To Live is Christ

Last time, I mentioned the verse in Philippians 1:21, "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain." That verse is divided into two parts - living and dying. Today, we'll look at the first part of that verse, "to live is Christ." What does it mean? Obviously it means to live differently than if life was all about us. It means living with Christ at the center of our lives where everything we do is for Him.

But this means more than simply that Christ is the center of our lives, it means Christ is our life. Look at what Paul said in Galatians 2:20,

"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

When Paul says that to live is Christ, he's not just saying that he lives for Christ, but literally that he lives Christ's life - that it is Christ that lives in and through him. As Christ lived through him, Paul's body became Christ's eyes, ears, mouth, hands, and feet - so Paul became the instrument by which Christ acted out His will. Even our wills become His, our minds become His. We are transformed more and more into the image of Christ. We become Christlike.

How else do you suppose God can transform our lives like He does? How else can he take us who are reprobate sinners and make us like Jesus? He does it as Christ lives through us. Christ comes to live within us, and He energizes us with His power and love. He literally lives through us.

St. Francis of Assisi is an example of a man transformed by Christ. Shortly after he trusted Christ, he sensed God telling him,

"Francis, all those things that you loved in the flesh you must now despise, and from those things that you formerly loathed you will drink great sweetness and immeasurable delight."

Later, as Francis rode his horse out of town, he saw what he once despised - a leper. "During my life of sin," Francis wrote, "Nothing disgusted me like seeing victims of leprosy." What would Francis do? Exuberant in his new found faith and with joy flooding his soul, and remembering that he was now in love with and even treasured those things he once loathed; Francis leaped from his horse, knelt before the leper, and proceeded to kiss those deformed, diseased hands that had probably not felt human touch in years. Then he pressed money into those hands.

But he didn't stop there. He jumped back on his horse and rode to the nearest leper colony, and, as he recounts it, "begged their pardon for so often having despised them." then he gave them each money. He wouldn't leave until he had kissed each one of them. Francis was a transformed man. He was no longer the same. Christ now lived in and through Francis.

To Live or Die? It Doesn't Matter.

This week, one of the dear men of our church lingers at the point of death. It has caused me to ponder what happens when a person dies. But it isn't enough to ponder the imponderable from our own human perspective, we need to find the truth. That truth only comes from the one who is the author of life, but also the one who conquered death - Jesus Christ. So to find the truth, we look into the Word.

An obvious question is, "Is death a tragedy for a believer? Is it a gain or a loss?" In the book of Philippians, Paul argued that question with himself. He was under arrest for preaching the Gospel, and he faced the possibility of death by execution. Would he prefer to live? Would dying not actually be better? He didn't know. If he lived, he could go on serving God and preaching the Gospel. But if he died, he would be in heaven with the Savior he loved. The answer he found is in Philippians 1:21, "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain." That's his final conclusion. As long as he lives, he will serve Christ. When he dies, Hallelujah! He will see Christ face to face in heaven forever. And that will be gain, he says. It will be so much better.

Remember Paul's situation? He is awaiting trial. He expects to be vindicated, but he isn't sure. Never-the-less, he trusts God. In Philippians 1:20, he says, "According to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death." Paul knew God would get him out of his situation. It might be by life. He might be released from arrest. But, it might be by death. He might be executed. Either way, he is out of his trouble. But death for a believer is the ultimate release - the ultimate healing - and that is what Paul concludes is better.

Certainly, with Paul, we too can have confidence in God. Not that we can count on Him always doing things the way we would want. We would never choose to be executed. But God will always be there for us - always go through troubles with us. He will get us through somehow. Paul's confidence is in the fact that God is in control. The decision isn't in the hand of the Roman judge, the decision is in the hand of our sovereign God.

So Paul concludes that to live is Christ, and to die is better. Living is all about Christ. Dying only gives us more Christ. Therefore, dying must be better. Dr. William L. Pettingill used to say that the word translated as gain in the Greek language always mean more of the same thing. So if to live is Christ, to die means more Christ if it is gain. To die means, as a believer, we will never live apart from hHim again. To live in His presence is the ultimate gain.

I Don't Believe in Science

A couple of days ago, Howard Dean, head of the Democratic National Committee, made a statement that Republicans don't believe in science any more because they weren't buying into the Global Warming hype. I don't know about Republicans, but I for one don't. I don't believe in science. There, I've said it. And I speak as one who has a Bachelor's Degree in Zoology and post graduate work in Biological Sciences. I once believed everything they said. I swallowed it hook, line, and sinker (much to my embarrassment). But not any more. The truth is, I believe in "real" science. What I don't believe in is the way much of science is practiced today.

Why have I changed my mind about science? Because science has changed. Like much of our modern world, science has bought into the postmodern mindset. That is a mindset that has declared war on truth.

"Truth is whatever you believe."
"There is no absolute truth."
"If there were such a thing as absolute truth, how could we know what it is?"
"People who believe in absolute truth are dangerous."

These are the kinds of assertions that are made by postmodernists, even scientists who have a postmodern mindset. Postmodernists believe that truth is created, not discovered. They think that things like reason, rationality, and confidence in science are cultural biases. Therefore truth isn't the purpose of scientific study any more, the agenda is. Righting the wrongs becomes the goal of science even if it means manipulating the data to bolster the agenda.

The latest example of this is the "Global Warming" hysteria. When the pilfered e-mails were published, it showed our respected scientific community was guilty of hiding conflicting data, secrecy, and the intimidation of any opposing views or research. Now that they have been exposed for their hoax, rather than causing them to slink off into a corner in shame (as they would in any rational world); they become ever more shrill in their insistence that "Global Warming" is definitely real in spite of the evidence we can see and feel around us, and that immediate action must be taken to "save the world."

Anyone familiar with the creation-evolution debate has seen the similarity of the tactics since the days of Darwin- the evolutionists ignore or hide contrary evidence and intimidate the opposition. The movie by Ben Stein, "Expelled - No Intelligence Allowed," humorously documented the outrageous efforts to stifle free debate about the scientific evidence. For years, the evolutionists have presented pure fabrications and hoaxes as evidence for their "theory," and have been reluctant to pull the evidence even when the evidence has been proven false or proven a fabrication. This is why I don't believe in science.

When I look at the evidence, It cries out that this world was shaped by the global flood of Noah's day. You laugh? Think about it. If the global flood actually occurred, what evidence would it leave? Quoting Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis, the evidence would be "billions of dead things buried in rock layers laid down by water." Isn't that what you would expect from a global flood that is reported to have destroyed all that has breath not on the ark? Amazing, that is exactly what we see all around this globe. Yet this obvious explanation for the massive rocks layers laid down by water filled with the fossil record is thrown out.

Why? Because it doesn't fit their atheistic presuppositions. The truth is, it is never a lack of proof that explains why men don't believe. They don't believe because of their wills. To acknowledge a creator God would force them to acknowledge that their creator has the right to demand certain behavior from them, and to judge them for their transgressions. Yet the evidence of God's creative hand is all around us (For documentation, see www.answersingenesis.org). I haven't taken the time to provide that evidence to you, but you can easily find it if you are interested. But be warned, the evidence leads us to God. And the evidence will force you to make a decision about Him. The eternal consequences for that decision you will bear.

Disgust and Outrage

On Thursday, January 14th, the Bangor Daily News reported the conviction of a Maine man on manslaughter charges. He was convicted of shooting his partner during a homosexual orgy while they were playing Russian Roulette to increase their excitement. All three of the men involved in this incident had AIDS. My disgust and outrage is not at them, even though I find their behaviour to be disgusting. My disgust and outrage is with the Bangor Daily News who suppressed this story for months.

The Bangor Daily News seems to take great delight in splashing every horrid crime across its front page; and it supports every liberal agenda there is, not just in the editorials but the news articles with their biased slant. Yet this story, with all its bizarre and shocking details, went missing from the paper for months. Why?

Why did they suppress this story? It would have hurt one of their pet causes - homosexual rights - and especially the same-sex marriage debate going on in Maine. It seems, according to the Bangor Daily News, that the man found guilty of shooting his partner had testified before the state legislature at their hearings on the same-sex marriage bill the legislature was forcing upon the state. And this testimony was given just four days after the crime had been committed. That's right, after the crime had been committed. Apparently the Bangor Daily News didn't think that was relevant information in the debate, at least not relevant enough to tell us until now, long after the bill was passed and the the people's referendum overturned the bill.

All through the trial, according to the reports in the Bangor Daily News, the sexual practices of these men should not be considered. The issue was entirely a gun issue. Hogwash. They are right in the sense that no matter what their other activity, the use of a gun to play Russian Roulette was negligent. But, it is precisely their sexual practices that is the issue with homosexual rights.

Society has deemed that behaviour to be wrong. God has condemned it. Should we legalize it? Should we make discussion of this aberrant behavior off limits when we debate their "rights?" If the Bangor Daily News kept all the sensational crimes off its front page, I would applaud them. But for selectively suppressing this story for months because it would hurt their pet cause, I condemn them.

Going in Strength

The next verse I want to cover in Psalm 84 is verse 7, which says, "They go from strength to strength; every one of them appears before God in Zion." The question is, whose strength? The answer is found back in verse 5 where we are told that it is the strength of the Lord. Last time in this Psalm we were on a pilgrimage walking through a valley of weeping and desolation, only to find that God met us there and turned that valley into an oasis. Now we find that we can walk that valley in strength - but it is in the strength of the Lord. We don't have to do it on our own. And while our strength fails, His only increases.

Do you ever wonder if you are going to make it through the valley? I mean, living the Christian life is so tough. There are disappointments and difficulties aplenty. There is pain, sorrow, and hardship. Do you ever wonder if you can hang on and make it to heaven? This verse says there is no doubt about it. You will! You will, if your strength is in the Lord.

See how verse 7 ends? "Every one of them appears before God in Zion." This isn't talking about the Zion in Israel, but the heavenly Zion - the abode of God. This is the assurance, not that every human makes it heaven, but that every born again believer appears in heaven. This isn't talking some universalism drivel; that God will save everyone no matter how reprobate and blasphemous or whether they believe or not. This is perseverance of the Saints by the power of God. It is only believers that walk in the strength of the Lord.

"Well, I don't know, pastor," you might say. "I'm just not that strong." That's just the point. None of us are. We could never make it to heaven in our own strength. But we couldn't save ourselves either. We needed a savior. In the same way, we need the savior to keep us saved. Jesus can and Jesus will. We can trust that.

Do you remember what Jesus said in John 10:27-30?

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are one."

What does Jesus give us? Eternal life; not some temporary respite to see if we can hold on. And whose strength is it anyway that keeps us? It is the combined strength of both Jesus and God the Father. And just how strong do you think God's hand is?

They both have their hands on you, clutching you tightly. Now how could you ever get out of there? How can anything pluck you out from between their hands? Nothing can! So what are you worried about? It is the strength of the Lord that saved us, and it is the strength of the Lord that keep us. It is God's strength that gets us through the valleys of weeping and desolation, and God's strength that keeps on getting us through all the way to that heavenly Zion.

A Heart Set on Pilgrimage

Psalm 84:5 says, "Blessed is the man . . . whose heart is set on pilgrimage." Let's think about that word, pilgrimage, for a moment. The Old King James translates that same phrase as, "In whose heart are the ways of them." The word for ways, or pilgrimage, is usually translated as highways. Therefore, this makes it sounds like, "Happy is the fellow who has a highway in his heart."

I've been accused of having wanderlust a time or two because I like to travel and have moved around a lot following God's call in our lives. This verse seems to say, that's good! That is probably taking the verse of out context though. The real meaning is this: We need to be on a constant pilgrimage to draw closer and closer to God.

Think about Abraham. His life was one of constant pilgrimage. He wandered from Ur down to Canaan, then to Egypt and back again. He was always on a pilgrimage. Why? Hebrews 11:9-10 says:

"By faith he sojourned in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise,for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God."

Abraham wasn't content with an earthly city. He wanted to be where God was at. He longed for heaven. He was on a pilgrimage to God. There is never real contentment in our hearts until we get there. Shouldn't we all be on that pilgrimage?

Do you long to draw ever closer to God? Do you do whatever you can to improve your fellowship with Him? Is your heart set on pilgrimage? That pilgrimage is the path to blessing. And by that, I'm not talking about salvation. A lot of Christians who have trusted Christ for salvation live lives with little real blessing in them. But maybe this is why. They aren't on a pilgrimage. They aren't constantly on a journey to get to the heart of God. Are you?

But where will our pilgrimage take us? Psalm 84:6 shows us the pathway. It says: "As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a spring; the rain also covers it with pools." Where is the Valley of Baca? Nobody knows - not geographically. This may have simply been a symbolic term, because the Valley of Baca means the Valley of Weeping. That makes perfect sense. Baca means to weep. Think about it. Don't people usually find God most often during times of personal tragedy; during some crisis in their lives?

When things are going great, when we are healthy, when or bank account is full, we act like we don't need God. We tend to function in our own strength and live our lives on our own. But when tragedy strikes, and the tears start to flow, and we come to the end of our rope with our energy and resources all used up; that is when we turn to God. Isn't it true? When we are most vulnerable and most in need of comfort and love, we find God there waiting for us. He's not hard to find once our heart begins to look. As God says in Isaiah 45:19, "I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place on the earth. I did not say to the seed of Jacob, seek Me in vain."

God is findable, but there is a catch. Deuteronomy 4:29 asserts, "But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul." What is the catch? You have to make a good faith effort. This has to be a whole heart pilgrimage. God wants to be wanted.

The word, Baca, can also refer to a place of desolation - a waterless valley. Traveling through would be an ordeal. You would get hot, thirsty, and tired. But after camping out, the next morning you find that the rain had come and had filled up the waterholes with cool, refreshing water. Remember? Verse 6 says, "They make it a spring; the rain also covers it with pools." God turns our desolate places into oasis.

When we seek God traveling through our valleys of desolation, God meets us and brings blessings from barrenness. This is why 1st Peter 1:6-7 says what it does:

"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious that gold that perishes, though it be tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

Are you on a pilgrimage to find God? It is on this pilgrimage that you will find blessing.

A Heart Set on Pilgrimage

Psalm 84:5 says, "Blessed is the man . . . whose heart is set on pilgrimage." What on earth does that mean? Obviously, this refers to life under the Old Testament economy. So what was a pilgrimage for an Old Testament saint? In the old Testament, the pilgrimage had reference to those who were making the regular pilgrimages back to the temple as required by the Mosaic Law for feast days. All the people would flock back to Jerusalem for the Passover, for the Feast of Tabernacles, and others. And they were blessed. They were blessed because going back to the temple was where they met God. To go back on a pilgrimage was truly a blessing.

What about for us? We don't live under the Old Testament. How can this apply to us? Hopefully, you find going to church a blessing because you also meet God there. Church should never be a drag. It should never be a bore. Instead, going to church ought to be the highlight of your week. That's where you can fellowship with other believers. That's where you can join them in lifting your voice in praise of God. That's where you can hear how God has been at work in the lives of other believers. That's where you can sit under the teaching of the Word of God. That's where you can encourage and be encouraged by other believers. But mostly, church is a place to meet with and communicate with God. You can do that whether or not the preaching is dynamic or the music is to your taste. You can do that whether the church building is comfortable and ornate, or an old gym.

There was a time when the church was the center of of the social life in this country. In some places it's not even the center of religious life any more. What a shame, and what a loss for people. Because going to church should make you happy. Going to church should be a means by which God brings blessing into your life.

But ultimately, our pilgrimage is never to a building, but to God. there should be a constant restlessness within us, a constant longing to draw closer to God. Joining other believers in worship is a part of that. Do you have that longing in your heart? Until you do, you will never be truly blessed.