Whatchya Gonna Do About It?

As a teenager, I can remember my late Uncle Pat showing me his collection of guns once, and just drooling at all the beautiful pieces of firepower he owned.  He wasn’t a particularly generous guy until very late in his life, but I always kind of held out hope that someday one or two of those guns might end up in my possession. 

10 years ago, as a gift for my ordination, he gave me an old .30/06 deer rifle that was one of the first things he bought after he returned from WWII.  It wasn’t particularly beautiful or worth a whole lot of money, but it shot straight and I’ve used it to take a couple of deer. 

3 or 4 years ago though, after he had passed away, his widow gave my dad a couple of guns to give to my brother and I.  Since my brother’s older, he got to choose first, and being primarily a bird hunter, he chose an old 16 gauge shotgun.  All that my dad told me was that I was getting another deer rifle.  When I went to get it, I found a beautiful Winchester pre-64, Model 70 .243 Featherweight.  If you don’t know much about guns, you’re probably like, “So what.”  But if you know anything at all about deer rifles and pre-64 Winchesters, you’re interested!  

After doing a little research online, I found that this rifle, still in excellent condition, was made in 1955.  And I found out how much it was worth!  It was worth more than the last 2 cars I’ve driven! 

Then I thought, “What am I gonna do with this?”  I was almost afraid to shoot it, let alone take it out in a field or forest in the weather and hunt with it.  I took it out to shoot at some targets, and found that it was the sweetest shooter I’ve ever put to my shoulder.  Low recoil.  A scope that was still dialed in at 100 yards.  And it seemed about 10 pounds lighter than that old .30/06. 

As I thought about it, I simply realized that this beautiful gun was made to hunt.  I would have never considered selling it because it was a precious gift.  It wouldn’t have done any good sitting in my gun cabinet collecting dust.  I had to hunt with it.  And so my son Isaac and I have done just that with this gun.  It’s what it was made for. 

You and I were made for something too.  We were made for a relationship with God through his Son Jesus Christ.  We were made to do great things for God and we were made to bring glory to Him and advance His Kingdom.  There’s a sad thing about many of us though.  We don’t realize that.  We know how great God is.  We know how much Jesus loves us.  We know the great price that Jesus paid for the forgiveness of our sins and the power of his resurrection.  But we don’t know what we’re gonna do with it.  Or we don’t know how to do anything with it. 

Focus your thoughts for a few minutes on what Ephesians 4:1 (part of one of today’s readings from For the Love of God) has to say: “As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.”

As the Apostle Paul writes these words of encouragement and exhortation to his friends in the Church at Ephesus, he is writing from prison.  Not in a prison where he’s getting 3 meals a day, cable TV and cigarettes on the tax payers’ dimes.  Probably from a dark dungeon where he’s often chained, enduring all manner of physical, emotional and spiritual hardship. 

But he has no complaints.  There’s a calm assuredness throughout this letter of the greatness of God and all that we have in Jesus.  For Paul, it’s a blip on the radar screen of life. 

I think that his words aren’t just about the physical prison that he’s in.  He’s talking about a spiritual reality in his life.  It’s the reality that the love of God through Jesus Christ has completely and totally captured his life.  His thoughts.  His feelings.  His mind.  His heart.  His body.  He’s completely sold out to Jesus and bringing Him glory.

It’s easy when somebody who seemingly has it all tells us to get our spiritual act together.  It’s another thing altogether when we hear this from a man who is in chains and doesn’t know when he might see the light of day.  Or if he’ll ever see the light of another day.

“Live a life worthy of the calling you have received.”

In other words, do something with what God has done for you! 

This issue of the calling of God on our lives is something that we’ve got to take seriously if we’re ever going to understand that we must do something with it.  This calling is more than a “Hey you, getchyur butt over here and serve me.”  The calling of God throughout Scripture is a divine invitation, written in love with the blood of Jesus, to embrace a life of beauty and transformation. 

I’m bad at making and appreciating beautiful things in life, but imagine if you will a bride-to-be who patiently and painstakingly creates and crafts and hand-inscribes a hundred beautiful invitations to her wedding for her friends and family.  (See what I did there?  I went from talking about shooting deer to Pinterest type stuff in one blog!).  She does this not because she HAS to.  She could easily outsource the job to a printing company or her maid of honor, right?  She has better things to do with her time.  But she does it because she wants her friends and family to know that they’re valued and loved and appreciated, and wants them to be a part of something that’s going to be beautiful and wonderful.

God hasn’t called us to new life in Jesus Christ because He HAS to.  He has called us to new life in Christ because He WANTS to.  He wants us to know that we’re valued, loved and appreciated.  He wants us to experience the abundant life that Jesus promised to those who would trust in him.  He wants us to be a part of something wonderful and beautiful, that’s far greater than we could ever imagine.

Our response matters.  Paul, speaking for God, tells us to live a life that’s worthy of this calling.  In other words, live your life like this invitation and calling matter.  Make the most of your opportunities to experience transformation.  Make the most of your opportunities to serve others.  Make the most of your opportunities to love others.  Make the most or your opportunities to help others know what this invitation and calling are all about! 

Ephesians 4 continues with great care and instruction on how to be The Church that Jesus wants us to be.  Read it, and be encouraged.  Pray and seek God on where you belong in His Church.  Pray and seek God on how you can serve and love and invite others to be a part of His Church.  Do something with what God has given to you!   

That's Not Fair!

With 3 kids – ages 13, 10 and almost 4 – my wife Jessie and I hear, “That’s not fair,” quite a bit more than we’d like to.  Often the cry of “That’s not fair,” has to do with the chores that our kids are expected to do.  I know, I know, we’re so draconian in our parenting.  Sometimes it has to do with fun things that one gets to do while the other two don’t. 

I get it.  My brain is definitely wired to see the world in the solid colors of black and white, and not shades of gray.  I often see things as being fair or unfair, right or wrong, and good or bad.  I believe that the Bible is the infallible Word of God and that it’s as true and authoritative today for all matters of life and faith as it was when it was written.  I know that in our culture today that puts me in a small minority, and I’m good with that.  I am far more concerned with being faithful to all of God’s Word than I am about what other people think about me.

In today’s reading from John 3, we come to some of the truth claims of Jesus that often lead to complaints of, “That’s not fair.”  John 3:16 begins by saying, “For God so loved the world . . .” and John 3:17 begins with, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world.”  Not too many people – even the biggest skeptics or critics of the Christian faith – have a problem with that.  Most people can get on board with the idea of a God who is full of love for the world, and a Savior that didn’t come to condemn the world.

But what doesn’t seem fair to many people are the words that follow in those verses.  John 3:16 concludes with, “ . . . that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”  John 3:17 ends with, “. . . but to save the world through him.”  There are other things that don’t seem fair that follow in rapid succession:

“ . . . whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”  - v. 18b

“This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.” – v.19

“Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.”   - v.20

Some see this as Jesus throwing down the gauntlet and being a big old meanie pants.  How can Jesus say that he loves the world and yet at the same time say that some will be condemned by not believing in Him?  How can Jesus say that some people will continue to love the darkness and continue their evil deeds if He’s as loving as He says He is?  That’s not fair!

And these people are right.  It’s not fair!  And that’s because grace isn’t fair.  Fairness is about getting what we deserve based on what we’ve done.  Grace is about getting something far better than what we deserve.  Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.”   This is grace!  Jesus is grace!

Jesus isn’t throwing down the gauntlet.  He’s throwing the doors of the Kingdom of Heaven to anybody that confesses that He is the Son of God and has come into the world to save the world.  He’s throwing open the floodgates of grace and mercy to those who would call on his name and turn from sin and the condemnation that our sin brings.  He’s throwing open the gates of eternal life and has paid the ransom for our sin through his death on the cross. 

We can reject it or receive it.  We can believe it or not believe it.  We can rejoice in it or hate it.  But there’s no middle ground when it comes to what Jesus said about how we’re made right with God and how we receive eternal life in heaven.

As we look at the entire testimony about Jesus in the Gospels we see what grace looks like.  We see that the grace and truth of Jesus reached into some of the darkest and most hopeless of lives.  He loved and healed and transformed people afflicted with physical ailments who were the dregs of society.  He loved and healed and transformed people who were caught in terrible sin and shame.  He loved and healed and transformed people who had rejected God their entire lives. 

Believing the truth of God’s Word and the truth claims of Jesus isn’t for proud and arrogant people.  It’s for people who are humble enough to realize that without Jesus, we have no hope of anything in this world and in eternity.  It’s for people who are desperate enough to realize their need for a Savior who loves extravagantly and deals in grace, not fairness. 

I’m glad that God’s not fair in how he deals with us.  If he was, he would have destroyed me long ago and would have many reasons every day to destroy me.  I’m humbled and grateful for the grace that he’s extended to the entire world through His Son, Jesus Christ.  I hope you are too and that it makes all the difference in your life.  

It Ain't a Party Till Jesus Shows Up!

When my wife Jessie and I got married almost 17 years ago, we did it on the cheap.  She was in the middle of graduate school and I had just graduated from college – which I had paid for on my own with different jobs and student loans - and landed my first full-time youth ministry gig that paid me a whopping $20,000 a year with no benefits. 

So, we had our reception in a church fellowship hall.  Which, of course, meant no alcohol.  We had great food, a great DJ and had a lot of fun.  But when you’re in your early 20’s most of your friends that show up for your wedding expect to find some liquid courage to help them get out on the dance floor.  And so her friends brought some boxes of Franzia and my friends brought a cooler of beer, and would hit the parking lot every once in awhile.  We all had a great time and nobody got out of control.  It was definitely a fun celebration.

In Jesus’ day, and throughout the Bible, wine was an important part of many celebrations.  In John 2, we find Jesus in the very early stages of his public ministry at a wedding where the wine had run out.  It’s not entirely clear if Jesus’ mom Mary saw this as a problem or an opportunity or both, but in v.3 she brought it to his attention.  Despite Jesus telling her, “My time has not yet come (v.4),” Mary prepared the way for Jesus’ first miracle by telling the servants at the wedding to get ready to do whatever Jesus told them to do.

This isn’t a post about whether or not Christians should consume alcohol.  This is a post about the greatness of Jesus and reality of the ushering in of the Kingdom of God when he began his public ministry. 

Jesus told the servants to fill some water jars to the top.  These water jars were part of the ceremonial cleansing rituals of the Jews, and they were probably pretty nasty.  There’s no doubt that they were absolutely used at some point in the celebration by the guests to wash their hands.  And remember, sanitation and cleanliness at this time are nothing like what we have today.  There’s also a good chance that these water jars were also used to wash feet.  Feet that traveled dusty roads filled with all manner of animal excrement and other nastiness.  Disgusting.

But more than that, these water jars were a symbol of the dead religion of many of the Jews.  The dead religion that Jesus preached against.  The dead religion that got Jesus in trouble because of the times and places he healed people and performed miracles.  The dead religion that got Jesus in trouble for loving the unlovable and touching the untouchable.  The dead religion that made everything about keeping the rules, and forgot about the matters of the heart. 

In v.9, we’re told that Jesus turned the water into wine and that when the master of the banquet – kind of like the head of the catering crew – tasted it that he was astonished by the quality of the wine.  In fact, in v.10 he said to the groom, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.” 

It ain’t a party till Jesus shows up! But what Jesus did wasn’t just to prolong the party and make people happy.  Jesus did this to reveal his glory – a glory that is greater and richer and far more wonderful than anything that we can ever imagine. 

Jesus took a cesspool of dirty water – a symbol of dead religion – and turned it into a symbol of the abundant life that he came to give to those who would trust him.  We can settle for the comfort and familiarity of dead religion that leaves us thirsting for the true Living Water and hungering for the Bread of Life.  We can settle for the self-righteousness and smugness that comes from dead religion that robs Jesus of the glory that He longs to display in our lives. 

People are repelled by dead religion, but they are drawn to the abundance and goodness of Jesus.  And it makes me wonder, does my life reflect this?  Is my life a living testimony to the abundant life that Jesus gives or a testimony to dullness and drudgery?  Is my life a living testimony to the glory and greatness of Jesus or is it a testimony to smug self-righteousness?

How about you?

The Beauty of The Cross

We live in a culture that wants to fashion Jesus into something he is not.  And really, there’s not been a culture since the birth of Jesus over 2,000 years ago that hasn’t tried to do that.  It shouldn’t surprise us.  Yelling and criticizing don’t help.  Trying to win the internet by having Facebook and Twitter arguments doesn’t cut it either.  And believe me, I’ve done enough of both. 

What the world needs is Jesus.  And the way that the world will discover the fullness of the grace and truth of Jesus is through followers of Jesus who will stay the course, even when it seems like faithfulness to Jesus is useless or hopeless.  Remember the words that the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 1:18a: “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing . . .”  Those words are as true today as they were 2,000 years ago. 

In today’s reading from John 1, the Apostle John (not the same dude as John the Baptist) paints for us a beautiful theological picture of the implications of the incarnation – when The Word became flesh and made His home among us.  The culture into which Jesus was born was filled with darkness, and many who saw and heard him chose to remain in darkness.  The culture into which Jesus was born was filled with people who were dying to live and crying out for life, and many who saw and heard him chose to remain on a course of death.  The culture into which Jesus was born was filled with people who were starving for grace and truth, and many who saw and heard him chose to reject what He offered. 

John the Baptist, who came to prepare the way for Jesus was like us in many respects.  V.23 tells us that he was “ . . . a voice of one calling in the desert . . .”  John’s faithfulness to Jesus and his commitment to ushering in the Kingdom of God made him different from the culture around him.  He knew that he himself was not the Christ, but he knew that he had been chosen by God to represent Christ to the world and point the way to Him.  He was among those in v.12, “who received him . . . who believed in his name,” and received from Jesus, “. . . the right to become children of God.” 

Make no mistake about it, our culture is becoming increasingly hostile to the message of the cross and resurrection of Jesus.  But as it was for John the Baptist; the disciples of Jesus; the apostles in the Book of Acts and the saints who have gone on before us in victory and glory; this is a divine opportunity for us to bear witness to who Jesus really is.

And with that opportunity comes a great responsibility for those of us who have received him, believed in his name and have been added to the family of God: We must not forget the beauty of the cross of Jesus and we must not neglect telling the world who Jesus really is.  

In v.v. 19-28, we see that John the Baptist is undergoing some pretty tough questioning from some of the Jews and religious leaders of the day in regards to who Jesus really is.  John knew that he was not the Christ (v.20); that he was nothing compared to Jesus; but that he had a great responsibility and opportunity to declare who Jesus really is. 

Jesus is not your homeboy.  Jesus isn’t somebody who pats you on the head and says, “There, there; please continue on with your life of sin and disobedience.”  Jesus isn’t somebody who is indifferent to right and wrong.  Jesus isn’t somebody who is unconcerned with suffering and injustice.  Jesus isn’t somebody who said, “I’m going to promise you sunshine, lollipops and rainbows every day of your life if you just trust in me.” 

In v.29, John the Baptist tells us who Jesus really is: “The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”  This is a description of Jesus by John the Baptist that summarizes the theological truth that John the Apostle wrote about Jesus in v.14, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.  We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Jesus The Lamb is full of grace because he died in our place on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins.  He bore the punishment for our sin on his shoulders.  He endured the cross for us and shows us the true meaning of grace. 

Jesus The Lamb is full of truth because in his death on the cross he shows us the truth of our need for a Savior.  If there’s no such thing as sin, there’s no need for a Savior.  If our sin hasn’t separated us from God and made us his enemies, there’s no need to be reconciled to God by The Lamb. 

The cross of Jesus is a big deal and it must be a big deal to us.  One of my favorite follows on Twitter is Pastor Kevin DeYoung from Lansing, MI.  Last week he Tweeted out this thought: “When we get to heaven and see the Lamb who was slain no one will be embarrassed for making too much of a bloody cross.” 

Perhaps the greatest irony of the life of faith is the beauty of the Cross.

The cross of The Lamb of God is where life begins for us when we come as sinners in repentance and leave as saints who have been forgiven and justified by the blood of Jesus shed on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. 

The cross of The Lamb of God is where healing happens deep in our hearts and minds as we see the suffering of the Lamb of God and know that by his wounds we are healed.

The cross of the Lamb of God is where our adoption as the sons and daughters of God happens because our enmity towards God is taken away and we fall in worship, adoration and love. 

The cross of the Lamb of God makes possible the resurrection of Jesus, where he conquered sin, death and hell one time once and for all. 

Although the cross may be foolishness to some, “ . . . to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”  1 Corinthians 1:18b

Dying to Live

Diverging a little bit today from following the For the Love of God reading plan to talk football and Jesus.  I’m a sports news junkie and something really caught my eye over the weekend.

The yinzers that read my blog may have heard yesterday or this morning that former Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall has decided to retire from football.  At age 26.  At an age when most professional athletes are entering the prime of their careers, and the prime of their money making ability, Mendenhall is stepping away from the game that he’s played for 16 years.  He never quite lived up to the expectations that came with being a first round draft pick in 2008, but he put together some solid seasons with the Steelers, picked up a Super Bowl ring along the way, and finished his career with the Arizona Cardinals. 

In the process, he made about $15 million.  Not too shabby.  I think most of us could walk away from work after having amassed such a sum in 5 years of work.  But a lot of people are wondering why he’s walking away now.  Why not keep going for 5 or 6 more years and make another five or ten million. 

Here’s how Mendenhall explained it in an article he wrote for Huffington Post over the weekend:

So when they ask me why I want to leave the NFL at the age of 26, I tell them that I've greatly enjoyed my time, but I no longer wish to put my body at risk for the sake of entertainment. I think about the rest of my life and I want to live it with much quality. And physically, I am grateful that I can walk away feeling as good as I did when I stepped into it.

As for the question of what will I do now, with an entire life in front of me? I say to that, I will LIVE! I plan to live in a way that I never have before, and that is freely, able to fully be me, without the expectation of representing any league, club, shield or city.

I will live. 

That’s it.  That’s his reason right there.  He is dying to live in a way that he never has before.

I bet most of us are dying to live in a way that we never have before either.  We’re just too afraid to admit it or deal with the consequences of living so boldly.  Having $15 million to fall back on wouldn’t hurt, for sure, but how many of us are bold enough to make such a freeing statement and get on with doing it?

This morning in his daily devotional, Food for the Soul, my friend Steve Smith wrote these words that really cut to the heart of the matter for those of us that don’t have $15 million to fall back on:

Your concerns and soul-sickness may not be like mine, but something is bringing your soul a dis-ease, a longing for something different from the life you’ve been living so far.  What is your soul-sickness?  The holes in your soul?  What are you living with that you wish you could change about yourself?

Is it really possible to live this kind of life?  It is if we believe the words that Jesus spoke:

“I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” – John 10:10

“I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies.” – John 11:25

“For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.” – Mark 8:35

When Jesus talks about having life and being alive in the Gospels, he’s not talking about the physiological processes that keep our hearts beating.  He’s talking about something that’s far more excellent and rich and wonderful.  He’s talking about finding the source of all of hopes, dreams, plans and purpose in Him. 

This is the kind of life we find when we are ready to lay down our own agendas and idols (and the agendas that others have for our lives) to live for His Kingdom agenda. 

A life in which we know that we’re forgiven for the sin and shame of our past. 

A life in which we know that we’re free from the chains of bondage to sin. 

A life in which our hearts and minds are healed from the hurt and disappointment of our past. 

A life in which we’re being made new and transformed by His Spirit and His Word and being shaped into his likeness and image. 

How about you?  Are you dying to live today?  I am.  Let’s seek Jesus together.  

Preaching is Easy

This morning on his Twitter account, Troy Polamalu shared this great quote from the Greek Orthodox monk, Elder Joseph the Hesychast: “Preaching is so easy, it is like throwing rocks down from the top of a tall bell tower.  Practicing what you preach, on the other hand, is so difficult it is like hauling all those rocks back to the top of the bell tower.”

Boy, does this resonate with me!

Preaching is a labor of love for me – it’s probably my favorite part of being a pastor.  I love seeing the Word of God come alive to my heart and mind through the work of the Holy Spirit; wrestling with it to understand its meaning; further struggling to know how to apply it to life; and finally seeing the Holy Spirit work in the hearts and minds of the people that hear the Word of God.  In many respects for me, preaching is easy.

It’s also one of the most dreaded parts of being a pastor.  There are times when the well seems dry for me, despite the fact that I could never exhaust the riches of God’s Word.  There are times when I struggle spiritually in my own life to feast on God’s Word for my own personal edification and growth.  And there are times when I literally fear what I’m going to preach, because I know that practicing what I preach will require some significant work in my own heart and mind. 

In 2 Corinthians 4, one of the readings from For theLove of God today, the Apostle Paul wrote these words to his friends in the Church at Corinth: “For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.  For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” (v.v. 5&6)

Let’s tweak the word preaching to promoting for practical purposes here.  Many of you don’t preach in the traditional sense, but all of us promote something.  Promoting ourselves – our agenda and our priorities – is easy.  We live in a world that values and favors self promotion over self sacrifice.  There are lots of things many of us are qualified to preach about: how to lose weight and be physically healthy; how to have lots of fun; how to make lots of money; how to have nice things and climb the corporate ladder; how to do this and how to do that and how to be a better this or a better that. 

Promoting Christ as Lord and ourselves as his servants is hard.  But for a believer, the promotion and proclamation of Jesus should be evident in all that we do.  God has given us new life in Jesus so that his light would shine in our hearts, and shine in our lives so that the world may see his power and grace and that He would be glorified.

What are you preaching with your life?  What are you promoting in your life?  Is your focus on bringing glory to God through the greatness of Jesus or is your life focused on bringing glory to you?

 Later in v.v. 10&11, Paul wrote, “We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our body.  For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body.”

The life of a disciple should be marked by death to sin and self-promotion while at the same time displaying the reality of the new life that Jesus brings in us.  Simply put, if we’re not being transformed and changed by the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, we’re not being faithful to the one who has called us to this life. 

It’s hard work, but it’s incredibly valuable work.  Like Elder Joseph said, sometimes it’s like hauling rocks.  The bigger context of 2 Corinthians 4 shows us this.  Paul spends considerable time talking about the reality of harsh persecution of Christians in the first century.  In v.v. 16-18, he declares this great promise from God: “Therefore we do not lose heart.  Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.  For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

Preaching is easy and anybody can preach a great sermon, but are we living out what transformation for God’s glory looks like?  Remember that our struggles against sin and self promotion are temporary and that victory in those areas prepares us for eternity.  Look up!  Keep your eyes focused on Jesus.  Keep your life focused on preaching and promoting the riches of his life, death and resurrection.  

When They Tell Us To Shut Up

I believe that all of us hear voices in our hearts and minds.  “Hold on a minute,” you’re thinking.  “Are you saying we’ve all got mental illness?”  Not what I mean, although I do know that for some people who battle mental illness that the voices seem very real, very loud and are sometimes very scary. 

I’m talking about voices from our past and present.  The voice of a parent that was full of condemnation.  The voice of a teacher that was full of ridicule and scorn.  The voices of people that we thought were friends, constantly tearing us apart and telling us we don’t matter.  You know the voices in your heart and mind.  I know the voices in mine.  They’re loud.  Sometimes deafening.  They create chaos and cause us to doubt the voice of Jesus and his goodness. 

In one of today’s readings in For the Love of God, we find ourselves in Luke 18.  In v.v. 35-43, we find the story of a blind man that was healed by Jesus.  The story begins by telling us that he was sitting by the roadside begging.  In our modern world we have a difficult time understanding what life was like for this man.  In Jesus’ day, people with debilitating physical problems really had little value or worth to others.  If they were fortunate, they might have a family member or friend that would take them to a public area to beg for handouts.  This was probably what life was like for this man.  Day after day.  Week after week.  Month after month.  Year after year.  In pretty quick fashion, he probably learned that there weren’t many people that cared much about him or his needs.

But on this day, in this encounter with Jesus, everything changed for him.  We don’t know what he knew about Jesus, but we can make a good guess that he had at least heard about what Jesus was doing.  Perhaps he had even been a part of a crowd that Jesus had spoken to previously.  At any rate, when he knew that Jesus was passing by in v.38, “He called out, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’”  This man had a great desire to be healed and transformed by Jesus.

In v.39, some people who were leading the way for Jesus, perhaps even the disciples of Jesus, told him to shut up.  There it was again.  The voice that told him he didn’t matter.  The voice that told him this was his life.  The voice that told him to get in line and know your place.  Just like the voice that many of us hear in our own hearts and minds. 

When they tell us to shut up, we usually listen don’t we?  When a voice from our past reminds us of our failures, we usually stop crying out for Jesus.  When a voice from our past reminds us that we’ll always be a failure, we usually stop crying out for Jesus.  When a voice from our present reminds us that we don’t matter to anybody, we usually stop crying out for Jesus.  We hear those voices and believe them.

Not this man.  “. . . he shouted all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’” 

Jesus stopped because he heard the man’s cries for help.  More than that, Jesus demanded that the blind man be brought to him.  And he said, “What do you want me to do for you?”  The man wanted to see, and he said so.  Jesus healed him because of his faith. 

In that moment, his life was changed forever.  He heard the voice of love.  He heard the voice of healing.  He heard the voice of life.  Speaking to him.  Affirming his value as a child of God, created in the image of God.  Over the din of the crowd that told him to shut up. 

And he found a life he had never had before because Jesus had given it to him.  When they told him to shut up, he kept on shouting for Jesus.  And if we really want to have the kind of life that Jesus offers to us, we have to do the same.  

Faith Isn't Easy

If you have a heartbeat, you know what it’s like to get discouraged and doubt that you’re in the right place or doing the right thing.  It’s a natural human response to hardship and difficulty.  It happens to even the strongest people of faith.

In one of today’s readings from For the Love of God, we find ourselves in the midst of the Exodus.  In Chapter 14, the Israelites are making their escape from Egypt after God has miraculously made a way for them when there seemed to be no way.  Pharaoh has sent his entire army – all of his horses, chariots and troops – to pursue the seemingly helpless and hapless Israelites as they fled Egypt.

A curious thing happened in v.v. 17&18 in Chapter 13 –

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, "If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt."  So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt armed for battle.

God wasn’t making things easy for them.  But there was a purpose in His ways, just as there always is.

As the Egyptians got closer and closer, the Israelites were losing hope.  Israel’s situation was so dire that they accused Moses, the man whom God had chosen to lead them, of bringing them out of Egypt and into the desert to die.  It was so bad that they cried out in v.12, “It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert.” 

After all that God had done to miraculously deliver them from the hand of Pharaoh – through the plagues and the Passover – in their moment of discouragement and fear, they had forgotten the incredible power of God at work among them.  Not only that, but they had forgotten the incredible love that God had for them. 

We might read this story and think, “Man, are they stupid.  How could they not see that God had things under control?”  But the truth is, you and I are prone to do the same things. 

Yesterday was supposed to be a bad day weather wise for us in the Pittsburgh area.  Early forecasts last week said that we might get up to 20 inches of snow.  As the week ended and the weekend began, the snow totals got lower, but we were still on track for 8-12 inches of snow to fall throughout Sunday. 

We woke up yesterday to snow covered roads and snow coming down at a pretty good clip.  Things looked bad.  As I drove to the movie theater for church, I began having doubts.  “Should we have cancelled worship?”  “Will we be able to get home?”  “What’s our offering going to be like today?  Will we even get enough to cover the theater rent?”  “I’m going to be preaching to the sound of crickets.”

My concern began growing into discouragement.  The snow continued to fall.  A small number of people trickled in.  Even though we start worship at 10 AM – okay, 10:05 most Sundays – most folks don’t arrive until 9:55.  I gazed out the windows of the theater lobby towards the mostly empty parking lot and thought, “Well, this is going to be a rough one today.”  I was discouraged.  I had doubts about what God could or would do in our midst.

Before the Israelites saw the Egyptians advancing, God made this promise to Moses in v.4 – “I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them.  But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” 

God has his people right where he wanted them, although they couldn’t see it at the time.  But more importantly, God had a plan in place to work for his glory in the situation.  This is an incredible promise that every Christian has – God always works for his glory in every situation.  Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

That promise comes with an important caveat.  We’ve got to love him.  But the promise is still there – in every situation we face in life, no matter how discouraging or impossible it seems, when we love God and are walking with Jesus, He works for our good. 

As we read on in Exodus 14, we see that God worked for the good of his people – the ones He loved and chose, and the ones that loved Him.  He destroyed the Egyptians and His people crossed through the sea on dry ground because of God’s power and might at work in their lives.

There were Sundays in the early days of Alive when I can remember preaching to as few as 6 or 8 people after we dismissed the kids from the worship service for their ministry time.  As I was allowing myself to get discouraged and have doubts yesterday, I remembered that.  I remembered God’s faithfulness in growing our church and bringing people to salvation through Jesus.  As we were wrapping up our worship set and getting ready to dismiss the kids, I did a quick count of how many people were there.  About 50.  Scattered throughout an auditorium that seats well over 200.  It felt so empty. 

But I was preaching on what it means to be The Church and the people of God, and a big part of that is being together and loving people that we wouldn’t otherwise love or spend time with.  And God brought a thought to my heart.  So as we finished the opening set, I came forward and dismissed the kids and then I did something that I’m sure freaked a lot of people out.  I asked everybody to come down towards the front and pack into the first 2 rows of the auditorium.  As the volunteers who stay out in the lobby and a few late-coming families made their way in, those two rows just about filled the whole way up. 

Back in the early days of Alive, a day like this would have been disastrous for my ego.  But it was a great moment for God to remind all of us who braved the elements yesterday morning that He is bigger than our discouragement.  It was a beautiful thing to look out and see individuals come together as a family.  Quite a few folks who I know are struggling with loneliness and isolation in life, sitting next to people that loved them and were glad to be in worship with them.  Folks in their 50’s and 60’s sitting next to teenagers and babies.  Wealthy folks sitting next to poor folks.  It was a beautiful picture of the Kingdom of God and a beautiful picture of the reality of what it means to be The Church.  It wasn’t the most exciting or extraordinary day in the history of Alive, but it was a great day and a beautiful day as I was reminded that my discouragement is no match for God’s power and grace at work in our lives. And by the time we were wrapping up, the snow was almost over.  We ended up with about 2 inches, which is nothing for us.  

The life of faith isn’t always easy.  In fact, it almost never is.  The things that God calls us to do to build His Kingdom on earth are daunting and downright scary sometimes.  We will get discouraged.  We will have doubts.  But God’s faithfulness in keeping His promises is a great source of comfort and strength in those times.  Like the Israelites, God still loves His kids today.  Like the Israelites, God is still at work in our lives to work for our good and his glory. 

Keeping our focus on the glory of God is how we get through those times of discouragement and doubt.  We don’t often remember the faithlessness and doubt of the Israelites, but we always remember the power of God in parting the sea and bringing glory to Himself.  As we look back on our lives, those are the moments we remember.  The moments when we were helpless, and God showed up and did a great thing!