Christians Should Know how to Party!

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. (John 15:5-8, NIV) Jesus told his disciples that they were connected to him like branches to a vine, and that they should remain in him, abiding in a constant connection in order to receive sustenance and bear fruit. I used to think that such an arrangement would result in a somber kind of life, just meditating on Jesus all day or doing devotionals and such. The first impression many have about Christianity is that if we going to hang out with Christ 24/7, we are pretty much doomed to head straight to the monastery. And if we were honest we’d admit that Christians probably aren’t the group the world thinks of inviting first when they decide they want to party. But consider this: “On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding“. (John 2:1-2). “While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples.” (Matthew 9:10). [Jesus said] “The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’” (Luke 7:34) Apparently Jesus and his crew were just the kind of guys people would WANT to roll up on their social gatherings (and I’m talking sinners here, not Sunday school teachers). Sadly, that’s probably not what the prostitutes and sinners would say today about most Christians. I wonder what has changed… Come on, ya’ll, being a Christian is AWESOME! Being connected to Jesus is a sustaining, spiritual nutrition-delivering pathway to life and growth. Jesus says that if we remain in him we will bear “much fruit”. Tell me—what could be better on a hot day in July than biting into a sweet, succulent peach or cutting open a ripe, delicious watermelon? Jesus goes on to say that our fruitfulness is something that glorifies the Father! Do you ever stop and think of yourself as an example of God’s GLORY? According to Jesus, that’s what his disciples are. That’s what you are. So celebrate! Be glorious! Party!

Founding Faith

“Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations. (Psalms 100:1-5 KJV) I thought it fitting to reflect today on “Old Hundred”, a Psalm that our Founding Fathers undoubtedly sang or read in their worship. Can you picture some of them now, not signing declarations and fighting the British, but participating in worship? Many of them were Christian believers who regularly attended church and were actively engaged in spreading the gospel. Obviously they saw service to God as an important aspect of public life. Read these quotes from a few of our Founders: George Washington said, “To the distinguished character of Patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more distinguished character of Christian.” John Adams asserted, “”Now I will avow, that I then believe, and now believe, that those general Principles of Christianity, are as eternal and immutable, as the Existence and Attributes of God.” And Thomas Jefferson, describing himself, said, “”I am a real Christian – that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus Christ.” Lest we forget, these men created the framework for America (that’s why we CALL them “Founding Fathers”!) Our nation has spiritual underpinnings that deserve respect and preservation! How do we do that? The Psalm says to make a JOYFUL noise! Be as bold and as loud as you want! What if every Christian in America celebrated being a follower of Christ as if it was an exciting adventure, or a big party?? Turn the music UP! Sing out! If you can’t get everyone else in America to make a joyful noise to the Lord and serve Him with gladness, then start at home and go from there. Civic change comes from unshakeable beliefs. Ripples from a single pebble eventually touch every side of the pond!

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Be Reserved

“Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.” (John 17:17-20, NKJV) Jesus not only said He WAS the truth (John 14:6) and that the truth would set us free ((John 8:32), but he asked the Father to sanctify us by the truth. In a spiritual sense the word “sanctify” means to set apart for sacred use, and that is the most common application of the word. But because it is kind of a churchy word, I don’t think we use it as practically as we should. Leroy Eims said that a Jeep parked outside headquarters and designated with 4 stars is “sanctified” (set apart) for the General, and woe to any Second Lieutenant who takes it for a spin! Baker’s Dictionary says that the generic meaning is “the state of proper functioning. To sanctify someone or something is to set that person or thing apart for the use intended by its designer. A pen is “sanctified” when used to write. Eyeglasses are “sanctified” when used to improve sight.” Obviously things work better when we use them for what they were designed for. You use eyeglasses to see, but not to scramble eggs or unlock the door; you use God’s word not just as an interesting old book, but also to change the very state of your existence. So when Jesus prayed for us in the garden, and asked his Father to sanctify us, what did He mean? First of all, he acknowledges that we are set apart. As his followers, we have stepped outside of the previous boundaries of our existence and into a spiritual journey of obedience and transformation. As a believer, you live in a sanctified state and are set apart for God’s use. Interesting that in this short snippet of Jesus’ prayer, he answers a big theological question—why the cross? He set himself apart so that we could be “truly sanctified”. That’s why Paul says (in Galatians 2:20), “I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me.” It was only by Jesus’ crucifixion that we could be “truly sanctified”. Second, Jesus said that each of us has a purpose for which we were specifically made. Just as He was being sanctified for his journey to the cross, he prayed for every one of us to be used the way our Designer intended us to be used. Did the Designer intend for us to live consumed with our own selfish fleshly desires, or with a spiritual nature that  can lift us out of our carnal selfishness to love and service? That’s why the rest of Galatians 2:20 says “And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” The life that Jesus lived empowers the life the Father wants us to live. Two questions: What do you think your Designer intended for you to do? And are you allowing Truth to sanctify you and set you apart so that you are equipped to do it?

 

Sand or Stone?

“But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock.” (Luke 6:46-48, NIV)In some recent discussions about truth, a couple of folks have dismissed the Bible and told me that it is merely a myth containing some truth, but certainly not THE truth. If I go by what I read on social and mainstream media, this seems to be a common viewpoint. Truth is relative, and so are right and wrong. “What’s true for you is not necessarily true for me.” “You have no authority to tell me what to do. Right and wrong only exist in our own minds!” I understand where that thinking comes from, and it seems to have lots of momentum these days. Our culture chafes under any authority. TV commercials tell you to break the rules, not to share, or to color outside the lines. We ignore what law enforcement officials tell us to do. Lying and changing your position used to be considered a deal-breaker when running for President. Today it is pretty common, and there is little public outcry or backlash. We should legalize weed because it’s no worse than alcohol. Criminals are called courageous for shooting at police. Even something as seemingly obvious as gender, we are told, is really just a matter of choice. Our moral values seem to be built on the shifting sands of public opinion. But according to Jesus, there is a firm foundation to build upon. The teaching of Jesus set a different kind of standard for how we should be accountable and how we should treat one another. This passage highlights that there are two great dangers: One, don’t assume you know Jesus just because you go to church, or because you seem outwardly connected to him. He says we not only need to know what he said, but to live by it. Second, he says that we should build our values and our goals upon what He taught. We should dig deep and stand firm. If you say you follow Jesus but don’t know everything he said, get busy. You owe it to yourself to re-read, revisit, and reapply. If you don’t know what Jesus said, don’t dismiss him. At some point in your life, when the storms of difficulty break upon you, you will find yourself in need of a firm foundation. When that happens, all the shifting sand in the world won’t do you any good. Dig deep. Build. Stand.

The Immortals

“I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord”. (Psalm 118:17, NIV) David says a lot in this comment about the celebration of life. To start from the end and go backwards, David proclaims that he is alive to “declare the works of the Lord”. Like him, your life has a purpose greater than what you see. If you play the game, “6 Degrees of Separation” where you know somebody who knows somebody else who knows the President or Kevin Bacon, you realize how interconnected and small the world is, and just how large your life is. It will touch corners of the globe where you have never been, and all kinds of people you have not seen. Because of that your life has a purpose much greater than simply living for yourself, and yet that is what many of us do. As Rick Warren’s book “The Purpose Driven Life” says, we are here for God’s pleasure, not just our own. That’s why it is called History, and not My-story! Do you ever stop to realize that you are casual and short-sighted about life, even though you only get one chance at it? Life is not a dress rehearsal! The first part of this verse says, “I shall not die but live”, reminding us that our life also has a purpose far greater than its earthly span. I think we forget sometimes that life is far greater than an earthly sojourn—it is an eternal adventure. C S Lewis said, “There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit – immortal horrors or everlasting splendors. This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously – no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption.” Are you serious about eternity? Do you enjoy merriment of the merriest kind? As eternal beings, we have the opportunity to reflect the character and works of our creator. Do you think most people live as if their actions today mattered forever? Do you? Would your world be a better place if you interacted with others as though your conversation was an eternal transaction? As C. S. Lewis points out, it adds weight to things, even to our merriment. The Psalmist not only speaks of the length of his life, he also proclaims its purpose: to “declare the works of the Lord.” What if you lived today with that in mind? Would anything change? Has God done any work in you, around you, or through you that deserves declaration? Since you are no mere mortal, live as if you matter. Live as if GOD matters. And have some merriment of the merriest kind.

The Resolution of All the Fruitless Searches

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” (Hebrews 1:1-3, NIV). The writer of Hebrews says that faith is the substance of things hoped for. If you dissect the syllables and break that down, substance comes from sub (under) and stance (from stand), or that which stands under a thing. Knowing what stands under a thing will often help our understanding OF a thing. The Greek word used for substance is hupostasis, which referred to the underlying state or condition of a thing. It was also a legal term used in real estate transactions because it indicated that there was an underlying legal document (the title deed) that provided proof of ownership and possession. Faith is basically our deed of trust, giving us ownership of hope, and a reasonable expectation that God will do what He promised to do. The things which we CAN see are a down payment towards the things we CAN’T see. Creation points us towards faith and proves God’s reliability, because it demonstrates that all visible things were made by the One who is not visible. God does what He does. You can believe or not believe. You can choose to ignore the evidence He placed about himself into creation—the vastness of the universe, the delicate balance of the earth hung in orbit, the intricacy of a cell, the seasons, a flower, and the canvas of the sky every day—or you can allow it to stimulate faith. If you follow God by faith, the writer of Hebrews says, it will change your life. The elders obtained a good testimony by their faith, and Hebrews 11 goes on to discuss the stories of those who believed, and changed not only their own lives but human history as well… Faith is a big deal, ya’ll, but here’s the thing: God will never MAKE you believe. You can be skeptical about a God who painted portions of His self-portrait into a chosen people, an Exodus, the Pentateuch, a shepherd-king, the Psalms, the prophets, history (His Story), His Son, the Word, and into relationships throughout every generation… You can dismiss the people of faith as irrational, and you can live your entire life without seeking God or engaging Him by any choice you make. You don’t ever have to have faith in God. But if you make that choice, there are things you will never understand about God, and you will never know His character, His generosity, His wisdom, or His love. And, oh yeah, your world will never change. But if you search for God, Hebrews 11:6 gives some awesome advice: “whoever comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him.” Wherever you come from, whatever you believe or think: if you seek God in faith, He will be pleased and He will respond to you. Seek in faith today and be rewarded forever.

Abba’s Children

“But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.” (Galatians 4:4-7, NIV) In the grand drama of the cosmos, man was created in God’s image to be share in all that God made. He created man as a member of the family, someone who could walk with Him daily and call Him Abba, the affectionate form of Father that most closely equates in our culture to “Daddy”. Man was placed in the garden with a covenant that had one stipulation: do not eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Adam and Eve broke that covenant and were separated from all of God’s goodness. Like the prodigal son, they selfishly tried to take their inheritance early and ended up outside the family and far from home. Those who once walked daily with the Father now walked alone, and their actions brought a curse not only upon themselves but also upon the creation in which they labored. The very fabric of existence was torn, and no amount of effort by mankind could repair it. The story of the Bible is the story of how God redeemed us from the curse and adopted us back into His loving family. The curse resulted from the breaking of the covenant by men; so only a man could provide justice before a righteous God. Sin was the deadly enemy of man, separating him from the Father and bringing death and corruption into the world. Only a redeemer untainted by sin could triumph over it. Because its wages are death, sin affected all of mankind both physically and spiritually. This passage from Galatians offers assurance and hope. First, it assures us that God has always had a plan, and that plan has always been bent on restoring us to His family. It says that God sent his Son at “the set time.” The appearance of Jesus was no accident, and he was sent by the Father. Second, He was born of a woman, so that he might redeem those born of women. Third, He satisfied the law, so that he might save those cursed by the law. He provided not only a physical solution to sin, but a spiritual one as well. His words were not the random ramblings of a Jewish wise man, and his claims to be one with the Father were not blasphemy but fact. He was unique in all of history as being the one qualified to counteract the curse and mediate our adoption back into the Father’s family. Because of Jesus Christ, we are all able to be God’s children once again, walking with Him and calling Him “Abba” (Daddy). Read the words of Jesus sometime and see how often he depended on his Father, talked with his Father, and walked with his Father. See the affection and intimacy Jesus had with “Abba”. When is the last time you loved on the Father, and talked to Him not as the Awesome God of the universe or as the somewhat intimidating Righteous Judge, but as your Daddy? I’m pretty sure he sent His Son so you could do just that. Crawl up into God’s spiritual lap today and sit there for a while.

The Never-ending Story

“Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will declare your praise. You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, O God, will not despise.” (Psalm 51:15-17, NIV) David wrote this Psalm after he had his affair with Bathsheba and arranged to have her husband Uriah killed. Like all of us, David fell prey to his own pride and lust, and did just what he wanted to do even though he knew it was wrong. The same man who sang nighttime praises to God on the hillsides, who declared his undying faith and devotion to the Lord, had thumbed his nose at God to go do something selfish, sinful, and downright evil. Now his lips were silent and he was mute with shame. David was the king over Israel, a party in a covenant relationship with God, blessed beyond measure, and yet he caved in to his own fleshly desires and committed sins that were unthinkable. He fell from the heights of blessing to the depths of depravity. Sound familiar? It should. It’s your story. It’s everyone’s story. No matter who you are, no matter how close you are to God, there are times when you turn away from Him and do what you want to do. Your fleshly desires motivate you to lie, to covet, to commit sins in both deed and thought. You act publicly humble while you wallow in pride, you judge others when you are unworthy, and you act with impunity regardless of consequences. And then you stop, realizing that you have broken trust with the Lord, that you have violated Christ’s sacrifice, and that, like the lost son you are broken and far from home. Even though David wrote this Psalm when the Jewish sacrificial system was fully operational, he recognized that animal sacrifice was symbolic, that it portrayed publicly what God wanted to see going on in our hearts privately. The death of the animals represented the death of our flesh, given willingly so that God’s Spirit might live in us. God doesn’t want burnt offerings, He wants our hearts. When we ignore Him, when we elevate ourselves above Him, and when we cave in to selfishness and sinful desires, God doesn’t want us dead; He wants us BACK. When we stray from God’s love, according to David, there is only one appropriate sacrifice. What God wants to see is a broken and contrite heart. God is not looking for those things to insure that we are suffering, or paying for what we’ve done. He wants to restore us, to keep deathly sin from destroying us, and He knows that the only way for us to stay free from its grip is to present ourselves, broken and contrite to Him. When is the last time you were broken and contrite? When did you last do business with God by presenting your broken spirit to Him without self-justification or reservation? When were you last brutally honest with yourself before the Lord, begging him for forgiveness? Well, when was the last time you sinned? When did you last tell a white lie, or have a momentary flash of envy or hatred? When did you covet something, or put anything else before God? If there’s a gap between the last time you sinned, and the last time you were contrite, read David’s words again. You’ve got some business to do.

 

Mommy, Where did I Come From?

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1, NIV). This simple statement provides an amazing foundation for the Bible. Just break it down and you’ll see what I mean. First, it addresses the notion of time by saying, “In the beginning”. It doesn’t try to quantify time or define it in a linear sense. It doesn’t apply assumptions to a geological aging process and come up with a number. It doesn’t say that God began with time or even that time has any particular relevance to God. It merely states that our heaven and earth had a beginning, and that God preceded them in existence. I’m sure early man would lay outside at night gazing up at the stars, or think while walking the world around him, “what started this? Where did all this come from?” Genesis 1 addresses those questions with profound simplicity. Second, it says, “In the beginning, God”. It makes a logical assumption about God, His place in the universe, and the nature of eternity. It presupposes God. Some scientists object to this because it was not observable, but I would submit to you that those same scientists are also basing many of their conclusions about origin on assumptions as well. To me, “In the beginning, matter”; or “In the beginning, gases were floating in the cosmos” is no more scientific than “In the beginning, GOD.” The notion of God existing in the beginning is every bit as logical and rational as any of those other things. Also, read that verse again and think about its perspective; it is talking about OUR beginning, not God’s. He was already in existence. There is no assumptive logic or attempt to try to explain where He came from. In our quest for logical, scientific answers to everything, God makes every bit as much (and perhaps more) intellectual sense as Random Elements affected by Random Chance. Third, Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.” The writer of Genesis (Moses) knew that man did not create heaven and earth. Scientists today have confirmed this is true. Man can build some pretty nifty stuff out of created elements; he has yet to accomplish ‘creatio ex nihilo’ (creation out of nothing). But God designed, and God created. Walk out tonight and look up at the stars. Hold a baby. Look at a flower. Reflect upon the fact that you alone, of all the animals, have spiritual inclinations and moral obligations. All of those things make sense when you put them in context right after the sentence, “In the beginning, God created”. Placing the world of physical things into a spiritual context changes everything. It means that there is a God of order and intelligence, and that we are made in His image, with the ability for spiritual as well as physical sight. As you appreciate the heavens and as you walk the earth, remember who you came from.