Another "Sticky" Passage

This weekend at Crossroads I'll be speaking on envy and jealousy and what it does to our hearts. Our case study will be the Biblical character Saul who cast a "jealous eye" on David. Saul's jealousy wrecked his life.

1 Samuel 18:10 says that as the result of Saul's jealousy, "a tormenting spirit from God overwhelmed Saul."

Some translations say "an evil spirit from God" messed with Saul. Either way, we have a hard time getting our arms around this verse. Does God send evil spirits/demons into our lives when we screw up? Is this consistent with the character of God?

One thing I learned a "hundred years" ago in Seminary was to allow the clearer teachings of the Bible to interpret the more obscure teachings. God sending evil spirits to torment people sounds a little weird. It certainly contradicts clearer teachings like James 1:17 that says "Whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God above..."

So what's the deal? Do I have to worry about an evil spirit coming my way and possessing me when I sin? Here are 3 quick thoughts:

1. In the Old Testament God's Spirit came and went. The Spirit filled people for certain tasks and then departed. All that changes in Acts 2. The Spirit comes for good and when the Spirit possesses a believer in Christ its a permanent deal. Therefore, Christians cannot be possessed by evil (temped...yes; harassed...yes; possessed...no; see 1 John 4:4). The Spirit certainly departed from Saul, but if you're a believer in Christ today you have no reason to fear evil spirits possessing you.

2. Saul deserved whatever God "sent" his way. Whatever happened was the direct result of Saul's willful disobedience and refusal to take his sin seriously.

3. The Hebrew linguistic data lends itself to different interpretations of this passage. I am NOT a Hebrew scholar (nor any other scholar, unless there's such thing as a "coffee scholar"). The little reading I've done says that EVIL SPIRIT could be a generic/broad term referring to any type of consequences or torment. Also, the phrase "from God" could be interpreted as something that God "allowed". In other words, Saul's tormenting spirit/painful consequences were not so much sent but allowed by God.

This is deep stuff. The Hebrew language is complex and sheds new light on this interpretive question.

Struggling with 1 Samuel 15

This weekend at Crossroads I'm preaching on Saul's sad life (one of the greatest train wrecks in the Bible). One of the commands he disobeys is found in 1 Samuel 15--essentially he's to go and totally wipe out the Amalekites, men, women, children, babies, and livestock. The command was clear, yet (in our minds) cruel.

Again, we struggle with the "God of the Old Testament." How do we interpret or deal with a passage like this? It it hyperbole? Not in my opinion. Did God make a mistake and lose his temper? Not in my opinion. Did God really want them ALL destroyed? I believe he did. I believe God meant what he said. The problem is it's impossible for us to see things through God's eyes. For example:

Do we fully grasp God's holiness and justice? How much God hates sin? Do we have a clue how wicked the Amalekites were? That they burnt their children in front of statues of Molech, their idol? That their religion goes down in history as perhaps the most depraved known to mankind?

And do we fully grasp God's patience? He has put up with this vile nation for hundreds of years. This is no "blow-a-fuse" act of God. He's given them plenty of time to repent. Sin ultimately will be punished. Perhaps it was the Amalekites day of judgment.

Finally, do we fully grasp God's mercy? Yes, he commanded innocent children and babies to be killed...but perhaps that was an act of MERCY. No, I haven't gone mad. Think of the corrupt culture those babies/children were being raised in. Think about many of them being sacrificed (burned) to the idol Molech. And remember that children up to a certain age are not held responsible for their sins. Hmm. Maybe this command was an act of mercy--taking those children out of their godless environment to their eternal home in heaven. Maybe this was their only chance/hope of heaven.

Something to think about. I've blogged on this topic earlier. Scroll down for more of my ramblings and feel free to add some insight of your own.

Some BIG Decisions

Crossroads is facing some "crossroads" of its own these days. Let me spell them out:

1. Do we launch our first satellite campus in Eagan? A church in Eagan (BridgePointe) is looking into the option of merging with us and becoming "Crossroads, Eagan." It would be "us" in Eagan--our style, our DNA, our teaching team, our worship, etc. with some minor tweaking. This is a huge step for both churches. It's risky, messy, and painful. But, it's also a proven way to expand God's kingdom. The potential for reaching thousands more for Christ is there. So...do we do it?
2. Do we keep our current campus and make it our second satellite campus? Call it "Crossroads, Cottage Grove"? Again, our DNA with a different flavor. Our plan has been to sell our Cottage Grove facility. Although we've had a lot of lookers no one has shown us any cash. Is this God's way of telling us to keep the campus and use it for His glory? This is a huge decision. The financial strain it would put on us would be noticeable. But the potential to reach more people for Christ would be there. So...do we keep it?

We're asking the Crossroads family to pray heartily this month. We want to make decisions that are bathed in prayer and led by God's Spirit. Our goal is to get our leaders together the end of May and make the right decision.

Pray for clarity and discernment. Pray that our staff and Elders hear God's voice. Specifically, we're asking everyone to pray during your normal prayer times and pray in your Meal Groups. We're also asking for special times of prayer coupled with fasting on Tuesdays in May. Why fast and pray? It's Biblical... specifically in times needing God's guidance. Abstain from one or more meals for the next 3 Tuesdays and pray during that time.

Feel free to ask questions or add your comments.

The God of the Old Testament

OK...true confession: I've had a hard time with a lot of the Old Testament passages where God commands the destruction of entire groups of people. We're talking men, women, children, and even infants. This "vengeful, eye-for-an-eye, tooth-for-a-tooth, stone the sinner" kind of God bewilders me sometimes. There seems to be such a disparity between the God I read about in the Old Testament and the grace-filled God I see in the New Testament.

I don't have a lot of air-tight explanations but I would like to offer some random observations.
1. The O.T. world was very different. It was brutally violent. The "one" with the biggest muscles was in charge. How was God to get the attention of these barbaric people? Only one way--by speaking their language. By flexing his muscles and showing the world (by force) that HE was God.
2. Those God commands Israel to utterly destroy were utterly evil. They were guilty of gross sexual sin, as well as a boatload of others. How would God's greater plan of using Israel to bless the world be accomplished if God didn't eliminate and "clear an area" for the Israelites to thrive? What would happen if the Israelites became corrupted by these sin-infested people? People like the Canaanites who sacrificed babies by burning them alive...or who celebrated their victories by smashing the heads of their subjects' infants against rocks? Maybe some had to die so that others could live.
3. God never changes, so maybe the problem is MY ability to understand the God of the O.T. What we do know is that Jesus came to reveal to us God's character. In John 14 Jesus makes it clear that he is the spitting image of the Father. That if you know him (Jesus) you know the Father.

The principle that encourages me is is this: IT'S ALWAYS BEST TO WORK FROM THE KNOWN TO THE UNKNOWN. Since Jesus came and lived among us in clear view...since Jesus is the person in whom God is fully known...we should start with Jesus when asking what God is like. I define God from Jesus.

As John Killinger once said, "Jesus is God's way of getting rid of a bad reputation."

The question for us all is, "Can we trust a God like that (Jesus)?" I don't have to hesitate on that one. The answer is YES!