Tag Archive | Christianity

Another Birthday

© Wendy Anne Clark, 2026

Another year has passed, and like many before it, it was a very quick year, and still a lot happened. There were some big events: at the beginning of the year, our daughter Heather and her husband Phil had their first child, our first grandchild, Luke, and we flew to Marseille soon after he was born to meet him. Roy and I, along with Haley and Hannah, took a trip to visit the family again at the beginning of June. Two trips to France, flying “standby,” which is its own kind of adventure. We took a trip to the Grand Canyon and attended the wedding of our niece, Karli, in Arizona. We traveled to see a Christmas concert in Chicago–Michael W. Smith, Amy Grant, CeCe Winans.

I continued immunotherapy treatments for endometrial cancer while, at the same time, a friend with a similar diagnosis, on a similar timeline, chose to stop her cancer treatments and went to be with Jesus. I don’t know how to process the similarities and differences in our journeys, but they have caused me to lean even more heavily into Jesus and to trust more firmly in God’s plans for me, whatever they may be.

We moved to a new house again this year. We have now lived in 6 houses in the 11 years that we have been in the Wood River Valley. This move was unexpected because at the end of 2024, the owner of the house assured us that we would be able to sign a new lease for another year at the end of April, 2025, but, in March, she changed her mind and told us we would need to leave by April 30th. Unexpected and certainly inconvenient since I had surgery in March, and Roy had surgery in April, and neither of us could lift boxes or move furniture. But . . . we were able to hire movers to help us this time, and we had the help of many friends, so we were settled into a new house at the first of May.

Though we continued to look for a new location for the Coffee House and the House Church, we were unable to find a place that would work, and we moved church to the new house–a beautiful place with lots of room and a pastor and his wife as landlords. We recognize this house as a very gracious gift from God at just the right time.

Most of life, however, is not made up of the big events, but the ordinary, everyday ones, interspersed with challenges and celebrations. Every day, meeting with God in the morning, as I have done for decades now. Studying through Isaiah, starting Jeremiah and Proverbs, re-reading and reflecting on The Practice of the Presence of God, reading Dallas Williard’s book Renovation of the Heart, biographies of Mother Theresa and Lottie Moon, several novels by Charles Martin, and too many Bible study books to name.

Praying daily through long lists of prayer requests for family and friends and strangers. Writing articles and talks, filming YouTube videos, listening and watching personal testimonies of faith and videos on apologetics.

For women’s Bible study we worked through the Navigator’s book Growing Strong in God’s Family. Our group went through some growth, from a consistent two, to a consistent seven or eight, something that God decided to do. I continued preparing for and leading worship for our church service and cooking dinners each week.

Every Sunday, I met with two groups of ladies at the jail for worship and Bible study. It’s difficult to express how meaningful this is in my life and all that God is teaching me through this experience. I am so thankful for this opportunity. If you ever get the opportunity to serve, and on the surface it looks like “work,” don’t be afraid to step up and step in. Don’t miss the amazing things God will do when we just keep showing up.

Last year, at the first of the year, I chose the word “new” for a spiritual focus for the year. I reflected on these two passages:

Remember Not–Isaiah 43:18-19

“Remember not the former things,
    nor consider the things of old.
Behold, I am doing a new thing;
    now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
    and rivers in the desert.”

Remember–Isaiah 46:9-10

“Remember the former things of old;
for I am God, and there is no other;
    I am God, and there is none like me,
declaring the end from the beginning
    and from ancient times things not yet done,
saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
    and I will accomplish all my purpose.”

What new things did I encounter? New grandson, new home, new ideas, new friends, new visitors to church, new group of ladies at the jail, new understanding about God’s plans, God’s purposes, and God’s ways.

I had to let go of my vision of the Coffee House and the House Church and wait on God for what He wants to do next and how He wants to do it. We are still expecting that we will have a neutral ministry location to reach out to and to connect with our community, a version of the Coffee House, but it will not be what it was before. We perceive that God is doing a new thing. We don’t yet fully know what that will look like.

My word for this year is “rescue,” and the verse that has brought focus to the word is Proverbs 24:11:

“Rescue those who are being taken away to death;
hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter.”

God’s purpose for me is that I would do my part to reach out to rescue those who are lost and perishing, to act as an ambassador on God’s behalf and call out loudly: “Be reconciled to God” and then to point to Jesus as the only way of salvation.

The door to the ark is open, and the storm clouds are gathering overhead, but only those who will enter into the way of salvation that God has provided will be saved. All those who seek to save themselves in some other way will be lost. There were no life boats, floating around the outside of the ark. And when the time was right — God Himself shut the door.

So this year, I will focus on what it means to reach out to rescue those who are perishing, to pull back from the edge those who are teetering over the cliff. I will focus on having a greater sense of the urgency of sharing the Gospel and even more boldness and courage.

“And pray also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel . . . Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should” (Ephesians 6:19-20).

And now I am 62, and I look forward to another year walking with Jesus and growing in knowledge, understanding, and wisdom.

God’s Way of Salvation

Jan14

© Wendy Clark, 2026

I was recently asked a series of “why” questions that are important to talk about because they are prevalent in our culture and underline many of the arguments that people make when they oppose Christianity or they walk away from it.

Why do we need saving?

Why does sin require a blood sacrifice?

Why can’t God save us some other way?

God uses the physical world to teach us things about the unseen spiritual world. Though it is unseen, it is right here with us, and is just as real as all of the things we can perceive with our senses. We are all sometimes aware of things that aren’t physical in nature but are so close and so real. Some individuals seem to have a heightened awareness of things that are real, but are outside of our ability to perceive them with our physical senses. We know that there is something more than just the physical world.

One of the things that we understand about the physical world is that it is governed by fixed laws, gravity for example. Gravity is a reality of our physical world, and we are subject to its force whether or not we know about it, understand it, or believe in it. I can live as if gravity doesn’t exist, but if I defy its reality, I will discover that it is just as real for me as it is for everyone who believes in it. Gravity is a fact, a truth of this physical world and living on the earth.

Studies in the sciences are only possible because there are fixed laws that we can observe. By scientific study, we seek to figure out what those laws are and how they operate and discover ways to work within those fixed laws. In the same way, we can use math and measurements only because there are fixed laws in the physical world. Two plus two equals four whether I know that truth or not, whether I believe it or not. Two plus two will continue to equal four. If I decide I have some better way of adding, and I create my own system of math with its own rules, I can use that system of math to build a bridge, and I will discover that the rules of math that exist apply whether I believe in them or not. I can’t build a strong, supportive, reliable bridge if I defy the fixed rules that govern our physical world.

God uses the Bible to teach us that just as there are physical laws that govern the physical world, so there are spiritual laws that govern the spiritual realm. There are fixed spiritual laws, and just like the physical laws, it does not matter whether or not I am aware of them, understand them, or believe in them. I am still subject to them because I am subject to reality and what is true, and I can’t escape the spiritual laws by ignoring that they exist.

Once we understand this truth, we begin to study that Bible in order to grow in the knowledge and understanding of what God says is true. We want to know what God says about Himself, about this world, about us, about holiness and sin and salvation. We want to know what God says is the way to live a full and flourishing life. We want to know the truth.

When someone says something like, “Well, if I were God, I would do things in an entirely different way,” this person has missed the point that there is a reality, a truth that exists outside of ourselves and our thoughts and desires and opinions about how things should be. We can’t make spiritual things operate according to some other set of laws. We can only seek to discover how the spiritual realm is set up and how it operates. What are its fixed laws? We want to know, and God has graciously revealed many things about the spiritual realm to us through the Bible, His word to us. The best we can do is to align ourselves with what we learn from God about how to live our best lives, both in this life and in Eternity.

What does the Bible tell us about what is true of the spiritual realm? What are some of these fixed laws that it is important for us to know about and understand?

God is holy and perfect in every aspect of His character.

He is perfect in wisdom and knowledge and understanding, in justice and in mercy, in compassion and in love. He is completely truthful and trustworthy and faithful, always keeping His promises. He doesn’t bend with the circumstances or change according to shifting perspectives and opinions. He is far above all rule and authority on this earth and far beyond our ability to comprehend Him. He is all powerful and all knowing. We cannot escape His view or hide anything from Him. He sees down into our hearts.

All human beings are sinful, and our sin separates us from God.

We were created in the image of God for the purpose of walking in relationship with Him and giving glory to His name. And every person has strayed from this purpose. There are no exceptions.

The Apostle Paul writes this in Romans 3:21-24 (NIV):

“But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

We were created to have complete and perfect fellowship with God, but because of our sin, our rebellion against God’s plans and purposes and ways, we are separated from God, who is holy and without any imperfection.

As a result of that broken connection, that separation, in this life we experience broken relationships, broken homes, and broken hearts. Our sinfulness affects our lives in the present physical world and at the same time, it affects our lives in the spiritual realm.

At the center of our sin problem is our rebellion against God and His plans and His purposes and His ways. If we acknowledge God, we often still want to make up our own minds about how things should be and about what would please God. If we don’t acknowledge Him, we govern our lives according to our own reason and understanding, our own sensibilities and feelings. We set ourselves up as gods in place of the God of the universe. God tells us that this is no small or insignificant thing.

There is only one way to bridge the gap between our sinfulness and God’s holiness.

God has provided the way for our salvation, a way that works within the fixed laws that govern the spiritual realm. God’s way is the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, taking our place for our sins, and shedding His blood for the forgiveness of our sins. Jesus said clearly and plainly, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except by Me” (John 14:6).

Jesus, dying on the cross AND rising from the dead, is our way of salvation. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to those who study the Scriptures because God has been revealing this truth over thousands of years.

God set apart a people for Himself, the Children of Israel, and He laid out a canvas on which He demonstrated for us in the physical world the realities of God’s holiness, provision, and love, and man’s sinfulness and rebellion against God. Through His interaction with the Children of Israel, God shows us His willingness to provide a deliverer, a savior to rescue His people. He shows us the importance and necessity of our response to His invitation, to choose Him and His ways above all else.

Before He even gave His people the law, God chose them and set them apart as His own. Then He raised up Moses to deliver the people out of bondage. On the last night before their deliverance, there was a requirement that involved shedding the blood of a spotless lamb and spreading that blood over the doorpost of the house as a covering that would protect the firstborn of the household from death which would visit Egypt in the night.

All those who followed the instructions and put the blood on the doorposts experienced salvation from the angel of death that visited that night, even those who weren’t among the people of God. But all those who did not follow the instructions, found out that God’s instructions still applied to them, and the first-born all over Egypt perished in the night, even in Pharaoh’s household. There was a fixed spiritual law that even Pharaoh could not escape.

It is later that God gives His people the law and establishes a covenant with them. It is later that He will require a blood sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins and tell them that “the life is in the blood” (Leviticus 17:11). He will reveal spiritual truths about sin and uncleanliness and what it means to be “clean” before a holy God, and He will teach about these things through physical laws and rituals and observances.

Much later, after the death and resurrection of Jesus, the writer of Hebrews explains more of what was going on back when God’s people were delivered out of bondage, wandered in the desert for 40 years, entered the land that was promised to Abraham, and faced the enemies of God. It is in Hebrews that we learn that “without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins” (Hebrews 9:22). We learn that the blood of bulls and goats could never take away sin and only acted to cover sin and point the way to a more perfect sacrifice. (Hebrews 10).

What was always required, according to the fixed laws of the spiritual world, was the blood sacrifice of a perfect human being, willingly offered as payment for the sins of the human beings of the whole world. But in order for that sacrifice to cover for our sins, that person would need to be a perfect, “spotless lamb”, without blemish, as was always revealed to us in the Old Testament covenant that God established with His people. Since “all have sinned,” the only way for this sacrifice to be made, was for God Himself to take on human flesh, live a completely sinless life as a human being, and offer Himself, die in our place for our sins. (John 1). His resurrection from the dead confirms for us that He is indeed God and able to die in our place, save us from our sin, and restore our fellowship to the Father.

Why is a blood sacrifice required for forgiveness of sins? Why doesn’t God come up with some other way? Why is free will a part of the plan? Why doesn’t God compel all people to believe and accept His plan and be saved?

We can study the Word of God and reason through all of these questions and come up with some theories and ideas and some understanding of why, but in the end, we our forced to rely on faith to bridge the gaps where we don’t have a clear understanding of why things are the way God tells us that they are.

It requires faith to believe that God is telling us the truth about Himself, our sin, and the way of salvation. Do we believe that God is good, just, merciful, compassionate, loving, kind, trustworthy, faithful, powerful, and holy? He doesn’t ask us to have a blind faith. We see evidence of the truth all the time. The Apostle Paul tells us that “a man reaps what he sows” (Galatians 6:7), and we see this demonstrated in real life all of the time. If we decide to live as if this is not true, we will not escape reaping what we sow. We can test the things that Scripture tells us are true, and in testing, come to see how true they really are, but we are still required to exercise faith.

So what then about the people we know who do not turn to God but are so kind and good and generous and loving. Can’t that goodness be enough to save them? The Apostle Paul addresses this idea when he writes, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9, NIV). In the same chapter Pauls says this, “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (verse 13). The way to bridge the gap between God’s holiness and our sinfulness, the only way, has always been through the blood sacrifice of Jesus. No matter how good a person seems to us, that “goodness” cannot save him.

The Scriptures go further and teach us that no one is truly good apart from God. If you could follow every aspect of the law, keeping it perfectly, Jesus still points out that your heart would not be keeping the law perfectly (Matthew 5:21-43). We are sinful deep inside, rebellious against God’s ways, and that sin still separates us from God, even when we look pretty good compared to a lot of other people around us.

Surprisingly, Jesus talked a lot about hell, and His teachings should make us deeply uncomfortable because He seems to be saying that it is very bad, that it lasts for eternity, and that many people will end up there, even people that we think are “good” and that maybe for whom we would like to devise a “plan B” method of salvation, even some who prophesied in HIs name and did miracles and cast out demons (Matthew 7:21-23). He speaks of hell as a very serious warning, that your own works of righteousness will not usher you into the eternal presence of God.

The problem that we often have in thinking about hell is that we have experienced the effects of the presence of God whether or not we seek after Him and walk in His ways. His Holy Spirit lives in His people and is to some extent, restraining evil on the earth. At times we see and experience things like self sacrifice and generosity and true goodness–evidence of the presence of God. But it is important for us to understand that in Eternity a great separation will occur. And those who reject the atoning sacrifice of Jesus for their sins on the cross will have rejected the only means available to be forgiven of sins and to live in the presence of God–with all the things that flow from His presence. The problem that we have is that we think we can have the things of God, apart from God. And Scripture tells us that we are wrong.

What are some of the things that flow out of the presence of God? Light, warmth, comfort, peace, joy, hope, honesty, compassion, love, healing–wholeness of mind, body and spirit– sweetness, fun, laughter, beauty, satisfaction, contentment, even pleasing fragrances and tasty foods. All good things flow from the Father. We’ve all had moments when we felt these good things so intensely that we were overwhelmed by the wonder of it all. But these moments give us just a taste of what it will be like to live fully in the presence of God.

What then can we expect to find apart from the presence of God in that place where He is not?

Darkness, cold, chaos, corruption, deception, manipulation, bitterness, ugliness, decay, filth, stench, abuse, rage, malice, prejudice, hatred, pain, disease, suffering, torment. We have all experienced hints of these things as well. We have heard of and experienced such evil that we can’t even fathom it coming out of the heart of a human being. But even the most terrible thing that we have ever read about or heard testimony of, is only a small taste of the horror of living without the influence of the goodness of God.

Can you see why our mission is to tell people, “Be reconciled to God!” and then to point the way to Jesus as the only way?

Jesus says, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me” (Revelation 3:20, NIV). If you sense that knocking, in a spiritual sense, your next move is to respond to the invitation and open the door, not to go looking for some other way of salvation.

Probably of most concern to many are those people who live in a place where they are unlikely to ever hear anyone talk about Jesus or even mention His name. But the Apostle Paul says that every person has been invited to look around and see the evidence of God in everything that He has made. Paul writes, “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools . . .” (Romans 12:20-22). God has shown Himself plainly to all of us through creation, and when we look at notice and acknowledge that what we see points to a Creator, and we reach out to try to know Him, He responds to our seeking by reaching out to us and revealing more.

In the times of the Old Testament, God’s people didn’t know specifically about Jesus or about the role Messiah would play in their ultimate salvation, but they were still saved by faith, faith that God was the only means for their salvation, faith that the blood sacrifice rituals were important and meaningful and essential for the forgiveness of sins. Not all who practiced these things did them by faith, however. God rejected the sacrifices of those who followed the rituals and confessed their sins, but never turned away from their sins or walked in God’s commands. Theirs were empty and useless sacrifices.

Peter tells us this about God: “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.Instead He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9, NIV). 1 Samuel 16:7 reveals that God sees deeply inside a person: “But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” God rejects some people that gain our approval because we simply do not see what He sees.

Because we trust in the goodness and mercy and love and compassion and kindness of God alongside His holiness and justice and righteousness and judgment, we trust Him with those who we assume would not have heard the name “Jesus.” And at the same time we hear amazing stories of those we thought would never hear, but did. We can trust that those who seek after God will find Him because God tells us that they will. We can trust that He will deal with each individual to give them the best chance at being saved. Paul said that the exact time and place was chosen for each one of us to be born so that we might have our best chance at reaching out to Him and being saved (Acts 17:26-27).

It is not our job to come up with other plans or other ways for people to be saved from their sin. To tell people that God’s plan for salvation doesn’t apply to them–they can just be good–is like telling them that the law of gravity doesn’t apply to them and encouraging them to step off the edge of a cliff. Proverbs 24:11 says that it is wise to rescue a person from destruction, to turn them away from the path that leads to their demise.

Because we believe that God is telling us the truth about the unseen spiritual realm, about His holiness, and about sin and how it harms us and separates us from God, we trust Him with the parts that we don’t fully understand, and we step out as ambassadors for Jesus, representing Him well, and pointing to Him as the way to be saved and reconciled to God. “Be reconciled to God!” is an important and urgent message, and it is all the more urgent because we know that having a personal relationship with Jesus, this side of Eternity, brings us to a place where we can live our very best possible life on this earth in this physical reality. We don’t root for the death-bed confession of faith–though we still celebrate it. How much better it is when people turn to Jesus to be saved and turn away from the sin in their life and walk in newness of life, long before they take their last breath and step into Eternity.

Again, why is Jesus and the blood atonement on the cross for our sins necessary for us to be forgiven of our sins and live in fellowship with God? Because it is a spiritual reality that we can’t escape that life is in the blood and that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. But why? It is enough that God says that it is so.

What Is True?

Sep30

© Wendy Clark 2025

People who speak in the public square are being persecuted for their belief in absolute truth. Those who persecute them have their own definitions of both “God” and “Jesus,” and push back against the truth. This is why they can dress, speak, and behave in disgusting and foul ways and still say that they are “a good person,” or that they love God or say that they are Christians or that they follow Jesus and then accuse people like Ben Shapiro and Charlie Kirk and those who stand up against abortion or transgendered ideologies or sexual sins or those who say that Jesus is the only way to be saved, of being ungodly or not Christ-like or of being evil.

It used to be that you could talk about God all day long and most people would smile and nod but to talk about Jesus was a dividing line that sent the other person walking angrily in the opposite direction, but now, in most cases, you can talk about both God and Jesus–just as long as you don’t get too specific about what might be required to truly follow.

People are happy to “live and let live” as long as they can hold onto their general and squishy ideas about God, Jesus, and what is right and good. It is your “moral certainty” that they find “hateful” and “dangerous” because they rightly assess that the truth is the enemy to all they hold dear.

Isaiah 5:20-21, NLT
“What sorrow for those who say
    that evil is good and good is evil,
that dark is light and light is dark,
    that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter.
What sorrow for those who are wise in their own eyes
    and think themselves so clever.”

John 3:19-21, NLT
“And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.” –Jesus

Philippians 4:8-9, ESV
“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”–Paul, Apostle of Jesus

Jesus Died on the Cross for our Sins

Sep29

©Wendy Anne Clark, 2025

How do we know that Jesus died on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins and not just as a man who was executed by the Roman government?

First of all, God promised a Messiah and gave many prophecies about this Messiah. It was prophesied that the Messiah would suffer for the sins of all people. Other prophecies about the Messiah say that He will establish a kingdom and rule justly over all the world.

One thing to understand about Old Testament prophecy is that it has a dual nature to it. Some parts have already been fulfilled, and some parts are yet to be fulfilled. Sometimes we see it fulfilled at more than one place in history. So it is legitimate to say that Jesus came and fulfilled the prophecies concerning the Messiah as a Suffering Servant, and that He will come again to fulfill the prophecies of a king coming to rule and to reign, as prophesied to John in His vision on Patmos that we know as “Revelation,” the last book in the Bible.

Messiah as a Suffering Servant

Until about 1100 A.D. Jewish rabbis believed and taught that the Suffering Servant, the individual spoken about in Isaiah 53, was the prophesied Messiah. In the mid 1100s A.D., a French rabbi named Rashi taught that the Suffering Servant described by the prophet Isaiah is not a person, but the nation of Israel or the Jewish people as a collective. Since then, this has become the common teaching of rabbis for the meaning of Isaiah 53, but sometime later, most rabbis stopped reading it aloud in synagogue or teaching on it at all because it raises so many questions.

Today, the majority of Jewish people will never hear a teaching on Isaiah 53, and if they ask their rabbi about it, they are likely to be told that it is not something they would understand. This is the testimony of many Jewish people who decide that Jesus is the Messiah after they read and pray over Isaiah 53, which is sometimes called “the forbidden chapter.”

Messianic Jews are Jews who believe that Jesus is the promised Messiah and fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament. When they share the Gospel with Jews, they often choose to begin with Isaiah 53 and establish that the rabbis taught this passage as being about the Messiah until only relatively recently in history. They then point out that prophecy states that the Messiah will come before the destruction of the second temple, which occurred in 70 A.D.

They point out that we can conclude that the Messiah already came and they ask, who lived before 70 A.D. that could possibly have been the Messiah? Who could Isaiah 53 be describing? And very often Jewish people can come to that answer on their own. Jesus seems the obvious answer.

How do the rabbis explain why they believe the prophecy was not fulfilled and that God did not send the Messiah before the destruction of the temple as He promised? How can they still be waiting for the Messiah to come? They say because the people weren’t ready to receive Him, God had to delay His promise and did not send the Messiah when He had said He would come. That explanation doesn’t really work because the prophecies describe exactly that many of His own people will not be ready and will not receive Him. And the Bible is clear that God always keeps His promises.

Numbers 23:19
“God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?”

John the Baptist

Old Testament prophecy says that there will be a messenger who will come to prepare the way of the Messiah. John the Baptist points to himself as the messenger and to Jesus as the Messiah. The word “Christ” means “Messiah” or “Anointed One”:

John 3:26-28
And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him.” John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’

John the Baptist points back to the prophecy of Isaiah:

John 1:23
He said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.” (Isaiah 40:3)

Matthew, the disciple of Jesus, also points back to the prophet Isaiah when he describes John the Baptist:

Matthew 3:1-3
“In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.’”

Isaiah 53 is so important because it says that the Messiah will suffer before He comes into His kingdom and rules and reigns. After Jesus died and rose from the dead, the disciples remembered this and understood, but the Jewish people for centuries focused not on the Messiah who would suffer, but on the time when He would come into power and rule over the whole world, and this is why many Jewish people rejected Jesus because He did not overthrow the Roman oppressors.

Let’s take a look at the prophecies in Isaiah 52 and 53 that relate to the Messiah. Notice the words that point to sin and him dying for our sin like “transgressions” (rebellion against God and general rebellion and the guilt and punishment that it carries), “iniquity” (depravity and the guilt and punishment that it carries), “chastisement” (discipline or correction for error or going the wrong way), “an offering for guilt” (a sin offering), “he bore the sin of many” (the sins and the punishment and guilt that they carry)

Isaiah 52:13-15
“Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted. As many were astonished at you—his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—so shall he sprinkle many nations. Kings shall shut their mouths because of him, for that which has not been told them they see, and that which they have not heard they understand.”

Isaiah 53
“Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. 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.

“Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. 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.

“He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.

“Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.

“Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.”

Job referred to God as his “Redeemer.” (Job 19: 25) This was the idea that someone would come and pay a price that would set another free. The Apostle Paul refers back to this idea and uses it as an analogy for slavery to sin and the salvation from sin that comes through Jesus.

Paul’s Letter to the Romans

Russel Brand in a recent discussion of the death of Charlie Kirk, said that he told Charlie that he was reading and studying Romans, and Charlie told him that Romans is the Christian equivalent to the U.S. Constitution, that it lays down all of the foundational tenants and beliefs for the Christian faith. In his letter to the Romans, Paul explains sin and salvation and how the blood of Jesus was a blood sacrifice that pays for our sin and redeems us from the just punishment that is coming for all sin. He explains grace and how it is a gift that we do not deserve, freely given to us.

Here is how Paul begins his letter to the Romans. (I chose to use the New Living Translation here because Paul deals with some complicated ideas, and the NLT makes things easier to understand. I also have left out verse numbers, so that it’s easier to read this as the people first received it. Chapters and verses were added much later to make it easier for us all to look things up.)

Romans 1:1-5
“This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News. God promised this Good News long ago through his prophets in the holy Scriptures. The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David’s family line, and he was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord. Through Christ, God has given us the privilege and authority as apostles to tell Gentiles everywhere what God has done for them, so that they will believe and obey him, bringing glory to his name.”

Remember that the word “Christ” means “Messiah” or “Anointed One.” “Good News” is what the term “Gospel” means. This is what we are told to go and preach in order to make disciples. Paul establishes what that “Good News” is in this letter to the Romans. It’s a very important letter, and that may be why there are people who say they do not pay attention to the teachings of Paul. If you do, it’s impossible to argue that one can be saved by his own efforts and “good works.” But here’s what Peter says about the teachings of Paul:

2 Peter 3:15-16
“And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him— speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted his letters to mean something quite different, just as they do with other parts of Scripture. And this will result in their destruction.”

So those who toss out the teachings of Paul must also reject the teachings of Peter because Peter affirms Paul and his teachings.

In the rest of Romans 1, Paul establishes that all people everywhere have had the truth of God’s existence revealed to them through Creation, through everything that God has made, and this truth hasn’t been hidden from anyone in the world, throughout all of human history.

In Romans 2, Paul introduces the idea that to not obey the laws of God is to sin and that the only way to not be a sinner is to obey all of the laws of God perfectly. He says that no one is able to do that and that we will be judged for our sin, according to the law.

Paul continues this teaching in Romans 3, establishing that all people are sinners, Jews and Gentiles. No one escapes the requirements of the law. He says that everyone is under the power of sin, and he refers back to Psalm 14 and Psalm 53:

Romans 3:10-18
As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous—not even one. No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.”

“Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave. Their tongues are filled with lies. Snake venom drips from their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. They rush to commit murder. Destruction and misery always follow them. They don’t know where to find peace. They have no fear of God at all.”

Paul explains the purpose of the law:

Romans 3:19-20

“Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God. For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.”

Then he repeats that every human being is a sinner and that Jesus came as a sacrifice for our sin:

Romans 3:23-25
“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood . . .”

Paul makes it clear that we cannot save ourselves by obeying the law.

Romans 3:27-28
“Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith. So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law.”

In Romans 4, Paul talks more about faith, and he uses Abraham as an example. Even though Abraham lived before Jesus, he lived with the understanding that it was God who would provide a sacrifice for his sin and save him. Looking back, we are able to see this as the meaning behind the event where God asked him to sacrifice Isaac and then provided a sacrifice instead.

Romans 4:20-25
“Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.”

In Romans 5, Paul says this about Jesus as a sacrifice for our sins:

Romans 5:6-9
“When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation.”

In Romans 6, Paul talks about how the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross sets us free from the power of sin and death.

Romans 6:12-14
“Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.”

Romans 6:20-23
“When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.”

In Romans 7, Paul talks about the sin struggle and the reality that though we are no longer slaves to sin it hasn’t left us entirely. In Romans 8, he tells us that we are not condemned when we are in Christ and still fail and sin, that this sin does not lead to spiritual death, but we are guaranteed eternal life because Jesus already paid for our sin: past, present, and future.

Romans 8:1-2
“So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.”

Romans 8:9-11
“But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.”

There is so much more that the Apostle Paul teaches about sin and salvation and faith and grace, but this is enough to see that yes, Jesus died specifically for our sins, to save us, to redeem us, to take on the punishment that we deserved for our sin and to make us righteous before God.

This is what Paul says is the most important teaching to know and understand:

1 Corinthians 15:3-6
“I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. He was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve. After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died.”

The Teaching of John

This is what John, the Apostle, says about who Jesus is and why He came to earth:

John 1:10-14
“He came into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognize him. He came to his own people, and even they rejected him. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.

So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.”

The Teaching of Peter

This is what Peter, the Apostle, says about Jesus dying on the cross:

I Peter 2:24
“He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.”

I Peter 3:18
“Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.”

But what did Jesus say about Himself in regards to why He died and the significance of His death?

At His last Passover dinner before He was crucified, Jesus picked up a cup known as “the cup of redemption.” He held it up, and He used it to point to Himself. The disciples would have recognized that Jesus took a cup that had always been used to remember their redemption from slavery in Egypt when God provided Moses as a deliverer, and He gave that cup a new significance.

Matthew 26:27-28
And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many.”

What was this covenant that Jesus refers to and that the disciples knew well? It was a blood covenant, a spotless lamb sacrificed for the forgiveness of sins. John the Baptist refers to this covenant when he points to Jesus and says this: “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29)

Jesus, referring to Himself as “the Son of Man,” says this:

Mark 10:45
“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

The Bible absolutely teaches that Jesus died on the cross in our place to take the punishment for our sins. This teaching is central to what it means to be a Christian. Though it is through the Apostle Paul that we get most of the detailed and specific teaching about the cross, we also understand that He died for our sins by reading the Old Testament prophecies about the coming Messiah, what John the Baptist said about himself and about Jesus, and what Matthew, Peter, and John wrote about Jesus. And we also know it from what Jesus said about Himself and His death on the cross.

There are people throughout all of history who rejected Jesus as dying for our sins on the cross and yet still referred to themselves as “Christians.” But Christians, those who are disciples of Jesus or “little Christs,” believe what the Bible teaches about who Jesus is and why He came.

What We Believe Matters

Jun18

© Wendy Anne Clark, 2025

I was recently reading a Christian book where the authors kept talking about Believers and the “destiny” that they have in Christ. While I understand and agree with what they are trying to communicate, that God has things He desires for your life, I have to reject the word “destiny” as an unbiblical word. A devout Calvinist might disagree with me, but “destiny” is not taught in Scripture.

“Destiny” is the Greek idea that there is an “inevitable or necessary fate to which a particular person or thing is destined; one’s lot” or “a predetermined course of events considered as something beyond human power or control.” (The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.) It carries with it the idea that, not only is something planned for you, but that you can in no way escape that plan.

However, Scripture teaches that while God is sovereign and all powerful and could make us all fall in line with His perfect desires for us, He does not. Instead, He lays out possibilities in front of us and lets us choose. He says, “Today, I set before you life and death. Choose life that you might live” (Deuteronomy 30:19). With the choice that He lays before His people, God explains the consequences that will accompany the different choices.

This choosing goes all the way back to the garden where God provides everything that Adam and Eve need to live and flourish and commands them to avoid one tree, set in the very center of the garden. He doesn’t then compel them to not eat or compel them to eat–either would have confirmed the idea of destiny; He lets them choose. Had God simply plucked that tree from the garden, there would have been no choosing.

Was there simply no other way this story could have unfolded? Was there really no choice to be made? God knew from the foundations of the world what the outcome would be, and He had a plan of redemption even then. Does that mean that sin was the destiny of mankind? We just had to be sinners, from the very beginning?

I know I am getting into the philosophical and theological weeds, and most people won’t be interested, and it is not my purpose here to spin questions that we can’t answer in any satisfying manner. My point, my concern is that we ought not use a word like “destiny” that carries with it baggage that doesn’t easily correlate to Biblical teaching.

In the book I mentioned, The Cure, by John Lynch, Bruce McNicol, and Bill Thrall, the authors define “destiny” as “the ordained intention God has sacredly prepared with your name on it.” Then, a couple of paragraphs down they write, “Tragically, not everyone will fully realize the dreams God holds for them.” This is, however, not destiny. If one can escape it, it is not “destined” to be. That’s what the word “destiny” means. If it is your “destiny,” it will simply happen, no matter what you do.

Why does this distinction matter? The authors of the book The Cure are working to push back against and unravel wrong ideas of what it means to be saved and to walk in the Spirit. They do a very good job of sorting through what it means to live according to the Law and what it means to live by grace. But, destiny is an idea that permeates and pollutes the Christian community. It influences some people to think that if they will just mosey along, eventually they will happen on what God has for them, whether or not they give any attention to seeking after God or growing spiritually. It influences other people to think that the sin they keep falling into is simply an inevitable part of their story, a destined path they were always meant to walk. (BTW, this is not the teaching of The Cure.)

Linked to the idea of destiny is the belief in the “soulmate.” This too is found in Greek philosophy. It’s the idea that there is really only one person for each one of us, but strangely, although one cannot escape his destiny, one can miss his soulmate and end up searching and longing throughout life for that missing piece–that spot that only one can fill. Some believe that you keep looking for and finding the same soulmate in multiple lives or that if you miss that person in this life, there is always a chance for you to meet again in some other life.

I have had discussions with Christians who are convinced that their spouse is their “soulmate” and that there is no way that they could have married anyone else. God would have prevented that from happening, destiny. Of course, it is only those who have happy, healthy marriages who have this perspective. The danger of this thinking is that it invades the troubled or challenging marriage and a person might come to believe that he or she married the “wrong” person. Instead of committing to learning to love each other and grow together, the idea of the “soulmate” provides an easy way out, in order to keep looking for that one, right person.

But the Bible doesn’t teach this idea. What the Bible does teach about whom to marry is to ask God for wisdom (James 1:5), look at the fruit of a person’s life (Matthew 7), don’t be unequally yoked (2 Corinthians 6:14-16), and seek wise counsel (Proverbs 12:15). And the Bible teaches that God’s desire is for marriage to be a life-long commitment of love and faithfulness on both sides. The Bible does not teach that you couldn’t possibly make a bad choice in choosing a mate. Many have learned that the hard way.

At its worst, naivety about the importance of careful thought and much prayer before choosing to marry has derailed many a life that had been headed for ministry. How many people spend time fasting and praying before they walk down that aisle? How many have admitted that even as they were getting ready to say “I do,” they were not certain that doing so was the best choice for their lives or even that they “knew” they were making a bad choice? Too many.

I have lived long enough to see many pastors leave ministry because of their wives’ unwillingness to live a life of service to a community of Believers. I have seen many women who longed to be involved and serve in the church, find themselves out of town every weekend because of a husband who does not share their desires (and, of course, this goes both ways).

So while we are sorting through ideas and thoughts and teachings and separating the worldly perspectives from the Biblical ones, let’s toss out the ideas of “destiny” and “soulmates” as ideas that have some appeal but are not really true, and let’s hone in on the truth and live by it and keep encouraging each other to do the same.

Choose Wisely

Jun16

© Wendy Clark, 2025

Isaiah 48:17-18, ESV
Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way you should go.
Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments!
Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea . . .”

The sad truth is that though we cannot alter God’s sovereign purposes, we can limit God’s working in our present life. The choices that we make every day, minute by minute, matter. They add up to something. We can choose in ways that align with God’s plans and His purposes and His ways, which lead to peace “like a river” and “righteousness like the waves of the sea.”

Peace like a river–flowing, steady, cleansing–a deep peace that comes from being in the presence of God. In the eternal kingdom it is a river of the Holy Spirit that flows out of the presence of God, out of His throne, and into the surrounding city. By living according to God’s commands that peace, the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit, flows within my life right now, in this present life.

Righteousness like the waves of sea–constant, inevitable, powerful. Walking in God’s ways, living according to His commands, leads me to the path of righteousness. Through the power of the Holy Spirit in me, I am changed, conformed to the image of Jesus over time.

But I don’t have to be.

I can choose poorly, and I can live unwisely. And God gives that freedom to me.

I am convinced that God gives us freedom because freedom to choose, even to choose unwisely, is good and right and holy. He grants this freedom to His angels, created to serve Him. He grants that freedom to us, created to worship Him and to bring Him glory. Though He could, by His power and His will, lock us up and force us to obey, He does not. He shows us the right path, the holy and perfect path, and then He sets us free to choose it or to choose some other path.

And we are always choosing.

The very good news is that, even if we have been on the wrong path, choosing unwisely, going our own way, at any time we can surrender and realign ourselves to God’s path, to God’s ways. We can make this switch when we have started off a day heading in the wrong direction. We can make this switch even if we have traveled on the wrong path for many days or weeks or months or years.

It is not easy to move from one path to another, and the longer we have traveled in the wrong direction, the more difficult it may be, and it will require the power of the Holy Spirit in us and a constant and consistent surrender of self, my own plans, my own purposes, my own ways, to God’s plans, His purposes, and His ways. And make no mistake, His ways are not our ways, and surrender will require something of us.

But it is worth it to “consider myself dead to sin” (Romans 6:11). The Apostle Paul writes:

“When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life.” (Romans 6:20-22, NLT)

Paul says that though we are no longer slaves to sin as we were before we had the Holy Spirit living in us, we still have to choose to live as free from the power of sin.

Today, choose life that you might live.

The Shifting Culture of Higher Education

Apr5

I have been thinking about my college teaching experience as well as some of the ideological battles that have been taking place over the past few years. I began teaching college writing and critical thinking classes in California in 1991 and taught part-time until we moved to Idaho in 2014. I was not unhappy when I left, but I had observed so many changes over the years, and I may well have left at just the right time for me.

I still love teaching, and I loved teaching and cared about my students in the couple of decades that I taught. I found it to be a very rewarding job. Here are some of the changes I saw over the years that were leading to the “woke” culture that many have referenced as taking over many colleges and universities.

I’m not sure of the timeline, but a colleague who was the head of the English Department and was a white woman, was accused of being a racist. This sweet and kind woman who was loved by many faculty and students and was defended by many, found that she could not “prove” that she wasn’t a racist.

The “evidence” brought forward–by another colleague–was very weak and to me seemed to be manufactured and manipulated. The result was that the head of the English department became an elected position, rather than an appointed one. The woman who brought forward the charges against the current head was elected to that position–just once. The woman who lost her position continued to teach and to prepare for her retirement, but she was wounded by all that had been said about her.

I saw no evidence that shifting this position to an elected position instead of a position that was appointed by the head of the Language Arts Department benefited those of us teaching in the English Department. The woman who brought the charges and then was elected to the position was not better at it than the woman who had held that position for some time and was experienced at it. The primary way I was personally affected by the person holding that position was that she was in charge of assigning teaching assignments. The appointed woman had been very skilled at that task. The newly elected woman, not so much. She was a “woman of color.” Did that make her better at the job? Not so much. I preferred the women who previously held the position primarily because she had been very helpful and encouraging, and I had learned a lot from her. I had no real interaction with the woman newly elected to this position.

I remember a faculty meeting where this woman talked about how frightened she was as a woman of color every time that she went to the bathroom by herself. I asked if there had been any incidents at the college that I wasn’t aware of. Had anyone been accosted in the restroom? This was important to me because I often taught in the evenings and might go to the restroom at 10:00 at night.

The colleague answered, “no” to my question, but said that didn’t matter because it was her feeling of being afraid that mattered, not whether or not any incident had ever occurred. This was Napa Valley College, and there were no cases of violence or threat or gangs at that time. I had taught in both Santa Ana and San Pablo where there were actual cases of threat and gangs and violence and real reasons to be fearful and careful.

In the late 90s, a colleague told me that I should apply for a full-time job right away if I ever wanted to work full time. She said, “We probably will only hire maybe one more white woman for many years to come. After that, there will be no more full-time jobs available for white women.” My youngest child was only 4 at the time and that colleague said that was when she went full time when her youngest was 4. Although I thought at that time that I would teach full time some day, I did not feel the time was right, but I made note of the fact that my gender and my skin color could affect my ability to get a full-time position at the college where I loved teaching.

Later, after all that had happened to the woman who had been heading up the English department left a very bad taste in my mouth, I lost interest in ever teaching at this particular college full-time. As a part-timer I could avoid attending staff meetings and all the tension that they brought. I also could avoid some of the strange things that full-timers were sometimes asked to do. If you didn’t pay a part timer for it, you couldn’t require it, but more about that later.

Around that same time, I started to read more student essays that seemed to be rewriting history into some new version that I didn’t recognize. I had many conversations with students about the things they were learning in their history classes. One of the of things I remember from that time was an oversimplification of the conflict between native Americans and the colonists, with the colonists presented as the “bad guys” and the native Americans as the “victims.” There seemed to be no understanding of the clash of cultures (with colonists who believed in private property ownership and tribes who did not) or the fear stirred up by the violence of certain tribes as well as how some tribes came to fear settlers based on the behaviors of some.

There was no discussion of the tribes that were known to be peaceful and the tribes that were known to be violent. There was no thought given to how colonization was viewed at that time in most parts of the world and little understanding of the different groups of Europeans who came to the “new world,” the different reasons for which they came, and the different interactions that they had with native Americans when they arrived.

Another oversimplified narrative that was rising up at that time was that the United States at its inception was somehow unusual in its practice of slavery. Students were unaware that slavery at that time was present in every country in the world. There were even Africans who participated by enslaving and selling their own people. They were also unaware of the white people around the world who were also sold as servants and shipped away from where they were born and from their family members. This was not an “American” thing or a white/black thing, or sadly, even an unusual thing, but students were being taught to think that way.

There was also a false narrative of how the Founding Fathers viewed slavery. The fact that slavery continued to exist as long as it did was used as evidence that they did not want to get rid of it. Students were unaware of all of the writings by the Founding Fathers, including Thomas Jefferson, in which they discussed how they might end slavery and what that would require. They didn’t know that it was the western nations that first outlawed slavery. Again, this was an issue of oversimplification, something that we talked a lot about in my critical thinking classes, where the primary questions we always asked were “Is this true?” and “How do we know?” and “Where can we go to find out?”

A student was writing his research paper on immigration and was critical of United States’ immigration laws. I asked him to include in his paper a discussion of immigration laws from other countries around the world. He was shocked to discover that he, as an American citizen, couldn’t just move to and live in any country he wanted. He hadn’t realized that there were immigration laws in most countries. How had this been overlooked in the discussions he was having in his other class at the college?

One of the things I love about teaching is having relationships with students and having really good discussions about all kinds of different things. Over time, this was becoming more challenging. All of us faculty members were being instructed to not share anything that might be construed as “advice” to students. They should be sent to the counseling department where presumably the counselors had been trained in how to give advice. This is a direction that I accepted but only up to the point of my rights as an American citizen to share my thoughts and opinions as my thoughts and opinions. I found it interesting that the concern was directed most often toward conservative ideas even though far-left professors were teaching things as “true” that were not true at all. Conservative professors were far more likely than their left counterparts to entertain many different perspectives in the classroom and to avoid sharing their own opinion as the only correct option. My left-leaning colleagues were the ones most likely to be described by students as “hammering” their positions in the classroom and “punishing” students for expressing a dissenting opinion.

There were many times that I had students come to my office, close the door, and then ask my opinion about things like religion, marriage, church, or how to handle a hostile instructor. According to the law, I could answer anything that an adult student asked me as long as I was clear that I was offering my own ideas and opinions, and I kept to that standard. But more and more the pressure was rising to never talk to students about anything personal.

One of the other pressures that I encountered as an instructor was to give passing grades to students even when they did not do work that earned a passing grade. One student told me that her school counselor discouraged her from taking my class because it was “too difficult” and “too many” students failed my classes. This student had already taken two of my classes and insisted on taking a third class from me because she believed that she was learning a lot in my classes.

Of course, I did fail students who did not receive the minimum of a 60% in their coursework, but I gave credit for doing both homework and in-class work, that wasn’t graded (you could get an “A” on certain parts of the course by simply completing the work and turning it in), I allowed students to rewrite their essays many times if needed in order to get a passing grade, and I worked with students to get them to pass. A student who failed either didn’t turn in a lot of work, wasn’t willing to rewrite their work, didn’t attend class sessions, or some combination of these things. A student had to work pretty hard to not get at least a “C” in my classes because I worked really hard to try to get them to learn the things they needed to know to move to the next course.

Another problem that I encountered as a part-time instructor is that I was careful to assign the required number of pages for reading and for writing as spelled out in the “course outline of record,” but many of the full-time instructors did not adhere to the requirements (I assume that many did). Of course, it would have been easier to assign and read fewer essays, but writing students learn the most by writing and receiving feedback for their writing. Students who had an “easier” instructor often referred to how much less writing they had to do with that instructor even though I knew the requirement for that class section was much higher than students were experiencing. Students mentioned the names of specific professors often, so I came to believe that they weren’t “spinning tales.” By comparison those teachers who assigned the work they were supposed to assign were seen as “hard” teachers, demanding too much of their students.

Over the years, the culture was shifting, gradually, but noticeably. I was asked by a student to not refer to her as a “young lady”–even though her appearance was as a young lady– because her goal was to become a young man. This was my first encounter with transgender issues, and it made me very sad for this young woman. However, it did not change how I treated her in class or how I graded her work. I prayed for her then and still pray for her as she comes to mind. I know that my doing so would be deeply offensive to some. She was kind to me, though, and we had a friendly conversation unlike what is often posted on social media today when someone is not referred to in the way that they desire, and I did my best not to “misgender” her again. I wasn’t trying to be offensive, but at the same time, she wasn’t trying to be offended. (Using “her” here at the period of history is deeply offensive to some, but using “him” here would be neither accurate, nor clarifying.)

I had a student become angry with me after I mentioned the “Negro College Fund” by name and so used the word “negro” in the classroom. She addressed me in private about it, though, and I explained that the name was chosen by the organization and that I was not using a descriptive word. It was the actual name of an actual organization. She was very surprised at that, but she stopped being angry and was not aggressive also unlike what we see on social media in our current culture. I suggested as a research paper topic how we name things, how the meanings of words change over time, how our association with words change and the question of when we need to change titles to fit the changing culture.

It stands out to me now that Megan Kelley was driven out of her position at NBC for asking such a question in regards to the use of “black face” in entertainment. She wondered when it moved from being generally accepted to being tabu. It was a good question, but asking the question got her “canceled” and fired.

Nearing the end of my time at the college, we would get invitations to come to the quad and join hands in support of and solidarity with the LBGTQ community (at that time those were all of the initials being used). As a part-timer I could not be required to attend, and I never did. Why not? I treated all of my students with respect and kindness and graded all of their papers fairly, based on how well they were written, not on the opinions they held. But–I believed and still do believe that the agendas associated with the LBGTQ community are often harmful to students and not beneficial to them. And while I support all people’s right to think of themselves and present themselves however they want to, I do not agree that all choices are equal and good and the best thing for us, and I do not think I should pretend that I do agree, and I certainly should not be required to profess things that I do not think are true.

Eventually, I encountered the first of the “woke” trainings at the college. It was presented to us this way: If we would voluntarily attend “diversity and inclusion” training, we would receive a virtual “sticker” to post on our staff web page that announced to students that our classrooms were a “safe place” for students of all colors and identities. Would that mean, then, that the classrooms of all instructors who did not attend this training and did not have this sticker were “unsafe” places for some students? Many, like me, recognized that this idea was insulting and that it was the accusation that you are guilty until you prove otherwise. I did my best to treat all of my students fairly. I had never been accused of treating any student unfairly. Why would I need special training to have my classes declared “safe” for my students?

At the end of one of the essays that we read and discussed in my writing classes was a cultural survey about attitudes toward sex, dating, marriage, etc. I had students in my classes complete this survey anonymously for nearly 20 years. The changes in the answers over the years as well as the way the discussions shifted over time, revealed a huge cultural shift that is both alarming and terribly sad.

In the mid 90s the overwhelming majority of students believed that sex should be inside a committed relationship–that the couple should be married or at least engaged. When asked how often they had sex, most students answered “never” or “seldom,” but also believed that their peers had sex “often” or even “daily.” When I asked about this disparity in my classes, more than one student pointed to TV and movies for what they thought was “normal.” I remember one student who said, “Well, on ‘Friends’ they are all having sex with each other.”

By the time of my last semester of teaching in 2014, most students responded on the survey with approval of sex with someone you just met, “casual hook ups.” In class discussions many students said they considered marriage irrelevant and did not plan to get married or have children. They pointed to their own parents and their failed marriages as the reason behind their thinking. Students had begun celebrating their “uncommittment” to each other. True love, they argued, was expressed by staying with someone without ever having to commit to staying. Each day you stayed was a new profession of love.

I taught college classes for over 20 years, and in that time, the culture of the community college where I taught most of those years shifted and changed in so many ways, most of them not good or healthy at all. I saw a community of instructors–where adjunct and full-timers liked and supported each other, shift to an us-against-them mentality over issues of pay and resources and unions. I saw the rise of a division between faculty members based on political and religious views and race. I saw the rise of Atheism as a value among faculty members as well as the celebration of pagan religions as valued while Christianity was devalued and maligned.

I did not leave teaching because I was unhappy or worried about where these things were going; I left because my family and I felt called by God to move, to establish a church and ministry, and to begin reaching out and serving in a culture in very intentional ways that involved moving to a community that did not have a place for me to teach college English.

But . . . I can’t help but think that God moved me at exactly the right time. I don’t know how I would have navigated all the things that have happened in the decade since I left teaching. I know that much of what has occurred has made me very sad about the state of higher education.

Lately, I have felt a little bit hopeful about the future of higher education. Perhaps spaces are opening up for conservative-leaning instructors, traditional historians, and both instructors and students of faith and conviction. Maybe education will land more firmly on the side of the free exchange of ideas and the freedom to express dissenting viewpoints.

We wait. We watch. We pray.

Who Wrote the Book of Life?

Mar19

The Bible uses many things in the physical world to help us understand things in the spiritual world. For example, the Apostle Paul tells us that Creation reveals things to us about God’s eternal power and divine nature (Romans 1:20). We can observe nature in the physical world and learn something about God and the unseen spiritual world.

God as Father and Jesus as the Son, gives us an insight into the relationship between God the Father and Jesus. It’s not the exact relationship; the Father didn’t get married and bear a child–not in the physical sense. But there is something about a father-son relationship, especially a healthy one, that can help us to understand God as Father and Jesus as Son. They have different roles and are not exactly the same in what they do even as they are the same in nature and character. The Father is holy. The Son also is holy. The Father is trustworthy. The Son also is trustworthy. All of the qualities of the Father also refer to the Son and to the Spirit.

Jesus submits to the will of the Father. “For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of Him who sent me” (John 6:38). This is an eternal relationship and not anything new. It has always been (I Corinthians 14:24-28). The problem that we, as human beings, often have is that we do not rightly understand submission. We think of it as making one party lesser or of less significance than the other. But this is a distortion of what God demonstrates to us about submission.

A Bible teacher was once asked, “Is Jesus equal to the Father?” His answer was, “Almost.” Hmmm. While I think I understand where he was going, I don’t agree. Jesus is equal to the Father. They share the same nature and attributes, and yet Jesus willingly submits His will to the Father–His human will. As God, He always shared the Father’s plans and purposes and will.

Jesus also says that the Father gave Him all authority. How is it that the authority had to be given to Him? I’m not sure, but Jesus says that it was. Jesus has all authority even as He submits to the Father. I’m not sure that we can fully wrap our human minds around this relationship, but our human relationships are supposed to help us. I’m sure that is why the enemy is constantly distorting and corrupting our human relationships, to make it harder for us to understand how the Father, Son, and Spirit relate to each other.

The Son willingly submits to the will of the Father and is in agreement with the Father. He speaks only what the Father gives Him to speak (John 12:49). The Spirit willingly submits to the Son and reminds us of the things the Son taught (John 14:26). The Father, Son, and Spirit work in agreement with each other. There is no disagreement, disunity, or rebellion–not ever. Jesus prays that we might have this same kind of unity in the Body of Christ with agreement and willing submission and cooperation. In our case, sin becomes a very real barrier to overcome. There is no sin or selfishness or rebellion within the heart of God.

Marriage of a man and a woman demonstrates something to us of Jesus as a bridegroom and the Church as His bride. Jesus is described as a bridegroom, preparing a place for His bride. When the place is ready, He will return for His bride, and there will be a wedding feast, a celebration. We are meant to attend our wedding celebrations and think of what is planned for the future of all those who are in Christ Jesus. We are meant to watch a loving groom, who is excited for his bride, who is waiting for her and preparing for her, and we are reminded to think of Jesus in this same way, excited for us, waiting for us, preparing for us, and coming back for us.

Will there be an actual feast where we all sit down at a gigantic table and share a meal together? Jesus seems to refer to this at what we call “the Last Supper” when He says, “I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom” (Matthew 26:29). I imagine a real feast, a real celebration. Think of the most amazing feast that you have ever attended. Something far better is being prepared for us. With all the time to prepare, I anticipate something too amazing to describe.

What then of the Book of Life? Is this an actual physical book, sitting up on a podium somewhere? Are there physical pages to be turned and consulted?

Chad Bird (pastor, professor, scholar) poses an interesting perspective on the Book of Life in his article “How Do I Know My Name is Written in the Book of Life?” He writes, “This book is not a dusty volume laid to rest and forgotten, but a flesh-and-blood testament of the power of an indestructible life, raised for you . . . . Christ Jesus is the Book of Life. In him and him alone our names are written.”

Interesting.

I have never stopped to think about whether the book is an actual book or just meant to point us to something else. Of course, I have considered the significance of the Book of Life, but I like the idea of looking at the book and seeing a person.

Consider this: Jesus is the Word of God, the logos, spoken in the beginning. He was both with God, and He was God (John 1). Those whose names are written in the Book of Life were written there from the creation of the world (Revelation 17:8). In Ephesians, the Apostle Paul tells us that everyone who is “in Christ” was chosen before the foundation of the world to be adopted as God’s children (Ephesians 1:3-6). God has engraved the names of His people on the palms of His hands (Isaiah 49:16). Is this a reference to the crucifixion and all who would be in Christ? Are those names, written in the Book of Life, also engraved on the palms of the hands of Jesus?

It is in Christ and through His shed blood on the cross for our sins and our repentance and submission to His sacrifice on our behalf, that our names are written in that book, “The Lamb’s Book of Life” (Revelation 21:23-27). The Lamb’s Book contains the names of those who are saved by the Lamb.

So then, is the book an actual book, sitting up on a celestial podium in the spiritual realm? Maybe. It’s quite possible that there will be an actual book that is referenced. It’s also possible that it is simply an image for us to understand the nature of our salvation. It is written down, recorded. It is written in ink and will not be blotted out. It is personal–my name is there–in the book and on the hands of Jesus. My name. Me. It is not a collective recording of the Church as a whole, but of each person who is in Christ Jesus.

And God has known all along that I would respond to the Gospel, run to Jesus, and be saved, and God has determined long ago many things that will be mine because my name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

And if you are in Christ Jesus and have turned to Him as Savior and Lord, your name is written there too.

Don’t Lose Heart

Mar14

The closest I have ever come to being persecuted for my faith was a teacher making me feel uncomfortable for my views on the value of life, a professor warning me to not “take the Bible too seriously,” a classmate rolling his eyes at me over something I said I believe. None of these things are real persecution.

I have experienced being mocked for being “good” or for doing good or for trying to help someone. In seeking to serve others, I’ve been accused of not helping “the right way” or “enough” or of helping the “wrong” person or people. I’ve been told that by helping I am the one responsible for the bad actions of another person.

All of these things can be discouraging, but if you are being obedient to God’s commands and are serving the broken and hurting around you, don’t be discouraged when doing so becomes difficult. Serving broken people is not easy, and it is often a thankless job. Sometimes the people that you reach out to help will turn on you, become angry, maybe even lie about you. They may be manipulative or harsh in their criticism of you.

Serve others anyway.

If you live for rewards in this life, you will give up when the person you step out to care for is thankless, selfish, spiteful. But if you can remember that none of what you do is about you, that the goal goes far beyond the here and now, you will be able to stand even in the midst of lies or hurtful accusations.

So many things that others say and do can feel personal, and though words and actions might be directed at you, they often aren’t even about you. So while you should assess your part in any conflict you have with others, don’t take on the responsibility that belongs to someone else. Don’t consider yourself guilty just because a broken person says that you are. Remember that broken people say and do broken things, and that very often they aren’t ready to take responsibility for their own feelings and words and actions.

It’s easier to help people who are physically, financially, socially, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually healthy. But have you noticed that those aren’t the people who really need help? The people who need help have problems, real problems. Their problems aren’t easily solved, often have a long history, and usually run deep. They have problems because they don’t have it all together.

And their problems might be their “fault.” They haven’t done the kinds of things that result in physical, financial, social, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. They might not “deserve” help. But they are often desperate for help. They are often stuck, and without help, they won’t be able to move forward. And sadly, often with help, they won’t take the steps that they need to take to move forward.

Be willing to help anyway.

Pay attention, and don’t fall into doing more than the person you are trying to help is willing to do. Reach out your hand, but wait for the other person to grab onto it. If a person is stuck in a pit, don’t jump down in it and try to comfort the person there. The goal is to encourage and draw the person to climb out of the pit and to help the person on that upward climb.

All of this must be done with fervent and consistent prayer. God knows what the broken person needs. You see only a tiny bit of what is going on, so pray for wisdom all along the way.

And when you are investing time and energy in a person and that person decides to go in an unexpected direction, don’t let the disappointment or even the sense of betrayal you might feel keep you from doing what God has called you to do and being who God has called you to be. Serve others even when it seems a thankless task. Serve others because you serve the Lord Jesus Christ who gave Himself up for you, and know that He promises that there are rewards for you in Eternity. Eternal rewards.

Always keep Eternity in mind. Know that the only real hope you have to offer someone is the Gospel of Jesus Christ–the very good news that through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for our sins, we can be reconciled to God. The Holy Spirit will come into our lives and begin to transform the way we think, the way we see the world. Over time, our desires will change, and if we give attention to the Word of God, we will become more like Jesus and more aligned with God’s plans, and God’s purposes, and God’s ways. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, people really do change.

So don’t lose heart. Don’t give up. Don’t stop praying, and don’t stop loving and serving. Remain steadfast and faithful, knowing that it’s always worth it to do the will of a good, gracious, generous, and loving God.

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:9-10).

“Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life (2 Corinthians 3:4-6). Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart” (2 Corinthians 4:1).

In the Presence of the King

Jan23

Brother Lawrence, in his book The Practice of the Presence of God (p 55), writes something along these lines:

What would it be like for the greatest criminal in the world to dine at the king’s table and be served by him, knowing what he had done to break the king’s laws, but not assured of the king’s pardon? Wouldn’t he feel great uneasiness, great fear and trepidation? He would, of course, unless he knew the great goodness and faithfulness of the king and knew indeed that his debt had already been paid, and his pardon was already accomplished.

This is how we, who have been saved by the blood of Jesus, shed in our place, for our sins, sit at the table of the Lord and celebrate in His presence. The more aware we are of our great debt, the more we rejoice in our great and guaranteed pardon. We do not tremble in the presence of One so holy and great–only because we have experienced His amazing grace and mercy.

Hebrews 10:19-23

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that He opened for us through the curtain, that is, through His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.”

Wendy Clark Ministries

Encouraging the Church through Speaking, Singing, and Writing about the TRUTH of God's Word