How We Handle the Word

I've never been one to get excited over teacher's that provide an outline that begins with all one letter; in fact, I find most of those somewhat contrived. But I have to tell you, as I prepared for the message this past Sunday, it came flying out automatically. So in case you missed it, here's the outline from II Chronicles concerning the story of Josiah, the boy king:



33:21-25 Rotten to the Core



34:1-2 Right in God's Sight



34:3a Return to God



34: 36-7 Removal of Sin



34:8-13 Repair of the Temple



34:14-18 Recovery of a Treasure



34:22-28 Responsive Heart



34:29-30 Read Aloud the Word



34:31-32 Renewal of the Covenant


Chap 35 Rejoice in Worship



I want to share with you another relatively obscure chapter in the OT and how it relates to II Chronicles 34 and Josiah. Keep in mind that the main point that was impressed upon me as I read and studied this exciting chapter, was how Josiah treated the Word of God. Simply,



- He heard it.
- He recognized it's authority.
- He internalized the message.
- He acted on it.
- He shared it with the people.



This is a very powerful example that is much needed in our day. The world has thrown the Word on the trash heap and is doing it's best to bury it, just like in the days leading up to Josiah. It's a story of hope and excitement to see how God can work.

Now I didn't really finish the story of Josiah. It has a bad ending. Have you read it? Check out II Chronicles 35:20-26. This Egyptian king by the name of Neco comes onto the scene- I think they named the wafer after him some years later.

Anyway, even though Neco, an Egyptian, tells Josiah he is being directed by God, Josiah persists in attacking him. He puts on a disguise and engages Neco in battle. Archers shoot King Josiah and he's brought back to Jerusalem to die. Sad day. All of Judah laments his death. What do we lesson do we learn from this? Always listen to God. Don't stand in His way. And don't wear a silly disguise- it never works.

So a sad day in the history of Israel. Even Jeremiah writes a lament about Josiah to be recorded for the ages.

Which brings me to that obscure chapter I mentioned earlier.

Some weeks ago, I was reading a blog and the writer mentioned Jeremiah chapter 36. I had a read through that chapter and when it came time for the message, I was pretty certain that my message would be based on that chapter. Let's have a very quick look at it.

Jehoiakim was king in Judah, just a couple after Josiah. And he was a pretty rotten guy. Have a quick look here for a great summary of the Kings of Israel, all color-coded to show their level of rottenness.

http://www.geocities.com/thekingsofisrael/kings.html

Judah is in terrible shape and it won't be too long before God has enough of them and sends in Nebuchandnezzar to carry them off to Babylon for a few hundred years. God speaks to Jeremiah and says this:

1 In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD: 2 "Take a scroll and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah and all the other nations from the time I began speaking to you in the reign of Josiah till now. 3 Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about every disaster I plan to inflict on them, they will each turn from their wicked ways; then I will forgive their wickedness and their sin."

So Jeremiah dictates the Words of God and Baruch the scribe copies them on a scroll to take to the king. The people are so scared of Jehoiakim that they tell Jeremiah and Baruch to go hide and someone else will read the message to the king. Here's how the king handled the Word from God.

20 After they put the scroll in the room of Elishama the secretary, they went to the king in the courtyard and reported everything to him. 21 The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and Jehudi brought it from the room of Elishama the secretary and read it to the king and all the officials standing beside him. 22 It was the ninth month and the king was sitting in the winter apartment, with a fire burning in the firepot in front of him. 23 Whenever Jehudi had read three or four columns of the scroll, the king cut them off with a scribe's knife and threw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll was burned in the fire. 24 The king and all his attendants who heard all these words showed no fear, nor did they tear their clothes. 25 Even though Elnathan, Delaiah and Gemariah urged the king not to burn the scroll, he would not listen to them. 26 Instead, the king commanded Jerahmeel, a son of the king, Seraiah son of Azriel and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to arrest Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet. But the LORD had hidden them.

So as you can see, the king is pretty rotten-hearted and burns the Word of God as it's being read. My idea was to do a sermon on this passage and talk about how the Word of God is treated today. It's being burned, piece by piece, every where we turn.

As I did research on this passage, I was led to the story of Josiah and I was overcome by his handling of the long forgotten Word of God.

In these two stories, we have the extremes of the spectrum. One man sees it for exactly what it is and it transforms his life and the lives of those around him.

Another man will not accept it, but cuts it in ribbons and throws it in the fire. His life and the lives around him are also transformed.

29 Also tell Jehoiakim king of Judah, 'This is what the LORD says: You burned that scroll and said, "Why did you write on it that the king of Babylon would certainly come and destroy this land and wipe from it both people and animals?" 30 Therefore, this is what the LORD says about Jehoiakim king of Judah: He will have no one to sit on the throne of David; his body will be thrown out and exposed to the heat by day and the frost by night. 31 I will punish him and his children and his attendants for their wickedness; I will bring on them and those living in Jerusalem and the people of Judah every disaster I pronounced against them, because they have not listened.' "

And judgement soon came to pass on Jehoiakim, because of his rejection of God's Word.

Both chapters speak to us today- one shows the right way to handle God's Word and the other shows the wrong way.

Eric

Joe Carter- Update

We had a surprise phone call from Joe a few minutes ago. It was great to hear his voice! It was full of enthusiasm and very positive. Here's a summary of what's going on...

• First off, Internet access has not been that frequent, so he hasn't been able to update his blogs. He was planning once a week, but he wasn't able to this past weekend. This weekend may be doubtful too, because...
• He's been chosen to participate on a basketball team that will travel to several places in Nicaragua. It's primarily made up of native Nicaraguans and coached by a Christian. I'm assuming the team is made up of all Christians. The purpose is to play other teams and then minister- get to know the other players, hear their story, and then share the gospel with them. On Friday, he goes on his first trip to Matagalpa, a city in the mountainous highlands. This is the coffee capital of Nicaragua and is much cooler than Managua. Here's a bit about the city: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matagalpa Joe is really excited about this and said "It's going to be CRAZY- jungle and monkeys and mountains!" He said this was a two day trip, so I'm not sure if he'll be back to update his blog.
• Joe's mornings are quite structured. He has Bible classes, prayer time, and then another class in which they are reading a book on spiritual warfare. He describes it this way "We're ready the Bible like crazy, very powerful... and it's WILD." That's a good thing!
• Afternoon's are ministering as part of the local church. In typical Joe Carter fashion, he's made quite an impression on the local youth- he's raced them, arm-wrestled them, and played them at soccer and basketball. All this is used as a way to get to know them and he's been able to share his faith with them. He then brings them to Youth Group. He and the other guys in his group have also visited a local rehab facility. He didn't give details, other than it's a chance to talk to the people, hear their story, and then share the gospel. Note this common theme... There's a planned visit to an orphanage next week.
• Joe seems really happy and excited about what he's doing. He's very much appreciated all the comments to his first blog.

That's about it...the call was over way too soon. It's hard to believe he's so far away!

Eric

The God Particle- Updated!

I've been thinking about the God Particle alot lately. Not that I really even begin to understand it. But it's been on my mind. Let me explain.


Some 15 or 20 years ago, I picked up a book called "The Making of the Atomic Bomb" by Richard Rhodes and couldn't put it down. It's a history of particle physics, laying the ground work for the Manhattan Project, the code name for the secret government project to develop the atomic bomb in time to stop World War II. This book introduced me to quantum mechanics and the men and women behind these theories. I was fascinated and read book after book on this subject, particularly about the scientists themselves. I couldn't get enough of Bohr, Fermi, Dirac, Einstein, Lawrence, Heisenburg, Oppenheimer and especially Richard Feinmen. I learned that the picture of the atom that I learned in grade school, high school, and even college was hopelessly incorrect- that electrons don't orbit around the nucleus like planets around the sun.

In fact, we really don't know what an electron is. Or exactly where it's supposed to be at a given instant. Quantum physics works in probabilities- that it's quite probably that a given electron will appear in a given location, but that's all. Probabilities. We can't know for sure.

And it gets worse. Light can exhibit the properties of a wave, like a pebble dropped into a lake- we all know how light waves scatter, reflect, and interact. But it also exhibits properties of a particle, which your old tube TV set was based on- firing photons from the "gun" to the screen to make an image. Which is it? A wave or particle? It can't be both... The answer? It depends on how you look for it. It seems you can actually impact it's very core properties by your own observation.

Faced with these difficult issues, Einstein made his famous quote "God does not play dice." This is not the last time we hear the name of "God" invoked...

As time went on, physicists identified four Fundamental interactions by which particles react to each other; "fundamental" because they can't be explained by any other interaction. These are as follows:

Strong Nuclear Force- how do all those positively charged protons in the nucleus keep from flying out?? Remember, like charges repel each other.

Weak Nuclear Force- how and why do atoms decay? What causes this thing called radioactivity?

Electromagnetism- what explains the electric and magnetic forces between objects?

Gravity- while our most familiar force, it has characteristics and properties that still baffle the greatest scientific minds.

Scientists are working on a theory that will unite these four fundamental forces into one giant equation, called the GUT or Grand Unification Theory. So far, they have been able to unite the first three into an equation, but have been unable to bring in gravity.

The math to unite these is complex, but has been highly successful. Over the years, the math has predicted that certain subatomic particles should exist, but have not been discovered yet. Many times, what that mathematics has predicted has been found by experiment. A fellow by the name of Steven Weinberg (with colleagues) was responsible for the equation that linked the first three forces into something called the Standard Model. As particles were discovered to match the Standard Model, Weinberg was awarded the Nobel Prize. He integrated his math with a fellow named Higgs, which resulted in a description of all particles along with their predicted masses. There is still one major particle predicted that has not been found. In simple terms, experimental discovery of this particle may explain why particles have mass. Which relates to their behavior with respect to gravity...which ties everything together!

Which brings us to the God particle. Otherwise known as the Higgs Boson. This is the missing particle!

As you've probably read, a giant super collider came on line in Geneva, Switzerland a short time ago that made the news. This thing is built in a tunnel 300 feet below the surface, and is 17 miles long. It may be the most complex feat of engineering and technology ever assembled by mankind, at the cost of several billion dollars. You can check out what this looks like here:

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/03/god-particle/achenbach-text

Now somewhere along the line, a physicist by the name of Leon Lederman called the Higgs Boson "the God Particle", and even wrote a book by that title. Higgs himself tells the story that Lederman wanted to call it "the goddamn particle", because it's virtually impossible to find. However, "the God Particle" is more marketable and it stuck.

As I thought about the God Particle, I wondered what my smarter, more intellectual friends on the Web were saying. So I did a search. I expected to find some pretty technical discussions, along with some intelligent conclusions that we as Christians, might draw from the God Particles discovery (if its found).

This proved as elusive as the God Particle itself.

I found very little discussion, and what I did find was shocking and discouraging. There were two major viewpoints that I uncovered.

First, there were the Christian Wacko Contingent (CWC) that predicted the end of the world, based on the idea that the particle collider would produce a black hole that would in turn, swallow them up, along with their Aunt Matilda, her pet dog, and everything else. There were even several YouTube videos with these guys proclaiming "The END is NEAR". This didn't bother me so much, as it didn't actually come to pass, and I've seen my share of CWC's websites over the years.

What did, was the second viewpoint I encountered. This group, the Science Is Stupid League (SISL), posts blogs that start off "Dumb scientists. If they wanna find God, they should read the Bible. Yeesh. How stupid can they be, spending all that money, digging a hole, and thinking they'll find God at the bottom. " Then all their friends post comments in reply that say "Right on! They sure are stupid, snicker, snicker. God is gonna kill them, just like at the Tower of Babel."

Is this how dumbed down Christianity has become? As I read through these, I really was discouraged that Christians would be so negative about something they don't begin to have a clue about. They hear the name "God Particle" and immediately react, form an opinion, and get all their friends to agree to propagate the ignorance.

Finally, in the middle of one of these blogs with about 50 comments, a guy got on and said "Hey wait a minute...you guys really don't know what you're talking about." He went on to explain a bit about particle physics and the Higgs Boson and what it means.

He was immediately attacked.

But he persevered, with grace providing clear responses to their attacks.

Then he said something that struck a chord with me.

"I believe" he said, "that 'He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.'" Col 1:16

I don't really understand the weak force, or the strong force, or electromagnetism, or even gravity. And I can't fault scientists for developing theories...

But I do understand this: In Him all things hold together, whether at the subatomic level or the personal level, Christ is the author, creator, and sustainer of the universe. That's the Grand Unifying Theory of the Bible.

And one day, we'll all see the proof of this theory- Every knee shall bow and tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Thoughts?

Eric

Update 10/01/08:

Remember the guy I mentioned above that won the Nobel Prize for his work on unifying the four fundamental forces, Steven Weinberg?

He did an interview last May with Newsweek magazine in which he was asked repeatedly about God, especially in relationship to what the Geneva Collider will uncover. His answers are quite revealing as to how a scientific atheist thinks. Two in particular stand out:

But won't some people expect to find the presence of a grand designer in that final theory? "That's what was thought at the beginning, but we see less and less possibility of that. The more we learn about the universe the less sign we see of an intelligent designer."

Are they also going to be disappointed about our position in nature, our purpose? "We don't see any purpose dictated to human beings in nature."

So Weinberg, an extremely intelligent Nobel Prize winning physicist, working on some of the most complex theories in the world, can't see any evidence of intelligent design in the universe, or any purpose in human life.

How sad.

You can read the whole article here: http://www.newsweek.com/id/128877/page/1

Will We Ever Finish I Cor 7???

Hey There,

I apologize for not updating the blog recently. After Lindsey went back to Gordon and Joe went off on some mission trip thing, I've had a bit of a problem getting computer time in the evenings. Both Joe and Lindsey took their laptops with them, leaving the remaining four of us with one lousy stinking slow moving computer. Doesn't work very well in this crazy computer-dependant age!

So my solution is to bring my laptop home from work and use that! We'll see how it goes!

And speaking of this crazy computer age, I find that as usual, I'm on the falling edge of technology. Meaning that I'm behind the times! Way behind. Blogs started some years ago, and in my way of thinking, are still sort of new. And now that I finally started one, I find I'm totally out of date. See, one of my favorite blogs is one by Joe Carter (not MY Joe, but another one by the same name) called the Evangelical Outpost. I've been reading it most every day for a couple of years. Joe talks alot about current politics, about ethics, about world events, all from a Christian world view... and he has a pretty sharp sense of humor. I find his posts informative and challenging to my way of thinking.

I was surprised to find out about a week ago that good old Joe finds blogs a little too passe and has moved on to the next new thing- something called a Social Network (socnet). Check out his blog that describes what he is now doing and why.

http://www.evangelicaloutpost.com/archives/2008/09/culture11-and-t.html

I'm disappointed! Not only do I find out that I'm totally old-school, but now I have to get used to something completely different if I want to interact with Joe... oh well.

I'm still left with Pyromaniacs, another amazing blog site that I check out every day. These guys are way cool- a little too over-the-top in-your-face Calvinists, but challenging, entertaining, and VERY funny. Their graphics and pictures are GREAT. Check them out- in particular, scroll down and read the blog from Sept 12- it comments on an article from a major Canadian newspaper (The Globe and Mail) that makes the premise that because Sarah Palin has a child with Down's Syndrome, then people will stop aborting babies with Down's Syndrome and will actually HAVE them instead. Very scary article...

http://teampyro.blogspot.com/

Now on to I Corinthians chapter 7.

I woke up on Sunday morning a little discouraged. We're STILL in I Cor 7. This is really dragging. What more is there to say? I'm tired of this chapter. Time to move on....

That's what I was thinking.

Then I got reading the section for that morning's class- vs 17 to 24.

17Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches. 18Was a man already circumcised when he was called? He should not become uncircumcised. Was a man uncircumcised when he was called? He should not be circumcised. 19Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God's commands is what counts. 20Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him. 21Were you a slave when you were called? Don't let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so. 22For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord's freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ's slave. 23You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men. 24Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to.

It repeats three times that we should remain in the situation that God calls us in. And Paul uses two practical examples from the Corinthian's day- circumcision and slavery.

I got thinking about slavery. Paul basically says to not let that bother you. You're a slave. So what. You can still minister right where you are. Paul was in chains and he ministered. He didn't whine and cry and make excuses like I would do. He got down to business. And his chains were used by God in a remarkable way.

So I thought more about how we make excuses about out situations, so we don't have to minister. And I thought about the bigger context of the chapter (marriage), and how we sometimes make excuses about our spouses even. "If only I wasn't married to person xyz- then I could really be the Christian that God wants me to be..." Paul doesn't leave any room for that excuse either. Similar to all mankind, we are without excuse.

So this excited me about the chapter and about the verses. Maybe chapter 7 isn't so long after all!

Let me know what you think.

Eric

I Corinthians 7 and Divorce

Hey Everyone,

Thanks for being patient and hearing me out as I brought out some different ways of looking at a couple of the divorce passages. This is a challenging topic for me and been a real struggle to address. The problem is that I bring some ideas about divorce with me to the table and I read and interpret the scriptures based on those ideas. It's a problem we all face in different areas of study. This one is especially difficult because on the face of it, the scriptures seem quite clear- divorce and remarriage are allowed in only two circumstances. Otherwise, the parties involved have to carry the penalty of their sin for the rest of their lives. This seems to me incompatible with the gospel message, the love and grace of God, and the main thrust of Jesus' teaching. I certainly don't want to find a way "around" the scriptures- I want to find out their true meaning and application.

I'd like to start with the so-called "Laws of Divorce" in the Old Testament, something I referred to briefly on Sunday. Any book, article, or discussion on divorce often starts at this point. What is quite eye-opening to me is the brevity of the subject in the OT, and what the REAL subject of the passage is. The main area of scripture referred to is in Deut chapter 24. Have a read through the Laws of Divorce (NIV)...

1 If a man marries a woman who becomes displeasing to him because he finds something indecent about her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, 2 and if after she leaves his house she becomes the wife of another man, 3 and her second husband dislikes her and writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, or if he dies, 4 then her first husband, who divorced her, is not allowed to marry her again after she has been defiled. That would be detestable in the eyes of the LORD. Do not bring sin upon the land the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance.

What's the topic of this passage?

Divorce? Well...not the main topic.

The topic is REMARRIAGE. It's a very narrow case where a twice-divorced woman is not allowed to remarry to her FIRST husband. In fact, it could be that the woman isn't even twice-divorced- her second husband could have died. Still, she cannot remarry her first husband.

Very interesting. Many Christian churches teach that marriage is once-for-all, meaning that the first marriage bond can NEVER be broken- never ever. They go on to teach that even if people are married, divorced and remarried to other people, they MUST go back to their ORIGINAL spouses to honor God.

So much for that theory.

The other point about this passage is that it does not rule out divorce or remarriage. Just remarriage under a very narrow circumstance.

A huge amount of discussion has been had for centuries on exactly what is meant by the man "finding something indecent about her". Exactly what is "indecent"? Jewish scholars have debated and written volumes on this subject. Their intent was to try and discover the exact legal cases when divorce could be allowed and couldn't be allowed, based on their interpretation of "something indecent". The Jewish writings reveal that they would take case after case of divorce/remarriage and try to figure out exactly what was allowed and what wasn't. There were conservative Rabbi's that said "something indecent" could only mean adultery, the only grounds for divorce. Others said that it could be almost anything, giving the man especially, the power over the woman to get rid of her for any reason whatsoever.

Which brings us to Jesus' day. That exact debate was still going on. The religious powers were wrangling over a number of issues, trying to pin them down exactly. They were legalists- trying to discover what they could get away with and what they couldn't. Looking for laws to burden the people, or loopholes to allow them to get their way.

Jesus gives the Sermon on the Mount and blows them away with six topics in chapter 5 of Matthew that should put an end to their legalistic debates- God cares about the HEART. He focuses on not the final action, but the MOTIVE that caused the action.

You heard it said "don't murder". I say if you're angry at your brother, it's murder.

You heard it said "don't commit adultery." I say if your look at a woman with lust, it's adultery.

And it goes on, for six topics.

Look at the fourth one, about taking oaths.

33"Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.' 34But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.

Many Christians read this and say. "Oh man. Jesus says 'no oaths'. What if I get called into court and have to swear on the Bible and all that. The Bible forbids it, so what will I do??"

That's not what Jesus is saying. The problem Jesus was addressing was not oaths, but TELLING THE TRUTH. See, people in his day had a practice of lying. They also developed a system, with the help of the legalists, to find loopholes around telling the truth. They'd say "It's okay to stretch the truth as long as I don't swear an oath." Then the rules got more complicated- a person could lie as long as he didn't swear by heaven. Or some were saying what really matters is swearing by God's throne. Others said it wasn't the throne, but the earth, God's footstool....on and on it went. Lying and finding a loophole.

Jesus said "Enough. Let your yes be yes and your no be no." IE, tell the truth for crying out loud. No more crossing your fingers behind your back and no more stupid OATHS!!!

So we read Matthew 5 and we see all this and what is our reaction? Sadly, we entirely miss the point and become just like the legalists. We try to establish a complicated set of rules, regulations, and loopholes based upon Jesus' words in that sermon.

Remember what Jesus said at the start

17"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them."

We read that and immediately think that Jesus was talking about his ACTIONS. He went about and didn't murder, commit adultery, divorce, swear oaths, etc. We then apply His words to our actions.

I think it goes deeper then that. Much deeper.

And there's more...

Did you know that the term "fulfill the law" had a specific meaning in Jesus' day? When a rabbi told his followers that he was going to "fulfill the law", they understood him to mean that he was going to "tell the law", or "fully explain the law"- give it's true meaning and intent.

So in one sense, especially to the Jewish hearers of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus was saying "I'm not here to get rid of the law, I'm going to explain to you WHAT IT WAS REALLY GETTING AT- God cares about your heart!"

Have a think about that, read Matthew 5 and the six topics, and see if you have a different perspective.

So much more to say...

Let me just summarize my points on divorce and remarriage that I gave you on Sunday.

1. God's standard is life-long marriage.
2. Divorce is not God's standard, but is permitted because of the hardness of our hearts (sin).
3. Both the OT and NT permit divorce and remarriage.
4. Divorce is not an unforgiveable sin.
5. Divorce and remarriage must be looked at on a case-by-case basis.

Let me recommend an excellent book on the topic:

"Divorce and Remarriage- A Redemptive Theology" by Rubel Shelly

This book was written with a spirit of grace coupled with a desire to bow to the Scriptures. Shelly looks at all the occurances of the topic in both the OT and NT in detail, but in a very readable way.

Also, another good book is

"Divorce and Remarriage- Four Christian Views" edited by H. Wayne House.

This book looks at the four predominant views in Christian churches. Here's the description:

Divorce. No one likes it, but it doesn't go away. Even among Christians, the divorce rate continues to climb. How should Christians approach this issue? May Christians ever legitimately divorce? If they divorce legitimately, may they remarry?Not everyone who appeals to Scripture agrees on how we should understand what it says about divorce and remarriage. In this book, four authors present their distinct perspectives. Carl Laney argues that the Bible indicates that marriages are always intended to be permanent, that there is never a need for divorce and that remarriage is never permissible after divorce. William Heth contends that while there are legitimate biblical grounds for divorce, there are no legitimate grounds for remarriage after divorce. Thomas Edgar defends the position that Scripture allows for divorce and remarriage in cases of adultry or desertion. Larry Richards holds that Scripture, while decrying divorce and the pain it causes, points to a God of grace who will not condemn those who divorce and remarry.Such a sensitive debate cannot remain abstract, so a case study accompanies each position, followed by critical responses from each essayist. The result is a thoughtful, helpful resource for all who wish to think biblically about a crucial issue confronting the church.

Very informative and helpful.

Finally, when this topic comes up, people often quote a verse from Malachi "God hates divorce" and think the discussion is over at that point.

Did you know that God was speaking to a particular people at a particular time when He made that statement? In fact, if you read the passage, He was speaking about a particular TYPE of divorce that was going on, one common today. Have a read in Malachi and find out...you may be surprised!

Eric

Misc. Ramblings and I Cor 7

Hi,

Remember me?

Not many posts recently- sorry about that. Internet connection in Europe was pretty spotty...

Which reminds me.

I have to get something off my chest.

I didn't want to go. I was against it from the start. Too much money. Economy is in the toilet. Gas and oil are through the roof. I felt the good old "g" word hitting me right between the eyes.

Guilt.

I felt really guilty about going. My Maine upbringing makes me tighter than bark on a tree when it comes to spending money on myself. And as a Christian, how could I justify such an expense? I couldn't.

So for months leading up to this trip, I was a wreck. Ask my wife. We had a number of "discussions" about the trip and I was really really negative about it to the point we where almost didn't go. Then it got to be too late with all the deposit money and we had to go. But I still couldn't let go of my guilt and worry.

However, on July 30th, we flew out of Boston to Heathrow in London. Away we went, on the trip of a lifetime!

The other side of the story has to do with all the travel I used to do for Goodrich. I averaged at least two trips a month for several years. When I was in Europe and things were tough at home for Annette with the kids, she would say to them "Daddy's way over the ocean. One day, he's going to take all of us over there and we're going to see where he's been and have the trip of a lifetime!" And through hard work, perseverance, and saving money for almost 20 years, Annette made it happen. We have this giant bottle, the Europe bottle- it probably holds five gallons- and she's been putting money in it for as long as I can remember. Any loose change from the counter. A few bills sometimes get thrown in. Even tens and twenties. All saved up in a bottle so we could go to Europe to see where I'd been. And five free frequent flyer tickets sure helped!

So this morning, when I stood up for Sunday school class and gave you the 2 minute synopsis of the trip, I still felt a little funny. Because the trip cost a lot of money, even though we tried hard to do things cheaply (like food- let me tell you, there were a lot of meals that were bread and cheese). And some of you may not have too much money, especially these days. Especially with winter right around the corner and $4 or $5 per gallon home heating oil prices. Especially if you're on a fixed income.

Some may think it was extravagant to take 6 people to Europe for 3 weeks. It was. Some may think it was not a good use of my money as a Christian. I struggle with that myself.

In the end, it was a trip of a lifetime with my entire family. We saw the sights, we had tremendous experiences, we bonded together, we had times of stress and times of joy. And we fulfilled a decades long dream of seeing where "Daddy went". A heartfelt thanks to Annette for making it happen.

On a related topic, we read a lot of books on this trip. Thanks to Josh who brought a backpack full. Minimum number of books read by any one person was three and I think the most was five or six. And it was an eclectic mix, let me tell you. I love to read and I love to read books as a family and talk about them. As you know, I spend quite a bit of time reading Christian books, especially commentaries, which are detailed, verse-by-verse expositions on a particular book of the Bible. Plus I read several Christian blogs every day. In addition, I usually have at least one or two other books going that are "secular" in nature. I read them for enjoyment and in particular, with my "Christian glasses" on. (These, by the way, due to my advancing age, are 1.75X magnifying glasses, found at Kinney Drugs or the Dollar Store) What I mean by this is that I find it very healthy and stimulating to read books and enjoy them for the writing style, the plot, etc, and especially to see what the main message is and how it compares to my Christian world view. I find this particularly helpful with books my children are reading. So here's a quick list of what I read while on vacation (in order).

1. "Point Counterpoint" by Aldous Huxley. Huxley wrote "Brave New World" among others. This book is set in London in the 1930's and chronicles a couple of weeks in the lives of several upper crust Londoners. Since I was going to London, it seemed like a good choice. The prose was dense by lively. Huxley's characters were variable and quite amazing. Almost all were totally immoral and unscrupulous. Shows the character of sin and its deadly results in the end. Not sure I can really recommend it.
2. "Dharma Bums" by Jack Kerouac. This book was written and 1958 and along was Kerouac's "On the Road", became a standard for the Beat Generation. It's a semi-fictional account of his hitchhiking around the US, climbing mountains, doing poetry readings, communing with nature, along with his Buddhist friend Japhy. This book as very engaging and his discussions with Japhy are very interesting, as the author has Christian leanings. While I certainly disagree with the Buddhist philosophy of Japhy's, I can bring away several encouraging thoughts that permeate the book. First, is the appreciation and love of God's creation. We need, especially as Christians, to sit back in awe and wonder over the creation and the Creator. Second, is the desire for simplicity in our lives. Our possessions tend to possess us- they control our lives in an unhealthy way. I've read several Christian books and articles over the last few years that talk about the need to simplify our lives so that we can devote it to God and not to our possessions. Third, the main character meets all kinds of characters on his trips and he can always find some characteristic or quality to commend. We, as Christians, need to adopt this attitude. We are quick to judge and find fault. So in sum, while this was not a Christian book by any stretch of the imagination, I found it very encouraging and thought provoking. Sort of a non-Christian "Blue Like Jazz".
3. "Old Man and the Sea" by Ernest Hemingway. What can I say about this classic? You have to read this epic about growing old, about man vs nature, about man vs himself, the relationship between an old man and a young boy, etc. I could go on and on with the symbolism and the message in this book. Many have said the Old Man represents Christ in his suffering, and that can't be missed. Also, the Old Man searching for the fish and struggling to acquire it, almost to the point of losing his life. In the end, what does he end up with? A picture of our struggles to get things of the world... A must read.
4. "Eiger Dreams" by Jon Krakauer. He wrote "Into the Wild", which was made into a popular movie this year. "Eiger Dreams" is a series of chapters about his experiences mountain climbing, rock climbing, and ice climbing. Each chapter is thrilling and amazing as he describes his adventures on sheer rock faces- some he conquers, some he doesn't. As someone who is afraid of heights, I was amazed by his exploits and his determination. I was constantly reminded of the capabilities of man and thought several times of the Tower of Babel- "come, let us build a tower..." Krakauer also wrote "Under the Banner of Heaven", which a read a couple of years ago. It's a detailed history of the Mormon Church, particularly with the radical polygamist offshoots of the mainline Mormon Church. Fascinating reading.
5. "I Corinthians Commentary" by Gordon Fee. This massive tome, along with one by John MacArthur, are my main resources for the Sunday School class. Fee is absolutely amazing with his understanding of scripture. I highly recommend it, although it's not for the faint-hearted, as its almost 900 pages in small type! During our trip, I read his detailed exposition of chapter 7. I also read ahead into chapter 11 for some verses that I was interested in.

So what's my message in this? Read. Read broadly. Read with a Christian world view. Read with your family. Read what your family's reading. Talk about what you read.

So how does this relate to 1 Cor chapter 7?

It doesn't.

I want to talk about divorce and share with you my struggles on trying to teach this difficult subject. However, I think I'll let it sit for a few more days. So check back later in the week.

And post a comment! Let's try to make this a dialogue. I've hesitated about commenting on the comments, as I want to hear YOUR comments. But I see that lively discussions occur on the Christian blogs I read every day and the authors respond quite frequently.

Eric

I Corinthians 6- Adult with a Capital "A"

In case you didn't happen to attend Adult Sunday School this past Sunday, let me tell you it was the must difficult one yet. If you were there, you know what I mean! Our topic, based on I Cor 6, was a very adult topic. Here's the verses that we covered:

12"Everything is permissible for me"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me"—but I will not be mastered by anything. 13"Food for the stomach and the stomach for food"—but God will destroy them both. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. 14By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. 15Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never!

I always look forward to having the HS and MS people in class for the summer. In fact, I can't wait to get them in there. I want to show off our adult class. I'm so impressed and amazed at our discussions over the Word, that I can't wait for them to be part of it. I want them to clearly see how relevant the Word of God is for their lives today. I want them to hear us intelligently talk through a passage. Sometimes we struggle and sometimes it comes easy- I want these young people to see how we as adults do it. This isn't a Bible story. Or a Bible lesson. It's the real deal. No dis against their previous Sunday School classes- the difference is the maturity of the conversations. And oh boy, was it mature yesterday.

I've been debating this for several weeks. What am I going to do when these guys show up? Half of me says to just carry on in I Corinthians and let the chips fall as they may. And the other half says to do something relevant- something edgy- something to catch their attention- something that they may struggle with- something that they can REALLY APPLY RIGHT NOW.

I think we got both covered pretty well.

Right up until class started, the debate was going on in my mind, especially as I saw them heading out the back door for their classes. I thought of the verses we'd be covering and sort of gave out a sigh and thought "Carry on today. Maybe finish up I Cor 6 and stop for the summer. Maybe I'll figure out something else to take up."

Then they came marching back in.

Here we go.

I definitely had one of those out-of-body experiences. You've all had them. They come during times of stress. After I read the passage (actually to the end of the chapter) and launched into my opening monologue, it was like I was watching myself from above talk about this awkward subject. As I was talking, I was simultaneously (from above, up near the chandelier where all the horrid ultra bright light bulbs are the give me a headache during church) making comments to myself about what I was saying...

• Am I going too far?
• Be clear. Absolutely crystal.
• Don't shy away and avoid this- meet it head on.
• They've heard the world's version in Health class and probably seen pictures, demonstrations, and pretty much everything.
• I hope no parents are getting upset. Have they all had "the talk" yet???
• Who do I think I am talking about this?
• This may be THE chance, the ONE chance I have in this church to lay this all out- don't blow it.
• Don't laugh. This is serious. Even though I want to laugh during tension filled moments like this. No jokes, anecdotes or limericks!
• Run away. Fast and far.
• Be clear.
• Make eye contact. That's it...hold it. But not too much...
• Crystal clear.

Pretty soon, I returned to my body, away from those bright light bulbs. I was overwhelmed with this one idea- make it clear. Don't beat around the bush. Don't sugar coat it. Now is not the time for timidity.

So that's what I tried to do.

Just to summarize, here's what I think I emphasized:

• We are taught by the world (TV, Internet, School, etc) that we can do what we want- we have complete freedom. However, not everything we do is beneficial. Particularly when it comes to sex.
• Some people say that sex is like eating- it's a strong bodily urge and all we're doing is satisfying that natural urge. However, sex outside of marriage is wrong in God's eyes.
• The body is not meant for sexual immorality- in particular fornication/adultery and pornography.
• When we are sexually immoral, we sin against the Lord Jesus since our bodies are members of Christ Himself.

I plan to carry on with this topic, using the verses in I Corinthians. Next week we'll get into the spiritual side of sexual sin. After that, as we move into chapter 7, I'll attempt to reinforce the positive side of sex within a marriage. That it's God's gift, that it's healthy, pleasurable, and appropriate behavior for married couples. So what's coming are these verses:

4The wife's body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband's body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife. 5Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer.

Have you ever thought of those verses? How would you like to teach them to a room full of people including MS and HS? Uh huh. Time for an out of body experience!

Let me know what you think about this...

Eric