A people for his own possession

 This week I want to look at what the Word of God says about salvation. Now I know that if you lean toward being a Calvinist then you will be feeling doubtful as to whether I will treat this subject fairly. I can assure you that I will endeavour to be fair in my presentation of the facts as they appear in the bible. Before I jump into the many scriptures that relate to this subject I would point out that the bible has one continuing theme from the beginning to end. That God wants a people for his own possession.

Two scriptures that relate to this are Deuteronomy chapter 7 verse 6 “For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth...” ESV This speaks to the nation of Israel and is delivered through Moses and the Law. The other scripture is 1Peter chapter 2 verse 9 “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light...” ESV This scripture relates to all Christians. Those of Israel and those who are in the Gentile Church as of such are we.

But it applies to the angels as it applied to Adam and Eve. Lucifer was created perfect and the scriptures tell us he remained so until sin was found in him. Ezekiel chapter 28 verse 15 “You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, Till iniquity was found in you...” NKJV So although Satan was created perfect he chose to sin and became corrupted. Not only was he corrupted but he corrupted a third of the angels of heaven and led them in rebellion against the Creator. Revelation chapter 12 verse 4 “His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth...” Satan and the angels that followed him were defeated and cast out of heaven.

So God began the creation on Earth and created mankind in His own image. Adam and Eve were made perfect. But in Genesis chapter 3 verses 1-7 we see the Serpent spin God’s commands another way to deceive them into disobeying God. So they went from being a people for God’s own possession to a people separated from God by sin through disobedience. This is the same tactic that Satan has used to divert mankind throughout history.

Now prior to the great deluge mankind has completely forsaken the Creator to the point that He said he regretted ever creating them and only Noah was a person for His own possession. Through Noah and his family God was able yo re-establish mankind after the flood. Within a short time disobedience had recurred at Babel where mankind built a tower to heaven. God destroyed it and confused the language sending mankind off into different races and nations. This I believe, was to stop Satan creating a world empire and setting up worship of himself at that time.

Shortly thereafter God called Abraham out of Ur of the Caldees and into Canaan and made a covenant with him and his descendants. The offspring of Abraham and Sarah were driven into Egypt by famine and settled there where they stayed for nearly four hundred years until God sent Moses to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt.

For the first time God lived with the nation of Israel as they journeyed around the Sinai while he gave them the law and prepared them to enter Canaan. Thus began the nation of Israel. This is where God said through Moses “For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth...” So you see here that God desires a people who will obey him and be holy to Him. His treasured possession.

My belief is that God not only calls his people and enables them to come to him. He enables them to choose him and He only wants those who seek him in their hearts. Those who reject God are those who never sought to follow Him in the first place. John chapter 3 verse 18 puts it this way Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. ESV

So what is belief? Merriam Webster Dictionary defines belief as “A state or habit of mind in which trust or confidence is placed in some person or thing.” So it is an action or in Christian terms a work. So in this case this scripture is crucial to God seeking a people for his own possession. A people who choose to follow God. Jesus said in the scripture above that if we don’t believe we are condemned already. He clearly indicates in this scripture that we have the choice.

Yes we are chosen but we are chosen on the basis that we have a heart condition that is favorable to God. A heart condition that will lead us to respond to his calling. A heart condition in which He can engender that action of belief within us. Without that action of belief we are condemned already. Without that belief we do not have faith.

Merriam Webster dictionary defines faith as “belief and trust in and loyalty to God.” Hebrews chapter 11 verse 6 says “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” ESV So if we cannot please God if we are without faith. We cannot believe that He exists and rewards those who seek Him with eternal life. Again we see that faith is an action just as belief is an action. So if we are to draw near to Christ Jesus or if we are drawn near by the Father then an act or work of faith has to occur before God can redeem us.

It is a confusing business to tease out the threads of knowledge and to understand what the bible says about predestination. Being chosen by God and choosing to follow God. Being sought on the basis that we choose God and being accepted on the basis of election from the beginning of time. Understanding that we are hapless lost souls who can do nothing of ourselves to rectify our position before God. Yet also being chosen on the basis of acceptance of Christ’s redemptive work on the Cross. It begs the question “Do we believe ourselves or does God enable us to believe?” For myself I believe it is both. We need the Father to draw us near and we need to answer Christ’s knock on the door with a resounding “Yes!” Indeed “Yes I wish to be a chosen person who is holy to the Lord and a treasured possession out of all the peoples on the face of the Earth.”

I can tell you that it is true that I wish with my entire being to be a part of a holy nation and a royal priesthood. A people belonging to God. Now you might say that I can’t say that for myself and that only God can cause me to say it at all but I can tell you that I desire it with all my heart. Now, it seems to me that I wish it and I believe it but you may be right and that it only seems that way because God has done this for me. Yet it seems to me that I have made that decision and I believe it with all my heart and I also believe that God intends that to be the case.

So if we conclude where we began and look at the case of the Angels and Adam and Eve. In the case of the Angels they were created perfect and with purpose. As I understand it God did not allow for them to be other than they were made to be. Perfect and without sin. Yet in time because they are self aware entities. Satan was corrupted with personal sin and in due course he caused a third of the Angels to be corrupted with sin as well. It would seem that this led to the creation on Earth.

On Earth God performed the Creation as it is described in Genesis and He created Adam and Eve as the first humans. He placed them in the Garden of Eden and placed them in control of everything in Creation. He gave them instructions as to which trees they might eat of and specifically forbade them to eat of the Tree of Knowledge. This was a choice that God allowed them to make for themselves but it was a test of character as well.

You could argue that God drew them to disobey simply by instructing them not to eat of the fruit of that tree. In issuing that instruction it became a part of the law of God. Romans chapter 4 verse 15 says “For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression.” ESV and Romans chapter 5 verse 20 it says “Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more..” ESV So where there is law there is sin. If there had been no instruction regarding the Tree of Knowledge neither would there have been disobedience on the part of Adam and Eve.

So, finally, what am I saying here. Well, put succinctly I am saying that the fall of man was necessary for man to have experienced the consequences of sin. To know what Christ Jesus was saving mankind from and sort those whose desire and love for God was great, inspite of being lost in their sins. Therefore, God desires a people for his own possession. A people who will choose to follow Him. A people who given the choice will remain obedient to Yahweh Elohim simply because they are His people and He is their God. He loves them boundlessly and they return that love in unending faith and loyalty for eternity.

Reference List

All verses come from the English Standard Version of the Holy Bible

Belief https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/belief 16/03/21

The Fearful Believer

 I’m speaking in this article to other believers. I don’t know how you find life but for various reasons I have glass half empty world view despite of being a Christian. I can remember being very young and looking at my older siblings and being fearful that I would not be able to do the things they were doing. They were leaving school and starting work at the time and the responsibilities they faced terrified me.

Just to add to this my father died when I was a child and the personal and shared grief of that event left its mark on the entire family. My mother was left with seven children and a farm business to run. She remarried and that had an almost tidal effect on the family. I went to boarding school which was a wonderful thing but I didn’t think so at the time.

A few years later we moved to the Rotorua area to a dairy farm here and my mother didn’t shift so well. She ended up suffering from coronary heart disease and we almost lost her. God really blessed us though and she lived well into her eighties in the end. This was a happy and a sad time in my life which I look back on fondly. I didn’t realise at the time, though, that I had begun to develop an attitude of fearfulness.

In Church, the common preaching of the time focused on the near return of the Lord and the likely beginning of the Tribulation time, being near at hand. There was also a tendency among Christians to frown on others who expressed concern about the negativity of this message. So if you had doubts you were made to feel guilty for what was essentially deemed to be unbelief. So as well as already being fearful you now felt emotionally oppressed and confused also.

As the years passed and I began to seek ways of changing that negative outlook. Some of this involved questioning Christian perspectives that I had previously accepted without question. This related to some of the ultra conservative thinking in the evangelical church at the time about attitudes to child discipline, bible versions and even negativity itself. This took a while but I had seen a conflict between the attitudes of Jesus in the Gospels and the thinking in my Christian circles for sometime. I would say that this is continuing even now. A favourite scripture in this vein is 1John 4 verses 18-19 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us.

Twenty years ago I decided for a number of reasons to change careers. I left dairy farming and entered a degree course in teacher training. I hoped at the time that this would help set us off on a new journey. It did this but at a personal level, being an introvert with a negative outlook on life. Changing careers caused as many problems as it solved. Teaching is a confidence game and requires enormous self belief. It can also create equally enormous self doubt.

So, the career change was a good thing for the family but a mixed bag for me. In terms of developing a wider knowledge of life and empathy with others it has been incredibly successful. I would have to say though that I now have less self confidence and self esteem than I did when I started this journey. I am even more cautious and introverted than I was and being with large groups of people while teaching is emotionally draining..

So, that question again. What can I do to change this situation and make myself into a glass half full person. Well I never forget God has a plan and even if things don’t seem to be going how I would like them. He has a purpose in bringing me through these trials that he has seen fit to challenge me with.

Back in 2010 my son, who has Williams Syndrome discovered a little Reformed Presbyterian Church plant that was meeting in the school hall of the local primary school where my wife works. He began to attend there and I only lightly supported him as I wanted him to do this for himself. These awesome folks took my boy to their hearts and really cared for him and became his church home.

About two years ago I began to attend a bible study with some teacher friends and my son came along to that as well. I was thinking of ways to stretch myself and develop a more positive attitude. Now I was feeling that I needed to take a step in faith. I guess the Lord was pointing me to get more involved with the Church.

In support of my son I began to attend Grace Presbyterian with him but it was important for me as well. This has been a big challenge for me as it has required self confidence, self esteem and the courage of my convictions. I was raised congregational and Grace Church is all about the Reformed Tradition. We still maintain a connection with the bible study group of my teaching friends although this has been stretched with the commitments at Grace. But the point is that God is working in our hearts and  is healing the lack of self confidence, esteem and introversion in me. Largely through the prayer support of friends at Church and being in a nurturing environment with a loving church family.

Just a final word. The scriptures contain many promises of God relating to fearfulness. These are very valuable sources of encouragement in my walk as I seek the peace and security in Christ Jesus. Below are a few of the verses that have helped me to become more positive and grounded in the love of God.

Isaiah 41:10 Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. ESV

Joshua 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” ESV

Psalm 27:1 Of David. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? ESV

Romans 8:38-39 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. ESV

Psalm 94:19 When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul. ESV

1Peter 5: 6-7 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. ESV

Luke 12: 22-26 And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? ESV

Proverbs 3: 5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. ESV

Psalm 46:1 To the choirmaster. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A Song. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. ESV

2 Thessalonians 3:16 Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all. ESV

Isaiah 26:3 You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. ESV

Romans 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. ESV

You can find these verses using a favourite study tool of mine https://www.openbible.info/ which renders verses via a topical search engine from the ESV bible. When I’m feeling a bit down I often use openbible.info to find these verses for me again. It’s not that a verse gives you power necessarily just that they remind you of the love and care that God feels and brings to us as his children. Gradually He is changing my heart and breaking the shackles of fear in my life.