What’s the messsage?

Yesterday (Sunday, April 5th, to be exact) I had the opportunity to sub-teach for a couple of classes.  The lesson focused on the Suffering Servant passages of Isaiah 53:2-12.  Some interesting notes about the class and some conversation afterwards with people is what I would like to share.

Verse 5 talks about how He was pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our iniquities.  Pierced, in Hebrew, means a fatal injury caused by a deep stab.  Crushed, in Hebrew, means He was broken in pieces, splintered apart, and pulverized.  Transgression is rebellion, a flagarant and consistent disobedience.  Iniquity is the pervese and twisted sin of humanity caused by the slippery slope of transgression.  Meaning, the more we rebel against God, the acting out of our sins become worse.  A great example is drug abuse.  Most likely a drug addict didn’t start with just one drug only.  They probably start with something like marijuana, and digress to heroine, cocaine, crystal meth.  The digression is iniquity. 

So with that in mind, part of the discussion focused on the question in regards to Verse 10.  Why was the Lord pleased that Christ was pierced (fatally injured from a stab) and crushed (pulverized)?  A lot of atheist get stuck on this issue.  A few have claimed that God is psuedomasticis because he delighted in Christ’s injuries, and animal sacrifices.   The other question is related to this issue as well.  Why did Jesus have to suffer and die?  Another question that atheist can’t seem to wrap their minds around.  I had a friend ask me, “If Jesus knew He came to die, and died, isn’t that suicide?  If so, is His message then that salvation is found in suicide?” 

Finally, the last question we looked at, “What is the Easter message that Christ would have us share with others?”  So I would like to pose the same questions to you, and then later this week, revisit with what we discussed in the classes on Sunday.  So the questions to answer:
1. Why did the piercing and crushing of Christ please the Lord, and does this make God a psuedomasticis?  Why or why not?

2.  If Jesus knew He came to die, and then died, does this mean He committed suicide; making His message of salvation suicide?

3. Why did Jesus have to come suffer and die?

4. What is the Easter message that Christ (and the Tri-une God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) would have us share with others?

Where’s Your Hope and Peace?

Philippians 4:6-8, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

 

The scripture reference above is one that we hear referenced a lot through trying times.  It is used as a reminder for us when we start worrying about things like a slow economy, job loss/stress, cost of living, accidents, surgeries, etc.  It is good to have a reminder like these verses to remind our emotion/situation Who is really in control of things (here’s a subtle hint: it’s not our emotions in control, nor is it the situations we face).  My post on the election was a reminder of this, that it is God Who is in control of governing authorities.  But as well these verses are used frequently to broadcast messages of deception.  That message is Positive Thinking.

 

The message of positive thinking would seem to be a message based in hope, and not being bogged down by negativity.  This is not a bad concept to live by, don’t get me wrong.  As the Philippians verse says we shouldn’t be anxious; which literally means we should be content in all things.  But there is a fine line with this doctrine and a twist (lie) of the Truth of God’s Word as well.  That fine line and twist (lie) is that you are placing your hope in what YOU view as a positive (favorable) outcome; and become anxious for this positive outcome to happen, instead of contentment in the Lord (achieved by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving) and seeking His purpose for the situation you may be facing.  Most go as far as to avoiding saying anything they view as negative.  Here’s an example:  Say there is someone you know who had a stroke and is recovering.  You go to see them, and they refuse to let you, the doctor, nurses, their family, etc (including themselves) to call what happened a stroke.  But rather is referred to as a “setback”, and they tell people that they are completely recovered (even though they are not).  Then, through therapy and time, they do recover and tell people that it was because they refused to believe the “negativity lie” and kept a positive attitude that they fully recovered; instead of giving God the glory for their recovery.  The hope was found in what they wanted to happen, not necessarily what the Lord may or may not have wanted. 

 

Does this mean that the Lord doesn’t want good/positive things to happen for us?  No, He wants what is best for us; but what we view as “good” or “best” for us, doesn’t always line up with how He views it.  Like we talked about last week and in the weeks to come, that sometimes in order for God’s glory to be further revealed to us in our lives, we may have to go through some time of difficulty, persecution, or trying time.  Sometimes, in order see where we stand in our faith in Christ; we have to be tested in our faith because how we respond to those trials define where we are in Christ.  I can pull many verses about Paul being ship-wrecked, having a thorn in his flesh; or the Disciples of Christ being imprisoned, beaten, put to death; and even look to the suffering and death of Christ.  All of these things that they went through are not positive things, and though they never let these negative events control their actions, nor did they let it ruin their faith in Christ; at the same time, they never avoided speaking about it, or using different terminology to describe those events.  Their trust, their faith, and their hope was in the Lord Jesus Himself; not in the outcome they wanted or desired for themselves.

 

The second fallacy with this doctrine is it makes you blind to the reality around you.  Take a look at Revelation 3:17-20.  This is a letter to the church of Laodicea, and this is what the Holy Spirit spoke through John, “Because you say, ‘I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,’ and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and {that} the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.  Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.  Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.”  Notice where this church’s mindset is in?  Their desired outcome.  They are saying, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing.”  But look what the Lord says, “You do not know that you are wretched and miserable, and poor, and blind and naked.”  They are in denial of what their circumstances truly are, not because of a lack of faith in Christ; but because that is not the desired outcome they had in mind for themselves.  In fact, verses 15 and 16 indicate to us that this frame of mind that they have, has caused them to be “lukewarm” in how they serve one another.

 

This leads to the third fallacy of this doctrine, and that is it keeps you from confessing your sin.  Sin is not a positive thing.  The Lord reveals in verse 19, that these things they view as negative are for the reproving and discipline of those He loves, so they will repent and turn back to Him.  Essentially what the Lord is saying is, “What is more true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, of good repute, excellence, and worthy of praise than Me?  Dwell on Me!  Dwell on my faithfulness that these things are here so that I can reveal more of My glory to you!  Let that peace consume you and move you to act on faith in ME!”  To “confess” means to say the same thing that God says.  God tells us to call our sin what it is, to Him; so He can cover it with His grace.  But if we don’t, we deceive ourselves (I John 1:8-9).  How can we confess our sins (or call our sins out to God) if we are not willing to say anything negative?  How can we say we are completely trusting God, if we neglect to look at other possible avenues that the Lord would want us to take because it is not a desired outcome?

 

Does this mean that it is a sin to pray a desired outcome?  No, but we need to pray in the same manner that the Lord Jesus Himself prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, “And He went a little beyond {them,} and fell on His face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will’” (Matthew 26:39).  Then allow the Lord to direct our path, even if it leads down the less desirable road.  Matthew 6:33-34, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.  So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”  The positive message we need to focus on is summed up in John 16:33, as Jesus says to His disciples (and to us today) “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”  We live in this world.  In this world we are going to face tribulation, difficulties, and negative circumstances.  Our message of hope and peace is not found by thinking on favorable/positive outcomes; but according to Jesus, it is found in Him and Him alone because it is He who has overcome the world.  Where are you placing your hope and peace?  Are you content with the Lord in any situation?  Or is your focus on what you desire?

Quizzical Questions

I thought this would be a good time to let you in on my sense of humor.  There was an article online at the beginning of the year where the author of the article had some “unanswered questions” heading into the next year that he had hoped to answer.  That article inspired my own deep and darkest questions in life that has been left unanswered.  So sit back, strap your seatbelt tight, and hold on to your hats as you enter my sense of humor (it’s so much more than a bumpy ride).

 

Q-Why is the No. 8 always the same combination (tamale, enchilada, rice, beans) in any Mexican restaurant I visit? This includes primarily the southeast United States but not obvious franchises. 

A-Because the first letter of each item put together spells “ocho”  (I see you trying to figure that one out)!

 

Q- PYGMIES: How/when/where/still in existence/do we date them?

A- Like you do with anyone else.  E-harmony!

 

Q- Working in my yard yesterday, I killed a gnat in my ear canal, where it had flown. I couldn’t remove the body as my finger was too fat. What happens to it now? 

A-1.  Ants can come carry it’s remains away while you sleep.  2. It can fall into your ear canal.  3.  You could use a Q-Tip to clean your ear out!

 

Q- What is the richest religion? Scientology has a lot of Hollywood stars and I think they actually make their members give money, but Catholicism is a very old religion with its own country. Also, Islam has a lot of members but I don’t know about their money situation. 

A-Televangelism.

 

Q- How clean is bar soap in a public bathroom? Is it “self-cleaning,” since it’s soap? It seems like a health hazard to me.

A-I don’t think soap is self-cleaning, which is why normal public bathrooms use a soap dispenser.  But I do think a bar of soap would be okay as long as everyone washed their hands with it under running water.  I tried calling a soap company who thought I was trying to trick them, and wouldn’t comment on the matter.  So I would suggest that you be afraid of a bar of soap in a public bathroom.

 

Q- Why is smooth peanut butter cheaper than crunchy?

A-Because you are paying for more peanuts in the “crunchy” peanut butter.

 

Q- Is it possible to collect all the cookie dough in Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough ice cream and actually bake cookies from it?

A-It’s possible, but why waste good ice cream?  Just baking cookies is a task in my house, because I’m always trying to eat the dough. 

 

Q-If you were a superhero, what moniker would you go by, and what would your super powers be?

A-I would be “Hyber-Nate”, and my super powers would be that I would become sleepy when danger appears; and fight off the bad guys in my dreams while sleeping. 

YAWN-there must be evil around….