Archive for the ‘Hamartology’ category

Homosexuality: Taboo or Abomination?

July 21st, 2010

In my previous post, I mentioned that after some input, I would post a response to Jay Michaelson’s article which suggests that Homosexuality in the Old Testament is simply a cultural taboo that should not be thought of as sinful in our modern context.  He writes,

…a close reading of the term toevah suggests an entirely different meaning: something permitted to one group, and forbidden to another.

But is Michaelson right?  Is this really the meaning and context for the Hebrew word “toevah”  I suggest he is wrong for a variety of reasons.  In making my point, I only need to analyze this one simple sentance.

The term toevah (and its plural, toevot) occurs 103 times in the Hebrew Bible, and almost always has the connotation of a non-Israelite cultic practice.

1. Michaelson Can’t Count

This is just a real basic point, but the term “toevah” occurs 117 times in the Hebrew Bible, not 103.  This, in and of itself, is a minor point, but gives me pause in trusting Michaelson’s ability to deal with more difficult issues.  For the record, the following diagrams show the frequency and occurrences of toevah (click the image to see it larger).

okay, so now on to the real problems with Michaelson’s article.

2.  Michaelson Creates a False Dichotomy

It has long been the contention of Homsexual advocates that while the Bible condemns the cultic forms of homosexuality (ie homosexuality in worship to false gods), it never condemns the “loving act” of sex between two men or two women.  Michaelson writes:

In five instances, Ezekiel mentions toevah together with both idolatry and zimah or znut, “whoredom” (Ez. 16:22, 16:36, 16:58, 23:26, 43:8), strongly suggesting that the nature of sexual toevah is not mere lewdness, and certainly not loving intimate expression, but sexuality in a cultic context

Michaelson is not the first to make these self-serving interpretations.

John J. McNeill32, James Nelson33 and Peter Coleman34 argue that the specific instructions given in Lev. 18:22 and 20:13, which are part of the Holiness Code, must be understood in the context of cultic defilement. This is supported by biblical commentaries on Leviticus by Martin Noth35 and Norman Snaith36, and by Marvin Pope’s article on “Homosexuality” in The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible.37 The use of the Hebrew word ‘abomination’ [to ‘ebah] in this context clearly relates this to Canaanite idolatry and to the rituals–sexual or otherwise–practiced in it.38 Israel’s prostitution and sexual practices characteristic of Canaanite fertility worship. Such sexual rituals expressed the view that sexuality was a mysterious sacred power, related to the power of the deity that was worshiped. This is why Canaanite worship frequently involved overt sexual acts. Israel was required to reject all such pagan practices both to affirm the transcendence of God and to distinguish Him from all creaturely powers.

The conclusion that is drawn from this is that with the change of the social horizon, such injunctions are no longer valid. Or if they are, the reason for their continuing applicability must be found elsewhere than their inclusion in the Levitical Holiness Code.

Trinity College and Seminary. Global Journal Volume 1, Trinity College and Seminary, 1999; 2006.

The problem here is that this interpretation makes no sense. If God is only condemning cultic-behavior, and not the act itself, then how do we understand this passage?

““You shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness while she is in her menstrual uncleanness. And you shall not lie sexually with your neighbor’s wife and so make yourself unclean with her. You shall not give any of your children to offer them to Molech, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord. You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination. And you shall not lie with any animal and so make yourself unclean with it, neither shall any woman give herself to an animal to lie with it: it is perversion. “Do not make yourselves unclean by any of these things, for by all these the nations I am driving out before you have become unclean, and the land became unclean, so that I punished its iniquity, and the land vomited out its inhabitants. ” (Leviticus 18:19–25, ESV)

It is true that often the religious (cultic) nature of these acts is lost on the modern mind.

Modern readers of the ot doubtless miss occasionally the import of Canaanite idolatry. The worship of a Canaanite god or goddess was no minor blemish in Israel’s history. Besides having a devastatingly debasing effect on the practitioner, the acts of worship, which included male and female cultic prostitutes in hetero- and homosexual liaisons, were fundamentally opposed to the worship of the living God, and were, in fact, acts of treason against his suzerainty. R. K. Harrison, after describing the gross and savage worship system of the Canaanites, concludes that “its sordid and debased nature stand in marked contrast to the high ethical ideals of Israel. The absolute lack of moral character in the Canaanite deities made such corrupt practices as ritual prostitution, child sacrifice, and licentious worship the normal expression of religious devotion and fervor. In consequence there could be no compromise between the morality of the God of Israel and the debased sensuality of Canaanite religion”

Harris, R. Laird, Robert Laird Harris, Gleason Leonard Archer and Bruce K. Waltke. Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. electronic ed. Chicago: Moody Press, 1999.

However, this does not mean these actions are abomination only in cultic context.  if God is only condemning as “taboo” the cultic practice of these actions, then does Michaelson also find acceptable for Christians to practice non-religious forms of child sacrifice when it is not done to Molech?  If it is okay for two Christian men to have sex when it is “loving”, is it also acceptable for a Christian woman to have sex with an animal if it is a “loving act” of shared intimacy?  This passage must be interpreted as a whole and taking one part out of context to serve ones sexual passions does not represent a Christian approach to applying Scripture.

Michaelson’s invocation of the “cultic clause” is simply foolishness in light of how these passages are revealed to us by YHWH.  There is no “right” way to worship God when we abuse our sexuality; that is the message of what God decrees as toevah.

3. Michaelson Fails to Take Seriously the Decrees of God

Ultimately the problem is that Michaelson, and homosexual advocates who are looking for any excuse to justify their sin, simply don’t take seriously the commands of God.  Michaelson asks, “is toevah a cultural taboo or abomination?”.  I think this passage from Ezekiel makes it clear, YHWH takes toevah very seriously and it is not just a cultural taboo.

““Thus says the Lord God: This is Jerusalem. I have set her in the center of the nations, with countries all around her. And she has rebelled against my rules by doing wickedness more than the nations, and against my statutes more than the countries all around her; for they have rejected my rules and have not walked in my statutes. Therefore thus says the Lord God: Because you are more turbulent than the nations that are all around you, and have not walked in my statutes or obeyed my rules, and have not even acted according to the rules of the nations that are all around you, therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, even I, am against you. And I will execute judgments in your midst in the sight of the nations. And because of all your abominations I will do with you what I have never yet done, and the like of which I will never do again. Therefore fathers shall eat their sons in your midst, and sons shall eat their fathers. And I will execute judgments on you, and any of you who survive I will scatter to all the winds. Therefore, as I live, declares the Lord God, surely, because you have defiled my sanctuary with all your detestable things and with all your abominations, therefore I will withdraw. My eye will not spare, and I will have no pity. A third part of you shall die of pestilence and be consumed with famine in your midst; a third part shall fall by the sword all around you; and a third part I will scatter to all the winds and will unsheathe the sword after them. “Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them and satisfy myself. And they shall know that I am the Lord—that I have spoken in my jealousy—when I spend my fury upon them. ” (Ezekiel 5:5–13, ESV)

Application

I will let the Scripture speak directly to Michaelson, and anyone who shares his view, on the meaning of toevah.

“A desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul, but to turn away from evil is an abomination to fools. ” (Proverbs 13:19, ESV)

 

“Those of crooked heart are an abomination to the Lord, but those of blameless ways are his delight. ” (Proverbs 11:20, ESV)

 

“There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers. ” (Proverbs 6:16–19, ESV)

 

“The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but he loves him who pursues righteousness. ” (Proverbs 15:9, ESV)

 

“He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous are both alike an abomination to the Lord. Why should a fool have money in his hand to buy wisdom when he has no sense? ” (Proverbs 17:15–16, ESV)

 

“Whoever plans to do evil will be called a schemer. The devising of folly is sin, and the scoffer is an abomination to mankind. If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small. Rescue those who are being taken away to death; hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter. If you say, “Behold, we did not know this,” does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it, and will he not repay man according to his work? ” (Proverbs 24:8–12, ESV)

 

“An unjust man is an abomination to the righteous, but one whose way is straight is an abomination to the wicked. ” (Proverbs 29:27, ESV)

 

 

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Posted in Culture, Hamartology, OT Translation

God’s Judgement, Love, and the Haiti Crisis

January 19th, 2010

Opening Thoughts

A powerful 7.0 earthquake hit haiti this past week and killed at least 72,000.  Countless people are starving and more will eventually die from diseases spawned from the unburied corpses filling the streets of Port-au-Prince. I feel a connection with the people of Haiti. My parents served there in the 1980′s doing both medical and building missions and they saw first hand the destructive rule of Bébé Doc Duvalier. Over the years, our family sponsored several needy kids from Haiti and I grew up reading letters from our sponsored children telling of their life in Haiti. In last week’s earthquake, my wife agonized in prayer for many days over the life of an APU friend who was missing, and eventually found alive, in the rubble of the Hotel Montana.  With my own history in mind, I want to address this earthquake and how I see God’s judgment and love at work.

God’s Judgement Today

The internet is abuzz with the infamous remarks made by Pat Robertson on on the 700 Club TV show.

Something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it. They were under the heel of the French. You know, Napoleon III and whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, ‘We will serve you if you will get us free from the French.’ True story. And so, the devil said, ‘OK, it’s a deal. And they kicked the French out. You know, the Haitians revolted and got themselves free. But ever since, they have been cursed by one thing after the other. Desperately poor. That island of Hispaniola is one island. It’s cut down the middle. On the one side is Haiti; on the other side is the Dominican Republic. Dominican Republic is prosperous, healthy, full of resorts, et cetera. Haiti is in desperate poverty. Same island. They need to have — and we need to pray for them — a great turning to God. And out of this tragedy, I’m optimistic something good may come. But right now, we’re helping the suffering people, and the suffering is unimaginable.

Most disturbing is the historical falsity presented as “fact” from a guy who founded a University. Napoleon III did not come into power in France until 44 years after the Haitian revolt.  If Robertson can’t get his history correct on such a simple thing, I don’t trust him in more complex matters.  So on its face Robertson’s “true story” must be called into serious question.

The primary problem with this quote, however, is Robertson’s biblical hermeneutic and application which I have repeatedly called into question.   In this particular instance, I would like to distance myself from Robertson’s assertion that natural disasters are the judgment of God.  I disagree with Robertson’s view for one simple reason; we are not in an age of Natural Judgement but an age of judgment through grace.

YHWH has not changed–He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. God has appointed differing ages of judgment in order to establish his unchanging plan of salvation.  In other words, God’s method of judgement upon the world is different today than it was in the Old Testament, and different from the Age to come, but his overall purpose is the same–redemption of the lost.

First, unlike some other Christian commentators, I do not have a moral or ethical problem with God judging nations by the sword or natural disaster.  Clearly God did this during the Old Testament period where He punished whole nations for the sins of their Kings and leaders (Isa 1:1-20; Jer 5:15-17; Lam 2:1-22).  I don’t claim to understand it, I even cringe at it, but I trust that God’s judgement upon these nations in the Old Testament were fair and designed to serve YHWH’s purpose.

Second, God will some future day judge the nations for their actions.  The Old Testament is clear in teaching that in the “Day of the Lord” (an End of Times judgement) God will hold to account all the nations of the world for their wicked deeds.

For the day of the LORD is near upon all the nations.
As you have done, it shall be done to you;
your deeds shall return on your own head (Obediah 15. ESV)

Third, the world today exists in the age of Christ’s Judgement of Grace.  God has, for a season, forestalled the judgement of sword and nature upon the nations so they might instead have an opportunity to respond to the judgement of Christ expressed in his unselfish act of love on the Cross.

“[Jesus says] Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!”

Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.

Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine. Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.” He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.

The crowd spoke up, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?”

Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. The man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going. Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become sons of light. (John 12:27-36)”

God’s judgement today is not with sword and quake–used to drive the sinful to their knees in fear–it is in the death of Christ lifted up on the Cross–used to drive the sinful to their knees in love. Through Jesus’ act of love for the world, God is judging the nations who refuse to accept Jesus as the light of life.

Finally, how then should we perceive natural disasters if they are not a judgment of God?

  1. Natural disasters are a manifestation of corruption brought upon God’s creation through the sin of Adam (Genesis 3:1-24).
  2. Natural disasters are the manifestation of Nature’s true longing to be freed from the shackles of sin’s corruption (Romans 8:18-25).

Application for Haiti

Haiti has suffered from a tremendous disaster, but the death and suffering are not a result of God’s judgment and I would argue that they are not even the result of the earthquake.  The death and destruction in haiti is the result of the sinful leaders of that nation who have kept those people in poverty and allowed the earthquake to bring destruction.

1. The death and suffering in Haiti is a direct result of greed.

Since 1992, the United States has given 3 Billion dollars in aid to Haiti, yet it remains the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere.  The money was stolen by Haiti’s leaders and the more money the US poured in, the worse things got for Haiti.  The poor have no escape from Haiti because the money given to them was stolen by evil men.

2. The death and suffering in Haiti is a direct result of their value system.

In 1989, a 7.0 earthquake hit San Francisco (not exactly the picture of moral virtue), yet in that quake only 57 people were killed.  Why?  Because the leaders in the US, although sinful, still value the life of its citizenry. Based on our values, we impose building codes and invest Billions in infrastructures designed to protect the poor and wealthy alike from earthquakes.  Haiti’s leaders do not value life, so instead of spending money on infrastructure, they continued their policies of poverty.

3. The death and suffering of Haiti is a direct result of their religious faith.

Haiti’s predominant faith is Voodoo–a belief that magic and the spirits will save them from disaster.  Tony Campolo remarks on this very thing in his recent response to the earthquake.

Haiti’s former dictator, Jean-Claude Duvalier, was a voodoo witchdoctor, and when he was driven from power it was widely rumored that he offered an infant boy as a blood sacrifice to Satan, and cursed the country with an evil spell to bring disasters and suffering upon the Haitian people. You may not believe in that sort of thing, but many Haitians do. Now we must show them that God’s love, expressed through sacrificial people, is greater than the forces of darkness.

The Haitian people are ruled by evil spirits.  They allow politicians to rule who share their same faith and fears–leaders who seek power through evil forces. The curse of Duvalier may not have “caused” the earthquake, but it does remind us that the faith of a nation can enslave a people to poverty resulting the due penalty of their sin.

Ultimately, the hope for Haiti is that they see the light of Christ’s judgment of grace on the cross and turn to Him for freedom.  Haiti will only find this freedom in the giving of love–not dollars.   Love is expressed not through the giving of Billions, but through the message of the Gospel and the sacrifice of the many Christians who have given up the Western lifestyle to become the hands and feet of of Jesus to the people.

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Posted in Culture, Eschatology, Hamartology, Religion

Beyond the Grave: Hope for Today!

August 2nd, 2009

Year after year after year, politician proclaim, “I am your source of hope!”  ”Trust in me and I will make your life better!”

Year after year after year, politicians fail to keep their promises, they blame everyone else for their failures, and still people elect them again and again and again.

I open this post about life beyond the grave with a political observation, because there is a better promise of hope.  We have recorded in the Bible a promise from Jesus that we will be raised to a new life.   This hope for life beyond the grave is far more reliable than ANY political promise and more reliable than ANY politician.  This hope for new life beyond the grave is more practical for today than any healthcare plan or tax cut you can imagine!

Here is what the Apostle Paul says about his hope for life beyond…

1 Corinthians 15:29-34 Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf? 30 Why are we in danger every hour? 31 I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day! 32 What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” 33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” 34 Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.

This man was beaten, imprisoned, stoned and whipped because he believed that Jesus raised from the dead.    I doubt any, but a few, reading this blog post can say they have put their convictions through this kind of test.  Paul risked everything for no personal gain.  In this short passage from his letter, we find three ways that hope in a personal resurrection from the dead changed the way Paul lived his life!

First, Resurrection Hope is the Reason For Evangelism (v. 29):  If Jesus died and remained in the tomb, there is no reason to share his message with the world.  There are plenty of teachers, gurus, and shamans in our world, if  Jesus did not raise from the dead, please find one of these other teachers and follow them.  If Jesus did not raise from the dead and if we have no hope of life beyond the grave, don’t waste your time with the Bible…

But, if Jesus did raise from the dead…

Second, Resurrection Hope is the Reason for Self-Sacrifice and Serving Others (v.30-32):  Let’s be real, if there is nothing beyond this life, then don’t try to be nice to others.. there is really no point in it.

  • The reason for serving others is not compassion.
  • The reason for helping people is not because they have needs.
  • The reason for making personal sacrifice is not based on the life of Christ or on a bracelet that asks, “WWJD?”
  • But the reason for serving and caring for others is the resurrection of Jesus that gives us hope for a future resurrection.  And if that resurrection is real, then the works we do today will have eternal value (to us and to others).  So please care for people now, because they have an eternity yet to live!

3. Resurrection is the Reason for Living Holy (v. 33-34)  If Jesus did not raise from the dead then I encourage you to party all night, live for pleasure, and don’t worry about what anyone else thinks or feels.  Get everything you can out of this life, because pleasure and looking out for yourself is all you have to gain.

But, if Jesus did raise from the dead…

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Posted in Eschatology, Evangelism, Hamartology, Politics, Social Justice

One Blood Many Governments

March 12th, 2009

Last week’s post What do Communist Chinese and American Secularists have in Common? generated some good discussion. My post exposed the motives of Secularists who use the tool of Government, but the ensuing conversation emphasized the importance of going one step further. It is not enough to understand how, or why, people abuse government. We must come to understand first, why government exists, and second how Christians must live in the systems of this world. Next week I will look at the “how”. Today I want to look at the “why” of government.

Abraham Kuyper, was a Dutch politician, journalist, statesman and theologian. He founded the Anti-Revolutionary Party and was prime minister of the Netherlands between 1901 and 1905. The following quotes come from the Logos Electronic edition of his “Lectures on Calvinism” given at Princeton.

First, government, by its nature, divides humanity and denies our organic (created) unity.

Man is created from man, and by virtue of his birth he is organically united with the whole race. Together we form one humanity, not only with those who are living now, but also with all the generations behind us and with all those who shall come after us,—pulverized into millions though we may be. All the human race is from one blood.

Man, both male and female, was created in the image of God. Our unity lies in our common identity, but, at best, Government conceals our organic-unity and, at worst, Government is used to foster disunity and keep power (see last weeks post as an example).

Second, the existence of government is a result of sin and cannot offer a remedy for sin’s destructive influence.

The conception of States, however, which subdivide the earth into continents, and each continent into morsels, does not harmonize with this idea. Then only would the organic unity of our race be realized politically, if one State could embrace all the world, and if the whole of humanity were associated in one world-empire. Had sin not intervened, no doubt, this would actually have been so. If sin, as a disintegrating force, had not divided humanity into different sections, nothing would have marred or broken the organic unity of our race. And the mistake of the Alexanders, and of the Augusti, and of the Napoleons was not, that they were charmed with the thought of the One World-empire, but it was this—that they endeavoured to realize this idea notwithstanding that the force of sin had dissolved our unity.

No vision for world wide peace and unity can be accomplished through the power of Government. Governments are a symptom of the real problem that divides us; sin. Putting our hope in the United Nations, a single powerful leader, or to the political class, to solve the ailments of war, poverty, and injustice is trust misplaced.

Finally, institutional rule is no replacement for organic leadership.

For indeed without sin there would have been neither magistrate nor state-order; but political life, in its entirety, would have evolved itself, after a patriarchal fashion, from the life of the family. Neither bar of justice, nor police nor army, nor navy is conceivable in a world without sin; and thus every rule and ordinance and law would drop away, even as all control and assertion of the power of the magistrate would disappear, were life to develop itself, normally and without hindrance, from its own organic impulse. Who binds up, where nothing is broken? Who uses crutches, where the limbs are sound?

This final point builds on the last, but should remind the Christian that God’s Kingdom is not of this world. I am also reminded of Paul’s direction to the church in 1 Corinthians 6:1-11

If any of you has a dispute with another, dare he take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the saints? 2 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? 3 Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! 4 Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little account in the church! 5 I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers? 6 But instead, one brother goes to law against another—and this in front of unbelievers!

7 The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? 8 Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers.

9 Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

God established the New Testament church to be a counter-political system that reflects the organic nature of our humanity. Our leadership, was designed to be different from the leadership in the world! When we, as Christians, run to the government as the solution to sin (see HERE, HERE, and HERE), we fail to understand the origin of Government and the power of Church…. but more on the “how” of church and state in next week’s post.

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Posted in Ecclesiology, Hamartology, Politics