Where Did God Come From?

The question of the origin of God has caused many people to scratch their chins in wonderment. Whether by the curious Christian or the antagonistic atheist, this question has been asked for centuries. To quote atheist Sam Harris, “If God created the universe, who created God?” And what was God doing before creation?

 

Saint Augustine, as far as we can tell, was the first person to formulate a doctrinal position on this. His answer was that God created time itself while He was creating the universe. The phrase that opens the Bible, “in the beginning,” speaks of the beginning of time. God was not doing anything before He created, because the concept of before didn’t exist. That is a time word, and God operates outside of time.

 

Thomas Aquinas built on this supposition, writing that every effect must have a cause, and nothing in the universe came into existence on its own. A was caused by B, and B was caused by C, and C was caused by D, ad infinitum. But if we follow this all the way back to the very beginning, there had to be something that caused the fist effect. This is often referred to as an uncaused first cause. 

 

If there is no Higher Power then we have to answer that question of origin somehow. What caused the appearance of the earliest particles? They couldn’t “just so happen” to exist. They need a first cause. 

 

If you believe in a Higher Power then the answer becomes much easier. God is the uncaused first cause. He existed before there was anything, and when He decided to do so, He created the universe. Part of Aquinas’ logic was that everything in a series has a cause, but that God is in a category all by Himself. We do not need to trace anything back further than God. In God we have the origin and source of everything else.

 

Dinesh D’Souza compared God to the author of a book. If we were to read something like Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, we want to know about the character’s back stories. When we follow Pip, or when we meet Mrs. Haversham, we want to know where they came from. But no one reads the book and demands to know where Dickens came from. As the author of the book, the characters come about as a matter of Dickens’ own will, but we do not need to grapple with the author’s origins. 

 

In a similar way, God, as the author of the universe, has brought about everything we see as a matter of His own will. Which is easier to believe: that a powerful God intentionally and intelligently created the world through His will, or that some unexplained particles accidentally created the world through chaos? 

 

“You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for you created all things, and by your will they exist and were created.”

Revelation 4:11

Water in the Ship

 

The famous preacher D.L. Moody once said, “The place for the ship is in the sea, but God help the ship if the sea gets into it.” That succinct quote is easy to understand. Ships are made for the very purpose of being in the water. A boat that isn’t afloat is not fulfilling its reason to exist. We also understand the problem when water starts to find its way into the ship. While ships were made to be in the water, they were not made to retain it. A ship that takes in water will eventually sink. 

 

But Moody’s point was not to make us think about ships, but Christians. We are the ships in his illustration, and the world is the sea. We were made by God and put into this world for a purpose. According to the famous catechism, that purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. According to Scripture, “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for you created all things, and by your will they exist and were created (Revelation 4:11),” and “For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him (Colossians 1:16).” We were created by God and for God.

 

We live in this world, but we are not to be of this world. When interceding for the disciples, Jesus said, “I do not pray that you should take them out of the world, but that you should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. (John 17:15-16).” Christians, like a ship in the sea, are meant to be in the world. But just as the sea is not supposed to get into the ship, the world is not supposed to get into us. What does that look like? 

 

The world getting into Christians means the world influences us in such a way that our thinking, beliefs, and actions begin to bend towards the world’s system. Rather than being molded by God’s Word, we let the world shape our worldview. Once we begin to take in water, it is only a matter of time until we sink. At first it is only a little water—a small compromise or two that we justify and excuse as “no big deal.” But one compromise eventually gives way to another, and then another. Before we know it, there is standing water in the ship, and we are a little closer to the waterline. Many lives that have been ruined by sin were tragedies over time, not sudden catastrophes. 

 

If your ship is taking in water, you need to repent right away. Don’t let it take you down. 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Irrelevant

 

The professional football world has bestowed a rather inglorious title upon the final person selected in the annual NFL draft. Since 1976 the last person drafted has been dubbed “Mr. Irrelevant” because, after seven rounds, there is almost no chance of the last player actually signing a contract and making any money. While being drafted is an honor, and being draft last has to beat not being drafted at all, there has to be a bit of embarrassment that goes with that moniker. Mr. Irrelevant is usually honored with a parade as an ironic statement of his new standing in the league. He will probably never be in a Super Bowl parade, so let’s let him have this one.  

 

South Carolina Gamecocks fans might remember the name Ryan Succop, the former place kicker for USC. As you might have guessed, he had the title of Mr. Irrelevant endowed upon him in 2009 when he was taken 256^thoverall by the Kansas City Chiefs. After four years with that franchise, and five with the Tennessee Titans, Succop made history this year when he won Super Bowl LV with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Yes, Succop is the first Mr. Irrelevant to play in and win a Super Bowl (1994 Mr. Irrelevant Marty Moore played in Super Bowl XXXI, but his New England Patriots lost to the Green Bay Packers).   

 

Succop didn’t just play in the big game, he was a major contributor. He made all four of his extra point attempts (12 of 13 in the playoffs) as well as his lone field goal attempt from fifty-two yards out (he was a perfect 9 for 9 in the playoffs). There is obviously nothing irrelevant about Succop’s talent. To add to the Cinderella story, he was playing with quarterback Tom Brady, who was famously drafted in the sixth round and has arguably become the greatest of all time at his position. 

 

There was a time when people may have snickered at Ryan Succop. “He’s irrelevant!” I even remember a few Clemson fans having a chuckle at his expense when he was branded with his new nickname. Succop drowned out the noise and made a nice twelve year career (and counting) for himself, which happens to include a Lombardi Trophy. Most of the people who called him irrelevant will never even see a Super Bowl trophy, let alone hoist one up in victory. The Bucs kicker is an example of why we should never let people define us. We have to drown out the naysayers and just keep working. 

 

Those hurtful names may come from other people, but they ultimately originate with the devil. His name literally means “the accuser,” and his favorite tactic is to tell us and God how bad we are. He reminds us of our shortcomings. We were drafted last. No one wants us. We will never contribute anything. 

 

We are sinful. We have let God down. Jesus could never love us. 

 

Satan may accuse us now, but we will have the last laugh. John was given a vision of a future day: “Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, ‘Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down (Revelation 12:10).’”

So don’t listen to him. When Satan says you are a failure, God says you are forgiven. 

When Satan says you are a loser, God says you are loved. 

When Satan says you are worthless, God says you are worth it. 

And when Satan says you are irrelevant, God says are significant.   

Amen and Awoman

 

Prayer has been a bedrock in our country since it was founded, and that includes using it to open each new session of Congress. It was nothing new when Representative Emanuel Cleaver was asked to open the 117^thCongress in prayer last January, but it was the final two words of the invocation that raised some eyebrows. Instead of the traditional amen, the Missouri democrat added the words “and awoman” to the end of his prayer (inasmuch as we can call “awoman” a word).

 

The reason for this inclusion was the new rule set by the Speaker of the House that eliminated what she calls gendered words. Words such as mother and father, son and daughter, and grandmother and grandfather have been banned in the House of Representatives, and Cleaver must have thought that the last three letters of amen made it a gendered word. By adding “and awoman” Cleaver attempted to include the other gender into his prayer.

 

Is this what we should all be doing? The last thing we want to do is exclude women from our prayers or from Christianity in general. In Orwellian fashion, are we now to add awoman to the eleventh addition of the Newspeak dictionary? Is it chauvinistic if we stick to the traditional “amen”? 

 

The m-e-n at the end of amen does not make it a gendered word any more than the m-a-n in the middle of Emanuel makes the congressman’s name gendered. Amen isn’t even English. It is the transliteration of the Hebrew word that means “verily, truly, or so be it.” It is a term of agreement. That is why a congregant may shout it out when he agrees with the preacher, and why a believer says it at the end of her prayers. When we close our petition with the word amen, we are asking God to make it so, hoping that He will grant our request.

 

That is why it is fitting that amen is the final word of the Bible, not just our prayers. Revelation 22:21 says “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” The preceding verse says “Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus!” In the context of the Bible’s final book, there is a big amen stamped across the bottom, verifying not only the Revelation of Jesus Christ, but the sixty-five books that come before John’s vision as well. More specifically, we say amen when Jesus promises to return for His church. We say amen when He promises to bind Satan and cast him into the lake of fire. We say amen when He promises to bring heaven to earth and establish His kingdom. We say amen when He promises there will be no more curse, and nothing unclean will ever enter the city. 

 

We say amen because we are agreeing with God that this is the best end, and that we want Him to come back quickly. We do not need to add a fake word, but both men and women can heartily say amen at the end of our prayers and God’s promises because our trust is settled in our living Lord. He always keeps His promises, and to that we can all say amen!

 

 

Ten Days

 

The book of Revelation is most commonly known for its graphic descriptions of end times prophecy, but in the second and third chapters, there are letters written to seven churches that existed in the first century. While each of the seven churches were real congregations, they represent the church at large. 

 

In the letter to the church at Smyrna we read, “Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life (2:10).” The fact that the tribulation for these Christians will last “ten days” has led to debate over the years. Will their tribulation last for exactly ten days, or is the number ten symbolic, using a short, round number? 

 

Dr. Henry Morris sees a connection to the book of Daniel. This makes sense because John clearly relied on Daniel’s writings for Revelation. Remember when Daniel and his three friends (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego) refused to eat the king’s meat and drink his wine? Daniel said to the steward, “Please test your servants for ten days, and let them give us vegetables to eat and water to drink (1:12).” 

 

The believers in Smyrna were tested for ten days, just as the four obedient young men were tested in Babylonian captivity. What happened in Babylon? “And at the end of ten days their features appeared better and fatter in flesh than all the young men who ate the portion of the king’s delicacies (v.15),” and “As for these four young men, God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams (v.17).”

 

What happened in Smyrna during their ten days? That we do not know. But what we can gather by comparing Revelation 2 to Daniel 1 is that what we might consider to be tribulation may just be a test in the mind of God. Tribulation can often be viewed as just torture; nothing good comes from it, and we can’t wait for it to be over. Instead, we should try to view our trials as a test the way Daniel and company did. Try to view your trials as an opportunity to prove something good about yourself and your God. 

 

If you are going through a hard time, determine that at the end of your ten days you are going to be a better person, and somehow God is going to be glorified. If God is trying to teach you a character trait, commit to learn it. If God is trying to fine tune your patience, allow Him to do it. If there is an opportunity to point people to God, commit to making that happen. Please don’t think I am trying to minimize tribulations in life, but neither do I want to waste them. Daniel’s ten days of testing were used to prove the sovereignty of God in a pagan world, and maybe yours will do the same. 

 

 

 

Lion of Judah

 

Our family recently took a trip to the Greenville zoo. That is a trip that is fun for the kids, but in truth, I always enjoy seeing the animals and reading the facts posted about them. My favorite part is the African area, where giraffes tower over the buildings and lions walk harmlessly just feet away. This was the closest I have ever been to a lion. There was only about an inch between us and his powerful jaws (that inch was glass in the viewing area). 

 

The lion is an intimidating animal. I could not help but think about the biblical references to the lion; for example, Isaiah 31 compares God to a roaring lion, and at the zoo I read that a lion’s roar can be heard from an astounding five miles away. The most prominent lion passages, however, are the ones that bookend the Bible. 

 

In Genesis 49 the dying Jacob is blessing his children, and when he gets to his son Judah, he said, “Judah is a lion's cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him (v.9)?” This was part of a messianic prophecy that looked forward to the day when Jesus would return to earth to judge the nations. 

 

In Revelation 5:5 we see the prophecy come full circle: “And one of the elders said to me, ‘Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.’” The genealogies of Jesus provided by both Matthew and Luke show that Jesus was a descendant of Judah (from the line of Judah) as well as David (the root of David).

 

The lion is called the king of the jungle, and for good reason. It is a fierce yet majestic creature. This is a fitting picture of Jesus, the King of Kings. He is fierce, yet majestic. His roar is terrifying, but only to His prey. Romans 11:22 contrasts “the goodness and severity of God.” He is severe to the wicked, yet good to His children. To the unbeliever God is that severe lion—fierce, terrifying, and dangerous. But to those of us who have trusted in Him, to those of us who have been saved, we can be an inch away and have no reason to fear.  

 

Give Me the Bad News

We always want the bad news first, right? Whenever someone says, “I’ve got good news, and I’ve got bad news; which do you want first?” we take the bad news first. It isn’t that we like bad news so much that we can’t wait to hear it, we just prefer to get the bad news out of the way and get to the good news. Hearing the bad news is hard, but knowing that some good news is coming right behind it can help to soften the blow of the bad news. 

It reminds me of the man who got a call from his landlord. “I’ve got good news and bad news. The bad news is your rental house burned down and all your possessions are gone. The good news is you are finally out of the lease.” 

Bad news is a part of life, so it is nice when a little good news helps to offset some of the bad. There is a verse in the Bible that begins with really bad news, but quickly shifts gears and gives us the good news. Romans 6:23 begins by saying, “For the wages of sin is death…” That is very bad news since we are all sinners; just three chapters earlier it says “all have sinned,” and “there is none righteous, no, not one.” So we are all sinners, and the earned payment of our sin is death—both physical and spiritual. 

But there is good news! The verse continues, “…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” That is an amazing turnaround in just a few words. We are all sinners by birth; we are all facing a death of our own deserving; but now we learn that we can avoid death and receive eternal life. While death is the earned payment for our sin, eternal life is an unearned free gift because of the amazing grace of God. 

This verse doesn’t mean that Christians will drink from the fountain of youth and find immortality. The Bible teaches that we pass from death to life when we trust in Christ (John 5:24). When my heart stops beating here and my time on earth is over, I’ll continue living in heaven. In that sense I will never truly die. Conversely, Revelation 20:14 and 21:8 teach that the unsaved will experience a second death when they are condemned to the lake of fire. We can avoid this death because of the gift of God. 

God said, “I have good news and I have bad news. The bad news is your sin will lead to your death. The good news is I love you so much that I sent my only Son to die your death in your place. And if you trust in what Jesus did, you won’t face that death you deserve, but instead will have eternal life with me.” 

Don't Make Me Come Back There!

In honor of Father’s Day, I have been thinking about some of those classic lines our fathers said to us over the years. When riding in the car, how many of us heard our fathers ask, “Do I need to pull this car over?” Maybe you and your siblings were arguing, and he would threaten, “Don’t make me come back there!” Dads don’t have to say what they are going to do when they pull the car over or when they come back there; it is understood. If he pulls over, punishment will soon follow. 

God, the Righteous Father, gave similar threats to His people. Most notably through the prophet Jeremiah, God said, “Behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings 23:2, KJV).” Through Moses God promised to “visit the iniquity” of those who hated Him (Exodus 34:6-7, Numbers 14:18, Deuteronomy 5:8-10).  When God promises to come for a visit, He isn’t coming for dessert and coffee. He doesn’t need to describe exactly what will happen when He comes; it is understood. When God comes to visit people because of their iniquity, punishment will soon follow. 

Yes, God is a God who is rich in mercy and slow to wrath, but there is a time for everything, and that includes discipline and judgment. Just like a good Father, God first warns His children of the consequences of their rebellion, so they cannot be caught off guard when God “comes back there.” We have been warned, so the ball is in our court. If we do not want God to come to us in discipline, then we simply need to live in accordance with His instructions for us. 

The good news is that God’s corrective action is to make us better people, not to simply inflict pain or suffering. The hardships He may bring into our lives are meant to get our attention, to steer us back into right living. When we repent, God relents. When we stop doing whatever caused Him to visit us in discipline, the discipline subsides. 

Not every visit from God is for judgment. In Revelation 3:20 God says He stands at the door and knocks, and if anyone lets Him in He will come in and dine with them. This kind of visit is a warm one between friends. Jesus wants to have a relationship with us, so if we let Him in now, He won’t have to come in judgment later. 

Worship God Alone

I’ve spent the last three weeks writing about Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation that he is credited with initiating. There have been untold millions, if not billions of people positively impacted because of one sarcastic monk. But I want to make one final point about Luther before moving on; he should not be idolized or worshipped.

For all his strengths, Luther had many weaknesses. He was short-tempered and thin-skinned, a dangerous combination for such a prolific writer. Anyone who remotely crossed him or differed on a minor point would feel his wrath in his next booklet. He was offensive and crude even on his best days. Worse yet, Luther hated the Jews with a passion that Hitler would have envied. In his 1543 tract brazenly titled On the Jews and their Lies, Luther argued for the destruction of synagogues, as well as Jewish books, schools, and even homes; their property should be confiscated, and Jews themselves forced into hard labor. He concluded that it was not a sin to kill a Jew.

Years later in Germany, where Luther remained a hero, Hitler was sure to furiously copy and distribute Luther’s tract, using it to rally support for his own twisted ends. The same man who inspired Protestants in Germany was now posthumously inspiring them to approve of the Holocaust. Luther is rightly remembered for his contributions to Christian history, but he is a classic example of why we worship God and not man. People will always let us down because even the best of us is still imperfect.

The same can be said of Protestants in general. With five hundred years of history now in the books, some has been commendable, but some regrettable. While Protestants were the loudest voices against the Nazis in Germany and the slave trade in England and America, there were many who quietly looked the other way or justified the evils for their own gains. We cannot worship churches or denominations, because they are composed of imperfect people.

Like John on Patmos trying to worship an angel, we may need to be reminded that we should worship God alone.

And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which showed me these things. Then he said unto me, “See that you do not do that… worship God.”

Revelation 22:8-9