Reasonable Doubt

 A defendant was on trial for murder. Although there was strong circumstantial evidence indicating his guilt, no corpse had ever been located. It is hard to prove a crime has taken place when there isn’t a body, so the defendant’s lawyer was hoping to use reasonable doubt to get his client acquitted. In the defense’s closing statement, the lawyer, knowing his client probably would be convicted, resorted to a trick. “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I have a surprise for you all,” the lawyer said as he looked at his watch.

“Within one minute, the person presumed dead in this case will walk into this courtroom.” He looked toward the courtroom door. The jurors, somewhat stunned, all looked on eagerly. The lawyer looked at the door, then down at his watch, and repeated this several times until a minute passed. Nothing happened. Finally the lawyer said, “Actually, I made up the previous statement; but you all looked on with anticipation. Therefore, I put to you that you have a reasonable doubt in this case as to whether anyone was killed, and I insist that you return a verdict of not guilty.”

The jury, clearly confused, retired to deliberate. Only a few minutes later, the jury returned and pronounced a verdict of guilty. “But how?” inquired the lawyer. “You must have had some doubt; I saw all of you stare at the door.” The jury foreman replied, “Oh, we looked, but your client didn’t.”

There is plenty of doubt in the world today, especially about the things of God. There are also people who do not struggle with doubt because they know the truth. The defendant in that story knew the truth, although it was not good truth. For you and I as believers, we know the truth that can set people free from their doubts, free from their struggles, and free from their sin. Jesus said, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free (John 8:32).” 

We probably all know someone who has reasonable doubts about the things of God; after all, we are bombarded with messages about evolution, and there are a host of other religions, each offering the way to some kind of better life.  Doubting Thomas said he wouldn’t believe Jesus rose from the dead until he could see Jesus for himself, but Jesus said we are blessed when we believe in Him without seeing Him physically (John 20:29). We know the truth; in fact, Jesus is the truth, the life, and the way that leads to the Father. We need to embrace this truth and carry it to the doubters around us. 

Something New

Wise King Solomon famously said, “There is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9).” He continued by adding, “Is there a thing of which it is said, ‘See, this is new’? It has been already in the ages before us (v.10).” 

There is nothing new under the sun, and that applies to theology as well. It troubles me when I hear people talking about their church or their pastor who always have a “new” message. I have heard people say things like, “At that church, its always the same old thing.” Please don’t misunderstand me; I am not talking about preaching timeless truth in a fresh way, for that should be our goal. Neither am I talking about bringing something to light, such as a cultural nuance that may help 21^stCentury Westerners understand 1^stCentury Middle Eastern life. That information may be new to us when we first hear it, but the truth of the message is not new. It is dangerous when we become bored with the gospel and go out searching for something new. 

Sermons on grace, mercy, love, the Golden Rule, heaven, sin, repentance, the cross, or the empty tomb should never get old to us. According to the Talmud, “One who repeats his lesson a hundred times is not like him who repeats it a hundred and one times (Hagigah).” In other words, the more we study the Bible, the more sermons we hear on the same topic, the better we will become. The Talmud continues: “He who studies the Torah but does not review it is like one who plants and does not harvest.” In the Jewish culture, the Bible was committed to memory by constant recitation. 

The Shemah of Deuteronomy 6 (that God is one, and we should love Him with all of our heart, soul, and might) is to be spoken of when we lie down and rise up, when we sit down and walk. The truths of God’s Word produce a harvest in our lives when we not just read them, but when we constantly review them. That is the idea behind Psalm 1, which says the blessed man is one who meditates on God’s law both day and night. We need to chew on God’s Word just as a cow chews the cud. Have you ever seen a cow that was not chewing? Every time I see one she is chomping on a bite of food. That is the picture the psalmist was painting, and it is how we are to reflect on the things of God. 

The Greeks loved to hear something new (Acts 17), but they did not give the words much reflection. Any new message or deity would tickle their ears, but it would go in one and right out the other. We need to reject any ear-tickling “new” doctrine, and instead constantly reflect on the timeless theology that God recorded for us in His Word. 

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. 

The Silent Treatment

There was a couple that had a bitter argument that resulted in them both giving each other the silent treatment. After two full days of not talking to each other, the man knew he needed his wife’s help. He had a business meeting, and he needed to wake up early to catch a flight to Chicago. Not wanting to be the one to break the silence, he wrote his wife a note that said, “Please wake me up at 5 AM.” The next morning when he woke up it was 9 AM, and his wife was up and about. Furious, he was about to go demand to know why she did not wake him, when he noticed the note beside his pillow that said, “Its 5 AM. Wake up.”

No marriage is perfect; for that matter, no relationship is perfect. There will always be arguments, fights, and conflicts, but the story above is a good example of why we should never let the sun go down on our wrath (Ephesians 4:26). When we put our problems off until another day, those problems often times become worse. Sweeping problems under the rug does not make them go away, it only allows them to fester beneath the surface, making the eventual cleanup harder than if the mess had been dealt with right away.

If there is a person that you are currently at odds with, the best thing you can do is reach out to that person as soon as possible and try to mend the relationship. When people choose to live in conflict with others, they often times do not even remember what the original problem was; instead, they remember all the snide remarks and sideways looks that have come after the conflict began. If they had tried to repair the relationship sooner, there would not have been as much to deal with.

Fixing a relationship is important because we want to regain that brother or sister. It is wrong to think we can choose to not forgive, and then go about our business as if everything is ok. Jesus said it is a waste of time to offer a gift to the Lord if we have not tried to make restoration with that person. He said, “If you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift (Matthew 5:24).” In other words, God is not interested with our acts of worship if we are not willing to first do our part to repair a relationship. If you haven’t felt close to God lately, maybe there is another relationship you need to work on so that your walk with God will improve.

Actors

I heard about a county zoo that had a reputation for having a great collection of different animals. People would come from miles around to see the wide array of animals at this particular zoo, but one day the gorilla died. Not wanting to disappoint the customers, the zookeeper came up with a plan. He hired an actor to wear a gorilla costume and fill in for the dead animal. The only problem was the actor did not know how to play a gorilla.

During his first shift the actor tried eating a banana, beating his chest, and walking on his knuckles. He unfortunately was a little clumsy; he got too close to the wall of the enclosure and tripped and fell into the lion exhibit. At this point he became terrified, and even with a group of people watching him, he began to yell, “Help! Help!” The only thing that made him stop yelling was the voice coming from the lion behind him saying, “Knock it off. You’re going to get us both fired!”

The men in the gorilla and lion suits were actors who put on a costume and performed a role for an audience. I’m not opposed to acting; in fact, I enjoy a good performance. But the biblical word for actor is hypocrite, and it does not have a good connotation. There was not anything wrong with being a hypocrite back then, but we now associate the word with people who wear a mask and play a part in order to deceive others. Jesus frequently used the word to call out the outwardly religious people who put on a show in order that they might receive the applause of people; they made sure everything on the outside looked right, but inwardly their hearts were far from God.

Jesus gave them a stinging rebuke when He said, “Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are filled with dead people’s bones and all uncleanness (Matthew 23:27).” At a funeral we might remark about how nice a casket may look, but we all know what the purpose of the coffin is. Jesus said these hypocrites were bragging about being polished on the outside, while the inside was only housing corruption.

Are you an actor? Are you a hypocrite? A good performer may be able to fool the audience, but he can never fool God. You can convince your spouse, your parents, your children, and your pastor that you are the real deal, but God looks on the heart. If you are a hypocrite, you should come clean and allow God to make you into the real thing. Until then, being an actor is about as meaningful as pretending to be a gorilla.