"Create in me a Clean Heart"

"Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer." ( Psalm 19:14 ) 

Last blog entry I wrote that my sheep here at the farm eat and eat and eat. But while the dogs and I made the morning rounds, I realized that's not exactly right. Instead of sheep eating and eating and eating, the rhythm actually goes more like: eat, eat, eat, chew, chew, eat, eat, eat, chew, chew. Catchy, isn't it? 

Sheep are ruminants, meaning that they have a four-chambered stomach like cows and goats. Like cows, sheep are grazers feeding on green pastures, unlike goats which are mostly browsers preferring to stand up on their hind parts to reach vines, shrubs, and thick underbrush. In my experience, goats only eat grass as a last resort, if that's all that's available. This is interesting to me in light of what the Bible says about goats and sheep. One of the ways we know we are Christ's sheep is a craving for the pure milk of his Word. 

So most of what a sheep eats is stored in their abdominal cavity in the "rumen" - a sort of ziplock baggie for food that is quickly consumed and then saved for later. Eventually the bag "unzips" and the food is regurgitated, re-chewed, and re-swallowed. If you've heard of "cud-chewing," that's a simple definition. Since my man children originally set this blog up with the purpose of me sharing my rookie farming experiences, I thought I'd insert some livestock education today. 

Sheep chew their cud typically as they rest, not while they eat. If I suspect a sheep is sick because she's moved away from the flock, I always feel relief if I see her chewing. 

Chewing is usually a sign of a healthy sheep. 

You may think that rumination is a gross process, but I think it's fascinating how God has created his animals so unique and wonderful. I love discovering new ways I didn't see before of how the Lord's people compare with sheep. Granted that it isn't always a spiritual compliment, but it's not all bad either. 

Like sheep who graze throughout their day, God's children need to be constantly feeding on His Word, but there comes a time of contemplation. We must not undervalue this endeavor or "skip this step" in our crazy busy culture. The Scriptures have much to say about meditating on God's Word, and teach us to do so at least 18 times. 

The word "meditate" means to think deeply about something, to ponder, to consider, to mutter to one's self. 

To chew. 

"The Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night..." Joshua 1:8 

"Oh, how I love your law. It is my meditation all the day!" Psalm 119:97

"I will ponder all your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds." Psalm 77:12

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." Philippians 4:8 

These are just a few verses, but enough to see that according to the Scriptures, Christian meditation is not an emptying of the mind as in transcendental meditation practices; rather, it is a filling of the mind with God and his Word.

Christian meditation is also not speaking and thinking on things in an attempt to bring them to pass. 

I clarify this because many popular pastors and televangelists teach this practice of calling and thinking things into existence, which has its roots in New Age thought. I want to clarify that this is not a Christian ritual, but a dangerous practice. For everything of God, satan seems to offer us a counterfeit, doesn't he? 

When The Book of Proverbs warns us that life and death are in the power of the tongue, it is saying, as I think most of us know, our words can cause great pain or they can bring joy and upbuilding to the hearer. So we should choose them wisely, especially with children. 

False teachers will take this verse and make the leap that this means our words have the ability to create and call things into existence like God. Nothing could be further from the truth. Make no mistake, God is in a category of One. The serpent has been tempting us with that lie since Eden. 

Be careful what you eat. 

We have the ability to tear someone down or build them up with our words, not to create worlds. Attempting to use our words and thoughts to create circumstances and material objects is the New Age law of attraction and New Thought mind-over-matter, even if you try and sprinkle some Bible verses in there. It's something Christians should never engage with as Christ is the Creator of all things and all things hold together in Him alone. ( Colossians 1:15-20 ) 

And faith is not force we conjure up on our own to get God to "work" for us like his a grumpy old deity we must appease, another current teaching that has its origins in Christian Science which isn't Christian or science. Beware of this, and let's get to know our Bibles. Again, I want to reiterate this practice because so much of this false teaching splashed with a Christian veneer permeates our culture. I want to make sure people looking at the Christian faith and new believers understand that this isn't Christianity. 

We can "use" the Bible and God without actually knowing either to our detriment. 

Jesus never taught us to do this. When the disciples asked him how to pray, he taught them just that - to pray, not confess, demand, declare, decree, or use repetitive words to get God's attention, no, he taught them to humbly pray. God already knows what we need before we ask him. Prayer displays our dependence on God for all things. ( Matthew 6:9-11, Luke 11:2-4 ) 

We have many examples in Scripture of Jesus praying to his heavenly Father. 

True Christian meditation can come in between our Bible reading and our prayers. True Christian meditation is pondering and speaking God's Word, his biblical concepts and precepts, to drive them deeper into our hearts in order to know Him the one true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent. These alone are the treasures we seek. 

It's a sort of preaching to oneself, not to God, to ourselves. Say for instance, I want to know on a more intense level the love of Christ, a wonderful thing we all should desire, then I can "preach" verses to myself as I walk around the farm of what God says in his Word about the love of Christ. 

Currently I've been pondering the atonement. I've written out on index cards Scriptures pertaining to Christ's sacrificial work in an attempt to understand it better and focus on the unique work each member of the Godhead displays in the atoning work of Christ. Sometimes I reason out loud with myself like a lawyer because I'm attempting to wrap my tiny mind around this deep, deep doctrine. 

Also, I've found that Scripture memorization can be a lovely by-product of meditation as we hunger to learn and ponder these biblical treasures. 

In other words, what I'm hopefully conveying in this blog is that meditation is a sign of a healthy sheep in Christ's flock. 

But it takes times of quiet to engage our minds in this process. Times where after we've fed on God's Word we "bed down for the night" and start "chewing." Like any new habit, we must daily cultivate it into our routine, and it's going to look different for each believer because our schedules and lives differ. 

Meditation is a slow, possibly mundane and ordinary practice, one that some may not desire to develop because it's not "sexy" enough. Perhaps they're looking for something a bit more snazzy and glamorous, but God works through his providence, in quiet prayer closets, and through every-day, humble routines. This is how he mostly grows his children in these last days. 

Friends, God is looking for those who will be obedient and faithful, doing what it takes to know Him and learn his Word behind the scenes, but these quiet times of reflection and meditation are always seen by Him.

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And sometimes they chew on my clothing. 

"One Holy Christian and Apostolic Church" ( Part 6 )

"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright. and godly lives in the present age..." ( Titus 2:11-12 ) 

In learning what a true church of Jesus Christ looks like, we see in the Scriptures and affirmed by church fathers, faithful and sound Bible teachers, and Reformation theologians ( and yes, even AI. It's a crazy age we live in, isn't it?) that the marks of a true church are: 1.) The true preaching of God's Word. 2.) The proper administration of the sacraments. 3.) Church discipline.  There are other components, but these are the main ones. 

Thanks for joining me in this journey. I'm learning a lot too! 

When you think of "church discipline" you might be like me and your mind goes to that well-known passage in 1 Corinthians 5 where the Apostle Paul is sharply rebuking the church for not removing a congregant who is having relations with his father's wife. In fact, they are boasting about it, and Paul says that this type of sexual immorality isn't even tolerated among pagans. 

That is certainly a form of much needed church discipline that is grossly lacking in the church today. However, I wanted to draw attention to another form, more widespread, that involves us all, all the time. Or it should anyway. 

God often refers to us in the Scripture as his sheep, and one thing I've recently taken notice of concerning this metaphor is how much time my little flock here at Healing Brook spend eating. I think they eat so much that I just take their grazing for granted. But think about that. 

Sheep eat and eat and eat, and then at dusk, satisfied and healthy, they begin to find places to bed down for the night. When they wake up in the morning, they slowly make their way back out to the sunny pasture and begin to eat again. 

Keeping this in mind, I read in our doctrinal class text book, John Frame's "Concise Systematic Theology, An Introduction to Christian Belief" that although Matthew 18:15-20 lists the steps of discipline to be taken in cases where the teaching of the church has not had its desired effect, John Frame says that the first form of church discipline is "teaching." 

That's right - church discipline goes back to the first mark of a true church, the true preaching of God's Word. I never saw this before. ( This truth is all over Titus and 1&2 Timothy which are the pastoral epistles and ones I'll rely heavily upon in these blogs.) 

Paul leaves Titus in Crete with instructions to put things in order and appoint elders in every town. Elders, Paul directs, must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught; so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it." ( Titus 1:9 ) 

Again, when I think of the term "church discipline" I think of being called into the pastor's office and getting a good scolding for engaging in gossip you know, something of that nature. But here Paul is saying that first elders ( all pastors are elders ) must be able to teach sound doctrine "then" rebuke if necessary, if someone goes off the rails into false teaching. 

Jesus told Peter in John 21 to "feed" his sheep and lambs, and to "tend" them. 

Similar to parenting, discipline takes many forms and "training" is the most often used. My grandchildren were here at the farm this past week, and this concept was reinforced to me as we, meaning all family members, continually taught the kids by instruction and action what was acceptable to God and not, good behavior and bad. Even Jonah has begun to teach his younger sisters what he has learned. It's a beautiful God-given principle to behold. 

And in the church when these biblical truths are not in place, for instance, a man sleeping with his father's wife, another form of church discipline should occur, like Paul's strong rebuke because "a little leaven leavens the whole lump." ( verse 8 ) Sometimes the unrepentant person must be put outside of the church for the good of the flock until that person repents and can be restored to fellowship. ( verse 13 ) 

John Frame goes on to say concerning teaching being the first form of discipline that the church must make clear what behavior is acceptable to God. This makes sense. And it must present the gospel in such a way as to motivate obedience. Remember that people aren't motivated by denunciations and scolding nearly as well as they are motivated by the love of Jesus for them and the joy of living a godly life." ( page 303 ) 

As Paul instructed Titus ( and Timothy ), the elders were to teach the Word and "not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined." ( Titus 1:7-9 ) So God has strict instructions on how his shepherds are to care for his sheep. 

I know that some instances of church discipline are complicated and painful, so I don't want to make light of it. I'm merely saying that as lay-people, like sheep, we should desire to feed on God's Word continually, whether sitting under sound teaching and preaching in our churches or studying, examining, and meditating on Scripture ourselves. 

This training will discipline us and grow us into strong, mature sheep as well as keeping us out of the shepherd's office. Or worse, wandering from the flock. 

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Happy Monday! 

T.G.I.M. / Treasures in Heaven

"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." ( Matthew 6:19-21 ) 

If there is a verse to contend against the prosperity/health-wealth gospel of our day, surely this is it; but it's so much richer than just that. 

This often quoted verse is from what has become known as Jesus's "Sermon on the Mount." What Jesus has been getting at in this sermon, and in all of his teachings, is that it's not about the surface and what things look like on the outside, it's about the heart. 

It's not about having "an appearance of godliness," but about having a new heart that only God can give to us. ( Ezekiel 36, Jeremiah 31:33, Hebrews 8:10, Psalm 51:10, 2 Timothy 3:5 ) 

We may be in Christ, bought by His precious blood, and yet these hearts are still prone to wander. This is how God works it. Like the children of Israel rescued out of slavery in Egypt by the mighty hand of God, they witnessed with their own eyes, what appears to be, the greatest miracle the biblical narrative knows. Our hearts constantly need to be directed to the love, mercy, and grace of God on our lives, lives once condemned and held in the bondage of sin, now set free by the power of the Holy Spirit, who indwells us, to the finished work of Christ. 

Do we even realize how much we depend on His keeping power? 

"Oh to grace how great a debtor daily I'm constrained to be! Let that grace now, like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to thee. Prone to wander, Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love; here's my heart; O take and seal it; seal it for thy courts above." 

Somedays I think the greatest blessing is to know in every single detail and circumstance of our lives how very much we need Him in every way possible. 

When we are in desperate situations that cause us to remember how faithful God has been in our past, as we continue to hold onto Him for dear life, and because we know He kept not only his part of the covenant, but our part too, a bit more of our hearts are planted in heavenly soil. 

One of my "life verses" is 2 Corinthians 1:9. I read this verse for the first time over twenty years ago when I desperately needed something from God to hold onto, something that helped me make sense of the problem of evil and revealed to me that somehow, someway, God in his sovereignty had a plan I could not see or understand. I was okay with the suffering he allowed me to walk through as long as I knew it was Him and not me. 

The verse is in the context of Paul's suffering in Asia. 

"For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead." 

Have you ever felt like you received a death sentence? Like things were so difficult you spared even of life itself? If so, we can take great comfort first in knowing that Jesus not only felt this way too, but He actually served the death sentence out on a Roman cross on our behalf. Willingly. He bore the weight of our sin "for the joy set before him." ( Hebrews 12:2 ) 

Now God raises our hearts dead in trespasses and sin to new life. 

Our struggle and this knowledge of the sacrifice of Christ deepens our trust into a rich and abiding faith. What develops is not surface level, but heart changed and changing, a new life becoming what we are by the grace of God, the atoning work of Christ on our behalf, and the direction and finishing work by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

An even greater miracle than the parting of the Red Sea is a heart that only God can make new and keep for Himself. Through the trials and the joys we grow closer to Christ, our hearts become more devoted to Him than ever and our treasure chest fuller in Heaven. 

Because Christ is our treasure. 

💜

If you're owned by Great Pyrenees, you'll totally get this. lol

T.G.I.M.

"What is Christianity all about?"

I ask this question because here lately we've been looking at what it means to be a true Christian church and not a false one. We established that according to the Scriptures, and affirmed by church fathers, faithful Bible teachers and Reformation theologians, the first mark of a true church is the true preaching of God's Word followed by the proper administration of the sacraments and church discipline. Someday I hope to get to the last two, and there are others as well after these. But maybe we should back-up and ask: 

What does it even mean to be a Christian? 

What is Christianity all about? 

Some will say that it's about being a better person. Some will say that it's about family values, traditions, reaching your potential, rules, doxology, forgiveness, and the list goes on. 

Although these aren't bad things, Christianity is not about these things. Christianity is not about a system; it's about a person. Christianity is about Jesus Christ. 

It's about who He is and what He does. 

It's about what He has done for us, in our lives and in human history. Everything begins and ends with Him, and revolves around Him. As Christians, we are "Christ-centered."

All Scripture is about Him: 

"And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he ( Jesus ) interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself." ( Luke 24:27 ) 

He IS the Word. ( John 1:1-5 ) 

This month in our doctrinal class at Grace Church we are taking a long look into "Christology," which simply put is the study of Christ. So all of this is fresh in my mind. 

As students of the Bible we are now examining the nature of Christ and the work of Christ, I kept thinking to myself during the lectures and discussions that I don't want these truths to ever NOT be fresh in my mind. I regret and repent of all the years they weren't. I want them to dominate my thought life always. I need them too, as followers of Christ, we all do. And they should. 

Because Christ is the essence of Christianity. As Pastor Charlie said in class, "When we talk about Jesus, we are talking about everything." 

And it is beyond heartbreaking that we live in a "Christian" culture that has forgotten this truth. Or worse, never knew what Christianity was all about to begin with - Jesus Christ. He is the beginning and the end and everything in between. 

But Jesus Christ has been replaced with a multitude of other things, and some are good things. Very good things. Like God the Holy Spirit who himself is the third person of the Godhead. But Jesus said that after He ascends, He and the Father will send the Holy Spirit to us as his followers, and "He will glorify me." ( John 16:14 ) 

The Holy Spirit always points us to Christ. He doesn't point to himself. He is with us forever, saving us and keeping us and sanctifying us, transforming us into the image of Christ. ( John 14-16 ) 

However, some have replaced Jesus with the desire for miracles, spiritual gifts, manifestations, and "moves" of the Spirit, seeking those things instead of Christ as they gather for a worship service. 

Some have removed Christ altogether because they don't think they need anyone to "save" them because deep down they think that they are already really good people in spite of their "mistakes." They don't want all that bloody sacrifice stuff. It's not necessary. In fact, it's "cosmic child abuse." 

Some have replaced Jesus with his kingdom itself, even though Jesus said that his kingdom is not of this world, removing Jesus and appointing themselves as the heroes of God's story who will exercise authority and execute "greatness" as they usher in the Kingdom of God. Foolish people who are stealing the glory of God in Christ. 

Some have replaced Jesus with their best life now, seeking health, wealth, and worldly success, instead of denying themselves, taking up their crosses and sharing in Christ's sufferings as well as his joy, so they can also share in his glory. ( Romans 8:17 ) 

And yet, they miss the beautiful truth. They fail to see and understand from the Scriptures: 

Jesus so identifies with His Church that He will share his glory with us! This is amazing. On the road to Damascus ( Acts 9 ) when Paul ( Greek for Saul ) is knocked down and blinded by the resurrected Christ, he asked Saul why he is persecuting Him? Only Saul wasn't persecuting Jesus - he was persecuting His Church. But to persecute The Church is to persecute Jesus himself because we are the Body of Christ. He is the head. ( Colossians 1:18 ) 

This is part of our inheritance in Christ's sacrifice. ( Colossians 1:12-13 ) He is the Good Shepherd, and we are his sheep. ( John 10 ) He is the vine, and we are the branches. ( John 15 ) 

And yet, in light of this astounding, bewildering truth, we want to replace Him? As if He could be replaced. ( John 15:5 )  Like the devil, we want to be just like god ourselves, calling the shots, not content with or truly understanding and living in appreciation of our glorious inheritance in Christ of redemption and forgiveness of sins. Foolish people. That's what got us in this sinful mess in the first place. 

Friends, that's why I want this to always be fresh in my mind. That's one of our fleshy struggles and temptations, isn't it? To forget Christ and remember ourselves. "He must increase, but I must decrease." ( John 3:30 )  As we go about our day today and everyday in the busyness or loneliness of our lives, where ever we are, let's constantly remind ourselves of what Christianity is all about in the first place. 

Christ. 

💜

"A City to Come"

Happy 4th of July, Friends! 

Today I have another guest blogger. I'm sharing from Chad Bird what I believe will help and bless us as Christians navigating our country's celebration today of independence. As a believer, I often feel conflicted with the holiday and my loyalty, while I do love my countrymen and appreciate my freedom and those who died for it, I love God my Creator supreme and his Law and am above all thankful for my freedom in Christ my Lord and Savior. I don't always know how to flesh this truth out - not just on July 4th, but on every day living as a Christian in an American bubble in the 21st century. 

For those of you unfamiliar with Chad Bird, he has served as a pastor, professor, and guest lecturer in Old Testament and Hebrew. He holds master's degrees from Concordia Theological Seminary and Hebrew Union College. He is a scholar in residency at 1517:

"For Christians in America to celebrate the Fourth of July is good and right. We are citizens of this nation, enjoying its privileges and embracing its responsibilities. So today, we grill our hamburgers, wave our flags, and shoot fireworks.

Yet, while we are citizens of this nation, our ultimate allegiance is to God as members of the kingdom of his Son. His reign, teachings, and ownership of us trump everything else. Christ is not a president we elect; he is the King under whose reign we live.

This means, at a bare minimum, that when the government or its leadership should ever ask us or try to force us to do something that, as citizens of Christ’s kingdom, we cannot do, our response must echo the apostles: “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).

It also means that our beliefs, worship, priorities, loves, and overall worldview are not shaped by the American ethos but by the teachings of the Christian Scriptures.

The Epistle of Diognetus, written in the 2nd century, captures these truths beautifully when it says of Christians: 'They participate in everything as citizens, and endure everything as foreigners.'

Here is the context:

'For Christians are not distinguished from the rest of humanity by country, language, or custom. For nowhere do they live in cities of their own, nor do they speak some unusual dialect, nor do they practice an eccentric way of life. This teaching of theirs has not been discovered by the thought and reflection of ingenious people, nor do they promote any human doctrine, as some do. But while they live in both Greek and barbarian cities, as each one’s lot was cast, and follow the local customs in dress and food and other aspects of life, at the same time they demonstrate the remarkable and admittedly unusual character of their own citizenship. They live in their own countries, but only as nonresidents; they participate in everything as citizens, and endure everything as foreigners. Every foreign country is their fatherland, and every fatherland is foreign.' (Michael Holmes, The Apostolic Fathers in English).

This is a sober truth to ponder as we celebrate this day." 

💙

"For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come." ( Hebrews 13:14 ) 

One Holy Christian and Apostolic Church / Part 5

By the way, this title is found in the "Nicene Creed." I grew up until the age of twelve reciting the Apostles' Creed in Sunday worship service each week, but what I learned about the Nicene Creed and love to say about it is that it's a creed with some teeth to it. 

These two along with the Athanasian Creed are the three ecumenical ( I'm always afraid to use that word since the Charismatic Renewal Movement because the word sort of carries a different meaning for some folks, but I think the creeds can speak for themselves on this misunderstanding actually, if read. ), anyway these creeds were written in times when heresy threatened the Church. For instance, from the Nicene Creed we get a solid Christology when the false teaching that Jesus was a created being surfaced and began making the rounds.  

These creeds are not extra biblical information, no, they are our statement of faith as Christians. They are what we believe. 

They are a summary of the Scriptures and were constructed by church fathers and councils when most people did not have a Bible as we do today, and many couldn't read anyway. So reciting the creeds together in church was vital. Reciting the truths were meant to keep us on track in our faith and hold the shepherds accountable for what they were feeding Christ's sheep. So we could readily test the spirits as John instructed us in his epistle. ( 1 John 4 ) 

The creeds were to be read and taught to our children so they could be raised with sound biblical doctrine and learn to defend the Christian faith, be an effective witness of the Gospel, and disciple others.  It's sad to me that the creeds seem to have fallen out of fashion and are no longer read in many, I hate to say it, but most churches, along with the Lord's Prayer each Sunday. 

There's something so beautiful to me about a congregation reciting and confirming out loud what we believe about God and then reading the Scriptures together. There's Holy Spirit power in that as we obediently come and gather each week around Christ and his Word. 

I know speaking those doctrines summarized in the Apostles' Creed so often at such a young age along with the Lord's Prayer had a profound effect on my life. Even though I didn't come to faith in Christ for many years, those biblical, doctrinal truths never left my heart. Today it's my goal to make up for lost time and treasure them a bit more each day.

No wonder angels long to look into them. ( 1 Peter 1:12 ) 

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"I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible. 

And I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried. And the third day rose again according to the Scriptures and ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. And he will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end.

And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets. And I believe in one holy Christian and apostolic Church I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.

Amen"

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