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!

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?

 

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.