What is the Basis of Our Faith?

If I were to ask you how much you know about God and how you got to know what you know about God, what would you say?

Where is the source for what we believe? Well, God, of course, but where do we receive the authority for the things we believe in? What is the standard which tells us whether we’re on target or not?

Some say that tradition is of equal value to scripture when it comes to authority for our faith. We may often hear someone say they believe something because their parents said so. Others believe things based upon what their church or denomination has traditionally taught.

Many people believe that their heart will tell them what is right. It is supposed that intuition or a “burning of the heart” will lead us to the truth. This is the mystic conception of knowledge of God. However, the prophet Jeremiah wrote, “the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.” (Jeremiah 17.9)

Many others will hold to what they perceive to be the majority opinion about God. This often leads to ups and downs concerning our beliefs. Once, it was thought normal to not accept fornication or homosexuality. Nowadays, it is considered by many, perhaps most, to be unkind and intolerant if we do not only accept but also affirm such deviant behavior. This is because the tide of public opinion has shifted. We may often feel that our beliefs should change with this shifting tide.

Is there a standard for what we should believe? I believe there is. I have placed my confidence upon God’s written word, the Bible – sixty-six books from Genesis to the book of Revelation.

Martin Luther said, “My conscience is captive to the Word of God.” And “Let the man who would hear God speak, read Holy Scriptures.”

The London Baptist Confession of 1644 states:

The rule of this knowledge, faith, and obedience, concerning the worship and service of God, and all other Christian duties, is not man’s inventions, opinions, devices, laws, constitutions, or traditions unwritten whatsoever, but only the word of God contained in the … Scriptures.

Just a small portion of the Westminster Confession of 1647 (Presbyterian) says:

The authority of the Holy Scripture, for which it ought to be believed, and obeyed, dependeth not upon the testimony of any man, or church; but wholly upon God (who is truth itself) the author thereof: and therefore it is to be received, because it is the Word of God.

The Second London Confession reads:

The Holy Scripture is the only sufficient, certain, and infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and obedience.

The New Hampshire Confession of 1833 acknowledges:

We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired, and is a perfect treasure of heavenly instruction;  that it has God for its author, salvation for its end,  and truth without any mixture of error for its matter;  that it reveals the principles by which God will judge us; and therefore is, and shall remain to the end of the world, the true centre of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions should be tried. 

We could talk about Wesley’s Twenty-five Articles of Religion, Institutes of Calvin, and dozens of other great teachers of the Reformation, but I think it is best to let the scripture speak for itself.

Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. (Jesus; John 5.39) 

Jesus prayed:

Sanctify them by your truth. Your word is truth. (Jesus; John 17.17)

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (Paul; 2 Timothy 3.16-17)

And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. (Peter; 2 Peter 1.19-21)

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. (David; Psalm 119.105)

These are only a few of many, many places where the writings of the scriptures affirm themselves. The claim of the Bible is very bold. That claim is that those words, recorded there, are the very words of God.

For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe. (1 Thessalonians 2.13)

Look no further than to God’s word. Let it speak to your soul.

Do you want eternal life? Let God’s word, pointing to Jesus, show you the way.

Do you want to know God’s will? The Bible  is the recording of God’s revealed will.

Do you need wisdom? God will give it to you through the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments.

Do you wish to know what the future holds? Find out by reading the Bible.

Let us return to the Bible, God’s written word.

What is Most Important?

Photo by Mike Wilson on splash.com

Then He (Jesus) spoke a parable to them, saying: "The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. And he thought within himself, saying, 'What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?' So he said, 'I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry."

But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?' "So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” [i]

What are your priorities? If you were to write a list of the top ten most important things in your life, what would they be? You could start with the most important as number one and go on down the list in order of importance. Remember, this is not a list of how things should be but of how they really are. Then, you could write another list of how things should be. You would have to be brutally honest with yourself wouldn’t you?

How do I know if something is truly important or not? Here are some questions we should ask when we try to determine the true value of the things of life:

- What would I try to preserve in a fire or in a flood?

Have you ever spilled a cup of coffee all over your desk? It doesn’t take long to figure out what’s important and what’s not. I have scrambled so fast to clean things up that had to be saved, disregarding everything else. I had thought they were all important until the mishap occurred. Then there was a quick shift in my evaluation of them. I realized that I was just hanging on to many of those items and that all they were doing was just causing clutter on my desk.

- Will I be able to take it with me when I go? (when I die, that is)

- Does it help me build relationships with people, or does it deteriorate relationships?

- It is something I can be “proud” of? 

You have probably already heard this statement: Nobody ever says, when they get to the end of their life, “I wish I had spent more time making money.” or: “I wish I had spent more time watching television or messing with my computer.”

Most people, if they have any regrets, would say, “I wish I had spent more time with my family.” Or they might say, “I wish I had not squandered my time on frivolous things.” Many would say, “I wish I had not ignored my relationship with God.”

- Will it matter to those left behind? Who will care 100 years from now?

- Will my children and grandchildren or my friends remember me fondly for it?

- Is it worth the amount of time I am putting into it?

- What else or who else will suffer because of it?

- Does it have control of my life?

- Is it a need or a want?

- If it is a want, is it a selfish want?

- How does this priority affect those I love the most?

- How does this affect the work of God’s kingdom?

- Did I fix my focus on that which I do best in service to God and others, 

   or did I spend all of my time just doing “this and that”?

- Did I concentrate on the eternal or on the temporal?

The man in story Jesus told really did nothing wrong, it is what he didn’t do that caused him to waste his life. The world would have voted him as “The Man Most Successful” but God did not vote that way, and remember it is his vote that counts in the end. He laid up “treasure for himself but was not rich toward God.”

See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. [ii]

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[i] Luke 12.16-21 – The Holy Bible, New Testament

[ii] Ephesians 5.15-17 – The Holy Bible, New Testament

You Don't Know the Half of It

It has never yet been clearly established as to whether this Queen of Sheba came from a location in Arabia or Ethiopia. Both places have traditions concerning their ancient queen and King Solomon. It might even be possible that this great Monarch was the queen of both locations.

Regardless, the Bible tells us that:

When the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with hard questions. She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels that bore spices, very much gold, and precious stones; and when she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about all that was in her heart. So Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing so difficult for the king that he could not explain it to her. And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, the food on his table, the seating of his servants, the service of his waiters and their apparel, his cupbearers, and his entryway by which he went up to the house of the LORD, there was no more spirit in her. Then she said to the king: "It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. However I did not believe the words until I came and saw with my own eyes; and indeed the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame of which I heard. (1 Kings 10.1-7)

We can see from the biblical text that the Queen of Sheba was already very wealthy. She had brought to Solomon loads of amazing gifts – huge amounts of gold, precious stones, spices, and rare wood from Lebanon. She was a very wealthy lady!

But when she saw all that Solomon had – the palace, the food, his servants, the Temple of Jehovah he had built; not to mention his unsurpassed wisdom – her spirit was absolutely drained.

There was no question he could not answer, no wealth he did not already own, no authority he could not command, no comparison to anything she had ever seen.

Usually when one hears rumors, they often become exaggerated legends, grossly overstated assertions only partially true, but with Solomon, “the half was not told” her. His wisdom and prosperity exceeded his fame.

King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired, whatever she asked, besides what Solomon had given her according to the royal generosity. (1 Kings 10.13)

That’s the way it is when you come to Jesus. He exceeds all expectations and we have not yet seen him in all of his glory.

We could not even begin to give to him anywhere near all the riches that are available to us by him.

I can say about him that “the half was not told me” and I’m still learning more about his grace, goodness, compassion, love and tender mercies.

One day we will see him as he is in all of his glory and say: “I didn’t know the half of it.”

If you have considered becoming a Christian, think no longer. Jesus is more than you could ever imagine. We already know he is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We know he is Savior, Creator, Sovereign, and that he holds all things together to name only a few. What more could ever exceed what we already know about him. Wait and see. You’ll be surprised as you get to know him. Tell him your heart’s desire. Soon you will find that he IS your heart’s desire.

Who was that Masked Man?

In the old black and white television show, “The Lone Ranger”, a man, formerly a Texas Ranger, would go from place to place with his faithful friend, Tonto, helping people overcome run-ins with outlaws.

He wore a mask to protect his anonymity. Once the problem was solved and the bad guys were put away he would command his horse with “Hy-O Silver, away!” and ride off into the sunset.

Soon after he had left town someone would say; “Who was that masked man?” The answer was always, “Why, that’s the Lone Ranger.”

The bible mentions an occasion in which Jesus was talking to a religious man about the command: “Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.'" 

In an effort to find a loophole in those two commands, the man, well versed in the Holy Writings, asked this question, "And who is my neighbor?"

This prompted Jesus to tell this story[i] about a man who had true compassion. Though he wasn’t a masked man, he too was anonymous, for no one but God knows his name to this day. Here’s the story:

A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii (valuable coins)[ii], gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.' So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?"

And he said, "He who showed mercy on him."

Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."

Here are some observations about this “good Samaritan.”

• He would have been the most unlikely to succeed in being a prospect to help this “certain man” who was probably Jewish. The problem was that the Jews and Samaritans were always at outs with each other.[iii] It is strange that two very religious men would have left the afflicted man die because they had no compassion and didn’t want to be tainted by touching him. Both the Levite and the Priest “passed him by,” They thought they had “better things to do” but not the Samaritan man. The Samaritan was probably not as well versed in the religion of the Old Testament but paid more attention to its teachings than they. 
  
  
• He was compassionate. This is always where helping others always starts. It starts when our heart becomes burdened by the plight of another. Without a compassionate heart we will always be more interested in getting where we’re going and keeping our own hands clean than we are in helping someone who is hurting.
  
  
• He was present. The first man “saw” him but passed by on the other side of the road. The second man actually “came and looked” but also passed by on the other side of the road. But the Samaritan actually “came where he was.” Ezekiel put it like this: “I sat where they sat.”[iv] The Samaritan didn’t just stop and gawk, but “went to him.”
  
  
• He got his hands dirty. Helping others in a crisis is not white collar work even if you might be a white collar worker. If we really want to make a difference in people’s lives then we’ll have to get down and dirty with them sometimes.  He was willing to bear the man up with all of his strength and set him upon his beast. While the afflicted man rode the Samaritan’s animal, the Samaritan would have to walk the rest of the way to the nearest Inn.
  
  
• He provided for the man's healing. He poured medicine on his wounds, bandaged him, and took him to an inn to nurture him.
  
  
• He paid for his care. Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” The Samaritan truly showed how much he cared by the price he was willing to pay. He paid the innkeeper two days wages for the cost of lodging and told him he would pay any other costs which might incur. 
  This man was destitute after being robbed and could pay absolutely nothing. He was at the mercy of this good Samaritan but the Samaritan came through with all that was needed.
  
  
• He promised to come back. He said, “…when I return.” We don’t know if it was already in his plans to come back through that way or not. He does not say when he would return but he promised that he would do so. Having seen this man’s character and his compassion, we can be sure that he did come back just as he said he would.
  
  
• He followed through in every detail. He did not leave unfinished meeting any need of this injured and deprived man. He brought everything to completion. There was no need left unattended to, no detail left unnoticed, no sacrifice left unmade, no cost left unpaid, no distance left untravelled, and no promise left unfulfilled.

There is much we can learn from this story about having compassion on others who have experienced disasters in their lives. We have seen many of these kinds of people in the last couple of weeks in the Gulf Coastal areas of Texas and Louisiana. Thank God, there are still plenty of Good Samaritans out there. Many of them never planned to do what they’ve done for others in the last several days but when crunch time came they rose up to the occasion to help those in need. These are individuals who never asked “Who is my neighbor.” They already knew that the people they were looking at, regardless of nationality, skin color or background were indeed their neighbors.

But we still haven’t answered the question of who the real mystery man is. Who is there who really always does the loving thing – even for those whom others would say, “They’re not worth it?”

The answer: Jesus Christ.

He left heaven and came to this cold, dark, murky, sinful world to where we live.

He had compassion for me and for you in our desperate condition – those of us who were “sinners, poor and needy, weak and wounded sick and sore.” We were “thirsty,” “weary, heavy laden, lost and ruined by the fall”[v] but he came to our rescue.

He provided for our healing. We were sickened and near death because of our sin against God. Jesus came and poured in the wine of his blood and the oil of the Holy Spirit into our lives so that we might be healed.

He paid what we could never pay ourselves. We owed an insurmountable debt to God but he covered the cost through his death on the cross.

He promised he would return, saying: “I will come again and receive you to myself; that where I am, there you may be also.”[vi]

He completed his work. “He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.” Just before he died on the cross he uttered; “It is finished.”[vii] He did not fail to perform one little bit of everything that was required for our redemption.

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[i] Luke 10.25-37

[ii] Denarii is the plural form of the word Denarius, a Roman coin which contained approximately 1/8 ounces of silver. It may not sound like very much to you or me but it was originally the price of 10 donkeys (later 16). In the bible (Matthew 20.2), it was the amount paid to a common laborer for a day’s work.

[iii] John 4.9

[iv] Ezekiel 3.15

[v] I Will Arise and Go to Jesus – song written by William Walker

[vi] John 14.3

[vii] Hebrews 7.25