while today

A Special Mother

May 6, 2016

It’s mind boggling: “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us…” (John 1:14, ESV). The Son of God “emptied himself taking the form of a slave, being made in the likeness of men and being found in the appearance as a man” (Philippians 2:7). All of that meant being born as an infant to a human mother.

Have you or your spouse ever tried to think of who you would like to raise your children, if both of you were to die in an accident? Selecting someone is a difficult and awesome task, because you not only think of the physical needs of the child, but the emotional and spiritual needs as well. That leads me to believe that Mary had to be a very special mother to have the privilege of giving birth and raising the Messiah.

We know so little about Mary, but the few glimpses of her that we have are revealing. She was a woman of faith. When the angel, Gabriel, announced to her that she would give birth even though a virgin and that “nothing will be impossible with God.” She responded in faith, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38, ESV). Consider the risk! She was engaged, but not yet married. To fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14 involved an incredible burden. Can you imagine Joseph’s first response? But God was with her. An angel of the Lord appearing in a dream convinced Joseph.

We see glimpses of Mary practicing her faith. Mary and Joseph appear in the temple for the appropriate offerings following Jesus’ birth (Luke 2:22-24). Mary would have been ceremonially unclean the first seven days following the birth, and then Jesus would have been circumcised on the eighth day. After that she would continue for 33 days as days of purification. Following the days of purification, they would travel to Jerusalem with the newborn. Later, when Jesus is twelve, we see the family traveling to Jerusalem for Passover. Mary practiced her faith.

Mary’s hymn of praise (Luke 1:46-55) betrays a great familiarity with God’s word. Many note comparisons with Hannah’s prayer (1 Samuel 2). God’s word was treasured in her heart.

Mary did the mundane and daily tasks of raising a child: preparing meals, washing clothes, sweeping the floor, and giving the care and comfort that only a mother can give. Mothers shape character and instill principles to live by in those teachable moments. Mary’s spiritual concern shows her to be a special mother. She demonstrates the most important quality that any mother can have.

Today is a great day to say thank you to your own special mother!

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Posted by Russell Holden

Be Diligent

April 22, 2016

While recently reading 2 Peter, I noticed that Peter begins and ends 2 Peter with an appeal to his readers to be diligent. To be diligent is “to be especially conscientious in discharging an obligation, be zealous/eager, take pains, make every effort, be conscientious.”¹

Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. (2 Peter 1:10, ESV, emphasis added)

Diligence in confirming one’s calling and election has to do with practicing the qualities Peter had just enumerated: faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, endurance, piety (godliness), brotherly love, and love. In fact, the noun form of this word occurs in 1:5. The NASB reads, “Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence…” (2 Peter 1:5, NASB). Clearly, Peter doesn’t want us to be haphazard or careless about Christian living.

Peter ends his letter with another appeal to be diligent:

Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. (2 Peter 3:14, ESV, emphasis added)

If we live in a world that will end, and we await a new heavens and new earth, then Peter wants us to be diligent so that we are prepared for the world to come in which righteousness dwells. The stakes are too high for negligence in the Christian life.

Peter doesn’t just encourage diligence in others. He notes that he will be diligent in fulfilling his ministry as an apostle.

And I will also be diligent that at any time after my departure you will be able to call these things to mind. (2 Peter 1:15 NASB, same word as in 1:10 and 3:14, emphasis added)

It is a mistake to think we are earning our salvation. That somehow, we are attempting to outweigh our bad deeds with good ones. But it would also be a mistake to think that diligence is to be equated with the attempt to earn salvation.

Diligence is an appropriate response to faith. If I trust God, then I must believe that the things of God are of eternal consequence. God must have the first priority in my life as one seeking first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Faith should lead me to be zealous, eager, diligent, and conscientious. Because of the worthiness of God and the eternal

¹“σπουδάζω (spoudazō),” BDAG, 939. The Strong’s number for this word is G4704.

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Posted by Russell Holden

The Resurrection Body

April 15, 2016

Paul’s tour de force on the resurrection is 1 Corinthians 15. It was prompted by the denial of the resurrection by some in the Corinthian congregation (15:12). Paul first gives evidence for the resurrection of Jesus. Paul notes the Scriptures and the many eyewitnesses which include himself. To deny the resurrection is to deny Christ’s resurrection. For Christ not to have been raised, then faith is futile, we are still in our sins, and we are of all people the most to be pitied. But Paul will have none of that: Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. The resurrection of Jesus is connected with the future hope of Christians. Jesus is the basis of our hope.

But questions remain: “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?” (1 Corinthians 15:35-58) Maybe the deniers were troubled by these questions. Greeks typically believed in a life after death without resurrection. Many Jews had a crude conception of resurrection. If you died lame or blind, you were raised lame or blind. Paul gives us our best glimpse at the resurrection body.

Paul provides us with an analogy. Our physical body at death is like a planted seed. There is continuity between the seed and the plant to come, but there is also transformation. Paul reassures us that God knows how to create different kinds of flesh for different kinds of purposes, and He can bestow varying degrees of glory. In other words, resurrection is not a mere resuscitation but a glorious transformation.

Paul illuminates by a series of contrasts. Our physical bodies are perishable, but the resurrection body will be imperishable. Our physical bodies face the dishonor of death and decay, but the resurrection body will be raised in glory. We experience weakness now, but we will be raised in power. We have a natural body now. One suited to the current natural world. We will have a spiritual body.

We need to be careful when we see this word “spiritual” that we don’t think immaterial like Casper the Ghost. We need to hold on to the word “body” and remember that Jesus in the resurrection was solid and touchable. The spiritual body will be animated by God’s Spirit and suitable for the transcendent realm of the age to come.

We have to admit the details are few. We still likely have many questions about the resurrection. But the resurrection body is not a mere resuscitation of the old. It is a transformation. It is something more glorious and suited for eternal life with God.

It is enough to trust our Maker. Jesus conquered death in his resurrection. And death will be conquered for each of us in our resurrection. With that hope we live in encouragement knowing that in the Lord our labor is not in vain.

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Posted by Russell Holden

A Man Who Didn’t Trust God

April 1, 2016

Jeroboam son of Nebat was a man who didn’t trust God. He was an official under Solomon and rose to the position of being in charge of the whole labor force of the house of Joseph. One day the prophet Ahijah met him. Ahijah tore his new cloak into 12 pieces and gave Jeroboam 10 of the pieces. Ahijah prophesied that Jeroboam would become King of Israel. He would rule over the ten northern tribes. Jeroboam was given this promise from God:

And I will take you, and you shall reign over all that your soul desires, and you shall be king over Israel. And if you will listen to all that I command you, and will walk in my ways, and do what is right in my eyes by keeping my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did, I will be with you and will build you a sure house, as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you. (1 Kings 11:37–38, ESV)

Jeroboam had to flee from Solomon who made an attempt on his life, but after Solomon’s death, he returned from Egypt and became King of Israel just as God had promised. Yet, Jeroboam worried that he would loose his kingdom because the people must worship in Jerusalem. Because of his lack of trust in God’s sure promise, he rebelled and set up the golden calves in Dan and Bethel and commanded the people to worship there. He established an alternate feast and an alternate priesthood using men who were not Levites.

God warned Jeroboam. A prophet predicted that Josiah would someday offer Jeroboam’s priests on the altar at Bethel. A sign was given that altar would be split apart and the ashes would be poured out. Jeroboam ordered that the prophet be seized, but when he stretched out his hand it shriveled. When the prophet interceded for him his hand was restored. To top it all, the sign came true as well. Certainly, this should have made Jeroboam change his ways, but it didn’t. (1 Kings 13:1-6)

Jeroboam had evidence of great blessing in his life, and God’s sure promise if he but obey. Yet, he turned away—he was a man who didn’t trust God.

For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. (Romans 15:4, ESV)

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Posted by Russell Holden

Examine the Evidence

March 29, 2016

J. Warner Wallace was an L.A. County homicide detective. He knows something about solving crimes with multiple suspects. He has experience in investigating conspiracies. He notes that while conspiracies are popular in movies and novels, they are actually very difficult to pull off in real life. Successful conspiracies have several traits in common:

A small number of conspirators. Lies are difficult to maintain. The more people involved in the lie, the more likely the conspirators will be tripped up.
Conspirators need thorough and immediate communication. That is why investigators separate suspects for interviews. Without knowing what others are revealing, it is more likely someone will confess the lie.
Conspiracies operate best over a short time span. It is difficult to lie. It is increasing difficult to lie over a long time period. The tendency is for someone to break down and confess.
Conspiracies work best when the conspirators have a close relationship bond like family members. It is tougher to convince someone to “give up” the other in such a situation.
Conspirators are more likely to maintain the lie if they are under little or no pressure. Put pressure on a conspirator, and he will likely give up the truth to save himself.

But what does this have to do with the Bible? Wallace was an atheist until at the age of thirty-five he turned his investigative skills to examine the gospels and the Christian worldview. He knew how to examine a cold-case. He believed in the proper handling of evidence. His book, Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels, tells of his journey into faith. Taking his experience with conspiracies, Wallace believes he knows the disciples didn’t conspire to fabricate the resurrection account of Jesus. He notes the following:

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There would have been too many apostles involved in the conspiracy.
The apostles had little or no effective way to communicate with one another in a quick or thorough manner.
The apostles would have been required to protect their conspiratorial lies for too long a period of time.
While there were certainly pairs of family members in the group of apostolic eyewitnesses, many had no relationship to each other at all.
The apostles were aggressively persecuted as they were scattered from Italy to India.¹

Wallace states in the movie God’s Not Dead 2, “There are several common characteristics of successful conspiracies, and I don’t find any of these attributes were present in the first century for those who claimed to be witnesses of Jesus life, ministry, and resurrection.”

I believe that Jesus was raised from the dead and that changes everything. But my belief is based on evidence. The above is just part of one person’s search for the evidence. If you want some books suggestions, I’d be glad to give them to you. My plea if you not certain is to examine the evidence.

¹J. Warner Wallace, “Why I know the Disciples Didn’t Conspire to Fabricate the Resurrection of Jesus,” https://stream.org/know-disciples-didnt-conspire-fabricate-resurrection-jesus/

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Posted by Russell Holden

Eat His Flesh and Drink His Blood

March 18, 2016

Jesus fed the five thousand with five barley loaves and two fish. The crowds found Jesus the next day in Capernaum. They clearly had the free meal still on their minds. They asked for a sign. They reminded Jesus that Moses had given their fathers manna in the wilderness.

Jesus began his “Bread of Life” sermon: “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35). Why the figure of speech? They were desiring bread when they should have desired Jesus. Their minds were on lunch instead of recognizing their Lord. Figures arrest our attention and make us grapple with what is being said. But we can also become lost in them, and this sermon has plenty of them:

So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. (John 6:53–55 ESV)

The original audience to these figures of speech were confused: “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” They were viewed as “a hard saying.” Some did not believe.

When struggling with figures of speech, the first thing to do is search the speaker and author to see if he has explained them in the immediate context. Has he said something more literally that explains the figures? If the immediate context lacks the explanation, then the broader context of scripture may hold the key. The figure of speech may be used elsewhere, and an explanation may be there.

What about the “Bread of Life” sermon? I think Jesus said clearly and literally what he wanted.

Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” (John 6:29 ESV)

“For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:40 ESV)

The figures of speech make things memorable. The memorable figures attempt to pierce hard hearts. To trust Jesus is to “eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood” (John 6:53, ESV).

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Posted by Russell Holden

Overcoming Worry

March 11, 2016

All of us have concerns and stresses, but does that make us worriers? Interestingly enough the word that is translated “be worried” in Matthew 6:25 is also rendered “is concerned” (e.g., 1 Corinthians 7:32-34, Philippians 2:20 NASB) and “care” (1 Corinthians 12:25 NASB). I think it is similar to warnings against anger, and yet Ephesians 4:26 states “Be angry, and yet do not sin” (NASB). Everyone will have feelings of anger. The question is how we handle them. In the same way, everyone will have concerns that enter their life. The issue is how we handle them.

At root, the difference between having concerns and worrying seems to be faith. George Muller makes a telling observation when he says, “The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety.” What are the Biblical ways of handling our concerns and overcoming worry?

Trust God. “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?” Matthew 6:26, NASB
Accept the things that you cannot change. “And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?” Matthew 6:2, NASB
Keep God first in your life. “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.” Matthew 6:33, NASB
Remember the limits of one day. “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:34, NASB A study cited in Marriage Partnership notes that 60% of our fears are unfounded, 20% are already behind us, 10% are so petty they don’t make a difference, 4-5% are real, but we can’t change them, and 5% are real and we can act on them.
Pray. “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7 NIV “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6 NIV Abraham Lincoln said, “I have often been driven to my knees by the circumstances I face.”
Act on your concerns. Worry usually hinders, frustrates, and paralyzes. If we can avoid “worry,” we can usually develop a plan of action about our concerns. Taking action often reduces our stress level significantly.
Find support in the body of Christ. “…but that the members may have the same care for one another. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.” 1 Corinthians 12:25-26, NASB

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Posted by Russell Holden

The Street of Gold

March 4, 2016

The proportions of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21-22 are beyond human scale. The city is a cube with its length, width, and height being 1,380 miles (12,000 stadia). Within thist description is the statement: “the street of the city was pure gold” (Revelation 21:21). Noting that street is singular, the question is raised: does the city have only one street? Several approaches to this question have been taken by interpreters of Revelation.

First, many view the singular noun generically or collectively: singular in form, but plural in meaning. As one commentator noted this collective sense could also be seen in Revelation 22:2 where you have a mention of “the tree of life” singular, and yet the locations of the tree would suggest a plural number of them. The fourth verse of “When We All Get to Heaven” reads: “we shall tread the streets of gold.” I’m not going to object to hymns that speak of “streets of gold.” Understanding the singular as a collective is a popular approach.

Second, the word translated street is plateia which means broad or wide. Some see this as a reference to the main street of the city. A description of the main street of the city does not rule out other streets. Several modern translations take this approach. “The main street of the city is pure gold…” (Revelation 21:21, NET). See also “The great street” (NIV), “the broad street” (HCSB), and “the main street” (NLT).

Third, some commentators think that plateia refers not to a street but to the main square of the city. Young’s Literal Translation may be hinting at this: “the broad-place of the city is pure gold.” This kind of meaning for plateia is seen in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament. Passages with this meaning are Genesis 19:2, Judges 19:17, 20, 2 Chronicles 32:6, Ezra 10:9, Nehemiah 8:16. Although the KJV will use street in all of these passages, most modern translations including the NKJV will speak of the square of the city.

Finally, Homer Hailey writes, “Probably the streets from each gate are joined together to make up one street. Since the vision is of a great symbol, whatever the view or explanation one may hold, we can accept the idea of unity; all portals admit and lead to Him who is the central figure.”¹ In other words, he sees the singular street being a symbol of unity.

The vision of Revelation 21-22 is worth our pondering. But it doesn’t leave me worried about traffic jams in heaven if there is only one street. I suspect that what John describes is beyond describing in human language. The descriptions do not give me a blueprint but are there to spur my yearning. Faithfulness is worth it. This is the place of perfect fellowship, protection, provision, and joy!

¹Homer Hailey, Revelation: An Introduction and Commentary,(Baker Book House), pp. 416-417.

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Posted by Russell Holden

Can We Believe in the Resurrection?

March 1, 2016

Can modern people still believe in the resurrection of Jesus? George Eldon Ladd in his book, I Believe in the Resurrection of Jesus, notes three approaches to the resurrection found in contemporary biblical scholarship:

Christianity is a historical religion. The resurrection is a historical event—it really happened!
The resurrection was a real event in past history whose nature is such that it transcends history, and therefore, it is not subject to verification.
The resurrection did not happen, but talk about the Christ of Faith.

Approaches 2 and 3 have been influenced by an anti-miraculous, naturalistic approach that claims to be “scientific” and “objective.” Ladd counters, “A truly scientific method is the inductive method which accepts as a working hypothesis the best explanation for the known facts.” What are the facts that need to be explained?

The empty tomb. Why would the disciples steal the body? If the Jewish leaders could have produced the body, why didn’t they?
The eyewitnesses. The eyewitnesses suffered and died for their testimony. If their testimony was a fabrication, why the dedication? If their testimony was a fabrication, why did they have the women as the first witnesses of the resurrection? Why did they tell of their own faults and disbeliefs?
The transformations. What changed fearful disciples into heroic martyrs? What changed Paul from their most ardent opponent into the most zealous evangelist? What caused Jewish Christians to transfer their worship from Saturday to Sunday? What caused Jewish Christians to accept Jesus as the Messiah when the Law said “anyone who is hung on a tree is under God’s curse” (Deuteronomy 21:23, NIV). What caused Jewish Christians to call Jesus “Lord,” a term used in the Old Testament for Yahweh?
The Prophecies. Mathematician Peter Stoner in his book, Science Speaks, had university students calculate the odds of eight Old Testament prophecies being fulfilled in one person (he chose Micah 5:2, Malachi 3:1, Zechariah 9:9, Zechariah 13:6, Zechariah 11:12, Zechariah 11:13, Isaiah 53:7, and Psalm 22:16). He came up with the odds of 1 in 1017. Stoner compares this to the odds of choosing the correctly marked silver dollar in a pile of silver dollars two feet deep over an area the size of Texas.

I believe in the historicity of the resurrection. I believe that Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures.

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Posted by Russell Holden

Was Phoebe a Deacon?

February 19, 2016

The question is raised by a number of modern translations including the 2011 edition of the NIV. The new NIV has “our sister, Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae” (Romans 16:1). The footnote gives an alternate translation of “servant,” but another footnote on deacon reads, “The word deacon refers here to a Christian designated to serve with the overseers/elders of the church in a variety of ways; similarly in Phil. 1:1 and 1 Tim. 3:8, 12.” The 1984 edition of the NIV had the reverse: servant in the text and deaconess in the footnote. Other translations using deacon in this passage include God’s Word, NLT, NRSV, and the Voice. The NJB and the RSV used “deaconess,” and the more traditional reading of “servant” is found in the KJV, ASV, NASB, NKJV, and ESV.

The Greek word in question is diakonos, which means servant or helper. Deacon is a transliteration of diakonos. Transliteration is when we give the letters of one language using the closest corresponding letters of another. Some variation may exist as I’ve used an “I” for iota and a “K” for kappa where deacon has an “E” and “C.” I’ve given the Greek ending, where deacon anglicizes the ending by dropping off the last two letters. So why the transliteration?

The usage in Philippians 1:1 and 1 Timothy 3 indicates the servants are in an appointed position in the church with qualifications. There is a sense in which all Christians should be servants, but not all Christians are appointees having the qualifications listed in 1Timothy 3:8-13. Among those qualifications, by the way, is the qualification “husband of one wife.” In church history, there is no evidence for women as appointed servants (deacons or deaconesses) until the third century. Maybe we would have been better off not coining the word deacon, but the issue would still remain: was Phoebe an officially appointed servant or not?

This is not a question of whether women can do valuable service in the church. They certain can. The church would be impoverished without their service. The question is whether they were appointed in the sense of Philippians 1:1 and 1 Timothy 3:8, 12 as the 2011 NIV footnote reads. The evidence is simply lacking for this view, and church history doesn’t have such appointments until the third century.

Phoebe was certainly a servant. She was likely the letter carrier for Paul’s letter to the Romans, a very responsible task. But was Phoebe a deacon in the sense of the NIV’s footnote? The evidence points to no.

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Posted by Russell Holden