REMEMBERING: WHY?

 

‘Remember’, ‘take heed’, ‘recall’, ‘keep’, and ‘forget not’; all of these share something in common in the scriptures. They are all used in connection with God’s covenants in the Bible. God remembered certain things and God wanted man to likewise remember the same things. For this reason, God revealed His will to man through His servants the prophets (Amos 3:7; Genesis 18:17; John 15:15). Remembering God’s will is for the purpose of obeying God’s will (cf. Numbers 15:38-40; Ecclesiastes 12:13; James 1:25).

God always remembered His covenants. To Noah God said, “I will remember my covenant…and the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.” (Genesis 9:15-16). 

God remembered His covenants with the patriarchs (Exodus 32:13), with Israel (Jeremiah 31:32), and with David (Jeremiah 33:21). These covenants were made with a view to fulfilling His eternal purpose, which was to redeem man from his sins by the blood of Christ.

This is seen from the prophecy of Zechariah, father of John the Baptist, who at John’s birth said, “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us; to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.” (Luke 1:68-75).

The apostle Peter stated that God had indeed fulfilled His eternal purpose: “what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer, he thus fulfilled.” (Acts 3:18). Peter went on to connect all the covenants from Abraham, Israel, and David to this eternal purpose that was fulfilled in Jesus, saying, “Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago. Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you. And it shall be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people.’ And all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who came after him, also proclaimed these days. You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.’ God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness.” (Acts 3:19-26).

Notice also from Peter’s words above, what was said in regard to man’s response to this fulfillment. “Repent and turn back…” (Acts 3:19). The phrase ‘turn back’ means to return unto God (cf. Acts 26:20). In doing so, they would again obey the covenant terms. In the Bible, whenever man was to ‘remember’ or ‘forget not’ God’s covenant, man was to obey. Conversely, to forget was to transgress (James 4:17).

God rested on the seventh day, and commanded Israel to remember why. To remember was done by an observance of resting. The reason God rested is stated in Exodus 31:17. God blessed this day and made it holy (Exodus 20:11). Israel was commanded to remember (rest) on this day, thereby keeping it holy. The benefit was stated by both Moses and Ezekiel: “so that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you” (Exodus 31:13; Ezekiel 20:12).

The covenant through Moses had many ‘remembrance’ clauses. Chief among these was the remembrance of their sins. Animal sacrifices were for this purpose (Hebrews 10:1-3), reminding them that only God sanctifies (Hebrews 9:9: 10:4; Romans 8:3). Yet they were to ‘remember’ with an act of obedience – sacrificing an animal…exactly as specified (Exodus 12:5). God would indeed sanctify at the right time (Romans 5:6). God foresaw the need and predetermined to sanctify them and us (i.e., Jew and Gentile) through Jesus (Acts 2:23; Ephesians 1:5).

God prepared Jesus a body, that Jesus might do His Father’s will (Hebrews 10:5). His body was prepared to bear our sins. We are sanctified by His blood (Hebrews 13:12). We ‘remember’ as we follow His example. In remembering these things, let us be thankful that our sins and iniquities are remembered no more (Hebrews 8:12; 10:17).

9/19/21

“GOD—RIGHTEOUS AND JUST IS HE”

Of God, Moses said: “…all His ways are just; a God of faithfulness and without injustice, righteous and just is He.” (Deuteronomy 32:4). When God informed Abraham of the judgment purposed for Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham replied, “Far be it from You to do such a thing, to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?” (Genesis 18:25). God did indeed act justly, punishing only the guilty. Such righteousness was even recognized by wicked monarchs such as Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4:37). 

There are many times wherein God demonstrated that He was just and righteous in how He dealt with humanity. God was not merely consistent in His dealings, He always acted in accordance with His word whereby He forewarned of His intentions. His word was the basis for His actions. Never once did God act contrary to His word. In this we also have proof that God was just and righteous.

When God purposed to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, God revealed His intentions beforehand to Abraham (Genesis 18:17). Examples of God forewarning abound. We find it in the pre-flood warnings given to Noah (Genesis 6:13, 17). Noah was shown mercy and favor from God because God was just and righteous. God never once said that He would punish an obedient person. As Abraham, Moses, and Nebuchadnezzar acknowledged, God never once punished the righteous with the wicked. God spoke to Noah words of salvation that Noah and his family might be saved from the impending destruction upon the world of the ungodly (Genesis 6:14-16, 18-21). Noah, by faith, obeyed those words (Genesis 6:22; Hebrews 11:7). 

Who would dare accuse God of giving Noah commands that were impossible to understand? Why give Noah any words if those words could not be understood? God spoke His will to man solely in order that man might know and follow His will. When it comes to the revelation of His will to us in the Bible, consider this: How fair and just would GOD be to place my salvation upon that which is written and then give me that which is written (the Bible) knowing all the while that I could not understand it?

The apostle Paul affirmed that the things God revealed to Him could be understood. Speaking of himself and of the other apostles in Ephesians 1:9-10, Paul said, “He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He set forth in Him, regarding His plan of the fullness of the times, to bring all things together in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.” Could the apostles understand this great plan of God? Certainly so! Paul then says in Ephesians 3:3-4, “that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery, as I wrote before briefly.  By referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ…”. Here Paul speaks of his own insight and of how those to whom he wrote could understand. 

Paul speaks further of the just-ness and righteousness of God in declaring that it was God’s desire for man to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4). Truth, of course, is contained in God’s revelation to man.

In view of this would God have revealed His will in such a way that it was impossible to comprehend?

What are your thoughts about this matter? Do you believe that the Bible CANNOT be understood, or do you believe it CAN? We can agree on what is written. That brings us to another matter which needs addressed. If we can understand and agree, why is there so much disagreement surrounding what the Bible teaches?

The disagreement is not in reference to the teachings in the Bible, but over matters that are not taught or found in the Bible. We can agree on what is written, but we disagree when we focus on what the Bible does NOT say. Here are two examples:

1. Exodus 3:1-3. GOD spoke to Moses out of a ‘bush that burned with fire’. We know it was a ‘burning bush’, and there is no reason for anything but unity on what is revealed. Anything beyond that will be speculation and opinion. Speculations are to be avoided, as they promote division (1 Timothy 6:4; 2 Timothy 2:14, 23; Titus 3:9).

2. John 8:1-8. This scripture explicitly states that Jesus “wrote on the ground”. What did He write? We do not know because the Bible does not say. On this we can all be united. Unity comes from ‘that which is written’. We will never agree on that which is NOT written. That which IS written is the standard for unity. Let us put our faith in it alone (Romans 10:17). Let us not make, nor use such careless statements as to the capability of understanding God’s word as an excuse to NOT put forth the effort to TRY.

9/12/21

“IS IT NOTHING TO YOU?”

In the book of Lamentations, the prophet Jeremiah expresses a series of laments. First and foremost of these laments are those over God’s chosen people Israel. Because they have sinned grievously, God has punished them severely. Jeremiah asks this question in chapter 1:12: “Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by?  Behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the Lord hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger.”

The reaction of the people during Jeremiah’s day over this should have been as Jeremiah’s: grief and mourning. Sin had been committed for a long period of time by those who professed with pride their status as God’s chosen. Yet the very God who had chosen them, had now punished them. Jeremiah said, “the Lord has caused her grief because of the multitude of her wrongdoings…” (Lamentations 1:5). Society’s reaction was to hiss and taunt, as if it was nothing to them. Jeremiah said, “The adversaries saw her, they laughed at her ruin.” (Lamentations 1:7). We see in their reaction, the same attitude that Cain held toward his brother Abel, when he asked, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9).

In this, we see that what was true in Jeremiah’s day was true in Adam’s day. It is still true today. Things that ought to be important are nothing to society as they pass through this life. Many are unconcerned about the prevalence of religious division. Rather than mourn the perversion of the one true gospel (Galatians 1:6-9); many rejoice the availability of a church of one’s choice. When things of eternal consequence are ‘nothing’, it is cause for mourning. Our religious neighbors speak with ridicule of the church that Christ built (Matthew 16:18). They speak derogatory of those who advocate unity apart from diversity (John 17:20-21). These things mean ‘nothing’ to many people. What about you dear reader? Do you regard yourself as a Christian? Are religious divisions and perversions of the gospel of no concern to you? It should be. Jeremiah mourned over the sins of God’s people. He mourned over the fact that no one cared. Jeremiah recognized what many fail to acknowledge…this was God’s doing. He said, God had afflicted him (1:12). God’s justice had been exercised because of sin. This was to bring about repentance from sin. For those who did, God would be merciful and heal. 

Have you been afflicted by God? How have you reacted? With bitterness or with sorrow? An unconcerned attitude toward these matters has eternal consequences. Christians are to be “fervent in spirit” (Romans 12:11); “zealous of good works” (Titus 2:14); “always abounding in the work of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58); and to “stand fast in the faith” (1 Corinthians 16:13). Yet, there are those who are unconcerned in regard to their responsibilities toward God and toward one another. Why is it that there is a lack of concern among the people of God with regard to these two responsibilities?  First, let us consider the responsibilities as brethren.

The apostle Paul identified some brethren as ‘strong’ and others as ‘weak’ (Romans 15:1). Judgments must be made by brethren toward one another. Paul also distinguished between those ‘in’ Christ and those ‘outside’ of Christ as those ‘within’ and those ‘without’ (1 Corinthians 5:12-13). In either case, judgments must be made by all based upon righteousness (John 7:24). Jude also recognized the differences in spiritual maturity of brethren in his epistle. He wrote, “And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh” (Jude 1:22-23). Righteous judgment requires wisdom. In our ‘consideration’ of one another, let us remember this: “let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works” (Hebrews 10:24). We have all been made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). The value of a soul thus created is of greater value than the world in which we live and all that is therein (Mark 8:36-37). 

So likewise, we need to remember these principles in the relationships we sustain with brethren and with those of the world. All souls are of equal value in God’s sight. Let not this truth mean ‘nothing’ to us. The salvation of a soul is greater than gaining the whole world. The gospel must go forth in word and in deed by Christians. Our support of the gospel should not be taken lightly either. Does our contribution reflect that the gospel is of no value or of great value to the saving of a soul? The Bible declares that it alone is God’s power to save (Romans 1:16-17). Does the purity and integrity of the gospel matter to you?

9/5/21

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