Going All In

Hope For A Hurting World

2012-01-05T15:13:00.000-05:00

As Christians how do we cope with or explain tragedies, accidents, heartaches, pain and sufferings? Why are there so many trials, personal attacks and persecution? Why is life so complicated, convoluted, difficult, out of control, filled with setbacks, why so much stress, unrelenting, one thing after another? why do we go through so much of what we go through, when it comes to health, trials, why is life in general so difficult at times? Isn't life supposed to be easier and better as a Christian?
We have all been there or walked with those who have asked these or similar questions and at times we have wavered in our faith and belief in a loving, caring, all powerful God. We have struggled to make sense of the pain and heartache and have found ourselves to be at a loss for answers.
My goal is to in no way make light of the circumstances you find yourself in or to try and cover up your pain or questions with cliches that seem to hurt or induce guilt rather than heal and produce wholeness. What I would like to do in brief is use two verses as backdrops or underpinnings to make three very broad but fundamentally important statements, three principles of the Christian faith that you cannot go without. Three paramount truths that if you miss them you will be subject to a life of frustration and even despair and will succumb to thinking yourself a victim in every painful and trying situation in life.
I will give the two verses first in hopes that you will go to the scriptures to discover the freshness of God's amazing love for you and then I will give the 3 principles, one day at a time that you may have opportunity to consider each of them on their own and to contemplate them as you dwell on each.
The first refreshing Biblical text:
Romans 8:18-39 "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, 'For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NIV)
I know it's long but hang in there, one more verse for you to chew on then tomorrow the truths we learn from them.
1 Peter 1:3-9 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls." (NIV)

"I think Positive thoughts toward you today"

2011-03-30T08:00:00.002-04:00

This is as good as it can get as far as a person without Christ, or a society without Christ. This is a quote from someone I spoke with on the phone when they learned of my daughters pending heart surgery. I could sense the sincerity in her voice, she was genuinely concerned and then offered these words, "I think positive thoughts toward you today." What else was she gonna say? What else could she do or offer? She has a clear understanding that she has no power within herself to help the situation. What is she left with if she doesn't believe in a God who made her, me, my daughter? What does she stand on if she has only herself to turn to in times of distress and need?
"The fool says in their heart there is no God." (Ps 14:1) Had I not been so desirous to get off the phone as quickly as possible to get back to "more important" things I might have been a little more bold in engaging this dear lady with the question as to what good she thought her "positive thoughts" might do to help the situation. However, in my usual way I got too caught up in my own little world to see such a divine appoinments. God, I pray you forgive me for my selfishness and empower me to be a better ambassador for you. Amen.
The fool may say in their heart their is no God but the self-absorbed squander opportunites given by God.

Don't Ignore Routine Maintenance

2011-03-29T14:58:00.000-04:00

This week I had to spend a little over $1700 on repairs on my truck. I had to put new tires on because the alignment wasn't right and because they weren't rotated regularly. I also had to put new brake rotors all around because the brake pads weren't replaced when they should have been. If it had been properly maintained (I bought it used), the bill to have an alignment and tire rotation along with brake pads probably would have been less than $200.
The late Richard Baxter rights "Take heed to yourselves" in his book to pastors about being certain to care for yourselves in regard to your walk with Christ. His admonition to pastors stands true for everyone: "Take heed to yourselves". His admonition is of paramount importance, see to it that you "maintain" a close, abiding walk of faith and obedience with your Lord Jesus Christ. God commanded Joshua, "Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this book of the law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to obey everything written in it. then you will be prosperous and successful." (1:7) And the writter of Hebrews warns "We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away." (2:1)
This blog could easily turn into a sermon, however, for your sake let it remain an encouragment to you to not neglect the feeding of your soul. Take care to be in communion with your Savior, read his word, pray, worship Him daily.

The American Idols

2011-03-11T13:46:00.000-05:00

Just finished (for the second time in a row) a book titled You Are The Treasure that I Seek (but there's a lot of cool stuff out there, Lord). By Greg Dutcher. I had never heard of the guy before and that was a good thing it kind of clued me in on the probability that he wasn't just writing another book because he was a popular guy and new everyone would buy it if he wrote it, even though it probably wouldn't say anything new, just a rehash of what he said in his last book or what somebody else with a popular name just wrote in their last book and that is the thing to write about right now (wow long sentence). You ever notice that trend in our Christian book world?
Turns out Greg is sort of an ordinary type, he's a Senior Pastor who struggles putting Christ first in his life, boy how many of us deal with this on an ongoing basis. The book he writes is the reality of all the "idols" we have to come to terms with in our hearts. The author writes with a funny, fresh perspective, sort of a "confessing idol holder" type, someone you can easily relate to and share in his struggles.
I recommend this book, strongly, it will be available in our church library soon (as soon as I can pry my fingers off it), if you happen to not go to our church (shame on you) maybe you could find a copy on Amazon or something.

Balance...equally as tough

2011-03-08T16:16:00.000-05:00

I just got back from a 2 week vacation to beautiful SUNNY Orlando, Florida. It was 80-85 the first week and 75-80 the second week. Boy that was "hard" to take (HaHa). We decided not to do any parks of any sort (Disney etc.) but rather just hang out and enjoy our time together.
Throughout the course of a day there are many competing factors that keep us from spending real, quality time with those we love. There are those necessary things such as jobs that keep us apart (even those may take an unhealthy amount of our time and focus) but I thought it would be important to point out those "unnecessary" things we fill our time with that keep us from developing greater relationships with those we say we love the most, our wife and children.
To start with there are the technological gadgets we surround ourselves with. I remember when cell phones first came out and what a big deal it was to speak to someone using a phone that needed to be hard wired into your car and required a separate antenna and only worked sporadically. Not anymore, everyone has one and it seems most can't live without it. Many people, especially those under 30, have the ear piece to never miss a call and their fingers are fast and furious in texting, to the point where there is a whole new language being developed (there was a young teen girl in youth group who told me that she texted about 3,000 texts a month). Then you throw in the people who have Internet access with their phone and you create a whole sub group who can't live without their facebook and twitter feeds constantly at their fingertips.
That's just the cell phone world, when you throw in the ipod, ipad, mp3 world you have another group who have buried themselves in their music walking around with ear buds in place constantly, oblivious to their surroundings. Move up the tech scale and you have wii and kinnect and all those gaming options. Keep going and you have home Internet and cable and the biggest televisions you have ever seen in many houses (wasn't that long ago that the 19" was standard fare).
Move away from the electronic world and their are still many other chosen distractions interfering with our special relationships, home, yard, car, pet, friend, church, volunteerism, and on and on the list goes. You might start to get the idea that relationships that are deep, intimate, intertwined and lasting are a thing of the past, something only a few might even still want. The reality is we display this truth every day, that relationships aren't a big deal. I dare say that if for any tragic reason we should suddenly lose all technological ability and be locked in a room with our wife and children we wouldn't know what to do.
Back to our trip to Florida, 2 weeks with no appointments, no Internet service (for one week) cell phone off and left on the dresser, no where to go and nothing to do but spend time with my wife and daughter...turns out to be the best two weeks of my life so far.

Humility...it's tough

2011-01-30T14:46:00.000-05:00

WARNING: ALWAYS BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU PRAY FOR
I made the mistake of praying about my lack of humility and that God would "take this on as his Extreme Makeover". He is answering, and fast and right to the core of it. Ouch! It hurts to recognize how much I want to defend myself and justify my actions, opinions and shortcomings.
I have spent more time licking my wounds, developing arguments in my head and looking at the faults of others all to make myself feel a smidge better, than I care to admit (though it appears I did just admit it). I am not going to take the typical route of claiming I am amongst good company in my battle or use the "we" language instead of the "I or me" language to try and get myself off the hook. I am as guilty as they come and if this were a court of law I would be found overwhelmingly guilty and locked up for life. My self-preservation and pride go so deep I amaze myself.
I cry out for Your hand of mercy to free me. I am weak, I need Your love to free me. Oh, Lord my Rock come rescue me.

To The Praise Of His Glory

2010-11-12T06:59:00.000-05:00

I will give to the LORD the thanks due to his righteousness, and I will sing praise to the name of the LORD, the Most High. (Psalm 7:17 ESV)

Psalm 9:2
I will be glad and exult in you;
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.
Psalm 9:11
Sing praises to the Lord, who sits enthroned in Zion!
Tell among the peoples his deeds!
Psalm 9:14
that I may recount all your praises,
that in the gates of the daughter of Zion
I may rejoice in your salvation.
Psalm 18:3
I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
and I am saved from my enemies.
The Psalms are full of praise and adoration. Every few hundred facebook posts you run across someone who is full of praise to God for being God. Not for something He has done or spared them from but just because He is God, even less occasionally you run across a person whose life exemplifies this and you are truly humbled in their presence.
Today, be that person! Be that person whose life is centered on the praise of God's glory. Give "the glory due His righteousness." Praise Him in the morning, Praise Him in the day time, praise Him in the evening, Praise Him every watch of the night, not for what he has done but for who His is. Praise His Name, may God be exalted above the heavens, may His glory resound in all the earth, let it echo from all His creation. Praise His name

If you have read the book The Shack (or are thinking about it)

2010-09-07T16:04:00.000-04:00

The blog is a simple one... "don't." I haven't read a fiction book probably since high school. For the longest time the thought of reading was about as appealing as vomiting. Then I went back to college and that's all I did was read, but not fiction. Now in the ministry I read more than I ever have before, but not fiction. So, I'm going away for a few days with the family and decided that I would read something just for the pleasure of reading, I was going to read a fiction book.
I had heard so much about the book The Shack, for a while it seemed like everyone had read it and it was on the top of every ones must read list, it seemed it set up residency on the USA top 10 list, so I thought, "boy this must be some book, I will read it, everyone is just raving about how it has shaped them and opened their eyes to a whole new dimension about understanding God." Who could resist such reviews? So that settled it, I took the book with me and set out reading it the first chance I got. At first it was captivating ( I love a good mystery) but then it got theological and that's where the "wheels fell off."
The shack is a theological catastrophe trying to disguise itself as a book of fiction. The book completely destroys the God of the bible in favor of a god of his own making, one that is much more...palatable to the human taste bud.
I could go into great detail about all the criticisms I have against the book but someone else who is way more clear and articulate has already done this so I will just leave a link to it, but first let me tell you a little about him. His name is Tim Challies and he is web designer by trade but has in the last few years grown very popular in the Christian blogging world. A reformed Christian with which we would affirm theological similarities, in other words...trustworthy. His website is www.challies.com and you can go there and read all kinds of great stuff but I want you to go to this link regarding The Shack and see what a great job he does handling it. http://www.challies.com/book-reviews/a-review-of-the-shack-download-it-here

Can A Christian Lose Their Salvation?

2010-06-04T09:25:00.000-04:00

Can a Christian loose there salvation? 2 Peter 2:20-22

When reading chapter two of 2 Peter this question is bound to be on more than a few minds and since it is not the focal point of Peter’s letter but rather a conclusion to the fate of a false teacher I have chosen not to focus on it in this sermon. However, I felt it profitable to address it as sort of an appendix to the sermon and to put it in writing. Of course to do so is to my own ill fate, for whenever anyone puts anything in writing they are opening themselves to all sorts of criticism. I accept that reality and only beseech you on behalf of our Christian unity that if you disagree with me do so in a manner that brings glory to God and builds each of us up. If you should happen to agree with me then I beseech you to not let this “seemingly peripheral” issue be a cause of undue gloating and finger pointing but rather in all things be gracious. If you would like to discuss this may I suggest that you do so in the blog that I will post this to which can be found on our website www.cccofg.com

Attempting to come at this passage in its context as though I had never read it before and had no preconceived ideas I studied very carefully the wording, the context to the original audience and the language used for the original audience as well as the intimation, or what the author was alluding to. I later read a commentary that was in favor that a Christian could indeed lose their salvation, referring to it as “apostasy” then later reading a commentary that was in favor that in fact a Christian could not lose their salvation.

What I would offer you, regarding this passage 2 Peter 2:20-22 (as the only text being considered for this discussion at this time) is that according to this passage Peter is clear throughout this letter and very particularly in chapter 2 to show that these “false” teachers were never Christian and therefore did not lose their salvation, you cannot lose something you never possessed. I will highlight 7 points of reference on this point, though there could be more I limit myself to these 7.

1. Starting with the simplest: In verse 1 of chapter two he refers to both false prophets and false teachers, false in the Greek is our word for pseudo which means in essence to fake or pretend for the purpose of deceiving. Peter’s implication is that they are pretending to be something that in actuality they are not. They claim to teach something they have not embraced, doing so for personal gain.

2. 2:12, 22 Peter refers to them as brute beasts, creatures of instinct, dogs and pigs. They show no evidence of conversion they are still slaves to their sinful human nature. In verse 2:19 he says they are slaves to corruption. Christians ( I will not play the game of using terms such as “true” Christians I simply mean by the term Christian those who have confessed their sin; trusted by faith, Christ as Savior and Lord; and there is evidence of that in the fruit of their life in Christ) as I was saying, Christians are recognizable not only by their correct thinking but equally by their correct living.

3. Verse 2:2 “even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them.” John in his first epistle says it best, 1 John 2:22-23 “Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist he denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father whoever acknowledges the son has the Father also.” Paul in his charge to young Timothy puts it this way, 2 Timothy 3:41-9 “…having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.” (v.5)

4. In light of the fruit of their life: 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 and Galatians 5:21 “I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the Kingdom of God.” (Their fruit exposed in 2 Peter 2:1-15)

5. 2:5,6 A godless Christian is an oxymoron. Peter refers to these false teachers as ungodly which is the same Greek word for godless (read Jude 4-16 for a strikingly similar passage).

6. Verse 2:20 The word “if” is a Greek word used to imply a condition which fruit has determined. Jesus said in Matthew 7:15 ”Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16By their fruit you will recognize them”.

7. Verse 2:-20-21 Peter uses the word “known” and “knowing”, as we have seen and had our attention drawn to already the word “know, known, knowing” has many meanings in the Greek language as it does also in the English language. In this particular use the word is “epignosko” full knowledge but not the same as “Epignosis” which we understood to mean personal and intimate, relational knowledge. These false teachers have a very thorough and working knowledge of Christianity and Christian doctrine. How dreadful and sad to become so knowledgeable about Christianity and Christian teaching and never to surrender one’s life to Christ.

The argument in the case of these false teachers in this passage covered in 2 Peter 2:20-22 isn’t an argument of whether or not on can lose their salvation but rather an argument as to whether or not they were Christian in the first place and Peter succinctly points out that they in fact were not. Though they were very knowledgeable and even were able to pretend very well they were in fact unconverted.

Are We (am I) Missing It?

2010-05-26T14:04:00.003-04:00

We live in one of the most affluent countries in the world, some would the most affluent. As a result of this, we (I) tend to view the Gospel and the spreading of it in light of this affluence that surrounds me. I sat with a dear friend a bit today, it was hot, unusually hot for this time of year, the sweat dripped down my back and I was just sitting. Air conditioning kept going through my mind. I thought how great it would be when later I get to go home and enjoy it. This friend didn't have ac, this friend lives in a development that is comprised of mostly low income or subsidised housing. Many I know and they are slouches and didn't put themselves in this predicament, it kind of just happened. Maybe there was an injury, maybe it was a layoff, or a death in the family, maybe they served our country, maybe they immigrated to our country for a chance to be free. I imagine the stories are as varied as their backgrounds are.
I got to thinking, actually it has been on my mind all day, am I missing it, is the affluent church of our culture missing it altogether? Are we so consumed with ourselves and "doing church" that we have neglected the very heart of God and His Gospel? One can hardly read any portion of Scripture and not run across the undeniably compassionate heart God has for the poor and needy. There is so much irrefutable evidence towards this that I honestly don't know how we (I) can sleep at night and not come under such heavy conviction from the Holy Spirit. Why am I not more broken for the last, the least and the lost? Especially considering that this was once my story?
Isaiah 41:17 "The poor and needy search for water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the Lord will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them."
Jeremiah 22:16 "He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me? declares the Lord."
James 1:26-2:19

Gospel centered friendships

2010-05-18T16:25:00.002-04:00

"Friendship evangelism", when you hear that term what comes to your mind? I think, at least for me, the name gives it away and implies what is most important, friendship. That until you become someones friend the evangelism part of the equation has no place in the relationship. Funny thing is, the evangelism part rarely, if ever, becomes a part of the relationship. It also kind of implies that my friendship is really going to be the tipping point for this person to finally become a Christian, that they have put it off all these years just waiting for me to come along and befriend them. The humbling reality to this is my friendship won't do anything for their spiritual condition.
I was speaking with a friend the other day and this person was expressing with great passion their desire for some young people to know Christ in an experiential way. They were expressing the need to "get into their lives" to "let them know they care" before they could "earn the right" to share the Gospel. The following was my encouragement to them: "Having such a passion in your heart for these young people is so strong sometimes that it drives us. It drives us to involve ourselves in their lives. The danger is, and I can speak from personal failure in this area, is to attempt to be their friend and never get around to the Gospel. We feel, and God has wired us this way, that we need to get inside, deep inside their heart, to fix them, to help them with all their struggles and get them feeling good about themselves first, then we hope to get on to God. The reality is that we are all in desperate need of God, in all our ugliness or beauty, in all our mess or in our complete togetherness, that in God's eyes we are all wretched sinners who need to repent, surrender, humble ourselves and cry out for His mercy and salvation. We must show them their desperate need for Jesus the Christ as Lord, God and Savior. We must become increasingly more passionate about the Gospel and their need, we do this with grace and gentleness, lovingly, embracingly, relationally, but our passion for the Gospel must grow, pray that God will give us a deeper and deeper and deeper and deeper and deeper, passion for His Gospel and the spread of it till we all see Christ and not us.
"I know you share this passion, that without Christ we are nothing and we have nothing and we have nothing of value to offer. I only desire to warn you of a trap I myself fell into, that is not seeing their true need."
As I look back on it it doesn't seem all that great to read, when I wrote it I thought, "wow, that's great God." So in an attempt to summarize let me just say maybe we should rearrange the title from Friendship Evangelism to Gospel Centered Friendships or Evangelistic Friendships that in hopes that it rearranges our mindset to get it in the proper sequence.

Content With Weakness

2010-03-31T09:38:00.002-04:00

"Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamaities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
This is one of the greatest oxymorans of all times, that I am strongest when I am at my weakest. This is only true when we consider the true origin of our strength, that it is the power of the Holy Spirit at work in me. It is a recognition that even in my greatest self strengths and greatest self effort I can do no good thing for Christ or His kingdom. It is in this recognition of my self inability that I open the door for the flooding power of the Spirit of Christ to flow through me to accomplish his good purposes, both in me and through me.
Look at the list Paul rattles off that he is now content with, (content shouldn't be confused with enjoying but rather seen as able to endure with confidance) weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities. Lord, so work this in me that I too see my greatest strengths and abilities as truly insufficient that I might gain the strength that is mine through the power of the Holy Spirit to be content in all situations.

Rubbish removal

2010-03-16T14:48:00.002-04:00

Okay so it's been a while since I wrote and I was hoping to get some feedback and comments on the post. I remember that when I started this blog I was hoping that it would be a place where we could encourage one another with the stories of the awesome things God is doing in us and through us. I am aware of some really neat things going on. I know Bonnie H. has a great story to tell and I have had two different opportunities to share Christ (and I actually did, not that common for me). God is doing some really neat things and our prayer is that it is only just begun.
At youth group the other night we were challenged by the apostle Paul to "go all in" in a powerful way, "But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ... Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me." What a bold challenge for us all.

The Turning Point

2010-02-21T05:27:00.000-05:00

Sunday was...surprising, awesome, a blessing, powerful, inspired, these are just a few words some gave to describe what God did this past Sunday at church. One person even asked if I did something different in preparing, "did you pray for this one." It was as though God's Spirit broke into our routine of church. We would like to think that this happens every Sunday, but in reality we all know it hasn't.
I will not try to explain away what we experienced last week. The only explanation I will give is this; God has promised that there is power in the Word of God. "I will exalt My name and My word above all things." (Psalm 138:2) When we exalt His name and His word and we allow access to our inner most being to His Holy Spirit we will be apprehended, confronted to "Set apart Jesus as Lord in your heart." And that is what happened.
As powerful and great as Sunday was I wonder how this past week following it was for you? Did you find yourself "moving on"? You know, forgetting about it and getting back to the routine of life. I struggled all week, I struggled not with forgetting about it but with applying it. "How would Tuesday at 2pm or Thursday at noon be any different? What was your struggle?
One thing that happened this week was the rest of the letter of 1 Peter came into clearer focus for me. That verse, "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord." was like a key that unlocked the rest, it brought clarity to it, it tied it all together for me.
I am excited (honestly, nervously so) to preach this week because I see it being the next step for those of us who stood to say, "I Will Go All In."