Wow, I never really understood what meditation was for, nor why I should ever do it.
The main idea is this: Leave space to think and ponder things. Without this, especially in our world, your mind will eventually become a mess of thoughts with no meaning.
He says that meditation "very simply, is the ability to hear God's voice and obey his word." He also differentiates meditation from Eastern religion to explain that
"Christian meditation goes far beyond the notion of detachment...detachment is not enough; we must go on to attachment. The detachment from the confusion all around us is in order to have a richer attachment to God. Christian meditation leads us to the inner wholeness necessary to give ourselves to God freely."
Meditation, by his definition ends up being the means by which God speaks to you. As you clear away distractions and listen to God, you'll find you hear him clearly and can then obey his leading. He goes on to explain that meditation can be combined with the imagination because God "uses images we know and understand to teach us about the unseen world of which we know so little and which we find so difficult to understand."
Finally he goes into explaining that we should meditate on four main things: Scripture, our minds, nature, and the world/age we live in. Scripture is obvious and he goes into ideas about how to study it, focusing on small (one verse) portions. Our minds are something we should "re-collect" and he gives a process of releasing anxieties, bitterness, unforgiveness, etc. through a process of prayer and declaration. Nature is suggested because meditation on nature allows you to reflect on what God made. He says
"Look at the trees...take a flower and allow its beauty and symmetry to sink deep into your mind and heart...sometimes God reaches us profoundly in these simple ways if we will quiet ourselves and listen."
Finally he says to meditate on the "...events of our time." He says "We have a spiritual obligation to penetrate the inner meaning of events, not to gain power but to gain prophetic perspective."
All of this is to help us reorient our minds to hear God's voice and obey what he says to do or think about. By steady and consistent meditation we can do just that.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Monday, January 17, 2011
Celebration of Discipline: Intro and Chapter 1
The thing about my life as a Christian is that most of it has been a swath of ignorance puncuated by moments of awesome revelation. I mean to say that I'm oblivious for days, weeks, or even months at a time and then suddenly I get it. I'm awake to my current state and I'm left wondering why I ever was asleep. This book Celebration of Discipline has brought one of those moments.
I started reading it because the title so appealed to me that I couldn't ignore it. Discipline is something that I like the idea of but I never subject myself to its boundaries and therefore never experience its benefits. That's what I'm seeing in my future. The main benefit being an unexpected liberation. I say "unexpected" but if you think about it, discipline in children leads ultimately to their liberation as adults that successfully function in society. A lack of discipline now could lead in the end, to more dire consequences from societies laws. The spiritual disciplines applied now, I hope, will lead to a continual freedom in the Spirit that I've only experienced on occasion up til now.
Why do I dare to hope this will happen? Because what the first chapter teaches. It teaches something that I have constantly practiced. The author says, after referencing Colossians 2:20-23, "The moment we feel we can succeed and attain victory over sin by the strength of our will alone is the moment we are worshiping the will. Isn't it ironic that Paul looks at our most strenuous efforts in the spiritual walk and calls them idolatry 'will worship'?"
I had practiced this 'will worship' for some time and tried very hard to make every effort to stop sinning. Since God called me to be perfect as my heavenly father is perfect, I tried to. Eventually I realized the great Grace that God had given and stood corrected. Grace meant I didn't have to try to be perfect, in fact I believed I didn't have to try at all. Here is where this book gives me hope because he says
"The moment we grasp this breathtaking insight we are in danger of an error in the opposite direction. We are tempted to believe there is nothing we can do. If all human strivings end in moral bankruptcy (and having tried it, we know it is so), and if righteousness is a gracious gift from God (as the Bible clrealy states), then is it not logical to conclude that we must wait for God to come and transform us? Strangely enough, the answer is no. The analysis is correct - human striving is insufficient and righteousness is a gift from God - but the conclusion is faulty."
I had made the above conclusion many times and I had never heard clearly the final conslusion.
"Happily there is something we can do. We do not need to be hung on the horns of the dilemma of either human works or idleness. God has given us the Disciplines of the spiritual life as a means of receiving his grace. The Disciplines allow us to place ourselves before God so that he can transform us."
Then he quotes Galations 6:8, "he who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption; but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life."
All of this brings me hope because it puts me on a path toward spiritual growth and transformation. Before I was on a path with external direction from my church, from my reading, from listening to sermons. Now I feel like I'm going to get on a path with all of those and the internal direction from God and his word to guide me.
I'll keep posting as I feel led. By God's grace I hope I'll see some new changes in me.
I started reading it because the title so appealed to me that I couldn't ignore it. Discipline is something that I like the idea of but I never subject myself to its boundaries and therefore never experience its benefits. That's what I'm seeing in my future. The main benefit being an unexpected liberation. I say "unexpected" but if you think about it, discipline in children leads ultimately to their liberation as adults that successfully function in society. A lack of discipline now could lead in the end, to more dire consequences from societies laws. The spiritual disciplines applied now, I hope, will lead to a continual freedom in the Spirit that I've only experienced on occasion up til now.
Why do I dare to hope this will happen? Because what the first chapter teaches. It teaches something that I have constantly practiced. The author says, after referencing Colossians 2:20-23, "The moment we feel we can succeed and attain victory over sin by the strength of our will alone is the moment we are worshiping the will. Isn't it ironic that Paul looks at our most strenuous efforts in the spiritual walk and calls them idolatry 'will worship'?"
I had practiced this 'will worship' for some time and tried very hard to make every effort to stop sinning. Since God called me to be perfect as my heavenly father is perfect, I tried to. Eventually I realized the great Grace that God had given and stood corrected. Grace meant I didn't have to try to be perfect, in fact I believed I didn't have to try at all. Here is where this book gives me hope because he says
"The moment we grasp this breathtaking insight we are in danger of an error in the opposite direction. We are tempted to believe there is nothing we can do. If all human strivings end in moral bankruptcy (and having tried it, we know it is so), and if righteousness is a gracious gift from God (as the Bible clrealy states), then is it not logical to conclude that we must wait for God to come and transform us? Strangely enough, the answer is no. The analysis is correct - human striving is insufficient and righteousness is a gift from God - but the conclusion is faulty."
I had made the above conclusion many times and I had never heard clearly the final conslusion.
"Happily there is something we can do. We do not need to be hung on the horns of the dilemma of either human works or idleness. God has given us the Disciplines of the spiritual life as a means of receiving his grace. The Disciplines allow us to place ourselves before God so that he can transform us."
Then he quotes Galations 6:8, "he who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption; but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life."
All of this brings me hope because it puts me on a path toward spiritual growth and transformation. Before I was on a path with external direction from my church, from my reading, from listening to sermons. Now I feel like I'm going to get on a path with all of those and the internal direction from God and his word to guide me.
I'll keep posting as I feel led. By God's grace I hope I'll see some new changes in me.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
The War for our Souls
War is a behavior pattern exhibited by many primate species[1] including humans, and also found in many ant species. The primary feature of this behavior pattern is a certain state of organized violent conflict that is engaged in between two or more separate social entities. Such a conflict is always an attempt at altering either the psychological hierarchy or the material hierarchy of domination or equality between two or more groups. In all cases, at least one participant (group) in the conflict perceives the need to either psychologically or materially dominate the other participant. Amongst humans, the perceived need for domination often arises from the belief that an essential ideology or resource is somehow either so incompatible or so scarce as to threaten the fundamental existence of the one group experiencing the need to dominate the other group. Leaders will sometimes enter into a war under the pretext that their actions are primarily defensive, however when viewed objectively, their actions may more closely resemble a form of unprovoked, unwarranted, or disproportionate aggression.
In all wars, the group(s) experiencing the need to dominate other group(s) are unable and unwilling to accept or permit the possibility of a relationship of fundamental equality to exist between the groups who have opted for group violence (war). The aspect of domination that is a precipitating factor in all wars, i.e. one group wishing to dominate another, is also often a precipitating factor in individual one-on-one violence outside of the context of war, i.e. one individual wishing to dominate another.
This definition of war is very enlightening. The parts in bold surprised me. I was reading 1 John 3 and I realized that one of the keys to remaining holy is abiding in Jesus. Abiding means to continue in a daily, personal relationship with Jesus, characterized by trust, prayer, obedience, and joy. I also realized that one of the keys to remaining holy is waging a war against sin. We are in a war, whether we like it or not, a war for our souls. 1 Peter 2:11-12 says "Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. 12Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us."
Because of this it's especially helpful to know the definition of war. As stated above it's "an attempt at altering either the psychological hierarchy or the material hierarchy of domination or equality between two or more groups." In other words, it's an attempt to overthrow the dominant power. God is the dominant power. He created the universe, he sustains it, and he rules over it. Satan has come into this creation and has been slowly taking over parts of it. He focuses his energy on individuals. When he does this, when they lose, they no longer recognize God as the dominant power. He loses his rightful place. And because God is a loving God, he doesn't come and over-throw the new hierarchy by force. He comes and knocks gently on the individual's heart and wins them over internally.
The thing that is necessary to recognize, and what made me go "AHA!" is that a war is ocurring because ther is "an essential ideology...[that] is somehow...so incompatible...as to threaten the fundamental existence of the one group experiencing the need to dominate the other group" Satan is at war with us because his viewpoint of the world is at odds with God's, it threatens his existence. He knows he's defeated and he is doing everything in his power to grab as many people before he goes away.
We should recognize that we are in this war. Whether we like it or not. Because we are at war we should be "unwilling to accept or permit the possibility of a relationship of fundamental equality to exist between the groups who have opted for group violence" In other words, there should be no provision made for the flesh. NONE. The fact that any equal relationship is given to anything that Satan offers, is why we fall into sin. There must be a deep gap between us and sin. Our hearts need to be constantly in line with what God is telling us and giving us so we can recognize sin when it's coming. Satan is subtle and won't just come brazenly in, he'll offer sin as exactly what you want. The bait he'll use will be something you've been wanting your whole life, or something you lust after daily. All he asks you to do is bite, and the hook is set.
This is why the bible tells us to be on guard. 1 Corinthians 10:12 "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!" Be careful that you don't fall. How do we do this? Abide.
1 John 1-3 gives us the instructions. Mainly chapter 1 says in verse 7"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[b] sin." And chapter 2 gives us the provision if we do fall verses 1-2"But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for[a] the sins of the whole world. Finally in chapter 3 he advises us to not practice sin once we're out of it in verse 6"No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him."
You see we are saved out of sin and invited to walk in the light as he is in the light. We are also given the tool of confession, in 1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." He can do this because he is the atoning sacrifice. Even after all this we still have to be reminded not to practice sin once we're out of it.
All of this is because there is a war going on for our souls and our enemy will stop at nothing to get us to put him as the dominant power. God has defeated our enemy and gives us Jesus, not only as our initial savior, but as our continual savior. He saves us from our selves every day and wins anew our soul by our continual submission and surrender. The war can be won for Jesus simply by our consent.
In all wars, the group(s) experiencing the need to dominate other group(s) are unable and unwilling to accept or permit the possibility of a relationship of fundamental equality to exist between the groups who have opted for group violence (war). The aspect of domination that is a precipitating factor in all wars, i.e. one group wishing to dominate another, is also often a precipitating factor in individual one-on-one violence outside of the context of war, i.e. one individual wishing to dominate another.
This definition of war is very enlightening. The parts in bold surprised me. I was reading 1 John 3 and I realized that one of the keys to remaining holy is abiding in Jesus. Abiding means to continue in a daily, personal relationship with Jesus, characterized by trust, prayer, obedience, and joy. I also realized that one of the keys to remaining holy is waging a war against sin. We are in a war, whether we like it or not, a war for our souls. 1 Peter 2:11-12 says "Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. 12Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us."
Because of this it's especially helpful to know the definition of war. As stated above it's "an attempt at altering either the psychological hierarchy or the material hierarchy of domination or equality between two or more groups." In other words, it's an attempt to overthrow the dominant power. God is the dominant power. He created the universe, he sustains it, and he rules over it. Satan has come into this creation and has been slowly taking over parts of it. He focuses his energy on individuals. When he does this, when they lose, they no longer recognize God as the dominant power. He loses his rightful place. And because God is a loving God, he doesn't come and over-throw the new hierarchy by force. He comes and knocks gently on the individual's heart and wins them over internally.
The thing that is necessary to recognize, and what made me go "AHA!" is that a war is ocurring because ther is "an essential ideology...[that] is somehow...so incompatible...as to threaten the fundamental existence of the one group experiencing the need to dominate the other group" Satan is at war with us because his viewpoint of the world is at odds with God's, it threatens his existence. He knows he's defeated and he is doing everything in his power to grab as many people before he goes away.
We should recognize that we are in this war. Whether we like it or not. Because we are at war we should be "unwilling to accept or permit the possibility of a relationship of fundamental equality to exist between the groups who have opted for group violence" In other words, there should be no provision made for the flesh. NONE. The fact that any equal relationship is given to anything that Satan offers, is why we fall into sin. There must be a deep gap between us and sin. Our hearts need to be constantly in line with what God is telling us and giving us so we can recognize sin when it's coming. Satan is subtle and won't just come brazenly in, he'll offer sin as exactly what you want. The bait he'll use will be something you've been wanting your whole life, or something you lust after daily. All he asks you to do is bite, and the hook is set.
This is why the bible tells us to be on guard. 1 Corinthians 10:12 "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!" Be careful that you don't fall. How do we do this? Abide.
1 John 1-3 gives us the instructions. Mainly chapter 1 says in verse 7"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[b] sin." And chapter 2 gives us the provision if we do fall verses 1-2"But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for[a] the sins of the whole world. Finally in chapter 3 he advises us to not practice sin once we're out of it in verse 6"No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him."
You see we are saved out of sin and invited to walk in the light as he is in the light. We are also given the tool of confession, in 1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." He can do this because he is the atoning sacrifice. Even after all this we still have to be reminded not to practice sin once we're out of it.
All of this is because there is a war going on for our souls and our enemy will stop at nothing to get us to put him as the dominant power. God has defeated our enemy and gives us Jesus, not only as our initial savior, but as our continual savior. He saves us from our selves every day and wins anew our soul by our continual submission and surrender. The war can be won for Jesus simply by our consent.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Sunday's preach
INTRO
Today Jeremy and I are continuing the topic of work. This time we'll be covering the example of the apostle Paul as he writes to the church at Thessalonica in, 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15. From those verses we'll see that Paul offers advice to a growing church, much like this one, to give them instructions on what to do with those who are not pulling their own weight. Jeremy and I will give some insight into work, from the dangers and pitfalls of working too much, to the shamefulness and dishonor of working too little. On that broad spectrum we'll highlight Paul's advice on work and how his example is an example of balance between those two extremes. So, with that, let me ask you to do a little thought experiment...
LAZY CHURCH
Imagine a church where nobody works. There is no one who preaches a sermon, there’s no one who plays a song, there’s no one to set up the chairs. No one works. There’s no one who puts words on a screen with a computer and projector, because there’s no one who sets up the screen to put them on. There’s no one who goes to the printers to get communication cards, there’s no one who watches the kids, there’s no one who smiles and greets people as they come in. The only thing in this lazy church that even remotely resembles work is that everybody shows up. They all show up and what will they get? As we heard a couple weeks ago they might hear an improvised sermon from David, but what else would they get? What else would expect them to get? Nothing! Work makes things happen, obvious yes, but sometimes it’s hard to remember the purpose of work. Work is meant to create. We were made in the image of God, and he creates. We were made to create, therefore we were made to work. Whether that work creates anything tangible or not is not the point. God created the world and part of that creation involved simply separating light from darkness. Sometimes at work you may simply organize papers into categories to be placed into folders. God created the world and part of that creation was simply speaking. Sometimes your job might just be speaking, but those words create new thoughts in the minds of those who hear them. My point is, work is creation, whatever that form may be.
OVER-WORKED CHURCH
Now imagine a church where the pastor and one other person does everything. He preaches the sermon, he plays a song, he sets up the chairs, he gets all the communication cards, his friend somehow manages to simultaneously watch the kids and change the words on the projector. The pastor greets everyone that comes in, he prays for everyone before they leave, he brings in coffee, he gets donuts, he juggles not 2, not 3, but 4 cats, he sings an aria. You get the point. Thankfully, God can do anything and everything, and thankfully he understands that we can't. He can do everything and even he rested on the seventh day of his creation. So what is the balance between overwork and outright laziness? Maybe the bible can give us an idea.
2 Thessalonians 3:6-15
Let's read 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 together and see what it has to say “6In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers, to keep away from every brother who is idle and does not live according to the teaching[a] you received from us. 7For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, 8nor did we eat anyone's food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. 9We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow. 10For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat."
11We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies. 12Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat. 13And as for you, brothers, never tire of doing what is right.
14If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of him. Do not associate with him, in order that he may feel ashamed. 15Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.
THESSALONIANS CONTEXT
The apostle Paul visited Thessalonica for several weeks (as it says in Acts 17:1-10 vs. 2 says for “three Sabbath days”) probably in the early summer of 50 AD. Eventually, opposition forced him to leave the city before he was able to deliver all the instruction that he thought was necessary for a new Christian community (1 Thes. 3:10 talks about his desire to return to them). The new church in Thessalonica experienced persecution. Paul sent his student Timothy back to Thessalonica. When Timothy returned to Paul he reported that the Thessalonian Christians were standing firm in spite of persecution. However, there were several topics on which they wanted further teaching, in particular, teaching about the return of Christ. The first letter to the Thessalonians is mainly a missionary’s letter to new Christians which includes teaching on eschatology (end-times) and the parousia (the personal presence, the coming of Christ)
The second letter to the Thessalonians to a large extent deals with a similar situation as in the first letter. The persecution of the Thessalonian Christians seems to be less, but excitement and confusion about the return of Christ exists. A primary reason for writing Second Thessalonians was to clarify a misconception about the coming of Christ “its main aim is to tell them certain things which will calm their hysteria and make them wait, not in idleness, but in patient and diligent attendance to the day’s work.”
Paul’s instruction about work in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 must be seen in combination with his teaching in his first letter. In 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 it says “11Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, 12so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.”
CHILDHOOD
This teaching on work brings me to my experience growing up. My main example of work, and how it should be treated, is my father. He’s a hard working guy. Even now, in his retirement he’s never just “lazing” around the house. There’s always a project in progress. He’ll fix the cars, service the lawnmower and run the snow blower (honestly I have no idea why he does this, to keep the oil from congealing in the engine I guess). When he’s not in the garage he’s in the house doing laundry or cleaning dishes. When those are done he finds something to occupy his mind, like a book or a sermon. He’s usually never too still. So, growing up I was taught that work was valuable and important. My mother also worked hard to earn money for the house and for the bills. But, in contrast with my father, the main message I received from my mother was: work = money = freedom.
Why did she think this? Let me explain a little. My father is manic-depressive so every so often, for awhile it was on a 6 month to yearly basis, he has a manic episode. This causes him to completely change. He’ll go from a happy, relatable person, to a strange and confusing, hard to talk to person. In the process of doing so he’ll spend money like crazy, he’ll stay up all late or get up really early. He’ll work on stuff in the garage late at night, and he’ll basically disrupt the entire house. My mother in these times is usually the only one who deals directly with this. In many cases he ended up committed to a hospital until he stabalized. He would then come home for awhile until the process happened again later. It’s not this bad anymore, but it had been like this for years.
This kind of activity obviously makes it hard for him to make money, so thankfully he has a pension from the government, for his time in the Navy 30 years ago. But these manic episodes disrupted my mother’s ability to maintain a sound budget. So throughout my childhood and into my teen years I had it in mind to get out of the house as soon as possible, and find a job. I began to form the conclusion that my mother had always been indirectly teaching me that work = money = freedom. Work became my functional savior it promised to get me out of that situation, so I worked hard, but for the completely wrong reasons. I thought that if I had enough money, I would never have to face these kinds of problems. I also thought that if I had enough money, I could live far away from them and far away from their problems.
IDENTITY
For anyone, work can be used as more than it was intended for, more than just to create, or more than just to earn a living, it can be used as a savior like it was for me. It can also be used as an identity. Although Paul in 2 Thessalonians 3 is warning against laziness and idleness, the opposite extreme, over-work, is just as bad. If you think about it, this isn’t that hard to fall into. When you ask someone, who are you? One of the first things that they might tell you is, what they do as a job. They might say “I’m a computer programmer” or “I’m a nurse” “I’m an engineer” or “I’m an accountant.” Most of the time this is not a bad thing. It's ok to define yourself by what you do, at least partially. But for some people it can become ALL of who they are. It can be where they find worth, where they find fulfillment, where they find value. That is when it becomes more than a job, it becomes an identity. Ephesians 2:10 helps us realize where we should find our identity, it says “For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” So you see we are God’s workmanship, we were created by him to “do good works” works that he “prepared in advance for us to do.” Our work in ministry, our work at school, our work in our jobs is all included in this. So we work hard as servants, as God’s workmanship, that is who we are. If you are working from this point of view, I believe you will find it easier to work for anyone or for any organization. Working as if you are working for God moves your value and worth to it's proper place. God gives you his thoughts about you and his purposes for you. Then you can work, without trying to find those things in your job. The point is We don’t find who we are in what we do rather What we do is because of who we are! We work as secrataries or programmers or preachers because we desire to serve and do a good job for God. We don't work as secrataries and programmers and preachers to find out who we are. My favorite quote on this concept is "Standing for hours in an empty garage does not make you a car." We start out as children of God and then do things, none of the things we do will give us a true identity.
IDOL
Not only can work become our identity but it can also become an idol or a god. I talked earlier about how I turned work into my functional savior, essentially an idol. For others work can become that and more. It can be where they go to find meaning, to find order, to find purpose, to find validation. All of those things are good, but when they are derived from a job, or our grades, or our church, and not God, they are not coming from the right place. Work is simply meant to provide us with the means to be independent of others. To not be a burden on anyone else for our food or our clothes or our housing.
GODLINESS
As kind of a side note there's a verse in 1 Timothy 6:6 that says “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” And I just want to make a point that gives some good wisdom for work in general.
So godliness with contentment is great gain. To give this verse a little more context, in verse 5 it says there were those who thought godliness was a means to financial gain. Paul is correcting that misconception. Godliness can be considered a form of work. You have to read your bible, you have to faithfully follow what it says, you have to pray and communicate with God. The problem arises when you start to treat godliness as a means to gaining God's favor, or as a means to blessings or money. The purpose of godliness is simply to be with God and grow closer to him, nothing else. Godliness as a means to anything defeats the purpose of following God. Godliness is the end in itself, abiding with God, being in his presence is the end, not the means to anything else.
THE BALANCE
So what's the balance? The verses Paul writes in 2 Thessalonians give us the correct model of work; from the extremes of laziness and over-work. He says “7For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, 8nor did we eat anyone's food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. 9We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow. 10For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat."
CONCLUSION
Work, so you’re not a burden (whether a burden because your never home or because you don’t carry your own weight with a job). Work for your food and your shelter and then be content with that. Work, don’t find excuses not to. Work, don’t find “work” in meddling with other people’s problems.
What do I want you to take away from this?:
1. Work is meant to create
2. What we do is because of who we are. Work, because God made you to create a difference in this world. He put you here to do good works that will make his purposes come into being here on earth.
3. We are to find our identity in God and what he says about us. We are to work as children of God that were crafted as his workmanship, and not be defined by our work.
4. Godliness is the end in itself, it’s our end goal, not the means to anything. Our work in the church, what could be called “godliness” is not meant to bring about financial gain, or prestige. Godliness with contentment is great gain. The only profit and gain we need to seek is that which comes from our relationship with Jesus Christ.
5. Don't be idle or a burden on anyone.
Today Jeremy and I are continuing the topic of work. This time we'll be covering the example of the apostle Paul as he writes to the church at Thessalonica in, 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15. From those verses we'll see that Paul offers advice to a growing church, much like this one, to give them instructions on what to do with those who are not pulling their own weight. Jeremy and I will give some insight into work, from the dangers and pitfalls of working too much, to the shamefulness and dishonor of working too little. On that broad spectrum we'll highlight Paul's advice on work and how his example is an example of balance between those two extremes. So, with that, let me ask you to do a little thought experiment...
LAZY CHURCH
Imagine a church where nobody works. There is no one who preaches a sermon, there’s no one who plays a song, there’s no one to set up the chairs. No one works. There’s no one who puts words on a screen with a computer and projector, because there’s no one who sets up the screen to put them on. There’s no one who goes to the printers to get communication cards, there’s no one who watches the kids, there’s no one who smiles and greets people as they come in. The only thing in this lazy church that even remotely resembles work is that everybody shows up. They all show up and what will they get? As we heard a couple weeks ago they might hear an improvised sermon from David, but what else would they get? What else would expect them to get? Nothing! Work makes things happen, obvious yes, but sometimes it’s hard to remember the purpose of work. Work is meant to create. We were made in the image of God, and he creates. We were made to create, therefore we were made to work. Whether that work creates anything tangible or not is not the point. God created the world and part of that creation involved simply separating light from darkness. Sometimes at work you may simply organize papers into categories to be placed into folders. God created the world and part of that creation was simply speaking. Sometimes your job might just be speaking, but those words create new thoughts in the minds of those who hear them. My point is, work is creation, whatever that form may be.
OVER-WORKED CHURCH
Now imagine a church where the pastor and one other person does everything. He preaches the sermon, he plays a song, he sets up the chairs, he gets all the communication cards, his friend somehow manages to simultaneously watch the kids and change the words on the projector. The pastor greets everyone that comes in, he prays for everyone before they leave, he brings in coffee, he gets donuts, he juggles not 2, not 3, but 4 cats, he sings an aria. You get the point. Thankfully, God can do anything and everything, and thankfully he understands that we can't. He can do everything and even he rested on the seventh day of his creation. So what is the balance between overwork and outright laziness? Maybe the bible can give us an idea.
2 Thessalonians 3:6-15
Let's read 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 together and see what it has to say “6In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers, to keep away from every brother who is idle and does not live according to the teaching[a] you received from us. 7For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, 8nor did we eat anyone's food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. 9We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow. 10For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat."
11We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies. 12Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat. 13And as for you, brothers, never tire of doing what is right.
14If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of him. Do not associate with him, in order that he may feel ashamed. 15Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.
THESSALONIANS CONTEXT
The apostle Paul visited Thessalonica for several weeks (as it says in Acts 17:1-10 vs. 2 says for “three Sabbath days”) probably in the early summer of 50 AD. Eventually, opposition forced him to leave the city before he was able to deliver all the instruction that he thought was necessary for a new Christian community (1 Thes. 3:10 talks about his desire to return to them). The new church in Thessalonica experienced persecution. Paul sent his student Timothy back to Thessalonica. When Timothy returned to Paul he reported that the Thessalonian Christians were standing firm in spite of persecution. However, there were several topics on which they wanted further teaching, in particular, teaching about the return of Christ. The first letter to the Thessalonians is mainly a missionary’s letter to new Christians which includes teaching on eschatology (end-times) and the parousia (the personal presence, the coming of Christ)
The second letter to the Thessalonians to a large extent deals with a similar situation as in the first letter. The persecution of the Thessalonian Christians seems to be less, but excitement and confusion about the return of Christ exists. A primary reason for writing Second Thessalonians was to clarify a misconception about the coming of Christ “its main aim is to tell them certain things which will calm their hysteria and make them wait, not in idleness, but in patient and diligent attendance to the day’s work.”
Paul’s instruction about work in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 must be seen in combination with his teaching in his first letter. In 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 it says “11Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, 12so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.”
CHILDHOOD
This teaching on work brings me to my experience growing up. My main example of work, and how it should be treated, is my father. He’s a hard working guy. Even now, in his retirement he’s never just “lazing” around the house. There’s always a project in progress. He’ll fix the cars, service the lawnmower and run the snow blower (honestly I have no idea why he does this, to keep the oil from congealing in the engine I guess). When he’s not in the garage he’s in the house doing laundry or cleaning dishes. When those are done he finds something to occupy his mind, like a book or a sermon. He’s usually never too still. So, growing up I was taught that work was valuable and important. My mother also worked hard to earn money for the house and for the bills. But, in contrast with my father, the main message I received from my mother was: work = money = freedom.
Why did she think this? Let me explain a little. My father is manic-depressive so every so often, for awhile it was on a 6 month to yearly basis, he has a manic episode. This causes him to completely change. He’ll go from a happy, relatable person, to a strange and confusing, hard to talk to person. In the process of doing so he’ll spend money like crazy, he’ll stay up all late or get up really early. He’ll work on stuff in the garage late at night, and he’ll basically disrupt the entire house. My mother in these times is usually the only one who deals directly with this. In many cases he ended up committed to a hospital until he stabalized. He would then come home for awhile until the process happened again later. It’s not this bad anymore, but it had been like this for years.
This kind of activity obviously makes it hard for him to make money, so thankfully he has a pension from the government, for his time in the Navy 30 years ago. But these manic episodes disrupted my mother’s ability to maintain a sound budget. So throughout my childhood and into my teen years I had it in mind to get out of the house as soon as possible, and find a job. I began to form the conclusion that my mother had always been indirectly teaching me that work = money = freedom. Work became my functional savior it promised to get me out of that situation, so I worked hard, but for the completely wrong reasons. I thought that if I had enough money, I would never have to face these kinds of problems. I also thought that if I had enough money, I could live far away from them and far away from their problems.
IDENTITY
For anyone, work can be used as more than it was intended for, more than just to create, or more than just to earn a living, it can be used as a savior like it was for me. It can also be used as an identity. Although Paul in 2 Thessalonians 3 is warning against laziness and idleness, the opposite extreme, over-work, is just as bad. If you think about it, this isn’t that hard to fall into. When you ask someone, who are you? One of the first things that they might tell you is, what they do as a job. They might say “I’m a computer programmer” or “I’m a nurse” “I’m an engineer” or “I’m an accountant.” Most of the time this is not a bad thing. It's ok to define yourself by what you do, at least partially. But for some people it can become ALL of who they are. It can be where they find worth, where they find fulfillment, where they find value. That is when it becomes more than a job, it becomes an identity. Ephesians 2:10 helps us realize where we should find our identity, it says “For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” So you see we are God’s workmanship, we were created by him to “do good works” works that he “prepared in advance for us to do.” Our work in ministry, our work at school, our work in our jobs is all included in this. So we work hard as servants, as God’s workmanship, that is who we are. If you are working from this point of view, I believe you will find it easier to work for anyone or for any organization. Working as if you are working for God moves your value and worth to it's proper place. God gives you his thoughts about you and his purposes for you. Then you can work, without trying to find those things in your job. The point is We don’t find who we are in what we do rather What we do is because of who we are! We work as secrataries or programmers or preachers because we desire to serve and do a good job for God. We don't work as secrataries and programmers and preachers to find out who we are. My favorite quote on this concept is "Standing for hours in an empty garage does not make you a car." We start out as children of God and then do things, none of the things we do will give us a true identity.
IDOL
Not only can work become our identity but it can also become an idol or a god. I talked earlier about how I turned work into my functional savior, essentially an idol. For others work can become that and more. It can be where they go to find meaning, to find order, to find purpose, to find validation. All of those things are good, but when they are derived from a job, or our grades, or our church, and not God, they are not coming from the right place. Work is simply meant to provide us with the means to be independent of others. To not be a burden on anyone else for our food or our clothes or our housing.
GODLINESS
As kind of a side note there's a verse in 1 Timothy 6:6 that says “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” And I just want to make a point that gives some good wisdom for work in general.
So godliness with contentment is great gain. To give this verse a little more context, in verse 5 it says there were those who thought godliness was a means to financial gain. Paul is correcting that misconception. Godliness can be considered a form of work. You have to read your bible, you have to faithfully follow what it says, you have to pray and communicate with God. The problem arises when you start to treat godliness as a means to gaining God's favor, or as a means to blessings or money. The purpose of godliness is simply to be with God and grow closer to him, nothing else. Godliness as a means to anything defeats the purpose of following God. Godliness is the end in itself, abiding with God, being in his presence is the end, not the means to anything else.
THE BALANCE
So what's the balance? The verses Paul writes in 2 Thessalonians give us the correct model of work; from the extremes of laziness and over-work. He says “7For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, 8nor did we eat anyone's food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. 9We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow. 10For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat."
CONCLUSION
Work, so you’re not a burden (whether a burden because your never home or because you don’t carry your own weight with a job). Work for your food and your shelter and then be content with that. Work, don’t find excuses not to. Work, don’t find “work” in meddling with other people’s problems.
What do I want you to take away from this?:
1. Work is meant to create
2. What we do is because of who we are. Work, because God made you to create a difference in this world. He put you here to do good works that will make his purposes come into being here on earth.
3. We are to find our identity in God and what he says about us. We are to work as children of God that were crafted as his workmanship, and not be defined by our work.
4. Godliness is the end in itself, it’s our end goal, not the means to anything. Our work in the church, what could be called “godliness” is not meant to bring about financial gain, or prestige. Godliness with contentment is great gain. The only profit and gain we need to seek is that which comes from our relationship with Jesus Christ.
5. Don't be idle or a burden on anyone.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Luke 20:16-18
16 He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others." When they heard this, they said, "Surely not!" 17 But he looked directly at them and said, "What then is this that is written:
"'The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone'?
18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him."
How can God who is both merciful and kind "destroy" those who reject his salvation?
God uses the harsh word destroy to accomplish a few things.
One, his words are used to wake up those who are currently on the path to destruction. If he used words that were any less truthful of the coming consequences, then he would be guilty of sugar-coating the utter ruin that is coming. God loves everyone and to allow even his enemies to suffer unwarned would be against his nature.
Two, since God is a holy God he cannot permit into his presence those who oppose him. The unjustified people who try to, on their own, come to meet with God will be rejected as they rejected him. Each of us, without Christ are the same, exactly the same. We don't have clearance to enter into the presence of a righteous and holy God. Sin is a pestilence that God cannot come into contact with.
Three, Christ justified us, there is no other substitute. God can not continue trying forever to get someone to accept him. People will either follow God or follow themselves and eventually they will follow themselves into destruction.
It's harsh sounding but what else would you have God do? Would you have him create an entire other universe, separate from God, to go on sinning to your hearts content? Maybe that is just what he did, with hell.
God must separate, not only himself from those who oppose him, but also those who oppose him from those who love him. He must do this for the same reasons he must separate them from himself. Because his people are holy, because of Jesus. Because his people are justified and therefore in right standing with him. Once this life is over, we can't be with those God has not justified. Because they can't be with God, they can't be with us.
It is hard to grasp, emotionally and mentally, in fact the very reason I'm writing this is to help me understand God's reasoning. I think God gives everyone, every chance he can to accept him and in the end he judges us based on what we did with all those chances.
"'The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone'?
18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him."
How can God who is both merciful and kind "destroy" those who reject his salvation?
God uses the harsh word destroy to accomplish a few things.
One, his words are used to wake up those who are currently on the path to destruction. If he used words that were any less truthful of the coming consequences, then he would be guilty of sugar-coating the utter ruin that is coming. God loves everyone and to allow even his enemies to suffer unwarned would be against his nature.
Two, since God is a holy God he cannot permit into his presence those who oppose him. The unjustified people who try to, on their own, come to meet with God will be rejected as they rejected him. Each of us, without Christ are the same, exactly the same. We don't have clearance to enter into the presence of a righteous and holy God. Sin is a pestilence that God cannot come into contact with.
Three, Christ justified us, there is no other substitute. God can not continue trying forever to get someone to accept him. People will either follow God or follow themselves and eventually they will follow themselves into destruction.
It's harsh sounding but what else would you have God do? Would you have him create an entire other universe, separate from God, to go on sinning to your hearts content? Maybe that is just what he did, with hell.
God must separate, not only himself from those who oppose him, but also those who oppose him from those who love him. He must do this for the same reasons he must separate them from himself. Because his people are holy, because of Jesus. Because his people are justified and therefore in right standing with him. Once this life is over, we can't be with those God has not justified. Because they can't be with God, they can't be with us.
It is hard to grasp, emotionally and mentally, in fact the very reason I'm writing this is to help me understand God's reasoning. I think God gives everyone, every chance he can to accept him and in the end he judges us based on what we did with all those chances.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Growth
Today I repotted my office plant. It looks much much happier and I anticipate that it will be much bigger in the next 6 months. Probably, it will need to be repotted again. I mention this because I've been learning about growing in relationship with God. I've also been reading A Severe Mercy. The author speaks of relationship with his wife, or "comrade-lover", about how "sharing" is the key to oneness. By trying to appreciate what there is to like in the likes of the other, they bond.
I've also been thinking about how I'm going to be leading a community group this month. Part of me is a little intimidated by this. Not because I haven't done it before, but because it's been such a long time. Then today, I got to thinking, that doing something I don't know how to do is the key to growing. It's the key to taking new ground. It also is an opportunity to ask God for help. This is where I believe I need to learn the most. I don't ask God for help very often. I feel really independent and like my life the way I've made it.
Like my plant though, I will remain in the same pot, restricted from growth, restricted from getting stronger and better if I don't get repotted. Like Jesus said you can't put new wine into old wineskins, and you can't get new growth from an old plant pot.
The process of growth can be painful, and it can be embarrassing, but it's really the only way to get anywhere. I need to look at this process, not as something to be feared, but as something that can be great. God has much more freedom to work with someone who is doing new things than with someone who is stuck in the same routine.
Therefore, I will make an effort to be asking God for help in the new things I am doing, I will do new things, and I will ask for help in the old things that I feel like I have handled. Help from God will make what I thought was perfect into what God thinks is perfect. Now isn't that better?
I've also been thinking about how I'm going to be leading a community group this month. Part of me is a little intimidated by this. Not because I haven't done it before, but because it's been such a long time. Then today, I got to thinking, that doing something I don't know how to do is the key to growing. It's the key to taking new ground. It also is an opportunity to ask God for help. This is where I believe I need to learn the most. I don't ask God for help very often. I feel really independent and like my life the way I've made it.
Like my plant though, I will remain in the same pot, restricted from growth, restricted from getting stronger and better if I don't get repotted. Like Jesus said you can't put new wine into old wineskins, and you can't get new growth from an old plant pot.
The process of growth can be painful, and it can be embarrassing, but it's really the only way to get anywhere. I need to look at this process, not as something to be feared, but as something that can be great. God has much more freedom to work with someone who is doing new things than with someone who is stuck in the same routine.
Therefore, I will make an effort to be asking God for help in the new things I am doing, I will do new things, and I will ask for help in the old things that I feel like I have handled. Help from God will make what I thought was perfect into what God thinks is perfect. Now isn't that better?
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Acts 10
In a way, God will always be telling me to turn to him. Turn to him in my needs, turn to him in my joys. To God I am a success story because he already knows the end. He just has to turn to his right and see Jesus sitting by his side. The lesson that Acts is teaching me is God makes a path to Jesus for everyone. He breaks into time and space and intervenes in our lives. Cornelius opened the door for the Gentiles to receive God, but it was God who initiated. God gave him the vision. God gave Peter the vision. God makes the path for us to walk in before we even know we have feet.
All of this is not new to me, but I want to make it real so there needs to be a concrete way of thinking about this. There are two points I need to learn. 1. Evangelism is double-sided. 2. Grace is to set us free
The first point I had not fully understood. However, it makes perfect sense to think that the best evangelism is initiated by God. He knows who he's working on. He also knows who he wants for someone to talk to. So why not ask Him? Talking to someone before they're ready is like touching an iron while it's still hot. You get burned. I mean a red-hot piece of iron that God is forging. He's hammering them out. If we talk before God is ready for us to, we might get hit with the hammer, or worse, ruin the thing he's making.
Point two is much more complex. Grace is to set us free. Grace is to "burden" us with what God gives as a gift. His yoke is easy and his burden is light. What trips me up is God's willingness to accept me back EVERY TIME I fail. I'm somehow stuck in a world where I'm dreading the last time I fail. The time when I sin, I die, and God says.
"Ooh, that last one there, uh yeah, I'm going to need you to go right to Hell for that. You see all the other times I forgave you because I foreknew you were going to stop sinning but, actually I didn't intend for you to keep sinning right up to your death. Yeah caught me by surprise on that one, sorry! Never knew you!"
Then I have this awful thought that I'll spend the rest of eternity wishing I hadn't sinned that one last time.
All of that is ludicrous, absolute and utter rubbish. Fear, first of all, that ALL of my sin is not paid for. Past, Present, and Future sin. Every sin. All of them. Why not?! God is our Father and if I had a son who I told could never do anything to lose his place in my family, I would always honor that word. Even if he destroyed my car, or house. I would still love him. How much more does God love us? He loves us to the point of letting us kill him! If I can be forgiven of that, what could I possibly do to make him change his mind about me? We can't catch God by surprise. He made all of history and therefore knows every step and misstep that we'll take.
God's desire is to so change our manner of thinking that to sin is only to require more grace. Since our sense of justice or quid-pro-quo is always on, he needed to do something that would transcend it. Yes he satisfies justice but he does it to a ridiculous degree. We are left simply dumb-struck to try and utter a word to refute it. He gave a billion dollars for our $17.95 debt. He gave a yacht when we asked for a row-boat. He gave us Jesus, and ultimately himself, when we asked for forgiveness.
All of this is not new to me, but I want to make it real so there needs to be a concrete way of thinking about this. There are two points I need to learn. 1. Evangelism is double-sided. 2. Grace is to set us free
The first point I had not fully understood. However, it makes perfect sense to think that the best evangelism is initiated by God. He knows who he's working on. He also knows who he wants for someone to talk to. So why not ask Him? Talking to someone before they're ready is like touching an iron while it's still hot. You get burned. I mean a red-hot piece of iron that God is forging. He's hammering them out. If we talk before God is ready for us to, we might get hit with the hammer, or worse, ruin the thing he's making.
Point two is much more complex. Grace is to set us free. Grace is to "burden" us with what God gives as a gift. His yoke is easy and his burden is light. What trips me up is God's willingness to accept me back EVERY TIME I fail. I'm somehow stuck in a world where I'm dreading the last time I fail. The time when I sin, I die, and God says.
"Ooh, that last one there, uh yeah, I'm going to need you to go right to Hell for that. You see all the other times I forgave you because I foreknew you were going to stop sinning but, actually I didn't intend for you to keep sinning right up to your death. Yeah caught me by surprise on that one, sorry! Never knew you!"
Then I have this awful thought that I'll spend the rest of eternity wishing I hadn't sinned that one last time.
All of that is ludicrous, absolute and utter rubbish. Fear, first of all, that ALL of my sin is not paid for. Past, Present, and Future sin. Every sin. All of them. Why not?! God is our Father and if I had a son who I told could never do anything to lose his place in my family, I would always honor that word. Even if he destroyed my car, or house. I would still love him. How much more does God love us? He loves us to the point of letting us kill him! If I can be forgiven of that, what could I possibly do to make him change his mind about me? We can't catch God by surprise. He made all of history and therefore knows every step and misstep that we'll take.
God's desire is to so change our manner of thinking that to sin is only to require more grace. Since our sense of justice or quid-pro-quo is always on, he needed to do something that would transcend it. Yes he satisfies justice but he does it to a ridiculous degree. We are left simply dumb-struck to try and utter a word to refute it. He gave a billion dollars for our $17.95 debt. He gave a yacht when we asked for a row-boat. He gave us Jesus, and ultimately himself, when we asked for forgiveness.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Discipline, it's like a hammer covered in pillows
For the longest time, I've been undisciplined and unstructured. I love structure though. I love things to be organized and neat, but I hate making them that way. Structure, as in a set schedule, a weekly routine, keeps me disciplined but I've never been able to find a way to be comfortable doing this with God. I've always chalked this up to the enemy distracting me with the world, so I don't build a relationship with God. In some ways I think that is what is going on, but I think there is also an element of God not wanting to be put in a box. (He was in one for awhile in the desert with the people of Abraham, he doesn't like that anymore).
Where does this leave me? I think I'm left with only the option to be ever mindful. To always be listening. To always be talking. God is everywhere present and every-when with us, so everywhere and every-when I can be refilled. Jesus most certainly spent time alone, in the early morning, to be with his father, but he also spent a lot of time with people, teaching and healing. Therefore, I should be with people, teaching and healing, and only recharge when necessary, when I'm empty.
God can only fill an empty vessel.
So however much I long for a schedule, maybe I need simply to open my ears and open my eyes to find places to give away my blessings.
Holy spirit, open the eyes of my heart, open the ears of my heart. Be in my way.
Where does this leave me? I think I'm left with only the option to be ever mindful. To always be listening. To always be talking. God is everywhere present and every-when with us, so everywhere and every-when I can be refilled. Jesus most certainly spent time alone, in the early morning, to be with his father, but he also spent a lot of time with people, teaching and healing. Therefore, I should be with people, teaching and healing, and only recharge when necessary, when I'm empty.
God can only fill an empty vessel.
So however much I long for a schedule, maybe I need simply to open my ears and open my eyes to find places to give away my blessings.
Holy spirit, open the eyes of my heart, open the ears of my heart. Be in my way.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
The Original Lie
Genesis 3:4-5
"You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
Here we have the original lie that Satan told our first parents "You will be like God." Eve was presented with the idea that her intellect would be like that of God's. What would you say is the appeal of that? For Adam and Eve, who had everything, who had daily food, who had perfect peace, who had a consistent relationship with God, what could they possibly need? The truth is, they didn't need anything. They were completely taken care of from head to toe, from morning to evening. Their lives were totally in God's hands and totally blessed. Why did they need anything else?
Satan, posed a question, a misdirection, to get them thinking, to get them to doubt. Maybe God is holding out on us, they thought. Maybe he has something he's not giving us. Maybe he's not telling us everything. If we eat this fruit, well then, we'll know what he's not telling us!
And goodness gracious me, it worked! They could see they were naked! Well that's not the kind of thing they wanted to know. They wanted to know so much more, they wanted to know EVERYTHING and that's what Satan promised. But we're not meant to know everything, we're not meant to be God, we're his creation, not his creator. We're his dependents. If God filled out a tax form, he would have to put down 6 billion!
You see, we are still believing this lie. That God is holding out on us. That God has something he's not giving us. The truth is, he's not! We still believe that there's something he's preventing us from getting. There's something he doesn't want us to have. That may be true, but whatever he's preventing us from getting is for our GOOD. God prevented Adam and Eve from seeing that they were naked. That was for their GOOD.
We still believe that God, who gave us his own Son, won't freely give us all things. We think somewhere, for some strange reason, he's holding out on us. And that if we find a way to get what he's holding out, we'll be happy. If I could just get that job then I'll be happy. If I could just get that girlfriend, then I'll be happy. If I could just have a kid, then I'll be happy. If I could just get that raise, graduate from college, get my PhD, find love, be richer...etc, then I will be happy!
It never ends. We are never happy. When we achieve these things, they don't satisfy. When we get these things, often times they make us miserable. This is all because we are believing the lie. The Original Lie. That God is not God. That God won't provide. That somehow he'll fail us. So we make sure he won't fail, we find another way to provide, another way to fulfill our dreams, because, well, God isn't working fast enough! He's never going to come through! God helps those who help themselves! HA! Tell that to Eve!
"You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
Here we have the original lie that Satan told our first parents "You will be like God." Eve was presented with the idea that her intellect would be like that of God's. What would you say is the appeal of that? For Adam and Eve, who had everything, who had daily food, who had perfect peace, who had a consistent relationship with God, what could they possibly need? The truth is, they didn't need anything. They were completely taken care of from head to toe, from morning to evening. Their lives were totally in God's hands and totally blessed. Why did they need anything else?
Satan, posed a question, a misdirection, to get them thinking, to get them to doubt. Maybe God is holding out on us, they thought. Maybe he has something he's not giving us. Maybe he's not telling us everything. If we eat this fruit, well then, we'll know what he's not telling us!
And goodness gracious me, it worked! They could see they were naked! Well that's not the kind of thing they wanted to know. They wanted to know so much more, they wanted to know EVERYTHING and that's what Satan promised. But we're not meant to know everything, we're not meant to be God, we're his creation, not his creator. We're his dependents. If God filled out a tax form, he would have to put down 6 billion!
You see, we are still believing this lie. That God is holding out on us. That God has something he's not giving us. The truth is, he's not! We still believe that there's something he's preventing us from getting. There's something he doesn't want us to have. That may be true, but whatever he's preventing us from getting is for our GOOD. God prevented Adam and Eve from seeing that they were naked. That was for their GOOD.
We still believe that God, who gave us his own Son, won't freely give us all things. We think somewhere, for some strange reason, he's holding out on us. And that if we find a way to get what he's holding out, we'll be happy. If I could just get that job then I'll be happy. If I could just get that girlfriend, then I'll be happy. If I could just have a kid, then I'll be happy. If I could just get that raise, graduate from college, get my PhD, find love, be richer...etc, then I will be happy!
It never ends. We are never happy. When we achieve these things, they don't satisfy. When we get these things, often times they make us miserable. This is all because we are believing the lie. The Original Lie. That God is not God. That God won't provide. That somehow he'll fail us. So we make sure he won't fail, we find another way to provide, another way to fulfill our dreams, because, well, God isn't working fast enough! He's never going to come through! God helps those who help themselves! HA! Tell that to Eve!
The problem is, anything we set up, other than God, to be the ultimate thing, the thing that will make us happy when we achieve or receive it, is an idol. Anything that exists, whether good or bad or neither, can be turned into an idol. Anything that we place in the highest place, the thing that we put at the center of our lives, is an idol. God needs to be in the highest place. God needs to be set up as the "thing" that will make us happy. Until we put God in that place, we'll never be happy.
It all comes down to believing the lie or believing THE truth. What truth? That God is enough. God is all we need. God is going to come through. The beautiful thing is this. God is enough, God is all we need, and God has already come through. In Jesus, he came through. In Jesus we have the love, the acceptance, the thing we've been waiting for, already! We have Jesus already! If we just turn away from the thing that will "satisfy" and turn toward him, he is ready to accept anyone. He is pursuing us until we turn. He is loving us, until we love. He is chasing us, until we give in.
Leave what you think will make you happy and turn to Jesus. The lie will be seen for what it is. The truth will be abundantly clear. He is all you need.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Introspection
I enjoy a good drink on occasion. I enjoy a few too many good drinks on less occasions. Well tonight is one of the latter nights.
Now it may sound funny or out of place, but I've been watching the Showtime television series Californication. What I expected from the show was a lot of gratuitous sex and a little bit of entertainment. What I did not expect was to find that this man, David Duchovny, was a very insightful thinker. He's going through the pains and heartaches that I'm sure a good majority of Americans are going through. He's dealing with a break-up of his family unit, he's dealing with the hardship caused by relationships that don't work, he's coping with raising his child while not being available for her all the time.
I think I'm in man-crush with David Duchovny, simply because he tells it like it is. He has this way of making the pain he's going through, dealing with all the above, into something that's worth listening to. I know it's fiction, I know it's created by someone who had a lot of time to think about, but that does not diminish its value. It has taught me a few things about relationships that I needed to learn. One of them being that, if I have children, they will have a loving father, in the picture all the time. I will raise them much better than this because I will work out my differences with my future wife and not put them in a bad environment.
This show has basically taught me what NOT to do.
Anyway, I thought it was a great idea to post a little tipsy. Maybe I'll regret this tomorrow. Or maybe I'll enjoy reading my buzzed introspection.
Now it may sound funny or out of place, but I've been watching the Showtime television series Californication. What I expected from the show was a lot of gratuitous sex and a little bit of entertainment. What I did not expect was to find that this man, David Duchovny, was a very insightful thinker. He's going through the pains and heartaches that I'm sure a good majority of Americans are going through. He's dealing with a break-up of his family unit, he's dealing with the hardship caused by relationships that don't work, he's coping with raising his child while not being available for her all the time.
I think I'm in man-crush with David Duchovny, simply because he tells it like it is. He has this way of making the pain he's going through, dealing with all the above, into something that's worth listening to. I know it's fiction, I know it's created by someone who had a lot of time to think about, but that does not diminish its value. It has taught me a few things about relationships that I needed to learn. One of them being that, if I have children, they will have a loving father, in the picture all the time. I will raise them much better than this because I will work out my differences with my future wife and not put them in a bad environment.
This show has basically taught me what NOT to do.
Anyway, I thought it was a great idea to post a little tipsy. Maybe I'll regret this tomorrow. Or maybe I'll enjoy reading my buzzed introspection.
Friday, July 10, 2009
The pleasures of this life
Sometimes I want to go into a time warp and wake up married with a house and kids. Not that this sudden time warp would make me happy, but it would take out all the waiting. Also, I don't want to miss all the things that come before having kids, but you probably get my idea. Sometimes I just think "If I were older, wiser, and more patient then these problems wouldn't follow me or try to find me." The problems, I see, are here to refine me. The waiting, I see, is here to make me wiser (and older). The situations I want to skip, are meant to fill me with understanding and memories for advising my kids and my friends. The pain I want to jump over, is meant to fill me with compassion for those who can't deal with life on their own. My life is a learning experience, but sometimes it really hurts. Sometimes, it takes all I have not to want to break off and leave things alone, let raging dogs rage without me.
I will someday look back and be glad for all that God has allowed in my life. He has certainly not kept it boring!
This isn't the end, this is only the beginning. Hopefully I'll find rest along the way. What I do know is that God is my refuge and my fortress in times of trouble. God is my rock. I will lean on him and no other until the storms pass.
You may wonder why I entitled this "pleasures" when all I'm talking about is pain. Well it's ironic.
I will someday look back and be glad for all that God has allowed in my life. He has certainly not kept it boring!
This isn't the end, this is only the beginning. Hopefully I'll find rest along the way. What I do know is that God is my refuge and my fortress in times of trouble. God is my rock. I will lean on him and no other until the storms pass.
You may wonder why I entitled this "pleasures" when all I'm talking about is pain. Well it's ironic.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Our Inheritance
Imagine with me that you are a child of rich parents. I’m not talking about celebrity rich, I’m talking nation rich. I mean you’re the child of some noble, or prince. Basically you’ve got $20 or $30 billion coming your way when you come of age. This money and all the investments and property it’s contained in, will be yours when you're 18. Now, just think about what you would do with all that money! Travel the world, never work again, buy houses, cars, boats, motorcycles, start businesses, buy businesses, eat till you pop, help your friends, I could go on. I say all this to remind you, you ARE the child of a billionaire. You DO have an inheritance coming. Jesus says that in his house there are many mansions and that he goes to prepare a place for you. You will live in Jesus’ house! Jesus says that for those who persevere through hardship he will give them a crown of life. You will receive bling! He says that those who overcome, God will dress us in white, and allow us to sit with him on his throne! We will be dressed like kings and given stuff to rule over! Come on people! This is too much.
So whenever you’re thinking low thoughts about your life. Whenever you have a view of this world that fills you with dread, whenever you can’t make it through the day, just think of your inheritance. Know that you are a child of the richest father in the world. You’re gonna be rich, in fact, you ARE rich!
So whenever you’re thinking low thoughts about your life. Whenever you have a view of this world that fills you with dread, whenever you can’t make it through the day, just think of your inheritance. Know that you are a child of the richest father in the world. You’re gonna be rich, in fact, you ARE rich!
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Weird thoughts
What if every Christian got their wish, to be like Jesus? What if everyone of us got to be Jesus after we died? What if we got to heaven and God said "Son this is my first task for you as a new member of heaven, come I will show you how to be my Son just like you asked", and right there and then you wake up in a manger and your name is Jesus? You know the path that this life will lead you on and you follow it to the end. You die the righteous death that he died for you and all of mankind. You rise again to life at the right hand of the father. A member of the trinity.You are now assimilated into God fully and there is no distinction because everyone of his children was in Christ through his life. We all get to live his life and die our death in our place. And in the end there is perfect fellowship with the saints and God because we all died the death we were supposed to die. Weird and a little blasphemous since it says "He died our death Once For All" but it makes you think. Because, why are we being taught obedience if there is nothing to obey him for when we die? I don't know other than a crazy scenario like I just outlined.
I'm quite sure this doesn't make any sense I just had a thought and wrote it down. One of the main reasons it's not correct is because, well, you can't be God. Only God is God.
I'm quite sure this doesn't make any sense I just had a thought and wrote it down. One of the main reasons it's not correct is because, well, you can't be God. Only God is God.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Doing something for God
Have you ever thought about how doing something for God is like doing something for a good friend? Just think about it for a minute. If you planned your friend's birthday party, what would you do? You would spend the time to pick out the cake, what it said on it. You would make arrangements for an apartment or house to be ready for all his friends. You would spend time cleaning that place and preparing it for him and his friends to come over. All these preparations and all because you love that friend. Because you care about them and want them to be happy and loved. I think it's the same with God.
I can get all caught up in just doing things out of duty for God I can forget that I like him. I say to myself "I need to read the bible because it's good for me" when really I should say, "I get to read the bible because I get to hear from my friend." Or I say "I need to tell my friends about Jesus" when I should just naturally say "Do you want to hear about what my friend did for me the other day?" Because God really does do a lot for us.
I believe it's harder to keep this perspective of God because he is essentially on a long journey. Friends that aren't in the same zip code, or circle of interaction are hard to remember. I have a bunch of those that I know from college. I keep in touch, but only occasionally. (Sometimes they get married before I even know they're dating someone). So God can be hard to keep on the top of my mind simply because he's not blatantly in my face. However, I can be much more mindful of him if I remember to read my bible and pray daily. God will wake me up to his presence occasionally without my trying, but he's much more readily on mind when I'm loyally trying to seek being with him.
So what am I going to do for my friend? Whatever I can, and whatever he asks, the best I can.
I can get all caught up in just doing things out of duty for God I can forget that I like him. I say to myself "I need to read the bible because it's good for me" when really I should say, "I get to read the bible because I get to hear from my friend." Or I say "I need to tell my friends about Jesus" when I should just naturally say "Do you want to hear about what my friend did for me the other day?" Because God really does do a lot for us.
I believe it's harder to keep this perspective of God because he is essentially on a long journey. Friends that aren't in the same zip code, or circle of interaction are hard to remember. I have a bunch of those that I know from college. I keep in touch, but only occasionally. (Sometimes they get married before I even know they're dating someone). So God can be hard to keep on the top of my mind simply because he's not blatantly in my face. However, I can be much more mindful of him if I remember to read my bible and pray daily. God will wake me up to his presence occasionally without my trying, but he's much more readily on mind when I'm loyally trying to seek being with him.
So what am I going to do for my friend? Whatever I can, and whatever he asks, the best I can.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Jesus tries to get through to us...
Jesus, in John 14:1-14, tries to get through to his disciples, and consequently us, that He is God. This concept is one that you hear throughout your Christian life and even sometimes in your non-Christian life. And I think I understand two things now, one Jesus is God, and two, that one thing can be three persons.
Let me explain.
I learned in my psychology class that children go through a certain stage where they can't grasp the idea that one thing can have multiple names. For example, that a cup is also a container, or a plate is also a dish. Adults understand this and use this to categorize the world more precisely. Children just want one name, one thing, they're simpler. I believe this same concept is difficult for adults when it comes to God. God isn't just one thing with many names he's one thing with many persons. For a human to grasp this, is similar for a child to grasp that the color red could also be the color crimson. I'm not analogizing God and Jesus, to red and crimson, I'm saying we don't have the capacity readily available to categorize a thing that is both one thing and many things.
So for Philip to ask in John 14:8 "Lord, show us the Father..." it's not surprising. He can't get this idea that God can be both in heaven and on earth. That he can be both the Father and the Son, simultaneously. In fact He is both. Jesus says it plainly in vs. 9 "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father...I am in the Father and the Father is in me." He's trying his best to put it in words we understand. We need to know this, we need to get this.
Many many people have this deep desire to know God. They may not even know that that is the desire inside them. But it shows up in what they do, how they worship things (give their time and money) and how they have this desire for intimacy. And all this time here he is! He's sitting in plain view, in every bible, in every story of redemption, in every story of sacrifice. God. If they are ever truly want to see God all they have to do is look at Jesus. He is God.
Let me explain.
I learned in my psychology class that children go through a certain stage where they can't grasp the idea that one thing can have multiple names. For example, that a cup is also a container, or a plate is also a dish. Adults understand this and use this to categorize the world more precisely. Children just want one name, one thing, they're simpler. I believe this same concept is difficult for adults when it comes to God. God isn't just one thing with many names he's one thing with many persons. For a human to grasp this, is similar for a child to grasp that the color red could also be the color crimson. I'm not analogizing God and Jesus, to red and crimson, I'm saying we don't have the capacity readily available to categorize a thing that is both one thing and many things.
So for Philip to ask in John 14:8 "Lord, show us the Father..." it's not surprising. He can't get this idea that God can be both in heaven and on earth. That he can be both the Father and the Son, simultaneously. In fact He is both. Jesus says it plainly in vs. 9 "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father...I am in the Father and the Father is in me." He's trying his best to put it in words we understand. We need to know this, we need to get this.
Many many people have this deep desire to know God. They may not even know that that is the desire inside them. But it shows up in what they do, how they worship things (give their time and money) and how they have this desire for intimacy. And all this time here he is! He's sitting in plain view, in every bible, in every story of redemption, in every story of sacrifice. God. If they are ever truly want to see God all they have to do is look at Jesus. He is God.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Child of the King
A story from an email I received today from these guys
Challenge to Prayer…Article #7
Deep in the misty green hills of Ireland long long ago there was a kingdom. One of the rules of the kingdom was that every prince and princess needed to spend a few years living with the ‘commoners’ so that they would know what life was like for those they would one day rule. At this time it was not uncommon for strangers and travelers to come into the kingdom and settle in for a while before moving on, and under this pretense the future royalty would one day show up in a small village to begin their pilgrimage into normal life.
One young prince was in the midst of his exploration when a corrupt governor came into power and began robbing and harassing the very village that he had settled into. Secretly, the village began sending ambassadors one by one to the king to inform him of the injustice that was destroying the village and their way of life. And one by one the ambassadors timidly approached the castle and were turned away by the kings attendants and advisors.
Yet the village did not lose hope and persisted in sending representatives to the king. Eventually the king’s very own son was chosen for the task. He began the long walk to the castle musing over how he would be received.
Upon reaching the drawbridge the guards demanded to know his business. The prince revealed his identity and was immediately shown into his fathers mighty throne room, by some very apologetic guards. Naturally the father listened with passion to his child’s request for help and justice. And naturally the father responded, bringing justice by force to the village.
…So often we approach the throne of grace timidly or feeling unworthy to ‘bother’ God with our requests. Let’s believe God when He declares us to be his beloved sons and daughters, and let us see him not only as king, but as father.
“So let us keep on coming with boldness to the throne of grace, so that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
---Hebrews 4:16
Challenge to Prayer…Article #7
Deep in the misty green hills of Ireland long long ago there was a kingdom. One of the rules of the kingdom was that every prince and princess needed to spend a few years living with the ‘commoners’ so that they would know what life was like for those they would one day rule. At this time it was not uncommon for strangers and travelers to come into the kingdom and settle in for a while before moving on, and under this pretense the future royalty would one day show up in a small village to begin their pilgrimage into normal life.
One young prince was in the midst of his exploration when a corrupt governor came into power and began robbing and harassing the very village that he had settled into. Secretly, the village began sending ambassadors one by one to the king to inform him of the injustice that was destroying the village and their way of life. And one by one the ambassadors timidly approached the castle and were turned away by the kings attendants and advisors.
Yet the village did not lose hope and persisted in sending representatives to the king. Eventually the king’s very own son was chosen for the task. He began the long walk to the castle musing over how he would be received.
Upon reaching the drawbridge the guards demanded to know his business. The prince revealed his identity and was immediately shown into his fathers mighty throne room, by some very apologetic guards. Naturally the father listened with passion to his child’s request for help and justice. And naturally the father responded, bringing justice by force to the village.
…So often we approach the throne of grace timidly or feeling unworthy to ‘bother’ God with our requests. Let’s believe God when He declares us to be his beloved sons and daughters, and let us see him not only as king, but as father.
“So let us keep on coming with boldness to the throne of grace, so that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
---Hebrews 4:16
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
The King got up from his throne
This morning on my ride into work I had this amazing picture that gave me chills. I spent the next several minutes marveling and thinking on the implications of it. Imagine that God is a king. It's not that hard seeing that he is a king. Imagine him sitting on his throne, surrounded by a castle that is immaculate and orderly. The morning report comes in and he hears that his son's wife-to-be is in trouble her town is under siege. This future daughter-in-law, however, is only known to be of this status to him and his son. To everyone else she is simply a common citizen of his kingdom, which is vast. The king has ruled calmly and resolutely from his throne for years without leaving it vacant ever. Yet this news causes him great pain. And he does something no one expects.
He gets off his throne.
He stands up and resolves to personally fight this attack.
That image of a king rising for the sake of one person, it awes me. He got up and came to my defense. He actually made an effort on my behalf. Such power for such weakness.
Now, I'm not saying God actually left his rule and authority of the universe to become Jesus. No, he's three persons, he can remain on the throne and come down as a human, simultaneously. What I am saying is that he didn't have to do what he did. He didn't have to come to our rescue, he could have just sat there and been indifferent to our plight. But he didn't. And that's why I love him.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
The Jurisdiction of the Church
Click for sermon
Many of the ideas I am about to express come from the above linked sermon.
The issue in America again, because of the recent election, is gay marriage. I agree with Mark Driscoll's opinion that the United States is not a church. The jurisdiction of the church does not extend beyond the 4 walls of the church to dictate what people should do. This does not mean we can't preach the gospel in love and hope that people come to a knowledge of the truth. However, telling someone that they can't be legally bound to their partner on the basis of Church authority, is a little like a Canadian mounty pulling you over on horse back and giving you a ticket. You wouldn't pay that ticket, because his laws don't apply to you. Or if someone knocked on your door and said "You're breaking some of the rules in the Q'uran." You'd tell them "I'm not on that team, I don't follow those rules."
So how can we expect people outside the church to follow our rules.
It's ok for us to get angry with other churches, but there is no way we're going to see progress if we argue with those outside of it.
The problem is Satan has tricked us into believing we're at war with these people. We're not. We are at war with him and he has taken them captive. By fighting them we're effectively shooting the prisoners, expecting it to slow the enemy's progress. It's actually their goal that we fight the prisoners, we're falling right into their trap.
We are to love God, love people in the church, and love people outside the church.
There is no way anyone is going to come into one of our churches if we're judging them before they're on the same team. They are captives to the enemy and are following his rules. All we'll do is confuse and deject people. The bible doesn't make any sense to them.
We are called to lovingly explain the gospel in a way that is understandable. We are to love and instruct our brothers and sisters in Christ to do the same. We are to be men and women who know who our enemy is and fight him, not the people he's enslaved.
Many of the ideas I am about to express come from the above linked sermon.
The issue in America again, because of the recent election, is gay marriage. I agree with Mark Driscoll's opinion that the United States is not a church. The jurisdiction of the church does not extend beyond the 4 walls of the church to dictate what people should do. This does not mean we can't preach the gospel in love and hope that people come to a knowledge of the truth. However, telling someone that they can't be legally bound to their partner on the basis of Church authority, is a little like a Canadian mounty pulling you over on horse back and giving you a ticket. You wouldn't pay that ticket, because his laws don't apply to you. Or if someone knocked on your door and said "You're breaking some of the rules in the Q'uran." You'd tell them "I'm not on that team, I don't follow those rules."
So how can we expect people outside the church to follow our rules.
It's ok for us to get angry with other churches, but there is no way we're going to see progress if we argue with those outside of it.
The problem is Satan has tricked us into believing we're at war with these people. We're not. We are at war with him and he has taken them captive. By fighting them we're effectively shooting the prisoners, expecting it to slow the enemy's progress. It's actually their goal that we fight the prisoners, we're falling right into their trap.
We are to love God, love people in the church, and love people outside the church.
There is no way anyone is going to come into one of our churches if we're judging them before they're on the same team. They are captives to the enemy and are following his rules. All we'll do is confuse and deject people. The bible doesn't make any sense to them.
We are called to lovingly explain the gospel in a way that is understandable. We are to love and instruct our brothers and sisters in Christ to do the same. We are to be men and women who know who our enemy is and fight him, not the people he's enslaved.
Friday, October 3, 2008
7-20-08
Here's an entry in a journal I was writing a few months back. I found it relevant to how I feel today. When I speak of death, dying, kill, I mean meta-physically, so don't be worried for my physical health.
Here is the reason I sit. I sit because I can’t be good. I sit here and type this journal because I know there is a better way. I have much to discuss with God and much inside me that needs to come out, but I haven’t a clue where to begin. So I sit and I type as a testament to my defeat. A testament to the things that have come to pass. I am a sinner saved by grace. Hook line and sinker. That’s it. There’s a chosen few who were blessed to bring the message of the gospel to those in the world who have never heard it before. God blesses a small number so that they can bless the rest. Therefore here I am as a blessed one who is supposed to bring the message of God to those who haven’t heard it before. And there I am at that junction that I hate, hate, hate to be at. The junction that apparently the rest of mankind has been around, resisting since the beginning. The junction of being sent out. The root cause of course is disobedience. And what did God just hours ago tell me to do. Obey him. He specifically asked me to obey him. And what have I done so far as my acts of obedience. Sin. So I’m stuck. I really am completely and utterly stuck. And no I’m not saying that to get God to help me. Or even because I’ve said it before and believed it to be true. It’s true that I believed it before and it was true before. But I always had inside my head a reason to go on. A thing that said “you don’t believe that do you?” That said, “No, you can still find a way to obey what God is saying to you on your own.” And there it is. ON YOUR OWN you can do nothing! I’ve heard this message before. But here I am trying to type my way out of a bottomless pit. Even typing will only make my mind more tired of trying to figure a way out of this. Obedience on your own will never work. Children try and fail many many many times. And what makes you think you’re anything greater than a child? Who said you could be anything greater? There is a pride in you David! A pride of figuring it out. Drop the pride and just believe in me! Drop the pretense of holiness that you so love to hold. Drop who you know you should be and die! Die, DIE! There must be a way through that thick skull of yours. YOU NEED TO DIE! Ok, God. Kill me then. Desecrate my self. Kill it kill it kill it and I will be free. For nothing is going to work unless you intervene. KILL ME GOD. I am willing to die for freedom from all these chains. What chains you ask? The chain of self love. The chain of self-preservation. The chain of ignorance. The chain of self-hate. The chain of self. The chain of deception. The chain of wrong desire. The chain of alone-ness. You are going to be made free David, once you want to be made free. Well God I want to be made free.
Here is the reason I sit. I sit because I can’t be good. I sit here and type this journal because I know there is a better way. I have much to discuss with God and much inside me that needs to come out, but I haven’t a clue where to begin. So I sit and I type as a testament to my defeat. A testament to the things that have come to pass. I am a sinner saved by grace. Hook line and sinker. That’s it. There’s a chosen few who were blessed to bring the message of the gospel to those in the world who have never heard it before. God blesses a small number so that they can bless the rest. Therefore here I am as a blessed one who is supposed to bring the message of God to those who haven’t heard it before. And there I am at that junction that I hate, hate, hate to be at. The junction that apparently the rest of mankind has been around, resisting since the beginning. The junction of being sent out. The root cause of course is disobedience. And what did God just hours ago tell me to do. Obey him. He specifically asked me to obey him. And what have I done so far as my acts of obedience. Sin. So I’m stuck. I really am completely and utterly stuck. And no I’m not saying that to get God to help me. Or even because I’ve said it before and believed it to be true. It’s true that I believed it before and it was true before. But I always had inside my head a reason to go on. A thing that said “you don’t believe that do you?” That said, “No, you can still find a way to obey what God is saying to you on your own.” And there it is. ON YOUR OWN you can do nothing! I’ve heard this message before. But here I am trying to type my way out of a bottomless pit. Even typing will only make my mind more tired of trying to figure a way out of this. Obedience on your own will never work. Children try and fail many many many times. And what makes you think you’re anything greater than a child? Who said you could be anything greater? There is a pride in you David! A pride of figuring it out. Drop the pride and just believe in me! Drop the pretense of holiness that you so love to hold. Drop who you know you should be and die! Die, DIE! There must be a way through that thick skull of yours. YOU NEED TO DIE! Ok, God. Kill me then. Desecrate my self. Kill it kill it kill it and I will be free. For nothing is going to work unless you intervene. KILL ME GOD. I am willing to die for freedom from all these chains. What chains you ask? The chain of self love. The chain of self-preservation. The chain of ignorance. The chain of self-hate. The chain of self. The chain of deception. The chain of wrong desire. The chain of alone-ness. You are going to be made free David, once you want to be made free. Well God I want to be made free.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)