Walking with God (2)

The concept of walking with God, a prominent theme in the Old Testament, is continued in the New. Believers are commanded to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord. They are not to walk according to the flesh or their former way of life, but rather, according to the Spirit, in newness of life, in love, in good works, and in truth. They are to walk by faith, as children of light, and in keeping with God’s commandments. Jesus Himself was the ultimate example of one who lived every moment in perfect communion and intimate fellowship with His Father. He sets the pattern for us to follow. As 1 John 2:6 reminds us, “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.”

 

Like believers in Bible times, all Christians are called to walk in obedience, truth, and godliness. Of course, everything in society fights that effort. Secular culture is only getting worse, and the church, in many cases, has grown weak and shallow. The temptation to compromise and sin is immense and relentless. But as in the days of Enoch and Noah, God is watching for those who will faithfully walk with Him. As 2 Chronicles 16:9 reminds us, “The eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.” The actions of godly men and women are not determined by peer pressure or popular opinion. Rather, they arise from deep personal character and conviction—the kind forged over years of walking with the Lord in fellowship, truth, and obedience.

 

That kind of walk characterized Enoch’s life. It started with forgiveness from sin. It was marked by steadfast faith in the Lord. And it subsequently resulted in fruits of righteousness. In the midst of a corrupt society headed for total destruction, Enoch’s walk with God was counter-cultural and heavenly in character, as his earthly end demonstrates.

 

 --- John F. MacArthur, Twelve Unlikely Heroes: How God Commissioned Unexpected People in the Bible and What He Wants to Do with You. 2014.

Walking with God (1)

The term walk expresses the idea of moment-by-moment fellowship with the Lord. And in the early chapters of Scripture, it is the primary way that someone is identified as having been forgiven from sin and reconciled to God. Because Noah walked with God, he escaped judgment (Genesis 6:9). Because Abraham walked with God, he received blessing (Genesis 17:1). Because Enoch walked with God, he avoided death.

 

That kind of fellowship is what God both desires and provides. It is that same kind of relationship that He still offers sinners today. As Jesus told the multitudes to whom He preached, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:28–29). Even now, the Lord is looking for those who will come to Him for forgiveness—based on His substitutionary sacrifice—and walk with Him in fellowship.

 

--- John F. MacArthur, Twelve Unlikely Heroes: How God Commissioned Unexpected People in the Bible and What He Wants to Do with You. 2014.

The Marks of a True Hero

The pages of Scripture are filled with stories of great heroes—men and women whom God used in unique and powerful ways to accomplish His purposes. Their exploits vary greatly, yet the common thread that runs through all of their testimonies is faith.

 

Even though the word hero does not occur in the New Testament, believers often refer to the biblical saints (such as those listed in Hebrews 11) as the “heroes of the faith.” They are regarded as heroes for two primary reasons: they believed in the Lord, not just for salvation but for every aspect of life; and they acted on that faith, choosing to honor Him even when it was difficult to do so. When their circumstances seemed impossible, they depended on God’s wisdom and strength rather than their own. And they kept their eyes on Him, choosing to trust in His promises rather than pursue the passing pleasures of sin.

 

Thus, they were known both for their faith and their faithfulness—and God was honored through them. From the world’s perspective, most of them were not especially noble, strong, or wise. They had quirks, flaws, and shortcomings. But through the power of God, they were used in mighty ways to accomplish His purposes and bring Him glory.

 

We have much to learn from the legacy left to us by the heroes of the faith. They are the great “cloud of witnesses” (Hebrews 12:1) that has gone before us. As we study their lives, their testimonies encourage us to respond to trials with steadfast faith and to fight against temptation with uncompromising faithfulness. Their circumstances were often far different from our own, and yet the God-centered principles and priorities that governed their lives are applicable to us as well.

 

--- John F. MacArthur, Twelve Unlikely Heroes: How God Commissioned Unexpected People in the Bible and What He Wants to Do with You. 2014.

Biblical Leadership Designations

From Oswald Sanders’ classic, Spiritual Leadership, I first learned that common Hebrew leadership designations like nagid (man at the top) and ro’osh (head) and Greek terms like arche (literally the one “above”) and hodegos (guide, leader of the way) are rarely used to describe leaders among God’s people. Instead, the most common terms of scriptural- and self-designation employed concerning godly leaders are these: servant (Hebrew: ebed; Greek: doulos, huperetes, oikonomos) and shepherd (Hebrew: ra’ah; Greek: poimein, poimaino). Further analysis of the usage of these terms suggests that a biblical conception of leadership revolves around three primary metaphors: steward, servant, shepherd.

The primary implication of stewardship is accountability. Stewards must account for how fittingly they represent their master’s regime and how faithfully they conduct their master’s business. Stewards do not pursue their personal agenda, assert personal authority, seek personal acclaim, and accumulate personal assets. Their honor derives from their master’s status and their success is defined by their master’s satisfaction.

  --- Enlow Jr., Ralph E. The Leader’S Palette: Seven Primary Colors, 2013.

Love Drives Genuine Transformation

Only love is capable of genuine transformation. Willpower is inadequate. Even spiritual effort is not up to the task. If we are to become great lovers, we must return again and again to the great love of the Great Lover. Thomas Merton reminds us that the root of Christian love is not the will to love but the faith to believe that one is deeply loved by God. Returning to that great love—a love that was there for us before we experienced any rejection and that will be there for us after all other rejections take place—is our true spiritual work.

 

Ignatius of Loyola suggests that sin is ultimately a refusal to believe that what God wants is my happiness and fulfillment. When I fail to believe this, I am tempted to sin—to take my life into my own hands, assuming that I am in the best position to determine what will lead to my happiness. As I become convinced that God wants nothing more than my fulfillment, surrender to his will is increasingly possible.

 

Properly understood, these three intended destinations of the journey—becoming a great lover, becoming whole and holy, and becoming my true self-in-Christ—demonstrate just how radical Christian spiritual transformation really is.

 

 - David G. Benner, Sacred Companions: The Gift of Spiritual Friendship Direction, 2009.

Becoming Our True Self-in-Christ

Pennington suggests that Christ’s temptations in the wilderness were temptations to live out of such a false center. First the tempter invited him to turn stones into bread. But Jesus said no to the invitation to establish himself on the basis of his doing. Then the tempter invited him to throw himself from the top of the temple into the crowds below, so they would immediately recognize him as the Messiah. Again Jesus rejected the temptation. He chose not to base his identity on the acclaim of others. Finally the tempter offered him all the kingdoms of the world. But once again Jesus rejected the offer, refusing to find his identity in possessions or power.

Jesus knew who he was before God and in God. He could therefore resist temptations to live his life out of a false center based on possessions, actions or the esteem of others.

Merton suggests that at the core of our false ways of being there is always a sinful refusal to surrender to God’s will.

My reluctance to find my identity and fulfillment in Christ leaves me vulnerable to living out of a false center. It leaves me no alternative but to create a self of my own making. This is where the problem begins. The self I am called from eternity to be has meaning only in relation to Christ. The unique self that I am called to be is never a self I simply dream up and decide I’d like to be. It is always and only the self that I actually am in Christ. This is my eternal self. This is the self I am intended to be. This is the only self that will allow me to be truly whole and holy.

- David G. Benner, Sacred Companions: The Gift of Spiritual Friendship Direction, 2009.

 

Becoming Whole and Holy

The purpose of salvation is to make whole that which is broken. The Christian spiritual journey settles for nothing less than such wholeness. But genuine wholeness cannot occur apart from holiness. In The Holiness of God, R. C. Sproul notes that the pattern of God’s transforming encounters with humans is always the same. God appears; humans respond with fear because of their sin; God forgives our sins and heals us (holiness and wholeness); God then sends us out to serve him. This means that holiness and wholeness are the interrelated goals of the Christian spiritual journey. Holiness is the goal of the spiritual journey because God is holy and commands that we be holy (Leviticus 11:44).

Holiness involves taking on the life and character of a holy God by means of a restored relationship to him. This relationship heals our most fundamental disease—our separation from our Source, our Redeemer, the Great Lover of our soul. This relationship is therefore simultaneously the source of our holiness and of our wholeness.

Human beings were designed for intimate relationship with God and cannot find fulfillment of their true and deepest self apart from that relationship. Holiness does not involve the annihilation of our identity with a simple transplant of God’s identity. Rather, it involves the transformation of our self, made possible by the work of God’s Spirit within us. Holiness is becoming like the God with whom we live in intimate relationship. It is acquiring his Spirit and allowing spirit to be transformed by Spirit. It is finding and living our life in Christ, and then discovering that Christ’s life and Spirit are our life and spirit. This is the journey of Christian spiritual transformation. This is the process of becoming whole and holy.

 - David G. Benner, Sacred Companions: The Gift of Spiritual Friendship Direction, 2009.