Randy Alcorn's Blog, page 148

Phillip Holmes on the Heart of Socialism

The advantages and dangers of socialism is a hotly debated topic in today’s culture. There’s much that could be said about both capitalism and socialism, but of special interest to believers is how both systems help or hurt the poor.

Unfortunately, those who laud socialism ignore the fact that historically the poor usually fare better in capitalist economies. They also fail to recognize that when the profit incentive is removed from labor, someone must find another way to motivate people to work. There’s only one other way that works—coercion. The capitalist says, “You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.” Socialism ends up saying, in effect, “You scratch my back or I’ll break yours.”

Can capitalism sometimes involve exploiting the poor? Of course. Does socialism lead to the oppression of the poor? Inevitably. The point isn’t that capitalism is a perfect system, but that the alternatives are worse. It isn’t a systemic problem, it’s a sin problem. Any economic system will work where there’s no sin. None will work ideally when there is sin, but some will work better than others.

Phillip Holmes recently wrote a perceptive article for Desiring God addressing the heart of socialism.

The Heart of Socialism

Socialism is trending in the minds of many Americans. Some love it, some hate it, and others are indifferent to it. Some Christians argue that it’s evil, while others argue that it’s morally good or neutral. Those that argue for its wickedness often fail to condemn the crony capitalism and corporate welfare that is widespread in the United States; therefore, their arguments often fall on deaf ears with socialist sympathizers. The arguments for its moral good or neutrality typically appeals to emotion, rather than evidence, which is considered insufficient for those that oppose it.

The face that comes to mind when we think of socialism in this election cycle is that of Bernie Sanders—the self-proclaimed democratic socialist. But the reality is that forms of socialism have been a part of the fabric of America since the public school system (late 1800s) and FDR’s New Deal (1933–1938). Martin Luther King rightfully critiques the state of the country during his life when he said, “This country has socialism for the rich, rugged individualism for the poor.”

Furthermore, socialism is extremely difficult to pin down and most will agree that there are varying degrees of socialism. You’d be hard pressed to find a consensus on the Internet of what components embody a socialist government. But for my purposes here, I will use the definition provided by John Piper:

A social and economic system that through legal or governmental or military coercion—in other words, you go to jail if you don’t do this—establishes social ownership at the expense of private or personal ownership and/or you could say where coercion is used to establish social control—if not ownership, at least control of the means of production in society. And thus, through control, you effectively eliminate many of the implications and motivations of private ownership.

In other words, Socialism borrows the compassionate aims of Christianity in meeting people’s needs while rejecting the Christian expectation that this compassion not be coerced or forced. Socialism, therefore, gets its attractiveness at certain points in history where people are drawn to the entitlements that Socialism brings, and where people are ignorant or forgetful of the coercion and the force required to implement it — and whether or not that coercion might, in fact, backfire and result in greater poverty or drab uniformity or, worse, the abuse of the coercion as we saw in the murderous states like USSR and Cambodia.

Few question whether those who advocate for socialistic forms of government have good intentions. They clearly seem to care about the poor. Some, like Senator Sanders, want to fight much of the corruption that is currently in Washington. But as the saying goes, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions” (though, no, I’m not here condemning anyone to hell). In other words, the good intentions of “social programs” (a term I will continue to use below) will have unexpected bad consequences in the long run.

Read the rest.

Photo credit: Gabby Orcutt via Unsplash

If “No Eye Has Seen,” How Can We Know About Heaven?

Years ago when I was working on my book Heaven, a pastor visiting my office asked what I was writing. When I told him, he replied, “Well, since Scripture says ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him,’ what will you be talking about? Obviously, we can’t know what God has prepared for us in Heaven.” (He was referring to 1 Corinthians 2:9.)

I said to him what I always say: “You didn’t complete the sentence. You also have to read verse ten.” Here’s how the complete sentence reads: “‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him’—but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit” (emphasis added). The context makes it clear that this revelation is God’s Word (v. 13), which tells us what God has prepared for us. After reading a few dozen books about Heaven, I came to instinctively cringe whenever I saw 1 Corinthians 2:9. It’s a wonderful verse; it’s just that it’s nearly always misused. It says precisely the opposite of what it’s cited to prove!

What we otherwise could not have known about Heaven, because we’re unable to see it, God says He has revealed to us through His Spirit. This means that God has explained to us what Heaven is like. Not exhaustively, but accurately. God tells us about Heaven in His Word, not so we can shrug our shoulders and remain ignorant, but because He wants us to understand and anticipate what awaits us.

Another problem with using 1 Corinthians 2:9 is that it isn’t talking about Heaven. In its context, it refers to the salvation-related hidden wisdom of God. Some would argue that God’s hidden wisdom broadly includes wisdom about Heaven, but my point is that even if the verse did refer to Heaven, it says the opposite of what it is typically cited to prove, because verse 10 indicates that God has revealed these hidden truths.

Other verses are likewise pulled out to derail discussions about Heaven. For example, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God” (Deuteronomy 29:29). Heaven is regarded as a “secret thing.” But the rest of the verse—again, rarely quoted—completes the thought: “But the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever.”

We should accept that many things about Heaven are secret and that God has countless surprises in store for us. But as for the things God has revealed to us about Heaven, these things belong to us and to our children. It’s critically important that we study and understand them. That is precisely why God revealed them to us!

Another “silencer” is 2 Corinthians 12:2-4. Paul says that fourteen years earlier he was “caught up to paradise,” where he “heard inexpressible things, things that man is not permitted to tell.” Some people use this verse to say we should not discuss what Heaven will be like. But all it says is that God didn’t permit Paul to talk about his visit to Heaven. In contrast, God commanded the apostle John to talk about his prolonged visit to Heaven, which he did in detail in the book of Revelation. Likewise, Isaiah and Ezekiel wrote about what they saw in Heaven.

Although it’s inappropriate for us to speculate on what Paul might have seen in Heaven, it’s certainly appropriate to discuss what John saw, because God chose to reveal it to us. If He didn’t intend for us to understand it, why would He bother telling us about it? (When was the last time you wrote someone a letter using words you didn’t expect them to comprehend?) So, we should study, teach, and discuss God’s revelation about Heaven given to us in His Word.

Certainly, not everything the Bible says about Heaven is easily envisioned. Consider Ezekiel’s description of the living creatures and their wheels, and the manifestation of God’s glory that leaves the prophet groping for words (Ezekiel 1:4-28). Still, many other passages concerning Heaven are much easier to grasp.

Isaiah 55:9 is another verse often cited in support of a “don’t ask, don’t tell” approach to Heaven: “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” God’s thoughts are indeed higher than ours, but when He reduces His thoughts into words and reveals them in Scripture, He expects us to study them, meditate on them, and understand them—again, not exhaustively, but accurately.

Photo credit: Samuel Zeller via Unsplash

Christ-Centered Generosity Isn’t Just for Older, Suburban White Americans

Sometimes the Generous Giving movement is seen as predominantly consisting of older suburban white Americans. In fact, it’s happening in other parts of the world, and within our own country it’s also happening among the young and those of every ethnicity, in the city as well as the suburbs.

That’s why it was so encouraging for me to see this video made of a multi-ethnic singles group at CityLight Baptist Church in Burbank, California who studied my book The Treasure Principle. It isn’t a professional video, which in some ways makes it better, but I loved the responses of these young people who seek to honor Jesus and grow in the knowledge of God’s Word and the life of Christ-centered generosity.

Photo credit: Kasper Bertelsen via Unsplash

God of the Beautiful

In an 1847 letter to his father, Scottish author George Macdonald (1824–1905) wrote of the barriers he faced in turning to Christ:

One of my greatest difficulties in consenting to think of religion was that I thought I should have to give up my beautiful thoughts & my love for the things God has made. But I find that the happiness springing from all things not in themselves sinful is much increased by religion. God is the God of the Beautiful, Religion the Love of the Beautiful, & Heaven the House of the Beautiful— nature is tenfold brighter in the sun of righteousness, and my love of nature is more intense since I became a Christian. . . . God has not given me such thoughts, & forbidden me to enjoy them. Will he not in them enable me to raise the voice of praise?[i]

Loving nature and beauty should indeed be enhanced by loving the God who made them and reveals Himself in them—how could it be otherwise?

Living in Oregon, surrounded by stunning natural beauty and people who love and sometimes worship it, I often ponder the irony that my state and our neighbor, Washington, have among the lowest percentages of Christ-followers anywhere in the United States. For the present, by God’s grace and kindness, people can reject God but still receive the benefits of His common grace, including the enjoyment of loving relationships, natural and artistic beauty, and pleasure.

However, we live on borrowed time. We need to see creation as a revelation of God’s greatness and beauty, and turn to the great God and Savior, our Creator and Redeemer, before our lives here end (see Hebrews 9:27-28; Revelation 20:11-15).

Andrew Cox, who’s part of one of our church’s families, is a 19-year-old, talented, Christ-loving photographer and videographer. He’s created a beautiful short timelapse film, “GENESIS,” showcasing the magnificence of God’s creation. It includes a narration that asks some relevant questions about nature, beauty, and the Creator. Andrew writes,

Living in the PNW definitely has its perks. I don't think I'll ever get tired of this beautiful area. From the age of 17, I have been traveling across the Pacific Northwest taking timelapse. This is a compilation of the 10,000+ photos shot over the last 2 years throughout countless backpacking and camping trips.

This world was so beautifully created, and it reflects our God in every aspect.

I hope that by watching this video you are inspired to think about these questions: What is beauty? What separates us from other creatures to marvel at sunsets, sunrises, mountains, and waterfalls? Was this really created for us to enjoy?

Here’s Andrew’s outstanding video, well worth five minutes of your time.

[i] George Macdonald, An Expression of Character: The Letters of George MacDonald (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1994), 18.

Photo credit: Andrew Cox Media

We Need to Laugh at Ourselves (Try Checking out the Babylon Bee)

Over the years, I’ve observed some Christians who are perpetually somber, never laughing or poking fun at themselves, rarely celebrating, and quick to frown when they see someone having fun. They believe that happiness is ungodliness, and that having fun is a sin. It’s not!

Though his portrait shows a somber expression, German Reformer Martin Luther (1483–1546) said, “It is pleasing to the dear God whenever thou rejoicest or laughest from the bottom of thy heart.”[i]

As believers, we need to laugh a great deal more and a great deal less: more at ourselves and the incongruities of life, and less at immorality and mockery of what pleases God.

Laughter, for the right reasons, is scriptural. Psalm 126:2 says, “Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy.” By God’s grace, even in times of difficulty, I’ve laughed hard, and I believe I’ve truly sensed Jesus’ laughter joining mine. As long as no one gets hurt by them, I end up laughing at my stupid mistakes regularly, which allows me to find happiness in what otherwise could become frustration or embarrassment.

I don’t laugh at my sin; I do laugh at my limitations and mistakes, often whispering to myself, “You’re an idiot.” (It’s not self-hatred; it’s being entertained by my innocent and…okay, sometimes dumb, blunders.) Laughing at ourselves can please God, relieve stress, and reflect humility—after all, proud people can’t laugh at themselves and are outraged when others laugh at them.

Consider the example of one of my heroes, British pastor Charles Spurgeon. Dr. Larry Michael writes:

Many evangelicals know well the stern side of C. H. Spurgeon and his serious pursuit of the holy life. Indeed, his stands for righteous causes, and countering doctrinal error are often recounted. But many readers may not know that he was a man with a great sense of humor. Spurgeon knew the value of laughter and mirth. He virtually took to heart the word in Proverbs 17:22: “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.”

Spurgeon laughed as often as he could. He laughed at the ironies of life, he laughed at comical incidents, he laughed at the amusing elements of nature. He sometimes laughed at his critics. He loved to share wholesome jokes with his friends and colleagues in ministry. He was known to tell humorous stories from the pulpit. William Williams, a fellow pastor who kept company with Spurgeon, was a near and dear friend in the latter years of Spurgeon's life. He wrote:

What a bubbling fountain of humour Mr. Spurgeon had! I laughed more, I verily believe, when in his company than during all the rest of my life besides. He had the most fascinating gift of laughter . . . and he had also the greatest ability for making all who heard him laugh with him. When someone blamed him for saying humourous things in his sermons, he said, “He would not blame me if he only knew how many of them I keep back.” 

Spurgeon considered humor such an integral part of his ministry that a whole chapter in his autobiography is devoted to it. Humor permeates his sermons and writings, often woven into the fabric of his messages. It's one reason among many why he is still so readable today. 

When I was a young believer, in the 1970s, I used to read The Wittenberg Door (often with my old buddy Larry Gadbaugh). It was a magazine which featured satirical articles on evangelical Christians, mostly—though not always—good-natured. The Door was, in my opinion, sometimes overcritical of evangelicals it disliked and undercritical of evangelicals it liked. Still, even when I was among those it considered naïve or off-base, I found myself laughing hard, and that laughter was therapeutic. The Babylon Bee, in case you haven’t heard of it, is doing that now, in the form of short satirical news releases. Here are some that Nanci and I have enjoyed. Hope they make you laugh, and maybe learn something in the process. :)

‘What Has God Ever Done For Me?’ Asks Man Breathing Air

LYNNWOOD, WA—Sources confirmed Tuesday that local freethinker Jared Olson called into question the “absurd” idea that God had ever done anything for him, all while inhaling oxygen and exhaling carbon dioxide in a complex process well beyond his mind’s capability of understanding in its entirety.

Associate Pastor Demoted To Church Plant After Rocky Relief Outing

KANSAS CITY, MO—Kansas City First Christian Church teaching pastor Sammy Tilson announced Sunday that associate pastor Dave Cromwell would be demoted to their church plant in Omaha following a brutal relief sermon appearance.

Local High Schooler Pretty Sure Sixth Camp Rededication Did the Trick

HOMEWOOD, AL—Upon returning from his Spring retreat with Grace Life Baptist’s youth group, high-school senior Frank Middleton reported that despite the last five failed attempts, this time around he is pretty sure his rededication to Christ is really going to stick.

Stephen Curry Clearly Just A Christian Ripoff Of Michael Jordan

OAKLAND, CA—Shaking his head in disgust while huffing audibly, local man Jack Berlinski reported Thursday that Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors is clearly just a Christian ripoff of Michael Jordan, the secular professional basketball player who is widely considered the greatest of all time.

Author Models Humility By Retweeting Only 75% Of Compliments

DALLAS, TX—Pastor and best-selling author of It’s All About Jesus, Larry Richards, is known for practicing online the humility he preaches in the pulpit by retweeting only 75% of all compliments he receives on Twitter about himself or his books.

Mountain Climber Recovering After Decision To Let Go And Let God

MARIPOSA, CA—Seasoned mountain climber Randall Jespers tumbled hundreds of feet down the El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite National Park Sunday after reportedly deciding to “let go and let God.”

Pastor Admits ‘Doing Life Together’ Just An Excuse To Do Whatever

KENOSHA, WI—Pastor Doug Gosport, 53, admitted that his recent forays into “doing life together” with people in his church and community were really just an excuse to do whatever he felt like doing, sources confirmed Monday.

After 12 Years Of Quarterly Church Attendance, Parents Shocked By Daughter’s Lack Of Faith (This one has a strong and sad message.)

Fullerton, CA—Local father Trevor Michelson, 48, and his wife Kerri, 45, are reeling after discovering that after 12 years of steadily taking their daughter Janie to church every Sunday they didn’t have a more pressing sporting commitment—which was at least once every three months—she no longer demonstrates the strong quarterly commitment to the faith they raised her with, now that she is college-aged.

John Piper Gently Informs David Platt That Everyone Knows About ‘Secret Church’

LOUISVILLE, KY—Directing him to a private, dimly-lit room so any emotional reaction would be shielded from the throngs of attendees with cameras, John Piper reportedly sat David Platt down backstage at the Together for the Gospel conference Wednesday in order to gently inform him that everyone knows about ‘Secret Church.’

Landscaper Accidentally Trims Church’s Hedge Of Protection

KANSAS CITY, MO—The leadership team at Blue Valley Baptist Church confirmed Thursday that an employee working for Westside Landscaping inadvertently trimmed the hedge of protection church prayer-warriors had painstakingly prayed around the property, potentially exposing the church and its members to demonic attacks.

Paul Bunyan Tops List Of Favorite Puritans

VENTURA, CA—Evangelicals have spoken, and it turns out their favorite Puritan is none other than Paul Bunyan. In a recent survey of self-identified Evangelical Christians aged 30-55 performed by The Barna Group, the 300-foot-tall lumberjack of American folklore beat out other Puritans like former presidential candidate John Edwards, actor-director Robert Redford, and hip-hop artist/reality TV star John Flavel Flav by a wide margin.

Rob Bell: ‘I Believe Things About Things’

HOLLYWOOD, CA—In a bold declaration, Rob Bell has announced to the world that he firmly believes something about something.

Heaven Department Of Tourism Advises 2017 Round-Trip Tickets Selling Out Fast

HEAVEN—If you want to hitch a ride to the celestial kingdom and back, you’d better get your tickets as soon as possible. The Heaven Department of Tourism announced Friday that 2016 round-trip packages to the pearly gates have been sold out for months, and reservations for 2017 are selling out “very quickly.”

Trump Sees Poll Numbers Plummet As Yosemite Sam Enters GOP Race (A bit dated now, but we thought this was hilarious.)

U.S.—After weeks of speculation Yosemite Sam has finally thrown his 11-gallon hat into the ring. Although four states have already cast their ballots, the fiery prospector believes there is still plenty of time to make a strong run at the Republican nomination.

The Power Of Positive Declarations: Joel Osteen Can Now Fly

HOUSTON, TX—Joel Osteen, celebrity senior pastor of Lakewood Church, has been proclaiming the life-changing power of regular, vocal, positive declarations and self-affirmations for years, and for just as long has pointed to his own life and accomplishments as irrefutable evidence of their efficacy.

Gridlock Reached As Two Men Both Certain God Told Them To Date Same Girl

NEW YORK, NY—Stressing the precariousness of the situation, inside sources confirmed Monday that a gridlock has been reached in the social lives of David Gall, 23, and Mark Cormier, 26, as both men are absolutely, 100% certain that God has personally instructed them to date local 22-year-old Stephanie Fair.

Youth Pastor Forgets What His Hebrew Tattoo Means

SEATTLE, WA—Local youth pastor Bryce LoPresti blew a perfect chance to give a reason for the hope within him Tuesday when his neighbor finally inquired what his tattoo means.

Joel Osteen Ordered To Acquire Butcher’s License Due To Exegetical Methods

HOUSTON, TX—The Texas Department of State Health Services has issued an order to Joel Osteen, bestselling author and pastor of Lakewood Church, to acquire a butcher’s license in order to continue handling Scripture.

Dove Awards Announce Realistic New Categories

NASHVILLE, TN—In an announcement of sweeping changes, the GMA Dove Awards confirmed Thursday that the 2016 ceremony would feature all-new categories organizers are calling “more realistic.”

[i] Martin Luther, as quoted in Tal D. Bonham, Humor, God’s Gift (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1988), 245.

Photo credit: Josh Felise via Unsplash

The Happiness Found in God’s Word: Part 3 of a 3-Session Conference

Augustine said, “By hearing Thee I am happy; because of Thy voice I am happy.”[i] There’s no place we can go to hear God speak authoritatively, to hear His voice with complete confidence, other than the Bible itself.

When we’re right with God, we’re delighted with His words, because they’re an extension of Himself—His majesty, His beauty, and His happiness.

“The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul. . . . The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart” (Psalm 19:7-8, NASB). As we listen to, meditate on, and respond to God’s Word, our souls are restored from sin and unhappiness to righteousness and happiness.

As a new believer in Christ, I couldn’t get enough of God’s Word. At night I sometimes fell asleep with my face on an open Bible. Other times I would listen to Scripture on cassette tapes (remember those?). As I drifted off to sleep, my last waking memories were of God’s words.

When Jeremiah said that God’s Word “became to me a joy and the delight of my heart” (Jeremiah 15:16), he was suggesting that Scripture has a cumulative effect that increases over time. Happily, by God’s grace, I can attest to this.

As I shared in my earlier blogs this week, I recently spoke on happiness at my home church, Good Shepherd Community Church, in a three-session conference. (Check out session one and session two if you missed them. The sessions can stand alone, but I think you’ll get the most out of each if you watch them consecutively.) Today’s blog features session three, “The Happiness Found in God’s Word.” Pastor Alan Hlavka and I spent the last 15 minutes of the session focusing on the happiness-related words found in the Bible’s original languages, but before that we addressed several more questions:

What do you do when you’re not a naturally happy person?
How do I have happiness when I worry so much, especially in today’s troubled world?
How does the subject of Heaven have to do with our happiness?
Are emotions bad?
Do our holiness and our happiness go hand in hand, or are they at odds with each other?

Watch the full session below, or you can download the audio.

From Eternal Perspective Ministries:

Get an additional 20% off our already-discounted prices on all of Randy Alcorn’s books and products in our online store when you use the code SPRINGSALE during check out.

For example, Randy’s book Happiness is $10.39 with the code (58% off the $24.99 retail price, regular EPM price $12.99).

Browse all of Randy’s happiness-related books and products.

Code expires Tuesday, April 26 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

[i] Philip Schaff, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 7, “Augustine: Homilies on the Gospel of John” (Tractate #25).

Photo credit: Aaron Burden via Unsplash

The Happiness of God: Part 2 of a 3-Session Conference

Since we’ll inevitably seek what we believe will bring us happiness, what subject is more important than the source of happiness? Just as we’ll live a wealth-centered life if we believe wealth brings happiness, so we’ll live a God-centered life if we believe God will bring us happiness. No one shops for milk at an auto parts store or seeks happiness from a cranky God.

As much as I believe in the holiness of God, I also believe highlighting God’s happiness is a legitimate and effective way to share the gospel with unbelievers or to help Christians regain a foothold in their faith.

Some imagine that following Christ boils down to, “Just say no to happiness!” Christian homes and churches need to counteract that misconception with a biblical doctrine of happiness, built upon the happiness of God.

In his classic book The Knowledge of the Holy, which influenced me profoundly as a new believer, A. W. Tozer wrote, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. . . . No religion has ever been greater than its idea of God. . . . The most portentous fact about any man is not what he at a given time may say or do, but what he in his deep heart conceives God to be like.”[i]

It’s narcissistic to think of God only in terms of how loving, angry, forgiving, just, or patient He is in relation to us. We’re but creatures, latecomers, and incredibly small. He’s the Creator, without beginning and end, continuously vibrant and energetic. His identity and character don’t depend on us. He had a life before we met Him, and had we never met Him, He would have retained His identity. So the question isn’t merely whether God is happy with us but whether God, in Himself, is happy.

Jonathan Edwards said, “It is of infinite importance . . . to know what kind of being God is. For he is . . . the only fountain of our happiness.”[ii] Edwards knew that just as an unloving God couldn’t bring us love, an unhappy God couldn’t be our source of happiness.

As I mentioned in my last post, I recently spoke on happiness at my home church, Good Shepherd Community Church, in a three-session conference. (Check out session one if you missed it. The sessions can stand alone, but you’ll get the most out of each one if you watch them consecutively.) Today’s blog features session two, titled “The Happiness of God, and Happiness and Idolatry.” Pastor Alan Hlavka asked me another series of questions, including:

Is God happy, and why does the answer to that question matter?
Jesus was called a Man of Sorrows. Does that mean He wasn’t happy?
Is there a relationship between happiness and idolatry?
The secular world talks about being happy by helping others and being more grateful. What does the Bible say about this?

Watch the full session below, or you can download the audio.

From Eternal Perspective Ministries:

Get an additional 20% off our already-discounted prices on all of Randy Alcorn’s books and products in our online store when you use the code SPRINGSALE during check out.

For example, Randy’s book Happiness is $10.39 with the code (58% off the $24.99 retail price, regular EPM price $12.99).

Browse all of Randy’s happiness-related books and products.

Code expires Tuesday, April 26 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

[i] A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy (New York: HarperCollins, 1961), 1.

[ii] Jonathan Edwards, “The Importance and Advantage of a Thorough Knowledge of Divine Truth,” Select Sermons.

Photo credit: Christian Bruno via Unsplash

Hardwired for Happiness: Part 1 of a 3-Session Conference

Based on the books I’ve read, the sermons I’ve heard, and the conversations I’ve had, I’m convinced that many Christians believe our desire for happiness was birthed in humanity’s fall.

But what if our desire for happiness comes from God? What if He wired His image bearers for happiness before sin entered the world? How might this perspective change our approach to life, parenting, church, ministry, business, sports, and entertainment?

Augustine asked rhetorically, “Is not a happy life the thing that all desire, and is there any one who altogether desires it not?” Then he added a critical question: “But where did they acquire the knowledge of it, that they so desire it? Where have they seen it, that they so love it?”[i]

Not only has God written His law on our hearts (see Romans 2:15); He’s written a love of happiness on our hearts.

Blaise Pascal, who said that “all men seek happiness,” wrote these words in his collection of thoughts on theology:

What else does this longing and helplessness proclaim, but that there was once in each person a true happiness, of which all that now remains is the empty print and trace? We try to fill this in vain with everything around us, seeking in things that are not there the help we cannot find in those that are there. Yet none can change things, because this infinite abyss can only be filled with something that is infinite and unchanging—in other words, by God himself. God alone is our true good.[ii]

In other words, the Fall didn’t generate the human longing for happiness—it derailed and misdirected it.

Recently I spoke on the topic of happiness at my home church, Good Shepherd Community Church, in a three-session conference. I’ll be sharing one full session in each of my blog posts this week.

My hope is that individuals, pastors, and small groups would consider utilizing these videos for study and discussion, as they contain a large amount of Scripture related to happiness. (My PowerPoint slides are included in the video.)

Pastor Alan Hlavka asked me a series of thoughtful questions, which I responded to in the first session, titled “Hardwired for Happiness, and Happiness vs. Joy.” The questions included:

Does God expect us to be happy?
We live in a broken world. Is it insensitive to say that we should be happy and that God wants us to be happy?
In modern Christianity we tend to have a fear of talking about happiness. What’s the downside of avoiding addressing happiness?
Does Scripture show there’s a difference between happiness and joy?

If you’ve never studied what Scripture says about happiness, or even if you think that happiness isn’t something believers should focus on, I encourage you to take the time to listen to or watch these sessions, and consider what God’s Word has to say.

Watch the full first session below, or if you’d like you can download the audio.

From Eternal Perspective Ministries:

Get an additional 20% off our already-discounted prices on all of Randy Alcorn’s books and products in our online store when you use the code SPRINGSALE during check out.

For example, Randy’s book Happiness is $10.39 with the code (58% off the $24.99 retail price, regular EPM price $12.99).

Browse all of Randy’s happiness-related books and products.

Code expires Tuesday, April 26 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

[i] Augustine, “We Should Not Seek for God and the Happy Life Unless We Had Known It,” The Confessions of St. Augustine, trans. J. G. Pilkington.

[ii] Pascal, Pensées, number 425.

Photo credit: Brandon Couch via Unsplash

God’s Kingdom . . . and Ours

In Daniel 7:13-14 we’re given a prophetic revelation of four earthly kingdoms, beginning with Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon, that will one day be forever replaced by a fifth kingdom. As the four pagan kingdoms are on Earth, the contextual implication is that the fifth kingdom—God’s eternal Kingdom—will also be on Earth.

Daniel said of the four earthly kingdoms, “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea” (Daniel 7:2). These nations might appear to rise to power arbitrarily, but their emergence is orchestrated by Heaven, and their ruling authority is granted by God for they are “given authority to rule” (v. 6), and later “their dominion was taken away” (v. 12, ESV).

In contrast to the tenuous and temporary rule of the nations, we’re told that the Messiah’s dominion—in context, a kingdom on Earth—will be “everlasting” and “will not pass away” and “will never be destroyed” (v. 14).

Notice the continuity between the ultimate earthly kingdom of the Messiah and the previous earthly kingdoms of Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome, from which eventually comes the kingdom of the Antichrist. The kingdom with the everlasting dominion is not a dominion over a different realm but over the same realm—Earth. In speaking of these kingdoms, God is not comparing apples (Earth) with oranges (a spirit realm), but apples with apples. Christ will not merely destroy the earth where fallen kings once ruled. Rather, He will rule over the same Earth, transformed and new.

At Daniel’s request, an angel provides an interpretation of his vision: “The four great beasts are four kingdoms that will rise from the earth” (v. 17). Then the angel makes an extraordinary statement: “But the saints of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever” (v. 18). This statement makes clear both the kingdom’s location (Earth) and its duration (eternal).

Some theologians reduce Daniel 7 to a promise that God’s saints will reign with Christ during the Millennium. But the text couldn’t be clearer—it says “for ever and ever,” not a thousand years. Many other passages also affirm an earthly reign that will last forever (e.g., Joshua 14:9; 2 Samuel7:16; Isaiah 34:17; 60:21; Jeremiah17:25; Micah 4:7; Revelation 22:5). The angel Gabriel told Mary that Christ “will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end” (Luke1:33). Regardless of whether one believes in a literal Millennium, passages such as the ones cited here shouldn’t be understood as millennial references. They refer instead to an everlasting Kingdom.

But where is that eternal Kingdom located? If the other four kingdoms, spanning centuries, rose “from the earth,” and if the Antichrist will rule on the earth, where will God’s Kingdom be in order to replace those kingdoms? On the earth.

Under God’s covenant with Israel, the people never looked for the Messiah to reign in Heaven. That would be nothing new, because God already reigns in Heaven. Establishing God’s Kingdom was never about an immaterial spirit realm. It always concerned the one place in the universe made for mankind, the one place where God’s reign has been disputed: Earth.

It’s a common but serious mistake to spiritualize the eternal Kingdom of God. Many people imagine that God will replace the earthly kings and their kingdoms with a transcendent sovereignty over the spiritual realm of Heaven. But that is very different than what Daniel is telling us.

God has never abandoned His original plan that righteous human beings will inhabit and rule the earth. That’s not merely an argument from silence. Daniel 7:18 explicitly reveals that “the saints of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever.” What is “the kingdom”? Earth.

Earth is unique. It’s the one planet—perhaps among billions—where God chose to act out the unfolding drama of redemption and reveal the wonders of His grace. It’s on the New Earth, the capital planet of the new universe, that He will establish an eternal Kingdom.

Daniel 7:21-22 says that an earthly ruler “was waging war against the saints and defeating them, until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom” (emphasis added).

The same earthly kingdoms ruled by ungodly human beings will ultimately be ruled by godly human beings. Christ’s promise wasn’t figurative—the meek really will inherit the earth (Matthew 5:5). And they will rule what they inherit.

The Kingdom Transfer

Daniel 7:25 tells us that the saints will be handed over to the earth’s kingdoms, which will persecute them for a season. But then a stunning reversal will occur. “Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him” (v. 27).

What is the “greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven” that will be “handed over to the saints”? I believe it includes all that makes the nations great. That would include, among other things, their cultural, artistic, athletic, scientific, and intellectual achievements. All of these will not be lost or destroyed but “handed over to the saints” as they rule God’s eternal Kingdom on the New Earth. We will become the stewards, the managers of the world’s wealth and accomplishments.

Consider the marvels of this revelation. God’s children who suffered under ungodly earthly kings will forever take their place as earthly kings. The great cultural accomplishments of ungodly nations will be handed over to God’s people to manage and (I assume) develop and expand.

The very Earth to which Satan once laid claim will be stripped from his grasp and given over to those whom he hates and seeks to destroy—God’s saints. Notice it doesn’t say that the earth’s kingdoms will be destroyed, but that they will be “handed over” to the saints, placed under their just rule. All the wrongs done on Earth by tyrants will be a thing of the past. No more persecution and injustice. The Earth that was first put under mankind’s dominion and was twisted by the Fall will be redeemed, restored, and put under the righteous rule of a redeemed and restored mankind.

If the Bible made no other reference to believers ruling over an earthly kingdom, the emphatic message of Daniel 7 would suffice: The saints of God will rule the earth forever.

Many people believe that if God rules the universe, there’s no room for other rulers. But this can’t be true, because we’re told that “all rulers will worship and obey him” (v. 27). Isaiah 60 and Revelation 21:24 tell us there will still be nations on the New Earth, and they will still have rulers. But they will be righteous rulers, subordinate to Christ. People of every national and ethnic group (“tribe and language and people and nation”) will worship the Lamb (Revelation 5:9). Some will rule over cities; others will rule over nations. Christ will be King of all, but He will be “King of kings” (Revelation 19:16), meaning that His people will rule the new earth under Him.

Photo credit: Alexandre Perotto via Unsplash

Bruce Ware on Christ Emptying Himself

Philippians 2:5-8 says:

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant,being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

What does Scripture mean by saying that Christ “did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped”? And what does it mean for Christ to empty Himself?

My friend Bruce Ware is a professor of Christian Theology at Southern Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Below is an excerpt from Bruce’s excellent book The Man Christ Jesus where he discusses this passage:

Christ being fully God, possessing the very nature of God and being fully equal to God in every respect, did not thereby insist on holding onto all the privileges and benefits of his position of equality with God (the Father) and thereby refuse to accept coming as a man. He did not clutch or grasp his place of equality with the Father and all that this brought to him in such a way that he would refuse the condescension and humiliation of the servant role he was being called to accept. …Christ’s not “grasping” equality with God cannot rightly be taken to mean that Christ gave up being God or became in any way less than fully God when he took on also a fully human nature. No, rather, he did not grasp or clutch onto the privileged position, rights, and prerogatives that his full equality with God, his Father, afforded him, in order to fulfill his calling to become fully a man who would be, amazingly, servant of all.

…Paul is not saying that Christ emptied something from himself or poured something out of himself, as if in so doing he became less fully God than he was before (which, as we have seen, is impossible). Rather, he emptied himself; he poured out himself. That is, all of who Christ is as eternal God, all that he is as the one who is in the form of God and is equal with God, is poured out. Christ, then, as God remains fully God. He loses nothing of his divine nature, and no divine qualities are removed from him as he pours himself out.

May we follow Christ’s model of humility and “have this same mind among yourselves.”

Photo credit: Charles Thompson via Freeimages