Don't Be Tricked

I just heard an ad on the radio for a financial business and it went like this:

Do you have large credit card debt that you can't pay?  Don't let the credit card companies trick you and make you think you have to pay.  We can save you money.  Don't be tricked.

I cracked up!  The message is saying, "You can buy whatever you want, spend all the money you want...doesn't matter.  You don't really have to pay for what you buy."  

October 31, 2017, marks the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation.  As I heard that radio ad, it occurred to me that the Reformation had and still has the same message - Don't be tricked.

First, don't be tricked into believing that sin doesn't cost, that you can sin with impunity.  

For the wages of sin is death...Romans 6:23

It started with Adam.  His sin led to disease, decay, death.  It's the reason for the messed-up world that we live in.  Don't be tricked into thinking that you can do whatever you want, that you can just pursue your own happiness and all will be well. 

...there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  Romans 3:22-23

Second, don't be tricked into believing that you have the ability to pay for your sins.    

Before the Reformation, Martin Luther recognized that people were being misled into thinking that their own good works could somehow make up for their sin, or that they could make monetary payments for sin.

Works and money can't save.

For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” Galatians 3:10

Third - It's not a trick!  That's the good news. 

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.                 1 Corinthians 1:18 

You can't do anything to earn or buy your salvation.  It's free.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

And it's given by grace through faith based on blood, the blood of Jesus. 

...knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.  1 Peter 1:18-19 

It may seem foolish, but it's not a trick.

Packing Heat

As a Marine Lieutenant stationed at Camp Pendleton, I was often assigned a 24-hour shift as Area Guard Officer.  At Pendleton's 12/14 Area, I was required to check-out and carry a pistol while on duty.  I thought nothing of it, since wearing the pistol was required.

So when I transferred to the 24 Area at Pendleton,  and was again assigned Guard Officer duty, I checked-out a pistol from the Guard Armory and strapped it on. 

The Marines on 24 Area Guard were puzzled, thought I was a bit too "gung ho."  None of the other officers wore a pistol, and standard procedures for that area didn't require the Guard Officer to be armed.

But my own Marines, from my Supply Office, were delighted.  Once, while on duty, I ate with them at the chow hall, and they were proud that their Lieutenant was "carrying a pistol."

Truth be told, while on duty, I didn't feel properly dressed or equipped without that pistol.   

Fast forward to the Christian life...

As Christians, no matter our calling, we are always "on duty."  We continually face challenges and are open and vulnerable to sin, Satan, and the evils of this world.  

Likewise, we continually have opportunities for good, to do good works.

But we don't need to carry a "pistol" or some type of religious object.  We are fully equipped, although we may not think so, and we most often aren't even aware of it. 

We have His Word:

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 

 We have prayer:

 ...and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me. Psalm 50:15

We have His Spirit:

You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. John 14:17 

And more: His truth, righteousness, salvation, gifts and talents...Our Lord promises us many times that we are not alone, that He will be with us and equip us.  He gives us all we need, all standard issue, to carry out His work.

And just like the Marines who noticed my pistol, the world sees something different and takes notice of us Christians when we walk in faith.   

We know today that many people will and do respond to us in anger.  And some are just puzzled as to why we are the way we are.  

But our fellow Christians are encouraged.  And those people who need to hear the message of Jesus, who need to know that their sins are forgiven...they'll respond, be comforted, and believe.

Mrs. Hartley

Elizabeth Hartley 1892 - 1985

In 1971, when I was 9, I started attending Versailles Baptist Church with Mrs. Hartley.  She was a widow who lived across the street from the bus stop.  During the winter months, and on rainy days, Mrs. Hartley would invite us kids into her house to wait for the bus. 

Mrs. Hartley had a garden in her backyard; she drove an old silver car; she once gave me whiskey with honey to stop hiccups.

And sometimes, on the way home from church, we'd stop at the cemetery, and Mrs. Hartley would visit her husband and son's gravesite. 

But what I remember most about Mrs. Hartley was the way her eyes sparkled when she talked about reading the Bible.  As a young girl, she had memorized the Sermon on the Mount and had recited it in front of the church.

When I was 10, I bought my first Bible, a black King James Version, just like Mrs. Hartley's Bible.  I tried to memorize the Sermon on the Mount, but managed only the first chapter.  

But my inability to memorize didn't deter me for long.  Since that young age, I have consistently read God's Word.  It's a "lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path."  And I have Mrs. Hartley to thank for that.

When I tell this story, most people don't realize how young I was or how old Mrs. Hartley was - she was in her 80s.  

Today's society is all about youth, success, beauty, how much something is worth.  We often fail to consider or recognize the value of old age, wisdom, and just simple kindness.  

But Mrs. Hartley did.  She passed on her faith and her love of God's Word to a young girl who lived in her neighborhood.  The fruit of her sharing is beyond value.  

And, it's a lesson for all of us.  

First, don't discount the influence and contribution of your very oldest church members.  

And, second...keep serving and sharing, even when you're old and think you have nothing of value to contribute.

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:19-21

**When visiting her grave, I saw that her son, Kenneth, was a fellow Marine who was killed in action in Korea.  Semper Fi, Kenneth.

A Willing and Happy Heart?

I recently read a list of tips on avoiding dementia, and I mentally checked "yes" for those items that I do.  It's almost like a report card.  I think all of us read through these types of lists, just to reassure ourselves.

Martin Luther taught that every day we should pray through the Ten Commandments.  It's easy to read those laws and to mentally check "yes" thinking I'm okay with obeying them.  I might covet now and then, but who doesn't - basically I don't really break God's laws.

Commenting on Romans, Martin Luther talks about the true purpose of the law and how people mistakenly think they can obey and satisfy His law...

...not knowing how much the law demands, namely, a willing and happy heart.

Luther's saying that it doesn't matter if you can keep the letter of the law, but your motives and intent must also be correct, your heart must be right.  And Luther didn't make this up.  He got it from Jesus. 

...everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment....Matthew 5:22

...everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.              Matthew 5:28

Looking back through the Bible...

• Eve's sin started with delight and desire.
• Joseph's brothers were jealous of him.
• David looked on Bathsheba with lust.
• Jonah was angry with God for showing mercy.

All of these sins come from a hard, sinful heart.  And so it is with us, with me.  I may keep the outward demands of the law, but my heart is not right.  I inherited that from Adam - original sin and my sick heart.

But, Jesus.  The prophets said:

I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. Ezekiel 11:19-20

It started with baptism...and continues.  The more I read God's Word, the more I recognize the sickness of my own heart.  I read through those Ten Commandments, confessing that I break them all.  It's the heart of flesh that now recognizes my sin and also sees His goodness and mercy. 

Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!  Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! Psalm 34:8

"The Law of Medes and Persians"

While reading in Ezra recently, I was reminded of my early homeschooling years.  Whenever I tried to renege on a planned outing or change plans for the day, my sons would proclaim, "Law of Medes and Persians.  Law of Medes and Persians!"

The "Law of Medes and Persians" is referred to in several Old Testament books.  This "law" was a policy that forbade all previous laws from being revoked.  In essence, any law or decree written during the Medo Persian Empire became a permanent ordinance.

And a permanent law seems bizarre to our American way of thinking.  In our society, laws and policies change daily depending on who's in office.  But rather than being problematic, the Law of Medes and Persians actually had some advantages.

Stability - Permanent laws meant a sense of stability for the government.  And, the governed people knew what to expect.

Caution - A permanent law would not be written or approved in haste.  It was likely to be thought out, wise, and prudent.   

But the Law of Medes and Persians isn't just a history lesson.  God's character is actually similar to this law, and I think of that every time I read those Old Testament passages.  Consider:

God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it?  Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? Numbers 23:19

Our God keeps His promises; He does what He says He'll do.  He promises to hear our prayers, and indeed He does.

Also God's very name proclaims His eternality, His sameness, that He always is, that He doesn't change, and that He can be counted on:

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” Exodus 3:14 

But most significantly, the gospel is a truth that cannot be changed:

But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet.  For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. Hebrews 10:12-14 

Jesus came to earth at a specific time, at the time of Pontius Pilate, and He sacrificed once and for all.  Jesus' suffering, death, and resurrection can't be undone.  It's finished, and it proclaims a salvation that can't change.  That's greater and more precious than any Law of Medes and Persians.