Conversations Motivated by Love

We share devotional content here across a wide spectrum of Christian thought. Today’s thoughts are from Chad Reisig, an Adventist pastor to a absolutely beautiful high school in Milo, Oregon with its own farm, pond and covered bridge.  Because his posts are shorter, we’re giving you a double-feature today, but both are centered on the word talk. Click the individual headers below to read the articles at source.

Idle Talk

And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak.

Matthew 12:36 (NLT)

As we discussed in our devotional a few days ago, the perception of the outside world when it comes to the majority of Christians is that they are all talk, but rarely do anything to benefit the community that surrounds them. To summarize that particular devotional, that’s bad.

However, there is a different type of idle talk. This idle talk happens in our churches, schools, workplaces and homes way too often as well. What is “idle talk?” Well, to put it simply, it is like a car at a stop sign. It may make noise, because the engine is running, but it doesn’t go anywhere or produce any forward momentum.

Here, Jesus is using the term idle talk as a synonym for two things: Saying we will do something, then not doing it; and complaining. It’s the latter one I want to address today.

Complainers make a lot of noise, but never seek to resolve the situation they are complaining about. They, therefore, remain at the stop sign. In our current day and age, we tend to call it “venting.” At the end of the tirade, we often say something like “Well, I feel better.” However, nothing is accomplished other than feelings are hurt, others are now upset, (usually at the target of the complaining) and the situation that caused the complaining is not resolved. It’s all idle talk.

So, what does Jesus say about such talk? “You must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak.” That one stings a bit!

So, what must we do to get back on track with how God asks us to communicate? As we’ve seen previously, everything we do must be motivated by love. Therefore, we need to be able to have conversations with people within our schools, churches, homes, and workplace because we love those God has placed in our lives. We need to speak to those that we feel the need to vent about rather than complaining to others about them or questioning their motives, intellect, or wisdom. We need to have hard conversations – not shouting matches, but real conversations that lead to understanding, even if there is still disagreement.

Stop Talking

Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.

Romans 12:9 (NLT)

I was at a conference not too long ago. It was a gathering of teachers and pastors. The topic: how to get the churches and the school united in our mission, the Great Commission. It was a good conference, with good materials, and good presentations. But one thing really stood out to me.

One of the conference leaders put an ad out on Craigslist asking for people from the greater Portland area to come and speak to the conference attendees, on behalf of their peer group, about their perceptions of Christians. There were three that responded in earnest. One was a secular Jew with a radio show in Portland. Another came representing the LGBTQ community. The third was a young woman who grew up in a religious home where she was beaten over the head (figuratively speaking) with the Bible on a regular basis.

What they shared really impacted the entirety of the conference goers. But, it shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise. They all stated generally the same thing: Christians are really good at talking about love, but horrible at actually demonstrating that love to their communities. Ouch!

I believe that Paul’s inspired verse for us today shows that the early church was wrestling with this same concept a couple of thousand years ago. We can’t just say we love others. We have to do it. There are enough fakers in the world. As Christians, it pains me to think that we’ve been lumped into that category.

So, what do we do? We follow what the Scriptures say. Get out and love people.

In a practical sense, it means leaving the safe confines of our church buildings and making friends with people where they are: in the alleyways, in our neighborhoods, in the part of town we never dare enter because things are “different” there. Get out and serve.

Contending for the Faith

by Russell Young

Believers are not called to a relaxed, passive life. They are called to fight, to contend for the faith. Jude wrote, “I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once entrusted to the saints.” (Jude 1:3 NIV) To contend literally means, ‘to compete for a prize, and figuratively means, ‘to contend against an adversary.’

Jude was encouraging believers to contend with “godless men, who change the grace of our God into license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.” (Jude 1:4 NIV) That is, he was encouraging them to fight against those who misrepresented God’s grace allowing believers to feel free to engage in immoral acts. Giving this freedom was the result of allowing them to deny, reject, or disavow the sovereignty and lordship of Christ. Christ never lived, tolerated, or taught the allowance of immorality but condemned it. There are many today who preach Christ as saviour and reject the need to honour his sovereignty and lordship in their lives. Jude presented his admonition to contend for the faith to those who are “kept by Jesus Christ”, to believers.

The church has not done well at contending for the faith since the grace of God has been promoted as being a gifting that pardons all godless behavior that arises from the believer’s “doing” or practices, which results in freedom from judgment even for defiance of the Lord’s (Holy Spirit’s) right to their lives. The widely-promoted definition of God’s “sovereign grace,” as meaning ‘pre-creation election,’ has eliminated the need to recognize the practical lordship or sovereignty of Christ in the “believer’s” daily life; thus, it maintains that he or she will not suffer harm for any immoral behavior or unrighteousness of heart. Such teaching automatically gives license for ungodliness. However, Paul taught that God’s righteous requirements were accomplished through obedience to the Holy Spirit. “[H]e condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.” (Rom 8:3─4 NIV)

The church has not contended for the faith, but has endorsed the freedom derived from definitions of “belief” and “grace” that have given “licence” for immorality. Such allowance has been given to build numbers in the kingdom of God and to dispense with the need for personal righteousness. Jesus said, “The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law.” (Lk 16:16 NIV) It must be appreciated that no one can “force” or crowd himself into the kingdom. Entry comes through Christ alone as revealed in the truths of his Word; no one can enter without having satisfied the “righteous requirements” of the Law…not one “stroke” can be left out.

Why has the church not contended for the faith? The message that God’s “sovereign grace” has met a person’s needs is both appealing to teach and to receive. It seems, as well, that as people flocked to press their way into the kingdom, or were attempting to be pressed in by evangelists, proclamations of such hope became popular and its presenters were to some extent idolized and copied. Their gospel, even though not that of Christ, has become accepted.

Why have the students of God’s Word not raised a hew and cry about neglect of the need for repentance and the development of righteousness and holiness? Those who love the Lord and his gospel need to listen to Jude and make their voices known. Long-accepted teaching that licences the “believer” to fearlessly neglect the Lord’s sovereignty in life and that gives licence to ungodliness needs to be re-examined and rejected.

Paul taught that in the last days people would have a “form of godliness but denying its power,” and cautioned them to have nothing to do with them. (2 Tim 3:5 NIV) The “power” is the Holy Spirit (Christ in you) and his power for achieving a sanctified life is often ignored and its necessity denied. Paul also cautioned Timothy, “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” (2 Tim 4:3 NIV) Has this time come? In these, Paul also proclaims the failure of the church to contend for the faith.

The LORD prophesied concerning the end times through Isaiah, “The earth mourns and dries up, and the crops waste away and wither. Even the greatest people on earth waste away. The earth suffers for the sins of its people, for they have twisted God’s instructions, violated his laws, and broken his everlasting covenant. Therefore, a curse consumes the earth. Its people must pay the price for their sin. They are destroyed by fire and only a few are left alive.” (Isa 24:4─6 NIV) God will bring his wrath on humankind in the last days, not because they have rejected his “grace,” but because the earth’s people will have rejected his government…his laws, statutes, and everlasting covenant. His prophesy should not be taken as referring to the non-confessing people but to all people. By the end a great deal of teaching from “learned” men and women will have set aside the need to satisfy God’s laws, statutes, and everlasting covenant. The licence of which Jude spoke will have been fully realized. If God’s requirements are not made know, those who are seeking him will miss the mark.

The Lord said, “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.” (Lk 13:24 NIV) Matthew records this admonition as follows: “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Mt 7:13─14 NIV) If an “effort” is required, its reality must be made known and not left hidden behind the curtain of God’s grace.

Believers must appreciate that their time on earth needs to be given to “contending for the faith” and the building of the kingdom of God. Judgment will befall those who neglect the service to which they have been called and for which they have been gifted. (1 Cor 3:14) That “contending” needs to be with those who have not heard the gospel, with those who have heard a misrepresented version of the gospel, and with those who are actively misrepresenting the gospel.

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Russell Young is the Sunday contributor to Christianity 201 and author of Eternal Salvation: “I’m Okay! You’re Okay!” Really? available in print and eBook through Westbow Publishing, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble; and in Canada through Chapters/Indigo.  9781512757514

To read all of Russell’s contributions here at C201, click this link.

Worshiping in Vain

We’ve linked to Wes McAdams’ blog Radically Christian before at Thinking Out Loud, but apparently not here. Time to fix that! Click the link in the title below to read this at source; there are some really good articles.

What is Vain Worship?

In Mark 7:7 Jesus quoted Isaiah, saying, “In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” But what did Jesus mean about worshiping in vain? I’ve heard many people explain that “vain worship” is worshiping God in unauthorized ways. One website claims it is “when we worship the way we want” instead of worshiping “the way God has told us in His word” (source). Unfortunately, I think that definition of “vain worship” ignores the context of Jesus’ words and gives the wrong impression about vain worship.

The Context – Jewish Traditions

Jesus was criticized by the Pharisees because His disciples ate food without first ceremonially washing their hands according to Jewish customs. In order to help his readers understand what was going on, Mark explained, “The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly, holding to the tradition of the elders” (Mark 7:3). And he even added, “And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches” (Mark 7:4).

The Pharisees thought their strict customs and traditions were necessary in order to keep people from accidentally breaking the Law of Moses by eating something “unclean.” However, Jesus’ disciples were not observing these customs; which is why the Pharisees were very critical of them and of Jesus.

It’s important to recognize that nothing in the context is about worshiping “the way we want” versus worshiping “the way God has told us in His word.” That is an important discussion to have, but it is NOT the discussion Jesus was having with these Jews.

The Meaning – Vain Worship

The word, “vain” means “useless” or “empty.” It means “hollow” or “unsuccessful.” When Jesus used Isaiah’s words to criticize the people of His day, He wasn’t criticizing the way they were praying or singing. He was criticizing their hearts and the way they were living.

He went on to criticize the way they kept the custom of “Corban,” but disobeyed God’s command to financially provide for their parents. He said, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition” (Mark 7:9).

Jesus was saying, “All your words about honoring God are worthless. You say you love Him, but you don’t. Your religious piety is just a show you’re putting on for people. Your customs and traditions are for your own benefit; not because you actually love God.”

The Application – Vain Worship in Modern Times

I would certainly agree that we should worship God the way He says for us to worship and we should not invent unauthorized ways of worshiping. In fact, I could not agree with that more. But if we think avoiding “vain worship” is done by simply worshiping according to the rules, then there is a very good chance that we ourselves are truly guilty of vain worship.

I can’t help but think of Christians and congregations in the 50s and 60s who discriminated against people of other skin colors. That was vain worship! They were honoring God with their lips, but their hearts were far from Him. They maintained their custom of discrimination, segregation, and racism, saying, “That’s just the way things are done around here,” while they rejected God’s commandment to love their neighbor as themselves. Critical of the church down the street for worshiping in an unauthorized way, but all the while being guilty of truly vain worship.

And we continue to do such things today. Our worship is vain anytime we honor God with our lips, but we are more concerned with keeping the religious customs and traditions of our time than we are the actual commandments of God.

It’s interesting how many religious customs and traditions we have:

• What time we meet for worship on Sunday.
• How many times we meet for worship on Sunday.
• Whether or not we have a Wednesday Bible study.
• How we dress when we come to worship.
• Whether or not we offer an invitation at the end of a sermon.

None of these traditions and customs are inherently wrong; just as the washing of hands in Jesus’ day was not inherently wrong. But they become wrong when God’s people are more concerned about keeping traditions and customs than we are things like:

• loving our neighbor
• loving our enemy
• not slandering anyone (including political leaders)
• not being greedy or covetous

These are things God actually addresses and commands, but often we are more concerned with keeping our customs and traditions than we are obeying the actual commands of God. This is when we are truly guilty of “vain worship.”

Examine yourself. Examine your heart. Examine your life. The question isn’t, “Do you worship according to the rules?” but rather, “Do your words and your life reflect true devotion to God?”

 

 

Dead Churches, Like Sardis

by Clarke Dixon

Dead and dying churches. They are everywhere in our nation along with opinions as to why and what to do. A lack of vision. Failure to keep up with the times in music. Too much politicking. Boring services and coma-inducing sermons. A changing culture that could care less. These are some of the reasons people give for the death of churches, with no shortage of advice on staying alive. Perhaps now is a good time to read this letter from Jesus to a dead church:

 “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars:
“I know your works; you have a name of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is on the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God. 3 Remember then what you received and heard; obey it, and repent. If you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you. 4 Yet you have still a few persons in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes; they will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. 5 If you conquer, you will be clothed like them in white robes, and I will not blot your name out of the book of life; I will confess your name before my Father and before his angels. 6 Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.  Revelation 3:1-6 (NRSV emphasis mine)

Is there anything here that can help our dying churches in Canada? Jesus gives them six imperatives:

Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is on the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God. Remember then what you received and heard; obey it, and repent. Revelation 3:2-3a (emphasis mine)

Let us take a look at each.

Wake up!

To wake up is to leave dreamland and dwell again in the real world. It is to give up appearances and get back to reality. The church at Sardis appeared to be alive, but needed to grasp the reality that in God’s eyes they were quite dead. Every church needs to pinch itself from time to time to ensure it is awake and has a good grasp on reality.

The original language behind “wake up” is more literally “become watching” (Young’s Literal Translation). We are reminded of Jesus’ teaching:

“Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. (Lk. 12:35-36 NRS)

Churches, more than any other group of people on earth, should live in such a manner that the return of Jesus tonight would cause rejoicing and not embarrassment or regret. Sadly, many churches in our nation do not even think Jesus is returning.

Strengthen what remains and is on the point of death!

What remains, yet could disappear? A community of people gathered around a cause. Let us consider another time Jesus spoke of the potential for death:

John 15:5-6 (NRSV) I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. 6 Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.

To strengthen what remains, the Christian community needs to gather, not just around a cause, but around a person, the Person, Jesus Christ.

Remember then what you received and heard!

What was received and heard, that is now forgotten? Consider the following example:

13 We also constantly give thanks to God for this, that when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word but as what it really is, God’s word, which is also at work in you believers. (1 Thess. 2:13 emphasis mine)

The Christians in Sardis are to remember the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus Christ. It is the message of reconciliation with God. It is the truth that such reconciliation is made possible by the grace of God through the work of Jesus Christ on the cross and the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Is it possible for a Christian community to forget the Gospel? Here are three ways the Gospel is forgotten among the churches of our nation.

1. The Good News is forgotten where the reality of the supernatural is denied.
2. The Good News is forgotten where confidence wanes in what the Bible teaches about Jesus.
3. The Good News is forgotten where sentimentality becomes an idol.

This last one perhaps needs more explanation. Suppose you had to make a choice between a) having your church just as it is, with the building and the weekly services, but no possibility of anyone coming to Jesus through its ministry, and, b) a person coming to Jesus through the ministry of your church, but you must lose your building and the way you do things. What would you choose? If you chose option a, sentimentality may have become an idol. It can and does happen that the message of the church is seen of less importance than the institution of the church. Such churches need to “remember then what you received and heard.”

Obey it!

The word “obey” has the connotation of the mere keeping of rules. However the word in Greek is much more nuanced than that. Some of the definitions include: “keep in view, watch over, guard, keep, preserve, maintain, protect, observe.” Here is encouragement to keep, guard, and maintain the Gospel teaching. This is more than just keeping the right doctrinal teaching, for the Good News of Jesus Christ is not just good news. It is life changing good News. When we grasp the Good News fully, we will find ourselves grasped fully. Yes, churches are for sinners like you and me, and should be places where we can be transparent about our struggles. Yet, the Church is the people who live by the Holy Spirit. The statistics should reflect that people are bearing the fruit of the Spirit. If things look no different between the church and society, then chances are good that the church is dead. There is a need to guard the Gospel, not just in the sense of being able to recite a catechism, but in being changed people, a people who reflect the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

Repent!

To “repent” means to have a “change of mind.” The church in Sardis is told to repent, to have a change of mind about what is important. In our day, there are many voices calling for churches to change. Change the music, change the morality, change the doctrines, change the traditions, change the preaching, change the preacher. Some churches try to change nothing. Many churches try to change everything. The change that really matters is the kind of change Jesus calls a dead church to make; a call to change the mind, to repent and focus on the life changing Good News of Jesus Christ. 

There may be many reasons that churches die. But there is one reason that is inexcusable, one that Jesus speaks to; forgetting the life-changing Good News of Jesus Christ. Neglecting the Gospel is a sure-fire way to kill a church. Does your church need to pinch itself?

(All Scripture references are from the NRSV unless otherwise noted)

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Clarke’s articles appear first on his blog, Sunday’s Shrunk Sermon

Straight from a Faithful Heart

A guest post by Lisa Elliott

In August, 2009 Lisa and her husband David lost their oldest son Benjamin after a heroic battle with cancer at age 19. This loss greatly impacted many others, including ourselves, and I wrote about it at that time. Shortly after, she wrote her story in The Ben Ripple which we reviewed here. We also featured Lisa’s writing in a Facebook excerpt from those days. Recently I stumbled across a more recent article and knew that I needed to help her share it with a larger audience.

I’ve made it a habit over the past number of years to visit a graveyard every Sunday before church. My purpose, you ask? To metaphorically, but in a very tangible way, and strategically before engaging in a worship service, put to death anything in my life that is dead or dying and especially those things preventing new life from taking root and producing fruit in my life in accordance with John 15. You see, I’ve experienced firsthand that the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; but Jesus came that we may have life, and have it to the full (John 10:10).

You can be sure that the Enemy of our souls wants us to do anything but produce lasting fruit or enable us to live an abundant life—least of all, in our relationship with the Lord; the Lover of our souls, the One who died to give us life and who, in fact, is our life (Deuteronomy 30:19-20).

I hope you would agree that God has called us to so much more, even in this life, than what we’re often willing to settle for! He’s called us to not merely survive, but rather to thrive; whether it is in our relationships, in our investments, in our ministry, in our vocations, in our churches, or in life as a whole! Unfortunately, the sad reality is that many don’t! Rather, they forfeit the abundant life that He offers for a mediocre, lukewarm survival.

So what does it mean to thrive vs. survive? Here are some principles I have learned to thrive on:

• Life is too short to pretend; to simply fake it until we make it. God calls us to be real, authentic, and transparent, especially in our relationship with Him (A good example is David in the Psalms).
• Life is too short to waste our time, energies, and resources on people who suck the life out of us rather than on those whom we can mutually invest in life-giving ways (Proverbs 13:20).
• Life is too short to use our time on activities that only serve the purpose of wasting our time. Time is precious to the Lord and we need to use it wisely (Ephesians 5:16).
• Life is too short to exist merely for the sake of a paycheck or a pension (Luke 18:18-23; Mark 8:36).
• Life is too short to let the fear of failure, the fear of man, or the fear of the future control us and deprive us of all that God has for us (Psalm 20:7; Matthew 6:25-34).
• Life is too short to indulge in shallow, idol, and meaningless conversation and miss out on meaningful conversation about life and death issues (2 Timothy 2:16).
• Life is too short to hold grudges against people who will hold us captive as long as we allow them to (Colossians 3:13).
• Life is too short to obsess over keeping physically healthy when we should be investing in our spiritual well-being (1Timothy 4:7-9).
• Life is too short to put off investing in and enjoying a personal and intimate relationship with the Lord until “there and then” when we could be investing and enjoying it in the “here and now”(James 4:13-15).
• Life is too short to tolerate gossip and slander when instead we should be encouraging one another, and all the more as the day of Christ draws near (Hebrews 10:24-25).
• Life is too short to wait for life to happen when we can choose to make life happen (Proverbs 4:6-10)!
• Life is too short to allow the boulders in our life to be obstacles rather than opportunities to climb to higher heights (Galatians 6:10).
• Life is too short to waste our time longing for the life that was seemingly so much better in Egypt instead of remembering the God who saved you from slavery and brought you through the wilderness (Deuteronomy 8).
• Life is too short to wander in the wilderness when God calls us to a land promised to us that is full of life and growth and fruit in abundance (Deuteronomy 8)!
• Life is too short to hold onto the past so dearly that you don’t have the capacity to grasp and embrace all that God is extending to us through the outstretched arms of Jesus (John 3:16).

The bottom line is that life is too short to settle for anything less than what God wants for His children. The question is what are you going to settle for?

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. (Ephesians 3:14-21).

So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom (Psalm 90:12).

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Casting Crowns has a new release that fits so well into what I’m trying to say. You might want to have a listen:

Lisa Elliott is an award-winning author of The Ben Ripple; Choosing to Live through Loss with Purpose and Dancing in the Rain; One Family’s Journey through Grief and Loss. She is a dynamic inspirational speaker; often described as “refreshingly real” as she passionately shares the life-changing truths and principles of God’s Word in her ministry, Straight from the Heart. 

Visit her website — there are more articles in the “Straight from a … Heart” series —  at www.lisaelliottstraightfromtheheart.webs.com

Like her on Facebook at Lisa Elliott – Inspirational Speaker and Award-Winning Author

Lisa’s books can be purchased directly from her, greatcanadianauthors.com, Amazon, Indigo/Chapters, and Christian bookstores across Canada and throughout the U.S. via Anchor Distributors.

Killing My Old Man

I remember years ago a musician borrowed a phrase from Paul’s writings about the “old man” and the “new man” and came up with the song title, “Killing My Old Man.” It raised some eyebrows!  I also remember years ago without warning saying to an acquaintance, “Everybody has a spiritual compromise, what’s yours?” (He understood that this was a rhetorical question and remained silent.) Today we pay a return visit to the blog of Mike Ratliff and a blog post that applies as much to me as I trust it does to you. To read this at source and then look around at other good articles at his website, click the title below.

Unrepentant sin leads to spiritual blindness

1 O Lord, the God of my salvation, I have cried out by day and in the night before You. 2 Let my prayer come before You; Incline Your ear to my cry! 3 For my soul has had enough troubles, And my life has drawn near to Sheol. 4 I am reckoned among those who go down to the pit; I have become like a man without strength, 5 Forsaken among the dead, Like the slain who lie in the grave, Whom You remember no more, And they are cut off from Your hand. 6 You have put me in the lowest pit, In dark places, in the depths. 7 Your wrath has rested upon me, And You have afflicted me with all Your waves. Selah. 8 You have removed my acquaintances far from me; You have made me an object of loathing to them; I am shut up and cannot go out. (Psalms 88:1-8 NASB)

Despite what many so-called Christian leaders are teaching in our day about the necessity of repentance in the life of the believer, the Word of God teaches us something entirely different. In it, we learn that the life, vigor, and comfort of our spiritual life depends much on our actively and deliberately mortifying the sin that clings so closely, which results in genuine repentance. This teaching has unfortunately been neglected much over the last several decades to the point that some scoff at its necessity in the Christian walk. However, if we go back and read the Puritans and others that came before we find that personal holiness has not always been neglected in the Church as it has been in our day.

If a professing Christian considers of little value spiritual strength, comfort, power, and peace in his or her walk with God then there is a problem. Why? The genuine believer, being a new creation with a new nature, deeply desires these things. He or she has a growing hatred of sin while their love of holiness is continually increasing. These are indicators of the working of God’s Spirit in the heart to sanctify the believer unto Christlikeness. These believers have an insatiable hunger and desire for a level of obedience to their Lord that is marked by spiritual strength, power, vigor, and life as they walk with God day by day. Along with this, he or she deeply desires peace, comfort, and consolation within that walk.

On the other hand, many professing believers see no value in any of those things. Their focus is elsewhere. Their desires are controlled by their lusts. Since their souls are not illuminated by God’s truth and grace, they become more and more darkened. Their ability to recognize what is true and what is false becomes distorted. It is these professing Christians who have constructed or participate in a form of religion they call Christian but its values and constructs are according to what seems right to man. Their sins are not mortified so their hearts are darkened. Eventually they will become spiritually blind.

However, many a good Christian, while deeply desiring to kill their sin and walk in holiness before their God, even as they are on a constant course of mortification all their days, never enjoy a good day of peace and consolation. We see this in the passage I placed at the top of this post. I can relate to Heman, who wrote this Psalm, because there are days that I feel much like this even as I prayerfully seek to kill the sins that are tempting me as my flesh demands to be fed. Heman’s life was one marked by a perpetual mortification and walking with God, however, terrors and wounds were his portion all his days. God singled out Heman for this walk. Why? He used Heman, his choice friend, to make him an example to those that are fighting the same battle who read Psalm 88 and find therein comfort and encouragement by God’s grace.

The blessings of the sin mortified walk help us in pursuit of affirmation, vigor, courage, and a spirit-filled life as the Holy Spirit bears witness with our spirits that we are the children of God. Why? Victory over these sins keeps them from depriving us of fellowship and intimacy with God. On the other hand, when sin is allowed to live uncontested in the believer it will certainly weaken the soul, depriving it of its vigor while it also darkens the soul depriving it of comfort and peace.

The sin-weakened soul of the believer is deprived of spiritual strength. When David had sinned by committing adultery with Bathsheba and murdered her husband he then attempted to cover it up. However, the affects of this unmortified sin on David’s soul were dramatic.

3 There is no soundness in my flesh because of Your indignation; There is no health in my bones because of my sin. 4 For my iniquities are gone over my head; As a heavy burden they weigh too much for me. 5 My wounds grow foul and fester Because of my folly. 6 I am bent over and greatly bowed down; I go mourning all day long. (Psalms 38:3-6 NASB)

Unmortified lust will drink up the spirit and all vigor of the soul, and weaken it for all duties. Why? It clouds and scrambles the heart itself, by entangling its affections. It diverts the heart from it proper focus, the glory of God, which is required for vigorous communion with Him. It lays hold on the affections, rendering its idol as its beloved and desirable, which expels the love of God (1 John 2:15; 3:17). What this does is place a veil of mist over the soul that removes certainty. The believer will walk from God to love his or her idol and in the process lose the desire to say uprightly and truly to God, “You are my portion.” He or she loses this because their idol is now the object of their love. This is not simply an act of disobedience isolated in itself. No, it also entangles fear, desire, and hope with this idol worship. These things should be full of God, but now the heart is darkened and entangled with a contender for the believer’s affections.

Not only does this idol worship drive a wedge between the believer and God in the heart, it also fills the believer’s thoughts and imaginations about it. Thoughts are the great purveyors of the soul, to bring in provision to satisfy its affections. When sin remains unmortified in the heart, these thoughts are bent on making provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts rather than on walking in repentance and communing with God. Believers captured by their flesh this way must continually lift up the objects of the flesh, and embrace them in order to receive satisfaction. To make this work, however, their imagination becomes defiled beyond all expression. Christians so captured by their flesh are also hindered in their Christian duty. Instead of worshipping and serving God, they are serving their idols in vain attempts to be fulfilled. These idols can be anything that the flesh sees as a potential object of self-gratification.

As sin weakens the soul, it also darkens it. This darkness is a cloud, a think cloud, which covers the soul, intercepting all the beams of God’s love and favor. The sense of fulfillment that comes from contemplating one’s adoption into the family of God is taken away. Any sense of guilt or thoughts of consolation and turning back to God are quickly scattered by sin.

The believer’s who are sick and wounded under the power of lust often do cry to God for help. Their darkened souls remember, in a sense, how far they have fallen. However, they are not delivered until they come to acknowledge their offense. Any self-help cures to deal with a sin-sick heart will never work. Healing and repentance, which mortifies sin, begins with confession. This is the only means of the removal of the sin that has allowed the flesh to capture the soul.

Mortification prunes all the graces of God, and this makes room for them in our hearts so they may grow. The life and vigor of our spiritual lives consist in the vigor and flourishing of God’s grace in our hearts. This is the duty of the Christian in the maintenance of the heart. Deliberate and active mortification of sin is necessary in order for the graces of the Spirit to grow in the heart. The believer who neglects this has a heart choked by weeds because sin is allowed to run free and his or her flesh rules their lives. He or she has a darkened soul. Even though they may indeed search for faith, love, and zeal, they will probably not be able to find any. By God’s grace, they may discover the weak and neglected remnants of them, but their hearts are so clogged with lusts, that they are of very little use to them. But now let the heart be cleansed by mortification of the weeds of lust being constantly and daily being rooted up! Let room be made for grace to thrive and flourish. Then will God’s grace act its part, and be ready for every use and purpose.

The Christian who works to continually deny self and crucify the flesh is actively and deliberately mortifying their sin. This is the soul’s vigorous opposition to self. In this is Christian authenticity most evident.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Truth, By Definition, Is Exclusive

^{John 14:6} Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.  (NIV)

^{Acts 4:12} There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved.”  (NRSV)

Today’s article is by renown Christian apologist Ravi Zacharias and appeared on two occasions at the rzim.org website under the title Point of Exclusion.

With the numerous religions in the world, how can Christians claim exclusivity? I am often asked this question in different settings. But I’ve always been fascinated by the fact that the Christian faith is the only one that seems to have this question posed. The truth is that every major religion in the world claims exclusivity, and every major religion in the world has a point of exclusion.

Hinduism, for example, is often represented as being the most tolerant and accepting of other faiths. That is just not true. All Hindus believe in two fundamental, uncompromising doctrines—the Law of Karma, and the belief in reincarnation. These will not be surrendered. In fact, Buddhism was born out of the rejection of two other very dogmatic claims of Hinduism. Buddha rejected the authority of the vedas and the caste system of Hinduism. The issue here is not who was right or wrong. The truth is that they were systemically different—both claiming rightness.

Islam, as you know, is very clearly an exclusive claim to God. A Muslim will never tell you that it doesn’t matter what you believe or that all religions are true.

But before we get upset with such claims, let us remember that it is the very nature of truth that presents us with this reality. Truth by definition is exclusive. Everything cannot be true. If everything is true, then nothing is false. And if nothing is false then it would also be true to say everything is false. We cannot have it both ways. One should not be surprised at the claims of exclusivity. The reality is that even those who deny truth’s exclusivity, in effect, exclude those who do not deny it. The truth quickly emerges. The law of non-contradiction does apply to reality: Two contradictory statements cannot both be true in the same sense. Thus, to deny the law of non-contradiction is to affirm it at the same time. You may as well talk about a one-ended stick as talk about truth being all-inclusive.

So where does that leave us? We must not be surprised at truth claims but we must test them before we believe them. If the test demonstrates truth then we are morally compelled to believe it. And this is precisely the point from which many are trying to run. As G.K. Chesterton said, the problem with Christianity is not that it has been tried and found wanting, but that it has been found difficult and left untried.

Christ is either the immeasurable God or one dreadfully lost. Apply the tests of truth to the person and the message of Jesus Christ. You see not only his exclusivity, but also his uniqueness.

 

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Go Deeper: Another author goes into greater detail with today’s verses in this article.

Statements Jesus Didn’t Make

This appeared a few months ago at the blog of Dean Lusk, under the interesting title, Abstinence of Evidence. He actually wrote it much earlier, but considered it worthy of reposting, as do we!

“Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.” (Jesus in Matthew 7:20, NLT)
 “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” (Jesus in John 13:34-35, NLT, emphasis obviously mine blockquote>

Believe it or not, unassailable doctrine, large churches, observance of strict moral codes, etc., are not the best indicators that we’re followers of Jesus, although they may sometimes come along for the ride. But it doesn’t get much simpler than this: our love for one another will prove to the world that we are Jesus’ disciples.

Is it possible that followers of Christ tend to live under the impression — and teach and imply — that our abstinence from such-and-such “evil” will prove to the world that we’re indeed Jesus’ disciples? Certainly there are codes of conduct that are taught to the believer in Scripture, and often those things begin with “do not.” I’m not saying or implying otherwise

The problem, though, may be that we’re so concerned with the “do not” parts that we tend to forget the “do” parts. Consider the fact that Jesus did not make any of these statements:

• “If you do not associate with sinners, you will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
• “If you do not use foul speech, this will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
• “Your abstinence from alcohol will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
• “If you do not support businesses that act in a way that is contrary to Scriptural principles, the world will know that you are my disciples.”
• “If you do not gossip, it will be obvious to the world that you are my disciples.”

Some of those things are fine (unless they’re accompanied by legalism, at which point they’re tainted), but according to Jesus, none are the most solid evidence that we are His disciples. In fact, our reliance on “do not” rules can have a tremendous negative effect. (Dave Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons’ eye-opening 2007 book, unChristian, is a great place to start in learning about this, and I highly recommend it

One of my favorite quotes about the Church is one made by a man known as Julian the Apostate, emperor of Rome from 361-363. He wrote in a letter to Arsacius, the high priest in Galatia, “These impious Galileans [Christians] not only feed their own poor, but ours also; welcoming them into their agapae, they attract them, as children are attracted, with cakes.” It wasn’t that this early group of believers stood up for their religious rights, abstained from certain foods and drinks, or didn’t associate with pagans. It was direct outward evidence of their love for other people (which blossomed out of their love for Jesus) that was evidence that they were followers of The Way

For the sake of Jesus Christ, let us become a generation of believers that is known for what it does rather than what it does not do.

 

 

I Don’t Want To Spend My Whole Life Asking, “What If I Had Given Everything?”

First, here’s a piece I wrote in October, 2009 at Thinking out Loud:

“I don’t want to spend my whole life asking, ‘What if I had given everything?'”

I’ve been aware of this song for some time now, but it really hit home a few weeks ago when I attended the installation service for a local pastor and he asked his worship team to perform “The Motions” by Matthew West from the album Something To Say; also on the album WoW! Hits 2010. In an industry where songs come and go, it’s a song that’s gaining momentum week by week.

“I don’t want to spend my whole life asking, ‘What if I had given everything?'”

The song has haunted me since that morning. If that pastor means what that song says — he wants God’s all-consuming passion inside him — there is nothing that he and his church can’t accomplish in the years to come.

“I don’t want to spend my whole life asking, ‘What if I had given everything?'”

What’s true for that pastor is true for all of us. What might we feel at the end of the ride called life if and when we realize there’s so much more we could have done? So much time that could have been better spent? So many resources that could have been put to better use?

“I don’t want to spend my whole life asking, ‘What if I had given everything?'”

Matthew West invited fans to comment on his website as to how the song has impacted them. So far, over 2,870 comments! On the HearItFirst.com website, you can select a video where Matthew tells the story of 18-year old Ryan from Oklahoma, a young man who posted the lyrics on his Facebook page and asked his friends to hold him accountable to that song; just before he was killed — the same day — in a car accident. The song became the central theme for his funeral.

“I don’t want to spend my whole life asking, ‘What if I had given everything?'”

Here are the lyrics:

This might hurt, it’s not safe
But I know that I’ve gotta make a change
I don’t care if I break,
At least I’ll be feeling something
‘Cause just okay is not enough
Help me fight through the nothingness of life

I don’t wanna go through the motions
I don’t wanna go one more day
without Your all consuming passion inside of me
I don’t wanna spend my whole life asking,
“What if I had given everything,
instead of going through the motions?”

No regrets, not this time
I’m gonna let my heart defeat my mind
Let Your love make me whole
I think I’m finally feeling something
‘Cause just okay is not enough
Help me fight through the nothingness of this life

‘Cause I don’t wanna go through the motions
I don’t wanna go one more day
without Your all consuming passion inside of me
I don’t wanna spend my whole life asking,
“What if I had given everything,
instead of going through the motions?”

Take me all the way (take me all the way)
Take me all the way (’cause I don’t wanna go through the motions)
Take me all the way (I know I’m finally feeling something real)
Take me all the way

Here’s the song on YouTube including clips from Matthew’s (ouch!) vocal surgery:

The Motions (Matthew West) video

Why did I write this post today? Because…

“I don’t want to spend my whole life asking, ‘What if I had given everything?'”

Here are two versions of the song, both of which document a fairly rough period in Matthew West’s Life…

“I don’t want to spend my whole life asking, ‘What if I had given everything?'”