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I fear that Christianity often becomes a pursuit of style at the expense of substance. So I decided to write a “Meat and Potatoes” blog, digging into Scripture with as few frills as possible. Since God has provided the meat—His Word—I’m calling the blog “. . . And Potatoes,” in the hope that these mini-sermons can help enhance the flavor of the main dish. You hungry? Let’s dig in!

Right to Life

6/24/2017

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We will soon be celebrating the 4th of July—that is, celebrating the founding of a nation based upon the belief “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”[1] It is rather shocking, then, when we realize that two and a half centuries later our laws have sanctioned the murder of 60 million lives—that they have been “alienated” from that right to life. What is even more shocking is that many professing Christians—those who have taken the name of the Creator—are not morally outraged at this, that they would even vote for and support candidates who are pro-choice and, in some cases, pro-murder. How can this be? Now, I know we’re not supposed to mix religion and politics and God is neither a Republican nor a Democrat and all that. But when Scripture is ABUNDANTLY clear on an issue, we would be remiss—no, sinfully negligent—if we did not take that Scripture to every area of life, including politics. So today, with celebrations of life and freedom in mind, I want to examine the Bible’s stance on abortion. We will see there is absolutely no gray on this particular issue.
 
Now the word “abortion” doesn’t actually appear in Scripture, but that doesn’t mean it’s mute on the subject. To see and understand the Bible’s stance on abortion, we need, first of all, to examine what it says about the “object” in the womb—is it life, pre-life, part of the woman’s body, a hunk of random cells? Then we’ll consider the ramifications on terminating that “object.”
 
The Bible teaches that God is sovereign over the womb. As an example, we read that he closed Hannah’s womb[2] before eventually opening it.[3] Scripture speaks of the process of a body being formed in the womb as a mystery that we cannot understand any more than we can understand the work of God, “the Maker of all things.”[4] It also teaches that it is God who brings forth a baby from the womb.[5]
 
The Bible teaches that humanity is in the womb. Scripture repeatedly says that God is the one who makes and forms a body in the womb.[6] More than that, He tells the prophet Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.”[7] This verse shows us that God forms a human life with purpose and knowledge. The most beautiful description of this concept is found in Psalm 139:13-16, where the Psalmist writes, “You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb,” and “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” He adds that “Your works are wonderful,” before going on to verses 15 and 16: “My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”
 
Clearly, we see from these vivid passages that God is intimately and intricately involved in the formation of that “something” in the womb. But what is it? Life or potential life?
 
Beyond the above uses of words like “body” and “me,” Scripture is quite explicit at defining what is growing inside the woman as a human being. Luke 1 gives us several good pictures. In verse 15, we read that John the Baptist “will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born.” Never minding why the Holy Spirit would indwell a pre-life form, the verse suggests that John the Baptist has his identity even before emerging from the womb. That is, he is human. (Paul conveys a similar sentiment in Galatians 1:15.) A little ways down in Luke 1:41, we’re told that when Elizabeth (John the Baptist’s mother) heard the greeting of Mary (the mother of Jesus), “the baby leaped in her womb.” Please note that the Scripture does not say, “the lump of tissue leaped in her womb.” Check any translation you like. Similarly, we read in the prophecy about Christ that “the virgin will be with child.”[8] Not, “the virgin will be with fetus.”
 
The Bible teaches that eternity is in the womb. From the above sampling of verses, there’s no mistaking the Bible’s view on what is in the womb. It is a human life. But beyond the physical properties of life, Scripture introduces the idea of the human soul. In fact, it uses the word “soul” 95 times, mostly speaking of an “inner being.”[9] The Bible is quite clear on the eternal nature of the soul. So the question we have to ask ourselves is when does that soul come into being? When is soul united, as it is during our life on earth, with the body? Is the soul generated when the baby emerges from the womb? Does air create a soul? Does a slap on the rump from the doctor? Does the soul rush in with the first breath? Or does God pick an arbitrary time? First heartbeat? Start of the second trimester? Day 86? I ask these questions with tongue in cheek, but I think they make the point. None of those seems logical. What does make sense is that we are imbued with souls from the moment of conception, the moment when—biblically—life begins.
 
A survey of Scripture makes it quite clear that God views the “something” in the womb as a human being, a precious life that He knit together with knowledge and purpose. It’s not a fetus or a lump of tissue; it’s a person, gifted by his or her Creator with a soul. No other conclusion has any scriptural support. We must then assert that the Bible is adamant that abortion stops a life in progress. So what does that mean? What are the ramifications for terminating this life?
 
There are some issues on which the Bible isn’t vividly clear. The intentional, willful taking of a life, however, is not one of them. The Sixth Commandment is as brief as any, succinctly decreeing “You shall not murder.”[10] Jesus echoed that command in Matthew 5:21 and 19:18, Mark 10:19, and Luke 18:20. Paul[11] and James[12] also quoted it. Jesus also referred to murder as one of the evils that come out of the heart.[13]
 
The Old Testament is full of other commands against murder. Specifically, Numbers 35:16-18 refers to fatal blows struck with iron objects, stones, or wooden objects. It refers to them as murder, and says the person who struck the blow is to be put to death. (It does not specifically mention killing by suction or pill.) The Psalmist pronounces woes against killing the innocent, calling those who commit such acts “wicked.”[14] And in Proverbs, we see that “There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him.” Listed third are “hands that shed innocent blood.”[15]
 
But what about mitigating circumstances? Many pro-choice advocates—and some recent “pro-life” presidential candidates—suggest that abortion is appropriate in the case of rape or incest, when pregnancy causes medical complications for the woman, or when the baby’s “quality of life” wouldn’t meet a certain, subjective standard. In that case, they argue, taking a life is acceptable. There’s nothing in the Bible to advocate for that position, but there are a few startling examples to the contrary:
 
You’ve likely read or heard the story of Jacob,[16] who fell in love with Rachel but was tricked by her father into marrying Leah. Jacob ended up having children by both Rachel and Leah, as well as their two maidservants. Talk about a messed up family. Anyhow, one of these sons, born to him by Leah, was given the name Judah. If that name’s familiar, it should be, because Jesus was called the “Lion of the tribe of Judah.”[17] But we’re not finished with Judah. In Genesis 38, we read how his daughter-in-law dressed as a prostitute, seduced him, and bore him a son named Perez. It was from this distinguished lineage that King David and Christ Jesus himself descended.
 
Another example of a pregnancy that came about by less than ideal circumstances is Jephthah.[18] He was the son of a prostitute who was mistreated before the Spirit of the LORD came on him, making him victorious in battle. Scripture is replete with examples of God using the unwanted and outcast for great things. Every life is precious to God, even those not considered worthwhile or that come about as the result of deception and sinfulness.
 
One other situation is worth mentioning. The Bible briefly tells us the story of a young woman—a teenager, likely—who was a prime candidate to have an abortion. Unmarried, this girl “found herself” pregnant, about to be disowned, unable even to name her child’s father. Her entire life was about to be transformed, to the point of great sorrow that would ultimately be brought upon her because of the life inside of her. Sounds like a Planned Parenthood poster child. But, of course, I’m talking about Mary the mother of Jesus.
 
Sadly, many in America—including Supreme Court justices—deny that God has endowed all persons with the right to life. Since the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution don’t speak specifically and overtly to the issue, there will always be a loophole by which people can claim protection for the unborn isn’t covered by those documents. But no such loophole exists with Scripture. It is exceedingly clear on the two points that shape the entire abortion debate: 1) Abortion is the intentional taking of a human life—it is murder. 2) Murder is unacceptable in God’s eyes.


[1] Declaration of Independence
[2] See I Samuel 1:5
[3] See I Samuel 1:20
[4] Ecclesiastes 11:5
[5] See Psalm 22:9, 71:6
[6] See Job 31:15; Isaiah 44:2,24
[7] Jeremiah 1:5
[8] Isaiah 7:14, quoted in Matthew 1:23
[9] See Matthew 10:28, 11:29, 16:26, 26:38; Luke 2:35; I Thessalonians 5:23; Hebrews 4:12, 6:19; I Peter 1:9; and Revelation 6:9, 20:4, et al.
[10] Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 5:17
[11] See Romans 13:9
[12] See James 2:11
[13] See Matthew 15:19; Mark 7:21
[14] Psalm 10:2-10 and 94:21
[15] Proverbs 6:16-17
[16] See Genesis 29-30
[17] Revelation 5:5
[18] See Judges 11
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Immutability

6/14/2017

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Today I want to do something a little different from normal. Instead of expounding on one verse or passage, I want to use that verse as an anchor to explore a concept called immutability. In Hebrews 13:8 we read: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” While brief, the statement is incredibly powerful, and we could delve into this idea for a year’s worth of blog posts. In the spirit of brevity, I want to touch on just a few facets of this promise.
 
The author of Hebrews specified that it is Jesus who is eternally the same. But Jesus was quite clear—as is all of Scripture—that the three Persons of the Trinity are in perfect harmony. As referenced in my previous post, John’s Gospel mentions the unity between God the Father and God the Son numerous times.[1] Regarding the Holy Spirit, Jesus told His disciples, “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me.”[2] A short while later, He added, “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”[3] Paul tells us that “in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form,”[4] and Peter linked the Persons of the Trinity when he wrote “To God’s elect . . . who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood.”[5] The Great Commission does likewise, instructing us to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”[6] We also see the unity of the Trinity at Jesus’ baptism.[7]
 
I could go on and on, but I mentioned something above about brevity, and I think the point is made. And while I don’t have time to explore them all here, there are a number of other verses[8] that support the idea of immutability we see in Hebrews 13. To summarize, the author of Hebrews could have accurately written, “God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” It may seem like belaboring the obvious to show evidence that Jesus Christ is God, but it becomes pertinent as we move on.
 
One of the common “contradictions” skeptics (and even many well-meaning believers) raise is how the Old Testament reveals a “God of wrath” whereas the New Testament reveals a “God of love.” So how do we reconcile that—or other such conundrums—with what we find in Hebrews 13? We start by analyzing the premise of the contradiction and, in this case, rejecting it. The “God of the Old Testament” is actually a “compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”[9] “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.”[10] It is in the Old Testament that we read of God’s numerous commands to care for the poor and needy and the foreigner. The Old Testament’s Psalmist wrote, “Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies,”[11] “I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations,”[12] and “Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.”[13] And it is in the Old Testament that we find numerous references to the coming of the Messiah, the greatest demonstration of love ever.
 
Moreover, the “God of the New Testament” spoke about those who would “go away to eternal punishment,”[14] the varying levels of severity in that punishment,[15] and examples of those who would suffer it.[16] He “knows how to . . . hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment”[17] and “will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus” with “everlasting destruction . . . shut[ting them] out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might.”[18] We’re even told in the New Testament that “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness.”[19]
 
The idea that the God of the Old Testament is a God of wrath and the God of the New Testament Is a God of love doesn’t hold water. That being said, the apparent contradiction doesn’t go away that easily. We’re still left with an immutable God who clearly displays both wrath/punishment and love. How can this be? What’s to be made of this dichotomy? Put another way, we know that God is just and that He is merciful. He doesn’t just display those attributes; He is those attributes. God cannot be other than just and He cannot be other than merciful. So how does that work?
 
The answer is the cross. If God is truly just, He must punish us for our sin—He must pour out His wrath. If God is truly merciful, He must not punish us for our sin—He must show us His love. The beauty of the gospel is that God is both fully just and fully merciful. He did indeed pour out His wrath—but He poured it out upon His Son. The only injustice is that suffered by Jesus, “who had no sin” but became “sin for us.”[20] Thus God’s mercy is free to flow upon us without impeding His judgment, enabling James to write, “Mercy triumphs over judgment.”[21] This is not because God is more merciful than just or because He set aside His judgment, but because Jesus stepped in front of God’s wrath for us.
 
It is only through the cross of Jesus Christ that we see these seemingly contrasting characteristics of God coexist in unchanging harmony. And if we closely study the Scriptures and understand all that took place at the cross, we see other supposed contradictions regarding God’s nature melt away. I don’t mean to be glib or tritely dismiss hard questions about God, and to be sure, they exist. Read the Pentateuch and you will end up scratching your head. But if we interpret Scripture in light of Scripture and view God not in a snapshot from Leviticus or a soundbite from the Sermon on the Mount, we see Him as He truly, fully is—we see all His attributes. And they, like He, are unchanging from eternity past to eternity future. The God who spoke the universe into existence is the God who gave Himself on the cross for all of humanity is the God who will one day return “coming with the clouds”[22] is the God we will worship infinitely in heaven.
 
So what does that mean for us? To find out, let’s go back to our original text and, as we would always be wise to do, examine the context. There we find the following: Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings. It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace, not by eating ceremonial foods, which is of no benefit to those who do so.[23] The author of Hebrews places this assertion in the midst of two commandments. The first is to emulate biblical leaders. The Greek meaning of “consider” would suggest a careful observation, a study. Remember that just two chapters ago, the author of Hebrews spent 40 verses recounting the great heroes of the faith and issuing a call to persevere in their footsteps. We see the same thing here, leading us up to the statement about the unchanging nature of God. The question we have to ask ourselves, then, is what ultimately brought about an outcome worthy of following? Was it the faith of these heroes or “your leaders,” or was it One in whom they had faith? Faith or belief in itself is useless if the object of faith is not trustworthy. The readers of Hebrews were directed to emulate the faith of previous generations because they had faith in the Faithful One. He called Abram and made him into a great nation. He delivered that nation out of bondage in Egypt. He brought His people into the Promised Land. He led them faithfully despite their faithlessness. He rescued them from exile in Babylon. He sent the long-awaited and promised Messiah. He turned cowering disciples into bold apostles. And because He does not change, the God who did all of that is the God worthy of their faith and ours.
 
Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings. This seems like a sudden shift in gears, but it is a warning very applicable to the Hebrew readers and to us today. If God does not change, His Word does not change, nor does His standard, nor do His values. Right and wrong do not change with the culture or popular opinion or political party or leader. What was sin in the opening chapters of Genesis is sin today. And what was the only cure for sin promised in Genesis 3 is the only cure today. As Christians, we must not stray from the gospel because we know it does not change since the One who breathed it does not change.
 
Jesus Christ—One with the Father and Holy Spirit in a mystery we cannot understand—is unchanging. We may not always see that in our experience, just as we may not always see it if we narrow our focus to one verse or passage of Scripture. But we are told “my righteous one will live by faith,”[24] not by experience. Only by faith can we see the whole picture—faith banking on the promise of an immutable God.


[1] John 1:1; 5:17-18, 8:12-58, 10:30, 14:6-11, 17:20-22
[2] John 15:26
[3] John 16:13-15
[4] Colossians 2:9
[5] I Peter 1:1-2
[6] Matthew 28:19
[7] See Matthew 3:16-17, Luke 3:21-22
[8] See Numbers 23:19; I Samuel 15:29; Psalm 102:26; Malachi 3:6;  James 1:17
[9] Exodus 34:6; see also Nehemiah 9:17; Psalm 145:8
[10] Lamentations 3:22
[11] Psalm 36:5
[12] Psalm 89:1
[13] Psalm 115:1
[14] Matthew 25:46
[15] See Luke 20:47
[16] Jude 7
[17] II Peter 2:9
[18] II Thessalonians 1:8-9
[19] Romans 1:18
[20] II Corinthians 5:21
[21] James 2:13
[22] Revelation 1:7
[23] Hebrews 13:7-9
[24] Hebrews 10:38
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    I'm an author and the son of a preacher, with a passion for writing and examining the Scriptures. Thus this blog. (Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from the NIV)

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