A popular past-time for many people at this time of the year is to make (and break) new year resolutions.
These are most often centred around being materially or personally better off.
Favourite resolutions are to lose weight, quit smoking, save more/spend less, learn something new, exercise more, and other "me-focused" goals - all very worthy targets.
Disciples of Jesus might consider adding something more "other-focused" to these.
A recurring exhortation in both the Old and New Testaments is for God's people to love God and neighbour.
When Jesus was asked by a Jewish leader which commandment he considered was the most important, he replied:
"The most important one is this: 'Listen, Israel! The Lord our God is the only Lord.
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.'
The second most important commandment is this: 'Love your neighbor as you love yourself.'
There is no other commandment more important than these two."
[Mark 12 : 29 - 31 GNB]
So our added resolutions could be "to love God more" and "to be more loving to my neighbour".
And how could we do that?
Well, it depends on what we mean by love.
My definition: to love someone is to always want the best for them, and whenever the opportunity arises, to do that best for them.
(Notice that it has nothing to do with whether we like that someone or not.)
So, how could we love God more?
In other words, how could we do more of what would be best for God?
One way would be to represent him and his love for humanity more often and more faithfully.
... He has restored our relationship with him through Christ, and has given us this ministry of restoring relationships.
In other words, God was using Christ to restore his relationship with humanity. He didn't hold people's faults against them, and he has given us this message of restored relationships to tell others.
Therefore, we are Christ's representatives ...
[2 Corinthians 5 : 18 - 20 GW]
Then how could we love our neighbour more?
In other words, how could we do more of what would be best for our neighbour?
A back-handed answer is for us to become more Christ-like, as he was always doing the best for others.
Those whom God had already chosen he also set apart to become like his Son, so that the Son would be the first among many believers.
[Romans 8 : 29 GNB]
All of us, then, reflect the glory of the Lord with uncovered faces; and that same glory, coming from the Lord, who is the Spirit, transforms us into his likeness in an ever greater degree of glory.
[2 Corinthians 3 : 18 GNB]
We do this by allowing the indwelling Holy Spirit to guide and correct us, so progressively transforming us into Christ-likeness.
Out of that Christ-likeness flows insight into what is best for our neighbour, prompting us into action.
I am amazed at how often the Holy Spirit prompts me to call, visit or pray for someone I have not even been thinking about and discover my contact has resulted in meeting a current need of that neighbour.
As well as transforming me, I am prompted to love my neighbour as Christ would. Indeed, he is loving them through me.
So what about the "me-focused" resolutions on my list?
How can these contribute to our loving God and neighbour more?
To be better off financially might allow us to be better providers for our families and give us more options for doing the best for our neighbour.
To lose weight (a perennial favourite) might be an admirable goal if it means carrying less weight makes us more effective and efficient in serving God and neighbour.
To learn something new might be just the thing the Holy Spirit wants us to use in loving our neighbour.
Disciples of Jesus have so many options when choosing resolutions for the new year together with the Holy Spirit's empowering to ensure those new goals last the distance.
And all of them can contribute to Jesus' call for us to love God and love our neighbour as ourselves.
Wishing you a Spirit-guided and productive new year.
Blessings, Barry
It is so easy to forget (neglect) the reason we celebrate Christmas when we become over-consumed with parties, shopping for gifts, arranging travel and accommodation, family dinners, etc.
So we, especially those of us who are disciples of Jesus, need to ensure some time is given to focus ourselves and our families on the One whose birthday we acknowledge at this time of the year.
And although it is easy to start with the baby and the manger, let's not stop there. Let's discuss who the baby was and why he came.
Jesus' visit and ministry were planned by God even before the beginning of time.
God saved us and chose us to be his holy people. We did nothing to deserve this, but God planned it because he is so kind. Even before time began God planned for Christ Jesus to show kindness to us.
[2 Timothy 1 : 9 CEV]
His arrival was announced by the Old Testament prophets centuries before he appeared.
So the Lord himself will give you this sign: A virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and she will name him Immanuel [God Is With Us].
[Isaiah 7 : 14 GW]
The LORD said, "Sing for joy, people of Jerusalem! I am coming to live among you!"
[Zechariah 2 : 10 GNB]
His divinity was recognised.
The Word became a human being and, full of grace and truth, lived among us. We saw his glory, the glory which he received as the Father's only Son.
[John 1 : 14 GNB]
For the full content of divine nature lives in Christ, in his humanity,
[Colossians 2 : 9 GNB]
Jesus' purpose in coming to earth was acknowledged.
The next day John (the Baptist) saw Jesus coming to him, and said, "There is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
[John 1 : 29 GNB]
This is a true saying, to be completely accepted and believed: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
[1 Timothy 1 : 15 GNB]
And Jesus himself said:
I came, not to judge the world, but to save it.
[John 12 : 47b GNB]
Indeed Jesus, God in an earth-suit, is in the only One who can provide the salvation God has chosen to give us.
Salvation is to be found through him alone; in all the world there is no one else whom God has given who can save us."
[Acts 4 : 12 GNB]
Clearly, if the Creator of the universe would so confine himself to a human body in order to provide for our salvation and ultimately eternal life in his company, the least we can do is make sure he and his salvation work are acknowledged on the day we celebrate his earth birthday.
I wish you and your loved ones a holy and blessed Christmas as you celebrate and give thanks for our wonderful Saviour.
Barry
In a previous post, we dismissed the "hell of eternal torment" proposed by many people by first showing its absurdity, and then the Bible's declaration of God's intention to reconcile all of His creation to Himself.
Since we are currently living in an age which is dominated by sin, death and hostility towards God, there is clearly a lot that must happen to get mankind from where it is now to that promised reconciliation and peaceful state.
A broad brush stroke overview of the journey from here to there is outlined in the Scriptures and briefly described below.
It is a multi-age process with an advance party chosen and equipped in the current age, joined by a regathered and restored national Israel, to serve in Christ's kingdom age, followed by a final gathering and restoration of the rest of mankind at the end of time.
(Christ's kingdom age is often referred to as the Messianic Age by the Jewish community and as the Millennium by many in the Church community.)
Those in the Advance Party, also called the Body of Christ, are given the faith to believe that Jesus died for their sins and was resurrected to guarantee their life beyond the grave, and have subsequently committed themselves to serving Jesus as training for their future kingdom duties.
Serving Jesus in the current era also involves progressive correction and reformation into the image in which God originally made them. However, the journey to Christ-likeness will not be completed before the end of their lifetime on earth, so a future assessment and refining process is provided to ensure their perfection for service in the kingdom.
Paul explains this process when writing to the Corinthian believers in the Advance Party, who came to faith under his ministry.
Using the gift that God gave me, I did the work of an expert builder and laid the foundation, and someone else is building on it. But each of you must be careful how you build.
For God has already placed Jesus Christ as the one and only foundation, and no other foundation can be laid.
Some will use gold or silver or precious stones in building on the foundation; others will use wood or grass or straw.
And the quality of each person's work will be seen when the Day of Christ exposes it. For on that Day fire will reveal everyone's work; the fire will test it and show its real quality.
If what was built on the foundation survives the fire, the builder will receive a reward.
But if your work is burnt up, then you will lose it; but you yourself will be saved, as if you had escaped through the fire.
[1 Cor 3 : 10 - 15 GNT]
This judgement and refinement for believers occurs before Christ Himself.
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
[2 Corinthians 5 : 10 ESV]
Clearly, the more believers grow towards Christ-likeness during their lifetime on earth, the less refinement will be needed for their role in the kingdom.
When the last of the Advance Party is chosen and perfected, and Israel's regathering and restoration completed, the kingdom age begins. It is during this age, under the personal direction of Jesus Christ and the major judgement and restoration events at its end, that God completes His plan to reconcile all mankind.
But now Christ has been raised from the dead. He became the first fruits of those who are asleep.
For since death came by man, the resurrection of the dead also came by man.
For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.
But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then those who are Christ’s, at his coming.
Then the end comes, when he will deliver up the Kingdom to God, even the Father; when he will have abolished all rule and all authority and power.
For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
The last enemy that will be abolished is death. ...
When all things have been subjected to him, then the Son will also himself be subjected to him who subjected all things to him, that God may be all in all.
[1 Corinthians 15 : 20 - 28 WEB]
The New Testament has other references to this final result. Here's an example:
Christ existed before all things, and in union with him all things have their proper place.
He is the head of his body, the church; he is the source of the body's life. He is the first-born Son, who was raised from death, in order that he alone might have the first place in all things.
For it was by God's own decision that the Son has in himself the full nature of God.
Through the Son, then, God decided to bring the whole universe back to himself. God made peace through his Son's blood on the cross and so brought back to himself all things, both on earth and in heaven.
[Colossians 1 : 17 - 20 GNT]
Just as the perfection process for the Advance Party involves judgement and correction, as characterised by a refining fire at the end of this current age, so the remainder of mankind will experience judgement and restoration, also characterised by a refining fire at the end of the kingdom age.
However the scale of this latter process will be much larger than for the believers in the Advance Party as the final harvest will be dealing with the rest of mankind compared with only the first fruits in the former.
Indeed the Book of Revelation refers to the final judgement scene as the Great White Throne and its refinement facility as the Lake of Fire, giving an indication of their size.
The penalty for sin being paid for, death being abolished, God becoming "all in all", and all of creation being reconciled to God, are surely the outcomes we'd confidently expect from a loving heavenly Father who is in full control of His creation.
Judgement and correction/refinement are the methods God uses to complete that outcome for all - for those in the Advance Party and for those whose reconciliation awaits the end of time.
Blessings, Barry
This is the eighth in a mini-series of posts responding to the arguments offered by Dr Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum (Dr Arnold) against God's plan to eventually reconcile and save all His creation.
His arguments against Universal Reconciliation (UR) are offered under five headings, the second of which is b. The Fixed State of the Unbelieving Dead. (see a previous post "Opposition to Universal Reconciliation" here )
Under the b. The Fixed State of the Unbelieving Dead heading Dr Arnold claims that the unbelieving dead are seen in a fixed state that cannot be altered and then quotes numerous texts from the New Testament hoping to illustrate his assertion.
(i) The Matthew texts were discussed in a previous post.
(ii) The Rich Man and Lazarus parable from Luke's gospel which is presumed to show the fixed state of "hell".
Dr Arnold uses this story to point out that the rich man could not pass from his place in Hell to Lazarus in Abraham's bosom; there was no crossing the line, and no future opportunity to do so, thus demonstrating a fixed state that cannot be altered.
I won't list the lengthy parable here, so please read it in your Bible - Luke 16 : 19 - 31.
First of all, let me note that a correct Greek to English translation would use Hades instead of Hell to describe the rich man's position. In any case, apart from being a poor translation, the word "hell" has some grisly connotations derived from centuries of fear-mongering, church teaching and is best avoided in serious Bible study.
Hades is the unseen realm of departed spirits - nothing more; nothing less. (Sheol is the Hebrew equivalent.)
Before the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus, this was the resting place for all who died.
Second, Hades could hardly be describing a fixed state as there are at least two resurrections to occur subsequent to this age, making Hades only a temporary place of residence.
Do not be amazed at this, for an hour is coming in which all those in the tombs will hear his voice, and those who have done good things will come forth into a resurrection of life, and those who have done evil things into a resurrection of judgement.
[John 5 : 28 DBH]
Although the gulf between the rich man and Lazarus is not able to be crossed at the time of the telling of this parable, it will be irrelevant at the time of the resurrections.
Third, some people conflate the Hades of this parable with the Lake of Fire described in Revelation 20, assuming that both are a description of the "hell of eternal torment" that has been taught relentlessly as the future for unbelievers.
However the Lake of Fire is called the Second Death in the Bible and, since death is to be abolished at the end of the ages, the Lake of Fire can't be permanent either.
Christ will rule until he puts all his enemies under his power, and the last enemy he destroys will be death.
[1 Cor 15 : 25 - 26 CEV]
So the conflation is not helpful (as well as being ill-conceived).
Fourth, using this parable to produce an eternal doctrine is also inappropriate.
Let's remember that parables are stories that use familiar earthly ingredients to illustrate spiritual principles or realities.
Let's also remember that Jesus was only sent to Israel for his earthly ministry,
"I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel"
[Matthew 15 : 26 NIV]
These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: "Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel."
[Matthew 10 : 5 - 6 NIV]
and the only two ages that Israel was concerned with were their current age and the Messianic KIngdom Age, which Christians often call the Millennium.
"As you go, proclaim this message: 'The kingdom of heaven has come near.'"
[Matthew 10 : 7 NIV]
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.
[Matthew 6 : 33 HCSB]
They didn't conceive of an eternity at all, and Jesus never addressed eternity with them, even though many English Bible translators put the word "eternal" in Jesus' mouth. (If you're not sure about that, check out a literal translation of the New Testament like Young's or Hart's or Rotherham's or the Concordant Version. You'll find that Jesus did not use the word "eternal" or "eternity" or "everlasting" or "forever" at all.)
So Jesus' parables were designed to convey spiritual meanings about the kingdom of God, the Messianic Age promised by Israel's prophets.
They had nothing to do with the eternal realm on which many Christians are focused.
Dr Arnold's opposition dissolves in the face of the kingdom circumstances of this parable - there is nothing in it that even hints of a permanence that extends into eternity.
We'll discuss the texts from John's gospel in the next part.
Blessings, Barry
Note 1
I have addressed Dr Arnold's objection using his assumption that the parable is being used to describe conditions in "hell" (Hades).
Many commentators agree with that assumption.
However, I think the parable is telling his Jewish audience something quite different and much more relevant to them at that time.
I could write a post describing my interpretation, if you're interested.
Let me know if you are and I'll get a separate post written in the new year.
Note 2
As an aside, I think that Jesus' audience would have had difficulty visualising this parable as a description of "hell" as their view had "hell" populated by people who were asleep and unable to speak or debate.
For the living know they will die; but the dead do not know anything, ... (this verse is the most frequently cited)
Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity or planning or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.
[Ecclesiastes 9 : 5, 10]
So man lies down and does not rise.
Until the heavens are no longer, He will not awake nor be aroused out of his sleep.
[Job 14 : 12]
Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt.
[Daniel 12 : 2]
These verses from the Hebrew Scriptures demonstrate their view that the dead know and do nothing because they are asleep and therefore unconscious until the resurrection.
So a parable describing inhabitants conversing and debating ... is unlikely to be interpreted by Jesus' audience in the way many Christian commentators do.
