Tag: St. James Church

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Q and A

Is Water Baptism Relevant to Your Eternal Life?

I like to take groups of believers to Israel to see and experience the places where so many biblical events took place. A highlight is always water baptism in the Jordan River. Because Jesus was baptized in the Jordan—in honor of his example and as an expression of our own rejection of worldliness and our desire to live under his lordship—many of us have opted to share in this experience as well.

Before Jesus was baptized, John the Baptist came preaching that the Kingdom of Heaven was near. He said people should be baptized to show they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven. This act prepared people’s hearts to receive Jesus, who enabled us to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven—a kingdom where God rules supremely, where there is no sickness, disease, betrayal, sadness, or pain.

While living our earthly lives, we suffer in the midst of many negative influences. John the Baptist’s message opened the door for us to repent of our sinful living so that we can experience some of the Kingdom of Heaven even while still here on the Earth.

He preached,

Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near (see Matthew 3:2; 4:17).

This message is appealing because all of us experience suffering here on Earth, yet we long for order, peace, and prosperity. In other words, we desire more of Heaven here on Earth.  Most of us want to be good and to promote goodness in the midst of the evil, betrayal, greed, violence, and pain associated with living on Earth. And many of us assume that if our lives demonstrate more good than bad, Heaven will be available to us after death.

But John’s message was that we all have evil within us (which is why human attempts to establish order have often led to tyranny). So, John was saying that we all need to turn from the evil that is within us and seek God’s goodness in order for our own hearts to be transformed. Our human goodness is insufficient, even if we express our goodness by trying to please God. As every student of history knows, human attempts at goodness in the name of God often result in horrific tragedy.

That’s why John the Baptist introduced a new way. He emphasized that we all need to turn away from our own attempts to make life better, and submit to God’s way of transforming us into better people.

Until the time of John the Baptist, the Jewish people thought they could make their lives and the world a better place by obeying the Law, cooperating with the Priesthood, and worshipping in the Temple. But with John the Baptist, God was doing away with this system because it lacked the power to change hearts.

John communicated that we all need to let go of our old ideas about achieving goodness, admit our own weaknesses and failures, and allow God to transform us in a new way. In John’s and Jesus’ time, this meant that the people had to go outside the sacred city of Jerusalem to be immersed in the River Jordan.

John’s authority to minister was from God himself, not from the religious leaders. For this reason, most of the leaders opposed him, but the multitudes flocked to him. They knew what they had been doing was insufficient.

John 1:29-34 says,

The next day John [the Baptist] saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! . .  . Then John testified, ‘I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him. I didn’t know he was the one, but when God sent me to baptize with water, he told me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is the one who will baptize with the Holy Sprit.’ I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God.

After portraying the significance of this baptism, Jesus

began demonstrating that he was the Son of God through a series of miracles. He also challenged the religious leaders of his day about the authority of John the Baptist. Matthew 21:25-27 says,

Jesus said,

Did John’s authority to baptize come from heaven, or was it merely human?

They [the leading priests and elders] talked it over among themselves, ‘If we say it was from heaven, he will ask us why we didn’t believe John. But if we say it was merely human, we’ll be mobbed because the people believe John was a prophet.’ So they finally replied, ‘We don’t know.’

One reason the religious leaders of the day were upset was because the crowds were responding to the power of the transformed lifethat emerges when people repent, believe, and begin to hear the Spirit of God in their hearts.

Hebrews 8:10-13 says,

But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day, says the Lord:

I will put my laws in their minds, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the Lord.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already. And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.’

When God speaks of a ‘new’ covenant, it means he has made the first one obsolete. It is now out of date and will soon disappear.

The power of this is highlighted in Hebrews 9: 9 and 14 where the Bible says,

For the gifts and sacrifices that the priests offer are not able to cleanse the consciences of the people who bring them . . . Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God.

This explains why billions of believers from every nation on earth gather to worship. They are not constrained by duty, but are motivated by grateful hearts.

John’s baptism was radical. It opened the door for believers to be forgiven and transformed, which is why John said to those coming to be baptized,

Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. Don’t just say to each other, ‘We’re safe, for we are descendants of Abraham.’ That means nothing, for I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones. Even now the ax of God’s judgment is poised, ready to sever the roots of the trees. Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire (Luke 3: 8-9).

The trees that John was addressing were people’s confidence in their genealogies and their religious rituals. Every culture and generation has ideologies and practices that promise a better life, but most of them betray those who believe in them and fail to produce. Communism, alcohol, and greed promise a better life, but they always betray and disappoint.

But Jesus doesn’t ever disappoint. When we make a public confession of sin and repent, with a determination to

  • participate in Christ’s body in our community,
  • grow in the Word of God, and
  • develop a personal relationship with Christ through prayer,

our lives as we knew them never recover. We change.

By stepping into the waters of baptism, we announce to everyone that the solutions of this world are insufficient to produce the goodness we desire.We admit that we fall short and need God to do something inside our lives to change us. We joyfully confess our sins and declare that we need God’s Spirit within to achieve genuine goodness.

Water baptism is a physical demonstration of this turning point in our lives.

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Q and A

Will Only Those “In Christ” Be Resurrected?

No. Both those “in Christ” and those who have died without being reconciled to God will be physically resurrected. Death is not the end for either the believer or the unbeliever. However, the Bible does encourage/warn all of us toward godliness by revealing some important differences in the resurrection of those who are in Christ and those who are not.

The first thing we all need to understand is that what we do in this life determines the nature of our resurrection. Jesus said in John 5: 28-29,

Indeed, the time is coming when all the dead in their graves will hear the voice of God’s Son, and they will rise again. Those who have done good will rise to experience eternal life, and those who have continued in evil will rise to experience judgment.

Those in Christ as well as unbelievers will rise from the dead, but they will do so during different events. The Bible teaches that the dead in Christ will rise from the dead when Christ returns.

Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-16,

We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord himself will come down from Heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves.Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever.

Then John writes in Revelation 20:5–6,

This is the first resurrection. (The rest of the dead did not come back to life until the thousand years had ended.) Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. For them the second death holds no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him a thousand years.

So the first resurrection will involve Christians rising from the dead at the return of Christ, and the unbelieving dead will not be resurrected until the end of the thousand years (often called the millennium, see Revelation 20 and 21).

We all die when we leave our bodies and step into eternity, which all of us will experience if we die before the second coming of the Lord. Believers, though, will never experience a second death. Unbelievers, however, will experience a second death. Revelation chapters 20 and 21 both vividly describe it.

Revelation 20:11 says,

And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from his presence, but they found no place to hide. I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books. The sea gave up its dead, and death and the grave gave up their dead. And all were judged according to their deeds. Then death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This lake of fire is the second death. And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire.

Revelation 21:8 also describes the second death,

But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars – their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.

Since everyone who rejects Christ’s redemptive work on the cross (which is available to all of us) continues to live in disobedience to God, which is sin, they will be thrown into the lake of fire. Believers, however, have received God’s forgiveness and are victorious, which means we have overcome the grip of sin. So when Revelation 21 describes the fate of believers, it says in Revelation 21:3-6,

I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying ‘Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.’

And the one sitting on the throne said, ‘Look, I am making everything new!’ And then he said to me, ‘Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.’ And he also said, ‘It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega – the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.

We human beings never cease to exist. Instead, we all will continue exist past our initial death, so we should understand that the quality of our everlasting life will be decided according to our actions that reflect our relationship with Christ or our actions that reflect no relationship with him. In Daniel 12:2-3 the Bible says,

Many of those who bodies lie dead and buried will rise up, some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting disgrace. Those who are wise will shine as bright as the sky, and those who lead many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever.

Eternity continues the trajectory of our lives here on the Earth.If we love God, his people, and his purpose, we continue on that path in eternity. But those who resist God, reject God, and refuse to seek him, will have a very different experience in eternity—they will be separated from God and everything good.

So, in answer to your question, everyone will be resurrected. Those who have been reconciled to God through belief in Christ’s suffering, death, burial, and resurrection will be resurrected to eternal life; while those who do not believe in Christ will be resurrected and enter into eternal damnation.

Jesus came to save all of us. His will is that we all believe that truth, repent of our sins, give our lives to Christ, and live forever with him. However, he will respect our choice not to spend eternity with him should that be our decision.

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Responsible Citizens

Finding Truth

Everyone lies.

I’ve watched many seemingly honorable couples slip into deception, false accusations, and exaggerations while going through divorce.

In addition, my wife and I watch the news every evening when we are home. Often, after hearing or seeing firsthand the items being reported on, we observe news reporters distorting, exaggerating, and sometimes totally misrepresenting what actually happened.

We just experienced the confirmation hearing for Judge Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court. At the end of the process, three women came forward accusing him of sexual misconduct when he was in high school and college. Though the hearings were already partisan, it was interesting that the belief or disbelief of the accusers or the accused were partisan as well, sometimes based on political persuasion of gender rather than facts. I used to think that was partisanism and sexism. I also thought these persuasions were unacceptable in a progressive society, especially when it comes to establishing truth.

I guess not.

Though every civilized society has struggled to construct systems for determining truth or lies, guilt or innocence, America has heralded her ability to utilize due process under the law to protect the innocent and the guilty from mobs. However, our nation seems to be spiraling into an abyss of giving equal credibility to people’s construed “truths” that fit their belief systems regardless of the verifiable facts. Actually, we’re so confused, some would rather support opinions that fit their persuasions, rather than provable, factual evidence.

That’s one reason why we all need to know that everyone lies.

Romans 3: 10-18 points out why all human beings need Christ. It says,

“No one is righteous—
not even one.
11 No one is truly wise;
no one is seeking God.
12 All have turned away;
all have become useless.
No one does good,
not a single one.”
13 “Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave.
Their tongues are filled with lies.”
“Snake venom drips from their lips.”
14     “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”
15 “They rush to commit murder.
16     Destruction and misery always follow them.
17 They don’t know where to find peace.”
18     “They have no fear of God at all.”

This accurately reflects the human condition and it matches what I have observed in life. When I went through a scandal in 2006, I publicly lied. Interestingly, everyone else involved did too. Throughout that process, those disciplining me also publicly lied, the press lied, and my accuser lied. We all lied. We were all guilty of that seemingly innocuous offense that created devastation.

Thus, the complex system we’ve designed in our legal system to determine truth and dispense justice ought to be promoted and preserved for the good of all of us. It’s probably one the best we human beings have come up with thus far—though it still must be improved.

As a society, we rejected the practice that mob rule and lynching was fair, reasonable, or right, and demanded that rational and reasonable due process be used to determine truth and dispense justice. But that advance has recently been rejected by our advocacy press corps, shared ignorance on social media, and the politicization of truth.

Now we can easily incite mobs, motivate the angry to bully and threaten, and celebrate the extermination of others. If a popular narrative weighs heavier than the facts and allows us to destroy the individual civil liberties of others for our own gain, we have negated the presuppositions in western civilization that used to protect us all.

In the last century, many of our best political leaders strove to reject racism, sexism, and bigotry. But now the tide is turning and an increasing number of our leaders are embracing these ideas. We regularly hear what white men can or cannot do, and what women ought to do, believe, and promote. An increasing number of our political leaders defend violence, intimidation, and bullying. And many of our institutions of higher learning create ideologues who are incapable of working with and serving those with whom they disagree, but are instead fashioning them into experts who conquer, intimidate, and silence those they don’t like. Are we going to allow this? I hope not.

We human beings are sinful, no doubt. And just about every human being is on a personal search for significance, which often involves conquering or destroying our enemies. But Christ can help all of us rise above that darkness and see a vision of life and light that is unnatural to our dark human condition, and can make all of our lives better. I am the living proof of that.

I’m not a racist, so I’m not going to vote or treat people better or worse according to the color of their skin. Nor am I a sexist, so I’m not going to vote or respond to others based on their gender or sexual preferences. And I’ve rejected bigotry, so I think there is a role for mutual respect, manners, and civility toward others, even those with whom I disagree. I used to find comfort knowing that the majority of our national leaders thought this way too, but I no longer have that assurance.

It now falls to me to be much more responsible in thinking past the spin, sexism, racism, and bigotry that is being promoted by many, and maintain a determination to believe that facts matter, people are human—and therefore fallible, and that we as a society should continue to struggle to help others be better off than they were in the past.We all need to protect due process, the rule of law, and the protection of the weak and vulnerable. I still believe that truth exists, and that since everyone lies, our systems to differentiate between fact and fiction need to be defended and protected so that our rapid-fire communications systems don’t lynch too many. Whether guilty or innocent, everyone deserves due process. We have a constitutional republic instead of a democracy for a reason. It’s to protect all of us from the mob.

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Authentic New Testament Solutions

A Brief Exhortation on Faith

We are created in the image and likeness of God. As a result, we are capable of being rational and relational, of communicating with words—not just actions, and of bringing order to chaos. However, because of our inherent power as human beings created in his likeness, we Christians sometimes confuse our ability to influence our futures using our thoughts, words, and actions with faith. In other words, some confuse faith with the power of positive thinking and emphasize our human power to change things. Often Christians equate these ideas, which have some validity, with faith. But faith is different. Biblical faith is significantly more.

Faith is much more powerful than our human abilities. But the confusion between faith and our God given human power to influence the future has caused some Christians to believe that their own imaginations are the visions God has for them. Then when those imaginations don’t materialize, they are disillusioned.

Faith is believing in and acting on God’s plan before it materializes and recognizing God’s involvement throughout history and in our lives. It’s the ability to believe God—to trust his character and to take his Word as true and reliable. It’s being persuaded that God is who the Bible says he is. This is our response to the work of the Holy Spirit who enables us to hear God’s Word. It requires thoughtful consideration—it is neither blind nor naive. This persuasion results in an unshakable confidence—a knowing—that God’s Word is true. Faith is ultimately God’s revelation inside us that enables us to manifest his kingdom and his will here on the Earth

  1. Faith is a persuasion that God is both truthful and trustworthy.

Faith comes from the Greek word pistis (pis-tis) which means firm persuasion; strong and welcome belief; conviction of the truth of anything.

In 2 Timothy 1:12, Paul said,

. . . I am not ashamed of it [suffering in prison], for I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return.

When Paul says, I trust, and I am sure that he is able, he is expressing faith. In other words, he is fully persuaded. He is sure. He’s past hoping.

  1. Faith is substance and reality.

Faith is not imagination, nor is it just wishing things we want into being.

Proverbs 12:11 says,

Ahard worker has plenty of food,
    but a person who chases fantasies has no sense.

And Proverbs 28:19 says,

A hard worker has plenty of food,
    but a person who chases fantasies ends up in poverty.

Both of these proverbs emphasize the importance of competent work in contrast to chasing fantasies. Faith is not a fantasy—it gives us direction and confidence in our work. Faith is hearing or seeing what God is doing and believing it. It is the conviction of facts by the inner working of the Holy Spirit, who persuadesus to believe what actually exists. If God gives us faith for something, we can be sure that in the mind of God, it really exists, and as we work in cooperation with God, it happens.

Hebrews 11:1 says,

Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.

When we have authentic faith, things happen—things that are substantive and real.

  1. Faith is a gift from God.

We cannot work ourselves up into believing. It is not the result of mental gymnastics. The Holy spirit must place the ability to believe God within our hearts as we read the Word and seek God.

Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8,

God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 

  1. Faith is the response to hearing.

God communicates his thoughts through his Word. When he enables us to hear what he is saying to us by the Spirit, this creates within us the response of believing, of being persuaded that what he is saying is indeed true and directed to us.

Paul wrote in Romans 10:17,

So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.

So what should we do? Expose ourselves to God’s Word, learn to hear God’s voice, grow in our persuasion that God’s Word is true, and have the confidence in God to let our faith be tested by the realities of life. In other words, faithis living our lives with the confidence that God’s Word is true.

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Answers from the Pastor's Pen

Is Healing for Everyone?

A lady came into my office who was suffering from chronic sickness. She asked me if God’s healing is for everyone. I assured her it is. We had a good discussion about spiritual warfare, the differences between Heaven (where God’s perfect will is fully demonstrated) and Earth (where various influences impact our lives). In that discussion, though, I told her that understanding that God is for her is fundamental to our faith. After she left, I thought a glimpse into our discussion might be meaningful to you in the form of a blog. So here is what I told her.

  1. Read the Will

If we want to know what is in a person’s will, we read their will. If we want to know God’s will on any subject, we read his will. The Bible contains God’s will in which he bequeaths to us all of his blessings of redemption.

But unless we ensure that a will is carried out, other influences might prevent it’s fulfillment. I see that happen to people every day. God has provided great benefits for them, but they either don’t know about them, or don’t know how to obtain them, and are therefore missing out on the benefits that God intended for them.

So the first thing we all need to do is read the Bible, God’s will, and grow in an understanding of God’s will.

I told the woman in my office that I have read the Bible, for myself, and regularly attended church all of my adult life. Then I described for her our one-hour, discussion format Bible study that meets every Wednesday night. I emphasized that I always learn from these studies, and so do the others who attend. I told her that this one-hour investment in learning the Bible each week would give her rich dividends. She agreed to start attending.

  1. Determine what God’s will is for YOU!

Once we know God’s will as revealed in the Bible, we have to determine what portions of it apply to us. The Bible describes several instances where Jesus healed everyone present, but we must determine if these accounts revealed his will for those particular situations, or if they are a revelation of God’s will for us.

Hebrews 10:7, Jesus is quoted as saying, ‘Look, I have come to do your will, O God— as is written about me in the Scriptures.’

And John 6:38 quotes Jesus saying, “For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will.”

Jesus demonstrated that God’s will for us is clear.

Matthew 12:15 says, . . . many people followed him. He healed all the sick among them,

Matthew 14:36 says, They begged him to let the sick touch at least the fringe of his robe, and all who touched him were healed.

Luke 6:19 says, Everyone tried to touch him, because healing power went out from him, and he healed everyone.

And, Hebrews 13:8 says that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Mark 1 gives us an account of a leper coming to Jesus for healing wondering if it was his will to heal him. Mark 1:40-42 says,

A man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus, begging to be healed. “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean,” he said. Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” Instantly the leprosy disappeared, and the man was healed.

Here we see God’s will at work. And this healing didn’t stop happening when Jesus ascended to the Father. The Book of Acts gives us numerous examples of people being healed in the church. And James states in James 5:14-15,

Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well . . .”

God’s will is healing. Earth’s reality is sickness and disease.

In Heaven, everyone is well. And since we have become God’s people, no longer of this Earth, our prayer is,

Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven.

Jesus never made people sick or diseased. Instead, he healed them. Now, as a reflection of God’s character and will, the church also heals people. We as a church hate what sickness and disease do to people, and we delight is seeing people well.

Just as God is against people having to pay the price for their own sins, so God is against disease and sickness being part of our lives. When it comes to the benefits of God’s will, they are available to us in a variety of ways. God wants us well, and he uses a variety of methods and channels to help us get well.

He is still “willing” to heal as he was with the man with leprosy and the multitudes who followed him. 

  1. Pursue what God has for you, and resist everything else.

Matthew 8:16-17 says, That evening many demon-possessed people were brought to Jesus. He cast out the evil spirits with a simple command, and he healed all the sick. This fulfilled the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah, who said,

“He took our sicknesses
and removed our diseases.”

That was God’s will then, and it continues to be his will today.

God is against sickness and disease, and we are too. God is for all of us being as healthy and strong as possible, and we are too. As a result, Christians have done more to fight disease than any other single group in the world. We resist sickness, disease, emotional suffering as well as spiritual darkness everywhere we have influence. We build hospitals and provide health care all over the world with an emphasis on resisting every kind of ailment. We encourage research and promote innovative techniques that prevent disease, heal, and improve nutrition. And, of course, we pray for the sick, believing God’s will is that they be healed. Certainly we know from our Christian experience that not all are healed this side of heaven today. Nonetheless, we know it is God’s will that all would be healed, so we keep praying and doing all we can to encourage healing as we represent him on the earth.

 

 

This and other blogs by Pastor Ted Haggard are available at http://www.tedhaggardblog.com as a ministry of St. James Church. If you would like to strengthen the ministry of St. James Church and Pastor Ted Haggard by giving, please use the “give” tab at http://www.saintjameschurch.com.

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Q and A

Why Do People Say Our Ancestors Are From Outer Space?

Why Do People Say Our Ancestors Are From Outer Space

Every January at St. James Church we invite our congregation to submit questions that I then answer impromptu. This is always fun and interesting because it reveals what congregation members are interested in and forces me to reveal some of my personal beliefs and subjective opinions. Sometimes this pleases people. Other times it doesn’t.

The questions are randomly selected during the month of January to be answered publicly. You can find the videos of those services at www.saintjameschurch.com. The questions I didn’t get to in the services will be addressed here and in future blogs at www.tedhaggardblog.com. Today’s question:

Why do people say that our ancestors are from outer space?

It’s obvious, isn’t it? We’ve all met people who make us wonder if aliens are among us now!

Seriously, though, some secularists believe that because we humans are so different than other living beings here on the earth, there had to be some outside influence on human development in addition to evolution. Biblical believers, however, explain those distinctions with the creation account of Adam and Eve and the 1,500 pages of ancient accounts of God dealing with the human race.

There are biblical accounts in which the authors describe spiritual encounters which sound to some like encounters with aliens and their spacecraft. My favorite one is found in the first chapter of Ezekiel, where Ezekiel describes an encounter with God that sounds a lot like a space-ship as it would be described through the mind of someone living at that time. And what about the Genesis 6 account of the giant Nephilites, offspring of the “sons of God” and the “daughters of men,” who became the heroes and famous warriors of ancient times, or the strange creatures found in the book of Revelation? When I was an undergraduate student at Oral Roberts University in the 1970s, a book devoted to this subject,The Chariots of the Gods? by Erich von Daniken, generated a lot of discussion.

Aliens? Demons? Angels? God himself? Visions? Spaceships? What is the Bible talking about?

Well, here is what I can tell you: the Bible is the book God has given us that includes all the material we need to understand, to some degree, the reality of his existence, the fact that he created the heavens and the earth, and that he created us in his own image.

We are also the species that is able to contemplate a spiritual world. We are spirits who live in bodies, and when we die, we will continue to exist, not within these decaying bodies, but in eternity – a different dimension. We also know that God is Spirit, and that there are also good spirits and bad spirits.

We deduce from Scripture that before human history, one-third of the angels rebelled against God and became evil spirits, or demons. Two-thirds of the angels did not rebel against God and we know them as good servants of God, who minister to us along with God’s Holy Spirit. Evil spirits continue to be rebellious, and they use their influence to distract us from the one true God, or to incite human beings to directly rebel against God. The Bible implies that the purpose of earth is for us to have a place where we can decide if we want to submit to God and believe him, or to rebel against God and believe alternative ideas.God wants us to be free to make that choice, so he allows earth to consist of conflicting influences such as the Devil, angels, demons, our own independent will, various ideas and ideologies, natural law, and of course, God’s Spirit in order to give us opportunities to make choices.

Heaven is a place where God’s perfect will is fully expressed, which is outside of our earthly realm as we know it. Hell is also a place, in the depths of the earth, which is where those who have rejected God or denied his existence go after departing from their bodies. And it is the place where the Devil and his demons will spend eternity. When the Devil led his rebellion against God, he was thrown to the earth. And one day he’ll be thrown into Hell. The whole universe did not fall, the Devil and his demons did. Hell was made for them.

The Bible reveals what we need to know in order to be reconciled to God and to have an eternal relationship with him. It does not cover details of life on earth prior to Adam and Eve, nor does it cover details of the potential of life on other planets.Why? Maybe because it’s none of our business and it might become another distraction. So your question: why do people say that our ancestors are from outer space? Perhaps it is because there might have been communication or influences from outer space—or another realm—that we are not sure of, so people make guesses.

Are they right? We don’t know for sure today, but we might know tomorrow . . . or maybe tonight.

Good question.

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Q and A

What is going to happen to our country in the next four years?

What is going to happen to our country in the next four years

What is going to happen to our country in the next four years?

Good question, especially when we have a new president or experience an unusual event. All of us want predictability and order, but we live in a world plagued by chaos and disorder. Just hearing about the changes going on in the world upsets many, but not much bothers me because I live my life according to a few core principles. So, no matter what is going on around me, I maintain a sense of order that makes it possible for me to stay steady. I’ll explain:

  1. I read my Bible and pray every day.The Bible is the primary way I learn about God, and through prayer my relationship with him comes alive. This dynamic became vivid for me in my teen years as I developed a concern for the suffering church. Knowing how they suffer keeps me from thinking more highly of myself than I ought. I am always conscious of the fact that there are believers in more difficult situations than I have ever faced, and that awareness helps me stay steady and be grateful. Those who have suffered have taught me that time in God’s Word and a dependence upon worship and prayer is more than devotion, it’s my lifeline.
  2. I am committed to the local church.I believe God established the church, so it’s his, not ours. I’ve decided to love the church because of what the church is, not because of what other people do or say. I show up, I give, I serve, and I love God’s people. Regardless of where I live or the conditions of my personal life, I am a local church guy. It is my primary identity.
  3. I prioritize relationships.My relationship with God is primary in my life, followed by my relationship with my wife, then my kids, then relatives and friends, and finally strangers. Thus, I have a responsibility to take care of myself — my mental and emotional health, my physical body, and my spiritual life, so I can care for others. So many forget to care for themselves and end up a mess, and that inevitably creates a mess for others. I am responsible for making myself trustworthy and strong. And I know that my wife and I must maintain our relationship in order to experience so much of the goodness life has to offer. So today Gayle and I take care of ourselves, then we cherish our family and friends, many of whom serve with us in the church. With these relationships in order, together we all have the strength to care for the stranger, which helps make the world a better place.
  4. I Work Hard.Paul instructed the church at Ephesus to work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.It’s an honorable characteristic to work hard, with competence and a good attitude. Being dependable and trustworthy personally and in our work are important traits regardless of any political or economic situation. All of us should have enough self-respect and dignity to take care of ourselves, keep our possessions well maintained, pay our bills, and be generous with others.
  5. I trust God.I do all I can do, then, I trust God. Five hundred years before Christ, Jerusalem fell and a hostile king took some slaves. Daniel was among the young men taken. The first chapter of Daniel explains some of the training Daniel went through that prepared him to make the best of a horrific situation. He had learned manners and had developed both emotional and physical strength. He maintained his health, did what he could to look his best, studied so he was as well versed as possible in every branch of learning, and developed good judgment. He learned the decorum of royal behavior and understood that these preparations were the only way to be able to capitalize on future opportunities. He did all he could, then he trusted God. As a result, we all know about the successes of Daniel’s life and the miracles he experienced.

That is what each of us can do. We have no guarantees for the future, but we can all prepare and trust so we can capitalize on opportunities that may come our way. We don’t need to know the details of the future, but we can prepare and trust in order to be our best.

I suggest that you consider integrating these core principles into your life, or at least develop your own. Then no matter what happens in the next four years, you can experience a strong foundation, stay steady, and grow as opportunities present themselves. In doing so, you’ll be able to maintain a sense of personal order and peace regardless of what happens in the world around you.

Excellent question. Thank you!

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Every January at St. James Church we invite our congregation to submit questions that I then answer impromptu. This is always fun and interesting because it reveals what congregation members are interested in and forces me to reveal some of my personal beliefs and subjective opinions.

The questions are randomly selected during the month of January to be answered publicly. You can find the videos of those services at www.saintjameschurch.com. The questions I didn’t get to in the services will be addressed here and in future blogs at www.tedhaggardblog.com.

Categories
Q and A

Pastors and Friendships

Pastors and Friendships

Pastors and Friendships

Every January at St. James Church we invite our congregation to submit questions that I then answer impromptu. This is always fun and interesting because it reveals what congregation members are interested in and forces me to reveal some of my personal beliefs and subjective opinions. Sometimes this pleases people. Other times it doesn’t.

The questions are randomly selected during the month of January to be answered publicly. You can find the videos of those services at www.saintjameschurch.com. The questions I didn’t get to in the services will be addressed here and in future blogs at www.tedhaggardblog.com. Today’s question:

What’s the difference between a pastor and friend and is it really possible to be both?

The answer to this question is different for every pastor and congregation member.

Proverbs18:24 says, There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. This type of friend is sometimes more faithful than our own siblings. This type of friend is connected through shared life and purpose. This is why I believe we will find our greatest friendships among those with whom we share life experiences; and often these people are within our own churches. They can become our most faithful friends.

This view, though, is not typical, especially for churches that hire pastors and have a pattern of switching pastors every few years. The congregation is well aware that the pastor is there for only a designated period of time and that he can be fired for subjective reasons. They also know the pastor might move on to another calling at any time, which can limit the formation of genuine friendships. This system often promotes cordial relationships that lack personal commitment.

Gayle and I are committed to serving our city for the long haul. We served 22 years at New Life Church and now 8 years at St. James Church. Both churches are in the same city. As a result, everywhere we go, we see people we have known for decades. We’ve enjoyed sharing seasons of life, watching their children grow, and now celebrating as their grandchildren come along. I often say, the only way to have a 10-year relationship with someone is to know them for 10 years. There are no shortcuts. Many of the members of St. James Church are long-term friends; and probably half of those who make office appointments with me are people I have known for years who live in the community but don’t attend St. James Church.

The Pastoral Role is Fraught with Unspoken Expectations

Nonetheless, I do understand the pastoral role is fraught with unspoken expectations by others about what a pastor should be like. Several years ago one of my staff pastors at New Life went on vacation with another couple in the church he and his wife considered close friends. After the vacation, the other couple left the church and stopped communicating with that pastor and his family. I don’t know what happened, but my guess is that the other couple had an ideal image in their minds as to how a pastor should act, and when they saw him water skiing or watched a television program with him, their expectations were unmet, and they chose to move on.

This is why many pastors do not socialize with people in their churches and choose to be more private in their personal lives. It’s why Gayle and I have learned not to stay for wedding rehearsal dinners or wedding receptions. Typically, the family hosting the event invites us to stay because we know one another, but they don’t realize the awkward situations that can quickly develop with their other friends and family members involved with the wedding, who have a distinct expectation of the pastor, or a distant or hostile relationship with God or the church as an institution.

We’ve also chosen to respect the choices people make about themselves and their relationships with us. Sometimes people involve their pastor in private and difficult events in their families. Afterwards, they are embarrassed and want a new beginning, or perhaps the sight of the pastor reminds them of the difficult stage in their lives. So, though the pastor feels connected and committed to the relationship, those individuals don’t want to be around that pastor any longer. We respect that they have that freedom.

Gayle and I are in our sixties now, so we’ve settled on this issue. There have been many times when we thought others were good friends who would last a lifetime, only to have them disappear without explanation. Other times we thought people were moderately involved, yet now, 30 years down the road, their faithful friendships are profound and notable. It takes time to identify those who are true and trustworthy. Yet what we have found is that relationships that share a common purpose happen naturally and are the easiest to maintain. Even so, we enjoy people and are willing to partner with them for the cause of Christ to whatever degree they are willing.

Paul dealt with this subject in 2 Corinthians 6:11-13. I believe he is being candid when he writes:

Oh, dear Corinthian friends! We have spoken honestly with you, and our hearts are open to you. There is no lack of love on our part, but you have withheld your love from us . . . Open your heart to us.

Most pastors I know feel this way. I think it would benefit the body of Christ for all believers to take the risk and let friendships flourish.

Categories
Authentic New Testament Solutions

Why is Good Friday “Good”?

Why is Good Friday Good?

I’m writing this blog on Good Friday, the day we remember Christ’s earth-shattering words, “my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me” as he identified with humanity’s separation from God. He experienced tremendous sorrow so that we could be reconciled to God.

After over forty years of pastoral service, I taught my first series on Hell and eternal judgment a few months ago. It was the most counter-cultural set of sermons I have ever taught, but interestingly the crowds grew, the church strengthened, and an appreciation for grace, mercy, the cross, and Heaven intensified dramatically. As we wrestled through the Scriptures, our joy in worship increased, prayer meeting attendance improved, and our youth department grew significantly. I was mystified. Then I saw it: darkness had to be contrasted with light, and thus it follows that there had to be a death on the cross for resurrection to take on real meaning.

The value of Adam and Eve walking with God in the Garden of Eden is realized when the snake deceives them into disobeying God and they suffer the consequences. Abel’s love for God, the blessing on his life and the favor he enjoyed is seen in perspective when Cain kills him because, after all, doesn’t the rejected one often want to hurt the accepted one? Elijah performing the miraculous feat of killing 300 prophets of Baal becomes more vivid when we see him running from Jezebel in such fear that he wants to die. And King David’s majesty is measured against his having sex with the wife of one of his faithful officers, and then having that officer killed so David could escape the exposure of his sin.

  • It is the constant encroachment of chaos that makes us value order.
  • It is the darkness that makes us value light.
  • It is Hell that makes Heaven increasingly attractive.

Good Friday is Jesus experiencing you and me. On Good Friday, Jesus fully identified with us. He experienced our darkness, our separation from God, and our endless toil to shield ourselves from the vulnerability the future holds for us. Aging, accidents, disease, and conflict are in our futures. All of us know what it’s like to be fearful, and angry, and resentful, and bitter. We know what pain means. Not only do we experience these feelings in our own lives, we produce them in others. Even though our parents and our culture told us that we were good and everything would be ok, the suffering of Good Friday reminds us that we have a propensity toward corruption, and that we too often are capable of tormenting and corrupting others.

Good Friday is all about God’s sacrifice for us so that we are not swallowed by darkness. Jesus went into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil, and the resolve he displayed during those 40 days proved his goodness to us. He experienced every temptation that we have experienced, with complete victory. That gives value to the holiness he builds in us. He paid for our power to be clean.

Good Friday proves that regardless of where we are in life, there is hope and a future.

Gethsemane communicated Jesus’ willingness to do it alone, without support, love, understanding, or kindness. At Gethsemane he was not strengthened by his family, friends, or a supporting group. He did it alone, and that gave value to the reality that we who were not a people have become a people, a family, an assembly, a group. As a result of his aloneness, we now belong to each other.

One of our Elders, Col. Sam Barringer, USAF, was walking our congregation through Hebrews 11, the chapter that lists the heroes of our faith. He noted that the Bible makes an obvious and intentional effort to communicate the failings and struggles of its heroes. Then he emphasized that it was those failures that actually qualified those listed to become the heroes of our faith the Bible describes.

Why in the world do we call the Friday that reminds us of sacrifice, murder, depravity, betrayal, and the deception of humanity toward God’s Son “Good Friday?” Maybe it’s because the badness of Friday is required for us to realize the goodness of Sunday morning. I think so. It does take understanding the depth of human depravity to fully grasp the value and significance of Christ’s resurrection and, consequently, our redemption. Good Friday shows us how bad we human beings are without Christ’s righteousness infused into our lives and graciously dominating us. Good Friday is good because Christ demonstrated perfect love for us in his suffering, and in suffering he purchased every possible blessing for us.

We are resurrection people.

  • Is there a snake in our garden like the one in Adam and Eve’s garden?
  • Will there always be “Cains” in our lives who seem to have it rough, who are rejected and never quite “in,” who quietly allow resentment to grow toward the “Abels” of the world who seem to live easier lives? Do we know “Cains” who want to hurt the “Abels?” Could we be Cain or Abel, depending on the situation?
  • Will we, like Elijah, want to run and hide, or maybe even be tempted to kill ourselves in the midst of depression, after a wonderful demonstration of God’s might?
  • And might we be tempted to satisfy our most basic sinful desires immediately after perfect worship like David?

The answer to all of these questions is YES. That is why Good Friday is so good.

Jesus saved us on Good Friday, so we could resurrect with him on Sunday morning.

And Sunday is coming.

Categories
Authentic New Testament Solutions

False Expectations

False Expectations - Palm Sunday

False Expectations – Palm Sunday shook me up.

After leading Palm Sunday worship services in church for 40 years, it finally dawned on me that the celebration of Palm Sunday was based on the false expectations of the crowd in Jerusalem. They believed Jesus was the Messiah, but their expectations were that the Messiah, Jesus, would use his authority to vanquish the pagan Romans, establish himself as ruler, give the Jews supreme standing above other people groups, validate centuries of belief that the Jews were worshiping the One True God, and vindicate them for the suffering they had faced for centuries.

They were right about the fact that Jesus was the Messiah, but their mistaken expectations of him led to such deep disappointment that they wanted him dead by the following Friday evening.  Those who had loved him switched to hating him because he disappointed them.

My experience as a pastor is that the inevitable disappointment of unspoken and unfulfilled expectations is why most marriages dissolve, why people hurt and blame one another, why most people shift jobs and leave churches, and why revolutions happen. I’ve watched people become dismayed because it’s dawned on them that life, or something in their lives, will not turn out the way they’d hoped. When we don’t do what others want us to do, or they don’t do what we want them to do, our natural response is to become unhappy and do something about it. That’s often our transition from “Hosanna in the Highest” to “Crucify him!”

We all have hopes, expectations, and dreams that are not going to be realized, so we have to cope well with disappointment, or we might start looking for someone to crucify.

I think this is life.

Genesis 3:16-19 records,

Then he [God] said to the woman,

“I will sharpen the pain of your pregnancy,
    and in pain you will give birth.
And you will desire to control your husband,
    but he will rule over you.”

And to the man he said,

“Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree
    whose fruit I commanded you not to eat,
the ground is cursed because of you.
    All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it.
It will grow thorns and thistles for you,
    though you will eat of its grains.
By the sweat of your brow
    will you have food to eat
until you return to the ground
    from which you were made.
For you were made from dust,
    and to dust you will return.

All of my life I’ve watched believers try to keep this reality from happening, hoping that the cross undid its effect in their lives. But as a pastor, I’ve known that even though we are redeemed from the curse of the law, we will continue to confront some element of the curse while on Earth until we see Jesus face to face.

Don’t get me wrong. I know we all live with a huge deposit of heaven in our hearts and enjoy the blessings of his Kingdom. We have been translated out of the Kingdom of Darkness into the Kingdom of His Dear Son, and we have been liberated from the tyranny and bondage to sin, no longer with any obligation to it. We rejoice in his righteousness planted in our lives, and the freedom and liberty that follows.

As believers, we are, in fact, aliens on this Earth. But we are, still, on this earth. Even though we know there are miracles, we are most often fully subject to natural law. Even though we have our Bible and the Holy Spirit’s counsel, we sometimes make mistakes because of bad ideas. Even though we know the Devil was defeated at the cross and we are dominated by God’s Spirit, not our flesh, temptations still come our way from time to time. And even though we have committed our lives to the Lordship of Christ, we may find ourselves needing to repent for a thought, word, or deed that came from within us, to our own surprise.

I enjoy experiencing the gift of faith, so none of these present realities are discouraging to me. What is discouraging to me, however, is the way some believers cling to a particular faith position and try to impose it on others, while they are in such a dramatic process themselves. Having an expectation of others when our own lives need so much repair leads to grave disappointment and blame.

I pastor an excellent church that enjoys life-giving sanctification unlike any local church I’ve ever observed. We are holiness people. We enjoy remarkable power and life because we decided to read and teach the Scriptures from a first person singular point of view. In other words, we don’t read or teach the Bible projecting the ideas on the lives of others, but instead we read and teach the Bible with our own growth in mind continually working to clean our own houses before we presume to know how the other guy should clean his.

This approach removes the tendency of expectations of others which may lead to disappointment, and keeps all of us grateful to be growing in his grace.