Balance between God and School

With final exams rearing their ugly head it has been a lot harder to get into my Bible on a consistent basis. When it gets really bad, I'll cut out my time with God all together. All I can think about is how many things I need to be doing and how I wish that there were 36 hours in a day instead of 24. Ironically, as life gets more stressful I tend to drift away from God and try to do everything by myself. First of all this is very unwise, and second of all it reflects that my relationship with God is not a priority. So with this entry I'll discuss what the Bible says about having a healthy balance between school (or anything else) and the Bible.

When it comes to putting something before God, I'm always reminded about what Jesus says in his famous Sermon on the Mount:

"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."

-Matthew 6:24-25 (NIV)

In the context of this passage, not serving money is a similar to the idea of storing up treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:19-21). It doesn't make sense that Jesus would only want us to not serve money (see Luke 14:33), so insert anything that could be idolized or anything that you would make a bigger priority in place of money. For me it looks something like this:

"Travis cannot serve both God and grades."

I'm not trying to change the scripture, I'm just doing my best to apply it to my life today. You might say, "well Travis. Just because I want good grades doesn't mean that I'm mastered by them." True, but let me ask you this. If God asked you to get bad grades to glorify him would you be willing to do it? 

Now what I am NOT saying is that God wants you to get bad grades. Paul says otherwise in his letter to the Church in Colossi:

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not men."

-Colossians 3:23 (NIV)

We are to glorify God with our lives, including our grades. We should strive to honor God with our grades, but that's the only thing we should do. Even if I say that I'm studying for God, it can very easily turn into "I'm studying so I can get a good grade and impress my parents, impress my friends, and feel good about myself." In and of themselves, none of those things are bad. But notice how all of those motivations are centered around me. That's when it gets dangerous. Whenever the focus turns from glorifying God to glorifying ourselves, you best check yourself before you wreck yourself.

So as we endure the finals this semester, let's make sure that our lives stay focused on God and not anything else. God bless and good luck on all of your finals!

Tattoos

Over the past several years, Christians have started a new trend of getting tattoos to symbolize their relationship with Christ and their devotion to the religion they profess. But what does the Bible say about tattoos? Are tattoos okay or are they sinful? I'll discuss several verses, offer my advice, and then let you decide for yourself.

The word "tattoo" is only found one time in the Bible. Leviticus 19:28 goes as follows:

"Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourself. I am the Lord."

If this passage is taken at face value, there is no argument. Tattoos are sinful and it is a command from the Lord to abstain from the them. However, when we put this verse into context, we can delve a little deeper into the true meaning of the scripture.

"Do not eat any meat with the blood still in it. Do not practice divination or sorcery. Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord."

-Leviticus 19:26-28 (NIV)

The way this part of Leviticus is organized, different themes or groups are separated by a reminder that God is in charge, i.e. "I am the Lord." This particular group is a set of commands specifically directed towards pagan worship. Dr. Robert Jamieson does a phenomenal job of analyzing verse 28 in his commentary on the Old Testament:

"The practice of make deep gashes on the face and arms and legs, in time of bereavement, was universal among the heathen, and it was deemed a sort of propitiatory offering to the deities who presided over death and the grave. The Jews learned this custom in Egypt, and though weaned from it, relapsed in a later and degenerate age into this old superstition by tattooing, imprinting figures of flowers, leaves, stars, and other fanciful devices on various parts of their person. It is probable that a strong propensity to adopt such marks in honor of some idol gave occasion to the prohibition in this verse; and they were wisely forbidden."

The reason that God forbid the Israelites to have tattoos is because of what they represented. During this time, the only reason that someone would get a tattoo would be to pay honor to an idol or as a way of communicating with spirits. Experts on the history of tattoos almost unanimously agree that the origin of tattoos was indeed in order to worship/commune with pagan gods.

Why are you getting a tattoo? If it is in order to worship pagan gods then the Bible expressly forbids it. But what if you want to get a tattoo to show your commitment to God? Let's continue to dig into the scriptures.

Most modern Christians attend what is commonly known as a "New Testament church." This means that they teach the sacrifice and resurrection of Christ, and that they lean predominantly on the New Testament for their doctrine. 

"Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law."

-Galatians 3:23-25 (NIV)

This particular passage portrays that we are not under the law, but rather that we fall under the grace of Christ. Does this include tattoos? The idea of tattoos is not mentioned in the New Testament, but there are other ideas that are not mentioned in the New Testament and are generally accepted by New Testament doctrine. One example is bestiality. Bestiality is only mentioned in the Old Testament:

"Do not have sexual relations with an animal and defile yourself with it."

-Leviticus 18:23

So we cannot assume that getting a tattoo is okay for the sole reason that it is not specifically forbidden in the New Testament. But as we examine the what the Bible says about tattoos in Leviticus, it is reasonable to determine that the motive behind the tattoo is what is sinful, not the tattoo itself.

This opens a whole new can of worms. Why are you getting a tattoo? Is it so you can look cool and impress your friends? Is it so you can look "sexy"? Are you telling yourself that it's for God but really your driving motivation is the one of the first two? Your motivation for getting a tattoo is key to determining if it is sinful or not.

"Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."

-1 Samuel 16:7b (NIV)

Here's my take on this whole issue.

1. If you are getting a tattoo to glorify yourself, then it is sinful.

If you get a tattoo with the express desire of elevating your standing among men, then you are practicing self-worship (the idolization of yourself). This is definitely forbidden by the Bible (see Matthew 6:24).

2. If you are not fully convinced that getting a tattoo is okay, then for you it is sinful.

"Everything that does not come from faith is sin."

-Romans 14:23b (NIV)

If you are riding the fence, err on the side of caution and assume that it is a sin for you. If it is even a debatable issue for your conscience, don't get a tattoo.

3. If getting a tattoo will cause you to disobey your parents, don't get a tattoo.

"'Honor your father and mother'-which is the first commandment with a promise."

-Ephesians 6:2 (NIV)

If your parents say no, then you must respect their wishes for you. The Bible leaves no wiggle room for that one.

Ultimately, getting a tattoo is more than just a physical act, it is a heart issue. If you cannot justify getting a tattoo, then don't get one. If you decide not to, it's not the end of the world. My only advice would be that if you decide to get a tattoo, put it in a place that would not be a stumbling block to others (Romans 14:13), would not interfere with any jobs you could have in the future, and consider whether your spouse will want you to have it. Take a deep look at yourself before making this decision, and may the Holy Spirit guide your decision making.

Predestination vs. Choice

Many people ask me whether I think God predestines people to be Christians or if we have a choice in the matter. The Bible provides support for both ideas so I'll show support for both sides and then let you know how I feel about it.

Predestination

Let me come right out and say it, predestination does not equal Calvinism. While Calvinism does promote predestination, it also includes many other doctrinal practices. So for the sake of this entry, I'll leave Calvinism for another day.

These are the two main scriptures that the Lutheran Church leans on to support predestination:

"For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will."

-Ephesians 1:4-5 (NIV)

"For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to 

the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among 

many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those 

he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified."

-Romans 8:29-30 (NIV)

I don't mean to call out the Lutheran Church specifically, but it 

is one of the mainline church denominations that leans heavily 

on predestination. While these scriptures are in the Bible, it is 

important not to miss interpret them, or interpret them to say 

what you want them to  say. It is not uncommon for people to 

jump to the conclusion that being God's elect means that we can 

do whatever we want on this Earth because we have been justi-

fied (Romans 8:30). That does not agree with what Jesus Christ 

himself says: that in order to be his follower we have to be 

willing to give up everything, even our sinful nature, in order to 

follow him (Luke 9:23, 14:25-27).

Don Fortner does a good job analyzing this misconception. He 

says:

"The Word of God does not teach that religious fatalism which 

says, 'The elect will be saved, no matter what.' God has predes-

tined the use of specific means for the accomplishment of his 

purposes; and the use of those means is as necessary and as 

certain as the end itself."

Fortner uses the term "elect" several times. This term relates to 

God's chosen people (aka his disciples). So if the wording is 

confusing, try inserting the word "Christian" every time he uses 

"elect." Ultimately, predestination is less about being able to do 

anything we want because in the end we'll be saved and more 

about being a chosen people of God.

Choice

The concept of having a choice mainly spawns from every 

human's responsibility to seek God. This is demonstrated in the 

following verse:

"Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I 

will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek 

me with all your heart."

-Jeremiah 29:12-13 (NIV)

This verse suggests that in action is required in order for the 

result to come to fruition. Think of it as an if-then statement. If 

you seek God with all of your heart, then you will find him. This 

seems to refute the idea that God chooses us, and support the 

idea that we choose him.

This theme is also seen throughout several of the books in the 

new testament, specifically James. Chapter 1 of James is almost 

completed devoted to persevering through trials to become 

mature disciples of Jesus. This becomes a common sticking point 

with predestination as it infers that we actually have to strive to 

be like Christ even in difficult circumstances.

Another thing that seems to conflict with the idea of predestin-

ation is what is seen in 2 Peter:

"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some under-

stand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to 

perish, but everyone to come to repentance."

-2 Peter 3:9 (NIV)

This passage suggests that it is in fact the Lord's desire that 

everyone turn and follow him. If this is true, why would some 

people be "chosen" and others seemingly rejected. If God wants 

everyone to be saved, is there predestination at all?

Unfortunately for us human beings, both of these seemingly 

contradictory ideas are in the Bible, and if we believe the Bible

to be from God (2 Timothy 3:16), and God is truth, then they 

must both be true. While some will try to say that one has more 

support than the other, it is imperative that we do not dismiss 

parts of the Bible that seem to disagree with our personal 

beliefs. If we get into that habit, then only the parts of the Bible 

that we want to be true become true to us, and then the Bible 

says what we want it to say and not what God actually meant for 

it to say. As for how all that works, I'm not really sure. I suspect 

that I may never fully understand the balance between 

predestination and choice, but hey, it's fun to think about.