Hebrews is deffinately one of my favourite books of the Bible. There is something about it’s message of “rest” that really gives me hope. Hehe, no not because I’m lazy or anything. But if you’ve read through “The Missing Link” you’ll see that my biggest struggle as a Christian is my struggle with doing things on my own strength. Rest is just the opposite. No, It’s not sitting around and doing nothing. It’s not ceasing all activities at all. It is ceasing my own activities, and letting God do His through me.

There is a claim at the beginning of this essay, that the Apostle Paul wrote the book of Hebrews. Nowhere in the book does the author identify himself. And so, its authorship is disputed. Paul is a leading candidate. So is Barnabas. And there are others of course. I only wrote Paul because He is just about the most logical choice (as presented to us by the lecturer, Lawrence Jensen). I don’t even remember all the arguments for or against. It doesn’t matter. I kept it on because I wrote it in my original assignment, and I’m going to remain true to that.

Hebrews
Lecturer: Lawrence Jensen
By Chris Evangelista, January 27, 2005

The Apostle Paul wrote the book of Hebrews to “second generation” believers, who are learning to take their faith in Christ and truly let it take a hold of their lives. He is addressing their concerns and bringing them to a saving faith and relationship with Jesus Christ. In this, he reminds them of the supremacy of Christ and deals with their suffering. Knowing that circumstances may change our conclusion about Christ’s sufficiency in our lives, He reminds us that Jesus never changes.

We learn to consider Jesus in all of our circumstances: “Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider Jesus” (Hebrews 3:1). This is in response to Him speaking clearly and evidently in our lives; through Jesus Christ: “in these last days [He] has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world” (Hebrews 1:2). Because of this, our response should be of action, “for this reason, we must pay closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it” (Hebrew 2:1). We should respond to and not neglect Jesus Christ’s supreme message that we may not drift away and find ourselves deep in sin, for “how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” (Hebrews 2:3). Our action should then be, to consider Jesus in whatever circumstance we find ourselves in, which would then lead us to rest, a change from our activity to God’s activity: “For the one who has entered rest has himself also rested his works, as God did from His. Therefore, let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience” (Hebrews 4:10,11).

What is required in this rest is that we would have faith, so that “we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul” (Hebrews 10:39). We need to have faith in order to enter into this rest, for “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it, the men of old gained approval” (Hebrews 11:1,2). This faith is assured by a hope that is sure and true. It is not a wishful kind of faith, but an assured hope that is an anchor for the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast (Hebrews 6:19). Because this faith is so solid, to have it is to be justified, and to have it is also to rest in the assurance that God is the one at work.

The Generosity Assignment was my last “study” assignment in my LTS year at Capernwray. Honestly, I was really amazed when I read through it as I was typing. I can kind of tell that it was a little bit rushed, from the way I wrote it – in comparison to the first two assignments that is. I guess it was because life was really picking up at Capernwray during that time. The back end of the bible school year really is the busiest with all the activities going on (MissionFest, LTS field trips, Youth Retreat, etc).

But I can’t help but wonder what I missed because of that “business”, because as I read through this assignment, I am reminded of the times just in the past year since I left Capernwray, about how I have failed so much regarding “Generosity”. It took a sermon from Pastor John (head pastor of my church, Morninstar Christian Fellowship) before I started giving tithes regularly, and really thinking about some of my friends who do not have as much as I do. Yet as I read through these pages, something tells me that I should really have known it all along.

Praise God for His continuing grace, as He yet again reminds me of these things. Through Pastor John. Through Charlie Fordham (who introduced this assignment to us). God truly never lets us go.

Genorosity Assignment
Chris Evangelista
January 27, 2006

There is no cost to generosity. To be generous is to give; though not just to give, for generosity is not merely an action, but to give in the right attitude of trust and obedience to Jehovah. Generosity gives a large portion. How large? “Liberally” (Deuteronomy 15:14) large. How liberally? Not in foolishness, but trustingly liberally “as the Lord your God has blessed you.” Generosity also gives in obedience to the Lord for “you shall fear your God; for I am the Lord your God. You shall observe my statutes and keep My judgements so as to carry them out, that you may live securely on the land” (Leviticus 25:17, 18). In this attitude of generosity, cost becomes investment.

How do we know that we are being generous? This is shown in God’s commandments concerning the Sabbath year. He commands that every seventh year in the Promised Land must be a year of rest and the Israelites were to do specific things during that year. First, they need to give their land rest, which means that they are not to sow on their fields, prune in their vineyards, or reap the after growths of their harvest. They are to stop from their normal activities, which are the activities that sustain them, and trust that the Lord will provide what they need to live. But in Leviticus 25:20, God warns them of the ways they could mistrust God, and His solutions for their potential concerns: “but if you say ‘What are we going to eat on the seventh year if we do not sow or gather in our crop?’ Then I will so order My blessing for you in the sixth year that it will bring forth crop for three years.” God has our concerns in mind. He has everything figured out and even has a logical reason for us to trust Him. Why would He provide crop for 3 years? “When you are sowing in the eighth year, you can still eat old things until the ninth year when the crop comes in.” This is God’s answer for our mistrust, that He has considered everything and has a plan to sustain us. He will provide a bumper crop in the sixth year to last for three years.

Now that we know how to give, then we can relate that in terms of how much to give. In Leviticus, God also commands the Israelites concerning the year of Jubilee, which is an addition to the seventh Sabbath year (so it occurs on the 50th year). His commandments concerning the year of Jubilee shows God’s control over material values. In the year of Jubilee, on toop of the Lord’s commandment to give rest to the land, the Israelites are also required to return to their own property. It is a “release through the land to all its inhabitants” (Leviticus 25:10). This shows that God retains total control over everything that is Israel’s because it is all really His. He teaches the Israelites to hold nothing dear because it is not theirs, but still to value everything because it is His.

In Deuteronomy, we see this again in God’s commandments concerning the Sabbath. He tells the Israelites that slaves must be released in the Sabbath year and be furnished with everything that they need to live: “when you set him free, you shall not send him empty-handed. You shall furnish him liberally from your flock and from your threshing floor and from your wine-vat; you shall give to him as the Lord your God has blessed you” (Deuteronomy 15:12, 13). This again shows that the Israelites must be prepared to part with their possessions because it is God’s. God again reminds them of this, saying “You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you” (Deuteronomy 15:15).

Finally, in Deuteronomy 15, God also speaks on the poor in the land. In verse 4, it says “However there will be no poor among you, since the Lord will surely bless you.” But in verse 7, it then says, “If there is a poor man with you, one of your brothers, in any of your towns, in your land which the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand from your poor brother, but you shall freely open your hand to him, and shall generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks.” How could there be poor in the land if God has said there should not be any? The answer is in the second part of verse 4, God says that there shall be no poor in the land because “the Lord will surely bless you.” I think this is to show that God will bless some in order to bless others, so that there is no poor in the land. This is solidified in verses 9 and 10, “Beware that there is no base thought in your heart, saying, ‘the seventh year, the year of remission is near’ and your eye is hostile to your brother and you give him nothing… you shall generously give to him, and your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him, because the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and all your undertaking.” For this reason, He says in verse 11, “for the poor will never cease to be in the land; therefore, I command you, saying ‘You shall freely open your hand to your brother, to the needy and poor in your land.’”

This is when cost becomes investment. But not even our investment, but God’s in people’s lives. And He is happy to do it through us, if we choose to be generous.

To be honest, when I was typing this assignment up, I was a little confused at times by what I was trying to say. But as I read on, I started to get kind of flashbacks of the class, and what we were discussing in it.

I still remember that the basic idea of the class was to understand what it meant to be “in the world” but not “of the world”. The main focus being, worldliness, and combatting it without being legalistic. I remember Lawrence saying how in his time, Cards were the big taboo of Christianity… that and, electric guitars. What they did not realize was that worldliness is an attitude, thing, or an activity.

Anyway, I chose to add this journal to my list here, because I believe it is one that has impacted me quite a bit as well. We do live in a worldly world. hehe. We are in it, but we don’t have to be of it. I’m not really sure how to elaborate that anymore.

Dating the World
Lecturer: Lawrence Jensen
By Chris Evangelista, January 27, 2005

The intent of dating is marriage. But the world has changed this intent to a temporary relief and satisfaction. So dating the world is to say, being satisfied by the world. We learned about what it means to be worldly in different context and how to combat this by being in the world, but not of the world.

Worldliness is the biggest problem of generations. It changes with times and context, and so it cannot be narrowed down to specific activities, but is rather an attitude of acceptance of “the spirit of the age.” This attitude is seen if Christians conform to the world and loose their distinct identity of being witnesses for God’s truth. Our culture should not be defining Christianity, but rather let our Christianity define the culture we live in.

In John 17, Jesus provides us with a model of our response to the world. Jesus purposes for us to follow His example in glorifying God: “As You sent me into the world, I also have sent them” (John 17:18). He is seeking that we may become witnesses of god’s glory, which his why He has kept us in the world. But He doesn’t leave us alone, but gives us His joy, truth and protection. This is the response that we should have in being in the world.

Jesus leaves us His joy: “these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves” (John 17:13). He does this so that we may be abnle to strive in conflict. His joy isn’t perpetual happiness, but an expression of gratitude in any situation. As Job says in response to his situation: “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21). Even in the midst of seemingly unbearable pain, Job was still able to worship God. This is joy, which is not an absence of sorrow, but the expression within the sorrow, which is of gratitude and worship of God.

Jesus also leaves us with His word so that we may be a light of truth to those around us: “I have given them Your word… your Word is truth” (John 17:14 & 17). Because of His truth, we will be sanctified as light in the darkness. Because of this, we “will be hated because we are not of the world” *John 17:14). So God leaves us in the world to be His truth and light in the darkness.

Finally, Jesus provides protection from Satan: “I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one” (John 17:15). He gives us victory from Satan so that we may receive glory. And so in this, Satan’s power over us will only be in tempting us. Christ will not allow him to do anything to us.

So Christ left us in the world that we may have His joy in the context we are living in. We will be a light in the world because of His truth, but we will be hated for it. But our victory is in Christ so that the devil cannot harm us. Any deviation from this is worldliness. It is legalism when we try to gain spirituality without Christ’s help. Not being worldly doesn’t mean taking myself out of the world, because while I can get out of the world, I can’t take the world out of me. Besides, we are left in the world so that we may be His witnesses. For this, we must choose not to love the things of the world (1 John 2:15), not to be conformed to the world (Romans 12:2), and to remain unstained by the world (James 1:27). But while doing these things, we must remember that “the earth is the Lord’s and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it” (Psalm 24:1). But we need to keep that in balance with not loving the world because we are not to be in the world.

I wrote “The Missing Link” in November of 2004 a few months after the start of my Leadership Training year at Capernwray Harbour. I forget the exact reason why I began writing it, but from reading it through again, I can kind of understand why I wrote it.

My first few months back at Capernwray had been a time of reflection for me. To look back at the year that I had just completed and to consider what was coming up for me. But most of all, I was reflecting on this wonderful new truth that God had revealed to me about what exactly it meant to be a Christian. As mentioned in the beginning of this testimony, I feel that I have led quite an exemplary life prior to coming to bible school, and well, I guess I pretty much put alot of my trust in my “goodness” when it came to spiritual matters.

Well, Bible School definately was an eye opening experience for me. I realized so many things about myself that I did not like at all. Worst of all, I realized how far behind I really was when it came to spiritual maturity.

Much of my first year at Capernwray is kind of a blur to me now. I know that there were a lot of things that I needed to work through at that time. Lot’s of things that I need to lay down at the feet of Jesus. And well, this testimony was written in that context.

The Missing Link
Chris Evangelista
November 2004

I was a good kid. I have so far lived an excellent life that cause minimal to no strife to my parents and to those around me. Positions I have held in my church and other churches included many leadership positions, of small groups, of youth groups, of worship groups. I taught Sunday School, ran the sound board, played the piano and worshiped God with the best of them. I went on missions trips to serve God, and youth conferences and retreats to regenerate my faith, and each time I was “renewed in my faith” with a new sense of purpose. TO DO GOOD FOR THE LORD. This was inherently where my problem was.

I was probably no different than other overachievers out there. To borrow an illustration from Charles Price, I was a car who hasn’t found my engine (which is Christ). And I wasn’t going anywhere. I became good at making the sounds, “vroom vrooming” away in deception, and making people think that I had it all together. Yet when I looked out the window, I was far behind the goal. “[I want to] know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead” (Philippians 3:10, 11) was the sincere desire of my heart. I just did not know how to go about knowing Christ.

I thought that I could know Him by watching Him from a distance, mimicking His actions… What Would Jesus Do? Right? How wrong I was. I found in this a righteousness of my own, which to the outside world was good enough. I was encouraged and congratulated until my head swelled with pride. Hey why not? I was good at it. I was really good at mimicking Christ. Yet I knew inside of me that Christ was no where to be found. I thought that if I could do well enough, that I would attract His attention, and finally He would work in me. I would find that the opposite would be true. My own actions only caused me to become weary and tired. I would “burn out” doing for good for Christ.

There was a lesson I still needed to learn. There was a missing link. Here it is. “Faithful is He who calls you, He will also do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24). This was something that I had never heard before! What? He will also do it? Do what? Do what He has called me to do; “For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). What? There it is again. For it is God who works in me? Huh? How? How come I have never heard this before? I’ve read through Philippians, how come I’ve never seen this before?

There is a call in our churches today. That call sadly is for us to do for God, instead of letting God do through us. I reflect on the works that I have done – and again, they were good works. I did for God. And I did well for God. The problem was that I was doing it, instead of Him in me. In futility (that means, vanity, senselessness, uselessness), I continued on my works for Him, and found that I wasn’t going anywhere. “For even though [I] knew God, [I] did not honour Him as God or give thanks, but [I] became futile in [my] speculations, and [my] foolish heart was darkened” (Romans 1:21). Though I knew that He was God, I continued on to do my own works. I chose to mimic Him, working under my own strength, instead of giving Him His proper place in my life.

Months ago, I saw that my actions weren’t good enough. I saw that my “vroom vrooming” noises were incomparable to reality of Christ in those who were around me who had gotten the message. More than that, I saw them taking off on a sprint towards that goal of knowing Christ, while I was left behind, where I was squirming in my own strength. I knew that a change had to be made. I knew that things had to be different.

In Psalms 46:10, God says, “Cease striving and know that I am God.” This is the first step of faith that I had to take. I had to stop what I was doing, to stop my actions and to acknowledge that He is the Almighty, All-powerful, and All-knowing God. Then in acknowledgement of who He is, I needed to acknowledge who I am: “but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin” (Romans 7:14). I am sinful, I am human. Nothing I do will ever be able to please Him. Now in light of who He is, and who I am, I then need to realize my dependency on Him: “Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?” (Romans 7:24). This is it! This is what God was waiting to hear from me. He wanted me to realize that I now only live because of His mercy on me: “For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all” (Romans 11:32). Finally, based on this dependence, I needed to realize the basis by which God calls anyone to do anything for Him: “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgements and unfathomable His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counsellor? Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to Him again? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever.” (Romans 11:33-36) Let me say that again. The basis by which God calls anyone to do anything for Him is this: For FROM Him and TROUGH Him and TO Him ARE ALL THINGS. Remember the verses above? Faithful is He who calls you, He will also do it; and, for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. Praise God!

This is not the end, though. What is now required in light of these revelations is that I respond to Him: “Therefore, I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship” (Romans 12:1). The “therefore” in that is with response to the verses before from Chapter 11. Let’s read it this way. For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Therefore, I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Because from Him and to Him and through Him are all things, the only thing that I can do is present myself as a living and holy sacrifice to Him. This is my act of worship.

There is something significant about this sacrifice. A sacrifice to God has to die. So how is a sacrifice the act of worship? Did you know that the first time the word “worship” was ever used in the Bible is in the book of Genesis. In Chapter 22, we read the story of Abraham preparing to sacrifice Isaac. In verse 5, Abraham says to his servants, “stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go over there; and we will worship and return to you.” It was obvious what he was going to do. He was going up to the mountains and sacrifice (kill) Isaac to God. This was his act of worship. But here’s the amazing part for he says something peculiar. He says that once they have gone up and worshiped, then they will return. This is what worship and sacrifice means. It is the faith that God can bring life to what was once dead. Abraham believed in Resurrection Life. This is how it applies to Romans 12:1. It is in an attitude of faith and dependence on God who is able to resurrect from the dead that I must respond.

Finally, how this attitude is practically applied is found in the next verse on Romans 12:2, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” Conforming to the world is what I had been doing before in my futility. Conforming to the world is this: the attitude that says I can do it by myself. But the transformation and renewing of my mind is this that I would die to myself and live in dependence on Christ. It is merely saying, “Jesus I can’t, but You can. And so, I must die to myself, knowing that you have the power to resurrect.” This is amplified in a verse that is well known but poorly applied. It is a verse that graces our walls on plaques, and our songs of “worship”, yet is not changing our lives. “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). See I had read this verse before; I had memorized it, and even taught Bible studies with it. But without first, the attitude of faith that God is able to resurrect from the dead, then it is meaningless. Crucified with Christ? What does that mean exactly? It means that I became dead with Him. So that when I am resurrected, I live in the same newness of Life that He has. In dying to myself, I realize that it is not my actions that please God, but I yield to Him so that He may do through me what is His pleasure.

It’s an amazing concept actually. Gone are the pressures on me to do good, the burn out, and the futility. When it’s not me working, there is a freedom and joy. When it’s not me working, there is no fear of condemnation. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t become a vegetable and stand there waiting for God to do. Yielding to God’s activity simply means this, the realization and acceptance that there is nothing inherently good within me and in my actions; but, because of Christ’s mercy and grace, He cleanses me, and God is pleased. He can say as the master to his servant in Matthew 25:13, “Well done, good and faithful servant… enter into the joy of your master.” It is in this then that we are growing to know Him more: “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:18, 19). Isn’t that wonderful? To be filled up with all the fullness of God. But remember where it originates, in my presenting myself as a sacrifice, dead to myself, but alive in Christ, to God. Living in the fullness of Christ is this. To acknowledge moment by moment that only He can.

This choice means something different for different people. For me, the choice to die to myself, is the realization that all the good that I had done before were not good at all. I had so much to boast about, “but whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Philippians 3:7, 8). Nothing compares to knowing Christ. But to know Him, I had to count as loss all the things that I had done before, so that He may in turn do through me. I still leader worship, I still lead small groups and teach. I probably do more now than I’ve been doing before. But the difference is this, that now it is not in my strength but in Him who gives me strength. He is the vine, and I am the branch. Apart from Him, I can do nothing. But in Him, I bear much fruit (Matthew 15:5).

You may be in the same position that I was: finding that you are working in your strength and not His; merely imitating rather than actually reflecting God’s glory. There’s satisfaction in our God. He is sufficient for our every need. But we need to realize that we do have a need. There is nothing in us that can ever please God. “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good” (Romans 3:10-12). Not even faith can save us. Everyone has faith; I have faith right now that this chair I am sitting on is able to keep me up. The important point is the object of our faith. I hope that by this testimony, I have pointed you to the only one in whom we should put our faith on. Put your faith in Christ’s love, mercy and grace: In His ability to make you holy and acceptable to our Holy God. Only then will you find the satisfaction found in the Christian Life.