To The Seventh Generation

The tunnel was pitch black. The water rushing over my legs was ice cold. Our team of four crouched through the narrow space while holding the flashlights of our cell phones above our heads to give some light in the darkness. The water tunnel, two feet wide and 5-6 feet high, showed ancient pick marks surrounded by green algae. I was grateful for my water shoes since the surface of the passageway was smooth, but quite uneven. The echo of the rushing water and people’s voices reverberated off the stone walls. I was overwhelmed thinking of the 2700 years of history in this remarkable 1,750-foot carved, snaking bedrock channel. The tunnel was originally excavated by two teams, one starting at each end of the tunnel and then meeting in the middle. Where are we?

The Siloam Tunnel in eastern Jerusalem in the ancient City of David. It was dug during the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah so he could fortify the city against the invading Assyrian armies without compromising its main water source. Today, it is considered an extraordinary feat of engineering. A miracle!

I’ve always admired Hezekiah. The book of 2 Kings describes him as a very good king; a reformer. He destroyed idols and pagan temples. He trusted and obeyed God and was very prosperous. The Bible says there was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, both before and after him. But...he wasn’t perfect.   

At one point in Hezekiah’s reign, he became deathly sick, and the prophet Isaiah warned him to put his affairs in order. Hezekiah begged for healing and God gave him 15 more years to live and a miraculous sign to prove it. Meanwhile, the son of the King of the idolatrous Babylon, heard about this and sent messengers with a get-well card and a gift, inquiring about the miracle. Pridefully, Hezekiah gave these messengers a private behind-the-scenes tour of his palace, armory, treasury, and storehouses showing them everything in his palace and Kingdom. What was he thinking?

When the prophet Isaiah learned about this, he in essence, said to Hezekiah, “You've been tricked, and the condition of your heart revealed. A day will come when everything in your palace will be carried off to Babylon. Worse yet, some of your own descendants will be taken away and will be servants in the palace of the king of Babylon.” Hezekiah responds with relief that the consequences of his actions would not happen until after this death.

Hezekiah’s pride, selfishness, and lack of foresight in his present affected future generations to come.

How often do we make hasty decisions without considering the long-term effects on us, those around us and those to come? 

It could be a job or schedule change, an out-of-town move, a marriage, a change in church membership, a decision impacting health and illness, the choice to share our faith, and the list goes on and on. 

I recently learned about the Iroquois Indians’ seventh-generation principle. This dictates that decisions that are made today should be fair and meet the needs of seven generations into the future. How wise!

The Life Application Bible states: “The past affects our decisions and actions today, and these, in turn, affect the future. There are lessons to learn and errors to avoid repeating. Part of the success of your past will be measured by what you do with it now and how well you use it to prepare for the future.”

We don’t have to walk blindly through dark, narrow tunnels. Neither should we make hasty, short-sighted decisions. If we slow down, seek God through His word and prayer, and live humbly, He will light the way. He gives sure-footed wisdom, and the foresight needed so our actions and decisions today leave a positive and godly legacy for generations to come.

Karen Kinnaird brings the vast experience of having served as a ministry wife for nearly 38 years. Her husband has served as a church planter, senior pastor, state denominational leader, agency specialist at NAMB, and Associational Missionary Strategist. Karen currently serves as the Executive Assistant for Forgiving Forward, a ministry dedicated to helping people experience the freedom of the Gospel through the power of forgiveness. Karen and Jimmy, also known as Gigi and Poppy, have 3 children and 3 grandchildren.

This blog originally appeared in the www.Touchinghearts.tv blog.

Follow Jesus

“And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”” (Matthew 4:19, ESV)

We all follow someone. 

But following Jesus is not like following someone on social media. It’s not like following a sports team, or just keeping up with someone we admire or respect. 

Following Jesus is totally different from these other expressions of following. Following Jesus in the setting of the Essentials of Gospel of the Kingdom of God is about being an apprentice, a disciple to Jesus.

In the time of Jesus, the discipleship process was one that was characterized by a rabbi-to-disciple arrangement. Jesus, in His public ministry, was considered a rabbi. In His day, there was no formal or accredited training program to become a rabbi. A rabbi was known, not by his credentials but by his performance. A man was a respected rabbi due to his public recognition, his words and his deeds.  

A person who wanted to be a rabbi didn’t go to seminary. There was no seminary. Instead, he would seek out a rabbi he emulated and would attach himself to him. If accepted by the rabbi, the apprentice would start a lengthy period of very close association with the rabbi. This would of course involve watching him, hearing him and seeking to imitate him. He, and perhaps other disciples, would travel and basically live with him, seeing how he handled not only teaching, but the everyday mundane and unexpected events of life. He would serve the rabbi in whatever he told him to do.  In short, they would seek to be like him in thought, word, character, deeds and abilities. 

To follow someone we must be with them. 

It’s not possible to follow someone in the way I’m describing without being with them. We find in the New Testament that Jesus’ disciples were with him. 

“Afterward he was traveling from one town and village to another, preaching and telling the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him,” (Luke 8:1, CSB)

To follow Jesus, these disciples went where Jesus went. To follow Jesus, they had to be within earshot to hear his message on the Kingdom of God. 

“While he was praying in private and his disciples were with him, he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?”” (Luke 9:18, CSB)

To follow Jesus these men were with Him in the most intimate moments. He also wanted them to share their unguarded thoughts. An intimate trusting relationship goes both ways.  

“When the hour came, he reclined at the table, and the apostles with him.” (Luke 22:14, CSB)

To follow Jesus means to go with Him to places we would rather not be. The disciples were with Jesus as He instituted the New Covenant, which would be in His own blood. This began the dark days of betrayal, fear, denial, and doubt for His disciples. It was a time of anguish and surrender for Jesus, but also the defining time of purpose and victory. 

So, to follow someone we will need to be with them in both the good and the bad. We will be with them in public and private. In following Jesus, there is no time away from Jesus. To be with Him, we must always be following Him in the ups and the downs; in the mundane and in the exciting. 

The more we are with them, the more we will be like them.

Jesus even made this observation. 

“A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher.” (Luke 6:40, CSB)

Jesus said that if we would follow Him, He would change us. That is what “I will make you” means. 

Jesus will change us if we follow Him. If we are not changing, then we are not following; or at least following in the way Jesus wants us to follow. We cannot follow Jesus and follow our way. He determines how to follow. He determines what needs to change. 

What will Jesus change? Everything that is in our life that is not like Jesus. That is all He will change. He will change what will make us to be more like Him. There are several things he will change. 

He will change our beliefs. Jesus wants us to believe, what He believes, about who God is and what He does.  He will change what we believe about ourselves and what we are to do. 

He will change our hearts to reflect His attitudes. We are called to love God with all our hearts and the people around us as ourselves. 

He will change our character to reflect the character that God intends for His children living in His kingdom.  The Apostle Paul called this the “Fruit of the Spirit.” 

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. The law is not against such things.” (Galatians 5:22–23, CSB)

He will change our behaviors. We will function in a “Kingdom of God” way instead of the ways of the world. The ways of God are often not logical to the human mind, but they are always good, noble, full of grace and truth. 

The more we are like them, the more we see how real change takes place.

As the disciples were with Jesus, they saw Jesus’ deeds and heard His words. After some time observing Jesus, they started to do things with Jesus. They participated in what Jesus was doing, even if it was small, such as bringing the fish and loaves to Jesus before a hungry crowd. After observing Jesus and participating with Jesus, they were sent out by Jesus. 

“Summoning the Twelve, he gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. Then he sent them to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.” (Luke 9:1–2, CSB)

Here’s the process as I understand it.

1. Jesus announced the availability of the Kingdom of God. It was the good news of the Kingdom. 

2. Jesus taught about how things were done in the kingdom of God. He did this through parables and His famous “Sermon on the Mount.” He also contrasted the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees with His teaching to demonstrate Kingdom values and principles. Most of the religious leaders did not believe in the power of God or understand the ways of God.  

3. Jesus manifested the present power of the Kingdom of God. He healed the sick, cast our demons and raised people from the dead.  (Matt. 4:23, 9:35, Lik 4:18-44. 

4. Then, over time, He sent the disciples out to do the things they had heard, seen and experienced with Jesus. They were successful, but there was a cost.

The more we change, the more we count the cost. 

There are always those who believe following Jesus will solve all their problems. It will certainly solve many problems. It will solve the most important problems, but it will also give you a different set of problems. There is a cost to following Jesus. 

Jesus warned those who would follow Him about this cost. 

“As they were traveling on the road someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus told him, “Foxes have dens, and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” Then he said to another, “Follow me.” “Lord,” he said, “first let me go bury my father.” But he told him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and spread the news of the kingdom of God.” Another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me go and say good-bye to those at my house.” But Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”” (Luke 9:57–62, CSB)

It will cost us our home. We will feel like we do not have a real home in this world. For this world is not our home. Disciples of Jesus do not consider this world their home. Their home is now in God’s Kingdom. 

It will cost us our family. They will not understand and may even reject us, or Jesus will call us away to minister to people who are not like our own. It may end up being a little of both. We will pay the price of following Jesus rather than following our family. 

It will cost us our priorities. There are many good things we could do that seem right. But we must not second guess what the Lord tells us specifically to do. We must not compromise what God has revealed to us in His Word, no matter how reasonable something may seem. Our priorities as a disciple of Jesus are Jesus’ priorities. Not the other way around. 

In counting the cost, we weigh the price of discipleship.

Following Jesus is going to put us in direct conflict with this present world and its kingdom. It will likely put us in conflict with those we love and with those who love us. It happened to Jesus. We are no better. It will happen to us. There is a price to be paid for following Jesus. 

But I want us to think for a moment, what is the price of not following Jesus? What is the price of non-discipleship? Jesus answered it this way:

“Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it. For what will it benefit someone if he gains the whole world yet loses his life? Or what will anyone give in exchange for his life? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will reward each according to what he has done.” (Matthew 16:24–27, CSB)

It will be hard, but it will be worth it. Even if we could gain the whole world, we will lose our life. We will stand before Jesus. Remember, that is the first of the essential elements of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God: We are accountable to God. 

There was a time in the ministry of Jesus when people were realizing the cost of following Jesus and turning away. Jesus then said this to the twelve, “You don’t want to go away too, do you?”

Here’s what the Gospel of John records Peter saying:

“Simon Peter answered, “Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”” (John 6:68–69, CSB)

There is no one else we can go to for the words of eternal life. 

The price of discipleship is surrender.

We saw it in the passage where Jesus said that anyone who would follow him must deny self, take up their cross, and follow Him. This is surrender. This is the price. 

We surrender to Jesus as Savior. We surrender to Him as Savior because we cannot and will not and will never be able to save ourselves. We cannot even save ourselves from ourselves! The sinless Son of God died a sacrificial atoning death on the cross in our place for our sin. He paid for all our sin: past, present and future. He is the Savior. He is the only Savior. He needs to be without a doubt our Savior. He didn’t die for most of our sins. He didn’t die for only the big sins. He died for all our sin. 

We surrender to Jesus as Lord. He is our boss. He is our king. He is our master. We are not our own. We have been bought with a price. Jesus paid for us with His life and His blood. We don’t get to choose to have him as Savior but not Lord. They go together. We must surrender to Jesus. When we surrender to Him we surrender to Him as Savior and Lord. If we go our own way and not His way, you will go without him. 

To be a disciple of Jesus we must recognize and accept who Jesus is and place ourselves under his authority. To follow him is to be behind him. 

The prize of surrender is the abiding manifest presence of the master.

Remember Jesus said that a disciple is not above his teacher but when a person is fully trained, they will be like their master. The fulfillment of this comes through the abiding presence of Jesus through the Holy Spirit as He lives and works in and through the surrendered disciple. Take a moment to meditate on the following promise of Jesus for those who surrender. It is a prize worth the whole world. 

“Jesus answered, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. The one who doesn’t love me will not keep my words. The word that you hear is not mine but is from the Father who sent me. “I have spoken these things to you while I remain with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you.” (John 14:23–26, CSB)

I believe it was Augustine of Hippo who said, “He who has God has everything; he who has everything but God has nothing.”

Believe the Gospel

“For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Anyone who believes in him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God.” (John 3:16–18, CSB)

You can believe the good news about the kingdom of God. You can trust in the king of this newly opened-to-us kingdom and therefore trust what He has said and done. Certainly the belief I’m writing about is more than acknowledging propositions. It is what I call a saving faith. It is an active trust in the person and work of Jesus for your salvation both now and forever. This is saving faith, this is believing the Gospel. 

“For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—not from works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8–9, CSB)

“Now faith is the reality of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen. For by this our ancestors were approved.” (Hebrews 11:1–2, CSB)

In the New Testament Book of Hebrews, chapter 11, there is an impressive list of biblical characters who accomplished great things because of their faith. They range from Abel to Noah to Abraham and Sarah, to Moses to Daniel, and beyond. All these believed in the promises of God, so much so that they staked their very lives and eternity on it. In Jesus we have the fulfillment of these promises. We who believe the Gospel are included in that long line of believers. 

“All these were approved through their faith, but they did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, so that they would not be made perfect without us.” (Hebrews 11:39–40, CSB)

As we think about “Believing the Gospel” I want to describe what this kind of belief or faith is and how it works. Yes, this faith does work. 

First, biblical faith is real and objective. 

Hebrews 11:1 says faith is the reality of what is hoped for...proof of what is not seen. They are real things. They are real and they are proof. They are not ideas in our heads. They are outside of us. There is an objective reality. God acts in our would. What Jesus Christ has done, He did in real time and space.  Biblical faith is not a philosophical proposition, but based on real objective events, many of these were promised by God thousands of years ahead of time. 

Second, biblical faith is a future expectation based on present evidence.

Faith has a future quality. It is the reality of what is hoped for. The word for “reality” or “substance” as many Bible translations have it, is used 5 times in the New Testament. Two by the Apostle Paul and it is translated as "confidence" in 2 Corinthians chapter 9:4 and 11:17. The other three times it is found in the Book of Hebrews chapter 1 and 11. 

In Hebrews "reality" is more of a 'demonstration' than a confidence or an assurance. It is active, anticipatory, energetic and seeking. So to “believe the Gospel” has a future orientation based on the past and present record of what has been promised and kept.

Third, biblical faith is believing what is real but not seen. 

"The proof of what is not seen." As Hamlet said to Horatio, "There are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy." Actually this is even true on just the physical level. Our eyes can only see so much. Yet there are universes full of things and living organisms that we cannot see with the eye. There are light waves that our eyes cannot comprehend. The human visible spectrum is much smaller than the amount of light waves, for example infrared light is just outside of our spectrum. Just because you can't see it does not mean that it's not real. In many ways, seeing is not believing and still in many ways seeing is believing. 

Fourth, biblical faith is what connects people to God and saves them. This connection of faith brings even physical healing, reception of the promises God made to Abraham, entrance into the Messiah’s kingdom, and God’s forgiveness and power both now and later. See the Scriptures below.

“By faith in his name, his name has made this man strong, whom you see and know. So the faith that comes through Jesus has given him this perfect health in front of all of you.” (Acts 3:16, CSB)

“The purpose was that the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles by Christ Jesus, so that we could receive the promised Spirit through faith.” (Galatians 3:14, CSB)

“for through faith you are all sons of God in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:26, CSB)

“For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—” (Ephesians 2:8, CSB)

“You are being guarded by God’s power through faith for a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter 1:5, CSB)

Fifth, biblical faith has four dimensions to it.

First I want to start with an intellectual dimension. This is basic knowledge concerning Jesus Christ: Who he is, what he has done, but also who are we, what are we then supposed to do. They are the basic facts concerning Christianity. Knowing and acknowledging facts do not count as saving faith.  “You believe that God is one. Good! Even the demons believe—and they shudder.” (James 2:19, CSB) Yet, there are certain facts that need to be known.

Second is a relational dimension. Biblical faith is not a system of doctrines but a relationship with a person. How you are related to that person will determine the effectiveness of your faith. Relationships begin. Relationships grow and they become stronger as time is spent and experiences made. In other words, biblical faith is not static but dynamic. We should all remember this. Family is still family, but because of time, love, service and experience with someone, you will be closer to them and they to you. Your faith will grow and flourish or languish in relation to the amount of time you purposely spend with Jesus. 

Third is an emotional dimension. This can be more of a thermometer of where you are with God. Questions to ask: Do you desire Him? What about love? Love has an emotional element. So does faith. Genuine belief makes you have a stake in what happens and it will affect your mood. Certainly faith is in the head, but it is also in the heart and in the gut.

The last dimension to consider for biblical faith is the volitional dimension. This dimension engages a person’s will. Faith is certainly a gift from God (see Ephesians 2:8) but it is also a choice. You can choose to have faith. When you choose to believe the Gospel, you are not choosing against reason or reality, you are choosing for it. You must make a decision one way or another. There is not a third option. You don’t have a choice to not make a choice. Not making a choice is choosing not to believe. In one sense believing the Gospel is moving from believing in God to believing God. To faithing God. 

I cannot remember a time when I did not believe in God. I was taught from an infant the stories of the Bible. I knew them. Yet I did not believe it. I thought I believed, but I didn’t have all the dimensions of saving faith. I believed in my head but not in my heart. I didn’t have these until I was confronted with Jesus and my need to surrender my life to Him and make Him my Savior and Lord. I still remember that day. It was a Wednesday morning on a hot August 17th day. Everything changed because I was changed. This is what it means to believe the Gospel. Believe it now.