God Breathed

(NOTE: See yesterday’s post for Part 1 of this discussion.)

The unregenerate man (that is, he who has not been born again) is perpetually bound to his heart full of sin. It is not until he places his faith entirely on our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, as attonement for his sin and fully submits to His lordship that man is given a new heart:

“19 And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh 20 that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God.“-Ezekiel 11:19-20

As the passage clearly indicates above, it is with this new heart that man is finally able to faithfully obey God and His commandments. Apart from this new heart, man cannot. In fact, without this “heart-transplant,” man can do nothing but sin. It is part of his nature, his essence, his self-centered modus operendi, inherited from the father of all men, Adam (Romans 5:12). In fact, even after man is given a “heart of flesh” that same root of sin still resides. It is never fully plucked-out in this lifetime. It is a weed, which the regenerate man will continually strive to overcome, by the God’s grace. But, at least now, the weed that sprouts from the root of sin in his heart will never again overcome him.

In fact, if we take another look at the passage in Ezekiel, we will see that God not only gives the regenerate man a new heart, but He also will give them a new spirit… His Spirit. It is His Spirit who is ultimately the powerful force in this battle against sin. We must side with the Spirit and we will overcome sin:

“16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires fo the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.“-Galatians 5:16-17

Well, the 60’s & 70’s came rang loud & clear with a cry for peace and more than a generation later, we are still at war. What exactly is going on here? Why can’t we all just get along?

From the Vietnam War, to the more recent War Against Terrorism the perpetual problem of war & conflict is still very much a part of recent human history these past few decades, despite the infamous banner of the flower children: “Make love, Not war!” In fact, all of history past has been marked by wars, battles, invasions, and inquisitions at various points. If history has been shown to repeat itself so reliably in the past, even the most delinquent of minds can assume that it would continue to do so well in the future as well. But why? What is it about our humanity that is so perpetuated toward inter-relational conflict?

Thankfully, you don’t have to rely on my human wisdom for an answer. God has provided an answer in His all sufficient, innerrant Scriptures. In fact, in the beginning of the fourth chapter in the book of James, the author asks this very same question:

 ”1 What causes quarels and what causes fights among you?…“-James 4:1a

Then, he proceeds to answer this question, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, by using a literary device, known as a rhetorical question. This question is not intended to be debated. It is assumed that the person being asked would naturally agree with the questioner:

“… Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?“-James 4:1b

 James goes on to explain his point:

 ”2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.“-James 4:2

Here, James is clearly teaching that our outward battles are the result of our inner wars (v. 1b). The reason that we experience strife, conflict and fights is because we are desiring something, of which we are being deprived, so we take it upon ourselves to saticefy our desires through aggressive means (v. 2). Our selfish passions are riled-up about something and we will not back-down until our passions are saticefied, regardless of the cost.

Now, this passage is not making a political statement about our involvement in wars as a nation (although it could definately apply). What it is saying, is that the real reason our humanity has been so perpetuated by inter-relational conflict is because we have a personal internal conflict that flushes itself out in our relationships with others.

During Jesus Christ’s earthly ministry, He remarked on these same issues, but He left us with some greater insights on the matter. In the gospel according to Mark, Jesus reveals the deeper source of our conflict and strife:

“21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”-Mark 7:21-23

 It is from the heart of every man that sin abounds. Rooted in the heart, it then finds its full expression in the things that man does: his thoughts, his attitudes, his speech, his conduct, etc.

Dads… enjoy those little ones & soak up the time that you have with them. The Lord has entrusted them to you for a short season so take full advantage of it, for His glory. It may not seem like it at times, but children are the greatest blessing that the Lord could ever bestow upon a marriage. They allow you the opportunity to reflect the intimate care, self-sacraficial love, complete devotion, loving discipline, careful instruction, strong protection, and tender leadership that the Lord shows to His children. In doing so, your parental relationship with your children exemplifies the Lord’s relationship with His children like no other earthly relationship ever could!

As you meditate on this point, may it encourage you to take your parental responsibility with a sense of soberiety, aware of the fact that you are a steward, the Lord’s appointed overseer. Your children are not your own. Like everything else in heaven and on earth, they belong to our living Lord. Handle your little ones as such. Someday, you will have to stand before the Lord and give an account for everything in life, including your parenting. Like the servant in the parable of the tallents, may you be found to be a “good and faithful servant.”

On this Father’s Day, may you accept the blessing that the Lord has bestowed upon your life, seek to examplify Him in your parenting, and relish in the little ones that the Lord has entrusted to you… they will be grown & gone before you know it!

“10 You felt secure in your wickedness, you said, ‘No one sees me’; your wisdom and your knowledge led you astray, and you said in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one besides me.’

11 But evil shall come upon you, which you will not know how to charm away; disaster shall fall upon you, for which you will not be able to atone; and ruin shall come upon you suddenly, of which you know nothing.”-Isaiah 47: 10-11

The events of last week, concerning Paris Hilton, were a real live testimony of the awesome accuracy and validity of Scripture (“… discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” -Hebrews 4:12b).

“1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets…” -Hebrews 1:1

Why did God choose to relay His Word to mankind through prophets in the days of old? If there was something that He wanted the people to know so badly, then why didn’t He just tell them Himself?

If you are like me, then maybe you have been pondering some of these questions too. Well, let me assure you, the answer to these questions (and many more) can be found in the pages of Scripture. In fact, in the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy, Moses gives the answer to these questions as he prepares Israel to enter into the Promise Land:

“15 The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers–it is to him you shall listen–16 just as you desired of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God or see this great fire any more, lest I die.’” 17 And the LORD said to me, ‘They are right in what they have spoken. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. 19 And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.”-Deuteronomy 18: 15-19

See, the answer to these questions is simple: God chose to speak through prophets because man could not tolerate communicating directly with God. To do so would put sinful man in the presence of a holy God. It was too much for the Israelites to bear. So God, out of His gracious love & mercy, elected a “buffer.” He ordained and prepared certain men to bear the awesome responsibility of recieving His words and dispursing them to others.

It was not that God was incapable, insensitive or even unwilling to speak directly to men. It was men, who begged Him NOT to speak. In essence, God’s providence allowed the Isrealites to realize the fulness of their sin before Him, so that they would rather deny direct revelation from God than to bear the full weight of their sin. It was a gracious and merciful act of God to provide a prophet to shield them from His holiness.

But, by God’s amazing & merciful grace, believers in this age no longer need to be concerned about such things though because God has chosen to reveal Himself through different means. He no longer uses prophets, but has revealed Himself in His Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ:

“… 2 but in these last days he has spoke to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.”-Hebrews 1:2

In fact, many would argue that the end of the passage in Deuteronomy (quoted above) ultimately refers to Jesus Christ. He is our final Prophet. In addition, He is the “exact imprint of [God's] nature” and all that we need to know about God is now contained in Him, as revealed in the pages of Scripture (Hebrews 1:3). Glory be to Jesus Christ our Savior and God our Father!

A couple of days ago, my brother, Dave, celebrated his 26th birthday!!! His wife, Carolyn, organized a good ol’ family bar-b-que at their place and we all had a blast! Here are just a few pics to give you an idea of all of the “food, fun & fellowship” that we enjoyed (the 3 “F”s necessary for any good social function ):

The “gang”!

The birthday boy, Dave, & his wife, Carolyn… aren’t they cute?

My handsome husband, Geoff!

While we were there, we all heard some “interesting” stories about Dave, from birth to adulthood… as you can see, we were ALL captivated :-)

Grandma Tener, Momma Tener & Momma Hart chatting together :+)

Geoff & Dave talking theology.

The fun went on well into the evening…

My little nephew, Jonathan, & his Daddy, Wayne, hung-out too & managed to stay awake the entire time!

My brother-in-law, Jason, really enjoyed his s’moores :0)

Then came the moment that we had all been waiting for… Dave finally opened his presents. This is the one from me & my hubbie… can you guess what it is?

You got it! It’s a John MacArthur book on discipleship! I know, it’s kinda’ nerdy, but so is my brother so it was the perfect gift (lol… sorry, Bro, but I had to get ya’ on that one… much love :)!

“11“Take care lest you forget the LORD your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today, 12lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them, 13and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied, 14then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, 15who led you through the great and terrifying wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water, who brought you water out of the flinty rock, 16who fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers did not know, that he might humble you and test you, to do you good in the end. 17Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.‘ 18You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day. 19And if you forget the LORD your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish. 20Like the nations that the LORD makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the LORD your God. “-Deuteronomy 8:11-19

 May we give thanks to the LORD, our God, to Whom all praise is due, for the many blessings He has lavished upon us! †

“I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless.”-Psalm 101:3

In Psalm 101, the human author, King David, is vowing before the living God that he will “walk with integrity of heart” (v. 2). He goes on to list many of the practical ways that he will accomplish this. Among those on the top of the list is the following:

“I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless.” (v. 3)

The term “anything” is all inclusive. It leaves out “nothing”, but covers “everything.” King David is basically vowing to refrain from gazing upon anything that is of no value. In the context, he is especially speaking of those things that are of no spiritual value. That’s a pretty radical oath!

Can you imagine what our modern society would look like if we were to vow that oath before the living God? It would utterly negate the “enjoyment” of the majority of our primary modes of “entertainment”. Among the obvious: television sitcoms; fictional movies; chick-flicks; fictional literature (i.e. romance novels, etc.); pornographic magazines, movies & websites; fashion magazines; tabloids; internet activities, such as social chat-rooms, my-space, and on-&-on it goes… (I am sure that you could add a few more items to this list And that is just a list of the “worthless” things that we “set before our eyes” as a means of entertainment. What if we were to additional items to the list for other means, like academic studies, professional studies, political studies, financial studies, etc… what sort of spiritually “worthless” things would our society have to negate then? Imagine how much more free time we would have as a society if we were to remove those spiritually “worthless” things from before our eyes? Our society would look radically different, that’s for sure!

How about you? If you were to make that very same vow before the living God, what would you have to negate from your life? Are there any “worthless” materials that you “set before your eyes”? What “worthless” things or activities could you rule out of your life? It may be radical, but think of how much more time you would have to focus on the spiritually eternal things, which are of lasting worth & value. Would your life look different as a result?

I have been reading through the Old Testament book of Isaiah lately and I have just been so encouraged by the revelation of God’s attributes throughout the book. However, this morning, as I was reading through a familiar passage in chapter 40, I was struck by the profound poetry that overflowed the brim of each line with a fairly comprehensive description of the attributes of God, as He relates to His people:

“28 Have you not known? Have you not heard?

The LORD is the everlasting God, [God is eternal]

the Creator of the ends of the earth, [God is Creator (& thereby Ruler) over all creation]

He does not faint or grow weary; [God is non-physical; namely, He is Spirit]

His understanding is unsearchable. [God is omniscient]

29 He gives power to the faint, [God is Sustainer]

and to him who has no might he increases strength. [God is the very Source of strength]

30 Even youths shall faint and be weary,

and young men shall fall exhausted;

31 but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; [God is selective]

they shall mount up with wings like eagles; [God's grace is powerful & majestic]

they shall run and not be weary; [God's grace is long-suffering]

they shall run and not faint.” [God's grace endures]

Blessed  be the Lord, our God!

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