Monthly Archives: May 2024

AN UNEXPECTED OUTCOME – 9a

Christian Life, ,

1 Peter 4:1-2 NLT‬
[1] “So then, since Christ suffered physical pain, you must arm yourselves with the same attitude he had, and be ready to suffer, too. For if you have suffered physically for Christ, you have finished with sin. [2] You won’t spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God.”

Here is a gem to ponder! Many have tried to explain the mystery of suffering. Why does God allow so much suffering when He is love? How can He be loving when innocent babies and children, for example, go through so much hardship that it warps their entire lives? Is God really in charge?

In this short meditation, I have no intention of explaining the mystery of suffering but rather pointing to one of suffering’s unexpected outcomes.

God hates pride. He resists the proud. Pride started the rot in the universe and on planet earth in particular. He acted decisively against a created spirit being who stood up against the Almighty.

‭Isaiah 14:12-14 NLT‬
[12] “How you are fallen from heaven, O shining star, son of the morning! You have been thrown down to the earth, you who destroyed the nations of the world. [13] For you said to yourself, ‘I will ascend to heaven and set my throne above God’s stars. I will preside on the mountain of the gods far away in the north. [14] I will climb to the highest heavens and be like the Most High.’ “

‭Ezekiel 28:17 NLT‬
[17] “Your heart was filled with pride because of all your beauty. Your wisdom was corrupted by your love of splendor. So I threw you to the ground and exposed you to the curious gaze of kings.”

Jesus constantly confronted pride in the Pharisees. He hated their arrogance which made them unteachable hypocrites.

‭Matthew 23:2-3, 5-7, 33 NLT‬
[2] “The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses… [3] So practice and obey whatever they tell you, but don’t follow their example. For they don’t practice what they teach.
[5] “Everything they do is for show. On their arms they wear extra wide prayer boxes with Scripture verses inside, and they wear robes with extra long tassels. [6] And they love to sit at the head table at banquets and in the seats of honor in the synagogues. [7] They love to receive respectful greetings as they walk in the marketplaces, and to be called ‘Rabbi.’…
[33] Snakes! Sons of vipers! How will you escape the judgment of hell?”

How does God deal with our pride?

Peter says that those who have suffered have done with sin. What does he mean? It seems to me, then, that God specifically allows people to suffer, even sets it up, to confront and deal with sin, the root of which is pride.

This may not work for unbelievers because they refuse to consider that God is good, or even exists, because they cannot understand His ways.

However, for the believer, suffering is one of God’s most effective tools for achieving His goal. However, before we examine His goal, let’s look at the core nature of a human, be they believer or unbeliever, to understand what suffering is and how it works to deal with sin.

Satan’s aim, in the garden of Eden, was to disconnect people from God. “You don’t need God,” he insinuated. “You can be God.” By sowing mistrust in the motive for God’s instructions (His pure and perfect Iove), he lured the first man into going it alone. Once Adam had embraced this notion, Satan had him in his clutches because he had now become man’s master. Pride became the core of man’s life.

‭Habakkuk 2:4 NIV‬
[4] “See, the enemy is puffed up; his desires are not upright…”

By contrast, Jesus said that there is an attitude that gains God’s favour, one who lacks ‘wind’ or ‘breath’, ie, one who is not puffed up.

‭Matthew 5:3 NIV‬
[3] “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

The core philosophy that the devil had introduced is pride, i.e., that man is now like a balloon filled with helium, puffed up with ‘hot air’ that lifts him above God and people by luring him into thinking that he is in charge. So, humans in the main, reject God in favour of self and live to please and satisfy selfish desires.

Like Winnie-the-Pooh, we float around in the air, clutching our helium balloons. We believe that we are better than other people, that we can cope on our own and, in this or any situation, we don’t need God.

When God works in His own children, His first task is to bring the balloon down by emptying it of pride before He can begin the work of transforming us into the image of His Son. He must pop the balloon in an effective way.

His method of choice is suffering, but what kind of suffering? Peter said that Jesus suffered physically and, in that way, He dealt with sin.

That’s one form of suffering, but there is another form of suffering that gets to the core of who we are in Adam.

To be continued…

A WITNESS PAR EXCELLENCE – 8

Bible Study, ,

1 Peter 3:18, 22 NLT‬
[18] “Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit….
[22] Now Christ has gone to heaven. He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.”

We must be careful not to read Peter’s words as though he were quoting from a theological text book.

Peter had personal, firsthand experience of this man, Jesus. He was called to follow Him as a raw young Jew, possibly in his late teens or early twenties. How long did he live in the company of Jesus? Three years? Seven years years? Ten years? We don’t know but long enough to get to know something about Him.

In this unique relationship of “talmid” (disciple) and “rabbi”(teacher), Peter lived side by side with Jesus, walking, eating, sleeping, talking, living in His company for a long time. He could not help getting to know the man Jesus.

Of course, Jesus knew Peter. He could read him like a book. However, getting to know Jesus was a different matter. How can a human know and understand God, even in the flesh?

Peter must have puzzled, pondered, and thought deeply about this ‘mystery’ man who had chosen him to be a close associate. With his meagre education in the ‘torah’, he must have tried to understand Jesus in the light of Messianic prophecy. After all, it was Peter who boldly voiced his conviction that this rabbi was God’s Son.

‭Matthew 16:16 NLT‬
[16] “Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

He might not have understood all the implications of this revelation then, but it was a good place to start. Only after Pentecost, when the full deluge of the Holy Spirit fell on him and his fellow disciples, did he understand Jesus enough to proclaim Him as Lord.

‭Acts of the Apostles 2:36 NLT‬
[36] “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!”

So, with great conviction, Peter could pen the words that summarise what he had seen with his eyes and heard with his ears, and which the Holy Spirit had had blown open with revelation and understanding.

What a powerful witness Peter was to what he had seen and heard. After years of gathering the evidence, it all made perfect sense. God’s Word came alive in this Person. Peter could preach and write the words of a witness par excellence with absolute conviction.

“Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. (Peter was there, in person).

He never sinned, but… (Peter lived with Him for years).

… He died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. (Peter was at the cross, watching Him die).

He suffered physical death,…

… but he was raised to life in the Spirit…. (Peter saw the empty tomb).

Now Christ has gone to heaven. (Peter was there when He went).

He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and…

… all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.”

With a skilful use of words, Peter summarised the life and death of one man who changed the world. Without Jesus, the whole earth and its human population is doomed but…

Jesus came into this earthly scene and changed everything for those who believe.

We may not have walked in Peter’s shoes alongside the man, Jesus, but we have experienced the miracle that His life, death, and resurrection have made possible. We have been forgiven, made alive, given a new nature, and filled with His Spirit. We are a new species, sons and daughters of God, being renewed in the image of Jesus and destined to share His glory in God’s eternal kingdom.

So, we too, are witnesses par excellence to this life into which God has catapulted us by His grace!

THE BEST WITNESS – 7

Christian Life, ,

Peter 3:15-17 NLT‬
[15] “Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. [16] But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ. [17] Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong!”

The next ‘gem’ in Peter’s treasure chest is one some believers need to learn. How many ‘Bible-bashing’ believers there are that think they are being witnesses for Jesus! “Hit people over the head with God’s Word!” is their method of spreading the gospel. “Turn or burn,” is their message and God’s love for sinners becomes the club by which unbelieving sinners are alerted to their need.

Unfortunately, this type of ‘witness’ often does not flow from a life submitted to the authority of Jesus. Sometimes guilt drives us to preach to sinners rather than to show them what God can do.

Peter shows us how true witnessing works. A witness is one who has first-hand knowledge, either by seeing an event unfold, for example, a crime committed, or by being the one who experiences what he is advocating.

A life transformed by God’s grace can never be contradicted by reason or argument. God works in a human heart, changing it inside from a selfish, greedy, lawless individual to a loving, caring, and unselfish person who lives beyond himself to serve others. No one can explain what happened or argue the change away. It’s real and permanent. It’s visible and inexplicable outside of God’s grace.

Jesus was the epitome of a human living under the Father’s authority. And people could not understand Him!

So, the only way another person can understand is for the witness to explain what happened.

Peter says there is a progression in the process of witnessing. He knew that because he had first-hand knowledge. Remember who Peter was…an over-confident young motor-mouth. He fell badly despite his bragging. However, one day the Holy Spirit came, and Peter was never the same again.

Witnessing begins with a life submitted to Jesus as Lord, our supreme authority in every aspect and detail in life. It’s a tough learning experience, bringing our unruly self-will into submission to Jesus. Only God’s grace and the power of the Holy Spirit can help us win the battle against our old selfish nature.

‭Galatians 5:16-17 NLT‬
[16] “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. [17] The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.”

Pride must go – that persistent, toxic attitude that I am the centre of the universe.” I can do it. I don’t need you…or God, to cope.”

Only God knows what we are, and only He can bring down that stronghold by whittling away at our self-sufficiency until we learn to surrender to His disciplines.

How subtley pride creeps in, even in our witnessing for Jesus! That attitude of contempt, “I know the truth. You don’t! I’m saved. You aren’t! I’m right. You are wrong!” can so easily lurk beneath the surface of our words.

So, Peter urges, “First, live it out, then tell your story, remembering that, but for God’s grace, you were where they are now.”

HUSBANDS, YOU TOO – 6

Christian Life, ,

1 Peter 3:7 NLT‬
[7]”In the same way, you husbands must give honor to your wives. Treat your wife with understanding as you live together. She may be weaker than you are, but she is your equal partner in God’s gift of new life. Treat her as you should so your prayers will not be hindered.”

Peter includes advice to husbands in his collection of gems for this ‘crown of righteousness’ we will receive for faithfulness to Jesus.

What does ‘give honour’ mean? The Greek word ‘time’, (pronounced teemay), has the meaning of giving monetary value to something, figuratively meaning esteem, worth, dignity.

Husbands are to esteem their wives of great worth as precious, preserving their dignity and treating them with understanding. What must they understand? A wife is weaker in her physical makeup but equal in her position in Christ. Husband and wife are equal partners in their new life. “

There is a price to pay for those husbands who lord it over their wives, undermining their dignity and worth as equal partners in their marriage…they will spoil their fellowship with God.” Any untoward treatment will hinder your prayers,” said Peter.

When we consider the unique relationship God has planned for marriage partners to enjoy, one ingredient stands out that provides the glue that keeps the partners together…. humility!

What is humility? Despite the Bible’s simple definition of humility,

‭Proverbs 22:4 NIV‬
[4] “Humility is the fear of the Lord;…”

… I believe that there are other elements to humility that give us a clearer understanding of its meaning.

I asked myself the question, “Is God humble?” If not, then what is He… proud, arrogant, self-righteous? None of these descriptions fit the nature of God. In fact, Jesus claimed to be ‘humble and gentle in heart’.

Humility, then, is much more than the fear of the Lord, unless the fear of the Lord includes the qualities I am about to present.

Does Peter mention humility in his letter? Yes, he does.

‭1 Peter 5:5-6 NIV‬
[5] “In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” [6] Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.”

There it is again! Humility in the context of submission!

Let’s consider some of the elements that make up humility so that we can draw a picture of the way humility functions in a marriage partnership.

  1. Humility means accepting and functioning in one’s unique position in the world without force or coercion.

If we accept that God is humble, it means that God takes His rightful place as ruler of the universe and functions from that role without force or coercion. How true that He never forces anyone to accept His authority but He does warn of the consequences of disobedience.

  1. Humility accepts the other person/persons for their place in the universe.

What applies to me applies equally to all other persons.

  1. Humility allows the other person the choice to respond or refuse to respond whatever the issue.

A humble person allows another to make his own choices. He does not force his will on another simply because he believes he is right or wants what he wants.

Does not God accept our right to be wrong? Yes, He does. He gave us freedom to choose and never violates that freedom even if our choices destroy us. However, He offers mercy to those who acknowledge they are wrong and turn away from the wrong they chose.

  1. Humility has authority if it willingly comes under authority.

On earth, Jesus had authority because He was under authority. That means that, since He always submitted to the Father’s will, He required that others do the same to Him. Submission and obedience, which are the fruit of love and trust, are the hallmarks of a true son. These qualities qualify a son to act in behalf of the father.

  1. Humility accepts one another’s differences, and works within them without trying to change the other person.

Without humility, two people in a marriage partnership will always try to change each other. This is not God’s mandate for marriage. His mandate is to love and submit to one another.

  1. Humility keeps the greater purpose in view, focusing on protecting love and promoting unity in preference to demanding its own way.
  2. Humility is the willingness to submit to another person’s sacrifice without protest.

Humility provides the environment for unselfish service which is the role of a husband as servant leader.

When we put these elements of humility in place in a marriage partnership (or in any other partnership), God’s pattern for marriage becomes a workable alternative to the chaotic relationships in many marriages. It enables us to fulfil God’s plan for marriage which is to reflect the unity and harmony that exists in the Godhead.

When I think about these qualities, I discover that humility is an attitude which can only be seen by the way people treat one another. Like many other attitudes, e.g., love, hate, compassion etc., these attitudes don’t stand on their own. They are woven into the character of an individual by his behaviour towards others.

So, Peter can say to us, “Put on humility like a garment. Act humbly and you will become a humble person.”

How important this is for both husbands and wives if we want to do what God desires – to become one.

INNER BEAUTY VERSUS OUTWARD ADORNING – 5

Bible Study, ,

1Peter 3:3-6 NIV‬
[3] “Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. [4] Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. [5] For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands, [6] like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.”

Paul tells us THAT wives must submit to their husbands. Peter adds the beautiful gem of HOW and WHY wives are to submit.

Did Peter have personal experience in his own marriage? Perhaps Peter, a typical Jewish man in a Jewish culture, had treated his wife harshly in his unregenerate days. Did she teach him, by her quiet, inner beauty, how to relate to her as a partner, not a possession? The Bible does not tell us, but it does tell us the outcome of inner beauty versus outward adorning.

As we have already learned, following God’s pattern always works. Given the nature in us from Adam, women have always fought for independence. Even marriage does not change this continual power struggle, entrenched by the ongoing feminist, ‘burn the bra’ movement. Women demand their rights, at home, in the workplace, and on every level of society.

The roles of women and men have become so blurred that God’s pattern for marriage has all but been destroyed. It’s now two men or two women, accepted as the norm all over the world. Gender changes at will are being added to the mix in an attempt to obliterate God’s sovereignty in His creation order. It’s no wonder society is in chaos and confusion in its attempt to throw off God’s authority. The Bible calls these trends ‘suppressing the truth by their wickedness’.

‭Romans 1:18 NLT‬
[18] “But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness.”

However, despite what the world is doing, God’s pattern is the only way that will always work.

‭1 Peter 3:3-6 NLT‬
[3] “Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. [4] You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. [5] This is how the holy women of old made themselves beautiful. They put their trust in God and accepted the authority of their husbands. [6] For instance, Sarah obeyed her husband, Abraham, and called him her master. You are her daughters when you do what is right without fear of what your husbands might do.”

As always, God’s pattern requires God’s grace. Without His power in us, bringing our unruly desires into submission to Him, His pattern will always be only a pattern. Obedience to His pattern requires a change of heart, a change of mind, and a change of attitude.

God does not forbid outward adornment. Women want to look beautiful. Little girls pretend to be princesses, dressing up in ‘princess’ fancy dress with fake jewels that make them feel like princesses.

Women spend thousands building on this mindset in their adulthood. After all, they must do everything they can to catch a mate! However, to make this their goal is a dead end. Once they have caught a mate, it’s not their adornment that will keep them together. It’s the effort they put into building unity in a lasting relationship that counts.

How do we (wives) do this?

Peter says, “By cultivating inner beauty… ‘the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.'” Did you get that? When one brings God into the mix, one adds the only partnership in the universe that works. If God is pleased with a quiet and gentle spirit (attitude), we can be sure that His Spirit will make it happen.

Why must we focus on inner beauty?

The first reason is that outward beauty fades. The beauty of a twenty-year-old has mostly faded by forty, fifty or sixty. If it is only outward beauty that keeps a couple together, after a few years the magic goes. What’s left is strife and conflict.

The second reason is that outward adornment cannot achieve God’s core purpose of marriage…unity.

‭Genesis 2:23-24 NLT‬
[23] “At last!” the man exclaimed. “This one is bone from my bone, and flesh from my flesh! She will be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken from ‘man.’” [24] This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.”

God created male and female and brought them together in the permanent union of marriage to be a picture on earth of the unity within the Trinity in heaven. Paul affirms God’s purpose in his description of God’s pattern for marriage.

‭Ephesians 5:21-22, 25, 31 NLT‬
[21] “And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. [22] For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord….
[25] For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church….
[31] As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.”

There is a deep mystery in this union between a man and a woman, a divine order that God established in marriage, a pattern for unity and harmony that works. A woman can only submit in heart to her husband when she is submitted to Jesus first. It takes God’s grace to enable her to put her own independence to death and to place herself under her husband’s authority with her trust in God that this attitude will work.

God did not say that wives must allow their husbands to walk all over them and to wipe their feet on them. Marriage is an equal partnership but with different roles. For marriage to work, someone must take the lead. God gave this assignment to husbands. There cannot be two leaders for this family dynamic to work.

A wife’s attitude is the key, the foundation to achieve this harmony. Her husband’s love for her can only grow and flourish when she willingly submits to his sacrificial service. Unless she chooses lovingly and willingly to submit, his sacrifice will be insulted and rejected, gouging out the heart of their relationship.

Again, it’s Jesus example that provides the pattern for this relationship to work. He gave His life for His bride, cleansing her with His own blood and purifying her with the water of the Word.

Peter says that the gentle and quiet spirit of a submissive wife will tame her husband’s unruly attitude and give him the reason to believe in Jesus.

‭1 Peter 3:1-2 NLT‬
[1] “In the same way, you wives must accept the authority of your husbands. Then, even if some refuse to obey the Good News, your godly lives will speak to them without any words. They will be won over [2] by observing your pure and reverent lives.“

So, why the inner beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit rather than outward adorning of fine clothes and expensive jewellery?

God is pleased, unbelieving husbands are won to Jesus, harmony functions in the home, and God’s pattern of unity shows the world who God is.

Now that’s a gem worth seeking!