Theology Matters

Archive for April, 2007

Here’s a little something to start your day out right. I have heard this song a lot lately, and I really lilke it. It is called “Before the Cross” and it was written by Jon Payne of Sovereign Grace Ministries (© 2003 Sovereign Grace Worship (ASCAP)). A clip of the song can be found here. Here are the lyrics:

Verse 1
My Savior’s sacrifice paid for all my sin
So in my suffering I look to the cross again
No need, no want, no trial, no pain
Can compare to this
The wrath of God, once meant for me
Was all spent on Him

Chorus
Before the Cross, I humbly bow
I place my trust in the Savior
Your finished work captures my gaze
You bore the wrath, I know the grace

Verse 2
In my darkest hour, Your presence is my peace
In my days of joy, Your grace carries me
Jesus, my Great High Priest
The One who pleads for me
My heart is filled with faith in You
Here at Calvary on my knees

Of course, it’s better with the music, but I know bupkis about music and putting the chords here would only confuse me.

OK, I admit it; I am a huge fan of the Fantasy genre. I love FRPGs (Fantasy Role Playing Games for the non-geeks among you), movies with magic, elves, dwarves, and whatever else mythology has brought us. Pure escapism, I know, but sometimes I just need a good dragon slaying!

Anyway, the reason I am even writing this is because, recently, I have returned to an author from my youth, Piers Anthony, to re-read some of the books I loved “way back when”. Xanth, Incarnations, Adept, these books were the stuff of dreams, and I really enjoyed them. Piers’ worldview came out in those books, but when I was in high school, not yet called on by the Lord, I was not concerned about seeing it for what it was…at all. How things change.

Now, 20 years later and 6 years after God saw fit to glorify Himself by saving me, Piers’ worldview stands out in his writings like a pantless Santa at Mardi Gras (well, maybe that’s not so odd after all)…I am still enjoying the books, but it is disheartening the ways in which many people are influenced by fiction. Just read a few of the comments on Amazon regarding “On a Pale Horse” (his first “Incarnations of Immortality” novel) and you will see what I mean.

Mr. Anthony also writes a newsletter which I just found out about. In his newsletter, he opines about various topics (from economics to religion to morality). Without re-posting his entire newsletter, here are some of the things he espouses in his most recent one (February 2006):

1. That nationalized health care is a good thing and corporations are evil

“With a national health care program, General Motors would save $1,500 per car and the health of the nation would improve; but the CEOs seem to be more interested in richly feathering their own nests.”

2. That Bush should be impeached

“Interesting email I received: Congressman John Conyers, Jr., is taking steps to begin an inquiry into possible impeachable offenses by the Bush Administration. Seems NBC is investigating reports that the National Security Agency (NSA) conducted wiretaps of CNN reporter Christiane Amanpour, whose husband served as a senior adviser to the John Kerry presidential campaign. Hm–that’s not the first time the spouse of a critic has been illegally targeted by this administration. But that’s the mere tip of this iceberg. I will watch with interest as it slowly brings the Titanic down.”

3. The recent tax cuts did nothing for the economy

“So if the government cuts taxes on the rich to stimulate the economy, it won’t work; the rich will just put more money in the bank or investments. They won’t spend it on more expensive peppers. That’s why the tax cuts of recent years have had minimal effect on the economy, and major effect on the number of billionaires extant. To stimulate the economy you have to put the money in the hands of the poor; they will use it to survive, having no choice. That’s what isn’t being done. So are those currently in power economic idiots? No, they know this. It’s that they want to reproduce their kind, and make more billionaires, buy more politicians, and [bleep] the poor. It is happening exactly the way they designed it. The economic idiots are the poor who continue to vote these [bleepers] into office.”

4. That God is impotent

“Okay, there is one species that’s worse: mankind. We delve into all corners of the world, exhausting resources, generating garbage and destroying wildlife, just because we can. At what point will God conclude that mankind is a mistake, and put out bait? Yes, of course I’m agnostic, so this is just a thought. But if I were religious, I’d be distinctly nervous. Is there a Heaven for those who ruthlessly despoil the world? I doubt it.”

5. Humanistic Materialism is the answer

“A new String Theory describes 10⁵⁰⁰ universes, which is a fair number. So how does this relate to the price of beans in Bohemia? It’s that the fundamental laws of our universe seem largely haphazard, coincidentally making it possible for life to evolve, and thus enabling our presence to marvel at it all. How can this be? The chances against such a coincidental collection of just-right laws are astronomical. If you’re religious, you don’t sweat it; God made this [junk] in six days, and on the seventh day he was pooped out. But I’m not religious, so I need a natural explanation. And that is this nearly infinite array of universes. You can do things with infinity that are difficult in more limited quarters. There can be every conceivable and many inconceivable variants of universe, each just a whisper of the memory of the odor of fecal difference apart. Somewhere in that vast array will be a universe where life is possible–and that is our universe. So it’s not chance but natural selection and evolution. Sorry about that, God.”

Even through all of that muck, the following excerpt was the one that caught my eye. It really proves what Scripture says about the natural man:

“Richard Vallance sent me a video that appeared in England and may not make it to uptight America: The Root of All Evil? The answer: Religion. I have pondered for decades whether religion has not brought as much harm as good to the world. I never joined a religion, not because I lacked a moral compass, but because I saw no clear consistent ennobling of participants brought about by religion. I did see evangelistic hypocrites, and historically there was the Inquisition, which was about as unJesus as anything could be. Well, this video’s thesis seems to be that there is no doubt: religion is evil. What about indoctrinating children into organized superstition rather than letting them grow up and make their own choices after studying the issues? Is this a form of child abuse? What about threatening children with Hell, literally, eternal torture, if they aren’t scared into being “good”? (What is it about those who proclaim their religion, and their affinity for torture?) The case is devastating, as an evangelical minister lectures the interviewer on his arrogance, showing astonishing arrogance himself. Why struggle with all the conflicting theories of Science, when you can settle for Faith with no thinking at all? What I find frightening is how many people of this nation do settle for just that. The video suggests that religion is in fact a dangerous virus, warping people’s minds with twisted “morality.” I remember a comment commentator Paul Harvey made decades ago: all over the world, people are killing people, in the name of religion. I do believe that were Jesus Christ to return to Earth today, he would reject the warmongers and moneychangers who are so freely taking his name in vain.”

His comment about being agnostic is the funniest as there is no such thing as an “agnostic”. Scripture plainly says that everybody knows that God exists; it is just a matter of degree as to how forcefully you suppress that knowledge (Romans 1-3). If you see him as a typical, socialist, leftist liberal, you can almost feel sorry for the guy. He is 71, his wife is about that old, they have health problems, they are on medication, and they are waiting for the end as it were. I can only pray that God will be merciful to him and grant him repentance that leads salvation…as a natural man, he doesn’t want it, cannot find it anyway, and will hate his eternity more than he hates religion.

Yes, Piers Anthony is a talented author in that he writes an entertaining story that makes the reader want to finish it. However, I think he should stick to what he does best – fantasy, and leave reality to those who are more qualified.

I wrote this article for a men’s ministry newsletter at my church (Cedar Hills Evangelical Free in Cedar Rapids, IA). It’s not September 11th, nor the anniversary of it, but until I have time to come up with some other stuff, I am going to post some “stuff from my file cabinet” as it were. Enjoy, but be warned, you don’t hear this position too often…

Solace in Sovereignty
With the events of September 11^th, 2001 just one year removed (and still fresh in our minds), I thought it might be a good time to reflect upon the events of that day and how we can find hope and meaning through it all. The world is definitely a different place now, and many people have had to adjust to a life full of doubts they could have never dreamed would plague them. Fortunately, for us who are being saved, we realize that the world, and all events in it, still has meaning. We may not see it, we may not believe it, but we can take solace in the fact that God is sovereign, and that is our hope.

I have heard people say “Where was God on September 11^th?” The answer must be “God was then where He is now and always will be…on His throne, governing all things…working for the good of those who love Him.” God was in control of the events of September 11^th, 2001 as He is in control of all other events on all other days, for “the Lord sat enthroned at the Flood, and the Lord sits as King forever” and “the Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all” (Psalms 29:10, 103:19).

Some people do not like to think of God in this way, saying that it makes God out to be uncaring or capricious. I say however, that if God is not sovereign over all, He is not sovereign at all, “for the earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness” (1 Corinthians 10:26) and “the heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours; the world and all its fullness, You have founded them.” (Psalms 89:11)

Some people either knowingly or unknowingly put God in a box by limiting His sovereignty to seemingly normal things (moving to a new city), seemingly little things (the cable went out just as some blasphemous teacher was speaking), or seemingly trivial things (ensuring my car does not run out of gas on the way to church). But even these seemingly little things can lead to great accomplishments for His kingdom, “and He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us” (Acts 17:26-27). But when it comes to horrific events like the terrorist attacks on this country, or the single most wonderful event in a person’s life, the salvation of the soul, they do not like to see God on His throne. Instead, He is reduced to a being who only reacts to events that he foresaw would happen on their own by saying things like “God foresaw it would happen and will use it for good” or “God had nothing to do with September 11^th, He is just going to use it; it was not in His plan! It couldn’t have been!”, or “God cast the vote for me, Satan cast the vote against me, and now it is up to me to cast the deciding vote.” In their own way, each of these statements takes God off of His throne and places Him the role of a stage hand in the play of life, helping out where he can, but ultimately just reacting to situations as they fall around Him.

Even though the thought that God simply “uses” horrific events seems comforting to some (it does seem like an easy way to “get God off the hook”), it is really the root of hopelessness; if God really had nothing to do with September 11^th, if it just “happened”, if God didn’t have it in His plan from the foundations of the world, then it had no meaning, no purpose, and that is not a very comforting thought at all! The comforting thought is that God has said “For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.’” (Jer 29:11-12). Why we would accept an idea that makes the deaths of 3000 people meaningless is beyond me. This line of thinking ultimately leads us to seeing God as being either unwilling or unable to stop it; deciding to do the next best thing—“somehow using it for good”. God does not “use things for good”, He instead “causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). To be sure, the terrorists neither surprised God nor caused God to react to a condition He did not want to occur. Instead of trying to put God in a box and make Him a cosmic bystander, why don’t we see Him on His throne during times like these?

Scripture tells us that God “works all things according to the counsel of His will” (Ephesians 1:11), all things, not just some things, not just nice things, all things. Knowing that God purposed September 11^th for His purposes should be enough and it should bring us comfort in our time of sorrow. Those deaths were not meaningless; they occurred for a reason, and a good and just one at that “shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:25). Ultimately all things happen because they glorify God more than any other possible outcome. Satan was allowed to have a measure of success over Job because it brought great glory to God and grew Job more than he could have dreamed:

Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. And the Lord said to Satan, “From where do you come?” So Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it.” Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?” So Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!” And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person.” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord. (Job 1:6-12)

Likewise, Satan was allowed to have a measure of success against our country on September 11^th because it will glorify God more than if it had not happened. Be it a level of judgment, a wake up call, or the beginning of a great revival, we know that God will be glorified by it in the end. And the God honoring response to September 11th should be like Job’s as well when he “arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head; and he fell to the ground and worshiped. And he said: ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord’” (Job 1:20-21).

I have also heard many people talk about all of the innocent people that died on that day and how unfair it is. We must always remember that none of us is innocent in the eyes of a Holy God. We may be innocent as far as the world is concerned, and we should feel righteous indignation against the terrorists for what they did in that regard, but we must also remember what Jesus said:

There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:1-5)

The people who died in the attacks were no worse sinners than any of us. In fact, some of them were probably much better Christians than some of us. Even so, we must see these events as a somber reminder that life is a precious gift and each breath we take is a gift from God. We must remember to thank God always for every good gift He gives us. Knowing that life is so precious, we must turn our hearts towards those who lost family and friends, grieve with them, and mourn with them, but we must do so knowing we serve a God who comforts us and offers hope to His own, “but I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14)

We must also, however, realize that there is evil in this world that must be battled. The influence of Satan is strong, and when he attacks, we must “be angry, and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil” “because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.“ (Ephesians 4:26-27; 1 Peter 5:8-9)

Why do we put God in a box so often? Is it because we do not want to accept what it really means for God to be ultimately sovereign over everything? Are we scared to realize that we really do not control our lives? Do we really believe that “a man’s heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.” (Proverbs 16:9) How should we live knowing that God directs our steps, plans our times and boundaries, and has a plan for us, a plan devised in eternity past, for His glory and our benefit as His children? We must bend our knees, ask for forgiveness, and retreat into the loving arms of a Father who cares enough to bestow mercy on His rebellious children.

God’s sovereignty over all things is a source of great comfort for us. Because He is totally sovereign, we know that all things happen for a reason, that God actually purposes those things to happen for His glory and our ultimate benefit, and we need not worry. Jesus said “do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?” (Matthew 6:25-26) As far as this concerns God’s plan for us, we must be “confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). Paul had such a great perspective when, about his persecution, he wrote:

“For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:19-21)

When we cannot see God’s purposes and plans for us, we Christians can rest assured that He is doing the right thing and whatever He has in store for us will be to our benefit in the end. Knowing that “the Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.” (Psalms 9:9) Yes, in times like these, we must take great comfort in God’s sovereignty, knowing He will do right, knowing He loves us, knowing as Paul did:

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. 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. (Romans 8:28-39)