Archives for 2014

Longing for a home I’ve never seen, Part 2

Posted on August 22, 2014 Written by Mark McIntyre 1 Comment

This post carries the designation “Part 2” in the title because I had previously used the title Longing for a home I’ve never seen in a previous post.

In the internet age there is so much information flying around that a news source has to be extremely sensational to get any attention. The easiest stories to sensationalize are negative ones, ones that show mankind at its worst. Wars, shootings, traffic fatalities, child neglect and abuse, government failure and general stupidity are regularly featured.

In contrast to all this I read this prophecy from Isaiah:

“There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious.” (Isaiah 11:1–10, ESV)

The reason the news creates such disquiet in us is because we were designed for something better. I would think that most people have an innate sense that things are horribly wrong, but cannot identify why they feel that way. We are taught by our public educators that everyone has to determine his own right and wrong and it is presumptuous to apply our standards to other people. We are products of our DNA. But, if we are “dancing to our DNA,” why should we care about what is happening in the world around us? Why does the news from around the world cause disquiet?

The point is that we do have a sense that things ought to be different.

Part of the good news of the Gospel is that there will be a solution to all of the problems around us. The prediction of Isaiah is that at some point, there will be one who will come and set everything right. The “root of Jesse” will rule and danger from war and natural disaster will be eliminated. We have a longing for everything to be put right and are anxious for Isaiah’s prediction to come true.

Christians have identified that root of Jesse as Jesus the Messiah. We look to the return of Jesus as the solution to the mess within us and around us. We can be comforted by the fact that God remains in control and has a solution mapped out to our problems. We know the end of the story and Jesus will establish his final victory when he returns.

May the return of Jesus be soon!

Discussion question: Does the thought of Jesus’ return help you in any way? Do you find comfort in this or is it just “pie in the sky” for you? Please add your thoughts in the comment section below.

Luther on trouble in the Church

Posted on August 20, 2014 Written by Mark McIntyre Leave a Comment

Ministers of the Word, therefore, if they would be counted faithful and prudent on the Day of Christ, out to be very sure that St. Paul did not speak empty words or prophesy of a thing of nought, when he said: “There must be heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.” Let the minister of Christ know, I say, that as long as he preaches Christ purely, there will be no lack of perverse persons, even among our own people, who will make it their business to cause trouble in the Church. And he may comfort himself with the thought that there is no peace between Christ and Belial, or between the Seed of the woman and the seed of the Serpent. Indeed, he may rejoice in the trouble he is caused by sects and the constant succession of seditious spirits. For this is our glory, the testimony of our conscience that we are found standing and fighting on the side of the Seed of the woman against the seed of the Serpent. Let him bite our heel and never cease biting; we for our part will not cease to crush his head through Christ, the first to crush it, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

Martin Luther in his introduction to his Commentary on Galatians

Some links to consider – 8/19/2014

Posted on August 19, 2014 Written by Mark McIntyre Leave a Comment

Some links to articles I found interesting or helpful:

Christianity Today published an article by Mark Noll on Our Changing Understanding of the Bible in America. You might be surprised at some of his findings.

In looking for a Tozer quote I found Treasures from Tozer which is worth perusing.

John Perkins tells us that The Sin of Racism Made Ferguson Escalate So Quickly.

J. Warner Wallace provides a summary of Principles for the reluctant use of deadly force. If those involved in Ferguson had followed these principles . . .

Chad gives some helpful advice on listening. He presents it in the context of apologetic ministry, but the principles apply in any context. Thanks to The Poached Egg for the link.

While on the subject of listening, maybe you want to check out this post in Church in a Circle.

Empires and Managers Blog provides a perspective on Guardians of the Galaxy.

Question on Hebrews 6

Posted on August 18, 2014 Written by Mark McIntyre 4 Comments

Question

Recently, a friend emailed a question that came up in a small group Bible study regarding Hebrews 6. There was question about whether Hebrews 6 teaches that a person can lose his/her salvation.

Answer

One of the first principles of Biblical interpretation is that when there is a passage that is difficult to understand, interpretation of that passage must be informed by passages that are not difficult. In other words, the interpretation of an unclear passage must not disagree with the interpretation of a clear passage.

Specifically you asked if Hebrews 6 teaches that someone can lose their salvation. Here are the reasons why I do not think that Hebrews 6 teaches that you can lose your salvation:

It goes against logic. If there is nothing that I can do to earn salvation, how could there be anything that I could do to cause me to lose it?
It goes against Jesus’ teaching.
- “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. “My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.” (John 10:27–29, NASB) Never and no one are the function words in this statement. Never perish. No one can snatch them. By inference, the no one would include the person himself.
- John 3:16, 36 teach that whoever believes in Jesus has eternal life. To think that one could believe and then not believe is problematic. Once one knows something to be true, it is difficult for him to no longer know it.
- John 6:37 – “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.” (NASB) There is no out clause here but there is a beautiful in-clause.
It goes against Paul’s teaching.
- Romans 8:1 – No condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus
- Romans 8:35-39 – “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, “For Your sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (NASB) NOTHING can separate us from the love of God.
- “In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.” (Ephesians 1:13–14, NASB) We are sealed when we come to faith as a promise of the inheritance we will receive.

I could keep adding verses to these, but you get the point. These verses clearly present the truth that if we truly come to faith in Jesus, we do not have to worry that we can lose our salvation.

So then, what is Hebrews 6 saying?

If you look at the language in Hebrews 6:4-6, it does not openly declare that the author is speaking about someone who has experience new birth. Most commentators understand these verses to describe someone who has been part of the church and has experienced some of the blessings of being in the group without coming to saving faith. If you can see the work of God in others’ lives and experience the goodness of God and still walk away, it is unlikely that such a one will ever return. We should not be surprised to find unbelievers in the church. Jesus gave us the parable of the wheat and the tares to illustrate this. Also in Matthew 7:26-27 Jesus tells us, “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand . . . “

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