Without Natural Affection and Covenantbreakers

Most of us prefer a version of the Bible today that is more modern in its language than the original American Standard Version of 1901 or the King James Version, thus making the Bible easier to read and understand. However, in a few passages scattered about the Bible, the new literal translations like the ESV, NASB, and the NKJV, all excellent translations taken as a whole, have, in my opinion, given us inferior translations in an attempt to make reading easier for us.

One such example is found in Rom. 1:31. In Romans 1, Paul, toward the middle of the chapter, begins to talk about the ungodliness and unrighteousness of men (v. 18) and then in the last few verses lists a series of sins into which mankind had fallen. Verse 31 is a part of this listing and reads in its entirety as follows, “undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful.” (NKJV)

However, read this same verse from the King James Version and it reads as follows, “Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful.” The ASV of 1901 reads the same as the KJV except that it omits the word “implacable.”

Here is a case where both of these older translations are more accurate to my mind than any of the newer ones, more accurate in exactness of the meaning of the original Greek words behind the English words untrustworthy (NKJV) and unloving (NKJV). That is to say, covenantbreakers is a better translation than untrustworthy, and without natural affection is a better translation than unloving.

For covenantbreakers (it is one word in the KJV), the ESV and the NIV have "faithless," the NAS, the CSB, and the NKJV have "untrustworthy." These words are close enough that you can see where modern-day translators were coming from, but they still stray in my mind from the exact intent of the original. The original is not referring to general untrustworthiness but specific untrustworthiness in breaking a covenant one has made with another. I may be wrong, as I am not a Greek scholar, and modern scholarship seems to say I am, but if you go back in time, translators thought covenantbreakers was the best translation. Let each do their own study.

Hear the words of Malachi 2:13-16, and for this I will use the NKJV because it reads easier and is still accurate. “And this is the second thing you do: You cover the altar of the Lord with tears, with weeping and crying; so he does not regard the offering anymore, nor receive it with goodwill from your hands. Yet you say, ‘For what reason?’ Because the Lord has been witness between you and the wife of your youth, with whom you have dealt treacherously; yet she is your companion and your wife by covenant. But did he not make them one, having a remnant of the Spirit? And why one? He seeks godly offspring. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth. ‘For the Lord God of Israel says that he hates divorce, for it covers one’s garment with violence,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘Therefore take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.’”

When a man and woman marry, they make a solemn covenant between each other and God. To break that covenant would be exactly what the Greek word used in Rom. 1:31 is talking about. But there is more. How many times in reading the Old Testament do you run across the word covenant in connection with covenants God made with his people and them with him? How many times did his people break those covenants?

I did a quick e-sword search on the NKJV concordance for the word covenant in the New Testament, and the word popped up 31 times in 28 total verses. The New Testament is sometimes called the New Covenant (it is listed as that on the title page of the copy I have of the original American Standard Version of 1901).

As Christians, we have entered into a covenant relationship with God. When Jesus died on the cross and we come to accept him as Lord, Savior, and King of our lives by gospel obedience, we have entered into a covenant relationship with him. Remember his words, “This is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” (Matt. 26:28 NKJV)

Paul spoke of himself and his cohorts as “ministers of the new covenant.” (1 Cor. 3:6 NKJV) “Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant” (Heb. 722 NKJV) says the Hebrew writer. It is said to be a “better covenant” than that which was under the Law of Moses with better promises (Heb. 8:6). To be a covenantbreaker, whether between husband and wife or a Christian and his God, is a serious matter.

“Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing…,” says the Hebrew writer (Heb. 10:29 NKJV). We must be as good as our word, and if we are not, we need to repent and get to being that good. This easy covenant breaking we have today is not going to get it with God, whether the covenant we are breaking is with our wife or husband or with God.

Am I saying modern-day translations have it wrong? I am told by Claude, the A.I., that modern scholars think the original is broader than just the breaking of covenants. Here is a quote from it, “The shift from ‘covenantbreakers’ to ‘faithless’ in modern translations reflects a more contemporary understanding of the Greek term's broader meaning - it encompasses not just breaking formal covenants or treaties, but being generally untrustworthy, unreliable, or lacking in faithfulness to commitments and relationships.”

ChatGPT, the A.I., says, “the Greek ἀσύνθετος literally means ‘not keeping agreements’ but broadly conveys faithless/treacherous/untrustworthy, which explains why newer translations expand or modernize the wording.”

Certainly, a covenantbreaker would be faithless and untrustworthy so I can see that. However, here is a case for me where I find it hard to discern between translation and commentary, which is which.

The other phrase I want to talk about from Rom. 1:31 is the words, “without natural affection.” In the ESV and the NIV, the Greek is translated by one word, the word “heartless.” The NAS, the CSB, and the NKJV have “unloving.” I think you will find the old King James Version has it correct as to the exact meaning of the Greek. A person might be heartless and unloving in general and still not be “without natural affection.”

Vine’s, An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, a standard work that Bible students consult regularly to see what the original Greek behind the English word means, says this, “signifies without natural affection…love of kindred, especially of parents for children and children for parents.” The Greek word is “astorgos.”

An example of natural affection is found in the story of the two women (harlots) who, while living together, gave birth to sons 3 days apart. The one woman lay on her son in the night, killing him by accident. She then claimed the other woman’s son as her own. The matter was taken before King Solomon, who heard both women claiming the boy as their own. In his wisdom, King Solomon proposed to have the son killed by the sword and both women given a half, knowing the real mother would be willing to give up the child to have his life spared. Natural affection led to this very result, with the real mother pleading for the life of the son, willing to give him up to the other woman to save his life. “O my lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him!” (1 Kings 3:26 NKJV)

What is natural affection if it is not God given, natural, by nature? It is hard for most of us to understand how this can be, that one would not have natural affection, and yet Paul says some have this sin in their life. In writing Romans 1, he includes it with a long list of many sins about which he says in closing, “that those who practice such things are worthy of death.” (Rom. 1:32 NKJV) We read in the Old Testament of some offering their babies up for burnt sacrifices. In 2 Kings 17, one reads of the sins that caused God to allow Israel to be carried away into captivity. One of these sins was that “they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire.” (2 Kings 17:17 NKJV) This was a sin associated with the worship of idols.

Manasseh, the king of Judah, became guilty of the same thing: “he caused his sons to pass through the fire in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom.” (2 Chron. 33:6 NKJV) God, in the book of Jeremiah, said, “And they have built the high places of Tophet, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not command, nor did it come into my heart.” (Jer. 7:31 NKJV)

This shows the depth and degree to which men can sink when they get involved with false doctrine. Radical Islam comes to mind, where men can slit a man’s throat with a knife, the burning of Christians at the stake, etc.

However, it can work the other way as well, children against their parents. Almost every Bible reader is acquainted with the attempt by David’s son Absalom to overthrow him. One can read about Absalom’s revolt beginning in 2 Sam. 15, and every indication is that David felt Absalom would put him to death if he had the opportunity.

Many years later, Jesus spoke of a time when “brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death.” (Mark 13:12 NKJV) From time to time, we read or hear in the news of children abusing their aged parents. In fact, Jesus talked about this very thing, although not speaking of physical abuse, in Matt. 15. He accused the scribes and Pharisees of not honoring their parents, not being willing to help them (Matt. 15:1-6).

Yes, these are all extreme cases, but if men can fall into the depths of sin to the degree they are willing to do these things, then certainly there is such a thing as a lack of natural affection, which none can deny. The lack of natural affection can manifest itself in many ways. But in whatever way it manifests itself, the sin of the heart remains the same. The sin of lacking natural affection is simply the sin of not loving. Perhaps this is the reason some of the modern translations use the word “unloving” in their translations.

“For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.” (1 John 3:11 NKJV) “He who does not love his brother abides in death.” (1 John 3:14 NKJV) One would do well to read the book of 1 John where the word love is used 36 times in the New King James Version.

If one lacks natural affection, it is not something we are incapable of doing anything about. All sin begins in the heart, unless one is talking about sins of ignorance. If the Bible teaches anything at all, it teaches that men and their hearts can be changed. Saul had a hand in seeing Christians put to death (Acts 26:10), but God and his word changed him into the apostle Paul. Paul said there was a reason for that--that he might be an example.

I use the New Living Translation here, not because I think it is the most accurate translation of the passage, but because I think, as a commentary, it has hit the nail on the head of what the verse teaches. I refer to 1 Tim. 1:16 where Paul says, “But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life.” (NLT)

It is not a matter of saying I was born without natural affection; what can I do? We are the way we are because of the attitudes we have developed over time. Saul was not loving toward those families he tore apart, casting a mother, a dad, a son, or a daughter into prison and possibly seeing them put to death depending on the case. Even so, he became a changed man.

The apostle John reached a point where he no longer had any desire to have fire called down from heaven to consume those who rejected them (Luke 9:54), but given a lifetime came to be known to us today as the apostle of love.

Those 3,000 converted on the day of Pentecost who yelled for the Son of God to be put to death had their hearts changed from hatred and murder to love and compassion. Christ can change us. It all comes down to a matter of our wills. Do we want to be known as the man or woman who lacked natural affection or the man or woman who loved his or her family? It is a matter of personal choice just as much as salvation is. Natural affection goes with salvation as much as the lack of it goes with condemnation.

Love is a choice. That cannot be emphasized too much. Love is a choice, and remember, we are talking about natural affection. When you begin to love rather than hate, you will find life to be much happier. Where do you begin? You begin from within, within your heart. You begin with your will. God can change your heart, your life, but you have to want it first. When you want it, you will begin seeking it, and when you seek, you shall find (Matt. 7:8). 

[To download this article or print it out click here.]

Things About the Church

One should never minimize the value of the church, the church Jesus built. I am not speaking about man-made denominational churches established hundreds of years after the Lord built his church, but the church you read about in the Bible. Many do not understand the importance of the church. Years ago this sentiment was popularized by the saying, “Jesus yes; the church no.” The church that was being rejected by so many was the organized churches they could see.

Certainly, one can do without the church if one is talking about a denominational church. Almost all of them were begun long after the church one reads about in the Bible. Those in them will generally admit it does not matter whether or not you are a member of their particular denomination, for they say you can be saved without being a member of their fellowship. This is a confession, although unintended, that their denominational church is not the church of the Bible. But, with that said, it is a whole different story when it comes to the Lord’s church, for no one can be saved outside it.

Here is a list of 12 things many people do not know or understand about the Lord’s church--things that make all the difference.

(1) The same process that makes you a Christian, believing and obeying the gospel, adds you to the church the Lord built. There is no such thing as a Christian who is not a part of the Lord’s church. “And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47 NKJV) Who is saved? Is it the Christian or the non-Christian? If God has not added you to the church there is a good reason--you are not yet one of those who are being saved; you have not yet obeyed the gospel.

It is only the church, not those outside the church, that Christ sanctified and cleansed “with the washing of water by the word that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish.” (Eph. 5:25-27 NKJV) If you are saved, you are in this glorious church.

(2) The church is the saved. All of the saved are in the church. One cannot be saved outside the church. Jesus is the Savior of the body (Eph. 5:23), which is the church (Eph. 1:22-23, Col. 1:18, 24). There is no passage to be found in the Bible where Jesus ever said he would save a person outside his body, outside the church. Paul speaking to the Christians at Corinth said, “Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.” (1 Cor. 12:27 NKJV) “Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body.” (Eph. 5:23 NKJV) Christ is “head over all things to the church, which is His body.” (Eph. 1:22-23 NKJV)

This is not to imply everyone in the church is saved, but only that all who are saved are in the church. Paul said, as an example, that Demas had forsaken him, having loved this present world (2 Tim. 4:10). Unless he later repented and was restored, he would not have been saved, so here is a man who was in the church but left. Not all Christians are faithful, but, nevertheless, all who are saved are in the church.

(3) Jesus purchased the church with his blood. Paul, in speaking to the Ephesian elders, admonished them to “shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.” (Acts 20:28 NKJV) It is by his blood that we will be saved. “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins.” (Eph. 1:7 NKJV) One is either in the church purchased with Christ’s own blood or he is outside. Jesus' blood never purchased anything other than the church. “The Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:27 NKJV) Saved how? By the blood of Jesus. The saved are in the church, not outside it.

(4) You cannot join the church or be added by man. The Lord adds you to the church (Acts 2:47) once you have obeyed the gospel and been cleansed by the blood of Jesus in doing so. You cannot join the church because God adopts you into it, the church being God’s family. God “predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ.” (Eph. 1:5 NKJV) If you are a child of God, it is because God chose to add you to his family. He willingly does so when we make our desire to be a part of the family known by gospel obedience, obedience that is sincere and from the heart (Rom. 6:17).

(5) “Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it.” (Eph. 5:25 NKJV) Will we say Christ loved the church and still belittle its importance? If he loved the church, should we not also love it? The church is brothers and sisters in Christ. What has Christ said about loving one another? “He who does not love his brother abides in death.” (1 John 3:14 NKJV)

(6) When one persecutes, or belittles, or makes fun of the church (Christians are the church), he is doing it to Christ. Saul, who later became the apostle Paul, was a great persecutor of the church, as you are well aware. When Christ confronted Saul on the road to Damascus, he said to Saul, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” (Acts 9:4 NKJV) In persecuting the church, Saul was persecuting Christ.

[Please note I said “the church,” not denominations, for it would have to be first proven that a denomination is the church. They came on the scene generations after Jesus’ church. Since they all deny they are the church, claiming they are only a denomination within it, and say you can be saved outside their denomination, then surely they are right and their denomination is not the church, for you cannot be saved outside Christ’s church.]

(7) God receives glory in the church. “To him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus.” (Eph. 3:21 ESV) Christians are the ones who give God glory, and they are the ones within the church. “For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Cor. 6:20 NKJV) “That you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Rom. 15:6 NKJV)

(8) It is through the church that the manifold wisdom of God is made known. “To the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church.” (Eph. 3:9 NKJV) Do not ever expect to learn about God or the gospel or salvation from those outside the church. Remember, the church is Christians. They are the ones who proclaim God’s word, whether within the meeting house or outside it.

(9) The church is a spiritual building built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Jesus as the chief cornerstone (Eph. 2:20), a holy temple in the Lord (Eph. 2:21), “built together for a habitation of God in the Spirit” (Eph. 2:22 NKJV). One either desires to be a living stone in that building or one does not. “You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:5 NKJV)

Paul told Timothy, “I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God.” (1 Tim. 3:15 NKJV) One is either a living stone in that building of God or else he is no part of it at all. Can one be saved outside it? To ask is to answer.

(10) The church is where God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are. Christians are the church. Christians have the Holy Spirit. “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you.” (1 Cor. 6:19 NKJV) The church is “a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a habitation of God in the Spirit.” (Eph. 2 21-22 NKJV) “Where two or three are gathered together in MY name, there I am in the midst of them.” (Matt. 18:20 NKJV)

This is not to say God is unaware of those outside the church, but it is to say that he abides within the church in a way he never abides in those outside the church. If you want to be where Jesus is, where the Father is, where the Holy Spirit is, you cannot remain out in the world away from the church.

(11) There is only one way into the church--through Jesus. “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” (John 14:6 NKJV) Elsewhere he said, “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved.” (John 10:9 NKJV) The saved are in the church (Acts 2:47, Eph. 5:23, Col. 1:24).

To enter into Christ is to be baptized into his spiritual body based upon a genuine faith, repentance of sins, and a willingness to confess him with the mouth. “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.” (1 Cor. 12:13) Baptism is into Christ (Rom. 6:3, Gal. 3:27). “He who believes and is baptized will be saved.” (the words of Jesus--Mark 16:16 NKJV)

(12) The church is the place where prayers to God will be heard. “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” (James 5:16 NKJV) No one is righteous who has not been cleansed by the blood of Jesus and who, thus, is not a member of the church Jesus built. All the righteous are in the church; there are none who are righteous outside it who are of accountable age and mentally competent. “The prayer of the upright is his delight.” (Pro. 15:8 NKJV) “He hears the prayer of the righteous.” (Pro. 15:29 NKJV)

If it be said that God heard the prayer of Cornelius, a man at the time outside the church, the answer is yes, he did. He will hear your prayer also outside the church, “if” you are willing to hear and obey his word. Those who are willing have become Christians or will do so as soon as they hear the word. Cornelius was a true seeker after God.

Cornelius had a heart immediately ready to receive God’s word and obey it. God knew that, and thus it was not long until Cornelius was given that opportunity and soon became a Christian, a member of the church. But the scripture says, “One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be an abomination.” (Pro. 28:9 NKJV) Want God to hear your prayers? In the church is the place you need to be for that. “And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying out ‘Abba, Father!’” (Gal. 4:6 NKJV)

Let us love the church as Jesus loved it.

[To download this article or print it out click here.]

 

The Cleansing of the Church at Ephesus

How was the church at Ephesus cleansed from sin? To be cleansed from sin is to be saved. I think most in Christendom are well aware of the famous Ephesian passage found in chapter two, verses eight and nine, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.” (NAS) Many, many passages of the New Testament teach that salvation is a matter of God’s grace (Acts 15:11, Rom. 3:24, Gal. 2:21, 5:4, Eph. 1:7, 2:5, 2 Thess. 2:16, 2 Tim. 1:9, Titus 2:11, Titus 3:7, 1 Peter 1:10, 1 Peter 1:13). I have listed most of them here so the reader will know I am well aware of them.

I am thankful it is that way. If salvation were by works, a person might well come up short; the Bible teaches he would (Rom. 3:23). That is exactly what happened to the Jewish people under the Law of Moses. None was able to keep it. “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.” (Gal. 3:10 NKJV) I think we are all glad salvation is a matter of God’s grace, versus works, for works demanded perfection.

God’s grace, which gives us salvation, is granted to us as a result of faith we possess. “Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand.” (Rom. 5:1-2 NAS) “For by grace you have been saved through faith.” (Eph. 2:8 NAS) There are many other passages teaching that we are saved by faith. Here are quite a number of them: John 3:14-16, John 8:24, John 11:25-26, John 20:31, Acts 16:31, Rom. 10:9, 1 Cor. 1:21, Gal. 3:22, 1 Tim. 1:16, Heb. 11:6, 1 John 5:13, Rom. 3:26, 28, 30, 5:1, 11:20, Gal. 2:16, 3:24, 26, Eph. 2:8, Philippians 3:9, 1 Peter 1:9. These were again listed that the reader might know I am fully aware of them.

The question that arises, however, is what is this faith that justifies, that gives us God’s grace? I am not asking what the object of the faith is, for we know that. I am asking what the nature of this faith is. Many, perhaps most, are persuaded today (and have been since the Reformation) that it is merely a state of the mind regarding a belief one has in Jesus, who he is, and what he has accomplished for us. It is mental assent to the teachings of the scriptures about him. This is the faith that it is said saves. I certainly agree with that as far as it goes, but it stops short, too short.

One must not only believe what the scriptures teach about Jesus--who he was, what he accomplished--but faith also commits us to believe the man himself, believe what he said, and act on it. If faith does not lead to action, it is dead faith (James 2:17). James says it is “useless.” (James 2:20 NAS) Even in this world, as regards worldly matters, how can we say we have faith in a man when we will not take the man at his word?

The faith the Ephesians had that resulted in their cleansing from sin was the faith they had in what Jesus taught them through his inspired representatives. Paul was an inspired man, but the Holy Spirit, whether speaking through Paul or through any other apostle or first-century prophet, did not speak on his own initiative. “He will not speak on his own initiative, but whatever he hears, he will speak…he shall take of mine, and shall disclose it to you.” (John 16:13-14 NAS--the words of Jesus referring to the Holy Spirit) Thus, the Holy Spirit spoke the words of Jesus, and Jesus was thus their teacher.

Paul said later in the book of Ephesians that Jesus cleansed the church, “by the washing of water with the word.” (Eph. 5:26 NAS) “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her; that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word.” (Eph. 5:25-26 NAS)

Who was cleansed that way? Those Paul said earlier that had been saved by grace through faith (Eph. 2:8). The washing of water with the word is clearly a reference to baptism. What did Jesus teach about baptism? “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved.” (Mark 16:16 NAS) “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” (John 3:5 NAS)

John 3:5 and Eph. 5:26 teach the same thing. The Spirit gave the word. The Spirit working through the word works on our spirit, if we will allow it to do so, changing our thinking, our attitudes, our desires, and our will, bringing us to the point where we are ready to put the old man to death and be baptized to arise in “newness of life.” (Rom. 6:4 NAS) To be cleansed by the washing of water by the word (Eph. 5:26) is the same as to be born of water and the Spirit (John 3:5).

Furthermore, in scripture, the church (Eph. 5:25-26) and the kingdom (John 3:5), generally, not always but generally, are interchangeable terms. Peter was given the keys of the kingdom. When he used those keys, by preaching the gospel on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2, and people believed and obeyed, they were added to the church, one and the same as the kingdom that Peter was opening with his keys.

Were the Ephesians saved by grace through faith “before” they were cleansed? What was the church, the church being the members, cleansed of, if not sin? Can you be saved without first being cleansed of sin? They were saved by grace through faith when cleansed of sin by the washing of water with the word. That washing was done by “the obedience of faith.” (Rom. 1:5 NAS) Paul said he had received grace and apostleship, “to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles.” (Rom. 1:5 NAS)

Paul himself, obviously a church member, was told at his own conversion, “Why do you delay? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on his name.” (Acts 22:16 NAS) Paul had experienced the same washing and for the same reason the church had at Ephesus. No, water itself cannot wash away sins, but it can if God has made the decision that that is the time and place where he will act in response to a person’s faith. Some have said baptism is a test of faith, and I do not argue with them.

Naaman, in the Old Testament, “became furious” (2 Kings 5:11 NKJV) when told he needed to go wash in the Jordan seven times to be healed of his leprosy. He did not want to do it that way. His faith had brought him thus far to Elisha, and he felt that should be good enough. Elisha should just come out and “stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leprosy.” (2 Kings 5:11 NKJV) Obedience of faith had no place in his thinking. One is reminded of today.

No, the water of the Jordan had no magical power to heal Naaman, but faith in what God told Naaman to do, a faith strong enough to get him to act simply because God said to do it, was the faith that made the difference. Naaman is an excellent example of a man who experienced two types of faith. The first failed him in obtaining his objective. Why? Because it was based on his preconceived ideas of how God should do things.

When told to go wash in the Jordan seven times, "Naaman became furious, and went away and said, 'Indeed, I said to myself, 'He (reference to Elisha, God's prophet—DS) will surely come out to me, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leprosy.''" (2 Kings 5:11 NKJV) Naaman's faith that failed was faith in his own idea of how God should act. Naaman admits as much when he says, "I said to myself."

His later faith that brought Naaman healing was based not on Naaman's personal thinking but on what God said—"Go and wash in the Jordan seven times." (2 Kings 5:10 NKJV) This was the faith that brought healing when his faith became strong enough to become obedient to God's word.

This illustrates man's faith today in the spiritual realm with regard to baptism. There are two types of faith in what is commonly referred to as Christendom, as it relates to our salvation. The one says we will stop here (at the point of faith--mental assent) and do it this way. We have gone far enough; let God do the rest. The other faith says God said to do it (be baptized) for this reason (the remission of sins--Acts 2:38), I believe him, and I will do what he says because I believe. Both have what men generally call faith, but clearly, the faith is not the same.

There is also a question that needs to be asked. If Paul did not consider baptism to be salvation by works, why should we consider it to be salvation by works today? I have never heard a direct answer to that question. Paul tells the Ephesians they have been saved by grace through faith (Eph. 2:8) and then tells them at the same time they have been cleansed by the washing of water through the word (Eph. 5:26). He doesn’t miss a beat, doesn’t seem in the least to feel he has contradicted himself, so why should we feel that the two passages are contradictory? Why do we feel we have to try and devise a way to explain away the obvious meaning of the phrase "the washing of water?"

But there is much more in proof of the point I am making. In Eph. 1:7, Paul says, “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.” (NAS) In him is a reference, obviously, to Jesus who shed his blood for us. How does one get into him, into Jesus Christ? Gal. 3:27 says we were “baptized into Christ” (NAS) and so does Rom. 6:3, “do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus.” (NAS) I know of no passage in the New Testament anywhere that tells one how to get into Christ other than through baptism.

If you were to start through the book of Ephesians and start marking every passage you come to that talks about different things that are found “in him,” “in Christ,” “in the Beloved,” here is some of what you would come up with: (1) every spiritual blessing--Eph. 1:3, (2) grace--Eph. 1:6, (3) redemption--Eph. 1:7, (4) an inheritance--Eph. 1:10-11, (5) sealed with the Holy Spirit--Eph. 1:13, (6) seated us in heavenly places--Eph. 2:6, (7) kindness toward us--Eph. 2:7, (8) his workmanship--Eph. 2:10, (9) brought near by the blood of Christ--Eph. 2:13, (10) partakers of the promise--Eph. 3:6. But one must note that all of these blessings are in, not outside of, but in Christ. “For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” (Gal. 3:27 NAS) How does one enter Christ? By baptism. If one is clothed with Christ, he is in Christ.

Paul says elsewhere in the book of Ephesians, “we are members of his body.” (Eph. 5:30 NAS) But, then Paul tells us in 1 Cor. 12:13 how we get into that body, “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.” (NAS) What is Christ the Savior of according to Paul in Ephesians? “For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, he himself being the Savior of the body.” (Eph. 5: 23 NAS) This is the same body we are baptized into, that is, if we are in it, for that is the only way the scriptures give of entering into it--not by baptism alone but by the obedience of faith that results in baptism. The body of Christ, being the church (Eph. 1:22-23), is that which was cleansed "with the washing of water by the word." (Eph. 5:26 NKJV)

Where is grace found? The Bible tells us, “Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” (2 Tim. 2:1 NAS) Paul tells the Ephesians that this grace is “bestowed on us in the Beloved.” (Eph. 1:6 NAS) Again, how does one get into Christ, the Beloved, according to the scriptures? We have already answered that. When one is led by faith to believe Jesus and obey him in baptism for the remission of sins, he enters into Christ, into the realm of grace by which he is saved.

In the book of Acts, chapter 19, Paul comes to Ephesus and finds 12 men there who are disciples. He asks them this question: “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” (Acts 19:2 NAS) They respond no, they had not even heard of the Holy Spirit. Paul then says, “Into what then were you baptized?” (Acts 19:3 NAS) Please note this one thing--Paul takes it for granted that if they were Christians, they had been baptized. He doesn’t ask them if they had been baptized. Why not? Paul doesn’t ask them because he knows what it takes to become a Christian and be saved. “Why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins.” (Acts 22:16 KJV, Ananias speaking to Saul, a believer, before Saul’s baptism)

One also ought to note the first thing Paul did with these 12 men, after learning their situation, was to have them “baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.” (Acts 19:5 NAS) Yes, Paul taught baptism at Ephesus. Paul stayed in Ephesus at least two years (see Acts 19:10) after this event, so when Paul said later in Ephesians that the church was cleansed by the washing of water with the word, there is no doubt he knew from personal experience all about baptism at Ephesus. There is no such thing as an unbaptized Christian, for Jesus commanded in the Great Commission (Matt. 28:19) that all disciples be baptized. Paul either baptized them personally or saw to it that they were baptized by one or more of those who helped with the work. Either that or he disobeyed Christ, for which disciple was it that Christ said need not be baptized?

Faith is not just something to be believed but also obeyed. One must obey the gospel to be saved (2 Thess. 1:7-8). In a sense, the gospel is the faith (Jude 3); it is that body of doctrine that is to be believed, but within that body of doctrine that constitutes the faith, there are things that must be obeyed as well as believed. In addition to mental assent to the truth about Jesus as revealed in the scripture one must repent of sins (Acts 17:30), one must confess with the mouth the Lord Jesus (Rom. 10:9-10), and one must be baptized into Christ, baptized for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38, Gal. 3:27). Faith, the faith that saves, is not a dead faith but an active one. It is by faith that a man does these things, by faith because he heard the words of God and believed them enough to take them to heart and obey them.

Do not allow yourself to be misled. A person does not believe Jesus who believes the doctrine that says, “he who has believed and has not been baptized shall be saved,” for that is not what Jesus said. Jesus said just the opposite.

I have asked this question before, but have never gotten an answer. If Jesus wanted man to know that baptism was essential to the remission of sins, the cleansing from sin, how would he say it in a way to get man to understand it? He could not say “repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38 KJV) for he already said that via the Holy Spirit speaking through Peter, and men will not accept it.

How would he say it to make it plain and simple enough so all could understand it? No one has yet answered that question. The truth is, Jesus has stated it as clearly as it can be stated by mere words alone. Men will either accept it or reject it and thereby be judged.

Have you been cleansed with the washing of water by the word? Will you be one with those saints in Ephesus Paul wrote to, or are you going to be another kind of Christian unknown to the church at Ephesus?

[To download this article or print it out click here.]

 

The Struggle to be Spiritually Minded

Every person who has ever contemplated the subjects of life and death, the meaning of life and eternal destiny, and has chosen faith in Christ as the route they desire to follow has found themselves in a constant struggle. On the one hand, there is the deep desire to do what is right according to God’s will, as we read in the Bible, and on the other hand, there is that desire within us that wants to do what we want to do, which often means violating God's will. We have two states of mind, it seems, living within us. The one is the mind of the flesh, the natural man as he exists without God in his life, while the other is that of the spiritually minded individual to whom God deeply matters.

Which mindset shall prevail? The Bible teaches it is a matter of life and death. Hear Paul: “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.’’ (Rom. 8:5-9 ESV)

To set the mind on the flesh, the things of this life and of the fleshly body, we are told, is death. Now, why is that so? Because, Paul says, such a minded person does not submit to God's law. But we might reply, do we not live in a fleshly body? Yes, we do, but God, our creator, put us here for a purpose, and that purpose was not to live like the rest of the dumb animals of creation who live by the instincts of the flesh. We were created with a nobler purpose in mind, with the idea of living eternally with God, and not just for living a brief span of years on earth like a dog. We are better than that.

When God created man, he said, "Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness." (Gen. 1:26 NKJV) Only man was created in the image of God. Jesus said of man in John 10:34, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, “You are gods”’?” (NKJV) Only mankind is referred to as God’s sons and daughters, as his children, when they obey him (2 Cor. 6:18). We are not merely a higher-ranking animal. Paul says, speaking to Christians, "We shall judge angels." (1 Cor. 6:3 NKJV) We were created to be spiritual beings in bodies of flesh for a time before being transformed from our fleshly bodies into immortal spiritual bodies (1 Cor. 15).

We were put here to glorify God. "Everyone who is called by my name, whom I have created for my glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him." (Isa. 43:7 NKJV) “Glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Cor. 6:20 NKJV) The sin of the world after God made man could be summed up by saying, "although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened." (Rom. 1:21 NKJV) This led to all types of specific sins as a result of the state of their hearts and minds.

Jesus said in his prayer to the Father, "I have glorified you on the earth." (John 17:4 NKJV) That is our job as well. The only way God can be given glory by man is by obedience. Disobedience to God does not bring God glory but dishonors him as God and as the ruler of humanity. Disobedience is sin.

We might ask why God gave us fleshly bodies that desire the things of the flesh rather than spiritual things. Our bodies give us free will. Created as a robot versus as a man, how could God receive glory from an object that had no free will, no feelings, and no ability to think, reason, or choose? I don't think you are going to go trade your wife or husband off for a robot and say you can find the same kind of love and happiness with it as you do with your spouse. We love our spouse in part because they had free will in choosing us as a life partner. They did not have to do that. So, I think, it is with God. When we choose God, it means something to him, and he does care about us.

Where does the mind of the flesh lead a man if a man is fleshly minded? Paul gives a list of things that flow from such a state of mind in Gal. 5:19-21, "Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." (ESV) Another list is given in 1 Cor. 6:9-10, "Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." (ESV)

Every one of us is tempted by sin. "But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death." (James 1:14-15 NKJV) Paul says, "For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please." (Gal. 5:17 NAS) Again, he writes, "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man." (1 Cor. 10:13 NKJV) So, that is the situation we find ourselves in, even after becoming Christians. We begin the Christian life spiritually minded enough, or else we could not have become a Christian, but unless we die almost immediately thereafter, here comes temptation for that is the nature of this life we live. How do we remain spiritually minded so that we might have life and peace as taught in Rom. 8:6?

We will never succeed a hundred percent. John says, speaking to Christians, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:8-9 NKJV) Much of the New Testament was written to deal with sin in the lives of Christians. First Corinthians is perhaps the best example of that.

I have brought up the fact that we will never succeed one hundred percent for one reason, as a reminder to not despair and be overcome by discouragement when we sin or fall. A Christian may have to repent numerous times in their life from the sin that the King James Version says “doth so easily beset us.” (Heb 12:1) David Lipscomb, a Christian writer from the late 1800's through the early 1900's, made the comment that he doubted any Christian ever lived a single day without committing a sin. Whether that is true or not I cannot know but it is certainly closer to the truth than the idea that we seldom or never sin. I remind the reader, Jesus taught that even evil thoughts are sin (Matt. 15:19-20) and sins of omission are also sins (James 4:17). Have you had any sinful thoughts or failed to do the good that you could have done?

We must remember what Jesus told Peter when Peter asked how many times he should forgive his brother. Peter, I suspect, thought he was being generous by saying seven times, but what did Jesus say in response? "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven." (Matt. 18:22 NKJV) Jesus was thus saying there is really no end to forgiving and was certainly implying God would likewise forgive us, no matter how many times we need forgiveness, just as long as we repent, confess our sins to him, and are willing to give it another full faith effort. So, never ever give up in despair. Never!

How does one maintain a state of spiritual mindedness to the greatest extent possible? One Old Testament character that stands out as being deeply spiritually minded is Daniel. One of the first statements you will read about Daniel, with respect to his godly character, as you start the book of Daniel, is found in chapter 1 verse 8 where it says, "But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies." (Dan. 1:8 NKJV) "Daniel purposed in his heart." If one is going to pursue any course in life successfully, he or she must first purpose in his or her heart. Purposing in your heart gives you direction and motivation. There is no point in starting a diet or exercise program, enrolling in college or a training program, or doing anything else unless you have first firmly purposed in heart to see the thing through.

As this relates to becoming spiritually minded, this means you must determine in your heart that that is the way it is going to be. Things do not happen by accident. If you want to be a spiritually minded person, you must prepare to be one and work toward that end. Unfortunately, many Christians seemingly never develop spiritually beyond what they were on the day of their conversion. Instead, they gradually grow lukewarm and indifferent, and many fall away. What happens?

One likely contributor to such a state is spiritual starvation. Peter says of a newborn Christian, "desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby." (1 Peter 2:2 NKJV) It is impossible to maintain spiritual mindedness in the absence of spiritual food. Tuck your Bible away and do not use it and the result will be regression in spiritual mindedness, not growth. Jesus said, "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life." (John 6:63 NKJV) The words of God are spirit. Paul said, "These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches." (1 Cor. 2:13 NKJV)

Spiritual mindedness is not developed in the workplace, the fitness club, the golf course, in attendance at school activities, on family outings, etc. It comes with reading, studying, contemplating, and meditating on the words of the Spirit--the words of the Bible.

This takes us back to the point made--you have to purpose in your heart you are going to be faithful in reading and studying the word of God, and not just do it occasionally or once in a great while. Just as in exercise or fitness training, there is no such thing as reaching your goal without a commitment to doing it. A growing knowledge and understanding of God's word is essential to growing spiritual mindedness in our lives. How can you become spiritually minded without knowing the mind of the Spirit? That is found in the word of the Spirit.

Let us go back to Daniel, a spiritually minded man. The Bible teaches that Daniel was a praying man. "And in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days." (Dan. 6:10 NKJV) It is impossible to be a spiritually minded person if one does not have a prayer life. Quit praying, or only give prayer a random and hurried few seconds a day, and again, you are destroying spiritual-mindedness rather than building it. One cannot pray to God without thinking about God (spiritual mindedness). Prayer is, among other things, thinking about God. A spiritually minded man will have a thoughtful and consistent daily prayer life.

Then Daniel also kept good company. The apostle Paul said, "Do not be deceived: 'Bad company ruins good morals.' " (1 Cor. 15:33 ESV) The Good News Bible puts it this way: "Do not be fooled. 'Bad companions ruin good character.' " (GNB) Daniel had 3 good friends--Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego--who like Daniel were godly men. These men refused to worship the golden image set up by Nebuchadnezzar and, as a consequence, were cast into the furnace of fire from which God miraculously rescued them (Dan. 3).

If one desires to be a godly person and develop spiritual-mindedness in his or her life, that one needs the fellowship of like-minded people. "Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together." (Heb. 10:24-25 NKJV) Worshipping with God’s people is essential to spiritual mindedness and growth.

To become spiritually minded, we must become doers of the word and not hearers only. To fail in this we become academics only, even if we spend time in the word. We must allow the word of God free rein in our lives so that we live it. We worship God, do the things he tells us to do, and refrain from those things he forbids.

One can read any book of instruction on any topic, but until you put into practice what you read, it cannot be said that the word has become a part of who you are.  For example, we want a pilot who has gone beyond reading how-to-fly manuals. We want one flying our plane who has actually flown. To be truly spiritually minded, we must be doers of the word.  If we are disobedient to the word, we are not spiritually minded.

It is a mistake to take spiritual growth and spiritual mindedness for granted. Physical growth and development will occur whether you do anything or not, but it is not that way in the spiritual realm. The passage of time itself is not going to make you or me any more spiritually minded than we are now.

You have to make a commitment and an ongoing effort, or else you will do nothing more than grow old and die like the rest of mankind who live for the flesh, who live for the things of this life and this physical body. How will you differ from the mass of humanity unless you commit to the development of the spiritual side of your life? Paul says, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." (Rom. 12:2 NKJV)

The development of spiritual mindedness is not like turning on a light. You cannot just flip a switch. It takes time. No one becomes a spiritual giant, even if such a one exists, overnight.

If you live with a fleshly mind long enough, you may find it personally impossible to turn your life around, lacking the will to do it.

"To be spiritually minded is life and peace." (Rom. 8:6 NKJV) "To set the mind on the flesh is death." (Rom. 8:6 ESV) I think we all know whether or not we are spiritually minded. It is not a hard thing to know. Do thoughts of God and his word enter your mind frequently or not? Do you have a strong desire to know and do God's will?

The free will God has given us means we have a choice. Our state of mind is a matter of choice, a matter of life or death.

[To download this article or print it out click here.]