A couple of Facebook followers wanted to know my thoughts on the attached screenshot where a man named Jared Price used Luke 15 to make the case for why Christians shouldn’t say “All Lives Matter” when they are presented with the slogan #BlackLivesMatter. Do black lives matter? Of course they do. But in answer to the posted question, I begin my response from the premise of Jared’s own words (of course, with a few of my own modifications)…
.
If you are a Christian, and can’t hear “all lives matter” without feeling the need to respond by taking Luke 15:4-7 completely out of context, then crack open your Bible and hit up 2 Peter 1:20.
.
Don’t have it handy? Well, rather than summarizing, I’ll let the Bible speak for itself…

But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation…”

The meaning of Luke 15, particularly verses 4 through 7 as well as all the other stories Jesus told in the chapter was His way of illustrating repentance that leads to salvation. That is why he ends the lost sheep story with what He says in verse 7…

I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”

Though this is specifically a lesson for the self-righteous who think they don’t need to repent, in the context, ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance can literally be those who are saved. How do we know? Because verse 7 indirectly says there is rejoicing in heaven over the ninety-nine, but that there will be MORE rejoicing over the one who repents.
.
The one who obviously does need repentance is the one who is sought out for salvation and knows he’s a sinner. It’s like how a newborn baby is celebrated more than, yet loved just as much as, it’s older siblings. We actually see such an idea play out when the prodigal son returns in the prodigal son story also in Luke 15.
.
But Jared is using this text to talk about “social justice”. So with that in mind, do you realize that when Jesus came 2,000 years ago, His own Jewish people were under Roman oppression. And do you also realize that when Jesus left about 33 years later, His own Jewish people were still under Roman oppression? What was that all about?
.
You mean to tell me that Jesus did not come to cure racism and prejudice? Well, He in fact did come to cure racism and prejudice. The problem is that you think that He came to cure it in the earth, when He actually came to cure it in the heart. It’s funny how “earth” and “heart” have the exact same letters, and how both possess the ability to bear fruit.
.
The earth is fallen into sin. And therefore, it will continually bear the fruit of sin (which includes prejudice, racism, and oppression) until it is made anew by Jesus at His second coming. The heart is also fallen into sin. And therefore, it will continually bear the fruit of sin (which includes prejudice, racism, and oppression) until it is made anew by Jesus at each person’s salvation, and is continually renewed by learning and obeying His word.
.
So what is our priority as Christians again? It is to get the only soul-saving (heart-changing) gospel to as many people as we can so that when Christ takes up residence within each believing soul, ideas of prejudice, racism, and oppression can be evicted from each person’s heart. The more this happens to people, the greater positive impact is made in the fight against all sin (including prejudice, racism, and oppression).
.
It was not that Jesus didn’t care, or doesn’t now care, about racial oppression. It is that He simply remained (and expects His followers to remain) stedfast, unmovable, and always abounding in the work of the Lord. And that work is founded upon His Father’s express purpose for sending Him. What was that purpose? Luke 19:10 says it simply enough…

For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Now do you clearly see the real meaning of Luke 15? “But wait, Keith! Jared Price is just using Luke 15:4-7 as an illustration of focusing on lives that are oppressed as opposed to other lives that are not.”
.
My friend, my response to you is that when Jared started with the premise, “If you are a Christian,” at that moment he ceased to merely give an illustration for social justice, he began to eisegete Luke 15:4-7. And just in case you don’t understand what eisegesis means, it is the interpretation of a text (as of the Bible) by reading into it one’s own ideas.
.
So let me state 2 Peter 1:20 again…

But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation…”

Therefore, while this might not be the answer that those who asked my thoughts on Jared Price’s statement was expecting to hear, it is an answer that we all need to hear and remember. If we keep allowing the ebbs and flows of a sin-saturated culture to influence our message, we will continue to see “churches” and “christians” fall short of the grace of God as we literally help them seek to preserve or save their lives rather than first and foremost losing their lives to Christ…

For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:25-26)

Genuinely saved souls don’t PRACTICE sin (see 1 John 2:29-3:9). And that includes prejudice, racism, and oppression. It’s about our heavenly heredity in Christ. So not everyone can understand. And that might not be good enough for many people. But there is no other remedy. Take it or leave it. But God will never change. And neither will the Great Commission Christ gave us.
.
For my final thoughts, rather than summarizing God’s word or eisegeting it for cultural illustrations, I will continue to let it speak…

Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezekiel 33:11).

There is only one way that is not “the wicked way”. And that way is Christ Jesus (John 14:6). Turning away from your sins is repentance only when you also turn to Jesus with genuine faith in the fact of His death, burial and resurrection. Then, you can know why God also says concerning death that…

Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints” (Psalm 116:15).

The bottom line is that at every moment, human beings are leaving this life and entering into one of just two eternities—heaven or hell. And that is why Jesus came to seek and to save the lost.
.
May we as true Christians and true churches stop allowing the Devil to distract us from our Christ-commissioned prime objective of seeking and saving that which was lost. This message is not cultural, it is universal in the sense that it is for everyone, everywhere, no matter what their situation. This entire world has a date with God’s full and unrelenting wrath.
.
If your kitchen is on fire, would you want an illustration of how a fire extinguisher is like a person who’s kind words can put out the flames of a heated argument? Or would you want to follow the instructions on it to properly use it in order to save your home from fire? Illustrations ultimately only serve the context for which they are given. God’s word always serves God’s ultimate purpose.
.
So if we as Christians truly believe the Bible to be God’s word, then we also believe it when it says that the world will pass away with all of its lustful desires, but only those who do the will of God will live with God forever and never see a Devil’s hell. Those who are not saved cannot do the will of God (e.g. Romans 8:7), and hell will be their eternal home. And that is why above and beyond all, to Jesus, #EternalLivesMatter.
.
Stand up for what is right. Help those who are hurting and oppressed. But never let their issues become the prime objective. Their souls are in jeopardy of leaving this life without salvation. Get them to the Savior by giving His gospel to them. Then, if nothing in this life changes or improves for them, at least their eternal souls might be made secure in God.
.
God richly bless you, beloved.

A couple of Facebook followers wanted to know my thoughts on the attached screenshot where a man named Jared Price used Luke 15 to make the case for why Christians shouldn’t say “All Lives Matter” when they are presented with the slogan #BlackLivesMatter. Do black lives matter? Of course they do. But in answer to the posted question, I begin my response from the premise of Jared’s own words (of course, with a few of my own modifications)…
.
If you are a Christian, and can’t hear “all lives matter” without feeling the need to respond by taking Luke 15:4-7 completely out of context, then crack open your Bible and hit up 2 Peter 1:20.
.
Don’t have it handy? Well, rather than summarizing, I’ll let the Bible speak for itself…

But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation…”

The meaning of Luke 15, particularly verses 4 through 7 as well as all the other stories Jesus told in the chapter was His way of illustrating repentance that leads to salvation. That is why he ends the lost sheep story with what He says in verse 7…

I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”

Though this is specifically a lesson for the self-righteous who think they don’t need to repent, in the context, ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance can literally be those who are saved. How do we know? Because verse 7 indirectly says there is rejoicing in heaven over the ninety-nine, but that there will be MORE rejoicing over the one who repents.
.
The one who obviously does need repentance is the one who is sought out for salvation and knows he’s a sinner. It’s like how a newborn baby is celebrated more than, yet loved just as much as, it’s older siblings. We actually see such an idea play out when the prodigal son returns in the prodigal son story also in Luke 15.
.
But Jared is using this text to talk about “social justice”. So with that in mind, do you realize that when Jesus came 2,000 years ago, His own Jewish people were under Roman oppression. And do you also realize that when Jesus left about 33 years later, His own Jewish people were still under Roman oppression? What was that all about?
.
You mean to tell me that Jesus did not come to cure racism and prejudice? Well, He in fact did come to cure racism and prejudice. The problem is that you think that He came to cure it in the earth, when He actually came to cure it in the heart. It’s funny how “earth” and “heart” have the exact same letters, and how both possess the ability to bear fruit.
.
The earth is fallen into sin. And therefore, it will continually bear the fruit of sin (which includes prejudice, racism, and oppression) until it is made anew by Jesus at His second coming. The heart is also fallen into sin. And therefore, it will continually bear the fruit of sin (which includes prejudice, racism, and oppression) until it is made anew by Jesus at each person’s salvation, and is continually renewed by learning and obeying His word.
.
So what is our priority as Christians again? It is to get the only soul-saving (heart-changing) gospel to as many people as we can so that when Christ takes up residence within each believing soul, ideas of prejudice, racism, and oppression can be evicted from each person’s heart. The more this happens to people, the greater positive impact is made in the fight against all sin (including prejudice, racism, and oppression).
.
It was not that Jesus didn’t care, or doesn’t now care, about racial oppression. It is that He simply remained (and expects His followers to remain) stedfast, unmovable, and always abounding in the work of the Lord. And that work is founded upon His Father’s express purpose for sending Him. What was that purpose? Luke 19:10 says it simply enough…

For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Now do you clearly see the real meaning of Luke 15? “But wait, Keith! Jared Price is just using Luke 15:4-7 as an illustration of focusing on lives that are oppressed as opposed to other lives that are not.”
.
My friend, my response to you is that when Jared started with the premise, “If you are a Christian,” at that moment he ceased to merely give an illustration for social justice, he began to eisegete Luke 15:4-7. And just in case you don’t understand what eisegesis means, it is the interpretation of a text (as of the Bible) by reading into it one’s own ideas.
.
So let me state 2 Peter 1:20 again…

But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation…”

Therefore, while this might not be the answer that those who asked my thoughts on Jared Price’s statement was expecting to hear, it is an answer that we all need to hear and remember. If we keep allowing the ebbs and flows of a sin-saturated culture to influence our message, we will continue to see “churches” and “christians” fall short of the grace of God as we literally help them seek to preserve or save their lives rather than first and foremost losing their lives to Christ…

For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:25-26)

Genuinely saved souls don’t PRACTICE sin (see 1 John 2:29-3:9). And that includes prejudice, racism, and oppression. It’s about our heavenly heredity in Christ. So not everyone can understand. And that might not be good enough for many people. But there is no other remedy. Take it or leave it. But God will never change. And neither will the Great Commission Christ gave us.
.
For my final thoughts, rather than summarizing God’s word or eisegeting it for cultural illustrations, I will continue to let it speak…

Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezekiel 33:11).

There is only one way that is not “the wicked way”. And that way is Christ Jesus (John 14:6). Turning away from your sins is repentance only when you also turn to Jesus with genuine faith in the fact of His death, burial and resurrection. Then, you can know why God also says concerning death that…

Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints” (Psalm 116:15).

The bottom line is that at every moment, human beings are leaving this life and entering into one of just two eternities—heaven or hell. And that is why Jesus came to seek and to save the lost.
.
May we as true Christians and true churches stop allowing the Devil to distract us from our Christ-commissioned prime objective of seeking and saving that which was lost. This message is not cultural, it is universal in the sense that it is for everyone, everywhere, no matter what their situation. This entire world has a date with God’s full and unrelenting wrath.
.
If your kitchen is on fire, would you want an illustration of how a fire extinguisher is like a person who’s kind words can put out the flames of a heated argument? Or would you want to follow the instructions on it to properly use it in order to save your home from fire? Illustrations ultimately only serve the context for which they are given. God’s word always serves God’s ultimate purpose.
.
So if we as Christians truly believe the Bible to be God’s word, then we also believe it when it says that the world will pass away with all of its lustful desires, but only those who do the will of God will live with God forever and never see a Devil’s hell. Those who are not saved cannot do the will of God (e.g. Romans 8:7), and hell will be their eternal home. And that is why above and beyond all, to Jesus, #EternalLivesMatter.
.
Stand up for what is right. Help those who are hurting and oppressed. But never let their issues become the prime objective. Their souls are in jeopardy of leaving this life without salvation. Get them to the Savior by giving His gospel to them. Then, if nothing in this life changes or improves for them, at least their eternal souls might be made secure in God.
.
God richly bless you, beloved.

A couple of Facebook followers wanted to know my thoughts on the attached screenshot where a man named Jared Price used Luke 15 to make the case for why Christians shouldn’t say “All Lives Matter” when they are presented with the slogan #BlackLivesMatter. Do black lives matter? Of course they do. But in answer to the posted question, I begin my response from the premise of Jared’s own words (of course, with a few of my own modifications)…
.
If you are a Christian, and can’t hear “all lives matter” without feeling the need to respond by taking Luke 15:4-7 completely out of context, then crack open your Bible and hit up 2 Peter 1:20.
.
Don’t have it handy? Well, rather than summarizing, I’ll let the Bible speak for itself…

But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation…”

The meaning of Luke 15, particularly verses 4 through 7 as well as all the other stories Jesus told in the chapter was His way of illustrating repentance that leads to salvation. That is why he ends the lost sheep story with what He says in verse 7…

I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”

Though this is specifically a lesson for the self-righteous who think they don’t need to repent, in the context, ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance can literally be those who are saved. How do we know? Because verse 7 indirectly says there is rejoicing in heaven over the ninety-nine, but that there will be MORE rejoicing over the one who repents.
.
The one who obviously does need repentance is the one who is sought out for salvation and knows he’s a sinner. It’s like how a newborn baby is celebrated more than, yet loved just as much as, it’s older siblings. We actually see such an idea play out when the prodigal son returns in the prodigal son story also in Luke 15.
.
But Jared is using this text to talk about “social justice”. So with that in mind, do you realize that when Jesus came 2,000 years ago, His own Jewish people were under Roman oppression. And do you also realize that when Jesus left about 33 years later, His own Jewish people were still under Roman oppression? What was that all about?
.
You mean to tell me that Jesus did not come to cure racism and prejudice? Well, He in fact did come to cure racism and prejudice. The problem is that you think that He came to cure it in the earth, when He actually came to cure it in the heart. It’s funny how “earth” and “heart” have the exact same letters, and how both possess the ability to bear fruit.
.
The earth is fallen into sin. And therefore, it will continually bear the fruit of sin (which includes prejudice, racism, and oppression) until it is made anew by Jesus at His second coming. The heart is also fallen into sin. And therefore, it will continually bear the fruit of sin (which includes prejudice, racism, and oppression) until it is made anew by Jesus at each person’s salvation, and is continually renewed by learning and obeying His word.
.
So what is our priority as Christians again? It is to get the only soul-saving (heart-changing) gospel to as many people as we can so that when Christ takes up residence within each believing soul, ideas of prejudice, racism, and oppression can be evicted from each person’s heart. The more this happens to people, the greater positive impact is made in the fight against all sin (including prejudice, racism, and oppression).
.
It was not that Jesus didn’t care, or doesn’t now care, about racial oppression. It is that He simply remained (and expects His followers to remain) stedfast, unmovable, and always abounding in the work of the Lord. And that work is founded upon His Father’s express purpose for sending Him. What was that purpose? Luke 19:10 says it simply enough…

For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Now do you clearly see the real meaning of Luke 15? “But wait, Keith! Jared Price is just using Luke 15:4-7 as an illustration of focusing on lives that are oppressed as opposed to other lives that are not.”
.
My friend, my response to you is that when Jared started with the premise, “If you are a Christian,” at that moment he ceased to merely give an illustration for social justice, he began to eisegete Luke 15:4-7. And just in case you don’t understand what eisegesis means, it is the interpretation of a text (as of the Bible) by reading into it one’s own ideas.
.
So let me state 2 Peter 1:20 again…

But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation…”

Therefore, while this might not be the answer that those who asked my thoughts on Jared Price’s statement was expecting to hear, it is an answer that we all need to hear and remember. If we keep allowing the ebbs and flows of a sin-saturated culture to influence our message, we will continue to see “churches” and “christians” fall short of the grace of God as we literally help them seek to preserve or save their lives rather than first and foremost losing their lives to Christ…

For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:25-26)

Genuinely saved souls don’t PRACTICE sin (see 1 John 2:29-3:9). And that includes prejudice, racism, and oppression. It’s about our heavenly heredity in Christ. So not everyone can understand. And that might not be good enough for many people. But there is no other remedy. Take it or leave it. But God will never change. And neither will the Great Commission Christ gave us.
.
For my final thoughts, rather than summarizing God’s word or eisegeting it for cultural illustrations, I will continue to let it speak…

Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezekiel 33:11).

There is only one way that is not “the wicked way”. And that way is Christ Jesus (John 14:6). Turning away from your sins is repentance only when you also turn to Jesus with genuine faith in the fact of His death, burial and resurrection. Then, you can know why God also says concerning death that…

Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints” (Psalm 116:15).

The bottom line is that at every moment, human beings are leaving this life and entering into one of just two eternities—heaven or hell. And that is why Jesus came to seek and to save the lost.
.
May we as true Christians and true churches stop allowing the Devil to distract us from our Christ-commissioned prime objective of seeking and saving that which was lost. This message is not cultural, it is universal in the sense that it is for everyone, everywhere, no matter what their situation. This entire world has a date with God’s full and unrelenting wrath.
.
If your kitchen is on fire, would you want an illustration of how a fire extinguisher is like a person who’s kind words can put out the flames of a heated argument? Or would you want to follow the instructions on it to properly use it in order to save your home from fire? Illustrations ultimately only serve the context for which they are given. God’s word always serves God’s ultimate purpose.
.
So if we as Christians truly believe the Bible to be God’s word, then we also believe it when it says that the world will pass away with all of its lustful desires, but only those who do the will of God will live with God forever and never see a Devil’s hell. Those who are not saved cannot do the will of God (e.g. Romans 8:7), and hell will be their eternal home. And that is why above and beyond all, to Jesus, #EternalLivesMatter.
.
Stand up for what is right. Help those who are hurting and oppressed. But never let their issues become the prime objective. Their souls are in jeopardy of leaving this life without salvation. Get them to the Savior by giving His gospel to them. Then, if nothing in this life changes or improves for them, at least their eternal souls might be made secure in God.
.
God richly bless you, beloved.