Praying in Faith Part 2

I believe that one hindrance to faith-filled prayer is poor theology. In a world where so much evil happens and where pain is everywhere it is easy to forget that God is love. One of the greatest struggles individuals have in the West with Christianity is the problem of pain and suffering. "If God is loving," they ask, "why is there so much hurt in the world?" And if we are honest we will admit that we find these questions troublesome ourselves.
In spite of our confusion the Bible presents to us a God who is love and who is concerned for humanity. In 1 John 4:16 we read "God is love" and one of the most popular verses of Scripture, John 3:16, tell us: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." We need to allow the conviction of God's love to flow through our veins and inform our every prayer. We need to be reading Scripture which reveals God's loving nature to us. God cares much more deeply about people than we do and He longs to bless. Knowledge of God's good nature must fill our prayers with the expectation that God will indeed do good.

Praying in Faith Part 1

Yesterday I was reading a passage of Scripture that causes many of us Christians some significant trouble:
Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him. Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you. (Matthew 11:23-24)
As a "good Christian" should, I believe the words of Christ intellectually. However, in practice, I often find myself doubting in the midst of my prayers. I find myself not fretting over whether God can do what I ask, but wondering whether He actually will. Why? What prevents me from praying in faith at all times? I'd like to spend some time over the next several days exploring hindrances to faith-filled prayers and discussing ways that our faith might be increased.

Biblical Illiteracy Part III

Where do we go from here? Each one of us is in agreement that we must read and reflect on Scripture. Hearing sermons once a week is good, but this is not enough. Attending a cell group is beneficial, but not sufficient. Sunday school is enlightening, but we need more. The Word of God deserves prominence in our lives. The Psalmist wrote: “Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day.” How wonderful it would be for all followers of Christ to have such passion for the Word!

Those who, in the past, have been deeply immersed in God’s Word but have let this pursuit fade know what they need to do. My challenge here is for the individual who is new to seeking God. Set aside ten minutes a day to read one chapter of Scripture. Begin with the book of Mark or even Genesis. Read. Think about what the passage has to say about God, about what He’s done for you and about living for Him. God will meet you. He will teach you. He will shape you.

Biblical Illiteracy Part II

                The theologian and pastor, R. C. Sproul, points out a couple of other reasons individuals might utter to defend their distance from Scripture. He refers to them as myths and summarizes them thus:

Myth 1: The Bible is so difficult to understand that only highly skilled theologians with technical training can deal with the Scriptures.[1]

 and

 Myth 2: The Bible is boring.[2]       

In reference to the first of these justifications for not reading God’s Word, we must admit that there are certainly some portions of Scripture that we find confusing, at least at first read. Training in the biblical languages, logic, culture and history certainly help us in our interpretation. However, understanding the Bible is not as difficult as many make it out to be. Sproul explains:

When we express this myth, we do it with astonishing ease. The myth is so often repeated that we do not expect it to be challenged. Yet we know that as mature adults, living in the United States of America [or Canada!], having a high-school education or better, we can understand the basic message of the Bible.

If we can read the newspaper, we can read the Bible. In fact, I would venture to guess that more difficult words and concepts are expressed on the front page of a newspaper than on most pages of the Bible.[3]

I wonder how often this argument (that the Bible is difficult to understand) is put forth by those who have a bias against reading and obeying Scripture in the first place? How often is it an excuse, rather than a road block? Soren Kierkegaard comments on this myth. Philip Yancey explains: “Kierkegaard dismisses the objection ‘There are so many obscure passages in the Holy Scriptures, whole books which are almost riddles’ with the reply that he would only consider that objection from someone who had fully complied with all the passages that are easy to understand!”[4]

The suggestion that “the Bible is boring” needs some comment as well. Perhaps the most helpful idea that can be stated here is simply that many people strongly disagree with this sentiment. Borrowing again from Philip Yancey and R. C. Sproul:

The Old Testament portrays the world as it is, no holds barred. In its pages you will find passionate stories of love and hate, blood-chilling stories of rape and dismemberment, matter-of-fact accounts of trafficking in slaves, honest tales of the high honor and cruel treachery of war. Nothing is neat and orderly. Spoiled brats like Solomon and Samson get supernatural gifts; a truly good man like Job gets catastrophe.[5]

               

            and

When people say the Bible is dull it makes me wonder why. Biblical characters are full of life. There is a unique quality of passion about them. Their lives reveal drama, pathos, lust, crime, devotion, and every conceivable aspect of human existence. There is rebuke, remorse, contrition, consolation, practical wisdom, philosophical reflection and, most of all, truth. Perhaps the dullness some experience is due to the antiquity of the material that may seem foreign. How does the life of Abraham—lived so long ago and so far away—relate to us? But the characters of biblical history are real. Though their life settings are different from ours, their struggles and concerns are very much like ours.[6]

These are not the words of individuals whose eyes glaze over and whose minds wander as they read from the Holy Scriptures. At times the Bible shocks us, then it convicts us, it teaches us, entertains us and challenges us to be more than we have been. This is not to say that it is without less exciting sections for us to read. I admit that genealogies, for instance, do not stimulate my imagination the way that narratives do. However, the number of passages which I find intellectually, emotionally and spiritually stimulating, far outweigh those which I find “slow.”  

---

[1] R. C. Sproul, Knowing Scripture (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1977), p. 13.

[2] Sproul, Knowing Scripture, p. 14.

[3] Sproul, Knowing Scripture, p. 14.

[4] Philip Yancey, The Bible Jesus Read (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1999), p. 30.

[5] Yancey, Bible, p. 11.

[6] Sproul, Knowing Scripture, p.

Biblical Illiteracy Part I

Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day. (Psalm 119:97)

There are studies which suggest that the Church is in serious theological trouble due to biblical illiteracy. In an age where knowledge abounds and we have the ability to learn about any topic which excites our minds with the push of a button, knowledge of the Bible is waning. Why is this so? Why do we Christians find such little excitement at the mention of Holy Scripture and why do exhortations to pick up God’s Word and read it diligently so often fall on deaf ears and hard hearts? Let me propose a few possible explanations.

                My first reason is simply that God is not our first love. When we first fell in love with a young man or lady our lives were transformed. We couldn’t spend enough time with them. Conversations would run into the early hours of the morning. We longed to learn everything we could of the likes and dislikes, the opinions and experiences of our newfound infatuation. With this knowledge we sought to bring joy to their hearts by purchasing their favourite box of chocolates or taking them to a movie or to a restaurant they would most certainly adore. In short, when we love someone we long to spend all of our time with them and all of our energy on them. In Matthew 22 Jesus is asked: “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” He responds with a two-part answer, but the first element is of particular concern for us here: “And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.” Our failure to obey this greatest of  commandments keeps us from spending time with God (reading His Word and praying) and obeying Him (blessing His heart through our obedience). I find that I cannot force myself to love someone. Even if I am able to produce some sort of loving feeling for a short time, it quickly fades and I am left with my indifference or even disdain. If we truly want to love God the way He calls us to, I suggest that we start on our knees – asking Him to give us this love that is due Him.

                Another contributing factor to our lack of knowledge about Scripture is that we lack discipline when it comes to reading God’s Word. There are many habits which we routinely perform on a daily basis because we recognize their importance. We know that showering leads to favourable social consequences, exercising is the cause of many health benefits, reading keeps us intellectually stimulated and knowledgeable, and eating, well, eating keeps us alive. We discipline ourselves to perform many activities that we trust are “good for us.” Yet for some reason, even though each and every believer would agree that it is profitable to read Scripture, many of us fail to spend significant amounts of time immersed in its pages. We fail to set aside regular times for “devotions” or we skip over these times because other priorities emerge. Proposing a solution is easy. Seeing it through is not. We all acknowledge that reading Scripture is important. We have all made plans to read it on a regular basis. So, with a will of iron, let us begin following our reading plan, allowing nothing to get in its way. We will find that as we begin habitually reading Scripture, it will become easier and easier to continue in this essential discipline.

                A third hindrance to regular Bible reading is the busyness of life. Modern people lead chaotic lives. We work, go to school, taxi children, pursue relationships, have friends, exercise and have gruelling entertainment schedules. Many, if not most of the things we do are necessary and even good. The danger comes when we crowd out the “best” with the “good.” In the book of Luke we meet Martha and Mary: two sisters who are devoted to Jesus but who demonstrate their devotion in different ways (Luke 10:38-42). Mary sits at the feet of Christ to listen to His teaching. Martha is busy preparing food and perhaps sleeping arrangements for Him. Martha is angry at her sister for leaving all of the hard work for her to do. But Jesus points out that Mary had chosen the better option. With Jesus in her home, the wiser decision, the necessary thing to do, was to soak in His life-transforming words. Dinner could wait. How often do we let the less important tasks of life prevent us from accomplishing the essential ones?

Certainty

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
Philippians 1:6

This is a verse which broadcasts Paul's understanding of Christian dependence and which also highlights the incredible hope he had for the Philippian believers. Paul knew something that many of us miss - that our faith journey and our progress in becoming more like Christ (sanctification) are works of God. While we certainly have the responsibility to believe and to strive for holiness, unless God is at work, any attempt on our part will be futile. Therefore, when we are struggling with our beliefs or when we are feeling crushed by our addiction to a particular sin, perhaps the best place to begin is on our knees in front of the God who works in us.
Furthermore, Paul was also filled with hope - not merely "wishful thinking" hope but certain or confident hope. He knew and trusted that the God who had started working in them was going to finish His task. Their salvation would be realized.
May we learn to lean on God for our progress in the Christian faith, and may the Spirit fill us with confidence that we are in good hands - hands that will complete the task He has begun.

Partnership

because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.
Philippians 1:5

Paul, the greatest missionary the world has ever known, himself knew the value of partnership. The Philippian Christians were an incredible blessing to him and his ministry. I imagine that many prayers were offered on behalf of Paul and that words of encouragement from Phillipi touched his heart. And we know that this church offered financial gifts to aid him in his ministry.
May God protect us from an "island" mentality - believing that we stand alone and can do all things without the help of others. May God build into us an appreciation for the body of Christ and all its gifts - working as one towards a common goal.