Milo

Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—1 Corinthians 3:12

Context
Christ Our Foundation
…For no one can lay a foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, his workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man’s work.…

Now if any man . . .—Better, But if any man.
Precious stones.—Not gems, but grand and costly stones, such as marble. “Hay,” dried grass used to fill up chinks in the walls. “Stubble,” stalks with the ears of corn cut off, and used for making a roof of thatch.

Many ingenious attempts have been made to apply the imagery of this passage in detail to various doctrines or Christian virtues, but it seems best to regard it as broadly and in outline bringing before the reader the two great ideas of permanent and ephemeral work, and the striking contrast between them. The truth brought forward is primarily, if not exclusively, for teachers. The image is taken from what would have met the eye of a traveller in Ephesus where St. Paul now was, or in Corinth where his letter was to be first read. It is such a contrast as may be seen (though not in precisely the same striking form of difference) in London in our own day. The stately palaces of marble and of granite, with roof and column glittering with gold and silver decorations, and close by these the wretched hovels of the poor and outcast, the walls made of laths of wood, with the interstices stuffed with straw, and a thatched roof above. Then arose before the Apostle’s vision the thought of a city being visited by a mighty conflagration, such as desolated Corinth itself in the time of Mummius. The mean structures of perishable wood and straw would be utterly consumed, while, as was actually the case in Corinth, the mighty palaces and temples would stand after the fire had exhausted itself. Thus, says St. Paul, it will be with the work of Christian teachers when the “day of the Lord is revealed in fire.” The fire of that day will prove and test the quality of each work.

Benson Commentary
1 Corinthians 3:12. If any man build upon this foundation — Thus firmly laid; gold, silver, precious stones — The most valuable materials in nature, the most solid, durable, and precious, and which can bear the fire. And here they stand for true, firm, and important doctrines; doctrines necessary to be known, believed, and laid to heart, and which, when so received, fail not to build up the people of God in faith, love, and obedience; rendering them wise unto salvation, holy and useful here, and preparing them for eternal life hereafter. The apostle mentions next, as materials wherewith some might possibly build, and with which indeed many have built in all ages, wood, hay, and stubble; materials flimsy, unsubstantial, worthless, if compared with the former, and which cannot bear the fire. And these are here put, not merely for false doctrines, condemned or unsupported by the word of God, or doctrines of human invention, but all ceremonies, forms, and institutions, which have not God for their author, and are neither connected with, nor calculated to promote, the edification and salvation of mankind: all doctrines that are unimportant, and not suited to the state and character of the hearers; all but the vital, substantial truths of Christianity. To build with such materials as these, if it do not absolutely destroy the foundation, yet disgraces it; as a mean edifice, suppose a hovel, consisting of nothing better than planks of wood, roughly put together, and thatched with hay and stubble, would disgrace a grand and expensive foundation, laid with great pomp and solemnity.

And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. Revelation 20:12

Context
The Final Judgment
Then I saw a great white throne and the One seated on it. Earth and heaven fled from His presence, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And there were open books, and one of them was the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their deeds, as recorded in the books. The sea gave up its dead, and Death and Hades gave up their dead, and each one was judged according to his deeds.…

And I saw the dead, small and great . . .—Or rather, And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before (not “God,” as in text, but) the throne, and books (or, rolls) were opened; and another book (or, roll) was opened, which is (the book) of life; and the dead were judged out of the things which had been written in the books (or, rolls) according to their works. And the sea gave forth the dead that were in it; and death and Hades gave forth the dead who were in them; and they were judged each according to their works. The latter of these verses is added to assure us that the dead, in whatever quarter, must appear before the judgment throne. Death and Hades—“the grave world,” and “the great watery grave”—the sea, “the universal hidden region of the dead,” give up its prey; for there is One who sits upon the throne who has the keys of death and Hades (Revelation 1:18). It has been said by some that the dead here spoken of as coming forth from the grave are not all the dead, but only “the rest of the dead” mentioned in Revelation 20:5. Those who believe that the first resurrection there mentioned is a literal physical resurrection are compelled to limit the resurrection here to the resurrection only of the remainder of the dead. But the verses before us suggest no limitation, and the language most assuredly tends to the idea that saints and faithful servants of God take part in this later resurrection. If all the saints and righteous men of old are raised prior to the millennium, and take no part in this last judgment scene, then only the faithless and wicked are left to be judged before the great white throne, and as none of these can be found written in the book of life, the bringing forth of that book becomes meaningless. This is one result of vicious literalism of interpretations. The real significance of the scene lies in the vivid picturing of that great and solemn truth that we must all stand before the judgment-seat of Christ, and that before Him there is nothing hidden which shall not be revealed (Matthew 10:26; comp. 1Corinthians 4:5). Then shall every human life appear in its true light. stripped of all the deceptive adornments which have given a fictitious respectability to ingenious fraud, and a fatal popularity to adroit wickedness and splendid vice. Then shall men be judged, not by rank, or success, or achievement, but according to their works, as it is twice stated here, and according to whether they have any life towards God. The works and the life towards God must be combined. A man may have, from the activities of his Christian works, a name to live, and yet be dead: the life-book and the workbook combine to mark the real servant of Christ. If he labours more abundantly than all, it is Christ who works in him, for his life is a life by the faith of the Son of God. (Comp. Galatians 2:20; 1Corinthians 15:10; James 2:14-26.)

Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
And I saw the dead, small and great – All the dead – for this language would express that – the whole race being composed of the “small and great.” Thus, in other language, the same idea might be expressed by saying, the young and old; the rich and poor; the bond and free; the sick and well; the happy and the unhappy; the righteous and the wicked; for all the human family might, in these respects, be considered as thus divided. The fair meaning in this place therefore is, that all the dead would be there, and of course this would preclude the idea of a “previous” resurrection of any part of the dead, as of the saints, at the beginning of the millennium. There is no intimation here that it is the wicked dead that are referred to in this description of the final judgment. It is the judgment of all the dead.
Stand before God – That is, they appear thus to be judged. The word “God” here must naturally refer to the final Judge on the throne, and there can be no doubt (see Matthew 25:31) that this is the Lord Jesus. Compare 2 Corinthians 5:10. None can judge the secrets of the heart; none can pronounce on the moral character of all mankind, of all countries and ages, and determine their everlasting allotment, but he who is divine.

And the books were opened – That is, the books containing the record of human deeds. The representation is, that all that people have done is recorded, and that it will be exhibited on the final trial, and will constitute the basis of the last judgment. The imagery seems to be derived from the accusations made against such as are arraigned before human courts of justice.

And another book was opened, which is the book of life – The book containing the record of the names of all who shall enter into life, or into heaven. See the notes on Revelation 3:5. The meaning here is, that John saw not only the general books opened containing the records of the deeds of people, but that he had a distinct view of the list or roll of those who were the followers of the Lamb. It would seem that in regard to the multitudes of the impenitent and the wicked, the judgment will proceed “on their deeds” in general; in regard to the righteous, it will turn on the fact that their names had been enrolled in the book of life. That will be sufficient to determine the nature of the sentence that is to be passed on them. He will be safe whose name is found in the book of life; no one will be safe who is to have his eternal destiny determined by his own deeds. This passage proves particularly that the righteous dead are referred to here as being present at the final judgment; and is thus an additional argument against the supposition of a resurrection of the righteous, and a judgment on them, at the beginning of the millennium.

And the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books – The records which had been made of their deeds. The final judgment will proceed on the record that has been made. It will not be arbitrary, and will not be determined by rank, condition, or profession, but it will be according to the record.

According to their works – See the notes on 2 Corinthians 5:10. The fact that the name of anyone was found in the book of life would seem, as above remarked, to determine the “certainty” of salvation; but the amount of reward would be in proportion to the service rendered to the Redeemer, and the attainments made in piety.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Matthew 7:21

Context
A Tree and its Fruit
…So then, by their fruit you will recognize them. Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’…

He that doeth the will of my Father.—The continued stress laid on the ethical side of religion, on the nullity of the confession of a true faith (as embodied in the “Lord, Lord”) without doing the will of God, more than confirms the interpretation of Matthew 7:16 above given. A further development of the same thought is found in John 7:17, and we are taught that it is by doing the will of God ourselves, or rather by willing to do it, that we gain the power to distinguish, so far as we need distinguish, truth from error, man’s teaching from God’s.

Benson Commentary
Matthew 7:21. Not every one, &c. — The Lord Jesus, having declared the whole counsel of God, with regard to the way of salvation, and observed the chief hinderances of those who desire to walk therein, now closes the whole with these and the following weighty words; thereby, as it were, setting his seal to his prophecy, and impressing his whole authority on what he had delivered, that it might stand firm to all generations: that saith, Lord, Lord — That is, that makes a mere profession of my religion, that gives me the title of Lord and Master, or claims an interest in me as his Lord; that calls upon me and pretends to learn of me as a Teacher, to rely on me as a Saviour, to obey me as a Lawgiver, be subject to me as a King and Governor; shall enter into the kingdom of heaven — Shall be acknowledged as a true member of the church militant, or be admitted into the church triumphant. Some that say unto Christ, Lord, Lord, shall be saved, being his true disciples; but every one that does so shall not: None, indeed, shall, as Christ here declares, but such as endeavour to fulfil the whole will of God in faith and holiness, viz., that will which is described in this sermon. They that make it their care to understand the doctrine here declared, to experience the graces here delineated, to perform the duties here enjoined, to shun the hinderances here guarded against, and to embrace the helps here recommended, — they that thus comply with this holy, acceptable, and perfect will of God, shall be acknowledged loyal subjects of Christ’s kingdom here, and shall undoubtedly be admitted to reign with him hereafter.

Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Not every one that saith … – The Saviour goes on to say that many, on the ground of a mere profession such as he had just referred to, would claim admittance into his kingdom. Many would plead that they had done miracles, and preached or prophesied much, and on the ground of that would demand an entrance into heaven. The power of working miracles had no necessary connection with piety. God may as well, if he chooses, give the power of raising the dead to a wicked man, as the skill of healing to a wicked physician. A miracle is a display “of his own power” through the medium of another. An act of healing the sick is also a display of “his power” through the agency of another. In neither of these cases is there any necessary connection with moral character. So of preaching or prophesying. God may use the agency of a man of talents, though not pious, to carry forward His purposes. Saving power on the mind is the work of God, and he may convey it by any agency which he chooses. Accordingly, many may be found in the day of judgment who may have been endowed with powers of prophecy or miracle, as Balaam or the magicians of Egypt; in the same way as many people of distinguished talents may be found, yet destitute of piety, and who will be shut out of his kingdom. See Matthew 7:21; 1 Corinthians 1:26; 1 Corinthians 13:1-3. In this last place Paul says that, though he spoke with the tongue of angels, and had the gift of prophecy, and could remove mountains, and had nor charity or love, all would be of no avail. See the notes at 1 Corinthians 13:1-3.

Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Not everyone that saith unto me Lord, Lord,…. Not every one that calls Christ his Lord and Master, professes subjection to him, or that calls upon his name, or is called by his name; or makes use of it in his public ministrations. There are many who desire to be called, and accounted Christians, and who make mention of the name of Christ in their sermons, only to take away their reproach, to cover themselves, and gain credit with, and get into the affections and goodwill of the people; but have no hearty love to Christ, nor true faith in him: nor is it their concern to preach his Gospel, advance his glory, and promote his kingdom and interest; their chief view is to please men, aggrandize themselves, and set up the power of human nature in opposition to the grace of God, and the righteousness of Christ. Now not everyone of these, no, not any of them,
shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. This is to be understood not of the outward dispensation of the Gospel, or the Gospel church state, or the visible church of Christ on earth, in which sense this phrase is sometimes used; because such persons may, and often do, enter here; but of eternal glory, into which none shall enter,

but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. This, as it may regard private Christians, intends not merely outward obedience to the will of God, declared in his law, nor barely subjection to the ordinances of the Gospel; but more especially faith in Christ for life and salvation; which is the source of all true evangelical obedience, and without which nothing is acceptable to God. He that seeth the Son, looks unto him, ventures on him, commits himself to him, trusts in him, relies on him, and believes on him for righteousness, salvation, and eternal life, he it is that does the will of the Father, and he only; and such an one, as he is desirous of doing the will of God in all acts of cheerful obedience to it, without dependence thereon; so he shall certainly enter the kingdom of heaven, and have everlasting life; see John 6:40 but as these words chiefly respect preachers, the sense of them is this, that only such who are faithful dispensers of the word shall enter into the joy of their Lord. Such do the will of Christ’s Father, and so his own, which are the same, who fully and faithfully preach the Gospel of the grace of God; who declare the whole counsel of God, and keep back nothing that is profitable to the souls of men; who are neither ashamed of the testimony of Christ, nor afraid of the faces of men; but as they are put in trust with the Gospel, so they speak it boldly, with all sincerity, not as pleasing men, but God, and commend themselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God: such as these shall have an abundant entrance into the kingdom and glory of God. The Vulgate Latin adds this clause, “he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven”, and so does Munster’s Hebrew edition of the Gospel according to Matthew.

Candid Conversations with Jonathan Youssef

by
THEWEEFLEA
February 25, 2021

This is a conversation I had with Jonathan Youssef:

Episode 80: david robertson: the tragedy of ravi zacharias

It’s difficult and heart breaking to process the news of confirmed allegations of personal impropriety by Ravi Zacharias. Apologist David Robertson joins Jonathan Youssef for a respectful conversation on the importance of grieving this report, what it means for Christian leaders to be held accountable, whether or not scandal discredits previous teachings, and what we can learn, if anything, from this revelation.

You can listen to it by clicking this link…

https://www.ltw.org/listen/candid/episode-80

podcast
episode 80: david robertson: the tragedy of ravi zacharias
It’s difficult and heart breaking to process the news of confirmed allegations of personal impropriety by Ravi Zacharias. Apologist David Robertson joins Jonathan Youssef for a respectful conversation on the importance of grieving this report, what it means for Christian leaders to be held accountable, whether or not scandal discredits previous teachings, and what we can learn, if anything, from this revelation.

David Robertson is from Scotland where he was a minister and apologist for 18 years before moving to Australia to lead Third Space, an evangelistic initiative of City Bible Forum in Sydney. He has written several books including The Dawkins Letters and A.S.K: Real World Questions/Real World Answers. He is an award-winning blogger with The Wee Flea blog and is a contributor to premierchristianity.com.

This Report Proves it

by
THEWEEFLEA
February 13, 2021

Premier Christianity asked me to write a report on the report from RZIM re the allegations against Ravi Zacharias. It was painful to read. And it was the last thing I wanted to write about. But given that I had said we should not comment, until the evidence was in – and now the evidence is in – I agreed to write this article. You can read the Premier one here – below is a slightly fuller version. (Since this was published the UK RZIM has announced it is leaving RZIM). I am saddened and sickened by all of this.

An investigation into the once respected evangelist Ravi Zacharias has revealed far more disturbing behaviour than many had anticipated. In looking at the final report, which includes an allegation of rape, David Robertson says the future of the ministry, RZIM, is in serious doubt

Victims Exonerated, Ravi Guilty – What Now For RZIM?

When it was reported that Ravi Zacharias was being accused of sexual abuse through a couple of massage parlours that he had financial investments in – the news was so shocking that it was hard to take in. As with all such allegations it is better not to comment until we know the truth. Now we do. Although there are concerns about the speed at which Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM) began the investigation, once it was started it was done throughly and speedily with no excuses and no attempt to cover up. This has now just been published. Entitled “Report of Independent Investigation into Sexual Misconduct of Ravi Zacharias February 9, 2021” it is devastating.

It’s a tale of money, sex, abuse, greed, exploitation, and more. It’s far worse than we anticipated. For those who wish to know all the sordid details the report is in the public domain, but the following is a summary of the main points.

Ravi Zacharias was guilty of sexual abuse on many occasions, in different places, over a period of many years. These involved not only women in the US, but also in Malaysia, Thailand, South Korea and almost certainly other places. Martin Miller did not particularly investigate ‘Asia” and what he did on these trips.
He especially used those who worked in massage parlours – even ‘importing’ them from overseas and seeking ‘more than a massage’.
In one example in offered to take a masseuse to travel overseas with him.
He used RZIM ministry funds to fund his abuse. He would give masseurs large gifts or pay for them financially. Four received monthly support from RZIM’s charity for the poor for a lengthy period of time.
He used the Gospel and Christian language to gain the confidence of his victims. This paragraph is a horrific example. “This witness told us that their relationship began as a normal massage therapist-client relationship, and she came to think of him as a father figure. He elicited information about her faith and her financial situation. She reported that after he arranged for the ministry to provide her with financial support, he required sex from her. According to this witness, Mr. Zacharias used religious expressions to gain compliance, as she was raised to be a person of faith. She reported that he made her pray with him to thank God for the “opportunity” they both received. She said he called her his “reward” for living a life of service to God, and he referenced the “godly men” in the Bible with more than one wife. She said he warned her not ever to speak out against him or she would be responsible for the “millions of souls” whose salvation would be lost if his reputation was damaged.
Several RZIM staff expressed concerned about Ravi travelling with a personal masseuse because ‘they feared the appearance of impropriety’. When challenged he became angry. From 2018 several members of staff expressed doubts about Ravi’s explanation for the Lori Thompson case. Although he accused those who accused him of being ““nasty people” and “lunatics” who were engaging in “‘satanic-type’ slander and falsehood.”
Ravi owned at least two apartments in Bangkok. On one occasion he spent 256 days in one of those apartments and charged RZIM for rent.
There is more detail about the Lori Anne Thompson case. The report concludes that given the pattern evidenced elsewhere it is highly likely that the complaints of sexting are true. The report contains the sad and disturbing details that “In order to avoid “protracted and public litigation,” on April 27, 2017 the Thompsons sent Mr. Zacharias a letter demanding $5 million in exchange for a release of claims against him and the ministry. And that Ravi paid them $250,000 to buy their silence.
Some people excused Ravi as being ‘naïve’ and not using language wisely. The report provides evidence that his language was way beyond naïve. For example, he wrote to one massage therapist in Bangkok “I know more than ever that you have become the love of my life. I’m waiting to hold you close to my heart again”. There are many such examples and over 200 photographs.
Ravi consistently lied – “In my 45 years of marriage to Margie, I have never engaged in any inappropriate behaviour of any kind.” Just weeks after the Thompson case he was engaging with similar behaviour with a Malaysian masseuse.
The evidence is clear. Ravi Zacharias was a liar, a sexual pervert, and an abusive, deceitful manipulative, greedy hypocrite. This goes way beyond one incident, one fall. It reveals a lifestyle and pattern over many years. He fooled many people, shamed his family and brought disgrace upon the Church. He was someone of whom the Scripture warns us – a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Does that negate the message he so often preached? No. If someone who says that two plus two equals four, turns out to be a mass murderer it does not negate the truth that two plus two equals four. But it’s somewhat more complex than that. Given that one of the evidences of the truth of the Christian message is the fruit of the Spirit; when a preacher of that message displays the opposite, it is a terrible blow for the credibility of that message. Ravi betrayed the Lord he professed to love; he denied the Gospel he preached, and he caused the name of God to be blasphemed. May God have mercy on him!

What about the victims? In a world where the word is so often misused, they are real victims. Perhaps they will rightly feel exonerated. Perhaps ashamed. Perhaps angry. All we can do is pray for them and commend them to the One who never abuses, manipulates, deceives or lets us down.

What about the future for RZIM? The report exonerates them in that it states, “ we did not find evidence that anyone within RZIM or on its Board knew that Mr. Zacharias had engaged in sexual misconduct.” Although there are still questions to be answered about the lack of accountability (which they admit).

In response they have issued a statement – the opening words really say it all –

https://www.rzim.org/read/rzim-updates/board-statement

“It is with shattered hearts that we issue this statement about the allegations against RZIM’s Founder, Ravi Zacharias”

They also include this apology.

“We regret that we allowed our misplaced trust in Ravi to result in him having less oversight and accountability than would have been wise and loving. We also regret the ways that many of us have publicly extolled Ravi’s character and the impact this will have had on victims of his abuse.”

The Board have appointed Rachael Denhollander and Guidepost Solutions, a management/compliance consulting firm and have added “In light of the findings of the investigation and the ongoing evaluation, we are seeking the Lord’s will regarding the future of this ministry.”. It is clear that, whatever the future holds for the many talented Christians within RZIM, the current organisation cannot continue under its present name and it is difficult to see how it can continue at all. Perhaps something new will rise out of the ashes?

Whatever the case we know that the gates of Hell will not prevail against the Lord’s church – no matter the blows it takes. ‘Millions of souls’ will not be lost because of the damage to Ravi’s reputation – just as they would not be saved if he had been a saint. We are saved by the grace, love and mercy of Christ – not the reputation of his people. Thank God.

Michael Ramsden. President of RZIM tweeted “I am heartbroken and ashamed”. I feel his pain and share his heartbreak. I didn’t know Ravi – although he did sit at our dining table once and did preach in my church – and I didn’t work for him. But I do feel some of the heartache and shame. Only God knows the pain that all the victims, the abused and the deceived, are going through just now but of this one thing I am sure: “I am not ashamed. I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.” (2 Timothy 1:12).