christian living

If You Ask God For Help, Make Sure You Aren’t Guilty of This…

/ Richard Bargas / Leave a comment

“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he has redeemed from trouble”

(Psalm 107:1–2, ESV)

The pattern of Psalm 107 is particularly easy to see in the English Standard Version with the word “Some” in vv. 4, 10, 17, 23. Each section reveals a situation that “some” people encounter in life:

  • Some wander in the wilderness and are doomed to death (vv. 4-9)
  • Some are enslaved and sit in darkness. (vv. 10-16)
  • Some have invited destruction and death as the consequence of their sin (vv. 17-22)
  • Some faced near death as they went about their dangerous vocation as sailors upon story seas (vv. 23-30).

In every instance, whether self-inflicted or providential, the Lord responded with “steadfast love” toward his people because he is the faithful, covenant-keeping God. That is how the Lord God Almighty acted toward Israel, and that is how he responds to his Bride, the Church.

The question for you, if you are a Christian: how do you respond when God has acted? So many times we are vocal in our cries, our needs, and our complaints, and yet we are silent in our praises to the Lord for his goodness to us. We call people, we post to Facebook, we tell our church prayer groups and we tell friends of our need. But when God answers? Crickets.

As verses 1-2 say, let us give thanks to the Lord for his goodness, and let all those who are Redeemed, say so! What is your reason for giving thanks? And have you been as vocal in your praise as you have been in your complaint and cries for help?

I invite you to share your praises in the comments how the Lord has recently answered your prayers so that you might encourage others who are still seeking answers.

Don’t Forget to Look Up

/ Richard Bargas / Leave a comment

“But you, O Lord, are enthroned forever; you are remembered throughout all generations.” (Psalm 102:12, ESV)

Psalm 102 begins with great misery and pain. The superscription on this psalms reads: “A prayer of one afflicted, when he is faint and pours out his complaint before the Lord.”

As you read through this psalm one gets a great sense of his pain and anguish, which appears to be spiritual, emotional, and even physical. He groans, struggles with insomnia, weeps, and feels his body engulfed in fever and suffering so great that he cannot eat.

There are many of God’s people who can identify with such suffering. But what is the solution for the man or woman of God in such trying times? Here in America, it might be the time to see a physician or a psychologist. One might be given medications to help with the sleep and pain. Perhaps, a self-help group would be recommended so that the suffering might console one another.

But the psalmist has a different route. It stands out vividly beginning in verse 12 and begins with a strong contrast, “But you, O Lord…” In contrast to whatever is happening in our human experience on earth, there is another reality as well that is occurring in heaven: the Lord is enthroned forever. This is not simply about the duration of is reign, but about the permanency and the settled nature of it as well. The Lord has not been unseated. There has not been a coup in heaven whereby the demons have grappled control of the throne of God. No, he is still there.

The following verses build upon this hope-filled truth. If he is there, then he can hear. And if he can hear, he can answer. The Lord is glorious, and he will judge the wicked. He can see everything and he hears our cries. He still is worthy of praise and glorious. Although our suffering is difficult, this meditation on the fuller reality above our circumstances helps us to realize that the Lord God is fully aware, fully powerful to act, and still loves and cares for his people.

And even though our suffering may be prolonged, and even might usher us into the Lord’s presence, there is yet hope. The psalmist closes his song with these words that reach beyond this life and into eternity: “They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end. The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you.” (Psalm 102:26–28, ESV)

One day, we will no longer experience the pains and trials of this life. One day all danger will have passed and every threat will be gone. One day, we will be with the Lord who is eternal, and we shall be like him. But even better, we shall be with him. So, the next time you’re days are dark and seem to be without much hope, don’t forget to look up, and remember that there is more happening than meets the eye.

The Communicable Disease of Sin

/ Richard Bargas / 1 Comment

“I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless. I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me.” Psalm‬ ‭101:3‬ ‭

Using the perfect tense (“I hate”), David is steady in his hatred. David’s hatred is addressed toward the “work” of the wicked, perhaps leaving room for mercy by the repentant. David’s hatred, however, is for a personal reason. The nature of wickedness is that it is a communicable disease, and if tolerated, will eventually stick to those who give toleration to it (“it shall not cling to me.”). Only persistent care will keep it away.

Today we are warned of contracting a virus that may or may not sicken you, may or may not kill you, and may or may not be transmitted to others. There are many opinions both medical and anecdotal, but the Spirit’s words here have the weight of Divine truth–sin infects others easily, and it condemns the soul that does not run to Jesus Christ for their purification.

Fruitless Religion

/ Richard Bargas / 3 Comments

“And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant, and they said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, “ ‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise’?””

“In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once.”

(Matthew 21:14–16, 18-19 ESV)

While the people are rejoicing and celebrating the coming of Jesus of Nazareth into Jerusalem, the chief priests and scribes stand by in disgust at the display of the people.

These rabble, the people who are diseased, these uneducated children, the peasant disciples of Jesus–they are all so ignorant to the form of religion that they uphold! And Jesus, whom they assumed should know better, is unwilling to correct his misguided followers! Instead he continues quoting Scripture that affirms their worship of Jesus as the Messiah.

The next morning Jesus did something that is puzzling to many people. He came upon a fig tree along the side of the road and he found that it was barren of any figs. It had lots of leaves, but no fruit. With a word, he cursed the tree so that it withered and died.

Why did Jesus kill a tree? He did it for a profound reason. He killed the tree to show that those who make a show of their religion who have no evidence of the grace of God in their lives are worthless to Christ and they shall be judged. They might appear to be fruit filled because of the outward show of their religion, like a fruit tree with thick, green leaves. But leaves are not impressive to the hungry. And religious activity without a relationship with the Lord does not fool God.

In another place Jesus said these chilling words:

““Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”

Matthew 7:21–23, ESV

Religion doesn’t save. Only Jesus does. Church attendance, Bible reading, giving money, volunteering your time to good causes, being kind, saying prayers, all of these things do nothing to impress God.

When Christ gives new life, it is out of this new life that good works will flow (Ephesians 2:10, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10, ESV)).

But those who start with good works and then add God have dead religion that will not save them. It is like stapling figs to a tree. Make sure that your good works are the overflow of a life of worship and your relationship with the living Christ.

Seeking and Thinking Upon the Right Things

/ Richard Bargas / Leave a comment

With the new year ahead of us, many people are making all sorts of New Year’s Resolutions—new diets, new Bible reading plans, new commitments to exercise more. We have all heard of the truism: “You are what you eat.” In many ways, this statement is true! If you feed your body well, you will generally have better health and more energy. If you feed your body a steady diet of junk food, then the results are somewhat predictable. But think with me for a second about this saying’s spiritual counterpart: “How we think effects how we behave.” Perhaps in this new year, we as Christians could use a little re-focusing on how we think.

Consider the truth of Romans 6:11: “So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 6:11, ESV). If we think about the reality that we as Christians have died with Christ on the cross to the power of sin, then we can find victory as we strive to live holy lives. This sort of thinking will have a serious impact on the way we live our lives.

In a sense, we are living corpses. We are dead to ourselves and alive in Christ (Col. 2:20). We have been buried with him (Col. 2:12), have been raised up with him (Col. 3:1) and have been seated with him in the presence of God the Father (Col. 3:1). If we can get our heads around what this means, it will have a huge impact on the way that we live life now.

Colossians 3:1-3 says, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” (Colossians 3:1–3, ESV)

In this blogpost, I’d like to look a little more closely at this idea of seeking the right things and how that affects our thinking as Christians.

Background

As we begin, it would be helpful to take some time to remember the situation the church of Colossae faced. They had this false teaching that was spreading what was a mix of Jewish ceremonialism and a false teaching that would later be called Gnosticism.

Jewish ceremonialism demanded that they follow all the rules and regulations of the Old Testament, while failing to see that those ceremonies pointed to Jesus Christ (Col. 2:16-17).

Early Gnostic mysticism demanded ascetic living, angel worship, and visions while simultaneously taking the focus off of Christ (Col. 2:18-19).

One form of Gnosticism failed to see the symbolism of the Old Testament ceremonies and rituals that pointed to Jesus Christ, while the other form placed the focus on lesser beings and self-affliction to gain greater access to God. Both forms of this false teaching led the people away from God through rituals, ceremonies and false philosophies. The motivation for seeking God was man-made traditions and rules. And both failed because they did not address the heart and the mind.

So, Paul, in these four verses (Col. 3:1-4) turned from these false teachings to the true motivation given for pleasing God and living a victorious Christian life that replaces man-made rules and traditions. This brings us back to the truth I stated at the beginning: How we think effects how we behave. In Colossians 3:1-4 we find two keys that will unlock for us the real motivation for living for Christ that deals with the heart and the mind before it deals with the flesh.

1. Seek the Things That Are Above (v. 1)

“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” (Colossians 3:1, ESV)

Paul begins by giving to us the counter to the false teacher’s approach that he has just finished discussing in Colossians 2. “If then” is a conditional statement that really could be translated “Since.” Since you have been raised with Christ. What has happened as a result of being raised with Christ? We died to sin according to Romans 6. And according to Colossians 2:12, we were buried with Christ in baptism (“having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.” (ESV))

The very next verse (Col. 2:13) adds that not only did we die to our sins with Christ, but we were also made alive together with him at his resurrection. Paul once again reminds his readers of this fact in 3:1. Since we have been raised with Christ, Paul is saying, seek the things that are above. Really, Paul’s grammar tells us that he means, “Keep on seeking!” This isn’t a one-time deal. We are to keep on seeking. Paul is saying that since we are those who are truly spiritually alive, who have our lives in Jesus Christ. Therefore, let us place our goals, aspirations and dreams upon those things that are above, where our lives are at—with the Savior who is not on earth, but sitting at the right hand of the Father.

Whereas the false teachers were placing their sights upon earthly goals, Paul says that what we ought to seek is far above—in heaven. In other words, our values system changes when we see ourselves as being alive with Christ in heaven. We stop seeking primarily after the things on this earth because our lives are not here on earth, but in heaven with Christ. Our attachment to earthly things will be evaluated with this truth. We will have a different standard of value for material possessions because we have treasure laid up in heaven. We will not be concerned about gaining honor from men, because we are enthroned with Christ—and there is no greater honor than that. We will not seek after earthly power, because we have all power in Christ. We will not chase after fame because we have already gained the loving approval of our heavenly Father.

All of these things that men seek after are earthly things and the one who grasps the reality of what he or she has in Christ will not seek after them with the same hungering and passion as the unredeemed man. We may need and use earthly things while we are here, but we will not spend an inordinate amount of time or energy chasing them because we see their true value in the light of what we already have in Christ.

2. Set Your Mind on the Things that Are Above (vv. 2-4)

“Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” (Colossians 3:2–4, ESV)

Like the command in verse 1, this is also given in the same tense and could be translated, “Keep on thinking on the things that are above.” Keep on thinking about heavenly things. Some people say that some Christians are “Too heavenly minded to be any earthly good,” but I think that the real problem is that too many Christians are not heavenly minded enough to be any earthly good. Our eyes are on this world and not on heaven.

Paul reminds us why we ought to have this heavenly focus in verse 4. Christian, you are dead, he writes. You are no longer a citizen of earth. Sure, you need to live here for a few more years, but this planet is not your home. You are a visitor. Don’t unpack your bags! You are an alien, a foreigner in a strange, distant land, so don’t get too comfortable! This isn’t your home. Your old life—it is gone! You died. You are no longer the same person. You died and have been reborn a different person. So, don’t focus your mind on the things on this fallen earth, rather think about the things in your true home where Christ is.

When I was little boy, I went to a Christian camp in California called Indian Village. It was the first time that I had been away from home by myself, not counting staying over my grandparent’s house. I got so homesick at camp. I thought about the food at home and my toys and my bed. I especially thought about my mom and dad and my little brother. I was so unsettled, that I refused to take a shower for several days. That is until my camp counselor helped me get over the embarrassment by letting me shower after everyone had left camp for an activity and I was allowed to shower in my swim trunks. That teepee tent I slept in at night for a week was not my home, and I was not going to get used to it. I eventually settled down some and even had a good time, but I was ready to go home when the buses came!

Colossians 3:3 says that our real life is hidden with Christ, who is in heaven. Life is not here—it is waiting for us in heaven. We are somewhere between heaven and earth, as Jonathan Edwards said, not a part of either heaven or earth right now. Our feet are on earth, but our heads and hearts are in heaven.

What is our motivation for this change in our thinking? Verse 4 tells us that the motivation for living in this truth is that when Jesus Christ comes (and this is sure, although the timing is unknown), then our real life will begin, and we will really start living. We will appear with him in glory. Just as we died with Christ and were buried and were raised up with Christ, when he returns, we will share in the glory. We will see the unifying of this strange existence into one. Heaven will come down and we will no longer be torn between heaven and earth. We will then be with Christ in heaven where our hearts and minds are. Everything will be made right. We, as pilgrims, will finally be home.

What are you seeking after? Heavenly things or earthly things? If you are seeking after earthly things, you will eventually leave them all behind. You can’t take them with you, and even if you could, they would be worthless in light of the treasures of heaven.

What are you thinking on? Heavenly things or earthly things? Have you unpacked your bags and begun to settle in? Have you forgotten your true home? Are you home sick? You should be. You should have a mental picture of heaven and the Lord and it should be so vivid that you can’t be truly happy to remain here on this broken planet. May we all be like the Apostle Paul, who would stay here for the blessings that he could bring the church, but he would much rather go home to heaven (Phil. 1:21-24). Paul’s eyes were set heavenward. Where are yours?