True Marriage

In my last blog I commented on the growing trend of celebrating sin, specifically homosexuality and so called homosexual marriage. How will we Christians react to this challenge to traditional marriage? The only answer that will work is by defining what the Bible says about marriage and then putting that truth to work in our lives.

Hebrews 13:4 says that “Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled.” Therefore what does not fit in with the biblical definition of marriage is thus dishonorable.  As Proverbs 16:25 says “There is a way that seems right to a man but its end is the way of death.” So what is the biblical pattern for marriage?

Genesis 2:18, 21-25 says “And the LORD God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him…And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said:
      “This is now bone of my bones
      And flesh of my flesh;
      She shall be called Woman,
      Because she was taken out of Man.”

Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.”

So, what is the pattern? Here is the answer:  male and female; adult to adult; one man, one woman; leaving parents and cleaving to one another and no shame in the sexual union.

Marriage, true marriage, is a powerful and beautiful thing. It is where a man and a woman work together to lighten the burdens and sorrows of life. It is where they work together to help each other become their best for God, their children and for one another. It is the most complete, the most intense, and the most beautiful relationship possible between two human beings.

The Bible commands, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her…So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church (Ephesians 5:25, 28, 29).” This was and is revolutionary! A husband is to pour himself into his wife’s welfare; her needs come before his needs.

And yes, “Wives,[are to] submit to [their] own husbands, as to the Lord (Ephesians 5:22).” This is not groveling submission. This is a voluntary arrangement and submission to serve another, to help him be his best. It is submission to someone who strives to love his wife sacrificially like Christ. This not servile submission to a couch potato dictator. This is selfless service to bring honor to the husband and family. There is great honor and dignity in both roles of husband and wife.

Marriage at its best is a man and a woman who strive not for dominance but to serve in love. Nowhere does a Christian have as many opportunities for becoming more like Christ than in the marriage relationship. Why? In a marriage you are with someone in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, and in all of those situations there are opportunities to encourage one another, pray for one another, challenge one another and honor one another.

How awe inspiring it is to see the beauty of another person and to bring the best out of him or her. How wonderful it is to become intimate in soul, mind, heart and body – to actually “become one flesh (Genesis 1:24; Ephesians 5:31). But like all great things in life, marriage takes work. A happy marriage is impossible for those who never take the biblical steps needed to make it shine. But we can, because we, “can do all things through Christ who strengthens [us] (Philippians 4:13).”

The Celebration of Sin

Yesterday President Obama threw his support to leading Democratic Senators who are bent on repealing the Defense of Marriage Act that defines marriage as a bond between one man and one woman. Last week Governor Jerry Brown of California signed a landmark bill adding lessons about gay history to social studies classes in California's public schools.

Brown, a Democrat, signed the bill passed by a Democratic majority in the House and Senate, making California the first state in the nation to require public schools to include the contributions of and promote the lifestyle of gays and lesbians in social studies curriculum.

On June 24^th New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law the Marriage Equality Act. This makes New York the sixth state (Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and the District of Columbia) where so called homosexual marriages will be legally recognized.

In Chicago on June 26 there was the Annual Gay Pride Parade supported by many of our state politicians. President Obama hosted a gay pride reception at the White House.  Tolerance is one thing, but it is something else altogether to celebrate this lifestyle or to say that this lifestyle is good and that our children should be taught so. Homosexuality is a sin just as lying, stealing, hating, greed, drunkenness, adultery and fornication are sins. And practicing sin is one thing but celebrating it is another. Sin has always been practiced but rarely if ever celebrated!

The Bible is not silent about this. In the clearest explanation that homosexuality is a sin (Romans 1:24-27) stands the indictment of those who celebrate sin and a declaration of severe consequences. Though people know instinctively that homosexuality is wrong (along with gossip, slander, pride, etc) some “being filled with all unrighteousness [and] sexual immorality…knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them (Romans 1:29, 32). Some people approve and applaud sin—are we nuts or what?

Our country does not realize the tragedy that is waiting to happen to men and women, families and children, because of this approval of homosexuality. Biblically thinking people can see that sin carries its own misery. The Bible warns us that the unnatural act of women being with women and men being with men and doing “what is shameful” will receive “in themselves the penalty of their error which was due (Romans 1:27).” In other words sin brings great misery and sorrow to people’s lives now. And along with sin’s power to destroy lives in the present, in the future the full and final “wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience (Colossians 3:6).”

Why do I bring this up? It is certainly not to exalt myself or any Christian as morally superior to others. It is to offer hope to those struggling in sin, any sin, that there is a way out. I am a sinner who deserved God’s judgment and wrath, but I have been saved by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ. God offers to all of us, all of us, amazing grace. The apostle Paul wrote to the church at Corinth and said,

“Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).

Let us not celebrate sin; let us weep over it. And let us lovingly and boldly share the good news of Jesus Christ to people who are as we were—lost in sin.

The Last Best Hope of Earth

I mentioned in my last blog that Abraham Lincoln called the United States the “last best hope of earth.” I admire Lincoln and I find inspiration in his words to be a good citizen. But the last best hope of earth will not to be realized by any government we form, but by the world wide kingdom that Jesus Christ will establish at his return.

The second coming of Christ is as certain as the Word of God is true. At his ascension into heaven two angels said to the disciples “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven (Acts 1:11).” At the second coming of Christ God’s people will receive everlasting life and glory and the ungodly and wicked will perish, forever.

Christ’s second coming is mentioned more frequently in the Old Testament than his first coming at his birth. For example, Psalm 96:13 says that Jesus comes to judge the earth. Psalm 2 declares that he will inherit every nation of the earth. The prophet Daniel saw that Christ was “given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed (Daniel 7:14).” The New Testament calls Christ’s return our “blessed hope (Titus 2:13)” and it is: the last best hope of earth.

When Christ rules as the King of kings and the Lord of lords, the hopes of humanity will be fully realized. There will be no more war (Isaiah 2:4), there will be peace without end (Isaiah9:6), there will be no more sickness (Isaiah 35:5,6), the voice of weeping will be heard no more (Isaiah 65:17-19, the desert will blossom like a rose (Isaiah 35:1, 2, 6, 7), the world will again become like the Garden of Eden (Ezekiel 36:33-35), the earth and believing humanity will be redeemed and delivered from death and corruption (Romans 8:18-23).

How can you participate in this new world order? The answer is simple; you enter the kingdom by voting yourself in. Jesus Christ said that the only way to see this kingdom is to be saved, to be born again of God’s Spirit. And this new birth occurs the very moment that you believe one of the greatest promises in Scripture. In John 3:16, 17 Jesus Christ said “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” Believing this promise with all your heart gets you into the kingdom.

A renewed earth will be the everlasting home of God’s redeemed people. This planet, the scene of paradise lost, is destined to be the scene of paradise restored. This earth shall be filled “with the glory of the Lord (Numbers 14:21).” If you haven’t done so already, I encourage you to seek salvation by faith in Christ. If you are in the Chicago area come join us on Sunday mornings as we worship God and learn His Word. We meet at 10:30 AM at the Gorton Community Center, 400 East Illinois Rd, Lake Forest, IL. You can also listen to and study the various biblical teachings we have at our web site (www.graceministryinternational.org).

Happy Birthday USA, Part 2

The U.S.A. just celebrated its 235^th birthday. There were the usual parades, cook-outs and fireworks. With all of its flaws we still live in a great country. It was during the time of our country’s greatest internal struggle, the Civil War, when Abraham Lincoln called for the hard work needed to preserve the union. Lincoln realized that our country was “the last best hope of earth.”

Lincoln wasn’t exaggerating. Tyranny and oppression had been and often is the lot of mankind. Nowhere else on the globe, but in the U.S., did (and do) men and women have such liberty, opportunity and equality based upon just law. One reason for this was the Great Awakening. This was a time of spiritual awakening to biblical truth which began in 1730 and lasted nearly twenty years. Powerful, biblical preaching moved the people of the American Colonies away from mere religious ceremony and tradition to a personal commitment to Jesus Christ.

This awakening also opened eyes to the biblical mandate of living righteously and opposing tyranny and injustice. Christian ideals and truth permeated society with such force that one nation under God was the political and spiritual legacy that permeated the goals of the American Revolution.  In 1776 while Ambassador to France for our fledgling nation Benjamin Franklin said “He who shall introduce into public affairs the principles of primitive Christianity will change the face of the world.”

Franklin was right and we did. Our country wasn’t perfect but America became a great nation whose light of freedom shone around the world. The secret of America’s genius was not simply in our form of government it flowed from our godly homes and churches. America was great because it was good, and when we are no longer good we will no longer be great.

So the question to ask is this: are we good? We can be and at times we are. Whenever needs arise or natural disasters strike, at home or abroad, Americans are there with big hearts and open hands. But the engine of our nation is running on an empty gas tank with the scant gas fumes of the Great Awakening. Still there is hope.

The Bible is still available to read, believe and obey. We still have the privilege and freedom to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others. And as one poem declared “One man awake awakens another, the second awakens his next door neighbor…One man up with dawn in his eyes - multiplies.” So let’s share the truths of the Bible with love and boldness.

But even as great as our country has been and can be, there is a much more wonderful government, a world wide government coming. Samuel Adams knew this and longed for it saying,

“And as it is our duty to extend our wishes to the happiness of the great family of man, I conceive that we cannot better express ourselves than by humbly supplicating the Supreme Ruler of the world that the rod of tyrants may be broken to pieces, and the oppressed made free again; that wars may cease in all the earth, and that the confusions that are and have been among nations may be overruled by promoting and speedily bringing on that holy and happy period when the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ may be everywhere established, and all people everywhere willingly bow to the scepter of Him who is Prince of Peace." (As Governor of Massachusetts, Proclamation of a Day of Fast, March 20, 1797.)

Samuel Adams and knowledgeable, awakened Christians know that the true last best hope of earth is the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. At his return

“… justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field. The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. [God’s] people will dwell in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places (Isaiah 32:16-18).”

The world’s best hope is coming. I’ll share more about this coming world wide kingdom next week. Stay tuned!