Categories
Christian Living

Who is Jesus?

Learn about Jesus through the Testimony of Others in the Bible

Who is Jesus? C. S. Lewis attempted to answer this question when he popularized a trilemma (a dilemma with 50 percent more content) about Jesus.

He argued that Jesus is either a liar, a lunatic, or the Lord. If you’ve read many of my posts, you know that I pick the third option.

Jesus is Lord. Jesus is my Lord.

Of course others deride Jesus, calling him a charlatan or a crazy man. And other people have other characterizations of Jesus too. But let’s set all these perspectives aside and look at what the Bible provides as an answer to the question, “Who is Jesus?”

We’ll start and end with what father God says about his only Son, but we’ll also consider many other biblical voices as well. This list isn’t extensive, but it is what I could quickly come up with.

Interestingly, I found the most input from my outspoken namesake, the disciple Peter. (These are all taken from the NIV.)

Who Is Jesus?

  • “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased” -God, Luke 3:22
  • “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, that one of the prophets of long ago has come back to life.” -Peter, Luke 9:19
  • “the Son of God” -religious leaders (incredulously), Luke 22:70
  • “the King of the Jews” -Pilate (questioningly), Luke 23:3
  • “a righteous man” -the Centurion (confidently), Luke 23:47
  • “God’s Messiah,” -Peter, Luke 9:20
  • A man who has “done nothing wrong” –the criminal on the cross, Luke 23:41
  • “the Messiah, the Son of the living God” -Peter, Matthew 16:16
  • Jesus is “a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people,” -the pair on the road to Emmaus, Luke 24:19
  • “My Lord and my God!” -Thomas, John 20:28
  • “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher) -Mary Magdalene, John 20:16
  • “Rabbi” -Peter, Mark 11:21, along with many others, including Judas who eventually betrays him
  • “the Son of God; you are the king of Israel” -Nathanael, John 1:47
  • “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” -God, Matthew 17:5

So Then, Who is Jesus?

Putting these together gives us a composite understanding of who Jesus is and how we can relate to him. Most importantly, we can focus on God’s own testimony: Jesus is the Son of God and we should listen to him.

May we do exactly that.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

Categories
Christian Living

Can We Make Up Our Own Religion?

King Solomon Mixed Religious Practices and God Was Not Pleased

In the Old Testament of the Bible, God tells his people to not marry those from other nations, folks who believe differently and worship other gods (Deuteronomy 7:3).

This isn’t so much to keep the bloodline of his chosen people pure but to keep them safe and their faith in God intact.

That’s why he says to not worship other Gods (Exodus 34:14). Mixing religions never works.

King Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, wasn’t so wise when it came to women. Aside from having a ton of wives and lots of women on the side, many came from other nations who believed in different gods and not the God of the Bible.

It could be Solomon forgot what God commanded his people to do or that Solomon didn’t care. It might be he thought the rule was silly or it didn’t apply to him.

Perhaps he assumed he was too smart to let his foreign-thinking wives influence him. Newsflash: he wasn’t (1 Kings 11:2).

In his old age, his foreign wives distract him, turning his heart away from God and toward foreign gods. This divides his attention, and God isn’t pleased.

Though Solomon doesn’t fully turn his back on God, his devotion waivers. He splits his heart’s focus. In addition to biblical God, Solomon also pursues Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek, the god of the Ammonites.

He honors these gods and worships them (1 Kings 11:4-13).

God Is a Jealous God

The Bible says that God is a jealous God (Deuteronomy 6:15 and Exodus 34:14). He’s jealous of our attention and isn’t content with part of it. He wants all of it.

Because Solomon divides his attention, God removes some of the blessings he had previously given to the king and punishes him.

If we want a relationship with the God of the Bible, we need to do what the Bible says. We must give God our full attention. If we try to mix in other spiritual or religious practices into our pursuit of biblical God, it dishonors him and splits our attention.

If we’re merely trying to make ourselves feel good or find some sort of enlightenment, we can pursue any course that works for us. We can mix religions, practices, and philosophies to produce something that makes us happy. But that’s as far as it goes.

However, if we want a relationship with the God of the Bible, we need to do what the Bible says and pursue only him. Mixing different religious practices won’t work.

If we try that, we run the risk of making God into our own image instead of recognizing that he made us in his image.

Mixing different religious practices together is making up our own religion. It may make us feel good now, but it offers little hope of spending eternity with the God of the Bible.

With time in perpetuity at stake, we better do what the Bible says and ignore all other ideas as mere distraction.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

Categories
Personal Posts

There Has to be a Better Way

I don’t know if I wasn’t listening or am slow to catch on, but it wasn’t until later in life that I realized how to land a job:

  • The purpose of a resume is to secure an interview,
  • the purpose of an interview is to sell yourself well enough to receive an offer, and
  • the purpose of an offer is to negotiate a compensation package for your new job.

Silly me. I thought that people should just hire me because I could do the work—and would do it well. (I wouldn’t have applied if I didn’t believe that.)

I viewed the application/resume and interview steps as unnecessary irritations in the process.

As far as compensation negotiations, just skip that part and pay me what I am worth.

The sad reality is that—except for a few positions, such as sales or marketing—being able to pen a compelling resume or conduct a convincing interview is no measure of one’s ability to actually do a job, merely their ability to obtain a job.

The result is that unsuited people are hired and—I fear—good people are overlooked. There has to be a better way.

The same is true in politics. You need to be able to raise money to campaign and you need to be able to debate well to raise your poll numbers and you need to speak with conviction to create interest among the electorate.

But these skills have little bearing on your ability to lead well. Whether it is obtaining a job or being elected, the conventional processes do not allow the best person to prevail.

There has to be a better way.

Do you like this post? Want to read more? Check out Peter’s book, Bridging the Sacred-Secular Divide: Discovering the Spirituality of Every Day Life, available wherever books are sold.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Bible Insights

Are You a Good Samaritan?

Helping Our Neighbors Should Be More Important Than Following Religious Rules

A man comes up to Jesus. The guy’s an expert in Jewish law. Today we might call him a theologian. He asks Jesus a question, “What should I do to earn eternal life?”

The answer is simple. There are two steps. Love God and love your neighbor as much as you love yourself. It’s that easy. Love God and love others. Then you’ll have eternal life.

Who Is Our Neighbor?

This must make the theologian squirm, because he asks Jesus, “Well, who is my neighbor?”

Then Jesus gives him a parable, that many people call the parable of the Good Samaritan. This is how it goes.

Robbers beat up a man and leave him for dead.

A religious leader (a priest) walks by and ignores the man. Later another religious person (a Levite) does the same.

It could be they’re in a hurry or that helping this hurting stranger will somehow cause them to break one of their religious rules. Or it may be that they just don’t care. Regardless they fail to help their neighbor in need.

Then a religious outcast (a Samaritan) comes upon the wounded man. The Samaritan attends to the man’s injuries, takes him to a safe place, and pays someone to look after him.

“Which of these three men,” Jesus asks, “was a good neighbor to the hurting man?”

The answer is the Samaritan, but the religious theologian can’t bring himself to say that word out loud. Instead he merely says, “the one who showed mercy.”

Jesus then tells the theologian to go and do the same thing.

Be a Good Samaritan

Though the religious people of the day dismissed and even despised Samaritans, it is the Samaritan—the good Samaritan—who does the right thing and earns Jesus’s approval.

Who are we in the story? Are we religious insiders who fail to help our neighbors in need, or are we someone who pushes religious rules and people’s expectations aside to do what is right?

Or may it be we’re like the theologian who would rather focus on words then action.

Though I want to be like the Good Samaritan, I fear that too often religion gets in my way.

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is Luke 10-12, and Today’s post is on Luke 10:25-37.]

Read more about the book of Luke in That You May Know: A 40-Day Devotional Exploring the Life of Jesus from the Gospel of Luke, now available in e-book, paperback, and hardcover.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Christian Living

What I’m Learning by Praying for People

We Honor God and Obey the Bible When We Share Our Prayer Requests with Others

Prayer is an important part of my life. It’s part of my daily practice and essential for my work and relationships. I daily pray for God’s blessings and provision for my family and close friends.

I also regularly pray for people who read my words, both in this blog and my books.

I pray for you as a group, that God will bless your life and inspire you through what I write in my ministry of words.

I also pray for the people who receive my newsletter updates. Sometimes I call them followers and other times fans, but friends may be the best term of all. Every few months I ask these friends to let me know how I can pray for them specifically.

The Bible tells us to pray for each other (James 5:16), but prayer is something I offer as an act of service. It’s both a joyful privilege and a sacred burden to pray for them when they share their prayer requests with me.

The Global Church of Jesus

As people share their concerns with me, my appreciation for the global church of Jesus grows. We are so beautifully diverse. We come from different cultures, countries, and races. We have various experiences and struggles.

Our perspectives of God may differ, but we share our faith in Jesus.

The prayer requests I get from people in the United States are far different from what I might get from some of my friends in Africa or Asia.

But each prayer request is just as valid and just as real to the person who asks me to pray for them. And it’s just as important to God.

When I pray for my friends around the world, my concerns often seem trivial in comparison. In contrast to them, I live a safe and secure life. Yes, God is a real part of my everyday life, but his provision to ensure my daily existence is not as urgent.

My friends on my mailing list inspire me with their prayer requests. Some have great pains, others share weighty concerns, and many inspire me with their faith and great desire to boldly move into becoming who God wants them to be.

When I pray for them, I am both honored and humbled.

They remind me that we serve a great and powerful God.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

Categories
Personal Posts

Three Kinds of Capitalism

Capitalism is under fire. Pundits take potshots at capitalism. They decry its evil nature and harmful outcomes. Indeed much of this criticism is warranted. Just look at the many people who practice it wrong. I call this, greedy capitalism.

Greedy Capitalism

Greedy capitalism is the insatiable lust for more. Profits, not for any real purpose other than to increment their money scorecard by another dollar.

Monetary gains sought with no ethical compass to guide it. This includes exploiting workers, defrauding investors, cheating on taxes, stealing from the innocent, backstabbing stakeholders, and insider trading. The list goes on.

It’s no wonder practitioners of greedy capitalism receive the sneers of those who witness it. Yet not all capitalism is greedy. There are two other kinds we don’t often hear about.

Entrepreneurial Capitalism

Entrepreneurial capitalism is the backbone of prosperity. It’s the driver of small business, those men and women with a vision to produce a product or provide a service.

For their efforts, they dream of earning a profit to care for themselves and provide for their families.

Entrepreneurial capitalism is the backbone of what made the United States great. It is us pulling themselves up by our bootstraps. We pursue industry, raise our standard of living, and become self-sufficient.

Yet there is a risk when entrepreneurial capitalists become too successful, when profits far exceed needs. Then they place themselves at risk of becoming a greedy capitalist, but there is a third option, a higher calling.

Philanthropic Capitalism

Enterprise for the benefit of society.

This is where philanthropic capitalism come in. Its vision is to first provide for oneself and then to care for others: donating money to worthy causes, financially supporting others so they can help those in need, using business as a means to benefit humanity.

Capitalism is good. Greed is bad. Join me in decrying greedy capitalism, while upholding the virtue of entrepreneurial capitalism and philanthropic capitalism.

May we use money wisely to care for ourselves and benefit others.

Do you like this post? Want to read more? Check out Peter’s book, Bridging the Sacred-Secular Divide: Discovering the Spirituality of Every Day Life, available wherever books are sold.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Christian Living

We Must Listen to the Holy Spirit and Obey Him

God Gives Us Holy Spirit Inspiration to Guide Us for Our Benefit and His Glory

For the last week, I had planned to write the introduction to my next book. I had the whole thing outlined, and I knew what I wanted to cover in the opening pages. Each day I asked God to give me the right words, but nothing came.

Inspiration eluded me. So instead of working on that book, I worked on another one.

Yesterday morning, during my morning exercise ritual, part of which includes praying, one of my topics for the day was to “Pray for Holy Spirit inspiration.” I prayed.

The words for my uncooperative introduction flooded into my mind. I know from experience that I must capture them immediately or they will quickly fade, eventually disappearing altogether.

I stopped exercising at that moment and sat down in front of my computer. I wrote for the next hour. With my introduction finished I resumed exercising.

I learned the hard way that when I’m inspired to write something—whether directly from the Holy Spirit or indirectly—I must write immediately. If I don’t, I will lose those words and inspiration. And they may not return.

Holy Spirit Inspiration

The Holy Spirit is my writing muse, and I must not ignore him.

Yet the Holy Spirit speaks to me at other times too. Sometimes this is insight for me or to share with another. Other times it’s something I must do.

To my discredit, I’m not always so quick to jump when the Holy Spirit gives me direction. At times I question his words because they make no sense to me, and he needs to tell me twice—sometimes three times. Then I act.

However—and I’m ashamed to admit this—sometimes I don’t act at all. Instead I debate with the Holy Spirit. Surely he didn’t mean what he said, because it makes no sense.

Could it be that I heard wrong? This happens. In the end I talk myself out of following through.

When the Holy Spirit tells me to write, I learned I must do so and do so immediately. I wish I could respond just as quickly when he tells me to do other things.

May I learn to do so and learn quickly.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

Categories
Personal Posts

Should Everyone Really Have a College Education?

Several years ago, the United States made a concerted political push to increase home ownership rates. The idea was to help renters become buyers. Politicians argued this would have many benefits for those who made the jump.

This included an increased standard of living, greater self-esteem, and financial security (by building up equity). As a result, many people who shouldn’t have bought houses were pushed into doing so.

This was exacerbated by some lenders who got greedy, sub-prime loans, and the assumption that balloon payments would not be a problem.

The belief was that the housing bubble would not collapse. We now know that these forces conspired together to create a perfect storm for economic disaster.

We now know the truth, not everyone should own their home.

A Free College Education

It seems that the political emphasis has switched from owning your own home to getting a college degree. Indeed the current mantra is “free college education for everyone.” Never mind that not everyone is college material.

Some need to pursue a trade, join the service, or directly enter the workforce. Sending the ill-equipped, the unmotivated, and or uncaring to college will do nothing to make them better. But attending will saddle them with student loans.

It will also harm the overall learning opportunities offered at the institutions they attend.

In addition, if everyone obtained a college degree, then those seeking to distinguish themselves will feel a push into grad school. Indeed some fields are already like that.

If this effort to send everyone to college succeeds, the result will not be them getting a better job, but merely an upward push on required qualifications, as well as more money spent on schooling and increased student debt.

It will only be a matter of time before the college bubble bursts—just like the housing bubble before it.

Do you like this post? Want to read more? Check out Peter’s book, Bridging the Sacred-Secular Divide: Discovering the Spirituality of Every Day Life, available wherever books are sold.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Christian Living

We Must Give God All Our Heart

Ten Things to Do Wholeheartedly for God

In our post Go All in For Jesus, we talked about the importance of giving God our whole heart, all our heart. The Bible repeatedly tells us to do things with “all your heart.”

This means to not do things halfheartedly, that is with a split allegiance or divided focus. Instead we must do everything with our whole heart, not half way but all the way.

This idea of doing things for God with our whole heart occurs in both the Old and New Testaments of the Bible.

Half of them appear in Deuteronomy, but the most significant times are in the New Testament, quoting the words of Jesus, when he tells us to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.

Discover what the Bible tells us to do wholeheartedly:

1. Love God with All Our Heart

The most common thing we are to do whole heartedly is to love God. This is in both the Old and New Testament, first coming from God to Moses and even more importantly coming from the lips of Jesus.

We must love God fully (Deuteronomy 6:5, Deuteronomy 13:3, Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, 33, and Luke 10:27).

2. Serve God with All Our Heart

Another frequently mentioned instruction is to serve God wholeheartedly. This means we’re to work for him, to do things for him.

When we do things wholeheartedly our actions become a witness to others of how important God is in our lives (Deuteronomy 10:12, Deuteronomy 11:13, Joshua 22:5, and 1 Samuel 12:20, 24).

3. Turn to Him with All Our Heart

The idea of turning to God wholeheartedly shows up in three forms: turn to God (Deuteronomy 30:10), returning to God (1 Samuel 7:3), and return to God (Joel 2:12).

This idea of turning to God ties in with repentance. When we think of repenting as making a U-turn to follow Jesus, we know that we must do so with our full heart.

4. Seek God with All Our Heart

We must look for God, to go after him wholeheartedly. Jeremiah says that we if do this with all of our heart, we will find God (Deuteronomy 4:29 and Jeremiah 29:13).

5. Observe His Commands with All Our Heart

The Bible tells us things that we must do, which we must pursue wholeheartedly (Deuteronomy 26:16). The context refers to the Old Testament Law, but is that the extent of the instruction, or does it apply to the whole Bible.

6. Obey God with All Our Heart

Connected with the idea of observing God’s commands is to obey them (Deuteronomy 30:2). Though this may be two words that look at the same action, is it possible to observe something without obeying it?

7. Trust Him with All Our Heart

One of the better-known verses about this subject is a proverb to trust God with every bit of our heart (Proverbs 3:5). If we trust God wholeheartedly, that means we aren’t putting trust in ourselves or our situation. We’re handing all our trust to God.

8. Take Hold of His Words with All Our Heart

Next we are to take hold of God’s words (Proverbs 4:4). In Proverbs, Solomon instructs his son, but in this verse, it isn’t Solomon’s advice. It’s God speaking to Solomon—and to us.

9. Be Glad and Rejoice with All Our Heart

We are also to praise God wholeheartedly, with happiness and joy (Zephaniah 3:14). This may be through our worship music, but even better is when it’s through our actions and our words in everyday life.

10. Work at It with All Our Heart

In all that we do we must work wholeheartedly, not just to gain the favor of others, but also as though our work—all of our work—is for God (Colossians 3:22-23).

Though this verse specifically addresses slaves and their relationships to their masters, shouldn’t it also apply to employees and their relationships to their bosses?

God Deserves All Our Heart

These are ten things the Bible tells us to do with all our heart, not halfheartedly but wholeheartedly. In doing so we honor God with our words and our actions. He deserves nothing less.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

Get the Bible Reading Tip Sheet: “10 Tips to Turn Bible Reading from Drudgery to Delight.”

​Enter your info and receive the free Bible Reading Tip Sheet and be added to Peter’s email list.

Categories
Personal Posts

How Much is Enough?

When asked “How much would be enough?”, John D. Rockefeller reportedly answered, “just a little bit more.”

That push for more has propelled people to accomplish some amazing things, but left unchecked and unexamined it can leave a wake of devastation—destroying lives, organizations, and resources.

When the push for more focuses on wealth, it is never satisfied. Seeking more can become an inescapable snare.

Many people live beyond their means. For them, they desire just a little bit more. They are, in fact, greedy.

A few people live at their means. They spend responsibly, not letting their reach exceed their grasp. But even these people are often one paycheck away from the collapse of their subsistence.

They are living on the edge; financial disaster is knocking at their door.

It is rare for people to live beneath their means, to live more simply than they can afford, to save money and give money away. They are wise.

Whichever category we find ourselves in, we’ll do well to ask, how much is enough?

Do you like this post? Want to read more? Check out Peter’s book, Bridging the Sacred-Secular Divide: Discovering the Spirituality of Every Day Life, available wherever books are sold.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.