Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.
[Ephesians 5:24, ESV]

I can just imagine the hordes of feminists getting out their pens and crossing this verse out of their Bibles. Not only does Paul say that wives are to submit to their husbands, but he explains exactly what he means: in everything. Can’t really build any loopholes out of that! The Greek is equally plain and incontrovertible; everything means everything!

So, we have a command from God to submit to our husbands in everything. Let me the first to say that I fail miserably at this! Everyday, probably: very time I’m lazy and spend time on my own pursuits and the housekeeping goes a bit awry, every time I get unjustly miffed at Seth for some little thing or another, every time he asks me to do something–or I know it would please him if I did something–and I don’t do it, I am failing to submit in everything. In short, this is a hard command to follow! It infiltrates every moment of our homeworking, every breath of our marriages, our finances, our families… that’s what everything means.

While the command is clear, I find myself asking two questions tonight:

1. Are there exceptions to “everything”?
2. What motivates me to such a massive calling?

These aren’t exegetical questions so much as heart questions, so my answers are not theological so much as personal, although I hope they’re scripturally sound!

Are there exceptions to “everything”?
I think this is sort of a trick question, really, although I suspect it’s the most often asked. The only exception that’s is biblical is, of course, when one’s husband is asking one to sin. Clearly, Christ is our Lord far and above the position of our husbands, and submitting to Him is both first and limitless. And since Christ is Lord of our husbands as well (whether Christian or not), I think it’s fair to say that biblical wifely submission in such a case is to obey God rather than man.

But once we get out of the area of direct sin, things are far less clear. What if our husbands want to teach something we think is theologically wrong to our children? Again, there are times when this would be clear–if our husbands forbid us to tell them about Christ, for instance–but what if it was a more minor point of theology, or even something that barely even touches on theology, like politics? Especially for those of us who tend to be more opinionated, it can be a deep struggle to have a disagreement even in such a small subject.

The most helpful thing to me in these situations is to remember that unsubmission should always be a very sorrowful concept. If we are choosing to act contrary to our husbands, and if we believe that we are doing so out of righteousness, then our hearts should ache unbearably! Our husbands are choosing sin, we’re being ideologically completely separated from them, we aren’t happy with them, they aren’t happy with us, and we’re losing the opportunity to move forward in Christ together. In other words, there is no room for gloating, unholy glee, rashness, or self-centered anger. If our hearts aren’t breaking with every act of disobedience, then we’re not being unsubmissive for the right reasons.

To bring this home a bit–I remember one time when I told Seth something along the lines of I think what you’re doing is wrong, in the sense of sin-wrong, and I’m not going to have any part of it. Which sounds really good doctrinally, except that I was saying it because I was frustrated and you’d have been searching my heart for a long time before you found a holy motive. So was I right? Absolutely not!

Secondly, I think that it’s important to remember that nothing should be important to us apart from God. All of our wants and desires–whether mundane, like a fondness for chocolate sundaes, or serious, like a burning desire for motherhood–all these things we are called to subordinate to God’s will. All these things we are called to abandon to God. Not to stop liking them, necessarily, but to order them in our minds so that if, in God’s sovereignty, they are denied us, we find it joy to forsake them for His sake.

In other words, while submitting to our husbands involves varying degrees of self-denial, it’s nothing more than we should already be prepared to do (joyously!) as Christians. The wants we’re talking about abandoning are nothing in comparison to the sweetness of obeying God. And submitting to our husbands is obeying God. This strikes very near to my own heart, honestly, because I often don’t consider things that far. If Seth asks me to do something, I tend to consider it as him asking me to do something, me giving up something I like for him , when really I need to view it as obedience to God.

What motivates me to such a massive calling?
Submission isn’t natural–check out Genesis 3:16–and submission in everything can sound downright unpalatable. So why do we do it? This is one of those areas of theology that must sound absolutely batty to nonbelievers; we give up “everything,” and what do we get in return? What motivates us? Moreover, when we feel unmotivated, how can we learn to enjoy submitting to our husbands?

There’s the obvious answer: heavenly reward. God will reward us for obeying Him. But I think it goes beyond that, and so it’s the here-and-now I want to focus on tonight. As I was studying to write this entry, I came across the following passage in John Gill’s commentary on the verse:

Her head, being wholly dependent upon him, and entirely resigned to him, and receiving all from him; from whom alone is all her expectation of provision, protection, comfort, and happiness; wherefore she has respect to all his commands, and esteems all his precepts concerning all things to be right; and yields a cheerful, voluntary, sincere, and hearty obedience to them; arising from a principle of love to him, and joined with honour, fear, and reverence of him.

To be less archaic, Gill is saying that since a wife is dependent upon her husband for “provision, protection, comfort, and happiness,” she must therefore do what he says, agree with his opinions and obey them, because she loves/honors/fears/reveres him.

As I read, I thought, hmm, Mr. Gill, that sounds rather akin to the philosophy that we should do good works in an attempt to “pay God back” saving us. Like a cosmic thank-you note from us to God. And since John Piper rather throroughly debunked that idea (excellent book, by the way), I’m not sure that I agree with Gill here. Or maybe I’m reading him more chauvinistically than he intended. But while there is a sense in which wives do subordinate themselves to their husbands out of thankfulness for their provision, I think that motivation alone falls far short.

The parallel Paul makes in this passage between Christ/Church and husband/wife is unspeakably valuable. As believers, why do we do good works? Because they please God. And why does that please us? Because our delight is the Lord; pleasing Him is the sweetest thing we know. And yet that very truth is one that we have to learn a bit as we grow in Christ. Sometimes our thick skulls forget that there is no higher pleasure. Sometimes we do the wrong thing in pursuit of something infinitely less grand. And sometimes we do the right thing trusting that it will bring us the most delight, even though we don’t yet know it experientially.

Very similarly, in the sphere of marriage, pleasing our husbands is the sweetest thing we know. Just as we were created human to worship and glorify God, we were created woman to be a helper to man (Genesis 2:18)! As wives, the height of our gender, our identity as female, is to submit to our husbands. The church is the Bride of Christ to submit to and glorify Him; wives are examples of that relationship. Therefore, if submission doesn’t bring us happiness, our worldview needs changed! As Christians, we sin because we forget that our joy is in pleasing the Lord; as wives, we balk at submission because we forget that our joy is in pleasing our husbands.

But how do we get that truth into our minds? What can we do if we don’t feel joy in submission? I’m sure there are many answers to this question, but I would like to propose two.

The first is this: earnest prayer that God would change our hearts. It sounds cliché, but truly, every step on the road to eternity teaches me more and more that God is sovereign, and that He delights in answering our prayers. When things seem hopeless–when we need a massive personality overhaul, for instance!–God is faithful .

The second is, very simply, to seek out and savor the joy when we do submit. Here’s an example: when everything’s going crazy and I really don’t feel like I have time to get dinner on the table, but I do it anyway, I’ve got to treasure Seth’s smile and appreciation; treasure his happiness more than I disliked the “inconveniences” of achieving it. Then the next day when the same thing happens again, I can anticipate that joy as I work towards it. The joy sweetens the work, until it becomes such a state of mind that the work begins to sweeten the joy.

How awesome the gift of submission becomes once we treasure and learn from it as God intended!

Tags: biblical wifehood special tag no 1 submission theology women

I have been reading C.J. Mahaney’s book The Cross Centered Life: Keeping the Gospel the Main Thing over the past few days, and one thing he says has really stuck with me: the Bible is God’s story, not ours, and that should be a guiding factor in the principles we gather from the Word.

His example is David and Goliath. There’s a spectrum of approaches you can take to the passage (I’m broadening this beyond Mahaney, by the way):

Secularistic:
The story of David and Goliath shows us that it isn’t always the strongest that win. A little boy with stones can fell a giant with a sword. Therefore, we should never give up or despair, and if we’re the “big guy” we should be careful not to be over-proud because all it might take is a slingshot to bring us down.

Middle:
The story of David and Goliath shows us that anything is possible when God is on our side. We shouldn’t be afraid of facing off against giants, because if God is with us, we’ll win the battle! Similarly, we see that Goliath was trusting in human power alone and so failed.

Gospel-centered:
The story of David and Goliath shows us that we are utterly hopeless without God. David was totally set up to lose; he couldn’t possibly have beaten a mighty foe like Goliath on his own. But God in His sovereignty is able to use a wretch like David to bring down the mighty. We can also see a parallel to the cross in this story. Like David, we’re in a battle against sin and our flesh that we can’t possibly hope to win. We’re lost causes. But just as God brought David to victory, He brings us to victory in Christ!

Subtle differences, but very profound. From a certain viewpoint, all of these interpretations are valid. You can draw from the text the first implication against overconfidence. You can draw the second implication that with God all things are possible–Philippians 4:13 and Romans 8:31 back up this interpretation very thoroughly. And, of course, you can draw the final implication, that the story shows God’s sovereignty and our weakness.

On the one hand, it seems like the latter interpretation is “forced” on the text. The passage doesn’t talk about Christ, or the redemptive power of the cross. It doesn’t even talk about God’s sovereignty. David doesn’t sit down and compose a psalm of praise when Goliath hits the ground. But. What do we know about God? We know that in Him there is “no variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17). God’s was doing the same thing and working from the same principles in David’s time as He was when Jesus went to the cross. God’s been “preaching” the Gospel to His people from the moment Adam and Eve stepped out of Eden. And the Gospel as it’s written throughout Scripture is that man is utterly lost without God, but that God is a God of love and salvation so praise Him! And that message is very clear in the story of David and Goliath. David tells Goliath (1 Samuel 17:45-47, ESV):

You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hand.

So why did this exchange between a shepherd boy and a giant even happen? That “all the earth” (!) would see God, and that everyone who witnessed the exchange would learn that the Lord saves, not with human implements and might but by His sovereign power. He had dominion over the battle.

And here we come to a clearer reason why this is God’s story, not David’s. I have heard, so many times, that God “prepared” David for the fight with Goliath through using the fight with the lion and the bear. Like David’s a shepherd boy, sure, but he’s some kind of superhero shepherd. Yet that’s not what the passage is saying at all. David told Saul about those fights as part of his “qualifications,” yes, but he wasn’t saying, look, I fought off a lion and a bear, so I think I can handle a giant. No. David was saying, look, My God delivered me from a lion and a bear, and My God is going to deliver me from your giant. The story of David and Goliath has been about the sovereignty of God all along.

In conclusion, then, I’ve been deeply challenged by Mahaney’s book that when I read Scripture, I should be looking for the Gospel. I should be looking for the good news. Every passage should make me exalt God and abase self; to make me more aware of my helplessness without Him and more aware of His infinite power to save. If we’re reading stories like David and Goliath and coming away with only an interpretation like the middle one above–if we’re only seeing what God can do for us without simultaneously seeing how utterly helpless we are by ourselves–then we’re missing the Gospel, we’re missing the heart; we’re missing the whole point. We’re missing the opportunity to savor the beauty of the cross.

Tags: interpretation of scripture special tag no 1 the sovereignty of God theology verses

It occurred to me today what an amazingly beautiful verse is Luke 16:31. The context is that this rich man has died and gone to hell, and he’s begging Abraham to resurrect a poor man named Lazarus (who was in heaven) so that the rich man’s family might see the resurrection and believe and avoid hell. Abraham responds, “If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.”

That is such amazing evidence of God’s sovereignty over our souls! How many lost people have we had say to us, “if only I could see with my own eyes,” or “I’ll believe if I see a real miracle,” or “I’d believe if science couldn’t explain everything”? And the right response to that–the response we should have in our heads if not in our mouths–is you still wouldn’t believe. All of the “evidence” any of us needs is painted all around us: creation, our consciences, and, most importantly, the Word of God. These are all miraculous things, and as believers we can pause in awe as we witness the supernaturalness. In creation, we see marvelous complexity and irrefutable evidence of design. In our conscience, we see that there is plainly a law written on our hearts that is without explanation apart from God. And in the Word, we see the power of God (1 Corinthians 1:18) itself. But all of these things are non-obvious to the lost person. They see evolution, they see societal impressions; they see an old book.

It is God and God alone who opens our eyes. We could parade the most miraculous of all miracles in front of our depraved minds, and in our sin we would still fail to see a Miracle-Maker. It isn’t “proof” that changes our mind, it’s grace. Grace unmeasured.

My soul delights in the Lord! Apart from Him I am as blind and dead as one can possibly imagine; apart from Him, truth could have no impact on me.

Tags: faith the sovereignty of God theology verses wretchedness

Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.
[Colossians 3:18]

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands….let the wife see that she respects her husband.
[Ephesians 5:22-24,33]

Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, when they see your respectful and pure conduct. Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening.
[1 Peter 3:1-6]

Wifely submission is a complicated topic. I once posted an open query to a group of my friends, asking what, practically, submission “looks like.” I wanted a mental picture. I wasn’t married yet–I’m not sure Seth and I were even dating–but I figured there had to be some underlying attitude that characterized submissive wives: something I could emulate in my future marriage. I received no substantive response. We know we’re supposed to “submit,” but articulating exactly what that means on a day-to-day basis can be much more difficult!

I want, over the next few weeks (or perhaps a month and a half or so!) to do similarly to what I did with the cultivating heavenwardness “series”, by writing another set of posts focusing on submission. I’m a bit more organized going into this one, because I’ve been working on it for a while, and also because I want to focus on the important things moreso than just the things that I “like”. I’m not writing to cultivate a desire for something I already know is good (e.g. heaven) so much as writing to sear my own heart and conscience to better serve my husband and glorify God.

I’ll try to write the first entry tomorrow.

Tags: biblical wifehood submission theology

Noël Piper has recently started posting on the Desiring God Blog, for which I am thankful. Most “A-List” Christian women bloggers seem to go out of their way to make sure that their readers know that their posts are intended for women, explicitly drawing on the “Titus 2″ tradition, and largely confining their posts to discussions of how to be a good home-keeper, wife, and mother. I’ve seen instances on such blogs where, if a heavily theological issue comes up, the woman blogger will ask her husband to do a guest post to address it, instead of addressing it herself. Mrs. Piper’s two posts thus far are not in that exclusive tradition and contain no disclaimer warning men away. On the contrary, she writes in a blog authored almost exclusively by men, and quite probably read most often by men. And in her latest post, she sets out to expand upon her husband’s latest sermon!

I appreciate that. I struggle much with the issue, all the more because Christian women who blog subjects that can only be defined as “theology” seem to be a rare breed. For that matter, Christian women who write theology books seem equally rare–Elisabeth Elliot is the only one that really comes to mind, and even she does it in a very roundabout way. And yet, nowhere in the Bible does it say “women shalt not speak of the wonders of God except in the presence of younger women and small children,” does it? But that seems to be the consensus nevertheless.

How far removed we have become from the likes of Susannah Spurgeon, who throughout her entire life was very much in public ministry, whether in her little books of “Personal Notes On a Text”, her notes in The Sword and the Trowel publication, or in her immense work of gathering funds and selecting texts and recipients from the countless poor British pastors who applied to her for aid. Of her published devotional works, she wrote, “[the Lord] lead me into this unthought-of service, and most graciously has He hitherto sustained me in it; first giving me in my own heart the joy of His Word, and then enabling me to minister of that rejoicing to others.” In other words, what God taught her from His Word, He enabled and led her into sharing in book form. Moreover, she said, “its one aim and object is to summon the Lord’s people to bless and praise His Holy Name.” What a broad and far-reaching goal, and how immediately applicable to Christians of all ages and genders!

I wonder if she–and Noël Piper–don’t have a better grasp of the role of women than many of us seem to have today. When Priscilla and Aquila (how interesting that Scripture puts her name first!) took Apollos aside to “[explain] to him the way of God more accurately” (Acts 18:26 He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him and explained to him the way of God more accurately. (ESV)), do we presume that Aquila did all the talking while Priscilla stood meekly by? When we learn that Philip the evangelist “had four unmarried daughters, who prophesied” (Acts 21:9 He had four unmarried daughters, who prophesied. (ESV)), or when Paul gives instruction that women are to cover their heads while prophesying (1 Corinthians 11:5 but every wife who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it is the same as if her head were shaven. (ESV)), do we try to redefine the Greek word to mean something less than it does? When Paul writes of “women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel” (Philippians 4:3 Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life. (ESV)), what does he mean? If he wrote of “men, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel,” would we assume something different?

These questions bother me immensely. On the one hand, we have the clear directive that “women should keep silent in the churches” (1 Corinthians 14:34 the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says. (ESV)) and Paul adds that “I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man” (1 Timothy 2:12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. (ESV)). John Gill’s succinct exposition of the latter passage is a common interpretation:

Timothy, no doubt, received much advantage, from the private teachings and instructions of his mother Eunice, and grandmother Lois; but then women are not to teach in the church; for that is an act of power and authority, and supposes the persons that teach to be of a superior degree, and in a superior office, and to have superior abilities to those who are taught by them.

And so, all things considered, it seems that the argument could be made that Scripture’s commands for women to remain silent applies only within the church; that only men should be invited to preach or exhort in worship services. Yet even that is not so clear-cut: does the command apply to Sunday School? (Yes, presumably, since it’s still in church.) Does the command apply to night-time Bible studies held at the church? (Again, presumably.) Does the command apply to Bible studies held informally in people’s homes? (Not by the same logic, since it is not in or affiliated with church. And yet, would a woman teaching a Bible study to a mixed group in her own home still be “exercising authority over a man” even though it’s outside of the church context?) I don’t know all the answers. It doesn’t help that the traditions we’ve built up to supplement Scripture cloud the issue. And yet the question is of vital importance.

When it comes to Christian women blogging, some concrete answers must be found! For instance, I’m assuming that none of you reading here think that what I’ve been doing in writing thus far has been wrong, even though many of my posts are much more theologically-oriented than the average female Christian blogger. But there are things I’ve been learning from Scripture that I have not shared; things where perhaps many of you would disagree with me. If I shared those things with the same conviction that I’ve shared my belief in God’s unwaveringly astounding grace, would I suddenly be out of line merely because I would be controversial? There have been subjects debated in the blogosphere of Christian male bloggers lately–if I weighed in on some of the debates, would I be overstepping my bounds? Am I regulated to discussing only the “obvious” parts of Scripture and those which immediately concern homemaking? (And even to the latter–since most women are “older” women compared to me, am I overstepping my bounds to discuss even the home?)

It is not my intention to be flippant or irreverent here; the issue is utterly serious. I am a housewife; I have deep respect for the many women out there who do a better job at homemaking than I do. I learn from them and I appreciate their testimonies of love for their families. I also have deep respect for the roles God has created for men and women, and in theology I’m as complementarian as they come! But legalism is no better than liberalism, and the examples of Susannah Spurgeon, Elisabeth Elliot, Noël Piper, and women in Scripture itself stand in stark contrast to the lack of boldness displayed by many women bloggers today. We’re putting our lights under bushels! Does it glorify God to have so many blogs where women pour out their ideas about how to please their husbands and raise their children, but never ponder publicly on pleasing their Lord and Saviour? Does it glorify God to pontificate endlessly on how wonderful “dear husband” is, while reserving few words to describe the magnificence and majesty of God Himself?

We should be as gutsy as Susannah Spurgeon:

In these days of daring infidelity, and awful treason against the Most High, I count it an unspeakable honour to be permitted to testify to the power of the old truths, and the pleasantness of the old paths, and the unfailing faithfulness of God in the fulfilment of each and all of His precious promises; and though my voice is less than a Whisper amid the roar and turmoil of conflicting opinions and blasphemous theories, I know that God can hear it, and that He will accept the loving tribute which my heart thus offers to Him.

We too live in days of daring infidelity and awful treason against the Most High. Shall we also testify to the power of the old truths, or are we content to share recipes and laundry-folding techniques? May unbelieving readers never read our blogs and conclude that our whole life is swallowed up in serving our husbands and maintaining a good home! Instead let us confront them with the reality of the Gospel and the beautiful arrangement God has set forth wherein we serve our husbands and maintain a good home because, and only because, we are serving the Lord Most High and our true Delight is exclusively Him.

Tags: bloggers more coherent special tag no 1 susannah spurgeon theology women

This is part of a series. You can read the introduction first or view all the posts together.

The Westminster Shorter Catechism poses the question, “What is the chief end of man?” The answer to that question and today’s “why I want to go to heaven” are one and the same.

Our primary and sole purpose now is indeed to glorify God (”whatever you do, do all to the glory of God,” 1 Corinthians 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. (ESV) So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. (ESV)) and rejoice in Him (”rejoice in the Lord always,” Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. (ESV) Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. (ESV)). And our primary and sole purpose in heaven will continue unchanged. We’ll be a lot better at glorifying Him, yes, but it has always been, and shall always be, that for which we were created.

In an assembly-line world, full of everything from multipurpose 4-in-1 printers to three-sizes-fits-all sweatshirts, I think it can be hard to grasp the concept of a truly single-purposed object. The things we surround ourselves with often do many things satisfactorily, but do few things extremely well. That’s why we have different “levels” of gadgets depending on whether, for instance, the printer is going to be used by a mom in her home or a printing company in the workplace. We also make lots of substitutions. When I don’t have cooking spray, I use canola oil. I use the same kind of flour to put in many different baked goods. When we don’t have good nails to use to hang pictures, we use whatever nails we have. We’re adaptable and flexible, by God’s marvelous design, and so it isn’t a big problem that most of us don’t know how to mill our own flour exclusively for each specific cake, or forge an ideally-shaped nail for each task.

So when we speak of being created for a single purpose, I’m not sure how much immediate meaning that connotes in our minds. One thing engineering can show us–as countless human tragedies have attested–is that when you try to use a part for something other than its intended use, chaos can result. If you apply forces to a metal pin in different directions or strengths than the pin was intended, the pin may twist and strain and eventually break. And so bridges and buildings have come falling down, simply because the builders tried to use parts to do things other than what they were created to do.

And it’s the same way with us. We were custom-tailored, fashioned by God with the greatest care, intended for one chief object: to glorify God. And when we’re acting outside of that original intention, we too get twisted, strained, and breaking. We were designed to glorify God, and we don’t do other things well.

But right now, we’re like metal pins in a bridge that’s collapsing. In a fallen world and in fallen bodies, we are not glorifying God perfectly nor are we enjoying Him completely.

In heaven, we will be in a perfect situation, perfectly fulfilling our intended “use.” If spending eternity glorifying God sounds uneventful now, it’s only because our understanding is incomplete: Scripture is very clear that God is our ultimate joy, and glorifying Him is our greatest occupation. Now we see as through a glass darkly, but in Heaven, nothing will fill us with such excitement as worshipping God! It’s like if we imagine our perfect, most ideal job, with the best benefits: the type of job where we jump out of bed in the morning because we can’t wait to get to work because we love what we do and we know we do it well–and that’s the description of our job in heaven!

And so, today’s reason why I want to go to heaven is because there is nothing better, nothing more enjoyable, nothing more pleasing, and nothing more fulfilling, than doing what I was designed to do! And that’s an idea I can only begin to grasp, but it’s such an amazing and awesome thing that I can’t wait to understand it in full!

This is the last of the ten posts. I might extend the series with two or three closely-related posts, also on the subject of heaven, but not specifically “why I want to go.” I’m not one hundred percent decided yet, but I have some thoughts floating around that I’d like to work through.

Tags: cultivating heavenwardness special tag no 2 ten reasons why I want to go to heaven theology verses

This is part of a series. You can read the introduction first or view all the posts together.

This is often mentioned as “the” reason we should want to go the Heaven. And yet it’s also a reason that is completely meaningless to the lost person and also to our sinful “flesh.” I think it’s a fair observation that most people, given the choice between streets of gold or being with God, would get more excited about the former, albeit in ignorance. And frankly, even though I “know” which of the two is the real reward, the fact is still that the idea of being in the presence of God for eternity doesn’t always excite me as much as it should.

So in this entry, my aim is to cultivate excitement in my heart about the idea of being with God forever.

In Psalm 16:8-11 I have set the LORD always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let your holy one see corruption.
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. I have set the LORD always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let your holy one see corruption.
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. I have set the LORD always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let your holy one see corruption.
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (an absolutely beautiful psalm, by the way), David (or, prophetically speaking, Christ) writes of his experience in the presence of God. The last line bears repeating–”in Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures evermore.” That is the simple reality of the presence of God.

Fullness here is a Hebrew word which means literally “satisfaction.” In God’s presence there is a satisfaction of joy. I think that’s a worthwhile distinction to make; telling someone that there’s a banquet in the next room that’s full of food is very different from telling someone that there’s a banquet that will completely and perfectly satisfy their hunger. Inasmuch as we can understand the concept of “joy,” we should understand that God’s presence represents the absolute ultimate in the experience–in God’s presence, our joy skyrockets to become so immeasurably full that we can’t even think of wanting any more. It makes me think of those moments when, humanly speaking, I think I’m perfectly satisfied and “all is right with the world,” and yet if I dwell on that thought long enough, I can always think of something that could be a little more perfect. But in God’s presence, joy itself is complete and lacking nothing.

Joy itself can be a recondite concept. In various Hebrew-English dictionaries, the word used in this passage is defined as blithesomeness, glee, mirth, gaiety, gladness, making merry, and pleasure. It occurs ninety-three times in the Old Testament. It’s used in Judges 16:23 Now the lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to rejoice, and they said, “Our god has given Samson our enemy into our hand.” (ESV) Now the lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to rejoice, and they said, “Our god has given Samson our enemy into our hand.” (ESV) Now the lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to rejoice, and they said, “Our god has given Samson our enemy into our hand.” (ESV) to describe the way the Philistines rejoiced to find Samson delivered into their hand; in 1 Samuel 18:6 As they were coming home, when David returned from striking down the Philistine, the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with tambourines, with songs of joy, and with musical instruments. (ESV) As they were coming home, when David returned from striking down the Philistine, the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with tambourines, with songs of joy, and with musical instruments. (ESV) As they were coming home, when David returned from striking down the Philistine, the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with tambourines, with songs of joy, and with musical instruments. (ESV), the way the women of the cities came out singing, dancing, and playing music to rejoice in the defeat of the Philistines; in 1 Kings 1:40 And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise. (ESV) And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise. (ESV) And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise. (ESV), the reaction of the people to the crowning of King Solomon; in Ezra 3:12 But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ houses, old men who had seen the first house, wept with a loud voice when they saw the foundation of this house being laid, though many shouted aloud for joy, (ESV) But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ houses, old men who had seen the first house, wept with a loud voice when they saw the foundation of this house being laid, though many shouted aloud for joy, (ESV) But many of the priests and Levites and heads of fathers’ houses, old men who had seen the first house, wept with a loud voice when they saw the foundation of this house being laid, though many shouted aloud for joy, (ESV), the way the old men who had seen the first temple rejoiced when the foundation of the new one was laid; in Proverbs 15:21 Folly is a joy to him who lacks sense,
but a man of understanding walks straight ahead. Folly is a joy to him who lacks sense,
but a man of understanding walks straight ahead. Folly is a joy to him who lacks sense,
but a man of understanding walks straight ahead., “folly is joy” to the unwise man; in Proverbs 21:17 Whoever loves pleasure will be a poor man;
he who loves wine and oil will not be rich. Whoever loves pleasure will be a poor man;
he who loves wine and oil will not be rich. Whoever loves pleasure will be a poor man;
he who loves wine and oil will not be rich., the one who loves pleasure shall be poor; and in Song of Solomon 3:11 Go out, O daughters of Zion,
and look upon King Solomon,
with the crown with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
on the day of the gladness of his heart. Go out, O daughters of Zion,
and look upon King Solomon,
with the crown with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
on the day of the gladness of his heart. Go out, O daughters of Zion,
and look upon King Solomon,
with the crown with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
on the day of the gladness of his heart., Solomon’s wedding day is called “the day of the gladness of his heart.” I’m going into all of these examples because the distinction between “joy” and “happiness” is a tricky one, and perhaps over-emphasized. I find it easy to start thinking of “joy” in somewhat dreary terms, as something that doesn’t necessarily feel good, but rather is a sort of resignation and acceptance that God is sovereign and good and that He knows what’s going on, and the idea that that is sufficient. And there’s a sense, I think, in which that’s true (minus the dreariness!)–our joy in Christ certainly isn’t founded in the moment, but in eternity. And the joy we are called to have in the midst of suffering surely cannot mean that we must be all laughter and no tears.

But I think that to completely disassociate “joy” from emotions and, yes, happiness, is a mistake. In the passages above, Scripture uses the word to refer to very momentary things. Sometimes we see non-believers experiencing joy, as in the case of the Philistines; sometimes we see joy being used sinfully, as to the unwise man in Proverbs. In other words, at least in the way this specific word is used in the Old Testament, it seems to mean, in a primary sense, an emotion. So, when we learn in Psalms 16 [16:1]Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
I have no good apart from you.”
As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones,
in whom is all my delight.
The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply;
their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out
or take their names on my lips.
The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
I bless the LORD who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.
I have set the LORD always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let your holy one see corruption.
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. [16:1]Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
I have no good apart from you.”
As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones,
in whom is all my delight.
The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply;
their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out
or take their names on my lips.
The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
I bless the LORD who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.
I have set the LORD always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let your holy one see corruption.
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. [16:1]Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
I have no good apart from you.”
As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones,
in whom is all my delight.
The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply;
their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out
or take their names on my lips.
The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
I bless the LORD who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.
I have set the LORD always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let your holy one see corruption.
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. that in God’s presence there is satisfaction of joy, it means more than just that we’ll be perfect and so we’re going to be “joyful in God’s plan.” It means that as the Israelites felt joy in victory over their enemies, as Solomon felt joy on his wedding day, as people felt joy as their beloved temple from their childhood was rebuilt, and as the fool takes joy in his folly, in God’s presence there is joy! Joy that makes you dance and sing and be merry, joy that makes our hearts light–this is not a boring or obligatory joy, but a real and present emotive joy!

Pleasures evermore is a somewhat misleading translation, I think; the word means more “delight” or “pleasant” than “pleasures,” and the words carry very different connotations, at least in my mind. The word seems most often to refer to people, situations, or music being pleasant, as in 2 Samuel 1:23 “Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely!
In life and in death they were not divided;
they were swifter than eagles;
they were stronger than lions. “Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely!
In life and in death they were not divided;
they were swifter than eagles;
they were stronger than lions. “Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely!
In life and in death they were not divided;
they were swifter than eagles;
they were stronger than lions. Samuel 23:1 [23:1]Now they told David, “Behold, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah and are robbing the threshing floors.” (ESV) [23:1]Now they told David, “Behold, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah and are robbing the threshing floors.” (ESV) [23:1]Now they told David, “Behold, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah and are robbing the threshing floors.” (ESV), Psalm 81:2 Raise a song; sound the tambourine,
the sweet lyre with the harp. Raise a song; sound the tambourine,
the sweet lyre with the harp. Raise a song; sound the tambourine,
the sweet lyre with the harp., Psalm 133:1 [133:1]Behold, how good and pleasant it is
when brothers dwell in unity! [133:1]Behold, how good and pleasant it is
when brothers dwell in unity! [133:1]Behold, how good and pleasant it is
when brothers dwell in unity!, Proverbs 24:4 by knowledge the rooms are filled
with all precious and pleasant riches. by knowledge the rooms are filled
with all precious and pleasant riches. by knowledge the rooms are filled
with all precious and pleasant riches., and Song of Solomon 1:16 Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved, truly delightful.
Our couch is green; Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved, truly delightful.
Our couch is green; Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved, truly delightful.
Our couch is green;. I can’t read Hebrew, obviously, but I don’t believe that this means that God’s presence is surrounded with “pleasures” so much as it means that God’s presence is eminently sweet, pleasant, and delightful. (I’m somewhat confused, because the word seems to be an adjective, but the translation clearly makes it into a noun, which really changes the sense altogether. Notably it’s also translated as a noun in Job 36:11 If they listen and serve him,
they complete their days in prosperity,
and their years in pleasantness. If they listen and serve him,
they complete their days in prosperity,
and their years in pleasantness. If they listen and serve him,
they complete their days in prosperity,
and their years in pleasantness., but it seems to be adjectival nearly everywhere else.) The word for “evermore” can be translated as eminence, perpetuity, strength, victory, enduring, and everlastingness.

So, in addition to containing the satisfaction of felt joy, God’s presence is also enduringly sweet. I find that very comforting, in view of the fact that I think being in God’s presence would also be a little scary. It’s like that oft-quoted passage from The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, when the children ask “is He safe?” and the beavers respond, “no, but He’s good!” Yet even though He is the God of the universe, almighty and omnipotent, and although He does as He pleases and created the world in a breath–even though if there was anyone Who is intimidatingly great and awesome, it is surely God–His presence is pleasant. His presence is sweet. His presence is delightful. It’s a wonderful thing to be in the presence of God!

And so, just from this one verse from David’s pen, the presence of God is so unbelievably enticing that I’d like to pack my bags right now! God is so gracious.

Tags: cultivating heavenwardness joy ten reasons why I want to go to heaven theology verses

This is part of a series. You can read the introduction first or view all the posts together.

This is an expansion of part of yesterday’s post more than a truly new point. But it occurred to me today that rejoicing in the tangible benefits of being a new creation (yesterday’s post) and rejoicing in the One who makes us new creations (today’s) aren’t identical concepts, and I wanted to linger over the latter concept before moving on. More specifically–rejoicing in the culmination of the sanctification process and in the Sanctifier.

Scripture is very clear that God is now in the process of sanctifying us ([bible]2 Thessalonians 2:13[/bible], [bible]1 Peter 1:2[/bible]), conforming us to His likeness ([bible]Romans 8:29[/bible]); making us holy ([bible]1 Thessalonians 4:7[/bible]). The Greek word for sanctification is hagiasmos, from hagiazo, which carries both the sense of acknowledging something to be holy (i.e., “hallowed [hagiazo] be Thy name”) and the sense of actually making something holy, by purification and separation.

The word “sanctified” makes me think of a pile of grain, where God’s going through and pulling out all the pebbles and leaving the wheat. Scripture makes it clear that sanctification is connected to salvation (”God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth,” 2 Thes. 2:13, above), and on one level, it seems like that’s where the real “journey” of life is–we begin as completely lost in sin ([bible]Ephesians 2:1-3[/bible]), and God gradually transforms us through the renewing of our minds ([bible]Romans 12:2[/bible], [bible]Ephesians 4:21-24[/bible]) until finally, in heaven, our sanctification is complete ([bible]Philippians 3:21[/bible], [bible]1 John 3:2[/bible]).

And the sanctifying process is all God. Of ourselves, none of us do good ([bible]Psalm 53:2-3[/bible]). Scripture uses the word dead: dead people don’t do anything! But God, through His mercy and grace, makes us alive ([bible]Ephesians 2:4-5[/bible]) and conforms us to Christ. This is all now, before we die–God works in our hearts.

In heaven, the process of getting rid of the “old tent” involves God completing that process. I love how everything in Scripture points to us still being individuals in Heaven–instead of getting cookie-cutter identical new bodies, God renews our old ([bible]Romans 8:23[/bible]), somehow making us perfectly in His image without losing us in the process. Another mystery of heaven that I don’t really comprehend! Nevertheless–I’ve tasted the joy of sanctification here on earth; I’ve seen little things in me that God has graciously (and sometimes painfully!) corrected, and it is delight to the soul. The idea that the process will be (painlessly!) culminated in heaven is intoxicating. It’s like someone who’s eaten little bits of chocolate being told that they’re going to a complimentary chocolate buffet (except multiplied an infinite number of times because comparing chocolate to sanctification really doesn’t make sense on the scale of joy). Heaven’s a buffet of sanctification!

In my study today, I came across this poem, which goes very well with the subject.

Tags: cultivating heavenwardness ten reasons why I want to go to heaven theology verses

This is part of a series. You can read the introduction first or view all the posts together.

2 Corinthians 4 and 5 offer immense comfort in the midst of earthly suffering, and have been very near to my heart over the past ten months. I had taught on the passage to a small group of high school girls a few years ago, which seared it into my mind almost the point of memory–and as it has come to possess so much more immediacy to me now, I am amazed at how God provided for my then-future need of encouragement so far ahead of time! It never fails to astonish me when I see how something I thought was relatively insignificant at the time turns out to be a really major thing God was doing for the future. How awesome God is!

In reference to my seventh reason for wanting to go to heaven, i.e., “This Old Tent,” three verses from chapter five are most obvious:[bibleblock]2 Corinthians 5:2-4[/bibleblock]”This tent,” in context, refers to our bodies. Our fallen bodies. And in them we are groaning and waiting for the “redemption of our bodies” ([bible]Romans 8:23[/bible]). I think there are at least two dimensions to this–that which Paul expounds in 2 Corinthians 4, which seems to speak quite clearly (if not exclusively) of physical suffering due to being in an earthly body, i.e. persecution, also “wasting away,” which strikes a chord, I think, with anyone who’s aware of the fact that they’re dying, be it of disease or old age; and spiritual suffering due to being in an earthly body, as Paul expounds in Romans 7 and 8, for instance in 7:18, “For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.”

In Heaven, we will be clothed in heavenly bodies–”our heavenly dwelling,” to quote the verse above. I love way Paul uses his vocabulary here–the word translated as “tent” means hut or temporary residence; the word translated “dwelling” means architecture or structure. From the very beginning, these bodies we’re living in weren’t built to be our permanent home! It’s easy to forget that and get upset when the roof starts to leak. The reality, though, is that when our little tents get too worn down to be usable shelters anymore, we get to move into real houses! I think that if we looked at life as a camping trip, we’d be rejoicing when our tents started to show signs of wear and tear–because with every new sign of deterioration, we’re one step closer to getting some seriously superior structure to live in.

The other side of this, of course, is that in heaven we won’t be contending with the flesh anymore. Physically speaking, we won’t have tiredness battling with our desire to worship God in the morning, we won’t have our bodies’ faulty chemistry enticing us to depressed periods, and we won’t ever fall asleep in church! And spiritually speaking, our “body of death” ([bible]Romans 7:24[/bible]) which still holds us “captive to the law of sin” ([bible]Romans 7:23[/bible]) is going to be gone forever! [bible]1 John 3:2[/bible] says that when Christ “appears, we shall be like him”! [bible]1 Corinthians 15:51-52[/bible] says that “we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.” [bible]Philippians 3:21[/bible] says that Christ “will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body.”  Our sin nature will be gone.

I can’t adequately understand the magnitude of that thought. No more sin. No more inclination to sin. We’re all born sinners, and God by His grace creates new hearts within us–but still none of us alive know what it’s like to be freed of our fallen flesh. But in heaven, we’ll know fully!

Tags: cultivating heavenwardness sin nature ten reasons why I want to go to heaven theology verses

This is part of a series. You can read the introduction first or view all the posts together.

One of the bigger duh moments in my life came when I stumbled upon [bible]Galatians 6:9[/bible]: “And let us not grow weary of doing good…” Growing weary in well-doing is an easy thing here. It’s heart-wrenching when we pour our lives into a person in evangelism, only to have that person walk away and never come to Christ, and discouraging when we put time and money into a mercy ministry only to have someone tear it down. Yes, even here on earth, we are commanded not to grow weary, because we know what’s to come, but still–weariness tempts us. We’re not where we belong, and a lost world can be very unconducive to our joy if we get caught up in it.

So there’s a sense in which world-weariness comes easily, especially when we’re engrossed in “doing good” and the fallen things we deal with here keep getting in the way. But there’s another kind of world-weariness that seems to come not so easily.[bibleblock]1 John 2:15-17[/bibleblock]Desires of the flesh, desires of the eyes; pride in possessions: all will be gone. If those are the things we’re setting our sights on, even temporarily, we will be horrified at the prospect of heaven, because heaven means that the worldly things are passed away. Part of cultivating heavenwardness, then, is examining my heart closely and, with God’s grace, eliminating the parts that want bits and pieces of this world to keep.

Another aspect of world-weariness that heaven will free us from is witnessing the rebellion of the unrighteous.[bibleblock]Romans 1:28-32[/bibleblock]Is it possible to read that passage without cringing? That’s the reality of life without God, and that’s what we witness all around us every day, knowing all the while how utterly offensive sin is to God. But in heaven, we won’t have to witness that anymore. Everyone and everything will acknowledge and worship God in spirit and in truth!

As we grow more and more consumed with awareness of how repugnant fallenness really is, then the delight of heaven will become that much more dear, because there is no world to grow weary of there!

Tags: cultivating heavenwardness ten reasons why I want to go to heaven theology verses wretchedness