The Bulletin
of the
Church of Christ at
New Georgia
Tim Johnson, editor
December 17, 2006
In
This Issue:
How
God is Different from Prozac
by
Steve Klein
Death
is Victory
by
Johnny Ramsey
How God is Different from Prozac
Many people in our nation take medicines like Prozac to alleviate depression, help them deal with stress, or enable them to function more effectively. Tom Cruise and the religion of Scientology have famously opposed the use of such medication; Scientology encourages its adherents to undergo special counseling treatments called audits to clear them of their mental and emotional problems.
From a Bible perspective, there is no doubt that there are legitimate uses for medicines that improve our ability to deal with emotional difficulties and stress. Long before modern pharmaceuticals, the wise man said, "Give strong drink to him who is perishing, and wine to those who are bitter of heart" (Proverbs 31:6). But there can also be no doubt that many forms of stress and emotional upset could be dealt with more productively by stronger faith in God and words of encouragement from others. Notice these passages:
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Proverbs 12:25 Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad.
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Philippians 4:6-7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
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Psalm 34:4-5 I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces were not ashamed.
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1 Peter 5:7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
God will help us with our problems, to be sure, and He wants us to seek His help. But that is not His sole purpose, and our relationship with Him should not be based merely on our need for help in overcoming our anxieties. Too often, people turn to God just because they have a problem. When they don't have a problem, they don't see their need for God. Psychologist and author Larry Crabb observed that "We've turned Him into a divine Prozac." When we don't feel a need for God, we put Him on the shelf like a bottle of old medicine.
Friends, God Almighty is much more than a problem fixer for troubled mankind. A full relationship with Him is one that first recognizes His greatness, grace, majesty and authority. God is not like Prozac. He doesn't exist merely to help us feel better. Rather, we exist to serve and honor Him. "Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man's all" (Ecclesiastes 12:13).
--Steve Klein
Men have been dying for centuries. We usually fear and dread even the thought of death. But, nearly 2000 years ago, Christ changed the whole concept of dying into a symbol of victory, glory and strength. When, by the power of God, Jesus arose from the grave (Romans 1:4), we became "more than conquerors" over the ultimate weapon which Satan had used since Eden (Romans 5:12; 8:37).
In the Passover scene of Exodus 12, the Bible was already pointing to "Christ, which is our Passover" (I Corinthians 5:7). In the scapegoat of the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16), we can see the beauty of the "Lamb of God" who takes away our sins (John 1:29). Psalm 22 prophesied of the suffering on the cross a thousand years prior to Golgotha, as Jesus quoted from that poignant passage while projected on that tree (I Peter 2:24). "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Psalm 22:1; Matthew 27:46).
In the 53rd chapter of Isaiah, we have history written before it happened at Calvary. In fact, seven centuries after Isaiah wrote concerning a Savior who would be rejected by His generation, a gospel preacher used that message from Isaiah 53 to convert an Ethiopian (Acts 8:26-39). In Zechariah 13:1, five hundred years before Jesus shed the blood of the New Testament, it was prophesied that a fountain for cleansing and for sin would be opened outside Jerusalem (John 19:34; Ephesians 1:7).
"And He [Christ] is the head of the body, the church; who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it was the good pleasure of the Father that in Him should all the fullness dwell; and through Him to reconcile all things unto Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross" (Colossian 1:18-20). Because of His sacrifice, redemption is now obtainable for us all. The Redeemer out of Zion (Isaiah 59:20) is worthy and able to save (Revelation 5:12), and to give meaning, consolation, cleansing and victory to all men who bow in submission to the gospel of grace (Acts 20:24).
The Bible vividly reminds us: "And you did He make alive, when ye were dead in your trespasses and sins&ldots;that ye were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus ye that once were far off are made nigh in the blood of Christ" (Ephesians 2:1, 12-13). He was the One who died for all, by the grace of God, He "tasted of death for every man" (Hebrews 2:9). What wondrous love that opens up the way of heaven for us (II Corinthians 8:9)!
Scenes surrounding the historic event in the most monumental moment ever known on earth - the death of Jesus Christ - center in Gethsemane where He suffered, Gabbatha where He was tried in mockery, and Golgotha where He died between two thieves! Jehovah truly spared not His own Son, but "delivered Him up for us all" (Romans 8:32). Such an unspeakable gift should compel us to lovingly respond to the commands of Jesus (John 14:15). Paul made it clear in Galatians that Christ lived in him, and that Calvary transformed his thinking and emphasis. And, today, we should be motivated by the shadow of the cross and the suffering Servant (Philippians 3:10-14).
As the Bible says" "O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting? The sting of death is sin; and the power of sin is the law: but thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (I Corinthians 15:55-57). The unsearchable riches of Christ (Ephesians 3:8) and His love (II Corinthians 5:14-15) should overwhelm us and compel us to nobler deeds and greater heights in the Master's cause.
-- Johnny Ramsey
Via Gospel Minutes, Vol. 55, No. 50, December 15, 2006