Faith With Wisdom

About Faith With Wisdom

…we declare God’s wisdom… 1 Cor. 2:7

Publisher

DJ Price

Category

education · religion & spirituality · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

13 Mar 2014

Latest episode

23 Nov 2020

Latest episodes

37 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   23 Nov 2020

   James and Paul: Are They At Odds With Each Other?

   Since the Reformation in the 16th Century the teachings of the Apostle Paul and the Elder James have often been portrayed as being at odds with each other. Much time is spent by theologians and New Testament scholars trying to conclude whether there is a real conflict between the writings of these leaders or not. It seems to me that there is not really a conflict present, but the topic of faith is approached from a different perspective. This is probably because the supposedly contradictory pieces of writing are addressing different audience needs at the time of their writing. Meaning that the focus of the authors’ messages shift in order to highlight the needs they are addressing. This happens even within Paul’s own New Testament writings, so it is not really surprising that this happens between two different New Testament authors. We should acknowledge that there is much more of Paul’s writing recorded in the New Testament and so we hear his perspective on many more issues than we do that of James. This is part of the reason why it seems a bit impetuous to judge James and Paul’s writings as being at odds when there is so little of James’ writing to be able to compare with Paul’s. Certainly there seems adequate other examples within Paul’s work of his being in agreement with James on the importance of good works by professing Christians, even if he does not use always these labels. Paul then, unlike James, has much more opportunity to address the fact that salvation is not through works simply because of the volume of his writings available to us. Because of this we are able to see that Paul’s own good works are his way of expressing gratitude to God for the graceful salvation provided through Jesus Christ. Paul’s works, like the traditions of his Jewish heritage, are a response to God’s grace. James also saw good works as a way of living out God’s grace, and as such he concludes that these grace inspired works are the evidence that a person is living in Christ. The problem seems to arise though in the assumption that James is addressing salvation when he discusses works. It is true that our modern English translations record him using the phrase, “Can such faith save them?” (James 2:14b). The NIV’s wording here is important, because it uses the word ‘such’. It refers back to what James as described previously, that is a person who claims to know Jesus Christ, but does not act like it at all. To James, and Paul is very likely to agree with James on this: this was not the mark of genuine salvation. So a careful reading of the context shows that this then is likely a remark which is almost sarcastic, and is possibly even a comment made in exasperation with people who are not serious at all about the sacrifice Jesus Christ had made for them yet they are quite happy to pretend they are. If this comment had been written in English when first recorded we would probably have put the word ‘faith’ in parentheses to show that James is not referring to genuine faith, but instead to the person’s own imitation ‘faith’. “…such faith…” then is not the same as the faith that James and Paul are both so passionate about people receiving and both James and Paul show a real lack of tolerance for people who display this imitation ‘faith’. And so James’ letter is most likely not discussing works as a way to salvation, but is instead addressing how Christians should live as representatives of Christ after their salvation experience. Historical studies show us that James was probably writing his letter before Paul’s work was recorded. James, who was more than likely the brother of Jesus Christ was older than Paul and they may not have met till after James had written this letter. They were addressing different congregations, however, both authors may have had reason to believe their letters would be read widely by early believers. While the initial audiences’ locations and circumstances likely differed they would also have...

2. 

   15 Oct 2020

   Beware the Pre-Christmas Sale Season

   We are entering one of the most dangerous times of the year for families. Christmas is approaching and unfortunately the reason for the season gets lost as retail marketing ramps up. Christmas is an important holiday, it is the day we mark the birth of Jesus Christ. There is no greater cause for celebration than the entry of the Son of God into the world. Without Christ’s birth there would be no death on the cross and no resurrection, which would mean no salvation for us, no eternity to look forward to, no future hope for humanity. Christmas is therefore a good season to give gifts, but only because it is in remembrance of the greatest gift of all. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). For businesses it is a time of hope also, as many small retailers finally look to get out of the red and enter the black. On a financial balance sheet red represents running at a loss, not selling enough to meet all the costs associated with running a business and hence failing to break-even. It represents stress, worry and oppression because businesses can’t survive by being constantly in the red, especially small businesses. So “giving seasons”, of which Christmas is the greatest, represent an opportunity to get back into the black, that is to go beyond break-even and start to record profits in their earnings. Some retailers only make a profit over the Christmas season and so have to make enough to survive for the rest of the year on the seasonal profits ahead. It is becoming even harder for small retailers as we all go to the big stores to get our shopping done all at once, or logon to the online giants to avoid risking catching the pandemic at the local mall. Some of this is the reality of life, not everything we want to buy is available locally, however, lets face it, some of it is, if we take the time to look. Moving from business to people though this is a season of great danger to families. Futures and destinies are affected by what people do with their money as we enter this season of sales. This is because debt-based poverty is a form of enslavement, if you have ever been truely poor you will know that poverty places restrictions on people’s abilities to make choices and live their life to the full. Debt-based poverty increases this to even more severe levels. “…the borrower is the slave of the lender” (Proverbs 22:7). One of the ways that poverty and especially debt-based poverty enslaves people is by taking away their hope. As an extreme example of this: for the person earning less than the repayments on their loans the mountain is only growing, and their ability to climb it is decreasing by the day. At which point will they decide it is better to simply jump off the edge into the abyss? Hope deferred makes the heart sick (Proverbs 12:12), and for many the marketing season of Christmas is the living out of this process: ads create false hope of a longing being fulfilled, but the resulting debt is a deferral of the real longing, and as scripture warned us, this makes the heart sick. You see hope is stirred in this time of intense advertising and serious bargain bashing, which seems to start earlier every year! We see the messages portrayed to us in the flashy brochures, the screen ads, the highway billboards and we start to believe we can have all the material possessions we want! We can even give them away to others! It is in this time that our eyes take over from our God-given common sense. Our personal finances move from the positive black to the negative red, debt climbs higher as our desires grow greater. Even our generosity becomes a stumbling block as our use of credit well exceeds our bank balance. We want to get the best gifts, and we want to give the best gifts. Our motivation isn’t purely selfish,

3. 

   7 Sept 2020

   A Father’s Role in Passing on the Christian Faith

   “There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place.” Deuteronomy 1:31 Father’s Day has just been, here in New Zealand. Yesterday, thousands of fathers like myself received gifts, and much treasured homemade cards and pictures, from our children and spouses. It is a day when people are thankful for the people God has put around them. For myself I am very blessed and grateful for my family. Thankful for the unexpected “Happy Father’s Day!” text from my eldest son who was on a camping trip, for the colourful picture of the family drawn by my daughter, and for the clever flag and boat gift wrapping my younger son made for the cup he gave me. We started the day with a delicious breakfast of pancakes made by the children with help from my lovely wife, and its not just my generation we celebrate on Father’s Day, my brothers and sisters and their families came for lunch, along with my parents, so that we could celebrate Grandpa on this day as well. Father’s Day this year was a great time with family, but it had some sad moments too, as I remembered my children who have already passed on into glory. Tears came to my eyes as I heard the song about the dad whose daughter is getting married today. This songs always makes me think about what it would be like if my other little girl (who went home to Heaven many years ago now) was here. And, then the tears become a flood as I see the picture of my teenage son (who passed just over a year ago now) on the sideboard. There is sadness, yes, but there is also hope, because I know for certain that we will be reunited with these two loved ones beyond the veil. It is the separation of waiting that is hard. Looking ahead to the future awakens a longing to see loved ones again, but I know the present time needs me now. As a father, my children who are here in this world with me need guidance, they need encouragement, they need an example – even an imperfect one. As parents, both fathers and mothers, we don’t need to be perfect to fill the vital role we play in the lives of our children, whether they are related by blood to us or not. Proverbs 22:6 says, “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.” When we read this proverb from the start we see that it is the moral education of the children which is being referred to here, and that this is the responsibility of parents. Some children don’t have their own parents to teach them about life and doing the right thing, these children need someone to step in and pick up that mantel for them. Maybe this is something you can do for a child near you? God is gracious and he provides opportunities for people to come into his presence throughout their life, but the initial and primary way that God intends for children to learn about him is through the parents he gives them. Parents have the God-given role of passing on the knowledge of eternity to their children. The parents of a child set the first, and potentially most lasting and powerful example, of what Christian faith is. We can show our children how living for God is the ultimate purpose of every person on this earth, regardless of what that life looks like as a unique individual. Sometime ago I was listening to a speaker called Jeff Benner and he pointed out that the Hebrew word for Father (אָב), originally meant “strength of the tent,” which in practical terms describes the “tent pole” holding the shelter up. Within this word the Hebrew letter א (aleph) represented an ox and the letter ב (vet) a tent. The resulting term “strength of the tent,” is a visual picture of the role of a parent. Tough times come to every family, and the job of a father is to help the family through it,

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