Category: General

When we think someone’s wrong it’s tempting to engage others in deciding they deserve to be punished. It’s a claim to know the heart and motive, the background and circumstances of another’s choices.

But God says we’re not to speak evil of each other, for this is speaking evil of the Law and judging the Law (Ja 4:11); it’s putting ourselves above the Law, usurping the place of the Lawgiver. (Ja 4:12)

It’s one thing to identify an act as sinful, contrary to God’s Law (1Jn 3:4), but declaring someone to be evil, that they’re willfully alienating themselves from God and at enmity with Him, is another matter. This is actually deciding the Law itself is contrary to God, since it tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves (Le 19:18), which we aren’t as we engage in condemnation.

If we shouldn’t speak so about others, we shouldn’t be thinking this way either. Rather, in humility, we should be giving them the benefit of the doubt, esteeming others better than ourselves. (Php 2:3)

Only God can judge the heart; we must leave this work to Him. (Ps 119:84) He doesn’t need our help. God  is just, and perfectly so; He’ll do just fine, all by Himself.

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When God says Christ is the end of the Law, (Ro 10:4) He doesn’t mean the Law is obsolete. (Ro 3:31) The Greek is telos, meaning purpose, or the point aimed at as a limit. He means the goal of the Law, its objective, is Christ; Torah is our gateway to freedom (Ps 119:133) and divine fellowship. (Jn 14:21)

In other words, the goal of Torah is love out of a pure heart, a good conscience, and genuine faith. (1Ti 1:5) Keeping God’s law to achieve any other end, for any other purpose, is pointless (1Ti 1:6-7); it’s only good for us if we use it as God intended. (1Ti 1:8)

• So, keeping Torah is NOT about:
  1. Salvation: I’m justified fully and only by the blood of Christ; nothing else. (1Pe 1:18-19)
  2. Earning acceptance: I know I can’t be accepted by God any more than I already am. (Ep 1:6)
  3. Being self-righteous: Studying Torah exposes my sinful nature (Ro 8:7) and reinforces my utter dependence on God for graceto obey Him. (Ro 7:18)

• Keeping Torah IS about:
  1. The New Covenant: When God saved me He began writing Torah into my mind and heart. (He 8:10)  As He does this, I can’t help but delight in His Law (Ro 7:22), and obey as much of it as I can. (Ps 119:32)
  2. Love and fellowship: As I come to love Torah more and meditate on it, I begin to obey it more and to love God more (Jn 14:21), to love others more (2Jn 1:6), and to walk in the light in deeper, sweeter fellowship with God. (1Jn 1:6-7)
  3. Freedom: As I obey Torah I discover why God calls it “the law of freedom” (Ja 1:25): the Spirit uses Torah to identify sin (1Jn 3:4) and deliver me from its bondage. (Ps 119:45)

So, while keeping God’s law doesn’t justify me, it does provide evidence that I’m justified, and that I love him.

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Authority is “the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience.” In certain contexts, God gives people the right to act as His representatives, to define moral duty for others. It’s His way of ordering society. Being under authority is spiritually powerful. (Mt 8:9-10)

God gives rulers authority to create and enforce laws to promote our common welfare (1Pe 2:13-14); He gives husbands authority to decide what’s best for their wives and families (Ep 5:22-24), and mothers authority to stand with their husbands in governing their children. (Col 3:20)

Each role derives its authority from God (Jn 19:11) and represents Him, so resisting authority is rebellion against God (Ro 13:1-2), unless the authority is directly contradicting God’s law, in which case we submit to God as the ultimate authority. (Ac 5:29)

Religious leaders may claim a type of spiritual authority, presuming the right to control and manipulate others, but God doesn’t delegate this kind of power to individuals or organizations; He requires all of us to be spiritually accountable only to Himself. (1Co 11:3) Brothers in godly community comprise the only valid spiritual authority on Earth today, and may at times convey the will of God (Ac 9:30), yet they have no right to enforce their will. (Mt 23:8) Their ability to influence, especially as older men, comes as we recognize their godly example and holy character (1Pe 5:1-3), which encourages the younger to heed their counsel. (He 13:17)

God tells us to give thanks for and also to pray for all those in authority. (1Ti_2:1-2) Even if we don’t like what they’re doing, we must submit to them and remember they’re His servants (Ro 13:5-6), not speaking evil of them. (Ac 23:5) Being under authority is intrinsic to being aligned with God.

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Shame is guilt coupled with a sense of legitimate contempt and rejection; it’s feeling despised and rejected (Is 53:3) due to inexcusable moral failure. Shame claims to be separating us from respect, love and acceptance, making us feel exposed, vulnerable and defenseless. It’s extremely powerful, crushing soul and spirit; many prefer death to enduring their shame. Perhaps it’s why hateful rampages often end in suicide.

Those who accused and mocked Yeshua on the cross understood this force, trying to heap shame upon His agony (Ps 22:7-8), but He endured by despising the shame. (He 12:2) He looked beyond the lies and found safety in the eternal faithfulness and justice of His Father.

When we’re walking in the light we enjoy fellowship with God (1Jn 1:7), knowing we’re accepted in the beloved (Ep 1:6) and rejoicing in Him, so there’s no need to feel ashamed when we’re judged by men (Ps 119:80); by faith we can receive accusation as a growth opportunity.

But for those who aren’t walking with God, shame and everlasting contempt is their destiny (Da 12:2), an eternal, constant reality, a second death from which there will be no end, no escape.

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When we can’t see clearly and feel bewildered and uncertain, we can pray like the Twelve: “The apostles said unto the Lord, ‘Increase our faith.'” (Lk 17:5) What a great first step in growing our faith: ask God for more! But how will we know He’s answering? What are we asking for?

Faith is knowing what God will do, based on His nature and promises. (He 11:6)

So after asking for faith, seek to know God better. (Mt 7:7) Watch Him, study Him like the apostles did. (1Jn 1:1-2) Every day they followed Him, thought about what He was doing, trying to understand, and they invite us to do the same. (1Jn 1:3)

Study God until we’re seeing His mercy everywhere (Ps 119:64) and it’s filling us with hope (Ps 147:11), until His judgments comfort us. (Ps 119:52) Ask Him to make us understand the way of His precepts so we can talk of His wondrous works (Ps 119:27) and delight ourselves in His commands. (Ps 119:47)

As we walk in the light we have fellowship with God (1Jn 1:6-7); as we behold His beauty (Ps 27:4) He transforms into His likeness (2Co 3:18), revealing Himself from faith to faith. (Ro 1:17) At first, we look through a glass darkly, but in time it will be face to face (1Co 13:12); the more we behold Him, the clearer He becomes, until we’re like Him, seeing Him as He is. (1Jn 3:2)

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How do we build up ourselves in our faith (Jud 1:20), cleansing our lives of sin and increasing in holiness? By taking heed to our ways according to God’s Word. (Ps 119:9)

This means being present in our own lives, aware of what we’re thinking and feeling, paying attention to what we’re doing and why we’re dong it, and then comparing this with God’s Law and continually adjusting our behavior to align more and more with God’s standard. (Ps 119:59)

In order to do this effectively we need to be intimately familiar with God’s ways: we should be hiding God’s Word in our heart (Ps 119:11) and meditating on His laws all the time. (Ps 119:97)

But Christians are commonly taught that we grow by praying, studying the Bible and getting involved in church. While these things are necessary for spiritual growth, they aren’t sufficient: it’s possible to do them without moving closer to God and coming to the knowledge of the truth. (2Ti 3:7) Maybe it’s time we tried God’s way!

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If all I ever find in life is God, is He enough? Have I chosen Him as my portion? (Ps 119:57) Is He my lot in life? And am I content with Him? (Heb 13:5)

Do I need anything more than to behold the beauty of the living God? To know Him (Php 3:10), walking in light, in fellowship with Him? (1Jn 1:7) Do I need more approval than His? (Mt 25:21) Do I need more significance than having a name which only God and I will ever know? (Re 2:17) Do I need to be loved any more, by anyone else, when He loves me so? (1Jn 3:1)

To have everything else and not God, what of it? (Mt 16:26) To know all else but Him, who cares? (Je 9:24) To be accepted by all but God, so what? (Jn 5:44)

To have the infinite, timeless, omnipotent God is to have all that’s worth having. (Mt 13:45-46) To love this world is to miss Him (1Jn 2:15-17) … to miss everything. (Ps 73:25)

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“Worry is the practice of the unfaithfulness of God.” The saying intrigues and challenges me; it helps me understand the nature of unhealthy fear. (Lk_12:32)

Hope is faith resting peacefully in God’s goodness (Ps 125:1); anxiety is doubt accusing God of unfaithfulness before the fact (Php 4:6); it’s expecting to look back on life displeased with God’s care for us. (1Pe 5:7) It’s attacking God’s character (1Jn 5:10b), and so it’s sin. (Rev 21:8)

Instinctive fear of physical danger is good, God’s gift to help us escape when we’re threatened. Concern, caring for others, desiring the best for them in difficulty, is love moving us to good. (2Co 7:12) But living in worry, anxiety, dread … this is not of God (2Ti 1:7); it’s bondage on a spectrum of distrust in God’s faithfulness. Yeshua never felt any of these things. (Ps 23:4)

When we become aware of anxiety we should repent, asking God to increase our faith (Lk_17:5) and help us trust that He is good. (Na 1:7) The fact that He’s always with us (He 13:5-6) means everything He allows in our lives is for a good reason, and ultimately for our good. (Ro 8:28)

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There are thousands of Christian denominations, replete with falsehood and error. This isn’t unreasonable, it’s inevitable: God isn’t easily found or understood, yet He holds each of us accountable to seek and find Him for ourselves. (Ac 17:27) We may neither delegate this responsibility, nor force our beliefs on others. In seeking God independently, we’re all at various stages of our journey, with unique levels of understanding. We all have some truth, and we all have some error.

Our goal in spiritual community, where we find all social classes and cultures, is simply stated: to edify one another, helping each other in our journey after God. (Ep 4:11-13) Being diverse in our ways, gifts, dispositions and wounds, we must defer to one another in matters of preference. (Ro 14:4-5) Yet our goal implies that in matters of truth we are to be seeking unity through thoughtful like-mindedness: [1] encouraging each other where we agree, [2] humbly and prayerfully challenging each other where we differ, and [3] seeking wisdom in each other as we’re searching and growing. (Ro 15:5)

Yet many walk among us who are not on this journey (Php 3:18-19), not seeking God, not seeking truth (2Th 2:10-12), false brothers who exploit the power of religion, enslaving themselves and others. (Ga 2:4) They company with us, enjoying the benefits of community, and appear so much like the rest of us (2Co 11:13-15) that we cannot always tell one from another with certainty; it’s not even our place … only God can do this perfectly.  (Mt 13:28-30)

Even so, in pursuing the goal of spiritual community, God calls us to mark out and avoid those who either [1] express willful contempt for God’s laws (Mt 18:15-17,  1Co 5:12-13) or [2] offend and divide through false doctrine. (Ro 16:17) This must be done kindly but firmly, with wisdom, not as individuals but as a body indwelt by God. (2Co 6:16)

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I’ve often pondered the saying, “It never hurts to ask!” Sometimes I think it does hurt to ask; we shouldn’t lightly impose on others, taking their time and energy for granted. When we ask for something, we should ensure that our hearts are in the right place; selfish, inconsiderate requests are never good.

But how about God? How does He react when people pray, asking Him for things? Is He always delighted when people share their desires with Him?

As in human relationships, it depends on the heart; when the upright seek His help He’s delighted (Pr 15:8), but the prayers of those willfully ignoring His commands are disgusting to Him, an abomination. (Pr 28:9)

We should pray about everything (Php 4:6), ensuring as well as we can that our hearts are always right with God, seeking to walk in the light, in obedience and truth, not presuming we’re in a good place with God simply because we pray. If we’re justifying sin in our life, we’re wasting our time. (Ps 66:18)

God’s love moves Him to be angry with all who persist in willfully ignoring His commands (Ps 7:11), sinning against Himself and others. God’s children don’t do this as a manner of life; they’re elect unto obedience.

God is kind, and often answers the prayers of His enemies, but let’s not kid ourselves or deceive others: there’s no prayer, ritual or religious expression of any kind that covers the stench of rebellion. (De 25:16)

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