November 2006 chaplain's corner
The Chaplain's Corner is a monthly message for chaplains.
Chaplain’s Corner – November 27, 2006
Rev. Rich Hines
The Ability To Be Truly Thankful and God-Centered
This message is primarily for those who call on the name of Jesus Christ as
their own Lord and Savior from sin, and serve as a Chaplain in a jail, prison
or a follow-up ministry such as a rescue mission – in the United States.
All Scripture quotes are taken from the New King James Version (NKJV) of the
Bible, copyright 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson,
Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. When quoting a
text, any deviation from the NKJV text is placed within parenthesis signs ().
These usually occur as direct translations from the original languages,
or as notes from the original setting to help apply the text to today’s
culture.
ALL CAPITAL LETTERS are sometimes used to emphasize words in a text, or to make
a comment about a biblical text, or emphasize a statement.
This month I want to speak about two important issues that blend together
around the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. They are the ability to be
truly thankful to God and henceforth, to be God-centered.
So often most Christian leaders, wrongly apply
important parts of the Bible on living the Christian life to unbelievers. Don’t
forget – it is impossible for an unsaved person to live the Christian life!
Romans 8:7,8 says about the unsaved, the unbelievers:
7 … the carnal (fleshly) mind is enmity against God: for it is NOT SUBJECT to
the law of God, NOR INDEED CAN BE.
8 So then, those who are in the flesh (in this context he means those that are
yet unsaved) cannot please God.
The general spirit of unsaved society, especially in the jail or prison, is
commitment to self. It’s me first, “Watch out for number one!” When and if the
people with this mind set ever feel gratitude, it usually contains a form of
self-congratulations. They are thankful to themselves that they endured or
accomplished their goal. If they thank anyone else, it’s never really God.
Both David, and later the Apostle Paul wrote by the Holy Spirit’s direction:
Psalm 10:3,4
3 For the wicked (i.e. - the morally wrong person) boasts of his heart’s
desire; he blesses the greedy and renounces the LORD.
4 The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is IN NONE OF HIS
THOUGHTS.
Romans 1:21
21 …although they (the ungodly and unrighteous society of mankind) knew (i.e.
knew about) God, they did not glorify Him as God, NOR WERE THANKFUL, but became
futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
So, I want to remind you Chaplain, BEFORE anyone can truly thank and worship
God, THEY MUST REPENT AND BELIEVE HIS GOSPEL! But, that’s why our Lord placed
you in your ministry. Your first duty is to proclaim and teach and explain and
help establish the gospel in the inmates or residents life.
When anyone is truly saved BY GOD, the basis of their life
shifts from self to God.
I want you to see this in two texts. Speaking to the whole group of the saved,
the Scripture in 2 Corinthians 5:14b,15 says -
14 …if One (Christ) died for all (all the saved), then all died;
15 and He died for all, (in order) that those who live should live no longer
for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.
Similarly, Romans 14:7-9 speaks to those that have been born of God and were
adopted into His family - plural pronouns are used here to refer to them.
7 For none of US lives to himself, and no one dies to
himself.
8 For if WE live, WE live to the Lord; and if WE die, WE die to the Lord.
Therefore, whether WE live or die, WE ARE THE LORD’S.
9 For to this end Christ died and rose and lived again, that He might be Lord
of both the dead and the living.
The context of this passage in Romans 14 is dealing with liberty and love
within the church over diet and other sensibilities. Which ever side any
believer ends up on - they do what they do with a God-consciousness. The
believer lives and dies for the Lord, NOT FOR THEMSELVES.
The Scripture is very clear on this!
This heart of a true believer is described in Philippians 1:21 – “… to me
(Paul, a true Christian) to live is Christ,…”
A saved person’s life and consciousness is all wrapped up in Jesus Christ their
Lord. Therefore, they are always thankful to Him for all His blessings bestowed
upon them as unworthy recipients.
They are also those that “worship God in the Spirit” and “Rejoice in Christ Jesus.”
(Philippians 3:3). Those things make the remembrance of His coming to earth as
a human being to save them, so special at Christmas. For those who rejoice in
Christ Jesus, Thanksgiving Day takes on a special meaning.
So, what I’m really saying is this: don’t tell the inmates to be thankful and
rejoice that God sent His Son into the world WITHOUT FIRST MAKING SURE THEY
HEAR AND UNDERSTAND THE GOSPEL.
A good place to start is Romans 3:19-26. You should begin by explaining that
this text is talking about the advantage of having a
knowledge of God’s law.
Romans 3:19-26
19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the
law, that (literally, in order that) every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, …
He says that because a lot of people, then and now, think if they have some
religious knowledge and religious works or deeds, that will get them saved. No
way!
20 … by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His (God’s) sight,
FOR BY THE LAW IS THE KNOWLEDGE OF SIN.
There’s the ADVANTAGE of having God’s word. IT TELLS US WE ARE SINNERS. It
shows us our sin. It convicts us. Since salvation cannot come through the deeds
of the law, God’s righteousness stepped in and sent His Son. The Old Testament
Scripture spoke of a coming Savior.
21 BUT NOW (a time reference relating to the historical event of Christ’s
atoning death at Calvary) the righteousness of God apart from the law is
revealed, (literally has been revealed) being witnessed by the law and the
prophets (a reference to the Old Testament Scripture),
22 even the righteousness of God, THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST, to all and on
all who believe. For there is no difference (in this context, between those
that have some biblical knowledge – like the Jews, and those who don’t - like
the ancient Greeks or Gentiles);
23 for all (all types of mankind) have sinned and fall short of the glory of
God,
So what did the righteousness of God provide? Verse 24 says it provided a way
to be justified.
24 being JUSTIFIED FREELY BY HIS GRACE THROUGH THE REDEMPTION (the deliverance
by the payment of a price) THAT IS IN CHRIST JESUS, (at the cross)
25 whom God (the Father) set forth (or displayed) as a propitiation by His
blood,
Propitiation refers to that which appeases the righteous wrath of an all holy
God against sin. Only the blood of Jesus, that is the
death of the Perfect Substitute can take away sin. Read it again:
25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His (Jesus’) blood, THROUGH FAITH,
to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed
over the sins that were previously committed,
26 to demonstrate AT THE PRESENT TIME (another reference to the time since
Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection) His righteousness, that He (God)
might be just (or righteous because He was consistent and judged believers sin
in Christ) and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
Explain that this passage is dealing with the legal aspects of God’s provision
of salvation, namely the sinner needs to be justified or legally declared
righteous, in order to be forgiven of their sin. That justification comes ONLY THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS’ SUBSTITUTIONARY DEATH FOR
THE SINNER.
But teach them there is also another side that this Spirit-filled Apostle
always preached: it’s that sinners need to REPENT. This is the moral side of
coming to salvation. You can teach this from three passages in Acts.
Acts 20:20,21 is a review of Paul’s ministry. I would
wish you could say this about your chaplaincy ministry, as well.
20 … I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it from house to
house, (cell to cell?)
21 testifying to Jews and also to Greeks, REPENTANCE toward
God AND FAITH toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
This emphasis on repenatnce is demonstrated in two
other passages where Paul was preaching. In Acts 14:15, in the city of
15 “…why are you doing these things (they were starting an idolatrous act of
worshiping him and the other preachers)? We also are men with the same nature
as you, AND PREACH TO YOU THAT YOU SHOULD TURN (repent) FROM these useless
things to the living God, …”
Again he preached to idol worshipers in Athens in Acts 17:29-31 –
29 “… we ought not to think that the Divine Nature (i.e. God) is like gold or
silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising.
30 Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked (compare God’s “forbearance”
in Romans 3:25), BUT NOW COMMANDS ALL MEN EVERYWHERE TO REPENT,
31 because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in
righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this
(this coming judgment) to all by RAISING HIM (the Judge) FROM THE DEAD.”
Once any inmate truly turns from self and the idols they have made out of
non-gods, to the true and living God through faith in Jesus Christ alone, they
will have a new Spirit within them transforming their reason for living from
self to Christ. They will be able to be truly thankful and be God-centered
rather than self-centered. That makes Thanksgiving and Christmas and every
other day wonderfully different!
I hope this helps you Chaplain, as you minister to inmates and residents at
this time of the year.