Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | November 23, 2015

Your Temporary Clay Jar – Another Thought

  1. An Amazing Contrast

I occasionally reflect on the rather curious situation we face every day of our mortal lives; all that our physical senses can detect is very temporary. This world and the universe of which it is a part are all scheduled for destruction; they are to be replaced in their entirety, nothing will be left.

It is probably best to try and avoid an undue attachment to the physical body you occupy; it too is a temporary clay jar you occupy for only a few fleeting moments.

The Apostle Paul writes of this in 2 Corinthians 4:7:

“7 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” NLT

In previous essays I have mentioned the dramatic contrast between the origin of our living essence and our human bodies. Our living essence was directly from God and shares God’s image; our mortal bodies are from the dust of the ground and to the dust they shall return. It would be difficult to imagine a more extreme contrast than this yet this was exactly God’s plan for us; an immortal essence temporarily housed in a mortal body, a fragile clay jar.

Life can be a tough experience for both our eternal essence and our clay jar. This is complicated by the fact our clay jar finds itself on a spiritual battlefield and is constantly under attack; an attack at both the physical and spiritual levels.

While the Bible makes it crystal clear our clay jars do not have a place with us in heaven, and must die or be transformed by the power of God; our mortal lives are dependent on these clay jars and we do our best to help them last.

Cracked clay pot by Adele Bower

Artwork by Adele Bower

The Ravages of Time

Regardless of how careful we try to be time will take its toll on our jars; they will start to develop nicks, small scratches and hairline cracks that show they are aging and that doesn’t include the damage that’s being done to our eternal essence.

Our eternal essence has also been under attack and has suffered under the ravages of time. These spiritual signs of aging can include an assortment of fears, doubts, and knowledge of a vast assortment of personal sins. What’s more we received our eternal essence with a huge defect, it arrived spiritually dead; a defect that all humans born of a human father inherit.

Those who are born again have been given a living spirit to replace the old dead spirit but it too has been placed in the same old clay jar with all of its nicks, scratches and hairline cracks.

God’s Grace

God, in His wondrous, grace, mercy and love, has made provisions for His children as they struggle with the adversities of life. In the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ God has made redemption a very simple process. Simply believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and salvation is secured for all of time and eternity.

Knowing the life of His child would be encumbered by a battle with sin, both within and without; God has graciously imputed the very righteousness of His Son, Jesus, to all who receive Him as Savior. God’s children can believe with absolute certainty the reassurances given in Romans 8:1-4 where it is written:

“8 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. 2 And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. 3 The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. 4 He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.”

The Ultimate Grand Finale

As an encouragement to His children, God has given us a blessed hope, a promise that something new and vastly improved is on its way. I enjoy the Star Wars movies and am always touched by the occasional celebrations portrayed in the movies as once again good vanquishes evil.

Those scenes remind me of a glorious celebration that is planned by God for His own family; a celebration infinitely beyond the imagination of man. We will enjoy this celebration in new eternal bodies fashioned for us by God; bodies, no longer of the dust of the earth, but heavenly, eternal bodies created for us by God.

This ultimate celebration will take place in the presence of God for the pleasure and enjoyment of His family. A time will come when evil will have once and for all been vanquished and sin, with all its associated woes including death, will be gone forever.

In the meantime we wait, serving and rejoicing in our Lord and living out our appointed lives in the span of time allotted to us, but God in His grace, has given us a down payment on our inheritance, the Holy Spirit who has made us His home.

We have the opportunity and privilege to enjoy some of the blessings that will be ours in the future as we let the Holy Spirit control in our lives. Even this dust bound clay jar we occupy can benefit by its association with the Holy Spirit.

When Your Body Rejoices, Smiles and Laughs

When the Holy Spirit is in control of your life you have the opportunity to enjoy a blessing that will be fully realized in the future.

When you were rejoicing in the Lord and praising Him you have probably experienced this remarkable feeling; a flood of joy and peace seems to fill your entire body, it’s almost as if your body is rejoicing in the Lord too along with your soul and spirit.

A wave of good feeling sweeps over you and it feels as if your entire body is smiling and rejoicing. This can often burst forth in smiles, laughter and even tears as the joy of the Lord overwhelms you. To experience this is a rich blessing reserved for God’s children; a promise of greater things yet to come.

This blessing is only one reason Paul’s advice to the Philippians makes such good sense where in Philippians 4:4-9 he writes:

“4 Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! 5 Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.

6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.”

“4 Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice!”

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | November 17, 2015

The Painted Veil that Hides Reality, Revisited

Avoid Chasing Shadows

Last time we considered the true nature of reality and cautioned against making a potentially fatal mistake; the mistake of chasing shadows and overlooking the light which created the shadows. In this essay we will look at the same subject from a different perspective.

It would be impossible to overemphasize the  importance of your worldview; seeing past the creation to the creator is truly the beginning of wisdom. A worldview based on reality is the only foundation for a truly successful life.

The Sonnet, the Novel, and the Movie

The Painted Veil Poster Resized

A few days ago we had the opportunity to watch a fascinating movie, an epic movie experience filled with intense drama, “The Painted Veil” which led me to the discovery of a book, and a sonnet which all addressed, to some degree, a subject on which I had written in the past.

To start at the beginning of this line of thought, Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote a sonnet whose first line is “Lift not the painted veil which those who live Call Life.” This sonnet was a source of inspiration to W. Somerset Maugham as he wrote a novel in 1925 named, “The Painted Veil.”

This novel was later made into three different movies, “The Painted Veil” 1934, “The Seventh Sin,” 1957, and the most recent, again named “The Painted Veil,” which was released in January of 2007. It was this last version which stirred my spirit of inquiry into researching the background of the movie and the novel on which it was based which, in turn, led me to the discovery of Shelley’s sonnet.

The heart of the movie can possibly be reduced to one line spoken by Dr. Walter Fane to his wife Kitty, “It was silly of us to look for qualities in each other that we never had.” To some degree, each had come into their marriage with preconceived notions of how it would be and how the other would respond. This, of course, is the never ending challenge to young couples entering into marriage; separating fantasy from reality.

The Sonnet by Percy Bysshe Shelley

Shelley’s sonnet has been declared a mystery by some and aggressively analyzed by others; here is the sonnet:

“Lift not the painted veil which those who live

Call Life: though unreal shapes be pictured there,

And it but mimic all we would believe

With colours idly spread,–behind, lurk Fear

And Hope, twin Destinies; who ever weave

Their shadows, o’er the chasm, sightless and drear.

I knew one who had lifted it–he sought,

For his lost heart was tender, things to love,

But found them not, alas! nor was there aught

The world contains, the which he could approve.

Through the unheeding many he did move,

A splendour among shadows, a bright blot

Upon this gloomy scene, a Spirit that strove

For truth, and like the Preacher found it not.”

Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822)

What is Reality?

Those of you who have followed my blog may recall the essay I wrote called “What is Reality?” In this essay, which I published in September of 2011, I questioned the identity of true reality which was defined as, “the quality or state of being real: something that is neither derivative nor dependent but exists necessarily.” Using that dictionary definition I determined that only the Triune Godhead was real, all else was derived and dependent on the will of the Creator.

I went on to write, “I suggest to you that this is not true reality at all but little more than a facade, more similar to a stage setting one would find on a movie set. It is admittedly a complex and involved stage setting and has the appearance of permanence; permanence, however, from a finite point of view. The tragedy is that most people devote their entire lives to responding to the stage setting and ignore the true realities of life.”

Effectively then, what we call life is the painted veil that is described by Shelley as unreal shapes with colours idly spread.

Mankind’s Desire for a Deliverer

I found it fascinating that Shelley would describe a hopeful figure “who had lifted it–he sought, For his lost heart was tender, things to love, But found them not, alas!” Here was Shelley’s redeemer, but a redeemer who was doomed to failure and he, like the Preacher, found it not.

The identity of the Preacher has also been an subject of debate, but in the context of the sonnet, I thought of the first two verses of Ecclesiastes, also known as The Preacher; “The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. 2 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.” Here we find a similar longing for that which is not found.

I have long noted the need for a messianic figure in literature; the example that immediately occurred to me was Ayn Rand’s John Galt. In her novel, “Atlas Shrugged,” Ms. Rand creates an intellectual super hero named John Galt who is able and willing to take the necessary steps to deliver society from its many ills. I find these futile hopes for a messiah, as devised by the mind of man, to be pathetic and sad.

Lifting the Painted Veil

It is only in the Bible that the painted veil is lifted and the true nature of reality is fully exposed. It is only in the Bible that we learn the true nature of our existence and the fact that we are created beings living in and sustained, from moment to moment, by our creator as a part of that creation.

It is only in the Bible that we discover the identity of our true Messiah our very own, “splendour among shadows” and then discover that He has come to redeem us and that His work of redemption has been successfully begun. It is only in the Bible that we learn that this process of redemption will be fully completed at a time determined in eternity past by our Creator; that our Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ, will lift the painted veil forever.

It is the Bible that reveals what the painted veil conceals and it is infinitely more than the scene painted by Shelley’s words “behind, lurk Fear And Hope, twin Destinies; who ever weave Their shadows, o’er the chasm, sightless and drear.”

Behind the painted veil we call life lies an eternal plan of which we can be a part by simply receiving Christ as our Savior. There is also a terrible place called the Lake of Fire which is reserved for those who reject the salvation available to all who will receive Christ as Savior.

The veil has not only been lifted, it has been torn by the power of God; we have a Redeemer and a Messiah, one who is still seeking things to love, and ignore Him at our own peril; receive His love and love Him in return!

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved”

Next time another thought about our clay jars.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | November 3, 2015

What is Reality – a Review

Your Worldview Shapes Your Perception of Everything!

In my last essay we considered the negative impact of disobedience to God on the quality of our lives. We reviewed Solomon’s failure to effectively deal with the basic realities of life when he placed more emphasis on the creation rather than the creator.

At some point in our lives we too may start asking questions about who we are, why we are here, and what is our purpose in life; life itself does not provide easy answers to those questions leaving them open to speculation and theorizing.

I suspect a tremendous amount of time has been devoted to discussion and debate on these basic questions of life since they become increasingly important the older we get.

As young people we likely had dreams of what we would like to be and what we would like to do someday. My dream was to be a world famous conductor of music and lead great music ensembles in the performance of classical music. The closest I ever came to realizing that dream was the opportunity I was given as a teenage boy to conduct the Houston Symphony Orchestra in concert.

As I grew older the realities of my life began to dramatically change my goals and dreams and I realized I had to reshape my thinking to conform to my actual life situation; I had to face reality, my youthful dreams were no longer viable.

Face Which Reality?

The dictionary defines reality as “the quality or state of being real: something that is neither derivative nor dependent but exists necessarily.” Could it be that reality is vastly different from what is generally believed and if so then what is it like?

All of us have heard the expression “get real” which usually means to deal with life as it really is and stop dreaming. That is good advice as reality is the ultimate judge of the value of all of our actions and decisions.

The idea to “get real” would most often refer to the reality as expressed by the world in which we live but the so-called reality of our world is, I believe, both derivative and dependent. I suggest to you that this is not true reality at all but little more than a facade, more similar to a stage setting one would find on a movie set.

It is admittedly a complex and involved stage setting and has the appearance of permanence; permanence, however, from a finite point of view. The tragedy is that most people devote their entire lives to responding to the stage setting and ignore the true realities of life; this appears to be the mistake Solomon made.

If the world and all we see is nothing more than a stage setting then what is reality? The answer is both simple and yet complex beyond our ability to understand. As always the only source of truth about anything ultimate is the Bible.

The Creator Revealed

Although the beauty, intricacy and harmony of creation demands a Creator, it is only in the Bible we discover the existence of the Triune God; an eternal, unchanging God that is one in essence yet composed of three persons. That basic revelation already moves us to a point beyond our understanding.

Ultimate reality then is the Trinity; everything else is both derivative and dependent!

The Trinity is the absolute uncaused cause and present before time was created by the Trinity. It is impossible for us to imagine what the Trinity’s existence was like before the decision was made to create; it is equally impossible for us to imagine a timeless eternity that has no beginning and no end.

We know from the Bible a decision was made to create therefore the heavens and the earth came into being. The Bible also reveals that the Second Person of the Trinity was the instrument of creation and actually continues to sustain the existence of creation by the exercise of His power.

All creation therefore derives from and is dependent upon the Creator.

In other words all of creation, most specifically including you and me are sustained from moment to moment by an exercise of the will and power of the Second Person of the Trinity; the Bible identifies the Second Person of the Trinity in His incarnate humanity as the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Triune God, in His grace, uses terms that have some familiarity to mankind to identify the three Persons, Father, Son, and Spirit. I doubt that these terms even begin to describe the complex relationship that has always existed between the three persons of the Triune God.

The World as a Testing Ground

Considering the true nature of our being it should be obvious that the focus of our attention should be on the Triune God, not the creation as altered by man into the stage setting in which we now live. To only respond to the stage setting and not to the Creator is most seriously delusional and potentially catastrophic.

I’m reminded of a science fiction series written by Arthur C. Clarke referred to as the Rama series in which a gigantic spacecraft is sent to earth to provide a galactic civilization an opportunity to evaluate earth people for inclusion in a galactic empire. A cross section of humanity moves to an earth-like environment in the spacecraft and immediately reverts to type, completely forgetting or ignoring the fact they are being judged for membership in the galactic empire.

We too are being individually judged by God for inclusion in His eternal family. The only truly significant decision with intrinsic value we can make in life is our membership in God’s family; all other decisions are insanely trivial by comparison.

God has made that decision as easy for us as He can; just believe on His Son, the Second Person of the Trinity as one’s personal savior and membership in God’s eternal family is secured.

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will have effectually and successfully responded to true reality; your life will have been a success regardless of whatever else may happen.

I do not ordinarily repeat an earlier blog (September 8, 2011) but have decided to make two exceptions to this rule, one this week, updated and revised, and one next week. 

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | October 26, 2015

Do You Want to be Happy?

What Would You Do With $100,000,000,000?

It has been estimated that King Solomon would have a net worth of around $100,000,000,000 in today’s dollars; that is two and one half times the value of Bill Gates net worth.

I suspect that many of us at some point in our lives have wondered what it would be like to have a huge amount of money; what we would have, how we would live, how we would be treated; these flights of fancy may come but are soon forgotten as reality reasserts itself.

In the Book of Ecclesiastes we have the opportunity to read a first hand account from someone who has had that kind of wealth; from King Solomon himself as he writes in Ecclesiastes 1:1-11:

“1 These are the words of the Teacher, King David’s son, who ruled in Jerusalem.

2 “Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, “completely meaningless!”

3 What do people get for all their hard work under the sun? 4 Generations come and generations go, but the earth never changes. 5 The sun rises and the sun sets, then hurries around to rise again.6 The wind blows south, and then turns north. Around and around it goes, blowing in circles.7 Rivers run into the sea, but the sea is never full. Then the water returns again to the rivers and flows out again to the sea. 8 Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content.

9 History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new.10 Sometimes people say, “Here is something new!” But actually it is old; nothing is ever truly new.11 We don’t remember what happened in the past, and in future generations, no one will remember what we are doing now.”

Wow, that does not sound like a happy camper; where has all of the fulfillment, contentment, and happiness gone that great wealth is supposed to provide? How has someone with $100,000,000,000 managed to miss the boat?

Do you think there is possibly a lesson there for the rest of us? Can it be that wealth does not guarantee those qualities of life everyone seeks?

 In the Final Analysis What Does Solomon Learn?

In the final chapter of Ecclesiastes King Solomon provides his summary of life where in Chapter 12, verses 13-14 he writes:

“13 That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. 14 God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad.”

Do you see the prominence Solomon places on obedience and the parallels between Solomon’s conclusions and the last words he received from his father, David? Solomon was notoriously disobedient and paid a terrible price both individually and as the national leader of Israel; his disobedience caused Israel to pay a severe price as well as it reeled from the repercussions of Solomon’s disobedience.

Is There a Lesson For Us?

In 1 Samuel 15 we find the story of King Saul who is sent on a mission by God with specific instructions on what to do. Sadly, King Saul decides to disobey God and on his return is told by the prophet Samuel that God is not pleased with what he has done.

“22 But Samuel replied: “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.”

Here again we see obedience surfacing as the preferred response to God; are you beginning to see a priority being established here? Now you just might ask yourself how faithfully do you follow God’s commands? If you’re being honest with yourself I believe you would have to say, “Not so good.” Just in case you have any lingering doubt in your mind about your track record on obedience just remember Romans 14:23b which tells us that everything that is not of faith is sin and sin is a failure to be obedient to God’s commands.

In Matthew 28:18-20 the Lord gives us His “Great Commission” and one of the key parts occurs in verse 20:

“18 Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

I draw your attention to the words, “Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.” In the Great Commission obedience is important; do you practice obedience much less teach it? In your own mind can you say you are obedient to all the commands we have been given?

God’s Help for His Disobedient Children

After Christ died for our sins on the cross the situation changed; those of us who have Christ as our Savior have been freed from all condemnation. All of our disobedience, past, present, and future, have been covered by the shed blood of Christ and as I mentioned before, we shine with the resplendent virtue of the Lord Jesus Christ before the Father.

The remaining factor now is quality of life and service for the Christian; do we share in the blessings God wants for His children by living a Spirit led life? Do we practice obedience and teach obedience to other Christians? The fruit of the Spirit, as described in Galatians 5:22-25 includes all of those blessings that Solomon hoped to find in his extravagant wealth but was frustrated and disappointed by his failure to find them; these blessings are ours when we keep in step with the Spirit.

“22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”

Do Not Make Solomon’s Mistake

When reading about the life of Solomon it becomes clear that Solomon focused entirely too much of his attention on the creation rather than the creator. He accumulated a vast amount of the creation for his own personal use and seemed to forget the creator that made all things.

The world hammers on all of us relentlessly to do the same thing; let material possessions dominate our lives, our hopes and our dreams. I can promise you that if you let this happen you will get the same results Solomon did, ““Everything is meaningless, completely meaningless!””

The Spirit Led Life

Our creator God knows us perfectly and loves us with a perfect love; in His love, mercy, and grace, He has provided for His children the very things that Solomon and everyone else who has ever lived searches for all of their life if only they will heed His word. These are the qualities available to all who will let the Holy Spirit control in their lives and is described in Galatians 5:22-25 where it is written:

“22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. 25 Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.”

When we focus on the creator rather than the creation we are responding to true reality in a manner that will have eternal benefits.

Only obedience to God can open the door to the qualities of life the world cannot provide!

Next time we will take another look at the true nature of reality.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | October 19, 2015

Wisdom and Knowledge versus Obedience

A Sad Mystery Revealed in the Bible

For many years now I have, from time to time, pondered the mystery of King Solomon. This was a man who seemed to have anything his heart desired, a man of great wealth, noted for his wisdom and famous in his own time and the ages that would follow; yet he was the one who destroyed the nation of Israel. What a wild contradiction, how could that have possibly happened?

At a critical point in his life, Solomon, made an important decision, he asked God for wisdom and knowledge. In 2 Chronicles 1:7-12 we read:

“7 That night God appeared to Solomon and said, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!”

8 Solomon replied to God, “You showed great and faithful love to David, my father, and now you have made me king in his place. 9 O Lord God, please continue to keep your promise to David my father, for you have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth! 10 Give me the wisdom and knowledge to lead them properly, for who could possibly govern this great people of yours?”

11 God said to Solomon, “Because your greatest desire is to help your people, and you did not ask for wealth, riches, fame, or even the death of your enemies or a long life, but rather you asked for wisdom and knowledge to properly govern my people— 12 I will certainly give you the wisdom and knowledge you requested. But I will also give you wealth, riches, and fame such as no other king has had before you or will ever have in the future!”

At first that appears to be a wise choice on Solomon’s part and is certainly a gracious response on God’s part but let’s see how it all played out.

The Mosaic Law

Solomon was subject to the Mosaic Law as was every other Israeli. The Mosaic Law was intended to provide guidance and direction for the Jewish people and to keep them out of trouble. Obedience to the law ensured success while disobedience to the law invited failure and disaster; we see this time after time in the Old Testament.

 How did Solomon do as a follower of  the Mosaic Law, was he faithful or was he unfaithful? Let’s look at his record and see.

In 1 Kings 2:1-4 we read,

1 As the time of King David’s death approached, he gave this charge to his son Solomon:

2 “I am going where everyone on earth must someday go. Take courage and be a man. 3 Observe the requirements of the Lord your God, and follow all his ways. Keep the decrees, commands, regulations, and laws written in the Law of Moses so that you will be successful in all you do and wherever you go. 4 If you do this, then the Lord will keep the promise he made to me. He told me, ‘If your descendants live as they should and follow me faithfully with all their heart and soul, one of them will always sit on the throne of Israel.’

That was very good advice from David to his son but sadly, Solomon would not follow that advice therefore his descendants did not always sit on the throne of Israel. More importantly, the Lord Jesus Christ’s physical genealogy does not include Solomon but comes through his brother, Nathan. In Luke 3:23-38 we find what is believed to be the genealogy of Mary which shows the Messianic line going from David to Nathan, not to Solomon as shown in the Matthew genealogy shown in Matthew 1:1-16 which is believed to be the genealogy through Joseph.

Solomon’s disobedience to the commands of the Mosaic Law resulted in both the division of the nation and the loss of the Messianic line which was given to his brother, Nathan.

Some examples of how King Solomon ignored the Mosaic Law are shown in Deuteronomy 17:16-17 where it is written:

16 “The king must not build up a large stable of horses for himself or send his people to Egypt to buy horses, for the Lord has told you, ‘You must never return to Egypt.’ 17 The king must not take many wives for himself, because they will turn his heart away from the Lord. And he must not accumulate large amounts of wealth in silver and gold for himself.”

Concerning horses and chariots it is written in 1 Kings 4:26:

“26 Solomon had 4,000 stalls for his chariot horses, and he had 12,000 horses.

And then in 1 Kings 10:28 we read:

“28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Cilicia; the king’s traders acquired them from Cilicia at the standard price.”

Regarding many wives in 1 Kings 11:1-9 we read:

“11 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women. Besides Pharaoh’s daughter, he married women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and from among the Hittites. 2 The Lord had clearly instructed the people of Israel, “You must not marry them, because they will turn your hearts to their gods.” Yet Solomon insisted on loving them anyway. 3 He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines.”

4 In Solomon’s old age, they turned his heart to worship other gods instead of being completely faithful to the Lord his God, as his father, David, had been. 5 Solomon worshiped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech, the detestable god of the Ammonites. 6 In this way, Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s sight; he refused to follow the Lord completely, as his father, David, had done.

7 On the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, he even built a pagan shrine for Chemosh, the detestable god of Moab, and another for Molech, the detestable god of the Ammonites. 8 Solomon built such shrines for all his foreign wives to use for burning incense and sacrificing to their gods.”

Regarding wealth; in 1 Kings 10:14-25 it is written:

“14 Each year Solomon received about 25 tons of gold. 15 This did not include the additional revenue he received from merchants and traders, all the kings of Arabia, and the governors of the land.

16 King Solomon made 200 large shields of hammered gold, each weighing more than fifteen pounds. 17 He also made 300 smaller shields of hammered gold, each weighing nearly four pounds. The king placed these shields in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.

18 Then the king made a huge throne, decorated with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps and a rounded back. There were armrests on both sides of the seat, and the figure of a lion stood on each side of the throne. 20 There were also twelve other lions, one standing on each end of the six steps. No other throne in all the world could be compared with it!

21 All of King Solomon’s drinking cups were solid gold, as were all the utensils in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. They were not made of silver, for silver was considered worthless in Solomon’s day!

22 The king had a fleet of trading ships of Tarshish that sailed with Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years the ships returned, loaded with gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.

23 So King Solomon became richer and wiser than any other king on earth. 24 People from every nation came to consult him and to hear the wisdom God had given him. 25 Year after year everyone who visited brought him gifts of silver and gold, clothing, weapons, spices, horses, and mules.”

In today’s terms King Solomon could have had a net worth in excess of 100 billion dollars.

Next time we will consider the consequences of disobedience.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | October 12, 2015

Your Resplendent Virtue Concluded

The Duality of our Existence

In part 1 of this series we explored the duality of our mortal lives; we have both a positional reality and an experiential reality. Whereas our positional reality has provided us a perfection through the shed blood of Christ, which is undeserved and unearned, our experiential reality finds us in a temporary clay jar, our human bodies, as we fight in the spiritual war as soldiers of the cross. To further complicate matters we share the clay jar with a traitor, our sin nature, which is continuously trying to compromise our ability to wage successful battle in the spiritual war in which we find ourselves.

God, in His matchless grace, has joined forces with us in the clay jar in the person of the Holy Spirit; our clay jar is occupied by us, our sin nature, the Lord Jesus Christ, and God, the Holy Spirit. This occupancy was sequential; you, spiritually dead, and your sin nature have occupied the clay jar since you were conceived. The Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit came into you and brought your dead spirit back to life at the point you received Christ as Savior but the sin nature, although crucified, can still influence your life if you let it.

I like to visualize the sin nature as a zombie from one of the all too many zombie movies. Although it is seductive it is also ugly and repulsive so why would anyone want to follow its lead?

The Earnest of our Inheritance

Positionally we have been guaranteed that our place in heaven is secure and given a down payment on the blessings to come. In Ephesians 1:13b-14 we are told:

“And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 14 The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.”

That has to be the most wonderful, remarkable thing that has ever happened to mankind, God, the Holy Spirit, coming to live in each of us forever. As Christians this is one of the blessings we enjoy right now from God.

A Tarnished Temple?

In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 the Apostle Paul poses a question:

19 Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.”

Then in Galatians 2:20 we are told:

“20 My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

How do we reconcile Christ living in us and our place as a temple of God the Holy Spirit with the fact we continue to sin? The answer to that is given in 1 John 1:8-10 where it is written:

“8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. 9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.”

When we confess our sins to God and turn control of our lives over to the Holy Spirit then the Holy Spirit can then manifest the fruit of the Spirit in our lives as described in Galatians 5:22-25 where it is written:

“22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. 25 Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.”

When the Holy Spirit is controlling in our lives we can shine with resplendent virtue. It is true the temple may need occasional polishing when we commit personal sin, but confession of sin quenches the power of the sin nature and restores the Holy Spirit to control in our experiential existence.

The Resplendent Virtue of Christ

Our position in Christ results in the imputation of Christ’s virtuous righteousness to all of us who have been born again by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and God. This virtue is not something we deserve and there was no way we could have ever earned it; it is a free gift from God based on Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

When the Father looks at you He sees the shed blood of Christ and the resplendent virtue of the Lord Jesus Christ. This gift of virtue has been given to you as a free gift because you became a follower of the Lord Jesus and is yours to enjoy for all of time and eternity.

In summary then we always shine with resplendent virtue from a positional perspective and can shine with resplendent virtue when the Holy Spirit leads in our lives here on earth. Our objective then must be to let the Holy Spirit control in our lives all the time. We walk by faith and not by sight.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | October 6, 2015

Your Resplendent Virtue

Do You Shine with a Virtue Resplendent?

I’m a fan of Gilbert and Sullivan and enjoy one of their lesser know works, “Trial by Jury.” This was their first truly successful collaboration and exhibits all of the sparkle and humor that was to characterize their later, better known, works.

The story centers on a trial in a British courtroom concerning a breach of promise of marriage and Gilbert, as was his way, fires literary arrows at the British judicial system as he later would at almost every other major British institution.

In one scene the all male jury, after hearing the defendant’s pleadings, expresses their collective opinion on the merits of his defense as they sing these words:

         Oh, I was like that when a lad!

               A shocking young scamp of a rover,

          I behaved like a regular cad;

               But that sort of thing is all over.

          I’m now a respectable chap

               And shine with a virtue resplendent

          And, therefore, I haven’t a scrap

               Of sympathy with the defendant!

                    He shall treat us with awe,

                    If there isn’t a flaw,

          Singing so merrily–Trial‑la‑law!

          Trial-la-law!  Trial-la-law!

          Singing so merrily–Trial‑la‑law!

In case you’re wondering it all ends well and once the trial is over everyone leaves happily.

Now Back to the Question

Do you shine with a virtue resplendent and if you believe you do then why and if you believe you don’t then why? I think it would be safe to say that all Christians would like to appear virtuous with the glow of the stained glass window falling across their faces, as the expression goes; we see a lot of that in church.

We have a problem though with our experience; we, better than any other person, know the depths of our depravity and the struggle we have with the various forms of personal sin. Generally we may feel rather tarnished and just hope no one notices, hence the piety pose that is so popular among Christians.

The Bible reinforces that concern where in 1 John 1:8-10 it is written:

“8 If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. 9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.”

On the other hand the Bible also offers wonderful reassurance when in Romans 8:1-5 it is written:

“8 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. 2 And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. 3 The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. 4 He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.”

From these verses we see that “God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins.” “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.” Although we still commit sins, we are no longer judged for them because of Christ’s death on the cross. It would appear we are both resplendent and tarnished at the same time so how does that work?

The Duality of our Existence

Fortunately the Bible offers the explanation we need to resolve this question. Whereas we are finite creatures of beginnings and endings our creator is the omnipotent timeless God who sees the past, present, and the future with equal clarity.

All who have received Christ as Savior have a positional reality and an experiential reality at the same time. Positionally we are already blessed with eternal blessings that surpass our ability to even imagine. In Ephesians 2:4-7 we read:

“4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) 6 For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. 7 So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.”

We can only know this to be true by faith, not by feeling; God tells us this is our situation therefore we know it to be true! The truth of our positional reality can only be discerned by faith in God’s revelation to us in the Bible. This is something we know to be true even though we cannot feel it experientially.

When we are told to confess our sins to God, this has everything to do with our experiential reality and nothing to do with our positional reality. It is heresy to suggest we can lose our salvation if we commit personal sin; our salvation has been secured by Christ’s death on the cross and is not reversible.

Next time we will consider our experience as a temple of the Holy Spirit.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | October 1, 2015

A New Life in Kenya

The Birth of Joshua Mose

Joshua

On Tuesday morning, September 22, 2015 I received the following email from a Christian Pastor in Kenya, Kennedy Mose, concerning the birth of his son, Joshua.

“Dear brother David,
Great what can i say i as Pastor Kennedy it is beyond human and profession of this world!!!real God turned the impossibility to possibility!!!yes i know you are real very eager to hear,now we have Joshua Mose and the nickname is “Pastor David Junior”
Brother allow me please to let you know briefly how Christ Glorified Himself to the Hospital and,especially the mighty miracle that Happened in the Hospital that made even the Doctors to remain wondering.Briefly, took my wife to the hospital called CANA Located Lunga Lunga Road opposite Mukuru Kwa Reuben where i stay during the morning ours about 8.00A.M and the Doctors there said her condition was so deteriorating and therefore were not in apposition to offer Treatment in the Hospital and they Referred her to PUMWANI MATERNITY HOSPITAL.

Pumwani Maternity HospitalPumwani Maternity Hospital Ambulance

We arrived at the referred Hospital about 3.p.m and due to the many patients she was admitted at 7.00p.m.and the Doctor took here for frequent medical tests where finally the Doctor came out with the result that The Child was big that Could not be delivered normally and therefore suggested that she should undergo surgery.from there they called me to sign down the Documents that i accept at any in outcome that may a rise when she undergoes the exercise.From there i remember my wife telling me”my dear i know now i am on the knives,please have me in prayers for if it is God’s will for me to pass let it be and if not God will take control!!”i also responded that my dear nothing impossible before the Lord and he will not forsake his Chosen”so i left her to be prepared for Theater! i and my church member,a Lady( Millicent Nyanchera married to Duke and blessed two children) who volunteered to accompany us started Shading tears and lied down the floor in the hospital.i real have a very strong believe that due to our common prayer despite our regional difference we contributed towards claiming the lives of two(my wife and Child).i also went outside and i started meditating and praying while crying as Child,silently asking God to do is miracle for my prayer was”i love my wife and the to be born Child.When i finished Praying and returned to the building the Doctor said.All of those that were not sick or ill let them leave the building and go outside to the Ground.so we complied.
my wife was the next person to undergo surgery after the one that she was in Theater.Brother,Believe me!my wife gave birth while she is approaching the gate to theater successively without any help from either Doctors aid but by the grace and the mighty power.now those who witnessed us while praying and Crying there and started choking,were all surprised even the Doctors themselves.Brother since the Night the nation knew that their is God of Elijah who do not depend on man’s conclusion or man’s understanding,He is the Leaving God,Precious God Who will not forsake is People.since the night up to now i am praying to people who are undergoing Labor Process.my wife is doing well and my Blessed son Joshua.The Doctors told me that i have to give her enough time and to themselves to see the health of the Child and will discharge them soon by now there are some expenses i am undergoing and awaiting for discharge fees.
Shalom,
Pastor Kennedy

DSC00008 (2)The Brave and Blessed Mother and Son

DSC00009Peeking into the Ward – Mom is Smiling so all Must be Well

Kennedy Mose from Facebook PhotoPastor Kennedy Mose

Let us join with Pastor Kennedy and his family in praising God for the successful birth of Joshua and the continued safety and health of both mother and child.

This has been a year of both joy and sorrow for Pastor Kennedy and his family; on May 6th of this year Pastor Kennedy’s youngest sister was drowned in the heavy flooding that hit Kisii, Kenya leaving two girls, 5 and 3, behind.

Younger Sister who drowned 2 5-6-15Home with the Lord

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | September 23, 2015

You Are Not Going to Die Again!

A Question for You!

I closed my last essay on “Take up Your Cross and Follow Me” with a question. I was probably going to write on it even if no one responded because I believe it to be such an important part of the total picture.

I had written, “In Hebrews 9:27 we are told, “27 And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment.” Let’s review what has happened to us to this point. Our spirit died in the Garden with Adam, but when we received Christ as Savior, our old sinful nature, which we inherited from Adam, died with Christ on the cross as our spirit was brought back to life by the power of God; so that leaves only our mortal bodies which must experience death or transformation at the Rapture of the Church, whichever comes first.

A simple analogy that works for me is to think of a long car trip home; when you get home you get out of the car and go into the house. Your mortal body is your transportation through life on this earth as you make your way home. The really good news is when we get home we’re getting new transportation; an infinitely improved model with a warranty that lasts forever!

An Important Distinction to Keep in Mind

On a more serious note we should remember that our existence has a dual nature by design. This is explained in Genesis 1:26-27:

26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”

27 So God created human beings in his own image.
    In the image of God he created them;
    male and female he created them.

More details are provided in Genesis 2:7:

7 Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person.

Please carefully note the body was formed from the dust of the ground but the life God placed in the body was breathed into the body by God and was in His own image; the implications of being made in the image of God are enormous!

Therefore although our life essence was created in the image of God, it was placed in a body made from the dust of the earth, in a clay jar as Paul would write in 2 Corinthians 4:7:

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

The First Deaths Recorded in Scripture

If you ask many Christians which was the first death recorded in Scripture the answer would be the death of Abel but that is not correct. The first deaths recorded in Scripture were the spiritual deaths of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. I’ve written on this in greater detail in my essay  The End of Edenic Bliss.

God told Adam in Genesis 2:16-17:

16 But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden— 17 except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.”

When Adam disobeyed God he died spiritually immediately but was still alive physically; not until many years later would Adam die physically.

Now Let’s Get Back to Us

Spiritually we died in Adam in the Garden of Eden (which makes Adam the most horrific mass murderer in the history of humanity) and were born spiritually dead at the point of our physical birth. We were made spiritually alive when we were born again by the power of the Holy Spirit and no part of our life essence will ever die again. Our mortal bodies are another matter entirely. These clay jars we occupy came into being when we were conceived in our mother’s womb and will live until they too die or are transformed at the Rapture.

In their present form they are truly a very temporary abode; Paul writes of this in 2 Corinthians 5:1-5

5 For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. 2 We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. 3 For we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without bodies. 4 While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it’s not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life. 5 God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.

How does the idea of trading in your clay jar for an eternal heavenly body made by God sound to you?

 God promises us this cycle of sin and death is coming to an end; in Revelation 20:11-15 it is written:

11 And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from his presence, but they found no place to hide. 12 I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up its dead, and death and the grave gave up their dead. And all were judged according to their deeds. 14 Then death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This lake of fire is the second death. 15 And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire.

If the lake of fire is the second death for those rejecting Christ as Savior, then when did their first death happen; their first death was their spiritual death in Adam in the Garden of Eden. They have gone through their entire mortal existence spiritually dead then die their second death in the lake of fire. Hence it is written in Mark 8:36-37:

“36 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? 37 Is anything worth more than your soul?

In Acts 16:30-31 we are given God’s remedy for this horrible fate:

30 Then he brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, along with everyone in your household.”

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | September 18, 2015

Take up Your Cross and Follow Me!

Taking Up Your Cross

A Christian friend in India wrote to me recently asking about the meaning of Matthew 10:38. Having heard so many different interpretations of that verse I decided to offer what I believe to be the Biblical interpretation of its meaning.

In Matthew 10:38 is written:

“38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.”

What was Rome’s Point?

Taking up your cross was essentially an admission that you agreed with Rome on your punishment; Rome was right in requiring your death and you demonstrated your agreement by carrying your own cross on which you were to die.

As Christians when we take up our cross we are admitting God is right, we are worthy of death and the only answer to our problem is death on the cross.

We carried our cross when we identified ourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ and demonstrated in our lives that we belong to Christ and were spiritually joined with Him as our old nature was crucified with Christ.

When were you Crucified?

Taking up your cross is one thing but being crucified puts it into another realm entirely; this is getting serious. When were we crucified? Let’s let Paul explain this to us in Romans 6:6-11 where it is written:

“6 Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? 2 Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? 3 Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? 4 For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.

5 Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. 6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. 7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. 8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. 9 We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. 10 When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. 11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.”

What Does this Mean?

Taking up our cross was an admission that we agreed with God, we were incorrigible as we were, we were beyond any hope of redemption; there was absolutely nothing we could do on our own that would save us. Our only hope was for our old nature to die so we could be raised again with Christ and be born again by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The baptism Paul is talking about here is the baptism of the Holy Spirit which places us into the eternal assembly, the body of Christ. Paul clarifies this point in 1 Corinthians 12:13b where it is written:

“But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.”

Water baptism is a symbolic, public acknowledgement of what had already happened in our lives at the spiritual level when we were born again by faith.

As those who have already been crucified we no longer take up our cross but must be focused on the work and ministry of our Lord and let Him live His life through us.

My favorite life verse is Galatians 2:20 where it is written:

“20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

So you see, as Christians we have already taken up our cross and followed Christ in death. Our old nature died with Christ on the cross when we received Christ as Savior and the lives we now live is the life of Christ; we live by faith in the Son of God.

I’ll leave you with a question. If we died in Christ then what is this event we call death? In Hebrews 9:27 we are told, “27 And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment” Anyone interested in pursuing that line of inquiry?

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