A Good Reminder

Really great article by Tullian Tchividjian about grace, holiness, and accountability groups.

Reminders are More Effective than Rebukes

Here’s a snippet:

The real reason, however, that I hate the kind of “accountability groups” described above is because the primary (almost exclusive, in my experience) focus is always on our sin, not on our Savior. Because of this, these groups breed self-righteousness, guilt, and the almost irresistible temptation to pretend–to be less than honest. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been in “accountability groups” where there has been little to no attention given to the gospel whatsoever. There’s no reminder of what Christ has done for our sin–”cleansing us from its guilt and power”–and the resources that are already ours by virtue of our union with him.  These groups produce a “do more, try harder” moralism that robs us of the joy and freedom Jesus paid dearly to secure for us. They start with the narcissistic presupposition that Christianity is all about cleaning up and getting better–it’s all about personal improvement.

But it’s not!

 

 

 

 

 

Witnessing to a Christian: Is Your Gospel Good News?

Last night I had a surprising conversation with my best friend.  She is a Christian, as far as I can tell.  And yet she expressed to me that she is uncertain about eternity. She thinks it’s hard to go to Heaven.  She’s never sure if she’s been a good enough person.  The uncontrollable, inevitable passing of time makes her anxious, because this life is ending.

It all made me sad.

And then it made me wonder.  How many Christians know the Bible but don’t know the Gospel?   How many Christians have heard a message that is only fairly Good News?  How many Christians have sung a hymn about a grace they don’t really believe is all that amazing?

And my heart ached. And so I told her…
“The truth is, you’re not  a good person.  And even on your best day, it would not be good enough.  But the blood of Jesus covers all of that.  God is not keeping score anymore.  When you unite with Christ, God sees Christ’s righteousness when He looks at you.  It is so simple that we can’t stand it!  It is free. It is ridiculous. It is sufficient. You can be free from worrying about it.  Yeah, when you sin, it disrupts the harmony you have with God.  But it does not ruin your eternal standing with Him.  If so, the Good News would not be that good…”

Then we went on to talk about Heaven, and I told her…
“I absolutely would prefer Heaven over THIS.  And I think Christians who cling to this life do not yet have a robust enough understanding of Heaven.  I think lots of people think Heaven is this place in the sky where we will all go and sit on clouds and sing church songs to God forever!  If that’s what it is, I don’t think I want to go!  But God is going to re-do it all. New heavens, new earth. I think it will be a huge party with lots of food and music and dancing and rest and people working on things they love. The earth will be beautiful. There won’t be poisonous snake bites or natural disasters or poverty or sickness. And there will be wine.  You know Jesus loves wine!  I think it will be a good time, and I’d rather be there than here!”

She was quiet for a while and then said, “Man, when I have kids, will you explain Heaven to them like this?!”

“Sure.”

Eternity Leaking

What is this fearful obsession I have with not being holy enough?  Maybe spiritual residue from a youth spent in Pentecostal churches. Maybe an abominable self-centeredness that somehow thrusts my personal sanctification to the forefront of my spiritual concerns. It is paranoia parading as devotion.

“…because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” (Hebrews 10:14, NIV)
“For by a single offering He has forever completely cleansed and perfected those who are consecrated and made holy.” (Hebrews 10:14, AMP)

It’s all already done. Forever. Now I can relax, live joyfully, and trust God to continually sanctify me. But the problem is I can’t.

Maybe I am just NOW beginning to grasp  this grace. It is totally outrageous to me that there is nothing left to do. That I don’t have to anticipate punishment (or punish myself).  God has this ongoing project of making everything right. And, for me, that means He is letting the eternal reality of perfection leak into this present moment to make me holy.  Does that mean I am absolved of all responsibility?  I prefer to think of it as free from all spiritual anxiety.

Inside of You

Some things are so obvious that they’re not. I don’t know how I missed this one.

“Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, ‘This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.’” (Exodus 24:8, NIV)

“Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” (Matthew 26: 27-28)

The old covenant and the new covenant. Both confirmed with blood. In the old covenant, Moses sprinkled the blood of animals on the people. In the new covenant, Jesus tells his disciples to drink his blood (John 6:53-56).  And it occurred to me that the very way the blood is applied reveals an important difference between these two covenants. The old covenant was something external to you, something put onto you. The new covenant is something internal, something in your heart. This new thing is inside of you.

So, today I thank God for the new covenant, for the blood of His son, for the life I have in Jesus, for canceling the written code, and for writing His law on my heart.

DVD Player

For the past few years, I’ve been in the practice of reading a chapter of Proverbs each day.  Honestly, it started out as a prideful desire to possess an uncanny amount of wisdom.  I don’t know if it worked or not, but I DO know that you can’t read the Bible for very long and remain a prideful person.

So, today, chapter 15.  What stood out to me were the number of verses that talk about the mouth and the heart in conjunction.  I think the structure of these proverbs reveals something interesting about the connection between mouth and heart.  For example:

“The heart of the righteous studies how to answer, But the mouth of the wicked pours forth evil.” (v. 28, NKJV)

Here, the righteous and the wicked are being contrasted.  In order to contrast two things in a meaningful way, the object of contrast needs to be the same for both things.  In other words, if I’m going to contrast football players and soccer (fútbol ha) players, it would make sense to contrast their stamina. It would not make sense to contrast the number of tackles.  Sooooo…if we are going to talk about the heart of the righteous, it would make sense to also talk about the heart of the wicked. Instead, the proverb talks about the mouth of the wicked.  The heart and the mouth. What’s the connection?

“But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.” (Matthew 15:18-19, NKJV)

The mouth reveals the heart!  The heart is like a DVD player and the mouth is like a television screen, broadcasting all that is going on in inside the heart. Sure, your mouth and your heart are not the same thing.  But what you are and what you say are virtually the same.  They are so connected, that they can effectively be used as like objects when contrasting the righteous and the wicked.

The heart and the mouth. Connected.

Choice Wine First

I am about to “misinterpret” this passage. But I am doing it on purpose (which makes it okay, ha).

Actually, maybe now would be a good time to explain my approach to the Bible. I believe in the rigorous study of the Scriptures. I think Scripture should be contextualized and understood with attention to the culture and customs of that day, the original audience and purpose of the text, and with attention to the original languages whenever possible. Good lexicons, commentaries, and dictionaries are indispensable for a diligent student of the Word. This type of approach is intellectual in focus and profitable in numerous ways.

However…I think there are other ways of interacting with the Word too.  It is alive. So it moves. And it speaks. In this case, the Word functions to create a space for God to speak to our hearts.  And so it was this morning.

John Chapter 2. I love this story for many reasons. Jesus trying to keep low-key. Jesus keeping the party goin!  Jesus “saving face” for people. There is so much to love about this whole thing. But it was the master of the banquet who caught my attention this morning. He pulls the bridegroom aside and says (and I parapahrase), “Hey man, normally people serve up the good stuff first, and then when everyone’s drunk, they bring out the cheap stuff. But you…you saved your best stuff for last.”  Perplexing and impressive.

You will run out of whatever it is that has kept you going. And when you do, Jesus will supply. And what he supplies will be better than everything you had up until then. The world will offer you its choice wine first, but it will not be enough. Jesus will save the best for last.

Pedigree, Destiny, and Humble Service

Here it is…

“Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.  After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.” (John 13:3-5)

Jesus gets down and dirty, washing their dusty feet. A great act of service and humility. He was setting an example.  What keeps us from following that example?  Here’s a better question: What permits Jesus to perform such a menial, humbling task? (Besides the fact that he’s Jesus, for cryin out loud!)  It’s right there in verse 3.  He knew his pedigree. He had come from God. And he knew his destiny. He was returning to God. He has nothing to lose by humbling himself because he has full certainty and confidence in who he is, where he has come from, and where he is going.

Humble service can be a threat to our egos. It can be a threat to our reputations.  It can be a threat to our identities.  ”If I do that task, I will look like a doormat/loser/servant/fool…”  Until we rest assured in our pedigree and destiny, we will not be free to humbly serve others in ways that would otherwise threaten our identities.

Full Nets

“…but even with so many the net was not torn.” (John 21:11)

Peter and his disciple homies had been out fishing and had caught nothing all night.  Then Jesus (not recognized by them though) shows up and tells them to cast their nets on the other side of the boat. They did, and their nets were so full they could barely haul it to shore.  Peter literally had to drag it. 153 fish. With that kind of catch, a net might bust at the seams!  But even with so many, the net was not torn.

Lately, I’ve been reflecting a lot on where I’m at in life right now.  What I’ve gained and what I’ve lost over the last two years.  When I moved here for school, I knew that I was being blessed.  That God was doing a new thing in my life. That I was walking in favor.  But somewhere along the way, that blessing has threatened to tear me.  The challenges that have accompanied the blessing sometimes seem too much to bear. And I wonder if I’m strong enough to carry the weight of the blessing.  This thing that seemed so great becomes this heavy load that I’m dragging behind me, sweating and hoping that I don’t just tear under the emotional and spiritual weight of it all.

But the Lord whispered to me today. That quick, soft whisper that seems to vanish the moment I perceive it.

“Your blessing will not break you.”

Would You Leave Behind Your Blessing?

“When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him” (Luke 5:11, NRSV).

Here’s the thing…

They had, quite possible, just had the biggest catch of their lives!  After a long, frustrating, and fruitless night of fishing, they had come up empty-handed.  Now Jesus shows up, telling them to cast their nets once more.  And what happens?  They fill TWO boats so full of fish that the boats begin to sink.  What a blessing!  What a miracle!

And then…they abandon their boats and the biggest catch of their lives to follow Jesus.  Holy crap. I’m just gonna let that preach to me for a while.  I mean, these fishermen dudes were experiencing overflow! What more could fishermen ask for than two boats full of fish?  This was, after all, their livelihood.  The reality is, God may show up and rock your world (or your boat) and just bless you out of your mind.  And then he might invite you to leave it all behind and follow him. Would you leave behind your blessing?

I’ve been praying a lot about my job situation.  In August, I will finish my Master’s program and venture out into…I don’t know what.  In many ways, my experience of moving to Texas and going through graduate school has been the biggest catch of my life.  And today, while I was sitting in church, it occurred to me that God may be calling me to leave it all behind and follow him for something greater.

Full View

“He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all.  This amazed everyone and they praised God…” (Mark 2:12)

Have you been praying for something?  No, I mean like…
Every day
Down on your knees
Crying
Desperate
Diligent
Fervent
Shameless
Losing hope
Stuck
Needy
With every ounce of faith you can muster…

And nothing.

Have you ever wondered?  Maybe God is waiting for an audience.  The right audience.  Maybe God is waiting to perform your miracle in full view of everyone, so that they will praise Him.  I’m trying to get my mind around this today.  My miracle ain’t just about me!  If I will wait, even in my paralyzed desperation, I may find that others will be amazed by what God does in my life.  Is there anything greater than that?