“For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ...But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we..”
(1 Cor. 3:11; Heb. 3:6)
The four gospels are foundational and absolutely essential in the Christian’s life. Paul’s letters, on the other hand, are structural and just as indispensable. There is in the Bible such a thing as progressive revelation. And Paul, without controversy, was the custodian of such. Some feel they’re more spiritual if they only adhere to the gospels, but these misinformed saints are on the wrong side of Christ’s tomb.
“The days of His flesh” are behind us and we are to “go on to perfection” (maturity). Apollos was a mighty man in the scriptures, but knew only the baptism of John and preached faithfully the light that he had. But Paul’s two companions, Aquila and Priscilla, who were husband and wife, took him aside and expounded to him Paul’s teachings concerning the crucified risen Christ. After this we read he was even more greatly used; and others were blessed abundantly.
To know of the historical crucified Christ is imperative, but now we have entered into a new relationship with the risen Son of God. To worship only the Babe in the manger is to remain one yourself. We are presently a part of a new creation, thus everything has become new! Our view of Christ, ourselves, others, the world, and yes life itself, is seen in a different light. We’re now to see everything from heaven’s perspective.
Warren Wiersbe writes, “It is unfortunate that too great an emphasis is given in music and art on ‘Christ after the flesh.’ The facts about the earthly life of Jesus are important because the Christian message is grounded in history, but we must interpret the manger by the throne. We do not worship a babe in a manger; we worship a glorified Saviour on a throne.” To be sure, to know the heavenly Christ is heavenly!
“And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger.”
(Jn. 6:35)
When Jesus mentions never hungering He is speaking of another kind, not of the same kind. Yet the Bible is replete with examples of God’s people being filled with God and still hungering after God.
I think A.W. Tozer illustrates this truth best. In his younger years he sold peanuts on a train. He said when the passengers got settled in he would pass up and down the aisles giving out a few free peanuts to each, then he would wait for a time before he’d go back through each car selling peanuts. He said he always sold out. The principle? they did not hunger after another kind, but the same kind.
Once one truly acquires a taste for God he or she can’t get enough! Jacob, David, John the Beloved, Mary Magdalene, and Paul all had an insatiable hunger for God. They had such spiritual appetites for God that only He Himself could satisfy. Their desire for larger portions came after consuming their present meal. Please don’t misunderstand me, but they were gluttons for God! He was their portion. And they wanted larger portions with each helping.
It’s paradoxical: that is, a seemingly contradictory statement that when investigated may be well founded and true. When it comes to the Lord, we are satisfied yet always wanting more.
The mixed multitude longed for the leeks, onions, and garlic of Egypt. They didn’t have an appetite for the sweet Manna from heaven—the Lord Jesus.
“So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.”
(Lk. 17:10)
In the day which I was brought up, the term “doing your chores” was a common remark. Both adult and children had, as did the Old Testament priest, their “daily duties” to perform. By today’s standards the word “chore,” I think, has become archaic— that is, outdated. But any adult brought up on an old-fashioned farm will tell you that in their young years, there could be no personal enjoyment till their chores were completed.
A good definition of the word chore is: “a duty or task you’re obligated to perform, most often one that is unpleasant but necessary.” For example, washing dishes, doing homework, mowing the grass, etc. Character comes from doing best those things you dislike most. Many parents and grandparents give in to some little three foot tall terror when hearing the words, “I DON’T WANT TO!” It’s then that principles of a lifetime are discarded.
Life is not all fun and games, nor is it living on a spiritual mountaintop; its doing what needs to be done when it needs to be done, no matter how unpleasant it may be. Whenever each individual in a family or church fulfills his or her individual chores then there is completeness all around! We depend on each other. When we drop the ball, others are affected, not just us. Do your chores; milk the cows; others in the family will profit.
“Drudgery can become delightful when you put Deity into it- you know, ‘For My Sake’.”
“And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.”
(Matt. 14:3)
I used to think, when younger, that in my latter years I would like to teach novice preachers in a Bible institute somewhere. The subject matter would have been the Life of Christ. Although this never came to fruition, I have just begun a personal study on the Person of Christ. At the very outset of these studies I am struck by the fact that His entire life could be summarized as a life of prayer; The Man Christ Jesus was preeminently a man of prayer. If He then—who knew no sin—prayed, how much more should we— who know nothing but sin— pray?
We think erroneously that our Lord’s humanity was sustained by His divine nature. But a few examples show this not to be: His Divine nature did not help in His anguish in Gethsemane; His suffering hunger, thirst, and weariness was not aided supernaturally; and the pain of Calvary was not lessened by Him being God in the flesh. We are told, “He was crucified through weakness.” (2 Cor. 13:4); that is, the weakness of the flesh. (Mk. 14:38) He was, like the weakest of His followers, dependent upon God for everything. He used the medium of prayer to achieve these things.
Oswald Sanders shows from Luke’s gospel that there were nine occasions when Jesus prayed: at His baptism, 3;21; after a day of miracles, 5:15-16; before choosing the twelve, 6:12; before the first prediction of His death, 9:18; on the Mount of Transfiguration, 9:29; before teaching the disciples to pray, 11:1; when the seventy returned, 10:21; in the garden of Gethsemane, 39-46; and on the cross, 23:34,46. He prayed in the mornings and in the evenings. He prayed before great achievements as well as after. He prayed in life and He prayed in death!
Of all His characteristics, the one it seems that impressed His disciples most was His prayer life. They did not ask Him to teach them to preach, teach, or heal but, “LORD TEACH US TO PRAY.”
My prayer is, “Oh, dear God, forgive me my wicked sin of prayerlessness. And please, Lord, work in me a divine desire to pray! I beg you, grant this for Jesus’ sake!
This is one of those scriptures, among a great number of others, that it is essential to take in context; that is, to study its immediate setting. The “natural” man would have you in a corner if not. For, he would argue, a host of things can and are done without Christ. And he would be right. The background of the discourse is fruit bearing in one’s life.
In our story, Christ is on His way to Gethsemane; it is the eve of His departure— His Homegoing. When He uses the metaphor of the vine and branches, we see His desire for our life is that it may be a fruitful one. He makes plain that it is for our good and God’s glory!
Some make this fruit He mentions as referring to soul winning, but it has a much more far-reaching meaning than one isolated fruit. If it has only to do with winning people to Christ then Noah, Jeremiah and Isaiah would not be considered to have had a fruitful life. Our text is speaking of “fruits of righteousness,” and the “fruit of the Spirit,”of which Paul tells us.
A branch is mainly good for only one thing— fruit bearing; but it must have a living relationship with the vine to be productive. That lifegiving sap must flow from the ONE to the other. Therefore, to abide is absolutely imperative. And what does it mean to abide? In Acts twenty-seven Paul tells those in the storm to abide in the ship if they want to live. The definition being: remain fixed to a person, place, or thing.
Jesus said there are those with fruit, much fruit, and more fruit. But adds also, sad to say, those with no fruit. What a dreary scene it is to see a tree standing alone, withered, and fruitless. From the beginning God told all of His creation to be fruitful. We are told throughout eternity we will behold, “In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month.”
Today’s church is increasingly thin.[1] It has little substance. It blows about with every wind of doctrine (Eph. 4:14). It drifts from fad to fad, from kitsch to kitsch, from celebrity to celebrity. It chases the latest cultural prostitute. It is the laughingstock of the depraved society it so slavishly imitates. The church no longer commands serious attention because it does not take itself seriously as God’s redeemed body in the world. The pastor was once looked to as the moral and intellectual leader of the community. Now he is disparaged (often accurately) as a zealous know-nothing and consummate fundraiser. The church is superficial, consumerist, self-absorbed, mercurial. Thin indeed.
Thin Programs
What are the marks of a thin church? First, a thin church expands its programs and contracts its godliness. It is forever appointing committees and calling meetings to “strategize” about how to enlist more attendees by catering to their niche consumption addictions: MOPS, Super Singles, Celebrate Recovery. Sermons are geared to personal fulfillment (“Seven Steps to a Happier Marriage” and “Spiritual Strategies for Achieving Your Life’s Goals”). The congregation, suckled on self-help culture, develop “itching ears” (2 Tim. 4:3) to be scratched by spiritual lifestyle coaches meeting a market demand. Members do not live as a covenant community, pouring their lives into one another, but are simply atomistic spiritual consumers plugged into the religious satisfaction generator known as the postmodern church.
Thin Leadership
Second, a thin church expects the “senior pastor” to be the company CEO, driving a growing organization and “plant,” preferably incremental building programs. The “executive pastor” is more executive than pastor, perhaps holding an MBA and expected to keep the member-shareholders happy with the bottom line. Feeding the flock is incidental. The thin-church shepherd’s job description is beautifying the sheepfold, motivating the other sheep-leaders to keep that flock incessantly active inside the fold, and preserving his own reputation among neighboring shepherds.
Thin Music
Third, a thin church molds its music around the wider cultural sensibilities. Ours is an age of radically rhythm-driven and lyrically over-simplistic performance music, and the church is no exception. “In this moment you’re right beside me/ You’re everywhere, you’re in the air that I breathe/ Every morning you keep coming/ The waves of your affection keep washing over me.” The Sunday morning laser-light concert showcases the swaying female alto and hipster guitarist, and the congregation haltingly mouths the screen lyrics never intended to be sung by anybody but the gaudy professionals. The music, like our culture, is existential, not majestic.
Thin Ideas
Fourth, a thin church is ignorant of or uninterested in the Christian worldview. The Triune God wishes to transform our lives by transforming our minds (Rom. 12:2), but the thin church is thickly invested in the anti-intellectual temper of the age, preferring emotion, passion, and intuition and bypassing the mind. The unified creation-fall-redemption paradigm of the Bible and its implications for the world are of little interest. While it may stress redemption (narrowly conceived as personal salvation), the church omits biblical creational norms that shape the cosmos. Self-absorbed emotional intensity, sprinkled with churchy Jesus-language, rules the day.
Thin Vision
Fifth, a thin church ecclesiasticizes the Bible and the Faith.[2] All the important things happen in the church. The thin church is incestuous. There is no appetite for the Kingdom of God, for pressing the Lordship of Christ in technology, education, the arts, politics, science, and the wider culture — outside the church. That new gaming-addiction recovery program is much, much more important. The thin church equates the church with the Kingdom. Few theological ideas are more dangerous.
The Sunday morning laser-light concert showcases the swaying female alto and hipster guitarist, and the congregation haltingly mouths the screen lyrics never intended to be sung by anybody but the gaudy professionals.
Thin Message
Sixth, a thin church refuses to confront the surrounding culture at the very points at which that culture is assaulting God and his word. The thin church is the cowardly church. Because the Sexual Revolution is the most visible cultural depravity today, it vanquishes the thin church. Premarital sex and same-sex “attraction” must be afforded “safe spaces,” either never mentioned, or positively encouraged, for “broken” people who wish to persist in their sin. Under the guise of compassion,[3] the thin church sells biblical truth down the river for a mess of modernist pottage.
Thin Sanctification
Finally, a thin church knows nothing of ecclesial sanctification, growing in grace as a body. The leaders’ goal, rather, is to create a product/service that increases breadth, not depth. Long-time members grow uneasy that the sermons are pabulum designed for the merry-go-round of new attendees, but lack any meat to feed the souls of those wishing to move beyond spiritual adolescence (1 Cor. 3:1–2). Covenant, Kingdom, worldview, the cultural mandate, wealth, self-sacrifice, judgment, hospitality, individual and eschatological victory and other vital themes are rarely mentioned. Members trudge ahead as spiritual pygmies, as the church increases its programs and membership.
Conclusion
A thick church, in radical contrast, reflects a robust faith. Its leaders are on their face before God and his Word. The Triune God, not the apostate culture, sets the church’s agenda. They lovingly press the faithful toward greater obedience, greater knowledge, greater faith, and greater expectation. The music is theologically substantial and conveys truth that turns religious backbone into iron. The thick church speaks prophetically for biblical sexual ethics and against the Sexual Revolution. It holds antinomian and spineless politicians accountable to God’s standards. This church might be scorned and persecuted by pagans and secularists (and jellyfish Christians), but it is a bright light shining on a hill in a very dark time. To return to the initial metaphor: it is thick, weighty, substantial, a force to be taken with utmost seriousness — including by her Lord.
[1] I borrowed this language from my friend and colleague Brian Mattson. He employed it at the recent inaugural Even Runner Academy to describe art as thin or thick, chiding much modern Christian art as thin. I later counseled a friend about his vexing church situation, and adapted the thinness metaphor to assist him.
[2] S. U. Zuidema, Communication and Confrontation (Toronto: Wedge Publishing, 1972), 36–51.
[3] The church must exude compassion, but it is never compassionate to excuse sin. This is a lack of compassion.
“He [Hezekiah]…brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan."
(2 Kgs. 18:4)”
Originally, this brazen serpent was by Divine direction, but it had outlived its usefulness. Just because God uses something for a certain time doesn’t mean necessarily He intended for it to be used for all of time. Some things have their day; after that, they are of no more use. The Tabernacle, for example, “which was a figure for the time then present."Something better was to take its place - the Temple!
Hezekiah refers to this religious relic which had become a spiritual substitute for God, as “Nehushtan” (a piece of brass). Good things used in the past, but that are no longer of any value in the present, should be discarded, lest we end up idolizing them.Tradition can lead to superstition, and, in the end, can paralyze a person from parting with the past. Don't old dear what God discards!
“But [He] made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness...And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought...I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye...The meek will he guide...the meek will he teach his way...For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death.”
Our “Good Shepherd, Chief Shepherd, Great Shepherd “ promised to always go before us, leading the way. We have Divine guidance; we are guided by God, if you please. He gave His Word that He will guide us till the end, right up to the door of the celestial city. As my dear departed wife used to sing, “Jesus Led Me All the Way.” Or like Abraham’s servant testified, “Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham...I being in the way, the LORD led me.”
Just as God led His people through their wilderness wanderings both day and night, so He leads us. Maybe not by a cloudy pillar by day or the pillar of fire by night; means change but not the fact! He mainly uses His Word, but providence can also play a part. And those filled with the Spirit can’t rule out that “still small voice behind them…And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.”
To be sure, God never leads out of the path of righteousness! “And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein.” As the old preacher would say, “The right road always leads out to the right place.” Nothing, I believe, is more tragic than a misdirected life.
“Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children.”
(Eph. 5:1)
As followers of our God one of those footprints we are to step into is His precious attribute of longsuffering. It is, what I like to refer to as a reversible word. Like the so-called archaic “careful,” as found in Phil. 4:6. When turned around it reads full of care, simple and not so outdated. And so it is with longsuffering, when the last become first we read, suffer-long. With some people and situations we’re to be in it for the long haul.
Although we shall never fit into our Father’s shoes, but as children often do, we should still put our small feet into them and at least try to emulate our Father in this respect. Throughout scripture we read of God’s longsuffering. One of my favorites is found in Psa. 86:15, “ But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.” Thus it is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22).
I am ashamed when I think how His tender soul suffers with the likes of me; my sins, failures, shortcomings, etc. And how I am a clockwatcher when it comes to the lives of others; and events. I think some of us need to put ona new suit of clothes. “Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved...longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another...even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.”
Mark Twain said, “Clothes make the man.” This is especially true of the scripture quoted above.
Change is a natural process; it also falls under the heading of an intellectual procedure. I speak of the latter of these two, those things we have power over to change as we decide, those things over which we have control.
When making any type of change one must determine if it is really needed and also, along with this, will it be for the better? Most certainly to effect a change in our lives that is for the worse would indicate we’re both mentally and spiritually unstable.
There are what I term impulsive changers. You might categorize these under the head of Chameleon Christians. Jeremiah asks these types of individuals the question, “Why gaddest thou about so much to change thy way? Jer. 2:36 And the wise man admonishes us, “...meddle not with them that are given to change.” Prov. 24:21
There is no question legitimate changes in our lives are necessary from time to time and approved by the Almighty, but they’re to be inserted at an opportune and accepted time; timing is everything when dealing with change.
Today’s idiom, “Don’t change horses in the middle of the stream,” is purported to have its roots in something Abraham Lincoln said; “It’s not a good thing to swap horses while crossing a stream.” Or, I would add, “Don’t make a major change in your life till you’re on solid ground; that is, until you have sure footing!
“Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend."
(Prov. 27:17)
Some years ago, I wrote in an article that I believed in dispensations (within the context of the Bible), but that I was not a “Dispensationalist” (by today’s meaning of the word). A friend sent me four pages of quotes by men of his own theological persuasion. Then he added that I should drop him from my mailing list. To quote his words, “I find whoever one reads after, they soon end up believing what they believe.” You might want to ponder that statement to enjoy the humor in it.
How sad one cannot read contrasting views without fear of becoming a spiritual chameleon. Maybe someone should explain the term subjective/objective, to them. Paul spoke of such saints as being “tossed to and fro.” These intellectually insecure individuals only show that what they profess to believe is just that, a profession. They have never been fully persuaded in their own minds. Cardinal doctrines such as the Blood of Christ, the Bodily Resurrection, New Birth, and Inspiration of the Scriptures should be set in concrete; but all secondary doctrines are to be kept in pliable putty.
As you grow and receive more light on these minor teachings you’ll find it necessary to readjust your thinking and position on some things. That is, if your going to be intellectually and spiritually honest with yourself. Nearing the age of eighty-six, and being a Christian for some sixty-two years, I am not one of those who boast, “I have not changed my views over these many years.” The truth is, I have changed my thinking on a number of lesser (minor) doctrines.
After reading or debating contrary views to your own, I guarantee you’ll not be as dogmatic as you were before doing so. Don’t let anyone keep you incarcerated within their box of beliefs. Break out of that confinement and find out what YOU believe. Do not be afraid to discuss other views with those of opposing ones. You’re not out to win an argument, but to find the truth!
"Christians who are one-sided readers can sometimes display a spiritual snobbery."
“For in that He Himself hath suffered being tempted, He is able to succour them that are tempted…[He] was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”
The scriptures tell us, “...the common people heard Him gladly.” One reason for this is the fact that He was human. Yes! all God; but just as true, all man. He knew what it was like to suffer the common temptations to which all common people are susceptible.
His being tempted demonstrated the genuineness of His humanity. In both Matthew’s and Luke’s account of the temptation He told Satan He was there as a man. For we are told, “God cannot be tempted.” Therefore, because of this fact He is knows how to aid tempted souls.
He is fully capable of understanding and being sympathetic to us when the Tempter shows up on our doorstep. For He felt the full force of his temptation, “He resisted...unto blood.” His temptation was not the result of any corruption from within, but Satan from without.
We are tempted, as our first parents were, with “...the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.” But also was our precious Lord Jesus. Check the temptation in Matthew and Luke chapter four. The best of saints are tempted; there’s no sin in temptation; the sin is in yielding.
Just as the life of the flesh is in the blood, so the lifeblood of the Church is in prayer. I know a little about anemia, being anemic myself. I know what it’s like to have a blood count of eight; the faint feeling, the confusion of mind, and deep depression that accompanies such a condition. I am also familiar with blood transfusions and the radical and marvelous change they bring to the body. It’s wonderful to see those eyelids turn red again.
Any Spirit-filled believer entering an average Bible-believing church today will confess their concern for that particular assembly’s lack of spiritual vitality. Such churches need immediate attention! As my doctor said to me when I asked him the consequence of not having a transfusion, “You die” was his answer. Many churches are ready to die (Rev. 3:2). I have driven past churches that were once lighthouses for God, but now are hog pens. The early church put prayer even before the ministry of the Word (Acts 6:4). When Peter was thrown into prison an angel was sent to set him free. The old Puritan said, “The angel fetched Peter but prayer fetched the angel” (Acts 12). Not to belittle preaching in any way but: you can live without preaching, but you can’t live without prayer! The early believers prayed at Pentecost and the power of God came into their lives (Acts 2). This was repeated in chapter 4. I like the term in verse 33, “With great power!”
“If we fell on our knees more we would not fall as often.”
“[And] the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat...We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick...”
(Num. 11:5)
I find sentimentality usually arises from a nostalgic spirit in me. Many times, in my own case, being sentimental implies my emotion is involved a little too much. Don’t misunderstand: sentimentality is a legitimate emotion and is fine, in its place — if guided aright; that is, kept under tight scrutiny.
In the text quoted above God’s people seemed to have been led more by emotion than reason. Our lives are not to be governed by, nor rely on, emotion; not by sentimental feelings, but by scriptural facts. Israel sentimentally remembered the good times but refused to learn from the bad.
Melancholy David was a dyed-in-the-wool sentimentalist, but not to the extent that he left good reasoning behind him. The order is fact, faith, feeling. My pastor illustrates these three walking on a fence rail; whenever one or both of the first two look back at the third, they fall off the fence.
The Christian life is a lifelong battle, “andthere is no discharge in that war.” Pacifists lose every time in this spiritual conflict. We are to fight all the way to Heaven, for there will always be conflict against corruption. Let me remind you there is more to this fight than being able to take the blows of the enemy. We are not to cower in a corner. We are expected to get in some blows ourselves. We hear much about yielding, but that’s to God. We are to resist our adversary.
To fight this battle in the flesh will result in defeat. It’s a battle entered into by faith. For our warfare is spiritual. We do not war “after the flesh.” The rest Joshua led God’s people into was not by a passive faith, but by a fighting faith. May our dying testimony be that of the old, battle-scarred warrior: “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” Satan hates God, and the only way he can attack Him is by attacking the objects of His love.
“The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.”
(Prov. 29:25)
Today being the second anniversary of my dear wife’s departure for that “Better Land,” I have been thinking of the various rare qualities she possessed. One that sticks out most in my mind this day is her refusal to be intimidated, whether it be by man or woman; and I ashamedly confess, also by her husband.
She had a way of boldly intimidating the intimidators. She achieved this by two means ingrained in her charming character. The first being, she knew who she was; the second was, she knew what she believed. She never cowered in a corner for anyone. Humble, YES! Intimidated, NEVER! She made some preachers I’ve known look like wimps.
She had a courageous spirit that would be akin to Deborah’s, in the Old Testament. (Jud. 4:1-9) Salle was one of the most strong-willed women I have ever met, but she had fused that will with her Saviour’s, when she was just a girl of nine years. This is what made her such a powerhouse for God! This can be true of any woman—even you, dear lady reader.
“Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.”
