Abundant Life – Page 58 – Write From Karen

Teaching: The Art of Forgiveness

June 28, 2009July 30, 2011 Karen

Every Sunday I provide videos and valuable links to the Truth or Tradition teachings. We’ve been following the Truth or Tradition teachings for many years now and they have truly blessed our family. We have found peace and happiness through our beliefs and we walk confidently for God. My hope, by passing on this information to you, is that what you find here, or on the Truth or Tradition website, will guide you to a better, more blessed and abundant life.

If you would like to read my views on religion and how we got started with the ministry, you can read this.

Let’s get started:

Have you ever been sinned against, wronged, cheated, lied to, deceived, scammed, conned, ripped off, or shafted? Do you think it may happen again? If so, developing the art of forgiveness will be beneficial to you. Forgiveness is a prerequisite for spiritual growth, mental health, emotional stability, physical wellbeing, and rewarding relationships. It is a key ingredient to true love, for without forgiveness, “love” is not love, it is little more than reciprocal back-scratching (or stabbing).

The sheer magnitude of sin in this fallen world today is overwhelming. Many people are creeps, and the rest of us too often act like creeps. Sinners leave “sinnees” in their wake. In fact, even those we love the most will wrong us, and, in reality, they have the most power to hurt us. All of us are fallen children of Adam, and the art of forgiveness is very handy, as in indispensable, if one wants anything close to real life as God intended it to be. Hurt people hurt people. Life is so full of wounded people who wound others that forgiveness must be at the heart of every relationship, and relationships are what both Christianity and life are all about. The key is not being for getting, but for giving.

A powerful teaching tape by the same title, The Art of Forgiveness, which elaborates on the points made briefly in this article, is available from us by clicking here.

Given that both secular and Christian research has shown that forgiving is absolutely required for mental and emotional health, we will consider the following: Why do we need to learn about forgiveness? What is forgiveness (first from God to me, and then me to others)? What are the benefits of forgiveness? What are some keys to forgiving? How do you know when you have forgiven someone?

To gain the greatest benefit from this article, as you read be thinking specifically of whom you need to forgive or who you need to ask to forgive you. How many unreconciled relationships are there in your life today, and how many of them are unreconciled due to your fear of being rejected when you speak to the other person? But that is exactly what you are supposed to do, whether you are the sinner or the sinnee.

Why learn about forgiveness?

Because forgiveness is a big key to radiant Christian living. When we do not forgive, we get hurt over and over again as the result of the sin once committed against us. It is like what the person did to you happens again every time you think about it with the attitude of unforgiveness. Thus, forgiveness is the only way to end the domination of another person’s sin over you. More good news—it is your choice whether or not to forgive.

Forgiveness is an integral part of self-government. Forgiving persons refuse to be mere victims of others’ mistreatment. Instead, they become masters of the situation. Far from a display of weakness, forgiveness is a sign of enormous personal strength. As we truly forgive those who have hurt us, we begin to manifest wholeness in many ways. We release ourselves, and others, from the penalties of sin. We are freed from paying interest on a debt that other people owe us. And they may not even know they owe us; they may not even know they hurt us, or they may have forgotten about it. When we don’t forgive, we keep paying interest on the debt that they owe us. We are the loser. So we forgive.

Another thing forgiveness does is uproot the seeds of bitterness and resentment, not allowing them to germinate. We might define bitterness as unfulfilled revenge. Sometimes I think that by not forgiving someone, I’m getting back at him, but even if that is true, it can’t hurt him as much as it hurts me. Forgiveness shuts the door on yesterday’s wounds. This is so vital, because when my past becomes my present, it robs me not only of my present but also of my future! Forgiveness might not change the other person, but it changes me. It allows God to begin the healing process. Forgiveness breaks the cycle of hurting people hurting others. If I can put that in my heart, the next time I’m hurt by someone, instead of reacting or lashing out in kind, I could stop and think, “This person must really be hurting to be treating me the way he is.” That enables me to look at him with the compassion of Christ, and perhaps even stand for him by prayer, a kind word, or a soft answer.

Many things in this study apply not only if you are the one who needs to forgive, but also if you are the one who needs to ask for forgiveness. If you have sinned against someone, you are to go and ask for forgiveness, and this entails more than just saying, “I’m sorry.” Think about it—when I say, “I’m sorry,” I’m not risking anything, I’m still in control. What I should say is, “Will you forgive me?” Now I’m risking your saying, “Nope.” I am also giving you the opportunity to make a biblical response, that is, to forgive me.

After the sinner says, “I’m sorry,” the sinnee often says, “That’s OK.” Actually, it’s not OK, and that’s why both confession and forgiveness are necessary for true reconciliation, that is, bridging the gap between two human hearts caused by the offense. Forgiveness is not merely the action of accepting another person’s apology.

It’s fairly easy to see that if I have wronged someone, I should be the one to ask forgiveness, but what if I am the one wronged? Wouldn’t it be too dangerous for me to make the first move? Shouldn’t I wait for the other person to have a change of heart and come to me? Not according to Jesus Christ, and he is surely our supreme example of one forgiving others. Here’s what he said:

Matthew 18:15
If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.

To “show him his fault” means to tell him how he hurt you and to hold him accountable for doing so, and that doesn’t mean at a towering decibel level. You are reaching for his heart, and giving him the best opportunity to do what is right before God, and you have the right to expect a godly response from a brother in Christ. Yes, it is often scary, but God will help you have wisdom and compassion in reaching out like this to another brother, for his sake.

What is forgiveness?

Four key elements are recognition, repentance, restitution, and reconciliation.

Read the rest of the article here.

If you have any questions, or would like to learn more about God’s wonderful message, please visit the Truth or Tradition website. You can also keep track of the ministry through their Facebook page, their YouTube Channel, or follow them on Twitter.

Thanks for reading.

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Abundant Life

Teaching: Processing Anger in a Healthy Way

June 21, 2009June 14, 2009 Karen

If you would like to read my views on religion and how we got started with the ministry, you can read this.

Let’s get started:

[The following article is an edited transcription of our March 2003 Tape / CD of the Month, Healthily Processing Anger by Karen Theisen.]

As a small child, I had somehow internalized the idea that God Almighty would be very displeased if I ever got angry. You can imagine my dismay when as an older teenager I finally began to read the Bible on my own. Frankly, I was quite shocked at the Psalms. I was beginning to read the Psalms because I wanted to know more about praise and how to have a relationship with God. The word praise is actually used more often in the Bible in Psalms than any place else. Unbeknownst to me, a lot is in the Psalms about anger and other issues with which I had struggles.

Frankly, it really surprised me to find that my heavenly Father displays Himself as having the emotion of anger. Today, I want to take a look at that because perhaps some of you also have struggled with this concept. We are going to be taking a look at the two categories of anger that are displayed in the Bible. The first one is justifiable anger. That is the kind of anger that our heavenly Father displays and that our Lord Jesus Christ displays; therefore, we should assume that we too at times would have justifiable anger. The second is unjustifiable anger. We will be taking a look at situations of unjustifiable anger.

We will also be talking today about the physical, the psychological, and spiritual prices that we pay when we choose not to resolve or healthily process our angers. We pay huge prices, not just as individuals, but I am going to assert that as a community of believers that we pay huge prices when we do not process our anger.

We are also going to be talking about strategies for dealing with angers. The strategies will vary depending upon whether you are the recipient of someone’s anger or whether you are the person who is angry. Finally, we will be closing with a look at the Lord Jesus Christ, his life, and how he chose to deal with anger.

I would like to begin in Ephesians.

Ephesians 4:26 and 27
(26) “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,
(27) and do not give the devil a foothold.

It is interesting that it says, “In your anger do not sin.” I shared with you that as a little Christian girl I had the idea that anger was a sin in and of itself. Actually, the Webster’s New World dictionary defines anger as this, “A hostile feeling of displeasure because of injury or opposition.” The emotion of anger is just that; it is an emotion. It tells us that something is up. We have in someway been possibly violated. Our boundaries have been violated.

I was really surprised that as I began to read through the Psalms I discovered that our heavenly Father says that He gets angry. This tells us that the emotion of anger, again, in and of itself is not a negative emotion. I would like to begin with Psalm 78. What exactly was God communicating? In this particular situation, we will see that God’s justifiable anger involved unbelief, the unbelief of His people.

Psalm 78:12 and 13
(12) He did miracles in the sight of their fathers in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan.
(13) He divided the sea and led them through; he made the water stand firm like a wall.

I cannot wait to see the rerun of that. That will be amazing.

Psalm 78:14-18
(14) He guided them with the cloud by day and with light from the fire all night.
(15) He split the rocks in the desert and gave them water as abundant as the seas;
(16) he brought streams out of a rocky crag and made water flow down like rivers.
(17) But they continued to sin against him, rebelling in the desert against the Most High.
(18) They willfully put God to the test by demanding the food they craved.

This whole section goes on to talk about basically how the Children of Israel tested God. They complained about foods that they missed. God in His loving provision did provide, and yet, if you read through this whole section, you will see that our heavenly Father gets angry and rightfully so. His anger was justified.

Psalm 78:38a
Yet he was merciful; he forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them. Time after time he restrained his anger…

The anger in and of itself was not evil; it was healthy. His people had betrayed His trust. He was frustrated and rightfully so.

Psalm 78:38b and 39
(38) and did not stir up his full wrath.
(39) He remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return.

Let’s look at Jeremiah chapter 44. This is another example of our heavenly Father getting angry. In this particular example, we will see that the anger involved idolatry. God is very clear on His boundaries. God did not want His people to do certain things because it hurts us.

Jeremiah 44:1-3
(1) This word came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews living in Lower Egypt—in Migdol, Tahpanhes and Memphis —and in Upper Egypt:
(2) “This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: You saw the great disaster I brought on Jerusalem and on all the towns of Judah. Today they lie deserted and in ruins
(3) because of the evil they have done. They provoked me to anger by burning incense and by worshiping other gods that neither they nor you nor your fathers ever knew.

Again, it is all about idolatry. God goes on.

Jeremiah 44:4-7a
(4) Again and again I sent my servants the prophets, who said, ‘Do not do this detestable thing that I hate!’
(5) But they did not listen or pay attention; they did not turn from their wickedness or stop burning incense to other gods.
(6) Therefore, my fierce anger was poured out; it raged against the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem and made them the desolate ruins they are today.
(7) “Now this is what the LORD God Almighty, the God of Israel, says:

This is very telling, and as we read through this, I want you to be considering, “What are the idols that you and I face today?” You might not be tempted to burn incense to an idol, but what about the idol of self? What about the idol of beauty? What about the idol of pursuing fame? What about the idol of pursuing great monetary wealth? I am not saying that having wealth is necessarily evil, but I am saying how you hold it in your heart could be. What about the idol of TV watching or pornography? Fill in the blank, what idols might you be considering as we read these Scriptures. [For further study on idolatry, please read Cleansing the Temple and Destroying the High Places.]

Jeremiah 44:7b
Why bring such great disaster on yourselves by cutting off from Judah the men and women, the children and infants, and so leave yourselves without a remnant?

Idolatry costs all of us a lot.

Jeremiah 44:8
Why provoke me to anger with what your hands have made, burning incense to other gods in Egypt, where you have come to live? You will destroy yourselves and make yourselves an object of cursing and reproach among all the nations on earth.

We, as individuals, pay a mighty price when we are involved in idolatry. God has justified anger here in this Scripture. We live in a time of an Administration of Grace. You do not see people who are bowing down to false gods being zapped off the face of the earth during this time period, absolutely not. We have the privilege of taking a stand and helping people to understand who God is, who Jesus Christ is, what is the holy spirit, and how it can operate in the Church today.

Read the rest of the article here.

Here’s a video on how to “Fight Like a Christian.”

Thanks for reading.

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Abundant Life

Teaching: Honor One Another

June 14, 2009June 12, 2009 Karen

If you would like to read my views on religion and how we got started with the ministry, you can read this.

Let’s get started:

Honor One Another

Just yesterday morning I ran through our neighborhood in my pajamas and bedroom slippers—not my usual attire for running! You might ask why I would do such a thing. Well, I was chasing our little Jack Russell Terrier, Peanut. You see, she is very precious to me.

What would you do for someone or something that you consider precious? Protect? Nurture? Keep well maintained? We all invest a lot of time, thought, prayers, money etc. in caring for what we deem valuable to us.

Just recently I read Romans 12:10b: “…Honor one another above yourselves.” I had always thought this meant to give someone special recognition, respect, the best seating, compliments etc. In studying the word “honor,” I found out it meant “to value.” In 1 Corinthians 7:23a where it says, “You were bought at a price…” the word translated “price” is the same Greek word translated “honor.” Its root word is usually translated “precious,” of “greater worth” or “dear.” To honor one another is to treat each person as valuable, costly, precious.

Okay, that comes pretty easily with our immediate family members, our close friends, and (nice) managers or employers. But what about others? Romans 12:10 refers to the family of God, but in 1 Peter 2:17a (KJV) we are told to “honor all men,” and this is where it gets a lot more challenging. How are we to honor those people who really get on our nerves? Better yet, what about those people who are unfriendly, arrogant, and don’t like us? There is no distinction between honoring only those who bring value to your life and those who bring irritation.

One tip on how to value others (especially the “others” who really bother us) is first to realize that God demonstrated His love by having His Son, Jesus Christ, die for them, too (Rom. 5:8). We truly have to see people through God’s eyes, remembering that He “wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim.2:4).

In Matthew 25:40a Jesus said, “…whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” We can care for others for Jesus’ sake! People mean a lot to him. He gave his life for them. More than that, he says that caring for them equals caring for him! By the way, I used to think that the “least of these brothers” were only nice people (I have no idea why I came to that conclusion), but it doesn’t say that. In fact, some of them are in prison (v. 36), and maybe they did something really bad. Still, I’m to see them as valuable and precious. These are people for whom Jesus gave his life, and he says that in caring for them I care for him. Honoring people comes much easier when I realize just how costly they are.

Back to my first question: What would you do for someone or something that you consider precious? Since “to honor,” biblically, means to treat as valuable, it’s much more than just compliments and fanfare. Let’s go back to me chasing my dog through my neighborhood in my pajamas. Because I consider my dog valuable (although she didn’t cost a cent, she was a stray. Hmmm…), I put aside my desires and plans and sought after her welfare. My major concern was to protect her and bring her back to a safe and caring environment. To honor others is to be concerned about their welfare and seek to do what’s needed in helping them grow in a knowledge of God’s will, which by the way, is “good, pleasing, and perfect” (Rom.12:2)—much more than just safe and cared for! It’s also exhibiting their true value, living a life that is worthy (worthy implies a cost factor) of the Lord.

Now here’s the somewhat difficult part: each person is different and you’ll need to really seek wisdom in helping them. Of course, God does promise that He’ll give us wisdom generously if we ask (James 1:5). For example, if you know someone addicted to drugs, you would help them differently than you would a young child. Both are precious, but helping them grow in knowledge of God’s will would look different for either person. The key point is that “honoring each other” is seeing each other as precious (no matter how we may appear) and helping to bring out our true value. It might look like “running” after someone to protect him from harm, or it could look like not “running.” The idea is to seek God’s wisdom on how to care for each very precious person who crosses your path. In doing so you are honoring Christ Jesus. What a privilege, and what an honor!

Thanks for reading.

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Abundant Life

Teaching: Healthy Submission

June 7, 2009June 6, 2009 Karen

If you would like to read my views on religion and how we got started with the ministry, you can read this.

Let’s get started:

What we are going to look at today is Jesus Christ and healthy submission.

We are going to talk about what healthy submission looks like and what healthy submission does not look like. We are going to use marriage as an example of a relationship in which submission is present.

How many of you are not married?

How many of you hope to be married someday?

Even if you just have married friends or if you just have a relationship with Jesus Christ, this is a topic that applies to all of us. We are using marriage as an example to show how relationships work, so we will be referring to marriage often. This can also be extrapolated to any kind of relationship, and we will make mention of that as we go along.

How many of you know that within the Bible another gifting occurs besides marriage? That gifting is to remain single and serve within the church. This is a very highly esteemed gift that has been degraded within the last couple of decades. We want to take a look at this because this weekend is all about living life in balance and we want you to understand that within the Body of Christ there is incredible balance.

For those of you whose gifting is to remain single so that you can serve the Lord in any capacity, I want to start our sharing by saying that we totally esteem you and honor you. For those young people in the audience, who do not have it on their hearts to get married, I want to affirm in you that that is a good and healthy desire for you to have. I do not want you to buy into the worlds lie that you have to have a partner in order to fit into the world. That is not at all the truth. Jesus Christ went through his entire life without a marriage partner.

Jesus Christ chose the marriage relationship as the example of how he works with the Church and how the Body of Christ is supposed to work together. That will be the focus of this teaching.

We will look at Ephesians chapter five. This is “ground zero” for submission in a lot of respects in the Church Epistles. Ephesians 5:21 is really the beginning of any relationship. This comes at a very key point in Ephesians because it is the verse immediately before where Paul launches into verses on marriage, upon which we will touch.

Here is a significant verse that caught my attention this morning:

Ephesians 5:13
but everything exposed by the light becomes visible,

It is important within families that the family is a safe community where we can confess our struggles, our sins. No perfect family exists. I lived for awhile with the myth that if I could just be the perfect parent, then I could produce the perfect children. Who else in here has had that drummed into your head? Look at all the women’s hands go up! That is the perfectionism thing amongst us women. I wonder if our culture has anything to do with it? Think about it. Who was the perfect father, and who is the perfect father? God is! Did He have perfect children? Does that not just take a load off of your shoulders? What we can learn is how God chose to stay in relationship with His children and support them. Again, I wanted to bring your attention to where it says:

Ephesians 5:13 and 14
(13) but everything exposed by the light becomes visible,
(14) for it is light that makes everything visible.

In a healthy family it is important to have that environment where we can confess to one another that we are not perfect. We have good days, and we have some not so good days. It is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said, “Wake up oh sleeper. Rise from the dead” (Eph. 5:14). We certainly do not want a community of believers where people walk in and it is kind of like what I have termed in my area the “Christian country club.” Everyone puts on their nice clothes on Sunday and walks in, “How are you?” The person’s heart could be breaking, they might be on the brink of divorce, or their children might be off in never, never, land, but they slap on the happy face and say, “Fine, bless you.” That is not the kind of community that we are trying to establish here in Spirit & Truth Fellowship International because that is not a biblical community. We would much rather have a community where people could say, “I am really struggling, and I could really use your prayers.” What then would be the result? It says, “Wake up oh sleeper. Rise from the dead,” which takes some effort, does it not? It takes effort to move out of the comfort of pretending and into being authentic, but look at the results, “and Christ will shine on you.” As a body, the Lord can shine not only on us but also within us.

Let us back up even more in Ephesians.

Ephesians 4:1
As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received [referring to chapters one, two, and three].

Ephesians 4:2
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.

Verse one says to live a life. Well, where is life lived? Life is lived among others. To be completely humble and gentle, to be patient, bearing with one another in love—this is the start of submission. This is the mindset. This is where the heart needs to be in order to get to the place where you are ready to deal with others.

Ephesians 4:3
Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

The word bond is a very anatomical word. It is a word that is used when they talk about how cells are joined together. In certain junctions between cells, they still use the root of that word bond.

Ephesians 4:4-6
(4) There is one body and one Spirit— just as you were called to one hope when you were called—
(5) one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
(6) one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

Life is not lived in a vacuum. Life is lived in a place where you run into others, so we need to prepare our hearts to be among others.

Read the rest of the article here.

Thanks for reading.

(Comments have been turned off because I’ve been receiving some really odd, and incoherent comments lately. These teaching posts are meant to bless and educate you. The information is here, it’s up to you to accept, or deny, it).

Abundant Life

Teaching: What Does the Bible Say About Divorce?

May 31, 2009May 27, 2009 Karen

If you would like to read my views on religion and how we got started with the ministry, you can read this.

Let’s get started:

Original article can be found here.

The institution of marriage between a man and a woman goes back to the beginning of Creation and has been recognized by every culture as the foundation of both family and civilization itself. God created two sexes, “male and female” (Gen. 1:27, 5:2), and He did so for the mutual benefit of both genders. The man and the woman bring different strengths into the relationship, and by doing so strengthen both the relationship and the family. When the two sexes come together, God says they become one flesh (Gen. 2:24; Matt. 19:5; Eph. 5:31; 1 Cor. 6:16). The book of Malachi points out that another reason God made the man and woman one flesh in the covenant of marriage was so that the children would be godly: “Has not the LORD made them [husband and wife] one? In flesh and spirit they are his. And why one? Because he was seeking godly offspring” (Mal. 2:14 and 15).

Sadly, it sometimes happens in a marriage that the differences between a man and woman, instead of being appreciated and capitalized upon by the couple, are the cause of friction, division and even divorce. Marriage goes back to Genesis, but so do reasons for divorce. God understands that sometimes the relationship between a man and a woman becomes so hurtful that divorce is the only practical solution, and so He allowed for it in the Mosaic Law (Exod. 21:11; Deut. 24:1). Jesus Christ correctly stated that the foundational reason for divorce was people’s hardness of heart, but pointed out that God did not design marriage to end in divorce. Jesus said, “…Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning” (Matt. 19:8).

Christians have discussed and debated the subject of divorce for hundreds of years, and different groups have different beliefs about it. One of the more hurtful doctrines held by some groups is that God never allows divorce. These groups do not allow the same freedom that God allowed in the Law of Moses, and Jesus allowed for in his teachings; that there are times when divorce may be necessary for the health and safety of one of the partners or the children. Another false doctrine about divorce is that God allows for divorce only if one of the spouses has committed adultery. That belief comes from reading the words of Jesus without understanding the culture of his time or the entire scope of the Word of God, i.e., what else the Bible says about the subject.

To understand what Jesus said about divorce, we must read what he said in light of the context, the culture, and the Mosaic Law. We must never think that the Bible is like one of those books of unconnected wise sayings that some people have on their coffee tables. No verse stands on its own, but is interconnected with every other verse and with the general theme of the Bible. That means to really understand what the truth is on any subject we have to pay attention to how all the verses on the subject relate to each other, and that means we have to study the entire Bible. Jesus’ statements about divorce are recorded in Matthew 5:31 and 32, 19:3-9; Mark 10:2-12; and Luke 16:18, but there is also material in the Old Testament and other places in the New Testament that must be considered. As for the culture in Jesus’ time, the rabbinic school of the great Jewish teacher, Rabbi Hillel (ca. 60 B.C. – 20 A.D.), was teaching that a man could divorce his wife for anything she did that displeased him. It was a “no fault” system of divorce, and divorce was becoming a major social problem. We get a glimpse of the cultural problem of easy divorce in Jesus’ time by the question the Pharisees asked Jesus: “…Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?” (Matt. 19:3). Jesus answered them in a way that promoted marriage and the family (Matt. 19:4-9).

It is important to notice that Jesus is never recorded giving a complete teaching on marriage and divorce. Instead, he addressed the question he was asked and the cultural problem of his time, and tried to get people to look at the posture of their hearts and see the purpose of marriage from God’s perspective. Jesus never meant his teaching about marriage and divorce to be pulled from its cultural context and separated from the Law of Moses, which completed it. If Jesus had given a complete teaching on divorce, then he would have mentioned the rights granted to women under the Mosaic Law. Jesus did not mention women in his answer because he did not need to in order to emphasize God’s heart for marriage and relationship, or to reply to the question he had been asked. Jesus did not come to abolish the Mosaic Law, but to fulfill it (Matt. 5:17).

To understand God’s heart about marriage, we need Scripture and logic. It is clear from the Bible and history that the intent of marriage is to benefit both partners and to raise godly children. Nevertheless, there are times when the marriage becomes harmful to one or both of the partners, or the children. At that point the marriage may need to be dissolved, and in certain circumstances God allowed for the dissolution of the marriage. The book of Exodus contains important information about divorce. To fully understand the verses, however, we must be aware that the Law of Moses allowed for a man to have more than one wife (Exod. 21:10; Lev. 18:18; Deut. 21:15).

Exodus 21:10 and 11
(10) If he marries another woman, he must not deprive the first one of her food, clothing and marital rights.
(11) If he does not provide her with these three things, she is to go free, without any payment of money.

What we see clearly revealed in Exodus 21 is that when a man and a woman enter into a marriage covenant, each is responsible to provide for the other. What the woman would provide in the marriage is not specifically spelled out in Exodus because it was so well understood in the culture and because the woman did not usually have the power to divorce a man unless that privilege was specifically granted to her by local or current law or custom. In contrast to the assumed responsibilities of the woman, Exodus 21:11 specifically states that a man must provide food, clothing, and “marital rights,” or the woman is free to leave the relationship.

We must understand the three things listed in Exodus 21:11 in light of the Old Testament culture, not our modern culture. The “food” was the woman’s daily food that sustained her. Her “clothing” meant clothing, and also by extension, a place to stay, her shelter. Some poor people did not have enough money to own a house or tent, and slept under their heavy outer robes at night (Exod. 22:27), so “clothing” often meant both clothing and shelter. A man was responsible, as much as he was able, to provide clothing and shelter for his wife.

The third thing in the list, “marital rights,” refers to sexual intercourse. Although this hopefully included loving affection, in the context of the Old Testament culture, the most important thing it meant was that the woman would have the chance to have children. In an age when bank accounts, Social Security, hospitals, and retirement homes were non-existent, it was a woman’s children who provided her protection and care throughout her life and especially in her old age. A man who would not have sexual intercourse with his wife because he had another wife or wives thus subjected her to the danger of getting sick, hurt, or becoming elderly without any means of help and support. This was very cruel indeed, and God would not tolerate it. If a man treated his wife this poorly, the Law said she was free to leave.

Read the rest of the article here.

Thanks for reading.

Abundant Life

Teaching: Don’t Blame God, Part Four

May 17, 2009May 20, 2009 Karen

If you would like to read my views on religion and how we got started with the ministry, you can read this.

Let’s get started:

Is God a Murderer?

If God is now in complete control of the world, then He is ultimately responsible for all human suffering — either by causing it or allowing it. Doesn’t that make Him very hard to love? Maybe that’s why you hear so many Christian euphemisms designed to take the edge off what, if people did to other people, would be called destruction of property, stealing, torture, or premeditated murder, and would result in jail time. To say that God “called someone home” sounds so much better than saying that He “wasted” the poor soul.

As usual, the question is: What does the Bible say? Does God’s Word say that He is in control of everything that happens in the world? Absolutely not. In fact, Scripture states that it is the Devil who is exerting a controlling influence over the affairs of mankind.

1 John 5:19
We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.

The Word of God also says that Satan is the one who now holds the power of death, that is, he is the ultimate cause of death. This is either directly, via evil spirit intervention, such as a spirit of murder causing one person to murder another, or indirectly, via one of the countless diseases he has introduced into the world.

Hebrews 2:14
Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil.

Some typical examples of misguided euphemisms about God ending people’s lives are found in Roger Steer’s otherwise inspirational book titled J. Hudson Taylor, A Man In Christ. Taylor was one of the most influential Christian missionaries ever to work in China, which he did between 1854 and 1905. Drawing upon Taylor’s diary, Steer writes of his conversation with his eight-year-old daughter Grace, as she lay dying of meningitis: “Back at her bedside, he said to Grace, ‘I think Jesus is going to take you to Himself. You are not afraid to trust yourself with Him, are you?’” [1]

After her death, Taylor wrote:

Our dear little Gracie! How I miss her sweet voice in the morning, one of the first sounds to greet us when we woke— and through the day and at eventide! As I take the walks I used to take with her tripping at my side, the thought comes anew like a throb of agony, ‘Is it possible that I shall nevermore feel the pressure of that little hand, nevermore hear the sweet prattle of those dear lips, nevermore see the sparkle of those bright eyes?’ And yet she is not lost. I would not have her back again… the gardener came and plucked a rose [Emphasis ours]. [2]

Later, his 33-year-old wife Maria became gravely ill, and Steer writes that Taylor “could not pray unreservedly for her recovery.” [3] How heartbreaking that with his misunderstanding of Scripture, he could not resolve whether it was God’s will to heal his wife, and therefore he had no basis to pray with faith. Perhaps had he been able to, she might have recovered. After her untimely death, which left him with four children, Taylor wrote:

From my inmost soul I delight in the knowledge that God does or deliberately permits all things, and causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him. He, and He only, knew what my dear wife was to me. He knew how the light of my eyes and the joy of my heart were in her… But He saw that it was good to take her; good indeed for her, and in His love He took her painlessly; and not less good for me who must henceforth toil and suffer alone— yet not alone, for God is nearer to me than ever. [4]

Taylor’s journal entry leaves an obvious question: “Where is God’s love for those whom He does not ‘take’ painlessly?” It must pain God to see someone who obviously loved Him so much be so misguided and so practically hindered by such debilitating error. How sad that it is rampant throughout Christendom. If the truth of God’s Word were taught, such semantic sidestepping would be unnecessary, and the blame would be laid where it belongs— on the one-day-to-be-ashes shoulders of the Devil (Ezek. 28:18).

Don’t Blame God video series – Part Four

You can find parts one, two, and three here.

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Abundant Life

Teaching: The Mother of All Mothers

May 10, 2009May 9, 2009 Karen

If you would like to read my views on religion and how we got started with the ministry, you can read this.

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One of the truly great women of the Bible is Mary, the mother of Jesus. She was a woman of faith, courage, humility, praise, and prayer. She was a good wife and mother, and an exemplary disciple of Christ. Nevertheless, Mary often is not given the recognition she deserves, and that is primarily due to all the fanciful things that have been taught about her, such as that she was a “perpetual virgin,” or that she answers prayers and dispenses grace. These unbiblical things tend to make the average Protestant Christian avoid studying her life, which is too bad because she was an awesome believer. We can learn a lot from the woman who was chosen by God to bear His Son.

A Woman with a Pedigree

Mary’s family pedigree was exalted and spotless. She was born into spiritual royalty because she was a descendant of David through his son Solomon, and down through the kings of Judah, including such greats as Asa, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and Josiah. [1] Mary, of course, did not choose her family heritage, one that made it possible for her to bear the promised Messiah. Nevertheless, Old Testament Scripture made clear that the Christ would be from the line of David, and there is little doubt that the subject was discussed in her home, just as godly people today often speak of the Rapture and return of Jesus Christ. However, it is clear that Mary never thought of herself as better than others, and instead saw herself as an Israelite whose work was to be a good wife and mother, and to live her life in service to God.

A Woman of Faith

We do not know how cold, or perhaps even snowy, it was that December day in Galilee when the young woman we know as Mary was surprised by the angel Gabriel. [2] We do know that Mary would have been in her early teenage years, most likely twelve to fourteen years old. We can tell her age because she was engaged, but not yet married, to a man named Joseph, and yet was physically mature enough to both have and rear God’s Son, something she did for at least a couple of years without much family support. While twelve to fourteen may seem very young to us, it was common in biblical times for women to be married at that age, and much older than fourteen would have been uncharacteristically old for marriage in her culture. We can better understand the great courage and faith Mary had when we realize that she was not a middle-aged and experienced woman of the world, but rather a young woman of faith who accepted the call to be the mother of the Christ.

When the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, he said, …“Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28b NASB). [3] The angel told Mary that she had “found favor with God” (Luke 1:30), and that she would be impregnated by God and give birth to the promised Messiah, whose “kingdom will never end” (v. 33). Although we do not know a lot of details about Mary’s life, we can tell from Scripture that even at her young age she was familiar with Scripture, and would have immediately understood some of the immensity of the task being asked of her. She also would have known, though only in part, the personal price she would have to pay to be the mother of the Messiah.

Part of the price she paid was the doubt, suspicion, and rejection she encountered because of her virgin conception and birth. Neither Mary nor her fellow believers were expecting a virgin birth. Isaiah 7:14 is quoted in Matthew 1:23 (“The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son…), and therefore Christians, with 20/20 hindsight, realize that Isaiah was at least in part foretelling a virgin birth. But in its context, the “son” in Isaiah 7 was born during the lifetime of Isaiah (Isa. 7:15-17), and there is no historical record that the Jews were expecting a virgin birth until it actually happened. [4]

On being told she would have a child, Mary herself said, “How will this be, since I am not knowing a man?” (Author’s translation). [5] Mary was confused about how she would get pregnant when she was not “knowing,” actively having sexual relations with, a man. The angel told her that she would be impregnated by God Himself (Luke 1:35). Mary believed what the angel Gabriel told her, but it had to occur to her that it would be difficult, and often impossible, to get people to believe what she would tell them. Even so, in a statement of faith that has echoed through the ages and been an inspiration for millions of believers, she replied to the angel, “Behold!, the slave-maid of the Lord, may it be to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38b Author’s translation).

Mary’s humility and faith shine brilliantly through her statement. She referred to herself as the “slave-maid” of the Lord, indicating that she completely submitted her will, her agenda, even her life, to God. The Greek word I translate “slave-maid” (following the well-known biblical scholar, R. C. H. Lenski), is doule, the feminine form of the better-known masculine noun doulos, and it can refer either to a servant or a slave. In the biblical culture, servants were not owned, and thus were free to stay or leave as they wished, and they were paid for their work. Slaves, on the other hand, were owned and thus were not free to come and go, and they were seldom paid for any service. Also noteworthy in this context is that a slave was the sexual property of the owner, something that devastated many marriages in the ancient world. Mary did not think of herself as a servant who could leave if the employment was unfavorable or the pay was not good enough. No, she thought of herself as the slave of God, willing to do whatever he asked. A better example of faith could hardly be set by anyone at any time.

Read the rest of the article here.

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