032. Suggestions for Searching Through Holbeck Blogs

Posted on August 10, 2011 by Jim Holbeck

Friends recently asked us whether it was possible to find things more easily in the articles. So a search has brought some results. You may find the suggestions useful in searching through the blogs. We have put these in the order in which they appear going down on the right hand side of the articles.

SEARCH.    Using the Search Box at the top on the right hand side of the articles enables you to find names or Bible verses.  For example if you are trying to find where I wrote about Corrie Ten Boom in one of the articles you can type “Corrie” or “Boom”  into the Search box and click on SEARCH to take you to the relevant article.

If you want to find references to the book of Isaiah, you just type “Isaiah” into the search box, click on it and it will take you to all the articles in which Isaiah the person, or scripture references in the book of Isaiah are mentioned.  The same applies to the other books of the Bible. To get quickly to an article you want, for example article number 003,  simply type 003 into the Search Box and click on SEARCH. To find a Hebrew word such as “salach” just type that into the Search Box and click on SEARCH. And so on.

CALENDAR.  This is another new item on the blog page.  It is on the right hand side of the articles below “Recent Posts”.  It shows the current month and below that you can go back to previous months.  Some dates are high-lighted and when you put the cursor over those dates, it shows the number and name of the articles or blogs posted on that date.  If you click on any of those high-lighted dates, it will take you to those articles or blogs.

INDEX.  (Under “Categories”).   I have included an Index on the right hand side of the page under “Categories”, which gives the Number of the Blog, its Title and the Date posted on the internet. The higher the Number, the more recent is the article or blog.  So the first article is numbered 001.  When the Index page is opened fully it is possible to click on the number of the blog you want and it will open up to that blog.

LINKS. I will be endeavouring to provide a link in some of the articles (will be in blue printing) where you can click on it to find more information in a previous article.  For example clicking on this link  will take you to the article on the late John Stott.

I hope these suggestions may be helpful.

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031. John Stott. A Mightily Used But Humble Servant of God

Posted on August 8, 2011 by Jim Holbeck

I heard the words that came from Matthew 7:13-14, “Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.  14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few”.  I was listening to a tape of a talk given in Australia by someone named John Stott. It was over 50 years ago. As this man John Stott went on to explain the passage, my life was forever changed. I realised that I was one of those people who was walking on the wide easy road. I suddenly knew that I had to enter by the narrow gate through Jesus that led to life. John Stott was perhaps the most influential person in my conversion some weeks later. From that point I began to listen to the tape of any talk he had given. I read the booklets he had produced.  I felt, “This is reality”. In future years I was to meet him personally on a number of occasions and again I felt “This man is real.” Time only confirmed that conviction. Only God knows how many people have entered into full-time Christian ministry as a result of reading his writings and hearing him open the Word of God at conferences and church services.  

Tributes to him have poured in from all over the world following his death. I add my tribute to that enormous list. Just a couple of little remembrances. I remember John meeting a young teenager during a conference in Australia. He asked John a few questions about the Christian life and later John promised to write to him to encourage him.  He did and the correspondence continued for the next decade or more that I had contact with that lad. I wondered how many International speakers would notice a young teenager at a large conference. How many would take time to speak with a youngster when there were dozens of other “more important” people who wanted to spend time with this famous speaker?  

I used his book, “Your Confirmation” with hundreds of young and older people as I prepared them for Confirmation. I have used his wonderful, well-balanced  commentaries in Bible Studies over the years and for checking on his thoughts on passages for preaching. But one concept has always stuck in my mind among those many treasures. He spoke well over 40 years ago to a group of Christian nurses in Australia. I later heard the tape.  He used the expression “bibline blood”.  I had never heard of a word, “bibline”. The point he made was that we need to feed upon the word of God and to absorb it, so that we have “bibline blood”.  He stressed that God’s word must become part of our life-blood.  It was probably that concept that has influenced my study of the Bible over the years. His encouragement was to soak oneself in the Scriptures so that its truths became personally real to us, and manifest in our everyday living.

For his major contribution to the Christian cause in this world I am profoundly grateful. For these lesser known manifestations of his Christian love and concern I am also deeply grateful. He was “the genuine article” and thousands upon thousands of us around the globe praise God for what He has done through his life and ministry.

Blog No.031.  Jim Holbeck. Posted on Monday 8th August 2011

 

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030. FORGIVENESS. Abundant Pardon. Isaiah 55:6-7

Posted on August 8, 2011 by Jim Holbeck

William stood before me shaking like a leaf. His face was white. His words came out in a torrent, “It’s all true isn’t it? What have I got to do to get right with God?” William was a well-known atheist whose views on life and religion were sought after by the local press. He was one of the most unloving and negative people I have ever met. During lunchtimes at work he would sometimes ask me questions about the Bible and about church life. One day he asked me if he could borrow a New Testament from me. He had later begun to read it during those lunchbreaks.

On this fateful day he read a passage in Hebrews that had these words,   Hebrews 6:4  For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5  and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6  and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. Having read the passage he asked me what I felt those words meant. I tried to explain them as best as I could as a brand-new believer myself.

 I went back to work when suddenly he rushed up to me saying the words above. It appeared that as he continued to read those words, the Spirit of God had convicted him of his rebellion against God over many years. He was desperate to find out what he had to do. It was the first time I had seen someone come directly under the deep conviction of the Holy Spirit as they were confronted with God’s truth. It made the words of John 16:8 come alive to me, “And when he (the Holy Spirit) comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me”.

 I told him I believed he needed to confess his sin and rebellion against God and ask for His forgiveness. He also needed to ask Jesus to come into his life, as I had done some months earlier. He did and that day marked the transition of an avid atheist into a “switched on” believer much to the surprise of his family, neighbours and the few friends he had. It was an amazing transformation as William began to go to church and to read his Bible. He wanted to discover more about this gracious God who had called him from spiritual darkness to Himself. He was later to become a lay preacher in his local church preaching those very truths he had once denied.

William initially found it hard to accept that God could forgive him of ALL his sins. He knew he had been rebelling strongly against the Lord and influencing other people, even members of his own family. He wondered how could God forgive him of all the things he had said against Him over many years. He had thought, “Surely there must be a limit to how far God is willing to forgive me.” 

 William came to understand as he continued to read the Bible that the God from whom he had asked forgiveness was a compassionate, forgiving God. He discovered this truth in verses such as those in Isaiah 55:6-7, “Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; 7 let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. In God’s compassion He abundantly pardons. But God revealed through Isaiah that those who come to Him to receive His mercy and pardon, needed to be sincere in their desire to change. These verses indicate the human initiative required in turning back to God to receive forgiveness.

i).         People are to “seek the Lord”.  The Hebrew word for “seek” is “daras”. It means inquiring of someone such as the Lord in Exodus 18:15  And Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me to inquire of God”.  Any seeking after God would bring a reward as in Psalm 34:10 The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing. It can also mean searching for property or animals or a sincere searching into the law of God as in Ezra 7:10 For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel. God can be “found” by those actively seeking Him.

ii).        They are to “call upon Him”. The word here is “qara”. The meanings include call, invite, summon, invoke and other shades of meaning. To invoke God is the meaning in Genesis 4:26  …At that time people began to call upon the name of the LORD. Humans have the privilege of calling upon God and the responsibility of taking advantage of the opportunity to do so.

iii).       They are to “forsake” their wickedness in action or thought.  “Forsake” in verse 7 is “azab” and means to abandon something. In this verse it meant abandoning their outward rebellious ways and also their inward sinful thoughts. Isaiah accused the people of God of forsaking their God Isaiah 1:4, 1:28, and His way Isaiah 65:11. However God, though He might chastise His people, would not forsake His people who walked in His way,  Isaiah 54:7  For a brief moment I deserted (“azab”) you, but with great compassion I will gather you. 8  In overflowing anger for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the LORD, your Redeemer.   These verses describe the character of God as compassionate as in the verses we are looking at in Isaiah 55:7. let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. Before we look at God’s “compassion” we see the final response required from those who come to Him for the forgiveness arising from his compassion.

iv).       They are to “return” to Him. The word is “shub” which is used over a thousand times in the Old Testament with different shades of meaning. It is used in Jeremiah 4:1 to indicate God’s call to His people to return to Him,  If you return, O Israel, declares the LORD, to me you should return.  However He was willing to accept any nation that had incurred His anger if it turned from its evil, Jeremiah 18:8  and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. God required people to repent of their sin and to turn to Him. Only then could they experience the fullness of the pardon coming from the compassion of God.

GOD’S COMPASSION.  Isaiah 55:7. “ … let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him.”,

The word used for “have compassion” is from “racham” meaning to love deeply, have mercy, be tenderly affectionate.  God described Himself in Exodus 33:19 as being compassionate. To Moses He said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The LORD.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. The word is used of God’s compassion in restoring His people and in forgiving them. For example in Prov 28:13 Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy (compassion). And Micah 7:19  He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities under foot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.

 However those who kept on rejecting God and did not turn back  to Him, would not be the recipients of His compassion, eg.,  Isaiah 9:17 Therefore the Lord does not rejoice over their young men, and has no compassion on their fatherless and widows; for everyone is godless and an evildoer, and every mouth speaks folly. For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still. On the other hand those who sincerely longed to walk in God’s way could receive His mercy (compassion),  Isaiah 30:18  Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the LORD is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.

 It is no surprise to read that Jesus, as One with His Father, was motivated by compassion in His ministry on earth. He had compassion on the crowds seeing them as being like sheep without a shepherd, Matthew 9:36.  He had compassion on the five thousand (Matthew 14:14) and on the four thousand (Matthew 15:32)  when he saw their needs. He taught the virtue of compassion in the parables He taught such as in the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 1:33)and that of the prodigal son where the father has compassion on his long-lost son, (Luke 15:20).

GOD’S ABUNDANT PARDON.  Isaiah 55:7  “let him return to the LORD…  for he will abundantly pardon.

In Isaiah 55:7 the word for “pardon” in “abundantly pardon” is the word (salach) we looked at previously in articles 006 and 007 on this site. It speaks of freedom and forgiveness. “Abundantly” is “rabah” which stresses the magnitude of the pardon offered by God. It is a reminder to us of the amazing grace God has towards those who turn to Him for forgiveness. He doesn’t forgive them reluctantly or ungraciously or in any condescending way. Rather His compassion leads to abundant forgiveness so that there is abundant pardon available for all the sins of all the people.

This was the marvellous truth that William discovered. He had rebelled against God and perhaps had caused others to rebel too. But genuine repentance on his part led to the experience of abundant forgiveness from God.  He really was released from guilt. But he was also highly motivated to pray that those whom he had adversely affected in his life would also cease their rebellion and discover, as he had, the abundant pardon of a loving compassionate God.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER: [Added in November 2017]

1]. Do you know any people like William in the story who once weren’t interested in God but who changed to become strong believers? If so, what changed them? Some Bible truth or the witness of a Christian believer or what? Could you share with the group?

2]. Many folk in our world say they “seek the Lord” but later say they haven’t found Him. What advice would you give such people if they came to you for help?

3]. If someone asked you what this verse meant, how would you try to help them understand? Isaiah 55:7 “let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts.” If they asked you how you managed to do it, what would you tell them?

4]. As you look at the verses quoted under the heading “God’s Compassion”, which one really stands out for you personally? Why is that so?

5]. God “abundantly pardons” sinners. Are there some things you think He will not pardon? What sorts of things do you think they might be?   How could people eventually know and experience God’s abundant forgiveness?

Blog No.030.   Jim Holbeck.   Posted on Monday 8th August 2011

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029. FORGIVENESS. Jesus The Anointed, the Messiah Died For Sinners. Isaiah 53:5-6.

Posted on August 3, 2011 by Jim Holbeck

 In a previous article we looked briefly at these verses in Isaiah 53:5-6. Now we will look a little more deeply at their richness. They portrayed what the promised Messiah would do when He came. Isa 53:5 “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” [NIV]

The  Following Things Would Happen To The Coming Messiah

1).           He would be “wounded” [or pierced] for the “transgressions” of the people

“Wounded” in the Hebrew Bible is “chalal”.  It is used of causing a wound in people as in Psalm 109:22 (my heart is wounded within me”.)  Ezekiel 28:9. It is also used of piercing something such as in Job 26:13, a serpent, and in Isaiah 51:9, a dragon. In Ezek 32:26 it is used of being slain by a sword. In other verses in Isaiah it is used of God seeing those opposed to Him as stained, defiled, profane or polluted, Isaiah 23:9, 43:28, 47:6. (It may be that some of that meaning is in mind here as the Messiah is to be defiled or polluted as he is made sin and slain on behalf of the people).

In the Greek Old Testament version, the Septuagint (abbreviated to LXX), the word is from “traumatizō” meaning to wound or to slay, and is used for people being injured (especially by sword or arrows). However most of the references go beyond wounding to being slain.  Overall it seems that the death of the Messiah is in mind here as He is made sin and slain on behalf of the people.

“For their transgressions” .  The word for “transgressions” is the Hebrew word “Pasha”. It means rebellion against fellow humans or against God. It can mean the act itself and the guilt and punishment arising from that action.  The word in the LXX is “anomia” meaning “lawlessness” in general or the sinful act or “transgression”.  It is failure to live according to the will of God. People sin against one another. People sin against God.  People need a Messiah figure to act as their redeemer to set them free from the penalty their sins deserve. God Himself was to provide such a Messiah. He would be wounded, indeed slain for the transgressions of the people.  Only in that way could forgiveness come to those who needed it.  The following phrases add more meaning to this concept.

2).           He would be “crushed” for their “iniquities” instead of them  

The Messiah would be crushed for human iniquities.  “Crushed” is “daka” meaning to bruise, beat down or to oppress. In Isaiah 53:10, Isaiah writes that it was God’s will to crush His Messiah, “Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him.” Why? Because He would be bearing the iniquities of the people.  The Greek Old Testament (LXX) has the word “malakizō“ for “crushed”.  Its main meaning is to be “sick” or “infirm” or “diseased” as we see in the other occurrences in the Old Testament.

What were those sins or iniquities?  The word is “avon” with the meaning of evil, and the guilt and the punishment associated with it. It can stand for deliberate sin or failing to obey God.  The LXX has “hamartia” for iniquities, denoting a failure to fulfil the will of God, or acting in defiance of God’s will and His Laws.

Again we see the Messiah taking the place of the people in bearing not only their sins, but seemingly their punishment as well.

3).           He would bear the “chastisement” upon Himself for their sin, to bring them peace

 “Chastisement “ is “musar” which means discipline, chastening, correction, instruction and punishment. It seems that in many passages where this word is used, people refused God’s correction and thus needed His chastisement or punishment, for example, Proverbs 15:10 Grievous punishment is for him who forsakes the way; He who hates reproof will die. (NASB).  The LXX appears to have a softer description for “chastisement” with the use of “paideia”.  The word was used for the instruction of children but more generally implied correction for those of all ages.

Isaiah went on to describe the result of the Messiah being chastised for the sin of the people. They would receive peace with God as a result of the Messiah suffering on their behalf, “Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace”. Or in the NRSV, “Upon him was the punishment that made us whole”.

The Hebrew word used for “peace” is “shalom” which has the deeper meaning seen in the NRSV translation.  It can mean completeness, soundness, wholeness, safety, well-being.

The LXX uses “eirēnē” which is the usual word for “peace” in the Greek Old and New Testaments. It too has much of the same depth of meaning.  (In the New Testament we see it used for God as “the God of peace” in Philippians 4:9, who will be with His people. He gives His peace, “the peace of God”, to guard the hearts and minds of the people of God as they present their requests to Him in prayer, Philippians 4:6. Believers know “peace with God”, as they are justified by faith in Jesus Christ, Romans 5:1). All this Jesus made possible in His role as God’s Messiah.

4).           By His “stripes” sinners would be “healed”

“Stripes” is from “chaburah” and can also be translated as blow, bruise, scourging, striking, welts and wounds.  For example in the NASB version, “… by His scourging we are healed” , and in the NRSV, “… by his bruises we are healed”.  In the LXX it is an interesting word “mōlōps” deriving from “mōlos”, a battle, and ōps, an eye or face. It could refer to the welt or bruise from being struck in battle, or to the stripes made by whip lashes.

Peter saw how this Messianic prophecy was fulfilled by what Jesus did on the cross in His death for sinners. He wrote of Jesus in 1Peter 2:22-24, “He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. Jesus as the Messiah didn’t die for His own sins for He had none.  Peter concluded, 2:24  He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed”.   “Wounds” here is the same word found in the Greek text of the LXX in Isaiah 53:5.

 “Healed”. What benefit did the Messiah bring to people by His suffering and death on their behalf? Isaiah 53:5 says, “and with his stripes we are healed”. What healing was Isaiah referring to?  The Hebrew word is “rapha”. It has a very rich tapestry of meanings in the Old Testament. It is translated in terms of healing, being made fertile, of being repaired.  God described Himself in Exodus 38:15, “I am the LORD, your healer” where “healer” is a derivative of “rapha”.

In the LXX the word here for “healed” is from “iaomai”.  Again this word has a rich background of meanings including physical and emotional healing, healing of the land and many other meanings. The same word is used in the Greek New Testament for many of those healings as well. It is interesting that in another Messianic passage in Isaiah 61:1 this word is used for the Messiah “healing” the broken hearted. The same word is used in some New Testament manuscripts for Luke 4:18, where Jesus described His ministry as a fulfilment of Isaiah 61:1.

It is amazing how much information about God’s amazing grace to humans is contained in these verses.  Even then we are not able to fully comprehend (or apprehend) the fullness of all God has made freely available to us in His Son Jesus. But at what a cost! The next time we read the words of these verses, I hope we will have a deeper understanding of their meaning, but more importantly a deeper appreciation for the God who sent His Son to die for sinners, and for the Son who wants to become, not only our friend, but also the Lord and Master of our lives.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER [Added November 2017]

1]. Do you think it was “fair” that Jesus [as the Christ, the Anointed One, the Messiah] had to be wounded for our transgressions? If not, what other method do you think God could have used to deal with the sin of humankind?

2]. “Jesus was “crushed” on the cross so that we don’t have to feel crushed by sin!” What do you think that saying means? If someone tells you they feel crushed under the weight of their sin, how could you try to help them to get rid of their burden using these truths from Isaiah?

3]. How would you try to explain to an inquirer what these words mean, “the punishment that brought us peace was on Him?” What form did the punishment take and on whom? What sort of peace do you think Isaiah had in mind? Can we experience that peace today? If so, how?

4]. The phrase, “and by his wounds we are healed” seem to indicate that the Messiah’s death would lead to healing for those who trusted God.  What sorts of healing do you think Isaiah had in mind? How could that healing be received?

5]. These truths in Isaiah 53 [about the Messiah dying for the sins of the people] have been in existence for almost 2700 years. Do you think humans today can plead ignorance of the fact that Jesus fulfilled those prophecies 2000 years ago? How could we make those truths more well-known in today’s world?

Jim Holbeck.    Blog No.29.   Posted on Wednesday 3rd August 2011 

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028. Jesus The Messiah Died To Bring Healing. Isaiah 53:4

Posted on July 25, 2011 by Jim Holbeck

“Do you believe that healing is part of the atonement?” The “senior” person sitting opposite me waited for my answer.  I replied that in Matthew 8:17 Jesus had been healing people and casting out demons and he saw that as part of His role as the Messiah.  That is what Matthew wrote, Mathew 8:16, That evening they brought to him many who were oppressed by demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick. 17 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: “He took our illnesses and bore our diseases.” Another Messianic prophecy (from Isaiah 53:4) had been fulfilled by Jesus. Healing had become available for the people of God even as forgiveness would become available through Jesus’ death on the cross as the Messiah.  The ‘senior” person seemed to relax somewhat having heard the answer.

The verse has been translated in various ways. For example the English Standard Version uses the words “griefs” and “sorrows” to indicate what Jesus carried. The New Revised Standard Version has “infirmities” and “diseases” as does the New American Standard Bible. The Holman Christian Standard Bible has “sicknesses” and “pains”. What then did Jesus as the Messiah carry on our behalf? These are the words.

“Sicknesses”. (Hebrew is “choli” which is used for physical illness in the son of the widow of Zarephath, 1Kings 17:17, After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill. And his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. Another to become physically ill was King Asa of whom it is said, (2 Chronicles 16:12) Asa became diseased in his feet. His disease was severe, yet even in his disease he did not seek the LORD, but the physicians. King Ahaziah also became ill and wanted to know if he would recover from his sickness, 2 Kings 1:2. Jehoram was an evil King whom God afflicted with illness because of his sin, 2 Chron 21:18 And after all this the LORD struck him in his bowels with an incurable disease.  There is also in Isaiah 1:5 the sense of pain suffered by the nation of Judah because of their rebellion, Why will you still be struck down? Why will you continue to rebel? The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. It would seem from these and other verses that the Messiah would bear the physical and emotional sicknesses of the people.

 “Sorrows”.  (Hebrew is “makob” which refers to pain, sorrow and suffering.)  It can refer to physical or mental pain. In this verse 4 it says that the Messiah would suffer the pain of the people, Isaiah  53:4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.  That was because the Messiah would be rejected and would know grief as the previous verse indicates, He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

 Jesus as the Messiah certainly did come to know the sadness of rejection as John wrote in John  1:11  He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But that was nothing compared with the suffering He would experience on the cross as He the Messiah was made sin for His people.  Jesus was not just simply quoting Psalm 22 when He cried out on the cross, Mark 15:34  …  “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”  The experience of being forsaken was real as the Father’s face, as it were, turned away from Him as He was made sin for us.  He alone knows the full import of human pain and rejection. That’s why He can help us in our need.

Jesus as the Messiah bore our sins , our sicknesses and our sorrows on the cross so that we might be able to receive the healing that He has made available to His people.  You see, the cross was followed by His resurrection when He rose triumphant over sin, sickness, sadness, and over the powers of darkness. He released His kingdom power as He sent His Holy Spirit upon His people. His people can take hold of all the blessings which are now theirs in His “unsearchable riches” (Ephesians 3:8).  Healing in all its forms, physical, emotional, spiritual, relational, deliverance, inner healing and so many other healings are now able to be appropriated by faith In Christ Who through His role as the Messiah made them available in Himself.

Jim Holbeck.   Blog No.28.    Posted on Monday 25th July 2011

 

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INDEX of blogs by Jim Holbeck based on date posted

Posted on July 12, 2011 by Jim Holbeck

Clicking on numbers below will take you to those blogs.

No.001. FORGIVENESS. To Forgive. Is it possible? 2011/02/04

No.002. FORGIVENESS. Do I Need To Be Forgiven? Do I Need To Forgive? Some answers. 2011/02/06

No.003. FORGIVENESS. The Freedom That Comes From Forgiveness 2011/02/08

No.004. Forgiveness. How Can We Understand What It Means? 2011/02/11

No.005. FORGIVENESS. God’s Nature Is To Forgive. (Selichah). 2011/02/11

No.006. FORGIVENESS. God Brings Release To People. (Salach) Part 1 of 2. 2011/02/14

No.007. FORGIVENESS. God Brings Release To People. (Salach) Part 2 of 2. 2011/02/15

No.008. FORGIVENESS. God Removes Our Sin From Us. (nasa). Part 1 of 2. 2011/02/22

No.009. FORGIVENESS. God removes Our Sin From Us. “nasa.” Part 2 2011/02/23

No.010. Evangelism. Sharing Jesus with other people 2011/02/23

No.011. Forgiveness. God Covers Over Our Sin. (Kaphar and Kasah) 2011/02/27

No.012. Forgiveness In The 21st Century. A Practical Example 2011/02/28

No.013. Forgiveness. Genesis 45-50. The Story Of Joseph 2011/03/04

No.014. Forgiveness. Psalm 32.  A King Found Forgiveness.  2011/03/05

No.015. Forgiveness. Psalm 51. A King Wanted To Be Forgiven. 2011/03/07

No.016. Forgiveness Of All Sin. Psalm 103. 2011/03/11

No.017. Forgiveness. Removing The Stain Of Sin. Isaiah 1:18. 2011/03/13

No.018. FORGIVENESS. Isaiah 43:25. Sin is blotted out and not remembered. 2011/03/14

No.019. John 3:1-17. To Perish Or To Have Eternal Life? 2011/03/20

No.020. FORGIVENESS. Why “Good Friday” Is “Good”. God blots out our sins. Isa 44:22. 2011/04/21

No.021. Easter Day. “Christ Is Risen!” 2011/04/22

No.022. Jesus Stands And Knocks. Are We Listening? Revelation 3:20. 2011/05/22

No.023. Pentecost. Part 1. Motivation and Empowerment for Living. Acts 1:6-8. 2011/06/12

No.024. Pentecost. Part 2. God Motivates and Empowers His People. Philippians 2:12-13. 2011/06/20

No.025. SALVATION. God Says Not “By Good Works” But “For Good Works”. 2011/06/26

INDEX of blogs.   Updated 2011/09/09

No.026. John Richards. A Teacher On Christian Renewal And Healing. Died 19June2011.An Australian Tribute 2011/07/08

No.027. FORGIVENESS. HEALING. Isaiah 53:4-6. The Messiah To Bring Peace. 2011/07/11

No.028. FORGIVENESS. Jesus The Messiah Died to Bring Healing. Isaiah 53:4.    2011/07/25

No.029. FORGIVENESS.  Jesus the Anointed, the Messiah Died For Sinners. Isaiah 53:5-6.  2011/08/03

No.030. Forgiveness. Abundant Pardon. Isaiah 55;6-7.   2011/08/08

No.031. John Stott. A Mightily Used But Humble Servant Of God. 2011/08/08

No.032.  Suggestions For Searching Through Holbeck Blogs.  2011/08/10

No.033.  Outline of Ephesians Chapter 1:1-14.     2011/08/15

No.034. Outline of Ephesians Chapter 1:15-23.    2011/08/15

No.035. Outline of Ephesians chapter 2.  2011/08/16

No.036. Outline of Ephesians Chapter 3. Paul’s God-given Ministry to the Ephesians.   2011/08/22

No.037. Outline of Ephesians 3:1-6. The Purpose of Paul’s Ministry to the Ephesians. “YOU belong to God.”   2011/08/22

No.038. Outline of Ephesians 3:7-13. The Purpose of Paul’s Ministry to the World-wide Gentiles.   2011/08/22

No.039. Outline of Ephesians 3:14-21. Paul’s Prayer For The Ephesians.  2011/08/24

No.040. Prayer Based On John 15:5-7. Receiving Through Abiding in Christ.  2011/08/31

No.041.  Healing of Lou Gehrig’s disease. ALS. Motor Neuron disease. 2011/09/18

No.042.  Outline of Ephesians 4:1-16.  “Become what you are in Christ”.  2011/10/31

No.043. Outline of Ephesians 4:17-32. “Become what you are in Christ.”  2011/11/02

No.044. Outline of Ephesians 5:1-21. “Walk in love”.      2011/11/12

No.045. Outline of Ephesians 5:21-33. Mutual Submission in the Body of Christ. (Part 1 of 2).  (2011/11/22

No.046. Outline of Ephesians 6:1-9. Mutual Submission in the Body of Christ. (Part 2 of 2). 2011/11/23

No.047. Outline of Ephesians 6:10-24. Spiritual Warfare.   2011/11/23

No.048. FORGIVENESS.   Iniquity Forgiven. Sin Not Remembered.  Jeremiah 31:34.  2011/11/27

No.049. FORGIVENESS.  Guilt Cleansed And Forgiven.  Jeremiah 33:8.  2011/11/27

No.050. HOMOPHOBIA. Who is guilty? A Surprising Possibility!  Romans 1.  2011/12/16

No.051.  A Prayer based on Romans 12:1-2. Total Commitment.     2011/12/17

No.052. A Prayer based on 2Peter 3:8-14. Being Prepared For Jesus’ Coming.  2011/12/17

No.053. Who is the Jesus Christ of Christmas?     Luke 2:10-12.    2011/12/24

No.054. “What’s Happening?” A Search for Meaning In Life. Ephesians 3:1-12.   2012/01/01

No.055. “The Body as a Temple of the Holy Spirit”. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.  2012/01/19

No. 056. “Jesus Sets The Captives Free.” Mark 1;21-28.   2012/01/29

No.057.  A Prayer for Freedom from the Powers Of Darkness.   2012/01/29

No.058.  Jesus. His Willingness And Ability To Heal. Mark 1:40-45.   2012/02/12

No.059. The Transfiguration of Jesus And Our Transfiguration. Mark 9:2-9.  2012/02/19

No.060. Lenten Studies. Part1. “The Healing Of Our Hurts”. Philippians 1:1-11. 2012/02/22

No.061. The Baptism and Temptation of Jesus. Jesus’ Ministry and Ours. Mark 1:9-15.  2012/02/16

No.062. Lenten Studies on Philippians. Part 2. “God is in Control!” Philippians 1:12-26.  2012/02/29

No.063. Sermon on Mark 8:31-38. “The Need to Commit Oneself to Jesus.” (Jesus is Coming Ready Or Not). 2012/03/04

No.064. Lenten Studies on Philippians. Part 3. Phil 2:1-11.    2012/03/07

No.065. Lenten Studies On Philippians. Part 4. “God At Work Through His Humble People.” Phil 2:13-30.  2012/03/15

No.066. Lenten Studies in Philippians.   Part 5.  “Getting Ones Focus on Jesus”. Phil 3:1-21.  2012/03/23

No.067. Lenten Studies in Philippians. Part 6. “Rejoicing In The Lord.”  Philippians 4:1-7.   2012/04/02

No.068. Lenten Studies in Philippians. Part 7. “Focussing on the Good for Victory.” Philippians 4:8-23.  2012/04/06

No.069. Easter Day.  “The Resurrection of Jesus. A New Life With New Possibilities”. Acts 10:34-48.  2012/04/08

No.070.  “From Doubt To Belief!” John 20:19-31.  2012/04/17

No.071.  God Can Heal The Mess We Get Into. “Repent. Return. Receive.” Acts 3:12-26.  2012/04/25

No.072. Christian Ministry.  Ability Or Availability? 2012/05/04

No.073. Christian Ministry. “Rust out? Burn out? Opt out? Is there another way?”  2012/05/05

No.074.   The Assurance Of Salvation. A Reflection on 1John 5:9-13.  2012/05/21

No.075.  The Relevance Of Pentecost For Today. The Gift of the Holy Spirit.  2012/05/22

No.076. “To Perish or Not to Perish? That is the Question.” John 3:16.  2012/06/04

No.077. Question. “What does the Bible say about “Gay Marriage” ? Is there a simple answer?” 2102/06/18

A more recent up to date Index can be found on this site.   https://holbeck.wordpress.com/category/index-of-blogs/

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027. FORGIVENESS. HEALING. Isaiah 53:4-6. The Messiah To Bring Peace

Posted on July 11, 2011 by Jim Holbeck

I walked into the Auditorium to begin a weekend for those with cancer and their carers. But I was shocked to see one young woman so desperately ill with cancer. I discovered later that she had been given only weeks to live. Nothing in her world was healthy. Her body was being destroyed by a virulent cancer. Her emotional state was “shot to pieces” as we might say in Australia.  Her relationships were almost non-existent as she had been pretty difficult to get along with. Personal hurts had meant that she no longer had contact with any family members. Some would say that she really had nothing much to live for. Anyway she didn’t have to put up with her lot much longer. She would soon be dead!  Doctors had told her so! They couldn’t do anything for her, so advanced was the cancer.

How is it then that some twenty years later Julie (not her real name) is alive and whole and enjoying life? She discovered many spiritual truths over that weekend that she acted on. She discovered how to be forgiven by God. She learned how to forgive those who had hurt her. She was marvellously physically and emotionally healed over several months. She began to experience a peace she had never known before.  Some of the concepts associated with these verses helped transform her life.

  These are the verses from Isaiah 53:4-6, Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. 6  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned–every one–to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Isaiah’s prophecy anticipated an “anointed one”, the Christ, the Messiah, who would bear the sins of the people.  Julie came to understand over that weekend that Jesus the Messiah had died for her on a cross, bearing her sins and her infirmities. She came to understand that she could find forgiveness and healing in Him. And she did! Miraculously so! Amazingly so!

In coming articles I would like to share more about those truths which brought such a radical transformation to Julie’s life. Perhaps also to go a little deeper into the richness of these and other verses in the Old Testament that remind us of a God, who as St. Paul the apostle was later to write in Ephesians 3:20,  “… is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us.”
Jim Holbeck.   Blog No. 27.   Posted on Monday 11th  July 2011

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026. John Richards. A Teacher On Christian Renewal And Healing. Died 19th June 2011. An Australian Tribute

Posted on July 8, 2011 by Jim Holbeck

One Australian website describes John Richard’s  book “But Deliver us from Evil” as a “classic piece of work” in relation to the study of deliverance and freedom from the powers of darkness.  I am among those around the world who readily concur with that judgment. All of his many publications are studies in balanced scholarship and practical ministry and should be required reading in every Theological and Bible College.

It was my privilege to meet John and his wife Rosemary in England in 1988. The late Canon Jim Glennon had arranged for me to go to England to visit Crowhurst Healing Centre among other healing centres before I took over from him as the Leader of the Healing Ministry at St Andrew’s Cathedral Sydney.  Crowhurst is in East Sussex near the historic town of Battle (Battle of Hastings, 1066). Whilst I was their guest there, Crowhurst celebrated its 60th Anniversary. The celebrations included a Garden Party in the grounds. There was a liberal scattering of bishops, well-known clergy and outstanding lay people of whom I had read in Christian magazines.  Most of the people seemed to know a considerable number of fellow guests.  Just when I was thinking about how to break into one of the groups, I was approached by two charming people.  I was amazed to find that they were John and Rosemary Richards of whom I had read so much previously.  I was blessed by their fellowship and doubly blessed by the interest they took in my own ministry as Dean of a country Cathedral in Australia.

Several years later I had the joy of arranging to have John speak at the Wednesday night Healing Service in St Andrew’s Cathedral in Sydney.  His ministry was warmly received by the congregation and by all those who met John and Rosemary as they ministered in Sydney. My wife Carole and I witnessed their great joy when we put them on the train in Sydney to begin their trip home to England. Joy? To be leaving Sydney? No, of course not! John loved boats and trains. He had looked forward to one day doing one of the great train journeys in the world, the crossing of the Australian continent by rail. The Indian Pacific Railway links Sydney and Perth (the Pacific and the Indian Oceans) and traverses about 4,350km (2,700 miles).  We were so happy for them that they had the opportunity to fulfil that dream.  We read later of John’s interest in travelling across the English Channel by small boat in a celebration of the Dunkirk evacuation of 1940. 

John, as a minister of the gospel, faithfully strove to fulfil the Biblical injunction, 2Timothy 2:15  Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.  He succeeded. Many ministers around the world can testify to that. We thank God for outstanding leaders like John whom God has used to bring insight and blessing to the lives of thousands of people around the world; very humble men but spiritual giants in God. 

Like many others around the globe we will remember Rosemary, Paul and Tracy in our prayers as they mourn the loss of such a wonderful man, whilst praising God for our experience of God’s love through him. 

Jim Holbeck.   Blog No. 26.   Posted on Friday 8th July 2011

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025. SALVATION. God Says Not “By Good Works” But “For Good Works”

Posted on June 26, 2011 by Jim Holbeck

A transformation was taking place before my eyes. Graham was a young engineer who had wanted to see me to find out what Christianity was all about.   I shared some of the Bible passages with him that stressed how salvation was God’s gift to us in Christ and we how we could never deserve or earn our salvation.  The longer we shared, the more wide-eyed he became. It was as though an inner light was being switched on within him. That was literally what was happening as he heard and responded to the word of God I was sharing with him. I wasn’t surprised when he eventually said, ”Can I become a Christian right now?”  That night he prayed a prayer inviting Jesus to come into his life.  In the days that followed he was quickly changed by the power of God and became more and more “switched on” for Jesus.

 SALVATION IS NOT BY GOOD WORKS. Ephesians 2:9

One of the things Graham found amazing was the fact that God was offering him salvation freely in Christ. Graham was a worker. He had worked hard to get through school. He had then worked hard to graduate as an engineer. As an engineer he continued to work hard in serving his employer. So to be faced with the concept that he couldn’t work his way to heaven was at first confronting to him. But as he heard the word of God from such passages as Ephesian 2:8-9, spiritual understanding came.  These verses say, For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. In other words we are saved by putting our faith in who Jesus is, and in what He has done for us on the cross.  We can’t boast that we earned our way. Acceptance by God does not come by the “works” we do, but by receiving the free gift of salvation in Christ.  That night in our home, Graham understood for the first time what grace really is.

 SALVATION IS FOR GOOD WORKS. Ephesians 2:10

In this next verse 2:10, Paul goes on to write about the “works” we are to do as believers. He calls them “good works”.  10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. What is the difference then between the works that we do that don’t get us right with God, and the “good works” He wants us to do? It has to do with the origin of those works. Good works originate in the mind of God. They are manifest through humans who are in a living relationship with Him as He works in them.  They work them out in practical living. 

 In verse 10 Paul describes His people as being His “workmanship” (the Greek word is “poiēma” from the verb “poieō” to make, do or produce. It is the basis of our English word “poem”).  Some have translated the word as “a work of art” or a “masterpiece”. At the very least it means that they are the product of His power. They are as they are, by God’s creative power in creating them. It is a creation in “Christ Jesus” because of their faith-union with Him. It is a similar expression to that in 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. Believers are in the process of being changed more and more by the Holy Spirit into the likeness of Christ, 2 Corinthians 3:18  And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. This transformation is not just into a growing likeness to Christ. It has its outward expression through Christ-like character AND through the “good works” the believer is to exercise.

 THE NATURE OF THE GOOD WORKS THAT BELIEVERS ARE TO DO

Their origin is in God Himself as He motivates and empowers His people by His creative power to do the things He wants them to do. They are not simply those things that may seem to be good things in the minds of the believers to do. One has to ensure that the “good works” we think we are doing for God,  are really from the mind of the infinite God rather than coming from our own finite human thinking. They are planned by Him rather than by us.

 There is another vital truth concerning the nature of these good works. They are good works which God prepared beforehand… . The word here for” prepared beforehand” is  (proetoimazō) and is only used in the New Testament here and in Romans 9:23. The latter reads “in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory”.  Both instances are based on God’s everlasting love for His people. Because God is omniscient, knowing the end from the beginning, it means that those works He has for us to do, have been in His mind from all eternity.  That is why we have to “walk in them”, as they have been laid out, as it were, for us to walk in. It is not a matter of the believers “dreaming” up all the good things they can do to please God.  Rather it is humbly “praying down” His plan and purpose for their lives. It is allowing Him to work in them to motivate and empower them to do those things He has eternally planned for them to do. As St Paul said in the verse we are considering (Ephesians 2:10), we are to “work out” what He is working in us. In believers of all ages I might add!

Praise God for His grace in saving us through Jesus. Praise God for the ongoing grace He gives us to do the things that we know are pleasing to Him, because they came from His mind and are part of His eternal purpose for His world.

Jim Holbeck.  Blog No.25.   Posted on Sunday 26th June 2011

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024. Pentecost. Part 2. God Motivates and Empowers His People. Philippians 2:12-13

Posted on June 20, 2011 by Jim Holbeck

We CAN do what is pleasing to God. In the previous blog we saw how God had promised in the Old Testament that in the new age of the Spirit (under the New Covenant He would initiate with His people) He would motivate and empower His people to live for Him. That age came into being on the day of Pentecost when the Spirit was poured out on the early disciples. From that moment on they were changed.  Later on there were disciples in other places who also experienced the Holy Spirit coming upon them. They too were to experience God’s motivating and empowering power in their lives.

OUTPOURINGS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT AFTER THE DAY OF PENTECOST

An Outpouring Of The Holy Spirit In Samaria. We read in Acts 8 that after the martyrdom of Stephen by stoning, the church in Jerusalem was persecuted and all the disciples except the apostles were scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria. One of those disciples was Philip who was one of the seven men chosen to ensure that there was fair treatment of Hellenistic widows in the daily food distribution. The seven had to be “men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom”.  Philip went to the city of Samaria and proclaimed Christ to them. There was a great response to his preaching and many people were set free of evil spirits and others were healed. Many heard Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ and were baptized.

Word of this believing response to the gospel message through Philip came to the apostles in Jerusalem.  They sent Peter and John, who prayed for these Samaritan disciples to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Luke records the reason why. Acts 8:16  for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus). The outcome of their visit?  As the apostles laid their hands on them, they received the Holy Spirit. It was another pouring out of the Spirit on believers though in a different locality.  However it maintained continuity with the church in Jerusalem as it took place through the laying on of the hands of the apostles.

An Outpouring Of The Holy Spirit In Ephesus. The apostle Paul came to Ephesus where he found a number of disciples of Jesus.  We are not told why he asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” However it appeared that they knew nothing about the Holy Spirit. That prompted Paul to ask them, “Into what then were you baptized?” They replied that they had been baptised into John’s baptism. Paul explained that the baptism John offered was an anticipation for the coming Messiah, the Christ, in whom they were to trust. Paul would have been able to tell them that the Messiah had come. They could now be baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus.  We read what happened, Acts 19:6-7 And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.

Our Own “Pentecost” Experience. We have seen that the initial outpouring of the Holy Spirit was on the Day of Pentecost. This fulfilled Old Testament prophecies. However we have also seen that there were later outpourings of the Spirit such as in Samaria and Ephesus.  Various outpourings of the Spirit have occurred in various places and in various times throughout history.  We can think of many revivals when there appeared to be a greater outpouring or manifestation of the Holy Spirit than at other times.

But let us never denigrate or fail to appreciate our own experience of the same Holy Spirit. It is not as though Peter and James and John and Paul and the disciples in Samaria and Ephesus received a greater Holy Spirit than we received when we repented of sins and received Christ as Saviour. He is eternally the same. The Holy Spirit who came upon them to motivate and to empower them is the same Holy Spirit who has entered our puny little lives as well. It means that we too can (and should) be motivated and empowered by the same Holy Spirit to live for the Lord.  Well in what way does that happen?

WORKING OUT IN PRACTICE WHAT GOD IS WORKING IN OUR LIVES

There was a brilliant little book with the title, “Caution! Saints At Work”.  I suppose we, as modern day believers, could carry signs with the words, “Caution. God At Work On This Site” referring to the fact that He is at work within each one of His people.  It would be true but perhaps not advisable! We shouldn’t have to tell others that God is at work in us. They should be able to see it without us pointing it out to them! What does the Bible have to say about God being at work in us in terms of motivating and empowering us to live for Him? The answer is found in Philippians 2:12-13, … work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.  We will now take a closer look at those verses.

In verse 12 we note that it does not say, “Work for your salvation!”   Salvation can only be a gift to us from God’s grace. We can never earn or deserve the mercy and grace of God. We can’t earn our salvation. That’s what Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8,9,  For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (We will look more closely at those verses possibly in the next article).

 In Philippians 2: 12-13 we are reminded that the responsibility of believers is to work out in practice what God is inwardly working within them. They are His saved or redeemed people.  They respond to His amazing grace in their lives out of a sense of “fear and trembling”.  This is not a cringing fear of God but rather the deep reverential awe of the majesty and holiness of God who has given them the awesome task and responsibility of doing His will for “His good pleasure”.  What a task! What a responsibility! But He works in them to give them that willingness and the ability to do so. Or in the terms we have seen earlier, He motivates and empowers His people to live and work for Him.

SOME FURTHER COMMENTS ON THESE VERSES

In Philippians 2:12 Paul uses the word “katergazomai” in saying that believers are to “work out” their salvation. It means to accomplish or to complete a task. God’s grace and power are seen in the salvation of every individual.  His grace and power are also there to help them to live out the implications of the salvation they have received by faith.  In the next verse when he tells his readers that God is at work in them he uses the word “energeō” which means to produce an effect or to be operative within. What is produced by this work of God in the believer is a willingness and an ability to do God’s will.  This ability in believers to work for God’s pleasure comes because of God’s work in them. Paul uses the same word on both occasions.

The final comment on these verses highlights another truth. Philippians 2:13 in many versions says that God works in believers “to will and to work for His good pleasure”. This appears to mean that God is pleased when His people allow Him to work in and through them.  However not all translators or commentators seem to go with that meaning of eudokia for pleasure in this verse.  But there is another verse in the New Testament where the word is best read in terms of giving God pleasure. It is Luke 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”  What an incredible motivation it would be for us (who have received Christ as Saviour and submitted to Him as Lord) to live in obedience to God’s will if we knew He was pleased by our genuinely sincere (but imperfect) attempts to do so. Even then we would humbly have to admit that unless God was at work in us, we would not have the desire to please Him and certainly not the ability to do so in our own strength. The whole of our Christian life from its beginning until we live with Him in glory depends on His amazing grace to us. 

Jim Holbeck.  Blog No.24.  Posted on Monday 20th June 2011

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