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The Gulf Between Good and Godly

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on . Posted in The Gospel. 3 Comments on The Gulf Between Good and Godly

There seems to be a common phrase among many church-goers.  It goes something like this: “They’re some good people down there at Insert Church Name.”  Yet, if you actually went “down there” to some of these churches you would find out quite quickly that their definition of “good” is not so good.

While we all understand what is meant by this, I have thought about the biblical accuracy of such a phrase.  I have concluded that there is absolutely no biblical foundation for making such a statement, and I hope to demonstrate my claim with three basic points from Scripture:

  1. There is no good person:  Paul, quoting the Old Testament, reminds us of our depravity before a holy God when he says, “All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” (Romans 3:12).
  2. Only God is good:  Jesus teaches us this plainly when He says to the Rich Ruler, “Why do you call me good?  No one is good but God alone” (Luke 18:19)
  3. By God’s grace, believers are godly:  Again consulting Paul, he reminds us that believers are to be separate from the world.  We are to be godly and that is only possible by God’s grace.  “For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you.” (2 Corinthians 1:12).

Based on this simple three point approach, I believe we need to re-orient our belief on what constitues “good” and “godly” for there is a world of difference between the two.   Good, by the world’s own estimate, falls far short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).  For God calls us to be more than “good”, He calls us to be godly.  Peter says it like this, “But as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:15-16).

So, I guess the point I’m getting at is this, who cares if the folks down at the local church are “good” if they aren’t godly?  Is it not of far more importance that God’s church be known in the community as being godly and holy people?  Is not God’s gracious imputation of His righteousness the only thing that separates believers from unbelievers?  Lest we be godly, we will be nothing more than the world around us is? (1 Peter 2:11-12).  So let God’s people, who have been saved by His grace, be godly.

For His Glory,
Jeremy Vanatta

Call His Name Jesus

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on . Posted in The Gospel. 2 Comments on Call His Name Jesus

I love Christmas.  I love the sights, sounds, songs, and smells.  I love the candies.  I love the family reunions and the gathering of friends.  I love the gifts and the givers.  But as much as I love these things, I do not love them in and of themselves.  I love these things because they remind me of the One who loved me first.

Every year there seem to be more and more stress-laden, unhappy partakers in the holiday we call Christmas.  It is almost as if someone forgot to give these pessimistic prunes the memo: CHRISTmas is coming.  On the other extreme, you have the euphorical extremists all tanked up on the materialism of it all.  It is almost as if someone forgot to give these optimistic ones the same memo: CHRISTmas is coming.  You see, both have lost sight of the bigger picture and turned in on themselves as the center of Christmas.

But Christmas is far from being about self and what self wants. Christmas is about the Christ child who was sent on a mission by God.  This was a rescue mission.  The mission was this: deliver God’s people from themSELVES.  For the child born in a stable and laid in a manger grew up to be the man of sorrows, crushed for the inquities of His people.  So Christmas should never be about fulfilling our selfish desires, no matter what form they take. Christmas, always and forever, should be about Jesus Christ, Son of God. Christmas should always bring hope to the hopeless, and we all fit that bill.  For without Christ, we all are a hopeless people.  Hopelessly searching for happiness, contentment, or simply stuff.  Hopelessly headed for eternal destruction in hell.

Yet, God reminds us of the simply profound message of Christmas:  “She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).  Now that is worth celebrating!

Merry Christmas!

Jeremy Vanatta

Slippery Little Fellas: 10 Common Signs of False Teachers

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on . Posted in The Church, The Gospel. 2 Comments on Slippery Little Fellas: 10 Common Signs of False Teachers

It seems most natural for man to fear serpents.  All the world over snakes find themselves the repeated targets of panicked ophidiophobics (snake-fearers).  Two memorable occasions stand out in my experience that prove my point.  One was watching a “macho” fifteen year old boy run out of the tobacco field screaming like a lady and cussing like a sailor because he saw a rattlesnake.  The other was observing twenty or so African men in Zimbabwe, along with a few Americans, gathering  around a puff adder with rocks in hand.  I imagined in that moment what it must have felt like to be the woman caught in adultery or Stephen who was martyred for his testimony about Jesus Chirst.  As with Stephen, the puff adder died for his testimony–the adder’s testimony being, “Yes, I am an adder.  Here I lie!”

In some ways, man’s fear of serpents is unwarranted and more often rooted in frenzy rather than fact.  Serpents, however, can be dangerous creatures depending on the ones you encounter.  Perhaps one of the reasons that man has such difficulty with snakes is because they are simply so stealthy.  Yes, most snakes bite and/or coil, and some snakes use venom on their prey.  But at the end of the day, these predatory features are only as useful as a snake’s slipperiness.  They accomplish such stealth via their God-cursed ability of slithering from place to place.

We can draw many parallels between serpents and the perennial enemy of God’s church.  Satan, with false teachers under his direction, have always posed a threat to the health of the local expressions of Christ’s body.  While we all freely admit that false teachers are dangerous for the church, it is their slithery character that catches us off guard.   Jude reminds us of this dangerous aspect of false teachers when he writes, “Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.  For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ” (Jude 3-4).   Notice that they “crept in” (the verb literally means, “to go down into” or “to come alongside”).  The implication of the word is saturated with creepiness and stealthiness.  False teachers are indeed slippery little fellas.

Well, since false teachers are so dangerous, what exactly are the dangers?  I will attempt to answer this question only briefly and partially using Scripture as our guide.  False teachers may have one, more, or all of these ten dangerous characteristics:

Dangers of False Teachers

1.  They disguise themselves as sheep but are really ravenous wolves (Matthew 7:15)

2.  They will bring destructive heresies into the church secretly (1 Peter 1:21)

3.  They lead many astray (Matthew 24:11)

4.  They are spoken well of by “all” (Luke 6:26)

5.  They attack true believers (1 Corinthians 11:26)

6.  They preach a form of works-righteousness rather than grace (Galatians 2:4)

7.  They stray from core Christian beliefs (1 Timothy 6:3-4)

8.  They are arrogant, though this may be hidden beneath sheep’s clothing (1 Timothy 6:4)

9.  They are greedy and liars (1 Timothy 6:5-10; Titus 1:10-16)

10.  They seek to please man rather than God (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

Therefore, Christians ought to be on the lookout for such Slippery Little Fellas.  Prayerfully, these ten dangers will remind us of their character and tactics.  May God continue to protect His church and His truth from the wiles of the Serpent and all his brood.

Anti-Santa or Pro-Christ?

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on . Posted in My Family, The Gospel. 2 Comments on Anti-Santa or Pro-Christ?

[This is an updated version of an article written several years ago]

Christmas is undoubtedly one of my favorite times of the year.  While I abhor the plague of syncretistic paganism that envelopes much of the holiday season as much as the next Christian, God always works it out to His glory.  Despite the world’s effort to euthanize Christ from Christmas, the Star of the show shines brightly on.

But all the traditions do pose a challenge for the Christian.  Specifically, how do Christians maintain as central that which is central to Christmas, namely God’s plan of salvation for sinners through Jesus?

One of those aspects that my wife and I have wrestled with is Santa Claus.  We both grew up in homes that told their young children that Santa was real, Santa knew all your deeds, and Santa was the giver of gifts at Christmas.  After we married and before God blessed us with children, we began discussing the Santa issue.  After many conversations, we opted out of “being Santa” for our then future children for a variety of reasons, but our top five are below.

1)  Being Santa de-centralizes the centerpiece of Christmas–Jesus:  This one is difficult to get around.  Yes, the historical St. Nick is worthy of respect and honor.  We can learn much from his heralded compassion and kindness.  Yet it remains, that it’s all about Jesus.

2)  Being Santa attributes divine characteristics to Santa that belong to Jesus:  In many ways, this may be the most serious issue.  Only the Divine Jesus knows all of our thoughts and deeds.  To ascribe any other being but our God with these divine characteristics is idolatry.  In our minds, it is all pretend.  In the minds of children, it is somethhing altogether different, which leads  to numbers three and four.

3)  Being Santa lends itself to covetousness and idolatry rather than worship of Jesus:  If our children are more concerned about Santa because of what kinds of gifts he can bring than they are about Jesus for the gift that He is to sinners, then we have contributed to our children’s already idolatrous nature.  In addition, I’ve heard many parents proclaim they’re love of “being Santa” because of the priceless “joy” or “look on my kids’ faces.”  It seems this is a slippery slope toward parents idolizing their children rather than worshipping Jesus.

4)  Being Santa introduces mythological themes into historical reality:  Christmas is about the truth  of Jesus Christ.  Why then would the believer want to introduce mythological elements into a holiday that Christians celebrate as a historical reality, that Christ is born?

5)  Being Santa lends itself to immorality rather than holiness:  Since many parents that “do Santa” lie to their children about Santa, then one must question the very foundation of “doing Santa.”  This is not the same as a temporary, birthday-surprise type situation.  We are talking about a deception that is maintained anywhere from three to ten years.  Add to this, Christmas is supposed to be about the truth that Jesus is indeed “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).  Therefore, it does not seem the wiser to mix fact and fiction at Christmas time.

Of course, many people (often professing Christians) seem to have a beef with folks like us.  Some are genuinely curious as to why we don’t do Santa.  Others are downright indignant.  Here’s some of the reactions we received over the years:

1)  “Aren’t your kids missing out on all the fun at Christmas?”:  An alternate version of this questions is, “Aren’t your kids missing out on their childhood?”  Of course, this assumes that Christmas is about having fun and getting stuff.  Now granted, Christmas is lots of fun and should be, but I know plenty of children (including mine) that have never been fed the Santa tradition and who think Christmas just as grand.  In essence, they don’t really care so much about Santa as they do about getting stuff.  Either way, you have to deal with a child’s covetous idolatry (the “Mine, Mine, Mine Syndrome), and we believe that task is best accomplished by focusing on historical truth at Christmas.

2)  “You’re just being legalistic.”:  First off, we must use the term legalism carefully, since it often requires that we know the motivations of someone’s heart, and we can only know their motivations by getting to know them personally.

Second, legalism can only be legalism if it is a belief or practice that a person believes sets them apart as more righteous than another person and obtains for themselves a more righteous standing with God.  And this is certainly not where we stand.  A Christian’s righteous standing with God is by His grace alone through faith in Jesus.  Thus, my wife and I don’t judge other Christians for “being Santa.”  Rather, this article is not religious dogma but a call to consideration from fellow believers.

3)  “So, you don’t celebrate Christmas?”:  We were meeting with a group of Christians once, and we happened to share with them that we “don’t do Santa”.  One lady in the group said, “So, you don’t celebrate Christmas?  You don’t do gifts?”  Indeed, the Santa myth is deeply ingrained even among adult Christians.  Apparently for some, leaving Santa out of Christmas is no longer Christmas.  Thus, we see plainly the real and present danger of neglecting the Savior during the holiday.

All this to say, let us keep central that which is central at Christmas.  Christians, if you choose to “do Santa”, then do it.  But by all means, please be careful in how you deal with the historical truth of Jesus coming into the world at Bethlehem, living a sinless life that we couldn’t live ourselves, taking God’s wrath against sin that we ourselves deserved at the cross, and rising from the dead so that everyone that turns from sin and follows Him will have eternal life.

Merry Christmas!
Jeremy Vanatta

The Unquenchable Flame

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on . Posted in The Church, The Gospel. 5 Comments on The Unquenchable Flame

The Unquenchable Flame: Discovering the Heart of the Reformation, written by Michael Reeves, the Theological Advisor for the Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship.  Reeves has written a concise and comedic history of the sixteenth-century Reformation.  To use the adjectives “concise” and “comedic” to describe a history book may seem oxymoronic, but both words fit the bill.  Not only this, Reeves’ account is accurate, balanced, and thoughtful.

Space would not allow for sharing all of the most significant points that this little book brings to light, but I must note at least the following four:

1)  The Reformers, while far from perfect in a variety of ways, risked all for the sake of returning the Church to a biblical understanding of the gospel: grace alone, faith alone, Scripture alone, Christ alone, God’s glory alone.

2)  Opponents of the gospel hate God’s word.  The Roman Catholic Church and its devotees feared the translation of God’s word into “common” languages more than anything else because they knew it would lead to the questioning of their authority regarding church tradition and popish dogma.  We can find a correlation with today.  Today, many professing Christians hate the expositional preaching of God’s word either out of fear or flat out boredom.  Those that fear it do so because it challenges their traditions and preconceived notions of God, not to mention that it brings them face to face with some of the most difficult texts in Scripture such as, “He who endures to the end will be saved.” (Matt.24:13); and “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent Me draws Him.” (John 6:44).  Those that find it boring usually do so because they want their flesh fed (John 6:25-27) or are simply indifferent (1 Cor. 2:14).

3) The heart of the Reformation was not political but religious.  Now admitedly, the radical fringes were quite political, and even the mainstream reformers found themselves inextricably intertwnined in political issues.  The heart of the Luthers, Calvins, and Zwinglis, however, was one of religious intent.  For the likes of these, the Reformation was about the truth of salvation.

4) Related to the previous point, the heart of the Reformation was justification by faith alone.  If all other things could be agreed upon, yet it remains that the marked difference between Catholic and Protestant was and is the doctrine of justification by faith.  Luther said, “Nothing in this article can be given up or compromised even if heaven and earth and things temporal should be destroyed.” because it is the belief “on which the church stands or falls”.  Reeves concurs, “Justification was what made the Reformation the Reformation.” (p.176).  It is here that the line must be drawn and maintained.  For the Catholic, justification by faith is the process of becoming more holy and thus becoming more worthy of salvation.  For Reformers, justification by faith is the declaration of God that the sinner, whille still a sinner, has been given the righteousness of Christ.  The argument may seem to be a mere wrangling over words, and at one level that is true; but it is so much more than that.  What is at stake when one wrangles with these hot-bed words?  The gospel itself.  The Catholic side says one must develop a righteousness, with God’s help, that will result in salvation.  The Reformer says one must simply receive the righteousness of Christ by God’s grace through faith in Christ, which results in salvation.

In conclusion, we must ask with Reeves and many other contemporary figures, “Is the Reformation over?  Reeves, and I with him, give a resounding, “NO!”  As long as the enemy continues to lead so many (including Protestants) into the error of thinking that the sinner can muster up a righteousness of his own in order to obtain salvation, the Reformation must continue to cry, “Solus Christus!”

For His Glory,
Jeremy Vanatta

Essential Things or Not: Do All to the Glory of God

Written by Jeremy Vanatta on . Posted in The Gospel, Theology. 4 Comments on Essential Things or Not: Do All to the Glory of God

Perhaps one of the greatest struggles for followers of Jesus Christ is the very real tension between essential and less-essential matters within Christianity.  If the The Threshing Floor is going to be of any use to anyone (not the least of which, me), then we must bear in mind that some wheat kernels that fall to the ground are less essential than others.  When we speak of essential matters, most Christians are referring to the most fundamental truths of Christianity.  Truths that would render Christianity quite unremarkable and quite impotent if they were ignored or adjusted.

What are some of these essential truths (also referred to as core or fundamental truths)?  To name only a few, we should mention: the sovereignty and holiness of God; the sinfulness of man; the virgin conception of Jesus, His substitutionary atonement and bodily resurrection; His Second Coming; justification of the sinner by faith in Christ alone; and the sanctification of all those who are genuinely His.

What, then, are some of the less-essential truths (also known as non-core or secondary truths)?  Again to name only a few, we should mention: Sabbath-keeping; frequency of Lord Supper observance; food choices; clothing choices; alcohol consumption; tattoos; styles of music; speaking in tongues; and the list could go on and on.

On all of the essential truths, Christians must be inflexible and vigilant as the assaults of the enemy are relentless here.  We can in no way deny these truths without denying the very core of Christianity itself. But what should Christians do with the less-essential truths of Christianity?  Paul’s instructions to the Corinthians can be especially helpful here.

In 1 Corinthians 10:23-33, Paul writes about the less-essential issue of meat that has been sacrificed to idols.  Should a Christian eat or not?  Many believers would immediately answer, “No way!  Don’t eat it!”  But Paul instructs us differently.  He actually says, “Eat” (v.25), although we should be able to answer “Yes!” to at least two questions:
1)  Is it helpful to my neighbor? (1 Cor.10:23-24; Rom.14:13-19)
2)  Does it bring glory to God? (1 Cor.10:31)

If the answer to either question is no, then the Christian must not partake.  If, however, the Christian’s conscience is clear on these two points, then he may proceed, all to the glory of God.  I pray this helps us in at least some small way to navigate the often confusing maze of truth.