Regrets

While it would be wonderful to live life with no regrets there are few if any of us that will.  Regret is common to mankind for no one lives a perfect life always making the right decisions and doing the right things.   I think it would do us some good to look back at some of the Bible's famous men and see if they had any regrets.  By doing so it may give us a degree of strength to go on and not give up. 

Adam, the first man, no doubt had great regret.  He once lived in an earthly paradise with an unending life ahead of him having free access to the tree of life.  For food all he had to do was reach up and pluck it from the trees on which it grew.  There was no need to store it or do hard labor for it, as it would always be there.  God walked with him in the garden and thus for a time he had full fellowship with God.  Adam gave it all up. 

Do you not think while he was toiling the soil by the sweat of his brow fighting the thorns and thistles and realizing his destiny was to become dust himself, that he must die, that he had also brought this same destiny upon his children, that he was responsible for what they would have to go through, that he often looked back on how it once was and deeply regretted what he had done? 

Samuel was a great man of God.  I do not recall a single passage that speaks ill of Samuel.  He was God's man and judged Israel all the days of his life (1 Sam. 7:15) and, furthermore, he was a prophet of God ((1 Sam. 3:20).  In the New Testament we find him listed in the book of Hebrews, chapter 11, along with others in what one might call faith's all of fame.  And, yet, we find this, "Now it came to pass when Samuel was old that he made his sons judges over Israel." (1 Sam. 8:1 NKJV)  And then a little later we find this, "But his sons did not walk in his ways; they turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice." (1 Sam. 8:3 NKJV) 

Do you not think this grieved Samuel greatly?  The thought comes naturally to mind when a child goes wrong where did I fail, where did I go wrong in raising him or her?  There is possibly no other regret that cuts deeper than this one.  We think to ourselves if I had just done this or that differently.  We blame ourselves.  I failed my child or my children. 

I do not claim Samuel sinned in the way he raised his family for I have no way of knowing but I do believe parents naturally blame themselves, at least to an extent, and have regrets about how they parented their children when their children go astray, singular or plural.  When one looks back in time there were a number of great men of God listed in the Bible who could not have qualified to be an elder in the church in the New Testament era, one of the requirements being "having faithful children" (Titus 1:6 NKJV), due to the kind of lives one or more of their children lived.  I also suspect being the godly man he was that Samuel regretted making his sons judges of Israel after him. 

David was another great man of God.  Here is what God thought about David after his death, speaking of King Abijam, the scripture says, "His heart was not wholly true to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father." (I Kings 15:3 ESV)  Then in the latter part of verse 4 of the same chapter we read, "David did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and did not turn aside from anything that he commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite." (1 Kings 15:4b ESV)  He also is listed in faith's hall of fame in Hebrews 11 verse 32.  Certainly, we all expect to see David in heaven. 

Yet, David had occasion for regret in his life.  Yes, the most obvious was committing adultery with Bathsheba and having Uriah her husband murdered.  No doubt he looked back on that occasion many times in his life with deep regret.  Not only had he done this great evil it also brought with it great consequences resulting in much harm later to others.  Hear the words of Nathan the prophet, "Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.  Thus says the Lord, 'Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house.  And I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun.'" (2 Sam. 12:10-11 ESV) 

What was the evil that came down the road?  Absalom, a son whom David loved, murdered another son of David--Amnon.  Awhile later, Absalom sought to take the kingdom away from his father and even have his father put to death.  David had to flee to save his own life.  In a battle that brought defeat to Absalom, David commanded those in charge of his army, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom." (2 Sam. 18:5 ESV)  You know the story of how in disobedience to David's orders Joab killed Absalom.  You also remember the deep grief David suffered over this. 

The Bible says when David learned of Absalom's death he was deeply moved and wept.  "O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom!  Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!" (2 Sam. 18:33 ESV)  What sorrow, what regret!  Had David not brought this upon himself by his sin?  Much like Adam, he could look back with deep regret over his sins.  It had cost him dearly and resulted in much harm to others he loved deeply.  To me the Bible is clear that had David pursued a different course in his life regarding Bathsheba and Uriah the life of his own family would have turned out differently.  Solomon later had another son of David's put to death--Adonijah.   Prophecy was most certainly fulfilled. 

Sin can have deep consequences in this life not only for ourselves but also for those we love and care about.  It is not as we sometimes hear "my life" and no one else's business.  There are always consequences for good or ill for others in our acts or lack thereof.  But the subject is regret.  There is no doubt about regret being in David's life as he thought about these things in reflection from time to time. 

In the New Testament, we also find great men of God who undoubtedly had regret.  We can readily name two--Paul and Peter.  Paul said he was "not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God." (1 Cor. 15:9 NKJV)  Elsewhere he calls himself the chief of sinners (1 Tim. 1:15).  I believe there is every reason to believe that Paul was at the least indirectly responsible for the deaths of some Christians.  When Stephen was stoned to death the Bible says "Saul was consenting to his death." (Acts 8:1 NKJV)  In Acts 22:4 Paul says, "I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women." (NKJV)  Paul says the persecution was "to the death."  One wonders how many mothers were in the group of those who were persecuted leaving behind children as orphans.  Do you think Paul had regrets?  Do you think those regrets ever completely passed from his thoughts as he lived day by day? 

Peter's case is too well known to recount here but we are all well aware of his regret having denied Jesus just at the time when Jesus could have used support the most. 

A lesser-known case is that of James and John.  Do you remember when Jesus was heading to Jerusalem how he sent messengers before him and as they came to a village of the Samaritans how those living there refused to receive him?  James and John responded by saying to the Lord, "Do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them"?  (Luke 9:54 NKJV)  Jesus answered by saying, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.  For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them." (Luke (:55-56 NKJV)   As you know James was killed not long after the church was established but John lived a long life.  Do you not think that John looked back with regret when he thought about the kind of man he once was, a man willing to bring about the death of others?  He is known as the apostle of love and yet there was this in his life, the very opposite of love.  It had to hurt as he looked back.  There had to be regret concerning the kind of attitude he once had. 

Then there was the other time when James and John came to Jesus asking that they might sit, "one on your right hand and the other on your left, in your glory." (Mark 10:37 NKJV)  There would have been no problem with this if it had not been for leaving others out seeking only glory for themselves.  The Bible says, "When the ten heard it, they began to be greatly displeased with James and John." (Mark 10:41 NKJV)  In time to come James and John could look back and regret the attitude they once had. 

We have seen enough examples to make the point.  There are often in the best of men things they look back on with regret.  Things they wish they had done differently, attitudes and actions they deeply regret or things they wish they had done but didn't.  These regrets can drag us down and destroy us if we allow it. 

When I look at you or you look at me we think we know the person we are seeing if we have been acquainted with them for any length of time.  That is not necessarily the case.  We do not know the inner man and the sorrow he or she may be carrying deep within.  Paul said in 1 Cor. 2:11, "For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him?" (NKJV)  There may well be a very deep regret within others that we know not of and cannot see, a burden that is carried every day.  

Sometimes we see those who are overly righteous so to speak.  They feel they have led exemplary lives and perhaps their sins have not been as great as that of others except for one thing--their attitude.  One is reminded of the two men who went up to pray, the one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  The Pharisee prayed thanking God he was not like the tax collector. (Luke 18:10-11)  He busied himself telling God the good things he was doing and how he was not doing evil and yet Jesus says of the tax collector "I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other." (Luke 18:14 NKJV)  The Pharisee did not deep down feel a need for God for to him his works were of such a quantity and quality as to fully justify him.  He had no sense of sin and guilt, had no regret.  

When we begin to think too much of ourselves we ought to stop and consider.  If I am so good why do I need Jesus' blood?  There is not a person on the face of the earth who has lived such a life that on its own merits deserves anything other than eternal hellfire.  A nasty attitude toward others is just as bad as anything else and even more distasteful to others.  It is disgraceful and unbecoming a Christian. 

It matters not how bad a life a person, or even a Christian, has lived in the past.  When a person repents and comes to God or back to God, as the case may be, they deserve all the honor and respect that can be given one of God's children whom Jesus came to earth to save.  No matter how bad a life they may have lived they are just as good as you in God's eyes no matter how good a life you have lived or think you have lived.  You probably never committed the sins David did but would you dare say, because you have not, that God sees you as superior to David?  We sometimes, despite ourselves, carry about a sense of superiority.  We did not do this or that and we become the Pharisee that went up to pray. 

Remember the account of the man who sent workers out into his field at different times of the day in Matthew 20?  When evening came those who had worked longer felt they deserved more money than those who had worked fewer hours and in some cases far fewer hours.  They felt the landowner was unjust when he gave the same amount to every man regardless of the hours worked.  It seemed unfair to them.  We have to be careful that we never develop that kind of attitude toward our fellow man and especially toward one another, brethren in Christ.  The attitude of we have done more, we have been better, we deserve more, is unchristian.  The truth is we deserve nothing, nothing that is but punishment for our sins, the sins we think we don't have. 

Why do people sometimes develop this kind of negative attitude?  Perhaps there are other reasons as well but here are a couple that come to mind.  One, they are unwilling to be honest with themselves for they find more comfort in self-deception.  The Bible says, "Every way of man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the hearts." (Prov. 21:2 NKJV)  God said in Jeremiah 17:9 (NKJV), "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?"  If we want to be self-deceived it is not hard to do so. 

A second reason some develop this negative attitude is their ignorance of the scriptures.  Some do not know the scriptures well enough to know what is and is not sin.  There are all kinds of sins apart from just sins of commission but some are relatively unaware of this.  If I do not love my brother have I sinned?  Some act as though as long as they do a man no harm all is well.  Is it?  Did you do him any good if and when he needed it? 

We sometimes blame a person for his or her past and want to see it corrected before we accept him or her.  There are a ton of things in our past we cannot correct and if that is to be the standard of Christian love toward another it is a standard that sinners can never attain to.  How do you correct the past?  There is only so much any of us can do to correct the past. 

We want mission impossible out of people sometimes rather than accept them as full-fledged brothers and sisters in Christ.  We will love them later when everything has been corrected.  The trouble is that it is often impossible to correct the past no matter how much we might desire to do it. 

I would like to reflect on the men mentioned in this study.  Of the men we have studied some were already children of God at the time events unfolded in their lives that brought them regret.  I guess Paul would be the only exception.  Of the six men we have mentioned I believe we all agree that we expect to see at least five of them in heaven.  As for Adam, I am only willing to say that I do not know what happened in the many years after his fall in the garden.  Did he repent?  Did God forgive him?  I suspect he did but the Bible does not say so I cannot know.  

Because we are all in the same boat together should we not fully accept one another with all of our faults of the past and count them as but nothing (the assumption being we have repented and turned to God)?  We have all sunk our own boat and all of us are reaching up to Jesus for salvation.  We are all hoping with Christian expectation that Jesus will reach out his hand to us as he did to Peter when Peter was sinking in the water he had been walking on.  Only Jesus can save us. 

The past is the past but we can help one another, comfort and console one another, and help one another get to heaven.  We all have regrets but we all can have hope if we will, as the old song goes, but trust and obey.  The time comes when we must move on.  The past cannot be undone and we do not want it to destroy us.  Paul gave us inspired advice when he said, "But one thing I do:  forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.  Let those of us who are mature think this way."  (Phillipians 3:13b-15a ESV)  

The inspired advice is let the past go.  Look to the future.  That is the best advice you will ever get on this subject--inspired advice.  Turn loose of the past, let it go.  Christ has called us to freedom, not to bondage.  

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The Way Into Christ

It is only human nature to want the way to heaven to be as broad and all-inclusive as possible thus the more ways into Christ that can be found the better from a human perspective.  We have people we want to see saved and yet we are pretty sure they are not due to either the way they are living or to the beliefs they hold thus a broad gate and a wide way to heaven would suit us just fine.  But it goes without saying that our love for one who does not walk in the light of truth cannot change the truth itself.  No man is saved “unconditionally” which is to say saved regardless of belief, character, and conduct.  God saves sinners, true enough, but not while they actively engage in the practice of sin unrepentantly.

The fact remains that no matter how much we desire another’s salvation it is up to them to bring their life into accord with God’s will for neither you nor I can broaden the gate.  “Narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life and there are few who find it.” (Matt. 7:14 NKJV)

Salvation is found only in Christ.  “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12 NKJV)  Jesus said he was “the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6 NKJV)  Again, he says, “I am the door.  If anyone enters by me, he will be saved.” (John 10:9 NKJV)

The point I want to drive home is that salvation is found “in Christ” and not “out of Christ.”  Paul speaks of “the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.” (2 Tim. 2:10 NKJV)  Redemption “is in Christ Jesus.” (Rom. 3:24 NKJV)  Elsewhere Paul says Christ “is the Savior of the body.” (Eph. 5:23 NKJV)  The body of which he is the Savior is his spiritual body, the church, for the church is his body (Eph. 1:22-23, Col. 1:18) which makes being “in Christ” essential.  We must be in that which Christ is going to save.  “If anyone is in Christ he is a new creation,” (2 Cor. 5:17 NKJV) emphasis on “in Christ” and not out of him.  Thus it is essential to be “in Christ” for that is where “every spiritual blessing” is found (Eph. 1:3 NKJV) which, of course, includes salvation itself. 

Having firmly established that salvation is found “in Christ” how then does one enter into Christ?  How many ways are there?  The Bible teaches there are conditions for entering into Christ, prerequisites if you will, namely faith, repentance, and confession all of which are absolutely essential to salvation but none of those things by themselves or even taken collectively will put you “into Christ.”  Only baptism is said to do that--no not baptism by itself  but baptism that is built on faith accompanied by repentance with a willingness to confess Christ.  Baptism is the final step one takes to enter Christ and find salvation in him.

Hear the language Paul uses:  “Do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus” (Rom. 6:3 NKJV), “as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Gal. 3:27 NKJV), “for by one spirit we were all baptized into one body” (1 Cor. 12:13 NKJV) speaking of the body of Christ.  Baptism puts one into Christ where salvation is found.

How does this accord with the examples of conversions as we find them in Acts?  In Acts 2 on the Day of Pentecost when the first gospel sermon was preached that was ever preached and that by inspiration of the apostle Peter (the Holy Spirit speaking through Peter) people were made believers.  Were they saved?  God did not consider them saved for his command to them through Peter was “repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins.” (Acts 2:38 NKJV)  Denominationalism would say they were saved after faith and repentance and the rest of God’s command to them that day (be baptized) was not needed for salvation.  Well, who are you going to believe?  We ought to believe Peter and the Holy Spirit and not our denominational pastors.

Peter said, “Every one of you.”  There were to be and are to be no exceptions.  This brings to mind Paul’s statement to the Corinthians in 1 Cor. 12:13, “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.” (NKJV)  Note here again the phrase “we were all”--that is every one of us.  No, Paul did not do a lot of baptizing personally but that it was done as a result of his preaching and by those working with him there is no doubt for “many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized.” (Acts 18:8 NKJV)  No one was considered as “one of them” who was not baptized either on the day of Pentecost in Jerusalem (Acts 2:38) or at Corinth (1 Cor. 12:13).

Paul himself was made a believer and repented when Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus.  Was he saved?  Jesus told him directly, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”   The Lord sent Ananias to tell him what he must do.  What did Ananias tell him?  “Now why are you waiting?  Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins.” (Acts 22:16 NKJV)  When a man’s sins are gone, washed away, he is “in Christ.”  So no, Paul was not saved on the road to Damascus even though he came to faith and repentance there, not if the word “must” means must.

Paul equates baptism into Christ with putting on Christ.  “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” (Gal. 3:27 NKJV)  When I put on a coat I am in the coat.  When I put on Christ I am in Christ.  That is where I need to be for that is where salvation is found.  Can one be in Christ who has not put on Christ?

We need to always remember Jesus himself commanded baptism (Matt. 28:18-20 NKJV)--the Great Commission.  Why did he do so if it does not matter to him and is non-essential for salvation?  Put yourself for a short moment of time into the apostles' shoes who received this commission (verse 20 teaches we have received that commission as well for it has been handed down to us).  Jesus tells them to make disciples (learners, those who will follow one’s teaching) of all nations baptizing them (Matt. 28:19).  That is a command.  There is no choice about it.

Question--how do you do that in today’s world where people have swallowed the denominational line that you need not be baptized?  We are commanded to baptize those made disciples yet they refuse thinking it unnecessary even though Jesus commanded it.  It ought to be obvious that discipleship ends at that point where one bulks at a command and refuses obedience.

I have said nothing on Mark 16:16, the words of Jesus, “he who believes and is baptized will be saved” but do I need to?  I do not think so.  If words mean anything it is self-explanatory.

I want to deal with some objections.  There are many passages in the Bible that if one wants to be a careless scholar he can lead himself astray.  For example, take a passage like Rom. 5:1-2, written by Paul, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand.” (NKJV)  Or, here is another, “even the righteousness of God which is through faith in Jesus Christ to all and on all who believe.” (Rom. 3:22 NKJV)  A careless scholar takes these passages and many similar ones found throughout the New Testament and says “see, here it is, salvation is by faith and baptism has nothing to do with it.”

Some things are obvious about this kind of scholarship.  For one thing, it pits the writer, Paul, against himself not only in other books of the Bible but in this very same book itself--the book of Romans.  If the reader will just read on to chapter 6 he will find baptism.

“Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we were buried with him through baptism into death that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.  For if we have been united together in the likeness of his death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of his resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.  For he who has died has been freed from sin.  Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.” (Rom. 6:3-8 NKJV)

How about the person who has not been baptized into Christ’s death?  What if you have not been “united together in the likeness of his death?” (Rom. 6:5)  The text says “if we have.” (Rom. 6:5)  It does not say “if we have not.”  Baptism is into Christ (Rom. 6:3) and that being the case it is also into the benefits or blessings of Christ’s death.  You only walk in newness of life, a new creature, a new creation, when you arise as such from the waters of baptism for “our old man was crucified with him.” (Rom. 6:6)  Crucifixion means death.  We were baptized “into death.” (Rom. 6:4)  We arise from the baptismal waters to “walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:4) because “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Cor. 5: 17 NKJV)  The text says “If we died with Christ.” (Rom. 6:8)  It does not say “if we do not die with Christ.”  We need to read and reason as we do so.

“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (Jesus speaking, John 3:3, NKJV)  “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” (Jesus, John 3:5 NKJV)

A man is saved by faith, the Bible teaches that, but it is a faith that truly believes and thus acts.  That is why on the Day of Pentecost when God told the people, speaking through Peter, to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins the people did it.  Why, because they believed God’s message.  That is why Paul, then known as Saul, was baptized when God speaking through Ananias told him to arise and be baptized and wash away his sins.  Why?  Because he believed what God’s messenger Ananias told him.

Faith or belief has been perverted today.  Thus today you cannot read Peter’s sermon as delivered on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2, believe it, and be accepted as a man of faith by the majority in Christendom.  Why, because the consensus is today that you do not have to believe what Peter said to do for the remission of sins and if you do believe it that is heresy.  Thus there can be no faith in what Peter preached as a command to the people that day.  Faith today thus means no faith.  Yes, it is strange and hard to reason out (maybe because there is no reason to it).  It is a perversion of faith.  Scriptural faith means you believe what Peter preached, not disbelieve it.

In the Bible when it comes to salvation faith and obedience are so linked together that there can be no saving faith without the obedience that proceeds from it.  Here is a perfect example.  Heb. 3:18-19, “And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who did not obey?  So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.” (NKJV)  Why did the children of Israel under Moses’ leadership not enter the land of Canaan, the land of rest?  Because they heard God’s command to go take the land but they did not believe God (did not believe he would give them the power to overcome the inhabitants) and not believing they would not obey.  That is where most of Christendom is today with baptism.  They know what the Bible clearly says about it but they are unwilling to obey because they do not believe plain statements of scripture concerning baptism’s function and purpose.

One thing that would help men greatly in understanding faith is if they would learn what a synecdoche is.  A synecdoche is a figure of speech “by which we speak of the whole by a part, or a part by using a term denoting the whole…This is many times the case with the salvation of sinners.  The whole number of conditions is indicated by the use of one.  Generally the first one is mentioned-that of faith-because without it nothing else could follow.” (Prof. D. R. Dungan, Hermeneutics, Pages 300-305)  We should not read the Bible, come across the word faith, and think without giving it thought that it necessarily means mental assent alone.  Be a scholar and study it out and see based on the context and the totality of New Testament teaching on the subject what the word means where it is located.

I want to deal with one other passage and that by Peter before closing.  In Acts 10:43 Peter is at the house of Cornelius preaching and says this, “To him all the prophets witness that, through his name, whoever believes in him will receive remission of sins.” (NKJV)  This is the same Peter who preached on the Day of Pentecost that those there must repent and be baptized for the remission of sins.  Has he now changed his tune in chapter 10, at a later date, and is he now preaching another gospel?

No, for in the New Testament faith and baptism fit together as a unit.  It is simple, if you believe, if you truly believe, you are baptized.  Again, did Peter change his tune here versus what he taught on the Day of Pentecost, no not at all.  The text says five verses later, speaking of Peter addressing Cornelius and his household, “And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord.” (Acts 10:48 NKJV)  One who believes in Jesus believes what Jesus said and what Jesus said was “he who believes and is baptized will be saved.” (Mark 16:16 NKJV)  What Jesus said was, “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” (John 3:5 NKJV)  Yes, even Cornelius had to be baptized and was “commanded” to do it.

Baptism is a test of the purity or sincerity of faith.  It is not whether you believe me but whether you believe Jesus and his apostles.  Yes, there is only one way into Christ but man has sought out many inventions to try and circumvent the way of the Lord. 

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Pray For Others Lest You Sin

Is it a sin to not pray for others?  When we think of sin I am sure a failure to pray for others does not come immediately to mind like say theft, murder, adultery,  lying, and other more notorious sins.  Yet, in the book of 1 Samuel, chapter 12, verse 23, we read this statement from Samuel spoken to the children of Israel:  “Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you.” (NKJV)

Now I am not Samuel but it makes you stop and think does it not?  Samuel was praying for God’s people.  Are we exempt from doing the same?  Are we under no obligation?

During Jesus’ ministry he once was asked what the greatest commandment in the law was. (Matt. 22:36)  His response was love God “with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37 NKJV) but he then went on to talk about the second greatest commandment which was “love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matt. 22:39 NKJV)  Do we pray for ourselves?  If we do are we not under obligation to pray for our neighbor?  We are if we love him.

We are clearly commanded to love one another as disciples of Jesus for none other than Jesus himself gave the commandment when he said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” (John 13:34 NKJV)  Thus in the book of 1 John we read in chapter 3, verse 16, “By this we know love, because he laid down his life for us.  And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” (NKJV)

If I am to love you as Jesus has loved you (and loved me), to the extent he gave his life for you, then surely I am to pray for you.  Jesus prayed for us (John 17:20) and we are to “be imitators of God as dear children and walk in love, as Christ also has loved us.” (Eph. 5:1-2 NKJV) 

But, we are not just to love and pray for our neighbors and the brethren but even for our enemies for Jesus himself has told us, “love your enemies” (Matt. 5:44 NKJV).  You cannot love your enemy without seeking his welfare and that certainly involves praying for him.

Paul asked the brethren to pray for him and his company, “Brethren, pray for us.” (1 Thess. 5:25 NKJV--see also 3 Thess. 3:1)  The writer of the book of Hebrews requests prayers when he says simply “Pray for us.” (Heb. 13:18 NKJV) 

One prayer request by Paul seems to be more than just a request.  To the Romans he writes, “Now I beg you, brethren, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and through the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in your prayers to God for me.” (Rom. 15:30 NKJV)

That one especially touches the heart, “I beg you.”  Have you ever wished people would pray for you?  I have wished they would pray for me.  We often feel alone.  People know us but it seems too many are just figures passing in the night.  They stop long enough to say hello, smile, and ask how you are and then they are off and gone and you are left alone with every single problem you ever had and no one cares, or so it seems.  We just wish someone cared enough to pray for us.

What is wanted is not just “Father, be with (you fill in the name).”  What we want is people who really care, who really love us, whose prayer for us will be fervent, zealous, and intent.  We want a sincere prayer from the heart, not just a word said in passing.  When we become Christians who have taken God’s command to heart to love one another only then will we get the kind of prayers that are sought and effective.  It is “the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man” that “avails much.” (James 5:16 NKJV)

Paul prayed for others continually.  To the Romans he says, “Without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers.” (Rom. 1:9 NKJV)  To the Colossians he wrote, “We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you.” (Col. 1:3 NKJV)  To the Philippians, he wrote, “In every prayer of mine making request for you all.” (Philippians 1:4 NKJV)  To the Thessalonians, he wrote, “We also pray always for you.” (2 Thess. 1:11 NKJV)  In a personal letter to Timothy he says, “Without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day.” (2 Tim. 1:3 NKJV)

We ought to pray for one another.  Paul says, “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.” (1 Cor. 11:1 NKJV)  Did Christ pray for his disciples?  To ask is to answer.  We are to “pray without ceasing.” (1 Thess. 5:17 NKJV)  A question we all need to ask ourselves is how much of my praying time will I devote to praying for others?  When I do pray for them will it be with a deep heartfelt concern for their welfare or just to fulfill a requirement?  I guess it comes down to how much I really love.  That seems to be the bottom line does it not?  Does what is happening in the other guy’s life make any difference to me?  The Bible teaches it should.

Jesus tells us to “love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.” (Matt. 5:44 NKJV)

Paul, in 1 Tim. 2:1-4, adds this, “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence.  For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (NKJV)

God is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9 NKJV)  In Rom. 10:1 Paul speaks of his praying for those who were not Christians for his desire for them was that they might be saved.  In 2 Cor. 5:11 he spoke of knowing the terror of the Lord and thus sought to persuade men.  We too know something about the terror of the Lord and ought to be praying for those who need to obey the gospel, praying fervently on their behalf, praying that such events might transpire in their life that their eyes will be opened and they can see their need and will turn to the Lord. 

We ought to be praying for the needy, the poor, the sick, the lonely, the alien, for those who have fallen away, the aged, the young, parents, children, and many, many others for the list could go on?  I have all of the proof I need to make up my mind whether or not it is a sin to not pray on behalf of others.  I will pray for others and hope they will pray for me.

Will it do any good?  James said it would (James 5:16) but it will have to be a “fervent prayer of a righteous man.” (NKJV)  There are many, many people who need prayers beginning with little children to the very aged, and yet there is, I fear, a shortage of righteous men and women to do the job.  It is a good work greatly needed.

“Epaphras,” Paul told the Colossians, “greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers.” (Col 4:12 NKJV)  The prayer of a righteous man is a labor of love.  May God send us more righteous men and women willing to labor fervently in prayer for others and I hope some of those prayers will be for you and me. 

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Mt. Sinai and The Day of Judgment

What do the children of Israel coming to Mt. Sinai have to do with the Day of Judgment?  More than you might think.  The children of Israel reached Mt. Sinai in the third month after they left Egypt (Ex. 19:1-2).  They had had by this time many experiences and had seen God working actively on their behalf in miracle after miracle.  They had seen the plagues in Egypt many of which they were spared.  They had crossed the Red Sea on dry ground, they had been provided with drinking water miraculously on two separate occasions (Ex. 15:22-25, Ex. 17:1-7), they had been fed with manna and quail (Ex. 16), and they had been able to defeat those who attacked them with God's help (Ex. 17:8-13).  There was also the cloud that accompanied them by day and the pillar of fire that accompanied them by night.  Evidence of God's presence with them and of his care for them was everywhere to be seen.

At Mt. Sinai, the Lord spoke to Moses from the mountain (Ex. 19:3) with a message for the children of Israel.  They were to be reminded of what they had seen the Lord do to the Egyptians and "how I bore you on eagles' wings, and brought you to myself." (Ex. 19:4 NASB)  These things they were fully aware of.  The Lord is prepared to make a covenant with them making them his special people if they will only agree to obey him keeping his covenant (Ex. 19:5-6).  Moses goes back to the elders of the children of Israel, meets with them, and "all the people" (Ex. 19:8 NASB) agree to do whatever the Lord says.

Here is where we begin to get to what I want to talk about.  Moses returns with the words of the people to the Lord.  The Lord then says to Moses, "Behold, I will come to you in a thick cloud, so that the people may hear when I speak with you and may also believe in you forever." (Ex. 19:9 NASB)  All Bible students are well aware this will be the time when God descends on Mt. Sinai in sight of the people though he will be hidden in a cloud.  "On the third day (after preparations for the event are made--DS) the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people." (Ex. 19:11 NASB)  It will be the time when the Lord delivers the Ten Commandments.

A question is in order here.  Why was one of the purposes of this event "so that the people may hear when I speak with you and may also believe in you (Moses--DS) forever"? (Ex. 19:9 NASB)  The answer to this question is simple enough.  Moses was God's lawgiver, "For the law was given through Moses" (John 1:17 NASB).  He was God's man, the man who acted as a mediator between God and God's children, the children of Israel.  When Moses spoke to the children of Israel they were to listen for he spoke to them on God's behalf.  This event was to make it crystal clear to all of God's relationship with Moses so that the children of Israel would know with certainty that to disobey a command Moses gave was to disobey God himself.

However, there was also another reason God wanted the people to hear him.  He says, "so that the people may hear when I speak with you." (Ex. 19:9 NASB)  They had seen God in action in his miracles but they had not yet heard his voice.  He wanted them to hear him.  Why?  Was it just more confirmation to the people that Moses was God's man as God talked directly to him?  There was that in it but might there have been more?  Yes!  It was to learn to fear God.

Can you imagine what it must have been like to hear the voice of God?  What kind of an effect would that have on a man or woman?  If you were to hear a voice from heaven right now, a loud speaking voice from the heavens (not a quiet inner speaking to the mind or spirit), what kind of an effect would it have on you?  Our first and immediate reaction, one we would be incapable of not having, would be to strike us with terror down to our toes.  The children of Israel had been told what was coming, what was going to happen, and were in expectation but even so, it terrified them.  Fear can change a man and we want to pursue that thought a little bit.

On the third day, as God had said, he descended on the mountain called Mt. Sinai in the presence of the people who were at the base of the mountain although far enough back, according to God's commandment, not to be touching it.  "So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled." (Ex. 19:16 NASB)  

"Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire.  Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly.  And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice." (Ex. 19:18-19 NKJV)  The NASB says, "God answered him with thunder."  However, while the original language can be technically translated either way the NKJV is correct, it should be voice rather than thunder.

How do I know?  Deut. 4:10-13, "Remember the day you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb, when the Lord said to me, 'Assemble the people to me, that I may let them hear my words so they may learn to fear me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children.'  You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the very heart of the heavens: darkness, cloud and thick gloom.  Then the Lord spoke to you from the midst of the fire; you heard the sound of words, but you saw no form--only a voice.  So he declared to you his covenant which he commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments; and he wrote them on two tablets of stone." (NASB)  They heard words, the words of God spoken by God, not thunder.  We find further confirmation of this in Ex. 20:22, the very words of God himself directly speaking on the subject.    

On the day God descended on Mt. Sinai (called Horeb in Deut. 4:10) the New International Version says the people "trembled with fear." (Ex. 20:18 NIV)  While that is not a literal translation, the literal is "they trembled" (NASB), it is the exact meaning of the literal.  They trembled due to what they were seeing and hearing.

On that third day when God came down on top of Mt. Sinai Moses went up.  God then instructed him to go back down, warn the people again to stay their distance, and to get Aaron and bring him back up to the top of the mountain with him (with Moses), see Ex. 19:20-24.  This he did.

However, having heard God speak terrified the children of Israel to the extent that they begged Moses, "Let not God speak to us, or we will die." (Ex. 20:19 NASB)  Moses responded, "Do not be afraid; for God has come in order to test you, and in order that the fear of Him may remain with you, so that you may not sin." (Ex. 20:20 NASB)

So what are the lessons in this account for us?  I have not been telling a story just to repeat a story.  There are important lessons here for you and me today.  Here are some of them.

(1) One should fear God.  Fear is a motivating factor from God himself.  Its purpose is to keep us from sinning.  Many today say we should have no fear of God.   But the Bible says we are to perfect holiness "in the fear of God." (2 Cor. 7:1 NASB)  Of those listed by Paul in Rom. 3 as being "under sin" (ver. 9) one of the condemning factors is, "There is no fear of God before their eyes." (Rom. 3:18 NASB)  Paul speaks of a factor that motivates him to preach to sinful men.  He says, "Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men." (2 Cor. 5:11 NASB)  He does not want men to experience condemnation and knows there is a reason to fear such an end.

Yes, I know perfect love casts out fear and the one who fears is not perfected in love (1 John 4:18).  I am sure Paul did not fear God as in trembling fear but the fear of the Lord is one of the things that keeps us from sin (Ex. 20:20) and keeps us walking in faithful obedience so that we can develop that perfect love which in our spiritual maturity destroys fear.  That day comes when we can say as Paul did, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." (2 Tim. 4:7 NKJV)  We never know when we are about to finish the race but we can know before death that we have fought the good fight and have kept the faith and thus have the assurance of salvation.  We need not fear God as long as we are walking in the light but the fear of God ought to keep us walking in that light.

(2) Another lesson we can learn from this account is that fear itself will not keep us on the straight and narrow road of righteousness over the long haul.  All who know the Bible know the rest of the story that is not being covered in this article.  I refer to the golden calf, an idol, which will be made before Moses returns from being on the mountain with God for forty days.  We have here a people who have experienced the real God who speaks and works miracles and who is full of wonder and awe, capable of striking terror into people in an instant, and before Moses can come down off this smoking mountain where God is the people are already into idol worship.

This is at a time when Moses is receiving the Ten Commandments on tablets of stone.  It is at the time when "the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai … and to the eyes of the sons of Israel the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire on the mountain top." (Ex. 24:16-17 NASB)  But, did it matter?  What effect did this wondrous sight have on the children of Israel? 

People will worship their idols and soon forget God.  This is still true today.  Give a man a little terror in his life and he suddenly comes to God but it often only lasts as long as he remains terrified.  As soon as the terror abates he is back to his worship of money, or entertainment, or whatever it is he worships.  That said there are two types of men--wise men and foolish men.  Wise men learn a lesson from terror and it remains with them.  Wise men can learn from what has happened to others.  Foolish men can only learn when the stripes are laid directly on their own backs. 

(3) The final lesson in this article pertains to the terror of the Lord itself.  The children of Israel were terrified of God when directly in his presence at the foot of the mountain.  Now I want to ask one thing.  Do you think it will be any different on the Day of Judgment?  I have no idea why people have no fear of facing God in judgment, people who live their lives here in disobedience.  Do they think they are going to be standing before God as equals on that day? 

When the Day of Judgment comes it will be as it was on that morning at Mt. Sinai.  There will be no doubt about God's existence.  There will be no doubt about whether or not there is going to be a Day of Judgment.  There will be no doubt about where you are heading very, very shortly if you have never obeyed the gospel.  There will be stark terror in the hearts of all the disobedient.  There will be knees too weak to stand on.

There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt. 13:42).  "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." (Heb. 10:31 NKJV)  "And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire." (Rev. 20:15 NKJV)

It is easy to walk with a swagger through life and tell yourself and others you can handle anything, that you do not need help from anyone and that you are not afraid of God.  Well, maybe you are not afraid.  Maybe you are not wise enough to be afraid but God will make you afraid in the Day of Judgment.  It is just so foolish and unnecessary that people will throw their lives away and for what?  It was for a golden calf in Moses' time and often for nothing more than foolish pride and arrogance and the pleasing of self in our own time.

Everyone needs to count the cost now of disobedience to God.  "God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap." (Gal. 6:7 NKJV)  Will your heart fail you for fear on the Day of Judgment?  It doesn't have to be that way but it is indeed "a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." (Heb. 10:31 NKJV)  If you are unfaithful and disobedient we will see how strong and tough you are on that day and you will see for yourself.  On that day we will all know who we are and what our place is.

That will be the day when "the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.  These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power." (2 Thess. 1:7-9 NKJV)  Yes, like at Mt. Sinai men on the Day of Judgment will know God is God and that man is not the boss.

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