Take Up Your Cross Daily

Luke 9:23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone wants to come with Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me. HCSB

What does this actually mean?

Practically speaking, how do we live for God instead of for ourselves?   What does is really mean "day to day" to "die to self"?  

And how do we even do this?!

This is a hard teaching!

John 6:60-61 Therefore, when many of His disciples heard this, they said, “This teaching is hard! Who can accept it?”   Jesus, knowing in Himself that His disciples were complaining about this, asked them, “Does this offend you? ...The Spirit is the One who gives life. The flesh doesn’t help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.  HCSB

John 6:66 From that moment many of His disciples turned back and no longer accompanied Him. HCSB

Two Choices

The Garden of Eden offered two choices:

• Tree of Life - Divine Life rules our hearts 
• Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil - The "self-life" rules the heart and results in death. 

We chose poorly in the Garden...

and each of us has inherited the nature of the "self-life" that rules our hearts.  Christ offered a way to reboot - to choose the Tree of Life again.  Yeshua said so directly.  Do you remember when He started His ministry?  He was in the synagogue and opened the scroll of Isaiah and read this:

Isaiah 61:1-3 The Spirit of the Lord God is on Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to bring good news to the poor.  He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor....  HCSB 

Luke 4:20-21  He then rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. And the eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  He began by saying to them, “Today as you listen, this Scripture has been fulfilled.” HCSB

Jesus was laying out His ministry and His mission to his brethren.  He stopped before the phrase "the day of our God's vengeance", because that is part of His second visit to earth....  Those in the synagogue didn't respond very well, and by the end of His sermon they were trying to murder Him.   So, the battle between our self-life and God's offer of life is real - it's tangible.   It's literally life and death.  And Yeshua offers us a chance to reboot and start over.

Before you realize you must reboot, you first have to realize there is a problem. We have to realize we are living the self-life.  The self-life is nothing but ugly ashes. But we don't want to look upon our self-life because the truth hurts.  We prefer beautiful lies. We pretend we will never grow old and die; that we will be accountable for the injuries we inflict on others, or that by choosing self-life means we are rejecting God.  We are good at lying to ourselves and others.

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is more deceitful than anything else, and incurable—who can understand it?  HCSB

Lessons from the "Prodigal Son"

From the Parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:11-32 we see can learn a great deal about ourselves and how we should react to a lost world.  There are three main characters in this story: The Father, the older brother and the younger brother.

Most of us were the younger brother at one point in our lives.  Paul lays it out for us. No one is righteous outside of God. Read Romans 1 and it shows you the world of the pagans. These are people who have openly chosen the self-life in many forms. They are outside of the church and do not even pretend to follow Christ. In the parable of the Prodigal son this is the younger brother. 

But what about the older brother? Most of us in the church identify with the older brother. Is that a good thing? It depends.

Does the older son love the Father more than the younger son?

Following the story, we see that the older son stayed with the Father and worked hard in his fields. But was his service to his Father sincere?

Revelation 3:1 " I know your works; you have a reputation for being alive, but you are dead."  HCSB

As "older brothers" is our Christian service dead or alive? How can we find out? Pressures in our daily lives often reveal our true intentions. Some people explode under pressure. But others have mastered suppression. They appear calm and in control. But God sees the heart.

1 Samuel 16:7 "Man does not see what the Lord sees, for man sees what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.”  HCSB

Insights about the Older Brother

I confess to you I am the older brother. I see the mischief of the younger brother and get irritated. While the younger brother was abroad, did the older brother wish he would come home? Did the older brother set out to find his younger brother and bring him back?

How did the older brother react when the younger brother received forgiveness? Did he rejoice when grace was given that was not deserved?

Did the older brother think with all his work and faithfulness he deserved something the younger brother did not deserve? Who deserves forgiveness and salvation?

OK then, if the older brother's service did not earn him any special favor (like a party thrown in his honor by the Father), what did the Father really want from the older son?

What does Christ want from the Church?

Let's go back to the parable. When the Father comes out of the house to speak to the older brother what do you think He says? Notice He comes out of the house for both brothers in this story. He pleads with the older brother. He wants to share in the rejoicing of a saved life. The Father wanted to share in the joy of salvation.

Does the Father get the response from the older son that he wanted?

No. Instead, the older brother now prosecutes the younger brother - he is the attorney, the jury and the judge, condemning his younger brother, and feeling sorry for himself.

When we are jealous of others or estranged with our spiritual brothers or think ourselves better than others it damages our relationships. We can't have real fellowship with those we feel are beneath us -- even with those who truly repent and have come back into the church.

If we have this attitude, we cannot enjoy fellowship with the Father either.

We are standing outside the house pouting while the Father is inside the house rejoicing with those who truly repent and love the Father.

Look at biblical history of this problem of alienation.

• Cain and Abel. 
• Esau and Isaac. 
• Joseph and his 11 brothers, 
• David and Saul. 

Where is the joy and fellowship there? And why all this tension?

So, are we supposed to overlook sin and just "get along" with everyone? Never! This isn't about overlooking sin. In fact, it's about looking into our own hearts and rooting out pride, jealousy, undeserved anger. Then, we can go and pluck the speck out of our neighbor's eye.

That's our first principle. God sees what is in the heart; who we really are.

This is about recognizing what God truly wants from us. To love Him and love our neighbors. We aren't any better than they are. The Father loves His children equally. We just happened to be blessed with salvation.

If we give off the odor that we are superior and exalted in some way, that pushes seekers away from God. What made Yeshua so angry with the Pharisees? They made it impossible to approach God with so many rules and the need for outward perfection. What ends up happening is that God finds another way to receive His children into His presence, and we find ourselves outside the house!

Legalism and pride go hand in hand and are very toxic, dangerous sins. It is the Devil's favorite lie. "You deserve the best." "You are a great spiritual leader! You are so wonderful!" God reminds us to daily take up our cross and kill the self-life. We aren't the path to salvation, Yeshua is, and we have to get out of the way so others see Him and not us. If it is about "us" then it's not about God.

This sermon is for me most of all.

What are Spiritual Leaders Called to Do?

If you are a spiritual leader what are you to do? If we focus on getting credit, others cannot grow under us. If we try to be indispensable to God, thinking God cannot achieve His goals without our help, watch out!

That is the only way to attract others to do the same. This is our calling, to make disciples of the entire world. When you mentor another to become a disciple of Christ, you are passing the gift to another. We are to make successors.  I don't know who said this:

"Success without a successor is failure".

But it is true.  So this is our calling: We are called to make successors to carry on the Great Commission.

Remember Barnabas? He was willing to diminish as Paul increased. Everyone should strive to be a Barnabas.   Who knows, you may encourage a "Paul" someday.

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Scripture citations are from:  Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) © 2009 Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville TN

Spiritual Preparation - An Analogy

Always be prepared.... This inspirational story is a beautiful analogy that reminds us to always be ready to give an answer for the hope that lies within you (1 Peter 3:15).   This story happens to be true -- the author personally witnessed this.  It's a wonderful  proverb explaining why we need to "stay" prepared....and preparation helps us make the most out of opportunity when it arises. 

In this case, opportunity came at the VERY END.

I watched an amazing football game a few years ago that had a number of spiritual lessons in it.  The Pittsburgh Steelers were playing, and the team had just lost five in a row, and in this game were up against a much better team (the Patriots as I remember). But the Steelers fought and clawed their way to a 2 point lead with less than 3 minutes left in the game.  Then they made a fatal mistake, fumbling a recovered onside kick.  The Patriots scored a touchdown the very next play. They were crushed; having played 59 minutes and 20 seconds of heart wrenching effort only to see themselves denied the opportunity to win.  They would leave this game with six losses in a row and be out of the running for the playoffs.

But the coach rallied his players, and sent the offense out on the field one last time for the night. They had time for just 3 plays and no time outs left.  The quarterback called three plays in the huddle - something that is very unusual. Later in interviews, the quarterback, who had been sacked relentlessly throughout the game, told how he exhorted the linemen to give him everything they had for the next 26 seconds.  He asked them to leave everything on the field. Well, I couldn't believe what I witnessed next, except they showed the instant replay of the next series of events at least four times - even the announcers were astonished at what happened.

The offense ran those three plays in a row without a huddle - and each pass was completed with a miracle catch.  On the third and last play, with 0 seconds on the clock, a receiver caught his ONLY pass all day –  in the end zone. Talk about perseverance – and he had dropped several critical passes throughout the game.

The kicker, who had pretty much put on his jacket and was ready to leave the field suddenly found himself at the center of the critical situation.  You see, he had to make the extra point kick to win the game. An obscure football rule allows a team to kick the extra point after a touchdown even if time has expired. So, with time ALREADY expired, this player, who moments before heading to the locker room, is given the opportunity to win the game. Fortunately he was prepared for the challenge, kicked the ball through the uprights, and won the game.

The moral of this story?  Don't give up...ever.  Everyone thought they had lost. The team was out of options.  They had faced heartbreaking setbacks all day.  They were nearly out of time and exhausted.  But....they didn't give up, even when it looked like they had no chance to win.  

God gives us chances even when we think ALL of our options are gone and our time has run out.  Even when you think there is NO WAY OUT, and you can't cope and you can't overcome and you can't deal with everything, remember, God is NEVER out of options.  You just have to be willing to finish the race, play to the end, even when you think the clock has expired!   He has a plan for you that is so amazing, and there is a "happily ever after" ending better than any suspense novel ever written waiting for you.  So what do you have to lose?

The Origin, Character and Activities of the Adversary (Satan)

Life doesn't happen in a vacuum.  Events unfold and we see them in the physical world, but scripture clearly teaches things are also happening in the spiritual realm -- likely higher dimensions of reality we cannot see in this life.  

One of the key features of the earthly and heavenly or spiritual realms is that there is a conflict in progress.  Besides our own fallen sin nature, there is an Adversary, arrayed against God and the Angels of Heaven, and most definitely in opposition to mortal men.   Without giving respect where it is not due, it is still important to learn about our Adversary to be aware of his methods and goals. 

Satan's Origins and Fall

Ezekiel 28:11-15 The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: carnelian, chrysolite and emerald, topaz, onyx and jasper, lapis lazuli, turquoise and beryl.  Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared.  You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you.  You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones.

You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created until wickedness was found in you.  Through your widespread trade (or: abundance of traffic – meaning going about from person to person slandering) you were filled with violence, and you sinned.  So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones.

Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor.

So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings. By your many sins and dishonest trade you have desecrated your sanctuaries.  So I made a fire come out from you, and it consumed you, and I reduced you to ashes on the ground in the sight of all who were watching.  All the nations who knew you are appalled at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more. ’”

Lucifer's 5 "I will" statements

Here is an important theological teaching about pride, the greatest of sins, to alert us to the tendency as fallen creatures ourselves to make these same false statements from a deceived heart.  A sidebar on symbolism: mountains in biblical texts when implied to be symbolic always refer to governments and positions of great authority.

Isaiah 14:12-14 How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn!  You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations!   You said in your heart,

“I will ascend to the heavens;

I will raise my throne above the stars of God;

I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon.

I will ascend above the tops of the clouds;

I will make myself like the Most High.”

But you are brought down to the realm of the dead, to the depths of the pit.

Those who see you stare at you, they ponder your fate:

“Is this the man who shook the earth and made kingdoms tremble, the man who made the world a wilderness, who overthrew its cities and would not let his captives go home?”

Analysis of the 5 'I will' statements

Satan's sin of pride had five very specific characteristics that are encoded in his 5 "I will" proclamations.  Each of these statements had heresy and error and were sinful statements:

“I will Ascend to heaven” – pride drove him to desire a higher role than that of guardian cherub, a position reserved for God only.

“I will Exalt my throne” – he strove to have dominion over the angelic hosts, deposing Michael of his role and usurping the hierarchy established by God

“I will Sit on the mount of assembly” - this meant to rule in the Millennial Kingdom and be the Messiah of Israel (in reference to Isaiah 2:2); again, usurping God's order and plan

Isaiah 2:2 In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s house will be established at the top of the mountains and will be raised above the hills. All nations will stream to it...

“I will Ascend above the heights of the clouds” - referring to Shekinah Glory, he wanted the glory reserved for God alone. 

Exodus 16:10  As Aaron was speaking to the entire Israelite community, they turned toward the wilderness, and there in a cloud the Lord’s glory appeared.

“Like the Most High” - he desired to be the possessor of creation, to have authority and control as Elohim the Creator. 

Six Fallacies about Satan

1 - That he resides in Hell

Satan will be exactly the last being thrown into the Lake of Fire.  There is no hell where demons administer punishment to tormented souls.  Forgiving C. S. Lewis for an amazing look at the sinister world of the demonic, "The Screwtape Letters" is entirely a fiction if not for the sound theological teachings served up as an allegory.

• He is not 'omnipresent' and must exist somewhere
• His first home was heaven as the guardian cherub of God's throne
• Now, he now lives in the “atmospheric heavens” of Earth (inter-dimensional) with his fallen angels (Ephesians 2:2)
• He is busy at work on Earth deceiving the nations and corrupting men (II Corinthians 2:11, 4:3-4, 11:13-15, 12:7; Revelation 2:9, 2:13, 2:24, 12:9, 16:12-16, 20:3, 20:7-10; Matthew 7:22-23; Thessalonians 2:18; II Thessalonians 2:8-11; I Timothy 4:1-3

2 - That he does not exist personally, but rather is a "concept"

Probably in this 'modern' age, this is his most effective lie.  Those who subscribe to evil actors as 'forces' tend to change their definitions of evil to suit their whims.

• Jesus believed in Satan (Mark 3:23-26; Luke 13:15-16; Matthew 4:10)
• Satan does “work” that Jesus came to destroy. A concept does not “create works” (I John 3:8)
• Satan sinned, then rebelled against God. A concept cannot sin.
• Numerous biblical references to Satan's will, intellect, emotions (Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28)

3 - Good and evil are “dualistic” making him equal to God and necessary for “good” to exist

This lie is his finest blasphemy.  His struggle since the beginning of history has been his desire to take what is not rightfully his - to be viewed as the most high.

• Satan was created perfect (Ezekiel 28:11)
• He chose to sin (Isaiah 14:12-14)

4 - That he causes all the sins of the world directly

Ironically Satan would probably like to take credit for this, but it is not true.  Much, if not most, of the sin in the world originates directly from the rebellious minds and wills of people.

• Satan is and was the first sinner (I John 3:8)
• He did cause the fall of man (Genesis 3:1-8, II Cor 11:3; I Tim 2:14)
• He sets snares for believers (I Timothy 3:7; II Timothy 2:26)
• However, man sins of his own volition and chooses to not to resist temptation

5 - That he is all powerful and cannot be resisted

Certainly this is a lie he wants to believe but it is false.  Only God is all powerful.

• With prayer and preparation, he can be resisted (Ephesians 6:10-18; James 4:7; I Peter 5:8-9)
• The Lord's Prayer indicates we can be delivered from the 'Evil One” (Matthew 6:13)

6 - That his influence is limited and can be ignored

It is very dangerous to fall into the trap of believing this.  While Christians are secure in our salvation, forces are at work that can damage your faith, you walk with God, your witness, your relationship with family and loved ones because you did not put on the spiritual armor every day.

Ephesians 6:11-12  Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the tactics[g] of the Devil.  For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.

• He is the ruler of this world (age) II Corinthians 4:4
• He exerts influence over nations (Dan 10:13, 20; Matthew 4:8-9)
• He will introduce the Anti-Christ, the world ruler (Rev 13:2,4)
• He will lead mankind to revolt against God (Rev 16:12-14; Rev 20:7-10)

Six characteristics of Satan

1. He is extremely intelligent – he is described as “crafty” (II Corinthians 11:3), able to fool nearly the entire world
2. He is emotional – he exhibits pride, and anger (Revelation 12:12)
3. He has power and influence – the control over the kingdoms of the world (Luke 4:5-7, Ephesians 2:2; II Timothy 2:26, II Corinthians 4:4)
4. He is malevolent – seeking to harm God, and destroy us (John 8:44, I Peter 5:8, Revelation 9:11; Luke 13:16; Acts 10:38)
5. He is totally corrupt and evil – referred to as “the Evil One” by Christ Himself (John 17:15, Matthew 6:13, I John 3:8)
6. He is very busy. (II Corinthians 2:11, 4:3-4, 11:13-15, 12:7; Revelation 2:9, 2:13, 2:24, 12:9, 16:12-16, 20:3, 20:7-10; Matthew 7:22-23; Thessalonians 2:18; II Thessalonians 2:8-11; I Timothy 4:1-3)

Six activities of Satan

1. Prince of the World (John 12:31, II Corinthians 4:4)
2. Accuser of individuals and Israel ( Revelation 12:10, Zechariah 3:1-2, Job 2:4-5)
3. Deceiver (II Cor 11:14, Rev 12:9, Rev 13:11-15, John 8:44)
4. Tempter (Matt 4:3, I Thess 3:5)
5. Destroyer/Murderer – (John 8:44, I Peter 5:8, Rev 9:11)
6. Adversary of God (Jude 9, I John 3:10-12, Genesis 3:15)

Satan's Certain Demise

• Christ came to destroy Satan's works (I John 3:8) The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.
• Satan was judged by Christ's work on the cross (Luke 10:18; John 12:31, 16:11; Colossians 2:14-15; Hebrews 2:14-15)
• Satan will be judged further in the middle of the Great Tribulation, having all access to heaven removed, and being cast out of the 'atmospheric heavens' and to Earth. (Revelation 12:7-12)
• Satan will be cast into the abyss after the Great Tribulation (Revelation 20:1-3)
• Satan will then be judged at the Great White Throne Judgment (possibly by the Church, with his fallen angels, as Paul states we will judge angels in Romans 16:20 and I Corinthians 6:2-3).
• He will then spend eternity in the Lake of Fire (Matthew 25:41 and Revelation 20:10).

This is our duty; now having wisdom about the Adversary and his methods and plans.

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.  

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Scripture citations are from:  Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) © 2009 Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville TN or New King James Version®. (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson

The Perplexing Problem of Suffering and Evil

When faced with the problem of Suffering and Evil we are left with three basic philosophical explanations for our circumstances:

1 - Pantheists philosophy - affirms God but denies evil exists

2 - Atheist philosophy - affirm evil exists but deny God's existence

3 - Theist philosophy - affirm both God and evil exist in reality

Why does an all-knowing, all-loving God permit evil?

• Evil is real, but 'it' is not a 'thing', it is the absence or corruption of a good thing.
• God did not create evil, but created the conditions of evil to occur by allow sentient beings to choose to not obey - to experience the "absence" of God's holiness and grace.

The Origin of Evil

• The premise that a perfect creature with free will cannot do evil is false.
• Free will makes evil possible because it is the power to not choose good.
• God made a class of beings (human, and angels) who could choose not to do good (all people, since we are fallen, cannot even choose to do good without God's intervention through the Holy Spirit)
• Evil can occur when a free will creature chooses the finite good of the creature over the infinite good of Creator.

False Arguments About God and Evil

Often atheist objections to God come in the form of Euthyphro's Dilemma, which states:

• If God were "all" good, He would want to defeat all evil and suffering
• If God were "all" powerful, He would defeat evil and suffering
• Yet evil and suffering exist
• Therefore God is either unwilling or unable to end evil and suffering and so He does not meet the requirements to be God

But the first two assertions make unspoken assumptions

• It is logical that God may allow evil and suffering for a period of time to achieve a greater good in order to glorify Himself and fulfill His purposes (which we don't fully understand) 
• It is also promised in scripture that God will in fact achieve this purpose and separate good from evil

Colossians 2:14-15 He erased the certificate of debt, with its obligations, that was against us and opposed to us, and has taken it away by nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and disgraced them publicly; he triumphed over them in him.  CSB 2017

So, it appears evil and suffering, for the time being, have a purpose.

Evil Has a Purpose?

• An all-good, all-knowing God has a good purpose for everything
• God knows the end of all things. Deuteronomy 29:29 and Romans 11:33

Suffering can serve a good purpose:

• Our 'disappointments' may be God's 'appointments' to accomplish something in us or through us for His glory.
• God's discipline of our sins shows us He loves us, and is in the process of perfecting us in the likeness of Christ.

Suffering and Free Will Thought Experiment

Let's do a thought experiment to test out what we know about suffering and evil in our own life experiences.  Since we are beings made in God's image, we have some limited level of Free Will.  Now, atheists (materialist determinism) will tell you we have no free will any more than molecules of dead matter.  However, materialists are right, any discussion about Good, Evil, Suffering etc. is moot. 

For those, who of their own accord, believe Free Will exists at some level for sentient beings like humans, let us examine what life might look like if all evil and suffering never existed.

• Free Will would be impossible because you would be "unable" to make choices that potentially had negative consequences.
• To remove all sources of suffering removes all choices 

Life Without Pain or Danger

Let's at least remove all physical dangers and negative consequences then:

• no scissors, cars, bicycles, machinery and dangerous jobs - you might get hurt
• no sickness, no discomfort, and no pain would eliminate the ability to feel great, enjoy physical activities, enjoy endorphins after a hard run...  A very bland life.
• No one can ever be a hero, as there is no need to ever rescue anyone, heal anyone or protect anyone.  Therefore there is no such thing as bravery.

Life Without Sorrow or Anger

OK let's set aside physical harms resulting in us living in padded cells, and remove emotional harms.  What would that world look like?

• no dating, no romance, no friendships (because inevitably you might be disappointed or emotionally hurt).  This means you can never forgive, reconcile or have learn from relationship mistakes.
• no families are allowed for reasons above.  You can't raise a child because their may be conflict and the need for discipline, and the emotional toll of parenting that comes with it.  Kids would be upset with siblings and parents so they can learn to live with one another.  
• no opinions about anything, because someone might disagree with you causing you and them distress.
• all possibilities to emotionally hurt someone else will be removed from your life, eliminating the possibility of jealousy, competition, ambition to do better than others, demanding justice or learning from others who have a different opinion (and they may be right)

You will basically have to be in a coma, floating in fluid, with nothing but happy thoughts transmitted into your brain resulting in a euphoria.  You are useless, helpless, and frankly, hopeless in this state.  No one else cares about you because they would have to be in the same situation, unaware of their surroundings or your existence.

The Purpose of Pain Is a Greater Good

If you allow anything to cause pain, you must account for 'evil' since they derive from the freedom to choose and accept consequences.

• Any discussion of suffering and evil must account for potential and actual good that comes from it. Romans 8:28
• The rewards for suffering for the right reasons outweigh pain

Christ is Glorified

To share in Christ's glory, you must share in His sufferings

• Faith must be tested to be true and of value
• We are in training to inherit a new world and need wisdom
• To appreciate our eternal future, we will remember our past sufferings. God will wipe away our tears but not memories.
• God's ultimate goal for us is not to be “happy” now, but forever.

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Scripture citations are from:  Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) © 2009 Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville TN or New King James Version®. (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson

What is Faith?

Can You Trust Someone You Do Not Know?

Start with this question: "Can you trust someone you do not know?", or another way, "Can you trust someone when you know nothing about them?". 

Usually, if you have feelings for a stranger it's considered infatuation - or just creepy. Once you get to know someone you've had a 'crush' on, you find you are either deeply disappointed, or you discover new and wonderful things you like about that person that yield a deeper relationship.  The same is true of God. We are told to "have faith" in God, but often we know next to nothing about Him - His nature, His personality, His thoughts.  How can you have faith in something or Someone you know nothing about?  

Is there really anything more important to establish in your own mind than whether God exists or not?  Upon deciding God is real, then do you willfully ignore the opportunity to learn more about God and His nature, or do you invest time and effort to develop spiritual 'muscles'?  Some people struggle their entire lives with the tension of not having enough faith and not wanting to fix the problem.  Let's address that head-on.

Is Faith Blind?

Does having faith in God require you to abandon critical thinking?  Is it even logical to believe in God?  Yes, it is. If Vulcans really existed, they would believe in God.... because it is logical.  At the heart of faith is establishing firmly in your mind that God exists, and that you can trust Him.  

To those that deny that God exists, these are the truths they must grapple with:

• Life has no real meaning - in fact, it cannot have any meaning - ever.
• No objective standard of Good or Evil can exist – only preferences and opinions.
• Personal values overrule society's values - after all, if it is only your opinion and not based on facts or universal truths, why should anyone tell you what to do?
• Societies without shared universal values either self-destruct into anarchy or tyranny rules (the battle between individual and State never ends)

Atheists also presume a lot when they claim knowledge which they cannot empirically prove. Can an Atheist Disprove God?  No, they cannot. This is because:

• Atheism is a “universal negative”, it cannot be proven, only disproven
• Not believing in God does not disprove God's existence....
• Atheists have to "know everything" to be certain God is nowhere to be found -- but then that makes the Atheist "god".   

Atheists are proud of what they “know”.  But with all their self proclaimed wisdom and intellect, they cannot meet their own burden of proof.  Atheism has not represented the best “model” to explain the mysteries of the universe.  Let's test the validity of Atheism's claims by evaluating four logical arguments.

Arguments for the Existence of God

Leibniz' Contingency Argument - or, why is anything here?

1 - Everything that exists has an explanation for its existence

2 - If the universe has an explanation for its existence, that explanation is God

(or the inverse: if God does not exist, the universe does not have an explanation for its existence)

3 - The universe exists

Therefore from 1 & 3

4 - The universe has an explanation for its existence

Therefore from 2 & 4

5 - The explanation for the existence of the universe is God

Kalam Cosmological Argument - or, everything that begins had a cause

1 - Whatever begins to come into existence has a cause

(...it follows from the laws of nature that something cannot come from nothing)

2 - The universe began to exist (big bang cosmology)

3 - Therefore the universe has a Cause

Fine Tuning (Teleological) Argument - or, this looks suspiciously designed

1 - The universe is fine tuned for life due to physical necessity, chance or design

2 - The universe is not fine tuned for life due to physical necessity or chance

3 - Therefore, the fine tuning of the universe for life is due to design.

Moral (Axiological) Argument - or, why is that 'unfair'?

1 - If God does not exist, then no objective moral values or duties exist

(...it follows any atheistic approach to morals is arbitrary and based on preferences)

2 - Objective moral values and duties exist

3 - Therefore, God must exist

The Atheists' Rebuttal

Can an atheist explain where do objective moral beliefs come from?

• Who invented “guilt” and what purpose does it serve without morals?
• Why does “evil” exist in our minds if there is no moral good and evil?
• Why does “Justice” exist in our minds? Is there a universal standard of justice?
• Why sacrifice anything for others? What purpose is served by acting altruistically?

Let's recap what Atheists' model of reality cannot explain:

• Why does anything exist.
• How life came to exist.
• What the meaning of life is.
• Why everything looks designed.
• Why we have moral beliefs.

Atheists make a lot of claims from having "knowledge", but don't seem to have a lot of answers. It all comes down to their firm belief that they “know” God doesn't have anything to do with it.  But, is that really rational?  It seems to take a lot of "faith" to be an atheist.

The Christian's Redirect

The bible speaks to this claim of knowledge directly. 

2 Corinthians 2:4-5 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ

As Christians, we are to combat

• Pretensions that set themselves against the knowledge of God
• False or unsupportable claims
• False accusations / Straw men
• All Lies”

To those dead set against God's truth, The gospel is foolishness. 

Romans 1:16-23 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

But, the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

To the unsaved, it isn't about facts or evidence, it's about submitting to God – and Atheist can't handle that truth.  So as a Christian, what should our faith be grounded in?  How can we be sure it is real?

What Real Faith Looks Like

First, it helps to understand what faith actually is. It is not "blind", or a "feeling" that is contrary to observable facts.  Faith is a combination of the following:

• Trust - built from experiences in life
• Knowledge - of God's Word via effort and time spent studying the Scriptures and learning from other believers
• Action(s) - positive reinforcements that 'test' the basis of your faith. These are both:

+ Positive Actions - "stepping out" in faith

- Negative or “non-actions” - "obedience" and "waiting on the Lord"

• The Holy Spirit ties this all together in the redeemed soul who has accepted Jesus Christ as their savior and experiences the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.

The image above is a rudimentary attempt to define Faith mathematically.

Faith consists of Trust, Knowledge, and our Actions (avoiding sin and acting in faith).  All of this multiplied to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (signified by the infinity symbol) that animates and energizes our spirit.

Romans 8:15-16 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father!”  The Spirit Himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children...

Faith is Reliable (Trust)

• Experiences in the past
• God's promises that are fulfilled
• Evidences from creation and the Holy Spirit

Psalm 40:4-5 Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods.

Faith is Rational (Knowledge)

• Learning God's Word
• Learning theology
• Counsel of others who are wise in the Lord

Proverbs 3:13-22 Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding, for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her; those who hold her fast will be blessed.

Faith is Revealed (faith is acted out)

• Positive actions – acting in faith reveals God, "stepping out"
• Negative / non-action – obedience to God's command, shunning sin, waiting on the Lord patiently

James 2:14-18  What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, 

“Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, 

“You have faith; I have deeds.” 

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.

Faith is Received (By the Holy Spirit)

• He guides you in all knowledge and wisdom

1 Corinthians 2:12-16  What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

A word of warning about faith:

Faith, if not tested, is of no value.  If your faith is based on how wonderful things are in your life, you have no faith. 

If you lose your faith because something bad happens to you personally, you probably never had it to begin with – because bad things are happening to other people all around you --every day -- and if you measure your faith in God simply by whether only pleasant things occur in your life, then your faith is not really in the God of the universe who sets His sights on eternity, not this earthly moment. 

Decide in advance, build upon your acts of service and obedience and serve God, learn about Him and in time you will understand, trust and love Him. Faith does not come free, or without sacrifice, and to be of any use to you it will have to be tested and sure. But, if you truly understand the basis of your faith, you don't have to live the life of the atheist, a life of logical contradictions and hopelessness and selfishness with no purpose or meaning.

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Scripture citations are from:  Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) © 2009 Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville TN or New King James Version®. (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson

Decision Making and God's Will

When faced with literally dozens of decisions each day, the Christian can be overwhelmed by both the number of choices available to us and the tension between gratifying our desires and walking the narrow path set before us by Christ.  

The real conundrum for many Christians is the problem of deciding between two or more "good" things.  With finite resources and time, we are constrained to make our "best judgment", yet it seems we have very few guidelines to go by.  Do we go with our "gut"?  Do we follow tradition, or the confines of what is "normal"?  What exactly defines a "prudent" decision?  Can we consider our personal preferences? 

When making important life altering decisions, what does the Bible say we should do?  Let's start with covering what the Bible does not say about decision making.

Decision Making: What the Bible Does NOT Teach 

The Bible does not teach guidance from a feeling (“I felt led”)

• No instance taught from Scripture to make personal decisions
• “Led by the Spirit” refers to the Spirit's work of conviction of sin and the leading a Christian into righteous living – and resisting sinful impulses.  See Romans 8:12-14 & Galatians 5:16-21.
• Jesus was “impelled” by the Spirit into the wilderness – not a good model for decision making.
• “Felt Led” approach leads to contradictions, shifting directions, and often contradicts Scripture.

The Bible does not teach guidance from inner peace (“I had a peace about it”)

• Colossians 3:15 often used to justify this approach “Let the Peace of Christ rule in your hearts”.
• In context, this peace means harmony between believers, based on love and forgiveness.
• This is not a decision making model
  • Sometimes major decisions – even the right ones – cause emotional distress
  • Sometimes you have peace about the wrong thing – even when contradicting Scripture

The Bible does not teach guidance from “open and closed doors”

• Paul often chose not to go through “open doors”.  See 2 Corinthians 2:12-13, Acts 16.26-28
• Not a good decision model -- a door may suddenly close, leaving you to reconsider your decision, or may open after persistent prayer or much later in life.
• Often doing the right thing creates obstacles, hardships, and “closed doors”. (Paul's decision to go to Jerusalem and Rome involved years of prison, shipwreck, and his death).

The Bible does not teach guidance from Providential Signs

• The pharisee's requested a sign from Jesus (He condemned them for this – Matthew 16:4)
• Gideon's fleece (Judges 6-7) only came after the Angel of the Lord appeared (Judges 6:11,12)
• Not a good decision model -
  • Gideon's request was based on doubt and disbelief
  • Asking God for specific signs imposes your desires and ideas on God
  • Providential signs not taught anywhere in the New Testament for Christians  

The Bible does not teach guidance from Confirmations

• Matthew 18:15-16, 2 Corinthians 13:1-2, 1 Timothy 5:19-20 and Hebrews 10:28 refer to testimony of witnesses in a judicial action; the discipline of members of the church.
• This does not refer to “divine hints” or coincidences that God plants in your path to confirm a decision you may have already made.

Does the Bible ever show situations where specialized Divine guidance is given to people? Yes.

• These are rare situations, and not always sought by the individual trying to make a decision.
• It is an intrusion of God, a supernatural event
• The guidance often goes against human wisdom (Gideon's army of 300)

Other misconceptions about God's Will for our lives

Does God lay out a plan for our lives that we have to “discover” to make life decisions? No.
That was not His purpose in giving us free will. He has given us freedom within boundaries to make decisions – we are not required to “discover” His secret plan for our lives.

What about the saying on thousands of picture frames and posters that God has 'plans' for us? This is misrepresented most of the time.  Look at the passage in context:

Jeremiah 29:10-12 This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.

It is addressed to the entire Jewish nation, not individually, and it is not about their individual decision making – the Jews were forcefully removed from their homeland by a conquering army and God is fulfilling prophecy and His righteous punishment of the Jews for failing to give the land a sabbath.  While Israel was captive in Babylon the Land observed its Sabbaths.

2 Chronicles 36:20-22 He (Nebuchadnezzar) carried into exile to Babylon the remnant, who escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and his successors until the kingdom of Persia came to power. The land enjoyed its sabbath rests; all the time of its desolation it rested, until the seventy years were completed in fulfillment of the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah.

Defining God's Will

Having swept away common misconceptions and false teachings about God's Will for our lives, now let us paint the target so that we know what to aim for.  There are two forms of “God's Will” we must define:

God's Sovereign Will – A Decree that must happen.

• Daniel 4:35
• Ephesians 1:11
• God has not revealed all things in His Sovereign Will....yet Deuteronomy 29:29

God's Moral Will – What God desires, but will not force on us...

• 2 Peter 3:9                 Not willing that any should perish
• I Thess 4:3                The Will of God is your sanctification
• 1 Peter 2:15              The Will of God is that by doing right you silence foolish men...
• 1 Thess 5:18              … give thanks in all circumstances for this is the Will of God
  Note these verses apply to everyone not to specific individuals

God's Moral Will is completely revealed in the Bible. The Gospel shows how the righteous are to live:

Romans 1:16-18 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed —a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

God's Will for you is not about what you DO. God's Will for you is about WHO YOU ARE.

• It's not who you will marry, but what kind of husband or wife you will be
• It's not about where you live but what kind of neighbor you are
• It's not about what job you take but what kind of worker you are
• It's not about what ministry you are in, but that you serve faithfully

God's Will is that we be conformed to the image of Christ:

• Romans 8:29            ...predestined us to be conformed to the image of His Son
• 2 Thess 3:5               may the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance
• Romans 12:2            ...not be conformed by this world but be transformed...proving the Will of Go

Do we have to discover a specific plan for our lives from signs and confirmations in order to make good decisions for our lives?   No.

• God doesn't make decisions for us
• He gave us a mind and the capacity to seek wisdom
• He gave us others in the Church to counsel us
• He gave us the Scriptures to determine what is righteous

Did God give us a model to follow to make sound decisions?  Yes He did!

The Wisdom Model for Decision Making

Decisions should be made within three domains:

• God's Moral Will
• God's Revealed Wisdom
• Personal Factors

By applying these constraints/guidelines to your decisions, you will be expressing your Free Will with God's consent and blessing.

God's Moral Will

Apply God's standard to all decisions.  Ask yourself, “is this moral?” and “is this scriptural?”.

• Diligent study of the Bible         1 Timothy 4:3, 2 Timothy 2:15
• Consider God's teaching           2 Timothy 2:7
• Memorization of Scripture         Psalms 119:11
• Listen to teachers                      Ephesians 4:11-12

God's Moral Will extends not only to the decisions themselves, but your motives.  If your decision positively enforces God's Moral Will, or there is no constraint or conflict with God's Moral Will, then you are free to choose or decide with God's permissive Will.

God's Revealed Wisdom

Decisions need to apply common sense, good information, wisdom, and knowledge. The right use of knowledge is endorsed in Ephesians 5:15 and Colossians 4:5.  Where do we find wisdom?

• Prayer is a source                                                           James 1:5
• Counsel from Godly people                                            Proverbs 1:7; 10:31; 19:20; Psalm 37:30
• Counsel from experienced people                                 Job 12:12; Proverbs 2:2
• Research and effort to discover truth                             Proverbs 4:7
• Does not contradict God's Moral Will                             Psalm 111:10; Proverbs 9:10;
• Wisdom does not normally originate from our culture.  1 Corinthians 3:19

Personal Factors

• Personal gifts, skills, abilities and talents might shape your decision for a career or ministry.
• Decisions about marriage and friends directed by personal tastes, areas of interest, availability.
• Our attitudes and desires
• Personal circumstances (some not voluntary) may shape choices.

God doesn't decide for us.  He hasn't “Decided” everything for you already and it's your job to figure out what that decision was.

In submission to God's Moral Will, and applying Wisdom, kindness and common sense along with our desires and personal tastes, we are free to make decisions with a sense of peace and confidence.  Within these boundaries, any decision we make is acceptable to God.  As circumstances change, we are free to adapt our decisions (within the boundaries still!) and can do so without offending God or taking His Name in vain.  We are free moral agents destined to become judges of the Earth.   As such, God welcomes us to choose, for we are Free in Christ!

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With gratitude to Greg Koukl and Stand to Reasons ministries...  Koukl, G. (2023). Decision Making and the Will of God: The Biblical Model. (Stand to Reason Ministries   www.str.org) which was heavily referenced in the making of this post.

Scripture citations are from:  Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) © 2009 Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville TN or New King James Version®. (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson