Father’s Day in 2013

It seems like a different Father's Day to me this year. It has been a trying year.  My own dad, Eulane Walker, a compassionate and hard-working and godly family man, departed this earthly life January 9.  Within a week or two, my wife Pat lost her brother-in-law.  My dear brother Steve was then diagnosed with advanced colon cancer, and he has been in a battle ever since.  And "Stan the Man" Musial, baseball hero for young boys of the 1950s and 60s, died 10 days after my father. 

I feel so much older and “emptier” with regard to myself, and yet I feel so much richer and fuller in purpose.  It seems fitting for me to pause today and reflect about my Dad’s life and death. 

He gave unselfishly all of his life to do what he thought helpful for others – family, friends, neighbors, brethren.  The funny thing is he didn't think of himself that way.  But so it is with God’s humble servants.  They don't think of themselves at all.

He worked all the time as long as he was able - with his hands and his heart and his mind and his spirit.  Vacations you could count on one hand.  No trips to Hawaii or Florida to get away.  If he ever took a trip, it was to preach, or to go see family, or to help somebody.  He was a father and husband; a farmer, a maintenance worker, a milk hauler, a carpenter, a craftsman, preacher and teacher, and as you just heard – we didn't know it, but he was even a poet.  But ALL of these with ONE goal – to be God’s man.

I realize my bias. He had his faults, his weaknesses, his doubts, his failings.  He and I did not always see things alike.  But God is his judge, not me.   [Aren’t we all glad of that?] But in the final analysis he was a man of faith (surrender of the will based on conviction), who set his course toward God’s will and kept re-centering on it.   God tells us that is what he is looking for.  And that’s enough for me.

He and our mother were completely devoted to us children, to giving us the best they could in life from a spiritual standpoint. We quickly learned the concept of right and wrong, and it was reinforced with love and with the belt.  [Daddy didn't really get a hold of me very often.  Mother regularly took aim at my backside, but if Daddy came home to do it, it was memorable.]

But especially they attended to our spiritual development.  They taught us about Bible doctrines, the church, morality and their understanding of God’s will.  But for me, above all things, they gave me a great foundation to one day develop my own convictions, to seek and open my own heart to the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 3:6). 

And now to the great king eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory forever and ever.  I am privileged to bow before him, and to praise him, and to commit my Daddy to his keeping.

The Kingdom of Heaven is Like… (2)

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:

Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.”  Mat 13:45-46

The first four parables in Mt. 13 (up to v. 35) are spoken to the multitudes by the seaside.   For the “outsiders”, these parables deal with simple and surface truths about the kingdom of heaven – the kingdom as it would first dawn on men in the world.  So they draw them to seek further, to hear honestly, to discern truth and error. To beware of evil influences that might distort or hide the kingdom truth. 

But the latter parables in the chapter are a bit different.  Now Jesus is back in the house with his disciples.  They ask him about the parable of the tares he had just spoken to the multitude.   And after the explanation, Jesus shares deeper truths with his disciples.   They will be his representatives – from the spiritual realm to the world.  They will proclaim the kingdom’s spiritual truths.   He leads them to see the preciousness of the kingdom, to understand its spiritual value and how to recognize it and how to lead men to see it.

For the parables of the treasure and the pearl, they are often interpreted as suggesting that hearers should sell all they have to “buy” the gospel truth.  But I suggest that Jesus is still using the illustrations from the earlier parables.  “The field is the world” in these earlier parables, and “the man” or the sower is the Son of Man.  The earlier parables focused on the hearing of the gospel, but now Jesus wants his disciples to see the treasure of the kingdom and the salvation of the king. 

In the parable of the treasure, the man seeks the treasure, finds it, buries it again (!), and – with joy - goes and sells all he has to buy the field.  This is the story of Redemption.  The field is the world.  The man (Son) sees the treasure hidden there. The treasure is the setting up of the reign of God in the world – bringing redemption to the souls of men and women.  Only the Son sees the treasure hidden, and only the Son can purchase the field.  With joy he buries the treasure again (in the world it is “hidden”) – but he knows exactly where it is, He SEES it, knows its value, knows how to get to it and how to protect it.  With joy, He gives all He has for it.  He will die for it and he will OWN it.  He will own the whole world, and in it He will preserve the treasure of His kingdom.

In the parable of the pearl of great price, the idea is the same, but with a further note.  The merchant is seeking “goodly” pearls.  He is going about his trading, buying and selling.  But this merchant is special.  He is looking not just to make money, but using his money to find special quality gems.  He is seeking beauty, majesty, gems suitable for royalty.  But when He finds the ONE pearl that exceeds all others in beauty, majesty and preciousness, then He sells everything else, and buys it. 

Do you see the glory of those two parables?  See how Jesus is teaching his disciples about the value and preciousness and beauty of his kingdom, hidden in the world?

In the parable of the dragnet, there is a further insight.  The disciples might naturally ask, “What about all the evil in the world? How can we know the real treasure?  How can we separate the good from the evil?  How do we know which pearl to keep and which to throw away?”  Jesus reassures them.  At the end of the world, there will be a gathering and sorting.  The angels will know.  God will get it right.  Rest on that.  The disciples’ work was to sow the seed, teach the word, open the eyes of all who will hear about the good news of the reign of God.  He and his angels will one day do the separating.

He is not saying we should ignore evil in the church. But rather, that the kingdom is “mixed in” with the world. The church must exist in the world to save the world, and it cannot be completely insulated from evil men and evil influences.  Sometimes it may be hard to separate.  But God will take care of it one day.

And now that brings him to the last short parable in this chapter.  Jesus says to his disciples, “Have you understood these things?”  They answer positively, and He explains to them their charge: they must understand his teaching about the kingdom, its majesty, its preciousness, its purpose, how it is “hidden”, what its destiny is.   And – like Ezra the scribe of old – they are to instruct the people in the ways of God, like a householder drawing out treasures from his house – things new, and at the same time old.  They would preach the gospel of the kingdom in the message of the cross.  Old principles would have new and glorious meaning.  Old texts would find beautiful fulfillment.  The ancient plan of God – from before the foundation of the world – would find fresh expression in the living Christ in the hearts of men!  These disciples would be the keepers of the treasure-house!  God help us to see what we have in our hands!                       

The Kingdom of Heaven is Like… (1)

“Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field…” Mt. 13:24

“He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;

The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked” Mt. 13:37-38

In Matthew 13, there are powerful and practical lessons for us about the kingdom of heaven if we can see them.  The chapter drives home the point that Jesus is teaching the crowds in parables for a reason.  On one level, he is trying to reach those who might have hearts prepared to seek truth.   For those who are willfully blind and dull to hear about spiritual things, it will mean little to them.   He is drawing those from the crowd who are willing to ask and seek.  On another level, for his true disciples, he is leading them from one truth into clearer understanding and deeper truth.  [see v. 10-17].

The organization and setting of the whole chapter help our view.  Jesus went “out of the house” to sit by the seaside (v. 1), and a great crowd is gathered to hear him teach.  He gives the parables of the sower (with its explanation), then the tares, the mustard seed and the leaven.  After this, Jesus sends the multitude away (v. 36) and goes back in the house.  Now his disciples ask him to explain the parable of the tares, and after his explanation, he teaches his disciples with the parable of the treasure, the pearl and the dragnet.  Finally he gives them another “parable” to emphasize their responsibilities with their new understanding (v. 51-52).

Now just on a broad look, consider that in the first 35 verses or so, there are given to the “multitudes” by the sea some basic “drawing points” about the kingdom of heaven, designed to arrest the attention of men and women in the crowds who are willing to hear and seek.  For those who are interested, Jesus’ words here will draw them on.  He is getting their attention and inviting them to inquire further.  But in verses 37-50, there are deeper things, leading those who are followers of Christ to see more clearly and more deeply the nature of the kingdom.   Let’s look at the chapter in that way.

The earlier parables are simple, surface parables.  They speak of the kingdom in terms of good in the midst of an evil world.  The goodness of the Son of Man and the seed he sows, but also of the opposition of Satan and the world, which grows and may even seem to triumph for a while.   For the crowd listening to Jesus, these are the choices each individual must make.  They must see the evil around them and learn to recognize and seek the good.  These are parables that speak of warning about paying attention to good [“take heed how you hear”], and that one day, there will be a separation and destruction of the evil.  Those parables are aimed at causing worldly people to stop and think about what they are listening to, what they are allowing to grow in their lives, what they are seeking.  [Many around us need this simple light shined on them – even in the church!].  These kingdom parables challenge people to conviction about good and evil, sin and judgment. [“When he, the spirit of truth is come, he will convict the world in respect of sin and righteousness and judgment.”]

It is straightforward to us to see good and evil in the parables of the sower and the tares.  They both have the sower (Jesus), the seed (the word), the soils (fields or waysides of the world), and the fruit or grain produced.   They both have the opposition (rocks, thorns, tares).  Even the parables of the leaven and the mustard seed may relate to good and evil, to the kingdom and its opposition.  Look carefully at them in that light.

The hearers (outside the kingdom) need to understand that there is good and there is evil.  There is the true seed and its fruit, and there are the birds, the weeds, the hard ground and the thorns.  The kingdom is hard to see! Sometimes they can’t see the saints for the hypocrites!  Sometimes they can’t appreciate the glory and beauty of the kingdom because of the pain and sorrow and evil all around.  It seems evil is stronger than righteousness.  Sometimes evil seems to win, even in the church!  They have to look wisely and choose wisely.  They must be careful how they hear!  These are simple parables of conviction about right and wrong, good and evil, harvest and judgment.   Jesus calls the hearers who seek truth to consider the kingdom of heaven.  Look at it rightly.  Understand the gospel.  Hear the call.  Choose honestly.  It is serious business, those first steps about the kingdom of heaven!

The later parables in Mt. 13 look deeper.  They show Jesus teaching his disciples some fundamental and profound insights about the kingdom, and about Jesus the king in relation to it.  Then He challenges them about their responsibility.  We’ll look at that in the next article.

Seeing the Failures of Others

"If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and He shall give him life for them that sin not unto death."  1 John 5:16

We are always pretty quick to see where other people are failing - the way they raise their children, keep their houses, their language or dress, worldliness, shallow understanding, etc. If we are concerned about the things of God, it is inevitable that we will be troubled by the sins and shortcomings of people we know and care about.  But it makes a big difference how we see our own selves.  It is very easy to become a criticizing hypocrite.  We might feel like we know they are wrong because we ourselves got it right – we understand things better, we act better, we are more worthy.

We must look at things differently.  It is not our worthiness, our wisdom, or even our superior and doctrinally correct understanding of Scriptures. If we correctly see others’ failings, it is because He has blessed us in Christ to know something of His own character.   If we are His children, we have, by his grace, been made anew to be more Christ-like, more sensitive, more attuned to God’s holiness and majesty, more aware of our own failings, more humble about our own capabilities, more compassionate about the shortcomings of others.

All this is another way of saying that Christ’s spirit (the Spirit of God) dwells in us.  It is not a matter of mastering the knowledge of the revelation; it is a matter of submitting our wills to His in the walk of faith.  This certainly requires the written revelation to guide use.  But the “fruit of the Spirit” must be born in our lives, and we should give glory to Him for it – not to our own wisdom or worthiness.

If we realize this, we will remember that God says if one sees a brother sinning, ". . . he shall ask, and He shall give him life for them that sin not unto death."   We will see ourselves as saints with the responsibility of discernment concerning other souls. The failings of others are revealed to us – not so we can feel superior - but so that we may take these souls before Him in prayer.  When we intercede for them, God says He will give us "life for them that sin not unto death."  God will give to us spiritual life to bear a burden on their behalf - to have the mind of Christ about them, and to work toward the forgiveness of those whose hearts can be turned back to Him.

How this works in detail I cannot explain. But the Bible teaches that in the providence of God, in His care for His people, He makes many opportunities for His children for repentance, to be restored to Him and forgiven.  If we pray for them sincerely and earnestly, we can be a part of that providence.  He will give US life for them that sin “not unto death.”  What a glorious thought!  What a great responsibility!  How often I have failed in my prayer life for those around me who are stumbling and failing. 

Of course, it must be emphasized that we cannot effectively pray for the sins of others, if we are not sensitive to, and recognizing, and humbly repenting and confessing our own.                      

Think about this.  What if, instead of spending most of our prayer time focused on others’ physical illness or grief or financial woes, we spent more time praying in compassion and mercy for those who struggle spiritually?  Not praying arrogantly “I am better than they are” (the Pharisee of Luke 18) but determined to give our own time, effort, pleading and tears on their behalf, lifting them up to our heavenly Father.  Imagine that the promises of God might really work!  What kind of difference might we see in spiritual growth in our congregation?                   

The Way of Cain

Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Korah. Jude 11

By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.  Heb 11:4

Not as Cain, [who] was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous. 1 Jn 3:12

The story of Cain gives us insights about how materialism (worldliness) can affect us.  The verses above from the New Testament give us important further commentary from the Holy Spirit.  Jude speaks of some who “have gone in the way of Cain.”  What could it mean?  Lets analyze the way Cain took:

1.    He did not act in faith.  In contrast to his brother Abel, his offering was not acceptable to God.  The details of this are not given.  But as we have learned, faith is the surrender of the will to spiritual conviction, the “evidence of things hoped for.”  Abel trusted God as to the spiritual realm and shaped his offering accordingly, but Cain trusted and indulged HIMSELF and walked in his own way.

2.    When his offering was not accepted, he pouted and brooded.  God says if he will do the right thing, he will feel better.  [Good advice for any of us who are in the dumps, brooding, or depressed...]

3.    He turned his back on repentance and correction. When God challenged him to overcome the sin threatening him, Cain did not listen. He indulged his self-pity and anger and jealousy.

4.    He murdered his brother, who had walked by faith.  John says it is because Cain’s works were evil, and his brother’s righteous.  Sometimes we develop ill will toward faithful brethren because our own behavior is selfish.

5.    He denied responsibility for his brother, and showed his attitude toward God by speaking sarcastically and haughtily.

6.    When God confronts him and disciplines him, he complains about the harshness of his punishment.  “It is greater than I can bear.”  Cain was sorry about the consequences of his sin, about the punishment.  But he was NOT sorry about the sin.

7.    He decided to go on his own. God graciously sets a “mark” [sign] upon him so no one would kill him.  Whatever this might have been [and it did not have to be something visible] God offered it to him as protection.  But Cain “went out from the presence of Jehovah.”  One can’t leave the presence of God geographically.  But you can leave it spiritually.  Cain left the government of God.  He refused the authority of God.  He thought he could make it on his own, independent from the reign and relationship with God.

The “way of Cain” is first dullness to spiritual things - walking in worldliness, indulging self in material things. Then pouting, brooding, jealousy, stubbornness, and other bad attitudes when we don't get enough of them.  When challenged, we neglect, hate, and abuse righteous people, and then whine about God’s justice when he chastens us.  Finally, we may "go out from the presence of Jehovah" to go our own way.  We leave the government of God and think we can make it just fine.

Our main problem in our country is not the economy.  We have raised a couple of generations of Americans who have gone “the way of Cain.”  Today’s young people are reaping the consequences of these selfish and indulgent and materialistic ways.  The harvest is bitter tears, a corrupt society, and degraded culture.