CREATION, EVOLUTION, OR INSTRUCTION?

A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully taught will be like his teacher.  Luke 6:40, R.S.V.

"Do you believe in creation or in evolution?"  As he asked the question, I saw a look in his eye that told me there was a catch in it somewhere.  But being a Bible-believing Christian, I of course voted for the divine sudden act rather than for the long, slow process of gradual change.

With an "I've got you now" tone in his voice, he asked, "When it comes to obtaining a Christlike character, is it a long, drawn-out process, or is it a sudden, divine act?  Is it creation, or evolution?"  It sounded good.  Not wanting to be thought of as an evolutionist or be seen as faulting God's miracle-working power, I almost fell for it.

But a clear-thinking friend commented, "Instant creation is fine for trees and whales; but our God doesn't instantly create mature characters.  Neither Jesus nor Adam had that benefit.  Christlikeness of character comes from hearing His word and making choices accordingly."

Jesus spoke clearly to the issue of how one becomes like the Teacher: "Everyone when he is fully taught will be like his teacher."  Jesus made us with minds capable of understanding--through the Holy Spirit's enlightenment--the principles of His kingdom.  These same minds then can make choices to act in harmony with those principles.  And these are the building blocks of character.  Character is revealed through the habitual acts that are in harmony with one's internal value system.

I have known several people who have tried to hold to the theory that character is created instantly mature.  They believe that their position is a testimony to the miracle-working power of God, and to anticipate a slower process is to make allowance for sin.  But they are boxed into that all-or-nothing position that says that, should they detect immaturity within themselves, they must doubt that God has indeed done His miracle in their lives.  And they are crushed with the haunting fear that perhaps they are not even converted!

Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life."  His power to change us is rooted, not in enthusiasm, mystical ritual, or incomprehensible acts, but in truth.  The longings of the heart after Christlikeness find their highest expression, then, when we say, "Jesus, teach me!  Show me Your will, and I will gladly respond."

July 10    THROW AWAY PEOPLE

Even if a man should be detected in some sin, my brothers, the spiritual ones among you should quietly set him back on the right path, not with any feeling of superiority but being yourselves on guard against temptation.  Gal. 6:1, Phillips.

You reach for the paper cup in a dispenser and pull it down.  You fill the cup and drink from it.  When it is empty, it seems cheap and worthless.  So you simply throw it away.  Keeping it for later use would be too much bother.  Furthermore, there are plenty more where this one came from.

You have a number of employees under your supervision.  Jobs are scarce, with a dozen applicants for every opening.  One of your employees, overwhelmed with personal problems, becomes ineffective on the job.  To deal with his problems would demand too much of your time, and the names of a dozen apparently problem-free applicants are on file in the personnel office.  So you fire him.

You discover that a church member has succumbed to some dark sin that is embarrassing to the congregation.  You begin to weigh the personal demands--in time and energy--involved in helping him to set his life in order once again.  Yours is a large congregation, and he isn't a particularly prominent member.  What is more, you have Church Manual grounds to disfellowship him.  What will you do?


How very easy it is to become indignant with troublesome people and to use their failings as an excuse to pass them by in favor of more "promising" people.  It is so time-consuming, so taxing of our interpersonal skills, to confront in a redemptive manner the brooding and confused victims of this sin-blasted planet.

Jesus never looked upon anyone as a throwaway person.  Even the most unpromising could not hide their true potential from the eyes of One who knew how powerfully His love could affect them.  He never cast them aside to go in search of more promising prospects.

We represent our Father best when we cherish each person we meet as of great worth.

HAVING THE RIGHT PERSPECTIVE

And having thee, I desire nothing else on earth.  Ps. 73:25, N.E.B.

"It's just not fair!  They break all the rules and get all the privileges!"  Roger's eyes burned with a mixture of anger and amazement.  At 15 he felt things should be cut and dried: the guys in the dorm who messed around should not be having it so good.  Yet they were the very ones who seemed able to appropriate every loophole to their advantage.  "What good does it do to try to play fair?"  The muscles in his cheeks were tense.

Probably every person on earth has, at some time or another, had such sentiments.   David certainly did.  He lamented, "My feet had almost slipped, my foothold had all but given away, because the boasts of sinners roused my envy when I saw how they prosper" (Ps. 73:2, 3, N.E.B.).

He continued, "And so my people follow their lead and find nothing to blame in them, even though they say, 'What does God know?  The Most High neither knows nor cares.'  So wicked men talk, yet still they prosper, and rouges amass great wealth."  David then indulges in a bit of self-pity: "So it was all in vain that I kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence.  For all day long I suffer torment and am punished every morning" (verses 10-14, N.E.B.).

However, David knew God too well to remain in such a state of agitation.  Catching himself before going any further with his feelings, he admits, "Yet had I let myself talk on in this fashion, I should have betrayed the family of God.  So I set myself to think this out but I found it too hard for me, until I went into God's sacred courts; there I saw clearly what their end would be....I am always with thee, thou holdest my right hand; thou dost guide me by thy counsel and afterwards wilt receive me with glory....They who are far from thee are lost" (verses 15-27), N.E.B.).

Only as we are totally satisfied in our relationship with the Father can we accept that God's continued blessing of the wicked robs us of nothing!  His choice to love people to wholeness instead of "giving them what they have coming"--even when they take advantage of this posture--can never diminish the fact that "God is [our] possession for ever" (verse 26, N.E.B.).

Having Him, we shall desire nothing else on earth.

DRESS FOR SUCCESS

Then put on the garments that suit God's chosen people, his own, his beloved: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience.  Col. 3:12, N.E.B.

Everything we choose to wear is a statement of who we see ourselves to be.  If we wear the latest designs from Gentleman's Quarterly, or Sak's Fifth Avenue catalog, we are saying that we see ourselves to be current, aware, artistic, and not a little affluent.  If we choose to wear well-worn khaki or denims, and very "familiar" shoes, we are projecting an image of casualness, a laid-back disregard for the highbrow expectations of society, and a penchant for personal comfort.

Employers have learned to gauge their prospective employees by seeing how they dress.  When considering subordinates for promotions, executives note, among other things, how they dress.  It is no wonder that the book Dress for Success is selling in the millions of copies.

A young man of a royal line--destined to sit on a monarch's throne--will have a dignity, a bearing of self-confidence and poise, that will be evident to others.  This will be revealed to a large degree by the clothes he will choose to wear.  They will express who he knows himself to be!

Paul says that if we will recognize who we really are--chosen, claimed, and loved by the King of the universe--we will "dress" accordingly.  That Spirit-interpreted understanding will impart to us a dignity, a self-image, that will be expressed naturally by those character qualities with which we clothe ourselves.

Each one of the qualities that Paul mentions in today's verse is an expression of a person dealing from a position of strength.  He whose own needs for love have been met is set free to be compassionate to the needs of others.  A secure person can come out of himself enough to let kindness flow to others.  Humility (or teachableness) will mark the life of one who knows he already belongs to God.  Beholding our gentle Father and seeing how powerful He has been in our lives through His gentleness will give us the courage to be gentle with others.  And one who has benefited from God's patience will be quick to grant others time and space to grow.

"Dressing" with these character qualities, as Christians, is more than a self-chosen statement about our tastes and preferences.  It is an accurate  statement to the world of who our Father is and how wonderfully He adorns the lives of His people.

MORE THAN LEGAL REINSTATEMENT

I will restore to you the years which the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter.  Joel 2:25, R.S.V.

"I'll make it up to you!"  Mother consoled her little daughter after telling her that a proposed trip to the ocean had been canceled.  "We'll go another time."

Still distressed, the child wiped at her tears, hiccuping slightly as she spoke, "Will all the pretty shells still be there?"  Assured once again by her mother, she toddled off to her sandbox, muttering under her breath, "Mommy and I will build castles.  And we'll feed the sea gulls..."

Life in this world can be shattering. We may sustain losses that are far worse than postponed trips to the ocean, losses that are as forever gone as yesterday.  Who can replace the loss of a son or daughter who died "out of the Lord"?  Having grown up in a home filled with drunkenness and strife, who can go back and experience a happy childhood?

I believe that the wicked indulgences so prevalent today are stark evidence that people are trying to "make it up" to themselves for all the losses, great and small, sustained in their lives.  The call to chaste living and to right concepts of Biblical doctrine draws relatively few from the masses.  Why?  Because the inherent message of self-denial threatens to further increase their sense of loss.  Often those who do come to embrace Christianity accept forgiveness for their past sins in exchange for the hope of eternal life.  Surely, that would "make it up" to them!

But is legal reinstatement into the community of heaven enough?  Let's look again at the situation of the little girl mentioned above.  Would she have been happy at the beach without her mother there to enjoy and participate in her activities--even if many other children were present?  Was not the companionship with her mother what she hungered for more than mere permission to go to the ocean?

Friends, God has more to offer us than legal reinstatement into heaven.  His plan is to "restore to [us] the years which the swarming locust has eaten"--and He knows our going to heaven is not enough in itself to accomplish this.  We need Him!  His companionship alone can heal our brokenness and relive our sense of loss.

God's message to the world is that He has given us Himself!  And having Him, we shall desire nothing else on earth (Ps. 73:25, N.E.B.).

IT'S HOW YOU PLAY THE GAME

An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.  2 Tim. 2:5, R.S.V.

If I had been writing today's verse, I would have written what seems so obvious: "An athlete is not crowned unless he wins.  He who gets to the finish line ahead of the others wins the prize.  It doesn't matter who gets hurt or snubbed along the way.  Winning is itself the goal."

In Paul's mind, playing the game by the rules is more important than simply winning the game.  For it is the day-to-day, practical matters of life that must be brought within the boundaries of God's will.  This is what will, in the end, prepare one to wear the crown.

As with the athlete, the Christian never forgets the finish line.  But it is a crude athlete who regards his personal victory as more important than the humanity of his fellow-runners.  Were he to shove or trip other runners to gain an advantage over them, he would be disqualified.

"Winning," in our usual context of rivalry and competition, implies that someone else must lose.  It is an ego-oriented activity in which the self-worth of many is crushed so that a few can supposedly think better of themselves.  As such, it damages the very fabric of human respect that is so vital to the healing of persons.

Our Father does not use enticements of selfish rewards to get us to live the Christian life, for living "according to rules" is itself the reward.  We do not embrace those inner qualities of tenderness, compassion, and sensitivity in order to win a crown.  They are themselves the crown, the Christ-life within.  And heaven is but the marvelous opportunity to enjoy this whole-life forever.

An old bromide says, "It's not whether you win or lose, but how you play the game."  In the unstudied moments of life we reveal who we really are.  We "play the game" of life by the game game rules--the values and attitudes of the soul--that we have internalized through our fellowship with our Lord.  If it is natural for us, in the race-pace of our daily course, to have our hearts tuned to the unspoken hurts of those running with us (and especially those lagging behind us), then we shall receive crowns with our names on them at the finish line.

WHAT MAKES OUR JOY FULL?

These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.  John 15:11, R.S.V.

Jesus was in the upper room with His eleven remaining disciples.  He knew that in a few short hours their lives would be turned upside down.  And so He sought to comfort them ahead of time and teach them precious truths that they would consequently take to the whole world.

He began by telling them that He was to be taken from them but that His departure signaled preparation for their being with Him forever afterward.  Meanwhile He would send the Comforter to help them remember all that He had said to them.  He told them that He was going to the Father, that it was to their advantage that He go.  He understood that because of His telling them these things, sorrow had filled their hearts.  How much more He wanted to explain to them, but they could not bear it right then.  "So you have sorrow now," He said tenderly, "but I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you" (John 16:22, R.S.V.).

Then He gave one of the most wonderful promises ever recorded in Scripture: "Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask anything of the Father, he will give it to you in my name....Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full" (verses 23, 24, R.S.V.).


As always, Jesus pointed His friends to the Father.  "He who has seen me has seen the Father" (chap. 14:9, R.S.V.).  "All that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you" (chap. 15:15, R.S.V.).  The place He was going to prepare is in the Father's house.  Even the promised Comforter "proceeds from the Father," He reminded them (verse 26, R.S.V.).  And the joy that was His--that total oneness with the Father (expressed in His prayer for them)--was to be theirs for the asking!  "The Father himself loves you," He emphasized (chap. 16:27, R.S.V.).

Jesus knows that there is only one way for us to have total joy.  It is not in living where there is no pain or suffering.  It is not in having a mansion or walking on streets of gold.  It isn't even in living eternally.  It is in being restored fully to fellowship with our Father in heaven, for "in [His] presence is the fullness of joy" (Ps. 16: 11, N.E.B.).

LEGALISTS ARE REBELS

I am the Lord, and I do not change.  And so you...are not yet completely lost.  Mal. 3:6, T.E.V.

Our usual picture of the religious legalist is of one with permanent worry marks on his brow, collecting endless lists of good things to do and bad things to avoid doing.  His religious vocabulary is heavily spiced with words such as "duty," "obedience," and "perfection."  And he dreads nothing more than that he might do something that would incur the disfavor of a hypersensitive God.  To speak of him as a rebel against God would be, in his eyes, grounds for a libel suit.

But consider again the root motivation of the legalist.  His most intense desire is that his diligent efforts at goodness might persuade God to change toward him and to grant favors of grace or kindness He might otherwise not offer.  The legalist assumes that he knows exactly what he most needs and wants.  Indeed, he knows better than God does, and were he not coaxing those gifts from God, God would not likely grant them.

As such, the legalist is saying that he is better off in his own hands than is the hands of God.  He is convinced that he can take better care of himself than God can, were he given the controlling vote.  His life is a protest that the gifts of forgiveness and acceptance are held in the hands of a niggardly God who is not inclined to part with them except when coaxed or obligated.  The legalist, then, believes himself to be higher, wiser, and more loving than God.  And surely that is the ultimate rebellion!

Any time I approach God with a desire to change His attitudes or actions toward me, I am reverting to the posture of a legalist.  When God said, "I am the Lord, and I do not change," He was not making a petulant remark or announcing a closed mind.  Our Father does not change toward us, because there is nothing in His perfectly loving and wise attitude toward us that needs changing.

God said, "I am the Lord, and I do not change.  And so you...are not yet completely lost."  We dwell in grace, every one of us.  Though each of us has sinned, we have each been granted life--and a lifesaving opportunity to change our minds.  We have not died, not because we have begged for our lives but because our unchanging God is gracious by nature.

HOPE FOR HOPELESSNESS

Now we find that the Law keeps slipping into the picture to point the vast extent of sin.  Yet, though sin is shown to be wide and deep, thank God his grace is wider and deeper still!  Rom. 5:20, Phillips.

Two couples shared a duplex in suburbia.  On one side lived Mary and her husband, Steve, who was in the Navy.  Their relationship flourished in spite of extended times of separation when Steve was away at sea.  Rhonda and Joe were quite another matter.  Though rarely apart for more than a day at a time, the distance between them seemed wider than the Atlantic and Pacific oceans combined.

Much of the tension in the Christian experience is a result of an awful sense of distance between heaven and earth.  God is just too far away!  If only we could actually hear Him.  Or catch a glimpse of Him as did Moses.  Or if not of God himself, at least of an angel!

Such longing can wreak havoc in our sense of peace if we allow the fact of our physical separation from God to override the counterbalancing reality of our union with Him.  God's friendship with us is far greater than our physical separation from Him!  We read: "Now we find that the Law keeps slipping into the picture to point the vast extent of sin.  Yet, though sin is shown to be wide and deep, thank God his grace is wider and deeper still!"  Let's stop and think about what this text is saying.

We are born into this world separated from God both in body and in spirit.  In order for us to recognize how serious is this condition, God gave us His law.  It continually shows us the vast extent of our estrangement from Him--mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.  However, there is hope for our otherwise hopeless condition!  God's love, which we did not ask for and do not deserve, is so wide and deep that it far outreaches any distance between us.  To be reunited with Him physically while still alienated spiritually is not the key to eternal life.  The physical distance is an expression of God's love to us.  Only when the spiritual relationship has been restored will we feel totally comfortable in His presence!

The gulf of separation between God and me is actually only as wide as my unbelieving heart.  How glad I am that He has bridged this distance with His matchless love!

A STUNNING GIFT

For what is mortal must be changed into what is immortal' what will die must be changed into what cannot die.  1 Cor. 15:53, T.E.V.

You are the manager of Tiffany's Jewelry Store, having in your charge the most lavish inventory of gems and jewelry in the country.  And you are interviewing people for the position of head clerk.

One applicant seems to have extensive knowledge of premium jewelry and evident confidence in handling it.  Naturally, you ask if he has a criminal record.  Sheepishly, he nods the affirmative.  "I've served fifteen years in prison," he admits.  "For jewelry theft."  Would you hire him and hand him the keys to the store?  Or would you suddenly worry about that priceless inventory?

Paul tells us that God alone has immortality (1 Tim. 6:16).  And yet in today's text he says that God is putting the finishing touches on a plan to begin distributing that Godlike quality to human beings!  And what a stunning gift!

Stunning, not only because of the mind-jolting implications of living forever, but also because of the ones to whom God will give it: Sinners!  Some would view it as similar to giving the keys to Tiffany's to a convicted jewelry thief, for the people to whom God will entrust eternal life will not be placed in solitary confinement.  They will be free to travel the universe, openly sharing their values and convictions, acting out the longings of their hearts.

Why, then, will God give eternal life to sinners?  Some see it as primarily an expression of love--that God is too generous to withhold such a treasure from those He loves.  But loving can be indulgent if it grants treasures to those unable to handle them.  For that matter, God loves the wicked, who will not receive eternal life, just as much as He loves those who will.

The gift of eternal life is profoundly an expression of trust.  It is God's announcement that He trusts His own abilities to restore His people to complete loyalty.  He has confidence that His methods surely will work.  Therefore, when He gives out the gift of eternal life, He is announcing that He trusts His people to be fully restored.  Former jewelry thieves, murderers, liars, and the rest--He will trust us all!

If our God will have ample reason to trust "sinners" with eternal life, shouldn't we sinners, even now, have ample reason fully to trust our God?  For that is eternal life.