2 Kings 2:23-24
23 He went up from there to Bethel, and while he was going up on the way, some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him, saying, “Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!” 24 And he turned around, and when he saw them, he cursed them in the name of the Lord. And two she-bears came out of the woods and tore forty-two of the boys.
The above passage is just plain weird. IN fact, the only time I have ever really heard it referenced is when making a joke about this being the only “youth group” in the Bible. But, is there not something more for us to learn from this passage than that kids who made fun of the prophet got mauled by bears?
I think that there is something very important for us to grasp here. Elisha was the man of God. He was the prophet. HE was the man who was charged with communicating to Israel the words of the living God.
The young men in the story were not at all concerned about Elisha’s role of spiritual leadership. They were happy to make fun of him. They called him to “Go on up.” Perhaps they were making fun of the loss of Elijah while telling Elisha to get away too.
Be careful what you say about the men of God and the word of God. It is no trivial thing to put down and taunt those who serve the Lord faithfully. Perhaps you are in a church in which you don’t personally like your pastor. What do you do? Do you make fun of him? Do you take cheap shots at him? Do you criticize him to others behind the pastor’s back? If so, I wonder how much different you sound in the ears of the Lord than those youths who made fun of God’s prophet.
OH, I know, pastors are flawed. I’m terribly flawed in far more ways than I would comfortably blog. And, if we think clearly, we can assume Elisha was flawed too. But Elisha was still the man of God for the people of God at that time in Israel’s history. To mock him was to commit a very serious offense against the God who set Elisha up as prophet. Similarly, to mock and take cheap shots at your pastor is to commit a very serious offense against the very same God.
I understand that some pastors are unbiblical and dangerous. You should do what you can to talk to such men. IF you see your pastor failing to handle Scripture rightly, you should talk to him personally. You should, with all love and grace, try to help him to see your point. You should be willing to pray with the pastor and work with him to help him to serve the Lord better. But don’t, for the love of God and his church, go out and try to hurt the ministry without you first trying to find out the heart and reasoning of the pastor.
If the pastor is in sin in some way, it is your loving job as a Christian to graciously confront him and try to help him to repent. This is the call of Jesus from Mathew 18:15-17 that all Christians are to follow. But if you are not willing to first follow Scripture’s call to confront the man in his sin, don’t think you will be righteous and honoring to God if you go around and gossip about someone you are unwilling to sit down and talk with. If the pastor is doing something illegal, go through the proper channels to expose it and to put a stop to it in order to protect others. This is by no means a shield for clergy abuse. But it is a call for those who would make an accusation to do so properly, wisely, and in a godly way.
There are always difficulties with making a blanket statement about how we are to handle any situation. It is hard to tell somebody how to deal with a situation that you are not experiencing yourself. But, let’s learn something from this weird passage in 2 Kings. Let’s learn to guard the way that we speak about those who are serving God. Let’s be careful not to mock those who have been charged with delivering to us God’s word, especially if they actually do their job and deliver that word. No, never tolerate sin or abuse. But be circumspect as you speak regarding those who serve the Lord.
In Christ Alone
This is a very nice live version of this great modern hymn.
Found: God’s Will – A Review
John MacArthur’s Found: God’s Will has for many years been my go-to book to offer Christians a brief answer to the question of how they might understand God’s will in their lives. When Christians ask about God’s will, they are generally looking for advice on how to make a decision so as not to displease their Lord. MacArthur, in only a few pages (or just over an hour of an audio book), offers as clear an answer as anyone I’ve seen.
Positives
In his book and philosophy of discerning God’s will, John MacArthur is first and foremost biblical. MacArthur makes it clear that the way for a Christian to understand God’s will for his or her life is to be found in Scripture. MacArthur does not suggest any sort of strange, mystical, or superstitious use of Scripture, but a simple, clear, honest look at the text of God’s word. We need more of this in Christendom.
Besides being biblical, MacArthur is wonderfully freeing in his approach. Taking God’s call in Psalm 37:4 to heart, the author concludes in his work that a Christian delighted in God and submitted to his commands will be free to do what he or she desires. This is by no means a license for sin, as the prerequisite for doing what you want is that you have first done what God has proclaimed is his will in clear texts of Scripture. MacArthur calls us to be saved, to be Spirit-filled, to be sanctified, to willingly suffer persecution for the sake of the gospel, and to be submitted to the authorities that God has placed over us. When those conditions are met, a believer will be free in his love for God to do whatever he desires without fearing somehow thwarting God’s will.
A final positive that I will mention is that this book is wonderfully brief, only 64 pamphlet-sized pages in print. MacArthur does not force his readers to wade through hundreds of pages to find the answer they are seeking to the question of how to make a decision about whom to marry or which college to attend.
Negatives
The brevity of MacArthur’s work, though a positive, is also a negative. There are many challenges that MacArthur simply does not address, as his work is more a pamphlet than a scholarly defense of non-mystical decision-making. Thus, MacArthur does not address questions of spiritual gifts, “leadings” in prayer, or other methods people might declare useful for discerning God’s will.
We might also add that MacArthur’s list of five categories to satisfy is not exhaustive. For example, MacArthur does not address the need for a believer not only to desire something biblical, but to also be convinced in his or her conscience that his or her actions are right (Rom 14:21). I do not doubt that MacArthur would agree with this added point, but his brief work did not allow for the addition of other points (nor does having a clear conscience begin with the letter S, thus potentially messing up the entire system [and for the humor-impaired, this parenthetical is sarcastic]).
Recommendation
While many God’s will books have been written, I still find MacArthur’s tiny work to be my first choice for helping believers begin to grasp that the word of God is sufficient for life’s difficult decisions. There are other books that I like very much on this topic as well, including Kevin DeYoung’s Just Do Something, but for a short, simple, and sound answer to the question, MacArthur’s Found: God’s Will is an excellent resource. I have no hesitation in recommending this little book to any believer.
Audio
As part of their reviewers program, I was given a free audio copy of the audio version of this book from Christian Audio. The reading and audio quality of this work meets the high standards one has come to expect from this organization. To learn more, visit www.christianaudio.com.
can I Know God’s Will – A Review
R. C. Sproul. Can I Know God’s Will. Crucial Questions Series, no 4. Lake Mary, FL: Reformation Trust, 2009. 102 pp. $7.00.
Has any question been asked more often or with more earnest desire than the question of how a Christian can understand what is the will of God? This topic matters, and so it was with great anticipation that I began to read volume 4 in R. C. Sproul’s Crucial Questions series. The little book, Can I Know God’s Will addresses a few important and sometimes neglected issues in the discussion of the will of God.
Positives
I love reading R. C. Sproul. He has a style of writing, a scholarly clarity, that many authors of today sadly lack. This book has logical thought, real-life illustrations, humor, and the occasional Latin phrase sprinkled in (one can’t have Sproul without Latin). Simply put, this is a book that is easy-to-read without being dull or overly simple.
Sproul addresses the topic of God’s will from what I would consider to be a very solid angle. In defining the concept of God’s will, Sproul speaks of God’s will of decree (that which God in his sovereignty makes happen), his will of precept (that which God commands people do), and his will of disposition (that which God desires to happen but will not force). Until those categories are understood, the question “What is Gods’ will” is a nonsense question. Sproul makes a solid argument for the distinctions between Gods’ will of precept and his will of decree, and shows that we want to know God’s will of precept and disposition while we have little right to attempt to find God’s will of decree.
For many Christians, the breakdown of the different kinds of will of God will be worth the book’s cover price. Far too often we desire to have God tell us the future. We want to know which decision we can make that will make our lives work perfectly without any struggle, difficulty, or pain. In this seeking, we are wanting less to honor God and more to simply have God work for us like a fortune-teller who steers us away from difficulties. However, God has not chosen to reveal the future or his secret decrees to his children, and we ought not think that we can find this “will” through any of our means.
In the other chapters of the book, Sproul addresses the question of God’s will versus man’s will. The author argues that, for God to be sovereign, man’s will cannot supersede God’s will. While mankind is free to choose according to man’s greatest desire, such choosing will never be outside the ultimate decreed will of God. Again, this is a concept that many Christians need to consider.
In the final two chapters, Sproul offers some very practical advice for Christians who are looking into issues of God’s will in career and marriage choices. Since many believers struggle mightily in these areas, Sproul’s points could prove to be valuable aids.
Negatives
While I agree with the points that Sproul makes in this work, I found myself disappointed in the overall construction of the book. When a person asks about issues related to determining the will of God, that person is generally trying to examine practical versus mystical means of hearing the voice of God in order to receive God’s guidance. It is good that Sproul makes it clear that the word of God, his preceptive will, is what we must learn in order to do what is right. Sproul makes a point similar to John MacArthur’s point in Found: God’s Will, the key to discerning Gods’ will is to obey God’s commands and then to act with godly freedom. Though Sproul makes this point in general, he makes it more weakly than I would like, and does not address the dangerous false methods that many use to attempt to discern God’s will. So, while Sproul’s point is solid, he fails to thoroughly deal with the questions that I think would be on the hearts of many of his readers.
I also question the 3 category approach of God’s will. While I understand Sproul’s use of the 3 wills, it seems to me to be simpler to refer to God’s will of decree and will of precept and to include God’s will of disposition in the will of precept. I wonder if adding this third category truly advances the discussion, or if it in fact might add a level of confusion for those who read Sproul’s work who will then seek to discover a hidden “disposition” that is somehow apart from Scripture. If believers attempt this task, they will then be back at square one, looking for a “will” that they have no way of objectively finding.
The chapters on career and marriage were very wise chapters to insert. However, I wonder if readers who pick those chapters up to read will feel satisfied. Sproul offers some wise questions and wise counsel; however, will readers who are looking for more understand that such wise questions and wise counsel are really what they need? Since Sproul does not deal strongly with the many negative methods that some would attempt to discover the will of God, he might not be able to satisfy readers who find themselves reading chapters 3 and 4.
Conclusion and Recommendation
Though I wish that Sproul had rearranged his work to spend more time on some of the mystical and non-scriptural means that some would suggest for discerning God’s will, I still love that he addresses for Christians to grasp that the will of God is not a secret path that we must stumble upon in order to live a successful life. I would that Sproul spent less time on the discussion of human freedom versus God’s sovereignty and more time on how Christians go about decision-making in general. But with those complaints aside, Christians who need a more philosophical look at the concept of the will of God and the freedom of man can certainly benefit from this work. It is easy to read through in a short time, and the concepts present are certainly solid.
Disclosure
Reformation Trust has given me a free copy of this work for the review that I am submitting.
Grudem’s Systematic Theology – A Review
Over the past couple of years, I made it a goal of mine to read through Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology. Grudem’s is one of the standard systematic theology books used in Bible colleges and seminaries around the world. I read Millard Erickson’s book in my theology classes in seminary, and thus wanted to take a look at Grudem’s work. Over the next few paragraphs, I will mention just a few impressions of the text that I have. I will not attempt a thorough review, as to review a 1,200 page work is not a task I relish.
Positives
The first thing that I will applaud in Grudem’s work is the way in which he made his book accessible for readers of all different levels. While some of the concepts are necessarily difficult to mentally wade through, Grudem did extremely well in making this book readable. I do not remember many times in which I felt I had to reread a paragraph or sentence simply because the prose was difficult. Yes, sometimes the logic was difficult, but never the language. Grudem does not revel in using bigger words than his readers can easily digest.
Another positive of the book is its devotional nature. At the end of each chapter, Grudem offers questions for reflection, Scripture to memorize, and even an applicable hymn for the topic being discussed. This demonstrates for us that Grudem does not consider theology something to be reserved for sterile academia. On the contrary, Grudem helps us to see that to embrace theology should necessarily include a deep life of worship of the Creator.
I must also say, though it sound self-promoting, that I enjoyed reading a work that I could so readily agree with. As the author took us through doctrine after doctrine, I found myself so regularly thinking, “Yes, that is exactly what I think.” Of course this is not every concept on every page, but for the most part, I found myself easily able to point back to Grudem and to say to people that this is a good place to see why my doctrine is what it is.
Negatives
In any work of this size, it is impossible to agree with every concept or argument. There are some doctrines or definitions given where I believed that Grudem may have shot wide of the mark. This is a difficult thing to write, however, as I assume Grudem to be much brighter than me, and thus he is probably right while I need the correction. Without getting into the issues, Grudem’s definition of the New Testament gift of prophecy and his handling of cessationism vs. continuationism is an example where I do not quite find myself lining up with the author’s assessment. I will say, however, that reading Grudem here has made me commit to review my position on the topic and examine my own understanding.
Perhaps the strangest criticism of this book is that some chapters feel too short. Yes, this book is already enormous. Many people will never open its covers for the simple fact of the intimidating mass of the tome. However, some of the latter chapters of the book feel like cursory overviews. This is the downfall of a single volume systematic theology. The point is, however, that many who look to this book for a defining answer on difficult issues such as eschatology will only find a starting point with Grudem, but will have to look to other, more focused works to find a conclusion. No, this criticism is not fair when we consider the book’s purpose, but it is still something that a reader may sense as he or she works through the volume.
Recommendation
I would recommend that Christians of all walks of life take a shot at working through Grudem’s Systematic Theology. Yes, the book is huge. But, if you will give yourself to simply one chapter per week, in 57 weeks, just over 1 year, you will have worked through deep thinking on some of the most glorious things that a person can consider. I have no personal hesitation at all in calling Christians to look to Grudem’s work as a great starting place for understanding the things of the faith.
An Amazing Sovereignty (Genesis 45:4-9)
4 So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near. And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. 5 And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. 6 For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are yet five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. 7 And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. 8 So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
Which is ultimate, God’s sovereignty or man’s freedom? If we believe that Joseph knows what he is talking about, the answer is that God’s will is ultimate. Mysteriously, this is not to say that God’s will does not involve human freedom. However, at the end of the day, when all is said and done, God is sovereign and man, even man’s freedom, is subject to the decree of the Lord.
You know the story of Joseph. His brothers sold him as a slave and shipped him off to Egypt. Everything in that account would show us that his brothers acted of their own accord, in concert with their freedom. The brothers would have had no way of recognizing the sovereign hand of God at work. They did what they wanted to do.
Yet, when they stand before Joseph, God pulls back the curtain. Yes, they acted freely, but God was the one at work. The brothers cannot receive any of the credit for the outcome of their actions. In fact, their actions were sinful; and, in fact, the brothers bear personal moral responsibility for those actions. Yet, if the scene can be understood by us mere mortals, we understand that, somehow, God was the ultimate actor from start to finish, though God is in no way guilty of sin.
Can your view of God’s sovereignty and man’s freedom handle the words of the Scripture here? Can you see that, while the brothers acted freely, it was ultimately God who was in control? Can you handle that, even though hard things were done, God drove all the circumstances to work out his will for his glory? Can you live with the fact that we are free, but that our freedom is limited by God’s sovereignty and not the other way around?
It is wonderful to know that God is sovereign. It is glorious to know that his will is always going to be ultimately accomplished. God will not be eternally wishing that things had turned out differently. God will never be defeated. God’s plan will never be thwarted. He will use man, even the sinful free choices of men, to accomplish his perfect plan; all the while God will never be guilty of sin in any form. God will move in our desires to help us accomplish his plan, but we will never know that it was his hand moving our desires until he shows us that in eternity. God is magnificent, and worthy of our fear, our awe, our love, and our praise.
Judah as Substitute (Genesis 44:30-34
Genesis 44:30-34
30 “Now therefore, as soon as I come to your servant my father, and the boy is not with us, then, as his life is bound up in the boy’s life, 31 as soon as he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die, and your servants will bring down the gray hairs of your servant our father with sorrow to Sheol. 32 For your servant became a pledge of safety for the boy to my father, saying, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, then I shall bear the blame before my father all my life.’ 33 Now therefore, please let your servant remain instead of the boy as a servant to my lord, and let the boy go back with his brothers. 34 For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I fear to see the evil that would find my father.”
One of the key, running themes in the Bible is substitution. Though the men in the days of Jacob and his 12 sons may not have realized it, God’s plan for humanity’s rescue had always been comprised of a sacrificial substitute. God planned, from before creation, that he would send Jesus to become the sacrificial substitute for the sins of God’s children. Jesus would receive in himself the punishment that others deserved.
That the theme of substitution is central to the Scripture’s tale is evident in what we see Judah do here in Genesis 44. Judah, from whose line the Christ will come, stands before Joseph. Benjamin has been found guilty of a crime before Joseph. Judah, however, pleads with Joseph to allow him to bear the punishment in Benjamin’s stead.
Judah will take Benjamin’s penalty in order to spare Benjamin and Jacob the pain.
I love to read The Jesus Storybook Bible with my children. The subtitle, “Every story whispers his name,” is so fitting and so glorious. Here, in Judah, we again see the name of Jesus whispered. Yes, Judah acted selflessly. Yes, Judah offered to sacrifice himself for the sake of his brother. But even more, Judah points us to the greater sacrifice. Judah reminds us of the ultimate substitute. Judah shows us what it will be like when Jesus walks to the cross and bears God’s wrath for the sins of those who will be saved.
A Strange Reminder of Sovereignty (Genesis 38:27-30)
Genesis 38:27-30
27 When the time of her labor came, there were twins in her womb. 28 And when she was in labor, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, “This one came out first.” 29 But as he drew back his hand, behold, his brother came out. And she said, “What a breach you have made for yourself!” Therefore his name was called Perez. 30 Afterward his brother came out with the scarlet thread on his hand, and his name was called Zerah.
While the passage above might seem very obscure and strange to you, it is one of the most glorious little reminders of God’s sovereignty. This passage is the conclusion of the Judah-Tamar story. If you remember, Judah treated Tamar deceptively, refusing to marry her to his third son after his first two sons died childless. Tamar, in a very unrighteous way, took matters into her own hands. She disguised herself as a prostitute and seduced Judah, becoming pregnant by her father-in-law. When the truth came to light, Judah confessed that he was an even greater sinner than Tamar, and he did not take advantage of her again. (By the way, it is only after this point that we ever see Judah do good.)
Then it became time for Tamar to give birth. It turns out that she was carrying twins. It was significant, then, for people to recognize which twin was born first. God had promised that his plan would be carried through Judah’s family line. In general, the blessing, the wealth, and the promise would go to the firstborn.
Now, here is what we see that is interesting. WE see a hand of a child. The midwife ties a thread around the kid’s arm so we know which one is the firstborn. Then, something happens. The kid backs up. The twins somehow swap positions and the other baby comes out first. This astonishes the midwife. The boy is named “Perez,” meaning to break through.
What in the world ought we learn from this? Oh, this story has a lot to commend it to us. We see Judah learn about his evil. We see God still find a way to use a scoundrel like Judah. We see the sadness of a woman used and abused, and we certainly learn not to treat people like Tamar was treated. But there is something more glorious and much more beautiful in this passage. God’s glory is front and center if we’ll see it.
How can we see God’s glory here? God chose which child would be born first. It is nothing short of miraculous to see how the children switched their birth order. God must have done it. It’s not like there is a ton of room down there for the kids to wrestle past each other. No, God moved, and by doing so, he showed that he, by his sovereign power, was superintending the birth order. God knew which child he would use to carry his promise, and God had that child born first. But, instead of simply having that kid come out first, God made sure to show that he was the one who did it.
Do you ever fear that God has lost control of the circumstances of your life? Think again. God is far more mighty than your greatest hardship. He is in control. He will accomplish is plan. He will arrange circumstances so that, when all is said and done, God’s name is glorified.
God Does the Impossible (Genesis 35:5)
Genesis 35:5
And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were around them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob.
Too often we make decisions about what to do based on what makes sense to us. Too often, we fail to remember that our command to reach the world with the Gospel of Christ has been given to us by the God who is over all the earth. Too often we fail to remember that the Holy Spirit of God is with us. Too often, we fail to grasp that God has the power to do what we think impossible. Too often, we fail to see that God doing the impossible glorifies him and gives us joy.
When Jacob traveled in Canaan with his people, his sons did some things that made them not the most beloved group in the land. Jacob feared that the Canaanite people would come and fight against him and his family. In fact, all logic pointed in this direction. Levi and Simeon had wiped out an entire village [and nobody is arguing that this was the right thing to do]. It only made sense that Jacob’s days were numbered.
But God was involved in his people’s lives. God was keeping his promises to Jacob, to Isaac, and to Abraham. God used his power, his amazing, unseen, invisible power, to make things happen that Jacob did not imagine.
God, by his own power and for his own glory, made fear of Jacob fall upon the people of the land. While it seems that the Canaanites would have assembled and destroyed a similar band to the family of Jacob, God moved. Behind the scenes, out of human sight, God made it so that the enemies never mustered the courage to attack. The men who might have spoken to raise a mob never spoke. The tough guys who might have picked up the spears never quite managed to get their hands to move. God acted, and Jacob remained safe.
What about us? What might God do for us if we would simply be bold enough to follow him? Do you want to move to a foreign country for missions but fear you lack the funds? Why not trust God? Do you want to share the gospel with your neighbor but are afraid that she won’t hear you? Why not pray and give it a shot? God is with us. God is real. God is strong. God changes lives. God changes circumstances that we cannot see. Why not trust him and step out in faith? Why not ask him to do what is otherwise impossible if he does not do it?
God Gave me Success (Genesis 27:20)
Genesis 27:20
But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “Because the Lord your God granted me success.”
I have one little thought to point out from this passage. The context is simple. Jacob is deceiving his father. Isaac is too old to be able to see Jacob, and so Jacob, by his mother’s scheme, is pretending to be Esau for the purpose of garnering the blessing for himself. When Isaac asks how he was able to get to him so quickly with hunted game (Isaac had sent Esau to hunt for him), Jacob declares that God had given him success.
Here is the tiny point I have: Not all who claim that God has given them success have really experienced God’s success. Talk to any pastor in any church, to any Christian leader in any ministry organization, and each of them will say that God has given them success. We all say this. If the church is growing, God has given us success. If we have enough money to build, God has given us success. If we have even one member go into the ministry or go on mission, God has given us success. Whether our methods honored God or not, if they worked, we declare that God has given us success.
Be careful, then, when someone tells you that God has given them success. Often it will be true. Certainly, no one truly honors God in their lives without God being behind it all. At the same time, even those who dishonor God are not escaping the sovereignty of God. But, be careful assuming that, just because a man says God blessed him, that he is doing what God really wants. Also be careful claiming that God has blessed you with success. First make sure that you are obeying the commands of God before you credit him with blessing your idea, your ministry, or your local congregation.
Again, I know that God is behind all that is good. Every good and perfect gift comes to us from the Lord. But let’s be careful not to, as Jacob did, use the name of the Lord our God in vain—an in an empty and meaningless and dishonest way.
Pastor Travis Peterson 