1 Thessalonians 2:1-12.  Paul spells out the difference in attitude and motive between today’s true and false teachers.  The major separating point is doctrine, but, as this passage indicates, there are other matters as well.  True teachers tell the gospel message of Jesus in spite of strong opposition; they work hard to communicate that message; their appeal is not from trickery or impure motives; they try to please God and not men; they don’t flatter, but they speak the truth in love; and in that love share not just a message but also their own lives; they speak sincerely and don’t put on masks.  False teachers, on the other hand, use trickery (I think that means anything other than communicating the truth) and false motives to get others to follow them; they speak to please their hearers, even using flattery to do so; they put on masks to cover up greed.

            Read carefully through this section of First Thessalonians and you can discern what is happening.  With the news in recent years of ministries that rake in millions of dollars yet have no accountability to the use of that money, I believe it’s clear to whom this word applies.

            God, may I speak the truth of the gospel in love, regardless of opposition; may I never use false methods and motivations to draw others; may I speak to please you alone and to your glory alone.

Gloria in excelsis Deo

            I have written that Acts 2:38 doesn’t teach baptism as necessary for salvation.  Now I want to demonstrate that all of Acts argues for salvation by grace alone through faith alone.  I will use faith and repentance in this article interchangeably, though they are not exactly the same thing.  Repentance is turning away from something one used to trust; faith is turning to something else and putting one’s trust there.  Genuine, biblical faith, faith that results in salvation, involves both aspects. It is not real saving faith in Jesus, if someone hasn’t turned completely away from his previous trusts.  To be saved one must trust Jesus alone; he cannot just add Jesus to his other lifelines.  So when the Bible talks about faith necessary for salvation or repentance necessary for salvation, it may be emphasizing one aspect of genuine faith over another, but it is not giving two completely different requirements.

            After Pentecost, Peter’s very next sermon was about the healing of the lame man in the temple and includes the words “It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing.”  Of course that doesn’t say anything about salvation, but it does say something about the importance of faith in Jesus.  However, plenty of other passages offer support to this argument as well.  Peter speaks to the Sanhedrin and offers this conclusion, “God exalted (Jesus) to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might give repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel.” (5:31)  There is no mention of anything connected to forgiveness other than repentance.  Then in Peter’s sermon to Cornelius and his family, Peter spells out the requirements for these Gentiles; “everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” (10:43)  It is interesting that the Holy Spirit came into their lives right at that moment.  The audience had been eagerly waiting about four days to hear what Peter would say, and as soon as he said “believe,” they did.  Baptism wasn’t necessary, though it followed immediately after.  These first Gentile believers were saved before they were baptized, and before they did anything else for that matter!  When Peter was questioned about spending time with Gentiles, he told his story, and “when they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God saying, ‘So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life.’” (11:18)

            We see the same teaching in the sermons of Paul.  His first one parallels Peter’s first in many ways.  But his application to this mostly Jewish audience is “Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.  Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the Law of Moses.” (13:38-39)  Again there is no mention of any requirement on our part but faith.  When the Philippian jailer asked point blank, “What must I do to be saved?”  Paul gave the direct answer, “Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved.” (16:29-31)  His farewell address to the Ephesian elders states, “I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.”  (20:21; see also 26:15-18)

            However, I believe the key passage in this matter is found in Acts 15.  The Apostles and elders of the Jerusalem church met to discuss the matter of the Gentile believers coming into the church in huge numbers.  They were particularly interested in the question of circumcision – whether or not the Gentiles had to be circumcised to be saved – but their conclusion impacts our question as well.  Peter reminded the Council of his dream from God and of Cornelius’ salvation.   Then he concludes, “He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith.   .  .  .  we believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.” (15:9-11)  The conclusion of the question about circumcision was that God saves by his grace through faith – and nothing else.

          I am at Ponderosa Baptist Camp near Colorado Springs with our church middle-school youth group for the first few days of this week.  With the loss of our youth pastor, many people are filling in wherever they can.  My wife Cathy will be here all week, but Pastor Wes will replace me tomorrow.  Fortunately, I don’t have to do all the small group leader things, so I can do some of my own work while I’m here.  We brought 12 kids, including my daughter Amber, and I pray they would encounter God this week.  Both Cathy and I have prayed how to balance our own work and alone time with the opportunity to invest in young lives.  May God use us to help direct these kids this week.

          This morning I read Matthew 23 and was pondering the idea of being a teacher.  I am called a “teaching pastor;” the Bible says that some are gifted as teachers, and that some are given to the church as teachers; even in this passage Jesus promises to send prophets, wise men and teachers.  Yet the balance to that is found in the words, “You are not to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one teacher, the Christ.”  That passage is followed by six “Woes” to the hypocritical “teachers of the law.”  I would hope I fall into those who are sent by God as teachers, not into the group who are cursed, but I cannot presume that.  I can only take the “woes” to heart:  I am one of the condemned teachers if I make entering God’s kingdom difficult; if I get caught up in the details of righteousness but neglect mercy and justice; if I look wonderful on the outside but am full of greed and self-indulgence and deadness on the inside.  Help me God never to presume to be a teacher, but to humbly accept the teaching opportunities you give me, and to accept them with a deep reliance on you, understanding my own depravity, greed and self-indulgence.

                Who’s the savior in Titus?  The OT prophet proclaims “I, even I, am the LORD (Yahweh), and apart from me there is no savior.” (Isaiah 43:11)  When Paul wrote this letter to Titus, he would have had an understanding that there was no savior other than Yahweh God.  Yet once in each chapter he applies the title to God and to Jesus.  Note the introduction of the book:  God “brought his word to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior.”  And just one line later, “Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.” (1:3-4)  Then in the second chapter, slaves should be subject to their masters, so that “in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.”  And just a few sentences later, “we wait for the blessed hope – the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” (2:10-13)  And finally in the third chapter, Paul puts in this marvelous statement about grace:  “When the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.  He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior.” (3:4-6)

                Could there be a stronger statement of the deity of Jesus?  God is our savior; Jesus is our savior; and each said three times.  In fact, Jesus is our great God and savior!  Paul wasn’t confused; he knew exactly what he was saying, and only the Trinity doctrine explains it without contradiction.  By the way, with this line of reasoning, one can prove the deity of Jesus even in the New World Translation of the Jehovah’s Witnesses – a bible translation (not a Bible!) which goes to great length to remove any reference to Jesus’ diety.  Though they change the wording of “our great God and savior,” the argument still holds.  This is such a compelling statement of deity that even that translation couldn’t get it out!

            Here is the real prosperity gospel:  “God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory . . .  My purpose is that . . . they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Colossians 1:27, 2:2-3)  God wants us to be rich, but we measure riches with the wrong ruler.  We measure riches in dollars and possessions, but God measures true riches in wisdom and knowledge of Christ.  There are many preachers today emphasizing God’s desire for us to have riches and success, but they use the Wall-Street definition of riches and the Madison-Avenue definition of success.  Those false definitions make for a false gospel.  Wall-Street riches and Madison-Avenue successes are confined to this world at best, and our recent economic history demonstrates that they may not even last that long!  God’s riches are eternal.

            It is no accident that the Apostle Paul immediately follows these words with this explanation:  “I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments.”  And a few verses later, “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” (Colossians 2:4, 8).  Having what the world calls success is music to our mortal ears, but in the end it is hollow and deceptive, for the very reason that it is based on this temporal world.

            Seek the true prosperity gospel, the gospel of knowing Christ in you, for that is a full and glorious richness.  If you struggle with these matters, then this book of Colossians would be a great place to turn.  May you know Christ better today!

If you think I’ve been rather silent the past week without writing in this blog, then go back and read the comments section on the book review for The Shack.  There have been some good comments and insightful questions, and I’ve tried to answer the questions as best as I could.  Interestingly enough, that post has already become the single most read on this blog, and, since posting it, my average daily readership has more than tripled.

One of the questions asked me to clarify my comment that Young presents an “Arminian understanding of God’s sovereignty.”  You can read my response to that question in the book review post.  However, one of the quotes I ran across in the book, the last one I quoted in my answer to the question, has been bugging me the past two days.  Here’s the quote found on page 225 of the book:  “In Jesus, I have forgiven all humans for their sins against me, but only some choose relationship.”  That’s a scary statement, one that could make me change my opinion on the statement that nothing in this book is objectionable enough to call heresy.

I first took this statement, supposedly from God in the novel, as an indication of Young’s Arminianism – a statement of what theologians call “prevenient grace.”  Scriptures are abundantly clear:  our sin is such that we could never respond to God apart from his working in our lives.  Arminians propose that the invitations in scripture presuppose a measure of grace which overrides depravity and allows people to respond to those invitations, and that measure of grace is given to all people.  In other words, prevenient grace is the doctrine that God has given everybody enough of a measure of grace to respond to his invitations, in spite of their sin.  There is no biblical support for such a doctrine other than the invitations themselves (which is one of the things that convinced me in seminary of the Calvinist position).  However, the more I ponder what Young said here, the more I realize it can’t be prevenient grace he’s presenting.  In my understanding, an Arminian would say that prevenient grace is not forgiveness but the ability to respond to God’s invitation to forgiveness, and only those who respond to that invitation are forgiven.  What Young indicates in this one sentence goes far beyond the typical Arminian understanding.

Young indicates that the only reason we turn to God is for relationship with him, because we have all been forgiven already.  However, the biblical teaching is first that not all are forgiven, and second that we turn to God for justification and forgiveness, and then a relationship with him follows.  Consider these references about God’s wrath and those who are not forgiven:  John 3:18, 3:36; Romans 1:18; and Ephesians 5:6; and add to these the references about “blasphemy against the Holy Spirit,” which I wrote about just a few posts ago.  Then consider these references about how forgiveness and justification are related to faith and repentance:  Acts 13:38-39; Romans 3:21-24; Titus 3:4-7.

I have often been asked questions about “the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit,” as it is called in the New Testament.  This sin, which is called an eternal sin that cannot be forgiven, naturally raises questions for followers of Jesus, who understandably don’t want to be guilty of it.  This grievous sin is mentioned in all three Synoptic Gospels: Matthew 12:31; Mark 3:29; and Luke 12:10.  The passage I’m most familiar with is the one in Mark, so I will refer specifically to that passage.  The context in Matthew is identical.  The context of the Luke version is similar enough that the same argument holds there too.  To arrive at the correct understanding, we must look at the entire story in Mark 3:20-30 rather than jump immediately into verse 29.

Jesus was drawing a crowd everywhere he went in his Galilean ministry.  Rightly so, because word had gone out that he was healing many and casting out demons (Mark 1:28; 1:45; 3:8).  Because he was gathering such a large crowd, the religious leaders were jealous of him and wanted to kill him (3:6).  Killing Jesus would have been hard since he was so popular, so they tried first to discredit him in the eyes of the crowd.  They did so by saying his works were from the devil (3:22 – You might notice that these Pharisees were from Jerusalem, not Galilee, probably because they were more influential Pharisees who had gone to Galilee with the sole purpose of trapping or discrediting Jesus).  Jesus answered their charge with two parables, one about a divided kingdom and one about the strong man.  The first demonstrates that Jesus has an authority that is other than Satan; the second demonstrates that he has an authority that is greater than Satan.  Both of these truths are things the Pharisees in the story refused to admit. In other words, they stubbornly refused to admit who Jesus really was.

Jesus follows these two stories with some encouraging words about forgiveness and then a warning about blasphemy.  “I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them.  But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin.  He said this because they were saying, ‘He has an evil spirit.’” (29-30)

Don’t ignore the good news in the passage.  Every sin and blasphemy of men will be forgiven them!  Sometimes we miss that promise and  jump right to the problem issue.  However, with that said, there’s no way to water down the next phrase.  Whatever this blasphemy is, it is unforgivable.  This is a serious matter, and we best know what Jesus was talking about.  I’ve have heard four possibilities suggested.

First, this blasphemy could be speaking against the Holy Spirit or, more pointedly, cursing the Holy Spirit.  This fits the common understanding of blasphemy.  However, it simply doesn’t fit this context.  There is no reason why Jesus would say that here, especially in light of the closing comment in verse 30, that Jesus said these words because of the accusations of the Pharisees.

Second, blasphemy of the Holy Spirit has been said to be unconfessed sin.  One job of the Holy Spirit is to convict people of sin; ignoring that conviction would be a rejection of the Holy Spirit.  Like the first option, this too does not fit this context, especially in light of verse 30.  However, this option has a deeper problem; it makes our confession of sin the basis of our forgiveness of that sin.  This is absolutely not biblical.  The basis of forgiveness is always Jesus’ death as the substitute for our deserved punishment.  And on that basis, God forgives his people whether they confess everyone of their sins or not!  (For some of you this is a radical statement.  I would encourage you to read the following verses and especially note the tenses of forgiveness – it is an already done deal!  Romans 8:1-4; Ephesians 1:7-8, 2:1-10; Colossians 1:13-14, 2:13-14; Hebrews 10:11-13.  Right now some of you are saying, “But what about 1 John 1:9?  Doesn’t it say that we must confess our sins?”  Since this is not the topic of this post, I don’t have time to go into depth on 1 John 1:9; suffice it to say that passage deals with the believers attitude toward sin – one is not a true believer unless he readily admits he is a sinner.  Maybe that can be a topic for another post someday!  Now back to the main topic for this post.)  If the basis of forgiveness is my confession, then I am trusting in myself rather than in Christ.

Third, some have said blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is crediting God’s work to Satan.  This option certainly fits the context of the passage; that’s exactly what the Pharisees were doing.  However, churches do this all the time.  One theological expression calling another heretical, even when God is at work in both situations!  Even the Apostle Paul was guilty of this!  In his early career, he said the Jesus movement was an evil work of the devil (Acts 9:1-2).  He even calls himself “a blasphemer, a persecutor and a violent man,” yet “the grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly!”  (Read 1 Timothy 1:12-17)  Certainly Paul is an example proving that crediting God’s work to the devil is not unforgivable.

Fourth, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit could be a stubborn refusal to recognize who Jesus is.  This explanation fits the context of this passage; it’s what the Pharisees were doing.  It fits the entire biblical teaching on forgiveness and salvation; note some of the passages in option 2.  This fits the biblical teaching about the Holy Spirit also.  One of the Holy Spirit’s jobs is to teach people who Jesus is; a stubborn refusal to see that is a stubborn rejection of the Holy Spirit.

Do you recognize who Jesus is?  Do you recognize that he is God in human form?  Have you accepted his death on the cross as the substitute for your deserved punishment?  If you answer no, then a prolonged stubbornness in that position is eternally dangerous.  However, you can still come to Jesus, and all who come to him will be accepted and forgiven.  If you can answer yes, then blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is not a possibility for you.  Take God at his word and believe it.  The one believing in him has eternal life!  (John 3:18, 36; 1 John 5:11-13)

As a pastor-appreciation gift, Cathy and I were given a night at the Bear’s Inn Bed and Breakfast in Evergreen.  We took advantage of that during the holiday weekend while Amber was with her cousins in Greeley.  We had a wonderful 2 days to slow down, to connect with God and to connect with each other.  The inn was a delightful place to stay, and, with very few people staying, we had the couch and chairs in front of the fireplace almost entirely to ourselves for reading and reflecting.  I read a great chapter in John Piper’s book, Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ.  I started this book quite a while ago, but it is such a great devotional book to ponder, I have saved reading chapters in it for weekends and days off when I can ponder more.  This weekend I read the chapter titled, “The Incarnate Wealth of the Compassionate God.”  The main argument of the chapter goes like this: God is the wealthiest being in the universe, because he created and owns everything, but “strikingly, the New Testament describes the wealth of God not mainly in terms of what he created and owns, but mainly in terms of the glory he has from all eternity.”  That wealth is often described in terms of God’s mercy, and Jesus is the incarnate display of the riches of God’s mercy.  “All the Father’s mercies belong to those who come to God through faith in Jesus Christ.”  Then there is this striking conclusion: “The place where mercies are kept is at the throne of God.  Here is infinite wealth and infinite power and infinite wisdom.  And all this stands ready in the service of mercy, because of Jesus Christ, the mercy of God incarnate.”

            I had three thoughts related to this chapter.  One was the scripture I’d read the same morning, Psalm 65.  This chapter has a very similar idea in the early verses.  “When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions.  Blessed are those you choose and bring near to live in your courts!  We are filled with the good things of your house, of your holy temple.”  All the riches of God are available to those he chooses, all the good things of his house and temple.  Of course, one of the best things from God’s riches is his mercy to offer us the forgiveness of our transgressions!

            The second thought I had was related to today’s prosperity preachers.  They teach that God’s wealth is available to his people, but they define that wealth in worldly terms rather than in godly ways.  The wealth they present is, in comparison with God’s mercy, absolute poverty.  First, it’s not the real thing, and second, it’s only temporary.  Yet God’s real wealth is so much more valuable than anything they or this world have to offer, and it lasts forever.  It’s as though they teach their followers to collect the plastic trinkets in the corner of God’s house when the most valuable of jewels are just across the room.

            The third thought is that the discussion in the paragraph above doesn’t speak just to prosperity preachers, but to all people.  All of us seek treasure in things that are not God’s true riches.  We are guilty of the same sins as the Israelites in Jeremiah 2:13, “My people have committed two sins:  They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”   Even with the best of riches and life –the living water – available in God, we seek riches and life in everything else – things that are stagnant in comparison.  God, grant that we may find our true riches in the riches of your mercy.

Acts 2:38.  There is a movement that has been dubbed by others as “Acts 2:38 Christians.”  The name comes from the high regard they have for this verse – they believe it is the normative verse concerning the requirements for salvation.  The doctrine they preach is known as “baptismal regeneration.”  In a nutshell, baptismal regeneration teaches that a person must be baptized (usually by immersion) to be saved.

Notice Peter’s words in this verse, from his Pentecost sermon.  When asked by the crowd, “What shall we do?”  Peter responded: “Repent and be baptized, everyone of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the Holy Spirit.” 

“Repent and be baptized.”  This verse might, at first glance, seem to teach that baptism is necessary for salvation, but consider the logic of the words.  An illustration will help:  If my daughter were to ask me how to start the car, I might respond, “Buckle the seat belt and turn the key in the ignition.”  Now those are good instructions, since they would accomplish the task at hand.  However, though buckling the seat belt may be the wise  thing to do before starting my car, it is not a necessary  thing to do.  My car will start without the seatbelt buckled.  My instructions offered good advice that was more than the requirements.  So too with Peter’s sermon, if someone genuinely repents and is baptized, that person would be saved, and both repentance and baptism are wise, but that does not mean both those things are necessary.

            The real test of whether both are necessary would be a look at the rest of scripture.  Are there passages that say baptism is necessary?  And are there passages that say repentance and faith (two sides of the same issue) are all that is needed?  The answer is “no” to the former and “yes” to the latter.  In other words, this passage in Acts is clarified by comparison with the rest of the New Testament, and the rest of the New Testament strongly attests that repentance and faith in Jesus is the only requirement for salvation.

            Here are numerous references to demonstrate my point.  My Sunday morning Reformation class students might recognize these as the study verses I handed out last week.  First in Acts, since that’s where we began:  10:43;  13:38-39;  15:1-11;  16:29-31;  20:21; and 26:15-18.  Next the evidence in John:  1:10-13;  3:14-17;  3:18;  3:36;  5:24;  6:28-29;  6:35;  6:40;  6:47;  7:37-39;  8;24;  11:25-26;  12:44-46;  20:30-31; and 1 John 5:11-13.  In Romans:  1:16-17;  3:21-30;  4:1-25;  5:1-11;  10:9-13.  In Paul’s other letters:  Galatians 2:15-21;  3:1-15;  5:2-6; Ephesians 1:3-14;  2:8-9;  2 Timothy 3:14-15; Titus 3:3-7.  The evidence is overwhelming!  Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone!

            There are two related notes.  First, 1 Peter 3:21 is also quoted as support for baptismal regeneration.  That verse says the water of the Flood “symbolizes baptism that now saves you.”  However, Peter defines very clearly what he is talking about: “not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God.”  The baptism which Peter says saves is the reality which the ordinance of baptism in water pictures.

            On a second related note, I’ve been asked on more than one occasion if Max Lucado believes in baptismal regeneration.  A rumor may have gotten started because he makes a strong case for baptism, a case that all believers should be immersed.  But it is also clear that he does not believe baptism a necessity  for salvation.  You can check out his church’s doctrinal statement on baptism here.  Included in that statement is this paragraph:  “Does baptism, itself, have the power to save people?  The answer to this is a resounding ‘No!’ Scripture is abundantly clear that only Jesus saves.  The work of salvation is a finished work by Christ on the cross.  Baptism has no redemptive powers of its own.  There is nothing special about the water.  Nothing holy about the river or pond or baptistery.”   And then later the statement adds:  “Is it possible for an unbaptized believer to be saved?  Yes, definitely.  Should every believer be baptized?  Yes, definitely.”

Isaiah 40-46.  We are vacationing at a small secluded oasis in the middle of the Wyoming dessert – a beautiful little spot called Ayres Natural Bridge.  I have always loved these chapters of Isaiah and pondered them during the quiet mornings of our stay here.  I am impressed by the God-centeredness of this section: They tell of the glory of God in comparison with idols and with people; they often remind us that God is God and there is no other; they tell of the sinfulness of men, and of God’s grace in spite of our sinfulness.

 I have three observations to share from my ponderings.  The first is how often God tells his people, “Do not fear.”  I was impressed by the reasons for the command, which are always related to God’s sovereignty and grace.  The famous verse in this regard is 41:10, “Do not fear for I am with you; do not anxious look about you, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you, surely I will help you; surely I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”  I wonder how many people who quote that verse know the context is God’s sovereign choice of his people.  But there is also “I am the LORD your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you ‘Do not fear; I will help you.’”  “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.”  “Do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.”  (notice again the context is God’s calling).  If we trust in a sovereign God, there is nothing to be afraid of; if we are his people, we have nothing to fear.

The next two observations from this section are theological in nature.  First is the idea that God is beyond time, not bound by it like we are.  In fact what impresses me here is that God’s freedom from time boundaries uniquely identifies him as God.  No other has that freedom.  In comparison with the idols, God says, “See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you.” (42:9)  And in taunting the idols, He says, “Tell us, you idols, what is going to happen.  Tell us what the former things were, so that we may consider them and know their final outcome.  Or declare to us the things to come, tell us what the future holds so we may know that you are gods.” (41:22-23)  Even more telling are two passages where God seems to say, there is no one else like me, who can tell the future: “Who then is like me?  Let them proclaim it.  Let them declare and lay out before me what has happened since I established my ancient people, and what is yet to come – yes, let them foretell what will come.” (44:7)  “Who foretold this long ago, who declared it from the distant past?  Was it not I, the LORD?  And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me.” (45:21)  There has been a movement amongst evangelicals in recent years (even in my own denomination) called “open theism.”  Open theism presents a god who doesn’t know all that will happen in the future, such as some actions and decision of people.  Though thoughts of such a god may be comforting when people do evil things to us, that god is not the God of the Bible.  According to Isaiah’s high view of God, that theology follows a false god, an idol of human invention.

            My second theological thought on this passage comes from one line that jumped out at me in a long section dealing with idols.  The idol maker shapes his idol “in human form, human form in all its glory, that it may dwell in a shrine.”  (44:13)  I laughed when I read this, because I’d been marking the passages in this section that make reference to God’s glory, yet when it comes to man-made gods, the best we can invent is one after our own image!  We instinctively know that we are the highest of God’s creation (or we arrogantly think we are the highest form of evolution!), so when we make a god, we fashion it after ourselves – glorified men with human strengths magnified.  Such were the idols of Isaiah’s day; such were the gods of the Greeks and Romans; so also are the false gods worshiped today.  Problem is, they have human weaknesses as well. The god of easy believism is a god who, like us, doesn’t take sin seriously; the god of prosperity is a god who, like us, focuses on the present life rather than the eternal; the god of open theism is a god who, like us, is bound by time; the same could be said of the Mormon god – he, like us, is bound by time and space.  “I am the LORD; that is my name!  I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols!” (Isaiah 42:8f)  I want to worship, follow and teach the true God, who, unlike me, is not bound by time and space; who, unlike me, is holy and sovereign; who, unlike me, lives in the present and the eternal.