I’ve tried to avoid this topic. As unbearable as atheists are on subjects like origins, they’re even worse when it comes to things like slavery in the Bible. Their imaginations run loose and their feigned outrage cause them to exaggerate and fabricate to an extent that seems to know no bounds when it comes to the topic of slavery in the Bible. Why do I say their outrage is not genuine? Because, if you'll remember, atheists don't believe in God. They don't really believe that any of this actually took place. "I don't believe in God, but I'm furious that He commanded the Israelites to take slaves." Pfft!
What follows is from a discussion between John Loftus and another couple. For the life of me I can’t find the site from which this was taken. Loftus of course makes comments that are easily as nonsensical as Sal’s. I give it to you as I found it. If you are willing to read with an open mind and not in a spirit of challenging what you read before you’ve read it all, you might, might gain a proper perspective. Personally? I don’t hold out any hope for education as the mass of bigotry and bias among atheists in this area is as dense as a black hole.
It is often affirmed, as an incontestable and obvious truth, that the Bible supports slavery. Walter Sinnott-Armstrong cites Leviticus 25:44 as evidence of this charge in “Why Traditional Theism is not an Adequate Foundation for Morality.”1. [1] Although Armstrong is not the alone in making this claim, I think the charge is mistaken; the Bible does not support slavery.
This claim was refuted by John Locke in his Second Treatise on Civil Government, one of the founding texts of contemporary liberal political theory. Locke was a famous English philosopher, less known is that Locke was also the author of several commentaries on scripture and the First Treatise of Civil Government was essentially a class argument from scripture against the divine right of kings. In the Second Treatise, Locke argued that the law of nature, which for Locke is the law of God, forbids a person selling themselves or another into slavery.[2]
In response to the line of argument Armstrong cites, Locke responded with
I confess, we find among the Jews, as well as other nations, that men did sell themselves; but, it is plain, this was only to drudgery, not to slavery: for, it is evident, the person sold was not under an absolute, arbitrary, despotical power: for the master could not have power to kill him, at any time, whom, at a certain time, he was obliged to let go free out of his service; and the master of such a servant was so far from having an arbitrary power over his life, that he could not, at pleasure, so much as maim him, but the loss of an eye, or tooth, set him free, Exod. xxi.[3]
Locke’s argument here is as follows,
[1] If a person is a slave then that person is “under the absolute, arbitrary power of another, to take away his life, when he pleases.”[4]
[2] The institution referred to in scripture that people could sell themselves into, was not one where they were “under an absolute, arbitrary, despotical power.”
The conclusion Locke draws from [1] and [2] is that the institution scripture refers to is not slavery. Locke’s response here is interesting and fundamentally correct. Here I want to simply elaborate on it in more detail so I will address each premise in turn.
What is Slavery?Central to Locke’s argument is his definition of slavery and understanding of what makes slavery wrong. Locke understands the state of slavery as,
[1] If a person is a slave then that person is “under the absolute, arbitrary power of another, to take away his life, when he pleases.”
Rodney Stark utilises a similar definition,
A slave is a human being who, in the eyes of the law and custom, is the possession, or chattel, of another human being or of a small group of human beings. Ownership of slaves entails absolute control, including the right to punish (often including the right to kill), to direct behaviour, and to transfer ownership.[5]
The Oxford Dictionary gives a similar definition; a slave is defined as a “person who is the legal property of another or others and is bound to absolute obedience, human chattel.”[6] Timothy Keller notes correctly that the English word ‘slave’ carries connotations of new-world slavery as it was practiced in the British Empire, made infamous in the antebellum southern states of the US.[7] It is this paradigm that critics of scripture tend to allude to. John Loftus, for example, cites an eyewitness description of antebellum practices and then links it slavery in the Bible,
He took her into the kitchen, and stripped her from neck to waist. He made her get upon the stool, and he tied her hands to a hook in the joist. After rolling up his sleeves, he commenced to lay on the heavy cow skin, and soon the warm, red blood came dripping to the floor … No words, no tears, no prayers, from his gory victim, seemed to move his iron heart from its bloody purpose. The louder she screamed, the harder he whipped; and where the blood ran fastest, there he whipped longest. He would whip her to make her scream, and whip her to make her hush; and not until overcome by fatigue, would he cease to swing the blood clotted cowskin.
Why didn’t the Christian God ever explicitly and clearly condemn slavery?[8]
In the British Empire and in many US states, slavery was governed under the Code of Barbados. This code was explicitly racist and described Africans as “heathenish, brutish, and an uncertaine, dangerous kinde of people.”[9] It allowed owners to use, “unlimited force to compel labor without penalty even if this resulted in maiming or death;”[10] It denied slaves due process rights, allowed owners to, in effect, kill their slave for any cause, forbade slaves from marrying and effectively, prevented owners from setting their slaves free.[11] Keller writes that, “The African slave trade was begun and resourced through kidnapping.”[12] Stark notes that “20 to 40 percent of slaves died while being transported to the coast, another 3-10 percent died while waiting on the coast, and about 12 to 16 percent boarded on ships died during the voyage.”[13]
Does the Old Testament Approve of Slavery?
Armstrong argues that “the bible contains some horrible passages about slavery;”[14] to substantiate this he cites from the English Standard Version, "as for your male and female slaves whom you may have: you may buy male and female slaves from among the nations around you." (Lev 25:44) [15]
The ESV here uses the English word ‘slavery’ to translate the Hebrew word ebed. An important initial observation is that ebed is the noun form of the verb abad which means ‘to work’ or ‘to serve.’ Ebed does not have the same semantic range as the contemporary word ‘slave;’ Freedman notes,
The word ebed however, denoted not only actual slaves occupied in production or in the household but also persons in subordinate positions (mainly subordinate with regard to the king and his higher officials). Thus the term ebed is sometimes translated as “servant.” Besides, the term was used as a sign of servility in reference to oneself when addressing persons of higher rank.[16]
Locke suggests that an examination of The Torah’s references to an ebed shows that, in fact, it is not the equivalent of what in English language and culture is referred to with the word ‘slave.’ I noted above that Locke’s second premise was,
[2] The institution referred to in scripture that people could sell themselves into, was not one where they were “under an absolute, arbitrary, despotical power.”
I will give four examples to demonstrate why I think Locke is correct.
First, an ebed was not acquired by kidnapping; kidnapping a human being and selling them as a slave was a capital offence in The Torah (Ex 21:16). Moreover, slave trading is implicitly condemned in the book of Revelation (Rev 18:13) and explicitly condemned by Paul as contrary to the law and sound doctrine (1 Tim 1:9-10). An ebed is used in The Torah to refer to a person who offers to work for another, free of charge, in exchange for a debt being cancelled. During service the ebed worked for and served another, lived in that person’s house and probably received free food and board.
Second, the institution was not based on racist notions that ebed were of an inferior race. In fact, the opposite is affirmed. In the book of Job we read,
If I have rejected the cause of my male or female slaves [Hebrew: ebed amah] when they brought a complaint against me; what then shall I do when God rises up? When he makes inquiry, what shall I answer him? Did not he who made me in the womb make them? And did not one fashion us in the womb? (Job 31:13-15
Here Job refers to an ebed as having a right to go to court and sue their “owner” in pursuit of their rights. Job bases this on the idea that both he and his ebed are equal; both are created by God.
Third, as Locke notes, an ebed was not the property of another so that they could dispose of them as they saw fit. To deliberately kill an ebed is a capital offence (Ex 21:20-21). Similarly, it was illegal to strike an ebed (Ex 21:26-27). This latter point is often denied on the basis of Exodus 21:20-21,
If a man beats his male or female slave with a rod and the slave dies as a direct result, he must be punished, but he is not to be punished if the slave gets up after a day or two, since the slave is his property.
Some interpret this passage to mean that because a slave is the property of another they can severely beat the slave and providing the beating is not fatal, there is no punishment. This fails to deal adequately with the context and the Hebrew text; the word translated as ‘property’ here is actually ‘silver’ (a reference to money) and the word translated ‘punishment’ here is not the usual word for punishment. Christopher Wright notes that the word implies “the shedding of the blood of the master of the slave”[17] and so refers to capital punishment. It is used in direct contrast with the same word in the previous verse where it is stated that deliberately killing an ebed is to be avenged. Therefore it does not say the person will not be punished for beating a slave, it says he will not be executed for it unless he kills the slave. For further evidence that the passage is not a licence to beat, a couple of verses later even causing a minor injury on an ebed, such as a bruise, is explicitly condemned.
The same contrast occurs in the passage immediately preceding where a free man who struck and killed another was to be “held responsible” but not if the person survives. It is clear from v 19, however, that the person was in fact to be punished; hence, again, the ‘held responsible’ is referring only to being held responsible for murder and is not speaking to the lesser charges. What Ex 21:20-21 says then, is that if a person deliberately kills their ebed then they are to be held responsible for murder and executed. If the slave if the slave “gets up after a day or two,” they are not to be held responsible for murder because the ebed is their “silver.”
This makes sense when a few verses later, in Ex 21:26-27, striking a slave is explicitly prohibited and the legal punishment is for the ebed to go free. In The Torah, the penalty for assault was for the assailant to provide monetary compensation to the victim.[18] This would create a quandary in this case as an ebed is in a position of servitude because he or she is in debt to the person they work for. In such a case the assailant would owe money to a person who owes him money. The Torah resolves the issue by declaring that even a trivial strike (such as the causing a bruise 21:25) resulted in an immediate cancelation of the ebed’s entire debt, which would often result in a financial loss to the assailant.
Third, unlike new world slavery which was life long and where, under the Barbados code, emancipation was effectively prohibited, an ebed could not be held in service for more than six years (Exodus 21:2).[19] Upon release, their employer was morally required to give them sufficient resources for them to be set up on their own feet (Deut 15:12-18) and the community left resources for them to live on for a year (Ex 23:10-11, Lev 25:2-7). In fact, The Torah encouraged people to prevent family members from becoming an ebed by paying their debts for them (Lev 25:48). Paul, after writing to the Corinthians and encouraging them to “retain the place in life that the Lord assigned,” encourages slaves to purchase their freedom and not to remain in this position (1 Cor 7:21-22).
Finally, if an ebed fled from an oppressive employer it was illegal to return him or her to “his master,” instead he or she was to live, “wherever he likes and in whatever town he chooses” (Deut 23:15-16). It was forbidden to send him or her back to his owner. This law stood in stark contrast the Ancient Near Eastern legal customs of the day.[20] The code of Hammurabi, for example, proscribed the death penalty for receiving a runaway slave.[21] In the antebellum south, the Fugitive Slave Act 1850 required the return of run-away slaves at penalty of law.
It seems then that Locke’s response is fundamentally correct. While it is true that many English translations of the bible use the word slavery to translate the word ebed it is mistaken to see the two institutions as the same. Slavery refers to the state of being the property or chattel of another; regardless of what connotations various words in English translations have, the institution referred to in scripture did not permit, condone or allow this.
Some people ask, why wasn’t God crystal clear on this issue since people suffered horrendously at the hands of Bible quoting masters?”
Well, even if you interpret “ebed” as “slave” as Hodge did, God WAS crystal clear in scripture about not beating them, not killing them, not threatening, the fact they were entitled to due process rights, must be released after six years and so on; in other words, to NOT treat them as property to be disposed of as one sees fit. Hence, to suggest that the Bible is unclear on the kind of suffering inflicted on the US southern slaves is false.
Another question that is asked is, “If there is a perfectly good God who knows us like he does and could foreknow how we humans would misuse the Bible, then why didn’t he reveal himself to us better than he did? There are many things in the Bible which led his followers to kill and hurt people that upon human hindsight could’ve been stated better.”
This is an incoherent argument. Knowledge constitutes of a warranted and true belief. If God foreknew that people would misuse the Bible then it must be true that they would, but then God could not prevent them doing so, if he did then it would not be true that they would in which case he would not know it.
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Given that slaves had the same basic rights as men, even if it were correct that women were treated like slaves, there should not be a great problem with it. Slaves could not be raped or forcibly married; it is clear from many passages stated above that the only difference between the rights of slaves and men is that one owed money and had consented to work that debt off.
In the passages condemning assault, homicide, etc there are NO exceptions made for women – the fact there are not, that women were treated equally, was actually controversial given the surrounding, non-Christian, cultures.
Some suggest that women were made to marry their rapist. Those passages do not mean rape in the sense anti-theist would like it to mean. They refer to pre-marital seduction – consensual sex - where the woman concerned was quite happy to marry the man she was sleeping with (not surprising given the risk of pregnancy in a pre-contraceptive culture).
If a man raped a woman in the sense to which anti-theists are referring to he was to be executed. This is a better standard for women than the laws that exist against rape today in most industrialised countries.
By the moral standards laid out for the treatment of slaves in the Bible, anyone unlucky enough to get h/himself into debt and could not manage that person could do a lot worse than being an indentured servitude program where s/he got a roof and board and a chance to work the debt off and where that person’s debt could be cancelled if the person I was in debt to mistreated the slave, than being sent to prison for failure to pay h/her fines.
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Rab and others say things like, Please oh please tell us why God didn't condemn it plainly if he foreknew what sincere believers would think about slavery from the Bible. If I were god this is what I would've said: 'Owning a person as property or treating them inhumanely is an abomination. Forced slavery is an abomination. Beating employees is a sin.' This is what I would've said if I were God, and I'm not perfect unlike your God."
This resembles the question:
When did you stop beating your wife?
Of course you can’t give a direct answer to this question because the question assumes you are a wife-beater and you are not.
In the same way, when an anti-theist asks why God does not condemn the beating of slaves or treating them inhumanely or forcing people into slavery, we are being asked to assume that scripture does NOT condemn these things. That, however, is incorrect.
Scripture does condemn these things. Most atheists who ask this question know that the harsh treatment of slaves is clearly condemned but are too dishonest to make this known in what they write on the subject.
However, just to reinforce what’s already been said, I will cite from the King James Version (KJV) which was widely available in the antebellum US South. The citations I provide are straight from the KJV, one does not need to know Greek or Hebrew to read them. Moreover, despite the fact that the KJV translates the word “ebed” as “servant” I shall also assume, for the sake of argument, that southern theologians were correct and that the word “ebed” refers to slavery.
Here are some of the things the scriptures say about beating slaves, treating them as property, inhumanely etc:
Ex 21: 14 "And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death."
This passages states that forcing someone into slavery is a serious sin, punishable at law.
Consider these two passages:
Ex 21:23-26 "And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe. And if a man smite the eye of his servant, or the eye of his maid, that it perish; HE SHALL LET HIM GO FREE for his eye's sake. And if he smite out his manservant's tooth, or his maidservant's tooth; HE SHALL LET HIM GO FREE for his tooth's sake."
Does that sound like the American south to you?
Deuteronomy 23:15-16 "Thou shalt not deliver unto his master the servant WHICH IS ESCAPED from his master unto thee: He shall dwell with thee, even among you, in that place which he shall choose in one of thy gates, where it liketh him best: THOU SHALT NOT OPPRESS HIM."
The first verse teaches that it is wrong to beat one's “slave” and that a slave that is beaten by a master should be liberated. The second teaches that a slave that runs away from an oppressive master should not be returned to him. Both then state that a person should not be held in bondage to a master that beats and abuses them.
Ephesians 5: 7-9 "Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free. And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him."
This is a command to not even “threaten” one's slave, it also commands people to treat their slaves the way they would like to be treated.
So I put to you, that when you cite an example of “brutal American slavery,” of a woman being whipped, of her bleeding and pleading for the beating to stop, and then, in this context ask why God did not condemn slavery, you are assuming the scriptures did not condemn such practices.
Even defenders of slavery, such as Charles Hodge, admitted what was going on in the south was contrary to scripture.
Again John, I ask, show me a passage where God permits, endorses or commands the practices you describe on p 231 of your book? Where he tells us to ignore the ones I cite? If you cannot, why do you insinuate, on the very same page, that he did not?
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Some might attempt to adopt a narrower definition of slavery and then use it to argue that, on that narrower definition the bible does not condemn all forms of slavery.
The problem with this move that you cannot now use the bible to argue that it supported the kind of slavery that existed in the antebellum south, nor can you argue that the bible supports the kind of slavery common in the new world. Nor can you use it to argue that it supports any obviously objectionable form of slavery. The conclusion that the bible supports some form of slavery does not entail it supports all forms or any particular form the sceptic cites.
Moreover, if this move is made it is no longer obvious that the bible supporting "slavery" is problematic. If the word "slavery" is expanded to include various different kinds of servitude. Including ones which are consensual, are used to pay of debts, the servants are not treated like property, not beaten, treated with dignity and respect etc etc. Then the claim that slavery is always wrong is no longer obvious.
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I believe it is Sal who uses this next passage to show his outrage over slavery. Luke 12:47-48, which states: "That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked."
This passage does not teach that it’s permissible to beat ones slave. The text is from a parable designed to illustrate the point that “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” Jesus illustrates it by citing an example from the surrounding culture in this the practise of a someone being beaten. The parable is no more about slavery than the parable of the sower is a lesson on gardening. Or that the parable of the vineyard is Jesus giving instructions on how to grow grapes. Or that the parable of the net is a lesson in fishing, or the parable of the good Samaritan is a command to travel from Jerusalem to Jericho. Can you understand that Sal? This is NOT a teaching on how to treat slaves. It’s a parable.
In fact only a few verses earlier Jesus uses the example of burglar to illustrate a point about “being prepared. ” In Luke 12:39-40 Jesus says “ But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."
Yet no sensible commentator has ever interpreted this passage to be a command from Jesus on how to rob houses.
Parables use images examples to illustrate points, what they teach are the points illustrated, they tell us nothing about the examples used.
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[1] Walter Sinnott-Armstrong “Why Traditional Theism Cannot Provide an Adequate Foundation for Morality” in Is Goodness without God Good Enough: A Debate on Faith, Secularism and Ethics eds Robert K Garcia and Nathan L King (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2008) 101-116.
[2] John Locke Second Treatise on Civil Government Ch IV.
[3] Ibid, sec 24.
[4] Ibid, sec 23.
[5] Rodney Stark For the Glory of God: How Monotheism led to Reformations, Science, Witch-hunts and the end of Slavery (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2003) 292.
[6] The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English (Oxford: Oxford Clarendon University Press, 1974 ) 5th Edition, 1199.
[7] Timothy Keller Reasons for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism (New York: Dutton books) 110.
[8] John Loftus Why I Became an Atheist: A Former Preacher Rejects Christianity (New York: Prometheus Books, 2008) 231. Many thanks to Dean Mischewski for gifting us a copy of Loftus's book.
[9] Stark For the Glory of God: 312-313.
[10] Ibid, 313.
[11] Ibid.
[12] Keller Reasons for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism 111.
[13] Stark For the Glory of God: 303.
[14] Sinnott-Armstrong “Why Traditional Theism Cannot Provide an Adequate Foundation for Morality” 110.
[15] Armstrong omits to mention the previous passage which forbids any Israelite taking another Israelite as a ‘slave’ on the grounds that they are a “slave of God” whom God has redeemed. Paul applies the same teaching to Christians in 1 Corinthians 7:23 prohibiting Christians from being sold as ‘slaves.’ This teaching led many early and medieval theologians to forbid the enslavement of Christians resulting in slavery all but disappearing from Christian Europe in the early Middle Ages; Stark documents this in For the Glory of God: 329-330.
[16] D N Freedman Anchor Bible Dictionary (New York: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group,1992).
[17] Christopher Wright God's People in Gods Land: Family, Land and Property in the Old Testament (Grand Rapids Mi: Paternoster Press, 1990) 242.
[18] See Exodus 21:19.
[19] There is an apparent discrepancy between Exodus 21:1-6 and the release laws of Leviticus 25:39-43; Christopher Wright in God's People in Gods Land: 253, noted that the law in Exodus 21:6 refers to Hebrew slaves. Wright notes that in its original context the word ibri designated a social class, not an ethnic group. This was the class of people who did not own land, who survived by hiring themselves out to land owners. Lev 25, on the other hand, deals with an Israelite landowner who has been forced into poverty by mortgaging his land and then selling himself and his family into the service of another land owner.
[20] Wright God's People in Gods Land: 249.
[21] Code of Hammurabi 16.
Showing posts with label slavery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label slavery. Show all posts
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
“Slavery? 2 Thumbs Up” - God
When a member of the government, who happens to be a vegetarian votes to improve living conditions for cattle on the nation’s farms, does it mean that person is in favour of eating meat?
When city officials decide that it would be better for prostitutes to work within a controlled, supervised (safer) environment, does that mean those officials support prostitution? (Ok maybe that’s a bad example but bear with me).
When city officials provide clean needles to drug addicts are they saying that IV drug use is great?
When an animal rights person supports limits on hunting, does it mean that person is in favour of hunting?
The answer to all of these, of course, is a resounding “No.” These people are working with what they have available. They are working within a culture that is already established.
It's the same when God lays out specific guidelines for the treatment of slaves:
. Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair because you know that you also have a Master in heaven. Col. 4:1
. Do not rule over [your slaves] ruthlessly but fear your God - Lev.25:43
. [Your slave] is to be treated as a man hired from year to year, you must see to it that his owner does not rule over him ruthlessly - Lev. 25:53
. Masters treat your slaves in the same way you want them to treat you. Do not threaten them, since you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favouritism with Him. Eph. 6:9
. In another place Paul encourages slaves to take freedom if they can. As well God has laid out specific punishment to come for “Slave Traders.”
God / Bible is NOT supporting slavery anymore than city officials are promoting IV drug use by establishing safe places for addicts to inject their drugs. God was working within an established culture. Why didn’t God forbid slavery among the Jews like He did with idol worship or child sacrifice? God allowed slavery to operate under His guidelines for at least two reasons. One was to establish Israel as a nation which probably couldn’t have been done without extra help. Two, was that slavery or servanthood served as a social safety net. It was that or starve.
Have people abused the concept of slavery? Of course. Each of us abuses other people virtually on a daily basis in all manner of ways. They did it back then and we still do it today. However, we can only abuse our fellow man, be it within the confines of slavery or elsewhere by disobeying the guidelines of our Lord and our Creator.
When city officials decide that it would be better for prostitutes to work within a controlled, supervised (safer) environment, does that mean those officials support prostitution? (Ok maybe that’s a bad example but bear with me).
When city officials provide clean needles to drug addicts are they saying that IV drug use is great?
When an animal rights person supports limits on hunting, does it mean that person is in favour of hunting?
The answer to all of these, of course, is a resounding “No.” These people are working with what they have available. They are working within a culture that is already established.
It's the same when God lays out specific guidelines for the treatment of slaves:
. Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair because you know that you also have a Master in heaven. Col. 4:1
. Do not rule over [your slaves] ruthlessly but fear your God - Lev.25:43
. [Your slave] is to be treated as a man hired from year to year, you must see to it that his owner does not rule over him ruthlessly - Lev. 25:53
. Masters treat your slaves in the same way you want them to treat you. Do not threaten them, since you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favouritism with Him. Eph. 6:9
. In another place Paul encourages slaves to take freedom if they can. As well God has laid out specific punishment to come for “Slave Traders.”
God / Bible is NOT supporting slavery anymore than city officials are promoting IV drug use by establishing safe places for addicts to inject their drugs. God was working within an established culture. Why didn’t God forbid slavery among the Jews like He did with idol worship or child sacrifice? God allowed slavery to operate under His guidelines for at least two reasons. One was to establish Israel as a nation which probably couldn’t have been done without extra help. Two, was that slavery or servanthood served as a social safety net. It was that or starve.
Have people abused the concept of slavery? Of course. Each of us abuses other people virtually on a daily basis in all manner of ways. They did it back then and we still do it today. However, we can only abuse our fellow man, be it within the confines of slavery or elsewhere by disobeying the guidelines of our Lord and our Creator.
Sunday, September 9, 2007
The Joy of the Lord is My Strength
I was reading a blog a bit ago. On it a woman was expressing her dismay over the seeming impossibility of ever convincing Christians how stupid they were for “believing” in Jesus. She also went on at length regarding how awful the God was whom these Christians seemed determined to worship. Especially perplexing for this person was the fact that the worse conditions get for Christians, be it a flood, or earthquake or act of terrorism or the death of a child, the greater their joy seems to get and the deeper their conviction in the goodness of God.
I actually know where she’s coming from. At one time I too found the Christian’s response to life perplexing, disconcerting and at times infuriating. I thought that it was just a phoney act when I’d hear a Christian talk about how blessed he or she felt during a “time of sorrow.” I thought it was absolute rubbish when a Christian would talk about the peace she would feel after what sounded to me like a horrendous loss. Now that I’m on the other side, now that I have a healed relationship with Jesus, I know where those weird Christians are coming from. Now that I have a forgiven relationship with my Creator I can relax and just bask in the loving presence of the Holy Spirit who is the source of my joy.
There is a tremendous chasm that separates a Christian’s deep inner joy and the fleeting happiness that pagans experience. A Christian does not need to depend on manufacturing joy through a well planned trip to the mountains or to a movie. A Christian doesn’t have to depend on the fleeting pleasure of getting stoned. A Christian doesn’t have to search for contentment and security in amassing a fortune or accumulating piles of possessions. A Christian doesn’t have to pretend that h/his worth has increased or that h/she “belongs” because a lot of names have been accumulated on a website. A Christian doesn’t have to work at or discipline him/herself through meditation or rituals in order to finding lasting peace. A Christian’s joy is independent of worldly influence. A Christian’s joy comes to the Christian from the Creator’s Spirit that indwells that person upon accepting Jesus as one’s Saviour.
This is not to say that some of the things that make a pagan happy don’t also make a Christian happy. It’s just that the Christian will acknowledge the truth that “All good things, and every perfect gift is from above, coming down to us from the Father of heavenly lights, in whom there is no changing or shifting like shadows - James 1:17. A pleasant day, a good relationship, the thrill and excitement of exploring or travelling to a new place, watching a much loved child learn a new skill, these things please anyone, pagan or atheist or Christian. Rather than enjoying and then praising a painting, a Christian enjoys the painting and then praises the artist.
The type of attitude that was so troubling for the writer of that blog was highlighted thousands of years ago by another person who had a close relationship with the God of Love.
A person named Habakkuk whose thoughts can be found in a ‘book’ by the same name. In chapter 3 verses 17-19, it says this. “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.” A line from the well known book of Job cites, “Though He slay me, yet I will serve Him.”
In more recent times a song writer said -
“When peace like a river attends my soul
When storm clouds like sea billow roll
Whatever my lot
You have taught me to say
It is well, it is well with my soul.”
These are more than just words. They were written by a man who had lost his wife and children when their ship sank in the North Atlantic. As he later passed that very spot on his way home to England from North America he penned those words.
What creates that kind of loyalty in a person who has just been clobbered by life? What sustains the soul of these people who claim to love and serve a God that does not free his loyal subjects from the harsh realities of life? How is it that possessing the ability to experience love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, supercedes and overshadows the good feelings that come from relationships, power, position, looks, or fame etc.? This is something that the writer of the blog simply can’t comprehend because in her spiritual state, it is impossible for her to experience or to receive what Christians are allowed to experience.
There is no doubt that we humans possess an indomitable spirit. We can adapt to virtually any situation, any cruelty, any oppression. But those who rise above these situations, those who come out of them more convinced than ever in the goodness of their Creator have been given something that they and they alone know to be true.
One of the main things that bring joy to Christians is the solid belief that they have found a “First Principle” when it comes to a code of ethics and moral grounding regarding how to live life. They have found a solid foundation upon which to base their lives. Experience has proven that this is a foundation that is able survive the storms of life. It’s a foundation that nothing and no one can take away from someone who is part of the family of God.
As most people discover at some point during their life, and as has been stating at least a dozen times in the Bible, we are strangers here on earth. We do not instinctively know the way home. The old adage, ‘Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it,’ while true, is virtually useless as the majority of people not only fail to learn from history, they purposely ignore it. Each of us begins the journey of life content in the arrogant belief that we know the correct path through a dizzying array of street signs. Even though we’ve never been down this road before, and even though we profess that no single map is any more dependable than any other map we boldly go where all the other idiots have gone before. In a great irony, it is those who are the most lost who proclaim the loudest that they know the correct route to a good life. Only in hindsight and often after great damage has been done to those around them do people confess that they were on the wrong road for decades. I can honestly state from years of experience spent on both the incorrect and finally the correct road, that it is a tremendous relief to no longer have to pretend that I know where I’m going and to simply let Jesus be my tour guide. Christianity is of necessity an admission to self and to one’s Creator that, “I’m lost and I need help.”
First and foremost, Christians have joy because -
The Holy Spirit is the source of a Christian’s joy.
Luke 10:21 - At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.
John 15:10-12 - If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
Acts 13:52 - And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13 - May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 14:17 – For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit,
Galatians 5:22 - But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace.
This is a supernatural joy that is as amazing as it is wonderful. In fact, agony is hardly an exaggeration to describe how I feel when I’m not allowed, out of political correctness, to share the way, the path, the how to lay hold of this joy with another individual.
Christians have joy because they possess-
The Road-map of God’s guidance:
Psalm 16:11- You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.
Psalm 19:8 - The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
Psalm 119:111 - Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart.
Psalm 97:11 - Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart.
I can’t remember who it was that said it, but someone from another blog said something like, “I don’t believe in God because I can see Him. I believe in God for the reason that because of His light I can see everything else clearly.” Amen to that. I no longer have to wonder whether an affair is worth it or not. I don’t have to ponder if it’s alright to steal something small from a big company. I don’t have to contemplate if it’s worth the risk to cheat on my taxes. I live a life whereby morality is no longer relative to the situation. Do I still fail from time to time? Sure. But it’s due to human weakness; it not because of not knowing the right path to take.
Christians have joy because -
Praising God brings joy:
Psalm 33:1 - Sing joyfully to the LORD, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him.
I’ve heard it said that God presents Himself in the Bible as self-centered, egotistical, arrogant, etc. because of all His commands to worship Him. What the people who make these claims don’t understand is that when we are “right” with God and when we possess the Holy Spirit of the living God in our souls, worship is a natural outpouring of our inner joy. Worshiping our Creator is what brings joy to His created beings. Praising God brings joy because it is precisely that for which we were created. He is only asking us to do those things that will bring the most joy into our lives.
Christians have joy because -
Salvation in it’s own right brings joy:
Psalm 51:12 - Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
Psalm 68:3 - But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful.
Isaiah 12:3 - With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
Psalm 71:23 - My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you— I, whom you have redeemed.
I just finished reading a book by a man who was recently involved in purchasing, or more correctly redeeming slaves in Sudan. At this time in the 21st century, the Muslim slave trade is huge business in Sudan and in many other parts of the world. While the men from villages are usually killed, women and children are sold into both physical and sexual slavery. Many of the young boys are forced to fight in the Muslim militias after little or no training. All slaves are forced to convert to Islam via torture. No one that I know of, except North American Christians are involved in this effort to redeem slaves. This is done at great personal risk. To redeem means to buy back, to free - to set free those who have been enslaved. This is what Jesus did for us. Every person on earth is born enslaved to sin. Every person on earth is born impossibly separated from God. Only through faith in Jesus and what He did for us on the cross brings freedom from the power of sin, freedom from guilt, and freedom to live life as it was meant to be lived. That is indeed a joyful experience. If you are interested in reading about this further, see my post “Freedom - Glorious Freedom” where I list all that areas in which Jesus has brought freedom into my life.
Christians have joy because -
The joy of the Lord brings mental and emotional healing:
Psalm 94:19 - When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul.
Two opposing thoughts cannot occupy the mind at the same time. Perhaps the greatest antidote to anxiety is a trusting relationship with Jesus our Lord. My prayer every night is that God would grant my children the gift of faith. It is the greatest gift in the world. Trust of course is built strong over time. I can tell you however that Jesus is more than able to prove Himself to you if you will only let Him. Do that and you are in for the most exciting ride of your life, for the rest of your life.
Matthew 13:44 - "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
What incredible peace and joy lies in the heart of the person who has found the greatest treasure this stage of life has to offer - Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 1:8 - Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
This joy that Christians have is not manufactured. It is not a human joy. It is not some chemical mixture in the frontal lobe. It is supernatural. In many cases the joy comes without the person becoming fully aware of its growing presence. We become so used to trudging through life that it’s only in hindsight that one becomes astonished at the power with which s/he handled what would normally be a very troubling experience. Only in hindsight do we realize that Jesus is changing us for the better. Only in hindsight do we realize that the promise of Jesus to bring joy and peace into our lives is no empty promise. It’s a promise that comes to us and is fulfilled in us with power and perfection.
Christians have joy because -
Faith is the greatest gift ever:
So often I praise God with , “Thank you that you are in charge Father.” This faith that I have in Jesus is based on almost three decades of friendship with Him. As the apostle Paul once said, “I know the One in whom I believe.” I know Jesus well enough that I know that I can trust Jesus. I know that He is Truth. I haven’t found even one statement of Jesus’ to not be truth in the absolute. I know that He will never leave me or turn His back on me. My faith is based on being SURE of what I hope for. I am CERTAIN of what I don’t yet see (Hebrews 11:1). This is not just some wishful thinking. My joy is based on fact; it’s based on the reality of Jesus the Christ. Rather, as some say, that faith is based nothing substantial or ‘believing without any evidence,’ my faith is based on irrefutable evidence. It is built on trust that has been built up over 26 years of living with Jesus. This allows me to be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
1 Thessalonians 1:6 - You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
15:16 - Be joyful always;
Hebrews 1:9 - You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy."
10:34 - You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.
12:2 - Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
James 1:2 - Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
1 Peter 1:8 - Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
This is what is so confounding to non believers. Paul is recorded as saying in 2nd Corinthians, “That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecution, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” The joy that increases even as our troubles increase is so overwhelming, so wonderful, so infused with the love of God, that life’s flaming arrows become as pinpricks. Nothing can separate us from God’s love. There is no trouble so great that Jesus will not be right by your side all the way through it, empowering you and bringing you peace. That is why, in regard to a relationship with Jesus and the victorious life that He provides, someone has written, “Rain on, I will not drown, for I am standing on higher ground.”
Christians have joy because -
Jesus love feels the same as Protection from suffering:
Psalm 4:7 - Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength
James 1:2 - Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
Psalm 5:11 - But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you.
Psalm 28:7 - The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him
2 Corinthians 7:4 - in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.
8:2 - Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.
Colosians 1:10-12 - And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.
1 Thessalonians 1:6 - You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
15:16 - Be joyful always;
Hebrews 10:34 - You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.
Hebrews 12:2 - Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
What humans so often fail to realize is that our problems, our losses, our pummeling by life, while difficult, are also opportunities for growth and courage. This is doubly so for the Christian. The chief source of pain when confronted with hardship is not the hardship itself but our resistance to the hardship. We spend so much time trying to wiggle out of our problems that we completely miss the learning that can be taking place within the problem. As a Christian, you are not always protected FROM life’s difficulties. But you will be protected THROUGH life’s difficulties. This is joy. This is strength. This is character.
I actually know where she’s coming from. At one time I too found the Christian’s response to life perplexing, disconcerting and at times infuriating. I thought that it was just a phoney act when I’d hear a Christian talk about how blessed he or she felt during a “time of sorrow.” I thought it was absolute rubbish when a Christian would talk about the peace she would feel after what sounded to me like a horrendous loss. Now that I’m on the other side, now that I have a healed relationship with Jesus, I know where those weird Christians are coming from. Now that I have a forgiven relationship with my Creator I can relax and just bask in the loving presence of the Holy Spirit who is the source of my joy.
There is a tremendous chasm that separates a Christian’s deep inner joy and the fleeting happiness that pagans experience. A Christian does not need to depend on manufacturing joy through a well planned trip to the mountains or to a movie. A Christian doesn’t have to depend on the fleeting pleasure of getting stoned. A Christian doesn’t have to search for contentment and security in amassing a fortune or accumulating piles of possessions. A Christian doesn’t have to pretend that h/his worth has increased or that h/she “belongs” because a lot of names have been accumulated on a website. A Christian doesn’t have to work at or discipline him/herself through meditation or rituals in order to finding lasting peace. A Christian’s joy is independent of worldly influence. A Christian’s joy comes to the Christian from the Creator’s Spirit that indwells that person upon accepting Jesus as one’s Saviour.
This is not to say that some of the things that make a pagan happy don’t also make a Christian happy. It’s just that the Christian will acknowledge the truth that “All good things, and every perfect gift is from above, coming down to us from the Father of heavenly lights, in whom there is no changing or shifting like shadows - James 1:17. A pleasant day, a good relationship, the thrill and excitement of exploring or travelling to a new place, watching a much loved child learn a new skill, these things please anyone, pagan or atheist or Christian. Rather than enjoying and then praising a painting, a Christian enjoys the painting and then praises the artist.
The type of attitude that was so troubling for the writer of that blog was highlighted thousands of years ago by another person who had a close relationship with the God of Love.
A person named Habakkuk whose thoughts can be found in a ‘book’ by the same name. In chapter 3 verses 17-19, it says this. “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.” A line from the well known book of Job cites, “Though He slay me, yet I will serve Him.”
In more recent times a song writer said -
“When peace like a river attends my soul
When storm clouds like sea billow roll
Whatever my lot
You have taught me to say
It is well, it is well with my soul.”
These are more than just words. They were written by a man who had lost his wife and children when their ship sank in the North Atlantic. As he later passed that very spot on his way home to England from North America he penned those words.
What creates that kind of loyalty in a person who has just been clobbered by life? What sustains the soul of these people who claim to love and serve a God that does not free his loyal subjects from the harsh realities of life? How is it that possessing the ability to experience love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, supercedes and overshadows the good feelings that come from relationships, power, position, looks, or fame etc.? This is something that the writer of the blog simply can’t comprehend because in her spiritual state, it is impossible for her to experience or to receive what Christians are allowed to experience.
There is no doubt that we humans possess an indomitable spirit. We can adapt to virtually any situation, any cruelty, any oppression. But those who rise above these situations, those who come out of them more convinced than ever in the goodness of their Creator have been given something that they and they alone know to be true.
One of the main things that bring joy to Christians is the solid belief that they have found a “First Principle” when it comes to a code of ethics and moral grounding regarding how to live life. They have found a solid foundation upon which to base their lives. Experience has proven that this is a foundation that is able survive the storms of life. It’s a foundation that nothing and no one can take away from someone who is part of the family of God.
As most people discover at some point during their life, and as has been stating at least a dozen times in the Bible, we are strangers here on earth. We do not instinctively know the way home. The old adage, ‘Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it,’ while true, is virtually useless as the majority of people not only fail to learn from history, they purposely ignore it. Each of us begins the journey of life content in the arrogant belief that we know the correct path through a dizzying array of street signs. Even though we’ve never been down this road before, and even though we profess that no single map is any more dependable than any other map we boldly go where all the other idiots have gone before. In a great irony, it is those who are the most lost who proclaim the loudest that they know the correct route to a good life. Only in hindsight and often after great damage has been done to those around them do people confess that they were on the wrong road for decades. I can honestly state from years of experience spent on both the incorrect and finally the correct road, that it is a tremendous relief to no longer have to pretend that I know where I’m going and to simply let Jesus be my tour guide. Christianity is of necessity an admission to self and to one’s Creator that, “I’m lost and I need help.”
First and foremost, Christians have joy because -
The Holy Spirit is the source of a Christian’s joy.
Luke 10:21 - At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.
John 15:10-12 - If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
Acts 13:52 - And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13 - May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 14:17 – For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit,
Galatians 5:22 - But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace.
This is a supernatural joy that is as amazing as it is wonderful. In fact, agony is hardly an exaggeration to describe how I feel when I’m not allowed, out of political correctness, to share the way, the path, the how to lay hold of this joy with another individual.
Christians have joy because they possess-
The Road-map of God’s guidance:
Psalm 16:11- You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.
Psalm 19:8 - The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
Psalm 119:111 - Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart.
Psalm 97:11 - Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart.
I can’t remember who it was that said it, but someone from another blog said something like, “I don’t believe in God because I can see Him. I believe in God for the reason that because of His light I can see everything else clearly.” Amen to that. I no longer have to wonder whether an affair is worth it or not. I don’t have to ponder if it’s alright to steal something small from a big company. I don’t have to contemplate if it’s worth the risk to cheat on my taxes. I live a life whereby morality is no longer relative to the situation. Do I still fail from time to time? Sure. But it’s due to human weakness; it not because of not knowing the right path to take.
Christians have joy because -
Praising God brings joy:
Psalm 33:1 - Sing joyfully to the LORD, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him.
I’ve heard it said that God presents Himself in the Bible as self-centered, egotistical, arrogant, etc. because of all His commands to worship Him. What the people who make these claims don’t understand is that when we are “right” with God and when we possess the Holy Spirit of the living God in our souls, worship is a natural outpouring of our inner joy. Worshiping our Creator is what brings joy to His created beings. Praising God brings joy because it is precisely that for which we were created. He is only asking us to do those things that will bring the most joy into our lives.
Christians have joy because -
Salvation in it’s own right brings joy:
Psalm 51:12 - Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
Psalm 68:3 - But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful.
Isaiah 12:3 - With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
Psalm 71:23 - My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you— I, whom you have redeemed.
I just finished reading a book by a man who was recently involved in purchasing, or more correctly redeeming slaves in Sudan. At this time in the 21st century, the Muslim slave trade is huge business in Sudan and in many other parts of the world. While the men from villages are usually killed, women and children are sold into both physical and sexual slavery. Many of the young boys are forced to fight in the Muslim militias after little or no training. All slaves are forced to convert to Islam via torture. No one that I know of, except North American Christians are involved in this effort to redeem slaves. This is done at great personal risk. To redeem means to buy back, to free - to set free those who have been enslaved. This is what Jesus did for us. Every person on earth is born enslaved to sin. Every person on earth is born impossibly separated from God. Only through faith in Jesus and what He did for us on the cross brings freedom from the power of sin, freedom from guilt, and freedom to live life as it was meant to be lived. That is indeed a joyful experience. If you are interested in reading about this further, see my post “Freedom - Glorious Freedom” where I list all that areas in which Jesus has brought freedom into my life.
Christians have joy because -
The joy of the Lord brings mental and emotional healing:
Psalm 94:19 - When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul.
Two opposing thoughts cannot occupy the mind at the same time. Perhaps the greatest antidote to anxiety is a trusting relationship with Jesus our Lord. My prayer every night is that God would grant my children the gift of faith. It is the greatest gift in the world. Trust of course is built strong over time. I can tell you however that Jesus is more than able to prove Himself to you if you will only let Him. Do that and you are in for the most exciting ride of your life, for the rest of your life.
Matthew 13:44 - "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
What incredible peace and joy lies in the heart of the person who has found the greatest treasure this stage of life has to offer - Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 1:8 - Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
This joy that Christians have is not manufactured. It is not a human joy. It is not some chemical mixture in the frontal lobe. It is supernatural. In many cases the joy comes without the person becoming fully aware of its growing presence. We become so used to trudging through life that it’s only in hindsight that one becomes astonished at the power with which s/he handled what would normally be a very troubling experience. Only in hindsight do we realize that Jesus is changing us for the better. Only in hindsight do we realize that the promise of Jesus to bring joy and peace into our lives is no empty promise. It’s a promise that comes to us and is fulfilled in us with power and perfection.
Christians have joy because -
Faith is the greatest gift ever:
So often I praise God with , “Thank you that you are in charge Father.” This faith that I have in Jesus is based on almost three decades of friendship with Him. As the apostle Paul once said, “I know the One in whom I believe.” I know Jesus well enough that I know that I can trust Jesus. I know that He is Truth. I haven’t found even one statement of Jesus’ to not be truth in the absolute. I know that He will never leave me or turn His back on me. My faith is based on being SURE of what I hope for. I am CERTAIN of what I don’t yet see (Hebrews 11:1). This is not just some wishful thinking. My joy is based on fact; it’s based on the reality of Jesus the Christ. Rather, as some say, that faith is based nothing substantial or ‘believing without any evidence,’ my faith is based on irrefutable evidence. It is built on trust that has been built up over 26 years of living with Jesus. This allows me to be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
1 Thessalonians 1:6 - You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
15:16 - Be joyful always;
Hebrews 1:9 - You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy."
10:34 - You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.
12:2 - Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
James 1:2 - Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
1 Peter 1:8 - Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
This is what is so confounding to non believers. Paul is recorded as saying in 2nd Corinthians, “That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecution, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” The joy that increases even as our troubles increase is so overwhelming, so wonderful, so infused with the love of God, that life’s flaming arrows become as pinpricks. Nothing can separate us from God’s love. There is no trouble so great that Jesus will not be right by your side all the way through it, empowering you and bringing you peace. That is why, in regard to a relationship with Jesus and the victorious life that He provides, someone has written, “Rain on, I will not drown, for I am standing on higher ground.”
Christians have joy because -
Jesus love feels the same as Protection from suffering:
Psalm 4:7 - Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength
James 1:2 - Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
Psalm 5:11 - But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you.
Psalm 28:7 - The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him
2 Corinthians 7:4 - in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.
8:2 - Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.
Colosians 1:10-12 - And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.
1 Thessalonians 1:6 - You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
15:16 - Be joyful always;
Hebrews 10:34 - You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.
Hebrews 12:2 - Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
What humans so often fail to realize is that our problems, our losses, our pummeling by life, while difficult, are also opportunities for growth and courage. This is doubly so for the Christian. The chief source of pain when confronted with hardship is not the hardship itself but our resistance to the hardship. We spend so much time trying to wiggle out of our problems that we completely miss the learning that can be taking place within the problem. As a Christian, you are not always protected FROM life’s difficulties. But you will be protected THROUGH life’s difficulties. This is joy. This is strength. This is character.
Saturday, December 9, 2006
Is There Anything Wrong With Slavery?
"all of the specific references to slavery in the Bible seem to sanction it.
This is a statement that you can read in a recent post. Either this person is Biblically illiterate and is simply throwing out statements about which he knows nothing at all. Or, I would have to suppose that he is deliberately trying to mislead those who would love to believe what he’s just said.
It’s true that slavery in New Testament times, and Old Testament times for that matter, was a fact of life. But it certainly wasn’t acceptable for Paul, Jesus or any of the other New Testament writers. So why didn’t Jesus spend His time on earth trying to rid the world of this despicable practice? Well, He did, in a way. In fact He brought freedom from the effects of slavery to any and to all who wanted that freedom. You see, Christianity is about a relationship with one’s Creator that brings freedom despite circumstance. Jesus says that a life of integrity, meaning, context and purpose can be had no matter what one’s station in life, no matter what one’s race, no matter what one’s nationality, no matter what one’s gender. In one particular passage, Paul is addressing slavery when he says, "Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him. Were you a slave when you were called? Don't let it trouble you . . ."
I suppose that if you stop there, you could have the beginnings of a case that Jesus thought slavery was no big deal. However Paul goes on to say, "although if you can gain your freedom, do so" 1st Corinthians chapter 7. Paul is saying, ‘slavery is not good, escape it you can; but neither is slavery the most important thing in this life’. Paul is saying, ‘don’t be distracted from the most important thing in life, by something that is less important’.
‘There are no references in the Bible that don’t sanction slavery’? Hardly! In fact because of the way that slavery is usually carried out, Paul announces in 1st Timothy 1:10 that 'those who take part in the trading of slaves will deserve eternity in hell'. The reason I say, "The way that slavery is usually carried out," is because slavery in ancient Hebrew society served as an important social safety net. There wasn’t any welfare system. There wasn’t any unemployment insurance. Many times, the only way to feed oneself and one’s family was to sell oneself into slavery. Nevertheless, human nature led back then, and has led right up to the present day to horrendous abuses. This is the world that we have chosen to create for ourselves.
Since all people are desperately wicked, desperately wicked people are all God has to work with. That is why He laid down guidelines for the ‘given’ practice of slavery in ancient Hebrew culture. He is saying to those who lived in a society where slavery was normal practice, "Masters, treat your slaves in the same way [with respect]. Do not threaten them, since you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with Him, Ephesians 6:9. And Colossians 4:1 Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.
Is slavery as it is usually carried out supported or sanctioned in the Bible? Absolutely not. Is it accepted as a fact of life? Yes. God has accepted, for a time, the world that we have chosen for ourselves. And to that end, just like cancer, earthquakes, war and other events that bring difficulty in our lives, God provides a means of coping in a healthy manner with things that can’t be changed.
This is a statement that you can read in a recent post. Either this person is Biblically illiterate and is simply throwing out statements about which he knows nothing at all. Or, I would have to suppose that he is deliberately trying to mislead those who would love to believe what he’s just said.
It’s true that slavery in New Testament times, and Old Testament times for that matter, was a fact of life. But it certainly wasn’t acceptable for Paul, Jesus or any of the other New Testament writers. So why didn’t Jesus spend His time on earth trying to rid the world of this despicable practice? Well, He did, in a way. In fact He brought freedom from the effects of slavery to any and to all who wanted that freedom. You see, Christianity is about a relationship with one’s Creator that brings freedom despite circumstance. Jesus says that a life of integrity, meaning, context and purpose can be had no matter what one’s station in life, no matter what one’s race, no matter what one’s nationality, no matter what one’s gender. In one particular passage, Paul is addressing slavery when he says, "Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him. Were you a slave when you were called? Don't let it trouble you . . ."
I suppose that if you stop there, you could have the beginnings of a case that Jesus thought slavery was no big deal. However Paul goes on to say, "although if you can gain your freedom, do so" 1st Corinthians chapter 7. Paul is saying, ‘slavery is not good, escape it you can; but neither is slavery the most important thing in this life’. Paul is saying, ‘don’t be distracted from the most important thing in life, by something that is less important’.
‘There are no references in the Bible that don’t sanction slavery’? Hardly! In fact because of the way that slavery is usually carried out, Paul announces in 1st Timothy 1:10 that 'those who take part in the trading of slaves will deserve eternity in hell'. The reason I say, "The way that slavery is usually carried out," is because slavery in ancient Hebrew society served as an important social safety net. There wasn’t any welfare system. There wasn’t any unemployment insurance. Many times, the only way to feed oneself and one’s family was to sell oneself into slavery. Nevertheless, human nature led back then, and has led right up to the present day to horrendous abuses. This is the world that we have chosen to create for ourselves.
Since all people are desperately wicked, desperately wicked people are all God has to work with. That is why He laid down guidelines for the ‘given’ practice of slavery in ancient Hebrew culture. He is saying to those who lived in a society where slavery was normal practice, "Masters, treat your slaves in the same way [with respect]. Do not threaten them, since you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with Him, Ephesians 6:9. And Colossians 4:1 Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.
Is slavery as it is usually carried out supported or sanctioned in the Bible? Absolutely not. Is it accepted as a fact of life? Yes. God has accepted, for a time, the world that we have chosen for ourselves. And to that end, just like cancer, earthquakes, war and other events that bring difficulty in our lives, God provides a means of coping in a healthy manner with things that can’t be changed.
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