Does Romans 12:15 Tell Me To Say, "How 'Bout Them...CHIEEEEEEEEFS"?

Rom 12:15  Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. 

In a previous post, I mentioned how many non-believers worship the Kansas City Chiefs.  I was all prepared to not get too excited about the fact that they won their second Super Bowl in a row.  

Then one day at work, the above verse came to me.  And I wonder, is it biblical to celebrate a Super Bowl victory with others, believers or not?

What other things do people rejoice about in the Bible?

Well, Luke 15 gives three examples.  There was a party for a lost sheep (Luke 15:6).  There was a party for a lost coin (Luke 15:9).  There was a party for a lost son (Luke 15:23).

Also in Luke, there was rejoicing for the birth of John The Baptist (Luke 1:58).

Much earlier, God made Sarah have a happy laugh, inviting collective laughter, at the seemingly impossible birth of Isaac (Genesis 21:6).

So, what about a group of strangers who play for a local American football team winning a championship against another group of strangers who play for a different American football team?

As long as you don't see Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Isaac Pacheco, Andy Reid, Donna Kelce,  Taylor Swift, etc. as deities, why not?

Besides, even in the Super Bowl, I see the hand of God at work (not that His hand isn't at work all the time says Romans 11:36), in particular, for the fact that this group of strangers who play American football for a team closest to where we live, have won a second championship in a row, reminding me of the following verse:

Ecc_9:11  I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.

"time and chance happenth to them all".  Just to refresh your memory, this is the first time in 20 years that any American football team has won two in a row, the previous team being the New England Patriots.

If the Kansas City Chiefs win the Super Bowl next year, this will ring even more true, as the team will be the very first in the history of the National Football League to win three championships in a row, called a "three-peat".  You cannot deny that such a rarity would be a blatantly obvious act of God.

It would also be an undeniable, and blatantly obvious act of God, if, for example, the Kansas City Chiefs miss the playoffs next year, and the Cleveland Browns defeat the Detroit Lions in Super Bowl LIX.

"Shudder the thought!"
"Hey!  Didn't I say we weren't to worship the Chiefs?"

Whoever God wants to win next year's Super Bowl will win, period, whether it be the Kansas City Chiefs, Cleveland Browns, Detriot Lions, or even no one (remember what happened to the MLB in 1994?).

Anxiety Is A Sin (Matthew 6:25-34, Philippians 4:6, etc.)

 Matthew 6:25-34 says:

"Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."

Philippians 4:6 says:

"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."

It is a COMMAND of Jesus for us to not worry.  Now, this is not to say that we are to be careless in our activities in life.  I Corinthians 14:20 says that we are to be mature adults in our thinking.  However, "to take thought", as the KJV says, means to be anxious, and Jesus Himself gives an example of what is anxiety.  If you say "What are we going to eat?" or "What are we going to drink?" or "What are we going to wear?", it is anxiety, and it is sin.  In any situation, if you say, "What do we do?" in worry, it is anxiety, and it is sin.

So how do we not worry?

Read this again:

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

(Mat 6:33-34)

"Judge Not" Does Not Mean "Judge Never"

 “Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.” (Matthew 7:1-5, KJV)

Many people refuse to make any comments on sinful behavior or make a determination on whether or not someone is saved by the first verse of this passage.

However, the context is very different. 

Firstly, v.5 appears to give the permission to deal with a brother's sin, ONLY AFTER you deal with your own.

Secondly, consider these passages:

“Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” (John 7:24, KJV)

“Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?” (1 Corinthians 6:2-3, KJV)

“For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” (1 Corinthians 5:3-5, KJV)

“Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.” (Luke 17:3, KJV)

“Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.” (Leviticus 19:17, KJV)

“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” (Ephesians 5:11, KJV)

There's probably more, but the message is clear:  Judging (which we all do, we all judge that the sky is blue) in and of itself is not a sin.

So what of judging IS a sin?  For there is a kind of judging that is forbidden in Scripture.

1. Judging The Very Thing You Do

Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal? Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege?

(Rom 2:21-22)

This is the very definition of hypocrisy.  Yes, we shouldn't steal.  Yes, we shouldn't commit adultery.  Yes, we should abhor idols.  But at the same you, YOU don't steal.  YOU don't commit adultery.  YOU don't rob temples (what "sacrilege" means in the text)

2. Judging Those Outside The Church Camp

For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within? But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.

(1Co 5:12-13)

It is none of our business to judge those outside the faith.  Do not judge non-Christians for worshipping the Kansas City Chiefs (Exodus 20:3), or anything like that (also see Luke 16:15).

3. Judging Without The Facts

Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.

(1Co 4:5)

If a believer's sin is hidden, and you suspect a believer is living in sin, don't make any judgments until it is proven that such a believer is indeed living in sin.  I Corinthians 5:1 provides an example of enough evidence given that a believer is living in sin:

It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife.

(1Co 5:1)

In this instance, it was obvious of the facts of the sinning believer.

Above all else, remember the following when considering a judgment:

Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.

(1Th 5:21)

4. Judging a Non-Sin

Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him. Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.

(Rom 14:3-4)

It is not a sin to eat bacon under grace (Mark 7:19).

It is not a sin in and of itself to drink alcohol (see I Timothy 5:23), but drunkenness is sinful (Ephesians 5:18, Galatians 5:21)

It is not a sin in and of itself to smoke tobacco (Proverbs 30:6).

It is not a sin in and of itself to smoke marijuana (Proverbs 30:6), but to do so in the USA is ILLEGAL, thus a sin for that reason (Romans 13:1, I Peter 2:13-14).

It is not a sin in and of itself to masturbate (Titus 1:15), but lust (Matthew 5:28), as well as evil thoughts (Matthew 15:19, Mark 7:21) are still evil (Matthew 5:28).

If a believer's behavior is not sinful according to Scripture, DO NOT JUDGE.  If it is, then by all means, rebuke, according to Scripture (I Timothy 5:20).

In conclusion, there is a time to judge, and there is a time to not judge.  "Judge Not" is not universal.  Even in the opening Scripture passage:

 “Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.” (Matthew 7:1-5, KJV)

When Jesus says "Judge not", He does not mean "Judge nothing", but rather, "Do not judge in unrighteousness."

Are Republicans Christians?

There was a YouTube video I came across, basically saying that Republicans, particularly that of the evangelical, MAGA, super conservative group, are not Christians at all because they don't help the poor. 

Here is the video, and after the video, consider reading my analysis.

John Fugelsang and Tennessee Brando's accusation is that Republicans don't help the poor because they don't pass laws that help the poor.  But here's the thing:  Many of these laws FORCE OTHERS to help the poor via taxation.  Let me show you part of Jesus' parable of the Sheep and the Goats:

Mat 25:34  Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 

Mat 25:35  For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: 

Mat 25:36  Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. 

Mat 25:41  Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: 

Mat 25:42  For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: 

Mat 25:43  I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. 

Ye, as in YOU.  YOU fed me.  YOU gave me drink.  YOU clothed me.  YOU visited me.  You didn't pass a law to make others pay for a program to help the poor.  YOU did it YOURSELF.

Now, I am not saying that programs that help the poor at the expense of levying more involuntary taxes are evil, I'm still on the fence about that.  Yet, I do believe that our current welfare programs (Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, etc.) do not count as charity in the eyes of God, for it is written:

2Co 9:7  Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. 

Who among us cheerfully pays taxes?  Now, I am fully on board with funding the military, police, governors, mayors, and presidents, at taxpayer expense (Romans 13:6 gives these administrators as reasons for paying taxes), and I am also on board for funding many local and state public works at the expense of special taxes voted in by the public.

As for funding the rest of the government, such as Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the various Cabinet departments, etc., at the very least, I accept it and tolerate it, because God has ordained all governments (Romans 13:1), but I cannot call it true charity, especially if the citizen has no say in the matter.

Am I saying "taxation is theft"?  Not at all!  For even taxes to pay the President's salary is involuntary, and yet I don't consider it theft.

Now, would I be on board for helping paying for, say, an overhaul of the American healthcare system, most famously called "Medicare For All"?  I would be much happier doing so if I were allowed to vote on it, for at least if this is charity, it is truly charity, for it would not be "arm-twisting" as The Message renders.'

But I've been digressing far enough.  Back to the question:  Are Republicans Christians?  Firstly, not because of their politics, that has nothing to do with it.  Is a Republican a Christian if they themselves don't help the poor?  No.  Is a Democrat a Christian if they themselves don't help the poor?  No.  Is ANYONE a Christian if they themselves don't help the poor?  Again, no.

More Proof That You Need To Endure To Be Saved

 Hebrews 10:36-39 (ESV)

36 For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.

37 For, “Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay;

38 but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.”

39 But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.

Let me repeat this:  Faith in Christ is NOT a one-time event, and then you're done.  Faith in Christ is a lifelong commitment.  Only those who endure to the end will be saved.  (Matthew 10:22, Matthew 24:13, Mark 13:13, etc.)

Eternal Security Is Not What You Think It Is

(I am using the ESV, unless otherwise specified, in this post's Scripture references for clarity.)

* Matthew 23:9 forbids calling anyone on earth your "father".  Obviously, I struggle with this.  How else am I to address Douglas Crawshaw Sr. with honor?

 I grew up American Baptist.  My d*d, Douglas Crawshaw Sr. is an American Baptist pastor.  He, and many other people, not just of the American Baptist faith, believe in a "kind" of eternal security, emphasizing that once you're in Christ, you can NEVER lose Christ (The general teaching is also known as "once saved, always saved" or OSAS).  I once overheard Doug Sr.* say that he will take this teaching to his grave.  One of the main proof texts of OSAS is the following:

In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

(Eph 1:13-14)

In one sermon, I overheard Doug Sr* say that there is no "unforgivable sin" that will keep you out of Christ.  In another, he suggests that John 15:2 (which partially says: "every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away,...") does not mean being cut off from Christ, but is simply "lifted up", using the Greek word for "takes away" to mean that fruitless Christians need worked on.  (In the April 28 retelling of the John 15:2 sermon, he did at least acknowledge that "airo" can also mean to "take away")  This is coming from a quote from Bruce Wilkinson's book "Secrets of the Vine", where Mr. Wilkinson gives the following false teaching:

'In both Bible and in Greek literature, airo never means “to cut off”. Therefore, when some Bibles render the word as “takes away” or “cut off”, in John 15, it is an unfortunate interpretation rather than a clear translation.'

Mr. Wilkinson is wrong when he says that "airo" never means "to cut off". Because Matthew 9:16 and Mark 2:21, which describes a new cloth on an old garment tearing up the garment, also uses the Greek word "airo". The suggested English word is "to tear". And in John 19:31 and 38, the word "airo" is used to mean "take away", meaning taking away the body of Jesus after His crucifixion. Now, "airo" can be used as "lift" (John 11:41, as in "Jesus lifted up his eyes", context nullifies Jesus "tearing" or "taking away" his eyes in order to speak to His Father in v. 41 and 42.), but the same Greek word is also used for many other purposes.  

So yeah, this is a perversion of Scripture.  While indeed, followers of Christ will never perish (John 10:28 for example), we are still warned against falling away.  

Hebrews 10:26-31 makes it clear:

For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

(Heb 10:26-31)

The writer of Hebrews included himself in this passage ("we").  Himself, a fellow believer!  There must be a reason that a believer, on the road to eternal life, is warning his listeners, including himself, about going to Hell, for those who have no sacrifice for sins as a credit indeed go to Hell!

Yet, John 10:28 and Ephesians 1:13-14 suggest that believers are locked in to Paradise.  

However, there IS a way to reconcile all of it.  You see, true believers, true followers of Christ, WILL endure to the end, and they will NOT intentionally live a life of sin after knowing the Truth.  Look at this passage from I John:

1Jn 3:9  No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. 

So, not only does the Holy Spirit, God's seed, seal the believer, but He also keeps the believer from practicing sin!  Ain't that neat? 

As for enduring to the end, the Book of Hebrews has a bunch of verses talking about that:

Heb 3:14  For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. 

Heb 3:6  but Christ is faithful over God's house as a son. And we are his house, if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope. 

Even Jesus said:

Mat 10:22  and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 

Paul also made a suggestion of endurance:

Act 14:22  strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God. 

(the NIV gives this rendering: "We must go through many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God", this puzzled me in the past, for this rendering suggests that eternal life is conditional.  I now know that eternal life is on the condition of our faith, which does involve endurance of many hardships, as the road to life is a narrow one)

Then, there is this passage:

For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.

(Heb 6:4-6)

Wait, hasn't this apostate once shared in the same Holy Spirit that sealed Him and kept Him from falling away?  Am I missing something here?  Is the presence of the Holy Spirit temporary?  John 14:16 suggests not:

Joh 14:16  And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 

However, I have found another way to reconcile this.  Jesus wasn't lying when He said that believers get the Holy Spirit forever.  Is it also possible for the Holy Spirit to dwell in temporary believers, for the permanent residence of the Holy Spirit is for the destined and enduring?   Correct me if I'm wrong!

Despite all of this, there is a conclusion that I am rock solid on when it comes to eternal security.  Faith in Christ is not a one-time event, and then you're done.  We must continue in the faith until the end, otherwise we go to Hell.  Those who are eternally secure, will indeed continue in the faith.  There are no former Christians in Heaven.

* Matthew 23:9 forbids calling anyone on earth your "father".  Obviously, I struggle with this.  How else am I to address Douglas Crawshaw Sr. with honor?

Citations:

Crawshaw, Douglas. “FBC Waverly Virtual Worship 2021 09 26.” YouTube, YouTube, 26 Sept. 2021, www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWyGTGAmEss.