“I Like Crosses”

I recently attended a gathering of Christians. At the gathering one of the pastors was wearing a cross ring. The ring was quite attractive with gold-plating and an embossed cross raised on top of it. One of the ladies at the gathering saw the ring and said, “I like crosses”. She went on to say, “I collect cross jewelry; necklaces, rings, bracelets and pins”.

One of the elder women at the gathering said, “You like crosses, do you?” She went on to say, “Well if you like crosses, do you like to bear them?” That was certainly a sobering statement. I then chimed in to break the tension by saying, “Must Jesus bear the cross alone, and all the world go free?” Another person chimed in and said, “No, there’s a cross for everyone, and there’s a cross for me.”

Let’s take a look at the cross. It is more than just a piece of jewelry.

Scripture Readings: Matthew 16:24 (ESV)

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

Reflection:

The cross was a tool of death. It was used to crucify Jesus Christ as He brought forgiveness of sin and salvation to the world. Most people believe that the Romans created the cross for punishment of those convicted of criminal actions to include rebellion, insurrection, and blasphemy of the Roman gods. But, research indicates the cross and crucifixion probably originated with ancient Persians in the 7th century BC. The practice of crucifixion on the cross was later adopted by the Romans.

The crucifixion generally began with a scourging or whipping with a strap or club covered with sharp bone, stone, or anything sharp that could cause extreme pain and bleeding. The scourging exposed muscle, bone, entrails (intestines or internal organs) and could cut major veins or disembowel the person being whipped.

Then the convicted rebel of the law, government or society usually had to carry the horizontal beam to the place of execution, not necessarily the whole cross. The rebel was then probably affixed to the cross by ropes, piercing nails, or some combination of the two. This was to provide a particularly painful, gruesome, and public death. The rebel would in hours or days die from asphyxiation, physical shock, dehydration, and/or exhaustion. This would be a deterrent to anyone considering challenging the forces of authority.

So, for Christians the Cross should never be viewed as just a piece of jewelry. It has a painful history for our Savior Jesus Christ, and a story of hope for those that believe in Him. The author (Thomas Shepherd (1693)) of “Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone” says it well:

(1) Must Jesus bear the cross alone,

and all the world go free?

No, there’s a cross for everyone,

and there’s a cross for me.

(2) How happy are the saints above,

who once went sorrowing here!

But now they taste unmingled love

and joy without a tear.

(3) The consecrated cross I’ll bear

till death shall set me free;

and then go home my crown to wear,

for there’s a crown for me.

(4) Upon the crystal pavement down,

at Jesus’ pierced feet,

joyful I’ll cast my golden crown

and His dear name repeat.

5 O precious cross! O glorious crown!

O resurrection day!

When Christ the Lord from heaven comes down

and bears my soul away

Amen!

“What has bewitched you?”

If you are anything like me, there are times when God through the Holy Spirit puts a specific theme in your heart. It is a compulsion to share the Good News of Jesus Christ about a specific topic. For me that topic is “Apostasy”. That is a word that we generally don’t use in our everyday Christian-ease language or even our everyday language. Apostasy is described and defined as:

• A falling away or abandoning of the faith
• Deserting of a loyalty to God
• Departure from the belief in Jesus as Lord and Savior
• A leaving of the church or a lukewarm service to it

The one thing about apostasy that makes it so devastating is that it generally happens very subtly to the person that is in its grips. Galatians 3:1 (KJV) asks a question that infers apostasy’s grip as Apostle Paul asks, “… who hath bewitched you that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?”

Per Apostle Paul, the Christians at Galatia were aware of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross in obedience to God. It was the sacrifice of Jesus that brought about forgiveness of sin, salvation, and eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ alone. So, Paul uses a question to reprove (gently correct) the Galatian Christians for departing from faith in Christ.

The Galatian Christians were moving away from the faith and had begun to reject it for other philosophies and beliefs. So, Apostle Paul questioned why the Galatians were not obeying what was the truth about and of Jesus Christ. What had changed their minds and hearts or as it is stated, “What had bewitched (captivated or fascinated) them?”

This is the same question that is reproving us today. What has captivated or caught our fascination such that now we aren’t loyal to what we once believed in and believed about Jesus Christ.

Let’s examine the theme, “What has bewitched you?”

Theme: “What has bewitched you?”

¹O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?

Reflection: 

Most people would strongly reject the notion that they had been “bewitched”. The use of that terminology is arcane, old fashion, and outdated for our modern, rational, and technology-driven society. The term bewitched hints that someone is under a spell, curse or some type of magical control. Certainly nothing like that happens in the 21^st century! Well perhaps yes and perhaps no…

But, what we can document with evidence is what is known as “Syncretism” which is the mixing of other beliefs and philosophies with Christianity to obtain a more convenient truth to live by.

Syncretism is the combination of different forms of beliefs and philosophies which is evidenced by the following derailing movements within Christianity:

• “Jesus as Savior, but Not Lord”
• “All Religions serve the Same God”
• “There are Many Paths to God — Just Choose the one that Fits your needs”

Each of these movements is just that — a way to move you away from the truth of Jesus Christ.

Adrian Rogers, evangelist and radio broadcaster states, “If Jesus is not your Lord, then Jesus is not your Savior. You don’t pick and choose what you want of Jesus. There are a lot of people who think they are doing God a wild favor by accepting Jesus Christ as their Savior so they can have a little fire insurance and not go to hell. Jesus is Savior and He does save, but we cannot have what He gives unless we receive who He is. He is Lord!” *

In terms of all religions, Christianity affirms the doctrine of the Trinity which is the teaching that in the one God are three distinct persons–not three gods. In other words, the one God exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is a uniquely Christian teaching, and this is a critical difference dealing with the nature of God. He is either triune (Christianity), or he is not triune (Judaism, Islam). Logically speaking, God cannot be both a Trinity and also not a Trinity at the same time. In addition, Jesus cannot be both God in flesh (second person of the Trinity) and also not God in flesh. Therefore, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam do not believe in nor worship the same God. **

Lastly, John 14:6 (KJV) states, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” In this scripture, Jesus uses a definitive article (“the”) in describing the path and direction to God; the reliability of His promises; and the eternal life offered by God. So, there is only one way to God and it is through Jesus Christ.

So, be aware and on guard that you don’t fall away from the faith. It is subtle, trendy, and deceiving, and it leads to destruction.

Amen!

Ref:

*See: See: http://www.lwf.org/site/PageServer?pagename=aboutus

**See: https://carm.org/do-christians-muslims-jews-worship-same-god

“Self-Deception”

What is the biggest lie you have ever told?

Well, if you asked God to forgive you for telling that gargantuan (enormous) lie; God has forgiven you and He won’t keep bringing it up. And there is no need for you to keep bringing it up to yourself either. That is certainly the “Good News”. Praise God! One more time – Praise God!

The truth can be so daunting at times, that many people don’t bring their lies to God and ask for forgiveness. But, instead they make up a false story and begin to believe it themselves. They become self-deceived. When confronted with the truth they go into a fight or flight self-preservation mode. Both of those modes are an attempt to fool others and themselves.

Fighting occurs with arguments, denials, rationalization and finally prideful claims of self-righteousness. Flight occurs with avoidance, rejection, attempts to discredit others, and projection and redirection of lies on others. This certainly takes a lot of time, thought, and energy to accomplish.

Why is self-deception so prevalent? The answer is because we have the need for others to think well of us. 1 John 1:8 tells us, “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.” God’s Word also says in Galatians 6:7 (NIV), “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” In everyday language Galatians 6:7 says, “Don’t fool yourself (be self-deceived), you can’t outsmart God”. It goes on to say using an agricultural metaphor, “A man gathers a crop from what he plants; or what you put in that is what you will get out”. You don’t plant corn and harvest potatoes; so, if you plant lies and believe them yourself, will get a harvest of self-deception.

Theme: “Self-Deception”

Scripture Readings:

1 John 1:8: If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.

Reflection:

There is an old wise saying, “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time” — (saying from Abraham Lincoln). And rest assured you can’t fool God any of the time. God in the Hebrew language is “El Roi — The God that Sees Me (and you)”, not some of the time, but all of the time.

So, rather than believe your own lies to the point of delusion (being self-deceived), which can have devastating results such as:

• Becoming a pathological liar by believing the lies you tell
• Refusing to admit the reality of an unpleasant fact
• Projecting in which you admit the unpleasant fact exists, but blame someone else for it

Remember what you said as a little child, “Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire” which means there are severe consequences to lying. In some cases the warming of your behind, with a spanking.

Lastly, scripture in Revelations 12:11 tell us that we have overcome sin, by the sacrifice of Jesus and the power of our testimony. With that said, let your testimony (statement of truth) be genuine and know you will overcome the need to lie, and will receive deliverance by God, as He forgives you.

So, don’t let your lies take on a life of their own. Don’t be self-deceived!

Amen!