Many people don't like John's gospel as much as the others because it doesn't contain the birth narrative. To many, it seems incomplete. But the richness of the gospel is built into seven "I am" statements where Jesus describes himself and the life in the Spirit. Let's look at these:
1. "I am the bread of life" 6:35
In this passage Jesus has just completed the feeding of the five thousand. But he wants to make it clear that the act was not about bread and fish, or even physical hunger. Jesus wants to make it clear that He is all we need for true sustenance. He assures us that when we come to him we will never be hungry or thirsty again. In this is a promise of etrernal life and that we will never need anything for that journey except Jesus alone.
Everytime I go to holy communion this passage is one that comes to mind. Now in the United Methodist Church, we do not believe in transubstatiation or the idea that bread and wine are transformed into the actual body and blood of Christ, We believe in a form of consubstantiation where we believe the Spirit works in through and around the the bread and juice. We experience the Spirit in the sharing of the elements. We United Methodists believe that we engage in much more than a memorial meal remembering Christs death and resurrection, but that the Spirit enters us in the process...changing us and drawing us closer to his love. That is why we should share the scacrament as often as possible.
2. "I am the light of the world" 8:12
Earlier in the gospel, Jesus makes it clear that a light has enetered the darkness and the darkness could not overcome it. The problem Jesus says is that most people were o.k. with living in the darkness. Think about the intense darkness that the enemy has placed in our world. Derranged gunmen who kill school children, addictions to drugs and alcohol, loneliness and depression and slavery to credit, debt and poor finances.
But Jesus also offers us a way out. He offers us the truth of His Spirit and that He has come to earth so the darkness could not over come the light of God. Jesus is the light of the world that shines bright because He wants us to follow that light to Himself. Only there can we disocver the truth about our own lives. We are loved and accepted unconditionally. We are not shut out of life's process. When we come to Jesus we come to the truth and the promise of healing through the Holy Spirit. It is a healing that can help us overcome any darkness that has entered our lives. We access that life by calling on Jesus as Lord and Savior, Praying to Him for what we need and not holding anything back, sharing our journey with others and meditating on His Word. One of the things that conitinues to shock me about churches and even pastors is how little time they actually spend in the scriptures.
3. "I am the gate for the sheep" 10:6
Jesus is simply making clear what He said in John 3:16. Jesus is the only way to God. We cannot get to God through an ecclectic practice of borrowing things we like from other religions. In seminary one of my classmates actually held up the Indian Vita and the Koran as equal in stature to the Bible. His argument was that every religion contained truth and that truth was universal. What moved Ghandi to peace and the book of billions of muslims could enlighten our path along with the sayings of Jesus in the Bible.
But Jesus makes it clear that he is the only way for the sheep to enter the flock. He is the gate. One cannot access the truth of God without a proclamation that Jesus is Lord! The truth is that Jesus is the only way to get to God. We were separated from God by sin and a chasm developed and we couldn't get back. Jesus death allowed the cross to fill in the chasm so we could again experience the love and forgiveness of God. But the only way this path can be traveled is through Jesus Christ. There is no other path to God because He is coequal and coeternal with God. Only Jesus can bring us to a relationship with God.
4. "I am the Good Shepherd" 10:14
What's key about this part of the gospel is the sacrifice that the good sheepherd makes for His flock. The gospel says that He sacrifices His life for the sheep. Christianity begins and ends at the cross. Without the cross there is no salvation. If Jesus didn't actually die, than His resurrection is not true and our faith is in vain. But the truth is made clear. The passage also makes it clear that Jesus will never abandon His sheep.
5. "I am the resurrection and the life" 11:25
Jesus has power over what is living. He can change things. He naswers prayers, heals, forgives and makes new. But the other important thing is that Jesus also has power over death. By the cross, he has forever conquered death and its hold over us. Whatever happens to Jesus is going to happen to us as believers. Because He has risen from the dead and has seated Himself at the right hand of the Father, we are promised a resurrection as well. Death will not be the end of our story. We are promised eternity in heaven. That is a promise that no one....not even the enemy can take away.
In our world today, we are surrounded by so much death. We see school shootings, movie theater shootings and all kinds of untimely deaths. Cancer has taken many before their time should have come. I suffer from depression and many days I don't feel very alive. It is the promise of new life now and in eternity that keeps me going. My Illness will not conquer my life because Jesus promises me eternal life. Eternal life is not just a life that never ends, but is an eternal quality of life that is given to us when we committ ourselves to Jesus Christ. We need to make this committment not just once but every day of our lives.
6. "I am The Way, The Truth and The life" 14:6
Jesus is the only way to God....period. Sometimes people like to say Jesus is just one of the ways to God. They say that other world religions have truth in them too and they are as good as Christianity. But scripture makes it clear that this is not so. God is not just a celestial being we can connect to in the universe. God is a person who has made himself known and available to us through Jesus Christ spiritually. Apart from belief and worship of Jesus, religion is counterfeit and will not bring us the change we need in our lives. I see so many self help programs that promise people power for living, but in the end they lack life giving power. They may offer a few good tips for daily life, but that is all they offer. We need Jesus...and only Jesus.
7. "I am the true vine" 15:1
I have always felt that this verse was about the church. It is through our belief and committment that we are made part of God's family the church. Sometimes we only view church as a place for worship, but it is in fact so much more. When we pray the Lord's prayer we are praying with the church eternal and do so along with Christians who have prayed that same prayer throughout the ages. When we recite the creed we are affirming the same faith as the very first disciples.
The one thing that I love about our faith is that not one doctrine has changed since the very beginning. We affirm the same beliefs as the earliest believers. These beliefs are not opinions that are open to suggestion, opinion or interpretation. They are what they are and they mean what they say.
Take some time to reflect on John's gospel and belief in what Jesus says about himself. They are not man made beliefs or doctrines but come from the mouth of the savior Himself. Jesus said it...I believe it...and that is good enough for me.
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Thursday, November 8, 2012
What makes Me A Christian?
The most common words of the human language are me , myself and I. And when it comes to our faith in God nothing really changes. We try to make it about us....what we believe...what we want...what we need...and what we choose to believe.
But is it what we do that makes us a Christian? Other than our belief, what do we really have to offer?
I would like to argue that it is not what we do or say that makes us Christian, but what Jesus has done for us that makes us Christian.
Like the other 3 gospels, John offers us a time line into the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. But John's gospel is also built around seven I am statements that make clear what the work of Christ is and how it applies to us.
John 6: 35 "I am the bread of life." No matter what we put in our bodies be it Wendys to nutrition shakes we always end up hungering and thirsting and again. But this verse makes it cleaer that who ever comes to him will be given a spirirtual nutrition that will never go away. Whe we take comunion we become one with Christ, even if only for a moment. God brings us to himself and vows to never drive us away. Those who belong to christ and feast upon him will always belong to God no matter what
n
John 8:12 "I am the light of the world" He tells us that whoever follows him will never walk in darkness. I always thought of this as being akin to the pillar of fire that guided the Israelites by night. Jesus promises to never lead us astray. No matter what tough times we may be going throught at home, work, or school, Jesus light is always the pathway to what God thinks is best for us. It is not for us to question the light or negotiatewith the light, but merely follow.
John 10:7 "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. Jesus wants to make it clear that those who enter His fold are part of the family of God
John 10:11 &14 I am the good shepherd. When we enter through Jesus Sheepgate we can be sure that we have made the right choice to follow. He is infinitely good and wants what's best for us. He is the good shepherd who will lead us to life everlasting away from the destructive behavior which have causedb us to flee iin the first place.
John 11:25 "I am the resurrection and the life." Simply put....no one comes to the father except through having a saving realtionship with Jesus Christ
John 14 "I am the way the truth and the life" Ditto from above.
John 15:1 "I am the true vine" this suggests that through a personal relation ship with Jesus Christ we are grafted into the Christain family.
I know that so many are out try to do everything they can to be a good Christian, but many seem to think that it is by their actions thoughts and deeds that they can live a better more fulfilled Christian life.
But te evidence is clear it is not we do that makes us Christian it is what Jesus has done for us that makes us Christian. Maybe we need to stop trying so hard and just say yes to Jesus and everything else will take care of itself. It takes patience and perseverance but John's gospel makes it clear it will work.
But is it what we do that makes us a Christian? Other than our belief, what do we really have to offer?
I would like to argue that it is not what we do or say that makes us Christian, but what Jesus has done for us that makes us Christian.
Like the other 3 gospels, John offers us a time line into the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. But John's gospel is also built around seven I am statements that make clear what the work of Christ is and how it applies to us.
John 6: 35 "I am the bread of life." No matter what we put in our bodies be it Wendys to nutrition shakes we always end up hungering and thirsting and again. But this verse makes it cleaer that who ever comes to him will be given a spirirtual nutrition that will never go away. Whe we take comunion we become one with Christ, even if only for a moment. God brings us to himself and vows to never drive us away. Those who belong to christ and feast upon him will always belong to God no matter what
n
John 8:12 "I am the light of the world" He tells us that whoever follows him will never walk in darkness. I always thought of this as being akin to the pillar of fire that guided the Israelites by night. Jesus promises to never lead us astray. No matter what tough times we may be going throught at home, work, or school, Jesus light is always the pathway to what God thinks is best for us. It is not for us to question the light or negotiatewith the light, but merely follow.
John 10:7 "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. Jesus wants to make it clear that those who enter His fold are part of the family of God
John 10:11 &14 I am the good shepherd. When we enter through Jesus Sheepgate we can be sure that we have made the right choice to follow. He is infinitely good and wants what's best for us. He is the good shepherd who will lead us to life everlasting away from the destructive behavior which have causedb us to flee iin the first place.
John 11:25 "I am the resurrection and the life." Simply put....no one comes to the father except through having a saving realtionship with Jesus Christ
John 14 "I am the way the truth and the life" Ditto from above.
John 15:1 "I am the true vine" this suggests that through a personal relation ship with Jesus Christ we are grafted into the Christain family.
I know that so many are out try to do everything they can to be a good Christian, but many seem to think that it is by their actions thoughts and deeds that they can live a better more fulfilled Christian life.
But te evidence is clear it is not we do that makes us Christian it is what Jesus has done for us that makes us Christian. Maybe we need to stop trying so hard and just say yes to Jesus and everything else will take care of itself. It takes patience and perseverance but John's gospel makes it clear it will work.
Saturday, October 13, 2012
"I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry again, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty...All that the Father gives to me will come to me, and who ever comes to me I will never drive away."
John 6:35-37
One of the most common emotions related to faith is guilt. We feel that who we are and what we've done is such that we are unworthy of forgiveness. So we stray away from God and get stuck in our guilt.
But I want to argue that guilt may be one thing that stands in the way of faith, but shame is the number one impediment to a real and lasting faith in our lives.
Guilt diminishes us and makes us afraid. We feel that what comes around goes around and we will be eventually judged for our sin.
Shame on the other hand completely eviscerates us. It causes us to feel like we are invisible to ourselves and those around us. I feel shame for many things I have done in my life and would share most of them with no one. But they plague me and I feel less than whole. Paranoia is intensified shame and we feel like crawling into a fetal position.
Shame involves more than sin. It tells us that we are unacceptable as we are and there is no point to having faith in our lives. We all have shame. Things we hide from even the closest around us. We feel shame for things we have done in relationships, thoughts and feelings we have had and actions that we would rather die over than make public.
Shame is the deevil's greatest tool in keeping us away from the healing love of God. If we are so embarrassed by our behavior, thoughts or feelings we won't take them to God because they will ultimately be judged.
But God has a heart for those who struggle with shame. It was shame that caused God to clothe Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They knew they were naked and God provided the cure.
We need to take our shame before God. The scripture says He will never drive us away but will be a loving shepherd. My mental illness often causes me shame because it makes me feel defective and less than others. But it is in the midst of my delusions, paranoia and hallucinations that I lay myself bare before God. He accepts the life I have to give to him. He knows my limitations, foul ups and wreckless behavior and he will not drive me away. Every time I feel like I have hit a new bottom I go to Him and He lifts me.
No matter what your shame. No matter what has happened in your life, God will not drive you away. He will help you to be visible again and He will wash clean the darkness is your life. But you have to go to him bare. You have to lay it out there. When you come to terms with it. God will come to terms with it and He will lead you out of your shame.
The unspeakable for us is knowable and forgiveable by God. It is not rocket science. What you hold back holds you back. So today let us search the darkest reaches of our hearts and lay our shame before God. He will heal it. He will help us to live with it. And He will show us a way out of it. God is the good shepherd who will never drive us away.
John 6:35-37
One of the most common emotions related to faith is guilt. We feel that who we are and what we've done is such that we are unworthy of forgiveness. So we stray away from God and get stuck in our guilt.
But I want to argue that guilt may be one thing that stands in the way of faith, but shame is the number one impediment to a real and lasting faith in our lives.
Guilt diminishes us and makes us afraid. We feel that what comes around goes around and we will be eventually judged for our sin.
Shame on the other hand completely eviscerates us. It causes us to feel like we are invisible to ourselves and those around us. I feel shame for many things I have done in my life and would share most of them with no one. But they plague me and I feel less than whole. Paranoia is intensified shame and we feel like crawling into a fetal position.
Shame involves more than sin. It tells us that we are unacceptable as we are and there is no point to having faith in our lives. We all have shame. Things we hide from even the closest around us. We feel shame for things we have done in relationships, thoughts and feelings we have had and actions that we would rather die over than make public.
Shame is the deevil's greatest tool in keeping us away from the healing love of God. If we are so embarrassed by our behavior, thoughts or feelings we won't take them to God because they will ultimately be judged.
But God has a heart for those who struggle with shame. It was shame that caused God to clothe Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They knew they were naked and God provided the cure.
We need to take our shame before God. The scripture says He will never drive us away but will be a loving shepherd. My mental illness often causes me shame because it makes me feel defective and less than others. But it is in the midst of my delusions, paranoia and hallucinations that I lay myself bare before God. He accepts the life I have to give to him. He knows my limitations, foul ups and wreckless behavior and he will not drive me away. Every time I feel like I have hit a new bottom I go to Him and He lifts me.
No matter what your shame. No matter what has happened in your life, God will not drive you away. He will help you to be visible again and He will wash clean the darkness is your life. But you have to go to him bare. You have to lay it out there. When you come to terms with it. God will come to terms with it and He will lead you out of your shame.
The unspeakable for us is knowable and forgiveable by God. It is not rocket science. What you hold back holds you back. So today let us search the darkest reaches of our hearts and lay our shame before God. He will heal it. He will help us to live with it. And He will show us a way out of it. God is the good shepherd who will never drive us away.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Why Is The Church Having A Cconfidence Problem?
"Do not give to dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls before pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces."
Matthew 8:3 (New International Version)
All one has to do is step inside a church on Sunday morning and one will hear about the ongoing war between the Christian faith and the popular secdular culture. Since I have left the active ministry, I have spent the last 8 years visiting protestant churches of every denomination and theological temperment. They have all had didfferent worship styles--organs to amplified rock music, different belief emphases, and all sorts of different architicture. I have sat in cathedrals, naves and in the newer style auditorium churches. One thing that has been a given whether or not it was a town, country, urban or suburban church...mega, large, medium or small...is that for some reason people feel the church is losing the battle against the culture around it.
One could see it in worship bulletins, financial statements and even a potluck dinners. It wasn't openly talked about in many of the churches, but when it was it was through talk of the good old nostalgic days. I would hear things like, "Back in the day when the church was full we used to have to set up extra chairs...or..."There was a time when we didn't have enough Sunday school class rooms and had to have classes in the church kitchen." Mainly, people saw the church as the great central gathering place of the community where almost any need could be met.
But ,these same folk, most of whom are in their golden years, always seen to be talking about the church in the past tense. They say they yearn for the good old days when offering plates heaped with envelopes and pews were full. They long again for a time when the church can again become the center of town life.
But if you study the numbers of churches going back to the 1940's and 1950's, when most believed the church was at its strongest point in a genereration one will see only about a 10% drop off in attendance and membership. It is also clear to see that it was during these golden years when many of these cultural issues we are fighting today began to rear their ugly head.
But in today's church it seems much, much worse. It seems like things like tithing, attendance, membership, conversion and professions of faith are off by a lot more than 10 %. The pews seem emptier, the offerings less and the hand-wringing by leaders over the future survival of their congregations is greater than ever before. Even the United Methodist Church in some publications has suggested that if current trends continue some 35% of churches will end up closing. The church and the culture are at war and to many involved it seems like the culture is winning.
We need to go back to the beginning to places like the garden of Eden and Jesus' temptation in the wilderness to get a feel for the psychological aspects of the issue. Ever since the serpent (Satan) convinced Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit, Satan has been a huge part of the ongoing cultural warfare. When Jesus was even allowed to be put to the test for 40 days in the wilderness it was Satan who made the arguments for going the way of the culture and not the way of God. In the book of Job, Satan is given free reign to tempt, test and torture Job and His friends to see if they would reject and curse God.
But an important message was being sent. Satan was being given the opportunity, power and authority on earth to deceive us into bad situations and decisions. We would be faced with a choice...the prince of this world...or the prince of peace. In the movie, "The Devil's Advocate" Al Pacino plays Satan as never seen before. He has started a huge law firm where he is the senior partner. The law firm puts him and his minions into play in almost every area of the culture: crime, business, civil suits and internatiional relations. It puts him into a position to encourage and nurture every sin known to mankind. He views his lawayers as priests and plans to claim the world for himself. God can have the heavenly realms while they take to the streets where they can have evil influence upon people's lives, persuading and misleading as many as possible.
Our cultural war is spiritual warfare: God versus evil. "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 6:12 NIV)."
Now does this mean that the church should give up on the culture and trying to influence it? Of course not. But maybe we should change the way in which we fight this culture. We are so reactive to everything that the culture is doing. It seems like the church is spending much of its time, resources and treasure to look, sound and make people feel that this distance between church and culture is not that great. We've bought into the approach that to bring people to Christ, we have to keep them in their cultural comfort zone so they will not be put off by the exclusivity of the Christian messaqe.
But this is failing beccause we live in culture of relativism where people are conditioned to believe that one belief is just as valuable as another. One persons' Christ is another's Buddha. We've allowed people to become cafeteria Christians who can pick and choose the parts of the message that are appealing and leave behind the parts that are judgemental and challenging.
Another problem with our approach to reacching the culture is that we assume that people have a moral center from which a sound and complete decision for Christ can be made. But morality is also relative and our culture is constantly chiding us for having judgements of any kind about behavior, lifestyle, sexuality and politics. The schools teach our children open-mindedness so they come out of school immune to what is destructive behavior and broken living.
So we look out into our churches and see half-empty pews, half-hearted participation and apathy and we become depressed. We as churches think we are failing and losing grounde to the culture in our strivings to be relevant, intellectual, non-judgemental and open minded. We are trying to appeal to the world and it doesn't seem to be working. But we keep trying to do church from a cultural standpoint.
Jesus gave us the great commission to take the gospel to all the ends of the earth, he didn't give us the great compromise. That is why he told us not to throw our pearls before swine. Maybe we need to keep the best of what we have away from the culture. Maybe if the world sees an alternative or opposite way of living where people seemed fulfilled, purposweful and loving they will then want to check us out to see what we have to offer. But we have to use our pearls to streagthen the faith and life of our own congregations before this can happen.
Here are four things churches can do to keep their pearls for use inside their own walls.
1. Foster greater Biblical literacy - How can we share the message when many in our pews are not sure what the revealed truth of God says? Bible study, Bible Study, Bible study.
2. Increase the maturity of our members by demanding they live lives in accorance with the faith. The church should be helping strengthen families, marriages, parenting and relationships. They will know we are Christians by the way we love one another. When non-believers see this being lived out, they often want it for themselves. That gets a foot into the door. But this cannot be done by programming. It is done one person at a time as Christians encounter people in the world around them.
3. Offer structure and accountability. People whose lives are messed up usually do not have support systems around them that provide sound advice and relational help. We need to reinforce Christian life style in our pews before we push it in the culture. People often compliment Anne and I on how well-behaved and cooperative our boys are. I always tell them the same thing. We put God first in our house and believe every good thing will follow.
4. Live our faith. We need to pray, study, worship and pratice our faith every day. We need to re-committ our lives to Jesus everyday. We need to be in church on Sundays, get our kids to youth group and work torwards tithing. The stronger we become the less effect the culture will have on us.
So, the church must keep more of what it has and put it to work helping those that are already in our pews live stronger, more mature Christian lives in the world. We beat the culture only by becoming an alternative to it. Satan is on the loose and we need every weapon we can muster to fight off the deceptions and destructive aspects of our world.
Matthew 8:3 (New International Version)
All one has to do is step inside a church on Sunday morning and one will hear about the ongoing war between the Christian faith and the popular secdular culture. Since I have left the active ministry, I have spent the last 8 years visiting protestant churches of every denomination and theological temperment. They have all had didfferent worship styles--organs to amplified rock music, different belief emphases, and all sorts of different architicture. I have sat in cathedrals, naves and in the newer style auditorium churches. One thing that has been a given whether or not it was a town, country, urban or suburban church...mega, large, medium or small...is that for some reason people feel the church is losing the battle against the culture around it.
One could see it in worship bulletins, financial statements and even a potluck dinners. It wasn't openly talked about in many of the churches, but when it was it was through talk of the good old nostalgic days. I would hear things like, "Back in the day when the church was full we used to have to set up extra chairs...or..."There was a time when we didn't have enough Sunday school class rooms and had to have classes in the church kitchen." Mainly, people saw the church as the great central gathering place of the community where almost any need could be met.
But ,these same folk, most of whom are in their golden years, always seen to be talking about the church in the past tense. They say they yearn for the good old days when offering plates heaped with envelopes and pews were full. They long again for a time when the church can again become the center of town life.
But if you study the numbers of churches going back to the 1940's and 1950's, when most believed the church was at its strongest point in a genereration one will see only about a 10% drop off in attendance and membership. It is also clear to see that it was during these golden years when many of these cultural issues we are fighting today began to rear their ugly head.
But in today's church it seems much, much worse. It seems like things like tithing, attendance, membership, conversion and professions of faith are off by a lot more than 10 %. The pews seem emptier, the offerings less and the hand-wringing by leaders over the future survival of their congregations is greater than ever before. Even the United Methodist Church in some publications has suggested that if current trends continue some 35% of churches will end up closing. The church and the culture are at war and to many involved it seems like the culture is winning.
We need to go back to the beginning to places like the garden of Eden and Jesus' temptation in the wilderness to get a feel for the psychological aspects of the issue. Ever since the serpent (Satan) convinced Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit, Satan has been a huge part of the ongoing cultural warfare. When Jesus was even allowed to be put to the test for 40 days in the wilderness it was Satan who made the arguments for going the way of the culture and not the way of God. In the book of Job, Satan is given free reign to tempt, test and torture Job and His friends to see if they would reject and curse God.
But an important message was being sent. Satan was being given the opportunity, power and authority on earth to deceive us into bad situations and decisions. We would be faced with a choice...the prince of this world...or the prince of peace. In the movie, "The Devil's Advocate" Al Pacino plays Satan as never seen before. He has started a huge law firm where he is the senior partner. The law firm puts him and his minions into play in almost every area of the culture: crime, business, civil suits and internatiional relations. It puts him into a position to encourage and nurture every sin known to mankind. He views his lawayers as priests and plans to claim the world for himself. God can have the heavenly realms while they take to the streets where they can have evil influence upon people's lives, persuading and misleading as many as possible.
Our cultural war is spiritual warfare: God versus evil. "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 6:12 NIV)."
Now does this mean that the church should give up on the culture and trying to influence it? Of course not. But maybe we should change the way in which we fight this culture. We are so reactive to everything that the culture is doing. It seems like the church is spending much of its time, resources and treasure to look, sound and make people feel that this distance between church and culture is not that great. We've bought into the approach that to bring people to Christ, we have to keep them in their cultural comfort zone so they will not be put off by the exclusivity of the Christian messaqe.
But this is failing beccause we live in culture of relativism where people are conditioned to believe that one belief is just as valuable as another. One persons' Christ is another's Buddha. We've allowed people to become cafeteria Christians who can pick and choose the parts of the message that are appealing and leave behind the parts that are judgemental and challenging.
Another problem with our approach to reacching the culture is that we assume that people have a moral center from which a sound and complete decision for Christ can be made. But morality is also relative and our culture is constantly chiding us for having judgements of any kind about behavior, lifestyle, sexuality and politics. The schools teach our children open-mindedness so they come out of school immune to what is destructive behavior and broken living.
So we look out into our churches and see half-empty pews, half-hearted participation and apathy and we become depressed. We as churches think we are failing and losing grounde to the culture in our strivings to be relevant, intellectual, non-judgemental and open minded. We are trying to appeal to the world and it doesn't seem to be working. But we keep trying to do church from a cultural standpoint.
Jesus gave us the great commission to take the gospel to all the ends of the earth, he didn't give us the great compromise. That is why he told us not to throw our pearls before swine. Maybe we need to keep the best of what we have away from the culture. Maybe if the world sees an alternative or opposite way of living where people seemed fulfilled, purposweful and loving they will then want to check us out to see what we have to offer. But we have to use our pearls to streagthen the faith and life of our own congregations before this can happen.
Here are four things churches can do to keep their pearls for use inside their own walls.
1. Foster greater Biblical literacy - How can we share the message when many in our pews are not sure what the revealed truth of God says? Bible study, Bible Study, Bible study.
2. Increase the maturity of our members by demanding they live lives in accorance with the faith. The church should be helping strengthen families, marriages, parenting and relationships. They will know we are Christians by the way we love one another. When non-believers see this being lived out, they often want it for themselves. That gets a foot into the door. But this cannot be done by programming. It is done one person at a time as Christians encounter people in the world around them.
3. Offer structure and accountability. People whose lives are messed up usually do not have support systems around them that provide sound advice and relational help. We need to reinforce Christian life style in our pews before we push it in the culture. People often compliment Anne and I on how well-behaved and cooperative our boys are. I always tell them the same thing. We put God first in our house and believe every good thing will follow.
4. Live our faith. We need to pray, study, worship and pratice our faith every day. We need to re-committ our lives to Jesus everyday. We need to be in church on Sundays, get our kids to youth group and work torwards tithing. The stronger we become the less effect the culture will have on us.
So, the church must keep more of what it has and put it to work helping those that are already in our pews live stronger, more mature Christian lives in the world. We beat the culture only by becoming an alternative to it. Satan is on the loose and we need every weapon we can muster to fight off the deceptions and destructive aspects of our world.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
The "S" Word
"For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickidness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own...
Titus 2:11-14 (New International version)
Back when I was pastoring a suburban Pittsburgh church, a great uproar ensued at the local hospital. One day I was on my way out when one of the Roman Catholic hospital chaplains pulled me aside for a conversation. "The other night that fundamentalist church down the street sent a team of people into the hospital and had them go into the rooms of perfect strangers and ask them, 'If you were to die tonight...would you be sure you would go to heaven?'
"Really!" I replied. He went on saying, "some people were so upset they were in tears. One old lady I took communion to earlier said that they made her feel like she was a piece of dirt."
"Well...how did she answer the question?" I asked
"I don't think she ever did," the priest replied frowning heavily.
I remember thinking to myself. Are we really that scared that we cannot ponder the end result of our faith?
Look...scripture is clear. The bible mentions heaven by name to many times to count. When you add in the various names that were used for hell: fiery pit, outer darkness and place where there is wailing and gnashing of teeth. It ends up being over a hundred times as well. Christianity is a religion with an end game. We are either sheep or goats. We are either going on to glory or fire. It is the reality all of us who choose to follow Jesus must consider.
About six months ago, I had surgery on my stomach. As they were getting ready to put me under and place that mask over my face, I looked up at the nurse and said, "Can I have a moment to pray?...I just want to be sure that if things go wrong I will be going to heaven." After the surgery was over and I awoke I was certainly relieved. And that same nurse was caring for me in the recovery room. She came over and said she thought it was funny that I asked that before being put under.
I told her it was no joke...I was deadly serious.
I know that we want to focus on the here and now or maybe just the near future in our lives and I get that. It is hard enough to be a Christian in a hostile culture today without having to think about tomorrow, or eternity for that matter. But it is the certainty of eternity that God's grace gives us that gives us energy to face the crises and issues of daily life.
A lot of people criticize especially conservative evangelical Christians because we talk about heaven and hell. I always tell people who throw judgement criticism at me to read the gospels. Jesus talks about heaven and hell and what it takes to get there as much as he talks about any other subject. Now if it weren't that important, why would he have spoken about it so often? Would Jesus intentionally mislead us about our future possibilities?
Every choice we make is a choice that has an eternal consequence to it. If we choose to live according to the values of the culture around us and not give God any thought, that decision has eternal consequences. I think that where one is destined to be is determined by how they live their life.
Every morning and every night I recommit myself to being the best follower of Jesus I can be. I pray for help, guidance and strength. I confess my sins and offer to God the areas of life in which I fell short of the mark. I ask for another day, if that is His will, and that he would provide for my family if he called for my soul that night.
Now let us be clear here. For the Christian, redemption does begin in the here and now. Christian salvation begins with our committment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and then effects us from the inside out. Our lives are changed and we begin to live a life of meaning, purpose and hope that non-believers simply don't experience. The Holy Spirit comes into our lives and gives us the strength, power and wisdom to live through the good times and bad. So redemption and salvation start in the life we live with Christ today.
But to not acknowledge the importance of the eternal afterlife is to live in the worst sort of denial. It takes our faith out of the supernatural realm and turns us into another social action non-profit charitable group. Unfortunately, there are many Christians who are well-suited with that kind of faith. They are content to feed and clothe the homeless, work on poverty issues and push for greater social justice. Those things are very important, but are only part of the faith.
In Christianity there is an ultimate destiny that has to be part of the hope equation now. Paul said that if there was no resurrection than our faith was in vain and we were still in our sins. What he was saying is that when we remove the supernatural aspects out of faith, there really insn't any reason to get out of bed in the morning. The same thing is true of Salvation. If we don't have the hope of heaven, than what is the point of being Christian in the first place.
The same thing is true about hell. There are all manner of Christians who want to deny that the place even exists. They think that only someone who believes in a flat earth can believe that heaven is "up there" and hell is down in the bowels under the earth. There may be no up or down, But heaven and hell are real places because Jesus tells us they are real. If He were only speaking symbollically about a life absent from God, then we have to believe that everything else revealed to us in scripture is symbollic including the resurrection.
I don't think we should spend all of our time pondering whether will we make it to heaven or not. The fact that it matters to us at all means we are probably on the right track. Heaven is the promise that God makes to us that there is something to look forward to. We will be re-united with those we love in a place where suffering, death and pain no longer exists. If we don't want to accept that Jesus is Lord and try to make that belief part of our lives than there will be a price to pay. The result of such living always has us indulging ourselves in self-destructive behavior and destructive behavior that affects those around us. A life without God is a life of sin and misery and why wouldn't that continue indefinitely if we have no change of heart.
Should we threaten people with hell if we disagree with the way we live their lives? Of course not. I'm simply saying that we must remember that our faith is something with eternal destinations that should effect how we live in the here and now. It is pure hope. Everytime I sat with a family after the death of believer, the promise of heaven was always a great comfort. When it was a non-believer or someone who was unsure of their faith, I hoped it would spur them to further reflection about their own life. When I comforted families of those who didn't know Christ, or did funerals of non-believers, I did not promise that the person who died went to heaven. I suggested thaqt their departed loved one would urge them to see the event as an opportunity to receive something new and beautiful. I always felt that funerals were for the living and not the dead. Once someone dies their destiny is sealed. But the people left behind have a choice. A life well-lived should be acknowledged, but our goodness isn't what gets us into heaven. It is our faith in Jesus Christ.
I for one am not afraid to talk about salvation or damnation because I feel a deep assurance that I live in Christ now and will forever. That is what matters. To deny it that it matters is to deny that our faith here and now matters as well. I've got a future in heaven and no one can take that away... no matter how miserable life gets. As someone who has faced some serious health crises, I look forward to a day when my health will be made perfect in heaven. This hope has gotten me through many surgeries and medical procedures and has given me a positive attitude which has allowed Jesus healing touch to work in my life.
If you disagree with what I am saying, read your Bible. Pay attention to what Jesus says at the end of parables and when he talks about the culmination of history. Ifr these things seem to hard too accept, then you need to pray for greater insight and assurance. Just because we can't point to heaven or hell on a map doesn't mean those places don't exist in the eternal realm beyond our ability to conceive.
Faith is trust. And trust starts with believing that everything Jesus says in the Bible is true and real. I can't soften the reality of that and I don't want to either.
So ask yourself this question: If the Lord would demand my life of me today, would I be sure that I would go to heaven? The answer will reveal the direction you need to take in life.
Titus 2:11-14 (New International version)
Back when I was pastoring a suburban Pittsburgh church, a great uproar ensued at the local hospital. One day I was on my way out when one of the Roman Catholic hospital chaplains pulled me aside for a conversation. "The other night that fundamentalist church down the street sent a team of people into the hospital and had them go into the rooms of perfect strangers and ask them, 'If you were to die tonight...would you be sure you would go to heaven?'
"Really!" I replied. He went on saying, "some people were so upset they were in tears. One old lady I took communion to earlier said that they made her feel like she was a piece of dirt."
"Well...how did she answer the question?" I asked
"I don't think she ever did," the priest replied frowning heavily.
I remember thinking to myself. Are we really that scared that we cannot ponder the end result of our faith?
Look...scripture is clear. The bible mentions heaven by name to many times to count. When you add in the various names that were used for hell: fiery pit, outer darkness and place where there is wailing and gnashing of teeth. It ends up being over a hundred times as well. Christianity is a religion with an end game. We are either sheep or goats. We are either going on to glory or fire. It is the reality all of us who choose to follow Jesus must consider.
About six months ago, I had surgery on my stomach. As they were getting ready to put me under and place that mask over my face, I looked up at the nurse and said, "Can I have a moment to pray?...I just want to be sure that if things go wrong I will be going to heaven." After the surgery was over and I awoke I was certainly relieved. And that same nurse was caring for me in the recovery room. She came over and said she thought it was funny that I asked that before being put under.
I told her it was no joke...I was deadly serious.
I know that we want to focus on the here and now or maybe just the near future in our lives and I get that. It is hard enough to be a Christian in a hostile culture today without having to think about tomorrow, or eternity for that matter. But it is the certainty of eternity that God's grace gives us that gives us energy to face the crises and issues of daily life.
A lot of people criticize especially conservative evangelical Christians because we talk about heaven and hell. I always tell people who throw judgement criticism at me to read the gospels. Jesus talks about heaven and hell and what it takes to get there as much as he talks about any other subject. Now if it weren't that important, why would he have spoken about it so often? Would Jesus intentionally mislead us about our future possibilities?
Every choice we make is a choice that has an eternal consequence to it. If we choose to live according to the values of the culture around us and not give God any thought, that decision has eternal consequences. I think that where one is destined to be is determined by how they live their life.
Every morning and every night I recommit myself to being the best follower of Jesus I can be. I pray for help, guidance and strength. I confess my sins and offer to God the areas of life in which I fell short of the mark. I ask for another day, if that is His will, and that he would provide for my family if he called for my soul that night.
Now let us be clear here. For the Christian, redemption does begin in the here and now. Christian salvation begins with our committment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and then effects us from the inside out. Our lives are changed and we begin to live a life of meaning, purpose and hope that non-believers simply don't experience. The Holy Spirit comes into our lives and gives us the strength, power and wisdom to live through the good times and bad. So redemption and salvation start in the life we live with Christ today.
But to not acknowledge the importance of the eternal afterlife is to live in the worst sort of denial. It takes our faith out of the supernatural realm and turns us into another social action non-profit charitable group. Unfortunately, there are many Christians who are well-suited with that kind of faith. They are content to feed and clothe the homeless, work on poverty issues and push for greater social justice. Those things are very important, but are only part of the faith.
In Christianity there is an ultimate destiny that has to be part of the hope equation now. Paul said that if there was no resurrection than our faith was in vain and we were still in our sins. What he was saying is that when we remove the supernatural aspects out of faith, there really insn't any reason to get out of bed in the morning. The same thing is true of Salvation. If we don't have the hope of heaven, than what is the point of being Christian in the first place.
The same thing is true about hell. There are all manner of Christians who want to deny that the place even exists. They think that only someone who believes in a flat earth can believe that heaven is "up there" and hell is down in the bowels under the earth. There may be no up or down, But heaven and hell are real places because Jesus tells us they are real. If He were only speaking symbollically about a life absent from God, then we have to believe that everything else revealed to us in scripture is symbollic including the resurrection.
I don't think we should spend all of our time pondering whether will we make it to heaven or not. The fact that it matters to us at all means we are probably on the right track. Heaven is the promise that God makes to us that there is something to look forward to. We will be re-united with those we love in a place where suffering, death and pain no longer exists. If we don't want to accept that Jesus is Lord and try to make that belief part of our lives than there will be a price to pay. The result of such living always has us indulging ourselves in self-destructive behavior and destructive behavior that affects those around us. A life without God is a life of sin and misery and why wouldn't that continue indefinitely if we have no change of heart.
Should we threaten people with hell if we disagree with the way we live their lives? Of course not. I'm simply saying that we must remember that our faith is something with eternal destinations that should effect how we live in the here and now. It is pure hope. Everytime I sat with a family after the death of believer, the promise of heaven was always a great comfort. When it was a non-believer or someone who was unsure of their faith, I hoped it would spur them to further reflection about their own life. When I comforted families of those who didn't know Christ, or did funerals of non-believers, I did not promise that the person who died went to heaven. I suggested thaqt their departed loved one would urge them to see the event as an opportunity to receive something new and beautiful. I always felt that funerals were for the living and not the dead. Once someone dies their destiny is sealed. But the people left behind have a choice. A life well-lived should be acknowledged, but our goodness isn't what gets us into heaven. It is our faith in Jesus Christ.
I for one am not afraid to talk about salvation or damnation because I feel a deep assurance that I live in Christ now and will forever. That is what matters. To deny it that it matters is to deny that our faith here and now matters as well. I've got a future in heaven and no one can take that away... no matter how miserable life gets. As someone who has faced some serious health crises, I look forward to a day when my health will be made perfect in heaven. This hope has gotten me through many surgeries and medical procedures and has given me a positive attitude which has allowed Jesus healing touch to work in my life.
If you disagree with what I am saying, read your Bible. Pay attention to what Jesus says at the end of parables and when he talks about the culmination of history. Ifr these things seem to hard too accept, then you need to pray for greater insight and assurance. Just because we can't point to heaven or hell on a map doesn't mean those places don't exist in the eternal realm beyond our ability to conceive.
Faith is trust. And trust starts with believing that everything Jesus says in the Bible is true and real. I can't soften the reality of that and I don't want to either.
So ask yourself this question: If the Lord would demand my life of me today, would I be sure that I would go to heaven? The answer will reveal the direction you need to take in life.
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