The Man from the Ends of the Earth

The Man from the Ends of the Earth

by | Apr 30, 2015 | Great Commission, Updates

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The New Testament Book of Acts contains many fascinating stories of the growth of early Christianity. One of those stories tells of the conversion of an African man from Ethiopia whose coming to belief had great significance for early Christianity – more than we might realize …

“Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road – the desert road – that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means “queen of the Ethiopians”). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked. “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him …” (Acts 8:26-31).

Reading the story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch it is hard for us, as modern readers, to grasp the way in which the story would have been perceived by its original hearers in the early Church.

In the ancient world Ethiopia epitomized the idea of remoteness.  The Greek poet Homer spoke of the inhabitants of Ethiopia as the “farthest of men” – the most remote known peoples (Odyssey 1.23), and the term Ethiopia  was often used by classical writers to mean all of unknown sub-Saharan Africa – to “the ends of the earth.”

This sense of the exotic and distant land from which the eunuch came was heightened by other details of the story – the fact that the inhabitants of Ethiopia were dark-skinned was exotic in itself. The fact that the man was a eunuch also placed him in a small minority of Jews or  Gentile proselytes  to the Jewish faith. Even more exceptional was the nature of the eunuch’s position as an important official in a distant land perceived to be “ruled by women” (a number of the Kandake queens ruled Ethiopia  during that era). All these factors would have come together in the minds of early Christians to form a very vivid  image of a man from the ends of the earth. 

We see how these facts would have been perceived when we apply them to the wording of the great commission given by Christ to his disciples before his ascension: “…you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8B).  Acts records that commission being fulfilled in Jerusalem (Acts 6:8-8:3), in Judea and Samaria (Acts 8:4-25) and, in the story of the Ethiopian  eunuch, to “the ends of the earth” (Acts 8:26-40).  That is doubtless why, out of all the thousands of people that were converted at that time (Acts 4:4, etc.), the story of the Ethiopian eunuch was selected to be told in detail. The commission certainly was to take the Gospel to all the Gentile world, not just to Ethiopia, but the early readers of Acts would have immediately recognized in that account how God was working out His purpose and beginning to fulfill His intentions. 

There are many exemplary lessons we can see in the story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch: the willingness of Philip to follow the Spirit’s prompting to do the work of God, the devotion of the Ethiopian to travel the huge distance to Jerusalem to worship, the humility of the powerful  man in the way he asked Philip’s help  to understand God’s word, and many more.  But a lesson we should not forget is that if we keep in mind the plan and purposes of God, we will see them being fulfilled in and around us if we are observant.  If we look for them, we will see the signs of God’s work being done and be strengthened by them, as the word continues to go out to “the ends of the earth.” 

The Second Step of Forgiveness

The Second Step of Forgiveness

by | Apr 24, 2015 | Strategic Notes, Updates

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When it comes to forgiving others as we know we should (Matthew 6:12), we sometimes need to remind ourselves of advice the apostle Paul gave to the Corinthian Christians. The church at Corinth apparently included an individual who had caused some problems for the brethren in that city.  We don’t know exactly what the problems were, but we do know that once the matter was sorted out, Paul reminded the other believers of an extra step in the process of forgiveness that we often overlook.  When we forgive someone who has done something against us, we often jump from the act of forgiving in our own mind (which is difficult enough) to trying to “forget” the incident as well as we can (which can be just as hard). But this jump overlooks a part of the process that Paul chose to stress.  Notice what he told the Corinthian church regarding the one from whom they had become alienated:

“If anyone has caused grief…The punishment inflicted on him by the majority is sufficient. Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him” (2 Corinthians 2:5-8).

Notice that Paul immediately follows the admonition to forgive the individual with one to “comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.”  This clearly indicates that the individual was already sorry for whatever it was he had done and Paul seeks to limit or to end the ongoing sorrow  But Paul doubly stresses this admonition to accept the forgiven individual by telling them that in this circumstance they should “reaffirm your love for him” (a principle we find in Isaiah 12:1 which shows that God follows necessary punishment with comfort and love).

Forgiving someone a serious hurt can be difficult enough, and  we sometimes are tempted to feel satisfied if we do reach a point of sincere forgiveness. But Paul shows we must resist the temptation to then continue in a kind of hurt distancing of ourselves from the individual forgiven. The apostle shows that if the person does respond to our forgiveness, it is then our responsibility to reestablish an accepting relationship.

We can also see that Paul meant this important principle as a firm admonition for us rather than just something he was offering as “good advice” by what he says in his following words:  “For this is why I wrote, that I might test you and know whether you are obedient in everything” (2 Corinthians 2:9 ESV). Paul clearly equated his readers’ acceptance of this principle of reconciliation after forgiveness with spiritual obedience.

Being as conscious as he was of his own need for God’s forgiveness  and acceptance (Acts 9:4, 1 Timothy 1:15-16), Paul probably understood as well as anyone that the second step of forgiveness is just as important as the first. Having himself been fully accepted by Christ after his persecution of the Church, Paul reminds us that forgiveness without acceptance is meaningless and hollow. Only as forgiveness is followed by acceptance is it truly full forgiveness, and that acceptance in turn makes the final step of forgetting the incident, where possible, that much easier.

  • For more information on this topic, download our free e-book How to Forgive – here.

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A Burden to Carry – or Not?

A Burden to Carry – or Not?

by | Apr 19, 2015 | Difficult Scriptures, Service, Updates

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“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ … for each one should carry their own load” (Galatians 6:2-5).

On the surface, these two statements of the apostle Paul – only a few words from each other – certainly seem contradictory, but are they? 

First, we should recognize that ancient literature often compares and contrasts opposite situations – just as in the biblical proverbs that say “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him” (Proverbs 26:4) and “Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes” (Proverbs 26:5).  The two thoughts are complementary, each giving part of the story. Paul frequently uses this same technique of contrasting opposites in his epistles (for example, Philippians 2:12-13, 2 Corinthians 6:8-10, 2 Corinthians 7:10, 2 Corinthians 12:10), and what Paul states in Galatians 6 is complementary in the same way.

When Paul tells us we should carry each other’s burdens then that we must carry our own loads, he uses two slightly different words. The first word, translated “burdens” in verse 2 (Greek baré), always connotes the weight of the burdens and stresses the “burdensome” nature of what is carried. The word translated “load” in verse 5 (phortion) was often applied to the pack carried by a soldier on the march. It can connote something heavy or light, whatever has been assigned to the individual. It is the word Christ used when he said “My yoke is easy, and my load is light” (Matthew 11:30) and when he spoke of the heavy loads the Pharisees placed on their followers (Matthew 23:4).

We see what Paul had in mind regarding the load each one must carry when we look at the immediately preceding verse:  “Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else” (Galatians 6:4).  Paul shows here that rather than comparing ourselves unwisely with others, we should look at our own situations and “test” or check our own standing, because we all stand alone before God in terms of His assessment. Paul is stressing – as he states next – that each person has individual responsibilities that no one else can carry. We must prove own standing before God, as no one can perform our religion or fulfill our beliefs for us.  That is the “pack” assigned to us for our march. On the other hand, life has many difficulties and problems that weigh us down, and Paul reminds us that these are burdens we can help each other with. 

So, Paul’s meaning is clear.  We are all given the responsibilities of our faith to bear in life and these are things we must shoulder and bear willingly as good soldiers on the route march to which we have been called. Yet, if we are walking with God and not entirely by our own strength, as Christ showed, those loads need not be oppressive or heavy.  On the other hand, every one of us carries the weight of personal problems and difficulties which are just part of life. We can certainly look to God for extra help in times when those burdens become oppressive – and one of the ways He answers that prayer is through help given us by fellow believers. 

We all have a burden we are expected to carry, but the more closely we walk with God the lighter it seems – and the more we are able to help those who need help with their own burdens.

Preparing for Battle

Preparing for Battle

by | Apr 15, 2015 | Updates, Warriors of the Way

Scripture: “The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.” Proverbs 21:31.

Something to think about: As with so many biblical proverbs, we can see a number of aspects to this saying as we turn it in our minds. First, the verse clearly reminds us that regarding many things in life, whatever preparations we may make,  ”the race is not always to the swift,” and the final outcome is, of course, in God’s hands. But the verse also reminds us that we have to do our part to “prepare for battle.” These are the same two principles we see in Nehemiah 4:9 “…we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.”  Preparing for any difficulty means we do what we can do physically as well as asking God’s help. It’s a basic but important principle to remember – whatever the problem, we need to do our part as well as asking God to help. 

The Three Things that Define Us

The Three Things that Define Us

by | Apr 9, 2015 | Knowledge & Wisdom

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Some people are defined in their own eyes, and in the eyes of others, by their accomplishments, others by their relationships, others again by their education or experiences. There are clearly many things that serve as defining aspects in our lives. 

Yet, sadly, a great many people in this world would answer the question “What three things most define  individuals?”  in a remarkably similar way: “appearance, possessions, success.”  Although many are not so shallow, of course, hundreds of millions of people would agree that these are perhaps the three physical things that “define” an individual in the eyes of others more than anything else.  

But the Christian realizes that these three things are ultimately meaningless, and that in the long run – at the end of our physical lives – our looks, money, influence, and all such things will certainly not define who we are in the eyes of God. So what qualities do affect how God sees us?

The answer is a surprisingly simple one and is found repeatedly throughout the Bible. The three things that define us in God’s eyes are our attitudes, our actions, and our words.  We see this many times in scriptures such as this example in the Book of Proverbs in which God, in the personification of Wisdom, states: “… I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech” (Proverbs 8:13B) – in other words:  attitudes, actions, and words.

What is especially interesting about this particular verse is that it does not say that Wisdom hates “evil thoughts,” in addition to evil behavior and evil speech, but elaborates on the area of attitude by singling out the example of pride and arrogance.   The verse makes it clear that the God who looks on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7) particularly dislikes a proud attitude – something which is underscored by many other verses in Proverbs and elsewhere (Proverbs 16:5, etc.).  In fact, if we study the many biblical verses that deal with our thoughts and mental state, we find one of the most commonly mentioned problematic attitudes is that of rebellious pride that puts itself before God. 

This is worth thinking about.  It is considerably easier to be aware of the problem when we have fallen down in deed or in word than it is when we have slipped in the area of attitude.  Secondly, there are many possible failings of attitude – selfishness, self-pity, lack of concern, etc. – but perhaps none is so hard to see in ourselves as pride.  And this is an important thing to remember. Pride has been called the worst of all sins by Christian thinkers from Augustine to C.S. Lewis and beyond. The fact that pride is so bad and yet is the hardest attitude to detect in ourselves may well be the reason it is singled out so often in Proverbs and elsewhere in the Bible.

But why is pride so bad? From a biblical perspective, pride is often an “invisible” form of hate itself, the very opposite of love. In fact, we find in the apostle Paul’s great “Love” chapter, 1 Corinthians 13: “Love is kind… it does not boast, it is not proud” (1 Corinthians 13:4).  These are in fact, examples of the very opposites of the qualities hated by Wisdom in the Book of Proverbs: Love is kind – actions, love does not boast – words, love is not proud – attitude.  It is clear that if we are to follow the way of Wisdom, the Way preached by Paul and found throughout the Scriptures, we must remember that the three things that truly define us are – our actions, our words, and our  attitudes.