God Has No Perfect Servants

Christ is the divine/human reference point for both God and man.  Just as no man can come to the Father but through Christ, God does not come to us but through Christ either.  In this way Christ is indeed the only mediator between God and man.  Just as we see God through and in Christ, God sees us in and through Christ.  Therefore, just as our reference point in our dealings with God is not ourselves, not our sin, and certainly not our performance as Christians but rather is Christ, His righteousness and His performance on our behalf—God’s reference point in dealing with us is the same.   

This is the truth behind Psalm 103:10, in which we are told God does not deal with us according to our sins.  How can this be?  Because He is dealing with us in accordance with another reference point—that point of reference, being Jesus Christ Who made an end to all our sins! 

As I read through my Bible, I am often confounded as well as relieved with how God related to and carried on intimate fellowship with the likes of men who lied about their wives, had more than a few wives, were not the best of fathers, kept a few household idols around just in case, took advantage of others, and otherwise chose not to deal with some serious sin issues in their lives thus failing to break down the “high places” that were a constant scourge to their spiritual progress.  

Reading these biblical accounts reminded me of a short biography of A.W. Tozer, a man whose intimacy with and knowledge of the Holy very few would dispute or have experienced.  Yet, for all his godliness, he greatly lacked as a husband and father causing those closest to him to question throughout their lives whether he truly loved them or simply tolerated them as he pursued Who he truly loved—Jesus Christ.  As I read about Tozer’s less than complimentary and acceptable performance as a Christian husband and father I struggled to reconcile his intimacy with God with his lack of intimacy with his family.  How could he know and relate to God yet not truly know and relate to his wife?  How could he preach, pray, and write with such spiritual power yet fail to communicate and demonstrate a father’s love to his sons?  Basically, I was surprised that God could and would relate as intimately to and use a man to such a degree as He did Tozer. 

Now please understand, my surprise was not because I thought Tozer was unfit or unqualified for service but rather because I thought he really had it all together and that is why God was so intimate with Him and used him to such a great degree.  In other words, I had fallen into the trap of a performance-based consecration which thinks that God relates most intimately with and uses most greatly those whose lives demonstrate the greatest degree of holiness and “spiritual got-it togetherness”.

Then in one of those all too few moments when God seems to come down and speak directly into the heart of His servants, God spoke to me, deep within my heart of hearts,  and here is what He said,   “I have no perfect servants.”    What a freeing realization this became for me the more I contemplated His words.  My sin, my failings, my lack of sanctification, my issues, my rough edges, my lack of godly character, and myself in general and in particular are not God’s reference point when it comes to dealing with, fellowshipping with, becoming intimate with, and/or even using me.  His reference point, plain and simple, both now and forevermore, is Christ.  He sees me in Christ and deals with me in Christ and this is the way it will always be.  And this is what frees God to love me allowing and enabling me to experience and enjoy intimacy with Him.  Not only does it free Him to relate to me in a positive way it also enables Him to use me, failings, immaturity, sin issues, and all, for His greater glory and my immense joy.

Now, I realize, that given most teaching on the subject of consecration, that saying our degree of sanctification is not the main issue when it comes to whom God chooses to use in His service, seems spiritually dangerous—it nevertheless is true.   Not that it hurts to pursue holiness so as to be as sharp an instrument as possible in the hands of God but God has never been nor is He now nor will He ever be limited by the quality of the cutlery available to Him.  Hebrews 11 is the perfect example of how greatly God used imperfect and in fact badly flawed and even badly dulled instruments to accomplish some of His greatest and most penetrating work.  This should not surprise us either as the whole point of Hebrews 11 as well as in salvation and sanctification is not the merit of the recipient of God’s grace as much as it is his or her’s utter lack of merit.  In other words,  God did not use and does not use great men and women of God to accomplish great work for God for the simple reason there are no great men and women of God.  God has no great or perfect servants.  All are flawed, all are sinful, all have issues, all struggle, and all have Christ and His righteousness as their point of reference when it comes to how God sees them, relates to them, and uses them.  In this sense, all are trophies of His grace.

The point of consecration in terms of greater sanctification is not so much service or spiritual usability as much as it is a greater capacity for seeing and thus experiencing and enjoying God.  “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God” is the promise made to all of those who have become partakers of divine grace and mercy.  The point of consecration is not greater service for God but greater vision of God.  Divine happiness, of which, we have all been enabled to enjoy as much of as we desire, comes not through our serving of God but in seeing God.  In fact, to find a greater joy in serving than in seeing God is idolatry in its purest and most hideous form.   We serve because we see not vice versa.  Furthermore, we serve Him best when we see Him best.  But we will never see God to serve God and in fact to enjoy God if we continue to view the quality or lack of quality of our relationship with God through the false reference point of ourselves, our sins, our failures, our immaturity, and our glaringly true spiritual inadequacies and inconsistencies.  Only one reference point exists by which the believer is to view God as well as himself and all that he is or is not and that point of reference is the same one through Whom God views, deals with, and comes to us—The only Mediator between God and man—Christ Jesus our Lord!

Christian Meet Your God Genesis 1:1A

This post is a continuation of yesterday's thoughts on Genesis and in particular the first independent clause or statement in the Bible, "In the beginning God", found in Genesis 1:1. This is how God introduces Himself.  The basic idea is that when beginning began God already was and had been forever.  Theologians refer to this concept as the pre-existence of God.  Now since God is pre-existent and thus prior to all things because He is the Creator of all things—He cannot be controlled, bound, obligated, limited, known, or defined by anything He created. 

God can only be known if He makes Himself known.  Furthermore, God can only be known to the degree that He makes Himself known.  But interestingly enough, this God Who is Infinite and without limitations  and thus unknowable—knows Himself perfectly, completely, and infinitely.  So how do you package a God Who knows Himself perfectly and yet by theological definition is unknowable?  You can’t!  And that is God’s point in the very first sentence of the Bible—Don’t try to define or figure me out so you can put me in your little box and try to contain me.  God is not a box-able, package-able, containable God.  As Tumnus, in C.S. Lewis’ book, “The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe”, states to Lucy about Aslan the Lion, who pictures Christ Who is Himself God,—“He is not a tame lion but He is good.”

To go further in understanding this first sentence of the Bible we see that because God is pre-existent and the source of all things and is thus bound by nothing outside of Himself that He is self-existent, self-sufficient, and self-determining or completely Sovereign over every atom in His Creation.  In other words, God exists because it is His nature to exist—He is self-existent and because He is self-existent—He will always exist and He will always exist as He is—thus God is eternal.  And because God is eternal as He is in all His perfections He will never change.  So this means that regardless of what becomes politically correct and acceptable to man—God will not change to accommodate the speck of dust He calls Man and his perversions of God’s created order.

God’s pre-existence also means He is Self-sufficient which means He did not create because He needed to or because He needed something from his Creation.  God has always been and thus has always been Self-sufficient and really Self-Contained thus there is absolutely nothing that we or the rest of Creation can do to improve God’s existence.  In other words, God did not create us because He needed company, fellowship, workers, glory, love, or anything else.  He created because He wanted to--not because He needed to.

The fact is—God has never needed fellowship or company or love because He exists as a Trinity with perfect fellowship and love with each member of the Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  This is hinted at by the use of the Hebrew word, “Elohim” in the first sentence of the Bible, “Bereshith Elohim” or “In beginning God”.  You see Elohim is plural.  It is the plural form of El which means God.  The word Elohim occurs 35 times in Genesis 1 so, this was not a typo.  God wants us to understand that He exists as more than one person and the remainder of Scripture reveals to us that God exists as the three Persons we know as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
Therefore, existing as Trinity in perfect fellowship and love—God did not create because He was lonely and needed love or fellowship.

Now, finally, because God is Infinite as the Pre-existent God, He is Omnipotent or All-Powerful and Omni-Present or Present everywhere at the same time which means He is absolutely able to do whatever He wishes whenever He wishes and wherever He wishes which means He is Absolutely Sovereign over everything—including us.

Wow—all this in the very first sentence of the Bible.

And the fact is, this very first complete thought in the Bible is perhaps the most important because it is bringing us face-to-face with the God with Whom we have to do.  He is not an imaginary God nor a God of our own making because no man would create a God like this—no man could.  He is the God Who is—and He will always Be.  And He is perfectly capable and able to meet your every need.  He is infinitely more than able to satisfy your every desire.  He can be trusted and He can be relied upon and knowing Him as he reveals Himself is the only true and lasting antidote to stress and fear that exists.

You know, God gave the Israelites the Book of Genesis to help them but they for the most part failed to use it and they failed to teach it to their children.  And this spelled disaster for them for generations to come.  They who forget God and Who He is—do so to their peril.  And the reason why we often struggle with sin, stress, a lack of faith, spiritual courage, confidence in God, and a lack of joy in our lives is because we too have forgotten Who our God is and What our God is able and willing to do on our behalf if we would only trust and rely upon and put confidence in Him alone.

We are often like the man who was walking next to a cliff and suddenly slipped and went over the edge.  As he was falling however, he was able to grab ahold of a tree root extending out from the cliff.  And as he was dangling in mid-air holding on to that root for dear life he began crying out for help.  He began yelling, “Is anyone up there who can help me?”  And then all of a sudden he heard a voice from above which said—“I can help you but first you need to let go of the branch.”  The man looked up and then he looked down and began yelling—“Is there anyone else that can help me?”

Well, there is no one else who can help us except God but we have to trust Him—we have to put our confidence in Him and we can only do that if we know something about Him.  Genesis is God’s gift to you to help you understand that He not only is able to help you—It would be His joy to do so—but you’ll have to trust Him and place your full confidence in Him to help you by doing what is best for you not necessarily what is comfortable—whether you like it or not.

Finally, our Creator God is ultimately inescapable by anyone.  All of us who are creatures must one day meet Him and be judged by Him.  And we will either be judged innocent because we have trusted in Him for salvation or we will be judged guilty because we chose to ignore Him.  The God with Whom we all have to do is merciful, compassionate, kind, and will forgive our sins but only if we come to Him on His terms which is to come to Him through Jesus Christ Who is Himself God the Son.  Oh how much better to do business with God today rather than later.

STRESSED OUT? READ GENESIS!

Can you imagine going to your pastor or counselor because your stress level has shot through the roof only to have him tell you to go home and read the Book of Genesis?  Well, it may surprise you to know that this is exactly what some pastors of old would have prescribed.  You see, back in the day, a really long time ago when pastors were considered by the Puritans to be "doctors of the soul" Genesis would have been a go-to tool in their spiritual medical bag for people who were struggling with stress.  Who would have known--right?!

I mean, this surprises us and the reason it comes as a surprise is because when many of us think of Genesis we picture endless genealogies, ancient history, a really long Book filled with names we can’t pronounce, stories we’ve heard over and over again in Sunday school, and all the technical details about Creation versus Evolution.  So, how can this help anyone and why would I say that Genesis can help stressed out believers?  Good questions that deserve a good answer.

Well, for starters the original intended target audience God provided Genesis to was a group of several million Hebrew people Moses had just led out of Egypt into the middle of the barren “no-man's” land of the Sinai Wilderness.  These were people who had been in Egypt for 430 years—most of that time as slaves—and then this God whom they had for the most part forgotten raised up a man with a criminal record ,whom they did not really know,  to lead them back home to a place they no longer knew on a journey through a wilderness they not only did not know but did not in the least care for.  Talk about stress!  Can you imagine all the “what-if’s” these Hebrew people must have had?!

So, if you were there would it be of interest to you to meet this God and find out a little bit more about Him?  Would you want to know something about His ability to take care of you, provide for your family’s needs, keep you safe, and successfully lead you all to the Promised Land?  Well, I sure would!!  I mean, if I am going to entrust my life, my family, my future, and in fact, my very soul to God—I’d like to get the scoop on Him.

In fact, if I don’t get the scoop on Him—if I really don’t have any understanding of this God—how can I really trust Him—let alone love Him.  Because, you see, we humans come pre-wired to only trust what and who we know and to only love what and who we trust.  So, if we are going to love and follow someone—like God—we need to be able to trust Him.  And to trust Him we need to know some stuff about Him.  In fact, we really need to know Him to trust Him.

So, the way in which God began to alleviate their stress and their fear was by formally introducing Himself to them through the very first Book in the Bible—the Book we call Genesis.  But, not only did He introduce Himself and make Himself known to these people—He also introduced them to themselves by sharing through Genesis the stories of their roots and their ancestors.

But, that’s not all God gave them Genesis for—In Genesis, He told them why there was so much evil in the world and why life just didn’t seem to add up and what He was doing about all this evil and how in the end He would restore their hope, their dignity, their dreams, their future, their relationship with Him, and their original destiny which, they had all but forgotten.  You see, God wanted to help His stressed out and fearful people by giving them faith, hope and courage by revealing Himself, His Attributes, His Faithfulness, His Promises, and His Love for them.

Now, to really get a handle on Genesis we need to understand that the Hebrews were not so much concerned with how old the earth was or precisely how God created the universe as much as they were with knowing if this God Who was leading them into the unknown could and would take care of them.  So, He gave them Genesis.  And here’s a secret for you—this is why He gave us Genesis too!  He gave us Genesis so that we might know Him better than we do so that we will trust Him much more than we are so that we will love and enjoy Him far more than we ever thought.  Oh, sure Genesis gives us all the facts we need to know concerning the creation of the universe and people but it was never intended to be a science text book as much as it was designed to introduce us to the God of science Who created the universe and people. 

Now, Genesis was recorded by Moses sometime after the Exodus in 1445 B.C. and before Moses died in 1405 B.C.  And the other really important thing to know about Genesis is that it, correctly understood, is really all about Jesus Christ and the Gospel.  That's right!  Don't believe me?  Look at Luke 24:25-32.  Now check out Luke 24:44-47.  Consider John 1:45; 5:39 as well as verses 45-47.And let's throw Matthew 5:17-18 in there too.  You see, Jesus not only completes the Old Testament; He fulfills it in the sense that He is the ultimate reality that everything in the Old Testament is pointing to.  Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law, the Prophets, the Writings, the feasts, the sacrificial system, the Temple, the priesthood, and the promises written about in the Old Testament.  Thus, every bit of Scripture including Genesis is part of the same great story of God rescuing us from our sin and its condemnation through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ so that we might be reconciled to God and restored to our original destiny in Creation, which we had all but forgotten.

As Tim Keller writes:

There are two ways to read the Bible.  The one way is to read it as though its all about you—what you have to do in order to be right with God and stay right with God.  This way of reading the Bible will never give you sure hope and security because you will never measure up.  The other way to read it is to see it as all about Jesus.  Its about Who Jesus is and what Jesus has done to make you absolutely right with God.  If you do not read the Bible this way you will never be secure in your Faith.  But, once you understand that the Bible is all about Jesus Christ and what He has done for you and in your place—then you can be secure and experience hope and peace.

I'd also add that once you understand the whole Bible--including Genesis--is about Jesus and His rescue of sinners who will repent and believe in Him from an eternity in hell--you'll be well on your way to experiencing much less stress.

Now, the title “Genesis”, which means “origins”, comes from the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures.   The original Hebrew title of the Book, named after the first word in the Book, is Bereshith—which means “In  Beginning”.  Both are appropriate titles because Genesis is about the origin or the beginning of our universe, marriage, family, sin, redemption, the Hebrew people, and a bunch of other things.  But Genesis is especially concerned with telling us about Him Who has no beginning—He Who has always been and always will be—Him Whom we call God. 

This brings us to the very first sentence in the Bible, found in Genesis 1:1 which is—“In beginning God.”  Now, I know that does not make grammatical sense in English and so the first sentence in our Bibles is:  “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”  But, in Hebrew—“In beginning God” or “Bereshith Elohim” form an independent clause which stands alone as a complete thought or sentence with “created the heavens and the earth” being the second clause or second complete thought.

Thus, Genesis 1:1 is telling us more than—when beginning began God is the One Who brought it into being—it is first and foremost telling us that when beginning began God already existed and had existed forever.  Perhaps the best way to understand it is to see how Moses phrased it in Psalm 90:2 where he wrote: "Before the mountains were brought forth or you had formed the earth and the world--from everlasting to everlasting you are God."  In theological terms, what Moses was saying is that—God is pre-existent!

Therefore, the first complete thought in Genesis—Bereshith Elohim—rightly understood is introducing to us the God Who has no origins, no beginning, no end, no source, no equal, no superior, no needs, no rivals, no limitations, and no problem dealing with us and whatever is causing us stress.  You see, the fact that God is pre-existent means He is previous to and thus, more powerful than and in fact--sovereign over any thing, person, experience, situation, problem, anxiety, challenge, issue, glitch, fear, doubt, or sin which might be causing you to be stressed out. 

Notice also that the Bible does not begin with man or with creation but with God because God is the beginning and the source of all things.  This means that nothing in our universe can be understood correctly without beginning with God first.  This means nothing that is wrong can be made right apart from starting with God first.  It means that God is necessary to every equation, every proposition, every truth, and the solution to every stress-causing problem because God as the originator of all that exists is essentially necessary.  In fact, God is the only Being Who is necessary! 

So.....got stress?  Read and believe Genesis!

How God Uses Your Doubts To Give You Assurance

If I could see my sanctification with 20/20 vision I would have no trouble believing in my future glorification with 100% certainty.  But, the fact is, I can't and I don't see my personal holiness and growth in Christlikeness with this kind of 20/20 clarity.  Truth be known, most of the time I can't see it at all and this sometimes causes me to doubt my salvation.  And this is serious business because if my doubts prove true and I am not a believer I have no expectation of future glorification but rather condemnation.  But, what if I were tell you that God's purpose for your doubts is to give you assurance of your salvation?

You see, this inability to see our growing sanctification with perfect 20/20 vision causing us to doubt we possess it is the very thing that fuels an intense desire to be growing in Christ and holiness so as to prove the reality of our salvation.  If you could see with perfect clarity your growth in Christ and holiness so as to never doubt it you would have no reason to hope for it.  But, when we cannot see our sanctification clearly--resulting in us intensely desiring, crying out to God, and hoping for it we are seeing the genuineness of our faith.  You see, it is the desire for spiritual growth and holiness (aka: sanctification) that gives us assurance of our salvation, continuing sanctification, and future glorification.  

The Apostle Paul alludes to this in Romans 8:23-25 when he makes the point that true believers eagerly look forward to the final redemption of our bodies which finally and forever frees us from the presence of sin which fights us at every turn in our battle for holiness.  He goes on to state in verse 24 that "in hope we have been saved but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees?"  In other words, if you could see your progress in sanctification with 20/20 clarity you would have no reason to hope for it.  Then in verse 25 he makes the all-important point that ". . . if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it."  What Paul is saying is that our inability to see perfectly our own sanctification is the very thing that drives us to intensely desire it and persevere in waiting for it which, in turn is the assurance or proof that we are truly saved and will be glorified.

Keep in mind, unbelievers are not at all bothered by an inability to see spiritual growth and holiness let alone Christlikeness in their lives.  It is not a problem for them because it simply does not interest them.  Only believers care about sanctification.  Only believers care about not seeing it in their lives as they think they should.  Only believers desire it.  So, if you are hoping for the sanctification and holiness that you cannot see very clearly if at all today--rejoice.  Rejoice that you are desiring and hoping for that which only true believers in Christ Jesus desire and hope for.  Rejoice that God is using even your doubts to assure you of your salvation.  

What's A Pastor To Do?

Used to be that one of the most popular synonyms for the title "pastor" was another title, "preacher".  That's because, back in the day, that's what pastors were--preachers--because that's what they did.  Now, that's not all they did.  In fact, if that's all they did they really wouldn't be able to be pastors because pastors do more than preach.  Besides preaching, pastors also pray and shepherd the souls of those God has entrusted to them.  Of course, they also provide leadership and counsel to their congregations as they shepherd them.  So, there you have it.  Pastors primarily preach, pray, and shepherd God's people.

In preaching pastors are essentially talking to the congregation about God.  In their praying pastors talk to God about their congregation.  And in their shepherding pastors live life with their people offering spiritual direction, counsel, encouragement, friendship, a listening ear, an imperfect example of what it looks like to follow Christ, and sometimes even firm loving discipline.  These three tasks of preaching, praying, and shepherding are the essential acts of pastoral ministry.  

This is not to say pastors don't do other things like moderating business meetings, presenting budgets, training church workers, attending meetings, overseeing building projects, analyzing community demographics, launching attendance growing programs, scheduling, and any number of other tasks that have somehow over the decades become part and parcel of what a pastor does.  It's almost as though a conspiracy was hatched ages ago to keep the pastor so busy with the peripheral that he has very little time and energy for the essential--the tasks of simply preaching, praying, and shepherding.

And how has the church fared with hordes of pastors neglecting the essential tasks of their calling to heed louder voices screaming "expediency", "pragmatism", and "church growth"?  Not well.  You see, pastors who are too busy to study Scripture so as to preach, who are too busy to pray, and who are too busy to interface spiritually with their people have become themselves inattentive to God.  This results in their churches becoming inattentive to God too.  

Pastors do not need to be attentive to God to grow a big church.  The word of faith prosperity false gospel preachers have proved that.  But, pastors do need to be attentive to God if they want to see their people become and remain attentive to God so as to see healthy spiritual growth take place in their lives and churches.

Boiling the pastor's job down to just one all-encompassing task is challenging.  At the risk of oversimplification I'd have to agree with one old pastor who said it's the task of keeping God's people attentive to God.  But, this can only be accomplished if and when well-meaning pastors get back to the basics of their pastoral calling--preaching, praying, and shepherding.            

    

Where Have All The Pastors Gone?

The late Eugene Peterson made the observation back in 1987 that pastors in America were leaving their posts "left and right, and at an alarming rate".  Adding some clarification to his observation, he went on to say that they were not literally leaving their congregations as much as they were leaving their calling.  He put it this way, "Congregations still pay their salaries.  Their names remain on church stationary and they continue to appear in pulpits on Sundays.  But they are abandoning their posts, their calling.  They have gone whoring after other gods."

The "other gods" he had in mind were the gods of ambition, influence, respect, prestige, recognition, status, success, and significance all summed up under the category of church growth.  His words, back in 1987 were prophetic.

The pastors of America have metamorphosed into a company of shopkeepers, and the shops they keep are churches.  They are preoccupied with shopkeeper's concerns--how to keep the customers happy, how to lure customers away from competitors down the street, how to package the goods so that the customers will lay out the money.  Some of them are very good shopkeepers.  They attract a lot of customers, pull in great sums of money, develop splendid reputations.  Yet it is still shopkeeping; religious shopkeeping, to be sure, but shopkeeping all the same.  

So, thirty-two years down the road where has this "shopkeeper" mentality left us.  I think its left us with churches, who having obediently followed their shopkeeping pastors, have become "shop franchises" all trying to be or at least appear successful in marketing whatever it is they are marketing on a particular Sunday or series of Sundays. 

But, as Peterson went on to say back in 1987,  "The biblical fact is there are no successful churches.  There are, instead, communities of sinners, gathered before God week after week in towns and villages all over the world. . . [And] in these communities of sinners, one of the sinners is called pastor and given a designated responsibility in the community . . . to keep the community attentive to God.

Biblically speaking that has not changed.  At best, we are still a community of sinners, albeit, forgiven sinners who live our lives together before God week in and week out--all struggling with the same temptation to become inattentive to God.  Those gatherings who have been led to forget this and thus, have become distracted with becoming cutting edge, relevant, pragmatic, and bigger so as to be labeled "successful" probably should not be called churches.

Nor should their leaders rightfully be called "pastors"--not if the pastor's job is to see his success in terms of shepherding his flock, no matter the size, of forgiven sinners he has been charged to lead to remain attentive to their God rather than the distractions of the world.  Maybe its time for those pastors who can no longer stomach the business of shopkeeping to return to their calling of leading flocks of gospel believing and thus, forgiven sinners to be attentive to God week in and week out.  Maybe its high time, for all who are called pastors to reaffirm their primary calling of preaching, praying, and shepherding rather than building bigger more sophisticated shops.  And for all you real pastors--men who have resisted the temptation to become shopkeepers--who still preach the Word of God, pray for the sheep, and shepherd the flock, week in and week out, Thank You!

       

  

God's Best Now And Forever Is Himself

The key to obtaining the best life has to offer is desiring "The Best" life has to offer.  That's right and not only is it right--its biblical.  Now, lest you think this is just another prosperity false gospel false promise being trumpeted by a false preacher on cable who writes motivational books take a peek at Psalm 84.

Psalm 84 was written by the descendants of Korah which is in itself very significant.  It's significant because Korah, a contemporary of Moses, was a man who wanted the best that life had to offer.  The only problem was that the best he sought was not God's best for him or anyone else.  

You see, Korah, a subordinate Levite responsible for transporting the furniture and articles within the tabernacle, became dissatisfied with his assigned role.  He believed he deserved better.  He was convinced a more "important" job with greater influence suited him better and would make him much happier.  Significance was, in his mind, to be found in serving more visibly.  Being a Levite was not enough--he wanted to be a priest.  

So, jealous and resentful of his lower, yet very important and essential position, he questioned the claim of Aaron and his sons to be God’s only ordained mediators for the people. Korah argued that the entire community had an equal right to the priesthood. His power play not only challenged Aaron but also Moses and finally even God Himself, affronting the Lord’s divine authority to anoint whomever He chooses.  

Korah's questioning of his role coupled with his desire to seek what he believed was the best for him rather than pursuing God's best for him led to disaster--not only for him but also for 250 malcontents who believed his false preaching.  Because they rejected and rebelled against God's best for them, choosing to create their own "best"--God killed them.  You can read all about Korah's rebellion, false teaching (Yes, he was a false teacher and according to Jude 11 became the a model of what it is to be a false preacher), and demise in Numbers 16.  
  
On a happier note, the descendants of Korah found favor in God’s eyes. Seven generations after Korah died, the prophet Samuel arose from the line of Korah (1 Chron. 6:31-38 and 1 Samuel 1:1, 20).  The Korahites later became doorkeepers and custodians for the tabernacle while one group of Korahites became elite warriors who joined King David in various military exploits.  During the time of King David, the sons of Korah also rose to the esteemed role as the worship leaders of Israel in which they recorded psalms as well as led the whole congregation in singing.   They recorded eleven psalms--one of which is Psalm 84. 

With this background information in mind, Psalm 84 gives us a beautifully refreshing snapshot of God's grace at work in the lives of people who have come to learn, albeit, the hard way, that the key to obtaining the best life has to offer is found in desiring and pursuing the best God has to offer--which is God Himself.  Psalm 84 is all about finding your satisfaction, significance, and salvation in God and specifically in God's presence by trusting in Him.  

You see, God's dwelling place is lovely because God is there (Ps. 84:1).  God's courts are desirable because God is there (Ps. 84:2).  God's house causes His people to break out in song because God is there (Ps. 84:4).  Hard, difficult and painful circumstances can't break you because God is there.  In fact, because God is there our challenging days are opportunities to enter into even deeper experiences of God's presence (Ps. 84:5-9).  God's personal presence in your life is the guarantee that all you will ever receive from God in this life and the next are manifestations of God's grace and glory (Ps. 84:10-11).  These are the eternal benefits of those who trust God--not to give them His best--but to be their best (Ps. 84:12).

Somehow, Korah missed this.  He thought the key to obtaining the best life has to offer was by pursuing "a best" of his own making.  Sadly, this pursuit cost him his life.  His descendants, on the other hand, in learning from his tragic mistake, recognized that the best life has to offer is God's presence with us now and forevermore.   Whether they knew it on not, the writers of Psalm 84 gave us a beautiful picture of what life is like for those who trust in Jesus--Whose first given name is Emmanuel which means "God with us".


  

The Bible--Its Not All About Us!

Sometimes we read the Bible as if it were fundamentally about us and our moral improvement, our victory over sin, or our comfort. We have a tendency to see God’s Word as a collection of timeless principles that will give us our best life now if we simply apply those principles.  We search its pages as we would any “self-help manual” when we are in need of advice.  And sometimes, we think the Bible is about us and what we’ve done or are doing wrong.  But, by looking at the Bible as if it were fundamentally about us, we totally miss the point of Who and What the Bible is all about—like the two men on the Road to Emmaus in the Gospel of Luke who had to learn that the Bible is about Jesus and what He did.

Luke 24:44-47 makes as one of its many points, that it is possible to read and study the Bible all the while missing the whole point of the Bible so that in reading the stories in the Bible—we miss the Story of the Bible.  Unless we go to the Bible and see Jesus and his work upon the cross on behalf of people whose best works are as “filthy rags” before God (Is. 64:6) we have missed the main point. Furthermore, if we see Jesus’ work in the redemption of man as being primarily for and about man we have also missed the point and are in danger of turning even our most devout Bible reading into fuel for our own man-centered, man-glorifying narcissism. 

Contrary to popular assumptions, the Bible is not a Book about or for good people looking to become better.  Rather, it is a Book about and for bad people who realize they cannot become better. That is not a typo. The Bible is not about how to improve our lives so as to please God and earn His acceptance so as to one day live with Him in Heaven.  Its not about “good” people reaching up to God; it’s about God reaching down to bad people who cannot improve their lives so as to become acceptable to God. Far from being a book for people looking for morals to live up to, the Bible is a Book for people who having failed to live up to God’s laws are looking for mercy and grace.

In essence, the Bible is one long story of God meeting man’s rebellion with His rescue; man’s sin with His salvation; man’s catastrophic personal failures with His favor; man’s guilt with His grace; and man’s intrinsic moral depravity and sinful corruption with His goodness.  Likewise, the Bible’s overwhelming focus is not on the works of man but the work of God.  It’s just not a Book about us as much as it is a Book about God and that is why it is Good News for us.

Want To Know What's Going On?

Regions In Need is ever expanding as opportunities to provide Bible, Theological, Leadership, and Missionary training are made available to us.  In addition to opportunities for training we also have several opportunities to support indigenous church planters, pastors, and gospel works such as orphanages, widow's ministries, etc. in Africa and Asia.  Please check out our website at the following link to find out more:   www.regions-in-need.org

Thanks a bunch for following and keeping track of the Waite family "on mission with Regions In Need".

We Grow By Grace!

Philippians 1:6 is one of those favorite verses most of us as followers of Christ learned back in our spiritually formative years. Of course, as with many of our memory verses, we probably made the mistake of memorizing it out of context.  It’s a great verse all by itself but, oh, so much better when taken in stride with verse 7.  Just in case you’re in need of a reminder or you’re too comfortable to go get your Bible let me quote the verses for you here and please note the sections I highlighted.

“And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel."

Taken alone, verse 6 is a wonderful statement of confidence that God will complete the work of spiritual transformation He began in us when we initially trusted in Christ. Taken with verse 7, we see that this spiritual progress is a work of grace.  Thus, our spiritual progress or growth, if you will, is a work of grace.  That is, it is not accomplished by our works or solid consistent performance but rather by God’s wondrous and free grace.  Just as our physical growth as a child had nothing to do with us other than enjoying the food--our spiritual growth, that is our ongoing and future conformity to the image of Christ, is not dependent upon us either.  “For it is God Who is at work in you [us], both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13).  And His good pleasure is our sanctification.

This means that our Bible reading, memorization, prayers, ministry, and other spiritual disciplines aren't a self-help or self-serve means of producing spiritual growth.  Rather, they are the means by which God Himself increases our spiritual understanding and enjoyment of Him, His Character, and His Love for us which, He subsequently uses to produce spiritual growth and maturity in us.  The ramifications of these truths are staggering for those of us who, all the while embracing a works-free salvation, are struggling with a works-based sanctification mindset.  Just as our salvation is by grace so is our sanctification.  In other words our holiness is by grace not works.

Does this mean that we have no part to play in our ongoing sanctification which again is nothing less than our becoming conformed to the image of Christ?  No, we have a huge part to play—just not the part we most likely have been trying to play and feeling very frustrating about because we’re not playing it so well.  We are not responsible to create our spiritual growth.  We are responsible, however, to be involved in those activities that God uses to grow us.  Things like reading God's Word a lot, memorizing Scripture, thinking about what God is saying in the Bible, being involved in a solid church that teaches the Word, fellowshipping with other believers, talking to God--a lot, obeying the Lord, diligently fighting our own sin, and talking to nonbelievers about Jesus are the kinds of activities that God uses to grow us in Christ (sanctification).

God is the One Who is at work in us who are partakers of His grace. Thus, not only is our sanctification guaranteed it is guaranteed on the basis of God’s work and performance not ours. This is essential to understand. Just as we are saved by a grace-based righteousness (Christ’s) we are sanctified by and for a grace-based righteousness as well. God will never become our debtor and thus to lose sight of our sanctification as well as our salvation both being the result of God’s grace rather than our works gives way to the false, terribly destructive, and discouraging view that God loves us because we obey Him. The truth of the matter is that because God loves us we desire to obey Him. Thus, our obedience, our holiness, our sanctification, and our spiritual transformation are all the result of God’s love for us and His grace toward us not vice versa.

God will indeed finish the work He began in us and He will finish it well not because of our obedience or performance but because of His grace in spite of our lack of obedience and lackluster spiritual performance. We grow by grace or we don’t grow at all and grow we will because of His grace!

Keep Fighting!

Christianity is war, plain and simple.  If you are a Christian and don’t know this—you are in trouble.

This war is far more real than you think.  The fighting--more intense.  Real victories are hard won and more rare than you think. Casualties abound, retreat is commonplace, and taking and holding ground far more costly than ever imagined.  This war is the ultimate reality all earthly wars point to.  They are but a picture of this war as real and horrific as they are. 

In this fight, our weapons are not made of metal and plastic but are divinely powerful designed to destroy all that is in us that is opposed to Christ.  Our enemy is a brutal, savvy, treacherous, highly skilled, and unbelievably enduring foe whose greatest strength is his close proximity to us....for our enemy is always with us 24/7.  It is none other than our sinful flesh, our old man, if you will, whose nature it is to oppose, fight, and if it could, destroy the spiritual life within us that is becoming more and more glorious everyday as it is being conformed moment-by-moment into the image of Christ 24/7 whether you realize it or not.

Our enemy will never quit, be reformed, tamed, surrender, tire of fighting, or concede.  It will fight us to the death and only in our death will its head never rise again.  But while our flesh presents itself as such a formidable foe it can be defeated even if not yet destroyed.  It can be resisted and it can even be used to encourage our battle hardened and weary souls when seen correctly for what it is and why it is.  You see, the mere realization that we have a sinful flesh that opposes us in our desire to pursue Christ assures us that our pursuit of Christ is real and something the enemy of our soul finds worthy of opposing. 

The truth all Christians must grasp and hold onto for dear life is that the mere fact that we are being opposed by and opposing our sinful flesh provides us with an assurance of salvation we could find nowhere else.  For you see before salvation, we were at peace with our sin but at war with God. Because of salvation, we are now at peace with God but at war with our sin. 

Listen, I know firsthand how ugly this battle can get.  I also understand how demoralizing and discouraging it often becomes to lose battle after battle.  But don’t diminish the value of the battle whether won or lost.  Only believers are at war with their sinful flesh and thus, the greatest value may not lie so much in your success as much as in the fact that you’re in the fight. 

So, just keep fighting!   

The Gospel Is The Main Thing

There is an idea floating around some churches that gospel preaching or preaching the gospel is not necessary for believers, who need more meatier portions of Scripture taught so as to result in a deeper understanding of God and of course greater sanctification.  The only problem with this idea is that it is not grounded in Scripture and thus it is wrong.  More than that, the idea that believers will be bored with hearing the gospel and the ramifications of the gospel preached and taught on a consistent basis is due more to the shallowness of how the gospel is often preached and the immaturity of believers rather than any fault in the gospel.

As I read my Bible I see rather plainly that the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace is not just the  way we enter the Kingdom; it is also the means by which we grow into the very likeness of the King of this Kingdom.  Take Titus 2:11-13 for instance, which states clearly that it is the gospel alone that leads believers to sanctified living:

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.  It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Notice, that Paul confidently and unapologetically makes the point that the way we as believers learn how to successfully say no to their sinful flesh so as to live self-controlled and godly lives is by letting the gospel teach us.  The idea is that as we are trained, coached, and disciplined, over time, by the gospel we will begin to change from the inside out.

And if, as Peter writes in 1 Peter 1:2 that the angels never tire of gazing at and exploring the wonders of the gospel as presented in the Word of God and experienced in the lives of repentant sinners, how can we find it boring, simplistic, or unnecessary?  The fact is, because the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace is so amazingly and endlessly rich, it can handle, as Tim Keller writes, "the burden of being the one main thing of a church".

What We Call Exposure God Calls Freedom

The Bible makes the point that the fear of man is a snare. In other words our fear, or if you prefer our concern, over what others think about us can end up entrapping us.

In the case of trying to deal effectively with and defeat our sin addictions, or if you prefer--sin struggles or besetting sins, our fear of what others think about us will entrap us in our shame to the point that we will not pursue the only real and lasting means of freedom there is, which is confession or what we often think of as self-exposure.

No one and I mean no one wants to be exposed for who they really know themselves to be and what they know themselves to have done or be doing. In fact, if I were a betting man, I would be quite confident wagering a couple month’s salary that one of the biggest fears most Christians have is the fear of exposure.  Most of us are deathly afraid of having our past as well as our present hidden thoughts, motives, attitudes, actions, words, and especially our besetting sins made public for anyone and everyone to see. And if you don’t think we’re all that concerned about what others think about us—what’s the first thing we do when we find out someone has hacked our Facebook account and posted something morally questionable or ridiculously stupid in our name? Well, obviously, we get rid of the post ASAP and then make sure we get the point across several times that “it wasn’t us” never-minding the fact that if the truth really be known--what was posted was fairly mild compared to what we know to be true about ourselves.

All of us, myself included, are very much concerned with how others perceive us, actually see us, or know about us and especially our failures. We don’t want others, especially our peers, to think less of the image we are working tirelessly to project of ourselves. The problem with all this however, is that we are projecting an image of ourselves that is not real thus forcing us to live and perpetuate a lie all because we value the opinion of others more than we do the truth and the only opinion which really matters—God’s. This devaluation of God and over-evaluation of man leads us to run from the one thing that can free us from this trap of shame that keeps us from experiencing eventual freedom from our sin issues and greater intimacy with God. That one thing is exposure in which, we expose ourselves before God and man for who we really are—sinners, what we are really struggling with—sin, and what we really need forgiveness for—our sin.

The Bible puts it this way in Proverbs 28:13: “He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, But he who confesses [exposure] and forsakes [repentance] them will find compassion.” In other words, what we call exposure God calls freedom.

Why Is There A Picture of A Coast Guard Boat On My Blog?

That's a good question.  The fact is, I served in the U.S. Coast Guard for a few years back in the day.  I started in Kodiak, Alaska and then was transferred to a rescue station on Lake Michigan where I was a small boat coxswain on a 41' rescue boat.  In the Coast Guard, the coxswain is the person in charge of the boat, its crew, and how the mission is to be carried out.  So, basically my job was to ensure our boat and crew were ready at all times to assist and rescue those who were in danger of perishing.  It was also my job to make sure my crew didn't get sidetracked and lose sight of our mission.  The mission, not us or our concerns, was the priority every time we went out.    

So, in part, my affection for the Coast Guard is one reason for using such a picture.  But, its not the only reason.  You see, the Coast Guard's mission is to rescue people who are in trouble and in danger of peril.  As I see it, that's the church's mission too.  We are to be involved in rescuing the perishing.  And this picture reminds me of that so that when I find myself immersed in all the nitty gritty of church life especially the administrative details, the inevitable internal conflict that comes when sinners rub shoulders, and yes, the good stuff too, I don't forget that first and foremost we're a rescue outfit.  We are tasked with the mission of rescuing, with the gospel, those who are perishing.  And we do it all for the glory of God and the eternal joy of those people who will believe the gospel and be rescued.

 

Our Eternal Weight of Glory Will Blow You Away

What if I were to tell those of you who are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ that your greatest occupational duty or job, if you will--the one that will be the most rewarding, most fun, most adventuresome, most interesting, most exciting, and really thrilling with absolutely no negative downside whatsoever—is being prepared for you right now, even as I speak?  And what if I were to tell you that you are being prepared for this job, this really awesome responsibility and in fact great occupation through your suffering, trials, afflictions, loneliness, heartaches, pain, grief, sin battles, and even your failures?  Would you believe me?

Well—believe it or not this is what the Bible teaches in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 where the apostle Paul makes the point that God is using our afflictions, pain, and suffering to produce for us an eternal weight of glory. Essentially, what Paul is pointing out is that . . . .as believers, the secret to not losing heart and becoming discouraged with our troubles, afflictions, heartaches, failures, suffering, pain, grief, and yes, even our sin--is knowing that God is using these very things to not only prepare us for Heaven but specifically to be able to enjoy heaven to the hilt. And it is this enjoyment of heaven that Paul refers to as an eternal weight of glory.

We don’t use the word “weighty” very much anymore but back when we did it had the idea of something important which had a certain heaviness to it in the sense of a weighty responsibility, a hefty obligation, an important duty, and even an all-consuming occupation.  So what Paul is saying is that through our afflictions God is preparing us for some kind of weighty responsibility and full-time all-consuming occupation, if you will.  And then he qualifies this eternal weight by describing it as having something to do with "glory”.

The word “glory” from which we get “glorious” is referring to that which is full of splendor, beauty, brilliance, grandeur, magnificence, and wonder so as to be fully marveled at and enjoyed with intensity.  It is what Jesus can’t wait for us to see, experience, and enjoy in John 17:24.

"Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world."

And if our enjoying His glory is what Jesus is looking forward to then it must be big.  To see and enjoy God’s glorious presence and His glory in all that He has prepared for us in Heaven will be the adventure, pleasure, and purposeful occupation of an eternal lifetime.  Here's a dismal illustration in comparison to what Jesus wants for us but it at least gets you thinking along His line of thinking.  Can you imagine getting a job at Disney World and the boss tells you the only thing you have to do—your primary responsibility—you’re duty and the very  reason you get up every morning is to come here and enjoy me and everything that is in this park to the best of your ability.  That is what I am paying you for.

And what the Bible wants us to see is that God is using our afflictions, our trials, our suffering, and yes—even our pain to refocus our spiritual eyes, senses, and perceptions on what is real, valuable, and eternal as opposed to what is transitory, fleeting, inferior, and really nothing more than fruitless joys in comparison.  That is what He means in 2 Corinthians 4:18 when He tells us that what we can see, perceive, and comprehend on this earth and in this life are temporary but what we can’t see and comprehend yet, because it is simply beyond our ability to see, perceive, comprehend, and let me add—enjoy yet—is eternal.

So, our momentary light afflictions of living life in a sin-ridden, sin-loving, sin-sick, sin-afflicted, ever dying and suffering world as people who are afflicted in every way, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down is preparing us for heaven so that we can fully enjoy it.  Our afflictions are producing within us a taste and a desire for something far superior and far more enjoyable than anything we have ever known or imagined. And this enjoyment of heaven is described as an eternal weight of glory because it will not be a half-hearted, temporary, fleeting, momentarily enjoyable diversion from pain or an interruption of life’s routine boredom.  

In essence, what God is doing in all of our pain and afflictions is rewiring us for glory.  Because in Heaven that is what life is all about—enjoying the intense, unending, ever-increasing, tangible, actual, palpable, rapturous, and real pleasure of God's glory which will unrelentingly capture your full attention and appetite—once God has rewired you to be able to take it all in.

Repentance Is The Means To Happiness

Repentance is not an end in itself but rather a means to a fuller, richer, and greater enjoyment of God.  To the degree that we are willing to repent of our sin-to that degree and that degree only are we able to experience and enjoy God's fellowship.  If unwilling to repent of sin as unbelievers we lose any hope at all for a positive relationship with God.  If unwilling to repent of sin as believers, we, while still possessing a relationship with the Lord, forfeit fellowship with Him and any enjoyment in this relationship.  On the other hand, if willing to repent of our sin completely, we gain complete fellowship with God.  If our repentance is somewhere in between so is our experience of fellowship with and enjoyment of God.

According to the Bible, we cannot love the world and God at the same time (1 John 2:15).  It is simply impossible for a person to love such diametrically opposed entities as God and the world at the same time.  However, this is not what most of us try to do.  We usually do not find ourselves completely at one end of this spectrum--loving only God or loving only the world.  But, in all honesty, we do often find ourselves somewhere in between don't we?!  And to the degree that we love the world or our sinful fleshly desires we do not love God.  Our love for God and our experience of God's love for us correspond to our love for the world and our sin.  If our love for the world increases due to sin then our love for the Father and our experience of His love decreases.  If, on the other hand, our love for the world decreases through repentance of sin then our love for God and our experience of His love increases.  Thus, is the value of repentance.  Our repentance then is not an end but rather a means to the end of loving God and experiencing and enjoying Gods love for us in a greater and much more intimate way.

Therefore, God's commands to us to repent of our sins and turn to Him are commands for us to leave our inferior pleasures behind so as to find superior joy, happiness, and fulfillment in pursuing God and His pleasures.  Repentance then, rather than being a "kill-joy", becomes the portal through which we find true joy.  God is not commanding us to stop sinning to deny us but to delight us.  He is calling everyone everywhere to repent and turn to Him (Acts 17:30) in order to let them drink from the fountain of all true and lasting pleasure.  

Going Deep! Why Does The Bible Call Jesus "God's Only Begotten Son"?

Ever wonder why the Bible calls Jesus "the only begotten Son" in John 3:16?  Jonathan Edwards, the American pastor-theologian of the 18th century and the guy who is better known for his sermon entitled, "Sinners In The Hands of an Angry God" has a robust take on that question which I want to try and accurately summarize here.  If you'd rather go straight to the horse's mouth, so to speak, just get yourself a copy of Edwards' unpublished essay on The Trinity. You might want to pick up a dictionary specializing in 18th century terms and prose while you're at it.  If you don't have the time to pick those up you can take your chances with my summary.

First things first though--Edwards understood that the word "begotten" was not being used to speak about the Son of God as having a point of beginning, origin, or birth.  Rather, the word was used, especially in John's writings, to communicate the idea of the Son of God existing as a "unique and one of a kind" type of Being completely equal to and always existing alongside the Father as a separate person from the Father (Jn. 1:14, 18; 3:16; 1 Jn. 4:9).  So, how is it then, if the Father and the Son are two separate co-equal and co-eternal divine Persons that the Father is the "begetter" and the Son is the "begotten"?  What does the Bible mean when it states that the Son is begotten of the Father?

Essentially, Edwards makes the point that because God is unlimited in His knowledge He knows everything perfectly and comprehensively about everything and everyone including Himself.  Now, knowing everything there is to know about me may not seem like a big deal but God knows everything there is to know about everyone without exception.  And if that still doesn't impress you, try this on for size--God knows Himself and everything there is to know about Himself as an Infinite Being with a perfect, full, and totally comprehensive knowledge.  In other words, God, Who is, by virtue of His being Infinite, unknowable, knows fully and comprehensively everything there is to know about Himself.  That is impressive!

Edwards explains that God has always had perfect and totally comprehensive knowledge of Himself.  Therefore, God's perfect knowledge of Himself is as eternal as He is.  Furthermore, because God's knowledge of Himself is absolutely perfect in every detail His knowledge of Himself is really nothing less than a perfect reduplication of Himself.  It could not be otherwise.  If God's knowledge of Himself is absolutely perfect, all-encompassing, and fully comprehensive then for it to be all those things it would have to be more than a mere picture, thought, reflection, or idea--it would have to be a real person just like Him.   For how could God have a perfect knowledge of Himself and it not be exactly the same as Him?!  And if it is the same as Him it must be another person just like Him in every way completely equal to Him and as eternal as he is.  It  would have to be the One we call Jesus.  (2 Cor. 4:4, 6; Phil. 2:6; Col. 1:15, 19; 2:9;  Heb. 1:3)

Edwards put it this way:

". . . that idea which God has of Himself is absolutely Himself.  This representation of the Divine nature and essence is the Divine nature and essence again: so that by God's thinking . . . there is another Person begotten, there is another Infinite Eternal Almighty and Most Holy and the same God, the very same Divine nature.  And this Person is the second Person in the Trinity, the only Begotten and dearly Beloved Son of God; He is the eternal, necessary, perfect, substantial and personal idea which God hath of Himself."

This, then in very simplified terms is Edwards answer to how Jesus Christ can be co-eternal and co-equal with the Father so as to have never begun yet still be begotten.    

Another Day--Another Chance To Say "No"

I like to remind myself, from time to time, that every day I wake up and find myself conscious and breathing is another day to fight sin in my life so as to make much of Jesus by my life.  I don't know about you, but, it seems to me that I am fighting some sin issue or another in my life every day.  

And the fact is, some days are better than others.  That's a positive way of saying that some days are worse than others.  Regardless, however, of how the previous day's battles went I can always count on another day and another battle as long as I am still this side of glory.

When I was a younger believer this was not a comforting thought or proposition.  Much of my time in prayer used to be asking God to take away the battles, to remove the temptations, and to make me invincible to falling.  Now, there is a sense in which I am thankful for the battles because they not only serve to remind me God has not taken me off the battlefield, they are also my opportunities every day to express in a very real and tangible way my loyalty to my King.

Someday, when this life is over and real life begins there will be no more personal battles with sin for me and what a glorious day that will be.  However, on the other hand, I will never ever have the opportunity, out of love for and loyalty to my Savior, to say "No" to temptation again either.  So, now I don't ask God to remove temptation or my sin issues from me.  I ask for His help to prefer Him over them and thank Him for giving me another day to fight--another day to say "No".

GRACE-DRIVEN CHURCHES GLORIFY GOD BEST

Churches are known for and driven by all kinds of things.  Many are known for their tradition and have as their motto: We’ve never done it this way before.”  Some churches are finance-driven and the only thing the membership wants to know before making a decision is "How much will it cost and can we afford it?"  Others are numbers-driven, having as their bottom line--a bigger budget, a bigger building, and a growing membership roll.  Others still, are known for a certain theological perspective such as being reformed or non-reformed, charismatic or non-charismatic, seeker-driven or non seeker driven, contemporary/blended worship or traditional, etc. Finally, there are churches known for and driven by programs, activities, ministry, personality, social causes, and a plethora of other possibilities.

So, what is your church known for and apparently driven by?  

Personally, I think that whereas its not a bad thing for  churches to be known for what they believe and stand for or against they should, by all means, strive to be grace-driven and here are some reasons why.  First, grace-driven churches are driven by God’s saving grace-in forgiving sinners-to preach the gospel.  Second, they are driven by God’s sanctifying grace-that grows believers in grace-to preach the Word of grace to one another as well as to deal with each other in grace, correcting one-another in grace, accepting one another as Jesus accepted them freely, unconditionally, and over and over again.  Third, they are driven by God's extravagant grace-in which He gave His own Son Whom He loved to save sinners whom did not love Him-to take serious risks, expend great energy, significant resources, and exhaustive creativity in communicating and demonstrating the Gospel of grace to unbelievers both nearby and far away.  

God is grace-driven.  His plan of salvation, His desire to redeem, and His move to crush His own Son (Is. 53:10) so as to save us were all grace-driven acts.  But, while grace-driven, these acts were not simply carried out to make much of us and our need.  No, God’s grace-driveness is not about making much of us which is often what many  a church's "pet" distinctions and preferences are driven by.  God's grace-drivenness is not an end in and of itself just as we are not an end in and of ourselves.  To think that would be to terribly misunderstand and pervert God's grace, which is a means to a much greater end.  That end is God’s glory. God is grace-driven because God is passionate about His own glory.  He justifies for His glory.  He forgives for His glory.  He redeems for His glory.  He saves for His glory and He keeps us saved for His glory.  God’s grace-driveness is first, foremost, and fundamentally about and for His glory.

And this ultimately is for our good in that whereas, God's grace saved us-God's glory satisfies us.  You see, God's grace is the means by which we are able to see, enjoy, revel in, and forever be amazed by the glory of God.  This is what Jesus wants for us.  That's why He asked His Father in John 17:24 that we who have been given to Him by the Father be with Him so that we may see His glory and be forever satisfied.  Grace is the means to glory!

And thus, if any church really desires to glorify God as well as to enjoy and be amazed by God and His glory—she absolutely must be, among other things, grace-driven! 

Sanctification And The Gonzaga-North Carolina Game

Last night we watched the NCAA basketball championship game between Gonzaga and North Carolina.  In all honesty, it wasn't a very good basketball game.  Even North Carolina coach Roy Williams thought so, calling it "an ugly game".  Both teams were sluggish, stiff, ungraceful, and just seemed out of sync.  The referees were't much of a help either blowing their whistles so often they, rather than the teams playing, controlled the pace of the game.  But, interspersed among all the missed shots, missed opportunities, fouls, turnovers, and some really poor performances by all involved there were some really great moments that brought the crowd to its feet too.

Probably, more than anything, what impressed me about this particular game was the fact that the players, in spite of how bad and how ugly their game looked, didn't walk off the court and quit until the final buzzer sounded.  They kept running the plays, as sluggish and sloppy as they were, totally committed to finishing.  At the final buzzer two exhausted teams left the court.  Both had persevered to the end.  Their performances were anything but stellar but they finished and in the end this is what registered with me.  Real basketball teams....real basketball players play all the way to the buzzer no matter how well or poorly they are playing.  That's just what they do!

All-in-all, the game reminded me of what sanctification--at least mine looks like.  Simply put, sanctification is the theological term we use when talking about the process every true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ goes through in this life, after salvation, of becoming more and more like Christ.  This process of sanctification or growing in Christ entails fighting and saying no to personal sin and yes to God by the power of the Holy Spirit.  It is evidenced by the fruit of the Spirit in which the believer's life is characterized more and more by such qualities as joy, love, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  It is a time of growth in Who God is, what the Bible teaches, obedience to the Word of God, and building and maintaining relationships with other believers.  But, it is not a process characterized by sinless perfection.  That doesn't happen until Heaven.  It is characterized by perseverance though.  Real believers keep growing and keep going in spite of how ugly and messy their fight with sin and fight to be holy often looks.  That's just what they do!

I don't know about you, but my sanctification has been a pretty messy process.  Likening it to the basketball game, there have been days, weeks, months, hey there have even been years when it seemed like I missed far more shots than I made, sluggishly stumbled through most of the plays, couldn't get in the groove, had very little momentum, and.....well, I hate to admit it.....talked a much better game than I played.  Now, this is not to say there haven't been some great moments--some really unbelievable "bring the crowd to its feet" moments because there have been.  They have been few and far between but there have been some.  There's also been some growth, which while slow in coming is still real and enduring.  And there has been perseverance.....by the grace of God and only by the grace of God......I am still in the game, still on the court, still running, still shooting, still playing "D", still cheering my teammates on, still fouling, still being fouled, still making the plays even if they're not pretty, with never a thought of quitting until the final buzzer sounds.  And in our sanctification this is what matters because real churches.....real Christians keep fighting their sin, keep pursuing holiness, keep cheering their fellow-believers on, keep confessing their sins, keep themselves in the Word, keep praying, keep serving, and keep on keeping on no matter how ugly it sometimes looks.  That's just what we do!

What's A Spiritual Leader To Do?

You can't miss the leadership section of any Book store or internet site for that matter--its simply too big.  Do a search on Amazon for books having something to do with leadership and you'll come up with almost 200,000 books with the word "leadership" in their titles.  In 2015 alone, over 1200 books were published that had something to do with some kind of leadership in some field.  Add to these numbers the hundreds of blogs being written that have something to do with leadership and you have a mountain sized stack of resources on leadership that have been written and read.   Throw in the almost just as many definitions of leadership and opinions on what's a leader to do and you have a major leadership traffic jam on your hands. 

In 1991, Joseph Rosa, a professor of leadership studies at the University of San Diego, took on the challenge of reading as many books on leadership as he could in preparation for his class.  After reading all that he could get his hands on reaching all the way back to 1900 he found that the "experts" on leadership  had defined it in more than two hundred ways.  Comparing the differences in definition as well as what each writer suggested were the fundamental tasks of leadership, Rosa states that the closest the different books came to a consensus definition of leadership was that it was simply "good management".  In practice, Rosa wrote, "leadership is a word that has come to mean all things to all people."

The subject of "spiritual leadership" is no different.  Literally hundreds of books, blogs, and internet sites are devoted to the topics of spiritual, pastoral, and ministry leadership. Interestingly enough, they all come up with the same kind of varied conclusions about what spiritual leadership is and does.  Since so many others have thrown their opinion into the mix I thought I'd give it my best shot too.  So, here is what I think spiritual leadership is basically all about and does.

Spiritual leadership is influencing God's people to think, act, and react like God's people in any and every circumstance of life.  As for what a spiritual leader does, I think Craig Hamilton hit it right on the head in his book entitled Wisdom in Leadership when he makes the point that the number one thing a spiritual leader does in any given situation is to ask and answer the question, "What does the Bible say?"  The number two thing he does is to lead God's people to do what the Bible says.  

Every church has been tasked with a mission that is impossible to accomplish unless God shows up. That's a really good reason to pray!