Thursday, December 17, 2009
True Substance
When you mess with the security of your life you uncover the true substance of your faith.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Let Jesus Fill Your Lives
Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom He gives. Colossians 3:16
When Paul comes to the end of his letter to the Colossians, here is part of his admonition to the readers of that letter. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom He gives. What strikes me the most are the words “each other”. I believe that if I am letting the message or Jesus fill me, if I’m letting my roots grow down deep into Jesus (as Paul states earlier in this letter), if I’m letting the richness of the message of who Christ is saturate my life, I will have some wisdom to share with others.
We have, in our church culture, relegated the “sharing of wisdom” to the pastor or the teacher. We must learn by experience that we all, no matter where we are in our walk with Jesus, have something to share. We all have something to offer. So when we gather, we don’t come together to receive, we come together to give, to offer the wisdom that has come from letting Christ, in all his richness, fill our lives.
We are so indoctrinated into coming to church to get. Many of us believe that we really don’t have anything to offer. We’re too young, or not in the right place in life, or don’t have that gift, or haven’t taken the responsibility. Whatever our reason, we’ve given the task of “giving” to the “pastor”. I really believe that until we understand that each of us has a piece to give that we’ll be frustrated in our gatherings, feeling like something is missing or like they are just a “social” time.
When I am letting Jesus fill my life, and understanding the wisdom He is sharing (remembering that knowledge plus experience equals wisdom), when we come together and I share, that will encourage, or convict, or teach someone else and when they share, I will be encouraged, or convicted, or taught. And so the family of God serves each other and growth happens naturally. But if we come together with nothing to share, we sit around and look at each other and wonder what’s wrong.
So here's the question. What has Jesus shared with you that You are to share with others. Understand it doesn’t have to be “earth shattering” or plumbed from the depths of theology. Wisdom is wisdom and Jesus shares it as He sees fit. What is it Jesus wants you to share?
Can you think of anything? If you can’t, what are you going to do about that?
When Paul comes to the end of his letter to the Colossians, here is part of his admonition to the readers of that letter. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom He gives. What strikes me the most are the words “each other”. I believe that if I am letting the message or Jesus fill me, if I’m letting my roots grow down deep into Jesus (as Paul states earlier in this letter), if I’m letting the richness of the message of who Christ is saturate my life, I will have some wisdom to share with others.
We have, in our church culture, relegated the “sharing of wisdom” to the pastor or the teacher. We must learn by experience that we all, no matter where we are in our walk with Jesus, have something to share. We all have something to offer. So when we gather, we don’t come together to receive, we come together to give, to offer the wisdom that has come from letting Christ, in all his richness, fill our lives.
We are so indoctrinated into coming to church to get. Many of us believe that we really don’t have anything to offer. We’re too young, or not in the right place in life, or don’t have that gift, or haven’t taken the responsibility. Whatever our reason, we’ve given the task of “giving” to the “pastor”. I really believe that until we understand that each of us has a piece to give that we’ll be frustrated in our gatherings, feeling like something is missing or like they are just a “social” time.
When I am letting Jesus fill my life, and understanding the wisdom He is sharing (remembering that knowledge plus experience equals wisdom), when we come together and I share, that will encourage, or convict, or teach someone else and when they share, I will be encouraged, or convicted, or taught. And so the family of God serves each other and growth happens naturally. But if we come together with nothing to share, we sit around and look at each other and wonder what’s wrong.
So here's the question. What has Jesus shared with you that You are to share with others. Understand it doesn’t have to be “earth shattering” or plumbed from the depths of theology. Wisdom is wisdom and Jesus shares it as He sees fit. What is it Jesus wants you to share?
Can you think of anything? If you can’t, what are you going to do about that?
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Following Motivation
We always pray for you, and we give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God's people, which come from your confident hope of what God has reserved for you in heaven. You have had this expectation ever since you first heard the truth of the Good News. This same Good News that came to you is going out all over the world. It is bearing fruit everywhere by changing lives, just as it changed your lives from the day you first heard and understood the truth about God's wonderful grace. Colossians 1:4-6 NLT
I love it when I read scripture and the Holy Spirit asks me a question to something that I can’t answer right away. If I have been following Jesus for 30 years, I think I should have a pretty good handle on what it means to follow after Him. The Holy Spirit has a wonderful way of humbling me without crushing me. This passage is a good case in point.
Paul is writing to the Colossians and commends them for their faith and love. Would that Paul could write a letter to us and do the same thing. But here’s the humbling part. Their faith in Christ and love for God’s people came from something. It was based on something. Paul alludes to it but never really names, at least in this part of the letter, what it is. “For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God's people, which come from your confident hope of what God has reserved for you in heaven.” They where bound together by faith, love and hope. A confident hope at that. Of what? Of what God had reserved for them in heaven.
So here’s my question. What is it God has reserved for you in heaven? Do you know? How hard do you have to think about it? For me I had to pause and think. How humbling. I think that after 30 years I should be able to recount what God has reserved for me in heaven. But I had to pause and think about it. What is it God has reserved for me? Not having this answer in the forefront of my mind leads me to ask the next one. Is this confident hope of what Goad has reserved for me in heaven the reason I follow Jesus? It would seem that if I fully understand what is reserved for me in heaven, then following Jesus in my day to day life might be put into a different perspective. Challenges would take on a different meaning. Those difficult people in my life might look a little different through the lens of what is reserved for me in heaven.
And the REALLY humbling question for me is this. If I have to pause and think about what God has reserved for me in heaven, what am I REALLY basing my confident hope on? What lens am I using to looking at the stuff in my life? What REALLY motivates me to follow Jesus?
So how about it? Why are you following Jesus?
As for me, I’m going to spend the next little while answering that question.
I love it when I read scripture and the Holy Spirit asks me a question to something that I can’t answer right away. If I have been following Jesus for 30 years, I think I should have a pretty good handle on what it means to follow after Him. The Holy Spirit has a wonderful way of humbling me without crushing me. This passage is a good case in point.
Paul is writing to the Colossians and commends them for their faith and love. Would that Paul could write a letter to us and do the same thing. But here’s the humbling part. Their faith in Christ and love for God’s people came from something. It was based on something. Paul alludes to it but never really names, at least in this part of the letter, what it is. “For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God's people, which come from your confident hope of what God has reserved for you in heaven.” They where bound together by faith, love and hope. A confident hope at that. Of what? Of what God had reserved for them in heaven.
So here’s my question. What is it God has reserved for you in heaven? Do you know? How hard do you have to think about it? For me I had to pause and think. How humbling. I think that after 30 years I should be able to recount what God has reserved for me in heaven. But I had to pause and think about it. What is it God has reserved for me? Not having this answer in the forefront of my mind leads me to ask the next one. Is this confident hope of what Goad has reserved for me in heaven the reason I follow Jesus? It would seem that if I fully understand what is reserved for me in heaven, then following Jesus in my day to day life might be put into a different perspective. Challenges would take on a different meaning. Those difficult people in my life might look a little different through the lens of what is reserved for me in heaven.
And the REALLY humbling question for me is this. If I have to pause and think about what God has reserved for me in heaven, what am I REALLY basing my confident hope on? What lens am I using to looking at the stuff in my life? What REALLY motivates me to follow Jesus?
So how about it? Why are you following Jesus?
As for me, I’m going to spend the next little while answering that question.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Understanding, Wisdom and God's Will.
So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of His will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.
We also pray that you will be strengthened with all His glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to His people, who live in the light. For He has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of His dear Son, who purchased our freedom [with His blood] and forgave our sins. Colossians 1:9-14 NLT
In this prayer, Paul prayed for all who believe. That includes us. I’m too often frustrated by my lack of progress or my lack of seeing fruit in my sphere of influence. And yes, I understand that I’m too often forcing my definition of what I want to happen on God’s process. I find that when I let God define it, I can find peace. But this too can lead to frustration for me because I wish to have this view as my default and not have to “arrive” at God’s view. Seems I spend a great deal of my life’s energy trying to “arrive” at God’s point of view. So I often find myself asking, “Jesus how do I keep following Your way?”
I’m encouraged that Paul, as he so often does, gives us an overview of how to “keep following Your way” in our daily reality, while not defining what that looks like for every individual. (Can you imagine having to write a specific life script for the life of every person alive? Makes my head hurt.) I’m struck, first of all, that Paul spent a great deal of time and energy on those who were truly following after Jesus. “We have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you.” Those who were followers of the way consumed much of Paul’s physical, emotional and spiritual energy. When you read the beginning of this letter to the Colossian believers, Paul talks about loving those who love Jesus as a mark of true life change. (Check out Colossians 1:1-9 noting where Paul talks about loving people.)
So what’s Paul’s heart desire for those who are following after Jesus? What drives him to the point where he would spend emotional time and energy in prayer for someone? What does he want us to “get”? We ask God to give you complete knowledge of His will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Paul wants us to “get” knowledge of God’s will, spiritual wisdom and understanding. Perhaps we can look at Paul’s heart desire, his prayer, as a means by which we follow after Jesus. It’s interesting that his first request is for a complete understanding what God wants us to do: God’s will. Interesting. I grew up often wondering what God’s will was. Was it something I could step in and out of? Was it something like a rail, where if I was “in” God’s will I was running on the rail, if I was “out” of God’s will I was willy-nilly all over the place getting myself into trouble until I could get back to the rail.
If you study scripture where it talks about God’s will, you won’t come away with an idea where God’s will is a path where every action you take and every decision you make is “perfectly” aligned with what God set up before the world was created. I don’t find that anyway. What I do find are statements like “It is God’s will that you be holy.” (1 Thessalonians 4:3) “Be thankful in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:18) “For God’s will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time.” (Hebrews 10:10) “Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” (Romans 12:2) So we’re back to our thinking about life from the standpoint of “being” and not “doing”. God’s will is not what I do, but who I am in Jesus. Conversely, how I conduct my life will reflect what I understand of God’s will. That challenges me.
So how do we find God’s will? We ask for it. And now we’re back to relationship. I can’t hear and know something from someone who I don’t spend time with and listen to. I must spend intentional and consistent time with Jesus if I want to begin to understand the complete knowledge of God’s will. The cool thing about God is that we don’t have to earn it; He wants to give it to us. He doesn’t hold back; He gives us completely and totally what we’re ready for. And He graciously and lovingly prepares us to receive the things we’re not ready for.
So if we are to truly understand God’s will and how it works in our lives, and if it’s really not what I do, but who I am, I need the second thing Paul prayed for. “…and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding.” I truly need to see my world through the eyes of Jesus if I’m going to understand God’s will. I have learned that wisdom is a combination of knowledge plus experience. Knowledge plus experience equals wisdom. Walking in wisdom brings understanding. Understanding is the entering into the complete knowledge of the will of God.
Knowledge plus experience equals wisdom. For example, I know Jesus loves me. It is a simple thing for me to give mental assent to the fact that I’m loved by Jesus. I can even pass that knowledge on. Hey! Did you know Jesus loves you? But that knowledge by itself doesn’t grant me wisdom and understanding. Now when I experience Jesus’ love, then I begin to understand it. When I am tempted and I have that moment where I am at that point of decision, do I engage in this temptation or do I say, “No, I desire to follow God’s will to be holy.” Does Jesus love me at this point of decision? Of course. His love doesn’t change. Now when I look at the temptation and look at Jesus and choose the temptation over Jesus, it proves that I really believe what is tempting me will meet whatever need I’m pursuing, even though I have the knowledge that Jesus supplies all my needs. Does Jesus love me in the middle of my decision choosing sin over His provision for me? Yes. His love never changes.
Now here’s the hard part for me. If knowledge plus experience equals wisdom and walking in wisdom brings understanding, can I experience Jesus’ love in the middle of my wrong choice? My woundedness says no. The Holy Spirit tells me yes. And when I’m sitting in the middle of my sin, in the guilt and shame, when I understand and see my rebellion I ask Jesus, “Do you love me in the middle of this?” I would suggest that we must experience Jesus’ love in the middle of our wrong choices if we are ever to change. Understanding Jesus’ love in the middle of my sin is to experience being loved in the middle of my rebellion, my guilt and my shame.
When we begin to engage God on this level our lives change. We begin to understand God’s complete will. We begin to walk in wisdom and live our lives in understanding. Paul goes on to say, “Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better”. I read Paul’s words and I’m encouraged. I desire that the way I live honors and pleases the Lord, always. I desire to produce every kind of good fruit. I want my life to look like I’m following after Jesus. And Paul separates the growth and learning part from the honor and fruit part. How encouraging that we can produce every kind of good fruit and honor God from the first time we say yes to Jesus until the day we see Him face to face. But I am more and more convinced that I must experience Jesus’ love in the deepest part of my wound to begin to understand the complete will of God.
Whew. But Paul’s not done with his prayer. And I’m glad he’s not. If you’ve ever walked in the depth of this kind of relationship with Jesus, you know it takes effort. It’s a committed life. It’s not something you do on a leisurely Sunday afternoon. It takes effort and determination. It requires much attention and commitment. Paul walked this path so he understood what it would take. So he prayed: We also pray that you will be strengthened with all His glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. Strength, endurance and patience. Something tells me that this wisdom/understanding/God’s will thing isn’t going to happen overnight and something tells me I’m going to have to give it some effort.
Paul understood, and so should we, that our salvation includes being strengthened with the power of Jesus. The same power that the Father exhibited in Jesus when He rose from the dead, this is the same power available to work in our lives. But the thing is, we’re going to need that power. It’s going to take nothing less than the glorious power of God to finish this course.
We must also understand that this is a marathon. This is the long haul. We need to be prepared to endure. And as always, patience will be required. I will be frustrated by my lack of growth, or my stumbling over my “pet sin”. Or my feeling like I’m the only one who’s in this. Whatever requires patience in my life, I’m going to need it.
I’m pretty convinced that we have it so easy in our culture that we are clueless when it comes to patience and endurance. At least I am. I’ll ask Jesus for an answer and if it doesn’t come in the next hour, I’m offended. If it doesn’t come in the next day, I forget and I’m on to the next thing.
My prayer for us as a family is that we begin to ask questions like, “Jesus, what is your will?” “Open my eyes to see where you are.” “Open my mind to the knowledge You have for me.” “Grant that I might experience Your love in the middle of my life so I may gain understanding.” “Fill me with your power so that I might endure with patience the path You’ve asked me to walk.”
We also pray that you will be strengthened with all His glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to His people, who live in the light. For He has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of His dear Son, who purchased our freedom [with His blood] and forgave our sins. Colossians 1:9-14 NLT
In this prayer, Paul prayed for all who believe. That includes us. I’m too often frustrated by my lack of progress or my lack of seeing fruit in my sphere of influence. And yes, I understand that I’m too often forcing my definition of what I want to happen on God’s process. I find that when I let God define it, I can find peace. But this too can lead to frustration for me because I wish to have this view as my default and not have to “arrive” at God’s view. Seems I spend a great deal of my life’s energy trying to “arrive” at God’s point of view. So I often find myself asking, “Jesus how do I keep following Your way?”
I’m encouraged that Paul, as he so often does, gives us an overview of how to “keep following Your way” in our daily reality, while not defining what that looks like for every individual. (Can you imagine having to write a specific life script for the life of every person alive? Makes my head hurt.) I’m struck, first of all, that Paul spent a great deal of time and energy on those who were truly following after Jesus. “We have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you.” Those who were followers of the way consumed much of Paul’s physical, emotional and spiritual energy. When you read the beginning of this letter to the Colossian believers, Paul talks about loving those who love Jesus as a mark of true life change. (Check out Colossians 1:1-9 noting where Paul talks about loving people.)
So what’s Paul’s heart desire for those who are following after Jesus? What drives him to the point where he would spend emotional time and energy in prayer for someone? What does he want us to “get”? We ask God to give you complete knowledge of His will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Paul wants us to “get” knowledge of God’s will, spiritual wisdom and understanding. Perhaps we can look at Paul’s heart desire, his prayer, as a means by which we follow after Jesus. It’s interesting that his first request is for a complete understanding what God wants us to do: God’s will. Interesting. I grew up often wondering what God’s will was. Was it something I could step in and out of? Was it something like a rail, where if I was “in” God’s will I was running on the rail, if I was “out” of God’s will I was willy-nilly all over the place getting myself into trouble until I could get back to the rail.
If you study scripture where it talks about God’s will, you won’t come away with an idea where God’s will is a path where every action you take and every decision you make is “perfectly” aligned with what God set up before the world was created. I don’t find that anyway. What I do find are statements like “It is God’s will that you be holy.” (1 Thessalonians 4:3) “Be thankful in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:18) “For God’s will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time.” (Hebrews 10:10) “Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” (Romans 12:2) So we’re back to our thinking about life from the standpoint of “being” and not “doing”. God’s will is not what I do, but who I am in Jesus. Conversely, how I conduct my life will reflect what I understand of God’s will. That challenges me.
So how do we find God’s will? We ask for it. And now we’re back to relationship. I can’t hear and know something from someone who I don’t spend time with and listen to. I must spend intentional and consistent time with Jesus if I want to begin to understand the complete knowledge of God’s will. The cool thing about God is that we don’t have to earn it; He wants to give it to us. He doesn’t hold back; He gives us completely and totally what we’re ready for. And He graciously and lovingly prepares us to receive the things we’re not ready for.
So if we are to truly understand God’s will and how it works in our lives, and if it’s really not what I do, but who I am, I need the second thing Paul prayed for. “…and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding.” I truly need to see my world through the eyes of Jesus if I’m going to understand God’s will. I have learned that wisdom is a combination of knowledge plus experience. Knowledge plus experience equals wisdom. Walking in wisdom brings understanding. Understanding is the entering into the complete knowledge of the will of God.
Knowledge plus experience equals wisdom. For example, I know Jesus loves me. It is a simple thing for me to give mental assent to the fact that I’m loved by Jesus. I can even pass that knowledge on. Hey! Did you know Jesus loves you? But that knowledge by itself doesn’t grant me wisdom and understanding. Now when I experience Jesus’ love, then I begin to understand it. When I am tempted and I have that moment where I am at that point of decision, do I engage in this temptation or do I say, “No, I desire to follow God’s will to be holy.” Does Jesus love me at this point of decision? Of course. His love doesn’t change. Now when I look at the temptation and look at Jesus and choose the temptation over Jesus, it proves that I really believe what is tempting me will meet whatever need I’m pursuing, even though I have the knowledge that Jesus supplies all my needs. Does Jesus love me in the middle of my decision choosing sin over His provision for me? Yes. His love never changes.
Now here’s the hard part for me. If knowledge plus experience equals wisdom and walking in wisdom brings understanding, can I experience Jesus’ love in the middle of my wrong choice? My woundedness says no. The Holy Spirit tells me yes. And when I’m sitting in the middle of my sin, in the guilt and shame, when I understand and see my rebellion I ask Jesus, “Do you love me in the middle of this?” I would suggest that we must experience Jesus’ love in the middle of our wrong choices if we are ever to change. Understanding Jesus’ love in the middle of my sin is to experience being loved in the middle of my rebellion, my guilt and my shame.
When we begin to engage God on this level our lives change. We begin to understand God’s complete will. We begin to walk in wisdom and live our lives in understanding. Paul goes on to say, “Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better”. I read Paul’s words and I’m encouraged. I desire that the way I live honors and pleases the Lord, always. I desire to produce every kind of good fruit. I want my life to look like I’m following after Jesus. And Paul separates the growth and learning part from the honor and fruit part. How encouraging that we can produce every kind of good fruit and honor God from the first time we say yes to Jesus until the day we see Him face to face. But I am more and more convinced that I must experience Jesus’ love in the deepest part of my wound to begin to understand the complete will of God.
Whew. But Paul’s not done with his prayer. And I’m glad he’s not. If you’ve ever walked in the depth of this kind of relationship with Jesus, you know it takes effort. It’s a committed life. It’s not something you do on a leisurely Sunday afternoon. It takes effort and determination. It requires much attention and commitment. Paul walked this path so he understood what it would take. So he prayed: We also pray that you will be strengthened with all His glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. Strength, endurance and patience. Something tells me that this wisdom/understanding/God’s will thing isn’t going to happen overnight and something tells me I’m going to have to give it some effort.
Paul understood, and so should we, that our salvation includes being strengthened with the power of Jesus. The same power that the Father exhibited in Jesus when He rose from the dead, this is the same power available to work in our lives. But the thing is, we’re going to need that power. It’s going to take nothing less than the glorious power of God to finish this course.
We must also understand that this is a marathon. This is the long haul. We need to be prepared to endure. And as always, patience will be required. I will be frustrated by my lack of growth, or my stumbling over my “pet sin”. Or my feeling like I’m the only one who’s in this. Whatever requires patience in my life, I’m going to need it.
I’m pretty convinced that we have it so easy in our culture that we are clueless when it comes to patience and endurance. At least I am. I’ll ask Jesus for an answer and if it doesn’t come in the next hour, I’m offended. If it doesn’t come in the next day, I forget and I’m on to the next thing.
My prayer for us as a family is that we begin to ask questions like, “Jesus, what is your will?” “Open my eyes to see where you are.” “Open my mind to the knowledge You have for me.” “Grant that I might experience Your love in the middle of my life so I may gain understanding.” “Fill me with your power so that I might endure with patience the path You’ve asked me to walk.”
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Perfectly As One
I do not pray only for them. I pray also for those who will believe in me because of their message. Father, I pray that all of them will be one, just as you are in me and I am in you. I want them also to be in us. Then the world will believe that you have sent me.
I have given them the glory you gave me. I did this so they would be one, just as we are one. I will be in them, just as you are in me. I want them to be brought together perfectly as one. This will let the world know that you sent me. It will also show the world that you have loved those you gave me, just as you have loved me. -Taken from John 17:20-23
Jesus, right before he walks through the passion, leaves his disciples with these words. These words are found recorded by John near the end of his final prayer. These words are spoken right before he was going to complete the work the Father had sent him to do. These are important words. I like to think that these are the deepest part of his heart. What are the last words you would tell those you loved right before you left to die?
Jesus prayed that we would be one. Then he defined what that looked like. That we would be one with each other just as Jesus and the Father are one. Not only that, but it is Jesus’ deep desire that we be one with the Father and himself. Why? Because it is then that the world will believe that the Father sent Jesus to save the world.
Jesus goes on to say, I have given them the glory you gave me. Why? So we could be one, just like Jesus and the Father. The world will know that the Father sent Jesus, the world will be able to see the gospel, to hear the good news, to understand the kingdom of heaven, when we are one.
I think we understand what it means to be one outside of each other. I know what it means to be alone. To be one among many. That’s what sin does. It separates us. My own sin makes me feel guilty, causes shame, separates me from people and I become one, alone. Conversely, other’s sin against me hurts me, makes me angry, causes me to mistrust and again it separates me from people and I become one, alone.
Jesus gave us the glory that was given to Him by the Father. When we enter into relationship with Jesus we receive this glory. I like to think of glory as weight. Jesus carried the full weight of the Father and those who Jesus entered into relationship with felt that weight. Those who accepted Jesus’ words were given that weight to carry. We carry the glory of the Father, we carry his weight, his influence, so that we might be one with each other. When we live together as one, I believe the collective weight we carry is compelling and convinces the world that Jesus is who he said he is and came to do what he said he came to do. This to me is what it means to live the gospel.
I am convicted by this prayer. I’m convicted by these words. Does the world look at our lives, or relationships, our church and feel compelled to say, “I now believe that Jesus came from the Father because of what I see in these people. Has anyone ever looked at our community of followers of Christ and said, “I now know that the Father loves them just like he loves Jesus.” Yes? No? I read these words and it cuts me deeply. I’m not sure I know how to live in such oneness with those God has called me to live with that the world looks at us this way. What did Jesus call it? Being brought together perfectly as one? Wow.
I think I know what it doesn’t look like. But what does it look like to fulfill Jesus prayer and to be brought together perfectly as one?
I have given them the glory you gave me. I did this so they would be one, just as we are one. I will be in them, just as you are in me. I want them to be brought together perfectly as one. This will let the world know that you sent me. It will also show the world that you have loved those you gave me, just as you have loved me. -Taken from John 17:20-23
Jesus, right before he walks through the passion, leaves his disciples with these words. These words are found recorded by John near the end of his final prayer. These words are spoken right before he was going to complete the work the Father had sent him to do. These are important words. I like to think that these are the deepest part of his heart. What are the last words you would tell those you loved right before you left to die?
Jesus prayed that we would be one. Then he defined what that looked like. That we would be one with each other just as Jesus and the Father are one. Not only that, but it is Jesus’ deep desire that we be one with the Father and himself. Why? Because it is then that the world will believe that the Father sent Jesus to save the world.
Jesus goes on to say, I have given them the glory you gave me. Why? So we could be one, just like Jesus and the Father. The world will know that the Father sent Jesus, the world will be able to see the gospel, to hear the good news, to understand the kingdom of heaven, when we are one.
I think we understand what it means to be one outside of each other. I know what it means to be alone. To be one among many. That’s what sin does. It separates us. My own sin makes me feel guilty, causes shame, separates me from people and I become one, alone. Conversely, other’s sin against me hurts me, makes me angry, causes me to mistrust and again it separates me from people and I become one, alone.
Jesus gave us the glory that was given to Him by the Father. When we enter into relationship with Jesus we receive this glory. I like to think of glory as weight. Jesus carried the full weight of the Father and those who Jesus entered into relationship with felt that weight. Those who accepted Jesus’ words were given that weight to carry. We carry the glory of the Father, we carry his weight, his influence, so that we might be one with each other. When we live together as one, I believe the collective weight we carry is compelling and convinces the world that Jesus is who he said he is and came to do what he said he came to do. This to me is what it means to live the gospel.
I am convicted by this prayer. I’m convicted by these words. Does the world look at our lives, or relationships, our church and feel compelled to say, “I now believe that Jesus came from the Father because of what I see in these people. Has anyone ever looked at our community of followers of Christ and said, “I now know that the Father loves them just like he loves Jesus.” Yes? No? I read these words and it cuts me deeply. I’m not sure I know how to live in such oneness with those God has called me to live with that the world looks at us this way. What did Jesus call it? Being brought together perfectly as one? Wow.
I think I know what it doesn’t look like. But what does it look like to fulfill Jesus prayer and to be brought together perfectly as one?
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Do You Know Your Father?
After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed. He said, “Father, the time has come. Bring glory to your Son. Then your Son will bring glory to you. You gave him authority over all people. He gives eternal life to all those you have given him.
“And what is eternal life? It is knowing you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have brought you glory on earth. I have finished the work you gave me to do. So now, Father, give glory to me in heaven where your throne is. Give me the glory I had with you before the world began."
What is eternal life? It is knowing God the Father and Jesus. Eternal life is not a destination. It’s not a set of facts to be believed. It’s not a state of being. Eternal life is a relationship. Specifically, eternal life is knowing God the Father and knowing Jesus. Jesus’ purpose in ministry was to show us the Father. His work was to make it possible for us to be in relationship with, to be connected to, the Father.
So if relationship is Jesus’ goal. How much does that translate into our lives? What’s the purpose of our gathering together? I believe our purpose in ministry is to show “the world” God the Father. We do this through relationship: relationship with each other, relationship with Jesus and relationship with the Father. I cannot directly bring glory to someone I don’t know.
If we desire to be fully alive, if we want to be fully free, if it’s our goal to become everything we were created to become, we will find all of these things in a relationship with God the Father.
“And what is eternal life? It is knowing you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have brought you glory on earth. I have finished the work you gave me to do. So now, Father, give glory to me in heaven where your throne is. Give me the glory I had with you before the world began."
What is eternal life? It is knowing God the Father and Jesus. Eternal life is not a destination. It’s not a set of facts to be believed. It’s not a state of being. Eternal life is a relationship. Specifically, eternal life is knowing God the Father and knowing Jesus. Jesus’ purpose in ministry was to show us the Father. His work was to make it possible for us to be in relationship with, to be connected to, the Father.
So if relationship is Jesus’ goal. How much does that translate into our lives? What’s the purpose of our gathering together? I believe our purpose in ministry is to show “the world” God the Father. We do this through relationship: relationship with each other, relationship with Jesus and relationship with the Father. I cannot directly bring glory to someone I don’t know.
If we desire to be fully alive, if we want to be fully free, if it’s our goal to become everything we were created to become, we will find all of these things in a relationship with God the Father.
Carrying Full Weight
And what is eternal life? It is knowing you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have brought you glory on earth. I have finished the work you gave me to do. So now, Father, give glory to me in heaven where your throne is. Give me the glory I had with you before the world began. (John 17:3-5)
I like to think of the concept of “glory” in terms of weight. The glory of God in my mind is easily transferable to “the weight of God”. When I “feel” God I’m really feeling the weight of His presence. The weight of who He is. When I experience God, the more intense that experience, the greater the weight I have carried. The more I live in who Jesus created me to be, the greater the weight I carry. The greater the weight I carry, the more “glory” I bring to Jesus.
I think in relationship we bring our “weight” to bear in each other’s lives. I bring weight to my relationship with you. You “feel” the weight of who I am when we spend time together. I feel the weight of who you are when I choose to engage with you. When I experience your personality, I feel your weight. When I laugh with you, cry with you, wonder with you, I experience the weight of who you are. The more of myself I share with you the greater you feel my weight. Or better said, the more of myself I share with you, the greater the portion of my weight you carry. Our ability to carry each other's weight is determined by how mature we are.
Jesus carried the full portion of the glory of the Father. When you look at Jesus in the gospels, you are looking at the full revelation of the Father. Jesus said, “I and the Father are one”. He also said, “I share with you only the words I hear from my Father.” To look at Jesus was to see the Glory of the Father. Jesus carried the full weight of the Father and I believe it was Jesus’ desire for us to feel the full weight of the Father.
If I “weighted” this passage it would look like this:
And what is eternal life? It is knowing You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have carried the weight of who You are here on earth. I have finished letting these, Your chosen children, experience the full weight of who You are, just as You desired for me to do. So now, Father, let my weight be felt in heaven where your throne is. Give me the weight I had with You before the world began.
Jesus lived with the end in mind. From this passage it would seem that one of his core motivators was to attain the glory, the “weight” that He had before the world began. I surmise from his words that he was looking forward to sharing in that glory. He desired, after he had completed what his Father asked him to do, to engage in the weight of his eternal existence.
Jesus’ desire to be brought into this glory holds significance for me. Glory, or as we’ve been inferring, “weight”, originates from the Father. Since weight originates from the Father, there is only one place where having weight matters. Weight only has value in the Father's presence. The weight of being that I carry only has value in the presence of the Father.
I like to think of the concept of “glory” in terms of weight. The glory of God in my mind is easily transferable to “the weight of God”. When I “feel” God I’m really feeling the weight of His presence. The weight of who He is. When I experience God, the more intense that experience, the greater the weight I have carried. The more I live in who Jesus created me to be, the greater the weight I carry. The greater the weight I carry, the more “glory” I bring to Jesus.
I think in relationship we bring our “weight” to bear in each other’s lives. I bring weight to my relationship with you. You “feel” the weight of who I am when we spend time together. I feel the weight of who you are when I choose to engage with you. When I experience your personality, I feel your weight. When I laugh with you, cry with you, wonder with you, I experience the weight of who you are. The more of myself I share with you the greater you feel my weight. Or better said, the more of myself I share with you, the greater the portion of my weight you carry. Our ability to carry each other's weight is determined by how mature we are.
Jesus carried the full portion of the glory of the Father. When you look at Jesus in the gospels, you are looking at the full revelation of the Father. Jesus said, “I and the Father are one”. He also said, “I share with you only the words I hear from my Father.” To look at Jesus was to see the Glory of the Father. Jesus carried the full weight of the Father and I believe it was Jesus’ desire for us to feel the full weight of the Father.
If I “weighted” this passage it would look like this:
And what is eternal life? It is knowing You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have carried the weight of who You are here on earth. I have finished letting these, Your chosen children, experience the full weight of who You are, just as You desired for me to do. So now, Father, let my weight be felt in heaven where your throne is. Give me the weight I had with You before the world began.
Jesus lived with the end in mind. From this passage it would seem that one of his core motivators was to attain the glory, the “weight” that He had before the world began. I surmise from his words that he was looking forward to sharing in that glory. He desired, after he had completed what his Father asked him to do, to engage in the weight of his eternal existence.
Jesus’ desire to be brought into this glory holds significance for me. Glory, or as we’ve been inferring, “weight”, originates from the Father. Since weight originates from the Father, there is only one place where having weight matters. Weight only has value in the Father's presence. The weight of being that I carry only has value in the presence of the Father.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
World Peace
I have spoken all these things while I am still with you. But the Father will send the Friend in my name to help you. The Friend is the Holy Spirit. He will teach you all things. He will remind you of everything I have said to you.
I leave my peace with you. I give my peace to you. I do not give it to you as the world does. Do not let your hearts be troubled. And do not be afraid. (taken from John 14)
There is a peace to be found in this world. It is a counterfeit peace. One that does not deliver as promised. One that cannot be trusted. But it can be defined as “peace”. I suppose our reliance on pharmacology is a good example of that type of peace. Our voracious appetite for pleasure and entertainment is another example of what we seek peace in. Money is certainly offered as “peace”. These things offer us a “peace”. A temporary diversion from the pain in our lives. I suppose what strikes me this morning is the fact that there IS a peace that the world offers, a peace with enough substance to it that we might confuse it as a permanent answer to our problems. No wonder we’re so often confused about our lives pain. No wonder it’s so hard to give up the “peace” that we’ve placed our hope in.
Having spent time embracing the peace that the world offers I have found that the world’s peace doesn’t last long enough, isn’t deep enough and doesn’t really address the real issue. But it still floors me that I pulled to chase after it. To underestimate the attraction of what the world offers is foolish at best. I have made the mistake of thinking that the peace that this world offers is something that is so inferior to what God offers that there would be no other choice but to embrace God’s peace. The truth is that what the world offers scratches the itch enough to keep me coming back. There is an unspoken exchange that happens when we seek peace. When we seek peace as the world defines it there is an understanding that if we embrace this peace, if we take it to heart and let it into our soul, it’s understood that we will then serve the thing that brings our peace. We will serve what we give ourselves too. What we seek to rest in will become what drives us. Our driver becomes a hard task master. We must give more and more of ourselves until there is nothing left to give. We exchange temporary peace for death.
Jesus is different. His peace isn’t transactional. He said first of all that he leaves His peace with us. It’s an open opportunity to enter into His peace, no strings attached. Not only is it possible to experience Jesus’ peace because He’s left it here for us. Jesus is proactive in our struggle with peace. Jesus gives us His peace. We don’t have to chase it. Amazing. The peace offered by the world must be sought out, pursued, hunted down. Jesus, in His eternal love, provides for our peace by leaving it here and then freely offers to pour out His peace on us. It’s a gift to be received. To be embraced with a simple and humble “yes”.
Are we seeking peace? Are we finding it?
I leave my peace with you. I give my peace to you. I do not give it to you as the world does. Do not let your hearts be troubled. And do not be afraid. (taken from John 14)
There is a peace to be found in this world. It is a counterfeit peace. One that does not deliver as promised. One that cannot be trusted. But it can be defined as “peace”. I suppose our reliance on pharmacology is a good example of that type of peace. Our voracious appetite for pleasure and entertainment is another example of what we seek peace in. Money is certainly offered as “peace”. These things offer us a “peace”. A temporary diversion from the pain in our lives. I suppose what strikes me this morning is the fact that there IS a peace that the world offers, a peace with enough substance to it that we might confuse it as a permanent answer to our problems. No wonder we’re so often confused about our lives pain. No wonder it’s so hard to give up the “peace” that we’ve placed our hope in.
Having spent time embracing the peace that the world offers I have found that the world’s peace doesn’t last long enough, isn’t deep enough and doesn’t really address the real issue. But it still floors me that I pulled to chase after it. To underestimate the attraction of what the world offers is foolish at best. I have made the mistake of thinking that the peace that this world offers is something that is so inferior to what God offers that there would be no other choice but to embrace God’s peace. The truth is that what the world offers scratches the itch enough to keep me coming back. There is an unspoken exchange that happens when we seek peace. When we seek peace as the world defines it there is an understanding that if we embrace this peace, if we take it to heart and let it into our soul, it’s understood that we will then serve the thing that brings our peace. We will serve what we give ourselves too. What we seek to rest in will become what drives us. Our driver becomes a hard task master. We must give more and more of ourselves until there is nothing left to give. We exchange temporary peace for death.
Jesus is different. His peace isn’t transactional. He said first of all that he leaves His peace with us. It’s an open opportunity to enter into His peace, no strings attached. Not only is it possible to experience Jesus’ peace because He’s left it here for us. Jesus is proactive in our struggle with peace. Jesus gives us His peace. We don’t have to chase it. Amazing. The peace offered by the world must be sought out, pursued, hunted down. Jesus, in His eternal love, provides for our peace by leaving it here and then freely offers to pour out His peace on us. It’s a gift to be received. To be embraced with a simple and humble “yes”.
Are we seeking peace? Are we finding it?
Friday, March 27, 2009
Unloveable
When the hour came, Jesus and His apostles took their places at the table. He said to them, “I have really looked forward to eating this Passover meal with you. I wanted to do this before I suffer. I tell you, I will not eat the Passover meal again until it is celebrated in God’s kingdom.”
After Jesus took the cup, He gave thanks. He said, “Take this cup and share it among yourselves. I tell you, I will not drink wine with you again until God’s kingdom comes.”
Jesus knew that the time had come for Him to leave this world. It was time for Him to go to the Father. Jesus loved His disciples who were in the world. So He now showed them how much He really loved them.
The evening meal was being served. The devil had already tempted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon.
He had told Judas to hand Jesus over to His enemies.
They also started to argue. They disagreed about which of them was thought to be the most important person. (taken from Luke 22)
What an intimate portrayal of the heart of Jesus. This was the beginning of the end. The hour had come, it was time to finish the work His Father had sent Him to do. He had "set his heart on it" (epithemeo) -really looked forward to. His sharing of the cup was His giving fully of Himself to them. I like to believe that He was fully emotionally investing in them. Sharing with them His emotional well being. Letting them into the deepest part of Himself. Freely opening up and inviting them into deepest relationship. One would think that it would be a wonderful experience. That His disciples might begin to understand or at least be drawn into the fact that something eternal was going on. This should have been like the mount of transfiguration for the entire 12. Instead of the pinnacle of following Jesus up to that point, it seems to be the pinnacle of the revelation of their self-centered, sin-twisted soul.
Judas fully gives into the temptation to betray Jesus. The rest begin to argue as to who was thought as the most important person.
In my limited view of how I follow Jesus, I would think that if Jesus was this intimate with me then I would hope to see it for what it is, to embrace what it is He is trying to share and grow from it and for it. I would like to think that it would be a positive, pleasant experience. Yet I've walked enough with Jesus to come to this realization. All too often Jesus' best and most precious gifts reveal the worst of my sin-twisted heart.
I used to stop here and beat myself up for being so "bad" when Jesus is so "good". But if I look at the totality of the lives that Jesus invested Himself in, they did honor Him. They did follow after Him. They did great things to advance the Kingdom and bring glory to the Father. So I have to stop and wonder out loud: is it possible that we're supposed to go through a time where God's love reveals the depth of our ugliness? Is there a time where Jesus say, "I have set my heart on sharing this time with you because I want to show you how much I love you" and to have that time do nothing but bring to light the depths of our self-centered , self-glorifying, self-preserving, self-promoting self?
And if Jesus' expression of love to me shines the light of truth on my soul and reveals that I'm unworthy of that love, does that make His love for me invalid? Or does that disqualify me from embracing as my own this expression of love? Am I supposed to keep Jesus' love at arms length until I no longer have expressed in my life what the light of that love reveals?
I have come to this: If my life is to truly change, I must allow Jesus' love to reveal in me my "unloveliness". I must come to terms with the truth that Jesus' love will first reveal who I really am. I must come to terms with the fact that this is okay. I must come to terms with the fact that Jesus' love does not depend on my "lovable-ness". In truth, when Jesus expresses love to me, one of the purposes of this type of love is to root out of me that which is not lovable. That's why Jesus expresses love the way He does. And if that is truth, then when this love is expressed, not only is it okay to embrace it, to experience it, to claim it as our own and live in it, not only is it okay, it is necessary to do so if we are to grow up into mature Jesus followers. If we want to mature beyond what that love is revealing, it is necessary to experience Jesus' love at our deepest point of "unlovable-ness". Instead of rejecting love until I can "get myself cleaned up". It's the embracing of that love that does the cleaning.
After Jesus took the cup, He gave thanks. He said, “Take this cup and share it among yourselves. I tell you, I will not drink wine with you again until God’s kingdom comes.”
Jesus knew that the time had come for Him to leave this world. It was time for Him to go to the Father. Jesus loved His disciples who were in the world. So He now showed them how much He really loved them.
The evening meal was being served. The devil had already tempted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon.
He had told Judas to hand Jesus over to His enemies.
They also started to argue. They disagreed about which of them was thought to be the most important person. (taken from Luke 22)
What an intimate portrayal of the heart of Jesus. This was the beginning of the end. The hour had come, it was time to finish the work His Father had sent Him to do. He had "set his heart on it" (epithemeo) -really looked forward to. His sharing of the cup was His giving fully of Himself to them. I like to believe that He was fully emotionally investing in them. Sharing with them His emotional well being. Letting them into the deepest part of Himself. Freely opening up and inviting them into deepest relationship. One would think that it would be a wonderful experience. That His disciples might begin to understand or at least be drawn into the fact that something eternal was going on. This should have been like the mount of transfiguration for the entire 12. Instead of the pinnacle of following Jesus up to that point, it seems to be the pinnacle of the revelation of their self-centered, sin-twisted soul.
Judas fully gives into the temptation to betray Jesus. The rest begin to argue as to who was thought as the most important person.
In my limited view of how I follow Jesus, I would think that if Jesus was this intimate with me then I would hope to see it for what it is, to embrace what it is He is trying to share and grow from it and for it. I would like to think that it would be a positive, pleasant experience. Yet I've walked enough with Jesus to come to this realization. All too often Jesus' best and most precious gifts reveal the worst of my sin-twisted heart.
I used to stop here and beat myself up for being so "bad" when Jesus is so "good". But if I look at the totality of the lives that Jesus invested Himself in, they did honor Him. They did follow after Him. They did great things to advance the Kingdom and bring glory to the Father. So I have to stop and wonder out loud: is it possible that we're supposed to go through a time where God's love reveals the depth of our ugliness? Is there a time where Jesus say, "I have set my heart on sharing this time with you because I want to show you how much I love you" and to have that time do nothing but bring to light the depths of our self-centered , self-glorifying, self-preserving, self-promoting self?
And if Jesus' expression of love to me shines the light of truth on my soul and reveals that I'm unworthy of that love, does that make His love for me invalid? Or does that disqualify me from embracing as my own this expression of love? Am I supposed to keep Jesus' love at arms length until I no longer have expressed in my life what the light of that love reveals?
I have come to this: If my life is to truly change, I must allow Jesus' love to reveal in me my "unloveliness". I must come to terms with the truth that Jesus' love will first reveal who I really am. I must come to terms with the fact that this is okay. I must come to terms with the fact that Jesus' love does not depend on my "lovable-ness". In truth, when Jesus expresses love to me, one of the purposes of this type of love is to root out of me that which is not lovable. That's why Jesus expresses love the way He does. And if that is truth, then when this love is expressed, not only is it okay to embrace it, to experience it, to claim it as our own and live in it, not only is it okay, it is necessary to do so if we are to grow up into mature Jesus followers. If we want to mature beyond what that love is revealing, it is necessary to experience Jesus' love at our deepest point of "unlovable-ness". Instead of rejecting love until I can "get myself cleaned up". It's the embracing of that love that does the cleaning.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Growth
Luke 11:1-6
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples spoke to him. “Lord,” he said, “teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
Jesus said to them, “When you pray, this is what you should say:
“’Father, may your name be honored.
May your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’”
“’Father, may your name be honored. validation - what makes life worth living.
May your kingdom come. motivation – what drives us to keep going.
Give us each day our daily bread. provision – what gives us the stamina to complete the task.
Forgive us our sins, as we also forgive everyone who sins against us. healing – what removes the obstacles that keep us from moving forward.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’” growth – what increases our ability to honor the Father.
We’ve looked at validation, motivation, provision, healing and finally growth.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.
Once I understand that the Father makes life worth living and I have the motivation to get up and go advance the Kingdom, and I understand that I have been given everything I need to go and have Kingdom impact, once I understand and enter into the healing that comes from forgiving others and being forgiven by God. The next natural and expected part of relationship with Jesus is growth. I find it very interesting that we’re often surprised when stuff happens to us. Jesus never once promised life would be smooth, or easy, or uncomplicated. As a matter of fact, the call of entering into relationship with Jesus is a challenge. It’s dangerous. If we’re looking to follow after Jesus because we’re looking for safety, comfort and convenience, don’t follow Jesus.
Growth, the normal and expected part of being in relationship with Jesus, requires effort. It requires sweat and exertion of our mental, physical and emotional selves. Growth happens when pressure is applied. In our relationship with Jesus, growth happens when our faith is tested. ‘Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted’ is a reminder that we will be tempted. It’s a part of what it means to be human. There will be times when we find ourselves stretched by temptation. How we respond to temptation shows us how much we’ve grown. How we handle temptation shows us how mature we are in our relationship with Jesus. Jesus himself walked through temptation as part of his preparation for what He was called by the Father to do. And so it will be with us.
I suppose the real learning is to understand that growth is normal and expected. To be in relationship with Jesus is to grow. If there is no growth, there is no relationship. The second part of that learning is to understand that growth is revealed through temptation. When I do not fall into sin when tempted, I can be assured that growth has happened in my life. When I fall to sin when tempted, I can be assured that Jesus will, if I want Him too, show me where I am not growing, and then grow me, and I will, in time, see that growth in my life.
Are we growing? Can we point to areas in our lives and say, “Jesus has grown me there?” Are you in the middle of temptation? Ask Jesus what He’s trying to grow in your life.
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples spoke to him. “Lord,” he said, “teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
Jesus said to them, “When you pray, this is what you should say:
“’Father, may your name be honored.
May your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’”
“’Father, may your name be honored. validation - what makes life worth living.
May your kingdom come. motivation – what drives us to keep going.
Give us each day our daily bread. provision – what gives us the stamina to complete the task.
Forgive us our sins, as we also forgive everyone who sins against us. healing – what removes the obstacles that keep us from moving forward.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’” growth – what increases our ability to honor the Father.
We’ve looked at validation, motivation, provision, healing and finally growth.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.
Once I understand that the Father makes life worth living and I have the motivation to get up and go advance the Kingdom, and I understand that I have been given everything I need to go and have Kingdom impact, once I understand and enter into the healing that comes from forgiving others and being forgiven by God. The next natural and expected part of relationship with Jesus is growth. I find it very interesting that we’re often surprised when stuff happens to us. Jesus never once promised life would be smooth, or easy, or uncomplicated. As a matter of fact, the call of entering into relationship with Jesus is a challenge. It’s dangerous. If we’re looking to follow after Jesus because we’re looking for safety, comfort and convenience, don’t follow Jesus.
Growth, the normal and expected part of being in relationship with Jesus, requires effort. It requires sweat and exertion of our mental, physical and emotional selves. Growth happens when pressure is applied. In our relationship with Jesus, growth happens when our faith is tested. ‘Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted’ is a reminder that we will be tempted. It’s a part of what it means to be human. There will be times when we find ourselves stretched by temptation. How we respond to temptation shows us how much we’ve grown. How we handle temptation shows us how mature we are in our relationship with Jesus. Jesus himself walked through temptation as part of his preparation for what He was called by the Father to do. And so it will be with us.
I suppose the real learning is to understand that growth is normal and expected. To be in relationship with Jesus is to grow. If there is no growth, there is no relationship. The second part of that learning is to understand that growth is revealed through temptation. When I do not fall into sin when tempted, I can be assured that growth has happened in my life. When I fall to sin when tempted, I can be assured that Jesus will, if I want Him too, show me where I am not growing, and then grow me, and I will, in time, see that growth in my life.
Are we growing? Can we point to areas in our lives and say, “Jesus has grown me there?” Are you in the middle of temptation? Ask Jesus what He’s trying to grow in your life.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Healing
Luke 11:1-6
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples spoke to him. “Lord,” he said, “teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
Jesus said to them, “When you pray, this is what you should say:
“’Father, may your name be honored.
May your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’”
“’Father, may your name be honored. validation - what makes life worth living.
May your kingdom come. motivation – what drives us to keep going.
Give us each day our daily bread. provision – what gives us the stamina to complete the task.
Forgive us our sins, as we also forgive everyone who sins against us. healing – what removes the obstacles that keep us from moving forward.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’” growth – what increases our ability to honor the Father.
We’ve looked at validation, motivation, provision and now healing.
Forgive us our sins, as we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Once I understand that the Father makes life worth living and I have the motivation to get up and go advance the Kingdom, and I understand that I have been given everything I need to go and have Kingdom impact, what is it that keeps me from going? What is it that keeps me from being everything God created me to be? The answer is simple. Our sin keeps us from being everything God created us to be. I find Jesus’ words “forgive us our sins”, summed up in Matthew 7:1-2 “Stop judging others, and you will not be judged. For with the judgment you judge you will be judged. Whatever measure you use in judging others, it will be used to measure how you are judged.” (NLT) If I don’t forgive my brother who offends me, I stand as his judge. I judge him for the wrong he’s done (and in many cases, he doesn’t have to offend me and I still stand in judgment of the wrong I believe he’s done). If this scripture is true, how I measure him, I will be measured. I believe what Jesus is saying here is this. We do the same things we stand in judgment over people for. The old saying, we hate in others what we do ourselves, comes into play here. But I believe there is a spiritual law at work here. Even if I have never done what I judge my brother for, I bind to myself, by that judgment, to do it. So if I judge you as a dirty rotten stinking liar, I will become a dirty rotten stinking liar. With the same measurement I used, I will be measured and found to be the same.
The implications are huge here. Only God can see the beginning from the end and really know if someone really is a “dirty rotten stinking liar”. I don’t have enough information to make that judgment and my ability to judge is impaired by my own wounds and sins. So Jesus tells us to forgive those who sinned against us. Let Jesus do the judging. It’s His job, not ours. Healing happens in our lives when we let the Holy Spirit show us where we’ve hung on to our “right” to judge others. When I understand that I’m hanging on to this “right” for an offense done to me, I can truly say, “Jesus, forgive me, I’ve judged my brother, I’ve done him wrong”. It is then I can give to Jesus my right to see justice done. He’ll be the judge, not me. I can trust that He’ll work it out. He’ll make it right. This is how I can forgive my brother. Not ignoring the wrong done to me, but taking that wrong and giving it to Jesus to work out the right. Let Jesus bring judgment to it.
I’m convinced that it’s these particular offenses that often keep us bound to our sin. Our unwillingness to let Jesus be the judge and bring justice to our situations is the very thing that binds us to repeat the cycles and patterns of sin in our lives. Our unwillingness to let Jesus search our hearts and show us where we are hanging on to these, our own judgments, keeps us bound to our cycles of sin. Freedom comes when I first deal with my own sin, “Forgive us our sins” and let Jesus deal with those who’ve sinned against me “as we also forgive everyone who sins against us”.
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples spoke to him. “Lord,” he said, “teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
Jesus said to them, “When you pray, this is what you should say:
“’Father, may your name be honored.
May your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’”
“’Father, may your name be honored. validation - what makes life worth living.
May your kingdom come. motivation – what drives us to keep going.
Give us each day our daily bread. provision – what gives us the stamina to complete the task.
Forgive us our sins, as we also forgive everyone who sins against us. healing – what removes the obstacles that keep us from moving forward.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’” growth – what increases our ability to honor the Father.
We’ve looked at validation, motivation, provision and now healing.
Forgive us our sins, as we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Once I understand that the Father makes life worth living and I have the motivation to get up and go advance the Kingdom, and I understand that I have been given everything I need to go and have Kingdom impact, what is it that keeps me from going? What is it that keeps me from being everything God created me to be? The answer is simple. Our sin keeps us from being everything God created us to be. I find Jesus’ words “forgive us our sins”, summed up in Matthew 7:1-2 “Stop judging others, and you will not be judged. For with the judgment you judge you will be judged. Whatever measure you use in judging others, it will be used to measure how you are judged.” (NLT) If I don’t forgive my brother who offends me, I stand as his judge. I judge him for the wrong he’s done (and in many cases, he doesn’t have to offend me and I still stand in judgment of the wrong I believe he’s done). If this scripture is true, how I measure him, I will be measured. I believe what Jesus is saying here is this. We do the same things we stand in judgment over people for. The old saying, we hate in others what we do ourselves, comes into play here. But I believe there is a spiritual law at work here. Even if I have never done what I judge my brother for, I bind to myself, by that judgment, to do it. So if I judge you as a dirty rotten stinking liar, I will become a dirty rotten stinking liar. With the same measurement I used, I will be measured and found to be the same.
The implications are huge here. Only God can see the beginning from the end and really know if someone really is a “dirty rotten stinking liar”. I don’t have enough information to make that judgment and my ability to judge is impaired by my own wounds and sins. So Jesus tells us to forgive those who sinned against us. Let Jesus do the judging. It’s His job, not ours. Healing happens in our lives when we let the Holy Spirit show us where we’ve hung on to our “right” to judge others. When I understand that I’m hanging on to this “right” for an offense done to me, I can truly say, “Jesus, forgive me, I’ve judged my brother, I’ve done him wrong”. It is then I can give to Jesus my right to see justice done. He’ll be the judge, not me. I can trust that He’ll work it out. He’ll make it right. This is how I can forgive my brother. Not ignoring the wrong done to me, but taking that wrong and giving it to Jesus to work out the right. Let Jesus bring judgment to it.
I’m convinced that it’s these particular offenses that often keep us bound to our sin. Our unwillingness to let Jesus be the judge and bring justice to our situations is the very thing that binds us to repeat the cycles and patterns of sin in our lives. Our unwillingness to let Jesus search our hearts and show us where we are hanging on to these, our own judgments, keeps us bound to our cycles of sin. Freedom comes when I first deal with my own sin, “Forgive us our sins” and let Jesus deal with those who’ve sinned against me “as we also forgive everyone who sins against us”.
Monday, February 16, 2009
I'm at a loss.
I’m at a loss.
You demand I be safe for you. Can I demand you be safe for me? Who gets to define what safe is?
You accuse me of being closed. There was a time when I chose to trust you with my vulnerability. Did you forget? Who gets to define what being open is?
You say you’ve held me in higher esteem then you should have, is that why I always seemed to catch your anger?
You don’t desired to be judged by who you were because you’ve changed. Amen! Me too!
You say being in ‘real’ relationship with you means we need to get real and raw, does that mean I have to let you beat me up to be real?
You rehearse the deep wounds I’ve caused you. Is that getting real? Does that mean I’m supposed to rehearse the deep wounds you’ve caused me?
You see, I really feel like you want to be free to act any way you want. I feel that you expect that I will accept how ever you treat me. I’m supposed to, in love, understand where you are and accept that you’re trying to grow. So it’s supposed to be OK if you hurt me. Or you’re angry with me. Or you treat me in a way that later you’ll regret. Your free to dump on me. That's what friends do right?
But the rub is this, I’m not free to be angry at you. Or hurt you. Or do something to you that later I might regret. I'm not free to dump on you, even though I’m trying to grow.
I really feel like you want to be free to be who you are but you demand that I be your idea of what you need me to be. I’m supposed to be the person you set me up to be and when I’m not I’m the one who’s at fault.
So I can never live up to the expectations I never set them to begin with. And I can never walk through this morass with you to some understanding because I supposedly bear the greater burden in its creation.
You demand I be safe for you. Can I demand you be safe for me? Who gets to define what safe is?
You accuse me of being closed. There was a time when I chose to trust you with my vulnerability. Did you forget? Who gets to define what being open is?
You say you’ve held me in higher esteem then you should have, is that why I always seemed to catch your anger?
You don’t desired to be judged by who you were because you’ve changed. Amen! Me too!
You say being in ‘real’ relationship with you means we need to get real and raw, does that mean I have to let you beat me up to be real?
You rehearse the deep wounds I’ve caused you. Is that getting real? Does that mean I’m supposed to rehearse the deep wounds you’ve caused me?
You see, I really feel like you want to be free to act any way you want. I feel that you expect that I will accept how ever you treat me. I’m supposed to, in love, understand where you are and accept that you’re trying to grow. So it’s supposed to be OK if you hurt me. Or you’re angry with me. Or you treat me in a way that later you’ll regret. Your free to dump on me. That's what friends do right?
But the rub is this, I’m not free to be angry at you. Or hurt you. Or do something to you that later I might regret. I'm not free to dump on you, even though I’m trying to grow.
I really feel like you want to be free to be who you are but you demand that I be your idea of what you need me to be. I’m supposed to be the person you set me up to be and when I’m not I’m the one who’s at fault.
So I can never live up to the expectations I never set them to begin with. And I can never walk through this morass with you to some understanding because I supposedly bear the greater burden in its creation.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Have Mercy On Me
Jesus told a story to some people who were sure they were right with God. They looked down on everybody else. He said to them, "Two men went up to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee. The other was a tax collector.
"The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself. 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people,' he said. 'I am not like robbers or those who do other evil things. I am not like those who commit adultery. I am not even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week. And I give a tenth of all I get.'
"But the tax collector stood not very far away. he would not even look up to heaven. He beat his chest and said, 'God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner.'
"I tell you, the tax collector went home accepted by God. But not the Pharisee. Everyone who lifts himself up will be brought down. And anyone who is brought down will be lifted up."
Whenever I read Jesus' words I'm quick to put myself in the right. I'm not like the Pharisee right? I'm not self righteous. I don't draw attention to myself. I always look at this Pharisee as an arrogant sort who wears his Sunday best and stands up with his arms raised to heaven in the middle of the congregation using his best voice to make sure that everyone could hear him, because what he had to say was important.
Then I began to reread the Pharisee's prayer:
"God." Well that's a good start, he really knows who he's talking too. He's taken a position of authority, talking directly to God. "I thank you that I'm not like other people." Wow. That is arrogant if you read it with an attitude of smugness. Now try reading it with an attitude of being genuinely thankful that you're not like other people. I've followed Jesus for 40 years. There have been times where I've looked at my life's stuff and looked at other's life's stuff and I've been genuinely grateful that I don't have to deal with the stuff they deal with. Why is that? "I am not like robbers or those who do other evil things." True. I have not robbed nor do I do evil things. I'm happy that I don't have that stuff on my conscience. There's not been a time in my life where I've "walked away" from God. I've followed the rules. "I am not like those who commit adultery." Funny how this version translates the language. "I am not like". Never inferring he had a stray thought, it's just that he has mastered his passions and isn't like the adulterer who can't seem to master his passions. I've been married for 20 years. I'm not part of the divorce statistics of our day. I'm thankful for that. Then looking around he sees the tax collector, the one whom everyone hated. "I am not even like this tax collector." I suppose it's not hard to feel good about yourself when you compare yourself to someone that everyone else hates. When I place myself next to what people consider the worst of society it's not hard to look good. "I fast twice a week. and I give a tenth of all I get." They guy had his religion down. He knew what to do and how to do it. After 40 years, I too, know what to do and how to do it.
So what happens if I read this prayer not with a smug attitude, but with a genuine attitude of relief that I'm really not the things I am praying about:
God, my soul is relieved that I'm not like other people. I'm relieved that my conscience is clear. I'm relieved that my marriage is pure. I'm relieved that society looks at me with approval and not disdain. I'm truly relieved and grateful that the way I conduct my worship is pleasing. I'm relieved and truly thankful that because of all these things I have value and You, God, can love me.
OK. Maybe I'm stretching things a little bit here, but boy, rewriting that prayer strikes a little too close to home. Perhaps I'm more of a Pharisee then I thought. And maybe, just maybe, I slowly became a Pharisee all in an effort to find value in the eyes of God. I've noticed that much of what motivates me is in an effort to find something in my life that has value. Something that is lovable. Something that I can look at and say, "Here God, see this. This has value, this is worth something, You can love this." And my desire to have value, to have worth, slowly turns me into a Pharisee, comparing myself to others of less value and counting on how I conduct my life to some how make me lovable.
"God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner." Nothing I offer God can be the basis for His love for me. Any value that I have comes from Jesus, not from me. He chose to give me value. I have value because Jesus does love me, not because I have something in me that is worth loving. It is no wonder that the only response I can have to this truth is, "have mercy on me."
So accepting Jesus' love for me is to understand and experience "have mercy on me". To understand that worth comes from Jesus is the point where I can fully embrace and experience love and worth and feel valuable.
God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner.
"The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself. 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people,' he said. 'I am not like robbers or those who do other evil things. I am not like those who commit adultery. I am not even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week. And I give a tenth of all I get.'
"But the tax collector stood not very far away. he would not even look up to heaven. He beat his chest and said, 'God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner.'
"I tell you, the tax collector went home accepted by God. But not the Pharisee. Everyone who lifts himself up will be brought down. And anyone who is brought down will be lifted up."
Whenever I read Jesus' words I'm quick to put myself in the right. I'm not like the Pharisee right? I'm not self righteous. I don't draw attention to myself. I always look at this Pharisee as an arrogant sort who wears his Sunday best and stands up with his arms raised to heaven in the middle of the congregation using his best voice to make sure that everyone could hear him, because what he had to say was important.
Then I began to reread the Pharisee's prayer:
"God." Well that's a good start, he really knows who he's talking too. He's taken a position of authority, talking directly to God. "I thank you that I'm not like other people." Wow. That is arrogant if you read it with an attitude of smugness. Now try reading it with an attitude of being genuinely thankful that you're not like other people. I've followed Jesus for 40 years. There have been times where I've looked at my life's stuff and looked at other's life's stuff and I've been genuinely grateful that I don't have to deal with the stuff they deal with. Why is that? "I am not like robbers or those who do other evil things." True. I have not robbed nor do I do evil things. I'm happy that I don't have that stuff on my conscience. There's not been a time in my life where I've "walked away" from God. I've followed the rules. "I am not like those who commit adultery." Funny how this version translates the language. "I am not like". Never inferring he had a stray thought, it's just that he has mastered his passions and isn't like the adulterer who can't seem to master his passions. I've been married for 20 years. I'm not part of the divorce statistics of our day. I'm thankful for that. Then looking around he sees the tax collector, the one whom everyone hated. "I am not even like this tax collector." I suppose it's not hard to feel good about yourself when you compare yourself to someone that everyone else hates. When I place myself next to what people consider the worst of society it's not hard to look good. "I fast twice a week. and I give a tenth of all I get." They guy had his religion down. He knew what to do and how to do it. After 40 years, I too, know what to do and how to do it.
So what happens if I read this prayer not with a smug attitude, but with a genuine attitude of relief that I'm really not the things I am praying about:
God, my soul is relieved that I'm not like other people. I'm relieved that my conscience is clear. I'm relieved that my marriage is pure. I'm relieved that society looks at me with approval and not disdain. I'm truly relieved and grateful that the way I conduct my worship is pleasing. I'm relieved and truly thankful that because of all these things I have value and You, God, can love me.
OK. Maybe I'm stretching things a little bit here, but boy, rewriting that prayer strikes a little too close to home. Perhaps I'm more of a Pharisee then I thought. And maybe, just maybe, I slowly became a Pharisee all in an effort to find value in the eyes of God. I've noticed that much of what motivates me is in an effort to find something in my life that has value. Something that is lovable. Something that I can look at and say, "Here God, see this. This has value, this is worth something, You can love this." And my desire to have value, to have worth, slowly turns me into a Pharisee, comparing myself to others of less value and counting on how I conduct my life to some how make me lovable.
"God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner." Nothing I offer God can be the basis for His love for me. Any value that I have comes from Jesus, not from me. He chose to give me value. I have value because Jesus does love me, not because I have something in me that is worth loving. It is no wonder that the only response I can have to this truth is, "have mercy on me."
So accepting Jesus' love for me is to understand and experience "have mercy on me". To understand that worth comes from Jesus is the point where I can fully embrace and experience love and worth and feel valuable.
God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
The Kingdom Of Heaven
Why do we name ourselves? Why is it when a group of people get together the first thing they want to do is come up with a name for the group? Those who follow Jesus seem to rush to do this. A group of Jesus followers begins to met together and the first thing we ask is, what do we call ourselves? How will we be identified? How will people recongnize us? I've begun to wonder why we do that. It's so easy to view people as "in" and "out" if we have a name to attach to it. Our names end up being the way people define who we are. What names we attach ourselves too, seem to be an attempt to protect ourselves from what ever might cause us harm. As soon as a group is named, they separate themselves from the very ones they are trying to reach. They become "in" and all others become "out". Doesn't that seem a bit counter productive?
Luke 17:20,21 - Once the Pharisees asked Jesus when God's kingdom would come. He replied, "The coming of God's kingdom is not something you can see just by watching for it carefully. People will not say, 'Here it is.' Or, 'There it is.' God's kingdom is among you."
If what Jesus says is true then God's kingdom in my neighborhood is not going to be as tangable as a group of people who have gathered around a name. God's kingdom first of all is. Period. I can't say, "Oh look, they're doing God's kingdom". Or "You know those people down at the First Street Church of God's Kingdom, really have this kingdom thing down." Yet isn't that just what we do? Don't we rally around a name and say, "Look, here is the kingdom, come see it!"
I think it's time we started looking at things differently. Let's stop looking at names and start looking at the reality of what the kingdom is. If God's kingdom really is among us, then when does it express itself? I'm thankful that Jesus answered that question for us. Matthew 18:20 (NLT) "I also tell you this: If two of you agree down here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. For where two or three gather together because they are mine (in my name), I am there among them." Does not the presence of Jesus mean we're living in the kingdom? So anytime I sit for coffee with a brother or a sister I'm doing the kingdom. Anytime I share a meal with a brother or a sister, I'm doing the kingdom. Anytime I see a concert, talk about a book, share a ballgame, visit a park, play euchre, fish, ride motorcycles, watch kids play, with a brother or a sister, I'm doing the kingdom.
It seems to me that the kingdom of God is not about names or carefully constructed boundaries, theological or physical. Seems to me the kingdom of God is Jesus. If Jesus is here, then we are the kingdom of God. When I start from that point, it changes my whole perspective on how I do life.
Luke 17:20,21 - Once the Pharisees asked Jesus when God's kingdom would come. He replied, "The coming of God's kingdom is not something you can see just by watching for it carefully. People will not say, 'Here it is.' Or, 'There it is.' God's kingdom is among you."
If what Jesus says is true then God's kingdom in my neighborhood is not going to be as tangable as a group of people who have gathered around a name. God's kingdom first of all is. Period. I can't say, "Oh look, they're doing God's kingdom". Or "You know those people down at the First Street Church of God's Kingdom, really have this kingdom thing down." Yet isn't that just what we do? Don't we rally around a name and say, "Look, here is the kingdom, come see it!"
I think it's time we started looking at things differently. Let's stop looking at names and start looking at the reality of what the kingdom is. If God's kingdom really is among us, then when does it express itself? I'm thankful that Jesus answered that question for us. Matthew 18:20 (NLT) "I also tell you this: If two of you agree down here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. For where two or three gather together because they are mine (in my name), I am there among them." Does not the presence of Jesus mean we're living in the kingdom? So anytime I sit for coffee with a brother or a sister I'm doing the kingdom. Anytime I share a meal with a brother or a sister, I'm doing the kingdom. Anytime I see a concert, talk about a book, share a ballgame, visit a park, play euchre, fish, ride motorcycles, watch kids play, with a brother or a sister, I'm doing the kingdom.
It seems to me that the kingdom of God is not about names or carefully constructed boundaries, theological or physical. Seems to me the kingdom of God is Jesus. If Jesus is here, then we are the kingdom of God. When I start from that point, it changes my whole perspective on how I do life.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
"Right Ache"
Jesus told his disciples a story. He wanted to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said, "In a certain town there was a judge. He didn't have any respect for God or care about people. A widow lived in that town. She came to the judge again and again. She kept begging him, "Make things right for me. Someone is doing me wrong.'
"For some time the judge refused. But finally he said to himself, 'I don't have any respect for God. I don't care about people. But this widow keeps bothering me. So I will see that things are made right for her. If I don't, she will wear me out by coming again and again!'"
The Lord said, "Listen to what the unfair judge says.
"God's chosen people cry out to him day and night. Won't he make things right for them? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, God will see that things are made right for them. He will make sure it happens quickly.
"But when the son of Man comes, will he find people on earth who have faith?"
I have come to the conclusion that I just want things to be right. Things get so convoluted. If you take any conflict and when you look at it long enough, there is enough "wrong" to go around. Anybody who feels they are totally blameless just hasn't lived enough life to know that we're all stained. Each one of us lives the consequences of a life that doesn't measure up to "right".
I look at all of the conflict in the world. Globally. I look at what's happening in this nation, even in this time of hope, things are not right. I look locally, things are not right. I look at my own life. Things are not right. My heart aches for right.
I find it interesting that Jesus' comments come after talking about when the "last days" will come. In this context I believe He's opening up a part of who we are, that part that longs for what we lost in the garden. That part that demands justice but knows that true justice will only happen when Jesus is the one meting it out. It's the part of us that we know is incomplete, broken even, and we just ache for it to be 'right'.
Jesus said, "Listen to what the unfair judge says." So if this unfair judge will make things right, how much more will our heavenly Father make things right for those who are crying out to Him day and night?
So what have we been crying out to the Father for? Have we given up? Does He hear? Does He know my heart aches?
Jesus, make it right. Come make this world, our lives, come make me right.
"For some time the judge refused. But finally he said to himself, 'I don't have any respect for God. I don't care about people. But this widow keeps bothering me. So I will see that things are made right for her. If I don't, she will wear me out by coming again and again!'"
The Lord said, "Listen to what the unfair judge says.
"God's chosen people cry out to him day and night. Won't he make things right for them? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, God will see that things are made right for them. He will make sure it happens quickly.
"But when the son of Man comes, will he find people on earth who have faith?"
I have come to the conclusion that I just want things to be right. Things get so convoluted. If you take any conflict and when you look at it long enough, there is enough "wrong" to go around. Anybody who feels they are totally blameless just hasn't lived enough life to know that we're all stained. Each one of us lives the consequences of a life that doesn't measure up to "right".
I look at all of the conflict in the world. Globally. I look at what's happening in this nation, even in this time of hope, things are not right. I look locally, things are not right. I look at my own life. Things are not right. My heart aches for right.
I find it interesting that Jesus' comments come after talking about when the "last days" will come. In this context I believe He's opening up a part of who we are, that part that longs for what we lost in the garden. That part that demands justice but knows that true justice will only happen when Jesus is the one meting it out. It's the part of us that we know is incomplete, broken even, and we just ache for it to be 'right'.
Jesus said, "Listen to what the unfair judge says." So if this unfair judge will make things right, how much more will our heavenly Father make things right for those who are crying out to Him day and night?
So what have we been crying out to the Father for? Have we given up? Does He hear? Does He know my heart aches?
Jesus, make it right. Come make this world, our lives, come make me right.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Provision
Luke 11:1-6
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples spoke to him. “Lord,” he said, “teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
Jesus said to them, “When you pray, this is what you should say:
“’Father, may your name be honored.
May your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’”
I find in this text a blue print for life. Each statement addresses a part of our lives that must be considered if we are to be “fully alive”. I find it very encouraging that Jesus would so succinctly package life’s meaning into the “teaching us how to pray” prayer. It tells me that prayer is vital. I must pray to be fully alive. If I neglect prayer, my life suffers accordingly. If I don’t talk to Jesus, I end up trying to do it on my own and I slowly lose the ability to fully engage in life.
Here is what I see in this passage as Jesus deals with the completeness of life.
Father, may your name be honored. validation - what makes life worth living.
May your kingdom come. motivation – what drives us to keep going.
Give us each day our daily bread. provision – what gives us the stamina to complete the task.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us. healing – what removes the obstacles that keep us from moving forward.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted. growth – what increases our ability to honor the Father.
We’ve looked at validation and motivation, how about provision.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Question time, how long would you have to go without a paycheck before you panicked? Do we really believe that Jesus will supply our every need? Really believe that? If you missed a paycheck, would Jesus supply your need? If you missed 2 paychecks? 3? Jesus taught us to pray, give us each day our daily bread. I’m struck by the fact that it’s not, supply our needs for the week. Or, show us how our budget is going to work out for the year. Walking with Jesus is a moment by moment proposition. Each day has its own challenges, financially, emotionally, spiritually, physically. Each day Jesus promises to supply what we need for that day. The moment I expect more then what is for today is the moment I’ve stepped outside of what God has asked. Wow. Let that sink in for minute. The moment I expect more then what is for today is the moment I’ve stepped outside of what God has asked.
Nothing is guaranteed. No job. No program. No bank. No government. No harvest. The only thing one who can back up His promises is Jesus. He is the only guarantee in this life and his guarantee is for what we need today. His provision is good to meet the challenges for today. Food, clothing, strength, character, stamina, wisdom, He has promised to give us what we need to face today. As I understand what makes life worth living and engage in the mission of Kingdom Near. Jesus provides what I need today to accomplish what He’s asked me to do today. Nothing more, nothing less. Daily bread.
In this time we’re walking through, I’m learning to get up in the morning and ask, “Am I taken care of today? Is my family taken care of today? Are those with whom I’ve engaged in life with taken care of today?” I then look for that provision, my Father’s emotional, physical, spiritual, financial daily bread prepared specifically for me. Am I taken care of today? And I have to answer every day so far, “yes.”
Give us each day our daily bread
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples spoke to him. “Lord,” he said, “teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
Jesus said to them, “When you pray, this is what you should say:
“’Father, may your name be honored.
May your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’”
I find in this text a blue print for life. Each statement addresses a part of our lives that must be considered if we are to be “fully alive”. I find it very encouraging that Jesus would so succinctly package life’s meaning into the “teaching us how to pray” prayer. It tells me that prayer is vital. I must pray to be fully alive. If I neglect prayer, my life suffers accordingly. If I don’t talk to Jesus, I end up trying to do it on my own and I slowly lose the ability to fully engage in life.
Here is what I see in this passage as Jesus deals with the completeness of life.
Father, may your name be honored. validation - what makes life worth living.
May your kingdom come. motivation – what drives us to keep going.
Give us each day our daily bread. provision – what gives us the stamina to complete the task.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us. healing – what removes the obstacles that keep us from moving forward.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted. growth – what increases our ability to honor the Father.
We’ve looked at validation and motivation, how about provision.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Question time, how long would you have to go without a paycheck before you panicked? Do we really believe that Jesus will supply our every need? Really believe that? If you missed a paycheck, would Jesus supply your need? If you missed 2 paychecks? 3? Jesus taught us to pray, give us each day our daily bread. I’m struck by the fact that it’s not, supply our needs for the week. Or, show us how our budget is going to work out for the year. Walking with Jesus is a moment by moment proposition. Each day has its own challenges, financially, emotionally, spiritually, physically. Each day Jesus promises to supply what we need for that day. The moment I expect more then what is for today is the moment I’ve stepped outside of what God has asked. Wow. Let that sink in for minute. The moment I expect more then what is for today is the moment I’ve stepped outside of what God has asked.
Nothing is guaranteed. No job. No program. No bank. No government. No harvest. The only thing one who can back up His promises is Jesus. He is the only guarantee in this life and his guarantee is for what we need today. His provision is good to meet the challenges for today. Food, clothing, strength, character, stamina, wisdom, He has promised to give us what we need to face today. As I understand what makes life worth living and engage in the mission of Kingdom Near. Jesus provides what I need today to accomplish what He’s asked me to do today. Nothing more, nothing less. Daily bread.
In this time we’re walking through, I’m learning to get up in the morning and ask, “Am I taken care of today? Is my family taken care of today? Are those with whom I’ve engaged in life with taken care of today?” I then look for that provision, my Father’s emotional, physical, spiritual, financial daily bread prepared specifically for me. Am I taken care of today? And I have to answer every day so far, “yes.”
Give us each day our daily bread
Motivation
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples spoke to him. “Lord,” he said, “teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
Jesus said to them, “When you pray, this is what you should say:
“’Father, may your name be honored.
May your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’”
Father, may your name be honored. validation - what makes life worth living.
May your kingdom come. motivation – what drives us to keep going.
Give us each day our daily bread. provision – what gives us the stamina to complete the task.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us. healing – what removes the obstacles that keep us from moving forward.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted. growth – what increases our ability to honor the Father.
So what get’s you out of bed in the morning? Why do you go to work everyday? Why do you engage in family life? Why do pursue the things you pursue? Why? I love asking the question why. If you ask it long enough, you’ll always find yourself confronted with Jesus. May your kingdom come. Jesus want’s us to understand that one of the primary motivations for a full life is engaging in the Kingdom. Did you wake up this morning and ask, “Jesus how can I help Your Kingdom come today?” If you’re like me you probably didn’t. But it should be one of our primary motives. I should understand as I walk with Jesus how my life helps advance the Kingdom. I should understand the more I get to know the Father, how my job helps advance the Kingdom. I should begin to understand how my marriage, how my parenting, how my dating life, how my friendships, all advance the Kingdom.
I find that I don’t very often think this way. I understand that my “church” relationships advance the kingdom, that’s the churches job right? But my marriage? How I parent? What I do in my leisure time? All of these things have Kingdom significance? They do if we understand that it’s Jesus desire that the Kingdom come. So let me challenge me, (and you) to begin to ask this question; Jesus, how do I advance Your Kingdom today? Listen for the answer, then do it.
Jesus said to them, “When you pray, this is what you should say:
“’Father, may your name be honored.
May your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’”
Father, may your name be honored. validation - what makes life worth living.
May your kingdom come. motivation – what drives us to keep going.
Give us each day our daily bread. provision – what gives us the stamina to complete the task.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us. healing – what removes the obstacles that keep us from moving forward.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted. growth – what increases our ability to honor the Father.
So what get’s you out of bed in the morning? Why do you go to work everyday? Why do you engage in family life? Why do pursue the things you pursue? Why? I love asking the question why. If you ask it long enough, you’ll always find yourself confronted with Jesus. May your kingdom come. Jesus want’s us to understand that one of the primary motivations for a full life is engaging in the Kingdom. Did you wake up this morning and ask, “Jesus how can I help Your Kingdom come today?” If you’re like me you probably didn’t. But it should be one of our primary motives. I should understand as I walk with Jesus how my life helps advance the Kingdom. I should understand the more I get to know the Father, how my job helps advance the Kingdom. I should begin to understand how my marriage, how my parenting, how my dating life, how my friendships, all advance the Kingdom.
I find that I don’t very often think this way. I understand that my “church” relationships advance the kingdom, that’s the churches job right? But my marriage? How I parent? What I do in my leisure time? All of these things have Kingdom significance? They do if we understand that it’s Jesus desire that the Kingdom come. So let me challenge me, (and you) to begin to ask this question; Jesus, how do I advance Your Kingdom today? Listen for the answer, then do it.
Validation
Luke 11:1-6
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples spoke to him. “Lord,” he said, “teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
Jesus said to them, “When you pray, this is what you should say:
“’Father, may your name be honored.
May your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’”
I find in this text a blue print for life. Each statement addresses a part of our lives that must be considered if we are to be “fully alive”. I find it very encouraging that Jesus would so succinctly package life’s meaning into the “teaching us how to pray” prayer. It tells me that prayer is vital. I must pray to be fully alive. If I neglect prayer, my life suffers accordingly. If I don’t talk to Jesus, I end up trying to do it on my own and I slowly lose the ability to fully engage in life.
Here is what I see in this passage as Jesus deals with the completeness of life.
Father, may your name be honored. validation - what makes life worth living.
May your kingdom come. motivation – what drives us to keep going.
Give us each day our daily bread. provision – what gives us the stamina to complete the task.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us. healing – what removes the obstacles that keep us from moving forward.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted. growth – what increases our ability to honor the Father.
I think Jesus starts at the deepest drive and ends with real life. I love the patterns he follows. The deepest question I can ask myself is “why do I exist?” “Why am I here?” Jesus answers that question simple by saying, “Father, may your name be honored.” It’s His reminder of why we’re here. To honor the Father. This is what makes life worth living. This is one of our deepest longings. If we are wired with a desire to hear our earthly dads say, “Good job!” How much more are we wired to hear our heavenly Father say “well done”? How settling to our spirits when we know that someone is pleased with how we live? How freeing to know that how we act, or how we engage in life’s activity is validated by our Father? If God be for us, who can be against us? How much more willing am I to risk, to strike out on an adventure, to follow the Holy Spirit's prompting when I know my Father is pleased with me doing so? How much deeper will I engage in life when I know my Father is smiling in approval? Knowing that His name is honored by how I’m living my life.
Father, may your name be honored.
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples spoke to him. “Lord,” he said, “teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
Jesus said to them, “When you pray, this is what you should say:
“’Father, may your name be honored.
May your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.’”
I find in this text a blue print for life. Each statement addresses a part of our lives that must be considered if we are to be “fully alive”. I find it very encouraging that Jesus would so succinctly package life’s meaning into the “teaching us how to pray” prayer. It tells me that prayer is vital. I must pray to be fully alive. If I neglect prayer, my life suffers accordingly. If I don’t talk to Jesus, I end up trying to do it on my own and I slowly lose the ability to fully engage in life.
Here is what I see in this passage as Jesus deals with the completeness of life.
Father, may your name be honored. validation - what makes life worth living.
May your kingdom come. motivation – what drives us to keep going.
Give us each day our daily bread. provision – what gives us the stamina to complete the task.
Forgive us our sins, As we also forgive everyone who sins against us. healing – what removes the obstacles that keep us from moving forward.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted. growth – what increases our ability to honor the Father.
I think Jesus starts at the deepest drive and ends with real life. I love the patterns he follows. The deepest question I can ask myself is “why do I exist?” “Why am I here?” Jesus answers that question simple by saying, “Father, may your name be honored.” It’s His reminder of why we’re here. To honor the Father. This is what makes life worth living. This is one of our deepest longings. If we are wired with a desire to hear our earthly dads say, “Good job!” How much more are we wired to hear our heavenly Father say “well done”? How settling to our spirits when we know that someone is pleased with how we live? How freeing to know that how we act, or how we engage in life’s activity is validated by our Father? If God be for us, who can be against us? How much more willing am I to risk, to strike out on an adventure, to follow the Holy Spirit's prompting when I know my Father is pleased with me doing so? How much deeper will I engage in life when I know my Father is smiling in approval? Knowing that His name is honored by how I’m living my life.
Father, may your name be honored.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Things you see on the back of a Harley
Three years ago I took a sabbatical. Jesus met me in ways I didn’t expect and I came back from that motorcycle trip to Denver seeing my world differently. What up until that time were just fleeting thoughts through the dark recesses of my mind began to seep into my daily routine.
Though Eileen and I love the people in our church family and couldn’t see ourselves doing anything else, I began to be bothered by the fact that the routine of ministry was turning into a grind. Every fall we would start another ministry season and hope that by spring we would see God do “amazing things.” We couldn’t always pinpoint what “amazing things” we wanted God to do, but surely we were “this close” to seeing God do them. We’d throw ourselves into each ministry season, working hard through the fall and winter and hope by spring we’d see the fruit of our labor. For the past several springs, it seemed to end where we had started. It became “wash, rinse, repeat.”
On the back of that Harley I realized that I couldn’t do the “wash, rinse, repeat” anymore. I began to pray. Okay, Jesus, show me what to do. How do we change this?
Things began to change for our church, but I could not have foreseen how. God used the ministry season of 2007/08 to tear down what I thought church should be, or what church was. I learned that a majority of our time, energy and resources went to furthering the organization instead of the Kingdom. Here’s what that looked like for me. I would spend several hours a week planning for a Sunday morning service. Using music, drama, video, multimedia and the spoken word, we spent a ton of time and effort to create an atmosphere where people could connect people to Jesus.
While many people remember the “cool” things we did, very few had their lives really changed by Jesus. It seemed the fruit of our labor was a “hip” expression of a Sunday morning service. Our desire was the fruit of a life deeply impacted by a relationship with Jesus. I fondly remember some of the creative ways we expressed the theme for a particular week, yet I looked at the life impact it had on those who were a part of it and it began to be very frustrating. There was a ton of effort being expended for what seemed to be a small handful of fruit. As a steward of the gifts God has given me, including time, resources and people, I began to wrestle with the uncomfortable question of is the fruit we’re seeing a good use of the resources we’ve been given?
During this time of frustration I began to meet with two men on Saturday morning from 7-9 to have coffee and talk about Jesus in our lives. What I began to realize was this. The 2 hours I spent with these guys had a deeper impact on our walk with Jesus then the 15 -20 hours a week I spent trying to program a Sunday morning service. My epiphany came when I realized that I could “preach” the same sermon on a Saturday morning talking with these guys and then preach on a Sunday morning to 175 people and have more of an eternal Kingdom impact on Saturday morning. So I continued to question, if I spent the time I used to spend on planning a service in one on one communication with people, would we bear more fruit? The conclusion I’ve come to is a resounding yes. I believe Jesus has called me to spend more time in relationship then planning services. To “preach” in the context of relationship. To plan and program in the context of relationship. To do life in relationship furthering growth through relationship and not through planning a program. I’m convinced that my life is better spent in connection then in programming. If Eileen and I can spend one or two hours a week with three or four or five people, crawling into their lives and find out where Jesus is what kind of Kingdom impact would there be?
Though Eileen and I love the people in our church family and couldn’t see ourselves doing anything else, I began to be bothered by the fact that the routine of ministry was turning into a grind. Every fall we would start another ministry season and hope that by spring we would see God do “amazing things.” We couldn’t always pinpoint what “amazing things” we wanted God to do, but surely we were “this close” to seeing God do them. We’d throw ourselves into each ministry season, working hard through the fall and winter and hope by spring we’d see the fruit of our labor. For the past several springs, it seemed to end where we had started. It became “wash, rinse, repeat.”
On the back of that Harley I realized that I couldn’t do the “wash, rinse, repeat” anymore. I began to pray. Okay, Jesus, show me what to do. How do we change this?
Things began to change for our church, but I could not have foreseen how. God used the ministry season of 2007/08 to tear down what I thought church should be, or what church was. I learned that a majority of our time, energy and resources went to furthering the organization instead of the Kingdom. Here’s what that looked like for me. I would spend several hours a week planning for a Sunday morning service. Using music, drama, video, multimedia and the spoken word, we spent a ton of time and effort to create an atmosphere where people could connect people to Jesus.
While many people remember the “cool” things we did, very few had their lives really changed by Jesus. It seemed the fruit of our labor was a “hip” expression of a Sunday morning service. Our desire was the fruit of a life deeply impacted by a relationship with Jesus. I fondly remember some of the creative ways we expressed the theme for a particular week, yet I looked at the life impact it had on those who were a part of it and it began to be very frustrating. There was a ton of effort being expended for what seemed to be a small handful of fruit. As a steward of the gifts God has given me, including time, resources and people, I began to wrestle with the uncomfortable question of is the fruit we’re seeing a good use of the resources we’ve been given?
During this time of frustration I began to meet with two men on Saturday morning from 7-9 to have coffee and talk about Jesus in our lives. What I began to realize was this. The 2 hours I spent with these guys had a deeper impact on our walk with Jesus then the 15 -20 hours a week I spent trying to program a Sunday morning service. My epiphany came when I realized that I could “preach” the same sermon on a Saturday morning talking with these guys and then preach on a Sunday morning to 175 people and have more of an eternal Kingdom impact on Saturday morning. So I continued to question, if I spent the time I used to spend on planning a service in one on one communication with people, would we bear more fruit? The conclusion I’ve come to is a resounding yes. I believe Jesus has called me to spend more time in relationship then planning services. To “preach” in the context of relationship. To plan and program in the context of relationship. To do life in relationship furthering growth through relationship and not through planning a program. I’m convinced that my life is better spent in connection then in programming. If Eileen and I can spend one or two hours a week with three or four or five people, crawling into their lives and find out where Jesus is what kind of Kingdom impact would there be?
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