Freedom in Slavery

Have you ever really struggled with understanding why you or someone you love continues to give into temptation and commit grievous sin only to confess, repent, and fall back into the same thing again and again? Well, the Bible has some comforting and urging for you on this matter:

“...I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.” (Romans 7:15-20)

You would think that this was in reference to some “carnal Christian”, enslaved to sin speaking of his continual struggle and inability to escape temptation but this is the Apostle Paul himself! I, and many Christians like me, have often prayed something like “Oh God if I could only be free of this desire! Why oh why can’t I be free from it??” This is a kind of “slavery” (or rather “servitude”) that can be re-entered into when we make a habit of sinning. The Scriptures make this clear, “Don’t you know that if you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of that one you obey—either of sin leading to death or of obedience leading to righteousness?” Suddenly, we can find ourselves unable to escape and the truth of Romans 6:22 becomes all too distant: “But now, since you have been set free from sin and have become enslaved to God, you have your fruit, which results in sanctification—and the outcome is eternal life!”

I believe that it is in both recognizing that we have locked ourselves away by a new choice of servitude to sin and are enslaved and YET set free from sin that we can truly experience freedom in ANY “ensnaring” area. On one hand, it is of no use to pray simply, “God take this away from me!” because this removes our responsibility to “cut off the hand that offends” (Matt. 5:30) and to “fear God and depart from evil” (Pro. 3:7). On the other hand, if we have “re-enslaved” ourselves through our sinful choices, we must ask for God’s rescue. It is both/and.

In summary, if you or someone you care about is experiencing addictive sinful behavior, here are some steps that I believe will help deliver you and put you on your way to living a fruitful (Luke 8:15) Christian life:

1. Remove the tempting thing and be willing to make radical “amputations” in your life. Consider the severity of Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:29-30 and that the “wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23; Gal. 6:7-8)
2. Pray for strength to overcome temptation and God’s deliverance from the pattern of giving in to sin and temptation. (Matt. 6:13)
3. Believe that you have been set free (Rom. 6:20-22) from sin and walk in it!

Remember brothers and sisters, in order to experience freedom from sin, we need to BOTH draw on God’s strength and delivering power AND take personal responsibility for our actions!

Be blessed and be Bereans!

For deeper study, on the theological ramifications of the "victim mentality" and not taking personal responsibility for sin, click here

Chosen by God (Part I): "The Choicest Servant"

First, I want to address the “Chosen One” whom we are all familiar with...Jesus Christ, whose very name means, in part, “Chosen” or “anointed” one. We can see this as early as Isaiah 42 “Here is my servant whom I uphold. My Chosen One in whom I delight” (v2). Now, let us be clear, Christ was not chosen among many men to be the Messiah. He simply was the “Elect One”. Now allow me to take an important sidebar into that word “elect” or “chosen”. Time and space don’t allow me to unpack what I’ve learned about this word (I am indebted to authors C. Gordon Olson, Norman Geisler, and Robert Wilkin for almost all that is written here) but I’ll give a few practical examples to illustrate. In Ancient Greece, there was this thing that we call a “democracy” where people “elected” others to a position (this is where we get our word which has evolved into a more simplistic “to choose”). Now, the original Greek, carried with it an idea of choosing the best or “choice” option (see Olsen’s BCAA pp.315-318 for more technical info [link above]), which is why when people held “elections” they were “choosing” the person they believed had the qualities best suited to the task at hand (before you call me a heretic remember we’re still talking about Jesus).

Another illustration helps us understand this word better. When you go to the grocery store, you “choose” your fruit and vegetables. Do you do it arbitrarily? Of course not. You choose the “choice” fruits and vegetables. This is the primary meaning of elect/choose in the Greek that we miss in the English (if you don’t believe me, consider the following verses where such usage fits much better than the simplistic/traditional “to choose”: Ex 14:7, 17:9, 18:5; Rom 16:13; Col 3:12; 1 Ti 5:21. Additionally, “elect”, as mentioned briefly before, also carries with it an idea of “appointment to service” [cf Acts 1:21, Jn 6:70, etc.] which is not discussed in detail here but fits with Christ being the “Choicest” to accomplish the task He came into the world for). So, when we say Jesus was (and is) the “Chosen One” we really mean “Choice One”...born of a virgin, sinless, fully Deity, all-loving, all-just, all-powerful, etc. That is, He was qualitatively the “Choicest One” for the task at hand (before He even entered the world). As a concluding thought to the sidebar, the banana example sums it up nicely. In the same way that your “choice” of a banana is based on its “choiceness” which has little to do with arbitrary “selection” and more to do with the quality and characteristics of the banana (again, see above for Scriptures supporting this usage).

As mentioned before, Christ in His choiceness was appointed to a task (to teach, live, die, be resurrected, and reconcile the world to Himself). We can see more how what is often translated “chosen” means “choice” in passages like 1 Peter 2:6. With its close proximity to “precious” in this verse, “chosen” (or “choice”) is also paralleled with “beloved” in other passages. We see where Jesus is referred to as “My Beloved Son” at His baptism (Lk 3:22, Mk 1:11; Mt 3:17) and then in very similar language referred to as Chosen (or “Choice”) both at His transfiguration (Lk 9:35) by God the Father and by Pharisee mockers at His crucifixion (Lk 23:35). What brings the two terms, “beloved” and “choice”, together is 1 Peter 1:6 where we see both right next to each other, each describing Christ, the “Elect” Cornerstone. The word “chosen”’s close proximity to “precious” helps us to see it as “choice” and not as a simple “choosing”. So, in conclusion, Christ’s “chosenness” has absolutely nothing to do with the verb “to choose” more than His own precious-, beloved- and choice -ness. I’m almost certain that I’ve lost a handful of you in this short explanation but I trust that the noble-minded (Acts 17:11) will find the truth as they wholeheartedly seek it.

Christ being the “Choice One” is foundational for understanding how we are “chosen” in light of Christ’s “choiceness” and how we are united to His choiceness by faith (which I will show later). In the next entry, we will start by examining an oft misunderstood parable called “The Wedding Banquet” in Matthew 22:1-14 where we will see a very clear shift in understanding what it means to be “chosen by God”. Until next time...take everything you’ve heard here and be a Berean: “Search the Scriptures daily to see if it is true”.

Fear God, Shun Evil

Fear of God is certainly one of the least favorite topics of the day both in modern Christianity and in the secular world. Many people, regard God as a good, loving, forgiving God and believe any fear [of punishment] is unmerited. This can be especially true in our Christian community circles where we [rightly] regard our standing with God as righteous, holy, and pure washed by the blood of the Lamb. However, sometimes this lack of fear can be a detriment to us as we are seeking to live lives characterized by holiness and fruit of the Holy Spirit. Several days ago, as I was in a Bible study, we contemplated some of the more stringent truths of 1st John such as, “No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.” (1 John 3:6) “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.” (1 John 3:9). Most of us admitted we had no idea what these passages meant, probably in large part due to the fact that they chafe against our own personal preconceived beliefs. I believe things like this may be rooted in our lack of fear of God.

So, how does a lack of fearing God relate back to believing the truth about God? In order to do this, I’d like to pair two other passages together and consider their implications for believing the truth about God. “The fear of the Lord is wisdom; and to shun evil is understanding...” (Job 28:28) “Can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be burned? Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned?” (Proverbs 6:27-28) Think about these questions: When was the last time you grabbed some fire and held it to your chest? Or when did you decide to take your shoes off and decide to prance around in the coals of the fire you roasted your marshmallows in? Unless you’re a fool or someone paid you to (or perhaps both), you’ve probably NEVER done these things. Why? Because you understood the consequences of your actions. You, in a word, believed the fire and coals to be hot and harmful and therefore decided to stay far away (flee). Therefore, when we fear God and shun evil we demonstrate wisdom and understanding because we actually take God at His Word and trust that the sin which is so enticing is in actuality genuinely harmful (and sometimes deadly Acts 5:1-10) to us.  

Now how does this change the way we live out our faith? I believe it starts with identifying blind spots in our walks with the Lord, areas in which we know we are either outright disobedient or genuinely struggle to achieve victory. Then, we find what God’s Word has to say about these things, no matter how stringent.  Do you struggle with lust? Memorize and meditate on passages like Proverbs 5. Do you wrestle with anger? Consider Matthew 5. Does gossip come a little too naturally? Meditate on proverbs about the tongue and wholesome speech. Now I’m also not advocating for spiritual sado-masochism through beating yourself up with the Scriptures. I’m simply saying that you should fill your mind with the truth...all of it, including the sins and flesh struggles that are specific to you. I hope this helps you in your walk with the Lord and encourages you to know that His will for you is your sanctification. (1 Thess 4:3)

Questions for Reflection, Discussion, and Application:

1. Can we believe the truth about sin and still be ensared by it?
2. How do we reconcile fearing God and loving God at the same time? Is it possible?
3. What are some good passages to meditate on so that we fear God rightly?

*Next up on "Good & Noble"...What exactly is "repentance" and how does it relate to believing the Truth? Does it mean turning from evil and doing good as popularly heard or something else entirely?

Good & Noble Hearts: An Introduction

It has been said that Man’s chief end (sole purpose) is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. According to John 15:8, God is glorified in our bearing fruit; it reads, “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” Additionally, as we abide in His love (John 15:9) and bear fruit, we are able to enjoy this fruit of the Spirit that is characterized by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal 5:22-23). We are responsible to “bear” this fruit; ultimately, however, this fruit comes from the Holy Spirit. In Luke 8, Jesus tells the parable of the four soils. Only one of which He relates as fruitful soil. In this important parable, the key difference between the fruitless, immature, thorny soil and the good soil is one heart (“soil”) is overgrown by worries, pleasures, and riches (Luke 8:14) and the other heart is described as “good and noble”. As you can discern from the title, that is what this blog is about.

More specifically, It’s purpose is three-fold: pursuing the Truth [of God’s Word] as the noble-minded Bereans did (Acts 17:11-12), using the Truth to battle the deception of the enemy (Eph 6:10-20), and protecting ourselves against the self-deception of being only “hearers” of the Word and not “doers” (James 1:22) and, thereby, being fruit-bearing believers.

Or, more simply:

1. bearing the fruit of the Spirit (being “doers” and not merely “hearers”)
2. speaking the Truth (in love) in order to defend against the lies the enemy uses to keep us in bondage
3. being open and noble-minded (as the Bereans were), searching for the Truth no matter where it leads us

All of this can be boiled down into one simple statement: "obeying and believing the Truth of God for our lives," which includes all three of these elements.

I look forward to this journey with you and I pray that it will challenge you to bear fruit in your lives, transform and conform your present beliefs to the Truth of God’s Word, thereby setting you free from the lies of the enemy. Please comment and discuss below each post to enrich study but remember to love one another (as that’s how Jesus said the world would know we are His disciples, John 13:35), even if you vehemently disagree. Remember, we’re all on this journey of Truth together; and while there is only one Truth, everyone has a different, unique perspective to bring to the table. I am very grateful for my brothers and sisters that have come from differing Christian traditions and have brought fresh perspective to the Text. In fact, the reason why this blog is called “Good & Noble HeartS” (plural) and not “Good & Noble Heart” (singular) is because I want you to feel like you are part of this blog and what it represents.

May God bless you all with a spirit of knowledge and revelation so that you may know Him better! (Eph 1:17)

Questions for Reflection, Discussion, and Application:

1. What does it mean to have a "good and noble" heart?
2. How can we seek to be "modern day Bereans"?
3. How might believing things that aren't true affect us?

*Next up on "Good & Noble"... How fearing God and shunning evil (Job 28:28) relates to believing the Truth about God and ourselves...