Q & A on God is…Self-Sacrificing

Certainly when we think of the cross of Jesus Christ we can see a God who sacrifices himself for his fallen creation. This thought is implicit in “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life” John 3:16. One text question submitted during the message asks how people who lived and died before Christ‘s sacrifice were saved. It’s a good question and I hope I can give a good answer.

Q. How was salvation achieved before Jesus died on the cross? For example, in the Old Testament and the early church.

A. If we believe in the exclusiveness of salvation in Jesus Christ, then there was no other way for a person to be saved than through him, even in the Old Testament Days. The Bible does state: “…There is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all” 1 Timothy 2:5-6.

So either they were saved by faith in a Christ who had yet to die or they were not saved at all. The answer, I believe is that those who were saved in the Old Testament days were saved by a faith that was a forward looking faith based on God’s Word of the promised Messiah and Redeemer that would come. The Bible says that Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and Sarah, “these all died in faith, not having received what was promised, but having seen it and greeted it from afar…” Hebrews 11:13. Later in the chapter it says that Moses, “considered the abuse suffered for the Christ (or the Messiah) greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he looked to the reward” Hebrews 11:26.

We have to remember that Jesus himself backed this thinking up when he told the religious leaders of the day, “Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see my day; he saw it and was glad” John 8:56.

So the Old Testament believers looked forward to the promise. They didn’t have the details that we have, but they had enough. From our vantage, we look back. The important thing is to believe God and trust in Christ now. They had to do it while living and so do we.

Q & A from God is…Holy, Part 2

Another text question from the series “God is…” This question is from the talk on the holiness of God. This talk has brought about the most text questions of any in this series.

Q1. How is God merciful by not bringing us to a place of holiness if that is his desire?Doesn’t He want to help us get there no matter the cost of disruption?

A1. In my talk, I made a point that God is not in our midst in power because we do not have a healthy fear of God or a fear of sin. If He were to draw near to us, it would have to be first in judgment upon our sin, before it could be in revival. It was a mercy of God for him not to come at this moment.The reason is He is giving space for us to repent and to return to Him in holiness. We are to judge ourselves so God will not judge us. Now this will not go on indefinitely. God will come and he will pass his judgment on us and on the world. But he will come to his people first. His mercy is that He is giving us an opportunity before He moves in himself.

Q2. Do you believe in the concept of “churching” a member of the church when they are involved in sin? Would that help members learn to fear sin?

A2. I believe in the concept of removing a member from church membership due to sin only in cases of very extreme unrepentant sin. This is only to be used after every other means of helping the member regain fellowship with one another and with God. The very purpose of this action would be restoration, not punishment. God will discipline the sinning Christian Himself. I have only had to use this action once in my 27 years in Christian ministry. It was very hard time. It also helped our members to clarify and renew their own walk with God. I wouldn’t want to go through that again.

Q & A from God is…Holy

Sunday, September 18th I gave a hard message on God being holy. I spoke about what that means for God himself and its implications for us as well. One of the most misunderstood concepts of God is the concept of His wrath.

We speak often of God’s love, though I’m not convinced we have a real biblical concept of that either. But without understanding his love, we cannot understand his wrath either. At the price of oversimplification, God’s love is his desire for what is best for you. God’s wrath, therefore is his desire to eliminate or destroy anything that would prevent the good or best for you. God’s wrath is against sin because sin harms you. God is against sin because He is for you. Hate is a strong word, but because God loves you, he hates whatever will harm you. The more he loves you, the more he will hate that which brings you harm. God’s wrath is not an emotional outburst, but a measured and reasoned response to sin. This makes him holy. Holiness is who God is. It is part of his nature. Wrath is not part of his nature. Love is part of God’s nature. The Bible says, “God is love” (1 John 4:8). So in understanding his love, we understand his wrath.

Now onto a text question:

Q1. Do you think God hardens individuals hearts today for the greater good or off the completion of his plan for the world?

A1. I don’t think God has to harden anyone’s heart for the greater good or the completion of his plan. He can complete his plan without anyone’s help or hardening. With that said, God has chosen to use the willing and even the resistant. This displays His power, patience and sovereignty.

A familiar biblical example of this is God’s use of Pharaoh in Egypt in the release of his people from captivity. God tells Moses to go to Pharaoh and demand the release of God’s people. The Lord also tells Moses that Pharaoh will not let them go. He says, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do all those wonders before Pharaoh which I have put in your hand. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go” (Exodus 4:21). Later, the text actually states that Pharaoh hardened his own heart three times (Exodus 8:15, 32; 9:34). The Bible also states that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart five times (Exodus 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10; 14:8   ) and even the hearts of his army so they would pursue Israel into the Sea and be drowned (Exodus 14:17). That’s a lot of hardcore hardening!

How do we explain all this? If God does the hardening of people, how are people then held accountable for their actions? Think of this issue of hardening in this way. The sun which melts butter is also the same sun that hardens clay. The sun treats both butter and clay the same. It does not shift its rays or up its output of UV for butter. The sun shines the same on all things all the time. The fault is not found in the sun. The difference is found in the properties of the butter and the clay. As they are exposed to the sun, what is in them reactsand reacts differently.

As some are exposed to Jesus Christ, they react by resisting him. Their continued resistance causes a hardening of their heart. The hardened heart is a consequence of resistance, just as a calloused fingers are due to the resistance of continued exposure to the strings of a musical instrument. The Scriptures that speak of God hardening hearts simply means God draws near to them. The hardening is due to their resistance. God drew near to Egypt and Pharaoh. He did mighty signs. Instead of them acknowledging him the Lord and God. They resisted. Who is responsible for the hardening? They were. God was just being God, like the sun is just being the sun.

How you respond to the holiness of God has very important implications. God treats all people with grace and mercy, but you are responsible for how your react to his movement in your life. Just as Pharaoh was.

Q & A on God is…Love, Part 3

Q. I’ve been praying and trying to follow God with all of my heart, but something keeps holding me back. I want to follow him, but it seems every time I try I get rejected. how can I follow God and obey His will if I am not given the chance?

A. From your statement and question it looks like there are two different directions to approach this problem. One is that there is “something” holding you back from following God. When you do try, perhaps when your courage is up and you step out, you are rejected. Initially, without more information, it sounds that fear of more rejection is what is holding you back.

As far as rejection goes, certain questions need to be answered in this as well. Is the rejection coming from people or do you believe it is coming from God? What form is the rejection coming? Is it possible that there is a misunderstanding between you and them? Are you trying to follow God your way or are you submitting yourself to God and following Him the way He directs?

Joseph was the favorite son of Jacob. He was beaten by his own brothers out of jealousy and sold as a slave. In Egypt as a slave, Joseph was accused of attempted rape which he did not do. He was then imprisoned for over 15 years. While in prison he helped a man who said he would remember to speak for him when the man got out of prison. The man forgot. Jacob was rejected by his brothers, his slave owner and forgotten by his friend. He was treated terribly but he never gave up. He kept his faith in God. God used that and made him second in command next to Pharaoh. God also used him to save the lives of many people. Some of those he saved were the very brothers who had rejected him. Joseph knew God had a plan and would not leave him. He kept his trust in the Lord even when it looked like everyone had rejected him. I urge you to do the same. God will not forget you.

God is giving you a chance. A chance to demonstrate faith. This time will not always be. Joseph’s trial ended. Yours will end as well and you will then enter into a new day.

Q & A on God is…Love, Part 2

Another question that was texted during the message “God is…Love”

Q. If God’s love is non-manipulative, what about how He arranges circumstances in our lives to draw us to Him and make us more like Him? Can you explain the difference?

A. I must admit that this is at first blush a very difficult question. I think the answer to this can become more clear when we define what the word “manipulative” means, and therefore can apply the opposite of this to the question of God using his Holy Spirit and circumstances to draw us to himself in a non-manipulative way.

First, to manipulate according to Dictionary.com is “to manage or influence skillfully, especially in an unfair manner.” There are other definitions, like to change chemical properties, etc. But the usage of the word in our context would definitely be an unfair influence or an influence with a selfish interest. Other words associated with this are  being “exploitative” and “abusive.”

Second, is there any biblical evidence that God uses these kind of tactics in drawing us to himself? Does He catch us when we are most vulnerable and get us to make a commitment to Him when we are weak? Does He get us to do things that benefit Him but not us? Does God exploit people and abuse them?

Honestly when I ask these questions, God does not come to mind, but the Devil does! There is no fine print when you come to Christ. He gets it all. All your sin. All your hang-ups, and all your problems.  Jesus taught this openly and repeatedly, saying if anyone does not deny himself and take up his cross, he cannot be my disciple. Jesus Christ gives full disclosure. Jesus Christ also gets all the downside and you get all the upside.

What profit does God gain by us receiving His gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ? Seems like God paid all the price for that one. What to we gain? Only everything for eternity!What does God gain? What’s in it for Him? Another renovation project? To coin an old country song, “We get the gold mine and he gets the shaft.” 2 Corinthians 8:9 reads, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”

But what about God’s ability to arrange circumstances and the influence of the Holy Spirit? Circumstances certainly provide a context for making decisions. God, according to his character and past behavior, uses circumstances to remove the blinders off our eyes. The right circumstances help us to see reality as it is rather than from just our own narrow perspective. The work of the Holy Spirit helps free us from the bondage of our will to sin. This enables a more even playing field for decisions. The Holy Spirit is called a counselor in the scriptures.

Millions of people alive today, all around the world would testify to the fact that they would not have made the decisions they did for Christ had not the circumstances and the guidance of the Spirit been there in the right measure and in the right way. Yet they will tell you without hesitation that the decision was still their decision. God didn’t manipulate them, he helped them to be free to choose.

God, being… well, you know… God. He could force people to follow him. Yet millions and even billions do not. So those who do not accept the sacrifice of Christ are also a testimony to God’s non-manipulative love. The very fact that they refuse and remain lost gives integrity to God’s respect in their choice. Where do you stand in his offer of love?

Q & A on God is…Love, Part 1

I’ve been doing talks on the God Jesus reveals. My latest talk was on God is…Love. The Scriptures have a lot to say about God’s love. The New Testament alone has the most material. There are great passages that explain God’s love toward us. While there are several words that the biblical material uses for love, the most popular and the most descriptive of God’s love is the word “agape.”  My message dealt with what Jesus taught on God being love. The questions and answers below are in that context.

Q1. After a person becomes saved is it possible for them to lose their salvation?

A1. Sometimes people think or may do things and they say to themselves, “I must not be a Christian because a Christian would never think or do such a thing.” This is at best a personal opinion and at worst poor theology. If a Christian can still commit a sin, then where do we draw the line at what sins would make that person not a Christian? Is it adultery? Murder? or even feeling like giving up on God?

Some people give up on religion, but that does not mean they have given up on God. Don’t confuse religion with belief in Jesus Christ.

Theologically, I don’t believe it is possible for a person who is a real child of God to lose eternal life. That is one of the reasons it is called “eternal” life, because you have it for eternity, otherwise it would be “conditional” life. Conditional upon your holding onto what God gave. You didn’t save yourself and you don’t keep yourself either. God does. Using the imagery of God’s people as sheep following Jesus as the shepherd, Jesus says this about your security. “27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. 30 I and My Father are one.” (John 10:27-29, NKJV) If you have “heard” the call of God in your life and have committed yourself to him as your Leader, Savior and Lord then He has given you eternal life. You will never perish. That means you will never be lost. Though you may close your eyes in death to this world some day, you will wake up in His awesome presence and be with all the goodness of the universe forever. No one can take you away, not even yourself. When Jesus concludes this by saying, “I and the Father are one.” He said that what he says, the Father says and agrees to. He is also saying that his essence is the same as the Father. His authority is one in the same as that of the Father.

If you believe you may not have trusted Jesus Christ in this way, in the past. I invite you to do it now. Doubts concerning whether a person is really a child of God and saved can ruin your peace of mind today and your eternity tomorrow. It will certainly keep you from growing and becoming the person you and God want to be. Below is a simple prayer. It’s not magical. The words are not magical. What is important is the meaning you put behind them. That is what counts. This prayer is a way to help guide you to that saving experience with God.

If you pray the prayer below, and really mean it. I’d like to know. First, so I can rejoice with you in that decision. Second, I’d like to point you to some resources that will help you in your spiritual growth. Spiritual growth is a lot like walking. Just because you have legs doesn’t mean you can use them. At some point we all had to learn to walk. Okay, enough about this. Here is the prayer. Jot me a message on the blog or you can fb me at Jimmy Kinnaird or email me at jkinnaird@vbcokc.org.

Dear God, I know I’m a sinner. I believe Christ died on the cross for my sins and then arose. Please forgive me of all my sin. I turn and now confess You as Lord and trust You alone for my salvation. Thank you for forgiveness and the free gift of eternal life. Amen.

God is…Love

In my “God is…” series this last Sunday I spoke on God’s love. I strictly approached it from the teachings of Jesus only. I did not include the worthy passages of 1 Corinthians 13 or 1 John 4. If I was going to do a proper exposition on the topic I certainly would have to do a whole series. In this I just wanted to reflect the love of God that Jesus experienced and submitted himself to.

In looking through the Gospels, I have been amazed at the correlation between love and obedience in Jesus’ experience with the Father and also our experience with Jesus and subsequently the Father. This love is not a soft, cotton-candy kind of love. It is tough and demanding and hard. It is a love that is submissive in its totality.

One of the passages that has captured my attention is John 5:19-21.

¹⁹ Then Jesus answered and said to them,  “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. ²⁰ For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel. ²¹ For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.

In my opinion, this is the most definitive statement of Jesus on his relationship to the Father. His union with the Father is so close and so immediate that he does not do anything other than what the Father does. On top of that, he does it in the same manner. As an apprentice in a woodshop, he follows the Fathers hand with his. Uses the same tools and carves in the exact same way. Augustine said that as the light cannot be separated from a flame, neither can the Son be separated from the Father.

It is out of this relationship that the love between the Father and Son flows. It is out of this dependent and submissive relationship that revelation proceeds. Jesus promises the same for us. Love from God is experienced as we place ourselves in ever increasingly dependent and submissive positions before Him. After all, Jesus said, “²¹ He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” John 14:21.

Spiritual Exercise for the Week

Practice a form of Lectio Divina. This is a latin term for “Divine Reading.” A divine reading is where you take a biblical passage, usually a short one, and read over it several times with a focus on the passage and how it may speak to you. For this week I want you to take the passage of John 5:19-21. Here are the steps:

1. Look up in your Bible John 5:19-21.
2. Spend a moment just relaxing, asking God to help calm your mind and to be receptive to His Spirit.
3. First reading. Read the passage through, slowly. Pause at the natural places where someone who was speaking the passage would pause. After reading, just sit and be silent for a moment and let it sink in.
4. Second reading. Read the text slowly again. Pause even longer. Not words or phrases that may grab your attention more than others. Write down these words or phrases.
5. Third reading. Re-read the passage. When you get to the words or phrases that spoke to you, say them several times out loud.
6. Reflect on the phrases that moved you. Answer the question: “Why am I drawn to these words or phrases?” “What is here that I am looking for?” “What is God speaking to me?”
7. Pray your answers to God. Ask God what is it that you need to hear from Him.
8. Sit quietly before the Lord for a few minutes. When you are done, ask God to show you where his presence will be today and seek to keep yourself in line with Him.

Q & A on God is…Generous, Part 3

Here is the final installment of the Q and A from the Sunday morning message “God is…Generous.”

Q4. Do you think God knows when we will accept Christ?

A4. I do believe God knows when we will accept Christ. I also believe he has given us the ability to choose for him or against him. His knowledge of our time for salvation or our lack of it does not determine the choices we make. God has predestined us to have the freedom to choose. His sovereignty is large enough to contain all our choices. Our choices are limited but God’s power, knowledge and sovereignty is not.

Q & A on God is…Generous, Part 2

I had a virtual flood of questions on this issue of God being generous. I’ve decided to answer just a couple at a time each day rather than all at once. Unfortunately some of the questions were submitted in an accusatory manner. However I will attempt to re-frame the question and hopefully provide a satisfactory response. In this part two, below are more questions.

Q3. If God is so generous, then why did he attempt to keep both the gift of knowledge and life away from his chosen people as written in Genesis?

A3. If you are asking what I think you are asking, this is a very good and very puzzling question. You also wrote 12 other questions that followed up on the premise that God was intentionally trying to keep the very best from those created in his image, which would infer evil or at the very least selfish motives on God’s part.

Now to the question. In the Scriptures God set Adam and Eve in the Garden and told them that they could eat of every tree except for the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The tree of life was there in the center of the garden as well, but they were only told not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil because if they did, they would die. God was not trying to keep something good from happening to the first couple but was trying to keep something bad from happening. God is the one who set the trees there. He didn’t have to put them in the garden at all. So that brings up more questions. Why did God then place a tree in the garden, which would have been a perfect place that if humans ate of it, they would die? It goes to the whole issue of mankind’s free will. The tree was a test. It was a test of love. God created us to know Him and to love him. Yet God cannot force love. Love for God must be freely given, therefore there must be a way to refuse God’s love. There must be a choice to make that will show us and God whether we will love him or love something else. That choice was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It was not the tree of knowledge. Adam grew in knowledge anyway. It was of a particular kind of knowledge, one that would bring death. Not all knowledge is good. Just ask victims of abuse or of other traumas. They would wish they never experienced these things. So it was with the first human pair.

But what about God later forbidding them to partake of the tree of life? His prohibition was only as a result of their disobeying God and eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If they had eaten of the tree of life in their fallen, sinful state, they would have been in that state permanently. They would have been like the angels that sinned and fell, with no hope of salvation. Death, our death and the death and resurrection of Christ actually become a way to undo the fall. In the book of Revelation, those who have been transformed by Christ will then get to eat of the tree of life. Check our Revelation 22.

What God withholds from us, he withholds for our good. Even in His withholding He is generous, for when we disobey he ultimately works that out in his generosity to be greater than what we refused before. Maybe this is some of what the apostle Paul was thinking when he wrote:

33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

    34      “For who has known the mind of the LORD?
          Or who has become His counselor?”
    35      “Or who has first given to Him
          And it shall be repaid to him?”

36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen. Romans 11:33-36.

Q & A on God is…Generous, Part 1

Sunday AM, September 4th my talk was on the generosity of God. Several questions were texted to me that had to do with this topic. Here are some and my quick answers.

Q1. So is the saying, “God helps those who help themselves” bad or wrong?

A1. It depends. God expects us to take initiative in some things, but not in others. The Bible commands us to repent and believe in Christ. That is our part. God’s part is to put in our hearts a desire to come to him and once we open our hearts to God, he comes in and gives us the new birth from above (John 3:3). On the other hand, if you are out for yourself in a selfish way, God will not help you there. A better phrase may be, “God helps those who are helpless, when they come to Him.”

Q2. So is there no difference in the heavenly reward given to Billy Graham versus a Christian who has believed and is a believer – but never reached another soul for the kingdom?

A2. There is a difference. Jesus taught such in his sermon on the mount, especially Matthew 5:12-6:18. Jesus speaks of a reward coming from God for their service and faithfulness that those who did not serve Christ as such would not receive. Paul taught this in 2 Corinthians 5:10 as well. So there will be rewards for some and lack of rewards for others. What will be the nature of these rewards? I think they will be of a nature that other people without them would not know. It may be a deeper understanding of God or greater revelation and experience of God himself. This is just my speculation