Ensign: Their Story Helps Define Who We Are

All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye. Isaiah 18:3

AN ENSIGN ON THE MOUNTAINS 22 March 2013

This was NOT the devotional I had originally planned to write. But I was having some technology issues (you know what those are, when you're saddened that rebooting your computer does not mean kicking it out the window and getting a new one) yesterday, and I was into three paragraphs of a devotional tied into The History Channel's current miniseries on the Bible and not only did the power get interrupted but also I ended up with the part I'd saved coming out as nothing but ########### … SO I delved into my archives and picked out a message with part of what I'd meant to produce, and a flashback for me to August 23, 2007, (the original date on this Ensign) a month after my son Jeffrey had been born and three months after my family and I had moved into our house. It was originally called “The Hard Way” and though there's parts that still fit, I'm going with the title I'd planned to use. I don't think the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit will mind. – David

(originally presented August 23, 2007)

 

The church I'm currently a member of, Bethany Lutheran, is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA). Two weeks ago representatives from all the ELCA's member churches met in Chicago and among the issues which came up and were voted on were the issue of homosexual clergy. Usually this gets to be such a headache, but perhaps it needs to be. In essence, the ELCA voted (by no means unanimously at 538-431) to urge bishops to refrain from disciplining pastors in "faithful committed same-gender relationships". My concern: why is this even an issue? This naked attempt to rewrite the requirements for serving as a bishop (a role filled by today's pastor) as listed in 1 Timothy 3:1-7, particularly verse two in which a bishop "must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach", comes across as indifference at best and as arrogance at worst.

I expect the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah saw if not dealt with roughly the same thing in terms of the erosion of God's message. In Jeremiah 23:30-40, we see the LORD relating to Jeremiah that he is against the prophets who are telling the people what they want to hear rather than what He really says. Verse thirty-two is particularly telling: "Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness [recklessness]; yet I sent them not, not commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD." It's easy to hear what is familiar to us, what we're comfortable with, yet it's wrong. Certainly tolerance and inclusion of those who believe differently from ourselves can be done with all sincerity, but it is possible to be sincerely wrong.

Some people might say I'm taking the Bible's admonition against the gay lifestyle to extremes with one verse, but think about it. If we're serious about applying the whole Word of God to our lives, we can't pick and choose what Scriptures to abide by and what Scriptures to ignore. We can't claim to be for Israel's Savior Jesus Christ while actively opposing Israel the people He came to. We can't be faithful to our spouses while being heavy drinkers. We can't lead in our churches and not tithe ourselves. The verse which is partially emblazoned on every student's mind, 2 Timothy 2:15 -- "Study to show thyself approved unto God, [and then continued in the Bible] a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth," -- is also what we need to be doing out of the classroom. By applying what we study in any field, we have the potential in the right setting to become a shaper of culture.

The question we and the church at large needs to ask is are we the shapers, the positive influences, on those around us or are we those shaped? The gestalt theory of psychology states that we become part of all those we meet and vice versa, but whether the influences are right or wrong has to be determined not by popularity's whim but by God's standards. Just as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego chose to walk into Nebuchadnezzar's fiery furnace in Daniel 3 (whether God would save them or not, see verses seventeen and eighteen) rather than bow down to the idol he had set up, so our testing on matters regarding God and His Word shows what we're really made of. It models for people who aren't Christians a hard way, true; but it's also the only way.

Jesus refers to Himself at the passover with His disciples as the way, the truth, and the life in John 14:6, and He's not exaggerating. Without the distinct guidance of Him the Son of God, we become open to compromise, open to being shaped in ways that aren't pleasing to God and ultimately leave us barren and unsatisfied. How we are not created to be; we are created to have life, and have it more abundantly (John 10:10), just as Jesus has promised. And He will keep His promises; we just have to believe and reach for them.

Sincerely yours,

David

P.S. I write this weekly devotional to keep in touch with all of you in my address book, and I hope to be an encourager to action too! If you find that I’m not or you want me to get lost, just let me know – thank you!

Thank You, Lord, that we can come to you in prayer and that You provide for all our needs, even when we don’t know what they are. We pray for the peace of Jerusalem on both sides of the fence there and around the world.

Thank You, Lord, for everyone in leadership and service, both here and abroad. Thank You for the opportunities we have and the promise of new life through You. I pray that we all seek and have a blessed week! Amen.