Advent

Advent. Coming. The bringing of hope. The discovery of peace. The embodiment of love. The beginning of joy. This is the season in which we celebrate the greatest love God has ever shown us: the arrival of Jesus. He is Emmanuel: God come to be with us. He is Messiah: God our Savior. He is the Christ-child: the anointed one of God.

Even in birth, Jesus exalted the lowly. A baby who will one day redeem us and reconcile us: born to a woman of no consequence, made great by the blessing of our God. A baby of infinite splendor: born in a barn and laid in a feeding trough. A baby who had been praised by the angels: greeted on Earth by shepherds.

Even as a toddler, Jesus opposed the proud. The mighty Herod: shown to be a jealous coward. The extravagant Rome: shown to be worthless.

Thirty-three years later, mankind would see all of this culminate in one glorious act of love. Jesus, the Anointed One, the Embodiment of God, freely gives himself as the sacrificial Lamb, the propitiation of sin, then rises from the dead to become our living Messiah. On the cross, we see the proud and the lowly together. Even on the cross, Jesus exalted the lowly, giving life to the condemned thief. Even in death, Jesus opposed the proud, choosing to stay on the cross then rising to defeat death forever. In Him, we hope. In Him, we have peace with God. In Him, we love. In Him there is joy.

This is Advent: Jesus.

Late Night Ponderings

This past Sunday, New Community in Spokane received a dynamic Word from God. It hit me hard and has left me with musings and ponderings all week. The passage is Matthew 13:44-46 known to theologians as the "Treasure Parables."

The great thing about parables is that there is only one point to them, but that point is sometimes seen/shown in multiple ways. These short parables have more complexity in them than some of the longer ones.

A quick read tells us this: a man finds treasure in a field. He sells all he owns and buys the field for the treasure. Also, a man finds the most costly pearl ever. He sells all he owns and buys the pearl.

Conclusion? Hint: Don't jump there.

I must first ask you to ask yourself a couple of questions. First, "How do you see yourself in light of God?" And second, "How do you see God in light of yourself?" Yes, you read that correctly. I want you to know how you see God in light of yourself.

It is easy to see ourselves in light of God. We are sinful, horrid beings in desperate need of grace. Our best is nothing to God. That is easy for us to see, especially when we sin. The hard part tells us to look at God in light of ourselves. Since I am bordering heresy, let me explain this. This is not taking a look at the human condition followed by God. That is seeing ourselves in light of God. What I want you to do is to search your heart and really think about how you see God.

Do you put him in a box? Do you shove him off to the side? Do you make him convenient only when you want? A friend of mine recently had a revelation about how he saw God. He tried to put him in a box that said, "God only works in this way because that is all I know how he works." My friend knows now how faulty that thinking is. So, please, examine yourselves (it is Scriptural after all).

Now, let's look at the meat of these parables. A man searched a field and found treasure in it. Another man found a super costly pearl, a "pearl of great price" as Scripture reads. Both men had to respond to this, and they both responded in kind. They went and sold all they had to acquire their desired treasure. The first and easiest way to see these verses is seeing the treasure/pearl as Christ. We are to identify with the men who stumbled upon these great treasures. And, as they did, we must give up all to possess the treasure that is Christ. Please note that I am not saying we can buy our way into heaven, because that is not what Jesus ever taught. Jesus said, so I echo, that we are to give up all we have. In the spiritual, that does not always mean we sell everything and go live in a monastery. What it means is that we become a living sacrifice, giving up our desires, affections, dreams, pursuits, etc., for that of the Holy One. Everything we live for changes when we come in contact with the true Treasure.

Think about it. These men no longer had houses! They could not even feed themselves, but they had that which is greater. They no longer cared for their own well-being, only that of the Treasure.

See why that is so easy? We understand Christ is the true Treasure. We have just seen ourselves in light of who God is. Christ is worth giving up all because he is holy and we are not. So, what is the other understanding of this parable?

Look at the context of this passage. This is the same chapter as the parable of the sower, the parable of the weeds, the parable of the mustard seed and leaven, and the parable of the net. In each of them, the world is the field/dough/sea. In the parable of the weeds and net, we see a look at the close of the age when the angels separate the wheat and the tares/good and bad fish. So why do we always see Christ as the treasure?  Hopefully, by now, you see where this is heading. In this alternate reading, WE are the treasure and Christ is the man. WE are the pearl and Christ is the man.

Listen to Paul in Romans: "God demonstrated his own love toward us, in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Hear that? Christ gave up everything he had so that he could redeem (buy) us. This is viewing God in light of ourselves: that we see the drastic lengths he went to tell us that we are loved and we are worth it all. How can we keep God in a box after that? How can we hope to push God aside when he tells us we are worth dying for to save?

So, which is correct? Hint: it is both.

The greater question is: who or what is the main character of the parable? The answer is always, emphatically Christ. He is the Treasure and he gave up all for us. If you read this as Christ as the Treasure, then you must see the worthlessness of humanity in light of the glorious riches of Christ; but if you see Christ as the man, then you must see how precious we are to God.

Worship Is...

As I lay in bed tonight, a though blossomed at the back of my mind, so, here I am writing this blog instead of sleeping.

This thought (which has now firmly attached itself to my brain, and will not let go) was "The institution of the church (where you gether on Sundays) is designed for us. The ecclessia (the Called Out; the true Church) is designed for us to unify to give God glory."

This is one of the major things I find wrong with churches today. As I later tweeted, "When a church's attitude of expectation overtakes its attitude of worship, there is a problem." And it is true. While expecting God to work is not a bad thing, it is not the point of church. So to say that you go to church to hear a word from God, I feel, is a poor motivation. God speaks to us in so many ways and at so many different times, that we shouldn't go into a Sunday morning service expecting Him to speak there. Now, please don't hear me saying that He doesn't, but that should not be our primary motivation for going to church.

Church (ecclessia) is about community. It is built upon and only works when a myriad of individuals come together in unity for a singular goal. When we come into church services expecting God to speak so we can consume, we are asking for something selfishly. However, if we come into a church service with an attitude of worship, we, then, become truly unified with the other believers, since our purpose is make God famous. We cannot do that if we are fractured. It is only when we are unified that the Church works.

Look throughout Acts. The apostles may not always have gotten along, but they were unified in one purpose: making God famous. It is through that unity that God moved. I am sure the apostles expected God to do things, the very nature of faith is knowing that He will do things, but their unity was built first upon making God famous, and from there, all other things.

I know this is probably confusing, maybe even infuriating, but if it causes you to think about why you attend church, then it has accomplished His purpose. God wants us to glorify Him and make Him famous, especially when we are grouped with other believers.

Worship Is...
-An attitude,
-A lifestyle,
-A desire,
-Loving God back,
-Unifying.

Redemption: How sweet it is

"And in that day, declares the Lord, you will call me 'My Husband' and no longer will you call me 'My Baal.' For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, and they shall be remembered no more. And I will make for them a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, birds of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground. And I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety. And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the Lord."

What a beautiful promise we have from the Lord! A promise, given in the midst of turmoil and unfaithfulness, to Israel and, by extension, to the Church.

How often do we run from Christ, the Husband of the Church? How often do we "go after [our] lovers, who give [us our] bread and water, wool and flax, oil and drink"? (Hosea 2:5) It is God who gives us those things, and yet we seek them in our new baals. These gods the Israelites worshiped were supposed to have power and control over the land and weather, so they would sacrifice and worship them, when all the while, God is saying, "I gave that to you!" Our modern society has grown technologically to where we no longer think that way, and yet, we still have our own false gods and our idols: money, success, pleasure, satisfaction, laziness, etc. We see these things and we chase after them because we think, "That is where I find my validation; that is where I find my joy," not know that God is saying, "No! You find that in Me!"

And, still, in the midst of this, God says that He will bring them back unto Himself and "betroth you to Me forever." In other words, the Church will be married to Christ, and we will no longer search for those things outside of Him. Just as Hosea's wife was a prostitute, so we are here. We leave Christ in search of things that we think are better. How miserable humanity is! We leave a faithful, loving, gracious Husband to whore with the baals and idols sin offers. But, God redeems us as Hosea redeemed Gomer. Check it:

"And the Lord said to me, 'Go again, love a woman who is loved by another manand is an adulteress, even as the Lord loves the children of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love cakes of raisins.' So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethech of barely." (Hosea 3:1-2)

Hosea bought his wife out of the life of adultery and prostitution and freed her from it! She never had to return to it again. Remind you of any other Husband you know?

Grace vs Forgiveness: Why grace saves and forgiveness doesn't

When it is 4 a.m. and someone is awake, it's either because they are in pain, don't want to sleep yet, have insomnia, or are getting up for work. Those that don't want to sleep are young and will grow out of it (I did). Those in pain or insomniacs take a pill. Those getting up for work have already slept. So that leaves us with me. I just can't sleep tonight. I'm tired, my eyes are heavy, but I just can't shut off. So, while all normal people in my time-zone are asleep right now, I take to the interwebs and I blog...

This is one of those good kind of "can't shut off nights." I've prepared (mentally), several possible teaching lessons that are in their infancy. The one I am most prepared to discuss (the one that takes the least amount of brain power), is a discussion of forgiveness and grace. In my last blog posting, I spouted possible heresy, saying that we don't need to ask for forgiveness from God to be saved, we only need to openly confess that He is our Lord and Master and that we will follow Him always. I made the point that it is our faith that saves us and not us wanting to be free from guilt of doing bad things. That is called easing your conscience.

So, I guess, this will be a continuation, since Ephesians 2:8-9 says "For it is by grace through faith that you have been saved..." Grace saves us when we put our faith in the Giver of Grace. So, what does that word mean: grace? I've heard it defined as "unmerited favor", "getting what you do not deserve", and other things along those lines. Now, I'm not saying those are wrong (they are actually decent), but as I study Scripture, I find that those definitions are incomplete. For instance, take Romans 12:3. Paul writes, "For by the grace given to me..." Here, the definition "unmerited favor" works decently. But that definition is a repeat of the other I gave you. "Unmerited favor", broken down, means "you didn't earn the standing you have." So, in light of the subtle deficeincies I see, I propose this definition of grace: "the power to do what you cannot do yourself." This power, when dealing with Scripture and spiritual matters, comes from God. Now think of Ephesians 2:8: "For it is by the power you do not possess that has been given to you because of your faith in Christ that you are saved." Or Romans 12:3: "For by the power I do not have on my own, which was given to me..." It just seems a more complete definition to me. But, more on grace later.

Now we shift our focus to forgiveness. This is easy. Forgiveness isn't saying, "That's ok" to someone who has hurt you. Far from it. We have taken this mentality of "forgive and forget" to an extreme and even applied this to God! I saw a video from Francis Chan the other day where he said we have the tendency to take God and make Him subject to our morality. Ouch.

I am here to tell you (super-fundamentalist, bring out your heresy book again) that God doesn't forget our sin. "But, then how do we get to heaven?" I said He doesn't forget, not that He doesn't forgive. Read the end of Revelation. Every man, woman, boy and girl who EVER lived will stand before the throne and give account for what he or she has done. EVERY SINGLE ACT, WORD, OR THOUGHT! However, Christ is there as our advocate and says, "I paid John's penalty. He followed me. He trusted me. He let me be his Master. He is mine." Then He will say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant. Enter into your rest." No where in there does God ever forget our sin. I think He will see it clearly (God is outside of time...different lesson), but it was placed upon Christ while He was on the cross. Therefore, we no longer face the penalty of our sin. We have been forgiven. Our sin is no longer held against us. That is my working definition of forgiveness: "not holding a past offense against someone." This is key in marriage and relationships.

Think of this: A man is walking home from work, when a mugger pulls him into an alleyway. "Give me your wallet," the mugger says, thrusting a gun at the man's chest. "Here, take it," the muggee replies. As the mugger takes it, he shoots the man anyway, killing him. After the investigation, the mugger is caught and goes on trial for murder. He is convicted. The man's wife is there in the courtroom. (Here is where the rubber meets the road, folks.) She walks down the aisle, leans over to the mugger and says, "I forgive you. I no longer hold this against you."

Now, will she EVER forget that this man killed her husband? NO! But forgiveness is not holding it against him. "Yeah, but this is murder!" It doesn't matter. It was our sin that forced Jesus to die, and, still, He forgives us. "Yeah, but that's Jesus! He's God!" Agreed. Yet aren't we called to live like Him? Luke 6:36-37,40 "Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. Judge not, and you will not be judged. Condemn not, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven...A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher." We will be like Him if He is our teacher. From the mout of Jesus Himself.

Back to the illustration: The woman stands up, tears rolling down her cheeks. She looks at the prosecuting attorney, and then leans back down to speak to her husband's murderer again. "Also, I heard that you cannot afford an attorney, so I would like to help you pay for one."

Enter grace. The mugger didn't have the power to help himself. He didn't have the ability to hire a good lawyer. So, in a shower of grace upon a man who killed her husband, the wife paid in his stead.

Yes the event was ficticious, but the premise is not. The premise is based on Christ. If we are to show Christ in everything, how can we not respond the same way? That's my question to you reading this: which shows Christ more? Holding onto past grievances, or forgiveness?

"Love...keeps no records of wrongs..." 1 Corinthians 13

Forgiveness and Salvation Are Not The Same Thing

I must preface this by saying, please read the entire post. It will not make sense unless you do that. Also, do not let the title throw you.

You enter into this post with one of two mindsets: with a narrow viewpoint brought about by what you already "know" or a broad viewpoint brought about by not allowing your knowledge to interfere with what you will read. I pray that you have the latter mindset.

First and foremost, we must look what the Bible says about forgiveness, specifically forgiveness of sin. I use the English Standard Version (ESV) in my study. In the gospels, whenever Christ talks of forgiveness, it is always in relation to us forgiving other people. We must forgive to be forgiven. Move onto Acts. In chapter 2 verse 38, Peter said to the crowds at Pentecost, "Repent and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Spoiler Alert: This is the only time I've found in Scripture where asking for forgiveness leads to salvation. By the way, this was addressed to the Jews, alone, who had seen Jesus and knew who He was. Later in Acts, we find Peter again preaching, this time to Gentiles and notice the difference: "To [Christ] all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name." (Acts 10:43) Yes, he just said belief comes before forgiveness. Perhaps you knew that. Let's keep going.

Paul doesn't actually spend a lot of time on forgiveness in his letters. Why? He is writing to Gentile churches who didn't know who Jesus was prior to a evangelist coming. Instead, he says "righteousness" and "made righteous" and "justified". In Romans 4:5, he writes "And to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness." He does say that it is through Christ's blood that we are redeemed and forgiven in Ephesians 1:7 and Colossians 1:13-14.

In Hebrews, which was written to Jewish Christians, the writer echoes the Old Testament and says in 9:22 "without the shedding of blood there is no forgivess of sins." And in chapter 10, she (I believe Priscilla wrote Hebrews) writes "Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins" (verse 12).

This brings us to one of the most quoted verses in all of Scripture, 1 John 1:9, which says "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." However, even here this doesn't say it gives us eternal life or that we are saved.

Now we have to look at what Scripture says saves us. This is simple, in words, but very difficult in terms of actions and understanding. Faith saves us. More than that, our confession of Christ as Lord and Master saves us. It isn't asking for forgiveness that saves us, as we like to tell people. I would posit that we don't even have to necessarily ask for forgiveness to be saved. Most of you think I'm bordering on heresy, so let me hit the Scriptures.

Let's look at the most famous passage of Scripture, John 3. Here, Jesus tells Nicodemus he must be born again, which throws the Pharisee for a loop. He doesn't understand that. "How can a grown man go back into his mother's womb?" Silly Nicodemus. Jesus isn't speaking physical, he is speaking spiritually. Look at 3:14 and 15, "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life." Did you see that? Jesus himself says its about belief in Him that saves us. He didn't say, "anyone who confesses their sins to me will be saved."

And here, you may be saying, "Yeah, but Jesus died for our sins." Well, duh. Sin still separates us from God, and we can't get past that gap. Forgiveness is incomplete, though. (Now I know you think I'm speaking heresy.) It's true, though. Forgiveness isn't enough to save us. Let's look in Romans 10. "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved." What does this mean? Simply, We have to accept that Jesus is our Master and believe that He is alive and defeated death. You can believe in your heart and be justified. Literally, you can believe in Jesus in your heart and get forgiveness of sins, but do you see what actually saves us? We have to confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord!!! It's not all about the inward. We have to confess and tell the world that we serve Jesus. This is what is meant by "If you deny me before men, I will deny you before my Father." Uh-oh.

You may be asking, "Are you saying that we can ask God to forgive us, but if we don't live for Him and serve Him, we aren't saved?" YES!! That's exactly it! We have to tell people we serve Christ and we actually have to serve in order to be saved!!

"Are you saying that its our works that save us, then?" NEVER!! It's our faith in Christ that saves us (Ephesians 2:8-9), but we actually have to show we have faith by serving (James 2:14-26)!

Now, we combine these two. If we confess Jesus as Lord and serve Him, then He will forgive us! Jesus says in Matthew 7:21, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father in who is heaven." Jesus then speaks of those who did miracles and prophesied in his name that won't enter into heaven. He calls them "workers of lawlessness." They did those things for themselves, or because they wanted to, not because God commanded it.

Why did I spend all this time on this subject when the majority of people who will read this are already Christians? Because I want those who think that because they asked for forgiveness they are going to heaven, that isn't necessarily true. I don't want you to question your salvation, unless you are not actually living for Christ and acknowledge Him as your Master.

The other reason I write this is for those of us who spread the Word of God and the Gospel of Christ to those who need it. People need to understand it isn't the forgiveness of sins that saves us, its the faith in Christ and subsequent living for Him showing our faith. It's our acknowledgement of Him as Master.

Grace, Freedom, and Slavery: A likely approximation of what my Father's Day sermon might possibly look like

First and foremost, I am going to ask that you read Romans 5:18-7:6. I would copy and paste it, but it would take a lot of space, and I need to get these thoughts out before they run away tonight. If you don't have a Bible handy, I suggest using blueletterbible.com for an alternative. You can choose to your preferred version (I use the ESV, so all quoted texts will be from it).

In chapter 5, Paul writes to the Roman church that Christ is the New Man. He makes several parallels between Adam and Christ. Where Christ is so much more than Adam was. Look, for instance, in verse 15. "For if many died through one man's trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift, by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ, abounded for many." This is a good summation of what Paul is trying to say. Adam's singular sin brought sin into the world for all men. Christ's righteous life, death, and resurrection likewise brought life for all men. Even more, we deserve our fate because we sin as Adam sinned, but we can still receive the gift of grace though we never live a truly righteous life.

Paul concludes by saying wherever sin is, grace is even more abundant because grace covers sin. He then asks a question that sets off on of my favorite discussions in all of Scripture: "Shall we continue in sin so that grace may increase?"

In other words, should we keep on sinning so that we can receive even more grace than we had before? The answer is an emphatic no! As verses 2-11 of chapter 6 says, we died to sin because we are joined in Christ's death and life! Sin should have no reign in our lives because of this very fact. In 6:14 Paul makes one of the most beautiful statements in Scripture: "For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace."

This brings us to a second question: "Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace?" At first glance, this may seem like the same question, but it's totally different. With the first it was asking if we should sin so that we could receive more grace. This is asking if we should sin since there is nothing keeping us accountable any longer.

Again, the answer is an empatic no! Paul, then, begins to lay the groundwork for what is called slave theology. This says how we were once slaves to sin, owned by it and controlled by it. All we could do is sin's bidding (v. 20). However, through Christ, we are set free from sin because He paid the price. A companion verse to this is found in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20. In the 1st Cor passage, Paul is speaking about fleeing sexual immorality because our body houses the Holy Spirit. He goes on to say that "you are not your own, for you were bought with a price."

In other words, we are owned by Christ since He payed for us with His blood. In context with his question, though, Paul is saying that our new accountability no longer lies with the law, but with our new master, Jesus Christ. Paul has been careful to outline in Romans that none are righteous (3:10-16) and everyone has sinned (3:23). Therefore, he laid the foundation for the understanding that Christ is OUR righteousness. So, when he says that we have "been set free from sin, [and] have become slaves to righteousness," that is, Christ.

Some may have a problem with the imagery of slavery because all we Americans are conscious of is the slave trade from the 18th and 19th centuries. This is not the same as slavery during 1st century Rome. There is a story from the reign of Augustus Caesar. A rich man, Vedius Pollio, was a cruel slavemaster. He had a tank of flesh-eating fish and would routinely feed his slaves to them whenever he would get cross with one. The story says that one day, Pollio was entertaining Augustus and a slave accidently broke a crystal vase. Pollio became so enraged, he ordered the slave to be fed to the fish. Augustus, outraged by the treatment of this slave, ordered, instead, that all of Pollio's crystal be broken in front of him and thrown into the tank instead. This story shows how rare the mistreatment of slaves was in those times, and what was expected of slavemasters by Rome's emporer. Laws were even written to protect slaves from harsh and inhumane treatment.

The Roman church would know what slavery is like, so they would understand this comparison easily. Becuase, here is the reality: we have been freed from having to follow the letter of the law as perscribed in the books of the Law (Genesis through Deuteronomy), but we are now held to the standard of our Master, Jesus Christ. This doesn't give us allowance to do everything we want, but it does mean that if we mess up, we aren't fed to the flesh-eating fish. Peter emphasizes this point in 1 Peter 2:16: "Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as slaves of God."

Yes, we now live according to the spirit of the Law, which is the Spirit of God ("All Scripture is inspired by God..." 1 Timothy 3:16). This is the truth that we have to understand if we are to live for God. We are His slaves because He paid for us. We are no longer held accountable to the law, but, now, according to the righteousness that is Jesus Christ.

Plans - Pt 1 of ?

Plans. The thing that eats at everyone. That fear-inducing word that all high school graduates spend months or years pouring over and that all college graduates fear. "What are your plans after this?" Or, "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?" Ha. Five years. Seems like such a long time when you are graduating high school, now, as the 6th year past high school passes, it seems like a blur. Yes, plans.

One of the most quoted verses in all of Scripture is Jeremiah 29:11. "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord. Plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." Comforting, right? Well, it should be, but not for the reasons you may think. I want to start off this open-ended series talking about this verse because it is THAT important. So, let's dive in...

To correctly understand this verse, and the verses that promise prosperity that follow, we have to know what happened in chapter 28 or Jeremiah. This was after Israel had been defeated and was in exile in Babylon, yet Judah was not yet conquered. Even so, they were in desperate need for some good news. Hannaniah stepped up to the plate in order to give the news they wanted. Jeremiah writes "Hannaniah, the prophet from Gibeon, spoke to me in the house of the Lord, in the presence of the priests and all the people..." Here we see Hannaniah carefully constructing this. He seeks out Jeremiah at the temple in Jerusalem in front of the priests that were there. He was going to make sure as many respectable, honest, trustworthy people heard him as was possible. So, in this setting, Hannaniah speaks. "Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon." Hannaniah then begins to tell Jeremiah that God was going to overthrow Babylon within two years. WOOHOO! God is going to come through for His people again! Except...

Jeremiah does everything but laugh in Hannaniah's face (although, I personally would like to think he did). Jeremiah turns to Hannaniah and tells him, (paraphrase) "Hey, buddy, listen. All those prophets we've studied and all their prophecies have one thing in common. Calamity. Read them. There are wars, sicknesses, plagues, all sorts of things. Never a timetable for peace."

Too late, though. Hannaniah had it in his head that he was right, and because he was confident, the priests believed him. So, as good news usually does, word traveled fast. I'm sure a letter was on the next caravan to Babylon to tell all the Israelites what Hannaniah said. Well, God had other plans. He told Jeremiah to go to Hannaniah and tell him that God called him a false prophet, and because he lied, and used God's name in the lie, he would die within the year. And, yep. In the 7th month of the year, Hannaniah was dead. Way to go Hannaniah.

Now we get to chapter 29. God tells Jeremiah to write a letter to the Israelites in Babylon. Here's what most of it reads like:
"Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I (God) have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams they dream, for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the Lord. For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile."

I know that was a long section (shoot, I typed it), but did you catch what God told the exiles? Build a life in Babylon! Only the youngest might see Israel again, cuz it's going to be 70 of Babylon's years before I bring you back home (Babylon and Israel had different calendars). He tells them not to worry, though. He will bring them back because He knows the plans He has for them. Ah, finally. We have arrived at the key verse.

What are these plans? What prosperity is He promising? What fortunes does He promise in verse 14? Well, since we have the context of not just this book, but the entirety of Scripture, it is easy to see the plans He had for the Israelites was bringing Christ through the line of Judah and crucified in Jerusalem, which would have been impossible if they were still in exile in Babylon. Ok, easy, yes? So, what about this prosperity, hope, future, and fortune?

They are one in the same, honestly. Christ and the redemption He brought to earth. He promises prosperity in the security of His grace, hope in the security of His grace, etc. "I will restore your fortunes." Man used to walk with God in the garden. I believe this entire section of the letter is prophecy of the coming Christ!

So, what does that mean for us? Well, God still knows the plans He has for us. He still plans to give us hope and a future. He still plans to restore our fortunes. And the answer to all of that is still, and will always be, Christ. Christ is for our welfare, our benefit. The plans He has for us is seeded deep within the person of Christ. Am I saying God doesn't know what He wants us to do? Never! In fact, I'll back up the position that He knows exactly what He wants us to do in the next installment. What I am saying, however, is that when you read or hear this verse, remember who our hope is and where our future lies. That is key to understanding this verse.

So, plans. That fear-inducing word. It's lost some of its bite, no? God has given us hope in Christ. We have our welfare in Christ. We have our future in Christ. We have fortune in Christ. I hope to take a little more fear out of the word next time.

With the love and grace of Christ,

John

Memorial Day

As this Memorial Day draws to a close, thoughts of freedom rise to the front of my mind, along with rememberances of sacrifices, both recent and ancient. It was in this state of being Sunday that I was reminded of Romans 6 and 7, and various other passages throughout Scripture, and I thought I would share those with you.

First, however, I want to call attention to this Memorial Monday. It is a day that is meant to remember those who gave their lives for our freedom (many of you know where I am going to go with this). As we, the nation of the United States, have set aside this day for this specific purpose, it throws our lives into contrast with the rest of the year. What defines America to the rest of the world? We hope that it is freedom, but I fear what we show is hatred, loud talk, egocentrisim, and a state of comfortability that has turned to complacency. I hate to say that those are the qualities I see most from Americans.

Think about it, in this "land of freedom", people kill over stupid things. In this "land of freedom", people sit idly by and expect others to help them. In this "land of freedom", our primary focus is ourselves. As I watched the History Channel's Gettysburg tonight, I was struck once again with this thought. In 1776, we officially declared our nation free, and we eventually won our independence. In the years to follow, we fleshed out a working governmental system, that is still in place. But, please, think about what our founding fathers would have said about the state of the nation today. I think it would be something like this, "We didn't put our lives at risk, so that you could become complacent. We didn't sacrifice so that you could focus on yourself. We didn't give you freedom so you could kill your neighbor." (This thought was much more streamlined in my head.)

The same can be said about Christians. We hope that people see love and freedom, but I feel that they most likely see hatred, hypocrisy, egocentrism, and contented complacency. We have a couple days a year where we try real hard and remember Christ's sacrifice (Christmas and Easter, our Memorial Day and 4th of July), but what happens, instead, is that our lives are thrown into contrast by those days and we see who we really are.

We have freedom in Christ, but, for most Christians, this leads to a life of comfortability or contented complacency. We think, "Oh, I can do whatever I want, Jesus will forgive me." Even though he will, should we think that way? No!

Paul writes in Romans 6, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! We died to sin, how can we live in it any longer?" Paul is making it real clear, here. Christ died for our sins so we don't have to, and though his grace will cover our sins, we shouldn't live in sin and do whatever we want. Peter writes in 1 Peter 2, "Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as slaves of God."

It's plain and simple. In Christ, we have the freedom to do whatever we want, but here is the bottom line, that makes a mockery of Christ's sacrifice. When we live our lives focused solely on ourselves, that makes a mockery of His death.

I still cannot separate this truth from the current America. In America, we have the freedom to say what we feel, write what we want, or even carry a gun if we feel like it. When what we say, though, is hateful and sews discord, I think it makes a mockery of the sacrifices that hundreds of thousands of soldiers have made. And when people use that gun they carry to shoot another person, just because they don't agree, or because they live two streets in the wrong direction, or whatever, I know it makes a mockery of solders' deaths.

What does the way you live say about you? First of all, does your life make a mockery of Christ's death? Secondly, does it make a mockery of the reason why our soldiers' fight?

It's like taking a death sentence away from a murderer...

This started with my pastor using a couple of verses from chapter 5 of 2 Corinthians and grew into a thought-provoking study and examination of previously read words. As I look through my Bible, I find that I have spent much time in 2 Corinthians, yet I feel as though I don't know this book. I have underlined important verses, yet I don't remember why. I have studied Paul's reasonings for writing this letter, and, luckily, still remember that much. However, as I continued on in 2 Corinthians 5 during the sermon (sorry Pastor), I began to remember some of what I figured out the last time I read this letter.

For my reader's sakes, I will abridge the first four chapters (seeing as these are HIGHLY important to the context of chapter 5), and begin with quoting in chapter 4:16 after.

In this letter, Paul begins a defense of his and Timothy's ministry. The church at Corinth accuses them of stealing, lying, and being in it for themselves (among other things). They boast, in clean conscience, of living in God's grace alone despite the circumstances they faced during imprisonment. They defend and defend and defend. They begin to tell of how, through themselves, God is moving and how more and more people receive God's message of grace. And, so, because God's grace is being shown to more and more people, even through their suffering, they write:
"So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, out inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened - not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we makie it our aim to please Him. For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known to your conscience. We are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. Working together for Him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says, 'In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.' Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation." 2 Corinthians 4:16-6:2.

So, what does this say? I hope you are still with me, cuz this is excellent stuff. Let's start at the top.

Paul is saying that because God's grace is reaching more and more people, they don't lose heart when faced with trials or imprisonment. Instead, they understand that while they are alive, God's grace is preached, but when they die, they are home with Him. It is a struggle for Paul, as he mentions it many other times in his letters, but one that he is ok with having.

I absolutely love verse 13 of chapter 5 "For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you." What Paul says here is this: "When we appear crazy, we are crazy for God's glory, and when we appear sane, it is for you to know God." How incredible is that!? I just listened to an interview/discussion with Mark Driscoll, Francis Chan, and Joshua Harris. In it, Harris and Driscoll seemed dumbfounded at Francis' decision to leave Simi Valley and give away his money, spend time with the needy and homeless, and, possibly, move to a third world country. This idea seemed preposterous, especially to Driscoll judging from his questions. However, Francis always brought it back to Scripture and said, "This is what I understand is to be done from the New Testament." He is motivated by love for people and for God, as Paul and Timothy were, and wants to see God move.

Following that are the great words: "For the love of Christ controls us..." We are to be CONTROLLED by Christ's love. Not just His love for us, but His love for other people. Check it out. "We have concluded this: that one died for all, therefore, all have died." So, we can no longer sit on the sidelines and watch. We must be active. We must be living for Him because His love for us and for everyone else He died for controls us and compels to act. Paul then preaches the gospel in short form. He tells of the wonderous gift of grace and being regarded according to Christ and not the flesh (works). Oh, how beautiful! We are new, if we are in Christ. Christ is calling us back to Himself, and using those who have come back to Him to bring others back. That is what Paul means by "All this is from God, who through Christ...gave us the ministry of reconciliation."

The RA's verse is next. "Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ." We represent Him. We fly His flag, so to speak, just as our ambassador in another country flies the American flag. When people see Christians, they see Christ. That makes me scared of what people think of Christ when they see my life. This is a call to mission and holiness. Ambassadors are active, always working for the good of the country/person they represent. If they didn't, they wouldn't be a good ambassador.

Then, the most beautiful thing ever is said: "For our sake, He (God) made Him (Christ) to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him (Christ) we might be the righteousness of God." WOW! I know I've heard it before, but it never gets old to me. Christ became my sin so that I could have perfect standing in God's eyes. That is humbling! It's like saying that someone walks into the courtroom on the day of sentencing for the man who is given a death sentence and says, "I'll take on his punishment so that this man can go free." Yeah. That's true insanity. That's true love. Love is insane. Love makes no sense.

And God did this for us all. Please, listen to the words that Paul wrote in chapter 6: "we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain...Behold, now is the day of salvation."

I pray this opens your eyes to God's goodness and Christ's love. I pray that His love controls you. I pray that one person who needs to hear this, does so, and understands just exactly what Christ did for him/her.

The Perfect Relationship

Do you want to know when you have the "perfect" relationship? (I use "perfect" carefully, for, as fallen humans, we will not know perfection apart from the person of Christ until Heaven.) As I told a couple of my students tonight, our relationship with God is shown beautifully in a married couple who has Christ at the center of their relationship. They, in their dating relationship, asked me, "What do we do if we are fighting about who gives?" They sited their first dating (and other subsequent dates) where the conversation went something like:

Boy: "Where do you want to eat, tonight?"
Girl: "I don't care. Wherever you want to eat?"
Boy: "No, I'm taking you out, you choose."
Girl: "I don't care."
Boy: "What about Wings N More?"
Girl: "No...not there."
Boy: "What about Red Lobster."
Girl: "Wherever is fine with me."

That pattern proceeded for many more restaraunts, until he finally just went to Wings N More since she wouldn't decide. She told me it was because she wanted him to be able to get something he wanted, whereas he wanted to serve her. In essence, they were both trying to give, but neither was willing to take.

You have probably heard that a relationship is "give-and-take." Well, that's true, but I think it is better stated as a giving cycle. Part of giving in a relationship is taking. You must be humble enough to take at times.

Guys, treat your girlfriend/fiance/wife as a princess.

Girls, do not act like a princess.

Contradictory? Not at all. A man is to serve his wife (ergo girlfriend and fiance prior to marriage), but as a wife, a woman should not play the part of princess and ask him to do every little thing for her. What do I mean? Let's take the above mentioned high school couple for example again.

He said to me while talking about serving, "I serve her. I take her tray sometimes at lunch.
She counters, "But not when I ask you to take it."
He responds, "That's because you ask me in front of my friends, and they tell me I'm whipped."

Obviously, that isn't the only way he serves her, but it worked well for a teaching moment. I told him that she shouldn't have to ask, he should just do it out of love and service to her, but at the same time, she has to realize that it is out of love and service he takes her tray. It is not an opening for her to get him to do whatever she wants. I gave them an illustration, "If she called you at 3 in the morning and asked you to get her some Taco Bell or tylenol or something and you are asleep..."

He interrupted me and said, "I would get it for her."

I said, "I know, but she shouldn't ask you to if she is in her house, which has a medicine cabinent, and parents there also, at 3 in the morning. It's not a question of you serving or giving to her, its a question of her playing the part of a princess."

Hopefully, something clicked with you, as well as them. This leads to the giving cycle. It is out of love that he gives, so because he gives to her, she, in turn, gives back to him in some way out of love. That is what biblical submission looks like.

These are the first two aspects of the "perfect" relationship. Humility (the other person is first, but when they try to give to me, I have to take) and the giving cycle (out of love he gives. In turn, she gives back out of love).

The final aspect is intimacy. Intimacy is not a sexual term. It is a term that is grossly misrepresented. Initmacy is opening your life to someone else, showing that person all your faults and past failures and wanting to know everything, even the ugly, about that person, too.

This leads to a committed, settled, passionate relationship. Committed in that when you reach the point of marriage, you say "I am joining myself to this person, no matter what." Settled in that you say "I am making my home here, where I'm supposed to be with this person." This is completely different than settling, which is "I can't quite make to that point, so I'll just stop here and be ok." Passionate says "Here I am, all of me, to serve you. You are so much more important than I am."

If you are having questions about how this can be the perfect relationship, let's look at God's relationship with man. Humility? He came here, from His throne, as a man, to serve us and take all the sin and shame of forever past, present, and future upon Himself for us. Giving cycle? He gave Himself to us, not to mention life in general, just because He wanted us to have it. When we give back out of love, He gives even more! Intimacy? He has opened Himself up to us in His Word for us to get to know Him. He wants to know us, too. Completely. He already does, but He wants us to open up to Him in the same way He opened Himself up to us. He wants us to reveal EVERYTHING to Him.

That kind of love can only lead to a committed, settled, passionate relationship with Him, where we say, "God, here I am. All of me. I'm ready to serve you. I am making my home here, with you, no matter what happens."

See? It's the recipe for the perfect relationship. And no, it's not just for the husband-wife relationship. This recipe works for every friend you have. Obviously, I'm not saying marry everyone, but you can have a committed, settled, passionate relationship with anyone. You simply say, "I am your friend, no matter what. This is where I'm supposed to be, so here I am, ready to serve you."

That is love. Pure, simple, unconditional, agape love.

"All, Like sheep, have gone astray..."

How many times have you heard something similar to that? How many times have you been told something like, "Don't be a dumb sheep that follows every one else."?

I recently (as in 5 minutes ago) came across a blog that told us, as Christians, to avoid a sheep's mentality. My question is, how can we do that? How can we allow ourselves to devoid our lives of something that Christ said? Yes. Jesus Christ called us all sheep.

In John 10:10-16 Jesus says, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd."

I understand what the writer of that blog was trying to say. He wants us to use the wisdom of God to discern who we should listen to. However, we should not abandon the "sheep mentality." I'm not speaking of being unintelligent. I am simply re-stating what Christ says. Farther down in chapter 10, Jesus says "My sheep hear my voice and I know them, and they follow me."

Here is a little tidbit about sheep, THEY KNOW THEIR MASTER'S VOICE!!! If a sheep listens and hears the voice of his master, he will run to him, if it is not his master, he will run away. This attribute is ESSENTIAL to the Christian life! We listen for the Master's voice and when we hear it, we respond.

It is up to YOU to know the Master's voice. The only way to know it is by spending time in His Word and soaking Him up. If you do not do this, then you will be led astray by the wrong master until the voice of your true Master calls you clearly. So, by all means, keep your sheep-like mentality! It is essential in determing who is from the Master and who is not.

Another wonderful thing about sheep is their complete and total faith, dependence, and trust in their master. That is exactly what God desires of us. Read the above section of John 10 again and tell me that isn't what God desires. Remember Psalm 23? "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside still waters, he restores my soul." Life is good as a sheep when Christ is your Master!

Look at David. As a shepherd, he killed a lion and a bear to protect his flock! The very shepherd's hook is an example of Christ!! With it, the shepherd drives away the enemy that comes, he pulls the sheep up out of danger, and helps the sheep up a climb they cannot make alone. I could go on and on. No, friends, we cannot and must not lose our sheep like mentality. Some may calls us dumb or ignorant, but that isn't it at all. We are trusting in our Master to guide us correctly.

We also have under-shepherds. These are our pastors and church leaders. It is their job to lead us, physically, to the place where the Good Shepherd wants us. If the under-shepherd fails the flock, it is not on the flock. No, it is on the under-shepherd. It is our job to know the Master's voice and call. That is how we know who is from the Good Shepherd and who is from the Butcher.

Love or IN Love?

How many times have you been told to love God? My guess will is hundreds. How many times have you been told that you need to be IN love WITH God? My guess: no where near enough.

That doesn't make it any less true! Yes, the Father is our Abba (daddy). Yes, Jesus is our Savior. Yes, the Holy Spirit is our Comforter. But, Jesus is also our husband. Now, fellas, don't freak out here. We, the Church, are called the Bride of Christ, which indicates marriage. Therefore, Christ is our husband. This means we are to not only love Him, but we are to be IN love WITH Him!

Now, let me ask an even weirder question. Are you IN love WITH your parents? Have I taken it too far for you? Honestly, I hope so. What does it me to be in love with someone? It means, I think, to love them unconditionally, no matter what they do, just because of who they are. It is intimate and intense. Now, let me ask you again, are you IN love WITH your parents? Well, King David sure sounds like he was. Check this:

"O Lord, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me." --Psalm 131:1-2

Here, David equates himself to a weaned child with his mother, which shows God's motherly, nurturing characteristics. There are several things to glean from this. One, David does not think highly of himself. He has a heart of humility. Two, he understands that God is responsible for feeding him until he was weaned and could feed himself. And, three, he outlines a loving relationship with God.

We are to humble ourselves before God because HE is responsible for our initial feeding until we can feed ourselves. Afterward, we respond by quieting ourselves. Because of the mother's caring and love for her child, the child responds by loving her just for who she is. The child is IN love WITH her! That is our appropriate response to God!

We aren't to love out of some guilt trip or some over-bearing sense of obligation. We can never earn God's love, so why do we try? We can never prove our love to God, because if we base it upon us proving we love Him, the first time we choose something over Him, and not prove our love, then we fail. He loves us for who we are. No matter who the child is or what he/she has done, his/her parents still love him/her. (If that isn't true of your parents, first, ask them about it, and second, get a hold me somehow and I'll describe to you how God loves and His design for the parent-child relationship.)

Why do we base our response on anything other than how God loves? Is it because we KNOW we don't deserve love from the Creator? That should be even MORE reason to love God for who He is! It is all dependent upon who He is. I encourage you to fall IN love WITH God. Love Him for who He is and for no other reason! I promise, the rest of the Christian life will be easier, because the only thing that counts is "faith working through love" (Galatians 5:6).

The Unforseen Kiss

It was predictable. The situation, anyways. He was on one side of the room, and she was on the other. Five seconds after walking through the door, she met his eyes and smiled. This told him everything he needed to know. She came because of him. Arrogance did not tell him this. Nor did conceit. He did not think that he was something special, he just knew that she came for him. She had purposefully sought out his face, and, when she found it, smiled with recognition. It was time.
____________________________________________________________________________________

She found his face and smiled. It wasn't a shy, "wow, he is staring at me" smile. No, this was a smile of recognition. A smile of love. A smile of longing.

She had waited so long for him to come back. For just a trickling of his name to be uttered. For microsecond look at a non-picture. And now, here she was, 50 feet away from the person she longed for. He smiled back as he rose from the table and made his way towards her. They met halfway. She smiled, coyly this time, and said, "Hello." She didn't know what was going to happen next, but she never imagined what did happen. Instead of replying, he bent his head down too quickly for her to recognize what was happening, and kissed her lips. Shock froze her lips, but soon the shock gave way to the longing and the kiss erupted passionately.

Throughout the kiss, and for a long, speechless moment afterwards, she couldn't control her heart. It was as though it were doing backflips through her, pounding, waiting to burst free. She came her for him, but he came back for her. Everything was as it should be.
_____________________________________________________________________________________

"Heaven meets earth like an unforseen kiss, and my heart turns violently inside of my chest. I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way He loves."

The above is a true story. It has been adapted for ease of understanding and romanticized a bit. However, Christ did sit and wait for the time to come. He was sitting in the "room" waiting for "her" to come in. When she came in, the time was right. That's when heaven met earth. When Christ became man. It was so unexpected, so deliberate, and so shocking, that it took a while for the shock to wear off, but, when it did, the result was a passion that cannot be equaled by man.

This passion is the passion to live for Christ. The desire, the longing, they are there before hand, hidden deep within you. When you see Christ, clearly, for the first time, they spring forward uncontrolled. Then, it is like this "kiss" happens all over again. It's so unexpected, but so complete, that you have no choice but to kiss back.

And that's the way he loves us. Without care or thought about our past, he says "I want you." He's already shown it by dying on the cross, whereby making this relationship possible, and taking away the punishment of our sins, if only we would kiss back. And that is your decision entirely.

The Amnesiac

Debbie met Carl in late Autumn of 1998. They quickly took to one another, and spent most of their time together. It seemed that the world melted into an unintelligible blur when they were together, and the moments were glacial while apart. It truly was love, and a strong love at that. In late January of 1999, Carl proposed. Debbie, all red from excitement and astonishment, said yes, and the two were wed that July. Time went by, and the two couldn't have been more happy. Two years passed in blissful happiness, but, August of 2001 nearly wrecked their marriage...

One morning, Debbie woke up, alone in bed. Debbie busied herself by getting ready for the day. She showered, brushed her hair, and dressed. At 7:30, Debbie left for work. She pulled out of the garage and closed the door. She went about her daily routine. After work was over, she headed home. When she arrived, a car was in her drive-way. It surprised her to see a car there. She cautiously pulled into the garage and entered the house. A man was at her stove cooking dinner. She took in the man's frame and sandy hair. "Carl," she asked timidly. "What are you doing here?" Carl turned around and looked at Debbie, obviously confused.

"What are you talking about, Debbie? I live here." Debbie was taken aback. She didn't remember Carl moving into her house, and he wasn't here this morning when she woke. Debbie just stared at Carl, she didn't know what to say. "Quit kidding around, Deb, and help me make supper." Debbie slowly set out two settings on the table and chopped random vegetables without really knowing what they were. Her mind was too busy running through her memories trying to remember Carl moving in. All she knew, though, was that they had only met a handful of times. It was absurd to think that Carl actually lived here. She barely knew the man!

Dinner was finally ready, and they sat down to eat. "I'm sorry, Carl," Debbie began, "but I don't remember you moving in. All I know is that we have met maybe four times. Why do you say you live here?" Carl busted out laughing at her words, which caught Debbie off guard. "I'm being serious, Carl! This is really weird. Why do you say you live here, too?" Carl's laugh caught up short in his throat. He cleared it out, and stared at Debbie, too stunned to speak for a second. "Really, Debbie? You don't remember us getting married two years ago?"

"Two years ago! I only met you for the first time, last week! What are you talking about?" Debbie was on the verge of tears. Two years, she thought. How could we have been married for two years? And why would he even say that? Debbie was looking at her plate while she thought. She heard Carl's fork hit the plate, and the noise snapped her out of her reverie. She found Carl's face and saw the tears streaking down. She had hurt him, and hurt him deeply. Was it possible that they were married? No, it couldn't be! She met him last week. Carl scooted his chair back and stood. "Come with me," he softly commanded. Debbie rose from the chair and followed Carl into the sitting room.

Carl reached under the coffee table and pulled out a large photo album. For several hours, Carl patiently went page by page, picture by picture, describing the day and what happened and what was going on in each picture. Finally, he reached the pictures from their wedding. Carl tried to describe the day, but his emotions choked his words. He handed Debbie the album and got up from the couch and headed to the bedroom. Debbie just stared at the pictures from the wedding, confused. There was so much evidence pointing to her and Carl being married, but she couldn't remember even dating the man! How could the last three years just be erased from her memory?! She reached the last page of the pictures and a piece of paper fell out. Debbie reached down and picked it up. She unfolded it and read the words written on the page:
"Through life and death, sickness and health, riches and the lack of them, I will love you. If you should happen to wake one day and not know me, I will love you. If came between a choice of your life or mine, I will gladly give mine to show you my love. There is nothing I will not do for you, my love, my desire, my sweet Deborah."

The date on the paper was July 15, 1999, the date that her wedding was supposedly on. Tears flooded Debbie's eyes when she began to realize what was going on. She had somehow forgotten her first love. Her true love, but he didn't forget her. He even did everything in his power to show her his love once again. Debbie sat there for another hour, constantly reading and re-reading the words of Carl's vows to her.

Carl came back out and found her sitting on the couch holding the paper. He had found her engagement and wedding rings lying on the dresser, she hadn't put them on this morning. "I believe these are yours, love," Carl said, the tears thickening his voice. Debbie turned to see him, the tears flowing freely from her own eyes. "I'm so sorry, Carl," Debbie said as she took the rings from his hand. "I don't know how I could have forgotten this...forgotten you." Carl placed a finger on her lips and pulled her close to his chest. "It doesn't matter, love. What matters is that you know how much I love you. You can re-discover your love for me, because I won't ever forget you." Carl kissed his wife's lips and they sat up the rest of the night talking, and Debbie re-discovered her love for Carl.
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"There is an epidemic of spiritual amnesia going around, and none of us is immune. No matter how many fascinating details we learn about God's creation, no matter how many pictures we see of His galaxies, and no matter how many sunsets we watch, we still forget." --Francis Chan, Crazy Love

Despite the fact that Debbie forget she was married to Carl, she was still married and Carl still loved her. It is the same with the Church, Christ's Bride. Even if we forget that we are Christ's Bride, Christ still loves us and we are still His.

Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow...

"Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him all creatures, here below. Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen."

These are the words to one of the greatest hymns ever written. Yes, it's that short, but how powerful are those words?! Quite recently, as in the last 40 hours or so, I was given one of the greatest things to rejoice over: one of my great friends received his long-overdue lung transplant! It is simply too overwhelming to write down. I am oozing with a joy that was placed in my heart by the Holy Spirit and a love that reciprocates that of my Father. This great, spectacular, monumental occasion is, without a doubt the best news I have heard, or will hear, all year.

However, I find it oddly discouraging that it takes this to bring such a swell of joy and love out of me. Don't get me wrong, this is exactly that kind of miracle. God, once again, proved His faithfulness to His children. We are told, however, in Philippians "Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say; Rejoice" (Phil 4:4). That isn't a suggestion. Paul isn't saying, "Oh, it would cool if you did this." No, this is a command! Rejoice! Praise God all the time!

Again, Paul addresses this idea in Romans 5, "We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope" (verses 3-4). James, likewise, tells us to "count it all joy, my brothers, when you face trials of various kinds" (James 1:2). What are they saying, then?

They are saying that it is easy to praise God when the good things happen in life, i.e. a much needed lung transplant, but what about when something stressful happens in your life? Do you "count it all joy"? Do you say, "Thank you God for this time of testing"? Do you even look on that situation as a time of testing? I know I don't every time. Yet, that is our command and encouragement. That is the attitude that allowed Paul to share Christ with the "whole Praetorian guard," as he writes in Philippians (Phil 1:13). Paul shared Christ with the very guards who held him captive. That is what true rejoicing looks like. True rejoicing and praise comes when we know that it is only by God's power and will that a situation is good. Paul knew that it was only by God's power that he would be able to share Christ with the guard, and he knew that it was God's will that he be in chains so that could happen!

So, as I sit here and think through this amazing time of God's faithfulness and blessing, I am fully aware that it is God's will that Ryan receive this transplant now, and I am fully aware that it is by God's power that Ryan will recover, and I know that it is also God's will that Ryan not keep God's power quiet, but that he share it with the world.

So, the next time you are faced with a difficult test, remember to thank God and praise His name that you have been given the opportunity to grow and show God's glory.

"Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him all creatures, here below. Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen."

Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus, Ye Soldiers of the Cross.

"Share in suffering as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him." 2 Timothy 2:3-4

This is from Paul's last letter. He is concluding his earthly affairs and attempting to pass on just a few more pages of wisdom to his "son in the faith", Timothy. Timmy boy is now a pastor at a church he and Paul started while on their missionary journeys, and, though he is still young, Paul clearly thinks he is qualified to handle the tough stuff. The verses listed above follow Paul's heart-cry to Timothy: "What you have heard from me in the presence of many witness entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also" (2 Timothy 2:2).

Paul's desire is that this fire that he started for the cause of Jesus Christ, not be snuffed out. He over and over commands Timothy to teach and instruct and to carry out his instructions. Why does he do this? Why does he so forcefully and fervently want Timothy to do this? Because Paul understands that it is only through the teaching of the Word, that man can hear who God really is. So Paul encourages and commands Timothy to pass on what was passed on to him.

Let's look back to the original passage now. Why are we called to share in the suffering of Christ? Why must we do this? Well, to be honest, you don't have to if you don't want to. You don't have to follow Christ. You don't have to love Christ, but why wouldn't you want to? Over the last couple days I've been reading through Francis Chan's book Crazy Love, and it is extraordinary! It challenges everything I know about myself and my walk with God. It makes me ask, do I really love God the way I'm supposed to love Him? And that isn't a bad thing at all. Do you readily agree to face the discrimination you will undoubtedly face for being a soldier of Jesus? Are you willing to be cast aside and looked down upon because of your stance? I know I wasn't, probably still not when the fire is the hottest, but I pray that God will change that about me.

Have you ever tried to swim across a river with a strong current? I have. It's tiring work. You have to pick a spot you want to go for, then aim about 30 yards or so up river, and swim to that spot, just so you come out at your intended destination. Now, say that river is this life you are in. The "current" is your culture, friends, family, and anything else you hold in priority. In this situation, you are trying to swim away from a waterfall behind you to a safe spot upstream. What will happen if you pause, even for just one second? Everything will be lost! You will be swept downstream, away from your prize, which is Jesus Christ. It's impossible to do on your own! Which is why Paul continues on into verse 4.

"No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits..." What does that mean? For those of you who are from a military background, you might understand this better. Paul is saying (and this was far truer in his time than in ours) that a soldier only does what he is commanded. He doesn't worry about "buying, trading, and negotiating," as the great evangelist Junior Hill once said. Instead, a soldier "aim[s] to please the one who enlisted him." A Marine must obey his superior. This happens at every rank. If it doesn't, then the entire Marine Corp suffers.

So, for us non-military folk, that means that Jesus called us and we answered His call and were enlisted in His army. We serve Him, and our aim is to please Him. So, we are no longer in charge of ourselves, but He is in control of us. Therefore, live your life accordingly. For, which man in military history has served a commander who has died for him and won the war before he enlisted? The answer is none. Which commander has died to save his soldier's lives out love, not duty, and bought them their freedom, and provided them with everything they have ever and will ever need? The answer is one: Jesus Christ.

So, knowing that, how can we not respond with love? How can we continue to "get entangled in civilian pursuits"? How can we continue to think that just appearing at church one or two days a week be love?

God, save me from my own stupidity. Save me from my own disloyalty. God, forgive me for my lack of love and create in me a new heart full of love for You and Your creation. Help me start anew in my ruthless pursuit of You.

On the Side of the Road...

Recently, I've gotten heavy into The Classic Crime, and I am currently stuck on one song: "Salt in the Snow." It is a cry of desperation for help from God, but in it, the writer makes a great observation. He says, "Give me wings, give me peace, these are the things that I need. I'm tormented, broken and chained...and give me shelter from the storm. I know it's a lot to ask for, considering how recent I've piled the dirt on your name."

How often do we do that? How often do we do whatever we please, and then turn around and ask God to help us out when the consequences come our way? We can't have our cake and eat it too. We either live our lives the way we want and expect nothing of God, or we live for God. I know, I know...it's not that black and white. But why isn't it black and white?

Paul says in Romans 6: "Shall we continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! We died to sin! How can we who died to sin, live in it any longer?" Paul's thought is simple. Christ freed us from sin, why do we continue to subject ourselves to living in its grasp day-in and day-out?

No, I haven't forgotten what Paul says in Romans 7 about "I have this to be a law within me, when I want to good, evil lies close at hand." Paul says there, "I do not do the good things my mind tells me I should do, instead I do the evil things I know I shouldn't." How are these reconcilable? On the surface, they aren't. However, Paul isn't very "surface-friendly."

Paul says in Romans 6 that we are free from sin and its hold over our lives, so we should no longer live in the sins that control us. In chapter 7, though, he says that he has a battle going on that tests him every day. With his mind and soul, he desires to please God, but his physical body still wants things for itself. It's a thin line to walk.

Please don't take this to mean that I think I'm perfect or that we can be. That's an absolute lie. I do sin, and, unfortunately, that sin sometimes runs rampant in my life. It's at those times I need to check up and go before God and ask Him to cleanse me. It's at that time I need to cut things out of my life that aren't good for me. My goal and desire is to live my life to glorify God, which means that I cannot have anything other than Him controlling my life.

This last Wednesday night, I talked a bit about consequences. Every action has a consequence, whether good or bad. Unfortunately, the act that we perform, whatever that may be, is not a stand alone event. There are things I've done in my past that will affect me for the rest of my life, and I have to accept that. I can't go to God and say, "Hey, I didn't really know what I was doing when I did that, so, can you, maybe, stop the effects of it?" God doesn't work that way.

Instead, allows us to learn. That's part of this ability to choose what we do. We have to take the good with the bad. Take heart, though! Paul does give us a promise of God we can cling to: "We, who love God and are called by Him, know that everything that happens will work out for something positive later in our lives." Usually, that turns out to be a teaching experience, where we can pass on wisdom.

So, what does this mean? It means that we should accept the consequences of our actions and know that God loves us. He has given us a way to defeat sin in our lives.

This song, combined with a great blog on Transparency, have greatly shaped this post. So I'll leave you with a final thought:
"Is this where I am for Your sake, stuck between sleep and awake? My mind is dreaming of things. Are you listening? I took You for granted again and threw you aside and pretended for one minute that I had control of my life and the direction it seemed to be in. I was wrong again. I've heard that winter's cold will give way to summer's warmth. Oh no! Like salt in the snow, I'm melted and left all alone on the side of the road."

Be like salt in the snow. Melt yourself away and leave it alone and live for God's glory.

(All Scripture in this post were from my own paraphrase.)

Single Minded Obedience

Man, I've been missing out. I read an excerpt from Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Cost of Discipleship and was blown away by it! Have you ever considered the concept of "costly grace" versus "cheap grace"? It won't leave my head alone!!

Here is the concept, in case you aren't familiar with it: Cheap grace says that I don't have to do anything for God. God saved me and gave me His grace, and that is all I need. Costly grace, however, says that I am called to serve and give of myself because Christ gave himself up for me. This is evidenced by what Bonhoeffer calls "Single Minded Obedience". This is when we obey completely and not look for loopholes in God's call.

For his example, which I will borrow, Bonhoeffer used the Rich Young Ruler from Scripture. This man asked what he had to do in order to inherit eternal life, and Jesus replied that he must adhere to and keep the commandments, which the man had done. Jesus also adds that he must sell all that he has and give the money to the poor. At this command, the young man turns away from Jesus and goes away in sorrow because he was attached to what he had and couldn't get rid of it.

Bonhoeffer argued that, today, most of us would look for a way to hang on to our stuff and still "obey". He said that we would try to detach ourselves from our possessions, and believe that was all God was commanding. We are, however, called to a strict obedience. We cannot half-heartedly obey. What was Christ actually commanding this young man to do? He asked this man to leave all his comforts and get rid of anything that might keep him from following Christ whole-heartedly. Christ gave the man the opportunity to believe, and obey, but the young man couldn't do so.

If you remember, this was the same command he gave to Peter and Levi when he called them. Peter, a fisherman, was called to leave his nets and boats (in actuality, his entire livelihood) and follow Christ, knowing not where he would sleep each night or if he would even eat every day. Levi, a tax collector, was, likewise, called to leave his table and follow Christ. These men, though probably not rich, still left everything they had and didn't return to their former lives. They were given the opportunity to trust in Jesus, and though they only knew Him by what they saw (possibly rabbi's robes), they followed without delay.

That is the kind of obedience God desires from us. Obedience without delay and without compromise. Peter and Levi definitely didn't starve, and God provided for them. If God calls us to do something, He will provide. I've seen it happen, and still I'm hesitant. Why do we find it so hard to obey so completely? Why does it stretch our faith so much to trust God? He hasn't failed anyone, anywhere...ever. Why would we be any different?

Lover (Part 3 of 3)

"Why, Dad? Why did he choose Her?! I chose Her first! She's mine!" The Son could hardly stand still. His eyes were wet with tears. He finally was able to talk to Her, but all She said was, "That isn't my name. My name is Harlot," every time He addressed Her. She wouldn't let Him speak. She wouldn't let Him explain. She was only caught up in the foul, loathsome thief. She called to him like he was Her lover. How could she not remember the love He had given Her first?

"Patience, My Son," His Father said calmly. "She will see your love for Her. She will know how much you care." The Son nodded at His Father and sighed deeply. He, then, walked away to try and find Her again. "Be careful, My Son. That beast is looking for a way to make you fall."

The Son knew this. In fact, the loathsome creature had already tried. The Son neared the water's edge and looked up, as He had every day before. He searched far and wide for Her, and, at last, He spotted Her. She sat near the water, only 100 yards away, and the foul beast was no where to be seen. The Son walked over to Her in order to talk, but as He neared, the beautiful Woman looked up with tears in Her eyes. "Go away!" She screamed at Him. "Look what talking to you gets Me!" She showed Him Her arms and legs. He saw bruises spotted over them, and, He too, began to cry. "Why are you crying?" She asked harshly. "These are not your burdens, nor are they from your hand. I disobeyed my lover, my Cad. This is my just reward!"

The Son listened in horror at Her warped and twisted words. "No. It isn't your just reward," He said quietly. "You deserve more, my--"

"DO NOT SAY THAT NAME!" She was yelling again. "My name is Harlot! I am not that foul name you say!" She stood up quickly, then, and ran off into the wood. Her sobs and cries of anguish came loud through the trees.
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"It is time, Father! He is hurting Her. That foul beast is beating Her! I cannot stand it! Let me go and claim My Bride!" The events of that afternoon hurt the Son deep in His chest. It brought out feelings of pain and anger so deep, that He wasn't sure that they were His feelings.

"Yes, Son. It is time. You are ready, but remember this: You cannot touch him. You may only touch the Woman. Go, now, and be strong, My Son. She will love you."

The Son, determined now, ran back out towards the water. His anger and desire and jealousy pushed Him to the breaking point, but He ran faster still. He was weakened when He found Her, yet, He knew He could do this. For Her. For His Father.

"Why have you come back?" The tears still had not stopped flowing down Her cheeks, and now, there was blood on cheek as well. "He will only beat Me again! Do you delight in my pain?"

The question startled the Son. "No! Far from it!" It was time to tell Her. "I hate Your pain, more than My own. I despise Your tears of sorrow. As to why I am back, I have come back for You." He let that statement sink in for Her. "I have come to take You home, away from the beast you call Cad. He does not love or deserve you, but I do. I love You more than My life. Your redemption has always been My purpose." A smile came across His face as He said those last words, for He had an idea. A pleasant idea, but it had to be done quickly. "You, Beloved, are My Prize! You are what I will gladly die for." The Woman said nothing. She stared at the Son in shock at His bold words. At that moment, He matched His bold words with a bold, unexpected action. He took Her in His arms and kissed Her lips. All the passion He had saved up came through in this moment.
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Harlot couldn't believe her ears. He loved her? What she had always desired was true? She was in shock. She couldn't believe it. Was that how He truly saw her? As His Beloved? He couldn't, though! She was dirty. Unclean. A harlot. How could He love her? She looked into His deep eyes and found herself drowning in them. The desire was there. The fervor for her she could clearly see. He really would forgive anything and do anything for her. She knew she didn't deserve Him, but she wanted Him. The next thing she knew, He had her wrapped in His arms and His lips were pressed tightly against hers. The joy of that moment surpassed all of the pain she had ever felt. She felt at home in His arms.

The kiss was cut off too quickly. He smiled wildly at her. She smiled back at Him. She knew, now, her Lover. As soon as she thought the word concerning Him, her mind filled with images that she did not recognize. The one that lingered the longest was one of her in His arms again, but she was without clothes as when she first awoke. His smooth voice said quietly to her, "Wait for me, here. I will return for you." Realization hit her between her eyes. He was calling for her when she first awoke! He had always loved her and had searched and fought for her the whole time! Her mouth dropped open in surprise and understanding, but He just smiled wider.

A rough voice cut through the quiet. "What are you doing with HIM?!" She turned to see Cad walking towards them, visibly furious. "Leave Her alone, beast," the velvet voice said. "She is mine and She always has been." The color of Cad's face turned a deeper red to an almost black. A snarl ripped from Cad's chest and his eyes turned black. He pulled a knife out from behind his back at leapt at her. The knife was aiming right for her, but she soon only felt the grass on her back. She looked back to where she was standing to see Him, her Lover with the knife sticking out of His chest. Blood poured from His wound and covered the ground below Him. He looked at her and smiled. "I told you I would die for you. Wait for me, Beloved." Then He fell to the ground, dead.

A scream of pure agony ripped from her chest, but it was coupled by a scream much rougher and another so loud and painful that it shook the Earth. It was as though the earth was crying for justice. After her scream broke off, she looked and saw Cad as he truly is. Dead black skin with dead red eyes. All his beauty was stripped away leaving him exposed. She stared in horror at him and saw the pain in his dead eyes. He turned and ran away. He seemed afraid to be in this place any longer. After he entered the cover of the trees, she turned her eyes and attention back to her Lover. Tears, once more, fell from her eyes. Sobs broke loose from her chest. A calm, soothing voice reached her, "Do not weep, Daughter. For He will return for you. He died to free you so that you could live to love Him."

After these words were spoken, the wind blew and her pain eased. She raised her face into the breeze and welcomed it on her cheeks. After the breeze died away, she looked back down to her Lover's body, but it was not there. The pool of blood stayed and the knife had been removed, but the body was gone. Panic gripped her and she began to cry once more. She had only just remembered her Lover, but now, He was dead and she couldn't even bury the body.

"Don't cry," a softer, gentler voice said. "Everything is right, now." She turned to look at the voice. She felt her whole body lift off the ground. He was there! Her Lover HAD come back. "How," she asked suddenly. "You were dead! How are you here now?"

"I had to die. If I didn't, you would still not be free. My Father looked upon My sacrifice with favor. I did it correctly. I did it for My Beloved." He bent down and kissed her again softly. "Now, and I know this will seem cruel, but I must go. I must see to Our house. I want it to be perfect for you, My Beloved. My Bride. Wait for Me, here. Do not forget Me!" Then, He disappeared.

She didn't have time to agree or to protest, but she knew she would remember Him. How could she not? So, she waited, not always patiently, but she waited. Men came by, but she did not notice them. Her eyes were fixed on where her Lover said to wait. Time passed, but she hardly noticed. She was fixated upon her Lover. One morning, she awoke as the sun came rose across the water. She stretched her arms and stood to stretch her legs. Then, the voice she had waited for spoke, "Hello, My Beloved. It is time. Come, My Wife, let Us go home." She grabbed His outstretched hand, pulled Him close, kissed His lips, and said, "Yes, My Lover, My Husband. I am ready to go home."

They turned and walked towards the sun, across the water, and went home.

"Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the Church and gave Himself up for Her."
- Ephesians 5:25. Bottom line: The Church is the Bride of Christ and He died to set us free so that we could live to love Him.