ACTS 20:24 I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.
Paul is saying good-bye to the Ephesian church after having been ministering to them for three years. His purpose, his goal is quite clear. Finish the race. Complete the task.
Everyone one of us has a race to run and a task to complete. Both given and ordained by God. In the course of life we may run many mini-races with God or perform many small tasks for God but we also have the race that does not end until we see Christ and the task that is never finished but passed on to someone else.
Big or small, finish the race. Complete the task.
I look at the task of raising my kids. A God-ordained task if there ever was one. It was not the easiest of tasks but I look at my kids today and I can say the task has been completed. They have a lot of growing to do but it is no longer my task to raise them. Now I get to run the race alongside of them.
I look at the task of being a Pastor. Planted our church in 1997 and more than once I thought our time was done, the task complete and ready to move onto another place of ministry. But God continues to give me new tasks in the same place. In some ways, I am running this race in place. And what a race it is as God continues to make it exciting and new despite coming close to 15 years here.
I wonder what it would have been like in those very dark moments if I had chosen to not finish the task: The Sundays when it was just my family and I and the kids asking if I had to preach. The days as I cut my teeth in ministry I inadvertently bit some of the very flock I am called to shepherd. The times when the money was low and I was even lower. I could have quit before the task was done and no one would have blamed me. Yet I did not, thanks to the strength of a very wise wife and the patience of a very wise God.
If I quit the task too early I would never have seen the blessing of those who have come to know Christ as Savior. I would not have seen God move in miraculous ways in regards to buildings and facilities. I would not have grown as a preacher, a man, a husband and father.
I have come to the conclusion that any task God gives us, he equips us with what is needed to finish the task. Or at least our part of the task. There will come a day I leave this church. It may be feet first, it may not be. But I hope I can say I have been faithful to the task that God has given me.
Paul would use the race metaphor more than once in his teaching and ministry. He uses it last in his famous passage in 2 Timothy 4:6-7 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race.
By all accounts I have years of ministry for God ahead of me. So do many of you reading this blog. There will be formal ministry tasks to finish and life tasks to complete. Paul's good-bye to the Ephesians gave seed to his good-bye to Timothy and us all. In Acts he hopes to run the race and complete the task God has set before him. In Timothy he can look back with assurance that he has done just that.
O Lord, my God, help us to finish the race and complete the task. Amen.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Little old ordinary me
ACTS 20:9-12 Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. "Don't be alarmed" he said. "He's alive!" Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.
Despite the obvious miracle here, I am hard-pressed to understand why God would put such a passage in Acts. It is transitional and does not seem to hold any great theological nugget that we can chew on. Until I got to thinking that this might be another passage that God shows that his people are just ordinary, every day people.
Paul is speaking at this house because he is going to leave the next day. They have broken bread together, which can mean one of two things: They shared Communion, or they shared a meal and fellowship. Or both.
Paul is speaking very late because of his departure. People want to hear everything they can from their teacher and friend. Haven't you done this at the end of a vacation or a visit with family? You try to squeeze in as much time as possible, spend as much time with family before you leave?
I love the verse that says Paul "talked on and on". Even Paul gets infected by the preacher's disease of going on and on. Even Paul talks enough that it might bore someone. Though I have never killed anyone by my preaching, I have certainly had people fall asleep on me.
God uses ordinary people to do his extraordinary.
Sometimes, I get stuck in my ordinariness. God wants to use me for some extraordinary things but I get a little Moses syndrome going: "Lord, send someone else." The reality is if we were capable, we would not need God. If it is something that we could do without God's intervention and power, may be it is not something God wants done in the first place.
Being next to Christ means we get to go on some terrific adventures. Adventures we would not go on if we were to lag behind out of fear or uncertainty or jumped ahead out of pride. It is Christ and the power of his Holy Spirit that does the extraordinary through us.
Paul has been elevated in our minds as extraordinary. Rightly so. Yet he is extraordinary because of Christ. Paul was ordinary in many ways: He was stubborn at times. Got into arguments with his friends. Was rash in some of his decision making. He enjoyed the company of friends. He was hurt when people would say things against him. He expressed thanks and disappointment. At times, when he prayed, God did not answer the way Paul would have wanted. Ordinary. But he allowed God to use him extraordinarily.
So it is important that I do not say "Lord send some one else" like Moses initially did but to have the response of Isaiah: "Lord send me!" To put it in a more modern vernacular "Lord, send little old ordinary me!" If we do that, get ready for the extraordinary.
Despite the obvious miracle here, I am hard-pressed to understand why God would put such a passage in Acts. It is transitional and does not seem to hold any great theological nugget that we can chew on. Until I got to thinking that this might be another passage that God shows that his people are just ordinary, every day people.
Paul is speaking at this house because he is going to leave the next day. They have broken bread together, which can mean one of two things: They shared Communion, or they shared a meal and fellowship. Or both.
Paul is speaking very late because of his departure. People want to hear everything they can from their teacher and friend. Haven't you done this at the end of a vacation or a visit with family? You try to squeeze in as much time as possible, spend as much time with family before you leave?
I love the verse that says Paul "talked on and on". Even Paul gets infected by the preacher's disease of going on and on. Even Paul talks enough that it might bore someone. Though I have never killed anyone by my preaching, I have certainly had people fall asleep on me.
God uses ordinary people to do his extraordinary.
Sometimes, I get stuck in my ordinariness. God wants to use me for some extraordinary things but I get a little Moses syndrome going: "Lord, send someone else." The reality is if we were capable, we would not need God. If it is something that we could do without God's intervention and power, may be it is not something God wants done in the first place.
Being next to Christ means we get to go on some terrific adventures. Adventures we would not go on if we were to lag behind out of fear or uncertainty or jumped ahead out of pride. It is Christ and the power of his Holy Spirit that does the extraordinary through us.
Paul has been elevated in our minds as extraordinary. Rightly so. Yet he is extraordinary because of Christ. Paul was ordinary in many ways: He was stubborn at times. Got into arguments with his friends. Was rash in some of his decision making. He enjoyed the company of friends. He was hurt when people would say things against him. He expressed thanks and disappointment. At times, when he prayed, God did not answer the way Paul would have wanted. Ordinary. But he allowed God to use him extraordinarily.
So it is important that I do not say "Lord send some one else" like Moses initially did but to have the response of Isaiah: "Lord send me!" To put it in a more modern vernacular "Lord, send little old ordinary me!" If we do that, get ready for the extraordinary.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Christ is Risen....Still!
Easter is over. Church Services Are Done. Ham has been eaten, eggs have been found, candy will continue to be eaten. The Easter Holiday is done...but Easter is not.
Easter, and what it stands for and what it means for us, is an everyday thing. Easter is not something to commemorate, it is something to live everyday!
Every morning I wake up I should wake up to the thought "He Is Risen!" His promises, His mercy His grace, His love, His wisdom, His counsel, His correction is still available to us. Those things have no expiration date. In fact, Scripture tells us this:
Lamentations 3:22-24 (The Message)
22-24God's Loyal Love Couldn't Have Run Out,
His Merciful Love Couldn't Have Dried Up.
They're Created New Every Morning.
How Great Your Faithfulness!
I'm Sticking With God (I Say It Over And Over).
He's All I've Got Left.
So we need to live Easter everyday in our hearts because Christ is Risen....Still!
Easter, and what it stands for and what it means for us, is an everyday thing. Easter is not something to commemorate, it is something to live everyday!
Every morning I wake up I should wake up to the thought "He Is Risen!" His promises, His mercy His grace, His love, His wisdom, His counsel, His correction is still available to us. Those things have no expiration date. In fact, Scripture tells us this:
Lamentations 3:22-24 (The Message)
22-24God's Loyal Love Couldn't Have Run Out,
His Merciful Love Couldn't Have Dried Up.
They're Created New Every Morning.
How Great Your Faithfulness!
I'm Sticking With God (I Say It Over And Over).
He's All I've Got Left.
So we need to live Easter everyday in our hearts because Christ is Risen....Still!
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Meanwhile...
Acts 18:24-25 "Meanwhile, a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and spoke with great fervor, and taught about Jesus accurately..."
The set-up for this passage is as follows: Paul has gone on to teach the people of Ephesus. He stays for a short time, and though they beg him to stay longer he does not. Instead he leaves, saying "I will return, if it is God's will."
This is where Apollos steps in. He comes into Ephesus and becomes a great teacher for the church for awhile. He inspires the people, convinces many of the Jews that Christ is the Son of God and the small church began to grow. It is as if God had it all planned.
It is the word "meanwhile" that catches my attention. Paul would return and teach again to the church in Ephesus, but in the meanwhile, God used Apollos to be the next influence for the people of Ephesus.
This may be a strange passage to talk about parenting but I think there are some parallels to the church in Ephesus and our work as parents. Hear me out.
We spend, as followers of Christ, the first 18 years of the lives of our children pouring into them the precepts, the love, the life that it is to be a follower of Christ. We influence their thoughts, their habits, their attitudes with God's Word. We try to be a good role model of the things of God. We take to heart the promise of God found in Proverbs 22:6: "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." And then they are gone. Off to college. Moved out of the house. Getting married. Getting jobs. For 18 years we are the most consistent influence on their life and then we take a back seat to the next influence.
This is why I like the word "meanwhile". The church in Ephesus is no longer under the direct influence of Paul, but meanwhile, God sends Apollos. Things go well. Things grow. Things change.
When our sons and daughters step out our front door into life, they will no longer be under our direct influence. We can no longer protect them; monitor their behavior; correct them. This is a "meanwhile" time of life for them and us. And we have to hold on to this: In the meanwhile, God will provide and send the next influence, the next Apollos, so that our kids can continue to grow.
I thank God for the next influence that God provided for my daughter as she headed off to North Central University. She found a church that encouraged her and mentored her and gave her a place to grow and stay involved in ministry. She found pastors that took her under their wing. She found professors that brought out the best in her. She has grown, in the meanwhile.
When my son followed two years later, he found a similar experience. He, too, became involved in church and ministry. He, too, found mentors and pastors and professors that have encouraged him and helped him grow in Christ and in life. Because of these men and women, my son has discovered leadership abilities that none of us knew he had possessed.
The next influence is in place for your sons and daughters. God already has a plan for the meanwhile. Take heart.
Of course, just as Ephesus got to glean from the wisdom of Paul time and time again, my kids come and ask advice from Mom and Dad. Since both are headed into ministry, the subject of God comes up quite often. We share resources, speak of the practics of ministry, talk about the crafting of sermons and prayer and God's Word. The other issues of life come up as well: Relationships, jobs, money, how to handle disappointment. My wife and I still have influence, but in turn my kids bring back to us things I can learn. It is a great time of life.
I thank God for providing for my kids in the "meanwhile". I thank God for the Apolloses that He put in their path to be the next influence. I will never stop being Dad but I can rest better knowing that God has the "meanwhile" all set up for my kids, wherever that may take them.
The set-up for this passage is as follows: Paul has gone on to teach the people of Ephesus. He stays for a short time, and though they beg him to stay longer he does not. Instead he leaves, saying "I will return, if it is God's will."
This is where Apollos steps in. He comes into Ephesus and becomes a great teacher for the church for awhile. He inspires the people, convinces many of the Jews that Christ is the Son of God and the small church began to grow. It is as if God had it all planned.
It is the word "meanwhile" that catches my attention. Paul would return and teach again to the church in Ephesus, but in the meanwhile, God used Apollos to be the next influence for the people of Ephesus.
This may be a strange passage to talk about parenting but I think there are some parallels to the church in Ephesus and our work as parents. Hear me out.
We spend, as followers of Christ, the first 18 years of the lives of our children pouring into them the precepts, the love, the life that it is to be a follower of Christ. We influence their thoughts, their habits, their attitudes with God's Word. We try to be a good role model of the things of God. We take to heart the promise of God found in Proverbs 22:6: "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." And then they are gone. Off to college. Moved out of the house. Getting married. Getting jobs. For 18 years we are the most consistent influence on their life and then we take a back seat to the next influence.
This is why I like the word "meanwhile". The church in Ephesus is no longer under the direct influence of Paul, but meanwhile, God sends Apollos. Things go well. Things grow. Things change.
When our sons and daughters step out our front door into life, they will no longer be under our direct influence. We can no longer protect them; monitor their behavior; correct them. This is a "meanwhile" time of life for them and us. And we have to hold on to this: In the meanwhile, God will provide and send the next influence, the next Apollos, so that our kids can continue to grow.
I thank God for the next influence that God provided for my daughter as she headed off to North Central University. She found a church that encouraged her and mentored her and gave her a place to grow and stay involved in ministry. She found pastors that took her under their wing. She found professors that brought out the best in her. She has grown, in the meanwhile.
When my son followed two years later, he found a similar experience. He, too, became involved in church and ministry. He, too, found mentors and pastors and professors that have encouraged him and helped him grow in Christ and in life. Because of these men and women, my son has discovered leadership abilities that none of us knew he had possessed.
The next influence is in place for your sons and daughters. God already has a plan for the meanwhile. Take heart.
Of course, just as Ephesus got to glean from the wisdom of Paul time and time again, my kids come and ask advice from Mom and Dad. Since both are headed into ministry, the subject of God comes up quite often. We share resources, speak of the practics of ministry, talk about the crafting of sermons and prayer and God's Word. The other issues of life come up as well: Relationships, jobs, money, how to handle disappointment. My wife and I still have influence, but in turn my kids bring back to us things I can learn. It is a great time of life.
I thank God for providing for my kids in the "meanwhile". I thank God for the Apolloses that He put in their path to be the next influence. I will never stop being Dad but I can rest better knowing that God has the "meanwhile" all set up for my kids, wherever that may take them.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
No need to be alone
ACTS 18:9-10 One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: "Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city."
I have always thought of Paul as this singular, and solitary person. The circumstances surrounding his conversion and the 3 years he spent in training were so unique that no one else could hold a candle to his experiences.
Yet Paul was never alone. Ever. It was Paul and Barnabas. Paul and Silas. Paul and Timothy. At the beginning of Acts 18 Paul meets Priscilla and Aquilla in Corinth and they become important travelers with Paul during his missions trips. The book of Acts was written in such detail by Luke and focused much on Paul because Luke was with Paul on these journeys.
Even in prison, Paul was not alone. Read the end of his Prison Epistles and he lists a number of people that are there with him. Friends who had come to visit. Paul was never alone.
By the time Paul reaches Corinth in Acts 18 he has had enough. At his previous stops he had been harassed, persecuted, stoned, chased out of town, talked down at and made to feel very unwelcome. It continued in Corinth and Paul said "Enough! I will take my message to the Gentiles, then."
Paul probably had a fitful night's sleep that brought about the Lord coming to him in a vision and encouraging him. Two things God says that give us hope and instruction are this:
"I am with you" and "I have many people in this city."
As we walk with Christ in the 21st Century we must come to the understanding that we are not alone. Our relationship with God should be deeply personal and private but it also should be corporate and public. All the men and women of faith, though deeply intense with God, shared the journey with others.
I have always thought of Paul as this singular, and solitary person. The circumstances surrounding his conversion and the 3 years he spent in training were so unique that no one else could hold a candle to his experiences.
Yet Paul was never alone. Ever. It was Paul and Barnabas. Paul and Silas. Paul and Timothy. At the beginning of Acts 18 Paul meets Priscilla and Aquilla in Corinth and they become important travelers with Paul during his missions trips. The book of Acts was written in such detail by Luke and focused much on Paul because Luke was with Paul on these journeys.
Even in prison, Paul was not alone. Read the end of his Prison Epistles and he lists a number of people that are there with him. Friends who had come to visit. Paul was never alone.
By the time Paul reaches Corinth in Acts 18 he has had enough. At his previous stops he had been harassed, persecuted, stoned, chased out of town, talked down at and made to feel very unwelcome. It continued in Corinth and Paul said "Enough! I will take my message to the Gentiles, then."
Paul probably had a fitful night's sleep that brought about the Lord coming to him in a vision and encouraging him. Two things God says that give us hope and instruction are this:
"I am with you" and "I have many people in this city."
As we walk with Christ in the 21st Century we must come to the understanding that we are not alone. Our relationship with God should be deeply personal and private but it also should be corporate and public. All the men and women of faith, though deeply intense with God, shared the journey with others.
- When God created Adam he realized that it was not good for him to be alone. He then created Eve. (Genesis 2:18)
- When Moses took leadership of the people of the Hebrew nation, his brother Aaron and Miriam shared the load.
- David had Jonathan.
- Elijah had his own pity party when he cried out "I am the only one left." And God said "Don't be ridiculous, I have another 7000 in Israel." (1 Kings 19:18). It wasn't long after that Elisha came on board.
- Even Christ needed the disciples. He called them his friends.
Though the old chorus is correct when we sing "He is all I need, He is all I need, Jesus is all I need", God provides other people in the city, as well. It is imperative as a follower of Christ that you find a place in a body of believers. We are gifts to one another to help us grow in Christ.
The Biblical pattern is set. In Acts 2: 42 the believers "devoted themselves to the apostles teaching, and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer."
Hebrews 10:25 "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching."
Proverbs 27:17 "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
It is important that you do not go it alone. God has provided not just Himself but has provided many in the city. If you are opposed to organized religion, you still need to find people you can fellowship with and sharpen your walk with God. I recommend church because it is a proven connection area for people with like faith. You can find iron at a church. You can find friends at church.
Look for a church that preaches God's Word faithfully and true. You will be encouraged and you will grow.
Paul was ready to leave Corinth but once God had told him "I am with you" and "I have many people in the city" he stayed 18 months establishing the church there. I think it was important to Paul to have Priscilla and Aquilla but also to know there were many others. He was not alone.
You do not need to go it alone. Don't go it alone. Christ is all we need, but in proof of his generosity, he has for us many people that will help us in our desire to be next to Christ.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
god vs. God
Acts 17:22-23 Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Aeropagus and said "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you."
And that is exactly what Paul does.
The men of Athens were just covering their bases. They had a god for everything.They built an altar or a temple for each and every god for everything and just in case they missed something, they created the unknown god.
I am not sure we would have that problem, today. Just look on the internet and you can find most any god feasible. Did you know there is a tribe that worships Prince Philip? That there is another religion based on Star Wars called Jediism? Every god has a name nowadays.
The issue today is not that one does not know the name of a god, it is that many do not even know they have made the god which they are worshipping. But I would contend that any thing that commands the top priority in our lives has become our god.
For some this is their job. The majority of moments are spent pleasing the demands of the job, working up the ladder of success. Families are neglected. Our own health takes a back seat at the altar of our job.
Be it money, addictions, family, or even good works...if these things take priority they become our god.
Some even make their church their god. Figure that one out.
We all have a god. We should all have God.
What I have noticed when people serve other gods than God is that every other facet of life declines and takes a back seat to the god. Families fall apart or become dysfunctional. Relationships are strained. Jobs are lost. When serving a god there is nothing left for anything else.
But when we choose to serve God, he supplies us the means to not only enjoy everything else but to have those things in a much better way. Servants of God become better Fathers and Husbands. Servant of God become better employees and employers. Servants of God become better managers of money and resources.
Every god asks us to give all we got. Even Christ says we must take up our cross and follow him (Mark 8:34-35). Only serving God gives us the promise of "life to the full" (John 10:10). This is not a promise of riches untold, the best car, the corner office of the corporation. This does not guarantee a trophy wife, perfect kids, or a stress-free existence. He promises a full life, meaning putting God first allows us to have the job, the family, the meaningful relationships, the purpose, the joy and the love without sacrificing one over the other.
Serving God expands our ability to live life. Serve any other god and it minimizes what we could be and could attain.
The following words of Christ are not a threat but a promise:"But seek first [God's] kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well." (Matthew 6:33)
Inherently all of us know the important things in life. Serving God brings those things to bear.
And that is exactly what Paul does.
The men of Athens were just covering their bases. They had a god for everything.They built an altar or a temple for each and every god for everything and just in case they missed something, they created the unknown god.
I am not sure we would have that problem, today. Just look on the internet and you can find most any god feasible. Did you know there is a tribe that worships Prince Philip? That there is another religion based on Star Wars called Jediism? Every god has a name nowadays.
The issue today is not that one does not know the name of a god, it is that many do not even know they have made the god which they are worshipping. But I would contend that any thing that commands the top priority in our lives has become our god.
For some this is their job. The majority of moments are spent pleasing the demands of the job, working up the ladder of success. Families are neglected. Our own health takes a back seat at the altar of our job.
Be it money, addictions, family, or even good works...if these things take priority they become our god.
Some even make their church their god. Figure that one out.
We all have a god. We should all have God.
What I have noticed when people serve other gods than God is that every other facet of life declines and takes a back seat to the god. Families fall apart or become dysfunctional. Relationships are strained. Jobs are lost. When serving a god there is nothing left for anything else.
But when we choose to serve God, he supplies us the means to not only enjoy everything else but to have those things in a much better way. Servants of God become better Fathers and Husbands. Servant of God become better employees and employers. Servants of God become better managers of money and resources.
Every god asks us to give all we got. Even Christ says we must take up our cross and follow him (Mark 8:34-35). Only serving God gives us the promise of "life to the full" (John 10:10). This is not a promise of riches untold, the best car, the corner office of the corporation. This does not guarantee a trophy wife, perfect kids, or a stress-free existence. He promises a full life, meaning putting God first allows us to have the job, the family, the meaningful relationships, the purpose, the joy and the love without sacrificing one over the other.
Serving God expands our ability to live life. Serve any other god and it minimizes what we could be and could attain.
The following words of Christ are not a threat but a promise:"But seek first [God's] kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well." (Matthew 6:33)
Inherently all of us know the important things in life. Serving God brings those things to bear.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Evangelistically Speaking
Acts 17 5-9 But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason's house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other brothers before the city officials, shouting: "These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar's decrees, saying there is another king, one called Jesus." When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.
Nothing like a little exaggeration to handle a situation. Paul and Silas have caused trouble "all over the world"? They should be proud to be considered such world beaters! And though it is true that they are claiming there is another king called Jesus, they never said Caesar was not a king. It is highly unlikely that the Roman government, let alone Caesar, cared about Paul and Silas. They didn't even know Paul and Silas were Roman citizens when they were imprisoned unjustly in Philippi and if they were such a threat to Rome, why allow them to leave in the first place?
It was the world of the Jews in Thessalonica that was being threatened. But in order to achieve their goal of ousting Paul and Silas and the followers, they exaggerated a bit to get the point across. And people fell for the exaggeration to the point of arresting Jason and chasing Paul and Silas.
We have all exaggerated but let's call exaggeration what it is: It is the Truth compounded with a Lie.
The church exaggerates, too. Jokingly we say someone is speaking "evangelistically" when they tweak the Sunday Morning attendance a bit. In order to lift ourselves up in the eyes of our fellow ministers we may add a little bit to our missions giving total.
There was a church I knew of that claimed terrific numbers for a Vacation Bible School. 1200 was the number given for the outreach in the small town. Church officials were impressed and fellow ministers "oohed and awed." Until the exaggeration came to light. Yes, there were 1200 in attendance but that represented 300 on average a day. Impressive numbers at any rate but the Pastor sensed the need to exaggerate in order to build up his own reputation. Instead, his reputation was sullied.
Why must we compound a truth with a lie? What is so insecure about us and our call that we can't just say it like it is? Why exaggerate? Why speak evangelistically? Isn't it up to God to decide if we have been successful or not? For that matter, does success have anything to do with numbers at all? Isn't it more about being obedient to what God has called us?
I have been guilty of exaggeration. And I feel awful everytime. If the Truth is not enough how could a lie added to it make it any better?
I have determined to not exaggerate, be it about my golf game (woefully inadequate) or the numbers that fill the chairs on Sunday morning (sometimes woefully inadequate, as well). I have chosen not to speak "evangelistically" but to speak as an evangelist. Surely, if more people come to know Christ the numbers will take care of themselves.
Nothing like a little exaggeration to handle a situation. Paul and Silas have caused trouble "all over the world"? They should be proud to be considered such world beaters! And though it is true that they are claiming there is another king called Jesus, they never said Caesar was not a king. It is highly unlikely that the Roman government, let alone Caesar, cared about Paul and Silas. They didn't even know Paul and Silas were Roman citizens when they were imprisoned unjustly in Philippi and if they were such a threat to Rome, why allow them to leave in the first place?
It was the world of the Jews in Thessalonica that was being threatened. But in order to achieve their goal of ousting Paul and Silas and the followers, they exaggerated a bit to get the point across. And people fell for the exaggeration to the point of arresting Jason and chasing Paul and Silas.
We have all exaggerated but let's call exaggeration what it is: It is the Truth compounded with a Lie.
The church exaggerates, too. Jokingly we say someone is speaking "evangelistically" when they tweak the Sunday Morning attendance a bit. In order to lift ourselves up in the eyes of our fellow ministers we may add a little bit to our missions giving total.
There was a church I knew of that claimed terrific numbers for a Vacation Bible School. 1200 was the number given for the outreach in the small town. Church officials were impressed and fellow ministers "oohed and awed." Until the exaggeration came to light. Yes, there were 1200 in attendance but that represented 300 on average a day. Impressive numbers at any rate but the Pastor sensed the need to exaggerate in order to build up his own reputation. Instead, his reputation was sullied.
Why must we compound a truth with a lie? What is so insecure about us and our call that we can't just say it like it is? Why exaggerate? Why speak evangelistically? Isn't it up to God to decide if we have been successful or not? For that matter, does success have anything to do with numbers at all? Isn't it more about being obedient to what God has called us?
I have been guilty of exaggeration. And I feel awful everytime. If the Truth is not enough how could a lie added to it make it any better?
I have determined to not exaggerate, be it about my golf game (woefully inadequate) or the numbers that fill the chairs on Sunday morning (sometimes woefully inadequate, as well). I have chosen not to speak "evangelistically" but to speak as an evangelist. Surely, if more people come to know Christ the numbers will take care of themselves.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Prison Attitude
Acts 16:29-31 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved--you and your whole household."
This is a familiar story in Acts 16. Paul and Silas are jailed because they exorcised from a young girl a demon that was making her master loads of money. Paul and Silas were severely flogged, they were thrown into prison and shackled, their feet put in stocks.
What could have happened in the hours between Paul and Silas being placed in the hands of the jailer and the moment the jailer was trembling on his knees before Paul and Silas wondering what it would take to be saved? What could turn a man indebted to the the Roman Government into a man who turns his life over to Christ?
Paul and Silas happened, that's what.
Consider you are the jailer and possibly you have been doing this job for a long time. You have seen every type of criminal and miscreant imaginable in your cells. You have heard all their stories, most of them beginning with "I was framed!" or "I am innocent." After awhile you would turn a deaf ear to the complaints and pleas of the crooks.
But the jailer couldn't turn a deaf ear to Paul and Silas because instead of complaints, he heard prayers. Instead of cursing he heard hymns of praise. This had to pique his interest.
And when the earthquake came and all the doors opened, the jailer supspected the worst: all the prisoners would have fled and the Roman government would have his head. And just as he was going to do the job himself, Paul cried out,"We are all here! Don't do it!"
There was something different about these guys. Paul and Silas had even convinced the other prisoners to stay where they were. Though the end event is what is celebrated (a whole household getting saved), the jailer never would have responded without Paul and Silas living out their faith in the harshest of times.
So that is the challenge. Everyone lives a great faith when things are going well. It is not hard to put on a happy face when things are going all smiley for you. But what happens when we are thrown into the prison of life? How do we live out our faith when life is at its harshest?
Earthquakes help, but the short time of exposure the jailer had to Paul and Silas was more than enough to convince him that they had the answer to whatever the question would be. Because, in the worst possible moment: beaten, scourged, imprisoned, in stocks, Paul and Silas lived like the followers of Christ they proclaimed to be.
I cringe at some of the moments in my life when I did not walk the faith I had so proudly proclaimed. That at times when the pressure was on, I wilted. And though this only attests to my humanity and that I am a work in progress, how many saw my spiritual hissy fit or self-righteous pouting and concluded that following Christ makes no difference in a life.
Paul and Silas could have written the words to this popular worship song:
Blessed be your name, in the land that is plentiful,
when the streams of abundance flow, Blessed be your name.
Blessed be your name, when I'm found in the desert place.
though I walk through the wilderness, Blessed be your name.
Every blessing you pour out I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord, still I will say:
Blessed be the name of the Lord!
So the key is to respond to the hardships in similar manner as to when life is going well. I should be consistent in my reaction. And this comes by being next to Christ in prayer, in His word, and in fellowship with others who share your faith in Christ. If I have truly ceded my life to God, then when certain things happen as a result of my faith, I will just have to trust God has got it figured out. And I should go on praying and praising in the darkest of moments.
Who knows? Someone may be watching and decide to follow Christ. That would be alright.
This is a familiar story in Acts 16. Paul and Silas are jailed because they exorcised from a young girl a demon that was making her master loads of money. Paul and Silas were severely flogged, they were thrown into prison and shackled, their feet put in stocks.
What could have happened in the hours between Paul and Silas being placed in the hands of the jailer and the moment the jailer was trembling on his knees before Paul and Silas wondering what it would take to be saved? What could turn a man indebted to the the Roman Government into a man who turns his life over to Christ?
Paul and Silas happened, that's what.
Consider you are the jailer and possibly you have been doing this job for a long time. You have seen every type of criminal and miscreant imaginable in your cells. You have heard all their stories, most of them beginning with "I was framed!" or "I am innocent." After awhile you would turn a deaf ear to the complaints and pleas of the crooks.
But the jailer couldn't turn a deaf ear to Paul and Silas because instead of complaints, he heard prayers. Instead of cursing he heard hymns of praise. This had to pique his interest.
And when the earthquake came and all the doors opened, the jailer supspected the worst: all the prisoners would have fled and the Roman government would have his head. And just as he was going to do the job himself, Paul cried out,"We are all here! Don't do it!"
There was something different about these guys. Paul and Silas had even convinced the other prisoners to stay where they were. Though the end event is what is celebrated (a whole household getting saved), the jailer never would have responded without Paul and Silas living out their faith in the harshest of times.
So that is the challenge. Everyone lives a great faith when things are going well. It is not hard to put on a happy face when things are going all smiley for you. But what happens when we are thrown into the prison of life? How do we live out our faith when life is at its harshest?
Earthquakes help, but the short time of exposure the jailer had to Paul and Silas was more than enough to convince him that they had the answer to whatever the question would be. Because, in the worst possible moment: beaten, scourged, imprisoned, in stocks, Paul and Silas lived like the followers of Christ they proclaimed to be.
I cringe at some of the moments in my life when I did not walk the faith I had so proudly proclaimed. That at times when the pressure was on, I wilted. And though this only attests to my humanity and that I am a work in progress, how many saw my spiritual hissy fit or self-righteous pouting and concluded that following Christ makes no difference in a life.
Paul and Silas could have written the words to this popular worship song:
Blessed be your name, in the land that is plentiful,
when the streams of abundance flow, Blessed be your name.
Blessed be your name, when I'm found in the desert place.
though I walk through the wilderness, Blessed be your name.
Every blessing you pour out I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord, still I will say:
Blessed be the name of the Lord!
So the key is to respond to the hardships in similar manner as to when life is going well. I should be consistent in my reaction. And this comes by being next to Christ in prayer, in His word, and in fellowship with others who share your faith in Christ. If I have truly ceded my life to God, then when certain things happen as a result of my faith, I will just have to trust God has got it figured out. And I should go on praying and praising in the darkest of moments.
Who knows? Someone may be watching and decide to follow Christ. That would be alright.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
A God that wants to be next to me.
It is precocious, I think, to title a blog "Next2Christ".
Such a title implies that I am next to Jesus, keeping in step with Him and His desire for my life. It all sounds so simple in a Christian-cliche sort of way, as if Christ and I are holding hands and skipping down the yellow brick road of life until I reach heaven.
The fact is, my walk with Christ sometimes displays a lack of heart, courage, and a brain. Even as a Pastor.
"Next2Christ", then, is not a statement of fact, but an expression of desire. I would like to be, every moment, next to Jesus. I would like to always have the heart of compassion that Christ displays, the courage of my convictions that Christ voices,and a brain not just to understand that "the square of the length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle equals the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sided" but to understand the best way to apply God's Word to my life and how to communicate that to others.
Actually, the blog could easily be called "Next2Gerard" because it is Christ who promises to never leave me nor forsake me. It is Christ who has sent the Holy Spirit to comfort, instruct and guide. It is Christ who draws near to me as I draw near to Him. Too often I am lagging behind or going on ahead of Christ and it is He who waits for me to catch up or to call me back.
So, "Next2Christ" will serve as a travelogue of my journey with Christ through God's Word. It is devotional in nature, personal by design. I hope that I spend more time next to Jesus rather than catching up or falling behind. And if any part of my walk can help your walk, that will work for me.
Such a title implies that I am next to Jesus, keeping in step with Him and His desire for my life. It all sounds so simple in a Christian-cliche sort of way, as if Christ and I are holding hands and skipping down the yellow brick road of life until I reach heaven.
The fact is, my walk with Christ sometimes displays a lack of heart, courage, and a brain. Even as a Pastor.
"Next2Christ", then, is not a statement of fact, but an expression of desire. I would like to be, every moment, next to Jesus. I would like to always have the heart of compassion that Christ displays, the courage of my convictions that Christ voices,and a brain not just to understand that "the square of the length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle equals the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sided" but to understand the best way to apply God's Word to my life and how to communicate that to others.
Actually, the blog could easily be called "Next2Gerard" because it is Christ who promises to never leave me nor forsake me. It is Christ who has sent the Holy Spirit to comfort, instruct and guide. It is Christ who draws near to me as I draw near to Him. Too often I am lagging behind or going on ahead of Christ and it is He who waits for me to catch up or to call me back.
So, "Next2Christ" will serve as a travelogue of my journey with Christ through God's Word. It is devotional in nature, personal by design. I hope that I spend more time next to Jesus rather than catching up or falling behind. And if any part of my walk can help your walk, that will work for me.
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