Declared Righteous

“And he brought him outside and said, ‘Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.’ Then he said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:5-6)

The Lord God Almighty promised Abram that a child of his own flesh would be his heir. Through that heir, Abram would have numerous descendants, as numerous as the stars in the sky. Abram believed in spite of the circumstances, in spite his current situation, in spite of what he saw with his eyes. He believed God would fulfill his promise even though it appeared to be impossible since Sarai was barren and well past her child bearing age. Abram trusted God would fulfill the promise. That faith is what God acknowledged and rewarded by declaring Abram righteous, that is, totally acceptable and pleasing in His sight. This declaration was based solely on God’s love and mercy, and had nothing to do with Abram’s actions to date or the actions which were to follow.

Today, the word faith is primarily used in a generic sense to indicate systems of religious belief that prescribe adherence to specific detailed sets of ideas, tenets, values, rites, and commands. Sometimes it is also used to express confidence in one’s own abilities, or in those of another person or system, or in some form of higher power. These generic references to faith do not express the essence of Biblical faith. Biblical faith is trust in God: that He is and that He always keeps His word and His promises. This faith is imparted by God Himself and enables us to persevere in the midst of circumstances that seem to belie or negate God’s promises, presence and power. His imparted faith determines and orders the shape of our lives.

As with Abram, God still declares men righteous based on their faith. He does this based upon His will not on anything a person has done or will do and despite whatever sins he or she has committed, will commit, or is struggling with. Faith believes in God’s forgiveness of sin based solely on the righteousness of Christ and His death on the cross. What God does by declaring us righteous by faith is in total contrast to the ways of our world, our cultures or our social structures. These reward people praise, honor, fame, and rewards for their achievements, fame, or physical appearance, but despise and denigrate those which it describes as losers, those who do not measure up to worldly values. But the Lord chooses the meek and lowly, the despised, the losers to be members of His heavenly Kingdom. How glorious is this great love of God! https://trinityhicksville.org

Look at the Stars

Right Use of Resources.

“For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” (Luke 16:15)
Jesus taught a parable about an unjust and dishonest manager or steward. When faced with dismissal, the man took steps to insure his future by making friends with the debtors who owed his master in an attempt to make friends and secure a new position. He did this by reducing the amounts that the debtors owed. This was dishonest because he was altering the account books and defrauding his master of his property, money and the interest due him on the resources he loaned or sold. Jesus does not commend him for his dishonesty but for his shrewdness in insuring future security. If the wicked can do this with their resources, money, the righteous can do better by using their God-given resources to build up the Kingdom of heaven.

Jesus ended the parable with a sharp rebuke to the Pharisees, one which ought to speak to our hearts. All that men in our world idolize, money, fame, power, hedonistic pleasure is not just useless in the Kingdom of God, but downright offensive to Him. When we value these things to the point where we seek to use them to exalt ourselves and enhance our lifestyle, we have strayed from God into idolatry. We think that the things we value and the things they can get serve us. Yet they truly become gods we serve.

Despite what we think or feel or what the world would have us believe, all the resources, money and property we have belong to God, not us. He expects us to manage them wisely for His purposes. We are not to squander or waste them but we are to use them to advance the His Kingdom. We are to give freely expecting nothing in return. In addition we are to forgive freely, to extend mercy, grace and compassion to all those in need. Often this is difficult and costly but our desire should be to lead the lost, the downtrodden, and the broken-hearted to faith in Jesus.

Trinity Lutheran Hicksville

Disciple is a Humble Servant.

“You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:42b-45)
In the quarrel the disciples have over greatness we see one of the major ways in which people fail to serve God wholeheartedly: the desire for and pursuit of fame, riches and wealth. Many people people think that their money will buy happiness, security, and even eternal salvation. Some confuse riches with being blessed and accepted by God. Others fail to serve God by thinking they can earn their way into heaven by doing good deeds, performing religious rituals, or appearing pious and holy. Such people are trusting in their own abilities and not God.
Many Christians act in a similar manner. Many only serve Jesus outwardly largely because of what they think they can get: glory, prestige, fame, power, even a sense of community and self worth. Jesus rightly rebuked His disciples for such hypocrisy and selfishness. As He did so, He set down the one basic principle which must characterize every true disciple, the one which summarizes and encapsulates His ministry: humble servanthood not selfishness. A true disciple forsakes his own way to serve others and thereby serve God. This is imitation of Jesus Himself who surrendered the glory of heaven for a time to become just like us, a human being. And what is more, He came to take on our sins and suffer our punishment. If we wish to follow Him we too must lay down our lives for others, our enemies as well as our friends and loved ones.
Trinity Lutheran Hicksville

Blogging Through The Psalms: Looking at the wrong things.

Psalm 73

Here is a Psalm by a man who had almost gone astray and deserted the Lord. He realized that he took his eyes off the Lord and what He desired. Instead he compared his life to the wicked. The wicked seemed to prosper for they had everything they needed: riches, power, health and fame while he lacked such things. It seemed as if his loyal service to God counted for nothing. All he had was heartache and suffering as he struggled just to survive. But he realized the error of such faulty thinking when he went into worship the Lord. Then he realized that he was in right relationship to God. The wicked had their reward now but it was only temporary as were the woes of the righteous. In eternity the wicked would suffer while the righteous would receive glory and blessings.

Too often we Americans, including many Christians look at the rest of the world and desire what the rich and famous have. They have power, wealth, fame, health and live lives of luxury and self-indulgence. We Christians think we should enjoy what they have. The reality is that such a path usually leads us into many troubles: psychological, spiritual, physical and financial.

Consequently, the Christian is called not to look at the world, at the prosperity of the wicked or desire them. We are called to look at God for in Him we find all that we need to survive. The rich and the worldly may scoff at God and at the righteous, but they do so to their peril. Self-indulgence is its own reward and its own punishment as well. In the world to come, the wicked will suffer eternal separation from the God of all comfort and love. We Christians are not meant to live a life of ease and comfort in this world. We are not supposed to enjoy rich lives like the wealthy and the celebrities. Rather the blessings we receive come as we put our trust in God and work to advance His Kingdom.