created the world (Gen. 1:1; Job 38:7). Sometime after creation there was a revolt in heaven and one of the highest angels, an anointed Cherub named Lucifer, rebelled against God and led a third of all the angels into sin (Isa. 14:12-14; Ezek. 28:12-18). This angelic rebellion was the beginning of the kingdom of darkness, which would later be expanded when Adam rebelled and followed the advice of Satan rather than God (Gen. 3:1-7; Rom. 5:12-21; 1 Cor. 15:22). Today, every person born in the world is born into the kingdom of darkness, and it is only by faith in the gospel that a person is born-again and placed into the kingdom of light. Believers are attacked by demonic forces, and will continue to be until the time Satan is thrown into the Abyss (Rev. 20:1-6), and later into Lake of Fire (Matt. 25:41; Rev. 20:10).

In order to fight spiritually, the believer needs to start with a biblical worldview that understands that God created the universe (Gen. 1:1), man has fallen into sin (Gen. 3:1-7; Rom. 5:12-19), and Christ is the only redeemer for a fallen mankind (Rom. 3:21-31). Also, the believer must understand that there are two kingdoms that will continue until the New Heaven and New Earth (Matt. 13:24-30; cf. Isa. 14:12-14; Ezek. 28:12-18; Acts 26:18; Eph. 2:1-2; 5:8; Rev. 21), and that it is possible for the believer to engage in spiritual infidelity (Jas. 4:4; cf. 2 Cor. 11:2). The Bible gives us examples of believers who suffered spiritual attacks (Gen. 3:1-7; Job 1-2; Matt. 4:1-11; 2 Cor. 12:7-10).

The Bible sets forth three Spiritual Dangers to the Christian (Eph. 2:1-3):

1) The world: The world refers to those philosophies and values that influence the believer to think, speak, and behave contrary to God’s word. The world is society without God. It is wholly against God, and built on satanic philosophies which are rooted in false perceptions of reality. In short, “Worldliness is a way of thinking about life that is contrary to the biblical way or divine viewpoint” (Robert Dean, Thomas Ice, What the Bible Teaches About Spiritual Warfare (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Kregel Publications, 2000), p. 64). Dr. Lewis Sperry Chafer describes the world as follows:

"The cosmos is a vast order or system that Satan has promoted which conforms to his ideals, aims, and methods. It is civilization now functioning apart from God-a civilization in which none of its promoters really expect God to share; who assign to God no consideration in respect to their projects, nor do they ascribe any causality to Him. This system embraces its godless governments, conflicts, armaments, jealousies; its education, culture, religions of morality, and pride. It is that sphere in which man lives. It is what he sees, what he employs. To the uncounted multitude it is all they ever know so long as they live on this earth. It is properly styled “The Satanic System” which phrase is in many instances a justified interpretation of the so-meaningful word, cosmos. It is literally Kosmos Diabolou [i.e. the Devil’s world]" (Lewis S. Chafer, “The Work of the Holy Spirit in the Believer” Bibliotheca Sacra, 99 (1942): 297).

One can detect worldly governments, cultures, and philosophies because they always seek to muffle or silence the Word of God. “The world, or world-system, puts pressure on each person to try to get him to conform (Rom. 12:2). Jesus Christ was not ‘“of this world”’ and neither are His people (John 8:23; 17:14)” (Wiersbe, The Bible exposition commentary, Eph. 2:1 (Wheaton, Ill. Victor Books, 1996)).

2) The flesh: The flesh refers to the Old Sin Nature which is resident in every believer, and which is the source of internal temptation. “The flesh refers to that fallen nature that we were born with, that wants to control the body and the mind and make us disobey God” (Wiersbe, The Bible exposition commentary, Eph. 2:1, (Wheaton, Ill. Victor Books, 1996)).

3) The devil: Sometimes the devil himself attacks a person (e.g. Adam & Eve, Job, David, Jesus), but more often it’s demonic forces that seek to frustrate and keep the believer from accomplishing God’s will. Warren Wiersbe states

“The devil is “the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience.” This does not mean that Satan is personally at work in the life of each unbeliever, since Satan as a created being is limited in space. Unlike God, who is omnipresent, Satan cannot be in all places at one time. But because of his demonic associates (Eph. 6:11–12), and his power over the world system (John 12:31), Satan influences the lives of all unbelievers, and also seeks to influence believers. He wants to make people “children of disobedience” (Eph. 2:2; 5:6). He himself was disobedient to God, so he wants others to disobey Him too” (Wiersbe, The Bible exposition commentary, Eph. 2:1, (Wheaton, Ill. Victor Books, 1996)).

It is important to note that by His death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus has overcome the world (John 16:33; Gal. 6:14), the flesh (Rom. 6:1–6; Gal. 2:20), and the devil (Eph. 1:19–23).

Here are a few notes on spiritual warfare:

1. The battle is spiritual-mental, not physical (2 Cor. 10:1-6; Eph. 6:12). Even though Satan may attack the body, he’s primarily trying to get the believer to stop thinking Bible doctrine (2 Cor. 10:5; cf. Rom. 10:1-2; Col. 3:1; Phil. 4:10-11). Satan can defeat the believer only when he gets him to stop trusting the Lord.
2. Like his attack on Eve, Satan will try to get us to question God’s word, then deny it, and finally substitute false doctrine in its place (Gen. 3:1-7; 1 Tim. 4:1).
3. Christians are never to take an offensive posture against Satan, but rather, only a defensive one (Eph. 6:10-17; Jas. 4:7; 1 Pet. 5:8-9). That is, we do not attack Satan, but rather defend ourselves from his attacks against us.
4. Only the believer who is spirit-filled and living in obedience to God’s word can stand against the devil (Eph. 5:18; 6:10-17). To try to fight the enemy without God’s armor is like walking onto a battle field naked without protection.
5. Satan and his demons can influence the Christian to think and act according to his will (Acts 5:1-4). When the believer sins (and he will, 2 Samuel 7:12-15; 1 Kings 8:46; Prov. 20:9; Eccl. 7:20; Rom. 3:23), he can never say the devil made him do it; at best he can only say the devil tempted him.
6. Satan can be used by God to destroy the flesh of a sinning believer who has turned to a disobedient lifestyle (1 Cor. 5:1-5).
7. God may permit Satan to atack a believer (Job 1-2).
8. Satan can deceive the minds of believers, but only as they are ignorant of God’s word, or disobedient to it (2 Cor. 11:3-4; 13-15; cf. Gen. 3:1-7).
9. God will send demons to deceive and destroy arrogant believers (2 Sam. 16:14-16; Judges 9:23; 1 Kings 22:19-23).
10. God will send demons to attack believers to keep them humble (2 Cor. 12:7-10).
11. God will deliver those who turn to Him for salvation and protection (Acts 26:18; Eph. 2:1-7; 6:10-17; Col. 1:13-14).
12. Satan can deceive the minds of unbelievers (2 Cor. 4:4).

This list is by no means exhaustive, and there are many excellent books written about Satan and Demons by such authors as Lewis S. Chafer, Merrill F. Unger, Warren Wiersbe, and Dwight Pentecost. I would strongly recommend the book Spiritual Warfare by Robert Dean and Thomas Ice.

Steven R. Cook
www.christonly.com


-

God will forgive

Psalm 32:3-5 “When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide; I said, ‘“I will confess my transgressions to the LORD”’; and You forgave the guilt of my sin.”



In this song, David contrasts the difference between keeping silent about his sin to God, and openly confessing it. When he kept silent, God’s hand was heavy on him; but when he confessed it, God forgave him. It is nice to know that God will forgive sin when it is confessed to Him.

I know when I fail God, and it’s usually at those times when I need to stand up for Him, but the pressure becomes great, and I turn and flee the battle. Even though I may know the truth, my weakness to stand for it is my shame. There have been many times when I stood for the Lord, but there have also been times when I failed. I have confessed my sin and received forgiveness, but sometimes my memories are unpleasant. I know I am not alone in producing sin, for the Scripture declares “there is not a righteous man on the earth who continually does good and who never sins” (Eccl. 7:20). Like everyone else, I produce sin; but I am training myself to confess it each and every time I do. I know it is never the will of God for me to sin, but when I do, it is His will for me to confess it so I can be forgiven (1 Jo. 1:9).

In Psalm 32, David is writing about confessing his sin to God, and how God forgave him. This is wonderful! I wish more Christians would be honest with God and admit their failures. God is righteous and just, and He can forgive us because Jesus’ death on the cross paid the price for all our sins. God is love, and He wants to forgive us and bring us back into fellowship. We only hurt ourselves when we fail to seek God’s forgiveness.

Steven R. Cook
www.christonly.com


-

Preach the word

2 Timothy 4:1-4 “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.”



In Paul’s day there were kingly messengers who would deliver messages to citizens of the kingdom. The messenger was to proclaim the message loudly and clearly so everyone could hear, and he was to proclaim it exactly as it had been given to him. If a person rejected the message of the king, there were serious consequences. Timothy was a messenger of God, and he had the full support of the kingdom of heaven.

Timothy was also to keep in mind that his messages would be judged by Jesus, who, when He comes, will “judge the living and the dead.” Everything Timothy preached would someday be judged by the Lord Jesus who will hold every preacher accountable for his words and actions.

Timothy was to be ready to preach whenever the opportunity arose, and in his preaching he was to “reprove, rebuke, [and] exhort, with great patience and instruction.” It seems rare to hear a preacher reprove or rebuke anyone today. The preaching trend seems to favor exhortation, as this makes people feel better. However, the preacher should be careful to reprove and rebuke those who are comfortable in their sin, and to exhort and comfort those who are biblically facing life’s difficulties.

Paul’s command to Timothy was simple: “preach the word” (2 Tim. 4:2). Paul commanded this because he knew the day would come when men would “not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths” (2 Tim. 4:3-4). I think men were already turning away from doctrine in Paul’s time, but that trend has grown over the centuries and become magnified in our own day. I think people today evaluate sermons based on how it makes them feel, rather than whether God’s word was correctly and clearly communicated.

Whenever I hear I sermon preached, I ask myself “do I understand the biblical passage better after the sermon than before?” That is, do I better understand the biblical passage textually (chapter, book, whole Bible), linguistically, historically, culturally, theologically, and personally. If the answer is “yes”, then I feel the pastor has succeeded in preaching the word (2 Tim. 4:2). If the answer is “no”, then the pastor has failed. If I hear a pastor fail numerous times, I will move on to a church where the word is preached.

The preacher must preach doctrine, and not favor stories or illustrations that simply move his hearers emotionally. When a passage is preached, it should be explained carefully, and application should follow only after the hearer understands what the passage meant to the original audience. Remember, the Bible is God’s word to someone else before it’s His word to us.

When a pastor feeds his congregation with anything but Bible doctrine, he has failed. It is commonly accepted that many cult members were once members of true churches, and that most cults recruit from Baptist churches more than any other denomination. This was often understood in the Baptist seminary I attended; and yet, most of the student-pastors I knew would simply shrug their shoulders and blame the disaster on something other their failed preaching. To be fair, there were a few student-pastors I knew who saw the issues clearly, and made efforts to correct their preaching, even when it meant they would lose some of their church members who were accustomed to their weekly tickling.

Over the years I have made it a point to inform Christians about how to evaluate a sermon to determine if it is biblical or not. They should ask the question “do I understand the biblical passage better after the sermon than before?” Do I understand the biblical passage textually (chapter, book, whole Bible), linguistically, historically, culturally, theologically, and personally. If the answer is “yes”, then the pastor has succeeded in preaching the word (2 Tim. 4:2). If the answer is “no”, then the pastor has failed.


Steven R. Cook
http://www.christonly.com/

'

Death Comes to us All

Job 14:2 Like a flower he comes forth and withers, he also flees like a shadow and does not remain.

Psalm 103:14-16 For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust. As for man, his days are like grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourishes. When the wind has passed over it, it is no more, and its place acknowledges it no longer.

Isaiah 40:6-8 All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.


My father died in a hospital in Las Vegas, Nevada, in December, 1994. I was flying from Texas to Nevada when he passed away, and I did not get the chance to say a last “goodbye.” We spoke regularly on the phone, and I often told him I loved him; so his parting this world was not too hard to bear.

My father had been dying for two years and spent more time in the hospital then he did at home. I grieved so much for him during that time, that when he finally passed away, I did not shed any tears. I do miss him though.

Death was not a part of God’s original creation, but was introduced because of Adam’s rebellion (Gen. 3:1-7; cf. Rom. 5:12-19). All death, whether human or animal, is the result of one man’s sin, and all of us inherit it and must face it someday. Death is a constant reminder that sin is still in the world, and we see it everywhere we go.

Too often people make a big deal about HOW someone died, emphasizing cancer, war, crime, disease, and other things. However, even if a person escapes death by one thing, it’s only a matter of time before something else gets him. Death comes to us all, and the manner of its occurrence is not the primary issue, but rather sin itself which brings about death.

Also, death hurts, because God did not originally design people to experience it. It hurts both in the one who dies, and others who share a bond, such as family or friends. That’s why there’s pain when someone is ripped away from us, or when we face our own mortality.

It is interesting to note that God the Son experienced death when He took upon Himself humanity and died on the cross. This does not mean that God died, for that is impossible, but that He was touched by death when He died for the sin of the world. Jesus is fully God and fully man, but it was not deity that died. Also, He is one person with two natures, so that we cannot talk about two persons on the cross, but one. There is a mystery here, because we cannot know all the implications of how this happened, except that the Scripture declares it. God the Son took upon Himself humanity, and willingly went to the cross and died. Jesus stated “For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father” (Jo. 10:17-18). Jesus did not die from the crucifixion, but simply gave up His life, and then took it again after His three days in the tomb (1 Cor. 15:3-4).

Not only did Jesus experience death, but throughout His life until the cross, He experienced grief and sorrow, like all humanity. Isaiah declares about Messiah “Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him. He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth; like a lamb that is led to slaughter, and like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, so He did not open His mouth. By oppression and judgment He was taken away; and as for His generation, who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living for the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due? His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death, Because He had done no violence, nor was there any deceit in His mouth. But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand. As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities.” (Isa. 53:4-11).

That God would share in the guilt and punishment He imposed upon His creation in order to liberate it reveals a love that surpasses anything any human could conjure up. More so, after His resurrection, Jesus went to heaven to prepare a permanent residence for all who trust in Him for salvation. Jesus stated “Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to Myself; that where I am, {there} you may be also. And you know the way where I am going.” Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me” (Jo. 14:1-6).

All who trust in Jesus as savior get to spend eternity in heaven. To the Christian, death is that time when he is released from his body and taken into the presence of God in heaven. Later, at the resurrection, the believer will be reunited with his body, which will be purged of sin, and made perfect for eternity. The apostle Paul declares “for we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed in this [house] we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven; inasmuch as we, having put it on, shall not be found naked. For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed, but to be clothed, in order that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge. Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord--for we walk by faith, not by sight--we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:1-8).

Death, the result of sin, is not the final victor. Rather, Jesus our Lord has conquered sin and death, and has given to us the promise of eternal life, and the pledge of the Holy Spirit. So whether we enter heaven by death, or by being caught up together with him in the clouds, we shall forever be with Him in that place where there is no more suffering, and this is our confident expectation.

Come Lord Jesus!


HOW DID YOU DIE?

Did you tackle that trouble that came your way
With a resolute heart and cheerful?
Or hide your face from the light of day
With a craven soul and fearful?
Oh, a trouble’s a ton, or a trouble’s an ounce,
Or a trouble is what you make it.
And it isn’t the fact that you’re hurt that counts,
But only how did you take it?

You are beaten to earth? Well, well, what’s that?
Come up with a smiling face.
It’s nothing against you to fall down flat,
But to lie there–that’s disgrace.
The harder you’re thrown, why the higher you bounce;
Be proud of your blackened eye!
It isn’t that fact that you’re licked that counts,
It’s how did you fight and why?

And though you be done to death, what then?
If you battled the best you could;
If you played your part in the world of men,
Why, the critic will call it good.
Death comes with a crawl, or it comes with a pounce,
And whether he’s slow or spry,
It isn’t the fact that you’re dead that counts,
But only, how did you die?

(Edmund Vance Cook)

Steven R. Cook
http://www.christonly.com/


~

The Sin of Adam

Romans 5:12 "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned…"

Romans 5:18a "So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men…"

Romans 5:19a "For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners…"

1 Corinthians 15:21-22 "For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive."

When Adam rebelled against God and sinned in the Garden of Eden, I fell with him as though I produced the sin myself (Gen. 3:1-8; Rom. 5:12). God declared me (and every human) guilty of Adam’s sin, because he served as the representative of the whole human race. The profound truth is that “in Adam all die” (1 Cor. 15:22).

When Jesus died on the cross as my substitute He bore the penalty of all my sin, as well the first sin of Adam which had been imputed to me. God the Father judged Jesus in my place and poured out on Him the divine wrath that was due to me. This is the grace of God, treating me better than I deserve. Upon trusting Jesus as my savior, God the Father imputed to me the righteousness that belonged to Christ, so that I am declared righteous before Him (2 Cor. 5:21). John Piper states “Paul is saying that the consequence of Adam’s sin, death, was experienced by those who had not done what Adam did. In other words, Paul is stressing here that it is not our own individual sins that bring our first condemnation on us. People die who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam. The point is that Adam’s sin is the most fundamental problem, not our sins – just as Christ’s righteousness is the fundamental solution, not our righteousness” (John Piper, Adam, Christ, and Justification, http://www.desireinggod.org/).

I must always keep in mind that it is Adam’s sin that condemned me, and it is Jesus’ obedience on the cross that saves me. To stand condemned before God I simply had to be born a human in the line of Adam. To stand righteous before God I simply had to be born-again into the family of Christ.

All men are either dead in Adam, or alive in Christ. We do nothing to condemn ourselves, and we do nothing to make ourselves righteous.

Regarding Romans 5:12 John A. Witmer declares “The Greek past (aorist) tense occurs in all three verbs in this verse. So the entire human race is viewed as having sinned in the one act of Adam’s sin. Two ways of explaining this participation of the human race in the sin of Adam have been presented by theologians—the “federal headship” of Adam over the race and the “natural or seminal headship” of Adam… The federal headship view considers Adam, the first man, as the representative of the human race that generated from him. As the representative of all humans, Adam’s act of sin was considered by God to be the act of all people and his penalty of death was judicially made the penalty of everybody… The natural headship view, on the other hand, recognizes that the entire human race was seminally and physically in Adam, the first man. As a result God considered all people as participating in the act of sin which Adam committed and as receiving the penalty he received” (John A. Witmer, Bible Knowledge Commentary, Romans 5:12).

Some people like to make an issue out their personal sin, and some have worse personal sins than others. However, every person is condemned in Adam, so that it really does not depend on what we have done over a lifetime. If I commit two million personal sins over my lifetime, I am no more condemned before God than if I had committed none, because it is Adam’s sin that is the major issue, not mine. Keep in mind that people sin because they're sinners; they are sinners because they have a sin nature, and they have a sin nature because they inherited it from Adam. As a human I experience personal sin, but this comes from my sin nature which I inherited from my father Adam, which he generated when he sinned against God. On the other hand, if I were to commit two million acts of righteousness as a believer, I would not be any more righteous before God, because I am already as righteous as I can be because of the work of Jesus on my behalf. Just as I cannot add to Jesus’ righteousness by my own good works, neither can I add to Adam’s sinfulness by my sin. Again, my personal sin and righteousness is not the issue; rather, it’s my position in Adam or Christ that determines my eternal standing.

Millard Erickson comments “Just as we are not actually righteous in ourselves, but are treated as if we have the same righteous standing that Jesus has, so though we are not personally sinful until we commit our first sinful act, we are, before that time, treated as if we have the same sinful standing that Adam had. If it is just to impute to us a righteousness that is not ours but Christ’s, it is also fair and just to impute to us Adam’s sin and guilt. He is able to act on our behalf as is Christ” (Millard Erickson, Christian Theology, p. 652).

By my natural birth I am in Adam, by my spiritual birth I am in Christ. Thank God for the work of Christ who died as a substitute for me, a sinner.

Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, salvation is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

Titus 3:4-7 “But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

Steven R. Cook
http://www.christonly.com/

Facing Hardship with Prayer and Faith

This morning I woke at 3:30 AM and could not go back to sleep; so I did what I’ve grown accustomed to over the past few years: I prayed. For nearly an hour I poured myself out to the Lord expressing my concerns. I prayed for others in my life whom I love dearly and I asked the Lord to heal them. Of course, I’ve been praying for their healing for some time and it has not come, so I accept there is some purpose for it, and I pray that God will make His purpose known to the one suffering. I prayed for God to take away some of the uncomfortable pressure in my own life, but past experience has taught me that what He does not remove, He intends for me to deal with by claiming His promises and walking by faith. The problem I encounter is that my faith is not always strong, and sometimes I’m foolish enough to do things my way, thinking that my human solution is greater than God’s. I find the older I get the less I rely on myself and seek the Lord and His will.

This brings me to another issue, and that is my failure to live the Christian life as fully as I ought. I am not perfect, and so I rely on God’s grace moment by moment. I am reminded of the words of Solomon who stated “Indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins” (Eccl. 7:20). I have trusted in Christ as my Savior (John 3:16). I believe He died for me, was buried, and rose again on the third day (1 Cor. 15:3-4). I realize I cannot save myself by my good works, and that I must trust completely in His work on the cross as the only thing that satisfies the Father’s righteous demands on sin (Isa. 64:6; Rom. 3:19-28; 4:1-5; Gal. 2:16; Eph. 2:8-9; Tit. 3:5). I believe that God’s righteousness was imputed to me at the moment of faith in Christ and that I am forever counted among the righteous (2 Cor. 5:17-21). I know that Christ died for all my sins and forever removed them from me (Heb. 10:10-14). Yet, the experience of my sin remains, and it grieves my heart to be overly conscious of my shortcomings. On the other hand, it has moved me to trust more in His grace, as I cannot live life on my own in the energy of my flesh, which fails me more and more the older I get.

The weaker I become with old age, the more I turn to Him in prayer, seeking His strength to sustain and guide me. In my hardship, I cling to His word more tenaciously, like a stubborn man holding on to God no matter the cost, and like Job say to myself “though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him” (Job 13:15). I have come to realize lately that sometimes faith is nothing more than the stubbornness of the believer to hold on to the promises of God in spite of all other experiences. I am learning this in my own life, and also from my best friend, who is going through a hardship in her life and seeking the Lord diligently. She cannot change her suffering, but she is responding to it well with Bible doctrine. She appears to me as a trophy of God’s grace, a shining example of someone who clings to the Lord through her tears, believing there is some purpose to her agony, and accepting God’s will for her life knowing that He is faithful to provide for her in all things (1 Cor. 10:13; 2 Cor. 12: 7-10; Jas. 1:2-4). God’s trophies of grace are among us, the weak and hurting who seek Him amidst the storms of life, and who go day by day relying on His word as more real than their affliction. Though it breaks my heart to see my friend suffer, I am also glad that such a hero of the faith has lived and that I am blessed to know her. It is an encouragement for me to face my own difficulties by faith, because even though I fail at times like she does, I keep getting back up and pressing onward toward my final meeting with God.


Steven R. Cook
http://www.christonly.com/

Doing a Right Thing in a Right Way

Leviticus 10:1-3 “Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took their respective firepans, and after putting fire in them, placed incense on it and offered strange fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them. And fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed them, and they died before the LORD. Then Moses said to Aaron, “It is what the LORD spoke, saying, ‘By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy, And before all the people I will be honored.’” So Aaron, therefore, kept silent.”


In chapters eight and nine of Leviticus it was reported numerous times that Moses, Aaron, and Aarons’ sons Nadab and Abihu performed their Temple duties “as the Lord had commanded” (Lev. 8:4; 9; 13; 17; 21; 29; 36; 9:10). Yet, Leviticus chapter ten starts by stating that Nadab and Abihu engaged in activities “which He had not commanded them” (Lev. 10:1). The LORD responded to their disobedience by instantly killing them with fire. Afterward, when talking with Aaron about the death of his two sons, Moses explains the reason for God’s actions is that God “will be treated as holy” before all the people (Lev. 10:3). Apparently Nadab and Abihu’s public disobedience at the Temple disrespected the LORD, and God had to make a public display of His disapproval by killing them.

It appears from the text that Nadab and Abihu overstepped their responsibilities with regard to Temple worship. It was not their duty to burn the incense on the altar before the Lord, but rather only “Aaron shall burn fragrant incense on it” (Ex. 30:7; cf. Lev. 16:1-12). In fact, God had already made it clear that no one was to “offer any strange incense on this altar” (Ex. 30:9). So why did Nadab and Abihu disobey the Lord? A few verses later in Leviticus 10:9 God tells Aaron “do not drink wine or strong drink, neither you nor your sons with you, when you come into the tent of meeting, so that you will not die.” It was possible Nadab and Abihu’s disobedience was the result of not thinking clearly because they were drunk. However, even if they were inebriated, God still held them accountable for their actions. Burning incense in the Temple was a right thing; however, it had to be executed according to God’s commands in order for it to be acceptable to Him, otherwise it was wrong.

Another example in Scripture of someone disobeying the Lord and dying is when “Uzzah reached out toward the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen nearly upset it. And the anger of the LORD burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down there for his irreverence; and he died there by the ark of God” (2 Sam. 6:6-7). In that event David was happily dancing and singing to the Lord before the Ark of the Covenant as he was bringing it back to Jerusalem on a new cart pulled by oxen. I suspect David was very sincere in his actions, however, he was doing a right thing in a wrong way, for God had commanded in Scripture that the Ark of the Covenant be carried on poles by the Levitical priests and not in any other way (Num. 4:5-6; 7:9; cf. Deut. 31:9). Regarding David’s mishandling of the Ark, one Bible scholar states “Thus David did things in the wrong way, following his own ideas or those of others instead of God’s ways. Surely this passage warns that it is not enough to have a worthy purpose and a proper spirit when we enter into the service of God; God’s work must also be performed in God’s way. Pursuing the right end does not automatically imply using the right means” (Walter Kaiser, Hard sayings of the Bible, p. 219). One might argue that Uzzah’s act to stabilize the teetering Ark was a noble thing. However, the Ark should never have been on the cart from the start, tempting Uzzah to act disobediently.

After the LORD killed Uzzah the Scripture declares “David became angry because of the LORD'S outburst against Uzzah…so David was afraid of the LORD that day” (2 Sam. 6:8-9). I imagine that when David danced before the Ark that day that he was feeling good and thinking that God was very pleased with him. Then, when Uzzah died suddenly by the hand of the LORD, David responded with angry shock like a child who gets slapped by his parent because of silliness and over-exuberant disrespect.

What’s interesting is that the Ark of the Covenant was previously taken by the Philistines after they defeated the Israelites in battle (1 Sam. 4:11). Apparently the Philistines handled the Ark of the Covenant and were the first to carry it on a cart pulled by oxen (1 Sam. 6:8-11). Even though God did strike the Philistines with “tumors” for taking the Ark, one might ask why God did not strike them dead at their handling of it? I believe the answer is found in the fact that Israel was God’s people, and they alone had received the Mosaic Law, and were therefore more accountable for their actions.

Moses, Aaron, and David learned a valuable and shocking lesson that a right thing must be done in a right way.

So what lessons can we learn from the deaths of Nadab, Abihu and Uzzah?

1) We serve the God who loves, but who also is holy, and we must keep in mind that God says “those who come near will treat Me as holy, and before all the people I will be honored.”

2) The Scripture declares that “our God is a consuming fire” and He must be approached with an attitude of reverence and willingness to serve Him according to His commands (Heb. 12:28-29).

3) We should be willing to accept God’s judgment when it comes, for all His actions are righteous and just.

4) A right thing must be done in a right way, otherwise we commit sin and God is not honored.


Steven R. Cook
http://www.christonly.com/

The Birth of the Savior

Luke 2:1-20 “Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city. Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 “This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.” So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.”



Thirty eight chapters in the Bible mention Jesus’ death, whereas only two mention His birth; it is clear what the Bible emphasizes. The cross overshadowed the birth of Jesus, and we should not lose sight of this when we consider His birth in the Gospels.

Luke treats the birth of Jesus as occurring in time and space. That is, Jesus was born into a real world, with real people, living in real places, and engaging in real activities. The Bible in no way treats the events of Jesus’ birth as mythical. There is sufficient reason to think of Jesus in the biblical sense, as a real person who lived in time and space, who walked among men, and some day will return to rule this earth.

God used the decree by Caesar Augustus (Lu. 2:1-3) to bring the young couple to the city of Bethlehem in order to fulfill the prophecy given by Micah the prophet (Mic. 5:2). This reveals that God was controlling the events of Jesus’ birth, and that none of this was happening by chance. Remember, prophecy is not God looking down the corridor of history and telling us what will come to pass; but rather, what He is going to cause to happen, because He is controlling the events of history.

Warren Wiersbe states “Augustus Caesar was ruling, but God was in charge, for He used Caesar’s edict to move Mary and Joseph eighty miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem to fulfill His Word…God had promised that the Saviour would be a human, not an angel (Gen. 3:15; Heb. 2:16), and a Jew, not a Gentile (Gen. 12:1–3; Num. 24:17). He would be from the tribe of Judah (Gen. 49:10), and the family of David (2 Sam. 7:1–17), born of a virgin (Isa. 7:14) in Bethlehem, the city of David (Micah 5:2).”
The question is raised as to why Mary was traveling with Joseph at a time when she was advanced in her pregnancy? Perhaps because she knew the baby would be born soon, and did not want to be away from her husband, or because she knew they were traveling to Bethlehem and she knew about the prophecy given in Micah that foretold the birthplace of the Messiah, or simply because she wanted to get away from the wagging tongues of those who knew she was pregnant while still claiming to be a virgin. Whatever her motivation, ultimately it was the hand of God that brought her there to that historical place, which in the Hebrew means “the house of bread;” a fitting place for the One who referred to himself as the “Bread of Life” (Jo. 6:35).

Mary gave birth to her “firstborn son,” implying there were others (Matt. 12:46). The place of Jesus’ birth could not have been born more lowly and humble; yet, it was like the holy of holies because Messiah was there. The Son of God, born of a virgin, lay that night in a manger. As a baby He was helpless, relying on His mother to feed and clothe Him, and yet as God He was holding the universe together by His power. Here was/is the God-man, Jesus the Christ.

Mary wrapped the baby in swaddling clothes (Grk. Esparganoo, lit. strips of cloth) to keep Him warm and then she placed him in a manger (Grk. phatne, lit. a feeding trough). The manger could have been either a feeding trough made out of clay, or a hewn out hole in the wall of a cave. The image of a baby wrapped in strips of cloth and placed in a manger might well have symbolized the death of Jesus which overshadowed His birth (Jo. 12:27).

The shepherds were low on the social order of Jewish life, and would have been rejected by those who were higher in society. Yet, it was these lowly social-outcasts that God called to witness the coming of the Savior into a world of darkness. It is no small thing to note that God did not call kings, nobles, priests, or mighty men, but rather the shepherds in the fields surrounding Bethlehem, who spent their days caring for the animals used in the sacrificial worship of Israel, which animal symbolized Messiah Himself. The shepherds who stared at the sacrificial lambs night after night would soon gaze upon the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (Jo. 1:29). God is still calling those who are insignificant by worldly standards (1 Cor. 1:26-29).

The announcement came to the shepherds by angels, who came singing “glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased” (Lu. 2:14). The shepherds were afraid at the first sight of the angels, and if I were there I would have been afraid also. However, their fear abated with the good news that “today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Lu. 2:11). The shepherds were then given the sign that they would “find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger” (Lu. 2:12). Today people rush around seeking gifts to give each other, whereas the shepherds rushed to find the gift of God lying in a lowly manger. The shepherds accepted the message and by faith went to visit the baby Jesus.

The shepherds had perhaps checked several animal stables before they found the one which housed the Messiah. Their motivation was to “see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known” (Lu. 2:15). Without revelation from God, man can know nothing about God or His workings in history.

Upon finding Jesus in the place which the angels had foretold, the shepherds shared their experiences with Joseph and Mary, and then went back to their place of work praising God “for all that they had heard and seen” (Lu. 2:20). The Holy Spirit tells us that Mary “treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart” (Lu. 2:19). I bet she went her entire life thinking about that night she gave birth to the Savior, recalling the sounds and smells of the nearby animals, and hearing the report by the shepherds.

It is a wonderful thing that God sent His only Son into a world of darkness, born miraculously of a virgin, in the line of David, according to the promise of Abraham, in the prophesied place of Bethlehem, at the time of history when God chose. The birth of Messiah meant God was executing His plan to bring the perfect sacrifice to atone for the sins of the world so that sinners like me could have salvation and hope for a future. Praise be to God for His wonderful promises and provisions!


Steven R. Cook
www.christonly.com

Why Suffering?

Last week I was at the park at Lake Arlington and watched an old man help his wife walk from a nearby bench to her wheelchair. He stood close at her side as she struggled to move her paralyzed leg without falling. It took her almost five minutes to travel twenty feet, and after she reached her wheelchair, her leg did not want to bend, even though she was tired and wanted to sit. The man turned her wheelchair and walked to their car. Carefully, shaking, he struggled to lift her to a standing position, and it was obvious it hurt her to get up. The man stiffened, pulled her upright with her face close to his, and for a moment it looked as if they were going to kiss; then the woman leaned to her left and plumped down into the car with a look of exhaustion. I was moved by the scene.

My heart was softened by what I saw, both by the suffering and the display of love. I know that if the Lord does not return in my lifetime, and my wife and I live to an old age, then that scene could easily reflect our future.

Over the past week I’ve asked myself “why is there suffering in the world?” The short answer is that suffering exists because of sin, which is the product of willful creatures acting contrary to God’s purposes. First, there is the sin/fall of Satan and all the angels that joined in his rebellion, and then there is Adam, who also followed Satan, and plunged all humanity and the world into corruption. Suffering was never part of God’s original creation, but was introduced when Adam disobeyed God by eating the forbidden fruit.

Suffering can be physical, psychological, or both. Biblically, suffering is either deserved (Luke 23:32-41), or undeserved (Acts 5:41). A good example of underserved suffering is seen in Daniel 3, where three Hebrew children were cast into a furnace of fire by a sinful king, because they would not disobey God and bow to an idol.







Some of the reasons for suffering include the fall of Adam (Gen. 3:1-8; Rom. 5:12), rejection of Bible doctrine (Prov. 1:24-33), the bad choices of other believers who are being disciplined (Jonah 1:12), and personal sin (1 Pet. 4:15).

The sources of suffering include self (1 Tim. 1:18-19; 2 Pet. 2:13), other people (Jonah 1:12), Satan (Job 1:1-21), demons (Luke 8:29), and God (Job 1:21; 2:10; Eccl. 7:14; 2 Cor. 12:1-10). However, it should be noted that when God sends suffering to His people, it is always to restore fellowship with Him, or produce spiritual growth. That is, when God sends suffering, there is always a good purpose for it. Those who accept and respond properly to suffering serve as trophies of grace in a fallen world.

Some of the purposes of suffering include bringing the unbeliever to God (Acts 9:1-9), producing righteousness living (Ps. 119:71; Phil. 4:10-14), bringing about spiritual growth (Heb. 5:8), serving as a testimony to others (Prov. 24:30-34), producing humility (Jonah 2:1-10; Dan. 4:19-37; 2 Cor. 12:1-10), strengthening the elect (Jas. 5:10-11), setting an example to others (1 Pet. 2:21; 3:14-17), producing perseverance (Rom. 5:1-5; Jas. 1:2-4), warning of sin (1 Cor. 11:27-32), correcting sinful behavior (Ps. 32:1-5), and glorifying God (Rom. 8:17; 1 Pet. 4:16).

With regard to spiritual growth, suffering does not in itself lead one to maturity, for one can suffer all one’s life and never grow. Rather, suffering helps produce growth only as the believer responds properly to it by learning and living God’s word on a daily basis. To neglect the study and application of Bible doctrine is the worst thing a believer can do; for if God’s word is not factored into the suffering, then the meaning and purpose of it is lost.

The Christian will do well to understand that suffering is inevitable, but the stress that often accompanies it is optional. The believer who lives by faith in God’s word has an anchor for the soul that sustains him during difficult times, and provides joy in the midst of trials (Isa. 26:3; Prov. 3:5-6; Acts 5:40-41; 16:22-30; 1 Cor. 10:13; Phil. 4:10-13). The joy of the believer is not a giddy exuberance where he walks around laughing like an idiot; but rather, the peaceful assurance that God is in control of the situation, and that because He is good, there is good in the suffering.

Steven R. Cook
www.christonly.com

Jesus Divides Men

Luke 12:51-53 “Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you, no, but rather division; for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two, and two against three. “They will be divided, father against son, and son against father; mother against daughter, and daughter against mother; mother-in-law against daughter-in-law, and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”


Jesus has a high priority on the family, but a higher one on Truth. He wants families to stay together, but realistically, He knows that some members of a house will choose Him, and others will not. Because of Jesus, division will occur in families, and even in the church and beyond. John—the Gospel writer—mentions several accounts of Jesus walking into a group, and within a few minutes “a division arose in the multitude because of Him” (John 7:43; cf. 9:16; 10:19). The simple truth is that Jesus divided men, and this was good.

Even after Jesus’ death, burial, resurrection, and ascension, people were still divided over Him. When the apostle Paul preached Jesus in the city of Iconium “the people of the city were divided; and some sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles” (Acts 14:4), and again when he preached in Jerusalem “there arose a dissension between the Pharisees and Sadducees; and the assembly was divided” (Acts 23:7). Wherever Paul went and preached, there was a division between those who chose Jesus and those who did not. I have come to understand that division itself is not sinful, so long as it is based on Christ, and not some personal matter. The only place where Christ is preached and men do not divide is in the church where all members are saved and agree on biblical truth.

Apart from divisions that result over the preaching of Jesus, there are also divisions that occur over Bible doctrine. Within the first century church there were sinful men “who cause divisions,” who were “worldly-minded, and devoid of the Spirit” (Jude 1:19), and these men were to be avoided and removed from the fellowship. When writing to the church at Rome, the apostle Paul stated “I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them” (Romans 16:17). We are to have nothing to do with men who hold to false doctrine, but rather to leave their company if they will not receive the truth. There’s no place for compromising God’s word in the Christian life.

I want unity and peace, but not at the price of Jesus or sound doctrine. Any church that seeks unity, but compromises sound doctrine, is building its fellowship on teachings that are not pleasing to God, and cannot sustain them during hardship. Sometimes these churches are full of very kind, caring, and moral people, like the Mormons, but in the end they are building on sand, and cannot withstand the storms of life.

The fact is, Jesus and Bible doctrine divide men.


Steven R. Cook
www.christonly.com

Blessed are you when men hate you

Luke 6:22-23 “Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. “Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets.”



When speaking to His disciples, Jesus stated “Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man.” As a disciple of Jesus it is not easy for me to rejoice when others hate me because rejection always hurts; yet, I am to consider myself “blessed” because such hatred is an indicator that I am identified with the “Son of Man.” Jesus came into a world of hostility, where men “loved the darkness rather than the light