fencepostdigest

I often read statements like this:

“Baptists and others like them present ‘easy beliefism’.” 

My answer is simple, for those who think God elects those who will go to Heaven; what is so difficult about that? No faith required just accept you may or may not be one of the elect…hmmm. How difficult is this?

“There are two of ‘me’ living inside of me: the old self and the new self, and they always fight over what ‘me’ is to do.”

 The biblical answer is this: “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin.” Romans 6:4-7 NASB.

Jesus tells us, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:16-18.

And Paul writes, “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, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” Ephesians 2:8-10.

And the Apostle continues with, “But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”-that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” Romans 10:8-11.

Yes, it is simple enough to believe that Jesus saves the one who expresses faith in Him alone. But, folks, God did not, did NOT, elect some to go to Heaven and the remainder to go to Hell.

Jesus is Lord.

I wrote about this very thing a few days ago and now I am returning to the question because I think the understanding of this has much more depth than I have known previously. I am aware no one will agree or disagree with my conclusion. With that I began a word study beginning with ‘acceptance.’

Acceptance:

The 1828 Webster’s Dictionary tells us this, “the act of accepting something or someone : the fact of being accepted : approval, acceptance of responsibility.”

Modern Webster’s Dictionary explains, “a receiving what is offered, with approbation, satisfaction, or acquiescence; esp., favorable reception; approval; as, the acceptance of a gift, office, doctrine, etc.”

The manner in which I first came to this ‘journey’ as it were was a quick look at a church’s website containing their foundations of existence. One of them is the question, “does obedience come before or after acceptance.”

I have come to the conclusion that obedience, our obedience to follow Christ, comes after His knowing of us and NOT of His acceptance of us. For most I will assume, because I have not studied this, that many will spend some quiet time with the Lord when His call is involved. On the other hand, others will not hesitate to say, “yes” to Him.

The conclusion that my personal obedience comes after His formation of me is simple. “Your eyes saw me when I was formless; all my days were written in Your book and planned before a single one of them began.” Psalm 139:16 HCSB. He has always known me as I am at this very moment, and as we understand Webster’s definition, the meaning is moot. Therefore, I obey His call to follow Him without hesitation and accept to do what He expects of me.

Obedience:

The 1838 Webster’s Dictionary is more complete than the modern version, “Compliance with a command, prohibition or known law and rule of duty prescribed; the performance of what is required or enjoined by authority, or the abstaining from what is prohibited, in compliance with the command or prohibition.”

There is no doubt, Jesus’ disciples already knew Him and had a relationship with Him. But when Jesus called them to serve Him, theirs was an incredible sacrifice to leave everything behind. And they made no excuses as to why they could not leave their stuff to serve Him.

“Then He said to them all, “If anyone wants to come with Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me will save it.” Luke 9:23-24.

Therefore, the question of which comes first really is ‘on us’ because the Lord already knows us and does not ‘accept’ us as we understand and ‘accept’ Him. He already knows us in every detail possible for we can hide nothing from Him. However, when observed from our point of view, yes we might survey whether or not we accept His call to serve Him because His call is a severe termination of everything we know which will include family ties and friendships, too. For this reason He implores us to ‘count the cost’ in His parable found in Luke 14:25-35. In verses 33-35 we find this, “In the same way, therefore, every one of you who does not say good-bye to all his possessions cannot be My disciple. “Now, salt is good, but if salt should lose its taste, how will it be made salty? It isn’t fit for the soil or for the manure pile; they throw it out. Anyone who has ears to hear should listen!”

In the end, God is not compelled to accept us before we obey Him. However, if anyone He calls does not consider the cost of His call, that is to accept His call to obedience, then, yes, acceptance does go before our obedience to serve Him.

This is why I will stick with my original suggestion, “Obedience, indeed, comes before acceptance.” The original 12 did not hesitate for they left whatever they held dear, to “Follow Me.” He already knew who they were AND He knows you first. Because His Followers do know Him well, we will understand the cost of obeying His call to serve Him.

Jesus is Lord.

Christ-honoring Obedience

Christ-honoring obedience is found in His call to “Follow me.” It would not be accurate to say that obeying Jesus is only the result of being accepted by Him. Being accepted by Him points to the faulty notion of being selected to follow Him before His call to “Follow Me.”

Between the beginning and the end stands the cross of Christ. Paul writes, “So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.”Romans 5:18-19 NASB.; “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Philippians 2:5-8; or “Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered. And having been made perfect, He became to all those who obey Him the source of eternal salvation.”’ Hebrews 5:8-9.

Someone has said, “Obedience follows being accepted.” And I ask, are we accepted before our obedience? This is a difficult question, but we find this, “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, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” Ephesians 2:8-10. Paul indicates here that our obedience in grace and faith precedes being accepted in salvation. Salvation does not come first. This is Christ-honoring obedience.

Jesus called the 12 to obey Him before they were born-again. They were not accepted as His Disciples until they obeyed Him to, “Follow Me.” When they specifically chose to follow the Messiah in obedience He the accepted them.

Some from whom He demanded obedience chose not to follow and one walked away sad. Most could not bear the cross of obedience. And just as John pointed out, “Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.” 1 John 2:18-19.

Jesus remains Lord.

Dying to self is the reason I live now. Are you prepared to really say and live like this? Self-denial is not so difficult because Christ is in you and He is your hope in glory. The reason one dies to self is for the purpose of the Cross of Jesus Christ. As you prepare to say ‘yes’ to this question be prepared to lose friends and family because some may falsely accuse you of being ‘self-righteous’ and more. Remind yourself that Jesus is Lord.

Obedience to the call of God is not an easy thing to do when the urgency of His call is observed. Reading the Gospels containing those moments when Jesus called someone to follow Him the urgency to do so was always ‘immediately.’ 

“When Jesus saw large crowds around Him, He gave the order to go to the other side of the sea. 19 A scribe approached Him and said, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go!” Jesus told him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.” “Lord,” another of His disciples said, “first let me go bury my father.” But Jesus told him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.” Matthew 8:18-22 HCSB.

What did Jesus mean when He said this? Our Lord was and is speaking to those who are spiritually dead. These folks are alive physically but their hearts are not inclined toward God, they are not yet Followers of the Christ. One may be very strong and healthy physically, and yet be spiritually dead which has eternal implications. One cannot be a Follower of Jesus Christ and be immersed in the secular activities of this world.

The way of Jesus is not so easy as many may think. When Jesus called the original disciples they simply laid aside their treasures and became His. One remarkable story reveals the heart of most in His hearing. Jesus instructed a man to sell all that he owned, give it to the poor and then he could be saved. That man’s response is not remarkable, but simply most common. He could not do as Jesus asked and walked away lost and sad. Indeed, how eternally sad this kind of response is. Without Jesus all is lost for eternity.

Jesus is Lord.

Because we are adopted into the family of God, we Christians (Followers of Christ) sometimes find it difficult to understand this, “ “Therefore, everyone who will acknowledge Me before men, I will also acknowledge him before My Father in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven. Don’t assume that I came to bring peace on the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to turn a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; The person who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; the person who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And whoever doesn’t take up his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me. Anyone finding his life will lose it, and anyone losing his life because of Me will find it.” Matthew 10:32-39. HCSB

What, then is the concept of family found in the Word of God? Jesus absolutely removed what it meant to be part of a family: “Someone told Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to You.” But He replied to the one who told Him, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?” And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven, that person is My brother and sister and mother.”

We must understand that Jesus is not saying our biological families are not important. He is making a point that in the Kingdom of Heaven, the most important family connection is spiritual, not physical.  John writes, “He came to what was his own, but his own people did not receive him. But to all who have received him, those who believe in His name, He has given the right to become God’s children, children not born by human parents or by human desire or a husband’s decision, but by God.” John 1:11-13.

We are born first into a physical family, yes, but when we are “born again,” we are born into a spiritual family. Paul tells us we are adopted into God’s family, Romans 8:12-16. God becomes our Father and Jesus our Brother. This spiritual family is not bound by ethnicity, gender or social standing just as the Apostle writes in Galations 3:25-29, “But since that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ like a garment. There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, heirs according to the promise.”

Our physical family is the most important foundation in society, and should be nurtured and protected. However the more important is the new creation that God is makes in Christ made up of all people who call upon the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior.

The foremost characteristic of the Christian family is love for one another: “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” John 12:35. 

Jesus is Our Lord.

Among us exist offenders of the Gospel message who have, indeed, “For it is impossible in the case of those who have once been enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift, become partakers of the Holy Spirit, tasted the good word of God and the miracles of the coming age, and then have committed apostasy, to renew them again to repentance, since they are crucifying the Son of God for themselves all over again and holding him up to contempt.” Hebrews 6:4-6. HCSB.

Peter provides a vivid picture of how ‘wanna be’ Believers operate so true Christians can know how to avoid their evil activity. He writes, “For whatever a person succumbs to, to that he is enslaved. For if after they have escaped the filthy things of the world through the rich knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they again get entangled in them and succumb to them, their last state has become worse for them than their first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than, having known it, to turn back from the holy commandment that had been delivered to them. They are illustrations of this true proverb: ‘A dog returns to its own vomit,’ and ‘A sow, after washing herself, wallows in the mire.’” 2 Peter 2:19(b)-22. 

False believers are acquainted with the principles of Jesus’ teaching in Scripture but resist true faith and repentance. They have intellectual knowledge about Jesus but not faith. “For ignoring the righteousness that comes from God and seeking instead to establish their own righteousness, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. For Christ is the end of the law, with the result that there is righteousness for everyone who believes.” Romans 10:1-4. Cross-bearing is foreign to them, “Then he said to them all, “If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will save it.” Luke 9:23-24. 

Peter seemed certain that attempts made to reform these would be a waste of time and used powerful words to illustrate those who reject Jesus Christ. Rebellious people are like pigs wallowing in the mud or wild dogs eating their own vomit. 

In 2 Peter 5:1-1, perseverance is essential to faith. There will always be false teachers in the local church attempting to deceive as many as possible. “Children, it is the last hour, and just as you heard that the antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have appeared. We know from this that it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us because if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. But they went out from us to demonstrate that all of them do not belong to us. 1 John 2:18-19. 

Born-again believers will not return to their past. They are empowered by the grace of God and the Holy Spirit, and their reward is eternal life. We find this truth in John 3:16-18, “For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through him. The one who believes in him is not condemned. The one who does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God.”

Jesus is Lord.

The Preacher in Ecclesiastes said, “there is nothing new under the sun.” Solomon is correct for God directed him to place in His Book. What we do know is simple: God creates everything and there is absolutely nothing surprising to the Father.

In my short life-span of almost 80 years God has allowed me to personally speak to at least 350 thousand people, maybe more. On this Lord’s Day, August 31, 2025, I may have the opportunity to personally speak with a dozen more.  How many people have you met and spoken to over the course of your lifetime?

The Preacher says, “I also observed under the sun: there is wickedness at the place of judgment and there is wickedness at the place of righteousness. I said to myself, “God will judge the righteous and the wicked, since there is a time for every activity and every work.” But there is more, much more.

Jesus tells us, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while people were sleeping, his enemy came, sowed weeds among the wheat, and left. When the plants sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also appeared. The landowner’s slaves came to him and said, ‘Master, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Then where did the weeds come from?’ “‘An enemy did this!’ he told them. “‘So, do you want us to go and gather them up?’ the slaves asked him. “‘No,’ he said. ‘When you gather up the weeds, you might also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time I’ll tell the reapers: Gather the weeds first and tie them in bundles to burn them, but store the wheat in my barn.’” Matthew 13:24-30. 

What we know is simple, there are lost and saved people everywhere we go. Walking about town at work or in a park everyone around us is in need of the Good News we bear for in the end, the Judgment.

John writes, “Then I looked, and there was a white cloud, and One like the Son of Man was seated on the cloud, with a gold crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand. Another angel came out of the sanctuary, crying out in a loud voice to the One who was seated on the cloud, “Use your sickle and reap, for the time to reap has come, since the harvest of the earth is ripe.” So the One seated on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.” Revelation 14:14-16.

In your time the work God has given will never be complete.  

Jesus is Lord.

What has happened in family(s) seems to be a very common result of a parent remarrying following the death of their spouse. Most of what I have read deals with the difficulties following remarriage. 

A common statement deals with adult children, and there seems to be no correct answer. The difficulty has been for everyone, but mostly the difficulties lie with adult children. And the question has been, ‘how long should I wait?’ What is known is simple, ‘there would never have been a ‘right time.’

The argument has rested on biblical answers found in two of Paul’s letters; 1 Timothy 5 and then in 1 Corinthians 7:8-9. And Jesus counsels us in Matthew 18:15 to have discussions with others and to forgive, too. He also says that we are to speak with fellow Believers and to seek God’s counsel and blessings. 

Paul makes it very clear that a widow is permitted to remarry.  In fact in some cases the Bible actually encourages it and he writes, “SoI want younger women to marry, raise children, and manage a household, in order to give the adversary no opportunity to vilify us. For some have already wandered away to follow Satan.” 1 Timothy 5:14-15. 

However, the children of the deceased often have a hard time accepting the fact that their mother or father is capable of loving more than one person.  The tension is very common and for the children it seems disloyal for their parents to remarry – even years later.

In Matthew 18:15 Jesus teaches us to have one-on-one discussions with fellow Christians when there are disagreements. We should have an open, loving discussion with your children in which you explain to them that marrying again does not mean we love one another any less. The bottom line is we all need to get over it.  Life goes on and we all need to make the most of every day God gives us. I will not help them by pampering or catering to their objections. Objections should not be rewarded.

This is not a matter of competition but a matter of the need for companionship and living in different chapters of life. We need to trust the Word of God and live the abundant life our Lord has provided for us.  

Paul writes in Romans 14: 8-12, “If we live, we live for the Lord; if we die, we die for the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For this reason Christ died and returned to life, so that he may be the Lord of both the dead and the living. But you who eat vegetables only—why do you judge your brother or sister? And you who eat everything—why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will give praise to God.” Therefore, each of us will give an account of himself to God.”

We do not have to be separated. Yes, we have made choices to live in a new chapter of life and the hope is for everyone to allow what has transpired. Please make your choices to be pleasant.

After all is done everyone will stand before the Creator, “When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is: fear God and keep His commands, because this is for all humanity. For God will bring every act to judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil.” Ecclesiastes 12:13-14.

Jesus is Lord.

I will not “allow Satan to destroy our relationship” more than what has already been caused by him.  He has seduced many just as Adam fell into his trap to  follow Eve. I refuse to do the same. Satan is the defeated foe as a result of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We must resist him once again and already he has fled. 

I am convinced evil choices are out of an unrighteous fear of God. More than a few times have evil-hearted people confronted me, but God has directed my steps in every case.

The first time I faltered and stumbled happened because of spiritual immaturity. However, the Holy Spirit demonstrated how to confront evil such as this by putting on His armor in order to defend myself from the darts of Satan. The Tempter is far easier to overcome today than in the beginning.

Being crucified with Jesus each day, being filled with His Spirit each day, walking with Him daily, being clothed with His armor are the reasons I am able to walk victoriously. And just as Paul described his personal journey and being content because of the empowerment of the Christ, I have chosen to do the same. Indeed, “I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me.”

Christ has given us His righteousness enabling us to walk with Him daily. Yes, this time in our lives has been a dark valley, but we do understand that He walks with us and we do not fear the evil that has been present in our life together.

Indeed, I have chosen to be married to Sharon and God has blessed us uniquely. I am quite certain others have walked similar paths and each of us has known the gracious love of God protecting and empowering us.

Sharon and I lived and worked side by side with some of those chosen by God to serve Him in another culture. No doubt, He chose us from  among many who were not; not because they were less worthy, but because He planned our steps before time began. He enabled us to stand with those found in Hebrews chapter 11, the Hall of the Faithful, as some call it. We are humbled to be able to stand with them. Our journey has not been the same, but we are among the righteous because we are in Christ just as they are. We are Ambassadors of Christ..

Am I boasting? Yes, a thousand times yes. But my boast concerns only the Person of Jesus Christ and not about what I have done. Without Him I am nothing, but in Him, we have and will accomplish all that He has for us. Just as Paul stood in Athens speaking to a group of Pagans we have and continue to do the same, proclaiming the Name of Jesus to a lost world having denied the Risen Savior in our time.

Neither am I ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ because this Gospel empowers those who will believe to be saved. There is more to this than meets the eye for just as Jesus said, few will enter into His Kingdom, but far more will enter the darkness of Hell because they have denied Him. These will not have their names written in the Book of Life because they have not opened the door of their heart to Jesus Christ standing to receive them into His heaven.

Jesus is Lord…