What is truth?

Posted on by kevinjandt

Jesus-Pilate

This is a question that was asked by Pilot of Jesus over 2000 years ago and I would guess it’s a question still asked today. Although most don’t go around asking the literal question, because so many are completely blinded to truth. They will say they speak the truth, and would be offended if they were called a liar, but isn’t it “true” that we are all liars? (Romans 3:13)

Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” – John 18:38

Certainly we’ve all exaggerated the truth, or “stretched the truth”.

We all have told flat out lies in order to protect ourselves from something, so it’s undoubtedly true that all have lied and we are all in need of the truth, but I go back to the question, what is truth? Is it a noun or a verb? Is it something we can grasp and hold onto or just something we do or don’t do?

John 17:17-18 Sanctify them by Your truth, Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.

In very plain language Jesus tells us the answer. The word of God IS truth!

This is unbelievable for most people, but Scripture reveals this to us throughout its pages and therefore, we must not take this for a true truth, or one of those things we just know and forget about. Like the truth that you woke up breathing this morning. Did you forget what a miracle that was? Or when you turned on the light switch, light just appeared? How often do we just forget the simple fact that God’s word is true?

The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul…

The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple…

The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart…

The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes…

The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever…

The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.

More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold…

Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb…

Moreover by them Your servant is warned, and in keeping them there is great reward. Psalm 19:7-11

Before our souls were converted by the truth of God’s word, everything we held dear, every thought we had, every desire of our heart was wrong. That is a bold statement right? How can I say that?

Before salvation our hearts were wicked and unable to please God, so no matter how “good” your intentions, or no matter how noble your desires, they are unable to make you right for salvation. Your good intentions are still at best self-seeking and we are blind to the deceitfulness of our own hearts (Jeremiah 17:9).

We can’t even begin to get our minds around this because we like ourselves. We are deceived by sin.

Psalm 19:12-14 Who can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults. Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, and I shall be innocent of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.

Only through the truth of God’s word can one be made right with God and bring wisdom to salvation. It’s the truth of the matter. As a wicked and dying world scoff and deny this truth, we beloved, have the opportunity to tell them what IS “truth”. We can share the good news, there is an empty tomb in Jerusalem, that death could not conquer God, nor thwart His plan. That’s the truth.

 

Kevin

Noah, a just and perfect man?

Posted on by kevinjandt

stormy_sky

Who was Noah? He’s getting a lot of attention these days because of a movie, but those that have knowledge of the Biblical Noah, see a very different man than portrayed by Russell Crowe.

Genesis 6:9 This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God.

Is this a contradiction in the Bible? Is it possible that Noah could actually be just and perfect?

The word in Hebrew is tsad-deek’ which means just, lawful, righteous (man), and the word perfect (taw-meem’) means without blemish, complete, full, perfect. These words really mean what we think they mean but how is this possible?

In just a few more chapters we will see that after the flood Noah has a vineyard and became drunk (Genesis 9:20-21). How can we reconcile this? 1 Corinthians 6:10 tells us that drunkards will not inherit the kingdom of God.

We see similar language with Job. There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil. (Job 1:1)

The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans that there are none righteous…Romans 3:10-11 As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one; There is one who understands; There is none who seeks after God…”

Paul is quoting from the book of Psalms here and referencing Psalm 14:1-3 and 53:1-3 and we also see this in Isaiah.

Isaiah 64:6-7 But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; we all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. And there is no one who calls on Your name, who stirs himself up to take hold of You; for You have hidden Your face from us, and have consumed us because of our iniquities.

Our iniquities have taken us away from God, the word means perversity, or moral evil, fault, iniquity, mischief or sin. We all understand that we clearly have sin, don’t we? Did Noah and Job somehow perform better at keeping God’s law and finding favor with Him than we are capable of today?

If we really think about it, it seems there would have been fewer distractions and less opportunity for sin doesn’t it? No television to watch, the women wore those bland gowns and not the tight shorts we see girls wearing today, but yet when we read about the wickedness of man in Genesis chapter 6 it appears that sin was every bit as rampant as it is today.

So how can Noah really be a righteous man?

Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

Do we see it?

Faith is the answer, it’s the only thing that can save and cause us to be righteous.

Our righteousness is only found in faith in Christ and that faith was every bit as present in the Old Testament as it is in the New Testament. To be complete in our understanding of Scripture we can’t be “only” New Testament Christians. We must believe that by faith God has been working all through redemptive history to draw His people to Himself.

This is no small concept for us today, because if we don’t grasp this, we don’t grasp the reality of God working in His elect all throughout time. We will miss how the whole of Scripture is pointing to Jesus. How He satisfied the righteous requirements of the law and that it is all about faith in Him, not something we can perform to be good enough.

Look how clearly Paul tells us this truth.

Romans 3:21-26 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

This is an awesome statement about God and what He has done. There is no righteousness outside of faith in Christ. There is no possibility of pleasing God by our own hand. There is only faith in Christ to save us from our sin. This is the whole narrative behind Noah’s story. He wasn’t righteous and just because of who he was. He’s righteous and just because of who Christ is.

Can we see the humbling reality of how big this makes God? If we think we have something good to offer, or somehow we bring anything but our poor wretched selves to the table, we are deadly wrong. Everything the Bible shows us is about God. If it’s about us then we are serving the wrong god.

2 Corinthians 3:4-6 And we have such truth through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit, for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

If this does not bring you to your knees consider that your knowledge of Him is what He can do for you, not what you can do for Him. If He is your Lord then you will serve Him out of a pure heart to know Him more intimately and serve Him with urgency, for His profit and for His glory, not for your benefit.

Kevin

Shepherds

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shepherds and sheep

As I mentioned last week we don’t think very much about sheep in this day and age and it’s logical that we think little about shepherds. The role of a shepherd has changed in this modern day and it doesn’t have the same meaning it had in biblical times. The work of a shepherd still exists today in areas of the world and people still care for sheep in the way that the scripture describes for us.

Let’s take a look at why the role of shepherd is important today for those of us that call ourselves Christians. The word shepherd quite obviously comes from the joining of the two words sheep and herd. So a shepherd is one who herds sheep. It can also mean pastor or one that works in the “pastures”.

1 Samuel 16:11 And Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all the young men here?” Then he said, “There remains yet the youngest, and there he is, keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and bring him. For we will not sit down till he comes here.”

Isn’t it interesting that David was a shepherd, the man after God’s own heart and would be the first acceptable King, started as a lowly shepherd. We also see that Abraham, Moses, Jacob all were shepherds. Jesus described Himself as the “Good Shepherd” that lays down His life for His sheep. The metaphorical use of shepherding and the important role of shepherds are as significant for us today as it was in the times of Christ.

We can see that God uses the lowly to reveal His greatness. Shepherds were considered the bottom rung of society, shepherding was not a glamorous job. It was a 24 hour a day, 7 days a week job. Sheep never stop being sheep. They need constant care and watching over. We saw in the article about sheep that they need constant watch because there is so much danger for them. They easily contract illness and cuts which can cause disease. They are very susceptible to attack from predators.

So you might say, “Well this is moderately interesting but how does it affect us today?”

There is a tremendous amount of New Testament application to the role of being a shepherd, but for the sake of this article, being shepherded. What does it mean to be shepherded by those called to be shepherds?

Ephesians 4:11-12 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ…

As established above the word pastor here is the same word as shepherd (poimēn) which means literally or figuratively to be a shepherd or a pastor. We can see that Christ Himself has appointed men in your life to be your pastor, for what purpose…for the purpose of equipping you for the work of ministry and the edifying of the body.

This really is the primary purpose of the church and the work of those that are in ministry as pastors and elders. It’s not to stand on the stage and give you a pep talk about life, or provide you with a motivational speech to keep you going until next week.

The pastors job is bring the weight of scripture to bear upon your life. That you would be edified and equipped for the work God has for you. Not to fill the seats with his wonderful charm and quick-wit.

The shepherd will do the unpopular things to keep his sheep healthy. He will pin them down and pull bot flies out of their infected flesh. Doesn’t this make the 23rd Psalm come to life?

“He makes me to lie down in green pastures…” Just think about this for a moment, it’s not your own desire to lie down in a green pasture, you must be made to do it.

“He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” If you are a child of the King you will be led on the path of righteousness, for His name’s sake.

“Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” Sometimes the shepherd must use the rod to correct, even when it’s unpopular.

1 Peter 5:2-4 Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.

What an overwhelming charge give to those that Christ has appointed. They are told to be examples and overseers. They are accountable for souls, and we generally just want to be sheep, right? We desire our own way, and we might want some accountability, but not too much.

Hebrews 13:17 Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.

Here is a charge to us sheep. We are to willingly place ourselves under the authority of our shepherds, as we willingly place ourselves under the authority of Christ. We have established earlier by looking at Ephesians 4:11 that Christ Himself has placed those shepherds and now we must obey and be submissive.

Why?

Because it is profitable for us! Doesn’t it make sense that when sheep have illness and disease and the shepherd digs out the nasty infection that can kill his sheep; that is profitable for that sheep? Do we make that connection? Have you considered the last time you fought against God’s desire for your life and you refused to obey or submit? If your shepherd was faithful in his calling, he did his job.

Did you fulfill your requirement?

May we humble ourselves today, for the plan God has put in place for the profit of His people.

Kevin

Sheep

Posted on by kevinjandt

sheep

Then Jesus said to them again, “Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may it more abundantly. John 10:7-10

What are sheep, and what is the significance of them in the Bible?

Most people will read their Bibles and rarely consider the importance of the reason Jesus uses this metaphor to describe believers. The majority of us live in urban areas and the most we think of sheep is when we see a mattress commercial showing us the imagery of counting sheep. It’s just not something we think much about.

In our modern society being compared to sheep is very insulting, as we think sheep are stupid, they are followers, and are most often led to slaughter. Everyone wants to be a leader; nobody wants to be a follower. We want to be strong-willed, independent and self sufficient. This is the American way. To be otherwise is weak and needy.

On our recent trip to Israel, for the first time in my life, I saw sheep grazing on the hillsides and actual shepherds walking with them. It was quite an incredible scene. The shepherds are a group called Bedouins and they are nomadic Arabs, they live a very simplistic life in the hills surrounding Jerusalem.

Sheep are very needy and this is one of the reasons most people have no interest in being associated with this idea of being one. Sheep would not last long if left to their own devices; they are easy targets for predators having very little natural defenses. This is why sheep flock together, which provides protection. Those that act independently are an easy target for predators.

Sheep need lots of personal attention and care; they often wander off and when left on their own will not live long. A small cut can lead to infection that will quickly kill them, and because they are easily preyed upon sheep naturally hide their weaknesses and illness. Sheep are very susceptible to external parasites, such as bot flies that will lay their larvae into the flesh and it will eventually cause death if left untreated. A shepherd must be diligent to inspect the condition of his flocks.

Despite what most people believe, sheep are not stupid, although they behave “stupidly” and not generally for their own benefit. They have the ability to understand human voices and even know their names. They will follow their shepherd and not another, but instead flee.

“And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of stranger.” Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them. John 10:3-6.

How many people really understand this illustration? Isn’t this still true today? Do you really want to think of yourself in this way? This may be a good barometer of your spiritual health. Are you independent of the church and mostly do your own thing, or do you desire to be led as though you realize you need shepherding.

Sheep don’t think about the fact they need a shepherd, it’s just a reality that they do.

But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” Matthew 9:36-38

Next time we will take a look at the role of the shepherd and Christ being the Chief Shepherd.

 

Kevin

He is Alive!

Posted on by kevinjandt

Hes Alive

And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments.  Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them.  “Why do you seek the living among the dead?  He is not here, but is risen!  Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’”  And they remembered His words. – Luke 24:4-8

This past weekend I had a business trip and had the opportunity to have dinner with some friends that I hadn’t seen in a while.  It was a very enjoyable time, and the food was great.  One of my friends was interested in our recent trip to Israel.  So I spent some time going through a few pictures and talking about the trip.

He asked an excellent question to begin the conversation, wondering if this had deepened my faith.  One of the things about walking where Jesus walked is just that.  If you “believe”, and I mean really believe it can’t help but deepen your faith.

I told my friend that “belief” and faith are a gift of God, and I can attempt to prove things to people but without the gift it’s an intellectual belief and not an awakening of the heart belief that distinguishes the true believer from the false believer.  As James writes, even the demons believe…  (James 2:19)  So if we see that the demons believe, we must realize there is a different kind of belief.

This is the difference between life altering beliefs, and just “oh yes, of course I believe in god”.  The gift of God that comes through understanding His revealed will to mankind through His word.  Living and desiring obedience in all areas of your life.

I’ve been continually reminded, especially recently, of the way the human heart can deceive.  There is such a razor thin line between what most people will believe as obedience, and what God looks on as obedience.  This is the thin line between eternity in heaven or hell.  God is deadly serious about our obedience, not that it can save you, but it is the proof of your salvation.

As our conversation progressed through the evening my friend asked me an almost startling question.  It surprised me because I hadn’t even considered it.  He said to me, “where do you think Jesus’ bones are today?”  And then he told me about a National Geographic program that they thought they had discovered the bones of Christ.

Uhhh….  Wow, I really hadn’t considered that.

I told my friend that my worldview, doesn’t allow for that.   If I believe the Bible, which I do, the Bible tells us Christ is alive, and He is seated at the right hand of the Father.  He was crucified, and raised from the dead.  If we don’t have this, then we don’t have Christianity.  It’s just another dead faith like Buddhism, Islam or hundreds of other false religions.  They have no hope in anything other than their own righteous acts.

1 Corinthians 15:3-8 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received; that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.  After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep.  After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles.  Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. 

This is crystal clear!  We have eyes witness accounts that saw Christ crucified, Old Testament Scripture prophesied that He would die, prophesied that He would rise again and then we have over five hundred eye witness accounts of Him alive.   I have no opportunity in my life to believe anything other than this.  This is the truth and the cutting of God’s word.

If I disbelieve anything in the Bible, I disbelieve it all.  I can’t have it any other way.

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

I hope in the substance of God’s word, and there is evidence of things that I personally have not seen, but it’s not a blind and ridiculous faith.  It’s not a faith that requires me to do things to obtain favor with God and earn my salvation.  It’s faith that by God’s good pleasure, He chose to save me, yet I must believe and I’m responsible not to suppress the truth in unrighteousness (Romans 1:18).

All around us today are people that have some sort of an intellectual understanding and a surface level belief in a god, yet don’t know the One True God of the Bible in an intimate way.  This God must be believed to inherit eternal life, or the price of disobedience and disbelief will be eternal separation from Him and anything good.  A place of torment, where the God that poured out His wrath on His Son to pay for sin, will in turn be poured out on those in disbelief.

That’s what the Bible teaches and we can choose to ignore, disbelieve or whatever form of denial we might want to employ, but it doesn’t change that reality.  Why?

Because He is Alive!

Romans 8:34 Who is he who condemns?  It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. 

If this is news to you please consider what the Bible has to teach us about God, if you are a believer He is there with the Father making intercession for you and me.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Kevin