Author: Tim Ehrhardt

I'm just a common ordinary pastor, chaplain, father, grandfather, and dog owner who loves the smell of a genuine leather Bible and the aroma of its message. I'm on a quest to track down the best Bibles, how to best read and use them, and to discover the encouragement inside.

Psalm 145

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            I believe that every person on planet earth needs a healthy robust theology.  We all have a theology, that is, some understanding of a god, God, or no god at all.  In addition, we all have basic needs in order to thrive and flourish in life.  Physical, emotional, and spiritual needs can be and are met in God.  His grace sustains the universe.  Yet, sometimes we might feel as if God is aloof, distant, or disinterested.  This is where generous attention to the biblical psalms can help us.
 
            Let this psalm buoy a solid theology for you:  “The LORD is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his works.  The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.  He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them.  The LORD preserves all who love him.”  God actually bends his ear to hear us; he wants to listen to us acknowledge and cry out to him.  This is no indifferent God.  This is a God who hears and responds.
 
            I am taking time today to read this psalm several times over, to let it awash my soul with significant doses of truth and mercy.  There are simply times when all of us need to remember and be reminded that there is a God in heaven who is able, and is near to respond.  For true human satisfaction does not come through personal ingenuity or accumulation of more knowledge or more stuff.  Rather, our deepest desires and needs are fulfilled in the God who cares.
 

 

            Mighty God, you are both far and near, totally above us yet close at hand.  Preserve me with your mighty power so that I might not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity.  But in all I do direct me to the fulfilling of your purposes through Jesus Christ, my Lord.  Amen.

How Our View of God Influences Us

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Exploring Church Ministry BlogLeave a comment
 
 
            There are many people today who have given up on Christianity.  For all the reasons given (and they are many), the one I encounter most often is the person who comes to the point of believing that Christianity just does not work.  I will say at the outset that I approach Christianity with two major presuppositions:  I believe the Christian life works; and, I believe our view of God largely determines whether Christianity works, or not. I don’t think anyone sets out attempting to live the Christian life in order to fail at it.  No, we fully expect for it to work.  So, then, if we are to live a successful Christian life, we need to keep a few things in mind.
 
One of Satan’s primary objectives is to destroy the believer’s understanding of God (Genesis 3:1-10).
 
A chief way of doing this is through using influential factors from our past.  We can trace much of our contemporary beliefs, values, and actions to the past actors of parents, church, good/bad experiences, place of upbringing, siblings, peer groups, teachers, and friends.  Our earthly relationships in life are often transferred to our relationship with God.  For example, if one’s father was demanding and perfectionistic, it is possible that the person might transfer those same attributes to God. 
 
Sometimes a Christian’s view of God is more like a policeman always watching for us to break the rules; an old man who is aloof and largely uninterested; or, a fickle Being who can never be pleased.
 
But this isn’t how God describes himself in Holy Scripture.  God is the Sovereign Creator, Lord, and Redeemer.  He is our heavenly Father who is absolute in holiness, truth, and love.  Within God himself there is complete self-existence, unity, harmony, love, enjoyment, immensity, and infinite integrity (Psalm 147:5; Malachi 3:6; Deuteronomy 6:4).  When God deals with his creatures he is always observant, powerful, and present (Psalm 39:7-12; Jeremiah 32:17, 27).  What is more, God continually acts with veracity, faithfulness, mercy, goodness, justice and righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:9, 10:13; Psalm 36: 7, 10; Jeremiah 31:3; Hosea 14:9).  God always acts this way because he is love and truth.
 
Who God is determines how he reveals himself in his law and his will (Leviticus 11:44, 19:1-2; 1 Peter 1:16).
 
This is why Jesus is described as “The Word of God” in John 1:1.  In his revelation, God has made himself known to us.  Therefore, the appropriate response to such a God of truth and love is worship (recognizing His sovereign greatness); praise (recognizing His absolute perfection); and, obedience (recognizing His infinite love).  When we gain a view of God as always having our best interests at mind; showing steadfast love to us even when no one else does; redeeming and healing us from past trauma; giving purpose and meaning to us; providing everything we need for life and godliness in the awful muck of this world; then, it is not a stretch to offer worship, praise, and obedience to such a God because our view of him is one of adoration.
 

 

            Church ministry thrives when individual believers have a view of God which is consistent with his infinite grace, love, mercy, and truth.  When there are cracks in the foundation of understanding the basic nature and attributes of God, then the house cannot stand.  This is more than checking off a list of appropriate beliefs in God; it is giving ourselves fully and irrevocably to God because he is the One who loves us perfectly and completely.  One of the prayers that God delights to answer is:  “God, show me your glory, love, and truth.”  Don’t give up quite yet.  Let God reveal His attributes to you and your church as you seek Him with all your hearts.

1 Corinthians 1:3-17

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            The Apostle Paul clarified his foremost mission to the Corinthian church:  Christ sent him to preach the gospel.  Everything else Paul did, from healing people to gathering offerings for others, from making tents to journeying around the Mediterranean world, he did with the central focus and aim of proclaiming the gospel of God’s grace in Jesus Christ.
 
            The Corinthian believers had lost sight of this urgent and needed imperative of preaching the good news of Jesus.  They had hardened into opinionated groups and had broken down into disunity over things that were secondary, not primary.  Paul wrote to correct this situation, which had gotten out of hand.
 
            The proclamation of the gospel needs to be at the core of every church and every believer’s life.  When it isn’t, there will be factions, special-interest groups, and condescending attitudes which are more than ready to fill the vacuum left in the center.
 
            Everyone in the church has a role to fulfill, a gift to exercise, in proclaiming the gospel of grace.  For me, I enjoy teaching Scripture to unbelievers and answering their questions, as well as mentoring believers in the cardinal doctrines of faith and practice.  Others proclaim the gospel through hospitality, or partnering with others, or even inviting people to events and bible studies.  In all the myriad ways God has gifted us, whether it is in serving or speaking, we are to use that gift not to advance a personal agenda, but to preach the gospel.
 

 

            Blessed Father, Son, and Spirit, you are One God, perfectly united and in continual harmony.  You have loved humanity to such a degree that you orchestrated a great deliverance from sin, death, and hell.  Help your entire church to get our eyes off our petty differences and fix our gaze firmly and graciously on proclaiming the good news of salvation in Jesus, our Lord.  Amen.

Romans 12:9-21

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            A bit of historical context will give us a better appreciation for today’s New Testament lesson.  Within the ancient church at Rome were converts out of Judaism and paganism.  In other words, both Jew and Gentile worshiped together within one church.  These two groups of people had very different backgrounds.  So, even though they were both believers in Jesus, they had a tendency to look down on one another.  Because of this attitude, each group thought that the locus of authority with was with themselves, and not the other.  That is, who should call the shots in the church? 
 
            This ecclesiastical milieu is why Paul wrote his letter to the Romans; he wanted the entire church to rally and unify around the gospel, not in being Jew or Gentile.  Since they were both justified or made right by Jesus, they both needed to live up to true Christian living.  So, Paul gave some very pointed encouragement and exhortation of how both groups ought to be treating each other.  They are brothers and sisters in Christ.  Therefore each should love one another with genuine affection.  Jew should rejoice with Gentile, and Gentile should weep with Jew.  If things get out of hand, blessing ought to be the default response, not cursing.  Both Jew and Gentile must be willing to associate with each other, honor one another above themselves, and live peaceably with all.  There is to be no favoritism in contributing to the needs of all the saints, whether Jew or Gentile, and in showing hospitality.
 
            As we think about all of these various commands of Scripture together, one of the things we need to hear with great clarity is that the exhortations are to be carried-out without discrimination.  Various special interest groups within the church are not to simply lobby for their own needs, wants, and preferences.  There is to be a concern for the entirety of God’s people, whether we understand them well, or not.  This has profound implications for us, not only within our own local churches, but within the church universal.  Thinking deeply about such matters, and translating them into action, is a worthy cause for every believer and church.
 

 

            Loving God, you came not to only to save me and people like me, but to deliver all kinds of people from the power of sin.  Enable me to be genuine in my love for all people, no matter from what background.  May love be the glue that holds all believers in Jesus together.  Amen.