The Spirit of Truth

When Jesus was preparing His disciples for His departure from this earth, He made a strange pronouncement. He told them, “It is to your advantage that I go away.” (John 16:7) That statement by itself would be hard to justify. What could possibly be better than having God in the flesh walking by your side? What He said next, though, explains why this would be true. He explained, “For if I do not go away, the Helper shall not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.” A few verses later He further explained that “when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth, for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.” (John 16:13) In other words, Jesus, when He was here on Earth could only be in one place at a time, but when the Holy Spirit came He could be with every believer always and forever, constantly teaching and guiding them.

          Jesus' statement in the verse above is a powerful one. Can you imagine being able to hear what God is speaking through the Holy Spirit who dwells within you? That is the kind of life that is promised to a believer. How exciting this is! Now, I am not saying that we always know exactly what God is saying to us, but we learn to hear His voice as we walk with Him. Also, as we read the scriptures, the Holy Spirit gives us insight to be able to understand them. The Holy Spirit trains our spiritual ears to be able to hear His voice. Jesus also told us “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32) So, as believers, we are promised the infilling of the Holy Spirit who will lead us into all the truth and disclose to us all the things God wants to tell us. What more could we possibly ask for? (see I John 2:27) Now we know why Jesus told His disciples that it would be to their advantage if He went away.

On the night Jesus was arrested He had a last Passover meal with His disciples. At that time He told them some important things they needed to know before He left. What He told them is recorded in John, chapters 14-17. One of the things He talked to them about was the importance of the role of the Holy Spirit in their lives. In John 14:16-17 He says, “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you.” So, the conclusion we can reach from Jesus’ words is that we, as believers, should have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us (I Cor. 3:16 NASB), and this is even better than having Jesus walking beside us in the flesh. The Holy Spirit will be our Teacher, and He will guide us into all the truth.

After Jesus was resurrected, He appeared to His disciples over a period of forty days, speaking to them about the kingdom of God, “And gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, ‘Which,’ He said, ‘you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’” (Acts 1:4-5) In Luke 24:49 He instructed them, “And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you, but you are to stay in the city (Jerusalem) until you are clothed with power from on high.” Also, in Acts 1:8 Jesus told them, “but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses…”  Jesus knew it was essential that His followers be filled with the Holy Spirit. Nothing has changed in that regard. We, His followers today, must be filled with His Spirit in order to fulfill the role He has for us on this Earth.

 

Where is Holy Ground?

          In 1979, a young man named Geron Davis was asked to write a song for the dedication of a new building at his father’s church. The song he wrote, entitled “Holy Ground,” has since become immensely popular, even a favorite of Pres. Bill Clinton and singer, Barbra Streisand, who does not even profess to be a Christian. Streisand’s comments about the song are revealing. “The lyric says that when we are in God’s presence, we are on holy ground. But since God is everywhere, that would make every square inch of this planet holy ground.” People have differing views about what the song means, but my goal is to know how it does or does not line up with what God has revealed to us in the scriptures about His presence.

            To begin with, the song lyrics say, “As I walked through the door, I sensed His presence, and I knew this was a place where love abounds, for this is the temple, Jehovah God abides here, and we are standing in His presence on holy ground.” I have searched the scriptures in vain for some evidence to support what these lyrics say. First of all, the song says that he sensed the presence of the Lord when he walked into the door of the church building. In what way did he sense the presence of the Lord? Was it a goosebump, a temperature change, a feeling of awe, …..?  How much importance should we place on our feelings? Christians today seem to be seeking some tangible manifestation of the presence of God rather than seeking the truth. This is disconcerting in light of scriptures like II Thess. 2:9-12. A deception is coming about which Jesus said, “False Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect.” Matt. 24:24 If we are following subjective signs or feelings, there is a good chance we could be led astray. I understand and have experienced the emotions that are possible in worship, but I can find no scriptural references that speak of sensing the presence of the Lord?

            The next thing I question in the song is the phrase, “this is the temple.” Is this scriptural? Is the church building the temple or are the believers in Christ the temple? We can’t have it both ways. I Cor. 3:16-17 says, “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are.” I Cor. 6:19 states, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?” In the Old Testament God’s presence dwelt in the temple in the Holy of Holies, or at least that was the Israelites point of contact with Him, where He allowed them to come into His presence once a year only, and then it was only the High Priest who was allowed to enter. With the institution of the New Covenant, our access to God changed. When the curtain in the temple was torn all believers gained access to the presence of God through the Holy Spirit. We don’t have to go to a particular building to connect with Him. Why should we “sense” God’s presence in a building when we should be walking in His presence all day, every day.  In fact, the Holy Spirit now dwells in all believers, and we have access to constant communion with Him whether we realize that and avail ourselves of its benefits or not.

            This brings me to another question that has been bothering me for some time. Why do we call the church building God’s house? The scriptures say that we, the believers in Christ Jesus, are God’s house. Hebrews 3:6 says, “but Christ was faithful as a Son over His house whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.” If we believe that the church building is God’s house, then how does that reconcile with the scriptures that tell us that we, His believers, are God’s house? Ephesians 2:19-22 also speaks of where God dwells. “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.” Clearly, the Body of Christ, composed of all believers, is God’s house.

             If the scriptures teach that the believers in Christ Jesus are the temple and God’s house, then why do we contradict the teachings of the Bible by calling the church building the temple or God’s house? Also, since Jesus, our High Priest, has already made the only sacrifice that is necessary for our salvation (Hebrews 10), why do we still say there is an altar that we must come to when we worship God? An altar implies that there is a sacrifice to be made on it, but the scriptures tell us, “By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” Hebrews 10:10  “For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.” (Hebrews 10:14)  Are we demeaning the sacrifice that Christ made on the cross by insisting on another altar and another sacrifice? There is no need for an altar or another sacrifice. Christ has already accomplished all.

            The song goes on to say, “Jehovah God abides here,” speaking of the church building. How can this be? Does God live in a building? Does he dwell in all church buildings? To abide means to stay, so does God remain there during the week after everyone goes home? It seems to me that this would tend to give people the impression that when they leave the church building, they are no longer in God’s presence which would tend to make someone feel that they are no longer under His watchful eye. They only need to act holy when they are “at church.”  I know that sounds a little silly, but I have heard stranger things from people who attend “church.”

            The last part of the verse says, “we are standing in His presence on holy ground.” Where is His presence? Doesn’t scripture tell us that where two or more are gathered together in His name He is in the midst of them (Matt. 18:20), but scripture also teaches that His presence is in every believer. He indwells us! So, if the church building is holy ground, it is so only because of the believers’ presence there; however, the New Testament scriptures make no mention of “holy ground” in this regard. The only references to holy ground in scripture are Exodus 3:5 and Acts 7:33 which are both speaking of Moses’ encounter with God at the burning bush.  If we are seeking to “feel” His presence in a church building, then we are not recognizing His presence in us. Perhaps then, we have not been filled with the Holy Spirit as the scriptures command.  (Ephesians 5:18)

            To sum up, the scriptures teach that believers are the temple of the Holy Spirit, and we are God’s house. There is no need for an altar or a sacrifice. God dwells in us, and His Spirit goes with us wherever we go. Acts 7:48-50 states, “….the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says: ‘Heaven is My throne, and Earth is the footstool of My feet; what kind of house will you build for Me?’ Says the Lord; ‘Or what place is there for My repose? Was it not My hand which made all these things?’” When we sing songs to praise the Lord, shouldn’t we sing songs that are truthful and honor Him for who He really is?  All believers should seek to be filled with His Holy Spirit so that His presence is with us every moment of the day. In my next post I will have more information on this topic of being filled with the Holy Spirit.

Is God Arrogant?

           How does one respond to someone who says that God must have a pretty big ego to create us, and then expect us to worship Him? I had never really thought about that until I was asked that question. What this person is really accusing God of is arrogance. One definition of arrogance is "excessively and unpleasantly self-important; haughty, from the Latin word arrogare, which means to claim without right." That would pretty well sum up someone with a big ego. So, does God have a big ego? Is He arrogant?
          
          One who may have dealt with this question is Job in the Old Testament. Job suffered tremendously, and He questioned God during His sufferings. In Job, chapters 38-39 God answered Job, even though He was not obligated to. Job finally fell silent when he realized how awesome God actually is. You see, God reasons with us even though He doesn't have to, because He loves us. (Isaiah 1:18-20)  He wants to have a relationship with us, but that relationship has to be based on truth, not on a lie. The truth is that He is God, and we are His creation, formed from the dust of the earth.

          Why did God create us? He didn't have to. It was because He wanted to express His love. God's very nature is love. (I John 4:8) Why do human beings, who are created in the image of God, have a desire to have children? Usually, it is because they have a desire to pour out their love on another human being. God feels the same way about us. He wants to show us His love. That's why He sent His only Son, Jesus, to pay the penalty for our wickedness, so that we could be restored to fellowship with Him.

          Jesus told us that when you have seen Him, you have seen the Father, so the attributes we see in Jesus through the scriptures are the attributes of God. (John 14:9)  Hebrews 1:1-4 tells us that Jesus is the exact representation of who God is. In Colossians 2:9 we read that in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form. Jesus was not proud. He was the most humble person who ever walked this earth. He was, and still is, God, but He didn't flaunt it. Humility implies meekness and modesty, not arrogance and boastfulness. It implies lowering rather than exalting oneself. This is exactly what Jesus did when He left heaven and lowered Himself down to our level by becoming a man. The scriptures tell us in Philippians 2:3-11 "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond servant, and being made in the likeness of men, and being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

          God could have made us like robots, totally submissive to Him with no choice on our part, but He chose to create us with a free will. He wants us to choose to love Him. Do we want people to love us because they have to, or because they want to? Love that has no choice is no love at all. The scriptures tell us that God loved us first. He loves us whether we love Him back or not, and it breaks His heart when we choose to reject Him.
                       
          Have you ever thought about what this life would be like if God was evil instead of good? What if He created us just to torment us? What if our pain gave Him pleasure? Some people have this image of God, but they don't realize that they are confusing God with the god of this world, Satan. When we choose not to submit our lives to God, then we put ourselves at the mercy of Satan, and he has no mercy. The scriptures tell us that Satan only wants to steal, kill, and destroy. He's doing a really good job of it, too. On the contrary, Jesus came that we might have life, and have it abundantly, (John 10:10) but we must submit ourselves to Him in order to receive that abundant life.

          No, God is not arrogant. In fact, He has every right to expect to be worshiped by virtue of who He is. We don't have to worship God now if we don't want to, but the scriptures tell us that one day every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that He is Lord. He remains the same regardless of what we choose to believe about Him. He is God and He would be a liar if He claimed to be anything less, but God cannot and does not lie. He loves you. Won't you receive His love and love Him in return?

          

What Next?

“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first.  Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord.  Therefore comfort one another with these words.” I Thessalonians 4:16-18

            Now that Israel is a nation once again what will the next major event in God’s timetable be?  Could it be the rapture of the church? This is what the words “caught up” are referring to in the above passage. The word used in the original Greek is harpazo, meaning to seize, catch up, or snatch away. Although we don't know exactly when the rapture will take place, the scriptures assure us it will be sometime before the last half of the tribulation period, sometimes referred to as the "Great Tribulation," when God will be pouring out His wrath on an unbelieving world. In I Thess. 5:9 we read, “For God has not destined us to wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

            Jesus refers to this time of tribulation in Matthew 24:21-22, “For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall.  And unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved….”.  If God is going to be pouring out His wrath, I Thess. 5:9 makes it clear that those who are trusting in Jesus Christ will not be on the earth at that time. See also I Thess. 1:10, Luke 21:36, and Rev. 3:10 for more evidence of that fact.

            How close are we to this time of tribulation?Prophecy is being fulfilled every day in the news.  The conflict over Israel and Jerusalem grows more heated every day, not to mention the threat of nuclear war posed by terrorists and countries like Iran that want to destroy Israel and the United States. The world cries out for peace!  I Thess. 5:3 tells us that “While they are saying, ‘Peace and safety!’ then destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape.  But you, brethren, are not in darkness that the day should overtake you like a thief.” When God pours out His wrath on this earth, believers will be safe in the ark, safe with Jesus. By the way, God also removed Noah and Lot before sending His judgment. These are types of the rapture.

            My prayer is that you will be ready for the coming of the Lord, so that if the rapture happens during your lifetime, you will not be left behind to face the wrath of God.  The world is crying out for peace today, but true and lasting peace will only come to this world when the Prince of Peace returns to set up His kingdom on this earth. Whether these things take place in our lifetime or not, we shall all one day face judgment, and we all need to be putting our faith and trust in the only One who can save us, Jesus Christ. Meanwhile, “He who testifies to these things (Jesus) says, ‘Yes, I am coming quickly.’ Amen.  Come, Lord Jesus.” Revelation 22:20

Israel, a Sign

            Thus says the Lord God, "Behold, I will take the sons of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and I will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land." Ezekiel 37:21

             The most convincing sign of Jesus' soon return is the fact that Israel exists as a nation once again after not being a nation for almost 2,000 years. In 70 A.D. the Romans conquered Israel and destroyed the city of Jerusalem and the Jewish temple.  The Jews that survived were then scattered all over the world. God, through His prophets, had warned Israel that they would be scattered because of their rejection of Him; however, He also promised to one day bring them back to their land.

            Although there are many places in the Old Testament where God makes this promise, there is one passage that is especially interesting.  In Ezekiel 37:1-14, the prophet has a vision of a valley of dried bones that come together and come to life again.  Verse 11 explains that these dried bones are a symbol of the “whole house of Israel.”  God has indeed fulfilled this prophecy and breathed life into the nation of Israel, just as He promised He would do.  “I will place you on your own land.  Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and done it.” (verse 14)  Wow!  What a miraculous sign for our generation to see! On May 14, 1948 Israel became a nation once again.

            So, what is the significance of this event for all of us?  When Jesus’ disciples asked Him what would be the sign of His return and of “the end of the age” in Matthew 24, Jesus gives a long explanation, but part of His answer was a parable about a fig tree.  In the Old Testament, God sometimes refers to the nation of Israel as His fig tree.  (See Joel 1:7 and Hosea 9:10)  In Matthew 24:32-34 Jesus tells His disciples, “Now learn the parable from the fig tree; when its branch has already become tender, and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near; even so you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door.  Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.” Jesus Himself refers to this as a parable, implying a deeper hidden meaning.  If Israel is previously referred to as God’s fig tree, then the rebirth of the nation of Israel could be compared to the budding of the fig tree, meaning that His return is very near.

            What the world and sometimes even the church fail to realize is that God made an everlasting covenant with the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Israel), to give them their land forever. (See Genesis 15:18 and 17:8)  If God says it will happen, then no one can change that fact.  God is not through with Israel.  He is still working to bring about His will in and through them.

 

            What does this mean for us?  Do we want to be on God’s side?  In Genesis 12:3 God promised Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse.  And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”  He said this because it was through Abraham that Jesus Christ would someday come.  If we, as a nation, want to be blessed, we had better be friends to Israel.  We should also be expecting to see the other end-time prophecies fulfilled very soon.