Tag Archives: faith

Out Of The Black Hole

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OUT OF THE BLACK HOLE

“‘In the generations before us, God let all the different nations go their own way. But even then He didn’t leave them without a clue, for He made a good creation, poured down rain and gave bumper crops. When your bellies were full and your hearts happy, there was evidence of good beyond your doing.’ Talking fast and hard like that, they prevented them from carrying out the sacrifice that would have honoured them as gods — but just barely.” Acts 14:16-18 (The Message).

Strange what humans can come up with when they deny and let go of the truth! When superstition takes the place of reality, reason and common sense go out of the window. Gods becoming men has no foundation in fact and no evidence to prove that it could or did happen. Why? Because gods do not exist. They are the fruit of perverted human imagination.

But what about Jesus? Wasn’t He God come to earth as a man? A thousand times, yes! So what’s the difference? The difference is, firstly, that God exists. We have the evidence of creation, its design and unity, and the goodness and blessing we receive from it, not as concrete proof but as evidence of a Being of supreme goodness, power and wisdom who exists and who created the universe.

Secondly, we have the evidence of prophecy. God’s entire plan was laid out in detail centuries before it happened. If God prompted men to write about it accurately in advance, He must exist. How else can anyone explain prophecy?

Thirdly, we have the resurrection. The greatest legal minds have worked hard to disprove the resurrection but the evidence is overwhelming. Jesus died on a Roman execution stake and three days later He walked out of the tomb. He appeared to over five hundred people in a body that could be touched, that could eat and yet was able to do more than our mortals bodies can do.

Fourthly, how can we explain the church if there were no God, no Jesus and no Holy Spirit? Without the supernatural power of God at work in people, convincing them of the truth and changing their lives, no one would have bought the apostles’ story. It was too far-fetched if it were not true and too dangerous to embrace a fantasy that could cost them their lives in a hostile world.

Fifthly, what about the Bible? Both internal and external evidence points to a unique book which cannot be explained apart from God. It was written over a period of 2000 years by more than 40 different authors from many walks of life and yet it is a comprehensive story and presents a unified picture of a God whom human imagination could never invent.

There is one factor that is missing in most of the people who hear the apostle’s message — faith — not a leap-in-the-dark kind of faith but a rational acceptance of the evidence and a step towards God to which He immediately responds.

“By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what is visible….And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” Hebrews 11:3, 6 (NIV).

What is it that prevents people from accepting the overwhelming evidence of a God who is both powerful and loving and passionately desires a relationship with His human creation? It’s that stubborn independence woven into our nature through Adam’s choice that refuses to come under His authority and live His way.

But when we do, we find, to our absolute amazement and delight, that life makes sense, has meaning and purpose and is filled with joy and peace that makes no sense and has no explanation outside of God. It’s like stepping out of a black hole into the glorious light of the midday sun.

The War Intensifies

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THE WAR INTENSIFIES

‘”But then there was a split in public opinion, some siding with the Jews, some with the apostles. One day, learning that both the Jews and non-Jews had been organised by their leaders to beat them up, they escaped as best they could to the next towns — Lyconia, Lystra, Derbe and that neighbourhood — but then they were right back at it again, getting out the Message.” Acts 14:4-7 (The Message).

What a life! Always on the run! But they had a divine commission to fulfil and a message to deliver and they could not afford to become faint-hearted about it. As long as there was new ground to break they pressed on, their hearts burning with a passion to make Jesus known. Fortunately for them, they never knew what lay around the next corner for them.

“There was a man in Lystra who couldn’t walk. He sat there, crippled since the day of his birth. He heard Paul talking, and Paul, looking him in the eye, saw that he was ripe for God’s work, ready to believe. So he said, loud enough for everyone to hear, ‘Up on your feet!’ The man was up in a flash — jumped up and walked around as if he had been walking all his life.” Acts 14:8-10 (The Message).

All in a day’s work! Whether it was hearts or bodies God was healing, it was all miracle! Paul and Barnabas were on a mission for the kingdom of God and nothing would stop them. Imagine the thrill, in the midst of opposition and the threat of being killed, of seeing God at work like that — a partnership between Him and them that they would not miss for anything in the world.

These two emissaries for the kingdom of God were in the thick of pagan society, surrounded by a culture of godless living and religious superstition and yet they were not deterred from their task of making Jesus known. His power through them was lighting up the darkness, bringing life to those who would believe. One man in the crowd showed a spark of faith and Paul pounced on his opportunity to rescue him from a life of useless disability.

One day Jesus purposefully took His disciples to a place no self-respecting Jew would ever want to visit — equivalent to feasting one’s eyes on the images in “Playboy” magazines — Caesarea Philippi — the red light district of Israel! In full view of the debauchery and sexual orgies on the go there He told them, ‘On this rock I will build my church.’ So confident was He in His power to change people’s lives that He could announce it in the worst possible circumstances.

Paul and Barnabas were personally involved in the fulfilment of Jesus’ promise. No matter where they proclaimed their message, God’s power was there to transform lives. A crippled man, deformed from birth, healed in an instant; history repeating itself in a pagan city! Peter and John had seen the same thing happen at the Beautiful Gate of the temple in Jerusalem with surprising results — the outbreak of opposition against them from the Jewish hierarchy.

Paul and Barnabas were in for a surprise too. Initially it was not rejection but worship!

“When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they went wild, calling out in their Lyconian dialect, ‘The gods have come down! These men are gods!’ They called Barnabas “Zeus” and Paul “Hermes” (since Paul did most of the speaking). The priest of the local Zeus shrine got up a parade — bulls and banners and people lined right up to the gates, ready for the ritual of sacrifice.” Acts 14:11-13 (The Message).

In their pagan ignorance, these people responded in the only way they knew. A miracle had happened, so it must be the work of a god. They mistakenly thought that Paul and Barnabas were gods, not understanding that God really did come, in the person of His son, Jesus. A showdown was about to happen, a clash between the kingdoms of darkness and light. Satan was snatching every opportunity he could to destroy these men because they were a constant threat to his unchallenged rule over whole world.

Resurrection Proof

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RESURRECTION PROOF

“When this became known all over Joppa many put their trust in the Master. Peter stayed on a long time in Joppa as a guest of Simon the Tanner.” Acts 9:42-43 (The Message).

What was it that caused the message of Jesus to touch people’s lives in wave upon wave every time a miracle happened? Was it the miracles that attracted them or was it the proof that Jesus was alive that convinced them?

Miracles do not produce or sustain faith. We only have to read the story of God’s people in their deliverance from Egypt and their sojourn in the wilderness to recognise this. At no other time in their history did the Israelites experience more or greater miracles than when God rescued them from Pharaoh “with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm” and cared for them for forty years in the desert.

Plagues that destroyed a nation and its economy and finally wiped out its military might; natural phenomena like a wind so powerful that it cut a path through the sea; manna that appeared every six days out of seven; a flock of birds so vast that it covered their camp; water that flowed out of a rock enough to satisfy the needs of more than two million people; a pillar of cloud that gave the people shade from the desert sun by day and fire that warmed them at night — these and much more, were the order of the day. Could God have done any more for them than He did?

Yet they grumbled, rebelled, disobeyed and even set up a forbidden image in spite of all the miracles that attested to God’s invisible presence with them and power among them. A deeper investigation into the Old Testament actually reveals that the greatest miracles happened during the times of Israel’s greatest unbelief e.g., during the times of Elijah and Elisha.

No, miracles do not produce saving faith. What was it that convinced people everywhere that what the disciples were proclaiming was the truth? There were no billboards inviting people to “come and get your miracle” as we so often see today. Their message was simple. “Jesus is alive and He is Lord.”

It was the resurrection of Jesus that powered their faith. Miracles were the evidence of the presence of God’s kingdom on earth. People put their faith in the risen Jesus, not to get their miracle but because He is alive and He is who He said He is. They did not come to Him to get their needs met or to have a comfortable life or even a free ticket to heaven. They entrusted their lives to Him because He is Lord.

Not even the threat of persecution could stop the phenomenal growth of the church. Persecution weeded out the passengers and strengthened the faith and character of those who truly followed Jesus. And God continued to verify the truth of His Son’s resurrection by confirming His word with signs following.

Peter remained in Joppa. A new branch of the church was growing there. As a guest of Simon the Tanner, he stayed on to preach and teach about Jesus so that the faith of these new believers would be anchored in the truth of who Jesus is.

What if Jesus did nothing for us? He owes us nothing and is under no obligation to do anything for us. Would we still follow Him and put our trust in Him, or is our faith so mercenary that we only believe in Him for what we can get out of it? What He does for us flows from His infinite generosity and we are beneficiaries of pure grace.

It is His passion to put His glory on display that prompts His goodness to us. Let us never slip into the false notion that there is anything in us or anything we can do for Him that merits His favour.

A Time of Testing

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THE TIME OF TESTING

“‘Simon, stay on your toes. Satan has tried his best to separate all of you from me, like chaff from wheat. Simon, I’ve prayed for you in particular that you not give in or give out. When you have come through the time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start.'” Luke 22:31-32 (The Message).

Jesus’ words are packed with insight into God’s ways. It would pay us to understand and heed what He said to Peter.

Firstly, there is great significance in a name. Jesus changed Simon’s name to Peter and yet on this occasion He addressed him as “Simon.” To the Hebrew people a name was a prophetic utterance of character. “Simon” means “listener” or “hearing”, but Jesus prophesied that he would become a “rock”. Why did Jesus revert to his old name? It seems that He did this when Peter reverted to behaving like his old self. He was “hearing” but was he heeding the words of Jesus. Jesus was warning him that he was in grave danger of behaving like the old Simon.

Secondly, how strange that Jesus did not pray for Simon to be prevented from being tested! It seems that every time we are tested, both God and Satan have an agenda. Satan’s design was to drive a wedge between Him and His disciples so that their fellowship would be disrupted. God’s agenda was to expose their vulnerability so that they would get to know themselves and put their trust in Him in their weakness.

If we were protected from temptation, we would be as spineless as jelly fish. Even if we give in to temptation, as Peter did, it does not mean that we are disqualified from being Jesus’ disciples. It is a necessary part of our journey to true sonship. How can we grow in our dependence on God if we have no idea of how really weak we are?

Thirdly, temptation is not about strengthening our will power. There would be no benefit in that because God’s purpose is to train us to trust Him, not ourselves. The Apostle Paul tried to wriggle out of his trial which he called his “thorn in the flesh”. He pleaded with God to take it away. Instead, God explained its purpose.

“To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me…For when I am weak then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 (NIV).

Paul’s experience and his explanation help to put our trials in perspective. Where Satan’s agenda is to arouse suspicion and alienate us from God, God’s agenda is to strengthen our reliance on him. Temptation is never from God. James makes that clear. “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone.” James 1:13 (NIV). But God is never caught off guard. He gives us the option to give in or trust Him for strength to resist the devil by submitting to Him.

Fourthly, Jesus did not pray Simon out of the test. He prayed that he would come through it without giving up so that he would be able to lift his fellow disciples up when they fell because of his own experience. Gentleness and humility cannot be learned any other way and these are the hallmarks of a disciple, as imitators of Jesus.

Jesus prayed particularly for Simon because he was the natural leader. He was a ‘hearer’ but he needed to be honed into a ‘rock’ so that others could learn from and depend on him in their time of testing.

We can draw great encouragement from Jesus’ words to Peter. From His perspective, Peter’s fall did not spell disaster but growth – getting to know himself and God’s grace. Satan’s agenda is to destroy but if we handle our failures with understanding, they will serve as valuable learning experiences, exposing our vulnerability and strengthening our faith in God.

The same Peter who failed his Master so badly, said this, “In this (his readers’ hope of resurrection) you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith — of greater worth than gold which perishes even though refined by fire — may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed.” 1 Peter 1:6-7 (NIV).

He Is Not There!

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HE IS NOT HERE!

“They were puzzled, wondering what to make of this. Then, out of nowhere it seemed, two men, light cascading over them, stood there. The women were awestruck and bowed down in worship. The men said, ‘Why are you looking for the Living One in a cemetery? He is not here but raised up. Remember how He told you when you were still back in Galilee that He had to be handed over to sinners, be killed on a cross and in three days rise up?’ Then they remembered Jesus’ words.” Luke 24:4-8 (The Message).

Funny how  grief blotted out the women’s ability to think straight! Had they remembered Jesus’ words, they could have saved themselves a whole weekend of emotional pain, and unnecessary activity and expense. Instead of weeping useless tears and spending their time and money preparing to preserve the body of Jesus for a little while longer, they could have enjoyed their Sabbath in anticipation of their beloved Master’s return.

I have often wondered why their minds refused to receive the promise of His resurrection. His disciples had heard the same information many times but they still didn’t get it. For some reason the women, who were far more receptive than the men, didn’t get it either. They believed He was dead and that He would stay dead and their belief brought forth the flood of grief that shut out the possibility for them, of His words being fulfilled.

Not even angelic visitors from the other side could convince them that Jesus was alive. The appearance of these two men was so startling that the women were overwhelmed and fell down in worship. They must have made an impression on them. No one can meet an unearthly being like these and not take note!

It took this powerful visitation to remind them of Jesus’ promise. but even that did not seem to have the desired effect on them. They remembered, yes, but what else? As the story unfolds, we will see how unbelief was like a disease that spread among Jesus’ followers.

As much as this was part of their journey, so it is a part of ours. The robust faith of the early church was the product of a painful process of failure and learning which formed the foundation of their unshakable confidence in their Lord. He was as dead as anyone could be, but He rose again and was powerfully alive and at work in and among them.

They only knew that because they had passed through the terrible grief of their loss to the indescribable joy of His resurrection. Their faith was not automatic and neither is ours. But our experience must never end at the tomb with eyes blinded by sorrow and ears deaf to His promise. Like them, we must pass through death to resurrection, through sorrow to joy and through despair to hope.

No matter what our pain or loss might be, it gains its true value only when we come through it to a faith in God stronger and more secure than before the trial. Suffering has no value if it does not take us into a peace and security that does not make sense in the natural. It is rooted in a God who is with us and for us because He did not leave His Son’s body to rot in a rocky tomb.

No religion, based on human imagination with roots men’s minds, not in history, can match the story of Jesus. His life, death and resurrection happened as God said it would, and with that comes the certainty that everything else He said is true. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 (NIV).