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Today in 1863 – Howard Smith Born

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Howard E. Smith was a church organist who composed a number of hymn tunes, including the one used for Love Lifted Me. The words for this song were written by James Rowe, and his daughter describes for us how the two men worked on it:

Howard E. Smith was a little man whose hands were so knotted with arthritis that you would wonder how he could use them at all….I can see them now, my father striding up and down, humming a bar or two, and Howard E. playing it and jotting it down.

I was sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore,
Very deeply stained within, sinking to rise no more;
But the Master of the sea heard my despairing cry,
From the waters lifted me, now safe am I.

There is a line in the second stanza of the hymn that I especially appreciate. “Love so mighty and so true merits my soul’s best songs.” That is a worthy sentiment. In both the writing and the selection of our hymns, and in their use, we should keep in mind who we are singing for, and singing about. The Lord is worthy of our very best.

Having said that, I do have some reservations about this particular song. The words are fine, but Howard Smith’s tune does not always suit their mood and meaning. The tune of a hymn should serve as the frame of a picture does, enhancing the message, and supporting it. The tune and the words should be saying the same thing. But that is not always the case here.

The kind of bouncy rhythm of the melody does not suit the words “I was sinking deep in sin.” (Someone suggested it almost sounds as though the lyric should be, “I was sinking deep in sin, Yahoo!”) The third stanza’s “Souls in danger, look above” is likewise not suited to the happy, rhythmic tune. Since the song uses a somewhat irregular metre, it does not seem possible to switch to another familiar tune. It might help a bit to sing it more slowly.

(2) Today in 1895 – Elwood Stokes Died

Graphic Elwood Stokes

Little is known of Elwood Haines Stokes except that he was one of the founders of a New Jersey religious community, and president of the Ocean Grove Campmeeting Association. His prominence in the late nineteenth century is attested to by the statue raised in his honour. Sensing a need for more hymns about the Holy Spirit, Stokes wrote Fill Me Now in 1879.

Hover o’er me, Holy Spirit,
Bathe my trembling heart and brow;
Fill me with Thy hallowed presence,
Come, O come and fill me now.

Fill me now, fill me now,
Jesus, come and fill me now;
Fill me with Thy hallowed presence,
Come, O come, and fill me now.

Thou canst fill me, gracious Spirit,
Though I cannot tell Thee how;
But I need Thee, greatly need Thee,
Come, O come and fill me now.

Of this prayer hymn, my musician father would likely have said, “I don’t agree with all the details, but I appreciate the sentiment being expressed.” The work of the Holy Spirit is often misunderstood, and there are few hymns on that subject that are fully biblical.

A Note on the Filling of the Spirit

“Be filled with the Spirit,” says Ephesians 5:18. But in order to grasp what the Word is saying we need to note a couple of things. First, all Christians are forever indwelt by the Spirit of God (Rom. 8:9; I Cor. 6:19). We do not need to ask Him to come into our lives. And second, the Greek word for “filled” (pleroo) is more often translated fulfilled in the New Testament.

His filling ministry is not a spatial thing. It’s not as though we need to be “topped up” with the Holy Spirit the way we fill a gas tank. What Paul is speaking of in the Ephesians text is His empowering to enable us to fulfil the will of God. (The artisans of Israel were filled with the Spirit to equip them to design the intricate furnishings of the tabernacle, Exod. 31:1-5).

Occasionally, in Bible times, the filling of the Spirit was a sovereign act of God, seeming to require no personal qualifications or human action at all. John the Baptist was filled with the Spirit while still a babe in his mother’s womb (Lk. 1:15). But that does not seem to be the norm for Christians on this side of the cross.

Greek scholars suggest the verb tense for “be filled” (or, if you will, be fulfilled) is more literally “be being fulfilled.” That is, be in such a condition, and have such an attitude, that the Spirit of God is able to fulfil His purpose of equipping you to serve the Lord. No Bible verse actually tells us to ask for the Spirit’s fulfilling ministry. But we are responsible, by God’s grace, to be in a condition of heart and life which allows Him to do His work unhindered in and through us.

While not exactly synonymous with walking in the Spirit, these two are closely related. “If we live in the Spirit [through the new birth] let us also walk in the Spirit” (Gal. 5:25). Walking requires step-by-step faith in God and obedience to His Word, and the confession of any known sin (I Jn. 1:9). And as we walk, the Spirit fills (and fulfils), and as He fulfils, we walk.

It might be going too far to suggest believers should never ask for the Holy Spirit’s filling–which is tantamount to praying for God’s enabling grace. But more pragmatic and practical prayers, related to the specific need, can have the same result. The believers in the early church prayed, “Grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word….And when they had prayed…they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:29, 31).

God’s Plan of Salvation

The plan of salvation is about what God has done to provide eternal life for all who will seek it. The plan is simply this: Jesus Christ came to save sinners (Lk. 19:10). That is the essence of God’s great work of saving those who are lost. The Lord Jesus Himself is the answer to a question asked long ago:”What must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30-31). And incidentally, that is the most important question anyone can ever ask, because it has to do with his or her eternal destiny. Your destiny and mine.

Some years ago, I heard a simple explanation of the plan of salvation that makes use of the old Bad-News-Good-News formula. Here it is, abridged and adapted a bit. I trust it will be of help to you.

The Bible contains both bad news and good news. The bad news is something about us. The good news is something about God.

The Bad News

Each of us is a sinner. Romans 3:23 says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Moral as we may be, good deeds not withstanding, we have all come short of God’s standard of perfection. And the bad news gets even worse.

More Bad News

The penalty for sin is death. Romans 6:23 says, “The wages of sin is death.” By sinning, we have earned death. That means we deserve to die and be separated forever from a holy God (Jn. 3:36; II Thess. 1:8-9). But now for the good news.

The Good News

Here is God’s plan of salvation: Jesus Christ died in our place. Romans 5:8 tells us, “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (cf. I Cor. 15:3). He took the penalty we deserve for sin, and died in our place. Three days later, He came back to life, proving that sin and death had been conquered. And just as the bad news got worse, the good news gets even better.

More Good News

We can be saved forever, through faith in Christ. In response to the question posed above, the answer was given, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).

Our salvation depends not on how we feel, or on any good works we do, but on what Christ has already done for us. The Apostle Paul wrote to a group of Christians at Ephesus and said, “For by grace [God’s undeserved favour] you have been saved through faith, and that [salvation is] not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

The Meaning of Faith

What does it mean to BELIEVE ON the Lord Jesus Christ, or to put our FAITH in Him? It means we trust in what He has done on the cross to save us. It means we depend on Him alone for forgiveness and for eternal life.

That is a basic look at God’s plan of salvation. Is there anything keeping you from trusting in Christ?

If you have never done so before, you can pray right now and tell God you are trusting in His Son. Just remember, it isn’t a prayer that saves us. It is the work of Christ upon the cross. Prayer is simply how we tell God we accept His gift. Is that what you want to do?

A Prayer You Could Offer

“Dear God, I know that I’m a sinner. I know my sin deserves to be punished. But I believe the Lord Jesus saves sinners. I believe that He died for me, paying my debt of sin,  and rose from the grave. I trust Jesus Christ alone as my personal Saviour. Thank you for the forgiveness and everlasting life I now have as Your free gift to me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

☼ If you have further questions, please let me know. I’ll do my best to be of help to you.

“Carnal” – “Flesh” – “Old Man”

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Question: Richard asks, “What’s the difference, if any, in the terms ‘carnal’, ‘flesh’ and ‘old man’?”

Answer: Thanks for the good question, Richard. The terms you have listed certainly are related, though not necessarily synonymous. And we could add some others, such as worldly, sensual, the natural man, and the Adamic nature. These words and phrases represent key spiritual truths about the desperate plight of the unsaved, and the dangerous potential for believers who are not living as they should. Let’s see if we can sort it all out a bit.

1) The Natural or Sensual Person

“The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (I Cor. 2:14). (“Natural” translates the Greek word psuchikos, from which we get our word psychology. It refers to the soul–the mind will and emotions–of the person, as opposed to his God-energized spirit. We could call this individual a soulish person.) The natural man is one who was born naturally (i.e. physically) but who has never been born again, and therefore is still “dead in trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1, 5). He is severely limited when it comes to understanding and applying spiritual truth, since this ability is given to those indwelt and taught by the Holy Spirit (vs. 12-13).

The word “sensual” is also used to translate psuchikos. It refers to that which pertains to the old, unregenerate nature. “The apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ…told you there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts, these are sensual [psuchikos, or soulish] persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit” (Jude 1:17-19). And if they do not have the Holy Spirit indwelling them, they are not Christians (Rom. 8:9). But it is possible for a born-again believer to yield to temptation and sometimes act in a soulish way. James warns, “If you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual [psuchikos], demonic” (Jas. 3:14-15, and see the context, vs. 13-18).

2) The Old Man

The Old Man is an expression used three times in the New Testament. (It is sometimes described as the Adamic Nature by theologians.) These terms speak of the corrupt fallen nature we inherited from Adam. When we put our faith in Christ, the “old man” is considered to have been crucified in Christ. “Our old man was crucified with Him” (Rom. 6:6). “You died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God….You have put off the old man with his deeds” (Col. 3:3, 9).

As to our legal position (or standing) before God, the old man has been dealt with. But as to our condition (or state) in daily experience, the old man or Adamic nature continues to be an active force that can only be controlled as we reject its promptings and walk in the Spirit. Each Christian has a responsibility to “Put off…the old man…and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and…put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:22-24; cf. Rom. 12:2).

This conflict in the Christian between the old Adamic nature, and the new nature energized by the Holy Spirit, will continue until we go to be with Christ and are transformed into His likeness (I Jn. 3:2; cf. Col. 1:27). The struggle is captured in Paul’s words, “What I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do” (Rom. 7:15). “The flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another; so that you do not do the things that you wish” (Gal. 5:17).

The answer, if the Christian is to live a victorious life, is submitting to the ministry of the indwelling Holy Spirit. This is described by the twin terms of walking in the Spirit, and being filled with the Spirit.

¤ “Walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfil the lust of the flesh” (Gal. 5:16). This “walk” refers to daily and habitual steps of faith and obedience toward God. That is our responsibility, by His enabling grace.

¤ The word “filled” is perhaps better translated “fulfilled”–another meaning for the Greek word pleroo. (Cf. “He who loves another has fulfilled [pleroo] the law,” Rom. 13:8.). Thus, “Be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18) could be paraphrased, “Be being fulfilled by the Spirit, allowing Him to fulfil His sovereign purpose in you, by His divine power.”

These two realities of the Christian life are expressed in a little different way in Philippians 2:12-13. “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling [live out what God has equipped you to be, by an ongoing walk of faith and obedience], for it is God who works in you [filling and fulfilling] both to will and to do for His good pleasure.”

3) Flesh and Carnal

The Greek word (sarx) is most often translated “flesh,” though occasionally it is rendered “carnal.” Sometimes physical flesh and blood (the physical body) necessarily is in view. (For example, we are told that Christ “was born of the seed of David according to the flesh,” Rom. 1:3.) But when it is used in an ethical or theological sense, it refers to the human nature, or earthly nature of man, apart from God’s intervention and influence. The flesh in that sense is spiritually impotent, and prone to sin. Further, it tends to be self-centred and opposed to God. Paul recognizes that when he says, “In my flesh nothing good dwells” (Rom. 7:18).

When we are saved, through faith in Christ, we are no longer living in the sphere of the flesh but in the sphere of the Spirit (Rom. 8:9). However, the flesh (the old, sinful human nature) is still within us, and we have a choice whether to respond to the flesh, thus walking according to the flesh, or to respond to the Holy Spirit, walking in the Spirit. This is the difference between a spiritual Christian and a “carnal” (sarx) Christian. To be saved is to be rightly related to Christ. To be a spiritual Christian is to be rightly related to the Holy Spirit. “Walk in the Spirit [controlled and guided by the Holy Spirit], and you shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh” (Gal. 5:16; cf. Rom. 8:4).

Paul condemns some in the church at Corinth because of their carnality. He does not deny that they are born again, but labels their behaviour as spiritually infantile. “I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ [i.e. as to those who are still spiritually immature]. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it…for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men [i.e. acting as unsaved individuals would]?”(I Cor. 3:1-3).

4) World, Worldy

This is another word (kosmos in Greek) that can be used in a physical or spiritual sense. It can refer to the earth, or to the people living on our planet (“God so loved the world… ” Jn. 3:16). But in the spiritual and ethical sense, it speaks of this corrupt world system, dominated by Satan. In that usage we are warned, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world–the lust of the flesh [sarx], the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life–is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever” (I Jn. 2:15-17). Instead, we should be those who, “denying ungodliness and worldly lusts…live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age” (Tit. 2:12).

The Fallibility of Self Knowledge

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The Bible says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” (Jer. 17:9). Desperately wicked, meaning incurably bad. The heart is so corrupted by sin that it robs the individual of the ability to accurately assess his own condition. The sinner is self-betrayed and will remain blind to his own true state apart from the convicting work of the Holy Spirit (Jn. 16:8).

human knowledge

Only God Himself is able to properly understand what is within each of us. Thus the answer to the question raised in our text comes in the following verse. “I, the Lord, search the heart…” (vs. 10). But as for man himself, he is chronically self-deceived. Ironside cites as an example Benedict Arnold. Arnold rose to the rank of major general in the American military. But he was extravagant in his lifestyle, and quick to take offense. Charges were brought against him of misuse of his military powers. In revenge, he sold out to the British in 1780. His name as become synonymous with treachery and betrayal. Yet he wrote to his fiancee, “I daily discover so much baseness and ingratitude among mankind, that I almost blush at being of the same species.”

The inability to properly see our own faults also affects how we direct our steps, the life we live, the goals we set, and so on. Proverbs says, “There is a way that seems right to a man [in his blinded condition], but its end is the way of death” (Prov. 16:25). If we cannot see ourselves accurately, how can we find our way? Recently the A & W fast food chain came out with an advertising slogan that said, “Listen to your cravings. They are wise.” But how contrary that is both to reality and to God’s revealed truth. “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools” (Rom. 1:22).

Premillennialism and Popular Theology

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Question: Glenn asks, “In his book, The Basis of the Premillennial Faith (1983, second printing), Charles Ryrie says theologians, who support the premillennial interpretation of prophesy, are in a minority. Is this true today? Is Modernism increasing in popularity?

Answer: Let’s take the latter part of your question first. Liberalism and Modernism, though not necessarily identical, both teach a salvation by works. Both reject the verbal inspiration (and infallibility) of Scripture, and its historical accuracy, including its record of supernatural events. Therefore, they usually reject the deity of Christ and deny His resurrection and bodily return to reign as “King of kings and Lord of lords.” If we are talking about Christendom (the professing church at large) this likely represents the majority view.

However, if we are speaking of the true church, the spiritual body of Christ holding to the fundamentals of the apostolic faith, premillennialism is either the majority position, or represents a strong minority. To my knowledge, all the major evangelical Bible schools founded at the end of the 1800’s and in the early 1900’s held this position when they started (e.g. Moody Bible Institute, Bob Jones, Prairie, Briercrest, and little Millar College of the Bible where I taught). Most of them still hold to premillennialism.

Add to this the influence of Dr. Scofield’s teaching, and that of Dr. Lewis Sperry Chafer, at Dallas Seminary. Then, factor in the great popularity of Hal Lindsey’s book The Late, Great Planet Earth years ago, and now the best-selling “Left Behind” series, and I would say the premillennial faith is strong and growing stronger. Ryrie’s book came out in 1953, and the book by Hal Lindsey, mentioned above, in 1970. Things changed somewhat in that nearly 20 years, and have changed even more so today.

But having said all that, orthodox Christians will always be in the minority, and unbelief and error will increase as the day of Christ’s coming approaches (Matt. 7:13-14; I Tim. 4:1; II Tim. 3:1, 13). As to differing views true believers hold on the details of prophecy, keep in mind that a view is not true because it is held by the majority, but because it is taught in the Word of God.

When My Son Has Doubts…

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Question: A concerned Mom writes, “Our youngest son has decided that maybe God isn’t real, maybe there is no hell, and then of course there is no value in going to church, etc. I thought he had a [salvation] experience as a small child but it isn’t real to him. I think he may also have had some negative influence from some older bachelor guys he has contact with.

How could we approach this problem to show that God is real ? I’ve talked to him about creation and the fall, and he says “So why didn’t God do it right the first time ?” Some ideas would help.”

Answer: Thanks for the good question. Of course, your son is only saying what the Bible itself plainly says–that “there is no God.” But unfortunately for him, the context reminds us of the kind of person who makes such a statement. God says he is a fool (Ps. 14:1). The reason it is foolish to deny the existence of God is that the evidence of His amazing handiwork is all around us (Ps. 19:1). So much so that sinners are “without excuse” for refusing to believe in Him (Rom. 1:20).

When you think about it, there is a certain arrogance to atheism. To say there is no God to be found anywhere in our vast universe, one has to claim he knows absolutely everything that’s out there! To assert such a thing is foolish indeed, causing Lewis Sperry Chafer to state, “It is probable that a consistent atheist has never existed.” An older theologian (John Foster) says, “Unless this man is omnipresent, unless he is at this moment in every place in the universe, he cannot know but that there may be in some place manifestations of a Deity by which even he would be overpowered.”

Many books have been written in defense of the existence of God and the reliability of the Bible. Both C. S. Lewis and Josh McDowell have written on such themes. If your son were a reader I might suggest The Case for Faith, by Lee Strobel (published by Zondervan in 2000). Over the course of about 400 pages he deals with all the common objections to faith that unbelievers throw at us–the problem of human suffering, how could a loving God send anyone to hell, and so on. A valuable book to have in one’s library.

Another “book” that is going to be read by your son whether you like it or not is your own life. If God is real to you, and Christ’s salvation truly means something to you, your life will show it. That ongoing testimony can have a powerful effect on your son. In a poem called “The World’s Bible,” Annie Johnson Flint wrote, “We are the only Bible / The careless world will read, / We are the sinner’s gospel, / We are the scoffer’s creed.” And “What if the type is crooked? / What if the print is blurred? / What if you hands are busy / With other work than His? / What if our feet are walking / Where sin’s allurement is?” Good questions!

Regarding your son’s concerns about creation, Peter speaks of scoffers who ridicule the Word of God, saying they “willfully forget” some things (II Pet. 3:5, NKJV). They deliberately shut their eyes to the facts. No one who found a ticking watch in the woods would immediately assume all the parts had come together by themselves without any outside help. There had to be an intelligent designer and a maker. And anyone looking at the intricacies of creation is forced to come to a similar conclusion.

Whatever your son’s study of the natural world has been, he has reached a false conclusion, indicated by his question, “So why didn’t God do it right the first time ?” The answer is, He did. When the work of creation was complete, “God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good” (Gen. 1:31). The wonders of creation caused the psalmist to cry, “O Lord, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all” (Ps. 104:24). What has happened to the world since it was made is not a result of sloppy workmanship on God’s part. It is a result of human sin.

God gave human beings the responsibility of caring for our planet (Gen. 1:28), but their “dominion” was always to be restricted and governed by God’s rule over him (Gen. 2:16-17). When Adam and Eve disobeyed the Lord–in effect, rejecting His rule–God punished them by placing a curse on creation. Though it still reflects the wisdom and power of God, nature is now seriously flawed (Gen. 3:17-19), and man’s care of it is handicapped accordingly. Added to that, the fallen nature of man causes him to continually abuse the natural resources we have. Selfishness and greed, carelessness and waste, strip the rain forests and fill the air with pollutants. None of this is God’s fault.

So why didn’t God simply make human beings with no power of choice, creatures that were programmed to obey Him? The answer is because He did not want mere robots, or puppets. He wanted intelligent beings that could fellowship with Him, that could love Him and be loved in return. And for such a relationship to be sincere and meaningful human beings had to be able to choose whether to trust and obey God or not. They had to have the power not to trust Him, not to obey Him and not to love Him.

But I want to return for a moment to the words of Peter–that “wilful forgetting” he speaks of. Herman Wouk, in his novel War and Remembrance, about the Holocaust, speaks of “the will not to believe.” A denial of the existence of God, and the existence of hell, is often a morally loaded conclusion. That is, there is a rejection of God’s authority which manifests itself as a denial of His existence. In order to continue in his sinful ways, without accountability to God, the sinner may try to write God out of the picture. That is why Psalm 14:1 (quoted in part, earlier) says in full, “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’ They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none who does good.” Atheism and a sinful lifestyle are connected.

It is important to establish a belief in God at a young age, and to ingrain a sense of moral accountability to a higher authority. Solomon writes about that in Ecclesiastes. In his later years he had drifted away from God (I Kgs. 11:1-8), but I believe the book of Ecclesiastes is a testimony of his repentance and return to God, near the end of his life. He says, “Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you say, ‘I have no pleasure in them.’…Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil” (Ecc. 12:1, 13-14).

If your son’s conclusions about spiritual things have been carefully considered, then I would certainly doubt the earlier “experience” you speak of. Jesus says, “By their fruits you will know them” (Matt. 7:20). In the article “Assurance of Salvation” I list seven things that are the fruit of salvation. To one degree or another, each of these should be in evidence in the life of the born again person.

One other possibility, and I only mention it in passing for your consideration, is that your son is emotionally depressed for some reason. Whether this has a physical, a psychological, or a spiritual cause needs to be investigated. Sometimes doubts arise out of an emotional despondency. In that case, medical treatment or counselling may be what is needed.

The Theif and The Kingdom

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Question: Elias takes issue with a statement I made to the effect that the dying thief on the cross “entered the kingdom in the throes of death” (Lk. 23:42-43). He points out that Christ did not at that point begin his earthly reign, therefore the thief could not have entered the kingdom.

Answer: This view seems to be based on the false assumption that a word or a symbol is always used in precisely the same way throughout Scripture. Such is not always the case. For example, Paul’s use of the term “justification” is quite different from James’s. The future earthly messianic kingdom is not the only manifestation of the kingdom of God. Paul is able to write to the Colossians and say “the Father….has [i.e. past tense, has already] delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Col. 1:12-13, NKJV). Believers are already a part of the kingdom, possessing a heavenly citizenship (Phil. 3:20), even though Christ’s earthly rule is yet to come.

Below is a brief overview of some aspects or manifestations of the kingdom concept, and an indication of how the church of Jesus Christ relates–or does not–to each:

  1. The universal kingdom of God. This refers to God’s supreme rule over all, for time and eternity (Ps. 103:19; Dan. 4:34-35). There is nothing that exists that is not under His sovereign control. (The church is obviously a part of this.)
  2. The spiritual kingdom of God is that which is entered by the new birth (Jn. 3:3; Col. 1:13), and it involves the Lord’s rule over individual believers. (This concept of the kingdom may be considered equivalent to the church, the body of Christ in this age.)
  3. The Theocratic or mediatorial kingdom. (The word theocracy comes from the Greek language: theo = God, kratein = to rule.) This has to do with God’s rule being administered over the earth through a human representative or mediator.
    a) A theocratic rule was exercised, however briefly, through Adam, prior to the fall (Gen. 1:26, 28; cf. 2:19, 23). (The church was not a part of this, not being in existence at the time.)
    b) The mediatorial kingdom was instituted at a national level over Israel with the giving of the Mosaic Law. Sometimes it is called the Davidic Kingdom, in that God’s covenant with David promised one of his descendants would occupy the throne forever (II Sam. 7:12-17). As Israel’s Messiah, Christ will be the ultimate fulfilment of this covenant. The nation was to be a showcase of the blessing of being under God’s rule, and other nations were to experience blessing through Israel (Exod. 19:5-6). But Israel turned away from God to worship idols and the theocratic rule was put in abeyance with the Babylonian Captivity which began the Times of the Gentiles (Lk. 21:24). (The church is not a part of this.)
    c) The mystery form of the kingdom (Matt. 13:11) refers to “Christendom,” between Christ’s two advents. It includes both true believers and unbelievers–among whom are those who are Christian only in name (cf. Matt. 13:24-30, 36-43). (The true church is a part of Christendom, but the two are not identical.)
    d) The mediatorial kingdom will flower again as a world-wide entity when the messianic kingdom becomes a reality with Christ’s rule over the earth for a thousand years at His second coming (Mic. 4:1-8). (The Church Age saints will reign with Christ at this time, Matt. 6:10; Rev. 5:10; 20:4.)

The Holy Spirit and the Tribulation

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Question: Juanita asks, “I heard that it says somewhere in the Bible that the Holy Spirit will not be on earth during the Tribulation. Is that so?”

Answer: As God, the third Person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit is omnipresent. There is no place where He is not. Thus the references to Him being “sent” and “coming” at Pentecost are merely verbal tools to describe a change in ministry, not so m1|uch a change in location. The Holy Spirit was very much at work in Old Testament times, before He “came” at Pentecost. He was involved in creation (Gen. 1:2; Job 33:4), and of course He inspired the Old Testament Scriptures (II Pet. 1:21). He also came upon and “filled” individuals to equip them for a particular work (Exod. 31:3; Jud. 3:10).

Prior to Pentecost, sinners still needed to be born again through faith, and receive eternal life. That is a work of the Holy Spirit–which is why Christ (pre-Pentecost) could speak to Nicodemus of his need to be born again of the Spirit of God (Jn. 3:5-8). There are, however, some differences with regard to the ministry of the Spirit of God in the present age. His permanent indwelling of believers is new (Jn. 14:16-17), as is His baptizing work of joining Christians to Christ and to one another in His body (I Cor. 12:12-13; Gal. 3:26-28). The church is unique to the present age.

That brings us to what happens after the rapture of the church. Second Thessalonians 2:6-8 says, “Now you know what is restraining, that he [the Antichrist] may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He [meaning, I believe, the Holy Spirit] who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed…” One of the ministries of the Spirit now is to restrain the forces of evil. (Imagine what they will be like when unrestrained!) And one of the chief agencies the Spirit uses to accomplish this is the church, and concerned Christians who speak out against wrong. When the church is taken up, this restraint will come to an end.

However, that does not mean the omnipresent Spirit will no longer be here and at work. One writer says the “taking out of the way” of the Restrainer “refers not to spatial removal…but rather [to] a stepping aside.” I sometimes picture it as the opening of flood gates causing a tide of evil to sweep across the world. Millions will be saved during the Tribulation (those who have not heard the gospel and decisively rejected Christ before the rapture–Rev. 7:13-14; cf. II Thess. 2:9-12). They will be convicted by the Spirit of God, and born of the Spirit. But in many respects, judging from the limited Scripture we have on the subject, His operations seem to revert to what they were in the Old Testament.

Could Jesus Have Sinned?

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Question: (This is a follow-up question from a reader of Glenn’s query on the sinlessness of Christ. In my response I indicated that not only did Christ not sin, He could not sin.)

Matt asks, “How does Hebrews 4:15 fit in what you say? In whose ‘like as [we are]’ is the temptation? Would this not suggest that Jesus had two natures? One nature is God. The other nature is human. Jesus felt the temptation on his human side and could have sinned if He wanted to do so. He did not want to do so. How could He be touched with our infirmities if Jesus could not sin?”

Answer: You ask a good question, Matt, and I hope I can clarify things for you. The issue is what’s known in theology as the impeccability of Christ. Could Jesus have sinned if He wanted to? Or was it impossible for Him to sin? There are conservative scholars on both sides of the debate, but I believe the greater weight of argument falls on the latter position. Let me make several points.

Christ was indeed “in all points tempted as we are” (Heb. 4:15). Not that He experienced every single temptation we do. (For example, I doubt He was tempted to smoke cigarettes as they had not been invented yet.) But He experienced every category of temptation common to humanity. The same Greek word is used in Acts 10:12. “All kinds of four-footed animals” does not mean every species on earth, but representatives of the various kinds.

As God the Son, Christ cannot be tempted to sin (Jas. 1:13). But as Man He willingly exposed Himself to the temptations common to humanity. Christ was truly tempted (in your words, He “felt the temptation”), but He did not sin. This truth is emphasized many times (e.g. II Cor. 5:21; Heb. 7:26; I Pet. 2:22; I Jn. 3:5). In being tempted He is like us, and can sympathize with us when we are tempted. He did not have to be able to sin to do that. One theologian uses this illustration to support the point: We cannot say because a powerful army cannot be conquered that it cannot therefore be attacked.

Yes, Christ has had, since His incarnation, two natures. He is both fully God and fully Man. But we must not divide those in a schizophrenic fashion as though He had some kind of split personality. The two natures are fully integrated. “In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily” (Col. 2:9). He is one Being, not two. And He cannot do something as Man that would be impossible for Him to do as God. For example, the Bible says God “cannot lie” (Tit. 1:2). It is an act which is contrary to His nature.

As perfect Man Christ possessed no sin nature, and in His perfection He fully submitted Himself to the will of God the Father (Jn. 5:19; 8:29). As God the Son–and therefore also as the God-Man–it was impossible for Him to sin. In fact, one of the purposes of His temptation may well have been to demonstrate without doubt that He could not sin!

“There is none who seeks after God”

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Question: Bill asks, “Can you please explain what Paul was teaching in Romans chapter 3 where he refers to no one seeking God. Is this a general condition of mankind? There are many people who think they are seeking God, so to what was Paul referring?”

Answer: The short answer is that Paul is speaking of sinful fallen human beings left to themselves, and without divine intervention. But let’s dig a little deeper.

The entire passage, Romans 3:9-19 is devastating. The sin problem affects both Jews (favoured by God’s covenants, 3:1-2) and Gentiles. They are “all under sin” (vs. 9), and “all the world…[stands] guilty before God” (vs. 19). The passage is referring to each and every fallen human being, without exception. The virgin born Son of God, of course, was not corrupted by sin, nor did He commit sins. But apart from Him, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (vs. 23).

The most striking note in the passage, is its unrelenting insistence on sin’s inclusiveness. Drawing from six different Old Testament passages, Paul carefully supports his argument: “all under sin” (vs. 9); “none righteous, no not one” (vs. 10); “none who understands…none who seeks after God” (vs. 11); “all turned aside…none who does good, no not one” (vs. 12). It is impossible to miss the point!

Then, the apostle looks at the subject from a different angle. Not only has sin corrupted us all, it has entirely corrupted each of us–that is, every part of our beings. Here is “total depravity” writ large. All of our conduct shows the result. Sin’s pollution affects what we say (vs. 13-14); the way we go, or what we do (vs. 15-17), and the object of our faith or allegiance (vs. 18). The unsaved may do good works, in a temporal and material sense, but not good that is free of fleshly effort and sinful pride. Any “good” the unregenerate might do is thus “unprofitable [worthless]” (vs. 12) in a spiritual and eternal sense. It cannot earn him acceptance with God.

Paul’s goal is to show the absolute necessity of the gospel of grace. To do that he begins with the “bad news”: that sin’s devastating effects are universal and entire. Then, the “but” of vs. 21 begins the “good news” and the answer: That righteousness (i.e. a righteous standing before God) comes through faith in Christ (vs. 22), and those who trust in Him are justified (pronounced righteous) “freely by His grace” (vs. 24; cf. 4:4-5).

Yes, there are many people who think they are seeking after God, or salvation. But it may be a god of their own imagining and a salvation of their own devising, and both are vanity and lead only to destruction. “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Prov. 16:25). The condition of each individual born into the world is described as being “dead in trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1, 5). This deadness involves both a spiritual insensitivity and spiritual inability. No one in such a condition has the spiritual perception to understand God and His ways (I Cor. 2:14), or the power to respond to Him appropriately, even if he could understand (Rom. 5:6).

The only answer is for God to step in. Since man would never seek God on his own, God must act first. As Jesus said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father draws him,” and “no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him by My Father” (Jn. 6:44, 65). Part of this is the convicting work of the Holy Spirit (Jn. 16:8). He also energizes the spirit to respond in faith. We believe “through grace” (Acts 18:27). (Cf. “To you it has been granted…to believe in Him,” Phil. 1:29). And, when the individual reaches out in faith and becomes a new creation in Christ, it is only by the continuing ministry of the Spirit of God that Christlike conduct is produced (Gal. 5:22-23).

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