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FOOLS FOR CHRIST

27 Wednesday Aug 2014

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One of the more difficult “responsibilities” we have as followers of Christ is to die to self.  After 50+ years of living a life dedicated to securing my own comfort, this has proven to be pretty challenging.  Not because I don’t want to do it – every fiber of my being wants my commitment to Christ to be evident to everyone I come into contact with.  But as I become more convicted of habits and attitudes I need to rid myself of, I find myself dealing with things that are so ingrained and culturally acceptable that they are not so easy to identify and very easy to justify (to myself – God’s not buying it!).  And once God reveals them to me and I accept that they truly are creating an obstacle in my relationship with Him, I have to admit the real problem is that I don’t really want to get rid of them.  When I first committed my life to Christ, the things I let go of were things I had struggled to let go of for years.  I didn’t mind ridding myself of those things; even patted myself on the back for being able to turn from them!  But now I am at the point where it is time to let go of some deeply rooted habits that make my life comfortable and easy. And as I become more convicted about them, I am disappointed in my level of commitment to Christ as I continue to justify them or refuse to turn from them. 

Romans 7:15 – “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do…”

One of my favorite stories in the Old Testament is Abraham’s great test of faith.  While I’ve never doubted that it was a true story, what Abraham experienced never sunk into my consciousness.  I was reading “The Fifth Gospel” by Bobby Conway and in his chapter titled “Fools for Christ,” he talks about the “weird” and “ridiculous” things God has asked His people to do.  He mentions Abraham.  And, reading about Abraham in this context suddenly made it more real than it has ever been.  Here’s how Mr. Conway put it:  “God promised Abraham he’d be the father of many nations.  Then, after Abraham finally receives his promised son, God tells him to kill the child.”  The degree of faith Abraham had suddenly hit me.  Abraham was being asked to sacrifice HIS CHILD: the child he had longed for his whole life; the child he didn’t believe he would ever have.  In spite of the shock he must have felt when God asked him to do this, Abraham was faithful in obeying God.  In spite of being promised by God that his heirs would be as numerous as the stars he was still willing to obey God and kill the one thing that could bring that promise to bear.  I can only imagine the things I would have said to God, the questions I would have been asking, the justifications for not obeying this seemingly ridiculous request.  But Abraham did it believing that somehow God would work it all out.  I was ashamed at how I struggle to let go of things in my life that are nowhere near as precious as Isaac was to Abraham; ashamed at how little faith I have that God is just waiting for me to clear my life so that His plan and ways can enrich my life; ashamed at how unwilling I am to forego the comforts I have acquired because I fear the things I feel He is asking me to replace them with. 

As Abraham walked to the place where he would sacrifice Isaac, I like to think he spent some time bargaining with God, just as I do.  But as I consider the faith he must have had, Abraham is more apt to have spent those moments asking for strength and comfort.  That’s what my conversations with God need to be.   

The stories in the Bible are given for instruction.  I have to stop glossing over them and pretending they don’t really apply to me.  God will probably not ask me to offer my children as a sacrifice to Him but He is asking me to sacrifice a lot of things that have come to be so important in my life that I struggle to let go of them.  He is asking me to trust that when I do that, my life will be so much more meaningful and joy-filled.  He is asking me to trust that these are the things I must do to become more Christ-like.  The things God is asking me to do aren’t really that ridiculous or weird, but I have been shown glimpses of what God wants my life to look like and I gotta say it’s weird for me to think that I could live like that.  It’s so different from my self-absorbed lifestyle!  But I want to demonstrate my faith and live my life as a testimony to others what followers of Jesus can look forward to and if I can implement the changes God is asking of me, I know for sure that others will see a huge difference and at least wonder at what has come over me! My lifestyle has to be so different that people notice.

Bobby Conway goes on to say: “God knows that most anyone obeys Him when blessing is promised and given.  But what about when that long-awaited gift is delivered and God asks you to give it back?  How many obey then?”  I want to be one of those people that obey when it’s hard.  It certainly isn’t as difficult as Abraham’s test, but dying to self is never easy, no matter what the sacrifice is.  And as I fully grasp the reality of what others have done, particularly the people we read about in the Old Testament, I find a little extra strength to “be a fool for Christ!”

Consider Joshua at the battle of Jericho and Ezekiel lying on his left side for 390 days then flipping over to his right side for another 40 days.  Instead of focusing on how they were being perceived, their faith in God’s ways kept them obedient to what He was telling them to do.  My faith must be my focus to follow through with the things God is showing me.  As God convicts me to spread the Good News of salvation, I find excuses for not doing so.  I would prefer God grant me the gift of singing so I could safely serve Him at church in the choir!  Why can’t He give me the gift of teaching and give me a Sunday School class?  But if handing out tracs to people who want nothing to do with a “Jesus freak” is what God is calling me to do – to give up my comfortable days in the pool or in front of the TV – then I must trust that is how He can best use me and get out there and DO IT.  As I contemplate these promptings, I am curious about how it will all play out and excited to see what God can accomplish with me if I can only find it in me to obey Him.

Isaiah 55:8-9 “…for my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways”

This is what Conway says about these Isaiah 55 verses: “…there is an infinite gap between the way He thinks and the way we think.  Think about that. But God’s creative, out-of-the-box ideas not only challenge our thinking but also test our faith.  We Christians are quick to sing and talk about trusting God and following Him no matter what.  But when He asks something odd, difficult, or uncomfortable of us, that’s when things get a bit complicated.”

My response to God’s requests of me so far has been “God knows how fearful I am of people, He’ll understand if it takes me a while to work up my nerve.”  Here’s the last quote from Pastor Conway that has turned my thinking around: “Never before has the church tried so hard to fit in with society, when in reality God still wants us to think different and stand out. We’ve spent so much time, energy, and money trying to convince the world that we’re normal – just like them.  And why?  Because deep down we want to be accepted by our friends and culture. And this stems from two roots – an insecurity about our faith and a subtle fear of man. Both of these contribute to our desperation to be liked. And neither are characteristic of the Fifth-Gospel Christian.  …we still recognize that radical obedience to God may sometimes lead others to think we’ve gone off the deep end.”  And that’s what I have to accept.  The things God is calling me to do are so out of character for me.  But I am out of character.  That night I committed my life to Christ and He sent the Spirit to dwell in me I became a new creation.  Until I actually do what God is calling me to do, I will not be an effective witness for Christ.

Matthew 5:11-12: “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

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THE TRUE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

30 Saturday Nov 2013

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In December, 2009, I yielded my life to Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, began dwelling within me.  It is a wondrous thing to think about. In his book “The Prayer Life” Andrew Murray tells us exactly who the Holy Spirit is and how we must think about Him:

 “What was the peculiar privilege of the disciples, who were always in fellowship with him?  It was uninterrupted enjoyment of the presence of the Lord Jesus.  It was because of this they were so sorrowful at the thought of His death.  They would be deprived of that presence.  He would be no longer with them.  How, under these circumstances, did the Lord Jesus comfort them?  He promised that the Holy Spirit from heaven should so work in them a sense of the fullness of His life and of His personal presence that He would be even more intimately near and have more unbroken fellowship with them than ever they experienced while He was upon earth.”

 Initially the Holy Spirit’s presence in my life brought about some dramatic changes.  I couldn’t wait to find time in my day to read my Bible – it became much more than a book. I noticed things in the stories I had never noticed before, understood things I never understood before.  The more I learned about Jesus, the more I wanted to know.  I accepted the things God told me to do, even when I disagreed with them or when they put me at odds with the world.  I rid myself of habits I had struggled with for years.   I hurt for people where I hadn’t even noticed their suffering before.  I began to realize how far from God the world was getting.  I experienced peace and joy for the first time in my adult life.

 1 Corinthians 6:19 – “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,”

 While many of the powers Christians were given during the first years of the church can still be given, they are no longer the norm.  Certain gifts were given during that time to insure the Gospel would spread.  Speaking in tongues was necessary so that the Gospel could be taken to people who did not understand the language of the first converts.  Healing and exorcising demons was widespread and served as evidence that Jesus was truly the son of God.  News of those events attracted a lot of attention and word of them spread quickly in a world with none of the modern modes of mass communication we rely on today. 

 In our world today, confusion about the Holy Spirit abounds.  One Christian leader stated that the Church would never tolerate this kind of abuse of Jesus. Too many who claim to be committed followers of Christ insist on visible signs of spirituality.  Some decide we will be able to speak in foreign tongues as proof we are indwelled with the Holy Spirit; others believe we will have healing powers, the ability to avoid all sickness, or will amass great wealth as evidence that God dwells within us. Some are led to dress differently as a visible sign of the change they have experienced.  Some begin to live differently than the rest of the world, renouncing modern conveniences. But the most wondrous power of the Holy Spirit is in things we cannot see: understanding God and His Word, a full understanding of Jesus’s teachings, peace in the midst of trouble, assurance when we find ourselves doubting God, comfort during difficult trials, boldness to speak the Truth in a world that does not want to hear it. The Holy Spirit will even help us pray when we find it difficult to express our thoughts to God!  These are the things we experience that insure He is with us. 

Romans 8:26 – “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”

 I know that I don’t fully understand His power and my faith in Him is often very weak.  I tend to think I’m on my own again, but nothing could be further from the truth.  In another passage from “The Prayer Life,” Andrew Murray writes:

 “When a Christian does not yield entirely to the leading of the Spirit…he lives, without knowing it, under the power of ‘the flesh.’  This life of ‘the flesh’ manifests itself in many different ways.  It appears in the hastiness of spirit, or the anger which so unexpectedly arises in you, in the lack of love for which you have so often blamed yourself; in the pleasure found in eating and drinking, about which at times your conscience has chidden you; in that seeking for your own will and honour, that confidence in your own wisdom and power, that pleasure in the world, of which you are sometimes ashamed before God.  All this is life ‘after the flesh.’”

 And, though I don’t want to admit it that is my answer:  I am still living life under the power of ‘the flesh.’  As God leads me to do certain things, I refuse, giving in to my excuses and fears.  I still look for the things that make my life comfortable and easy.  Instead of taking life a day at a time, I constantly look forward, hampering my ability to call on Him for help with my present situation.  After 50 years of doing things under my own power, I struggle to let go and truly give it all to Him.  But just as I did in December, 2009, each day I must yield myself to Him in the same way.  I must devote time each day to be with Him in silence, without imposing my will and thoughts on Him.  Again, I refer to Andrew Murray’s words (from Abiding in Christ):

 “And, last of all, even when the soul seeks truly to enter the way of faith, there is the impatience of the flesh, which forms its judgment of the life and progress of the soul not after the divine but the human standard.  In dealing with all this, and so much more, blessed the man who learns the lesson of stillness, and fully accepts God’s word: “In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.”  Each time he listens to the word of the Father, or asks the Father to listen to his words, he dares not begin his Bible reading or prayer without first pausing and waiting, until the soul be hushed in the presence of the Eternal Majesty.”

 Psalm 46:10 – “ Be still, and know that I am God;”

 The Holy Spirit’s unseen gifts are the greatest.  I have little interest in speaking a language I’ve never learned unless it is needed to lead another to Christ.  I have little interest in the gift of healing unless it is God’s plan for my life.  God does tell us that every believer will receive gifts that will speak volumes about what Christ can do in the lives of those who follow Him: peace, joy, wisdom.  I want to exhibit those things so a life dedicated to Christ is desired by everyone I am around. 

 Romans 15:13 – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”

WITHOUT JESUS WE DON’T HAVE GOD

13 Friday Sep 2013

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There’s some site I’ve seen posted a lot recently on Facebook with celebrities proclaiming their faith.  The quotes include comments about reading their Bible and falling on their knees in prayer every day.  Some comment on how they couldn’t get through life without their faith and/or God.  While I do not pretend to know anything about their spiritual lives, I am not convinced they are Christians, if that’s something I’m supposed to take away from the quotes.  Don’t get me wrong; I’m really happy to see that some top celebrities are reading God’s Word.  I would be happier if they would mention Jesus in there somewhere.   

John 14:6-“Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Many of my friends and family will readily tell me they believe in God.  But the conversation comes to an abrupt halt when I ask them to tell me what they believe about Jesus.  I would venture to guess that most people believe in God and feel He helps them in their lives in some way but they see no need for Jesus.  

I have believed in God all my life. From as far back as I can remember I have felt connected to Him.  I have always known He loves me and I never doubted that He exists.  Jesus was kind of a side item.  I knew in my head that He “died for me,” but didn’t really understand how that affected me.  It was only when I truly understood who Jesus is that God began to have a real impact in my life.  My spiritual life went from a bunch of beliefs, most of which I made up, to the reality of God.  He went from being a distant spiritual being to a living presence.  My impression of God shifted from a demanding Father to a loving one.  In their commentary “The Fourfold Gospel” J. W. McGarvey and Phillip Y. Pendleton write:  “Nature shows God above us; the Law shows God against us; but the Gospel shows God with us, and for us.”     

As I studied the Bible I could see the big picture of the world; how events in the Old Testament all led up to Christ and how the world as we know it will end with His return.  I no longer fear the world because it is no longer a random bunch of happenings.  While we are subject to man’s depravities in the short-term, God has ultimate control and will take it back in the end.  I find great comfort in that.  I also find comfort in knowing He has a reason for every single human being, including me.  God had a plan for me even before I was born.  Life is no longer about me; it is now about serving God and leading others to Jesus.  The hopelessness is gone and I have new resources to help me manage the sadness I have always felt.

 God provided the law to the Israelites as a way for them to live to set themselves apart from other people, to show their love for Him through obedience, and to acknowledge their need for His forgiveness of their sins.  There were rituals, sacrifices and laws that they strived to obey. These were external symbols God used to illustrate His authority, His direction on how we are to live, and the requirement to pay a price for sin.  They foreshadowed Jesus.  Once He died and was resurrected, the need for these things went away.  Because of Jesus, I don’t have to DO anything for God’s forgiveness.  It’s hard to fathom that God offers this kind of rescue to us.  All I have to do is know that Jesus is who He said He is (God).  Until I fully grasped what God did in the person of Jesus I depended on successfully obeying a bunch of rules to insure I received God’s forgiveness and blessings.  And that’s why I viewed life as so hopeless. 

Each time I failed God I sank deeper and deeper in an abyss.  At some point, I gave up trying and convinced myself that God really didn’t care how I lived. In my belief system, God didn’t require anything of me; I call Him my Santa Claus god because I decided to believe He existed only to give me the things I needed and the things I wanted.  But deep down I knew I was wrong and I was engaged in a never-ending mental wrestling match.  A summary of my thoughts might go something like this:

If I’m good for a while, then I mess up, will God give me a second chance?  I hope He loves me enough to give me a third, fourth and fifth chance.  There has to be a line to cross where God says “enough is enough” and He’s done with us. How does God determine when we cross that line? Is He comparing me to Mother Theresa, the Pope, my grandma, maybe Oprah?   For every bad thing I do, must I do something good to even up my score or can I assume it only takes one really good thing to make up for lots of kind-of-bad things?  What if I forget something bad I did and don’t make up for it?  If I find a number of people who don’t view what I did as bad can I cross it off my list?  What if I die right after a bad deed and don’t get a chance to do the good thing I intended to do to make up for it?  Does the intent to do good count or do I actually have to do it?  Is God keeping a tally sheet of my sins?  Even my thoughts are bad – there’s not enough time in the day to do a good thing for every bad thought I have!

It was mentally and emotionally exhausting and as the failures piled up the harder it was to see a way out!  I was fighting a losing battle.  Then God led me to an understanding of what He did in the person of Jesus.  I learned that my perception of God and Jesus as being separate was wrong; God is three persons yet one.  This is a difficult concept to grasp, but I accepted it by faith.  I don’t have to understand it I just have to know it’s true.  I learned that there’s nothing I can do to earn God’s forgiveness; Jesus did all that needed to be done.  I learned what grace is and I learned what God’s mercy is: God gives me what I don’t deserve (forgiveness) and He refrains from giving me what I do deserve (punishment).  It’s so simple, yet so complicated.  But this new understanding freed me from constantly looking back and drowning in my past.  It gave me a way to show God I love Him simply by putting forth a sincere effort to do what He asks. 

I’m not suggesting that once I figured out what God did in the person of Jesus all my problems disappeared.  But it was the beginning of a life that allowed me to move forward, assured I was forgiven for all my poor choices; it enabled me to wake up each morning knowing I have a clean slate in God’s eyes.  Life is still difficult.  In some ways it’s even harder.  But with Jesus there’s hope.  It’s not a constant fight to live up to an unattainable standard.  Now that I know Jesus, the Spirit dwells in me, the other person that God is while still being God.  That’s what I didn’t understand before.  And that is where I found hope where I saw none before.  I’m not alone in this.

John 14:17 – “…even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. You know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.”

It’s frustrating when non-believers relegate my experience as merely a belief or adopting a religion. The God that created this universe dwells in me.  When I fully understood that, it overwhelmed me. I cried and I repeated the idea over and over in my head, trying to wrap my brain around it.  It still amazes me.  I’ve tried to come up with a way to explain the experience.  In the commentary The Fourfold Gospel (McGarvey and Pendelton) there is a comment regarding Luke 1:15 that says “the stimulation of the Spirit is elsewhere thus contrasted with alcoholic stimulants.”  I’ve considered explaining the experience by comparing it to drinking alcohol, but thought it a bit irreverent.  Seeing it in print by accomplished Christian authors assured me it’s OK to use the analogy.  If I were to tell someone who has never drank alcohol the way they will feel and the things they might do if they consume several drinks, they might not believe me.  But once they start drinking, they will find it to be a real experience.  The Spirit indwelling me is the same way.  It wasn’t a response to something I read nor was it a mere decision to accept a particular doctrine.  It is as real as the experience I have when I drink alcohol.  When I began leaning on His power instead of going it alone, I was able to rid my life of so many harmful habits and behaviors. That’s the difference Jesus has made. 

John 16:7  – “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.

Jesus’ disciples begged Him to stay but He assured them His leaving was for their good.  Jesus died so we can have a personal relationship with God and that relationship can exist because the Spirit dwells in us.  There can be no closer relationship.  And the only way to receive the Spirit is through the re-birth we experience when we accept what Jesus did for us on the cross.  Only as a believer of Jesus are we counted as one of God’s children. 

Simply put, without Jesus, you don’t have God.  It grieves me when people claim a faith that includes God but they don’t see a need for Jesus.  They will not spend eternity with God, and they will miss blessings God wants to give them in this life.  God has given us the responsibility of helping others understand who Jesus is.  It’s hard to do in the culture that exists today.  Not only is it a narrow gate to God, He tells us few will find it. 

Matthew 7:14 – “For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”

“Imperfect knowledge of Him troubles, but perfect knowledge and love cast out fear.” (I John 4:18 partial paraphrase in The Fourfold Gospel, McGarvey and Pendleton)