Salvation? (part 2)

God loves us and Christ died for us

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

            Can you imagine a love demonstrated in such a magnificent way that it involved someone laying down their life for you? 

"Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13)

Jesus is God’s gift to us.  In the second step on the Romans Road we read the bad news concerning the sin that are an unfortunate part of each of our lives.  A requirement that none of us are exempt from, but the second part of that step begins the good news that now leads to this step: God loved us that Christ died for us.  So many words within this verse that we can just expound on and savor the goodness of what each one means. 

“Demonstrates”:  He showed it to us.  Too often we live with verbal expressions but here God’s love is revealed by a physical expression by dying for us. 

“His own love”: Literally his affections.  How splendid!  A rebellious creation, a creation that has dishonored him, disrespected Him, and disobeyed Him, yet He still loves us.  We are often quick to turn on those who have wronged us and hurt us, but God did the exact opposite.  He demonstrated His love towards us! 

“Christ died”: Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death.  In dying for us, Christ paid the wages that we were never able to pay.  He died for our sins.  He wanted to take our place!  As I would say when I get a little excited, “Well glory!”  The death that is required for sin has been made in Christ.

“Towards us”, “for us”:  This makes it personal.  The usage of the word “us” in Romans 5:8 includes the usage of the word “all” in Romans 6:23.  All of us who have sinned, there is no one who is excluded, he died.  He paid the wages.  He endured the punishment and the shame of the cross because God loved us. 

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

We must confess and believe on Christ

That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. (Romans 10:9,10)

There are two words that important to the process of salvation: confess and believe.  Here is what we have discovered on our journey through the Romans Road:  We have all sinned, there is no one excluded.  The penalty (or wages) of that is death, but God has offered to us a free gift of salvation or eternal life.  It is a gift that demonstrates God’s love towards us when Christ died and paid the wages or penalty for our sins.

Salvation?

(This is a continuation of understanding the basics of Christianity - I would simply entitle the series "New Beginnings")

 

To understand the meaning of salvation, one must understand what salvation is.  Dictionary.com defines salvation as “the act of saving or protecting from harm, risk, loss, destruction”.  The word “salvation” in the Biblical sense means “deliverance.”  What is it we need salvation from and how do we get it?  To answer this question, we are going to take a little trip. 

In Genesis 3, we read the account of man’s fall at the Garden of Eden.  But before we read the account, we must rewind to Genesis 2, “The LORD God commanded the man, saying, "From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die” (Genesis 2:16,17).  At this point, creation was beautiful.  Relationship between creation and Creator was in perfect harmony and fellowship.  Nothing stood in the way between the two and in all its glory, creation was perfect, until we reach chapter 3.  What changed?  What came between the perfect fellowship between creation and Creator?  The answer is one word: sin.  Sin is simply disobedience to God.  When sin entered, the relationship became separated. 

When one reads the Scriptures, the effects of sin upon creation became obvious.  In the previous chapter we read about Christianity being a relationship, in essence, it is the restoration of a relationship that has been separated.  In Genesis 2, the resulting consequence of disobedience is death.  Did you know that death is separation?  What most people argue the reasons on why God did not immediately cause Adam and Eve to die, I believe it is important to understand that death is separation.  At the moment that Adam and Eve disobeyed God, their relationship with the Creator died or became separated.  It was God’s holiness and man’s sinfulness that caused the separation. 

With this basic understanding in mind, let us now take another trip to gather a better understanding, this time to the book of Romans.  In this sixth book of the New Testament, there is a road that is found within its marvelous passages, a road that helps to bring clarity and understanding of a relationship that was separated.  Not only that, it brings to light the answer of how that divided relationship between creation and Creator can be restored.  It is most often called the Romans Road to Salvation and within these simple verses, lies the greatest story ever told in a nutshell. 

Everyone is a sinner

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  (Romans 3:23)

When sin became a part of the human race, it consequences had a far reaching impact, notice the word “all” in this verse.  It was not relegated to one or two people, it was spread throughout the human race like a cancer.  One of the key arguments that I have heard concerning the way to Heaven or to be in a right relationship with God is we just simply must be a good person.  In Romans 3:10, Paul writes, “As it is written, "THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE.”  There is an importance in understanding the meaning of the word righteousness.  It is translated from the word “dikaios” (dik'-ah-yos) meaning innocent or holy.  When Paul wrote this, he was actually repeating a text from the Psalms 14:3, “They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one”.  What a dreadful thought concerning the human race, there is no one who is innocent, there is no one who does good.  To really get what Paul is saying, it would be better understood as this, there is no one who is good enough or holy enough to be in a right relationship with God, there is no one who is good enough or Holy enough to get into Heaven.  Each one of us, no matter who we are or where we are from have sinned and each one of us have fallen short of God’s glory.  The Greek word in which “glory” is translated from speaks of praise.  Another way to view this is found in John 12:44, “For they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God.”  Now let’s go back to the idea of Christianity being a relationship.  Being in a relationship, our desire is to honor that in which we are in a relationship with and in return we receive approbation from the one we honor or love.  The most important commandment as expressed by Jesus in Matthew 22:37 is to “LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND” and the second one is to love others as yourself.  Any action that fails to honor those two commandments is a sin.  When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they failed to honor God and instead of praise, they suffered the judgment of God for their disobedience, death. 

The wages of sin is death

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)

What a bleak outlook.   It is bad enough that we have all sinned, it is even worse that the wages of sin is death.  There is a payment that is required, but unfortunately, we are not able to make that payment by our own doing.  In our vain attempt in doing so, we will forced to face eternal separation from God.  It is not just a physical death that is being referred to here.  It is the spiritual and the eternal.  It is this death that occurred instantaneously at the Garden of Eden during man’s disobedience.  No hope, no fellowship, no joy.  To stop there though is to miss the blessing.  Thankfully, there is more to the verse than the revelation of that sin brings death.  For following the first clause of the verse is the word “but”.  Paul, the author of Romans, has given us the bad news, but…  What a wonderful turn of events. 

All of us have sinned and the wages of sin is death, but... 

From bad news now to good news: the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.  What phenomenal news.  Sin costs us, but God has given to us a free gift.  Sin equals separation and death but God’s gift is life!  It is reconciliation!  It is bridging the chasm that separates us from our Creator.  What is this free gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus?  The answer to that question is found at the next stop on the Romans Road.

The Heart of the Christian Life (part 2)

It is not a set of rules.

Jewish rabbis have counted 613 commands in the Law.  How often have we wandered into a church and it feels like it is more.  Too often, some wander into church and hear “Don’t do this.  Don’t do that.  Do this.  Do that.”  As the burden of rules continued to be added upon us, the joy of Christianity is lost, especially the heart of it.  It must be emphasized that the Law of the Old Testament was designed to be a blessing and not a burden.  In the time of Christ, the Pharisees heaped law upon law and made stipulations which made their religion more of a burden thus robbing what God had intended it to be for His people, a joyous blessing.  They had the tendency to make one law more important than the other.  For many during Jesus’ time, a walk with God was more like walking aimlessly through a minefield.  Obedience was more out of fear and confusion than it was out of reverence.

The Pharisees focused so much on rules and debating the issue of which law was the most important that a Jewish lawyer asked Jesus the question.  It must be noted that the intent of the lawyer was not pure as you can read in the following text:

One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" And He said to him, “‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.' "This is the great and foremost commandment.”  The second is like it, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.' "On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 22:35-40)

Did you catch it?  Of the 613 commandments that Jewish rabbis have counted, the foundation of all 613 rests upon two important commandments as expressed by Jesus.  Both commandments are found in the Old Testament.  “Love God”, the greatest of all commandments is found in Deuteronomy 6:5.  EVERYTHING we do in our Christian life is simply an outflow of obedience to this commandment in our lives.  It is not a matter of obedience and living for God because we have to, but simply a demonstration of our love for God…we want to.  The second important commandment that Jesus taught deals with others: Love your neighbor.  This commandment is found in Leviticus 19:18.  With this important point in mind, it is now time to reveal in all its simplicity what the heart of Christianity is. 

It is a relationship.

There it is.  In all of its simple glory this is what the Christian life is.  A fact bolstered by what Jesus tells the Jewish lawyer in Matthew 22 by the usage of one simple but profound word: LOVE.  Everything we do in this Christian life is simply an outflow of our love for God.  To show love to others (our neighbors) is simply to show others the same love of Christ that has been extended to us.  In I Corinthians 13, a chapter affectionately known by many Christians as “The Love Chapter”, Paul defines love by its characteristics.  One of the characteristics of love in verse 5 says: it does not seek its own.  Another way of explaining this is to say that love seeks to please the one who is loved.  So how can we demonstrate our love?  Do you remember the 613 commands of the Old Testament as counted by Jewish rabbis?  It was God showing to His people how to love Him.  The Bible, God’s Holy Word is God showing to us how we can love Him.  As a Christian, we are in a relationship.  We simply want to honor Him, love Him, and live for Him.  We have now entered a glorious walk with Him and each day should bring a sense of desire in our hearts and mind to know Him.  It is for the sake of restoring a relationship broken by sin that Christ came to die.  Think about this for a moment, God came into this world as a man, Jesus Christ, to restore a relationship with us.  The hard part of restoring the relationship has been taken care of by Him, the ball is now in our court.

The Heart of the Christian Life (part 1)

Over the next several weeks, I will be working on a series entitled "The Basics of Christian Life"

To understand the basics of Christianity, one must understand the heart of Christianity.  It is regrettable that the heart of Christianity has been drowned out amid the chaos of doctrines and denominations.  There have been so many characterizations given to Christianity and most of those characterizations miss the mark or simply do not do justice to explaining the heart of Christianity without expounding on the characterizations given.  I am by no means a premier authority on Christianity and its doctrines.  I am simply a pastor/minister with a deep love of Christ and His words and it is my intentions to help others come to know the Christ of the Bible.  The blessings that I have had in experiencing Christ in my life is the very thing that I want others to experience as well.  I have made many choices and decisions in my life and some I have not been proud of.  There are a few that I would have to say were my shining moments such as marrying my wife, having children, and becoming a pastor, just to name a few.  The greatest moment of my life though was when I began my newfound journey with Christ and committed my life to Him in 1991.  The journey has seen its share of bumps in the road and has been far from flawless and the basics and the heart of Christianity had been lost along the way until it became renewed in my life which is certainly a danger if we are not careful in our own personal journey.  My three fold purpose in writing this booklet is simple:

1)      To help everyone understand the basics of Christianity.

2)      To help the new believer develop a basic understanding of their newfound faith.

3)      To renew the joy of each believer in refreshing our understanding of basic Christianity.

I have heard it all.  While many of the characterizations given to Christianity are not necessarily wrong, they simply do not tell the real story or meaning and therefore dampen the blessing of what Christianity is, especially at its heart.  Before getting to what the heart of Christianity is, we must first tackle the issue of what Christianity has been classified as but is not:

It is not a set religion

When I hear the expression of Christianity as a religion, it is often clumped in with Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, etc.  In that form, that is not what Christianity is.  This fits in line with what dictionary.com has defined religion as: a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects.  In this form religion is manmade.  Unfortunately, Christianity is a religion simply because we have made it that way.  When we start attacking each other of doctrines and opinions, we begin to make Christianity a religion and robbing the joy of what the heart of Christianity really is.

I have often heard the argument in classifying Christianity as a religion is the fact that James defines Christianity as religion. 

Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. (James 1:27)

The Greek word “thrēskeia” that is translated to “religion” in the New Testament is found 4 times.  In James, it is the only time that the word is used to define the Christian faith, but it is interesting to know that the meaning of this word is defined as the outward expression of worship and service and not a fundamental “set of beliefs”.  What James describes here as true religion is an emphasis taught by Jesus during His earthly ministry, a fact that we will highlight later. 

It is not a set of rituals.

            “How would you explain communion?”, you may ask.  The answer is simple, communion is a remembrance.  We do these things, not because we have to, but we want to remember what Jesus did for us.  We read in Luke 22:19: And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”  We often get so burdened by rituals that we just start going through the motions, at that point, the joy is lost.  When participating in communion, the joy of remembering Jesus’ death on the cross begins to consume our heart and soul and the partaking of the communion takes on a special meaning and significance.  When communion is demanded, the reason becomes lost. 

            There is no place in the Bible that demands that our journey with Christ be a ritual.  The word ritual itself seems to demand a certain ideology of just going through the motions.  That is far from what God intended the journey of a Christian to be.  Our journey is a wonderful expectation of hope, a beautiful experience of God’s presence, protection, and provision, and the marvelous excellence of grace and mercy.  It does not demand us but simply creates in us a desire and therein lies the difference…our attitude.  When anything we do, whether going to church, singing, teaching, preaching, giving, or whatever other service we perform in the name of Christianity starts to feel as though we are going through the motions, then it simply has become a ritual and the way God has intended it has been lost.

Simply....Just be there

I was once asked the question why.  Why do I go to spend time with people I barely know?  When I am beckoned why do I go without reservation?  To answer that question, I mention my father’s death.  There were those in the days following his passing he said very little to me but were simply there.  They willingly offered their shoulder to cry on, their ears to listen, and their heart to love and care.  They didn’t have to say anything, they were simply….there.  I have been preaching on the “Sermon on the Mount” during our Sunday morning services and the message itself to me has been thought provoking, eye opening, and spirit convicting.  As I prepared for this Sunday’s message, this verse jumped out at me:

"In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 7:12)

I thought about when my father died and wondered about what I needed most.  What I needed most more than anything is people simply being there.  I read this story a few days ago and I want to share it with you.

*******

A nurse took the tired, anxious serviceman to the bedside. "Your son is here," she said to the old man. She had to repeat the words several times before the patient's eyes opened.

Heavily sedated because of the pain of his heart attack, he dimly saw the young uniformed Marine standing outside the oxygen tent. He reached out his hand. The Marine wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man's limp ones, squeezing a message of love and encouragement..

The nurse brought a chair so that the Marine could sit beside the bed.All through the night the young Marine sat there in the poorly lightedward, holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength. Occasionally, the nurse suggested that the Marine move away and rest awhile.

He refused. Whenever the nurse came into the ward, the Marine was oblivious of her and of the night noises of the hospital - the clanking of the oxygen tank, the laughter of the night staff members exchanging greetings, the cries and moans of the other patients.

Now and then she heard him say a few gentle words. The dying man said nothing, only held tightly to his son all through the night.

Along towards dawn, the old man died. The Marine released the now lifeless hand he had been holding and went to tell the nurse. While she did what she had to do, he waited.

Finally, she returned. She started to offer words of sympathy, but the Marine interrupted her. "Who was that man?" he asked. The nurse was startled, "He was your father," she answered. "No, he wasn't," the Marine replied. "I never saw him before in my life." "Then why didn't you say something when I took you to him?" "I knew right away there had been a mistake, but I also knew he needed his son, and his son just wasn't here.

When I realized that he was too sick to tell whether or not I was his son, knowing how much he needed me, I stayed." I came here tonight to find a Mr. William Grey. His Son was killed in Iraq today, and I was sent to inform him. What was this Gentleman's Name? The Nurse with Tears in Her Eyes Answered, Mr. William Grey.............

*******

 

The most powerful difference we can make in a person’s life is not by something we can say, it is by simply being there.  Offer your shoulder to cry on, your ears to listen, and your heart to love.  You don’t necessarily need to say anything.  Sometimes the best thing we can say is really nothing at all.  Just simply be there, there are others who will have plenty to say and sometimes it is not necessarily the right thing, you don’t need to be numbered with them, you just simply need to be remembered for being there.  That is what I want to do.  I simply want to be there.  I was told once that as a pastor I am a representative and ambassador of God and by simply being there, I can serve as a reminder that God is near.  I like to go deeper with that….I think it is true for any Christian.

Church: A Blessing or a Battlefield?

It is horrifyingly astonishing to hear how easily God’s people would destroy a church.  In a society where people are looking for excuses for not going to church, it becomes even more heartbreaking when God’s people give them a greater reason not to.  The devil does a good enough job that he does not need our help.  Jesus says in John 13:35 -"By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."  Yet within the walls of our churches, God’s people readily dig their toes into the sand and defiantly say “My way or the highway” and by their actions, show the exact opposite of love.  Thriving churches whose name evokes high commendations in the communities have now sullied its reputation for the sake of a few.  A beacon of light and love has now turned to a battleground of selfishness and strife.  I have been a part of several ministries both in youth and pastoring and in my journeys, I have witnessed division, dissension, discouragement, and distraction (all major tools of the devil enabled by God’s people from time to time).  The Bible is clear about one thing, the sin of selfishness is a major part of fighting.  James 4:1 reveals the source of fighting and quarrels: What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? (New American Standard)  We are so focused on what we want that we lose the focus of what God wants.  We are more ready to fight over the color of the carpet instead of expending our energy to commit the Gospel to a lost and dying world.  We are more willing to hurt someone for the sake of helping ourselves, whether it be a new program, a new pastor, or a new place.  Paul also expresses that quarreling and dissension is a source of pride and selfishness.  In first letter to the Corinthians, he writes: “For you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?” (I Corinthians 3:3)  Simply stated, when God’s people become involved in frivolous and trivial quarreling, it is a sign of worldliness. 

                What place does quarreling and division have in the church?  The Biblical answer is none.  In his letter to a divided church, Paul writes:

Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment.  For I have been informed concerning you, my brethren, by Chloe's people, that there are quarrels among you.  Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, "I am of Paul," and "I of Apollos," and "I of Cephas," and "I of Christ."  Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? (I Corinthians 1:10-13, New American Standard)

                Did you notice the text?  There was a clear difference of opinion among God’s people in Corinth and that clear difference of opinion was causing division among a group that should have exemplified unity.  Why would someone allow the difference of opinion establish division within the church?  It goes back to what we have just read in James 4:1, selfishness.  At the root of selfishness is pride.  The “me first” mentality and the “what I want” attitude is not found in the Bible nor does it have any place in God’s kingdom or His church.  There are two commandments that are clearly taught by Christ in Matthew 22 and all the laws of the Old Testament and prophets and everything we do and how we respond rest upon those two commandments: Love God with all our heart, soul, and strength and love our neighbors as ourselves.  In the battlegrounds amid God’s people, those two are quickly thrown out the window and the agenda of our battle plans is that we will not stop until we get what we want: selfishness.

                The Bible gives a clear direction of how we are to respond to those who cause division and dissension: Avoid them.  Paul writes: Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them (Romans 16:17, KJV).  We are quick to point out the problems with the world and there are problems to be found wherever you look, but at the same time, we turn a blind eye to the problems within.  While we are too busy watching the world, we must remember that the world is watching us.  There was a saying that became a popular fashion wear among the younger generation when I was younger, it was based around the acronym “WWJD”.  It was a question that we were to ask ourselves” What would Jesus do?  It served as a reminder as we journeyed through life whenever we came to a decision we needed to make we would ask in our heart that question with the hope of making a God pleasing decision.  I believe there is a more important question we should be asking amongst ourselves: What is Jesus seeing.  If He was to visit HIS church, what would He see? It becomes even more weightier when we realize that while we all see what is on the outside….Jesus lookers deeper…into the heart

I Am a Father

I can’t ignore it.  I was told that there are far more important things that we need to talk about other than the disgusting display of Miley Cyrus on the awards show.  It came to my attention while watching the news and what I saw absolutely floored me at first that the news would consider it important enough to talk about over many of the more important.  I was becoming irate that this type of behavior was considered “news”.  As I waited for them to hurry through the dialogues I heard the voice of my two young daughters in the other room.  My heart sunk.  I can’t ignore it.  I can’t ignore it because as a Christian the moral values of America is important.  The Christian church is the last line of defense for moral values in America.  If Christians refuse to stand, then moral degeneration shall occur.  So many of our moral values have already been trampled on by print, media, and social networks.  It used to be that what happens in the privacy of one’s own home stays in the home but the ease of social networking has brought what was once cherished as intimate, cherished, and private to the forefront.  Instead of enjoying the wonderful events of a family or sharing in wonderful news, we spend more time deleting vulgarities and scantily clad pics in seductive poses or showing off their newest tats.  This is the world my children are growing up in.  I can’t ignore it because as a father, I find it all too important to ensure that my children are taught wholesome values.  God gave me these children.  I am a steward for these children.  I am responsible for the things that I allow into my children’s lives.  I can’t let the Miley Cyruses and the Justin Beibers of this world be allowed into my home.  Not while their young minds can be so easily shaped by the things they see or hear.  Not while they continue to be called "wholesome entertainment" yet their despicable acts of rebellion and selfishness and disrespect are on full display.  I can’t ignore it.  As a pastor, I have a duty to take a stand for what is right.  I have a duty to stand against sin.  I have a duty to cry aloud as said in Isaiah “Cry loudly, do not hold back; Raise your voice like a trumpet, And declare to My people their transgression And to the house of Jacob their sins” (Isaiah 58:1).  The moral value of America is shrinking at an alarming rate because we have stopped raising our voices at the moral undressing of America.  Maybe because we are fearful of offending people.  Maybe because we just want to climb into our shell and say God will take care of them, it is not my problem.  But in doing so, you would be forced to ignore Ezekiel 3:20 - Again, when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I place an obstacle before him, he will die; since you have not warned him, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand.  Yes, God will take care of them but God will also hold us accountable for ignoring it or keeping it.  I can’t ignore it.  As an American, this should not be reflective of who America is.  We cannot allow Hollywood shape the image of America or even the world for that matter.  The spiritual battle rages on so many fronts.  From personal, to the home, to the church, to the country and to the world.  Acts like these are only a small part of a larger scale of assault against moral values in society today.  My daughters are laughing now.  I need to go pick them up and hold them close to me.  I can’t ignore it.  I need to teach them.  I need to love them.  I need to raise them….all in accordance to God’s Word.

Birds of a feather

Birds of a feather flock together.  This is an ancient saying that is said to have it roots back to ancient Greece.  There has been a bit of a crisp in the air especially in the evenings, a sign that fall is coming.  Fall usually means birds will begin their long trek to their winter grounds in the south.  Last fall, my first in this Calhoun County, I was amazed at the number of white pelicans that rested at the nearby Rip Rap.  The little ravines of water were coated in a sea of white as pelicans floated lazily along and fed on unsuspecting fish.  Within a week, they were gone. 

There is another saying about ducks.  If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck and congregates with other ducks, then it must be a duck.  I have been in church pretty much my whole life and have been involved in church ministry for at least 18 years and there is a destructive tendency found among church members: cliques.  A clique is a tight knit group of likeminded people.  It is interesting to know that the word “clique” derives from the French word that means to make noise. 

There is nothing wrong with friendship, in fact, the Bible encourages friendship and when it encourages friendship, it encourages right friendship.  Consider these verses from Proverbs:

One who is righteous is a guide to his neighbor, but the way of the wicked leads them astray. (Proverbs 12:26)

Make no friendship with a man given to anger, nor go with a wrathful man, lest you learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare. (Proverbs 22:24,25)

Iron sharpens iron, So one man sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)

The Bible is full of friendship such as David and Jonathan, Ruth and Naomi, Elijah and Elisha, and Paul and Silas among other.

In the same way that the Bible encourages friendships, it also discourages cliques.  Cliques tend to cause division or trouble in the church or as the original French word would define it “make noise.”  Paul gives us a warning to watch out for them:

Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them.  For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. (Romans 16:17-18)

According to what Paul wrote above, these people are more concerned about themselves than they are the good of the church.  Commentator John Gill writes that their usage of smooth and flattering speech is handling “the word of God deceitfully.” 

In another letter, Paul writes:

  But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him (Titus 3:9,10)

Consider these words of James in his epistle

What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. (James 4:1-3)

Did you see why people fight and quarrel.  Because they are not getting what they want.  It is not a coincidence that Christianity is a matter of the heart as Jesus teaches.  Everything we are and everything we do is a reflection of the condition of our heart.  If we are bitter, then we have bitterness in our heart.  If we are selfish, then we our heart is focused on ourselves and not God.  If we are indifferent to others, then our heart is indifferent.  Paul even teaches us to preach the Word in II Timothy 4 because the time will come where people will find teachers after their own desires to satisfy their needs.  The key point is this, it is not what God wants but what we want that brings about quarrels. 

Now, let’s go back to the word clique.  You can tell a lot about a person by the kind of people they hang out with.  A duck hangs out with other ducks.  A pelican hangs out with other pelicans.  If you find yourself become a part of a clique, leave because as the wisdom of Proverbs tells us:

Make no friendship with a man given to anger, nor go with a wrathful man, lest you learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare. (Proverbs 22:24,25)

What flock are you flying with?

Be the "You"

Friday was an interesting day.  I met with a young lady named Erika Harold.  Erika is a former Miss America.  She won the crown in 2003.  She is also a graduate of Harvard Law School. She was in Hardin and I had lunch with her at the Barefoot Landing.  While I thought it was impressive that a little old preacher like me could be having lunch with a former Miss America, even more impressive is who she was.  She was the kindest, humble, and compassionate soul I have ever met.  In a world surrounding by cliques and stature, around that table no such thing existed.  There were five of us and each one of us came from different backgrounds and different areas.  Each one of us do different things for a living but on that day, around the table, none of those things existed.  In my travels through life, I have met some famous people and some non-famous people.  I have met some who were rich and some who were not so rich.  I have met people of different nationalities and race.  I have been in some extravagant homes and I have been in some humble homes.  Despite all the positions and conditions, there is one thing I have noticed, people in general are the same.  In my conversations with Erika, it stood out that she was as real or genuine as one could be.  She didn’t want you to see her as a Miss America.  She did not want you to see her as a lawyer or politician.  She wanted you to see her as Erika Harold.  She wanted you to see her as a person who cares.  She wanted you to see her as one of you.  She could have gone anywhere else and met different people but she chose to meet with someone like me, an ordinary person simply striving to make a difference in the community and county.  She was simply…herself.  I am reminded of a story of a young man who met a beautiful girl on the plane.  He tried to strike up a conversation and asked her what kind of men she liked.  She said she liked Indian men because of their tan color.  She also like Jewish men because they were generally rich.  She further stated that she liked country boys for their rugged way of life and monster trucks.  She finally asked him his name and he responded, “I am Geronimo Benjamin but my friends call me Bubba.”  Too often we try to be different things to different people when all we need to be is ourselves.  It is the only way people can really know who we are.  It doesn’t matter where you come from or what you do, simply be the you God intended you to be.  Forget the cliques and social statuses, simply accept and enjoy people for who they are because in reality: a sure fire way to make a difference in the lives of others.
I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made…(Psalm 139:14)

God's Got Something Better

“You keep checking doors and you keep checking doors and when it doesn’t open, you leave them alone.”  Those words of advice was given to me by a pastor in December 2011 as he and his wife met with my wife and me.  I was discouraged as I was wondering if God really had a place for us.  I knew that God had a place but the search and the wait was getting frustrated.  I once heard this quote “On the way to a dream you will find a better dream”.  Too often we have this idea of what we want or even how we want, but when we pray God will either say yes, no, or I have something better.  The third answer is probably just as difficult for some as the second answer because the third answer most likely involves waiting.  When I received the invitation to pastor Belleview Community Church, at the time I had a hard time seeing how this could be better.  16 months into the journey, I can see that God is right.  Sometimes when we push the issue, we usually will wind up in trouble.  With any of life’s major decision we need to LET GOD.  We need to let Him provide.  We need to let Him guide.  We need to let Him answer.  Whatever the answer may be realize that our best interest is in His mind.

For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11)

God has a plan for us.  Did you know the word “providence” means “to see beforehand?”  God knows what is best for us but not only that, we need to realize that He knows what is best for us beforehand.  Long before our journey begins….God knows.  He knows our hurts.  He knows our heartaches.  He knows our situations.  He knows our frustrations.  He knows our prayers.  He knows our desires.  He knows our thoughts.  He also knows what is best.  The Message has a wonderful paraphrase for this verse: I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.  As we determine God’s plan and purpose for our lives we can take comfort in his provision.  He will take care of us.  God supplies our every need.  Everything we could possibly need to get us to where we need to go, God will take care of it.  Every obstacle that stands in our way, God will enable us to overcome.  He knows the plans.  He knows what He is doing.  We can also see God’s presence.  He will not abandon us.  No matter where we are or where we are going, He will not abandon us.  What a blessing!  When I reflect back to the second half of 2011 when we were searching for God’s plan for our lives, I can see how God was with us.  There is no way that we could have financially survived those months except for God.  There is a third blessing found in the verse.  His promise.  His plans are for our best.  You didn’t get the house you want.  You didn’t get the job you want.  You didn’t move to the state you wanted to move to.   It doesn’t mean God is saying no, it could just be God saying, I have something better.  Let God.

Constrained by Fear or Conquering by Faith?

“Your maidservant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil” (New American Standard).  In II Kings 4:1-7, we read the story of the widow and her oil.  The widow’s situation was dire, she had owed so much money and was unable to pay that she was on the verge of losing her two sons to slavery to pay the debt.  The prophet Elisha asked her a question.  What do you have in your house?  She had nothing but a pot of oil.  Such a bleak outlook.  If we live in the material then we are going to be limited to the material.  Too often we focus on the situations instead of the Savior.  That is the difference between fear and faith.  Fear limits us.

 Fear says “Then Moses said to the Lord, “Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue” (Exodus 4:10).

 Faith says “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).  

 

Fear says “So they gave out to the sons of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone, in spying it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants; and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great size. There also we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight” (Numbers 13:32-33). 

Faith says “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine” (I Samuel 17:37). 

 

Fear says “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger” (Exodus 16:3).

Faith says “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:13). 

 

I wonder what we would be saying about the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11 if they allowed their visions or faith to be hampered by their situations.  Faith is defined in Hebrews 11 as “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Faith is the assurance that what God has promised He can and will keep.  Faith is the assurance that God is watching over us.  Faith is the assurance that God provides.  Faith is the assurance that through Jesus Christ we have the gift of eternal life.  Faith is the assurance of victory

In his attempt to walk on water, Peter allowed fear to hamper his step.  Faith helped three Hebrew friends to walk in the fire.  Fear sees giants.  Faith sees God.  Fear sees obstacles.  Faith sees victory.  Fear says “I have nothing but a pot of oil.”  Faith says “God will take care of us.”  Much like He did in the story of the widow and her oil.  So how does God do it?

1)      In His own way

2)      In His own time

3)      Using other people

Two years ago I stepped out on faith and quit my job believing that God had a place for me elsewhere but holding to my job was preventing me from finding that place and purpose.  It was fear that made me use that job as a crutch.   I have found that place.  It is in western Illinois, a place that was far from my thoughts and far out of my way.  A simple reminder that “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9).  How many goals have been missed?  How many blessings have been robbed?  How much joy has been taken?  Simply because we let fear control our steps and our destiny.

Common "Denominator"

What denomination are you?  I was posed this question recently.  It is a question that makes me cringe.  I do not cringe because I am ashamed of my denomination, I cringe because of what the word denomination has done to the church of Christ over the years.  Our church, Belleview Community Church is a part of The Evangelical Church headquartered in Minneapolis, MN.  We are first and foremost Christians whose headquarters is Heaven.  I have been a part of a few different denominations in my lifetime.  For almost 30 years I was a Free Will Baptist, I have worked with youth in Nazarene churches and Free Methodist churches as well.  For some of these denominations, I have gotten a gist of how the denominations work.  The dangerous enemy of the body of Christ is not worldliness, the dangerous enemy of the body of Christ is its people.  Please understand that I am not against denominations, I am against what it has done.  It has deeply divided the body of Christ and has damaged the testimony of so many churches. I can’t tell you how often I have attended meetings or listened to other pastors spend so much energy in fighting with other leaders and pastors within the denomination over trivial issues or fight with other denominations because they simply don’t agree with their interpretations.  Our focus is to edify the Christ and his saving grace.  “Angry” sermons are being preached when people genuinely need to see the love of God instead of us venting our frustrations about denominations, ours or theirs..  People deal with enough fighting in the week they do not need to deal with it when they come into the house of God.  They want to see Christ.  Just recently I read a pastor’s share his sermon which was obviously done in an eisegesis method instead of the more proper exegetical message.  To understand the difference between the two is to understand that the eisegesis approach is when the speaker or preacher interjects his own ideas into the text.  The Bible does not need your ideas interjected, to do so will only diminish its authority, value, and truth. The people do not need to hear what we think we have to say, the people need to hear what the Bible has to say.  Yes denominations are different.  Yes, people within denominations will do things that we may not like or agree with.  Our goal is to exalt the love of Christ and evangelize those who need evangelization into the Kingdom of God.  There are a few denominational leaders in other denominations that have gone so far overboard to say that anyone else not in their camp are “hell bound”.  A few years back, after the publication of my book, I was looking to set up a table to advertise my book at a “denominational” conference.  I was told that they do not deal with outsiders. I recently read this passage of Scripture from Galatians:

For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:27, New American Standard)

We are all one in Christ.  Whether we are Baptists, Methodists, Evangelicals, Pentecostals, or Nazarenes, the most important element of any person is a saving faith in Christ. It is not about denominational beliefs, it is about relationship with Christ.  Let us add to that number instead of trying to take away numbers from other denominations.  Focus on the cause of Christ instead of cursing other churches.  You build God’s kingdom by evangelizing the lost not shuffling sheep.

Rush to Judgment

I know that the last thing that you want to hear is another post, another blog, or another mention of the George Zimmerman trial.  After all, social media and news outlets still continue to put in their two cents of opinions.  I heard a statement from a news commentator that stuck with me: "There is a reason why Lady Justice is blindfolded".  As a minister, the heavy impact of those words made me step back and review who we are as Christians and church.  Although the trial, within itself, has nothing to do with Christianity and the church, there are some key elements surrounding the trial that I believe we can and should learn from it.  Long before the case made its way to the courtroom, people have been quick to rush to judgment.  Without the facts being fully presented, many have already made the guilty/not guilty verdict.  Many have been quick to judge the heart of a man that they do not know. 

But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart. (I Samuel 16:7)

It is amazing to see how social media immediately makes us lawyers, Bible Scholars, or even political experts.  One thing that we can never do is to judge the heart of a man, whether he is 17 or 29.  As I watched the events unfold, I quickly realize that though we are quick to criticize those for rushing to judgment, we as Christians are quick to do the same.  Sometimes, we only invite certain types of people to church or talk to certain people about God.  Sometimes, we would only warmly welcome certain visitors while coldly acknowledging the presence of another.  Maybe it’s the clothes.  Maybe it’s the social status.  Maybe it’s the color of their skin.  Maybe they act different than us.  We have been quick to judgment.  I remember working as a car salesman in eastern NC, from my desk I watched an older African American gentleman step out of a cab carrying a book bag over his shoulder.  Some of the salesman closest to the door refused to move towards him as he approached the door.  A few of these salesmen were even of the same race.  One quickly picked up a phone call and pretended to be with another customer on a sales call.  I slowly rose to my feet and made my way to the door.  His ragged clothes reeked of cigar smoke and his unkempt hair looked as though it had not been washed in a while.  To make a long story short, he bought a new car from us with a certified check from the bank.  How quick we judged.  We do the same in church. 

For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:27,28)

Tonight at Vacation Bible School, I noticed a group of teenagers who wouldn’t sit with another teenager because he seemed “different”.  I sat with him during craft time.  I made sure he didn’t feel left out.  He needed a friend.  He needed someone to show that they cared.  How quick we judged.   You know that person you ignored?  You could have been the one person to make that difference.  How quick we judged.  Just remember, some people felt the same way about you.  You were a drug addict.  You were a criminal.  You came from a broken home.  You were divorced.  You were a school drop-out.  You were a democrat.  You were a Republican.  You came from another country.  You came from another state.  Your clothes are out of place for church.  How quick we judged.  God does not look at color.  God does not look at social status.  God does not look at financial status.  God does not look at clothes.  God looks at the heart.  He has to change the heart.  He needs to change the heart.  The very thing that you cannot see, that is what God is looking to change.  Yet, we often find that our heart needs more work because we are quick to judge.  Many people come through our churches, never to set foot into them again, because we are quick to judge.  My dad was my hero.  In the mid 1980’s, a group of African American kids came to our church to participate in our church basketball program.  There were a few within the church who were not happy with that.  Cries to shut down the basketball program resounded through the congregational body.  My father stood with those kids, he knew that they needed us and we needed them.  They were a little older than me and I watched my father show compassion to them just like he did with every teenager in the youth program.  Our family took them home or picked them up if they needed a ride, I watched them ask Jesus into their heart.  One of them is now a minister.  How quick we judged.  Maybe we need to take a lesson from Lady Justice and be blindfolded.