Tag Archives: God

April 15, 2019 · 6:38 PM

Using The Gospel Tool

I always enjoy watching professionals work. The experienced and accomplished craftsman is poetry in motion. And my appreciation for their fine-tuned abilities is amplified when I try to use the same tools!

Most tools take time and effort to master. The right tool in the right hands is sweet harmony. As Christians laboring to carry out God’s mission in this age, we must be accomplished at using the right tools. Our primary tool is the gospel. We must work to be experts at using the gospel.

The final mention of the gospel in the New Testament is in the Book of Revelation (14:6). The Apostle John sees an angel flying in the sky and proclaiming the eternal gospel to those on earth, to every nation, tribe, tongue and people. In other words, this is the one true gospel for all peoples, everywhere and always.

The words spoken by this angel may come as a surprise. In a loud voice he says, “Fear God and give him glory, for the hour of his judgment has come; and worship the one who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and the springs of waters.”

When we hear the term “gospel,” we expect the story of Jesus’ death on the cross to forgive our sins and his resurrection from the grave to be our Lord. The angel’s eternal gospel sounds different. It consists of three commands: Fear God, give him glory, and worship him.

Is this a different gospel? No. The Bible assures us that there is only one gospel. But we should distinguish between the gospel and the plan of salvation. The plan of salvation is for God to give eternal life to all who exercise saving faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ.

The gospel (the word means “good news”) is something bigger than the plan of salvation. When Jesus began preaching, his subject was the good news of God’s kingdom. God’s kingdom is every person submitted to God’s rule in their lives. It is true that God rules over everyone, even those who oppose him. But anyone who persists in rejecting him will not enter and enjoy the blessings of his eternal kingdom.

Is the angel’s call for actions other than faith a call to “works salvation”? In other words, if we must do these things to get saved, then salvation is not truly from faith alone, right? But the angel is not denying that salvation is by faith. The angel with the eternal gospel is reminding us of the rest of the story. Once saved, we live saved.

So the plan of salvation is saving faith in Jesus, which is the entryway into God’s kingdom. Once in, what do we do? We fear God, give him glory, and worship him. Anyone who does not want to fear God, give him glory, and worship him does not want to be saved.

To proclaim the plan of salvation without explaining the purposes of salvation would be misleading. Our mission is to share the good news about being saved and living saved. God saves us completely so that we can serve him joyfully.

May God’s Spirit enable us to be faithful in proclaiming his gospel,

Brother Richard Foster

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March 21, 2019 · 2:15 PM

A New Christian Cult?

Some proponents of the LGBT movement insist that it is compatible with Christianity. Is that true? Christianity is defined by the Bible. Does the Bible allow for a new or evolving Christian sexual ethic?

Early in the Bible God established his design for human sexuality. Immediately following the account of God presenting Eve to Adam in Genesis 2, God’s word says, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and will be joined to his wife and the two will become one flesh.”

More than a thousand years later Jesus was questioned about marriage and divorce by the Jewish religious leaders. In his response, in Matthew 19, he affirmed God’s original design for marriage. Jesus asked the religious leaders, “Have you not read? ‘In the beginning he created them male and female,’ and ‘for this reason a man will leave his father and mother and will be joined to his wife and the two will become one flesh’?” The joining of male and female is fundamental to God’s creation.

After Adam and Eve disobeyed God they were cut off from God’s presence and blessing. They began to suffer under the curse that comes from rebellion against God’s word. In the generations that followed, disobedience to God became a sad but predictable trait of humanity.

God was not finished with humanity. In Moses’ day the Lord established a covenant with the Hebrew people, his chosen nation (Israel). That covenant included a body of law that is summarized in the Ten Commandments. The details of God’s law forbade sexual relationships that departed from his established design, which was revealed early in Scripture and subsequently affirmed by Jesus.

The prohibited sexual relationships in God’s law included premarital sex, adultery, incest, bestiality, and same-sex relationships (Leviticus 18). Only the original design for marriage and family was endorsed: One man and one woman freely committed to one another for a lifetime. The prohibitions from Leviticus are affirmed by the New Testament. Regarding same-sex relationships, the letter to the Romans affirms God’s prohibition (chapter 1). We are warned that those who persist in participating and promoting such sinful behavior will be “given over.”

Jesus acknowledged that his appearance and ministry fulfilled certain aspects of the Old Testament law, thus relieving God’s people of their need to observe them. For instance, in an argument with the Jewish religious leaders, Jesus proclaimed all foods clean (Mark 7). Prior to this, certain foods were considered ritually unclean by the Mosaic Law.

Jesus never advanced any deviation or alteration in God’s design for human sexuality. Indeed, he never acknowledged any change in God’s prohibitions against murder, adultery, lying, and many other commandments. In other words, Jesus himself revealed certain changes in the relationship of God’s people to Mosaic legislation, but not regarding human sexuality. There is no positive statement about same-sex relationships anywhere in Scripture.

Any attempt to use Old Testament legislation about trimming hair, making clothes or planting crops as a comparison with human sexuality fails to recognize the special position of marriage and family in God’s plan and his word.

The Bible treats sexual relationships as unique. Although it is true that all sin is alike because all sin separates us from the love and blessing of God, Scripture notes the special status of sexual union. The letter to the Corinthian church warned believers that all other sins are outside one’s body, but sexual sin defiles one’s inner self, a serious matter for any Christian since all believers are living stones in the single structure of God’s temple, his church (1 Corinthians 6; 1 Peter 2).

Why should human sexuality be treated differently from all other sins? God’s gift of sexuality is meant to do more than provide for procreation and pleasure. The marriage relationship is designed by God to reflect his love for his people (Ephesians 5). A Christian marriage is meant to be a living parable of the love relationship between Christ and his church. The church is the Bride of Christ (not any one believer, but the church in total). The Christian wife submits to her husband as the church submits to Christ. The Christian husband loves his wife as Christ loves the church and gave himself for her, a love willing to sacrifice self.

Are faithful, loving, monogamous same-sex relationships true to the intent of Scripture? The “B” in LGBT creates problems with this proposal. To be active bisexually requires more than one partner, thus raising serious questions about fidelity. Since the L and the G stand in solidarity with the B, they apparently express approval of polyamory against the clear design of Scripture.

It is true that the Bible reports times when God’s people engaged in polygamy, but never with approval. In fact, God’s word always highlights the inevitable failures of alternative designs of marriage and family (see Jacob and his wives in Genesis).

Are same-sex relationships in modern times different from those in Bible times? If that were so, it would be logically possible that God did not address modern relationships in the Bible. This would be either a terrible omission by God (creating conflict among us unnecessarily) or evidence that God cannot see the future (discrediting his sovereignty). Neither option is true to the claims made for God in Scripture. God is sovereign and he made no mistakes in his word. His design for human sexuality stands, just as his prohibitions against murder and adultery stand.

Another possibility would be that God has only recently decided to reveal this new view about same-sex relationships. This would put proponents of the New Sex Ethic into the same category as Joseph Smith, who assured his wife that God told him he could have other wives in addition to her. Smith tried to make the case that Christian churches had been wrong for more than a thousand years about human relationships (among other things). He claimed a new revelation directly from God, one which apparently undermined centuries of Christianity.

Proponents of forcing LGBT on God’s church are in the unfortunate position of being another pseudo Christian cult, like Joseph Smith’s group (Mormons), or Charles Taze Russell’s (Jehovah’s Witnesses), or Mary Baker Eddy’s (Christian Science), or one of countless others. Each of these false teachers also claimed special revelation from God that disagreed with the clear word of the Bible.

Those who question the clear word of God are risking association with the Father of all lies (John 8). He was the first to utter the words, “Did God really say. . .?” (Genesis 3). In fact, the biblical prohibitions about human sexuality are stated in clear language. Circumventing them requires twisted and strained logic which serves to justify sinful human desires and passions.

The LGBT community insists on defining personal identity by sexual orientation. Followers of Jesus find their identity in Christ. Jesus calls on anyone who would follow him to deny himself, take up his cross, and follow him (Matthew 16). Jesus will not take second place to any human ideology, desire, or philosophy. His followers must renounce all idols, including sinful notions of human sexuality.

When responding to skeptics about the resurrection, Jesus surprised his listeners by revealing that marriage will be absent in heaven (Matthew 22). We may conclude from this that sexual orientation is a matter for this age only. At best, sexual orientation is a temporary part of our identity. Our eternal identity will not depend on our sexuality. For those who have taken the blessing of sex and perverted it into the ultimate goal of life and the cornerstone of their identity, Jesus’ heaven may sound more like hell.

The great missionary Apostle Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, wrote to the believers in Rome, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the ways of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds” (Romans 12).

“Living sacrifices” is a reminder of Jesus’ exhortation to “deny self.” The follower of Jesus is not pulled through life by the ebb and flow of human desire. Jesus’ people find their pathway in life from him, from his example. Jesus was willing to deny himself of his very life in order to complete his mission. These are the footprints he has left for all who wish to be his disciples (1 Peter 2).

So what about the one who is attracted to the same sex? What is he or she to do? Predictably, the Bible’s answers have already been attacked, mocked, and deemed to be completely unacceptable by pop-culture proponents of LGBT. Nevertheless, like God’s design for sex, his word to those with same-sex attractions stands.

First, God’s word to the one with same-sex attraction is the same as it is to all people: Seek him in prayer. Don’t misquote me. I am not saying “Pray away the gay.” Despite the derogatory tone of this phrase, I know from first-hand experience that God has the power to change our desires. But God works according to his time table and his agenda. We must patiently endure. Prayer is not merely about persuading God to do something now. Prayer is communion with God which includes listening for his Spirit and gaining wisdom from our experiences in life (see the Book of Job).

Second, God sometimes calls people to celibacy. It is no surprise that worldly minds reject this option without any serious consideration. The world says, “Indulge yourself!” Jesus says, “Deny yourself.” Jesus recognized celibacy as a special calling in God’s kingdom (Matthew 19). The Bible envisions a church where most are married but some are freed from the commitments of an intimate physical relationship in order to invest more time and energy in kingdom pursuits (1 Corinthians 7).

Same-sex relationships undoubtedly include authentic human desire and affection. But human emotions are notoriously prone to manipulation and to unpredictable fluctuations. Human affection is not a dependable moral compass. In fact, the power of sexual attraction has shipwrecked many a life and family. Any who choose to “follow their heart” instead of submitting to God’s word should beware the consequences.

The ways of this world have always pulled God’s people away from his truth. Pop-culture in the West has embraced LGBT in a rapid and unprecedented way, sweeping away established cultural norms and laws about marriage and family while threatening to ruin any who stand in the way. To disagree with this New Ethic is to risk being charged with hate speech, a circumstance that reveals the intolerance of the LGBT movement. But we must choose between God’s word and those who claim that God’s word doesn’t mean what it clearly says.

Any attempts to promote prohibited sexual relationships as acceptable expressions of human sexuality misunderstand and misrepresent God’s word. Unfaithful relationships do not reflect the pure and faithful love that God has for his people and that his people are to aspire to for him. Same-sex relationships do not reflect the joining of what is different yet compatible, God and his church, husband and wife.

The writer of this article is sympathetic with those who find themselves attracted to people of the same sex. Human affections are strong. God made us passionate people. He is a passionate God and we are made in his image. But our passions are wounded by sin and subject to manipulation, temptation and deception.

If you are struggling with same-sex attractions, please do not despair. The story of your life is yet to be finished. We all struggle with sin. Sinners are not the enemy of the church. Sinners are the intended targets of God’s grace and mercy! God’s word assures us that he opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble (James 4).

If you are promoting the erroneous idea that same-sex relationships are endorsed by God and working to persuade others to agree with you, I urge you to reconsider. Jesus warns that anyone who breaks the least of God’s commands and teaches others to do likewise will be called least in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5).

Christ Jesus assures us that heaven and earth will pass away, but his words will never pass away (Matthew 24). How many popular movements that questioned God’s word have come and gone in the past two millennia since he made that promise? Every generation sees its challenges to God’s truth, but the challengers have always eventually faded away and they always will. Each of us should decide to build on the rock of God’s faithful and unwavering truth, not the sand of the world’s shifting desires and ideas.

Brother Richard Foster

Please note: Bible references above give only book and chapter. This is by design. Too often debates about the Bible’s message employ verses and even smaller sections of Scripture without due consideration of their context, thus misrepresenting God’s intended meaning. I invite the reader to examine carefully the context of my biblical quotations, testing their applications for faithfulness to God’s word.

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January 30, 2019 · 2:40 PM

Applauding The Deaths Of Our Little Ones

What a sad day. People stood and applauded. Buildings were lit up in festive pink to celebrate the event. New York State now allows abortions up to birth for any reason.

Considering the gravity of such a move, deciding whether a human being will be violently robbed of life, one might expect more somber looks. One might expect a sad-but-necessary attitude. No. They were happy.

The picture of the signing which circulated in the media shows people filled with joy. They look like a group who just declared a new holiday, another chance for fun and recreation. If this is a holiday, it is a holiday from sanity and common sense.

To add insult to injury, the New York bill is titled the “Reproductive Health Act.” The only accurate word in that title is “act.” This heinous act is an enemy to reproduction. Reproduction, new human life, will be extinguished because of this bill.

And there is nothing healthy about violently denying a baby its right to life. It is not healthy for the mother, her family, for the medical professional, for the community, and certainly not for the baby.

Advances in science over the past 20 to 30 years have consistently supported the fact that a fetus is a life. Successful surgeries on babies before they are born, amazing survival rates of children born long before their due dates, and other astounding medical treatments on little boys and girls developing inside their mothers’ wombs all place the burden of proof squarely on those who would de-humanize the fetus.

Perhaps even more powerful than the voice of science is the testimony of images. Imaging technology has enabled us to see with astonishing clarity the life of our unborn. And seeing is believing. The images are not of disease or random tissue, but of individual lives.

The persuasive power of these images is admitted by those who wish to kill more babies. More than 15 yeas ago a photographer was in the operating room when doctors were performing surgery on a little boy in his mother’s womb. The child stunned the world by reaching up and grabbing the doctor’s finger. The picture was taken, but almost destroyed.

By a strange turn of events the man who snapped that picture stood in my office several years ago. He told me about the outrageous efforts that were made to keep his picture from being published. Why? Because in this case one picture is worth millions of words and perhaps millions of lives.

As followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, we stand for life. Each and every boy and girl is made in the image of God and deserves a chance to grow up and walk with God and enjoy his blessings.

We believe in more than just physical birth and life. We believe in spiritual life. Every person deserves to hear that God so loved the world that he sent his one and only Son, Jesus, so that anyone trusting in him will not perish (hell) but have eternal life (heaven), to be born again.

The voice of truth will not be denied. God’s Spirit will raise up men and women to courageously stand for life. Let’s answer that call. If our children see us retreat, then they will be more likely to retreat and our grandchildren will suffer. If our children see us stand firm, then they will be more likely to stand firm, and our grandchildren will benefit.

May God’s Spirit inspire and empower us to speak the truth in love,

Brother Richard

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January 14, 2019 · 9:41 AM

What Is God’s?

Jesus raised this question with one of his most familiar sayings.  He was being tested by the religious leaders in Jerusalem.

They asked Jesus if it was right to pay taxes to Caesar.  Caesar was the leader of the Roman Empire, an uninvited and unwelcome occupier in Jerusalem and Israel.

Since the Jews hated their Roman overlords, Jesus would be risking the displeasure of the people if he agreed with paying Roman taxes.  But if he openly encouraged people not to pay their taxes then he would be seen as a threat to Rome, very hazardous.

Jesus’ response is famous.  He asked his opponents for a coin, then asked them whose image and inscription were on the coin.  “Caesar’s,” they answered.  Jesus concluded, “Then give the things of Caesar to Caesar, and the things of God to God.”

The men who came to trap Jesus were amazed by his response.  They left without further comment.

The question and Jesus’ answer make it clear that the “things of Caesar” include money.  But what about the “things of God”?  Since money is at the forefront of their conversation, it is natural to ask what financial responsibility we have to God.

The Old Testament saint was instructed by God’s word to give a tithe (10% of income).  What does Jesus say to his New Testament followers?

Jesus noticed a poor widow who gave two small coins as an offering to the Lord.  Even though her money was not worth much, it was everything she had.  Did Jesus rebuke her for giving such a meager amount?  Was he troubled because she gave too much?

Jesus drew a contrast between the woman and the other worshipers.  They gave out of their wealth, but she gave out of her poverty.  Jesus praised her gift, not because of its great monetary value, but because of the great love and faith it expressed.

The Lord was not introducing a new command for God’s people to give 100% of their money in offerings.  God blesses us with work and income so that we can provide for ourselves and our families.  Jesus is honoring the widow’s special offering.

Jesus revealed his mind about giving when he told his followers this: Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  The one who gives a small portion to God has a small heart for God.

The cheerful giver is not restrained by rules and regulations.  Tithing is a great starting point, but a debt of love is never paid in full because the heart of love is always eager to give.

Giving is an act of worship to God and an expression of agreement with God.  We give regularly and generously to the Lord because we love him, and we want to participate in the victory of his great kingdom work.

May God’s Spirit inspire us to be cheerful givers to him and his kingdom,

Brother Richard Foster

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December 10, 2018 · 12:11 PM

Have We Forgotten Part of Christmas?

We celebrate God’s great gift at Christmas, but have we misunderstood it?

Inspired by his love, God has given his Son Jesus to be our Savior. The value of this gift is beyond calculation. Is there nothing that we can or should do in response?

Jesus and his sacrifice at Calvary are the essence of God’s amazing grace. Given 10,000 lifetimes we could never do enough good deeds to earn such an astounding act of mercy and its eternal blessings. And if we could earn it, God’s grace would no longer be a gift, right?

In Jesus’ own teaching we find an important aspect of his God-given mission that we dare not miss. During a conflict with the Jewish religious leaders just days before his crucifixion, our Lord told a parable that reveals something vital about a healthy relationship with the God of grace.

In Jesus’ parable a landowner entrusts his vineyard to tenant farmers. The farmers refuse to turn over the fruit of the vineyard when the landowner sends his servants to collect. They even kill the landowner’s son when he comes for the harvest.

The landowner represents God, the farmers are the religious leaders, and the son is Jesus. God sent Jesus looking for spiritual fruit from the Jewish religious leaders, but they rejected him, even plotting against him and having him crucified.

Jesus warns these religious leaders that God’s kingdom will be taken away from them and given to a people who will produce its fruit. The new people who take up responsibility for God’s kingdom is the Christian church. As followers of Jesus, we are now the farmers in God’s vineyard, blessed with the opportunity and honor of producing fruit for God.

God’s desire for spiritual fruit from his people is a common theme in Jesus’ teaching. A tree is known by its fruit. Only a good tree can bear good fruit. A tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

But what does the fruit represent? First, a holy life. God is holy and his people are to live holy lives. When God’s people live holy and righteous lives in an unholy and unrighteous world, they bear testimony to God’s goodness, shining like light in a dark place.

In addition to a holy life, God expects his people to be faithful witnesses. God entrusts his word to his people. His word is not meant to be hidden away like a lamp under a bowl. It is meant to be scattered like seed, finding receptive hearts and bearing fruit for eternal life.

God gives us his kingdom, an astounding expression of his marvelous grace. We did nothing to earn the honor of working in his kingdom. But fruitful labor in God’s vineyard is the proper response to God’s grace. God’s grace is not meant to lie fallow in our lives, idle and useless.

Jesus said, “I am the vine, you are the branches. If a man remains in me, and I in him, he will bear much fruit. Apart from me you can do nothing.” We need not fear failure. With Christ as our source we will share in a great harvest, an eternal victory.

As we rejoice over God’s great gift this Christmas let’s also remember and celebrate the fact that God has blessed us with fruitful labor in his eternal kingdom. The proper response to the gift of Jesus is to give ourselves to God in service.

May God’s Spirit enable us to bear much fruit for his kingdom,

Brother Richard

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November 6, 2018 · 1:39 PM

Jesus Goes Viral

Jesus’ popularity with the people came and went.  Once he had a group of more than 5,000 that followed him out into a wilderness region. No building, no music, no food, no port-o-potties, but they stayed with Jesus for days.  He was ‘in.’

Suddenly the crowd was gone and Jesus was back to his small group of 12 disciples.  All it took to turn the people away was for Jesus to teach them the truth. He was ‘out.’

On another occasion excited crowds of thousands of people were singing Jesus’ praises.  It was almost time for the great Passover Feast.  The city of Jerusalem was filled to overflowing with worshipers from all over.

Jesus traveled from Galilee to attend the feast.  He walked the entire way, as he always did.  But once he was near Jerusalem he insisted on riding a donkey into the city.

Jesus wanted to make a point.  He was fulfilling a prophecy spoken by God through Zechariah, “Tell the people of Jerusalem, ‘Look! your king comes to you meek and riding on a donkey, on the foal of a beast of burden.’”

One day God’s promised Messiah, the Anointed King of Israel who would rule forever, would come into Jerusalem riding on a donkey.  This was that day and Jesus was the man!

The crowd spread their garments on the road in front of Jesus’ donkey, along with branches cut from nearby trees.  This was their version of the ‘red-carpet treatment.’

They also cried out in praise of Jesus, “Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!  Hosanna in the highest!”  They openly acknowledged him to be God’s chosen ruler, King of Jerusalem, King of Israel.

People in the city were stirred up by the commotion and asked, “Who is this?”  The crowd answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”  So, not only did they recognize him as God’s chosen king, but they also realized that Jesus was God’s chosen spokesman, the prophet.

One thing they missed: Jesus came gently, riding on a beast of burden to show that his mission was one of a servant, the Suffering Servant prophesied by Isaiah.  John the Baptist said it this way, “Behold! the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.”

Jesus was king, prophet, and priest.  And not just any priest.  This priest was also the sacrifice.  Days later when Jesus stood before Pilate, he was ready to die.  The crowds were no longer friendly.  “Crucify him!” they cried out.  What happened?

The crowds wanted a king to defeat their current political enemy: Rome.  Romans occupied and ruled their country and Israel wanted liberation.  But Jesus came to bring spiritual freedom and eternal life, not temporary political relief.

To stay popular, Jesus would have to change his mission and do what the crowd wanted.  But Jesus’ mission was greater.  Praise God, Jesus stayed with his God-given mission and did not succumb to the pressure of popularity!

Popularity still calls out today.  Many will do almost anything to please the adoring crowds, to gain more followers, to get more ‘likes.’  But the crowd’s goals are rarely in step with God’s.  The only ‘like’ we really need is the love of God.  The only followers we need to make are disciples of Jesus.

May God’s Spirit keep the eyes of our hearts on the things above,

Brother Richard

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October 3, 2018 · 11:45 AM

Moses’ Advice for Twenty-First Century Christians

Every follower of Jesus faces three powerful enemies. First, Satan prowls around like a lion looking for those he can devour. Second, the world is filled with sin that entangles and destroys. And third, our own sinful desires draw us away from the Lord.

When the people of Israel were ready to go in and take possession of the Promised Land, their leader Moses knew that they would face these spiritual enemies. So he gave them instructions on living in God’s victory and blessing (see Deuteronomy 6).

Moses said, “Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all you heart, soul and strength. These commandments that I am giving you today are to be on your hearts.”

The commandments Moses speaks of are primarily the Ten Commandments, but also the many applications of those commandments in their daily lives. These words of God were to be on the hearts of God’s people.

Moses continued speaking about God’s commandments, “Impress them on your children. Speak about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the way, when you lie down and when you get up.”

In addition to having God’s word on their hearts, they were to have God’s word in their homes, obeying it in their daily lives and speaking about it with their children. In this way they would pass God’s word on to the next generation.

Then Moses said about the commandments, “Tie them on your hands as symbols and bind them to your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”

The “gate” of an ancient city was the place of official business, much like the courthouses in towns and cities today. Moses is telling the people that private faith is insufficient. They had to take God’s word into their communities, into the public square.

So, in addition to having God’s word on their hearts and in their homes, they were to have God’s word in their communities. Only with the word of God’s truth would God’s people be victorious over their enemies.

The same dynamics are in play now. As God’s people, we face powerful resistance to God’s eternal truth. We need to carry God’s word into the public square, into our communities. This is our only hope for pushing back the darkness that presses in from every side.

Please notice, however, that we will not have God’s word in our communities until we have it in our homes, impressing it on our children. And we will not have God’s word in our homes if we do not have it on our hearts.

Victory in the public square begins in the heart of each and every believer. Every man and woman of faith must diligently read, passionately believe, and faithfully obey the Bible. Without the sure foundation of God’s word, we can build nothing of lasting importance. With it we will overcome!

May God’s empowering Presence inspire and enable us to carry his word into our communities,

Brother Richard

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September 6, 2018 · 4:19 PM

Prayer For A Nation

God makes a promise about prayer in 2 Chronicles:

. . . and (if) my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their evil ways, then I myself will hear from the heavens, forgive their sin, and heal their land. (7:14)

The Lord is speaking to King Solomon. At the dedication of the new temple in Jerusalem Solomon prayed publicly and asked God to always answer the prayers offered at the temple.

Thirteen years later God is finally answering Solomon’s request. That’s a long delay but hearing from God is worth the wait!

To understand God’s answer to Solomon we must move back one verse. God tells Solomon, “When I stop the rain or send locusts to devour the land or if I send a pestilence, and my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray” etc.

God’s promise is about those times when he uses natural disasters to soften hard hearts and bend stiff necks. Extreme weather is now blamed on man-made global warming (or “climate change”). Nevertheless, God is still the master of nature and the Bible clearly says that he sometimes employs nature to get our attention (see Exodus 9).

Of course, every bad storm is not a judgment from God. Jesus used a storm on the Sea of Galilee to demonstrate his divine authority by commanding the wind and the waves to stop. He made no mention of any national sin.

The point is this: When God’s people disobey him and deserve his judgment, God offers a pathway to return to his favor.

First, God’s people must humble themselves. Genuine humility starts with attitude and stirs action. The Israelites often humbled themselves by fasting. Skipping meals was a way to demonstrate that they were contrite.

Next, God’s people must pray. When combined, prayer and fasting are powerful. By fasting and praying God’s people demonstrate their desire to connect with God.

In addition, God’s people must seek his face, that is, his personal presence. Seeking requires time and effort. When God’s people gather for combined prayer and fasting the purpose is to experience God’s powerful, personal presence.

Finally, God’s people must turn from their evil ways. No amount of fasting, praying and seeking will solve the problem if God’s people defiantly persist in disobeying his commands.

To simply turn from evil ways without turning to God would also be short of the goal. The objective is always to enjoy God and his favor.

God promises to hear from heaven despite the chasm between him and his people. God will then forgive their sin and heal their land, both spiritual and physical restoration. He is Lord of the visible and the invisible, of individuals and of nations.

As followers of Jesus we are God’s people now and we share in this wonderful promise about prayer. So let’s humbly seek the Lord in prayer, turning from sin to him. God will hear and restore.

May God always hear from heaven and visit us with his healing presence,

Brother Richard

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August 1, 2018 · 10:26 AM

Christians are Prone to Wander

The Bible often pictures God’s people as a flock of sheep.  Apparently, God sees some things in common between people of faith and small wooly livestock.  How are believers and sheep alike?

One point of comparison is noted by Peter.  He writes to Christians, “For you were like sheep going astray. . .” (1 Peter 2:25).  Sheep tend to stray from the safety of their shepherd and his flock.  On their own, in the open, sheep face a variety of dangers: predators, cliffs, thieves, and so forth.

Christians also tend to stray away from the safety of the Shepherd, our Lord Jesus, and from his flock, the church.  Like straying sheep, straying Christians face various threats.

The New Testament warns believers about 3 spiritual dangers.  First, the devil is like a roaring lion prowling around looking for someone to devour.  Second, this broken world is full of temptations that can entrap believers and shipwreck their faith.  And third, the ‘flesh’ is an inner threat, sinful desires that pull us back to a destructive lifestyle of disobedience to God.

To the believers who had once strayed Peter goes on to say, “but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”  Of course, the Shepherd and Overseer of their souls is Jesus, the Good Shepherd who laid down his life for the sheep.

Safety from the devil, the world, and the flesh is found in close communion with Christ.  And Christ gathers his followers into his church like a shepherd gathers his sheep into his flock.  In the flock, under the watchful eye of the shepherd, the sheep find security from every danger.

And more than protection, the sheep find provision when they are in the flock.  The shepherd leads his flock to green pastures and quiet waters, the necessities and joys of a healthy and enriched life.

Our Shepherd Jesus has come so that his flock may have abundant life.  Following Jesus, we find the provisions necessary for a strong faith.  The Shepherd and Overseer of our souls nurtures us so that we can grow in the grace of God and enjoy his blessings to the fullest extent.

Peter’s warning against straying reminds us that a spiritual downfall often begins in subtle ways.  Wandering away from the Lord is a gradual process that may go unnoticed until disaster strikes.  The wandering believer is rarely alarmed and often in denial about potential dangers.

James writes to Christians, “My brothers, if one among you strays from the truth, then someone should bring him back” (James 5:19).  As God’s people our highest goal is to be like Jesus, which includes seeking and restoring those who wander away.  Doing so is one way that we are his hands and feet.

A wonderful old hymn says, “Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love.”  Knowing that God’s people are prone to wander, we should faithfully seek out those who do.  And if you or I happen to be the wanderer, we should be gracious when they come looking for us.

May the Good Shepherd always keep us,

Brother Richard

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July 14, 2018 · 1:34 PM

Coming Home to God’s Truth About Marriage

Jesus was questioned about marriage and divorce by hostile Jewish religious leaders. They hoped to trick him into saying something that would cause him trouble.

Jesus quoted from Genesis, reminding them that God established a design for marriage when he created Adam and Eve. He made them male and female, and for this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife and they will become one flesh.

Jesus emphasized the permanent nature of marriage by adding these words: “They are no longer two but one flesh, so what God has joined together let no one separate.” God’s design for marriage is one man and one woman freely and fully committed to each other for life.

The religious leaders thought they had trapped Jesus into contradicting Scripture. They said, “Why, then, did Moses command to give her a certificate of divorce and send her away?”

Jesus corrected them. Moses allowed divorce; he did not command it. And he allowed divorce, Jesus said, because of people’s hard hearts. It was not God’s design or desire. In fact, God sees unwarranted divorce and remarriage as adultery.

But God also knows that hearts sometimes become so hard that broken relationships are the inevitable result. So he makes concessions, but he does not change his design. The goal is still a faithful union between one man and one woman. A divorce in the past need not keep us from succeeding at God’s design for marriage now.

Jesus is saying that some parts of the Bible are weightier, or more fundamental, than other parts. God’s original design for marriage is more fundamental than his allowance for failed marriages. The concession does not cancel the design.

Jesus’ disciples were listening carefully to this discussion. They were surprised by Jesus’ strict view of marriage. Perhaps it would be better not to marry at all, they suggested.

Jesus agreed that some people are called to live single, but not so they can engage in open and temporary physical relationships. God’s call to live single is a call to live celibate, and to devote oneself to God’s kingdom work in a special way.

Jesus’ words are helpful for Christians today. Our culture is rejecting God’s design for marriage. As a result, many people have suffered broken homes and strained relationships.

If we reject everyone who has deviated from God’s design for marriage, then we are raising unnecessary barriers to the life-changing experience of God’s transforming grace. On the other hand, if we follow the world in redefining marriage and sexual morals, then we are misrepresenting God and his truth.

We should model our lives after Jesus. He unapologetically exalts God’s unchanging design for marriage, but he also extends God’s mercy and grace for hearts that were once hard but are now open and willing to come home to God’s truth.

May we be faithful agents of God’s holiness and his grace,

Brother Richard Foster

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