Stand for Something

"Give to us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for - because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything."

Peter Marshall

Curtain Call

"The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place. Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, 'Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?'"

Revelation 6:14-17

"'Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth beneath; for the heavens vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and they who dwell in it will die in like manner...'"

Isaiah 51:6

Harold Camping thinks the world will end today. A radio preacher, Camping believes that Biblical evidence points to the second coming of Christ on May 21, 2011.
 
There's just one problem.

Who told him?

Jesus told a parable about ten virgins waiting for the bridegroom at a marriage feast (Matthew 25:1-13).  In Jewish custom, virgins lit the way for a bridegroom to go into a house to meet his waiting bride.  In Jesus' parable, ten virgins - five wise and five foolish - waited for the groom, lamps in their hands.


Now, Jesus' story is a parable, and all parables have a deeper meaning than what appears on the surface.  Jesus was illustrating a story about His coming.  In the story, He is the bridegroom, and the virgins are those waiting for Him to come.  The five wise virgins are true believers; their lamps don't burn out because He has lit them.  The five foolish virgins are hypocrites, claiming to believe but really remaining in their sin.  They have not brought extra oil for their lamps: "They had just the oil enough to make their lamps burn for the present, to make a show with" (Matthew Henry, commentary on Matthew 25).  They weren't ready for the bridegroom's return.


Camping isn't the first to predict a date for Christ's return.  And he won't be the last.

"And they asked him, 'Teacher, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when these things are about to take place?' And he said, 'See that you are not led astray. For many will come in my name, saying, "I am he!" and, "The time is at hand!" Do not go after them'" (Luke 21:7-8).

When you dig deeper, there are more twists to Harold Camping's story than it first appears.  Camping has predicted the end of the world before (in 1994, to be exact), and preaches doctrines that are blatantly unbiblical.  Even if Camping's theology was sound (which it isn't), there would be another reason to disbelieve his prediction.  When Jesus was on earth, He told His disciples that He didn't even know the date of His second return (see Matthew 24:36).  If Jesus didn't know then, how can we presume to know now?


"Christ's coming will be at our midnight, when we least look for him, and are most disposed to take our rest...Christ will come when he pleases, to show his sovereignty, and will not let us know when, to teach us our duty" (Matthew Henry).


The world will end one day.  For some, it will be a day of terror.  For others, a day of realized hope.  The second part of Isaiah 51:6 gives comfort to those who belong to God.

"Lift up your eyes to the heavens,

   and look at the earth beneath;

for the heavens vanish like smoke,

   the earth will wear out like a garment,

   and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;

but my salvation will be forever,

   and my righteousness will never be dismayed."

Isaiah 51:6, emphasis added

Many have believed Harold Camping's prediction that the world will end today.  And it might.  The day's not over yet!  But the question of eternity is, will you be ready?

"But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.

 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells."

2 Peter 3:10-13, emphasis added

The Center

"As Christians, we profess, not only to believe and look for, but to love and long for, the appearing of Christ, and to act in our whole conversation with a regard to it. The second coming of Christ is the centre in which all the lines of our religion meet, and to which the whole of the divine life hath a constant reference and tendency."

Matthew Henry

Little Deal, Big Deal

When I was about six years old, I found a tiny weed poking through the cracks of our sidewalk in a futile attempt to become a full-grown tree.  Due to my disproportionate interest in the doomed weed, my parents transplanted the small tree into a pot.  I named it Emerald.  (Yes, I named a tree.  We all have our less-than-flattering childhood moments, don't we?)  It was an evergreen tree, so the name "Emerald" fit very well.  Emerald stayed in a pot through two moves before we finally transplanted it to our backyard.  Today, if you look out our window, you will see an evergreen tree that is halfway in front of our gate.  Emerald has grown a lot.  What was once a weed in our sidewalk now blocks our gate.

A song by Rich Mullins speaks of how "stuff of earth competes for the allegiance I owe only to the Giver of all good things" (Mullins, "If I Stand").  Every time we give in to sin of any kind, be it pride, or laziness, or bitterness, we water and care for it, strengthening it.

Sometimes you don't even have to care for it, as I did for Emerald.  Some of our neighbors had a weed in their front yard.  It's now over fifteen feet tall.  No longer are they able to pull it out; they'd have to cut it down, leaving a stump to remind them of its presence.  When it first appeared, it would have been easy to pluck it out of the ground.  Instead of doing that, they ignored it; now they would have to spend hours of hard labor to get it out of their yard.

While it may sound ridiculous for our neighbors to have waited so long, things like this happen faster than you may think.  I remember hearing a story about Chuck Swindoll when he was the only member of his family at home.  He opened the freezer and found that there was a brand new half-gallon container of his favorite ice cream.  He decided to have some.  He ate a little bit.  And a little more.  And a little more.  Then he had just a little bit more.  Soon he realized that he had eaten the entire half-gallon of ice cream.  All of it, in that one sitting!  Before you know what's going on, one computer or video game turns into five, ten minutes turns into an hour, one bite of ice cream turns into a half gallon, and one little weed turns into a tree.  It happens in the blink of an eye.

There's nothing wrong with transplanting a weed or even naming it (although I admit that naming a tree is a little odd).  But what was once cute is now a nuisance, what was once inconsequential now affects anyone who tries to go through our gate.  It will take a lot more work to get rid of our bothersome tree than it would have at the beginning.  Similarly, it will take a lot more work to kick an ingrained habit than it would to end a habit just beginning.  Once we give in to our unhealthy desires, it often seems impossible to root them out.  But it is possible.  Even though a little deal has turned into a big deal, it is still possible, for "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26).

Happy Easter!

"But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, "Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise." And they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest." Luke 24:1-9

How the angels must wonder at our surprise.  We're shocked when God rearranges "normal" for His purpose, as if we don't really believe that He is in control of everything.  To the angels, however, it made perfect sense: God kept His promise.

Everything we believe hinges on the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  "And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins" (1 Corinthians 15:17).  Without Easter, there would be no Christianity!  Everything we believe is founded on God's fulfillment of His promises.

Easter gives us hope because the God who was powerful enough to keep a promise made in the beginning ["he shall bruise your head" (Genesis 3:15)] is still all-powerful.  We know that He will also keep His promise to us: "'In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also'" (John 14:2-3).


Easter gives us purpose because the One who promised us great things has also given us work to complete (Ephesians 2:10).

Easter gives us victory because we are now made to be "more than conquerors" (Romans 8:37).

Easter gives us joy because that promise kept was given to us.  "See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God" (1 John 3:1a)!

It's hard to believe that the God of the universe stoops to make a promise to the wretches that are so far from the holy perfection He requires.  Even more incredible is that He keeps the promise.  It truly is amazing grace!  Is it any wonder that God takes promises seriously?  His own Son took our unbearable punishment for us, to keep a promise made before time began.  Through His grace, we are now "children of promise" (Galatians 4:28).

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised IS faithful."
Hebrews 10:23, emphasis added

Have a wonderful Easter!

Awkward!

In many movies, there is a side plot in which a man and woman seem to be just perfect for each other.  During the entire movie, everyone watching is just waiting for the couple to decide the obvious.  But until then, there are moments where the couple is together and they don't know what to say.  As they are obviously uncomfortable and begin searching for the right words, the viewers notice their discomfort.  This is when my brother likes to yell, "Awkward!"


There is a verse in the Bible that, when I read it, I find myself thinking, "Awkward!"  It happens in 1 Kings.  Israel, the nation loved by God, the nation that had seen the miracles and heard the voice from heaven, had once again turned away from the God who had blessed them so abundantly.  Under bad leadership, the Israelite people fell away and followed their hearts - and the neighbors' gods.  Soon the prophet Elijah appeared on the scene and proposed that all prophets (whether good prophets or false prophets) gather together at Mount Carmel.


Here we reach the climax.  Beginning his call for the Israelites to return to God, Elijah faced the Israelites.  We read, "And Elijah came near to all the people and said, "How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him." And the people did not answer him a word" (1 Kings 18:21).  Imagine the deafening silence.  The people "did not answer him a word" as Elijah talked about their sin.  There was no repentance or returning to the one true God.  There was no adamant defense of the lie they had chosen in place of the Truth.  There was only silence.  What was going through their minds?  It must have been very awkward.


It can be awkward when our sin is confronted.  While reading the Bible, God might show us some areas we don't want to change.  He might show us where we limp between God's Truth and the pull of other things - be it popular opinion, entertainment, or anything else we put before Christ.  It can be awkward, yes, but God doesn't call us to a comfortable life.


Elijah proposed a test to the undecided Israelites.  They decided to offer sacrifices and see which God responded to their efforts and devotion.  What follows is a humorous yet incredible account and a breathtaking display of God's awesome power and involvement in our lives.  As expected, the false god lost, just like our petty priorities will never be able to stand before God's magnificent power.  God turned the hearts of Israel back to Him.  Oh, that He will keep our hearts true to Him.

On Pins and Needles

For the past several weeks, I have been eagerly watching for signs of spring, as I'm sure many others have been as well.  Ahhh, just take a deep breath and know that spring is finally, at long last, in the air.

Many people seem to think of Christmas as "the most wonderful time of the year."  Around Christmas-time, I would agree.  But today, as I noticed new blossoms on the tree in our yard, I began thinking that spring is great, too.  I wonder why those two times - Christmas and spring - stand out as the best times of the year?

Then I realized what makes spring and Christmas seem so special.  Anticipation: the waiting for something coming that is even better than what we have now.  During the Christmas season, we are anticipating Christmas Day.  During spring, we anticipate summer.

Anticipation.  Looking forward.  Trying so hard to wait patiently.  The dictionary defines "anticipate" as "to look forward to as certain."  When we hear "Joy to the World," we know that Christmas is around the corner.  When we see blossoms on trees and heard birds chirping, we know that spring is coming.  For certain.  You can count on it.

What must Paul have been thinking when he cried out "Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" (Romans 7:24).  Why was he so miserable? Didn't this same man write, "For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death" (Romans 8:2)?  Why did he consider himself free on the one hand and yet still a wretched man?

"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God...For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience" (Romans 8:18-25, emphasis added).

The weight of sin has marred the picture of the glorious world God created.  Everywhere, all of creation groans under the burden.

But, wait.  The story isn't over yet.  We anticipate the final chapter.  '"Behold, I am making all things new'" (Revelation 21:5).  For the redeemed, such a dreary, painful world will not always be so.  One day we will reach the gates of heaven and hear '''Enter into the joy of your master'" (Matthew 25:21).


Until then, we anticipate our eternal destination - sitting on pins and needles, so to speak, as we wait for our call to glory.  It will come.  For certain.  You can count on it.

Photo Credit: Arvind Balaraman from FreeDigitalPhotos.net