If The World Hates You …

Posted on October 4, 2006 by Danny Glover

By Jack Glover

Those who serve Christ must continue to live on this physical ball we call the world, even though living here we are instructed to not conform to worldly practices (Rom. 12:2). We are in the world but not of the world.

Jesus perceived that His disciples would not have the approval of the world and warned them to remember they would not be the first to experience being hated. He also had suffered the scorn of the world, although many of them claimed to serve God.

If the world hates you, [a]you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you (John 15:18-19).

Living in the world with all its temptations is difficult. We, like the earlier disciples, will experience various forms of ridicule when we do not become associates with worldly people and their sins.

Peter said, “In regard to these, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you. (I Pet. 4:4) John admonished, “Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you” (I John 3:13). So what reaction should we have when worldly hate comes our way? Should it be one of expectation or disappointment?

It seems plain that we should not expect the approval of all our neighbors, friends or work associates. Approval of family is even too great an expectation (Matt. 10:21). But when we face the disapproval (hate) knowing they hated Jesus first, it should bring a reaction of joy — “and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame” (I Pet. 3:16)

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Hypocrisy

Posted on August 11, 2006 by Danny Glover

By Jack Glover

Jesus used the word hypocrisy often. He used it in reference to the scribes and Pharisees as recorded in Matthew 23 for several of their doctrines and actions. They were deceptive to the point of not only leading others astray, but themselves also. Notice some of Jesus’ condemnations:

  • “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.”
  • “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.”
  • “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’ You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold? And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.’ You blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering? Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and by everything on it. And whoever swears by the temple, swears both by the temple and by Him who dwells within it. And whoever swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.”
  • “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!”
  • “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.”
  • “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”

Hypocrisy is a big danger in the church today. As in the days of Jesus it is easy to deceive ourselves. We profess to serve Christ yet ignore some of His most basic teachings.

Concerning our actions, Jesus said: “But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. Accordingly, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in the inner rooms will be proclaimed upon the housetops” (Luke 12:2-3).

Hypocrisies are listed among things that we are to put away while seeking the spiritual milk (I Pet. 2:1). The wisdom that is from above is without hypocrisy (James 3:17). Our love is to be without hypocrisy (Rom. 12:9). Hypocrites are said to have a beam in their eyes, which makes them unfair judges (Matt. 7:5). Those who allow their traditions to rule are said to be hypocrites (Mark 7:8-9).

The above passages and many others define hypocrisy, and the message to us is that hypocrites do not please God. They have a destiny that none of us want (Luke 24:51).

Hypocrisy in the church comes in many forms. We must be aware it exists, many times knowingly. We face false teachers who know they are false teachers, as well as brethren who cannot get along and speak evil of one another. Others have deceived themselves into believing what they want to believe on certain subjects.

Make your own applications, first to yourself (remember the beam) and then to others. Jesus described the scribes and Pharisees as being “like concealed tombs, and the people who walk over them are unaware of it” (Luke 11:44). The big problem with hypocrisy is its deception of both the hypocrite and those they teach. If we do not see the danger, then we will not deal with it, and deal with it we must.

The prophecy of Isaiah was true in his time, and unfortunately still holds true in many cases: “This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men” (Matt. 15:8-9).

Let us be aware!

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Civil Government And Evil

Posted on July 23, 2006 by Danny Glover

By Jack Glover

In speaking of the Christian’s obligation to government, we often quote Rom. 13:1. “Let every soul be in subjection to the higher powers: for there is no power but of God; and the powers that be are ordained of God.”

We are certainly right in stressing the responsibility one has to follow the laws under which he lives. Peter stated it this way: “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God. Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king” (I Pet. 2:13-17). We must obey government unless its laws attempt to override God’s laws (Acts 5:29).

But there is another side to this issue spoken of in the latter part of Rom. 13:4, which says, “But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil.” The Christian should not only obey government but should expect government to protect him from, and to punish, those who practice evil. God expects that of government, just as he expects you and me to obey laws.

It is in this that we see a failure in our current government, no matter the political party. Yes, it does protect us from some evils but not all. In fact, it encourages some evil by the laws our elected officials pass or by ignoring sinful actions.

Why does our government even bother to discuss stem-cell research, abortion, homosexuality, gambling, drunkenness, fornication, adultery, sorcery and many other sins under the guise of entertainment, tax sources, freedom of expression, lifestyle, women’s choice, etc.? Seldom do we hear a member of Congress or the president appeal to sin as a reason for opposing an action or proposed law when that is what God expects of them. In reality, they ignore the biblical description of sin and appeal to man’s reasoning, philosophy, the Constitution and other sources for failing to stand against things that are evil.

I recognize that some may think this teaching strange in our free society, but it is just as scriptural as Romans 13:1. It only requires reading a couple of more verses to see that government’s obligation to society is as great as society’s obligation to government.

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Godly Or Ungodly

Posted on July 23, 2006 by Danny Glover

By Jack Glover

How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers.

The wicked are not so, but they are like chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord [e]knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

Psalms 1 describes two classes of people. One is blessed; the other will perish. Those who will be blessed are so because their delight is in the law of the Lord. Those who will perish are ungodly and will not stand in the judgment.

Paul said when Jesus returns it will be in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God (ungodly) and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ (II Thess. 1:8). Other scriptures make like statements.

The world is filled with ungodly people who perform ungodly acts. It has been that way from the beginning. Enoch prophesied, “Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” (Jude 1:14-15).

Each person has the choice to be godly or ungodly, but he cannot be some of each. We live in a nation that boasts hundreds of different forms of religion. All claim to be godly. In light of the scriptures, is that even close to being a possibility? It is unreasonable to think all can be godly when each one teaches a different gospel. Their doctrines are fraught with teachings of man that came from various sources.

Jesus told the Pharisees, “You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men'” (Matt. 15:7-9). And to those who listened to the sermon on the mount, he said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter” (Matt. 7:21).

Saying and doing are two different things. God requires obedience, not lip service. As the psalm says, the godly “delight in the law of the Lord,” not doctrines of men.

The lack of respect for God and His word has led our nation (and many others) toward ruin. We are a people who do not delight in His word. Although we say we are godly, many of our actions say differently. We think we can toss God out and still call on Him in times of difficulty, trouble or disaster. Oh, how we deceive ourselves!

Remember, the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. Peter said, “For the time is come for judgment to begin at the house of God: and if it begin first at us, what shall be the end of them that obey not the gospel of God? And if the righteous is scarcely saved, where shall the ungodly and sinner appear?” (I Pet. 4:17-18)

The reward is to the godly.

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Admonitions And Incentives

Posted on June 24, 2006 by Danny Glover

By Jack Glover

Why do we need to obey commandments from God? Most importantly, because God, as creator of heaven and earth, has the right to require certain things of His creation. In spite of our attitude toward God, no man has the right to question His authority over His creation (Rom. 9:20-21).

But even though He has the right to issue commands, and punish those who disobey them, God still provides incentives for obedience. The following list provides some of them.

  • “So that you may have success wherever you go” (Josh. 1:8): After Moses’ death, God commanded Joshua, “Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel” (1:2). He further said in verse 8, “This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.” Joshua was responsible for leading Israel in the conquest of Canaan, but success was an incentive for obedience. Would he have been successful if he had not followed the law? We all want to be successful in life. If your conquests seem to be failing, you may need to check your obedience to God’s law, the New Testament. False service brings no reward (Matt. 7:21).
  • The goodness of God: The Jews were God’s chosen people and felt above the Gentiles because of that knowledge. They routinely judged the Gentiles as being sinners when they were guilty of the same sins. God had shown his mercy and goodness many times to Israel, yet they never seemed to learn the lesson “that the kindness of God leads you to repentance”? (Rom. 2:4) God’s continual goodness, forbearance and longsuffering was an incentive for them to obey His commands, but their pride ruled and all they could see were the faults of the other nations, not their own. Four times in Psalms 107, it is said: “Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness, and for His wonders to the sons of men!” The goodness of God should be an incentive for our nation (people) to obey Him, for no one has been blessed more than we have, yet like Israel we seem to think this goodness will continue in spite of our resistance to His commands. Paul’s answer to Israel’s attitude was this: “But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who will render to each person according to his deeds” (Rom. 2:5-6). I suspect if we do not recognize his goodness and repent of our evil the same fate will await us.
  • “So that it may be well with you and that you may live long on the earth” (Eph. 6:3): God has always demanded that children honor their parents. A similar statement to the quote above can be found in Deut. 5:16. Obviously God places a great importance on family. The Bible contains instructions for all members of the family, specifying individual obligations for each member. Even the church is often likened to a family, being used as an illustration for certain teachings. Yes, we should naturally love our parents, but an incentive also is supplied to encourage us. That incentive is being well and living long on the earth. We know that a happy family life, where children respect and honor their parents and where other commandments concerning family are obeyed, has its rewards. Fighting families bring no happiness. “A wise son accepts his father’s discipline, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke,” and “a wise son makes a father glad, but a foolish man despises his mother” (Prov. 13:1, 15:20).

God offers us rewards for our obedience. We do not deserve them, nor have we earned anything. We have many incentives to encourage obedience, but if we ignore them and go our own way, punishment will certainly follow.

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Name The Church

Posted on June 11, 2006 by Danny Glover

By Jack Glover

Christ’s church has a name. I drove past a church building this morning that had no name. Oh, it had some sort of directional name, like the Northside Church or something of that fashion, but that doesn’t tell me anything about who it follows or what it teaches.

Christ said “I will build my church” (Matt. 16:18). That tells me who the church belongs to and what doctrine it teaches, unless someone is falsely applying the name. The Bible always identifies the church by name. Even when we read a passage of scripture where it is termed “the church,” early Christians knew what group of people was being referred to and what their doctrine was.

Today the tendency is to stand for nothing that is offensive to anyone and adjust your doctrine to fit the situation. Thus the name of Christ must be removed from the sign at the meeting place. It seems we would not want anyone to be offended by associating ourselves with the offensive words of our Lord (Matt.15:1-14).

Christians stand with their Master and love doing it. They don’t hide the fact that they love and believe in Him. (John 14:15)

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The Hip-Hop Church

Posted on June 3, 2006 by Danny Glover

By Jack Glover

Many efforts have been made to make the church fit what man wants instead of man complying with what God wants. At present I’m in Memphis, Tenn., and on yesterday’s local news much was being said about the hip-hop church.

I gather (from local news comment) that some hip-hop churches exist in Memphis, but the news was about a Catholic priest in New York and the hip-hop church he has started. The report included the reading of some of Psalm 23 as rewritten in hip-hop language, and showed some of their hip-hop dancing and singing as worship.

Do you suppose God was pleased?

Now before you go all bananas on me, notice a few things from the scriptures. God, not man, determines how He is to be worshiped (John 4:24), He has said what to include in worship to himand how to do it. The worship is to: 1) be orderly (I Cor.14:4); 2) include singing (without instruments), teaching, prayer, the Lord’s Supper and contributions (on the first day of the week); and 3) be edifying, according to truth.

Read I Corinthians 14, and you will see that even those who spoke in tongues (a spiritual gift at the time) had to follow God’s regulations. Worship always has been bound by His scriptures, and when man added something new or changed it, the worship was never acceptable to God.

Remember worship is to please God, not man.

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What Is Truth?

Posted on May 30, 2006 by Danny Glover

By Jack Glover

What is truth? It seems that is a good question to ask because trust does not abound in our society.

Our government is full of men who have made us question the validity of what they say. We are forced to question our leaders, from the local level to federal level. Corporations are not trusted to give accurate information concerning their products or accounting. Distrust exists among families — between wives and husbands, and between children and parents. The divorce rate continues to increase; drugs and alcohol replace love of family; and we try to solve all of our problems with pills.

Among all this there remains one trustworthy standard. When Jesus was asked “What is truth?”, the answer rang clear from His lips: “Thy word is truth” (John 17:17).

In spite of the fact that many times it is taught falsely, or misinterpreted, the fact remains that the truth still exists. It is there for all to find who sincerely want it. We remain firmly convinced that God’s truth is present for all to find and apply in their actions or decisions in this life.

When it looks as if there is no one to trust, let God show you the way through His word.

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Do You Justify Sin?

Posted on May 1, 2006 by Danny Glover

By Jack Glover

Jesus made the following accusation against the Pharisees: “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15).

We live in a time when sin is justified. We expect this from the world, but our goal for the church is higher. Christians do not partake of sin (I John 5:18), nor do they seek ways to justify it in others. We should be willing to suffer for good rather than justify evil. Christians are to “test all things; hold fast what is good” (I Thess. 5:21).

It appears that we are rapidly approaching the justification of evil by Christians. We are not speaking of those who falsely claim to be servants of God and are not, like the Pharisees, but members of His church. Some are beginning to justify sin under the guise of doing good?

Note this excerpt from a Soulforce press release from March 27 about an “equality ride”:

ABILENE, Texas — Equality Riders completed a full day of presentations, discussions and worship with students at Abilene Christian University today, the first school to allow the riders full access to campus. The school, affiliated with the Church of Christ, has about 4,000 undergraduate and 800 graduate students studying in a range of liberal arts and professional programs.

Soulforce describes the ride like this: “The Soulforce Equality Ride is a journey to change the heart and mind of America on the issue of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality. Following in the footsteps of the Freedom Rides of the 1960s, the Equality Ride uses principles of non-violence to confront military and religious colleges and universities with policies banning enrollment of LGBT students.

The Equality Riders reflect on the lessons of history, which have shown past religion-based discrimination against women, people of color and religious minorities to be an unacceptable abuse of the sanctity of religion. At each of the 19 schools on the 51-day bus tour, the young adult ambassadors of the Equality Ride bring this simple message to students, faculty and administrators: Learn from history; end religion-based discrimination.

The goal of ride is easy enough to understand. It “is a journey to change the heart and mind of America on the issue of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality.” In other words, they want the equal right to attend and promote their way of life in all schools (religious, military, etc.). Anyone who thinks they will not promote their sexual ways simply have their heads in the sand.

Their goal is to openly advocate things that are condemned as sin in the scriptures. During a recent Easter egg roll at the White House, same-sex parents brought their children and wore leas to show others they were same-sex parents. They could have come and enjoyed the festivities with no one ever knowing their sexuality, but that was not good enough for them. They had to use this event not just for their children but also to advocate that a sinful lifestyle is acceptable.

Two ACU officials issued statements about why the school allowed this group on campus:

  • Wayne Barnard, associate provost for student development and dean of campus life: “This is an opportunity to proclaim the message of Christ in love. As followers of Christ, we love all people, even those with whom we might disagree. We should always be prepared to give a reason for our faith, and our students need to witness Christ-followers engaging other views with calm assurance of God’s truth. Jesus talked to people with whom he did not agree, and as His ambassadors, we can do the same.”
  • ACU president Royce Money: “After careful consideration and discussions about who we are as a university, we decided the best way to affirm our core Christian values would be to treat Soulforce as Christ would — to have peaceful, patient dialogue about these issues while respectfully and clearly articulating why we believe as we do.”

Soulforce members said they knew ACU continued to affirm the belief throughout the day that God intended sexual relations as an expression of love between a married man and woman. They also agreed that ACU offered the love of Christ, despite theological and academic disagreements.

We agree that Jesus talked with sinners, at times even ate with them. It is my understanding that is why He came to earth (Matt. 9:10-13, I Tim. 1:15). They also killed Him (Matt. 26:45), and God doesn’t hear them (John 9:31). There is a way to teach or deal with sinners like Jesus did — Matthew 23 is a good example — but the Bible doesn’t seem to describe it as the ACU event was described.

In our effort to show charity, or be open-minded with groups that advocate sinful lifestyles, we must be careful that we do not allow the attitudes of society to influence our decisions. The following scripture makes a good point:

But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion, wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions.

But we know that the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully, realizing the fact that law is not made for a righteous person, but for those who are lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers and immoral men and homosexuals and kidnappers and liars and perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound teaching, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, with which I have been entrusted. (I Tim. 1:5-11)

We don’t have to fellowship sin in order to teach the sinner.

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‘The Book Of Daniel’

Posted on January 10, 2006 by Danny Glover

By Jack Glover

UPDATE, Jan. 31: It’s gone! NBC has announced that after three episodes, “The Book of Daniel has been cancelled. The main reason seems to be the rejection of the show by sponsors, as well as some NBC affiliates refusing to air it. Many letters of protest were received. When the networks, or others, who are trying to make the country another Corinth get hit in the pocketbook, it can make a difference.

Have you seen “The Book of Daniel”? Please notice that I asked if you had seen, not read, “The Book of Daniel.” I am speaking of the television show that began airing on NBC at 9 p.m., Jan. 6.

I will not go into all the details of the series except to say it seems to justify everything evil and ridicule things that are good. That might not be a surprise for a TV show, but it is another sign of the extent to which networks are going in the name of entertainment.

I realize that things have come to the place that almost all TV shows (and movies) have some things in them that we would rather not see, or hear, because that is what the world in general wants to see and hear. The networks, and movie studios, know this and continue to increase their sinful topics. Our nation that a few years ago would not allow any of this on TV, and little in movies, now justifies such under the guise of free speech.

How does the Christian deal with this avalanche of adultery, filthy speech, homosexuality and such like? Here is some Biblical advice:

  • Learn to run. “Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body” (I Cor. 6:18).
  • Recognize your weakness. “Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart” (II Tim. 2:22).
  • Realize that some things will keep you out of heaven. 1) “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Gal. 5:19-21); and 2) “Or 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 effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God” (I Cor. 6:9-10).
  • Don’t laugh at sin. “And although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them” (Rom. 1:32).
  • Fight back against evil in our society. “Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses” (I Tim. 6:12).
  • Be an example of righteousness. “Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe” (I Tim. 4:12).
  • Know that God will win the battle between good and evil. “But if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them; or else you may even be found fighting against God” (Acts 5:39).

This list is not exhaustive. Sin has been with man from the beginning, but that does not make it acceptable or funny. Christians must not encourage it by their acceptance of it. Sin must never become our entertainment.

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