April showers show God's power

He sends His command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.  He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes.  He hurls down His hail like pebbles.  Who can withstand His icy blast?  He sends His word and melts them; He stirs up His breezes, and the waters flow.  --Psalm 147:15-18, NIV

We have had some violent spring weather over the last couple of weeks.  Tornadoes have blown through, hail stones the size of softballs have fallen.  Weather watchers have had to go inside for their own safety.  Television meteorologists have all issued warnings, saying "Please do not travel unless it is absolutely necessary."

Messages like this get our attention.

Most of the weather warnings involve water.  When it is raining in torrents, we slow down.  When it floods or freezes, we stop.  If the water runs swiftly, we may get swept up in it and find ourselves in a different place than when we started.  But we all know that when we travel to arid places, where there is no water, we'd better take some water with us, because we cannot live without it.

In a way, our spiritual lives are like a river.  Sometimes our lives are hectic.  Sometimes we hit obstacles in our way, bounce off them, and move on.  This is like white-water rapids.  Sometimes they are exciting, but ultimately they are shallow and move too fast to soak in.  Sometimes we go with the flow.  We are moving, not too fast, but enough to see a change.  In times like these we might get complacent.  We might get too comfortable.  Or we might want to move ahead and see what's around the next bend.

What are some ways that God can get our attention?  What are some places or situations where the water may stop for awhile?  The best instance might be when it gets deep.  When we went tubing down the river last summer, there were places in the river where the water seemed to stop.  The inner tube we were on would go no further, but only spin slowly around in circles.  This was where the water eddied, where the deepest part of the water was surrounded by sand bars or reefs.  The water was flowing just a few feet toward the opposite bank, but right here in the eddy it was time to relax and reflect.

I think God sometimes directs us to a deep place, where we can stop and meditate on His word.  The world may pass us by for a season, but we need to just stop and soak there for awhile.  God will move us in His time.

A second way that a river is stopped is by being trapped by a dam.  A dam is an unnatural impediment to a river.  It keeps the river from flowing.  The dam could be man-made, or caused by a land-slide, or by an animal such as a beaver dragging tree limbs and other debris into the river from the shore.  If the river is to flow like it was meant to flow, then the impediment needs to be removed.

I think sin sometimes builds up and impedes our walk with God.  It might make us flow a few feet in a different direction, or it might stop us altogether.  If we want to continue in the channel God made for us, sometimes we need to get out and remove the barriers of sin.  We might need to tear down a stronghold that dams up the flow of God's blessing in our lives.

A third way that a river might stop is to freeze.  There have been a couple of times in history that it got so cold in upstate New York that even the Niagra Falls froze solid.  The water gets so cold that it can't move.  Although the river can't change the air temperature, it can wait patiently until the sun comes out and warmth returns.

I think many times we get frozen.  We can't understand why.  We are ready and willing to flow for God.  There is nothing in our way, no impediment in the river bed to stop us in our tracks.  Nevertheless we are stuck until the Son comes and thaws us out.  His presence allows us to return to our normal flow.  We may never know the reason that God had us stop for a time.  Perhaps it was to protect us from a peril downstream, something we are not prepared for.

We only have to trust God, and rely on His presence to guide us, to pressure us to clean out the sin before us, or to direct us to a pool where we can delve deeper into His presence for a time.

May He be your shepherd, and may you lack nothing.  May He lead you to lie down in green pastures beside still waters.  May He restore your soul.  May He guide you in paths of His righteousness for His name's sake.

Priesthood of the Believer, Unstained by the World

If you think that you can walk in holiness without keeping up perpetual fellowship with Christ, you have made a great mistake.  If you would be holy, you must live close to Jesus.  --Charles Haddon Spurgeon

THESIS:  Priests must be holy before God and men (Leviticus 21:7).  "For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens." (Hebrews 7:26). We are all priests, called to stand between men and God.  "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." (1 Peter 2:9).

ANTITHESIS:  Even though we are "a royal priesthood," we are not without sin.  "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.... If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us." (1 John 1:8, 10). "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23)

SYNTHESIS: God admonishes us to keep His word, to stay close to him.

"And now this admonition is for you, O priests.  If you do not listen, and if you do not set your heart to honor my name," says the Lord Almighty, "I will send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings.  Yes, I have already cursed them, because you have not set your heart to honor me." --Malachi 2:1-2

Part of our job as priests is to give blessings to the people.  But if our blessings are cursed, then we are just snake-oil salesmen.  Our churches are no different than a civic club--worse, because we are proclaiming a lie.

"For the lips of a priest ought to preserve knowledge, and from his mouth men should seek instruction--because he is the messenger of the Lord Almighty.  But you have turned from the way and by your teaching have caused many to stumble; you have violated the covenant with Levi," says the Lord Almighty.  "So I have caused you to be despised and humiliated before all the people, because you have not followed my ways but have shown partiality in matters of the law." --Malachi 2:7-9.

If we stop proclaiming the truth of God, or if we start watering it down with worldly compromise, then we will be despised among the very people to whom we are sent.  We cannot water down the message because we think it too harsh, or that people won't stomach it.

"Another thing you do: You flood the Lord's altar with tears.  You weep and wail because He no longer pays attention to your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands.  You ask, 'Why?'  It is because the Lord is acting as the witness between you and the wife of your youth, because you have broken faith with her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant.  Has not the Lord made them one?  In flesh and spirit they are His.  And why one?  Because He was seeking godly offspring.  So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.  I hate divorce," says the Lord God of Israel, "and I hate a man's covering himself with violence as well as with his garment," says the Lord. --Malachi 2:13-16.

Sexual imagery is everywhere.  Violent images are everywhere.  It is almost impossible to escape.  We have numbed ourselves to it.  We see it all around us in the world, and in the church.  We are not shocked by it.  We even see it in the entertainment choices we make.  Is it any wonder that there are more divorced people in America than married people?

"So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith." (Malachi 2:16b).  Be the priest, the mediator between God and man, that you were created for, that is the proof of your calling.  

We sing a chorus in our Bible study group that goes like this:

Holiness, holiness..is what i long for
Holiness is what i need
Holiness, holiness 
Is what you want from me

[Chorus:]
Take my life and form it
Take my mind transform it
Take my will conform it
To yours, to yours, oh lord

Righteousness, righteousness is what i long for
Righteousness is what i need
Righteousness, righteousness
Is what you want from me

[Chorus:]
Purity, purity..is what i long for
Purity is what i need
Purity, purity 
Is what you want from me

 

 

Of Death and Taxes

When  you take a census of the Israelites to count them, each one must pay the Lord a ransom for his life at the time he is counted.  Then no plague will come on them when you number them. --Exodus 30:12

With tax day in the United States coming up quickly, our minds are focused on what we get for our money.  Perhaps you got a tax refund from the IRS, and are happy with it.  A small windfall that will help you to pay bills, put away for a rainy day, or to use now to buy something you want or need.  On the other hand, if you are like me and had to pay in additional money besides what was withheld from each paycheck, then you might be grumbling about the size and scope of the government.

As I read through Exodus 30 today, I saw what the Israelites were promised in exchange for their Temple Tax, or "atonement money."  If they were faithful in paying this half shekel each year to the Temple treasury, then God would not strike them with plagues or diseases.  This money was to help atone for their sins.

Take a  look at verse 15 with me.  "The rich are not to give more than a half shekel and the poor are not to give less when you make the offering to the Lord to atone for your lives." (Exodus 30:15).  Each person age 20 and above was to be invested in this program, to have "skin in the game."  And it cost the same to atone for each person, whether rich or poor.

I'll confess I never understood the progressive income tax system ingrained in American culture.  If I make just $10,000 per year, and I am taxed at 10%, then I will give the government a sum that is less than the 10% that would be collected from a millionaire.  But somehow, in our culture, it is "unfair" for the poor to pay the same tax rate as the rich, because the rich might have more left over after the taxes are paid.  Like I said, it doesn't make sense.  But that is the mind-set of my people.

In the Jewish mind-set, it cost the same amount to atone for each person, whether rich or poor.  What is not stated, but I think is implied, is that the same half-shekel would be due from the worst sinner as would be paid by the most holy among them.  Therefore, it is not a huge jump to say that, like the Temple tax of the Old Testament, the same blood of the Lamb covers all people in the New Testament.  The same blood of Jesus was shed for my sins as was shed for yours.  You may be richer; I may be more sinful.  Regardless, it was the same act that saved us all.

Going back to our scriptural text, the beginning of Exodus 30 speaks of the Altar of Incense.  Twice a day the priests were to burn incense before God, in front of the curtain that separated the Holy of Holies from the place where they kept the Ark of the Testimony.  This Ark, also known as the Ark of the Covenant, had ornate carvings upon it, including two horns that were significant throughout the history of Israel.  I won't go into that here, but it would be a fascinating study if you have never looked at those passages before (you can start by reading 1 Kings 1:50-51, and 1 Kings 2:28).

"Once a year Aaron shall make atonement on its horns.  This annual atonement must be made with the blood of the atoning sin offering for the generations to come.  It is most holy to the Lord." (Exodus 30: 10).  The Temple Tax was paid to atone for the lives of every adult age 20 and over.  The annual blood atonement sacrifice was made "for the generations to come," or those too young to pay the half shekel Temple tax.

This blood sacrifice was made once a year, for all the people.  Similarly, the death of Jesus was made once for all (Hebrews 10:10).  There is no need for further sacrifice.  No more dabbing the blood of bulls and goats onto the horns of the Ark.

Speaking of the Ark, most of us remember the 1981 movie Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark.  Harrison Ford played archaeology professor Indiana Jones, who was enticed back into the field from his pampered ivy-league lecture hall in pursuit of the holy grail.  They believed that the Old Testament Ark of the Covenant had been discovered in and ancient site, and was in danger of being stolen by a team of Nazi officers for use by Hitler in the war.  Very exciting stuff.

I want us to see the Ark with new eyes.  We know it as the Ark of the Covenant, because God made a covenant with Abraham, and renewed that covenant in the sight of Moses.  Inside the ark were evidences of that covenant.  One was the rod (or staff) used by Aaron that God allowed to produce buds and leaves (even though it had no root, and it had been cut off from the branch that had produced it).  Another was the stone tablets that God had given directly to Moses, containing the Ten Commandments.  A third was a jar of the manna God had sent to sustain the people in the wilderness for 40 years.

These pieces of evidence were kept safe in the Ark as a testimony to God's covenant relationship with His people.  That is why in Exodus chapters 26 and 30, the ark is referred to as the Ark of the Testimony.  (See Exodus 25:16, 22; Exodus 26:31; and Exodus 30:6).

What is the evidence of God's atonement in your life?  Is your life a testimony of the price Jesus paid for your sins?  Or are you dead in your sins?  In the Old Testament, the priests had to become ceremonially clean before God to offer atonement for the people.

Aaron and his sons are to wash their hands and feet from it (the bronze basin).  Whenever they enter the Tent of Meeting, they shall wash with water so that they will not die.  Also, when they approach the altar to minister by presenting an offering made to the Lord by fire, they shall wash their hands and feet so that they will not die.  This is to be a lasting ordinance for Aaron and his descendants for the generations to come. --Exodus 30:19-21

We who are under the New Covenant are washed by the blood of Jesus.  This is the testimony we have of His goodness and grace.  Friend, do not remain stained by sin, but rather be washed in the blood of the Lamb.  This is my testimony; my faith is the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1).

A Flood of Reason

Being a born again Christian is not an intellectual pursuit. It is not the result of examining evidence and analyzing data. It comes through faith. It is faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ that saves a person. But Christian faith is not blind faith. It is based on understanding and believing God’s Word. And the Bible confirms that nature itself proves God’s existence.  --Source http://beginningandend.com/scientists-confirm-biblical-account-of-the-fountains-of-the-deep/

 I have often wondered about the description of Noah's flood found in Genesis 7.  Skeptics have long contended that this story is a myth, that there was never any 40 days of rain that resulted in water covering the highest mountaintops.  It is physically impossible, they say, for this to occur.  Scientifically unprovable, because there is no way to replicate the results.  Morally wrongheaded, they feel, because they can't imagine a loving God pouring out His wrath on the entire population of the earth, save eight souls who happened to be on the only sea-going vessel in the world at that time.  Oh, and the animals, too, that these eight people were able to herd into one place and pen up inside what must have looked like a three-story warehouse, or big box store.

I will admit that I have trouble envisioning this happening.  Not that my God is not big enough.  He most certainly is.  The part that I had trouble wrapping my mind around was the last half of Genesis 7:11, "...On that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens were opened."  Some translations read, "the fountains of the deep."  So it was not just 40 days of torrential worldwide rain, but some additional flooding from underground reservoirs.

In my mind, this is hard to imagine.  All of the sources of all of the rivers on earth have not produced enough water to raise the levels of the ocean more than the one-tenth of a centimeter that has the global warming enthusiasts in a tizzy.  So what does it mean?

The problem is that Noah was not a scientist.  He was probably not even a very good historian.  Look, if there were a world-wide apocolypse today, and you and I were the only survivors, how would we be able to document it for future generations?  Would you have the scientific knowledge to explain the cause and effect of what happened?  Would I be able to accurately describe the events in a historical word picture that people 3000 years later would understand?  I doubt it.  And if you are honest, you would agree with me.

This week I read of a scientific discovery.  According to Andy Coghlan, Environmental reporter for "New Scientist" magazine (dated June 12, 2014),

A reservoir of water three times the volume of all the oceans has been discovered deep beneath the Earth's surface. The finding could help explain where Earth's seas came from.

The water is hidden inside a blue rock called ringwoodite that lies 700 kilometres underground in the mantle, the layer of hot rock between Earth's surface and its core.

The huge size of the reservoir throws new light on the origin of Earth's water. Some geologists think water arrived in comets as they struck the planet, but the new discovery supports an alternative idea that the oceans gradually oozed out of the interior of the early Earth.

"It's good evidence the Earth's water came from within," says Steven Jacobsen of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. The hidden water could also act as a buffer for the oceans on the surface, explaining why they have stayed the same size for millions of years.

The underground water reserves, according to the article, contain a volume of water up to three times the volume of all of the oceans combined.

This explanation sheds new light, in my mind, about the problem of Genesis 7:11.  Apparently, I am not alone.  A website run by Beginning and End Ministries has an article entitled, "Scientists confirm Biblical account of "Fountains of the Deep.""

In yet another confirmation of the Bible’s accuracy, scientists have now confirmed what Scripture refers to as “the fountains of the deep.” In the days of Noah and the Ark, these large pools of water beneath the Earth’s crust burst forth onto the surface providing the massive amounts of water needed for the global flood judgment. What has once been a source of skepticism and mockery for those who doubt the Bible, has now been confirmed by secular scientists, again showing that although written over 3,000 years ago, the Bible’s description of the Earth and its natural properties are indeed accurate. 

All this tells me that placing faith in the God of the Bible does not mean that I have to check my brain at the churchhouse door.  It may not be enough to change the minds of the skeptics, but it is good to know that an honest, unbiased scientific view is not at odds with Scripture.  Nor is faith at odds with those who honestly seek the truth, using observation, logic, and history.

A couple of weeks ago I was at a used bookstore.  I bought copies of Lee Strobel's The Case For Christ: A Journalist's personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus, and The Case for a Creator: A Journalist Investigates Scientific Evidence that Points Toward God.  In these books, a successful, trained investigative journalist with a legal background asks tough questions to experts in their fields, and comes to the conclusion that faith is not mindless.  In fact, Strobel himself was a skeptic, leaning toward atheism, before he began investigating the evidence.  What he found was convincing enough for him to give his life to Christ.

You could investigate these facts for yourself.  Or you could stick your fingers in your ears, and scream at the top of your lungs the half-truths and outright lies that the World uses to "disprove" Scripture.  Like so many in the world today, you find it easier to toe the ideological line rather than look at the evidence objectively.  That may be okay for now, but when you die and face the Creator, what will you say then?  "God, you can't exist.  There is no good explanation for the miraculous, so You are just a figment of someone else's imagination; a social construct, a crutch used by weak-minded people to explain the unexplainable.  Never mind that I can't explain what I'm seeing now."  But by then, dear friend, it will be too late.

The Paradox of Peace

The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.  The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.  --Romans 16:20

Well, friends, there is no going back now.  I have signed a contract with a publisher, and my book Facets of Grace should be available in bookstores, on Amazon and for Kindle in about 90 days.  Hoping for July 1.  Praying for a wide audience, not so as to increase my royalty checks (though that would be nice--I can't lie), but that the God of grace would use my humble musings to touch someone, to encourage them, and to perhaps lead them to Christ.  I hope that you will pray with me toward that end.

Now I feel impressed to begin a new project, this time on Peace.  Transitioning from Grace to Peace should be easy.  Paul said in Romans 1:7, "Grace and peace from God our Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ."  In this way, he bridged the gap between Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians who lived in Rome.  Let me explain.  The traditional Christian greeting among Gentile Christians, especially those with Greek influence, was to say "Grace to you."  Whenever they met another Christian on the street or in the church, they would say "Grace to you."  Usually, the other person would answer, "And also to you."  In this way there was fellowship among the brethren.  Even today, many Catholic and Orthodox Christians continue this greeting.

If you were raised in a Jewish household, the standard form of greeting was to say, "Shalom", or Peace.  In this verse, Paul differentiated the greeting from the traditional Jewish one by adding, "from our Lord Jesus Christ."

It seems that in our world today, peace is needed now more than ever before.  There are Christians being persecuted and imprisoned in North Korea and Iraq.  The Islamic State can be seen beheading Christian believers on CNN.  The wars and rumors of wars are a reminder of what Jesus said in Matthew 24:6: "You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed.  Such things must happen, but the end is still to come."  Note what he said.  Don't freak out about wars, even ones that may be happening on your own soil.  Don't be alarmed.  God is still in control.

Many in the world today believe that peace is the absence of conflict.  They see organized religion as a source of much of that conflict.  That is why you see bumper stickers that say "Coexist" where each letter is representative of a religious or new age symbol.  To often in our country, anger is focused on Christians.  Somehow, the thinking goes, if we "Bible thumpers" were not so dogmatic and narrow minded, there would be less conflict in our world.  These folks argue that the so-called "militant wing" of the Muslim faith is a small percentage of the followers of Islam, so those who are beheading Christians on the news aren't to be lumped in with more moderate followers of the "religion of peace".

What a shame that these people are buying in to a lie from the pit of hell itself.  I saw a statistic recently that said even if only 5% of Muslims fall into the "militant" category, that is still millions of people bent on the destruction of Israel and the destruction of America.  In fact, I have heard it said that the eschatology (study of end times or of last things) of the Q'uran closely mirrors that of the Bible, but with a different hero.  What Christians would call the Antichrist is hailed in the Q'uran as the great Mahdi, or Guided One, who will rule the earth for 7 years and bring peace through subjugation of all peoples.

That is why the promise of Romans 16:20 is so great.  The God of peace will not bring an absence of conflict.  No, the God of peace will crush Satan underfoot, and He will use you and me to do it.  Read the verse again.  "The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.  The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you."  The grace of God is given to those who stand up to Satan and his evil forces.  Peace, then, is not the absence of war and conflict.  It is the calm assurance of the warrior that he or she is on the side of good and of right.  Peace of mind in the midst of a conflict.  Peace in the heart of a warrior.

May God grant you that peace.  May He grant you the grace to stand against the evil one.

Prophetic Keys in Scripture

I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. --Matthew 16:19

Every Christian has a principle spiritual gift, one that they practice and perfect, one that is seen most often in their spiritual walk.  Mine, I believe, is teaching; although I am starting to focus on a secondary gift of giving.  I have heard it said that each of us may be given multiple spiritual gifts; some may be primary, others may be secondary, and still others may be tertiary--so far removed from our individual temperament and experience that we would never dream of exercising or even experiencing it.

Romans 12 lists seven spiritual gifts.

We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.  If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.  If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let  him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.  --Romans 12:6-8

If I did a personal inventory, and placed those seven gifts in order of use in my own life, I would place teaching at the top, and prophecy at the very end.  The other five may be placed in different rankings, depending on the day, the circumstance, or my mood.

Let me reiterate--of the seven spiritual gifts in this list, prophecy is dead last.

I know of some people who believe they have the gift of prophecy.  Some of them speak in terms so general that they could be speaking of anyone, in any place, at any time.  On the other hand, some are so specific to a place and time that they cannot be denied as either God-inspired, or very, very coincidental.

A friend of mine, who leads our small-group Bible study, is fascinated by modern-day prophecy.  He has recommended a web-site, "The Elijah List", and I have begun skimming through some of the entries.  As I said, some appear straight from a positive thinking seminar, similar to a Zig Ziglar presentation.  Others are more specific, and I have no way of checking their veracity.  Remember, the way to recognize a true prophet of God is that 100% of what they say comes true.  If someone you see claims to have an 80% or 90% veracity rate, they are not of God, because God knows everything.

Not all prophets predict the future.  Their role is not always "foretelling", but it is always "forth-telling".  That is, proclaiming the truth of God.  More on this later.

Anyway, my friend and small group Bible study leader knows the names of all the so-called prophets that are regularly printed in The Elijah List.  Some he likes more than others, because he can identify more with their writing style, and the subject matter.  I, on the other hand, could not tell you the name of one modern-day prophet.  It just doesn't interest me.  My friend has said that many of the prophets of today share a theme of "alignment"--that is, God is working in many ways, in disparate parts of the world, and in opposing politics and policies, to bring about His perfect will.  He believes that "a matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses" (see Matthew 18:16 and Deuteronomy 19:15).  If many are testifying of this spiritual phenomenon, then it must be so.

This past Wednesday night, I was in the small group study, and was listening to him say "alignment", and I saw a vision.  It was like a dream, but I was awake and my eyes were open.  I saw a diagram of a lock; when the key was inserted, the tumblers were pushed up by springs to differing heights, being limited by the contours of the key.  When the key was fully engaged, the tumblers were at different heights, but the lock swung open, because there was a straight line near the opposite end of the tumblers.  It was something like this:

You see that when the tumblers are all aligned, the lock can be opened.

Not only did I see this vision, I heard the words, "The key is the Word of God.  When fully engaged, God's Word can open up the floodgates, or solve an ancient mystery."

To be sure, I have had visions and phrases pop into my mind like this hundreds of times in the past.  Usually, it was when I was studying to prepare a lesson, or to write this blog.  I had always associated it with the gift of teaching.  However, when I shared my vision and context with the group, my friend (who loves to read and hear prophecy), exclaimed, "I receive that!"  He treated it as a prophetic word, not so much foretelling, but forth-telling a biblical truth.

Maybe prophecy and teaching aren't that far removed from each other.  Perhaps they are associated, like the gifts of encouragement and leadership, or of giving and showing mercy.  I do not want to be puffed up, and become big-headed.  I do not want to dare to think that God has opened up a direct channel to me, and that I have now become His spokesman to the world.  I only think it is interesting that as I surround myself with like-minded believers, their traits (or gifts) might rub off on me.  It could also happen to you.

So all day today I was meditating on the message of "keys" and the words of God.  I was drawn to Matthew chapter 16.

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"  They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets."  "But what about you?" he asked.  "Who do you say that I am?"  Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.  And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.  I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose will be loosed in heaven."  --Matthew 16:13-20

In this passage, Peter said something profound.  Jesus reminded the disciples that it was not Peter that had come up with this idea on his own; rather, God had blessed him with it.  You will recall that Peter later exhibited the gifts of healing and of teaching the Word.  But he also had a vision, a dream in which unclean animals were lowered from heaven on a sheet.  God told him that nothing He had made was unclean.  This vision and these words led to opening up the message of the gospel to the Gentiles.

Jesus also told Peter that He was giving him the keys to the kingdom of heaven.  Did this mean that Peter stands at the gates of heaven now, deciding who will get to go in?  No.  We are all recipients of these keys, because the keys are the Word of God.  When properly used, they can show sinful man the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  When the Word of God is rejected, these same keys will lock them out of God's presence, because men will stand condemned by the very words that we preach to them.

Above all, do not quench the Spirit.  "Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy."  (1Corinthians 14:1)

THAT!

Every Christian has a testimony of grace.  We all have our individual story of how God pursued us with mercy and love, so that when we acknowledged Him as Lord and Savior, we could trace the hand of God that brought us to that point.

This week I have been meditating on this verse.  Ephesians 2:8 shows how God's gift of grace leads us to salvation.  The above is from the NIV; many of us first memorized it from the KJV: "For by grace you have been saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God."  Let's take a broad view--God has given us the saving grace we need, so that by faith we accept it, and thus we receive His salvation.  Think of it as a mathematical formula:

(His)Grace + (our)Faith = Salvation

But the more I think about it, the less sense it makes.  And it is all because of that one word, the pronoun "that".  (Or, in the NIV, the more specific "this").

What does "that" refer to?  When I look in the Amplified version, they seem to imply the word "that" refers to salvation:

For it is by free grace (God's unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ's salvation) through [your] faith.  And this [salvation] is not of yourselves--of your own doing, it came not through your own striving--but it is the gift of God.

I can see how they would make that connection.

There are other commentaries that seem to underscore the idea of "grace" is what the "that" refers to.

So then, grace, that is to say, the gift of God, and faith, stand with one another, to which two it is contrary to be saved by ourselves, or by our works. Therefore, what do those mean who would join together things of such contrary natures?--Geneva Study Bible

But I seem to recall from my English lessons (way back in the Stone Age) defining the term "that" as

used as a function word after and to indicate emphatic repetition of the idea expressed by a previous word or phrase <he was helpful, and that to an unusual degree>

So the translators of the oldest and most reliable English version of the Bible put the word "that" in close conjunction to the word "faith", meaning that is is not our faith.  We cannot take any credit at all for our own salvation.  It is all a gift of God--even our faith.  Look at 1 John 5:4: "For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith."  Here we know that "our faith" overcomes the world, because it is born of God.

Please don't misunderstand me.  I don't think that God predestines some to become His children, and some to burn in hell.  "It is not His will that any should perish."  I do think that some people can more easily grasp the faith that God offers, and thereby tap into the grace He offers.

Many scholars say that the Greek word  τοῦτο is gender neutral, and the Greek word for "faith" is feminine; therefore it cannot possibly relate back to the most recent idea "faith"; it must certainly relate back to "Saved".  However, some tend to disagree.  Note this excerpt from Gill's Exposition Of The Entire Bible:

----- (I asked the following question from a Greek and Hebrew professor:

"In this verse, to what does the word "that" refer to? Adam Clarke, Wesley & company say that it is neuter plural and "Faith" is feminine hence it cannot refer to faith, (Such an admission would destroy their theological system.) However "Grace" is also feminine as is "Salvation".''

His reply was:

"Here you ask a wonderful theological/exegetical question to which I can only give an opinion, and not a definitive answer. The problem is that there is NO precise referent. Grace is feminine. Faith is feminine. And even Salvation (as a noun) is feminine. Yet it must be one of these three at least, and maybe more than one, or all three in conjunction. Since all three come from God and not from man, the latter might seem the more likely. However, it is a tautology to say salvation and grace are "nor of yourselves," and in that case it certainly looks more like the passage is really pointing out that man cannot even take credit for his own act of faith, but that faith was itself created by God and implanted in us that we might believe (i.e. the normal Calvinistic position). In which regard the whole theological issue of "regeneration preceding faith" comes into play. So, that is basically my opinion, though others obviously disagree strenuously, but from an exegetical standpoint, the other positions have to explain away the matter of the tautology.''

Whether you accept the reply or not, it is sufficient to show that the Greek is not as definitive in this verse as some scholars would have you believe. Editor)

Notice the play on words--the term "tautology", which has as its root word the Greek word  τοῦτο (and thus is the focus of our little study here), means

tau·tol·o·gy

tôˈtäləjē/

noun

1. the saying of the same thing twice in different words, generally considered to be a fault of style (e.g., they arrived one after the other in succession ).

   synonyms:

   pleonasm, repetition, reiteration, redundancy, superfluity, duplication "avoid such tautology as "let's all work together, everyone, as a team" by saying simply "let's work together""

   • a phrase or expression in which the same thing is said twice in different words.

     plural noun: tautologies
   • LOGIC

     a statement that is true by necessity or by virtue of its logical form.

"Every word of scripture is inspired by God", and understanding every word in this particular verse (Ephesians 2:8) leads us to an appreciation that God has given us everything necessary for salvation.  If you meet someone who says, "I just don't have enough faith to believe in Jesus," tell them that faith is a gift, and God offers it to them, if they are willing to put aside their skepticism.  Christian apologist Ravi Zecharias has said, "God has put enough into the world to make faith in Him a most reasonable thing. But He has left enough out to make it impossible to live by sheer reason or observation alone."