How Do I Choose? by Dr. Rik Danielsen. Published by DiscipleshipDirect.com In conjunction with Instantpublisher.com

Transcription

1 How Do I Choose? by Dr. Rik Danielsen Published by DiscipleshipDirect.com In conjunction with Instantpublisher.com

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3 How Do I Choose? By Dr. Rik Danielsen Copyright Rik Danielsen 2003, 2007 All rights reserved. Unless otherwise marked, Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers. Scriptures marked NAS are from the New American Standard Bible. Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE, Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960,1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1988, Used by permission. ISBN: Published by: In conjunction with Instantpublisher.com

4 Table of Contents: Introduction: 1 Section 1: Choose the Person of Salvation 4 Chapter 1: Jesus Unique Identity 6 Chapter 2: Jesus Unique Sacrifice 15 Chapter 3: Jesus Unique Accomplishment 25 Section 2: Choose the Purpose Filled Life 34 Chapter 4: Jesus Can Give Us a New Start 36 Chapter 5: Jesus Gives Us a Reason to Get Up Every Morning 44 Section 3: Choose the Promise of Eternal Life 53 Chapter 6: Absolute Assurance 55 Chapter 7: The Promise of Heaven 63 Conclusion: 73 Additional Resources 75

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6 Introduction The menu of religions to choose from in America is fuller today than it has ever been. Once thought of as a Christian nation, America is now a very pluralistic society. One can drive down busy streets in most cities and find churches of various denominations, some thriving, and others languishing, but one can also find the temples, mosques, and synagogues of the major religions of the world. Many Americans are feeling the need for some form of spirituality, but they don t know how to choose one religion over another. Recently, my wife and I were having dinner with another couple in a restaurant near our home. We struck up a conversation with the young woman who served us. I have found one way to begin a conversation with the young adults who serve tables in our community is to ask them what school they go to. The fact that I taught world religions in the local college comes up and leads to a discussion of religion and faith. Anna told us she was raised in the Catholic faith, but was personally searching for some form of spirituality. She said she was attending a different religious service every week. Anna is not unusual; many people, young and old, are searching for a way to connect with God, but aren t sure how to go about it. This book is written for Anna and her tribe of religious searchers. How are Americans choosing? Some are seeking 1

7 information in the colleges and universities of their communities. The number of people majoring in the study of religion has increased dramatically in recent years. Many people are reading books on spirituality and religion. Others are picking and choosing the parts of various faiths they like and are bringing them together in their own form of personal spirituality. How very American of them. A few years ago I attended a meeting for adjunct faculty at the college where I taught. The other instructors I sat with and I introduced ourselves to one another and discussed our individual disciplines. Later in the conversation I was asked if I had another job. Since adjunct is a fancy term for part-time, I assured the person who asked that I did have another job. I faced a familiar dilemma, How do you tell an intellectual you are a Southern Baptist minister? The Hollywood stereotype of a Southern Baptist preacher is a chicken eatin hick whose tie doesn t cover his protruding belly. The stereotype also depicts him as a King James Version Bible thumper who condemns people for their every infraction of God s law. (Now, do you know why I hesitate to tell people what my real job is?) Somehow we got through the shock of what I do full-time, and the other instructor replied, With all the religions in the world, you were able to choose just one? I assured her that I was able to choose just one, but the setting did not allow me to elaborate on how I chose Christianity over all the other religions of the world. What are the criteria most people use in choosing a religion? Having worked in the religious field for over thirty years and having had conversations with thousands of people, I would have to say the number one criterion people use is the feeling the religion gives them. Admittedly, my faith makes me feel good, but I didn t base my choice on my feelings. Frankly, if I was looking for a 2

8 good feeling everyday I would form my own religion and it would be the Religion of Good Barbecue, because good barbecue always makes me feel good. You might want to start your own religion; it could be the Church of Anything Chocolate, or whatever makes you feel good. I want to suggest three criteria for choosing a religion. They are: first, the founder of the faith; second, the difference it will make in your everyday life; and third, the final destination promised by that faith. Oh, yes, be sure there is something more than feelings on which to base your choice, because a bad bowl of chili will change how you feel, and your search will have to start all over again. In the first century, the Apostle Paul was sent to share his faith in Jesus Christ in the city of Berea. When he shared his faith with those people, they began to search the scriptures for themselves to see if the things he said were true (Acts 17:10-12). As a result, many of the people of the city chose to be followers of Jesus Christ, too. The book you are reading is based on the teachings of the Bible, but you don t have to take my word for anything; study it yourself. Read the biblical passages in their context and see if the things I am sharing are true or not. Then make a decision based on your own study. 3

9 Section 1: Choose the Person of Salvation The religions of the world have many things in common. For example, almost all religions have rituals of some sort and some form of sacrifice (we will deal with this more fully in chapter 2). Another thing most religions have in common is a founder. A man from the sixth century B.C., who is known to us as the Buddha, founded Buddhism. He was a man from India (not China as the contestant from Who Wants to be a Millionaire mistakenly believed) who felt there was more to life than the life of ease and affluence with which he was raised. As he searched for enlightenment, he discovered something he called the middle way. The way of enlightenment was not to be found in extreme selfindulgence or extreme self-punishment; it was to be found in a life devoted to getting rid of all grasping and personal desires. The faith named after the Buddha was originally a non-theistic philosophy; in other words, Buddha taught that people must find their own enlightenment without the help of the gods. Judaism was founded hundreds of years earlier. The father of Judaism was a man named Abraham, who claimed to have heard from God. He said that God had called him to go to a country he had never seen. If he obeyed, God would 4

10 cause Abraham s descendants to be as numerous as the sand of the sea or the stars of the sky; he would become the father of a great nation. In addition, God promised to bless all of the nations of the world through him. Abraham did as he was told, and as a result, Judaism and the nation of Israel were started. A man from Arabia whose name was Muhammad founded Islam in the seventh century A.D. He grew up in the city of Mecca. Because the city was on a major trade route, people from all over the world visited there. The city became a place where ideas, philosophies, and religions from all over the world were shared, but it was also a very immoral city. Muhammad was disturbed because drunkenness, idolatry and every kind of vice could be found in Mecca. Every year he went to the mountains outside the city to pray in one of the caves found there. He was seeking spiritual truth. He claimed that an angel from God came to him in that cave and revealed the true way to live and the one true God. The result is the religion we know today as Islam. Christianity also has a founder. He was also an oriental. Like Abraham and Muhammad, he taught monotheism (the belief in one God). His life and teachings have inspired millions over the past two millennia like the three great teachers already mentioned. But frankly, that is where the similarities end. You see the Bible teaches that Jesus Christ is himself God. The first section of this book will examine the claim that Jesus is indeed divine. If he is, he is far more than a great teacher and he deserves more than a nod of respect from spiritual people. 5

11 Chapter 1: Jesus Unique Identity At least twice a year Jesus makes the cover of major magazines in America. Yes, at the two times some Americans feel compelled to attend church (Christmas and Easter), Time and Newsweek feel compelled to acknowledge that Americans are interested in spiritual things. So, during the Easter and Christmas seasons readers will find cover articles on some religious subject. I don t collect all of those magazines, but if one catches my eye, I do pick it up to see what the secular press is saying about religious matters. Let me call your attention to some magazines that have featured God or Jesus on the front cover in the last few years and give you a very brief summary of the messages that are being communicated. April Time Magazine. The cover article was a report on the Jesus Seminar and the reaction that it has been getting from evangelicals. The Jesus Seminar is a group of liberal theologians who reject all but 2% of the teachings of Jesus, as recorded in the New Testament. December Time Magazine. This cover article dealt with religion on the Internet. It reported at that time that there were 410,000 web sites that mentioned God, and 146,000, which mentioned 6

12 Jesus. It said that people were looking for new ways to understand their old religions. The issue of cyberchurches was also raised in the article. December Life Magazine. When you think of God, what do you see? This cover article dealt with the fact that Americans expressed their faith in Islam, Mormonism, Judaism, Hinduism, Orthodox churches, the Sikh faith, Catholicism, Protestantism, Jainism, Pentecostalism, etc. March 2000 Newsweek Magazine. Visions of Jesus. This cover article dealt with how other religions see Jesus. Islam sees him as a prophet. Buddhism sees Jesus as a monk and a source of spirituality. Hindus see Jesus as a guru to the Jews. In Judaism some reject Jesus completely, while others see him as a good teacher. Muslims see Jesus as one of Allah s prophets, with Muhammad as the final prophet of Allah. These articles tell me that there is a lot of confusing spiritual information being communicated in the general marketplace in America. In this chapter we are going to begin by examining the first gospel that was committed to writing, the Gospel according to Mark. Biblical scholars generally agree on three things regarding Mark's gospel: It was the first of the gospels to be written. As such, it is the closest to the actual events in the life of Jesus. The Apostle Peter was Mark's eyewitness source of information. Peter s life and ministry are far better known than those of Mark. I have heard it said that none of the gospel writers were eyewitnesses to the life of Jesus. This is simply not true. Eyewitnesses 7

13 wrote the books of Matthew and John. Luke was not an eyewitness; he was a Gentile (non-jew) who relied on the testimony of eyewitnesses for his gospel. This brings us back to Mark. Many have suggested that this book of the Bible could be called The Gospel According to Peter. Although Peter did not pen the words, he did verify their accuracy. It was written for a Gentile audience. Again the word, Gentile, means someone who was not born as a Jew. Many believe that Mark was trying to communicate the message of Jesus Christ to a Roman audience. Their culture was much faster paced than the Jewish culture. This gospel may be the best suited to communicate with a twenty-first century world, since we live in an era that is much faster paced than ever before. My goal is to introduce Mark's main theme to you. I want you to see that Mark had one primary message to communicate. What was that message? Mark 1:1 The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Mark did not write to tell us that Jesus was a good teacher. He wrote to convince the world of Jesus true identity, which was the Son of God. If this is true, we must reject the Buddhist view that Jesus was only a monk. If this is true, we must reject the Hindu idea that Jesus was only a guru. If this is true, we must reject the Muslim idea that Jesus was only a prophet. If this is true, we must also reject the Jewish idea that Jesus was just a good teacher. What evidence does Mark give to prove that Jesus is the Son of God? Over and over again, he comes back to this truth and as he does, he calls forth four witnesses to testify to this truth. Let s look at the testimony of these four witnesses. 8

14 Witness One: God the Father. Who would know the Son better than the Father? Mark recalls two occasions when the Father testified to the identity of Jesus: At Jesus' Baptism. Along the shore of the Jordan River, there was a prophet who was bringing a much-anticipated message to the Jewish people. The man, known as John the Baptizer was preaching that the Jewish Messiah was going to come to the people very soon. The Jewish people had been anticipating Messiah s arrival for hundreds of years; and many Jews prayed for his arrival every day. John s message was that the people had to be prepared for their Messiah and that the way to prepare themselves was to repent of their sin. John called the people to show that they were repenting by being baptized (immersed in water). When Jesus was thirty years old, he went out to the Jordan River, where John was preaching, and presented himself for baptism. Jesus was identifying himself with sinful humanity in this act, but he was also about to launch his public ministry of teaching and healing. As Jesus was coming up out of the water, two things happened. First, the Bible says the Holy Spirit came down in the form of a dove and landed on Jesus. Second, God the Father spoke in a way that Jesus and John the Baptizer could hear and understand. Mark records the words of the Father: Mark 1:11 and a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased." Who knows a person better than his or her parents? The Heavenly Father declared the true identity of Jesus at the critical beginning of his public ministry. 9

15 At Jesus' Transfiguration. Close to the end of his public ministry, Jesus took three of his followers on a spiritual retreat with him. They climbed a mountain to spend time in prayer and to get away from the crowds that were calling for Jesus attention day and night. Jesus knew what was going to happen soon; he was facing his own death by crucifixion. Even though Jesus was fully God, he was also fully human. As such, Jesus had some questions that needed to be answered. As was his custom, when he needed guidance for the direction of his ministry, he spent time talking with the Father. Once again, Jesus heavenly Father assured him he was on the right track. How? The Father reaffirmed Jesus identity: Mark 9:7 Then a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him! Jesus was able to proceed on his path to the cross with the full assurance that he was the Son of God and that he was doing the right thing. Witness Two: The Demons. Demons or evil spirits are fallen angels. The Bible teaches that Satan led a revolt in heaven and took one third of the angels with him (Revelation 12:1-9). These fallen angels became demons. They had been in heaven with Jesus. Even when no one else knew who he was, they knew who he was. When Jesus was teaching at the Sea of Galilee. At the end of Mark chapter two and on into chapter three, Mark drew an interesting contrast between a group of religious leaders who didn t know (or want to know) Jesus true identity and the demons who tormented so many people. In Mark 3:11, we find this simple summary concerning the demons understanding of who Jesus is: 10

16 Whenever the evil spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, You are the Son of God. The Gadarene Demoniac. In another incident, Jesus and his disciples encountered a man on the Gentile side of the Sea of Galilee who was possessed by a legion of demons. (We are going to look at this man s story in more detail in a later chapter.) Tragically, Satan s little demons had more sense than the religious leaders of that day. When confronted by Jesus, they said: Mark 5:7... What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won't torture me! Witness Three: Jesus Himself. How Jesus saw himself is a critical question. In the introduction to this section, we looked at how Abraham, Buddha, and Muhammad saw themselves. None of them saw themselves as divine. How did Jesus see himself? Mark 14:61b-62 Again the high priest asked him, Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One? I am, said Jesus. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven. Jesus was on trial for his life when he confessed he was the Son of the Blessed One. He could have saved his life if he had recanted, but he didn't. Jesus honestly believed that he was God's one and only son. We need to put this confession in historical context. Twenty-first century Americans don t have any problem with the idea of being God s children; after all, we are all God s children aren t we? But no first century Jew would have considered himself a son of God in the manner Jesus 11

17 did. Why? They understood that this meant that the person would have been claiming to be divine. By nature, the Son of God would be God, and every Jew knew there was only one God (monotheism is the most basic tenet of the Jewish faith). For Jesus to claim to be the Son of God meant that he believed himself to be divine. Whether you agree or not, whether you accept him or not, understand that this is what he believed. Witness Four: A Gentile Soldier. For six years I served a church that was situated near Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base in Southern California. Our church had a number of active duty and retired Marines in its membership. We served both noncommissioned and commissioned officers. One of the things I learned from the men and women of the corps was that Gunnery Sergeants are so experienced and respected Colonels listen to their advice. They can chew nails and spit bullets. Mark s fourth witness reminds me of a Marine Gunnery Sergeant. He supervised the executions of prisoners for the Roman government. What a grisly job that was! The method used in Judea was crucifixion. Death by crucifixion was so horrible that it was against the law to execute a Roman citizen in that way. We know this man only as a Roman Centurion. This meant that he was in charge of one hundred Roman soldiers and, as we have already said, they were in charge of executions. One other fact needs to be mentioned about the centurion: he worshipped the emperor of Rome as his god. All Roman soldiers were required to pledge their allegiance to the emperor and venerate him as a god. On the day that this man supervised Jesus execution he woke up a member of the emperor cult of Rome, but that all changed when he met Jesus. Mark records this testimony: 12

18 Mark 15:39 And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said, Surely this man was the Son of God! Don t miss Mark s point here. He recorded the centurion s testimony because he was another witness to the deity of Jesus. One can only speculate that some of the members of the early Christian community knew him and knew how he followed Jesus for the rest of his life. It is entirely possible, though, that none of the Christians ever saw him again, but they had heard his confession of faith and were so impressed by it that they shared his story everywhere the good news of Jesus was proclaimed. What changed? What caused him to change from a member of the emperor cult to a follower of Jesus? John tells us that the final word from the lips of Jesus was tetelestai (John 19:30). In English it is translated, It is finished! These words were used as a cry of victory. When an army defeated its enemy in a crushing and decisive battle, it would shout, Tetelestai! It meant that the victory had been won and would remain won forever. Jesus final word was a cry of victory. He didn t die with a whimper; he died with a shout. The centurion heard that cry and saw Jesus breathe his last. There was more, though. The centurion had observed Jesus at least from the time he was hung on the cross. He observed how Jesus prayed that the Father would forgive those who were nailing him to the cross. He observed how Jesus dealt with those who hurled insults at him while his life s blood drained from his body. He observed how Jesus dealt lovingly with his mother and entrusted her into the care of one of his disciples. Other men did not die this way and the centurion knew it. He may have heard of Jesus teaching and his 13

19 miracles, but we don t know that for sure. But if he did, we can imagine that all Jesus reputation as a great teacher and a miracle worker hastened the centurion s confession of faith. Here s what we do know: after hearing the final words of Jesus on the cross and seeing him deal with people, both friend and foe, this man was convinced that Jesus was in fact God s Son. One cannot get around one fact about Jesus Mark and the early Christian community believed Jesus was the Son of God. Mark was so convinced of this he wrote his gospel to convince us, too. But you don t have to base your choice on this testimony. As you continue in this book, you will be given more evidence to consider. 14

20 Chapter 2: Jesus Unique Sacrifice. Virtually all religions have some form of sacrifice. Some people perform sacrifices simply to show their gods they love them. Others, however, are performing sacrifices to please their gods or appease them. Hollywood likes to show primitive people performing grotesque human sacrifices like the one depicted in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Even though a few cultures have practiced human sacrifices, it is doubtful anyone has practiced that particular kind of human sacrifice. The vast majority perform very simple daily sacrifices; they leave small pieces of food or little drinks for the spirits. The most elaborate sacrifice ever practiced came from the Aryans who conquered the Indian sub-continent and founded Hinduism. It is known as the horse sacrifice and is found in the Vedas (a portion of the Hindu scriptures). Only the wealthiest of rajas could attempt this sacrifice. Several benefits were promised to those who did perform them: Atonement for sin Spiritual power would be given to the participants, and 15