There's an interesting quote in the first chapter of the book "Pierced for Our Transgressions: Rediscovering the Glory of Penal Substitution". It sheds some light on a bible translation that I've used often in the past.
"In the mid-twentieth century, the case against penal substitution was articulated most strongly by the Biblical scholar C. H. Dodd... his understanding of (texts referring to propitiation) was also reflected in the Revised Standard Version, produced in 1946."
This makes me want to go back and read some important passages in the RSV. Passages like Romans 3:25, 1 John 2:2, and 1 John 4:10.
The nature of Christ's salvation is woefully misrepresented
by the present-day "evangelist." He announces a Saviour from
hell rather than a Saviour from sin. And that is why so many
are fatally deceived, for there are multitudes who wish to
escape the Lake of fire who have no desire to be delivered from
their carnality and worldliness.
... A. W. Pink (1886-1952), Studies on Saving Faith,
Swengel, Pa.: Reiner Publications, 1932, p. 9-10
This is one of the most interesting quotes I've run across lately. Like all great quotes it sums up a simple but profound truth in a short form.
It helps me answer many Muslim friends who ask me "what would motivate a person to live for God's glory and seek holy living after having their sins forgiven?". They see the forgiveness of sin (past, present, and future) as giving license to continual sinning. "If God will forgive all your sins why would someone stop sinning then?" they ask.
This quote provides a clue to at least one answer to my friends. The saving faith that God grants to those who put their faith and trust in Christ's sacrifice, is faith in a Savior who saves from sin and it's consequences. He's not a Savior who merely saves us from the consequences themselves. Sin is what brings condemnation to us all. It seems reasonable and logical that if Christ only saved us from an eternal hell then the Christian would indeed feel the freedom to continue in sin. But being saved from sin is what true saving faith brings through Christ's death on our behalf.
If the faith I have in Christ is a belief in being saved from sin then that faith will produce in me an ongoing desire to fight against sin in my life rather than just mere belief that I will avoid an eternal hell. This saving faith motivates the Christian to fight sin throughout their lives. And it is sustained in them by the presence of the Holy Spirit.
A second reason that the Christian is motivated to fight against sin rather than giving in to sin is that when we put faith in Christ for salvation we are bound to him as Lord. He is the source of our new life as it says in Colossians 3:3 "For you died and your life is now hidden in Christ with God." Romans 8:1 says "For now there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus".
If we are "in him" then we are bound to him and are constantly and eternally with him. We don't just receive something from him. We are with him and in him. And the person who is with him will be motivated to continually fight against sin by his holy presence in them. Just like if a coach or parent were with us in every and all situations in life. If we truly loved them and had faith in them then we would be motivated to live for them at every moment as they urged and encouraged us. So it is all the more with Christ who is with us and in us all the time.
Each of these two reasons and explanations of why the true Christian fights against sin rather than welcomes it need some illustrations but I'll have to supply that later.
God's omnipotence means [His] power to do all that is not
intrinsically impossible. You may attribute miracles to Him,
but not nonsense. This is no limit to His power. If you choose
to say, "God can give a creature free will and at the same time
withhold free will from it," you have not succeeded in saying
anything about God: meaningless combinations of words do not
suddenly acquire meaning simply because we prefix to them the
two other words "God can." It remains true that all things are
possible with God: the intrinsic impossibilities are not things
but nonentities. It is no more possible for God than for the
weakest of His creatures to carry out both of two mutually
exclusive alternatives--not because His power meets an
obstacle, but because nonsense remains nonsense even when we
talk it about God.
... C. S. Lewis (1898-1963), The Problem of Pain
I just heard a simple but helpful analogy or metaphor for Christ-centered preaching. Kim Riddlebarger shared it on the latest edition of the podcast White Horse Inn.
The first idea to know is that all the scriptures are about Christ. Christ himself said so in numerous places but especially verses like Luke 24:26-27 and John 5:39.
Riddlebarger then states that much of today's preaching in churches is like pastors taking one puzzle piece and carefully describing it to the congregation. Christ centered preaching does that and then relates it to the whole picture into which it fits... the Gospel and Christ. He is the focus of the scriptures.
So pastors need to have a clear view of what the puzzle "box top" picture is when they enter the pulpit and they need to tell the congregation how the piece fits into the big picture of God's redemption of his people through Christ.
Some of you may have noticed that over 2 months ago I spoke on this blog about an upcoming Muslim - Christian Dialogue being held in Knowledge Village. It took place on March 2 and it was attended by close to 300 people. It was a scintillating evening of conversation about "Who is God and how are we saved?".
The company I work for here in Dubai was a corporate sponsor and we also arranged for the event to be professionally filmed. Later we will offer the DVD for sale. But the video production is done!
Click here to go to our youtube channel to see all or part of the dialogue.
Embedded below are the two video trailers to whet your appetite for entire thing.
Trailer 1
Trailer 2
Entire Dialogue (~3 hours long)
I heartily recommend that you embed the videos in your own blog or link to it on your facebook page.
The flow of the dialogue was:
Muslim speaker opening statement (25 min)
Christian speaker opening statement (25 min)
Muslim questions Christian (15 min)
Christian questions Muslim (15 min)
Audience Q & A (1 hour)
Muslim closing statement (15 min)
Christian closing statement (15 min)
All of it is excellent. But if you have to choose I'd say to watch the opening statements first. Next the questioning sections (very entertaining), the closing statements are excellent as well. Audience Q and A is just as good but a little long.
A conversion is incomplete if it does not leave one integrated into the Church. By this we do not mean any particular part of the Church; what we do mean is that conversion must leave one linked in loving fellowship with one's fellow believers. Conversion is not something simply between a man and Jesus Christ, with no other person involved. True, it may start in that way; but it cannot end in that way. Conversion is not individualistic. It is, in fact, just the opposite. It joins man to his fellow men, and certainly does not separate him from them.
William Barclay (1907-1978), In the Hands of God [1967]
The White Horse Inn is a radio program/podcast that I enjoy listening to often. It comes out every week and deals with some issue of theology or culture related to Christianity. The guys who do the show, including Michael Horton, are not theological slouches and you have to listen carefully to follow along. But the reward is rich.
In honor of the election tomorrow I'm including links to two shows they recently did outlining a Biblical view of politics and faith for the Christian. These are not shows about 'who you should vote for if you're a Christian'. They had both Republicans and Democrats on the show and the conversations were really stimulating. Give them a listen.
I'm reading through the account of Jesus' life written by Matthew, one of his followers. I hope my thoughts and comments might spark some thoughts for you.
Today I'm considering Matthew 5:1-11.
I'm struck by the thing that seems to motivate Jesus to teach his disciples - the gathering crowds. It seems like he saw the crowds and knew that he needed to clarify what his identity, leadership, and Kingdom were all about. He did this with his primary leaders. They needed to represent his Kingdom well.
He starts with a list of "blessed's". It's as if he is stating the results of being in covenant relationship with himself and with God. Those who enter into his covenant will receive blessing.
The first four blessed statements seem to be all about recognizing your own sin and unrighteousness. They involve seeing our own inadequacies before a holy and pure God. The essential qualities are poor spirit, mourning attitude, meekness, and a hunger and thirst for righteousness. As a composite, this would describe people who recognize their emptiness, unrighteousness, powerlessness, and personal brokenness. In brief: humble and honest about their spiritual condition.
The next three fit together; the merciful, pure in heart, and peacemakers. These strike me as the actions of humble people. The substance in the lives of those who have the first four inner qualities listed above.
The last two involve the the blessings that come to those who are persecuted by others for two reasons. First, those who are persecuted because they demonstrate righteousness in their lives. Secondly, those who are directly connected with Jesus. He's describing the eternal perspective that his followers must have about this life. They must live for God and be connected with him despite the persecution that he implies will necessarily come. He even encourages rejoicing and gladness in the face of persecution and this is only possible with an eternal perspective on life.
So do these things describe you? To what degree? Have you been humbled by your own inadequacy before God? Has that humility produced the actions of mercy toward others, a purity of heart only possible for those honest about themselves, or someone who works for peace between people and God and among people themselves?
Lastly, could you be accused of anything "on Jesus' account'?
I was in the Dubai post office last spring and noticed these posters that were part of a Dubai Police Department campaign against speeding. I suppose they might be effective if you have some fear of God.
As a Christian, the scriptures teach that we should obey the laws of the land, in as much as they don't command us to do things contrary to God's commands in scripture.
Romans 13:1-7 says:
"Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. 4For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. 6This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing. 7Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor."
But for the Christian there is the Gospel that tells how Jesus' death and sacrifice for us covers over all our sins past, present, and future. I'm grateful for that since I know I've surpassed the speed limit on occasion. Yet, the Gospel of Grace also encourages me to obey the laws even as I seek to obey God in thankfulness for what he's done for me in Christ.
Some of you may have noticed that I recently included a humorous cartoon about Moses, Pharaoh, and the Ten Commandments here. There were some anachronisms (aspects of a historical scene that were not present during the time period pictured or written about - i.e. a wristwatch on a caveman) and inconsistencies as compared with the Biblical accounts. I thought the cartoon was funny, interesting, and I didn't take it too seriously.
But a Muslim friend of mine noticed the cartoon entry here and kindly warned me that government and/or religious authorities in this region could view the posting of the cartoon about Moses as sacrilegious and offensive... perhaps as offensive as a cartoon about Prophet Mohammad.
So I've altered the cartoon to remove the image of Moses. I hope that anyone offended by the cartoon would please accept my apology. No disrespect or offense was intended. Here is the new cartoon image:
This entry and the advice from my friend have caused me to ponder the ever-present possibility of offending other's deeply held religious views. Things that I believe most definitely might offend people. I think this is possibly true for everyone no matter what you believe.
And there are aspects of what I hold to be true that I am not willing to hide or deny even if others feel that they are offensive. But the cartoon itself doesn't represent anything about which I'm willing to be willfully or knowingly offensive.
I think the Gospel itself is the only thing I'm willing to not hide or keep to myself.
As advice to my Christian friends, if there are others you are offending ask yourself the question: Is it my manner or character or is it the Gospel which is offending others around me?
And Christians, if you are offended by others by what you consider to be mocking, trivializing or demeaning Christ and the Gospel, then I encourage you to consider Christ and his response to offense and insult:
1 Peter 2:21-23
To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. "He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth." When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.
Almost home to Dubai... just a few more days. And in the meantime I'll throw you a odd piece of humor with a Bible trivia twist.
This cartoon is from Mike Peters and it's titled Mother Goose and Grimm. Here is his website. Go check it out.
The cartoon below is an obvious reference to America's judicial branch resistance to public postings of the Ten Commandments. Numerous places have ruled it to be unconstitutional because it favors one religion over another. The cartoon below obviously includes Moses and Pharaoh of Egypt.
But here's the trivia twist... Can you tell me in what way this cartoon misrepresents Biblical history?
Let me know what you think in the comment section.
A good friend here in Dubai, who happens to be Muslim, sent me a link to the video below and asked me to comment. I couldn't resist. Here are my extended thoughts below.
First the video...
First, the method of teaching these children seems to be theologically deficient at best. The first thing I disagree with is the emotionalism that is employed in teaching them. The leaders seem to focus on emotional expression to a fault. I'm concerned that they're teaching them merely religious practice and a particular brand of religious expression. The Bible teaches that the true effect of regeneration in a person will be Godliness or God-like-ness. The scriptures teach this in many places but one is Galations 5:22-23...
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
The scriptures don't teach that the fruit of the Spirit is necessarily training in conjuring up tears during worship services, shaking on the ground, or zealous and loud proclamations of allegiance to God.
Secondly, I'm concerned that the kids in the video are prone to being emotionally manipulated by the teachers at this church. Children generally seek the approval of their elders and if they sense that their elders desire a particular type of behavior then the kids will produce it to gain acceptance. I'm concerned that the leaders are merely teaching a particular type of religious practice and the kids are ready to comply. I'm not saying kids shouldn't be taught spiritual truths and expected to obey adults. But when they are told that you should act like "this" or "that" to demonstrate a genuine religious experience in a meeting then I think they are going too far. This all arises from deficient theology.
Some of what you are seeing is the product and practice of a famous "revivalist" Charles Finney. Google him if you like. He promoted a bad form of emotional manipulation in Christian services adopted to bring people to a point of emotional decision to pledge their lives to Christ. His theology was terrible and his practice was just as bad. And the modern day evangelical church is much influenced by him as are these people in the video.
Thirdly, you of course heard lots about military and war in the video. Some of this is because the Bible has stories of military exploits and has military images and allegories too. As you know, the Old Testament has stories of armies and battles. And the New Testament uses military images to describe aspects of Christian life at times as in Ephesians 6:10-18.
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Churches, like the one in the video, often appropriately teach about Biblical history including the battles and fighting. But some (and I fear this one in this case) teach only moral lessons from the Old Testament. In the end they do not teach about the Gospel and Jesus Christ the Messiah in light of the Old Testament. And this is exactly what Jesus himself felt was important. He says in John 5:39-40.
39You diligently study[a] the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, 40yet you refuse to come to me to have life.
And in Luke 24:27.
27And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
I believe that Old Testament Israel was a "type" which would be mirrored and fulfilled in the New Testament by all the followers of Jesus Christ: the Church. So the Gospel should be proclaimed in light of these passages in the Old Testament. Churches should not merely teach moral lessons about courage, dedication, and holiness from Old Testament stories of military battles. This is a big mistake I think.
Fourthly, the filmmakers emphasize the encouragement of political involvement for Christians. The modern day Evangelical church misses the point and gets their theology wrong often on this too. I believe the Bible teaches that their are two Kingdoms; a Kingdom of God and a Kingdom of the world. Christians live in both. But the Kingdom of God is the only one that we are taught will last. So, the Church is the physical expression of the Kingdom of God in the Kingdom of the world. The Church is called to be an influence in the world through the proclamation of the Gospel and living a life obedient to Christ. Today, many evangelicals are tempted to influence the world primarily through politics. This is a temptation from Satan. Christians should vote their conscience at the polls and even be involved in politics. But the Church proclaiming the Gospel and living for Christ is how the world will know God; not through political power. Christians in public office or laws that uphold Christian moral values can restrain evil. But they do not proclaim the Gospel. I would agree with this statement included in a recently released "Evangelical Manifesto" which speaks about this Kingdom confusion among evangelicals. It says,
Christians from both sides of the political spectrum, left as well as right, have made the mistake of politicizing faith; and it would be no improvement to respond to a weakening of the religious right with a rejuvenation of the religious left. Whichever side it comes from, a politicized faith is faithless, foolish, and disastrous for the church – and disastrous first and foremost for Christian reasons rather than constitutional reasons.
Called to an allegiance higher than party, ideology, and nationality, we Evangelicals see it our duty to engage with politics, but our equal duty never to be completely equated with any party, partisan ideology, economic system, or nationality. In our scales, spiritual, moral, and social power are as important as political power, what is right outweighs what is popular, just as principle outweighs party, truth matters more than team-playing, and conscience more than power and survival.
This idea of Two Kingdoms was first advanced by Augustine if I'm not mistaken, but is continues to be discussed today. I would encourage you or anyone to listen to this 30 minute discussion by some good Christian theologians about the Two Kingdoms idea and the temptation of political power for the Church. The show is called "White Horse Inn". And here is the episode to listen to. It's really worth it and will help you understand this issue immensely. You can also get more resources on this topic at the show's website here. Scroll down to the January episode for more.
Lastly, I want to comment on the video as it was uploaded to Youtube. The uploader took the promo video for the movie and added at least one clip of George Bush talking about the "War on Terrorism". You can go to the Jesus Camp movie website and see the original. I would have posted it here but it automatically plays when you navigate to my blog... and that's annoying :(
The Jesus Camp clip doesn't include the Bush clip. It seems like the uploader wanted to convey the idea that these conservative Christians were teaching about how to literally make war and participate in the "War on Terror". This is misleading. And for all the theological confusion represented in the teaching at this church I'm 99% sure they would not be teaching anything about literally making war, like how to shoot a gun, how to throw grenades, and how to sign up for the American military.
The uploader has also interspersed clips from news show interviews with the female teacher talking about Muslim jihadists and how Christians need to teach their kids to just as dedicated. (you can search the ABCNews website and find some of them there) The short clips seem to be intended to show that Christians are training their kids to be "Christian Jihadists" of a sort. This just isn't happening. I think it is legitimate to ask the question whether we as followers of Jesus are willing to die in the service of the Gospel in comparison to Muslim jihadist's dedication to Islam. But no one is teaching their children that "dying for Jesus" involves taking up arms against Muslims. They DO talk about being willing to die taking the Gospel into a hostile world. You might recall the female teacher yelling, "this means war!". This clip is set alongside the Bush clip to imply that she was teaching that the church is literally joining up in the War on Terror and sending their children to fight. We don't know from the clip what she said but I would bet that she was teaching about making war on sin in our lives. That's generally what these types of children's programs teach. Believe me, I've seen lots of them.
So in conclusion, I think there is lots of theological error and unbiblical types of teaching revealed in the clips but also a dishonest (or at least horribly misguided) attempt by the uploader to imply that the literal training of children for war is going on in American churches. That's just not true.
I suppose that every age has its own particular fantasy: ours is science. A seventeenth-century man like Blaise Pascal, who thought himself a mathematician and scientist of genius, found it quite ridiculous that anyone should suppose that rational processes could lead to any ultimate conclusions about life, but easily accepted the authority of the Scriptures. With us, it is the other way `round.
Malcolm Muggeridge (1903-1990), Jesus Rediscovered [1969]
A couple months ago we had the privilege of hosting in our home a small gathering of youth and University students from the church for a meeting with noted Bible teacher and preacher Stuart Briscoe.
It was a wonderful time as Dr. Briscoe shared from his experience three important principles of Christian leadership. They are:
1. A Christian leader leads people into God's will for their lives. 2. A Christian leader treats people like they are made in the image of God. 3. A Christian leader displays an increasing amount of Godliness in their life.
Great stuff from a wonderful and wise man! Check out his website for radio programs, teachings, and podcasts.
Stuart Briscoe, me, Joanne (my wife), Mark Forrester (friend)
If you want to look up a word or specific passage in the Bible you can just scroll down to the BibleGateway sidebar gadget I just installed below. Give it a try!
I also recently added a sidebar which lists books I'm currently reading.
Interesting policy implemented at the Mall of the Emirates last month. If you're feeling amorous with your shopping partner (or someone you meet there :) you should take note of the second prohibition listed... "No Kissing or Overt Displays of Affection". You might also get stuck at "Please Wear Respectful Clothing" too.
This raises a number of questions. Does this apply to all kissing? Like the "peck on the cheek" kind? Or just the 'extended lip-lock' kind? Who makes this decision? Is hand-holding an overt display of affection? Is an arm around the shoulder? Exactly where can a hand be put?
And what is respectful? Of course I assume they mean respectful to the host culture. But that is a tough thing to do when you (Dubai) are setting your goals on drawing hundreds of thousands of tourists to your country. Tourists by definition almost always see themselves as not a part of the culture they are visiting. It's as if they think of themselves as viewing everything from behind a glass window.
When I first moved here I used to not wear shorts except to the beach and to the park. But I've loosened up about that over the last 5 years. I wonder if I ever offend anyone when I go to the store.
As a Christian I'm eager to keep the commandments of the Bible as an act of gratitude to God for what he's done for me through Christ - the forgiveness of sins and the adoption into the his eternal family as a son of the King. The Bible would teach "let there not be a hint of immorality among you." (Ephesians 5:3) But the real challenge is that immorality has some culturally defined boundaries. Or at least the "hints" are culturally defined often.
So, even when I take my family of all women (4 daughters, 1 wife) to the mall they don't go in shorts or sleeveless shirts just out of respect for the host culture in which we live. But even then I wonder if people see my daughters, know we're from the west, and then just assume they are immoral. What can I do about that? Nothing I think. Other than to live it down among the people who really know us.
When we go though, we'll just have to make sure... no kissing!
I get a daily email entitled Christian Quote of the Day. I've been getting it for over 5 years now and though I don't read it every day it has been a great source of encouragement and spiritual stimulation almost weekly.
Today is the 12 year anniversary of the email list and the author has published the entire chapter 8 of Romans from a book entitled "The Inspired Letters in Clearest English", a translation into simple English of the letters of the New Testament, prepared by Frank C. Laubach, a twentieth-century champion of literacy and Bible translation in many countries. In it he only uses a vocabulary of about 200 words it was published in 1954.
I really like the way it reads... refreshing. Take a look, it will only take you about 10 minutes to read it. And Romans 8 is about the pinnacle of the New Testament so you can't do much better. (Click the link below to read the entire chapter
There is now no sentence of death for those who are in Christ Jesus. The Spirit has its own law, and this law gives me life in Christ Jesus. It sets me free from sin and death. What the law of Moses could not do because our flesh was too weak, God has done. He sent His son in flesh like our sinning flesh. Christ died as a sin-offering for us. In this way, God passed a death sentence upon sin in the flesh. Now we are able to live as the just law requires if we obey the Spirit and do not obey the call of the flesh.
Those who live for the Spirit keep their minds on the things of the Spirit. Those who live for the flesh keep their minds on the things of the flesh. To keep the mind on the flesh means death. But to keep the mind on the Spirit means life and peace. The mind that is set on the flesh is the enemy of God. It does not and cannot obey the law of God. Those who live for the flesh cannot please God.
But you do not live for the flesh. You live for the Spirit, if the Spirit of God really lives in you. Any man who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Christ. If Christ lives in you, your bodies are dead because of sin, but your spirits are alive and you love what is right. The Spirit of God Who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you. And God is going to put life into your bodies just as He raised Christ Jesus from the dead. It is His Spirit which lives in you which will be your life.
So then, brothers, we do not owe a duty to the flesh. We are not to obey the call of the flesh. If you live for the flesh you will die. But if you are led by the Spirit, and put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all those who are led by God's Spirit are God's sons. You did not receive the spirit of a slave, to make you fear. But we have received the spirit of a Son of God. That is why we cry, "Father, dear Father." The Spirit of God is bearing witness with our spirits that we are children of God. If we are God's children we are also to be God's heirs. We are fellow-heirs with Christ. If we share His sufferings, we shall also share His glory. I do not consider the sufferings of this present time worth comparing to the glory that is going to be revealed to us.
Even the created world is waiting with eager desire for the sons of God to appear. Every created thing has been put under the power of death and decay. Nothing wants to die or decay, but God has willed it so. Yet He gave us hope that the created world itself will be set free from decay and death. Then everything in the world will obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God. We know that the whole created world has been groaning in the pains of childbirth until now. Not only the world around us, but we ourselves have been groaning within. We are waiting for God to deliver our bodies from the power of death. We are waiting for Him to adopt us as His sons. This is the hope that saves us. If it had already happened we would not need to hope for it. Who hopes for a thing after he has it? But if we still hope for what we do not yet see, we must be patient while we wait for it.
The Holy Spirit is a glorious first fruit of what God plans to give us. The Holy Spirit helps us, because we are weak. We do not know how we ought to pray. But the Holy Spirit Himself keeps praying for us with sighs too deep for words. God Who can see into men's hearts, knows what the Spirit desires. And the Spirit keeps praying for God's people in the way God wishes. We know that God works with those who love Him to bring good out of everything.
Those who love Him have been called according to His purpose. He knew them before they were born and He had chosen them to become like His son. Jesus was the first born and those whom God has chosen are His brothers. Those whom God chose He called. He cleared all charges against those whom He called. He gave His own glory to those whose charges He cleared.
What then can we say if this is true? God is for us, so who can be against us. God did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all. And God will gladly give us all things along with Christ. Who then shall bring any charges against those whom God has chosen? It was God Who cleared their charges, so who dares to condemn them? Christ Jesus died; He was raised from the dead; He is at the right hand of God. And it is He who pleads for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or pain or ill treatment or hunger or need of clothes or danger or death? As it is written:
"For Thy sake we face death the whole day; we are regarded as sheep to be killed."
Yet in all these things that happen we shall have victory and more than victory by the help of Him Who loved us. I am sure that nothing shall be able to separate us from Christ, in life or in death. Neither angels nor even the princes of the dark spirit world can separate us from Christ. Nothing now and nothing that shall ever come can separate us. No power, no height, no depth, nor anything God has created will be able to separate us from His love which He gave us in Christ Jesus our Lord.
... prepared by Frank C. Laubach (1884-1970), The Inspired Letters in Clearest English [1954]
