I believe that this article should challenge all of us who have been privileged by God and has been entrusted with the ministry of teaching His Word. What are teaching?

Apostle Paul warns us in Galatians 1:8: “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.”

“There is a school of theology rising up in this day, which appears to me most eminently calculated to promote infidelity, to help the devil, and to ruin souls! It comes to us like Joab to Amasa – with the highest professions of love and liberality. (2 Samuel 20:9-10)

“‘God is all mercy and love!’ according to this theology. His holiness and justice are completely left out of sight! Hell is never spoken of in this theology – its talk is all of Heaven! Damnation is never mentioned – it is treated as an impossible thing. All men and women are to be saved!

“‘Everybody is right! Nobody is wrong! Nobody is to blame for any action he may commit! It is the result of his circumstances! He is not accountable for his views, any more than for the color of his skin! He must be what he is! God…

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It’s by Grace throughout but…

Last week, I posted on this blog an article entitled, “It’s by Grace Throughout” in which we discussed that we do not only need God’s grace for us to be saved (justified) but also for us to be transformed and become more like Christ (sanctification).

However, although it is true that sanctification also is by grace, there is a need to highlight that we need to cooperate with God for him to make us more and more like Christ. In other words, in justification God, single handedly, declares us righteous basing on the righteousness of Christ while in sanctification, God through the Holy Spirit works hand in hand with us so that we become like Christ.

For instance, one of the things we need to do to be more like Christ is to study God’s Word frequently and live it. So, God will give us the desire to study the Bible but it will take us to really study the Word. God will never open the Bible and force us to read it. We have to play our role of reading.

Now, one might ask that if we are to cooperate with God in sanctification, where is grace then? Philippians 2:12 has the answer: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

For us to obey God, it is God, himself, who enables to do so. God knows that on our own, we can’t obey him hence he works in us that we should obey him. This is grace, is it not?

Do We Become 100% God When Saved?

Recently, my Facebook friend posted the following on his wall and asked me to comment: (I have done a bit of editing to the post for clarity’s sake):

Brethren, there is this issue I would like you to help me look at carefully. I had a discourse with a fellow believer; we were just sharing about how GOD has been working in our lives. So we came to why salvation in the Bible is stated in some places as something that happens when one first believes in CHRIST, some places as a continuing process and other places as a future thing.

I explained it in terms of justification, sanctification and glorification. But the friend explained it in terms of man being spirit, soul & body. The spirit gets saved at the time when a person believes in CHRIST then the soul is being saved and the body will be saved at last.

But what really raised hair at the back of my neck is when the person said that GOD in Genesis2:7 breathed into man the breath of life, so it means GOD took a part of HIMSELF and put in man making man 100% GOD, 1OO% MAN. This is why JESUS had to come to give life to the spirit and also to show how we were meant to be (100% GOD, 100% MAN). This scared me. Please help!

Following my friend’s post came this comment from another person (whom I believe was the one my Facebook friend was referring to in his post. I have also edited it for sake of clarity):

1 John 4:17 and not from Genesis. It’s from the resurrection. God has given us His very life. Not just a measure of it. Paul says “It’s no longer me who lives but Christ Himself lives in me (2 Corinthians 3:20). It’s indeed 100% God in man. He who is joined with Christ has become one spirit with him (1Cor.6:17). Thus what Christ is, I am. It’s a complete spiritual transaction but the mind needs a complete makeover (Romans 12).

For us to find the truth about this discussion we need to turn to Scripture and begin from Genesis on wards to hear what God has to say about this whole issue. But before we dwell much on the issue of man being “100% God and 100% man” let me say that I am convinced by the testimony of Scripture that man is made up of body and soul and not body, soul, and spirit. In Scripture, soul and spirit are used interchangeably. But anyway, this is a different matter for a different day.

So, I was saying that for us to know whether you and I can be 100% man and 100% God, we need to begin in Genesis. When God created the first man, how did he create him? The Bible tells us is that man was created male and female and in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26, 27).

Now, what does ‘likeness and image’ mean? Does this mean that man was created exactly like God? Absolutely not! Otherwise, man could not have sinned since God cannot sin. But there are some aspects of God that are also found in man. It is these aspects that qualify us to be ‘the likeness and image of God.”

There are so many aspects of our likeness to God but in this article I will just cite some. We are moral beings and we have a sense of right and wrong unlike animals. Our likeness to God is shown when we behave in a holy way and our unlikeness to God is seen when we sin. Man is also a spiritual being. It is because of this that man is able to relate with God unlike animals. I don’t know if any other animal can spend some minutes or hours praying to God. Man is also a relational being just as God is relational. Man’s relational aspect is seen in marriage and family, in church and fellowship with fellow believers. Although animals can also have some sense of relationship with each other in their community, human relationships are unique and greater than those of animals. These are just some of aspects in which man is in the likeness and image of God.

Another important question that should be addressed here is: what happened to the “the likeness and image of God” after man sinned in Genesis 3. Basing on Scripture, the image of God in man was distorted but not completely lost when man sinned. In other words, even though man sinned he still bore some of “the likeness and image of God” in him. This can be seen in the words of God to Noah after man had already sinned. God in Genesis 9:6 reiterates that even after the fall, man is still created in His image.

However, we know that this image is not as perfectly as it was in the beginning. For instance, at first man was sinless just as God is sinless but now you and I, even though we are believers, are no longer sinless. Our moral purity has been lost. Our minds think evil and plan evil. Our speech does not always glorify God. Falsehood and malice comes out of our mouths. This is not the way God created the first man.

For now, let’s highlight the important truths we have seen regarding the creation of man. First, man was created in the image and likeness of God. This does not mean that the first man was 100% God but rather he was like God in so many ways. Secondly, after the fall (sin) God’s likeness and image in man was distorted but not completely lost.

Now, we should move on to see what happened after Christ came to save man. When Christ came, he began the work of restoring the image and likeness of God in man to be the way God created him at first. As a matter of fact, better than Adam because when we will be glorified (go to be with Jesus in heaven ) we will be unlike the first man, Adam , in the sense that Adam in Eden was capable of sinning while when we go to heaven, we will be incapable of sinning. Remember, there is no sin or evil in heaven (Revelation 21:27). Any way, this also can be another topic for another day.

I digressed a bit. Let‘s get back to where we were. I was saying that after Christ lived a perfect and sinless life and died on behalf of those who believe in him and later rose from the dead, he brought salvation to these believers. So, when we believe in Christ, God through the Holy Spirit begins the work of progressively restoring the His distorted image in us (Colossians 3:10). Wayne Grudem puts it better and allow me to borrow his words:

“Throughout this life, as we grow in Christian maturity, we grow in greater likeness to God. More particularly, we grow in likeness to Christ in our lives and in our character. In fact, the goal for which God has redeemed us is that we might be “conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29) and thus be exactly like Christ in our moral character” (Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, Intervarsity Press © 1994, p. 445).

It is important here, in light of our discussion, to emphasize that no where Scripture tells us that when we believe in Christ, God deposits his deity in us. We do not become 100% God. Furthermore, let’s also know that according to Scripture when we believe in Christ, we have two natures in us. The sinful nature (also referred to as ‘the flesh’ in other versions of the Bible) and the spiritual nature (Galatians 5:16-18; Romans 7:18-25). The two natures are always at war and when we let the sinful nature rule, we sin and when the spiritual nature rules we live a life that pleases and glorifies God. A true believer will confess of this struggle which is ongoing until Christ comes or when we go to be with the Lord but by praying against temptation and constantly seeking the help of the Holy Spirit in our lives we progressively put to death the sinful nature (Roman 8:13; Colossians 3:5).

Now, consider this: is it right, I mean biblical, to say that man is 100% God and 100% man yet he possesses a sinful nature in him? Can the sinful nature and the deity dwell in one body? For Christ, it was different. Yes, Christ was 100% man and 100% God because he was sinless and there was no sinful nature in him. When you consider this biblical truth, the whole argument that the friend of my Facebook friend made crumbles. You and I do not reach a certain stage where we become 100% God and 100% man. This can’t be and we will never be.

Let me finish the discussion with what will happen when we go to heaven. When we will go to heaven, we will be glorified. The complete ‘likeness and image’ of God will finally be restored in us. We will be in every way like God but not God himself (1 Corinthians 15:49). We will never sin just as God is sinless. We will never hunger just as God never hungers. We will never fall sick just as God never falls sick. We will never grow old just like God never grows old. In short, Scripture says: We shall be like him (not him) (1 John 3:2). Therefore, man cannot be 100% God and he will never ever be. Not even after he has been saved. This is the teaching of Scripture.

Postscript: 1 John 4:7 says: “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God” (ESV). Does this verse teach that we are God? Absolutely not! “Born of God” in the verse does not refer to “becoming 100% God” rather it means that we have become God’s children (John 1:12, 13).

It’s by Grace Throughout

Is it only I or you have also noticed it? There is a temptation to believe that we only need God’s grace for us to be saved (justified) but after that we are tempted to think that we need to rely on our personal efforts to grow spiritually (sanctification). Others even go an extreme of believing that after Christ has saved us, he then leaves us on our own to make it to heaven.

This is not only a fallacy but also one of the great deceptions of the evil one. We all need God’s grace to become God’s children. We all also need God’s grace to remain God’s Children. There is no room for personal effort.

Apostle Paul rebuked the Galatians for falling into similar temptation in Galatians 3:2, 3: “Did you receive the Spirit by works (personal effort)? Or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit (grace) are you now being perfected by the flesh (personal effort)? (Words in parentheses added).

Scripture here reminds us that salvation is by grace throughout. John Newton realized this truth very well when he composed that famous hymn, ‘Amazing Grace’

Through many dangers, toils and snares

I have already come

T’was grace that brought me safe thus far

And grace will lead me home.

So, by grace Christ has saved us and by the same grace he will welcome us in heaven. Oh, what a beautiful and amazing grace.

It’s a Slow Fade Indeed

Casting Crowns which is a Christian singing group from USA did a track entitled ‘Slow Fade.’ It chorus goes:

It’s a slow fade when you give yourself away
It’s a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray
Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day

It’s the last part that has inspired this article. People never crumble in a day. There are so many examples that you and I can cite to uphold this statement, but I would like us to turn to Scripture and look at the life of the first king of Israel, Saul. He, too, never crumbled in a day. It was a slow fade.

After being king over Israel for some years, God had this to say about King Saul: “I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not performed my commandments,” (1 Samuel 15:10). Later on Samuel blatantly tells King Saul, “Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, the LORD has also rejected you from being king” (1 Samuel 15:23).

The story that began so well is ending on a sad note. Earlier on when the LORD directed Samuel to anoint Saul as king, Samuel said these words to the people of Israel: “Do you see him whom the LORD has chosen? There is none like him among all the people.” And all the people shouted, “Long live the king!” (1 Samuel 10:24). But after some time, the same Samuel tells Saul that God has rejected him as king.

Now, we might wonder as to what happened for the Lord to completely reject Saul as king but if we take a detailed look at his life we will find evidence of ‘slow fade’ in the life of Saul. He who begun so well by trusting the Lord, ended up doing things in his own way and breaking the heart of God in the process. Disobedience, jealousy, murder and idolatry slowly faded away the trust and faith that Saul had in the LORD earlier.

First was the disobedience to the word of God through prophet Samuel who told Saul to go to Gilgal and wait for seven days before Samuel could come to offer burnt offering (1 Samuel 10:8). However, Saul out of panic as the Philistine army approached him, failed to obey the word of God and offered the sacrifice himself instead of waiting for Samuel. Remember that only Samuel was supposed to offer the burnt offering.

Samuel rebuked him for this ‘foolish act” (1 Samuel 13:12) and he told Saul that because he disobeyed the commandment of God, the Lord will not establish Saul’s kingdom over Israel forever (1 Samuel 13, 14). I was expecting to read of Saul’s repentance in the proceeding verses but there was no such thing. No remorse, no repentance from Saul.

What follows this foolish act is another sin of disobedience when Saul directly disobeyed God’s command. The command from the Lord through His prophet Samuel was crystal clear: “Now go and destroy the Amelek and devote to destruction all that they have. Do not spare them but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey,” (1 Samuel 15:3). But disobedience reign supreme in the life of Saul and there is a sad report in verse 9: “But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of sheep and of the oxen and of the fattened claves and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them. All that was despised and worthless they devoted to destruction.”

When asked why he defied the Lord’s command Saul shamelessly replied that he spared the best sheep and oxen to sacrifice them to the Lord. Samuel response to this lame excuse was very outstanding: “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, to heed is better than the fat of rams” (1 Samuel 1:22).

After this story we continue to see the godly life of Saul slowly fading into oblivion. Next you read of his jealousy of David. Jealousy leads to plan of murder. Saul is determined to kill David despite the latter sparing his life a couple of times. Then to crown it all, Saul takes the path of idolatry. Because his relationship with the Lord is not good, he resorts to consulting the souls of the dead to give him guidance. Idolatry finally leads to death and 2 Samuel 1:27 sums it up all: “How the mighty have fallen!”

Indeed it’s a slow fade and people never crumble in a day. After reading this, we might be tempted to shudder in fear and think, if this is the case. Who then can survive without slowly fading away? Christ has the answer in John 15:5, 6:

“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into fire, and burned.”

The truth of our vulnerability without Christ should continually be borne in our minds hence we should continually lean on Jesus and completely refuse to be deceived by our wicked hearts that we are strong without Christ. The word of God is very lucid on this: “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall,” (1 Corinthians 10:12). We can’t stand without Christ otherwise we will surely crumble although it might not be in a day.

Christ our Victory

Sometimes when things are not going on well, we are tempted to question if Christ is really in control. These are the times when all things seem to be falling apart.

However, Christ has a sure word for us in such times. In John 16:33, he tells us: “In this world you will have trouble but take heart I have overcome the world.”

It is assuring that Christ is not hiding the truth from us. He, clearly, tells us that in this world, we will have trouble. As a Christian you are not immune to hard times. Tribulations and difficulties will surely come your way. But “But take heart,” Christ says, “I have overcome the world.”

In these words, we have the assurance of victory. Because Christ has overcome, we will also overcome through him. Victory is ours in Christ Jesus. As a matter of fact, Christ is our victory. Therefore, take heart.

I believe it is out of this realization that Rev. Martin Luther King could say: “And now to Him who is able to keep us from falling and lift us from the valley of despair to the mountain of hope, from the midnight of desperation to the daybreak of joy; to Him be power and authority, forever.”

So, don’t doubt it, Christ is still in control and he alone is our victory.

The Intimacy of Eternal Life-You Get Christ, Not Earthworm Jim

Chief of the least

{A newly edited retread from the late great blog “Enabled by God.” May she RIP}

Eternal life is scary.

At least it was to me as a child. Every time I pondered for any amount of time about being somewhere forever, an incredible aching formed in the pit of my stomach. An aching that would persist to the point of either nausea or panic attack, until I drove all thoughts of immortality out of my mind for the moment. I understood heaven was preferable to hell as far as eternity went, but I couldn’t fathom being anywhere for forever, no matter how celestially blissful it may be. Even Earthworm Jim got old after you’ve beaten it for the seventeenth time, right? According to my concept of heaven, after a couple of years the monotony would be mind-boggling.

We get to run on streets of gold. But then what? We get to swing…

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The Power of Forgiveness

The youth of one of the churches in Lilongwe asked me to share with them on the topic: “Staying hopeful when the world mistreats you.” What a topic!

Searching the Scriptures, I came to the story of Joseph. Like our Lord Jesus, Joseph was also mistreated in various ways. However, one thing that kept him going even in the midst of the ill-treatment was forgiveness.

This is clearly seen in Genesis 50:19. Joseph’s brothers lied to him that their father, before he died, had asked Joseph to forgive them for the mistreatment he suffered in their hands. Joseph’s response is amazing: “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.” Wow!

Joseph saw the hand of God in everything that happened to him. He knew that some things are beyond our control. Therefore, Joseph chose the way of forgiveness. Like our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross who asked his Father to forgive those crucifying him, Joseph also opted for forgiveness instead of bitterness or vengeance.

I believe this is the way to go for God’s children. We can stay hopeful in times of ill-treatment when we pray that God through his grace should grant us a heart of forgiveness not vengeance or bitterness. After all, it is God alone who directs our footsteps in this world.

That statement scared me (Biblical Eldership)

This other evening I was sitting in a forum which I shall leave unnamed. The main discussion of the round-table was the ordination of women to be elders of a church and the main question posed to the meeting was: “Is ordaining women to be elders of a church biblical?

There were about seventy of us discussing and only two of us including myself argued basing on Scripture that it is unbiblical for women to be ordained elders or even pastors. But I should confess, it was not easy to courageously stand for the biblical truth in an environment where many were against this view. For first time, I understood better how Jesus felt with the great opposition he faced, especially from the Pharisees and other teachers of the law, when he taught the truth. By this I don’t mean to compare myself to my beautiful Savior; rather, what I want to put across is that: Friends, it is more challenging to stand up for the truth when the majority opposes it, but thank God he grants the grace.

Any way, back to the story. As I stood to present the biblical view on the issue, I began quoting Scripture, then, one church leader cut me and said, “Don’t quote Scripture. Everyone understands Scripture in their own way and if you do that we won’t reach any agreement.”

Men! That statement scared me. I could feel the hair on my head rising in fear. I could not believe it, especially, coming from a leader of a church. I responded, “If, we don’t use the Scripture to discuss this issue what authority are we going to ascribe to. The authority of man? Our views and ideas? Lord, have mercy!

“As Christians, don’t we have the Bible as our final rule of faith and life?” I thought to myself. Doesn’t God’s Word tell us: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16).

Any way, I have already highlighted that I am convinced beyond any reasonable doubt that Scripture teaches that only Christian men should be elders of a church. You, definitely, are asking me to back up my stand with Scripture and I will definitely do that. So, here we go.

First, let’s look at the qualification of an elder as given by God himself in his Word in 1Timothy 3:1-4 and Titus 1:5-9. In these two passages an elder is being referred to using the pronoun “He.” Is this by accident? I don’t believe so. In the same passages, an elder is supposed to be “A husband of one wife.” Again, is this phrase accidental? Why is God not telling us “A husband of one wife or a wife of one husband?” Have you ever though about it?

So, an elder is being referred to with a pronoun “He” and is supposed to be a “A husband of one wife.” Now, if I say that basing on this pronoun and phrase, God is telling us that an elder must be a man will I be reading too much into the passage? Certainly not!

Secondly, if I open my Bible which is God’s inerrant and holy Word, I don’t find a single woman who held the position of an elder. Is this just by chance? I choose to not to believe it that way.

Thirdly, when we talk about an elder, we are talking about the leadership of the church. Now, I would love us to learn from the early Church and see if women were given leadership roles like being an elder in the church. Let’s begin with the Founder of the New Testament Church, Jesus Christ who is also the Head of the Church (all believers come together).

When Christ assembled the first ever leadership of His Church, he chose the twelve apostles (all men) and he ( a man as well) was the main leader. Did Jesus communicate any message by this? I believe so. He was establishing the norm for the Church to follow when it comes to the leadership of the church. And you can see this throughout the New Testament. The Apostles got the message of Christ right.

But someone may object and say: “Jesus being a Jew and also because of his Jewish culture, he was forced to choose only men because his culture valued men more than women.” You must be kidding. That’s not the Jesus I know and read in Scripture. Do you really believe that Jesus (fully man and fully God) could be forced to do ‘a wrong’ thing because of desiring to please his culture? Sincerely, is that the picture of Jesus you get when you read your Bible?

Jesus challenged his culture in so many ways and he was not afraid to look different when it came to truth. For instance, Rabbis (teachers of law) could not speak to women in public but Jesus could speak to women in public (John 4:1-45) and he even had Mary Magdalene as on of his followers. Jesus could also boldly rebuke the Pharisees and teachers of the law for misleading people and he once called them “blind guides” (Matthew 23:16) and “children of the devil” (John 8:44).

With this clear manifestation of boldness, do you really believe that Jesus chose only men to be leaders of the Church because he wanted to please his culture? Allow me to borrow the words of Alexander Strauch to emphasize my point.

“Some…say that Jesus’ maleness and choice of male apostles doesn’t mean anything theologically. They say that such choices were necessary because the first-century Jewish culture didn’t allow women to preach and lead. So Jesus had to concede to the standards of society.

What an insult to Jesus! The Jesus of the Gospels was absolutely courageous. He was unafraid to give new, radical teaching to His tradition-bound culture. Jesus didn’t give in to sinful culture or let women down at this critical moment in history…Jesus gave His Church male leadership. His male gender and his deliberate choice of twelve male apostles was based on Genesis 2, God’s original creation design for the sexes” (Men and Women Equal Yet Different, Lewis and Roth Publishers ©1999, page 29).

I can go on and on to present the backing for my stand; however, let me stop here for now. I am open and ready for further discussion on the topic if you, my dear reader, would love so.

But before I wrap up let me highlight this important truth. The fact that God’s will for his Church is that it should be led by Christian men does not mean that women are unequal to men. Neither does it mean that women are of second class. Anyone who advocates this teaching is not biblical in their view.

According to Scripture, men and women are equal (Genesis 1:27; Galatians 3:28); nevertheless, men and women have different roles. God in his sovereignty and wisdom has chosen to give the leadership role of the home and Church to Christian men. Again, this does not imply that men are better than women. God forbid!

Why I wrote “It’s Only One Life”

Before I became a Christian, I liked this singer’s tracks. After I became a Christian, I never stopped falling in love with this singer’s songs. Of course, Christians differ on how the view secular songs. Some are fine with some secular songs while others declare a complete shut out to to these songs. Any way, let’s not go into details about this because it can be another topic for another day.

I was saying that even after my salvation, I still once in a while listen to this artiste’s songs. I also followed some stories concerning the singer’s life and often my heart broke when I heard what the singer was going through. I could pray in my heart, “If only the Lord would save this musician”

Then the news broke out that this artiste was no more. I was shocked. After the announcement I keenly followed the developments around the musician’s death and heard very sad stories.

I, then, dug a little about the life of the singer and found out that the artiste began singing in church and it seems the singer came from a Christian family or a family that valued Christian teachings. Then my eyes immediately opened, “Oh, that’s why the singer could once in a while have words like ‘Jesus’ ‘judgment day’ and ‘prayer’ in some songs.”

My heart broke even more because the stories that were emerging concerning the artiste’s last days on this earth were very cheerless. I almost cried but remembered that there was nothing I could have done. “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). I should point it out here that I don’t know the artiste’s spiritual stand when the singer died hence I don’t want to speculate.

Any way, this is one of the secrets of our life. We don’t know when our time will be up and the Lord will call us. The other disheartening thing is that sometimes when we have taken a path that leads to destruction, we hardly realize it. Now and then friends or other Christians will share the gospel with us but it will seem nonsensical.

I pray that the Lord will help us to “Number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).

For sure, this one life is very short, very short indeed. Today we are here on earth, tomorrow, we are no more. Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!” (Revelation 14:13). Amen!