Osama Bin Laden is dead. Across the globe, people are celebrating. There’s a general sentiment, even among non-Christians, that he is in hell, because that’s what he deserves.
I’m guessing that, some of those people, if you had shared the Gospel with them two days ago, would have said they didn’t believe in hell. Or that a loving God wouldn’t send people to hell. Or that God just forgives everybody when they die, and everybody goes to heaven.
If you hold any of those beliefs, the law of non-contradiction requires that they be applied across the board to everybody. In other words, you can’t say you don’t believe in hell and at the same time believe that Bin Laden is in hell. If it doesn’t exist, he can’t be there.
So I’d like to pose two questions to people who hold the aforementioned beliefs:
1. If God decided not to send Bin Laden to hell, but rather allowed him into heaven, has justice been done?
2. Do you think it’s fair that you will have to spend your own eternity in heaven with Bin Laden? And Hitler, and Nero, and Mussolini, and Caligula, and Jack the Ripper?
As broken and messed up as we are, even we humans demand that there be justice –punishment– for people who have committed such heinous crimes. If God doesn’t punish these awful people, what does that make Him? How could He be perfect in every way and let such people off scot free?
I can tell you how. Because I used to be Bin Laden. And Hitler, and all of those other people rolled into one. Me. A good little Sunday School girl. Guilty. James 2:10 tells us:
For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.
In God’s eyes, when I broke curfew to stay at Bible study just a little bit longer, I was as guilty as a serial murderer. When I said, “Oh my G-d!” I was on par with a child molester. When I refused to forgive someone, I might as well have flown one of those planes into the Twin Towers myself. And I deserved the same punishment as all of those horrible people. Hell.
God is perfect. He’s perfectly holy and perfectly just. And that’s why He can’t let any sin slide, no matter how small. But He’s also perfectly loving and compassionate. He knew none of us would measure up to his standard for us –perfection, no sin whatsoever– so He made a way for us to escape punishment, yet still serve justice: Jesus.
God Himself came here and lived out His perfection as a human being. And when it was time, on the cross, He took the punishment for our crimes against God. He got our sin and our punishment, and because of His death and resurrection, we can get His sinless perfection.
We can get it, but it’s not an automatic thing that just happens to everybody when they die. As I said in a previous post, you can’t have it both ways. If you decide to get married, you give up the single life. If you decide to become a star athlete, you give up being a couch potato. And when God enables you to turn from your sin to faith in Christ, He empowers you to give up a life of embracing sin, and, instead, embrace Christ and the new life He has for you. Here. Now.
Is Bin Laden in hell? I can tell you with certainty that if he did not, in the last moments of his life, sorrowfully turn from his sin and bow his knee to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, yes, he is indeed in hell.
And there, but for the grace of God, go I. And you.
The Amazons were supposedly a race of very tall warrior women. They first appeared in Greek literature in Homer’s The Illiad in the 8th century B.C. Scholars can’t seem to agree as to whether the Amazons were strictly products of Greek mythology or whether they actually existed somewhere and the mythology was “based on a true story”. Interestingly, in the 1990’s archaeologists discovered the 2000 year old burial grounds of the Sarmatian tribe near the border of Kazakhstan, and think this tribe might be the origin of the Amazon legend. Unlike the mythological Amazons, a number of the women of this tribe appear to have been married with children, but many of them were buried with their weapons of war. The Sarmatian women’s average height was 5’6”, which was fairly tall for women at that point in history.
Maybe that description evokes images of some sort of “femi-nazi” overlaid with a pseudo-Christian veneer when you hear the phrase “mighty Amazon women of God.”
Not at all.
So what on earth does it mean?
I think we 21st century church ladies have, in some ways, a skewed perspective of what it means to be a Christian woman. You see, a lot of people seem to think that being a godly woman means you have to be shy and quiet, never confrontational, a doormat, nothing of substance to say, nicey-nice, always ready with a casserole for the church potluck. A caricature of feminine fluff.
But the longer I live as a woman of God, the farther from the truth that caricature becomes. Being a godly woman requires a kind of strength that a man will never know. Courage of a sort the most valiant warrior does not possess. Endurance and self control that the best trained athletes will never attain. Because we have to be strong and soft. Bold and restrained. Leaders and followers.
Being a godly woman is not for the faint of heart. And, yet, it’s the faint of heart God loves to turn into His heroines of the faith.
A mighty Amazon woman of God…
…studies and rightly handles God’s word (2 Timothy 2:15)
…loves her enemies (Matthew 5:43-45)
…refuses to have her ears tickled (2 Timothy 4:3-4)
…is a faithful and active church member (Hebrews 10:24-25)
…holds to a biblical view of women’s roles in the church (1 Timothy 2:12ff)
…forgives completely (Ephesians 4:32)
…submits to her husband (Ephesians 5:22-24)
…serves her family (Proverbs 31:10-31)
…is more concerned with God’s opinion than man’s (Acts 5:29)
…loves Christ more than her family (Luke 14:26)
…trains her children in godliness (Deuteronomy 6:6-7)
…shares the gospel with the lost (Matthew 28:18-20)
…helps her husband (Genesis 2:18)
…refutes false teaching instead of embracing it (2 Timothy 3:1-9)
…trains younger women in godliness (Titus 2:3-5)
…controls her tongue (James 1:26)
…works heartily as unto the Lord (Colossians 3:23-24)
…isn’t led by her emotions (Jeremiah 17:9)
…is merciful (Luke 6:36)
…repents when she sins (Matthew 3:8)
…is strong (Ephesians 6:10)
…is joyful (Philippians 4:4)
None of us are there yet, ladies, but as one of my favorite Bible teachers likes to say, “It’s not perfection; it’s direction.” Is this the direction you’re walking? Is God conforming you more to His image day by day? Are we settling for being little girls in the faith or anxious to grow up and be the mighty Amazon women of God He created us to be?
What kinds of things come to mind when you hear the phrase “mighty Amazon woman of God”?
These are my notes from my ladies’ Sunday School class this morning. I’ll be posting the notes from my class here each week. Click here for last week’s lesson.
Through the Bible in 2014 ~ Week 38 ~ Sep. 14-20 Daniel, Ezra 1-6, Psalm 137, Haggai But Even If He Does Not…
Exile. God has been warning Israel of the consequences of idolatry for centuries and has finally brought it to fruition. Last week we saw Ezekiel comfort the people with the good news that God’s anger and their punishment would not last forever, but today we find them smack dab in the middle of their time as Babylonian expatriates. How could they live as God’s people while being punished in a pagan nation? How could they please Him apart from temple sacrifices and offerings? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are going to show us.
Daniel 3
The Problem- 1-7 (Exodus 20:1-6)
Here, the stage is set for the drama that is about to unfold. Nebuchadnezzar set up a 90 foot tall (probably much of that was a large base), 9 foot wide statue of himself, and commanded everyone under his rule to worship it. Emperor/king worship was not uncommon at any time during the Old or New Testament periods. While the emperor’s ego certainly must have played into this, it was mainly about loyalty and obedience to that leader and his rule. He was trying to preclude any hint of sedition while reinforcing to the people that he had control over every aspect of their lives. This was an especially important message to drive home to all of the governmental officials (2), because they were the ones most likely to slaughter the emperor and stage a coup.
From the emperor’s perspective, emperor worship also had less to do with actual religion and worship than submission to his absolute rule. Nebuchadnezzar and nearly everyone else in Babylon worshiped a panoply of gods, which was fine with Nebuchadnezzar as long as none of those gods superseded him and his rule in the eyes of his subjects. He was to be esteemed and obeyed above all others. That’s where our young Hebrew friends found themselves butting heads with Nebuchadnezzar’s new law. God is not OK with his people worshiping any other god before, besides, instead of, or in addition to Him. He is the only God, and He alone is to be worshiped, even if your life is on the line.
The Persecution- 8-12 (2 Timothy 3:12, John 15:18)
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were three of the Judean exiles. We saw in chapter 1 that they, along with Daniel, were godly young men who risked their lives to be obedient to God’s commands. By the end of chapter two, Nebuchadnezzar had promoted them to prominent positions in his government. This is probably why the Chaldeans accused them– they were jealous. As with Daniel’s accusers in 6:4-5, they likely could not find any other grounds on which to discredit Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego because they were upstanding, ethical, loyal citizens.
Satan hates God and anyone who loves and serves Him. John 15:18 says,
If the world hates you, know that it has hated me [Jesus] before it hated you.
Because of this hatred, Satan will do anything in his power to get God’s people to turn away from Him or sin against Him. He is the force behind all persecution, and he often uses his own servants to attack God’s servants. This was true for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and it is true for us today. Second Timothy 3:12 says,
Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,
If we love God and strive towards holiness, we will find ourselves under attack at times.
The Predicament- 13-15
Being a child of God can often mean facing scary situations in which we are tempted to cut corners or sin. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were tempted to bow down to the image the first time when the music played. Here, the heat is turned up because they’re standing in front of the man who holds their lives in his hands, and they face the same temptation a second time. Why not just do it? God will understand and forgive them, right?
The Profession- 16-18 (Psalm 115:3, Romans 8:28)
Although it’s tempting to think that way, we can’t, and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego prove this out beautifully. They would rather die than disobey their true King. And notice the strength of their testimony in the simple fact that they needed no time to consider Nebuchadnezzar’s offer (16). Immediately, they answered that their minds were made up. Under no circumstances would they bow to the image.
Why? Because they knew nothing was going to happen to them? No. We know that because we have the rest of the story. We have to remember that this was a real event happening to real people in real time, the same way things happen to us. They didn’t know what was going to happen next. For all they knew, they were toast. Yet they stood and boldly declared that God was able to do anything and they trusted Him no matter what.
But even if he does not…Those are probably the most important words in this story. To Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, God was still God, still worthy of worship and obedience, whether he spared their lives or not. Can we say the same?
There are a lot of false teachers out there that will tell you it is always God’s will for you to be healed, wealthy, successful. And if you’re not, it’s your fault because of your lack of faith. But the Bible clearly teaches the opposite. If God had not saved Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, could anyone say it was due to their lack of faith? Did God refuse to take away Paul’s thorn in the flesh because of his lack of faith? Were 11 of the 12 disciples martyred because they lacked faith?
The truth is, Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases. (Ps.) God does what He does for His glory and our good. And, much like when we take our children to the doctor for a shot, what’s good for us can be scary and painful. What if God doesn’t heal you? What if your child dies? What if your marriage isn’t reconciled? What if you lose your job? For those that love God and are called out to His purposes, He works all things together for good (Rom.) He has not promised us an easy way, but a difficult way. But He has promised to be with us all the way. Can we stand in faith with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and say, but even if He does not…?
The Peril and the Protection- 19-30
If we were writing this story, it would probably end right after verse 18 with Nebuchadnezzar so impressed with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that he backed down and honored them for their courage and integrity. But God’s didn’t want Nebuchadnezzar to be impressed with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. God wanted Nebuchadnezzar to be impressed with Him.
If you’ll notice, God did not rescue Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego after their profession of Him. Things got worse. Nebuchadnezzar got angrier. The fire got hotter. God did not rescue them before they got tied up. Or before they got to the furnace. Or before they were thrown into the furnace. Or before they hit the bottom of the furnace. God allowed these three men who loved Him and were loyal to Him above all else to hit bottom before He rescued them. He didn’t rescue them from the furnace, He rescued them through the furnace.
God (possibly the preincarnate Christ in a theophany) was with them in the fire and, eventually, He brought them out on the other side. What do you think that did for their faith in Him? How much more intimately did they know Him, how much more thankful were they, and how much more intensely did they worship Him after God walked through the fire with them?
It’s the same for us. We grow to know and love God so much more intimately, when, instead of rescuing us from trials, He walks through them with us. I would not know and trust God as provider the way I do today had He not walked with me through some very difficult situations that only He could provide for. Others know God as healer or comforter or strength because of what He has walked through with them.
And what happened to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego wasn’t just about them, personally. God had a broader purpose for their suffering, and also for Daniel’s experience in the lions’ den. In those two incidents (and others), God got to pull back the curtain and reveal Himself to pagan people who desperately needed Him. He showed that He was superior to their gods, that they needed to repent and turn to Him, and that He loves His children. It had always been God’s plan to make Himself known to the Gentiles as well as the Jews, and here were God’s first missionaries. If these four men hadn’t gone through what they went through, Nebuchadnezzar and the rest of watching Babylon would not have seen God. What they went through showcased the great God they served.
Likewise, our trials can be an opportunity to point people to the Christ who has rescued us from the ultimate fire, and who can rescue them as well. Even if He does not…is a glorious opportunity to shine the spotlight on our great, mighty and merciful God.
I keep seeing Christian pages post this video, but I was wondering, does this bottle prayer thing match up with what the Bible says?
Signed,
Praying for an Answer
Well, what about it, Pop? Could you give us any reasons why this might not be a biblical way to learn about prayer?
Lemme lay it down for ya homies:
1. No one has the right to put words in God’s mouth. When you hear someone say, “God says _____,” the only thing that blank can safely be filled in with is Scripture. Otherwise, you’re turning God into a ventriloquist’s dummy and making Him say what you want Him to say. (Deuteronomy 18:21-22, Ezekiel 22:28, Jeremiah 14:13-16).
The truth is, things DON’T always become clear to us on this side of Heaven. Talk to a woman whose husband has abandoned her, or someone in chronic pain, or a parent who has lost a child in an accident. There are things in this life that are painful, dark, and confusing, and no where in Scripture does it say that God owes us an explanation for them or that things will “become clear.”
Did you notice the gentleman in the video didn’t use a single Bible verse to back up his “God says____,” or “Things will become clear,” statements? That’s because he can’t. Scripture doesn’t teach this. It’s just his opinion.
What Scripture DOES promise Christians is that, even in the darkest times, Christ will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5), that God can use even the worst difficulties for the good (Romans 8:28), that even our Master learned obedience through suffering (Hebrews 5:8), and that when we trust God (regardless of whether or not we get what we want), He will keep us in perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3).
2. Where does Scripture say that “in order for Him to really begin to do the work that YOU want done” you have to “take the limitations off”? It doesn’t. Prayer isn’t about us maneuvering and manipulating God to get Him to do what we want Him to do. Prayer is about US getting on the same page with GOD’S agenda. Us submitting to His will. Us trusting Him regardless of the outcome. It’s not about the work that we have to do (and no matter how holy it might sound, all the “ya gotta…ya gotta…ya gotta” stuff in this video is work) to force God’s hand. The gentleman in the video makes it sound like everything rests on YOU and that if you’ll just pray hard enough, long enough, and with enough faith, everything will work out the way you want it to.
And if things don’t work out, guess whose fault it is? Yours. Because you didn’t have enough faith, or you didn’t pray long enough, or whatever. That’s a Word of Faith false teaching. It is not what the Bible teaches.
The Bible says that God is in the Heavens and does whatever He pleases (Psalm 115:3), that His ways and thoughts are higher than ours, not the same as ours (Isaiah 55:8-9), and that when we pray, we don’t have to feel anxious. Prayer is to produce peace (Philippians 4:6-7), not worry over whether we’ve said the right things or said them long enough (Matthew 6:7-8). Even our perfect, sinless, holy Jesus, when He prayed in Gethsemane before going to the cross, said “NOT My will, but Yours, be done.” (Matthew 26:39).
3. Watch this video again, paying attention to HOW the liquid in the bottle becomes clear. Who, in this analogy, initiates the action? You. Who does all the work? You. (You take off the lid, you put the bottle in the sink, you turn on the water, you make sure the bottle is in the right place, you readjust the bottle to make sure you’re getting the result you want, you decide when it’s clear enough.) So who gets the glory if everything works out the way you want it to? You.
God says He will not share His glory with another (Isaiah 48:11), and that HE is the one who wills and works for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).
Ladies, if you want to know how to pray, a video like this featuring a guy who dares to speak for God outside of, and in conflict with, Scripture and doesn’t offer a single Bible verse to teach you about one of the most important aspects of the Christian life is not the way to go.
Don’t believe somebody just because what he says makes you feel good and he has a cool visual aid. Instead, if we want to know how to pray, we need to go straight to the horse’s mouth. That’s what the disciples did when they wanted to know how to pray (Luke 11:1-4), and here’s what Jesus told them in Matthew 6:7-13:
And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
If that was good enough for Jesus, it should be good enough for us. Ya feel me?
Photos courtesy of: Stickerish.com, WUTT on YouTube.com, and Amazon.com
These are my notes from my ladies’ Sunday School class this morning. I’ll be posting the notes from my class here each week. Click here for last week’s lesson.
Through the Bible in 2014 ~ Week 31 ~ July 27- Aug. 2
Isaiah 44-66, 2 Kings 18:9-21:26, Psalm 46, 80, 135
Hezekiah: Who Are You Going to Believe?
2 Kings 18:1-8
This first part of the chapter sets the stage for everything we subsequently learn about and from Hezekiah. Even though he had a despicable, idolatrous example for a father (King Ahaz), Hezekiah somehow turned out to be a godly man and king. Could it have been the way his mother raised and taught him? Possibly. (The Zechariah mentioned in v. 2, is not the prophet in the book of the same name.) It could also have been one of the priests or Levites brought in to train him as part of his childhood education. Scripture doesn’t tell us specifically, but we should never discount the importance of a godly mother or teachers, and we should strive to take hold of every opportunity we have to impact children’s lives for Christ.
At any rate, Hezekiah was off to a good start. Notice that this passage talks much more about Hezekiah’s relationship with the Lord than his actions for the Lord. It says, “he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord” (3), “he trusted in the Lord,” (5). He held fast to the Lord, did not depart from the Lord, and kept the Lord’s commandments (6). “And the Lord was with him.” (7)
His actions followed his faith: he tore down idol worship paraphernalia, rebelled against the king of Assyria, and struck down the Philistines.
9-12
This passage continues to set the stage by reminding us that during the first few years of Hezekiah’s reign in Judah, the king of Assyria captured Samaria (capital of Israel) and carried Israel away to Assyria because they had rebelled against God.
13-16 (2 Chronicles 20:12)
Sennacherib (king of Assyria after Shalmaneser, who had captured Israel) wasn’t wild about Hezkiah rebelling against him, so he attacked Judah and captured all the stronghold cities except Jerusalem (the capital), which was next on the hit list.
What was godly, faithful Hezekiah’s response. Did he pray? Seek out Isaiah or another prophet or priest for godly counsel? No. Here, Hezekiah showed us an example of what we are not to do. Before, we read that Hezekiah did what was right in God’s eyes. Here, he simply reacted to his circumstances in the way that was right in his own eyes, the way that was most expedient and practical. It was exactly what his father and others before him had done when they became vassals of Assyria or other kings. Instead of following in their footsteps, he would have done better to pray as his predecessor Jehoshaphat did:
“O our God, will you not execute judgment on them? For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” (2 Chron.)
What determines our response? When we face an impossible situation like Hezekiah did, we have two options: we can let our circumstances dictate our response, or we can let God’s word dictate our response. Hezekiah didn’t consult God’s word. So, since he didn’t know what God would have him do in this situation, his only remaining option was to let circumstances dictate his response.
17- 37 (Isaiah 30:7, 10:5-6) What happened? The 11 tons of silver and 1 ton of gold that Hezekiah sent Sennacherib, king of Assyria weren’t good enough for him. So Senaccherib sent his goon squad over to make Judah an offer it couldn’t refuse.
The Rabshakeh (commander) did his best to demoralize and talk Hezekiah’s men into surrendering. Notice that he didn’t really have to lie to them very much. Much of what he said was actually true:
Egypt was weak and would be of no help in fighting off Assyria (21,24). In fact, Isaiah had already told them this (Is. 30).
Even if Assyria herself supplied Judah with horses for battle, Judah was still too weak to defeat even the weakest of Assyria’s troops, so Egypt certainly wouldn’t be of any help. (23-24)
Whether the Rabshakeh knew it, or was just boasting and stumbled on the truth, Assyria was to be God’s arm of wrath against his people (25). Judah knew this because Isaiah had already told them (Is. 10)
From man’s point of view, and in his own flesh, Hezekiah would lose this battle and the people would be carried off to captivity in Assyria (29-32).
The false gods of the other nations had not been able to save them from Assyria (33-35).
But the truth was mixed with falsehood and fallible human wisdom:
The Rabshakeh didn’t know that the places of idol worship that Hezekiah had torn down were to false gods, not the true God. (22)
God might have been against Judah, but he wasn’t with Assyria (25).
The Lord is trustworthy and able to defeat any enemy (30, 32b, 35).
Hezekiah’s officials delivered the message to him. Would he believe the Rabshakeh? Would he react the way he did last time?
19:1-7
Hooray for Hezekiah! This time, he responded the right way. The first thing he did was to grieve before God and head to His house to pray (1). The second thing he did was to send his staff to Isaiah to seek God’s word. (2-4).
And what was God’s word? Do not be afraid; this dude’s going down. (6-7)
8-13
The Rabshakeh left and went back home only to find Sennacherib fighting with one kingdom and under impending attack from another. So, just to let Hezekiah know he hadn’t forgotten about him, Sennacherib sent another threatening message: “I may be busy right now, but I’m still coming for you. And don’t forget– none of the gods of these other countries saved them and your God isn’t going to save you.”
Hezekiah had a choice to make. Who was he going to believe, the Rabshakeh or God? The Rabshakeh had said a lot of stuff that was true. He even said that God had sent him. It would have made sense to listen to him, do what he said, and surrender.
14-34
But that’s not what Hezekiah did. He again turned to the Lord in prayer. While he was praying, Isaiah heard from the Lord, who reiterated and expanded on his earlier promise: God would defeat Assyria in this battle, and would even give Hezekiah a sign that confirmed His word.
35-37 Even though it seemed reasonable to believe Sennacherib, and even though he had talked about God sending him, Hezekiah chose to believe God’s word. He believed God’s word even though the situation seemed impossible. Even though he was scared. Even though it didn’t make sense.
Who are we going to believe? God calls us to do the same thing as believers. We encounter a lot of situations these days in which people say things that seem to be reasonable, might even be true, and tell us they come to us in the name of the Lord:
“Pastors” and “theologians” who tell us that evolution or homosexuality or abortion or female pastors/teachers (of men) are OK with God, or that the Bible isn’t infallible.
Christians who tell us about trips to Heaven they have taken or “God told me ______” even when it conflicts with Scripture.
But no matter how strong the evidence might appear to be or how convincing the argument, it all comes down to this question:
Who are we going to believe?
Are we going to believe fallible, sinful human beings, or are we going to believe God’s word, even when it’s hard, even when we don’t fully understand it?
For Christians, SCRIPTURE ALONE is our final authority for what to believe, think, and do. It doesn’t matter what we (or someone else) have personally experienced, what our feelings or opinions are, what science says, what conventional wisdom says, or what political correctness says. God’s word stands, and let the chips fall where they may.
Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. John 17:17
This God—his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him. Psalm 18:30
