PRAY FOR ARIEL CASTRO

Ariel Castro, the infamous Cleveland kidnapper, has been sentenced to life plus 1,000 years without parole for his crimes. Regarding this recent sentencing, I recently heard someone say that they hoped he would rot in hell. I did not respond to this person’s statement, but my immediate thought (and I am quite glad that it was indeed immediate) was not to hate him but rather to pray for him. I have definitely spent some time in prayer for this man who has committed horrific crimes. The fact is that we all make mistakes, some worse than others. Ariel Castro, however, is no less of a human being than anyone else. It is easy for people who profess Christ, in the name of righteousness, to proclaim their hatred for injustice in the world but to do so through proclaiming hatred of those who carry out injustice. We must consider that Jesus hates injustice but does not hate those who carry it out, and if we are to profess his name, we must not hate them either. This man is in need of prayer and of God’s redeeming love, not hatred by people who do not even know him. Justice has been served, but he is still a man in need of God. Let us not make the mistake of thinking that he is beyond redemption, that God’s love cannot reach him. Let us commit to praying for him and yes, even loving him rather than hating him. Like us, he is in need of a savior.

LUKE 12:13-21: OUR TREASURE

LUKE 12:13-21: OUR TREASURE

            As Americans, we easily misplace our treasure. While it should be found in God alone, we place it in earthly things. We also often justify our treasures by saying things such as, “It is not wrong to be rich.” While this statement is true, it often becomes our crutch for continuing to store up treasures on earth that are momentary and fleeting. Jesus tells a parable in Luke 12:13-21, the parable of the rich fool, and in this parable, we are forced to examine where our treasure is.

Luke 12:13-21

English Standard Version (ESV)

The Parable of the Rich Fool

¹³ Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” ¹⁴ But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” ¹⁵ And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” ¹⁶ And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, ¹⁷ and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ ¹⁸ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ ²⁰ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ ²¹ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

Covetousness Is the Enemy of Finding Treasure in God (vv. 13-15)

            We must realize the truth in what Jesus says here, the truth that covetousness is our enemy. It, in no way helps us find our treasure in God, and in fact, it prevents it. When Jesus was propositioned to become a judge in this situation, he responded with one crucial point: be on guard against all covetousness. This could be the thesis of this entire passage. Covetousness helps us in no way, and it blocks our focus on Christ, where our treasure should be. We must see it as that, find it in our lives, and severe it. Whatever it takes, we must rid ourselves of covetousness. The fact is, however, that we do not do this. We instead allow this important point made by Christ to pass us over. We simply drive by it and do not allow this not optional command to penetrate our hearts and affect our actions. For some, ridding covetousness may require something extreme such as selling or getting rid of meaningful earthly possessions. For others, it may not require something as extreme. There are, however, actions that we must take to be on guard against this root of evil. When someone is on guard, they are in constant watch. In other words, they are expecting an attack. Be assured that covetousness will attack, and many times it is unexpected. Therefore, we must examine ourselves to discover if we are, in fact, on guard or if we are not prepared for the certain attack of covetousness.

We Must Realize the Eternal Value of Treasure in God and the Foolishness of Treasure on Earth (vv. 16-21)

            With God, there is eternal value; with the things of earth, it is momentary and fleeting. This is why our treasure must be found in God and not in earthly things. Jesus makes the point, in this passage, that the foolish rich man built up his treasure in earthly things, but upon his death, these things would be worthless to him. We must store up treasure in God and in heavenly things. This means that our entire lives must focus on and exude the gospel. We cannot lose sight of the importance of God. He is everything. A believer who is homeless should be just as content and focused on the gospel as someone who is rich and not in need. This is not the case, however, particularly in our United States of America. If God truly is everything, then why do earthly things affect us as much as they do? This should be convicting to all of us. Our treasure must be in God who is eternal, not in earthly things, which are temporary.

Conclusion

            We can read this passage and talk about it all we want, but unless it affects our actions and the way we live our lives, it is meaningless. Our treasure must be found in God. Therefore, we must examine our lives and act accordingly.

HUSBAND AND WIFE CO-PASTORS IS NOT A BIBLICAL CONCEPT

A fad is taking over many churches, and that is to consider wives of staff members part of the staff as well. You see this mostly in charismatic churches but also in churches that are not charismatic as well. You can go to their websites or see their advertisements and notice that they have pastors plural (husband and wife) or youth pastor plural, etc. Since I first noticed this, I have wondered why churches do this and if it is biblical. The conclusion I have come to is that it is not biblical. Nowhere in scripture do you see husband and wife teams. In fact, the Bible states clearly that the pastor is to be a man, not a woman. Qualifications are indeed given on what his wife is to be like as far as character, but the Bible does not seem to imply that the two are a team of ministers. I believe that it is a calling to be a minister’s wife much the same way it is a calling to be a minister of the gospel. This does not mean that the wife is equally the minister just as her husband is though. This concept has frustrated me, and I realize now that it is because it is not even biblical. Let’s get it straight; the minister is the husband, and the wife is his support period!

HOSEA 1: PURSUING ONES WHO HAVE ABANDONED: GOD'S AMAZING STORY OF REDEMPTION

HOSEA 1: PURSUING ONES WHO HAVE ABANDONED: GOD’S AMAZING STORY OF REDEMPTION

            It can be very easy to minimize God’s amazing redemption in our lives through our day to day activities and routines. This amazing story, however, must always be the focal point of the gospel. The fact that God has redeemed those who were indeed unredeemable is amazing in and of itself, but what is more amazing is that the one we abandoned for the lure of sin was the very one who redeemed us.

Hosea is a picture of God’s faithfulness to his children, in spite of the fact that we abandoned him. The prophet, Hosea, a minor prophet to the northern kingdom of Israel, presented this very vivid picture of abandonment and forgiveness through his marriage and love of one who was to be considered a whore, one who most would consider unlovable. This picture and amazing story of redemption should not be only associated with Israel but also with us as God’s children.

Hosea 1

English Standard Version (ESV)

1 The word of the Lord that came to Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.

Hosea's Wife and Children

² When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord.” ³ So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.

⁴ And the Lord said to him, “Call his name Jezreel, for in just a little while I will punish the house of Jehu for the blood of Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. ⁵ And on that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.”

⁶ She conceived again and bore a daughter. And the Lord said to him, “Call her name No Mercy,^[a] for I will no more have mercy on the house of Israel, to forgive them at all. ⁷ But I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the Lord their God. I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen.”

⁸ When she had weaned No Mercy, she conceived and bore a son. ⁹ And the Lord said, “Call his name Not My People,^[b] for you are not my people, and I am not your God.”^[c]

^10 [d] Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And in the place where it was said to them, “You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, “Children^[e] of the living God.” ¹¹ And the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head. And they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel.

How this Applies to Us

            There are some clear points on how this passage applies to us.

We Abandoned God (vv. 1-9)

            There are varying interpretations on this passage and the implications of Hosea pursuing a whore. Did he actually pursue a woman who was already a whore before he knew her? One interpretation, which makes the most sense, is that he rather pursued the woman he was already married to and who was unfaithful to him. This would paint the clearest picture of God’s pursuit of people who were unfaithful to him. The fact is that this passage applies to us because we were the ones who abandoned God. He, in no way, abandoned us; nor will he ever. We were the ones who went astray; we were the ones who lived in hatred of him; and indeed we were the ones in need of his mercy. We, in essence, can be seen as the whore pursued by Hosea, the ones who abandoned our first love.

God Still Forgave and Blessed Us (vv. 10-11)

            Despite the fact that we abandoned God, he still forgave and blessed us. It is obvious that we did not deserve his forgiveness and blessing; yet he gave it anyway. Hosea did not have to pursue his unfaithful wife (if God had not commanded him to do so), and God did not have to pursue us. He did though. This is the amazing mystery of the gospel. How could God pursue us? Relating this whore to Israel, graphic language is used. When Gomer bore a daughter in verse 6, her name was the Hebrew word, Lo-ruhama, which literally means “she has not received mercy.” She then conceived a son with the Hebrew name, Lo-ammi, which means “not my people.” The theme presented here is that God was dishonoring the people who he chose as his own. This is our story. We were once people who abandoned God, radically depraved, and God-hating. Yet he loved us and forgave us. This is the amazing story of redemption.

Conclusions on What God Did for Us

            Because of this vivid picture of what God has done for us, there are some conclusions we can draw.

God Pursued Us When We Did Not Pursue Him

            We must always keep in mind that we did not pursue God, but rather he pursued us. We were radically depraved and in need of mercy, and he gave it despite the fact that we did not deserve it.

God Disciplines His People

            Although God’s children ultimately received mercy, they did not get away with their abandonment. Instead God disciplined them. This was the point of Hosea’s message to the people. A brief time of God’s discipline was certain. The same is true with us. God disciplines those he loves.

God Ultimately Loves and Blesses His People

            Ultimately God blesses his people. The brief time of discipline will come because of our great sin, but God’s ultimate plan is blessing, the blessing of his mercy and love.

Conclusion

            We must see this picture painted vividly by Hosea as our story of redemption. God pursued us when we did not deserve it. He loved us and had mercy upon us, the ones who abandoned him. The whore in the story represents us. This is the amazing story of God’s redemption in our lives.