LookingtoJesus

November 27

Bible Reading: 2 John

2 John 7-11, “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh.  Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist.  Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward.  Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God.  Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.  If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works.”

John, who had much to say about the need to “love one another” (2 John 5-6), had tough words for those who were walking and teaching contrary to the truth.  He called them deceivers (2 John 7).  He warned his friends to watch themselves lest they lose, through acceptance of the false teaching, what they had worked for (2 John 8).  He indicted the false teachers for straying from the truth (2 John 9).  They considered hospitality virtuous in those days, but John counseled the recipients of his epistle to not receive the false teachers into their homes or even give them a greeting (2 John 10-11). 

Albert Barnes commented on this, “The friends of truth and piety we should receive cordially to our dwellings, and should account ourselves honored by their presence (Psalms 101:6-7), strangers we should not forget to entertain, for thereby we may entertain angels unawares (Hebrews 13:2), but the open advocate of what we regard as dangerous error, we are not to receive in any such sense or way as to have our treatment of him fairly construed as patronizing his errors, or commending him as a teacher to the favorable regards of our fellow-men…In all this there is no breach of charity, and no want of true love, for we are to love the truth more than we are the persons of men.”

Albert Barnes

In these postmodern days, a counterfeit version of “love” is adored, but truth is as an orphan. In the name of this new fashionable version of love, the modern church has broadened its umbrella to encompass all kinds of divergent beliefs and practices. But love and truth are inseparable twins. If they are to be adopted by us, we must take them both. One cannot exist—at least in a God-defined sense—apart from the other. Believers are to be “speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15). To speak the truth apart from love is to speak as “a noisy gong or clanging cymbal” (1 Corinthians 13:1; i.e., in a harsh and annoying manner). On the other hand, love apart from truth is love in mere human terms and is inconsistent with God’s definition and objectives. Love needs to be practiced “with knowledge and all discernment” (Philippians 1:9). Jesus is the perfect example to us. He embodied truth and love, walked in both, and related to others accordingly (John 1:17).

The Intervarsity Press Commentary offers this insight: “We would do well to take note of the corporate focus of the Elder’s concern, for he is particularly worried lest the false teachers be granted an opening to teach and propagate their doctrine within the church. It is the church’s responsibility to teach people and to nurture them in faith, righteousness, and love. As a church, it must draw the lines that exclude teaching and practice it deems out of harmony with the revelation of the Scripture. It has this right and responsibility. To be sure, in the effort to guard truth with zeal, some churches draw the lines too soon and too narrowly. But in the effort to exhibit Christian charity and tolerance, some churches refuse to draw the line at all. The continuing challenge to the church is to ‘speak the truth in love.’ Unfortunately, as one wag has said, this generally leads to a lot of speaking, little truth and even less love!”

Intervarsity Press Commentary

“Truth must always guide the exercise of love.”—John MacArthur

Speak, O Lord, and renew our minds
Help us grasp the heights of Your plans for us
Truths unchanged from the dawn of time
That will echo down through eternity
And by grace we’ll stand on Your promises
And by faith we’ll walk as You walk with us
Speak, O Lord, ‘til Your church is built
And the earth is filled with Your glory

November 24

Bible Reading: 1 John 5

1 John 5:13, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.”

John’s gospel and first epistle both include a purpose statement.  He wrote his gospel account, recounting the signs done by Jesus, “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:30-31).  He wrote his first epistle to those who have believed that they “may know that (they) have eternal life” (1 John 5:13).  His purpose in writing this epistle was that the believer would have assurance with respect to his salvation.

The doctrines of security and assurance are complimentary.  The believer is one who “has passed out of death into life” (1 John 3:14).  He is secure in that objective reality whether aware of the truth of it or not.  Assurance has to do with one’s confident realization of his security.  Assurance is a crucial doctrine because it touches on other important aspects of the Christian’s life.  The assured Christian is a joyful and serving Christian.

With respect to these objective and subjective matters, it is possible for a person to live in one of four different states: saved and assured; saved and not assured; not saved and falsely assured; not saved and not assured.  Of these four, the state that is most desirable is the first.  God wants us to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4) and to have assurance of our salvation (1 John 5:13).  Of the four, the third situation is least desired.  It is possible for a person to not be saved, but to think—on the basis of some mistaken assumption—that they are (Matthew 7:21-23).

The Holy Spirit has a ministry of granting assurance to the believer (1 John 5:10, 4:13).  “The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Romans 8:16).  His presence in one’s life is manifested in various ways.  And while there are varying degrees of spiritual maturity (1 John 1:12-14; Philippians 3:12), and it is possible for a believer to behave “in human ways” (1 Corinthians 3:3), the Spirit of God will inevitably work to manifest His presence in the life of the child of God.

The true believer is one who loves the truth.  “God is light” (1 John 1:5).  The believer is one who walks “in the light, as he is in the light” (1 John 1:7).  “Whoever knows God listens” to the truth (1 John 4:6).  Jesus put it this way: “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27, 16).  The true believer is one who has been born again through the truth to a love for truth (1 Peter 1:23, 2:2).  By the Spirit, the believer both understands and loves truth (1 John 2:27).

The true believer is one who loves righteousness.  Though aware of his sin (1 John 1:8-10; Romans 7:24), he is not one who “makes a practice of sinning” (1 John 3:4-10; 5:18).  Instead, he “practices righteousness” (1 John 2:29, 3:7), and endeavors to keep “his commandments” (1 John 2:3-4).  It is not that he never sins, but by the Spirit, his response to sin is not what it once was and is not according to the world’s way of thinking and living (1 John 2:15-17; Romans 1:28-32; Galatians 5:19-21).

The true believer is one who loves the brethren.  This is a main theme in John’s epistle.  “God is love” (1 John 4:8).  “Love is from” Him (1 John 4:7).  Those who have “been born of God” are Spirit-led and empowered to love others with His kind of love (1 John 4:7).  “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers” (1 John 3:14).  If no desire for fellowship exists, and there is no capacity to love “in deed and in truth,” and no resulting correspondence between the walk of Jesus and our own (1 John 2:6, 3:16), then there is good reason to be concerned as to one’s spiritual condition.

1 John 3:10 summarizes the matter this way: “By this it is evident (NASB, “obvious”) who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.”  We are not saved by doing these things—salvation is to “those who believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ” (1 John 3:23)—but our identity as children of God is affirmed to us as we are Spirit-led and empowered to do them.  That is how we can know (i.e., have assurance) that we know Him.

Christ’s work makes us saved; God’s Word makes us sure.

I know not why God’s wondrous grace
To me He hath made known,
Nor why, unworthy, Christ in love
Redeemed me for His own.
But “I know Whom I have believed,
And am persuaded that He is able
To keep that which I’ve committed
Unto Him against that day.

November 23

Bible Reading: 1 John 4

1 John 4:4, “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”

In the movie, “My Bodyguard,” a bully relentlessly attacks a boy who has recently joined the school.  But the bullying stops when the boy acquires the services of the school’s most feared kid as his personal bodyguard.  Spiritually speaking, there is no greater bully than the devil, but the believer is indwelt by One who is infinitely stronger.

“He who is in the world” is powerful and evil.  He exercises dominion through “rulers,” “authorities,” and “the cosmic powers over this present darkness” (Ephesians 6:12).  He “has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:4).  He “prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).  He deceives (2 Corinthians 11:3), tempts (1 Thessalonians 3:5), and accuses (Revelation 12:10).  He has schemes (Ephesians 6:11) and designs (2 Corinthians 2:11) through which he exercises his evil plans.  “For still our ancient foe, doth seek to work us woe—his craft and pow’r are great, and, armed with cruel hate, on earth is not his equal” (“A Mighty Fortress Is Our God;” Martin Luther).

Though he represents a horrific evil in this world—one that should not be underestimated—the One indwelling the believer is far greater. The devil is powerful, but God is omnipotent. The devil goes “to and fro on the earth,” but God is omnipresent. The “father of lies” schemes against us according to his limited knowledge, but God is omniscient. God is sovereign over all. The devil must first ask permission before he can touch the life of the child of God (Job 2:4-6).

Jesus cast out demons.  Blasphemously, the Pharisees claimed that He did so “by Beelzebul, the prince of demons” (Matthew 12:25).  In His response, Jesus asked, “Or how can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?” (Matthew 12:29).  Jesus was able to cast out demons because He is greater than the “strong man”!  Indeed, through His death and resurrection, He has worked “to destroy the one who has the power of death” (Hebrews 2:14).  Through the One “who loved us” we are “more than conquerors” (Romans 8:37).  No lesser entity or power can work “to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39).  “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world” (1 John 5:4).

“One night, John Paton and his wife—a missionary couple in the New Hebrides Islands—were awakened by chants outside their mission station.  Looking out, they saw that scores of hostile islanders had surrounded the station with torches, intent on burning the place down and killing the missionary couple.  The Patons got down on their knees and prayed throughout the night, asking God to deliver them.  The tense, dark hours passed, yet the islanders kept their distance.  Finally, around daybreak, the Patons looked out the window—and the hostile tribesmen were gone.  John Paton was baffled.  There seemed to be nothing preventing the islanders from attacking, yet no attack came.  Paton didn’t find out why the islanders left so mysteriously until a year later, when the chief of the tribe was won to Christ.  Remembering the night-long siege of a year before, John Paton asked the newly converted chief why the tribesmen had departed instead of burning the mission station to the ground.  ‘We were afraid of the men who were with you,’ the chief replied.  ‘What men?’ asked Paton.  ‘There were a hundred tall men around the mission house that night,’ said the chief.  ‘Their clothing shone with light, and they had swords in their hands.  We knew that they would never let us harm you, so we went back to our village.’”

Ray Stedman; “Spiritual Warfare;” Discovery House Publishers; c1975. 

John Paton’s devil-led foes represented a seemingly insurmountable force, but He is who is greater protected John and his wife from harm.

The power of Christ within you is greater than the power of evil around you.

And though this world, with devils filled,
should threaten to undo us,
we will not fear, for God has willed
his truth to triumph through us.
The prince of darkness grim,
we tremble not for him;
his rage we can endure,
for lo! his doom is sure;
one little word shall fell him.

November 22

Bible Reading: 1 John 3

1 John 3:16a, “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us.”

The much-loved song, “Jesus Loves Me,” was written by Anna Bartlett Warner, who also authored several other books and poems. Anna’s family home was quite close to the United States Military Academy at West Point, in New York, in the era just before the Civil War. Each Sunday, Anna taught Bible classes to the cadets. Her remains are buried in the military cemetery, and her family home is now a museum on the grounds of the United States Military Academy. “Jesus Loves Me” came from a poem written by Anna and her sisters in the 1860s for their sentimental and best-selling novel “Say and Seal.” In a scene that brought many people to tears, a child lays dying and is comforted as the main character in the book recites the poem: “Jesus loves me! This I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to Him belong, they are weak, but He is strong.” Many soldiers on the battlegrounds during the civil war sang—and found spiritual comfort in—in the words of the hymn. As many have since!

How can we know that “Jesus loves me?”  And how are we to define love?  The word “love” is commonly used and in various ways.  Much of what is deemed “love” in our society bears little resemblance to the love spoken of in this verse.  We tend to think of love in human terms, but there is a love which transcends all others.  “God is love” (1 John 4:8, 16).  Love is an attribute of God (attribute=something true about God).  He doesn’t try to love, He is love.  The other “John 3:16” speaks to how God has so loved the world by sending His son.  This verse speaks to how Jesus has defined and demonstrated love in laying down His life for us.

Two terms are especially important here, “love” and “know.”  The term translated “love” in this verse is the Greek agape.  Vine’s definition of the term is especially helpful: “Agapao” and the corresponding noun agape present ‘the characteristic word of Christianity, and since the Spirit of revelation has used it to express ideas previously unknown, inquiry into its use, whether in Greek literature or in the Septuagint, throws but little light upon its distinctive meaning in the NT…Love can only be known from the actions it prompts.  God’s love is seen in the gift of His Son…But obviously this is not the love of complacency, or affection, that is, it was not drawn out of any excellency in its objects, Rom. 5:8.  It was an exercise of the divine will in deliberate choice, made without assignable cause save that which lies in the nature of God Himself.”

Several things stand out in this definition.  First, the love defined here for us is demonstrated by “the divine will in deliberate choice, made without assignable cause save that which lies in the nature of God Himself” (i.e., “for love is from God;” 1 John 4:7).  Second, the demonstration of this love was not sourced in “any excellency of its objects.”  He did not love us because we were in any measure deserving of His love (Romans 5:8; Ephesians 2:1-3; Colossians 1:21).  Thirdly, God’s love has been best evidenced for us in “the gift of His Son.”  True love has been defined for us in Christ and His willing sacrifice for us.  If we wonder as to what love looks like, we should direct our thoughts and attention cross-ward.

The other especially important term here is “know.”  It translates the Greek “ginosko.”  The basic meaning of the term is “to be taking in knowledge, to come to know, recognize, or understand” (Vine’s Expository Dictionary).  The term implies “appreciation as well as knowledge.” A knowledge “obtained, not by mere intellectual activity, but by operation of the Holy Spirit consequent upon acceptance of Christ” (Vine’s Expository Dictionary). Our verse speaks to the abiding experiential knowledge of Christ’s love possessed by the believer in Christ.  Indeed, “God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Romans 5:8).  Love has not just been defined for us in Jesus, He has filled our hearts to overflowing with His love!  

Jesus loves me!  And when I find myself in doubt of that reality, the cross is there to remind me of this wonderful truth!

Jesus Loves me, this I know
For the Bible tells me so
Little ones to Him belongs
They are weak but He is strong
Yes, Jesus loves me
Yes, Jesus loves me
Yes, Jesus loves me
The Bible tells me so

November 21

Bible Reading: 1 John 2

1 John 2:15-17, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.  And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”

An old country song speaks of “looking for love in all the wrong places.”  Our text speaks to how it’s possible for any of us to look to love the wrong things in all the wrong ways.

The word “world” stands out in this passage, appearing six times in these three verses.  It translates the Greek “kosmos” which is used in the New Testament in reference to: the earth (John 21:25; Acts 17:24); the human race (John 3:16); or “the present condition of human affairs in alienation from and opposition to God” (Vine’s Expository Dictionary).  The latter usage is the sense here.

The believer is exhorted to “not love the world or the things in the world” (1 John 2:15).  The term “love” translates the Greek “agapao.”  Kenneth Wuest has commented on its use here, “Agapao” speaks of a love which is awakened by a sense of value in an object which causes one to prize it.  It springs from an apprehension of the preciousness of an object. (Wuest, Kenneth; Wuest’s Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Eerdmans).  To love the world is to value and treasure it as opposed to love for God.

Three reasons are given as to why we should not love the world: 1) what the world is; 2) what the world does; and 3) where the world is going.

The world stands in opposition to God, as James Montgomery Boice explains: “The idea here is of the world of men in rebellion against God and therefore characterized by all that is in opposition to God.  This is what we might call ‘the world system.’  It involves the world’s values, pleasures, pastimes, and aspirations.  John says of this world that the world lies in the grip of the evil one (1 John 5:19), that it rejected Jesus when He came (John 1:10), that it does not know Him (1 John 3:1), and consequently that it does not know and therefore also hates His followers (John 15:18, 19, 20, 21; 17:14).  It is in this sense that John speaks of the world in the passage before us. (Boice, James M.; The Epistles of John: An Expositional Commentary; Baker Books).

The world encourages a misplaced love.  We should love God above all else and always endeavor to do His will, but that’s not what the world says.  Indeed, these last days are characterized by love for all the wrong things—self, money, pleasure (2 Timothy 3:1-4).  The world system uses three primary devices to tempt and trap believers — “the desires of the flesh (pleasurable “doing” type sins; “fun”) and the desires of the eyes (profitable “having” type sins; “fortune”) and pride of life (positional “being” type sins; “fame”)” (1 John 2:16).  The devil used these three devices to deceive and tempt Eve (Genesis 3:6).  She saw that the tree was “good for food (“the desires of the flesh”), and that it was a delight to the eyes (“the desires of the eyes”), and that tree was to be desired to make one wise (“pride of life”).  Jesus was likewise tempted according to these three devices, but He did not sin (Matthew 4:1-10).  These devices appeal appropriate desires but tempt us to fulfill them in inappropriate ways—outside and contrary to the will of God.  For example, to satisfy one’s hunger is altogether appropriate, but gluttony is sin; sex within marriage is a gift from God but is otherwise forbidden.  The believer is to preference the doing of the will of God to illegitimately attempting to fulfill his desires according to the world’s way of thinking.  Paul similarly exhorts the believer to “not be conformed to this world,” but instead to be transformed that he might know and do the will of God (Romans 12:2).

Though most suppose otherwise, the world and its desires are passing away (1 John 2:17; 2 Peter 3:1-7).  One day the world system will come to an end.  All of the worldly pursuits of men will be exposed and expunged (2 Peter 3:10).  John contrasts between two differing ways of life, living for the here and now vs. living for the then and there.  Living for the here and now (according to the way of the world) is a bad investment of one’s life because you can’t keep hold of the things that you are now living for.  But “whoever does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:17).  Love for the world is a love that God hates (James 4:4).  It is far better to love God and endeavor to do His will.

“Hold loosely to the things of this life, so that if God requires them of you, it will be easy to let them go.” — Corrie ten Boom

O let me feel Thee near me,
The world is ever near;
I see the sights that dazzle,
The tempting sounds I hear;
My foes are ever near me,
Around me and within;
But, Jesus draw Thou nearer,
And shield my soul from sin.

November 20

Bible Reading: 1 John 1

1 John 1:1-4, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life—the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us–that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.”

That a man named Jesus once lived on this earth is a matter of record acknowledged even by secular historians.  Years are even numbered according to the “Year of Our Lord” (i.e., A.D. = Anno Domini = “Year of Our Lord”).  Who is Jesus?  Why did He come?  How can we know?  The Apostle John was an eyewitness of Jesus and wrote about what he saw and heard.

He wrote this epistle in part to refute some heretical teaching.  False teachers were distorting the truth concerning Jesus.  They claimed to have an exclusive, enlightened understanding of the truth.  They professed faith in Jesus but denied that He had come in the flesh (1 John 2:22; 4:2).  They likewise denied the physical reality of HIs sufferings.  So, John wrote to refute their heresies.

John was an eyewitness to the truth about Jesus.  Three times in three verses he spoke to that which he had “seen and heard” (1 John 1:1-3).  To use the Apostle Peter’s language, he wasn’t following “cleverly devised myths” in what he was speaking about, but was an eyewitness to the truth (2 Peter 1:16).  What did he see and hear?  He saw the incarnate Word, the “only Son from the Father,” dwelling among men (John 1:14).  He saw the Divine Son having come in human flesh.  He beheld His glory (John 1:14).

John saw the eternal life made manifest.  John saw that in Jesus.  Eternal life is not merely life unending but equates to knowing God in a personal way.  John elsewhere wrote, “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (John 17:4).  Jesus came for the express purpose of imparting eternal life to the spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1).  John’s gospel and epistles are replete with references to the life made manifest and availed to us by Jesus through his death and resurrection.

• “In him was life” (John 1:4).
• “He has granted the Son also to have life in himself” (John 5:26).
• “I am the bread of life” (the terms “life” or “living” are used some 18X in this chapter” (John 6:35).
• “Whoever believers in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water’” (John 7:38).
• “I came that they might have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10).
• “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).
• “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).
• “And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.  Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life” (1 John 5:11-12).
• “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one.  I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades” (Revelation 1:17-18).

The Apostle John was an eyewitness to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  He devoted his life to proclaiming the truth that he himself had witnessed.  He willingly suffered persecution to defend and proclaim these truths (Revelation 1:9; Acts 4:20).  His fellow apostles suffered martyrdom for that cause.  They yearned for others to receive the true life that Jesus alone can provide.  The Apostle John still testifies to us through God’s inspired word. He who died on the cross and rose from the dead is able to impart life to sin-dead souls (Ephesians 2:1).  That very same Jesus who called a rotting Lazarus from the grave, is able this very day to revive any man and bring him into an eternal fellowship with the Father and the Son.  Life is in the Son.  Do you have the Son?  If so, you have the life—it is yours by His gracious provision (1 John 5:11-12)!  If not, don’t delay in calling on Him.  He came that you might have life and have it abundantly (John 10:10).

“And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” – John 17:4

Once I was lost in sin’s degradation,
Jesus came down to bring me salvation,
Lifted me up from sorrow and shame,
Now I belong to Him;
Now I belong to Jesus,
Jesus belongs to me,
Not for the years of time alone,
But for eternity.

November 17

Bible Reading: 2 Peter 3

2 Peter 3:3-7, “Knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.”

Mt. St. Helens was about to erupt. Warnings were issued for people to leave the area, but Harry Truman refused to heed them. A National Geographic article recounted the story of what happened: “Old man Harry Truman (83) built a cabin by Spirit Lake on the slopes of Mt. St. Helens some 53 years ago. All those years nature remained consistent. But then the mountain started to awaken. Residents were asked to leave. Warnings were given. Park guards came to the cabin to tell him it wasn’t safe. TV and newspaper folks interviewed him. He said he could not live anywhere else. He was part of the mountain, and the mountain was part of him. He laughed at and cursed all his visitors. Then on May 18, 1980, the mountain exploded, and Harry Truman perished under hundreds of feet of volcanic ash.”

Though people scoff and disregard the truth, Jesus Christ is coming again.  The word “scoff” translates a term which means “to play with, trifle with, deride, or mock.”  It is the same term that used to describe the cacophony of abuse directed towards Jesus by sinners as He hung upon the cross.  They mocked Him in His first coming (Matthew 27:29, 31, 39, 41) and they are even now mocking the promise of His return. They scoff because “all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation” (2 Peter 3:4). 

John Piper has commented on their reasoning: “This is an amazingly modern argument for rejecting the supernatural, bodily Second Coming. It simply says the laws of nature are constant and unchanging. The sun has come up and gone down, the seasons have followed each other, the tides have risen and fallen for thousands of years in perfect order. Therefore, we must expect this constancy for the future, and any thought that the sky might be rolled up like a scroll and the earth purged with global, fiery judgment by the returning Christ is unimaginable and unwarranted. This is exactly the position of much modern science and there are hundreds of pastors and theologians in the churches and seminaries today who reject a physical second coming and future judgment for the same reason.”

John Piper

According to their false reasoning—and for the sake of the pursuits of their lusts—they “deliberately overlook” obvious realities (2 Peter 3:5).  They deny the truth that God is the creator of the heavens and the earth (2 Peter 3:4; Romans 1:18-20).  They likewise purpose to forget that God has previously exercised judgment when the world “was deluged with water” (2 Peter 3:6; Luke 17:26-30).

God has patiently withheld judgment.  And though it seems to have been for an exceedingly long time, “with the Lord one day is a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (2 Peter 3:8).  “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish, but that all should reach repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).

Some suggest that we should be extremely concerned about climate change and the effect it will have soon have on our planet, claiming that it presents an existential threat to humanity.  They are right, it’s coming, but not in how they suppose.  2 Peter 3:7, “But by the same word the heavens and earth now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.”  God has issued a warning.  It’s left to us to take it seriously and respond accordingly (Matthew 3:7b, 2 Peter 3:11-13).

The book “Pilgrim’s Progress” depicts in its main character, “Christian,” a better response than that of Harry Truman. Having been warned of the pending destruction of his city, Christian felt great distress and could not rest until he found a means of escape. He fled for safety. We would do well to follow his example, looking to Jesus, who gave himself to deliver us (Galatians 1:4).

Jesus may come any time, so we should be ready all the time. 

Time is now fleeting, the moments are passing,
passing from you and from me;
shadows are gathering, deathbeds are coming,
coming for you and for me.
Come home, come home;
you who are weary come home;
earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling,
calling, O sinner, come home!

November 16

Bible Reading: 2 Peter 2

2 Peter 2:9, “…then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials.”

Fresh out of high school, I commercial fished a small dory out of Depoe Bay. Possessing only a depth finder and compass, I was daily at the mercy of the winds and waves and currents of the mighty Pacific Ocean. One day, as I was preparing to enter the harbor, my old 55 hp outboard motor quit. With the waves crashing against the nearby shore, I needed to get help, and fast. I used my CB to call for help, and arranged my tall trolling poles according to the universal distress signal (one pole up, one pole down). Within minutes, I caught a glimpse of a Coast Guard Rescue Boat making their way out of the harbor. They quickly worked to tow me back to safety. They are good at rescue! God is even better!

There is no 911 to call when it comes to our spiritual troubles.  Instead, it is God who stands on the other side of our pleas for help.  Trials are an inevitable part of life (John 16:33).  It’s good to know that God knows how to rescue the godly from trials. 

The Greek term translated rescue in this verse means “to draw or snatch to oneself and invariably refers to a snatching from danger, evil, or an enemy.”  The term emphasizes both the greatness of the peril and the power exercised in the deliverance from it.  The basic idea might be compared to a soldier responding to the cry of a wounded comrade in battle.  He runs to his aid and with exertion, drags him away from the hands of the enemy. The verb, as used here, is in the present tense, speaking of a continual action.  The suffering Christian can rest assured both of God’s awareness of his plight, and God’s ability to rescue him from it, no matter how perilous it might be.

Peter draws on a couple of examples to illustrate his point.  God “rescued righteous Lot” (2 Peter 2:7).  Lot was unaware of the plight that was soon to befall the city, but God sent two angels to deliver him (Genesis 19:1).  His subsequent rescue is vividly described in Genesis 19:15-16: “As morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be swept away in the punishment of the city.”  But he lingered. So the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the Lord being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city.”  Noah was likewise “preserved” from the great flood of which he was previously unaware through the intervention of God (2 Peter 2:5).  Peter’s argument in this passage is from the lesser premise to the greater.  If God was able to rescue Lot and preserve Noah, then He is able to rescue us too. No matter how big your trouble, God knows how to rescue you. It may not be by an angel or an ark, but He can intervene in your life for good. As the Apostle Paul said (in his last words), “The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen” (2 Timothy 4:18).

On the other side of the equation stands the fate of the ungodly and the false teachers.  God knows both how to rescue the godly and how “to the keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment” (2 Peter 2:9; Jude 14-15).  “Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep” (2 Peter 2:3).  God will surely accomplish His alternative purposes, both with respect to the godly and the ungodly. And the final determination revolves around whether or not one knows Jesus (2 Thessalonians 1:8-10).

Charles Spurgeon once commented on this: “The godly are tempted and tried.  That is not true faith which is never put to the test.  But the godly are delivered out of their trials, and that not by chance, nor by secondary agencies, but by the LORD Himself.  He personally undertakes the office of delivering those who trust Him.  God loves the godly or godlike, and He makes a point of knowing where they are and how they fare.  Sometimes their way seems to be a labyrinth, and they cannot imagine how they are to escape from threatening danger.  What they do not know, their LORD knows.  He knows whom to deliver, and when to deliver, and how to deliver.  He delivers in the way which is most beneficial to the godly, most crushing to the tempter, and most glorifying to Himself.  We may leave the ‘how’ with the LORD and be content to rejoice in the fact that He will, in some way or other, bring His own people through all the dangers, trials, and temptations for this mortal life to His own right hand in glory.  This day it is not for me to pry into my LORD’s secrets but patiently to wait His time, knowing this, that though I know nothing, my heavenly Father knows.”

Charles Spurgeon

Trials are inevitable, but God knows how to rescue us from even the worst of them.

Have faith in God though all else fail about you;
Have faith in God, He provides for His own;
He cannot fail though all kingdoms shall perish,
He rules, He reigns upon His throne.
Have faith in God, He’s on His throne;
Have faith in God, He watches o’er His own;
He cannot fail, He must prevail;
Have faith in God, have faith in God.

November 15

Bible Reading: 2 Peter 1

2 Peter 1:16-21, “For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, ’This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,’ we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

It had been nearly four decades since Peter experienced what he wrote about here, but he remembered well what had happened.  His testimony regarding Christ’s transfiguration did not arise from “cleverly devised myths” (2 Peter 1:16).  Peter and his companions were “eyewitnesses of his majesty,” heard the “voice borne from heaven,” and were “with (Jesus) on the holy mountain” (2 Peter 1:16-18).

Though we’ve not seen Jesus as Peter had (1 Peter 1:8), we have “the prophetic word” to guide us and to that we would “do well to pay attention” (2 Peter 1:19). Many in this postmodern day prefer personal experience as a guide, but Peter directs us to something better—the objective truth revealed to us in God’s inspired Word (1 Peter 1:20-21; 2 Timothy 3:16-17). We are exhorted to “pay attention” to it as we navigate through this present darkness in eager anticipation of the dawn of Christ’s return.

The Greek Word translated “pay attention” was a nautical term meaning to hold a ship in a direction.  The text emphasizes the importance of staying focused on the Word, like a ship relying on the light of a distant lighthouse in a dark stormy night. A GPS is an amazing device—by satellite, it determines your position, within a few feet, anywhere on the planet. Give it a destination and it will give you audible instructions when to turn. No longer is there a need for maps or to stop and embarrassingly ask for directions. But a GPS has its limitations—It will do you no good to type in “heaven” as your destination—it doesn’t know the way. The best of earthbound navigational aids are of no help when it comes to spiritual matters. 

The hymn “Let the Lower Lights Be Burning” is based on a true story D. L. Moody once told.  Cleveland harbor was marked by two sets of lights.  A ship was headed into the harbor on a dark and stormy night.  They spotted the upper lights, but not the lower ones.  They needed both to successfully navigate the passage, but due to the ferocity of the storm they had no choice but to proceed.  The ship ultimately crashed into the rocks and few survived.  There is a need to pay attention to the Word lest we be led off course into treacherous waters (2 Peter 2:1-3; Ephesians 4:14).  The hymn’s theme — “let the lower lights be burning”—speaks to the need for believers to uphold a light-bearing testimony in this dark world, but the hymn also illustrates the need we each have for God’s supreme “navigational aid.”

The Bible is elsewhere said to be a light to our feet and a lamp to our path (Psalm 119:105).  In darkness it is difficult to safely find one’s way apart from the provision of light from some external source.  God’s word is that light to us.  How are we to distinguish between right and wrong, good and evil, truth and falsehood?  How are we to know if a thing is in fact pleasing unto God?  What will work to help us to stay the course on the narrow path that leads to life when most everyone else is headed in a different direction?  God’s inspired Word alone can do that (2 Timothy 3:16-17).  

Every Gideon Bible includes this wonderful testimony regarding the Scripture’s ability to guide us: “The Bible contains the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers. Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding, its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable. Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, and practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to support you, and comfort to cheer you. It is the traveler’s map, the pilgrim’s staff, the pilot’s compass, the soldier’s sword, and the Christian’s charter. Here Paradise is restored, Heaven opened, and the gates of hell disclosed. CHRIST is its grand subject, our good the design, and the glory of God its end. It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet. Read it slowly, frequently, and prayerfully. It is a mine of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of pleasure. It is given you in life, will be opened at the judgment, and be remembered forever. It involves the highest responsibility, will reward the greatest labor, and will condemn all who trifle with its sacred contents.” 

The Bible alone is able to help us to navigate through life’s challenges as we sail to heaven’s shore!

Brightly beams our Father’s mercy
From His lighthouse evermore;
But to us He gives the keeping
Of the lights along the shore.
Let the lower lights be burning!
Send a gleam across the wave!
Some poor fainting, struggling seaman
You may rescue, you may save.

November 14

Bible Reading: 1 Peter 5

1 Peter 5:7, “Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”

The context of this ever-relevant encouragement is the exhortation to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God (1 Peter 5:6).  And we should thereby remind ourselves that anxiety has its source in pride and unbelief.  In pride we wrongly suppose ourselves capable of dealing with our problems.  Lacking faith, we sometimes refuse to trust God with them.

Worry is a prevalent sin from which no one is exempt.  The average person worries about many things, but as someone has suggested: 40% of things we worry about will never happen; 30% have to do with things in the past that cannot be changed; 12% relate to criticism by others (mostly untrue); 10% are about our health which only gets worse under stress; only 8% have to do with real problems that we will face.  All that being said, the reality is that anxiety is counterproductive.  It’s been compared to rocking in a rocking chair, a lot of energy is expended but you don’t get anywhere.  Indeed, the Greek term translated “anxieties” means “to draw in different directions, distract.”  Worry is a distraction whereby interest is paid on tomorrow’s troubles.

A humorous story speaks to the need to do something with one’s anxieties.  “I have a mountain of credit card debt,” one man told another.  “I’ve lost my job, my car is being repossessed, and our house is in foreclosure, but I’m not worried about it.”  “Not worried about it!” exclaimed his friend.  “No.  I’ve hired a professional worrier.  He does all my worrying for me, and that way I don’t have to think about it.”  “That’s fantastic.  How much does your professional worrier charge for his services?”  “Fifty thousand dollars a year,” replied the first man.  “Fifty thousand dollars a year?  Where are you going to get that kind of money?”  “I don’t know,” came the reply.  “That’s his worry.”  But there are, of course, no professional worriers.

The Greek term translated casting means “to throw or cast upon.”  It is otherwise used in the New Testament only one other time (when the disciples threw their garments on the back of the colt Jesus was to ride; Luke 19:35).  We are, in like manner, exhorted to cast all our anxieties on the Lord.  Not just the small ones or just the big ones.  As someone has said, “Our great problems are small to God’s power, our small problems are great to God’s love.”  God is sufficiently wise, powerful, and loving to deal with our troubles—no matter how deep the heartaches, how challenging the difficulties, or how disappointing the failures.  All our anxieties, the whole heap of them, are to be cast upon the broad shoulders of Jesus.

He cares for you.  He who purposed to bear the full measure of your sins cares for you (1 Peter 2:24).  He who serves as “the Shepherd and Overseer” of your soul cares for you (1 Peter 2:25).  Jesus had likewise spoken of the need to trust God and not worry: “Look to the birds of the air: they neither reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not of more value than they” (Matthew 7:26)?

I’m wondering if Peter reflected on his own experience with Jesus amidst a storm, when he wrote these inspired words. Jesus and the disciples were in a boat crossing the Sea of Galilee when “a great windstorm arose” (Mark 4:37). The waves were breaking in the boat and the boat was filling up with water. The disciples were afraid! But Jesus was asleep! They woke Jesus up and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing” (Mark 4:38). “And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be Still!’ And the wind ceased, and there was great calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with fear and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him” (Mark 4:39-40)? Who indeed? If He can calm the wind and waves, then surely he can calm our anxiety-prone hearts. He can “impart the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding” (Philippians 4:6-7). There’s no need for worry when you’ve got Jesus in your boat. He cares and He is able.

A song puts the matter this way: “I cast all my cares upon You.  I lay all of my burdens down at your feet.  And anytime that I don’t know what to do.  I will cast all my cares upon you” (Words and music by Kelly Willard; c1986 by Maranatha! Music).

No matter the size of the storm, there’s no need to fear if You’ve got Jesus in your boat.

Does Jesus care when my heart is pained
Too deeply for mirth or song;
As the burdens press, and the cares distress,
And the way grows weary and long?
O yes, He cares- I know He cares!
His heart is touched with my grief;
When the days are weary, the long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.