It’s All About Jesus

It was mentioned Sunday that in Christ all things hold together; life without Him is chaos. In other words:

In my beginning, Jesus created me (Col. 1:16). Because of sin, my heart was formless and empty, full of chaos, and wrapped in darkness. But the Spirit of Christ hovered over my heart.

Then Jesus said, “Let there be Light,” and understanding began to dawn in my mind. And Jesus called the Light “Truth” and the darkness “Lies.” He invited me into the Day, and when I stepped into the Light, the darkness fled away. And my Lord said, “Let there be space between the earth and heaven,” and separated for me the temporary from the eternal, so I could see what really matters.

Then He said, “Let there be dry ground in My child’s life, terra firma, a solid Rock beneath him.” And Jesus became the firm foundation on which I trusted. He continued, “Let him become fruitful right where I have put him,” and I began to discover what Christ had made me to do and become, and to use the gifts and resources He'd given me to make much of Him.

Then Jesus put smaller lights in my life, imitations of Him, persons to mentor me and teach me to walk in the way that pleases Him. And He went on to say, “Let My child’s life be filled with blessings. May his days swarm with gifts from My hand - blessings in his home, blessings in his work, even blessings in his trials. And let these blessings multiply and spill over onto those around him, and fill his world with joy and praise to Me.”

Furthermore, Jesus said, “Let him reproduce more followers for me, who will go out and reproduce yet more, until My glory fills the whole earth, and men and women from every nation bow and proclaim that I am Lord to the glory of God the Father.”

Jesus Christ is not done speaking in my life – or yours. One day, He will say, “Let this one be fully remade in My image. Give him a new body, immortal as Mine. Give him a sinless heart and a holy mind, untainted by guilt or blemish. And bring him home to live with Me forever.” And on that endless Day, our Lord will say, “It is very good.”

Our lives do all hold together in Christ., and fall apart outside of Him. Life is all about Him. That concept isn’t just Alliance doctrine or congregational creed; it’s truth for our individual lives and pursuits. So a simple yet powerful question provides a tool for evaluating my life and work: Am I all about Christ?

He was all about me.

It’s How You Say It

I remember as a teenager being strictly admonished by my father for something I had done. It was not to be repeated. “Do you understand?” he finished. I affirmed that I understood.

That’s when the trouble escalated. I think it was not my agreement with him that got me into hotter water… it must have been that flippant tone in my voice and the dismissive shrug of my shoulders. My father had not been merely listening to my reply; he was watching for my attitude. And it was in for a change.

My parents were in cahoots about this sort of thing. I can still hear mom insisting: “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.” Attitude.

I think of that in relation to persecution. Yes, it’s to be expected in some form, though for most of us (but not all) it’s quite diluted. As Keith pointed out Sunday, we should never invite persecution, just to feed our martyr’s complex. But when it does come…with what attitude do we greet it? That’s what our Father is watching for. And that’s what makes all the difference in the world.

I think it gets a little complicated sometimes, hard to know just what attitude we should take. For instance, there exists in America an element of general persecution against the unborn, against conservative Christianity, against traditional values, etc., etc. This is displayed in areas of the entertainment industry, the business world, and the government… and comes home to lodge sometimes in the places we work and the movies we watch and even the attitudes of loved ones who oppose our views and values.

How do we respond to hostility and opposition at each of these levels? How do we answer our relative, or the public figure that seeks to destroy our freedoms? What is our attitude? Is it militant and abrasive? Do we turn their tactics on them, give them a taste of their own medicine? Focus on their demise? Be slanderous, ruthless, merciless?

How then will we win these who are against our Lord and His followers? Or are we saying that they’re not “winnable,” that they’re hopeless and we only need to be Christlike to those who seem open to our message?

The apostle Paul left us a prime example of how to treat persecution at any level. It doesn’t matter if we are crusading against abortion or living with an unbelieving, antagonistic spouse:

Live wisely among those who are not Christians, and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and effective so that you will have the right answer for everyone – Col. 4:5-6 NLT

I say it’s complicated, because there surely is a time for exposing evil and confronting the work of Satan in this world. There’s a need for crusaders of righteousness. But there’s no need for mean-spiritedness and ridicule. An ambush by the low road may win the battle, but lose the war. We may regain personal rights but alienate eternal souls. May beat back the opposition, but give it reason to turn its face from God forever.

So I think my parents had it right. It’s not just what we say, it’s the attitude with which we say it. It’s not what we do, but the motive and spirit with which we do it. We needn’t be doormats; we are called to take a stand. But we’d better be careful. Our attitude is on display, and we don’t want to get into hot water with Father.

Fine Dining

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness”…

How long has it been since you’ve been really hungry to be holy? Thirsty for more of God?

My guess is that many of us don’t remember when we last were truly famished for God and His Kingdom and His righteousness. I think it has something to do with fast food vs. fine dining.

Fast food is available… well, fast. You hardly have time to work up a good appetite, just barely get the smell of burger and fries in your nostrils, when – poof! – there it is, all bagged and ready for your wolfing pleasure. Fine dining, in contrast, can be a little aggravating as the wait stretches out, but isn’t it worth it? When you finish that seven-course meal, you haven’t just stuffed an empty stomach, you have had an experience! You have tasted something new and intriguing and (hopefully) pleasing to the palate; you have been refreshed and relaxed by a lovely atmosphere. You haven’t just mumbled around a half-chewed hamburger bun; you have connected with your dining companions, have talked about things that matter, have shared your true feelings, and have listened, really listened, to those around you.

Why doesn’t that happen more often in the spiritual realm? Why do we so often feel like we’re hopping from one fast food chain to another, keeping body and soul together but never really experiencing this abundant feast God is supposed to offer?

Perhaps it’s because, as Pastor Ben said, as soon as we feel a slight pang of desire to experience God’s pleasure, to be like Him, to show our colors for the Kingdom, we do something. Something to make Him happy with us, to let Him know we’re about our Father’s business. In doing so, we choose doing over being. Fast food over fine dining. And we miss the smile that says, “You don’t have to prove anything. You bring Me pleasure just by loving Me and sharing your heart with Me.”

It’s not that doing isn’t important. It’s that the good feeling of having done something for God can take away the hunger pangs to be more like Him, get closer to Him, become holy and righteous and blameless and pure.

Maybe it would be helpful to set aside a day to just “be.” To intentionally not do anything for God or ask anything from Him; instead, to just spend time with Him, focus on Him, sit at His feet and, as we move through the duties of the day, listen to His heart. Maybe in that day we would grow hungry for a finer dining experience than we’ve been giving ourselves lately. And maybe we would again hear our Lord say,

“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat!... Listen, listen to me and eat what is good, and your soul will delight itself in the richest of fare” (Is. 55:1-2 NIV). “I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it… You would be fed with the finest of wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy you” (Ps. 81:10,16).

Maybe in that day, we would make reservations to come to those waters more often, just to share His pleasure in our company and dine on His finest.

Blessed are the Meek

John Stumbo is an Alliance pastor from Salem, Oregon who became deathly ill nearly two years ago. Partially recovered, he maintains a blog for the many who have closely followed his progress, sharing his physical, emotional and spiritual struggles and victories along the way. Recently he posted this excellent story, which I think fits well with our current beatitude, “Blessed are the meek.”

Pastor Stumbo wrote, “Today I'm going to follow-up with a story I heard years ago from professor, author and theologian, R. C. Sproul:

Dr. Sproul was assigned an Old Testament class of 250 freshmen. In his syllabus he clearly set forth the course requirements. There would be three small papers due by noon on September 30, October 30 and November 30. They were to be finished and on his desk by noon unless the student was physically confined to the hospital or a there was a death in the family. If they didn't submit it in time, they would receive a failing grade.

When September 30th rolled around and the first paper was due 225 students turned their papers in on time and 25 were late. These 25 were scared to death and with abject humility appealed to Professor Sproul, “Please don’t give us an 'F!'" They begged for mercy, wanting an extension.

“OK," the professor relented, "I'll let it go this time. But remember, on October 30 the next paper is due. Don't be late."

"We won't, Professor. Promise!"

October 30th arrived and only 200 papers were turned in on time. Fifty students came to class in terror. They pled with him with abundant excuses about it being midterm and homecoming. “Give us one more chance," they begged.

"OK. Just one more chance."

The class broke out into song, “We love you, Prof. Sproul, O yes we do.” Dr. Sproul claims that for the next thirty days he was the most popular professor on campus. But then November 30th came. This time only about 150 papers were turned in on time and a hundred students came into class as casual as could be. They weren't worried in the least.

“Where are your papers?” Dr. Sproul demanded.

“Hey, Prof, don’t worry about it. We’ll get them done in a couple of days," came the relaxed response.

“The professor took out the grading book, “Johnson, where's your paper."

"I don't have it, sir."

"F.”

“Greenwood—I don't have yours either. F.”

Professor Sproul describes the response as "unmitigated fury."

“That’s not fair!” Greenwood claimed.

"I don’t ever want to be thought of as unfair or unjust. You want justice?”

“Yes!”

"You were late last time, too. ‘F’ for that one. Anyone else want justice?”

“No!”

I don't know how Dr. Sproul finally resolved the grade issue, but he finished telling his story with a powerful statement, "By the third time, they not only assumed mercy, they demanded it. They assumed I was obligated to be merciful. They had become accustomed to grace. Ours is a history of grace. God is so gracious to us that we can begin to take it for granted. The most difficult theological question I’ve ever had to face in my life is this, 'Why has God been so kind to me?’”

Pastor Stumbo’s blog says something about our ability to forget – forget the holy and righteous God we serve, forget who we were and what we’ve done, forget the grace that has been extended to us personally. And in forgetting, we become arrogant, presuming upon God’s favor. Our attitude is not “that of Christ Jesus, who… made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant… humbled himself and became obedient unto death” (Phil. 2:7-8 NIV). We’re more like the servant who was forgiven a huge debt, but went right out to force payment of a small amount due him (Mt. 18)...

Paul pointed to “the meekness and gentleness of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:1 NIV) as a quality to be imitated. A quality that is very undervalued in our culture, but extremely precious in God’s sight. Precious because it keeps us from taking God for granted. It makes us look like Jesus. It makes us act like Him. It puts Christ on display for those around us to see Who He is and what He’s really like. It makes Him approachable, attractive… merciful. And it brings peace and freedom to our soul.

Blessed are those who remember the grace that has been extended to them. Blessed are those who extend that grace to those around them. Blessed are the meek.

Comforters

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Mt. 5:4 NIV).

My father-in-law grew up in West Virginia, without the benefit of central heating. At bedtime on the cold wintry evenings, he would back up to the wood stove and get his backside as hot as he dared, then sprint for his bed. Diving onto the cold mattress, he warmed it up until it chilled him down. In the morning he would awaken to find snow drifted into the bedroom through cracks around the window. What he wouldn’t have given for the lovely comforters of today – large, thick, fluffy, filled with insulating goose down…

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles…God is our Comforter. Infinitely large and filled with delicious warmth and compassion, He comes to us and offers exactly the comfort that we need in this cold, hard world. He comes today to you, and…

He comes with a smile of kindness instead of the dreaded frown of condemnation (Rom. 8:1).
He comes to bear your burdens today (Ps. 68:19).
He works in every aspect of your current situation for your good (Rom. 8:28).
He assures you that sorrows are temporary things (Cor. 4:17).
He reminds you that an eternity of uninterrupted joy awaits (Rev. 21:4)
He promises to personally wipe the last tear from your eyes (Rev. 21:4).

Who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort that we ourselves have received from God (2. Cor. 1:3-4 NIV). Each of God’s children are designed to be “little comforters” – lap robes, you might say, fashioned in the likeness of His King-sized covering. We’re privileged to bring a bit of God’s warmth and compassion to the miserable and shivering who pass by us day after day. We can display God’s smile of kindness, share their burdens, strengthen their faith, and point them to the One Who will one day end this season of winter and bring eternal summer.

As God’s children through faith in Jesus Christ, we have a constant Comforter, so we don’t have to fear chilly mournings. And we are comforters, because we are filled with Him. How blessed we are!

So spread the warmth this week!

Running Against the Tide

Spain’s Pamplona Bull Run, which ends Wednesday, began long ago as an annual religious festival in honor of San Fermin, a Catholic saint and martyr. By the 19th century it had become commercialized and included street theatre, human cannonballs, and circus animals. In 1926, Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises attracted people from all over the world to the event, and today’s festival is overcrowded with thrillseekers and enthusiasts.

Spanish-fiestas.com goes on to describe the event:
“The Pamplona bull run takes place at 8am every morning from 7th to 14th [of] July. Runners must be in the running area by 7.30am. The actual run stretches from the corral at Santo Domingo where the bulls are kept, to the bullring where they will fight that same afternoon. The length of the run is 825 metres [about 1/2 mile] and the average time of the run from start to finish is about three minutes…

“First [the bulls and runners] climb Santo Domingo and go across the Ayuntamiento Square…The most dangerous part of the bullrun approaches as there's a closed curve leading into Estafeta which is the longest stretch of the run. Next comes a small section of Duque de Ahumada which is known as the Telefónica stretch. The last stretch is also very risky as the route leads into a dead end street providing access to the Bull Ring.

“The vast number of people taking part in the bullrun nowadays adds to the already considerable danger of running alongside wild bulls weighing in the region of 700kg [1500 lbs.] each. Too many drunks taking part also increase the risks for everybody. There are plenty security guards and first aid personnel but there is little they can do during the running of the bulls such that 15 people have died and over 200 been seriously injured since 1924.”

In Matthew 6 Jesus urges His followers not to worry about what they will eat, what they will drink, what they will wear. The pagans, He said, run after all these kinds of things, but you are to trust that Your Heavenly Father knows what you need and will provide all that is necessary for His perfect will to be accomplished in your life. So don’t worry about tomorrow. Prepare, yes. Do all you ought to provide for yourself and loved ones, yes. But worry?... no.

Don’t worry about tomorrow? Oh, my. That’s irresponsible. That’s risky. That’s running against the tide of humanity. When you try to envision living like that, you see yourself pounding the pavement of Pamplona, turning the corner, and discovering that you’re going the wrong way! A veritable tidal wave of humanity – and a few thousand pounds of enraged animal – are bearing down on you without mercy. In seconds you will be mowed down, mashed flat, mulched by Nikes and hard, sharp hooves.

But picture this: you say a desperate prayer and move out to face the overwhelming odds. And miracle of miracles, a slim way opens just as the tidal waves hits. It’s a mini-parting of the Red Sea, engineered by God just for you. He’s making it possible for you to keep going the “wrong way” on a one-way street, in the opposite direction of a crowd hell-bent for a dead-end.

Keep that picture in your mind over the next weeks as we continue to learn about “The Kingdom Experience.” We will hear things that will sound foreign to the crowd around us. We will be asked to run the “wrong way,” to think and act differently than those we work with and live near. But don’t let the thought of changing direction, of turning to face an oncoming wall of humanity, become too much to ask.

Trust God to split the crowd and make a way for you, one humble little soul, to walk against the flow. For you to take on, through His power, the pressure and weight and influence of an entire culture that has rejected the Kingdom Experience… and emerge, as Jesus promised in His Sermon on the Mount, blessed – “Happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous – with life-joy and satisfaction, regardless of [your] outward conditions” (Mt. 5:3 Amp).

Olé!

His Truth is Marching On

“The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” so beautifully sung by our choir on the Fourth of July, was once a marching song for the Union soldiers of the Civil War. It’s easy to imagine hundreds of troops advancing steadily and purposefully to that rhythmic chorus, “Glooooo-ry, glory halleluuuuu-jah…”

Yet as anyone who’s studied the Civil War knows, there were some very inglorious moments in that conflict. Days, seasons even, when things looked dark and unpromising, when precious lives were sacrificed, it seemed, for nothing. When good men suffered and enslaved men seemed no nearer to freedom than when the war began. In those hard days, mere boys took up the fife or drum and entered the fray - literally. It is said that some of the musical brigades of both the northern and southern armies accompanied their commanding officer right onto the field and played patriotic songs while the bullets and cannonballs – and comrades - fell around them.

What would it have felt like to be blasting out “His truth is marching on” when progress had ground to a halt or the troops were even falling back, giving ground to the enemy? To finish the last notes of the last chorus and fall silent on a battlefield strewn with fallen friends? Was His truth still marching on? Many surely asked those words as the years dragged on and the war waxed and waned. Many others had their lives snuffed out before they ever saw the fulfillment of what they’d given their lives for.

Same with us. There’s a Truth that’s been marching since the Creation, and when we read our Bibles we see that it marches right off the pages of Revelation into eternity. This Truth wins in the end. And all who sacrifice their lives – give their time and energy here on earth for its cause – are resurrected to share in the victory at the end. What they didn’t see accomplished here because they had to leave “early,” they will see and enjoy in their heavenly home. And all injustice and unrighteousness will be past.

In the meantime, a trumpet has been sounded that shall never call retreat. His Truth is marching on. So let us play our little fifes and drums for all they’re worth, because the cause is worthy, and the Commander is worthy, and the outcome is sure. There may be days of darkness and death and the years of conflict may drag on, but we’re to keep playing while the bullets fly and the cannonballs explode around us. To keep playing while the wounded groan and the agnostics curse. To keep playing, even when we see the whites of the enemies’ eyes… because His Truth is marching on and, as one little-known verse of the song declares,

“He is coming like the glory of the morning on the wave,
He is wisdom to the mighty, He is succour to the brave,
So the world shall be His footstool, and the soul of Time His slave,
Our God is marching on.”

Glory, glory hallelujah!