I find it hard to believe that I set up the web site for Mt Olive (mtolivesalem.org) and this new blog posting over two years ago and have not done anything with it since. Yes, things have been busy and I am not very inclined to the social networking of blogs and web sites. (I don't even text message unless I have to.) However, I know a lot of people do and it is my hope that the membership of Mt Olive who are into the technology can get better connected through the web site or other venues. We all need the fellowship and to support one another in prayer and encouragement.
I have just revamped the web site and given it a little brighter, cleaner look using a Google Sites template. It has most of the same information as before though I have added a few things. There are still some documents and links I need to finish up and I would like to add some membership specific features some day but as far as my web management skills go I am obviously over my head as it is.
I do not know if I will do any better in the future but as the Lord leads I will try to get up to speed. Needless to say, our greatest goal is to reach beyond Mt Olive and let others, especially in the Salem area know who we are, where we are and how they can know more about Jesus Christ.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Friday, August 28, 2009
Does It Matter?
To those who would deny God or claim there is no God I have to ask two questions.
1) Does it make a difference what you think?
If God is who He says He is, He does not need your approval to exist or to function in any way He pleases. Even if you deny Him He is still there. If you refuse to acknowledge His hand in creation and attribute the balance and order of the universe to a random evolution that drew what is out of the chaos that once was it does not mean God is going to change His mind about what He is doing because of your puny lack of faith or recognition.
If there were no God then ones denial of His existence would be a moot point. So what?
Whether there is or is not a God, what you think about it does make a difference. To other like-minded souls it will make a difference. It will make a difference in your behavior. After all, being accountable to a higher power can be so binding and oppressive. But you will require some personal and social standards to keep things from getting out of control. Hmm. You still have rules and accountability. I guess some things never change.
2) Does it matter what you think?
Does it really matter what you think? If there were no God you would be right! I am sure that would count for something to some one somewhere. If you could only prove it.
Now there is the problem. If God is who He says He is there is no earthly, scientific, philosophical, sociological, psychological (unless you stretch it to some form of para-psychology) or even theological way to disprove His existence. In fact, these disciplines, such as they are, are more likely to lean toward the existence of God than away from Him.
Does it matter to God what you think? I think He cares. In the big scheme of things it may seem a small matter but on the personal level it could mean everything. If God is as big and comprehensive as He claims to be then what you think is known to Him and He has an appropriate response. If you have the intellectual capacity to unlock the barriers of your mind and assume for a moment that God made the universe and He made you, and He has the ability to be conscious of your existence along with all the other billions of people on the earth, what do you think His response should be? Should He just leave you alone? Should He hold you accountable? Should He care at all about you? Should He love you and want you to love Him in return?
I know where I stand. God does love me and He wants me to love Him in return. He also holds me accountable for my lack of rightness (That’s right, we call it sin.) but is willing to forgive if I will love Him. In order to love Him I need to believe in Him and if I believe in Him I need to obey Him by believing that He paid the price for my unrighteousness when He gave His Son, Jesus, to die on the Cross for my sins. I guess it does matter what you think.
Monday, July 13, 2009
God's Peace
Sometimes things do not work out the way we expect or the way we would like them to. This may cause us to wonder and to doubt that God cares or that He is even remotely interested of aware of the circumstances we are in. Romans 8:28 states:
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.
If we love the Lord our knowledge of God's providential workings in the affairs of mankind should give us a heart of peace. We may not always understand the things that go on around us and sometimes it is going to seem unfair and painful, but God is still there and still working for our good. He has a calling and a purpose for your life. No one said it would always be easy but we can have peace. Jesus said:
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. (John 14:27)
Personal trials, family problems, church difficulties; these are all things that fall under the jurisdiction of God's peace. They are not things to be run from but rather to seek God's help in overcoming. Let us rest in God's peace.
RH
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.
If we love the Lord our knowledge of God's providential workings in the affairs of mankind should give us a heart of peace. We may not always understand the things that go on around us and sometimes it is going to seem unfair and painful, but God is still there and still working for our good. He has a calling and a purpose for your life. No one said it would always be easy but we can have peace. Jesus said:
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. (John 14:27)
Personal trials, family problems, church difficulties; these are all things that fall under the jurisdiction of God's peace. They are not things to be run from but rather to seek God's help in overcoming. Let us rest in God's peace.
RH
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
A Just Weight
Proverbs 11:1
“Just” comes from Justice. Justice indicates a judgment of equity. In the Old Testament it was very basic: An eye for and eye, a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life… this is pure justice, equal recompense. If you cause me to suffer you will suffer likewise
Pure justice does not address the thought that “two wrongs don’t make a right”. It does not consider mercy or grace. It is equal punishment for a given wrong. It did not matter that another family might be left without a father, son or provider. It did not matter that there would now be two men in the community with only one eye or with the same snaggly grin. The concept of justice was an incentive to keep men from following their sin nature to do what ever they wanted. A man who feared justice would be more inclined to help his neighbor than to harm him in any way. This line of thinking (philosophy of life) synchronizes well with the fundamental Biblical principle Jesus expressed in the “Golden rule” and Paul speaks of in Romans 13:8.
On the other hand, such a pure system of justice could become vindictive and have an escalating effect that would lead to the fall of a society through feuds, vendettas, retaliations and so on. God knew this and made adjustments in the Old Testament Law where the innocent, though they inadvertently caused the death of another, could escape death themselves. The thief could make restitution; the fornicator could marry (with no divorce option) or die. God made allowances where justice would be meted our with an equal punishment to fit the crime, not necessarily an identical punishment.
In the realm of human endeavor God demands equity in man’s dealing with man. There is an expectation of fairness and a mandate for honesty. We are to be as “just” as we can in all our dealings. God holds us accountable. When we are unjust it is an abomination and God is offended. (Prov. 11:1)
A just weight is literally speaking of a standard where one is trading equal for equal but it pictures far more. It speaks of you and me. Our business dealings, our personal dealings, our attitude toward one another to seek fairness and to be honest. Anything less is an offence to God.
Justice requires judgment. It is a legal term. Someone has to have the authority and credentials to make determinations in matters of equity. Weights had to be matched to a standard. Someone that both parties trusted had to certify that. If you trusted your neighbor or the person you were dealing with it wasn’t a problem. But if you questioned their integrity you needed to take the matter to a higher authority.
God is pleased when we are honest and trusting. God is offended when matters, especially among brothers, are done otherwise. He will judge accordingly and He knows what a just weight is.
Related passages:
Ex. 22:24-25 …eye for an eye…
Mat. 5:38 Jesus’ thoughts
Romans 13:8 keep the Law through love
Lev. 19:35-36 Principles of Life - In the midst of admonitions of proper behavior God includes the just weight and measures.
Deut. 25:13-16 You are not even to have the corrupt standards, though unused, in your house.
RLH
“Just” comes from Justice. Justice indicates a judgment of equity. In the Old Testament it was very basic: An eye for and eye, a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life… this is pure justice, equal recompense. If you cause me to suffer you will suffer likewise
Pure justice does not address the thought that “two wrongs don’t make a right”. It does not consider mercy or grace. It is equal punishment for a given wrong. It did not matter that another family might be left without a father, son or provider. It did not matter that there would now be two men in the community with only one eye or with the same snaggly grin. The concept of justice was an incentive to keep men from following their sin nature to do what ever they wanted. A man who feared justice would be more inclined to help his neighbor than to harm him in any way. This line of thinking (philosophy of life) synchronizes well with the fundamental Biblical principle Jesus expressed in the “Golden rule” and Paul speaks of in Romans 13:8.
On the other hand, such a pure system of justice could become vindictive and have an escalating effect that would lead to the fall of a society through feuds, vendettas, retaliations and so on. God knew this and made adjustments in the Old Testament Law where the innocent, though they inadvertently caused the death of another, could escape death themselves. The thief could make restitution; the fornicator could marry (with no divorce option) or die. God made allowances where justice would be meted our with an equal punishment to fit the crime, not necessarily an identical punishment.
In the realm of human endeavor God demands equity in man’s dealing with man. There is an expectation of fairness and a mandate for honesty. We are to be as “just” as we can in all our dealings. God holds us accountable. When we are unjust it is an abomination and God is offended. (Prov. 11:1)
A just weight is literally speaking of a standard where one is trading equal for equal but it pictures far more. It speaks of you and me. Our business dealings, our personal dealings, our attitude toward one another to seek fairness and to be honest. Anything less is an offence to God.
Justice requires judgment. It is a legal term. Someone has to have the authority and credentials to make determinations in matters of equity. Weights had to be matched to a standard. Someone that both parties trusted had to certify that. If you trusted your neighbor or the person you were dealing with it wasn’t a problem. But if you questioned their integrity you needed to take the matter to a higher authority.
God is pleased when we are honest and trusting. God is offended when matters, especially among brothers, are done otherwise. He will judge accordingly and He knows what a just weight is.
Related passages:
Ex. 22:24-25 …eye for an eye…
Mat. 5:38 Jesus’ thoughts
Romans 13:8 keep the Law through love
Lev. 19:35-36 Principles of Life - In the midst of admonitions of proper behavior God includes the just weight and measures.
Deut. 25:13-16 You are not even to have the corrupt standards, though unused, in your house.
RLH
Monday, May 4, 2009
False Religion
Man has superimposed a false religion over the true religion. Baptists do it as well as anyone else. The formalities and order of worship are a template that we use to structure our time together and keep things organized. Such things are not all bad unless they become the substitute for worship and true religion. True worship comes from the heart. True religion has positive, tangible effects in the lives of others as we minister to them in Jesus name. (James 1:27)
False religion is: Thinking that going to church is about you. Expecting services rather than serving. Accepting worldliness as a “normal” part of life. False religion is also: Superstitious (Acts 17:22-23), Superficial (Mat 23:23-28), Superfluous (Isaiah 40:19-22), Superimposed, Supersedes, Super social… However, it is not Superior to real worship (though often Preferred).
If you can come to an assembly of believers and sing the same songs, hear the same message, pray at the same time and say Amen to the same things and leave this place forgetting what manner of man or woman you are and unprepared to obey God and His Word then your religion is false. Your hypocrisy betrays you. But God is not mocked.
False Faith:
There may be those who in a given worship service, before they pass through the doors of that place are already planning their next sinful activity. Theirs is a false faith.
Maybe you are of the “freedom to fornicate” religion. Maybe you are of the “no drug is too bad” religion. Maybe you are into the “alcoholics anonymous” religion or the “Gamblers anonymous”, “I love my car”, “Money, money, money” or the church of “I’m better than you are.” The thoughts and intents of the heart are the very measure of one’s faith. If your heart is distracted from God, though you may be a believer, you cannot be actively living, walking or professing godly faith. Your faith is false (just for show) and God is not unaware.
False Doctrine:
In false religions you can go to church, read your Bible, pray the prayers, be saved, be baptized and be a member – as long as the church tolerates it. As you grow in the Lord and in His Word you may discover the things being taught are not the things being practiced. If you do not practice what you teach, even if you teach the truth, you are practicing a false doctrine.
God has given us His Word. It is to be our standard of Faith and Practice. It is the unique source of Divine Wisdom and Knowledge. All other sources are to be proved by it. We are expected to learn the things taught in the Bible with the leadership of His Holy Spirit. If we in any way question God’s Word, only believe the parts we want, strive to adapt the meaning to our own preconceived notions or willfully deny the expressed truths found therein we are teaching false doctrine.
In false religion you can believe, teach and do just about anything you please – but you cannot please God because you are serving the false god of self and the flesh and not the true and living God who paid the price for you sin on the cross. God is not impressed!
False Worship
To sing, pray, perform the religious ceremonies without love or passion for the True and Living God who gave His only begotten Son for our sins is false worship.
Real Worship and Religion are not the same: 1) Real Worship is an expression of our love for God to God. 2) Real Religion is practicing your love for God, love for one another (as God loves us), serving one another and obeying God (“If you love me, keep my commandments”).
If your worship is false you have nothing to authenticate your religion. Religion without worship is works without faith. When James spoke of faith without works being dead he was encouraging True Religion: Works based on Faith. If you have Faith (empowered belief) you shall have True Religion and Real Worship.
Real Religion
Real Faith (empowered belief), True Doctrine (believing, teaching and practicing God’s Word), and Real Worship (expressing your love for God) are the foundations of Real Religion.
Faith, without which it is impossible to please God, leads to knowledge and Wisdom of God which leads to real worship in Spirit and in Truth which leads to real religion that is true, undefiled, loving, ministering, giving and nurturing.
Jesus Christ (He is God) is the answer. Faith in Him is the healer of all our infirmities. His Word empowers our minds. Worship secures us emotionally. Real religion strengthens our character and gives us the ability to handle the challenges of life without fear from… being awakened in the night, that phone call, that bad news, that troubling conversation, that stabbing pain you felt for the suffering of another, the brokenness of personal failure, the sense of loss, that day when the Devil tried to take you apart piece by piece and you felt there was nothing you could do to stop it…
RLH
False religion is: Thinking that going to church is about you. Expecting services rather than serving. Accepting worldliness as a “normal” part of life. False religion is also: Superstitious (Acts 17:22-23), Superficial (Mat 23:23-28), Superfluous (Isaiah 40:19-22), Superimposed, Supersedes, Super social… However, it is not Superior to real worship (though often Preferred).
If you can come to an assembly of believers and sing the same songs, hear the same message, pray at the same time and say Amen to the same things and leave this place forgetting what manner of man or woman you are and unprepared to obey God and His Word then your religion is false. Your hypocrisy betrays you. But God is not mocked.
False Faith:
There may be those who in a given worship service, before they pass through the doors of that place are already planning their next sinful activity. Theirs is a false faith.
Maybe you are of the “freedom to fornicate” religion. Maybe you are of the “no drug is too bad” religion. Maybe you are into the “alcoholics anonymous” religion or the “Gamblers anonymous”, “I love my car”, “Money, money, money” or the church of “I’m better than you are.” The thoughts and intents of the heart are the very measure of one’s faith. If your heart is distracted from God, though you may be a believer, you cannot be actively living, walking or professing godly faith. Your faith is false (just for show) and God is not unaware.
False Doctrine:
In false religions you can go to church, read your Bible, pray the prayers, be saved, be baptized and be a member – as long as the church tolerates it. As you grow in the Lord and in His Word you may discover the things being taught are not the things being practiced. If you do not practice what you teach, even if you teach the truth, you are practicing a false doctrine.
God has given us His Word. It is to be our standard of Faith and Practice. It is the unique source of Divine Wisdom and Knowledge. All other sources are to be proved by it. We are expected to learn the things taught in the Bible with the leadership of His Holy Spirit. If we in any way question God’s Word, only believe the parts we want, strive to adapt the meaning to our own preconceived notions or willfully deny the expressed truths found therein we are teaching false doctrine.
In false religion you can believe, teach and do just about anything you please – but you cannot please God because you are serving the false god of self and the flesh and not the true and living God who paid the price for you sin on the cross. God is not impressed!
False Worship
To sing, pray, perform the religious ceremonies without love or passion for the True and Living God who gave His only begotten Son for our sins is false worship.
Real Worship and Religion are not the same: 1) Real Worship is an expression of our love for God to God. 2) Real Religion is practicing your love for God, love for one another (as God loves us), serving one another and obeying God (“If you love me, keep my commandments”).
If your worship is false you have nothing to authenticate your religion. Religion without worship is works without faith. When James spoke of faith without works being dead he was encouraging True Religion: Works based on Faith. If you have Faith (empowered belief) you shall have True Religion and Real Worship.
Real Religion
Real Faith (empowered belief), True Doctrine (believing, teaching and practicing God’s Word), and Real Worship (expressing your love for God) are the foundations of Real Religion.
Faith, without which it is impossible to please God, leads to knowledge and Wisdom of God which leads to real worship in Spirit and in Truth which leads to real religion that is true, undefiled, loving, ministering, giving and nurturing.
Jesus Christ (He is God) is the answer. Faith in Him is the healer of all our infirmities. His Word empowers our minds. Worship secures us emotionally. Real religion strengthens our character and gives us the ability to handle the challenges of life without fear from… being awakened in the night, that phone call, that bad news, that troubling conversation, that stabbing pain you felt for the suffering of another, the brokenness of personal failure, the sense of loss, that day when the Devil tried to take you apart piece by piece and you felt there was nothing you could do to stop it…
RLH
The Message of Ecclesiastes
Vanity and Vexation of Spirit
Solomon had the most glorious earthly life one could have desired in terms of the material and the carnal and the pleasures of this world. His life was “cart blank” (a blank check). He could have and do virtually anything he pleased. From his 300 wives and 700 concubines to his tremendous wealth to his fantastic construction projects (including the Temple that might have been his legacy) Solomon lived beyond the dreams of mankind. Add to it all his tremendous mental and intellectual capacity and Solomon is one of the “Super Men” of the Bible.
Yet, with all this Solomon declared his life to be empty (vanity) and frustrating (vexation of spirit).
I believe Solomon was a man of faith but throughout much of his life he did not live by faith. It appears that with his tremendous knowledge and wisdom came a thirst for experience that lead him down some very shady pathways in his life. When God loosed the reigns of Solomon’s human limitations Solomon ran wild, compelled to try everything and push all limits, running farther and faster than any before him but in the end, getting nowhere.
Solomon may be an illustration of man at his highest capacity with unlimited resources and potential. He may be a small sample of what mankind would have become had Adam and Eve been allowed access to the Tree of Life after the fall and they and their offspring’s physical and mental capacities remained intact from the time of creation.
Before we become too enamored with Solomon’s charmed life we need to keep in mind that in the end he regretted much of what he had done, repented of his selfish and carnal behavior and turned to God for comfort, personal fulfillment, peace, joy and purpose in his life. With all his wisdom (skill, intelligence, intellectual capacity, intuitive knowledge and higher reasoning) he had failed to include God into the equations of life and found only inequities and errors (vanity). He finally concluded that the answers to life’s problems – mathematically of otherwise- are found in faith (empowered belief) in God and obedience to His Will.
RLH
Solomon had the most glorious earthly life one could have desired in terms of the material and the carnal and the pleasures of this world. His life was “cart blank” (a blank check). He could have and do virtually anything he pleased. From his 300 wives and 700 concubines to his tremendous wealth to his fantastic construction projects (including the Temple that might have been his legacy) Solomon lived beyond the dreams of mankind. Add to it all his tremendous mental and intellectual capacity and Solomon is one of the “Super Men” of the Bible.
Yet, with all this Solomon declared his life to be empty (vanity) and frustrating (vexation of spirit).
I believe Solomon was a man of faith but throughout much of his life he did not live by faith. It appears that with his tremendous knowledge and wisdom came a thirst for experience that lead him down some very shady pathways in his life. When God loosed the reigns of Solomon’s human limitations Solomon ran wild, compelled to try everything and push all limits, running farther and faster than any before him but in the end, getting nowhere.
Solomon may be an illustration of man at his highest capacity with unlimited resources and potential. He may be a small sample of what mankind would have become had Adam and Eve been allowed access to the Tree of Life after the fall and they and their offspring’s physical and mental capacities remained intact from the time of creation.
Before we become too enamored with Solomon’s charmed life we need to keep in mind that in the end he regretted much of what he had done, repented of his selfish and carnal behavior and turned to God for comfort, personal fulfillment, peace, joy and purpose in his life. With all his wisdom (skill, intelligence, intellectual capacity, intuitive knowledge and higher reasoning) he had failed to include God into the equations of life and found only inequities and errors (vanity). He finally concluded that the answers to life’s problems – mathematically of otherwise- are found in faith (empowered belief) in God and obedience to His Will.
RLH
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Where Does Evil Come From?
Evil is that which is not of God. God is good. He creates good. He does good.
Evil is departure from the good of God. Since all of God is good and it is His Will that good be done the ultimate source of evil is disobedience to God.
Lucifer disobeyed God and became evil.
Adam disobeyed God and caused the evil of sin to fall upon all creation – including himself and his posterity.
Sin, by definition, is disobedience to God.
Evil is the “bad” associated with sin. It is inherent in sin. Note that some “good” may come of sin but it is inherently evil. One might justify steeling from the rich to give to the poor. However, the poor then become complicit in the crime. Lotto dollars may be used for schools and economic development but it in fact takes money from those who have false hopes and the innocent become dependent on the vices of the weak. Abortion may be seen as good to one who does not want to accept the responsibility or the inconvenience of a child but it means the slaying of the most innocent among us. These are evil results of sinful behavior.
If disobedience has brought sin and the subsequent evil, only obedience to God can restore the goodness and forgiveness of God through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.
Some would argue that if God created all things He also created evil. However, evil is not something created or generated by good. It is the consequence of the freedom God gave man to choose to obey Him or not. Such a design is risky can only serve one purpose: to prove love. Without a choice love is irrelevant, a mere glandular emotion that only complicates life and has no meaning. With choice love is still glandular and still complicated but when it is true and one chooses to love God who first loved us it is the greatest treasure and brings Him the Highest pleasure, glory and honor.
A perfect creation without love? Or a fallen creation to choose to love and be loved of (at least by some) in return? Creation will eventually be purged of evil but the love of God is forever!
RLH
Evil is departure from the good of God. Since all of God is good and it is His Will that good be done the ultimate source of evil is disobedience to God.
Lucifer disobeyed God and became evil.
Adam disobeyed God and caused the evil of sin to fall upon all creation – including himself and his posterity.
Sin, by definition, is disobedience to God.
Evil is the “bad” associated with sin. It is inherent in sin. Note that some “good” may come of sin but it is inherently evil. One might justify steeling from the rich to give to the poor. However, the poor then become complicit in the crime. Lotto dollars may be used for schools and economic development but it in fact takes money from those who have false hopes and the innocent become dependent on the vices of the weak. Abortion may be seen as good to one who does not want to accept the responsibility or the inconvenience of a child but it means the slaying of the most innocent among us. These are evil results of sinful behavior.
If disobedience has brought sin and the subsequent evil, only obedience to God can restore the goodness and forgiveness of God through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.
Some would argue that if God created all things He also created evil. However, evil is not something created or generated by good. It is the consequence of the freedom God gave man to choose to obey Him or not. Such a design is risky can only serve one purpose: to prove love. Without a choice love is irrelevant, a mere glandular emotion that only complicates life and has no meaning. With choice love is still glandular and still complicated but when it is true and one chooses to love God who first loved us it is the greatest treasure and brings Him the Highest pleasure, glory and honor.
A perfect creation without love? Or a fallen creation to choose to love and be loved of (at least by some) in return? Creation will eventually be purged of evil but the love of God is forever!
RLH
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