Doing the Impossible Task [24:08m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Romans 7:14-24 [+/-]Romans 7:14-24 [14]For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. [15]For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. [16]Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. [17]So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. [18]For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. [19]For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. [20]Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. [21]So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. [22]For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, [23]but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. [24]Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? (ESV)

a message about the spiritual journey by Don Veldboom, Associate Pastor

I want to believe that Christmas is about family, and I do believe that families ought to gather at this season of the year. Some need to gather to celebrate what they share together; others need to gather to remember what it means to be family. Some have forgotten with full-grown brothers and sisters battling with each other while bathing themselves in baskets of food and gifts, all in the same house while not in the same room. And some families like the one that I am privileged to be a part of needs to gather just to give thanks for what we enjoy. Anne has a Mom and Dad who love Jesus and are faithful to the church. They are still here away from home but doing as well as they can do. She has two sisters who are still married to their first and only husbands and both have children that are doing well. So, we should gather and we should celebrate what we share. It is good. But it is not the essence of Christmas. It is the essence of an American Christmas and is the center of the culture of the South, but it is not the center of Christmas.

Long ago and far away a very poor couple with very meager means made a journey to the town of their birth. They could not find a place to stay the night. She was fully pregnant with contractions coming more rapidly as the moon came up on that star filled night. He was fully faithful to his God and to his wife. They have travelled a long ways together. But on this night these two poor people would find lodging among the animals and she would give birth to the baby who long before had made the animals that inhabited that stall. The King of Kings was born in the middle of poverty to people who knew this pain all too well. That is why the center of Christmas to me is not family gatherings with far too much food and far too many gifts most of which are not needed at all to those to whom we give them and most of the food is tossed at the end of the day. Such gatherings cause me so much grief because they miss the point of the whole season of Advent and Christmas. I mean, who should be giving and serving more this season than those of us who serve the Savior? Who should be looking more for opportunities to give and share than us? And so many are doing that for which I give great praise to God. But so many don’t. It is much more likely that you find too many of us in the mall at Christmas than in the messy marketplace among the masses of hurting humans. I encountered one of them just today.

What a story she had to tell. She has been in and out of jail. She has been “had” by a so-called preacher. She is not old by any stretch but she has lived a long, long time already. She was free with her confession about “rippin and runnin the streets.” She has been diagnosed with sickle cell and needed some medication. A very dear friend of mine and I helped her to get it; Ithought it was funny hanging out with her at Wal-Mart as I am sure that some were wondering what I was doing with her, or maybe they were wondering what she was doing with me! But it felt like Christmas to me. What better way to celebrate Christmas than this day to serve communion to people I love, to spend some time today with a dear friend who has been a strength for me in the years that I have been here and to help a struggling soul in part by just hanging out with her for just a little while in Wal-Mart. It was for me the height of Merry Christmas!

“Santa Claus is not the only one who knows who has been naughty or nice.” I saw the sign. I was stunned. I made a left turn at the next possible place to turn and rode back by the sign sitting in front of the church just to make sure it said what I thought it said. Now let me issue a caveat here: I know the pastor who put the words on that sign and he is one of the most conservative people I know and a very gifted pastor/preacher. I know that for him it was an attention grabber to point people to the absolute omniscience of God. I know that at some level given his quite jovial nature that he was just having fun. He was being playful. But I read those words in the context of what I see in our culture in terms of what we have done with Santa Claus and within five years will have done with the Easter Bunny. We take them both seriously! Smart people taking seriously what is clealy a made up myth. But the problem is even greater than this travesty.

If I think that Santa Claus really exists and knows who has been naughty or nice then I have either elevated him to the status of God or I have lowered God to the status of Santa Claus. And then I have made it seem as if good things come to us based on the good deeds that we do. I have emptied God of grace and made of God one who is watching and weighing what I do to determine if I get the eternal toys. So, what do we as believers do with Santa Claus? What should make us distinctive from the world?

I believe that we as believers are faced with three options only two of which have any real viability for us. The first one is not a viable option for us. It is simply to join the world at the hip and to act as if he is a real being doing real things: reindeer flying through the air on one night of the year delivering toys and other goodies by landing on rooftops and descending a chimney. Tell that story to the starving kids in refugee camps all over the world. Yet, it is this kind of craziness that casues professing Christians to act like pagans at Christmas. Can I preach just a second: I am all but fed up with the fight over whether it is “happy holidays” or “merry Christmas” because some I hear saying “merry Christmas” as if it is some BIG DEAL are spending out the wazoo for Christmas gifts given to people who already have more than enough. Let me tell you what would be a BIG DEAL: take all that you are going to spend on gifts and gift and equal or greater amount to the missions offering of your church. Then you will have it close to what it really is all about. This option of acting as if it is all real is silliness if not sacrelilgious.

The most extreme option that I did not take but I surely admire is to make sure that your children know the truth about this made up man in the red suit and that they do receive some gifts at Christmas but it is from real, flesh and blood people. Anne and I did not do that. Do I wish now that we had? Well, yes. But we were classic liberals during that time and lived for the most part to be quite honest like the world was living. It was no big deal to us. Some of our younger parents in our church have chosen this option. I admire them so much. I can at least assure them of this truth: your kids won’t grow up and have any right to think, “well if Santa Claus isn’t real, maybe God isn’t either.” There is one other option. It is the one that we chose.

Join in with all the fun of the Santa stuff. But make sure that it is kept at the level of story and not history. Do not even begin to act as if this man is really a real man living at the north pole making toys and feeding reindeer. Tell the truth at the level of story. Compare his story to Dorothy on the way to the land of Oz. Read, “Twas the Night Before Christmas” but make sure that what is emphasized is that it is simply a story. Stories fascinate children and fire their imaginations. They can live in the world of a story and exit it when it is time without damage, but when we treat all of this stuff as if is real, our children exit this with some puzzlement about what else we may have “fibbed” to them about. So, I simply want to warn you because whatever you are doing at Chrsitmas with Santa is what you will do at Easter with the bunny. And that phenomenon is so recent that my recommendation to believers is that we get together and bounce the bunny into a far away land. Let’s say very clearly, “there is no such thing but there is a babe born in a manger, a Savior crucified on a cross, and a Lord and Christ raised from the dead.

 

 Life in the Spirit: Sanctification - Part II [45:33m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Romans 8:1-17 [+/-]Romans 8:1-17 [8:1]There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. [2]For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. [3]For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, [4]in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. [5]For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. [6]For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. [7]For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. [8]Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. [9]You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. [10]But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. [11]If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. [12]So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. [13]For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. [14]For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. [15]For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" [16]The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, [17]and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (ESV)

As night follows day so sanctification follows a genuine work of grace in the salvation of sinners. This is the promise of God and it is the purpose of God that is fulfilled through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. There is no salvation of a sinner that does not lead to the work of sanctification based on the Word of God through the Spirit of God among the saints of God. A sinner saved by the graced of God is a sinner compelled to come together with the people of God for the praise of the Name of God and the passionate pursuit of the purpose of God. The Bible knows no alternatives so that the Holy Spirit who works salvation shows the legitimacy of that work of salvation in the work of sanctification on the foundation of Romans 8:1 [+/-]Romans 8:1 [8:1]There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (ESV)
: there is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus because of the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. Those who are in Christ Jesus are those who are committed to Christ who have come together in a body of believers in which and through which they carry out the purposes of Christ because of the law of the Spirit that brings life.

Learn more about this message by downloading the sermon notes here!

Music matters. I have heard that all of my life. I have attended conferences where speakers have exhorted us to pay attention to both the lyrics and the melodies of the music; they have an impact on the mind and the soul. Let me tell you a little secret: I have not really believed that, I mean really believed that until very recently. And what convinced me of its truth is experience and not something somebody said or wrote. This was my experience.

I love the Advent and Christmas season but for years found it very frustrating as we moved toward Christmas Day. I would come to Christmas Day even as an adult and get more and more depressed as the day moved forward. It is over, I would be thinking; Christmas is over. Then I discovered the Advent model with Christmas Day being the first of the twelve days of Christmas as Christmas walked toward the season of Epiphany. It made me happy. I held on and hold on to that model. I come now toward Christmas with joy knowing that Christmas Day is not a culmination but an initiation, a beginning and not an ending. That solved one problem. But I had another one.

I love Christmas music. I mean I could begin listening to Christmas music on July 4. I just love it. Therein is the problem. I love the secular variety from Andy Williams to Frank Sinatra to shake a leg now Elvis. But some years back I noticed that the more I listened to that music the more I got captured by the wrong kinds of things at Christmas. Don’t laugh at me here but I would drive to Augusta just knowing that I was going to be frugal in my gift buying and keep the reason for the season in focus and then I would hear that song about the little boy buying his dying Mama a new pair of shoes and then I would hear Alabama singing, “Another Tender Tennessee Christmas . . . and before you know it I had spent far more than was necessary and was on way back to the Boro listening to Chestnuts roasting on an open fire and wondering what kind of nut I was for preaching about the real meaning of Christmas and then spending money like a drunk sailor, and all of it by impulse due to my feelings. Well, I started seeing the issue and started listening to very classical Christmas music and limited my radio listening at Christmas to WAFJ. Guess what? I was able in recent years to maintain focus. Now let me be clear: I am no scrooge. Scrooges are people that I don’t like. I love Christmas still and all that it stands for but I do not like the way we spend money at Christmas: too much of it on the wrong kinds of things. But something happened earlier this month and thus my musiological education.

I happened onto a secular radio station that was playing all Christmas music and I started listening. Boy, did I ever start listening. Please don’t laugh at me but I would be on my way home some nights and would drive around the block a time or two just to hear more of it. And before you could say, “here come Santa Claus, here come Santa Claus . . ” (Elvis, of course), I was thinking like I used to think. I was about to be on the wagon again until one day I got up and turned from 104.3 to 88.3 and within a day had regained my perspective. Boy, was I blown away. I was wrong. Music does have an impact. Do you think the people in the Mall know this yet?

Daniel 9 [+/-]Daniel 9 [9:1]In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a Mede, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans-- [2]in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. [3]Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. [4]I prayed to the LORD my God and made confession, saying, "O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, [5]we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. [6]We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. [7]To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, those who are near and those who are far away, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of the treachery that they have committed against you. [8]To us, O LORD, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against you. [9]To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him [10]and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets. [11]All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey your voice. And the curse and oath that are written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against him. [12]He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against our rulers who ruled us, by bringing upon us a great calamity. For under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what has been done against Jerusalem. [13]As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this calamity has come upon us; yet we have not entreated the favor of the LORD our God, turning from our iniquities and gaining insight by your truth. [14]Therefore the LORD has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, for the LORD our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and we have not obeyed his voice. [15]And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and have made a name for yourself, as at this day, we have sinned, we have done wickedly. [16]"O Lord, according to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, your holy hill, because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people have become a byword among all who are around us. [17]Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. [18]O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. [19]O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name." [20]While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my plea before the LORD my God for the holy hill of my God, [21]while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the first, came to me in swift flight at the time of the evening sacrifice. [22]He made me understand, speaking with me and saying, "O Daniel, I have now come out to give you insight and understanding. [23]At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly loved. Therefore consider the word and understand the vision. [24]"Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. [25]Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. [26]And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed. [27]And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator." (ESV)

The interpretation of the Book of Daniel from an apocalyptic perspective depends almost entirely on the understanding of the seventy weeks in Daniel 9 [+/-]Daniel 9 [9:1]In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a Mede, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans-- [2]in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. [3]Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. [4]I prayed to the LORD my God and made confession, saying, "O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, [5]we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. [6]We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. [7]To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, those who are near and those who are far away, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of the treachery that they have committed against you. [8]To us, O LORD, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against you. [9]To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him [10]and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets. [11]All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey your voice. And the curse and oath that are written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against him. [12]He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against our rulers who ruled us, by bringing upon us a great calamity. For under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what has been done against Jerusalem. [13]As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this calamity has come upon us; yet we have not entreated the favor of the LORD our God, turning from our iniquities and gaining insight by your truth. [14]Therefore the LORD has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, for the LORD our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and we have not obeyed his voice. [15]And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and have made a name for yourself, as at this day, we have sinned, we have done wickedly. [16]"O Lord, according to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, your holy hill, because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people have become a byword among all who are around us. [17]Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. [18]O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. [19]O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name." [20]While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my plea before the LORD my God for the holy hill of my God, [21]while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the first, came to me in swift flight at the time of the evening sacrifice. [22]He made me understand, speaking with me and saying, "O Daniel, I have now come out to give you insight and understanding. [23]At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly loved. Therefore consider the word and understand the vision. [24]"Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. [25]Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. [26]And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed. [27]And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator." (ESV)
. Thus, at the outset of our study of this chapter we need to be clear about several very critical realities:

3. The two keys to understanding this chapter are the texts that Daniel studied to get the number of seventy years and the meaning of Daniel 7:24 [+/-]Daniel 7:24 [24]As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings shall arise, and another shall arise after them; he shall be different from the former ones, and shall put down three kings.
. We will begin our study of this chapter with these two issues.

C. The third view holds that the seventy weeks refers to events around the time of Christ with the last set of seven referring to the end time. The issue for this view is two-fold. First, what is the starting date for the seventy years that culminate at the time of Christ and what date do we use for the point of culmination? If we use 538 B.C. when Cyrus gave the edict for the Jews to return to Jerusalem (2 Chron. 36:23 [+/-]2 Chronicles 36:23 [23]"Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, 'The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may the LORD his God be with him. Let him go up.'" (ESV)
, Ezra 1:2-4 [+/-]Ezra 1:2-4 [2]"Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. [3]Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and rebuild the house of the LORD, the God of Israel--he is the God who is in Jerusalem. [4]And let each survivor, in whatever place he sojourns, be assisted by the men of his place with silver and gold, with goods and with beasts, besides freewill offerings for the house of God that is in Jerusalem." (ESV)
) this would yield a date of 48 B.C. which has no significance at all. Another possibility is the edict of Artaxerxes (Ezra 7:12-26 [+/-]Ezra 7:12-26 [12]"Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven. Peace. And now [13]I make a decree that anyone of the people of Israel or their priests or Levites in my kingdom, who freely offers to go to Jerusalem, may go with you. [14]For you are sent by the king and his seven counselors to make inquiries about Judah and Jerusalem according to the Law of your God, which is in your hand, [15]and also to carry the silver and gold that the king and his counselors have freely offered to the God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem, [16]with all the silver and gold that you shall find in the whole province of Babylonia, and with the freewill offerings of the people and the priests, vowed willingly for the house of their God that is in Jerusalem. [17]With this money, then, you shall with all diligence buy bulls, rams, and lambs, with their grain offerings and their drink offerings, and you shall offer them on the altar of the house of your God that is in Jerusalem. [18]Whatever seems good to you and your brothers to do with the rest of the silver and gold, you may do, according to the will of your God. [19]The vessels that have been given you for the service of the house of your God, you shall deliver before the God of Jerusalem. [20]And whatever else is required for the house of your God, which it falls to you to provide, you may provide it out of the king's treasury. [21]"And I, Artaxerxes the king, make a decree to all the treasurers in the province Beyond the River: Whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, requires of you, let it be done with all diligence, [22]up to 100 talents of silver, 100 cors of wheat, 100 baths of wine, 100 baths of oil, and salt without prescribing how much. [23]Whatever is decreed by the God of heaven, let it be done in full for the house of the God of heaven, lest his wrath be against the realm of the king and his sons. [24]We also notify you that it shall not be lawful to impose tribute, custom, or toll on anyone of the priests, the Levites, the singers, the doorkeepers, the temple servants, or other servants of this house of God. [25]"And you, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God that is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges who may judge all the people in the province Beyond the River, all such as know the laws of your God. And those who do not know them, you shall teach. [26]Whoever will not obey the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be strictly executed on him, whether for death or for banishment or for confiscation of his goods or for imprisonment." (ESV)
) in 458 B.C. which takes us to A.D. 33. This calculation also makes Dan. 9:24 [+/-]Daniel 9:24 [24]"Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. (ESV)
make sense. One other view is when Nehemiah was given letters from King Artaxerxes in 445 B.C. to begin the rebuilding of the walls of the cities of Jerusalem. This approach, of course, assumes that the numbers are to be understood literalistically and that the dates in the Bible that we construct by attaching them to certain events are exact.

II. Daniel 9:1-2 [+/-]Daniel 9:1-2 [9:1]In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a Mede, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans-- [2]in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. (ESV)
and 24 as keys

A. Daniel 9:1-2 [+/-]Daniel 9:1-2 [9:1]In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a Mede, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans-- [2]in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. (ESV)
is the first key. Daniel is studying the Book of Jeremiah and comes to a conclusion about the number of the years of captivity. It seems that Daniel would have been studying Jeremiah 25:1-13 [+/-]Jeremiah 25:1-13 [25:1]The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah (that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon), [2]which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem: [3]"For twenty-three years, from the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, to this day, the word of the LORD has come to me, and I have spoken persistently to you, but you have not listened. [4]You have neither listened nor inclined your ears to hear, although the LORD persistently sent to you all his servants the prophets, [5]saying, 'Turn now, every one of you, from his evil way and evil deeds, and dwell upon the land that the LORD has given to you and your fathers from of old and forever. [6]Do not go after other gods to serve and worship them, or provoke me to anger with the work of your hands. Then I will do you no harm.' [7]Yet you have not listened to me, declares the LORD, that you might provoke me to anger with the work of your hands to your own harm. [8]"Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: Because you have not obeyed my words, [9]behold, I will send for all the tribes of the north, declares the LORD, and for Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants, and against all these surrounding nations. I will devote them to destruction, and make them a horror, a hissing, and an everlasting desolation. [10]Moreover, I will banish from them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the grinding of the millstones and the light of the lamp. [11]This whole land shall become a ruin and a waste, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. [12]Then after seventy years are completed, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity, declares the LORD, making the land an everlasting waste. [13]I will bring upon that land all the words that I have uttered against it, everything written in this book, which Jeremiah prophesied against all the nations. (ESV)
and 29:1-14. These texts ought to be carefully read and closely studied. Please pay close attention when reading Jeremiah 29 [+/-]Jeremiah 29 [29:1]These are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders of the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. [2]This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the eunuchs, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had departed from Jerusalem. [3]The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. It said: [4]"Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: [5]Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. [6]Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. [7]But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. [8]For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, [9]for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the LORD. [10]"For thus says the LORD: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. [11]For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. [12]Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. [13]You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. [14]I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile. [15]"Because you have said, 'The LORD has raised up prophets for us in Babylon,' [16]thus says the LORD concerning the king who sits on the throne of David, and concerning all the people who dwell in this city, your kinsmen who did not go out with you into exile: [17]'Thus says the LORD of hosts, behold, I am sending on them sword, famine, and pestilence, and I will make them like vile figs that are so rotten they cannot be eaten. [18]I will pursue them with sword, famine, and pestilence, and will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, a terror, a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them, [19]because they did not pay attention to my words, declares the LORD, that I persistently sent to you by my servants the prophets, but you would not listen, declares the LORD.' [20]Hear the word of the LORD, all you exiles whom I sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon: [21]'Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying a lie to you in my name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he shall strike them down before your eyes. [22]Because of them this curse shall be used by all the exiles from Judah in Babylon: "The LORD make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire," [23]because they have done an outrageous thing in Israel, they have committed adultery with their neighbors' wives, and they have spoken in my name lying words that I did not command them. I am the one who knows, and I am witness, declares the LORD.'" [24]To Shemaiah of Nehelam you shall say: [25]"Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: You have sent letters in your name to all the people who are in Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the priests, saying, [26]'The LORD has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, to have charge in the house of the LORD over every madman who prophesies, to put him in the stocks and neck irons. [27]Now why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth who is prophesying to you? [28]For he has sent to us in Babylon, saying, "Your exile will be long; build houses and live in them, and plant gardens and eat their produce."'" [29]Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the hearing of Jeremiah the prophet. [30]Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: [31]"Send to all the exiles, saying, 'Thus says the LORD concerning Shemaiah of Nehelam: Because Shemaiah had prophesied to you when I did not send him, and has made you trust in a lie, [32]therefore thus says the LORD: Behold, I will punish Shemaiah of Nehelam and his descendants. He shall not have anyone living among this people, and he shall not see the good that I will do to my people, declares the LORD, for he has spoken rebellion against the LORD.'" (ESV)
as verse 11 is one of the most misapplied texts in the Bible. It was written as a promise of God to people who were under His judgment and the promise is to them only as they belong to Him. It is not at all about them and what they deserve after their pain; it is all about God and what He gives and does in spite of the pain.

B. Daniel 9:24 [+/-]Daniel 9:24 [24]"Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. (ESV)
. It is important to read verses 20-23 as the foundation for verse 24. We will study these verses as we move through the chapter but they focus for us the importance of this verse. And this verse would lead us to a more literal interpretation so that seventy weeks or years is decreed for the people of God and for the city of God. Now we have to be precise here in deciding whether the people of God or Jewish only or are they Jews and Gentile and is the city of God the real Jerusalem of the symbolic city of the saints of God, and we must not mix and match here. I believe that the word here is for the Jewish people and the city is the city of Jerusalem so that what follows if first and foundationally for them. And then when we read this text we see that there are six statements here with the first three very clearly focused on the first coming of Jesus and the second three very clearly focused on the second coming of Jesus.

The focus for the first coming of Jesus is His cross; His sacrificial atoning death for sin. Now, if we go to a text like Luke and look at it from the perspective of what is being said here and in the context of the vocabulary that is used we see how the Bible is not only inherent but so very coherent. Look at Luke 2:10-11 [+/-]Luke 2:10-11 [10]And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. [11]For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (ESV)
. The word for “people” in verse 10 is a word that in Luke always refers to the Jewish people. The shepherds were Jewish people and the good news is for them and for all Jewish people and the good news is that their Messiah has come and that their Messiah is Lord. Go then to the Book of Acts and see the struggle that the early church had taking the Gospel to the Gentiles and even watch Paul who was called to preach to the Gentiles but who always went first to the synagogue to his own people. The foundational focus of God in the coming of Jesus was the salvation of the Jewish people who were first called of God to be a light to the nations. This means that when Gentile believers are involved in outreach to Jewish people, we are involved in that which represents the very heart of God.

Here again if this holy place is tied to the holy people then the focus must be the city of Jerusalem where the Temple will be rebuilt with a splendor unknown since the days of Herod and all the nations will flow toward Jerusalem for either ultimate salvation or ultimate condemnation. Read Zechariah 14:16-21 [+/-]Zechariah 14:16-21 [16]Then everyone who survives of all the nations that have come against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Booths. [17]And if any of the families of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, there will be no rain on them. [18]And if the family of Egypt does not go up and present themselves, then on them there shall be no rain; there shall be the plague with which the LORD afflicts the nations that do not go up to keep the Feast of Booths. [19]This shall be the punishment to Egypt and the punishment to all the nations that do not go up to keep the Feast of Booths. [20]And on that day there shall be inscribed on the bells of the horses, "Holy to the LORD." And the pots in the house of the LORD shall be as the bowls before the altar. [21]And every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holy to the LORD of hosts, so that all who sacrifice may come and take of them and boil the meat of the sacrifice in them. And there shall no longer be a trader in the house of the LORD of hosts on that day. (ESV)
for what is a prophetic understanding of the centrality of the city of Jerusalem and the reinstituted festival of booths or tabernacles that will be observed there in the last of the last days.

The interpretation of the Book of Daniel from an apocalyptic perspective depends almost entirely on the understanding of the seventy weeks in Daniel 9 [+/-]Daniel 9 [9:1]In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a Mede, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans-- [2]in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. [3]Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. [4]I prayed to the LORD my God and made confession, saying, "O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, [5]we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. [6]We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. [7]To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, those who are near and those who are far away, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of the treachery that they have committed against you. [8]To us, O LORD, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against you. [9]To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him [10]and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets. [11]All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey your voice. And the curse and oath that are written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against him. [12]He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against our rulers who ruled us, by bringing upon us a great calamity. For under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what has been done against Jerusalem. [13]As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this calamity has come upon us; yet we have not entreated the favor of the LORD our God, turning from our iniquities and gaining insight by your truth. [14]Therefore the LORD has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, for the LORD our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and we have not obeyed his voice. [15]And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and have made a name for yourself, as at this day, we have sinned, we have done wickedly. [16]"O Lord, according to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, your holy hill, because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people have become a byword among all who are around us. [17]Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. [18]O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. [19]O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name." [20]While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my plea before the LORD my God for the holy hill of my God, [21]while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the first, came to me in swift flight at the time of the evening sacrifice. [22]He made me understand, speaking with me and saying, "O Daniel, I have now come out to give you insight and understanding. [23]At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly loved. Therefore consider the word and understand the vision. [24]"Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. [25]Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. [26]And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed. [27]And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator." (ESV)
. Thus, at the outset of our study of this chapter we need to be clear about several very critical realities:

1. Although this chapter is as inerrant and as infallible as any other in the book, we must no more make our ability to hear the message of Daniel hinge on getting the seventy weeks right than we should make our understanding of the Book of Revelation hinge on our understanding of the millennium. The latter is just one small paragraph in a book of twenty-two chapters and the seventy weeks here is s small part of one of twelve chapters. So, let’s keep this issue in its proper perspective. There are those who are strong believers and good, solid Bible interpreters who see this passage limited to the time of Antiochus Epiphanes and no later than A.D. 70 as well as equally gifted interpreters who see this text tied almost totally to the end of time.

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I just love “God things.” Let me share just two of them with you that have been such a blessing to me in recent days. The first one happened the other day while finishing checking my email at home. I have had some recent encounters with men who are just having a really tough time with internet pornography. If you own a computer and can get to the internet, you know how easy it is to get to unsavory sites. So, I was thinking I was clicking off how serious a problem it is and then I saw what I see every time I click off the internet: the full blown picture of my grandson’s smiling face. I usually say as I get ready to get up, “have a good day, buddy; stay warm in Cleveland.” But today I said something different: “Grayson, I don’t know much about being a grandpa and don’t really see you enough to make that work too well and because I don’t see you a lot I don’t have much impact in showing you what a good husband or father looks like, but I know this: I want you to know me until I die as a godly man who loves Jesus. I do not want to disappoint you.” I got up after praying briefly and walked out. The phone rang. It was my daughter calling from Cleveland to tell me that just before she called she had done something new with Grayson, she let him choose one person for whom to pray and he chose G. Al, me. Wow, God. At almost the moment that he was on my mind as one for whom I wanted to live a life of purity, this little two year old was praying for me as his grandpa. That is a God thing.

That same day I drove to Metter for a meeting about the Guido Christian Training Institute. I had been telling Larry Guido that we needed some help from somebody to help us know how best to use various media to get out the message about what God is doing through the Guido Christian Training Institute (GCTS). I walked into the meeting that day to be greeted by Bo Fulginiti. He just recently moved to Metter because God told him to move to Metter. It gets better. He has a degree in communicatins and has been working in professional sports organizations to help them sell their product while also serving as a sports announcer. He got saved by the glorious grace of God and was called by God to move back to Statesboro where he had graduated from college and there began to seek God. He was simply praying and digging into the Word of God when God called him to get on a train and go visit his sister. He was on the train trip when a woman sitting behind him was so impressed with him that she wrote him a note that read, “you have the makings of young Michael Guido.” She did not give him the note. But then on his return trip, she sat beside him and was so stunned by this that she gave him the note. It was after his return home that God called him to move to Metter where he immediately found a job and visited the gardens for the first time to find that for us he is the man for whom we have been looking and needing and God just sent him to us. Isn’t that neat? And it is God. It is a wonderful God thing.

 

 Life in the Spirit: Sanctification [36:44m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Romans 8:1-17 [+/-]Romans 8:1-17 [8:1]There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. [2]For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. [3]For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, [4]in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. [5]For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. [6]For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. [7]For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. [8]Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. [9]You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. [10]But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. [11]If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. [12]So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. [13]For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. [14]For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. [15]For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" [16]The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, [17]and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (ESV)

As night follows day so sanctification follows a genuine work of grace in the salvation of sinners. This is the promise of God and it is the purpose of God that is fulfilled through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. There is no salvation of a sinner that does not lead to the work of sanctification based on the Word of God through the Spirit of God among the saints of God. A sinner saved by the graced of God is a sinner compelled to come together with the people of God for the praise of the Name of God and the passionate pursuit of the purpose of God. The Bible knows no alternatives so that the Holy Spirit who works salvation shows the legitimacy of that work of salvation in the work of sanctification on the foundation of Romans 8:1 [+/-]Romans 8:1 [8:1]There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (ESV)
: there is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus because of the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. Those who are in Christ Jesus are those who are committed to Christ who have come together in a body of believers in which and through which they carry out the purposes of Christ because of the law of the Spirit that brings life.

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What happens when a group of special people come to a special place for a very special purpose? Well, when that place is the top of a mountain devoted to prayer and the study of God’s Word and that people is a group of believers who enjoy being together and are seeking the glory of God and that purpose is the praise of God, then what happens cannot be captured in words but will not be forgotten. That is the character of the experience that I had this week at The Cove in Asheville, North Carolina with a group of Senior Adults from our church. I told one of the pilgrims who made the journey with me just today that I hoped that everyone who made the journey would come to recognize that we had just been a part of something very, very special. This was no ordinary trip. This was no ordinary conference. We laughed and we cried. We were lifted to the heights in our worship of God and we felt, really felt His awesome presence. I knew by Tuesday night of the week that we were a part of one of those marker moments in life when we just want to hold on to what we are experiencing. I do not exaggerate that this week I got just a small taste of heaven and there was nothing bitter about it. It was all so sweet.

Yet coming home brought me face to face with the reality of life in this world. I had been away from television and telephones. I had spent a few days with no need for a calendar and little need for a clock. I heard no complaints only cheers but then I had to come “home.” I decided when we arrived in Waynesboro that I would go by the office and check my voice mails. I heard not complaints but one message after another from hurting people. One was sick. Another had heard very bad news and another needed some help. All sounded stricken and most were in need of urgent attention. The real world hit me. And the contrast was great. I had left the mountain and now I knew it. But this is where I live my life most of the time. So do you. And it is also why we must go to the mountain from time to time for it is from there that we see more clearly what we really face down here and it is up there that we see where we really want to be. That little taste of heaven for me was just that; it was not nearly enough. But it was enough to enable me to hear the hurt when I arrived at home and to see the pain and undestand that for all who know, love and serve God “we’ll soon be done with troubles and trials.” Having been to the mountain I could now understand some of what we really do face as suffering for the Gospel in this world. Living in this world without the Gospel is very hard. Living in this world as those who are faithful to the Gospel is very difficult if from time to time we do not get to that very special place with very special people for a very special purpose. And do you know what is so tricky? You don’t ever know where that place and people and purpose are going to intersect; it did for me in the first few days of this week and I will never be the same because of it.

I was asked an interesting question tonight. I am at the Cove with a group of Senior Adults from our church. The question was about my being here. It was not asked skeptically but was asked in order to get information: why have you come with your church group to this event? Well, the truth is that the question has several answers. First, I come because I love this place. There is here that which I do not find at other places. There is a quiet and a calm that is refreshing. I find this when I go to Guido Garderns and I find it here. So I come because of what I found here last year and am finding here already again this year. I come becasue I love Phil Waldrep and the way he does conferences. He does such a great job. I love hearing him preach, and he did a fabulous job tonight. But ultimately I come because I love being with my church family. That may sound “hokey” to you; but it is true for me. It is real. It is deep. It is the reason that I come. I love each one as if each was a member of my own family. They are. They are my brothers and sisters in a way that biological family cannot be and will not be. I love laughing with them and sharing with them. I love listening to them and spending time with them.

I sat at dinner tonight and we talked about a time when our country was more moral and thus far more decent than it is now. They lived their lives during this time and they have watched with dismay and disgust the deterioration of our culture. They are sad and they are mad. And it was during this conversation that an insight came to me. It was one that I really needed to see. You see, I often see Senior Adults as self-centered and selfish. I see them wanting church to be the way they want it to be and not at all accepting of any change. But it hit me tonight: they have seen a lot of change and a lot of it is not good. They lived in a more decent time and they want that time to return and it will not if they do not resist some change. They want their time to be recognized for what it was and it was a different time that was better morally than now. Far better. They simply do not want to be left out nor left behind. It was a good thing for me to see. I needed to see it. Maybe in God’s providence that is why I am here in Asheville this year at the Cove.

 

 Saved, Sealed and Showing [39:13m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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 Wednesday Evening - December 2, 2009 [28:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Genesis 3 [+/-]Genesis 3 [3:1]Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden'?" [2]And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, [3]but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'" [4]But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. [5]For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." [6]So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. [7]Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths. [8]And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. [9]But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, "Where are you?" [10]And he said, "I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself." [11]He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" [12]The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate." [13]Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." [14]The LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. [15]I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel." [16]To the woman he said, "I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you." [17]And to Adam he said, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; [18]thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. [19]By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return." [20]The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. [21]And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them. [22]Then the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever--" [23]therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. [24]He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. (ESV)
cont…

Tiger Woods has made the news in a way that nobody wants to make the news. Some have waited for this kind of episode to happen; others are stunned that such a thing could happen to Tiger Woods. I have two areas of concern in connection with the events as they have unfolded over the last week both of which I want to address in the context of two caveats. First, Woods is arguably the greatest golfer ever to tee up a golf ball. There has been one better to date. He has set a standard for the golfing world that makes it at least possible that someone might appear in the future that is at least his equal. Second, no one wants to see this kind of thing happen to anybody and only a few know all that is involved in his accident. It seems at least clear now that the blood in his mouth and elsewhere came from something other than a car accident and that Tiger was “shopping around” for treasures in addition to his wife. This reality should not shock or surprise us and it will be explained for him as with Clinton on brain chemistry that makes him have a more active libido than others. It was written of Clinton as it will be of Woods that this reality is just the truth with men of this kind of activity and accomplishment. Bah! Humbug! Some will even believe such garbage. Whatever happened sexually with these men outside marriage is due with them as with every man to sinful hearts and haughty spirits. Plain and simple. Now having issued these words let me address the two issues that concern me most.

First, we need to pray for Tiger and his family. This may well be the opening that was needed to bring him low enough to cry out for the grace of God. Tiger has spoken often of the inner strength that is his. No athlete short of Michael Jordan has shown the mental determination that is seen in Tiger, but mental determination and inner resolve will not be enough for him now. He cannot think his way out of this dilemma and no matter how much inner resolve he has, it will not be enough to sustain him in this storm. So, pray for him that God will use this storm as a way of bringing him to bow before Jesus as Lord. And why is that important? Well, just go to the “first tee” sites all over the world and ask young kids who they want to be like when they grow up and the answer is always the same: Tiger Woods. So what if Jesus got Tiger by the tail? Wouldn’t that be something and particularly if while on the golf course he had John 3:16 [+/-]John 3:16 [16]"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (ESV)
or Philippians 4:13 [+/-]Philippians 4:13 [13]I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (ESV)
plastered on his golf bag like Tebow does under his eyes. So, pray that God will use this mess for His glory in getting a Tiger to bow before the true King of the jungle.

Second, some of my generation and the previous generation gloat over this kind of thing with words like, “you never heard this about Arnie and Jack, did you?” Well, no; but not because they are believers. There is no indication that either is and if you know otherwise, please let me know. I would want to set that one straight as quickly as possible. They both group up and played in a period when public personna meant everything and they worked hard to produce that public personna, to put it on display and to protect it. They portrayed themselves and portray themselves publicly as good and decent people. Who knows what their private lives are? I do not believe that they have had anywhere near the scrutiny that modern athletes get because one of the realities of modern athletes is that they do not work as hard to create this public personna as athletes once did. And that is a good thing. Public personalities that are different from private personalities is hypocrisy. That is why I would much rather have Terrell Owens be who he is than have someone who is really nice in public but has a reputation of being really rough in private. Anyway the point I am laboring to make is that we not be too quick to say that Tiger is different from Jack and Arnie. He lives in a different day when private lives are put on public display. I don”t think that is a bad thing because the divorce of the private life from the public life leads to duplicitous living that can be devastaing if it is thought to be an acceptable and even appropriate way of living.