The Courageous Christian #2

It is easy to live a life of fear. All around us there are reasons to be fearful. We can live in fear because of the economy or climate change. We can be afraid because of changing morals or which political party controls the government. We can live with the fear that our children will be influenced by the wrong people or that we will be hit by a bus when we step out on the street. If we allowed it to fear could paralyze our lives.

God does not want His people to be held back by fear. He wants us to live life, to engage the culture, and to stand up and fight for His Kingdom. In other words, God wants us to be different.

Remember what the apostle Paul wrote to his disciple Timothy in 2 Timothy 1:7? The Apostle wrote; “...for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline” (NRSV). God has given us the Holy Spirit so we wouldn’t be cowards, but would be heroes that make a difference for Him. We have courage when we trust God. Every Christian who has ever faced an unappealing task, has found their courage in God to do it.

That reality was true with the Apostles as well. I want us to focus on Acts 4:5-22 today. To give you background on what has happened. Peter and John went to the Temple to worship and preach. On their way into the temple they came across a man who had been lame for 40 years. He asked them for money, and Peter and John healed him. As the man ran and jumped, praising God, Peter and John spoke to the people. As they were speaking the Temple guards came to arrest them, for what they were saying was disturbing the religious leaders. Now it is the next day, and Peter and John have their day in court.

On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, By what power or by what name did you do this? Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus. But seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition. But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another, saying, What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name. So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered them, Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard. And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people, for all were praising God for what had happened. For the man on whom this sign of healing was performed was more than forty years old. (Acts 4:5-22; ESV)

In the next two installments we will look at two ingredients for Christian courage that we find in this passage, but right now I want us to understand a very important truth. We will be opposed, even when we do good things, when we go in the name of Jesus. I want us to remember this because it will be disheartening and we will want to give up, but we have to continue. Jesus never said it will be easy, and it is my belief that is through these tough circumstances, when we want to give up, that our faith is grown the most. That is why courage is so vital to our lives as followers of Christ.

Sunday Quote: At the End of the Day

"Paradoxically, then, even though the problem of evil is the greatest objection to the existence of God, at the end of the day God is the only solution to the problem of evil. If God does not exist, then we are lost without hope in a life filled with gratuitous and unredeemed suffering. God is the final answer to the problem of evil, for He redeems us from evil and takes us into the everlasting joy of an incommensurable good: fellowship with Him." ~ William Lane Craig; Hard Question, Real Answers; p. 112

Stupid or Sinful?

There is an idea floating out there, especially among humanists and atheists, that the big problem in our world is a lack of education. In other words, if people just had more knowledge we would be able to rid the world of things like sexism, racism, hunger, and poverty. The problem is we have no evidence that is true, in fact, experience tells us the opposite.

I have been reading Timothy Keller’s book, The Reason for God, and chapter 10 is entitled The Problem of Sin. Keller begins the chapter with two quotes from H. G. Wells. In 1937 Wells wrote the book, A Short History of the World. Keller shares this quote from the book:

“Can we doubt that presently our race will more than realize our boldest imaginations, that it will achieve unity and peace, and that our children will live in a world made more splendid and lovely than any palace or garden that we know, going on from strength to strength in an ever-widening circle of achievement? What man has done, the little triumphs of his present state...form but the prelude to things that man has yet to do.”

After World War II (1946) Wells published another book entitled, A Mind at the End of Its Tether. This is the quote Keller took from that book:

“The cold-blooded massacres of the defenseless, the return of the deliberate and organized torture, mental torment, and fear to a world from which such things had seemed well nigh banished—has come near to breaking my spirit altogether…’Homo Sapiens,’ as he has been pleased to call himself, is played out.”

There was such hope for humankind, but the atrocities of war were a vivid reminder how evil people really are. The lack of knowledge and education is not our problem. We are a society that has been schooled and we have more knowledge than people who came before us (that doesn’t mean that we have more wisdom). Yet, we still do incredibly stupid things.

Just this week we have read about a governor who got caught having an affair because of a unannounced trip to South America. When I read that story I thought, “How stupid can you be?” Or we read about celebrities who know the consequences of drug addiction, and yet they are caught in an endless cycle of rehab and abuse. Or there is the couple who is in debt tens of thousands of dollars, and yet they still live a lifestyle way beyond their means by using credit cards. It isn’t a lack of knowledge that causes people to do seemingly stupid things.

I know that my day goes better if I take time to pray in the morning, but I don’t always do it. Why? Because my body tells me that I can take five more minutes to snooze, which turn into 10 minutes, and then 30 minutes, and in then end I am rushing around trying to get to the office on time. It isn’t a lack of knowledge that keeps me from praying in the morning.

The problem is that we are controlled by the flesh, the part of us which puts us as ultimate. That is what sin is. Sin, at its core, is putting things in the place of God, even ourselves. As long as we are controlled by the flesh we are going to experience stupid and evil behavior from ourselves and those around us. The problem with humanity isn’t a lack of education, it is sin.

The presence of sin in the world is one clue that leads me to believe in God.

The Courageous Christian #1

Fear is a part of our lives. Each one of us is afraid of something, and many of us are afraid of multiple things. This fear often prevents us from living the life God created us to live. The tasks God designed us to do are the very things that Satan uses to fill our hearts with fear. We must be courageous if we are going to be the people, and thus the church God wants us to be.

I have no idea what fear lurks in your heart, preventing you from really living life. What I do know is that fear holds you back from living the life God wants for you. At least that is true for me. Here is the question I think we need to consider: What fear does Satan use to keep you from living the life God planned for you to live?

This fable by Aesop illustrates how many of us respond to fear:

An old cat was in the habit of catching all the mice in the barn.
One day the mice met to talk about the great harm that she was doing them. Each one told of some plan by which to keep out of her way.
“Do as I say,” said an old gray mouse that was thought to be very wise. “Do as I say. Hang a bell to the cat’s neck. Then, when we hear it ring, we shall know that she is coming, and can scamper out of her way.”
“Good! Good!” said all the other mice, and one ran to get the bell.
“Now which of you will hang this bell on the cat’s neck?” said the old gray mouse.
“Not I! Not I!” said all the mice together. And they scampered way to their holes. (The Brave Mice; p. 457; The Book Of Virtues)

Many of us want to be part of something bigger than ourselves and to do something that has lasting value, but when it comes time for the rubber to meet the road we run away and hide. We don’t want any part of it. Yeah, we may talk a good game, but in reality we know we are going to chicken out in the end.

That is why people who have demonstrated courage amaze me. You can see that courage in many of the men who fought during World War II. My grandpa, my mom’s dad, flew B-17s in the war, even being shot down on at least one occasion. When I was preaching in Russellville, Arkansas one of the guys at the church had a heart attack. When I was visiting him doing his recovery he told me a couple of stories about fighting in the Pacific during WWII. I am amazed at their courage, and I am left to wonder if I could do that.

In the March 2003 issue of World War II magazine there is an article about an infantryman and his experience during the Battle of the Bulge. This is what the author, Wyatt E. Barnes, wrote about the assignment he was training to do in the days leading up to the battle.

“I was to be a pole charge man; I would have to run up to a bunker with a long pole capped with a block of TNT. If I survived to reach it, I was to thrust the pole into the bunker’s firing embrasure and detonate the TNT. Others in the unit had equally unappealing assignments. But like infantrymen everywhere, we did not think much about it. We could not change anything. We would have to deal, somehow, with whatever was to come.”

I think we can see an element of courage in what Mr. Barnes wrote. That element is the realization that the task is dangerous, or unappealing as Mr. Barnes put it, but being committed to deal with whatever is to come. Courage is not the absence of fear. If there was no fear then it wouldn’t take courage. Fear is there to remind us something is dangerous, that the task is not safe. Courage, therefore, is the determination to do what needs to be done in spite of fear. For the follower of Christ we know hat determination comes from being committed to God. Total trust in God gives us the courage to deal with whatever obstacles that may pop up in our path.

Courage is not just for soldiers, law enforcement officers, and fire fighters. Christians need courage. We need to recognize that courage is a vital part of our lives. Bill Hybles wrote; “Living as a fully devoted follower of Christ takes courage on a daily basis for the rest of our lives!” We need courage because we are in a war. There is a spiritual war raging all around us and we are, as C. S. Lewis reminds us, living in “Enemy-occupied territory -- that is what the world is.” We need courage, because Satan is at war with God, and he is doing whatever he can to thwart God’s will. As God’s children we are prime targets for the evil one.

Not only are we prime targets of the evil one, but we are also called to fight in this spiritual battle. The apostle Paul tells us:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm (Ephesians 6:10-13; ESV).

Courage is an essential part of the Christian’s life. While there are many things that bring fear into our lives it is possible to live with courage. We can be courageous Christians!

The Good Side of Pain #5

Pain isn’t always a bad thing. Pain is positive when it tells us to stop doing what we are doing, like sticking our hand in the fire. Pain is positive when God uses it to shape us into the people He wants us to be. Pain is positive when it teaches us to trust on God. Pain is also positive when it get us to take the focus off ourselves and minister to people who are suffering as well.

As much as we would like to have a purpose for our pain, the reality is that much of the time our pain and suffering will be a mystery. If we are fortunate we will be able to look back on our lives and notice that our suffering helped mature us in our faith, but we have to be ready in case we never get an answer to “WHY?”.

It is when we are left with more questions than answers that we must turn our attention to Jesus and the cross, for at the cross we realize that God also experiences pain and suffering. As we focus on the cross it should also remind us of two great truths that should help us when we experience the pain and hurt of life.

The apostle Paul in Romans 8:31-39 wrote:

What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.

Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NLT)

1. The Cross of Jesus reminds us the God didn’t spare His Son. (Romans 8:31, 32)

Sometimes we forget that Jesus’ life was not a walk in the park. It was anything but easy. Jesus experienced the death of his father Joseph, the rejection of brothers and sisters, the death of his friend and cousin John the Baptizer, the struggle of temptation, the rejection of his closest friends, and he experienced pain that few have known when he was beaten and whipped and finally nailed to the cross.

This is Jesus, the Son of God, and the Almighty did not shield Jesus from any of it. When bad things happen in our lives, when life doesn’t turn out the way it should, it is not because God who has failed us, but because our understanding of God has. The Cross reminds us that Jesus experienced pain just like we have pain.

2. The Cross of Jesus reminds us of the extent of God’s love. (Romans 8:39)

Only those who are parents can even come close to understanding the love God has for us. God allowed His Son, a part of Himself, to suffer and die for rebels. It is not like we were doing God any favors, we were in rebellion against His authority, and He still sent Jesus.

We are God’s creation, uniquely created to have a relationship with Him. He loves us so much that He sent Jesus to die for us, in order that the problem of our sin may be dealt with. The cross is a great symbol of God’s love for mankind. When we start to feel like God doesn’t care, all we have to do remember the horror of the cross so that we can be reminded that He does.

Pain can be a valuable part of our lives. God uses pain to create us to be the people He wants us to be and to give us a desire for Him. But the reality of it is that if we want to understand why there is pain or why suffering is part of our lives, we will never find a satisfactory answer. God’s ways are different from our ways and we will never understand everything that He does. When we look at the cross we should remember that God also suffers pain. The cross reminds us of the fact that Jesus experienced pain, suffering and death. The cross also reminds us how far God is willing to go in order to have a relationship with us. The cross of Jesus is evidence that God lives and that He cares for you. When you start doubting God’s love or His existence, look to the Cross and be reminded about the truth of who God is.

With God's Help

One of the battles I constantly fight is the battle of feeling inadequate. There are really only a few things I feel comfortable doing, and outside of those few things I feel very unprepared and ill equipped to do anything else. I wish I could spend my life writing, preaching, and teaching so I didn’t have to worry about anything else. But life isn’t like that. We have to do things we don’t feel equipped to do.

I need to keep in mind what John Ortberg wrote in If You Want to Walk on Water, You’ve Go to Get Out of the Boat:

“Sometimes, when your worst fears of inadequacy are confirmed and you discover that you really are out of your league, you experience the liberation of realizing that it is okay to be inadequate and that God wants his power to flow through your weakness.” (p. 139)

Ortberg reminds us that for God to use us it is more important that we have faith than talent. When we are at our weakest God’s glory can shine all the more brightly. It would also follow that if GOd has called us to do something, then He will provide what we need to accomplish the task. Peter in 2 Peter 1:3 tells us that God gives us all that we need for life and godliness. Consider God’s call of Moses. Moses did not feel adequate or equipped to face Pharaoh, but God made it clear that He would be with Moses. Yet, Moses still complained, and God further equipped Moses by send Aaron along as spokesman. God worked both Moses and Aaron to accomplish His task.

If doing God's will just fit into our strengths, then there would be no reason for God to get any credit. Being the selfish beings that we typically are we would give ourselves the credit for our success. To the observations of other people could come to the conclusion that we are talented people, rather than recognizing God at work in the world. God wants to work through our weaknesses so people see His power at work.

When we walk by faith in times of inadequacy we will also learn to trust God more and more. As we experience God working through our lives it will be easier for us to obey Him in other areas of our lives, especially when obedience doesn’t make sense from our perspective. One way to deepen our faith is to do what God has asked us to do, even when we are ill equipped to do it. If we never take a risk and do something we are not equipped to handle, we will never understand the impact God can make through our lives.

The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy; For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:7; NLT). God wants us to step out in courage and in trust to do the things He has asked us to do. When we shrink back from doing God's will because we feel inadequate we are in fact saying; “I don't trust God”. When we step out and embrace the adventure beyond our control we are saying declaring to the world; “Yes, I trust in God!”.

Sunday Quote: Father and Priest

"How privileged and exalted a thing it is to be a father—it images God himself. If children do not have a good image of their earthly father to start from, it will be much harder for them to come to know God as a loving heavenly Father. Saint Augustine had a very bad relationship with his father, and he could not bring himself to address God as Father for a long time. Every father is a priest, like it or not, a good one or a bad one, mediating an image of God to his children." ~ Peter Kreeft, Fundamentals of the Faith: Essays in Christian Apologetics, p. 125

Don't Be a Fool

I was reading through some of my old writings and I came across the following excerpt from What the Bible Says About Goodness by Georgann Bennett. This is what she writes:

For the inspired writers of the Bible, a belief, a reasoned faith in Jehovah, was (and is) demonstrated in the goodness of one’s deeds--the righteousness of one’s life style. Many of us who would bristle up and fight were we to be accused of atheism make such blatant denials of God in the way we do business, the way we treat our children, the way we fulfill our lusts that we have become the Biblical fool (p. 99).

This is one of the the central truths that I want to communicate to people in my life. It is so crucial for people to realize that how they live conveys a message to those around them about what they truly believe. It reminds me of what Henry Blackaby in Experiencing God wrote; “How you live your life is a testimony of what you believe about God” (p. 109, the workbook). Our behavior is an indication of what we truly believe in our heart of hearts.

Stop and think about what your life is telling others about God? If you say: “Yes, I believe in God” and then go out and do things contrary to His will what are people to assume about us? Yes, there will be times when we fall to temptation and sin, but isolated incidents are totally different from a lifestyle sin. In other words it isn’t about the detours of our lives as much as it is about the direction of our lives.

The inspired writers of the Bible expect Christians to live a life of faith which points the world to God. For example, consider what the apostle Peter wrote:

Be careful how you live among your unbelieving neighbors. Even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will believe and give honor to God when he comes to judge the world (1 Peter 2:12; NLT).

Peter believes that we can live in a way that brings honor and glory to God. In other words we are more that dirty rotten sinners saved by grace, we are royal priests and part of a holy nation (1 Peter 2:9). When we surrender to Christ Jesus He transforms us and gives us a new heart. 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us that we are new creations because of the transforming power of God. The way we live is the greatest testimony we can offer for God’s existence and love.

The way we live our lives comes down to the choices that we make. “Be careful how your live…” Peter tells us. In other words think about how we will respond to people, to circumstances, and to God’s leading. Think about how you will treat your boss, your husband, your children, or your waitress. We are to be intentional in the way we live, and God’s Truth and Wisdom are to influence the choices that we make.

We are fools when we claim to love God and follow Jesus but live like the rest of the world. It means that we haven’t truly listened to God. We have heard His Word, but we haven’t applied His Truth to our lives. It is foolish to ignore the instructions from the Life Maker as we try to live life. It is foolish to possess the Truth, but not to follow the Truth. We are fools if we all we do is claim Jesus and not follow Him.

The difference between wisdom and foolishness in the eyes of God is a small one. The difference lies in one word: application. If we want to be wise we need to apply God’s Word to our lives. This requires two actions on our part. First, it requires that we commit to regular and practical Bible teaching. We cannot apply what we do not know. Second, it requires that we obey God, even when we don’t fully understand His plan. The future is unknown to us, so we don’t know the consequences to our actions, and there will be times when God calls us to do something that seems foolish and will lead us into great hardship, but we obey God and trust Him with the future. The wisest thing to do is to trust our future to the God who has determined the course of the future.

If we are not intentional in the way we live we will end up being fools. We will be fools because rather than trusting God we allow our lives to be determined by the emotions of the moment. The intentional person is able to rise above the swirling emotions of the moment and make choices that are in alignment with what they truly believe. That person is on their way to being counted as wise.

Getting to Know God

Take a moment and ponder what Ravi Zacharias wrote in his book Cries of the Heart:

“We all know that our faith results in works, but we often forget that the reverse is also true. One of the fundamental differences between the Greek way of thinking and the Hebrew way of thinking was that for the Greeks truth came by reason, and for the Hebrews truth came by obedience.

“We see this several times in the Scriptures. Moses, Ezekiel, Hosea, and Jonah did not feel like doing what God has asked them to do. In fact, every heartbeat within them was impelling them to do otherwise. Yet God said they were to obey. The remedy was not to do God's will because they felt like doing it, but just to do it and their faith would be strengthened.”

In our search of truth we must not only rely on knowledge, evidence, and the material world we observe around us, but also our experience. There is no doubt that faith begins as we understand the evidence for God as we begin to understand His revelation (not only in nature, but also in His Word), but faith is strengthened as we live our lives in obedience to His will. Knowledge is the beginning point of faith, but it is experience that makes it real in our lives.

James wrote; But you are not a judge who can decide whether the law is right or wrong. Your job is to obey it (James 4:11; NLT). We are not to debate with God about what He has commanded us to do; we are to simply obey. I know that might sound like intellectual laziness because I am saying that we are to do whatever God tells us to do with no questions. Just do it as the old Nike commercial said.

I don’t think that is the case. Henry Blackaby in Created to be God’ Friend wrote; “A response of faith is based on fact--that is, what we know, no on what we do not know. Faith is never blind! Faith is based on the God we know!” We obey because we know God and we trust His character. If He asks us to do something we do it, because we know that He wants the best for us. Our knowledge allows us to come to an understand of who God is, and that helps us to respond to His will in obedience.

How do we discover what is God’s character? Hebrews 1:3 reads; The Son reflects God’s own glory, and everything about him represents God exactly (NLT). Looking at Jesus allows us to understand the character of God. The life and teachings of Jesus allows us to understand the character of God. If we want to know God we first have to get to know Jesus.

The only way I know of getting to know Jesus is through the study of the Bible, especially a study of the Gospels. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, All scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right. It is God’s way of preparing us in every way, fully equipped for every good thing God wants us to do (NLT). The Bible claims to be God’s Word, something we can trust. Historically, scientifically, and philosophically the Bible is a book that can be trusted. It is accurate and trustworthy. When we read what it says about Jesus or about God we can be confident what it says can be trusted.

As we learn understand the character of God through the teachings and life of Christ Jesus we are able to know how God wants us to live. Sometimes we will feel ill-equipped to live that type of life. Other times we will have fear which will keep us prevent us from obeying. Faith then isn’t just a knowledge about God, but it is a response to God. It is trusting God even when every instinct we have tells us to give up or hide. It is this response which strengthens our relationship with God.

Responding to God in obedience helps us to discover truth because it takes our faith out of the realm of theory and puts it into reality. Obeying God leads us to experience Him in a whole new way.

Henry Blackaby in Experiencing God wrote; “In Scripture when God did something through an obedient person or people, they came to know Him in new and more intimate ways.” That is the point I want you to understand. It is not primarily though study that we come to know God (that is where it starts and we need to evaluate our experience by the truth found in the Scriptures), but ultimately we come to know God as we obey Him. Truth is made real to us through our obedience to our Creator.

The Good Side of Pain #4

We will not always have the answers to the pain that we suffer or the struggles that we are forced to go through. In fact, when we are in the midst of hardship there are no answers that can comfort us or make diminish the pain that we feel. It is in the middle of suffering that we need to have faith. So how can we have faith in the midst of pain? We look to the Cross of Christ.

The Cross needs to be at the very center of our discussion of pain and suffering. The Cross is the greatest symbol of pain that we can have. It is because of the cross that we can know that even in the midst of the greatest tragedy of our lives, God is still there, loving and caring for us. The Cross symbolizes that even God experiences pain.

I am not talking about the pain Jesus suffered when he was crucified. Don’t get me wrong, that was real and immense pain that Christ experienced for us. No, the pain I am talking about is the pain the whole Trinity experienced because of the Cross, the pain God knowingly experienced in order to have a relationship with us.

When God decided to create people with free will He set Himself up for pain. God wanted creatures that would love Him. Love cannot be created, love has to be chosen, and so God created people with the ability to choose love. That also means that God created people who could choose to reject Him and to love themselves or something else. For God to be loved He had to take the chance of being hurt.

The cross symbolizes God’s effort to extend His love to people. The cross should remind us the cost God paid to create people who have the ability to choose accept His love or rejection Him. The cross also symbolizes the hurt God experienced when fellowship amongst Himself was interrupted. The Father, Son, and Spirit had always experienced fellowship. When Jesus died, taking on our sins that fellowship was interrupted, because of the sin Jesus bore He couldn’t have fellowship with God.

Consider Matthew’s account of Jesus’ death:

At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli,* lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”*

Some of the bystanders misunderstood and thought he was calling for the prophet Elijah. One of them ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, holding it up to him on a reed stick so he could drink. But the rest said, “Wait! Let’s see whether Elijah comes to save him.”*

Then Jesus shouted out again, and he released his spirit. At that moment the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, rocks split apart, and tombs opened. The bodies of many godly men and women who had died were raised from the dead. They left the cemetery after Jesus’ resurrection, went into the holy city of Jerusalem, and appeared to many people.

The Roman officer* and the other soldiers at the crucifixion were terrified by the earthquake and all that had happened. They said, “This man truly was the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:45-54; NLT).

I believe this provides evidence that God was hurt when Jesus died. The death of Jesus was much more than Jesus dying physically. As the praise song Here I Am To Worship says; “I'll never know how much it cost to see my sin upon that cross.”

God has not insulated Himself from pain and suffering. He created us with the full knowledge of what it would cost Him, and He still chose to give us life. What this means is that God decided that pain was an acceptable cost for the relationship He wants us to experience with Him.

Sunday Quote: Surrendered Freedom

"How often have we surrendered our freedoms under the weight of our fears? This is one of the main reasons we abdicate living for existing. As mundane and routine as it is, existing does provide for us a level of certainty, predictability, and safety. Freedom is wild and wide-open. It is filled with uncharted territory and unmapped terrain." ~ Erwin McManus; Uprising

Saturday Links: Colson, Moreland, Wells

Here are the links for this week. I hope you like them.

Protecting Our Little Platoons ~ Charles Colson
The Historicity of the New Testament ~ J. P. Moreland
Moving the Goalpost ~ Jonathan Wells

A Place in God's Family

At one time or another most of us felt out of place inside the Church. We feel out of place because we don’t think we have anything to offer when it comes to the great task Christ gave the Church, the task of making disciples. The talents we have seem insignificant, and the fear that rises in our hearts keep us paralyzed. Another reason we feel out of place in the Church is because we see ourselves as hypocrites. The sin which still seems to control our lives makes us feel like posers. The guilt we feel makes us question if we are even saved and we wonder why we can’t haven’t more together like all the other people at Church. If we depend just on our mood there will be times when we feel out of place in God’s Family.

Why do we feel that way? I want to explore two reasons. The first reasons why we feel out of place in the Church is because we have allowed Satan to lie to us. Jesus told us the truth about Satan:

“For you are the children of your father the Devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murder from the beginning and has always hated the truth. There is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character, for he is a liar and the father of lies‚” (John 8:44; NLT).

Jesus told us that when Satan speaks he tells lies. They might be half-truths, but his intention is to deceive us. Satan will get us to believe that because we don’t have talents that are cherished in the Church today that we don’t have what it takes to do ministry. Satan will remind us of all the sin that has marred our lives, and make us feel guilty of sin that Jesus has already dealt with. If we want to know the truth about ourselves we have to go to the one who will not lie, and then we have to believe those truths.

When God tells us that we have a valuable place in the body (Romans 12:3-8 or 1 Peter 4:10-11) we need to believe that we have something to contribute by discovering ways to minister to others with the talents we do have. When God tells us that our sins are forgiven (1 John 1:9, 2:12; Ephesians 2:1-10) we need to believe that promise by engaging in prayer, praise, and fellowship. The difficulty in trusting God is that we have go against our feelings and act on what God has said, which is hard because our feelings seem more real than God’s truth. Our faith is thus demonstrated by not allowing our feelings to control us and choosing to believe and obey God.

The second reason we feel out of place is godly sorrow. In other words there are times we feel out of place because we are out of place. Instead of following we Jesus we have taken a detour into a life of sin. We allow ourselves to get caught up in the things of this world and forsake the call of God, and we have refused to repent from our lifestyle. The apostle Paul tells us:

For God can use sorrow in our lives to help us turn away from sin and seek salvation. We will never regret that kind of sorrow. But sorrow without repentance is the kind that results in death (2 Corinthians 7:10; NLT).

When we feel sorrow in our hearts for how we have lived God is calling us to examine our lives and and to repent of our sin. God makes us feel uncomfortable in church because He wants us to repent and surrender our entire lives to Him.

There are two reasons why we feel out of place in the Body of Christ, but they are from two very different sources. The lies of Satan will always be accusing and harsh. What Satan wants us to do is to become paralyzed because we believe we don’t have what it takes to make and impact for the Kingdom of Heaven. Instead of seeking a relationship with God, Satan will convince us to hide from Him. As a result we will cut ourselves from the very source of assurance we so desperately need.

When we experience godly sorrow it will be quite different. We will be upset because of what we have done, but there will be a desire to return to God’s presence. The sorrow we have is the result of God revealing to us that we need Him in our lives. Godly sorrow reminds us that life is not found by our own efforts, but is a result of being part of God’s Family. We can make an impact for the Kingdom of Heaven when we respond to the godly sorrow we feel in our hearts and live by faith.

Those times we feel like we don’t belong we need to examine whose voice is whispering in our ear. If it is the voice of Satan we need to tell him to back off and remember the truth God has told us. We are His children, saints, and priests. If it is the voice of the Holy Spirit we need to get own our knees and ask forgiveness. No matter where we have been or what we have done, God wants us to know that we have a place in His Family.

The Good Side of Pain #3

I have been talking about how pain can be a benefit to us. God uses our suffering to mold us into the people He desires us to be. Remember, one of the things God is doing in this world is creating a people fit for heaven, and so that means He isn’t concerned about our happiness right now as He is concerned about our holiness.

While we can understand that pain has a purpose in our lives and that God is able to redeem our suffering for good purposes many times the reason for our pain will be mysterious to us. There won’t be an answer to the question why. Though I think it is important for us to ask that question. In the book of Psalms we find 64 Psalms of lament. These psalms are poems in which the author begins by crying out to God for understanding. King David begins Psalm 13 with these words; O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever?How long will you look the other way? (NLT). We will not always understand the reasons for the pain and suffering in our lives.

Take for example Job. As we read the book of Job it seems that he is a righteous man who gets used as a pawn in a game against Satan and God. Satan believes that Job only worships God because God blesses and protects Job. God says that Job is a man of character and would serve Him regardless of what happens to Job. God allows Satan to test Job. First, God allows Satan to test Job by taking away everything he has, including his sons and daughters. The second test God allows is for Satan to attack Job’s health by covering Job in boils and sores.

The pain that Job suffers does not seem to fit the two reasons why pain is valuable that I mentioned in the first two parts (God uses pain to make us holy and God uses pain to teach us to trust Him). Job’s friends try to explain Job’s suffering by insisting that Job had done something sinful. His suffering, Job’s friends tell him, is God’s punishment for some great secret sin. Through all their accusations Job maintains his innocence, he has done nothing wrong.

Job is as confused as anyone about what is happening. His friends tell him his pain is his fault. Job’s wife tells him to curse God and die. He doesn’t know what to make of the situation. Much of the book of Job deals with Job’s discussion with a few of his friends. It goes back an forth between the friends trying to get Job to confess some great sin and Job insisting that he is being treated unfairly

I think the young arrogant Elihu summarizes Job’s position nicely when he says, You have said it in my hearing. I have heard your very words. You said, “I am pure; I am innocent; I have not sinned. God is picking a quarrel with me, and he considers me to be his enemy” (Job 33:8-10, NLT). While Elihu gives us some insight into what Job was feeling it is interesting to note that it is after his arrogant rant that God reveals Himself.

Here is part of what God says Job:

“Brace yourself like a man, because I have some questions for you, and you must answer them. “Will you discredit my justice and condemn me just to prove you are right? Are you as strong as God? Can you thunder with a voice like his? All right, put on your glory and splendor, your honor and majesty” (Job 40:7-10, NLT).

The lesson we learn from Job is that we can never understand everything that happens. God has His reasons, and because He is God and we are not, we will never always understand all of the whys.

I know this isn’t intellectually satisfying at times, but it is at this time when faith becomes very important. Sooner or later your world is going to be rocked with pain, if it hasn’t been already. During the suffering and the struggle you will not understand why it is happening. It will seem unfair and unnecessary. You will want to cry out to God and question Him. Those feelings are normal. If we never faced a crisis, a trial, or a doubt then faith would not matter. It is during these critical times in our lives that is essential to know why we can trust God with our future.

We need to trust God, even when the world around us is crumbling. We need to believe in God, even when it would seem easier to believe in no God than a loving Creator who allows pain into the lives of His children. Faith helps us to make the right choices even when we don’t want to. It helps us to live holy lives, even when we want to do anything to numb the pain. It gives us light to push out the darkness. It gives us hope in the face of a bleak future. Faith gives us the reason to worship God when the world tells us to curse God and die.

Religiously Biased Thoughts on The God Delusion #4

Today I return to Richard Dawkins’ best selling book The God Delusion to offer more of my reactions to what he wrote. Chapter 3 of The God Delusion is Dawkins’ dissection of the “positive arguments” for God’s existence. The good professor pulls out 8 different “proofs” and then explains why each one is silly and should be ignored.

It is tempting to get caught up with trying to argue with Dawkins on this point. As Vox Day in The Irrational Atheist points out, “They are tempting honey-traps in which the Dawkins critic is all too easily caught; because Dawkins is convinced that God almost certainly does not exist, attempting to engage him in a reasonable discussion of theological proofs is like trying to mathematically prove the speed of the Earth’s rotation to someone who does not believe in numbers, and furthermore, is utterly convinced that the Earth is a disc mounted on the back of a very large turtle” (p. 138). The same can be said for any Dawkins Groupies that troll the internet looking for a good debate; you are not going to prove God to them.

Instead of proving that these arguments have validity, and I am not convinced that all of them do, I want to focus on how Dawkins is intellectually dishonest in his presentation of these arguments. He either uses arguments that Christians no longer use or he frames them in a way that misrepresent what Christians really believe.

The first argument that Dawkins mentions is the list of five proofs given by Thomas Aquinas. One of the interesting things that Dawkins does here is that he restates the five proofs in his own words rather than directly quoting what Aquinas wrote. So the reader miss the entire impact of Aquinas’ argument, and this is especially significant when it comes to proof 5, the argument from purposeful design, which Dawkins observes is the only one still in use today (p. 103, paperback edition). The reason I think this is significant is because what Aquinas writes in the fifth proof is the basis of the very science Dawkins loves so much. It is because Christians believed that there is a purpose behind creation and that there are natural laws that govern how things work, that caused them to explore the the mechanisms of the world.

One other thing I would mention about the five proofs is that Thomas Aquinas didn’t regard them as proofs in the way that we understand proofs. Alister McGrath wrote, “Although these cannot be regarded as ‘proofs’ in the strict sense of the word, Aquinas regards them as demonstrating the consistency of Christian theology with the known world” (p. 17, The Christian Theology Reader). When we look at the universe through the lens of faith we discover that there is validity, even today, in what Aquinas wrote.

What I find interesting about Anselm’s Ontological Argument (the second argument Dawkins brings up), which formulated in 1079, is that it has never been a serious argument for God’s existence. A German monk by the name of Gaunilo argued against the argument by the end of the eleventh century. While Anselm’s argument is an interesting side note in theology, it hasn’t been used as a real argument for God’s existence, and yet it is the one he spends the most time on. One has to wonder, “If this is such an ‘infantile argument’ why spend six and half pages on it?” Could it be that Dawkins is bothered by it more than the others (which would explain why he spends an equal amount of time on the argument from admired religious scientists)?

The third argument is the argument from beauty. While I think this is a weak argument, it does get a person to wonder, “Why am I so moved by….( a sunset, a love song, the mountains, a good book, a beautiful woman, a brilliant painting)?”

The argument form personal “experience” is the fourth argument that Dawkins mentions. One of the things I find interesting about this argument, which is an observation that Vox Day made as well, is that while Dawkins is the one who put scare quotes around the word experience, The God Delusion is primarily about his personal experience. He references his personal experience more often in the book to make a point than he does empirical evidence. So he is in favor of personal experience when it serves his cause.

Though I realize that isn’t what he means by personal “experience.” What Dawkins refers to here are people who claim to have had a supernatural encounter that led them to believe, such as a vision. While I believe that God gives people dreams and visions, it isn’t what many of us mean when we say that we believe in God because of experience. While I can say that I have had a couple of supernatural encounters in my life they are not part of the personal experience that has led me to have faith in God. My personal experience mainly consists of my observation of faithful people, how living out Jesus’ teaching has made a difference in my life, and the way the Bible has shaped my understanding of the world. It is easy to explain away a person’s experience when it is only understood as the supernatural, but it is harder to explain away when it is what we live everyday of our lives.

The fifth argument is the argument from Scripture. First, it needs to be pointed out that people aren’t convinced of God’s existence because we say, “It is in the Bible.” Scripture is not proof that God exists, though the truth that it contains does lead people to faith.

What Dawkins did with this argument is that he takes the pronouncement of one set of scholars who have said that the Bible is unreliable and leaves it at that. This is what he writes, “Ever since the nineteenth century, scholarly theologians have made an overwhelming case that the gospels are not reliable accounts of what happened in the history of the real world” (p. 118). First, he states that “scholarly theologians” have made the case, and so he implies that anyone who makes a different case is not scholarly. That is disingenuous, because there are very scholarly theologians who would kindly explain to Dawkins why he is mistaken about the reliability of the Bible. Second, he tells us that it is “an overwhelming case,” and so he implies that the other side doesn’t have any evidence worth considering. Given the large amount of manuscript evidence and some solid archeological evidence I think there are some good reasons why we should consider the other side of the argument.

The previously mentioned argument from admired religious scientists compromise the sixth argument. This is another weak argument, but one of the things Dawkins tries to do here is to say the famous religious scientists of the past would have been atheists if they were alive today. It was their culture rather than their study of science that gave them Christian faith. An interesting argument, but also unprovable.

The often referred to Pascal’s Wager is the seventh argument. This is an argument that is misunderstood by both Christians who use it and atheists who mock it. The Catholic philosopher Peter Kreeft has an essay on Pascal’s Wager in his book Fundamentals of the Faith that is well worth the read (the essay and the book).

The last argument is the Bayesian Arguments which is based on Bayes Theorem. Dawkins says that it is the oddest case he has seen to prove God’s existence, and since I had never heard of it before it isn’t worth talking about. Though one of Dawkins criticisms of Stephen Unwin, who put forth the argument in a book entitled The Probability of God, is that Unwin used numbers based on his personal judgments to put into the mathematical formula. I bring this up because we discover Dawkins doing the very same thing in the next chapter, but that discussion will have to wait until next time.

Trusting God with the Future

Henry Blackaby in Experiencing God wrote; “We join Him so He can do His work through us. We don’t have to be able to accomplish the task within our limited ability or resources.”

Have you ever been given an assignment and then wondered how you would do it? That is how I feel right now. I haven’t talked much about the church I pastor, because that isn’t the focus of this blog, but things aren’t going well. When I accepted the position 2 and half years ago the church family had been in decline for a decade. Ten years ago the church was averaging 130 on Sunday morning, last year we averaged 33. How do you stop a pattern of decline once it has started? This is my heart’s cry to God: “What am I supposed to do?” I feel so incapable of making a difference in a church family and in a community that desperately needs help.

That is why things like this quote from Blackaby are so valuable to me right now, for they remind me that it isn’t just about my effort (I also realize that it doesn’t mean that I just sit back and wait for God to do all the work). An aspect of faith is being able to trust God when things are outside of your control.

I also have to remember that I am not the only person in this position. All of us, when we are given a job, want to be given instructions on how that job is to be accomplished. That is not how God works! Many times God will give us assignments that we cannot accomplish on our own, and He doesn’t reveal to us His entire plan at once. Instead His plan is revealed with each step of faith that we take. The Bible is full of examples of this truth. Noah, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Samson, and Ruth all did things only God could do, and none of them and the entire picture ahead of time. Yet, God used them to accomplish His purposes.

Take for example what God told Moses; “I will be with you. And this will serve as proof that I have sent you: When you have brought the Israelites out of Egypt, you will return here to worship God at this very mountain” (Exodus 3:12; NLT).

I think that it is interesting that the proof God gave Moses was what would happen after Moses trusted God. God didn’t tell Moses about Pharaoh’s hard heart or the ten plagues. Moses has no idea how Israel was going to be freed from Egypt, but he trusted God and went. As Moses walked in faith, God revealed a little more of His plan to Moses. This means what is needed is not knowledge but faith. We cannot talk ourselves out of trusting God just because we don’t have all the answers. It is our faith that makes the difference.

God knows that we will have our doubts about the task He has set before us. He knows we will question our ability to complete the job, the way the people will respond to our efforts, and even if it is really God calling us to go. What God is interested in is not so much in our talents or knowledge, but our faithful character. The number one thing we need to carry out God’s calling on our lives is the resolve to trust God no matter what.

Confession time. That is where I miss the boat. I only want to go, to “risk” if I know how things are going to turn out in the end. I want God to give me a plan and assurance that He will use all my hard work. I want to take a step of faith where everything has been worked out in advance.

While I am uncertain about the next step that I am to take, I am absolutely certain that I am in the right place. God has placed me here for the purpose of enhancing my faith, and now I have to ask myself the question all of us have to ask, “Will I trust God with the future?” The choices we make will reveal our answer.

Sunday Quote: The Mop-Up Operation

"The Cross is God's part of the practical solution to evil. Our part, according to the same Gospel, is to repent, to believe, and to work with God in fighting evil by the power of love. The King has invaded; we are finishing the mop-up operation." ~ Peter Kreeft, Fundamentals of the Faith, p. 56

Satuday Links: Craig, Witherington, Zukeran

Here are links to three articles/blogs that I enjoyed this week.

No Ultimate Purpose Without Immortality and God ~ William Lane Craig
With Justification ~ Ben Witherington
Archaeology and The Old Testament ~ Patrick Zukeran

Enjoy.

Praise God All the Time

{Galatians 1:1-5; NLT}

This letter is from Paul, an apostle. I was not appointed by any group of people or any human authority, but by Jesus Christ himself and by God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead.

All the brothers and sisters here join me in sending this letter to the churches of Galatia.

May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. Jesus gave his life for our sins, just as God our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live. All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.

In this evil world in which we live it is hard not to lose our focus. Bad things happen to us and we wonder where God is in the midst of our pain. Tragedy hits our nation and we wonder why God didn’t protect us. When we are honest with ourselves we realize that there are times in our lives when it is just plain hard to worship God.

I have been there. In trying to understand what God wanted me to do with my life I began questioning Him about every little thing that came along. I became frustrated because God continually seemed to set Himself against me and prevent me from doing what I wanted to do. During this time in my life praising God was the last thing on my mind. Instead of worshiping God I gave Him the silent treatment.

Have you been to a similar place? Perhaps you are still loyal to God and you fulfill your commitments to the church, but you don’t praise God like you should. You go through the motions because you know it is the right thing to do, but you sure don’t feel like worshipping God because He seems to be the source your trouble or at least apathetic about your condition. During these tough and dark times of life we need a reason to praise God.

Our faith is exposed in how we respond to God in the bad and tough times in life. It is easy to praise God when everything is going our way because it seems like God is right there beside us blessing us each step of the way. When trials come we have a tendency to blame God because He didn’t protect us like He should. The apostle Paul gives us one good reason why we should praise God no matter what else happens in our lives.

Why should we praise God no matter what? We should praise God because Jesus gave His life for our sins. This was God’s plan from the very beginning. God planned to show us His love through the sacrifice of Jesus. Not only does Jesus’ sacrifice show us God’s love, but it also rescues us from this evil world in which we live. How did Jesus’ death accomplish that? We are saved through Jesus’ death because He didn’t stay did, the resurrection of Christ reminds us that God has power over sin and death. The rescue was made a reality by the death and resurrection of Jesus, the two go together.

True we still feel the effects of this evil world, but the difference is that now we have hope. Hope that one day all this will be destroyed and God will come and make all things new. Things will be how they were intended to be.

If God never gave us another blessing He would still deserve our endless praise because of this reality. Not only did God create us, which is another reason we should praise Him, but He did what was necessary so we could be saved from evil and find life in Him. Glory and honor be to God forever.

I know that during the tough times in life the hope of heaven is very far from our minds. That is why we need to have some spiritual disciplines in our lives. Disciplines that help us get a proper perspective on things. Let’s face it, the reason we don’t praise God is because we are focused on the wrong thing or person. Too often our focus is on our problems and pain and we lose sight of God and what He has done for us. Spiritual Disciplines are designed to reorient our thinking so we will have the right perspective on the circumstances of our lives.

If you feel like praising God take some time and thank Him in word or song for all the blessings He has given to you. If you don’t feel like praising God, even though you know you should, get to a quiet place and pray. Ask God to open your eyes to what He has done in your life and the blessings He has given you. Write them done and take in how gracious and loving God truly is. Let those blessings move your heart to worship.

God deserves our praise, and we cannot afford to praise Him only when we feel like it. Sometimes we need to take steps to worship God even when we don’t feel like it. When we do we reveal the true content of our character and our faith.

The Good Side of Pain #2

The reason that pain is such an important part of God’s molding process is because it gets us to redirect our focus. So many of us have our focus on other things besides God. We may be focused on the money we will be making on what we will spend it on. We may be focused on a romantic relationship, and we put in so much effort to make it work. Our focus may be the upcoming football season and winning the state championship. It could be on getting good grades so you can get into a good college. Whenever our focus is on something other than God, we are cheating Him of what He deserves. As long as our lives are good and problems are small and manageable we are not going to change our focus. For many of us, the only way we will learn to focus on God is to have our worlds rocked and our dreams shattered, in a word, Pain.

Dr. Larry Crabb in his book Shattered Dreams wrote; “But we almost always mistake lesser pleasures for this greatest pleasure (an encounter with God) and live our lives chasing after them. We’re not in touch with our appetite for God” (p. 5). God allows pain in our lives to help us get in touch with our desire for God.

If we were honest with ourselves we would admit that many times the only way God could redirect our focus is to take away the thing that distracts us the most. When our dreams shatter or when our lives are turned upside down the result is pain. Having our lives disrupted is not be a pleasant experience, it does hurt. This is the second reason why pain is valuable in our lives. Pain is valuable because it is an opportunity to trust God.

The apostle Paul wrote about a particular pain he suffered in 2 Corinthians 12:6-10. This is what the Apostle wrote:

If I wanted to boast, I would be no fool in doing so, because I would be telling the truth. But I won’t do it, because I don’t want anyone to give me credit beyond what they can see in my life or hear in my message, even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud. Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (NLT)

Pain can be valuable in our lives, but only if we learn the lesson that God wants us to learn. So often we miss out on growing in our relationship with God, because we miss the opportunities God has given to us. The next time you go through a trial or some great pain enters your life, ask God this question, “God what is it that You want me to understand or do?” If you do that I am confident that you will make the most of the pain that is in your life.

Though I believe pain can be valuable, I also believe that not every situation will fit neatly into these two reasons. Sometimes we have to realize that we will not understand that pain and suffering that is happening. Think about the grandmother with Alzheimer. How is that disease valuable to her? How can her character be developed when her mind isn’t functioning? How can she focus on God when she can’t even remember the names of her grandchildren? We will not always understand why God allows pain into the lives of people, especially into the lives of His children. It is a mystery that we need to learn to live with.

Religiously Biased Thoughts on The God Delusion #3

Prayer. It is something that is greatly misunderstood by Christians, atheists, and everyone in between. That is why it is not a shock to find Richard Dawkins commenting on a prayer experiment done by the Templeton Foundation on pages 85-90 of The God Delusion. Dawkins ends his comments with a bit of mockery writing; “Yeah, right: we know from our faith that prayer works, so if evidence fails to show it we’ll just soldier on until finally we get the result we want” (p. 90).

First of all, I want to point out the complete insanity of trying to do an experiment to see if prayer works. I have written about this topic before in a post entitled Testable Prayers. Performing experiments to see if prayer works reeks of all the people who came to Jesus and demanded that He perform some sign for them so they would believe. This is what Jesus told them; “Why do these people keep demanding a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, I will not give this generation any such sign” (Mark 8:12; NLT). Prayer ceases to be prayer when it is said in the spirit of trying to get God to do your bidding. We shouldn’t expect God to do anything in those situations.

Second, I want to mention our complete misunderstanding of the purpose of prayer. The purpose of prayer isn’t to convince God to provide for us the good life, but it is to usher in the Kingdom of God. Remember the model prayer Jesus gave to us (Matthew 6:9-13)? We can break this model prayer down into three parts. The first part is praise. Jesus shows us that our prayers should start with praising and thanking God for who He is and what He has done. When we open with praise we orient our focus on God. The second part of the prayer could be labeled priorities. Jesus instructs us to pray for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven and that His kingdom comes. Each one of us have our own agenda when it comes to life and ministry, but Jesus reminds us that what matters most is God’s will and His Kingdom. The last part could be called provision. It is here that we focus on our needs. First, there are our physical needs, our daily bread. Second, there are our spiritual needs, forgiveness and deliverance. Here is my point: when we align our priorities with God’s priorities our understanding of what we need for life will change. Our prayers will be more about advancing God’s kingdom than about curing grandma’s bunion.

Third, I know that prayer works, but I have no evidence that prayer works. What evidence can I offer to show that when I ask for wisdom as I am working on a sermon that God grants me wisdom? I know He does, but I have no proof. This is the problem with prayer, unless you experience there is no proof that it happened. Take for example Jesus turning water into wine, after the miracle happened what was the proof that it had happened outside of the testimony of a few people? The same is true for answered prayer. Outside of the testimony of a few people who have experienced it, what is the proof that God acted? That is why answered prayer is an unconvincing argument for unbelievers.

Let people like Richard Dawkins mock us for praying. Proving to them that prayers make a difference in our lives will not change their opinion or bring them to faith. Saving faith has never been built on miracles and signs, but rather it is built on the example of other Christians and a commitment to God’s Word. Instead of trying to convince them that prayer works we should focus on living faithful lives, because in the end it is the faithful life that is the best evidence for the working of prayer and God’s existence.

The Good Side of Pain #1

After losing his wife the late Christian thinker CS Lewis wrote a book entitled A Grief Observed. The Following quote is taken from that book:

Meanwhile, where is God? This is one of the most disquieting symptoms. When you are happy, so happy that you have no sense of needing Him, if you turn to Him then with praise, you will be welcomed with open arms. But go to Him when your need is desperate, when all other help is vain and what do you find? A door slammed in your face, and a sound of bolting and double bolting on the inside. After that, silence. You may as well turn away.

C.S. Lewis had a difficult time dealing with his wife’s death. It presented him with a crisis of belief, because the pain was real and immense. But C.S. Lewis’ experience is not any different then the rest of humanities’ experience. Everyday people experience pain and suffering, crying out to God and finding no answer.

Let’s be honest, when tragedy happens, when pain enters our lives, God doesn’t always feel close by. Where was God when the World Trade Center was burning in New York? Where was God when a drunk driver killed your friend? Where was God when your parents got divorced? Where was God when your brother got involved with drugs? Where was God when my uncle got cancer and died?

If we were all powerful like so many people claim God to be, then we would use that power to make the world right and good. When we see a friend of ours hurt and suffering we want to do whatever it takes to fix the situation. We love them, and want their lives to be good. Haven’t we heard that God loves us and wants our lives to be good? If that is the case why does God allow suffering to happen?

I know that pain is not a pleasant experience. It hurts! You are out there thinking, “Thanks for pointing out the obvious. I knew that before I came to this class.” Here is my point, even though pain hurts, it is valuable to our lives. One of the worst Star Trek movies made, is Star Trek 5: The Final Frontier. The only redeeming part of the movie is a line the Captain Kirk has. The crew meets up with Spock’s half-brother, a Vulcan who has discovered how to take away the emotional pain that we all have. Imagine what your life would be like if all the emotional baggage you carry could suddenly be taken away. You simply forget about that time you father yelled at you and called you sissy boy. You forget about the deaths of your grandma and of your dog Spot. You don’t remember the betrayal by your best friend when she stole your boyfriend. The fact that you other kids call you fat vanishes from your mind. Wouldn’t that be great!? This Vulcan offers to take away Kirk’s pain, and the Captain looks at him and says, “No! I need my pain. My pain makes me who I am.” Pain is valuable to our lives because it shapes our character. Though to be honest, it isn’t the pain that shapes our character, what shapes our character are our choices, suffering is the environment in which we have to make those choices.

James 1:2-5 says, Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking (NLT).

I want you to understand something, God’s greatest concern in your life is not your happiness. God does not intend for His people to constantly go through life feeling like they are on the top of the world. Why? Because that type of life does not create the type of people God wants us to be. If God immediately took away our pain and struggles we would never know what it would be like to trust Him. Pain and suffering often forces us to rely on God in ways we would never have before.

The struggles, trials, and pain of life is what develops Holiness in our lives. That is God’s greatest concern in our lives, that we be holy. We are created to be holy not happy. Because happiness is not the goal God uses pain to create us to be holy. Rebecca St. James wrote, “God really wants to mold all of us -- male, female, young, and old -- into what He created us to be.” Pain, trials, and struggles are one way God molds us into what He created us to be.

Remove the Dirty Clothes

{Colossians 3:5-10; NLT}

So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming. You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world. But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him.

Do you hear it? Do you hear the cry of your heart? The cry to be transformed into the person God created you to be. Don’t be ashamed, for my heart is crying the very same thing. One of the deepest longs we have is the desire to truly live life, and instinctively we know that true life can only be found with the Life Maker. Only God can truly offer us the life that we so desperately want to live.

While many of us have turned to God to find life we are frustrated with the results. One of the reasons for this reality is that we have refused to give up certain behaviors. We have allowed Satan to lie to us and convince us that these “little vices” are not a big deal and will not harm our spiritual growth, and yet the result of our lives would tell us a different story. We are frustrated because our lives are not characterized by joy, peace, love, or hope they way it should be. In short we are not living the abundant life Jesus promised His followers.

Here is the truth of the matter. While our small vices may not seem to be a big deal and that we control them, they, in fact, control our lives. We keep them because they give us a connection to this world, so we don’t feel out of place. The problem is that God has called us to live as foreigners and pilgrims in this world, in other words, we are not supposed to fit into the ways of the world. We keep them because we are addicted to the way they make us feel, and it would be hard work to break free from their grasp. The problem is that God has told us to be guided by the Holy Spirit, and we cannot be guided if we are in the grasp of an addiction.

Make no mistake about it, these private little sins that we hold on to pose a bigger threat to our relationship with God than we realize. They keep us from experiencing God at work in our lives, and they allow Satan to establish a stronghold in our hearts that he can use to lead us further down the path of sin and death. As long as we are willing to play in the mud of sin, no matter how shallow it might seem, we will continually miss out on the celebration of life God wants us to experience.

The apostle Paul wanted to make sure we understood that there must be a throwing off of our old way of life as we adopt a brand new way of living. We cannot hope to hang on to our old way of life and still follow Jesus. It has to be one or the other.

Paul wrote; Put on your new nature… That means being a Christian is about living in a dramatically different way than the rest of the world. In this world of confusion, pain, and doubt Christians are to SHOW the world that there is a better way to live. We bless the rest of the world when we display the new nature that comes with following Christ Jesus.

As long as we are hanging on to our old vices, no matter how small they might seem to be, we will constantly be frustrated with our relationship with God and the life that we are living because we refuse to abandon the old way of living and accept God new way of life. When we aren’t living the life God created us to live, then we are not able to be the blessing to the world that God intended for us to be.

Please remember that God knows that we cannot change overnight. He knows our weaknesses and our addictions. That is why He is gracious. Grace is all about God giving us the time, the wisdom, and even the strength to change our lives. God wants us to change little by little with each step we take as we follow Jesus.

Take some time and ponder what Erwin McManus wrote in Stand Against the Wind:

“You cannot follow Jesus and remain the same. The journey itself will change you forever—not only your priorities but your passions. It alters not only your direction but your desires. It transforms not only your actions, but your values. It makes you just like Christ and unlike anyone else. It is nothing less than leaving the fake for the real. There is great risk in abandoning the artificial in pursuit of the authentic” (p. 26).

It is time that we abandon the artificial life of sin and addiction and pursue the authentic life of Jesus. Throw off the old way of living and put on a brand new way of life.

• Point to Ponder: We cannot hope to hang on to our old way of life and still follow Jesus.
• Questions to Consider: What sins have I hung on to? Why has it been so difficult to give them up? Where can I turn to for help? Do I believe that God will give me strength to overcome these sins?
• Prayer to Pray: God, my Hope and Savior, I thank You this day for life. With all the ups and downs I have experienced I am still grateful for the fact that You have given me life. I ask today for the strength, the wisdom, and the help I need to get rid of my old way of living and adopt the new way of living as I follow Jesus. Constantly remind me that I am not alone, that You are with me in this process, and that You have forgiven me and are proud of the effort I am making to change my life...