Bible

A Resurrected Life part I

~ ForCommonGround ~ Leave a comment

In Ezekiel’s vision from Ezekiel 37, the valley of dry bones was lifeless, barren, and without hope. It represented a people who felt abandoned, broken, and beyond redemption. Yet, in that desolation, God asked Ezekiel, “Can these bones live?” Ezekiel’s response was one of faith: “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

God commanded Ezekiel to prophesy over the bones, and as he did, a miraculous transformation began. Bones came together, flesh formed, and breath entered them—they rose as a vast army.

This story reminds us that no situation is too hopeless for God. What feels like a graveyard in your life—whether it’s a broken relationship, a lost dream, or a spiritual drought—can be revived by the power of His Spirit.

God specializes in breathing life into dead things. His Spirit can restore, renew, and rebuild what has been lost. The same God who brought life to the dry bones in Ezekiel’s vision is still working today, calling out to you: “Prophesy to the dry bones. Trust Me to breathe life into what seems dead.”

No matter how lifeless things may seem, place your hope in the God who brings life. He is faithful to revive and restore, turning valleys of despair into fields of victory.

Just as important, this passage points ahead to the New Life and Transformation done on behalf of the believer.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

2 Corinthians 5:17

The resurrection power transforms believers into new creations, enabling them to live a renewed and righteous life.

When God made man, He breathed life into Adam. When we give our hearts to Jesus, new life is breathed into us. It’s the same idea as what is happening in Ezekiel 37. After all, we were described as “…dead our trespasses and sins” (Eph2:1) but then he says ““But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—” (Eph2:4-5 ESV) And He does that by breathing life into us.

The Hebrew word for breath used in Ezekiel 37 is: (roo’-akh) rûaḥ also denotes His Spirit. It’s also used in Genesis 1:2: The earth was without form and void, and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Again, in Genesis 41, when Pharaoh speaks about Joseph, Pharaoh says to his servants, “Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom is the Spirit of God?” It’s Spoken over the judges when the spirit of the Lord came over them to judge Israel.

My question for all of us is, are we living the new and resurrected life? And how do we really know? And that’s what my next post is all about.

Peace in Christ brothers and sisters.

New Year New You

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This isn’t your typical new year’s resolution kind of post. In fact, it is probably the exact opposite. While there’s more than enough messages this time of year promoting self improvement, not many are proclaiming that the new version of ourselves should be a whole lot less of ourselves. Christians are familiar with the often quoted 2 Corinthians 5:17. We are new creations in Christ. I see that verse used more this time of year than any other time of the year. Sermons and devotions that promote self improvement. I believe that exercise, eating better, and healthy habits are great things. But the call of the gospel on our lives is much deeper than that. The gospel life is one lived for others. It’s a life of sacrifice, giving, loving, and serving. The “new creation” is a Spirit-filled individual who cares far more for the salvation and betterment of those around them than for how they are viewed by others or even for their own needs. One of the greatest of the apostles, Paul, states it this way:

But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

Acts 20:24 ESV

In a different letter to the church at Galatia he wrote this:

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Galatians 2:20 ESV

To the Philippians Paul emphasized something very similar.

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus…

Philippians 2:3-5 ESV

And just so no one thinks this is just Paul’s message, look at how Jesus Himself phrased it.

And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

Luke 9:23 ESV

It is easy to get wrapped up in goal setting when a new year rolls around. What I would propose is that we all focus less on the “usual” goals for the new and improved us, and make our goals more about others and how we are going to put Jesus on display this year. Instead of the new year bringing about a new you, it can bring about less of you, and more of Jesus. I invite everyone to pray that this would be the case for me. Those who know me, I ask for them to hold me accountable. We need to encourage our brothers and sisters in this life of surrender. Eat healthier. Exercise more. Set goals. But may we never forget what our ultimate goal should always be: To know God and to make Him known.

This year may it no longer be us who live but Christ who lives in us. This year may we do nothing out of selfish ambition but look out for the needs of those around us. This year may we testify to the gospel of grace. This year may we take up our cross and follow our King.

Peace in Christ brothers and sisters.

Misconceptions on God’s design for husbands and wives

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Other than humanity’s standing with God, what relationship was first rocked by their sin? The union between Adam and Eve. And what has resulted for millennia, is a faulty approach to the marriage relationship ever since. Not to say that some haven’t gotten it right. But I believe that the world, and even many in the church, have been getting it wrong for centuries. That stems from a wrong reading of the text. If you trace our history back you will see sermons telling the women to stay in their place and to follow their men. Even in America, women faced oppression for nearly all of our existence, much of which was justified using faulty interpretations of God’s design. The Bible itself is full of examples of how men and women screw things up. Let’s read over the wives and husbands commissions found in Ephesians five in light of the garden events from Genesis 2 and 3.

“Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.”‬‬

Ephesians‬ ‭5‬:‭22‬-‭24‬ ‭ESV

Some misconceptions can be traced back to Genesis 3 where God is pronouncing the consequences of sin. We can view Ephesians 5 as a call back to a pre-fall relationship. The first big misconception is in the terms of the “wives submit” terminology. The word submit used here is idios in greek. This means to treat as one’s self. Literally unite with. This is never once used to denote an inferior position. In fact let’s look at the origins of Eve. She is described as a “help meet” ( Gen 2:18&20). The word ezer, (Strong’s concordance #5828) means a shield, a form a saving. God is described often as an ezer. So that’s the pre-fall purpose for wives. That’s the intent of God. For wives to be united with husbands, to be one with them, to walk along side them (not under or behind them) to help shield them and be an essential role in the mission of God.

The post fall narrative, on the other hand, is much different (Genesis 3:16-17). We see the words ruling and desire used in this portion of Genesis. Both are prescribed in the midst of negative consequences from Adam and Eves actions. Nowhere does it alude to this being God’s plan or ideal. To say that, would be like saying God wanted brokenness and screwed ip relationships. If anything, the context of these verses makes it apparent that it is opposite of how God designed things. The next time this word for desire is used its to describe sin’s desire for Cain.

Can you think of examples when women and men from the Bible showed this fallen narrative? Times women subverted and disrespected or preyed on men. How about Rebecca and Sarah? Times men ruled as jerks and treated woman like animals? Maybe Isaac and Abraham? These relationships, while containing some good elements, were not models to follow, but illustrations of the brokenness of the fall. If anything, God was heartbroken over this.

Ephesians 5 is a picture of the reality of God’s design, opposite of that of the Genesis 3 fall motif. Wives are designed as an ezer, or defense, shield, life-giver, unified with her husband. Not a submissive, second-rate counterpart to do her husband’s bidding.

Now let’s address husbands.

“Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church,”‬‬

Ephesians‬ ‭5‬:‭25‬-‭29‬ ‭ESV

Husbands, also, are meant to lead, not as Genesis 3 states, but as Christ does. As a servant, in humility. Ephesians 5 uses the comparison of washing the bride with the word. Looking back at Genesis, Adam should have intervened when the serpent was twisting God’s words. Adam, by all accounts, was there, being passive, and not leading. He was also flattered and deceived by the serpent. He was meant to be a guardian, a shepherd, in pursuit of God’s mission. And so are men today.

Ephesians five uses some powerful words to define husband’s role. It says for husbands to love, give themselves up for, to cherish, and to nourish. If Adam had done that, the serpent would have lost his head that day. The leadership of men is a selfless leadership. It is wholehearted leadership. The leadership of a husband seeks Christ first and the heart of his wife second. The husband must lead from his knees not from a pedestal. My how world history would be different if men actually did that. -Men, we must be committed to seeing our wives thrive just as Christ seeks that for His bride. If Christ’s love and commitment to His bride is our example for loving our brides, then we have to step it up. And we do that by surrendering more of ourselves to Christ and His leadership in our personal lives.

God obviously doesn’t want us living in the Genesis three story. And we will be opposed. The serpent isn’t gone. The next chapter of Ephesians addresses the spiritual war that still rages on and how we are to fight. Enter Jesus. He is our shield of faith, our breastplate of righteousness, our belt of truth, our helmet of salvation. He came to be our example. He came to crush the serpent. He came to restore right relationships. He came to heal our broken approach to life and to love. He came to impart God’s wisdom. For Jesus is, ““He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power…” Hebrews 1:3 ESV and, ““And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image…” 2 Corinthians 3:18 ESV and, ““whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” 1 John 2:6 ESV

Whether we are single, married, wives, or husbands, our call is to be like Jesus…abiding in Him…unified with Him…and then we will see God’s kingdom come in our homes and in our relationships.

Must Gentile Christians Observe the Jewish Feasts?

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jesusinthefeasts

Article by Dr. Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg

This post was shared with me a week or so ago and I found it very interesting, full of good points. I’ve also written on the subject in the past. If you’d like to read a past article on the matter check out Celebrate Bible-Style.

There are several reasons why this topic is making a powerful comeback. The primary reason is that in the past 20 years Christian Churches around the globe, represented by almost every major Christian denomination, have become much more aware of the Jewish identity of their Savior and King. This, of course, is a wonderful thing.

The question is usually framed in a very simple way: “Must Christians observe the Jewish feasts?” I would submit to you that there are several problems with how the question is formed.

First, the assumption is that “Christians” are members of a non-Jewish movement, independent in every way from the people of Israel. Knowing what we now know about the Jewish background of the New Testament, we can say with full confidence that this is clearly not the case.

Second, the question refers to the Feasts of the Lord as “the Jewish feasts,” as if these feasts did not belong to God himself as their biblically native terminology clearly implies. Only when we adopt the biblical (rather than theological) categories, can we begin to see that we are asking the wrong question. Wrong questions, in turn, are known to lead good and godly people to wrong answers.

Third, the inclusion of “must” is problematic as well. It unintentionally advances the question in the context of the Protestant-Catholic, 16th-century divide regarding personal salvation (faith vs. works).

I would restate the question in a way that, while surely more cumbersome in Christian English (the language of our communication), is more fitting to the biblical context:

“Should the follower of the Jewish Christ, who comes from the nations and not from Israel, also mark as holy ‘the Feasts of Lord’”?

I think the answer to this question is clearly – yes. The question is not “if”, but “how” must Gentile followers of the Jewish Christ observe the Feasts of the Lord in covenantal continuity and partnership with Israel, yet with full realization of the powerful implications brought forth by Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and ascension.

It is indeed very interesting to note that Christian Churches, especially in their Catholic and Eastern Orthodox expressions, have never claimed that believers should cease to observe the feasts of the Lord.

In fact, both Christian communities (along with most protestant ones) have regularly marked many key biblical feasts with special worship celebrations. Unfortunately, they have often observed the feasts purposely on different dates and often inventing traditions far removed (and sometimes antithetical) to the original biblical injunctions.

Gentile Christians today are called to reunite with the people of Israel through, among other things, Christ-centered observance of the Feasts of the Lord and in so doing to experience their belonging to the Commonwealth of Israel.

For more articles like these are various topics, go to the Israel Bible Center website.

Peace in Christ brothers and sisters!

You’re Being Read

~ ForCommonGround ~ 1 Comment

preach-reconciliation

Very few people in the world today actually read the Bible. The above image was taken from Christians….CHRISTIANS! More than 50% of Christians are not familiar with the Bible. Only 20% have actually read the entire thing. This is God’s story. This is the story of humanity. It’s the story of redemption, past, present, and future. It’s the most valuable information we could ever gain. It’s universal in application. It’s faultless. Yet, for so many, it’s collecting dust on people’s shelves or sitting as an unused app on their phones. If this is the case among Christians, you know that far fewer non-believers are reading it. But do you know what they are reading? You and me. If people aren’t reading about who Jesus is, we need to show them. We may be the only image of Jesus they get. What message are the people in your life getting? The message of Christ is not contained when it lives in and through His followers. Let’s show the world the contents of the Bible by how we live and love and the truth that is the banner of our lives.

The Bible is Not the Constitution

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There has always been a debate about what God has told mankind. In fact, it started in the Garden of Eden. The serpent tried to confuse Adam and Eve about what God had told them. The words “did God really say” are still being uttered by believers and non-believers alike. Keep in mind that those words are what led the first people into sin. Deception and a muddled interpretation of God’s instructions to His creation are a formula for destruction. We need to consider the source of those things. The serpent is an image of Satan, the one opposed to God and everyone who claims allegiance to Him.

I teach US History and American Government at a local high school. I love the US Constitution. It’s one of the most incredible documents in World History. It was crafted in less than three months, in secret, by only 55 people. This small group engineered one of the longest lasting governments this world has ever seen. Have the people in that government always been good? Definitely not. But the system is more than sound. A few years after the document was ratified, amendments were added which became known as the Bill of Rights. Contained within those first 10 amendments are rights that we battle over and fight for to this day. Seventeen more have been added in the 227 years since. This amazing document, as flexible, enduring, and cherished as it may be, is still imperfect. That’s because it was created by imperfect people. They were great minds. No one would argue the contrary. But none of them were perfect.

An amendment is a change made to a legal document. Perfect things never require change. You can’t add to perfection, you can only detract from it. Our government has added 27 changes to the US Constitution because it needed to be changed. Our nation and any other for that matter are made up of imperfect people. We have a history of discrimination, war, and oppression. Each nation has a different story but they’re all fluid. No society is constant because no society bases it’s existence and guidance off of a constant source. The US Constitution of 1787 was not worthy of being left untouched and unaltered. Even with its 27 additions, this document is lightyears away from being the foundation of truth to anyone’s existence.

I see a frightening trend among certain sects of believers who prefer to treat the Bible as though it was the constitution. As though it was imperfect and in need of altering. I hear people claiming to be followers of Christ, second-guessing the very things Christ spoke and stands for. To question the Bible is to question Christ. To question the Bible is to question the Creator of all existence. We cannot approach the Bible as though it needs to be flexible and mold to the times. I have no problem in making God’s word relevant to our time. It does that all by itself. The Bible is a mirror into everyone’s soul. It doesn’t matter if you lived a thousand years ago, a hundred years ago, or are alive today, the Bible speaks to your existence. It doesn’t need to be amended. To believe that it does means that you believe that God is imperfect. We do the society we live in no favors when we utter the same words as the serpent of the garden, “did God really say?” Those words only create an atmosphere ripe for sin to flourish.

We don’t mold the Bible to our worldview. The Bible is our constant, perfect document. We mold our worldview into what the Bible says. Just because the views on certain issues change in society does not mean that the Bible needs to change with them. What the world needs are followers of Jesus who are not ashamed of the truth. People who are willing to stand against deception and the love of sin that is so persistent in this world. The world does not need compromising souls but passionate disciples.

Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'”

Matthew 4:4 (NIV)

How do you swing the Sword?

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For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Hebrews 4:12 (ESV)

The Bible is sometimes referred to as a sword. That’s because it’s the best weapon a person has against the lies of cultures that are pervasive in every society. The Bible cuts through our selfish motives, pride, deceit, carelessness, and so much more. It shows everyone of us just how much we need a Savior, then introduces us to Him. It shows us the remedy for the ills of life and the purpose for which we were all created. It’s the ultimate source of strength, encouragement, and hope. It is a lifeline for sinking men and women across the globe.

In Ephesians chapter six, the Bible is called the Sword of the Spirit. It is meant to be wielded to crush the enemy lines that seek to spread darkness and chaos throughout humanity. But that enemy is not in the flesh. It’s spiritual power that seeps into every facet of this world. But all too often, this sword is swung at those who need to experience its life changing qualities, not the sting of another’s insult. The Bible is a tool to fight evil, not to fight people. This sword is meant to build bridges not cut down people in its wake. This sword is meant to bring healing, not further injury to those who are already wounded. As followers of Christ, we use His sword to fight for those in our life, not against them.

With one fell swoop of His Sword, God could wipe out fallen humanity. In a moment of real honesty, we’d have to admit that we’d all deserve it. But He doesn’t. God uses His Sword to mold us into what we are actually supposed to be. God doesn’t destroy with this weapon, He creates new life in us. I wish more believers would want to do the same. I know many who do. But I also know of a lot who would just as soon run someone through with the sword than love them. I think it’s pretty obvious who’s been touched by God’s redeeming grace by how they use His Word. His Sword is an instrument of love. Handle with care.