Month: May 2014

Deal-breakers?

Posted by

1

In men’s group last night, we talked about what a loving community of Jesus-followers looks like. We talked extensively about the differences between denominations, and the pitiful, trivial reasons we aren’t unified as one Body of Christ. If it weren’t so sad, it would be laughable.

The question to ask when deciding to partner with others from another denomination is, “Do they believe in Jesus Christ and him crucified as the Son of God?” That is the “essential” question as author James Bryan Smith says in The Good and Beautiful Community.

Could all our others differences be “non-essentials?”

Smith goes on to say, “The essential is our identity as people in whom Christ dwells. Tolerance is not our primary aim; nor is equality. Our highest aim is love. Our primary focus is on Christ as Lord.”

We will always have differences in doctrine and methodology. We will always have differences in style, how we dress, what we sing, and how we worship our God. Yes, we have major differences. But as Pastor Brandon said last night, “Are they deal-breakers?”

James Bryan Smith says:

“I am not liberal and I am not conservative. I am an apprentice of Jesus. I am simply trying to discern that which that which is essential and that which is non-essential. For me, the basic teaching found in the creeds (the Apostles’ Creed and Nicene Creed) is essential. Everything else is non-essential. Not unimportant, just not important enough for me to divide from those who share the same belief in the essentials.”

For me, this rocks my world. It has me re-examining my “essentials” and my “non-essentials.” I wonder how different the Body of Christ – The Church – would look if we all did the same. I wonder if the watching world would respond differently to the Good News.

There are important differences, to be sure. Each must decide what is essential and non-essential. But that shouldn’t stop us from our highest aim: love.

Love never fails.

Be

Posted by

4

I know I have a part to play in this thing called faith. I know that the Bible says:

But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:15-16, NLT).

But as strange as it sounds, I looked up the word “be”. There were a number of definitions and uses, but the one that fits its use in the Scripture above would be the same as used in the phrase, “Be careful” or “Be happy”.

The Mirriam-Webster Dictionary says that “be” is used to describe the identity of a person or thing; or used to describe the qualities of a person or thing; or used to describe the condition of a person or thing.

Identity. Qualities. Condition.

Holy.

Because of Christ, my identity is holy. I have been chosen (you have been, too) to be set apart as an instrument of grace, to bring glory and honor to the One who did this for me. I am a child of God. That is my identity. I am BEING holy.

Because of Christ, the Holy Spirit of Christ now dwells within me. I am being transformed from glory to glory into the image of Christ. It is no longer I that live but Christ who lives in me. I am no longer comforming to the pattern of this world but my mind is being renewed (little by little). I have the mind of Christ. If you are a follower of Jesus, you do too! I am not perfect. But I’m not who I used to be. The old is gone and the new has come. Those are my qualities. I have Christ dwelling within me. I am BEING holy.

Because of Christ, I eternally reside in the Kingdom of God. I have a home in heaven that awaits me. It will be glorious, to be sure. But that’s not all. Eternal life happen in the here and now! I am a participant in the divine nature of God! I get to watch God work in me and in the lives around me! No matter what happens to me or the world around me, I know that the Kingdom is unstoppable and unshakeable. No matter what Fox News or any other report says, in spite of the world around us, God’s Kingdom is not in trouble. The ending has been written! It’s victorious, and despite what happens in my world today or tomorrow, I am victorious, too! Unshakeable. That’s my condition. I am BEING holy.

The part I have to play in this journey of faith is to “be.” BE holy. Because of Christ, you and I are.

Good News indeed!

Be still…

Posted by

1

On Saturday, I rode out on my motorcycle to see my friend Dave, who invited me out to a rental property he and his wife, Dawn, own just east of Charlottesville’s airport. It was a beautiful ride on a beautiful Spring day. I took the back roads and arrived mid-afternoon as he was mowing grass as he does every other week.

I took a tour of his property which includes a total of about 20 acres, part of which is open field fronting on the Rivanna River. It was a gorgeous piece of property. He said loves to come out and spend hours on one of his two mowers, normally with his son, Clark, who helps him. He says, “It gives me a chance to be with my son. Sometimes we just sit on a tree stump and talk and enjoy God’s creation.”

Before I left to head home, we hugged, and then there was a pause. A gentle breeze blew through the trees and there was no noise except the sound of the new leaves rustling as breeze traveled through them.

Pastor Brandon did something unusual at church yesterday. After the worship music portion of the service, he explained that silence is a gift from God, and then he had us sit in silence. He said, “This may be the most spiritual thing you do today.” And as I sat there with my head in my hands, at first I heard people getting settled in their seats. But the longer I sat there, my mind shifted from the here and now to that brief moment Saturday as the breeze blew through the trees. As I sat there, I realized that the brief moment of silence with David was a gift of God. It was a moment of His presence… of His grace… of His love. And as I sat there in siilence, His presence again saturated me and, frankly, I began to cry, overwhelmed by His presence and love.

Silence is a gift from God. It helps us separate from the clamour of this world. It allows us to hear that “still, small voice”. It allows us a chance to experience His presence, His grace and His love.

“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10)

It’s not easy. It’s awkward and uncomfortable. Pastor Brandon broke the silence by saying, “That half hour you just experienced was three minutes.”

It was the best three minutes of the day. It WAS the most spiritual thing of the day yesterday… and the day before.

An Open Invitation…

Posted by

2

“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! (Isaiah 55:1)

“You made us for yourself and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” — Augustine

How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They feast on the abundance of your house;
you give them drink from your river of delights.
For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light we see light.
(Psalm 36:7-9)

“…but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (Jesus in John 4:14)

It is an open, endless invitation to FINALLY find what satisfies. There’s nothing you have to do to prepare. You just come with a willing heart.

God will meet you there.

It’s not by accident that you’re reading this.

No matter your status or situation… Just come.

Taste and see that the Lord is good;
blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
(Psalm 34:8)

I’m praying for you.

Surrendered?

Posted by

2

I attended a church service in June or July of 1996 and I was never the same afterward. I’m ashamed to say that I don’t know my “Re-Birthday”, but I think it was July and it was definitely ’96. I was changed. That was nearly 18 years ago and I think that those who knew me in college and high school would say there’s been a change. I would have been voted “Most Likely to Waste Their Life” because I was getting wasted all the time. It’s an apt description… what a waste! I nearly did waste my life; that is, until 1996.

Thereafter, I hungered for the things of God. I devoured the Bible in six months. I knew what I was supposed to do. I had the knowledge. But the obedience didn’t follow. I fell into sin, and as is the unfortunate case with most Christian failings, the perpetrator is ostracized or shunned. Those that knew about my sin tried to get me to turn away but after a couple of tries, they would have nothing to do with me.

Normally sin will keep you from the desire to seek the things of God, but not so with me. I still hungered and at the same time, was tormented by what Christians would call the conviction of the Holy Spirit.

I discovered grace (again) in February of 1997 when I first attended a new church, Community Fellowship Church of the Nazarene. It felt like a safe place from the very beginning. I had lunch at Captain D’s Restaurant with its pastor, Jeff Griffith, and he showed me the true meaning of love, forgiveness, grace, and restoration. Through his leadership, I found that, incredibly, God could use my failings and brokeness to bring encouragement, healing, and victory to others. And God did, amazingly. I still shake my head in amazement.

I attended that church for 16 years, and being the Type-A personality that I am, served as hard as I could. Looking back, maybe it was God’s burning desire rekindled in me or maybe it was an effort to repay God for His forgiveness and restoration. Maybe it was both. I was constantly trying to do more, learn more, study more, work more, and even surrender more.

My wife and I sadly left that church last August. It was the hardest decision of my Christian life. Looking back after seven months, I’m glad we left. I miss the people terribly, but without leaving, I would have never discovered the liberation I now have after finding another facet of God’s grace.

Every Sunday, Christians hear a message of forgiveness and surrender. They are encouraged to surrender or to surrender more, and some pulpits will even declare a message of trying harder. I can’t remember a message of trying harder, although I know that it’s preached. I’ve preached it. I’ve taught it. “Read more.” “Pray more.” “Serve more,” is the mantra.

As I’ve struggled in my journey of faith, I’ve always thought my problem was that I hadn’t surrendered fully. There must be areas of my life that I haven’t fully turned over to God. I haven’t fully yielded to the leading of the Holy Spirit. That must be the problem, I thought. That’s what I’ve been taught and that’s what’s been preached (at least that’s what I thought I heard).

That may be true, but to a Type-A personality and perfectionist like me, surrender then becomes an obsession, and actually becomes – in some crazy way – a work. It becomes something I must do in order to become more like Christ. Maybe that sounds crazy to you. Maybe it sounds strangely familiar.

For me, liberating victory has (again) come through the Gospel. Yes, the Gospel. The Good News.

Knowing that Jesus paid the price for my sins is one thing (and yes, the MAIN THING), but there’s more to it than just that (although that’s great news by itself).

It’s also knowing that…

… because Jesus won, I’m free to lose.
… because Jesus was strong, I’m free to be weak.
… because Jesus was someone, I’m free to be no one.
… because Jesus was the ultimate leader, I’m free and content to be a follower.
… because Jesus was (is) extraordinary, I’m free and content to be ordinary.
… because Jesus succeeded, I am free to fail.
… because “It is finished”, the work is done.

There is such freedom in those words, but there’s more.

I’ve said it before but I have to say it again and again because it is such Good News: There’s nothing I can do to make God love me more and nothing I can do to make God love me less. There is nothing I can do to repay God. There is nothing I can do to curry God’s favor, including surrendering more.*

Surrendering more is something that occurs naturally by getting the statements above the 18 inches from my head down into my heart. Surrendering more is something I don’t have to do; it just happens. As I discover the full revelation of God’s love and grace, it fills me more and more with the things of God. He’s all I think about or want to think about. I see the futility of living any other way and see more and more my need for Him everyday… mostly to save me from ME. It’s still a constant battle, but one that Jesus has already won for me.

I’m not sure if any of this resonates with you, but it is life-changing with me. Isn’t God’s grace truly amazing!?!

 

* to read a better description of this liberation, read any of Tullian Tchividjian’s books, such as One Way Love or Jesus + Nothing = Everything

I thank God for his fresh teaching on the subject.

Embarrassments

Posted by

1

I read an article a few nights ago about Donald Sterling and just had to share some thoughts from it. Donald Sterling, if you fell off the planet in the past two weeks, is the embattled owner of the Los Angeles Clippers NBA basketball team. He made some shocking, deplorable remarks to his girlfriend that were recorded which included that she shouldn’t associate with black people and he wished that she wouldn’t “bring them to his games.” The remarks are appalling, indeed, and everyone, seemingly, has weighed in on this issue – from LeBron James and Michael Jordan to President Obama.

In his article, “Jesus Came for the embarrassments”, Nick Lannon writes:

“It seems to me, though, that there is at least one thing left to say, one thing that I’ve not heard amidst the talking heads, one thing that’s being drowned out by the outrage: I’m not all that different than Donald Sterling.

“To frame our discussion, let’s use a tweet from ESPN.com’s NBA analyst Kevin Pelton, who wrote this on Saturday:

“@kpelton: Important Sterling takeaway: If it’s so hard to get rid of an embarrassing owner, the vetting process better be airtight.

“What Pelton is referring to here is the vetting process done by the NBA and other owners before giving a prospective owner the opportunity to buy into their most exclusive of clubs. There have been many calls for the NBA to ‘force’ Sterling to sell the Clippers, but there doesn’t seem to be any kind of precedent—or legal recourse—to make that happen. Pelton suggests that if kicking an embarrassment out is impossible, the league should make extra sure that they don’t let embarrassments in in the first place.

“Here’s the pertinent fact for our discussion: We are all embarrassments!

“Too often, we think of Christianity as an NBA-like exclusive club from which we’d like to keep potential embarrassments. When someone on the inside has a public ‘fall from grace,’ we wonder aloud to each other if they were ever truly members in the first place. We keep our vetting process airtight, praying that our club avoid embarrassment.

“What if Jesus had sentiments similar to those Pelton expressed? In Part 13 of his Romans sermon series, Pastor Tullian Tchividjian asked this question. ‘If he’s going to be such an embarrassment,’ Jesus might say, ‘I’ve got to make sure my vetting process is airtight.’

“Pastor Tullian continued: ‘Jesus doesn’t vet. He comes to the embarrassments. He comes to you and to me.’ ”

Lannon goes on to add that if Jesus had a “vetting” process to get into the Kingdom, we’d all be in trouble. He says, “We need a God who, in Christ, does not vet. We need a God who knows us to be the needy, prideful, prejudiced, self-glorifying Donald Sterling people that we are, and who comes to us in our need. We need a God who doesn’t wait for us to clean up our act. Donald Sterling has proven himself an enemy of the NBA, and the NBA is going to do all it can to punish him for it. Jesus Christ, on the other hand, was sent on a mission specifically to rescue his enemies (Romans 5:10).

“It might be fair for Donald Sterling to lose his NBA team. That’s for lawyers to decide. We need a God who is better than fair; in fact, a fair god leads inexorably to our destruction. We need a God of mercy. And in Christ, the rescuer of enemies, we have one.”

(Note: Two days ago, Donald Sterling was banned for life from the NBA, fined a hefty amount, and ordered to sell his team. Stay tuned.)

Beauty

Posted by

0

Last night in men’s group, we were talking about what a serving community looks like. After talking about servanthood and working our way around the topic, just before we finished, I asked a guy if he had any thoughts. He had been quiet the entire evening. When he spoke, I was hanging on every word.

He said that it all boils down to seeing the value in whom you serve. It is about assigning more value in those you serve than in yourself. That does not mean self-debasement, because I am valuable, he said. It’s just about valuing others more than yourself.

He went on and spoke about Jesus. Jesus, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, the One who made all things, and for whom all things exist, considered His creation more valuable than Himself, and humbled Himself as a servant, even unto death on the Cross.

James Bryan Smith, author of The Good and Beautiful Community writes, “It is a matter of seeing the beauty and worth of a person that increases our desire to serve.” He goes on to say, “The core narrative we choose to live by will determine our behavior — my needs first or your needs first.”

We are ALL His creation and are ALL beautiful treasures… the apple of His eye and those worth dying for. James Bryan Smith re-crafted a prayer by Macrina Wiederkehl to say:

“O God, help me see the truth about those I meet today — no matter how beautiful they are.”

Amen.