Dealing with Despair

By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. (Hebrews 11:24-26)

The record of the life of Moses in the Bible is a story that tells us about the successes and failures of the man Moses. Few have walked this earth and experienced such contrasting experiences of despair and joy.

As I have written in other articles, we are all created for a purpose, and we find that purpose for our lives by developing a relationship with God, listening to his voice, and following his plan for our lives. Moses was a prophet, but he was unique among all other prophets in his age, and in the ages to come before Jesus came to earth, in that he regularly talked directly with God:

The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend. (Exodus 33:11)

When a prophet of the LORD is among you, I reveal myself to him in visions, I speak to him in dreams. But this is not true of my servant Moses; he is faithful in all my house. With him I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the LORD. (Numbers 12:6-8)

Moses carried on conversations with God, apparently in his Hebrew dialect. The task God was giving to Moses was so fantastic, so significant, that God had to make sure there was no doubt in Moses’ mind that it was him who was speaking to him, and telling him what his purpose in life was.

Moses was a Hebrew born in Egypt during a time when all the Hebrew baby boys were commanded to be put to death. Moses’ mother hid him and he was found by the king of Egypt’s daughter. So he was raised by a princess.

When he became an adult, however, he saw how his people were mistreated as slaves, and apparently God put it in his heart to be the deliverer of his people. Unfortunately, he tried to do this in his own way, and ended up murdering an Egyptian who was beating one of the Hebrew slaves. Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, heard about it and tried to kill Moses, but Moses ran away into the desert to hide. He lived there for 40 years as a shepherd, got married, and raised a family.

Then one day, God appeared to him in a burning bush, and started talking to him. He told Moses to go back to Egypt and deliver his people from their bondage as slaves. He made it clear to Moses that he would be with him and that he would show his power to Pharaoh. Moses did everything he could to try and convince God that he had the wrong man, but God was not persuaded. This was God’s purpose and plan for Moses, and when your Creator talks to you face to face in your own language, there can be no doubt!

So Moses goes to Egypt along with his brother Aaron to confront the king and watch God make a fool of Pharaoh, and bring about a great deliverance for his people. He told his people the news, performed a couple of miracles and they cheered him on. Everything was going well. God spoke to Moses. Moses listened. Moses obeyed. Moses followed the plan perfectly. But then his world fell apart.

I am convinced that Moses’ first encounter with Pharaoh as recorded in Exodus chapter 5 was probably the lowest point of his life. He did everything God asked him to do, but it only infuriated Pharaoh, and in turn he made life even more difficult for the Hebrews, increasing their labor and hardship. The Hebrews wanted nothing to do with Moses after that (I am sure some wanted to kill him), and Pharaoh had basically laughed at Moses and mocked him and his God. Moses did everything right, but everything turned out wrong! The result was loneliness, anger, and despair.

Scripture does not tell us how long the interval was between Moses’ first and second encounter with Pharaoh. His subsequent meetings with Pharaoh were much more successful. It could have been days, weeks, months, or even longer before he dared to go back to Pharaoh a second time in obedience to God. We do see that the conversation between Moses and God continued during this time, as Moses expressed his anger and complained to God: Moses returned to the LORD and said, "O Lord, why have you brought trouble upon this people? Is this why you sent me? Ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has brought trouble upon this people, and you have not rescued your people at all." (Exodus 5:22-23)

Since Moses himself is the one who recorded these events, there is probably a lot he left out in his writings of this time period, since it was such a depressing time for him. I imagine his complaining and anger towards God were much more involved than what is recorded here! He would naturally be brief in his record of those dark days, and instead emphasize the victories that followed in his writings. After such humiliation and disgrace, I am sure there were many other conversations with God, and there are 39 verses written before the next encounter with Pharaoh happened, suggesting that this was the longest interval between Moses’ encounters with Pharaoh. It was undoubtedly one of the darkest periods of his life, if not the darkest. He was alone and rejected by his people, and even his wife (who was a Midianite, a descendant of Ishmael and not a Hebrew) had abandoned him on the way to Egypt, returning to her father with their children. But God had not abandoned him, and he kept talking to him. Moses listened. He didn’t have too many other choices.

Most of us know the rest of the story, and how God hardened Pharaoh’s heart and inflicted many plagues on him and his country, until they lost everything. The Hebrews plundered their wealth and left their life of slavery in Egypt to journey to the Promised Land. God did just what he said he would do, and Moses became one of the most famous people in all human history. Imagine how the course of human history would have changed if Moses had given up after that first encounter with Pharaoh, where Pharaoh mocked him and then punished his people in return by making their lives more miserable. It would have been easy for Moses to give up after his first defeat. After all, his family was back in Midian, his home of 40 years, and how were they supposed to get along without him? He could have come up with some very good reasons to quit and go back home. And who would have blamed him? Everyone would probably have been happy to see him leave at that point! They were undoubtedly saying things to him like: "Nice try Moses, but go back to the desert where you belong! You're only making things worse here!" But that wasn’t God’s plan, and Moses chose to keep listening to God and to keep doing what he told him to do, even in the face of complete opposition and humiliation.

There are some incredible lessons for us to learn from Moses’ life, and his conversations with God. When we listen to God and obey his plan for our life, there is no guarantee that things are always going to go well. In fact, we may experience some of the most difficult times in our life just after making a decision to obey God and to take a step in faith. We may find depressing times in our life where everyone has abandoned us. During those times, it is crucial to follow Moses’ example, and to not turn away from God in anger during those times. Being angry and expressing our anger to God is OK, but we need to keep talking to God and keep listening to him, so we can believe and trust that there is master plan that will all work out in the end. That’s what faith is. Faith is trusting in God not only when things are going well, but when life is darkest. It is easy to trust God when things are going well and we are seeing God work and do incredible things in our life. But faith is what is needed when we sink to the lowest pits of despair. Blaming God will do no good in such situations. We need to express to him our feelings, but then we need to listen to his response. He won’t disappoint us like others in our life will.

Are you going through difficulties today? Are you turning towards God in your situation, or away from him? Are you listening to him, or avoiding him? One way leads to despair and sickness, the other way leads to healing and restoration by strengthening our faith.

For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. (2 Corinthians 4:6-9)

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The Ultimate Training Program

Train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. (1 Timothy 4:7-8)

Physical fitness and training is a huge business in our culture today, as we become a more sedentary population in the age of science and technology. During biblical times, the apostle Paul often referred to athletic events that were a part of the Roman culture and the precursor to today’s Olympic Games:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. (1 Corinthians 9:24-25)

Athletes must plan and implement a specific plan to train physically in order to compete successfully. Likewise today, many of us who lead sedentary lifestyles must make specific plans to stay physically fit through regular exercise, or our health will deteriorate.

But Paul told Timothy that training to be godly was far more beneficial for one’s health than physical training. He stated that physical training was only of some value, whereas godliness has value for all things. Physical training is only good for as long as your body lasts in this life, while godly training has value both in the present life and also in the future life to come. This principle is especially true in our modern society, as we exalt and emphasize the physical realm, and either ignore or deny the spiritual realm altogether.

So what is “godliness?” It is a lifestyle that honors God as the Creator of all things; a lifestyle that is lived out of a correct doctrine of who God is, and who Jesus is. Notice how Paul starts chapter 4 in his first letter to Timothy:

The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer. If you point these things out to the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, brought up in the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. (1 Timothy 4:1-7)

So godliness begins with correct thinking; correct teaching that starts with a foundation of understanding that Jesus is our Creator and our redeemer. False teaching begins with the foundation that there is no God, and that life is a part of the evolutionary process. One doctrine leads to godliness and health, the other leads to ungodliness and death.

As has been written previously, there are two spiritual kingdoms in the world today: the Kingdom of Light ruled by Jesus in the spiritual realm, and the kingdom of darkness ruled by Satan in the spiritual realm. We are all members of one kingdom or the other. The kingdom of darkness in its current modern form is built upon a foundation of evolution that worships science and technology. The Kingdom of God is built upon the firm foundational truths contained in the Scriptures, the ancient writings of the Bible, which teach that God is the Creator of all things, and that Jesus is the mediator between God and man offering eternal salvation through his sacrificial death on the cross.

Just as it takes discipline to become physically fit, so too it takes discipline to become godly. If you never exercise, you just naturally become flabby and fat without too much effort. The same is true spiritually. If you don’t make any effort to study God’s word regularly, and spend time with him in prayer regularly, you will just naturally become ungodly without much effort. The result is that you will look just like those walking in the kingdom of darkness. But if we train ourselves to be godly, we will naturally clash with the kingdom of darkness, and suffer persecution:

In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:12-17)

We are very fortunate that we do NOT have to be godly to be loved and accepted by God. He loves us with an unconditional love, simply because he created us and sent Jesus to die for our sins. But if we want to find purpose and meaning in life, fulfilling God’s specific plan for why he created us, then we need to make a commitment to go into training to become godly people. It doesn’t happen naturally. Each day you should take time to spend with God, letting the Holy Spirit direct your thinking into the truths of God’s word, and applying the scriptural principles to your own specific life and situation. Just as there is pain, suffering and self-denial in training to be an athlete, so too there is pain, suffering, and self-denial in becoming godly. It takes training in faith to go against the crowd that is walking in the darkness, and who will mock you and even attack you for being godly. But it’s worth it! Have you begun the ultimate training program yet?

His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins. Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:3-11)

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What Kind of Sign is Your Life?

With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)

In the previous article (Life’s Not Fair!) we looked at the life of Joseph, and saw how he was treated unfairly. He had to live many years as both a slave and a prisoner, suffering for wrongs he never committed. But he never abandoned God’s calling in his life, and the dreams that God had given to him as a youth. The result was that he prospered in everything he did, and people were drawn to him, and trusted in him. His life was like a giant billboard, testifying about his faith in God, and people looked to him for help.

What kind of sign is your life? When the difficulties of life overwhelm you, what do people read in you? Do they see a person of faith trusting in the love and grace of God, or do they see someone who complains and gets angry over the trials of life?

The church in Thessalonica was a shining example of believers facing adversity in the days of Paul. They faced tremendous persecution for the stand they took for Christ, and their faith was like a big billboard proclaiming who they were trusting in, as Paul wrote: “among God's churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.” (2 Thessalonians 1:4)

Paul prayed for these believers in Thessalonica the prayer that is recorded above. When God calls us out of the kingdom of darkness and brings us into his kingdom, it is not something we have earned or deserve. We simply receive his calling in our life by faith. But once he brings us into his kingdom, it should be our goal to become worthy of his calling. It is not something we can do in our own strength, which is why Paul prayed that the Thessalonian believers would receive God’s power to accomplish his purpose in their lives, and that their actions would be prompted by faith instead of fear, or anger. They faced tremendous persecution and suffering for following Christ.

He then goes on to give the reason why he prayed for this: “so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him.” Our lives are to be a sign to others that the message of Jesus is real. The strength by which we are to face trials and suffering to display this sign is “according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.” The grace of God is a power that nothing in this world can overcome. Paul goes on to write later in the letter: “May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance.” (2 Thessalonians 3:5)

Facing loss of family, job, and even life for the result of believing in Christ is not something most people in America have to face. Yet many Christians around the world today do face these kinds of trials as a result of their faith in Christ. Their life is a sign to others that the gospel of Jesus is true, and that it is possible to forsake the ways of the world and fully trust in God.

One of the places where this kind of persecution is currently happening today is in Nigeria. Here is a letter from a believer in Nigeria as posted on the Christian Aid website this week:

I want to give you the following story, just told me by Pastor Darlington Elekwa, who was discipling the boy. Darlington was one of my student leaders in the early '80s:

“I learned just this morning how my beloved boy, John Nfon Nsima, was murdered in cold blood by terrorists at Gada Bako, Nasarawa Gwom. He was only 20 years old. One of John’s colleagues was taking him home on a motor bike. About 100 Muslim youths waylaid them, demanding that they declare that they have become Muslims. The rider of the motorbike did, but John refused. He maintained that he was a Christian and would die a Christian. Right there, they cut him down on the spot with axes and machetes. They gave the other one some cuts and let him go.

This surviving colleague of John's who rode the motorbike told us the story. We have gone round all the hospitals in search of his remains, but to no avail. Unfortunately his body must have been among hundreds of others given mass burial. We are obviously proud of our late brother who stood gallantly and refused to deny Christ even in the face of death.”

You can read more here.

John Nfon Nsima’s life in Nigeria was a sign that pointed people to Jesus. God made him worthy of the calling in which he was called. And through God’s grace, the name of the Lord Jesus Christ was glorified in him, and now he is glorified in Christ.

How about your life? What kind of sign are people reading in you? Is the name of Jesus glorified in you? Or do you look like the majority around you in the world today, walking in the kingdom of darkness?

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:9-14)

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Life’s Not Fair!

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. (Genesis 50:20)

The story of Joseph in the book of Genesis, the first book in the Bible, provides a wonderful illustration of the truth that while life is not fair, God is in control at all times, working things out to accomplish his purposes. Life may not be fair, but God is, and he has the last say in every matter.

If there was anyone who ever seemed to have a “right” to complain that life was not fair, it would certainly have been Joseph! As a youth God gave him certain dreams about the future which showed that his older brothers would one day be bowing down to him. These dreams, together with his father’s favoritism, caused a deep jealousy and anger among his older brothers. So one day they took advantage of a situation out in the fields to get rid of him, and sold him as a slave to a caravan of traders heading to Egypt. An unfortunate incident, but some could claim Joseph caused some of this problem himself by his arrogant attitude.

Once he reached Egypt however, the story takes on a whole different tone. Joseph is purchased by a wealthy and influential person named Potiphar, an official of Pharaoh (the king of Egypt) and the captain of the palace guard. The story shows how God blessed Joseph in this new occupation, and how Potiphar recognized that blessing, as the Lord gave Joseph “success in everything he did.” Potiphar put him in charge of his entire household, and “with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate.” He apparently became a very wealthy man because of Joseph.

But Joseph had one problem: Potiphar’s wife. She kept making advances towards him! Joseph’s response was: “No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” Joseph was trustworthy both to his earthly master and to his heavenly one. He did not give in to temptation. Unfortunately, when the wife saw she could not get her way with Joseph, she wrongly accused him of attempting to rape her, and Joseph was convicted and put in prison. Not fair! Joseph did all the right things, and look what he got in return!

But Joseph did not wallow in self pity while serving his time in prison. He again succeeded with God’s blessing: “the LORD was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph's care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.” (Genesis 39:21-23)

Then one day Joseph put his ability to understand dreams to good use, by interpreting the dreams of two different prisoners. One was the cupbearer of the king, and the other the chief baker, both of whom had been thrown into prison for reasons we do not know. Each had a dream that greatly disturbed them. Joseph listened to the dreams and gave the interpretation to each one, as God revealed the interpretation to him. The cupbearer was to be restored to his former position, but the baker was to be executed. It happened just as he stated, and he asked the cupbearer to remember him and help him get out of prison. But when the cupbearer got out of prison, he forgot all about Joseph! Unfair! Here was Joseph being good and faithful in everything he did, but he just couldn’t catch a break. A righteous and talented man like him was just wasting away his life in prison for crimes he never committed. Life seemed so unfair!!

But God had a master plan. He had not abandoned Joseph. Everything that had happened to Joseph was part of his perfect plan for his life, and also for the lives of many others. The key here, I believe, is that Joseph never seemed to despair and give up hope. He continued serving God, and was continually blessed, even while he served as a slave first, and then later as a prisoner.

Finally, one day his chance came. Pharaoh the king of Egypt had a dream that none of his magicians could interpret. The cupbearer all of a sudden remembered how Joseph had interpreted his dream and the dream of the baker who was executed some two years earlier. So he tells Pharaoh about it, and Pharaoh apparently investigates the matter and orders that Joseph be brought before him. Joseph is cleaned up and given a shave and brought before Pharaoh. Little did he know that all the “unfair” things that had happened to him through the past several years were a preparation for that one day before the king. He interprets the king’s dream which was a prophecy about seven years of abundant harvest followed by seven years of severe famine. Joseph recommends that they store up grain during the abundant years to have available during the years of famine. Everyone agrees with the interpretation of Joseph, and Joseph is promptly made second in command of the entire nation of Egypt, second only to the king. Talk about a rags to riches story – this one beats them all!

Later, during the midst of the years of famine, all the surrounding countries come to Egypt to buy grain, because they are the only ones who have any to sell. Joseph, of course, is in charge of the storehouses of food. So imagine his surprise one day when his brothers show up from his homeland to buy grain! They of course do not recognize him, and bow down before him to ask for food to feed their families back home. Joseph’s first dream from so many years earlier had come true! Eventually he makes himself known to his brothers, and arranges for the whole clan to be brought to Egypt, as there were many more years left of drought. The entire Hebrew nation was preserved during that time as a result of Joseph being in the right place at the right time.

As you can imagine, Joseph became very wise and very wealthy. He learned a lot about life and “fairness” and also about how God works everything out to accomplish his purposes. So when his brothers came to him after their father died, fearing that he might take out revenge on them, he replies with the verse we quoted above:

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. (Genesis 50:20)

He was not bitter towards his brothers at all! He could have said the same thing to Potiphar or Potiphar’s wife, and something similar to the cupbearer who forgot about him: “You messed up and did the wrong thing which was not fair and hurt me, but God took that circumstance and used it for good, and we are all blessed as a result.” Life is not fair, but God is. We may not be able to see the results of current injustices that we are suffering here in this life, but in time God’s justice and his plan will always prevail. He’s the Creator. He wrote the story. He knows the ending, because he wrote it!

It takes faith to believe that God has the kind of knowledge, foresight, and power to make all things work together for his good purpose in the future. The key, as it was in the life of Joseph, is to not stop believing and to not give up hope. When life deals us something unfair, we have two ways to respond. We can respond with anger and bitterness, complaining about our unfair circumstances. Or we can respond in faith, believing that God is in control and will use our unfair circumstances somehow for something positive. One response will reap sickness and despair, the other one health and confidence, the kind of confidence that the world, with its belief in evolution and no master designer controlling everything, cannot understand.

Joseph the dreamer never stopped dreaming, and never gave up hope. He suffered unfairly as a slave and a prisoner for many years. One day his dreams came true, far beyond his wildest imagination. Have you given up on your dreams? Have you believed the lie that the enemy tries to sow in our minds that life is not fair, and so we should just give up hope? Joseph was alone and separated from his family, suffering the unfair circumstances that caused him to be a slave and a prisoner for years, but God had not abandoned him. He simply had to keep faith and wait for his time to come. God never abandoned Joseph, and he has never abandoned you either!

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified. What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:28-31)

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Are You a Model Believer?

And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia… They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath. (1 Thessalonians 1:7-10)

Are you a “model believer?” This passage gives us a good description of what was considered a “model believer” in the early church. It was someone who turned away from idols (and idolatry) to serve the living and true God. It was someone who set their hope for the future on Jesus, and his eventual return to earth to one day set up his physical kingdom here. As we saw from the passage in Colossians in the devotional last week, it was also someone who set their hearts and minds on the things above, where Jesus currently is, and not on worldly things.

But to fully understand what a model believer is as defined in these verses in 1 Thessalonians, we need to define “idolatry.” The word “idol” means an image, and in the context of the biblical literature it referred to man-made images of deities or “gods” that people worshiped. The image itself is man made, and therefore has no power of its own.

So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that an idol is nothing at all in the world and that there is no God but one. For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many "gods" and many "lords"), yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. (1 Corinthians 8:4-6)

The Bible clearly teaches that the worship of images as idols is the result of rejecting God as their Creator, and that this leads to immoral behavior:

The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen. (Romans 1:18-25)

Paul also wrote in 1 Corinthians 10 that idolatry was associated with demonic powers. Participating in idol worship was to be a participant in demonic activities. This was especially true during his day and age with food that had been sacrificed to idols, which was in direct contrast to the partaking of food in the Lord’s Supper:

Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf. Consider the people of Israel: Do not those who eat the sacrifices participate in the altar? Do I mean then that a sacrifice offered to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord's table and the table of demons. (1 Corinthians 10:14-21)

Interestingly, there appears a whole word group in the Greek language used in the New Testament for idols and idolatry that does not limit itself to just images. This word is used in Colossians 3:5 and Ephesians 5:5, for example, and is equated with immorality and “greed.”

Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. (Colossians 3:5)

For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. (Ephesians 5:5)

This follows along closely with what Jesus taught about pursuing wealth, which can become an idol: “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” (Matthew 6:24)

Another interesting observation about the Greek words for idolatry is that they were often used in a list of sins and closely linked to the Greek words pharmakeia and pharmakos. We have discussed this word group in previous articles, and have noted that in our English Bibles they are most often translated as “witchcraft” or “sorceries.” But it is also the same word group from which we get our English word “pharmacy” and could be properly translated “medicines” or “drugs.” Here are the passages where both the Greek word for idolatry and pharmakeia or pharmakos are used:

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21 – pharmakeia is translated “witchcraft” here.)

The rest of mankind that were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk. Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts. (Revelation 9:20-21 – pharmakeia is translated “magic arts” here.)

But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death. (Revelation 21:8 – “those who practice magic arts” here is from one Greek word “pharmakos” – similar to pharmakeia which means “magician, sorcerer, or one who poisons with drugs”)

Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. (Revelation 22:15 – “those who practice magic arts” is one Greek word, “pharmakos,” as in the verse above.)

Let’s now return to the text in 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 where we are told that the “model believer” is one who turns away from idols “to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.” There is a tremendous amount of text written in the New Testament warning believers to avoid idols. Are we to assume that idolatry was simply an old fashioned belief system that was strictly tied to worshipping images in pagan temples? Hasn’t modern day “science” disproved all that and eliminated idolatry, at least in developed “modern” cultures?

I think not. The old idols have just been replaced with new ones that aren’t so new at all. They just have different names. Greed and love of wealth are still around, for example. And so is pharmakeia and pharmakos. It’s just that they are seldom practiced outright with witchcraft anymore, but instead with science and modern day medicines and drugs. Our evolution-based science has supposedly eliminated the need for the supernatural, so it is simply replaced with humanism and the same belief that we don’t need a Creator God, because we now have science, technology, and medicines. These are our modern day idols, and the demonic influence behind them is as strong as it has ever been in the history of man. Paul’s description of idolatry in his day and age is just as true today:

For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools. (Romans 1:20-22)

The truth that Paul wrote about images that were idols is also true today: “We know that an idol is nothing.” For just as man-made images serving as idols had no evil power in and of themselves (it was the worshipping of them and the demonic influence behind them), so too most idols today are not evil in and of themselves. Science, technology, wealth, and medicines all have good purposes. But when they replace our faith and worship of God, they become idols and tools that Satan and his army of demons can use. The “model believer” will not trust in them, but trust in God alone, waiting patiently for Jesus to come back to earth and set up his kingdom. The model believer is heavenly minded, and not worldly worthless. Are you a model believer, or an idolater?

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Before and After Pictures

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— (Colossians 1:21-22)

Weight loss advertising is in full swing these days, and one of the most effective means of advertising weight loss products or services is to publish “before and after” photographs. The “before” photos show an over-weight unattractive person, and the “after” photo shows a slim attractive person who has supposedly used a specific product or service to lose weight. So the “before” photo is “ugly” and undesirable, and the “after” photo is “beautiful” and desirable.

There are “before and after” pictures in the spiritual realm as well. As we have discussed in previous articles, there are two spiritual kingdoms co-existing in the world at this present time: the kingdom of darkness ruled by Satan, and the kingdom of light ruled by Jesus Christ. Everybody walking the face of this earth is in one of these spiritual kingdoms. The kingdom of darkness is the majority kingdom, and the one we are born into by default because of our inherited sin nature. It takes a spiritual rebirth to come into the kingdom of light where Jesus rules. Jesus himself said that only a few will find that narrow path:

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. (Matthew 7:13-14)

In the letter to the Colossians (and other places) Paul elaborates on this by saying that when we live in the kingdom of darkness, we are enemies of God. Our thinking is wrong, and our behavior is evil. In this condition of walking in the darkness, we are on a road to destruction.

But when we humble ourselves before God and receive the forgiveness Jesus offers, our spirits are recreated and we become a new person: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (2 Corinthians 5:17) In this new spiritual state we are “holy before God, without blemish and free from accusation.” To be “holy” before God means that you are special – God has a special plan and purpose for you! In the physical realm you sill have an imperfect body and you still have the sinful nature present, but in God’s eyes you are perfect! God is not limited by space and time, so he can see you as you will be in the future, in the resurrected life in heaven.

So here are the spiritual before and after pictures:

BEFORE: alienated (separated) from God, an enemy of God, wrong thinking, evil behavior

AFTER: holy before God (united with him for a special purpose), no blemishes or imperfections, not guilty of any of your sins, because Jesus Christ already paid the punishment with his blood sacrifice on the cross

Please note that a changed spiritual life should result in a change of behavior as well! But this will depend on where our hearts lead us, and how much of our hearts are consumed with the love of Jesus and heavenly things, or with temporal worldly things:

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. (Colossians 3:1-10)

What does your spiritual picture look like today? Is your spiritual picture the “before” one, or the “after” one? What have you set your heart’s desire on for today, tomorrow, and your future?

Related articles:

Re-Creation: The Rebirth

Living in the Kingdom of Light

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The Most Remarkable Person You Will Ever Meet

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him (Colossians 1:15-19)

How well do you know Jesus? In Paul’s letter to the Colossians, he wrote what is one of the most comprehensive descriptions of Jesus that was ever written. I see at least 10 attributes here:

1. He is the image of the invisible God. The apostle John wrote that no one has seen God at any time, but that Jesus came to earth to reveal him to us (John 1:1-18). If you know Jesus, you know God.

2. The firstborn over all creation. Jesus existed before anything else in the physical universe was ever created.

3. He created all things. Obviously number 2 has to be true first. If Jesus created everything that is a part of creation, he had to exist before the things he created existed!

4. Everything that exists was created for Jesus. Jesus owns everything. If Jesus owns you, doesn’t it make sense to know as much about him as you can? The most important questions you should be asking Jesus are: Why did you create me? What do you want me to do?

5. He is before all things. Similar to number 2, Jesus has always been around. He is eternal. He was born in the flow of human history as a baby on Christmas, but he existed before then.

6. In him all things hold together. Jesus is not only the creator of all things, he also is the force that keeps all things alive, or in existence. He is the energy source of the universe. He is the one who electrifies and keeps every molecule or atom in its place.

7. He is head of the body, the church. The word “church” here, also described as a “body,” consists of all born again believers in the kingdom of light. The body, or church, is a single living organism, with one head who controls the whole body. That head is Christ. This is not to be confused with “church” organizations, which are restricted by geography and usually appoint other heads besides Christ to direct their organization/business.

8. He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead. Jesus was the first human being to rise from the dead in a new body. Death’s power could not keep him in the grave. He is now the “firstborn” among all those who follow him in the resurrection from the dead.

9. In everything he has first place. Jesus is the most important person in the universe. No one can compare to him in dignity, honor, power, glory, majesty, beauty, or any other adjective we can think of to describe a person. He is higher than all kings or spiritual powers, and he is our high priest before God.

10. All the fullness of God dwells in him. Jesus is perfect. He lacks nothing! Every good thing about God exists in the person of Jesus Christ. All of God’s divine attributes exist in Jesus. Jesus has no limits. He knows all things, and is not limited by time or space. He can be everywhere at all times. While you may not be able to get an audience with some famous person here on earth, Jesus has the ability to give you his full attention and see to every one of your needs and concerns! He’s not in a hurry either. You can take as much time with him as you need.

While all of these attributes make Jesus the most remarkable person you will ever meet, even more remarkable is what he has done and accomplished for us. Jesus’ obedience to God in dying on the cross for our sins allowed God to welcome us into his kingdom through Christ:

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

…and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. (Colossians 1:13-14; 20-23)

Jesus did all the work that we could not do to overcome sin and death, and earn a place in God’s eternal kingdom. We can never measure up to Jesus’ standards. We can never be perfect like him, and we can never accomplish the things that only he could accomplish. How wonderful that we don’t have to! We can have all our sins forgiven and become members of God’s kingdom, as members of Christ’s body, with Jesus as our head. Jesus loves us, and he provided the way to become a part of his body, the church, and be part of God’s kingdom.

But just understanding who Jesus is is not enough. Satan and his host of demons in the kingdom of darkness know who Jesus is, probably even better than most “Christians.” But they are not part of his kingdom. We need to move beyond just knowing about Jesus, and begin to have a relationship with him. We meet him and become part of his body by having our spirit recreated. Then, we acknowledge him as our head, and begin to understand our role in his body and in God’s kingdom.

This is where true health begins! We need to meet Jesus and be reconciled to God through the rebirth process, and then understand the purpose for which we were created. Have you met Jesus yet? He is the most remarkable person you will ever meet!

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