Above the Sun: Hypocrites are at odds with God

by Barrett Vanlandingham
June 20, 2021 

            In today’s article, I want to explore a few of different levels of what it means to be a hypocrite, a form of lying.

I remember when our kids were little and someone would drive past us in a souped-up car that cost way too much. From all appearances, life could not be any sweeter! The conversation would always be something like “Wow dad, what a neat looking car!”  Then I would say, “True, but I would not want to have their debt.” Eventually, the kids could finish my sentence and then we would have a talk about the debt, stress, relationship problems, and insecurities that are hiding behind those expensive purchases.

“Putting on airs” is the term for when someone is pretending to be superior to others, looking down their nose at others, or acting snobby, especially when behind the scenes their life is an absolute wreck. Anyone who spends much time on social media is well acquainted with hypocrisy and all the blow hards who try to make themselves look so smart, or their lives seem so grand or perfect. The fact is, nobody is better than anyone else. We all have our issues to deal with.

            We’ve probably all said or done something that made us look better than we deserved.  Sometimes we get lucky and it just happens by accident. Other times, we say or do something out of convenience such as throwing everything in the closet before company arrives to make a room look less cluttered than it normally is. I may have done that more than a few times. But I think the worse version of hypocrisy is the practice of expecting or demanding high standards of others when secretly we don’t even make an attempt at reaching those standards.

Jesus condemned the practice of hypocrisy. His words were especially harsh towards those who were considered to be the religious elite of the community. They pretended to have it all together, and even worse, they pretended to be more important than everyone else around them. They acted like it, spoke like it, and dressed like it.

Matthew devotes an entire chapter to Jesus’ warnings against hypocrisy. “Do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach… Everything they do is done for people to see… They love the place of honor… They love to be greeted with respect” (Matthew 23:3-7).

Jesus condemned the lifestyles of hypocrites who are full of greed, self-indulgence, and wickedness even as they portray themselves outwardly as clean and pure. Jesus compared them to “whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones.”

In Numbers 20:9-12, Moses disobeyed God by striking a rock to get water out of it for the thirsty grumbling crowd of Israelites he and Aaron were leading. Moses was supposed to have spoken to the rock as God instructed. But God allowed water to pour out of the rock anyway, and Moses and Aaron no doubt came across looking like superstar saviors, especially when they did not give God the credit as they should have. This act of disobedience to God and hypocrisy resulted in neither Moses nor Aaron being allowed to lead the people into the promised land. Moses expected the Israelites to be obedient to God even though he had just committed an act of disobedience.

May we all strive to live Godly lives both in public and private, and use all of our blessings and talents for His glory, not ours. Have a great week!

Above the Sun: We are not saved like the thief on the cross

by Barrett Vanlandingham
June 13, 2021 

            In Luke 23:39-43, we read about a conversation that took place between Jesus and the two criminals who were being crucified on either side of Jesus, one of whom had a better eternal outcome than the other.

“One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!” 40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43 Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

            Even though this story is found in the New Testament, Jesus and the criminals and everyone else were still living under Old Testament law because Jesus had not yet died. Baptism was not yet required. The New Testament covenant along with the baptism we read about starting in Acts 2 had not been enacted yet. So, believers in Jesus Christ could not become Christians and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38) until Peter preached the first Gospel sermon at the Jewish festival known as Pentecost where God added 3000 people to their number (the church) that day (Acts 2:41, 47).

The Bible says Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist, came to prepare the way for Jesus, and was baptizing people during Jesus’ ministry even before Jesus died. Mark 1:4 says, “And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.”

We still have no way of knowing whether the thief on the cross had received John’s baptism or not.

The verses from Luke indicate the criminal at least knew about Christ’s kingdom, and that it was not of this earth. The criminal also knew he deserved to be punished on earth, but called out to Jesus to save him in the after-life. So, the criminal at some point, if not during the crucifixion process, had heard about Jesus, and at that moment believed, repented, and confessed his belief in Jesus as the Son of God.          

            But whether the thief was baptized or not, people at that time were still living under the Old Law that required animal sacrifice as a means of gaining access to the forgiveness of sin that would come later with the perfect sacrifice of Jesus. Although the Hebrew writer said there is no forgiveness of sin without the shedding of blood (Hebrews 9:22), the writer also says, “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” So, ultimately it took the perfect sacrifice of Jesus to forgive the sins of people in the past who obeyed the Old Testament law as well as those in the future who would obey the commands of the New Testament (Hebrews 9:28, 10:4). Simply put, the blood of Jesus flows backwards and forwards to forgive the sins of those who are obedient.

            So, yes, we are saved by the grace of God just like the criminal on the cross. But for those who are trying to obey the pattern of New Testament Christianity, baptism for the forgiveness of sins is essential. It is how believers receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38) and live a “new life” in Christ (Romans 6:3-5 and Galatians 3:26-27).  Have a great week.

Above the Sun: It takes more than prayer to save us

by Barrett Vanlandingham
June 6, 2021 

            This may surprise you, but the popular “Sinner’s Prayer” that is practiced by a lot of denominations is found nowhere in God’s word. Yes, you heard it right. The “Sinner’s Prayer” is not in the Bible. There are no examples of anyone becoming a Christian by saying a prayer.

            This is a problem for a lot of reasons including that many people over the years have gone to their graves believing that they were saved when they said this prayer. They had been told by well-meaning teachers that if they really believed the words, they had just prayed from the bottom of their heart, they were now saved.

God’s instructions still remain unchanged by anything or anyone including new religions, politics, cultural changes, or personal preferences. The apostle Paul is very clear on this issue.

“But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:8).

            In 2 Timothy 3:16-17, Paul says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

            So, if we can find everything we need in the Bible to be thoroughly equipped to serve God, there is no need or justification for looking elsewhere or coming up with our own recipes for salvation other than that which is found in the Bible.

The same New Testament author, Paul, told the church in Rome that their “new life” in Christ could begin after (not before) they were immersed/baptized (Romans 6:1-11).  In this passage, he compares baptism to the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, and the “new life” that follows.

In the story of the Ethiopian who was immersed by Philip, it was after (not before) they came up out of the water that the Ethiopian “went on his way rejoicing” (Acts 8:39).

            Peter said in Acts 2:38 that baptism is the point at which your sins are forgiven. This is also when God adds the “saved” to His church (Acts 2:41, 47).

In the story of Saul’s (Paul’s) conversion to Christianity, Jesus appeared to Paul as a bright light from heaven. They had a conversation (Acts 22:6-10). Imagine talking/praying to God and actually hearing Him respond! No wonder Paul repeated his conversion story so many times! Paul even asked Jesus, “What shall I do, Lord?”  You see, even a direct conversation with Jesus did not save Paul or forgive his sins. Several verses later, Jesus commanded a man named Ananias to tell Paul: “And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name” (Acts 22:16, also Acts 9:1-19).

Many people have called on God for help, but as Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21).

            A sincere prayer of repentance or turning to God is always a good thing. But from the beginning of Christianity, prayer alone does not save. Neither does confessing sins alone or even belief in God if you’re not willing to obey (1 John 1:5-10 and James 2:14-25).

            In the end, it’s all about committing our lives to God, trusting Him, and obeying what His word says is required for salvation that gives us access to God’s amazing grace (Titus 2:11-14). Have a great week!

Above the Sun: Be a seed planter

by Barrett Vanlandingham
May 30, 2021 

            Corn, beets, melons, squash, peppers, various herbs and flowers, just to name a few things gardeners are planting right now. I am far from being an expert in this field, but it’s easy to find charts and lists that help novices like me know the when’s, what’s, and where’s of planting. Thankfully, there is no chart that limits Christians from planting God’s word any time of year into the hearts of lost souls.

            You may remember John’s story of Jesus talking with the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well at noon, in the heat of the day. When it became clear to her that this man who spoke of “living water” might just be the Messiah, she went back into town and told people about this man, Jesus, who was able to tell her about “everything she ever did.”

            Jesus’ disciples had just returned from buying food in town and offered him some. But he took this opportunity to plant spiritual seed, explaining to them that his food was “to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” 

If His disciples were still wondering why he was talking with a Samaritan woman (John 4:27), Jesus made it clearer with more seed planting: “Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest” (John 4:35).

Jesus was letting his disciples know that the kind of good news he was about was not limited by tradition, cultural prejudices, or barriers of any kind. The townspeople no doubt had a lot of questions to ask Jesus based on what they’d heard from the Samaritan woman. She had planted the seed of faith in them that was now in her. This evidently resulted in them also wanting to have conversations with Jesus about “living water”, which they did, and then believed in Him as the “Savior of the world” (John 4:42).

            To me, part of what makes this story so great is that earthly logic went out the window once Jesus entered the picture. The chances and circumstances for success were just all wrong. Jews and Samaritans didn’t have anything to do with each other. It was also the wrong time of day to have a conversation like this because it was noon, the heat of the day, Jesus was tired and probably hungry, and this woman who was living in sin may very well have chosen this time of day to avoid people. There were a lot of things going against this meeting.

            I think most of us have experienced God’s involvement in our life in ways that we cannot understand or explain, and often when we least expect it. The fact is, we can make plans, do the work, but in the end, it is God who decides when or if it should be blessed. The apostle Paul said it best:   

            “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9).

“I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor” (1 Corinthians 3:6-8).

Have a great day!

           

Above the Sun: Be a blessing today

by Barrett Vanlandingham
May 23, 2021 

            “Encourage one another and build each other up” (1 Thessalonians 5:11).

            Most of us would rather be around others who make us feel good instead of those who suck every bit of the air out of the room as soon as they walk in.

You know the type, those who try to make every conversation about themselves. For instance, one person says, “It sure is a beautiful day!” The other person says, “Yeah, maybe for you. But nobody ever talks to me or visits me, so that’s why I’m always depressed.”  

Or one person says, “Let’s go do something nice for somebody today.” The other person says, “Why? Nobody ever does anything nice for me!”

And then there’s the person who says, “I am NOT donating clothes to homeless people because they might be on drugs.”

Obviously, these are bad attitudes that everyone should strive to avoid. If there is anyone who deserves to be in a bad mood and looking for reasons to take it out on somebody it is God. But he is not that way in spite of how we treat Him.

“…He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).

 Our Lord is a blessing and he wants us to be a blessing to others.

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).

We’ve all heard the following famous words of Jesus from His Sermon on the Mount: “Treat people the same way you want them to treat you” (Matthew 7:12).

He goes on to say that those few words sum up everything that is said in the Law and the Prophets, basically what we call the Old Testament. In other words, Jesus is saying that if we all loved others the way God wants us to, the Bible could have been a lot shorter! (Matthew 22:36-40).

Americans have it really good, and I am happy about that. But it does cause me to stop and think about how even the poorest person in the U.S. is rich in comparison to most of the world’s population. Jesus had a lot to say about what we do with our blessings including our time, talents, and earthly possessions. In the book of Luke, Jesus makes a powerful statement on this topic:

“Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required” (Luke 12:48).

It is not as if Jesus is asking something of us that he was not also willing to do.

“…the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).

The apostle Paul said, “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully” (2 Corinthians 9:6).

Solomon said, “Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered” (Proverbs 11:25).

With so many things to be worried and stressed about, it is a challenge for any of us to keep from being negative or making everything about us. But scripture clearly teaches that those who give their anxiety to God (1 Peter 5:7) and commit to seeking God’s kingdom first (Matthew 6:33), and that includes being a blessing to others, will find it well worth their efforts. 

Have a great week!

Above the Sun: Immersion and forgiveness are connected

by Barrett Vanlandingham
May 16, 2021 

            Since 2007, when I started writing this column, I have tried to stay true to what the Bible teaches on any topic. I figure that’s what the world needs, more truth, less opinion.

In regards to today’s title, “Immersion and forgiveness are connected,” I knew I better be able to back it up with scripture since the religious world is not only conflicted on what it means to baptize, but also whether it is even necessary for our salvation.

            The word “baptism” comes from the Greek word “baptizo” which means to immerse, dip, plunge, or submerge. “Baptizo” was used by the Greeks to describe submerging a cloth under the water to dye it. This word was also used to describe the sinking of a ship.

So, it would be accurate to read Mark 16:16 as “He that believes and is immersed (baptized) shall be saved.”

            But since most of you reading this are not Greek scholars (neither am I), and none of us lived in the first century, let’s look at the Bible and how it clearly demonstrates that baptism was immersion.

            After Jesus was baptized by John “in the Jordan” (Mark 1:9-10), he "went up from the water" (Matthew 3:16).

When the Ethiopian was baptized, he is described as going “down into the water" and "coming up out of the water" (Acts 8:38-39).

The Old Testament uses “baptizo” when Naaman “went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times” to be miraculously cured of leprosy (2 Kings 5:14).

In both Romans 6:4 and Colossians 2:12, baptism is called a "burial" and "resurrection" that re-enacts Jesus’ burial and resurrection. If someone asks you to bury something, would you sprinkle it? No. Would you pour something on it? No.

            Now that we’ve looked at how baptism was done, let’s look at why? One popular but incorrect answer is that baptism is an outward sign of our inner grace already received. Another is that baptism is simply an act of obedience expected of those who have already been forgiven. But the Bible teaches that baptism is the point at which Christ promised to remove sins.

            Look again at Mark 16:16. Jesus said that salvation follows belief and baptism.

Also, in Acts 2:36-38, when the people “were cut to the heart” and indicated their belief in Jesus by asking Peter, “What shall we do?” Peter told them to "Repent and be baptized… in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins." This passage makes it clear that forgiveness of sins follows repentance and baptism. Remember, the people had already believed.

In the story of Paul, he was told to "Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins" (Acts 22:16). You see, even though Paul had believed in Jesus, and repented (turned away from the life he was living in error), he still had his sins. So, in order to complete his obedience, he must be baptized to wash away his sins. It was at the point of baptism that his sins were forgiven. At this point, a believer can truly begin to “live a new life” (Romans 6:4) clothed in Christ (Galatians 3:26-27).

So, who should be baptized? A repentant believer who has turned away from the world’s ways, and has decided to follow Jesus. How should one be baptized?  Immersion. Why should one be baptized? Forgiveness of sins to start a new life, saved in Christ.
            Have a great week!