Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Kyrios Theos
Elohim, Yahweh, El-Shaddai, Jehovah-M’Kaddesh, Jehovah-rophe…whatever Name the Lord God called Himself in His Word as He revealed Himself…He IS.
He is not your god to create, change, adapt to your personal needs! The only way He is your God is if you are willing to come to Him and worship Him for who He is and what He said. And I don’t mean what He said in The Da Vinci Code! Or the gospel of Judas, Philip, or Thomas!
Some Christians know what I’m talking about and many, many don’t. I called my friend from the PCA neither of us attends anymore. She has grown much in the Lord and it was such a comfort to have support in the faith. So much of my Christian activity involves proceeding with caution. As my friend said, aren’t we supposed to find unity and comfort in the church, our support group? Yet much effort is needed to sift through the muck. Why? The answer at my Bible study was the broad answer given to me by an interim pastor…Jesus Christ as our Savior is our unifying belief. I would and did suggest differently. "The authority of God’s Word as True" brought dissension but there was one in agreement because she had come from a church split. The cause: refusing God's authority in His Word.
The Church is in a shambles. I don’t blame the Bible study leader for what she did. It was innocent. After all, she researched it using multiple commentaries; she is careful. What is a teacher to do when Christian educated leaders, scholars, writers, and preachers ARE WRONG? Yet now she will be held accountable for what she teaches! By God! Like me.
I am thankful that God has helped me rely on His Word, shown me a commentary that does not dispute it, and strengthened my conviction. He gets ALL the credit. If I’m going to teach it, why would I risk offending my Lord by cutting and pasting His Truth. Here’s the kicker. Christians, including my study leader, are professing to believe the Bible is God’s divinely inspired revelation and then use all the liberal excuses…”well that was the culture back then”, “historical context is important”, or “my god (the real Lamb baster!) wouldn’t do that!”
No, my friend on the phone agreed, taking God at His Word, trusting that He wouldn’t allow errors and cultural adaptation, historical mutations, this is hard!
The text under interrogation isn’t even the usual Paul writing! I wonder if Jesus said it here and now, would the Bible study leader raise her hand and ask, “Do you mean me? Wasn’t that the rule way back when?” Matthew 5:31 and 32, Jesus releases only adultery victims from their wedding vows. What about victims of wife-beaters? Hold on to your hats, because with that, the words of our Kyrios are made null and void by many reasoning Christians! First of all, Jesus didn’t say, “Stick with your man no matter what!” He could actually mean for the woman to remain married but separated. Other Scripture has to be weighed in. Is it lawful for a woman to be beaten by anyone? The guy belongs in freakin’ jail! Jesus said this in the Sermon on the Mount for a reason, and where that leaves the woman? Maybe alone…with children. That is very hard to accept. But “My god wouldn’t…” limits God and expands man’s authority based on a finite view. BTW, the punishment for adultery was death, so my commentary purports this adultery Jesus refers to is unfaithfulness, disobedience, contentiousness of a relational kind other than sex.
Think bigger. Jesus is saying the Church will be under penalty if it commits adultery…you know, fools around with various and sundry gods and idols, false teaching? Jesus can and probably will divorce the Bride who betrays Him like God did with Israel(Jer. 3:8). Who is the adulteress? The one who casually, flippantly says to a group of vulnerable women, “My God wouldn’t do that!” Would YOUR God hang His own Son on a cross and penalize His innocent Body and Soul to Hell? God is tough! Who can comprehend it? God is holy. God is Truth. God is Just. God is Love.
I love what my friend in the study offered! In the context of God’s plan…Jesus might have stuck us with a wife-beater with no earthly recourse but God, Jehovah-jireh, has also provided salvation. If you are remarried, He forgives. If you made a mistake in your marriage, God forgives.
The glory is, when we repent of our wrongs, when we realize we blew it, our Father who also loves perfectly, has redeemed us by the blood of His sweet Son. He will be our Helper and Strength in any situation. I knew a Christian woman who insisted God’s will was to stick it out. I could hardly accept it then and I barely can now. God does give strength and peace to His faithful. I saw His mighty Hand in that woman’s life. His will, not ours, be done.
He is not your god to create, change, adapt to your personal needs! The only way He is your God is if you are willing to come to Him and worship Him for who He is and what He said. And I don’t mean what He said in The Da Vinci Code! Or the gospel of Judas, Philip, or Thomas!
Some Christians know what I’m talking about and many, many don’t. I called my friend from the PCA neither of us attends anymore. She has grown much in the Lord and it was such a comfort to have support in the faith. So much of my Christian activity involves proceeding with caution. As my friend said, aren’t we supposed to find unity and comfort in the church, our support group? Yet much effort is needed to sift through the muck. Why? The answer at my Bible study was the broad answer given to me by an interim pastor…Jesus Christ as our Savior is our unifying belief. I would and did suggest differently. "The authority of God’s Word as True" brought dissension but there was one in agreement because she had come from a church split. The cause: refusing God's authority in His Word.
The Church is in a shambles. I don’t blame the Bible study leader for what she did. It was innocent. After all, she researched it using multiple commentaries; she is careful. What is a teacher to do when Christian educated leaders, scholars, writers, and preachers ARE WRONG? Yet now she will be held accountable for what she teaches! By God! Like me.
I am thankful that God has helped me rely on His Word, shown me a commentary that does not dispute it, and strengthened my conviction. He gets ALL the credit. If I’m going to teach it, why would I risk offending my Lord by cutting and pasting His Truth. Here’s the kicker. Christians, including my study leader, are professing to believe the Bible is God’s divinely inspired revelation and then use all the liberal excuses…”well that was the culture back then”, “historical context is important”, or “my god (the real Lamb baster!) wouldn’t do that!”
No, my friend on the phone agreed, taking God at His Word, trusting that He wouldn’t allow errors and cultural adaptation, historical mutations, this is hard!
The text under interrogation isn’t even the usual Paul writing! I wonder if Jesus said it here and now, would the Bible study leader raise her hand and ask, “Do you mean me? Wasn’t that the rule way back when?” Matthew 5:31 and 32, Jesus releases only adultery victims from their wedding vows. What about victims of wife-beaters? Hold on to your hats, because with that, the words of our Kyrios are made null and void by many reasoning Christians! First of all, Jesus didn’t say, “Stick with your man no matter what!” He could actually mean for the woman to remain married but separated. Other Scripture has to be weighed in. Is it lawful for a woman to be beaten by anyone? The guy belongs in freakin’ jail! Jesus said this in the Sermon on the Mount for a reason, and where that leaves the woman? Maybe alone…with children. That is very hard to accept. But “My god wouldn’t…” limits God and expands man’s authority based on a finite view. BTW, the punishment for adultery was death, so my commentary purports this adultery Jesus refers to is unfaithfulness, disobedience, contentiousness of a relational kind other than sex.
Think bigger. Jesus is saying the Church will be under penalty if it commits adultery…you know, fools around with various and sundry gods and idols, false teaching? Jesus can and probably will divorce the Bride who betrays Him like God did with Israel(Jer. 3:8). Who is the adulteress? The one who casually, flippantly says to a group of vulnerable women, “My God wouldn’t do that!” Would YOUR God hang His own Son on a cross and penalize His innocent Body and Soul to Hell? God is tough! Who can comprehend it? God is holy. God is Truth. God is Just. God is Love.
I love what my friend in the study offered! In the context of God’s plan…Jesus might have stuck us with a wife-beater with no earthly recourse but God, Jehovah-jireh, has also provided salvation. If you are remarried, He forgives. If you made a mistake in your marriage, God forgives.
The glory is, when we repent of our wrongs, when we realize we blew it, our Father who also loves perfectly, has redeemed us by the blood of His sweet Son. He will be our Helper and Strength in any situation. I knew a Christian woman who insisted God’s will was to stick it out. I could hardly accept it then and I barely can now. God does give strength and peace to His faithful. I saw His mighty Hand in that woman’s life. His will, not ours, be done.
