Lead Us Not IntoTemptation

This morning Rev. Tony preached what he said will be his final sermon on the Lord's Prayer. His text, of course, came from the Sixth chapter of the Book of Matthew, verse 13. "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil..." (KJV) Actually, there is another sermon in that verse, as it goes on to say, "for Thine is the kingdom and the glory and power forever. Amen." (KJV) However, Tony ends it here.

Today's premise is that the word temptation is defined in this situation as "test." When temptation comes our way, it is not from God, because God cannot lead us into evil. He can, however, allow tests that will shape our character. We can be tested during emotional highs and extreme lows. When we fall into one of these tests or "traps" (my word,) we do so because of the lusts in our own lives, as he paraphrased Chapter 4, Book of James.

From here, the good reverend explained that there is a very real adversary working against the children of God, and we need rescuing. "Deliver us from evil," is a cry for rescue from that which causes pain and trouble in our lives. When we pray, we are to pray for individuals. The church is brick and mortar, but the people in it make up the body of Christ. He said that when we ask God to keep us safe from those tests of evil, we "win," because through Christ Jesus, we have been delivered.

I told Rev. Tony, coming out of church today that I thought his sermon was concise and to the point. I had to think about it for awhile to really be able to comment, and believe it or not, the only comment I have is as follows:

I agree wholeheartedly with Tony that as Christians we will go through tests, and as such, we learn lessons from resisting temptation, and sometimes greater lessons when we don't.

The Apostle Paul is very clear in the Book of Romans that the Spirit will help us with our prayers. Romans, Chapter 8, verse 26, "Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered." (KJV) We have to be very careful not to burden our brothers and sisters in Christ with expectations of perfection that are not manifest to our human eyes. We should not instill a "fear" into our congregation that if they should "fall prey to any test because of their own lusts, then they would be out of the will of God." That is simply not true. To suggest otherwise is to negate the entire redemption story.

Case in point. When Peter walked on water, where was he in this test? When he took his eyes off Jesus, was he suddenly out of God's will? The answer is clearly "NO." Didn't the Savior reach out His hand for Peter and tell his disciple that he should have more faith? Clearly, the result of this test was Peter learned a valuable lesson about who commands the seas and who is worthy of his service and worship. Most tests that we face are like this. They are tests of faith, and we are reminded over and over that the source of our faith is God.

Sometimes we stumble publicly in ways that embarrass us and call our character into question. Once again, Peter denied Jesus three times. He was, however, never "out of God's will," as Jesus had already told him he would be the rock upon which His church would be built.

We have to remember that God has called us to Him. He will qualify us according to His plans, and even though we may stumble, forgiveness is available to us. Every Sunday, and today is not different, Tony talks about standing in judgement. We cannot say to our fellow Christian, "you will have to answer to God for your sin," for if he is saved (and only God can truly know,) then Romans 5:9 states that the believer is "...now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." (KJV) Our mortal lives may face the consequences of our missteps, but our eternal lives are never on the line when we are covered in the blood.

Rev. Tony was absolutely correct when he proclaimed, "We win!" Those headlines have been written in RED.

The Beginnings of Discussions on Theology

I have always been fascinated by theology. It's a very dangerous topic and not one I visit lightly. I'm not a theology scholar, although my daughter has a masters degree in it, and she is always sure that the rest of us have misinformed opinions. I study theology because I want to know God. So many people seem to know a great deal about God, but I'm often bewildered by the fact that they do not KNOW God. They do not appear to have any kind of personal relationship with Him; the concept is not logical to them. They question how something supernatural can have a "relationship" with someone in the natural. It tests the limits of their imagination.

I've been studying Calvinism over the past several years. Ten years ago, I thought Calvinism was reserved for people who, well, let's just say see themselves as set apart from the rest of us. I've learned over and over all about God's sense of humor that's wrapped up in that marvelous irresistible grace that is always sufficient. Thus, today I see this form of theology as very liberating. It gives back to God what has always been His.

We know that we are born into sinful world, that even in the innocence of infancy, we are sinful merely because sin has separated us from God. We know, as Christians, that He calls us to Him with no conditions. He doesn't call the qualified but qualifies the called. Unless we embrace universalism, atonement is limited to those who repent of our sins and call upon Him as Lord. His grace is irresistible, because He is all powerful. He rules the universe, and in so doing, how can it be possible to ignore His call? Finally, for those who are covered by the blood of Jesus, losing our salvation is just too much fathom.

The an acronym for Calvinism is T.U.L.I.P..

1. Total depravity of man
2. Unconditional election
3. Limited atonement
4. Irresistible grace
5. Perseverance of the saints

I am going to write more about this as the days go by, to share my thoughts on why I've evolved to embrace this theology. My pastor and I seem to have this discussion every Sunday, and I walk away laughing, while he walks away scratching his head. Here's the key that turns the lock: God is omnipotent. If He is omnipotent and His grace unlimited, God cannot be limited by human characteristics! In the future, I'm going to include Scriptures that I believe support these five tenants.

Again, I am not a theologian or scholar. I'm just like everybody else, waiting on the Lord and walking toward home. I'm hoping people will visit and leave comments so I can learn from them and maybe everyone else can too.

Commentaries on Sunday's Sermon, Jun 15, 2008

It confuses me when preachers speak of God's omniscience and man's free will in the same sentence, as if the concepts are interchangeable. If God never gets confused by it, one has to wonder if He isn't at least amused.

Today, Brother Tony, when speaking of what Jesus meant by "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done," (Matthew 6:10,) suggested the Kingdom Christ is referring to is God's Kingdom on earth inherited by and in the stewardship of mankind. Mankind was put here to do God's will. Ergo, God's will should be man's will. His example was to set aside God's time for God and squander it not on things that are irrelevant. (So far so good...)

Brother Tony spoke of four entities that have pull over the will of man: 1. God, 2. Self, 3. Others, 4. Satan. Well, really? I'm not so sure, and here's why. Who other than God would or could call man into communion with God? Who other than God puts it upon one's heart to go to church, to study the Word, to witness to the lost? If man is in the will of God, then man has died to self and cannot be removed to self, others or Satan. If one accepts the assumption that when one has been saved, he has died to self, been buried and resurrected as a new creature in Christ Jesus, then this new creature has no self will.

If God has ordained the footsteps of the righteous; And if God has called each man to Himself; And if man has received sanctification through salvation; then the work is done. "Thy Kingdom Come" is not synonymous with "God let me do your will while here on earth." It is synonymous with "Father, live through me that Your will may be seen on earth as it is in Heaven." God's omnipotence precludes the possibility that a child of God can "act" in ways that are outside of not only His knowing, but His direction.

In Tony's sermon this morning, he spoke of the potter who molded his clay into a particular vessel. It is the will of the potter that determines the usefulness of his artwork. Likewise, God determines the usefulness of each of His vessels. A clay pot cannot fill itself with soil or seeds. Likewise, a new life in Christ cannot fill itself and has no usefulness except what God has purposed.

I believe that God has called each of us according to His will, because that's what the Bible says. When our human feet fall over each other, God and God alone can mend the cracks and make us useful again. God is omniscient and therefore knows what the future holds. I believe it would be better to say, "Church, let us be thankful we are in God's will." Pray, "Holy Spirit, move in this place." It can't be proper theology to put God into a tiny little box and say, "We'll do your will now, Lord. Direct us." As Christians, we must be about feeding each other and edifying God's church. If God is in the box, who is holding up the world? I would much prefer it if God is holding up the world so the church can be about feeding His sheep. That way, we would never have to worry if we are in God's will, and the world would know we are Christians by His love.