The Pleasure of God’s Soul – Part 10 – Following The Christ

So Jesus comes as the Christ, announcing the Kingdom, and calling individuals to follow Him as disciples. How does this discipleship fit and what is involved?

Let’s begin with John’s statement that if we believe that Jesus is the Christ, we will have Life (John 20:30-31). And as we saw last week, when Jesus appeared as the Christ, He called individuals to follow as His disciples. Does that mean that we have to be His disciples in order to have Life?

Well, yes and no. This is a critical point to understand.

The answer is “no”, if we mean “Life” in the sense that it is often used in Gospel presentations. In this sense, “Life” would mean that I go to heaven when I die. And if that was all we were talking about, then the only thing that would matter is whether I had trusted Jesus to pay the penalty for my sins. If so, then I would go to heaven when I die, regardless of how well I lived the Christian life.

But that is not the primary meaning of “Life” in The Story, and that does not encompass all the Life that Christ offers to us. Read more

The Pleasure of God’s Soul – Part 9 – Responding to The Christ

So, when the Christ shows up, what does He do, and what kind of response does He require?

Well, two emphases dominate Jesus’ ministry from the very beginning.

Matthew and Mark summarize the first of these with the statement that Jesus began to proclaim that the Kingdom of God was at hand (Matthew 4:17; Mark 1:14-15). Our minds tend to interpret this in light of our modern Christian experience, and probably envision something along the lines of street evangelism or evangelistic outreach events.

But Luke gives us more detail in his Gospel (Luke 4:14-44) – Read more

The Pleasure of God’s Soul – Part 7 – A Whole Lot of Hope

So far, this little journey to understand what is going on in Hebrews 10 has turned into an expedition that is in its seventh week. Seems like we have been talking about this forever. In fact, it’s hard to remember why we are here, or where we are going. Wait. What was the question?

Oh, yeah. We are talking about the “pleasure of God’s soul” in Hebrews 10:38-39 -

“But My righteous one shall live by faith; and if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him.’ But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul.”

In the middle of all that is the phrase that prompted this little expedition – “. . . and if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him . . .”. The pleasure of God’s soul is somehow linked to our choices. Very unsettling. How do we “shrink back”? As I read on, it seems that the destruction of my soul is at stake. How can that be? I thought we were saved “by grace, through faith”. What about eternal security? How does all this fit with the little message we have become so accustomed to – some version of “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.” This doesn’t sound very wonderful. Sounds like we could really foul things up if we are not careful.

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The Pleasure of God’s Soul – Part 6 – Looking For A King

(Note – Some of the material in this article is taken from the previous article – “Looking For ‘The Kingdom’”, and presented here, in the context of the flow of the story.)

There is much background behind Hebrews 10. But we are making progress.

Beginning in the Garden, and moving through Noah, God’s covenant with Abraham, and most recently, His covenant with Israel, given through Moses, we have seen several key developments in the Story -

• The One Who Is Coming to crush the Enemy will indeed bring, not simply relief from the curse, but, in it’s place blessing.
• Abraham’s descendants are becoming a nation, just as God promised in His covenant with Abraham.
• For the first time since the Garden, God has acted to once again dwell among men. Although there are strong indications of the inherent challenges in this, mankind has not yet begun to grasp the magnitude of the problem of Holy God dwelling in the midst of sinful man. Hope is advanced as it appears that the consequences of the curse are being reversed.

So, Moses completes the Tabernacle, per God’s instructions and provision, and establishes the Aaronic Priesthood (Exodus 21-40, Leviticus, Numbers 1-9). With the Mosaic Covenant in place, the people of Israel set off in pursuit of the other key piece of God’s promise to Abraham, and the next critical step in their becoming a nation – they set out for the Land that will be home for their Nation (Numbers 10-12).

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The Pleasure of God’s Soul – Part 5 – Hope Grows

Yep. Hebrews 10 is still our destination.

In our re-examination of the story, we have moved from the Garden, through Noah and the Flood, to God’s covenant with Abraham. At this point in the story, we have learned that The One Who Is Coming to crush the Enemy will indeed bring, not simply relief from the curse, but, in it’s place blessing.

And so, Abraham begets Isaac, and Isaac, Jacob. Jacob is renamed “Israel”, and it is with his 12 sons, who become the tribes of Israel, that the promise of a nation coming from Abraham begins to take shape. The book of Genesis ends with these sons and their families seeking relief from a famine by going to Egypt.

Four-hundred thirty years later, these 12 have grown 600,000 men capable of going to war, in addition to women and children. But, fearing them, the Egyptians have made them slaves.

God sends Moses to lead them out of Egypt, into the Land of His promise to Abraham. Egypt’s objections are mitigated with a series of 10 Plagues, and God brings them out, to Mount Sinai, where they meet Him and formalize their relationship.

Having received a commitment from the people of Israel, through Moses, to obey God and become His chosen people, God calls an assembly at Mt. Sinai (Exodus 19:1-15).

After careful preparation,  the people gather at Sinai. What they experience is very different from Adam and Eve’s meetings with God, where they walked with Him in the cool of the day, in the Garden, pre-fall. Instead, they find themselves before a mountain that is quaking violently and engulfed in smoke. They are surrounded by thunder and lightening, with the sound of a trumpet that grows louder and louder. And, they have been warned that if they touch even the edge of the mountain, they will be killed. In the midst of this God speaks to them, laying out the 10 Commandments – the outline of the Covenant that will govern their relationship with Him. The experience is so terrifying, they never want to do it again. Read more

The Pleasure of God’s Soul – Part 1 – “Bad News”

The “pleasure of God’s soul” – There is something unsettling, yet compelling about that phrase. Unsettling because I don’t think of God as having a “soul”. Clearly, He is Spirit (John 4:24). But the idea of Him “having a soul” is somehow foreign. Unsettling also, because it seems that I might have something to do with this pleasure . . . and compelling for the same reason. Also compelling because it seems like a good thing for God’s soul to have pleasure. If I can impact that . . . Wow!

It is this idea – the “pleasure of God’s soul” – that draws me back to Hebrews 10-11. It is so powerful that I memorized Hebrews 10:35-39 a few years ago -

“Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. ‘For yet in a very little while, He Who is coming will come, and will not delay. But My righteous one shall live by faith; and if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him.’ But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul.”

Right there in the middle is the idea that draws me – “. . . and if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him . . .”. God is speaking, ascribing a soul to Himself. And the pleasure of His soul is linked to our choices. Very unsettling. How do we “shrink back”? As I read on, it seems that the destruction of my soul is at stake. How can that be? I thought we were saved “by grace, through faith”. What about eternal security? Read more

On Sheep & Goats – Part 4

In our examination of the question of whether our pursuit of social justice will determine our eternal destiny, we have been looking at the Judgment of the Sheep and Goats in Matthew 25:31-46. So far, we have:

• Set the discussion of this judgment in the context of the Olivet Discourse, which was given in response to the disciples’ question of the timing of Jesus’ coming and the end of the age (Part 1).
• Seen that there are at least 3 distinct judgments in the New Testament, and that believers alive now are not part of the Judgment of the Sheep and Goats (Part 2).
• Seen that Christ’s Coming has been anticipated since the beginning of the Old Testament. As the story has unfolded, additional details have come to light, revealing an increasing complexity to His Coming. What seemed, from the Old Testament perspective, to be a single event, now, clearly, has two parts, separated by at least 2000 years (Part 3).

This raised an important question – With the details in Matthew 24-25, do we have a complete picture of Christ’s return and the end of the age? Or, are additional details needed for a complete picture?

I believe that it is the later. And to make sense of the Judgment of the Sheep and Goats, we need to consider some of these additional details. Let’s begin with the information that Jesus gives us in the first half of the Discourse.

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On Sheep & Goats – Part 3

In Part 2 of our look at the Olivet Discourse, and the question of whether our pursuit of social justice will determine our eternal destiny, we began to examine the judgment spoken of in the Judgment of the Sheep and Goats, that will mark the end of the age.

As we compared the judgment in Matthew 25 with other judgment passages in the New Testament, we discovered that there are three distinct judgments spoken of, and that believers alive now will not be part of the Matthew 25 judgment.

While this gives us some comfort, we cannot simply discount Jesus’ words to the disciples here based on other passages. Clearly, a lot is at stake in this judgment. If it doesn’t apply to us, to whom does it apply? Read more

On Sheep & Goats – Part 2

In Part 1 of our look at the Olivet Discourse and the question of whether our eternal destiny will be determined by our pursuit of social justice, we overviewed the Discourse,  and made the following observations:

• The Olivet Discourse answers the disciples’ question about the sign of Christ’s coming and the end of the age.
• During the interval between Christ’s First and Second Comings, His disciples should expect disaster, war, false prophets and apostasy.
• Immediately preceding His return will be a period of such intense suffering that, if it were not shortened for the sake of the elect, all life would be wiped out.
• He will return with power and great glory, at which time all the elect will be gathered.
• Only God knows the exact time of His return. Just as in Noah’s day, mankind will be caught off-guard. They will not understand until they are taken away in judgment, leaving only the righteous behind.
• In light of this uncertainty, His disciples should be alert for His return, when they will be rewarded, based on their faithfulness.

This brings us to the final section of the Discourse. In it, the “nations” are gathered for judgment at His return. He will separate them into sheep and goats, based on their treatment of the the hungry, thirsty and naked, the sick, the strangers, and the imprisoned. Care for these groups is equated to care for Christ. Those who provide this care are judged as sheep, and invited to inherit the kingdom. Those not responding are considered to be goats – who have, in effect, ignored Christ, and are condemned to the eternal fires prepared for the devil and his angels.

To understand Jesus’ message, we must identify the various characters, as well as the setting depicted.

The central character is the Son of Man at His Coming. This, of course, is Christ, at the return about which the disciples inquired (24:3). Having come, He now takes His place on His throne. This development shifts the focus to the final part of the disciples’ question – “what will be sign of. . . the end of the age?”

At Christ’s Second Coming, the current age will end. What will mark this ending? The gathering of all the nations for judgment, with the righteous receiving the kingdom, and the accursed ones being sent away in to the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

And it is this gathering and judgment that we set out to explore. Are we involved in this judgment? Is our eternal condition decided here? Read more

On Sheep & Goats – Part 1

About 5 years ago, I was sitting in a meeting with many other Christian leaders when a person with a certain celebrity status was given the opportunity to address the gathering. His role was to call the church out for its lack of involvement in global social issues, such as AIDS in Africa, poverty, and social justice. The primary Biblical basis for his challenge was Jesus’ words in Matthew 25:31-46. He argued that Jesus will judge us based on whether or not we serve the poor and imprisoned, and, on this basis, determine whether we are part of the kingdom or not. Since then, I have heard others treat this as established truth.

Admittedly, this is an unsettling and difficult passage. It does seem to say that our service to the poor and imprisoned of the world will determine whether we receive eternal judgement or eternal life.

But, an even more disturbing reality is this – If the position stated above is the correct understanding of this passage, then everything we believe about salvation by faith alone, independent of our works, is wrong, and we need to tear many pages out of our Bibles – Romans 2-4, Ephesians 2, and the entire book of Galatians, for starters. This is not a peripheral issue – it goes to the core of the Gospel and our faith.

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