The Blessed Man

"Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not whither; and whatever he does shall prosper." -Psalm 1:1-3

Blessed is an interesting word. Most of the time we use it to describe the state of life we are in when we have many material things or when things are going well for us. This first Psalm doesn't describe the man who is blessed in this way.
The man who is blessed is the man who, first of all, does not do wicked things. He doesn't walk through his life in the 'wisdom' of the ungodly'. He doesn't stand (abide, dwell) in the path of sinners and he doesn't sit in the dwelling of the scornful. This man steers clear of all things that are contrary to the Word of God.
The man who is blessed is the man that delights in the law of God. He thinks about it and ponders its meaning day and night. This man is totally stable. He is rooted and grounded in what he believes (Colossians 2:6-7). He is like a tree planted close to the rivers. This summer, my dad, my brother, and I took a trip to Boston to watch the Redsox play the Yankees. On the way back from the game, we walked through a park in Boston. In this park there was a small river (or large stream, whichever you prefer). Along the banks of the river were some very large trees. The base of the trunks of these trees were so healthy that the roots literally began two feet above ground and grew down into the ground from there. I'm sure that those roots extended deep into the soil.
The blessed man is a fruitful man. As he delights in the law of God, he sees the effects of it in his life. The righteousness that he reads in the Word is lived out in his life. God makes this man prosper in whatever he does.
Are you a blessed man? Do you measure your blessedness by what you have or by how much you delight in God's law. Read the Word and you will be blessed.

The Financial Oppression of Interest

Read Nehemiah 5:1-13

Nehemiah and the people of Israel that have returned from the land of Babylon to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem are in the midst of the massive building project. In Nehemiah 4 we read of oppression from outside sources. Now Nehemiah and company will face oppression from inside the camp.

The stage is set by the explanation of the financial situation of the Jewish people. First of all, there were a lot of people and they were hungry (v. 2). Feeding these people was not necessarily a problem, but it became a problem because the people tried to solve the matter on their own without Nehemiah's counsel. Some had mortgaged their land in order to buy grain (v. 3). Some had borrowed money to pay their taxes (v. 4). Some had even gone so far as to sell their children  as slaves (v. 5) and they didn't have the necessary funds to redeem their children from the slave market.

When Nehemiah hears of the circumstances, he is not a happy camper. Scripture tells us (v. 6) that he became 'very angry.' I imagine that this is possibly an understatement. If Nehemiah were anything like me, he would have been totally furious. However, even though he was very angry, verse 7 tells us that Nehemiah still took the time for some serious thought. 

Then Nehemiah rebuked the nobles and rulers (the money lenders) for charging interest on money loaned to their Jewish brethren. Nehemiah exposes the wickedness of what they were doing. They were, in essence, forcing their own people to become slaves without the possibility of being redeemed. After hearing Nehemiah's rebuke, the nobles and rulers had nothing to say. So Nehemiah continued with his solution to the problem.

The nobles and rulers were to stop charging interest and restore the lands, vineyards, houses, and a hundredth of the money and goods that they had charged the people. Interestingly enough, Nehemiah contrasts the charging of interest with walking in the fear of God. The nobles and rulers responded well. They vowed before the priests and people that they would restore what was taken and require nothing from the people. They did as Nehemiah said. 

What does this mean for us? Is it wrong to charge interest ? Is it wrong to mortgage your land or borrow money? What does it mean for our building projects? What does it mean for church finances?

At the very least, it means that Christians ought not to charge each other interest and we ought to seriously weigh the cost of borrowing money or mortgaging our land. The people in Nehemiah 5 made foolish financial and family decisions just because they were hungry and needed to pay their taxes. Just because you can borrow money doesn't mean that you should.

Secondly, there is a need for personal financial planning. These people put themselves in the position of borrowing to pay taxes. This is not a good spot to be in. Essentially, the people locked themselves into paying interest on something that happened in the past. This causes financial enslavement to the past. We ought to always be looking ahead with our finances. That is why it involves planning. 

When it comes to building projects, I can't help but think that the only option ought to be saving until you can pay for the project up front. That ensures financial freedom at the beginning, middle, and end of a project. Churches that take out mortgages in order to fund building projects trap themselves into paying for a project years after it is completed. The whole of church finance ought to be operated on a cash basis. 

100 Days...1000 Chapters

Good Morning!

Today marks the 100th day of the year. If you've been faithfully following the Bible Reading System that I posted as we started this year, you will be half-way through Leviticus, halfway through 2 Samuel, most of the way through Job for the second time, 100 Psalms down, into Proverbs for the fourth time, more than halfway done Jeremiah, and twice through a handful of New Testament books (mostly done Acts for the fourth time!).

This is a lot of reading! You are devouring Scripture at a rate I'm sure you never imagined. You have read nearly as many chapters as there are in Scripture. So keep reading, keep growing, keep on walking with the Lord!

The Hope of the Resurrection

Hope is a good thing. Perhaps it is the best of things. Hope brings comfort to a downcast soul. Hope motivates the discouraged to keep on running. Hope keeps our eyes fixed on the future. Hope is a good thing.

The Christian’s hope is different from the hope of the world. The hope of the world is a simple feeling that everything will be ok in the end. But the hope of Christianity is a mental confidence that what God has promised will come to pass.

Hebrews 6:19 – "This hope we have as an anchor for the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil, where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus…”

In the day and age in which this was written, the anchor of a ship was often placed in a smaller boat, called a forerunner, to take the anchor deep within a harbor that the boat could not successfully navigate. The forerunner would drop the anchor in the harbor. That would secure the ship’s safety. Even though the ship was out on open water it would not drift away.

As Christians, hope is our anchor. Jesus, our forerunner, has taken our hope beyond where we ever could and placed it in the presence of God, behind the veil. No matter what happens out here in the open waters, we can know that our hope is both sure and steadfast.

The hope of Christianity is the resurrection. We believe, first of all, that Christ died, was buried, and rose again three days later. And we believe that one day He will return and resurrect those who have died in Christ and those who are alive and remain will be raptured. That is our hope.

In 1st Corinthians 15 we read of the truth of the resurrection. The Corinthians had lost sight of this hope. They even went so far as to deny that there was a resurrection. This was no small matter. Paul writes this long treatise in defense of the vital doctrine of the resurrection. Let’s look at a portion of it:

1. The Resurrection is intrinsically tied to the Gospel

1 Cor. 15:1-4 – “Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel…that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures…”

Declare: - means to make known. It is as if Paul has to declare the Gospel anew to a group of people that should have known better.

Paul reminds the Corinthians that it was the gospel of the resurrection that had brought them salvation in the first place. In verse 12 Paul tells us that some of the Corinthians were actually questioning the resurrection from the dead. Our culture today is not much different. The majority in our culture denounce what the Scripture teaches. In fact, there are many within the church that if seriously questioned would deny the doctrine of the resurrection.

In some small way, I can understand why it would be difficult to believe in something so amazing, something so far beyond our comprehension. None of us have seen a resurrection. There is no one here today that has died and been resurrected. Yes is it difficult for our minds to accept such a truth, but let me remind you that these are the very words of God. These are words we can trust. We have never seen a resurrection, but the Word of God declares this truth: “He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.” We can heartily agree with Job and declare, “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God…How my heart yearns within me!” (Job 19:25-27)

Without the resurrection the doctrine of the gospel would be incomplete. Paul ties the resurrection to the very gospel itself. The resurrection is the “good” in the “good news.” Without the resurrection, Christ’s death is just “news”—just another headline in the morning paper. “Extremist Sect Leader Crucified on a Cross” the papers would read. Without the resurrection, Jesus would be no different from the so-called heroes of the rest of the world’s religions.

2. The Resurrection was identified by many eye-witnesses

1 Cor. 15:5-8 – “and that He was seen by Cephas…the twelve…over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present…James…the apostles…[Paul]”

One of the greatest confirmations of the resurrection is the host of eye-witnesses to the risen Lord. An eye-witness account is powerful. Think about it. In our court system in America, an eye-witness is enough to give someone the death penalty. Eye-witnesses confirm something that actually happened.

It is possible that if there was only one eye-witness that the testimony could be passed off as untrue or unreliable. But Jesus was seen by over five hundred people at one time. Try convincing those five hundred that they were all crazy or hallucinating. The word ‘seen’ means to gaze with eyes wide open. There was no doubt about it. Jesus was alive—and that confirmed by a host of eye-witnesses.

If the resurrection was false, they had to know it! If it was something they had conjured up by hiding the body or if Jesus faked his death they would have known. Why would the disciples have died for Christ if the resurrection was false? Many people have died for a lie, but they always believed it to be true. The disciples and other eye-witnesses of the resurrected Christ were willing to go to the death because they knew the resurrection was real.

3. The Resurrection is imperative to the hope of eternal life

1 Cor. 15:12-20 – “If Christ is not risen, the our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty…”

If there is one thing that Christianity hangs on, it is the resurrection of the dead, specifically the resurrection of Christ. Paul declares that without the resurrection his preaching is empty and their faith is empty. Not only that, if Christ is not risen, then all those who have died in Christ have perished.

I love verse twenty. “BUT NOW Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” This is the truth. Christ is risen from the dead. What a glorious day! Our faith is not in vain! Our preaching is not in vain! Our Christianity is not in vain. Those who have died in Christ did not die in vain! There is life beyond the grave! Christ is risen from the dead!

“For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.” -1 Thessalonians 4:14-17

The resurrection gives hope for:

1. The Past – Those who have died in Christ will be bodily resurrected at the rapture of the church. Their lives were not in vain. The sacrifices that they made for Christ were not in vain. They will be resurrected.

2. The Present – This hope motivates us not only to live for Christ, but to convince others of the certainty of Christianity. Remember, our hope is both sure and steadfast. Jesus has gone before us and placed our
hope where we never could have gone.

3. The Future – There is coming a day when we shall meet the Lord in the air, whether we have already died or are still alive and remain. Each and every day we ought to expect the Lord to return. He is coming again. We have hope.

Famous Last Word..."Almost"

The Agrippa said to Paul, "You almost persuade me to become a Christian." -Acts 26:28


Paul had a miraculous opportunity to share the faith before King Agrippa. It was an opportunity that was orchestrated by God. God used the persecution of Paul by the Jewish leaders to bring Paul to this point. I enjoy how clearly Paul explains his own conversion in this chapter of Acts. King Agrippa patiently listened to Paul expound from the very beginning his own persecution of the church, his miraculous conversion, and his ministry to the Gentiles.

But Agrippa could not bring himself to commit his life to Christ. He said to Paul, "You almost persuade me to become a Christian. We don't know if Agrippa ever put his trust in Christ. I certainly hope that he did, but I am saddened that he couldn't quite make the choice. Someday Agrippa will stand before God to give account for his life. How sad it would be to have to say to God, "I almost became a Christian."

If you have not become a Christian, put your trust in Christ. Turn from your sins and trust Christ for salvation. Don't be like Agrippa. Don't let almost get in the way. Give yourself fully to Christ.