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2 February 2022

The Plan of Salvation

Jim Devotional and Bible, Ministry glimpses, Prayer and Praise, ST Highlight 0

That was actually the title of my sermon this past Sunday, on the amazing chapter – Exodus 6.

As we and others share the gospel with those around us, this chapter has been a reminder that the power is not in us, but in God’s Word. And even greater, salvation itself is a work of God.

You probably remember some of the basics of the story. Moses himself was reluctant to go to Egypt, to be involved in this great liberation. He complained that he wasn’t a good speaker, but he probably had a lot of reasons not to go, based on his history.

Then when he arrived and got started, things immediately got worse. Pharoah just mocked him, and then raised the workload of the Israelite slaves to an impossible level. The foremen were against Moses and his big brother Aaron as well, complaining that all they had done was give Pharoah a sword to kill them all.

So in chapter 6, God gives Moses an overview – a roadmap – of His great plan of salvation. All of it is what God will do, none of it seems to depend on Moses and the Israelites at all.

But when Moses returns to share this great plan with the Israelites, this is the scene we see:

Moses spoke thus to the people of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery.
Exodus 6:9

And Moses himself continued to complain. “Behold, the people of Israel have not listened to me. How then shall Pharaoh listen to me, for I am of uncircumcised lips?”

Of course, according to Moses, the whole plan revolved around whether or not he would succeed. See the quote above? “Me…me…I…”.

But unbelief didn’t stop God. A mocking king didn’t stop God. Depression didn’t stop God. It’s as if God didn’t even notice all these supposedly massive obstacles. There is no comment on them whatsoever. The very next verse says:

But the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron and gave them a charge about the people of Israel and about Pharaoh king of Egypt: to bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt.
Exodus 6:13

There’s no doubt a lot of opposition. But God’s great plan is really and truly not dependent on us. God’s power is really and truly not hindered by the huge “roadblocks” that we can’t see past.

Do pray against the discouragement that the believers here often feel – but keep praying that God will work, and He will.

We were very excited to talk on Sunday about starting up men’s and women’s Bible studies from now until the summer. It was great to hear people’s desire to learn from God’s Word, in spite of concerns and doubts. There are some huge needs in our small group. Please pray that God would use these studies to bring Himself glory.

And pray for those who have still not come to the Lord. They don’t yet know His transforming power, and are still under their “broken spirit and harsh slavery”.

21 January 2022

Genesis 1 and 2: First Keyword

Jim Devotional and Bible 0

Let’s continue our look at Genesis 1 and 2 (part 1 here: 7 Hebrew Words).

There is a lot that we can learn about humans from these chapters. And as I’ve said, we’ll be back here a lot as we continue this conversation (Lord willing). If you’d like to take a few minutes to meditate for yourself, why not read Genesis 1:25-31 and make a list of some of your initial observations about humankind.

There are three key things that I learned from this text, that I would like you to remember. Three keywords. Let’s just cover one today. And this may get a little philosophical, so hold on to your hats.

1. Truth

It’s interesting to note that everyone seems to have some kind of basic “authority”. We might also say that everyone has “presuppositions”. Here’s a common example: “empiricism”.

“Empiricism” comes from the Greek word for experience. Basically, in empiricism, the ultimate authority is observation. You learn truth by what you see, hear, taste, and so on. Knowledge is based on experience.

For the Christian, although we recognize that there are various ways to learn truth, our ultimate authority is God’s Word – revelation – the Bible.

Weird, eh? So, instead of observing and gaining scientific knowledge, we believe in some old religious book? That doesn’t sound very reasonable, does it?

But wait a moment. Without that book, science couldn’t exist.

“Wait a minute”, you say. “Many atheists believe in science. Hey, some are actually very good scientists themselves!”

You’re right. Let’s put it this way. Without the truth of this Book, science could not exist.

Ok, let’s say that all knowledge comes from observation. Here’s a question. How do you know that all knowledge comes from observation? Have you observed every little bit of truth in the cosmos, and have you observed that every bit of truth can be observed? And you’re sure that no truth exists outside of your observation? How do you know that what you’re observing is “true”?

Of course not. So, as an ultimate system of knowledge, this idea is inconsistent. The foundation of this idea is unstable.

Now here’s something that most people don’t think about: You really can’t test a supreme authority. If you could, then you would be the supreme authority, with the ability to judge the lesser authority.

But here’s something you can do, to some extent. You can see that your authority is consistent – it’s logical.

Listen, I agree – we can learn a lot from observation. But how do I know?

What if – what if Someone who is the source of all knowledge and the source of all that exists – what if that Someone were to tell me something? That would be a solid foundation for my knowledge.

Now, imagine that we all evolved by chance from a bunch of amoebas. We’re just a random collection of chemicals. Like an alien in Star Trek says, we’re bags of mostly water (because our bodies are mostly made of water). How do we know that our observations are correct? How does a bag of chemicals know anything? Maybe we just think we know something.

If your brain is just a bunch of broccoli of a different colour, why should you trust it? Maybe your species learned to survive and reproduce by believing false things.

Or, if something is true today, will it be true tomorrow? Why?

Maybe every 5000 years, all the laws of mathematics change. Poof! 4+4 now equals pink.

Now many people say, “Ok, maybe, but at least the knowledge I have ‘works'”. How do you know it “works”? And what do you mean, “works”?

And of course many people today try to argue that absolute truth doesn’t exist at all. (Of course, the stereotypical response is – how can you say that it’s universally absolutely true that nothing is universally absolutely true?)

Great, so imagine that your surgeon no longer needs to attend university, because there is no universal truth. Would you like that person to do your next heart surgery?

But what if God made the world, and then told us what He did? That would mean that we have a trustworthy source of truth. And He created an orderly universe, with certain “laws”. And what if He wants to communicate with us? He wants to be known. Well, we would expect that He would communicate with us, in a way we would understand, right?

Check this out:

Thus says the LORD: “If I have not established my covenant with day and night and the fixed order of heaven and earth, then I will reject the offspring of Jacob and David my servant and will not choose one of his offspring to rule over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy on them.”
Jeremiah 33:25-26

God is the source of physical laws. God fixed natural laws in place at the creation. And so, we expect that those laws will be the same tomorrow, because God created them, and God wants us to know Him.

You might have noticed some other things in Genesis 1 and 2. God separates things, and that is good. Creation isn’t just a big grey ball of creation, right? Look at all the different people, even just in your own family, or your own neighbourhood! Look at all the different plants, animals, climates . . . this is not an illusion, it’s real!

Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Why then are we faithless to one another, profaning the covenant of our fathers?
Malachi 2:10

God created everyone. And so we should have a relationship with one another based on truth. We should not be “faithless”, as Malachi says.

Not only is God the source of physical laws, God is the source of loyalty and trust.

For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (he is God!),
Who formed the earth and made it (he established it; he did not create it empty, he formed it to be inhabited!):
“I am the LORD, and there is no other.
I did not speak in secret, in a land of darkness;
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain.’
I the LORD speak the truth; I declare what is right.
Isaiah 45:18-19

There it is. God wants us to have a relationship with Him. And so He speaks the truth.

And so this is why it is possible to search for and find truth.

And here we see one of the purposes of the earth – “he formed it to be inhabited”.

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.
And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for “‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’
Acts 17:24-28

It’s possible to seek God. He created us, He gave us a place to live. And He wants to have a relationship with us. Again, this is why it is possible to search for, and find, truth. And we could also say, it’s possible to seek for, and find, God.

God reveals Himself. He ordered the universe so that we would find repeatable physical laws at work. Also, moral laws, a difference between good and evil. We can learn coherent rules of logic. God wants us to know Him.

That’s why true knowledge or wisdom starts with God. Proverbs 1:7a, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge…”

Of course, you can possess knowledge without “fearing the LORD”. But you must assume that you live in God’s creation – that is, that there is some transcendent order in the universe. As some have put it, you must “steal” our biblical vision of the world in order to hold up your understanding. Because without God’s Word, your worldview isn’t stable and consistent – there is no solid foundation.

Next time we’ll try to get to the next two words – which should be a little simpler!

16 January 2022

Retro: Sk8er

Jim Family, Just for fun, Retro 0

Ten years ago today. Nathanael had gotten a new skateboard for Christmas, and was already looking pretty expert.

15 January 2022

God’s Warmth in Chilly January

Jim Family, Ministry glimpses, Prayer and Praise, ST Highlight 0

I’m just stopping by to say hello and let you know what we’re up to these day! So first – hello! And second, here’s a visual hello from Shari and her boys:

Actually, there are a few new photos in our Photo Gallery, if you would like to check them out.

So, yes, chilly January is here. I think we were pretty spoiled with temperatures last year, but winter has truly arrived in Mexico. And all of you up north can just be quiet about comparing temperatures – the truth is, I’m cold most of the time these days. Except today, when I brewed turkey soup on the stove all day, and made a dessert in the oven. It was a nice reprieve.

But seriously, this is the weather when a lot of houses are pretty cold around here, and that seems to lower your immunity, and people get sick. That can be bad, but of course these days there’s the added dimension that people feel they need to shut down their lives when that sniffle comes around, and so that means checking on people and sometimes shuffling around who is in charge of what on Sunday morning.

Tomorrow our church will take part in Biblical Sexuality Sermon Sunday (read more about that here). I’m actually not the main preacher. But by God’s providence, Rod was already preaching on a related theme. And I will address the topic earlier in our service, and we’ll be praying for our fellow believers in Canada, and other parts of the world, who are sharing God’s love and truth.

I’m excited that we’re getting back into Exodus next week, although I have to wait until the end of the month to preach myself. But I’ve already been preparing and I’ve got a fascinating text (Exodus 6).

Next week we’ll be continuing our leadership Bible studies, finishing the pastoral epistles. I think we’ve all learned a lot from the Apostle Paul (and most of all, the Holy Spirit!).

Nathanael is finishing up his semester next week, so that is certainly the end of a journey (and another one will begin the following Monday).

And I started my second Greek course this week. So that has meant a lot of study. A bonus is that I’m the only student in the class, no extra charge! 🙂

We’ve been excited about some past and future opportunities to share the gospel. So do pray for those who are hearing, that God’s Spirit would work in their lives and bring them to life.

And there are a lot of other things going on – every-day things, ministry things . . . even some online ministry at En la Biblia, and moving my Dad’s materials to the new WordWise blog.

Anyway, that’s just a little first-month-of-the-year update. Hope you’re all doing well!

7 January 2022

7 Hebrew Words

Jim Devotional and Bible 0

As I mentioned back in December, I’ve been thinking of sharing some of my thoughts from the Biblical Anthropology series that we did last year at our church here in Mexico. So, here’s part 1!

About 3500 years ago, and old man begin to write. The first three words completely change our understanding of reality. The first seven words change our understanding of the cosmos. And with just a few phrases, our understanding of how the world works, who we are, the purpose of life and the concept of love is completely transformed.

These words are so revolutionary, so surprising, so transforming, that we really cannot exaggerate their importance.

But of course that begs the question – should we really be sitting around pondering the nature of reality and the natural laws of the universe? Aren’t there more practical things to be talking about?

Here’s the thing. There is a revolution going on in the world today. In some ways it’s something new, in some ways it’s the same old thing. But every day, people in the world are trying to tell us how to act, how to talk – even how to think. And the frustrating thing is that those “instructions” seem to change every day!

Recently I hear someone say that today’s youth have to log onto social media each and every day to find out what they’re supposed to believe. Which celebrity are we fans of now? Which one are we supposed to stop following? Who did something terrible, and why does “everyone” say it’s terrible? What are we supposed to be excited about?

Can you relate?

And listen, it’s not just that we must think what the crowd thinks. We must in fact celebrate what we’re “supposed to” celebrate, and punish those whom we’re “supposed to” punish.

So we’re not just talking about philosophy and private belief here. We are being pressured to change our lives, based on the beliefs of others.

When we did this series at our church, we called it “Biblical Anthropology”. It might not be the organized course that it sounds like. But basically, anthropology is the study of you and I – people. Those creatures that we call “humans”.

So anthropology is going to raise questions such as – Who am I? Why am I here? Do we have a purpose? What is freedom? What is right and wrong?

But we started with those three Hebrew words – five in my English (ESV) Bible: “In the beginning, God created . . .” And the seven Hebrew words, ten in my English translation:

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
Genesis 1:1

And what Moses goes on to say in the first verses and chapters of Genesis change everything.

And let me tell you, when I started the series last February, I had no idea how important these chapters really are.

Meditate on those words. There is a lot of truth in just that one verse.

For example, God exists! And it appears that He somehow exists outside of the space/time universe that we know. After all, He was already there, “in the beginning”.

This God has a will – He has a specific plan and purpose.

He’s creative. Powerful. He is the source of all things. And so He is not His creation – He is not part of the cosmos – He exists apart from it. However, apparently He can interact with it.

And as we continue to read Genesis 1, we’re told about the 6 days of Creation. God creates using words. And a big part of His creative work is separating, making limits, borders, and variety.

And here’s something else amazing – what He creates is “good”. So what? Well, this means that there is such a thing as “good”. In other words, there is more than just “is”. The cosmos is not just a random neutral thing without meaning or morality.

Here’s one sample glimpse of God’s creative work:

And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so.
Genesis 1:24

So once again, God uses words, and He separates – makes variety. And the creatures reproduce after their “kinds”. The basic idea here is that, since the beginning, there has been a biological separation between different types of creatures.

A dog has its own DNA, right? That’s the information in the dog’s body that explains how to make a dog. God placed that information into the dog’s cells, and that’s why a dog gives birth to puppies and not chickens.

Of course the puppies aren’t identical to their parents. There is information from both parents, for one thing. But the little one is not a totally different creature.

And so as we would say in modern terms, a species can certainly change and adapt over many generations, and that is a “built-in feature”. But each creature does indeed reproduce according to its “kind”.

As I said before, there is no way to overestimate the truths in these few verses. They really do change everything. And we haven’t even gotten to the part about humans yet.

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