EXCUSES

 

Selective Justification of Time

An excuse is something offered as justification for a failure to do something or be somewhere. Telling you that I missed our appointment because I lost track of time is as much an excuse as telling you I missed it because I had a heart attack. What makes an excuse unacceptable is not the degree to which the reason is untrue but rather, the habitual nature of its occurrence. For instance, if I always seem to have a heart attack every time we are suppose to meet, then perhaps there is something more hideously wrong than a medical condition. Or if you are always losing track of time, it might be an indicator of how unimportant our meeting is to your life. All excuses fall into one of three categories. Some are excuses of the flesh justified by temporal conditions. Some are excuses of life justified by logistical constraints while the rest are spiritual excuses justified by our differing doctrines. “But they all alike began to make excuses…” (Lk 14:18).

Excuse My Flesh

When someone tells you they are too busy to do what you are doing, they are saying that their time and resources are occupied elsewhere. If I tell you I am too busy to read my Bible, then I am telling you that I prefer to spend my time on things I consider more important. “We hear that some of you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies” (2Thes 3:11). Typically, our busyness is just a cover up for idleness in other areas. If I am busy at work, then I am idle with my family or if I am busy watching movies then I am idle with my reading or if I am busy with nonchristian friends then I am idle in my fellowship. “You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little… Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own house” (Haggai 1:9). Preoccupation with self is simply sin. And there’s no reasonable excuse for sin.

Excuse My Life

Two thorns that often choke out the kingdom of God in the lives of Christians are family and work (or school for college students). Jesus tells us that those who come to Him and do not hate their families cannot be His disciples (Lk 14:26). He tells us that our families will turn against us (Mk 13) and was an example of the same occurring in His own life (Mk 3). The people of Israel used their children as an excuse for not entering the Promise Land (Num 14:3-4) and were told by God that He would kill the parents and allow the children they used as justification for their disobedience to be the recipients of His inheritance (Num 14:26-33). Others devote all their time to their work or studies thinking, “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Col 3:17). We give so much of our lives to satisfy our temporal cravings that we allow the benefits we receive from such investments to be our excuses for not obeying His commands. God has called me to minister to my family before others and so like the children of Israel, we neglect others for the sake of our flesh. My work or school is my pulpit and so we strive for A’s or lofty evaluations on earth but will receive our eternal due at the judgement seat of Christ. We had better not allow our earthy duties to excuse us from our heavenly ones or there will be hell to pay when we face the Author of our lives.

Excuse My Faith

In Luke 9:57-62, we read of three men who excused themselves from following Jesus because the cost outweighed their temporal gain. One was told that Jesus does not lay His head down upon this earth. A second was ordered to “Let the dead bury their own dead,” while a third was warned, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” Many Christians use their faith as a reason for not obeying God’s commands. I am saved by faith am not required to give my life to habitual disciplines like quiet times, scripture memory or one on one discipleship. They justify their laziness by God’s forgiveness. Other Christians use God’s love to excuse them from His commandments. God’s love is unconditional, so I don’t have to earn it by making disciples. Jesus said that in order to remain in His Father’s love, He had to obey God’s commands (Jhn 15:9,10). We excuse ourselves as His followers when we do not live by His standards. Lastly, Christians use religion as an excuse for blatant disobedience. Praise songs are my ministry or I tithe or I was baptized or seminary taught me or I help the poor. Our works will never appease Him when He tells us, “I never knew you.” Jesus asks, “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord’ and do not do what I say” (Lk 6:46)? What’s your excuse?

 

 

DUTY

 

A duty is an obligation owed because of a commitment made. We fulfill our duty by working appointed hours, completing assigned tasks, & sometimes even going above and beyond. Yet, why is it a sin to some to call our faith a duty? When we finish the race our only comment should be, “We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.” If faith is not a duty to you, then perhaps you owe God less than the rest of us.

I want God to say, “Thank you, Mike, for all your hard work,” but I know that’s selfish and a lie. I don’t work hard, but that’s because I don’t really know what “hard work” means. People say, “You know you’ve worked hard because you feel it in the pit of your stomach.” I’m no doctor, but I don’t think our stomachs have crevices that house “quality of work sensors.” I can’t tell my students, “You know you’ve worked hard on this paper because you just feel it,” nor can I tell them how many hours equate to efficiency—it’s not that simple. So how do we know when we’ve done our spiritual duty?

The “well done(s)” seem to be God’s domain while the boot in the rear seems to be ours. After all, James tells us that a man is “justified by what he does and not faith alone” (Jas 2.24) because faith in God can only be evaluated (and thereby justified) by God. But faithful deeds like Bible study, fellowship, witnessing, discipling, giving, serving, etc. are all actions which show our faith to people for people. My duty is not to be evaluated by the people I serve, but those I serve will ultimately be my evaluation.

 

THESE THINGS THEN TEACH (Titus 2:11-15)

The Universality of Grace

"For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men." Paul admonishes his disciple to preach on matters significant to his listeners' growth in the faith. First is the fact that God has presented His grace as a gift to all men; "for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." The same "all" that has fallen, the sentence goes on to say, "are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." The doctrine of justification teaches that God has gifted us with eternal life apart from any work we can manage. We may call that work: "faith, repentance, baptism, belief or acceptance," but none of it can save us. You don't have to believe it to be saved. You don't have to accept Him to be born again and you don't have to repent to be a child of God. But just as surely as you don't have to breath in order to be alive, it sure helps to prove your vitality. The true child of God will do all of the above but is saved apart from any of it. The first lesson is the futility of man's decision in comparison to the power of our Creator. Even man's sins are no longer his. Man must learn that he is not the center of the universe and God does not respond to his beckoning. If he is to be saved, he must be chosen by God. There is no other way. (Rom 3:23,24; Eph 2:8,9)

The Practicality of Grace

"It teaches us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age." Single people envy their married friends because of the love and companionship they share with their spouse. Married people envy their single friends because of the freedom and individuality they cling to. Both neglect to examine the impediments which accompany the advantages of both camps. God's grace is like a proposal to a world of prostituting sinners to join in holy union with Him. Those whom He weds enter a new relationship based upon the rules of their new Husband and not the freedom of individuality they once clung to. To become a recipient of the grace of God, we must not merely accept the benefits of such a gift but deny our freedoms that impede our love for Him. It is said of Jesus that "the grace of God was upon Him," not to mean that He needed the gift of forgiveness from sins, but rather that He learned obedience by denying Himself and adhering to the rules of God's kingdom. As a Son, He lived by the practical aspects of God's grace. If we are recipients of His grace, then we will live self-controlled, upright and godly lives. God gives no lenience beyond His grace. (Luke 2:40)

Return of Christ

"While we wait for the blessed hope-the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ." This is actually the reason why we live by the practicality of grace, for God will return and He will judge each of us for what we have done in the body, whether good or bad. Jesus prophesied several times about His return, usually via a parable, teaching us the events which will occur. I don't mean the ones that lead up to His arrival, but rather what occurs when He does arrive. He tells us we must be wise and prepared virgins awaiting the Bridegroom. We must invest our talents and have a return when He examines us so that we might be called good and faithful servants. We must be the sheep who lovingly care for the hungry, naked, sick and lonely. We are the landlords who must treat God's servants as we are treated by God. We are the stewards of His knowledge who will give an account of our stewardship. "Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for Him." Preparation implies training and training demands obedience, and obedience is love for God. (Heb 9:27,28)

Sanctification

"Who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good." The process of sanctification, simply put, is God molding us into people He can use. God recreates us for the purpose for which we were first created. That is, sharing in a relationship with God our Father. As I put it to one lieutenant who is thinking about the faith, God has given us two testimonies: His word and His people. Te Word of God is "the testimony of God, which He has given about His Son." If we choose to reject God's revelation of truth, then we call God a liar and reject Him. But just as His word is a testimony of His grace, so also are His people. If we choose to reject them, we also reject Him. The teaching of sanctification encompasses many doctrinal teachings involving obedience, purity, and ministry. But it must be learned from both of His two testimonies. These things they both teach and woe to them if they do not. (1John 5:9)

 

Doctrines of Doing, not Knowing

"These, then, are the things you should teach. Encourage and rebuke with all authority. Do not let anyone despise you." Why should we despise our teachers? Perhaps because we are taught doctrines that we either do not want to hear or believe we do not need to obey. Many will hate their teachers because they do not "tickle their ears," but rather speak the words God has given them to say. The rest of us will hate our teachers because they do not teach what we need to know to pass the test but only what their opinion describes as most important. All that is necessary for us to learn about God's doctrines of truth are found in these four things Paul charges his disciple with teaching. Each of these doctrines demand reaction on the part of those who believe. The teacher does not merely pass information about the subjects, but encourages his listeners to adhere to the truth and rebukes them when they fail to do so. This is what we call training. When I write or speak to a group, I ask if what I am sharing fits into one of these four categories (God's grace, our obedience, God's judgment, or our mission). If it doesn't, I either keep it to myself or share it cautiously, ensuring that such deviations are the exception and not the rule. These then are the things we ought to teach.

 

A God Who Deceives

Secret Things

God does not reveal Himself to merely the literate but to those who know how to read. “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this Law” (Deut 29:29). Not everything you want to know about God is found in Scripture but everything He wants you to know about Him is. Have you ever wanted to know why you were created the way you were to do the things you crave to do? Have you tried to imagine what Heaven is like or how bad Hell really is? Have you asked every Christian you know about the mysteriousness of God’s eternal love? Well, they are hidden for a reason. The things revealed belong to us that we might walk in accordance with His commands. The secret things do not teach us that and so they remain hidden. Do not ask to see what is hidden lest you take your eyes off what is revealed.

Pyrrhic Victories

As I read and understand Jesus' ministry, I don't find many occasions in which He saw a need to rebuke a person's sins but have unexpectedly found quite the opposite. When Jesus met the rich man who thought he had no sin, Jesus did not say, "Look here, these are the laws you have not obeyed (after all, who hasn't lusted in their hearts or been unforgiving to someone)," but rather Jesus said, "Sell all you have and give to the poor." He focuses on the sins of omission rather than the sins one's committed. Why? Allow me to illustrate. I'm a squad leader directing 10 men to attack an enemy stronghold at the top of a hill. Our commander has ordered me to take the objective at all cost. Everything else is negligible compared to this one mission. As we advance, my soldiers are pinned down by various snipers who detract them from our primary purpose. Should I allow them to search and destroy these pesky harassers or should I rally them together to charge up the hill and win the war for our side? As we defeat the snipers, we may win the battles, but inevitable we will lose the war. Killing the snipers is what we'd refer to as a pyrrhic victory, one in which a triumph occurs but is offset by so large a cost in losses that in the larger scheme, we've really lost. We must figure out what wins the war and avoid the skirmishes with those things meant to keep us from accomplishing our mission.