Where You Begin and Where You End
I have often said, when teaching in various settings, “Where you begin is where you end.” This is my axiomatic, though admittedly somewhat simplistic, way of expressing the truth that all of us come to a situation, a problem, or a challenge with our own preconceived notions and biases. These preconceived notions and biases, in turn, inevitably color the conclusions we draw and the solutions we formulate. This is especially true when it comes to working with the text of Scripture. If you approach the Bible with a stance of pessimism and incredulity, what you find will be appropriately pessimistic and incredulous. Conversely, if you approach the Bible with a stance of awe and a desire to “give the Bible the benefit of the doubt,” as it were, the conclusions you draw will strengthen your faith soothe your troubled soul. It is no secret that I am in the latter camp of how I approach Holy Scripture. In light of my ABC yesterday on the doctrine of the inspiration of Scripture, I thought that this quote from Ben Witherington III, given at the Greer-Heard Forum last Saturday at New Orleans Baptist Seminary, offered some keen insight into why I am in this latter camp:
I don’t believe in “justification by doubt.” I don’t believe that philosophical skepticism is the same thing as critical thinking, and I also don’t think that the sort of historiography that is undergirded by such a prioris can help us very much with the question are the Gospels reliable, truthful witnesses when it comes to the historical Jesus. In fact, if you want to actually get at the truth of something, you have to enter into dialogue with that source giving it the benefit of the doubt, allowing it to have its say, and while one doesn’t put one’s critically thinking cap aside, if you do not approach the material with an open mind and a willingness to learn from it, you won’t get at the truth of the matter, not even the historical truth of the matter. You can’t possibly analyze the actual nature of a raging fire, by pouring cold water on it, and then picking over the ashes and charcoal thereafter.
ABC Extra – The Perfect Book
This past weekend, we kicked off a two part mini message series titled “INSPIRE!” where we are looking at how the Scriptures are both inspired by God – that is, they are His very words, authored and spoken by Him – and inspiring to us – that is, they give us guidance for our everyday lives and hope for tomorrow. Yesterday, we talked about the doctrine of the inspiration of Scripture according to 2 Timothy 3:16-17: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” From these verses, we draw the doctrine of the verbal plenary inspiration of Scripture. The word “verbal” means that God not only inspired the general thoughts of the biblical authors, but their very words. The words of the Bible are truly “God-breathed.” The word “plenary” comes from the Latin word plenarius, meaning, “entire,” or “complete.” Thus, the doctrine of plenary inspiration states that all, not just some of the Bible is inspired by God. From Genesis to Revelation, God is speaking.
Because the Bible is verbally and completely inspired by God, it follows that the Bible is also inerrant. Because God is finally the author of the Scriptures and God is perfect, the Scriptures themselves can be nothing less than perfect, even as the Psalmist says, “The instructions of the LORD are perfect, reviving the soul” (Psalm 19:7 NLT). Robert Preus puts the connection between the doctrine of inspiration and the doctrine of inerrancy well when he says, “Inerrancy is an inextricable concomitant of inspiration” (“Notes on the Inerrancy of Scripture”). One cannot have a vigorous and meaningful doctrine of divine inspiration without an honest position of inerrancy.
But what do we mean when we say the Bible is “inerrant”? Because there has been much misunderstanding as to precisely what inerrancy entails, I offer the below list of what inerrancy does and does not mean as outlined by James Voelz in his hermeneutics volume, What Does This Mean? Voelz outlines three things that inerrancy does not entail:
- Inerrancy does not entail exactness of quotations. This is illustrated especially when New Testament authors quote Old Testament prophetic texts. For example, at the Council of Jerusalem, when church leaders are trying to decide whether or not they should require Gentiles to become circumcised according to Jewish custom before becoming Christian, James quotes Amos 9:11-12 and says, “After this I will return and rebuild David’s fallen tent. Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it, that the remnant of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who bear my name, says the Lord, who does these things that have been known for ages” (Acts 15:16-18). James concludes that because the Gentiles also seek and bear the name of the Lord, “We should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God” (Acts 15:19) and thus counsels against requiring circumcision for Gentile converts. Notably, the Hebrew text of Amos 9:11-12 is different from the Greek text that James quotes. It reads, “In that day I will restore David’s fallen tent. I will repair its broken places, restore its ruins, and build it as it used to be, so that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations that bear my name.” In the Hebrew text, rather than a general remnant of men seeking the Lord, Israel possesses the remnant of Edom. The difference in these two texts is not an affront to the inerrancy of the Old Testament; rather, James, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is using an Old Testament prophecy for the express purpose of highlighting how many Gentiles are coming to faith in Christ.
- Inerrancy does not constitute exactness in the order of events recorded. A famous example of this principle is found in the temptation of Jesus’ in the desert. In the account in Matthew 4, the devil begins by tempting Jesus to turn stones into bread, moves on to tempting Him to throw Himself down from the temple, and then finally demands that He fall down and worship the devil. In Luke 4, however, the order of the temptations is shuffled. First, Satan tempts Jesus to turn stones into bread. Next, he tempts Him to worship him. And finally, the devil tempts Jesus to throw Himself down from the temple. What accounts for this difference? More than likely, the different evangelists wish to emphasize different things. Matthew highlights the “descending Christology” of Satan’s temptations, ending with a demand so brash and low as asking Jesus to worship him. That is, Satan wants Jesus to be “under” him by worshipping him. Luke, however, saves the temple temptation for the final one, more than likely because it is the temptation in which Satan quotes Scripture. Satan says, “It is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone’” (Luke 4:10-11). Before this temptation, Jesus has cited Scripture to refute Satan’s temptations. But now, Satan is using Scripture against Jesus. Luke seems to highlight Satan’s most sinister type of temptation – the twisting of God’s Word – by saving it for last. The change in order in no way negates the historical veracity of these temptations, however. The different evangelists simply wish to highlight different things in Jesus’ wilderness experience.
- Inerrancy does not constitute the avoidance of figures of speech. Hopefully, this aspect of inerrancy is fairly self-evident. For even today, figures of speech are commonplace. Thus, when the Psalmist sings of God’s creation, “God set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved” (Psalm 104:5), he is not saying that the earth is somehow cosmologically static. Indeed, we know it’s not. Scientific observation has taught us that the earth revolves around the sun. The earth does indeed move. The Psalmist, however, is not speaking with cosmological concerns in mind. He is simply stating that, at least from our human perspective, the earth seems very solid and unmovable thanks to the high handiwork of our God.
In light of all this, what then can we say about inerrancy? Voelz explains inerrancy from a positive standpoint well: “To say that the sacred Scriptures are inerrant is to say that their authors are absolutely truthful according to their intended purposes” (What Does This Mean? 239). Thus, the biblical writers do not lie in any of what they write. They do, however, write using normal and expected grammatical and rhetorical tropes. Armed with an understanding of these tropes, we can trust the Scriptural writings as God’s inerrant Word. And because God’s Word is inerrant, it will never lead us astray. Praise be to God for His perfect book!
Want to learn more on this passage? Go to
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and check out audio and video from Pastor Tucker’s
message or Pastor Zach’s ABC!
ABC Extra – For Thinkers Only
Last week, I posted a blog on Mark 12 and the glory of loving God with all your mind. As a follow up to that post, I wanted to offer a few further reflections on this important topic. As I mentioned in ABC, there is a common belief among many that people of faith in general, and especially the faith Christians, is not intellectually astute and is even downright imbecilic. Consider this from one of the leading atheists of our day, Sam Harris:
The Bible, it seems certain, was the work of sand-strew men and women who thought the earth was flat and for whom a wheelbarrow would have been a breathtaking example of emerging technology. To rely on such a document as the basis for our worldview – however heroic the efforts of redactors – is to repudiate two thousand years of civilizing insights that the human mind has only just begum to inscribe upon itself through secular politics and scientific culture. (Sam Harris, The End of Faith, Location 601-605)
Two things are especially notable about Sam Harris’ quote. First, he assumes a fundamentally modern epistemology. That is, he assumes that, as history marches forward, we inexorably become smarter, more insightful, and yes, even better than the generations before us. The bare events of human history, however, do not always bear out Harris’ assumption. The Dark Ages saw a sad retrograding of human knowledge and two world wars demonstrated beyond a shadow of a doubt that humans are by no means becoming somehow inexorably better. History does not always and only march forward into a brighter, better future. Second, note the vehicles by which Sam Harris says the world becomes a better place: “secular politics and scientific culture.” Really? It was the precise wedding of secular politics and scientific culture that gave us the eugenics of the Nazis. The Nazi’s applied Darwin’s “survival of the fittest” politically to usher in a reign of terror and death against anyone they did not deem “fit.”
The fact of the matter is, it is only Christianity which gives us a cohesive explanation for why some people do evil in the name of religion, as Sam Harris aptly points out, and others do evil in the name of “secular politics and scientific culture,” the very things which Harris lauds as the highest good. Christianity says it is the depravity of man which drives him to do evil. Because man is depraved, he will do evil in the name of all sorts of things, twisting things which can be good for his own evil intentions.
Thus, Christianity and its holy book, the Bible, provide a cohesive and even comprehensive explanation for the world which we encounter. Perhaps the biblical authors aren’t nearly so ignorant as Sam Harris makes them out to be.
This all leads us back to Mark 12. When Jesus tells a questioning Pharisee that the greatest commandment is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all you mind and with all your strength” (verse 30), the Pharisee responds, “You are right” (verse 33). As I mentioned in ABC, this little phrase, “You are right,” is a marvelous declaration of faith. Indeed, Jesus takes it as such: “When Jesus saw that the Pharisee had answer wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God” (verse 34). Interestingly, the Greek word for “wisely” is nounechos, the word noun meaning “mind” and the word echos meaning “have.” In other words, when this Pharisee answers wisely, he answers in such a way that demonstrates that he “has a mind.”
Like the Pharisee who agrees with Jesus, we too can “have a mind” as Christians. Our faith does not require us to check our brains at the door, no matter what Sam Harris may say. This is why Jesus calls us to love the Lord, our God, not only with all our hearts, all our souls, and all our strength, but also with all our minds. So think on God and His Word and you’ll find that, when it comes to Christ, there’s a lot to think about!
Want to learn more on this passage? Go to
www.ConcordiaLutheranChurch.com
and check out audio and video from Pastor Tucker’s
message or Pastor Zach’s ABC!
Weekend Extra – Mind Your Maker
The other day, I stumbled across an internet quiz which, if you answered a few simple questions, claimed to tell you whether you follow your head or your heart. The questions included, “Is kissing in public cute or should it be avoided?” “Are flowers, little romantic notes, and romantic restaurants an important part of dating for you?” After seven simple questions, I learned that I followed my head more than my heart. I’m not surprised. After all, I’ve considered this characteristic of my personality before…in my head.
There is a regularly peddled belief, often lapped up by our emotionally inundated society, that it is better to follow your heart rather than your head. Just look at the sappy sentiments that permeate greeting cards which are being given all over our country on this Valentine’s Day. In her book Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert chronicles how she traveled the world after divorcing her husband, looking for insight into life, which she gains from a medicine man in Bali. Apparently, even a Divinely witnessed moral commitment made in marriage is no match for the whims of a human heart. And, indeed, it shouldn’t be according to Gilbert. To follow a moral commitment made in marriage rather than your heart would be no less than, well, immoral!
Certainly, the human heart is important. The wise man of Proverbs reminds us, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life” (Proverbs 4:23). But at the same time the human heart is capable of great good, it is also prone to deep evil. Jesus warns, “Out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander” (Matthew 15:19). The heart, then, cannot and should not be the summit and sum of human decisions and desires. This is why Jesus, in our text for this past weekend, says, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30). In His words, Jesus is quoting the Shema, a Hebrew word meaning, “Hear,” based on Deuteronomy 6:4-5: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” Faithful Jews still recite the Shema two times a day and it is traditional for them to recite this as their last words before they die.
What is so striking about Jesus’ recitation of the Shema in Mark 12 is His addition to it. The original Shema reads: “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” But Jesus adds another way in which we can love the Lord, our God. Not just with our hearts and souls and strength, but also with our minds: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” It is not just the heart that loves God and follows Him, it is also the mind. The mind is important to Jesus!
The apostle Paul writes, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2). In order to follow God, we need not just properly disposed hearts, but miraculously transformed minds. Minds which love to ponder the things of God. Minds which diligently studies the Scriptures. Minds which use their intellectual capabilities to study God’s world and marvel at its grandeur and intricacies.
Do you love the Lord, your God, with all your mind? Are you learning new things about God and His Word? If you’re not, you’re missing out on a fantastic part of your life in Christ. So join a Bible study, listen to good teaching, and ponder anew what the Almighty can do. For our God always gives us something new – and exciting – to think about.
Want to learn more on this passage? Go to
www.ConcordiaLutheranChurch.com
and check out audio and video from Pastor Tucker’s
message or Pastor Zach’s ABC!
Sermon Extra – True Treasure
The wise man of Proverbs reminds us, “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones” (Proverbs 14:30). Envy, the wise man says, is dangerous. However, envy is also such a universal part of the human condition that God finds it necessary to warn us against it time and time again. He even prohibits it in His Ten Commandments: “You shall not covet…anything that belongs to your neighbor” (Exodus 20:17).
Part of what makes the sin of envy so dangerous is that because it can be engaged in privately, it can often go unnoticed and, even if people do spot envy in your eye, there are little to no repercussions. Though you may get arrested for stealing, no such punishment exists for envying. Indeed, we even have a saying that encourages envy: “You can look, but you can’t touch.” The under-riding premise of such a statement is that it although it is not okay to take something defiantly, it is okay to lust after it longingly. It is okay to envy.
This past weekend, we continued our “Fit for Life II” series with a look at our hearts and how they are connected to our finances. The message was based on Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:19-21:
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
As I mentioned in my message, when we read words like these, we can be tempted to think, “Jesus’ words don’t apply to me. I don’t store up for myself treasures on earth because I don’t have any treasures! This economy has hit me really hard!” And so we dismiss out of hand Jesus’ words about how our hearts and treasures are connected.
It is important to understand that when Jesus spoke these words, He spoke them not to people who were well-to-do, but to people who were poverty-stricken. The crowds who listened to Jesus were most likely comprised of simple Palestinian farmers and tradesmen who would have been making around a denarius a day, equivalent to about 20 cents in today’s currency. Thus, Jesus is calling on people who must live on 20 cents a day not to store up earthly treasure! These people hardly seem like a group who would need this kind of reminder! But Jesus knows the sad state of the human condition. Even among the poor, storing up the wrong treasure in the wrong place can become a huge problem. At issue is not the amount of money that a person has, but the perception of money that a person holds. A person can be greedy and poor all at the same time. For a poor person, like a rich person, can envy those who have more money and earthly treasure than they. This is why Jesus continues:
The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! (Matthew 6:22-23)
The ancients believed that the eyes were a source of light that helped illumine the world around, thereby helping a person see. When the light of the eyes went dark, a person would go blind. Thus, Jesus says, “If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” But Jesus means to describe more than just physical blindness here. He says, “If your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness.” The Greek word for “bad” is poneros, meaning “evil.” The eyes, just like any other part of the body, can be used for evil. The eyes can be used to gaze and covet. The eyes can be used to stare and envy. Just because you don’t have a lot of money doesn’t mean you can’t you use your eyes to look at someone else’s money or lifestyle and secretly desire it for yourself. And this, Jesus says, is poneros.
What is the solution to such envy and covetousness? The apostle Paul says it is to “know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:2-3). Rather than seeking and striving after the treasures of this world, we are to seek and to strive after Christ. For in Him is true treasure. So treasure Christ, for He treasures you. In the words of C.H. Spurgeon, “So did Jesus Himself, at the utmost cost, buy the world to gain His Church, which was the treasure which He desired.” You are Christ’s treasure.
Want to learn more on this passage? Go to
www.ConcordiaLutheranChurch.com
and check out audio and video from Pastor Zach’s
message or Dr Player’s ABC!
Weekend Extra – It’s Crystal Clear!
In 2008, the Pew Forum on Religious and Public Life conducted one of the largest surveys ever of Americans’ religious beliefs. Though it found that 92 percent of people believe in God, when asked to specify who God is or make hard and fast distinctions between their faith systems and the faith systems of other religions, respondents struggled. Instead, most Americans have an increasingly nonexclusive attitude when it comes to faith. 70 percent of people surveyed believe that many paths lead to God. Gregory Smith, a research fellow at the Pew Forum, explains: “Even though Americans tend to take religion quite seriously and are a highly religious people, there is a certain degree of openness and a lack of dogmatism in their approach to faith and the teachings of their faith” (“Most Americans Believe in Higher Power, Poll Finds,” Washington Post, 9.24.08).
In all honesty, the Pew Foundation’s survey offers no real surprises. Though it is one of the largest surveys ever conducted, the results are a dime a dozen. Survey after survey has demonstrated that, though most Americans are “spiritual” and believe in “God,” they have no real cohesive doctrinal system nor do they subscribe wholeheartedly to an external source of authority such as the Bible. People claim to be spiritual, but their spirituality is fuzzy.
Long before researchers were around to conduct in-depth surveys on people’s religious attitudes, the apostle Paul foresaw that such misguided faith would be the order of the day for many: “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons” (1 Timothy 4:1). In a world which subscribes to fuzzy spirituality, Paul seeks to inject some clarity from the Holy Spirit: “The Spirit clearly says…” True faith in God is never ill-defined. It is as clear as the Gospel itself. Indeed, according to Paul, a faith that does not find its clarity vis-à-vis the Gospel is not a faith in God, but a faith from demons. And for the nebulous faiths of demons, Paul warns, “some will abandon the faith.” Two things are notable in this phrase. First, the Greek word for “abandon” is apostesontai, from which we get our English word “apostasy,” a word which, etymologically, means “to stand apart.” Paul’s argument, then, is that standing apart from faith in Christ means standing with demons. Second, the arthrous phrase “the faith” reminds us that, quite distinct from the popular conception that many faiths lead to God, there is only one true faith – faith in Jesus Christ.
What is the way out of the fuzzy spirituality which plagues our culture? Paul cites two remedies. First, fuzzy spirituality must be remedied by the Gospel: “This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance (and for this we labor and strive), that we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe” (1 Timothy 4:9-10). Hope in the living God and His Savior, Jesus Christ, leads to salvation. Period. Of this we can be clear and sure. No nebulous spirituality can promise salvation like the Gospel can. It can only conjure up shady specters of possible hereafters. Second, fuzzy spirituality must be remedied by the authority of Scripture: “Devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching” (1 Timothy 4:13). The Gospel is revealed in, by, and through the pages of Scripture. Thus, if we desire clarity on the Gospel specifically and theology generally, we turn to Scripture and submit to its authority and believe its promises. With the Gospel and Scripture in our hearts and hands, clarity is given to things spiritual, with even more clarity being promised in eternity: “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12). Praise be to God for the clarity which comes from our Creator!
Want to learn more on this passage? Go to
www.ConcordiaLutheranChurch.com
and check out audio and video from Pastor Tucker’s
message or Doctor Player’s ABC!
Weekend Extra – It’s Not Yours!
“It’s my body and I can do what I want with it.” If you’ve parented a teenager, then you may have heard these words before, usually in an attempt to justify some dangerous behavior such as underage drinking, abusing illegal or controlled substances, or engaging in promiscuity. This phrase has also been wielded to support abortion rights. I even stumbled across a “Facebook” page of this name in support of those who want to get tattooed and pierced, much to their parents’ chagrin.
“It’s my body and I can do what I want with it.” As much as some might wish this to be true, it is patently false. On the one hand, there are some things which are simply physiologically impossible for us to do with our bodies. We cannot force our bodies to produce healthy tissue rather than tissue which is cancerous. We cannot stop our bodies from aging. We cannot compel our bodies to work without rest. We cannot drink excessively without suffering a hangover. The bare restraints of nature constrain us to confess that our bodies are not always ours to do with as we please.
On the other hand, there are some things that, even if they are physiologically possible for us to do, are not beneficial. As the apostle Paul reminds us, “‘Everything is permissible for me’ – but not everything is beneficial” (1 Corinthians 6:12). Excessive drinking, chain smoking, and raunchy promiscuity are examples of such activities which are not beneficial to us, for they hurt our bodies. And because they hurt our bodies, they dishonor God, for God has created and still cares for our bodies.
In our text for this past weekend, Paul exhorts us, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship” (Romans 12:1). There are a couple of things that are especially notable about this verse. First, Paul reminds us that our bodies, rather than being used to chase after every hedonistic whim, should be used in worship of God. That is, all that we say, think, and do with our bodies ought to give glory to the Creator rather than defy His commands and intentions. For finally, our bodies belong to God: “You are not your own; you were bought at a price” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Because things like promiscuity or substance abuse defy God’s commands and intentions, they ought to be eschewed by us.
Second, it is important to notice Paul’s subtle shift from the plural to the singular in this verse: “Present your bodies as a living sacrifice.” There are many bodies worshipping God, but only one living sacrifice to God. Why is this important? Because it reminds us that not only do our bodies belong to God, they also belong to each other. We are to come together to offer a single, unified sacrifice of worship with our lives to God. This is why Paul continues, “We, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another” (Romans 12:5). We belong to each other! Thus, any protestation that says “It’s my body and I can do what I want with it” is wrong not only because it’s insufferably bombastic, but also because what I do with my body really does effect others, if not physically, then at least spiritually or emotionally. And, as a person who is called to love others, I should worship with my body in such a way that not only guards against personal ill effects, but against corporate ill effects as well.
It’s not your body and you cannot do with it as you want. Though this may sound strange to a culture that bows at the altar of rugged individualism, it is actually a precious truth. For God’s will for our bodies is always better than our whims for our bodies. And so we trust Him with our bodies – to the glory of God and in the service of others.
Want to learn more on this passage? Go to
www.ConcordiaLutheranChurch.com
and check out audio and video from Pastor Tucker’s
message or Dr. Player’s ABC!
Luther on Romans 12
This morning’s text in worship is Romans 12. Paul opens this chapter, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.” Luther offers some great context on this verse – what comes before it and what follows it – in his commentary on Romans:
In the preceding chapters, the apostle laid “the true foundation which is Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:11), or “the first rock,” upon which the wise man builds (Matthew 7:24), and he destroyed the false foundation, namely, man’s self-righteousness and merits, which are as “the sand” upon which the foolish man builds (Matthew 7:26). Here now he proceeds to “build upon this foundation gold, silver, and previous stones” (1 Corinthians 3:12). Good works, which are the building, must above all have a sure and dependable foundation on which the heart can purpose to stand and to rely forever, so that, even in the case that the site may not yet have been built upon, the site is ready to do so. The moralists do the opposite of this with their good works. They seek to put their trust in their conscience and, when they have performed many good works, they think they have done enough for themselves, so that they can feel secure. This is nothing else than to build on the sand and to reject Christ. The apostle tries hard to prevent this; this is the purpose of all his letters. To say, as is commonly done, that “sand” means the riches of the world is a superficial and weak exegesis. For Christ speaks here of the people who build (i.e., who do good) and not of misers and worldlings who rather destroy themselves than build up anything.
Hence, it is good works that the apostle calls “sand.” And it is upon this foundation that these people try to build their righteousness in order to obtain a dwelling place for the conscience and peace of mind. But, as a matter of fact, only Christ is this foundation – and before all good works. For even before we think of doing enough or building up, He has given us the foundation as a free gift, namely, a quiet conscience and a trusting heart. Has there ever been a builder stupid enough to lay also the foundation? Do not the builders look for the foundation that is already laid in the earth or do they not accept what is offered to them? So then, just as the earth offers us a foundation without our effort, so Christ offers Himself without us as our righteousness, peace, and security of conscience in order that from then on we can continually build upon Him in doing good. (WA 56)
ABC Extra – You’re So Vain, I Bet You Think This Blog Is About You
“Mirror, mirror on the wall, who in the land is fairest of all?” asks the wicked queen to her magic mirror in the fairy tale, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. For years, the answer always came back the same: “You, my queen, are fairest of all.” But when a young maiden named Snow White comes of age, the mirror’s rejoinder changes: “Queen, you are fair, tis true, but Snow White is fairer than you.” After hearing the mirror’s reply to what was supposed to be a foregone answer to a rhetorical question, the wicked queen spends the balance of the story trying to kill Snow White so that, once again, she can be the fairest in the land. First, she tries to suffocate Snow White with stay laces. Next, she tries to kill her with a poison comb. Finally, the queen offers her the dreaded and infamous poison apple, which lulls her into a deep sleep until, of course, she is wakened by her charming prince.
Being a fairy tale, this story is splashed with an unambiguous principled paint that could perhaps be better nuanced. Nevertheless, its fundamental moral should still be well taken, for its basic point is this: The queen’s vanity destroys the queen’s life. And real life vanity can do to the same to us. It can sneak and creep into our lives, take root in our hearts, and suffocate our souls.
This past weekend in worship and ABC, we kicked off a new series titled “Fit for Life II,” meant to be a second round of messages and Bible studies on health and wellness to follow up the series of the same name that we did last spring. As an introduction to this series, I offered what I call “A Theology of the Body.” People, when talking about and thinking about their bodies, tend to make one of two errors. They assume either that the body is bad and only a cumbersome drag on a pure soul, or they make the body their “god” and spend exorbitant amounts of money, time, and energy either by feeding its sometimes sinful desires in gluttony or pruning and primping it in vanity.
In truth, the body is neither “bad,” nor is it “god.” Rather, it is “good.” It is a good gift of the true God, meant to be faithfully stewarded by us. This is why we take care of our bodies through diet and exercise – not so that we can drop three dress sizes, or boast six-pack abs, or look ten years younger. Instead, we take care of our bodies to the glory of God because they are the temples of God, as Paul says: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
Do you ever treat your body as if it’s bad? Do you spend endless hours complaining about your aches and pains, your wrinkles and your warts, rather than giving thanks to God for the body with which He has blessed you? Do you ever treat your body as if it’s god? Do you linger in front of your mirror, even if it’s not a magic one, just a little too long, obsessed with how others will see you rather than being satisfied with how the true God has made you? This time of year, many people are still trying to follow through on their resolutions to “lose some weight” or “get in shape.” Rather than just losing a few inches off your waste line or enlarging a couple of biceps, may you resolve to steward your body to God’s glory in what you eat, in how you exercise, and in everything you say and do. For this is where true fitness lies.
Want to learn more on this passage? Go to
www.ConcordiaLutheranChurch.com
and check out audio and video from Pastor Tucker’s
message or Pastor Zach’s ABC!
ABC Extra – Serious Joy
“Behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy” (Matthew 2:9-10). Now that’s some big time joy! After all, the wise men didn’t just rejoice, they rejoiced exceedingly. And they didn’t only have joy, they had great joy.
C.S. Lewis wrote, “Joy is the serious business of heaven” (Letters to Malcolm, 93). Dallas Willard puts it like this: “God is the happiest being in the universe” (“Wide Awake,” Leadership, Fall 1994). Thus, when the wise men “rejoice exceedingly with great joy,” they are simply reflecting the character of God by responding appropriately to the gift of God. They respond with joy to Jesus Christ.
Unfortunately, many of us do not heed C.S. Lewis’ call to take joy seriously nearly seriously enough. We are all too often content with being bitter, anxious, or forlorn. But joy is not only the serious business of heaven, it is also the serious business of Christians on earth. This is why Paul, when speaking of the fruit of the Spirit, places joy only second to love (cf. Galatians 5:22). He elsewhere says, “Be joyful always” (1 Thessalonians 5:16). Joy, then, is not an option, but a command!
With this in mind, it is worth reflecting on how joyful you really are. Here are some questions that may help you think about your joyfulness:
- When was the last time a person made you smile with a kind action or gift?
- How often do you chuckle at the marvel of God’s creation – whether it be a pet who does something goofy or a scene from nature which brings a smile to your face?
- When you worship, does your heart leap within you as it did with the Psalmist (cf. Psalm 28:7)?
- When was the last time you laughed so hard you cried?
Certainly life comes with its ups and downs and, sometimes, things can become so wearisome that joy is the farthest thing from your mind. Indeed, during these times, you may even look at Paul’s admonition to “be joyful always” with a mild contempt and silently grumble about the unrealistic nature of such a command. But it is at times like these that it is important to remember that joy is not only a command, it is a gift. It is a gift to dull a hard season and heal a broken heart. And it is a gift that comes straight from the character of God.
Hard seasons are things the wise men knew well. For they arrived at Bethlehem only after a long journey from an undisclosed location back east, followed by an interrogation from a menacing despot named Herod. The wise men had a lot to be stressed and upset about. But they nevertheless found joy because they nevertheless found Jesus. And Jesus is where true joy is to be found.
So are you feeling stressed and upset? Does joy elude you? Like the wise men, cling to the cradle of the Christ. For in the gurgle of this Child is the joy of the ages. In the words of Johann Sebastian Bach:
Jesu, joy of man’s desiring,
Holy wisdom, love most bright;
Drawn by Thee, our souls aspiring
Soar to uncreated light.
Word of God, our flesh that fashioned,
With the fire of life impassioned,
Striving still to truth unknown,
Soaring, dying round Thy throne.
Through the way where hope is guiding,
Hark, what peaceful music rings;
Where the flock, in Thee confiding,
Drink of joy from deathless springs.
Theirs is beauty’s fairest pleasure;
Theirs is wisdom’s holiest treasure.
Thou dost ever lead Thine own
In the love of joys unknown.
Want to learn more on this passage? Go to
www.ConcordiaLutheranChurch.com
and check out audio and video from Pastor Tucker’s
message or Pastor Zach’s ABC!
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