Lost, Lost, Lost...

Lost!  The word evokes an emotional response.  It causes us to recall things that have been removed from our use - often against our will.  It denotes a sense of irrevocability and helplessness.  When we lose something...really lose it...all that remains in the newly-created void is a mournful awareness that we are missing what we once possessed. Often times when we lose something, we are prone to expend massive amounts of energy looking for it, trying to regain it.  

Luke 15:1-2 records the Pharisees' complaint that Jesus was receiving "sinners" and eating with them.  They effectively are asking, "Why would Jesus hang out with such people?" In response, Jesus told them three parables about things that are lost:

Luke 15:4-7 - The Lost Sheep

Jesus tells the tale of a shepherd having lost one of his sheep.  Remember, this is a response to the remark of the pharisees.  Jesus is effectively answering the complaint by showing the relationship that God (and thereby He, Jesus) has with the "sinners" with whom Jesus was eating.  "Why am I receiving these sinners?  Because I am the Shepherd, and they are my lost sheep. I am trying to retrieve them!"

Luke 15:8-10 - The Lost Coin

Jesus relates the parable of the lost coin.  In response to the indignant remarks concerning Jesus "receiving sinners and eating with them," He responds with common-sense reasoning that communicates the point, "Why am I eating with these people?  Because they are my lost coins, and I am trying to get them back!"

Luke 15:11-32 - The Lost Son

Jesus illustrates further with the familiar story of the prodigal son.  The interesting fact about this story is that while a sheep cannot find its way without the shepherd and a coin has no way of helping itself, this parable focuses on the limitations that an unfaithful son places on his father.  The father was limited to waiting and watching for his wayward son to decide to come back.  While a sheep is pretty much at the mercy of the shepherd and a coin is at the mercy of its owner, the son had to choose to return.  

Truths From the Parables

• First, in each parable there is joy when what was lost is regained.
• Second, in each parable Jesus communicates the great value of what was lost.  A sheep, a coin, and a son were all things that the Jews would understand as having great value.  The Pharisees and Scribes failed to understand the great value that God (and thereby Jesus) placed - and still places - on those that are lost.
• Third, the Jewish leaders' disapproval of Jesus' actions was flat wrong (like the older brother in the third parable).  They should have been happy that Jesus was reaching out to regain the lost.

A Parting Word

Realize that God lost us when sin entered the world.  When mankind was separated from Him, God was apart from those that He loved, John 3:16.  Isaiah 59:2 explains very clearly the effect of sin upon the relationship between God and men, "But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear." Almighty God had lost something that He wanted back.  Do you remember something...someone...you have lost?  How much would you give to recoup that loss?  Realize that this is how God views you.

Though God had lost us to sin, He was "not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance," 2 Peter 3:9.  God wanted his lost people back, and went to the great lengths of sacrificing His Son to regain us, John 3:16.  Imagine being lost in a place that you didn't know.  Imagine that the place is dangerous and would kill you, but you had no way to get out.  Now, imagine watching someone who loves you facing and traversing all kinds of obstacles to get you back.  That is what God did to get His people back.  Jesus died so that God could regain what had been lost.  That's what Luke 19:10 is all about.  Jesus came to seek and save that which was lost!  

Christians, let us remember that we are the ones over which God has rejoiced when He regained us.  Let us also remember that we ought to see those outside of Christ with the same value that God sees them.  They are precious to Him, and should be to us.  Let us serve as God's messengers, helping Him regain those precious ones who are lost to Him.  If ever you have regained something that was lost, remember that feeling.  We are helping God regain what was lost.

Had It Not Been the Lord

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,

     The anger of the enemy would have swallowed us alive,

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side.

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,

     The waters would have engulfed us, we would have surely died,

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side.

Blessed be the Lord, who would not give us up!

Blessed be the Lord, for His unfailing love!

The snare is broken and we have escaped;

Our help is in the name of the Lord!

Blessed be the Lord!

Ping-Pong Ball Salvation

A man was watching his wife prepare dinner.  She peeled potatoes and carrots and put them in a pot with a little chicken broth, an onion, some celery and a couple bay leaves.  She seasoned a roast with salt and pepper, then cut off a large section from the end of the roast and threw it away before placing the roast in the pot with the other ingredients.  The man asked, "Why did you throw away the end of that roast?  It looked fine!"  Perplexed, the man's wife said, "I really don't know...it's just how my mother taught me to cook a roast."  At Thanksgiving the man's wife asked her mother, "Mom, why did you always cut the end off the roast and throw it away?" Perplexed, her mother said, "You know, I never really thought about it.  That's just the way your grandma taught me to cook a roast.  Let's go and ask her."  The two ladies approached the matriarch of the family, who was warming herself by the wood stove.  They asked, "Why did you always cut the end off the roast?" The elderly lady replied without hesitation, "We had no refrigerator and only one pot, and it was too small to hold the whole thing!" Tradition can be a funny thing, can it not?  Before simply accepting and emulating practices we have been taught, it is important to understand the reasoning behind them.  Never has this truth been more important than in religious teaching and practice.


One traditional teaching we should examine is what has been referred to as "ping-pong ball salvation."  Imagine watching a ping-pong match with each contestant swatting the ball back and forth over the net.  Now imagine one side of the table with "SAVED" painted across it, and the other with "LOST" on its surface.  The ping-pong ball is a Christian, and as the ball is swatted from the "SAVED" side of the table to the "LOST" side, it is because the Christian has committed a sin.  

SMACK!

-lost, because sin has been committed-

Now the opponent volleys back, symbolizing the Christian repenting and asking God for forgiveness.

SMACK!

-saved, because the Christian has repented and asked God for forgiveness-

When the Christian sins again, they are volleyed back to the lost side, and when they repent and ask for forgiveness they are returned to a saved state, and so on and so on, back and forth.  This teaching is nerve-wracking, to say the least.  It prompts questions like, "If a Christian is driving along and they have a flash of anger and maybe utter a profanity, then have a wreck and die without having time to ask God for forgiveness, do they go to hell?"  Those who teach that this type of salvation is accurate to the Bible would be forced to conclude that the Christian whose ill-timed explosion preceded their death was raising up their eyes in the torments of Hades.  Is this in fact the way salvation works for those who have put on Christ?  

In a word, no.  

In many more words, see the following: 😏

Consider first the book of Romans.  

In chapter 1:16-17, Paul discusses "the righteousness of God."  Righteousness is a poor translation.  The Greek word is diakasune, and is better translated in Romans as "justification."  This means standing in the state of uprightness or "being a perfect 10" before God.  It is something that is done by God for the sinner, mentioned as "the power of God for salvation" in verse 16 to "everyone who believes."  Romans is about faith!  Faith - real, obedient faith (Romans 2:13, James 2:17) - is what allows God to place the sinner into the state of being justified, or "saved".  God views us and treats us just as if we had never sinned (Hebrews 10:17).  If we understand that at the point of baptism we are placed in a state of being justified before God (Romans 6:1-4), the question we must then ask is, "What causes God to STOP seeing us as a perfect 10?"

• Is it that every time we sin, we are no longer seen as a perfect 10 before God?  No.  Romans 3:23-24 says that all HAVE sinned, and FALL short.  "fall short" would be better translated, "DO FALL SHORT."  This is a present-tense word.  It means that they continually, presently fall short.  We HAVE sinned, and DO sin, and we ARE justified (made to be a perfect 10 by God) - present tense again - as a gift by His grace, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.  That means that as we sin, we are justified.  That's what grace does.

•  At this point, the "ping-pong" advocate might say, "Yes, but that justification from sin only happens when the Christian repents and asks God in prayer for forgiveness!"  Please note that this is not stated in the book of Romans.  Rather, we who "fall short" (present tense) are "justified" (present tense) by grace.  This reflects the reality of a Christian trying to do right (obedient faith) but falling short (sinning), and being covered by Grace.  There is not mentioned a period in which the Christian goes from saved to lost, then says a prayer and repents, then goes back to being saved.

Consider second the book of 1st John.  

In 1st John 1:5-10, we read about walking in the light vs. walking in darkness. Many who teach the ping-pong salvation will say that sinning is walking in darkness, and thus when we commit a sin, we are out of fellowship with God.  However, examine verse 7. 

"If we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin."

Just as in Romans the Christian is continually falling short and is continually being justified by grace, in 1st John the same is true.  When the blood of Jesus "cleanses" us, it is a present-active Greek word, which means that it is a continual, perpetual action.  It doesn't stop, provided that we walk in the light.  The assertion that "walking in the light" is living without sinning falls apart at this point, because here "walking in the light" is directly connected to being "cleansed from all sin."  This means that there must be sin to cleanse.  Thus, we sin while walking in the light.  What is NOT mentioned here is that every time we commit a sin, we go into a lost state, then we must repent and ask for forgiveness in prayer and then be in a saved condition again.  Those who walk in the light (that's someone who is attempting to walk in a way that is in agreement with God but can't do it perfectly, but is continually cleansed from those sins as they try to please God) are in a state of fellowship with God!  

So...committing a sin does not place the Christian in a lost condition.  The Christian who while walking in the light sins (making a mistake while TRYING to do right) is continually covered by grace and continually cleansed by Christ's blood according to Romans and 1st John, respectively.

BUT WHAT ABOUT...

• Simon the sorcerer in Acts 8?
• Acts 8:9 - Simon formerly was astonishing the people and claiming to be someone great.
• Acts 8:13 - Simon became a Christian, and was constantly amazed by the miracles that were happening.
• Acts 8:17-19 - Simon saw that these great miracles could take place if the Apostles laid their hands on someone, and attempted to purchase this ability to bestow the Holy Spirit from the Apostles.
• NOTE:  This is what Simon had come out of.  He was previously astonishing people, being called "the power of God," and was claiming to be someone great.  He wanted to get that back, and tried to purchase the ability to lay on hands.
• Acts 8:20-23 - the problem identified by Peter is that Simon's heart was not right before God.  
• NOTE: This would not be someone who was "walking in the light."  One who walks in the light is trying to please God.  It is their intent to practice the things that God desires, though they cannot do so perfectly.  Simon was willfully pursuing something other than pleasing God.
• NOTE: In this situation, Peter then demanded that Simon repent from pursuing his course, and pray that the intention of Simon's heart be forgiven him.
• Acts 8:24 - we have an example of one Christian praying for another that they be forgiven.  
• See 1 John 5:16.  
• The "sin to death" is the willful, habitual WALK of darkness that is in 1 John 1.  It is a refusal to please God.  It is a denial of God's authority and standard.  This is a sin that is no longer covered by the blood of Christ, nor God's grace.  Simon the Sorcerer had begun walking in darkness when he intentionally, willfully, and purposefully attempted to serve his own desires with the gift of God.
• The "sin not unto death" is a sin committed while walking in the light.  The Christian who witnesses another committing a sin while trying to serve God is instructed to pray for that sinner, but the sinner is continually cleansed by the blood of Christ, 1 John 1:7.
• Conclusion - Simon's problem was that he had willfully turned to the way of sin.  He had lost sight of the goal upon which Christians are to focus - pleasing God.  He was walking in darkness.  Upon walking in darkness, a Christian most certainly needs to repent of their actions and pray that God forgive them.

THE END OF THE MATTER - Christians have the benefit of grace, and have the gift of Christ's cleansing blood.  Both of these continually cause the Christian who is walking in the light to stand as a perfect 10, in a justified state, "just as if I'd" never sinned, before God.  So, Christian, if you make a mistake while trying to serve God, do not fear that you have been swatted to the "lost" side of the table.  It was still a sin, and when we are made aware of our shortcomings we must work to improve them.  Keep walking in the light, and sing with confidence and understanding O Thou Fount of Every Blessing, when it says "Oh to grace how great a debtor daily I'm constrained to be!  Let thy goodness like a fetter bind my wandering heart to thee!"  Be thankful for God's grace, and be thankful for the blood that continually cleanses us.

Think On These Things...

 I Should Have Stayed in Bed Today 

By Jack Prelutsky

 I should have stayed in bed today, In bed's where I belong

 As soon as I got up today Things started going wrong. 

I got a splinter in my foot, My puppy made me fall, 

I squirted toothpaste in my ear, I crashed into the wall. 

I knocked my homework off the desk, I landed on my toes, 

I spilled a glass of chocolate milk, It's soaking through my clothes, I accidentally bit my tongue, That really made me moan,

 And it was far from funny when I banged my funny bone. 

I scraped my knees, I bumped my nose, I sat upon a pin, 

 leapt up with alacrity, And sharply barked my shin, 

I stuck a finger in my eye, The pain is quite severe, 

I'd better get right back to bed 

And stay there for a year!

Sometimes bad things happen.  It's normal that from time to time we have a bad thought.  It can even turn into a bad moment.  A bad moment sometimes grows into a bad experience.  A bad experience may even snowball and create a bad day.  That's...normal.  It's okay to have a bad day every once in a while.  It is only when those 'bad' elements change us that our state becomes one that is most pitiable.  

Have you ever met someone who seems to walk around flinching?  What about those folks who have a perpetual chip on their shoulder, and act like the entire world is trying to put a 'kick me' sign on their back?  It's a sad but true phenomenon that there are some people who have been so wounded by the negative element in this world that they become almost...warped...in their day-to-day interactions.  When bad things happen, there must be a stopping point!  There must be a time at which everything stops spinning, we take a breath, and we reset for a better mindset.

One of the fantastic facets of Christian life is the concept that there is always something better on which to focus.  While there is certainly no shortage of negative things in this world, God instructs Christians to seek out those things that are better, wholesome, and good. "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things"(Philippians 4:8, NASB).

Our attitude can change amazingly simply by focusing on something that is good.  The next time a 'bad' moment seems to be clinging to you, take a second and find something on which to focus that reminds you of Paul's words to the congregation at Philippi.  It may be that a moment of positiveness is all you need to break the hold of the negative, and you can move forward to better things.

Let us remember to focus on the good things, so that the bad things don't have time nor room to grow on us!

"You think you're the only ones going to heaven!"

"You think you're the only ones going to heaven!"

A friend of mine was recently accepted to attend the Bear Valley Bible Institute, based in Denver, Colorado.  Most of our conversations have been positive, filled with excitement and anticipation of the good things Robert will learn at school.  The other night, however, he was troubled.  He told me that he had logged his last day at work before he leaves for Denver, and that his boss who serves as a "pastor" (the meaning of "pastor" makes this a word that ought not be used for preachers, but that is for a different post) had delivered quite a parting shot.  "Just so you know, the church of Christ thinks they're the only ones going to heaven," he began, then continued for some time in what Robert relayed as "running down the church."  This is a criticism that the churches of Christ have endured for generations, now, and it is time for logic and truth to take their roles in the discussion.

FIRST, note the absolute lack of forethought in such a statement.  It is spat out as a condemnation and accusation.  Why would it be wrong to claim correctness?  Why would it be wrong to claim exclusivity?  How many products on today's market claim just exactly that?  Countless companies put forth the idea that their product is "the best," and they express in their advertisements why their product should be chosen over all the others that are similar to it, yet no one condemns these companies as elitist.  Nobody slings venomous accusations at the company for making the claim of superiority.  Why does it happen with the church?

SECOND, realize that this is worldly thinking that has crept into the minds of people who are seeking spiritual improvement.  James 1:27 describes pure and undefiled religion before the Lord as "visiting orphans and widows in their distress, and keeping oneself unstained from the world."  This last element of God-approved religion is a necessity for anyone seeking to truly follow God, and all too often we fail in carrying it out.  "World-stains," as one great instructor put it, happen almost without us realizing it.  A prominent world-stain that finds its way into the church is the post-modern, subjective attack upon any standard.  In our emotionally-based society, no one likes to be told they are wrong.  Condemnation of anything is strongly discouraged, and the liberal mindset presses this point at every turn.  It follows naturally that if no one likes to be wrong, the concept of anyone being right must be obliterated.  How...backward...is that?  No one can be right, so that no one will be wrong.  Really?  So that no one feels inferior, let's remove the standard, and give everyone a participation trophy, right?  So that no child feels like they are academically inferior, let's remove the grading system, right?  Do we see the absolute perversity of such notions?  Now as standards are being removed in our society, the trend is continuing into religion.  Now, if a church claims to be the one that Jesus promised, people attack!  Why?  Because a standard means that some people will not meet the standard.  Because if anyone is right, it means that someone must be wrong.  Please allow me to very simply show the importance of standards.  If a person takes their check to the bank and fills out a deposit slip for 900 dollars, they would react quite poorly if they received a receipt for 90 dollars, would they not?  "Hey, I gave you my check for 900 dollars!  Why did you print the receipt saying I only gave you 90?!?"  Imagine the outrage and legal pursuit if the teller said, "Well, from YOUR point of view, you gave us 900 dollars.  OUR truth is that you only gave us 90, and you can't push your beliefs on us."  Yet standards are being attacked everywhere!  What if a pharmacist decided to give a man estrogen supplements rather than blood-pressure medication, citing that the medical standards cannot be imposed upon him because they do not fit into his world view?  What if a waitress decided to put antifreeze in your coffee rather than creamer, stating that food health standards cannot be used to oppress her individuality and expression?  A tiny bit of thought and logic shows that this worldly, subjective attack on standards is dysfunctional at best.
THIRD, the answer to such a poorly thought out accusation is simple:  "Why don't you believe you're the only ones going to heaven?"  Follow this line of reasoning.
1) Denominations exist because people do not agree on how religion should be practiced.  If the disagreements are potent enough that people cannot worship together, it only goes to reason that someone believes they are right where someone else is wrong.  The very existence of denominations shows this to be true, and that these denominations believe in a standard.
2) LOGICAL LINE OF THOUGHT:
          - Because denominations vary in teaching from group to group concerning how a person is justified before God, how we are to worship, and who is to lead in the church, they cannot all be right!
          - If they cannot all be right, why does anyone attend, study, and practice in association with the denomination they do?  They must believe that they are right, while others are wrong.
          - If they believe that they are right while others are wrong, it is hypocritical, unfair, and irrational to condemn a church for claiming the same thing.  Would it not be wiser to examine the biblical standard for the Church that Jesus promised, compare the teachings of each group, and adopt the teachings that are aligned with what the Bible teaches?

FOURTH, the Bible is not unclear about this.

1) Jesus promised ONE CHURCH, in Matthew 16:18.
2) There is ONE body (the church, in context), ONE Spirit, ONE hope, ONE Lord, ONE faith, ONE baptism, and ONE God, according to Ephesians 4:4-6.
3) Any gospel (means of salvation) that differs from the message preached by the apostles renders the teachers as "accursed," according to Galatians 1:8-9.  This means that there is ONE way for people to be justified before God, not "many paths to one end," as so many love to phrase it. In fact, preaching “many paths to one end” results in the preacher being accursed.
4) The Bible can only be correctly understood ONE WAY, according to 2 Peter 1:20-21, thus the popular argument of "well, that's just YOUR interpretation, and MY interpretation is just fine, too," falls lamely flat.  God intended His word to be understood ONE WAY.
5) To say that it is impossible to correctly understand what God desires for His church (as many retreat to saying once “many paths to one end” is disproven) is to say that God is either incapable or unwilling to communicate His will in a clear and understandable manner.  If He is incapable, then He is not all-powerful.  If He is unwilling, then He is unfair, unjust, and just plain cruel.  Both of these notions are erroneous, to say the least, and the mountain of scripture that contradicts them would take hours simply to list. Any who make this assertion have serious theological issues with which they must contend before attempting to convert people to this philosophy.
6) Christians are supposed to be confident in their salvation, according to 1 John 5:13.  We are to "know we have eternal life," just as a chemist is to "know" that they have correctly compounded a formula.  We "know" we have eternal life by the things written in the Bible, just as a chemist "knows" he has correctly combined the formula by the written instructions and equations.  If anyone has a problem with that, they have a problem with God, not with the Christian who follows His word.

7) Hebrews 11:7 speaks of Noah, and that through the reverence he showed God “condemned the world” by doing what was right. The entire population of the world, with the exception of 8 people – Noah, his wife, his 3 sons and their wives – was faced with the doom of drowning. Was the answer to sit on the highest place one could reach and call Noah an elitist, or was the answer to realize that the only way to survive was to repent, listen to Noah, and to get into the ark?  The people had 100 years to listen to Noah as he built the ark, but when the rain began falling God closed the door of the ark and it was too late. How long will the people of our day revile those who submit to God rather than listening to what is right?

The next time that someone throws the accusation of "You think you're the only ones going to heaven," at bare minimum print this article out for them.  At best, know these scriptures and the line of reasoning contained in this article, and answer them yourself.  There is no reason for this backward, subjective slam to continue gaining traction against the people of God.
-J-