Not because of your righteousness...

Deut 9:4  After the LORD your God has driven them (the Gentile nations in Palestine) out before you, do not say to yourself, "The LORD has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness." No, it is on account of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD is going to drive them out before you.  5  It is not because of your righteousness or your integrity that you are going in to take possession of their land; but on account of the wickedness of these nations, the LORD your God will drive them out before you, to accomplish what he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  6  Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people.

My daily Bible reading plan is taking me through Old Testament readings from Deuteronomy these days.  As it is Lent, the season of preparation for Easter, traditionally a season of penitence, passages tend to focus on the need to repent and turn to God for his unmerited favor.

I was struck in the passage above with the repetition of the phrase “not because of your righteousness”.  The people of Israel about to enter the Promised Land of Canaan were tempted to see themselves as deserving of inheriting the land, because they were righteous in contrast to the unrighteousness of the Gentile nations.  God, however, didn’t see it that way.  In his eyes they were unrighteous, perhaps just as unrighteous as the Gentile nations they were dispossessing. 

It’s relatively easier for us to see the wickedness of the nations they were dispossessing.  The first custom associated with their pagan idolatry that comes to my mind is the practice of offering their children to the god Moloch.  They made a god of metal who was hollow inside and had hands out stretched as if to hold a burden.  Then they put in wood and fuel and started a raging hot fire inside the idol.  Once the temperature was hot enough to burn someone severely, they laid a newborn infant on the outstretched arms of the idol.

The Israelites could be rightly repulsed by this pagan practice of infanticide, especially in such a miserable, horrible way.  However, they were not guiltless of idolatry, which Moses reminds them of.  When he was on the mountain receiving the tablets of the Ten Commandments, the tablets of the Covenant, they forced Aaron to take their golden earrings and bracelets and other objects of gold and melt them down and fashion a golden calf, an idol.  Then they feasted, danced, sang and “rose up to play” (literally my Hebrew dictionary says this term is used “of conjugal caresses”).  So, the Israelites may not have given their children to Moloch, but they did engage in just the same sort of immoral sexual behavior as did the nations they were to dispossess.

So the question arises:  Why was God going to drive out the Gentile nations, who were idolaters, to give it to an undeserving, idolatrous people, the Israelites?

The answer can be found in one word, which I think is my favorite word in Hebrew, chesed, covenant love or loving-kindness or tenderness.  God says to the Israelites:

“It is not because of your righteousness but…, the LORD your God will drive them out before you, to accomplish what he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”

God had made repeated promises to the Patriarchs of Israel, not because of their righteousness or accomplishments, but in order to show his great might by choosing them, a despised and small nation.  He made a covenant with them because of his chesed, his covenant love, and he would keep the promises he made to them, even if they were unrighteous.

Despite the fact that they repeatedly failed to live up to their side of the covenant God remained faithful to his side.  As Paul says, “If we are faithless, he will remain faithful. For, he cannot disown himself.” (2 Tim. 2:13)

God’s covenant wasn’t without conditions and consequences, but his covenant love, his chesed, never changes.  The Israelites eventually were dispossessed of the land too, but God’s love still attended them eventually - sending them a savior, the Messiah Jesus.

Eph. 2:8 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast.”

A Shoot from the Hip Response

Our home Bible study group is working its way through the book of Revelation.  Someone asked how we are to understand events transpiring in the Middle East right now.  Are we to be concerned that all of the countries in the Middle East and North Africa will become Islamic theocracies and Shiia states as well?  Will all these states join to form a Middle Eastern Arab Shiia super-state which will start Armageddon?

Let’s see… How many countries is it now?  Iran, Yemen, Egypt, Tunisia, Bahrain, Libya…  I don’t think we have reached seven heads yet or ten horns.

I think biblical prophecy is interesting and there are many things for us to learn from it.  However, I think, for instance, speculation about who or what is the beast and who or what is the Antichrist is rather pointless.  When these people or institutions or states come into being there will be no mistaking them.

I remember back in high school, it must have been 1975, I recall being 10^th grade Biology class and expecting the Lord to return.  I don’t recall if it was precisely the Jehovah’s Witness prediction of Armageddon occurring in 1975, but I do recall watching the clock and shrugging my shoulders.[1]  I guess there was no relief from Biology exams.

After the publication of Hal Lindsey’s The Late Great Planet Earth how many evangelical Christians were counting the days till the Rapture (the coming of Christ for the Church prior to the second coming and the Great Tribulation).  As I recall, Lindsey used the founding of the modern state of Israel (May 14, 1948) as his measuring tape to figure out when the Rapture would occur, assuming 40 years as a biblical general. He was thinking of Jesus’ saying in Matthew 24:32-34, and interpreting the “fig tree” as the state of Israel.  So, the Rapture should have been on May 14, 1981 and Christ should have returned on May 14, 1988.[2] I don’t remember where I was then.  It’s possible I was traveling in Macedonia or Bulgaria.  Anyway life has continued now much as before for more than 30 years.

When the European Union was formed, some saw it as the ten headed beast of Revelation.  Lots of speculation, lots of ink was spilt.  The EU now has more heads that ten, even more than ten heads and three horns…

Of course in recent time the “Left Behind” movie and series of books (novels) have made a great impression on people, much as did the movie “A Thief in the Night” in my high school days.  These sorts of fictional representations of events in the book of Revelation require the addition of a lot of imagination to the text of the Bible.  There’s a whole lot speculation added and a lot of interpretation of the biblical text which is driven by one of many different interpretative frameworks

Many Christians want a quick answer to these questions. The answer most would like is: Yes, the Lord is returning next year or next week or tomorrow. Speculating about biblical prophecy can become addictive.  There are many teachers on the web and in print to follow.

I believe that our addiction to prophecy is fueled by our desire to know the future.  Biblical prophecy, however, gives us some broad guidelines about the future, but it’s not a road map or a timetable.  It does give us true information about the future, but it doesn’t satisfy all our “itches”.  It doesn’t always “scratch” where we have a desire to know.

Almost all of us want to know the future. Almost all of us want the security of knowing that our future is certain.  Almost no one wants to live with uncertainty.  Yet our times are uncertain and our ability to predict the future is not great, even given our technological advances.

For me the main message of the book of Revelation is very clear:  Jesus Christ is the victor!  Jesus is the Lord of the Church and of history.   One day he will return for his followers. If you are a Pretribulational Premillenialist,[3] you believe that Christ will come yet another time to set up his kingdom on earth and finally battle and bind Satan and evil and renew the heavens and earth.

The original recipients of the book of Revelation were the seven churches of Asia Minor (modern day Turkey).  They were facing persecution by a bloody Roman emperor. As they would not bow and worship Caesar as a god, they were mercilessly murdered whether in the arena fighting wild beasts or by beheading or crucifixion.  Those who remained needed a message of hope.  The message the Apostle John received was one of hope:  Jesus shall reign over all the earth!  Keep true to your faith, your testimony that Jesus is LORD (God), and you will inherit the crown of Life and have a share in the eternal kingdom of God.

Those of us who live in the West rarely face persecution of the magnitude that these early believers did in that era of the Roman Empire.  For us, persecution for our faith might be something along the lines of being snubbed, being ridiculed and possibly being blackballed from some social organization or terminated from a job (if for instance we espouse creationism while being an elementary or high school teacher).

However, for those present day Christians who live in some Islamic countries and those who live in some Buddhist and Hindu countries persecution even to the point of being murdered is a real likelihood.  The Voice of the Martyrs is an organization dedicated to raising awareness within the Christian Church about those suffering physically, economically and spiritually for their faith in many “closed countries”.  They have a blog (www.persecutionblog.com) which documents the suffering of many Christians for their faith.  They also have a website (www.persecution.com) which provides much information as well.

Those of us in the West complain of snubs and insults and limitations of our freedom.  We do have a right to be concerned about the infringement of our constitutional rights to freedom of speech, freedom of belief, freedom of worship, freedom of assembly and fair treatment before the law and in the academy.  However, our “suffering” in general pales by comparison with that that believers in northern India or Pakistan suffer, for instance.

Rather than spending loads of time speculating about when exactly Christ will return, we western Christians should support our suffering brothers and sisters with prayer and finances, as well as concrete actions: for instance, mail campaigns to specific government officials. 

I’m not saying that we should ignore biblical prophecy, but in light of what Revelation portrays we should be caring for our brothers and sisters in countries where they suffer persecution.  We can also rest secure in the knowledge that our God is in control of history and Jesus will return and he will conquer.  His Kingdom shall reign over all the earth!

So, should you worry about an Islamic, Shiia super-state that will start Armageddon?  No.  If it happens, we can’t stop it. If it happens, Christ will still be in control.

If you are a Pre-Tribulational Rapturist, you’re leaving anyway. So, don’t worry.

If you’re a Mid-Tribulational Rapturist, hang on tight.  Jesus will come to get you just when it seems the darkest.

If you’re a Post-Tribulational Rapturist, persevere!  The Lord is with you in every difficulty and trial.

If you’re Post-millenial or A-millenial, Jesus will return and conquer.

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[1] See this link for info on the JWs’ prediction of Armageddon (and a  whole lot more) http://www.catholic.com/library/History_of_the_Jehovah_Witnesesses.asp

[2] In his critique of Lindsey Dr. Samuele Bacchiocchi (Hal Lindsey’s Prophetic Jigsaw Puzzle:
Five Predictions that Failed! ) says it was on page 53 of The Late Great Planet Earth. http://www.biblicalperspectives.com/books/jigsaw_puzzle/1.html

[3] You can find out what this is by looking at this Wikipedia link.  It’s a good start. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapture

And a few more

Keeping looking!

A few new pages

I've added a few pages with some different things.  The Letter to Bonnie Lu is a pastoral and to some degree philosophical treatment of the problem of evil and suffering.  The Problem of Evil page treats the same problem from a more pedagogical standpoint, a good bit more philosophical/ apologetic.  The How do we know what we know is true? page is a lecture on epistemology or theory of knowledge for theological students with no particular background in philosophy.  I can add up to ten pages so... I imagine I can fill that up pretty fast! ;-)

Getting started

I know that I am way behind the times just now beginning a blog...

I'm not intending to write a daily journal on line or even to vent my spleen when it suits me.

My main goal is to have a place to make various of my course materials available.  Some folks will find my thoughts as contained in some of these course lectures useful.  Not all of the materials are lecture per se.  Some are letters and other vehicles to communicate various ideas and thoughts.

I hope you enjoy them!