What must we do, to being doing the "works of God"?

The Work of God

Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” ²⁹ Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”^[1]

This question is from John 6:28 and comes from a group of unbelievers who had just seen Jesus preach and perform the miracle of the loaves and fishes.  Jesus offers an unexpected answer.  He actually ignores their question and tells them what they actually need to hear.

These men clearly had an unrepentant, religious mindset.  They ask the Lord, “What must we do?”  When dealing with God this is the exact wrong question.  Instead of justifying this wrong question with a response, Jesus ignores them and answers the question they should have asked.  He answers, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”  He tells them what God’s work is.  God’s work in them is that they believe in his Christ.

Some have read this passage to say that Jesus responds something like, “These are the works that God desires of man.”  There are even some Bible “translations” (I hesitate to use that word) that render it that way.  But the fact is that it is grammatically impossible to read the Greek text in such a way.  The phrase is Τοῦτό ἐστιν τὸ ἔργον τοῦ θεοῦ, “This is the work of God.”  No connotation of desiring anything of man anywhere in the words.  Furthermore, to read it like this creates a contradiction of the biblical teaching that we are saved, “apart from works of the law.” (Romans 3:28)

Also to understand this exchange the way I have presented it is to read directly in the context of the rest of this passage.  Jesus goes on to explain to this group of unbelievers about God’s unconditional election of sinners to salvation through believing in his son.  This section details the work of God in saving his people to the uttermost, drawing the elect, losing none that are his.  Once you are his you CANNOT walk away.  Christ does the father’s will perfectly.  John 6 contains beautiful truths that should be precious to anyone who claims the name of Christ.  The next time you think, “What must I do?”  Remember how Christ answered this crowd, “This is what God has done.”

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^[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. 2001 (Jn 6:28–29). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.

John 3:16 – For God “so loved” the world?

I discovered something interesting recently.  Most of you do not know that I started learning Ancient Greek a few months ago.  I don’t know a lot about the language yet, but I do know enough to notice something in the Bible’s most famous verse.  Here is the first section of John 3:16 in Koine Greek:

Οὕτως γὰρ ἠγάπησεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν κόσμον

The English of this sentence is the well-known translation, “For God so loved the world.”

The word translated “so” is the Greek word “Οὕτως” (pronounced: “houtos”).  This word most often means “thus”, “so” or “in this manner”.   It is a word that almost always signifies the “manner” of something as opposed to the “degree” of something.

I don’t know about you, but when I read this verse, I always heard, “God SO loved the world”, as in, “God loved the world SO much, that he gave…”.   According to the Greek word, “Οὕτως”  this is not so.   What it actually says is “God so loved the world”, as in, “God, in this manner loved the world; that he gave…”  The word “so” is used in the same way Captain Jean-Luc Piccard in Star Trek used it when he gave a command by saying, “Make it so.”

Another thing about Greek is that the word order of a sentence does not having any bearing on the meaning, like it does in English.  Instead, words are put in the beginning of a sentence to provide emphasis on them.  Since “Οὕτως” is the first word of the sentence in John 3:16, it is emphasized.   This means that a good translation of this verse in English might be, “For in this manner God loved the world; that he gave…”

This is not a new discovery.  This is well known Greek grammar.  In fact, the Holman Christian Standard Bible translation renders it like this: “For God loved the world in this way:^[a] He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.”

Translating “Οὕτως” as “so”, is not technically incorrect English.  It just sounds like it means something different in modern English.  At least it did to me.  Maybe it did to you too.

Anyway, God Bless.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Falling "in love" with Jesus?

Something has been bugging me ever since I became a Christian.  It is the idea that as a Christian, I am supposed to be "falling in love" with Jesus.  If I am being honest with myself this idea makes me EXTREMELY uncomfortable.  There is something off-putting about the very notion of "falling in love" with the Lord of Glory, yet this idea is ubiquitous in modern evangelical worship, both musical and otherwise.  I guess my problems are as follows:

Firstly, "falling in love" is a phrase that by its very nature stirs up high levels of emotion.  That is not in and of itself bad, but the problem is that emotions are subjective by nature.  They are experienced differently, by different people.  Personally, I "fell in love" multiple times before I met my wife.  I felt intense emotional connections that at the time I could only describe as love.  As a Christian, who now has a Biblical worldview,  I realize that what I felt was intense lust for those women, not love.  

In order for the idea of falling in love to be useful in worship, it needs to be defined Biblically, not emotionally.  As I write this, I am watching the Catfish MTV show, where the subject is claiming to have fallen in love with someone she has never met, yet has regular phone sex with.  Is this love?  Certainly not.  Yet this is how the phrase is used in the world today.  When it is said that we need to" fall in love" with Jesus, it is almost never qualified Biblically.  In my opinion this is not only not helpful, it could actually be harmful to the saints.

This leads me to my second, and far more important concern.  Is this idea even Biblical?  If it isn't, then where does it come from, and why is it so common in worship today?  I am completely comfortable with the idea of loving God.   But again, love must be defined Biblically to have any meaning at all.  I believe love is very clearly defined in the Bible in 1 Corinthians and elsewhere.  None of that has anything to do with the vague concept of "falling in love", prevalent in today's culture.

At this point I must point out that I am aware of the metaphor used in Scripture of the Church being the bride of Christ.  But I am not sure this necessarily has anything to do with the modern exhortation for individual Christians to "fall in love" with Jesus.  Furthermore, I am not an expert on the institution of marriage as it was practiced in the time of the Apostles, but I am not convinced "falling in love" with her husband was the determining factor of whether or not the woman married him.  It's very likely that the metaphor of the Church as the bride, meant something very different to the initial audience of the Scriptures than it would to our modern sensibilities.

The greatest commandment, according to Jesus, our Mighty God, King of kings, and Lord of lords, is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind.  This is indisputable truth.  But is that love, which is commanded by Jesus in Matthew 22, akin to "falling in love" as defined by today's culture?  If not, isn't it about time that we stop talking about it like it is?

I am honestly posing these as questions.  (Excuse me for channeling my inner Rob Bell's "I'm just asking questions" style.)  Personally the use of the phrase "falling in love" pertaining to Christ is uncomfortable based on what I know about Him through the Bible.  I readily admit I may be missing something Scripturaly here.  I would welcome any thoughts or comments anyone may have on this issue.

Born That Way

The Bible teaches that homosexuals are sinners by nature.  This is not a debatable issue.  This is an essential teaching that all Christians must accept.  Heterosexuals are likewise sinners by nature.  This also is not a debatable issue.  This is clear teaching from the word of God.  “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)

The debate over homosexuality should not be had over whether or not a homosexual is “born that way”.   That makes no difference.   Christian, is it really so hard to believe that someone is born with a predisposition, or a desire towards sin?  Of course not.  The Bible teaches that God created Adam perfect.  Adam decided to rebel against the God who created him and because of that we all, by nature, join him in that rebellion.  We are all “born that way”, though that predisposition towards sin manifests itself in different ways in different people.

The real issue is one of repentance.  As Christians we are called to deny ourselves and follow Jesus. (Matthew 16:24)  Many people know this verse, but few in our culture truly live it out.  Pastor Saeed Abedini is living it out.  He is in prison in Iran.  He suffers regular beatings with no medical care.  Eventually he will be killed.  He knew that he faced this when he decided to preach the Lord Jesus Christ to the lost in Iran.  He has a wife and kids who miss him dearly.   Wouldn’t he rather be with them right now?  Of course he would.  But he loves God more than he loves himself, and so he preached Christ to the Muslims of Iran.  (And continues to do so in prison in between beatings.)

The issue of homosexuality is one of repentance.  If a homosexual truly resolves in their heart to deny their own desires, no matter how innate, it will hurt.  But that is what God requires.  He requires a change in the mind about sin.  You must hate your sin and love God.  You must trust in the perfection of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross on behalf of your own failings.  To do this you must repent from your desires.  Just like I must repent of my desires.

I am an adulterer.  Vile and wicked.  The Lord Jesus Christ said, “But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matthew 5:28)  I fail that test, and it is a deadly serious sin.  Do I want to look at women with lustful intent?  No.  I desperately want to change.  I hate it.  I was born that way.  This DOES NOT make it right.  It makes me a sinner to a Holy God.

What can I do?  All I can do is throw myself on the mercy of the Judge.  All I can do is recognize that it is not okay, even though I was “born that way”.   I need to repent from my own sinful desires and believe in the complete forgiveness available to me through the death, burial, and resurrection of our God, and Savior, Jesus Christ.

If you are reading this, you are also “born that way”.  No matter how it manifests in you, we are all in the same boat.  There is forgiveness in Christ, but only in Christ.  Outside of Christ there is only wrath and condemnation.  (Not from me, but from God.)  I beg you to repent and believe the good news of Jesus Christ, our God.

Exiles Part One: Peter Preaches the Trinity, the Gospel, and Contradicts Pluralism

Today at Movement NYC, the preaching was on 1 Peter verses 3-5.  Because I spend a good deal of time communicating with unbelievers, listening to their many objections, I tend to notice things in scripture that might have explanatory power for a skeptical audience.  I noticed one such thing in the introductory sentences of Peter's letter.

The introduction to 1 Peter (verses 1 and 2), contain a clear declaration of the concept of the Trinity.  All three members of the Godhead are present in this passage, as well as their distinct roles in the salvation of men.   The Father "foreknows and elects", the Spirit "sanctifies", and the Son atones.  In non-christian circles such as Jehovah's Witnesses or Mormonism, often the criticism is levied that the Bible does not teach the Trinity.  The opening of 1 Peter stands in direct contradiction to that idea.

One particularly interesting point brought up during the sermon was that in verse 3, Peter says "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!" (Emphasis added)  He specifies that God is the Father of Jesus, and not some other god.  This is important today, because the word "god" has so many different connotations that unless it is defined, it is meaningless.  If someone came up to you at Union Square and told you they knew how to get closer to god, what would they be saying to you?   They could be quoting that Nine Inch Nails song referring to some kind of sex, they could be trying to sell you drugs, or they could be talking about some pseudo-spiritual, new age, cosmic "force" of some kind.  In our pluralistic, "whats true for you is true" type of culture, this vague idea of god is acceptable, perhaps even preferable.  After all, isn't it arrogant to think that one concept of God is true and all others false?  Our culture tells us that all religions tell us truth about God.  This attitude, however, MUST and DOES exclude the religion established by the resurrection Jesus Christ.

This is because the resurrection proved that Jesus was God, just like he said he was.  If he was not God, he would not have resurrected.  If Jesus is God, and he is, that means that any religion that teaches he is not God, cannot be true and leads to eternal damnation.  Jesus said as much;  "unless you believe that I am, you shall die in your sins." (John 8:24).  In order for any other religion to be true, Christianity must be false.  Christianity is not false, therefore no other religion can be true.  Peter makes this abundantly clear by identifying Jesus as Lord, and God as his Father.

One other interesting thing I noticed from the sermon is that verses 3-5, are actually a very early confession of the gospel message in summary form, including the specific roles of all three person of the Trinity.  This is important because often times atheists and other non-Christians will claim that these doctrines came much later, and were developed over time by people who did not know the real Jesus.  Peter was closer to Jesus than even Paul, and he summarizes the gospel clearly in these verses:

Regarding salvation he identifies:

the Cause:          "According to his great mercy he has caused us..."

the Effect:          "to be born again to a living hope through..." 

the Means:          "the ressurection of Jesus Christ from the dead,"

the Result:          "to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading..."

our Response:     "through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed..."

The Father causes us to be "born again" by the Holy Spirit, and shows us mercy by the death and ressurection of the Son, who atones for our sins, so that we are given an eternal inheritance in heaven.  This is ours simply by receiving it, through our repentance and trusting God.  This is the gospel.  It is all right there, in the opening sentences of Peter's letter.

The truly remarkable thing about all this is that Peter was just a regular guy.  He was a fisherman who had a knack for being the most hard-headed of Jesus' disciples.  That he so deeply understood the implications of Jesus' life, death and ressurection, so early on, should encourage all of us.  If God can powerfully use a man like Peter, he can use our meager efforts as well.  I am looking forward to opening up 1 Peter even more in the coming weeks.