Holy Hatred

What is one subject everyone loves to talk about? Themselves. People love to talk about themselves in every area of the world. Self promotion happens everywhere around us in our modern world. In ads, TV shows, film, books, radio, magazines, and in conversation. How many songs do you know that are all about how great and powerful the artist is?

A popular term these days is "haters". This usually refers to someone who doesn't do what you do and disagrees with you. "Haters gunna hate," they say. What does this mean? Usually it means that whoever is speaking doesn't care what other people say.

As Christians, we are called to be the opposite of the people around us. We are called to be humble, putting others first. This is easy to quote from Sunday School, but what does it mean?

Proverbs 6:16-17
There are six things that the Lord hates,
    seven that are an abomination to him:
¹⁷ haughty eyes, a lying tongue,

Here we have the start of a list of things that God hates. What tops the list? Something referred to as 'haughty eyes'. What does that mean? Well, haughty means proud; so haughty eyes means those who look pridefully at everyone. In more modern English we would say someone with their nose up in the air. Self conceited. Proud. Vain. God hates this pride. It is an insult to Him and goes against the name of Christ that we as Christians carry.

"But Christianity didn't start until the New Testament," you hear people say. "This doesn't really apply to us." Two responses come to mind. First off, yes, the Old Testament is inspired by God and when it tells us about God its as accurate as the New Testament. So when it says here that God hates a proud look you can be sure He still feels that way.

The second response would be to quote the New Testament on this matter.

I John 2:15-17
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 desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

Here we hear a slightly different part of pride; greed. Greed and pride go hand in hand. As you grow comfortable with pride; greed will be sure to follow. As soon as you think you are better than people you will assume you deserve more. This is the mindset we deal with all around us. I wish I could say it was only the unGodly who acted this way. Tragically, many modern Christians have the same attitude about the world around them. They love this world, it's toys and pleasures. They think they deserve them after all their hard work.

The truth is that if we become prideful we fall in the true original sin. Lucifer, now the devil, was once a prince among the angels. Not one other angel was greater then he. Only God Himself was Lucifer's superior. Then he became prideful. Greed soon followed and Lucifer tried the first mutiny ever. He tried to overthrow God. Lucifer convinced a third of all the angels to follow him in his coup. Thus the father of lies became who he is. Pride started it, greed continued it.

That may be why it tops the list of things God hates. Almost every sin starts with pride. A humble person does not feel he has to hurt people to get on top. Pride is where we almost always begin. When greed follows we carry out our sinful plan. What can we do about this as Christians?

Conclusion

Well, the first thing to do when we find pride in our lives is to repent. Turn to God and admit your sin. Then, ask Him to fill you with His Spirit. Ask for His help in being Christ to the world around you.

A few things to practice in order to help overcome pride and self would be as follows. The next time you have a conversation with someone, instead of trying to make the conversation about you, your stuff, or important people you know, ask the other person about them. Talk to them, show them that you care about them. This is simple advice, but you will find that we love to always turn the conversation to ourselves. As you go throughout the next week, try to avoid turning the conversation in your direction. Show love and humility by caring about the other person and only talking about you, and your stuff and connections when asked. You will find that not only do you feel more peaceful (due to obedience) but you will also be someone people enjoy talking to. Jesus Himself was a popular person with most people, however, He was (and is) our perfect example of true humility. Let us follow Him.

Music Ministry

Music is a wonderful creation by God. It's a wonderful form of worship and praise. The beauty in the simplicity and truth in some songs can be more meaningful than a dozen sermons. The strength and beauty of this form of worship is highly used in the Bible, and throughout history.

Some people like to take this a step further. The beauty and meaning of the songs is combined with the Great Commission by many musicians in the modern world. As well and good as this sounds, I fear we have no Biblical support for this reasoning. Below are a few passages about music and worship.

Exodus 15:19-21
For the horse of Pharaoh went in with his chariots and with his horsemen into the sea, and the LORD brought again the waters of the sea upon them; but the children of Israel went on dry land in the midst of the sea. And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.
Judges 5:3
"Hear this, you kings! Listen, you rulers! I will sing to the LORD, I will sing; I will make music to the LORD, the God of Israel."
2 Samuel 6:13-17,20-23
Now King David was told, "The LORD has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and everything he has, because of the ark of God." So David went down and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. When those who were carrying the ark of the LORD had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf. David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the LORD with all his might, while he and the entire house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouts and the sound of trumpets As the ark of the LORD was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, she despised him in her heart. .....When David returned home to bless his household, Michal daughter of Saul came out to meet him and said, "How the king of Israel has distinguished himself today, disrobing in the sight of the slave girls of his servants as any vulgar fellow would!" David said to Michal, "It was before the LORD, who chose me rather than your father or anyone from his house when he appointed me ruler over the LORD's people Israel — I will celebrate before the LORD. I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes. But by these slave girls you spoke of, I will be held in honor." And Michal daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death.
1 Chronicles 15:16
David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint their brothers as singers to sing joyful songs, accompanied by musical instruments: lyres, harps and cymbals.
1 Chronicles 16:9
Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts.
1 Chronicles 16:23
Sing to the LORD, all the earth; proclaim his salvation day after day.
2 Chronicles 5:13
The trumpeters and singers joined in unison, as with one voice, to give praise and thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, they raised their voices in praise to the LORD and sang: "He is good; his love endures forever." Then the temple of the LORD was filled with a cloud,
2 Chronicles 20:19-23
Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful." After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the LORD and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying: "Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever." As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. The men of Ammon and Moab rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another.
2 Chronicles 29:28
The whole assembly bowed in worship, while the singers sang and the trumpeters played. All this continued until the sacrifice of the burnt offering was completed.
Psalm 30:4
Sing to the LORD, you saints of his; praise his holy name.
Psalm 30:11
You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
Psalm 59:16
But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.
Psalm 100
Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his [a] ; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Psalm 138:1
I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.
Psalm 149:3
Let them praise his name in the dance: let them sing praises unto him with the timbrel and harp.
Isaiah 44:23
Sing for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done this; shout aloud, O earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains, you forests and all your trees, for the LORD has redeemed Jacob, he displays his glory in Israel.
Isaiah 51:11
The ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
Jeremiah 3:31-3-5
"I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness. I will build you up again and you will be rebuilt, O Virgin Israel. Again you will take up your tambourines and go out to dance with the joyful."
Revelation 5:13
Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!"

In all these passages, (and more that were not listed) we do not find a single reference to ministering the Gospel with music. Throughout both the Old Testament and the New we find that music was used exclusively for worship, never for ministry to the unsaved. Why?

Well, lets take a look at a few details. Why does music speak to our souls? Is it because the truth is in the song and finds our heart? Or is it perhaps that we have the truth in our hearts and it is realized in song? Did Jesus ever speak about music as worship or ministry?

No, not specifically. But if we turn to Luke 8:9-10 we find Jesus explaining why He used parables.

⁹ And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant, ¹⁰ he said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’

Jesus tells us here that some people do not wish to hear, and therefore they will not and can not. If a person conscientiously choses to reject the Gospel for too long God will harden their hearts and close their ears. As grave as this is to say we find a source for this in John 12:38-40.

When Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them. Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

“Lord, who has believed what he heard from us, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” and hardened their heart,

lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.”Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said,

“He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.”

Does God really harden peoples hearts? Yes, the same way Pharaoh's heart was hardened. However, we need the context of the hardening of the heart. It says here that even after Jesus had shown them many wonders they still did not believe, and therefore their hearts were hardened.

So what of Music Ministry then? How is it to be compared with parables? Well, music (God worshiping music) is only understood by those whose ears are opened in a spiritual sense. It is nonsense to an unbeliever. Much in the same way only those who were seeking the truth understood parables, only some will understand the music we so much appreciate.

But why would I state that Music Ministry is un-Biblical? Well, that's a complex question. Of all the references we find in the Bible to music (and there are many), we find no reference to ministry by music. We always find music to be to be used for worship, praise, and rejoicing. It is a dangerous thing to take what is made to be used as praise and turn it into something it is not.

Another danger of music ministry is the fact that many people who wish to make a living entertaining people with music (which I am not condemning here) find that it is more profitable to slap the "Christian" label in front of their musical group. This makes them "acceptable" in Christian circles; even if their Theology is as deep as a Saharan River and only referenced in the CD insert. (do those still exist?) I find it a grave danger to try to profit off of adding God's name to whatever product we sell. A plumber may be a Christian and a plumber, but that does not make his plumbing more holy. Nor does the fact that a musician is a Christian make random lyrics more holy either. The plumber is not a "Christian plumber"; he is a Christian who does plumbing. If we use Christian as an adjective instead of a noun, we soon end up with Christian thieves. We are to first be Christians, then do our job, not add our Christianity where it suits us or is profitable. Christ should show in every part of our lives, and that should affect everything we do and say. If we do this we will show Christ, not just in verse 3 of track 5, but in everything. A Christian who is a musician I have respect for; a Christian artist not so much.

Again, I have no issue with entertaining music; nor with Christian music (as worship). What I do have an issue with is when people want to use the term Christian to launch their own career. If you wish to entertain people, thats fine. But don't use God as a way of guilt tripping people into buying your CD. If you want to make a profit, then do so. Tread softly when adding God's name only to bring in the cash flow, however.

I know this is a post that may hit close to home for some people. I do not wish to antagonize anyone, however, I do feel strongly on this matter.

Conclusion

I do not believe we should use music as ministry. I believe it should be used as worship. People can be convicted by such a means, just as you can eventually hit a fish with a shotgun. However, neither is the being used the way they were designed.

Nice Neighbors

Love your neighbor as yourself. Bet you haven't heard that one before. It's one of the most basic concepts of being a Christian. That being said, it can also be one of the most difficult. People try to avoid loving others in different ways. We have Jesus' timeless parable in the Gospel of Luke about the Good Samaritan, and how he acted towards the injured man. We love that story and always imagine ourselves as the Samaritan. But are we?

^{Luke 10:29-37  29} But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbour?” ³⁰ Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. ³¹ Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side.³² So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³ But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. ³⁴ He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵ And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ ³⁶ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbour to the man who fell among the robbers?” ³⁷ He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

What of the two men who avoided the injured man? Why were they so cold and calloused? Let's take a look at the requirements of  cleanliness that the Levite and priest were required to follow in order to serve God in the Temple.


^{Lev. 19:11-13      11}“Whoever touches the dead body of any person shall be unclean for seven days. ¹² He shall cleanse himself with the water on the third day and on the seventh day, and so be clean. But if he does not cleanse himself on the third day and on the seventh day, he will not become clean. ¹³ Whoever touches a dead person, the body of anyone who has died, and does not cleanse himself, defiles the tabernacle of the Lord, and that person shall be cut off from Israel; because the water for impurity was not thrown on him, he shall be unclean. His uncleanness is still on him.

The man at the side of the road appeared dead, or close to it. The Levite and priest were both, in all likelihood, going to fulfill their duties at the Temple. They could not do so if they touched the man and he happened to die. So in concern for their duties in the Temple they left the man there. In attempting to be who the people would see as "holy", (a visible performance) they neglected what was actually holy (the dangerous and unclean work that would disqualify them from the Temple for a week).

Their reason behind inaction was so they could serve God in the "normal" or visible way. In not acting to help the man they were disobeying God's command to love their neighbor. (Lev. 19:18) So does this mean I believe that works save us? By no means. However, the decision here shows us what was of importance to these two men. Praise rather than lowly service. How often do we err in similar fashion?

Love your neighbor as yourself. Now you've heard it again. But what I find the most odd about modern teachings on this command is the stressing of the "love your neighbor" and lack of detail of the "as yourself." I guess we just assume it means super-love.

But does it? Think about how you love yourself. When you mess up, (which we all do) how do you react? Do you console yourself and say, "Its ok, I love you (me)". Most of us will tolerate more flaws from others than we do from ourselves, we are bothered when we make errors we shouldn't and we go to pains to fix them, or (foolishly) try to cover them up. Loving yourself doesn't mean you let yourself get away with everything. In fact, it often means the opposite. We would work hard to make ourselves better, and we care about the result.

Conclusion

That is how we are to love our neighbor. Not give them a free pass to do whatever they please to us or themselves. We are to care, to love, to help, and to show God's love even when that means not going easy on that person (only if it is for their benefit and not merely ours). To love; truly as we do ourselves, means to care and to invest, not to smile and condone whatever they are doing. That isn't love, its carelessness. Jesus didn't wink at sin, nor should we, in our lives or others.

Sadducee Superstars

 In my last post I referenced the Pharisees and some of the things that Jesus addressed in the Gospels. Interestingly, the Sadducees were not much of a hinderance in Jesus ministry. However, the Pharisees and Sadducees switched opinions after Christ's Resurrection. The Pharisees seemed more passive after the disciples started their evangelism, but the Sadducees howled in protest. What changed?

 Well, lets get some background. The Sadducees were the "Rockstars" of their Theological world. They do not appear much in Jewish history, in fact, they seem to sprout only right before Christ's coming and dwindle only a few years after. They were the wealthy elite; the 0 AD version of celebrities. Their beliefs were not so much based in traditionalTheology but in some very new (for their time) and controversial beliefs. Unlike the Pharisees, they did not hold to all the translations of the Law; instead they ignored all their predecessors and only recognized the written Scripture as authoritative. Ironically, the Sadducees fell into the ditch on the other side of the Theological road. The Pharisees added plenty of laws; the Sadducees listened to no one.

 What were their beliefs? Well, good question. Let's take a look.
Acts 23:8 For the Sadducees say there is no resurrection, or angel, or spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.

 We have other Scriptures that show us that the Sadducees held power in the Priestly lines. (Acts 4:1 & 5:17)

So why did the Sadducees suddenly care once the disciples took over?

The Resurrection. The Sadducees did not hold that resurrection was possible, and therefore found the disciple's claims blasphemous. It is important to note that the disciples were not blaspheming God's Word, but man's interpretation. The disciple's claims, if true, would ruin the comfortable Theology that they had instated, and they could not stand for that. In the book of Acts, we find that the current High Priest was indeed a Sadducee. So were many in the Sanhedrin. The rich and powerful were at the peak of their influence at this time. They were going to make sure they stayed that way.

So what can we learn from this group of Theologians? Well, Jesus did not much go out of His way to condemn them (unlike the woes of the Pharisees, see previous post). Interestingly, He had little to do with them. They only cared once their toes were stepped on.

In the Modern world we have many examples of Churches who hold their own "translation" of the Gospel and God's Commands. They do whatever they so please and find a verse that could be construed to support their point of view. Others are more likely to become the "wealth is power" types. We can all tend to assume our interpretation of the Bible is correct without consulting the opinion of others.

Conclusion

Does this mean I'm contradicting my last post? No, not at all. We should never hold man's opinion above God's Word. That being said, we should also remember to respect the revelation that God did give these Theologians while remembering that those men were flawed. God is unchanging, however, we are not. Due to this, what God may tell us may be different than what He told His people two, three, four, or five hundred years ago. Not because He changed His mind, but because the application has changed to those we are evangelizing.

Peter sums it up perfectly.
 ^{Acts 5:29} But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.

This was the error of both the Pharisees and Sadducees in very different forms. Let us heed Peter and not fall for the same flaw.

Pharisee Foolishness

Religion is something people love. Either they love to love it, or they love to hate it. Everyone has an opinion on right and wrong. (even if their opinion is that they do not exist) There is no debate that has raged as long as this one, nothing that has split so many families, friends, and countries. It seems the more religious a person or group is, the more they split. In fact, the more you study any religion, the more you see what people disagree on.

But lets look at what we mean when we say religious. One of the first words that pops into my mind when I hear that word is Pharisee. The Pharisees were a powerful group of religious leaders in Jewish history. They upheld the Torah and Talmud primarily, along with the Mishnah and a few other writings. The Torah is the name they gave the first five books of the Bible (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy) which were written by Moses. They contained the Law, given to them by God. The Talmud expounded on the Law, and the Mishnah expounded further on specific judgements by great rabbis in history. These men had literally hundreds of laws they memorized to 'make sure' they were righteous enough. Indeed, throughout time, the Talmud and Mishnah expanded to include various by-laws and exceptions to further "complete" the Torah's writings.

We won't go into all the details of the Talmud and Mishnah. (that would be hard as the Talmud alone is over 6,200 pages long) But it is suffice to say they had rules. And rules. And rules. They tithed, they prayed, they fasted, they basically lived at the Temple. If memorization, style, and sacrifice could save a soul, these guys had it made.

But what did God think of this form of worship? Well, lets take a look.  He addresses their form of worship in Matthew 23:1-39, we will take excerpts from this passage and go from there. I strongly recommend you read the whole chapter.


²  “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, ³ so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice.

Here is what Jesus says on the matter. He tells us that what they teach (the Law) is good. But the works they do are not in alignment with their own preaching. Jesus is just warming up to the subject though, it seems. He gets more into this dissertation in a moment. He starts in on their self glorifying attitude. He then moves on to tell them that they are Hell's sons and spawn more of the same. (verse 15) These are not light words, but they are spoken from God Himself. He goes further and says that they are forgetting the basic teachings and trying to only follow the complex parts of faith. It is interesting to note, He does not tell them that they should not do what they are doing (in context to sacrifice and offerings) but that they are not doing enough. He says they are straining out the smaller parts (gnats) and swallowing whole errors (camels). He goes on to say "these things you should have done without neglecting the others" (emphases mine) The Pharisees were by no means "too righteous" (an impossibility) but they were not righteous enough. They assumed following the "advanced teaching" was more important than action. Jesus continues His speech with something no man wants to hear from God: "You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?" (verse 33)

So what is the application of these chilling verses? What can we do to avoid the error of the Pharisees? Is there any modern version of this problem?

I don't want to accuse people of things, nor do I want to play Judge (that is not my role, but God's); but that being said, there are some things that weigh greatly on my heart. There are teachers today who condemn almost every group, (as the Pharisees did with the general population and even the Sadducees) and there are those who hold the teachings of old preachers, great though they may be, as level to the very Word of God (the error of the Talmud), they expound on great Theological concepts and doctrines and neglect the appalling implications they make (the same thing the Pharisees were accused of in verses 16-23). They take their doctrine and hold it as the only correct, indeed the only possible true view, without realizing that this falls dangerously close to the Pharisees' own error.

Conclusion

Jesus met many people: prostitutes, thieves, con artists, adulterers, & liars. He welcomed them to Himself, seeing them as lost sheep who were looking for their shepherd. But when He came to those "leading" the sheep; His tone changed. He condemned them, ran them out of the Temple with whips, and called them the sons of Hell. Why? Because they were already convinced they were righteous. They assumed that what they had done, what they taught, and what they were was "good enough". This is why they were condemned so strongly. May we learn from their sobering example.

Godly Guilt

Guilt is something we all deal with. There are many ways that guilt can show itself; some people overeat or start drinking, some take up other habits to dull their minds or keep themselves busy, while others become overachievers to compensate for what they have done. Often times, we don't even realize that it is guilt that drives us, we just feel we "need" to do or have something. Before coming to God this is what we call "conviction of sin", it is one of the jobs of the Holy Spirit. But what about Christians who feel guilty?

Well, lets take a look at that. Christians are saved sinners, plainly stated. So as saved people we don't sin anymore and have no reason to feel guilty, because we are now 100% perfect, right? WRONG. We fail and fall far too often. This stumbling causes some to doubt their very salvation in the first place. What kind of saved person would still sin?

It seems we have perhaps over-simplified the concept of Salvation. As people, we have three elements to our existence: body, soul, and spirit. Our spirit is saved in the act and moment of Salvation, that part is plain and simple. This Salvation brings us before God as righteous due to Christ's Gift. Theologians call this Justification. Our bodies are not saved at that moment; nor will they be until the day that we receive our new bodies at Christ's Second Coming. This causes us some difficulties here on earth, but in Heaven we will have perfect bodies that submit to our soul and spirit.

But what of our soul's salvation? Our soul, the part of you that makes you well you, is not saved at this moment. Our personality is still of a fallen nature. That is why we have angry Christians, and Christians who struggle with addictions and other issues. As long as we try to keep our personality compartmentalized (e.g. our "Christian part" and our "me time part") we will struggle with these sins. God works through His Spirit to change our soul, our personality, to fit His.(the Theological term for this is Justification) This is why Jesus said being angry with your brother (or sister) is as wrong as murder. The soul is still in bondage, it is enslaved. We must come before God, even after becoming Christians, and allow Him to change our soul. This is called "conviction of righteousness" and it is also in the Holy Spirit's job description.

So how does this affect guilt? Well, if we assume that we are talking about Christians, (people who have heeded God's call and come to Him for repentance, realizing they can never save themselves) we would have to ask a simple question. Is this a sin that you have come before God and repented of, asking Him to help change your soul? If you haven't, then the problem is quite simple. You need to yield to God, ask Him for forgiveness and strength to change, and then live accordingly.

But what if I already did that and I still feel guilty? Then hold up. If you have truly come to God with it and have addressed the issue and turned from it but still feel guilty, remember one thing. God will NEVER convict you of a sin that you have already resolved with Him.

"As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us." 
-Psalm 103:12

God does not promise anything in vain. He will never bring that sin up again. If you are indeed feeling guilty about such a sin, just remember it is not God who is convicting you. When this happens, pray to God, call out and thank Him for His forgiveness, His Word, and His Truth. Then ask Him for His Peace as you remember that this form of guilt does not come from God. In these times remember that the devil is defeated, crushed by Christ, and that the devil has no power over you that you do not give to him. He is a professional liar and cheat, he'll take all the credit you give him, but remember that this is only an illusion. He has no power over you. Praise God, and stand firm against the wiles of the devil.

On the flip side of this coin, however, is the guilt that DOES come from God. What is the difference? God will only convict you of sin that you commit that you do not resolve. By resolve, I mean to repent, and have Him help you change your ways, your soul, if you will. Keep in mind, God does not change, will not change, nor will His definition of sin or of righteousness. His conviction will not change, only our sensitivity to it. So when it is indeed from God that your conviction comes, remember that Christ's example was of perfect obedience to the Father, and we should always strive to follow that example.

CONCLUSION

So when dealing with guilt just do a quick check. Have I brought this before God? Am I trying to hide this? Am I still indulging my self in this? If so, repent. If it is something that you have already brought to God, then rejoice that He isn't the one convicting you. Praise Him, and go before Him in prayer and gratitude. This is the best way to deal with false guilt. In fact, this is the best way to exist.

Yoga: Evil Exercise?

I'm not a morning person. I like 3:00-5:00 am as much as the next guy; but only when I have yet to go to bed, not if I'm supposed to get up at that hour. However, Proverbs 25:28 states "A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls." Ouch. So in order to work on my own self discipline, I have agreed to get together with a group of aspiring fitness buffs to work up a sweat in the wee hours of the morning. At 5:45 am. For 6 days a week.  3 straight months. Gulp. So far it's working, (one whole day down) but we ran into something interesting  today while we were stretching and straining the muscles we wish we had.

It seems as part of the exercise program that we are doing, you have at least one day in six that you are supposed to do a form of yoga. For those of you not familiar with yoga, it is an exercise that comes from ancient India. It involves stretching and seeing how many of your bones are made of rubber. (at least thats what it looks like to me) Hinduism, Buddhism, and several other eastern religions use it to meditate. Many people in the western world use it to exercise. We aren't even to day three of our regimen yet, so we haven't even seen that portion of our exercise tutoring video.

But it seems that yoga is a place that Christians are starting to take sides on. Some say that since it is used by other religions to raise people to a higher spiritual plane we Christians should not participate in it. Others say that it is no more moral or immoral than a Pilates class. So what to do? Should we skip it and do something else? Or do we move forward?

Well lets see what Paul has to say on yoga. Hold on, it seems that Paul wasn't a big fitness nut. (First Timothy 4:8a "For bodily exercise profiteth little") Oh well. So it seems Paul does not talk about yoga itself. But he does talk about something that has a very similar concern and application. For this we will go to First Corinthians 10:23-32. It reads:

²³  All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify. ²⁴ Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor. ²⁵  Eat anything that is sold in the meat market without asking questions for conscience’ sake; ²⁶  for the earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains. ²⁷ If one of the unbelievers invites you and you want to go, eat anything that is set before you without asking questions for conscience’ sake. ²⁸ But if anyone says to you, “This is meat sacrificed to idols,” do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for conscience’ sake; ²⁹ I mean not your own conscience, but the other man’s; for why is my freedom judged by another’s conscience? ³⁰ If I partake with thankfulness, why am I slandered concerning that for which I give thanks?

³¹ Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. ³²  Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God; ³³ just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit but the profit of the many, so that they may be saved.

Here Paul is talking to a church in Corinth (the city of sin in those times) and the members have a concern. The people around them are sacrificing meat to statues of their 'gods' as part of their worship. Then the meat can be sold and eaten. Is it wrong to eat such things? They are involved in other worship traditions, and we do not agree with idol worship or sacrifice.

Paul tells them that all things are from God and are good, when applied properly. Since these idols are not actually gods and we don't eat as an act of worship, it is not a concern. It is not that this item has now been stained because of the way others use it. What matters before God is our own heart and loyalty. No matter what we do (or don't do) we are to do so to the glory of God.

Paul also says that if  you feel guilty about it, or if it bothers one of your brothers; then stop. Whatever it is here on earth is not worth causing you to defy your conscience or your brother's. Even though the act or deed itself is not sinful, going against your convictions is. 

So Paul concludes by telling them to look at the greater picture. Even though it is not sinful in itself to eat this meat, is it bothering another? Does it bother you? If not, then there is no reason to abstain. If so then don't do it. We should always see what profit can come out of it first.

In the exact same fashion we should approach yoga. Is exercise suddenly sinful if someone else came up with it first? I fear that would eliminate many forms of exercise altogether. If we applied that concept  (of abstaining from things not invented by Christians) to all other aspects of life we would find the modern world very limited indeed. Even the Olympics that are now on were originated by the Greeks, who worshiped many 'gods'. 

In summation; God is One. To Him be the glory. Our bodies are the temples of God and we are to treat them as such. If you take Pilates to stay in shape, awesome. If you do cardio, thats wonderful. If you are a runner, I applaud you. But let us not worship our own fitness, but the God who created us. We should do all to honor and glorify Him. Even exercise at 5:45 am.

The Words in Red

One thing I really liked from the King James and New King James Translations that I used as a child was the red text used whenever Christ was quoted directly. (Some other translations do this as well, but many publishers in the modern world find it easer to just print in black and white) I remember having particular awe for the pages in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John that were covered in red ink. I treated them with greater respect. I thought that they were the Holy of Holy quotes.

But now in most modern Bibles you will find that they use the same typeset throughout the Bible. There are also never any color designations in these Bibles either. Honestly, I am disappointed that so many have given up on the “Words of Christ in Red” format. I suppose I’m just nostalgic. 

However, this leads me to a new question. Do the “Words in Red” (Christ’s Words) hold more value than the rest of the Bible? Are they “more inspired”? I think before we tackle that question we should talk about the inspiration of the Bible as a whole.

God’s Word, the Bible, is a divinely inspired writing. The first Chapter of John goes into this in greater detail. There are other places we find that the Bible is Divinely inspired from Genesis to Revelation. (2 Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 1:20 and others) So all the writings of the Bible were inspired by God and written by man who was moved by His Spirit. This is a far greater inspiration that outweighs other writers who may also be ‘inspired’. In fact the modern world has many good Christian writers whom I do believe to be inspired writers. But their writings do not supersede God’s Holy Word.

So then, do we take every verse in the Bible as God’s direct command to us? What do we do then with some places like this one? “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die.” Job 2:9b Is this a command from God to us? NEVER. God inspired the writing of the story of Job, but that does not mean that we are to do what the villains in the stories say or do. A large portion of the Old Testament is full of history that serve as examples and illustrations of things that we should not follow. We believe that the stories are God’s Truth, but we do not imitate the sins that the people committed.

So to review, the Old Testament is full of examples in history. These are divinely inspired writings, but that does not mean we are to copy all of them in our lives.  But what about the New Testament? How do we take the specific commands of the New Testament?

Again, some parts of the New Testament are recorded history, specifically the book of Acts. The Gospels also contain history, but are focused more with Jesus teachings. The Epistles were commands and admonishments to early churches. The book of Revelation is New Testament prophecy.

So how do we rightly divide the Word of Truth? Well, first of all we need to understand the difference between inspiration on commands. God’s moral law never changes. He is not less or more Holy to suit modern or historical culture. That being said, we do have to realize that not everything in our lives is primarily a moral choice. Some churches have pastors who wear a suit and tie, some do not. Which is the morally correct version? 

Here we need to back up and be very careful. God is unchanging, but people are not. What is culturally acceptable is not always right, but we must also remember that choices, not items, have the moral significance. The heart of rebellion can be seen wearing a tie or a t-shirt, a skirt or jeans. The issue is not with the items but with the heart of the person.

What does that have to do with the New Testament’s inspiration? Quite a lot, actually. Paul, Peter, James, and John were writing to people of a certain time and place. In those settings there were things that were concerns based on what the culture around them was doing. That is why Paul writes about food that was sacrificed to idols. This is why James writes about slaves and masters. They were showing what the moral significance was in the situations and times of their writings.

Now we do not see food that has been sacrificed to an idol in our grocery store. Nor do we have slaves. But the moral points of these writings; the inspiration that drove them, still applies. Paul wrote about these foods because it was an important issue of the day. Christians did not want to be seen as supportive of idolatry so they would not eat such meats. But some thought that since the idols were merely man’s foolish creation they held no actual weight. Both parties were convicted by their conscience. Paul tells them that what is important is to not ignore your conscience in this type of matter, regardless which side you fall on. But he also warns that those who do not feel convicted when eating such things should not force their beliefs upon the weaker brothers, nor flaunt them. He tells them that they are to avoid causing each other to stumble. This is the timeless truth that we can apply from this inspired text.

In the words of Christ, however, we run into a different setting. Jesus taught people pure timeless truth. His teachings have little to do with the culture of that day, but rather with the condition of the human soul. As such, His writings are more direct, piercing Truth. The Son of God, perfect and Holy, came to lead His people into Salvation. His preaching and words apply directly to us all, and are the Words of God spoken by God Himself in His Holy Word. They are Divine to the fullest. They do not contradict any other Scripture, nor do they annul any of the Law or Prophets. He, and His Words, fulfilled them instead. Unlike the Epistles, which were written to specific people, Jesus words were to all who followed Him.

Conclusion

So back to the question. Are the “Words in Red” more inspired? Well, no. All of the Bible is equally inspired by God. However, Jesus teachings are more directly applicable than the Old Testament stories, and even the specific epistles that we find in the New Testament. All Scripture is God breathed; but in the same breath, we need to remember that many of the letters of the Bible were indeed to specific people for their specific times. The truths are still there, but in some cases, the specific problems they were dealing with have indeed passed. So remember, Paul was as inspired as Moses, so were Mark and John. But Paul and the New Testament writers did have more information to work with, (since they had Christ’s commands and perfect revelation which the Old Testament writers could not know) so their works are more detailed. But Christ preached as only God could. His words are just as much Scripture, but are also some of God’s direct commands. All inspired equally, but not all Scripture is direct command. The moral truth of God’s Word is unchanging. So read, study, and listen to the convictions of the Holy Spirit. God will lead those who earnestly seek Him.