Better than Craftsman
By Rev. Robert P. Elkins
All Scripture verse taken from the NIV Bible unless otherwise noted
(2nd Timothy 3:16) “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man (and woman) of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (emphasis Mine)
When I became a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ I had to take a good, long and hard look at what is known as the Pastoral Epistles of the Apostle Paul, in particular 2nd Timothy. Paul’s letter to Timothy is a beautiful letter filled with instruction and I had to read it over and over to really get a grasp of the significance of those words. My favorite reading is from the fourth chapter, verses 1 through 5 and I feel it is one of the most useful portions of Scripture a minister can find. (2nd Timothy 4:1-5) “1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.”
The Scriptures are telling me that as a minister I’m to preach the Word of God in season or out, in essence when it’s popular and when it’s not. To correct, (offer the people correction when I see or hear them misreading or misusing God’s word, taking it out of context or trying to force it to say what it doesn’t say, whether intentionally or not). I’m to rebuke, (let them know they are wrong). Encourage, (lift up, build up and edify) and to do all of this with great patience and careful instruction. Not a real tall order for the man of God is it? That last part, the encouragement with great patience and careful instruction or loving instruction comes from listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit. If done in my flesh its going to turn out to be a disaster believe me. There was a time to be sure when I was not a gentle and loving person filled with patience. Before I came to know Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, before I came to know Jesus in an intimate and personal way, before I developed a personal relationship with our Lord I was anything but a patient and gentle person. Over the years I’ve learned to walk in stride with my Lord, I no longer run ahead or lag behind, now I’m trying to walk with him. I try to listen to his voice and always maintain a good talking/listening relationship where we both get to talk and listen to each other. And in trying to remain in union and fellowship with him his attributes are starting to rub off on me. Have I found perfection yet? Not even close, but I’m constantly working on it and as each day passes and the days go into weeks and then months and then years I find myself getting closer and closer. Each day I have to look up to his cross and deny self or self will and self desire. Each day I have to seek his nature over mine and remember to give all the glory to God for whatever transformation that may occur as I pass through this journey we call life.
To assist me in this journey through life as a minister, God has provided me with a holy toolbox and it’s a wonderful thing to behold. It’s actually quite small and easy to transport; I can go from job to job, task to task and day to day without a problem, my toolbox by my side. And the tools in my toolbox that God has given me are even better than the best Sears has to offer in their Craftsman line. The Craftsman tools are warranted forever, break one and take it back to the store and it’s replaced no questions asked, and that’s a good thing. But God’s tools will never break, they will last forever and they will always fit regardless of the situation. I don’t know about anyone else but for me if I need a socket or a wrench I always get the wrong size when I reach into the tool box. I’ve leaned that if I’m working on anything I just grab all the sizes and go through the process of elimination until I find the one that fits. And if that doesn’t work I then look of the adjustable wrench as my last resort. Praise God I don’t have to go through all that with the tools of God because they always fit and they are always handy. Amen! My toolbox from God is assembled out of only three things and yet it always works. The first element that makes up my box is my Bible, the Holy Word of God. Then there’s my prayer language, always available and 100 % effective when offered in the will of the Father. And the third element is the guidance and assistance of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter promised by Jesus and God’s promises always come to be.
One of the things I hope to encourage you with today is the fact that you don’t have to be a minister to get this toolbox from God. This heavenly toolbox is given to all believers, it’s free for the asking and there are no strings attached, no coupons required, never a back order, always in stock and Jesus already paid the cost. Actually with these toolboxes there is only one restriction that applies and it’s the overlooking or willfully ignoring this restriction that gets most of us in trouble.
You see with every toolbox that is given out, included with the tools is a set of instructions, given by God’s Holy Spirit. And if we don’t read the instructions and follow them then the tools don’t work as good as they should. We may be able to force them to work but it’s a task that requires many hours of additional work and the job just doesn’t come out as it should. Every toolbox is made of the same three things, God’s Word as found in the Bible, our prayer life or language and the Holy Spirit’s assistance. And even though the boxes look identical there is a difference in how they work because the tools inside are custom-built by the Holy Spirit to work differently in the hands of the person that gets the box. Each basis toolbox looks the same, feels the same, weighs the same and if used correctly will be as effective as the others but the difference lies in the tools that are put in them by the Spirit. Each box is custom made and custom filled by the Spirit with specially designed tools made just for you the toolbox holder and only you the toolbox owner can use those tools to their most effectual best. Your tools were designed for you with you in mind and they are perfect in every detail.
Where we get in trouble is when we start to look beyond our toolbox, the one build just for us, and start to put our hands in the toolbox of someone else. You see the tools in our box fit only our hands and not theirs and the same holds true for theirs as well. There tools don’t fit our hands but they fit their hands with a perfect match. And if we read the Spirit’s instructions we will see that we aren’t supposed to be borrowing or taking the tools from someone else’s toolbox. The tools in someone else’s toolbox weren’t made for us, they don’t fit right, they won’t work as well and they won’t be as effective as they should if we try to use them. If we get our hands in someone else’s toolbox we may be able to force their tools to work to some degree but they will never work as good as they could or as good as they should if used by the rightful owner.
To make this concept easier to grasp, allow if you will a few examples taken from life I think we can all understand. If you’ve ever worked with wood you’ll understand what I’m talking about. You have a piece of wood and you want to cut it, so you go and grab a handsaw. Any saw will do right? A saw is a saw, there is no distinction between saws right? Ah here is where the problem lies, you see one saw is made for cutting across the grain of the wood and another is made for cutting with the grain of the wood. Each saw is made with teeth specially designed and sharpened to work in only one manner. If you try hard enough you can get a cross cut saw to rip lengthwise with the grain but it is a lot of work, it usually screws up the saw and the cut isn’t very fine. You’ll get a finished product but it won’t be what you’re after. Some saws are made for cross cutting across the grain of the wood and some are made to rip the grain lengthwise, you see not all saws will work the same.
Don’t have much experience with wood you say? How about baking then? You want to make a nice two-layer chocolate cake, you preheat the oven, mix the batter and now it’s time to put it in the pans for baking. Oh no! You have two pans but one is a 9 inch round pan and the other is a 9 by 12 rectangle pan. Not a problem, you can put the batter in both pans and they will cook, but to get a nice round cake you have to take the 9 by 12 cake, place the round one on top and trim off the parts that stick out. In the end you will have a round 9 inch cake but to get there you had to waste a lot of cake, use more time than needed and it will be harder to decorate because you’re trying to cover the edges that were cut which don’t hold us as well as the edges that were formed by baking against the cake pan. You’re hearing the voice of experience here friends, for the cake and the wood.
You’ve got a good pair of scissors, made for cutting fabric and someone uses them for cutting paper, will they work? Sure … but it screws up the scissors, they become dull quicker. How about those who have tried to take off the electric outlet covers in your house with a butter knife, one little slip and the whole place gets dark real fast doesn’t it? And that’s only if you’re lucky, with no insulated handle like a screwdriver you might find yourself sitting on you bottom and your hair standing straight up, again the voice of experience.
At times I carry a .357 Magnum pistol for my own personal use and at work I carry a 38 caliber pistol. Can I put 38 caliber rounds in both my personal weapon and the one I carry in my line of employment as a state peace officer? Sure I can, and it will fire, but I won’t get the hitting power it was designed for, the 38 caliber rounds don’t have the punch the 357 rounds have. And if you try to go the other way you can get the 357 rounds in the 38 caliber pistol but you can’t fire it because the cylinder won’t close and if it did the barrel would most likely explode from the extra power of the shells. At first glance both guns look the same but they sure don’t work the same, each was designed for a special use and it’s that special use that makes them work the best. That’s the way it is with our God given toolboxes. They may look the same but they aren’t, the toolboxes are the same but the tools inside are different. God didn’t make a mistake when he designed our tools; he intended it to be like that. Go to (1st Corinthians chapter 12: 4-11) “4There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. 7Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.”
A variety of gifts for a variety of people, the Spirit of Jesus knew what he was doing when he came with the gifts and the Spirit knows what he’s doing when he distributes them. We all have the same toolbox but we don’t all have the same tools, we don’t all have the same gifts.
When Jesus set up his church he knew exactly what he was doing and he revealed this truth to the Apostle Paul so that Paul could write it down in his Epistles with Christ knowing that his words would be there for the church to read whenever they needed it. God knew what he was doing when he led me to this sermon just in case you hadn’t read this for yourself or maybe you didn’t really give it much thought if you did read it. Jesus working through his Spirit, gave the message to Paul, this same Spirit led me to study it and now I give it to you to be shared with whoever you are led by the Spirit to witness to and maybe share this simple message.
At this point I have to remind you that this isn’t a new revelation given me or something I got by special appointment for God. There are no new revelations given to anyone. All of Gods word is there for all to read, the only new thing here is the revelation of how to deliver God’s message. If anyone at any time comes and tells you that they have a new revelation from God that came to them and no one else they are not hearing from the same God we serve. Let me say this one more time, there will never be a new message from God given to only one person or one group of people, when he closed his book he did so for a purpose, he had already given us all we needed to find him, anything else is not from God. That’s not to say that we don’t receive new revelation of what the scriptures say, we call that the hermeneutics or the way we interpret the word of God. God can and does on a regular basis give men and women a new style of delivery for his message with each passing generation. But remember, the message can not and will not change. What I give you today is a new way of delivering a message that has been there for many ages. It’s always been there in the pages of the Bible; it’s only been waiting for me to elaborate it in a new form. And I’ll bet right now someplace in the world the Holy Spirit is giving someone else a different way of saying the very same thing custom designed in a different form for a new body of believers to hear. Go to (1st Corinthians chapter 12: 27-31) “27Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 28And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. 29Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 31But eagerly desire the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way.”
Friends I’m not making this up, but I am being led by the Spirit. And when the Spirit talks I listen! Different tools for different people, we all get the same toolbox but each toolbox comes with different tools inside. Right now I’m using my toolbox and I’m using my tools, these are the tools God has given me. I’m doing my job, I’m preaching His Word in season and out because there may be someone out there that doesn’t like this message but that’s okay. My motivation comes from my God and He allows it to flow from my heart and although I know you will be blessed by this in time, if it ruffles some feathers now; that’s okay as well. Sometime we have to let something season in our heart for a time before we can taste the sweetness of the words. I have to do what God tells me and I have to do it when he tells me. (Galatians 1:10) says; “Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ”. It’s my desire to be Christ’s servant; I just pray that you’re blessed by hearing His word preached without fear, hesitation or question on my part. I would rather be a blind servant of Jesus Christ than see the world through rose colored glasses and try to present you the same distorted image. (2nd Timothy 1:7) says, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline”. My toolbox as a preacher comes with all the tools I need to read a verse, pray to God for His revelation and guidance in preparing the sermon, wait upon the leading of the Spirit, and then present to you the hearer or reader what the Spirit has given me. Why do I do this? Because I have to, I’ve got a Holy Ghost fire that burns inside me and the flames come forward from my heart to my head, from my head to my hand and I write down what the Spirit gives me. When I started Eternal Truth Ministries our Lord told me to use the words “All the Truth All the Time” as my motto and my rule. I’ve stayed with that and as long as I’m speaking with that motto in mind I will never apologize for anything I say as long as I’m speaking under the anointing of the Spirit. I endeavor to follow the same principle in the ministry “Up from the Ashes” as well, it is still all the truth all the time, and I pray by the leading of the Holy Spirit. I wish I could say the same for when I’m just speaking. But to my regret I have had times when I had to apologize for things I’ve said when I was talking without the anointing. But that’s a different sermon.
I don’t take my calling lightly, I can’t. (James 3:1) says; “Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because we who teach will be judged more strictly”. If I’m to be held to a higher measure of judgment because of my calling you can be sure that I will be sure to use every tool in my toolbox to the best of my ability and I’m also going to make sure that I am never caught with my hand in someone else’s toolbox. I play the guitar a bit, I could lead you through a few songs and we could praise God with our music … but I won’t … its not where my gifts and talents lie. That’s someone else’s toolbox. I sing a bit and I could lead worship if there were no one else to do it …but I won’t … it’s someone else’s toolbox. That’s not the gifts the Lord has given me to use. I won’t put my hand in someone else’s toolbox.
I served in a church once that had everything needed to be a great house of worship. The building was beautiful, the facility had all that was needed for meaningful ministry, nice classrooms, a dining hall, more than enough parking for any event. They had tremendously talented people, people with music skills, people that were gifted as organizers, teachers, workers, they had it all. The perfect assortment of gifted people, the perfect building, the perfect location and yet for all their gifts and talents they might as well be dead! What they didn’t have was the ability to follow biblical principles. They couldn’t surrender their all and all to Jesus; they couldn’t relinquish their hold on the throne and allow Jesus his rightful place on his throne. They couldn’t follow the biblical idea that everyone had a different gift and talent for the Lords use. Instead, a select few constantly had a hand in the other person’s toolbox and were constantly butting heads over who was to do what task. For every task presented to the church there were at least four people trying to do everything on their own. They side stepped the order of biblical authority with each claiming the rights to the throne that didn’t belong to anyone but Jesus.
Everyone claimed to be working for the Lord but the sad reality of it all was that they couldn’t stop squabbling long enough to see that the individual talents of each person in the church wasn’t being used but rather the misguided talents of a few was suffocating the talents of the many. A beautiful church building with all the things needed for ministry and over the course of 6 years they added no new members, the number of members actually dropped lower each year as people left and saddest of all. With all the talents, with the beautiful facilities there were no new believers that came to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Not one new person accepted the Lord in 6 years. The only change in membership they experienced was when a child of one of the families grew old enough to be moved into a different lever of membership and then they said “look how we’re growing”. They couldn’t see that if you have a pound of jellybeans it doesn’t matter how far you spread them across the floor you still only have a pound of jellybeans. Christ didn’t sit on the throne, the people did and each one was constantly reaching into the other person’s toolbox and trying to make a tool work that didn’t fit their hand.
They couldn’t see that the same Holy Spirit of 1st Corinthians 12, the Spirit that gives gifts to the people as he desires didn’t abide there, they couldn’t see that his tools were misused so he removed them. They couldn’t see that the Holy Spirit doesn’t give all his tools to just one or two people and that it takes more than one or two people to run Christ’s church. The Spirit gives many gifts to many people because a church isn’t one or two people who do it all while the rest are just bystanders who have no function other than being bodies to warm a seat. The whole church needs to be alive; the whole church needs to feel the lifeblood flowing through it. The whole church needs to feel the blessing of exercising its power by working through its gifted people to reach the unsaved and the lost.
The Apostle Paul uses the analogy of a body and how the church has to function as a body with all the parts working together for the welfare of the body as a whole. Do you know what atrophy is? When a body part isn’t used, when it isn’t given any exercise, atrophy sets in, blood stops flowing to that part and eventually that body part shrivels up or dies from lack of use. It’s the same thing in a church. If a person or a small group of people try to control or dominate in a church, if a person or small group of people try to use everyone else’s tools and not allow others to use their God given tools atrophy sets in with the unused person or people and eventually they shrivel up and die. They don’t die in the physical but they die in the spirit, their spirit stops functioning and their options are to stay where they are and continue to die in the spirit or they leave and seek new life elsewhere. And when atrophy sets in it doesn’t affect just the one person, it spreads like a cancer throughout the church and eventually the entire church starts to die. It may not die for a long time but the sickness is there and it’s felt by the entire church body. There’s no new growth, there is no new blood to carry life through the veins of the church.
Think about this for a moment. Why would the Holy Spirit lead new sheep to a pasture where they aren’t allowed to reach the food or water? Why would the Holy Spirit lead new people to a church, people filled with gifts and talents, and then watch them become stagnant in the spirit and spiritually develop atrophy and wither or die? The Holy Spirit is going to lead those people to a church where there’s life and there’s blood flowing through the veins of the church. The Holy Spirit is going to lead them to a place where they can use the tools he’s put in their toolbox because it’s the Spirit’s job to grow a church of believers for the kingdom of the Father. He’s going to lead them to a church that is alive and healthy drawing life through the atoning blood of the Son.
And this is the church I see when I come here, a church that is going to be filled with a variety of people, all coming in with a toolbox filled with the tools of the Spirit. A church that is filled with believers carried up to the heavens in worship and fellowship with our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ. A church that dances for their Lord, a church that teaches the whole message of salvation and shares the Gospel with it’s neighbors. A church that has an entire congregation of believers all equipped with their toolboxes and every tool put to use for the kingdom of God the Father in heaven. Are you ready for that church? If you are give the Lord a praise offering.
I want to close with a reading that really says it all. If you have any questions as to what I’ve said this morning, whether you think it true or untrue, I want you to go home, look at this passage and pray about it. Pray that the Holy Spirit would talk to your spirit and see if he doesn’t have something to say to you. See if the Spirit of God doesn’t have a message for you and is speaking to you through his word. (Ephesians 4:16) “From him the body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does it’s work.” Let that verse sink in for a minute.
“From him (who? Jesus Christ of course!) the body (who is the body Paul is referring to here? It’s us, the believers assembled in this place of worship, the body is the church of Christ, alive and well on the earth today regardless of what some may say). Joined and held together by every supporting ligament (what are the ligaments in Paul’s thoughts? The very gifts or skills the Holy Spirit has given us. The gift of music, the gift of helps, the gift of love, the gift of teaching, the gift of preaching, the gift of singing, the gift of giving, the gift of caring, the gift of listening to another in pain, the gift of wisdom, and the gift of knowing when we are stepping into someone else’s area of ministry.)
And what is the result of this body of believers, gathered together, each one using the ligaments of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, putting God’s agenda before our own agenda. Seeking to serve His kingdom and not seeking to develop our kingdom under the false pretense of using His name to make ourselves look good or as Paul says "Puffed up"). The body grows and builds itself up in love (and what is the key to this growth and building that is going to take place? As each part (that’s each person working in their area of gifting) does it’s work. (Denying self, taking up His cross and going foreword into the world).
I pray that this message is well received by you the hearer or reader and that it ministers to your heart. Each of us has a place in ministry, each of us has a place in the work of the Lord Jesus as he has called us to do. Pray about what this message has to say to you and then follow your heart and remember, in all things, give God the glory.
Grace & peace
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Life, the NFL & Jesus
Life, the NFL, & Jesus
By Rev. Robert P. Elkins
All Scripture verse taken from the NIV Bible unless otherwise noted
I want you to realize that there isn’t one person on either of the teams, not one player, one coach, one trained, one medical person, one equipment person, one assistant of any kind, not one person connected with any team in the NFL that is there in his or her position that is there without intensive training in their field of expertise. Be it a player who knows and runs the routes his position calls for or a coach that decided what play to run. Every person is a well-trained professional. And yes that includes the Buffalo Bills and every other team in the league that didn’t do so good this year. Every single person you see on the television connected with a team has practiced their profession for many long hours, read books, studied films, learned plays, spent hours in a classroom, hours in a gym working with weights, running lifting and sweating. And all for the right to call themselves an NFL player or a team member. And should that team make it to the Super Bowl and win the game, they all get a ring, not just the players.
This is what we have to do in life as well. For the most part, in this country, just about every person has to train long hard hours getting some kind of education if they are to rise to be any level of self sufficient, productive and mature adult. Granted there are many places in the world where education isn’t as important in their culture or as easy to obtain as it is in our country. But for the most part in the great United States of America, we educate our children and adults at least in the basics to enable them to compete in life. And when looking at all the people in juxtapose to the NFL players, the NFL players making up the entire NFL and the people making up our society, we can see that just as they are one cut above the average in their field of sports, we are one cut above the rest of society as Christians. As the NFL player has to take it to a higher level to go to the top of his game likewise we, as Christians have to take it to a higher level to be Christians.
In the NFL, most of the players get to play in the games throughout the season be it a starter or a backup who gets the call in the event of an injury. But once they start the playoff games many teams and many players fall by the wayside. They no longer get to play and they are like the rest of us, they are watchers, no longer are they participants but just viewers. Once they get to the playoff games the starters are actually able to take their game to yet another level and many of them put out so much extra effort that they play through many an injury. They play through something that in the regular season would have put them on the sidelines for a play or a game. When they get to the playoff games they turn into super players. And throughout the playoffs as each team looses they are dropped to the level of viewer and only the winners advance to the next level or play. They continue to follow this pattern until they come to the division championship game. And then from the ranks of what was once many, only one team from each side gains the right to go to the Super Bowl and try to win that coveted title of world champion and walk away with a super bowl ring on their finger.
And who is the winner? Why they are the one’s who usually work the hardest, practice the hardest, put the most into their game and are the most hungry for that title and ring. While all of them worked really hard to reach that one elusive game, it is usually the ones that put the most extra effort into it that walk away the winner. The ones who win are the ones who execute the plays just a little better than the other guys. They’re the ones who ran just a bit faster, turned just a little sharper, stopped just a fraction quicker and over all preformed just a little better than the other guys. And it’s this special group who did just a little better that gets to have the bragging rights for the next year and who get to wear that super bowl ring for life. While all the players in the league can say, “I’m a NFL player” only a few can say, “I’m a super bowl winner and here’s my ring to prove it”.
Now how do we tie this into the Christian experience? How do we make that leap from NFL player to the everyday person that is walking the street and how do we apply this to us today?
The world is filled with people. Just about anyplace you go you are going to run into people. Red, yellow, white or black, there are going to be people of some kind, of some color, just about anyplace you go. I think with the exception of Antarctica there are people just about anyplace you look. And the only reason they aren’t all over Antarctica is that the climate is so harsh it’s really super hard to live there. And even in that, there are people going there, I have an aunt who went there on vacation, she went in the summer because then it’s only 20 below zero rather than the 90 below in the winter. She stayed in an “Ice Hotel”! Somehow that doesn’t sound like a great vacation to me. Usually I’d say “Oh cool” but that is just to cool to suite me.
And out of all these people in the world there is a select group known as Christians. Again in looking at us the people in juxtapose to the rest of society we, the Christian, are to be the cut above who have advanced to the higher level. We are the ones who have risen above the rest to claim that title that eludes the rest of the world. We’re the ones who are set apart from the rest and for this we have to give the glory to God because it sure isn’t anything we’ve done on our own. (1st Peter 2:9) “9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” Or perhaps it is better stated in the Amplified Bible as
“9But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a dedicated nation, [God's] own]purchased, special people, that you may set forth the wonderful deeds and display the virtues and perfections of Him Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” Either way what it says is that God chose each of us and he’s made us a special people. By the standards of God we are the ones who can say we are Christians much like the football players say I play in the NFL. And as they get the ring to show and proudly display we have the cross of Jesus.
And just who are these Christians? What makes us so special? How did we become so special? We’re the ones who have bent the knee and acknowledged that Jesus Christ is Lord of lords and King of kings. We’re the ones who acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God and he is God. That’s the only difference between us and them, the rest of the people in the world. For the most part we all walk the same, look the same {taking into consideration some obvious differences}. We all use a form of communication known as language, we reproduce the same, eat the same way if not the same kinds of food. We try to get comfortable in the same ways, we try to keep warm or keep cool seeking to keep our bodies in about the same range of temperature. In short we all pretty much act the same as everyone else. It’s not until we become followers of Jesus Christ and acknowledge Him as our Lord do we show or exhibit behavior any different than everyone else. Like the football players who are all members of the NFL, we are all members of the human race, people created in the image of God and loved by God. But we the Christian have been set apart, we’ve gone to the next level solely by our belief in Jesus, and that only by the grace of God.
But here we see the juxtapose between the NFL and the Christian take a far different turn of events. You see in the NFL the object of the game is for only one team to make it to the Super Bowl. Only one group is to earn that title and wear the ring. In the Christian faith we want to see everyone get to the big game, we want to see everyone make it to what we call heaven or eternity with God. While the football player wants his team and only his team to be the winner, we want everyone to be a winner right along side of us because we would like to see everyone on the same team as we are. We want to see every person in the world right there with us in glory, right there in Beulah land standing shoulder to shoulder with us. We want to see everyone with the title of Champion, we want to see them all wearing the title of Christian and go to the cross to be covered by the blood of Jesus where all sin and iniquity is washed away by that blood. We don’t want to see anyone left behind or missing the boat.
In Matthew 28 we read the words of Jesus. “I have been given all authority in heaven and earth. Therefore go and make disciples in all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and teach these new disciples to obey the commandments I have given you”.
If we were to paraphrase what Jesus said in that verse it could come out like this. “Go get all the players on earth, bring them into my Christian faith, get them to my Super Bowl and my father and I and my Holy Spirit will make all of them winners. You bring them in and we’ll make them champions”.
How are we going to do this? Just like the NFL players. Preparation, preparation and more preparation. The NFL uses a game plan and a play- book; we use God’s game plan and His Bible. What’s one of our main plays as Christians? Number 1, Prayer! The Bible instructs us to pray.
• Ephesians 6: 18 … “pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests”.
• Philippians 4: 6 … “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God”.
Do you realize that we can pray anywhere and anytime? We can pray anywhere and anytime even in this slightly off center world in which we live. Prayer is one thing we can all do inside our own mind and no one else need know that we are doing it. We don’t have to be vocal to pray, prayer can be a shout or a whisper but it can also be a mental conversation that is only heard between us and God. Mental prayer is great; it’s as good as speaking in tongues. Mental prayer and tongues are like a person to person telephone call directly to God and Satan can’t listen in.
Another part of our game plan and playbook from God is number 2, Study! We need to study God’s word on a regular basis.
• 2nd Timothy 2: 15 … “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needs not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth”. That’s from the KJV, the NIV translates it as; “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, an workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth”.
Unless you are one of the few that are truly gifted to have a photographic memory knowing and understanding the scriptures will require study on your behalf. Allow me to make one thing perfectly clear though, there is nothing in the scriptures that is beyond the grasp and comprehension of anyone unless there is a server learning disability. And even then the power of the Spirit can come upon the person and endow them with a gift of learning that exceeds many others. Remember we are dealing with a God of miracles and nothing is beyond his scope or range of doing. There are no hidden messages in the scriptures, there is no secret codes that need to be unlocked, there is nothing but the pure word of God and in his infinite wisdom God has put foreword his word in a book that anyone can use. Granted it may take some diligence on behalf of the reader, it may take some searching to find the meaning of some of the beautiful jewels of wisdom to be found. But with the ample supply of resource materials available finding the meaning, the knowledge and beauty of the Bible will be a pure pleasure for you.
Game plan and playbook rule number 3, Commitment! We need to commit our work to God.
• Proverbs 16: 3 … “Commit to the Lord whatever you do and your plans will succeed”.
{A word of caution here … if we want success in our plans then our plans need to be done in God’s way and in His will.} No one is ever successful at anything if they aren’t committed to what they are doing. We’ve been comparing the Christian to the NFL player; neither will be where they want to be unless there is a level of commitment involved. The football player must commit time and energy to the game plan; the Christian must commit the same to their faith. If we commit the entire Bible to memory and never use any of it in life it is of no use at all. Whether we know the Bible or not has no effect on our salvation, salvation comes through belief in Jesus Christ and without exception there is no other way. But the Bible, God’s instruction manual for our walk through life is a key element for that walk. The Bible instructs us in how to behave, how to talk, how to pray; how to witness for Christ, how to do just about everything there is to be done and we need to commitment in our use of this wonderful book. But please remember what I said at the start of this segment, our commitment needs to be within the guidelines of God’s desires for us. And to know what God’s desires for us are we need to know what his word says to and about us. And in order to know the answer to what the desires of God are we need to know the Bible and to know the Bible brings us back to commitment.
• Proverbs 16: 9 … “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps”. We can make all the plans we want, but in the final analysis under the divine providence of God it’s God who determines the outcome of our plans. If our plans don’t come to fulfillment it’s because God allowed them to fail for whatever reason He deems to have and He doesn’t always let us know why. We have to remember … He’s God and we aren’t.
Game plan and playbook rule number 4, fellowship! We need to regular fellowship with like believers. We need to make it our habit to have regular fellowship with other Christians. Regular attendance at church is nice, attending Sunday school, attend a Bible study, in the church or in a home. Host a Bible study and have fellowship with other Christians. Do whatever it is to gain knowledge of God’s word. Surround yourself with knowledgeable people, people that can assist you in learning God’s word. We need to seek out people of Godly knowledge and having a Godly spirit, people who are spiritually mature.
• Proverbs 15: 22 … “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed”.
Friend all of this is known as preparation. We need to be prepared for what we have been called to do, no not just called but directed or commanded to do by our Lord. If we are to bring the unsaved into the knowledge of Jesus Christ we need to be prepared for the task that lies ahead of us. Like a football player we need to be fully equipped both physically and mentally but we also need to carry it one additional step that the football player isn’t concerned with. We need to be fully equipped in the spiritual realm as well. Our spirit needs to be prepared because the opponent we are going against is equally ready to wage a war against us. Satan has been playing in this game for a long long time, he’s studied his game plan, he’s studied his playbook and he’s fully assured that he can win the game, and he can if we allow him. Although Jesus has already gained us the victory of that final Super Bowl in the heavens we can loose a game or two down here on earth if we aren’t prepared. The championship is ours to be had, Jesus has already assured us the victory, he’s already guaranteed us the ring of a champion and accepted us as members of his team, but it’s up to us to take up the preparation. As a member of the winning team of Christ we’ve looked at what it’s going to take to make it through the final game and on to glory. We already saw how we need to be in a state of prayer life on a regular basis. How we need to study to show ourselves to be approved workmen, approved team members. We’ve already seen how we need to be committed to the task of winning our super bowl ring and how part of that commitment is found in fellowship with the other team members.
The final stage of preparation I want to close with is suiting up for the game. Just like in the Super Bowl both football teams wear a uniform so that they can see each other in the crowd of people on the playing field, so likewise are we to wear the uniform our team owner has selected for us. God has laid out our uniform. He’s given us all that we need for protection in the game of games so that we can walk away victorious and without injury. Just like the football player who wears padding and protection to cover the areas where he is most likely to be struck by his opponent, God had given us this same kind of protection in his uniform. You may have already guessed where I am going with this. Look at Ephesians chapter 6, starting with verse 10.
“Finally be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is now against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all of this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints”.
I want to call your attention to just a few things about this reading. First and foremost, notice that our struggle isn’t in this world, not our physical world of flesh and blood, it’s in the spiritual world, that’s where the real battle is going on. In this world we are going to have ups and downs, pains cuts and boo boos. That’s just a part of life in a fallen world. My friend we aren’t going to see perfection here on this earth until Jesus Christ returns and gathers his bride and carries us off to the new earth. It’s not going to happen! God doesn’t promise perfection here on earth, but what he does promise is that when we leave here, it’s going to be perfection in heaven. That’s the promise of God. Now look at the list of verbs in this reading. Put on the full armor of God! God doesn’t dress us; he just gives us the uniform. It’s up to us to put the thing on. God provides us with his armor but it’s up to us to take it and put it on. God provides us with armor but we don’t wear it and we get hurt whose fault is it, God’s or ours? If we are given armor to wear into battle and we elect not to wear it aren’t we acting a bit foolish? If we have the proper armor at our disposal it’s our responsibility to put it on.
Stand firm then with the belt of truth. We have to stand firm, it’s our responsibility to take a stand and not waver back and forth. We wouldn’t go to a football game wearing the helmet of one team and the jersey of the other would we? Of course not! We pick our team and stay with them, that’s what makes us a fan of our team, we support them in their endeavor to win. When we pick the team of God we need to stay with that team, we need to stand firm in our decision and not waver back and forth. In the book of James we are admonished about not being like a wave in the sea tossed back and forth by the wind. Pick your team, stand firm and don’t look back! Jesus even told us that once we put our shoulder to the stone we can’t go back any more. If we’ve selected the helmet of God we need to quit putting on the jersey of Satan! We need to quit falling back into a sin lifestyle. In the Super Bowl when we run with the ball we have to run in just one direction, we don’t get to pick which goal like we want to cross, we don’t get to say “I think I’ll run to the one that is the closest or the easiest to reach”. If you really think about it isn’t the goal we’re after the one that is the hardest to get to? Isn’t the goal the one that is most defended by the opposition? That’s the way it is in football and that’s the way it is in life. Satan is going to love it if we run to his goal line but we don’t score any points by not standing firm in our belief. Stand firm, every time we get to the goal line we need to score points for God, don’t waver and score any points for the other team.
Take the shield of faith, take the helmet of salvation, and take the sword of the Spirit. God has provided all these things for us, He’s laid them out for our use, but it’s up to us to take them. God isn’t going to force us to take them but He has provided them for our use. God’s provided all these things and he’s telling us in his word to take them, grab hold of these things and don’t fumble they away, like a good football player, hold on to them with all you have. And like any football game, remember that the opposition is trying to take from us what we have, Satan is trying to cause us to fumble. Satan would love to see us fumble away our faith, he would love to see us doubt and question, don’t do it, stand firm. He would love to see us fumble away our salvation, to fall into a sinful state and reject Jesus and his mighty work on the cross, don’t do it, stand firm. And Satan would love to see us fail to use the gifts of the Spirit, to see those gifts lay useless like a Bible on a shelve gathering dust rather than opened and read. Don’t do it, stand firm, use the Bible, use the gifts of the Spirit and use them wisely and often. Take advantage of everything offered by God, if he didn’t want us to have it and use it he wouldn’t have offered it to begin with. Any other thought, doubt or question is a lie and a trick of the enemy. Satan is trying to win the Super Bowl of all super bowls, let there be no doubt about it. He would love to be the champion but in reality he is already a defeated foe. Satan isn’t going to get the ring, he isn’t going to get bragging rights and he’s not going to like it when he sees the final score. When they post the final score and it shows the number of souls under God’s name and the number of souls under Satan’s name the entire universe is going to know who the winner really is. We have to do all that we can to make sure that our name in the right column. And we have to do all we can to make sure that no one else’s name is in the wrong column because we didn’t do our part in getting them on the winning team with us. Every player deserves to win the Super Bowl ring and every player deserves to be a winner; not for what we’ve done; but because of what was done for us by Jesus on the cross. This is the most important game we will ever play in, lets go out there and play out hearts out, and lets go out there and show the world that we are champions and our team owner is a King.
Grace and peace
By Rev. Robert P. Elkins
All Scripture verse taken from the NIV Bible unless otherwise noted
I want you to realize that there isn’t one person on either of the teams, not one player, one coach, one trained, one medical person, one equipment person, one assistant of any kind, not one person connected with any team in the NFL that is there in his or her position that is there without intensive training in their field of expertise. Be it a player who knows and runs the routes his position calls for or a coach that decided what play to run. Every person is a well-trained professional. And yes that includes the Buffalo Bills and every other team in the league that didn’t do so good this year. Every single person you see on the television connected with a team has practiced their profession for many long hours, read books, studied films, learned plays, spent hours in a classroom, hours in a gym working with weights, running lifting and sweating. And all for the right to call themselves an NFL player or a team member. And should that team make it to the Super Bowl and win the game, they all get a ring, not just the players.
This is what we have to do in life as well. For the most part, in this country, just about every person has to train long hard hours getting some kind of education if they are to rise to be any level of self sufficient, productive and mature adult. Granted there are many places in the world where education isn’t as important in their culture or as easy to obtain as it is in our country. But for the most part in the great United States of America, we educate our children and adults at least in the basics to enable them to compete in life. And when looking at all the people in juxtapose to the NFL players, the NFL players making up the entire NFL and the people making up our society, we can see that just as they are one cut above the average in their field of sports, we are one cut above the rest of society as Christians. As the NFL player has to take it to a higher level to go to the top of his game likewise we, as Christians have to take it to a higher level to be Christians.
In the NFL, most of the players get to play in the games throughout the season be it a starter or a backup who gets the call in the event of an injury. But once they start the playoff games many teams and many players fall by the wayside. They no longer get to play and they are like the rest of us, they are watchers, no longer are they participants but just viewers. Once they get to the playoff games the starters are actually able to take their game to yet another level and many of them put out so much extra effort that they play through many an injury. They play through something that in the regular season would have put them on the sidelines for a play or a game. When they get to the playoff games they turn into super players. And throughout the playoffs as each team looses they are dropped to the level of viewer and only the winners advance to the next level or play. They continue to follow this pattern until they come to the division championship game. And then from the ranks of what was once many, only one team from each side gains the right to go to the Super Bowl and try to win that coveted title of world champion and walk away with a super bowl ring on their finger.
And who is the winner? Why they are the one’s who usually work the hardest, practice the hardest, put the most into their game and are the most hungry for that title and ring. While all of them worked really hard to reach that one elusive game, it is usually the ones that put the most extra effort into it that walk away the winner. The ones who win are the ones who execute the plays just a little better than the other guys. They’re the ones who ran just a bit faster, turned just a little sharper, stopped just a fraction quicker and over all preformed just a little better than the other guys. And it’s this special group who did just a little better that gets to have the bragging rights for the next year and who get to wear that super bowl ring for life. While all the players in the league can say, “I’m a NFL player” only a few can say, “I’m a super bowl winner and here’s my ring to prove it”.
Now how do we tie this into the Christian experience? How do we make that leap from NFL player to the everyday person that is walking the street and how do we apply this to us today?
The world is filled with people. Just about anyplace you go you are going to run into people. Red, yellow, white or black, there are going to be people of some kind, of some color, just about anyplace you go. I think with the exception of Antarctica there are people just about anyplace you look. And the only reason they aren’t all over Antarctica is that the climate is so harsh it’s really super hard to live there. And even in that, there are people going there, I have an aunt who went there on vacation, she went in the summer because then it’s only 20 below zero rather than the 90 below in the winter. She stayed in an “Ice Hotel”! Somehow that doesn’t sound like a great vacation to me. Usually I’d say “Oh cool” but that is just to cool to suite me.
And out of all these people in the world there is a select group known as Christians. Again in looking at us the people in juxtapose to the rest of society we, the Christian, are to be the cut above who have advanced to the higher level. We are the ones who have risen above the rest to claim that title that eludes the rest of the world. We’re the ones who are set apart from the rest and for this we have to give the glory to God because it sure isn’t anything we’ve done on our own. (1st Peter 2:9) “9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” Or perhaps it is better stated in the Amplified Bible as
“9But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a dedicated nation, [God's] own]purchased, special people, that you may set forth the wonderful deeds and display the virtues and perfections of Him Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” Either way what it says is that God chose each of us and he’s made us a special people. By the standards of God we are the ones who can say we are Christians much like the football players say I play in the NFL. And as they get the ring to show and proudly display we have the cross of Jesus.
And just who are these Christians? What makes us so special? How did we become so special? We’re the ones who have bent the knee and acknowledged that Jesus Christ is Lord of lords and King of kings. We’re the ones who acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God and he is God. That’s the only difference between us and them, the rest of the people in the world. For the most part we all walk the same, look the same {taking into consideration some obvious differences}. We all use a form of communication known as language, we reproduce the same, eat the same way if not the same kinds of food. We try to get comfortable in the same ways, we try to keep warm or keep cool seeking to keep our bodies in about the same range of temperature. In short we all pretty much act the same as everyone else. It’s not until we become followers of Jesus Christ and acknowledge Him as our Lord do we show or exhibit behavior any different than everyone else. Like the football players who are all members of the NFL, we are all members of the human race, people created in the image of God and loved by God. But we the Christian have been set apart, we’ve gone to the next level solely by our belief in Jesus, and that only by the grace of God.
But here we see the juxtapose between the NFL and the Christian take a far different turn of events. You see in the NFL the object of the game is for only one team to make it to the Super Bowl. Only one group is to earn that title and wear the ring. In the Christian faith we want to see everyone get to the big game, we want to see everyone make it to what we call heaven or eternity with God. While the football player wants his team and only his team to be the winner, we want everyone to be a winner right along side of us because we would like to see everyone on the same team as we are. We want to see every person in the world right there with us in glory, right there in Beulah land standing shoulder to shoulder with us. We want to see everyone with the title of Champion, we want to see them all wearing the title of Christian and go to the cross to be covered by the blood of Jesus where all sin and iniquity is washed away by that blood. We don’t want to see anyone left behind or missing the boat.
In Matthew 28 we read the words of Jesus. “I have been given all authority in heaven and earth. Therefore go and make disciples in all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and teach these new disciples to obey the commandments I have given you”.
If we were to paraphrase what Jesus said in that verse it could come out like this. “Go get all the players on earth, bring them into my Christian faith, get them to my Super Bowl and my father and I and my Holy Spirit will make all of them winners. You bring them in and we’ll make them champions”.
How are we going to do this? Just like the NFL players. Preparation, preparation and more preparation. The NFL uses a game plan and a play- book; we use God’s game plan and His Bible. What’s one of our main plays as Christians? Number 1, Prayer! The Bible instructs us to pray.
• Ephesians 6: 18 … “pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests”.
• Philippians 4: 6 … “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God”.
Do you realize that we can pray anywhere and anytime? We can pray anywhere and anytime even in this slightly off center world in which we live. Prayer is one thing we can all do inside our own mind and no one else need know that we are doing it. We don’t have to be vocal to pray, prayer can be a shout or a whisper but it can also be a mental conversation that is only heard between us and God. Mental prayer is great; it’s as good as speaking in tongues. Mental prayer and tongues are like a person to person telephone call directly to God and Satan can’t listen in.
Another part of our game plan and playbook from God is number 2, Study! We need to study God’s word on a regular basis.
• 2nd Timothy 2: 15 … “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needs not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth”. That’s from the KJV, the NIV translates it as; “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, an workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth”.
Unless you are one of the few that are truly gifted to have a photographic memory knowing and understanding the scriptures will require study on your behalf. Allow me to make one thing perfectly clear though, there is nothing in the scriptures that is beyond the grasp and comprehension of anyone unless there is a server learning disability. And even then the power of the Spirit can come upon the person and endow them with a gift of learning that exceeds many others. Remember we are dealing with a God of miracles and nothing is beyond his scope or range of doing. There are no hidden messages in the scriptures, there is no secret codes that need to be unlocked, there is nothing but the pure word of God and in his infinite wisdom God has put foreword his word in a book that anyone can use. Granted it may take some diligence on behalf of the reader, it may take some searching to find the meaning of some of the beautiful jewels of wisdom to be found. But with the ample supply of resource materials available finding the meaning, the knowledge and beauty of the Bible will be a pure pleasure for you.
Game plan and playbook rule number 3, Commitment! We need to commit our work to God.
• Proverbs 16: 3 … “Commit to the Lord whatever you do and your plans will succeed”.
{A word of caution here … if we want success in our plans then our plans need to be done in God’s way and in His will.} No one is ever successful at anything if they aren’t committed to what they are doing. We’ve been comparing the Christian to the NFL player; neither will be where they want to be unless there is a level of commitment involved. The football player must commit time and energy to the game plan; the Christian must commit the same to their faith. If we commit the entire Bible to memory and never use any of it in life it is of no use at all. Whether we know the Bible or not has no effect on our salvation, salvation comes through belief in Jesus Christ and without exception there is no other way. But the Bible, God’s instruction manual for our walk through life is a key element for that walk. The Bible instructs us in how to behave, how to talk, how to pray; how to witness for Christ, how to do just about everything there is to be done and we need to commitment in our use of this wonderful book. But please remember what I said at the start of this segment, our commitment needs to be within the guidelines of God’s desires for us. And to know what God’s desires for us are we need to know what his word says to and about us. And in order to know the answer to what the desires of God are we need to know the Bible and to know the Bible brings us back to commitment.
• Proverbs 16: 9 … “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps”. We can make all the plans we want, but in the final analysis under the divine providence of God it’s God who determines the outcome of our plans. If our plans don’t come to fulfillment it’s because God allowed them to fail for whatever reason He deems to have and He doesn’t always let us know why. We have to remember … He’s God and we aren’t.
Game plan and playbook rule number 4, fellowship! We need to regular fellowship with like believers. We need to make it our habit to have regular fellowship with other Christians. Regular attendance at church is nice, attending Sunday school, attend a Bible study, in the church or in a home. Host a Bible study and have fellowship with other Christians. Do whatever it is to gain knowledge of God’s word. Surround yourself with knowledgeable people, people that can assist you in learning God’s word. We need to seek out people of Godly knowledge and having a Godly spirit, people who are spiritually mature.
• Proverbs 15: 22 … “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed”.
Friend all of this is known as preparation. We need to be prepared for what we have been called to do, no not just called but directed or commanded to do by our Lord. If we are to bring the unsaved into the knowledge of Jesus Christ we need to be prepared for the task that lies ahead of us. Like a football player we need to be fully equipped both physically and mentally but we also need to carry it one additional step that the football player isn’t concerned with. We need to be fully equipped in the spiritual realm as well. Our spirit needs to be prepared because the opponent we are going against is equally ready to wage a war against us. Satan has been playing in this game for a long long time, he’s studied his game plan, he’s studied his playbook and he’s fully assured that he can win the game, and he can if we allow him. Although Jesus has already gained us the victory of that final Super Bowl in the heavens we can loose a game or two down here on earth if we aren’t prepared. The championship is ours to be had, Jesus has already assured us the victory, he’s already guaranteed us the ring of a champion and accepted us as members of his team, but it’s up to us to take up the preparation. As a member of the winning team of Christ we’ve looked at what it’s going to take to make it through the final game and on to glory. We already saw how we need to be in a state of prayer life on a regular basis. How we need to study to show ourselves to be approved workmen, approved team members. We’ve already seen how we need to be committed to the task of winning our super bowl ring and how part of that commitment is found in fellowship with the other team members.
The final stage of preparation I want to close with is suiting up for the game. Just like in the Super Bowl both football teams wear a uniform so that they can see each other in the crowd of people on the playing field, so likewise are we to wear the uniform our team owner has selected for us. God has laid out our uniform. He’s given us all that we need for protection in the game of games so that we can walk away victorious and without injury. Just like the football player who wears padding and protection to cover the areas where he is most likely to be struck by his opponent, God had given us this same kind of protection in his uniform. You may have already guessed where I am going with this. Look at Ephesians chapter 6, starting with verse 10.
“Finally be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is now against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all of this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints”.
I want to call your attention to just a few things about this reading. First and foremost, notice that our struggle isn’t in this world, not our physical world of flesh and blood, it’s in the spiritual world, that’s where the real battle is going on. In this world we are going to have ups and downs, pains cuts and boo boos. That’s just a part of life in a fallen world. My friend we aren’t going to see perfection here on this earth until Jesus Christ returns and gathers his bride and carries us off to the new earth. It’s not going to happen! God doesn’t promise perfection here on earth, but what he does promise is that when we leave here, it’s going to be perfection in heaven. That’s the promise of God. Now look at the list of verbs in this reading. Put on the full armor of God! God doesn’t dress us; he just gives us the uniform. It’s up to us to put the thing on. God provides us with his armor but it’s up to us to take it and put it on. God provides us with armor but we don’t wear it and we get hurt whose fault is it, God’s or ours? If we are given armor to wear into battle and we elect not to wear it aren’t we acting a bit foolish? If we have the proper armor at our disposal it’s our responsibility to put it on.
Stand firm then with the belt of truth. We have to stand firm, it’s our responsibility to take a stand and not waver back and forth. We wouldn’t go to a football game wearing the helmet of one team and the jersey of the other would we? Of course not! We pick our team and stay with them, that’s what makes us a fan of our team, we support them in their endeavor to win. When we pick the team of God we need to stay with that team, we need to stand firm in our decision and not waver back and forth. In the book of James we are admonished about not being like a wave in the sea tossed back and forth by the wind. Pick your team, stand firm and don’t look back! Jesus even told us that once we put our shoulder to the stone we can’t go back any more. If we’ve selected the helmet of God we need to quit putting on the jersey of Satan! We need to quit falling back into a sin lifestyle. In the Super Bowl when we run with the ball we have to run in just one direction, we don’t get to pick which goal like we want to cross, we don’t get to say “I think I’ll run to the one that is the closest or the easiest to reach”. If you really think about it isn’t the goal we’re after the one that is the hardest to get to? Isn’t the goal the one that is most defended by the opposition? That’s the way it is in football and that’s the way it is in life. Satan is going to love it if we run to his goal line but we don’t score any points by not standing firm in our belief. Stand firm, every time we get to the goal line we need to score points for God, don’t waver and score any points for the other team.
Take the shield of faith, take the helmet of salvation, and take the sword of the Spirit. God has provided all these things for us, He’s laid them out for our use, but it’s up to us to take them. God isn’t going to force us to take them but He has provided them for our use. God’s provided all these things and he’s telling us in his word to take them, grab hold of these things and don’t fumble they away, like a good football player, hold on to them with all you have. And like any football game, remember that the opposition is trying to take from us what we have, Satan is trying to cause us to fumble. Satan would love to see us fumble away our faith, he would love to see us doubt and question, don’t do it, stand firm. He would love to see us fumble away our salvation, to fall into a sinful state and reject Jesus and his mighty work on the cross, don’t do it, stand firm. And Satan would love to see us fail to use the gifts of the Spirit, to see those gifts lay useless like a Bible on a shelve gathering dust rather than opened and read. Don’t do it, stand firm, use the Bible, use the gifts of the Spirit and use them wisely and often. Take advantage of everything offered by God, if he didn’t want us to have it and use it he wouldn’t have offered it to begin with. Any other thought, doubt or question is a lie and a trick of the enemy. Satan is trying to win the Super Bowl of all super bowls, let there be no doubt about it. He would love to be the champion but in reality he is already a defeated foe. Satan isn’t going to get the ring, he isn’t going to get bragging rights and he’s not going to like it when he sees the final score. When they post the final score and it shows the number of souls under God’s name and the number of souls under Satan’s name the entire universe is going to know who the winner really is. We have to do all that we can to make sure that our name in the right column. And we have to do all we can to make sure that no one else’s name is in the wrong column because we didn’t do our part in getting them on the winning team with us. Every player deserves to win the Super Bowl ring and every player deserves to be a winner; not for what we’ve done; but because of what was done for us by Jesus on the cross. This is the most important game we will ever play in, lets go out there and play out hearts out, and lets go out there and show the world that we are champions and our team owner is a King.
Grace and peace
Friday, October 1, 2010
Give to Caeser what is Caesar's
Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s
By Rev. Robert P. Elkins
All Scripture verse taken from the NIV Bible unless otherwise noted
Luke 20:23-25
“He saw through their duplicity and said to them, “Show me a denarius. Whose portrait and inscription are on it? “Caesar’s” they replied. He then said to them, “Then give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.”
When Jesus said this I think he was saying something that in close analysis shows a far deeper meaning than what we see at simple face value. On the surface it appears that Jesus was talking about money. Today in America we call it the dollar, its yen in China, euros in Europe, drachma’s in Greece and I think it’s still the pound in England unless they have gone with the euro as has most of Europe which has a very heavy overcast of the end times. The Bible tells of when there will be one world government and one currency and it is quite evident that we are headed in that direction. It’s just a matter of time. That is the reason for urgency in my messages, it’s still not to late too accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Once the trumpet blows and Christ returns it’s a whole new day and things will be different but that’s not the direction this message is going so I better get back to the outline of today.
At that time and place when Jesus physically walked the streets and countryside of what we now call the “Holy Land” the monetary note of choice was the Roman denarius. The denarius was the printed or most likely a better term is, the stamped coin of currency issued under the authority of Rome and used for most types of transactions, and in particular the payment of taxes.
But one of the places where the denarius wasn’t accepted as a type of currency was in the Jewish temple. The Jewish priests issued their own coinage and it was the only accepted currency that could be used to purchase the animals or objects needed for the required sacrifices that needed to be purchased and offered for sin on the altar in the temple as described in The Law. The people would come to the temple with their Roman coins and have to go to the money exchangers who had little tables or booths set up in the outer courts of the temple known as the Court of the Gentiles. There the money changers would exchange the Roman coins for Jewish coins, for a fee of course; the people would then pay a priest for the article of sacrifice, and then offer the sacrifice back to the priest who took it and completed the sacrifice ritual.
The Jewish priests really had a good thing going in the temple if we were to look at this from a business point of view. Being the good godly men that they were, it was the priests that said the evil Roman coin was of no value and had to be exchanged for the good and acceptable Jewish coin. The priests were the ones whom under their authority ordered the issue of Jewish coins to be made for use in temple service. The priests were the ones that made the arrangements for the money exchangers to be in the temple to offer their exchange services, and of course the priest got a portion of the profits from this exchange service. It was the priests that made sure all of the Jews offered a sacrifice for their sins, and it was the priests that received the sacrifice offerings. From the beginning to the end of the transaction in sacrifice offerings, the priests made a profit from every angle to be implemented. A fellow has to make a living now doesn’t he?
Allow me to cover this one more time to make sure we all understand how this worked. The priests ordered the stamping of Jewish coins, for a profit of course; the priests then got the Jewish coins in the hands of the moneychangers, for a profit of course. The moneychangers then sold the Jewish money to the Jewish people taking in the evil Roman coins and charged a fee for this service with the priests getting a cut of the profits for this service. The people then bought from the priests an object for sacrifice, a dove, a bird, an animal of some kind; for a profit of course. And then the priests took the sacrifice to the altar and were able to retain a small portion of the sacrifice for their wages as was fitting for being a poor and humble priest. Now mind you, each time I’ve mentioned a profit being made, it was a profit paid in Roman coins, you remember those bad and evil coins that no good and godly priest would want to handle but did so out of the goodness of their hearts just to get rid of those nasty old Roman coins. The priests did this great and noble service for the poor and simple people because the Jewish coin was pretty much useless for any transactions outside of the temple; there the Roman coin was the desired and accepted coin of use. I think today we would call this a very slick and unique money-laundering scheme, which would most likely be quite illegal in our society. Unless of course you are the government, they do the same thing, they issue the currency, tax you when you get it, tax you when you use it and tax what’s left if you save it making a profit for themselves at every turn in the road. Jesus knew how this system of profit and exchange worked and now maybe you have a good idea why our dear sweet Lord Jesus got so mad when he saw what was going on in his Fathers house of worship. Now you can see why Jesus kicked the tables of the moneychangers over and drove the owners of the tables out of the building. Jesus knew they were crooks and he let everyone know that he knew it. I think it’s safe to say that Jesus wasn’t a bit bashful in addressing sin when he saw it. What our dear Savior did was follow a practice we today call “Civil Disobedience”. Jesus saw a practice of the ruling government, in this case the temple priests, Jesus saw a practice that went against the law of the Father and he followed the higher order; that of course being the order of God and he, Jesus, rebelled against the government edict that allowed this money changing system to function in God’s house.
I think we can also see the wisdom Jesus displayed when challenged in regards to the Roman currency. Jesus said that if the Roman system or government of Rome wanted to collect taxes from their Roman currency then give them what they wanted. Jesus knew the recorded word of God, he wrote it. Jesus knew that in the Old Testament, which was the only Scriptures they had at that time; that it was clearly prophesied that when the people rejected God as their king and demanded a human king like the heathen nations around them, that that king would be demanding the payment of taxes to support his government and that under the order established and permitted by God that king then had the right to demand the taxes and the people under his authority were obligated to pay them. God warned the people about the problems they would encounter under the leadership and authority of human kings and what would be required of the people should they go with human kings over having God as their king and ruler which was the system they then lived with at that time. The people were unrelenting in their desires and said, “give us a human king”, which God did, the king said, “thanks for the job, now give me taxes” and the taxes needed to be paid. Pure and simple politics at it’s best. You can read for yourself the account of how this all transpired, the people’s demand for a king, God’s warning about not getting one because they would be under a heavy burden of taxes if they had a king and God’s walking away for the table when the people wouldn’t relent in their demands. It is all there in 1st Samuel the eighth chapter.
But the paying of taxes isn’t the only object lesson to be learned from this portion of scripture. There are other principles to be learned as well. There is more fruit to be harvested in this because the words of Jesus are seldom just a sandwich; usually they are a complete meal with everything from the appetizer to the desert, kind of like going to the buffet for seconds and thirds. In our opening reading, in the twenty-four red letter words of our Lord alone should the Holy Spirit inspire me I could glean a half dozen sermons, God does that all the time with people all over the world.
Yes, Jesus is saying that paying taxes owed to the government is the proper thing to do. It’s our obligation to pay taxes and in doing so we are being a good witness in the principles of Christianity. We are being obedient to the civil authorities that God has allowed to be established over us. The apostle Paul explains this in greater detail in the 13th chapter of the book of Romans. Starting with verse one Paul goes on to say, “Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves”. We need to remember this when we start to grumble and complain about our elected officials, there is no one; there is no person, not a one, in any office or position that is there against the will of God. Be it from the highest to the lowest, if they are in office; God allowed it, he may not like what they are doing, and he may not approve of their behavior while in that office, but God in His sovereign power and authority has allowed that person to be there. Sometimes we may question why, what is God’s logic in this? But it’s really a God thing, and it’s not our position to question God. If you are a reader of my materials or should you ever sit in on one of my teachings at some point you are going to hear me use a passage that I go to frequently from Isaiah. (Isaiah 55: 8-11) “8 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. 9 "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, 11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”
If you believe in an all powerful and almighty God, if you believe in divine providence and that God is omnipotent in all things, then you have to believe that it is by God’s authority that anyone and everyone is in office because God allowed it to happen. You see my friends, God has a plan and a purpose for everything and even though there are many times when we can’t see or understand what that purpose is; there are many times when it’s like trying to see the forest through the trees, it is right there in front of us but we just can’t see it. It is still within Gods plan and authority, God’s plan is being carried out regardless of our lack of insight or understanding of the situation. You may be thinking, “Pastor don’t tell me that God wanted President Bill Clinton to conduct himself in the fashion in which he did while he was in power!” No God didn’t want him to conduct himself as he did; nor did God condone his behavior, but isn’t it possible that God allowed it to happen for a greater purpose? Because of Bill Clinton’s lies and lurid behavior thousands of Christians rose up in righteous indignation and went to the ballot polls to cast a vote when in the past they just sat on their righteous moral behinds and complained and grumbled but they did little else. Because of Bill Clinton a message was sent to our political leaders that said, “we have a voice and it’s going to be heard” and that my friends is a good thing!
Getting the Christian to voice their opinion is a good thing just as obedience to the civil authorities is a good thing. Remember, we have established government because God wants it there. But … is this to say that we are to follow the edicts of the government blindly in everything that it says or directs and never question that authority? Is this to say that there is no place for civil disobedience under any circumstance? And the answer to that my friend is a loud and resounding NO! I’m not trying to say that and neither do the scriptures, go back to our reading of Luke. What are the words that Jesus used? “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. We are to give the government their just due but we are to give God his just due as well, and God should come first in the equation.
If government is established under the authority of God, who’s authority is higher, the government or God’s? In this equation, who’s authority do you think should be supreme, God’s authority or the governments? And of course the answer to that question is God’s authority because in all reality there really isn’t much of a question to be found is there? And since God is the higher authority and government is established under God’s authority; when there are times of conflict or disagreement between the two would not common logic tell us that we are to advocate to the will of the one who is in the highest position? In times of conflict when the will of the two authorities are at odds with each other man must submit to the will or desires of God over the will or desires of the ruling government regardless of what that government structure may be.
Our founding fathers knew and understood this concept of government and submission to the higher authority. Look at our system of courts. Should we be in conflict with another person or people what is the process for settling the disagreement? We engage the court system starting with the local or town court. Should we disagree with that court’s ruling we then advance to the court of higher authority, which is usually the county court. If no satisfaction is reached at this level we continue to advance in the system through the various levels of state court, moving onward and upward until finally we arrive at the U.S. Supreme court, this journey exhausting several years and thousands or millions of dollars. Most disagreements are brought to a closure before we arrive at the U.S. Supreme Court, which is our highest level of justice, and it is hoped that by this time all parties have had their chance to voice their opinion and we trust that the judges will render a fair decision.
In our military there is a well established chain of command going from the lowest ranking enlisted man and going up to the highest ranking officer and should you violate that chain of command you open yourself up to charges for that violation. This holds true in the department of corrections as well. You have the correction officer; this is the level I worked at during my career in law enforcement. Next in line were the sergeants who were under the authority of the lieutenants, who were under the authority of the captains who were under the authority of Deputy Superintendents of Security who reported to the final authority in the prison, the superintendent. And of course all the superintendents of the various prisons scattered about the state are under the authority the Department of Corrections. And thus we can see that with each level from officer on up, there is always someone to whom we are accountable to, we are always under the authority of a higher power or authority regardless of who we are and ultimately that higher authority, no matter who they are or what title they carry must come under the final authority and that being God. Once we reach the level of God there is no further appeal process, there is no other place to go and God’s rulings must be obeyed, God’s word is final and complete, God’s rulings are final and complete. There is no higher authority over God!
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. We call it “Civil Disobedience” when we find ourselves in dispute with man’s authority and we then go against that authority even if we find that authority be our form of government. And although we are instructed in the scriptures to obey our governmental leaders is there ever a time when disobedience is acceptable, is there ever a time when disobedience is not only accepted but required? And does the Bible address this situation? The answer to this question is “yes, the Bible does address this very situation”. Look at the book of Galatians in the 1st chapter, looking at verse 10. “Am I now trying to win the approval of men or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ”. You see my friend, if there is a discrepancy between the will of man and the will of God and we want to be servants of Christ then it is the will of God that we must submit to even when it violates the will of man, even when it violates the will of the government because the government isn’t the final authority, God is. I may be bias but I’d venture to day that in America we have the finest form of government to be found on this earth. I think our form of government is superior to every other form of government even though it’s not perfect. We will never see perfection until Jesus Christ returns in all power and authority to rule this world but until that time what we have is the best to be found even with its flaws and imperfections. By and large, in theory our government is directed by the will of society, and at times the will of society, the will of the government is in opposition with the will of God. And it’s within these times that the Christian has the responsibility to be in or practice civil disobedience to the government. Allow me to give you a few examples.
In our present situation in America today what is the biggest discrepancy between the will of man and the will of God? I would think abortion! There may be many others but in my mind abortion is the largest of all the divisions to be found between man’s government and God. Our government, our society, our elected leaders and appointed judges have taken a stand for abortion that is in direct violation to the recorded will of God. Our society and our leaders have said that it is alright it kill unborn children and to use this process of selected murder as a form of birth control eliminating a entire generation of people to cover over or mask our sinful lifestyle. It is more acceptable in our society of today to eliminate the results of a sinful lifestyle than to speak out against the sin that creates this result. Our society now says that each individual has the right to do with their own body whatever they desire and should the results of that use be a unwanted child then it is alright and acceptable to kill that child without consequence.
But this is not what God says, not in regards to children .God tells us that children are a blessing from Him and that they are a gift, given by God. Psalm 127 says; “Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of the mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that has his quiver full of them”. Happy is the man that has his quiver full of them, full of what? Why children of course, the man with many children is to be happy that he has them. Children are to be a blessing to us, where is the blessing if we kill them off? Proverbs 17 says; “Children’s children are the crown of old men and the glory of children are their fathers”. Not only are children a blessing from God but grandchildren as well. The children’s children are the crown of old men. We are to delight in our children and our children’s children, the children are a blessing and the grandkids are an extra blessing, for every child aborted, for every generation aborted there is the future generation aborted as well. When a child’s life is ended so likewise the ending of the potential prodigy that child may have created had they reached adulthood. God tells us that children are his blessing, that we are to love them, protect them, educate them, nurture them and watch them grow to maturity that we may be blessed with their children as our heritage. Jeremiah 19 tells us the mind of God in regards to child abuse, “They had built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as offerings to Baal, something I did not command or mention, nor did it enter my mind”. The killing of children doesn’t even enter God’s mind, so why does it enter ours? If this thought isn’t from God then where did it come from? I’ll let you answer that for yourselves, I think you already know the answer to that one. We should all know that there are two spiritual forces at war in this world, God and the evil one, and if the thoughts didn’t originate with God then it had to come from the other spiritual force and our society has fallen victim to the evil one’s way of thinking. And although our society says it is all right to kill our young with the flawed logic being that because they haven’t really been born yet and come out of the womb, consequently they can’t be real humans either. It is in this flawed logic that we as a society face a real conundrum. On the one hand where we’ve said the child isn’t really a child because it hasn’t been born out of the womb, and on the other hand society says that should you kill a woman who is pregnant you’ve then killed two people and are responsible for two lives, the mother and her unborn child. This friend just doesn’t make any sense. We can’t have it both ways, either the unborn child is a person and represents life in all situations or they do not and God does address this topic and God’s word on this is very clear. Listen to what the Bible says in the book of Psalms in the 139th chapter. “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be”. God sees us before we are even formed in the womb, and he knows us … intimately. He knows all of our days, he knows all about us; and all of this knowledge about us comes before we are even born. That my friends, tells me that from the moment of conception I was a person, I had life and I had a future. This scripture tells me that God knows us from the moment the cells of our male and female parents first unite in the woman’s womb, from that first instant on, from that first new union of what will be a new life, we are a person and as a person we have a spirit. We may not be complete, we may not have all the parts developed yet, but we are a person with a spirit that God knows. If we weren’t a person, even if we are only a small and incomplete person, would God have made mention of us in his word were it not true? Would he have given us this place in his book of instruction and direction?
Let me approach this from a different perspective for a bit. Can a non-person sin? A rock isn’t a person right? So can a rock commit a sin? We all know the answer to that is “no, a rock can’t sin”. But what about other things, I’m an animal lover, I love animals, in particular dogs, and I have to tell you “I really love dogs”. But dogs can’t sin! If I have a dog and that dog chews up something of mine it isn’t a sin, granted I’d be angry about it but I couldn’t say that the animal sinned, they just did what comes natural to them and it comes to be an aggravation to me, but no sin has been committed. Why? Because the dog doesn’t have a soul and a spirit, the dog doesn’t have that spiritual connection to God that man has. Man has soul and spirit, that’s where the connection to God comes from, the spirit of man and God the Spirit, two unique spirits in communication. You don’t find that with a dog, love them as we may, they aren’t privy to or don’t have the same attention of God as man does because there isn’t that spiritual connection. Be honest now, have you or do you know of anyone that has had a dog or for that matter had any animal that has done something we perceive as wrong and said to the animal; “look at how great your sin is!” I doubt it. We may have told the pet that they were bad, “Bad boy, bad boy, look what you did”. But we don’t tell them that they sinned because they don’t have a spirit and sin is a spiritual thing. Pets, animals, when they do wrong; it’s a physical act and it’s declared “wrong” in a physical sense but that’s where it stops, in the physical. But we humans, when we do wrong in the physical we sin in the spiritual. The physical action is the wrong doing, but it’s not sin, not in the physical part of the equation. But in our spirit … here’s where the two, the physical and the spirit are interwoven, the physical action although wrong is not sin but creates the sin factor, the sin is in the spirit part of us and the two can’t be separated, that’s why this is such a hard concept to grasp. In our human minds we can’t separate the two, we can’t conceive us as having a physical and a spiritual part without uniting the two as one and that’s how God made us. Animals have the physical only, we as humans have the physical and the spiritual because we, and not animals are made in the image of God.
To give you a clearer idea of what I’m saying try thinking of it like this. The physical man does something wrong and sins, say grand larceny; they’ve taken something that wasn’t theirs. The taking of the item was the physical action, it was the wrongdoing. The spirit now is in a state of sin because of the physical action of the taking of the item. The person is now arrested and convicted in a court of law and given a jail sentence for their crime. They do their time in jail, they are released from custody and their obligation to society has been met. If we were physical beings without a spirit like the animals this would be the end of it, the entire situation would be over at this point, a crime was committed, a time was served for that crime and the laws of the land have been fulfilled. But the story doesn’t end here because there is still a part of this act that still exists … in the spirit of the person. They still carry the sin in their spirit, man has been appeased by the incarceration, but God hasn’t because the person is to this point unrepentant, they haven’t acknowledged their sin and they haven’t asked for forgiveness from God.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. Man has been given what he desires, in this case a jail term for a crime. But God hasn’t been given what he desires, a repentant spirit.
Now … the person realizes that what they did was also against the will of God so they repent and come to God and ask for forgiveness. Again… they have truly done so with a repentant heart and being the kind and grace giving God that we serve, God in his mercy forgives that sin, the sin is no longer sin, it is no longer there, it is no longer remembered, God’s word tells us that God not only forgives but he forgets sin so it’s gone, the slate is wiped clean, it’s like it never was and the person’s spirit is now free from judgment for that now forgotten sin. Now, Caesar has what he deserves, time served for a crime, and God has what he deserves too, a soul, which is back in union with God without the division of sin between the spirit of man and God the Spirit. I hope through this illustration you can see that man is more than one-dimensional; I hope you can see that man is physical and at the same time; that man is spiritual, and the two can’t be separated from each other, what one does the other either enjoys the consequences of or suffers the consequences of that action. I hope I’ve made my stand on this a little clearer and now I’ll return to where I was before I made that little detour for clarity’s sake.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. I want you to remember that we aren’t talking solely about financial matters; this command of Jesus talks of much more than just money. We are still talking about civil disobedience and giving to God what is God’s even if it goes against the law of the present day society. And now we are going to look at civil disobedience from a different perspective, and yet it will still be with children in the middle of the focus.
I’m an advocate in the belief of prenatal sin, I’m an advocate, or it is my belief that a child can sin in the womb, that a child can sin prior to birth. You may not believe in this or maybe you’ve never even given it a thought, and that’s okay because I’m not here today to try to change your thoughts or get you to think along the lines my minds goes to. I’m not here to argue about it with anyone because in the final analysis whether you believe it’s possible for a child to sin prior to birth or not, it’s not going to have any effect upon our salvation. Lets go to the Gospel of John reading in the 9th chapter. “As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” Look what it says here people, the man was born blind from birth and the disciples are asking who sinned to bring this to happen, the man or his parents. The disciples were with the understanding that the blindness was the result of sin, either the mans, or his parents, and since the blindness was present at the time of birth and that since it could have been the man’s fault or the result of the man’s sin, his sin had to be prenatal. I think you’ll find the words of Jesus to be quite interesting here. Jesus didn’t say, “Well the man couldn’t sin because he hadn’t been born yet and it’s not the result of the parents either”. But what Jesus did say is that neither the man nor his parents sinned resulting in the blindness, thus indicating while not actually saying; that it was possible for either the man or his parents to have sinned and the sin to be the possible cause for the blindness. And in my mind that opens the door to the possibility of pre birth or prenatal sinning.
By now you may be saying; “okay, you’ve got my attention, I may not be buying all of this but you do have my attention. So how can a child sin before birth? How can that be possible?” Although this sounds like a complex question the answer is actually very simple and we have already talked about it. Even before the child is birthed from the womb it is still a person, it is still a little tiny people/person with a spirit and a soul, and remember you have to have a spirit to sin. At the moment of conception that spirit was there and from the moment that spirit was there the ability to sin was there as well. But you don’t have to take my word for it, go to the Scriptures, what do the Scriptures say about this? Psalm 51:5-6 “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Surly you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.” Look at psalm 58:3 “Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward and speak lies.” When a child exits the womb the ability to speak lies is already present. We come with a sin nature already installed, it’s a standard part not an option that is added on later. It’s something we inherited for our farthest removed relatives, Adam and Eve. They are the only humans other than Christ to be born without the sin factor already in their being. Still not sure, look in Genesis in the 6th chapter. “The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time.” That’s very strong language friend, “I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me”; “Every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time”. Although modern science is usually at odds with the Holy Scriptures, strangely enough in this case modern science proves the Scriptures out to be correct. Through the marvels of modern science we can measure the brain activity of the youngest embryo in a mother’s womb, through the marvels of modern science we can now see and register the effects of voices on the unborn fetus, man can prove that the unborn child responds to music and to the sound of the parent’s voices while still in the womb. Today parents are encouraged to talk to their unborn child while that child is still in the womb, to sing to the child, to have conversations with the child and the child responds … while still in the womb the unborn child knows and recognizes their parent’s voice. And after birth, the child shows that it has already established a bonding with the parents because it knew them from their voices before the child was born, and that applies to both the mother and the father. It was always known that there was a special bond between the child and the mother because of the mother carrying the child inside her body, but now there is proof that the child can have a bonding with the father and the mother at the time of it’s birth because the child recognizes them from hearing them as they talk to that child. Friend, if that child is capable of thinking about its parents before birth it is capable to make judgments and in its mind conceive sinful thoughts as well. A child developing in an abusive situation, a situation where the mother is being abused by the father or where the mother is in a violent or vile surroundings that child will exit the womb and enter the world with anger or fear or both already in it’s mind, it will already have a predisposed nature to negative emotions and sinful conduct. And I’m not the only one saying this, the Bible is saying it too, the Word of God is saying it. God is saying that every thought is sinful until the proper Word of God is planted in that child’s heart.
If you question this, think for a moment about a small child and their actions. If left to their own design will not a child automatically go to the wrong thing or do the wrong things until they are instructed to do differently? Without any instruction a child is going to run into traffic if not instructed against this behavior, if left alone a child is going to play with fire, stick things in an electrical outlet, fight with other children, scream just for the sake of screaming, take toys from other children and the list goes on and on. Come on now, you know I’m right don’t you? If you don’t instruct a child, if that child isn’t shown the right way or correct way to behave, if that child isn’t trained or instructed in behavior, it is going to be one little monster in activity, in behavior and character. Go to any store or public place, go to any school function or any activity where there is a gathering of children and it won’t take long before you are able to make a distinction between the children that have received proper instruction and correction from the parents in the home and from those who have not. If you study the children’s behavior for just a few moments you will be able to see the ones who behave well in public and the ones who do not, you will be able to see the children that have received instruction and the ones who have not. If left uninstructed little children do little nasty things and bigger children do bigger nasty things and it doesn’t change with age. If you doubt these words just look at the prison systems in the United States, the jails are filled with people who were never filled with the word of God and who were left to their own design and to find their own way in the world. They didn’t gravitate to the right or godly way of doing things, they gravitated to the wrong and ungodly way of doing things and now they are a burden on society and on God’s heart.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. Remember what we have already established, God’s authority is to be respected over the authority of government, it’s called “Civil Disobedience” and it’s not only acceptable but required when man tries to usurp God and go against God’s commands and laws. I’ve talked a lot about abortion and correctly so because it is one of the biggest contradictions between man and God, but there are others and we will address just a few and most likely not in the same amount of detail as the abortion issue. Time won’t allow for that.
In our society today it is far more acceptable to kill a child through abortion … and talk about it openly … than it is to talk about the circumstances under which the child was conceived if those circumstances were outside the bonds of legal marriage. If we talk openly about abortion in our society today well that’s acceptable, the law said it’s okay to have an abortion and that’s an acceptable practice … because the laws of the land say it’s acceptable, and for the most part, no one gets offended, as long as you aren’t saying that it’s killing children, even though it’s the truth, that’s a no no, then people get offended, they don’t want to hear that part of it. If you say “abortion” well that’s okay, if you say “killing”, well that’s not okay, strange isn’t it how one word is acceptable and the other isn’t? But heaven forbid don’t even talk about how the pregnancy came to be, not if it was through un-matrimonial sin, not if it was through relations outside of the bonds of marriage. Now if you want to offend someone try talking about sexual relations without the marriage bond or a wedding ring. Our society of today, the same one that says abortion is acceptable; also says sexual relations without the ring, God’s blessing and the license are acceptable as well, and I dare say that this is a far more touchy subject and will get you in more hot water than talking about abortions. Why? Because there are a lot more people having sexual relations without the marriage license, God’s blessing and the ring on the finger than there are people having abortions. Although abortions still remain somewhat taboo, having sexual relations in a sinful state is not, not in the society in which we now live, today having intimate relations with someone is almost as common as dating. I hate to have to admit it but it was my generation, the generation of the 60’s that really ushered in this new free lifestyle that has flourished into what we have today and I have to be so ever thankful for God’s grace and mercy in forgiving past sins.
I’ve talked with many young people and if there is one common thread to any of their conversations in regards to the dating process it’s having sexual relations as soon as possible, many times on the first date, before you even know the other person. In our society today the people are intimate with each other before they even know the other person’s last name. In talking with many of these younger people I was amazed to hear that not only is intimate relations a part of the early dating process but it is almost expected, and that’s the opinion of both the men and the women. In regards to our society today I have found out through talking to the young adults and pre-adults that both the men and the women, with the women rapidly becoming the dominant aggressor, intimate relations are integrated into the dating process as early as possible and if one of the partners objects, be it the woman or the man, that person, the one holding back or practicing morality, is then deemed a misfit, and is usually dismissed as a potential partner.
And one of the truly sad parts of this is that our government doesn’t care any longer. Our government and society now turns a blind eye and looks the other way when people enter into intimate relations with each other. Not only does the government and society look the other way, they actually encourage unholy relations between people. Where marriage was once the only acceptable way for a man and woman to cohabit together and should that couple do so without meeting the legal requirements of the law they could find themselves in legal troubles were it reported and if they did cohabit together without falling under the repercussion of the law, after seven years they were considered married under the status known as “Common Law Marriage” this practice was once looked down upon as shameful but it was tolerated and the legal consequences and benefits of marriage then applied to the couple after the seven year period had ended.
But oh how things have changed. All of that is now passé, obsolete, old-fashioned, and out-of-date. The government now allows instant recognition of any relationship as “Domestic Partners” and each partner is allowed the same rewards as the legally married couples. Insurance benefits, medical coverage, shared property, and where is this all headed? The new rage is accepted domestic partners of the same sex; the rewards of marriage now can be applied to homosexuals and lesbians following their perverse lifestyle and demanding “their rights”.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. As Christians are we to follow the laws of the land when those laws go so terribly, so appallingly against the Word of God? Are we to follow a government edict or decree when it is in clear violation of God’s word or, are we to follow the higher power and enter into civil disobedience? We’ve talked about this earlier in this teaching; the answer now is the same as it was before. The answer to this question is that we are compelled to enter into civil disobedience just as Jesus did. The answer is that we are to follow the ruling of the highest authority and rebel against the lower authorities ruling just as Jesus did when there is a division between the lower authority’s ruling and God’s ruling.
We call it “Civil Disobedience”, it’s a form of rebellion, and that’s exactly what we are to do. In a civil fashion we are to be disobedient to the edict of the government when that edict violates the word of God, in a civil fashion we are to rebel against the government if the government places its self in a position that violates the will and word of God. So how do we go about this civil rebellion against the lawful government, the government established by God and placed in its position of authority over us and over the land? To start with, we don’t form or fashion our rebellion or civil disobedience as the world does, we do so in a fashion that does not harm or taint our Christian image. We do so with respect of persons and property, we do so without anger or violence, we do so in humility and gentleness of spirit. We start with prayer, heartfelt and sincere prayer, prayer in our private life and in our corporate gatherings. We offer prayer in your homes and we offer prayer in public, we pray in our family settings and pray in public gatherings. After prayer we voice our opinion to whoever will listen wherever we can, and at times even when they don’t want to listen; but we do it in proper respect. Contact the politicians of your area, contact the news media, let everyone know that you are taking a stand for God and that you want to follow God’s word over mans word if the two are at odds with each other.
If the violation of God’s word is being promoted via the television or some other form of media, the newspaper, the radio, contact the sponsors of that media and tell them that you intend to boycott their products until they stop supporting this misguided cause. If enough people talk to the bottom line of these big companies, take my word for it; you will get their attention. If enough people talk to the bottom line, the almighty buck, and those bucks stop rolling in you will get someone’s attention and it won’t take very long. These sponsoring companies keep a very close eye on the bottom line; they monitor the flow of cash very closely. They are not in business to just provide a product or a service, they are there to make a buck and if anything interferes in that flow of money they will stand up and take notice real fast.
Contact the politicians who are making the decisions, we need to let them know how we feel; we need to express ourselves clearly. Let the politicians know that we are the voting public and that we have a long memory. Remind them that they are there to serve us and if they can’t they can be replaced in the next election. We need to show ourselves in numbers and let the politicians know that we are watching and we are going to be heard, let them know that we intend to be heard in their offices, in their meetings and in the elections polls as well. Always do so with respect, in the book of Titus, in the 3rd chapter we read; “Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.” This is not to say that we walk blindly and are to follow no matter what, remember, God’s authority is the highest authority and we are mandated to follow the highest authority. Again in the book of 1st Peter, in the 2nd chapter we read; “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.” Our elected officials, and those appointed, like them or not, we are to show proper respect. We are allowed to protest, but we are not allowed to show disrespect to our leaders.
Gather together in public places for prayer and petition, let our numbers be seen, there is power in numbers, there is strength in numbers. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work; if one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up. Also if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves, a cord of three strands is not quickly broken”. The Rev. Doctor Martin Luther King knew and understood this concept, using godly principles and acting under the direction of the Holy Spirit Doctor King was able to usher in the greatest change in our nations history since the Civil War.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. All of us are called by God to be able to understand and divide what belongs to whom. I believe that if you’ve made it to this point in this teaching and I haven’t lost you each of you all have the mental capability to read the scriptures and then make a proper judgment as to what belongs to God and what belongs to man. I believe in my heart of hearts that each hearer of this teaching is able to look at the topics I’ve covered and then has the ability to say with clear conscience “Either this is or this is not in agreement with God’s will and I know that I must stand on the side of God in my support of this topic”.
I’ve only covered a small few items that fall under the “What is God’s will about this” category, money, marriage, children, but there are far too many other items that need our inspection and for those things, time now will not allow. Get out your Bible, if there’s dust on it, blow the dust off and open the pages, get involved with God, read his words, look at what he has to say about pollution, the environment, conservation and use of our natural resources, read what God’s word has to say about war, feeding the hungry and homeless, education, taxes, think of a topic and you’ll find that God has addressed it in his word. It’s all there for our use; it’s all just a turned page away. Hosea 4:6 reads; “My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge”. We can’t allow a lack of knowledge to destroy us, with the availability of the diverse amount of educational resources found today there is just no good reason for anyone to not know what God has to say about any subject if only they the person are willing to take a little time and look into God’s word and see what it has to say. I won’t even try to list the resources that are but a fingertip’s touch away because the list grows daily and is so even as I speak. But it’s all out there if we will but only look for it.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s” Each has the right to what they deserve, give what is required and give with joy knowing that when we do our God looks down on us and smiles because we are doing his will.
Grace & peace
By Rev. Robert P. Elkins
All Scripture verse taken from the NIV Bible unless otherwise noted
Luke 20:23-25
“He saw through their duplicity and said to them, “Show me a denarius. Whose portrait and inscription are on it? “Caesar’s” they replied. He then said to them, “Then give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.”
When Jesus said this I think he was saying something that in close analysis shows a far deeper meaning than what we see at simple face value. On the surface it appears that Jesus was talking about money. Today in America we call it the dollar, its yen in China, euros in Europe, drachma’s in Greece and I think it’s still the pound in England unless they have gone with the euro as has most of Europe which has a very heavy overcast of the end times. The Bible tells of when there will be one world government and one currency and it is quite evident that we are headed in that direction. It’s just a matter of time. That is the reason for urgency in my messages, it’s still not to late too accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Once the trumpet blows and Christ returns it’s a whole new day and things will be different but that’s not the direction this message is going so I better get back to the outline of today.
At that time and place when Jesus physically walked the streets and countryside of what we now call the “Holy Land” the monetary note of choice was the Roman denarius. The denarius was the printed or most likely a better term is, the stamped coin of currency issued under the authority of Rome and used for most types of transactions, and in particular the payment of taxes.
But one of the places where the denarius wasn’t accepted as a type of currency was in the Jewish temple. The Jewish priests issued their own coinage and it was the only accepted currency that could be used to purchase the animals or objects needed for the required sacrifices that needed to be purchased and offered for sin on the altar in the temple as described in The Law. The people would come to the temple with their Roman coins and have to go to the money exchangers who had little tables or booths set up in the outer courts of the temple known as the Court of the Gentiles. There the money changers would exchange the Roman coins for Jewish coins, for a fee of course; the people would then pay a priest for the article of sacrifice, and then offer the sacrifice back to the priest who took it and completed the sacrifice ritual.
The Jewish priests really had a good thing going in the temple if we were to look at this from a business point of view. Being the good godly men that they were, it was the priests that said the evil Roman coin was of no value and had to be exchanged for the good and acceptable Jewish coin. The priests were the ones whom under their authority ordered the issue of Jewish coins to be made for use in temple service. The priests were the ones that made the arrangements for the money exchangers to be in the temple to offer their exchange services, and of course the priest got a portion of the profits from this exchange service. It was the priests that made sure all of the Jews offered a sacrifice for their sins, and it was the priests that received the sacrifice offerings. From the beginning to the end of the transaction in sacrifice offerings, the priests made a profit from every angle to be implemented. A fellow has to make a living now doesn’t he?
Allow me to cover this one more time to make sure we all understand how this worked. The priests ordered the stamping of Jewish coins, for a profit of course; the priests then got the Jewish coins in the hands of the moneychangers, for a profit of course. The moneychangers then sold the Jewish money to the Jewish people taking in the evil Roman coins and charged a fee for this service with the priests getting a cut of the profits for this service. The people then bought from the priests an object for sacrifice, a dove, a bird, an animal of some kind; for a profit of course. And then the priests took the sacrifice to the altar and were able to retain a small portion of the sacrifice for their wages as was fitting for being a poor and humble priest. Now mind you, each time I’ve mentioned a profit being made, it was a profit paid in Roman coins, you remember those bad and evil coins that no good and godly priest would want to handle but did so out of the goodness of their hearts just to get rid of those nasty old Roman coins. The priests did this great and noble service for the poor and simple people because the Jewish coin was pretty much useless for any transactions outside of the temple; there the Roman coin was the desired and accepted coin of use. I think today we would call this a very slick and unique money-laundering scheme, which would most likely be quite illegal in our society. Unless of course you are the government, they do the same thing, they issue the currency, tax you when you get it, tax you when you use it and tax what’s left if you save it making a profit for themselves at every turn in the road. Jesus knew how this system of profit and exchange worked and now maybe you have a good idea why our dear sweet Lord Jesus got so mad when he saw what was going on in his Fathers house of worship. Now you can see why Jesus kicked the tables of the moneychangers over and drove the owners of the tables out of the building. Jesus knew they were crooks and he let everyone know that he knew it. I think it’s safe to say that Jesus wasn’t a bit bashful in addressing sin when he saw it. What our dear Savior did was follow a practice we today call “Civil Disobedience”. Jesus saw a practice of the ruling government, in this case the temple priests, Jesus saw a practice that went against the law of the Father and he followed the higher order; that of course being the order of God and he, Jesus, rebelled against the government edict that allowed this money changing system to function in God’s house.
I think we can also see the wisdom Jesus displayed when challenged in regards to the Roman currency. Jesus said that if the Roman system or government of Rome wanted to collect taxes from their Roman currency then give them what they wanted. Jesus knew the recorded word of God, he wrote it. Jesus knew that in the Old Testament, which was the only Scriptures they had at that time; that it was clearly prophesied that when the people rejected God as their king and demanded a human king like the heathen nations around them, that that king would be demanding the payment of taxes to support his government and that under the order established and permitted by God that king then had the right to demand the taxes and the people under his authority were obligated to pay them. God warned the people about the problems they would encounter under the leadership and authority of human kings and what would be required of the people should they go with human kings over having God as their king and ruler which was the system they then lived with at that time. The people were unrelenting in their desires and said, “give us a human king”, which God did, the king said, “thanks for the job, now give me taxes” and the taxes needed to be paid. Pure and simple politics at it’s best. You can read for yourself the account of how this all transpired, the people’s demand for a king, God’s warning about not getting one because they would be under a heavy burden of taxes if they had a king and God’s walking away for the table when the people wouldn’t relent in their demands. It is all there in 1st Samuel the eighth chapter.
But the paying of taxes isn’t the only object lesson to be learned from this portion of scripture. There are other principles to be learned as well. There is more fruit to be harvested in this because the words of Jesus are seldom just a sandwich; usually they are a complete meal with everything from the appetizer to the desert, kind of like going to the buffet for seconds and thirds. In our opening reading, in the twenty-four red letter words of our Lord alone should the Holy Spirit inspire me I could glean a half dozen sermons, God does that all the time with people all over the world.
Yes, Jesus is saying that paying taxes owed to the government is the proper thing to do. It’s our obligation to pay taxes and in doing so we are being a good witness in the principles of Christianity. We are being obedient to the civil authorities that God has allowed to be established over us. The apostle Paul explains this in greater detail in the 13th chapter of the book of Romans. Starting with verse one Paul goes on to say, “Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves”. We need to remember this when we start to grumble and complain about our elected officials, there is no one; there is no person, not a one, in any office or position that is there against the will of God. Be it from the highest to the lowest, if they are in office; God allowed it, he may not like what they are doing, and he may not approve of their behavior while in that office, but God in His sovereign power and authority has allowed that person to be there. Sometimes we may question why, what is God’s logic in this? But it’s really a God thing, and it’s not our position to question God. If you are a reader of my materials or should you ever sit in on one of my teachings at some point you are going to hear me use a passage that I go to frequently from Isaiah. (Isaiah 55: 8-11) “8 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. 9 "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, 11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”
If you believe in an all powerful and almighty God, if you believe in divine providence and that God is omnipotent in all things, then you have to believe that it is by God’s authority that anyone and everyone is in office because God allowed it to happen. You see my friends, God has a plan and a purpose for everything and even though there are many times when we can’t see or understand what that purpose is; there are many times when it’s like trying to see the forest through the trees, it is right there in front of us but we just can’t see it. It is still within Gods plan and authority, God’s plan is being carried out regardless of our lack of insight or understanding of the situation. You may be thinking, “Pastor don’t tell me that God wanted President Bill Clinton to conduct himself in the fashion in which he did while he was in power!” No God didn’t want him to conduct himself as he did; nor did God condone his behavior, but isn’t it possible that God allowed it to happen for a greater purpose? Because of Bill Clinton’s lies and lurid behavior thousands of Christians rose up in righteous indignation and went to the ballot polls to cast a vote when in the past they just sat on their righteous moral behinds and complained and grumbled but they did little else. Because of Bill Clinton a message was sent to our political leaders that said, “we have a voice and it’s going to be heard” and that my friends is a good thing!
Getting the Christian to voice their opinion is a good thing just as obedience to the civil authorities is a good thing. Remember, we have established government because God wants it there. But … is this to say that we are to follow the edicts of the government blindly in everything that it says or directs and never question that authority? Is this to say that there is no place for civil disobedience under any circumstance? And the answer to that my friend is a loud and resounding NO! I’m not trying to say that and neither do the scriptures, go back to our reading of Luke. What are the words that Jesus used? “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. We are to give the government their just due but we are to give God his just due as well, and God should come first in the equation.
If government is established under the authority of God, who’s authority is higher, the government or God’s? In this equation, who’s authority do you think should be supreme, God’s authority or the governments? And of course the answer to that question is God’s authority because in all reality there really isn’t much of a question to be found is there? And since God is the higher authority and government is established under God’s authority; when there are times of conflict or disagreement between the two would not common logic tell us that we are to advocate to the will of the one who is in the highest position? In times of conflict when the will of the two authorities are at odds with each other man must submit to the will or desires of God over the will or desires of the ruling government regardless of what that government structure may be.
Our founding fathers knew and understood this concept of government and submission to the higher authority. Look at our system of courts. Should we be in conflict with another person or people what is the process for settling the disagreement? We engage the court system starting with the local or town court. Should we disagree with that court’s ruling we then advance to the court of higher authority, which is usually the county court. If no satisfaction is reached at this level we continue to advance in the system through the various levels of state court, moving onward and upward until finally we arrive at the U.S. Supreme court, this journey exhausting several years and thousands or millions of dollars. Most disagreements are brought to a closure before we arrive at the U.S. Supreme Court, which is our highest level of justice, and it is hoped that by this time all parties have had their chance to voice their opinion and we trust that the judges will render a fair decision.
In our military there is a well established chain of command going from the lowest ranking enlisted man and going up to the highest ranking officer and should you violate that chain of command you open yourself up to charges for that violation. This holds true in the department of corrections as well. You have the correction officer; this is the level I worked at during my career in law enforcement. Next in line were the sergeants who were under the authority of the lieutenants, who were under the authority of the captains who were under the authority of Deputy Superintendents of Security who reported to the final authority in the prison, the superintendent. And of course all the superintendents of the various prisons scattered about the state are under the authority the Department of Corrections. And thus we can see that with each level from officer on up, there is always someone to whom we are accountable to, we are always under the authority of a higher power or authority regardless of who we are and ultimately that higher authority, no matter who they are or what title they carry must come under the final authority and that being God. Once we reach the level of God there is no further appeal process, there is no other place to go and God’s rulings must be obeyed, God’s word is final and complete, God’s rulings are final and complete. There is no higher authority over God!
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. We call it “Civil Disobedience” when we find ourselves in dispute with man’s authority and we then go against that authority even if we find that authority be our form of government. And although we are instructed in the scriptures to obey our governmental leaders is there ever a time when disobedience is acceptable, is there ever a time when disobedience is not only accepted but required? And does the Bible address this situation? The answer to this question is “yes, the Bible does address this very situation”. Look at the book of Galatians in the 1st chapter, looking at verse 10. “Am I now trying to win the approval of men or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ”. You see my friend, if there is a discrepancy between the will of man and the will of God and we want to be servants of Christ then it is the will of God that we must submit to even when it violates the will of man, even when it violates the will of the government because the government isn’t the final authority, God is. I may be bias but I’d venture to day that in America we have the finest form of government to be found on this earth. I think our form of government is superior to every other form of government even though it’s not perfect. We will never see perfection until Jesus Christ returns in all power and authority to rule this world but until that time what we have is the best to be found even with its flaws and imperfections. By and large, in theory our government is directed by the will of society, and at times the will of society, the will of the government is in opposition with the will of God. And it’s within these times that the Christian has the responsibility to be in or practice civil disobedience to the government. Allow me to give you a few examples.
In our present situation in America today what is the biggest discrepancy between the will of man and the will of God? I would think abortion! There may be many others but in my mind abortion is the largest of all the divisions to be found between man’s government and God. Our government, our society, our elected leaders and appointed judges have taken a stand for abortion that is in direct violation to the recorded will of God. Our society and our leaders have said that it is alright it kill unborn children and to use this process of selected murder as a form of birth control eliminating a entire generation of people to cover over or mask our sinful lifestyle. It is more acceptable in our society of today to eliminate the results of a sinful lifestyle than to speak out against the sin that creates this result. Our society now says that each individual has the right to do with their own body whatever they desire and should the results of that use be a unwanted child then it is alright and acceptable to kill that child without consequence.
But this is not what God says, not in regards to children .God tells us that children are a blessing from Him and that they are a gift, given by God. Psalm 127 says; “Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of the mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that has his quiver full of them”. Happy is the man that has his quiver full of them, full of what? Why children of course, the man with many children is to be happy that he has them. Children are to be a blessing to us, where is the blessing if we kill them off? Proverbs 17 says; “Children’s children are the crown of old men and the glory of children are their fathers”. Not only are children a blessing from God but grandchildren as well. The children’s children are the crown of old men. We are to delight in our children and our children’s children, the children are a blessing and the grandkids are an extra blessing, for every child aborted, for every generation aborted there is the future generation aborted as well. When a child’s life is ended so likewise the ending of the potential prodigy that child may have created had they reached adulthood. God tells us that children are his blessing, that we are to love them, protect them, educate them, nurture them and watch them grow to maturity that we may be blessed with their children as our heritage. Jeremiah 19 tells us the mind of God in regards to child abuse, “They had built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as offerings to Baal, something I did not command or mention, nor did it enter my mind”. The killing of children doesn’t even enter God’s mind, so why does it enter ours? If this thought isn’t from God then where did it come from? I’ll let you answer that for yourselves, I think you already know the answer to that one. We should all know that there are two spiritual forces at war in this world, God and the evil one, and if the thoughts didn’t originate with God then it had to come from the other spiritual force and our society has fallen victim to the evil one’s way of thinking. And although our society says it is all right to kill our young with the flawed logic being that because they haven’t really been born yet and come out of the womb, consequently they can’t be real humans either. It is in this flawed logic that we as a society face a real conundrum. On the one hand where we’ve said the child isn’t really a child because it hasn’t been born out of the womb, and on the other hand society says that should you kill a woman who is pregnant you’ve then killed two people and are responsible for two lives, the mother and her unborn child. This friend just doesn’t make any sense. We can’t have it both ways, either the unborn child is a person and represents life in all situations or they do not and God does address this topic and God’s word on this is very clear. Listen to what the Bible says in the book of Psalms in the 139th chapter. “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be”. God sees us before we are even formed in the womb, and he knows us … intimately. He knows all of our days, he knows all about us; and all of this knowledge about us comes before we are even born. That my friends, tells me that from the moment of conception I was a person, I had life and I had a future. This scripture tells me that God knows us from the moment the cells of our male and female parents first unite in the woman’s womb, from that first instant on, from that first new union of what will be a new life, we are a person and as a person we have a spirit. We may not be complete, we may not have all the parts developed yet, but we are a person with a spirit that God knows. If we weren’t a person, even if we are only a small and incomplete person, would God have made mention of us in his word were it not true? Would he have given us this place in his book of instruction and direction?
Let me approach this from a different perspective for a bit. Can a non-person sin? A rock isn’t a person right? So can a rock commit a sin? We all know the answer to that is “no, a rock can’t sin”. But what about other things, I’m an animal lover, I love animals, in particular dogs, and I have to tell you “I really love dogs”. But dogs can’t sin! If I have a dog and that dog chews up something of mine it isn’t a sin, granted I’d be angry about it but I couldn’t say that the animal sinned, they just did what comes natural to them and it comes to be an aggravation to me, but no sin has been committed. Why? Because the dog doesn’t have a soul and a spirit, the dog doesn’t have that spiritual connection to God that man has. Man has soul and spirit, that’s where the connection to God comes from, the spirit of man and God the Spirit, two unique spirits in communication. You don’t find that with a dog, love them as we may, they aren’t privy to or don’t have the same attention of God as man does because there isn’t that spiritual connection. Be honest now, have you or do you know of anyone that has had a dog or for that matter had any animal that has done something we perceive as wrong and said to the animal; “look at how great your sin is!” I doubt it. We may have told the pet that they were bad, “Bad boy, bad boy, look what you did”. But we don’t tell them that they sinned because they don’t have a spirit and sin is a spiritual thing. Pets, animals, when they do wrong; it’s a physical act and it’s declared “wrong” in a physical sense but that’s where it stops, in the physical. But we humans, when we do wrong in the physical we sin in the spiritual. The physical action is the wrong doing, but it’s not sin, not in the physical part of the equation. But in our spirit … here’s where the two, the physical and the spirit are interwoven, the physical action although wrong is not sin but creates the sin factor, the sin is in the spirit part of us and the two can’t be separated, that’s why this is such a hard concept to grasp. In our human minds we can’t separate the two, we can’t conceive us as having a physical and a spiritual part without uniting the two as one and that’s how God made us. Animals have the physical only, we as humans have the physical and the spiritual because we, and not animals are made in the image of God.
To give you a clearer idea of what I’m saying try thinking of it like this. The physical man does something wrong and sins, say grand larceny; they’ve taken something that wasn’t theirs. The taking of the item was the physical action, it was the wrongdoing. The spirit now is in a state of sin because of the physical action of the taking of the item. The person is now arrested and convicted in a court of law and given a jail sentence for their crime. They do their time in jail, they are released from custody and their obligation to society has been met. If we were physical beings without a spirit like the animals this would be the end of it, the entire situation would be over at this point, a crime was committed, a time was served for that crime and the laws of the land have been fulfilled. But the story doesn’t end here because there is still a part of this act that still exists … in the spirit of the person. They still carry the sin in their spirit, man has been appeased by the incarceration, but God hasn’t because the person is to this point unrepentant, they haven’t acknowledged their sin and they haven’t asked for forgiveness from God.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. Man has been given what he desires, in this case a jail term for a crime. But God hasn’t been given what he desires, a repentant spirit.
Now … the person realizes that what they did was also against the will of God so they repent and come to God and ask for forgiveness. Again… they have truly done so with a repentant heart and being the kind and grace giving God that we serve, God in his mercy forgives that sin, the sin is no longer sin, it is no longer there, it is no longer remembered, God’s word tells us that God not only forgives but he forgets sin so it’s gone, the slate is wiped clean, it’s like it never was and the person’s spirit is now free from judgment for that now forgotten sin. Now, Caesar has what he deserves, time served for a crime, and God has what he deserves too, a soul, which is back in union with God without the division of sin between the spirit of man and God the Spirit. I hope through this illustration you can see that man is more than one-dimensional; I hope you can see that man is physical and at the same time; that man is spiritual, and the two can’t be separated from each other, what one does the other either enjoys the consequences of or suffers the consequences of that action. I hope I’ve made my stand on this a little clearer and now I’ll return to where I was before I made that little detour for clarity’s sake.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. I want you to remember that we aren’t talking solely about financial matters; this command of Jesus talks of much more than just money. We are still talking about civil disobedience and giving to God what is God’s even if it goes against the law of the present day society. And now we are going to look at civil disobedience from a different perspective, and yet it will still be with children in the middle of the focus.
I’m an advocate in the belief of prenatal sin, I’m an advocate, or it is my belief that a child can sin in the womb, that a child can sin prior to birth. You may not believe in this or maybe you’ve never even given it a thought, and that’s okay because I’m not here today to try to change your thoughts or get you to think along the lines my minds goes to. I’m not here to argue about it with anyone because in the final analysis whether you believe it’s possible for a child to sin prior to birth or not, it’s not going to have any effect upon our salvation. Lets go to the Gospel of John reading in the 9th chapter. “As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, “Rabbi who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” Look what it says here people, the man was born blind from birth and the disciples are asking who sinned to bring this to happen, the man or his parents. The disciples were with the understanding that the blindness was the result of sin, either the mans, or his parents, and since the blindness was present at the time of birth and that since it could have been the man’s fault or the result of the man’s sin, his sin had to be prenatal. I think you’ll find the words of Jesus to be quite interesting here. Jesus didn’t say, “Well the man couldn’t sin because he hadn’t been born yet and it’s not the result of the parents either”. But what Jesus did say is that neither the man nor his parents sinned resulting in the blindness, thus indicating while not actually saying; that it was possible for either the man or his parents to have sinned and the sin to be the possible cause for the blindness. And in my mind that opens the door to the possibility of pre birth or prenatal sinning.
By now you may be saying; “okay, you’ve got my attention, I may not be buying all of this but you do have my attention. So how can a child sin before birth? How can that be possible?” Although this sounds like a complex question the answer is actually very simple and we have already talked about it. Even before the child is birthed from the womb it is still a person, it is still a little tiny people/person with a spirit and a soul, and remember you have to have a spirit to sin. At the moment of conception that spirit was there and from the moment that spirit was there the ability to sin was there as well. But you don’t have to take my word for it, go to the Scriptures, what do the Scriptures say about this? Psalm 51:5-6 “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Surly you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.” Look at psalm 58:3 “Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward and speak lies.” When a child exits the womb the ability to speak lies is already present. We come with a sin nature already installed, it’s a standard part not an option that is added on later. It’s something we inherited for our farthest removed relatives, Adam and Eve. They are the only humans other than Christ to be born without the sin factor already in their being. Still not sure, look in Genesis in the 6th chapter. “The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time.” That’s very strong language friend, “I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me”; “Every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time”. Although modern science is usually at odds with the Holy Scriptures, strangely enough in this case modern science proves the Scriptures out to be correct. Through the marvels of modern science we can measure the brain activity of the youngest embryo in a mother’s womb, through the marvels of modern science we can now see and register the effects of voices on the unborn fetus, man can prove that the unborn child responds to music and to the sound of the parent’s voices while still in the womb. Today parents are encouraged to talk to their unborn child while that child is still in the womb, to sing to the child, to have conversations with the child and the child responds … while still in the womb the unborn child knows and recognizes their parent’s voice. And after birth, the child shows that it has already established a bonding with the parents because it knew them from their voices before the child was born, and that applies to both the mother and the father. It was always known that there was a special bond between the child and the mother because of the mother carrying the child inside her body, but now there is proof that the child can have a bonding with the father and the mother at the time of it’s birth because the child recognizes them from hearing them as they talk to that child. Friend, if that child is capable of thinking about its parents before birth it is capable to make judgments and in its mind conceive sinful thoughts as well. A child developing in an abusive situation, a situation where the mother is being abused by the father or where the mother is in a violent or vile surroundings that child will exit the womb and enter the world with anger or fear or both already in it’s mind, it will already have a predisposed nature to negative emotions and sinful conduct. And I’m not the only one saying this, the Bible is saying it too, the Word of God is saying it. God is saying that every thought is sinful until the proper Word of God is planted in that child’s heart.
If you question this, think for a moment about a small child and their actions. If left to their own design will not a child automatically go to the wrong thing or do the wrong things until they are instructed to do differently? Without any instruction a child is going to run into traffic if not instructed against this behavior, if left alone a child is going to play with fire, stick things in an electrical outlet, fight with other children, scream just for the sake of screaming, take toys from other children and the list goes on and on. Come on now, you know I’m right don’t you? If you don’t instruct a child, if that child isn’t shown the right way or correct way to behave, if that child isn’t trained or instructed in behavior, it is going to be one little monster in activity, in behavior and character. Go to any store or public place, go to any school function or any activity where there is a gathering of children and it won’t take long before you are able to make a distinction between the children that have received proper instruction and correction from the parents in the home and from those who have not. If you study the children’s behavior for just a few moments you will be able to see the ones who behave well in public and the ones who do not, you will be able to see the children that have received instruction and the ones who have not. If left uninstructed little children do little nasty things and bigger children do bigger nasty things and it doesn’t change with age. If you doubt these words just look at the prison systems in the United States, the jails are filled with people who were never filled with the word of God and who were left to their own design and to find their own way in the world. They didn’t gravitate to the right or godly way of doing things, they gravitated to the wrong and ungodly way of doing things and now they are a burden on society and on God’s heart.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. Remember what we have already established, God’s authority is to be respected over the authority of government, it’s called “Civil Disobedience” and it’s not only acceptable but required when man tries to usurp God and go against God’s commands and laws. I’ve talked a lot about abortion and correctly so because it is one of the biggest contradictions between man and God, but there are others and we will address just a few and most likely not in the same amount of detail as the abortion issue. Time won’t allow for that.
In our society today it is far more acceptable to kill a child through abortion … and talk about it openly … than it is to talk about the circumstances under which the child was conceived if those circumstances were outside the bonds of legal marriage. If we talk openly about abortion in our society today well that’s acceptable, the law said it’s okay to have an abortion and that’s an acceptable practice … because the laws of the land say it’s acceptable, and for the most part, no one gets offended, as long as you aren’t saying that it’s killing children, even though it’s the truth, that’s a no no, then people get offended, they don’t want to hear that part of it. If you say “abortion” well that’s okay, if you say “killing”, well that’s not okay, strange isn’t it how one word is acceptable and the other isn’t? But heaven forbid don’t even talk about how the pregnancy came to be, not if it was through un-matrimonial sin, not if it was through relations outside of the bonds of marriage. Now if you want to offend someone try talking about sexual relations without the marriage bond or a wedding ring. Our society of today, the same one that says abortion is acceptable; also says sexual relations without the ring, God’s blessing and the license are acceptable as well, and I dare say that this is a far more touchy subject and will get you in more hot water than talking about abortions. Why? Because there are a lot more people having sexual relations without the marriage license, God’s blessing and the ring on the finger than there are people having abortions. Although abortions still remain somewhat taboo, having sexual relations in a sinful state is not, not in the society in which we now live, today having intimate relations with someone is almost as common as dating. I hate to have to admit it but it was my generation, the generation of the 60’s that really ushered in this new free lifestyle that has flourished into what we have today and I have to be so ever thankful for God’s grace and mercy in forgiving past sins.
I’ve talked with many young people and if there is one common thread to any of their conversations in regards to the dating process it’s having sexual relations as soon as possible, many times on the first date, before you even know the other person. In our society today the people are intimate with each other before they even know the other person’s last name. In talking with many of these younger people I was amazed to hear that not only is intimate relations a part of the early dating process but it is almost expected, and that’s the opinion of both the men and the women. In regards to our society today I have found out through talking to the young adults and pre-adults that both the men and the women, with the women rapidly becoming the dominant aggressor, intimate relations are integrated into the dating process as early as possible and if one of the partners objects, be it the woman or the man, that person, the one holding back or practicing morality, is then deemed a misfit, and is usually dismissed as a potential partner.
And one of the truly sad parts of this is that our government doesn’t care any longer. Our government and society now turns a blind eye and looks the other way when people enter into intimate relations with each other. Not only does the government and society look the other way, they actually encourage unholy relations between people. Where marriage was once the only acceptable way for a man and woman to cohabit together and should that couple do so without meeting the legal requirements of the law they could find themselves in legal troubles were it reported and if they did cohabit together without falling under the repercussion of the law, after seven years they were considered married under the status known as “Common Law Marriage” this practice was once looked down upon as shameful but it was tolerated and the legal consequences and benefits of marriage then applied to the couple after the seven year period had ended.
But oh how things have changed. All of that is now passé, obsolete, old-fashioned, and out-of-date. The government now allows instant recognition of any relationship as “Domestic Partners” and each partner is allowed the same rewards as the legally married couples. Insurance benefits, medical coverage, shared property, and where is this all headed? The new rage is accepted domestic partners of the same sex; the rewards of marriage now can be applied to homosexuals and lesbians following their perverse lifestyle and demanding “their rights”.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. As Christians are we to follow the laws of the land when those laws go so terribly, so appallingly against the Word of God? Are we to follow a government edict or decree when it is in clear violation of God’s word or, are we to follow the higher power and enter into civil disobedience? We’ve talked about this earlier in this teaching; the answer now is the same as it was before. The answer to this question is that we are compelled to enter into civil disobedience just as Jesus did. The answer is that we are to follow the ruling of the highest authority and rebel against the lower authorities ruling just as Jesus did when there is a division between the lower authority’s ruling and God’s ruling.
We call it “Civil Disobedience”, it’s a form of rebellion, and that’s exactly what we are to do. In a civil fashion we are to be disobedient to the edict of the government when that edict violates the word of God, in a civil fashion we are to rebel against the government if the government places its self in a position that violates the will and word of God. So how do we go about this civil rebellion against the lawful government, the government established by God and placed in its position of authority over us and over the land? To start with, we don’t form or fashion our rebellion or civil disobedience as the world does, we do so in a fashion that does not harm or taint our Christian image. We do so with respect of persons and property, we do so without anger or violence, we do so in humility and gentleness of spirit. We start with prayer, heartfelt and sincere prayer, prayer in our private life and in our corporate gatherings. We offer prayer in your homes and we offer prayer in public, we pray in our family settings and pray in public gatherings. After prayer we voice our opinion to whoever will listen wherever we can, and at times even when they don’t want to listen; but we do it in proper respect. Contact the politicians of your area, contact the news media, let everyone know that you are taking a stand for God and that you want to follow God’s word over mans word if the two are at odds with each other.
If the violation of God’s word is being promoted via the television or some other form of media, the newspaper, the radio, contact the sponsors of that media and tell them that you intend to boycott their products until they stop supporting this misguided cause. If enough people talk to the bottom line of these big companies, take my word for it; you will get their attention. If enough people talk to the bottom line, the almighty buck, and those bucks stop rolling in you will get someone’s attention and it won’t take very long. These sponsoring companies keep a very close eye on the bottom line; they monitor the flow of cash very closely. They are not in business to just provide a product or a service, they are there to make a buck and if anything interferes in that flow of money they will stand up and take notice real fast.
Contact the politicians who are making the decisions, we need to let them know how we feel; we need to express ourselves clearly. Let the politicians know that we are the voting public and that we have a long memory. Remind them that they are there to serve us and if they can’t they can be replaced in the next election. We need to show ourselves in numbers and let the politicians know that we are watching and we are going to be heard, let them know that we intend to be heard in their offices, in their meetings and in the elections polls as well. Always do so with respect, in the book of Titus, in the 3rd chapter we read; “Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.” This is not to say that we walk blindly and are to follow no matter what, remember, God’s authority is the highest authority and we are mandated to follow the highest authority. Again in the book of 1st Peter, in the 2nd chapter we read; “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.” Our elected officials, and those appointed, like them or not, we are to show proper respect. We are allowed to protest, but we are not allowed to show disrespect to our leaders.
Gather together in public places for prayer and petition, let our numbers be seen, there is power in numbers, there is strength in numbers. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work; if one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up. Also if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves, a cord of three strands is not quickly broken”. The Rev. Doctor Martin Luther King knew and understood this concept, using godly principles and acting under the direction of the Holy Spirit Doctor King was able to usher in the greatest change in our nations history since the Civil War.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”. All of us are called by God to be able to understand and divide what belongs to whom. I believe that if you’ve made it to this point in this teaching and I haven’t lost you each of you all have the mental capability to read the scriptures and then make a proper judgment as to what belongs to God and what belongs to man. I believe in my heart of hearts that each hearer of this teaching is able to look at the topics I’ve covered and then has the ability to say with clear conscience “Either this is or this is not in agreement with God’s will and I know that I must stand on the side of God in my support of this topic”.
I’ve only covered a small few items that fall under the “What is God’s will about this” category, money, marriage, children, but there are far too many other items that need our inspection and for those things, time now will not allow. Get out your Bible, if there’s dust on it, blow the dust off and open the pages, get involved with God, read his words, look at what he has to say about pollution, the environment, conservation and use of our natural resources, read what God’s word has to say about war, feeding the hungry and homeless, education, taxes, think of a topic and you’ll find that God has addressed it in his word. It’s all there for our use; it’s all just a turned page away. Hosea 4:6 reads; “My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge”. We can’t allow a lack of knowledge to destroy us, with the availability of the diverse amount of educational resources found today there is just no good reason for anyone to not know what God has to say about any subject if only they the person are willing to take a little time and look into God’s word and see what it has to say. I won’t even try to list the resources that are but a fingertip’s touch away because the list grows daily and is so even as I speak. But it’s all out there if we will but only look for it.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s” Each has the right to what they deserve, give what is required and give with joy knowing that when we do our God looks down on us and smiles because we are doing his will.
Grace & peace
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