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It’s been a few days since I have posted about our 90 day Bible reading challenge. If you are on schedule, you have now made it through the first five books of the Bible in just over two weeks! Congratulations. If you’re not on schedule, that’s ok too. The important thing is trying to be in God’s word on a daily basis, so we can learn from in and apply it to our daily lives. Keep plugging along, whether you are on schedule or not!

As I was reading the first few chapters of Joshua tonight, there was a phrase that really stuck out to me. And it’s one that I feel is a phrase we as Christians need to take to heart, especially with the religious climate that we are starting to find ourselves in today. Just in the first chapter, the phrase “be strong and courageous” or “be strong and very courageous” is found multiple times. God tells Joshua this, and Joshua tells the people of Israel this. This is because God was giving them the land of Canaan, but He knew the opposition they would face. He was encouraging them to put their courage in Him.

We may not have the promise of a physical land like the land of Canaan, but we have the promised land of eternity in heaven to look forward to. But there is a lot of opposition that we are beginning to have to face in this country. Our Christian faith is under constant scrutiny and attack, while other religions are given almost free reign. We can’t hold organized prayers on public property without drawing huge criticism. This can be a very scary thing for those of us that are outspoken about our faith. In other words, those of us that have taken serious the task of becoming completely, committed, followers of Jesus.

Things may get worse before they get better. But I can assure you of this. We have the promise of eternity with our Lord if we are able to stay the course. I don’t know what is in store for us as Christians in this country. I pray that we are on the verge of another Great Awakening in which revival will just sweep across this country. But for that to happen, in all reality, we may have to face a time of persecution to get there. Whatever happens, I think it’s reasonable for us to think that Christ is whispering and encouraging us, “Be strong and very courageous for My name”.

Did you notice the mention of sacrifices to Molech in the day 9 reading? It may have been easy to breeze right past it, because it wasn’t focused on very much. But it’s important enough that I wanted to take a moment to tell you a little about why this was so detestable to God.

First, it was human sacrifice, which God never wanted. Jesus was the only human sacrifice ever planned by God, and that was by His choice. Jesus’ perfect life is the only reason this was planned, because it was the ultimate sacrifice to end sacrifice.

But not only was sacrifices to Molech human sacrifice, it was child sacrifice. Sometimes even infant sacrifice. If you remember in our “Urban Legends” series a few weeks ago, I mentioned Gehenna, which was a valley outside of Jerusalem, where pagan sacrifices used to take place. This is where these sacrifices to Molech were undertaken.

Molech was a pagan god, which the inhabitants of the land of Canaan before the Israelites, built an altar to him. This was a huge altar, shaped like a man seated with his arms stretched out in front of him. The back of the image was open and turned into a furnace. The fires in the furnace would be burned so hot, that it would make the arms of the altar glow red-hot. The child sacrifices would then be placed in the arms of Molech.

So, in the midst of telling His chosen people how to make sacrifices for their sins, God took the time to tell Moses to make sure that the people of Israel did not fall into the trap of making sacrifices to a pagan god. This act was detestable to God, and He didn’t want His people falling into it. Israel actually struggled with this throughout it’s history, however, which we will see as we continue this reading. Not really an insightful post, but more of an fyi this time.

God Bless,

Kraig

I was just recently looking through some files that I found on an old thumb drive, and came across my first testimony that I ever shared in a public setting.  This took place almost 14 years ago now, during a Teen Choir performance at Hale’s Chapel Christian Church in Gray, TN.  This brought back some good and bad memories, but it’s also very cool to see how much I’ve grown in my walk with Christ since then, not to mention my writing and speaking skills as well.  What follows is an unedited version of my testimony that I gave at the age of 17.

*Warning* This includes references and details of my dad’s death:

Hi, I’m Kraig Birchfield.  I’m a 17-year-old junior at Daniel Boone H.S.  I would like to share something with you.  My freshman year at Boone was just about over as the summer of 1999 approached.  My family and I had planned a trip to begin the summer to go to the Amish country in PA.  My dad was really looking forward to this trip, even more than I was.  For some reason my mom didn’t really want to go on this trip.  Finally my dad insisted enough that we go that mom gave in.  So when that last day of school came, we left for our vacation.  By midday the next day we had arrived in Gettysburg.  We toured the battlefield and then found a hotel room.  The next day we went on into the Amish country around Lancaster.  We had planned to stay in the area until we went home and on that Tuesday we made plans to go to Hershey, PA to tour the chocolate factory.  Little did I know that on Wednesday morning I would wake up to the unthinkable.  Mom woke me up and said that something was wrong with my dad.  Well she called 911 and then we pulled him off the bed so she could do CPR and I went out in the hall and cried until the paramedics left.  When the ambulance left, mom called Clint Andrews, our preacher. Then we went to the hospital and found out that it was pretty bad.  WE spent the day at the hospital and then went to our motel room.  When we went back to the hospital on Thursday, Clint came walking in.  He had driven all night so he could get there around midday on Thursday.  He realized that I needed to get out of the hospital so we went for a ride in his Miata that he calls his mid-life crisis.  Later that night, Clint and I went to a movie and when we returned to the hospital, there was my cousin Matt, who was in a full leg cast at the time, his mom, and my mom’s sister.  They had driven all day Thursday to get up there.  The hotel let my family stay in our room for no extra charge.  The next morning more support arrived.  My neighbor Boo Croley and his mom had driven all night Thursday to be with us.  On Friday my mom and aunts went to the hospital while Matt, Boo, Boo’s mom, and I drove around the countryside.  Sometime in the afternoon we went back to the hospital and Mom told me that the doctor’s needed us to make a decision whether or not to take Dad off of Life Support.  I looked at Mom and told her that we should because that is what Dad would want.  I went up to ICU to see Dad one more time and then Boo, Matt, and I were taken back to the hotel by Boo’s mom.  Mom, after telling the doctor’s our decision, started to second-guess her self.  But after seeing that they pulled the life support at around 5:30 P.M. and Dad died about 10:30 P.M., she knew we had made the right decision.  I would like to tell you how God prepared me for this and was a constant presence in my life throughout.  On Tuesday night before my dad’s heart attack, I was lying in bed and before I went to sleep I pictured paramedics rushing into our hotel room.  I would also like to thank God for the people He surrounded me with.  I would have never have made it through this hard time if it hadn’t been for people like Clint, Boo, Matt, my best friend Byron Tolley, really good friends like Michelle Keebler and Sheri Aubrey, the whole youth group here at Hale’s Chapel, and Curtis Booher.  But even with all their help, I wouldn’t have made it without God.  At the time all of this was going on, I couldn’t imagine any good ever coming from it and I didn’t understand why it was happening to me.  But now I see that through experience, God has helped me to grow up faster.  I’ve also developed a lot stronger faith in Him because of how I’ve learned to trust Him.  Just remember that whatever is going wrong in your life, God is with you and will always bring good out of a bad situation.

As I was reading through the first part of the book of Exodus yesterday, the story of Moses and Pharaoh really showed me the power of our God. You see, I have always known the power of God, but this story in Exodus should show us all exactly what our God is capable of. In fact, if you look at the story of the plagues of Egypt and the people of Israel crossing the Red Sea, and really look at the significance of those events, then we can see that our God is the one true God. There are no other gods.

It’s always been interesting to me that the story tells us that God hardens the heart of Pharaoh. Some use that to try and claim that God is not just, that He is manipulative. But that’s not the case. God knew the heart of Pharaoh before hand and knew that Pharaoh would not let the people go easily. What God does through Moses and Aaron in front of Pharaoh is actually trying to give Pharaoh every chance to realize that He is the true God. How do I know that?

It’s simple actually. When you look at each plague in the context of Egyptian history and religion, each plague is a direct attack on an Egyptian god. Each plague is basically demonstrating to Pharaoh and his officials that the God of the Hebrews is actually more powerful and in control of everything that their gods are supposed to be controlling. And each plague kind of builds on the previous. In other words, each plague takes on a more “powerful” Egyptian ‘god’ as they continue. The plagues culminate in the death of the firstborn of all families and livestock in Egypt.

But God’s demonstration of power does not stop there. As the Hebrew nation leaves Egypt, there are actually more direct routes that they could have taken, but God leads them to the Red Sea. Also, He has them stop there for a period of time, instead of allowing them to cross quickly. “Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon. (‭Exodus‬ ‭14‬:‭2‬ NIV). This is perhaps the most significant act that God uses to demonstrate His power over the Egyptians and their gods. You see, Pi Hahiroth was where the temple to the Egyptian god of the sea was located. It was within site of where the Hebrews were led across the Red Sea on dry ground, and where the entire Egyptian army was lost in the sea. God was not only showing the Egyptians His power, but He was also letting those know in the land of Canaan, the Promised Land if you will, that His power was great, because they would have heard about the Egyptian army.

God used the plagues and the crossing of the Red Sea as a show of His supreme power, and it’s when we are able to see that in its true context that we can truly appreciate the story of the 10 plagues of Egypt.

God Bless,

Kraig

I challenged our faith family at Central Christian Church to read through the Bible in 90 days with me starting 1-1-2015. We want to focus on truly growing in Christ this year and one of those ways is through reading the entirety of God’s word. I also have pointed out before that the entire Bible either points ahead to Jesus and the cross, or back to Jesus and the cross. For those of you that have never done this kind of study before, that is one theme that should become clear as you read the whole Bible this quickly.

So I thought I would take a few minutes to point out a couple of things that point to Jesus from the first couple of days of this reading plan. Day 1 is pretty obvious as it is a direct prophecy about what is to come. It comes from Genesis 3, after the serpent’s deception causes Adam and Eve to sin.

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” (‭Genesis‬ ‭3‬:‭15‬ NIV)”

This refers to what Jesus does on the cross and in His resurrection. He defeats Satan, even though Satan is able to hurt Him. God’s plan of salvation has been in place since the beginning, in the garden of Eden. That’s why the whole Bible either points forward or back to Jesus. He was always the plan, and we see that in the garden during this encounter.

What I saw in the day two reading isn’t as obvious, but it is just as powerful, if not more so. Look at Genesis 22. It’s the story of Abraham being told to sacrifice his only son Isaac, the son God promised Abraham that descendants as numerous as the stars would come from. God is testing Abraham’s faithfulness and trust.

The obvious part of this is that Abraham is being asked to sacrifice his son, just like God is eventually going to do with Jesus. But the coolest part is easy to miss if you don’t know the history of the geography of the area. God tells Abraham to take Isaac to a place called Moriah. This is s mountain, or hillside right outside of the area that would eventually become the great city of Jerusalem! In other words, Abraham takes Isaac to sacrifice him in the same place that thousands of years later, Jesus would be crucified for the sins of the world. This is direct foreshadowing of what is to come and one of the main ways that we see the OT pointing toward Jesus and the cross.

I plan on writing reflections of our readings on a somewhat regular basis over the next 90 days, but it won’t be everyday. Let me know if you come across any questions during your reading and I will do my best to answer them.

God Bless,

Kraig

If you grew up in the church like I did, you are probably pretty familiar with the idea of loved ones being immediately with Jesus in heaven upon death, assuming they had accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior.  It’s pretty common.  I hear it all the time.  And it’s a great comfort to those of us who have lost loved ones.  There is a question, however, that has to be asked about this.  What does the Scripture say about what happens after death and before Jesus’ 2nd coming?  

Most people that don’t ask this question believe those that pass away are immediately in heaven because it is what they have always been taught.  I know that’s where I was at just a few years ago.  I never even thought about whether this was correct or not.  When my dad passed away when I was 15, that’s what I was told by many people.  It was the same as when my grandparents passed away.  It really wasn’t until I was doing my internship for my college degree that this was even questioned.  It was questioned then because the Sr. Minister (who is now my Father-in-Law) at the church I interned at strongly disagreed that believers were immediately in heaven when they passed away.  At the time, even with hearing this brought up, I didn’t give it much thought.  What does it matter if that is the truth or not?  It helps people in their grief, and to me that made it the right thing.

A couple of years ago, however, our Sr. Minister at Crossroads Christian Church preached a sermon that touched on this subject.  After hearing this sermon, it made me really start to think about this.  While thinking through things, I realized that if the Bible does deal with this topic, and those who pass away do not immediately go to heaven, then it does matter if this is being said or taught.  While this comforts those mourning the loss, it would be considered a lie, and therefore would not be something that we should participate in.  

That was about as far as I got with this thought until just about a month ago.  While attending a funeral, I listened to a preacher state numerous times that this person was now with Jesus.  I realized something at this moment; it irritated me now to hear this.  But I had never done the study myself to see what Scripture says.  So, what does the Bible say about what happens between death and Jesus’ 2nd coming?

Do those that are saved go immediately to heaven upon death?  That is the question that I started with.  

If the answer to the first question is no, then where do they go and are they with Jesus before the 2nd coming?

Let’s go to the Scriptures! (I will reference the passage and give a summary of it, but for the sake of space, will not quote the entire passage here)

First of all, Jesus, in his teachings and conversations, makes an apparent distinction between the terms heaven and paradise along with hades and eternal fire (hell).  The thief on the cross that confessed Jesus as the Christ was promised to be in paradise with Jesus that same day. (Luke 23:39-43)  Before this event, Jesus taught about a rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31.  In this story, two men die; one righteous and one evil.  The rich man (evil) was in constant torment, while Lazarus (righteous) was being comforted.  They were separated by a great chasm to where they could not cross over to each other, but they could see each other and communicate.  Lazarus was with his faithful ancestors and being comforted as stated before. The argument can be made that Lazarus is in paradise, while the rich man is in hades.  So the thief on the cross is promised this paradise with Jesus, but Jesus leaves this paradise three days later in his resurrection.  Then Jesus ascends into heaven.  I Peter 3:18-22 tells us that during the time between Jesus’ death and resurrection, He preached to those that were in “prison”. This is believed to be paradise/hades, depending on your standing with Christ.

But is this “prison” or “holding cell” our final resting place?  Is this referring to heaven and hell?  Matthew 25:31-46 is the story of the sheep and the goats.  In it, Jesus is teaching about the final judgement day, where all will be judged and will either enter their reward (heaven) or be cast into eternal flame (hell).  Jesus indicates that this is a one time event.  It would appear that whether saved or unsaved, we do not enter heaven or hell immediately upon death.  Other evidence to this is found in John 14:1-14, in which Jesus tells his disciples that He is going to prepare a place for them, and if He goes to prepare a place for them, then He will surely return and take them to this place (reference to 2nd coming).  The entire chapter 15 of I Corinthians talks about the resurrection of Christ, resurrection of the dead, and the resurrection body.  In Philippians 3:20-21, Paul tells us that as Christians, our citizenship is in heaven and we are waiting for Christ’s return to go there.  Finally, I Thessalonians 4:13-18 shows that the dead in Christ (those that are saved but have passed away before the 2nd coming) will be raised to heaven followed by those of us that are saved but are still alive.

Evidence throughout the New Testament seems to point out that saved and unsaved alike go to a temporary “holding cell” after death until the 2nd coming of Christ.  Once dead, there are no more chances to have a relationship with Christ.  There is a chasm between the two sides (paradise and hades) that cannot be crossed.  Jesus is in heaven at the right hand of God (Acts 7:56), preparing a place for those of us who have accepted Him as our Lord and Savior (John 14 again).  Then, at the 2nd coming of Christ, and final judgement, we will either enter our reward in heaven, or be cast into eternal fire in hell.

Does saying that someone that has passed away is now in heaven with Jesus really matter?  It really isn’t a salvation issue.  It is, however, a matter of sticking with tradition versus actually studying what Scripture says about certain topics.  It is a matter of teaching truth verses saying things just as a comfort, whether they are true or not.  All-in-all, I think it comes down to our consciences.  I would never walk up to someone who has just lost a loved one, and tell them that their loved one is not in heaven with Jesus, just because they are saying their loved one is there as a way of comforting themselves.  They are more than likely saying this because it is what they have always been taught.  This would not, however, be a good time for correction.  I will also never tell someone who is dealing with the loss of a loved one that their loved one is in heaven with Jesus.  I cannot, in good conscience, after seeing what Scripture says, tell anyone this.  What I will do, is to always look to Scripture and try to apply the teachings of Scripture in my life on a daily basis.  

What are your thoughts? 

I wrote this post about a week ago while I was at work but just needed more time to process it before actually typing it up and publishing it.  That is why the dates mentioned in here may be a little off.

Today is always a hard day every year.  I didn’t think it was going to be bad today, but while sitting at work, it hit me like a ton of bricks.  June 4, 2013…it has been 14 years today that my dad died in a hospital room in Lancaster, PA while on family vacation.  14 years, that can’t be right.  Sometimes it feels just like yesterday.  Others it feels as if it was a lifetime ago.  My dad was a good man.  Yes, there were times that I couldn’t stand him.  There were things about him that I never liked and have fought very hard to keep from developing those same habits in my own life.  Mainly, this would be his temper.

Even with these few things, I have to say he was a good man and a great example.  Sometimes that example was what not to do, but for the most part, especially in the last 10 years of his life, he was an example of a godly man.  I learned to play baseball and to golf with him, but I also got to watch and learn how to live for God.  It’s a really amazing though to remember him serving as a deacon at the time of his death, and no I’m serving in that role 14 years later.

That is a humbling and honoring thought that we have both served the same congregation in somewhat of the same capacity.  I m just realizing the legacy that I am a part of.  While this is incredible, it is also somewhat intimidating.  I realize that I have plenty of my own faults just like dad, but I strive to be seen as a good man.  More than that, I strive to be a Man of God.  This is of utmost importance to me.  I have a long way to go but I will get there.  I have too many people surrounding me to fail.

Right here, right now, its time to refocus on my walk with Christ.  Life seems to always get in the way, but I will do everything I can to make sure my walk and my family’s walk with Christ is the best that it can be.  And that starts now with recommitting to spending daily time in conversation with God.  I have to stope letting life get in the way.  I have a a family legacy to uphold.  Let us all become Crosseyed.  Hebrews 12:1-3

Romans 1:16-17;

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.  For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed–a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written:  “The righteous will live by faith.”

A couple of nights ago I wrote No Religion about how what we really have is a relationship, not religion.  Last night, as I sat in the hospital with my wife waiting to see if we can finally figure out what is going on with her, I started reading No More Christian Nice Guy; When Being Nice–Instead of Good–Hurts Men, Women, and Children by Paul Coughlin.  The premise behind the book is that in today’s society, men have forgotten what it means to be “men”.  And it’s the same in our churches.  What we pass off as nice or humble is often a misrepresentation of what we are actually called to be.  Coughlin states, “Somehow we have mistaken niceness for righteousness, when the Bible says that the righteous are as bold as lions.”

I think these two ideas are represented well by the words of Paul from Romans above.  You see, Paul was not ashamed of the gospel, or the idea of a personal relationship with Christ.  That is what Christianity is all about~a personal, growing relationship with Christ, the savior of he world!  How can we be weak with that idea?  Society has tried to take our hope and strength away from us.  How can we sit by and either never proclaim our relationship to others or do so in such a way that it seems weak and powerless.  Paul tells us that, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.  For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed–a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written:  ‘The righteous will live by faith'”.

We should not be afraid to share our faith.  In fact OUR FAITH should empower us and we should not be able to keep it in.  Jesus never promises that this will be easy, but He does give us an even better promise.  The last part of Matthew 28:20, Jesus tells us, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”  This is Jesus’ promise to us if we are willing to tell others about how great our relationship with Him is.  Be bold because the gospel is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes!

Romans 1:11-12; 

I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong–that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.

Here we have Paul, arguably one of the strongest Christians and missionaries this world has ever seen, admitting that he needs help.  He not only is writing to the Romans of his desire to come and teach them, but also of his desire to come and be encouraged by them as well.  This passage provides much encouragement to me in my life.  I have always struggled with the idea that I have to do things on my own.  I know that I can’t do things without God and others, but I constantly seem to slip into the mindset of “I can do it myself”.  And that’s just not the case.  If Paul couldn’t do it on his own, what makes me think that I ever have a chance of doing it on my own.

There is a growing trend that I have seen in this world of people thinking they can have a real relationship with God, but never darken the doors of a church.  Again, how could this ever work?  And trust me, this is not just coming from this one passage.  I have personally lived that lifestyle.  At one point in my life, I tried to do my relationship with God strictly on my own.  I got discouraged with church because I lost sight of the real meaning of church…Community.  And it didn’t work.  I was very irregular in my attendance to church for about 2 years, maybe a little more.  And let me tell you, it has taken at least double that amount of time to get back to where I was before I started trying to do it on my own.  The community or fellowship found in the church is vital to our lives as Christians.  And Paul seems to agree.  We mutually encourage one another by our faith.  So stop trying to do it on your own, and I’ll continue to stop trying to do  it on my own, and let’s work to encourage one another on this journey.  If Paul needed other Christians, I think it’s pretty clear that so do we.

God Bless

Matthew 28:18-20, “Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

This is a very familiar passage for most of us that claim to be Christians.  We hear it all the time.  But then why aren’t we living it out?  Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty that do live it out.  This passage is most often used to describe the need for people to become missionaries around the world.  And that is certainly part of the call here from Jesus.  But I firmly believe that not all of us are called to travel to far off mission fields.  There are places and people right where we live that need Jesus as well.  So this passage is truly for all of us.  But that leads back to my first question.  Why aren’t more of us living it out?

Maybe it’s because we don’t feel like we are qualified to talk to others about Jesus.  Maybe it’s because we just assume someone else will do it for us.  Maybe it’s because we’re scared of the other persons reaction.  Or maybe it’s just that we simply don’t care enough about that other person to tell them about the greatest gift that has ever been given.  If it’s this last statement, that we simply don’t care about the other person enough, what is the cause of that?  Could it be that our relationship with Jesus isn’t as strong as we believe it is?  Doug Fields, in his book Fresh Start: God’s Invitation to a Great Life, states, “When we know God intimately, this gives us a new power to care for the spiritual conditions of others.”  Part of our relationship with God should compel us to share our faith with others.  II Corinthians 5:14, “For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.”

Ok, so we are called, or even compelled, to share with others about our faith with Christ.  But what does that look like?  Most people know something about religion.  And, let’s be honest, most people are turned off by religion.  And who could blame them.  Religion makes most people think of a long list of strict rules that are impossible to live up to.  Also, religion (any religion for that matter), throughout history, has not always held the best track record of love and peace.

What we should have with Christ in our lives is not religion.  It’s a relationship with the Creator of the universe.  And that should be exciting enough to want to share with anyone.  Fields, later in the same chapter, states, “They don’t need religion and rules; they need Jesus…And great joy awaits you if you care about their spiritual condition.”  So, let me ask again, why are we not living out the command found in Matthew 28?  Look closely at that passage again.  There is a promise from Jesus there at the end that should calm any fear that we have.   “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”  Now that’s a promise that should go with us while we try to live out our lives.

Matthew 9:35-38, “Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.  When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.  Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.  Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.'”