What Love's Got to Do with It

.......Two young women, both sisters in their early twenties, were reuniting during summer break after a couple very busy years at their separate colleges. They met at their favorite hometown bakery and coffee shop. The oldest arrived before her sister, who walked in ten minutes later, wearing dyed blonde hair with very dark roots, dark purple lipstick, a black halter top with a picture of a skeleton hanging on a cross, a miniskirt, leather boots, and jewelry in places that her older sister knew hadn’t been pierced a few years ago. Trying to not look shocked, the elder cheered, hugged, chatted, ordered food, and sat down with her sister before addressing what couldn’t be completely ignored.
.......“So what’s with the new look?”
.......“What do you think?” asked the younger.
.......“Um, … well, … I’m not sure what to think.”
.......The younger sister chuckled and then said, “It’s part of my seeking deeper service to the Lord.” Apparently not noticing or simply disregarding her sister’s half-cocked eyebrows, she continued, “As you might recall, I’m heavily involved with the campus ministry to the inner city. So we dress in a way to blend in with those to whom we’re witnessing; we don’t want to scare them off by dressing like FBI agents or whatever. This way, we earn their respect and hopefully a chance to show them the love of Christ.”
.......“Oh, I see,” the elder replied, “you want them to know how much you love them and how much Christ loves them, and this is accomplished by dressing like them.”
.......“Well, not just that, –” the younger started to say, but her sister interrupted.
.......“Is that how we’ve known that Grandma loves us? When we walk into her house, do we often catch her dancing around the kitchen to Beyonce? Does she prove her love by announcing how much she couldn’t believe what happened on the latest episode of Bridezilla? When’s the last time you saw Grandma in hip huggers or a halter top?”
.......While the younger sister laughed, the older continued, “Sure, she may ask us what we’re listening to, or what we’ve been watching. She has even cautioned us about some of the latest styles. And that is actually how she loved us – by caring about us, discussing our interests, warning us, … not by being like us. She also loves us by allowing herself to be interrupted by us any moment of the day, fixing us something to eat even if we say we don’t need it, praying for us, sending cards and packages to us at college, faithfully setting before us an example of grace, temperance, and modesty.
.......“How did Mother Theresa show love for the impoverished? How did Christ show love for Legion? What is more likely to get the attention of a biker gang? – A 220-pound Christian guy with tattoos, a leather vest, and a Harley, who offers to buy ‘em a drink? Or a 150-pound Christian guy in khakis and a button-up shirt, who offers to buy ‘em a drink? Do you think people cannot recognize love just because it comes in a moderately-dressed package?”

The Lord's Table

In some Christian circles, “communion” is more commonly referred to as “the Lord’s table.” This latter expression, I think, can be quite useful in helping us to better understand a number of very important Scriptural principles and their necessary applications. The reason for this is that we all know what a table is, we all have had dinner around a table, but we are not as familiar with the definition for communion. How many times in the past week or the past month or the past year have you used the word “communion” in your everyday conversation? And of those times, how many times did you use the word in reference to something other than a periodic church ritual where people partake of a pinch of bread and an ounce or so of some grape beverage?

Sadly, however, the nature of the Lord’s table even may be less understood than it was fifty-plus years ago since families seem less likely to have frequent meals together in the dining room in the absence of a distracting television. Interestingly, we do see more and more consistency between our current culture’s approach to meals with family around their table and our current church’s approach to meals with the Lord’s family around his table. How often do the individual family members just grab a bite or two whenever they can and take it with them to their bedroom, downstairs in the den, in the car, or next to the computer? And how often do you hear it promoted from the pulpit for each individual to worship “as each one chooses”? How often have you been concerned about those who call themselves believers but are not faithful to attend church? Have you ever observed a lack of ... connectedness, comradeship, or perhaps a better word would be … communion among believers in a local church?

So as we begin our discourse about the nature and efficacy of the Lord’s table, you may need to use your imagination when comparing it to your own table. Better yet, may I provoke you “unto love and to good works,” – specifically, in this case, the good work of regularly eating with your family around the dining table in your home – and “not forsaking the assembling of [yourselves] together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:24-25).

No Discord at the Table

Throughout the Holy Scriptures, we can observe an association between expressions of gladness and moments of feasting. The two naturally go together. Conversely, animosity and isolation go together. How long do you think it would take the members of a family who are bearing grudges against one another to start making excuses as to why they “will not be eating around the table tonight”?

When there’s been a rŏw in the Rauch house right before dinner time, we do not ask the Lord’s blessing or take a bite of food until reconciliation has taken place. Several times, we have been called to the table and sat down, then Dad has to repent of some sin against another family member or I, as the head of household, have to require confession and forgiveness to be expressed among the children for some recent discord.

When the church gathers to worship the Lord and partake of the Lord’s table, the Head of such table also desires and requires an attitude of fellowship and glad harmony amongst those who expect to share of Him. Proverbs 6:19 lists, as one of seven abominations unto the LORD, the man “that soweth discord among brethren.” Then Christ says, in Matthew 5:23-24, “Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.”

So our coming to the table, eating, and drinking, expecting to be sustained and satisfied, is a declaration that we have “a conscience void of offence toward God and toward men” (Acts 24:16). How many of us are telling lies at the table? How many of us should be fasting instead of feasting, at least until we have been reconciled to our brother or even our Father? Perhaps this is why so many churches have communion only rarely.

Smoky Mirrors

James 1:23-24 states, “If any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.” The implication seems to be a man with apparent blemishes looks in a mirror, has no problem with what he sees, and thus contentedly walks away with no intention of addressing the blemishes. How can he be so comfortable with himself looking like that?

The value of a mirror is simply in showing us what we look like; it does not at all show us what we should look like. The value of a model, pattern, or standard, on the other hand, is to show us what something should look like (which is why the term “supermodel” is a lie); but a model does not show us what we actually look like. Scriptural preaching should involve both.

The evangelical preacher should hold up the standard for the church to see. Good exegesis should help Christ’s Bride to see precisely what the Groom desires regarding the Bride’s physical appearance, wedding gown style, jewelry, health, manner, disposition, and lifestyle. The preacher should hold up a mirror almost simultaneously, very graciously pointing out the areas which are inconsistent with the standard. In practical terms, the preacher should combine exposition of what God’s law has required for thousands of years with a competent understanding of the church’s state and condition today, especially as distinguished from contemporary culture.

Many preachers can be found who do a bit of one or the other, but less common are those who do both simultaneously and do it well. Some complain about how bad things are and give us many statistics from George Barna’s polling research, but they provide us with poor instruction as to what we should effectively do about it. Others love to openly share their perspectives in a Bible study, where “what it means to you is good for you. Just don’t try to tell me what to do.” No wonder a hearer of the Word can go away and easily forget what he looks like. Perhaps no one has told him what he should look like.

Evidence of the Testator's Death

Within his last will and testament, a man has provided specific directions regarding what is to be done, upon the event of his death, with those particular things and persons for which he was responsible during his life. Now the beneficiaries should not be surprised that, when the estate is to be settled, the executor might require evidence of the testator’s decease.

The LORD says, within the writings of Jeremiah (31:31-34), “Behold, … I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, … not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers …, which they broke. But this shall be the covenant that I will make …, says the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. … I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” The Hebrew writer recalls these words before he goes on to write (in 9:16-22) that “where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator lives. Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without blood. For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood … and sprinkled both the book, and all the people, saying, ‘This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.’ Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry. … And without shedding of blood is no remission.”

Every time we partake of and pass the communion cup, we are acknowledging our assent to the Lord’s proclamation that “This cup is the new testament in [His] blood, which is shed for [us]” (in Luke 22:20), for by partaking, we “do show the Lord’s death till He come” (I Corinthians 11:26). When we partake of and pass the cup, we thereby testify that the Testator has died. When we pass the cup, we “do show the Lord’s death” to one another, testifying, “He did die. Look here! This is His blood.” When we partake of the cup, we testify that the new testament is therefore in effect – specifically that God’s law is written in our hearts, He is our God, we are His people, our iniquities are forgiven, and our sins will be remembered no more by Him.

Frozen Banana Delight

The other night my wife tried an old trick. “Want some ice cream?” she said, and then she offered us some frozen pureed banana with some raw cocoa topping. As I said, the bananas were frozen and pureed such that its consistency and appearance greatly resembled that of soft homemade ice cream. But it tasted like … well, … frozen pureed bananas. – Go figure.

The idea, I guess, is to encourage us to eat more healthy food and less junk food. In spite of what we’re being told by the health conscious around us, we still remember having often enjoyed hamburgers, chicken, pizza, and, of course, ice cream. So now we’re being offered healthy alternatives in the form of soy patties, soy nuggets, fruit pizza, and Rice Dream. Since our taste buds are so accustomed to desiring and enjoying the foods that are not so healthy, we try to trick them by telling the ears and eyes that we are about to enjoy some ice cream, … “healthy” ice cream.

But this is an old trick. The church has been doing it for years now. We know that many are not very excited about what we have to offer, even though it’s better for ya. So we say, “Want some fun? Want some entertainment? – Look! We can give you pop music, and we can show you videos during worship!”

But there’s a problem with this approach in both applications. When we call fruit “pizza,” we are confessing that pizza is more desirable than fruit; and when we call worship “contemporary” or “seeker-friendly,” we are confessing that the world knows how to worship better than we do. As a pastor of mine (Douglas Wilson) has said: “Anything the world can do, the Church can do five years later and worse.”

Who are we kiddin’? Can we no longer recognize truth, beauty, and goodness?

Discipline to Listen

Have you, as a father, ever found yourself quite uninterested in what your little children have to share with you? Certainly there are moments when our children surprise us by recognizing the Wendy’s restaurant sign when they’re only two-years-old. Or they make us laugh by climbing into the snack cabinet. Or they stump us by asking “How did my baby brother get inside Mommy’s belly?” But then there are those moments when they boast about how they would’ve fought off that T-Rex if he had come into their town, or they begin telling you the story that never ends, or perhaps they want to explain the rules of subtraction to you. Sometimes it’s difficult to keep from yawning or to raise one’s eyelids in an expression of supposed interest.

But the Holy Spirit makes clear through the Scriptures that earthly fathers are to behave like our heavenly Father. This principle can be seen in passages like the following: “As a man chasteneth his son, so the LORD thy God chasteneth thee,” – Deuteronomy 8:5; and “Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him,” – Psalm 103:13.

We also have heard from many a modern pulpit of I Peter 5:7 – “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you” – and Psalm 34:15 – “The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.” We’ve been told that God cares about the little things as well as the big things.

Sometimes it is a challenge to be truly interested in our children’s particular observations, about which our own excitement waned years ago. But our heavenly Father “understandest [our] thought afar off” (Psalm 139:2) and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts “as the heavens are higher than the earth” (Isaiah 55:9). Our generation gap doesn’t even compare with the gap between the heavens and the earth. So the only way we’re really going to convince our children that God listens even to our own boring prayers is by faithfully giving them eye contact, a listening ear, and time.

On the Sabbath...

If you believe that Jesus violated the Sabbath, then with what company does that put you? Didn't the Pharisees also vehemently make this claim? ... Hhmmm ....

Lawlessness -- Good or Bad?

“City sidewalks, busy sidewalks, dressed in holiday style, –
In the air, there’s a feeling of Christmas –
Children laughing, people passing, meeting smile after smile,
And on every street corner, you hear … Silver Bells….”

It’s a Currier-&-Ives or Thomas Kinkade sort of town. Not a Norman Rockwell sort of town – no cops, no stop signs, no lists of rules anywhere, no law books, … because there’s no need of them. Everybody does what they’re supposed to do. Everything’s beautiful… until …

One day, a guy takes a cobblestone from Kinkade’s cottage, takes his brother into a field, and bashes his head. The snow of perfect texture and temperature is now blood-red around the fallen body. This throws the town for a loop. Nothing is done to the murderer … because there is no precedent, no law, no authority with which the townsfolk might bring about justice. The murderer still enjoys his wonderful life in this wonderful community.

But obviously something must be done to discourage such behavior. So the townsfolk come up with their first law: “Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed.” (Gen. 9:6) Of course, many of the folk don’t need the law written on paper because it is already written on their hearts (Jeremiah 31:31-34). It is a part of their divine nature, you might say; goodness just flows out of them, that is, out of their hearts where the good, divine law resides. As Christ put it, “from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts,” desires, and actions: “All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.” (Mark 7:21-23). The law written on paper or stone then serves as a witness against the defiled ones, showing them the nature of God, “so that they are without excuse” when they do “that which is against nature” (Romans 1:20, 26).

Perhaps this will help us begin to understand how “that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully; knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers …, whoremongers, …, menstealers, liars, …” and so on – I Timothy 1:8-11.

Twist and Shout

“Twist and Shout!” There used to be a good bit of that in some of the churches with which I was familiar as a child – twistin’ the Scriptures and shoutin’ for 1-2 hours. There may not be quite as much shoutin’ nowadays, but some of ‘em are still “doin’ the twist.”

Ya know how it goes … yer standin’ at the edge of a cliff, prayin’, “Lord, Yer Word says that You’ll give Yer angels charge over me, to bear me up, lest I go dashin’ my foot against a stone, and if I’m abidin’ in Christ, then what applies to Him applies to me, right? So now I’m claimin’ Yer Word and trustin’ in them mighty angels to bear me up – all fer Yer glory! – as I throw myself down off this here rocky cliff. … And I, uh, … I …, I praise Ya now fer what Yer gonna’ do. And I …, I …, well, huh, I think I fergot to leave a tract for that waitress back at the donut shop. I’d better go take care o’ that first.” Y’all know how it is …; I’m sure y’all can relate ….

But now wait! That does sound just a mite bit familiar …. Oh, yes; now I remember: Jesus Christ was faced with a similar temptation, wasn’t He? But what was it He said? Oh, that’s right – “It is also written, …,” Matthew 4:7. He didn’t say, “Yeah, right, Satan, like I’m gonna fall for that.” He didn’t directly accuse the Accuser of taking the verse out of context. Christ didn’t even deny the verse’s application to Himself. He refused to apply one Scriptural passage in such a way that would require express disobedience to another passage.

Sadly, many church members’ perspective of balance is too much like that drunk, of which Martin Luther speaks, who, upon falling off the left side of a horse, climbs back atop the horse with the determination to achieve balance by, next time, falling off the right side of the horse.

Teach Them to Teach

Two old warriors. Brothers. Scars from many battles – some they fought together, some not; but often on the side of victory in either case. They each have wisdom to share and swords which have become most precious to them.

One warrior’s advice to his son amounts to little more than “I’ve fought and won many battles. I hope you’ve learned something from me. With God’s help, I made it and you can, too.” Then he mounts his sword on the wall as a trophy.

The other warrior says, “Son, ‘I’ve fought a good fight; I’ve finished my course.’ Now take this sword. Remember how I’ve trained you with it. Keep it always with you. – Never, for even a moment, put it aside. – Continue practicing with it daily. It may look dull and feel clumsy to you now, but with much use, it will shine brighter and it will make you stronger, faster, smarter.” Then the warrior adds this very important final instruction: “Be also sure to pass this sword on to your own son, teaching and training him to use it skillfully. And when you’ve come to the end of your course, tell your son all that I’ve just told you.”
* * * * *

I suppose many have been tempted to place a favorite Biblical instruction of theirs under the label of The Eleventh Commandment. If I were to yield to such a temptation, I’d want to cast my vote for those words from the passage in Deuteronomy 6: “Thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children.” And I think I’d have a good argument, too. It’s written in the form of a commandment (“Thou shalt teach …thy children”). Better yet, this mandate is given very shortly after the second generation out of Egypt have just been reminded of the first Ten Commandments. It is preceded even more immediately by the first and greatest commandment; and it is being told to the generation whose parents did not keep the commandments. Then we soon discover in Judges what happens when, after Joshua’s generation, this commandment is not heeded “and there [arises] another generation after them, which [knows] not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.” (Judges 2:10)

In short, “Here are the commandments; do them, and teach them to your children. – Then teach your children to teach the commandments to their children. Teach them to teach.” – The Eleventh Commandment? Maybe not, but you’d better do it!

Placing Second in Your Own Look-Alike Contest

Christopher Witmer said, “You don’t resemble my caricature of you because you’re lying.” That may help explain the following, or vice versa: I once heard that Groucho Marx won second prize in a Groucho Marx Look-Alike Contest; and I have no trouble believing it. Without having investigated the truth or the background of this story, I would like to make some conjectures about it because I think it provides a useful illustration. 1) I have also heard and even observed in pictures that Groucho sometimes wore a painted-on mustache, which could offer one plausible explanation for why he placed second. The first prize winner may have had a real mustache. 2) Groucho was also an actor and television celebrity. Perhaps his behavior was somewhat different in person and off camera. But logic still demands that there is no way that a person should place second in his own look-alike or act-alike contest. The first prize winner should have had a painted-on mustache, acted witty on camera but somewhat different off camera, and even had an identical … well, everything that Groucho had.

Are we frustrated that Christ does not always live up to our caricature of Him? It seems that, if many churches today were on the panel of judges, Christ & His Bride themselves would not win First Prize if they were to enter their own look-alike contest. Under cultural influence, we have created our own list of criteria, instead of using the age-old List given to us by the Spirit of Christ Himself – the Holy Scriptures. Many Christians and churches today actually have the audacity to think that we may decide where, when, how, and even why we will worship; but by so doing, we are – without realizing it – even deciding what we will worship. Someone said, “God made man in His image, then man returned the favor.” But, in case you didn’t catch it, that’s a violation of the second commandment.

It's Not Just the Heart That Matters

If you want to commit sin and still be a Christian, then you might like the modern evangelical Church of God. There, in the modern church, if you can only become accustomed to and comfortable with the convicting of the Holy Spirit, you can likely enjoy your sin for quite some time without much interruption. For should anyone else dare to take upon himself that which “belongs to the Holy Spirit,” all you need do is remind such a person of the following presuppositions espoused by the modern church: “Don’t judge,” and “It’s the heart that matters.” In other words, just tell ‘em, “No matter what you might claim about me, with your very limited perspective about me, you obviously cannot see my pure heart; therefore, you have no right, against my wishes, to hold me accountable in my private faith and personal relationship with God. – Mind your own business.” It’s also a nice touch to throw in a little “Biblical” reminder that “Christ reserved his harshest criticisms for the Pharisees, whom He called ‘hypocrites,’ because, even though they did all the right works, their heart was far from God.”

Fortunately for you – unfortunately, really, – a typical individual within the modern church won’t recognize, let alone correct the various fallacies in your theology, including even your misperception about Christ’s diagnosis of the Pharisees. Christ did not disunite a man’s works from his heart. You likely already know and perhaps are uncomfortable with the implications of the passage which says, “By their fruits, you will know them” (Matt. 7:16, 20 – the same chapter where He said, “Judge not,” by the way). But Christ also applies Isaiah’s prophecy to the scribes and Pharisees when He quotes, “‘This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, …; but their heart is far from me,’” and then explains, “Those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man” (Matt. 15:8, 18-20, italics mine). Finally, you should realize that Matthew 23, where we read at least seven “woes” pronounced against the “scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” for their various correlating teachings and works, begins with Jesus Christ “saying, ‘The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not’” (Matt. 23:2-3, italics mine).

Sin Is Disobeying God

Sin can be defined in two words: disobeying God. Included in the teaching of our children to confess their wrongdoing immediately following correction is the proper phrasing of the confession. “I’m sorry for standing on the table” is not necessarily a confession of sin. Those words may come out of the mouth, but the heart might be saying, “I know you don’t like for me to stand on the table, so I’m sorry that I did it … while you were watching … because I don’t like spankings.”
So I will often ask, “Is standing on the table a sin? Does the Bible say, ‘You shall not stand on tables’?”
The child says, “No,” even though he has never read the entire Bible, let alone, memorized it. But I think God has given my child enough grace to recognize the answer to my question.
“What was your sin then?” I ask.
“Disobeying my parents.”
“Is disobeying your parents a sin?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because God says, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Children, obey your parents in the Lord.’”
“That’s right. So when you disobey your parents, then you are also …”
“… disobeying God. – I’m sorry, Dad, for disobeying you by standing on the table.”
“Now, Son, you need to tell Someone else ….”
“I’m sorry, God, for disobeying you.”
* * * * *
Throughout the Scriptures, beginning with Cain and Abel, we see God accepting some sacrifices and rejecting others. He is the One Who required sacrifices with multiple parameters, but then later (in Isaiah 1) He asked, “Who has required all these sacrifices at your hand?”

As the Hebrews writer explains, Christ knew that doing God’s will – obedience – took priority over sacrifice; but then, in doing God’s will, Christ offered Himself as the sinless, atoning sacrifice. Hebrews 10:8-10 – “First He said, ‘Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings You did not desire, nor were You pleased with them’ (although the law required them to be made). Then He said, ‘Here I am, I have come to do Your will.’ He sets aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

Wash One Another's Feet

John 13:12-17 – “So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.”

If pride was involved with the very first sin and with the beginnings of every sin thereafter – as the Proverb writer states, “An haughty spirit [goes] before a fall,” (Proverbs 16:18), – then perhaps it is also involved in the arguments against and resistances to the practice of Christians washing one another’s feet in modern times. Interestingly and, I think, not coincidentally, pride is one of those very sins which this practice is meant to shame; thus, it is the first to protest even the suggestion of the practice.

“It’s just weird,” someone might say. But such was not the case in Biblical culture, unless, of course, a master would happen to wash his servants’ feet. But then to say such a thing would be to declare the actions of Christ Himself as weird. And although the practice was somewhat common in Biblical times, one should not assume that pride therefore never got in the way back then. Why did Peter at first recoil at his Master’s actions? Why did not the hosting Pharisee wash Jesus’ feet?

At the time of writing this exhortation, I have yet to observe or recall a persuasive argument against feet washing, … at least, not one as clear and precise as the Lord’s own words in saying, “Ye also ought to wash one another’s feet. Ye should do as I have done to you.”