Life In A Hole

Life in a hole.

From Facebook: Facebook friends and family, I need a prayer tonight. Tomorrow, I will be at the hospital and it's going to be a very hard day. This is really heavy on my heart.

Life in a hole.

Also from Facebook: I'm so very nervous and anxious. I just need to breathe! I would take an Ambien but it is almost daylight.

Life in a hole.

In an e-mail: Quite honestly, Scott, my wife does not love me anymore and we both know it.

Life in a hole.

From The Carpenters: Rainy days and Mondays always get me down.

Life in a hole.

From a conversation at the ballpark: I have failed my children. All of their friends have so many opportunities, and mine look at me and wonder, “Why not me?”

Life in a hole.

In an e-mail: My child is an alcoholic. 

Life in a hole. 

From a conversation over lunch: I close my eyes at night and see myself walking up the steps of a gallows. I have failed at life.

Life in a hole.

I've been in a lot of holes and you have, too. Some are just a temporary bad mood, others are a day-long funk (like, for me, last Thursday), others linger for a while, some show up to haunt us from our childhood, and some are deep and wide. We can see some of the holes coming from a distance, but others surprise us and we fall in before we can help it. Some holes are in our head, created by a wild imagination and too little rest. Some are knee-buckling and all too real.

We live our lives in and out of holes.

The purpose of this lesson is to give four reminders about life in the hole.

Jesus is there in the hole.

The Bible is one giant book about men and women who find themselves in holes and are touched by the hand of God. I would tell every hurting person - unemployed, separated or divorced, and sick over an uncertain future - to read the Bible and draw hope from God's redemption of people who found themselves in holes.

Most all of us are, to a degree, Sunday morning Christians. We want a nice, clean and easy faith life. When things are going great, we say, "Well, thank you, God, for all these blessings, and for making my life so great." We walk tall and proud when we are out of the holes. And, then we step in a hole and we panic. We forget all about God. The true color of our faith is exposed.

But, listen, God is in the hole. God is everywhere, and He is everywhere all the time. And, His son, Jesus, is calling us to faith in Him and a restored relationship with God, who can bring peace to us in the hole.

One of my favorite Bible stories is from Daniel 3:19-28. It's the story of the three boys, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. King Nebuchadnezzar ordered everyone to bow down to his golden statue. These boys refused, and the king had them throw into a furnace so hot it killed the guards who threw the boys inside. As the king looked inside, he saw a fourth figure with the boys, and he saw the boys were no longer bound. Ultimately, the three boys emerged from the furnace unharmed.

Many presume that fourth figure in the furnace was an angel. It could have been, but I believe it was Jesus - years before He was ever born in the manger. The reason I believe the figure was Jesus is because the king was converted to a faith in our holy God because of the experience.

I won't unpack this whole story for you, but look closely: These boys were consistent in their love of the Lord, and they stood for the things of the Lord. Their faith was not altered by the hole because they knew the Lord was in the hole with them. The hole was not prevented, but the Lord was in the hole with them.

In the first chapter of Joshua, over and over, God says to the people, "Don't be afraid. I am with you, always." The next time you feel a panic coming, open Joshua 1 and read it. Don't be afraid. Jesus' last words to His disciples, knowing they would all be martyred (John survived poisoning and was exiled), Jesus said, (I know you are going to find yourselves in holes as you carry the gospel), but I am with you until the end of the age (forever)." That message is for us today, too.

At one point in my life, I was unemployed. I was in a hole. The Lord called me to spend my idle time - waiting on interview callbacks - visiting people in the hospital. And, so I went to the church, got the hospital list, and went to visit those who were sick. I didn't know the right words to say, but I quickly found my "being there" was welcome ministry. Ministry is a great way to get out of a hole. During those visits, I had opportunity to sit - day by day - with a man whose daughter was dying with cancer. She was in the final stages. This was a strong family of faith, and she was a believer. I sat with this daddy every day until she died. I will never, ever forget the peace of that hospital room, and the peace this man enjoyed. He knew that Jesus was in that room. He knew the presence of the Holy Spirit was calming and I dare say glorious even in the face of a dying girl's groans. I will never get over that "knowing" that Jesus is in the hole with us, and that Jesus trumps death. I understood - in my own unemployment - that Jesus was in the hole with me, too.

Two more things: Jesus understands that we are afraid. It's okay. Just remember this from 1 John 4:18, "My perfect love will banish fear from your heart." Turn to Jesus in the hole. Pray.And, Jesus hears our prayers. 1 John 5:14: "And, we can be confident that He will listen to us.” For those who know Jesus, God is listening when we speak to Him, asking Him to make our lives right according to His will for us. 

I believe that most people, even most Jesus followers, never pray. My own prayer life isn't what it should be. Most people don't know how to pray. Most people are embarrassed to pray, believing it is a sign of weakness. Heck, I've even had people tell me not to pray for them because they saw it as a sign of charity. Pray, people. Pray. My most peaceful time with God comes when I say nothing out loud. I just kneel in front of the sofa, put my head in my hands on the sofa, and just focus on the Lord. As people come to my mind, I pray for them. I thank God for sending His son to die for me. I thank God for crossing my life with people who help me grow in faith. Sometimes, I cry out for God to help me out of a hole. There are no perfect prayers, and it's ridiculous to believe that we must seek out a "professional prayer warrior" to pray for us. I get nervous when I hear people, in the context of prayer, talking more about human intercessors than they do about Jesus. Brennan Manning wrote The Ragamuffin Gospel. I am reading it; you should read it, too. In it, Manning writes that God sees our prayers like a parent sees a toddler's coloring book. The toddler doesn't understand the colors.The toddler can't color within the lines. The result is a sloppy scribbling on a piece of paper. But, every parent looks at it and sees it as a Picasso. It's beautiful and it goes on the refrigerator. That's how the Lord sees our prayers. No matter how sloppy they are, God delights in the fact that we are praying. So, pray from the hole.

The size of the hole doesn't matter.

A friend of mine sent me a recent e-mail from within a hole.

I was so thankful that he took time to send it, honoring me with the opportunity to encourage him.

But, like so many of these cries from the hole, he wrote, "I know people are struggling with things that are a  lot worse than this." I told him, the power of God to be all to all and at all times is beyond our feeble attempt to even understand the word "power." God sees a person He loves, and He sees that person crying out from a hole. He focuses on the person; not the hole.

In Psalm 5:22, we read:  “Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.” There is not a heavenly pecking order when it comes to holes. Psalm 139:12: "Even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.”

If you believe that God doesn't care when your car won't start and you don't have the money to fix it, you are not in worship of a God who can hang each star and call it by name. If you believe that God doesn't care when you are sad because the children are growing up and moving on, then I call that blasphemy. It's an insult to God. If you have a faith in Jesus as the Lord and Savior of your life, your burdens - great and small and even tiny - burden the God who loves you enough to send His son to die for you.

The size of the hole does not matter to God.

Tell others when you are in a hole.

We hate charity, don't we? Why? Because in our "stand on your on two feet" culture of personal supremacy, we have relegated charity to be synonymous with government welfare. Charity is a spirit of generosity and helpfulness. Believers have an obligation to be involved in charity as providers and as grateful recipients. I believe a person demonstrates their faith in Jesus by their approach to charity - coming and going. Jesus' death and resurrection was charity. How can we follow Jesus, and not be deep in charitable lifestyle - receiving and providing?

In 1 Peter 5:9, we read, “Stand firm in faith, because you know the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of suffering.” As believers, you and I join a universal family of faith, regardless of the sign outside the church building. We are part of a local church family, and many of us are a part of small groups of faith friends.

At the depth of one of my darkest holes, God sent a voice - spoken through the mouth of a family friend - who said, "Scott, your biggest mistake in this hole was not turning to your family and friends, who love you. As soon as you feel the ground shifting, reach out to those who love you.” Those words were a mile-marker in my faith life.

But, wait a minute. If I start telling people about my hole, they will start whispering about me. They might start raising money, and that will be embarrass me. They might start bringing chicken casseroles. They will take my pain and make it public knowledge. Some will try to fix my life. Some might say I deserve what I get. If you start feeling or thinking this way, well, you are hearing the voice of Satan, who wants you to stay in that hole with all its darkness and all its fear. You and I were not meant, as Jesus followers, to live private lives of pain. We have an army of fellow hole-dwellers standing with us. God says turn to the army of faith.

I was visiting a church recently, and sat on the periphery of a staff meeting. The pastor announced that one of the staff members was resigning. Her life had been in a hole for a long time, and she made the decision to leave the staff. There was obvious pain in the room, and there was no turning back from her decision. Clearly, around the room, there was concern for the hurting person. But, there was also pain at being robbed of the opportunity to love and serve this person before her climactic decision to leave.

It is sinful to be in a hole and selfishly rob others of the opportunity to exercise their faith - their charity - and to see how God will work in it. You can hide behind all the veils of privacy that you want, and initially some privacy with the Lord may be needed, but ultimately, I believe the Lord is going to say, "turn to your family of faith with this." Hole-dwelling can be very selfish and sinful. Don't be that way.

When you are not in a hole, help provide a ladder for those in the holes.

In those times when we are not in a hole, the last thing we want to do is think about the holes. Right? We stand on good ground, we breathe deep and we try to stay away from holes. We don't visit hospitals, prisons and nursing homes because they remind us of the dark places - the holes. And, we don't want to think about them. We don't want someone else's life to rub off on us. What if they pull us into the hole with them? We just want to rest and enjoy life outside the hole rather than looking down in holes.

Well, it's this selfish and sinful attitude that causes those in the hole to distrust us. Our inability to help people out of holes is why so many people get comfortable in holes and don't tell anyone. They don't want to be failed by those who claim to love Jesus. Is there a more sad statement than that? Not for me.

In 1 John 4:7, we read, "Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God.” We have to love one another. Believers must always carry ladders with them so we can help people out of holes.

I was able to exercise my faith last week, and received such a blessing from it. A friend of mine from high school was recently transferred to Texas. In this economy, it was one of those "move or lose it" corporate decisions, and so she moved. This separates her from beloved family. She's in a hole. I noticed her painful cry through Facebook. She wrote, "I'm having a difficult time adjusting to (Texas) and being without my husband and best friend, and my family. Keep me in your prayers that I will settle (calm) down and I will find a good church here for my Sundays away from my home church."

The Holy Spirit nudged me to contact a ministry counterpart (a wife, mom and grandmother much like my Georgia friend) in Texas, and my Texas friend reached out to my Georgia friend. They made a connection. Who wins in that? We all do. My Georgia friend, a believer, cried out, "I'm in a hole!" The Spirit moved me to bring a ladder. My Texas friend jumped in to help with the ladder. All of us were blessed with the reminder that God is larger than all the holes we face. 

Are you in a hole today?

Do you feel all alone in the hole?

Does God seem a long ways away? Do you know He cares? 

Do you know Jesus as your Savior from sin, and as the comfort – the cool water – while in the hole?

Do you feel Jesus there with you in the hole?

Do you have other believers around you, loving you? Are you confiding in them?

Are you experiencing the undefinable joy of blessing someone else’s life?

Are you walking in tandem with our Savior?

Followship: The secret ingredient to being a great Leader

By John Wright 

The last opportunity that I had to speak to the V Class, I talked about leadership and how Jesus was absolutely the greatest leader that ever lived.  Well today, I will continue on that theme but talk about a leadership quality that is sometimes overlooked and that quality is followership.  I have had the opportunity over the years to work with some of the world’s greatest leaders and one thing that I am convinced of is that you cannot be a good leader without being a great follower.  There is no gray area in Jesus’ teaching about this. In John 14;15, Christ says “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” 

So let me start this discussion of followership by saying that I love a good story.  Growing up in southern Appalachia, a great part of our Scotch-Irish heritage is the handing down of history through the oral tradition.  In fact, the little town that I am from hosts the National Storytelling Festival every year.  Every year, people from all over the world pour into this little town to hear world-renowned story tellers.  I could get the same thing by sitting in my grandmother’s kitchen or the local country store.  And the good thing about those options, in addition to being free, I was usually able to eat what was left in a mixing bowl or have someone buy me a grape or peach Nehi.  In fact, Susan’s and my alma mater now offers a storytelling program of study, so hopefully this tradition is not going away in our modern times,

I say all this because this year, I am reading through the Bible using a chronological version and I am constantly amazed at how fascinating God’s word is as a literary work.  And what you have to appreciate is that all those great stories and historic accounts began with an oral tradition, generations and generations passing these stories down.  So, this morning, I would like to use two stories from the Old Testament as examples of good and bad followership. 

The first story is the account of Saul as the first king of the Israelites in the book of 1st Samuel.  The fact that Saul is the king of Israel is even an account of corporate bad followership by the entire nation of Israel.  If you remember, before Saul becoming king the affairs of the nation were overseen by judges whose job was to interpret the will of God for the people.  But like so many times in our lives, we have God’s perfect will but we think we know what is best.  So the people of Israel come to Samuel and say “well all the other nations have a king why can’t we have one.” The problem was that they already had a king.  God was their king and by wanting a king they, in turn, were telling God that he was not good enough.  Do we ever do that? Do we say to God, “well this person has this and that, and I want it, too.” When Jesus’ disciples asked Him to teach them how to pray, remember that he taught them to ask for their daily bread. Trust God for exactly what you need because not only is He Jehovah Jireh that can provide it, he is the God of Infinite Wisdom and he knows exactly what you need.  So fast-forward a few years. Saul has been doing a pretty good job as king.  After claiming the land that God had promised to them, there was one nation that continue to be a thorn in the side of Israel and that was the Amalekites. So let’s pick up the story in 1 Samuel 15.

15 Samuel said to Saul, “I am the one the Lord sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from the Lord. 2 This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. 3 Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy[a] all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”

Now that sounds pretty rough, doesn’t it? It does to me and I have had the unfortunate opportunity to experience ground combat.  But, remember that this about followership, obedience to a perfect God, with perfect wisdom. 

So let’s pick up the story again:  

7 Then Saul attacked the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, near the eastern border of Egypt. 8 He took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and all his people he totally destroyed with the sword. 9 But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves[b] and lambs—everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed.

Did you catch that?  Everything that was good they kept, everything that was despised and weak they destroyed.  Saul has got clear instructions from God Almighty and he’s following those instructions right down to the letter. Nope.  Sound like anyone you know? Sounds like someone that lives in your mirror?

I love the next part of the story.  I think Samuel must been just a really cool old guy.

11-12 Samuel was angry when he heard this. He prayed his anger and disappointment all through the night. He got up early in the morning to confront Saul but was told, “Saul’s gone. He went to Carmel to set up a victory monument in his own honor, and then was headed for Gilgal.”

By the time Samuel caught up with him, Saul had just finished an act of worship, having used Amalekite plunder for the burnt offerings sacrificed to God.

13 As Samuel came close, Saul called out, “God’s blessings on you! I accomplished God’s plan to the letter!”

14 Samuel said, “So what’s this I’m hearing—this bleating of sheep, this mooing of cattle?”

Yes, you heard that right. Saul had gone to erect a monument to his own honor.  Oh, but he’s not done.  He’s standing in a hole already and shoveling as fast as he can.  He goes on tell Samuel:

15 “Only some Amalekite loot,” said Saul. “The soldiers saved back a few of the choice cattle and sheep to offer up in sacrifice to God. But everything else we destroyed under the holy ban.”

Of course, we know the rest of the story. God decides that Saul’s descendants will not serve as the king of Israel and Samuel will go on to find their next king.  He’ll find a country boy, Jessie’s youngest son, a kid named David.  But listen to what Samuel says to Saul after learning about what he has done.

What is more pleasing to the Lord: your burnt offerings and sacrifices
or your obedience to his voice?
Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.

23 Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft  and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols.
So because you have rejected the command of the Lord,he has rejected you as king.

Saul had a pretty good gig going.  The first king of Israel and he lets his pride get in the way and blow it for him.  You see, there is a major difference in following the instructions of God and the instructions of man.  When you follow the instructions of another person, there can be that little sliver of doubt as to whether or not this is really the right thing to do.  When following God there is never a reason to doubt his instruction, it’s perfect.  Many folks would tell you that The Bible is an antiquated book full of instruction and wisdom for people that lived a long time ago and in times very different than others.  I will tell you that they are wrong and will further say that there is not a conflict or crisis in your life that the Holy Spirit and the words of God himself in this book aren’t answered.  Followership is so easy but still so hard.

I am a big fan of the movie, Forrest Gump. I especially love the scene when he has just assembled his M-16 and the big drill sergeant asks him “Gump, why did you put that weapon together so fast?” Of course, his reply was “Because you told me to Drill Sergeant!” Do you think God would like to hear us justify our actions by saying, “because you told me to God?"

I told you that I would give you a good and bad example of followership from the Bible.  Obviously that was the bad one.  Not only do I love stories as a result of my childhood, I also have a tendency to express myself using euphemisms.  That’s just the way people communicate where I’m from.  I went my whole childhood wondering who Cooter Brown was and why he didn’t get help for his drinking problem. And while I didn’t know who this guy named Dick was, I certainly wondering why he never adjusted his hatband. Southern mamas have some of the best ones.  My mother used to tell me to “get next to myself” and I never understood what that meant.  Anyway, one of my favorite metaphors is that “you have to drink upstream from the herd” and really no explanation is required for that one. So this story is about a guy who drank upstream from the herd both figuratively and literally.

Our next story takes place before Saul back in the time of the judges and begins the way that so many stories begin in the Old Testament, “The Israelites did evil in the sight of the Lord.” He we go again.  I think I could write my autobiography starting chapters that way. “Then John did evil in the sight of the Lord.” Then just like Scott talked about last week, God’s gotta do a little work on me.  Now a man named Gideon is chosen by God to be the judge for Israel. Now unlike Saul, who struggled with his pride, Gideon is like so many others who doubt their own abilities when God promises to side with us to do his own will.  For seven years, the people of Israel have been tormented by the nation of Midian.  So God tells Gideon that he is going to deliver the Midianites into the hands of the Israelite army. Preparing for battle, Gideon receives his first order from God:

Judges 7

2The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many warriors with you. If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength. 3 Therefore, tell the people, ‘Whoever is timid or afraid may leave this mountain[a] and go home.’” So 22,000 of them went home, leaving only 10,000 who were willing to fight.

Oh, it gets better.  The last time you heard this story might have been on a flannel graph in Sunday School and if you don’t know what a flannel graph is, I’m sorry your childhood just wasn’t complete.

4 But the Lord told Gideon, “There are still too many! Bring them down to the spring, and I will test them to determine who will go with you and who will not.” 5 When Gideon took his warriors down to the water, the Lord told him, “Divide the men into two groups. In one group put all those who cup water in their hands and lap it up with their tongues like dogs. In the other group put all those who kneel down and drink with their mouths in the stream.” 6 Only 300 of the men drank from their hands. All the others got down on their knees and drank with their mouths in the stream.

If I’m Gideon, I’m thinking, “OK, surely God is going to tell me to send those 300 home and I’ll take the 9,700 left and go defeat the Midianites.” Right? Nope

7 The Lord told Gideon, “With these 300 men I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites. Send all the others home.” 8 So Gideon collected the provisions and rams’ horns of the other warriors and sent them home. But he kept the 300 men with him.

But God did something very special for Gideon. He encourages him just like he will encourage you through the Holy Spirit when you resolve to do his will.  Like any great military leader, He instructs Gideon to go on a little recon. So Gideon and his servant, Purah go creeping down to the Midianite camp where they overhear this conversation: 

13 Gideon crept up just as a man was telling his companion about a dream. The man said, “I had this dream, and in my dream a loaf of barley bread came tumbling down into the Midianite camp. It hit a tent, turned it over, and knocked it flat!”14 His companion answered, “Your dream can mean only one thing—God has given Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite, victory over Midian and all its allies!”

Well, the rest of the story is pretty simple.  Gideon and his 300 troops go on to totally annihilate the Midianites.

Do you notice the difference between Saul and Gideon?  Both leaders were faced with huge tasks that can only be accomplished with the help of God. And unlike Saul, every time Gideon was given instruction he followed it with complete obedience.  You see not only was Gideon displaying obedience in his personal life, the fate of the entire nation of Israel rested on his decisions.  Think about the leadership roles that you have assumed (mom, dad, teacher coach, manager) and how your ability to follow God affects those around you.

In the latter chapters of John, Jesus had just washed his disciple feet and he is preparing for this terrible death that he will soon face.  This is what he tells His disciples:

John 14:

12 “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. 13 You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. 14 Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!15 “If you love me, obey[d] my commandments. 

When you read this that this whole concept of followership seems so elementary. Why wouldn’t we follow God with complete obedience? But there’s good news.  In the same passage, Jesus goes on to say

16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate,who will never leave you. 17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.

Folks, never forget that when you become a Christian that the Spirit of God lives within you.  After Saul’s sin with the Amalakites the Bible says that the Spirit of God left him.  How sad does that sound?  But Jesus promises us that if we belong to him the Holy Spirit will never leave us.

God will discipline those who are His

Does God punish us?

As I have told you before, I was especially rebellious in my 20s, leading to some ugliness in my life as I reached 30. My mama, who had introduced me to Jesus and followed my Christian journey all my life, said to me one day, “Scott, God will not let ONE OF HIS continue to rebel like this.” Those words penetrated me and caused me to pause. She did not speak those words in anger. In fact, it was her lips moving, but it was the voice of God speaking to me. That is why I can tell you that God will not let us call Jesus, Lord, and then continue to purposely live our lives with self-indulgence. If I do that, I will be disciplined by God. If you live that way, you too will be disciplined by God.

But, let's start this discussion elsewhere and come back to that.

We all sin, and we sin (love self more than we love God and others) throughout our lives. We sin by putting our plans ahead of God's plans. We sin when we choose the smart action rather than the right action. We can't escape sin. Sin is with us from birth to death. And, because God is sinless, and all of creation belongs to God, God must punish sin.

It's like we're born on Death Row. But, there's hope! God sent Jesus to free us from Death Row. Those who confess Jesus as their Lord & Savior from sin are spared God's wrath. As a follower of Jesus, my sin - past, present and future - were punished on the cross, where Jesus was crucified. Paul writes in Romans 8:1, "So, now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus." Because of Jesus' sacrifice, God sees only the righteousness of Jesus when He looks at believers. Our sins were nailed to the cross with Jesus, and we will never be punished for them. That's why we call Jesus the Good News. It is Good News to be freed from Death Row.

The unbeliever, sadly, does not have a relationship with God through Jesus. He or she is not saved from sin. The unbeliever may live a good life with what they perceive as rich blessing, but the unbeliever remains on Death Row. Dying on Death Row, the unbeliever receives God's death penalty, and spends eternity in a real and literal place called hell. God doesn't send people to hell; people choose to be there.

Let's now turn our attention back to the believers, spared from the God's wrath on sin. Though forgiven and saved, sin remains in our lives. But, believers have the Holy Spirit living within them. And, the Spirit cries out when we sin, telling us to avoid or flee from the sinful behavior, or thought, or action. As we are counseled by the Spirit that we are involved in sin and we don't repent of the sin, continuing to take up the sin, God will step in and discipline us in a divine way.

It's a parent-child relationship.

When the boys were little, if I told them to stop doing something, and they kept doing it out of defiance or neglect, I whipped them. I certainly loved them, and the whipping was to shape them into the men that Vicki and I wanted them to grow up and be. It was not a spanking to hurt them, but to get their attention and shape them. My preferred discipline style was a whipping. Other parents choose isolation punishment or the removal of activities. I preferred whippings because I could take care of business in less than three minutes, correct the behavior, and not have to keep up with how long someone had been in timeout, and I was not going to punish an entire baseball team by keeping my son out of practice. But, the point is this: As we discipline children for rebellious behavior, we can expect God to discipline us for continued rebellious behavior. That’s what my mama meant when she said, “God will not let ONE OF HIS continue to rebel like this.”

If you don't ever feel God's discipline - through the Holy Spirit, the words of others, or through a situation - you may not be saved from sin. I say this because I can't imagine a Holy God who loves you ignoring your desire to do, and act, outside of His plan for you as a follower of Jesus. I believe that all believers are regularly disciplined. I know I am, and I can't imagine that other believers are any different than me.

In Hebrews 12:7-13 (NLT), we read, "As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as His own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father? If God doesn't discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn't we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever? For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God's discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening - it's painful! But, afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. So, take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees.Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong."

We should be thankful that God loves us enough to discipline us, shaping us as stronger followers of Jesus.

Why is the discipline necessary, you ask? Well, to make us more like Jesus, yes, but read again Hebrews 12:13. You and I have a responsibility to live lives that encourage the weak in faith. We will be disciplined when our lives have a negative impact on the weak in faith. The next time you socialize with friends, please keep that in mind. People are always watching. Believers must reflect the One they claim to follow. Failing to be conscious of the weak is grounds for discipline. It will sting.

God's discipline is designed to turn us from rebellion to obedience. It's to open our eyes more clearly to God's calling on our lives. Read what David writes in Psalms 32:3-5, "When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, "I will confess my rebellion to the Lord." And, you forgave me! All my guilt is gone." So, God's discipline is from a place of love. It is a shaping of our lives to a more peaceful, hopeful, and loving existence.

Okay, Scott, how does God discipline us, specifically? Well, none of us are God, none of us can understand the ways of God, and God can choose to discipline as He sees fit. But, here's some thoughts for you:

1. The discipline will be from a place of love. It will not be from a place of hard-heartedness or cruelty. My analogy. God's discipline will be more like a spanking; not a torturous event like cutting off your fingers. But, the spanking will have sting to it, it will get our attention, and it will cause us to confess sin and turn from it. When we do that, God promises peace.
2. The discipline will fit the sin, and you will be able to recognize that it does so. This is how God teaches us.
3. The believer will know he or she deserved the discipline. Because of the Holy Spirit within us, there will be brokenness and repentance. David wrote that he groaned all day under the weight of God's discipline. Come on, as a follower you know - you know to your core - when you have done wrong, acted wrong, said something wrong, and taken the low road. You know when you've been ugly. I do, and I know you do, too. And, because I belong to God - as a follower of Jesus - I can expect discipline for regular and unrepentant selfishness.

Very personally, I hear God's discipline through Vicki. I hear it through my dearest friends. I feel it to my core. God will take me to the desert to teach me, too. For me, personally, God takes His hands off my life and I start sinking. I'm restless, I'm not at peace, I'm worried, I'm frustrated, I'm sleepless, and I'm mildly depressed. Then I cry out, beg forgiveness, and peace is restored. That's how God's discipline works for me.

What inquiring minds want to know, because we are all sinners, is this: When do "they" get their discipline, and can I watch? We have this fascination with wanting to see others punished for what "they" do, specifically if "they" are doing it to me and mine. That's a very sinful attitude, because it inserts "me" in the discipline of others by a Holy God for my satisfaction. The prayer should not be, "Sic'em, Lord" but instead, "Use me Lord to love them into a stronger relationship with you." Big difference.

What about those who claim to love Jesus, but seem to sin their entire lives? Well, this leads us back to conversations of The Narrow Gate, right? If someone perpetually sins, and never turns from it, there’s a strong chance that person does not know the Lord at all – regardless of what they say and do. Why? Because a follower of Jesus is going to be disciplined, will realize it, and turn from the sinful behavior. So, our responsibility is to build relationship with that person toward the opportunity of sharing Jesus with them. We can’t turn from them, nose in the air, and give them the middle finger.

Some people have addiction problems. I understand that. While we all have a sin problem, in some believers sin has rooted and manifested into addiction – sexual, alcohol, chemical to name some. If the addict is a believer, God’s discipline will drive that person to seek professional help, including, possibly, Christian counseling.That’s why there is always hope for every person – even those whose sinful nature has gotten out of their control.

But understand something. It all begins with Jesus. Know Jesus as your Savior, and escape God's punishment on sin. Know Jesus and lean on the Holy Spirit for right direction in daily living. Enjoy today – and in eternity – the love, hope and peace that comes with Jesus victory over your sin. Thank God for the continuous shaping He does with me and you through His divine discipline.

Love Lifted Me - Easter 2013

Psalms 40:2 - "He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along."

God is perfect in every way. Deuteronomy 3:24 reads “God is the rock. His works are perfect, and His ways are just. He is a faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just.”

Paul reminds us in Romans 3:23 of the wide chasm that exists between God and us:  “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.”

What separates us from God is our sinfulness - our selfishness.
I chuckle sometimes at how ridiculous we are as human beings (self included!). We get so over-consumed with the manifestations of sin. We look at people who consume alcohol and we say, "You are a sinner." We at look at those involved in sexual sin, and we point fingers and say, "You are a sinner." We look at people who are not in church regularly and we say, "You are a sinner." We look at those who are hostile, angry, jealous, prideful (won't ask for help - even prayer support), bitter, divisive, envious and we say, "Sin, sin, sin, sin, sin."
I chuckle at all of this because we are all sinners. We all sin. We all sin all the time. We all fall short of God's glorious standard.

Sin is so easy. Last night, we were coloring Easter eggs. Vicki had bought plastic coloring cups because she and Matthew use a cold-water coloring method. I like to go old-school, using food coloring and hot water. Without thinking, I poured the first cup of hot water in a plastic cup. I watched helplessly as the cup melted and the red dye flooded across the counter and onto the floor. What came from my mouth - even in whispers - was not pretty. And, I don't know why I thought my blunder was Vicki's fault, but I lobbed a sarcastic comment in her direction. Vicki is not easily offended, but when she is offended she takes time getting past it. And, so she stewed over my reaction for hours. Both of us sinned. There was no right or wrong in either of our actions or reactions.

And, if it's so very easy to slip into sin over the coloring of eggs, how easy must it be for me to sin each day and every day?

There's no way around it. We all sin. Sin, at its root, is the breaking of God's law to love Him and to love others without condition and prejudice. It's putting love of self above love of God and others. To love God means we put Him first in our lives and we submit to His plans for us - not our own plans. We completely love others above self in all things. All things. Self love (sin) oozes from us in our attitudes, actions, words, and body language.

Sin is looking out for Number One, and putting Number One above all others. We are born into this condition. It's called "Human Nature." Human Nature is simply the natural drive toward living a good Earthly life by Earthly standards. As good as that sounds, it is sinful because it always puts "self" ahead of others. It lives by Earthly rules rather than Godly rules. Human Nature cries out, "I want and I need (fill in the blank)." I catch myself asking college students, "What do you want to do after school?" when the question should be, "What does God want to do through your life after school?" See the difference?

Sin is intoxicating. The more we focus on "self" instead of God and others, the easier sin becomes. And, yes, there are rewards. And, those rewards are intoxicating. The rewards - financial, influential, physical - they feed our love of self. And, soon, we are living life completely for the advancement of self. Deep within us, we temper this love of self with an occasional donation - even a big one - to the church or a charitable cause. We can even serve a charitable cause, but this salve does not really cover our sinful nature. In fact, many give only to love the fact that they give. That is sinful. There's honestly no escaping it.

Matthew and I are cleaning out the old shed and moving stuff into the new shed. I told him that he would learn some things about me in the process, especially as we go through the old trunks that I have from high school and college. These old trunks are full of memorabilia and collectibles from my youth. I haven't peered in them or gone through them in decades. Now, with the shed project, it's time to sort through all the mess and purge some of it. I told Matthew, "Some of what we find may tarnish your image of me." He said, "But, you weren't a bad person." And, I said, "No, but I was living for me and me alone. I was living deep in sin - far from God. I was living for what life could give me. And, I wanted a lot."

Sin pulls us to look in the mirror and see only ourselves (and I extend that to our children, too - all that is mine). The problem is that self can never satisfy. How many times have you ever saved for a purchase, bought the item, and then immediately regretted it? Sure you have. It's because the feeding of self never satisfies. You can't have a house big enough to make you happy. You can't have enough clothes to make you happy. You can't go on enough trips to make you happy. You can't lose enough weight to make you happy. There aren't enough promotions to make you happy. At the gym, I see young women on a quest to be "beautiful." But, they are so thin that they look ancient. They are desperately feeding "self" and dying in the process. Sin is addictive.

The hymn "Love Lifted Me" by James Rowe (words) and Howard Smith (music) includes these words, "I was sinking deep in sin far from the peaceful shore, very deeply stained within, sinking to rise no more."

Selfishness becomes a weight that drags us deeper and deeper into it.

Sin dehydrates us. It robs us of peace. I constantly hear people say things like, "I'm tired all the time" or "I can't sleep" or "I'm so weary" or "I'm so lonely" or "I'm so bored" or "I'm so angry" or "My life sucks" or "I need a friend" or "I just wish I could have one peaceful day." Friends, I have been there - so weary from "self" that self is all I can think about. I just put my head on the pillow and cried out, "Peace." This love of self is a chase that never ends and is never fulfilling. Sin robs us of peace because we’re always chasing something for self. It robs us of hope because we can’t see an end to the rat race and the stress. It robs us of love because we realize the person in the mirror can’t love us back, can’t hug us, can’t hold our hand, can’t console our tears. Sin is lonely. Sin is tired. Sin is depressed. Sin is sleepless. Sin is angry.

But, the hymn reminds us, "But, the Master of the sea heard my despairing cry, from the waters lifted me, now safe am I. Love lifted me! Love lifted me! When nothing else could help, Love lifted me!"

Whose love? God's love. God looks down on our sinfulness and says, "I love you more than you love yourself. And, I want to free you from that self-bondage." And, He sent Jesus as our rescuer, our Savior from sin. And, Jesus calls us back to the purpose of life: Love God, and love others, and help others discover Jesus as Savior. Pour your life into God and into others and watch how peaceful, hopeful and loving your own life becomes. Turn from the mirror of self and sin, and look out the window to see God at work and the struggle of others - without prejudice. What would your day be like if you did nothing for self or with selfish motivation? What would your day look like if you used your workplace, your home, your errands to pour into others in the name of Jesus? I believe you would find a blessing beyond words.

Jesus and Jesus alone is the only way to escape the sinful bondage of Human Nature. Those who acknowledge their sinful nature, turn from it to recognize Jesus as their own only Hope from sin, will be restored with God - through Jesus - for all eternity. Jesus says, in Matthew 11:28, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” Jesus’ sacrifice provides salvation from the bondage of sin, and restores those who believe in Him with Almighty God and God’s plan for us. Paul writes in Romans 12:2, “Restoration will allow us to discern the will of God, what is acceptable to Him and perfect for us.”

Love lifted me! Jesus lifted me! Amen.

The Narrow Gate

In Matthew 7:22, we read the words of Jesus, "Not everyone who calls out to me, 'Lord, Lord!' will enter the Kingdom of heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, 'Lord! Lord! we prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.' But, I will reply, 'I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God's laws.'

Every human being on this planet was and is and will be born without salvation from sin. Please understand that. All of us are born sinful and live our lives in sin. We die as sinners. We are born on a road with hell - a real place and an eternal separation from God - as our deserved destination. God loves us, He is with us, but, outside of faith in Jesus, God has no relationship with us because we are 'born in sin' and he is sinless. (John 14:6 - Jesus says, "No one can come to the Father except through me.) Knowing that we are born with hell as our eternal destination helps us understand what we read in John 3:17, "God sent His son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him."

There is not one thing that you and I can do that will make hell more of a destination. We were born ticketed to that destination. It's ridiculous then to lower ourselves to the judging of others' sinfulness except between believers and in a spirit of protection and love for that person. (If my close friend is beginning to flirt with women outside his marriage, I'm going to confront him for his own good and because I love him). Likewise, there is not one thing that you and I can do to save ourselves from hell as a destination. In the Scripture passage, above, from Matthew 7, Jesus says people will claim they did great things in the name of spirituality, but none of it saved them.

Because God loves us, despite our sinfulness, and desires a relationship with each of us, He provides an escape - salvation - from our road to destruction. He sent his son, Jesus, to die as a substitute for each of us. Jesus bore each of our sins, died on the cross with them, was cleansed of them, and rose again to join God in heaven. Those who believe that Jesus made this sacrifice will be filled with the Holy Spirit for daily guidance, and be restored to a relationship with God. These believers will die and God will not see their sin - God will see Jesus and pardon the individual. That's the gospel presented by the apostle John in John 3:16.

Only Jesus saves. Only Jesus. None but Jesus.

In Luke 18:16, Jesus says, "Then Jesus called for the children and said to his disciples, "Let the children come to me. Don't stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn't receive the Kingdom of God like a child (acceptance, faith, trust, and innocence) will never enter it." It takes a child's faith to respond to Jesus. That's why adults have such a struggle coming to Jesus. Adults try to logically figure it out. But, we aren't God. We must acknowledge that we need Jesus, that we have a void in our innermost being that nothing of this Earth can fill, and that only Jesus can fill that void. We acknowledge Jesus and respond - we let go of what the world calls logical. The world is a deceitful place.

Jesus tells us that most people can't or won't accept Him as their Savior.

Many of the people that I know will not be with me in heaven. That's not an indictment of their lifestyle because all of us are sinful. It's just that I know, from the words of Jesus, that only a few will enter the Kingdom. The indictment is on me to be bold in my faith and point people toward salvation. And, that indictment eats at me day and night, night and day. Who is coming to Jesus because of my life? Because of your life?

It's uncomfortable and messy to believe that many of the people I know will not be in heaven. We like to think of our comfortable little Bible Belt, where people gather in churches, have lunch afterward with mama, sign up children for Vacation Bible School, read devotion books, and revere Billy Graham. We like to think that everyone on our left and right will be with us in heaven, but the opposite is true. The question is not whether people are good or bad because many of the lost are really good people. But, being a good person doesn't lead to eternity with God - only a confessed faith in Jesus does that. If being a good person was all that's important to salvation, we could buy our salvation and that's not Biblical.

My studies and travels lead me to believe that people fall into three very loose categories:

1. The carnal lost. Those that have completely turned from faith, and have rejected it.
2. The Cultural (Carnal or Consumer) Christian. Those who believe they do the right things that "Christians are supposed to do" and by default they are saved. These people - regardless of what they do in the name of church or religiosity - are not saved. 
3. The Conversion Christian. Those who can and do publicly confess, "I love Jesus; my life stands for Jesus, and nothing else in my life matters when compared to Jesus."

The overwhelming majority of people who have lived, live today and will live tomorrow fall into categories One and Two. Jesus says in Matthew 7:13, “You can only enter God’s Kingdom through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad and its gate is wide for the many who choose the easy way. But the gateway to life is small, and the road is narrow, and only a few ever find it.” How much is a few? Well, it's not a majority. A few, in the great scheme of the universe, isn't very many.

What does a Conversion Christian look like? They will have or long to have these attributes.

• There is a confessing love of Jesus, an acknowledgment of personal sinfulness and that only a faith in Jesus covers sin in the presence of Almighty God. There is an understanding that life is worth living only because Jesus lives. (Mark 8:38)
• There is an accepting that following Jesus is costly and painful to this human existence. Every believer that I know has suffered in this Earthly life because of a faith in Jesus. It is ridiculous to believe Jesus died on the cross and that we can follow Him without suffering. A believer will lose friends, lose customers, be at odds with family, be cut from the team, have children cut from the team, be laughed at, ridiculed, and struck down by this world and its forces of evil. (Matthew 5:10-12)
• There is a hunger to produce other disciples. Following Jesus is not a precious gift we lock away in a safe for our own admiration. There is a hunger to have eyes and arms wide open for people who need Jesus, and to point them toward the cross. I believe the Conversion Christian grows to a place, where he or she no longer sees people, but sees souls who need to know Jesus. Following Jesus is about "going and doing" with intention. (Matthew 28:19)
• There is a desire to be "workers" in a fellowship community - the church. There is a seriousness to the place of church in God's plan and in our lives. (Acts 2:41-47)
• There is an understanding that Salvation is not a transaction, but a conversion.It involves change. We are literally new creations manifested by repentance, love and obedience toward God and our neighbors. (James 2:14-26). To believe otherwise is to believe in a cheap grace. Salvation occurs within the heart; not within the trappings of church-based protocol or rituals.

You can see why the number are few, can't you? You can see why many buy into the deceit of the Cultural Christian that salvation can be purchased only by doing good things, connecting to a church, knowing some Scripture, attending prayer breakfasts, giving money and using influence for good, and making baptisms and confirmation classes synonymous with salvation? It's a wide gate. Some will even quote John's vision in Revelation 7 of the "multitude" in heaven, and use that to dismiss the Narrow Gate. Yes, many will be in heaven; but, still that number will only represent a few of all humanity that has ever and will ever live. Don't be deceived by the wide road. We see a lot of people on this wide road, and it feels comfortable. It's even fun. We can join the herd and be content - never even calling on the name of Jesus. But, Jesus provides the painful reminder of The Narrow Gate. Nothing about faith is ever really comfortable.

Many who read this will be confronted with the reality of Jesus' position in their lives. Non-existent, a cultural icon, or a personal Savior. For those who have not confessed Jesus as their Savior from sin, I invite you to contact me at scott@svministry.com. I invite you to attend our Sunday morning class, The V Class, at Lexington Baptist Church. God has put on my heart the need to share the gospel every week, and to stand with other believers in making disciples. We don't have it all figured out; we need others to be on the journey with us. We invite you to join with Jesus, and then join with us.

For those who are Conversion Christians, I need to speak with you here.
We can no longer assume that everyone is saved from sin by the blood of Jesus. We must assume that everyone is lost - continuing from birth on that broad road to an eternity without God. We must ache for people, not judging them, but judging ourselves. If you are a teacher, the classroom and the families behind the students become souls who need to know a Savior. If you are in sales, the customers become souls who need to know a Savior reflected through you. If you are a mechanic, a banker, a doctor, a lawyer, a coach, a dad, a mom, an aunt, an uncle, a grandmother, a grandfather, a brother, or a sister - all who come in and out of your life are souls, needing to hear about Jesus from you. This is not the pastor's job. This is not the Sunday School teacher's job. This is not the church's job.

As a Conversion Christian, this is the holy order you have been given: Make disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them about Jesus. Our holy order is to see people loosened from this world's values and knotted to faith in a risen Savior. As Christian soldiers, the Holy Spirit will teach us when to be bold and when to work in stealth.

We may not trumpet Jesus on every street corner, but we can pray daily this way, "Lord, put one person in my path today - one person - and then the courage to tell them, 'I love Jesus and I want you to know my Jesus.' Give me this divine appointment, Lord, knowing that you will give me the exact words to say."

Maybe you feel this burning inside you to stand up for Jesus, but you just don't feel equipped. No church ever equipped you. That's the future chapter of our Sunday School class. We are going to equip people who want to testify for Jesus, knowing that the Cultural Christians will be converted or slip away. I pledge to you that I will stand with you, and we will learn together. I've not yet fully arrived myself and that is not a false modesty. I am still growing as a follower of Jesus. I will not be fully made until I see my Savior in eternity. My life's calling is to share Jesus with others and to help others share their own faith.

Friends, this is what we call the Weight of God. It's heavy business that is uncomfortable.
You and I live a life that will end with judgement. This world is a temporary place for temporary bodies.
There is an eternal, supernatural world going on all around us and it's in our future. There is no denying it. There is no escaping it. There is no prolonging it. It is here, it is now and it is forever.

You and I were born separated from a God who loves us, and wants a wonderful unimaginable eternity with each of us. He sent his son, Jesus, to die for our sinfulness and restore us to God's love. Few accept this gift. Most don't. Some become deceived that they have when they haven't. None of us have the vision to see a person's deepest relationship with Jesus, but each of us - to the core - knows the truth of our salvation. Only the few will enter the Narrow Gate. Please be in that number. If you are among the few, please join me - though imperfect and sinful - in pointing others to the arms of our sweet, sweet Savior.

Jesus. Name above all Names.

           

             

Be, Know and Do

By John Wright

If you are going to teach, it’s usually good to teach a subject that you know something about. So at the very least, this lesson should discuss something that I should know a little something about. For those of you that don’t know, the Army and God’s will brought my family here to South Carolina. For the past 2 and ½ years, I have had the awesome privilege of teaching leadership classes at USC’s Army ROTC Department.

In the Army, our leadership doctrine identifies 16 leadership competencies. They are all listed on a form that we call a “Blue Card” which is used to evaluate a Cadet on his or her leadership abilities. On the top of the Blue Card are our values, our absolutes if you will, Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage. Then on the bottom are the leadership competencies. They include such things as physical fitness, resiliency, interpersonal tact, communication skills, and leading by example. These competencies are further organized into a model based on all these attributes being things that a leader should Be, Know or Do. I believe that Jesus was the greatest leader that ever lived and fully exemplified the Be, Know, and Do model.

So, let’s begin with “Be”. In my opinion, there is no greater example of being as a leader as God coming to earth as a man in the person of Jesus. In Philippians 2, Paul explains it so beautifully and I like how it is translated in the New Living Bible

3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.6 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross

The great singer and songwriter, Rich Mullins, the man who wrote Christian classics like “Awesome God” and “Step by Step”, never performed or recorded what I think was his most profound song. The song was titled “A Man of No Reputation” and was inspired by this passage. Mullins could never perform it because when he thought about the level of humility that Christ brought on himself out of love for us, he didn’t think he could keep his composure. Fortunately, this song was recorded after Rich’s death and I recommend that you listen to it some time. Just have some Kleenex handy.

Recently, Pastor Mike preached yet another of his great sermons .The subject was Jesus and the woman at the well. One of the things that strike me about this story is just how the humanity of Jesus is displayed. As a quick recap, Jesus chose to travel through Samaria, a region of the area inhabited by a group of people that were despised by the Jews. In fact, any self-respecting Jew at that time would not have been caught dead in Samaria. So here’s Jesus in Samaria, sitting beside a well when a woman walks up. And this is how John recounts the story in Chapter 4:

7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans. (NIV)

Now, let’s think about this. “Will you give me a drink?” Compare this passage with Genesis 1:

6 And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” 7 So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. 8 God called the vault “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day.9 And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good. (NIV)


So, why was the creator of all water, earth, and sky lowering himself to ask this half-breed, tramp, Samaritan woman to give him a drink? And I truly believe that he was thirsty because if you remember that one of the things that he cried down from the cross was; “I thirst.” It’s very simple. Jesus was “being” and a huge part of being is getting your hands dirty, making yourself uncomfortable, not worrying about the opinions of others and building relationships. That’s why Jesus asked this woman for a drink of water because he was getting ready to change her life. So how are we doing with being? If you are we are in a position of leadership, do we merely see those that we supervise as tools to use to check things off our list and further our own selves. Is the homeless person holding a cardboard sign at the interstate on-ramp an indicator of the deplorable situation in this nation that “someone” needs to do “something” about or, instead, is he an opportunity given straight from the hand of God to pour part of ourselves into someone else?

Now let’s discuss knowing. Have you ever been in a bookstore and seen all the books about leadership and management? Many of these books will tell you that an effective leader needs to clearly communicate their vision to their organization. In the 22nd Chapter of his gospel, Matthew says this:

35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’[c] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[d] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (NIV)

Pretty eloquent for a homeless man with no formal education who grew up blue-collar in a hick town, huh?

We must remember that Jesus knew and used the scriptures.
The Ten Commandments on at least 4 separate occasions, Leviticus, Isaiah, Psalms, when face-to-face with Satan himself, those are just a few of the over 40 occasions that Jesus quotes what we would now call the Old Testament in the four gospels.
It doesn’t surprise me that this series “The Bible” on History Channel is doing so well. People are thirsty to know the word and nature of our wonderful Heavenly Father. Check out this amazing illustration. Pick up a bible, put your finger on the account of Adam and Eve’s sin. Now notice how much more there is in the Bible between that account in Genesis and the end of Revelation. In those pages there are many characters and stories, but from that incident in the Garden of Eden the Bible is really all about Jesus. It’s all about God’s desire to love us his children and have a relationship with us. So how are we doing with the attribute of knowing? Do we live 1 Peter 3:15 that says:

15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. (NIV)

OK, now for the final attribute of doing. A trait that most effective leaders have is charisma. How’s this for an amazing illustration of charismatic leadership:

18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 19 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” 20 At once they left their nets and followed him.21 Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. Matthew (NIV)

Wow, now that’s making a first impression! I know that the Bible is perfect and God has ordained what is in the scriptures but wouldn’t you love to know what was going through those four men’s minds right then? What made them decide to drop everything and to follow Jesus? I often tell my students that they will never be good leaders unless they learn to be great followers. Right now, in our men’s Bible Study (MOVERS ) we are studying the book “Multiply” by Francis Chan (I knew that I could find a way to get a shameless plug in here). The cornerstone scripture of this book is this:
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew (NIV)

Of course, we know this passage as the Great Commission, not the Great Recommendation, or the Great List of Really Good Suggestions. And, if that doesn’t make you wiggle in your seat a little, check this out:

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Matthew (NIV)

I’m not making any of this up. I’m just trying to move the plank in my eye enough that I can see my Bible and share some scripture. You see, it doesn’t matter if you are a teacher, manager, coach, mom, or dad, if your identity is based in your relationship with God Almighty through his son, Jesus, you are a leader. Therefore, Jesus is the perfect role model for any leader. Furthermore this is what Bible says about our commissioning as leaders.

(all from the NIV)
Exodus 19:6
6 you[a] will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’

John 1: 12-13
2 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

1 Peter 2:5
5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house[a] to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ

Revelation 1:5-6
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, 6 and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.

We are greatly loved, mighty and powerful indeed. I pray you have a great week and you start to be, know and do like you never have before.

Love, Honor & Cherish

Marriage is important to God. It is serious business.

You and I were created for relationships, and the Bible is all about relationships - our vertical relationship with God, through Jesus, and our relationships with others.
St. Augustine made the statement, “our hearts are restless until we find our rest in God.” We were designed for a relationship with Him.
God created us to have relationship with others – people we could live and learn with. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12:18-21,  “But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired.” In preparation for this lesson, I read this statement, "If God deeply desires to place us in relationship with the body of Christ (the church), doesn’t that mean He also desires to place us with the spouse of His choice?"
Do you see that shift? It's not about who we want to marry - or arrange for our children to marry - but who God desires to place us with.
Marriage then, for me, becomes a supernatural, God-valued, serious part of our lives.

But, why would God create marriage? Why is it important?
Marriage is the most intimate (closest) of human relationships. Of all your Earthly relationships - all of them - the closest, the most intimate, the most endeared is the one with your spouse. No relationship trumps the relationship with your spouse. If others - even children - have come between you and your spouse, your marriage is in trouble.

Why is the marriage relationship the most precious? In Romans 8:29, Paul writes, "For God knew His people in advance, and He chose them to become like His son (Christ-like)." We know from Jeremiah that God knew us before we were born, and God desires us to be conformed to the image of His son, Jesus. Marriage - being bound to someone for a lifetime - forces us to care for someone other than self, to consider someone other than self, to love someone more than self. What better than marriage sharpens us toward putting self aside and being more like Jesus? Remember the traditional vows: Love, Honor & Cherish (putting spouse ahead of self) Until Death Do Us Part?

Marriage is God's way of teaching us to be more Christ-like. Knowing this about marriage helps us understand why we should be praying every day for our spouse. Single folk should be praying for their future spouse. Parents should be praying for the future spouses of their children . . . and grandchildren. Who do you have chosen, Lord, and hear and direct my prayers for them?

The problem in our culture, friends, is that we don't take seriously the things of God. We have reduced church - the bride of Christ - to another organization through which to impress our friends. We claim to pray for others, but never do it. We've trivialized marriage. Many marriages are doomed to fail before they even begin.

In some faiths, marriage (Matrimony) is a Holy sacrament. Even in Baptist services, pastors and officiants will refer to Holy Matrimony. Matrimony is a union; wedlock means joined or locked together. Holy means "set apart." And, so marriage is a bound - locked - relationship that is set apart by God - set apart from all the other relationships in your life. Because it is a relationship set apart by God, God has His hands on it. It's a covenant with God - a solemn and binding relationship meant to last a lifetime. God is so serious about His covenants with us - including marriage - that He sees them as a Walk into Death. God sees these covenants as a walk all the way to death. In the Old Testament, when two people made a covenant with one another, a goat or lamb would be slain and its carcass would be cut in half. With the two halves lying on the ground, the two people forming the covenant would solemnize their promise by walking between the carcass halves. That's how serious God sees marriage.

I don't like television shows like The Bachelor because it takes a God-breathed covenant like marriage and dumbs it down to our culture. Marriage is not a whimsical affair. We focus more on rings, dresses, flowers, parties, showers, bachelor parties, registering and honeymoon trips than we focus on the Holiness of what we are entering - a lifetime commitment with another human toward the goal of sharpening one another into deeper followers of Jesus. I refuse to officiate a wedding that, in planning and delivery, replaces holiness with culturalism. That's not to say that you can't have all the fun - I love a good wedding reception - but the celebration should be the union of two people and their covenant with God. What would a wedding reception look like if families of the bride and groom circled them for prayer before the party began? Many people enter marriage with a focus on the ceremony and parties - not the lifetime commitment that follows when all the guests go home.

The covenant is for a lifetime - until death do us part - because God doesn't go away and neither should we. God expects the covenant to stay around, too. And, marriage doesn't get easier as you grow older nor does a 25- or 50-year Anniversary translate into an immunity from problems. Many empty-nesters find their marriages have "lost purpose" once the children are grown, and spouses begin to look for new territory. As we get older, we begin to think about "bucket lists" that we want to accomplish without our spouses along. Satan hates God, and God is at the center of marriage. No marriage - until death has claimed it - is secure from Satan's attacks.

What about divorce? Clearly, and without question, divorce is not a a part of the marriage equation. That's why so much due diligence is required before marriage. It's why parents must coach children toward dating / engagement that involves prayer, faith conversations, parental counseling and formal counseling. Young people must know that marriage is serious business and divorce is not an option. But . . . certainly divorce is a reality in our broken world. Divorce is inevitable because of our broken world. Even in the Old Testament, Moses permitted divorce provided the two parties wrote a letter requesting it. Even in Moses' day it was relatively easy to get a divorce, but Moses required the letter to ensure the parties had thought it through.

Jesus was asked about divorce in Matthew 19:5-6. He responded this way, "Haven’t you read Scripture? God made them male and female. This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into ONE. Since they are no longer two but one, let no one separate them for God has joined them together.”
Someone asked Jesus, “Well, what about Moses and that letter-writing business?”
Jesus said, “Moses permitted divorce as a concession to your hard-hearted wickedness, but it was not what God originally wanted. And, I tell you this, a man who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery – unless his wife has been unfaithful.” (And, in our culture, that goes both ways)."

In fact, Paul, in 2 Corinthians, implies that if you aren't going to take marriage gravely seriously, it’s better to remain single.

So, what are the purposes of a marriage:

1. Cooperation – Genesis 2:18, “It is not good for man to be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to him.” Comparable to him means similar and equal to him, compatible, to help and support one another in all things. It’s a partnership because two heads are better than one. Cooperation toward what? Making disciples of Jesus . . . not pooling money or working together for a better economic status.
2. Procreation – Procreation is about preserving humankind from extinction. But, understand this, Christianity does not make procreation or children the primary purpose of marriage – the primary purpose is cooperation. That’s why childless couples should not grieve God’s plan for them. Procreation – producing children from a sanctified home - is equivalent to generating missionaries into a hopeless world. God wants these children raised in faith so they can go marry someone who is a believer, and continue making disciples.
3. Sexual Intimacy - It's the sexual intimacy that protects the marriage against adultery and fornication (consensual intercourse between two non-married people). In 1 Corinthians 7:1-16, Paul writes that "the wife’s body does not belong to her and the man’s body does not belong to him. Each should fulfill their marital responsibilities; not depriving one another except by mutual consent." If you start monkeying around with sexual intimacy in your marriage – using it as a weapon, being influenced by sinful self-esteem about how your body looks, allowing yourself to get so busy that you are too tired – I promise that your marriage will begin to unravel. We are sexual beings made aware of it by man’s fall in the garden of Eden. When sexual intimacy disappears from marriage, most people will give in to a lack of self control and find the intimacy in other places - pornography if not adultery. The door becomes wide open for Satan to bombard the marriage. Christian Marriage elevates the bodily union to become a spiritual union, through the Holy Spirit, just as the Holy Spirit works in the Baptismal water to make humans a new creation.  The Holy Spirit also works in the couple during the marital ceremony, through prayers and faith to unite them in the Lord.  Through the commitments made by the bride and groom in fulfilling the commandments of marriage, and the work of the Holy Spirit, the two partners become one.
4. Reigning – Genesis 1:28, “God said them – man and woman, whom He created separately and purposefully – be fruitful and multiply, and fill the Earth and subdue it.” We must be good stewards and good managers of God’s creation, and I like to further than by saying, “We must be reminded to lead our families in making disciples of Jesus so that all who are on the Earth hear the gospel.”

In closing, I want to give you a few practical things to think about and discuss with your spouse concerning your day-to-day relationship.

1. Love your spouse as God loves us. Sacrificially. What can I put aside to make my spouse’s day better? What can I sacrifice? What speaks love into my spouse: Quality time, encouraging words, gifts, a hug or hand-holding, acts of service? My life? My body?
2. Honor your spouse. 1 Peter 3:7, paraphrased, honor your spouse – be considerate and treat them with respect. Not because they earn it but because through your covenant they deserve it. Being considerate means considering your spouse's feelings and responses before you act; respect them by holding them up as revered – not chiseling away at their reputation.
3. Cherish your spouse. Cherish means “To cultivate with care – to make the person feel special – the most special person to you.” Here's how we cherish our spouse:
1. Sacrifice.
2. Listening.
3. Touching.
4. Being With Them In Public.
5. Saying Kind Things About Them In Public.
6. Sharing Responsibilities.
7. Never Allowing Children or Parents or Siblings To Come Between Spouses.
8. Admiration.
9. Respect.
10. Seeing Every Day As Valentine’s Day.
11. Opening Doors Of Possibility – "Where You Go, I Go."
12. Taking Time To Be Alone With One Another.
13. And, Men, Providing Spiritual Leadership. Men: Have you abandoned spiritual leadership in your home?

Marriage is serious business. Marriage is serious to God because it sharpens us as followers of Jesus and it produces disciples. It is a contract with God. And, God takes His contracts seriously.