Spiritual vs. Material

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Gen. 1:1

When God created the world, it was a very physical world, not only a spiritual one. God and creature were united in perfect harmony. God created a very physical garden. From some people you would get the idea that the Garden of Eden was a continuous virtual church service. I do not think it was quite like that. I think it was more like two lovers strolling through a park. Perfect peace and rapturous communication. I believe work was delightful and peaceful. Unfortunately sin entered the garden and everything changed.

Genesis 3:17-19 tells us what happened. God brought curses upon Creation, and death and destruction were the result. Verse 23 says, “Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.” I believe this verse records the great divorce between spiritual and material.

No longer is there perfect harmony between the spiritual world and physical one. Of course Christ came and paid the way for redemption, however this did not restore us to the Eden experience. One of the greatest struggles for the Christian maturing in holiness, is this divorce between spiritual and physical. Often the duties and struggles to earn a living and to provide for the physical body, consume much of our time and energy. Material concerns can obscure our spiritual sight. The Apostle Paul referred to this in I Cor. 13:12 “For know we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as I am known.” It takes faith in Christ to keep our spiritual vision keen.

This is not to downplay the wonderful world God has given for our enjoyment. However even this we are not often able to enjoy, because of the necessities of living. But rejoice there is hope! I look forward to the day of Isaiah 11:6, “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.” Once more spiritual and material will be inseparably united forever!!!

Quotes

Some thoughts from my good friend Brent,

Dear friends and family,

I have been reading a book called the Kingdom of God by John Bright.  He was the professor of Hebrew and the Interpretation of the Old Testament at Union Theological Seminary around World War II.  It is interesting reading.  I found a few quotes that I thought were relevant to our day.

In referring to the monarchy in Israel under David and Soloman, he says, “So it is that the question before us is not unlike that which the monarchy posed for Israel…it is a question which cannot be evaded, and it matters greatly how we answer it.  Will our destiny as a nation which calls itself Christian be satisfied in terms of the economic prosperity and the national might which we have created?  Will we seek no higher salvation than the present order can provide in terms of increased incomes(security), automobiles(mobility), and television sets(entertainment)?  What is worse, will we, because we have churches and because our political forms are hospitable to their growth, assume that the present order is the God-ordained order which God–if He be just–may be called upon to defend always?  The people that answers the question so, will see it as the sole function of religion to support and to hallow in the name of God its own material best interests.  But it will never begin to understand the meaning of the Kingdom of God.” (italics mine)

When talking of bad and good times, he writes, “But may we not also be led to reflect that times that seem evil to us may serve a better purpose than time that are good?  This may seem a strange thing to say, but there is much truth in it.  The good times that we desire are time of freedom from disturbing bother–in which a man can read his paper without worrying, can get on with his business, can have gas for his car and the pleasures and luxuries which we all enjoy.  Those, we would say, are good time.  But perhaps from the divine point of view they are not.  For the purpose of God for us is not the comfort of our bodies or the preservation of our interests, but the discipline of our spirits that we may become truly his people.”

In reference of the effort to legislate morality, he states, “Jeremiah saw that it would take more than Josiah’s reform to make Judah the people of God.  How strange their delusion, yet how familiar!  We yearn for a Christian society and know no way to gain it save by organizing meetings, financing programs, enacting laws, and padlocking the more nauseous resorts of ill fame.  And Israel yearned tor covenant peace with God–and padlocked the false shrines and became very busy at the temple.  We shall not decry reform measures are called for.  But Jeremiah tells us that if we have no more than reform measures, we are chopping Hydra’s heads, lopping at the leaves and branches of mortal frailty and touching the trunk of it not at all.  Jeremiah told his people that the covenant bond is simply not to be restored externally.  He wheeled upon their busy observance of the cultic law and appealed from the external of the law to th heart of it.  Said he:  God does not care how fussily you regulate public worship.  Offer your sacrifices this way or that–it’s all one to God! For the heart of God’s demand is not busy religion, but obedience.  Only an obedient people can remain in covenant with God; only over an obedient people will he rule.  As for this people, it must repent from the heart…The people of God are a people of clean heart.” (italics mine)

I found these quotes to be very relative to our day in both the political and spiritual climates in which we are living.  The lines between political and spiritual are being so blurred by our political activism.  We live in a church world that believes if we can outlaw this or outlaw that, that somehow that is going to turn around how God may view our country.  I think that Bright points out very aptly that only clear obedience to God will change anything.

We are also convinced that the survival of the American church as we see it is necessary for the kingdom of God to advance or continue.  Bright points out that the political Israel collapsed, but it is the spiritual circumcision that keeps the kingdom of God advancing.

I just wanted to pass along some of these quotes.  Enjoy!

Brent

Sober Minded

Here is a thought provoking article from friend Stephen Geise. You can visit his blog at  http://geiseblog.blogspot.com.

It is appalling to me the amount of empty, silly, foolishness that characterizes the western world and nowhere is this drivel so prevalent than on blogs, sites, and other means of communications.

Our culture as a whole worships at the altar of entertainment and sacrifices to the god of humor. But what is even more shocking is the nonsense that is regurgitated by those who name the Name of Christ. My mind turns to Titus 2:6 where young men are exhorted to be sober-minded. When we see an individual with red eyes, slurred speech, and a staggering gate we clearly understand what it means to be drunk and what it means to be sober.

But it seems that when it comes to entertainment somehow the word “sober” is confusing and difficult to understand. Christians have become intoxicated with frivolity and lightness and think nothing of it. It seems we have joined those of “Higher Criticism” and thrown out the Word of God. Truth is no longer relevant but relative.

A very elementary perusal of the New Testament reveals eleven passages where we find the injunction to be “SOBER”. (I Thessalonians 5:6, 8; I Timothy 3:2, 11; Titus 1:8; 2:2, 4, 6; I Peter 1:13, 4:7, 5:8) What are we to do with these commands? Are we going to foolishly fritter away our lives feasting on the swill of those who are spiritually famished? On what do you feed your soul? (Isaiah 55:1-3) Let me share the words of a song by E.A. Hoffman which echo the longings of my soul.

Lord, I am fondly, earnestly longing

Into Thy holy likeness to grow;

Thirsting for more and deeper communion,

Yearning Thy love more fully to know.

Dead to the world would I be, O Father!

Dead unto sin, alive unto Thee;

Crucify all the earthly within me,

Emptied of sin and self may I be.

I would be Thine, and serve Thee forever,

Filled with Thy Spirit, lost in Thy love;

Come to my heart, Lord, come with anointing,

Showers of grace send down from above.

Chorus:

Open the wells of grace and salvation,

Pour the rich streams deep into my heart;

Cleanse and refine my tho’t and affection,

Seal me and make me pure as Thou art.