humility

". . . in humility count others more significant than yourself . . ."
the stranger on the street, the cashier at the grocery store, your neighbor, your co-worker, that annoying guy at school, that smelly guy on the bus, my wife, my child . . . more significant than myself . . .
". . . look not only to your own interests, but also to the interest of others . . ."
I wonder what would change if I asked the cashier about her interests, instead of mindlessly standing their listening to the beeps of the scanner.
I wonder what would change if I showed interests in my neighbors life instead of telling them all about mine.
I wonder what would change if I focused on my wife's interests instead of expecting her to be focused on mine.
I wonder if what would change is that my life would begin to resemble Jesus' life and the people in my life would become drawn to Jesus, "who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross."
Philippians 2:3-8

The trouble with blogging is, it all sounds so nice as words on a screen, but it is only powerful if I actually put it into action . . .

stop following the crowd

Verses for those of us who were raised in Christianity--those of us who, as the verses say, "learned Christ."  Many of us (myself included) seem to go along with the crowd.
Ephesians 4:17-24 (the message)
And so I insist—and God backs me up on this—that there be no going along with the crowd, the empty-headed, mindless crowd. They've refused for so long to deal with God that they've lost touch not only with God but with reality itself. They can't think straight anymore. Feeling no pain, they let themselves go in sexual obsession, addicted to every sort of perversion.

But that's no life for you. You learned Christ! My assumption is that you have paid careful attention to him, been well instructed in the truth precisely as we have it in Jesus. Since, then, we do not have the excuse of ignorance, everything—and I do mean everything—connected with that old way of life has to go. It's rotten through and through. Get rid of it! And then take on an entirely new way of life—a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you.

May our lives be renewed from the inside out, and may we abandon the activities of the empty-headed, mindless crowd. That is no life for us--we have learned Christ!

strength in weakness

"The Lord said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.  For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

God's grace is sufficient . . . His power is made perfect in weakness.

The process of shifting our perspective from power in strength to power in weakness is a life-long process. Perhaps that is why we endure weaknesses, insults, hardships, etc. our whole life long.  It is a process of embracing God's grace.

May I take one step closer to shifting my perspective today.  By God's grace may I catch a glimpse of my weakness and His strength.

The Unseen Power of the Gospel

SEEN VS. UNSEEN
from II Corinthians 4

• Satan has blinded the minds of unbelievers
• God made His light to shine in our hearts
• jars of clay
• with a treasure inside
• hardpressed
• BUT NOT crushed
• perplexed
• BUT NOT in despair
• persecuted
• BUT NOT abandoned
• struck down
• BUT NOT destroyed
• always carry the death of Jesus
• SO THAT the life of Christ may be revealed
• always being given over to death
• SO THAT His life may be revealed
• outwardly wasting away
• inwardly renewed day by day
• light and momentary troubles
• eternal weight of glory
• temporary
• eternal
• seen
• unseen

II Corinthians 4:18, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

weakness

I just finished reading I Corinthians from beginning to end in one sitting.  Paul instructs the church at Corinth in many different topics ranging from the role of women in church to spiritual gifts to the resurrection of Jesus.  But at the beginning and the end of his letter Paul highlights the contrast that defines God's work in this world--In 1:27 he states that God uses the weak to shame the strong, and in 15:43 that what is sown in weakness is raised in power.

God is in the business of using our weaknesses to shame the strong and to demonstrate HIS power.

So as you read through I Corinthians and see the issues present in that church--divisions, sexual immorality, lawsuits, broken marriages, cultural clashes, idolatry, inappropriate use of the Lord's table, misunderstandings about spiritual gifts, disorderly services, etc.--one can't help but wonder if the Corinthian christians felt pretty weak by the end of the letter.  I imagine they read it and thought, "wow, we have a lot of work to do!"

As I look at the status of the American church today, I can't help but think, "wow, we have a lot of work to do!" But recognizing our weakness is a good first step, because God is in the business of using our weaknesses to shame the strong and demonstrate HIS power.

As I look at my life, I know that I have a lot of work to do.  I know that I am weak, but I also know that my weakness can be raised in power.

God's Orchestra

Romans 6:13, "Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness."


Offer the parts of your body to God as instruments for righteousness . . . I really like the imagery expressed by the apostle Paul here.  I like imagining God up in Heaven conducting an enormous orchestra.  The music of millions of horns, woodwinds, drums etc. all blending together to make the most beautiful music you could ever imagine.  I like imagining my hands, feet, mouth, mind, etc being used as instruments in God's orchestra. He takes the parts of my body and fits them into his orchestra as instruments--each one making sweet-sounding music, but each one undistinguishable amongst the magnificent surge of music coming from the great orchestra of God.  His symphony tells the tells the marvelous redemption story.

May my instruments be used by him today.

the road to rome

I just finished Acts and started on Romans--talk about a change in gears, I am dealing with a little whiplash.  But I was struck by how Paul opens up his letter to the Romans by telling them how he has always longed to be with them.  Having just finished the book of Acts, and seeing that he finally makes it to Rome is neat. God gave Paul the desires of his heart, but you have to wonder if Paul saw it that way as he sat in jail and trials for years in the process of getting to Rome.

Back in Acts 21:11-14, Paul is warned that if he continues to Jerusalem he will be arrested.  Paul hears their warning and boldly says, "I am ready to not only be imprisoned but even die . . . let the will of the Lord be done."  The rest of the book is about Paul going from one trial to the next until it ends with him in  Rome.  The last verse of Acts is 28:31, (he lived in Rome) "proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance."  


Paul always wanted to be with the Romans, and God made a way for him to finish out his life in Rome sharing the gospel with all boldness and without hindrance.  The only catch is, he had to go through years of jail and trials before he got there.

I enjoy seeing how God worked everything out in Paul's life.  It gives me some comfort that God is working things out in my life as well.

I am challenged by how Paul served God regardless of the circumstance--being in jail or free, shipwrecked on an island or standing before a judge, in Rome or in Jerusalem.  May I do the same.

that all may become what I am

In Acts 25-27 Paul continues to stand trial, this time before King Agrippa.  Chapter 26 is Paul telling his story of conversion to Christianity at Agrippa's request.  At the end of his story, King Agrippa says to Paul, "'Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?' Paul replied, "'Short time or long--I pray God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.'"  
I love Paul's response.  He is polite, but honest--passionate but not pushy.
If you have something wonderful, naturally you want everyone to have it.
I loose sight of that at times, and I need Paul to remind me.

Paul gets punched in the face

Throughout Acts 21-24 the apostle Paul is either in jail or on trial.  My favorite moment happens as Paul stands before the Jewish religious leaders and the High Priest orders him to be punched in the face.  So how does Paul respond?  Does he check his WWJD bracelet and stand there calmly?  Does he look his striker in the face and humbly say, "I forgive you"? . . . No.  He lifts his head up (in the style of Clint Eastwood) and says, "God is going to strike you, you hypocrite! By hitting me you break the very law that you claim to be enforcing!" (my paraphrase)

So often Christians are expected to be meek and mild pacifists who constantly turn the other cheek and get pushed around and taken advantage of.  But thank God for Paul.  He models for us a different version of Christianity.  A Christianity that stands for something and won't be taken advantage of.  A Christianity that stands up for truth and calls out hypocrisy.  A Christianity that is fearless, brave, and most importantly tough.  

God bless the pacifists, and obviously there are situations in which the Christian thing to do is to turn the other cheek.  However, as Paul demonstrates for us here there are times in which the Christian thing to do is look your attacker in the eye and fearlessly call them out for the corrupt coward that they are.  Sign me up for Paul's version of Christianity.

bored to death

Acts 18-20 continues the account of Paul's missionary activity.  In 20:7-12 we have the story of Paul preaching into the late hours of the night in a third story room when a young man sitting by a window falls asleep, falls out the window, and dies . . . Paul rushes downstairs and restores his life.

I love this story.  Not even the great apostle Paul can keep everyone awake during a sermon.  Stories like this one bring some humanity, humor, and bizarreness to otherwise seemingly hyper-spiritual characters.

While it is unhealthy to compare myself to other people, especially the apostle Paul, at times as I read about his incredible witness for Christ I can't help but think, I wish I could be more like Paul.  And then I read this little nugget and it grounds me.  At times Paul bored his audience to death.  Maybe I should focus on being me and let Paul be Paul.  I certainly don't want to bore people to death (especially since I seriously doubt I could bring them back to life).

May I not take myself too seriously, and embrace the bizarre moments that arise in a life of following Christ.

What must I do to be saved

As I work my way through the book of Acts, I pause today on chapter 16:30-31, ". . . 'What must I do to be saved?' and they said, 'Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved . . .'"


The Bible is full of ancient stories that can be hard to relate, poetry that is hard understand, and teachings that can be confusing and complicated.  But, every now and then the Bible gives us a moment of beautiful simplicity and clarity.  Acts 16:30-31 is one such moment.  My natural inclination is to take this straightforward answer "Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved" and place it in the larger context of what it means to be a Christian and how you experience salvation.  There are a tremendous amount of healthy debates swirling around the blogosphere regarding salvation.  We will forever try to wrap our human minds around the ways of our holy God, and I'm not implying that we should stop.  I think we must continue to send our roots down deeper and deeper into our faith through careful Bible study and debate.  However, let us always return to this beautiful moment in Acts 16, when a desperate man approaches a Christian and says, "What must I do to be saved?" and the Christian's answer rings with clarity and simple truth.

May I never lose sight of the extraordinary accessibility that God has offered to humanity through faith in Jesus.

Acts 11-14--Stories of Courage

I don't feel like the reputation of Christians today is one of courage and bravery.  But it ought to be.  The first Christians embraced a life of risk and faith, and the book of Acts is full of their inspiring stories.  These first Christians (Stephen, Peter, Paul, Barnabas, and countless others) were so moved by the message and mission of Jesus that they stopped at nothing to spread that message and share in that mission.
One of the clearest illustrations of this courage is in Acts 14.  Paul is sharing the gospel with the people of Lystra when the crowd turns on him, and he is dragged out of the city and stoned--seemingly to death.  But Paul recovers only to return to Lystra to strengthen the faith of the believers there.  To re-enter Lystra is a suicide mission, but Paul lives his life of the edge.  He stares danger in the face and lives to tell the story.
May I live as Paul did--so focused on the message and mission of Jesus that one day my life will tell a great story of courage as well.

Acts 8-10

Acts 8-10 continues to cover the spread of the gospel and includes Saul's conversion as well as Peter's encounter with Cornelius.  In chapter 10 Peter shares the good news of Jesus with Cornelius.  Peter summarizes his message in 10:42-43, "he (Jesus) is the one appointed by God to be the judge of the living and the dead.  To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name."  Peter presents Jesus as the judge, the fulfillment of prophecies, and the forgiver of sins.

I rarely summarize Jesus in that way--judge, fulfiller, and forgiver.  When sharing the gospel I often testify to his fulfillment of prophecy and his forgiveness of sins, but his judging of the living and the dead I usually leave for a later discussion.  But I think the beauty of Peter's synopsis is it casts Jesus in the light of the entirety of scripture.  The beginning of the Bible is full of the prophets bearing witness--then He comes and forgives sin on the cross--and then at the end of the Bible He judges the living and the dead. For much of the Bible Jesus' coming is promised.  He came and forgave.  He is coming back, and when he does he will judge the living and the dead.

May I follow in Peter's example and present a fuller picture of who Jesus is.

Acts 5-7

Acts 5-7 covers stories of the rapid growth of the early church as well as the persecution that accompanied  it.  The apostles seem incredibly active and the text says that multitudes were believing in the gospel.  At one point the apostles are again brought before the Jewish religious leaders and reprimanded for not stopping their spread of the gospel.  The Jewish religious leaders aren't sure what to do with the apostles, but their most respected rabbi makes a profound statement in 5:38-39.  He says that if this new movement is of man it will eventually fail like all the others before it.  But if it is of God, we will never be able to stop it.  So let's let these prisoners go and see what happens.

So a highly educated, respected, non-believer logically articulates one of the strongest rationales for faith in Christ.  The gospel / Christianity did not eventually fail or putter out.  In fact it reshaped the entire world and is still going strong today.

May that realty motivate my faith today.

Acts 1-4

Acts 1-4 covers Jesus's final words to his followers, his ascension, the Holy Spirit coming at Pentecost, the birth of the church, and the bold witness of Peter and James.

What stood out to me the most from these chapters was chapter 4, verses 7-12.  Peter and John have just been arrested by the religious "police".  The religious leaders are quickly losing control of Jerusalem.  The city is packed with people from all around who have come for Pentecost.  Thousands of people are converting to the teachings of Jesus (soon to be labeled Christianity).  The religious rulers ask Peter and John how they had healed a crippled man the preceding day.  Peter answered (my paraphrase), "Know this: He was healed by Jesus' name.  The same Jesus that you crucified and God resurrected . . . salvation is found in no one else."  The religious rulers are astonished at these "un-schooled, ordinary men" and the only sense they can make of the situation is that these men had been with Jesus.

Peter's words to the religious leaders seem to almost jump off the page at me.  He speaks plainly and boldly at great risk to his life, and when he finishes his audiences first thought is--this guy must have been with Jesus because there is no way an un-educated, ordinary guy could speak that way.

I want the boldness and power that Peter exemplified.  I wouldn't mind if my audience thought of me as un-educated and ordinary, if their next thought was, this guy must be one of Jesus' followers.   Acts 4:29 records part of a prayer that the church was praying after Peter and John were released, "enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness."  That is my prayer today.