Is Beautiful Music Coming From You?

December 10, 2009 Leave a comment

Old stories are just that: old stories. Some are true. Some aren’t. Here’s one that comes from the late seventeenth century. I can’t testify to it’s authenticity, but it’s a good story.

A wealthy man from London was traveling across Europe. In a rundown little shop in Paris, he found an old violin. Its finish was flaking. It’s bridges were broken down. It’s strings were gone. But something about the instrument intrigued the man, and he bought it for a small sum.

He took the violin to his room and began to tinker with it but quickly realized that repairing it was far too great a task for him. He then began to search for someone to do the job. In Cremona, Italy, he asked a man on the street if he knew anyone who repaired violins. The man directed him to a certain house. He went there and knocked on the door, and the person who answered instructed him to leave the violin and come back in one week.

When the man returned to pick up his instrument, the door was answered by someone different. This man was quite elegant looking and wore distinguished glasses. When he brought forth the violin, it didn’t even look like the same instrument. It was restored completely and virtually sparkled with beauty. 

The man took his violin and tried to play it, but the sound that came out was harsh and unpleasant. He thought, “Oh well. It was worth a try to fix it.” Then he asked for the bill and voiced his appall at what he considered an outrageous price, considering that the violin’s sound still left much to be desired.  

At that point the bespeckled fellow took the instrument back and began playing it. This time the sound produced was indescribably beautiful to the ear. The owner, with his eyes bouncing, immediately changed his mind and agreed to the price. As he handed over the money, he asked the gentleman, “Who are you, sir?” The answer came back, “My name is Antonio Stradivari. If you will look closely, you’ll find that name inside your violin because I made it.”        

The spiritual application of this story is two fold. First, just as Antonio Stradivari knew how to restore one of his Stradivarius violins, God knows how to restore you, His creation. Second, just as Stradivari knew exactly how to play one of his violins to produce the most beautiful music from it, God knows how to play you to produce the most beautiful music you have in you.

Filed under Doing Good, God's Love, God's Provision, Personal Holiness, spiritual gifts Tagged with , , ,

Lessons Learned From The Tiger Woods Story

December 9, 2009 2 Comments

Things are getting kind of bizarre in the story of Tiger Woods, the world’s top-ranked golfer. News broke early Tuesday that an ambulance had been dispatched to his Florida mansion sometime around 2:30 a.m. in response to a 911 call. The ambulance picked up Barbro Holmberg, Woods’ mother-in-law. She was rushed to a local hospital and listed as an “advanced life support” patient. Such a listing simply means that paramedics went beyond basic CPR methods in helping her. She was admitted for “stomach pain,” evidently responded well to treatment, and was released Tuesday afternoon to return to Woods’ home. 

This was just the latest chapter in a sad series of events that have played out over the past couple of weeks. The timeline runs like this:

-At 2:25 a.m. of November 27th, Woods crashes his vehicle into a fire hydrant and his neighbor’s tree. He is taken to a local hospital and treated for minor facial lacerations. He is quickly released and returns home. (Woods refuses to talk to Florida State Troopers for the next three days, and is finally cited for careless driving and fined $164.) 

-Shortly after the accident, the tabloids and internet become abuzz with rumors of Woods’ marital infidelity. (As of now, it’s impossible to sort out fact from lies, but the current number of alleged mistresses stands anywhere from seven to ten.) 

-On November 29th, Woods releases a statement on his website in which he says the accident was his fault and asks for privacy while his family works through a difficult time.

-On November 30th, it is announced that Woods will not be participating in his next scheduled golf tournament. The given reason for his withdrawal is injuries from the accident.

-On December 2nd, Woods releases a new statement in which he says, “I have let my family down and I regret those transgressions with all of my heart.”

-A few days later, several media outlets begin reporting that Woods’ wife, Elin Nordegren, has moved out of the house. (I haven’t heard whether or not she took the couple’s two-year old daughter and infant son with her.) 

-Then comes Tuesday’s story about the mother-in-law being rushed to the hospital in the middle of the night.

As for Woods, he still hasn’t been seen publicly since his accident. Whatever the exact details of everything are, it now seems fairly obvious that it’s a sad situation. The entire family needs our prayers. I have been praying for them, and I hope you will as well.

With that said, I’d like to offer some Biblical lessons here. I don’t do this to kick Tiger Woods while he is down. As I said, I’m praying sincere prayers for him and his family. I offer these merely as a way to view the story through the lens of God’s written word.

Lesson #1: A son needs his daddy. Tiger’s father, Earl, died on May 3rd, 2006. He was a military man who stood for honesty, integrity, and responsibility. Up until his death, he was the driving influence in Tiger’s life. He was the one who molded young Tiger into a golf prodigy. Later on he wrote two books about his no-nonsense parenting style. Tiger has often mentioned how much he misses his dad. In 1st Thessalonians 2:11, the Bible teaches that a father should exhort, comfort, and charge his children. Proverbs 1:8 speaks of a father instructing his son. Would Tiger be in the mess he’s in now if his dad was still alive? No one can say for sure, but many would answer, “No.”

Lesson #2: Every husband must work at remaining sexually satisfied with his wife. Affairs typically occur when husbands aren’t sexually satisfied with their wives alone. The lust for more sex or “different” sex is a powerful, primal thing. That’s why Proverbs 5:18-19 warns: “Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth. As a loving deer and a graceful doe, let her breasts satisfy you at all times; and always be enraptured with her love.”

Lesson #3: The sin of adultery is a fire that burns the one who commits it. Proverbs 6:27-28 says: “Can a man take fire to his bosom and his clothes not be burned? Can one walk on hot coals and his feet not be seared?” 1st Corinthians 6:18 says: “Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body.”

Lesson #4: No matter how much success, fame, and wealth a man has, his world can still come tumbling down if he doesn’t practice self-control. Proverbs 25:28 says: “Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city broken down, without walls.” A city without walls is wide open to be attacked and destroyed. So is a life lived without self-control.

Lesson #5: If you want to fall, be full of pride. Tiger Woods is well known for being supremely confident in his abilities, even to the point of being egotistical. Proverbs 16:18 says: “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” Surely one of Woods’ motivations for committing adultery was that his ego told him he could get away with it.

Lesson #6: All the self-will one can muster will eventually lose out to the power of the flesh (that inborn sinful nature of individuals). Woods’ strong will on the golf course is a major part of what makes him so good. But no man is so strong-willed that he can keep his inner nature of sin at bay for long. In Romans 7:18-19, the apostle Paul writes: “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.”

Lesson #7: Your sins WILL eventually be discovered. Numbers 32:23 says: “…be sure your sin will find you out.” Isaiah 29:15 says: “Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the Lord, and their works are in the dark. They say, ‘Who sees us?” and ’Who knows us?’”    

Lesson #8: Wealth doesn’t equate to contentment. Even though Woods has earned multiplied millions through his golfing and endorsements, there was obviously still something that prevented him from being content with his family life. 1st Timothy 6:6-8 says: “Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.”

Lesson #9: When you raise a child to worship the idol of sports, you shouldn’t be surprised when that child grows up to be lacking in morality and character. As I mentioned earlier, Earl Woods was an uncommonly influential father. No one can deny that he raised a champion golfer. But all those championships came at a high price. As far back as Tiger can remember, Earl led him to obsess over the sport of golf and devote himself fanactically to mastering it. Earl never taught Tiger how to keep golf in proper perspective and allow his spiritual side to develop. That inevitably caused some chinks in Tiger’s character and morality. In Matthew 16:26, Jesus asks the profound question, “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”  

Lesson #10: Buddhism simply cannot offer the help people need. By Woods’ own admission, he is something of a nominal Buddhist through his mother, who is from Thailand. He especially values the Buddhist practice of meditation. In a March, 2008 interview with Reuters, Woods said of Buddhism, “In the Buddhist religion, you have to work for it yourself internally in order to achieve anything in life…and in Buddhism to set up the next life. But in Buddhism it’s all about what you do and internal work.” Sadly, this religion and philosophy fly right in the face of Christ’s words from John 14:6: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” They also go against Ephesians 2:8-9: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God., not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

So, let me close by saying that Tiger Woods is just like anybody else on planet Earth in that he needs to place his faith (belief) in Jesus as his personal Savior. That will bring him forgiveness of sin (Colossians 1:14), spiritual life (John 5:40), salvation (Acts 16:30-31), and the empowerment to resist temptation and sin (Philippians 4:13). Certainly Tiger’s life has taken a tragic turn for the worse, but if that turn leads him to the open arms of Jesus, the best will be yet to come for him. That’s my prayer, for not only Tiger but his entire family.

Filed under adultery, Adversity, Belief, Character, Choices, contentment, Desires, faith, Fatherhood, Forgiveness, Husbands, Marriage, Money, Parenting, Priorities, Seeking Forgiveness, Sex, Sin, Sports, Temptation Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

What Should A Christian Do About Christmas Trees & Santa Claus?

December 8, 2009 3 Comments

(Post 4 of a series of 4)

This will be the last post in our series on the origins of our Christmastime traditions. But with this one I don’t want to deal with any more origins of any more traditions. Instead, I want to focus upon rightly applying what we’ve learned.

There are some who staunchly believe that Christians should have nothing to do with the Christmas holiday. They say, “The holiday has its roots in paganism, and Christians should avoid it altogether.” This was the mindset of the early Puritans, Baptists, Quakers, Presbyterians, and Calvinists who played such major roles in the settling of America.

If you ever meet someone who does oppose the holiday, that person will probably refer you to Jeremiah 10:2-5, which says:

Thus says the Lord: Do not learn the way of the Gentiles; do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven, for the Gentiles are dismayed at them. For the customs of the people are futile; for one cuts a tree from the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the ax. They decorate it with silver and gold; they fasten it with nails and hammers so that it will not topple. They are upright, like a palm tree, and they cannot speak; they must be carried, because they cannot go by themselves. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, nor can they do any good.

Some people read that passage and say, “You see? Right there the Bible tells us that we shouldn’t have Christmas trees.” But are these people right? That’s what we need to figure out. 

Several years ago, I came face to face with this issue in my life. I had learned the information that I’ve passed along in this series, and I had to figure out how to apply it to my life. Since the whole subject was pretty overwhelming to me, all I knew to do was pray about it. I poured out my heart to God and said, “Lord, You show me what You want me to do about the Christmas holiday, and I’ll do it.”

I prayed that and I meant it! I was open to never again having a Christmas tree. I was open to never again having Santa Claus mentioned around my house. I was open to ending the practice of buying presents and getting presents.

You say, “Oh, Russell, that kind of thinking is just going to a wrong extreme.” Well, maybe it is, but tell me, have you ever seriously prayed about the issue of the pagan taint that Christmas has upon it? I dare say that most people go their entire lives and never commit the matter to prayer. Say what you will, but I did that.

And what answer did God bring me back to time and time again? Well, if you go into my house at Christmastime, you will find a big Christmas tree sitting in my living room. It is beautifully decorated and, depending on what day you go, it might even have a few presents under it. You’ll also find stockings for Ryan and Royce hung on our windowsill. You get the idea. God gave me a peace about our Christmas traditions, and He taught me that it all comes under the heading of Christian liberty.

Not surprisingly, I’ve since learned that I’m not the only Christian whom God has led to this conclusion. Years ago, in Jerry Falwell’s publication The National Liberty Journal, he had a word to say about Christians and Christmas. It was so in line with how God had answered my prayers that I cut it out and kept it. Falwell wrote:

I usually get some critical mail from friends who object to trees, Santa Claus, gifts, and the entire celebration. They remind me that we do not know the exact date of the birth of Christ; that the Christmas tree and Santa have pagan origins; that commercialism dominates the scene; and that Christians should ignore the whole season. Of course, I respectfully disagree. I have never met a person who was damaged emotionally for life because of believing in Santa as a child, or believing in the tooth fairy, the Easter Bunny, or Mother Goose rhymes. Rather, I have met many who were sadly robbed of their childhood by strict legalistic parents who thought they were doing God a service by denying their children all harmless fun and innocent fantasy.

(By the way, Jerry Falwell was hardly classified as a liberal!)

Let me give you another quote that I like. This one comes from James Dobson’s Focus On The Family magazine. In answering a question about Santa, Dobson wrote, “…if I had to do it over, I would still let my children thrill to the excitement of Santa’s arrival down the chimney on Christmas Eve.”

So, does Christmas really have its roots in paganism? Yes. There’s no denying that. In this series, I didn’t even take the time to explain the pagan origins of mistletoe, the Yule log, decking the halls with boughs of holly, the Christmas goose, and many, many other Christmas traditions. I assure you that these customs didn’t come from the Bible. But does that mean that God would have us to boycott Christmas? No, it doesn’t.

Let me tell you something, unless you move to a cave on top of a mountain, you can’t really boycott it anyway. A man says, “My family isn’t going to celebrate Christmas in any way.” Then he sends his five-year-old off to kindergarten and the boy comes home and says, “We are having a Christmas party at school on Friday, and I’m supposed to bring the cupcakes.” A woman says, “I’m not even going to acknowledge that there is a Christmas. I just won’t let it into my house.” Then she goes to her mailbox and finds that her neighbor has sent her a Christmas card. Do you see what I mean?

Someone says, “But what about that passage from Jeremiah chapter 10?” I’ll tell you about it. It has absolutely nothing to do with a Christmas tree! What the passage condemns is cutting down a tree and fashioning a wooden idol out of it. If you don’t believe me, sit down and read it for yourself. The key to rightly understanding the passage is to read the entire chapter. Don’t just stop at verse 5. Keep going on through the chapter. When you do that, you will see that the reference is to the making of a wooden idol. It doesn’t have one thing to do with Christmas trees or Christmas.

Listen, Jesus knows that He wasn’t born on December 25th, and He knows about Saturnalia and all the other winter-solstice festivals that other cultures used to celebrate. But He also knows what it is to live in a fallen world. And, knowing that, what He asks from us each Christmas (as well as every other time of the year) is that we live all out for Him.

Parent, I firmly believe that Jesus wants you to let your kids have their fun at Christmas, but He also wants you to teach them the difference between myth and reality. What He especially wants is for you to teach them how to live for Him out there in the real world, a real world that makes a big deal out of Christmas. That’s why I would encourage you to pour out your heart to the Lord about all of the issues of Christmas, and let Him show you the guidelines and boundaries. He did that for me, and He will do it for you if you are sincere in wanting to know His will. To you, Christmas can simply be a wonderful time of family, tradition, and, of course, the heartfelt celebration of the birth of Jesus.

Filed under Christian Liberty, Christmas, Christmas Traditions, Origins of Christmas Holiday Tagged with , , , , , , ,

Christmas Trees, Santa, Bing Crosby, & Charlie Brown

December 6, 2009 Leave a comment

(Post 3 of a series of 4)

We’re in a little series on the origins of our Christmastime traditions. With the first post, I covered the subjects of the winter soltice and Saturnalia. With the second, I explained the effect the Roman emperor Constantine had upon the winter soltice and Saturnalia celebrations. With this third post, I’ll cover the origins of three major traditions.   

Tradition #1 is the name “Christmas” itself. The word comes from the Roman Catholic term “Christ’s Mass.” When you know this, it will come as no surprise that each Christmas Eve the Roman Catholics observe Mass, which is their version of the Lord’s Supper.

Tradition #2 is the Christmas tree. Long before the time of Christ, ancient Egyptians brought green palm branches into their homes on the shortest day of the year, the day of the winter solstice. To them, those green palm branches symbolized life. Centuries later the Romans decorated their homes with evergreen wreaths during the days of Saturnalia. The idea of a Christmas tree came out of these historical observances of the Egyptians and the Romans.

The first recorded reference to an actual Christmas tree comes from the 16th century. At that time the families in Strasbourg, Germany are known to have decorated fir trees with colored paper, fruits, and sweets. In 1520, Martin Luther, who was German, saw the beauty of the stars twinkling through the evergreen trees outside his home and attempted to copy this beauty by placing lit candles on his Christmas tree. His neighbors soon followed suit.

The custom of the Christmas tree eventually spread through Europe. Records tell us that Prince Albert of Germany married Queen Victoria of England and set up a beautifully decorated tree in England’s Windsor Castle. The tree was decorated with candies, sugared fruits, and tiny wrapped gifts.

As for the United States, the custom was brought here by German soldiers and Hessian mercenaries who were paid to fight in the Revolutionary War. In 1804, U.S. soldiers stationed at Fort Dearborn, in what is now Chicago, hauled trees from the surrounding forests to their barracks at Christmastime. Once the custom had begun in America, it quickly spread.

In 1851, a man named Mark Carr hauled two ox sleds loaded with trees from the Catskills to the streets of New York and opened the nation’s first retail lot. In 1882, Edward Johnson, a partner of Thomas Edison, invented electric Christmas tree lights and hung the first string on his tree. This was safer than Martin Luther’s old idea about placing lit candles on Christmas trees. Franklin Pierce, America’s fourteenth president, was the first president to place a Christmas tree in the White House. Later on, in 1923, Calvin Coolidge began the National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, which is held every year on the White House lawn.

Tradition #3 is Santa Claus. In approximately 280 A.D., a man named Nicholas was born in Turkey. He was raised in a wealthy family and received a fine education. As a young man, he became a priest. This Nicholas was well known for his kindness and generosity. When his parents died, he even distributed his inheritance and property to the needy. Ultimately, Nicholas became the Bishop of Myra. To this day a feast is held on December 6th, the date of his death.

It is from the life and deeds of Saint Nicholas that the basics of the legend arose. The most famous story is about him making three secret visits to the home of a poor father of three daughters. On each of the first two visits, Nicholas threw a bag of gold through the window of the home. On the third visit, he threw the bag of gold down the chimney. As the story goes, the bag landed in a stocking that had been hung by the chimney to dry. The father used those three bags of gold as dowries to get his daughters married into good families. Because of this, over the course of time, people began to thank Saint Nicholas anytime they received an unexpected gift.

According to legend, Saint Nicholas’ cape was bright red and trimmed with white fur. This was the origin of what Santa wears. The name “Santa Claus” comes from “Sinter Klaas,” the Dutch name for Saint Nicholas. The Dutch were the ones who brought the story of Saint Nicholas (Santa Claus) to America.

Once in America, the legend began to take on new details. In 1809, Washington Irving wrote a story about children leaving stockings out for Saint Nicholas to fill. A few years later, in 1821, Irving wrote a book entitled “The Children’s Friend,” in which he said that Santa traveled by a sleigh that was pulled by reindeer. That was different from earlier versions of Santa’s story, which said that he traveled by wagon with the assistance of a magic white horse.

One year later, in 1822, a New Yorker named Clement C. Moore wrote “A Visit from St. Nicholas.” It began, “Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house…” That story inspired an artist named Thomas Mast to draw a cartoon of Santa for the popular magazine Harper’s Weekly. That cartoon depicted St. Nicholas as a jolly, fat man.

Actually, Santa is just one of the many areas in which America has added its own touches to Christmastime. In 1942, in the movie “Holiday Inn,” Bing Crosby first sang the song “White Christmas.” In 1946, Jimmy Stewart starred as George Bailey in “It’s A Wonderful Life.” In 1947, Twentieth Century Fox released “Miracle On 34th Street.” In 1964, Elvis Pressley recorded the song “Blue Christmas.” Also in 1964, television gave us the cartoon classic “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” In 1965, it gave us “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” In 1966, it was “How The Grinch Stole Christmas.” In 1968, it was “The Little Drummer Boy.” In 1969, it was Frosty the Snowman. All of these elements and a vast assortment of others that we all know so well have become a part of the far-out, odd, colossal mix that we call the Christmas holiday.

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Constantine & Christmas

December 4, 2009 Leave a comment

(Post 2 of a series of 4)

With yesterday’s post I began a series on the origins of the traditions of our Christmas holiday. That post explained the winter solstice and the Roman holiday known as Saturnalia. Now, with today’s post, I need to say some things about a Roman emperor named Constantine.  

Constantine became one of the emperors of the Roman empire in the year 306. Six years later, in 312, he found himself at a pivotal point in his war against his brother-in-law and co-emperor, Maxentius. According to the historian Eusebius, it was on the day before a crucial battle at Milvian Bridge that Constantine prayed to God and asked for divine assistance.

As the story goes, Constantine then saw in the noonday sky a vision of a cross of light. The cross was superimposed upon the sun and written on the cross were the words in Latin “in this sign you will conquer.” That night Constantine had a dream that reaffirmed his vision. Supposedly, in the dream, God told him to use the sign of the cross in all of his battles. So, the next day Constantine added the sign of the cross to his flags, and his army went on to win the battle at Milvian Bridge.

A short time after that, in 313, emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan. That Edict made Christianity legal throughout Constantine’s empire. This meant that Christianity went from being a despised and persecuted religion (which is where the New Testament record leaves it) to being an accepted and even highly favored part of Roman religion.

The fact is, over the years of his reign, Constantine took Christianity even further than that. With the help of the bishops of the church in Rome, he made Christianity nothing less than the state religion of the Roman empire. He lavished gifts upon Christian leaders. He made Sunday a holiday so that people, especially his soldiers, could attend church. He made Christian clergy exempt from government duty. He made churches tax-exempt. He even personally funded the construction of several lavish, ornate church buildings. In Constantine’s view, his Rome and the Christian church should be as close as possible.

All of this, of course, ultimately helped to bring about the financial, political, and religious empire that we know as the Roman Catholic Church. And therein lies the great debate about Constantine. Was he, as some contend, a true Christian who was used by God to greatly serve the cause of Christianity? Or was he, as others contend, a lost man who was deceived by Satan and greatly used by Satan to corrupt Christianity? The answer you get depends upon who you ask.

One of the most serious problems that people have with Constantine’s supposed salvation is in the area of how he handled Rome’s pagan festivals. Rather than outlawing those festivals, Constantine, with the help of the bishops of the church in Rome, “Christianized” them. A prime example of this is what happened with Saturnalia and the Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun. Rather than forbidding the observance of those days of pagan celebration, Constantine and the bishops simply changed the meaning of the days. The festival of Saturnalia, which ran from December 17th through December 24th, went from being about the birth of the sun to be about the birth of the Son. Likewise, December 25th changed from being the Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun to being the birthday of the Son of God.

Please don’t think that December 25th is our best guess for the actual date of Christ’s birth. The Bible doesn’t tell us the exact date of His birth, but we can say with virtual certainty that it wasn’t December 25th. We can say that because the Bible does tell us that those shepherds and their sheep were out in the fields that night. In Israel the month of December is usually cold and rainy. During that month, shepherds normally keep their sheep penned up in sheepfolds. Furthermore, Luke chapter two says that Joseph and Mary made their trip to Bethlehem to register for the purpose of paying taxes to the Roman government. Such registrations weren’t usually decreed during the cold winter months because travel was just too difficult. Nevertheless, despite these Biblical roadblocks, Constantine and the bishops of Rome went ahead and made December 25th the official date that was given to Christ’s birth.

So what am I saying? I’m saying that the very idea of a holiday to celebrate the birth of Jesus was really just a way to claim Saturnalia and December 25th for Christianity. I’m saying that the idea of the world annually celebrating December 25th as the date of Christ’s birth came from the mind of Constantine and the bishops of Rome. I’m saying that it was Constantine and those bishops who linked the celebration of Christ’s birth up with days off from work, parties, evergreen wreaths, and the exchanging of gifts. And that’s where I’ll leave the story until my next post. 

　

Filed under Catholicism, Christmas, Christmas Traditions, church, Origins of Christmas Holiday, Uncategorized Tagged with , , , , , , , ,

The Winter Solstice & Saturnalia

December 3, 2009 Leave a comment

(Post 1 of a series of 4)

Let’s face it, Christmas is a weird holiday. What does the baby Jesus have in common with a fat man in a red suit who rides a sleigh pulled by reindeer? What does a virgin named Mary have in common with a green Grinch who lives in a cave? Why do we cut down trees, bring them into our homes, and cover them with lights and ornaments? Why do we buy presents, wrap them in beautiful paper, and give them to people? How did shepherds get linked up with a snowman named Frosty? How did a little boy with a drum end up at the manger scene? This is odd stuff.

The truth is, it takes many circumstances, cultures, and centuries to create this strange hodgepodge that we call Christmas. So, I’m going to devote my next few posts to explaining the origins of the traditions of the holiday. For this first post, I want to talk about the worship of the sun. I need to begin with this subject because this is where our Christmas holiday really gets its start.

Historically speaking, one of the classic trademarks of mankind has been sun-worship. Reaching far back into man’s history, many civilizations have studied the sun and devised times of celebration based upon the sun’s alignments with the earth. To those ancient peoples, one of the most important times of the year was the winter solstice. You ask, “What is the winter solstice?” Follow with me and I’ll give you the answer.

It takes the earth 365 days to make one full orbit around the sun. This is where we get the concept of a year. But as the earth continually goes about its orbiting of the sun, the orbiting alters where the sun appears on the earth’s equator. The earth’s equator is that imaginary line that divides the planet into a Northern Hemisphere and a Southern Hemisphere.

The day of the summer solstice is the day of the year that the sun appears farthest north from the earth’s equator. On that day, the time from what we call sunrise to what we call sunset is longer than it is on any other day of the year. That’s why we call that day the longest day of the year. The summer solstice is usually June 21.

After that day, though, the earth’s orbit causes the sun to increasingly appear farther and farther south from the equator. The day of the winter solstice, then, is that day of the year when the sun appears farthest south from the equator. On that day, the time from what we call sunrise to what we call sunset is shorter than it is on any other day of the year. That’s why we call that day the shortest day of the year. The winter solstice is December 21st or 22nd.

Ancient civilizations ingeniously figured out how to calculate when the winter solstice would take place, and they took that time of the year very seriously. To them, the sun decreasing in visibility as the days of the year moved forward spoke of the dying of the sun. They believed that at the time of the winter solstice the sun actually needed to be reborn so that it could live another year. That’s why, in their religious superstition, they organized annual festivals that were held during the days just before and after the day of the winter solstice. These festivals were celebrations dedicated to the sun god, whatever name that god went by in any given civilization.

The specifics of these festivals differed depending upon the civilization. Some civilizations threw parties during the days close to the winter solstice. Some lit candles. Some decorated their towns with bright, pretty decorations. But the basic motivation for the festivals was always the superstitious idea that the sun had grown weak to the point of death and needed to be reborn.

Well, the Roman empire eventually became the world’s dominant empire, and Rome’s version of these winter solstice celebrations was called Saturnalia. It lasted from December 17th through December 24th. December 25th, then, was celebrated with a feast to commemorate the birth (rebirth) of the sun.

That feast day was known as the Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun. During the days of the Saturnalia festival and the Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun everyone in the Roman empire was excused from work. Mardi-Gras like celebrations took place in the streets. Bonfires were lit. Evergreen wreaths were brought into homes. Gifts were even exchanged. Authority figures received gifts such as urns, jewelry, coins, or gold, while common people received gifts such as wax candles and little clay dolls. In other words, in the Roman empire, December 17th through December 25th looked a lot like our modern-day Christmastime.

 

Filed under Christmas, Christmas Traditions, Origins of Christmas Holiday Tagged with , , , , , ,

A Word To The Adults

December 2, 2009 Leave a comment

This morning I had the privilege of speaking at the chapel service of our local Tri-County Christian school. I’ll admit that it wasn’t an easy assignment. You try coming up with something that will keep the attention of grades ranging from K-12.

We all read Matthew 26:36-44 together and I spoke on the subject of surrending yourself completely to God’s will. I talked about the “nevertheless” way of living. That idea comes from Christ’s garden of Gethsemane prayer: “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.” If those young people could just get hold of that concept right there, I will have accomplished much this morning.    

After I left the school, I found myself thinking about Ecclesiastes 12:1: “Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you say, ‘I have no pleasure in them.’” As for the days of my own youth, I remembered my Creator to some degree, but my track record was a few billion miles from being perfect. My prayer for the kids of Tri-County Christian school is that their efforts at serving the Lord during their younger days will far outdo anything previous generations have done.

In the end, much of what today’s kids do or don’t do will depend upon what kind of mentoring and guidance they receive from us adults. That’s why we must never stop remembering our Creator, no matter how old we get. God desires the obedience. We need the blessings that come from such obedience. And our young people need the role models. You see, it’s a win-win-win situation. So, adult, I ask you: What kind of a role model are you? Think about it.

Filed under Character, Children, Doing Good, God's Will, Holiness, Parenting, Personal Holiness Tagged with , , , , , , ,

Five Good Questions About Water Baptism

December 1, 2009 Leave a comment

There is much debate and confusion concerning water baptism. This is sad because the subject is such an important aspect of Christianity. Only by going to the Bible and studying all of the passages that relate to the issue can we get at the truth. When we do this, we find the answers to five fundamental questions.

Question #1: Who Is Qualified For Water Baptism? 

The Bible plainly teaches that only born-again Christians can rightly submit to water baptism. To be born again, one must put saving belief (faith) in Jesus Christ (John 1:12-13; 3:3; 3:16-18; 1st John 5:1). Born-again Christians are people who have heard the gospel of Christ, seen themselves as sinners bound for hell, understood that Jesus died to pay the debt for their sins, and genuinely believed in Him as their personal Savior. This belief (faith) in Jesus brings eternal forgiveness and salvation to the individual (John 3:16; Acts 10:43; Romans 1:16-17; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:8-9; 1st John 5:1,13).

Such “believers” are qualified for water baptism because they have experienced Holy Spirit baptism (Matthew 3:11; John 7:37-39; Acts 1:5; 10:44-48; 1st Corinthians 12:13). Holy Spirit baptism is God the Holy Spirit taking up residence within the person who has put saving belief in Christ. This happens at the initial moment of the saving belief. Actually, it is Holy Spirit baptism that produces the “new birth” that makes one a born-again Christian. It is nonsense for people to claim to be Christians if they haven’t experienced Holy Spirit baptism (Acts 11:15-18; 15:6-8; Romans 5:5; 8:8-11, 8:14-16; 1st Corinthians 6:19; 2nd Corinthians 1:22; 3:3; 5:5; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 1:13-14; Ephesians 4:30; 1st Thessalonians 4:8; 2nd Timothy 1:14; 1st John 3:23-24; 4:12-13).

All of this means that the common practice of baptizing infants is wrong. Likewise, it is equally wrong to baptize any adult who hasn’t put legitimate saving belief in Christ. The fact is that anyone, regardless of age, race, or religion, who hasn’t been baptized with the Holy Spirit has no business whatsoever being baptized in water. This is why water baptism is oftentimes rightly referred to as “believer’s baptism.”

Question #2: Does A Person Have To Submit To Water Baptism To Be Saved?

The answer is, NO. In the New Testament there are over two-hundred verses that teach that salvation comes through belief (faith) in Christ. Many passages use the word “faith,” while others use words such “belief,” “believe,” or “believed.” Obviously, these words are interchangeable.

If water baptism played any part whatsoever in salvation we would find it consistently mentioned in the Bible whenever the plan of salvation is presented. What we find, however, is the exact opposite. For example, the apostle Paul said that he didn’t do much baptizing (1st Corinthians 1:13-17). He also didn’t mention water baptism when he gave the Corinthians his definition of the gospel (1st Corinthians 15:1-11). Paul’s words and actions seem very strange if water baptism is required for salvation. Paul was like Jesus, who Himself didn’t baptize anyone (John 4:1-2).

It’s true that Peter mentioned water baptism in the invitation he gave in his sermon on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:37-38), but he didn’t mention it in other sermons he preached (Acts 3:12-26; 5:29-32; 10:34-43). As a matter of fact, the Bible even points out that those who were saved after hearing the Pentecost sermon were saved by belief (Acts 2:44).

To contend that water baptism is vital to salvation is to create two plans of salvation. The people of the Old Testament age, not being baptized, would have been saved in a different way than the people of the New Testament age. Furthermore, the believers who lived during Christ’s earthly life did not experience Christian baptism. This group included the apostles. Many of these believers were baptized in the Jordan river by John the Baptist, but John’s baptism was not Christian baptism. When an individual was baptized by John, that individual was simply making a public profession of repentance (Matthew 3:4-12; Mark 1:4-5; Acts 10:34-37; 18:24-25; 19:1-5). This repentance was supposed to prepare the individual to accept the Messiah, who was soon to come and offer salvation (Matthew 3:11-12; Luke 7:24-30). This explains why John was hesitant to baptize Jesus (Matthew 3:13-14). John knew that Jesus had no sins to repent of and that He was the Messiah.

Still, despite the fact that they did not experience Christian baptism, the Old Testament believers and those who believed during Christ’s earthly life were saved (Psalm 23:6; Luke 7:37-50; 23:39-43; Hebrews 11:1-40). There is even an entire chapter (Romans chapter 4) of the Bible that is devoted to the teaching that salvation has always been through saving faith in the one, true Lord.

Question #3: Why Should The Christian Submit To Water Baptism?

Water baptism is a beautiful object lesson. First, it shows what has happened in the Christian’s earthly existence. In going under the water, the Christian is publicly saying, “I am now dead to sin” (Romans 6:1-2; 6:6-7; 6:11-14). The waters of baptism have even been called “a liquid tomb.” In coming up from under the water, the Christian is saying, “I am now alive to walk in the newness of the Christian life” (Romans 6:4; 6:6; 6:8; 6:10-14).

Second, water baptism shows what will happen in the Christian’s eternal existence. In going under the water, the Christian is publicly identifying himself or herself with Christ’s death and burial (Romans 6:3-5; 6:8). In coming up from under the water, the Christian is publicly identifying himself or herself with Christ’s resurrection from the dead (Romans 6:5; 6:8-9). By submitting to water baptism, the Christian is saying, “I know that Christ will not leave my body in the grave. My body will one day be gloriously resurrected, just as His body was” (1st Corinthians 15:20-24; 15:42-50).

Understanding how water baptism is a two-fold object lesson makes it easy to see why Jesus commanded that those won to Him should submit to it (Matthew 28:19). The Bible even says that a Christian can be saved from a guilty conscience toward God only by submitting to water baptism (1st Peter 3:21). If the Christian refuses water baptism, he or she will eventually feel guilty about the disobedience (Luke 6:46; John 15:14; James 4:16).

In the days of the early church, those who believed in Christ as Savior were expected to immediately submit to water baptism (Mark 16:15-16; Acts 2:37-41; 8:12; 8:26-40; 9:17-18; 10:44-49; 16:14-15; 16:25-34; 18:8; 19:1-7). Keep in mind that the early Christians had no church buildings, pews, aisles, or altars. Therefore, a public water baptism was a profound way for an individual to openly show that he or she was believing in Christ as Savior (Matthew 10:32). For that matter, it still is!

Question #4: What mode of water baptism is correct?

Total immersion is the only mode of water baptism that is described in the Bible. This is plainly seen in passages which describe John the Baptist’s baptisms as well as Christian baptisms (Matthew 3:13-16; John 3:23; Acts 8:35-39). The modes of sprinkling and pouring are not scriptural.

Keep in mind that the object lesson is what makes the mode so important. Water baptism is supposed to show the Christian’s death and burial to sin as well as Christ’s own physical death and burial. Total immersion in the water is the only mode that truly pictures death and burial. When we bury a corpse, we don’t just sprinkle or pour a bit of dirt over that body. Instead, we immerse that body completely in the ground.

Question #5: What Words Should Be Said During Water Baptism?

Frankly, the exact words don’t seem nearly as important as the mode. Jesus told His followers to baptize “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). Peter told a group of Jews to be baptized “in the name of Jesus Christ” (Acts 2:38). Later, he told a group of Gentiles to be baptized “in the name of the Lord” (Acts 10:48). Paul baptized a group of believers “in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 19:5).

Most churches use the Matthew 28:19 words. This verse is one of the Bible’s proof texts that God is one God who exists in three distinct personages. In the verse, Jesus says to His disciples, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name (singular) of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” You see, there is no need to immerse the believer three times into the water. To do so is to confuse the fact that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are One. It is also to miss the fact that corpses aren’t buried three times.

Filed under Baptism, Belief, Bible Study, Christ's Death, Christ's Resurrection, church, Doctrine, obedience, salvation, The Holy Spirit Tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

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