Does God overwhelm us?

"No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."
I Corinthians 10:13

How many times have you heard folks use this verse as proof that God will never overwhelm you? I've heard it plenty of times and I started to believe it too. Recently I read a devotion by Joni Eareckson Tada and it cleared this up for me. Also, the context of this verse, as with all verses, is important to the understanding of this verse.

I'll start with the devotion. Here's the full passage:

”Oh Joni, isn't it wonderful that God will never test us beyond what we can endure? That's a promise from God!" I knew my friend Sue was looking for an affirmation, a confirmation that God would never "bend the bruised reed." As I nodded slowly, relief flooded her features. Sue had never faced the kind of mind-bending, soul-obliterating pain that now loomed on her horizon. But with the recent medical report and the looming prospect of a morphine-drip pump in her future, she was scared. Surely the Lord won't give me more than I can bear, she was thinking. 

First Corinthians 10:13 is certainly a promise -- but it isn't talking about trials. It's talking about temptation. The promise is that God will always, always give you the power to say no to sin. But when it comes to heartaches, physical problems, and disappointments -- things out of your control, difficult circumstances suddenly thrust upon you -- you may very well be overwhelmed beyond what you can bear. There is a kind of suffering that rips your world apart and leaves you bewildered and wounded. There are trials that overwhelm. I drew a deep breath, showing my friend the context of the promise -- and her brow furrowed. "But take heart," I told her. "It's when we are at the end of our strength...that's when we fall helplessly into the everlasting arms of God. That's when God floods our hearts with sustaining grace."

You and I may indeed find ourselves overwhelmed at times -- at the end of our rope and beyond. But we will never fall farther than the palm of His hand. And where He has called us, His grace will sustain us.” 

*Taken from Pearls of Great Price by Joni Eareckson Tada

To put 1 Corinthians 10:13 into context, verses 1-13 have the subtitle “Warnings from Israel’s History”. Paul is writing about temptations that the Israelites gave in to during their 40-year journey from Egypt to Canaan. His purpose is to warn believers about becoming overconfident and fall to temptation. In verse 6 he writes, “Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.”

Paul does warn against a few specific sins: idolatry (v. 7), sexual immorality (v. 8), testing Christ (v. 9), and complaining (v. 10). I’m going to use the idolatry example. Paul’s mention of idolatry was a reference to the Golden Calf in Exodus 32.

The Israelites were just out of Egypt, a nation that was polytheistic, and they gave into the temptation of making up gods. Generations of Hebrews grew up in this culture, but were able to remember the true God to worship Him instead. They fled Egypt and slavery under Moses, who was a servant of the true God. Once they reached Mt. Sinai though, Moses went up on the mountain and they lost faith in God. Then they have Aaron make a calf of gold to worship and started getting drunk and having orgies.

What happened? The Israelites gave into temptation. Why? They didn't seek God’s help in dealing with temptation. He didn't allow them to be tempted beyond what they could bear, they ignored God’s help. God would have helped them overcome their temptation had they only asked.

One final thing to explain about 1 Corinthians 10:13 is temptation is not from God. James 1:13-15 says, “When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”

God might place trials in our lives to overwhelm us and remind us of our dependence on Him thereby strengthening our faith, but He will not tempt us. For clarity, God may allow temptation to happen in these trials, however, God is not the tempter. This is why the Lord’s Prayer includes the petition, “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” (Matthew 6:13)

So, remember the promise of 1 Corinthians 10:13 when facing temptation and call on God for his help such that you can resist temptation. As James 4:7 says, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

God Calls Us Just As We Are

1 Corinthians (below) explains that God calls us just as we are. God doesn't call the wise, the wealthy, or the powerful, he calls the foolish, the poor, and the weak. Without God there is no wisdom. wealth, or power. The world has its own versions of these things, but it's not eternal. We are very little, selfish creatures without God. What's amazing about this is that God knows how humans are and, yet, he still calls us to be his people.

26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus,who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness,holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”  1 Corinthians 1:26-31

One of my favorite hymns, "Just As I Am", has a verse that says,

"Just as I am - Thou wilt receive,Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve; Because Thy promise I believe,"

This verse is hits the nail on the head, God will receive, welcome, pardon, cleanse, and relieve us just as we are. God understands that we all have pasts. Some Christians have been to prison, some have committed sins that don't send you to prison, some have cheated on their spouse, some were prostitutes, and some were greedy. These are our lives before Christ: sinful. Jesus died to save us from our sins and to give us eternal life. It doesn't matter to God what you have done in the past. As long as you call on Him and confess your sinful condition, He will wash away your sins. God calls us as we are.

It's reassuring to know that God accepts us as we are and still loves us. He created you the way you are, so he knows how you come. The books of Revelation and Isaiah speak on this subject:

"The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life." Revelation 22:17

"“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool."  Isaiah 1:18 

An example of Jesus accepting someone as they are and forgiving them can be found in John 8:1-11. In this passage the Pharisees brought before Jesus a woman who had been caught in adultery and they asked Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” Jesus replied by writing on the ground, "Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” At this point everyone left, which left only the woman and Jesus. He asked her if anyone had condemned her and she said they hadn't. Jesus told the woman, “Then neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin.”

Jesus made two points here: come as you are and leave your life of sin. Both of these points are equally important. I've addressed the former, so I'll address the latter.

 The church today sometimes misunderstands and teaches incorrectly the message of Jesus accepting us as we are. Grace is not a pass to keep living the way you did before. You can't continue living a life of sin and expect Jesus to excuse your behavior. Jesus didn't tell the adulterous woman that it was fine to continue her illicit affair, He told her she was forgiven and to leave your life of sin. She was still a sinner, since she was a human, but she could stop living a life of sin. Jesus accepts our sinful condition and saves us with the expectation that we will give our lives over to Him instead of sin.

The Bible does shed light on this subject, here are a few examples:

"You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love." Galatians 5:13

"For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you." 1 Peter 4:3-4

"Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy." Romans 13:13

In the future, remember that your past sins don't keep you from Christ unless you don't ask His forgiveness. God loves us no matter what, but be careful not to mistake His unconditional love for "freedom to indulge the flesh." Think of how a great an example we as Christians could set if we would behave decently all of the time.

Decision-Making 101

I made a pretty big decision a couple of weeks ago that I would like to share. After much prayer, thought, and discussion, I decided against going to college for now. 

I applied for admission to three different colleges (I was accepted to two of those colleges) to major in English, which I would have started this semester. My plan was to earn a BA in English and then look for employment as a professional writer. I thought that sounded like a job I would like because, I like to write and I can write whatever I'm asked to. I saw a degree as something that can prove my abilities as a writer. 

My decision was based on a couple things. First, I'm happy with writing my blog and I don't think I would be happy writing for someone else. I learned recently (as I wrote about when I returned to this blog) that writers write about things they are passionate about. For example: if I were to find a job as a writer of vacuum cleaner instruction manuals, then I would be bored out of my skull because it's not my passion to write about vacuum cleaners. Working a job that makes you absolutely miserable is no way to live.

The other part to this is that I would be writing for someone else. I don't want to write for a boss, I wouldn't have the freedom to write whatever I want. Ultimately, I write for two souls: God and myself. I write this blog to share the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ with others, who I pray will believe it, but I don't write this blog to get paid or to find other people's favor. I am glad people read my blog, don't get me wrong, it's just not my ultimate purpose. 

Second, I don't need a college degree to be a writer, I already am a writer. A writer is: "one that writes," according to Merriam-Webster. You don't have to have a Bachelor's of Arts in English degree to write a book or a blog, heck you don't need any degree. You just have to write. Telling yourself that you're a writer is the first step to being a writer. Also, I'm doing the best thing I can do to improve my writing by writing. 

I'm not ruling out college forever, but I am ruling it out for now. I was getting caught up in what everybody was doing, which was going to college. My life, as a disabled person, is already vastly different in some areas than the average person, so it's not unfathomable that college is different for me. I'm not complaining in anyway by saying this because differences are okay, in fact sometimes differences are good. By going to college I thought I would be doing something with my life, but I did not realize that I was already doing something with my life.

I shared this decision because it shows that if you trust God He will lead in the right direction. It took a few months for me to figure this college decision, so I'm not bragging. I give the credit to God for poking and prodding at me until I saw what He was trying to show me. I prayed that He would lead me in the right direction and he did. What better proof is there than that?

Here's a few verses I was inspired by:

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7

"Who, then, are those who fear the Lord? He will instruct them in the ways they should choose." Psalm 25:12

Merry Christmas

I don't know what to say about Christmas that hasn't already been written. The Biblical accounts of Christ's birth are the best accounts; there is nothing I can hope to add because it is all there. I think the best way for me to celebrate Christmas on my blog this year is to share the Gospel accounts. My purpose as a Christian is to share the Gospel of Christ and many people have never read the story of Jesus' birth, so here it is.

I'm just going to put the links to both Matthew and Luke due to the length of the passages. I'll let the Bible speak for itself.

Matthew 1-2

Luke 1-2

Merry Christmas to anyone reading this and I hope you will experience the love of Christ this holiday season.

The Myth of the Pagan Origins of Christmas

This post The Myth of the Pagan Origins of Christmas was originally published on Intellectual Takeout by Daniel Lattier. I enjoyed reading this post, so I wanted to share it instead of summarize it myself. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this article as much as I did. I'll probably post something of my own before Christmas, so check back soon.

The Myth of the Pagan Origins of Christmas

It’s generally accepted that early Christians adopted December 25^th as the day of Christ’s birth to co-opt the pagan celebration of the winter solstice. Some believe this fact undermines Christianity.

But according to Professor William Tighe, this “fact” may actually be a myth.

Based on his extensive research, Tighe argues that the December 25^th date “arose entirely from the efforts of early Latin Christians to determine the historical date of Christ’s death.” He also goes so far as to claim that the December 25^th pagan feast of the “'Birth of the Unconquered Sun'… was almost certainly an attempt to create a pagan alternative to a date that was already of some significance of Roman Christians.”

Tighe explains…

In the Jewish tradition at the time of Christ, there was a belief in what they called the “integral age”—that the prophets had died on the same days of their conception or birth. Early Christians spent much energy on determining the exact date of Christ’s death. Using historical sources, Christians in the first or second century settled on March 25^th as the date of his crucifixion. Soon after, March 25^th became the accepted date of Christ’s conception, as well.

Add nine months—the standard term of a pregnancy—to March 25^th, and Christians came up with December 25^th as the date of Christ’s birth.

It is unknown exactly when Christians began formally celebrating December 25^th as a feast. What is known, however, is that the date of December 25^th “had no religious significance in the Roman pagan festal calendar before Aurelian’s time (Roman emperor from 270-275), nor did the cult of the sun play a prominent role in Rome before him.” According to Tighe, Aurelian intended the new feast “to be a symbol of the hoped-for ‘rebirth,’ or perpetual rejuvenation, of the Roman Empire…. [and] if it co-opted the Christian celebration, so much the better.”

As Tighe points out, the now-popular idea that Christians co-opted the pagan feast originates with Paul Ernst Jablonski (1693-1757), who opposed various supposed “paganizations” of Christianity.

Of course, to Christians, it really doesn’t matter that much whether or not they co-opted December 25^th from the pagans, or vice versa. The Christian faith doesn’t stand or fall on that detail. But it’s nevertheless valuable for all of us to give closer scrutiny to shibboleths—such as that of the pagan origins of Christmas—which are continually repeated without being examined.  ​

God's will needs to be our will

When I was younger, as with most people, I had all these ideas about what I wanted to be when I grew up, anything from a garbage truck driver to a kicker for the Carolina Panthers (the next #4). The one serious idea of a career that I did have was being a soldier. When I was in fifth grade I lost the ability to walk completely and after that I knew that I couldn't be a foot soldier. I didn't know until a few years later, however, that disabled people cannot be in the military.

I wasn't upset when I learned this because it makes sense that all soldiers should be physically able to defend the nation. It wasn't until a year or so ago that I saw that writing seems to be what God created me to do. Nonetheless it was a situation (not the only one) where I had face the reality that my plans for my life aren't usually God's plans for my life. God didn't come to me in dream and tell me that I would become a writer or anything like that, but He did lead me to writing. That's my topic today: what God's will is and how we can understand more about God's will.

So, what is God's will? The Bible is the best place to look for answers to these kind of questions, since it is God's heart put to paper and it is God breathed. The will of God is explained in 1 Timothy 2:1-4 (emphasis added) is, "First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." His will is for "all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." Once you become a Christian you are "to be conformed to the image of his Son." (Romans 8:29)

Simply put, God's will can be defined as: for all people to accept Christ's gift of grace and to become more like Christ. I'm not trying to oversimplify the will of God or say that I have some insider information on God's will, but I think my definition is a pretty good working definition. Now, as far as being saved, I've done that part, the hardest part is becoming like Christ. I'll write about becoming like Christ another time, as it is a topic that deserves it's own discussion.

To know God's will is to know God, which is a lifelong pursuit. Romans 12:2 discusses this, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." The renewal of your mind is daily prayer and Bible study. Daily prayer and Bible study will help you to start to understand more about God's character by building (and maintaining) a relationship with the Lord. And this is how "you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is."

We're also instructed to "give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 5:18), to do good works (1 Peter 2:15), to be "sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality" (1 Thessalonians 4:3), and 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, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you." (Matthew 28:18-20) By obedience to God's commands you will further your understanding of His will even more. Obedience to His commands is also a part of building your relationship with God.

Be warned that God's will isn't without suffering or hardships, in fact sometimes suffering is part of His will.  1 Peter 3:17 says, "For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil." The best example of this is Jesus' crucifixion. Isaiah 53:10 spells out what God's will for Jesus was,

"Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand."

Jesus came into this world to suffer and to die to atone for our sins, but he was resurrected later on. He knew this suffering and dying was part of God's will, Matthew 26:39 confirms this by quoting Jesus himself: "Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.""

Now, if you are looking for specifics on God's plans for your life -- like where to live, where to work, who to marry -- then you probably won't get the answer that you're expecting. You have to trust that through, again, getting to know God (by walking with the Lord, obeying Him, and relying on the Holy Spirit) that He will lead you to make the right decisions in accomplishing His "good, pleasing and perfect will." Proverbs 11:5 says, "The righteousness of the blameless makes their paths straight, but the wicked are brought down by their own wickedness." Remember, that Holy Spirit does dwell within us to be our guide in making decisions. The ultimate key to this is wanting God's will instead of ours. Psalm 37:4, "Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart."

I'll leave you with a question: will you make His will for your life, your will for your life?

Faith

Faith is one of the most important things in Christianity. Without faith, the Bible is almost useless and the sacrifice of Christ is pointless. But with faith, the Bible is a source of God's wisdom and love and Christ's sacrifice is humbling. In this post I'm going to explain the importance of faith and what exactly faith is.

What is faith? The dictionary definition for faith is: allegiance to duty or a person. Another, more fitting definition for my purpose here is: belief and trust in and loyalty to God. That's a good definition and it works fine, however, Hebrews 11:1-2 also defines faith, "Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for." 

Faith is all that God requires of us and that's all it takes to be saved by Christ. Romans 10:9-10 says, "If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved." That's faith, believing in your heart that Jesus is Lord and that God raised him from the dead. This message is simple and the most important part of Christianity. God's grace is nonexistent without faith. Ephesians 2:8-9: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast."

In this, the five-hundredth year after the Reformation, the message of justification through faith is being celebrated. This what Luther and other reformers believed and they wanted the Church to return to this message. Works won't earn anyone salvation; it can't be earned, rather, it can only be given to someone by God. There's no way anyone could even hope to repay Jesus for his sacrifice and suffering on the cross. As Ephesians says, "it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast."

When Martin Luther was a monk he did everything the Church taught would earn him salvation, everything from prayer and fasting to going without sleep to self-flagellation. Through all of these acts he was trying to love God, but it resulted in the opposite. Luther began to see his wretchedness and began to see God as a tyrant who expected perfection from imperfect people. He even started hating God. One day he read Romans 1:17: "For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”" He knew he couldn't live by faith because he wasn't righteous.

According to Christianity Today:

Meanwhile, he [Luther] was ordered to take his doctorate in the Bible and become a professor at Wittenberg University. During lectures on the Psalms (in 1513 and 1514) and a study of the Book of Romans, he began to see a way through his dilemma. "At last meditating day and night, by the mercy of God, I ... began to understand that the righteousness of God is that through which the righteous live by a gift of God, namely by faith… Here I felt as if I were entirely born again and had entered paradise itself through the gates that had been flung open."

This moment for Luther is what propelled him to write his 95 Theses and started the Reformation.

Now, faith without works isn't faith at all. James 2:14-17 explains, "What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?  Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?  In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."

This almost sounds contradictory to what Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us, however, James is saying that works need to compliment faith. Grace through faith saves you, but works done for God bring Him glory. Matthew 5:16, "In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." Ephesians 2:10 also elaborates, "For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." A Christian doesn't do good works to earn anything, a Christian does good works because they want to do what God created them to do.

The take home message here is live by faith as the ancients did, trust God and believe Him. Faith is all that is required of us to be saved. However, don't let your faith be a dead faith, do the good works of God to glorify Him and to be obedient to Him. Do good works because you want to, not because you want to earn anything.

A quote to end:

“The subject then of these chapters may be stated thus, — man’s only righteousness is through the mercy of God in Christ, which being offered by the Gospel is apprehended by faith.”

-John Calvin