A Legacy of Faith

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1

As I get older, I notice I have become more thankful for things that previously I had not noticed were valuable to me.  Like so many Americans, I have been guilty of taking for granted values and principles for which previous generations chose to suffer and die.  Such is the case with a four volume commentary on the book of Hebrews originally published from 1668 to 1684 in London by Dr. John Owen, the esteemed dean of Christ's College Oxford and beloved country preacher.  

My copy, originally published in 1811, was given to me by my father many years ago and has been in my library since.  They have unfortunately been rarely opened and until recently not studied nor appreciated.  

It's amazing what treasures are in our possession and we don't even know it.  Like the person who brings the picture that's been hanging in the garage to the Antique Road Show and finds out its a valuable original, I have been sitting unawares on treasures that are equally astounding.

A good friend and former mentor told me, "you will become in the next five years two things:  what you read and who you associate with".  Believing that to be true, I started many years ago to develop a voracious reading habit.  Still to this day, I read four to five books a month and sometimes more.  At times I read to learn, other times to relax.  Some volumes are on topics of interest and others are selected because of a need in my life.  It was need that drove me to finally open this great work by Dr. Owen.  

A few weeks ago, I felt a real and urgent need to get alone with God.  I've been studying the spiritual disciplines and realized that I really haven't been able to experience solitude for the purpose of communion with God and meditation in a long while.  Fortunately, I live in a very isolated place, in the middle of the Pacific ocean, on an island where less that 2% of the land is developed.  I live next to a mountain that has miles of wilderness.  With solitude as my goal, I drove to a very remote part of the mountain, high above the valley floor.  The bi-coastal view was spectacular.  Wispy clouds rolled in and out obstructing my view at times.   Not another soul was in sight.  There was not a sound to be heard except the wind through the trees.  I was indeed alone with God.


I felt God wanted to say something to me and I had been too busy and preoccupied trying to serve Him to listen.  What it was or how he would speak to me I had no idea.  In fact, I brought my Bible but I had absolutely no idea where to start.  I was even uncertain what to pray.  Not knowing what else to do, I simply prayed that He would make His intentions known to me if I would just start reading.  That just left one problem; "Where to begin reading?"  

Now maybe you've been in a similar boat, knowing you needed to hear from God; knowing the answers to your questions were to be found in His Word, but having no clue where to start.  If so, then you can empathize with my situation.  

I figured I'd narrow it down to the New Testament, but still felt no real direction, so I simply started in Matthew 1:1 and read the entire book in one sitting.  What followed turned out to be one of the greatest days in my Christian experience.  


Lots of things came to my attention.  Each of the stories of Jesus' life and ministry revealed His divinity, His nature, His compassion, His power, His love for all mankind, His hatred of hypocritical religion, His purpose and so much more.  But what literally leaped off the pages and grabbed my attention was Jesus' emphasis on the importance of faith.


Over and over again He either approved someone for evidencing faith or rebuked others for their lack of faith.  Whether it was faith in His ability to heal a sick family member, feed a multitude, calm a storm, walk on water or rise victorious over death; Jesus life and teachings continuously challenged and stretched His disciples faith. It was to teach me a lesson about faith that He had brought me up to the mountain.  


Now back to Dr. Owen.  


Wanting to study more on the subject of faith, I dug into Hebrews 11.  That's when I remembered the massive 4 volume, 2163 page commentary on Hebrews.  I turned to the fourth volume and opened to the section on chapter 11.  That's when I noticed the section pictured above.  


Here Dr. Owen, observes that Faith, at it's core, being the 'evidence of things not seen', is the "great means of preserving believers in constant, patient profession of the gospel, against all opposition, and under the fiercest persecutions".  He continues to teach that it is faith that:

1. "...discovers that the worst of what we can undergo in this world for the profession of the gospel, bears no proportion to the excellency and glory of those invisible things..."
2.  "...relieves and refresheth the soul under all its sufferings..."  And "makes (us) joyful in them and victorious over them".
3.  "...gives an assurance ... of the greatness and glory of the eternal reward, which is the greatest encouragement to constancy in believing."


His closing observations on Hebrews 11:1 spoke volumes to me.  He writes.


"It is faith alone, that takes believers out of this world whilst they are in it, that exalts them above it whilst they are under its rage; that enables them to live upon things future and invisible, giving such a real subsistence to their power, and victorious evidence of their reality and truth, in themselves, as secures them from fainting under all oppositions, temptations, and persecutions whatever."

Perhaps, like me, you need to be reminded that your faith is not in vain.  Your faith in God will be rewarded whether you see the end result here on earth or in heaven.  For the next 38 verses the author of Hebrews catalogs the faith of the ancients.  In 11:39 he reminds us that they were  

"commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised.  God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect."

I'm thankful for a legacy of faith and faithfulness passed down from my father,  and for all 2163 pages of wisdom now appreciated in my library.  I'm thankful that God chooses to speak to me through His word if I'll just take the time to listen.  I'm thankful I can place my faith in one who is Himself trustworthy and find confidence to face the trials and tribulations of life.  

Claiming To Be Wise They Became Fools ...

 

Hawaii is an incredible place.  Rising from the depths of the Pacific ocean are eight volcanic islands that make up this wonderful island state.  Actually these are just the visible parts of a chain of undersea mountains that stretch for 1500 miles across the mid-Pacific.  

When measured from their true foundations below the ocean, these are the tallest mountains in the world.  At the bottom of the island chain is the island of Hawaii and the shield volcanos Mauna Loa (13,677) and Moana Kea (13,796).  When measured from it's base, Mauna Loa reaches 3/4 a mile above Mt. Everest and covers nearly 10,000 cubic miles of mass.  No wonder they call it the "Big Island".  

The island of Maui, Hawaii's northern neighbor boasts two mountains, the massive Haleakala "House of the Sun" (11,500) and the west Maui mountains known to Hawaiians as Komohana, also called Mauna Kahalawai.  These two are connected by a broad valley thus earning Maui the name "The Valley Isle".  Each of the other islands have similar mountains though not as high or large as those on Maui or Hawaii.  (Sorry Kauai, you do have the dramatic Waimea Canyon aka "The Grand Canyon of the Pacific")

The islands of Hawaii are the most isolated land mass on earth, situated approximately 2500 miles from land in any direction.  Free from atmospheric pollution (well, there is the VOG from Kilauea), and with little to no ambient light, the mountains of Hawaii are considered some of the best places to observe the stars anywhere on earth. The night air is clear and dry.  As a result, both on the island of Hawaii and here on Maui you find leading observatories built above one third of the earth's atmosphere.  

At the summit of Haleakala is Maui's "Science City", home to the University of Hawaii Institute for Astronomy.  Partnering with NASA, the National Science Foundation, the Pan-STARRS consortium, the Space Telescope Science Institute, Tohoku University (Japan), the US Air Force and other agencies, the Institute for Astronomy shares some of the worlds most powerful telescopes.  These and other scientific organizations are researching such subjects as astrobiology, the sun and solar systems, the stars and galaxies and cosmology.

Ever wonder what they do with all those millions of research grants?  Take a moment to review those research subjects.  Astrobiology.  Cosmology.  Astrobiology from astron "constellation, star" and bios "life" is defined as the study of the origin, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe.  Cosmology from kosmos "universe" and logia "study" is the study of the universe in it's totality and by extension humanity in it's place.  Historically cosmology included science, philosophy, esotericism and religion.  The very names of the research subjects gives you a clue.  

The Institute for Astronomy's own website has this to say about Cosmology ...

"There is now nearly universal agreement that the universe began in a hot Big Bang more than 13 billion years ago and has expanded from a nearly uniform early state of very hot gas and radiation. One of the most compelling problems of modern astrophysics is to understand the evolution from this early uniform state to our current structured universe of stars and galaxies. When and how did galaxies form? When and where did the first stars form? Will galaxy formation go on forever, or are we at a special time in the history of the universe?"

The actual course description for Astrobiology 281 in part reads ...

"One theme of the course is the quest for an understanding of the origin and cosmic distribution of life. This topic embraces the search for life on Mars, efforts to find planets around other stars, an evaluation of the UFO phenomenon, and the search for extraterrestrial intelligence."

Academics and scientists across the globe continue on their endless search for the answers to man's origin.  Occupying the combined minds and efforts of some of the world's most intelligent people is the attempt to find purpose and meaning apart from God.  

In the opening chapter of the book of Romans, the apostle Paul tells us that God's anger comes to those who suppress the truth by their wickedness.  Paul writes, 

"¹⁹since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. ²⁰For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse."  

He continues to tell us that men could know God, but they chose not to acknowledge and glorify Him as God.  As a result,  

"their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. ²²Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools ²³and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles."

It's just as true today, intelligent people continue to exchange the truth of God for a lie.  In cathedrals of education and science across the globe people would rather worship and serve the things God has  created than the Creator Himself.  The scientific community continues to rage against what is easily recognizable to those less educated.  Clearly the amazing design of the universe requires a designer.  Job says of God,

 Job 9

 ⁸ He alone stretches out the heavens

       and treads on the waves of the sea.

 ⁹ He is the Maker of the Bear and Orion,
       the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.

 ¹⁰ He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed,
       miracles that cannot be counted.

When you look at the stars at night are you humbled by the immensity of the world God has created, or are you still searching for meaning without Him? 

Psalm 8

 ³ When I consider your heavens,

       the work of your fingers,

       the moon and the stars,

       which you have set in place,

 ⁴ what is man that you are mindful of him,
       the son of man that you care for him?

 ⁵ You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
       and crowned him with glory and honor.

In the mid-1400s Thomas À Kempis wrote, 

"Every man naturally desires knowledge; but what good is knowledge without fear of God? Indeed a humble rustic who serves God is better than a proud intellectual who neglects his soul to study the course of the stars."

And it's still true today! 

Alpha & Omega - When Tomorrow Comes

Do you hear the people sing 

Lost in the valley of the night
It is the music of a people
Who are climbing to the light
For the wretched of the earth
There is a flame that never dies
Even the darkest night will end
And the sun will rise.

They will live again in freedom
In the garden of the Lord
They will walk behind the plough-share
They will put away the sword
The chain will be broken
And all men will have their reward!

Do you hear the people sing
Say, do you hear the distant drums?
It is the future that they bring
When tomorrow comes!
Tomorrow comes!
Tomorrow comes!

So wrote Claude-Michel Schonberg & Herbert Kretzmer in the Finale of their Tony-Award winning musical based on Victor Hugo's epic, Les Miserables.  As one of the longest running shows on Broadway and London's Westend, and in traveling troops, their haunting music has been heard around the world.  It is likely that more people know the Musical today than have read the daunting 1500 page french novel.  Considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century the book chronicles the life and struggles of ex-convict Jean Valjean from prison to redemption.  

Early in the book you come to a critical passage as Jean Valjean, captured by the police, is returned to face Bishop Myriel whose silverware he has stolen in the night.  Facing certain re-imprisonment, the Bishop tells the police that the silverware was a gift and adds his silver candlesticks as well.  Seeing mercy for the first time, Valjean is a changed man which is proved out in the balance of the novel.  

It is in reference to this passage and to the lyrics of the song above that I wish to draw attention.  

In the novel, Bishop Myriel, in typical catholic proclamation, exclaims, "today I have purchased your soul for God."  This dogma of the church as the keeper and distributor of God's grace may well be the single cause of more people going to hell than any other deception of Satan.  The second is the belief that a person can perform enough good works to earn access to God's presence in Paradise.  Hugo spends nearly 1300 pages detailing his character's attempt to earn righteousness and justification.  

In the musical, Schonberg and Kretzmer likewise affirm a dangerous error about the future. Look at the words, "It is the music of a people who are climbing to the light".  The self-improvement of mankind on the basis of his own efforts in overcoming his fallen state is the concealed meaning of the phrase.  

But what can we really expect "when tomorrow comes"?  What is the future of mankind?  What will be man's just rewards?  The answer to these and other critical questions can be found in the book of Revelation (The Apocalypse of John), the last book in the Bible.  Here another Author concludes His Master-work.  Here also are written the lyrics of the songs of angels.

In contrast to Les Miserables (both the novel and the musical) the book of Revelation depicts mankind in outright rebellion against God.  With true believers removed from the earth after the fourth chapter, the world of man, deceived by Satan and his spiritual forces, follows him on a path leading to their destruction and judgment. The book culminates in a final showdown between God and Satan.  In chapter 19, the Word of God - Jesus, mounted on a white horse, with the armies of heaven following, crushes Satan and the kings of the earth, revealing Himself as "King of Kings, and Lord of Lords".

Is annihilation at the hand of an angry God the only future that awaits mankind?  So it would seem if the book of Revelation ended in chapter 19.  But in chapter 21 we see the Alpha & Omega living with the redeemed in a New Jerusalem and making everything new.  In chapter 22, the apostle John is told to write,  

¹⁰"Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near. ¹¹Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy."

 ¹²"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. ¹³I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

 ¹⁴"Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.

Revelation chapter 22 concludes with this statement: 

 ²⁰He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming soon."
      Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.

 ²¹The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen.

The grace of our Lord Jesus.  That's the key to the future.  It can be yours if you'll just ask Him.  All who call on the name of the Lord will be saved.  The Lamb of God, slain before the foundations of the earth, is the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last.  He alone bestows living water to all who are thirsty.  It is not a sacrament of the church or the blessings of a priest that secures your eternity.  Nor is salvation to be found in a lifetime's struggle against evil.  It is the grace of Jesus Christ alone. 

Do you hear the people sing?  Say, do you hear the distant drums?  What is the future you will see when tomorrow comes?

Running with Perseverance

Are you facing a world of difficulty and challenges?   

The author of Hebrews has much to say about perseverance.

BEJING, AD 2008-- The crowd in the stadium are on their feet.  Their cheers rising to a massive crescendo.  An elite team of finely tuned athletes are on the track. The final runner, set to take the handoff and dash to the finish line, reaches back.  And then a nightmare ... the baton is dropped, skidding away from the runners.  Passing out of the exchange zone the team is disqualified.  It’s a scene viewed by millions across the globe.  The collective gasp of the crowd steals the air.  Another race run, but not well, the race not completed, the medal lost. 

Team USA's 4x100 relay teams, both women and men, had failed after dropping their batons.  In fact it was the fifth time in the previous 12 world championships the star-studded Team USA had failed to finish the 4x100 relay.

ROMAN EMPIRE, AD 63 -- The author of Hebrews describes a similar spectacle.  (Hebrews 11:1-12:3) A great crowd looks on.  Distinguished celebrities are scattered throughout the crowd.  Abraham, Isaac and Jacob sitting with Joseph and Moses.  Rahab peering through the binoculars.  Gideon, Barak, Samson are waving the team’s banner ... a red cross on a blue field.  David and Samuel shout their encouragement.  Thousands of former runners, decorated for their faithfulness fill the stadium.  Each one applauding the runners and you are on the track.

The warning in Hebrews 12:1 is to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and ... run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”  It matters how we run.  It matters how we finish.  

MINNESOTA, AD 1980 -- When I was in high school, I ran track for two seasons.  It wasn’t my favorite sport, but it helped me get in shape for soccer.  The pre-season conditioning was difficult.  First running miles, then sprints, then miles mixed with sprints, then sprints mixed with miles, then just sprints and sprints and sprints.  I was neither a great distance runner, nor a spectacular sprinter.  However, I did run faster than most and so I was selected for the 4x400 relay team.  

Not having run in junior high, the coach took me aside the first week of the season and gave me some valuable coaching.  First he told me to run with my eyes fixed on the finish line, not the other runners, nor any other distraction in the stadium.  Second, he told me to run within my lane at all times to avoid infractions and disqualification.  Third, he told me to learn how to pace myself for the entire leg of my race.  Not to go out too fast and burn out, nor to wait until too late to try to catch up.  It was a lesson easier heard than implemented.  

For my first race I was selected to run the third leg.  Each of my teammates had successfully made their hand off and I was now running my grueling 400 meters.  Everything went perfectly for the first 200 meters.  In fact I had made up ground on the teams in front of me and had come even with the leading team.  I felt exuberant.  I was making an impact.  I was running well.

And then came the 300 meter mark.  All of a sudden, I had no breath.  My legs began to tighten up and I felt fairly sure that I was going to die.  Then I felt a tear in my right quadricep.  I could hear the crowd in the stands.  I could hear their gasps as I pulled up lame and had to struggle to finish my leg and make my handoff.  I then sat down right on the track.  We finished near the back of the pack.  It was the end of my track season.  The lesson -  stretch more, lots of stretching!

MAUI, HAWAII, AD 2010 -- Running the Christian race is very similar.  There is pre-season conditioning, preparing our minds and hearts for the event.  There’s the crowd of witnesses, each one a former runner themselves.  There’s the rules, run fairly, run well.  There’s the finish line and the prize.   

As I think back over these many years, I can still see in my mind exactly where I sat down on that track in pain and agony.  I can easily relate that experience to the race I’m running today.  Sometimes miles.  Months and years of struggle where persistence and patience are critical.  And there are the sprints.  Short bursts of intense energy in prayer and spiritual battle.  The crowd is there too.  Watching, cheering, awaiting the outcome.  And there at the finish line, waits Jesus.  He’s won the race.  He’s endured the pain.  He is the prize.  So run.  Run within the rules.  Run without entanglement.  Run with perseverance.  Run.