Stone Wall

In the famous Civil War battle at Bull Run the Confederate army found themselves in full retreat. The retreat ended, however, when the general of the Virginia army, Thomas Jackson, suddenly stopped in his tracks in full range of canon and gunfire. Standing firm instead of retreating, Jackson yelled for his men to do the same. General Barnard Bee ordered his South Carolina army to follow Jackson’s lead, yelling, “Form! Form! There stands Jackson like a stone wall. Rally ‘round the Virginians!” This event gave Jackson his famous nickname Stonewall. 

General Bee would not survive that battle, but the South rallied to win at Bull Run. Two years later Jackson would die from friendly fire, and the Confederates obviously lost the Civil War, but Jackson’s act of bravery in the face of fire became one of the highlights of an otherwise awful time in history. Instead of retreating away from the pursuing Union army, Jackson ordered his men to stand firm and hold the line. 

In Philippians 4 Paul gave a similar command. He told the church to, “Stand firm thus in the Lord, my brothers (v.1).” We are in a spiritual war, and our adversary the devil is looking for people to devour. He wants to divide churches by creating a wedge, just as he did with the two ladies Paul mentioned in the next verse. Satan also wants to neutralize Christians by getting them to stop focusing on God and focus on their problems. 

That is why Paul told them not to be anxious about one single thing (v.6), but to be thankful and make everything a matter of prayer. When we focus on the things in life that aren’t going our way, we will get ourselves down in the dumps; we get angry with God, we stop praying and reading the Word, and then stop fulfilling the Great Commission. This is exactly what Satan wants us to do. Paul said the opposite of anxiety is thanksgiving. We have to choose to be thankful. We have to determine to look on the bright side and appreciate the millions of blessings God gives us. 

When we choose thanksgiving over anxiety God will guard our hearts. Last week I wrote about how Philippi was a Roman colony and that Paul used that analogy to make his point (about their citizenship being in heaven). He does the same thing here. Rome sent soldiers to patrol the streets of Philippi to protect their interests there. In v.7 Paul wrote, “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” It was as if Paul was saying, “Look out the window. You see those soldiers guarding you? That is what God does for your heart when you choose thanksgiving over anxiety.”

We have the ability to stand firm like a stone wall even though Satan is opposing us. We get our strength from Christ Jesus, who guards our hearts, giving us peace. We have much to be thankful for!

Citizenship

Where is your citizenship? As Americans we know we are citizens of this great country, and that entitles us to the full rights that all Americans enjoy. The Constitution and Bill of Rights recognize that we are all created equal, and we are endowed with these inalienable rights by our sovereign God, and those rights have been protected by every person who has worn the uniform over the years. We are also residents of our state and most local municipalities. 

For the Christian, though, we have dual citizenship. We are very much American citizens, and yet our citizenship is simultaneously in heaven. In Philippians 3:20-21 Paul wrote, ““But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”

The Greek word for citizenship (conversation in the KJV) is unique and appears only hear in the Bible. The word refers to the locality where one’s name is listed among the official register of citizens. In other words, there is a place somewhere where each person’s vital records are on file; birth certificates, death certificates, and marriage licenses are stored in a building somewhere, and that place is where the person is an official citizen. This was a great analogy for Paul to use for the Philippians for one important reason: Rome had adopted Philippi as an official Roman province. 

Because of its location Philippi was prime real estate, and it generated a lot of tax revenue for the Roman Empire. The famous Roman Road called the Ignation Way ran through Philippi, and traders from around the world came through to do business. Rome was so grateful for the profits that they made the Philippians official Roman citizens, giving them the full rights of those born in Rome, and they didn’t even have to pay taxes. 

So go back to Paul’s analogy. The Philippians lived in Philippi, but their names were written down in Rome. They lived in one place, but their citizenship was in another. The same is true for Christians. We live here, but our names are written down in heaven (Luke 10:20). We live on earth, but we have the full rights of those who already live in heaven. We are just strangers and pilgrims passing through this land on our way to heaven. In the meantime, we can go boldly before the throne of the King of Heaven while our mansion is being prepared just over the hilltop. When we get there, Paul said, we will get to exchange these earthly bodies for ones that match our new heavenly residence. 

I am proud to be an American, and am thankful for the ones who died to give these rights to me. But I am ecstatic that I am a Christian, and am thankful for the one who died—my Lord Jesus Christ—to make my salvation possible. Where is your citizenship? Is your name written down in heaven? 

The Leaning Tower of Pisa

Back in December of 2001 the world-famous “Leaning Tower of Pisa” was finally reopened to the public. The landmark had been closed for close to a dozen years while major repairs were made. During that time a construction crew completed a 25 million dollar renovation project that was designed specifically to stabilize the tower. Part of the project called for the removal of 110 tons of dirt, and they reduced its famous “lean” by around sixteen inches. Why did they have to do that? The reason is the tower had been tilting further and further away from vertical for centuries, to the point that the top of the 185-foot tower had become an incredible seventeen feet further south than the bottom, and authorities in Italy were concerned that if nothing was done, the tower would soon collapse. 

What was the problem with the tower? Was it poor design? Was it faulty workmanship? Was it built using an inferior grade of marble? No. The problem was what was underneath. The sandy soil on which the city of Pisa was built was just not stable enough to support this monument; it had no firm foundation.

A strong foundation is imperative for any structure, and Jesus used that concept as an analogy for the believer’s life. In His conclusion to the Sermon on the Mount Jesus spoke of the wise and foolish believers. In context, Jesus was saying that a wise person would hear what He just said—the Beatitudes, His teaching on anger, lust, honesty, revenge, love, prayer, fasting, and the Golden Rule—and then apply that to his life. A person who does that is building his life on a firm foundation, and when the storms come, he will be able to stand firm.  

Some people hear the truth, but instead of heeding it, they choose to reject it. That is like building a house on shifting sand instead of a reliable rock. That is what foolish people do. John MacArthur defined the sand as the “self-will, self-fulfillment, self-purpose, self-sufficiency, self-satisfaction, and self-righteousness,” which is insufficient as a foundation. When the storms come, the person who builds his life on himself will crumble. 

What are the storms? Some see them as the storms of life: you get sick, you lose your job, your marriage falls apart, you become an empty-nester. We all face these storms, and a firm foundation is the only way we can withstand them. We have to build our lives on the teachings of Jesus. The storms may also refer to the judgment at the end of a person’s life. The wise person who is obedient to the teachings of Jesus will be just fine, but the one who lived in opposition to Christ will see his fate sealed. 

Maybe, like with the Leaning Tower of Pisa, your foundation is shaky and you are headed for a collapse. Maybe today you need to begin a renovation and start building your life on the Word of God.  

That's too Easy

Do you use those store bought mixes to make your cakes or cookies? Sometimes I bake desserts from scratch, but the majority of the time, if I baked it, I used a mix. We use those because of the convenience factor; it is much easier to buy the box and add water or vegetable oil, eggs, or butter than to measure and mix all of the other ingredients. 

Several years ago one of cake mix companies developed a product they thought was going to be a big hit: a cake mix that said just add water. To the surprise of the company, their new product was a big flop. No one was buying it. It seemed like a good thing, but it wasn’t selling. After doing some internal polling they realized that the buying public was skeptical of a cake that only needed water. It seemed too easy. That company went back to the drawing board and tweaked their recipe; the new box said, “Just add water and one egg!” Sales immediately picked up, even though the new recipe required more work and more money for the costumer. 

Many people view salvation that way. We tell people it is a free gift, and all they have to do is trust in what Jesus has already done. That seems too easy. It seems too good to be true. We feel like we have to do more. I have to earn it. I have to work hard, or give more money, or get baptized, or say enough prayers, or read the Bible through in a year. But the Bible teaches salvation cannot be earned because it is a free gift, “not of works, lest any man should boast (Ephesians 2:9).” 

In Philippians 3 Paul gives many reasons he could have boasted if salvation were earned: he was an Israelite from the tribe of Benjamin, circumcised on the eighth day in accordance with the law, a Pharisee who was zealous for the law, a persecutor of those deemed as heretics, and one who was blameless. In his younger days Paul was banking on those things getting him God’s favor and a spot in heaven. However, after he learned that Jesus is the only way, he came to look down on the very things he once gloried in. “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord (v.7-8).” He went on to say he viewed all his accomplishments as “rubbish,” which was a strong word for excrement. 

Paul hated the things which he once trusted in because they would deem the cross of Christ as worthless. If our accomplishments could save us, then Jesus died in vain. It really is that easy. Like Paul, we need to despise anything that we could trust in instead of Jesus because our righteous deeds are but filthy rags in the sight of a holy God. There is no need to add anything because Jesus Himself has done all the work.