Photo of the Week: August 15, 2018

Posted on August 15, 2018 by Don Merritt

Mount Vernon, Virginia; the estate of George Washington.

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The Letter to Pergamum

Posted on August 15, 2018 by Don Merritt

Pergamum was the Roman capital of Asia, the seat of Roman authority and of Emperor Worship. It was also the center for the worship of the Roman god of healing that was symbolized by a serpent, an image you might recognize today as being connected with healing. Pergamum was also the home of the great altar to Zeus.

To the angel of the church in Pergamum write:

Preamble (2:12b)

These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword.

Notice the way Jesus is described as the one wielding the sharp two-edged sword (the Word of God).

Historical Prologue (2:13-15)

I know where you live—where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, not even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city—where Satan lives.

Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: There are some among you who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin so that they ate food sacrificed to idols and committed sexual immorality. Likewise, you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.

 

We begin here with quite a commendation; even though this congregation is located in the city where none other than Satan has his throne, they have remained faithful to the name of Christ. Commentators differ on what is meant by the reference to the throne of Satan being present in the city, but one thing is clear; these brothers and sisters were holding valiantly to the truth in the face of heavy opposition. Even so, there were compromises being made, and this was a serious problem. They allowed worshippers of Balaam and Nicolaitans in their midst, with the associated behaviors, and that must be put to an end. My only comment to that is that it should give us food for thought as we look at what is going on today in our midst.

Stipulation (2:16a)

Repent therefore!

Curse (2:16b)

Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

If they do not either cause the offenders to repent or put them out of the congregation, the Lord would take action “with the sword of my mouth”. Yes, it’s a curious thing to say, but let’s not rush by too quickly. The sword represents the Word of God that proceeds from His mouth; that is the mouth of the Word who became flesh. This doesn’t mean Jesus will throw a Bible at anyone, nor does it mean that He is going to start yelling. What it does mean is that the Word of God is pure power; it is what caused the universe to come into existence, and it is what holds all of creation together. The people He is referring to are like wolves in the sheep pen, and Jesus our Good Shepherd will do what is necessary to protect those of the flock who have remained faithful to Him in such difficult circumstance. By telling them this, however, He is giving everyone involved the chance to correct the problems on their own before He steps in.

I’m thinking that should serve as food for thought as well!

Witnesses (2:17a)

Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Blessing (2:17b)

To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it.

This one isn’t so easy to understand. In the interests of brevity, those who receive “hidden manna” are servants of the Lord who will have a seat at His banquet table in the Kingdom. White and black stones were used in the Greco-Roman world when a jury cast its vote for the guilt or innocence of a defendant: White was for innocent, black for guilty. A white stone here would be indicative of being innocent on the Day of Judgment, i.e. having our sins taken away. When combined with the “new name known only to the one who receives it” we have symbolized the Christians of Pergamum being set free entirely from those who oppress and persecute them.

Next time, the letter to Thyatira.

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Test the Spirits

Posted on August 15, 2018 by Don Merritt

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.

1 John 4:1-3

Oh my word, what a timely text!  With the previous chapter ending by saying that we can know that Jesus lives in us because of the (Holy) Spirit He gave us, now John takes another step forward in our experience.  How can we tell who is right and who is not?

Simple: Test the spirits.

Well, it is actually simple, but at first it sounded a little creepy to me. On closer examination, however, it isn’t creepy and it isn’t hard.  Does a teacher or commentator acknowledge that Jesus Christ came in the flesh?  Do they acknowledge Him at all? If they do, they are from God; if they don’t they are not from God. If they don’t acknowledge Jesus, they aren’t from God, they are antichrist. If this is so, would we consider them a reliable source of insight?  Well, you can decide that one…

 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.

1 John 4:4-6

John finishes this thought in these verses, making his point even clearer.  We have overcome the spirit of antichrist, because the Holy Spirit within us is greater by far that the spirit of antichrist could ever dream of being.  Interesting point to bear in mind when reading commentaries, blogs and books.  These false teachers speak from the viewpoint of the world, not from the viewpoint of God, and the world will listen to them. Yes, and while the world will listen to the false teacher, the spirit of antichrist, the world will not generally listen to us, for they simply can’t fathom what we are talking about, so let’s not be surprised by this.

I’ve spoken with many Christians who fear that they might be tricked and led astray, and I always tell them that they will not be tricked and led astray if they have a strong relationship with Christ.  That is precisely what John is asserting here.  It’s so simple to tell the difference, and when you were little, your mother or father probably told you how to recognize who is credible and who is not, for I’ll bet they told you to “consider the source.” To put it another way, I wouldn’t recommend that we take spiritual advice from an atheist, nor would I suggest that we should take Bible instruction from a non-believer.

See how simple this stuff is?

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The Letter to Smyrna

Posted on August 14, 2018 by Don Merritt

Smyrna was the rival of Ephesus, a great and beautiful city built on the slopes rising out of the sea. Its buildings were a sight to behold and it was the most loyal of allies to Rome. Later it would be the scene of the martyrdom of Polycarp…

To the angel of the church in Smyrna write:

Preamble (2:8b)

These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again.

Historical Prologue (2:9)

I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.

The people suffered from poverty, extreme poverty. The believers had discovered that following Christ meant a serious sacrifice economically; they were thrown out of their employment for being Christian, they were often hungry and destitute, but they were still rich in grace and in the glorious hope of their secure future in Christ. (cf. Matt. 6:20; 19:21; Luke 12:21).

They were under constant attack by accusing Jews; you might compare these words to those found in Acts 13:50; 14:2, 5, 19; 17:5; 24:1. Those Jews, hardened as they were, probably believed they were the synagogue of God, but it is not God who is “the accuser of our brethren”, no, they were doing the bidding of none other than Satan.

Stipulation (2:10a)

Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death

The stipulation here is in the form of an exhortation; they will be imprisoned, they will suffer, they might be killed, and look who is behind all of this: The Devil himself. Satan is making use of the accusing Jews and the governing Romans to put them to the test in his effort to break the church of Jesus Christ… as was his pattern at that time. The real point or stipulation here is that they should remain faithful, even if that should cost them their very lives. The good news is that this intense persecution will only last for a short time. The “ten days” is not to be understood as ten calendar days, as we all know, for 10 is two handfuls, a short but definite period of time. This is often used as an encouragement for perseverance in Scripture; see Is. 26:20; 54:8; Matt. 24:22; 2 Cor. 4:17; 1 Pet. 4:6.

Witnesses (2:11a)

Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Blessing (2:10b, 11b))

and I will give you life as your victor’s crown

The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death.

The “victor’s crown” refers to the wreath of the victor in ancient athletic contests and it symbolizes eternal life here. The “second death” symbolizes perdition. Thus, the one who keeps the stipulation and remains faithful may die in the body, but will live forever victorious with Christ.

Please note that there is no curse here; Jesus has found no fault with the church in Smyrna.

Next time, we’ll have a look at the letter to Pergamum; see you then.

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Do You Really Know for Sure?

Posted on August 14, 2018 by Don Merritt

This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.

1 John 3:19-24

Chapter 3 of John’s first letter ends with the assurance that we can know for sure where we stand with God, but it isn’t the answer that most of us give if we are asked “how we know”…

John’s answer is that we know by the Spirit within us.

Well steady on there, isn’t that the Spirit that so many are waiting for…until “it” decides to move…? Yes, that one, the one that we say we can’t hear.

Yes, that’s the one John is referring to!

John takes a little different tack that we often do. He says that we will notice whether or not the Spirit within us condemns us, we know that God is greater than our hearts and knows all.  I think that many of us today use slightly different terminology for this by saying that we “feel convicted” about something.  When this happens, we have something to seek forgiveness for and have the need to alter our behavior or attitudes in some way.  When we are not condemned by our hearts, we are confident in His presence. We know that in saying these things, John is making reference to the work of the Spirit in our lives because he says so in the last part of the passage. Now, the remaining question is whether or not this is really true in our lives.

Over the years I’ve noticed that many people will tell me about their active prayer lives.  They will tell me all about the countless hours they spend with God and all the rest.  On other occasions, they will tell me that they never notice the Spirit working within them, and that’s how I know for sure that they don’t have any of this great prayer life they like to go on about.  The reason is that seeking His presence is how we are able to discern the Spirit that is within us.  Notice that John linked the two in verses 21 and 22:

Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask,

You should notice something else here. Here’s verse 22 in full:

and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him.

Yes, we will receive anything we ask in prayer, if we “keep his commands and do what pleases him.” As always in John’s writings, asking and receiving are mentioned firmly within the context of doing His will, and not in doing our will.

So, can you really know for sure where you stand with God?

YES!

Seek His presence and you’ll find out.

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TLP Inspiration: August 13, 2018

Posted on August 13, 2018 by Don Merritt

The Cry of My Heart

How lovely is your dwelling place,
Lord Almighty!
My soul yearns, even faints,
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.

Psalm 84:1-2

Good Monday Morning from the Heartland.

What does your soul yearn for− what does your heart cry out for?

I would imagine there are many possibilities.

As I sit here this morning thinking about it, this might be the question above all questions, the answer to which will tell us everything about ourselves. If my soul yearns for earthly things, say money or status or power, maybe for drugs or drink, possibly for love and romance… what would that say about my spiritual condition?

Yes indeed, there are so many possible answers…

Why is it that my soul cries out for God when I find myself in trouble, but when all seems well, things other than God have my attention? Oh yes, that says something about my spiritual condition!

I want to say that my heart and soul cry out for God, but if that were true, what would my daily life look like; would it look the same as it does now? Hmmm…

The things of this life are all around us, the pleasures of this life call out. The problems of this life are all around us as well; they aren’t easy to miss: The things of this life are ubiquitous in fact, and if my attention is to be on the things that are above, maybe I’m going to need to decide consciously to put it there, instead of on the things of this life. Yes, maybe I’m going to need to put my attention on God purposefully, deliberately, as a choice I make. After all, don’t our hearts and souls yearn for the things were pay attention to?

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Sunday Sermon Notes: August 12, 2018

Posted on August 12, 2018 by Don Merritt

Title: Dealing with a Storm

Text: Mark 4:35-41

Parallel Texts: Matthew 8:23-27; Luke 8:22-25

Right after Jesus wrapped up His teaching in parables, He was tired and ready to leave, so the disciples joined Him in the boat, and they began to cross to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. As they were rowing, a storm came up and the boat was nearly swamped by the waves, as Jesus slept.

A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

Mark 4:37-38

We might expect that the disciples of Jesus would have been exempt from storms, drowning and danger, but they weren’t. We might expect that the Son of God is never hungry, thirsty or exhausted, but He was; He was tired enough that this great storm didn’t wake Him up. In the midst of the storm, the disciples, filled with fear for their very lives, did a smart thing; they awakened Jesus and brought the situation to His attention.  I’d say we can learn from this.

He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

Mark 4:39

Jesus, so entirely human in the last couple of verses, was now entirely divine and intervened in nature. He was human, He was divine, and now as the Word that caused all of creation to come into existence, rebuked the storm.  Pretty smart of those disciples to take their storm to Jesus, wouldn’t you agree?

He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

Mark 4:40-41

I think Jesus’ remark is less a criticism of the disciples, and more an underscore of what He spent the day teaching about the Kingdom. In that little boat was the Kingdom Incarnate, along with the very men who would take the Kingdom to the world. Can’t they see that God’s eternal plan isn’t going to fail because of a storm? Well, maybe they didn’t have the whole picture just yet, but we do have the whole picture.

Here we are, little mustard seeds for God to use in a mighty way to further His Kingdom. We will endure storms throughout our lives, but those storms will not divert us from our purpose… will they? If our purpose and God’s purpose are in sync, we have nothing to fear.

 

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TLP Inspiration: August 11, 2018

Posted on August 11, 2018 by Don Merritt

Do We Really Need Jesus?

Good Saturday from the Heartland.

 “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

– Matthew 9:12-13

In this brief statement Jesus makes a really interesting point: God desires that people seek Him and surrender to His mercy, He doesn’t just reward those who follow all of the rules.

That isn’t to say that we should behave badly; far from it.  It is to say that many people become so proud and self-righteous that they forget where they came from and entirely overlook the fact that they too need God’s mercy.  The result is that they reject the idea of forgiveness and repentance because it doesn’t occur to them that they need it.

All of us need forgiveness from God.

In quoting Hosea 6:6 in verse 13 above, Jesus calls our attention to a passage in which God is reminding Israel that their love for Him has been fleeting at best, that they have constantly turned away from Him and gone their own way.  (Just like so many of us). He points out that God’s priority is that we repent and depend upon Him rather than on ourselves. Our reliance must not be upon our ability to keep the rules and regulations, for we will inevitably stumble; our reliance must be upon God alone.

As we go through the day today, let’s place our reliance in God.  Let’s be thankful for His mercy and seek His forgiveness, humbling ourselves before Him.  Will this result in a better day?  Yes it will, for it will be a better day with eternal results.

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The Letter to Ephesus

Posted on August 10, 2018 by Don Merritt

Ephesus was a great city; a transportation and commercial hub, and the home of the great temple of Diana. We discussed its ancient significance in our study of Ephesians, and as the recipient of one of Paul’s epistles the church there had quite a rich history when this letter was dictated.

“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:

Preamble (2:1b)

These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands.

Jesus describes Himself here by mentioning that He has the seven messengers (angels) in His hand, the whole number of God’s messengers are in His hand, and He walks among the seven churches of Asia, and the whole of His Body. This is of special significance to Ephesus because they have had a problem with “false apostles” (2:2) and have resisted them. Jesus, in this letter, is sending them His true message.

Historical Prologue (2:2-4, 6)

I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.

Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first.

… But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

Ephesus has a great history, and Jesus recognizes it here; their hard work for the Gospel, their endurance and resistance to false teaching and their sacrifices for His sake; they have been a lampstand shining forth the light of the Gospel in a dark world… but they have forgotten their first love. So many churches today have this problem; they work hard, they mean well, but in all of their toil, they forget their first love: Jesus. Jesus addresses this immediately, inserting His warning in verse 5 which we’ll cover shortly, but in verse 6 He eases His rebuke as He wraps up the historical prologue; they have hated the practices of the Nicolaitans. Opinions vary relative to this group, but it appears likely that they represent the heretical group who were followers of Baal and Jezebel; in any case, we will come across them again in Revelation.

Stipulation (2:5a)

Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first.

This takes the form of a covenant stipulation, a command that is to be kept. They are to repent and to once again put their relationship (love for) with Jesus first and foremost.

Curse (2:5b)

If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.

In a Biblical covenant, a curse is as much a promise as is a blessing is. A blessing is a promise for keeping the terms or stipulations of the covenant; a curse is a promise of what will happen if you don’t. Jesus has given Ephesus a stipulation, and if they don’t keep it, their lampstand will be taken away; the church will no longer be present. You are free to draw whatever conclusion from this you like, but there is no church in Ephesus today, nor has there been for many, many centuries.

Witness (2:7a)

Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Notice the plural: Each of these epistles is to be read to all of the churches, and they are the witnesses to the covenant renewal, just as the people were in Joshua’s day.

Blessing (2:7b)

To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

If a curse is a negative promise, then a blessing is a positive promise, and the positive promise to Ephesus is that if they overcome, they will have the right to eat of the tree of life, which is to say that they will receive eternal life with Christ. Notice the conditional nature of this promise; they must “overcome” something. To overcome is to conquer, and Jesus overcame the world. We also are to overcome the world, but that doesn’t mean we will rule the world, it means that we will overcome its temptations and trials that seek to pull us away from our first love, which is Jesus.

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Love is Active

Posted on August 10, 2018 by Don Merritt

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

1 John 3:16-18

We now come to an amazing text regarding love and what it really is.  The concept of Christian love, love of our brother or sister, is not merely an abstract idea; it is a reality of life that requires action. John gives us the model of Christ as the example of what love looks like in action.  Jesus loved us, and so He set His own life aside so that we might live.  In the same way, John calls upon us to set aside our own lives for the sake of others.  This may not necessarily require our physical death, for there is more to the teaching of Christ than that− it will most certainly require that we set our interests aside to serve others.

John uses the specific example of one who has material resources giving them to a brother or sister who is in need. How can we possibly sit by and let our brother or sister suffer when we have the means to bring relief; to do so is not showing the person love.  We can think of other circumstances in which we may have what a hurting person might need, and we must not withhold aid, even though giving aid can be quite inconvenient.  Very often these days, we may come across a brother or sister who has emotional pain, and we must be ready to give whatever comfort and relief that we can.

Whatever the particular case may be, we must understand that loving one another doesn’t simply mean to be nice, it means to put others first in thought, and deed as well as in words. This is what it means to follow Jesus Christ; this is what it means to love one another.

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