Mandatory Masks in Newfoundland

There is essentially no COVID-19 here in Newfoundland. There is always the possibility of asymptomatic spread, however, that would be evidenced by actual symptomatic people becoming present in the population. Since that isn’t a thing it would indicate that there are no asymptomatic people. Therefore, mandating the wearing of masks isn’t a measure to curb an existing COVID-19 issue; it is, rather, an endeavor to mitigate the impact of its uncontrolled return.

This has been the prevailing intention behind the social distancing, capacity limits and bubbling recommendations. As a province we’ve long since flattened the curve so the focus has been to try and ensure that if COVID-19 does, once again, begin to spread in the province that it’s impact would be stunted and allow for a more controlled reaction. So, there are two sides to keep in view when you follow(or ignore) any of the anti-COVID-19 recommendations and guidelines:

1. The current odds of catching COVID-19 in NL are extremely low, therefore, following these recommendations and guidelines do nothing to affect the situation.

2. It is possible for uncontrolled COVID-19 spread to resume at any time, therefore, following these recommendations and guidelines may do something to affect the future situation.

Both of these things are true. Therefore, the wearing of a mask can, simultaneously, be pointless and also may have a point. Mask wearing has (like a lot of things) been politicized and been presented to entirely stop someone from spreading their COVID-19. That isn’t entirely true which is why early on those leading us through the pandemic were rather “meh” on the necessity to wear masks. However, it does seem apparent that masks do SOMETHING to help mitigate the spread. So, utilizing them can be beneficial but they ought not be looked at as the ultimate prophylactic as presented by the media and politicians.

The reality of the pandemic has exposed the spectrum of responses. From irrationally paranoid, to reasonably cautious, to reasonably incautious, to irrationally careless. (I’m not making a moral judgement on those that fall on any part of the spectrum; I’m just pointing out its existence.) Our increasingly identity-focus society easily takes those along the spectrum and makes them either friends or enemies. Mask wearers vs. non-mask wearers, etc. So, while we ought to fight against that mentality and maintain an open discussion with each other with respect regardless of our view, the concept of a government mandate is separate.

Governments are inherently risk-averse and it is more risky to not mandate masks and there be an outbreak then to mandate masks and there be no outbreak. In the former they can quickly be accused of negligence and in the latter any complaint can be countered with their expressing the need for caution. Their focus isn’t so much based on pure reason rather than reducing as much as possible any and all chance for them not to be reelected. Their continuing as government is a driving force behind anything they do. That doesn’t always mean that all they do is unreasonable or unwarranted but there’s always that to consider.

One more aspect regarding government mandate is their understanding of how people work. For example, the bubbling rules were originally one other family then it increased. Anecdotally, many people are no longer strictly following this recommendation and I believe the government is aware of this. In this case, even the existence of the recommendation is a mitigation tactic as it will cause, at least some people, to reduce their contact. Similar to mask wearing, staying within a bubble now both does nothing currently and may also do something for the future. While the government can take a strong stance for masks they are also aware that not everyone will follow the mandate exactly and some places may not enforce it.

This isn’t a post to argue for or against the wearing of masks or following any of the other recommendations and guidelines. It’s just some information to be considered as we all decide what is best personally and for our families.

The Devaluing of Scripture and the Rise of our Experience

In modern Christianity there has been an increasing devaluing of scripture with a subsequent emphasis on promoting personal experience and transitory, earthly benefits of following Christ.

Being a Christian has become, therefore, a state in which we commune with a very non-specific and poorly defined presence of God. As is fitting since subjective, personal experience is presented as the infallible, unquestionable rudder by which our walk with God is steered.

In order for us to esteem so much our own experiences it necessitates the lowering of scripture so that it sits in subjection to how we feel. Instead of our bibles being used to validate our experience, it is our experiences (and their often prideful and/or culture-focused influences) which, ultimately, validates the bible.

This is a terrible thing and has lead to a prominent expression of Christianity that is more in line with a secular spirituality draped in the echoes of church tradition and which uses the bible as a reference book. It is the end result of a lifting up of how we feel about things rather than a dedication to what God has told us and how that ought to rightly influence our feelings.

If, however, our bibles are the actual, inspired words of God given to us by the Creator of the universe and all existence then we need to properly frame this in relation to ourselves and our churches. A dedication to pursuing an experience at the neglect of the loving boundaries of scripture is actually an outworking of our own sinful assumption that we and our inclinations should be in charge.

One popular outworking of this way of thinking is the tendency for using scripture to back up an already decided upon conclusion. Context and authorial intent are often scrapped in order to shoehorn a verse or two into a pre-constructed opinion. The reality of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is used as licence to assume the experience of inspiration which supersedes scripture. The result is referred to as an anointed word and is propped up with a weak frame of biblical texts without the necessary work of proper exegesis using a historical-grammatical hermeneutic.

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work."
(2 Timothy 3:16-17)

We should have a high view of the bible and a low view of our own opinions. It is given to us so that, through the empowering of the Holy Spirit, we can rightly divide the word of truth. Not as the means by which we validate our whims and experiences.

Is it possible for a Christian to lose their salvation? No.

Is it possible for a Christian to lose their salvation? No. 

However, for the sake of having a longer post I'll elaborate on that. The idea that a genuine Christian who has had their salvation provided to them by God being able to lose that salvation is not compatible with scripture in any capacity. The Bible teaches that our Father writes the names of those to who salvation has been given into the Book of Life (Philippians 4:3, Revelation 20:15). God is not a fickle God and, therefore, will not erase these names the moment he becomes displeased at our inability to maintain a standard that could not be met in the first place.

A genuine Christian is positionally, morally perfect before God. This is solely due to the intrinsic righteousness of Jesus Christ expressed through his perfect life and keeping of the commandments. This righteousness is credited to the Christian upon their repentance and trust in the Savior. It is in no way earned and, therefore, it is in no way kept by the intent or activities of the Christian (Ephesians 2:8-9).

The bible describes all people as being spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1, Colossians 2:13). But it also says that God determined, before he even created anything, which of these dead people he would have mercy on (Ephesians 1:4). Salvation is begun by God, maintained by God and completed by God (1 Peter 1:3-5).

A Christian can no more lose the salvation given to them as they could have willed they're receiving it in the first place. It is not based on their works (Ephesians 2:8-9) that they are saved and, therefore, works are not relevant to their becoming unsaved.

But what about people that have claimed to at one time been Christian but fell away? The bible teaches not that their salvation had been taken away and their adopted Father abandoned them. But rather that their leaving the faith is indicative of their never genuinely being of the faith to begin with.

"They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us."

1 John 2:19

It's important to understand how a Christian is called a Christian. It is not that a person decides to follow Christ and is therefore a Chrstian. But rather God decides that you will follow Christ and therefore you follow Christ and further therefore, you are a Christian. This distinction matters greatly as to how we view the subject of losing salvation.

If the choice is ours to call ourselves a Christian than the choice can be ours to stop following Christ and God can reject us. Yet if the genesis of a Christian comes from the sovereign choice of God and the maintaining of that faith comes from the enduring power of God and the purpose of the granting of that faith is for the glory of God then the matter of remaining a Christian or not is one of the integrity of God.

God will see his plan finished and will ensure his own glory. Because of this the salvation of a genuine, God-ordained Christian is as established as the reality of the existence of the Creator of the Universe.

Because of this, backsliding is not a thing. No one ever just backslides because, if you're a Christian, you're not climbing up a hill of good works and law to reach God. God plucked you from the grave, breathed life into you and set you firmly on solid ground. He indwells you with His Holy Spirit and conforms you increasingly to be more like Jesus.

An objection to the biblical understanding of eternal security is that it allows licence for a Christian to live anyway they like and to sin without thought of God. But this is not the case. Paul says in Romans:

"What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life."

Romans 6:1-4

As mentioned earlier, the reality of salvation has been granted and cemented for the Christian. Yet we remain in a sinful world and, for a time, in a sin-susceptible flesh. As the Father brings the Christian through the path of sanctification there may be times where the progress is slow or we become distracted by the sides of the road. While we are guaranteed to be brought safely to our destination there may be obstacles and ditches along the way. But our Father will not leave us in our wallowing. There will always be forward progress. Even if sometimes it may not seem like it to us. But the Holy Spirit is committed to carrying us along and we can trust in his will to increasingly keep our steps sure.

There is never continuous, unrepented, willful sinning in the life of a Christian. Security of salvation does not give warrant to sin. Instead, if a Christian continues in sin willfully and does not return to God it shows that they never had him as Father to begin with. NOT that God changed his mind about keeping them.

Eternal security is an assurance and blessing for the Christian and honoring and glorifying for God. So, no, a Christian cannot lose their salvation.

What is the point of a local church?

Back in the first century the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the calling of the Apostles and the intent and will of God the Father as facilitated by his Holy Spirit established the church. It's an institution that has been maintained by God for a couple of millennia so far and, as has been promised to us in scripture, will never be defeated.

In the wide view the church is comprised of all believers of Christ throughout the whole world. But it also refers to a collection of believers in a local area. The presumption of the bible is that Christians of near geographical location will collect together under the leadership of a God-ordained plurality of elders. The reality of being an active, engaged member of a local church for a Christian is biblically normative.

It has become common in society, and also among some Christians, to solely view the physical building used for religious gatherings as constituting a church. It is seen as a place that people that consider themselves Christians can gather for a couple of hours every week (or less) before going back to their actual lives. This view does not fulfill the biblical purpose for the church.

In order to understand the point of church it's helpful to understand the point of the Christian. Why does God save people? The answer is, ultimately, for him to receive glory. Through his providing grace and showing mercy to a group of people that hated him our Father gets to forever hold each one of us up as a display of his perfect mercy and kindness. Consequently we get to receive the love of the Father and enjoy him forever.

But why does the Father leave his people in this fallen, sinful world? He could immediately bring them home to be with him upon providing their salvation. It goes back to his intent to receive glory and the means by which he desires to save people for this purpose. As discussed in the previous web log post, the default of mankind is one of enmity towards God (Colossians 1:21). The curse of sin and the pride of mankind permeates the earth. Yet the sovereign will of our Creator has decreed the means by which he will save some and redeem what he has made.

There are a multitude of changes that occur for the believer the moment they are saved including:

1. The Father forgives them of their sins. All sins that they have committed, all they are currently committing and any that they will commit in the future. The eternal consequences are extinguished and the judgement that each of those sins deserves has been placed upon the Son as he was crucified.

2. The Holy Spirit immediately indwells them and begins the work of sanctification. For the first time the believer becomes capable of obedience, able to truly understand scripture and is empowered to not only turn away from sin but also to turn towards righteousness.

3. An adoption into a new family. We are changed from being a child of the devil (1 John 3:10) to a child of God. This adoption provides for us an inheritance (Ephesians 1:11), a perfect righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21) and a new home with our Father in heaven (Philippians 3:20).

These are realities for all Christians everywhere and they relate to the functioning of many Christians gathered together as a church.

It is the desire of God to save sinners (2 Peter 3:9) and it is with that purpose that all Christians are tasked with being ambassadors to spread his gospel and make disciples (2 Corinthians 5:20). We are like foreigners in a fallen world telling the people the name by which they must be saved. Yet we remain affected by lingering sin of a dying flesh and the temporal consequences of a past rebellion.

For the Christian there can often be a dissonance between the state of our soul and the reality of our lives and minds. This can be made more obvious as we proceed through sanctification and have sins that we didn't even know were a problem pop up in front of us. Our obedience to God and his scripture can sometimes feel like a brief sprint forward but then a tumbling down the hill behind us. Truths that we know from scripture regarding to who we belong, our eternal destiny and how the Creator of the universe sees us are, at times, difficult to remember. So God blesses us with fellowship together.

The church is designed to be a gathering of sometimes sin-prone, forgetful, doubting individuals made in the image of the One who has forgiven and loved them. Where some are weak God has strengthened others and it is for the purpose of lifting each other up from where we fall that we meet and do life with our brothers and sisters (Hebrews 10:24-25, Ephesians 4:11-13). It is a caring Father that sees his sheep fed, protected and led along the right path.

Church isn't a club in which we sometimes gather to be told how to feel good about ourselves. The point of the local church is to biblically feed, equip and encourage the children of God to reach the lost with his good news of salvation. It is to use the gifts that he gives to believers for the benefit of the whole. It is used by the Father to strengthen what is weak and to manifest his intentions.

Therefore, it is not just a building we go to but rather the local church is the primary paradigm of the living out what God has done and is doing in his people as he lead them to bring about his glory. That is what you are partaking in when you live your lives with other Christians and that's far better than just going to church sometimes on a Sunday.

The Confrontational Good News of Christ

The gospel of Jesus Christ is inherently a confrontational message. It is a declaration from the King to rebels which says that he has accomplished what was necessary to provide reconciliation and forgiveness and that "He commands all people everywhere to repent" (Acts 17:30).

In our natural state our minds are hostile to God (Romans 8:7, Colossians 1:21) and the pride that facilitated the fall of mankind is expressed in diverse manifestations of sin as we live primarily to usurp the glory of the one that created us.

We were created as image bearers to reflect the character of the Creator. Every person is born with this inherent dignity. But in addition, we are born as corrupted image bearers due to the legacy of rebellion intrinsic to us from the garden of Eden. We are more concerned with seeking our own glory rather than the glory of God. No one seeks after him (Romans 3:11).

The default of the creatures designed to display and glorify him is, therefore, one of hatred towards him. (Romans 1:30) Since a holy God will punish sin wherever it is found this results in enmity between God and man.

This also means that sins are not simply mistakes and the extent of punishment isn't solely a separation from God. Hell is a literal place of eternal torment; a neverending judgement for sins against an everlasting and infinitely holy God.

An unfortunate reality is that left to ourselves we would remain prideful rebels. However, God is "...a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,

keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin..." (Exodus 34:6-7) and he "...desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:4)

Loving their sin and pride and having no desire to bow to the King the rebels are spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1) and can raise themself to a right standing with God just as well as a corpse can jump from the grave. There is no desire and there is no ability.

It is up to a merciful and gracious God to turn the rebels back to him. 

"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons." (Galatians 4:4‭-‬5)

In his sovereign decree, and while being entirely justified in destroying all, God chose to have mercy on some. Jesus Christ lived a perfect life and died on the cross; living the sinless perfection that we couldn't and taking the punishment that we deserve. He rose from the dead and declared his victory. All that remains is for the rebels to bow their knee (Philippians 2:10), admit their sin and inability for good and to trust in Christ.

Therein exists the confrontation. The rebels believe themselves good (Proverbs 21:2) and rely on their own illusion of righteousness. In order for them to repent they must first believe in a need for repentance and a prideful heart despises such a thing. Unless God first awakens their spirit they will always fight against him. Such is the warning of Jesus: "If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you." (John 15:18)

As Christians we are tasked with the responsibility of declaring this message to those captive in their own pride. The message carries with it the commend to confront the love of our sins. It will either result in the hearers turning to God or their further cursing the one that gave them life. We need not add to this confrontation from a sense of aggressive zealotry. But we also must not soften the message from a desire to make it more palatable. God is the one who claims victory; our job is not to try and make the rebels feel better about their rebellion and suggest turning to God. We are to announce what God has done with obedience and love. The result and the glory are His.