What's the Big Deal?

Colossians 2:9

November 7th Devotional

      On this day in 680, 43 bishops convened in the imperial palace of Constantinople to debate a religious doctrine that was rapidly spreading.  This meeting would later become known as the Third Council of Constantinople.  This was the smallest gathering out of the major councils that helped determine the basis for Orthodoxy in Christianity.  The church was fragile in the mid 600’s and was seeking identity.  The religion of Islam was rapidly growing and becoming a genuine threat.  Many areas that were previously ‘Christian’ quickly fell under the flag of Islam.  The church as a whole was splintered as there was tremendous tension between the “western” church and the “eastern” church due to theological disagreements.  The church felt pressure to be united but in their attempt, they were willing to forsake Bible doctrine.  These compromises were a menace that caused the church to be divided and weak.  Emperor Constantine IV oversaw the meeting with hopes of settling some of the major differences that were rising.  This ten-month debate revolved around two new doctrines that were being propagated, monoenergism and monothelitism.  These complicated words mean that while the churches had agreed that Christ had two natures, the human and the divine (the God-Man), there was a question of Christ’s ‘energy’ and His will.  Did Christ have one will or two wills?  Was His will merely divine or was it like His nature, both divine and human?  This might not seem like a huge issue in our time but the church had five previous councils that each debated Christ’s relation to God the Father and the balance of His humanity and deity.   These previous councils were built on great scenes of passion and discussion.  Heretics abounded and it was of the utmost importance to have the right doctrinal teaching.  There could not be a tolerance for any ‘false teaching.’  After eighteen sessions the bishops concluded that Christ had two wills, both in perfect unity and accord, a human one and a divine one, though the human will was subject to the divine will.  The argument was basically if Christ has two natures, human and divine, then He must also have two ‘wills’ or else that would deprive Him of His full humanity.

      One might ask, why was this council of such value?  The value was to solidify our Christological doctrines.  We must teach correctly on who Jesus is.  The Bible unquestionably teaches that Jesus is both 100% God and 100% man.  In Colossians, we read that “For in him (Jesus) the whole fulness of deity dwells bodily (Colossians 2:9).  The deity of Christ matters.  If He was merely a man, a good teacher, a prophet, etc then He was also a liar when He told the people in John’s Gospel account “Before Abraham was, I AM (John 8:58).  Christ also could not just be just a man because that would destroy the understanding of His incarnation.  John 1:14 says that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14).  Jesus, being 100% God, took on flesh (100% man).  We cannot divorce those Biblical truths.  Christ undeniably affirms His deity and humanity over and over in Scripture.  We need to rejoice in our spiritual fathers who bravely stood firm on Bible truth, even when it would have been alluring to compromise.  We need to rejoice in their efforts to study the Word.  May our hearts take peace in settled theology.  May our hearts also be convicted to spend quality time in God’s Word to behold the truths before our very eyes.

Releasing Resentment: November 2nd Devotional

Releasing Resentment 

Ephesians 4:31-32

November 2nd Devotional

      On this day in 1880, James Garfield was elected as the 20th president of the United States.  James was the youngest of five children.  He was born in a log cabin in Ohio and would end up being the last of the log cabin presidents.  His father died after saving the family farm from a raging wildfire.  James was only two at the time.   His father’s death caused the family to suffer through abject poverty.  Childhood was extremely difficult for James.  He was often picked on and found comfort by reading for countless hours.  Books became his best friends.  His love for reading formed a love for learning in general.  He excelled in college, especially in the subjects of Latin, Greek, and mathematics.  He worked as a janitor, preacher, and canal man to pay off his education.  Garfield remains the only president who was an ordained pastor.  His faith would continue to grow throughout his life.  He was in church so often that his future assassin thought about attacking him at church.  He would continue his education, later becoming the president of Hiram College.  But politics drew him from full-time ministry and the education field.  He joined the newly formed Republican party because of its aversion to slavery.  He was elected to the Ohio Legislature in 1859.  While serving he joined the Union effort during the Civil War.  He proved to be a very distinguished soldier during the Tennessee theater of the war.  He served so well that he was named a Major General.  After the war he continued to serve in the House of Representatives, fighting for reconstruction.  The Republican convention convened in 1880 and Garfield wasn’t supposed to be a nominee, but his speakers enchanted those that were in attendance.  James argued against his nomination but after thirty-six ballots he became the dark horse candidate.  His excellent oratory skills helped him defeat his Democratic opponent, Winfield Scott Hancock (a fellow Union General).  He was by a narrow 11,000 votes, less than .1% more than his opponent.  Garfield’s tenure started with great promise. He also happened to be the first left handed president. He was a strong leader and an excellent speaker, but his presidency was cut short when Charles J. Guiteau shot the president twice.  His primary motivation was resentment for not being offered a position to serve under Garfield.  James suffered for weeks until he succumbed to an infection.  He served a mere 199 days, marking his presidency as the second shortest.

      James Garfield’s life was cut short because someone was resentful.  Resentment is like drinking poison and hoping that it harms someone else.  We’ve all felt that powerful emotion.  We have felt robbed, unfairly treated, ignored, overlooked.  It might be a job where we aren’t given a promotion or a scorned love, or maybe we feel like others have taken advantage of us.  What do we do when those dark thoughts creep into our mind?  Do we allow them to take our mind captive?  Instead, we are to put them away.  Paul told the church of Ephesus “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.  Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you (Ephesians 4:31-32).”  Paul powerfully says put this away.  Bitterness, wrath, anger, etc cannot be tolerated in the life of the Christian.  Yes, we might be disappointed, and yes we might feel scorned, but that does not give us a license to allow those emotions to overwhelm our lives.  We need to put them away.  Most of us are putting away summer clothes during this month because we won’t need shorts and swimming trunks.  They aren’t needed.  The same can be said about resentment, we put it away because we don’t need it.  It doesn’t benefit it, it only harms us.  Instead, Paul says to be kind, tenderhearted, and to forgive.  Those are the harder things to do.  It causes us to take our focus off who offended us and instead to have the mind of Christ.  The next time feelings of bitterness or resentment wash over your soul, put them away, right away.  Put on kindness and love.  There are no regrets when we love like Jesus.