Galatians 1:6-9

The Word of God is truth that’s living and able to penetrate human souls (Heb. 4:12). Consider how powerful Scripture is: it can change hearts, save lives from eternal condemnation, and give hope to the hopeless.

Is it any wonder, then, that the Bible is a battlefield of Satan? The Devil will do his best to destroy its message and truth. In fact, this has been our Enemy’s continuous goal since he chose to turn from God.

Our heavenly Father has graciously let us know in advance the outcome of this ongoing battle: Truth will prevail. But while the Lord has the ultimate victory, Satan can gain ground among individuals. His tactics are dangerous and deceptive to the unsuspecting. For this reason, we should carefully guard against his attacks, which are hard to recognize unless we are prepared.

False teaching is one of Satan’s preferred tactics for leading us astray. At first glance, such instruction often seems to align with Scripture, but do not be misled by the deception. Two things are essential for standing firm against these slippery falsehoods: to be well grounded in the truth of God’s Word and to listen to His Spirit. Only then can we recognize the error and avoid the pitfalls of Satan’s lies.

The Enemy longs to mislead believers so they’ll be ineffective for the kingdom. He also wants to keep all unsaved souls far from salvation through Jesus Christ. Friends, prepare for battle. Grow in the knowledge of truth, and lean on God’s Spirit to guide you moment by moment.

Every thinking reader of the Bible is bound to ask at some point in time, “Does this book actually condone slavery?”  To be sure, slavery is not the only issue the Bible causes us to question. The Old Testament is rife with palace intrigues, polygamy, divorce, violence and the like, and godly people are very often part of the problem. Although the New Testament is decidedly improved, it still seems to fall far short of that which twenty-first century human rights would expect. There are no women among the twelve disciples of Jesus and Christian masters do have slaves working for them.

To address issues of this kind, we need to step back and ask three larger questions: What are the theological, political, and cultural contexts in which the Old Testament narrative unfolds, and how is the behavior of God’s people in the Old Testament expected to be different from those of other cultures?  What are the major developments in the New Testament that give us a clue to interpretation of Old Testament ethics? And are we expected to further extrapolate changes in behavior beyond the New Testament times to the present day?

To begin with, it should not be forgotten that the Old Testament narratives contain codes which are ethical, ceremonial, and social. Therefore, their application to the present day should not always be considered in literal terms. The social elements of those narratives need not apply to us, and the ceremonial ones are largely fulfilled in the completed work of Christ. It is the ethical aspects of Old Testament teaching with which we should be concerned, and there is indeed much to consider.

As an example, on the way to Canaan, God tells his people through Moses that the alien, or foreigner, among them should not be oppressed (Exodus 23:9). The reason given is fascinating: the people of Israel know in their hearts how it feels to be oppressed!  (The word translated “alien” is not the same as slave, but the experience of the Israelites in Egypt was certainly that of slaves.)  Thus, we see the first statement on human rights: the alien was to be treated as a citizen; in fact, he was to be loved as one of their own.(1) Even when Hebrew law and custom shared in the common heritage of the ancient world, there is a unique care in God’s Name for those people who by status were not considered people—something absent from the codes of Babylon and Assyria.

The New Testament further gives us a paradigm to interpret Old Testament practices. In one of their notorious fault-finding missions, the Pharisees test Jesus on the subject of divorce.(2) He initially appears to play into their hands, asking what Mosaic Law has to say on the subject. When they gleefully quote the permission of Moses to divorce one’s wife, Jesus lays down a method of interpretation that has to be taken very seriously. He makes it clear that certain Old Testament commandments were to be understood as concessions to the hardness of the human heart rather than as expressions of God’s holy character. He goes on to reference how this was not the state of affairs in the beginning—that is, before the fall.

The regulation of slavery should therefore be seen as a practical step to deal with the realities of the day resulting from human fall. The aberrations that lead to alienation among individuals, races, and nations are the result of a fundamental broken relationship between humankind and God. Within this tragic scenario, Scripture comes as a breath of fresh air as it seeks to redeem the situation and sets us on a path of ever-increasing amelioration of our predicament. While the Bible does not reject slavery outright, the conclusion that it actually favors slavery is patently wrong. Scripture does reveal that slavery is not ideal, both in Old Testament laws forbidding the enslavement of fellow Israelites, the law of jubilee, and in New Testament applications of Christ. In fact, the Bible teaches that the feeling of superiority in general is sin!(3) The abolition of slavery is thus not only permissible by biblical standards, but demanded by biblical principles. The pre-fall statement that should guide and ultimately abolish such (and any) practices of superiority is the declaration that all humans—men and women—are made in the image of God.

On this principle, the Bible even lays the foundation for progressing far beyond what was possible in New Testament times by addressing the very economic discrimination and favoritism of which slavery is the worst expression.(4) Of course, lamentably, it must be admitted that the Church has taken many centuries to live out what Scripture taught long ago, and no doubt we continue to drag our feet. The time delay between the Word of Scripture and its implementation in society is often due to the “holy huddle” mentality prevailing among Christians who are largely unconcerned about issues outside of their immediate periphery. Another reason many Christians continue to remain silent in the face of injustice is the platonic view of the cosmos we have adopted, implying that life in the hereafter is the only issue to be addressed, while we watch the world go by in its destructive way. Both mentalities are sadly misguided.

Those of us who say that we believe the Bible to be the Word of God have to raise our level of awareness and involvement regarding social issues. Having failed to do so, we have let these issues pass into the hands of those who may not be Christians, but are better informed about social injustice and concerned enough to fight wrong practices through legal means. While they have no logical basis to do what they are doing, the real tragedy is that we who do have a basis to address these issues remain largely indifferent. May the Lord of Scripture open our eyes to see that God is interested in the redemption of the whole of creation and not just disembodied souls and spirits!

L.T. Jeyachandran is executive director of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Singapore.

(1) See Leviticus 19:33-34.

(2) See Matthew 19:1-9; Mark 10:2-9.

(3) See Philemon 2:1-8.

(4) See James 2:1-9; 5:1-6.

Morning   “Forsake me not, O Lord.”   Psalm 38:21

Frequently we pray that God would not forsake us in the hour of trial and

temptation, but we too much forget that we have need to use this prayer at all

times. There is no moment of our life, however holy, in which we can do without

his constant upholding. Whether in light or in darkness, in communion or in

temptation, we alike need the prayer, “Forsake me not, O Lord.” “Hold thou me

up, and I shall be safe.” A little child, while learning to walk, always needs

the nurse’s aid. The ship left by the pilot drifts at once from her course. We

cannot do without continued aid from above; let it then be your prayer today,

“Forsake me not. Father, forsake not thy child, lest he fall by the hand of

the enemy. Shepherd, forsake not thy lamb, lest he wander from the safety of

the fold. Great Husbandman, forsake not thy plant, lest it wither and die.

Forsake me not, O Lord,’ now; and forsake me not at any moment of my life.

Forsake me not in my joys, lest they absorb my heart. Forsake me not in my

sorrows, lest I murmur against thee. Forsake me not in the day of my repentance,

lest I lose the hope of pardon, and fall into despair; and forsake me not in the

day of my strongest faith, lest faith degenerate into presumption. Forsake me

not, for without thee I am weak, but with thee I am strong. Forsake me not, for

my path is dangerous, and full of snares, and I cannot do without thy

guidance. The hen forsakes not her brood; do thou then evermore cover me with

thy feathers, and permit me under thy wings to find my refuge. Be not far from

me, O Lord, for trouble is near, for there is none to help.’ Leave me not,

neither forsake me, O God of my salvation!'”

“O ever in our cleansed breast,

Bid thine Eternal Spirit rest;

And make our secret soul to be

A temple pure and worthy thee.”

 

Evening   “And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem … and they told

what things were done in the way, and how he was known of them.”  Luke 24:33-35

When the two disciples had reached Emmaus, and were refreshing themselves at the

evening meal, the mysterious stranger who had so enchanted them upon the road,

took bread and brake it, made himself known to them, and then vanished out of

their sight. They had constrained him to abide with them, because the day was

far spent; but now, although it was much later, their love was a lamp to their

feet, yea, wings also; they forgot the darkness, their weariness was all gone,

and forthwith they journeyed back the threescore furlongs to tell the gladsome

news of a risen Lord, who had appeared to them by the way. They reached the

Christians in Jerusalem, and were received by a burst of joyful news

before they could tell their own tale. These early Christians were all on fire

to speak of Christ’s resurrection, and to proclaim what they knew of the Lord;

they made common property of their experiences. This evening let their example

impress us deeply. We too must bear our witness concerning Jesus. John’s account

of the sepulchre needed to be supplemented by Peter; and Mary could speak of

something further still; combined, we have a full testimony from which nothing

can be spared. We have each of us peculiar gifts and special manifestations; but

the one object God has in view is the perfecting of the whole body of Christ. We

must, therefore, bring our spiritual possessions and lay them

at the apostle’s feet, and make distribution unto all of what God has given to

us. Keep back no part of the precious truth, but speak what you know, and

testify what you have seen. Let not the toil or darkness, or possible unbelief

of your friends, weigh one moment in the scale. Up, and be marching to the place

of duty, and there tell what great things God has shown to your soul.

 

Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ.  Philippians 1:27

The apostle’s concern is not simply with our talk and conversation with one another, but with the whole course of our life and behavior in the world. The Greek word translated “manner of life” signifies the actions and the privileges of citizenship: And in this way we are commanded to let our actions, as citizens of the New Jerusalem, be worthy of the Gospel of Christ. What “manner of life” is this?

In the first place, the Gospel is very simple. So Christians should be simple and plain in their habits. There should be about our manner, our speech, our dress, our whole behavior that simplicity that is the very soul of beauty.

The Gospel is preeminently true. It is gold without dross; and the Christian’s life will be lusterless and valueless without the jewel of truth.

The Gospel is a very fearless Gospel; it boldly proclaims the truth, whether men like it or not. We must be equally faithful and unflinching.

But the Gospel is also very gentle. We see this in Jesus: “a bruised reed he will not break.”1 Some professing Christians are sharper than a thorn-hedge; such men are not like Jesus. Let us seek to win others by the gentleness of our words and deeds.

The Gospel is very loving. It is the message of the God of love to a lost and fallen race. Christ’s command to His disciples was, “Love one another.” We need more real, hearty union with and love for all the saints, more tender compassion toward the souls of the worst and vilest of men!

We must not forget that the Gospel of Christ is holy. It never excuses sin: It pardons it, but only through an atonement. If our life is to resemble the Gospel, we must shun not merely the grosser vices, but everything that would hinder our perfect conformity to Christ.

For His sake, for our own sakes, and for the sake of others, we must strive day by day to let our manner of life be more in accordance with His Gospel.

 

1 Matthew 12:20

The family reading plan for May 24, 2012

Isaiah 25 | 1 John 3