the rule and reign of Jesus

"...there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist." 1 Corinthians 8:6b

The ruling and reigning of Jesus should be constantly monitoring our thoughts and actions. We should be seeking to understand how "all things were created through him and for him." It is that last bit, "for him" that we seem to somehow forget.

Tonight, at senior high, I gave a rough outline of what this doctrine practically means in our lives.

One, it means that things that happen to us (or others) that are bad, such as: death, sickness, famine, disaster..., are ultimately for Jesus. There is nothing that happens that does not finally make him look amazing.

I talked about Job as the prime example and that Job asked those questions of God. The why questions...which are natural and not a sin to ask. It is, I believe, good to ask these questions of God. It is not good to assume things of God.

God's answer, in essence, to Job is "Why not? How do you know the finality of all things if you don't even know the beginning of all things?"

God is an infinite being and we are finite. We want to make this world about us (ourselves and other people) when in reality it is about God. Trouble brews when we turn the tables on God and count him as guilty for calamity. He is in control and sovereignly let it happen...but he is not guilty of a criminal act. All things are pointing towards him because all things were made to do just that.

Two, in this coming election (and all elections) we make a mistake to get riled up for what a particular candidate can do for us. The question must always be "Who do I think God can best use to call us to repentance and to make Him look awesome?"

(That doesn't mean you vote for a person who claims to be a christian all the time.)

Instead of focusing on the issues that affect us we should focus on those that dismay God. This world and its leaders are not here for our pleasure, they are here for God's glory. Vote accordingly.

Three, respect for those in authority rests on respect of God's authority. If God is ultimately in control and places people in places of authority...then we must respect them. A prime example would those folks in 1 Samuel 10 who despise Saul. They are called "worthless men" (which sounds nicer than it is) for despising a terrible king. We must never despise those in authority over us. Only if they deny us our right to proclaim the good news of Jesus do we have the right to usurp their authority.

There are more examples that come from a worldview that is founded on the truth that everything here is for Jesus and his glory. He is ruling and reigning in an active way by "holding the world together by the power of his word."

Let us live in light of it.

-joe

the flavor of God

Tonight at senior high youth group I tasted the goodness of God...and it was sweet.

The lesson was Romans 10. I walked the group through much of the early exodus, the 40 years, a few kings and finally to the time of Christ. Israel, because of their ridiculous human nature, missed Jesus because they forgot God. Now, to the praise of His great grace, those outside of the Jews are opened up to the good news of Christ.

That is sweet. That is grace. That is the sovereign God loving a people not His own for the sake of His glory.

It amazes me as I read about Israel how they could forget God in the desert. They had (and I have to yell this) A PILLAR OF CLOUD BY DAY AND A BLAZING PILLAR OF FIRE BY NIGHT. AND THEY FORGOT THAT GOD COULD DO ALL THINGS.

If I didn't see the same idiocy and hypocrisy in my own life, I wouldn't believe that it would be possible to forget God when He blatantly shows himself. But, just like those stubborn Israelites I forget God even though (to quote Piper) the blazing center of the glory of God sits daily before us. Jesus death on the cross is always there...and I miss it. All the time I miss it.

Oh, Father...grant that we might not forget the grace bestowed to us through your sovereign love. If it were up to us, we'd forget you in a heartbeat. Thankfully, you love us and you won't let us run away.

-joe

p.s. something new. you can (if i'm available) talk to me live via google talk on the post. so, if you want you can click below (if there's a little green dot) and you can chat with me. pretty sweet, eh?

the cause of the pain

I'm apologize for not posting sooner. I've been a little caught up in fixing up the house I'm renting. Forgive my lateness.
Now, on to the matter at hand.
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The first and most important point of the matter is the cause. Why is it that these things have happened? Why have these children died? Why have these murders taken place? Why?

The answer is not easy, but I believe it with my full heart. The reason for these tragedies is so that God would be magnified. I do not say that lightly and I realize that this implicates God in every bad thing that occurs on this earth. I think, however, that He is quite capable of answering the question and that He has done so throughout the Scripture.

Below is a series of questions that may arise for you. Consider each carefully.

Do you think that God is surprised by these things? Do you think that when the young mother tried to back out of the rising water that He was unaware or ignoring the plight of those children? Far be it from God. He knows all things(Psalm 139). He is not caught unaware of any activity of this earth.

Do you think that God was unable to reach down and miraculously save those children? Do you think He was somehow incapacitated? Absolutely not. God is not bent by the will or the non-will of man. He has His own will and acts accordingly. (See Numbers 23 for the story of Balaam, who prophesied for God even though Balaam didn't want to do so.)

Do you think God is without pity? Do you think He was not grieved for the loss of life on this earth? He was grieved. He knows and shares our pain. He himself wept over the loss of Lazarus (John 11). He grieves in our grief and mourns with us, but still His unchangeable will goes on.

Do you think that God sins when He allows for men and women to murder? Or does he sin because He allows for some to perish without a known reason? This is not true. God is not evil and cannot do evil. He cannot sin.(2 Cor. 5:21, 1 Pet. 2:22) Jesus said that to sin is to be a slave to sin, and God is not mastered by any. (John 8:30ish)

Does God really hold life this delicately? Is He really actively involved in the life and death of individuals on this earth? To the fullest extent, God is willing that you and I at this moment are to be alive. And if He would like, in the next moment, He may strike us dead. (Deut. 32:39) He is intimately involved in the breath of us, His great creation.

I realize that these are short answers to deep questions. If you would like me to cover them in more detail, I will be more than happy to do so.

Tomorrow, I will unpack some of the purpose behind God's sovereignty over life. But, be warned, there are some things which are not for us to know. I cannot give an exact reason for the deaths in these past weeks. I cannot say it was this sin, or that sin, or so that this person would be saved, or that revival may break out. The cause of many things are a great mystery, but the result, the end, is not a mystery anymore.

Grace to you,

-joe

been a couple..

some of you are thinking..."man. there was a week or so where joe made 3 or 5 posts a day. now it has been 2 days and nothing". for those in that boat, i'm back.
others of you were thinking "man, it's nice not to have a million different posts from joe in my inbox" For those in that boat, i'm with ya.

I'm going to try and be a littler more deliberate in my posting. I'm going to try to stay myself to three a day. Hopefully, you'll find it easier to keep up with me.

So, without further ado...

Tonight's lesson was on Romans 2:17-end. It was on the idea of living by the law and how that translates now to those of us in the church who grew up under the 'law' of the church. This is not an exact translation of what was occuring in the arguement by Paul, but it is a good general way to think of it.
We talked about the idea of circumcision and why it was such a huge problem for the 1st century church. Then, we talked about some aspects of circumcision and how they relate to salvation.

Specifically, that circumcision is not something you can do to yourself. It must be performed by someone on you. You can't take the tool and clip your own heart, you'd probably muck it up and die. So, instead, God the Father takes care of it. He does it through the sacrifice of His Son. He extends it in His sovereign grace.

So, we must live as those who have been circumcized of the heart. We must be truly changed before anything we do that follows the 'law' of the church will matter.

After I talked about that for 20 minutes, one of the guys popped the question in about "Does God know everyone who will be saved?"...my answer "yes." Simple. Concise. Never enough.

Next question "Well, then why doesn't God save everyone?" Proceed to Romans 9. Explanation: because God is Sovereign and has mercy on whom He will have mercy.
"But why?". Proceed to next of Romans 9.
Because God wants to make Himself fully known both in power and might and in grace and love. He is all those things and in order for Him to be perfectly glorified He must display them.
Another reason is so that we, who are saved, will understand the abounding joy that comes from knowing God.

I concluded by going back to Romans 1 where all are guilty not because they are not chosen by God, but because they are guilty of not giving Him glory. Of sin. Of attempting to dethrone God. Therefore, man is responsible to believe and is justly condemned if he does not.

And there you have it, week three of Romans.

-joe