Freeing Truths: Rescue

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Rescue

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Col. 1:13)

In Galveston,Texas those who ignored the order to evacuate from Hurricane Ike’s fury now have to be rescued from waist-deep water. Reporters and observers have been quick to point out that these “determined” residents have put the “first responders” at risk. While it is true that they have needlessly endangered themselves and others, I was impressed by the response from a spokesman for some of those “first responders”. He gently said, “Our job is to rescue, not to judge.” What a refreshingly mature response!

Isn’t that the response we Christians should have toward unbelievers—those who have not yet heeded God’s warning and offer of safety? Paul said that it wasn’t his business to judge the world. (I Cor. 5:12) Even Jesus, the Creator of everything (Col 1:16) and eventual* judge said that he didn’t come to condemn the world but to save it. (John 12:47) Jesus response was and ours should be, “Our job is to rescue, not to judge.”

*Eventual is the key word here. Jesus will be the judge of all things and “the saints” will judge the world with him (John 5:27-30; I Cor. 6:2) but not until the “end”.

Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God. (I Cor. 4:5)

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About Me

I’m Joan C. Thomson, a writer, artist, and speaker but most of all, I’m a follower of Jesus and all that I am flows from there. I used to parrot what I heard in church and the American culture but the more I read the Bible, the more questions I had. I saw that a lot of what I heard didn’t add up with what I read (though some did). Somewhere along the way, God gave me the gift of knowing when something doesn’t add up—or when it does, along with a drive to find out what the Truth is. I’ve been studying the Bible personally and in many classes for over forty years but my understanding jumped into a higher gear when I took a Bible institute introductory Hebrew and Greek class. There I learned to use Biblical reference books to see what the Bible truly says.

I invest a lot of time and Biblical research into everything I believe, write—even in many of my art pieces. I put everything that comes my way through the filter of Jesus’ teachings (the New Testament of the Bible). Like an archaeologist, I dig into the Word and report what‘s there and sooner or later, I’ll probably step on everyone’s pet teaching. Why go to all that trouble? First, it’s what I do, it’s who I am as a follower of Jesus and I am utterly convinced that it’s crucial to believe the right thing (Biblically) and then live it. It can be a matter of life and death—spiritual or physical. And freedom from the unnecessary heavy weight of false teachings—well-meaning though they may be, gives freedom to take up Jesus’ teachings.

Though I’ve participated in quite a few denominations over the years I don’t identify with any denomination, nor with “conservatives” or “liberals”—I’m simply a follower of Jesus.

My hope for this blog is that you too, will want to know what the Bible truly says on a given subject and that you will read what I have written as a prompt to dig more deeply yourself, as a signpost of where to look. I encourage you to be like the Bereans, who “examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” (Acts 17:11) Don’t take my word for it, look it up! Paul wasn’t threatened, nor am I—preachers shouldn’t be either. And talk to me about it if you still can’t agree—don’t just get mad and/or write me off. Come join me in the quest to follow Jesus more closely.