Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | August 7, 2014

Under The Dome, by David Bower

God’s Version

There is a recent TV series called “Under the Dome” which tells the story of the small fictional community of Chester’s Mill after it is covered by an impenetrable transparent dome. The TV series is a highly sanitized adaptation of the novel of the same name written by Stephen King. In all fairness I’ll confess that I have not encountered this sort of plot in any other science or fantasy fiction that I’ve read. However a different version of being under the dome came to mind as I’ve reflected on the story.

As we examine the Bible, especially the Old Testament, we can see a protective dome over Israel both as a people and a land. A major distinction of God’s dome is it can be penetrated and has been on many occasions. I have no doubt that each of those historic penetrations have been part of God’s larger plan for Israel.

My wife and I have discussed the results on the various nations through history that God has used to discipline His people; history shows that being used as an instrument of judgment against Israel has proven disastrous for those nations  so used. Prophecy suggests no change in this pattern either so I recommend the United States move very carefully in its dealings with Israel.

History is littered with the carcasses of nations who fought against Israel while today, the nation Israel still exists and continues to fight for its life.  A time is coming when, with God’s help, a final victory will be won and Israel will prevail over all her enemies!

That Tiny Spec of a Nation Called Israel Has Become a Focus of World Attention

Any rational observer might well wonder how is it that a nation as small in area and population as Israel could manage to garner such a disproportionate share of the world’s headlines. The land area of Israel is 8,019 square miles; by way of comparison the land area of New Jersey is 7,787 square miles and that is not very big. The 2014 estimated population of Israel is 8,146,300 whereas the estimated population of New York City in 2013 was 8,405,837.

There is clearly more going on here than meets the eye; there has to be a reasonable explanation for the incredible emphasis such a small nation is being given by the world. Can we find any clues as to why this is happening? May I suggest there are a considerable number of clues provided in the pages of Scripture which are available for examination.

Some of the saddest words to fall from the lips of our Lord Jesus Christ involved His lament over Jerusalem; in Luke 13:34-35 he said:

34 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. 35 Look, your house is left to you desolate. I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’

Again as He approached Jerusalem on His way to die it is recorded in Luke 19:41-44:

“41 As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it 42 and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. 43 The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. 44 They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.”

This was fulfilled by the Roman army in 70 AD with the destruction of the Temple and the City of Jerusalem, sadly, for Israel this was only the beginning of the judgments that would continue to this day.

A Glimmer of Hope

While God’s judgments on Israel for their rejection and crucifixion of their Messiah have been severe, God has given them a message of hope. The dry bones are being drawn back together and after almost 2,000 years there is again a nation of Israel. A promise of restoration was given in Ezekiel 37:21-23, “21 and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land. 22 I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms. 23 They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses, for I will save them from all their sinful backsliding, and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.”

This process began in 1948 and despite fierce opposition from adjacent nations has continued to this day. Although spiritual life has not yet entered them nationally, they are in the land and the nation has begun its restoration.

Next, The Miracle of the Missle

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | July 31, 2014

The Peter Pan Christian and the Church, by David Bower

The Baby Christian is Under Attack and in Danger!

Any Christian who has not specifically and intentionally made the effort to study and learn the doctrines of the Bible and then taken the additional steps to put Bible doctrine into practice in their lives each day has failed to develop into a mature Christian adult! They are at best a spiritual child and at worst a spiritual baby who is vulnerable to attack and injury in the spiritual war into which we have all been thrust.

While the message of salvation by faith in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ is still preached by many churches this is not the end of their responsibility to the born again believer, but only the beginning.

One who has received Christ as Savior has been born again and can be considered a baby in Christ, an infant in need of all the kinds of care associated with an infant. It is the responsibility of older Christians to help this baby grow into a mature Christian adult who is prepared to face the realities of life and the spiritual warfare which has been in progress for thousands of years.

Without the proper care and guidance the baby Christian can stumble around looking for answers in all of the wrong places. The truly disturbing reality is the baby Christian can fail to grow and mature into an adult Christian. Although salvation is eternal and secure, Christian growth is not automatic.

The Peter Pan Syndrome

While I have compared the baby Christian with a normal human baby there is one dramatic distinction and that has to do with life and growth. In order to survive, the human baby requires the proper nutrition and if that is denied, the baby dies. The Christian baby will survive even if proper spiritual nutrition is withheld but will not grow into spiritual maturity and therein lays a great danger. While the baby Christian’s place in the family of God is secured by the power of God, the baby’s growth is totally dependent upon receiving the proper spiritual nutrition and this is provided by the Bible, the spiritual food provided by God in His written word.

It is true the baby Christian may mature physically and grow into adulthood as a human being but this does not automatically mean the baby’s physical growth is being matched by corresponding spiritual growth. It can happen that physically adult Christian’s are in fact spiritual Peter Pan’s; they have never grown up into spiritually mature Christian men and women.

In Hebrews 5:11-14 the writer warned of this as he was trying to teach on the Melchizedek priesthood of Christ:

“11 We have much to say about this, but it is hard to make it clear to you because you no longer try to understand. 12 In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! 13 Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. 14 But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.”

In 2 Timothy 2:15 the Apostle Paul cautioned Timothy, “15 Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

Notice the references to trying to understand, to study, to being a workman that does not need to be ashamed, and rightly dividing the word of truth; all of these indicate that dedicated effort is required if one is to grow in the faith. The truth of the matter is if you are to grow and mature into a spiritual adult it will require study and hard work on your part.

How Does the Church Fit in to the Feeding and Care of Baby Christians?

While the primary responsibility for Christian growth lies with the individual Christian, I believe the church has a responsibility to help the baby Christian discover the rich spiritual resources to be found in the Bible. I can remember the time when a church in Houston helped me and my wife discover the wonders of the Bible; this was a time of incredible excitement as the Bible was opened to us and we began to discover the glory and beauty of the Word of God.

By God’s grace we both developed an insatiable desire for the spiritual food provided in Scripture and became faithful attendees at every Bible study we could possibly make. We had been given God’s second greatest gift, a hungering and thirsting for the word of God. Thanks to God’s continued grace that hungering and thirsting has never gone away, we still delight in the discovery of the new truths He reveals to us every day from His word.

While we have remained hungry and thirsty for the word of God, it was a church that first opened the door to the blessings and opportunities for growth available to those who will study to show themselves approved unto God. I see this as the ministry of the church to the baby Christian; to open the door to God’s spiritual food pantry, the Bible.

The Bible is not primarily a medicine cabinet, a place to go when you need spiritual first aid; it is a spiritual food pantry where you go each day to find the spiritual food you need to grow and mature into the mature Christian adult God wants you to become.

“Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | July 24, 2014

The Unforgivable Sin and the Mission of the Church to the World, by David Bower

What is the Church’s Mission to the World?

Last time we reviewed the true nature of the sin barrier between God and man and saw it was failure to receive Christ as Savior. We saw that Christ had died for the sins of the world and personal sin and the fallen nature were no longer the barrier; the only remaining, unforgivable sin was failure to receive Christ as Savior.

Considering the true nature of the sin barrier; what then should be the mission of the church?

First of all I will tell you what the mission of the church to the world is not; it is not the condemnation of personal sin in any form. The mission of the church to the unsaved is the proclamation of the gospel, the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ; beating the unsaved over their heads with their personal sin is very much like beating a dead horse.

They are dead and cannot respond; by God’s grace they can be brought back to spiritual life by faith in Jesus Christ as Savior but until then focusing on their personal sin is an exercise in futility; after all, they have been forgiven of those sins by God in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ and their personal sins and their fallen Adamic sin nature are no longer the primary issue.

The only barrier that remains between the unsaved and God is their reception of the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior; introducing other issues only muddies the water. The church can plant the seeds of the gospel and water them but only God can give the increase; the church cannot save, only God can save the lost sinner but the church can see that the seeds of the gospel are planted and watered.

But What about Personal Sin?

It is the evidence of personal sin and Satanic activity that we see plastered all over the news; it is personal sin along with the Satanic forces of evil that are alive and well on planet earth and although personal sin is no longer the same barrier between God and man it was before the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ, it is still a plague and pestilence to mankind’s quality of life.

The Apostle Paul described in considerable detail the problem of the fallen sin nature of man in Romans 5-8 and God’s solution to that problem; those four chapters are widely considered to be the most profound statement on the Christian life to be found in scripture.

The Christian, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, is given the power to control and suppress the sin nature which is in every human being whereas the unbeliever does not have that ability and is constantly under the influence of their spiritually dead fallen nature. It is only God that can give the increase; it is only God that can bring them back to life by faith in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

For the Christian, personal sin is a daily challenge, for the unbeliever, it is the only way of life they know because they are spiritually dead. God knew the Christian would struggle with personal sin and provided the tools needed to control and suppress the power of personal sin.

In 1 John 1:8-10 the Christian is given the answer to successfully dealing with personal sin: “8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.”

And What about the Unbeliever?

The only critical issue facing the unbeliever is the issue of personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior; nothing else really counts. Starting or stopping sinful acts is irrelevant compared to the only important issue and that is one’s relationship to Christ as Savior. The message of the church, if it is to be relevant, is the message of salvation in Jesus Christ.

It is past time for the church to join the Holy Spirit in convicting the world: “of sin, because they do not believe in Me”.

Next, the church’s mission to the Christian

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | July 17, 2014

In Search of Truth Part 1, the Nature of Sin, by David Bower

The Devil Made Me Do It!

The devil made me do it was a phrase popularized by Flip Wilson in the early 1970’s. It picked up perfectly on the victim mentality that has continued to serve as a fallback position on sin. There was certainly no shortage of bad things happening in the 1970’s and it seems likely that the pace of bad things, which could be classified as sin, has even increased since then; a casual examination of any of the many forms of media communication reveal a staggering amount of what may be viewed as sin.

The local evening news is referred to by my wife as the evening police report as the stories of murders, attempted murders and assorted mayhem are discussed in way too much detail. The national television news channels are filled with stories of corruption at all levels of government as well as more murders, attempted murders and more assorted mayhem; does it make you wonder where all this is taking us?

Listening to accounts of similar events happening all over the world it is easy to see that the events described in the United States are rather typical of what is happening in other nations as well; the observer may be inclined to think sin is alive and well on planet earth.

A Restraint on Sin?

In my last blog I wrote of the restraining ministry of God, the Holy Spirit; in other words, as bad as things are they could be worse. This ministry is referenced in John 16:7-11 where Jesus is speaking to His disciples:

“7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. 8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 of sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; 11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”

Please notice verse 9, “of sin, because they do not believe in Me;” doesn’t that surprise you, even a little? When thinking of sin in the world wouldn’t it be logical to think of all of the terrible things that go on each day, all of those horrible murders, attempted murders, assorted mayhem and corruption that we hear about on a daily basis?

Why then would God direct the Apostle John to write down the purpose of the convicting ministry of the Holy Spirit regarding sin as He did; what is involved when believing in Jesus is the sole objective of this particular phase of the Holy Spirit’s ministry of conviction?

The Cross Changes Everything!

We know from many sections of Scripture that the Lord Jesus Christ came to earth at His First Advent to take on human form and to die on the cross as our substitute. We know He came to serve as our Kinsman Redeemer and was the only one qualified and willing to pay the price for our redemption. His authority to do this was confirmed by His rising from the dead after three days and later ascending back into heaven to serve as our intercessor.

We also know that the work He was sent to do on the cross was finished to perfection and it is this work I would like to consider next. When Christ said in John 19:30, “30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.” What was finished, what had been accomplished at that point in time?

One important fact is revealed in 1 John 2:1-2 where it is written, “My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.”

That would tell us that Christ’s death on the cross paid the penalty for all of the sins in the whole world; mankind was no longer guilty before God as before the cross, the fallen nature and the ongoing presence of personal sin was no longer a barrier between God and man. The barrier of sin had been removed between mankind and God by the perfect work of Christ on the cross.  

This is why the only sin mentioned as part of the convicting ministry of the Holy Spirit was the sin of not believing on Jesus Christ as Savior; all remaining sin had been paid for by the death of Christ on the cross! The only remaining sin barrier between God and man is rejection of the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and that one is unforgivable!

Next time, the mission of the church.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | July 10, 2014

The Last War in Heaven, by David Bower

The Coming War in Heaven

In the recent series on the spiritual war I mentioned that although Satan had lost his position in heaven, he still had access to heaven and referenced his conversation with God concerning Job in Job 1:6-12.

There is a time coming when that will all be changed; Satan will be forced out of heaven never to return. That last war in heaven will take place at the mid-point of the Tribulation and serve as the catalyst for the time known as The Great Tribulation.” This amazing event is described in Revelation 12:7-12.

7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

In verse 10 we see that Satan had been busy all this time accusing the brethren before God day and night. It would appear from that statement that most of the “satanic” activity on earth was the work of Satan’s demons and the fallen, sinful nature of man, and not Satan himself. Satan is not omnipresent, he can only be in one place at a time.

The Church in Heaven

At the point this last war in heaven starts, the church will have been there for an unspecified amount of time. The Bible does not reveal if we, as part of the church, will have much, if any, contact with Satan and the fallen angels during this time. From the wording of those verses it would appear that the church has no active part in that war and the Bible does not tell us if we will be spectators to the war itself.

Since we will return with the Lord Jesus Christ at the time of His Second Advent and observe the Battle of Armageddon, I think it reasonable to assume we shall also watch the last war in heaven; we will, after our resurrection, have become a higher form of creation than the angels.

The Great Tribulation

The casting out of Satan has very bad consequences for the inhabitants of earth, “Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.” It is at this point we believe Satan indwells the antichrist and declares himself to be god. (2 Thessalonians 2:4)

Satan’s day of reckoning is coming soon and he knows it; he just wants to take as many with him as he can; this has been his mission since his fall described in Isaiah 14:12f and Ezekiel 28:11f and will continue until he is thrown into the Lake of Fire where he will remain forever. “10 And the devil (Satan), who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” Revelation 20:10

The Choice

As human beings, descendants of Adam and Eve, we have been given a choice and there is no straddling the fence in this matter; we can either choose Christ and life, or Satan and death. The choice is yours, I urge you to choose Christ and life! The Bible is very clear on this matter.

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. John 3:16-18

36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them. John 3:36

The Consequences of Rejecting Christ

11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them.12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done.14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire. Revelation 20:11-15

These are profoundly serious matters with eternal consequences; make sure you wind up on God’s side of that fence by receiving Jesus Christ as Savior!

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | June 30, 2014

To the Soldiers in the Spiritual War Concluded, by David Bower

 The Visible and the Invisible

It is important to recognize that the spiritual war is being fought in both the visible and strictly spiritual realms at the same time. I suspect that if mortal human beings should catch a glimpse of the battles at the spiritual level we would probably faint dead away.

One example of the war at the spiritual level is given in Daniel 10:12-13, “12 Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. 13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia.”

The prince of the kingdom of Persia must be a very powerful demon to delay a messenger from God for 21 days; what is of particular interest to me is very likely it is this same demon that is influencing affairs in Persia today which is called Iran. While all of this is still going on, God’s clock is counting down toward the final events in the spiritual war.

The Church is Removed from the Earth

A time is coming, it is inevitable, when the true Church will be called home; the final chapter of the Church on earth will have fully played out. This is most specifically not a reference to organized religion as religion will, for at least a short time, prosper under the new regime.

The removal of the Church will have devastating consequences for the earth; not only the disappearance of millions of people from all over the world, but the removal of the restraining ministry of God, the Holy Spirit. For those who love sin, this will be sin on steroids! This is described in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12:

“2 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, 2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. 3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

He who now restrains is the Holy Spirit and He will be taken out of the way at the Rapture of the Church.

The Tribulation

Although the Rapture of the Church is not the catalyst that starts the Tribulation, it is likely the Tribulation will start within a few years of the Rapture. The second half of the Tribulation will get very bad as God’s judgments rain down on an angry and rebellious world. The Lord points out in Matthew 24:21-22, ” 21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.22 And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.”

Unlike the Genesis flood where only 8 were saved, at the end of the Tribulation there will be thousands of believers who will have survived to begin life again during the Millennial reign of Christ.

The Millennium

Although there will be something of a cease fire in the spiritual war it is not really over yet. For the moment, sin will have been dealt a devastating blow, but it is not finally disposed of. The Millennial reign of Christ will start with only believers who have survived the Tribulation; the Church who returned with Christ at the Second Advent; the Old Testament saints and the angels of God.

Unbelievers who survive the Tribulation will be cast into the Lake of Fire along with the beast and the false prophet to await the arrival of those who are condemned to go there at the Great White Throne judgment. 41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels, Matthew 25:41

In a way this will be a second chance at perfect environment on earth with only one flaw, the presence of the fallen sin nature in the mortal believers who survived the Tribulation and those who will be born to them during these 1,000 years. The descendants of those believers who survived the Tribulation will still be born with the fallen nature inherited from Adam. It seems that perfect environment is still not the answer to man’s sin problem, it didn’t work in the Garden of Eden and it’s not going to work during the millennial reign of the Lord Jesus Christ either.

Over the years, as children are born, some of those children receive Christ as Savior but others do not. The Bible reveals that Satan, who had been confined, would be freed to exert his influence on mankind at the end of the Millennium with predictable results as described in Revelation 20:7-10, “7 Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. 9 They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. 10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”

The Great White Throne Judgment

By this time, the earth and the entire universe that we have always known will have been destroyed by fire. The great white throne judgment will finally bring the spiritual war to an end. This fearful event is described in Revelation 20:14-15, ” 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” The spiritual war is now over.

The New Heaven and the New Earth

Finally, the creation that God wanted for us all along is fully realized; a place of unimaginable beauty and great joy. “3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. 4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

5 Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” Revelation 21:3-5

Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

 

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | June 23, 2014

To the Soldiers in the Spiritual War Continued, by David Bower

After the Flood

In my previous article I related the history of the ancient spiritual war through God’s judgment on the earth by the world-wide flood. By way of summary we covered the original act of sin when Lucifer became Satan, Lucifer’s fall from grace followed by his successful effort to destroy the spirit of man and his almost successful effort to corrupt human DNA.

We discovered that although Satan no longer has a place in the kingdom of God, he still has access to heaven and is seen in God’s presence having a discussion about Job. The next big shift in the spiritual war is about to develop.

The Birth of the Seed of the Woman, our Kinsman Redeemer

Despite Satan’s best efforts, human DNA remained pure through Noah and the seven members of his family. It has been estimated that the earth’s population at the time of the flood was around 9,000,000,000 people, all but 8 drowned; which is certainly a catastrophe of Biblical proportions!

Now the work of correcting the distortion that had been created by Adam’s sin would be begun by the one person who could do it, the Lord Jesus Christ. The eternal Second Person of the Trinity, the one who created the universe and continues to sustain it by His power, would humble Himself so as to become a man, flesh of our flesh and bone of our bone and, as our Kinsman Redeemer, restore mankind to its rightful place as intended by God.

In the perfection of His saving work, He would even elevate us to a much higher plane than Adam ever knew, we were to become children of God and joint heirs with Christ in God’s eternal family. It was this that Satan dreaded and hated and sought to stop by his unsuccessful effort to corrupt human DNA. God’s promise to Adam and Eve of a seed would be perfectly fulfilled in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Most of us are familiar with the story of the birth of Christ and Herod’s attempt to kill him; our Kinsman Redeemer was born in order to die on the cross on our behalf and nothing was going to interfere with His perfectly achieving that goal.

The Victory is Won

It may seem strange to think of a horrible death on a Roman cross as a moment of victory, but that is exactly what it was; at that point the ransom was paid and the earth redeemed from Satan, Christ’s work of redemption was finished. It pleased God to delay the final implementation of this redemption to allow all who would be called to enjoy the blessings of salvation; this delay resulted in our becoming part of God’s family and more are being added every day.

The Next Big Step

Around 50 days were to pass after the resurrection before a new type of human being would be created by the power of God; this process of re-birth would continue until the Church was removed at the Rapture. The Holy Spirit of God came to earth to indwell all who had received Christ as Savior; the fabled temple in Jerusalem had been replaced by frail human bodies as the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. From that point on the world contained two distinctly different classes of people, those who were spiritually alive and indwelt by God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and those who were not and were still spiritually dead.

For an unrevealed number of centuries, God would be creating a new form of life, the born-again Christian who collectively would form the true Church, the body and bride of Christ. It would be impossible to overemphasize the vitally important nature of this change; God Himself would now indwell each individual Christian and never leave that individual either in time or eternity.

Individual human beings would be added to this group by the power of God starting at Pentecost and ending at the Rapture of the Church; before that there was no equivalent creation and after that process is closed, at the Rapture of the Church, that process will be stopped forever.

What Does This Mean?

God has done an enormous thing in creating this new creation, the Christian; those who have been born-again have been blessed beyond measure by being made a dwelling place for God. The Christian can never be separated from his creator because his creator is in him, forever. This should be the dominant thought in the mind of every Christian, we are the temples of God, we are the vessels through which Christ lives His life on earth.

There are several sections of the Bible where this is revealed:

19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. Romans 8:9-11

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. Galatians 2:20

15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. 19 “A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. 20 At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” John 14:15-21

What an unqualified cause for rejoicing and gladness; this knowledge alone should make every day of your life a joy and be a never-ending source of praise and thanksgiving! We have every reason to rejoice in Christ always and delight ourselves in the blessings He has poured out on us. The words of Philippians 4:4-7 should dominate our thoughts, “4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

One More Thing

While the Holy Spirit is now indwelling all those who are born-again, there is another ministry of the Holy Spirit to the world which is described in John 16:7-11 ” 7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:9 of sin, because they do not believe in Me;10 of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more;11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”

The Holy Spirit is restraining sin in the world today, as bad as it seems to be it will get worse when the Church is removed at the Rapture; things will become more like they were before the flood when, “5 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Genesis 6:5

In the last of this series we will cover from the Rapture to the end of the spiritual war.

 

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | June 16, 2014

To the Soldiers in the Spiritual War, by David Bower

Like it or Not, You’re a Soldier if You’re a Christian

Have you ever thought of yourself as a soldier? There are few classic physical manifestations of warfare in most of our lives; we’re not surrounded by bombed out villages and carnage so we may doubt the reality of a spiritual war or be lulled into thinking we really don’t have to be involved in any “spiritual warfare.” If you’re thinking any variation of these thoughts then you’re wrong and potentially endangering yourself and others.

Although it will change during the final conflict, we are now dealing with destruction and carnage in the lives of everyone at a spiritual level as the spiritual battle for men’s soul’s rages around us. The carnage is being displayed in many lives as people make bad choices and cause themselves and others serious harm. Broken lives, broken marriages, broken commitments of many sorts litter the battlefield of this war.

What is Going On Today in the World?

Last week I wrote on right and wrong and this week I would like to dig into more of the background that has produced the framework for this spiritual battle between right and wrong. While the trend in society seems to involve an abandonment of objective moral standards; the problem of right and wrong, and good versus evil, goes back to a time before the creation of man.

It is entirely possible that we are approaching the climax of this ancient struggle; the Bible has outlined the general conditions that will prevail at that time and it appears that more and more pieces are falling into place. God moves according to His own timetable so this climax may occur within the next few years or the next few hundred years.

I feel it a real blessing that God is waiting; it is pointed out in 2 Peter 3:8-9, “8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

I suspect each of you can join with me in an outpouring of praise to the Lord for our opportunity to join the body of Christ by faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. By God’s grace we are still living in a time when people all over the world are being saved. “And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” Acts 2:47b It is exciting to see how many are coming to the Lord in faith and being saved each day that passes!

Going Back to a Time Before Time

The problem with sin did not begin with Adam’s direct disobedience to a command from God but at a time, possibly before the creation of time, in eternity past. There are a number of brief references to this event given in the Bible. Let us start with what appears to be an account of the earliest recorded incident which is described in Ezekiel 28:12b-17; the following is believed to describe Lucifer who is later known as Satan:

“‘You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. 13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: carnelian, chrysolite and emerald, topaz, onyx and jasper, lapis lazuli, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. 14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. 15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. 16 Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. 17 Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor.”

We are given further information in Isaiah 14:12-15 where the infamous five I wills of Satan are recorded:

12 How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! 13 You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon. 14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” 15 But you are brought down to the realm of the dead, to the depths of the pit.”

At this point Lucifer/Satan had lost his position in heaven but still had access to heaven; we encounter Satan in heaven speaking with God in Job 1:6-7:

“6 One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. 7 The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?”

Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”

Notice how Satan brags of his authority over the earth; when Adam sinned, the human race died spiritually and forfeited its position of authority over the earth to Satan, Satan became the “Prince of the Power of the Air” and mankind became spiritually dead slaves to sin as described in Ephesians 2.

“2 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.” Ephesians 2:2-3

The World and God’s Plan Put in Danger

If this was not enough, a Satanic plan was put into effect to try and eliminate any possibility of one who would be the seed of the woman and crush the head of the serpent described in Genesis 3:15:

15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

The reference to the offspring of the woman is seen as the first promise of the Messiah and the victory that would someday be won at the cross when Christ would spiritually crush Satan’s head. The striking of his heel is seen as the death of Christ on the cross, a short lived victory as Christ rose from the dead three days later.

Satan’s plan involved a corruption of human DNA that would prevent the promised redeemer from ever being born; a dangerous plan that required extreme measures to defeat it, the death of billions of human beings by a world-wide flood. This event is described in Genesis 6 and has been covered in some detail in other articles. It is sufficient to point out Satan’s plan was defeated and those most directly responsible, the sons of God who kept not their first estate, are being severely punished.

4 For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; 5 and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly” 2 Peter 2:4-5

6 And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day” Jude 6

To be continued.

 

 

 

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | June 10, 2014

But What About Right and Wrong?, by David Bower

Is There Such a Thing as Right and Wrong Anymore?

Can you remember a time when there seemed to be a much more general consensus on what was right and what was wrong? A time when asked, the majority of adults could agree that such and such was either something that was or was not acceptable behavior. There were, of course, certain areas that were more a matter of opinion but there seemed to be fewer of those areas than we find in today’s society and of less consequence in their impact on society as a whole.

There seemed to be a greater unity, a greater harmony of opinion on what was right and wrong than we are finding today; is there any explanation for that change? I believe there is a simple explanation for that change and that is the gradual removal of a reference point for behavior; an elimination of the benchmark for right and wrong.

If there is no standard, no law, then there is no way that standard or law can be violated; if there is no speed limit then it is equally lawful to drive at 35, 85, or even 125 miles or more per hour without breaking the law.

The Apostle Paul addressed this fact in Romans 5:13 where it is written, “13 To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law.” One might even ask if there is any such thing as sin if there is no reference point for personal behavior. If “no one is hurt and it feels good” should it not be considered right? What’s more, if there is no standard for behavior, would it not be right to simply dispose of another person if you felt they stood in the way of your achieving personal satisfaction and you were stronger and able to dispose of them?

It’s easy to imagine how chaotic society would become if all moral standards were removed; there would be no individual rights and we would be thrown into a “survival of the strongest and meanest” mode for sure; reminiscent of the world just before the Genesis flood. Very few, if any, would really want to see this as the norm for society; this implies the need for some standard of behavior, perhaps some moral absolutes to govern behavior if a society is to prosper and grow.

Are There Any?

We have all seen many changes; some are clearly beneficial, while others would be open to debate as to their true value. Since changes are coming at such a fast pace, I’m confident that all of us can quickly enumerate developments that may be viewed as positive or negative in their impact on life and living.

While the technological advances have provided amazing benefits to many, that is really not the subject of this essay; what I would like to discuss here is the question of relative versus absolute morality. Society seems to be in the process of aggressively following a path that leads to a relative, rather than an absolute moral standard; we are moving from a law abiding to a more lawless mentality.

Laws have become more arbitrary, more subject to interpretation to fit the whims of the moment; they can be bent or broken with impunity and sadly, we are seeing this from the top of our nation’s leadership on down.

While there are absolute standards in science and technology, the concept of absolute standards in moral behavior is being increasingly viewed as archaic and unsuitable for contemporary society. If one is to have an absolute moral standard then there must be a reference point against which all moral behavior would be measured, a benchmark for morality as it were. Following that line of thought, it is interesting to note that science and technology, with its absolute standards, are progressing rapidly while society, without absolute standards, appears to be in a downward spiral of moral decay.

For centuries, the Bible had served as that benchmark; it provided the specific information needed to serve as the standard for moral behavior. Now, the Bible is being cast aside and rejected as irrelevant and out of date. Acceptable moral behavior is now seen as negotiable, subject to interpretation based on the circumstances; anyone who would try and impose an absolute standard is also viewed as irrelevant and out of date.

What Constitutes Moral Decay?

When I referenced above, “a downward spiral of moral decay” was I not being judgmental, was I not imposing some objective standard, some benchmark of moral excellence? I confess, I was, I was being irrelevant and out of date by referring to the Biblical standard.

Would it not be possible that those who reject the Bible would see society as moving toward moral perfection? Is morality, then, a matter of personal interpretation and subject to the whims of the moment? I believe it is not, even if we should eliminate the Bible from consideration, I believe there is an objective standard in nature that will demonstrate whether moral relativism or moral absolutism is correct. Now the question; how could we determine which is correct?

I suggest to you that sustainable workability is the natural standard by which the validity of any philosophy of morality must be measured. Does the moral system promote the successful continuity of the society in which it is practiced; does the society grow and prosper, offering opportunities to pursue health and happiness to the members of that society? If it offers those opportunities over an extended period then it is valid; if it does not then it is not valid.

God’s Plan for Long Term Sustainability

If you should check out population or demographic decline you will find over 18,700,000 results in a matter of seconds. It appears that Western Civilization as we know it is on the way out. As the Western nations have increasingly discarded the Bible and Biblical standards they have begun to decline; we can easily see these forces at work in the United States.

The Bible offers a moral standard that works but that is no surprise to those of us who believe it was given to us for our instruction and guidance to successful living by the Creator God who gave us life. The Biblical standard was given to enrich our lives and help us find the very best path to a rich, full life that brings the greatest joy and provides for the healthy continuation of any society.

The perfect expression of moral excellence is found in the New Testament by both illustration and example; we have in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ a living expression of absolute morality perfectly displayed; it is in this life we find the example established.

Our Creator God, in His omniscience, knew we would need a lot of help and provided the Living Word, the Son of God, as well as the written word, the Bible to help us find the best way to enjoy life and living. To ignore God’s help is to invite disaster and sadly, we seem to have chosen the path of ignorance as God had predicted we would.

There is really good news for those of us who love the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior; a time is coming when we shall be able to enjoy life as God had planned it; a time when God’s perfect moral absolutes will be perfectly fulfilled in society. What is exciting to me is the possibility that time may come soon.

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Posted by: davidbowerkingwood | May 26, 2014

The Painted Veil That Hides Reality, by David Bower

 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 object 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 been lifted; 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”

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