Deuteronomy 30:1-19

“In the future, when you experience all these blessings and curses I have listed for you, and when you are living among the nations to which the Lord your God has exiled you, take to heart all these instructions. 2 If at that time you and your children return to the Lord your God, and if you obey with all your heart and all your soul all the commands I have given you today, 3 then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes. He will have mercy on you and gather you back from all the nations where he has scattered you. 4 Even though you are banished to the ends of the earth, the Lord your God will gather you from there and bring you back again. 5 The Lord your God will return you to the land that belonged to your ancestors, and you will possess that land again. Then he will make you even more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors!

6 “The Lord your God will change your heart and the hearts of all your descendants, so that you will love him with all your heart and soul and so you may live! 7 The Lord your God will inflict all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate and persecute you. 8 Then you will again obey the Lord and keep all his commands that I am giving you today.

9 “The Lord your God will then make you successful in everything you do. He will give you many children and numerous livestock, and he will cause your fields to produce abundant harvests, for the Lord will again delight in being good to you as he was to your ancestors. 10 The Lord your God will delight in you if you obey his voice and keep the commands and decrees written in this Book of Instruction, and if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and soul.

11 “This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand, and it is not beyond your reach. 12 It is not kept in heaven, so distant that you must ask, ‘Who will go up to heaven and bring it down so we can hear it and obey?’ 13 It is not kept beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear it and obey?’ 14 No, the message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it.

15 “Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster. 16 For I command you this day to love the Lord your God and to keep his commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in his ways. If you do this, you will live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you and the land you are about to enter and occupy.

17 “But if your heart turns away and you refuse to listen, and if you are drawn away to serve and worship other gods, 18 then I warn you now that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live a long, good life in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy.

19 “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! 20 You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him. This is the key to your life…

God

Questions...

Here are some answers to a few questions one of City Life's CNU students posed recently.  I thought I'd share them on the blog.  The first was regarding time and how time affects God, the second was about the nature of the Trinity, third was why God demanded animal sacrifices in ancient times, and finally about a friend who believes in God but has not made a vow of devotion to Jesus...

For time, I agree that God is outside of time but still, He is very conscious of time.  Mainly, because He created time.  Time as we know it in the temporal realm did not exist before creation.  My textual support for this is the pattern you read in Genesis 1.  You find this phrase in Genesis 1:5 , "And evening passed and morning came, marking the first day."  Notice how it repeats on each day of creation.  Now there is much debate as to whether or not this was an exact 24 hour cycle but regardless of what one may conclude about the duration of the creation days, they are at their very essence, time.  God created time, I believe, because He loves order and time helps to order our existence.  He though is not subject to time.  Time is subject to Him.  In Isaiah 38:8 and referenced again in 2 Kings 20:11, we read how God caused a shadow to move backwards.  In Joshua 10:13 we read where God held time still for a day...everything is subject to God.  All of creation is subject to His sovereignty.

The doctrine of The Trinity, while is foundational to Christianity, is one of Christianity's deepest mysteries.  In fact, the word "trinity" does not appear in the Bible, anywhere.  It is a word mankind has created to express one of our core beliefs, that The Father, The Son, and The Spirit are all divine and while individual, they are indivisible...3 in 1.  Part of being a follower of Christ is embracing truth without being able to enjoy total understanding.  I don't know if I fully grasp your statement that Jesus is a representation of His Word.  He is, but He is more than that.  He is.  Something that sets Christianity apart from most other world religions is the pre-existence of Jesus.  For example, in His prayer in John 17, Jesus speaks of His existence with God in Heaven before coming to earth (verse 5).  Mohammed got his start just like you and me...he didn't exist and then conception...existence.  Jesus existed before conception, in Heaven, with God.  The first three chapters of Colossians would be a great read for you!  So, for Jesus, He came in what is commonly referred to as "the fullness of time."  Many believe the timing was perfect because for the first time the civilized world had a common language, expansive road system, and also Jewish people were living all throughout the Roman empire (critical because they held the key to understanding the purposefulness of Jesus' atoning death which is why The Apostle Paul always taught in Jewish synagogues first in every city he visited).  This enabled the spreading of good news of Jesus, The Gospel.  Of course, ultimately, the timing was perfect because it was the time God chose!

Regarding sacrifices, I believe these are critical because God was establishing the need for an atoning sacrifice to be made for sin.  In fact, the very first one isn't found in Leviticus but rather Genesis.  God kills animals to clothe the nakedness of Adam and Eve.  This wasn't just to meet a practical need but to also establish a prophetic picture of the death that Jesus would one day offer to cover the sins of the world.  Israel was chosen by God to reveal Himself to the world.  All their laws were divided into three distinct categories:  civil, ceremonial, and moral.  The moral aspects are timeless, like the 10 Commandments.  The civil aspects will change based on history and culture...however basic instructive concepts like jurisprudence remain.  Ceremonial law, like animal sacrifices, priest's clothing, etc ...are prophetic in nature, pointing to and preparing the world to understand the nature of God, our relationship with Him, the church as a community, and many other things...and most certainly the purpose of Jesus' atoning death.  If you read Hebrews chapters 8 - 10, you will find a great explanation of the prophetic purpose of animal sacrifice and Jesus as our great high priest.

About your friend, only God knows who is a true follower of Jesus.  I believe the Bible is very clear that God will judge us in the end.  All people will be divided into two groups, those who accepted Christ's forgiveness and those who rejected Him.  Those who rejected Him are doomed to an eternity of perdition while those who accepted Him, eternal paradise.  What about those who never heard, what about those who were born before Jesus...and many countless other questions...in the end, I know that God is just and that I will ultimately be judged for what I did with Jesus and not what others may or may not have done.  You should continue praying for your friend, don't give up!  I know people prayed tirelessly for me during my rebellious years and that I am the benefactor of those prayers!

Pastor Fred

Job 28:23-28

God alone understands the way to wisdom;
    he knows where it can be found,
²⁴ for he looks throughout the whole earth
    and sees everything under the heavens.
²⁵ He decided how hard the winds should blow
    and how much rain should fall.
²⁶ He made the laws for the rain
    and laid out a path for the lightning.
²⁷ Then he saw wisdom and evaluated it.
    He set it in place and examined it thoroughly.
²⁸ And this is what he says to all humanity:
The fear of the Lord is true wisdom;
    to forsake evil is real understanding.


These are great verses to make into a prayer today, start with a declaration... "God I believe that you alone understand the way to wisdom, that you know where it can be found..."  Then, insert your moment of asking... "God I ask that you would lead me to that wisdom, that you would show me how to find the wisdom that only you can reveal, that my life might bring you glory..."

So many texts in Scripture become amazing moments of prayer.  As you are reading through the Bible with us this year, we are using the Chronological plan.  There are many websites offering plans, most of which will even email you the reading for the day.  I just got an app for biblegateway.com for both my iPad and iPhone, free!

Make 2013 a year of Scripture and a year of prayer!

Pastor Fred

Genesis 4-7

In today's reading from BibleGateway (Chronological Plan), there are two verses that found my interest.  First, there is God telling Cain (Genesis 4:6) that he must subdue sin and be its master.  That in refusing to do what is right, Cain is vulnerable to sin that is "crouching at the door, eager to control you."  Second, is the commentary on the person of Noah (Genesis 6:9).  We are told that Noah was blameless, in fact, the only blameless person living on earth at the time.

I find both of these verses curious because of what we read in Romans 7:14-25.  This is The Apostle Paul's well known discourse on the human condition, that we are all slaves to sin.  How can Paul say we are helplessly enslaved to sin and yet in Genesis, even before Jesus death on the cross, God says that we can master sin and then gives us an example of a person who did...declared blameless, Noah?

Briefly, I believe, there are two concepts of sin in Scripture.  There is the sin of our humanity and then there is the sin we commit (either through action or inaction).  The sin of our humanity is best seen in God's conversation with Moses in Exodus 33:22 where God promises to hide him with His hand has His glory passes by Moses.  We are told in Genesis 6:9 that Noah walked in close fellowship with God.  Previously in Genesis 5:24 this same phrase is used in reference to Enoch.  However, we understand the Bible in light of itself so we know that "their walking" was in relationship and not in physical presence as in Genesis 3:8.  In our human condition, we cannot withstand the holiness of God's literal presence (consider listening to our recent sermon series on grace for more...).  That is, prior to Jesus death on the cross, which restored mankind's ability to be in God's physical presence, walking with God could have only meant a relational intimacy with limited physical proximity.

However, Jesus' death on the cross did not cure us of our human condition, but rather covers us so that God's holiness does not destroy us...the ultimate heat shield...we call it grace.  Again, the series referenced above will be a great listen if these concepts are new to you.

But there remains the question of the sin we commit.  Of which God appears to tell Cain he can conquer and then the story gives us a successful candidate in Noah, who has been declared blameless in the realm of committed sin.  There is another curious verse much later in history found in 1 Corinthians 10:13 where Paul tells us that with every temptation, there is a path to successful resistance.  One more reference and then some closing thoughts.  Revelation 3:20 speaks about a door within us as does Genesis 4.  I believe this door represents our will, the God given power of humanity to choose.

Even if I get every choice right from the very first moment of my life until the last, I am still doomed without the grace of God.  Even Noah who was blameless up to the moment of his life identified in Genesis 6 (his post Ark drunken stupor may be his first lapse!), inherited humanity from Adam, a humanity that is hopelessly separated from God and doomed mankind until Jesus atoning death.

My question is have we allowed the preciousness of grace that deals with our humanity (a restoration of God's very real presence both with us and within us!) as a false sense of permission to stop contending for blamelessness in our actions/inactions?  I'm just 45, a far cry from Noah's 500-600 years of blameless living, and I already have a terrible record!  But I hear God saying to me what He said to Cain, what He spoke of Noah, what He inspired Paul to write to Corinth...I can master the sins of choosing.  My door will open and close according to my will.  My right standing with God is through Christ alone, regardless of my actions, grace.  My right living against sin is through Fred alone, revealed by my actions, will.

Let's make 2013 more blameless than 2012!

Pastor Fred

Genesis 3:20

Let's decide to begin this new year with the same grace Adam showed Eve.  I've not previously noticed the timing of Adam giving Eve her name.  The consequences of their sin have just been declared; paradise has been lost.  The nature of their relationship with God, with one another, with the natural world...has been irrevocably changed.  Adam when confronted by God immediately blames his wife but the next opportunity in the narrative where Adam speaks, his heart toward her has changed.

Did anyone experience betrayal this past year?  My life has not been without suffering from the lack of integrity of others.  When a friend chooses to be self-serving at your expense, we feel violated, used, devalued.  All sorts of names come to mind!  I have experienced this in my professional life, even this past year.  Unfortunately, I've not struggled with finding all the "best" names for that person!  But if we hope to see people change, we must stop naming them based who they are and begin declaring who we believe they will be.  This is the gift Adam gave to Eve.  As you are reading Genesis 3, what sort of "names" came to mind as you anticipated Adam's choice for a name?  If you connected that moment to your own recent experience of betrayal, like I did, well, you might not want to speak them out loud around children!

Adam calls her Eve because she WILL be the mother of all who live.  To date, with Adam, she has most recently been the mother of sin...but Adam now prophesies over her life, declares her future, rejects her past!  Who in your life needs you to stop defining them based on who they were?  Who in your life needs you to give them a new name?  Their change just might be waiting for your grace, your faith in who they too long to be.

It's gonna be a good year!

Pastor Fred

Citizenship

Any time our country finds itself at a place that holds the potential to define all our futures, honest, open, respectful, emphasis on listening based dialogue is critical.

When I here people begin their comments with “Any reasonable person…” alarms me.  When I here “No responsible person would disagree…” I am disturbed.  Regardless of where a person may stand on the issues of gun control, a conversation that most certainly needs to lead to meaningful action, there must be a commitment to work tirelessly to understand the positions, values, beliefs, and passions of the people opposite to our own ideas.  If conversations begin with “No reasonable person…” or “No responsible person would disagree…” then no effort is being made to listen, only insult.  No conversation where a person attempts to strengthen their position by framing the other person as unreasonable and irresponsible will be productive.  This is one of our greatest political impediments as a nation.  This impediment is at the root of our inability to pass legislation that results in meaningful action in response to the lack of access to healthcare by too many citizens, legislation that will return this country’s fiscal stewardship to the very principles that made us the wealthiest nation on earth, legislation that will continue to advance ethnic equality, gender equality, and social equality, and legislation that results in meaningful action to have a comprehensive plan for how we as a nation can responsibly arm our citizenry, for personal defense, wildlife management, and sporting recreation.

In February of this year my own personal beliefs about the ownership of guns evolved.  I had never considered owning a handgun, much less carrying one concealed on a daily basis.  My view changed as I listened to others with whom I would have previously disagreed.  I listened.  That is not to say that listening to someone will always alter our beliefs and values.  But if our beliefs and values are in need of changing, tempering, evolving… then listening to others is the only hope.  And if in our listening we still disagree, why do we need others to be wrong in order to make ourselves feel more right?  That is not strength of character but rather grossly misguided insecurity.  One of the great strengths of any society is to champion the coexistence of diverging values.

For me, I came to the conclusion that I was not living at my fullest possible potential.  I believe that if an opportunity arose where I found myself in a crisis where the lives of others were threatened, that my courage would not fail me and I would act.  This is how my father raised me, God bless him for always teaching me by his very example of the selflessness that manhood demands.  I realized that my actions, if ever required, would be grossly inadequate unless I was better prepared.  I obtained my concealed carry permit, took a class, copious research, committed to hours at the range, concentrated on developing muscle memory responses for various scenarios…I decided that any possible future crisis deserved an effort from me that was far greater than what presently existed.  My potential as a citizen of this Commonwealth that stirs my heart, of which my children are the tenth direct generation to walk upon the sacred soil of Virginia from when Abraham and Suzanne Michaux first arrived here the 1700’s, needed to climb.  My ability to serve others in a time of need that may demand lethal force existed at an elevation that placed me as a victim when I had the potential to be a responder, to aid, to rescue, to sacrifice.

Already a conversation has begun here in Virginia regarding allowing teachers to be armed.  To those who oppose this course of action, I would only ask that a conversation be allowed to advance, towards an outcome that is not yet determined but one that can and must be the result of a conversation that is characterized as being honest, open, respectful, and an emphasis on listening.

For me, I think the idea is to let people live at their full potential...for example, if a teacher is a former police officer and can pass a rigorous qualification process by the Virginia State Police, why wouldn't we consider allowing that person to live up to their potential in every possible setting, especially if that potential holds the possibility of saving lives. I would humbly suggest that part of the discussion in our society presently needs to also be how to limit the perceived vulnerability of people, how to project the ability to offer a sturdy response to any threat scenario, as opposed to our present situation of being too easily identified as victims.

The complexity of what lies ahead is immense.  But I am convinced that whatever decisions that will best serve humanity for decades to come must be born out of all the divergent values presently competing for influence.  May we all pray for those in authority over us as Scripture compels as these decisions are reached, “…that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity.”  (1 Timothy 2:2)

Pastor Fred

Horatio Spafford

This is from our weekend service at the Williamsburg campus this past Sunday, October 25th (www.thecitylifechurch.com).  We closed our service with this amazing story of faith and perseverance.  My prayer is that it will be the same source of encouragement to you as it so often is to me.

Horatio Spafford (1828-1888) was a wealthy Chicago lawyer with a thriving legal practice, a beautiful home, a wife, and four daughters. He was also a devout Christian, a faithful student of the Scriptures, and a church elder.  His circle of friends included D. L. Moody, Ira Sankey and various other well-known Christians of the day.

At the very height of his financial and professional success, Horatio and his wife Anna suffered the tragic loss of their young son. Shortly thereafter on October 8, 1871, the Great Chicago Fire destroyed almost every real estate investment that Spafford had.

In 1873, Spafford scheduled a boat trip to Europe in order to give his wife and daughters a much needed vacation and time to recover from the tragedy. He also went to join Moody and Sankey on an evangelistic campaign in England. Spafford sent his wife and daughters ahead of him while he remained in Chicago to take care of some unexpected last minute business. Several days later he received notice that his family's ship had encountered a collision. All four of his daughters drowned along with over 200 others; only his wife had survived and having arrived in England sent a telegram that began simply with the two words, “Saved alone.”

With a heavy heart, Spafford boarded a boat that would take him to his grieving Anna in England. It was on this trip that he penned those now famous words.

After receiving Anna's telegram, Horatio immediately left Chicago to bring his wife home. On the Atlantic crossing, the captain of his ship called Horatio to his cabin to tell him that they were passing over the spot where his four daughters had perished. He wrote to Rachel, his wife's half-sister, "On Thursday last we passed over the spot where she went down, in mid-ocean, the waters three miles deep. But I do not think of our dear ones there. They are safe, folded, the dear lambs."

Horatio wrote his hymn, still sung today, as he passed over their watery grave.

Philip Bliss (1838-1876), a famed composer, was so impressed with Spafford's life and the words of his hymn that he composed a beautiful piece of music to accompany the lyrics. The song was published by Bliss and Sankey, in 1876.

For more than a century, the tragic story of one man has given hope to countless thousands who have lifted their voices to sing, It Is Well With My Soul.

It Is Well With My Soul

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll;

Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,

It is well, it is well with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,

Let this blest assurance control,

That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate,

And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought!

My sin, not in part but the whole,

Is nailed to His cross, and I bear it no more,

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:

If Jordan above me shall roll,

No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life

Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

And Lord haste the day, when my faith shall be sight,

The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;

The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,

Even so, it is well with my soul.

It is well, with my soul

It is well, it is well with my soul.

May it be well with your soul today and forevermore!

Pastor Fred