Tag: love

Against Hate (Genesis 4:1-16)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
Cain and Abel by Keith Vaughan, 1946

Adam slept with Eve his wife. She conceived and had Cain. She said, “I’ve gotten a man, with God’s help!”

Then she had another baby, Abel. Abel was a herdsman and Cain a farmer.

Time passed. Cain brought an offering to God from the produce of his farm. Abel also brought an offering, but from the firstborn animals of his herd, choice cuts of meat. God liked Abel and his offering, but Cain and his offering didn’t get his approval. Cain lost his temper and went into a sulk.

God spoke to Cain: “Why this tantrum? Why the sulking? If you do well, won’t you be accepted? And if you don’t do well, sin is lying in wait for you, ready to pounce; it’s out to get you, you’ve got to master it.”

Cain had words with his brother. They were out in the field; Cain came at Abel his brother and killed him.

God said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?”

He said, “How should I know? Am I his babysitter?”

God said, “What have you done! The voice of your brother’s blood is calling to me from the ground. From now on you’ll get nothing but curses from this ground; you’ll be driven from this ground that has opened its arms to receive the blood of your murdered brother. You’ll farm this ground, but it will no longer give you its best. You’ll be a homeless wanderer on Earth.”

Cain said to God, “My punishment is too much. I can’t take it! You’ve thrown me off the land and I can never again face you. I’m a homeless wanderer on Earth and whoever finds me will kill me.”

God told him, “No. Anyone who kills Cain will pay for it seven times over.” God put a mark on Cain to protect him so that no one who met him would kill him.

Cain left the presence of God and lived in No-Man’s-Land, east of Eden. (The Message)

For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous.

1 John 3:11-12, NIV

Despite being brothers, Cain and Abel couldn’t have been any more different.

Abel became a shepherd. He took the absolute best of his flock and made it an offering, with the intent of giving God an appropriate gift. The Lord was pleased and approved of Abel’s actions because they demonstrated a good attitude and a sensitive heart. Abel’s belief and practice worked together.

Cain became a farmer. He cobbled together some of the leftovers from his vegetable harvest and gave them a nonchalant toss to God. The Lord did not look favorably on Cain’s actions because they evidenced a bad attitude and a hard heart. As a result, Cain became sullen, upset, and angry. His emotions reflected his actions. Cain didn’t listen to God. Instead, he let hate takeover and killed his brother.

God sets faithful people apart to demonstrate love and to be the hope of the world. God’s people reflect their divine image when lives are changed for the better; hatreds are overcome; failures are forgiven; grace melts hard hearts; selfishness is diminished; and compassion grows into blessing others – not hating them.

Humanity was created for love, not hate.

We know that we have transferred from death to life, because we love the brothers and sisters. The person who does not love remains in death. (1 John 3:14, CEB)

Love is the distinguishing mark of the spiritual person and the follower of Christ. The person with hate has so many barnacles built up on their underside that they cannot move through the water of life with any joy or fulfillment. What’s more, they drag down the rest of the fleet that seeks to move in concert together in love.

Everyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderers have eternal life in them. (1 John 3:15, NCV)

Yes, we ought to love – which means we also should not put up with hate. You and I are under no obligation whatsoever to listen to hateful speech and allow hateful actions. That’s because people are meant to be a reflection of God’s loving and healing acceptance of people. 

Love doesn’t let others spew hate in front of you, no matter who they are. Maybe you could respond to hateful words by saying, “Sounds to me like you need to let God pressure-wash some barnacles off your heart.”

If someone chronically complains to you, and there is never any love behind what they say, then there is hate behind it. In such a case, the person needs deliverance from the Evil One.

Every institution and organization on God’s good earth must have a zero-tolerance policy toward hate, and a 100% commitment to love. 

God has not called us to hate anyone, but to love. And God’s people are only the hope of the world when they love others. 

The world will know that there is a God in heaven, and a Christ in the church, when people within local congregations love one another, when particular Christian denominations go out of their way to bless others, and when the love of Jesus compels them to drip grace on the most unlovely of people. Indeed, they will know we are Christians by our love.

Cain is Exhibit A of modeling the way of hatred and death. He separated himself from his brother, Abel, in every way possible – relationally, emotionally, mentally, and finally, physically through outright killing of the body.

The message from Holy Scripture is: Do not be like Cain. Be like Abel. Love others. Do not hate them. Live for others. Die to self. Avoid violent speech and actions. Don’t be a murderer.

Lord Jesus Christ, through your death on the cross you disarmed the powers of evil. Help us, we pray you, to enter into your victory and to stand in your authority against all evil. Send forth your light and your truth. Bring to light the deeds of darkness and let plans of violence and murder be revealed. By the power of your Holy Spirit, convict those who have allowed their minds to be dominated by evil. Lead them to repentance so that they may receive new life and rejoice in your forgiving love. Amen.

Don’t Be Afraid (Matthew 17:1-9)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
Transfiguration by Sieger Köder (1925-2015)

After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.

As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.” (New International Version)

Fear is a universal feeling and experience. None of us has to work at being afraid – but we all have to work at being brave and having the courage to face our fears.

Sometimes, we adults teach children not to fear because we assume they are afraid of the dark, high places, and monsters in the closet. But I tend to think a lot of our own adult fear is projected on kids. Why? Because some of the bravest folks I have ever known are children. 

Kids don’t understand near as much as we adults do, yet they conquer their fears every day by facing the world with courage. If you were to go to any children’s hospital today, I believe you would be amazed at the kind of courage you would find amongst kids. We adults have a whole lot to learn about being brave because we have become far too sophisticated in hiding our fears and avoiding courage.

This is why the most repeated exhortation is all of Holy Scripture is to not be afraid. We need courage to live the way God wants. Every day is a fresh opportunity to practice courage.

We need the courage to stand alone

Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and certain Reubenites—Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth—became insolent,and rose up against Moses. With them were 250 Israelite men, well-known community leaders who had been appointed members of the council. They came as a group to oppose Moses and Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too far! The whole community is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is with them. Why then do you set yourselves above the Lord’s assembly?” (Numbers 16:1-3, NIV)

When Moses heard this, he responded with prayer to God – because he clearly understood that this was all a big power play by Korah, who got others stirred up to take action against him. 

Moses stood alone. Out of the millions of Israelites, not one single person stood with Moses. To be sure, the majority of Israelites did not side with Korah; but neither did they come and stand with Moses. Why? They were too afraid to be involved and took the posture of bystanders. 

God did a miraculous thing, never done before or since, by opening up the ground and having the earth swallow Korah and his followers. The Lord wasn’t only upset with Korah; God was also angry with the people for fearfully standing in the safety of numbers and doing nothing. In fact, God was so mad that he was ready to wipe them all off the face of the earth. But, yet again, Moses, in humility, prayed and pleaded with God to spare them – and God did.

There will always be someone opposing you when you are just trying to obey God and do the right thing. And there will always be a crowd of people who do not want to be involved because they are afraid.

The church everywhere needs to be what Jesus wants it to be, and not what a particular person or group of people want it to be. Courageous people need to stand up to people who want positions of power in order to lead in self-serving ways.

We need the courage to love people

Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people saw the signs he was performing and believed in his name. But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people. He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person. (John 2:23-25, NIV)

Jesus did not get carried away with his own press. Whether people responded to him by the hundreds, or whether they refused him altogether and tried to throw him off a cliff, Jesus was consistently the same. He did not need people’s responsive affirmation in order to do his mission on earth. Christ loved people just because he wanted to, and not because he was trying to get them to love him in return, like insecure and fearful people do.

We need the courage to love the unlovely. And we must understand that perfect love casts out fear.

“We should not only love our brothers and sisters, but also not consider ourselves better than them. Instead, we should show compassion and acceptance to others. We want to have others strictly reprimanded for their offenses, but we will not be reprimanded ourselves. We are inclined to think the other person has too much freedom, but we ourselves will not put up with any restraint to our freedom. There must be rules for everyone else, but we must be given free rein. It is seldom that we consider our neighbor equally with ourselves. If everyone was perfect, what would we have to endure for the love of God?… for we cannot live in this world without adversity. Those who can suffer well will enjoy the most peace, for such persons are brave, courageous, not afraid of pain, have Christ as their friend, and heaven as their reward.”

Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, c.1425, C.E.

It is no test of virtue to be on good terms with easy-going people. And, of course, all of us want to live in peace and prefer those who agree with us. Yet, in this mortal life, our peace consists in the humble bearing of suffering and contradictions, not in being free of them.

We need the courage to please God

The devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’” (Matthew 4:8-10, NIV)

Jesus is our model of courage. He sought to please the Father, and not anyone else. Jesus bravely resisted becoming someone other than he was called to be. 

On the Mount of Transfiguration, Jesus courageously refused to remain on the mountain, instead choosing to go into the valley and undertake a new and risky ministry. 

Christ fearlessly came to this earth in the incarnation and resisted the comfort of security. He valiantly confronted sin, overturned the money-changers’ tables, and did his Father’s will, instead of shrinking in fear about what people would think. 

Jesus heroically faced crucifixion, even though he was terribly stressed about it, in order to offer forgiveness in the face of persecution. Jesus gallantly said “No!” to the power of sin by rising from death. And he boldly ascended to heaven and confidently passed the work of ministry to a motley group of people who did not show any promise to carry the mantle of his teaching.

The Son found his identity in relation to the Father. For us to please God, we need the courage to play to an audience of One. 

If we need other people’s acceptance and approval in order to do anything, then we will never have the courage to act for God. 

We must live by conviction, and not by sticking our finger to the wind to see which way popular opinion is blowing.

Conclusion

History is filled with men and women who said “no” to destructive fear and changed the world. But imagine if they had succumbed to the paralyzing effects of fear in their lives. Imagine if…

The Apostle Paul, fearing resistance or rejection, chose to stay home rather than embarking on the missionary journeys that took the message of Christ throughout the known world.

Martin Luther King Jr. gave speeches filled with gentle hints about the evils of segregation, because he feared pushing too hard.

Jackie Robinson refused to enter major league baseball so as to not rock the boat; or Branch Rickey, the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, just going with the way baseball had always operated. But neither of them went that way. In the film, “42,” Robinson asks Rickey:

“You want a player that doesn’t have the guts to fight back?” “No. No.” replies Rickey. “I want a player who has the guts not to fight back. People aren’t going to like this. They’re going to do anything to get you to react. Follow a curse with a curse and they’ll hear only yours. Follow a blow with a blow and they’ll say the Negro lost his temper; that the Negro does not belong. Your enemy will be out in force and you cannot meet him on his own low ground. We win with hitting, running, fielding—only that. We win only if the world is convinced of two things: That you are a fine gentleman, and a great ball player. Like our Savior, you’ve got to have the guts to turn the other cheek. Can you do it?”  Robinson replies, “You give me a uniform; you give me a number on my back; and I’ll give you the guts.”

42 (2013 film)

Now imagine yourself, fully aware of the mission and vision God has placed in your heart to advance his gracious and benevolent rule in this world – and yet there is also present all the phobias, irrational worries, and destructive fears of failure, harm, or rejection. So I ask:

If you don’t fulfill the mission God assigned to you, who will?

What Must Come (Mark 9:9-13)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment

As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what “rising from the dead” meant.

And they asked him, “Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?”

Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah does come first, and restores all things. Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected? But I tell you, Elijah has come, and they have done to him everything they wished, just as it is written about him.” (New International Version)

Christ’s disciples, bless their wondering hearts, always seemed to be a few steps behind in following Jesus. And, truth be told, so are we, much of the time.

Since we know the end of the story, it’s easy for us to observe how clueless the original disciples of Jesus were, and how slow to the uptick they were on what their Lord was telling them.

The disciples were confused about Christ’s transfiguration on the mountain; puzzled about why they needed to keep their mouths shut about it; and betwixt about what the heck “rising from the dead” even means.

As they scratched their heads, trying to get a handle on things, they ended up asking about something they thought they knew about: Elijah. After all, if you don’t understand something, like a student in class, maybe you can ask about something else in order to get the teacher diverted from the thing you don’t understand. But bringing up Elijah only muddled their spiritual distraction.

The beauty of Christ is that he takes any discussion, any question, and turns it toward what must happen, what we must come to grips with.

What goes up, must come down

The disciples had the incredible experience of seeing a glorified Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration. There is a time for bright illumined mountain top encounters, but there is also a time to come down off the mountain and walk through the shadowy dark valley.

Christ’s exhortation to stay silent about the mountain top meeting may be a reminder that following Jesus is not all glory; it also involves the hard slog of dealing with adversity because of one’s spiritual commitment.

A fundamental truth about the nature of God is consistency and constancy, much like a mountain. And we can always look up, remember, and find strength in our time of need.

I raise my eyes toward the mountains.
    Where will my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
    the maker of heaven and earth.
God won’t let your foot slip.
    Your protector won’t fall asleep on the job. (Psalm 121:1-3, CEB)

What goes down, must come up

Just as life is not all mountain experiences, so it is not all about the valley. Jesus was letting his disciples know that they were about to face the darkest time of their lives. He would be rejected and suffer much – to the point of death. But the grave would not be able to hold him. A resurrection was coming; Christ would rise from death.

There cannot be a resurrection without a crucifixion – and the agony of the cross is not the final word. Resurrection, ascension, and glorification all result from the terrible suffering and ignominy of death. And since we have died with Christ, we will also be raised to life, as well.

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. (Romans 6:5, NRSV)

What goes first, must come last

Jesus linked the Old Testament prophet Elijah with John the Baptist. Just as Elijah put the Lord first and was God’s servant, so also John considered Jesus as first, and himself as last.

John testified concerning him [Jesus]. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me…

I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie….”

The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.” (John 1:15, 26-27, 29-30, NIV)

What goes around, must come around

I’m not referring to karma, nor to a circular view of history, but to the reality that suffering and death is a result of life, and paradoxically, glory and life come from death.

Christianity is, I believe, inherently paradoxical. The way up is down; in order to save our lives we must give them up; to be great is to be a servant; and the last shall be first, and the first, last.

We neither need to understand every jot and tittle of the Bible, nor have every word of Jesus fully comprehended in order to be a Christian and serve Christ’s Church. There is a great deal of mystery to faith, and so much yet to discover and learn. We will spend an eternity getting to know God and never plumb the breadth and depth of comprehending the Lord.

So, we need to learn to enjoy this awesome God and embrace the paradox of divine sovereignty and human responsibility so that we may worship, fellowship, and live in grace and freedom. In doing so, we are witnesses to a faith that transcends understanding, and allows us to serve within our churches, families, and communities without having every loci of theology nailed down.

All things shall eventually come back around to the Garden – a place of unhindered fellowship with God and one another without any sin or deceit to get in the way. Disaster, disease, and death are temporary; Love is permanent and shall come around to being the overwhelming and only force in this big universe.

We bless you, O God, for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all for your immeasurable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory.

Give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts, we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up ourselves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory forever. Amen.

How Can I Live a Pure Life? (Psalm 119:9-16)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
Statue of Saint Valentine in Terni, Umbria, Italy

How can a young person live a pure life?
    By obeying your word.
I try with all my heart to serve you.
    Help me obey your commands.
I study your teachings very carefully
    so that I will not sin against you.
Lord, you are worthy of praise!
    Teach me your laws.
I will repeat the laws we have heard from you.
I enjoy following your rules
    as much as others enjoy great riches.
I will study your instructions.
    I will give thought to your way of life.
I enjoy your laws.
    I will not forget your word. (Easy-To-Read Version)

There was an actual Saint Valentine (c.226-269 C.E.) who lived and served as a Bishop in Rome. The Roman Emperor of the time, Claudius II, was vehemently opposed to Christianity. Claudius forbad Christian marriages from taking place – which was something Bishop Valentine was unwilling to do, and was supposedly jailed for his refusal to stop performing Christian weddings. Hence, one of the reasons for Valentine being the patron saint of lovers.

That’s certainly one way of helping to keep young Christians pure. I, in fact, have more than once advocated on behalf of a young couple in love. Their parents, who wanted a large wedding and plenty of time to prepare for it, simply didn’t realize what they were asking of their kids and how much that put them in an awkward position.

To be pure means to be holy or set apart for a special or specific purpose. Christians are to be completely devoted to their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. In order to do that, they will need to pay particular attention to God’s commands and Christ’s teachings.

The Will

The whole person must be involved in obeying the teachings given to us. It begins with our will. Notice that the psalmist sets his resolve toward this great task by stating:

  • I will repeat (out loud) the divine laws I hear
  • I will study God’s instructions
  • I will give thought to my way of life with Yahweh
  • I will not forget the Lord’s words

I have considered my ways
    and have turned my steps to your statutes.
I will hasten and not delay
    to obey your commands. (Psalm 119:59-60, NIV)

We need strong affirmations toward engaging our will toward reading aloud, studying, and remembering biblical commands, so that we will succeed in our quest for purity and holiness.

The Emotions

Our affections also need to be involved. We are emotional creatures, having been formed by a Creator with deep feelings. Therefore, our own emotions are meant to be acknowledged and engaged. The psalmist enjoys God’s Law and is emotionally draw to it’s beauty and light.

Oh, how I love your law!
    I meditate on it all day long.
Your commands are always with me
    and make me wiser than my enemies. (Psalm 119:97-98, NIV)

We need strong feelings toward desiring God’s Word, so that there will be effective action toward a life of purity. Overall, we do what we want. Continually doing something we don’t really want to do ends up being either legalistic or loathsome.

The Body

Our bodies are the vehicles to doing and accomplishing God’s will on this earth. Thus, our physical selves must be animated toward the good, the right, and the just. The psalmist worshiped and praised God.

I, by your great love,
    can come into your house;
in reverence I bow down
    toward your holy temple. (Psalm 5:7, NIV)

Hear my cry for mercy
    as I call to you for help,
as I lift up my hands
    toward your Most Holy Place. (Psalm 28:2, NIV)

Our bodies need to move in physical rhythms of praise and worship to God, so that there will be purity of life. Holiness needs hands and feet to walk into the way of the Lord and obey God’s commands.

Philosophies of Purity

There are some unsound approaches to becoming pure and remaining holy:

  1. It’s up to me. God is too far away, maybe even absent altogether. This is a philosophy which ignores the gut. Yet, if we seek to connect with our innards, we’ll discover quickly that purity is not all on me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, then you will produce much fruit. Without me, you can’t do anything. (John 15:5, CEB)
  2. Follow your heart. Doing this has significance; however, if that’s the exclusive approach to purity, the mind gets left behind and the heart ends up vulnerable to deceit. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9, ESV)
  3. Knowledge is power. Yes, of course it is; but by itself, knowledge puffs up. We need the affections, particularly love, or else we become brains-on-a-stick, denigrating the body as superfluous to spirituality. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. (1 Corinthians 8:1b, NRSV)
  4. Control everything. There are certainly forces in operation in this world; yet we are never called to try and manipulate them. We may will ourselves to do many things, yet God has control of all things. Humanity is called to self-control, which takes up all our energy because it’s no easy feat. For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age. (Titus 2:11-12, NIV)

A sound philosophy of being holy and pure recognizes that we need divine help in strengthening our faith; the assistance of others who can walk alongside us and provide encouragement; and the engagement of our entire person, utilizing all our faculties in order to live a life of purity. Obedience to God’s Word is vital to a holy life; and to obey requires our entire selves.

There is to be a marriage between God’s commands and human obedience. The world may forbade this, but much like St. Valentine, we’ll let love have its way – and not the ruler of this present evil age.