June 23, 2013 · 3:07 PM

Did Eve Leave a Mark on Adam?

God made the first man and put him in the Garden of Eden. The man, Adam, enjoyed the perfect environment: no housing bubbles or global warming, no overcrowding or energy shortages. All was good, apparently.

Adam not only had the pleasure of living in the garden, he also had the responsibility of taking care of it. It was the perfect job: no unemployment or labor disputes. He didn’t even have to pay taxes or worry about his retirement account. He was free of worries, or so it seemed.

Religion was good for Adam, too. God gave him only one command. He was free to eat from every tree in the garden except for the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He only had one verse to memorize and obey. Who could ask for anything better?

So Adam had a beautiful home, a great job, and a simple religion. Nevertheless, God noted that something was not right. He said that it was not good for Adam to be alone. And God had the perfect solution.

First, animals appeared before Adam so that he could name them. Apparently this was God’s way of making Adam aware of his need, his loneliness. All the animals had mates but Adam did not. And none of the animals could serve as his closest companion.

Then God caused a deep sleep to come over Adam. While Adam slept, God took something from Adam’s side. Most English Bibles call it a rib. Rib or not, it was definitely part of Adam’s body.

God took the living tissue that he removed from Adam’s side and fashioned it into a woman, the first woman. He then closed up Adam’s side and presented the woman to him.

Adam was thrilled. “At last! This is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. She will be called woman because she was taken from man” (Genesis 2:23). Adam was no longer alone, problem solved.

But wait a minute. God performed surgery on Adam. Did that leave a scar? God closed him up but did he do so without leaving a mark? What place does a scar have in Paradise? After all, scars are echoes of pain and suffering, right?

And another thing: God could have made Adam and Eve at the same time, but he made Adam first, lacking his lover. Moreover, he sent Adam out on a search for a mate, knowing that his search would be unsuccessful. What is happening here?

Loneliness, failure, and scars are what we expect in the world today. Our world struggles with the tragic consequences caused by countless generations of rebellion against God. But why would God allow these things in the Garden of Eden, even just a little bit?

It’s clear; God made Adam incomplete. Adam was forced to change in order to become all that God wanted him to be. He needed the perfect helper made just for him, a woman, but he had to engage in a failed search first. He had to experience loneliness before he could appreciate her affection.

Then he had to trust God enough to give up a part of himself in order to have this mate. He really did have some “skin in the game!” And he had to put himself in God’s hands without seeing a picture of the woman first so that he could decide if she would be worth the trouble, the very first blind date.

Surely Adam’s struggle was far easier than the agony that people face now. After all, he was in Paradise. Human suffering now is far worse due to centuries of defiance against God. But it seems that God’s original design for humanity included some struggling for growth, even in Paradise.

If God’s surgery left a scar on Adam, then Adam was able to see his investment in Eve for the rest of his life. He could simply glance down at the mark on his side and remember that she cost him a bit of himself. That scar would be a good thing.

And even if Adam was not scarred from God’s surgery, he could remember the failed search for a mate, perhaps giving him his first sensation of anxiety. He had to realize that something important was missing in his life and that, apart from God, he was helpless to do anything about it.

Those who say that God never wishes for us to undergo any suffering are telling a half-truth. The whole truth is this: God does not want us to suffer meaninglessly. He does, however, desire that we experience real growth in our struggles.

If we mistakenly believe that God never allows us to suffer, then we will be tempted to conclude that our suffering is unnecessary, leading to despair. But when we trust that our suffering is used by God not to crush us, but to build us up, then we have hope. Our scars, be they physical, mental, or spiritual, are proof that we have a personal investment in growing stronger and wiser.

God’s greatest work resulted in scars. On the hands and side of Jesus are the permanent marks of the greatest victory in all of time and eternity: God’s salvation for all who will trust him completely.

Jesus obeyed God and suffered on a Roman cross. And for anyone who wishes to do things God’s way, Jesus challenges, “Let him take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24). That leaves marks. That leads to eternal victory.

Richard Foster, Grace Baptist Church
Published by the Camden News in Religious Reflections April 21, 2013

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May 26, 2013 · 4:51 PM

Our First Freedom

We exist on a very tiny island in the vast ocean of history. Surrounding us are hundreds of millions of people who face persecution for their personal religious convictions. Stretching back for millennia are the stories of untold billions of souls who lived in fear and persecution, denied the right of religious freedom.

For most of human history in most every culture or society, religious beliefs have been imposed by coercive measures. Those who dared to dissent endangered themselves and their families. Religious freedom was not even a consideration. Conformity was demanded. Any deviation from the accepted religious belief and practice was seen as a threat to order, a threat to society.

Then Jesus uttered revolutionary words, insisting that people should give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s. He surprised the powers of this world when he announced that his Kingdom is not from this world. Clearly he was introducing an innovative idea: the notion that two distinct kingdoms exist in the world, the church and the state.

Jesus also stunned his followers by defining his disciples not by nationality, or ethnicity, or ability, or geography, or politics, or wealth, or any other human status, but simply as those who are willing to accept the demands of discipleship. He invited social outcasts to be his followers and he allowed powerful and privileged people to reject his invitation and simply walk away.

So our Lord introduced two ground-breaking truths. First, church and state have distinct missions in this age. Second, people should be free to accept God’s truth without coercion and to reject God’s truth without persecution. Upon these two fundamental realities a new vision for religion in this age rests: individual God-given freedom of religion.

After centuries of political and religious oppression, the founding fathers of our country forged a new nation that incorporated and applied Jesus’ revolutionary ideas. In keeping with his revelation about two kingdoms, they adopted a Bill of Rights that prohibits government from establishing religion or from prohibiting the free exercise of religion.

America has experienced a season of religious freedom that is stunning in its contrast to the rest of world history. What people in Europe bled and died for, we have come to take for granted. And now our complacence seems to be resulting in a steady erosion of this precious first freedom, our freedom of religion.

Jesus warned his followers that they would be hated in the world on account of their loyalty to him. John’s Apocalypse foresees a time when God’s people will be universally ostracized and persecuted. These things must happen before the Lord comes and establishes his kingdom, a kingdom no longer divided into civil and religious realms.

When our Lord chooses to turn the page of history and remove the invisible hand of protection that keeps us from suffering the mistreatment of government, so be it. But until then, let us not give up our precious, hard-won first freedom simply because so many people are uninformed, uninvolved, and uninspired.

May the Lord of our salvation continue to bless us with freedom and with the wisdom to use it for his glory,

Brother Richard

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April 26, 2013 · 9:16 AM

Worshiping God

The Book of Psalms is 150 mostly shorter poems that instruct and inspire God’s people in authentic worship. This ancient book of praise reveals a rich and complex variety of attitudes and actions when God’s people encounter God’s Presence.

So extensive and varied is the picture of worship in the Psalms that one lifetime could not possibly be sufficient to fully explore and experience all the subtle nuances of praising God. Approaching the Presence of God is an ever-unfolding experience that pulls worshipers upward to greater heights of rejoicing and onward to deeper places of faith.

An important part of worship is remembering God’s mighty works. God’s people remember that he spoke the universe into existence and so his beauty and power are reflected in nature. God sustains and supervises the entire cosmos, from electrons and protons to spiral galaxies and black holes; from sun, soil, and water for a blade of grass to security, love, and purpose for each of his people.

God’s people also remember God’s great works in salvation when they worship. The psalmists recall and celebrate God’s deliverance of Israel from cruel bondage in Egypt. Inspired by God’s Spirit, they also heard the voice of prophecy in their worship, looking forward to the day when Christ would fulfill the promise, being the one and only Savior sent from God.

Not only is the vast array of God’s attributes and acts on display in the Psalms, but the encounters between God and his people include the full range of human emotion. Worshipers at times approach the Lord from the depths of despair. They come asking God for his protection, for his forgiveness, for his answers to difficult questions, and much more.

At other times worshipers approach the Lord with a melody in their hearts and a song on their lips, praising the Maker of heaven and earth for his majesty, wisdom, justice, power, love, mercy, or one of God’s other marvelous characteristics. In short, real worship calls God’s people to come with honest hearts.

So if you are feeling down and out on the next Lord’s Day, or if you have a heart full of happiness, make it a point to gather with God’s people for another meeting with God’s Presence. A lifetime of enriching encounters awaits us in worship.

May God’s Spirit always fill us when we gather in his holy Name,

Brother Richard

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April 16, 2013 · 3:15 PM

Are We Our Brother’s Keeper?

Cain killed his brother Abel because he was jealous. When God asked Cain about his brother’s whereabouts, he fired back at the Lord in anger, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9). Cain meant that he was not responsible for his brother, but God disagreed.

Cain’s question has become a symbol for issues far greater than the tragedy between two brothers from the ancient past. The question is now asked in relation to the Church’s responsibility to society. Is the Church called to eradicate all injustice in this world?

God’s command in the Old Testament to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:17) could be seen as an answer to Cain’s question. God’s people have a responsibility not just to their own family members, but also to neighbors. Does that include the society at large?

In the New Testament, a man asked Jesus about this command to love one’s neighbor. He wanted to know where to draw the line. How does God define “neighbor”?

Jesus answered the man’s question with a parable. A traveler was robbed and left for dead on a dangerous road. Two religious Jews passed by and denied the man any assistance. A Samaritan, however, went out of his way to help the dying man.

Jesus told his listeners, Jews, to be like the Samaritan, a people considered inferior by the Jews. Clearly Jesus expects his followers to help those who are in need, and not just those within one’s own socio-economic or ethnic group.

God’s people should reach across the multitude of lines that divide humanity in order to help anyone who is in need. But did Jesus expect his followers to establish a just and equitable society?

Jesus was a prophet like those in the Old Testament. They spoke truth to power. As bold messengers from the Lord, they stood against exploitation and oppression. They were advocates for the poor and disenfranchised in their culture.

Did not Jesus carry on the tradition of exposing and denouncing the sins of the ruling class? He did. Jesus excoriated the leaders in his day for using their places of privilege to enrich themselves at the expense of the marginalized.

The prophets’ fiery denunciations against abuses of power are a good model for the Church today, but only if their full message is understood and imitated. The prophets clearly saw that a just society depends upon a God-fearing and God-obeying people. Trying to remove injustice is not enough. The prophets’ ultimate goal was to turn the hearts of the people to the Lord.

Jesus condemned social injustice, but he left no mandate for redeeming cultures, societies, or governments in this age. He predicted that Jerusalem and the Temple would be destroyed, and it was. He also predicted that all kingdoms in this age will fall and they will. Why? Every new generation battles with sin and injustice because this world is broken by sin; and this broken world needs not just progressive social reform, but radical spiritual change.

Jesus expects his followers to denounce social injustice, but not as part of an attempt to establish heaven on earth because that would be an impossible task. Every generation starts over with a fresh crop of sinners whose hearts are drawn toward disobedience to God, leading to another harvest of injustice.

Despite the perpetual and inevitable failure of humanity to achieve a just and righteous society, God’s people are not allowed to be pessimistic. Instead, the Lord expects his followers to feed the hungry and clothe the naked. In fact, the Bible asserts that “faith without works is dead” (James 2:26). But good works without faith are futile.

The man who asked Jesus how to define “neighbor” had first asked Jesus’ opinion about God’s greatest command. Jesus answered by noting the command to love one’s neighbor, but he said that it was second in importance, not first. The primary command is to love God with all one’s heart, soul, mind and strength. Loving one another is not a substitute for loving God.

A rich man asked Jesus how to inherit eternal life. Jesus told him to sell his possessions and give all the money to the poor, but not so that first-century Palestine would be a more just and equitable place. The young man needed to rid himself of all that would keep him from following Jesus. To be a follower of Jesus was the ultimate goal then as it is now.

Jesus attended to the sick and poor, but he did so in order to bring attention to his message. At the end of his time on earth he gave his followers instructions for carrying on his work. “You all will be my witnesses,” he told them, to everyone everywhere (Acts 1:8). The record shows that Early Christianity’s main focus was placed on announcing the truth about God’s salvation.

Moments before Jesus surrendered his life on a Roman cross, he said, “It is finished.” What was finished? Surely he was not referring to the work of social justice, because as he uttered those words the world was filled with war, poverty, sickness, violence, and despair.

Jesus’ finished work was to give his life as a sacrifice for sin so that all who trust in him will be right with God and spend eternity with the Lord in a place without social injustice and without sin. Help those in need, but put your faith not in social reform, but in the Savior, Christ Jesus the Lord.

Richard Foster, Grace Baptist Church

Published by the Camden News in Religious Reflections April 12, 2013

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April 10, 2013 · 9:34 AM

What is Your Next Step of Faith?

Noah was commended for being righteous, blameless in his generation, and for walking with God (Genesis 6:9). Walking with God seems to be the climax of the list. Not only did he live an upright life, not only was he a bright spot in a corrupt and wicked generation, but he actually walked with the Living God, a very high compliment in Scripture. But what does it mean to walk with God?

The word walk is used in the Bible for a person’s lifestyle. Some of our newer translations simply use the word live. For instance, Galatians 5:16 is sometimes rendered: Live by the Spirit (Galatians 5:16). A literal translation is: Walk by the Spirit. By using the picture of walking we get the idea that our spiritual life is going somewhere. So we can ask: What is the next step in following the Lord?

To live a godly life in an ungodly world was only one step in Noah’s spiritual life. God challenged him to take the next step: to build an ark. If Noah was trying to blend in and stay out of sight, he was in for a surprise. You cannot hide a 450-foot-long, 75-foot-wide, 45-foot-high ark. In order to walk with God, Noah had to do something that would make his faith very public, very noticeable.

Building the ark must have taken many years of hard work. Surely Noah got used to the routine. In addition to all the things he did before, he now had to find time for building that massive floating box. But all the things he did before were still there, providing some continuity. Then, when the ark was finally finished, it was time to take another step of faith, the next step in walking with God.

God instructed Noah to enter the ark with his family. Once inside, God himself closed the door. It’s one thing to build the ark, but it is something else to go inside and leave the past behind. Everything changed for Noah when he took his family inside that ark. God unleashed the flood, and with it his judgment on a wicked and rebellious world. Noah’s life would never be the same.

Noah understood that walking with God meant leaving his comfort zone and following the Lord into the unknown. He knew that he could trust God, even though it meant losing what was familiar to him. Trying to stay in the previous stage of faith would have been a disaster for Noah. He was not called to build arks, but to build one ark and to entrust himself and his family to that one ark. He had to find the courage to take the next step.

What is the next step of faith for me? for you? If we are going to walk with God, then we will be called on by God to move forward one step at a time, not to stand still. Occasionally we will face a step that requires great faith on our part because it means leaving familiar things behind and going on to something new and unprecedented.

Perhaps the Lord is calling you to take the next step of faith by doing something new. To stand still would be like Noah refusing to enter the ark, or to leave it when the time came. Obedience will keep your spiritual life healthy and vital. Jesus is calling us to follow him, one step at a time, hand to the plow, not looking back, and fit for service in the Kingdom of God (Luke 9:62).

May God’s Spirit inspire and enable us to follow Jesus every step of the way,

Brother Richard Foster

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April 3, 2013 · 11:25 AM

King David’s Support

David was an extraordinary man. He was a mighty warrior, a wise king, a gifted musician and poet. As a king in the ancient Near East some 3,000 years ago, he was in a position of almost unquestioned power and authority. David united the people of Israel into a strong and successful nation, subduing all his enemies. He captured Jerusalem and built his capital there, forging a well-deserved reputation as an effective leader.

David’s successes could very easily have persuaded him that he was invincible. Such power and notoriety could have resulted in a man who was proud to the point of arrogance. But in addition to David’s military might, political ability, and musical talent, he was a deeply spiritual man. David trusted the God of heaven and earth implicitly. In fact, it was his trust in the LORD that inspired him to fight and defeat the giant Goliath when David was still a lad.

David is credited with writing many of the Psalms in our Old Testament. In Psalm 18, he expressed his deep love for the LORD in passionate worship. David recognized that the LORD was his strength, his security, his song, and his salvation. In verse 18 he remembered that his enemies confronted him in a day of disaster, but the LORD was his support. David gave God credit for his victory.

In Psalm 18:6 David recounted how he cried out to the LORD when he was in distress. His response to distress is remarkable. When people are in distress they tend to reveal what their real support truly is. Under stress we discover what we really believe, what or whom we really trust. When serious stress hits, different people run to different things for support. Some people simply go into despair. Apparently they have no support at all.

When you are being pressed hard, where do you go for strength, security, and deliverance? What or who is your support? If a man as powerful, popular, smart, successful, and talented as King David needed the LORD for support, surely the rest of us do, too. David cried out to God, and as David recorded in Psalm 18:16, “He reached down from on high and took hold of me.” What better place to be than in the grip of God?

May Almighty God be our support in all that we do,

Brother Richard

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March 27, 2013 · 10:25 AM

Offended or Overjoyed?

It was a legal hearing to determine the charges against him.  The Roman commander had called for the Jewish ruling council to investigate Paul.  If the council was able to prove its charges against him, then the Roman commander would probably turn Paul over to them, and they would almost certainly execute him.

With his own life hanging in the balance, Paul stood to defend himself.  He started by claiming his innocence but the council refused to hear that.  What would he do?  What could he possibly say to a group that was so hostile toward him and bent on ending his life?  Here’s what he did say, “I am on trial because of my hope in the resurrection of the dead.” (See Acts 22:30-23:10)

For the Apostle Paul, everything he believed and everything he lived for came down to the resurrection.  The resurrected Jesus Christ had appeared to Paul on that road to Damascus and everything changed.  Since Jesus was really resurrected, then the resurrection became the most important thing in life.

Not everybody agreed with Paul about the importance of the resurrection.  Paul’s Gospel made many people angry but at the same time it brought great joy to many others.  The message of a resurrected Lord Jesus who is the only Savior sent from God still has the same effects today.  Some are offended that Jesus is presented as the only way to eternal life.  Others are overjoyed.

At Easter we make it a special point to emphasize this one great truth: Jesus was raised again so we will be, too.  Jesus said that a day is coming when all will be raised, the just and the unjust.  Those who did good will rise to live and those who practiced evil will rise to be judged (John 5:28-29).  We rejoice about the resurrection because Jesus himself is our guarantee of goodness.

May God’s Spirit lift you up and fill you with the joy of his salvation,

Brother Richard Foster

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March 20, 2013 · 4:04 PM

Podcast: You Cannot Hide Real Faith

Podcast: You Cannot Hide Real Faith

What does saving faith move us to do?
Dr. Richard Foster explains through Genesis 6:9-22.

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March 19, 2013 · 8:01 AM

The Last Word

Jesus stood before Pilate.  A humble Jewish carpenter who had become an itinerant preacher was at the mercy of the powerful Roman governor.  Jesus stood bound by the chains of disgrace and Pilate stood adorned in the robes of honor.  The preacher was in submission and the statesman was in control—so it seemed.

Jesus had made some powerful enemies among the religious leaders in the city.  Pilate had forged some powerful connections in the ranks of the ruling elite.  Jesus apparently represented nothing more than a small spiritual movement confined to a relatively limited region, a movement that was embraced by just a handful of followers.  Pilate represented the mighty Empire that ruled much of the civilized world.

A lowly preacher was delivered into the hands of a powerful government official.  History thrust these two men against each other, but their conflict appeared to be one-sided.  As events unfolded that busy day in Jerusalem, anyone watching would have given the victory to Pilate and his Empire.  Before the day was done, Jesus had been brutally executed and Pilate still occupied his seat of authority.

Despite his honored status and impressive authority, despite the magnificence of his culture with all its wise laws and brilliant architecture and military might, Pilate and his Roman Empire would fade from its exalted place, left behind by the unstoppable advances of history.  On that Friday morning he seemed to be in command, but his power was not the last word.

Despite his public shame, his painful wounds, his broken body, his spilled blood, and the heavy stone that sealed his corpse in a tomb, Jesus would rise up and give birth to a spiritual movement that would challenge the powers and authorities of this world for two millennia, a movement that continues to challenge the powers and authorities of this world today.  On that Friday morning he seemed to be defeated, but his crucifixion was not the last word.

The turning point was Jesus’ resurrection.  Jesus, it turns out, was not simply a lowly preacher who left behind the life of a carpenter in Nazareth.  Jesus was, and is, the Leader of God’s Kingdom.  His resurrection firmly establishes his vital place in time and eternity.  All kingdoms and empires, all powers and authorities, every leader and every ruler, will not only step aside, but they will bend the knee and they will confess the supremacy of the One Lord sent by God: Jesus Christ the resurrected Savior.

Jesus’ resurrection makes everything clear.  Now we know which kingdom will finally be victorious.  Now we know which kingdom to support and to serve.  Now we know, despite any appearances in the meantime, that citizens of God’s Kingdom will share the ultimate victory for all of eternity.  Now we know that our participation in Christ’s Kingdom, no matter what the cost, is not in vain.

Because of Jesus’ resurrection, we should never lose heart, despite the apparent victories of the powers and authorities in this world.  Because of Jesus’ resurrection we know that all such victories are temporary, fleeting shadows in this passing age.  Because of Jesus’ resurrection we should gather on every Lord’s Day and worship, but especially on Easter.

Easter reminds us that Jesus Christ is the Living Word, the Word of Truth, and the Last Word—we need not wait for another Word from God, Christ is the fullest revelation of God’s glory.  The chains that bound him and the nails that pierced him have long since crumbled.  Jesus the Crucified and Risen One is seated at the right hand of God in glory!  What could possibly keep us from praising him?

May God’s Spirit fill us with the power and the joy of Christ’s resurrection,

Brother Richard Foster, Pastor
Grace Baptist Church, Camden, AR

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March 16, 2013 · 8:45 AM

The Very Words of God

In Psalm 19, we read that the Lord’s law revives the soul and his precepts make glad the heart (Psalm 19:7-8).  These phrases might sound a bit strange to our twenty-first-century ears.  How can laws and principles bring gladness to our hearts?  How can instructions and precepts revive our souls?

Before writing about the joy of the Lord’s precepts, the psalmist first marvels at the greatness of God’s creation.  The breathtaking beauty and unmistakable design of the cosmos point to a powerful and wise Maker.  Seeing the fingerprint of God creates a desire to know the mind of God.  Nature, however, is silent about God’s personal traits.  How can we see beyond the handiwork of God and hear his thoughts, know his mind?

After noting the glory of God in the sky, the psalmist turns to the perfection of God’s laws and precepts.  When the psalmist writes about the Lord’s laws and precepts, he is referring to God’s written Word: the Bible.  In the Bible we read the thoughts and plans of the Maker who called into existence the starry host and who calls them each by name.  From the Scriptures we learn how we can know this mighty Lord of heaven and earth, and how we can experience his blessing.

Most of us have owned a Bible since we were very young.  In fact, most of us have several copies of the Bible, and we can buy as many as we want.  We have grown up being taught what God has revealed about his thoughts and plans.  As a result, we might take for granted what an honor it is to have in our possession the very words of God, who manages spiral galaxies and forms subatomic particles.

What if we started out life without the Bible?  What if we lived for decades in awe of God’s greatness, seeing his handiwork daily, wondering if we could know his thoughts, wanting to find out if this magnificent God can be known?  What if we were in our thirties or forties before we heard Scripture or held a Bible in our hands?  Perhaps then we would experience the reviving of spirit and gladness of heart that the psalmist describes.

The psalmist looked at the sky and marveled at the handiwork of God.  As a result, he expressed a great appreciation for God’s Word.  Greater appreciation for the majesty of the physical world in which we live leads to a greater appreciation for the honor of knowing the thoughts and the plans of the one who made and manages the universe.  Let us never forget how blessed we are to have the very words of God.

May God’s Holy Spirit fill us with unending gratitude for his perfect Word,

Brother Richard

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